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chapter fifty-one: for good luck
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    THE VERY FIRST SECOND that Rose Tico steps foot on solid ground, she is engulfed by a fierce embrace that nearly knocks her off her feet. Before the technician can gather her bearings, a second body is dragged into the hug, followed by a third, and she finds herself sandwiched so tightly in the middle of a group hug that she can barely breathe.

     "I missed you all so much!" Indira Beren cries, her voice muffled as she does her best to wrap her arms around Rose, Stefan, and Finn at the same time. "I was so worried!"

She pulls back to look at their faces. "Are you guys okay?" Indira asks, concerned. "Is anyone hurt? Gods, I'm so happy to see you."

Rose shakes her head quickly. "We're fine," she promises. "What about you?"

      Indira's smile fades. "We're managing as best we can, but we took some heavy losses."

     "I can see that," Rose replies, frowning.

     "Listen up, everyone!" General Organa interrupts, calling for order amongst her scarce troops. "We need to set up a control center — scanners, shields, transmitters; the works. You all know the drill. Let's get moving."

     With so few crew members remaining, Rose is dismayed to find that she and Indira are two of the only technicians left. The general gives Rose the job of scrounging for useful materials hidden within the confines of their base while Indira works with Lieutenant Connix and Commander D'Acy to get their shields and comms up and running.

     Unfortunately, Rose's search of the base is inconclusive. Her findings amount to next-to-nothing and the results leave her feeling more downtrodden than before. As the technician returns to the control room, she can hear Poe Dameron's voice barking out orders.

     "Alright, shields are up," the pilot announces. "They can't hit us from orbit now." He nods at Lieutenant Connix. "Use all our power to broadcast a distress signal to the Outer Rim."

     "Use my personal code," General Organa interjects. "If there are any allies to the Resistance ... it's now or never."

     Poe nods gravely before his eyes flit over in Rose's direction. "Rose!" He points at her. "What do you got?"

     She shakes her head. "Rotting munitions, rusted artillery, and some half-gutted skim speeders."

     "Well," Poe sighs, setting his hands on his hips while starting to pace. "Let's just pray that big-ass door holds long enough for us to get help."

     As if on cue, a violent tremor wracks the structure of the base, causing dust to fall from the ceiling. Rose looks around in alarm before meeting Indira's worried gaze. "What the hell was that?"

      One by one, the rebels scurry out of the command room towards the blast door. Finn makes it there first and steps up to look into one of the viewing apparatuses monitoring the outside of the base. Whatever he sees on the other side of the scanner, it clearly isn't good news. His face is somber when he steps back, looking towards the others with a grim expression.

     "It's a battering ram cannon," he reports.

     Poe's brow furrows. "A what-now?"

     "Miniaturized Death Star tech," Finn explains, looking to Stefan — the only other person familiar with First Order weaponry. "It'll crack that door open like an egg."

     Rose shakes her head. "There has to be a back way out of here, right?"

     Nervous muttering erupts around the room as the troopers whisper amongst themselves. The tense atmosphere is briefly interrupted when BB-8, EV-1, and C-3PO come scuttling into the cavern. The smaller droids converse with each other in binary as 3PO herds them towards the circle of Resistance troopers.

     "Buddy, what have you got?" Poe asks his droid hopefully.

     "Beebee-Ate has analyzed the mine's schematics," C-3PO announces. "The blast door is the only way in or out."

     Another boom from outside collides with the door, emphasizing the droid's disheartening news, and the impact makes everyone flinch. As Rose looks around, she sees nothing but defeated faces. The soldiers look down at their feet, scuffing their boots against the salt-covered ground or crossing their arms over their chests.

     "Come on," Finn interrupts, drawing everyone's to him. His eyes are filled with fiery determination. "We have allies. People believe in Leia. They'll get our message and they'll come. But, we have to buy some more time."

      Around the room, people turn their heads up to look at Finn. Rose can see the hope returning to their eyes as they listen to him speak. His magnetism and charisma draws them in and, in spite of it all, Rose finds herself smiling as she watches him. This is Finn the Resistance hero; this is the Finn she always knew he was capable of being.

     "We have to take out that cannon," the former stormtrooper finishes, looking to Poe for approval.

     The pilot nods in agreement. "Alright," he says. "Let's do this."

    THE SKIM SPEEDERS had needed a lot of work. Indira and Rose were the ones who led the charge on the repairs, recruiting anyone with even the slightest bit of technical training to help them assemble the best of the dilapidated ships into working order. By the end of it, they manage to get fifteen ships into functioning condition. Given the state of the rusted pieces of machinery, it isn't much, but it's the only thing they've got to work with inside the abandoned mine.

"They're not great," Indira warns Poe as she gives him a status update on the speeders, wiping her grease covered hands on an already filthy rag. "And I have a lot of reservations about them. They definitely aren't meant for heavy duty combat and they are extremely delicate —"

"I know, I know," Poe interrupts, nodding emphatically. "It's like someone knocked over a museum in here that nobody wanted to visit in the first place. But fifteen birds is a lot more than I thought we could get flying. You two did great!"

"You should at least tell your pilots they've got to pick their targets," Rose informs him. "Those fire linkages are brittle. They'll overload them if they shoot at everything that moves."

Poe's brow furrows thoughtfully. "Good idea," he says. "But why don't you tell them yourself? Since you're going with us."

Rose blanches. "Me?" She demands with disbelief. "I'm a maintenance tech — not a pilot. Remember?"

Poe shakes his head stubbornly, fighting the urge to grin. Indira almost smiles herself as she remembers her own response when Poe first tried to convince her to fly with him. I fix ships — I don't fly them, she had said, but he had refused to take no for an answer. Anyone can learn how to fly, he'd once told her and — in a way — he'd sort of been right.

"Anyone can be a pilot," Poe asserts stubbornly. "And besides — when's the last time you tightened a pipe?"

"About a minute ago," Rose replies, raising an eyebrow at him.

     Indira laughs before Poe shoots her an exasperated look. "Okay, fine," he admits to Rose. "But that's not the point. Stefan told me you helped him fly the shuttle on your mission, which means you can do this, too."

     Rose shakes her head. "I nearly crashed that ship."

     Poe holds up a finger. "A wise man once told me that any landing you can walk away from is a good one." He nudges her arm gently. "And if you don't go, who's gonna look after Finn?"

     Rose's eyes widen as she looks at Finn, who is fumbling with a pilot's headset next to Stefan a few feet away. "You're going?" She asks, raising her eyebrows with surprise.

     He shrugs. "Aside from Stefan, I'm the guy who's most familiar with what they're going to throw at us."

     "This isn't like flying a shuttle," Rose points out. "Which you were kind of bad at."

     Stefan claps a hand on Finn's shoulder. "He'll be fine," he interjects. "And so will you, Rose. Come with us."

     Poe nods in affirmation. "We need you, Tico."

     Rose bites her lip before looking to Indira. "Do you think it's a good idea?"

     Indira crosses her arms over her chest. "No," she says truthfully. "I think this whole entire thing is a terrible idea. I haven't heard a plan this bad since we came up with the one to destroy Starkiller base."

     "Hey," Poe says indignantly. "I helped come up with that plan!"

     She smiles wanly at him. "I know."

     "Hurtful," the pilot mutters.

     "But," Indira continues. "This is our last stand, Rose. We need every fighter we can get, which is why even I'm going with them and I hate flying." She sets a hand on Rose's shoulder. "I think you should join us, too."

     Before Rose can reply, Leia comes hobbling into the hangar with her cane. C-3PO follows close behind her, making sure to stand near enough that the older woman could lean against him if necessary. "I've been summoned," the general announces, giving Poe a knowing look as she comes to a stop at the center of the room. "Red Squadron once used these same speeders to fight off Imperial scouts and I flew one on that mission. According to Poe, that makes me an expert."

     A small chuckle goes around the room then, bringing smiles to nearly every single face for just a brief moment.

      "The ski is there for stability," Leia explains, gesturing towards one of the skim speeders. "It's to make sure your engine provides thrust and not lift. Help it do its job. If you go airborne, you're an easy target." She pauses to let that sink in. "The First Order has landed heavy walkers outside. They're using TIEs for air support. The walkers are muscle, designed to take out artillery and ground defenses. You can't outslug them, so don't try. But, you can outfly them. The TIEs will be a bigger threat. That's another reason to stay close to the deck."

     Indira nods as she takes in her aunt's advice. Even so, she can't help but cast a doubtful glance in the direction of the speeders. Their mission was starting to feel like an impossible task.

     "Our objective is that cannon," Leia continues. "It's the only thing that can crack our front door, so let's try to not let it get in range. It's being towed by tug walkers. If we take the tugs out, the cannon stops. If we break the cable they're using to pull it, the cannon stops."

     When put like that, things seem much simpler. In spite of her nerves, Indira feels an odd sense of calm settling over her. Break the cable or take the tugs out and the cannon will stop. With fifteen ships and fifteen pilots between them, how difficult could that be?

     "We've transmitted our message," her aunt finishes. "I don't know who will respond, or when. But I do know that we're not alone in this fight. Every moment of time we can steal from the First Order increases our chances. Any questions?"

     All the pilots shake their heads and Leia steps back, nodding at Poe for him to step forward. The pilot takes a deep breath before addressing the group. "Well, I asked for a dozen T-85 X-wings with cloaking devices, but I guess they got held up in transit," he jokes.

     When no one laughs, Poe winces. Snap and Jess definitely would have laughed, even though the joke was terrible — or at the very least, they would have booed him. Hell, even Karé would have probably spared him a rare smile. But these are different pilots. They aren't his closest friends and they certainly aren't Black Squadron. Many of them are likely scared out of their wits, knowing the reality of what they're up against. Poe has to remember that.

     He takes a deep breath. "Alright, I know we're all nervous, but remember what we just heard," he coaches them. "Red Squadron flew our birds! When I was a kid, I grew up hearing stories about those men and women. I dreamed that someday, maybe I could fly like them, too. Nobody thought those pilots had a chance either. But you know what they did? They took out a Death Star."

     Indira smiles at that and so do a few of the others, including Leia. "Good luck," the general tells them. Her eyes linger on Indira. "And may the Force be with you."

     That was all the send off that they needed. The pilots disperse themselves to the rusty, worn down speeders and begin pulling on gloves, helmets, and headsets. Indira is in the process of adjusting her headset's mouthpiece when someone steps into her line of view. She looks up and she sees Poe standing right in front of her, his expression nervous but determined.

     "Need a hand?" He asks quietly.

     She meets his gaze and finds something earnest in his stare that makes her nod. Poe swallows thickly before he reaches up and tightens the headband around her ears, straightening the antenna where the small mic is attached. He doesn't touch her, but his hands are so close to her face that if she moved even a fraction of an inch, their skin would brush.

     He steps back before she can give in to that particular urge. "There," Poe says, satisfied with his work. "Perfect."

       Indira's lips twitch into a smile. "You think I'm ready for this?"

      He grins back. "Of course you are," he replies. "I taught you to fly myself. Nobody could have prepared you more."

     She rolls her eyes in response. "I'll hold you to that."

     His smile widens. "I'm looking forward to it."

     In spite of their light-hearted banter, Indira feels her smile waver slightly. "Do you believe that we really have a chance?"

     Poe's grin fades. "I don't know," he admits, "but I sure as hell hope we do." He swallows hard. "Listen, I know things went to shit back on the Raddus, but I would never be able to forgive myself if didn't try to make it right before we do this. I was wrong — about a lot of things — and I'm sorry. I don't know if things will ever be the same, or if I fucked everything up too much, but I had to tell you. I needed you to know."

      Indira exhales heavily and she shakes her head. "Look, we both messed up," she says. "I said some things I didn't mean in the heat of the moment because I don't exactly handle pressure with grace." She looks him in the eye. "We've got a lot to talk about, but it was just as much your fault as it was mine."

      His lips twitch into a half-smile. "Does this mean that you won't hate me forever?"

     "I never hated you to begin with," she replies and his face softens with relief.

     "Well, that's good to hear," he says.

     Someone slaps on the hood of Indira's speeder, startling them both out of their secluded little bubble. "Hey lovebirds, let's go!" Finn orders. "We've got work to do."

      "Yeah, yeah," Poe waves him off. "Give me a minute." He looks back at Indira with a hopeful expression. "Would it he pushing it to ask for a kiss for good luck?"

     She raises a brow at him.

      "Yeah, that's what I thought," he agrees hastily. "I'll just leave —"

      Indira reaches out and grabs him by the collar of his jacket, pulling him close. Before he can say anything else, she presses her lips to his cheek and lingers for a moment. Poe inhales deeply, burying his face into her hair to take in her familiar scent for what could very well be the last time. They stay like that for a few moments, frozen in time and space, before Indira pulls away and takes a step back.

      "If we both make it out of this alive," she says with a slight smirk, "ask me again."

     His eyes bulge before he clears his throat. "Sounds fair," Poe replies once his voice works again. "I'll see you on the other side."

Indira nods before turning to hoist herself into the cockpit of her speeder. Poe climbs into the ship on her left, while Rose, Finn, and Stefan load themselves into the ships on Indira's right. Her engine is already fired up when she gets behind the ship's yoke and the vessel hums with a nervous sort of energy that feels as if it matches her own.

"All good, Finn?" Stefan asks from a few ships down the row.

Finn gives him a thumbs up in response.

"Your comm link works, you know," Rose points out.

Finn raises an eyebrow and offers Rose another thumbs up. They all laugh in response and the sound travels across their radio frequency, carrying it into each of their cockpits.

"Alright, this is it," Poe announces, pulling their focus back to the task at hand. "Launching now. Follow my lead!"

Indira watches as his speeder slides across the hangar floor, disappearing from view as it skids down the low chute at the end of the ramp into the blinding light of day. For a moment, it's silent before the sound of Poe's loud whooping fills their headsets. His palpable delight at being behind the controls of a ship again — even if it might be his very last time — is infectious. Nearly every single person in the hangar has a smile on their face.

As Indira listens to him laugh, her heart feels light. Regardless of whatever is waiting for her on the other side of the tunnel, she is able to find peace within herself. It's a feeling that she has slowly learned to recognize as the Force. Her hand reaches up to touch her mother's necklace, feeling it warm with a sudden surge of heat as she prepares for takeoff.

Breathe, a soothing voice in her head tells her. Just breathe.

And she does.

      Indira inhales and exhales, closing her eyes tight, before she opens them and urges her speeder forward. As the ship picks up speed, she lets out a whoop of her own, watching from the window of her cockpit as she breaks free from the darkness of the tunnel and soars into the blinding sunlight.

a/n: hope u guys don't mind more frequent updates bc we are aLMOST AT THE END!!!!

EDITED ON:
11.13.19