Flix sings under his breath while working: "Moon bright, star bright, love light… dancing in the dark with you, so true." Kel grins, while Eila giggles softly. But they don't say anything, and neither does Orka, who's clearly used to it, even humming along a little. Kel is surprised how much he likes this small mundane task- helping Acquisitions dig through leftover scrap, since the Chelidae are in need of a spare part to fix the Colossus.
It's great to be free of the underground engineering rooms. They've grown so used to creeping through the shadowed passages, but now that the Colossus is aloft in space, they don't have to be worried about venturing out and being nabbed for a bounty.
Still, Kel misses the sky and fresh air.
Eila dreams of the monster before he arrives. She tells Kel: "He has an ugly voice like thunder. He makes the light of every living thing go out."
Nobody takes it as a dire portent, not even the temple elders, even though Eila's always had the reputation for being Force-touched. She knew that their baby cousin was going to be born dead; she knew that the rhinebeasts were going to attack last midsummer.
Instead, the villagers keep an eye out for small-scale tragedies, minor threats, and it's only Eila's absolute terror that keeps her and Kel alive.
They sneak aboard a transport headed for Castilon. In Kel's arms, Eila is crying and crying as she feels everyone die, cut down by a slash of red.
Mika tells them stories of the Jedi and Sith. Once, there was a Twi'lek who was connected so strongly with the darkness, who became the apprentice of a Sith Lord before being turned into stone by his master. Once, there was a Jedi warrior who bore a shield and a saber, wandering planet to planet and helping those in need.
At the temple, Kel and Eila have heard tales like these before, but it's interesting to hear new stories from a woman with a harsh accented voice, who makes animated gestures every twist and turn of the story.
"I wish a Jedi could have saved our village," Eila says, quietly. Sometimes it seems like with every evil act by a Sith, there is a noble deed by a Jedi, both clashing, interacting, advancing history in their own different ways.
"It's not as easy as that, girl," Mika says, shaking her head.
Eila doesn't understand completely, but she's aware that the Force is in everyone and you don't need to be a Jedi to be nice or good. Kaz and the Aces keep the Colossus safe, and they're no Jedi, not at all.
It's only much later that she remembers a story her mother told her once.
Before she was born, a bearded man in a robe had come to Tehar, bringing along a dark haired boy in tow. They had come to the temple to study it, and when they had found that its powers were weakening, they had fortified it, touching its walls and whispering.
For several years afterward, the rhinebeasts did not attack the village.
Kel and Eila learn the Chelidae's rough burring language. It's hard, but Chl'parr is patient, carefully naming objects and feelings and concepts, and some days, Kel's so used to speaking it that it's awkward to form words in Basic again.
For a while, he's envious of the Chelidae's shells. The Chelidae word for it means something like home.
How lucky, Kel thinks. Feeling like home is attached to your back, a place where you can easily curl up and hide in. It's not someplace you can ever really lose.
A man in a blue-striped X-wing lands in the Colossus' hangar, greeting Torra's mom and the rest of Jade Squadron with a warm smile. For a second, Kel wonders if this is the Commander Dameron that Kaz speaks so often about, but it turns out, it's another Resistance pilot, some guy named Snap Wexley.
He's here to pick up the new recruits, to take them back to base for training. He talks to Venisa about people they know - "My mom and Wedge are still out searching for more Rebel veterans. Karé's leading escort missions while I'm out recruiting; I miss her like hell," prompting Venisa to make a sound of sympathy.
Kaz is eager to hear news as well - "Poe and Beebee? Same ol', just took off on a mission to infiltrate a First Order bacta plant. They're with that ex-stormtrooper friend of his."
Then Snap catches sight of Neeku, who's intently fixing droids.
Kel and Eila are helping Neeku, handing him tools and practicing their Chelidaen. Even though they're getting better talking to Chl'parr and Vilpac, they've found that it's helpful to be taught by someone who knows how to switch back to Basic and explain the meanings of words.
"Oh ho, what's this?" Snap says, in soft surprise, leaning down to peer at the old droid in front of the Nikto.
"He is a B1 battle droid," Neeku informs him. "A gang of pirates attempted to use Clone Wars droids to take over the station, but since I programmed them, I stopped the mutiny in the nick of time. Unfortunately, due to a misunderstanding by the people of Aeos, they were disabled and I'm endeavoring to repair them."
"No," Venisa says, before Snap can say anything. "I've heard the stories from your mom. Absolutely not."
"But-"
"No, Temmin."
Snap sighs, and he pats the B1 droid's joints. "Okay. Kid, if you need any help fixing him, there's a secure HoloNet channel you can reach me by and I can walk you through the process. I'll leave the contact instructions with Kaz. Take good care of your B1 droid, alright?"
"Of course," Neeku says. "I appreciate your offer. He was a most useful friend. I'm looking forward to having him help protect the Colossus again."
Snap beams at that. His expression sobers when he looks over at Kel and Eila. "Hey, you were in one of the last reports that Ello wrote. The kids from Tehar. General Organa was hoping to get word out about what happened, so the galaxy could hear what the First Order did to your home. But things got crazy…"
"You wanted to send a broadcast about our planet?" Kel asks, disbelieving. He knows that Tehar's a small planet near Wild Space; it never got involved in any big galactic conflict until now, not even under the Empire.
Snap says, "It's a horrible thing. A war crime. The truth should get out there some way or another, so the First Order doesn't get to sweep it under the rug."
"He's right," Kaz says, ambling over, his hands in his pockets. "They shouldn't get away with it." His brow is furrowed, tight, tense; it's only recently that he's been speaking about Hosnian Prime, childhood friends and street speeder races and walking in the hanging gardens with his mom.
"There's room in the transport shuttle." Snap jerks his thumb behind him. "You can come back to base with us. Suralinda is our resident journalist. She'll get your story out. And the general won't mind keeping you kids safe, we've been settling down pretty well in our new base…."
"Oh," Eila says softly.
Kel doesn't know what to say. Leaving the Colossus? Leaving the only people they know and care about in the galaxy?
"Kel. Eila." A steady hand on his shoulders. Kel looks up, sees Yeager, who's entered the hangar. Snap gives him a half-salute, while Yeager says, "Temmin," with a nod of his head.
"It's a good offer," Yeager murmurs, his voice a low rumble. "You'll be missed, but you kids deserve this chance. On the other hand, remember that you faked your deaths."
"And they'll be hunting us down again, trying even harder," Kel says. Eila shudders, grabs Kel's sleeve.
They're the only survivors, the only ones who saw. The First Order would know.
"But," Yeager says, "Eila, Mika has been talking with me. You're most likely Force-sensitive. I've been hearing that there's a Jedi girl with the Resistance. I never believed in any of this Force stuff, but back in the day, I met Luke Skywalker. I still can't believe he's apparently gone for good… Anyways, maybe this girl can help you."
"Rey," Snap confirms."She's a tough cookie."
This is Eila's choice, then. Kel will go anywhere Eila goes. He shoots her an understanding glance, and she bites her lip, frowning deeply.
Finally, she says: "I'd like to tell the galaxy about Tehar and meet the Jedi one day, but not yet. There's still more to do here, Mister Wexley. The Colossus is our home." She takes Kel's hand into hers, and he squeezes it reassuringly.
"Fair enough," Snap says, solemnly. "Just know that we'll always be here, if you change your minds." He walks back toward Venisa, pulled into a low conversation with her and Yeager and Kaz about Resistance business.
Neeku puts down a wrench. "I am glad the both of you decided to stay. Your Chelidaen still needs improvement."
"We're learning," Kel says. With a mischievous smile, he says a Chelidaen swear word, eliciting a shocked gasp from Neeku.
For now, they are home. The Colossus drifts from system to system. Its inhabitants pick up work from the occasional shipyard or scrapyard they dock at to keep things running-the Aces enter into races and collect the prize money, more successful than the Vranki incident-and they pick up missions from the Resistance, shoring up supplies and fuel, an evermoving safe haven for those in need.
Kel and Eila help when they can, frequent mechanic assistants to Neeku, Tam, Kaz, Yeager, Flix, Orka, and the Chelidae. Torra introduces them to hologames. Mika tells them about her old adventures rescuing Jedi and Sith artifacts. Synara shows Kel how to shoot a blaster, despite Kaz's protests-"You're just jealous that the boy is a better shot than you, Kaz. You grew up hunting, Kel, didn't you?"
Kel did. His mother taught him how to shoot her energy bow. She was the best hunter in the village, but that still wasn't enough against the monster.
Eila's strange dark dreams remain. The night before the Emperor's message resonates throughout the galaxy, she wakes up screaming.
In the middle of the day, shiptime, Eila walks through the Colossus' corridors. She is humming a song that Flix sometimes sings, a treacly ballad, and then she stops and she sees, she feels-
An old woman with dark greying hair and dark kind eyes. "Leia," Eila says, her breath caught in her throat. "You're Princess Leia." And something about the woman seems to glow, suffusing Eila with a momentary sensation of warmth.
Then, she's gone.
The Colossus and the Aces join the fight at Exegol, and the war is won. The monster is dead and so is the emperor, but it's not a war without loss. Kaz's friend Hugh dies in the battle, and Kaz is clearly shaken. Neeku hears word about Snap Wexley, who he's been corresponding with via holomail, and he sighs, murmurs something about potentially installing a B1 droid personality template to honor his memory.
But it's amazing to see the happiness, the joy.
Venisa, Torra, and Captain Doza have their arms around each other, smiling, crying. Venisa says: "We did it again, Imanuel. We did it again."
Eila stands next to Kel in the hangar. Both of them are staring at the Doza family, wistful, but then, Yeager congratulates them on the quick repair work they did on the Colossus during the battle. Aunt Z jubilantly offers a tray of drinks, which Kel politely declines ("More for us!" Flix exclaims, nabbing it for him and Orka). Mika sets her hands on their shoulders and says, "It looks like everything worked out in the end, didn't it?"
"Yeah," Eila says. "It did." She can feel the light thrumming through her, through everything. It's at peace.
When Mika leaves, she invites Kel and Eila to join her, and this time, they say yes.
"There's an old friend of mine who collects artifacts, just like I do. I've been meaning to catch up with him."
They say their goodbyes, but they promise to visit. The Colossus has returned to Castilon, the businesses and races resuming, life back to normal. They're not the only ones leaving, though. Kaz departs to reunite with his family, who have been hiding somewhere in the Outer Rim.
Under the suns of Batuu, under the shadows of towering black spires, Eila and Kel meet a woman and a man who have lightsabers clipped to their belts. The woman wears a white capelet, her hair tied back and her eyes solemn bright. The man wears a jacket, carrying himself with the same kind of bearing that reminds Kel of Yeager and Doza: familiar with war, yet kind and loyal to the people they care about.
"You're here to visit Savi, too, I wager," Mika says, smiling at the two Jedi.
Awed, entranced, Eila touches Kel's forearm as if to say - are you seeing what I'm seeing? - and he gives her a companionable nudge. Together, they introduce themselves, ready to step into the next story.