AN: Alright, the actual final chapter. Sorry for the delay. The first chapter of Red will be posted on Nov. 2nd
.***.***.***.***.
Distant dots swarmed the thin trenches that stood between the First Order's front lines and the last desperate remains of the Resistance. Neither the general nor anyone else in the command shuttle paid them any mind.
Junior officers and a few enlisted personnel tapped away at their screens, relaying information in real time as the ski-speeders drew near. Their lead was halfway across the field with the first scarlet plume of un-oxidized salt burst into the air, sent skyward by the heavy blast of a TIE fighter.
The command shuttle trembled, shaken by the force of the passing craft.
The speeders twisted away from the hail of blaster fire. Their tight red tracks suddenly twisting in on each other, marring the earth like claws of a confused and desperate beast.
Hux impatiently waited for the farce below him to come to an end.
The AT-AT's let loose their own salvo of blaster fire, cutting down a few frantic speeders as they did.
Desperate, afraid, clinging to some obscure hope that Hux thought useless, two of the ski-speeders banked hard to the side, sending plumes of reddened salt into the air. His view of the field cut off, Hux scoffed at the pathetic attempt at delaying the inevitable.
His TIE pilots seemed similarly unconcerned. Half of them broke away from the scattered skis. Climbing skyward, the TIEs rolled into a wide turn barrel roll that brought them low over the trenches. Strafing the enemy line, they cut through the artillery emplacements without being challenged.
The general glanced at a chrono. They were winning, handily so, but it was all a terrible waste of time.
As the plumes of salt cleared and the general could once again see the field of battle, he found a few scattered craft that continued to carve bloody paths into the planet's surface. One desperate rebel swerved back and forth, trying to flee from the TIEs that would wipe them from this planet.
Then a sudden stream of blaster fire cut three of Hux's TIEs out of the sky.
A wild snarl burst forward from Kylo Ren's mouth before Hux had even bothered to look up, "Blast that ship out of the sky!"
Just barely sparing the effort, Hux glanced skyward to see the Millennium Falcon spinning in and out of his TIE formations.
The general held in a tired sigh, I'm not even surprised at this point.
"All fighters" Hux half-heartedly followed up Ren's command, completely sure that the battle was so totally won that they didn't need the air support.
As the fighters banked off in chase of the freighter, the salt just in front of their cannon began to glow. Melted from the intense heat of the laser, there were only a few bare seconds between the First Order and delivering the killing blow to the Resistance.
The remaining skis began a desperate charge. One, then two of the remaining six craft were cut away. Falling to pieces in a stream of sparks, their remains sent more waves of salt into the sky.
Four craft left.
The monstrous rumble of a laser about to fire shook the ground and air. Three of the small enemy fighters banked to the side, realizing too late that their charge was suicidal.
A single brave ship remained.
Hux scoffed at it, The brave are so ready to die for foolish reasons.
The beam began to form, its deadly heat painting its path in a burning orange. The final ship rode forward through the light. Speeding headlong to its doom. Then, one of the fled ski speeders jutted to the side, diving into the beam's path. Cutting just below the AT-AT's feet, the little pilot crashed into the foolhardy one, both of their doomed ships rolling to the side.
Then came a heavy pulse of light.
Pure plasma burst forward from the cannon, carrying with it the power of a small sun. Just as bright and hot, it would have blinded anyone foolish enough to try and watch it as it streaked over the marred field and bloomed against the rusted durasteel door.
A sudden bone-deep silence settled over the field.
Then a heavy creak and groan grew from the legs of Hux's machines. The all-terrain transports slowly made their way over the dead lands. Slowly made their way to the Resistance's end.
The general was a patient man, and on any other day he would have savored the palpable fear that wafted out of the Resistance's last hiding place, their fortress turned tomb.
But today, he had somewhere much more important to be.
Tapping his foot in annoyance, he silently waited for the command shuttle to glide along. When his troops finally did drift to a stop, they were greeted with such a sad and desperate sight.
Luke Skywalker.
"Stop!" Kylo Ren shouted the word, shaking with rage at the simple sight of an old man. After a breath that did nothing to calm him, Ren added in a growl, "I want every gun we have to fire on that man."
A gunnery officer hesitated for the briefest of seconds, unsure of whether or not he was meant to wait for a second order from Hux. Fearing for his own life and quickly realizing that the general's words had no real power here, the officer relayed the command to the walkers.
A single red beam burst forward from one of the machine's forward lasers. Then another shot came from the side. Then another, and another, and a hundred more until the field was being showered in red; some dull and tired from the ground, and some searing hot and glowing from the laser turrets.
"Do it. More." Ren grit his teeth at the destruction, seeing this as the end of the Jedi that he thought had cursed him. Clenching his fist, he screamed, "More!"
The general waited far too long for the firing to stop, a board though rolling through his head when it didn't, This is a waste of ammunition.
Hux stepped forward, "That's enough." He told the room.
"That's enough!" he shouted with no one having listened the first time. The barrage of lasers ground to a halt, the air below them filled with red dust and black ash.
"Do you think you got him?" Hux hoped that his words showed even a fraction of the resentment coiled within him, "Now, if we're ready to get moving, we can finish this."
The pilot's voice interrupted him, "Sir?"
Ready to lash out at the junior officer that dare to draw this moment out for a second longer, Hux pivoted to the side. But he didn't move as fast as Kylo Ren, who had taken a step towards the view port.
Luke Skywalker stood among the settling dust, straight backed and in perfectly pristine robes. As a clear challenge, the old man flicked away a non-existent speck of dust that clung to his shoulder.
"Bring me down to him." Ren was quick to take the bait, "Keep the door covered and don't advance until I say."
This was pathetic.
"Supreme leader," the title felt bitter when given to Ren, "don't get distracted, our goal-"
A sudden invisible force flung Hux across the cockpit. He clattered heavily against a wall of knobs and levers, ribs popping from their place and the air being knocked out from his lungs as his back crashed against the uneven surface.
Hux's head made a loud crack against the floor as he collapsed in a heap.
By the time he had scraped himself off of the floor, Ren was nowhere to be found in the cockpit.
Barely containing a smoldering rage, Hux limped to the viewport, cursing everything he had ever known about the other man. He hissed in agony and anger that he was made to waste his time on this desolate planet chasing the dregs of a ruined enemy. He barely managed to bite down his most acidic thoughts about the arrogant beast that had stolen the mantle of supreme leader.
These were his machines, his designs, his officers, and his First Order! Every single thing that surrounded Ren -that had been taken by Ren- belonged to Hux. These were his achievements. His hard work. His hopes and his dreams that had been torn from him.
All because the impetuous child couldn't bear to be wrong. Couldn't cope with getting his hands dirty. He'd killed his father in the heat of the moment and his pathetic little mind broke from the strain. Ren had been turned down once. Once! He claimed to be abandoned by someone he didn't even know. Ren was a spoiled brat. A terror and a fool that Hux should have shot when he had the chance.
Hux clutched at his bruised ribs and shook the ringing from his ears.
Ren had left the shuttle to face his uncle directly.
The general tasted blood in his mouth, and he hoped with every fiber of his being that Luke Skywalker would slay Kylo Ren on that salted field.
.***.***.***.***.
Lori didn't believe her eyes.
Luke Skywalker.
The legend, the myth. The man was casually strolling through the gnarled hole that had been blasted into the metal door. Lori was only able to see him once she poked her head up from behind a ruined control panel. As his silhouette became wreathed in the sterile while light from beyond the blast door, Lori felt a sudden tug at her sleeve.
The blast had created a persistent ringing in Lori's ears, though she only became aware of it when she found Brixie trying to say something. Exhausted, pushed beyond panic and into a numbed state, Lori slackly watched as Brixie gave up whatever she had been trying to say.
The medic forced herself to be content that Lori wasn't actively dying like the lieutenant. Nerves frayed by the gaping hole in their defenses and the nagging absence of the rest of the mercenaries, Brixie tried to focus on keeping her patient alive. As she felt for broken bones in his neck, more wounded were being carried in from the battle field.
A few limped in from the trenches, while one was dragged in by her coat.
A fresh series of explosions erupted from outside, the fragile light streaming into the base cast a red hue by the salt thrown into the air. Brixie ducked for cover at the sound, half-heartedly yanking Lori down with her.
Ardis shrieked and Lori only seemed to react to the commotion in her arms.
Tired. Wounded. Near broken from the several brushes with death, drained by the day and the fears and the endless danger, Lori shook and tried to calm her daughter.
"We're going to be okay. It's going to be okay." Lori knew that she was speaking, she felt the fragile words crawling up her dried throat. She saw the baby shrieking, felt her shaking. But all Lori heard was that persistent ringing.
The slight rumble of her mother's voice was reassuring. The absolute exhaustion that had come from the hours long ordeal was also dogging at the little girl. As the blasts from outside began to fade, so too did her cries.
Brixie had paused, a worried breath caught in her throat. Only having the time to spend on a cursory glance to the mother and child, she found Ardis to simply be asleep.
Struggling to let go of the tension that was tightly wound around her, Brixie leaned away from the duo.
This isn't good for them. She thought just before casting a worried look to the panicked base, This isn't good for any of us.
Before the thoughts even had time to fade, there came a fresh shout from the room, "Follow me!"
Twisting to the side, Brixie found Poe calling out, beckoning to everyone who still remained.
He shouted again, this time drawing more and more people to him. Brixie teetered to her feet, scanning the room as she did. As she came to standing, the other rebels had worked themselves into a fervor. Helping limping friends and dragging along the horribly wounded. Brixie found a fragile hope in the excitement, and before she called out a familiar voice came from her side.
Dak came trotting up, clutching at a wound on his shoulder, "Brix! We got to g- what the hell?"
"I'll explain later." She did not have the time as she tried to pull Lori to standing. The other woman just barely managed not to keel back over, grabbing at Dak as she got to her feet.
"Dak?" Lori only distantly remembered Brixie mentioning that he was still alive.
Dak began rapidly switching between squeaking out an apology, while also asking a series of blurred questions. Brixie didn't mind any of it as she began tugging at the lieutenant's limp arm.
Poe had a plan, and she had to believe that it would save them all. Stumbling along, Brixie only made it a few feet before a second familiar voice came from the rapidly emptying room.
"He's First Order, drop him." Lex came forward, his coat stained red and his steps made stiff from a hidden wound.
"He didn't leave Lori, so we're not leaving him." Brixie dragged at the mostly unconscious lieutenant, "Help me!"
Not knowing the first thing about what was going on, but instantly feeling guilty, Dak stepped in. Staying out of Lex's way, he grabbed Mitaka's limp wrist and started pulling alongside Brixie.
Quickly putting the pieces in place, Lex glanced to Lori who still hadn't spoken a word.
"I'm going to regret this." Lex muttered before stepping to the unconscious lieutenant's side and simply tossing the man over his broad shoulders.
Brixie and Dak let go of Mitaka's arms, with Brixie immediately offering support to a battered and confused Lori.
"Go, I'll follow." Lex said from beneath his own wounds and the weight of the other man.
.***.***.***.***.
The Resistance base was empty.
Deserted in haste by fearful people. Like rats, they must have fled from the hound, desperately crawling through decrepit caves in search of a place to hide.
General Hux was flanked by two troopers. They entered an empty room, decades deep blankets of dust clung to every surface, only having been disturbed by recent footprints and a few streaking hand prints on a work station. The troopers went through the standard room clearing procedures, checking for vermin in supply closets and behind control panels. Hux was wordless as he watched them work.
There was nothing here. That much was clear the second they stepped in.
He turned around, his long coat raising slightly at the movement.
They should have been bombing the mountain range from the start. He'd like to see what kind of sorcery would have guided the Resistance through molten stone.
Loose pebbles crunched under his boot. The general only dimly noted a fresh smear of blood behind a charred control terminal in the main room.
At least they're wounded. The need for medicine will draw them out.
He left the contemptible scene behind him. A fresh squad of troopers rushed in as he stepped out, so eager for a fight that they would not find.
The whole planet seemed cased in silence, the disfigured entrance to the base being the only sign of a struggle across all of its white surface. Alone and standing in the cold sunlight, Armitage looked to the clear sky.
Not far beyond the planet's atmosphere hung the Supremacy. Its main portion having moved into the planet's orbit, it couldn't be further away than a typical moon. Beyond the ship's ghostly outline drifted its severed wing.
The jagged triangle grew closer, slowly growing in focus.
They must have launched a series of tug ships, the engines couldn't possibly be operational.
Hux leaned against a solid portion of the melted blast door, another handful of troopers rushed past him.
The silence seeping from the ruined base was palpable. The general didn't mind it as he kept his gaze skyward.
He needed to get back to the Supremacy.
He needed to check on Lori and Ardis.
.***.***.***.***.
Lori was standing. Then running. Then being half way dragged along as all the dry light from the hole in the blast door vanished; swallowed by a hungry cave that she didn't even recognize as such.
The ringing in her ears was a hiss, her legs little more than dead weight. Exhaustion seeped from her bones and slowed even her thoughts.
Dak was there, a familiar face that brought a shattered memory of a backwater bar and a hastily accepted job.
Then there was nothing. A dark tunnel that offered some relief and some primal fear. Lori couldn't move. Her arms might have turned to stone, stuck into a position that held her daughter.
Ringing, then light, then a sudden commotion from a crowd that seemed so much larger just seconds ago.
Mitaka was there, a broken man that pulled forward a jagged memory of a shuttle and an explosion that had torn the life from her.
Lori felt her back hit a wall.
A shuttle? Some crowded place, filled with frantic faces and a suddenly lurching to the side. Lori wasn't sure if or when she stood, but something primal within her clutched Ardis closely as she suddenly fell to the floor, landing hard on her knees.
Something touched her shoulder. Lori's body shook with a sob.
She had taken a knee on the floor, scarce inches from a gunners cradle. Through the transparasteel she saw Crait's scarred surface shrinking to nothing.
Her chance of slipping back to the First Order, shrinking to nothing.
Defeated, broken, shocked into and out of action, Lori tried to bite the sudden grief back.
Brixie held her hand firmly on Lori's shoulder. Despite knowing that Lori couldn't hear her, Brixie she sunk down and cradled her friend, "Shh… It's okay. It's okay, we're safe now."
Lori shook her head, body jolting in anger and fear and so many unamenable things.
She needed to get back to the Supremacy.
She needed to check on Armitage.
