- ghosts of the past.

xiii

The two crews had split up, Han taking Kaleb, Arc, Celeste, Finn, and Chewie, while the others went another way.

Han's group slid behind a base structure and looked around the edge at walkers in front of the base.

"The flooding tunnels are over that ridge." Finn said, pointing with his gun towards the entrance. "We'll get in that way."

"What was your job when you were based here?" Han asked.

"Sanitation." Finn responded casually.

The others stopped and stared at him.

"Sanitation?" Han grabbed the back of Finn's jacket and pushed him against he wall they were hiding behind.

"How the hell do you know how to disable the shields?" Arc hissed.

"I don't." Finn said. "I'm just here to get Rey."

"Oh my god." Celeste muttered, turning away from Han and Finn.

"Good fucking going, man!" Arc said. "People are counting on us!"

"The galaxy is counting on us!" Han corrected.

"We'll figure it out." Kaleb butted in.

"We'll use the Force." Finn whispered.

Arc, Celeste, and Kaleb all stared at him.

"That's not how the Force works!" All three of them, as well as Han, said.

Chewie groaned something, and Han shot a look over his shoulder at the Wookiee.

"Oh really, you're cold?" Han snapped.

"Come on." Finn said, then made a break across the opening to the flooding tunnels.

The group made it inside the base and were making their way around. They came down in a Transport Compartment, ready to go out without a hitch with as far as they'd gotten, but when the door opened, they were face to face with a stormtrooper.

Chewie shot the trooper quickly, then dragged him out of sight as the others looked around the corridor.

"The longer we're here the less luck we're gonna have." Han said, pulling off his coat and throwing it back into the lift. "The shields."

"I have an idea about that." Finn said, following Han out of ht lift and down the steps.

They headed down the corridor until they found who Finn was looking for. As the trooper came around the corner, Chewie t-boned her, then pulled her out of sight of any other troopers or officers who might come that way.

"You remember me?" Finn asked as Chewie forced the trooper captain around to face Finn.

"FN-2187." The captain answered.

"Not anymore." Finn said quickly. "The name's Finn, and I'm in charge. I'm in charge now, Phasma. I'm in charge!"

"Okay, okay," Kaleb motioned for Finn to be quieter, "get to the point."

Finn looked back at Phasma. "Follow me."

With Phasma, they made it to the control access point of the base. Phasma was bent over the controls of the workstation, reluctantly working through them.

"You want me to blast that bucket off your head?" Finn snapped. "Lower the shields."

"You're making a big mistake." Phasma said, but Finn raised his blaster to be level with the captain's head.

"Do it." Finn instructed, and Chewie groaned in agreement.

Phasma hit a few more buttons and the controls beeped, and the shields were disabled.

"If this works, we're not going to have a lot of time to save Rey." Finn said to the others, leaving Phasma at the workstation.

"Don't worry, kid." Han said, shutting the doors. "We won't leave here without her."

Phasma straightened and turned around. "You can't be so stupid as to think this will be easy. My troops will storm this block and kill you all."

"I disagree." Arc shrugged. "What do we do with her?"

"It's there a garbage shoot?" Celeste asked, looking at Finn.

"Trash compactor?" Han added.

Finn grinned. "Yeah there is."