A.N: Surprise, surprise, I'm going as Depa Billaba for Halloween. Much like my Star Wars Celebration one. So, that knew Kanan comic, Depa feels. Though I'm kind of worried about where the story is going because I'm worried I'll end up doing the same kind of redemption arc Depa has in the comics. We'll see how it goes, I guess.

Chiibe the Rebel: Oh, wow, thank you. Hope you like the chapter :)

Beawolf's Pen: things will finally be a little quicker now. By action, I mean.

I don't own Star Wars

Chapter 9: Encounter

I woke up the next morning, finding myself leaned against a tree. At first, I was surprised I didn't find myself in the creaky old bed in my apartment on Arret, but then I remembered what had happened just in the last few days. It feels like a dream. I looked at my fire I put out last night before falling asleep. Smiling tiredly, I rubbed my eyes with the sleeves of my robe…. My robe? I looked at my hand and saw the brown cloth around my arm. Then I stood up quickly and found myself wearing my Jedi robe. Did I put my robe on before going to sleep? Rubbing my head, I started to remember how sleepy I was after eating and somewhat I remember putting on something around me to keep warm for the night. I must have been too tired to notice it was my robe.

I took it off quickly and stuffed it into my satchel. Better not wear it in daylight in case I bump into a Stormtrooper. Something inside me told me I was doing it for others reasons, but I quickly focused on covering the fire with more ash and dirt and then packing up to leave. Really all I had was my bag with my robe, lightsaber, beads, meal packs, and canteen of water. There really isn't much, but maybe when I get to a settlement I would get more supplies. I remembered my spy, the person who gave me the berries last night and the direction they disappeared to. As I made route to where they went, I thought about people like the spy who lived on this planet. How where they were able to avoid being noticed by Imperials on this planet? Do they not make contact with other planets? Do they even try to leave this planet? Maybe they don't because it's safe to stay hidden from the Empire then try to go public. But then how do they get their supplies? Do they live off this land? There was nothing but forests as far as I could see. I couldn't believe they could live on only berries. My spy knew it was food, but what else?

I would find out if I keep going on the straight path the spy took earlier. At least the ground path, because the tree path was easier for the spy then it could be for me. They must have excellent agility to jump from tree to tree like that. But why were they following me was the big question? If they were interested in me, why were they afraid to show their face? Maybe I was already seen as a danger. Maybe they already knew I was being hunted by Imperials and I could bring chaos to them and their settlement. Half a mile into the trip, I stopped in the middle of a small clearing and looked up at the sky. I probably shouldn't follow them. Who knows what trouble I could bring.

A roar-like screech was heard from within the shadows of the tree line in front of me. I looked ahead of me in time to see something huge and blue charge towards me. I stepped back as a winged creature stopped just in front of me. It looked almost exactly like the one I had encountered yesterday; long neck, reptile face and eyes, scaled skin, wings, dew claws, and two back feet. This time though it was smaller in size and was blue with green marking. There was a small flap of skin from the chin but along with it a flap of skin grew from each side of it its jaw line. The horn tendrils were smaller and so were its green tail wings. Not only was the creature different but the behavior was more erratic. Where as the yellow creature was distant, this one was more furious and attempted to actually bite me. It came up right over me and attempted to clamp it's jaws down on my head. I jumped back and had to do so several times until I was backed into a tree.

I quickly thought about spinning around the tree and making a break for it, but two more of its kind suddenly appeared from each side of me. There were more of them? Like a pack, the group of blue winged giants closed in on me, cutting off any escape for me. Remembering my training, I tried to summon the Force and connect with the creature, thinking about going into it's mind and calming it down. But of course, the Force would not work for me. Instead, it decided it would be the perfect time to have a mind of its own and make me feel a tugging in my gut. "This is no time to find something—"

The lead creature gave another rabid screech but from my left a pebble flew out of the tree line and hit the creature right in the eye. The reptile gave a yelp and it swung its head in the direction of the pebbles origin. Its comrades did the same, and then they all gave a screech when they seemed to spot the source. I followed their line of vision and saw something run from behind a tree and into the deep forest. It was small, and was a blur of light baby colored skin and faded orange. I could tell it was a person because I heard it pant as they ran through the bushes and away from the clearing. The tugging in my gut grew bigger as the person ran away with the three creatures chasing after it on foot. "Oh no…" The person had saved me and was now in danger of being hurt. I had to help. Quickly, I ran after them, taking off into the trees at top speed. I could only see the back of the creatures as they sprinted after the person. The person's little head bobbed up and down as they ran into the thicket. This couldn't go on for long. One of us, either me, the person, or the creatures would have to give up soon. I couldn't let myself stop now, but I was worried the person would be the first. And the creatures would close in on them.

The chase continued on until finally I saw the end of a tree line ahead. First the person jumped through, and then the creatures followed suite. Only a few seconds later, I got through as well and stopped to see the sight in front of me. A large mass of forest grew beyond me but it was on the other side of a large break through the ground in the form of a deep and wide canyon. It wasn't the view on the other side that shocked me, but what was going on my side. Standing at edge of a cliff was a young human girl.

A girl? The person who had been spying on me and rescued me earlier was a young girl? She looked no older then six and she made herself look even smaller as she crouched closer to the ground on all fours as the creatures tried to bite her. She had bright brown eyes and choppy short hair to match. The girl was dressed with a faded orange cloth that wrapped around her chest several times, and another piece of the same color wrapped around her waist like a skirt. The loose bit of fabric of her skirt was tied to her right hip and swayed back and forth as she moved. Two colorful wooden bracelets around her left wrist clanked against each other with every movement she made. The rest of her, arms, legs, and feet were bare, showing dirt caked skin and some bruises. The girl was worse for wear, and the creatures attempting to bite her didn't make it easier. She would yell and scream whenever one got close, cowering away and getting dangerously close to the edge of the canyon.

I became determined to help. Knowing I couldn't use anything in front of the girl, like the Force or my lighstaber, to fight with, I had to think quickly and improvise another course of action. I went up behind the creatures, going up to one and running up its tail then to it spine so that I went up the neck and to the head. I jumped off it but not before grabbing its left tendril and forcing it down with me. I smashed the head of the creature against the ground and heard it whimper as it backed off. I let go of it so that I could stand up and get between them and the young girl. I looked at her and asked, "Are you all right, little one?"

She blinked at me and then at the creatures in front of us. Did she not understand what I—my thought was cut off when a blue tail smacked right into me, pushing me back into the girl. As I fell on the floor the girl was hit so hard against her side, she slipped off the edge and fell with a scream. "NO!" I yelled from my spot on the floor and I quickly scooted to the edge and looked down. I could finally see the bottom of the canyon several hundred feet below with a raging river going by. But soon my eyes landed on the girl and I sighed in relief. She had luckily managed to fall onto an out cropping of flat rock as it stuck out the canyon wall. It was wide enough for her to sit on, but I could see from where I was that it was too thin to hold her weight. Cracks were beginning to show from where the rock connected with the canyon, and that made the girl press her back against the wall.

Hearing her whimper, I called down, "Don't worry, I'll get you-AH!" I felt something bite into my boot and drag me from the edge and the throw me back into the tree line. I didn't go through but I did end up hitting me back against a tree. The pain was bearable, and if it wasn't I couldn't tell the difference. I had to focus on saving the girl. Two of the blue creatures were standing on the edge of the canyon looking down to probably the girl. The lead reptile though was hissing right in front of me. This is the second time I am pinned to a tree by a creature. As a Jedi, I had been taught to open myself to the Force so that it could help me connect to other being such as animals. In turn I could command them to help me in any situation. Well, the Force hasn't been helping me since I got here, so I may as well forget about making connections. I reached into my satchel and felt a familiar metal object. Smiling, I pulled it out and pressed the button under my thumb. For the first time in five years, my lightsaber came to life.

Its green glow reflected off the wide and fear filled eyes of the creature as it hissed and backed away. I stood up and made a defensive stance as I thought how I would approach this next. I yelled and charged towards it. Making sure I didn't actually hurt it, I swung my saber back and forth several times, making the creature step away and then finally take flight. As it did I ran under it and went to it's companions, yelling so I could get their attention. The two reptiles immediately spread their wings and jumped off the canyon wall as they saw my weapon aimed right at them. I stayed away from the edge and watched as the flyers shot straight up into the sky and followed their friend towards the other side of the canyon. The feeling of satisfaction and relief made me smile as I deactivated my lightsaber and put it in the satchel. I don't have to be a Jedi to still swing a lightsaber. Before I could think about how great it felt to hold out my weapon again, I heard a yell from the canyon. The girl! I quickly went up to the edge and kneeled down to look over.

The poor thing was now hanging by her arms on the canyon wall, her fingers holding onto bits of rock sticking out or cracks in the surface. The outcropping must have given away during the fight, now she was hanging for dear life. She gave another whimper, this time followed by a sniffle. She was crying. Instinct took over and I went down on my stomach and hung my head over the edge to say, "Little one, look up."

Hearing my voice, her head shot up and bright brown eyes looked right into my dark brown ones. Her eyes were starting to go red with the tears welling up around them. "It's ok, it's ok. You're going to be fine. I'll get you out but I need you to hold out your hand…." I scooted my upper body as far as I could over the edge without loosing my grip on the surface and falling down. I held out my left hand and finished, "…. And take mine…"

Instant terror was seen on her face and she looked away, closing her eyes tight. She thinks I'm going to hurt her. She probably doesn't understand me… or doesn't trust me because I'm a stranger. "Please. You must take my hand. You will fall if you don't." I scooted only an inch over the edge to emphasize the need for her to grab hold. "It's ok, little one, I will not harm you. Please… trust me…"

The girl looked up again, this time her head turning slowly and her eyes shifting to take in every detail of me. A moment passed and finally she let go of a rock hold with her right hand and began to reach up towards mine. "That's it, good girl…" I could hear her grunt as her little fingers tried to touch mine. We were only inches from each other, so one of us had to get closer. As soon as I scooted up a few more inches, a crack was heard. Quickly I reached up and grabbed her hand as the rock hold of her left hand gave away and broke off the edge. She gave out a load whimper and used both hands to grab mine. Her feet swung back and forth as she tried to use them to climb up but it was only making it worse. I could feel myself slip off the edge with her momentum so I quickly yelled, "Stop! Stop!" she went absolutely still and kept her gaze on me. "I'll pull you up." I scooted my body back, keeping my left hand firmly gripping hers as my right hand pushed me away from the edge. Finally, I had enough room to stand up and I used both hand to grab her arms and pull her on to the safe surface of the flat ground.

I let go so that she could crouch in the grass and grab her breath. I sat down next to her and inhaled deeply several times myself. "That was… very close." I said between breaths. I looked at her to see how she would respond. To my surprise, she stood up quickly and took off on all fours. "Stop!" I yelled, quickly getting up and running after her. With the long strides she took using all her limbs, she had disappeared into the thick grove of the forest by the time I got to the tree line. She's fast… on both her arms and legs? I ignored the strange behavior and went in the direction she had taken. I got a gut feeling in my chest to just follow her, even though my mind was asking me why I cared since we had just met. Well, for starters she could be hurt. I saw the bruises on her and I wanted to see what had happened. She could even had gotten worse scars from this attack. There was no one else around so I guessed she was alone and maybe even lost. There was one more thing. If she wasn't alone and lost, she could take me the closest city were I could get a ship out of this planet.

I ran for about a mile until finally the sun had gone too high for the heat to make me tire and stop running. I leaned against a tree and observed my surroundings. Nothing but large trees and bushes to cover almost every inch of this area. Disappointed in having lost sight of the girl, I sighed in defeat. I worried for her. She could probably be hiding in some tree and shaking in fear at what just happened. I don't know what it was but something inside me urged me to give her comfort. Just remembering the fear in her eyes made me think she was calling for comfort. Or something was calling me to comfort her.

It suddenly hit me like a rock in the head. The Force! The tugging in my gut had been the Force. And it hadn't been making me feel this way randomly. I felt the Force whenever she was around. When she was spying from the tree and when she had dropped food down to me. When the Force wouldn't want to connect with the animals, it was trying to connect with someone else. The girl. Why was the girl suddenly so special? Maybe it was because of the same thing I had thought earlier. I smiled, in joy thinking that the Force was finally doing something right for once. She was probably my way off this planet.

I could leave and not be found by Imperials. I can go to Gamorr and find Caleb. My Padawan, oh I wonder what he is doing now? Probably hiding in plain sight no doubt but what was he thinking? What would he think when I found him? He would probably be happy to see me; he was joyous spirit that way. Or maybe five years alone made him a little rougher around the edges. Would he forgive me for not trying to find him sooner? All these questions made me sit down on the grass cross legged and begin to meditate on the Force around me. I felt it, helping me feel a little better that I was finally connected to it. Now I just needed to extend my senses…. Only the most powerful of Jedi could sense others from half away across galaxies. I was never that powerful, but it didn't hurt to try. Besides, Caleb and I were connected through a special bond, so maybe there is a chance I could sense him.

In all my effort, the Force did one thing and one thing only; bring my thoughts back to the girl. I grumbled and dropped my meditation. Well, I was just starting to get used to the living Force near me. My extended senses would need some development. Always room for improvement Mace Windu had said to me. I stood up again and walked in the direction the girl had gone to.

.

A.N: Whelp, you finally meet the OC, which raises a lot of questions. So the wild is a crazy place, and thankfully Depa has her savior to get her out. And with that she returns the favor by being a badass. Will she see the girl again? Find out next, I'm KikaKatTIOI, peace out!