I do not own Star Wars in any capacity.
Enjoy chapter 59!
T-9 days until Kyber Shipment
"Today we have a very special challenge," Commandant Aresko announced grandly. "The three cadets who receive the top marks for this challenge will have the great honor of touring and staying in the Imperial Dome for a day."
As he spoke, Ezra and his peers were being lowered into the pit via platforms. They had done this challenge the other day, but obviously something must have been changed from the way Aresko was building it up. Ezra was just breathing evenly and focusing on the Force. No matter the challenge, he had to get into the top three. This was the entire purpose of him even being here.
"Just like before, your goal is to make it to the top of the pit as fast as you can. However! There is a slight catch. There will be a variety of hazards. This test is not only about luck, but your ability to endure and push forward."
Beneath his helmet, Ezra bit his lip. That sounded awful. What was anyone supposed to learn from this?
"I'm going to make it first," Oleg sneered, looking around above him in preparation.
"You have to beat me and Dev first," Jai said with a big cocky grin.
Ezra squirmed uncomfortably. He hated how competitive Jai got sometimes. It just made the other cadets angrier at them, especially since the both of them have been consistently performing in the top. Ezra's scores have been particularly high. Oleg was in third overall and very bitter about it. Even though Ezra had signed up for, he had not been expecting the other cadets to be so hostile. He has been trying talk Jai down, but the redhead would get too into it and wouldn't listen to Ezra.
"And the test begins… now!"
The platforms began to stream from the walls of the pit. The other cadets immediately jumped up on whatever platforms were moving closest to them. Jai was about to as well when he noticed that Ezra was still standing at the bottom. "Hey, come on!"
"I-I know…!" Ezra was waiting, following the threads and whispers that he knew now were the Force. It wasn't exactly a voice, but he could still practically hear it telling him to wait.
Electricity suddenly cracked across all the platforms, the other cadets yelping out in surprise and pain. All of them either collapsed or fell off their platforms to the bottom of the pit.
Now.
He jumped up to the platform that had just disgorged from the wall, quickly climbing up and jumping to another platform that was just a bit higher and moving perpendicular to him. Ezra ignored his classmates. He just concentrated on the Force. There was a platform that was higher that he jumped to, grabbing the bar that was installed alongside the bottom. He just needed to climb up…
Wait.
Ezra stopped, just hanging from the bar as the platform floated across the length of the pit.
Swing.
He rocked his legs back and forward a couple times before letting go, using the momentum to swing forward. Half a second later, all the platforms suddenly dropped ten feet, eliciting a series of startled yelps from the other cadets just as Ezra landed neatly on a platform that had just lowered beneath him.
His heart was racing. Was he doing too well? Is it obvious that he was using the Force?
He didn't get to continue the line of thinking as Jai suddenly appeared on a platform nearby him. "Man, you're really good at this."
Ezra cringed. He supposed that answered that question. But he had to get into the top three. Failing to do so would mean the Ghost crew had all spent this time and effort for nothing.
He looked around and saw that he was about halfway up. He and Jai were well ahead of everyone else, so maybe it couldn't hurt to slow down just a bit.
His platform was about to sink back into the wall, so he rolled to the side, another platform emerging just as he did. Jai was looking around frantically as his platform approached the wall, searching for an empty platform he could jump to that wasn't far below him. Ezra slid to the side. "Jai!"
Jai gave a small nod before jumping from his platform to land next to Ezra. "Th-Thanks…"
"No problem," Ezra said, trying to sense when the next hazard would happen.
"How do you do it?" Jai asked. "It's like you know what's going to happen before it happens."
"Jai, I'm trying to concen-!"
A series of nozzles suddenly popped out of the walls, shooting out balls of plasma energy that crisscrossed the pit at seemingly random angles. Ezra only barely managed to push Jai down, one of the shots grazing along Ezra's shoulder. He grit his teeth at the pain, but it disappeared as quickly as it came, leaving his arm feeling numb and tingly.
The shooting only lasted for two seconds, but that was enough to put most of the cadets in some peril. Ezra grabbed Jai by the sleeve and pulled him along. "Come on!"
Jai yelped as they both slid off the platform onto one just below them, avoiding being knocked off by the first platform sinking into the wall.
Ezra huffed, scrambling to his feet before jumping back up onto a higher platform. Jai would be fine on his own, and the others were starting to catch up.
This dance continued for another half minute, jumping from platform to platform, avoiding the hazards as best as he could, and still making upward progress… He was only a few meters from the top now. He was panting and catching his breath as he calculated his next move. Jai was not far below him, their platforms about to cross paths. "Dev!"
He looked around. Yeah, he had time. Ezra knelt and reached out his hand, helping Jai climb up when he grabbed it. "Okay, just a couple more jumps…" Ezra said.
Pull.
"You're mine, Morgan!"
Ezra grabbed Jai's arm and yanked the both of them to the side, Oleg letting out a strangled cry as he swiped at empty air and tripped, falling off and spiraling down until he hit a platform that was almost at the bottom.
Jai let out a breathy chuckle. "Well that was close…"
Ezra tugged on his arm. "Let's go."
A couple jumps later, they were climbing out of the pit in front of the Commandant's feet. As they stood, another cadet that Ezra couldn't immediately identify followed them out.
"Congratulations," Aresko said, ignoring the fact that the other cadets were still struggling in the pit. "You three have won this challenge. Morgan. Kell. You actually set a record for this challenge."
Ezra's face burned beneath his helmet, praying that their record didn't seem too suspicious. Probing the Force, Aresko didn't feel suspicious or doubtful.
"And you, Cadet… Revo Martin, is it?"
The cadet straightened. "Yes, sir!"
"Very good work, as well." Aresko stood before the three of them. "You will report to Gate Two tomorrow at oh-six-hundred. From there, we will be taking you on your grand tour. Remember to bring enough provisions for a single night's stay."
Ezra was grateful for the helmet, because otherwise he wouldn't have been able to suppress his huge grin. He had done it. He had gotten a way in to the Imperial Complex. Now he just had to signal Chopper and meet up with Sabine tonight for a final briefing before he carried out the rest of his mission.
"You three are dismissed. I will see you tomorrow morning."
A couple more cadets had made it to the top during Aresko's spiel. He walked over to them and began to lay out what their day would be like tomorrow. Ezra glanced back into the pit, cringing at the sight of the remaining cadets struggling to reach the top.
He hated being in this Academy. Even though he technically did well by Imperial standards, he hated this environment of struggle and punishment. He could feel the anger and bitterness it was breeding in some of the other cadets. Jai had been the only good part of his stay here.
But as sad as he was to be leaving Jai behind, he couldn't wait to finish this mission, get out of here, and back to the Ghost.
Sabine had her arms crossed as she leaned back against a stack of crates. She was tucked up in a dark corner behind a weapon's rack. Unless anyone was specifically searching for her, no one should be able to spot her if someone came in.
Not that she expected anyone to come in here at this hour. She knew some cadets would sneak out at night to drink or do a bit of spice, but they tried to do it off of Academy grounds. The disciplinary action was less harsh if they were caught that way.
Chopper had given her the signal as she walked past him towards the commissary. A few flashes indicating that Ezra had passed his assessment and was ready for his final debrief. They had picked this meeting place ahead of time after getting their hands on a schematic of the Academy.
Sabine sighed, checking the time. Ezra should have been here almost fifteen minutes ago. Although there wasn't a reason to panic quite yet. It wasn't completely trivial to sneak out of the barracks unnoticed and then navigate the Academy without stumbling upon any of the workers or mouse droids. She'd much rather he be late and undetected. She just hoped he remembered exactly where they were meeting.
The door to the storage locker hissed open, and Sabine straightened, readying herself for anyone. There was the sound of footsteps before the door closed. Then there was a faint whisper. "S-Sabine…?"
She relaxed slightly, stepping out from her hidden corner to see Ezra standing just inside. She jerked her head. "C'mon," she whispered. "We should stay out of sight."
Ezra nodded, following her to the hidden nook she had been waiting in before.
"Also…" Sabine added, turning to face him. "You should still call me Ria. In case anyone catches us talking together."
"Oh, right…"
"And future note: don't just call out a person's name when you're trying to meet in secret. Had I been anyone else, you would have just outed yourself."
Ezra looked down, crossing his arms across his chest and hunching his shoulders up. "S-Sorry…" he murmured.
Sabine sighed. She didn't want to make him feel bad, but these were important things to learn if he was ever going to go undercover again in the future. "Just things to keep in mind." She leaned back against the crates. "What time are you heading to dome tomorrow?"
"Oh-six-hundred," Ezra said. "I've already got my pack for the stay over."
"Well, you should add this to your things." Sabine pulled out a beacon and handed it to him.
Ezra took it with a small frown. "What's this?"
"It's a panic button. If things go south - and I mean really south - and you need an emergency rescue, just activate that beacon. It'll patch you straight in to Chopper. He and others standing by in the Ghost will create a distraction while you and I escape."
Ezra's frown deepened as he looked down at it, holding the small device with both hands.
"You probably won't need it," she assured. "But better safe than sorry."
Ezra swallowed and nodded, tucking it into his pocket. He gave a small wince and hiss as he pulled his arm back.
Sabine frowned. "You alright?"
"I'm okay…" he mumbled, rubbing hard circles into the back of his shoulder. "I got grazed by a stunning bolt during the test. I didn't get knocked out, but my shoulder's been stiff."
"Oh, yeah that's pretty normal. You'll be fine by tomorrow, trust me."
Ezra sighed and nodded, lowering his hand. "So… what do we need to go over?"
"I want you to tell me the plan, step by step with every detail you can remember. I want to make sure you don't do something stupid." Ezra squirmed again, and Sabine internally cringed. Maybe it wasn't the most delicate phrasing, but this was important. "I just have to make sure," she said. "It could mean the difference between life or death in there."
"I know…" Ezra sighed. "Tomorrow the three of us are being taken to the Dome. We're going to be given a tour of the facility, which includes meeting some of the higher ranking officials."
Sabine nodded. "I already have a good idea of who you'll be meeting." She pulled out a holoprojector and pulled up the first profile. "This is Captain Yogar Lyste, in charge of the Supply Chain on Lothal." He was a light skinned man with brown eyes and a roundish face. Sabine swiped to the next one. "This is Lieutenant Den Fevor, the head of security." He was a larger imposing man with tan skin and a severe look on his face. Then Sabine swiped to the last one, a blonde light skinned woman. "This is Minister Maketh Tua. She is the highest authority on Lothal when Governor Pryce is off world.
"In all truth, these are the three most likely people that have to use their decoders regularly, which means they'll be the easiest to find. Most likely in their offices while they're working."
Ezra slowly nodded, looking at the holos intently. He swiped back through them. "Well… just based on their rank and the way they they look… I feel like Lyste will be the easiest to steal from."
"I agree," Sabine said. She pulled up the details she had collected on the man over the last week. "His office is two-thirty-one on the fourteenth level."
"Okay. So after the tour, they're going to be giving us a variety of low level assignments to get a taste of what it's like to work as an officer. I can use that time as an excuse to deliver something to Lyste and find a way to infiltrate his office."
"And once you have the decoder, what are you going to do?" Sabine asked.
"I'll climb out through the ducts," Ezra said, reciting the plan as they had outlined before. "Since the doors all have sensors that will go off if sensitive materials like encryption keys get taken out of the office without a passcode."
Sabine couldn't help but smile, relieved that he was remembering all the important details. "And then?"
"Then I meet Chopper in Loading Bay Three and give him the decoder to deliver to the Ghost. After that, I finish off my stay in the Dome. Then when I get back to the Academy the next day, you and I get out of here."
"Damn straight," Sabine said with a chuckle. "You ready for this, kid?"
Ezra's arms tightened around himself for just a moment before he unfolded them and let them drop to his sides, straightening his back. "I can do this…"
She gave him a playful punch on the arm. "You'll do great."
Ezra took a deep breath and let it out as a soft sigh as he nodded. "You must be anxious to get out of here…" he said to her casually.
"Of course I am. Going through the Academy once was enough. I do not miss all the drama and backstabbing… There's only three other girls in my class but they're unbearable at times." She looked at Ezra, who was rubbing his arm as he looked down at the ground. "What about you?" she asked. "How's your Academy stay been?"
Ezra shrugged. "Kinda the same. The officers keep telling us that we have to be ruthless and merciless, and the cadets all actively try to sabotage each other. Well, except for me and Jai…"
Sabine raised an eyebrow. "Jai?"
He nodded. "Yeah. We've been helping each other out on the assignments and assessments… I hate the Academy and the other cadets, but I'm going to miss Jai."
Oh no. Ezra had made a friend? "You know you can't trust him, right?"
"I know!" Ezra said defensively. "I haven't told him anything."
"No, not even that. I mean that there's a very good chance that he's using you."
"What?" Ezra shook his head. "No, he's not using me. We're helping each other."
"Uh huh, and who else is going to the Dome with you tomorrow?"
"Jai and a kid named Revo."
"And would Jai have passed the test with you without your help?"
"I mean… maybe not, but that's the point of helping each other!"
"Shh!" Sabine hushed as Ezra raised his voice. "Keep your voice down."
Ezra pursed his lips together as he took a moment bring his emotions back under control. "I know we don't know each other very well, but it's been nice to help each other out and eat together."
Sabine couldn't help but let out a small moan. Curses, this kid was naive. But they had lingered in here long enough, and at least Ezra wasn't stupid enough to tell this Jai kid any real information. As long as all went well, they would be gone in a couple days anyway. "Just… promise me you'll be careful, okay?"
"I will," Ezra said, sounding annoyed.
"Hey." Sabine put a hand on his shoulder. "Forget what I said about Jai. Just focus on the mission, okay?"
Ezra sighed, his shoulders relaxing slightly as he nodded. "I will," he said, sounding more sincere this time.
Sabine gave a strained smile. "Alright. Good luck. See you in a couple days."
With that, she leaned back against the crates, letting Ezra leave first. She could hang out for another twenty minutes. The last thing they needed was anyone seeing the two of them anywhere near each other.
She bit her lip as she stared up at the ceiling. This was it. It was all out of her hands right now. The entire crew was now relying on that kid to finish the mission and hopefully get out without anyone suspecting a thing. Ezra should be okay. They have drilled this plan countless times and he's managed to avoid detection so far.
All there was to do now was wait.
Please leave a review to let me know what you thought!
