Star Wars Rebels: A Slightly Different Path
Author Notes: I've recently gotten quite into Star Wars Rebels and have had a few ideas for different fanfic's based on the show, I'm especially fond of some of the AU fan fics that are out there for the show. This story is actually inspired by the story Ezra the Jedi by EzmireJay103 as I find the idea of Ezra already having some knowledge of the Force before meeting the Ghost crew and becoming Kanan's padawan a fascinating one.
Before anyone says anything I haven't forgotten about any of my other works and in fact am in the middle of working on new chapters for a few of them, I just had to scratch this particular plot bunny itch first.
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters that I am about to mangle around, all Star Wars Rebels characters remain the property of Disney and Lucasfilm Ltd. I am merely borrowing them and make no profit from their use. So please keep the lawyers firmly on a leash.
Edit (13/03/2016): It's been brought to my attention that the telekinetic blast Ezra originally used against the storm troopers was a bit brazen of him, and out of character with his earlier caution, so I've reworked the scene to remove and replace it with the current scene. I've also added in a reference to the third speeder bike that I forgot to include the first time.
Chapter One
Ezra's Tower
Lothal
Sitting on the floor of the old communications tower that had become his home Ezra Bridger was deep in meditation. Had anyone come into the room – though nobody ever did as he lived alone aside from the occasional loth-cat squatter, which usually happened during Lothal's monsoon season as like all felines loth-cat's hated getting wet – he would have seemed to have been asleep as he sat in a meditative pose that despite the Empire's best efforts hadn't quite yet been confined to the pages of the galaxies history books. They would have been wrong as he was anything but asleep.
Instead his mind was listening to the Force, probing gently at the currents and patterns of the energy field created by all living things as he tried to make sense of the odd feeling he'd been having all day long. He'd always been able to sense the Force, it was a gift that he'd inherited from his father, a former Jedi who'd left the order during the Clone Wars after meeting and falling in love with his mother, and one that his father had done his best to teach him about. At least till his parents were taken by the Empire one night eight years ago.
Though the teaching hadn't really stopped since as his father had left recordings, small instruction manuals of a sort to teach his son the basics of using his Force abilities and how to hide them from the ever watchful eyes of the Sith. They'd been helpful to him over the years, though there was only so much he could learn from them well when he wasn't doing his best to survive on the streets of the capital. Something that his limited knowledge of the Force had helped him to do.
Ezra knew he should have been in the capital today it was market day but this morning he'd been distracted by a strange sensation in the Force. A feeling that something, or possibly someone, was coming. It had been so distracting that he'd started meditating – something he normally only did in the evening before turning in to sleep – in an attempt to understand what the Force was trying to tell him.
So far without success.
A fresh shiver in the Force caught his attention and Ezra opened his eyes. Something new was happening, something outside. Huh wonder what's going on, he thought getting back to his feet and making his way outside to look in the direction of the capital city beyond the shifting planes of dry grass that were a such a dominant feature of Lothal for eight months of the year.
A shadow fell over him and he looked up. To see an Imperial-class Star Destroyer slowly gliding across the sky towards the capital. Ezra resisted, just, the impulse to scowl at the mighty space going battleship that had become a symbol of oppression for so many people across the galaxy over the last fifteen years. He had no love for the Imperials, they'd taken his parents after all and they forced him to hide such an important part of who he was – which had meant none of the handful of foster homes he'd ended up in over the years had lasted more than a couple of months at a time.
Feeling his stomach grumble he sighed. It was time to head into the city and get some food as his own stock here had run out yesterday. Figuring out the odd sensation in the Force would have to wait for a while. Decision made he slipped back inside to get his backpack and some of the items he'd repaired or acquired that he could use to barter food from the merchants.
Several minutes later Ezra was walking out the base of the tower. He quickly hopped on his battered old speeder bike and started the engine. Seconds later he was speeding across the dry planes towards the city.
Thirty Minutes Later
Ezra moved quietly through the thronging streets of the capital's market district. Vendors and patrons were everywhere as the citizens of the capital went about their daily business, though there was an unusual undercurrent of nervousness that he couldn't help but pick up on. Nervousness that was somewhat understandable given that Imperial patrols seemed unusually numerous today, Imperial storm troopers – in their distinctive bone white armour – being far more visible than they normally were.
Something obviously had the Imperials spooked. The garrison on this part of the planet was not normally this active outside the district immediately surrounding the mushroom-shaped Imperial Complex that now dominated the city skyline. Ezra couldn't help but wonder if it had something to do with the odd feelings in the Force that had been plaguing him all day.
"I'm just trying to sell a couple of yogans here," a voice abruptly said gaining his attention. Turning down the street in the direction the voice had come from Ezra found a pair of Imperial officers and two storm troopers looming over a merchant with a basket full of yogan fruit. One of the officers, a tall thin man with cruel eyes, was speaking into his comm link, saying something about bringing the merchant in on a charge of treason. Obviously the merchant had said something, mouthed off at the Imperials or the Empire in general, and the Imps were reacting in predictable fashion.
"You can't do this," the merchant, an alien whose species he didn't recognise, exclaimed as the two troopers, in response to a gesture from the thin officer, grabbed him.
"Yeah well who's going to stop us," the other officer, a just as tall but far fatter man asked before taking one of the merchants yogans and biting into it. "You," he asked looking at one of the few citizens who were watching, "or you," he asked looking at another. Both looked at citizens looked away, like most people on Lothal they'd long since been cowed into ignoring such displays by the Imperials no matter how unjust they were.
If they won't do something I will, Ezra thought adopting a submissive posture and approaching. "Hey mister a spare yogan," he asked.
"Move along loth-rat," the fatter Imperial snapped making a swipe at him with an arm as he'd known he would. Dodging it he moved slightly towards the other officer and with a quick sleight of hand palmed the others comm link without the Imp noticing.
"Sorry, sorry not looking for trouble," he said playing the submissive until he was out of the Imperials immediate earshot. "But it sure has a way of finding me," he said as he tossed the comm link in the air and caught it before slipping behind a convenient corner. Then he took a deep breath and activated the comm on a wide spectrum frequency so all Imperials within a block of here would hear it.
"All units to the main square," he said in a deeper voice than the one he normally spoke with, masking his native accent as well so he sounded more like your average Imperial officer who tended to be a core worlder hailing from somewhere like Coruscant or Alderaan. "This is a Code Red emergency."
"It's your lucky day, Lothal scum," came the voice of the thin officer from just around the corner. "You come with us."
Hearing the Imperials start to run Ezra returned to the square, to see the alien they'd been accosting sprawled on the floor some of his yogans around him having fallen out of the basket he'd had them in which itself was now on the floor having been thrown by the fat Imperial. "Stay alert," he said into the comm, the merchant looking up at him in shock and gratitude. "Repeating this is a Code Red emergency."
"Thank you," the little alien said as he turned off the comm link.
"You're welcome," Ezra replied offering a hand to help him up. A part of him wanted him to take some of the fruit but he pushed that down, while he'd steal from Imperials and their stooges he wouldn't take from an innocent not unless he had no other choice. The sense of ethics and fair play he'd gotten off his parents, and which years of living on the streets hadn't gotten rid of, wouldn't let him do that.
"Here take some," the merchant said offering him some yogans.
"You sure," Ezra asked.
"It's the least I can do for you," the merchant replied. Ezra smiled back and took a handful of yogans with a quiet 'thank you' and stuffed them in his backpack.
Then deciding he wanted to go watch the Imperials run around like a loth-cat with its tail on fire in response to his rogue declaration of a Code Red he jumped up onto the nearest barrel and used it as a spring board to jump onto the roof of the closest building. He could of course have used the Force to make the whole jump in one go but that would have garnered too much attention and thus it was something he would only do if he absolutely had to.
Keeping his guard up Ezra made his way across the rooftops until he came to one that looked down upon the main square. Where he saw an Imperial officer supervising the attachment of some shipping crates to the back of two speeder bikes, a third already loaded bike nearby. It was at that moment that the Imps who'd been harassing the merchant arrived.
"What's the emergency," the thin one asked as the officer turned to them in surprise.
"I don't know what you mean," the young man answered.
"You called in a Code Red," the fat one told him.
"I don't understand I didn't do such a thing. My orders are to get these crates to the Imperial Portal," the officer replied.
"I almost feel sorry for them," Ezra muttered to himself as he heard the thin officer snap at the supervisor to get the crates loaded then. "Almost."
Shaking his head in amusement he continued watching. Given the security it was obvious that something important was in those crates and he wanted to know what it was as if it was valuable he wouldn't hesitate to swipe it off the Imps. Swipe it then sell it off on the black market for credits he could use to buy valuable supplies.
Abruptly the same shiver in the Force he'd felt earlier caught his attention. Only this time it felt different, felt like the Force wanted him to see something. Trusting the Force, it had never let him down before, he looked in the direction that it seemed to want him to look.
To see down the street a tall man in green and grey clothing and with some kind of armour around his right shoulder and arm was standing his back to him. Somehow knowing it was this man that the Force wanted him to see he cautiously reached out with a Force probe and blinked when he encountered the most powerful mental shield he'd encountered since his father. What the, he thought ducking down as the man spun around, aquamarine coloured eyes scanning around. Ezra immediately ducked out of sight before the stranger could see him. He didn't know why the Force wanted him to know about this man, whoever he was, but he wasn't about to take chances and reveal himself not yet.
A Moment Earlier
Kanan Jarrus was doing his best to appear nonchalant, just another face in the crowd, as he heard the Imperials talking behind him. He had no idea who it was who'd declared a Code Red but it was going to make his, Sabine and Zeb's jobs a little harder as the Imps would be on alert now. Though Force willing they'd soon calm down and write the whole thing off as a prank carried out by some teenager who'd hacked their comms on a dare or something like that.
Abruptly he felt a Force probe brush against his mental shields. A probe that felt both strange and familiar as it almost felt like a probe from another Jedi, though not as focused. To say he was startled would have been an understatement and he immediately spun around, scanning with both his eyes and the Force for the source of the probe. After carefully scanning he didn't see anything but something, some whisper in the Force told him that the person who'd probed him was still here watching him. Probably wants to see what I'm going to do, he thought understanding the other Force users caution.
After a moment he decided to carry on with the mission. If there was another Jedi here, likely an initiate or at best a padawan from the strength of that probe, watching him he decided not to give any sign that he meant him or her harm. Maybe once they saw that his only intention was to cause the Imperials problems then they'd reveal themselves and he could ask a few questions. Like how it could be that other Jedi besides himself had survived Order 66.
So, keeping his walk casual to avoid suspicion from any watching Imperials, he moved up to where Zeb was hiding in the shadows of a doorway before tapping his blaster three times in the agreed upon signal. Immediately Zeb straightened up from where he'd been slouching with his eyes closed, giving the impression that he was dozing as Lasat were known to do during the day, and began to move into position.
Knowing the former Honour Guard would do his part Kanan moved on to where Sabine was waiting, not drawing any attention despite being clad head to toe in the traditional armour of her people. But then most people, even Imperials, knew not to make trouble with Mandalorians, especially Mandalorian warriors. As with Zeb he tapped his blaster three times, Sabine answering in turn before beginning to move herself.
Knowing that his teammates would do their parts to perfection, Kanan moved down a side street to where the speeder they'd acquired earlier was hidden…
…a second later the concussive rumble of an explosion filled the air.
"Interesting," Ezra muttered aloud as he watched the strange man give what was clearly an agreed upon signal to a large purple furred alien who he recognised as a Lasat and a Mandalorian female, who was dressed in the most colourful version of her people's battle armour that he'd ever seen, before disappearing down a side street.
He continued watching as the Mandalorian approached one of the Imperial speeder bikes and toss a small object at it. The driver obviously hearing the thud, turned from where he was standing behind his bike presumably to complain. He never got the chance for with a concussive rumble that shook the whole street the speeder bike exploded as the small thermal detonator went off.
"Whoa," Ezra breathed even as pandemonium erupted amongst the Imperials.
"Get those crates out of here," the officer who'd been supervising said, "protect them at all costs."
"All costs huh," Ezra said to himself as three Imps jumped on and started the bikes moving with some storm troopers following on foot at a fast march. "I like the sound of that." Whatever was in those crates was definitely valuable and thus very interesting to him, if he could sell whatever it was on the black market for enough credits he might even be able to afford that small, but high capacity power cell that he needed to finish building his own lightsabre as it would be nice to practice with one of his own instead of his dads as his father's really didn't fit his hands properly as he'd inherited his mother's smaller bone structure along with her vivid blue eyes.
Taking note of the direction the Imperials were moving in he followed jumping from rooftop to rooftop. After a few moments the Imperials came to a halt as a speeder was driven right across their path, a speeder driven by the other Force sensitive. He promptly drew a blaster and gunned down both drivers before summersaulting behind the speeder as the two storm troopers opened fire on him.
Then the Lasat was there grabbing both storm troopers from behind and cracking their heads together hard enough that they were both instantly sent tumbling into the land of nod. They're good, Ezra thought before deciding the time had come to introduce himself. Well after a fashion.
Taking a running leap, he jumped off the building and used the Force to slow his descent so he landed comfortably in the driver's seat of one of the speeder bikes, his sudden appearance surprising both human and Lasat. Now to see what this theft is about and if it's worth my while. Though even if it isn't I'll deprive the Empire of some of its hardware which is always a plus, he thought.
"Thanks for doing the heavy lifting," he said giving the other Force sensitive a cheeky grin and salute with two fingers before gunning the engine and putting the speeder bike into reverse. Absently dodging to the side evading the Lasat who threw a fist in an attempt to stop him. He waved back before bringing the bike to a halt, turning the corner and driving away.
After a few moments he heard the sound of the other two speeder bikes following as they pursued him. Deciding he was going to lead these guys on a merry chase, and in the process see how much they wanted this stuff, he increased power to the engine and shot away at full speed.
A thud behind him caught his attention and he turned in place to see the female Mandalorian had jumped down onto the crates. "Pretty gutsy move kid," she said sounding impressed with him before drawing a blaster from a leg holster and shooting the join between the crates breaking the magnetic lock. "If the big guy catches you he'll end you. Good luck."
That was weird, she could have shot me but she didn't, Ezra thought with a smile before turning his full attention back to his driving. Just in time to see a squad of bucket heads appear ahead of him. Yikes, he thought as the storm troopers sent a fusillade of hot blood red plasma shooting towards him from their blasters. Instinct and the Force took over enabling him to easily evade those handful of bolts that came too close, as always most of the troopers were simply piss poor shots who couldn't hit a target to save their lives.
Return fire from one of his pursuers shot past him and unlike the storm troopers the guy shooting was devastatingly accurate. Plasma crashed hard into the Imperials, punching through their bone white armour to flash fry hearts and lungs killing each trooper instantly even as the kinetic force sent them sprawling. A quick glance back showed his pursuers gaining, eyes widening he increased speed as much as he dared in the twisting canyons formed by the relatively tightly packed buildings of the market district, shooting away into the distance.
Mere seconds behind the kid who'd so suddenly dropped in on them to pinch some of the crates that he'd come to steal Kanan was, for the second time this mission, startled when said kid evaded a barrage of blaster fire with Force enhanced reflexes. Not bad, he thought as it was more proof that this kid was far more than he appeared to be and was in all probability the Force sensitive who'd probed him earlier.
Sensing more than seeing the troopers about to fire off another volley he took action. Drawing his DL-18 blaster pistol from his leg holster he opened fire on the white armoured Imperial soldiers. In seconds the entire squad were down, fist sized holes blown into the centre of their chests as the Force combined with years of experience ensured he didn't miss even once. His fire obviously caught the kids attention for he looked back, saw how close they were and shot off again increasing to a dangerously fast speed in these narrow and twisting backstreets.
Around them the city gave way to one of the main highways that connected the capital to the other cities and towns on Lothal. Yet still the kid showed no sign of slowing down so Kanan and Zeb kept close on his tail, trying to catch up but being slightly slower due to the fact that their speeder bikes were towing two crates each and the kids only one since Sabine had recovered the other.
Abruptly plasma bolts, from their size and sound they were being fired by a vehicle based blaster, shot past catching him off guard. Cursing under his breath Kanan glanced back, to see three Imperial troopers on speeder bikes had joined the chase. Rather than shoot at them himself he glanced at Zeb who nodded before putting his speeder bike into reverse, drawing his bo-rifle as he did so and expanding it into staff form.
Hearing two thuds and yelps behind him Kanan grinned as he knew Zeb had just used his weapon to knock two Imps flying. Hearing the remaining speeder bike approaching from his left Kanan thought quickly before grabbing and arming one of the small thermal detonators Sabine made from a pouch on his belt. Then he slowed down and turned, holding out both hands as if caught… just as the Imperial caught up.
"Alright you got me, I give up," he said.
"What the-?" the startled Imperial trooper exclaimed a second before Kanan grinned and tossed the armed detonator into his lap.
"Just kidding," he called back as he gunned his engine back to full power a moment before the charge exploded vaporising both the Imperial and his vehicle. Now to catch up to this kid, he thought focusing on his original quarry again. Only to note that the kid had gotten too far ahead for him to catch up to him unless he did something drastic.
As Zeb re-joined him Kanan looked over at him and made a hand gesture indicating for the Lasat to take his cargo crates. Zeb nodded back in understanding allowing Kanan to flip a switch on the speeder bikes control board that disengaged the magnetic locks holding the crates to the back, causing them to detach and just float there suspended by the miniature repulsors in the base of each crate.
Now free of the drag Kanan guided his bike forward. The kid noting, he was gaining again jumped into the next lane causing traffic coming the other way to swerve out the way, horns beeping angrily. Okay time to end this it's getting far too dangerous now, he thought pulling ahead of the kid and jumping over onto the other carriageway himself and coming to a stop right in front and across the kid's path forcing him to swerve to a halt.
"Who are you," the kid demanded unusually vivid blue eyes looking at him.
"I'm the guy who was stealing that crate," Kanan replied. Plus, I'm the guy who wants to know who you are youngling and whose trained you to use the Force, he thought as he extended a Force probe of his own feeling instantly that this kid had some seriously strong mental shields.
"Hey I stole this, whatever it is, fair and square," the kid protested.
"And you made it pretty far," Kanan complimented him. "But I've got plans for that crate so today isn't your lucky day."
The kid scowled at him then looked over his shoulder and smirked. "Days not over," he said before starting moving again off the carriageway just as a familiar screaming sound reached Kanan's ears from above.
"Oh wonderful," Kanan muttered recognising the sound of a TIE fighter and from the pitch of the dual ion fission engines that gave it its name one on an attack dive. Knowing he would never get the speeder bike moving in time he jumped off and began running, mere seconds before a barrage of laser fire raked across the ground and struck the speeder bike the intense heat of the lasers instantly melting through the thin metal skin and breaching the fuel cells. The result was predictable as the bike blew apart in a flash of smoke, flame and shrapnel. The TIE that had destroyed the bike shooting past overhead, already starting to bank around in a pass to search for the other stolen bike.
Stopping in place Kanan turned around and saw the kid's bike ease back onto the carriageway the kid looking back at him. "Have a good one," the kid said before shooting off into the distance, Kanan shaking his head in amusement before retrieving his comm from his belt.
"Spector One to Spector Two I need a lift," he said into it, the TIE screaming past overhead in pursuit of the kid.
"On my way Spector One."
Aware that the TIE fighter was still on his back Ezra guided his commandeered speeder bike off the carriageway and off across the dry grasslands. Bolts of laser fire began landing around him, some passing so close to him that he could literally smell the ozone of the blasts. Sheesh whatever's in this crate had better be worth all this trouble, he thought doing his best to dodge.
For a few more seconds he continued successfully dodging the laser fire until one bolt hit a rock up ahead of him. The rock exploding immediately sending fragments of hot stone flying through the air like razor blades, the concussion throwing him clear of the bike which spun away out of control, the violence of its tumbling motion breaking the magnetic lock on the crate, before crashing to a halt in a grumbled, burning heap.
Dusting himself Ezra picked himself up and glanced up seeing the TIE approaching again, the pilot intent on finishing him off. Huh I wonder if it's that guy I pinched the helmet off a few months ago flying it, he thought even as his whipped off his backpack and pulled his father's lightsabre out from the small compartment inside where he kept it. If he wants me he's not going to get me without a fight, he thought activating the lightsabre causing a one and a half meter long sun yellow laser contained plasma blade to extend with the familiar and comforting snap-hiss sound.
He embraced the Force as the TIE pilot opened fire again, the lightsabre moving rapidly intercepting the incoming blasts and sending them flying off in another direction. Huh not the easy prey you thought I was am I, Ezra thought smirking at the TIE as the pilot pulled up and started to come around for another pass...
…only for dual bolts of bright red laser fire to slice into the thinly armoured, totally unshielded craft. The blast coming from somewhere above and behind Ezra. The effect was predictable as the TIE immediately exploded into flames and crashed down. Thankfully the grass that dominated much of Lothal's seemingly endless prairie lands was actually pretty fireproof otherwise the burning remains of the Imperial fighter would have surely started one hell of an inferno.
Cautiously Ezra turned to see where the laser blast that had saved him had come from. To see a vaguely diamond shaped ship of Corellian design floating about twenty feet above his head. Its front cargo and crew access ramp was open and somehow Ezra wasn't surprised to see the Force sensitive stranger standing there on the ramp.
"Need a ride," the man called as the sound of additional TIE's approaching filled the air. Beyond the ship Ezra could clearly see four more of the Imperial craft approaching – far too many for him to fight and win. Which meant his only real chance of survival was to go with the man the Force had seemed determined for him to meet for some reason.
Trusting the Force knew what it was doing he deactivated the lightsabre and returned it to its place in his backpack before looking back at the crate. "Leave the crate you'll never make it," he heard the stranger say.
Not on your life, Ezra thought as he hurried over to the crate and hit the button to reactivate the repulsors. Immediately the crate lifted into the air and he began running towards what he hoped to be his salvation, pushing the crate ahead of him. As laser fire from the approaching TIE's began filling the air he gathered the Force around him and leapt into the air, landing easily on the ramp still holding the crate. Then the man was there helping him push the crate inside the ship, the hatch closing and locking behind them.
Whatever happened next he was committed at least for now.
Authors Notes: Well here's the first part of the story done.
I would like to say that while Ezra does have his father's lightsabre he's not that good with it yet both because he only has a few lessons on holodisks to go on that his father made for him before he and Mira were taken by the Empire. And because the lightsabre isn't quite right for him being made for someone with bigger hands than Ezra has. While the lessons left for him by his father have helped Ezra they've been more focused on his mental abilities and strengthening – while also helping to hide from prying Sith eyes – his connection to the Force. Which should give him a good base to start from when he really starts training with Kanan.
Next chapter I will really start diverging the storyline a bit from the canon movie length pilot episode Spark of Rebellion. Especially as I imagine Ezra is going to have quite a few questions to answer from a very curious Jedi.