Act 2

4 Zero Station

Five years after the Battle of Endor and the Destruction of the Second Death Star

Hoth - Zero Station

Silent, Thrawn stood before the sleeping form locked in the ancient stasis chamber studying the man held inside. The stasis chamber was designed to render a person in a comatose state, a holdover from the old Sith Empire. The subject would continue to grow and age normally (for their given species) but remain in 'death-like sleep.'

Thrawn contemplated the image before him. It's living art: the fate of the Jedi, locked in stasis, just like young Ezra here.

Ah, Bridger. It is too bad that you would not see the beauty in my grand design. Even now, the Moffs wage war amongst themselves. Which one will come out victorious? They are all fools. Soon, it will be time to strike. Time to make myself known to the fledgling New Republic. All the pieces are lined up in perfect order, and all I have to do is make my move.

Then, checkmate.

"Grand Admiral Thrawn."

The droid's mechanical voice broke his reverie. "Yes? Has everything been prepared?"

"Affirmative, master."

Thrawn nodded to himself. "And, have the sleeper agents been moved into position?"

The red droid's photoreceptors flashed menacingly. "Affirmative, master. All is ready. Simply speak the passcode, and they will awaken."

"Very good, HK-77. Let us proceed."

"Query: will we be bringing the Jedi with us?" The rust-colored droid glared at the unconscious man hovering in the ancient stasis chamber.

"No, HK. He will remain here, hidden away." Thrawn chuckled softly. "Best to be cautious, though. Leave a few squads to guard him, in case anyone gets too curious."

With that, Thrawn turned on his heel and strode to the communications hub located on the second level of the underground station. He smoothed down his white suit before flipping several switches activating the com-station.

The aide at his side nodded that all was ready - all he had to do was speak the passcode into the system. It would be aired out over the galaxy to all their sleeper agents that he had meticulously put into place over the last ten years, precisely for this moment.

"Onomatophobia."

He took the proffered datapad from his aide and began studying the readouts. "Excellent. It appears our wait has paid off. The sleeper agents have all awakened and are accepting their new assignments without fail."

He clipped the datapad onto his belt. "Have my shuttle prepped and ready for launch."

The station erupted in a flurry of activity as they prepared to depart. Thrawn strode purposefully back to the stasis chamber holding Ezra and smiled.

Everything is going according to plan. Checkmate, indeed.

#

Ezra dreams

"Mom," Ezra called out as he entered the tiny house. "We're back."

Sabine stood shyly behind him. "Ezra, are you sure about this? Maybe it's too soon."

Ezra turned and pulled her into his arms. "I promise you, it'll be fine. They'll love you. Just like I do."

He grinned down at her before kissing her softly. They pulled apart swiftly at the sound of quick approaching footfalls.

"Ezra!" Mira Bridger exclaimed. "Finally! I've been so worried about you." She smiled warmly at Sabine. "And, who do we have here, Ezra?"

"Mom, this is Sabine." He grinned boyishly at his mother while wrapping his arm around Sabine's shoulders. "My wife."

#

An uncharted Planet located on the outskirts of Wild Space

Sabine studied the remains of the downed star destroyer. She turned to Rex, shaking her head. "I don't understand, Rex. At first glance, it looks like the ship crashed. Do you see those scorch marks? Those were done by an ion cannon."

Rex took the macro binoculars from her. "Yeah, you're right," he grumbled. "Those marks are old, but damage like that came from someone opening fire on her, not from a crash landing."

Ahsoka felt a slight ripple in the Force and held out her elbow for Morai. "They came from Thrawn."

"Thrawn?" Sabine asked, taken aback. "Why would he do that?"

Rex scratched his white beard. "Several reasons. For one, it could be that he was covering his tail."

Ahsoka nodded. "Yes, I think you might be right, Rex. I did some digging on Thrawn after Ezra saved me from…." Her voice trailed off, the memory of her fight with Vader still a fresh wound, even after all these years.

Morai chirped in sympathy.

Ahsoka sighed. "As I was saying. I looked into Thrawn. I believe he was covering his tracks."

Sabine wanted to curse. Loudly. They'd come all this way… after months of searching, she thought this would be it. She thought for sure this was where he would be waiting for them...for her.

Rex cleared his throat softly. "I hate to be the one to say this, but we need to search the wreckage for clues."

Sabine narrowed her eyes. "You mean, search the wreckage for Ezra's body. He's alive, Rex. I know it! I can feel it."

Ahsoka and Rex shared a knowing look that didn't go unnoticed by Sabine.

"C'mon! Ahsoka! You know you feel it too." Sabine said.

Ahsoka sighed. "I want to believe he's alive, but Sabine...I haven't been able to sense him in the Force in a long time. Rex is right. We have to prepare ourselves for the worse."

Sabine hung her head. They were right; she just didn't want to believe it.

#

Lothal

Sabine grew restless from waiting. She hated waiting. It seemed like in the past ten years that was all she did was wait. Wait for Ezra.

After having a small measure of success finding the crash site of the Chimaera, Sabine thought perhaps the wait was over.

But she was wrong. The surrounding area showed no signs of recent activity, Thrawn or Ezra.

It was as if they simply vanished.

They had to call off their search and return to Lothal empty-handed, and Sabine went back to watching over Lothal.

#

Sabine had just returned to her small apartment in Capital City when she heard the holo-table chime alerting an incoming call. She dropped the bags in the hallway and rushed to answer. Ahsoka flickered to life before her in shades of blue.

"Ahsoka! Have you found something?!" Her heart was racing so fast, she thought it might burst from her chest.

Ahsoka smiled. "Yes, I have. I ran into one of Thrawn's apprentices. Does the name Morgan Elsbeth ring any bells to you?"

Morgan Elsbeth? Sabine shook her head. "No, I can't say it does. Who is she?"

Ahsoka crossed her arms over her chest. "A Nightsister from Dathomir. I thought they had all perished during the end of the Clone Wars, but I was wrong. She survived and has been helping the Empire build up their Imperial Starfleet. According to my intel, she worked under Thrawn before his disappearance. Since the fall of the Empire, she's become notorious for plundering worlds and destroying them in the process. I heard a rumor she was on Corvus, acting as their local governor."

Sabine frowned. "Did she have any information regarding Thrawn? Has she heard anything about Ezra?"

Ahsoka smiled. "She did. I'm en route to Lothal now. I've contacted Rex. He's meeting us on Lothal. We'll travel to the Hoth system together."

Sabine thought she misheard her. "Wait...did you say the Hoth system?"

"Yes," Ahsoka said. "I'll tell you more when I arrive."

Her holo-image flickered out, leaving Sabine to wonder...the Hoth system? What in the blazes would Thrawn be doing out there?

#

A chime rang through the small apartment.

Sabine's head popped up from the crate she was packing. Chopper's excited beeps and trills could be heard through the closed doorway, causing Sabine to dash toward the door. "Chopper?!"

She was plowed down by a nine-year-old green-haired boy. "Auntie 'Bine!"

"Jacen?!" Sabine whirled him around in a circle. "You've gotten so big!"

The boy giggled as she twirled him in another circle.

"That he has." Hera Syndulla grinned as she leaned on the threshold of the doorway. "Hello, Sabine."

Sabine hugged the child before letting him slide down and pull his mother in for a hug. "Hera!"

"You didn't think I'd let you bring him home without me, did you?" Hera asked as she returned the hug.

"Oh, Hera. I'm so glad you're here." Sabine said as she wiped away a happy tear.

#

Sabine's apartment had never been so full. Not only did Hera arrive with Jacen and Chopper in tow, but she had contacted Zeb Orrelios and Alexsandr Kallus as well. They had just arrived from Lira San and were ready to help in any way that they could.

Sabine grinned at the return of her Ghost family. They were all here. Everyone except Kanan and Ezra. She thought Kanan was still with them in spirit, watching over them.

Hera sent Jacen and Chopper off to play when Ahsoka and Rex arrived to begin the debriefing.

"According to Morgan Elsbeth - when she last heard from Thrawn, he was at a remote military outpost located on Hoth called Zero Station," Ahsoka reported.

Rex frowned. "Hoth? I don't recall there ever being a military outpost on Hoth. Well, other than Echo Base, and that we had to practically carve out of a wall of ice! Hell, we didn't even venture out onto that frozen waste of a planet back in the Clone Wars!"

Kallus nodded in agreement. "Yes, I've never heard of such a station on Hoth. There was no mention of any such station in the Imperial records."

Ahsoka nodded. "From what Elsbeth said, this military outpost was created thousands of years ago by the Chiss Ascendancy. It has been kept secret and hidden away from the Republic and later from the Empire."

Sabine sighed. "So, supposedly - this Zero Station is where Thrawn has been hiding? Right in the Outer Rim all along?"

"Sometimes, the easiest place to hide is in plain sight," Ahsoka said softly.

Zeb slid his arm around Kallus' shoulders and grunted softly in agreement.

Sabine's frown deepened as she paced. "I still don't understand why we just can't use the portals to grab him out of there before the purrgil runs off with Thrawn."

It was times like these that Ahsoka wished Kanan was still here. "Sabine, we've been over this. We cannot use the portals to change someone's fate. If we take him out of that moment, then everything he hoped to accomplish could not come to pass. There's a possibility that you all wouldn't have been saved. He knew that going in...he knew what he had to do. That he had to let go."

"But…" Sabine swallowed hard. "But he used it to save you. Why can't we do the same?"

Ahsoka sighed. "Maybe it was never my fate to die that day at the hands of Vader. Maybe what happened was already a part of my destiny. Either way, I returned to my timeline and used that time to search for answers. To learn. If we take him out of that moment, it could undo everything he worked so hard for."

Hera laid a calming hand on Sabine's shoulder. "Sabine, listen to her. She's right. You know Kanan would have said the same thing."

Sabine nodded. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's load up and go find this Zero Station if it exists at all."

#

Icefall Plains, Hoth

Zero Station

The wind howled across the icy plain as they left the warmth of the ship behind them.

Chopper and Jacen waved from the top of the ramp, with Hera keeping a firm grip on her son's shoulder.

Sabine shuddered against the cold as she sat down on the frigid seat of the speeder bike.

"You didn't tell me it was going to be this cold," Zeb grumbled from behind Kallus' back.

Kallus shook his head and chuckled softly. "We all told you, Zeb."

Zeb grumbled under his breath but leaned closer to wrap his arms around Kallus' waist.

Ahsoka and Rex were already seated on their shared speeder, waiting patiently.

"It shouldn't be too far from here, Zeb," Ahsoka said as she pulled the hood of her fur-lined coat over the top of her montrals. "Hera got us as close as she could. Sabine, are you ready?"

Sabine nodded, then they were off. She was grateful for her helmet that helped to protect her from the biting cold as they raced across the tundra.

This was it. He's here. I just know it, she thought as they came to a slow stop before a large metal door.

Ahsoka hopped off the speeder behind Rex and stood calmly before the closed door. With a wave of her hand, the door slowly creaked open.

They entered cautiously, moving silently into the large cavernous room. Weapons drawn and at the ready, they pressed forward - watchful of any Imperial presence prepared to make itself known.

"It appears to be abandoned," Kallus said quietly.

"Looks can be deceiving," Ahsoka said as she motioned for them to wait as she closed her eyes and connected with the Force. She could sense a living being through the Force, but it was muted. So much so that she almost missed it. "I sense a lifeform, but it's very faint."

Sabine felt a cold shiver as it raced down her spine as the sound of heavy footfalls could be heard in the distance.

In the darkness, five sets of red eyes began to glow.

"Guys," Sabine said quietly. "I have a bad feeling about this…."

Beside her, Ahsoka unclipped the hilts of her lightsabers from her belt and settled into a ready stance. "Steady…"

Five sets of red photoreceptors flashed menacingly as the rust-colored droids snapped to attention, their blasters charged and ready. "Observation: You are not authorized to be here. Solution: You have all been marked for termination. Prepare to die, meat bags."

Zeb groaned loudly. "Damn, HK droids! I hate HK droids!"

Kallus stepped protectively in front of Zeb, pulling his modified J-19 bo-rifle from across his back, and opened fire upon the nearest HK unit.

There was a loud snap-hiss as Ahsoka ignited both white blades. With a gymnastic leap, she sailed through the air and sank both blades deep into one of the droids as Rex and Sabine opened fire. Their blaster shots zinged past her as she pulled another droid to her with the Force, impaling it upon one of her white blades.

"Die, meeeaaaaat baagg…."

Sabine rolled her eyes as she blasted another round into the fallen droid. "Didn't anyone ever tell you it isn't nice to call people meat bags?"

Rex chuckled. "Looks like that was the last one."

Ahsoka grinned as she inhaled deeply. "Stay alert. There might be more."

Sabine hoped not, but her hopes were dashed as they encountered another squad.

They pressed on deeper into the abandoned facility until the last droid fell at their feet.

Before them, raised high above them, was an ancient-looking stasis chamber.

"Karabast, what is that thing?" Zeb asked as they stared up at the glowing blue rays of energy. In the middle of the blue stasis rays was a man. "Is that...is that Ezra?!"

Sabine felt as if someone punched her in the gut. The air left her in a loud whoosh as she hugged her stomach. "Ezra?"

Ahsoka swallowed hard. "Kallus...Rex...get to work. See how we turn off this...machine and get him out of there." She turned to Sabine. "Are you alright? It might not be Ezra."

"It's him. You know it is." Sabine stared up at him, studying the man's features. He had long black hair, and even though his complexion was pale and wan, she could tell it used to be a lively copper tan. An invisible breeze moved a long lock of black hair aside, revealing the two striped scars on his left cheek. "It is him! Look!"

Rex and Kallus worked swiftly to find a way to safely turn off the ancient device.

"I've never seen anything like this before," Kallus murmured. "I believe this should just about do it."

He nodded to Rex as they disengaged the stasis chamber, and Ahsoka used the Force to slowly lower Ezra down to the floor.

#

Ezra Dreams

"Mom…" Ezra grinned. "Isn't it a bit early to be asking about grandchildren? I mean, c'mon...we just got married."

Sabine blushed behind her raised napkin but nodded. "I mean, sure we want kids...but not right away."

Ezra frowned.

He thought he heard blaster fire. He rose from the dinner table slowly. "Sabine, did you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

He swallowed hard at the sound of a loud snap-hiss of plasma flaring to life. "I know that sound. I remember that…."

He reached down to pat the side of his hip where his lightsaber used to hang. "Where is it? Oh, man, Kanan is going to be so angry with me! He'll kill me if he finds out I lost it again!"

"Ezra, what are you talking about, dear?" His mother asked as she stared at him with confusion in her purple eyes.

Ezra whirled to face her. "My lightsaber. I'm a…."

He tried to remember. It's been so long. Did he dream it all? Was it even real? He turned to Sabine, but she was gone.

"Sabine?!"

He whirled around to discover his mother was missing as well.

"Mom? Dad?"

The house melted away to blackness. He stood in the black void, feeling nameless.

"Ezra, can you hear us? Ezra…?"

No... what's going on? Where am I? He cried out in the darkness as he fell to his knees. He reached out instinctively towards something that used to be very tangible to him. Something that used to come naturally to him like breathing.

Then, he heard it.

A song.

A beautiful melody wrapped around him like a warm blanket on a cold winter's night. He breathed in the Force and felt whole once more.

"Ezra, can you hear us? Ezra, you need to wake up now."

His eyes opened slowly. He blinked painfully at harsh bright light overhead.

Sabine knelt beside him and yanked off her helmet, setting it beside them. She pushed his long hair back off his forehead. "Ezra? It's me, Sabine."

He turned to the sound of her voice. Was she here? Was he still dreaming? He groaned softly. "S-s-ab?"

"Yes!" Sabine brushed away an errant tear, then grabbed his hand and held it close. "I'm here. You're safe now." She swallowed hard as she took in his thin frame and haggard appearance. "It's alright. Don't try to talk just yet. Let's get you home."

Home sounded great to him, he thought as he nodded weakly and drifted back into unconsciousness.

Home.