A/N And I have returned from the depths of slight writer's block! Lol, yes. Hope this chapter's worth the wait! XD I'm so excited!
X
It was the day after the investigation, and Pryce was going to FREAK OUT and SCREAM.
Zare presented his report late in the morning, and it left her raging, but of course, she needed to keep her professional composure, so she kept a straight face on and calmly dismissed him. Once he was gone, however, she grabbed the data-pad where the report was typed down and threw it to the wall. She gripped her hair and began to screech.
"AAAAAAAAAAUUUGGGGHHH!"
She gripped one of the chairs in front of her desk and tossed it over at the wall then she grabbed the other chair and kicked it to the other wall. She hissed in irritation and roared out in fury, sending everything on her desk down on the floor before she went on her knees, her body quivering with agitation.
She was certain that her suspicions were true. She was sure that Thrawn was up to something and that Kallus was involved with it, but the junior trooper had gotten her no proof of their treachery, and now, she was starting to have doubts herself.
As soon as her rant came to end, she took a deep breath to calm herself and pressed her forehead against the table, releasing a shaky breath.
"Calm yourself, Arihnda," she whispered to herself. "Pull yourself together. It's not over yet. There's a reason why you sent THREE troopers with Kallus to investigate. Maybe… the other two have more information…"
She gripped hold of the table and pushed herself back up on her feet. She grabbed her comm and placed it back on her desk then she quickly called for the two other junior troopers to her office.
A few minutes later, they arrived and stood before her, not bothering to acknowledge the mess. She stood straight in front of them, her expression stern as she eyed them both.
"Junior troopers, what post did Agent Kallus leave you in on the investigation yesterday?" She questioned them.
"I was told to wait in the shuttle, Ma'm." The 'Rookie' trooper answered.
"And I was told to stay outside of the office, where the guard trooper is," Oleg then spoke. "Only Leonis entered with Agent Kallus,"
"So he did…" Pryce cursed under her breath before biting her lip and straightening her posture. "I see. That is all I need. You are dismissed now."
"Yes, Ma'm." With that, the two turned to leave the office.
As soon as he was outside, Oleg came to a stop and let the other trooper leave him alone. He turned back towards the office and reentered it to see the governor facing the window.
"Governor Pryce, Ma'm,"
"Haven't I dismissed you?" Pryce turned to face him with an irritated facial expression.
"You did, but I myself have something to report," Oleg took a step forward. "It's about Agent Kallus and Leonis,"
Pryce's expression twisted into confusion and amusement as she went to her desk and sat on her chair. "Go on, trooper. Tell me what have you learned about Agent Kallus and Leonis,"
X
"And this is the last of the information about Dhara," Kallus gave Zare a data disk from his data-desktop. "She was last seen in Coruscant after the Emperor had called her over for a classified mission,"
"Thank you, Agent Kallus, Sir," Zare bowed. "I don't know about you, but I have a feeling that my report to Governor Pryce wasn't convincing enough,"
"We just need to distract her for a few more days until Thrawn had come up with a plan for us to escape," Kallus assured him.
"I know, but it still feels… risky," Zare frowned. "Especially at the fact that you were helping me with the report,"
"No one saw, not even your fellow junior troopers," Kallus pointed out.
"Oleg DID." Zare hissed.
"But he has no proof," Kallus opposed.
"Oleg doesn't need proof," Zare sighed. "He just goes with his guts, and his guts always say that he hates me, and he'll do anything to expose me to have an excuse to kill me. He hates Ezra more than me, and if he was going to report to Pryce anything, she'd have him investigate himself,"
"And Pryce would believe anything to have me and Thrawn exposed for execution…" Kallus bit his bottom lip.
"Exactly!"
"Then we have to be careful," Kallus then stood up from his desk. "I need you to go up to the Chimera and warn Thrawn and Ezra. We'll have no choice, but escape. Tonight."
"Right," Zare nodded and kept the data disk then he placed his helmet on and turned to leave. "I'll have to swipe a shuttle to get to the Chimera,"
"I will make up an excuse, in case Pryce comes here to ask," Kallus ushered him out. "Now, Go. Hurry,"
"I will," Zare walked out of the agent's office and went through the halls.
He went straight to the lift, and it went down to the hanger. His hands trembled as he exited the lift, his nervousness rising the nearer he got to the shuttle nearest to him. He stopped for a moment to wait for the other troopers walk away, so he couldn't get caught. Once the coast was clear, he rushed over to the shuttle. He noticed that there was no pilot and was relieved. He then closed the ramp and sat himself on the steering then he activated the engines before he flew out of the hanger as discreetly as could.
But of course, a Rebel Trooper can never be that discreet.
X
Ezra woke up late, with the Force practically screaming on his ears and vibrating hard on his brain. He groaned, grabbing his head as he sat up with an annoyed hiss. The pain was so unbearable that he wasn't able to hear the door slide open.
"Ezra?"
"Mm?" The said boy looked up to see his father staring down at him concern. "Oh, hey Dad. Good morning,"
"Good LATE morning," Thrawn shook his head and advanced towards him.
"Late? Oh shoot, I slept in again," Ezra sighed as the Chiss sat beside him.
"It is alright. You have been sleeping in quite often this past week," Thrawn took out a sack and handed it to him. "Here. Breakfast,"
"Thanks," Ezra received the sack and opened it to take out a piece of fruit that he didn't recognize. "…?"
"A fruit from Csilla. Eli sent it early in the morning for you,"
"Oh, really?" A smile stretched across his face before he sunk his teeth into the food. "… it cold… but yummy…"
"Good. It a delicious delicacy, truly," Thrawn returned the smile. "As a boy, I had always been excited when my brother Thrass brought home a basket of those fruits,"
Ezra had gotten the hang on chewing the fruit when he noticed that his father's face fell the moment he mentioned his brother Thrass. Not wanting his father to sulk again in his uncle's disappearance from Csilla, he placed a hand on the other's shoulder to snap him out of memory lane.
"Dad, I think there's a reason why I've been sleeping in constantly," he spoke, changing the topic to catch his father's attention.
To his relief, Thrawn had looked down at him with furrowed eyebrows to express his concern. Ezra held his breath and proceeded to continue.
"I've been having this… vision," he went on, fear and hesitation clogging up in his throat as he let the memories of what he saw return to him. "It's scaring me and waking me up in the middle of the night. I've been seeing you and Kallus getting into a fight… Pryce talking to Tarkin… even Mom getting involved with fighting Pryce," His fear peaked up when the image of his mother battling the vile Governor of Lothal came back to him, causing him to shudder. "At first, I thought it was just a nightmare, but the Force was screaming at me while I was in it, and it kept repeating itself, over and over. I could practically hear everyone screaming while they were fighting and getting killed. I could even hear Vader's robotic voice echoing a threat to kill you if I didn't surrender…"
Thrawn's eyes widened while eyebrows furrowed deeper to show even more concern. He had gotten his well share of fears and nightmares that Pryce would catch on to them. The woman may not be bright, but she is persistent. Any evidence that she gets on those grubby hands of hers was like something she would most likely use to get rid of him.
When Ezra avoided eye contact and began to tremble uncontrollably, Thrawn immediately wrapped his arms around the boy, holding him close as if he'd disappear if he didn't. The blunette felt the warm embrace and leaned his forehead on his father's chest before tearing up to pour out his fear and worry, which then began to fade as he felt his father reach back to stroke his hair.
"Shh, It is alright," Thrawn reassured him in a low, calm voice. "It is okay, Ezra. If the Force and your vision speak the truth then we must be prepared for a defection from Imperial Space. I will have to warn Commander Tano, Captain Syndulla and Eli about the change of plans, and that we must leave immediately," He slightly pulled away and used his thumb to wipe his son's tears as he stared at the boy's misty eyes. "I know that you just woke up, but I need you to get your things ready, and I want you to stay hidden in your room until your Rebel Crew can retrieve you,"
"But… But what about you…?" Ezra sniffled his tears. "And Kallus? And Zare? How are you three going to get out?!"
"Calm yourself, my child," Thrawn rubbed his back comfortingly. "I have a plan for all of us to leave, but you will have to trust me and calm down. Do you understand?"
"I… I do trust you, Dad," Ezra nodded slowly. "And I do understand, but… it's Pryce I don't trust…"
"I don't trust her either, and that is why we must leave immediately," Thrawn stood up and turned to the door. "For now, I will need to contact your Rebel friends and Eli for the change of plans. Stay here,"
Ezra gave another nod and a small smile as he watched his father take his leave before he himself got on his feet to get his stuff ready.
X
"I would never have imagined that Leonis would be a traitor…" Pryce snarled under her breath.
"He, Kell and Morgan have been close at the Academy, so I'm not that surprised." Oleg gritted his teeth in anger.
"Governor Pryce, Ma'm!" Suddenly, the door slid open, and in came one of the piloting troopers.
"What is it, trooper?" Pryce questioned.
"Junior Trooper Leonis has been spotted taking a shuttle from the hanger and heading to the Chimera, Ma'm," the pilot trooper reported.
"That's all the proof I need to assure their treachery!" Pryce got on her feet with a smirk. "Troopers, gather a squadron and meet me in Agent Kallus's Office,"
"Yes, Governor Pryce," Oleg and the pilot trooper saluted before leaving to do their orders.
Once they left, Pryce opened one of her desk drawers and grabbed a pair of restraints. She then exited her office and speed-walked to Kallus's Office. She soon found herself in front of the agent's office door. She took a deep breath and entered, the door sliding open to reveal Kallus on his desk and consulting a data-pad.
"Agent Kallus,"
"Governor Pryce," Kallus diverted his eyes from the pad to see the governor step in. "A surprise to see you,"
"Not too surprising, unfortunately, for you," Pryce growled before she took out her blaster and aimed it at the blonde man, who stood up with wide, alarmed eyes. "Agent Alexandr Kallus, you are under arrest for betraying the Empire. Surrender in peace, or you and your accomplices will be executed."
"Either way, I would be arrested and executed, so I rather not," Kallus took out his bo-rifle and activated it.
Pryce let out a grumble then she began to shoot. Kallus dodged the shots and proceeded to fight, kicking the blaster out of the woman's hands. Pryce hissed in pain as her hand was hit. She glared daggers at the agent and did a fighting stand then she began to attack, but Kallus dodged her and hit her straight on the abdomen.
"ARGH!" Pryce fell on her knees, clutching her stomach with a hiss before looking up to see the electricity of his bo-rifle sparking at her face. "You will not get away from this quite easily, you know,"
"I've had enough of you, honestly," Kallus shook his head, but as he raised his bo-rifle to finish her off, he was suddenly attacked by two stormtroopers, who both grabbed him and pulled him down. "Ack! Get your hands off me!"
"In a million years, Agent Kallus," Oleg took out his blaster and shot the agent, causing him to fall back and lose grip of his weapon.
The other troopers helped Pryce to her feet, and the woman rubbed her aching shoulder. She narrowed her eyes at the agent before grabbing his weapon and keeping it on her back then she neared the dazed man, grabbing her blaster from the ground to aim at him.
"Resisting would be a deadly mistake." She spat out, gritting her teeth. "What are you and Grand Admiral Thrawn hiding up in the Chimera?"
"Not my business to tell." Kallus finally came to and growled at the woman. "And I will NEVER reveal anything to the likes of you."
Pryce scowled him, but she turned around and kept her blaster. She took a deep breath and snickered.
"You had revealed much already," she gave him a victoriously evil grin.
Kallus's eyes widened as he realized what he just said. "… oh no…"
"Oh yes!" Pryce cackled before she turned to Oleg with the restraints. "Junior trooper, grab hold of Agent Kallus and accompany me to the Chimera,"
"Yes, Governor Pryce, Ma'm," Oleg nodded and took the restraints then he cuffed Kallus and grabbed him, forcing him to walk as they followed the raven-haired woman out of the office.
X
As soon as the shuttle landed, Zare knew that this was the last time he was going to be serving the Empire.
The moment the ramp opened, nearly a dozen stormtroopers came to his greeting/questioning. He held his breath and walked out of the shuttle.
"I have been sent here by Agent Kallus to send a message to Grand Admiral Thrawn," he spoke with the most serious tone he could speak out.
The troopers seemed to buy it and let him through. He pushed through them and entered the halls. Once he was far enough, he let out a sigh of relief. He marched to the grand admiral's office and handed over Kallus's spare cylinder pass (which the agent had given to him just in case) then he entered and wandered through the office halls. He went towards the main office door and knocked on it gently to not activate the automatic sensors.
"Who is it?" the faint and stern voice of the grand admiral came from the other side.
"Junior Trooper Leonis, Grand Admiral, Sir," Zare replied. "A message from Fulcrum,"
There was brief moment of silence and then came the shuffling of feet. The next thing he knew, the door slid open to reveal Thrawn looking down at him with a neutral expression. Zare gulped but stood straight and tall to seem confident (internally, he was cowering in fear already XD I mean, who wouldn't when your scary superior is standing right in front of you?).
"Grand Admiral Thrawn, Sir," he gave a bow.
"Leonis." Thrawn seemed to acknowledge him before turning around. "You may enter,"
"Of course, Grand Admiral, Sir," Zare stepped forward to see the Fulcrum device active after closing and locking the door behind him.
"Thrawn, who else is there?" a woman's voice of worry and suspicion echoed through the speakers.
"Do not be alarmed, Captain Syndulla," Thrawn advanced towards the device. "It is Junior Trooper Zare Leonis, an ally and friend Ezra's,"
"Leonis? I remember Ezra mention him before," Hera let out a sigh of relief. "Well, is there any reason why he's here?"
"I'm here to warn Ezra and Grand Admiral Thrawn about something, Captain Syndulla, Ma'm," Zare took a step forward. "An enemy/rival of mine and Ezra's caught Agent Kallus helping me with my report to Governor Pryce and—"
"OLEG CAUGHT YOU AND KALLUS?!"
Zare jumped at the voice before he and Thrawn turned to see Ezra enter the office with a shocked expression on his face and his backpack strapped on his back. The boy went closer to the duo, his eyebrows furrowed in worry as he glanced over at his friend.
"Oleg caught you and Kallus?!" He repeated in a more calmer voice. "How?! What happened?!"
"He caught us while Agent Kallus was helping me with the report," Zare shuddered at the memory. "I don't know why, but I've got this… gut feeling that he's going to report it to Governor Pryce. You know Oleg would do ANYTHING to have either of us killed,"
"Oh yeah," Ezra sighed. "That sounds like Oleg, alright,"
"We must take course of action," Thrawn then turned to the device. "Captain Syndulla, how soon can you and your ship get here?"
"In just a few minutes. We're flying up from Lothal," Hera replied. "We just got a surprise visitor who seems to know you and Ezra. He knows what's going on, and he came aboard in the Ghost to help get you two out of the Chimera,"
Ezra froze in shock, and Thrawn held his breath. They then exchanged surprised and worried glances. It couldn't be who they thought it is, could it?
"Uh, Hera," Ezra was too afraid to ask, but he knew that he had to. "did you happen to catch the name of this 'surprise visitor'?"
"As I recall, he introduced himself as… Eli Vanto? Yeah, that's it. Eli Vanto,"
"Karabast." Ezra hissed as he cursed lowly, so his father couldn't hear him and scold at him for swearing.
"Eli…" The hiss from Thrawn was sharp and sounded more threatening than any human hiss as he set a hand on his forehead and shook his head. "I KNEW that informing him about the situation was a terrible mistake,"
"Well, too late now," Hera told them. "We're already approaching the Chimera, but I think you all need to get out of there first,"
"Why? What's wrong, Hera?" Ezra felt the Force scream in his ears in alarm and in warning as he asked.
"A shuttle was just approaching the Chimera. Don't want to know who's in the shuttle, but I could only guess,"
"Pryce…" Zare gritted his teeth.
Thrawn's concern peeked up at the possibility of the vile woman catching them. He turned to his son and grabbed him by the shoulder.
"Ezra, you and Leonis must hide in the training area." he ordered. "Once you hear a battle in this office, you two must RUN out and into hanger, find your Rebel Crew and ESCAPE. No matter the cause, I want you to escape. And please, take your mother with you. Eli's rash actions will cause more pain than help. You all need to leave, and DO NOT ever look back,"
"B-But, Dad, what about you?!" Ezra's eyes screamed with panic.
"Ezra, YOU and YOUR MOTHER are my main priority right now." Thrawn simply and sternly answered before turning to the other boy. "Leonis, I command you to make sure my son is to be taken to the Rebel Freighter and to be taken to a safe place. For his safety. Is that clear?"
"Yes, Grand Admiral Thrawn, Sir," Zare nodded.
"Father, please, don't," Ezra tried to oppose, but to no avail as Thrawn turned away, so the blunette was facing his back. "I… I can't lost you too…"
"Leonis, escort Ezra to the training area. Now." Thrawn ignored his son's please, the guilt in his throat, but he paid no attention to it either.
"Yes, Sir," Zare sighed and gently took hold of his friend's shoulder. "Ezra, we have to go,"
Ezra gave his father a tearful, hurt look before turning away shakily as he was escorted out.
Unbeknownst to him, Thrawn had seen his expression and couldn't help but feel the guilt crawl back up to choke him. He knew that he was risking so much just to save his son, and he knew that he may not survive the consequences of his actions, but he knew that in the end, it would all be worth it. He knew that in the end, Eli and Ezra would make it and escape.
Even he had to pay with his life for it.
X
"Keep walking, you traitor." Oleg forced Kallus to stride as they both followed Pryce out of the shuttle's ramp and into the Chimera's lower hanger.
The governor snickered at the growl sent her way from the agent. All she needed was to capture Thrawn in the act and arrest him. Tarkin was going to find this very, VERY interesting…
They went through the halls and went to the grand admiral's office.
"Trooper, I request audience with Grand Admiral Thrawn." Pryce told the guard trooper. "And I order you to follow me."
"Yes, Ma'm," the guard trooper nodded and obliged to her command.
They entered the office halls and went forward to the main office. The automatic door slid open to reveal Thrawn facing the window, his back facing them with his hands behind him. Pryce suppressed a growl as she stepped forward with the Oleg and the guard trooper right behind her, dragging a silently raging Kallus.
"Grand Admiral Thrawn."
"Governor Pryce." Thrawn acknowledged her, yet he didn't turn around. "What is it you require?"
"I require your ultimate and peaceful surrender, Grand Admiral." Pryce held out her blaster and aimed it for his head, narrowing her eyes at him. "I know that there is something in this Star Destroyer that you are hiding. It is better that you surrender in peace and reveal what you are hiding. Now."
"And what proof do you have that I am hiding something that symbolizes treachery to the Empire?" Thrawn glanced down at her slightly, his red eyes gleaming in the dark. "The only thing I am hiding are the plans for the new Tie Fighters, and I am hiding that sort of in formation from the Rebels. My Emperor has knowledge of these plans and requests them to be carried out at my orders,"
"Oh, is that so?" Pryce snarled, knowing that he wouldn't surrender so easily, so she had no choice but to do things the hard way. "If that is true then I assume that you don't mind us searching your entire office for anything suspicious?"
"Do as you please, Governor." Thrawn kept himself from flinching or wincing visibly. He couldn't give himself away. Not now. Not yet.
"You heard him, trooper," Pryce turned to stormtroopers behind her. "Search this office, along with the other room across the hall. When you find something suspicious, show it to me immediately,"
"Yes, Ma'm." the guard trooper bowed and began to search the office.
Thrawn kept himself still until he realized that Pryce meant his ENTIRE office, including the training area, where Zare and Ezra were hiding. He tried not to think about it to much, but the more he did, the more his worry grew, all the way to his throat. He wanted to take out his blaster and shoot the trooper, shoot Pryce, all of his enemies now, but he knew that he couldn't. He shouldn't be the one to do the first move.
"Ma'm, we found something!" the guard trooper's voice made Thrawn's blood fun cold as he discreetly watched the trooper take out a crate from under his desk.
'…krayt spit.' Thrawn cursed internally, with a mental note that he should prevent Eli from 'accidentally' teaching Ezra swear words of his own while he watched the crate being set on his desk.
Pryce observed the crate and realized what it was. She evilly grinned and turned to face Kallus.
"Isn't THIS the package that you delivered to Thrawn two weeks ago?" she questioned the agent. "Mind telling me what is inside, Agent Kallus?"
Kallus growled at her but said nothing, merely giving her a glare. Pryce chuckled at his silence before commanding the trooper to open the crate. The guard trooper complied to the order and took out a device. He set it beside the crate and activated it, causing the Fulcrum symbol to appear.
"The symbol of the Rebel Spy…" Pryce narrowed her eyes at the symbol then she turned to face Kallus. "YOU had this device before it was kept here, so YOU are the mole."
"Admirable intelligence, Governor Pryce," Thrawn silently took his blaster from belt and set it to kill. "But unfortunately, a little to slow,"
"YOU ARE A TRAITOR!" Pryce snarled at the Chiss, the grip on her own blaster tightening before she pressed the trigger.
Thrawn swiftly avoided the shot then he turned and aimed a shot at Pryce. The woman jumped out of the way to avoid being hit, causing the guard trooper to be shot down and killed. Oleg scowled and took out his blaster to try to shoot the grand admiral, but Thrawn was too quick and did a barrel roll to move out of the way to shoot. Kallus noticed the shot being aimed at the junior trooper and ducked his head to keep himself from being hit.
"ACK!" Oleg wasn't too lucky, the shot hitting him on the chest before he fell down, dead.
Pryce looked up in horror as the junior trooper's body fell. She stared at it before glancing up to see Thrawn aiming the blaster on her head.
"Fight and your life will be the price." He warned with a sharp hiss.
Pryce glared up at him. "You don't think you are going to get away with this so easily. I will get in contact with Tarkin, and you and your rebel allies will be sorry."
"We will see about that." Thrawn lowered his blaster and kicked her down.
Pryce fell on her stomach with a pained groan. She silently fumed as she watched Thrawn uncuff Kallus and put her in the restraints. Kallus took back his bo-rifle and sighed in relief.
"Well, today's been quite eventful," he commented.
"It is not over yet," Thrawn went over the dead bodies and turned to the door, which opened automatically at his presence. "Come. We must leave,"
Kallus didn't argue and simply followed behind as they ran out.
Pryce watched them leave and gritted her teeth while she struggled to stand with the restraints on her back. She found the inter-galactic comm on the desk and used her foot to get in contact with Tarkin.
"Governor Pryce?" the holo-image of her superior gave a look of surprise. "What are you doing in Grand Admiral Thrawn's office? More specifically, why are you using his communication unit?"
"I had been correct the whole time, Grand Moff Tarkin." Pryce claimed. "Agent Kallus and Grand Admiral Thrawn are traitors to the Empire! Agent Kallus is the Rebel Spy being hidden by Grand Admiral Thrawn. The grand admiral himself shot down two troopers already!"
"Hmm… I see." Tarkin's expression grew solemn. "I will send Lord Vader to deal with this matter. Make sure that the traitors do not escape."
"Of course, Grand Moff Tarkin." Pryce nodded.
X
The second he heard the blaster shot, Ezra sprinted out of the training area with Zare on his tail. They ran through the halls, shooting down any trooper that tried to attack them. They ran all the way down to the lower hanger, coming to a stop to fight an army of stormtroopers coming their way. At the corner of his eye, Ezra found the Ghost heading up to land on the hanger.
"We have to go!" he cried out to his companion as soon as the Ghost landed, and the ramp opened.
"Alright," Zare replied with a nod.
Ezra Force-pushed the troopers out of his way then he grabbed Zare's arm and ran to the Ghost. From the ramp, Kanan, Rex, Sabine, and Zeb ran out, with the Jedi deflecting the troopers' blaster shots with his lightsaber while the others took out their weapons to shoot back.
"Ezra! Come on!" Kanan tossed an oddly-shaped lightsaber to his Padawan, who caught it and kept it with ease.
The moment the name was called out, a brown-haired man came from behind them, running out of the ramp and towards the two boys.
"Ezra!"
"Mom?!" Ezra's eyes widened at the familiar person that he had only seen through the data-pad.
But Eli looked a little different from how he last saw him. Eli has been wearing his pajamas the last time he saw him (which was understandable since it WAS bedtime), but now, Eli was wearing clothes that balanced between civilian and military. He was wearing a sleeveless blue-green top that went up to half of his neck, a pair of blue-green arm bands, long brown pants and black shoes.
Appearances aside, the look on the man's eyes was clear; he needed them to be safe.
The moment he was close, Eli had wrapped him in an embrace, an embrace that assured him that he was alright. He was SAFE.
But of course, the moment just had to be ruined.
The sound of another shuttle approaching caught their attention, and they turned to see an Imperial ship land beside the other shuttle. The ramp opened, and both Ezra and Kanan tensed to see the person come out, a red lightsaber ignited on his hand as he stepped forward.
Darth Vader…
Ezra felt the arms around him tighten, and he looked up to see Eli's face of horror and fright at the sight of the dark Sith Lord that was once his superior.
"Vader…" the name was spoken in a mere whisper, but the Sith managed to hear him and, by surprise, recognize him.
"Commander Vanto, Grand Admiral Thrawn's aid." Vader took a threatening step forward towards them. "A surprise to see you helping a group of… rebels after years of your… disappearance."
"Mom, we need to go," Ezra whispered to the man, gently pulling on his arm with a worried expression on his face.
"Eli!"
The said man turned to see Thrawn and Kallus running towards them. Vader spotted them too and Force-pushed them away. Kallus fell with a thud while Thrawn landed with on all fours, a glare sent to the Sith before turning to see Pryce out of the restraints and leading an army of stormtroopers behind her.
"Stop those Rebel Scums!" Pryce ordered, and the troopers fired away.
Eli glared at the governor and took out his own blaster before heading into the battlefield. Thrawn was this, and his eyes widened in alarm.
"Eli!" He got up on his feet and aimed to run after him when something strong grabbed him by the neck and shoved him to the ground. "Ack!"
Ezra had been helping Kallus to get back up on his feet when he heard his father's pained scowl. He turned, and his eyes widened in horror to see Vader force-choking Thrawn to the ground, the red saber raised to attack and kill.
"DAD!" Ezra ran to the Sith Lord and ignited his lightsaber. "Let him go!"
"Odd." Vader spoke, his robotic-like voice echoing through the mask. "Above all of the officers in the Empire, I would never expect you, Thrawn, to betray my Master like this, much less have a Rebel child."
"I said LET HIM GO!" Ezra's temper was rising, and he knew it. His eyes were practically glowing red while hair swayed in the wind that the battle had caused.
Needless to say, he looked very, VERY dangerous, the Force around him turning quite dark as it pressured over his ears, yet he blocked it out and gripped tightly to his saber.
"Yes, fuel your anger." Vader seemed pleased with the sudden turn of events and held the red lightsaber to Thrawn's neck. "One step closer, and I will end your father's life."
From the ship, Kanan felt the darkness in his Padawan's Force Signature. He was about to go and help when he heard a yell of pain. He turned and saw the clone on the ground, holding his shoulder with a hiss.
"Rex!" Kanan helped him up before turning to his comrades. "Zeb, help Kallus inside the ship! Sabine, tell Hera to start the engines!"
"What about Ezra?!" Sabine cried out as Zeb ran to pull and help the agent get in the ship. "And Eli?!"
"I sense his rage!" Kanan bit his bottom lip. "He needs to snap out of it, but I need to get Rex to the med-bay!"
"The kid's using the Dark Side of the Force again…?" Rex sounded weak, but his worries were still strong. "You need to help him out…"
"Yeah, he is, but you need to be inside first," Kanan sighed. "Ezra's matured in his abilities. I… I have faith that he can snap out of it…"
X
Eli loved his son and his husband dearly, but he sometimes wished that they didn't attract so much danger. Well, on the plus side, it gave him an excuse to fight.
Thankfully, his shooting was straighter than his gender preference as he went past the stormtroopers. He dashed past and through until he made it to his target; Pryce.
"Commander Vanto." the woman spat out his name as if it was a curse. Eli snickered.
"Governor Pryce." he spoke with venom as if her name was a jackpot on the streets, leftover by a couple of wild bantha. "Long time, long see, though I was really hoping that I would never see YOU again after I left,"
"I would say the same thing to you, Commander Eli Vanto." Pryce aimed her blaster at him with a growl.
"It's Mitth'eli'vanto now," Eli grinned and kicked the blaster off her hands.
Pryce was too stunned at the statement to fight back as she was kicked down. She fell with a groan, glaring up at the man who was now pointing a blaster at her head.
"THAT is why you left." she hissed. "You defied the law of the Empire against inter-species relationships AND against homosexual relationships."
"Good guess, but that's not why I left," Eli shrugged. "Good guess, though. Goodnight, Pryce,"
With that, he pulled on the trigger, and Pryce was shot down. Eli sighed, shaking his head as he kept his blaster.
He isn't the type of person to usually kill people, but he needed to do what needed to be done. To keep his family safe. To keep his husband safe. To keep their SON safe.
"LET HIM GO!" The dark aura in Ezra's voice soon caught his attention, sending a shiver down his spine as he turned to see his son facing Vader, who was still holding a red blade to his husband's neck.
'Wait, WHAT?!'
"Thrawn!" Eli went into a sprint and dashed towards the battle. "Ezra!"
X
"Ezra!"
His mother's voice cut through the dark thoughts in his mind as he turned to see the man come into a stop, his chocolate brown eyes full of worry as he froze.
"Take another step, Vanto, and HE dies." Vader threatened the blade closer to the Chiss's neck.
Ezra snapped back to reality and turned back to glare at the Sith Lord. But when he did, he had accidentally stared straight into the Sith's eyes (or where he assumed they were) and felt the Force guide him into Vader's thoughts and minds.
Suddenly, flashes of memories appeared in front of his eyes, flashing so quickly that it took Ezra back, sending him into Eli's arms and dropping and deactivating his lightsaber.
"Woah, easy!" Eli caught the boy in a warm, right grip. "Ezra? What happened?"
Vader himself seemed unprepared by what happened and was taken back, deactivating and letting go of his lightsaber. Thrawn found this as a chance to escape and immediately got up on his feet to wrap his arms around his family protectively.
"Eli," he gave his husband a worried, loving gaze then he looked down at his son with a smile. "Ezra,"
"Thrawn…" Eli sighed in relief, giving him a small smile.
"Dad," Ezra felt warm in the embrace as he hugged them tighter.
The Force soon tugged on him again, and he looked over see Vader getting up with his lightsaber and activating it. Ezra was about to pull away from his parents to fight when he felt the Sith's emotions through the Force. It was full of anger, annoyance, betrayed and… sadness and envy?
Ezra felt confused as his parents pulled away to get into a fighting stance, stepping forward to protect him.
Was Vader envying his family? Why would he do that?
'A soul of a man in a suit of armor and hatred… unlocked by a boy of blue and set free by a boy of blonde… to fulfill the prophecy… his destiny… "The Chosen One"…'
It was a message. A message from the Force that echoed in his vision. He didn't know what it meant, yet he did know that the 'boy of blue' was him, and the 'man in the suit of armor' was (possibly) Vader, but who was the boy of blonde? And who in KRIFFING hell was 'The Chosen One'?
His thoughts were interrupted when he was suddenly dragged. He turned to see Thrawn and Eli grabbing him by the arms and pushing him towards the Ghost. He mentally slapped himself.
First, they needed to escape THEN he needed to discuss the message with Kanan and Ahsoka.
He used the Force to grab his lightsaber from the floor and clipped it back on his belt then they all ran to the old Rebel freighter. Zeb met them on the ramp and shot the troopers to give the family of three time to enter the ship. Once they were inside, the Lasat ran inside and closed the ramp.
"Hera, we need to go! Now!" Zeb screamed through his comm.
"Copy that!" In the cockpit, Hera gripped tightly to the steering as she lifted the Ghost over the hanger and pushed down to escape.
The Ghost soon got a distance between the Chimera. Sabine and Chopper were firing on the Ties shooting at them as Hera fiddled with the hyperspace coordinates.
"Hang on, everyone!" she announced through the Ghost's speakers. "Next stop; HYPERSPACE!"
With that, she pressed on a button, and the Ghost dashed into a clearing and into hyperspace.
X
"Sir, are you alright?" A stormtrooper questioned as Vader stood up and watched the Ghost and the rebels make their escape.
"Fine." Vader snapped, keeping his lightsaber and turning towards the trooper. "What is the status of this Star Destroyer?"
"No rough damage, sir, but…" the trooper swallowed. "Governor Pryce is dead, and we found two corpses in Grand Admiral Thrawn's office; one of a guard trooper and another of a junior trooper,"
Vader silently listened at the report then he straightened himself up and clipped his lightsaber to his belt.
"I see…" he went past the trooper and breathed into his mask. "Summon Captain Palleon and Admiral Konstantine. Tell them to meet me here, in the lower hanger."
"Yes, Sir." the stormtrooper nodded and left to do his orders.
Vader watched him leave before heading to the halls of the Chimera to contact Tarkin.
X
A/N Phew! Finished the chapter! XD And Yes, I killed off some characters already, placed some mild Rex/Kanan, and reunited the family! Yay'