Recall

01

Several years later...

Felipa had grown up with the sun a lot.

Ever since she was young, she had always been a fan of the outdoors, always soaking in the sunshine in the early morning and the late afternoon. When some of the other children stayed inside, she would enjoy the sunny world outside, only getting inside when it got too hot or when nighttime was approaching. Whenever she could, she would run around outdoors, scaling boulders and letting the grass tickle her soles, the golden rays of the sun shining down on her.

Her parents knew her as their 'little sun'; a little lively lady, always bouncing around with a spring in her step and a little smile in her face; a smile enough to light up the house she and her parents lived in.

She remembered how when someone would comment how bouncy and cheerful Felipa was, her mother would comment, "She's got a lot of sunshine in her." She also remembered how whenever she came in for dinner, her face lit up in a cheerful smile, her mother would say, "Fely, with all that playing in the sun, I think some of the sunshine stayed with you." And yes, it was a compliment.

She remembered how many knew her well as the Resistance's 'ray of sunshine.' Sure, she wasn't as popular as famous pilot Poe Dameron, but still, a good number of her fellow pilots knew her as the girl who had a bright sense of optimism; one who remained optimistic in the face of the gloom brought on by the First Order.

Indeed, Felipa was like a living sun on her own; her warm, sunny disposition made her, well, a living ray of sunshine; a young, energetic woman, with a cheerful, optimistic disposition.

But now, as she trudged through the sandy wastes of Jakku, following the BB unit Poe Dameron had told her to take care of, the sun had never felt so unwelcome to her.

Internally, she gave a dry, humorless laugh.  The sun had two sides; there was the bright, light-giving one, which she was compared to a lot. The other one, however, was the total opposite of the side she knew well; this side of the sun was a fiery, vengeful monster, always ready to tear down those who tried to oppose it with its unbearable heat.

In other words, she thought, the sun out here is just as equal in formidability as the First Order.

Out here, in the desert planet, the sun's heat wasn't the gentle warmth she knew she played under when she was little. Here, the sun was harsh, beating down upon the ground with a ferocious heat that scorched the sands. Here, the sun was a relentless being, ready to sear the life out of any being unprepared for its heat.

Felipa raised her left hand and wiped it across her forehead, trying to get rid of the sweat which glistened on her deep bronze-colored skin. Strands of dark sepia-colored hair, which had strayed from the ponytail she had tied it in, stuck to her skin. The heat had been so scorching that she had resorted to using her jacket to cover her head, trying to protect herself from being baked by the sun's terrible heat.

She watched as the droid, BB-8, began to encircle her feet, beeping at her in a tone which she took to be one of slight concern.

She let out a shaky laugh, and internally recoiled at how dry and scratchy her voice sounded, along with how parched her throat felt. It had been a long time since she had last sipped at her canteen; about three hours, if her calculations were right. Heck, she didn't even know how many hours the two of them had braved the heavy heat. Had been it five? Six? Judging from the position of the sun, it had to be eight, or worse, nine. The only thing she had for shade was her jacket, and even then she had still been able to feel the heat of the sun throughout their long, arduous journey on the sandy surface of the planet. The only things that had kept her through this journey was her water canteen, a few food packets in the satchel she had bought with her, and her jacket, which had provided her with some shade from the sun's scorching rays. But still, she knew that it wasn't enough. The sweat flowing down her body, confined by the clothes she wore, was proof of her slight discomfort.