Stranded in Paradise

                                    

                                          

The Ghost shuddered violently, alarms blaring as Hera wrestled with the controls.
"Shields are down to twenty percent!" Ezra called from the co-pilot's seat, his voice tinged with panic.
"Do you think I don't know that?" Hera snapped, twisting the yoke to avoid a massive chunk of debris spinning toward them.
The ship jolted again as another asteroid grazed its hull, the metallic screech reverberating through the cabin.
"This is bad," Zeb grunted, gripping a support beam as he struggled to keep his balance. "This is really, really bad!"
"Thanks for the insight, Zeb," Sabine said dryly, frantically working on a console. "You're not helping."
Kanan, standing behind Hera, tried to keep his voice calm. "We just need to get through this field. The planet's not far."
"If the ship holds together that long," Kallus remarked from the gunner's seat, taking aim at a particularly large piece of debris and blasting it into harmless fragments.
"Less talking, more shooting," Rex muttered, firing from the opposite turret.
"Chopper, reroute power to the stabilizers!" Hera barked at the grumbling droid.
Chopper beeped a string of complaints but complied, the ship's flight smoothing slightly as the stabilizers kicked in.
"We're almost there," Hera said through gritted teeth, her eyes locked on the planet growing larger in the viewport.
With a final burst of speed, the Ghost broke free of the asteroid field, the chaos fading into the distance. Ahead lay a serene planet, its blue oceans and white beaches gleaming under the sun.
"Finally," Hera muttered, her grip on the yoke relaxing. "Hang tight—this landing might be rough."
***
The descent wasn't as catastrophic as they'd feared, though it wasn't smooth either. The Ghost skidded to a halt on a stretch of sandy beach, its landing gear barely holding up under the strain.
As the engines powered down, the crew took a collective breath.
"Well," Ezra said, unbuckling himself, "that wasn't so bad."
Zeb shot him a look. "Kid, that was terrible. I think I lost a year off my life."
"Good thing you've got a lot of years left, then," Ezra quipped, earning a glare from the Lasat.
"Focus," Hera interjected, standing and surveying the cabin. "We need to assess the damage and get a distress signal out. Kanan, Rex, Kallus—help me with the repairs. The rest of you, set up camp and keep an eye out for patrols."
***
By the time the crew had established a temporary camp near the beach, it became clear that their situation wasn't as dire as it had initially seemed. While the Ghost's hyperdrive was completely fried, the rest of the ship was intact, and Chopper had managed to send out a distress signal.
"This place isn't so bad," Ezra said, kicking off his boots and wiggling his toes in the warm sand. "Kind of feels like a vacation."
"Don't let your guard down," Kanan warned, though his tone was more relaxed than usual. "The Empire's reach is long."
"Yeah, yeah," Ezra muttered, already scanning the treeline for coconuts.
The planet was undeniably beautiful. The turquoise water sparkled under the sun, and a gentle breeze rustled the palm trees. Brightly colored berries grew in abundance, and the air was warm but not stifling.