Salvation To My Stars • Kylo Ren [2]

XVIII

Jude's Pov

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When I opened the door there was something that made me nervous. It could have been the aroma, or the temperature being too cold. I wasn't too sure but my instincts told me to run, call Uncle Luke, ask him to come, but I decided I was being paranoid and walked in regardless.

Grandmother is a hero. Every day she worked for a better tomorrow, a more noble outcome. For her, a rock in her path was simply an opportunity to think harder, to develop new solutions. With every fork in the road, she ended up walking both paths until she was sure which was the right one and then she ran as fast as she could. She held on tight to her dreams and woke up every day like her success was already there, she just had to keep on walking to it.

For those very reasons, she was everything anyone ever strived to be. Especially now, since she called an emergency meeting so we can save Corinthia.

"Are we all here then?" She questioned, her silvery hair braided into a bun. "Good."

Poe snuck by and sat beside me, carrying Kingsley in his arms as Finn trailed behind him with a bottle. "Did we miss anything?"

"It just started."

Finn nodded, handing Poe the bottle. "How is she doing?"

From behind us, Rey peeped down and made her way into the conversation. "Right now, she seems fine but earlier I caught her going over her speech."

Kingsley wrapped his tiny hand around Finn's finger and babbled aimlessly while Finn looked up at Rey, beaming greatly. "Heard you'll be flying alongside Poe and I, you excited?"

Rey bent down even more and pressed a kiss to Finn's cheek, then Poe's. "It's been too long Big Deal."

That wasn't all a lie. Rey and Finn barely went on missions together anymore since Finn would usually stay back at the Resistance Base with Kingsley. When I was younger, I looked up to Poe, Rey and Finn like I would a sibling. I would refer to them as the golden trio but now, it was the golden trio plus one and I loved being the plus one.

"Our spies have gathered information that the ship Corinthia Arlo is on is located somewhere near the Outer Rims. We have very little information on who is actually on the Star Destroyer, but we do know that we are to be prepared for anyone from Kylo Ren to Snoke himself. Blue, red, green, gold and purple squadron will all be protecting our main ship of Resistance fighters and Jedi. Once we demolish the force fields, our ship will land and we will attack. Rey and Jude, your job is to find Corinthia and bring her back to the ship."

"Pardon General, but did you say purple squadron?" Poe speaks up, his face unusually worried.

"Yes Dameron, I did."

"General, those are the kids still training at the academy." He points out uneasily.

"I am aware," She nods. "How else are they going to learn?" Grandmother looked our direction, clearly pleased with what she had said. "You are dismissed, rest up and hydrate. We leave in three hours exactly."

Poe shut his mouth almost as fast as Rey, Finn and I bursted out laughing. Slightly embarrassed, Poe rested his head in between his thighs and sighed. "You can't win them all."

"Clearly not," Finn chuckled, looking down at Kingsley. "Your daddy just got called out by General Organa Kingsley, don't be like daddy."

Poe looked up and shoved Finn slightly, causing Rey and I to topple over in laughter. We were suddenly silenced when my grandmother walked over to us, following her were a teenager I had never seen before and Nalani.

"Poe, this is Shen Ekki," Grandmother introduced. "He is top of his class and will be flying as Purple Leader."

Poe extended his arm. "Nice to meet you kid."

"Pleasure is all mine sir," Shen smiled. "I can assure you that my squadron will not mess up."

Poe grinned. "I don't doubt you Shen."

"Thank you sir," Shen looked up at Rey and I, his mouth dropping slightly. "Oh wow, I've never met a Jedi before, let alone two."

"It's nice to meet you Shen," Rey kindly greeted, shaking his hand. "Top of your class huh? How old are you?"

"Fifteen ma'am," He explained. "Third oldest out of the entire squadron."

"Impressive," I praised. "I look forward to flying beside you."

"All the same sir."

"Report to your headquarters purple leader, prepare your squadron for take off." Grandmother informed Shen and he took off, saluting us before he left. "Still think having the purple squad on this mission is a bad idea?"

Poe shook his head. "How else are they going to learn?"

Grandmother shook her head, smiling a giddy grin before turning to me. "I won't be seeing you until after this is over." She embraced me tightly. "May the force be with you Jude."

"And you."

Before she left, she grabbed my wrist and pulled me close, making it look as if we are still hugging. "Do not go after Bellamy. We are going to save Corinthia, not her." She pulled away as if she had said nothing.

Grandmother nodded at Rey and Finn before walking away. Nalani didn't follow her this time and stayed behind with us. This time, she wasn't wearing some glorious dress but a simple silver cloak with white pants. "Prepared?"

Coming out of my shock, I nod. "I think we'll be okay as long as there are no surprises."

I heard a loud wailing sound pierce through my eardrums. It was hard to believe it came from such a tiny creature. Desperately, Finn tried to soothe Kingsley but nothing was working. Poe took the baby into his arms and rocked him back and forth but it was no use. Annoyed, Rey grumbled. "I know, let's take him for some fresh air."

"Good idea," I say, covering my ears until they left. "My apologies your majesty, you were saying?"

Nalani watched them leave and sighed. "The way human beings speak is so heartbreaking to me, we never sound the way we want to sound. Speaking is a kind of misery and I guess I comfort myself by finding the rhythms and accidental poetry in everyone's inadequate attempts to articulate their thoughts. We're all sort of quietly suffering as we go about our days, trying and failing to communicate to other people what we want and what we believe."

Astonished, I blink to make sure I heard correctly. "That was beautiful."

She shrugged. "I sometimes get carried away by the poetry of human nature."

"How so?" I question.

"The entire Resistance is ready to hop on a ship and battle whoever they must in order to save one person," She explains. "That's beautiful."

"We did the same for you your majesty," I comment. "The Resistance would do anything for you and your planet."

Carefully, she placed her hand on my shoulder and squeezed. "Be careful Jude, I don't want anything to happen to you."

Before I can respond, she nods her head and leaves me. I can't help but smile at her mystery. Her aura gives me all the more hope to redeem Bellamy and save her from herself. When the day comes that Bellamy and I have been reunited, my life would of meant something. She's my twin sister and I will save her no matter the cost.

END OF PART ONE