Chapter 3
Kanan watched from the cafe balcony. Below on the other side of the fire pit, Ezra was chatting with one of the bar keepers. The reptilian trandoshan seemed more than happy to chat with Kanan's apprentice. Even from across the room, he could easily see the two of them enthusiastically waving limbs around. It had been Ezra's idea to scope out the locals for information. The boy had thought they might open up more to a curious kid then an intimidating adult. A loud bang bounced across the cafe as the trandoshan slammed a hand down on the bar and let out a raspy laugh. Kanan caught a quick glance and a smirk from Ezra, letting him know things were under control.
The older Jedi slowly placed his elbows on his knees and laced his fingers together. He was still processing what had just happened with his padawan. Kanan had had a hunch the distortion would make Ezra confront his fear, but it had reacted much more strongly than he anticipated. After Ezra's fight with the Inquisitor, Kanan wasn't sure how the boy would react. It had been his hope that without the Inquisitor antagonizing the boy, Kanan would be able to help his padawan deal with his fears. Thankfully it worked, and Ezra got a taste of the Jedi way to counter act the Inquisitor's influence.
Kanan exhaled loudly through his nose. There had been a brief moment when Kanan wasn't sure which way Ezra would choose. Even though his faith in the boy had proven well founded, it reminded him just how much he didn't know about Ezra. Doing his best to relax, Kanan exhaled slowly again.
"Master Billaba, I don't know how you did this." Kanan said under his breath. Fond memories returned of his master's face whenever he caused her trouble. Although he couldn't remember exactly how she looked, he remember how he felt. How she made him want to be a better person. He saw Ezra leave the bar and couldn't keep from feeling proud of his young apprentice. He was a good kid, sometimes in spite of Kanan's teaching. As the boy approached the table he looked eager.
"I think I got us something." Ezra said. He sat down and slide over by Kanan. "See that mounted head over there?" Ezra said as he pointed across the room. Kanan leaned over to line up with where Ezra was pointing. High up on the wall in the shadows was a massive canine head. Kanan could just make out three rows of teeth and paper-thin eye slits. "The guy down there was saying those things use to be all over the forest when they first built the town." Kanan raised an eyebrow.
"Use to be?" Kanan said.
"Yeah, the lizard guy-" Ezra said.
"Trandoshan" Kanan said.
"Yeah, the trandoshan said they use to drag locals off the streets and into the forest." Ezra said, enjoying the slight shiver it gave Kanan. "But he says they all suddenly disappeared." Ezra paused and dropped his voice and leaned forward slightly. "Here's where it gets weird. About six or seven years ago, he said this imperial guy showed up, alone. The bar guy said he came into the cafe, asking about Jedi." Ezra said. Kanan squinted and frowned. He leaned back and folded his arms.
"An inquisitor." Kanan said. "That makes this...interesting."
"No kidding." Ezra said. "The trandoshan said he warned this...inquisitor about the monsters, but he went into the forest. He came out about a week or two later and the monsters haven't been seen since." Ezra watched as Kanan furrowed harder and closed his eyes to think. It took a while for him to open again.
"I might know what happened, with this info." Kanan said. Ezra perked up, eager to hear he helped move them closer to an answer. "If I'm right, we could run into something rather twisted and it will probably get messy. You sure you feel up for that?" Kanan said, locking eyes with his padawan. Ezra didn't look away and nodded.
"I'm feeling good, really. I want to undo whatever this inquisitor guy did. I don't care what the bar guy thinks, I can feel something wrong here." Ezra said. Kanan waited a few seconds, then nodded. Ezra said, "So what are we dealing with?"
"I'm not really sure of the details, but my guess is the inquisitor found a Jedi." Kanan said and sighed, a bit of gloom in his voice. "There were rumors a few years back of some inquisitors trying to turn Jedi to the dark side. Some of them might have even experimented on Jedi with the dark side." Kanan said. He watched Ezra swallowed nervously, but keep his face focused. Kanan felt Ezra's determination through their bond. "This disturbance could only be caused by someone with a strong connection to the force, and its probably the thing keeping those monsters away." Kanan said.
Ezra leaned back and folded his arms. Kanan's hesitations about his padawan confronting this disturbance in such a direct manner evaporated. He could feel the boy's resolve very clearly. The force had been with them so far, he thought. Why not finish what they started?
"First thing is to find the source. I hope you've been doing your meditation exercises." Kanan said. Ezra smiled sheepishly and folded his arms tighter. "Don't worry, I'll talk you through the steps." Kanan said. "Start with your breathing, slow in, slower out." Ezra closed his eyes and rested his hands palm up on his thighs. He straightened his posture and started to get his breathing rhythm going. Kanan felt a twinge of self consciousness from the boy, but it passed.
"Good." Kanan said. "Feel the force around you. Feel it connecting you to me. Follow the connections out, expand your reach to the rest of the room. Can you see it?" Kanan said. Ezra slowly nodded.
"The distortion is making it hazy, but I can feel everyone in the room. Its a lot...I'm having a hard time keeping all of it together." Ezra said, his eyes tightening.
"Don't try to hold on to all of it. Let it pass through you, and focus only on disturbance." Kanan said. "Now, just in the room, where is the distortion the strongest?" Ezra's body relaxed, and his steady breathing continued for a few moments.
"There." Ezra said with barely any movement. "Its stronger against the front door."
"Now, keep yourself open. Let the force continue to flow through you, and follow the distortion. Find the place with the most disturbance." Kanan said. Ezra's face furrowed and his body tensed up, but he kept his breathing steady. Kanan supported his padawan with calming waves, and Ezra's body relaxed a bit.
"I've...I think I'm closing in on him." Ezra said. "I can see a...hole in the force. A little ways outside of town. That direction." Ezra said, lifting his arm and pointing. He opened his eyes and blinked a few times as he adjusted to the light again. Kanan stood up, and Ezra quickly followed.
"Very nice work Ezra." Kanan said. Ezra shrugged and gave a genuine smile.
"I've got a good teacher, I guess." Ezra said.
"You're darn right you do." Kanan said with fake smugness. "Maybe not the best but I am pretty close."
"Well, I did say I never wanted the best." Ezra said.
"I know." Kanan said. "We all have to make sacrifices kid. Yours is the burden of a perfect mentor." Kanan said, standing up tall and pretending to brush something off his chest with the sophisticated wave of his hand. Ezra rolled his eyes and snarked as they walked out the door.
Out in the forest, a very large canine with three rows of teeth perked up and looked towards the town. Its ears twitched and flicked back and forth. The thin slits of its eyes furrowed slightly as its nose wrinkled up. Long, slow inhales, followed by a single exhale that dragged out of the creature's body. A trail of vapor was the only thing left hanging in the air as the massive canine dashed off into the underbrush.
"There wouldn't happen to be any Jedi tricks for staying warm?" Ezra said. He rubbed his hands together and exhaled into them. Kanan looked back at his apprentice as the boy tucked his hands under his arms. The temperature wasn't below freezing, but the humidity definitely made up for it. The cold managed to find its way past their cloaks and seep into their bones. Ezra's teeth had been chatting every now and then behind him.
"I heard rumors once of a Jedi who could start fires with just the force." Kanan said. Without looking behind him, he felt Ezra's interest rise. Kanan said, "But I'm partial to using heat-sticks."
"Oh." Ezra said, clearly hoping the conversation had gone another direction. "That's...cool." They'd nearly reached where he had felt the hole. Even with better control over it, the disturbance continued to drain his focus. Ezra shivered, wondering how anyone force sensitive could live with this for so long. Kanan picked up on his padawan's diminished enthusiasm and decided to let the boy conserve his energy. They both walked quietly for a while.
The forest blocked most of the town's light, even though it wasn't that far behind them. There was plenty of walking room between the massive trees, but there was an unnatural dimness, even with their flashlights. The damp leaves squished underfoot, and Ezra caught a whiff of their decomposition every few steps. He followed close behind Kanan. The disturbance was generating illusions, making it feel like people were appearing and disappearing just outside of his vision.
"Wait." Kanan said softly. He stopped suddenly and put his hand back. Still looking to the side, Ezra's chest ran into Kanan's hand and startled the young padawan. Ezra crouched instinctively and looked around, sensing Kanan's frustration.
"I can feel something. Its been following us for a while, but I can't pin point it this close to the disturbance." Kanan said. He let his hand drift closer to his blaster.
Sensing something behind him, Ezra turned and dropped to one knee. He waited with his arm up, ready to fire his wrist shooter. He noticed vapor in the air and realized he was breathing fast. Frustrated at the many presences fading in and out around them, he listened and heard only the rain filtering down through the trees. He turn back towards Kanan, and out of the corner of his eye he caught a glimpse of a large canine head, half hidden behind a tree trunk.
"Karabast!" Ezra said, getting off a shot before falling backwards. Kanan swung around, blaster in hand. The sound of wet, heavy foot falls receded back into the forest, leaving only Ezra's heavy breathing.
"It was one of those monsters with the teeth!" Ezra said, reaching back to pull his hood back on. "Did you see-" He was cut off as a massive canine lunged from the side, landing almost on top of Ezra. The boy scooted backwards, but the beast's long tail rushed underneath its body and wrapped around Ezra's leg. It dragged Ezra back towards it and snapped at the boy's throat. Ezra dodged to the side, and the monster's teeth grazed his shoulder, slicing through his cloak and skin.
"Holy-!" Kanan said and fired a few blaster bolts into the monster's side. Startled and singed, the beast turned and snarled at Kanan. Frantically, Ezra fired a shot from his wrist shooter at the beast's underbelly. Yellow electricity wrapped over its body, and the massive canine convulsed momentary. The tail loosen, and Ezra slide backwards until he hit a tree. He raised his wrist shooter but couldn't get it to stop shaking. It took a moment for Ezra to realize Kanan had jumped in front of him. The snap hiss of his mentor's lightsaber echoed off the trees, casting a blue highlight over everything. The beast hesitated, coolly making up its mind. It whipped its tail at Kanan, who nimbly dodged the first few attacks, and grazed the last strike with his lightsaber. With a slight yip, the monster tucked its tail behind it and took a step back, then turned and ran off.
Kanan waited a while before turning his lightsaber off. Feeling for his padawan, he sensed the boy was in pain, but for the most part felt safe. He picked up his flashlight from where he had dropped it and scanned the area around them. A little extra cautious, he even checked up the trees just to be sure. Ezra stood up and flinched a little when he pushed up with his arm. He looked down and noticed the cuts in his cloak. He felt a twinge of disappointment that he had gotten Kanan's old cloak damaged. Ezra felt the frayed edges and his fingers grazed his cuts. He winced, and looked up at Kanan as the older Jedi walked up.
"Thanks for the save." Ezra said as Kanan inspected the boy's cuts up close.
"Thanks for being the bait." Kanan said, winking at his padawan. Ezra managed a laugh, not entirely certain his mentor wasn't joking. Kanan reached into his cloak and pulled out a small ointment tube wrapped in medical fabric. "Alright, lets patch you up before more of those things come back." Kanan said as he unscrewed the tube of medicine. Ezra gingerly pulled his vest off and inhaled sharply as he pulled his arm free of his jump suit. Having half his upper body exposed to the frigid air, he winced as his muscles shivered.
"Ah!" Ezra said surprised as Kanan dabbed the gashes with a piece of gaze he had torn from the wrappings.
"All those layers and that thing still cut this far." Kanan said a little impressed. "Do me a favor and don't tell Hera about this." Kanan said. He could still feel Ezra's tension, but it lightened a bit with the levity. Kanan rubbed some of the ointment onto Ezra's cuts, trying to be as gentle as possible. Ezra relaxed with a sigh as the immediate area around the gashes went numb.
"I..." Ezra said, a little self conscious. "I sensed your feelings during the attack. It just...happened. I knew what you would do. Kind of the way you just know things in a dream." Ezra stiffened as Kanan touched a new cut, then eased back as it went numb.
"That's a natural development of a force bond." Kanan said as he worked, happy to hear his padawan had progressed that far in opening himself up. "As we trust each other, the force allows us to connect at a subconscious level. We can work together with the same mindset." Ezra remained quiet in thought as Kanan finished applying the salve. After a final inspection, Kanan wrapped Ezra's wound and used the sticky ointment left on his hand to glue the end of the gaze down. He helped Ezra get his arm back into his jumpsuit. He finished putting away his med kit as Ezra pulled his vest and cloak back on. The young padawan curiously moved his arm around, finding the limits of his motion.
"Ready to move?" Kanan said as he turned around. A few meters away his flashlight lit up a figure standing, tall and pale. Both Ezra and Kanan jumped back with a yelp.
"What are you doing out here, Jedi?" the figure said. He was human, and looked like he spent more time in the woods then the town. Kanan stood up straight, the shock having worn off, replaced by surprise.
"I...I can barely feel your presence, even this close." Kanan said. "You're...the source."