"HEART OF GOLD...BROKEN"
Zeb watched his three friends fly away on gliders as quiet as a whisper to rescue Hera. As the images of his three friends...his family faded into the distance, he swallowed hard. Somehow he knew one of them would not be coming back. That made him want to...cry.
His warrior's heart of gold he kept protected by a strong wall of sheer will, had begun to crack earlier when he had embraced his friends for possibly the last time. It was hard to say goodbye to the family he had grown to love over the years.
"Promise me, Zeb, you will protect them," Kanan had said to him as they embraced not as comrades...but as brothers.
"I...promise," he had said.
The crack around the heart of gold...began to deepen...more.
Hours later after a huge explosion that signaled that the rescue mission had been a success, Zeb knew in his warrior's heart of gold, that one of his friends wouldn't be coming back. He knew it was Kanan Jarrus...his brother...
The crack deepened even more and seeing the strickened looks on Hera's, Ezra's and Sabine's faces he knew that Kanan was dead. His friend and brother was never coming back.
"Promise me, Zeb, you will protect them," came Kanan's last words to him...again.
"I promise," he whispered in a voice hoarse with grief.
He went up to his surviving friends and placed hands each of their shoulders. Hera's face reflected the degree of loss she felt. Sabine couldn't hide her tears and sobbed quietly. Ezra looked more angry than sad. The young man's eyes held a loss that cut to the core of Zeb's soul. The protective warrior part of him took them into his arms. He, too, wanted to grieve with them, but he had to stay strong. He had promised Kanan that he would always protect them. A warrior never breaks a promise.
Through the day Zeb watched his friends grieve in their own way. Ezra had gone off somewhere to mediate as Jedi often do. Sabine curled up in a corner of the cave and just cried off and on. Hera...held onto Kanan's face mask in her hands her eyes tight with grief and tears.
The wall around the heart of gold began to crack...even more.
"I promise to protect you..."
The next day the four of them gathered inside the cave near an altar that was set up near the paintings of the Loth-Wolves and ancient Lothol natives. On the altar was placed Kanan's lightsaber, his DL-18 blaster, the mask with the jaig eyes, and his ponytail of brown hair that he had cut off before he went to rescue Hera. This was all that remained of their friend, their mentor, their brother...perhaps one of the greatest Jedi to ever live.
The crack in the protective wall around the heart of gold...grew even larger.
Zeb found it harder to keep the tears inside. He was constantly blinking his big green eyes feeling the need to cry. His throat felt so tight he could barely speak...or swallow.
Ryder Azadi, a good friend of the GHOST family had suggested earlier to Zeb that a memorial and goodbye should be done for Kanan to help them with their loss. The Lasat had agreed even though he didn't feel worthy of saying anything. He knew he could never find the words to express the grief he was feeling, the brotherly love he had felt for Kanan.
The crack grew a little bigger...
Ryder Azadi had stood off to the side and delivered a heartfelt eulogy for the fallen Jedi who had given the supreme sacrifice for the ones he loved.
Zeb watched as Hera, Ezra, and Sabine fell to their knees before the altar, eyes closed as tears streamed down their faces. He knealt behind them, swallowed hard and enveloped them within the comforting embrace of his big powerful arms pulling them close. Taking a deep breath he embraced them them with the love of a brother, a protector and a friend. He bowed his head feeling the protective wall around his heart of gold threatening to fall away. He so wanted to cry like the others but promised to protect them.
A warrior never cries...
As seconds turned to minutes, and minutes turned to nearly an hour, Zeb held his family close to his chest. All of sudden he felt what seemed like two loving arms envelope him a hug of comfort. He opened his eyes to see...
Nothing.
Ryder had left giving the GHOST family privacy to grieve their friend's sacrifice.
Zeb closed his eyes, still embracing the remaining members of his family when he felt that comforting embrace again.
Deep down he knew who was embracing him.
It was Kanan.
A voice sounded in his mind. The voice of his friend.
"It is all right to grieve, Zeb. You have every right to feel as they feel. Let yourself go, big guy. It's not wrong to...cry..."
At that moment the wall around the heart of gold crumbled to dust. It had become as fragile as glass...cracking...shattering.
Tears fell like rain down the cheeks of light purple fur leaving darker purple streaks. The Lasat's great chest heaved with the sobs of a breaking heart. He held tighter to Hera, Ezra and Sabine not ashamed to finally cry in front of them. He was hurting just as much as they were.
The Force spirit of Kanan Jarrus, Jedi Knight, enveloped his little family in a hug of the purest love. He whispered words of comfort that only their ears could hear. He smiled seeing Chopper leaning close to Zeb and placing a manipulator arm against the Lasat's trembling back. The little droid was grieving in his own way too.P
Goodbye...my friends...my family, the spirit seemed to say, You will go on...don't ever forget how much I love you...
"Goodbye...Kanan," came four shaky emotion-filled voices.
Tears continued to fall like rain...a rain that would eventually be cleansing to the small family of rebels.
Never forget...
RIP Kanan Jarrus...Jedi Knight...