Miraculously, Hera, Andrexis, and Kna'tzhuk made it back to their cells before anyone noticed. Hera slammed the button to close her cell door and dashed inside as it began to close, narrowly missing her swaying lekku. She slowed to a stop, gasping for air, and supported herself with her hand on the wall. After several heavy breaths, she exhaled loudly and hung her head.

Since when did running get so hard? she thought. She had exercised every day since she had joined the Pilot Academy.

Without realizing it, Hera was resting her other hand on her belly. She couldn't seem to stop touching it ever since the test had read positive. Her breathing gradually became softer and more regular, and she wandered mindlessly around the room. She shifted her weight on each foot as she stepped, making a rocking motion for the baby, and ran her hand along the side of her belly where it met her hips.

"It's alright, Dear," she murmured. "Mama's safe."

Mama.

The word surprised her. Scared her. Especially how it came from her own lips. But somehow, it felt right to her. Like something she had needed to hear for a long time.

Motherhood was a topic Hera had lost sleep over. She couldn't imagine being totally responsible for the development and well-being of a whole other person. She couldn't imagine it ever happening to her, especially with a human partner. But it had. It had long ago, when Sabine and Ezra joined the crew. She had always been Mom to them. Sometimes, they even slipped and called her that. But she needed to hear it from herself: Mama.

And it was true. Hera's life was about to change, and for the better.

Just then, she heard tapping on the wall to the right.

Think anyone saw?

Hera's thoughts were pulled back to the failed escape. As far as she knew, no imperial saw them; not even Kna'tzhuk could see anyone else. But with her luck, someone had to have been watching. She sighed and raised her fist up to the wall.

Probably.

Checked for cameras. Found none.

Hera's brows furrowed. Weird, she tapped. She tried to remember if she had seen any. There had to have been cameras; it was a prison sector. But there wasn't a single one, at least visible to her. Unless...

Unless, she tapped, they got smaller.

Governor Pryce was sitting at her desk, studying a handheld datapad. She had been finishing some research on the holonet and was scrolling through the content when an officer dressed in a warm gray uniform entered her office. Pryce closed the tab and set the datapad on the desk, diverting her attention to him.

"Governor, two troopers missed their check-ins at 1300," he announced. "Prison guards for Unit 6."

Pryce frowned and pulled out her comlink.

"TK-4741, can you hear me? TK-4741?"

Only static replied to her.

"TK-5389, can you hear me?"

She listened to the static for a while until what sounded like the trash compactor crackled on the speaker.

"Let me see the surveillance records," Pryce demanded.

The man handed her a flat chip, and she inserted it into the holotable. She flipped through the different channels until she came to the camera above Unit 6's corridor. Currently, it was empty. She rewound the recording to 1130, watching the guards release the prisoners from the rows of cells and lead them down to the mess deck. She skipped ahead to 1215, and the guards corralled them back into the two lines. One by one, they were pushed back into their cells, until...

Pryce's brows knitted together further as the recording went on. Narrowing her eyes, she watched as the first trooper took an elbow to his chin. Then the second one, choked to death by the Twi'lek prisoner. The woman then stepped over the dead bodies and opened two of the other cells, freeing a human and a Shir'ik. When the Twi'lek turned back toward the bodies, Pryce stopped the recording and slammed her fist against the desk.

Syndulla.

She stood up and glared at the officer across the room.

"Get those three to an execution chamber," she snarled. "On the double!"

"But Governor, Syndulla—"

"You dare question my authority?" Pryce interrupted. "Do it!" she barked.

"Let us not make decisions we may regret, Governor." The door slid shut as a voice spoke. The officer stepped to the side, revealing Grand Admiral Thrawn. "Have you forgotten that Syndulla's child still depends on her?"

"She and two other prisoners have tried to escape!" retorted Pryce. "Two of our men are dead because of it!"

Thrawn quietly dismissed the officer. "We are not to damage Lord Vader's prize," he reminded her. "However, I believe we can use this situation to our advantage."

Pryce silently glared at the hologram as she replayed it, wondering how Thrawn managed to see the good in an event like this.

He nodded slowly as he watched Hera take down the two guards in a matter of ten seconds. "Impressive," he commented. "Her fighting style is heavily influenced by the standard hand-to-hand of a Pilot Academy graduate, with just a flavor of Tolivuk, the traditional martial art of the Twi'leks."

Thrawn then reached over the desk to pause the recording as Hera was freeing the other two prisoners. "There is success within the loss, Governor, and it is the culprits themselves who have given it to us." He looked closely at each of their faces, memorizing small details, such as Kna'tzhuk's thin scar across his nose and a tiny freckle on Andrexis' left cheek. "Syndulla has revealed with whom she is working to escape, and her tactics in doing so. We can also predict who will come to rescue her, as time is of the essence to her crew."

He walked slowly around the desk, keeping his attention focused on the recording. "With this information alone, we are able to use battle tactics specifically effective against Syndulla's allies, and prevent her capture overall."

Pryce grew more frustrated with every sentence Thrawn spoke. Her fists clenched, she stood up and spoke.

"Everything is some silly Dejarek game to you, Admiral. This is real life. The prisoners' crimes must be punished! We cannot let an escape attempt go!"

"Governor!" Thrawn snarled through half-gritted teeth. There was a moment of intense silence before he returned to his tranquil state.

"Lord Vader has given charge of this project to me, and his orders were to keep Syndulla and the child safe until he is born. As Grand Admiral, I will be overseeing the methods through which this task is done." He continued slowly pacing around the desk. "A successful predator does not catch its prey by pursuing it; rather he waits for it to make a mistake. We will let the prisoners believe they have gone unnoticed, but when the moment is right, we shall strike."

Pryce's jaw clenched. "I'm sure Lord Vader will be quite pleased with your achievements, Grand Admiral." She struggled to contain her rage behind her straight face.

"I thank you, Governor," he said, bowing his head. He exited the office, pondering the details of his plan.

Pryce let her eyebrows furrow into a scowl, her jealousy twisting her thoughts, and slammed her fist against the desk once more.