In honour of #RebelsRemembered, here's the next chapter a bit earlier than expected. There's something appropriate about it just happening to be the one with the Ezrabine wedding... So, happy 1 year finale anniversary!
I'm doing the wedding a bit differently, I'll forewarn you. Mandalorians don't have big ceremonies so there's a very small opening part, and then a larger section for some post-ceremony celebration.
This time: Hammerly returns to Site Two, the Fourth Sister talks about the Empire with Hux and Sarlis, Luke and Ahsoka talk about the Jedi, and we celebrate a Jedi-Mandalorian wedding.
The last few weeks had been a blur for Sabine.
Mandalorians didn't do expensive ceremonies or flashy displays. Most Mandalorian weddings were the exchange of vows, a few drinks, and back to work by the afternoon. A Countess' daughter mandated something a bit bigger, but even then it was a lot less intense than even an average core world couple would have. None of that bothered her though. The fanciest food and the prettiest clothes had nothing on good company.
Hera was overjoyed when Sabine asked her to be her bridal hand. It was about the only traditional role a Mandalorian wedding had outside of a bride and groom. The original intent of the position was as Mandalorian as it could be. The bride hand was something of a witness to a union, but was more so the one chosen to hold onto the weapons in case of an ambush mid-ceremony. Sabine has assured Hera that the last part was unnecessary, and that she should just treat it like a normal bridesmaid.
That meant Hera was her main source of advice for all things wedding related. Sabine made it clear - abundantly clear - that Mandalorians didn't wear dresses. Like for everything, they wore their armour. Usually that applied to bride and groom since marriages between Mandalorians and outsiders were rare. When they did happen though, no one really cared what the other wore. Hera had taken the advice in stride. 'Minimal is maximal', she'd repeated over and over, her way of saying that the best ideas were often the simplest ones.
Sabine agreed and settled on her usual choice - a new paintjob. A dark purple remained as the base colour of her breastplate and leg armour. She'd lined the outside of her knee plates and shoulder pads with a thin gold strip. On her left pauldron, she'd chosen a pure white convor as a memento for Ahsoka, and a little symbol of good luck for her out in the Unknown Regions. On her right, she'd redone her Phoenix-Jedi symbol hybrid in her favourite fiery orange. A sapphire blue streak went down from the centre of her breastplate across to the left, leaving just enough space in the top left for her traditional Phoeinx squadron starbird symbol. Even her jetpack's wings had a do over, all to complete the effect. Lastly, for her helmet, she kept the wren on the faceplate with its bright blue eyes, only adding to it two small wolf-like ears inspired by the ones she'd done for Kanan's mask.
There was a little something for everything. Purple for her, her favourite colour. A convor for Ahsoka, wolf ears for Kanan, a starbird for Hera and the rebels, the wren for her family, the blue streaks and eyes for Ezra, and the Phoenix-Jedi symbol for the two of them.
Before she even knew it, she was there in the main hall of her family's stronghold on Krownest, the ring being slid onto her finger.
Ezra had, to her relief, chosen something slightly different to his usual attire. It was the same basic orange outfit, but obviously cleaner and more presentable. He'd touched up the leg armour and added some pauldrons of his own. Sabine thought that maybe he was playing into the whole armour thing to impress her family, and she had to say that it did look good on him.
Her mother smiled down at her from her throne, watching from her traditional place as conductor of the small ceremony. The Countess of Clan Wren had been well aware of her and Ezra's relationship since he'd come home, and her family held him in high regard for his actions over the years. The pride was clear on her face as her mother told them to recite their vows.
"Mhi solus tome, mhi solus dar'tome, mhi me'dinui an, mhi ba'juri verde", they said in unison, "We are one together, we are one apart, we share all, we shall raise warriors."
"Sabine Wren-Bridger, Ezra Wren-Bridger, I pronounce you husband and wife."
A chorus of applause and cheering erupted from their moderately sized crowd as they sealed their union with a long, gentle kiss. After pulling apart, she stared deeply into his eyes and let the world around them melt away. In that moment, she felt that every problem in the galaxy couldn't touch them.
Site Two. Hammerly adjusted her suddenly tight collar as they drew close to the familiar planet in the freighter. The shattered orange surface hadn't become any more welcoming since they were here last, and this time she actually had to put boots on the ground.
"Do we still have the coordinates?", Hammerly asked the pilot.
She nodded, "Aye, ma'am. There's a large central basin with several canyons leading off it. We'll head as close to the centre as we can."
The previous squad of troopers sent after the Fourth Sister had set down deep in one of the surrounding canyons. Hammerly didn't know why anyone didn't just head straight for the basin's centre. Pretty much all they knew about this world was that what really mattered was found somewhere at that basin's centre.
Hammerly left the cockpit to address her team in the hold. "Everyone ready, Lieutenant?"
"Yes, ma'am. Your sensor teams are all prepared and my troopers are ready to assist."
"Alright, listen in", she still wasn't used to commanding soldiers, "We're here for two things. First, there's something down here that the Grand Admiral wants to know about. We almost had it last time but our lovely Inquisitor decided to pull one of her hissy fits again."
Poking fun at the Fourth Sister was guaranteed to score you some points in their fleet. For the crews of the Chimaera and the Myrmidon, she was almost universally despised. Arrogant, hateful, shortsighted, incompetent - about the only positive thing most would say about her was that she tended to keep her mouth shut around most people.
"We're taking images, scans, readings, and just about anything to figure out what happened down there. Sergeant Layley", she nodded to the man on the far side of the hold, "you are your team will set up our sensor perimeter to let us know about uninvited guests."
The Lieutenant beside her raised his hand, "What about my stormtroopers, Commander?"
"Apart from manual labour?", she earned an unenthusiastic chuckle from a few of the troopers, "No, in all seriousness, we have some fallen brothers and sisters nearby. The navpoint will be on your map so take some grav-platforms and bring them home."
"Honoured, Commander", the Lieutenant nodded and went to prepare his troops.
The landing was a smooth one. As soon as the ship settled, Hammerly was on her feet and heading to the door. With a hiss, it opened and she stepped out into the blaring sun.
They were in almost the centre of the basin, the ramp facing outwards towards one of the several canyons that led out of it. The afternoon sun was intense and the glaring orange reflection from the ground was already straining her eyes.
Her Lieutenant passed her with his squad in tow as they headed off to the canyon in the distance. A half dozen grav-platforms hovered behind them for the bodies of the fallen soldiers slain by Bridger's allies over a year ago.
"Layley?", she turned back over her shoulder to get her Sergeant.
"Yes, Commander. All set", he replied.
Layley was one of several scanning officers in the fleet, and one of the few good friends Hammerly had. He was roughly the same age as her, barely into his mid-thirties, and shared the same gloomy sense of the galaxy as her.
Behind him, five other technicians were carrying some boxes of perimeter sensors and other equipment. Hammerly went around the ship and began heading towards the centre of the basin. A large, unassuming rocky structure was in the centre a hundreds metres or so from them. Looks could be deceiving though, and she knew it was what they were here for.
"How many credits says that's what we've come for?", Layley joked beside her.
"None. I haven't got any credits left to bet with."
She led them up to the structure and started to look around it. There must have been a cave or an opening somewhere, why else would this be what they came for? On the far side of the structure, she found it.
"I have something", she called to her squad.
A small circular doorway was cut into the rock and led inside to a dark corridor. Carved into the rock leading up to the opening were a few steps that Hammerly climbed carefully. Her laid back attitude was replaced with caution, maybe fear, and the hair on the back of her neck stood up. Swallowing back the fear, she focused back on the task at hand.
Not a trace, Thrawn had told her. Hammerly looked for some crevices in the rocky structure or for areas of loose rubble. The senors they had were powerful enough to penetrate a metre of so of rock, so all they had to do was hide them from view from anyone who might come by.
"You two", she pointed to two of her team, "Start laying out our perimeter sensors, as even a spacing as you can. Remember: leave no sign that we were here."
Hammerly took out her handheld scanner and motioned the others to follow her. The doorway was smooth and obviously made by someone's hand. Were they still here? She reached a hand back and grabbed her blaster pistol, just in case.
They crept single file into the structure using what little light seeped in to guide their steps. A few metres in, the corridor opened into a small chamber with several corridors leading off it. The light had all but disappeared and they were soon fumbling in the dark.
"Ugh, lights up", she ordered and fumbled for her own light with the datapad still in her hand. Her squadmates lit up behind her just as she finished attaching the light to her pistol.
"Having trouble?", Layley quipped.
She stepped aside as if to let him pass, "You're more than welcome to take point, Sergeant."
Taking his silence as an answer, Hammerly pressed on. Now... which way first? She took a few seconds to mull it over in her head. Ah, middle one is the safest bet.
The middle corridor was also smooth and circular, an unusual choice for an old ruin in her opinion. Perhaps a dozen metres into it and she felt the ground start to slope downwards taking them deeper. Her light cut through the darkness and she could make out the end of the corridor ahead of her.
It opened up into a large, dark chamber that their small lights wouldn't be much help in.
"Anyone got a floodlight in one of those boxes?", she asked her team as they filed in through the door.
"Yeah, one moment", one replied.
There was a clank as the box hit the ground and the rattling of metal as they dug through its contents.
"Here", they said, before planting something down on the ground and turning on a powerful white floodlight.
In the new light she could see that the chamber was also circular and quite large, maybe ten or fifteen metres in diameter. In the centre was a small rocky stump that looked almost charred. The most distinctive feature though was the mess of metal and rock on the far wall. A deep black crack was cut through some sort of decorative metal structure. She could see piles of rubble, shards of metal, and a large chunk of stone scattered at the foot of the wall beneath it.
There was something off about this place. Not wrong, but not right either, just off. She found herself eager to be done here as soon as possible. She slowly stepped forward, on alert in case the bad feeling in her gut was more accurate than she'd like. Behind her, the rest of the team was starting to unpack their equipment and spread out around the room
"Commander, look at this." Laley's voice echoed off the ancient walls and she turned back to see him walking off to the edge of the room.
"Found something useful?", she asked and walked over to him, putting her pistol away for now.
He leaned down and picked up something in his hands. "I don't know", he inspected it for a moment before holding it up for her to see.
It was easy enough to tell what it was. "A stormtrooper blaster?", she took it from him and looked for herself. "Huh", she noticed the damaged barrel of the weapon, "Looks like it was cut right through."
"One of ours?", Layley asked.
Hammerly pursed her lips and winced, "No, we didn't lose any equipment down here, at least not from any of the teams that came to the ruin."
"Say, didn't Bridger shoot his way off the Chimaera?", Layley suggested.
"That he did", she agreed. The Commander was about to set it aside when she noticed the scorching where the cut was. "Hang on...", she'd seen this damage before, "This blaster didn't just break, it was cut in half by a lightsaber."
The Sergeant narrowed his eyes, "Are you sure?"
She looked up at him, "It's just like the damage on the bodies we recovered from Site Three, and I'd bet it'd be the same on the bodies the Lieutenant is going to recover." Hammerly wasn't blind to the implications. "Which means that either Bridger's Jedi friends found one of our troopers here..."
"Which we know they didn't know since the squad had only just arrived when they were set upon by Bridger's allies", Layley filled in.
She'd been on the Chimaera's bridge when news of the squad's run in with Bridger's friends had reached them. A short clip of a stormtrooper calling for help before being run through with a green blade had brought the entire bridge to a standstill. But that sqaud had only landed a few minutes before, and it was nowhere near enough time to reach this place.
"Then the Inquisitor did this. She found Bridger here. She found him but didn't tell us that she had and made sure no one knew anything about what was down here."
Hammerly didn't know what that meant or why she'd do it, but it couldn't have been good. The Inquisitor was hiding something from them, but what? Thrawn was right in saying that her whole demeanour changed after her visit to this planet, so what about this place changed her?
Shaking her head again, she handed the defunct weapon back to Layley. "Bag it. Let's get everything we can for Thrawn. I don't know about you but I want to be off this forsaken rock as soon as possible."
There were some murmurs of acknowledgement as her team set about their task. Commander Hammerly was again drawn over to the pile of metal and rubble on the far side of the room. What went down here, Inquisitor? She stepped over some shattered pieces of the wall decor trying to find some sort of answer. Sighing, she picked up part of one of the rings in a vain effort to figure things out. What were you trying to hide? Hammerly noticed some parts of the rings still embedded in the wall and wondered just what this odd little display was meant to be. What were you afraid of?
Progress was still agonisingly slow. The doors they discovered proved to be far stronger than they'd anticipated and they'd spent weeks cutting through the first one. Their scans hadn't been able to penetrate the thick material, so their joy was short lived when they cut through it only to find another identical door behind it. This was going to take a while. That time, however, gave the Fourth Sister opportunity. Every moment of boredom and impatience fuelled her new allies' discontent with Thrawn and drove them further into her arms.
Stepping out of her small hut into the morning sun, she saw the usual mess of activity around the dig site. Thrawn had ordered a huge operation to clear the layers of rock from around the doorway and open it up to the air. The combined hands and tools of their new reinforcements made the job a breeze, and they'd cleared more materiel in a few weeks than they had in a few months previously. Now, their new discovery was more accessible than ever.
The Fourth Sister set off towards the edge of the dig site, barely paying attention to the troopers and officers she passed by on her way. As she approached the edge of the pit, she caught sight of two familiar silhouettes.
"Commandant Hux, Captain Sarlis", the Inquisitor stopped next to Hux and joined him in looking over the dig site. "The progress really shows from here."
"Yes, it does", Hux agreed.
"I was just telling the Commandant about how much more progress we've been making recently", the Captain explained.
Doing my job for me, Captain. The Inquisitor peered over the edge of the pit and could see the podium and the now open door way, all surrounded by dozens of people with all sorts of equipment.
"It goes to show what good Imperial leadership can do", Hux declared proudly.
The Fourth Sister nodded emphatically, "I couldn't agree more, Commandant. It's something we've been lacking for the last few years."
Beside her, the man cleared his throat awkwardly, "I'm, uh, I don't follow."
"Oh come now, Commandant. You know what I mean. Thrawn is many things but a loyal Imperial servant? That's not one of them."
He was taken aback by her open contempt, but the man was too spineless to make a stand of his own. "I... I'll just take your word for it, Inquisitor."
"You don't have to", she replied instantly, "Take the Emperor's himself."
Name-dropping the Emperor immediately caught Hux's attention. "E-excuse me?"
The Fourth Sister cast her mind back to the day she was assigned this mission and the day she first saw the Chiss' face in the hologram, already en-route to his location on the Emperor's orders.
"The Emperor didn't trust him", she explained. "He had a hyperspace tracker installed aboard Thrawn's ship because he knew he couldn't be relied upon. It's what let me track him down after his failure on Lothal."
Admittedly, she didn't know exactly why there was a tracker on Thrawn's ship, or who had placed it there, but the Emperor knew about it so he must have had a hand in it.
"She's right", Sarlis' voice came as a surprise aid to her testimony. "Back on Coruscant, I was quite well-connected with High Command and they didn't like Thrawn one bit. Too reckless they said, too hot-headed, too... opaque, I think the word was."
The extra details were exactly the sort of thing the Inquisitor wanted to here. Thrawn had won few friends in the Empire, and soon enough it was going to cost him dearly.
"Exactly, Captain. That's why the Emperor assigned someone as well-connected as you to Thrawn's fleet before Lothal, and why I was sent to him afterwards", she knew the obvious platitudes would sail over the Captain's head. "The Chiss was useful to the Emperor but not dependable. He needed people like us to be his eyes and ears in Thrawn's fleet... and if needs be, his hands."
"What are you suggesting?", Hux lowered his voice and cast a cautionary glance around them.
"Nothing, Commandant. I'm only pointing out that we are the Emperor's loyal servants, and that Thrawn is an unknown. He's an alien from a foreign planet whom the Emperor himself had his reservations with."
Sarlis sighed audibly, "I... I have to agree. He might be clever and a good tactician, but I know how the highest levels of the Empire viewed him, and it wasn't well."
The Fourth Sister sensed that the Captain did believe those words, but Sarlis also lacked the conviction to back them up with solid action. At least for now.
"Not to worry, Captain", the Inquisitor assured, "We'll keep an eye on Thrawn. If he proves he can't be trusted, then my loyalties remain with the Empire." She leaned in to Hux and bore in to him with her eyes, "I can trust you to say the same can't I, Commandant?"
He fumbled under the glare and nodded sheepishly. "Y-y-yes, Inquisitor. I... you can count on me."
With a satisfied grin, she pulled back and set her eyes back down into the pit. "Excellent, I knew I could count on you."
She saw the teams below moving hurriedly around the excavation site. Aimed up at the sky was the old podium - whose purpose she still hadn't determined yet, if it even had one at all - around which sensor equipment, laser cutters, and some exhausted workers were clustered. She couldn't see into the doorway from up here, not that there was much to see anyway. What she could feel, though, was far clearer. They were getting close now, so tantalisingly close.
None of them truly knew what they were on the cusp of. Not Thrawn, not Hux, not anyone. Only she knew the power that was almost in her grasp. All she had to do now was take the final few steps, navigate the final few obstacles, and then He would be free. Soon nothing would be there to stand in His way.
The low crackle of Ahsoka's lightsaber's training mode reverberated around the hold with every strike. Luke's form was good, unorthodox but effective, as he deflected every blow with a well-placed block.
Ahsoka was going easy on him, testing out his abilities against her own honed skills. The confined space of her shuttle's hold didn't lend itself to the more manoeuvrable and acrobatic form of fighting she enjoyed, but simple one-on-one sparring was a good way to keep one's reactions sharp.
Ahsoka brought her lightsaber high and then took it down fast, Luke catching the blade with his own horizontally in front of his face. Their sabers fizzled and crackled again before Luke pushed her back with his saber.
"Good", she lowered her single blade and paused to catch her breath.
Luke switched off his saber and took a swig of water from the canteen on a crate beside him. "Maybe I am, but you're better."
"Possibly, but I had years of training with your father, Master Yoda, and some of the most accomplished duelists of the Order." Ahsoka sheathed her own blade and clipped it back to her belt. "You're really telling me that Obi Wan and Yoda never gave you a true lightsaber lesson?"
He shook his head sat down on the edge of the crate, "Not a proper one at least. Ben taught me some blaster deflection but not much else. Master Yoda was more of a philosopher in my experience. I can't imagine him using a lightsaber."
Ahsoka smiled and remembered the old Jedi Master. "He was really something. By the far the finest swordsman in the Order, even better than Anakin or Obi Wan. I don't think he liked it though. Master Yoda preferred to solve a problem with words rather than weapons."
"I wish I could have seen it. The Temple, the old Order. I don't expect we'll get it all back as it was in my lifetime", Luke said mournfully.
"You don't need a Temple to rebuild the Jedi. They're an idea, not a single institution. Take yourself for example. You didn't need formal classes and archives of old doctrine to become who you are."
"I could sure have used them though", Luke said.
Ahsoka leaned back against the wall behind her, sensing this conversation might take a while. "Lessons have their place, that's why I left Ezra that holodisc, but a certain Clone friend of ours always said that it's experience that outranks everything."
The other man rested his elbows on his knees, looking to the ground and thinking. "Alright, but the Jedi still need rules. If we don't have those then our experiences could take us down the wrong path."
"You and Ezra don't follow many Jedi rules and yet here you are, very much on the right path."
Luke looked quizzically at her, "How do you mean?"
"Take your attachments for example. Ezra has Sabine, Jacen, Hera, and everyone on Lothal. You have Leia, Han, Artoo, and all of your other friends. Those attachments fall outside the scope of what the Jedi would have allowed, but both of you used them and were better for it. They helped you overthrow an Empire. Your attachment to your father was the thing that saved him, and saved all of us."
"If we're better when avoiding our rules then why bother with them in the first place?", Luke countered, "What was the point in giving Ezra those texts if you think he was better off ignoring them?"
A fair question to be sure, but Luke seemed to be missing the point. For a moment, he reminded her of her younger self. The philosophy went in one ear and out the other as a young Jedi, but it'd become more central to Ahsoka's personality as she grew up. In time, she was sure Luke would embrace it too.
"Ezra has experience and perspective that shaped him and his outlook on the galaxy, but that growth came through the challenges he faced. We don't grow by staying in our comfort zones but by stepping out of them. By confronting ideas we don't like, by understanding perspectives other than our own, we grow as people and as a group. He's still young and not a finished product, this journey will be as much a learning experience for him as it will be for his students. Whether or not he'll take to every Jedi rule remains to be seen."
He perked up, "Is that why you left? You didn't see eye-to-eye with the rules?"
Ahsoka was taken aback by the question. She'd never been asked about it so directly.
Luke could see her uncomfortable reaction and seemed to regret the intrusion, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"
"No, it's alright", she assured him. "There was a lot behind why I left but I suppose the rules were a part of it. If you live by a rulebook for years and then people start to take every rule as unquestionable truth. Most people won't take a step back and actually think about what they're doing, and the few that do will struggle to find a way to express it."
"And which one were you?"
Ahsoka looked off to the corner for a few moments. "I'm not sure I was either of them. It was more a case of being caught between both of those things and not being able to face staying afterwards."
Luke looked sympathetic, "I'm sorry, that must have been hard for you after spending your whole life there."
More than you know. Ahsoka made the right choice in the end, but the right choice was rarely an easy one. Over the last two decades, she'd lost countless hour of sleep wondering how things would have changed it she'd just stayed. Seeing Luke and Leia and the state of the galaxy as it pulled itself back together had helped accept that things worked out in the end, but time was yet to heal every wound.
"It was, but I did what I needed to." She took a deep breath in and out again, refocusing her mind on the future rather than the past. "Still, you and Ezra are lucky in that regard. You came to the Jedi later and have lives outside of them. Maybe that'll give you the perspective you both need to avoid the same mistakes."
He smiled at the more optimistic turn, "We'll do our best."
Luke hopped off the crate and readied his lightsaber for another round of sparring.
Ahsoka smiled and reached for one of her hilts again, "I'm sure you will."
"I might leave the philosophy to Ezra though, I was never really good at that." He shrugged sarcastically, "Maybe when I'm a bitter old man."
"You?", she almost laughed, "You're far too optimistic for that."
Luke shrugged, "Maybe you're right. I am more of a pilot and a fighter."
"Just like your father", the Togruta pointed out. "Lucky for you, a bit him rubbed off on me too", she added as she ignited her blade's training mode and assumed the ready position once more.
"Mandalorians do two things right", Sabine had told him, "War and parties."
Sitting in the main hall of Clan Wren, tables laid out and covered in plates, bowls, cups, and jugs of all types of food and drink, Ezra had to agree with that last part.
"You were right, cyar'ika", he grabbed his wife's hand and squeezed it, "Your family can do parties."
Sabine grinned and pulled him in for a kiss, "Our family knows how to do parties."
Their guests sounded like they agreed. Ezra wasn't sure exactly how many people had come to the event, but it was more than he was expecting, even with the few people that were unable to make it.
Sabine's family had obviously come, and even more obvious were Hera, Jacen, Zeb, Chopper, and Kallus. Rex and Wolffe, Mart and the Iron Squadron, Rau and his new batch of Protectors, Ryder had cleared his schedule to come along, and even Wedge had used his leave to make the trip. Sabine had pointed out no less than a dozen representatives or groups from other allied clans, but Ezra'd be lying if he said he remembered any of them right now.
A few people couldn't quite make it, but Ezra and Sabine understood. Leia and a few others from the rebellion sent their best but were too wrapped up in rebuilding the galaxy to stop by. There was also Ahsoka and Luke, off on their mission in force knew where. They were here in spirit, Ezra knew, and he hoped they'd be here in person soon enough.
The most glaring absence though was the one Ezra knew he'd feel: Kanan. The head table they were sat on was designed for six: the bride, the groom, and two sets of parents. Ursa and Alrich were on Sabine's side, while on Ezra's there was Hera and Jacen. There was a certain meaning to having Jacen there instead, and as Ezra's padawan it made a certain sense, but Ezra still half-expected to see Kanan there smiling at him. Kanan would have loved to be here. Ezra could just imagine him telling embarrassing stories about the pair of them, facing down every Mandalorian request for a fight with his snarky indifference, and of course thoroughly embarrassing Hera and himself with his 'flirting' as he got just a little too tipsy.
Before he could let himself get too mournful, a familiar blue armoured man walked up to the table to talk to them, an object tucked under his arm.
"Mr and Mrs Wren-Bridger", Fenn Rau said heartily, "Congratulations!"
"Rau", Sabine smiled at the man as he came to a stop in front of them.
"I think my questions about you were so loyal to him on Concord Dawn have finally been answered. I knew I saw something in you two", he chuckled.
Sabine laughed too, "Yeah, that might be a tad early."
"Liar", Ezra interjected, "That jetpack hug definitely gave it away."
She scowled halfheartedly at him.
"Either way, congratulations." He took the object out from under his arm, "Lady Bo Katan sends her apologies that she couldn't attend the wedding. She gave me this to pass on to you."
Ezra got a look at the object as Sabine took it from Fenn Rau. It took a double-take for him to realise what it was. It was a book - an actual printed, paper book. In an age of datapads and lightspeed communications, paper books were a rarity and worth a fortune.
"I don't know what to say", Sabine marvelled at the object in her hand.
He could read the front cover: 'The Histories' by Polybius of Clan Achaea.
"Can't say I've ever seen a real book before", the Jedi said, reaching out to feel the aged leather cover.
"It's a well-regarded history. It covers some of the ancient wars between the Mandalorians and the Jedi; a fascinating read", Rau explained.
Ezra cast him a half-worried look, "Should I be worried?"
The Mandalorian laughed, "Ha, I'm not sure that was Lady Katan's intent. I believe she wanted you to be reminded what your union represents. Our past is important, we can't forget what brought us here, but remember that you're not trapped by it. You're both... quite unique, and so don't be afraid to embrace it no matter what the past has to say about it."
"Thanks Rau", Sabine carefully set the book down on the table.
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I promised your Clone friend I'd drink him under the table. Enjoy your evening", Rau bowed his head courteously and went over to Rex and Wolffe to make good on that promise.
Ezra was about to turn to Sabine when an unexpected figure dressed in red climbed up the small steps to their table. Almost the same grubby clothes, the same eager grin, the same... interesting scent. Wait, it that...?
"Ezra Bridger! Mando Girl!", the Weequay shouted and raised his hands in the air, "Look how much you've grown, oh I am so happy to see you."
"Hondo?! You came?", Ezra stood up from the chair and shook his hand. He'd sent him an invite to an old comm address that Ezra half-expected him to have stopped using by now.
"Why yes, how could I not? How could I miss seeing two of my closest friends become happily married?" Hondo turned to Sabine, "And you, Mrs Wren-Bridger, I must say you look so wonderful. And this home of yours is such a lovely place, so cosy and inviting and expensive."
Sabine still managed a smile for him, "Hondo, how have you been?"
The old pirate took off his hat and held it to his chest, "Oh, my dear, I have had quite the few years. I've been everywhere from the highest parts of Coruscant to the farthest parts of the galaxy's edge. Fought pirates, imperials, and all manner of vile things, but your old friend Hondo has outlasted them all."
His showmanship hadn't decayed with time, and Ezra loved it. "At least you seem alright, Hondo. It's good to see you again."
"And I you, Ezra." Hondo's gaze turned over to Jacen, "And my my, who is this handsome young fellow? Oh how you have grown since I last saw you."
"Hondo!", Jacen practically bounced in his seat.
"Yes it is I, my little...", he sniffled, "little green friend. I hear you are to become a Jedi like fine young Ezra here."
Ezra exchanged a confused look with Sabine, "How does Hondo know that?"
Sabine shrugged with the same wide-eyed look of confusion. "Beats me."
"Speaking of Jedi..." Hondo leaned over the table and spoke in a hushed tone, "How is our... uh, mutual friend doing?"
Again, he found himself confused. "Mutual friend?"
Hondo waved dismiisvely, "Oh you know her. Tall, red, has montrals, carries a staff I believe-"
"Ahsoka?!", Ezra whisper-shouted. "How... how do you know about Ahsoka?"
"Oh we go very far back", Hondo said nonchalantly. "I told you when we first met that I am an old Jedi sympathiser. Yes, Ahsoka and I are old friends", Hondo paused and stroked his chin, "Well, I say friend, some might say 'acquaintances', some might say she's my 'former prisoner', the lines are blurred."
Ezra sat back in his chair bemused, "I never expected that you might know each other."
"Yes, we know each other quite well. She even came to me for help a few years ago. She wanted a few things for her ship." Hondo looked up to the corner as he remembered, "New hyperdrive, fuel cells, weapon systems, stealth drive..."
"Hang on!", Sabine leaned forward, "You?! You're the one who modified Ahsoka's shuttle?!"
Hondo raised both of his hands, "Oh no, I merely procured the parts. My talents were needed as overseer. Melch and his team did the labour. I am a frail old man after all, better suited to counting money, and spending money... or finding money, investing money even..."
"You are so... Hondo, Hondo", Ezra couldn't think of a better word to describe him.
"Aha, the one and only." Hondo removed his hat again, brought it to his chest, and bowed, "Now I'd very much like to take a look around this wonderful establishment. My congratulations, once again."
With Hondo left and disappeared into the crowd of Mandalorians and others in the hall. Ezra lost sight of him pretty quickly and started to think of howw much explaining he'd have to do if his guest started causing a fuss.
Sabine reached a hand to Ezra's shoulder. "Clan Wren will be keeping an eye on him. He won't be making it out of here with half of our treasures stuffed in his jacket."
"You read my mind, dear", he kissed her cheek for good measure.
From amongst the crowd, Hera emerged after her mingling with some of the other guests. As the bride's hand, Hera had one of the few traditional roles to play in the wedding. From the look on her face, she was ready to fulfil one of them.
"All set?", Sabine asked as Hera went back to her chair besides Ezra.
She nodded, "He's all set."
The bride's hand didn't give the speech herself, but was to find someone else to vouch for the couple's legitimacy and worthiness to hold each other. Ezra had a reasonable suspicion as to who she'd choose, but tradition mandated the couple not know for certain.
Sabine turned to her mother to let her know, and the Countess rose to address the crowd.
"Everyone", her authoritative voice brought the room to silence in seconds, "Take your seats, we have a speech to contend with."
The guests found their way to their places around the hall and the conversation moved to hushed whispers. Hera remained standing, waiting for everyone to be ready, before starting.
"As you all know, it is Mandalorian tradition that the bride's hand organise someone to give a speech about the couple for the after party. There were many, many people who Sabine and Ezra have touched over the years, not least of all myself, but there was someone whose life was changed by both of them, and who understands what it means to cast off old ideas and embrace something new and beautiful." Hera extended a hand toward the table to her right, "So please, Kallus."
Kallus? Ezra had expected Zeb to do it, or even for Hera to break tradition and give her own. But no, it was their old sideburned friend that stood up in his meticulously presentable Alliance uniform, a datapad in his hand that he soon set down flat on the table in front of him.
"Thank you, Hera." Kallus cleared his throat, "I don't need to tell you all what it means to see a Jedi and a Mandalorian joined in matrimony. Their rivalry is almost as old as the Jedi Order itself. They have fought wars with each other, ravaged planets, and taken countless lives in thousands of battles. Surely, if many of their predecessors saw what was happening here today they'd scarcely believe it, let alone approve of it. However, Ezra and Sabine show us that everyone can change. An enemy can become an ally, or something so much more."
Kallus paused and glanced down at his datapad again.
"As many of you know, I myself was a member of the Imperial Security Bureau. When I was assigned to a small insurrection on Lothal, I'd never imagined how it would change everything. Soon, the crew of the Ghost had become the bane of my life. However, two in particular - a young Mandalorian explosives expert with a penchant for graffiti and a young loth-rat going by the name 'Jabba' - became something of an amusement for the men of ISB."
Ezra shrunk into his seat, somehow knowing this story was going to be an awkward time.
The smile on Kallus' face only confirmed that hunch. "During the first two years of our operations, ISB recorded no less than fourty-three separate attempts by this young 'Jabba' to woo the Mandalorian. Along with those records were the records of no less than fourty-three annoyed rejections of those advances by his companion." Kallus grinned to himself and picked up the pad to get a better view. "I will spare Bridger the embarrassment of reading all of them out, but I will present a few choice picks:'Wait, you know what I smell like?'", he put on a high-pitched and childish voice, "'If you were a star, you'd be a supernova because you're always so bright... and exploding', and my personal favourite, 'you're like a meiloorun, because you're so colourful and sweet and... uh, easily bruised?'"
The hall burst into laughter and Ezra could feel the heat in his cheeks. Sabine was laughing gleefully at him, not a hint of pity for his predicament. He didn't think they were that bad... alright, maybe they were.
When the laughter died down, Kallus continued. "Anyways, we soon learned their real names as Ezra Bridger, Jedi padawan, and Sabine Wren, former Imperial Cadet. They quickly turned from the source of our amusement to one of stress, anger, and annoyance. Shipments would go missing, parades were crashed, fuel was stolen, and a whole number of problems were caused by the rebels of Phoenix Squadron. All the while, these two became more prevalent in every report, and increasingly the one combination of rebels that terrified us the most was of a young Jedi padawan and the Mandalorian warrior he was smitten with."
"More than smitten", Zeb joked heartily, earning another round of laughs.
"Given Sabine's rejections, I was surprised to keep seeing the boy trying again and again to wriggle his way into her heart. But still, there he was, every time, still trying", Kallus flicked across on the datapad. "I'll spare you the details, but it was thanks to the crew of the Ghost that I went from a loyal Imperial servant to a prisoner on Thrawn's Star Destroyer, watching as his fleet tore apart the fledgling rebel ships above Atollon. All seemed lost. The Rebellion was going to be crushed, the whole of Phoenix Squadron destroyed, myself thrown out of an airlock, and the tiny glimmer of hope in a galaxy of darkness was about to be snuffed out."
Ezra became acutely aware of the silence in the room. The cheering, the talking, the laughing - it had all stopped.
"But then a few ships came in. Several Mandalorian gauntlet fighters, carrying with them many of you in this room, but most importantly the two people sitting on that table up there. In that moment, in that battle, it wasn't fleets or armies, ships or soldiers, that truly won the day. It was those two. In a time of crisis, when all seemed lost, Ezra turned to the one person in the galaxy he could depend on more than any other. Then, just as Ezra knew she would, Sabine left her home, grabbed whatever hands she could, and ventured into a suicide mission on the far side of the galaxy all on the word of someone who, according to every facet of Mandalorian culture, she should despise. They saved my life that day. They saved everyone's. I don't what would have become of the Rebellion, Mandalore, or the entire galaxy if it hadn't been for those two."
There were a few murmurs of approval from some around the room, probably some of the warriors they'd taken with them that day.
"At first, maybe I was too blinded by years of listening to Ezra's hopeless... 'flirting'", he emphasised that last word with air quotes, "But it wasn't long before even I noticed what had happened with the two of them. Zeb had already noticed, as had Rex, Hera, and of course Kanan too. It wasn't just friendship anymore. Every moment of their downtime or work was spent together. Every mission they were at each other's side. Blowing up a relay? Sabine and Ezra. Securing data recordings? Sabine and Ezra. Organising inventories? Sabine watching while Ezra did the work for her."
That was definitely accurate. Sabine smiled innocently at him. The joke was on her. Making him do all the work meant it took twice as long, giving them twice as much time together.
"By the time of the Battle of Lothal, I think we all knew. Maybe they hadn't noticed but everyone around them had. But then life happened. In the blink of an eye, Ezra was gone. No warning, no plan for us to bank on, he was just gone. Lothal was saved but he was out on the edge of the galaxy. To lose your best friend, the person you spent every minute with, the person that even those around you knew you loved, would break almost anyone - but not Sabine. She kept it together, powered through, and for five years helped rebuild Lothal as the galaxy tore itself apart in war. Then, when the war was finished, there was still no rest, and instead she hopped on a shuttle and set off on a mad adventure to bring him home."
His wife's fingers had found their way between his own over the course of the speech. Ezra was unconsciously squeezing her hand tightly, as if to assure himself that she was, indeed, still right there.
Kallus fiddled with his datapad for a moment longer before muttering to himself and turning it aside. "My long and laboured point is that you two have endured more than most people would in a hundred lifetimes. You've travelled the galaxy, fought in galactic wars, confronted some of the most vile individuals this galaxy has to offer, and endured the loss of people near and dear to you both. And yet, despite everything, you've been at each other's side through thick and thin. Maybe not physically there, but you've had each other's back without fail. That determination, that grit, that commitment, have pushed you to do amazing things that this galaxy cannot hope to repay you for."
Kallus reached for his glass and raised it in front of him.
"I speak for all of us when I say you've earned our respect, our admiration, our appreciation, our gratitude, and our loyalty a hundred times over. You are among the finest people I have ever had the honour of knowing, and I can give you both no higher compliment than saying that you deserve someone as brave, honest, selfless, and loving as each other to be at your side. So, I'd like you all to join me in a toast to Ezra and Sabine. One together, one apart, sharing all, and sure to be raising warriors of their own soon enough."
The applause echoed throughout the hall while a round cheers and whistles sounded from the throes of guests. Kallus had absolutely been the right choice. Perhaps the unexpectedness of such an honest speech from him had made it hit harder. It was something to recognise love in yourselves, it was another to have those around you be so convinced of it too.
Beside him, Sabine tugged gently at his hand and pulled him in for a deep kiss, to the joy of many of the guests who were watching. "I love you", he heard her say as they pulled apart. Kallus' speech seemed to have stoked the same mess of emotions from her too.
Ezra lost himself once more in his wife's beautiful brown eyes, "I love you too." He carefully brushed a long strand of hair away from her eyes, "But maybe we won't be raising warriors of our own quite yet."
She winked mischievously at him, "You never know..."
Before he could even try to respond to that, Hera moved from her seat beside him and stood in the middle of the new couple. The joyous smile on her face suited her, and it was one of the best sights Ezra could have hoped to see.
"I'm so proud of you, two. Kallus is right, you've been through enough. You deserve some happiness." There was some pain behind those words, Ezra could feel as much, but that didn't mean she meant them any less.
Hera, more than anyone else in their lives now, had done the most for them. Given them a home, given them a family, hope, purpose, love, care, each other, and so much more than they'd ever be able to thank her for. If Ezra was glad to have anyone here with them right now, it would have been here.
"Hera...", Ezra stood up from the chair and embraced her, "Thank you, for everything."
Sabine followed suit, getting both him and Hera in a tight hug. Hera didn't answer with words, only by extending her loving arms around the two of them,
He didn't know how long they stayed like that and he didn't care. The day had been everything Ezra could have hoped it would be, and best of all he had by his side the people in the galaxy that he loved the most. It was a bliss he wouldn't have forever, but it was one he could enjoy right now. Being a Jedi could wait, if only for a tiny bit longer.
A busy chapter this time. This is the first time since Chapter 8 that Thrawn hasn't made a direct appearance also, so a neat bit of trivia there.
The Hammerly section serves two main purposes. Firstly, it recounts some events from earlier in the story to help remind people what happened as well and secondly, it helps me show a bit more of the Imperials outside of the big players. The Fleet is much more than Thrawn, Pellaeon, Faro, Sarlis, the Fourth Sister, and the newcomers, and I thought it'd be good to try humanising some of the more ordinary members of the Empire. The Fourth Sister's section is relatively self-explanatory. I mentioned the hyperspace tracker since it's an easy way to show off some evidence that Thrawn wasn't trusted. This is where Sarlis' status as a political appointee helps the story, as it's well known in both canon novels that Thrawn is not popular among Imperial High Command. It makes sense that she'd be aware of that reputation, and so unwillingly plays right into the Inquisitor's hands. Again, I've mentioned how the idea that the Fourth Sister is trying to sew dissent isn't supposed to be a secret as it'd be insulting to you guys to try and pass off something so obvious as a surprise. However, hat's not to say it's going to be simple or that it's going to go the way Thrawn, the Inquisitor, or the Voice necessarily expects it to.
Our very small Ahsoka and Luke section is some more commentary on the Jedi, with Ahsoka drawing on her own experiences in Season 5 of The Clone Wars to explain some of her reservations. Again, that Ezra is going to have difficulty with the Jedi is quite obvious at this point, it's just what those issues are and how he resolves them, if at all, that we have to wait and see for. This section for Ahsoka and Luke, and probably the next one too, feel a bit 'removed' I guess since there's not much I can do with them. Obviously, I've already done plenty of 'sitting in the shuttle while travelling' sections for Sabine and Ahsoka, so I'm trying to avoid repetition by using these sections to explore some wider ideas that will be useful to the story.
Lastly, we have the wedding. I agonised over how to do this for a while but decided to skim over the really simple ceremony and focus on the celebrations. Mandalorians aren't much for that anyway, but celebrating is something they're bound to be good at. I created the 'bride's hand' simply to get Hera to have some official involvement, especially since I wasn't going to do much of a ceremony nor have her give the speech. The vows should be quite familiar to many of you, so I don't need to say much about them. The book Rau gives them from Bo Katan is a rather blatant reference to the 2nd-century BC historian Polybius of Megalopolis, whose account of Roman history contains many now famous details like Hannibal's crossing of the Alps, the crushing defeat at Cannae, and a thorough breakdown of Rome's constitution. He's a personal favourite of my mine, and I'm a sucker for little things like that. I had to get some Hondo in, there was no getting around it. Hondo mentions that he modified Ahsoka's shuttle. There is a small story there that, after I've finished this story down the line, I might put into a one-shot collection set in the ITU timeline. Lastly, there's Kallus' speech. I could have gone a lot of ways with this, namely having Hera give it, but that felt a bit too predictable. This a/n is already too long as is, but suffice it to say that Kallus perfectly understood what it meant to set one rigid tradition aside and embrace a new idea, which is very much what a union between two ancient enemies like the Jedi and the Mandalorians represents, making him the perfect person to give such an impassioned speech at the wedding.
Next time: Thrawn and the Imperials coordinate their activities, Luke asks Ahsoka about Malachor, Hammerly reports to Thrawn, and Ezra gathers his students.