Chapter 4: Starlight Port

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As the ship flew away from Jakku, the tension inside the freighter was palpable. The planet grew smaller and smaller through the cockpit's viewport, but the shadow of the First Order's pursuit still loomed large.

Poe Dameron gripped the controls, his brow furrowed with concern. "The hyperdrive is leaking fluid," he called back over his shoulder, the strain in his voice evident. "We'll only be able to make a small jump."

Finn leaned closer, scanning the readouts on the control panel. "How small of a jump?"

"Not much," Poe replied, his fingers moving deftly across the control console. "We need to figure out where to go before those Star Destroyers track us down."

The ship rattled slightly as it navigated away from Jakku's gravity well, and Poe angled the ship toward the outer reaches of the system. He glanced back at Finn and Rey. "Suggestions?"

Finn stepped back, considering the navigation chart. "We need a safe port to lie low, somewhere the First Order won't think to look."

Rey sat in her chair, staring at her hands with an intensity that made her oblivious to the conversation. She felt something strange within her, an energy that pulsed through her fingers. The sensation she experienced during the escape nagged at her, twisting her thoughts and making her question what she had felt in that moment.

"Rey?" Finn's voice broke through her thoughts, and she looked up to see him watching her closely. "Any ideas?"

Rey blinked, snapping out of her trance. "There's a spaceport on the edge of the system," she said, recalling the navigation charts she'd studied on Jakku. "It's old and rundown, but it should give us a place to regroup."

Poe nodded, already locking in the coordinates. "Good enough. Strap in."

The freighter's engines hummed to life, and the stars outside the viewport stretched into streaks of light as they entered hyperspace, leaving Jakku and the First Order far behind them.

Poe turned away from the control panel and leaned toward Rey, his expression earnest. "You're strong," he said, trying to reassure her. "What you did back there... Rey, you might have the Force."

Rey blinked, her brows knitting together in confusion. "The Force? But that's just stories."

Poe shook his head. "No, it's real. And whatever you did helped us escape. You've got something inside you."

Rey felt a swirl of emotions, a blend of disbelief and curiosity. The Force had always been part of the old tales she heard in the desert, like mythical threads woven into the fabric of the galaxy's history. But now, she wasn't sure what to believe.

"I don't know if that's what it is," she muttered, shaking her head. "But I have to go back. As soon as we reach the spaceport, I'm taking this ship back to Jakku."

Poe's eyes widened. "Jakku? What are you talking about?"

Rey stood from her seat and looked down at him, her gaze firm. "My place is there. It's the only place I've ever known. If I have the Force, or whatever you think it is, it doesn't matter. I belong on Jakku."

Finn stepped forward, his brow furrowed with concern. "Rey, you can't go back. Not now."

Rey looked between Finn and Poe, her determination faltering. "But my place is there. I can't leave."

Poe sighed, resting a hand on her shoulder. "Rey, the First Order is still out there, and they're going to keep coming. We need your help. And maybe you need ours."

Finn nodded in agreement. "We're in this together now. Let's get to the spaceport first, then we can figure out the next steps."

Rey looked at them both, the conviction in their eyes slowly wearing down her resolve. She finally nodded, the tension in her shoulders easing. "All right. Let's get to the spaceport."

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