Fandom Star Wars: Demesne [Closed]

[cleopat]

Skye raised an eyebrow at Zeb’s reaction, but she wouldn’t blame him. It did sound strange that here she was, helping the rebel cell a day after being formally accepted into the Shah-Tezh. She would make sure that there were no mishaps from herself.

The topic was forgotten for now as the Twi’lek stepped into the area.

Hera nodded in greeting at Adlai. “I thank you for being able to get here so quickly. Both of you.” She glanced between him and Skye with a grateful nod.

A more serious expression crossed her face. “Our first issue is where the Empire imprisoned Kanan. We may have an idea, but we need access to the Imperial data network to find more information.

“Well, I have a friend who may be able to help,” Ezra offered with a bit of a sheepish smile. Friend was a loose term for Vizago, but he could be someone to have the Imperial information they need.

~~

The Jedi remained still with the information Thrawn gave her, except for the slight change of her grip. Thrawn’s eyes noticed this, and while he would normally think nothing of it, the Jedi didn’t quite act like he expected the entire skirmish. He wanted to figure her out.

“If you believe that, then you truly do not know anything of me.” That would be the last words he got to her before she ran and lept for the Mantis. Thrawn’s eyes followed her, and only after she was in, he set off for his shuttle.

The only thing left was to hope that the TIE fighters could apprehend their ship, but Thrawn wouldn’t hold his breath. His pilots were capable, but the crew of the Mantis were infamous for a reason.


Cora, Ortell, and Tobias didn’t waste time getting back to their shuttle. They saw how the Mantis was flying away, followed by the sound of the TIE fighters chasing after it. “Remind me to never agree to a mission with Jedis again,” Cora muttered.

“You’re telling me,” Tobias scoffed. His arm still hurt, but the bacta bandages had done wonders for him.

Cora winced and sheepishly smiled. “Yeah, you have a better reason than me.”

They boarded the ship, and Ortell and Tobias sat down in some seats, while Cora made her way over to Eli. She didn’t have a chance to say anything before Thrawn boarded soon after, irritation clear on his face. “Prepare our ship for departure,” he commanded. “We shall have to watch this battle from the skies.”

~~

Cal pulled the Child back into his lap and tightened his arms around him just a bit as the Child seemed to doze off. “Well, this is certainly unexpected,” he commented. The Child snuggled closer to the warmth of Cal’s body, giving into the exhaustion Force healing brought him.

Both Cal and Lin looked over when they heard the thump of Ae’lia landing on the ramp, but Lin’s attention was focused on Merrin soon after. He still couldn’t get over the powers she displayed, with the green aura surrounding her and spilling from her. It was both terrifying and mesmerizing, and Lin was glad he wasn't on the opposite end of that anymore.

“Brace for a bumpy ride!” Greez called out from the cockpit. The TIEs were beginning to close in on them, and they remained a moving target until Merrin fully cloaked the ship. Tricky maneuvering may be necessary to escape.

Lin did not like the sound of that, but he had faith they would escape. Maybe. With a sigh, he turned to Ae’lia. “How are you doing?” And now that the ramp was closed, he removed the helmet, placing it on the floor beside his feet.

 

[Lucyfer]

Zeb was the one to give Ezra a doubtful look at that. “Which friend is this?” Their friends usually seemed to be pirates, smugglers, and other unsavory sorts who cared more about money, or business, than actually helping anyone out.

Adlai just arched a brow at the tone, but was hardly in a place to argue. He considered that he might be able to just ask Shay, but then again, she hadn’t mentioned Kanan being kidnapped. She might not have that information yet, or be able to get it in a timely fashion.

He wouldn’t volunteer such a thing.

Nor would he consider Amita, though she was usually good at hassling the Empire about ‘due process’. Where Tarkin was involved…that didn’t seem wise. “Is there a reason to suspect he’s not on one of the ships? It doesn’t seem like Tarkin to abandon a post,” or ignore the usefulness of bait, but he didn’t add that.

Jedi were usually special cases.

~***~

Eli heard the complaints as the group returned, and he looked over his shoulder from the cockpit to see Cora, Tobias, and Ortell. Although he was able to smile, mainly from relief, it flickered a touch at the sight of Thrawn. Not because he was unhappy to see Thrawn – hardly, he was glad to see Thrawn in one piece. It was because of the mood that Thrawn was exuding.

This would not be a good day for any of them.

“Understood, sir,” Eli said, closing the door and getting the ship up into the air. He’d already done much of the prepwork for that in reaching out to their bridges to get TIEs to be sent.

There wasn’t much battle to watch as Eli got them up, and kept them some distance from the fighting. The Mantis crew was skilled, their gunner taking out TIEs, but it was evident that wasn’t the goal of the pilot. Their pilot was taking skilled evasive maneuvers, dodging the TIEs recklessly, until Eli noticed specks of green light appearing around the ship.

Like fireflies, that light seemed to grow into a swarm around the ship, and Eli couldn’t help but gape as all the lights pulled away, leaving no sign of the ship anywhere.

Messages from the TIEs immediately came through expressing their confusion, followed by reports that scans and attempts to de-cloak were met with failure.

They were looking for direction now.

~***~

Ae’lia was barely registering much once she was on the ship. She took note of a couch, and made her way over to it, although she didn’t sit, just set her hand on the arm of it and tried to brace. She probably should have sat, but she wasn’t thinking all that much of the moment. Her mind was still circling over and over Mitth’raw’nuruodo’s words.

That he knew he worked with a Sith.

That he thought her assumptions were flawed.

‘No, I don’t know you.’

And that hurt, too, in its way. Not that Mitth’raw’nuruodo knew her, in full. It would likely hurt him just as much, wouldn’t it? That was another crushing thought, although some residual anger tried to convince her it shouldn’t be. That she shouldn’t hurt. That any pain he suffered was his due for siding with Palpatine – and maybe that pain would be good. Maybe it would help. ‘Why? Is the pain going to turn you from what you know is right?’

She was taken from the thoughts by Lin’s gesture to remove his helmet, and then his clear voice without it. She ought to take hers off, right?

She let go of the couch arm at the wrong time to do so, and just as her hands gripped either side of the helmet, the ship pulled itself in a manner that caused her to lose her footing. She fell backwards, resisted an urge to curse at another minor inconvenience, and sighed as she just pushed herself against a wall and braced while sitting on the floor.

“I’ve been better.” She took the helmet off and set it in her lap. She was trying not to cry. Not with an infant there. The strangers didn’t bother her so much, given two were Jedi, but crying in front of an infant seemed…weird.

Not as weird as the way Merrin used the Force, and the way that green light started to encase the ship, covering it as Cere let out a cheer as their ship vanished from sight, and vanished from radars.

“I will never get tired of that,” Cere exhaled relief, “Greez, get us to Retta.” They could figure things out from there. Bogano had been compromised too long ago, and remained that way.

 

[cleopat]

Hera shook her head. “He could be, but we don’t know which one, if he’s not on Lothal somewhere still, or if they didn’t already transfer him somewhere else.” There were too many ‘ifs’ to be confident in any one answer. They needed to know exactly where he was.

And Hera already had an uneasy feeling of who Ezra was suggesting. “Which friend is it?”

Ezra gave a nonchalant shrug, as if it was no big deal. “Cikatro Vizago.” The other Ghost crew members would know of him, given their dealings with him in the past for Imperial intelligence.

“The crime lord?” Skye blurted out, brows furrowing in thought at the Devaronian.

“You know him?” Hera asked.

Skye shrugged. “May have met him once or twice.” She paused. “It may be best if he didn’t see me.”

~~

Thrawn’s mood did not escape Cora’s notice, and so she elected to sit down, staying out of the way of any potential ire he may throw her way. Not that she thought he would take his anger out on his subordinates, like some others in command did, but she didn’t wish to risk that chance.

Especially as they all saw how the Mantis just...disappeared before their eyes in a flash of green.

Thrawn’s jaw tensed, but he didn’t express any anger or frustration over the maneuver. Undoubtedly it was the Dathomir witch who did that. She wouldn’t be able to hold it for long.

But the TIEs couldn’t shoot at nothing in hopes of hitting the Mantis before escaping Corellia.

Thrawn sighed. There was nothing more that could be done. “Tell them to retreat.”

~~

Lin frowned. He may not have the Force like more than half the people in that ship, but he could still tell Eira was hiding more than she let on.

When she fell, he got up and made his way over to her, sitting on the floor beside her. Somehow, Lin knew Thrawn was the reason behind her mood. She had been talking to him out there, providing a distraction. And if he was the reason behind this, Lin really didn’t want to say I told you so.

“What happened out there?” he decided to ask, after a brief internal battle of leaving it alone.

Meanwhile in the cockpit, Greez let out his own sigh of relief as the cloak worked, and he finished maneuvering them out of the battle and away from the TIE fighters. “Off to Retta it is!” He announced, and the sight through the viewport devolved into the blur of stars as they entered lightspeed.

 

[Lucyfer]

Sabine was the one to openly groan at the thought, but nonetheless, she had to give Ezra credit. There were good odds that Vizago could help them.

Adlai wrapped his knuckles on his own helmet, “That’s what these are for,” he had no plans of being known to anyone outside of the Ghost crew anytime soon.

“You sure about that? Vizago probably ain’t going to be happy to see any Stormtroopers.” Zeb pointed out with a slight smirk.

“Just give him a warning,” Adlai advised, “Where is this Vizago? How do we find him…and how can he help?” Adlai wasn’t going to question strategy. He was there to add his support, and if they knew this Vizago could help – and if he was a criminal – he’d believe them.

Criminals were enemies of the Empire too, after all.

~***~

Eli nodded, and turned the comms back on so he could speak, “This is Commander Vanto relaying an order from Grand Admiral Thrawn. Our forces are to retreat. Reconvene on Coruscant. Await further orders there.” He did not think he was stepping out of line to order the retreat to Coruscant.

He would even begin prepping this ship to jump.

He would not say anything like ‘I told you this was a bad idea’. Not right then, not with Thrawn in a rare mood, but he would ask, “Did we learn anything?” It wasn’t meant to imply if Thrawn learned this was a bad idea.

It was only meant to ask if he had picked up any clues about this group, or the secondary group, from his interactions with them.

Thrawn knew that some battles had to be lost to win a war.

Eli was never good at figuring out which those were.

~***~

Ae’lia kept her gaze down on the helmet even as Lin came over. There were plenty of questions she had in her had about all of this, and plenty she didn’t want answered. She couldn’t tune out the fact that there were strangers to the situation, nor could she lock Lin out, either. No matter what, she had to go back to being Eira.

That meant pretending she never heard what Mitth’raw’nuruodo said.

“Mitth’raw’nuruodo knows Palpatine is a Sith,” something that Ae’lia was certain 99% of the Empire had no idea about. It shouldn’t surprise her. He was terribly intelligent…and yet…, “He knows who he’s working for.”

There was ignorant evil that could be forgiven.

And then there was…this.



Merrin lost some of her strength as the ship set into lightspeed, and she let the cloaking go. Cere was able to steady her with a smile, as she got up from the cockpit. They were leaving, but they still had a bit of an issue with their newfound allies, and figuring out what to do about them.

And what their presence even meant.

There hadn’t been a lot of time for talking.

And as she stepped into the main room, she decided now wasn’t precisely the moment, seeing Ae’lia and Lin huddled against the wall, talking lowly. She went over to Cal and took a seat once more.

“Let’s give them a few minutes,” she said softly to Cal, certain he was also eager to get some answers.

 

[cleopat]

“That’s what I was thinking,” Skye agreed with Zeb. “Meeting a crime lord while bringing some troopers isn’t exactly a good look.” But if Ezra could give notify Vizago ahead of time, maybe there won’t be any issue. Or he’ll be less likely to trust them.

They’ll just have to try.

Ezra shrugged, “Yeah, we’ll just warn him.” He paused for a moment, resting his chin on his fingers in contemplation. “I don’t know exactly where he is, but I have some ideas. It shouldn’t take very long to find him.” Vizago had a few locations he did most of his business, and one fortunately wasn’t too far away.

This time, Hera spoke up, “Vizago has given us Imperial intelligence in the past, normally in exchange for something else.” With that, she sent a small glare Ezra’s way, before softening her look and shaking her head. “He may be able to tell us if he heard where they took Kanan.”

It was a risk, but one they would have to take and deal with the consequences of his price later.

~~

Thrawn wouldn’t disagree with Eli’s orders. No, he sighed and shook his head at Eli. “Nothing too substantial. We learn that there are multiple rebel cells out there, well organized and aiding one another. I would even fathom a guess that the mysterious rebels are from the Core and well connected.”

They had an Inquisitor and Purge Trooper uniform. Those weren’t so easy to come across, not like a Stormtrooper uniform.

“But anything to lead to identification? I’m afraid not.”

“Well, that may not be completely accurate,” Ortell said, and lightly flushed as all eyes turned his way. Thrawn raised a brow, silently commanding him to continue. “That one Jedi - the one who attacked Tobias - she called the masked Jedi by a name. Ae’lia.”

Thrawn’s irate mood dissipated some with the new information. “Really? How interesting.”

~~

Of all the things Lin expected, nothing prepared him for what Eira said. The Grand Admiral knew that the Emperor was a Sith, and yet he still chose to follow. He was an Imperial through and through, and this had only confirmed it.

Wait a minute…

“He’s a what?!” he all but shouted, bringing in the others to their conversation bubble. The Emperor was a Sith Lord. This was the first time Lin had heard about that bit of news.

Cal had just agreed with Cere. The conversation looked serious, and they shouldn’t jump in on something that may be sensitive, but then Lin raised his voice.

“What’s going on back there?” Greez left the cockpit. “Who’s a what now?”

Lin wouldn’t answer, but instead looked to Eira, expecting her to answer.

 

[Lucyfer]

At least no one anticipated this detour to find Vizago would take long. Adlai was grateful for that, and didn’t quite quell the smirk that touched his lips as he saw Hera’s look to Ezra. There was something familiar to the dynamic that he enjoyed. He could tell the group had plenty of love for each other already.

He wouldn’t see that ruined.

“If we can end up helping with the price in any way, we will,” Adlai offered.

“You’re loaded, aren’t you?” Sabine asked, arching a brow.

“I’m…wealthy, yes,” Adlai said.

“That’ll help with Vizago.” She deduced. “We won’t let him know where it comes from,” she added with a wink, since apparently, he and Skye wanted to lay low.

~***~

Thrawn’s deduction was the obvious one, and yet Eli hadn’t quite gotten to that in his own thoughts. It was an important fact to present to others, particularly Tarkin, when it came to planning how to act against Rebels. Not to mention, a cell in the Core was detrimental.

He wasn’t sure how much use this would actually be, in light of the failure.

And they had a bit of identification, not that it helped Eli any, “I don’t think it’s a common name. If they were a Jedi in the past, it may be possible to find one who identified under the name Ae’lia,” Eli said, “back in Clone Wars HoloNews or from other sources.”

A lot of the Jedi had served as generals. Their names were out there, in old reports.

The shuttle hit lightspeed.

~***~

Ae’lia winced under Lin’s outburst, realizing, of course, that she hadn’t shared that bit of information. It never seemed like good information to share. It only served to demoralize, really. Shay knew it, but Shay had found out on her own, and also chosen not to share it.

She lifted her voice a bit to be heard, “Emperor Palpatine is a Sith Lord.”

“Oh.” Cere frowned, “We knew that.”

“He didn’t,” obviously. Ae’lia sighed, “I’m sorry, Lin,” the rest of the group probably needed to know that. As well as what she was. It was going to be impossible to hide it now, anyways, once they heard about Corellia. Once they put the pieces together.

She forced herself to get back up to her feet, tucking the inquisitor helmet under her arm, and looking for a place to set it.

“So, do you want to tell us what two Coruscanti actors are doing here?” Cere finally asked, keeping a touch of play in it as she addressed them as actors, but also retaining the firmness. “We’re glad for the help, but….”

Well, it left a lot of questions.

 

[cleopat]

Skye didn’t withhold the smirk on her lips as Sabine questioned Adlai’s wealth. Money was always a safe answer for crime lords, or even for corrupted officials on either side of the war. If they needed to hand over a few credits to obtain information of where Kanan was imprisoned, then so be it.

Hera merely shot Sabine an exasperated look, but turned back to Adlai with a soft smile. “Hopefully it won’t have to come down to that, but we thank you for your help.”

A somber look back on Ezra’s face, he nodded in agreement. “But now we have a better chance to save him.”

The kid was attached to Kana, Skye noted, and she wondered just exactly what kind of relationship they shared. Why they were so close. Brotherly? “I am liking our odds here,” she smiled. “Now, we should go find Vizago before we lose any more time.” And the Empire had a chance to either transport him somewhere else, or worse.

~~

Thrawn agreed with Eli’s deduction. “No, I don’t think so either. If this is the case, then finding this Ae’lia should be simple enough.” Old reports from the Clone Wars weren’t exactly difficult to find, not as difficult as finding information for a specific Jedi could be.

He may have to contact Governor Tarkin for any Jedi specific files on this woman.

Tarkin.

Oh, that man won’t be pleased to learn what had happened today, but Thrawn got a glimpse of two rebel cells, three Jedis, and how organized the cells could be.

They were communicating. They were plotting.

“Was there anything else you observed of these rebels?” He glanced over all of them, noting how his officers looked exhausted, but, fortunately, Tobias’ injury had been the worst one.

~~

Lin dropped his head back against the durasteel wall, a soft thud resonating. “Well, this is just a grand ole time,” he murmured.

Cal gave him a slightly sympathetic look, but Cere’s question drew his attention back on Ae’lia. “Something tells me you’re more than just actors,” he said, a small smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.

Lin looked back at them, catching the question. “I feel like Ae’lia,” he looked at her with the mention of her name, one brow raised. The name was still new to him, and she had yet to explain it. “Would do a better job at explaining the nuances of this, but we’re rebels.”

It should’ve at least been obvious they weren’t for the Empire.

“Aside from the rescue, we also wanted to ask you guys about joining the rebels.” He would let Ae’lia take over. She was one of the founders of the Shah-tezh, after all. It felt more appropriate that she explained things further.

 

[Lucyfer]

Adlai appreciated the sentiment from Hera, but he was still willing to part with some funds if it helped. It wasn’t as if this crime lord was going to know where the funds were coming from – he wouldn’t know exactly how much he might be able to ask for. “Indeed, best not to waste time if you know where Vizago is, right?”

“Yeah,” Zeb sighed, “better start running down his locations and hope he ain’t off-planet,” because that was going to be hard to pull off, even with the Ghost.

“C’mon,” Sabine said, “We’ll show you to the ship!” Which was parked well out of sight from the rocks, but in a clear enough space that lifting off still wouldn’t be much of an issue.

Adlai nodded, and would follow as Sabine began to lead the way back to the Ghost.

Zeb did ask, “You got any idea of where we’re starting?” Directed to Ezra, of course.

~***~

Eli tried to think, but the only thing that came to mind was simply: “The two groups were…obvious,” as in, the Mantis crew and the other, “I don’t think they worked together before. There wasn’t a good cohesion when we were speaking with the Purge Trooper and the Mantis crew.”

There was too much wariness and uncertainty. They didn’t have a chemistry yet to know how to respond.

He was unaware that it might not hold true between what Thrawn saw of the Inquisitor and Cere, but that may be easy to equate to a shared history with the Jedi. “I’m not sure how relevant that is, but even in pirate groups we’ve dealt with, there seemed to be a bit more unity and understanding amongst the crew.”

There was some, but not enough.

~***~

Ae’lia did feel quite the pang of empathy for Lin as he mourned the situation and the new details. She could only offer an apologetic smile. At least focusing on other problems, was going to delay her from focusing on her own. It was going to help with the ‘not crying in front of an infant’ thing, at any rate.

“Yes, as you know, I am Ae’lia Kore,” she offered, “That is my real name,” she looked to Lin, “Obviously, I couldn’t use that, given its ties to my history.” She looked back to him, before looking back to Cal and Cere, “I am the Demense of the Shah-Tezh, a rebel cell operating out of Coruscant.”

Cere allowed a low whistle at that, “Right in the heart….”

Ae’lia gave a smile, but nodded, “I’m one of the leaders, and yes, I am here to ask the Mantis crew to join a much larger group of rebels. We were approached by a cell operating out of Alderaan, who is bringing many others together.”

“How many others?” Cere asked, “Who’s involved in this?”

“Ahsoka Tano and Caleb Dume,” those names would mean something, obvious enough by Cere’s widening eyes. “Bail Organa, Hera Syndulla, and others.”

Cere wasn’t surprised, somehow, that Ahsoka was involved. Like Ae’lia, she’d left the Order. Order 66 might not have impacted her. Might not have impacted Ae’lia. At least…they were not in immediate danger. Or so Cere thought. “Bail Organa is heading the Alderaan one, huh?”

“Yes. He’s bringing us together.” So they could begin to act together, and so muster up a greater force against the Empire. A more organized one.

 

[cleopat]

Skye would follow alongside Adlai as they made their way to the ship, unassuming enough, but she had heard of some of the feats the crew pulled off in that thing. I wonder if Hera would let me give it a whirl.

“Yeah, I have some ideas,” Ezra answered. “Most of his business deals happen outside of the city.” Sounded logical enough. One didn’t want to participate in any illegal trading in front of the Empire. “One of his typical meetup locations is not far from here. Maybe just a few miles to the east, within another grouping of rocks.”

“Alright, we’ll stay low, and I’ll let you guys out a little ways away,” Hera said. Someone had to stay with the ship, in case something went wrong. Vizago decided to get them into trouble. The Empire knew they were there. They had to be prepared for anything.

They all boarded the ship, and Hera immediately headed for the cockpit with Chopper following after her.

~~

Thrawn nodded at Eli, a soft suggestion for him to continue his line of thought as the officer considered what they learned and could infer. “Yes, I believe you are quite right.” There was no cohesion. Their strategy was sloppy, as if improvised right on the spot.

“When we first arrived at the scene, there was slight battle damage on the frontside of the house with no casualties, but not on the inside. This could suggest that the two disguised were not quite expected by the others, and the rebels decided to attack first and ask questions later.” Until someone could throw in who they were, and why they were there.

“These two rebel cells are not in contact with one another, given by the lack of cohesion, and yet one knew where the others were to help their fellow rebel friends.” Thrawn had started to lightly pace in the open area of the ship. “What do you think this may suggest?”

~~

As Ae’lia better explained the situation to the Mantis crew, Lin sat on the floor quietly, looking up at the ceiling as he processed the new information given to him. Ae’lia’s real name. The emperor was a Sith Lord. That certainly explained why the Empire was so adamant in wiping out the remaining Jedis.

The Child was dead asleep in Cal’s arms, and although he could feel the pinpricks of his limbs falling asleep, he couldn’t bring himself to move at all lest he woke up the baby.

“That’s...a lot to take in,” he admitted. There were names she mentioned that he knew quite well. Everyone knew Ahsoka Tano. He remembered Caleb Dume’s name, although he couldn’t recall if they’ve met once or twice. And Bail Organa was another name he knew, simply because of his political presence.

“A larger rebellion, eh?” Greez asked. “We’ve already been foolish enough to go straight into the Inquisitorius, this only seems like a natural progression.”

Cal chuckled. The baby shifted in his arms at the movement, but stilled once more. “I’m in.” There were other Jedi out there, coming out of hiding to help fight against the Empire, and Cal knew he had to help. It was his duty. “Do you know of any other Jedi survivors?” he had to ask. Ae’lia already mentioned a few names, were there more?

 

[Lucyfer]

Adlai hadn’t even considered going into the city, given it sounded like this man was a criminal. The Empire would probably not hesitate to capture him if they caught him. Sure, they did business with some criminals…but with the current state of Lothal, Adlai doubted they had much patience for those sorts.

Outside the city made sense, and he nodded.

“Should we stay with the shuttle until you’ve cleared things with Vizago, or at some distance?” Adlai asked as Hera went to the cockpit. He could imagine Skye’s curiosity.

It was obvious enough without her helmet on.

He nearly wanted to encourage her to go ahead and look, but suspected it may be better if she was present to ask any questions needed about this Vizago situation.

“Mmmm…you might want to come along, just hang back. Zeb can stay with you, and we’ll call you forward when we’ve at least warned Vizago,” Sabine offered.

~***~

Eli hadn’t forgotten the battle damage, but he’d yet to put it into his mental review. With that said, as well as his own conclusion that the rebels weren’t working well together, one thing became apparent: “The Inquisitor’s group was likely the one who found out about the Mantis group, and may be trying to organize or unify the other rebel cells out there.”

Saying it, didn’t make it any better.

A rebel cell with a Jedi attempting to organize could be bad. The Jedi had military experience, as well as the Force, and possibly old ties they could pull. “Which means they must be able to access information well, I don’t think this was highly publicized,” definitely not, “Probably inside information,” which could mean someone inside the Empire, or someone very good at slicing.

“They’re also well off, or well connected, to get accurate Purge Trooper and Inquisitor outfits,” another issue, “and the Inquisitors aren’t seen that often….”

~***~

Ae’lia was not surprised that many head’s were spinning, Cal and Lin’s included. However, she would let it sink in. To her delight, Greez seemed all for it, and Cal joined in. Merrin, coming around a bit more, nodded as well.

“Yes, I think we could do much more with more allies.”

“There’s risks there,” Cere acknowledged. No one knew better than her how the Empire could get information, “But I think it’s worth it. And about damn time.” She folded her arms over her chest, as curious as Cal about other Jedi.

“Yes,” Ae’lia did answer, “but their identities are not ones I can give,” she kept it neutral, and plural, so it wouldn’t be obvious to Lin who it could be, “and other Force sensitives, as well, who would have been Jedi in a better time.” Holdo, she thought of again.

Like the Child. “Speaking of…what is the next step here?” She and Lin were there to help, but they also had to get back to Coruscant at some point. She gestured to the swaddled child, unable to make it out.

Realizing that, Cere grinned, and walked over to Cal, offering her arms to take the Child. “We’re figuring that out,” she admitted, “we were told about the child, and as soon as we got the details, we knew we had to get there before the Empire did, but now we have to find a safe place for him.”

 

[cleopat]

Skye’s eyes had briefly trailed after Hera making her way to the cockpit. She almost wanted to follow her, to ask questions about her ship, but she stopped herself. Discussing plans concerning Vizago were more important at the moment, and they each needed to be there.

She would have time later.

“And once we’re all there, we’ll see if he knows anything of what happened to Kanan, with maybe a small fee included.” Ezra had looked over at Adlai with that.

Money made everyone talk.

“What if he doesn’t know anything?” Skye asked. She hoped that wouldn’t be the case. She hoped Vizago would be able to give them something to lead them to Caleb. If he didn’t, she may be able to reach out to Caleb, if he was still on the planet, or maybe in one of the ships in the atmosphere.

This could expose her to the Ghost crew, and it could also put her at risk with the Grand Inquisitor. But those were risks she was willing to make.

Ezra’s face dropped some, and he shrugged. “Then we’ll have to find another way.”

~~

Thrawn continued to nod at Eli’s deductions, pleased with what his officer theorized. A calm, neutral expression had completely replaced his cold look. “Yes, that is indeed what I came up with as well.” Which meant a larger issue was forming right in front of them, in the heart of the Core.

“My theory is that those rebels who came to rescue may be operating with those trying to unify the rebel cells. Why send in those with such resources that allows them to know of other Jedis? Or to acquire accurate uniforms for Purge Troopers and inquisitors?” Or send in those who can access top secret Imperial intelligence?

There were other explanations, of course, but Thrawn couldn’t help but to think there were already unification efforts underway, and now other cells were tasked to recruit more.

“We have to be open to the possibility of both a mole within the Empire, and an experienced slicer.” Even both were possible.

Cora frowned, going over this information in her head. Jedis teaming up together sounded dangerous, as they held strategic military experience. They were fearless and dangerous, and she heard of people who still looked up to the stories of the Jedis with hope and inspiration.

She thought they were foolish. After their encounter with the Jedis today, she would be happy to never see one again.

~~

Both Lin and Cal frowned as Ae’lia didn’t satisfy their curiosity over other Jedis. Cal wanted to know if they were someone he knew; Lin already knew of the Jedi she had previously mentioned, but he couldn’t think of anyone else he already knew of. Who were they?

Neither one would complain over the lack of answer though. They understood completely the secrecy needed.

Cere walked over to Cal, and he gently lifted the Child to put in her arms. He stirred a little, making a light noise, but he didn’t wake up. “But that may be the problem. Where would be a safe place for him from the Empire?”

“It’s so hard to trust anyone these days,” Greez grumbled. He wanted the best for the baby as well, as it was so easy to fall for the small child with ears and eyes bigger than his face. “Do we even know exactly...what he is?” He wasn’t a species familiar to him.

“He looks like he could be a baby Yoda,” Cal mused.

 

[Lucyfer]

“If you like,” Adlai began, “I can ask my own contact to do some digging. If Vizago knows nothing, she might find something.”

“Worth a shot,” Sabine shrugged, figuring it couldn’t hurt. If Vizago did know something, good. Perhaps whoever Adlai knew would just confirm it. If Vizago didn’t know anything, they’d have another lead already moving, while they considered who else they could reach out.

“Not Hondo,” Zeb grumbled.

Adlai wouldn’t comment on that, as he typed away his message to Shay to get her caught up with the fact they were here, and needed to find out if she could discern anything about Kanan Jarrus – where he was, or where he might be going. He had been captured.

He didn’t hear back immediately, but he didn’t expect to, either.

~***~

Thrawn’s additions made sense. The ones who got the information wouldn’t be the ones sent out into the field, unless that group was small. Which, given the unifications effort, were unlikely. They may not have captured anyone, but Eli could see how this information was useful to the war effort on the whole.

“I agree with your deductions,” Eli would make that clear, at least, “and I hope this information will be appreciated by the rest of the Empire.” In spite of their losses, and the fact they probably shouldn’t have been in there in the first place.

He wouldn’t make those additions, of course, as they came out of lightspeed, back at Coruscant.

He could only hold his breath and hope no one had heard just yet, but knowing Tarkin, that seemed almost impossible. He’d get clearance to land their ship back on the Chimaera, and ask for a medic to stand by to see Tobias to the medbay to get better treatment at their own facilities.

~***~

“A baby—!” Ae’lia had started to phrase it as a question, but as soon as Cere brought the Child over and she was able to see him above all the swaddling, she understood, “A baby!” Cere was already offering him to Ae’lia, who cooed over him immediately as she took him and held him close, “Hello dear.”

Cere couldn’t quite help but chuckle. Ae’lia’s eyes may as well have turned into hearts. Clearly, the Child at least made her feel a bit better.

“I do not know this Yoda,” Merrin had been living under a rock, “does he really seem like this Jedi Master I keep hearing of?”

“Yes,” Ae’lia said, moving to sit on the arm of the couch with the Child.

“We’re thinking somewhere in the Outer Rim might be good for him, but we’re just not sure,” Cere added. “The Empire is everywhere, and he’s…well, you see for yourself,” which Ae’lia did as he started to try to wake up again.

Ae’lia just started to hum a lullaby she recalled from the Jedi Temple.

“Hiding him would be difficult. We don’t know what Yoda was, or even where he came from, to take this one back home.”

Which was unfortunate.

 

[cleopat]

Ezra nodded in agreement with Adlai’s plan, though his mood didn’t quite perk up. He knew he should hold on to any hope he could that they would rescue Kanan, but that what if persisted in his head.

“You guys know Hondo?” Skye asked, leaning against the wall with her arms crossed and one brow raised in question. “First Vizago, now Hondo?” Certainly an unscrupulous lot for a bunch of rebels to know.

“I could say the same to you,” Ezra countered.

She paused. “...Touchè.”

It wasn’t long before the ship landed at their destination, just a few miles from where they had met. Hera came back into the room, “Alright, we’re here. Let’s try and make this quick.” Every minute they spent trying to find Kanan was another chance for the situation to worsen.

She couldn’t stomach the thought of something happening to him, but more so Hera couldn’t imagine how Ezra would deal with it.

~~

Thrawn gave a sardonic smile. “Yes, I hope they will see and understand what happened on Corellia could have a bigger impact on the Empire in the near future.” Mostly, it was Governor Tarkin he had to convince, as the man would hardly be happy that Thrawn left Coruscant to begin with.

They may have suffered more losses than gains, but potentially valuable information was discovered, and action needed to be taken soon.

They returned to Coruscant easy enough without any angry messages appearing on Thrawn’s datapad. “I thank you all for your valiant efforts today against these Jedis,” he said as the ship settled and the ramp lowered. “I will make sure you each get those days off you well deserved.”

Especially Tobias, the only one in the group to sustain an injury beyond bruising. “And Officer Tobias?” The man in question turned to look at Thrawn, as he prepared to step down the ship. “You did well. Get some much needed rest.” Tobias smiled and nodded, and then proceeded to step off the ship to be escorted to medbay by the medic on standby.

Cora, lingering behind on the ship for an extra second while Thrawn disembarked, just hoped that the admiral would actually stick to his words this time. That there wouldn’t be any more excitement for a little bit, so she could get some much needed rest. And so she and Eli could finally go on that date.

~~

While Lin knew Adlai’s and Eira’s relationship was fake, and that they didn’t truly break up because of differing opinions over children, he was still shocked to see Eira take so easily to the baby. He always held the impression she didn’t like them, and yet there she was, cooing over the small creature.

He is rather adorable.

“I suggested that we should just bring him along with us. He’s obviously gifted with the Force, and we could help him,” Cal said. He was more than willing to help this Child out, though he didn’t wish to change any diapers. Or clean up any of his messes. Just train the baby.

“And I say we don’t need a baby to stay with us, especially if we do end up joining the rebels,” Greez countered, crossing his arms over his chest. “Not to mention, sometimes he’s too curious for his own good and touches things in my ship that could break it.” No, a ship was no place for the Child.

“Put him on a moisture farm in the Outer Rims. That seems like it would be isolated from the Empire,” Lin suggested, half joking, half not. Damn, now I want to bring this baby back with us.

 

[Lucyfer]

Adlai nodded as Hera returned and gave the marching orders. He stuck his helmet back on, sighing, “I never enjoy wearing these things.”

Zeb hit the back of his head – lightly, for a lasat of his strength, “That’s not the point of them.”

Adlai knew this, but still huffed.

“Lead the way, Ezra,” Sabine said, prepared to follow after him, and cover him, if necessary when approaching Vizago. Vizago was at least one of the more harmless ones, but he could still cause quite a bit of trouble, if he wanted to.

Like any criminal.

~***~

Eli was glad to hear Thrawn’s promise of time off, but he also recognized that Thrawn wasn’t saying ‘when’.

They hadn’t spent too much time on Corellia, there was still a good portion of the day left, although Eli wouldn't want to quite do an ‘official’ date after this mess. It would feel off. He also wasn’t sure if he was dismissed from duty yet, as he stepped off the ship, glad to see Tobias being taken away by the medics. He’d be fine soon.

“Grand Admiral, do you have anything else you would like myself, Officer Suvan, or Ensign Ortell to complete right now?” Eli would at least ask, rather than assume, as he looked around the hangar. No signs of panic.

No signs of any unexpected visitors.

And so far he hadn’t heard or noticed Thrawn look at his datapad in a certain way. Perhaps Tarkin was too busy.

~***~

Ae’lia would have certainly been surprised to hear she’d acted so well as to convince Lin she didn’t like children. As it was right now, she was completely enamored with the small thing, but she was listening, and considering what both Cal and Greez had to say about the future of this baby, as the humming lulled it back to sleep.

“He cannot stay with any rebels,” Ae’lia said softly. “Not…active rebels,” obviously, he couldn’t stay with Imperials. He would need training, one day, that was obvious. “He needs to be hidden. Out of sight, out of mind.”

“I agree,” Cere was with Greez on this, “We just don’t know where that is.”

“Ahsoka will know,” Ae’lia said with strange certainty. That familiar intuition of the Jedi – Ahsoka, a non-human, who couldn’t blend in nearly so well, would know the sort of struggles and efforts it would take to hide someone like this.

 

[cleopat]

Skye smirked, agreeing silently with both Adlai and Zeb. She also wanted to blurt out a slightly more inappropriate, And your face is so much prettier without the helmet.

No, she would behave, and silently slip her own helmet back on.

Ezra waited a moment for their help to get their disguises back on, and once they were ready, he nodded. “Alright, let’s go.” He led the way out of the ship and back into the wilderness of Lothal, the landscape of its flat prairies only interrupted with rocky formations that served as a great location for those who didn’t wish to be easily found.

Like Vizago.

And fortunately for them, Ezra caught a glimpse of his ship, and he halted in his tracks. “Alright, it looks like there’s a little luck on our side. Vizago is here, now let us go ahead so we can warn him of you two.”

They were still in Imperial disguises, and they didn’t need to spook the crime lord before he could help them.

~~

Thrawn paused in his movement to the entrance of the hangar when Eli stopped him with a question. Even if he had something else he needed to task officers to, he would’ve sought others out first. The three with him held back to back missions, and they needed rest.

“No, that will be all, Officer Vanto. You three are dismissed. Thank you, and rest well.” If Thrawn needed anything, he would just go to Officer Faro about it. “I will make sure you three have the remainder of the day, and all of tomorrow, to rest.” Thrawn would wait and see what the medic said about Tobias before determining how much time he would have off.

“Thank you, Grand Admiral,” Cora and Ortell said in succession. Thrawn nodded at them with a cool expression on his face, before he turned back around and exited the hangar.

Once he was gone, Ortell turned to the two remaining officers. “Well, I don’t know about you guys, but I think I’ll head back to my quarters and sleep for a few hours.” He will check up on Tobias later, or send him a message. He was okay, and Ortell’s adrenaline was wearing off. “See you two later.”

With that, Ortell made his way out of the hangar to finally get some rest. It had been a busy few days.

~~

It was a shame that none of the rebels would keep the Child. Both Lin and Cal became enamored with the small, green baby, watching him as he gave a small yawn and slowly drifted back to sleep. Seeing how exhausted the baby became after Force healing Cere’s wound, Cal was curious to the extent of this ability. Could he heal someone on the brink of death?

Someone who had just died?

Maybe, with the proper training, he could, and this was why the Child needed to be hidden from the Empire.

“Now, who is this Ahsoka?” Lin asked. “You’ve mentioned her before, but I still don’t know who she is.” Cal had heard of her, but he didn’t know of her too well, not like the other Jedis had. He had been very young when she was on trial and subsequently left the Order.

 

[Lucyfer]

Adlai, Zeb, and Sabine, all followed Ezra out, Sabine looking around, half-wishing she’d brought her own helmet. It felt weird standing out here without one. Not to mention she also hadn’t changed out of the Stormtrooper attire while on the ship. She’d do that when they got back, but at least with the group of others in disguises, it made sense.

As they saw the ship, Adlai and Zeb paused. “Okay, we’ll be here. Give us a signal when it’s okay to approach,” Adlai said, taking his cue from Zeb pausing.

“We got your back if anything goes wrong,” which Zeb wouldn’t be too surprised if it did.

Sabine nodded. “Got it.” Sabine would look to Ezra, and move with him as they left their companions behind. They’d be able to easily reach Zeb on comms, at least.

They didn’t have to go too far, thankfully. Vizago was already outside of his ship, and Sabine nudged Ezra and pointed when she saw him, rather than yell out or draw attention.

Kid’s idea, kid could handle it.

~***~

Eli was relieved to hear Thrawn’s words, though he held some doubt about no work tomorrow. He wanted to trust Thrawn, but after this? Well, he’d wait to see it. He relaxed a bit, though, and smiled to Ortell, “Rest well,” he said before Ortell had headed off.

He let out a sigh and shook his head a bit, “I don’t know about you, but I need to eat something,” he said to Cora, “I didn’t eat much this morning,” and now it was past lunch time. He definitely needed something.

Not to mention it’d be an easy way to determine if they were still going to enjoy tomorrow together, assuming they had it off. They could verify plans, at least, though Eli also wanted to just spend a bit more time with her.

Without the mission hanging over their head, it was easier to think of relaxing.

~***~

“Ahsoka Tano was a padawan who left the Jedi Order after I did,” Ae’lia answered, “There was a criminal case opened against her…it was a mess.” From what she’d heard, she wasn’t present.

“You can say that again. The actual criminal ended up being Barriss Offee,” Cere chimed in. And how that had hurt Luminara, “It was near the end of the war. Many of us…were losing our faith back then.” She hadn’t been present, but Offee’s words had rung loud and clear through the galaxy. “But Ahsoka was cleared, and she chose to walk away rather than continue her training as a Jedi.”

“How are you so certain we can trust her?” Merrin asked, looking between Cere and Ae’lia, “If she walked….”

Cere smirked, “You’re talking to two ex-Jedi,” Cere reminded, and at Ae’lia’s look, she sighed and shook her head, “It came after…but I can’t call myself Jedi any longer.” She still hesitated to use the Force. She still used her former padawan’s lightsaber.

Ae’lia only nodded. She wouldn’t press. “Tano is the one helping to bring the rebel groups together, and she’s not human. If anyone knows how to hide a non-human Force sensitive, it’ll be her. That’s why I can trust her, Merrin.”

 

[cleopat]

Skye stayed behind with Adlai as the others went on ahead to meet Vizago. “I like them,” she said to Adlai, her eyes following them until they left her sight.

Luck was on their side when Ezra was easily able to locate Vizago, outside his ship and inspecting his latest goods. Undoubtedly something the Empire wouldn’t approve of, but they all did what they had to in order to survive.

Ezra stepped out into view and waved awkwardly at the Devaronian. “Hey there, Vizago.”

The man looked up, and a displeased expression crossed his face. “What is it you three want? Everytime you come to me, it seems that trouble immediately follows.” And now, the increased Imperial presence on Lothal disrupted his business, and he wasn’t happy with his fewer credits than he normally would have by this time of month.

“We really need some information, but first, we have two friends with us, but we needed to warn you first before they came out because they’re in disguise.”

Vizago had a look of apprehension to flicker across his face. “What do you mean?”

“In order for them to get on Lothal, they dressed up as Troopers, and they’re still wearing the outfits now for their protection.”

~~

Right as Eli expressed desire to grab something to eat, Cora’s stomach growled in agreement. She chuckled and nodded at him. “I think I will have to agree with you on that one.” An early morning, with little to eat, and a very active and adrenaline-inducing mission left her both starving and exhausted.

But food with Eli sounded more pleasant than going back to sleep.

The cafeteria shouldn’t be terribly busy at that hour, as lunch had ended some time ago, but it was still too early for most people to grab dinner. Cora was tempted to ask Eli if he wanted to grab food and take it to one of their quarters, she didn’t want him to get the wrong idea and make things awkward.

“Was there anything else you needed to get done first? Or shall we head to the caf and get some actual food for ourselves?”

~~

Cal remembered the trial, although not as well as the other two Jedi in the ship could. He was quite young when it happened, and so much was already going on around him with the Clone Wars. In hindsight, the trial just highlighted how far the Order had strayed from its true purpose.

But Ahsoka was cleared, and she was still alive. Just one of few who still remained from the Jedi Order and escaped the purge.

“...that sucks,” was the only thing Lin could think of saying, and Cal released a short snort. That’s one way of putting it.

Lin looked to Merrin. “And if Eira, err, Ae’lia,” he still wasn’t used to Eira having a different name, “trusts her with information of our rebel group, and with this baby, then I trust her as well.” Not that there was much of a choice right now.

“So now we just need to contact Ahsoka and let her know about this baby.” The baby that was now fast asleep once more, with innocence that Cal just wanted to shield from the galaxy.

 

[Lucyfer]

Zeb chuckled at Skye’s statement, “Yeah, the kids are fun,” even if the comment was obviously meant for Adlai, Zeb couldn’t help but chime in. Remind them he was still there to make sure nothing went south.

Adlai grinned under his helmet, but shook his head a bit. He liked them all, too, so far, but this was barely the beginning. He was curious how things might change as the situation grew more dire, which he had a bad feeling it would.

~***~

Further from them, Sabine gestured down at her own attire, “I didn’t have time to change, either,” though she was showing her face, “They’re legit – promise,” well, as much as she could promise. They were trusting this Fulcrum a lot, and Sabine didn’t even know who that was.

Vizago just frowned, “Why should I believe that, eh?”

“One of them is rich.” Sabine stated with a grin, because that was still the best angle to play with Vizago.

Watching the devaronian's face shift at that statement was, indeed, priceless. “Well why didn’t you say so!”

Sabine resisted the strong urge to roll her eyes as Vizago agreed to allow them, and she patted Ezra on the back as she went to signal for the others to join them.

~***~

Eli shook his head, “No, there’s nothing else. This was supposed to be a day off, so I didn’t have any plans,” and now that their errand had ended, they could move on to food, and considerations for tomorrow. Hopefully, there’d still be some good food between the lunch rush and preparations for dinner.

He wouldn’t hold his breath, though, as they approached the nearest cafeteria.

There did still appear to be plenty of food to grab, though, and Eli gave a nod to Cora before he moved forward to grab a selection, sticking mostly to things that were easy – the fact there were chicken strips just honestly made his day at that point. Not the healthiest thing, perhaps, but he wasn’t about to think about that right then.

He’d just faced down a Jedi.

He deserved a bit of indulgence in comfort food.

~***~

Cere just lifted her arms in a ‘yeah, well’ gesture at Lin’s deduction. She did wonder if he’d noticed anything regarding the war, or the Jedi, in his own youth, but she wouldn’t ask. She knew, by now, it was better not to know the widespread apathy others had felt. For her, it had been too personal. It all been too personal.

But for some random citizen on any planet, the was a nuisance at best, and at worst, something they were living.

Ae’lia nodded, and used the Force to take her datapad out from a pocket. It wasn’t her main one, stars forbid, but it had enough information. It had Ahsoka’s number in it, given Ahsoka had found out about this mission, in case she needed to reach out. “Is it all right if I call now?”

Cere nodded, “Go ahead,” she allowed, “We’re in lightspeed, I don’t think any sort of tracking from a datapad is going to be useful.”

Ae’lia dialed it through, and waited for the Fulcrum symbol to pop up.

 

[cleopat]

Skye smiled and gave a small chuckle. She could see how the kids could get into trouble easily and annoy the adults in the group, and that just endeared them to her more.

They didn’t have to wait long before Sabine signaled them that it was now safe to come forward. They totally used the money angle on him.

It truly was the fastest way to get something to happily agree with anything.

Skye walked forward in the direction Ezra and Sabine had gone until she could see Vizago, grateful for her disguise.

Ezra glanced behind him when he could hear the footsteps of the others coming forward. He wouldn’t introduce their names, though. Did they want to use their real names, since they were in disguise? And Skye had mentioned a less than agreeable past with Vizago.

“...are you sure they’re legit?” Vizago grumbled, not quite serious in his question, yet not quite pleased at the disguises these newcomers were wearing. With Adlai’s height, he actually looked like a Stormtrooper, unlike Sabine, and he had never seen a Purge Trooper in person before, but he knew their weapons, and he heard of their skill in combat.

But their friends, maybe, of this kid. And rich. Remember the money.

~~

Cora figured there would be nothing else, give what Eli said was correct. This was technically their day off, until Thrawn surprised them, which was why she had to ask if he had anything else. In case Thrawn threw another surprise at Eli.

She followed alongside Eli to the cafeteria, and in the same thought process as him, Cora opted for something more comforting and less nutritious after what happened to them earlier. They faced three Jedis and survived.

They deserved indulgence.

And so Cora opted for a burger and some side dish that looked like some kind of potato dish with cheese on it. She could hear her mother’s horrified gasp at the unhealthy meal.

“I was thinking,” Cora started, walking them over to an empty table, “if neither of us are too tired later, we could get together and do something simple. Something quiet.” Something to help them relax after their day. “Maybe a holofilm or board game?” She shrugged.

~~

Lin stared at the datapad for a moment that seemingly flew into Ae’lia’s hands. He knew about her abilities, about the Force, yet he didn’t see it all that often. It was still weird seeing it in action.

And he had hoped he would finally see this Ahsoka person that had been mentioned before, but a figure never appeared above the datapad. Only a symbol that wasn’t familiar to Lin, or even Cal or Greez. But they trusted Ae’lia in whom she was calling.

Well, Cal did. Greez was slightly less certain, but if Cal or Cere trusted Ae’lia in what she was doing, he would as well.

A heavily modulated voice spoke, not an ounce of femininity or any defining characteristics to give away the identity of the speaker. “This is Fulcrum.” If they could see her voice, they would see slight confusion crossing Ahsoka’s eyes.

“Did something happen?” She hadn’t quite expected a call from Eira so soon, and naturally her mind turned to worst case scenarios for Corellia. What is happening on Lothal wasn’t helping matters either.

 

[Lucyfer]

“Of course we’re legit, you think purge trooper outfits come easily?” Adlai asked Vizago, and before he could answer, he said, “They don’t.”

Vizago scowled a bit at that, but didn’t immediately question it. “Look, I’ll need some proof before I risk my neck for all of you. You understand,” he said.

“Maybe,” Sabine said, “but we don’t even know if you can help us, yet,” she said. Ezra hadn’t told him what they needed, after all. “Then we can talk price,” she added, “based on how much you can help us.”

That was fair, right?

Sabine nudged Ezra then so he could explain to Vizago. She thought he might have a good way to explain it to him so that it didn’t seem too impossible. Hopefully.

~***~

Eli would take a seat across from Cora at the table, and he immediately dipped one of his strips and took a bite of it. He was probably going to finish the plate too quickly if he wasn’t distracted with conversation, which, thankfully, Cora was providing.

“Mm,” Eli made an agreeable sound before he swallowed his bite, “Yeah, I was hoping we could do something like that,” perhaps a holofilm would be easier to just chill out to. Not that gaming was bad, but that required thinking, and also competition. They might manage enough of that at the amusement park tomorrow.

“I also wanted to check in to see if you wanted our original plans to carry over to tomorrow,” he added, “or if you wanted to adjust them any.” Perhaps rollercoasters weren’t in good tastes after nearly dying to a Jedi? Eli didn’t know.

~***~

Ae’lia kept the datapad hovering so she wouldn’t have to disturb the child by holding it, and she smiled a bit at hearing the heavily modulated voice. “A few things happened, I am certain you’ll hear of it soon,” Ae’lia answered, “But no, nothing bad. We have made it off Corellia, I’m with the Mantis crew.”

That let Ahsoka know who was around, at least.

“They’ve agreed to join the Rebel Alliance. We’re en route to Retta, and we need help. We have…basically a baby Yoda,” Ae’lia couldn’t not smile at saying it, “and we need to hide him from the Empire.”

Ahsoka could choose to meet them at Retta, or offer advice here, or even a new meeting place. Either way, she thought she’d said things clearly enough.

The others were remaining quiet, at least.

 

[cleopat]

Vizago crossed his arms as he looked to Ezra expectantly for what the kid needed. Ezra took a small step forward, determination clear in his features. Determination to get Kanan back.

“Kanan was taken by the Empire, and we need to know if you’ve heard anything about where they may have taken him.”

Vizago took a moment to think, but he shook his head. “Sorry kid, I haven’t heard anything about where he may be.”

Ezra looked crestfallen for a moment. Only a moment. He sensed more in Vizago, that he had more to say. “But you do know something that could help us, don’t you?”

The kid was good, Vizago had to admit. “Listen, I wanna help, but the Empire had tightened their security and increased their presence here on Lothal, and that has done nothing but disrupt my business. I don’t want to do anything that would lead you guys to do something stupid to inspire them to tighten their security even more.”

~~

Cora took a bite out of her burger as Eli answered her, and she was pleased that he was in a similar mindset, for the two of them to do something relaxing together that evening.

They deserved to do something together that day, despite the mission ruining their original plans.

And with Eli’s question in return, about their original date plans, Cora nodded and swallowed her bite. “I’m still up for the amusement park,” unless they were too sore or bruised for any reason, like from being thrown around by the Jedi.

Cora expected to find some bruises on her tomorrow, but she was determined to not let that stop her. Not when she and Eli could finally have some alone time without the weight of their responsibilities looming over them.

“Were you wanting to adjust our plans? Or are you still up for the amusement park?” Since he asked, she had to make sure he wasn’t asking to hint at wanting to do something else.

~~

Ahsoka was pleased with the first bit of news Eira shared. They completed the mission successfully, with no casualties by the sound of it, and the Mantis crew expressed interest in joining the Rebel Alliance. That was great. They needed more people with the skills that the crew had.

More Jedis were desperately needed.

But she paused with the next bit of information present. Her end remained silent for a moment. “A...baby Yoda?” she repeated, the confusion evident even in her modulated voice.

Ahsoka wanted more information about that, about this baby Yoda and why the Empire wanted him. But she knew the importance of trying to keep something hidden, and already had a few ideas in mind. She would have to make her decision of where to hide this baby Yoda after meeting with Eira and asking for clarification.

She didn’t want to keep the line open for too long.

“We’ll meet on Retta,” Ahsoka confirmed. “We’ll have to make the exchange brief.”

 

[Lucyfer]

‘We’re definitely going to do something stupid that will get them to tighten their security more.’ Adlai thought, but he didn’t say that. “How much does it take to run your business for six months?” Adlai asked.

Vizago looked a bit surprised, attention focusing on the Stormtrooper. He narrowed his gaze a moment, then dismissed that look as he thought, “This is a bit of an unpredictable business to begin with, you understand – estimating that can be tricky, but assuming six good months, to, ah, stay afloat and pay all the, uh, employees,” Adlai doubted he had much in the way of permanent employees, but wouldn’t call him on that, “Around, 65,000 credits.”

‘That’s all?’ Adlai reminded himself that his ideas of wealth were vastly different. “Then I can offer 30,000 now, and the rest when we have an actual lead on where Kanan is,” he said simply.

If he was concerned about his so-called business, then this should help lessen those concerns immensely. There wasn’t much of a point in arguing the price down.

~***~

“No, no,” Eli quickly shook his head to deny any thought of changing plans. He hadn’t intended that, “I just wanted to make sure you wouldn’t want something calmer,” he chuckled, a little, “today was…a lot.” No denying that, after all. They’d met Jedi.

And he’d been thrown by a baby.

If it was a baby. Maybe it just looked infantile.

One could never know with aliens.

“I still find it all hard to believe,” he said, “that there are still enough Jedi out there to come together like that,” and that they were finding each other. “It’s worrisome for the future of the Empire.”

He had no idea.

~***~

Ae’lia laughed just a little as even she heard that confusion, “You’ll understand,” and probably fall just as in love with it, as Ae’lia already felt. It was such a shame she had to let it go, but it was for the best. It had to get far away from them, and the danger they presented.

Maybe when the Empire was defeated, they could find it again. Bring it up to know it’s powers and use them.

Perhaps one day it would be another Grand Master.

“I understand, and I’ll send you the exact coordinates as soon as we land.” Ae’lia offered. Ahsoka could get to Retta without exacts. “Demense out.” She would cut the connection there, of a similar mind to Ahsoka.

 

[cleopat]

Shit, how rich are you again? Skye had to remind herself that Adlai was a Count, after all. Nobility of old blood on Serenno. Money undoubtedly would ever be an issue for him, and yet he was willing to offer so much in return for any leads on a Jedi he didn’t know.

She shook her head, wanting to call out on Vizago’s steep request. But she didn’t. She couldn’t. They needed to keep him amicable to work with.

Vizago narrowed his eyes on the Stormtrooper for a moment, but his expression softened with a sigh. “Okay, it’s a deal.” Although he wondered if he could’ve bartered for more, with how easy the Stormtrooper agreed to his amount, the credits would be more than helpful for some time, while they dealt with the increased Imperial presence on Lothal.

“Thanks to your little stunt you pulled with the radio broadcast, the Empire’s forced to pass messages through their courier droids. A friend of mine intercepted one of them, and the communications log mentioned something about a high security prisoner being escorted onto Tarkin’s ship.” He shrugged. “Dunno if that’s your Kanan or not.”

Vizago thought it was a lot of trouble for some small rebel, but the Empire seemed to be taking every little threat seriously after what happened to their communication’s tower.

Ezra wasn’t pleased at all with the news, which easily shown in the frown and the furrow of his brows. Of course it had to be Tarkin’s ship. But they couldn’t shoot the messenger. “Thank you,” he said with a grim nod.

~~

Cora chuckled, feeling slightly better that Eli had only wanted to confirm things, not hinting at anything more. “I agree, today was a lot.” Which she felt was putting it lightly.

Dealing with three Jedi, and whatever that small creature was they were carrying. The small creature that threw Eli as if he was a ball.

What even was that alien? Cora considered herself well read and well researched, but she couldn’t recall ever seeing one like it before. Maybe the Grand Admiral knows.

But she wasn’t about to go to Thrawn’s office right then and ask.

Cora hummed her agreement with another mouthful of burger. “I mean, we encountered three on one planet. How many more are still out there? And are they still teaching others?” They had no idea what the numbers could be, and this greatly threatened the Empire.

She shook her head, “Worrisome indeed.”

~~

Ahsoka hoped she would understand, and she wouldn’t allow herself to ponder over such a bizarre statement while she waited for them to meet with this ‘baby Yoda.’

But she certainly had several places in mind to hide someone from the Empire.

“Fulcrum out,” she echoed, and the connection line cut off. There was silence in the ship for a moment, before Lin was the first one to break it.

“Are you sure we can’t keep him?” He looked down at the sleeping child, its giant ears slightly lowered in its exhausted state. Lin could teach it how to use its cuteness to distract opponents before using the Force or whatnot on them.

That seemed like such a flawless plan.

 

[Lucyfer]

Tarkin’s ship was next to nothing in Adlai’s mind. Not to mention a mere escort. They needed to know if he was still there. Still, this was something – they now knew how the Empire was sending information. They just had to get a hold of one of the courier droids.

“Can I see a credit chip?” Adlai asked, “I can transfer over the first portion now.”

“I told you where Kanan is!” Vizago sputtered.

“You told us where he was at one time,” Adlai corrected, “and how we can get information by intercepting a droid. Once we have the rest of the information from a droid, I can wire you the rest of the funds,” he said.

“Getting a droid is going to be the hard part,” Sabine muttered.

~***~

Eli could only shake his head, but Cora’s questions had definitely crossed his mind. It was problematic to find three, and Eli was all but certain that wasn’t all of them. The possibility that they were rebuilding in the shadows was disheartening, and indeed, worrisome. It shouldn’t be directly their problem, but he knew it was as citizens of the Empire who wanted to see peace.

“Now I’m going to have to wonder how soon until Thrawn sends us to find art of the Jedi,” Eli chuckled, “Assuming Tarkin doesn’t demote him over this,” which he didn’t think was likely, but…well, it wasn’t going to be good, that much was certain.

He finished off another strip, and added, “I never heard much of the Jedi in Wild Space,” he’d been around during the Clone Wars, “It was all so far away from us – the Clone Wars, the Jedi,” he said, “I’m guessing it was a bit more impactful here?”

~***~

No answers came from the IT-O.

No answers came from the Grand Inquisitor.

‘So you are a true Jedi.’ It was strange how no answers, and resistance, could confirm such a thing for Wilhuff as he left behind an irritated Grand Inquisitor and a near-dead Jedi with orders to prepare for a transfer to Mustafar.

He would have to reach out to Vader. Where the Grand Inquisitor failed, Darth Vader would not; Tarkin had never heard of a Jedi being able to hide information from Vader before, and given Kanan’s age, he’d dare to think this one only a padawan when it all went down.

He would have to go through his list.

His first call was, indeed, to Vader – who informed him of an issue on Corellia, where an Inquisitor was killed recently. It would delay Vader to Mustafar, as he was now looking into that, but he would be there soon enough.

“Your newest Grand Admiral thought it wise to meddle in our affairs.”

Tarkin had suppressed a facial tick at that information, but it was Thrawn that Tarkin called right after Vader.

Digging through old files of padawans could wait.

~***~

Ae’lia could only chuckle softly at Lin’s question, “I’m sure,” she said, although she would have liked to, much as she knew many in this ship would have liked to. It was far too dangerous for that, “Perhaps we’ll all get to visit him again, one day,” she looked up to the others.

Cere smiled. “One day,” she echoed.

It was still hard to believe there could be a ‘one day’, but this talk of Ahsoka Tano, and other Jedi out there, gave her more hope than she’d had in a long time.

Merrin nodded, “If people are finally smart enough to start organizing, it will be soon. It must be soon,” she was always a bit more optimistic, if also just as cynical at times. People constantly exasperated her, but seeing some initiative? That was helpful.

Not to mention, having allies come from out of the blue to save them.

“Do you know where he came from? Or how he ended up on Corellia?”

Cere could just shake her head, “Not a clue. We know he was going to be sold through the crime syndicates, but other than that – nothing.”

 

[cleopat]

Vizago begrudgingly handed over a credit chip, as he didn’t have any other choice. He would at least get some of the credits, even if he didn’t trust the person in the Stormtrooper disguise to hand over the rest later.

“Or maybe getting a droid will be the easy part,” Skye quipped, and motioned one hand over her body. She, Adlai, and Sabine still had their disguises, and while Sabine looked a little suspicious as a Stormtrooper with her size, Skye and Adlai could still pass as Imperials easily enough.

It should be no trouble for them to stop a courier droid for a few minutes.

“The hard part may be going wherever they have Kanan,” she continued. He just had to be on one of the Imperial star destroyers, where he will be executed after being tortured. There was no room for stalling or hesitating.

~~

Cora chuckled, now thinking along a similar thought with art. “He...does have a bit of a fascination with studying art, doesn’t he?” She had wanted to say obsession, instead, but felt that may have been too harsh. Even if it was true.

Everyone knew of Thrawn’s obsession with analyzing the art of different cultures.

And she hardly thought Tarkin would demote Thrawn over this incident, but Cora wouldn’t be surprised if they had to deal with an angry grand admiral for a few days.

“Oh yes. The Clone Wars, hearing about the Jedi, all of that made a huge impact in my childhood. Anaxes saw a lot of fighting, especially near the end. A lot of civilians died, and even back then, all I could think of was if the Jedi were supposedly peacekeepers, how could they let so many innocent people die?” Shr shrugged and glanced down in her memories.

Of course, if Jedi were peacekeepers, then they should have never led in the war either, and yet they seemed to have no issues doing so. Cora held a lot of resentment that built up since childhood.

~~

The first thing Grand Admiral Thrawn had wanted to do when he returned to his office was to pour himself a glass. The second thing he had wanted to do was lay down in bed and pretend nothing on Corellia had happened.

He did neither of those things.

Instead, he sat at his desk and immediately reviewed what happened on Corellia. You didn’t expect the imposters.

That was a big factor. Without them, they could have surprised and overtaken the Mantis crew with fewer issues, even if they still had a Dathomir witch and two Jedis with them. The element of surprise would’ve been on their side.

But somehow, the rebels were well organized and well sourced. To get an exact copy of an Inquisitor and a Purge Trooper uniform, along with their weapons…

Or maybe they weren’t copies, but the real thing. Both thoughts were concerning in the grand scheme of things: The rebels were uniting, and more Jedi were out there, helping the rebels. But how many more?

The pinging of his datapad pulled him from his deep thoughts. With a frown, Thrawn noted that Tarkin was calling him. Just as expected.

He really wished Tarkin was somehow too busy to have called him. Wasn’t there an insurgence happening on Lothal? With a deep sigh, Thrawn answered the call with a neutral expression smoothed over his face. “What can I do for you, Governor Tarkin?”

Oh, Thrawn already knew what Tarkin will ask of him.

~~

Cal smiled his agreement. One day. For so long he had only focused on the current day, trying to survive in the galaxy like everyone else did. Like all other hidden Jedis did. And now they had hope of a better future.

A future where the green baby had a chance to train and become a powerful Jedi Cal knew he was destined to be.

“We’re not even sure how old he is,” Cal said, looking down at the sleeping baby in Ae’lia’s lap. “How old was Grand Master Yoda? At least 900, right?” Which meant his species aged much slower than most others. For all they knew, the baby could be older than Cal.

Lin stared at Cal. “Wait, what?” This was the first he heard of a species living that long. He looked back at the baby, his brows furrowed in thought as he began to imagine how old the Child could be, and how long it may remain in its current infantile state. “Did you just say 900 years old?”