Star Wars: A Resistance Story. Book 2

Chapter 8: Attack on Takodana.

Poe left the medical wing of the base. As he had sensed, he had two cracked ribs, several bruises and few cuts but nothing that would force him to stay in bed several days luckily. The pilot crossed the shed, checked quickly his ship before heading towards the Communication Room. He was still hoping he would receive news from Finn, BB8 or Ly'ra. He was still feeling guilty to have left Jakku without being able to look for the little droid, but he knew he didn't have the choice. After his squadron had found him, the First Order had sent TIE Fighters and they had to leave the planet quickly.

Nodding politely at the Resistants working in the Room, the Commander Dameron sat down in front of a screen and checked if the little droid had been noticed somewhere. Nothing on the radar. BB8 seemed to have disappeared. The pilot knew that there was a lot of scrap dealers and scavengers on Jakku and he was hoping that his double B unit hadn't been found and destroyed. He sighed deeply and, almost unconsciously, he also checked Ly'ra's name. The young woman's face appeared on the screen, and he noticed the price on her head had doubled since the last time he checked. Hux now wanted her alive and he truly wanted her seeing the price he was ready to offer for her capture. Poe lost himself in the contemplation of the young woman, in her beautiful green eyes that were fixing a point in front of her, a point he couldn't see. In the door frame, the General Organa was studying him sadly. War was forcing many people to leave their loving ones and Poe wasn't an exception. He probably hadn't seen his father, Kes, for years and now, Ly'ra was forced to stay away from him. All this was totally unfair and it was one of her many reasons to fight against the First Order. Suddenly, an alarm disturbed the silence of the Room.

"General! We found it!"

Poe quickly stood up, a grimace quickly appearing on his features because of the pain, and he hurried behind Leïa, fixing his eyes on the screen in front of them.

"Where?"

Taslin Brance glanced quickly at Poe before facing again his screen.

"In the Tashtor's sector... On..."

"Takodana..."

The officer in charged of the communication tried to hide an annoyed sigh. He was faithful to Leïa and the Resistance, but he hated Dameron's behaviour. According to Brance, the Commander had always belittled him because he wasn't a pilot. They both always had a complicated relationship and the General did notice it and sighed. She stayed a moment silent before turning to face Poe. The pilot didn't need to wait for her order, he nodded and quickly ran towards the shed. Leïa glanced at Brance and announced:

"Give the alert."

An alarm suddenly sounded loudly around the base and all the pilots quickly headed towards their own ships. As they were getting ready to leave, they all stopped at the sight of Leïa. The General studied them a second before giving her orders.

"A supporter of the Resistance has found BB8. He is on Takodana, in Maz Kanata's castle. You know how important this droid is..."

Poe willingly ignored the insisting look of Jay when the General pronounced these words, but he couldn't hold back a small knowing smile, which led to a discreet laugh from his friend.

"... So you must find him before the First Order. It's crucial. Commander, you're leading them now. I'll be right behind. May the Force be with you all."

Dameron nodded respectfully and raised his hand, moving around his wrist as a signal for the pilots to get ready to take off. He jumped in his ship, put on his helmet and started the engines.

"To all the pilots, Light Speed as soon as we leave D'Qar. Bring me back my droid!"

*******

The time for Ly'ra to join the castle, the Stormtroopers were deployed on the site and they were arresting all who were resisting. Hidden behind a pile of rubbles, the young woman took out her blaster while checking quickly her surroundings. She couldn't see Maz anywhere but, knowing the owner of this place, she surely found a way to hide and escape. Several customers were in line in a corner, ready to be taken away in one of the First Order's jails.