Quick announcement before we head into the chapter, I start school on Wednesday. Which unfortunately means that I won't be posting twice a week anymore. I'm taking difficult classes and I also have tennis so my time to write will be greatly diminished. So instead of posting on Tuesdays and Fridays, I'll only be posting on Fridays. Thank you!
For the day Esinon had been a silent observer, hiding in the shadows watching the rebels work and more importantly the people's reactions. This rebellion wouldn't end well if the people saw them as terrorists, and if anyone found out the Jedi were involved, it wouldn't end well. Esinon crouched next to Steela as she lined up a shot on a droid that was guarding a large rey shield. In one swift shot, she took out the droid and then the generator for the rey shield. The shield fell and in seconds a spider droid appeared firing off several shots at her and Steela. Both of them ducked back, a few seconds later Rex and the rebels had decimated that droid. Esinon and Steela peered back over the edge of the roof,
"Droids, six o'clock," Esinon whispered, Steela whipped her sniper rifle over the edge and waited until the droids were in range and she took them out in rapid succession.
"That should give King Rash something to think about," Steela grinned, Esinon peered back over the edge looking at the destroyed droids.
"Yeah- yeah I think you've gotten his attention," she replied, before sliding down the edge of the roof, with Steela following after her.
Esinon stood in a dark corner of the room and watched rebels file into the rendezvous point. Master Kenobi waved her forward, and she joined them and sat down next to Ahsoka. The four Jedi removed their hoods.
"Your success will not go unnoticed," Anakin began, a chorus of cheers went through the crowd of rebels.
"I agree," Master Kenobi said, "but we need to be mindful of public perception. What were your observations, padawans?"
'Oh, so we've gone to padawan formalities.'
"The people were fearful Master," Ahsoka began,
"I agree with Padawan Tano," Esinon said, "I'm afraid they will mistake the rebels' intentions."
"We need to do more damage," Saw said, enthusiastically punching his fist into his hand. "A few dozen broken droids will do little to free Onderon."
"The people need to believe that we can succeed." Steela interjected, "Without their support our efforts are meaningless."
"If they're afraid, they won't support us," Lux added, "We need to assure them of our intentions."
"I don't understand, why are they afraid?" Saw asked,
"They're afraid we aren't strong enough to win," Steela replied, "We need to earn their trust."
"You'll have plenty of time to earn their trust," Obi-Wan replied,
"All of you are going to be very busy," Anakin said,
"Today was only a taste," Rex added, grinning at all of them like a bunch of shinies, "You'll get your chance,"
"In the meantime, make the most of your victories," Obi-Wan said, "Welcome and learn from them."
"Perhaps if we hit something big," Lux said, "gave a show of strength." the young Senator started to pace the room. "They will overcome their fear and join us."
"Do you have something in mind?" Ahsoka asked,
"I know the perfect target," Lux said,
A few minutes later…
Esinon pulled her hood over her head, following her Masters, Rex, and Ahsoka out of the building where the rebels were staying.
"I think they're ready to give the 501st some competition," Anakin teased,
"...Let's not get carried away General," Rex replied, Anakin chuckled to himself. "Though these rebels have impressed me."
"We will share these developments with the Jedi council," Obi-Wan said, "Ahsoka and Esinon will remain here as advisors, monitor them and report back to us with their progress," The two padawans bowed to him before Anakin pulled Ahsoka off to the side. Master Kenobi pulled Esinon off a bit too, "Do keep an eye on Ahsoka, she seems a bit… distracted,"
"Of course Master, I will," she replied,
"No Master, I want to stay," Ahsoka said, Obi-Wan turned to the two padawans,
"Good. We should continue to provide supplies and credits, but they must learn to operate on their own." he advised, both of them nodded, "Their survival depends on it,"
"Yes Master," they both replied, Anakin turned to Ahsoka,
"And remember your purpose here," he said, Esinon glanced at Ahsoka and the two of them watched the two Masters and Rex walk away.
"Ahsoka, are you alright?" she whispered, Ahsoka quickly nodded,
"Yeah I'm fine," she replied quickly, Esinon stepped in front of Ahsoka.
"Because you know you can talk to me about it, right?" she said, the togruta nodded,
"We should… probably go back inside," Ahsoka said, Esinon gave her hand a quick reassuring squeeze.
"Ok,"
The next night, Ahsoka and Esinon were laying belly flat on top of a building next to Saw, Steela, and Lux as they looked over the power grid. The blast doors slid open and a squad of droids marched out,
"This power generator feeds substations across the city," Lux said to Steela. "We hit that, the entire grid falls."
"How does that help us?" Steela asked skeptically, "Battle droids are no longer connected to a central hub. They all operate individually,"
"Yes, but they still need power to recharge," Lux replied, "if we take out this facility, it will knock out the power grid, and then it will only be a matter of time until the droid army is brought to a standstill, literally."
"If you carry the plan out by nightfall, you'll maximize your strike capability," Ahsoka said,
"Okay so we just need to figure out how to destroy the power station," Steela said,
"We need to do more surveillance," Lux said, staring out at the crackling power grid.
"Those droids should have all the intel we need stored up in those tin cans, right?" Saw replied, Esinon nodded,
"You just need to get an intact one, and then I- or someone can perform a Robo lobotomy," she replied, Saw grinned at her,
"Then I'll just go get us one," he slid down the roof, disappearing to get a droid. Esinon watched Saw appear on the ground and quickly run-up to a droid. He snuck up behind a squadron of droids and grabbed the head of a straggler. He snapped off the head in one swift motion before running off again. He quickly returned to the roof, before handing over the head to Esinon. Lux opened up a kit for her and she pulled out the wiring and plugged in the droid's head. She shoved the head to Lux,
"Hold that," she said, her fingers flying over the keyboard, rapidly drawing out mounds and mounds of data. Esinon finally extracted the map to the power grid, the rebels peered at the holo map,
"Sentries at every point inside and out," Saw said, motioning to the blinking red lights that represented droids.
"We can't sustain combat against these numbers," Lux said,
"But our size makes us perfect for mobility and surprise," Steela interjected, "We need something with heavy firepower if we are to blow up this facility."
"If we give them enough trouble, they'll call for reinforcements," Lux said,
"Like a tank," Steela finished,
"Exactly," Lux said, "Then you can provide cover while we hijak it."
"And then we use their own weapon against them," Lux pulled the wire out of the droid's head,
"And bring the droid army to its knees," Saw said, Ahsoka glanced at Esinon who gave a slight nod. This plan could work.
Esinon had her back pressed against the wall in an alleyway behind Ahsoka, Saw, and Lux, with Steela on the other side. A couple saw them and Saw put a finger to his lips and shook his head and the couple moved on. A speeder skidded around the corner and a rebel jumped out of the cockpit, a speeder that was full of armed droid disruptors. A platoon of droids marched around the corner,
"Remember the plan," Lux whispered, "We attack this patrol and hopefully they will call in a tank for backup." The droids met the speeder and started to push it forward to get it out of the way. The platoon soon moved around the speeder until they had surrounded it. Saw flagged the rebels on the other side of the street and they pressed the detonator. A flash of light later and half the platoon went down. Saw flagged rebels forward again and they burst into the streets and fired off rounds at the droids taking them out.
"Let's go!" Saw shouted, he and Lux ducked out of the alleyway, blasters blazing. Esinon crossed her arms over her chest and resisted the urge to go and fight, they needed to learn how to do this on their own. They left one droid standing, and it did exactly what they needed it to do. It called reinforcements. Steela only let it get far enough to call for a tank before taking it out.
"Let's hope they send a tank," Ahsoka said, and the two padawans along with Steela ran out into the street. Esinon perked up at a familiar whirring,
"Do you hear that?" She murmured, Ahsoka nodded, knowing exactly what was coming. "They've sent destroyers! Move!" Esinon shouted, sprinting to the cover of the speeder when the droids came rolling around the corner at top speed. They immediately unleashed a barrage of fire, Esinon ignited her lightsaber, jumping on top of the speeder and deflecting bolts. Seconds later she saw Lux and Saw appear behind the destroyers, Saw rolled his droid popper perfectly and took down the first destroyer, Lux's did not. The destroyer sensed it and turned to face them. Saw dove around the destroyer's fire and ducked behind the destroyer. Steela grabbed a droid popper off her belt and sprinted toward the destroyer. She dodged fire and then slid down on the street and placed it through the shield, taking down the destroyer. Esinon replaced her saber on her belt, Ahsoka grabbed Steela's sniper and the two padawans sprinted to Lux, Saw, and Steela.
"Well I've never seen a destroyer taken out that way," Ahsoka joked, handing Steela's sniper over to her.
"We all have to adapt," Steela replied, another whirring sounded and it wasn't one of a destroyer. Esinon felt a jolt of electricity go through her, it was a tank. They had sent a tank!
"There's our tank!" Saw shouted happily, the tank lowered it's canon, firing off a shot.
"Split up!" Esinon shouted, the rebels instantly obeyed, ducking off to separate sides of the streets. Steela took out the B2's guarding the tank one by one before she could get to the last one, it fired a rocket. Esinon ducked away as it exploded near her, her ears were ringing as debris rained over her. Lux and Saw continued to advance until they were right on top of the tank. They both pulled droid poppers off their belts and sprinted onto the tank, making quick work of the droids. Finally, the rebels had their tank.
"Good work," Saw said, "Now let's get this thing up and running again," they all climbed back up the tank. Esinon glowered at Saw when he almost hit her with the droid he threw out of the top. "Sorry!" He climbed into the hatch, getting into the driver's seat. A few more moments past,
"Well, what are you waiting for?" Lux asked,
"Give me a second," Saw replied,
"Do you know what you're doing?"
"Yeah, I know what I'm doing," Saw snapped,
"You boys having a problem?" Steela asked, climbing up to the hatch.
"No. No problem. Why?" her brother asked,
"Well come on, we need to get moving!" Steela replied,
"Hey! Who put you in charge?" Saw snapped,
"This is like you and Fives," Ahsoka whispered, Esinon rolled her eyes,
"Well he is my brother," she replied, "And you're the same way with Rex,"
"You're the same way with Boil," Ahsoka shot back with a smirk,
"I could do this all night-" she was about to continue when she was interrupted when Steela climbed into the hatch of the tank and it jolted slightly.
"Couldn't have done it better myself," Saw said, Steela rolled her eyes and climbed out of the tank and Saw climbed back in. The tank moved forward and all of the rebels took a position on the tank as they rode towards the glittering power grid.
"I'll draw their fire," Steela said, jumping off the tank when they got close,
"Good luck," Lux said,
"I'll cover you," Ahsoka added, hopping off the tank and following Steela.
"Guess that means you're stuck with me," Esinon joked, the tank continued for a few more moments.
"We're almost in position," Saw said into his comlink, "Ready when you are Steela." A blue bolt shot through the night, nailing a droid through the head.
"A sniper!" A droid cried, "Get her!" Another droid went down,
"Roger, Roger," Steela took out droid after droid as red blaster fire lit up the night. Saw turned the tank towards the droids and Esinon heard one of them yell,
"Look! Reinforcements have arrived!" she smirked as Saw popped out of the hatch and waved at the droids. "Hey! You're not a droid. Get down from there!" Saw plowed through the platoon of droids towards the doors of the power grid. In one shot he blew the doors off, he fired again blasting off the second pair of doors. White optics flickered in the night as commando droids flipped out of the shadows and began to attack them.
"Fire the gun!" Steela shouted as she plastered herself against the tank and fired multiple shots at the commandos.
"It's recharging!" Saw shot back, a commando leapt up on the tank and grabbed Lux's shirt and slammed him against the tank, Esinon pulled her dagger out of her boot, as the commando slammed Lux again.
"Bonteri! Duck!" she shouted, Lux instantly dropped as Esinon leapt over him and tackled the commando droid, stabbing her dagger straight through its heart,
"Watch out!" Lux shouted Esinon threw the dagger behind her without looking, nailing another commando before calling the dagger back to her hand. "You're kinda terrifying, you know that right?" he asked, continuing to fire at the commandos, Esinon smirked drawing her saber and tucking the dagger in her belt.
"Yeah, you should be glad I don't use it one you," she said, deflecting a bolt and hitting a droid straight through the optic with scary accuracy. Lux raised his eyebrows and held up a hand in a placating gesture. "Good choice Senator,"
"You're all clear!" Steela called, Saw fired multiple shots at the power grid, and Esinon dove behind the tank at the electrical discharge. The power grid went up in smoke and the entire city went dark. Esinon pulled down her goggles over her eyes to be able to see in the dark and ran off with the rebels,
"Looks like all that training is paying off," Ahsoka said through their private com channel,
"You know for only a crash course they're doing pretty well, meet you at the rendezvous."
Esinon and Ahsoka watched as the rebels took out pod after pod of droids, the droids were instantly confused in the new change of environment. They weren't built to adapt. And then an amazing thing happened. The people of Onderon started to cheer, to yell encouragement.
"It's the rebels!"
"Fight for Onderon!"
"They're destroying the droids!"
"Freedom!"
"Fight for freedom!"
"Destroy the droids!" A chorus of freedom rang through the streets of Onderon that night.
"It's working," Esinon whispered,
"The rebels have given the people something that the droids never did." Ahsoka began, starting to walk off, "hope,"
A few hours later...
Esinon stood next to Ahsoka looking out over the crowd of happy rebels.
"Show those droids what we're worth!" Saw cheered happily,
"We must celebrate," Steela said,
"With pleasure," her brother replied, picking up his sister and spinning her around. When Saw set her down Steela walked over to Lux,
"Come here you handsome Senator," she embraced him in a hug that lasted way longer than a normal one would, and Esinon saw the annoyed look on Ahsoka's face. The jealous look. She turned her attention back to Steela and Lux who were still embraced, it was like when she and Korkie had hugged in public before they were dating. Suddenly she was missing her boyfriend, she should call him when this mission ended.
"Ahsoka," Anakin murmured, trying to make his voice low enough for only his padawan to hear but Esinon was too close. "Remember what I told you about being focused?"
"I can't help it, Master," Ahsoka replied honestly,
"I understand," Anakin replied, Esinon's heart beat a little faster. What did he mean? Was she reading too far between the lines, or did he mean it was normal for lifeforms? Which also begged the question of why they had the no attachment rule. Her relationship with Korkie, Fives, her own Masters could be considered attachments and they had been nothing but good for her.
"You do?" Ahsoka asked,
"I do. But remember, always put your purpose above your feelings." he reminded her. Ahsoka nodded as Master Kenobi's hologram stepped forward,
"This latest development will surely get Count Dooku's attention. He will respond harshly. They will stop at nothing to find you. You must adapt and continue to confront them in order to liberate Onderon."
"We will," Saw said,
"And we will win," Steela said,
"In that, I have no doubt," Obi-Wan replied, with a soft smile on his face. Anakin stepped forward next,
"You must rally the people next, you will need their support. Your ability to influence them will also determine your capacity to represent them. Not only on the battlefield but also off of it, against your enemies, even in your own ranks. Your commitment will inspire others. Your conviction will lead to victory."
"After tonight's efforts the people will be ready to follow," Obi-Wan finished, "You will need a leader for them to rally behind." he purposely looked at Steela, making it clear that was his suggestion for their leader. Esinon noticed Rex doing the same. Steela didn't seem to notice and instead looked expectantly up at her older brother.
A few minutes later…
"We need to build our momentum," Saw said, "And continue our attacks to keep them off their balance."
"We have to assure people of our intention. If we keep disrupting their lives, we risk alienating them." Lux said, "We have to gain their trust,"
"I agree with both of you," Steela said, "We can balance both. We also need to recruit others to join us." She turned to the other rebels in the room. "Onderon is ours. We will remind everyone and keep reminding them until we get it back!" She pumped a victorious fist into the air. A chorus of 'Onderon is ours' and 'freedom' chanted into the air, Steela certainly knew how to give a pep talk.
"All in favor of Steela as our leader!" a rebel in the back yelled, "raise your hand!" every hand in the room went into the air,
"Okay," Saw said, "It's been decided, you're our leader," he clapped her shoulder before downing the rest of his drink and storming out of the room.
"Saw!" Steela started to head after her brother, but Lux grabbed her arm.
"Let him go, he just needs to blow off some steam. He'll be back," Steela finally nodded,
"I'll be back," Esinon whispered to Ahsoka before slipping out. She followed Saw's fuming force signature up to the roof where he was sitting on the opposite edge, watching the streets below. "Mind if I join you?" she asked, walking towards him and waiting for his approval before sitting down next to him. Saw gave a huff before conceding and she sat down.
"What do you want?" he asked, pulling his infrared goggles down over his eyes and fiddling with his blaster.
"You know you can't see the stars with those on," Esinon said, flopping onto her back and staring at the expanse of galaxy that lay above her.
"They're the stars, I see them every night," Saw said grumpily, "I thought you'd see enough stars on those fancy cruisers you Jedi ride around in."
"Trust me Saw, you never miss something until it's gone," he glanced at her, pushing up his goggles,
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"I didn't realize how much the stars meant to me until I couldn't see them anymore. Being put into a coal factory and slavery gives you perspective on a lot of things." Saw glanced at her,
"That was you?" he asked slowly, Esinon hummed,
"Yep, I was a slave for two weeks. Got all the scars to prove it," she replied, Saw flopped down next to her,
"There a point to all of this talk about stars, or are you saying that I should become a slave to get perspective," he asked, Esinon rolled her eyes.
"I've learned a lot of things while being in this war as long as I have." She sat up and stared down at him, "People are there one day and gone the next. Don't fight with your sister, I know you're upset that people don't want you as a leader anymore but that's not something you can control. Your sister could die tomorrow and I'm telling you right now that if you are going to be part of open war, you better go into it with no regrets." she said sternly, "I called a clone I consider my brother this morning and said goodbye because I don't know if I'm going to come back. You never know Saw. I've seen entire platoons get wiped out on standard ops. When you live in wartime you have to live every single second of your life as if it's going to be your last. I hate Lux Bonteri with every fiber of my being for messing up those peace negotiations- my entire kriffing future- but I have saved his life more than once because I don't want Lux to die tomorrow and have known that I didn't make an effort to protect him. That's something that only experience has taught me."
"It's because you're selfless." Saw said, "I could tell you didn't like Bonteri from the moment we appeared in front of the Jedi Council, but that would never stop you, because you're selfless. Me- I'm not like you. I look out for myself,"
"I wouldn't say that," she replied, flopping back down next to him. "You put together an entire rebellion to get your planet back. You're doing this for your people, not yourself. And sure, you have some selfish tendencies, all lifeforms do. It's our nature to look out for ourselves, but it is the truly noble people in the galaxy that push past their base instincts for the interest of others."
"Is that one of the requirements to be a Jedi?" Saw asked in a joking tone, Esinon glanced at him. "Well, my mom used to say that that was the Jedi's main purpose, to be an example of selflessness." She paused for a moment,
"Yeah… I guess that does make sense,"
"What? Have you never been told that before?" Saw asked, Esinon shook her head.
"I was assigned as a padawan during an active battle. All I've known outside the temple walls is war. So… I'm told that I am a peacekeeper, but I don't think that's realistic. I know I'm a soldier, I hold military rank. But maybe… selflessness. That's what Jedi should aspire for," the two sat for a few minutes in silence, "But Saw, maybe the selfless thing is let Steela be the leader, do something for your people. Do whatever you need to do to get Onderon back." Saw sat up,
"I guess you're right," he replied, "Thanks Commander," he started to get up and head back towards the room below.
"You can call me Esinon," she replied,
"Alright Esinon, thanks," she gave him a nod as he disappeared over the side of the building.
Alright, alright, alright, I finally started picking up speed on this arc! I finished writing it last night.
Next up on let's make this canon corner: not relevant but, Esinon loves swimming because of Nadar and Master Fisto
Thank you for reading and make sure to leave a review!