The Rise of the Final Order - A Star Wars Story

Chapter 4

Ben Solo

"I thought you said we were going to lose them!" Just as Ben had predicted, as soon as he and Kaia had left the alleyway, the thugs hired to kill them had found them again, and now they were running at full speed towards a drop-off that would supposedly allow them to jump onto a moving train.

"We are, trust me!" Kaia shot back, firing her holdout blaster at their enemies chasing after them, only a few steps behind him. Blaster bolts zinged past them, and one came so close to Ben's face that he could feel the heat from the bolt on his cheek as it flew by.

As they neared the drop-off, Ben began to slow down, unwilling to take a blind leap of faith that could end in a plunge to his death if there really wasn't a train below them.

"No time to stop!" Kaia cried from behind him, giving him a surprisingly powerful shove.

But her surprisingly powerful shove was maybe a bit too powerful, because she ended up pushing him off the drop-off without any time to prepare for herself, so they both ended up tumbling down towards a very fast moving supply train that was definitely there.

Ben landed first, hitting the top of the train hard on his back and unintentionally rolling into a pile of supply crates covered by a net that held them down so none of them flew off. Kaia somehow managed a more controlled fall, landing on the train in a somersault and coming up on her feet.

Ben started to push himself to his feet, then winced at the pain from his blaster wound. Kaia came over to him and offered him a hand, glancing back at the drop-off, where their pursuers had appeared. He took it, and she pulled him to his feet.

"Thanks," he muttered, quickly letting go of her hand. For a moment, Kaia looked a little hurt by his reaction, but then her expression became unreadable.

"No problem," she answered. "Comm Greez and tell him we'll need a pickup." Suddenly, her eyes widened and she spun around, blaster ready, as the thugs landed a few cars down. "And you might want to hurry."

Ben pulled out his comlink and thumbed it on, and he was instantly greeted by Greez's impatient voice. "Well, if it isn't tall, dark, and brooding. Did you find Kaia?"

"I did, but we can't seem to get rid of our 'friends'," Ben responded, pulling out his own blaster. "We're going to need a pickup."

"Where are you?" Greez demanded. "I can barely hear you over the noise."

"That's because we're on a train," Ben told him, having to raise his voice to be heard.

"You mean on top of one?" Greez exclaimed. He sighed heavily, probably already knowing the answer, and grumbled, "Alright, we'll come get you two. Just try not to get yourselves killed."

Ben switched off his comlink and shoved it back into its pouch before he turned to join Kaia in firing at their pursuers. She had ducked behind a cargo crate, using it for cover as she returned fire with the approaching Weequay.

Ben dropped behind another crate across from her, and she glanced at him before turning her attention back to the firefight. "Is he coming?"

Before responding, Ben leaned to the side of the crate to blast at Twi'lek thug who made the mistake of standing out in the open. "Yeah, he's on his way."

"Good. Now we just need to buy some time." Kaia suddenly stood up, unclipping her shoto from her belt. "Cover me."

Ben barely had time to protest before she was igniting her blade and charging forward to take a running leap off of the car they were on and land onto the one behind it. She batted away blaster bolts and fired at their enemies at the same time, but Ben doubted that she would be able to hold them off long enough to escape on her own.