The space orbiting Korriban was engulfed in pure chaos, explosions and laser fire lit up the planet's exosphere. A few enemy stragglers got within range of The Falcon but were swiftly taken care of by R2's watchful eye. As they approached one of the orbital stations, Chewie turned on his holo-com and grunted a command. A few moments later, a wave of Resistance fighters flanked them in support, dealing with and drawing the fire of any First Order forces. This was the case at first, but the more progress they made on their descent, the less fire they drew. By the time they crossed the first enemy starship, they were being completely ignored. Chewbacca grew suspicion as to why they weren't being impeded. Rey looked at The Falcon's scanner. "I'm not sure, this ship is infamous so they shouldn't have trouble identifying it…" she trailed off. The scanner beeped for a few moments as she judged her situation. Suddenly, it became as clear as day. "It's a trap! They were expecting us all along, they're letting us through!" she said in alarm. Chewie roared in outrage and slammed his console. Rey looked towards the planet once more, and a pit began to form in her gut. Chewie was about to contact Commander Green when: "Wait!" she said with urgency. Chewie paused and looked over at her, grunting a question. "Everyone's counting on me…" she muttered. She turned to Chewie. "If we abort now, all of this will have been for nothing. All of those people who died fighting will have perished for nothing. Everyone's hopes rest on me, I can't let them down." She explained. Chewie growled in protest; Rey was just as stubborn. "Chewie, please!" she pleaded with him. Chewie regarded her for a moment, then reluctantly growled in agreement. He continued on his present course. The wave of Resistance fighters departed just as The Falcon arrived in Korriban's atmosphere. Rey scanned the surface for any potential landing zones. She noticed a structure that looked to be still in one piece, a base that was built into a large mountain. Rey pointed towards the outskirts just shy of the facility. "There! That should be outside of their scanner range." She noted. Chewie piloted the ship over to the outskirts while Rey got her equipment ready, donning her scavenger head parka and goggles. When they were close, he opened the exit ramp, and gave her a personal communicator connected directly to The Falcon, so that when she needed an escape he would be there within minutes. "Thank you." she said. She took it gladly, then received a great big Wookie hug, she embraced him back warmly. When they were done, he barked out good luck in Shyriiwook. She smiled back at him, covered her face, and leapt off of The Falcon onto the sandy dunes below. The Falcon made its way back into orbit, and Rey made her way to The First Order base, towards her destiny.
Luke stood motionless at the bridge, gazing out at the stars. Lieutenant Rose walked up to him and offered him a cup of coffee. He smiled politely and shook his head. Rose took a sip of hers. "I don't know how you can stand there day after day doing nothing." she remarked. Luke chuckled and turned to look at her. "It would grow tiring if you only observed with your eyes." He said as he turned back towards the window. Rose regarded him for a moment before joining him by the railing. Intrigued, she tried to see the stars from his point of view. No such luck, she sighed. "They look like the same stars to me." She said defeatedly. Luke smiled. "Not if you go cross-eyed." He joked. They both laughed.
Rose stared at him. "Y'know, you're nothing like I'd thought you'd be." she said. Luke raised an eyebrow. "Oh?" he questioned. She leaned against the rail. "The General used to talk about you a lot." she said. Luke turned to the window. "Hm. Slanderous lies, I'm sure." he said. Rose repressed a laugh. She stared off into the void of space. "She often described you as reckless and impulsive, always eager to get involved when your comrades were in danger." she said. Luke smiled sadly. "Yeah, I guess I was like that. A long, long time ago." he recalled. The hum of the ship seemed to go on endlessly. Rose fidgeted with her amulet. "I... I had a question if you don't mind." she stated. Luke turned towards her. "Of course." he said. She gripped the pendant tightly. "Are the rumors true? Was Darth Vader really your...?" she trailed off. Luke became silent for a moment. Rose panicked. "I-if that's too personal-" Luke's expression softened. "No no, it's fine, really." he reassured. Rose settled down as Luke took a breath. "In a sense, yes. Vader was my father. But I always viewed my father as a separate entity from Vader." he said. He looked back to the stars. "Vader was more a machine than he was a man. He was ruthless, heartless, and a slave to the dark side. My father was kind, compassionate, a man of morals. In the end, he returned and destroyed both Vader and The Emperor, and in turn, saved my life as well. He was a hero." he described, smiling warmly at the recollection of the memory. Rose looked down. She seemed to recall something as well. "I..." she began. Suddenly the ship's sirens started to blare. They both looked up in alarm. Rose spun instantly. "Report!" she ordered. One of the bridge crew responded. "Ma'am! We've detected several First Order starships coming out of hyperspace!" he reported. Luke's eyes darkened. "It's him." The Steadfast, two resurgent class starships, and a dreadnought appeared to surround The Altair.
Leia instantly contacted the ambush units. "Ladies and gentlemen, we have contact, that's your queue." She commanded. Within minutes, The Mon Calamari fleet appeared behind The First Order fleet, and General Calrissian's allied fleet flanked the ambush forces that The First Order had positioned around The Altair.
Lando was laughing it up on his bridge. "How do you like that? Caught 'em with their pants down! Haha!" he celebrated.
Admiral Ackbar swiveled in his command chair. "We've got them right where we want them, well thought out, General!" he praised.
General Leia contacted The Raddus' support ships. "Support units, prepare to proceed to attack formation, focus your fire on-" She began. One of her bridge crew suddenly spoke up. "General! Detecting multiple starships approaching rapidly!" he reported in a panic.
Three First Order starships dropped out of hyperspace. A dreadnought and a resurgent class flanked The Resistances ambush units, and the lead ship: The Finalizer, appeared right in front of The Raddus. Leia acted quickly. "Take evasive maneuvers, inflict defensive fire on the lead ship in front of us, all hangars, launch your fighters. I repeat, launch your fighters, this is not a drill!" she ordered. The void of space then descended into a maelstrom of chaos.
"Scramble the fighters, man your battle stations, prepare to engage the enemy!" Leia's voice sounded over the intercom as Finn and Poe raced for the hangar. Poe turned his head as they ran. "You're with me. My new ride's a two-seater, and she packs a wallop." He bragged. Finn's brow furrowed skeptically. "Y'know, the last time we flew together we got shot down." He recalled. Poe smiled at the memory. "Ah, relax. That was back when we first met. And besides, you've more than proven to be a bad enough dude to be my wingman." he said. Finn nodded challengingly. "And how do you know you aren't my wingman?" he asked slyly. Poe laughed. "That's a good one." he said. They arrived at the hangar; it was already scrambling with pilots prepping to launch. They made their way over to Poe's fighter: It was a double cock-pitted X-Wing with two standard laser cannons and photon torpedoes in the front, and four advanced laser cannons in the back. Finn stepped into the rear cockpit, with slight assistance from Poe. "Let's hope she's more than just a pretty face." Finn said. Poe turned to look at him. "Are you serious? Do you not see the cannons on this thing?" he asked. Finn put on his helmet. "That's what worries me. What's our top speed gonna be like with these hefty barrels weighing us down?" he asked with concern. Poe put his helmet on too. "Hey hey, I'm the pilot. You let me worry about that, you just focus on our flank." he said as he was strapping himself into the front cockpit. BB-8 popped out of the container pod, anxious to launch. "You comfy little guy?" Poe asked. BB-8 chirped back happily. "Good, then let's get this show on the road!" he said. The cockpits closed, and they zoomed out of the hangar into space, eager for battle.
"What's our status?" Lieutenant Rose ordered. The bridge crew was scrambling between stations, constantly monitoring the battle raging around them. Luke remained by the window, calmly assessing the battle. A few moments later, a crew member came back with a report. "No change, Lieutenant." He reported. Rose became confused. "No damage whatsoever?" she asked. The crew member double checked the screen. "All stations are at 100%." He added. Rose blinked. "How can that be? Aren't they targeting us…?" she trailed off. Luke whirled around just as the moment a report came in. "Lieutenant! Enemy shuttle approaching our port side!" he announced. Luke approached Rose. "You need to evacuate the ship, now." He stated. Rose took a moment to register what he was saying. "That'll take some time, we'll need to stall them." She said. Luke didn't hesitate to come up with a plan. "Which hangar are they headed for?" he asked. Rose turned to one of the bridge crew. "Hangar 2-B." was the answer. Luke continued. "You need to contact them and get all non-combatants out of there." He explained as he turned and made for the turbo lifts. Rose went after him. "Where are you going?" she asked him. Luke faced forward. "They're after me, so that's what they're gonna get." He detailed. They both stopped in front of the turbolift. "Surely you don't mean to take on all of them at once?" she asked, perplexed. Luke turned to her. "They were once my students, that makes them my responsibility." He stated with determination. Rose stared at him with a curious expression before the lift arrived, and Luke proceeded into it. "I'll hold them off for as long as I can. Good luck, and may the force be with you." He said before the doors closed.