Last Shot - A Star Wars Story

Chapter 15

Ersela Kryze

Ersela zipped through the chaos of the battle, glad to be using her jetpack instead of flying around in a bulky ship. Her Mandalorian armor, which she almost never got the chance to wear anymore, protected her well enough, and she wielded her blaster with expert skill. She had been trained to fight like this.

She could hear the tense voices of the other Resistance fighters in the comm attached to her helmet, but she didn't let them worry her. Her training meant she felt confident in this environment, and she was keenly aware of everything around her.

She dodged around a TIE fighter that seemed to be flying straight at her and blasted at another before she glanced up at the sky. Where are they? Her mother had promised to send forces to help, but they had yet to arrive, and if she was being completely honest, she wasn't sure that the Resistance could last much longer, and from what she was hearing over the comm, neither was Poe.

Ersela glanced down, where she saw Cora standing frozen in place with a terrified expression. Following her gaze, Ersela saw what she was looking at. Kaia, who was on the neighboring Star Destroyer, had clearly just been hit, and she was slipping off the ship with no sign of successfully regaining her footing.

Moving quickly, Ersela spun into a dive, ready to catch Kaia as she fell. She swerved around an X-Wing that was rocketing upwards and holstered her blasters before reaching out with one hand to grab one of Kaia's arms. The Jedi wasn't far below her, and she blinked up at Ersela as she called, "Grab my hand!"

Her eyes sparked with fear, Kaia extended one hand, and Ersela caught it, though it still wasn't enough to stop the fall. Grabbing with both hands, Ersela pulled upwards, slowing Kaia down until they were no longer falling and instead rising.

The Mantis suddenly slowed down beside them, and Ersela saw a look of relief on Greez's face as he extended the ramp to the ship. Ersela set Kaia down on it first before she landed as well, though she stayed on the ramp while Kaia, clutching her arm, went inside.

"That was a close one," the Jedi remarked. "Thanks."

Ersela just shrugged. "I wasn't about to just let you fall."

Kaia grinned. "Nice armor," she remarked. Then her eyes went up, and Ersela looked up in the direction she was looking before gasping. Reinforcements had arrived.

Ersela made out several Mandalorian starfighters, and on a separate frequency from the Resistance, a voice announced, "M'lady, your mother, the Mand'alor Bo-Katan, has sent us to help the Resistance."

"It's about time you showed up," Ersela replied, smiling underneath her helmet. "Now form up behind me." She jumped into the air and reached for her weapon, one that she had never revealed to the Resistance, for it was only to be used when it was most needed.

She heard gasps below her as she activated the black blade and raised it into the air as a signal for her people. The Darksaber crackled with power as she cried, "For the Resistance! For Mandalore!"

She could hear cheers from her fellow Mandalorians as they fell upon the enemy with the rest of the reinforcements and what remained of the Resistance fleet, laying waste to the Final Order. The Mantis joined in, flying close beside Ersela and she nodded to the people inside before she spiraled upwards, followed by two Mandalorian starfighters.

She sliced through a TIE fighter with ease, and the fighters blasted its remains to pieces. They continued like this, slashing and firing, with precision (though Ersela did allow the starfighters to take out some of the enemies on their own), until they had taken out several squadrons.

The tide was finally turning in the battle to end the war, and it was turning in the Resistance's favor.