Author's Crazy Apology: Guys, I am SO SO SO SO SO SO sorry for the delay between chapters. I've been going through a really rough patch lately. I mean hey, life happens. But, I'm really sorry for making you wait so long and then giving you a somewhat filler chapter... I'm the worst author ever.
Thank you to those who have reviewed and continued to review, you guys are amazing. All of you are amazing. Your continued love and support is the only thing keeping me going right now. I want to write because of you guys, so thank you. From the bottom of my heart, thank you all so much.
The pilot, the mechanic and the leader of the Ascension wandered into the newly established meeting area where the General, the Master, the Light User and the ex-Trooper were meeting; there was a silence. Everyone held their breath waiting to see what would become of the chaos that had seemingly been subdued for now. With bated breath, they stared in silence, only to have Kylo Ren roll his eyes and scoff. "Look, didn't kill him. Wonderful, we're all friends now. Can we please finish what we came to do?"
Before any snarkier comments were said; Ash spoke. "We need to go to Cularin; we are starting to run out of time." They all knew that; Ash was simply restating the facts. "We leave today, in the meantime, I need Master Skywalker to find us anything on the other stones. The rest of you need to build up, reach out to any sympathizers to our cause. We need to be in contact with the Ascension at all times, they're on our side too and we need all the help we can get."
Leia smiled; a sense of pride coming over her in the sudden authoritative position Ash was taking. "We will do what we can here." She looked to her son, a sense of reluctance coming from her as she reached out to him for his assistance. "Put us in contact with the Ascension again. I want to speak with your commanding officers directly."
Ren smirked knowingly. "Hux will love that." He muttered.
"Wait-" Poe chimed in. "General Hux is your commanding officer?" He knew the man well, at least, well enough to know he didn't like him. Granted, a lot of the dislike was mutual for both parties. However, for different reasons. "Who else left the First Order?"
Ren thought for a moment. "Let's see-" He began. "Phasma, Mitaka-" He would have continued; however, Finn's jaw had dropped. Ren frowned at the reaction before realizing the scenario before him. "Right, you're one of our traitors. You know Phasma."
"That's an odd way of putting it all things considered…" Finn chided; that moment of recognition over Phasma and his past dealings with the First Order were not so easily forgotten.
Ash ignored the side conversation between Ren and Finn and continued addressing the rest of the group that would listen. "I know a few freelance people on Lothal; they were my maintenance team; they're like family. I'm sure they'd be all for going against the First Order." She was willing to give Laynor and the rest of the crew a chance at being something more. She knew they didn't care for the dealings of the galactic order, however, she also knew the First Order would take them down once they ultimately took over. Everyone that wasn't fully aligned with them was doomed to fall.
"We will contact them as well." Leia confirmed willingly.
Her attention returned to Luke. "I don't know how to even begin with what you need to do."
Luke smiled slightly. "I have my ways of getting information. Don't worry about me."
Ash returned the small smile as she looked at Rey. "Are you ready to leave? We have to move while we can."
"Chewie had some important maintenance jobs to complete on the Falcon-"
"Oh no." Ren interjected; receiving death glares from Rey and Ashlyn. "We are not taking that piece of junk."
"We are taking the piece of junk." Ash insisted.
"It's not junk." Rey argued.
Kylo Ren laughed sarcastically. "Oh, it's a piece of junk. Han Solo may have taken care of it all these years, but that ship is garbage."
"He clearly put more care into the Falcon than you." Rey muttered as Kylo Ren clenched his fists, ready to start another war with the Resistance as Ash jumped in the middle.
"We are taking the Falcon." She said sternly to the man in black; her five feet of fury made for such an intimidating sight. A cute sight, but intimidating nonetheless. Kylo Ren glared at her, internally he knew there was no argument here. They were taking the Falcon whether he liked it or not. However, that didn't mean he couldn't make things difficult in the process. "I'll help Chewie with some of the work that needs to be done." Although, she didn't know what she was in for. Her tone lightened however, as she spoke to Kylo Ren softly; almost pleadingly. "Please contact Hux and Phasma for us."
The glare faded to more of an aggravated look as he relinquished. "Take me to the hub."
The group was beginning to find some traction after such a rocky start. Leia, Poe and Kylo Ren ventured back to the debriefing room where one of the communication hubs resided. This left the remaining group; well, minus Skywalker. He left the room without an explanation, something Ash found rather odd. Now wasn't the time to object to it, however. She had more important things to worry about.
Ash followed Finn and Rey to where the Falcon resided, the trio starting up the ramp as they entered the rather broken down ship as Rey decided now was as good as any of a time to warn Ash of Chewbacca. "He's really protective of the ship." She mentioned. "Don't get upset if he doesn't let you help."
The red haired girl frowned. "I get that, it's a territorial thing but-" Her eyes went wide as she noticed the internal damage as well as the little round, big eyed creatures squawking as they chomped on a few wires and metal frames. "You've got to be kidding…" She stared in astonishment at the little creatures she once found adorable. "How did Porgs get on the ship?"
Rey scowled at the creatures. "They chewed their way in."
"These things are nightmare fuel." Finn muttered as he walked over towards one and grabbed it tightly in his hands, keeping it from escaping. "They keep multiplying too. We thought we found them all the first time and there's still more."
"Well, regardless if Chewie wants my help or not… he's going to need it. These guys are eating the interior faster than he realizes." Ash informed them as the large, seven-foot Wookie emerged from somewhere within the ship.
He looked at the new Porg threat and groaned angrily. "What did he say?" Finn asked quietly.
"It's not polite for common ears…" Rey said, receiving a chuckle from Ash. "Chewbacca, Ash is here to help you." He roared again as he chased after the Porgs, scattering them. "It's better to let her help while Finn and I remove the Porgs."
Chewie roared again; Ash's eyes narrowed at the insult. "I'm a damn good mechanic, thank you very much." Another groan. "Excuse me? Just because he's my husband-" A louder roar. Right, Chewbacca didn't know. Ash grimaced. "Yes, we got married." Chewie shook his head. He liked Ash; he didn't like Kylo Ren. Even after their moment of understanding, he still didn't care very much for his best friends son. Not after all that had happened. "No, I'm not pregnant." She looked back at Rey and Finn. "Why does everyone assume that?" They simply shrugged without an answer. She turned back to Chewbacca, putting her metaphorical foot down as she did. "Listen, we have to get this ship up and running… like now. You need help and I can do it. So?"
With sheer reluctance, Chewbacca finally gave in and nodded to Ash. She beamed victoriously as she followed Chewbacca to some of the broken items on the ship that desperately needed some TLC after the Porgs got to it, while Finn and Rey tried to get rid of the new wave of Porgs once more.
Chewbacca wasn't the only one on base doing something he didn't really want to do, but knowing he had no choice in the matter. Kylo Ren stood at the communication hub, entering the coordinates for the Ascension. Ash had asked him to do this, otherwise, he'd be kicking and screaming and finding any and all reason not to. He also wished he didn't have to do this with the pilot around. He still despised the man and once the galaxy was his… well… maybe he could send him off on a one way mission to a nearby sun. Ash couldn't be mad if an accident happened, right?
The connection came through; Hux knew who was contacting them, at least, he knew it was a signal coming from the Resistance. "Well, this is a surprise." His voice devoid of any emotion but utter dryness that could make even the deserts of Jakku have more emotional connection.
"Hux-" Okay, he hadn't been expecting Ren on the other line. "I'm making the connection between the Ascension and the Resistance. I have General Organa here along with... " He glared at Poe. "What do you do here again?"
Poe rolled his eyes, sighing aggravatedly. "Commander Poe Dameron."
"You brought your Mother and a pilot to make contact with me, Ren?" Hux quipped.
"One of them is an excellent negotiator." Ren retorted right back; Poe clearly becoming more and more annoyed.
Leia was ending this battle before it ever began. "General Hux, we are reaching out to you because we know of your current standing and with the help of your Leader we are coming together. Now, while I have my reservations of this alignment, I must do what's best for the people and the galaxy as a whole. The galaxy is in chaos and we need to work together going forward if we want to get any traction. Is that something you can do?"
Hux was also quite the smoothtalker. While Leia wasn't exactly enthralled with him; she had to admit he had a way of presenting himself. "General Organa, it would be my pleasure to join you in removing the current controlling powers of the galaxy and creating a better tomorrow." That did not go without a very dramatic eye roll from Kylo Ren; for once Poe Dameron agreed with the former Commander of the First Order's actions.
"Behave yourself, Hux." Ren said somewhat dryly. "While she is the General of the Resistance, she is also my mother and she will also not tolerate your bullshit." Poe Dameron actually smirked then at Kylo Ren's quip. Sure, he was an asshole, but when he wasn't being an asshole to him, he was rather amusing.
"Noted." Hux replied.
"I'll leave you both to set your terms." Ren said in all finality. "I have to get to Cularin." He nodded to Leia, whom barely nodded back. Yet, something in her eyes that Kylo Ren couldn't help but notice and feel, she was counting on him. A weight that was just as awful as the one that Ashlyn put on his shoulders. People were counting on him; granted only two of those people actually mattered in some space. The fact of the matter was… Kylo Ren was actually somewhat important to the cause now and his failure was their failure.
That overwhelming sense of purpose, however, faded quickly when he unfortunately looked at Poe. "Good luck." He said, trying to be cordial.
Kylo Ren wasn't having any of that as he scoffed. "I don't believe in luck, pilot." His tone smug as he smirked. "I make my own."
As Kylo Ren left the room, Poe locked eyes with Leia, whom had a small reluctant smile on her lips. "He is too much like his father sometimes."
"Han Solo would have never been that annoying." Poe quipped.
"You'd be surprised." Leia mused before returning her attention to the hub. "Now, where were we, General?"
"I believe we were about to make our terms known." Hux added; this was where he'd play his game and try for the advantage. While he didn't want things to turn violent (and in also promising a certain red haired girl they wouldn't), he still needed some advantage on this playing field. It was a habit of his to do so. It also has kept him, Phasma and of course, Kylo Ren alive for so long.
When Kylo Ren stomped onto the Falcon, he was expecting a wide variety of things from everything running smoothly to everything being a chaotic mess. It was, unfortunately, the latter as he watched the scene play out before him. Finn was holding three Porgs tightly in his arms while Rey was chasing another two. She stopped short, looking up at the amused and also very confused expression on Kylo Ren's face as she yelled. "Help us!"
Amateur Force Users were quite a disgusting thing, in his mind at least. They had no idea the things they were capable of and it was quite clear within Rey, that she didn't. With an eye roll and a wave of his hand, Kylo Ren stopped the running Porgs in their tracks. "Why are these vermin on the ship?" He was afraid to have asked that question.
"They managed to sneak on board, we had no idea they did until we were already halfway here." Rey informed him as she plucked the remaining Porgs up into her arms.
"And they multiplied." Finn added.
Ren's brow quirked upward. "So I see." His attention turned to the rest of the ship, noticing the eerie quiet that lurked behind the massive chaos that had played out before him. "Where is my wife?"
Rey still had very mixed feelings over their union. It was a mixture of how sudden it had been, along with not finding out from Ash, but during an argument she was witnessing. She also still really, really hated Kylo Ren and really, really loved Ashlyn. It wasn't a good mix in Rey's mind. "She's helping Chewie fix some of the damage from the Porgs."
Without saying much more, Kylo Ren stepped around the scene before him and headed deeper into the ship. He could sense her and for the first time since their arrival on Crait, she was relaxed. It was a nice feeling; while he didn't exactly do much to help her relax and was quite possibly the direct cause of her aggravation, it still made him feel at ease knowing she was calm.
He found Ash and Chewbacca in the cockpit of the shit, Ash had pulled apart a few panels to get into some of the more interior and least taken care of parts. Chewbacca looked like he was about to have a heart attack over Ash's adventurous means of repairing things. It also didn't help the Wookie's nerves when the other Force User entered the cockpit.
A groan and a furry fist, shaking a wrench at Kylo Ren, he got the gist of where this was going. Ren raised his hands defensively. "I just came to see how things were going, considering we need to leave sooner rather than later."
Ash was still looking into the panel, her hands reaching as far in as they could go; pulling and repairing different wires. "We found out the ships' hyperdrive and internal navigation unit was completely on the fritz; damn Porgs got to it."
"And here I thought you liked Porgs." Ren teased.
She looked over at him, sticking her tongue out playfully before returning her attention to the wires. "I tend to not like things the more annoying they get."
He snorted. "Was that a quip against me?" He looked at Chewbacca, whom shrugged knowingly. Ash was simply smirking in reply. "Starshine, I promised I'd play nice and I did."
"I know; I just- damn it." She frowned, looking into the internal compartment and sighing. "My arms don't reach far enough."
Kylo Ren came closer, ignoring the death glare from the Wookie as he looked into the panel to see what Ash was talking about. "They just need to connect?" He asked, receiving a quiet hum from Ash. He nodded, removing his gloves and tossing them onto the pilot seat. Chewie whined in protest. "I know, I know, I break it; you'll break my arms." Ren quipped dryly as he reached his arms into the panel and began to assemble the wires Ash couldn't reach.
"Did you see how the Porg issue was coming along?" Ash asked, stretching lazily as she stood next to her much taller than her husband.
"Oh, you didn't hear the commotion?" He was clearly not serious. There was no way Ash couldn't have heard it.
Ash chuckled, sharing a knowing look with Chewbacca before looking back at Ren. "That's why I asked. From what we heard, it sounded like the Porgs were winning."
"They were." He connected the remaining wires; he pulled himself out of the panel, looking at Ash victorious as he grinned. "Until I showed up."
She frowned playfully. "Well, look at you saving the day." Her attention turned to the inner workings to see Kylo Ren's work; after a quick examination, she nodded in approval. "Alright, looks like we're back in business. Chewie, check that the navigation systems are back online." Chewie did what he was told; his large paws fiddling with the main console until the green light came on the navigation port. He roared excitedly. Ash smiled. "See, told you I could fix it." She was teasing, but also just a tad smug about it.
Kylo Ren nodded approvingly as he watched Ash begin to reattach the panel cover. "When can we leave?"
"As soon as the main hub is clear of Porgs, we can go." She informed him with a grin.
Kylo Ren looked to Chewie, his eyes narrowing slightly as he asked. "I assume you're coming too?" Chewie roared. "Figured." With a sigh, he turned to walk out of the cockpit. "I'll check on the Porg patrol."
"Thank you!" Ash called after him as Kylo Ren ventured to the main hub. Chewbacca whined again; Ash laughed. "He's not all bad." Another whine and another laugh. "Okay, he can be really annoying. I'll give you that. I promise though, he's here for good. He won't betray us." Chewie moaned more seriously this time as Ash finished screwing in the panel. "I know what he's done. He knows what his actions have done to everyone… and I truly believe somewhere, deep down-" She laughed nervously. "Okay, really deep down, he regrets it." Chewie snorted. "Trust me on this." She smiled. "I know my husband." But did she really? Although she would never show it outwardly, there was always that doubt lingering in the back of her mind when it came to Kylo Ren and his many, many secrets.
In the darkest depths of space; all was quiet say for the hum of the low, grumbling engines of the Finalizer. Espen Damar sat alone in General Hux's old office; a much larger version than the one on StarKiller. Although, Damar hadn't had the pleasure of taking that over from him as well, the Resistance did that on their own.
With a cup of tea that was still steaming as it sat on the desk, Damar sat back in the General's chair; his hands gripping the leather tightly before releasing it all together. In front of him; a hologram of Hux's file. He had begrudgingly read it thousands of times since the uprising, hoping to find some sort of clues, some answer as to how this all happened so smoothly. How long had this been planned?
His brows knitted together as his jaw locked tightly; Damar shifted to the next hologram of Captain Phasma. The woman who managed to stop him at every turn, preventing him from getting closer to the truth. He hated her almost as much as he hated Hux.
Hux had beat him in almost every possible way he could have. From coming out of the academy as head of his class, to rising in the ranks without much struggle, controlling StarKiller; he had it all. Certainly, a lot of it had to do with his name. At least, that's what Damar wanted to believe. He knew better, however. Hux was conniving. He knew exactly how to play this game, almost as well as the next hologram that appeared.
Commander Kylo Ren. The biggest thorn in his side. He was dangerous in so many ways. He was strong with the Force, one of the only people in the galaxy who could cause such an upset (which he did) and brilliant. He was always one step ahead; combine that with Hux, the two were a deadly force to be reckoned with. Something Damar learned the hard way.
If only he had power; if only Snoke had trusted him sooner. He could have proven where their allegiance truly lied; he knew they were up to no good. Now, here he was, with a splitting headache as he tried to decipher where the group had disappeared to. What their next plan of action was. He had no leads, he had nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Angrily, he slammed his fist down on the console. The hologram changed to another file. A different file. The red-haired girl that played just as much of a part in this as the others. The girl that bewitched Kylo Ren. She was his weakness; the power she had over him was immeasurable. A gift should Damar ever get his hands on her, he would have Kylo Ren at his front door, ready for a fight. Suddenly, Damar understood what he needed to do. If he wanted Kylo Ren, he'd have to take down Ashlyn Novafall.
He grinned wickedly, his next target would be Lothal. Unlike the others, Ashlyn had a conscious. She was weak when it came to sentiment; something Snoke had informed him of. He was going to use that against her, and he'd start by destroying anything and everything Ashlyn had left, until she came out of hiding. When she did; he'd strike.
Final Thoughts: Oh, you didn't forget about Damar did you? Because he hasn't forgotten about the Ascension and the red haired girl and he's itching for some sort of revenge soon... our friends might be in trouble... Remember to review and I'll see you guys in the next chapter!