Star Wars IX- The Rise of Skywalker

Chapter 20- Mustafar

Within the Falcon, Finn sat with Rose, staring down at their entwined hands. They'd talked for a while about their allocated tasks, but now they had to say goodbye, and though both hoped it wasn't for the last time, it might well be. Rose had lost so many that she loved, some whom she'd been able to say farewell to, but at the time, she hadn't known it was the final farewell. Others she'd never gotten the chance. On the other hand, Finn had never cared enough for anyone until recently to try to encompass his thoughts and feelings into a coherent last goodbye. Rose Tico had looked at him like a hero and then electrocuted him for being a coward. She finished his sentences; she told him when he was being an idiot or, as she liked to put it, a dummy, and that was frequently. Rose's faith in him and belief had nurtured him from a stormtrooper following orders to a Captain within the Resistance. Rose had made him want to remain and be a part of something great, a member of the Resistance.

"Rose," Finn started, but he had no idea what he wanted to say, and he knew she could tell.

"I know," she leaned forward and kissed him sweetly, "be careful and come home."

He nodded at her, "I will."

He watched her depart as Jannah entered, followed by her father, both in their trademark capes and smiled, glad he would have their company on this mission. Chewie was already in the cockpit checking flight and takeoff procedures in his usual co-pilot seat.

"Ready to go?" Lando asked with that charismatic smile of his. The odds of this particular mission going as planned weren't high, but as Lando was a betting man, these odds were worth betting on, betting his life and that of his daughter. Risks were tricky to predict, but when the stakes were this high, almost every risk was worth taking. The chance to finally end the war that spanned more than his lifetime had taken so much from him; that chance he'd risk everything for.

"Ready as I'll ever be," Finn responded, and Lando put a reassuring fatherly hand upon his shoulder before turning to the cockpit. It was a small gesture but one that steadied Finn's pounding heart and calmed his nerves.

"Chewie, have you got my ship ready?" Lando asked as he settled himself into the pilot's chair. A mixture of grief and joy flowed through him. Han, his oldest friend, one of his only real friends, Han's chair, his ship, their memories all rushed upon him in a wave. Chewie's yips and howls that they were good to go brought Lando back to the present; yes, he would risk everything to help end this conflict.

"Let's punch it."

The Falcon hovered above the ground of Yavin Four before turning and jumping to lightspeed, followed by a Mon Calamari MC80 star cruiser and the pilots of Bronze Squadron X-Wings. The small detachment came out of hyperspace directly by the fiery red planet. Inside his X-Wing, Snap Wexley was leading Bronze Squadron.

"Well, this planet looks unhospitable," Snap's voice filled the static.

"Copy that, Bronze Leader," Bronze Four responded sardonically.

Admiral Statura and Bronze Squadron stayed in position, circling the planet. The Star Cruisers' cloaking mechanism on waiting for the inevitable arrival of friendly First Order and enemy First Order ships.

Lando, Chewie, Jannah, and Finn peered out at the fiery red planet in the Falcon cockpit. It was like it was burning from the inside. Its surface cracked with veins of fire.

"I think we've landed on worse places, right Chewie?" Lando commented, peering down at Mustafar and giving Chewie a sidelong look.

Chewie grunted. He could recall multiple tricky spots and landings he'd been in over his lifetime, but nothing about landing on this planet looked welcoming, and they all knew it.