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chapter twenty-one: eye of the storm
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AT THE HEART OF every hurricane, there is an eye; a place in the center of the storm where the waves are calm and the winds are quiet. In the eye of the storm, the danger feels less prevalent — a distant, far-off thing that cannot cause you harm because it cannot touch you — but this feeling is nothing more than a false sense of security. The eye of the storm is not the end of the storm. It is a respite; not a resolution. There is always more wind and more rain and more waves waiting on the other side.

From her place on the floor in a secluded corner of the command center, Indira can easily see the back of General Organa's head as she speaks with Finn in hushed tones. A few steps behind her, Han Solo is standing with his arms crossed over his chest as he towers over his wife's shorter figure. Though their faces aren't visible to her, Indira can vividly picture their furrowed brows and tightened mouths as they seek out answers to complex questions.

A pair of legs clad in baggy orange pants disrupt her line of sight, blocking the older couple from visibility. Indira tilts her head back, letting it thump against the wall with a muted thud as she squints up at the person interrupting her view.

"Hey," Poe says, brow furrowed with concern. "How are you holding up?"

He'd regrettably had to step away for a few moments after her shocking revelation; his duties as a commander trumping whatever duties he had to his heart. Jessika had radioed in about her discoveries while running a reconnaissance flight on the First Order's base and since she was part of his squadron, it was his duty to answer the call and hear her report — but he was here now and he wasn't planning on leaving again.

"Move, please," she requests, ignoring the question as she stretches her neck to the side in an attempt to look around him. "You're blocking my view."

Poe sighs almost inaudibly, but obeys her request and moves out of the way before sinking to the ground beside her. His back leans up against the stone wall behind them as his shoulder presses against hers.

"You didn't answer my question," he says once he's settled on the floor next to her, shooting her a pointed glance.

"I'm fine, Poe," Indira snaps, much sharper than necessary before she sighs. "Sorry, that was uncalled for. I'm just ... tense." She glances over at him momentarily. "Is Jessika okay?"

"Jess," Poe says, pausing to reach over and take her hand, "is fine. She's in the process of sending in the data she obtained for a full report." He laces their fingers together so that she can feel the warmth of his palm against hers. "You don't have to worry about her."

Indira closes her eyes and pinches the bridge of her nose. "I can't help it," she mutters. "I worry. It's what I do."

He shifts his position slightly so that he can slip an arm around her shoulders and it feels like an anchor, keeping her from drifting away and getting lost in her own mind. "You wanna talk about it?"

"Yes," she says, then shakes her head. "No. I don't know." A heavy exhale leaves her lips. "I can't even begin to wrap my head around it. The fact that she might have been alive this whole time —" she shakes her head. "I don't know if that's better or worse."

Worse, Poe thinks, if his brief time in captivity had anything to show as to how the First Order treats their prisoners.

But he doesn't say that.

"If she's alive, then there's a chance that she can be rescued," he replies instead. "That's gotta count for something, right?"

Indira scrubs a hand over her face. "I don't know." Her leg jiggles nervously as she glances across the room once more. "Maybe; maybe not. I just don't understand."

"Understand what?" Poe asks, brow furrowing.

"Everything," she says, feeling more and more agitated. "Why did they take her? What could she have possibly known that warranted her abduction? How was I able to see it? It doesn't make any sense. I don't understand it — any of it!"

He frowns deeply, wanting to help somehow, but not knowing how. "I wish I had the answers for you."

"I know," she sighs, leaning her head against his shoulder and allowing herself a moment of vulnerability.

They stay like that for a few minutes, watching as Han Solo leaves his wife's side and begins walking in their direction. His face is grim as he makes his way over to them and Indira scrambles off the ground quickly, jamming her hands into her pockets nervously. The former general comes to a stop a few feet away, studying her appearance briefly before he nods for her to walk with him.

"Come on, kid," he tells her. "Let's talk."

Without hesitation, she steps closer to the older man and allows him to lead her outside of the command center into the hallway. It's quieter out there and less busy, but Indira still feels anxious as she waits for him to speak.

"Alright," Han says finally. "We talked to Finn. The kid doesn't know much, but he knows enough."

Her heart nearly stops as she waits for the words that will change everything. "And?"

Han doesn't say anything for a few beats, drawing out the tension until Indira nearly wants to scream at him to just spit it out already. When she opens her mouth, fully prepared to tell him to do just that, he breaks his silence.

"She's alive."

For a moment, Indira hears nothing but the sound of rushing wind in her ears as the rest of the world fades away. Han continues speaking, but she can't hear a damn thing as she tries to force herself to just breathe in and out and in and out.

"Where is she?" Indira croaks when she can finally speak. "Why did they take her? What — what did they do to her?"

Han sighs. "That's a little more complicated."

Her brow furrows. "What do you mean by complicated?"

"I mean that it's complicated," he repeats, frustration evident in his tone as he runs a hand through his gray hair. "Finn said that your mother is most likely being held in a high-security prison cell somewhere on their base. He wasn't assigned to run prison patrols, so he doesn't know where, but wherever they're keeping your mother, they're probably keeping Rey, too. That makes two high value prisoners together in one place, which means that the guards will be on high alert — and that makes things complicated. Do you get that?"

She bristles slightly at his condescending tone. "Of course I do," she replies, balling her hands into fists angrily. "But if my mother is alive and being held as a hostage on a First Order base, then I expect to hear something a little more substantive than it's complicated. Do you get that?"

"Kriff," Han Solo says, pinching the bridge of his nose and shaking his head. "You know, you're exactly like your mother. Has anyone ever told you that?"

She glares at him, crossing her arms over her chest. "I usually take it as a compliment."

Han barks out a laugh. "Well to me, it just means that you're a pain in my ass," he replies, raising an eyebrow at her before softening slightly. "Listen, kid, we're not going to let your mother rot away in a First Order prison cell and we're not going to let Rey stay there either. We just don't have a plan yet, alright? There's a lot of things here that are at stake."

Indira nods reluctantly. "Alright."

"Good," Han exhales, leaning back. "Now, go on back inside. I'm gonna go find Chewie, but after that we've gotta come up with a plan — and we've gotta do that fast."

INSIDE THE BASE headquarters, a small group of Resistance members are gathered around a table that has a projection of a map on top of it. Causing as little disturbance as possible, Indira slips into their ranks and presses herself into the space beside Poe to get a closer look at what they're studying.

"The scan data from Pava's reconnaissance flight confirms Finn's report," he tells the room, glancing at the faces standing around the table.

"The First Order has somehow created a hyper lightspeed weapon built within the planet itself," Snap adds from across the projection.

"Like a laser cannon?" Connix asks, her brow furrowed with confusion.

Snap's lip curls downward. "We're not exactly sure how to describe a weapon of this scale."

Indira watches as a horrified expression crosses the face of one of the older Resistance members at the table. "It's another Death Star," he mutters and an uneasy rumble goes across the room before Poe cuts them off.

"I wish that were the case, Major," he says bluntly before punching one of the buttons on the display. A wireframe projection of the Death Star appears, hovering above their heads in bright neon. "This was the Death Star." He switches another control, causing a second projection to appear. "And this is what Finn tells us is called Starkiller Base."

Indira can't help the gasp that leaves her lips at the sight of the enormous planet-sized base — a weapon of mass destruction that far surpasses the size and capability of any of the Galactic Empire's creations. Around her, she hears people coming to similar conclusions. Nervous whispers flood the room as the fear grows; each person more concerned than the last.

"So, it's big," Han Solo says flippantly, cutting through the background noise. Beside him, his Wookiee nods as he stands near him with a carefully bandaged shoulder.

"How is it possible to power a weapon of this size?" Admiral Ackbar demands from Finn.

The younger man shrugs. "I'm not sure of the authenticity of what I've heard or been told," he begins, hesitating slightly before pausing as he glances around the room; clearly intimidated to be speaking amongst so many members of the Resistance.

"Go ahead, Finn," Indira tells him encouragingly, picking up on his hesitance. She knows what it feels like to be the newbie at the table. "Tell us what you know."

Finn nods at her before taking a deep breath. "As you all know, I was assigned to work on the base there. In the course of performing my duties, I was rotated to multiple locations around the planet. One is on the side opposite from where the weapon is discharged."

Admiral Ackbar looks at him incredulously. "The weapon system is situated on both sides of the planet?"

Finn glances at him. "Not only is it located on both sides — the system actually runs through the planetary core. As near as I understand it, there are specially designed collectors that drain the power of nearby suns to send dark energy to a containment unit at the core of the planet. The dark energy is held there and built up inside that containment unit until the weapon is ready to be fired."

"But that is impossible!" Ackbar insists. "Although we know there is more dark energy in the universe than anything else, it is so diffused that it can barely be detected — let alone concentrated!"

"It's not," Indira frowns, speaking up. All eyes fly to her and she feels slightly intimidated, but holds her ground. "It's not impossible. It's called quintessence — I studied it briefly during my research. Galen Erso wrote about it during his work on Project Celestial Power."

"And what did Erso say?" Leia asks her, listening intently.

Indira takes a deep breath. "During his lifetime, technology wasn't advanced enough to harvest dark energy. They tried to contain it through kyber crystals, but it was extremely volatile because kyber crystals are inherently drawn to the light. Eventually, the Imperial science division abandoned the pursuit of quintessence and used the crystals themselves to power the Death Star."

She pauses and frowns. "But that was thirty years ago. The technology that the First Order has now is far more advanced than the Galactic Empire's. If the First Order has managed to work out the engineering to effectively harvest the dark energy, then they would have access to an almost infinite source of energy."

Finn nods in confirmation. "It uses the power of the sun. As the weapon is charged, the sun is drained until it disappears. General Hux once claimed that Starkiller is the most powerful weapon ever built. He said that it can reach halfway across the galaxy in real time because it doesn't actually reach across it; it reaches through it."

There's a beat of silence before Han Solo speaks up again. "Okay, so it's big and it's impossible. How do we blow it up?" Every person at the table looks at him and he shrugs. "There's always a way to do that."

The room goes silent as each person tries to think of something that can be done to take the weapon out. Indira wracks her brain, thinking of all the technical training and research she'd accomplished during her time in the flight academy. Nothing she learned there had ever come close to something of this scale, but there are still basic truths of science and engineering that she knows that will apply to the situation no matter how advanced the technology of Starkiller base is.

"Finn," she says, breaking the silence. "In order for the base to restrain so much power, it would have to have some sort of advanced containment field surrounding it. Do you know anything about this?"

Finn nods slowly. "I heard that it involves the planet's magnetic field," he replies. "But I'm not sure."

"Okay," Indira mutters, thinking deeper into the science of it all. "A planetary magnetic field wouldn't be strong enough on its own to contain that much energy, but an oscillating field might be able to sustain it if it were to oscillate rapidly enough."

Finn frowns at the scientific jargon. "I don't know about stuff like that," he admits before tapping into something on the map and enlarging it on a section of the planet's surface until a massive hexagon shaped structure comes into view. "But this is where the containment and oscillation field control system is located."

Indira snaps quickly, pointing at it. "That's it!" She says, looking around the room. "If you were able to disable the field controls, you could disable the weapon temporarily."

"Which would give us enough time to take a shot at it," Poe finishes, glancing over at her with wonder in his eyes. "That's genius! We'll go in there and we'll hit that oscillator with everything we've got."

"But they have defensive shields that our ships cannot penetrate!" Admiral Ackbar protests.

"Then we'll disable the shields," Han interrupts, looking to Finn. "Kid, you worked there. What do you got?"

Finn hesitates, wavering slightly, and Indira knows that he has absolutely no clue what they're talking about. "I can try —"

"I'll do it," Indira interrupts, cutting him off before he can finish his sentence. General Organa looks at her sharply from across the table and Indira nods at her quickly. "I'm sure that I can figure out how to disable them."

Across the table, Han Solo gives her a begrudging smile. "I like the sound of that," he says, pointing towards her.

"In order to disable the shields, she'll need to have officer level clearance codes," Finn begins, drawing the attention away from Indira. "And she'll have to be there, on the planet —"

Han Solo glances over at Chewie before speaking up. "We'll get her there."

"What?!" Poe demands, the word leaving his mouth before he can stop it. He looks over at Indira with an alarmed expression. "Are you kidding me? That's crazy. It's too dangerous —"

"I'll go with her," Finn hurries. "I know the codes and I can protect both of us."

"I'm right here," Indira says, annoyed, "and I do know how to use a blaster."

"Han, how are you going to get them there?" Leia demands from her husband, interrupting their debate.

Han shakes his head at his wife "If I told you, you wouldn't like it," he warns her.

"Oh, this plan keeps getting better and better," Poe mutters under his breath.

"It's the only plan we have. Unless you have a better idea?" Indira shoots back, daring him to come up with something else.

He clenches his jaw tightly before looking away, knowing that they have no other option. "Fine," he announces. "So we disable the shields, take out the oscillator, and blow up their big gun. Is that it?"

Chewbacca roars his affirmation.

"Alright," Poe sighs, running a tired hand over his face. "Let's go."

OUTSIDE OF THE base, there is a certain degree of organized chaos as all of the Resistance troops prepare for the upcoming battle. Indira walks with Finn towards the landing pad where Han Solo's infamous ship — the Millennium Falcon — is waiting. A few paces behind her, EV-1 flitters around her head, beeping and whirring loudly in anticipation. Indira had elected to bring the droid with her just in case she needed the extra support.

The trio passes by several pilots prepping their ships, including all of the members of the Black, Red, and Blue squadrons. Indira spots Kali from a distance and watches as her friend climb into her blue-accented X-wing, pulling her helmet on over her head to cover her dark hair before shutting the cockpit. A few ships down, she sees Rose Tico hard at work doing last minute preparations on an X-wing. The younger girl takes a moment to wave and Indira waves back before continuing onwards with Finn.

Near the end of the line of ships leading up to the Falcon, Indira sees Poe's very distinctive black and orange X-wing. BB-8 has already been loaded into the back of the ship, but the pilot himself is waiting outside with his arms crossed over his chest. Poe's expression is serious — far more serious than Indira has ever seen it before — and she knows that this conversation is one that can't be avoided.

"Finn, go ahead without me," she tells him, slowing to a stop just before Poe. "Han and Chewie probably need help. I'll only be a minute. Evie, you go with him, too."

Finn nods obediently and jogs off in the direction of the ship with EV-1 trailing behind him, leaving just Indira and Poe behind. "Look," she begins once they're alone, but Poe doesn't give her the chance to speak.

"Indira, I don't think you should go with them," he interrupts her. "It's too dangerous and you're too emotionally involved. Trust me on this."

Her nose wrinkles at his words. "Too emotionally involved?"

"I'm not stupid," Poe warns her. "General Organa told me that Finn thinks your mother is on that base. Can you honestly tell me that you're not thinking of trying to rescue her while you're there?"

Indira stiffens instinctively. "If you're worried about me jeopardizing the mission somehow, then you can save your concern for another time," she replies hotly. "I know what's at stake here, Poe. I wouldn't put the Resistance in danger."

"I know you know that," he says, shaking his head. "And I have full confidence in your abilities, but this is more than just a mission. This is something personal for you and I don't want that to interfere with what you have to do."

"Listen," she tells him, gritting her teeth because she knows he's right and she doesn't like it. "I appreciate your concern, but I'm not changing my mind. Someone needs to disable those shields and if my mother is really on that ship, then I have to at least try to save her." Her voice wavers slightly. "I can't lose her twice, Poe."

His eyes soften. "I know," he says. "But Han and Finn would be able to figure something out on their own and I'm sure that Han would look out for your mother. You don't have to play the hero."

"Oh, I don't have to play the hero?" She asks, raising her eyebrows at him. "This is coming from the guy who practically invented playing the hero. You do see the hipocrisy in that, don't you?"

For a moment, Poe almost smiles before his mouth curls downwards once more. "It's so dangerous," he mutters, shaking his head. "You don't know what they're capable of, but I've seen it. I've lived it. If anything were to happen to you —"

"Hey," she interrupts him, stopping his words by putting a finger to his lips. "Nothing is going to happen to me."

"You don't know that, Indira," he argues and the words are jarring to hear in reverse. Had it really only been a few weeks ago that she'd said the exact same words to him?

"Poe," she says firmly, forcing him to meet her gaze. His eyes are wide and vulnerable as he looks at her. "You're not going to lose me."

Recognition dawns on his face before a smile flickers across his lips. Settling a hand over her hip, he tugs her closer and ducks his head down so that their noses are brushing. "You really shouldn't make promises that you can't keep," he replies and before she can say another word, he leans in and captures her lips in a kiss.

Though it catches her somewhat off-guard, Indira tilts her mouth up to meet his, twining her fingers into his hair to keep him close. Somehow, this moment is one she knows she'll never want to forget and she wants to memorize every detail; the heat of his mouth against hers, the sun beating down overhead, the frantic beat of her heart in her chest. Poe curves his arm around the small of her back, tugging her closer with a sense of urgency and the rest of the world seems to fade away for just a moment as her eyes fall shut.

It would be easy for her to let herself get lost in the moment, but Indira knows that is something she can't afford to do — no matter how much she might want to. Slowly, she lets her hand slip from the back of his neck, cupping his face gently before pulling back slightly.

"I have to go," she says breathlessly, turning her head so that his lips make contact with her cheek instead of her mouth. "And so do you."

"One more minute," he protests and she laughs, tugging his head back.

"Poe, we have to go," she repeats, trying to find it in herself to sound commanding and failing miserably.

His expression is dazed as he leans back, allowing his eyes to fixate on her. He doesn't loosen the grip of his hands on her hips, keeping her pulled close against him. "You know, I could order you to stay," he jests. "Technically, I outrank you."

"Well, you don't outrank me, hotshot," a gruff male voice interrupts and the two of them freeze; totally unaware of the audience that has gathered behind them. Han Solo, Finn, and General Organa are all standing a few feet away; each wearing different expressions. Han is unimpressed, General Organa is smiling knowingly, and Finn looks almost as embarrassed as Indira feels.

Immediately, her face heats up and Indira takes a step away from Poe, tucking her hair behind her ears. She meets the General's gaze sheepishly and the older woman winks at her fondly before she clears her throat.

"I believe you've got orders to attend to, Commander," she says, scolding them mockingly as Han heads back to the Falcon. "You too, Ensign. We've got a war to fight — let's move along."

"Yessir," Poe says, embarrassed as he runs a hand through his hair.

He takes a few steps back towards his ship, pausing just before the ladder. "You, be careful," Poe says, pointing at Indira. "No; don't give me that look — I mean it."

"Don't forget to worry about yourself, flyboy," Indira tells him, crossing her arms and squinting as he climbs up the ladder. "I expect to see you back here when everything is over and done with."

"Best pilot in the Resistance," Poe replies with a wink as he settles into his cockpit, pulling his helmet on. "They won't be able to touch me."

Indira rolls her eyes in response, turning away from him towards Leia and Finn. The general's expression is filled with worry as she opens her arms to Indira, pulling her in for a tight hug. "You're going to be just fine," Leia whispers in her ear confidently. "I know you're more than capable of completing this mission. Your mother will be so proud of you."

Feeling confused, Indira pulls back and gives the general an incredulous look. "What do you mean?" She asks, brow furrowed.

Leia squeezes her hands. "If there's a chance for you to save her, I want you to try," she says earnestly. "Your mother helped rescue me when no one else would. What kind of friend would I be if I told you to leave her behind?"

Indira nods solemnly, understanding the general's words. "We're going to bring her home," she vows before glancing over at Finn. "And Rey, too."

Finn's eyebrows raise in disbelief before he looks at her with hope in his eyes and nods quickly. Leia smiles at the both of them, reaching out to grab Finn's hand once and squeezing gently before letting them both go. Indira turns her back on the general without a second glance, heading towards the spot where the Millenium Falcon is waiting, with Han Solo and Chewbacca already onboard.

Her eyes are filled with wonder as she takes in the sight of the Corellian freighter, but Indira hardly has time to admire it before Finn drags her by the wrist up the ramp and onto the ship. The door closes behind them immediately and Han yells for them to hurry up and get buckled in.

"C'mon, c'mon," he shouts from the cockpit, waving them into the room. "The sooner we go, the sooner we get back and you can see your boyfriend again."

Indira scowls at him, glaring as she takes a seat in the chair behind him. "You really are insufferable," she says, causing Chewbacca to let out a series of broken, chortled noises that Indira recognizes to be laughter before he says something else in Shyriiwook that she can't understand.

"Yeah, I know," Han mutters to his companion as he preps the ship for takeoff. "I told her that already."

"What'd he say?" Indira asks, brow furrowing as the ship slowly rises into the air.

"He said what I said; that you're exactly like your mother," Han replies, looking back at her briefly to give her a wry smile before turning back to the ship's controls. "Now, punch it, Chewie!"

Chewbacca obeys Han's order, sending the ship ship soaring into the sky at a breakneck speed that causes Indira's heart to nearly leap out of her throat. As the ship stabilizes, Han enters the coordinates of the base before launching them full speed ahead into hyperspace.

Just hold on, Indira prays silently as she watches the sky shift from black to the blinding white colors of hyperspace. She clutches her necklace tightly in her hand and closes her eyes, thinking only of her mother. We'll be together again soon.

EDITED ON:
08.29.18