Cosmic || Poe Dameron

Chapter Two

"We're going to need an extraction General, as soon as you can send one," Vera shouted into her long-range comlink, sending through their coordinates as she squatted behind some rubble, remnants of the once fortified Empire station. The damn Bucketheads had managed to destroy their ship, not out of skill mind you, but sheer dumb luck.

"FALL BACK!" she yelled, firing her blaster with deadly accuracy, covering her team as they ran to take defensive positions. She kept one eye trained on Captain Damari, the other on the advancing Stormtroopers. After confirming the safety of the Captain, who was weak and bloodied from his time imprisoned, she signaled to her two best sharp shooters to flank him for protection.

It had been almost two weeks since Vera and Alpha Unit had been sent to Lothal, and more than half that time had been spent searching for any trace of Captain Damari or the rundown Empire station. As nice as Lothal had appeared from the sky, Vera was eager to return home and put as much distance as possible between her and the Lothcats. As cute as the damn things were, they had given her nasty allergies.

"Black Squadron has been dispatched Commander," General Leia's voice sounded through her comlink. Vera closed her eyes in relief, the concern for her team dissipating.

They were going to be okay.

Their odds weren't particularly great at the moment. There were only nine of them against thirty or so heavily armed Stormtroopers, four of which were operating the remaining two heavy-duty canons.

The actual operation itself had gone smoothly. They had infiltrated the small base with ease in the early hours of the morning, a time in which the Troopers were less alert than usual. They had quickly located Captain Damari's holding cell and broke him out without raising any alarms. It was during their escape that things had turned sour. As luck would have it, the very moment they were almost free, a convoy of new Stormtrooper recruits had arrived, several hours earlier than anticipated.

"Get back in one piece kid," she heard Han Solo's voice crackle through her comlink and a smile instantly spread across her face.

"Always do Gramps," she responded with a laugh and disconnected, signaling to her team to advance. As a unit, they opened fire on the remaining Troopers. Viserys, their explosives expert, disabled the remaining canons just as the familiar roar of Resistance X-wings could be heard approaching.

"Give them all you've got!" Vera shouted as the Fighters came into view, shooting down the enemy from their aerial advantage. She fired her blaster, the blue plasma hitting its mark each time. The shuttle began to land, the X-wing Squadron covering them from above as she signaled to her team to evacuate to the transport.

Captain Damari was the first to board, flanked by Matisse and Nixon, both firing shots from their position by the shuttle's doors. The rest of her team ran towards the transport, covering one another as they boarded one by one.

Vera was the last on the ground, the roar of war ringing in her ears. She scanned the battlefield, ensuring every member of her unit was safely aboard, before turning and racing towards the transport herself, shouting for them to start taking off. She launched herself into the air as the shuttle began to lift off the ground, two strong hands gripping onto her arms and pulling her in as the doors closed with a hiss.

She thanked Elias and Jaren for the catch as she caught her breath for a moment, her sharp eyes scanning her team. She was relieved to find all of them were in one piece, no serious injuries in sight, just a few small cuts and bruises here and there. A wide smile spread across her face, thrilled they had completed their mission and were heading home.

"Rest now Alphas, we'll be home soon. All of you were brilliant," she said proudly, and they all saluted her with tired smiles and a few quiet chuckles. Vera checked her blaster was properly stowed away as she walked towards the Captain. The poor man was slumped against the wall in a chair, utterly spent.