It's the dawn of a new day for the Resistance. These first few steps will be crucial in guiding the heroes to victory-or to failure. As the First Order prepares its counteroffensive, the Resistance builds morale and prepares to beg for support in the far reaches of the outer rim.

We return now to-

4. Finn I

I should be dead.

The thought ran through Finn's mind every moment since the Battle of Crait.

I should be dead.

It was the thought he carried with him as he pulled Rose across the scarred battlefield. He could feel the weight of the walkers on his back-a single moment of realization from any of them would have meant instantaneous oblivion.

I should be dead.

It was the reason he refused to leave Rose's side. It was the burning fuel within him that kept him from sleeping like the others. And it was the poison that rotted at his mind. Over and over.

I should be dead.

I should be dead.

I should be dead.

It was his first thought as he woke up. As his eyes open, he could see the door into the sleeping quarters was open. From this angle, he could see what appeared to be Resistance members walking up a steep incline.

He pulled his head from his slanted position and began to stretch within the chair. Every muscle-every bone of his body ached and groaned at the feelings he had. And then, the thought returned:

I should be dead.

And suddenly he no longer wished to complain.

He looked next over to Rose-sound asleep in her cot. Or at least, what appeared to be sleep. Finn reached over and placed two fingertips on her neck.

Two heartbeats. She still lived.

Finn was at a loss to know how to feel. One moment he was hurling towards the weapon that threatened to destroy so many lives. The next, he felt the kiss of a woman he had met only yesterday. A woman who wanted to turn him in for treason. Now risking her life for the life of a traitor.

Traitor. There was that word again. How many times had it been called to him? He felt the word hurled at him by the First Order officers at Maz's castle. He felt that same anger from Rose as she stunned him into submission.

Traitor. He was a traitor, he supposed. Betrayed the First Order for the chance of a new life.

Betrayed the Resistance to save a friend.

Finn thought again to Rey. How he felt when he saw her again-self-sufficient and powerful. Standing solitary against the floating rocks. The more he learned of her, the less he feared for her safety.

Rey was a question mark in his mind-his first true friend. Poe was a trusted ally, but Rey? Rey fought for him when Kylo Ren swung a lightsaber up his back. He could have been left to die on Starkiller Base. Yet here he was. Saved.

Rose was the same. A capable woman. A bright soul. He could have died a needless death at the Battle of Crait. Yet here he was. Saved.

What right did he have to live?

I should be dead.

"Finn?" came a voice, breaking his concentration.

Finn looked up to see the gentle smile of a woman who looked only vaguely familiar. She continued: "You didn't have to stay with her."

That's right, Finn thought to himself. The medical officer.

This woman before him was the one to help patch up Rose's wounds. She had taken good care of her-or at least, as good a care as could be provided on a ship such as the Falcon.

"I didn't mean to stay all night," Finn lied. "Does she need something? Bacta?"

It was the first word to come into his mind-it was the little he knew of medicine. But his calls to help Rose were met with quiet resignation.

"There's nothing more you can do," the medical officer said. "I'm sorry."

Finn nodded. He took a moment, before rising. His place was out with the other soldiers-not in here. It was time for the medical officer to do her duty, same as him.

"If you need me-" he started.

"Of course," she dismissed.

Finn took one last look at Rose, before leaving.

Now out in the main hall of the Falcon, Finn was unsure of what to do with himself. He supposed that he could go and find Rey-but she had barricaded herself in her sleeping quarters since the group had taken off.

The other option seemed to be to go to the cargo hold and try to find anyone he knew. But that was a fool's errand in and of itself. The only other person he really knew on the ship was-

"Finn!"

Finn turned to see Poe Dameron rushing towards him. Before he could even react, Poe pulled him into one of his signature hugs.

"Poe, alright!" Finn said as he felt himself momentarily lifted from the ground. "I get it."

"I've been looking all over for you, man," Poe said. "I figured you would have at least gotten some sleep."

"I did," Finn admitted. His eyes glared over to the de-facto medical bay. "And it's not like it's a big ship."

"Did you really sleep in there all night?" Poe asked. "I mean, the cargo bay is stuffy, but I can't imagine the chair was much better."

"You were looking for me?" Finn asked. He liked Poe, but he was looking for more of an explanation.

"Yeah," Poe nodded. "Leia was going to call a meeting soon in one of the cargo holds."

"I can't wait to see what the plan is," Finn said.

Poe smiled. "Well, you don't have to. Come on."

With that, Poe's hand grasped at Finn's shoulder and pulled him down the hallway.

Finn was led by Poe towards a central room in the Falcon. Here, two or three personnel guarded the open entrances to the space. They each nodded to Poe and Finn as they entered.

Finn knew this space. This was where he and Rey had to repair the ship. Where they met Han Solo for the first time. Where he had originally taken Rose to the ship.

Now, gathered in the space were perhaps ten or so people-men and women Finn recognized to be leaders among the remaining Resistance.

Finn had been invited to the inner sanctum. The first meeting of the nascent Resistance-forced to re-invent itself after nearly being wiped out by the First Order.

"Glad you could join us," Leia said to Finn as he filed in. He placed himself at the edge of the dejarik table and nodded to her.

Rey isn't here, Finn thought to himself. Where was she?

"I'll keep this short, since I'll be repeating myself again in a moment," Leia started. "We'll be going to the Outer Rim to meet with the last remaining contacts we have."

"Why would they help us?" one officer asked. "They received our transmission yesterday on Crait. If they were to help, they would have already been in contact."

"Some people need more than a message," Leia said. "They need a visual. They need to see the fact that we're hulled up in this ship because we have nothing left."

"That sounds like a sign of weakness," another officer said.

A few of them looked to each other. Poe even looked uncomfortable in this moment. If Leia was unable to rouse these officers, how was she to rouse the spirits of the soldiers?

Leia sighed. "I've set a course for Iriad. It's a quiet planet without much need for interaction with the core planets, but it's got a militia to be reckoned with. I met with the Iriadians during the days of the Rebel Alliance. They didn't want to join a side outwardly but provided my father with useful weapons and ammunition. They'll remember me. I'm also arranging transportation of Maz Kanata to Iriad. Between Maz and the Iriadians, we should have a start."

There wasn't much of a response from the others. The officers seemed to nod and look at each other.

"Go and prepare one of the cargo holds for the meeting," Leia said. "Dismissed."

The men and women in the room rose to their feet and began to file out. Finn dismissed the macabre feeling in the air and approached Leia directly.

"The Iriadians," Finn asked. "Do you think they'll be able to help Rose?"

"Finn, you and me both should know it's possible to recover from far worse injuries than what Rose Tico sustained," Leia joked. "But medical supplies are on our list. We'll do our best."

Finn nodded. For Leia to know his concern felt like enough for now. There was little else he could truly do.

He turned to leave when he felt Poe's hand once again grasp at Finn's shoulder.

"Hold on," he said. Finn was surprised to turn and see Poe looking far bleaker than he usually did. His outwardly positive demeanor had faded away. He looked as if he'd seen a ghost. "What did Leia say?"

"I was just asking about getting supplies for Rose," Finn said. "Leia said-"

"I know," Poe interrupted, in a way that surprised them both. Poe couldn't seem to say something coherent. "I'm sorry, I mean, her name-it's Rose Tico?"

"Yeah," Finn said as he nodded. "Why?"

But Poe said nothing. Instead, he took a few steps back, looked to his feet, and slipped away with the other officers.

What was so special about Rose's last name? Finn thought to himself. Did he know one of her family members?

He had no further time to think on it, as he moved with the others towards the cargo bay.

After about an hour, the room was prepared.

Finn found himself leaned against the wall of one of the two cargo rooms-alongside the rest of the Resistance. Leia had called for everyone aboard to clear the room of any and all articles so that a meeting could be held.

The room still reeked of the filth of battle. Finn's eyes lifted to the ceiling-where exposed piping and frayed wiring sparked overhead. Looking around the room, the odds were never as clear as now-the entirety of the rebellion, now packed into a cargo room.

Standing in the center of the room was Leia. She watched the entrance of the cargo hold as two or three stragglers filed into the room. Aside from the medical officer, the pilot, and Rose, this looked to be everyone.

Near the door, Finn could make out Rey-her eyes locked onto her feet, hidden between two other men. How had she been?

Finn had hardly had a moment to think of anything else. He immediately felt compelled to cross the open space in the center of the cargo hold-to go to her and ask her if she was alright. He had to admit, he had a million questions:

The island, he wondered. Was it everything she thought it would be? Was Luke? What happened to bring her to Crait?

"Alright," Leia said, breaking Finn's train of thought. "I think that's everyone."

Leia turned in place to look to the rest of the crew. "I need you all to take a look around. Get to know each person in this room."

It looked like talking to Rey would have to wait for another time.

Finn did as instructed, but all he saw were the faces of strangers. Nobody he knew. Across the room from him, Poe Dameron made eye contact with him. Finn could feel the hesitation in him, even from this distance. What was it that I said to upset him earlier?

The room was solemn. The atmosphere thick with anxiety and failure. How was Leia going to turn this around?

"I'm not going to tell you that we have others on the way," Leia admitted. "I can't even tell you if we'll survive the night. But we're alive now. We have each other now. And that's as good of a start as we're going to get."

"What are we going to do?" Called out a voice to Finn's right. He turned to see one of the soldiers standing in front of the others. "How are we supposed to fight?"

The room sparked with life as several people murmured to each other. Before Leia could say another word, Poe injected himself-stepping forward into the open space.

Quiet, please," Poe called out. "Let the General speak."

"General of what?" Somebody called out in the back of the room. "There's nothing left!"

"What's left," Leia called out over the others. "Is the spark. The light that will grow to build a new republic. And it's small. I know. But look around!"

Leia's face broke out into a smile. "Can't you see! We are the voice of those who suffer under the oppression of the First Order! It's up to us to take what's been given to us and carry on the legacy! This is what your friends and family died for. This is what the good pilots of our rebel fleet died for. This is what Admiral Holdo died for. We've lost so many of us, so many good men and women...and for what?"

Silence. Nobody dared respond.

"So we could escape like cowards from a battle we could never win? So we could ride some old ship to the Outer Rim and live out the rest of our days like animals afraid of the light? So we could just sit and let the First Order claim every system in the galaxy while we hide away, and we say 'oh please, don't come for us! Take the others, but not us!' As if we hadn't seen the power of the light?"

She didn't have to say his name, but everyone knew what they had seen. It was almost something that couldn't be talked about. And how could you? How could you explain what Luke Skywalker had done?"

"Nobody is coming to save us, that much is clear," Leia said. "We can't wait until the galaxy decides it has had enough. We can't wait for Luke Skywalker to come save us again. Because he won't. It is up to us to build this Resistance. It is up to us to grow the rebellion until we can stand against the First Order, and say, 'enough!'"

The room was swelling now with her words. Finn watched as the other rebels beside him nodded. A few began to agree vocally.

Leia was almost shouting now. "Enough with the wars! Enough with this! We won't sit and watch as you destroy cities and planets and systems! We won't let you rule this galaxy any longer! We're going to stand up! We're going to fight! We're going to go to everyone we can. Any ear that will listen, we will tell them: get up from your chairs. Rise from your homes and your streets and your cities! And they will say to us: who are we to rise up? Who are we to fight the First Order? And we will tell them-in one loud and unified voice-that we are the Resistance!"

The room was cheering now. Even Finn couldn't help but smile and cheer along with the rest of them.

"Who are we?" Leia asked.

"We are the Resistance!" The room replied.

"Who are we?" Leia asked again.

This time, even louder: "We are the Resistance!"

"Who are we?"

And the Resistance roared to life once more.

Fun facts: I realized that The Last Jedi never played around with the idea that Poe may have known who Rose's sister was. This chapter brings this up. Perhaps we'll be looking into this more as time passes?

We have our stage now. We've seen the Resistance's plan and the First Order's counteroffensive. We'll see now how things play out.

Until next,

-BYIT