Zay Zay was a human female starfighter pilot who lived during the era of the New Republic . The daughter of Del Meeko and Iden Versio , both of whom were former soldier s of the Galactic Empire , Zay fought against the First Order after her father was executed by Gideon Hask in the waning days of the cold war . Hask was ultimately killed by Meeko ' s family , but Zay lost her mother as well . After the destruction of Starkiller Base , General Leia Organa instructed Zay to find allies for the Resistance in the Outer Rim Territories . Biography . During the cold war , Zay and her mother , Iden Versio , were pilot ing X - wing starfighter s through an asteroid field when Shriv Suurgav , Versio ' s Rebel comrade whom Zay regarded as an uncle , told them to come to the " Corvus " regarding something urgent . Suurgav told them that Zay ' s father , Del Meeko , was missing , and they set out to find him . This led them to Athulla , where they were contacted by an Athullan who asked if they had his people , only to realize Meeko was not there . Before they could learn anything beyond the name " Project Resurrection , " the transmission was cut off by a Jinata Security fleet under the command of Leema Kai , who led the kidnappings of Athullans . She and Iden then went to their X - wings , and a dogfight ensued between the " Corvus " , Iden , Zay , and J - Sec , who were using starfighters from the Clone Wars . During the dogfight , Iden shot down three modified GR - 75 medium transport s and disabled Leema ' s flagship , the " Opportunity " , while Zay drew attention away from Iden . This prompted Leema to engage them in a heavily modified Naboo starfighter armed with seismic charge s . When Leema Kai was killed , Zay told Iden the " Opportunity " had surrendered as she threatened to fire the " Corvus " concussion missiles all at once , but revealed to Iden it was a bluff . They later discovered fully what Project Resurrection was and that Protectorate Gleb was holding Del prisoner on Vardos , Iden ' s homeworld , which had been devastated by thirty years ago . Zay stayed on the " Corvus " , as Iden didn ' t want her to " stare Iden ' s past in the face . " Not long after , the " Corvus " was shot down by the " Retribution " , Gideon Hask ' s flagship , in an attempt to kill her , but she had gotten out in an escape pod just before the ship crashed and was destroyed . She then ripped out the pod ' s distress beacon and set up a makeshift sniper ' s nest , firing on both Jinata Security and First Order troops . She was later relieved when Shriv and Iden found her . When the fighting was over , Iden told Zay that Hask had killed Del and that she would find a way onto his Star Destroyer and get revenge , but Zay talked her out of it , stating it wouldn ' t bring him back . The plan was altered to boarding the ship to get any intelligence for the Resistance . They then set off to the ship in stolen TIE fighters , flying in sync with other TIEs while Iden ' s ID10 seeker droid , Dio , scanned for possible entrances . But their cover was blown , and a dogfight ensued . Dio later found an opening through a heating port by the starboard engines , so they blasted it open and flew in just as the Star Destroyer prepare to jump to hyperspace . Successfully boarding the ship , the trio made its way into a small command room , where Shriv discovered the schematics for a " Mandator IV " - class Siege Dreadnought but couldn ' t get the schematics to the Resistance while the ship was in hyperspace . So Iden devised a plan to force the ship out of hyperspace by destroying the hyperdrive , while Shriv went to find an escape ship . Zay jokingly commented that she understood why Shriv was a nervous wreck around her . After fighting to an armory and grabbing explosive charges , they fought their way to the hyperdrive . There , she began placing charges on key areas while Iden covered her from incoming stormtroopers . Before heading to the last area , Dio began diverting reinforcements so they had a clear path , but just after Iden finished planting the final charge , Hask snuck up on her and held her at gunpoint , taunting Iden to shoot him . But she threw down her weapon , as she didn ' t want to risk hitting Zay . Disappointed with her cowardice , he prepared to shoot Iden , but Zay broke free of his grasp and redirected his shots before falling off the catwalk . Iden grabbed her at the last minute and threw her back up before Hask went to finish off Iden , but Zay tossed her pistol to her mother , and Hask was shot off the catwalk and down into the hyperdrive core , killing him and avenging her father . Zay and Iden made their way to an observation room and set off the charges , ripping open a hole underneath the ship and forcing it out of hyperspace prematurely . Happy that the plan worked , Iden suddenly collapsed in pain , revealing she had been shot by a stray bolt from Hask ' s blaster . Worried and saddened , Zay tried to figure out a way to help her mother , but Iden told her it was too late for her , telling her that as long as they stayed strong and kept fighting , even if it meant dying , they would make a difference . After telling her she needed to get Dio to the Resistance and saying she loved her , Iden succumbed to her wound and died , leaving Zay devastated and alone with Dio before watching Starkiller Base implode into a star . Shriv then contacted them , stating he found a ship but it ' d be a tight fit only for Zay to tell him Iden was dead . Remembering Iden ' s last words , they arrived at D ' Qar , the Resistance headquarters , as it was evacuating and had a short conversation with General Leia Organa , a rebel veteran and the Resistance leader . She gave her sympathy upon hearing of Iden ' s death but asked for her help in finding the Resistance ' s allies in the Outer Rim Territories , to which she agreed . Leia then wished them good luck . Behind the scenes . Zay was created for the single - player campaign of " Star Wars Battlefront II " and first appears in the Resurrection DLC . She is portrayed by Brittany Volcy . After the initial campaign revealed that Iden Versio and Del Meeko had a daughter , some fans and media outlets speculated that they were the parents of Rey , the protagonist of the " Star Wars " sequel trilogy . The release of the Resurrection DLC officially put those rumors to rest by revealing their daughter as Zay .