Forgive the deus ex machina but…I need at least part of a goddamn fix-it okay? Leave me aloooone.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars or its characters. I just like to mend my wounds with fic.

…

Cassian raced through the halls of the Citadel. At least, he liked to think he was racing. It probably looked more like limping or stumbling.

The Stormtroopers had poured outside, so there was little resistance between him and…whatever he was looking for. His uniform gave him some cover. It was too chaotic for them to be searching for two intruders in Imperial uniform.

Transport. They needed transport.

He knew that Jyn could finish the job. That was fact now.

Jyn was capable, driven. On top of a thousand other things that made him so glad to have known her.

Force, his injuries were getting to him.

The layouts of the Citadel they had stolen a while back said that there were several hangars. Most of them were for TIE fighters, but he needed a shuttle. Preferably one with a hyperdrive or they weren't going to get very far.

And there it was, in a small hangar. Hope. Hope in the form of a parked starship.

It was small, big enough for the two of them.

They couldn't afford to wait for anyone else. His heart ached for Baze and Chirrut and Bodhi. Maybe they could find a way off Scarif.

The mission came first, their lives second. Every single one of them knew that this was the price before embarking on the mission. Death was the most likely outcome.

Cassian knew how to make hard choices. He knew how to make sacrifices. He sacrificed his soul to the cause, his life if it came to it.

But if luck, fate, the Force, could get him and Jyn out of this after the mission was over, it would be worth it.

The ship's engine roared to life and lifted off the ground.

Cassian tried not to think about how if Jyn were anyone else, he would have left them behind. Hell, he'd probably kill them just so the secrets stayed hidden. If she was captured and interrogated by the Empire, it could bring down the Rebellion.

But, if he got her out of there, there was no need to worry.

He picked that as his justification for going back for her.

He blasted out of the hangar doors and looped around the base, keeping an eye on the figure atop the tower.

The dogfight was quickly being lost to the Rebellion and he had to hope a stray shot didn't blow him out of the sky.

The ship idled near the small bridge extending out from the main dish and he lowered the ramp.

Cassian flung himself out of the pilot's seat, wincing. He needed medical attention, but there was no time for that.

"Jyn!" he yelled as soon as he saw her.

Jyn lowered her raised blaster and her face broke into a smile.

"Did you do it?" Cassian asked, almost rhetorically.

The smile morphed into something that looked almost angry.

"Of course I did!" Jyn screeched, sounding half-manic.

Relief almost crushed Cassian right then and there. They did it. No matter what happened then, they did it. The mission was a success.

"Get on!" Cassian yelled, turning back to the front of the ship. He kept glancing back, making sure Jyn was following him.

They were so close. All he wanted was this one thing to go right. Everywhere he went, things never went according to plan. He had to settle with so many half-victories. All of these pieces of his soul ripped out of him with every kill. Those he personally committed, those that were collateral.

The ends always justified the means. He told himself that. It usually helped him sleep at night.

Just this one thing. Let this one thing work.

He watched as Jyn limped, looking just as bad as he probably did, to the edge of the railing. And with a jump, she was on board.

Relief came again. Okay, now they just needed to get out of the system and go into hyperspace. Easy.

And then there was movement, a familiar flash of white and the sound of a blaster firing.

He watched as the bolt connected with her shoulder. She went down with a shout, almost slipping out the back of the ship.

"No!" Cassian yelled.

Jyn's fingers curled into the ship's floor, keeping her from slipping out. She was groaning, and that meant she was still alive.

Cassian closed the ramp as he pulled away, resisting the urge to make another run around the tower and blow the Imperial bastard to bits.

Dammit, Cassian wasn't fast enough. If he had been faster, Jyn wouldn't have been shot.

But they needed to get off of the surface of Scarif, avoid everyone they see, and make the jump to hyperspace.

And then they needed to get to a neutral or friendly world, patch their wounds, and rendezvous with the Rebellion.

It was all easier said than done.

But in the end, they did all they could. They completed the mission. Now they had to make sure they lived to see another day. Live to fight another day.

Cassian didn't need to leave the planet's atmosphere to know that it was chaos. The Rebellion and Empire clashed, the planetary shield generator in ruins.

He just needed to dodge everything, hope that the Rebellion didn't mistake them for the enemy, hope the Empire didn't catch on that the occupants of this ship were not Imperial agents.

"Rebellions are built on hope," he muttered.

Jyn was shuffling behind him, maybe getting to her feet, but he didn't dare look away from the controls.

He was a good pilot. And he needed to make sure that they got out of there.

He didn't look back as a green beam descended from the sky and impacted with the surface of the planet.

The Death Star. Of course, the Empire would try to stop them by utterly destroying everything. At least that meant that the Imperial who shot Jyn would likely die in the blast.

That would help him sleep at night.

The chaos of the battle was worse up close.

There were ships, pieces of ships, friend and enemy. And he had to consider that they were all enemies. On an Imperial ship, he was enemy to the Rebellion. And he didn't know if the Empire knew that this ship was commandeered by the Rebellion.

Cassian pulled left, barely missing the blast from an X-wing.

"Force," Jyn hissed behind him. It was probably out of pain but also out of the fact that they were almost blown to bits.

"Come on. Come on," Cassian breathed.

He wanted to help. He wanted to turn back and help the Alliance with the battle. But he had to make a choice. The mission was over and they had to get out of the system.

People were dying. People died in this battle. People he knew and didn't know.

His hands were firm, his jaw tense.

And he made the choice.

Finally, finally, they were in clear space, but time was running out before someone got a lucky shot.

Cassian had to make a choice and quick, because of all he knew, Jyn was dying a few feet away from him.

This was an Imperial ship. They couldn't go back to Yavin. The Empire would be able to track them. And the Rebellion would likely shoot them on sight anyway before they could send a transmission explaining themselves.

His hands fumbled at the controls, finding a set of coordinates.

And they jumped into hyperspace.

…

Remember that TIE fighter in the fucking trailers? This is a play off of that. Chapter 2 should be coming soon, but it will come sooner if there are lots of reviews ;)

All feedback is appreciated!

Cheers!

~Tiara of Sapphires