Chapter 18: Shattering Point

Sabine gets to play with a new toy and the Rebellion's latest recruit has some things to say.

Sabine plopped down on her bed, completely exhausted. It had been quite a day, as she reflected on all that had transpired. What started simply as a couple games of Cu'bikad with Fenn Rau had turned into a mission with Ezra and Fenn to investigate the Rebellion's lost communication with the Protectors. From there, things escalated just like they always seemed during any other mission. Although, in this instance, Sabine and Ezra got the experience of taking a prisoner with them.

Until that point, Sabine had only unsuccessfully attempted to recruit Fenn to officially join their cause. She wasn't anticipating any success on that front, as it wasn't her sole focus, and Fenn did not let her down. He remained steadfast in his opinion regarding the Rebellion and their cause, refusing any alliance other than possibly joining Sabine for Mandalore and Mandalore alone. Rau had to expect her response too, as she simply could not give it much credence. After all, Rau was aware of Sabine's checkered history with her people more than most of the Rebellion and even her crewmates on the Ghost. Kanan, Zeb, Chopper, and even Ezra had no clue, and Hera only had the faintest idea. The Twi'lek captain didn't have anything concrete to go on, aside from a single sentence that she had to pry out of Sabine when they initially recruited the young Mandalorian girl.

But coming back around to the mission, Sabine also got a taste of the old Ezra coming back. He was much more at ease during the beginning of the mission, which turned out to be a mistake. Ezra let his guard down at the worst possible time, with a fellow Mandalorian. Initially, they both paid the price for that mistake. Ezra wound up with a bump on the head, and Sabine stunned by her own Westar blasters.

From there, Sabine had to go from trying to convince Fenn that he was not giving up the Chopper base location to convincing him that Ezra was someone worth saving. Then she had to try and escape after rescuing Ezra by using her newly liberated jetpack. At that specific moment, although it was a life and death moment, it also felt a bit more intimate than Sabine anticipated. Ezra's surprise and the noise he made as she wrapped her arms around him just added to that feeling. Neither had time to reflect on those feelings then, but things began looking up from that point. Sabine and Ezra took turns protecting each other, while also evading capture. They were successful at first, but their luck seemed to have run out when Saxon and his men finally stopped them from reaching their only other known means of escape. It appeared that Fenn Rau leaving them behind would be their demise, as their abrupt landing had left them without their weapons.

Sabine thought they were doomed until Fenn appeared in the Phantom II, using the external loudspeaker to announce his stance against Saxon. Fenn gave them the opening they desperately needed, and neither she nor Ezra hesitated. Unfortunately, her blasters were lost to the cliffs thanks to Gar Saxon, leaving Sabine fighting the clan leader herself after he managed to tackle her from behind. Sabine struggled to get free from Saxon's grasp and eventually slipped away with a well-placed kick. From there, it was a battle to remain close enough to keep Saxon from using his blaster, while simultaneously looking for an opening to escape. The sound of the Phantom's engines grabbed her attention right after she took Saxon's legs out from under him. Sabine knew it was her best chance, and she took it, using her jetpack to flee toward the Phantom II, with Ezra waiting worriedly on the entry ramp.

Of course, Sabine wasn't able to safely make it onto the ramp with her new toy intact, thanks to Gar Saxon's final attempt to stop at least one of them from escaping. Sabine's initial reaction was frustration over her jetpack being damaged, but she knew things could have ended much worse. She could've been shot or fallen to her demise, but the jetpack saved her. And then Ezra saved her.

And it didn't go unnoticed by Sabine that he instantly held her around her shoulders in a protective manner, even though she was safely on the ramp. Ezra didn't say anything to her, but she knew he was concerned about how close he came to losing her at that moment. She also felt perfectly fine, aside from the aggravation over the damage Saxon had caused. She wasn't in any more danger, and none of the traitorous Mandalorians could follow them. Sabine believed he might be overreacting, but decided to leave it unsaid. After all, they were in mixed company, even if they were still on the ramp and Fenn was at the controls.

And by the time they returned to Chopper Base, the Rebellion had another Mandalorian in their ranks. There was still so much to do, but no amount of caf would provide Sabine with the necessary energy to accomplish anything else. Her eyelids were already getting heavy with the need for sleep, and reflecting on the mission was all she could muster. Everything more would have to wait until morning.

Meanwhile, Ezra experienced something different than his counterpart. He was still amped up from everything that happened during their mission. Ezra was returning to cloud nine now that he had the time to think about how close he and Sabine had been. His mind was coursing with questions about how often he could get away with being that close, and which situations would be acceptable. Ezra wanted to be close to Sabine now, but knew that Sabine was exhausted. It was easy to read her features. All her energy seemed to evaporate after she announced Fenn's intention to fully join the Rebellion.

So, Ezra was going to have to come up with something else to pass the time until he became tired enough to get some sleep. The question was, "What to do?" He knew that meditation was an obvious answer, but meditation didn't feel appropriate for his mindset. Instead, he needed something to do that would keep his mind busy. The answer came to him as he reached the lounge area of the Ghost. On the Dejarik table sat Sabine's damaged jetpack. Ezra figured it was safe to assume Sabine would've repaired it herself, if not for her being so tired. And while he didn't have experience with jetpacks, it was still a piece of machinery, and Ezra had a knack for tinkering with things thanks to his living on the streets of Lothal.

That was his initial thought, but Ezra quickly discovered how wrong he was. In just fifteen minutes, Ezra knew he didn't have the tools needed for such a project. That left him with just two choices. First, he could attempt to sneak into Sabine's cabin for the tools he was certain she had, and risk waking her up; second, he could take the jetpack off the Ghost and search the base. Waking a tired Sabine wasn't the wisest decision for someone to make, and Ezra wasn't willing to take the risk anyway. He wanted this to be a surprise for her.

Fenn let a yawn slip past his lips. He knew it would be a long evening to convince the rebel leaders of his position change. Still, eventually, they did take into account his return without binders, as well as some potential routes that wouldn't raise Imperial or Mandalorian suspicion. He even offered to help with combat training, but that wasn't enough. He was forced to wait until the scout returned from one of his suggested routes, but when they returned with the all-clear, Commander Sato finally relented and offered him a temporary cabin for the night. That cabin was where Fenn was headed when he noticed a single rebel sitting at a table with tools and pieces of something strewn about.

If it hadn't been along his path, Fenn wouldn't have allowed his curiosity to get the better of him. As he got close enough, he realized the young man was none other than the Jedi boy he'd just completed a mission with. "Bridger, isn't it?" He asked.

Ezra jumped a little, startled by the unexpected voice behind him. He'd been so engrossed in his work that Fenn managed to sneak up on him. The Force didn't even offer a warning. "Fenn Rau, hey." He responded. "What are you doing up so late?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Fenn said. "What could you possibly be working on that couldn't wait until the morning?"

"Oh, it's Sabine's new jetpack," Ezra answered. "I was just trying to fix it as a surprise for her."

Fenn looked over the table a little more closely and concluded that Ezra had torn the pack down to the damaged area, but had yet to replace the damaged parts. "Are you certain that you've got the proper wiring and materials to fully repair the unit?" He asked. "Beskar isn't something that non-Mandalorians typically have."

"I don't think we have any of that, but I was hoping to get it back to where Sabine could use it again," Ezra replied.

"From what I can see, some damage is more than simple wiring," Fenn said as he took a seat across the table from Ezra. "I think I can help if you're willing to accept it."

"Sure," Ezra said, his voice tinged with excitement.

"Well then," Fenn responded. "Let's get started."

From that point, Ezra took the role of retrieving anything Fenn Rau asked for, and watching as the Mandalorian protector worked. Some of the things he did seemed logical, while others, Ezra wanted to question but didn't. But then, he didn't account for the fact that he was with a Mandalorian. "Something on your mind, Bridger?" Fenn asked.

"Umm, no, not really," Ezra answered, not expecting to get caught.

"Then perhaps you can answer a few questions of mine," Fenn said, as he continued to work and didn't wait for the young rebel to respond. "Why do this for a Mandalorian? You are a Jedi, are you not?"

"Yeah, I'm a Jedi," Ezra answered, as though it should've been obvious. "And Sabine's my best friend."

"Is that all?" Fenn continued to question.

"Well, no," Ezra admitted. "We've been dating too. Why?"

"Because it's rare for a Jedi and a Mandalorian to be as close as the two of you seem. Our cultures have been at odds for centuries."

"Well, Sabine and I have always gotten along," Ezra responded. "And just because things happened in the past doesn't mean we can't be close now."

"I suppose not," Fenn said as he attached a large piece of the outer jetpack shell. "Although, I doubt things will be easy for the two of you."

"It hasn't been too hard yet," Ezra defended. "And Sabine's worth it to me."

"Fair enough, Bridger," Fenn replied, as he snapped on the last piece of the shell. "And the jetpack should be as good as new for Sabine, but I would advise a few short test flights before she takes it into battle."

"Thanks, Fenn," Ezra said as he began gathering tools to put away.

"Think nothing of it," Fenn said, standing up from the table. "Have a good night, Bridger, and perhaps our paths will cross soon enough now that I've been accepted into your little rebellion."

"I hope so," Ezra said as he watched Fenn take his leave.

Once he was alone again, Ezra got up and took the borrowed tools where he'd originally located them. His original plan was successful, as he returned and grabbed the repaired jetpack. He was more than ready to climb into bed and get some rest.

The door slid open to reveal Sabine, stretching out to the end of a yawn. She desperately needed a precious cup of caf, but regardless, she felt more refreshed than she had been in some time. She experienced a dreamless sleep, which was nice and refreshing. Plus, she had a new project to take on for the day, and that thought was followed by her quickly turning for the lounge where she'd left her damaged jetpack.

As she walked through the lounge, heading for the galley where the caffeinated beverage surely awaited her, Sabine glanced over to the jetpack, which caused her to immediately halt. It was plain to see that the jetpack had been repaired. Sabine moved to closely inspect the repairs, and her brain racked with questions. Had she been so tired last night that she made the repairs and forgot about it? But that couldn't be the case. Sabine was certain she planned to work on it after getting a little shut-eye.

But her jetpack looked repaired, and she didn't know how, when, or who did it. Her cup of caf since forgotten, Sabine thoroughly inspected the repairs and found the craftsmanship appeared spot on. All that was left was to perform some test flights. If it passed, she could focus on painting it.

The knowledge of that caused a smile to grow on Sabine's face as excitement began to overtake her. She hoped luck would be on her side, and she would have a short to-do list so that testing could begin as soon as possible. But Sabine's thoughts were interrupted by the loud yawning of her Lasat crewmate entering the lounge.

An almost lip-smacking sound came next, before Zeb noticed he wasn't alone and that Sabine had something in her hands he hadn't seen before. "What have you got there?"

"It's a jetpack I liberated from Concord Dawn yesterday," Sabine responded, before setting the pack down on the dejarik table and returning to her original objective, still waiting in the galley. She reached into a cupboard and pulled down two cups, before filling them and extending one to Zeb.

The Lasat gratefully took the offered cup and gulped down a healthy pull. "So you finished recruiting that other Mandalorian into joining us and got yourself a new toy to play with. And all while you were figuring out what was going on with our hyperspace route," Zeb recounted. "No wonder the kid's still out of it."

"Ezra?" Sabine asked. "What do you mean, out of it?"

"He's still out cold," Zeb answered. "Normally, he's already up and about with Kanan, but not today."

Ezra still being asleep was definitely not normal. Sabine's thoughts instantly went to her jetpack. Had Ezra been the one to make the repairs? She knew he was somewhat savvy with electronics, but not to the point of working on Mandalorian technology. Opening a locked or jammed door was one thing, but making repairs to something like her jetpack was another. But from what she had already looked over, it appeared Ezra had done a good job with the repairs. There was only one way to find out.

Sabine touched down again after yet another short test flight. This was her fourth attempt up to that point. To that point, everything had gone smoothly. On each trip, Sabine went a little higher and gained a little more distance. And with each flight, her confidence in Ezra's repairs grew. She was about to take another flight when a voice from behind caused her to halt.

"It appears the repairs were successful," Fenn said as he continued to approach Sabine.

"It was you?" Sabine asked, surprise evident on her face.

"I merely assisted Bridger," Rau explained. "He seemed knee-deep in it when I noticed him last night."

"I see," Sabine said. "I have to admit, I would've been surprised Ezra could repair the jetpack on his own."

"He may have been able to figure it out on his own eventually," Rau said, "but I'd wager you'd currently be stuck with a pile of pieces instead of performing test flights."

"Well, thank you," he replied.

"Think nothing of it," Rau said. "After all, you are the one rebel who spent the most time with me before I decided to join the Rebellion. And it was you who caused me to reconsider my original position."

"Speaking of," he responded. "Has command decided what role they want you to take on yet?"

"Combat training and strategic operations to start," Rau answered. "I've been told that some former clones have started training programs. I intend to take your fellow Rebels to the next level. Not quite Mandalorian, but better than any normal soldier."

"Sounds like fun," Sabine commented.

"I doubt most would agree with you," Rau said. "But, with any luck, the added training will help give the Rebellion more of a fighting chance."

"Every little bit helps," Sabine agreed.

"That's enough about me," Rau said, refocusing their conversation. "Let's see how your jetpack handles a full flight test."

With that, Sabine took a step away from her fellow Mandalorian and pressed the button on her gauntlet, firing up her jetpack. By the next second, she was rocketing into the air at a high rate of speed. Excitement coursed through her as she soon hit top speed. Before she knew it, Sabine was hundreds of feet above the ground, and she could barely spot Fenn down on the surface below. She thought about using the zoom feature on her helmet display, but it was more important to stay focused on the jetpack readout display. The fuel level remained steady, and no errors were popping up as she continued to hover. The statistical readouts all came back as she hoped, meaning the repairs were good and she could use her new toy whenever she felt like it.

With the final test flight a success, Sabine lowered back down to the same spot she had taken off, and noticed that Fenn Rau wasn't the only one standing there anymore. "Hey, Ezra," she cheerfully said as she removed her helmet and marched up to the young Jedi, grabbing him in a hug. "Thank you for what you did last night."

"It was nothing," Ezra managed to reply, before embarrassment seemed to take over.

"It wasn't nothing to me," Sabine said as she released Ezra from the hug, but then paused before moving up on her toes and pressing a quick kiss on Ezra's lips.

To say the young man was shocked was a severe understatement. Ezra was wide-eyed, frozen in place, and his jaw dropped open. Sabine actually allowed a smile to escape her features when she noticed Ezra's reaction. They both forgot about the third person there with them, as Sabine took the still frozen Ezra by his hand and coerced him into moving again as she pulled him with her back toward the Ghost.

Fenn watched them as they walked away from him, and only shook his head before heading off on his own.

Random thuds on a mat had been echoing throughout Chopper Base's crisp morning air. New recruits were falling flat on their faces thanks to the new combat instructor. Fenn Rau had taken a more active stance in the morning lesson. He had chosen a much more hands-on approach to combat training, in that he chose to take on multiple recruits simultaneously. Fenn wanted to get a taste of all the greener rebels before moving onto the more seasoned ones, and taking more than one at a time was the quickest way.

Sabine and Ezra had watched Fenn completely obliterate all the recruits. At one point, Ezra whispered his opinion that Fenn Rau would dissuade rebels from fighting at the expense of his ego. Sabine didn't respond, but she agreed with Ezra's point to a certain extent. A crucial part of training, especially with new recruits, should begin by building them up. What Rau was doing would surely do the opposite, but she didn't have a chance to bring up that opinion before Rau turned and faced her.

"Sabine Wren," he called out. "Step forward, and let's see if the Rebellion hasn't hampered your Mandalorian training."

Sabine wanted to voice her displeasure with Rau's stance on the other combat trainers and Rex specifically, but she kept her mouth shut. Now wasn't the time. So, instead, she walked forward and quietly got into a fighting stance. Once Rau saw that Sabine was ready, he moved forward to strike out at her. It was a standard strike, and Sabine blocked it with ease. But things quickly escalated from there. Fenn moved in with a sweeping kick, instantly followed up by a left jab and a right hook. Sabine stepped over the sweep and blocked both the jab and hook, but she didn't anticipate the elbow that followed the hook.

Fenn's elbow made solid contact with Sabine's temple, and the blow left her slightly dazed as she took a few steps back to regain her balance. However, Fenn didn't seem to be in a forgiving mood and quickly cut off the distance Sabine attempted to gain. She was still a little dazed, but managed to block Fenn's next three attempted strikes. But just barely. He wasn't giving her an opening to exploit either, so she feinted a jab and finally put in a little distance.

"Winded already, Wren?" Fenn Rau taunted.

Sabine wanted to clap back, but she realized she didn't have to open her mouth to speak. Rather, it was already hanging open as she panted for oxygen. She hadn't even been sparring for a full minute, and she was already winded. Sabine almost couldn't believe it. She hadn't shirked on training at all and had always been one of the Rebellion's better fighters. Sabine wondered if being the best had made her go soft as Fenn came in for another attack.

This time, Sabine was ready and determined to prove that Rex's training regimen was not questioned again. Taking advantage of her small success just earlier, Sabine again led with a feint, but then followed immediately with a right cross. Fenn Rau did block her cross, but not the kick to his leg. That move ended up switching their roles, putting Sabine on the offensive.

Since she wrested control of the fight, she could control the pace. Fenn had his guard up and ready when Sabine moved in for another attack, and he blocked everything, firing off a counter whenever he found an opening. They continued on this for a couple more minutes, with neither combatant gaining the upper hand until Rex called an end to their session.

"Not bad," Fenn said after the match ended. "I feared the worst in the beginning, Sabine, but then you recovered and held your own."

"It was a little more aggressive than we've been accustomed to." Rex chimed in.

"That was the plan," Fenn replied, before turning to the trainees. "I needed to push each of you to see where each of you stood against a well-trained warrior. It's a guarantee that if you survive long enough in this conflict, you won't always face a standard stormtrooper. I need each of you to be ready, and by facing each of you here, I can help Rex and the others train you all to be the best combatants you can be."

At Fenn's explanation, the looks of doubt around the training area changed to understanding, but Fenn wasn't finished talking yet.

"That leaves just one more rebel left for me to assess. Bridger, step forward."

Ezra did as he was asked and took Sabine's vacated spot on the training mat. He took a calming breath to center himself in preparation for the sparring match, but that seemed to trigger something within Fenn.

"No Jedi powers, Bridger," he commanded. "I need to see your fighting experience, not your Jedi trickery. Save that for your formal Jedi training."

"Alright," Ezra responded, before setting into his fighting stance.

The two combatants circled slowly, neither one willing to strike first. Ezra typically was started off on the defensive, allowing him to get a better read on his adversary, but he caught himself nearly using the Force subconsciously. He'd given Fenn his word that he would refrain from his Jedi abilities. He also wanted to show Fenn Rau that he was still a capable warrior, Jedi powers or not.

Ezra ended up making the first offensive move, throwing an exploratory jab at Fenn's head. But instead of blocking or evading, Fenn Rau latched onto Ezra's wrist, turned, and pulled, sending Ezra flying over Fenn's shoulder before coming to a thudding halt. From there, Fenn Rau slammed his knee down onto Ezra's neck, pinning him to the ground and putting the sparring match to an abrupt end.

One move, and Ezra had been defeated. It was completely demoralizing too. Even the least trained rebel lasted longer than he did. He knew he looked like the worst fighter among the group, and he could only hope that such a short match would warrant a rematch. Ezra had more ability that he could show Fenn, but that wasn't meant to be.

"I think I've seen all I need to," Fenn announced as he stood and allowed Ezra to climb up. "Expect your next combat training session to be a bit more personalized for each of you, but until then, class is dismissed."

"But," Ezra started to argue, but his attempt was instantly interrupted.

"Not buts, Bridger," Fenn forcefully said, before turning to the other Mandalorian in the area. "However, Sabine, if you could stay behind for a moment, there is something I'd like to discuss with you."

Ezra turned to look at his girlfriend. He wanted to say something about how unfair he felt his sparring match was, but Sabine seemed upset too, and he figured she might do that on his behalf, since Fenn wanted to talk to her.

Sabine did manage to wait until Ezra and everyone else was out of earshot, but just barely. "What the crap was that, Fenn? You didn't even give Ezra a chance."

"This is why I took Bridger out quickly," Fenn responded.

"Huh?"

"How could you allow yourself to become involved with a Jetti?" Fenn asked. "How would your clan, your mother, feel about this?"

"I...I left my clan...and my mother, she disowned me." Sabine pointed out.

"There have been more difficult paths to return to a clan." Fenn countered. "But being romantic with a Jetti whenever you choose to return would certainly be frowned upon, to say the least."

A/N: Hey everyone. It's certainly been quite some time. October, I think. Writer's block is certainly a crafty opponent. With this chapter, I was struggling with where to go, how to get moving to the Trials of the Darksaber episode. All in all, I'm still not to the episode, but I think the seed has finally been planted. We'll see how the next chapter goes as its word count currently sits at zero. As always, comments, constructive criticism, or suggestions for future chapters are always welcomed. Obviously, with zero words written, nothing after this chapter is completely set in stone.