Making love didn't change any aspects of their relationship, save for the fact that they spent far more nights in one another's rooms.
It became clear how close the pair was once Ellra was discovered in Poe's room when a lieutenant was sent to fetch him early one morning. And while the rest of Black Squadron made a point of teasing the couple until Ellra's face was bright lilac, no one really seemed to judge.
When Ellra confided in her best friend about what happened the night they returned home, Ilya gave a double thumbs up and said, "Get you some, Ell! Is Poe the stud rumor says he is?"
Ellra thought she was having a heart attack.
The week that followed found Ellra increasing her training. Every spare moment she had was dedicated to flight simulations and shooting practice.
Because Poe had been injured on what was supposed to be a quick, easy mission, she convinced herself that he could be killed at any moment. So she took it upon herself to be his protector. Obviously, she could not accompany Black Squadron on its secret missions, but she was determined to tag along with Poe everywhere else he went.
After a week and a half, Poe's burns were just dark scarring along his side and they weren't overly painful; he was cleared for active duty by Dr. Kalonia.
There was unofficial talk of a special mission for Black Squadron, independent of its normal goal, one in which Ellra would be allowed to participate. It was kept very hush-hush, with just Poe and Snap whispering among themselves.
One evening, after milking the cappa, Ellra was called into command to be briefed on the now-official mission.
Black Squadron, Colonel Umber, and a handful of high command were present.
General Organa stood next to a holo of a small planet with rugged terrain.
"This is Terrinagua," she said, clicking through the slides. A remote quadrant of the galaxy showed next. "Most of you have never heard of it. That's because it's small and out of the way." She clicked again and the holo played footage of a mine tucked in a rocky valley. "This is the Cragg Otel Mine, owned by some wealthy friends of mine from my days in the senate. They've secretly been under First Order occupation for years. They never let on because the safety of their operation and employees was at stake. Just last week, they got bold and asked us for a favor."
The general went on to explain that Cragg Otel had been taken over back before the First Order had officially made itself known to the Republic. Their ore had been of immense value to the Order for several years, but they were tired of being used and the mine was going bankrupt from isolation and being unable to sell the fruits of its labor.
When the First Order had conquered the area, they isolated the mine's shield generator from the rest of the operation, making it vulnerable to an attack from orbit. A Star Destroyer orbited the planet, ready to destroy the entire operation if they resisted the occupation.
The mine's owners asked the Resistance to liberate their shield generator so that the miners might have a chance to defend themselves against their occupiers. The Resistance didn't need an incentive to help victims of the First Order, but the owners promised them a share of the mine's future profits, once they got going again, and the Resistance desperately needed financial backers.
The mission was complex. A stealth transport would land outside the valley while the Star Destroyer was on the other side of the planet. Poe and Snap were in charge, and Snap would hold a troop of ground soldiers on standby while Poe and the rest of Black Squadron (which now included Suralinda after their last mission) freed the shield generator. Once the shield was up, and the Star Destroyer was no longer a threat, Snap's troops would go into the mining facility and help the miners defeat the occupying Stormtroopers. Colonel Umber and Ellra would protect both groups from above.
When the explanation was finished, Ellra leaned over to Poe and whispered, "I'm ready to go."
"I know you are," said Poe softly, unable to hide a grin. "We're waiting for the right moment in the Star Destroyer's orbit before going."
The shuttle would depart for Terrinagua the following afternoon. Everyone was encouraged to get a good night's rest and dismissed.
Ellra followed Poe back to his room where they laid together and held one another for hours.
"I will protect you, Poe," she murmured, kissing his scruffy jaw and up to his ear.
"You better, Sunshine – it's your job," he said, grinning.
"Poe, you're an idiot," groaned Ellra, frustrated but laughing.
"I'm your idiot," said Poe, nuzzling her cheek.
"No one else's."
The pair made love like they might die tomorrow before falling asleep in each other's arms.
The shuttle set down beside a waterfall. It spilled over a rocky face 150 meters high and down into a pool large enough that Ellra's whole home village would fit in it. The stream wound down from the pool and into the jagged valley in which Cragg Otel was tucked.
Few offloading from the shuttle had the mindset to stop and appreciate the beauty of the scene. Snap did. He was in a foul mood, but the grace of the waterfall stopped him in his tracks as he organized his team.
"We get sent a lot of places," he said. "Sometimes we forget to appreciate the beauty."
BB-8 gave a series of concerned beeps.
An infantryman nodded and said, "The 'bot's got a point, sir. Are you okay, Captain?"
The awe left Snap's face and his mouth set back into a grim line. "I'm fine."
Snap and his crew would wait with the shuttle until the shield generator was liberated. Ellra and Colonel Umber were to set out first and find suitable posts over the mine and generator. Shortly, Poe and the rest of Black Squadron would follow and make their way to the shield generator.
Ellra geared up, pulling the hood of her reed cloak over her head, and headed out. Instead of following the river down the valley, she would go up, scaling rough terrain littered with granite formations until she was on the cliffside overlooking the shield generator.
The ground was rocky and loose, but the stone protrusions provided ample handholds, so Ellra never fell down, even though she slipped a few times. Soft yellow brush poked out of the cracks, providing camouflage.
It felt like several hours, but it was little more than one when Ellra spotted the silhouette of the shield generator over the edge of the cliff. She fell to the ground right then and commando crawled to the edge where she could see the entire structure.
Ellra settled in the soft grass and assembled her rifle, preparing to examine the valley below her.
The shield generator itself was molded into the gorge, fitting neatly in the crags and drop-offs. The control bunker was a short distance away, built out of the same granite as the boulders protruding from the ground. A handful of Stormtroopers casually patrolled, blasters in hand.
"Black Leader," said Ellra, softly, into her comm. "This is Red Eleven. Do you copy?"
"This is Black Leader," said Poe. "I read you loud and clear, Ell. What do you have?"
"It's pretty clear over here," she said, scanning the ground below. "Three troopers patrolling your way into the valley. Four more marching in between the bunker and the generator. I don't have an eye on how many inside the bunker. That's yours."
"I copy. We're ten minutes out, according to BB-8's readings of the topography. Keep in touch."
In a few minutes, Ellra spotted Poe and the others creeping into the valley, guns at the ready. She waited until the patrol of three Stormtroopers was the most isolated in their circuit and fired three shots in quick succession. The troopers fell as the shots echoed through the valley.
"Good work, Ell," whispered Jessika into the comm.
The other four Stormtroopers were scrambling, running up and down the open space between the control bunker and the shield generator, aiming their blasters this way and that as they tried to spot the source of the shots. The wind blew through the yellow grass and the morning sun lingered over Ellra's shoulder; she was invisible.
One shot.
Then two.
One more.
Three of the four troopers fell dead to the ground, but the fourth toppled behind a boulder, hugging his gun.
Momentarily, a small contingent of white-armored troops spilled out of the bunker. Poe emerged from behind a rock and fired at them, signaling Karé, Jessika, and Suralinda to open fire as well. The three women spread out, emerging from behind different rock formations, half surrounding the Stormtroopers. BB-8 rolled up behind the troopers and began zapping them, distracting them enough for Black Squadron to get clear shots.
From above, Ellra felled a fourth of the troopers. Black Squadron felled a third.
On Poe's signal, the team bolted for the bunker, rushing inside and locking the blast doors.
Ellra waited, picking off the stray Stormtroopers as another, larger contingent entered the valley from the direction of the mine.
"Poe, you guys got company," she said into the comm. "Don't leave the bunker yet."
Silence.
Finally, through some static, "BB-8 is trying to slice in. The First Order has heavy cyber security in here. Give us a minute." Ellra couldn't be sure who said it.
Shortly, a white energy pulse emanated from the shield generator, enveloping the entire area in a protective wall of light.
"Black Squadron, this is Red Eleven. The shield is active. Repeat, the shield is active," said Ellra.
"We copy, Ell," said Suralinda over the staticky comm. "Poe's calling in Snap's troops. Stand by."
The Stormtroopers tried to blast open the shield generator control bunker, but to no avail. Several fired their blasters randomly up the cliff walls, trying to take out the source of the killing shots.
In five minutes, distant shots echoed through the gorge and off the rocks, followed by shouts and battle cries. Snap's team must have arrived at the mine. In another five minutes, eight Resistance troops and a dozen armed miners entered the valley below Ellra, firing on the remaining Stormtroopers. With her help, the entire troop was neutralized.
"Black Squadron, you're clear to leave the bunker," she said into the comm. "Again, the valley is clear of First Order forces."
"That's awesome," said Jessika. "We'll be right out."
Poe, Karé, Jess, Sura, and BB-8 all exited the bunker, walking over and greeting the troops and miners.
"Come on down, Ell," said Poe, squinting as he looked up towards Ellra. "Your job is done."
At that moment, a single First Order officer raced out of the bunker, stumbling as she went, and fired at Poe. Sura pulled him out of the way and Ellra shot the officer, her hands shaking.
"Poe?" she cried into the comm.
"He's okay," said Karé, shaking her head in exasperation.
Poe shook off the encounter, then turned and looked up at Ellra, one hand over his eyes. His hand moved to a two-finger salute and he grinned.
Ellra laughed nervously before saying into the comm, "Poe, my job is never done."
Two of the miners were left to man the shield generator while the rest trudged through the gorge to the main facility.
Ellra had never seen a mine before, and she was awed by the size of the structures and equipment. The mouth of the mine itself could have swallowed her whole village. Cranes taller than anything she had ever seen loomed over tracks and carts heavy with ore. Droids ran dangerous looking machinery that moved giant crates and loads of ore around.
"Spirits," she whispered to herself, trying to take it all in. "What an operation."
Stormtroopers hid behind metal crates and equipment, firing at the miners and soldiers. The miners had the home advantage and used the equipment to attack and the landscape to defend. Unarmed First Order officers occasionally screamed and ran from one hiding place to another; the Resistance soldiers captured as many of them as possible to use for leverage later.
Ellra climbed to the top of a massive land clearing machine and used her perch to fire on the First Order forces.
"I see you, Red Eleven," said Colonel Umber over the comm. "You can't hide from my hawk's eye."
"I wouldn't dare try, Colonel," said Ellra, smiling as she scanned the landscape for her mentor.
"Don't bother, Ellra," said the colonel. "You won't find me."
Ellra returned to her duty, keeping a close eye on the Resistance forces and taking out any threats she spotted.
Here, she got to see how reckless Poe was in action. He either had very little regard for his own life or absolute faith in her ability to protect him. Ellra reasoned that it was some combination of the two.
Poe would run headlong into a skirmish, seeming to forget he could use the crates or rock formations for cover. Ellra would have to shoot half a dozen Stormtroopers to keep him from getting killed right there. Other times, he would throw himself between another Resistance fighter and their opponent, seemingly ready to give his life for theirs. This, of course, Ellra found endearing, even as she shot three enemy troops to keep him alive.
"Stay behind the damned rocks, Black Leader," she said through gritted teeth.
Early in the afternoon, the remaining First Order forces surrendered, taking a mine-owned shuttle in exchange for the promise of leaving Cragg Otel mine alone for good.
The First Order had no idea who helped the miners regain their independence since everyone was in plainclothes and the only First Order soldiers who saw Poe's face up close were dead by Ellra's hand.
The mission had worked out as perfectly as possible.
Even though the remaining Stormtroopers had been called back by their superiors, the Resistance soldiers helped the miners clear every space under the shield just in case. Ellra and Umber remained in their hiding places, scanning the ground below for hidden First Order forces.
A single First Order engineer remained. No one saw him because he was inside the cab of the land clearing machine Ellra had scaled.
The machine roared to life and Ellra's heart leapt into her throat. The rifle slipped from her fingers as the structure she had used for her perch vibrated and moved.
"Black Leader, mayday!" she yelled into her comm. "I don't know what's happening but something is!"
There wasn't an answer as the machine swerved into the group of miners and soldiers standing nearby. There were cries of shock as people leapt out of the way.
The part that Ellra now clung to suddenly swung from vertical to horizontal with a loud, rusty screech, and she tumbled off her perch, clinging to the edge of the surface she had fallen from.
"Poe!" she cried, not knowing what else to do.
She heard blasters and shouts, unsure what was happening on the ground. The machine slowed to a stop and hydraulics hissed. The horizontal arm rose back to its vertical position and Ellra lost her grip.
She fell.
No! Her leg hung from a moving part and she dangled upside-down. She heard the snap as her calf wedged in the machine, but didn't associate the sound with the pain shooting through her lower body.
"Help!" cried Ellra as she swung from her leg.
Blood trickled over her clothes and splashed on her cheek. She realized how serious her predicament had become and she panicked, afraid her leg would rip apart from her weight. She struggled, leaning up to free her leg, not thinking about the distance between her and the ground.
Her leg came free.
She was falling. She was in pain. And then… nothing.