Hera watched the familiar blue vortex of hyperspace before her. The moment of truth would be revealed once they exited into normal space. Either the Force would be with them or not.

Kanan must have sensed her anxieties, because he was standing behind her now. She felt him gather her hand in his supporting one. Hera squeezed it back.

Eventually, the churning blue gave way to the usual black abyss dotted with distant stars as they came to their final destination. The rogue planet hung silently above them as it continued its mysterious journey through space.

There was nothing else here.

"Wait, what's that?" Sabine examined the blinking icon on her screen.

Hera looked at her console, "It's a ship."

"The Devastator?" Kanan asked, unable to sense the Star Destroyer.

"No, its small. No bigger than the Ghost." Sabine zoomed in to get a better look. It was an old and worn cargo vessel. Sabine had seen maybe one or two like it over the years, but she had never known it's class or origin.

"They're hailing us," Hera activated the comm to receive the message.

A heavily modified voice announced, "Neteru to Ghost, prepare to dock immediately."

"What?"

"We need to hurry before Vader appears. Also, you will need to move Kanan and Ezra to the galley for now." the voice emphasized.

Hera hit the response switch, "Who are you?" she demanded.

"Just call me Fulcrum."

Hera muted her line, "Fulcrum?"

"We haven't had a new Fulcrum since Kallus. Could it be him?" Sabine asked.

Both women looked to Kanan. He was trying hard to sense who was in the other ship. Ezra got up to help him. After straining, they finally gave up.

"I can't sense anything on that ship." Kanan admitted.

"Could it be a droid?" Hera inquired.

"Maybe. But-"

"I couldn't sense a single thing! Not even the ship!" Ezra noted with alarm, "How is that possible? Is that ship even real?"

They all watched as the Neteru drew closer, intending on docking with the Ghost's left port.

"Hera, don't let it get so close!" Ezra panicked.

"I think we should give them a chance." Hera said.

"What?!"

She stood and turned to Ezra, "The way I see it, the odds are 50-50. Either this is an elaborate trap, or it's someone willing to help. Considering we have a Star Destroyer on our tail, I'm open to taking a gamble on this option." Time was short and she'd made up her mind, "Kanan and Ezra, wait in the galley. Chopper, stay plugged in here and prepare for evasive maneuvers on my command."

Chopper saluted.

Hera handed Kanan a comlink.

"Are you sure about this?" he asked.

"The Force led you here, right?" Hera grabbed a lightweight oxygen mask and pack. She began putting it on.

"Yeah, but it didn't mention a ship."

"Aren't you always saying that the Force rarely shows a complete picture? I'm willing to trust it if you are."

Kanan exhaled slowly, his lips curving upwards. Normally he was the one attempting to convince her to trust in the Force. Having the roles reversed on this matter was oddly satisfying and brought a calmness he hadn't realized he needed. He nodded his agreement.

Hera grabbed another oxygen pack combo and began to head out the cockpit door.

Ezra and Sabine followed. Near the top gunner's ladder, Hera called to Zeb to join her. She handed him the other oxygen mask, "Bring your weapon but don't shoot until I do."

Zeb looked at the mask, "Are we expecting company directly from space?"

"Not sure. I wanted to be prepared just in case." she held up her gun, "Zeb and Sabine, you're with me."

"I really don't like this." Ezra stated once more.

Sabine put on her helmet, "Got any better ideas?"

Ezra thought for a moment then slowly shook his head. He reached out and briefly placed a hand on her shoulder, "Just be careful, ok?"

"Don't worry, I got this." she held up both her guns and moved to follow Hera.

Kanan called for Ezra. Both Jedi moved to the galley as Fulcrum had ordered. From this room, Ezra couldn't see around the 90 degree turn to the docking port, where Sabine and the others were. They could barely hear anything either.

"Kanan, we're not really going to stay here, are we?" Ezra whispered to him.

"Until Hera tells us otherwise, yes we are."

"Do you really trust this person? We can't even sense them or their ship!"

"No, but I trust Hera."

They heard the loud clang of docking clamps interlocking. Hera, Zeb, and Sabine got ready by the door.

Suddenly Kanan's panicked voice came over the comlink, "Hera, the Devastator's here!"

There was no time to answer him as the door began to open. Hera kept her aim steady. What greeted them on the other side was certainly a surprise, "It can't be."

"Ahs-!" Sabine was cut off by Ahsoka's finger coming firmly to her lips in a universal gesture of be quiet.

"It's imperative," Ahsoka said in a hushed voice, "you can't let Ezra or Kanan know I'm here or this whole rescue operation will fail."

"Why?" asked Zeb.

They felt the ships shudder suddenly, and everyone grabbed hold of something to keep their balance. Hera's comlink buzzed again. This time it was Chopper warbling an alarm.

"Take evasive maneuvers Chopper, but keep in mind, we're still attached to the other ship." Hera told the droid.

Chopper acknowledged and turned off the link. A second later, they felt the ships lurch again.

"We need to go," Ahsoka warned, "Hera, I need you to tell Kanan and Ezra that we're going to the third planet on the Efraynut system. Don't tell them about me just yet. I'll have my ship tow both of ours there. Zeb, go to the cockpit and tell Chopper to prepare for the jump. Sabine, come with me."

Sabine and Zeb looked to Hera. She nodded her concurrence, "Let's move!"

They separated to carry out Ahsoka's plan.

Hera met Kanan and Ezra in the galley. They were on their knees, struggling against Vader's attack. She hated seeing them like this. It nearly distracted her from her task. Taking off her oxygen mask, she keyed up the flow and held it to Kanan's mouth, hoping the extra oxygen would ease his breathing.

"Kanan, listen to me, we're getting towed to the third planet on the Efraynut system."

He didn't give any obvious response and she didn't expect one.

Glancing over her shoulder at the hallway which eventually connected to Ahsoka's ship, she prayed for her haste silently.

Then she returned her attention to the Jedi and shared some oxygen with Ezra, "Just hang on."

Sabine followed Ahsoka onto the Neteru. On their way to the cockpit, she passed by several curious structures, each with a strange animal resting on the artificial branches.

"What are these?"

"Come," Ahsoka urged her to keep up, "I'll explain later."

When they arrived at the cockpit, Ahsoka took the pilot's seat and Sabine took the copilot's.

"Watch what I do closely," Ahsoka pointed at the controls.

"Are you going to have me pilot this?"

"If everything goes well, yes."

Sabine observed the older woman maneuver the star ship into an opening and punch in the jump coordinates. The final control brought the stars streaking as both the Ghost and Neteru escaped the Imperials' last laser bolt into hyperspace.

In the safety of lightspeed travel, Ahsoka released a breath. Then she rose from her seat, "We still need to hurry. I need your help moving the cages to the Ghost."

Sabine followed her out of the cockpit and into the hallway that widened to double as a cargo bay on the small ship, "I still have so many questions. How are you even alive? - For one."

"I thought Ezra would have explained that to you by now." Ahsoka strained to lift one of the cages with Sabine.

"No he didn't." Sabine grunted against the awkward weight. They made their way slowly through the docking port, scraping the bottom of the structure.

From the galley, Hera heard the grating echo of metal on metal.

"What is that?" Kanan asked, slowly lowering his hands which had reflexively come up to cover his ears at the noise.

"Stay here, I'll find out." Hera left them. She followed the sound down the hallway. When she reached the docking port, she found Sabine and Ahsoka moving a bewildering structure towards her. "What the-?"

Ahsoka set her side of the cage down, and Sabine did the same.

"This is close enough." Ahsoka said, keeping her voice quiet, "Hera, can you bring Ezra and Kanan here? Then I can explain everything."

Kanan had considered breaking his promise and running after Hera as soon as she mysteriously disappeared from his Farsight. Only Ezra's reassurance that he could still see her in the hallway and the sound of her too-quiet-to-discern questions kept him from bolting out of the galley. When she came back, it was as if she suddenly popped into existence. Kanan found the whole experience jarring, "Hera, what is going on?"

Hera sent a sympathetic gaze to him and Ezra, "The only way I can tell you is to show you. Come with me."

"Hold on!" Ezra stopped them, "I can't sense Sabine at all anymore. I can't even sense that part of the Ghost! I'm not going anywhere until you explain!"

"I can't without jeopardizing our survival." Hera stated, crossing her arms.

They heard a sound and all turned their attention to the end of the hallway. Zeb had exited the cockpit and walked down to where the docking port was visible to him. "Whoa!" he exclaimed in bewildered surprise.

Kanan was certain that reaction piqued Ezra's curiosity as much as his own.

Hera seemed to realize that as well, "Are you ready to check it out?" she asked the younger Jedi.

Kanan could sense the younger man's resistance finally resolve. Ezra gave the slightest nod. They followed Hera towards the hallway. Ezra's tension matched his. Both Jedi kept their hands close to their lightsabers as they walked.

When they crossed the edge of the void in the ship, Kanan suddenly lost all spacial awareness. He knelt down to feel the ground, partially to make sure it was still there and partially to see if he could still sense anything.

Hera turned to him, "Love, are you alright?"

"I'm completely blind."

Beside him he heard the snap-hiss as Ezra ignited his lightsaber. Before Zeb or anyone could stop him, Ezra charged to the intersecting hallway, weapon raised. What he saw halted him in his tracks.

"Ahso-mfff?!"

Sabine's hand darted up to cover his mouth.

"It's alright," Ahsoka told her, "They're both in the bubble now; safe from Vader's tracking."

Kanan was close enough to hear Ahsoka's voice clearly. He couldn't believe it. She was here. She was alive!

"Wait, you know how Vader was tracking us?" Ezra turned off his lightsaber just after Sabine removed her hand from his mouth.

"I know he's using the Force to listen through your ears and see through your eyes. I don't know the exact method he's using, but I've seen the results through visions."

"And these creatures deprive Jedi from using the Force somehow?" Hera crowded into the hallway, leading Kanan by the hand.

Ahsoka turned to her, "Not just Jedi. These ysalamiri push back the Force. Anyone inside their bubble is cut off from using the Force, and also cut off from having the Force used against them."

"So to Vader, it will seem like we just disappeared suddenly?" Kanan asked.

"If he was watching you at that moment, then yes. I wanted to keep him in the dark as much as possible about the ysalamiri. And he can't know that I'm alive. That's why I couldn't let you know what was going on."

Kanan understood, but there was still something that bothered him, "Could he piece together what happened based on what we heard and felt, as far as the void in your ship?"

"I don't think he'll ruminate on it too much if we execute the next part of the plan well. First, I need you all to bring the ysalamiri aboard the Ghost. I also have fuel for you."

"Wow, you've really planned ahead." Hera noted.

"I've had two years to plan. I saw your peril in visions, and I've had time to find what I needed to help out."

"'Help out?' You've saved us!" Sabine emphasized.

"You're not safe yet. Come, let's get everything onboard."

The Spectres got to work.

They had the rest of the ysalamiri cages and supplies moved to the Ghost in no time, mostly thanks to Zeb and Chopper's strength. Ezra and Kanan were finding it much harder to move the heavy cages without the Force. By the second one, Kanan was wishing Ahsoka had bothered to put repulsorlifts on them.

The ysalamiri were placed strategically around the ship, covering every centimeter, so that Ezra and Kanan could move freely while still being protected inside the creatures' anti-Force bubbles.

Zeb, Ezra, and Chopper finished changing out the fuel containers on the Ghost.

In the Neteru's cockpit, Ahsoka finished going over the next phase with Sabine and Hera. Sabine had just received a crash course on the Neteru's controls, and the sequence she was to execute.

"Remember, we have to do this all before the Devastator appears, or the deception will fail." Ahsoka said.

"Right," Sabine gazed over the unfamiliar controls again, "No pressure."

"Are you sure you don't want me to do it instead? I've flown a craft like this before. I could do it in no time." Hera offered.

Ahsoka considered for a moment, "True, but to return to the Ghost, you'll need use of an oxygen mask and jet-pack."

"And the oxygen combos the Ghost has are very flammable with jet-packs." Sabine noted.

"Alright." Hera conceded, placing a hand on the younger woman's shoulder "Will you be ok?"

"Yeah," Sabine tried to sound assured, but her voice faltered. "Yeah," She corrected with more confidence, "I've got this."

"Then let's get into position."

Sabine watched, alone in the empty Neteru, as the ship dropped out of hyperspace.

"Ok, you can do this." she told herself, reaching for the first control. A satisfying sound came from the right side of the ship. "Docking clamp disengaged." she said into the comm.

"Copy Spectre 5. Good work." Hera's voice replied.

Now the hard part.

Sabine gently pushed the awkward rod designed for non-human hands. The Neteru responded, taking her closer to her intended target; the moon.

The three planets of the Efraynut system were dead rocks. No atmosphere, no life, and nothing of value to mine. The third planet was the largest. It's moon was equally uninteresting and considerably smaller. The perfect place for hiding an old, decrepit VCX-100 light freighter.

Staring at the battered duplicate of her home ship gave Sabine a shiver. Even though it was the same model as the Ghost, it didn't have nearly all of the upgrades nor a Phantom. Would this copy be enough to fool Vader? There was no time to question it nor time to come up with alternative plans.

"Give it some juice, Spectre 5, we're on a schedule." Hera said impatiently.

Flustered, Sabine grumbled but increased the acceleration. She slowed considerably right before reaching the moon's surface. Then began the painfully slow process of docking with it.

"Starboard. Starboard more. Now back," Hera told her as she watched from the Ghost, orbiting overhead.

There was a loud bang as the Neteru overshot and bumped into the freighter.

"Careful!" Hera scolded.

Sabine was tired of her micromanagement, "Just let me do this ok?!"

A couple more seconds and Sabine got it. She hit the docking clamp controls with a successful whoop.

After powering up the old freighter through the docking connection, Sabine sent the instructions for it to work with the Neteru and see it as the master ship. Now joined, Sabine maneuvered the two ships towards the asteroid field just beyond the third planet. There, giant rocks moved at great speed. Colliding with each other and scattering debris the size of small ships. Sabine had to admit, Ahsoka's plan was really promising. This was the perfect way to destroy the two ships, while dissuading any Imperial onlookers from entering the field to retrieve any remaining evidence for deep analysis.

"Ok," she took a moment to remember which controls to touch next. Moving the ships away from the gravity well of the moon, Sabine set a course into the heart of the erratic rock cluster. She checked the status display once more to make sure the autopilot was engaged.

Hera, ever the expert at judging flight movements, had recognized Sabine's last task was complete, "Good. Now come on home, Spectre 5."

"Copy that."

Sabine moved out of her seat. En route to the Neteru's left port, she heard a loud bang. The ship's acceleration compensators failed briefly, throwing her onto the ground.

"Spectre 5, are you alright?!" beyond Hera's call, Sabine could hear Ezra's worried voice murmuring something to the others.

"I'm fine." she answered, "Just a little ... dizzy." she didn't understand why she felt that way. She was wearing her helmet when she fell, and it didn't seem like she hit her head that hard.

Shaking off the feeling, Sabine reached for the override lever which would open the left port. But nothing happened. Instead, a low chime emanated from the lever's status display. The display itself printed out a generic error.

"Um, I might have a problem; the door's stuck."

"Spectre 5, the Neteru's port was hit by an asteroid. Both ships are spinning at a high speed." Hera responded, and in the background, there were sounds of Ahsoka murmuring hurried orders to the others.

"How high? ..." curious, Sabine moved back to the cockpit to take a look. She wished she hadn't. The whole view port was spinning on an unbalanced axis, and indeed, it was at a very high speed. Sabine thought she might be sick soon, so she glanced away.

"Hang on Spectre 5, help is on the way. Just stay clear of the left docking port for a second."

"Copy that." Sabine sighed. Why couldn't things ever go smoothly for once?

Ahsoka led the way down the corridor to the Ghost's right docking port. Behind her, Zeb hefted the ysalamiri cage he took from its strategic position just outside the cockpit. Kanan and Ezra followed them, staying close to remain under the creature's Force-cover. A press of the control opened the Ghost's door and activated its energy field.

Ezra reeled at the dizzying sight before him. Hera was doing an amazing job at keeping the Ghost aligned with the spinning ships, and not getting sick herself. The stars and asteroids beyond whizzed by at an incredible velocity.

Steadying herself with a hold on the inside of the ship, Ahsoka reached out into space, and ignited her lightsaber. The tip of it barely reached the Neteru's damaged port. She stretched further, and Zeb and Ezra held onto her as she carefully made three cuts into the broken door of the other ship. They pulled Ahsoka back as the triangular piece of crumpled metal popped out with a burst of the Neteru's atmosphere.

Inside the Neteru, Sabine felt the wind from the exiting air pull her briefly towards the left port. Turning her attention, she saw a new, three-sided hole in the damaged door. Beyond it, Ahsoka and the others beckoned her soundlessly.

Hera looked at the chronometer. She commed her team and snapped, "Hurry it up! We have less than 30 seconds before the Devastator appears!"

Sabine ran to the opening. It was tight, but she managed to squeeze through. Hera began a countdown from ten as Sabine ignited her jet-pack, and zipped across open space. She cut the jet's engine just as she entered the Ghost's energy field, bowling over her friends into a big dog pile.

Apologies and curses mixed while Ahsoka struggled to sit up and hit the door closed. Gripping the comlink, she told Hera, "We got her! Go!"

The Ghost spiraled away from the two ships, dodging another asteroid before jumping away into hyperspace.

Not one second later, the Devastator appeared.

Vader and the Imperials watched as the two spiraling ships were obliterated by a broad asteroid.

Just before it happened, Vader reached out with the Force, trying to sense the Jedis' final thoughts. But the Force showed him nothing.

The Sith Lord was brought back to the present by the captain's cautiously repeated question to him, "Shall I have a shuttle gather the remains, sir?"

Vader gazed once more at the wreckage, now in tinier pieces thanks to subsequent colliding asteroids.

The careless deaths of these foolish rebels and their Jedi did little to quell the still-simmering anger from their taunts. His mission was complete. The Emperor would be pleased. Yet it still felt like a hollow victory. They died to an accident instead of by his hand. Most dissatisfying.

Vader thought briefly about agreeing with the captain's recommendation, with minor changes to the away team assignments. Sending a shuttle out with the incompetent gunners, and then using it as target practice might assuage his frustration a little. But unfortunately, there was a more urgent matter to attend to.

The Devastator jumped away, leaving the wreckage of the Neteru and the VCX-100 light freighter behind.