Chapter 6

A/N: Okay, so I realized, after I finished writing this chapter that I should have put one of these scenes in the previous chapter. I know the last chapter was a little bit shorter than average, and this one would end up being a little longer with this scene in it, so I'm moving that scene into the previous chapter. So, unless you read it after 2/26/2022, check out the new ending of chapter 5!

The sun was just setting while Kanan, Ezra, and Zeb were making their way back to the Ghost. As they passed back through the town, all eyes were on them again. Although Ezra tried to ignore them, he could feel the curiosity and even hostility in the townspeople's gaze. Other than that, their return was uneventful. None of them had said a word on the way back, giving Ezra some time to think over what had occurred.

Questions swirled around his brain. If the Bad Batch had been the ones who helped Hera, why was Kanan so hostile towards them? Had Kanan met them before? The sniper, Crosshair, seemed to think so. And how had they found out about the chips, anyways? No one had known about them, not even the clones themselves.

Both Hera and Kanan seemed to have wildly different impressions of the Bad Batch. His gut told him that they were trustworthy, but his gut had been wrong before. He didn't know what to make of it.

By the time they got back, Chopper was waiting for them at the top of the ramp.

"Yeah, yeah, I know we told Hera we'd be back earlier," Kanan dismissed the astromech's complaining with an annoyed wave of his hand. "We got held up."

Chopper continued to grumble at them as they entered the Ghost's lounge. Although the smell of dinner wafted through the ship, Kanan left the rest of the crew, heading straight to his room. Hera raised an eyebrow at them, and Zeb shook his head. Ezra watched his master leave. He would get answers, he was determined to.

As Ezra sat down to eat, Hera asked if they had found their possible allies and what had happened that got Kanan so upset.

"Oh, we found 'em alright," Zeb replied, waving his fork in the air. "They're clones. Weird ones, maybe, but they're clones."

Ezra glared at him, "We found their ship out in the forest, and when they first found us, he attacked them."

"They attacked you," Zeb shot back.

"Yeah, in defense."

Hera interrupted their bickering, "Slow down. Who were they?"

"They called themselves the Bad Batch," Ezra told her, and Hera's eyes widened. "Do you know them?"

The pilot relaxed, leaning back in her seat. "Yes, they were the friends that helped me and my family escape Ryloth. I would trust them with my life," she said, although her gaze drifted down the hall in the direction of their rooms. Kanan didn't seem to share that sentiment. The question remained unasked. Why?

"I'm going to talk to him," Ezra announced, and marched out of the lounge before anyone could object.

Standing in front of the quiet door, Ezra reconsidered his motives.

He knew his master. Even after they had known each other for almost two years, Kanan had been hesitant to tell him about the clones and Order 66. He understood that his master had things about his past that he didn't want to talk about. They all did. But they couldn't continue the mission if Kanan refused to trust their allies. They needed mutual trust to get this done. This mission meant way more than a decades old feud. It was way more than any one of them. At least, that was what he continued to tell himself.

Just as Ezra was plucking up the courage to knock, the door slid open with a woosh. Awkwardly, Ezra edged into Kanan's room. He had only been there a few times, and none of them had exactly been with his master's permission.

Kanan sat cross-legged on his bed, eyes shut, meditating.

"So…" Ezra began, the well-rehearsed words in his mind choosing that moment to leave him. He coughed uncomfortably, and his master raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

Taking a deep breath, Ezra tried to gather his thoughts again. No use. Finally, he forced himself to speak, "You knew the Bad Batch… didn't you?"

Kanan opened his eyes, his gaze drilling a hole right through him. "As a matter of fact, I did." Kanan's voice was terse as he spoke, warning him to drop the subject, but Ezra had to get to the bottom of this.

"Then why don't you trust them? They seem nice enough—"

"You can't judge a holobook by its cover," Kanan replied bitterly.

"Okay," Ezra admitted with a nod, "but do we really have a choice? They're the only ones who can help us decrypt the plans! Can't you give them a chance?"

"Ezra—"

"Come on, Kanan! They didn't carry out Order 66—"

"Ezra!"

Kanan's harsh tone stopped him like a slap the face. Again, a raw storm of rage, fear, and grief erupted around his master, and Ezra took a step back.

Seeing Ezra's shocked expression, Kanan's anger crumbled into shame.

"Ezra I– I'm sorry, I just—" Kanan took a shaky breath, "They were all there during Order 66. They were with me and my master when…"

Kanan trailed off and looked away, jaw clenched. "I ran. Two of them chased me down, tried to shoot me. Eventually, one of them had me cornered. He could have done it… he could've finished me off but… he didn't." As he spoke Kanan's expression became distant, as if reliving an event that happened years ago.

"Kanan…" Ezra began, but his master shook his head. No number of apologies could change the past. "They don't know it's you."

"The sniper does, and he might tell the others, but they don't know it's me. Yet."

"I sorry… that I asked," Ezra said.

The corners of Kanan's mouth quirked upwards, and he let out a quiet chuckle, "No. I'm the one who should be saying sorry. To all of you. I shouldn't let my feelings control me like that. I should have told all of you from the start."

Shocked by his master's words, Ezra scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "Happens to the best of us."

Kanan chuckled again, then pointed to the door, "okay, now out of my room."

Ezra hurried out of the room, looking over his shoulder to see Kanan with a small smile lingering on his face, until the door shut again, leaving Ezra alone in the corridor. Even with an explanation from Kanan, there were still parts of the story that didn't fit. How did Omega know the Bad Batch? Was she, or was she not a clone?

Secondly, why had Hunter lied? He had said that none of them had participated in the killing of the Jedi. The two accounts he had heard didn't line up. There was something more going on there.

Lastly, how did the Bad Batch find out about the chips? Had someone told them, or did they figure it out themselves? In that case, how?

It was all such a mess. A mess that Ezra was determined to unravel. He yawned. Maybe he could unravel it after a good night's sleep.

Slowly, Ezra trudged to his own barracks, mind still swirling with questions. Even with his head racing as fast as a speeder, he fell asleep only minutes after he clambered into his bunk.

Ezra woke with a jerk.

Dragging a hand over his face as he sat up blearily, he tried to remember what had woken him up so suddenly. Whatever dream that had woken him was already fading from his memory. Checking the time, he considered going back to sleep. Zeb was still snoring loudly on the lower bunk, and it was early enough that the others were probably still asleep.

A rumble shook the Ghost.

Ezra shot to his feet and almost lost his balance as another mysterious force shook the ship violently. It wasn't a dream that had woken him. Moments after Ezra had raced out of his room into the hallway, Hera's voice blared over then intercoms,

"The Empire just entered the atmosphere; they're targeting our position!"

"What?!" Zeb bellowed as he stumbled out of bed and gripped the doorway. "How did they find us?"

Unsure of what to do, Ezra ran down the hall and burst into the cockpit. There, Hera and Chopper were rapidly preparing the Ghost for a quick getaway. Looking out the window, Ezra could see the Imperial ship looming just outside of the atmosphere.

Concentrating all fire on the town.

Fires ravaged the little settlement that had been lively and bustling just the day before, sending massive billows of smoke into the air. All Ezra could do was stare in horror at the destruction. This is our fault, he thought, stomach churning as the town went up in flames.

"Ezra, sit down!" Hera snapped, and he hurried into one of the seats. "Hold on!" she announced over the intercoms, and Ezra was slammed, as if by a giant, invisible hand into his seat. The Ghost shot off at top speed over the forest.

Immediately, the cruiser ceased fire on the town. Ezra felt a sinking feeling in his chest as he realized why the Empire hadn't just obliterated the Ghost in the first place. They want us alive.

"Kanan!" Hera shouted as a dozen tie-fighters appeared from out of nowhere, rapidly gaining on them.

"I see them," replied Kanan's tinny voice over the comms. Moments later, he and Zeb began firing at the fighters, and Ezra heard an explosion as one of them was obliterated by the cannons.

Without notice, the door to the cockpit whooshed open, and Sabine stumbled into the room, almost falling as the Ghost turned sharply, avoiding the tie-fighter's attacks by a hair. She still had bandages over her burns, but she looked much better than she had three days ago.

"How did they find us?" She said, falling into the seat opposite Ezra as the ship pitched upwards.

"How am I supposed to know? What are you doing up?" Ezra shot back.

"It's kind of difficult to rest when we're being chased."

"Enough, you two," Hera said impatiently. Sabine and Ezra gripped the arms of their chairs and screamed as Hera jerked up on the controls, sending the ship spinning violently. On the display, Ezra saw eleven ties still pursuing the Ghost. They were hopelessly outnumbered.

"How are we going to lose them?" came Kanan's voice again as another tie-fighter went spiraling out of control and crashed into the side of a mountain.

Hera did not reply.

Uh oh, Ezra thought. When Hera ran out of ideas, that's when you knew things were bad.

The ship hugged the peak of a snow-covered mountain, revealing dozens of massive rocky spires that pierced the sky like the blades of a knife. Immediately, Hera tugged on the controls, and the Ghost rolled and began rapidly weaving her way through the tight spaces. As Ezra held onto his seat for dear life, he heard a crash and the familiar sound of a tie-fighter hurtling into the spires.

Into the spires.

"Look out!" Ezra shouted, as a deafening crack echoed through the maze. Only moments later, boulders began crashing down on top of them.

A/N: And here's me, at it again with my cliffhangers! Have I driven you insane with them quite yet? Muahahaha! :)

Just want to apologize really quickly about the inconsistent posting schedule. I'm trying to figure out what works out the best with my current week schedule, and I think I'm going to try posting on Saturdays for a while, rather than Tuesdays.

Anyways, hope you enjoyed and, as always, thank you for your continued support! :)