Chapter 4: Redeeming Yeager
Alex's P.O.V
While the three of us were in Ezra's tower, we waited for Yeager to get up from his knockout, tied in to a chair that Ezra had in his tower. It was just us two inside, with Ezra keeping an eye on Yeager and me elsewhere in the tower, while Sabine went on the tower's balcony to inform Kanan about the present situation, and she came back in just now.
"What did he say?" I asked her. "He said to get back soon." she responded. "How's Yeager holding up?" "He's been out cold for a while. It's been only an hour or two since we brought him, and he's still out cold." I responded. "Alex, what if what you have planned doesn't work, and your 'friend' would still keep on trying to kill us?" "Sabine, trust me on this one. I think it might work, we just gotta give it a chance, that's all."
We stopped talking when we heard the sounds of groaning mixed with some grunting, and we came back into where Yeager was with Ezra. When he woke up, there was just a look of sadness on Yeager's face. I gestured to Sabine and Ezra to let me do the talking, where they both nodded.
"Yeager, do you remember me?" I asked him. "Yes." he responded worriedly. "I remember those times we had, Alex, good times." It seemed like he was trying to come back. "Yeager, why have you been doing this to us?" I asked.
"I'm sorry, Alex. It's partially not my fault." he said as he began to get kicked in by emotions. "What do you mean by that?" "You remember how I went to prison on that same night that we stole some imperial bikes transporting food crates years ago?" "Yes I do, Yeager." "When I was in prison, the Empire there seemed to show interest in me, a lot of interest." "Why?" "They wanted me for something. The night before I was taken by them in the prison, one of them said how if I could be reluctant to join a secret project as a test subject, then my freedom would be mine again. The next night, it was all a lie." Yeager started tearing up afterwards.
"They brought me into an imperial facility, experimented on me by extremely heinous means. They injected me with non lethal syringes that would enhance my performance, they trained me rigorously to become a sniper assassin, and worse..." "What was worse?" "They brainwashed me. They brainwashed me to remember life in that horrible prison, and they even convinced me that on that night where I got arrested, the night where it was the last time I saw you, Alex, until now, they convinced me that you betrayed me. I didn't fall for it in the beginning, but I did eventually because of...them." "What, Yeager?" "The numbers..."
"What numbers exactly?" "These numbers, they would be said by imperials to get me to comply, and be ready to carry out any tasks by them. Because of those numbers, I believed that you really betrayed me. I was molded into a sniper assassin by them just by these numbers also as a factor. When I hear those numbers, I carry out my kills and tasks flawlessly. However, it got up to the point where I was ready to fight back because I realized what I was doing. I remember that today, when I was tasked to hunt you and your friends down, Alex, I tried to fight back the numbers like how I've been doing for a while. I was nowhere near success in breaking my chains, and I'm sorry. You got me, old friend. Kill me for my crimes." Yeager started to tear up further. I turned to Ezra. "Ezra?" I asked him. "He's telling the truth. I could sense it in him." Ezra responded.
"I am not going to kill you. You're my friend, Yeager." "Really? After all of the stuff that I committed on you?" I nodded. "Do you think you could possibly tell us where they brainwashed you?" "I know the way. The question is, are the numbers going to be active again?" "Why do you say that, Yeager?" "Because I remember that whenever I'm out of my state, the numbers are transmitted, and I could here them all in my... ahhhhhhhhhhh!" Yeager suddenly collapsed on the ground in his chair, and was screaming out in what seemed like mental pain. The three of us rushed to him. "Yeager, what's going on dude?!" I asked worriedly.
"They're back, Alex! They're in my head!" Yeager cried out. "What is, Yeager? What are you saying?" I asked worried. "The numbers! They...no, no, I will not comply! No!" Yeager screamed out. "Yeager, you have to fight it!" I said. "Get out of my HEAD!" Yeager cried out, and then he fell back, with his eyes closed. All of a sudden, he opened them, and I heard him say, "Ready to comply." "Yeager, I know you can hear me. You have to fight it." I said.
"No! I refuse to comply now! I WILL NOT COMPLY!" Yeager cried out on the ground. "Come on, dude, fight it!" I said. "I refuse to comply! I am not your slave!" Yeager cried out, breaking free from the chair, and with his hands on his head like he was having a headache, moving around the tower like that. "No! You will not make me kill my friend!" Yeager said, slamming his head against the wall.
I saw Yeager take a sharp piece of metal from a shelf that was in the tower, and he aimed it towards the back of his head, still crying out in pain. "Yeager, what are you doing!?" I yelled with fear. " . . !" Yeager cried out, taking the sharp metal to the back of his skull, where we looked in horror as my friend was piercing his skin. When it opened up, the three of us watching in horror were shocked to see what was behind that flesh.
It was some type of chip in there that was small, but was big enough for the three of us to see it. Yeager dug into it with the sharp metal, and then once he was deep enough into it, he pulled it out with extreme force, yelling out in pain as he removed it. Then it was on the floor, and we saw him bleeding from that spot. Yeager then fell back, alive but was on the verge of death possibly. "Ezra, see if you have any bandages or something like that in here." I ordered. Ezra ran off to look for what I ordered him to look for in the tower, while Sabine and I rushed over to help out Yeager.
I lifted his head up, and put pressure on that spot. "Yeager, listen to me." I said over his moans of pain. "You're going to be alright, you here me?" "No. It's too late, Alex. I'm done for." he responded. "Don't you say that. You're a fighter, Yeager. You'll make it." "Alex, I don't have bandages, but I have tape." Ezra said. "Gimme that tape. Sabine, put pressure on that wound." I ordered. She got to it, while I took a piece of duct tape that Ezra provided, and stuck it to Yeager's wound.
"I told you that you would make it." I said. "Thank you for saving me, old friend." Yeager said with a faint smile on his face, which brightened up when I reached my hand for him. I helped him up, and the Yeager that I knew was back. "What now?" he asked. "I guess we get back to the ship." "What?!" Sabine and Ezra said simultaneously.
The three of us left Yeager inside the tower, while we went to the balcony to talk this out.
"Seriously, Alex, him!? Your friend tried to kill us!" Ezra said. "I know, but he was brainwashed. My plan worked, dude. Yeager is back to his old self." I retorted. "After what he did today, there is just no way that we're bringing him on the Ghost! There is just simply no way. Way to go, Alex. You screwed us all over." Sabine jumped in. "I'm telling you, he is back, Sabine! My plan worked!" I responded. "Seriously, the both of you need to chill the heck out before more stuff occurs." "If you think we're pissed, wait til you here what Kanan and Hera have to say for themselves. Oh wait, worse, Sato, Rex, and Ahsoka. Trust us on this, Alex: you bringing in an old friend that tried to kill us for the Empire is going to get you thrown out of the Ghost, and the cell." Ezra said with Sabine nodding.
"Look, I know that Yeager has had a tough time with the Empire. With them brainwashing him to become an assassin, but I think that he deserves a second chance, doesn't he?" I asked. "I can see where you're going, but there is no way that you're bringing him into the Ghost, or the cell." Sabine said. "What if he leads us to the facility where he got brainwashed, and where the numbers are being broadcast to him? Besides, it could be a key facility that has to go out of the picture if anything." I said. "Your fate, Alex. Talk to Hera and Kanan for yourself." Ezra said. "I will do just that." I responded.
I grabbed my commlink, and contacted Kanan. "Kanan or Hera?" I said. "Talk to me, Alex." Kanan responded. "I have some news about that sniper assassin." "What is it?" "The three of us apprehended him, but..." I took a deep breath. "But what, Alex?" "The truth is..." I paused again. "He's an old friend of mine." "What?!" "Look, Kanan. Before you get pissed, let me explain." "Fine. I'm listening, but it better be good." "He revealed that during his time in prison while I was on my own before I met you guys, he said that the Empire showed interest in him." "Go on." "He said that if he would volunteer for this secret project as a test subject at the time, his freedom would be restored. He said yes, but when the next day came, it was a lie. They experimented on him, and they brainwashed him, making him an imperial assassin that would activate after a numbered code would be said to him." "And what's his case now?" "We have him in Ezra's tower, where he revealed to us why he was tasked to kill us. He even said that he could take us to the facility where the numbers are being broadcast." "Oh no." "Kanan, what is it?" "You mean Omega Facility?" "I guess so." "There were rumors of imperials making assassins by brainwashing them and broadcasting numbers to them at that facility. Is your friend out of his state by the way?" "He broke his chains recently, but we also found something in him. We found a device that was inside his head that could have been broadcasting the numbers inside of him. He destroyed the device, and he is now back to the way I used to know him. But even though that device is destroyed, Kanan, I don't think it means that the numbers are out of him for good." "Then if he could lead us to that facility, it would be another facility off the list. Sato wanted that thing taken out for a while, and you just found us our man. If you trust him to lead you to that facility, I guess we could owe it to him and get him as an ally in the rebellion." "Once we have gotten there, I will contact you. Alex out." I shut off my commlink, and turned to face Ezra and Sabine.
"He was pissed, wasn't he?" Ezra asked. "Almost, but he did possibly reveal the facility where the numbers are being broadcast. We have to convince Yeager to take us there, and then destroy the facility itself." I said. Sabine sighed. "Great. Teaming up with the assassin apparently." she said. We went back into the tower and saw Yeager.
"Do you think you could take us to Omega Facility?" I asked him. "That depends, Alex. Will you and your friends give me a second chance?" Yeager inquired. "Yes, Yeager. Always." I replied. "Even though you tried to kill us earlier, I guess we'll give you a fare shake." Sabine said. "What she said, but me and these two are still watching you." Ezra warned him. "Fare enough. Let's go." Yeager said. We took the lift back down to the plains of Lothal, and then got on our bikes. Luckily for Yeager, Ezra had an old speeder bike in the tower, which he gave to Yeager. After that, we followed Yeager to Omega Facility.
We arrived after a half an hour drive. I pulled out my commlink, and contacted the Ghost. "Kanan or Hera?" I said. "Hera here." she said. "Specter 6,5, and 7 have arrived at Omega Facility with our man. Waiting on you. I'm sending you the coordinates." I said. "Copy that, Alex. I'm en route." she responded. If we could destroy this facility, the Yeager we knew today, the Yeager that tried to kill us, would be no more.