A/N: The saga continues

LIBERATION FLIGHT

Chapter 5:On Reinforcements and Hideaways

"Are you sure you don't want us to accompany you? You can't keep on hitchhiking your way across the galaxy, Cosette."

"Thanks for the offer, but we can't all go, not all at once. General Organa needs you and Finn on hand too, till Rey gets back from her mission."

Now, with the transport ship rattling to pieces as it went down through Bakura's atmosphere, Cosette found herself wishing she had just asked Poe and Finn to accompany her in this investigation of the First Order's forays into an Outer Rim trade corridor. 'We wouldn't have attracted attention, not like this!' she thought as another bolt of laser fire rocked the ship, making more of its beleaguered passengers scream while the captain tried to stay in control of the failing spacecraft. Then again, it was only to be expected that in the light of recent events, the First Order forces in the system would not hesitate to fire on any starship, even a civilian one. 'Then again, with Snoke now on the warpath, this was long in coming,' she told herself as she heard an alarm screech.

"Brace yourselves! We're making an emergency landing!" the pilot shouted over the rising din. "Everyone-"

His next words were drowned out by a scream, but Cosette lost no time in helping secure a couple of youngsters who had resorted to crying while clinging to their equally terrified parents. She had only a moment to brace herself against a bulkhead as the ship dropped sharply before bouncing against the ground and then coming to a jerky stop. Thick black smoke quickly filled the passenger compartment, even as blaster bolts cut through the darkness outside.

A woman clutched at Cosette's hand. "We'll be captured! What are we going to do?"

"We have to run," Cosette said, taking a shallow breath before she leapt past some wounded passengers towards the twisted door of the ship. She focused on a weak point she found in the doorway, giving it the slightest of pushes so that the metal would give just enough to create an aperture. 'Wouldn't do to blow cover this early,' she thought as she leapt out in order to help some of he passengers out.

Yet as soon as her feet hit the ground, she already could see a patrol of First Order stormtroopers approaching on a skiff, and already preparing to fire at the crippled ship. She immediately grabbed the lightsaber at her belt and powered it up, just in time to ward off the first blaster bolt that lit up the gloom. "Go!" she shouted to the other passengers who were crowding around the escape route she had created. In the yellow glow of her weapon she could see three more people rushing through the haze of smoke and ozone to this scene, but firing instead on the patrol's vehicle. Taking advantage of this covering fire, Cosette rushed back to her fellow passengers, warding off what blaster bolts still endangered their transport. "Go round the wreckage and make for the spaceport," she told the co-pilot, who stood at the head of this group. "There will surely be help at that place."

This shaken man nodded slowly. "And what about you, Miss..."

"I'll follow," Cosette said as she turned off her lightsaber. 'Just not sure when, or how,' she thought even as she rushed back into the fray. By this time the newcomers had already successfully crippled the First Order troops' transport, and taken out the stormtroopers. Cosette took a step forward, sensing that they did not intend any harm to her. She paused as an odd feeling washed over her, of familiarity mingled with surprise. 'Which could only come from one person,' she thought even as she caught the gaze of the one woman in this trio. "Ponine!"

The redheaded woman nearly dropped her holdout blaster. "What are you doing here, Cosette?"

"Very long story," Cosette replied, now smiling widely with relief on seeing her friend.

"Obviously! I mean you, a Jedi-" Eponine hissed.

One of Eponine's companions, a tall young man with golden hair, signed for her to be quiet even as he turned off his own comlink. "Combeferre and Joly will meet the other passengers. Some of them may need medical attention," he said in an undertone.

Eponine nudged him with her elbow. "Back to business as always, Enjolras? I haven't made any introductions yet."

Enjolras shrugged before nodding to his other companion, a slender dark-haired man who was now standing around with an incredulous expression. "Marius, are you well?"

The man named Marius blushed before shaking himself. "I'm fine," he stammered. He swallowed hard as he looked at Cosette. "It was brave of you to cover them."

"I wasn't about to just run off," Cosette said amiably. There was something about Marius' affable, even rather blustering manner that lightened her spirits considerably, especially in the aftermath of such a near escape. It was all she could do not to laugh when Marius reddened again when he glanced at her as they hurried in the general direction of a spaceport. "Is there something wrong?"

"It's just that all these things are unusual," Marius replied more easily. "The First Order normally does not trouble this planet."

"They are after the repulsorlift businesses," Enjolras deadpanned. "What is unusual is this raid. Where do your fellow passengers come from?" he asked, directing this query to Cosette.

"Everywhere. We flew out from Folor," Cosette replied. That particular spaceport was a huge crossroads, with all kinds of ships flying out to nearly every point within the Republic. She paused on seeing that Enjolras and Marius were carrying heavy blaster rifles with them. "Are you with the local police force?"

Enjolras looked at her for a moment. "No. Does this trouble you?"

"It's a legitimate question," Eponine retorted as she clasped his arm. "I'm pretty sure that this, and all the searches at the spaceport are related."

"You have a story too, Ponine," Cosette said lightly. 'Bakura doesn't have need for a resistance cell, so perhaps they feel their authorities have betrayed them,' she realized as they entered the spaceport only to find more pilots similarly armed with various weapons. In a corner was what appeared to be a sort of tapcaf that had now been converted into a medical station for the rescued passengers. Two young men, apparently medics of some sort, moved in the middle of this confusion, attending to the wounded. A Twi'lek and a Wookie were working to calm an agitated group of patients. In a corner two other young men were arguing with a burly gentleman dressed in scarlet, but with a designation marking him as the spaceport's superintendent.

Marius shook his head. "That cannot be good if not even Courfeyrac and Jehan cannot reason with Javert," he commented.

Enjolras gritted his teeth. "He is the one who owes an explanation." He nodded to Marius and the ladies. "Excuse me for a moment."

Marius glanced at Enjolras as he walked off, then back at Eponine. "Aren't you going with him?"

"Not till she tells us exactly what is going on first," Eponine said as she pulled Cosette aside and shooed Marius off. Her eyes were dark with confusion and a new sort of wariness as she regarded the other girl. "If you're here, that means the Resistance is getting involved," she said bluntly.

"Yes, but it's just to check whether it's true that the First Order has been moving in this part of the galaxy," Cosette replied. "It's not a military strike."

Eponine made a scoffing noise. "That's why I don't see Dameron anywhere?"

"The General has him and Finn on another mission," Cosette informed her. "For now," she added, seeing Eponine's disbelieving look.

"So Finn actually got use of his legs again?"

"He's getting better. I am not sure how he and Poe work it out but they team up a lot."

"Of course," Eponine said knowingly. She gestured to Cosette's lightsaber. "If you have that, I guess then that Rey found Luke Skywalker after all."

"She did," Cosette said proudly. It had taken a few weeks till she had suddenly gotten a message from Rey, asking her and Jean Valjean to come to the ancient Jedi temple. Ever since then she and Rey had been training together, up until summons suddenly came from General Organa, asking for all of them to return to D'Qar. 'She got her brother back, Master Valjean had a flight to command, while Rey and I have a Sith to find,' she thought.

Eponine chewed the inside of her cheek for a moment. "We may have gotten all the stormtroopers, but I'm sure there's still someone who'll report back with a tale of a Jedi Knight in the area. If that doesn't bring Kylo Ren here, I don't know what will," she muttered.

'That is if he's not already here,' Cosette thought, but she knew better than to voice this out. After all, for all she knew, Rey might have already caught up with the renegade first. Before she could say anything to this, a red burst of light shot through the spaceport. "Everyone take cover!" someone shouted.

"Right this way!" Marius called as he hurried back towards Eponine and Cosette. "Get into the tapcaf!"

"Are you crazy? We'll be cornered!" a woman shouted.

"We won't," Enjolras cut in firmly as he helped lead some more of the crowd into the barroom. Marius sprinted ahead and tapped a button on the underside of the bar. "Here," he said.

Cosette gaped at the trick floor that opened up a few feet away. "A storeroom?"

"A hideaway," Marius replied. He awkwardly held out a hand to her. "Need help?"

Cosette did not need any sort of inkling from the Force to prompt her to take his hand and leap with him into the cellar.