(NOTICE: The events of this mission take place in Star Wars Rebels Magazine #7)
(Author Note: Hey guys! I want to thank all of you who are reading and enjoying my story so far. YOU GUYS ROCK! Sorry if you've been waiting. I've been a bit busy, coming back from a Florida trip and preparing for my next semester of college in less than a week.
As a result of this, the chapters might be coming out really slowly, but I PROMISE, I am not giving up on this story. I will continue giving you galaxy-class Fanfiction, it will take time. Remember, a Jedi virtue is patience. In the meantime, read my other chapters and review them. I'd love some feedback from the fans. LOVE YOU GUYS 3000!)
The Ghost was traveling through hyperspace, nearing the Quila system. Jaden meanwhile was getting a bit anxious. This is his first official rebel mission. Sure, he helped the Ryloth Rebels briefly, from time to time. But now, he's taking part in a full-fledged rebellion.
"You nervous?" Sabine asked him, smiling.
"No. I mean, kinda. This is my first actual mission for the rebellion. I'm worried I might mess it up or something." Jaden replies. This earned a light chuckle from both Sabine and Ahsoka.
"Don't worry, you going to do great." Hera replies, looking at Jaden. Then the Ghost nav-computer started beeping. "We're coming up on Quila." she responds.
The Ghost then drops out of hyperspace, facing the blue ocean planet. Hera commenced a planetary scan. "The source of the distress call has been triangulated and verified. It's most likely coming from an Imperial freighter." She informs the rest of the team.
Jaden proceeded to get up and look at Quila with semi-awe and curiosity. He has been to a couple of planets in his lifetime, so he is soaking it all in.
Ahsoka got up as well also looking at the planet. She started to crave more information pertaining to the mission. "Any signs of Imperial activity in the system?" She asks.
Hera proceeded to look down at the Ghost's system scan. "Nothing." She says, "Looks like we beat the Empire to the chance."
"Then let's make the most of this head star while we can." say Sabine, standing up and walking to the back.
And with that, Hera proceed to pilot the Ghost into Quila's atmosphere, heading towards the signal's origin. Which turned out to be a half sunken, Imperial Gozanti-class cruiser. As she was pulling in Sabine, Jaden and Ahsoka proceed to outfit themselves with goggles and rebreathers. Hera then proceeded to give them an update about the downed Imperial ship.
"Judging by the hull damage, I'd say asteroid impacts caused the crash. Could have jammed the navi-computer or worse."
"So, we just swim down there, pick up our guy and bolt before the Empire arrives?" asked Jaden, putting his rebreather on.
"Yep, it's a blue-milk run." Sabine replies.
The Ghost landing ramp began to lower, reveal the vast ocean below the three rebels. And all three proceeded to walk toward the edge. Both Jaden and Ahsoka noticed that Sabine jerked a little and looked uneasy.
"You are alright." Asked Jaden. "You are afraid of water?"
Sabine looked at both. "How'd you guess."
"We don't need to use the Force to sense that you don't like water." Ahsoka replies.
Sabine proceeded to look down into the ocean. "Let's just say that I had a bad experience or two at the Imperial Academy, which involved scenarios similar to this."
Ahsoka proceed to walk up to the ramp, standing parallel to her left. "Try not to think about it." She reassures her as Jaden lines up with her right. "Besides, what's the worst that could happen."
Sabine looks at Ahsoka. "You know nothing good ever happens when someone says that."
"Anyway, I should be the one freaking out right now." Jaden says, causing the two women to look at him, while Jaden looks back. "There are no oceans on Ryloth."
This causes Sabine to chuckle and for Ahsoka to crack a smile under her rebreather. And with that, the three rebels dove off the Ghost, into the waters below.
Upon hitting the water, the three proceeded to dive and swim towards the sunken portion of the Imperial ship. As they were swimming through the ship, Sabine was inspecting the damage to the hull. "Yep, looks like the ship had a really bad crash. Let's start at the holding cells, Janard was a prisoner."
As the three continued to swim, they reached the end of the tunnel, which was blocked by debris, causing all three of them to stop. This caused Sabine and Ahsoka to turn towards Jaden.
"Alright Jaden, you're up. Can you cut the beam with your lightsaber?" Sabine requested. "I'll shift the smaller debris."
"I'm on it." Jaden replies, igniting his blue lightsaber, and then proceed to cut the large metal beam in half. This caused the remaining debris to float pass them. Then he deactivated his saber and turned around, looking at Sabine.
"Still feeling nervous?" He jokingly asks.
"I'll be somewhat better once we're on dry land again." She sarcastically answers back.
With Ahsoka taking the lead, the three continued to swim through the underwater levels of the ship. As they moved on, they saw multiple dead stormtroopers, with holes in their chests, and long green eels imbedded in the holes.
"Okay, I'm hoping whatever's coming out of that armor is friendly." says Sabine, looking at one of the said stormtroopers.
Suddenly, the eels began to dig themselves out of the stormtroopers and started to swim viciously toward the rebel agents. As this was happening, they revealed they had razor sharp teeth. This caused Ahsoka to start force-pushing some of them away, along with Jaden following her lead and Sabine pulling out her blaster and start shooting.
"I don't think they're friendly." Jaden calls back to Sabine.
More eels proceeded to come, in ferocious speed. Jaden and Ahsoka proceeded to force-push them away. But a few of them started to get past them. One of them approached on Sabine, accidentally snaking itself between rebreather and her, wrapping itself around her body.
"Ahsoka! Jay!" she calls out. This causes Ahsoka to swim to her, pull the eel of and force-push it away. But the eel had already disconnected the oxygen tubes of Sabine's rebreather, to her mask. She was starting to drown. "Help..." she croaks out.
Jaden swam over there and reconnected the tubes to her rebreather. She then proceeded to cough as oxygen rushes into her mask, allowing her to breathe again. She then started to cough a little.
"You alright?" Jaden asks her, still by her side. This causes Sabine to look at him, with her eyes extremely wide.
"This is why I don't like water. Along with the fact that water can wash away art. Thanks by the way."
"No problem." Jaden replies. The two processed to follow Ahsoka again through the sunken corridors. They finally made it to the blast door protecting the detention cells. Sabine moved to the door controls and opened them. They saw an empty interrogation chair.
"That's just terrific." Sabine sarcastically comments.
"He's not here." says Jaden.
"Are you sure this is the right ship?" asks Ahsoka, with both her and Jaden turning to Sabine.
"I'm sure." replies Sabine. "Maybe he's still alive somewhere else on board." With that, the three swam upwards towards the upper levels of the ship. These levels were not flooded, this allowed them to take off their rebreathers.
"We are on the clock. The ship is sinking fast, and we still have some ground to cover." Ahsoka informs them.
"So, what's the plan?" ask Jaden.
Sabine had one. "Alright. Let's start with the front sections near the bridge. That'll be the last area to go underwater and…" Then they heard a loud clanging sound, causing them to look in one direction.
"Or we can just check around the corner." she then proceeds to pull out her twin blasters and follow the noise, as did Ahsoka and Jaden. Then, Jaden reached down and unhooked his lightsaber from the waist, holding it in his right hand. Upon making the corner, they discovered the source of the noise. They see two stormtroopers facing a sealed door. One of them was yelling at the door.
"SURRENDER YOU TRAITOR!" yelled the trooper, "There's no way off this ship for you. The longer you resist, the worse you're making this for yourself. These eels aren't too far behind."
Sabine then held her blaster directly behind the heads of the troopers. "Speaking of things behind." she says, pulling the triggers, leaving smoking holes in their heads. The troopers bodies fell forward hitting the floor.
"Janard, it's me!" she yells. This causes the door to open revealing the human from the hologram, still wearing his prisoner jumpsuit.
"Well, I'll be." he spoke, "Sabine Wren, just in the nick of time." He then proceeded to extend his hand, and Sabine grasped it, a sign of comradery. "I hoped someone would come for me."
Sabine responded in kind, "You didn't think I was going to let you go while I owed you one?"
Janard smiled and respond as well, "You owe me nothing. I only ever tried to do what is right. Now let's get off this ship before…"
"Hands up!" All four turned to see two stormtroopers with blasters primed. Sabine kicked one of them, causing him to drop his blaster, and then Jaden and Ahsoka Force-pushed them into the wall, knocking them out. Then they heard metal breaking as water started to gush through the ceiling.
Jaden then turned to Janard, who was looking at them astonished. "You good for a run?" he asked the prisoner?
"Yes, who are you?" he asked confused by what he just saw.
"The people who are saving your life." exclaimed Ahsoka, as they proceed to run away from the oncoming wall of water. The four ran down the hallway, approaching the oncoming blast door. After running through the door, Ahsoka hit the button, closing the door, sealing off the water. Then they all took a minute to catch their breath. Jaden then looked through the blast door window, seeing the entire corridor and hallway they were just in underwater.
Jaden then turned to the rest of the crew. "What now?" he asked them.
"I think we should get to the bridge." says Ahsoka, "We can signal Hera for pick up there."
"I know the right turbolift we need to reach it. Follow me" say Janard. They followed him into the turbolift. As the lift went up, Sabine and Ahsoka then turned to Jaden. "Make the call." Sabine tells him, smiling at him.
Jaden then pulled out his comlink. "Spectre-7 to Ghost, We're ready for pickup, please confirm." there was nothing but static on the comms. Jaden, Sabine and Ahsoka looked confused, causing Jaden to speak into the comlink again. "Spectre-7 to Ghost, are you receiving us?" Still nothing.
Jaden then looked at the others. "Nothing, could they be jamming us?"
"I wouldn't put it past the Imperials' resources even in this condition." say Ahsoka, as they exited the lift. "Maybe something happened to the Ghost."
They approached the bridge door. "The way my luck usually works, I wouldn't be surprised." says Janard offhandedly. As the door to the bridge opened, they were met by an Imperial officer and a small squad of stormtroopers.
"Just the man I'm looking for!" says the officer.
"Told you so." replies Janard under his breath.
The stormtroopers held up their blasters at them as the officer spoke with his hands behind his back. "Our evac ships has just arrived, and your time has run out. Your rebel friends cannot help any of you now. Surrender or my men will execute you where you stand. Decide quickly."
Then a loud shudder rocked the bridge. "What the..." exclaims the officer.
They then see an on-fire Imperial transport crash into the ocean outside of the bridge's window. Then Hera's voice came out over Jaden's comlink. "This is Spectre-2 on the Ghost. Sorry for the delay, everyone alright."
"Right on time Hera." says Sabine.
Jaden and Ahsoka ignited their lightsabers, blue and white respectively. Jaden saw Ahsoka lightsaber and thought to himself, 'A white lightsaber? That's cool.'
Sabine pulled out her blasters and then Janard launched forward and decked the officer in the face while the rest of them engaged the stormtroopers. Jaden proceeded to deflect laser blast, as did Ahsoka, and Sabine returned fire.
"What kept you Hera?" asked Jaden.
"Lighting." said Hera, "I didn't want to scratch the Ghost's paint job. Stand by for pickup. I'm heading toward the bridge."
After seemingly killing all the Imperials in the room, Jaden and Ahsoka deactivated their lightsabers, and the four proceeded to head toward the window, with the Ghost in view, lowering its ramp.
"A little closer Hera, we'll jump over." says Jaden. Then suddenly Janard was shot in the back. He then fell forward, but Jay caught him and lowered him down.
"NO!" yelled Sabine, shocked buy this, turned to see a stormtrooper on the floor, holding a smoking blaster. She retaliated by shooting the trooper in the face. She then needed down to support Janard.
"Shoulda.. seen that coming… You have to go Sabine… go." he says weekly.
"No, I'm not leaving you." She says.
Jay felt him fading. Ahsoka felt it too. "He's fading Sabine. I'm sorry, there's nothing we can do for him now." she tells Sabine.
Jandard started to close his eyes spoke to her. "This is what... I deserve… Once… I saw a cadet leave… the Imperial Academy… and I turned them in. When I heard about what they make cadets do… the choices we make… I vowed to never repeat my mistake… and so I helped you… you got more to do… carry one… make the galaxy free again… This is my choice… Help save us all." And with that, Jandard died.
Then the ship started to jerk, sinking further and further into the sea. Jaden hit the back wall and Ahsoka used one of the bridge chairs to balance herself. "We have to go now!" Ahsoka yelled.
The three put ran out of the broken window of the bridge and dove into the vast ocean before them. Upon resurfacing, Jaden turned around and saw the Imperial transport sunk completely into the water. Ahsoka and Sabine were watching with him. "That was a close one. Let's head home." says Ahsoka.
With that, the three swam toward the Ghost. After getting on board, the Ghost flew out of Quila atmosphere, and made the jump to hyperspace before Imperial Star Destroyers show up.
While in hyperspace, Jaden, Hera, Ahsoka and Sabine were talking about the mission at the table in the center of the ship and giving her their condolences.
"I'm sorry about your friend Sabine." says Hera.
"Me too." says Ahsoka.
"And me, I botched up my first mission." says Jaden. This causes everyone to look surprised at him.
"What are you talking about?" Sabine says with a small smile forming on her face, earning a curious look from Jaden. "You were cool-headed, and you held your own." she says.
Then, Ahsoka spoke up as well. "I'd think you'd make a great addition to the Rebellion." smiling at Jaden as well. He was smiling at all three of them now.
"Oh, and by the way," Jaden said. "That white lightsaber is pretty cool." this causes Ahsoka to chuckle. Hera and Ahsoka went to the cockpit to check how long until they return to the fleet, leaving Jaden and Sabine alone at the table.
"Welcome to the Rebellion." says Sabine.
"What's next?" asks Jaden.