Those Before Us ⤇ Finn

Chapter 7

"So a stormtrooper, and a who now are doing what?"

After 30 minutes of cursing under their breath and praying to anyone that was listening that their friends would complete the mission safely, Poe had decided that they should tell Holdo what was happening, so that maybe, just maybe, she could help. Padme agreed, it wouldn't hurt. Worst case scenario, Poe and Padme get demoted. They agreed demotion was better than extinction.

"They are trying to save us," Poe said calmly but aggressively, trying to maintain eye contact. "This is our best chance for escape. You have to give Finn and Rose all the time that you can."

Holdo got furious, her veins popping out of her neck like a maniac. "You have bet the survival of the Resistance on bad odds and put us all at risk?" She leaned forwards as she spoke, Poe looking in disbelief and Padme holding her ground silently. This was not going as planned. "There's no time now. We have to get clear of the cruiser," Holdo turned around and ordered the soldiers to load up. "Load the transports," She said, waving her hand in the air. She turned back to the pilots and walked past them, bumping Poe's shoulder.

"Right away, Admiral," A crewmate assured.

"Yeah, I was afraid you'd say that," Poe and Padme turned around, eyes following the Admiral. They drew their blasters and aimed them at Holdo. Other pilots that had been strategically planted in case this happened turned with them as well.

"Vice Admiral Holdo, we are relieving you of your command for the survival of this ship, its crew, and the Resistance." Padme stated calmly and flatly. Poe had the same face plastered to his head, and neither pilot wavered.

"I hope you understand what you're doing," Holdo looked harshly at Poe, then earnestly at Padme.

"Yeah," Poe put his blaster away coolly. "I'm going to the bridge," Poe began to walk away, but Padme stayed back a moment, putting her blaster away after Poe had already left. "If they move, stun them," Poe finished before he was out of earshot.

Holdo looked to Padme now, searching for a reason as to why the daughter of the greatest Jedi to fight for the Resistance was now turning on them.

The answer was simple. The adrenaline that coursed through Padme's veins allowed that darkness from before to re-emerge. She was addicted. She didn't know it yet, but it was already true.

Instead of finding any sense of light, Holdo found a blank stare and ever-so-slight weakness. It terrified her to the core, but she wasn't in power. She would wait, wait until she had the upper-hand.

"Dameron's a bad influence on you, Padme," Holdo muttered when Padme finally made her moves toward the bridge.

"Mhmm," Padme nodded dismissively at her comment and continued on her way.

Turned out, Poe had waited for her on the other side of the doors. As she exited the hangar, Poe came up beside her and began briskly walking towards the bridge. Padme trailed him, adrenaline now fading from her body. She knew she needed to calm the fuck down, that fury never got you anywhere, but she couldn't help it. Their lives were at stake, and Holdo didn't seem to be bothered. They were trying to SAVE the resistance, not destroy it!

Poe spoke earnestly into his comms. "BB-8, tell me something good."

The droid gave the comms to his friend, and Finn's voice patched through the tech. "Poe, we're almost there. Have the cruiser prepped for lightspeed."

Poe brought the comms to his face and spoke firmly. "Yeah, I'm on it pal. You just hurry," he put the comms back down into his pocket as silence fell upon them. Only then did Padme hear the footsteps behind her meaning that the rest of their rebellious team was following right behind her.