Disclaimer: I have minimal knowledge of Star Wars, so if you find yourself easily offended at any incongruity then kindly leave or use your words wisely if you want a response or change. I have done enough research to feel confident in my story, but keep in mind this is a work of fiction, more importantly fan-fiction. The Star Wars universe is a malleable thing on websites such as this.
Mainly, I wanted a story with Finn as the main character because I find him fascinating. Reviews and opinions are amazing, I do not have a beta, but I own up to my mistakes and will correct them as needed.
Chapter 1: I am Finn
Objectively speaking, Finn could believe the reasons why the First Order has labeled him most wanted enemy (dead or alive) number four. He absconded with the enemy, gave vital information that the Resistance used without preamble, and (more importantly) he's a blow to their galaxy-sized pride. The first storm trooper to stand up and say: No, and actually live. Personally, he couldn't believe that his former colleagues would even think much about him other than an expandable loss. Really, he didn't do much for the First Order when he was storm trooper, then again, not doing and observing were two separate things as General Organa pointed out during numerous meetings. Still, waste management was hardly what came to anyone's mind when they think: storm trooper.
Keeping a cool head, Finn opened his eyes to see an unsurprising sight. He was strapped down to the same torture device he had saved Poe from over a year ago. There was no use testing the bindings for give so Finn moved on, taking stock of the otherwise dark and barren room. Storm troopers were stationed at the open door, their backs to him, neither of which were holding a blaster, their posture that of boredom by the slight curve in their shoulders. He wasn't sure if he should be irked at their lackadaisical attitude or...no, yup, he was definitely irked. Just because he was bound, bloodied and weaponless, didn't mean he would be down for long...well, he hoped anyway.
Watching them shift their weight from foot to foot every few minutes would've driven a normal person insane from boredom but not Finn. That little movement was a big enough tell for him to gauge his enemy. If there was one thing Finn was knowledgeable about, it was reading someone by the way they held themselves. And those two were equal parts bored and irritated at guard duty, because who wouldn't be? Finn was as good as useless in their eyes.
Overconfidence.
The First Order had plenty of that and Finn was used to being underestimated. He just needed to wait and plan, play his cards right as Poe would say. Still,to pass the time, he tested the restraints.
A fist slammed onto the desk, causing several papers and pens to shift and roll off.
"What do you mean 'you lost contact'?" Poe gritted his teeth, "It was just a stupid recon mission off the Gamma Delta quadrant!" Running a hand through his hair, he emphasized: "The gamma delta quadrant, General!"
Looking stern, General Leia gathered everything back into neat piles before responding, "We had intel that there was a possible base set on Wendaar's moon. Since Finn is good at reading First Order movements and breaking into their systems, we figured it would be best to send him-"
"Without back up! Force, I could've gone with him!"
"It's hard enough to get in one operative on that moon Commander, and if there was a base, it would be difficult to keep more than one small vessel off their radars. The gravity is ten times than what it is here, this was a low-risk assignment. To our knowledge, the First Order didn't have the sufficient technology to combat the gravity and dense atmospheric issue." Leia then turned on the nearest hologram and pointed towards a blinking dot, "Our information was wrong, they were waiting for Finn before he entered the moon's gravitational pull."
Cursing, Poe's heart clenched as numerous possibilities swarmed his mind, "Why him?"
"I don't know, Commander, but something reeks of this mission being leaked."
"We have a mole?"
"Possibly. Another possibility is that the First Order got lucky and discovered him."
"How likely is that?"
Ignoring that question, she continued on, "There have been recent reports stating that the First Order is targeting specific people." General Organa handed him a holo disc, "They don't have the force within them, but they were abducted from their homes by trained bounty hunters hired by those bastards. Some are saying that Finn was the last person they needed to round up." Watching Poe with a calculating gaze she echoed a conversation one of her officers had with her earlier, "Some say Finn went willingly."
Poe clenched his fist, his back rigid and his eyes flashing with fiery determination, "Finn isn't one of them. Not even when he was a storm trooper was he their lap dog! He would fight tooth and nail for the Resistance General!" Poe wasn't sure when he stood from his seat or that he was pacing until he turned to face her. Speaking with a calmness that he didn't feel, Poe looked down at the disk, "We will find him and bring him home."
"Then what are you waiting for Dameron?" Leia stood up and gestured behind him. Poe turned around and smirked, several high ranking officers were before him, looking just as determined as he was in getting back their fellow comrade. "Go through the files and prove Finn's innocence and help track down his possible whereabouts. You're all dismissed."
"Who are you?" Came Kylo Ren's deep voice.
The beaten, bloody man with one eye swollen shut glared as best he could at the dark figure, "I'm Finn of the Resistance."
"Wrong" Finn didn't flinch, too used to the pain, as Kylo cut off his airways using the force, "You are no one." He hissed, "And you will tell us everything."
"Wrong" Finn sneered back in a choked whisper, "You are no one, Ben, and I will tell you nothing." He gasped as the force choke hold was lifted. His head lolled to the side of the chair, unable to hold it up between the pain and whatever the hell they were injecting in him. Despite the fuzziness, Finn smirked at the irritated man, he had tried to break into his mind but out of sheer stubbornness and Rey's teachings, Kylo Ren was only able to scratch the surface and gleaned nothing important from the former storm trooper's mind.
Kylo Ren's frustration was palatable, causing the air to charge with a suffocating energy remnant of a planet with continuous lightning storms he had trained on as a child of the First Order. If he was lucky, Kylo would strike him down and end all of this, but Finn's gut clenched knowing that his death was never on today's agenda. Something a bit more sinister was in store for him.
Wearily he watched as Kylo's mood shifted to his smug arrogance and Finn's fuzzy head was trying to keep up with the bastard as he talked.
"My master is coming to this ship in a few days, he will break you." Kylo sneered, "You were trained adequately against me but against him, you will stand no chance scum." Turning sharply, Kylo Ren left the room, leaving Finn to stew over his situation.
Finn's stomach twisted as the face of the Sith Lord came to mind, how was he important enough to have a scary villain as Kylo's master paying him attention? What was their end game? Yeah Resistance secrets, but Finn had faith that Leia was taking the necessary precautions in the wake of his abduction. The most they can ferret out from him would be dated information and by the time they get to the main base, it would be long deserted.
Still, Finn was terrified of the Sith Lord. Rumors were abound in the barracks growing up and the nightmarish stories were often understatements of that man's power and utter lack of compassion. He knew that his fate, whatever that may be, would be sealed come the arrival of that evil man, and Finn feared that his fate was not that of death. After all, re-conditioning was still practiced, but unlike those chambers that mimicked the Dark side's powers, having a true manipulator of the Force would be more so effective that Finn feared he couldn't overcome it.
Shaking his head, Finn decided that now was the time to escape. Glancing up at the two unawares storm troopers, Finn used his blood-covered wrists to slowly work his hands free, ignoring the sharp pain of his thumbs being broken after a harsh, downward jerk. The sickening pop seemed to echo the room but the storm troopers were far enough away that they didn't hear it. Determination and stubbornness swelled in him as he went about executing his escape plan that was brewing silently in his head for the past week of captivity.
He was Finn of the Resistance, he chanted in his head as he loosened up the rest of the bindings, and he will be damned if he didn't give as good as he got.
