FIVE YEARS AGO, I was sent on a mission that would change my life forever. Little did I know, it would end it as well...
As a Trainee in the Aviation program, Poe Dameron comes from a broken family. His mother died when he was Eight, his Father brok...
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• p. dameron •
ELYSE IS STILL IN THERE. The Elyse who smiles and laughs and spends time with her friends is still in there. She's just hidden away behind a broken heart. I am dedicated to finding her. I want to find the Elyse I've heard so many stories about. I want to meet the real Elyse. — Poe Dameron
"What happened to your hands and arms?" Elyse asks, looking at the scars from the burns that trail up my arms.
She lay in my lap, her back against my chest, her fingers trailing up and down the scars on my arms.
"There was a fire," I say. "My friend's X-Wing was shot down and I dove into the flames to grab him."
She raises an eyebrow, looking back at me.
"You deliberately dove head-first into a flaming X-Wing to save your friend? What about the Fire team? Did you even try to wait for them to get in and extinguish the flames?" She asks, taking my hand in her own, looking at it.
I shake my head, watching her look at the burns on my palms.
"No, he didn't have that kind of time. If I hadn't got him when I did, he probably wouldn't be here today." I say.
She raises an eyebrow, her eyes wide.
"Wait, he survived? Poe, you saved your friend's life!" She exclaims.
I laugh, nodding as I reach forward, pressing a button on the dash board.
"Yes, he survived." I say. "He has some stitches on his neck but, otherwise, he's alright."
She wraps her arms around her body, shivering. I look down at her, spotting goosebumps all over her arms.
"It's freezing." She says, leaning closer into me. "Sorry, you're very warm."
I laugh, peeling off my jacket. I pull it around her, rubbing her arms.
"You've spent months on Yavin 4. The planet is a walking Jungle. It's warmer there than it is in space. You'll get used to it, though." I say.
The pictures from Graduation and the night Hunt was removed from the aviation program fall out of the pocket. She reaches down, grabbing them.
"What are these?" She asks, flipping them over in her hand.
She stares at the picture of the initiates that Snap took.
"Who are all of these people? And what happened to your neck?" She asks.
I laugh, pointing at Snap.
"This is my Best Friend, Snap. He's the one from the fire. This is Karé and this is Jess. That's Peter there. We were all initiates in the flight program." I say. "That was the day of my first fight. I knocked the other guy's tooth out and broke his nose.
She laughs, flipping to the second picture. Marlene and Piper stand beside Snap and I, our arms wrapped around each other.
"What?" She gasps, sitting up quickly. "That's Marlene! And that's Piper! How do you know them?"
I laugh, pulling her back towards me.
"They're the Doctors who took care of me every time I got injured." I say. "They're the best in the Resistance."
She rolls her eyes, smiling up at me.
"I bet I'm better." She says.
I laugh, pulling her close.
"Get some rest. I'll wake you when we're almost there." I say.
She nods, closing her eyes. I sigh out, looking down at my View-finder.
"Only nine more hours to go." I sigh out.
* * * * *
I lean against my hand, my other arm holding Elyse in my lap. I stifle a yawn, closing my eyes for just a minute after flying for almost ten hours with nothing to watch but the stars in the sky. BB-8 beeps loudly, waking me from my daze. I lift my head off of my hand, looking down at the planet.
"It's D'Qar. We're home." I say, a smile on my face.
I look down at Elyse, shaking her lightly to wake her from her nap.
"Elyse, wake up. We're here. We're home." I say, watching her.
Her arm slips off of her lap, dangling down beside my legs. I raise an eyebrow, brushing her hair out of her eyes.
"Elyse, it's time to wake up. We're almost to D'Qar." I say.
She's still unresponsive. I peel the leather jacket back, spotting blood covering her stomach, dripping onto my shirt and lap. My heart plummets into my stomach. I feel all of the blood rush out of my face. I reach up to her face, pressing a hand to her cheek. She's barely warm, her breath shallow.
"BB-8, punch it! Give those engines as much Gas as you've got. We need to get down to base ASAP." I exclaim.
I lift her shirt, exposing her wound, blood seeping out of her abdomen.
"She tore her stitches. Get us down there as quick as you can!" I exclaim.
I dial the Bridge, groaning as I tear the sleeve of my father's shirt, creating a temporary pressure padding.
"Poe! Where are you?" Leia asks, concern in her voice.
"Approaching base now. Get Marlene and Piper down to the Hangar immediately. I need a stretcher, a pint of blood, and a hell of a lot of gauze." I demand.
I hang up, flying into the hangar. I pop the cockpit open, lifting her off of my lap, onto the hood of the craft. I climb out, carrying her down with me. Marlene and Piper sprint into the Hangar, a stretcher, a pint of blood, and a whole box of gauze in hand.
"What happened?" Marlene asks, pressing gauze to the wound. "What happened to her?"
Piper puts the I.V. in, connecting the blood bag to the tube.
"Her stitches tore en route. I didn't even know because she was asleep." I say.
We run down the hall to the Med-bay, getting her into a room. Piper pushes the bed into the room, pulling tubes and wires onto Elyse's body, covering her head to toe in synthetic material that should keep her alive for now. Marlene stands in front of at the door, looking up at me.
"You should stay out here." She says. "You won't want to see this."
I nod. I stand beside the window, my arms crossed in front of me, chewing on my thumbnail. Something behind me flashes—a camera. I spin around, spotting Snap with a copy of a photo of me staring in through the window.
"This is a day you'll want to always remember, Poe." He says, handing it to me.
I shake my head, looking back at Elyse through the window.
"No, Snap." I say, staring at her pale, motionless body. "No, I don't think I'll want to remember this."
He approaches me, standing beside me. My hands and shirt are covered in her blood.
"But this was your first solo mission. You succeeded." He says. "That's an accomplishment."
I look over at him, an eyebrow raised.
"They wanted me to bring her back. I brought back her body but her heart is somewhere else. She's not all there. Something bad happened and I don't think any amount of love or care can fix it." I say.
