Prologue: Blue Nova
Jaral woke up in her bunk bed. She had been nervous the entire night, though one could argue it was just excitement.
She and the rest of the Ghost crew had been following the small flotilla of Phoenix Cell for three days now, and she had pondered hard for many hours on what her position on the matter would be. She had heard Hera and Kanan argue. The former was very eager to join the cell officially, but the latter wanted them to go back on their own once they had repaid the debt they had with Phoenix and Ahsoka.
After a day of internal debate, Jaral had decided to side with Hera. Not only that, she went to Darvos and commander Sato and asked if they were still looking for a pilot for the A-Wing parked in the hangar, and when they said yes, she volunteered immediately.
Hera, of course, was overjoyed. Jaral was like a daughter to the Twi'lek and it felt like the girl was following her surrogate-mother footsteps by enlisting as a combat pilot. Hera had immediately vouched for Jaral's abilities, so Sato decided to give her a chance.
Ezra was, to no one's surprise, completely in favor. He would support whatever made her sister happy, and even though he was worried at the possibility that she might leave the Ghost and be transferred aboard the Phoenix Home, he would still support her wholeheartedly.
Jaral had jokingly tried to reassure him by saying that, if she transferred, then he might move in the same room as Sabine.
Of course, if she got transferred, it would also mean that she would be closer to Darvos, the man who had just reaffirmed his commitment to her. That, however, was a thought that the always pragmatic Jaral managed to put in second place. Even if she got scouted and admitted into the Phoenix's fighter squadron, she still thought that staying on the Ghost would be the most efficient solution for her: she performed the best with its crew and especially when she and her brother fought side by side they were almost unbeatable.
Those thoughts and many others stormed into her head as she left the bunk and headed into the shower of her cabin's restroom.
When she got out, she noticed that Sabine was waking up as well.
"Morning, sis." Jaral teasingly said as she started to put her clothes on.
Sabine yawned and rubbed her eyes. "You are never going to drop that, uh?" she said with a silly smile.
"Wasn't you the one who told me that Mandalorians don't take relationships lightly?" Jaral asked with a knowing grin.
For Jaral, knowing that Ezra and Sabine were now in a relationship had been one of the best moments in the last months. She was simply happy that her little brother had found someone to like, and since she had come to see Sabine as her best friend, Jaral was happy for her too. Besides, she had noticed that the two shared a sentiment for quite some time, even trying to act as a matchmaker from time to time. The fact that the two teens had finally come around it and realized their feelings for each other had almost made her cry with joy.
"Might as well starting to get used to that name." Jaral kept going.
She was clearly implying that Sabine and Ezra would end up marrying one day. While Sabine believed it was way too early to bring that up, she never tried to reject it completely and simply shook her head whenever Jaral brought it up.
Still, that was just a morning joke. Sabine knew that this was gonna be a special day and could see a hint on nervousness in Jaral's movements.
"How do you feel?" Sabine asked.
Jaral was putting on her blue jacket.
"Nervous, freaked out...but thrilled." she said with a confident smile.
"That's the Jaral I know."
Sabine jumped down from the top bunk and headed to the restroom herself, her orange bangs definitely needed to be put in their place.
Jaral took the time to wait for Sabine to be done, before they both left the cabin and headed for the kitchen.
There they were greeted by Ezra, who had already prepared them both a cup of caf.
"Took you long enough, ladies." he said sarcastically.
"You better get used to it, Ezra." Sabine replied amused, while the boy handed them the cups before going back to the counter and grabbing his own.
"So, sis. Ready for the show?" he asked in support.
Jaral took a sip of the beverage. "Guess I don't have much of a choice at this point. We'll see how that goes."
"What do you mean 'we'll see?', there is only one possible outcome." Ezra put a hand on her sister's shoulder and firmly gripped. "You'll absolutely tear asses and those guys will beg you to join the fighter squadron." he said with a raised eyebrow and a smirk.
Jaral just did an amused huff at her brother's words, but they did help her getting more confident. Another gentle pat on the back by Sabine did the same.
Then she focused for a moment on her brother's left cheek and a more worried look made her smile die out. She reached his hairs and gently pushed them off to take a better look.
"How is that wound, by the way?" she asked seriously.
"I told you I'm fine. Or you forgot that we heal three times faster than normal humans?" he said dismissively.
Jaral sighed. "I just hope it doesn't leave you the scar."
"Why not?" Sabine intervened, stepping forward and caressing Ezra on that side of his hair. "I think it's sexy." she whispered. Jaral rolled her eyes in amusement.
"Really?" Ezra said, keeping his cool and smiling back. He pulled Sabine closer by grabbing her waist with his left hand. "Then I guess I have no other choice but cut my hair short, so you can look at it clearly."
"You want to cut them?" Jaral asked, taken aback.
"Yeah, they've grown too much, it's getting itchy under the helmet. Besides it would be easier to keep them clean, and also I wanted to change my look a bit. After all, we're starting something new, here."
"What do you say, Sabine?" Jaral asked with a smirk. "Do you approve of his actions?"
"Yes, I do. Maybe I should start about a change of color too. What do you think about that?" Sabine asked Ezra.
The boy stuttered, thinking about what the best answer would be. "Whatever you come up to, I'm sure you'll be beautiful."
Jaral couldn't hold a silent laugh and hid her mouth with the back of her free hand.
Sabine kissed him square in the lips. "A bit cheesy, but I appreciate it anyway."
"Glad to hear that." the young Padawan replied before releasing his girlfriend. "Now, let's get a move on."
The teens finished their cup and all took an energy bar before heading toward the cockpit, where Hera, Kanan, Zeb and Chopper were waiting for them.
"Look who's up." Zeb greeted them. "How you doing, kid?" he asked Jaral.
"I'm fine, Zeb. Thank you." she answered gently.
"We're about to dock at Phoenix Home." Hera announced. "Don't worry Jaral. Just remember what I taught you and you'll do great." the Twi'lek said with her motherly tone.
"Oh, I'm sure of that. I got the best possible teacher." Jaral said proudly.
Then she decided it was the time to put the armor on. She closed her eyes for a second and the device in her chest quickly materialized the nano-suit and the gray and blue-painted plates.
The girl took up her left arm and run a quick diagnostic over Jinx's processor and her omni-tool. She intended to fly with little to no help from her AI, but checking the equipment regularly was a habit that had only grown while fighting the Empire.
As the Ghost docked with the Pelta-class frigate in its mid-section, Jaral was at the head of the Specters. Her armor polished and cleaned, the night before, she even asked Sabine to redefine the paint-job on the plates; her helmet under her left arm.
The group headed to the bridge, where commander Sato, lieutenant Darvos Tanis, Ahsoka Tano and the leader of Phoenix squadron, a human male in his 40s, were standing around the holo-table, discussing.
"Gentlemen, welcome back." the commander said politely.
"Thank you, commander." Jaral responded.
"So you're the new recruit." the man in a green pilot suit greeted them with his arms crossed in front. "I'm Phoenix Leader."
"Pleasured to meet you, sir." Jaral replied by straightening up and looking at him with a firm gaze.
"Do you have previous experience as a fighter pilot?"
"I am pretty proficient with the Phantom, the Ghost's auxiliary vessel."
The man turned his gaze toward Hera. "Captain, I heard that you vouched for miss Bridger?"
Hera walked forward and put a hand on Jaral's shoulder as to protect her.
"Indeed, Phoenix Leader. She has a talent for flight. Given a few years, she might become even more skillful than myself."
"Ok, now you're overdoing." Jaral said with a chuckle, but appreciating the trust nonetheless.
"Well, you have a certain reputation, captain." Phoenix Leader kept going. "If you think so highly of Jaral Bridger, then I have no further questions. From here on I'll judge her performance."
"What do I have to do?" Jaral asked.
"You'll follow me out there so I can take a look at your ability to maneuver the fighter. It'll give you time to familiarize with the machine. Then, Phoenix Home will release some garbage blocks into space and we'll use them for some target practice." the man explained seriously.
"Copy that." Jaral said sternly, indicating that she was ready and eager to start.
"Then meet me at the hangar once you're ready." Phoenix leader simply stated as he walked out of the control room.
"The rest of you can wait here on the bridge and watch." Darvos explained to the others.
"Are you ready, sis?" Ezra asked.
Jaral took a moment to gather her thoughts one last time.
"I am." she finally declared.
Everyone smiled or looked at her respectfully.
"Lieutenant." Ahsoka said.
Without need for further instructions, Darvos motioned Jaral to follow him. Procedure dictating that the Ghost crew still moved around under escort until they decided if they would officially join the fight.
"You know, I was surprised to learn that you wanted to apply for a fighter pilot role." Darvos commented, walking beside her.
"I enjoy flying in the Phantom." she explained. "Yet, I wanted to try something else. And since I'd love to join the Phoenix, I thought 'why not?'."
"You're full of surprises, as always."
"Does it scare you?" she asked rhetorically with a smirk.
Darvos looked at her. "Not at all. That's one of the reasons I love you."
She answered by grabbing his hand and intertwining fingers. They walked like this for a few meters, until the came in sight of the door to the hangar, where Phoenix Leader was waiting.
With a single nod, the pilot opened the door and walked into the hangar.
Darvos said goodbye to Jaral. "I'll be watching from the bridge."
"Then enjoy the show." she said, following the pilot.
Phoenix Leader walked over a gangplank and showed Jaral that she would have to jump down into the cockpit of the fighter, a couple of meters beneath them.
"Wait, you guys jump every time?" Jaral was surprised.
"This ship wasn't built to keep a hangar. We can't have everything perfect in our situation."
"I guess not. All right, then."
Jaral put on her helmet, aligned and jumped down the small gap in the handrail and landing perfectly into the seat of the A-Wing.
"Jinx, make a scan of the ship. Warn me about shields and hull integrity, along with the weapon's status." she said while starting to do the flight checks.
Weapons, Engines, Shield (WES) the energy deviation commands, all was in working order. Her visor HUD changed. Instead of warning her about her personal shields, it now switched into giving a small model of the fighter in the left-down corner, and above it three indicators to inform her the distribution of energy among the three WES.
After a couple of minutes, waiting for authorization, it came.
"Specter-6, you're clear to take off."
The hangar was built on a straight line under the main body of the ship, and it was made so that only one ship at a time could take off. The pilots had to work a bit in order to bring the new A-Wing on the front position, but now there was nothing obstructing the passage.
"This is Specter-6, taking off."
The engines fired up and the loud noise of the reactors of the fighter running filled up the hangar. Jaral closed the hatch over her head, realizing that the cockpit seemed way smaller, almost suffocating, but she knew she would get used to it quickly.
Once Jinx gave her the okay, Jaral made the fighter lift from the ground, and when the mechanic beneath gave her a thumbs up, she pushed the lever forward. The fighter left the hangar smoothly and flawlessly, shooting out into the vastness of space. Jaral immediately noticed that the sound was suddenly very muffled, as the only air left was the one in the cockpit.
She waited for Phoenix Leader to leave the hangar, which occurred no more than a minute after her.
"You certainly know how to lift it, Specter-6. Follow me." the man said via the comlink.
"This is Specter-6, I'm on your wing, Phoenix Leader."
Quite quickly and efficiently, Jaral assumed the basic formation for two aircraft. Staying behind on his right wing.
As it was part of the test, Phoenix Leader made a few deviations without warning, to see how well Jaral was able to keep up. They passed around the entire flotilla, near the other corvettes and close to Phoenix Home a number of times. Jaral managed to keep up.
"Excellent work, Specter-6." the man said after making her fly around for ten minutes. "Seems like your credentials were justified."
Jaral knew that it was far from over, but the compliment certainly encouraged and emboldened her.
She felt her bond with Ezra suddenly sending a wave of pride and joy from the other side. No doubt the bridge was broadcasting the communications and the small camera on the front of her cockpit was sending images of her performance.
"Phoenix Home, this is Phoenix leader. We're ready for the shooting practice."
"Roger that, Phoenix Leader. Releasing the targets...now."
At this point, they were around 5 km away from the rear side of Phoenix Home. The sensors indicated that there were 10 designated targets. 5 were being released starboard side and 5 on port side.
Jinx marked the targets on Jaral's HUD.
"I got a lock on targets." she declared.
"Very well, girl. This will be a time trial. When you destroy the first target, we'll start measuring how long you take to get the others as well."
"Roger that, Phoenix Leaders. Moving to attack position."
Jaral suddenly pushed the thrusters at maximum speed, closing the distance with the targets in the next 30 seconds, reaching the frigate's port side.
As soon as the HUD signaled that the first three targets were in range, she opened fire, moving the ship in a swinging motion that destroyed all the targets with a single burst of the two cannons of the fighter.
Without wasting time, Jaral managed to use the momentum to align the fighter with the other two targets, making sure that Phoenix Home wouldn't accidentally be on the line of fire. With another controlled burst, she took out the targets.
As soon as she saw the second explosion she kicked back the energy into the engines. Jinx's contribution to redistribute the energy of the ship certainly was a big help, but he wasn't allowed to do anything without his mistress' input, so everything actually came down to Jaral's reflexes and abilities.
The radar signaled that the targets on starboard side were drifting under Phoenix Home, but from her position, the girl calculated that she could get them faster by passing over the head of the ship.
As she got near the frigate, she made a roll, the white hull of the ship ending up on the upside down. This move would actually allow her to use the gravitational force of the frigate and dive down toward the targets at a slightly higher speed.
The frigate's G-force was very small, but in the void of space, any bits of kinetic energy helps.
The A-Wing came down, making a roll at such a speed where a normal human would never be able to fire efficiently, but Jaral was no normal human. Keeping a cool head and pushing her reflexes to the limit, she got the first two targets.
The remaining three were now above her head, but simply pulling the yoke wouldn't suffice to put her in a good position to fire. However, she had already calculated this. With a command from her brain, Jinx shut down the engines, effectively letting the fighter making a very tight side-slip. Even in space, such a move would have made a person feel uneasy, or even crush a rib.
Yet, Jaral used the movement to swiftly take care of the remaining targets with only five total shots, in a most spectacular manner.
She finally released a breath that she hadn't noticed she was holding. On Ezra's side, she could clearly feel nothing but euphoria. They were probably shouting and applauding at such an amazing performance.
In a single, incredibly accurate passage, Jaral had taken out all the targets in the span of 19 seconds.
As Phoenix Leader got near her, he hailed. Until now his tone had been composed, but now he was chortling.
"Specter-6, that was absolutely bonkers. You do are a natural."
"Thanks, Phoenix Leader. I get that I passed the test?" she asked showing only a hint of the satisfaction she was feeling.
"Passed the test?! Girl, I'm almost considering dropping my role as leader and giving it to you. The Empire will not stand a chance."
Jaral shook her head, though inside her head she was gloating.
"I appreciate the support, Phoenix Leader. I'm ready to dock."
"Understood, I'm contacting Phoenix Home...wait…"
There was a bit of silence as the two fighters flew around the fleet.
"Specter-6, Phoenix Home wishes to speak with us."
"Copy that. Jinx give me the transmission."
In a few moments, the voice of commander Sato came into the comlink.
"Miss Bridger, I'll take only a moment to say that I've never seen such a masterful display of flight skill."
"Thank you, sir." She could tell that there was something else.
"However I am scrambling Phoenix Squadron. We're about to launch an incursion and we have little time. If you think you can handle it, I would like to ask you to flight into that A-Wing."
"Where is the Ghost crew?"
"They're heading for the Ghost, you might connect to their docking tube for the trip." said the voice of Darvos.
"Copy that. I'm heading toward the Ghost." Jaral closed the transmission and turned the fighter toward the Ghost, which was still anchored at Phoenix Home.
When she was a few thousand meters away, the Ghost finally detached and powered up its engines. Jaral moved to get closer to it.
"Specter-6, this is the Ghost. Dock at the cargo bay and come aboard." the voice of Hera came out with a mocking seriousness that barely tried to hide how happy the Twi'lek was.
"Roger that, Ghost, I'm coming back home."
With a single, swift movement, Jaral brought the cockpit into the open floor of the cargo bay, where the force shield had been activated, allowing people to operate normally even with the big opening into the void.
The magnetic clamps firmly got a grab of the A-Wing, and when the cockpit was finally above the shield, Jaral could open it and find out that Ezra and Sabine were waiting for her on the gangplank overlooking the bay.
As she stepped out, Ezra literally jumped down from the gangplank, his armor on to avoid injuries, and rushed to hug her, laughing almost maniacally, something that she returned automatically.
"I told you would do spectacular!" he exclaimed.
"Yes, you did." she admitted while chuckling.
"You were great, Jaral." Sabine said loudly and happily. She hadn't moved from the gangplank.
"And although I hate to break the moment, we should really go." she kept going.
As a matter of fact, other two fighters of Phoenix squadron had already readied themselves at the edge of the hyperspace lane, along with three corvettes. One of the latter, the Liberator, had now become the host of commander Sato. Apparently, Darvos was now in command of the Phoenix Home.
The teens headed into the cockpit, just in time to see the Ghost falling in ranks with the formation and jump into hyperspace
"First of all, Jaral, congratulations. I knew you had it in you." Hera started. "Second, let me catch you up on the mission."
"Right, what was so urgent to recall me in such a hurry?"
Chopper chirped and showed a hologram representing an imperial convoy, with three Gozanti transports and two Arquitens-classcruisers.
"In the last couple of days we've been tracking an imperial convoy loaded with supplies that the Phoenix fleet needs desperately. And it also appears that they have shield generators with them." Hera explained.
"I see…" Jaral mumbled, looking carefully at the formation. "What kind of opposition can we expect?"
"The transports would usually be loaded with TIEs, and two of them indeed are, though this one only has the containers that we want on his belly."
"What about the cruisers?"
"The corvettes will be there to keep them occupied, but they are no match for them in a prolonged fight, that's why I'd like you to make your way to the transport and shoot the magnetic clamps, so that we can use the Ghost to grab the cargo."
"Then we get the hell out before they call in reinforcements." Ezra commented at the end.
"Of course, we also need to do all of this before they enter a hyperspace lane and leave the system." Sabine added.
"We've done worse." Jaral shrugged.
The voyage lasted 42 minutes total. When they were almost there, Jaral went back to the cargo bay and got back into the A-wing. The rest of the crew manned the turrets of the Ghost, only Zeb stood in reserve, ready to get back in the cargo bay and use the Ghost's magnetic locks for when they would have to recover the cargo.
As they finally got out of hyperspace at barely 13 km from the convoy, Jaral had already fired up the engine and immediately detached, allowing the cargo bay to be closed again and joining the formation of the Phoenix squadron.
Aside from Jaral, only two other fighters had been scrambled along with Phoenix Leader.
Suddenly, the voice of the leader crackled through the comm.
"This is Phoenix-1, all fighters, report."
"This is Phoenix-2, reporting."
"Phoenix-4, reporting."
They were respectively a man and a woman.
"Specter-6, reporting in." Jaral added.
With everyone reporting regularly, Phoenix-1 explained the situation briefly.
"All right, everyone. We have to keep those TIEs busy while one of us frees the cargo. Specter-6, I didn't forget about your aim before, would you like to take that shot?"
Jaral thought for a brief second. "If you give me an opening, I'll make sure of it."
"Very well. Phoenix 2 and 4, form up on me, we're giving Specter-6 its opening."
The three fighters assumed a 'V' formation and rushed forward.
"Jinx, activate the countermeasures. And tap into the imperial communications." Jaral ordered as she watched her comrades go.
For now, she kept flying beside the Ghost, which was intended to circle around the convoy and dive in only when the containers were floating out in space.
As they approached the convoy even more, the corvettes rushed forward to engage the Arquitens, and Jaral followed soon, while hearing the communications between the various imperial commanders and their bridge operators.
"This is Transport 942, we're under attack!"
"This is the Maestralis, we have contact with three rebel corvettes, all transports, deploy your fighters and order Transport 533 to prepare for the jump into hyperspace."
Now Jaral was finally in range. The Phoenix squadron had already attacked the transports, taking out a few TIEs still hanging from the clamps, though most of them managed to deploy anyway and started giving chase.
The rebel corvettes opened fire on the cruisers and at that moment Jaral saw the opportunity to strike.
Pushing all the energy into the engines, she dashed forward, got past the first Arquitens and beneath a transport, taking out another fighter that was about to leave the clamp and join the battle.
Jinx had already marked the transport they wanted.
Avoiding a couple of the Gozanti turrets' bolts, she headed toward the belly of the ship, brought the fighter in an appropriate position and switched to the synchronized fire mode of her cannons, so that they shot two bolts at the same time.
The clamps of the imperial transport were crushed and the containers drifted out in space.
"Specter-6 to Ghost, you're clear for pick-up." Jaral immediately announced.
"Roger that, Specter-6, nice work."
"This is Transport 533, we lost the cargo, repeat, we lost the cargo!"
"This is the Tataran, there is a rebel freighter headed toward the cargo. Sending our fighters to intercept."
"Maestralis' fighters, concentrate on the freighter as well, don't let them take the cargo."
The radar informed Jaral that four TIE fighters were heading toward the Ghost.
"Specter-6 to Phoenix Leader, requesting permission to assist the Ghost." she said while shooting down a TIE unwise enough to try and take her head-on.
"Permission granted, Specter-6, we can handle the other fighters."
"Specter-6 to Ghost, multiple TIEs are converging on you. Stay on the course, I'm coming for you."
"Roger that, Specter-6." the voice of Hera replied with a hint of strain.
Jaral could see that the fighters were already on the Ghost's tail, unleashing a rain of green bolts. The freighter's shield helped, but Hera couldn't keep flying in a straight line for long.
Sabine was on the rear turret, and managed to shoot down the nearest one, and at that moment, Jaral had brought herself behind the remaining TIEs, her approach masked by Jinx's interfering with the imperial scanners.
She took down the first fighter, then a second one. The third realized what was happening and broke the chase, but Jaral made a daring maneuver and shot it down anyway.
"Damn, Specter-6, leave some for the rest of us." the voice of Sabine laughed.
"This is the Liberator, we are losing our deflector shield. Ghost, we must withdraw." the voice of Sato came through.
Looking at the scanners, Jaral realized that the corvette was engaging the cruiser Maestralis in a broadside, and the heavy cannons of the cruisers were making a huge difference.
"Acknowledged, commander Sato, but first we're getting what we came for." Hera replied.
Then Jinx intercepted a communication from the Maestralis' bridge.
"Send our reserve fighters, destroy the rebel corvette!"
She immediately knew what to do.
"Specter-6 to Phoenix Squadron, I'm heading toward that cruiser." and she pushed the lever on the engines' full speed.
"Copy that, Specter-6 we're moving to support the Ghost."
"Thanks."
Jaral made a rapid circle and then pointed straight toward the cruiser's hangar, which was placed into a very narrow corridor.
"Are we actually doing this?" Jinx's robotic voice pointed out with sarcasm.
"Indeed." Jaral said with a grin.
She switched to full power to the cannons.
"A rebel fighter is...coming toward the hangar?"
"What?"
One of the TIEs had just aligned itself with the hangar door. The shields were down.
Jaral clicked the button on the control stick, opening fire in free-fire mode.
A rain of bullets hit the TIE, which exploded violently, setting a chain reaction into the hangar. A ball of fire came out of the opening as the cells of fuel and munitions in the hangar exploded, rocking the ship. Jaral immediately turned around and got away from the vessel.
"Massive explosion in the hangar. We lost contacts."
"There is a fire spreading toward the starboard side magazine."
"Dammit, disengage from the fight. Power to the shields, all hands available take out that fire!"
The cruiser started to drift away, interrupting the attack against the Liberator, and a round of cheers came through her comlink.
"Great job, Specter-6, we owe you one." the voice of Sato said with relief.
Jaral chuckled. "Let's just say we're even."
Then she moved toward the Ghost, only to realize that they had just finished the job.
"Ghost to Liberator, we got the cargo." Hera proclaimed.
"Acknowledged. All ships, prepare to jump into hyperspace."
The imperial forces were by now decimated. The Tataran was the only vessel left capable of doing something, but the captain had preferred to not pursue as the Maestralis was asking for immediate assistance.
The Phoenix squadron aligned on the hyperspace lane and made the jump, Jaral this time used the hyperdrive of her fighter and would make the trip on her own.
A little more than an hour later, the Phoenix Squadron was back to Phoenix Home.
Jaral waited until the fighters were done getting into the runway from the rear side of the ship, then she followed after all ships, Ghost included, had docked or got back into formation.
As Jinx brought the fighter perfectly into the spot reserved for it, Jaral quickly noticed that almost the entire crew was waiting for her, on the gangplank above her and on the floor of the runway level, a crowd of cheering and jubilant soldiers, pilots and mechanics were waving, shaking their fists and whistling enthusiastically at her.
Jaral had never experienced something like this, and she wasn't sure she liked it. Though she indeed liked to make people happy, and those definitely were.
As she jumped down from the cockpit, Ezra and Sabine made their way toward the crowd and threw themselves at her. The teens were laughing loudly and spinning around in their hug.
The rest of the Specters came along soon after with nothing but smiles and proud on their faces. Hera too hugged her once the teens left her; Kanan and Zeb patted her on the shoulders.
Jaral's smile was showing her teeth and she seemed unable to close her mouth.
Then she noticed that Phoenix Leader and the two pilots that took part in the mission were looking at her with a smile of admiration, waiting for her in front of the crowd.
When she finally turned her head to look at them, the pilots made a military salute, that Jaral returned.
"I don't think I can express how beautiful of a show that was, Specter-6." the Leader said. "But we better go discuss this on the bridge."
Following the invite, the Specters followed Phoenix Leader back on the bridge, where Sat, Darvos and Ahsoka were already waiting for them.
"Gentlemen, thanks to your help, the attack have been a success." Sato said, then turned his head toward Jaral. "And thanks again, Miss Bridger, your brave initiative probably saved my life and all those aboard the Liberator."
"And again, don't mention it, commander. I just did what I thought was best for the mission."
"Speaking of which…" Darvos interjected. "We were talking about your possible assignment."
"What did you come up with?"
"Well, it's clear that no one in our squadron can keep up with your ludicrous speed and decision-making, so I proposed that you can retain the ship, but fly independently during missions." Darvos said, apparently very much convinced that this was the best solution.
"I agree." Phoenix Leader said. "Your talent would be wasted if we bind you to the standard maneuvers and formation flight rules. We will be more than happy to draw some of the attention away from you, but that stunt against the cruiser showed that you can do much more damage on your own, flying on your terms."
"So, that means…?" Jaral wasn't sure to follow.
"Welcome to the Phoenix fighter squadron." Darvos said with open arms. "Now we just have to give you your call-sign."
"I actually have an idea." Ahsoka intervened. "During the battle, I overheard some of the soldiers calling her, 'the Blue Nova'. I suggest we consider it."
"Blue Nova?" Jaral asked, not sure if laugh or frown.
"That actually sounds pretty poetic." Sabine commented. "After all, one of your main colors is blue" she indicated Jaral's armor. "and you brought considerable destruction on the imperials, considering you were flying on an interceptor. Like a nova."
"That's not all, isn't it?" Kanan asked rather skeptically. Everyone looked at him. "Yes, she's good, but you're trying to make her a symbol, right?"
Hera frowned at the rather impudent tone Kanan was using.
"Kanan…" Ahsoka patiently said. "Both her and Ezra are unique. Were it not simply for their genetic modifications and their equipment; their connection with the Force and on the battlefield make them perfect role models, symbols of hope for the galaxy."
It was rather weird for the siblings to hear someone talk about them in these terms, but in all honesty, they didn't mind: ignore the fact that they were unique specimens in this galaxy would be considered false modesty by anyone. While they didn't like to brag about it openly, they wouldn't deny their origin and their biology, as it was what made them who they were.
"I don't mind it, Kanan." Jaral said as to assert the fact that this was her choice. "I applied for this position because, whatever the crew will decide, I intend to fight. The galaxy will continue to suffer as long as the Empire exists, and I will not spend the rest of my life running and hiding. I want to fight." she declared.
Kanan didn't seem very satisfied of that answer, but didn't retort, instead just sighed in resignation.
"Then, welcome to the Phoenix Squadron, Jaral Bridger." Sato said, before every officer on the bridge stood up and made the salute to her.
"That went better than any expectation, didn't it?" Darvos said.
It had been a few hours since the debriefing. Jaral had gotten back to the Ghost for a few hours, where she, Ezra and Sabine celebrated the victory and spent a few time by themselves. Then, since the Ghost was still docked with Phoenix Home, Jaral had received an invite by Darvos into his cabin, since his shift was done.
Now there was only the two of them. Jaral had removed her armor and was wearing her civilian clothes.
"I actually didn't expect it to go that well. I was confident to do only a decent job." she said.
"Oh I had complete faith in you, Blue Nova." the officer said facetiously.
"If you're trying to flatter me, lieutenant, you're doing a poor job." she retorted in kind.
Darvos awkwardly chuckled. It was only then that Jaral noticed that his eyes were wincing around, but regularly landed on her body.
The girl smirked, then deliberately moved to lay her back on the bed and slowly crossed her legs, and enjoyed the face of her partner.
"You know, it's been a very stressful day." she said, not looking at him yet.
"I-I can guess…" he said, stammering.
By now, it wasn't like he was looking solely at her eyes. Jaral didn't need to force to perceive the lust coming from him.
"So I thought that, perhaps…" she whispered seductively and set her legs slightly apart. "You might help me with that."
The next moment, Darvos had thrown himself over her, his breath heavy, and she happily received his first kiss attack.
'Now this is something I missed these last years' her head thought as a storm of passion grabbed them both for the rest of the night.