Chapter 1

Alex woke early the next day to the sounds of her alarm blaring across the room. It had become a common occurrence for her to leave her alarm on the other side of her living space. This forced Alex to actually get out of bed to turn it off. On days when she was being particularly stubborn, R4 would be forced to deliver a small electric shock to her arm which always dangled off the side of the bed.

Fortunately for Alex, this was not one of those days, but never let it be said that Alex was a morning person. With a groan, she threw back the bedsheets and climbed out of bed.

After silencing the incessant irritation that was her alarm clock, Alex was greeted by a series of beeps and whistles as R4 emerged from his power down mode. Smiling at the droid, she quickly moved to her wardrobe to grab some clothes for the day. In the end, Alex settled for a dark pair of trousers, a purple tank top and her customary, black leather jacket.

However, now she was running a little late. She quickly pulled on her boots and placed her blaster in the holster on her belt. While she may have been on base, it was always better to have a weapon on you than not.

She only had one mission brief to attend today while the rest of the day would be spent repairing her ship. The last time she had gone out in it, she'd run a foul of some pirates. While she came out unscathed, her U-wing had not. She had spent the last three days fixing the damage. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, she should have it fully repaired by the day's end.

With R4 rolling along behind her, Alex left her room and headed towards the main control room. Despite the early hour, the halls were filled with pilots, mechanics and the like. Alex steadily weaved her way through the crowds. She earned a few nods of acknowledgement from workers that knew her and were not too focused on their work. However, there were a few scowls as well.

Alex was quite well known around the rebel base and not all looked upon her favourably. But, alas, it came with her position. As one of the top intelligence officers, she was regarded with some mistrust by various members of the rebellion. But the same could be said for the rest of her unit. No one can really trust someone who spies on people as a career. Not everyone had been happy when the General had restarted the Rebellion's special intelligence division six years ago but the results spoke for themselves. They were needed. It also gave Alex an opportunity to contribute more than just being a mechanic. The mystery that came with being an intelligence officer allowed Alex to hide her identity even further when a fellow rebel became a bit too curious regarding her background. Luckily, thanks to the efforts of Alex and the commanding officers of the Rebellions, no one had ever delved in too deep.

Command was as busy as ever. From people gathered around monitors to others carrying large stacks of files which needed to be sign and sorted, there was not a single still soul to be seen.

Finally, Alex found person she was looking for. Stood behind a desk at the back of the room was General Organa herself. There a couple of other generals with her and… Alex paused slightly. While Alex had nothing against Commander Dameron, just something about him always irritated her. Whether this was intentional or not, she wasn't sure. Steeling herself, she had R4 wait in the hallway and then continued to make her way to the General until she stood just in front of her desk.

Leia immediately looked to see who had interrupted her meeting but her eyes quickly softened upon seeing her daughter.

"Captain Simms," she spoke in a clipped tone. While Alex was her daughter, no one else in the room knew that so Leia was forced to address Alex like any other soldier.

"General," Alex answered, "I apologise for the interruption but you said to come see you first thing this morning."

Even after nearly 9 years of addressing her as such, Alex still saw a flash of hurt in her mother's eyes every time she called her General Organa. Alex had no doubt that the same flash occurred in her own eyes as well. However, they both knew that it was for the best. If the First Order ever discovered that Alex still lived, they would never stop hunting her.

Ben would never stop until he found her.

"Of course," Leia spoke, her voice never betraying the conflict she felt. She moved the papers on the desk around until she came across the datapad she'd placed there earlier. Leia handed it over the table to Alex. "Regarding your next mission, everything you need to know is on there. I would go through it with you but, as you can see, we're rather busy right now. If you have any questions, feel free to find me later."

Alex looked up from where she was skimming through the information in the datapad. "I understand General. I'll look it over and get back to you."

"When will you be leaving? From what I understand, your ship still needs repairs."

"Just a few bumps and scratches. Nothing that shouldn't be fixed by this evening. I should be able to leave in the morning."

"Had you have let another mechanic help with your ship, it would have been fixed by now," Leia commented with a barely there smile, already knowing how her daughter will answer.

"No one but me touches my ship. I break it and I fix it. It's how I was taught."

"As you wish. I expect to see an official notification as to whether or not you will leave tomorrow by tonight."

"Yes ma'am." Alex gave a brief salute to the General and left the control room with R4 rolling after her.