A lot of things went through Deke's mind the moment the General spoke, and none of them included him leaving here with his life. Before anyone could react, Deke abruptly grabbed one of the Republic trooper's blasters and aimed it at Kasius. Everyone moved at once, Commander Syndulla immediately pointed her blaster at him along with about ten other troopers. Deke didn't care. The only thing stopping him from shooting Kasius point blank was the fact that he too would be dead as soon as he released the blaster shot.
"So, you're a Sith Eternal spy. Lower the weapon and you get to keep your life," Kasius said. Deke frowned at him.
"I'm not a spy. You should look to yourself. You're Kree. Maybe you're what's causing the Republic's overwhelming defeat," Deke hissed. Kasius stared at him for a moment before gesturing for his troops to lower their weapons. Commander Syndulla began to protest but Kasius silenced her with a look, and she obeyed his orders, signalling the rest of the troopers to lower their weapons as well. If Kasius thought this would actually trick him, or worse: win his trust, he was dead wrong. Deke wasn't about to lower his weapon.
"You have something against the Kree," Kasius said, matter-of-factly. Deke didn't respond right away. He kept his eyes on Kasius, anticipating some sort of ruse. Maybe this whole ordeal Deke went through was some type of messed-up experiment orchestrated by the Kree. He shoved that thought out of his mind. If that were true, he might as well just give up right now. He couldn't deal with any more crazy.
"The Kree were responsible for all the pain I had to endure in my life," Deke spat at him. Kasius didn't respond and only frowned.
"Your family – your descendant – ruined my life and destroyed my family. My parents were murdered, and humans were enslaved," Deke continued. At this, Kasius' eyes softened, and it looked as if he felt sorry for him. It made Deke seethe with rage he didn't even know he possessed.
"Lower your weapon, Deke," Kasius said, authoritatively. Deke ignored his command.
"Lower your weapon or I'll lower it for you," Kasius said again, this time with an underlying threat that it would not be in Deke's best interest to cross him. Deke knew he had no choice but to obey and he slowly lowered the blaster. It was immediately grabbed by two troopers and he was tackled to the ground, hard.
Kasius bent down and picked up Finn's lightsaber that had tumbled to the floor in the midst of their confrontation while Deke was pulled off the ground and made to stand up. His hands were immediately bound behind his back. "Thank you, for bringing this back, Deke," Kasius said, facing him. He sighed and the sadness was overwhelmingly apparent in his voice. Deke wasn't about to fall for it.
"You don't deserve to touch that lightsaber!" Deke yelled. Commander Syndulla pursed her lips at him but he didn't care. Kasius continued staring at it.
"Deke, you've only known Finn for a few days. I've known him my entire life. He was one of my closest friends and I trusted no one more than I trusted him," Kasius explained. This actually gave Deke pause and he silently frowned at him. Kasius had more right to that lightsaber than he ever did.
"If Finn trusted you enough to sacrifice his life for you then I trust you as well and you will be treated as one of our own, regardless of what you think of me," Kasius said and gestured for the troopers to remove the binders on Deke's wrist. He was taken aback at Kasius' words but continued to stay silent as a million confusing thoughts raced through his head.
"Give him a room to rest and bring him some food and proper clothes. Treat him well," Kasius commanded the troopers. Deke blinked at him.
"Gather your thoughts, Deke, and get some rest. Try and remember if there's anything else you can tell us about the Sith Eternal. We still have much to discuss," Kasius continued. Deke didn't know how to respond and was glad he didn't have to as he was immediately marched out the door by the Republic troopers. He had a lot to think about.
Deke didn't know how long it had been since his "talk" with Kasius and Commander Syndulla at command. All he knew was that there were two troopers outside his door, and he was confined to this small, albeit comfortable room. So much for being "treated well" when he wasn't even allowed his freedom.
He did drift off into an uncomfortable sleep for a little while but that didn't last long as his thoughts were plagued with everything that had happened. He tried his best to put her out of his mind, but he couldn't help thinking about Jaina. How was he so wrong about her? To be fair, his initial instincts were cautious, but something about her just disarmed him. Her sad eyes and her beautiful smile. He vaguely remembered her crying when they first met. It was silly to think about now, but she made him comfortable and seemed to understand his need to belong and his willingness to try and find some sliver of happiness to hold on to. Based on what Finn told him about her, they definitely had shared trauma. Deke felt a pang in his chest when he thought of Finn. He had to die to save him all because Deke made the mistake of trusting Jaina. Their supposedly shared connection was probably just a ruse. Deke sighed. Why did he have to screw up everything he touched?
Deke reached into his pocket and gripped the Skywalker crystal he had cut from Jaina's neck. For a reason he couldn't explain, he felt connected to it. He wasn't a Skywalker and he definitely wasn't a Jedi but there was something about it, like a feeling he couldn't place into words. He thought of what Finn said about him still having a part to play. Whatever that part was…Deke could only guess. He just wanted to go home. Unfortunately, at this point, that seemed highly unlikely.
There was the sound of voices outside Deke's door and he recognized Commander Syndulla. He immediately sat up as she entered the room. She didn't look very happy to see him. Deke suspected his confrontation with Kasius really lowered her opinion of him. He smiled sheepishly at her, but she ignored him. Instead, she reached towards her belt and unfastened Finn's lightsaber.
"The General said you should have this," Commander Syndulla began. Deke was taken aback.
"Me? Why me?"
"I've asked him the same question. He just said that it was the will of the Force, "she replied. She didn't seem too happy about it and remained aloof, but she handed him the lightsaber, regardless.
"The will of the Force? So, Kasius is a Jedi?" Deke asked.
"No. But he has done a lot of research on the Jedi of old and he has helped Finn gain a better understanding of the Force and the Skywalker Family," Commander Syndulla explained.
"So, he's who Lady Amenia is looking for. The other person who knows the location to Ahch-To," Deke said, putting two and two together. Commander Syndulla nodded in confirmation.
"Why does she want to get to Ahch-To so bad?" Deke asked.
"Well, Finn and General Kasius have managed to gather old manuscripts as well as ancient Jedi and Sith secrets which they hid on that island. It includes Holocrons from the old Jedi Order as well as lost lightsabers and other old texts. That island is also…special. It has a strong connection to the Force. It's definitely a lot of knowledge and power, which I suspect would be extremely useful to Amenia especially if she's planning to double cross her Master," Commander Syndulla said. Deke was silent for a beat, looking at the lightsaber in his hand.
"I don't think I should have this," he said softly. Commander Syndulla frowned at him.
"I agree, but for some reason, Finn trusted you, so the General trusts you too and he believes giving you the lightsaber somehow honours Finn's sacrifice," Commander Syndulla said, not looking at Deke. She really wasn't happy with him, but she was still willing to put her personal feelings aside and respect Kasius' authority, remaining loyal and putting her duty first. Maybe he was a little quick to judge the General just because he had the same name as his horrible descendant. Deke figured he owed Commander Syndulla an apology for his behaviour.
"Listen, Commander Syndulla, I'm sorry for what I did before. It's just…my future wasn't exactly full of happiness and when I saw a Kree and heard his name was Kasius…his family was responsible for all our suffering," Deke said, imploring her to understand. She stared at him for a while, her expression still a little hard, but then, her eyes softened, and she sighed.
"You unfairly judge someone you don't know, Deke. He's a good man and a great General. If it's worth anything, he's the kindest and fairest person I've ever met. You can't fault him for things he has no control over," she said. Deke was silent. She was right, of course and he knew he overreacted.
"I'm sorry," Deke replied, not knowing what else to say. He remained silent, gathering his thoughts as she watched him, her expression unreadable.
"So Kasius is the General of the 605th Legion? You have 605 legions?" Deke asked as a way to change the subject. Commander Syndulla cracked a smile.
"Well, not exactly. It's really just a formality since we have adopted some battle techniques from the Clone Wars, but we mostly go by cells now, following the strategies from the Rebellion way back in the Galactic Civil War. So, we're just called the 605th New Republic Cell – not that we have that may troops of course," Commander Syndulla explained. Deke didn't even pretend to understand. The most he got from that was this galaxy has been war-torn for far too long.
"Listen, Deke, is there anything else you can tell us about the Sith Fleet? They've been growing in power and they have managed to take over several important planets under New Republic rule. You were in the lead Star Destroyer. Did Amenia let slip anything we could use?" Commander Syndulla asked seriously.
"I've told you everything I know. I think this whole war and whatever she's doing for Plagueis is just a means to an end for Amenia. I think she just wants to get her son back," Deke explained. Commander Syndulla was deep in thought but she nodded.
"Well, regardless. You managed to deal a blow to them by destroying the lead ship. It would take them a couple months at least to regroup and rebuild. It gives us some breathing room, so well done on doing something right," Commander Syndulla said and smirked as she made her way to leave the room. Maybe she was warming up to him after all. Deke smiled back at her.
"Take good care of that," she said to Deke as an afterthought, indicating the lightsaber in his hands. Deke turned to look at it before looking back at her, but she was already gone.
Deke sighed. What was he going to do with a lightsaber? It's not like he could actually use it in any way. It took him a lot of focus just to prevent the blade from burning him the last time he ignited it. There was no way he could use it as a weapon. He was no Jedi. He placed it on a small stand beside his bed along with the Skywalker crystal and Japor Snippet. It was somewhat like a tiny shrine to honour Finn's memory. It was the least he could do for him. Deke rubbed his forehead as he laid back on the bed. He closed his eyes and drifted off into yet another restless sleep.
