The Broken Ones | REYLO [Complete]

5. "It's your turn to babysit."

--FINN--

It's been three hours since we arrived back at the Resistance base, and all I've done is pace back and forth across the narrow hall outside the infirmary. My mind is racing, coming up with hundreds of scenarios where things could've ended differently, where Poe didn't end up bleeding out on a cold metal table and possibly dying. He wouldn't want me to blame myself, but I know I slow him down. The Resistance leaders should've sent someone smarter and more experienced than me. Feeling defeated, I slump to the ground and rub my face tiredly.

When Leia's medics arrived at the temple, they told me Poe was lucky. I didn't really see how, given that he was lying on the ground, unconscious from severe pain, in a puddle of his own blood. The doctor in charge told me he'd be okay, but until I saw him myself I wouldn't believe it. How many times is he going to die on me? 'He's lucky to be alive,' they'd said. 'The shot barely missed his lung. An inch higher and he'd be choking on his blood, if not dead already.' They were trying to make me feel better. It didn't work.

"Finn?" I glance up to find the wiry young doctor staring down at me as if he were afraid of me, like I was some kind of explosive he had to tread carefully around. He wipes his hands nervously on his shirt, which is covered in splotches of drying blood. Poe's blood. "You need to get some rest. Go back to your quarters and I'll have someone alert you if there's any change."

I jump up and step around the doctor, trying to catch a glimpse of my friend inside the brightly lit room. All I can see are a couple old FX-10 medical droids salvaged from the remnants of Imperial transports and destroyers. They're standing over Poe, working on something I can't see, and blocking my entire view of him. "Can't I see him now? I won't stay lo--" I'm cut off by the doctor stepping in front of me.

"He's fine, but he's sleeping. You both need lots of rest. Let him heal a bit before you bombard him with questions." The small man regards me sternly, daring me to oppose him again. I don't.

The doctor gives me one final glare before retreating into the infirmary. The door slides closed behind him with a hiss and puff of cool, sterile-smelling air. I sigh in defeat and stomp back toward the sleeping quarters.

Halfway there, I spot Leia standing over a control panel, staring blankly at a flashing screen.

"Is everything okay?" I ask quietly. She spins and puts a hand over her heart, clearly startled by my presence.

"No, Finn, it's not." She takes a deep breath and glances back at the screen. The recording plays over again and I see the flashes from before are actually blaster fire. "The unit we sent after the First Order ship that tracked you... They were ambushed. Overrun. No survivors."

My heart sinks and a tear slides down the general's cheek. She wipes it away quickly, as if embarrassed to be caught being human.

"Apparently there was another ship," she continues in a broken voice. "They knew what we were planning. The whole time, they were one step ahead of us."

"Are you saying there's a First Order sympathizer on base?" I ask, shocked.

Leia shrugs. "I can find no other explanation." She shakes her head sadly and looks at me, heartbreak clear in her eyes. "I know each of these people by name, I consider them family. I can't imagine any one of them doing this."

"Ma'am, I promise I'll find out who it is. I won't let them get away with hurting you or anyone else here," I tell her solemnly. She shakes her head.

"I couldn't ask you to do that."

"You took me in without question and trusted me wholeheartedly. You saved me from being tortured and killed for treason. Let this be my way of thanking you for that."