Chapter Text
One year before the destruction of both Hosnian Prime as well as Starkiller Base, the Resistance had been requested for a covert mission. Far from the jurisdiction of New Republic space. A prisoner was being held for ransom, and while it hadn’t been made public, citizens of the galaxy were starting to notice that something was off.
As two pirates blocked the cell doors, they never expected the blue laser to cut through them both. As their bodies hit the ground, the pilot made his way to the door.
“Hello?” came a voice from inside.
Turning the cogs, Remus opened the door.
“Chancellor Villecham,” he sighed. “I’m Remus Ber of the Resistance and I’m here to- rescue you.”
Lanever Villecham blinked. Remus widen an eye at him.
“Well?” the wolf man said, irritably.
The Tarsunt took a moment before he answered. “Where is your ship?”
“Scattered over the airfield,” Remus replied, casually.
“What?!”
“We’ll take one of theirs. I’ve planned all of this. Are you coming or not?!”
Lanever was taken aback, but quickly straightened his clothes and nodded. The pilot took a key from the guard and unlocked the prisoner’s cuffs. He followed Remus, keeping in cover as the pilot took out a few more patrolling pirates.
They moved across the bridges that hung over the canyon of molten rock.
“This way,” Remus spat, impatiently.
Eventually, they found a ship in the distance. It was an old Clone Wars vessel, though it seemed online.
“There,” he said, looking through his binoculars to see that its pilot was sleeping beside it. He shook his head. “Hurry your ass up, Chancellor.”
Lanever stumbled across, holding up his robes. Remus rolled his eyes at the sight of it.
“Villecham! Hurry up!”
The chancellor stopped in his tracks. He looked up at Remus and scowled. It had been a tense hour now, but it seemed he had reached the end of his ropes.
“Can I trust you?” the Tarsunt snapped.
“What’s that supposed to mean? I’m the one rescuing you,” Remus shot back.
“You- Resistance. Always so hard to read. How do I know this isn’t a trick? A scheme? Another plan by these pirates to get me to reveal political secrets?”
Remus stared at him with dead eyes. “Any other theories?”
Villecham pointed. “Are you even with the Resistance? How do I know they’re not the ones who staged my capture?”
Remus looked back at the ship he planned to take, then at the man he was supposed to rescue.
“For what it’s worth,” he let out, “I could just leave you behind.”
Villecham hesitated as he clenched his fists. Remus could tell the man was in a haze, most likely brought on by the single week in prison. If only he knew what a prison of the Empire was like.
“What is it with you?” the chancellor then murmured. “You know who I am, yet you act as if you wish to see me die here.”
“I wouldn’t go that far. I agreed to this mission after all.”
Remus turned back around, preparing to walk to the ship.
“No need to use such tone,” said Villecham. “I haven’t done anything.”
Remus spun back to him and gritted through his teeth. “That’s precisely the point.”
“What?”
“Because of your incompetence, your ignorance. Because of your unique ability to do nothing, planets are welcoming the First Order with open arms! I fought the Empire, I saw their horrors first hand, yet- you.”
Villecham looked away and shrugged. “It’s only a couple of planets.”
“It should be none. I mean, look at me. I have been tasked to- save the most powerful man in the galaxy, the man who has the power control almost any planet he wishes. I should feel honoured, I should- tremble by just speaking to you. Yet I feel… empty. I’m bored.”
With no other words, he marched to the hanger at the end of the bridge. The Klattooinian got up, aimed his pistol before Remus punched him in the face. He aimed his gun down over the pirate’s head.
“Please?!” he begged. “Don’t kill me. I told them this was a bad idea!”
Remus rolled his eyes again. “I don’t have time for this. Does this vessel fly like any old ARC-One-Seventy?”
“Erm.” The pistol clicked. “Yes! Yes it does!”
“Remus!” came the voice of the chancellor. “Wait just a moment!”
“What now, Villecham?” Remus yawned.
“We may be at odds, but as your chancellor, I order you not to execute this man.”
“Order? I don’t take orders from anyone.”
“But you do! Don’t think I don’t know how the Resistance operates. Leia would never approve.”
“You don’t know her then.”
“Wait.” Villecham stood in between them now. “You cannot do this. He is beaten.”
“Then what? What happens when he runs to the rest of the gang with word of the exact ship that is flying out of here with their prize?”
“They’ll notice something is a miss, regardless. You are looking for an excuse.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about!”
But Villecham held his ground. “Remus. I can read. Not just the many texts of pointless bills and ludicrous manifestos, I can read people! I can read you. You’ve been out of the fight so long, the mere idea of it frightens you so, you are quick to unleash it! But this man, he does not deserve to die for you. The pirates, the First Order, the Grisk even! You will have your time. But not today. You must prove that, because you are not one of them.”
He took a step closer, and Remus actually felt intimidated.
“You are not them.”
Remus didn’t know what to say. He looked down, saw that the pirate was staring at him in fear. He let out a long sigh. Dammit.
“Fine,” he let out. “Prisoner then?”
Villecham smiled. “Prisoner.”
“You and your speeches. Why do they always work?”
“It’s how you win.”
Remus stuttered, but he spoke no words in clear Basic. This was not the time for a debate. Cuffing the pirate using the ones that the chancellor had worn was easy, as was getting him in the middle cockpit. Remus got in the front, and Villecham was in the back.
He knew the moment he was in the air, the pirates would start to question. He prepared the cannons.
“You flown one of these before?” he heard Villecham speak in his piece as he put on the ship’s pilot helmet.
“Not of this kind,” he replied.
“I hope you know what you’re doing then.”
“Relax. I can handle it. I was an A Wing pilot during that last battle on Jakku. Took down at least thirty Ties before I crashed.”
“Should I ignore that you crashed?!”
The ship levitated upon the pad, then it shot off.
It wasn’t long before another voice came through. “Roast? Roast, what are you doing? We’re all grounded until the New Republic send their ransom.”
It was then sounds of muffled screams could be heard from the middle cockpit.
“Roast?” the voice spoke again.
“Is there a- secure channel?” Remus asked.
“What? Who is this?”
“I guess not.”
The ship sprung and went down below the canyon, just as he saw other ships beginning to intercept. They were small, definitely not suited for space travel. This should do fine. The only problem was the turrets above. The pirate’s ships flew in from behind, shooting rapidly.
Remus tried spinning, but with the length of the wingspan, he had to stop himself from skimming it on the ground.
“Watch out!” he yelled as his newly acquired ship ducked under a bridge.
“You’re the one driving!” Villecham.
Remus was still considering opening the doors, turning upside down, and dropping the chancellor into the abyss. Then again, Leia would not be happy about it, and if there was anyone he was afraid of.
“Let’s see,” Villecham said to himself through the microphone. “Aha! Got you.”
Sounds of blasts came much closer than usual. For an instant, Remus thought one pirate ship had gotten right on his behind, but in fact it was the chancellor himself. He fired the turret on the back, destroying the closest that chased.
“Good hit,” Remus exasperatedly muttered in disbelief.
“I have no time for this dillydallying, Remus!” Villecham roared, triumphantly.
“We’ll keep at it!”
The other pirate vessel was quicker, and Remus could see through his ship’s navigation scanner that it was getting close.
“Villecham?!” he called.
“This bugger is a tricky little bastard, let me tell you!” Villecham called back.
At the front, the pilot now saw a short bridge. He got close, timing it right. He waited and he tensed, and his hands gripped as tight as possible. Just before the collision, the ship ducked, and flames erupted from the back as their pursuer made contact with the bridge.
“A fine trick,” said Villecham.
“Thanks,” Remus replied, quickly.
“I see you are a talented pilot.”
“Yeah, you’re supposed to be good at what you do, Chancellor. Take notes.”
Gently, Remus pulled the sticks back and he sighed in relief, the ARC-One-Seventy lifted up and headed towards the atmosphere once they reached the canyon’s end.
Eventually, they reached the frigate that awaited them.
“The Tantive Four?” commented Villecham. “I thought we had that ship on display.”
“The museum donated it back,” Remus explained.
They docked, and the chancellor was greeted by the New Republic soldiers that awaited. Remus himself knew Leia would be calling him soon, yet as he anticipated it, his name was called.
“Remus?” said Villecham as he walked to him, alone.
Remus sighed. “What is it?”
“I wanted to thank you. It was- intense, but so is the job. I am glad, in a way, at least. I got to meet who I should have met forever ago.”
“Me?”
“A citizen, Remus. I have… been occupied. The senate and the congress. All sniffing their own gasses instead of telling me what the people need. I know you are just one man, but I am curious. You say the First Order is rising. How do we stop it? What do you think I should do?”
Remus felt on the spot. The last thing he wanted was to cross the line, though he doubted any accusation of treason would stand at this point. The chancellor owed him.
“I think,” he began, then stopped and took another moment to ponder. “I think you just need to listen. Help us, all of us. Some people are idiots, Villecham, and when they see an alternative, they’ll grasp to it no matter how insane it is. I understand you sometimes, you want to please everyone, but that doesn’t work. Some people will hate you no matter what, so maybe it’s time you look after ones that actually will support you. People like me. My planet never covered from the first war we had, Dooku rinsed us, and we’ve never gotten past it. But it’s not just me, not just my people.”
“Hmm,” Villecham lamented. “And our navy? Is the threat of the First Order enough to justify making it like it was?”
But Remus shook his head. “Of course not. You have us now, we’re your army. Don’t waste your resources. If you really want to threaten your enemies, just make your own Death Star.”
Villecham chuckled. “Imagine.”
“You don’t have to actually install the planet destroying laser. Just pretend you have; perfect deterrent.”
Villecham shook his head. “Anything else?”
Remus sighed. “Just remember this. Try. Yeah? For the sake of all that lives, give me something to fight for.”
On Gamor, Rey sat beside Remus as they awaited the arrival of their support. Another pilot and gunner that had crashed were on their way up.
“So, we steal the Star Destroyer and crash it?” she confirmed.
“That’s it,” said Remus. We get up there and make the attack. We’ll be safe as houses once it’s down.”
As Rey looked upon the natives here, she saw them all communicate. While she could not understand their squeaks, she could tell what they meant. They were saying goodbye, hoping it would not be the end. She felt awful for them, but this was the galaxy now. It was odd when she thought of how she had been raised to always look over her shoulder, but the people here were peaceful and completely alien to idea that death was always looming. Here, war was new.
“Families,” she muttered. “Always bonded the strongest.”
“Sure,” Remus muttered. “As long as you can keep it together. I have seen people make those faces at each other so many times, and for most, it is the last time.”
“Do you- have a family?” Rey then carefully asked.
Remus relaxed his shoulders as he slumped down.
“Sort of,” he said, though it was hard to make out.
“When did you last see them?”
“Just before I joined the Resistance. About two years ago.”
Rey had expected it to be a while, but the number he said surprised her by a lot.
“Can you not call them?” she asked, hopefully.
“It’s better I don’t,” Remus explained. He smiled and shook his head. “I met my wife after the war, just after I got home from Jakku. She was at my planet’s victory parade and- well it seemed obvious I’d found the one. But the war was over, right? I couldn’t say it was for me. A woman can withstand a few nightmares, the random disassembling and reassembling of a blaster on the dinner table, the occasional fight with another parent outside her children’s school. However, I think even she found it a bit much when I constructed the bomb shelter in our garden for the third time in a year. She’d ask me why and.” He shrugged. “This is where I need to be.”
“Do your kids never reach out?”
“They shouldn’t.”
Rey was surprised how little emotion her ally let out. It was like he’d accepted it long ago, perhaps even before he last saw them.
“Remus?”
Both looked up, and another Resistance soldier stood before them.
“Good to see you, Roast,” said Remus. “Your pilot okay?”
Roast nodded. “I can only hope.”
Rey stood and held out her hand, introducing herself. “Rey.”
He shook. “I’m Roast Keefer. Sorry, what’s your last name?”
Rey only shrugged.