Nothing is Ever Truly Over
Chapter Eight
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"Welcome back, you two!"
Ana and Nat heard the welcoming just before being swept up into a huge embrace by Hera Syndulla. Her age may have showed in other ways, but not through her hugs. No, those were still suffocating. In a good way, though. It was an embrace the two Nightsisters gladly reciprocated.
After parting, the elderly Twi'lek began throwing questions at them. "How are you? How are your parents? It's been forever since I saw them!"
"We're fine, Hera," Ana smiled, a sense of contentment washing over her. It was great to be back amongst the family Mika had given to her. It was always fun to be around them. Though different from her family growing up, she didn't at all mind it.
She noticed a blur of red hair dart towards a mop of green hair. At the sight of them smashing their faces together, Ana had to roll her eyes. Nat didn't care for propriety at all. If she wanted to make out with Jacen right then, then she would, even in front of her mother-in-law. Ana was the opposite; she preferred to keep her love life in the shadows. She found it more romantic that way.
Turning back to Hera, she replied, "Mother and father chose to stay on Dathomir, but they're doing great."
Mika's attention was perked from where he stood out of the way when he heard Ana say Dathomir. He smiled slightly upon hearing it. Saying the name of her birth world was one of the few times she spoke with an accent, the other times being when she chanted incantations. He loved hearing that Dathomirian enunciation. She sounded so attractive when she talked like that.
He smiled much more humorously when C1-10P, or Chopper for short, came barreling into the room and zoomed past Nat and Jacen, forcing them to jump apart to evade him. Mika hid his chuckles.
"Chyort!" Nat cursed in Dathomirian. Though she knew curses in Basic, she usually used Dathomirian curses because, out of her parents, her mother was the one who she saw curse the most. Her father didn't really use such language ever. Hence, her mother was who she learned to curse from, so she adopted what she heard from her.
"Dammit Chopper, you bucket of bolts!" Jacen cursed, his face flustered red.
The obsolete astromech spouted a very rude and crude warning to not do 'the nasty' in public view, even going so far as to use his manipulators to demonstrate said act before wheeling away back to where he came from. But not before Ana burst into guffaws. She saw it as karma for Nat being so indecent in public.
"Well, he's one thing I didn't miss about home," Nat grumbled. She wasn't truly upset, having learned fairly early on that that's just how Chopper was.
"You know… he's right, sister!" Ana managed to get out in between laughs.
"Oh, shut it!" she retorted, an embarrassed fluster rising through her face.
"And so it begins again," Hera muttered, rolling her eyes with a wry grin at the circus affair that was her son and nephew, and their Nightsister wives.
The former Rebellion pilot headed after the astromech to perhaps give him another stern talking-to, one he wouldn't listen to regardless. But she loved her droid no matter all the crap he pulled.
As she left, Nat and Jacen wised up and decided to continue their extended reunion elsewhere in private.
Hence, Ana was left alone with Mika in the living room. All alone, with nothing to interfere.
He was dressed more casually now compared to his senator's garb, though she thought he looked equally handsome no matter whether he was dressed to the nines or he just rolled out of bed. And then there was his glorious dark brown hair. It wasn't the most glamorous she had seen – her mother-in-law had once shown her an old holocron of Anakin Skywalker; that was truly glorious hair – but it was still enough to make her want to run her fingers through it.
But what caught her the most were those bright blue eyes. There was so much wisdom behind them. Even though she was several years older than him, he was ironically the more mature one between them. He was such a charmer, too, without even trying. Enough of one to make her feel like a little girl crushing hard.
"Hey," he said in a very low voice – only one note away from a whisper – as he approached her. Though he didn't have a Core accent, he spoke the same refined vocabulary as those from the Core. And it made her knees weak.
"Hey," she breathed when he was only a hair's breadth in front of her. That smile of his made her heart flutter with desire.
Since they were alone now, she gave into it, and let her lips softly kiss his. That electric thrill that shot through her whenever they kissed was still there in full. She felt his hands run down her back and rest at the small. Getting a little braver, she brought her arms around his neck and darted her tongue into his mouth, caressing his Togruta fangs with it. It prickled a bit whenever she did that, but one thing mother taught her when teaching her to use her magick was to use pain to fuel herself. The pain didn't drive her away, but rather, she grew more invigorated by that little sting.
At last, though, they parted, but they did not leave each other's embrace. "How's Trilla?"
Mika had a warm feeling at the concern she had for their daughter and replied, "Her cousins dragged her off to their rooms to do who knows what earlier today." He then shook his head fondly. "AP reckons those three girls will be the death of her." He referred to AP-5, Hera's protocol droid, who had a very sardonic and sarcastic personality, along with a very distinct drawling Core accent.
"She'll make it. She's strong." The 'just like her namesake' was left unsaid.
Perhaps unlike her younger sister, Ana was always fascinated by the tales her parents and Auntie Cere and Uncle Greez told. The one she was most interested in was the story of Trilla Suduri, Cere's former Padawan. It was sad, hearing how Cere's mistakes resulted in her being tortured until she broke and became an Inquisitor, one of the best at that. Ana always took away from that to mean Trilla was very accomplished and had many great skills and was a strong woman, but that greatness was unfortunately used in the wrong way. And she didn't even have a choice in it. Still, from what she had heard about her from Cere, during her Jedi days Trilla was very smart, and considered one of the best Padawans of her generation. High praise, considering her generation also had Ahsoka Tano in it. Hence, she felt honored to name her little girl after such an accomplished woman.
"What are you doing here?" she asked him with a little smile. She didn't complain about the private moment between them.
Her husband let one arm fall away from her waist as he turned to face the corner, which had a side table holding the Syndulla family's Kalikori. It was an heirloom, a prized one, within Twi'lek families. Every member of it would add their own contribution to its branches, leaving behind a legacy for every generation of the family.
Of course, it was much larger now than it was before the Galactic Civil War, so Hera had said. Over the years, she had added two more branches, bringing it to four in total. The reason behind that was to allow her entire family the chance to add to it. What she defined as her 'entire' family, though, was very large. Of course, there was her father, mother, her ancestors, and herself who had added to it first. But then she added her fallen lover and the father of her child Kanan Jarrus to it, and through that, she eventually drudged up the idea to add the entire Ghost crew to it. They were her family in every way that mattered. And then when she discovered Ahsoka again – with her own little family in Lux and their son Mika – she decided to add them as well. Ahsoka was much like an older sister to her.
Mika let his eyes run over the various other additions made to it over the years after Kanan's. He started with the first newly added branch.
He saw the pointed tip of a Lasat Honor Guard staff. Garazeb Orrelios, or Zeb, as he liked to be called.
There was another small piece of a Lasat Honor Guard's weapon, this one from a blaster. Alexandr Kallus, the next Fulcrum after his mother. He felt it appropriate considering Zeb and Kallus were as close as brothers.
There were two little trinket-sized helmets, like those found on a keychain, one a scout trooper's helmet and the other a female Mandalorian helmet, both painted with incredible creativity. Both helmets were chained together and hung side by side, appropriately representing how together the two owners of them were. Ezra Bridger and Sabine Wren.
Then, on the other added branch was where his family began.
The first one was a piece from some kind of wrist-worn device. He recognized it as being from an old Clone Wars era holotrace device. It was something Lux Bonteri kept in memoriam of being rescued from his own stupidity by Ahsoka. Carlac was not his best moment. Though, Mika recalled that was the place they had their first kiss. After he got past the phase of 'kissing is gross,' he thought the exact circumstances of that kiss were hilarious.
Rigidly attached to the bottom of that, though, was Ahsoka Tano's contribution. It was one of the teeth from her old headdress she wore as a Padawan, something she would most likely have worn upon first meeting Lux. And again something she had worn when they shared that very unconventional first kiss. Mika thought it suited her well. Though she was gentle for the most part, Ahsoka could become a savage huntress if provoked, like if her family was in danger.
"Just thinking how all but one of the people who put a piece on this are now dead," Mika finally said. Ana took note of the sadness in his eyes. "Jacen's father died before he was even born. The rest of Aunt Hera's family is long gone. Ezra and Sabine were killed on Mandalore, before they could ever have their own family. Zeb and Kallus were killed during the First Order's conquest. And then my parents…"
Ana saw how the death of his parents affected him so strongly. She ran one of her hands through his hair soothingly.
"Father died when the Hosnian system was wiped out. And then, during the war, I felt mother's presence just vanish one day… She was gone, too."
Ana brought her hand to brush away the tears from his cheek. When Mika looked up at her, there was so much sympathy in her gaze that he couldn't bear to hold it.
"I can't say I have experience in dealing with dead parents, but I know Lux and Ahsoka. And you do, too." There was an honesty in her voice that wasn't feigned at all. She truly believed in her words, something that made him listen. "They would be proud of you, Mika. When you found out they were gone, you immediately did what you could to realize their dreams, even putting your own to the side if necessary. When he died, you took your father's place as senator of Onderon and used the training your mother gave you to defend your home when she couldn't. You're their warrior prince." Her hand remained on his cheek; a warm anchor, surprisingly light from a Sister of the Night. "If Trilla did even half that, we'd both be proud of her. It's no different for you and your parents."
The darkness in his bright blue eyes lightened, though from what she could tell, something still bothered him. "I was there when father and mother liberated Onderon from the Empire. I was only a toddler, mind you, but I remember how driven they were. And when I asked them about it years later, they told me I was their drive. They had fought so hard so I could have a better life. I feel like I owe it to them to uphold that. But I just have this terrible feeling that it'll all be for nothing and that more of us will die." Before she could say otherwise, he cut her off. "I'm not being morose just for misery's sake."
That got her attention if he had a real reason. Both her red eyebrows raised, waiting for him to elaborate.
"There's something about that girl who's leading the Resistance now. Rey. She hides her signature well, and that's what unnerves me the most about her. I can't tell anything about her. It makes her feel dangerous."
He bit the corner of his lip with one of his fangs, only to have Ana grab his chin in chastisement. It was a habit he had whenever he was on edge, one he did subconsciously and which she couldn't stand. Realizing he did it again, he had a moment of shame before recomposing himself.
"Jacen told me I'm just drawing conclusions too soon. And I know mother would tell me the same thing. What do you think?"
Ana paused. If this concerned him this much to have him nearly unravel just thinking about it, then it must be serious. "Mother always taught Nat and I to never trust an outsider unless they earn it." A hint of amusement entered her eyes. "I remember you have experience with that."
He did. He remembered how terrified he was of her and her family at first. They didn't trust him at all. But with persistence, he eventually earned their trust, and her love.
"I think Jacen's right, in a way. You should give her a chance." He saw her green eyes harden into emeralds. That look always terrified him, even now when that look only meant he was banished to the couch. "One chance. If she wastes that chance, then don't feel inclined to be nice to her."
Mika nodded. He felt better now. His wife had great instincts. He trusted them. Trusted her.
They stood together for another moment, embracing the quiet. It gave them time to reflect and think about what was next.
Until the chaotic symphony of the rest of the family reached their ears. They could hear Chopper's mocking laughter…
"No, don't you dare put that in my hair!"
…Trilla and her cousins arguing…
"Girls, stop it and come help me with the food!"
… and Hera trying to restore order.
Mika grinned fondly at it all. He loved this family. He wouldn't trade it for any other in the world. "We should probably see what all the ruckus is about."
Ana nodded, a quiet smile on her face as well.
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The sun was setting over Coruscant. Darkness encroached the planet, in more ways than one.
In that outside darkness, the main inner circle of Rey's new order – Finn, Zorii, Rose, Poe, Kaydel, Jannah, Beaumont, and Chewie, 3PO, and D-O, along with Rey herself – were gathered around R2, who projected a hologram of a section of Coruscant's upper levels. What made this section unique, however, was that it was the final resting place of the wreckage of a Resurgent-class Star Destroyer.
"They're using the ship's wreckage as their base. No one would dare attack that fortress, and it has plenty of supplies for them to sustain their fight," Poe briefed.
"And," Rose picked up immediately as she moved her hand over the hologram, highlighting pathways that branched out from the ship to known First Order holdout cells. "they have secure supply lines. It's why all these different cells have held out as long as they have."
"Furthermore, fighting on the front lines is chaos," Finn continued immediately after Rose. "It's street to street, house to house." He blanched at the reminder of the last time he fought on the front lines. "Getting to our objective was a chore and a half. There were times where our side had the first and third floors of a building secure but there were First Order troopers still holding the second floor."
Rose nudged him, a silent cue to continue with the actual briefing. He took notice, and got back on track.
"But there was something else we found after the skirmish, when Rose and I finally got on our scouting mission."
He nodded to R2, who took the cue and started up a new hologram. A recording.
"We captured this from our overwatch nest," Rose informed.
From that nest, they managed to get a clear view of part of the makeshift base the First Order had made out of the crashed Star Destroyer. Activity there was high. But one little detail everybody took notice of, now that they weren't under fire from them, was that, excluding the flametroopers who had them for practical reasons, the troopers weren't wearing helmets. Just their armor, and beaten up armor at that, showing that they'd fought heavily. For many, it was the first time they had ever seen unmasked stormtroopers, not counting Finn.
The focus shifted towards two troopers holding a conversation.
"How's the extraction coming along?" one of them asked. The shoulder pauldron revealed him to be a commander. Even over hologram, it was easy to see he had much experience in battle. His appearance was gritty, hardened by the war. The state of his armor showed it. It was scuffed, dented, and beaten. There were even pieces missing completely.
"We've almost got the AT-ST out from the wreckage. Once it's out we'll have a massive firepower advantage against the Resistance. They have no units equipped to handle it," the other, a heavy trooper, notified, pride noticeable in her voice but with a twinge of anxiety accompanying it. Unlike her superior, she was much more fresh-faced. Practically a shiny, holding her standard-issue FWMB-10 repeating blaster - often called the Megablaster for short - with both hands as if she was under inspection. The only thing that stopped her from being a full-on shiny was her armor. It was in a state much like her superior's: beaten down and scuffed beyond recognition.
Rey crossed her arms as she took notice of how young the girl was. She was around the same age as herself, still very young. A girl stripped of her innocence too soon. Practically a child sent off to war. A pawn sent off to die.
They had much in common. Yet they were also very different. Rey wasn't a naïve, pathetic child anymore. She wasn't some pawn for the Resistance to send out anymore. She was at the top now, and she planned to stay there.
"Just because it's powerful doesn't make it invincible," the commander cautioned with the wisdom of someone who had been there and done that. "Especially here, of all places. Cities are deathtraps for armor. There are a million different places where the Resistance can hide and blast a rocket at it where it can't shoot back. We need to be careful how we use it."
The younger girl nodded. Then, with an anxious hesitation, she timidly asked, "Sir… do you think we'll make it out of this? I mean," she shrugged helplessly, like a massive weight had just been set on her shoulders, "there's nobody coming to help us. Is there even a point in fighting back anymore?"
The commander's hardened mug seemed to soften in sympathy at her despair. "We fight to survive. Surrender just isn't an option. The Resistance will just shoot us on sight." He laid a hand on her shoulder supportively. "The only thing we can do is take it one day at a time. Survive until the next day, then the next after that."
Her face grew reluctantly optimistic at her superior's words, and she nodded. Their chances may still be terrible, but thinking about it one day at a time made it easier to stomach.
R2 then cut the recording.
Most everyone watching felt some sympathy for the two troopers. Seeing them without their helmets humanized them in their eyes. It reminded them that there were real people underneath that armor.
Finn especially was affected. The reminder that stormtroopers were still real people hit him especially hard. It made him feel sick as he recalled all the times he blasted his former brothers and sisters without hesitation.
Rey, however, had only one question. "Why didn't you kill them?"
The disappointment in her voice made everyone stop in surprise. This was not what they expected her to say. Zorii in particular gaped in utter disbelief at her callousness.
"… I'm sorry?" Rose tried. She didn't understand Rey's displeasure.
"You had a clear shot on them," Rey explained to Finn and Rose like it was obvious. "Why didn't you kill them?" She repeated her question with an underlying tone demanding they answer her.
Finn looked to Rose, who stood shocked by the implication in Rey's question, as he tried to find an answer. He couldn't just say that he didn't want to; he had a feeling Rey wouldn't accept his sympathizing with the enemy.
"We figured we could learn more information if they stayed alive," he finally mumbled his answer, avoiding eye contact with her. He figured such an analytical and distanced answer would be welcomed.
Rey gave him an appraising look. She was still disappointed Finn and Rose had allowed those stormtroopers to live, but if it got them more information to use against them then she could live with that.
She finally nodded, though her eyes remained slightly narrowed. Something felt off in Finn. "Very well, then. But no more of that."
Rose looked at Rey with her eyebrows furrowed. She couldn't understand why she was so cold now. Her actions were starting to conflict with the usual ways the Resistance operated. And Rose didn't like it.
For a moment, nobody spoke up. The silence was thick, almost enough to choke. Nobody seemed to have the desire to speak up. It was like they were afraid of what would happen if they did.
Finally, Poe worked up the courage. "So, what do we do now?" he asked. "What's our play?"
"Ease off on them, but remain engaged," Rey responded. Sensing their confusion with her plan, she felt an explanation was necessary. "They won't advance if they know what's good for them. If they do, then they'll overstretch their supply lines. If that happens, we'll just cut them off, then encircle that pocket and crush it." She made a fist to emphasize. "Either way, we still win. Just this way, we might have to wait a little longer for them to run out their willpower. But it's worth it if it allows us to avoid any unnecessary loss of life."
Finn nodded his head in agreement. It was a good plan. "Sounds good." With that, the group began to disperse.
"One last thing, though," Rey lifted her finger to stop them from disbanding. Underneath her black hood, she quirked her lips in an ironic smile. "That commander was right."
Finn and Poe looked to each other in question. Several such looks were shared between all of them.
Rey looked to each of them, making sure she had their full attention. "From now on, if any First Order soldiers surrender, then they are to be executed."
She felt a spike of anger in the Force. Looking towards it, she saw an outraged Zorii. A sly smirk grew on her lips, which she used to taunt her further.
The former bounty hunter decided enough was enough and stormed off. She couldn't handle dealing with that… that bitch anymore.
Poe saw Zorii storm away. It concerned him. He moved to follow, but a cold hand on his shoulder stopped him.
Rey's piercing gaze served to warn him. "That is my order."
Those words stirred up conflict in Poe. He was never one for following orders for a long time, until the evacuation from D'Qar. After that, when they got to Crait, he came to realize the wisdom of following orders and trusting his superiors.
But that order seemed to upset Zorii quite a bit. And he had already upset her enough. He didn't want to do so anymore.
Rey pulled him along as she approached Finn. Finn felt her clamp a hand on his shoulder. He could feel the cold even through the fabric of his clothes.
"Finn, what would you feel if you lost Rose?" She then glanced to Poe. "What would you feel if you lost Zorii?"
Finn and Poe knew what they'd be like without them, but it was too terrible a possibility for them to put into words. They remained lost on what Rey was trying to say, however.
"I once lost someone like that. I can tell you it feels like losing half your soul." She swallowed thickly at the poignant reminder that Ben was gone from her life. The grief she still felt made her lose her composure a bit. "It is a punishment I wouldn't wish upon anybody."
Finn and Poe never knew that Rey had lost someone she loved that deeply, let alone that she had even been in love at all. With that loss, though, she was suffering every day now. Why didn't she tell them? About being in love in the first place as well as how much she had to be suffering now?
"If we give our enemies the chance, then they will take away all that we love." Her sickly, pale features then hardened into determined rage. "I will not let that happen. Not again."
Out of nowhere, she angrily shoved the both of them away. Finn nearly stumbled to the ground, but Rose caught and steadied him.
Poe had no such person to catch him, and he fell to the ground. He returned to his feet in a not so graceful manner.
"Dismissed!" Rey harshly announced. She then remembered something, and pointed at Beaumont. "Except you. You had an update for me."
Everyone except for Beaumont and Chewie left, Beaumont because of the update he had for Rey and Chewie because Rey had immediately sought out the Wookie for a deep hug. It was one she needed after talking about Ben again. She couldn't talk about him without becoming upset.
Poe immediately ran off after Zorii, and Rose and Finn departed together, but not before the Haysian took a moment to look at Rey. She noticed Chewie hesitated for a second to return Rey's embrace, and when he did, he looked like he was cold.
She noticed Rey had made a lot of people feel that way ever since her return.
"What are you thinking?" she heard Finn's sweet, gentle voice ask.
She looked to him and then back at Rey. For a long time, she thought the two inseparable. They clicked so well together. It reminded her of the bond she and Paige had shared. But now, they just seemed to be complete opposites down to their morals. Finn was such a cinnamon roll, while Rey seemed like this dark shadow.
"The greatest loyalty is that towards yourself, Finn," she finally said as she turned her head towards him, feeling a measure of trepidation as she did. She felt like one era was coming to an end, and another was just beginning. "Please, no matter what happens, please don't forget that."
Her pleading gaze was one he was unable to resist, nor did he really want to. He knew from experience that Rose was right one-hundred percent of the time. If she had a bad feeling about something, then Finn knew to take it seriously. She told him to not betray himself, but he also got what she was trying to say in between the lines, and was partly thankful she didn't actually say it. It allowed them to pretend everything was alright for just a while longer.
The former stormtrooper nodded. He trusted Rose very much. But enough to turn away from Rey? He didn't know the answer to that yet.
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That's chapter eight! In this one, I fail to resist writing more about my OCs, we find out the ultimate fate of the Ghost crew, the Resistance discovers a different side to the First Order, Rey takes a hardline stance on the First Order, and it stirs up internal conflict in the Resistance.
I did go back and change a line in chapter 6 referring to the last time Mika wielded a lightsaber. I just worded it to be more vague, because it allowed for more flexibility.
I originally was going to do this chapter a lot differently and have just the Resistance stuff, but then I had a great idea to do for the next bit I wanted to do. It's just that, with that idea, this chapter would've been either way too long because I decided to include it, or way too short because I moved it to the next chapter, and I didn't want that inconsistency. So then I thought of the stuff regarding the fate of the Rebels characters, and I found a way to tie that into the story and fill in that gap. It may not make sense now, but rest assured, that part does have a purpose.
Again, Rey's actions are done not necessarily because she's evil, but because she believes she's right. But then again, every villain believes they're the good guy. Her actions are driven by the desire to stop something like what happened to her – losing Ben, someone she loved deeply – from happening to anyone else. But at the same time, she doesn't care how she achieves that. That last point in particular is the main one that puts some of the Resistance at odds with her.
I've always wanted to see more regarding the First Order stormtroopers. I felt they had a great chance to really expose them to be just soldiers doing their duty just like the Resistance, but they didn't and just made Finn a traitor with no remorse for his former brothers and sisters and made the First Order stormtroopers carbon copies of Imperial stormtroopers. Considering Finn's loyalty, I feel like he wouldn't be so quick to kill them, but perhaps he just didn't think about it when there was a mask in between them. But now, with the helmetless troopers, he's forced to confront that he was gunning down his former comrades, people he once knew.
That's about it out of me. If you enjoyed, then give this story a favorite, follow it, and leave a review! I love answering them!