A/N: In this chapter I go back to Yavin IV and the rest of Zeb's family, showing how worried they are about him and are going to search for him no matter what Rebel Command says! Kanan, in the meantime, will be helping Leka with how to use the Force in a positive way. Ezra also will help and will become a close friend with the young Lasat. Warning for mature content.
Chapter 7 Training and Rescue Plans
Lekaryta Pauen sat cross-legged by the waterfall on Yavin IV. Kanan Jarrus was with him helping to hone his Force powers. The young Lasat proved to be a difficult student and Kanan knew it was because of his Lasat temperment.
"Leka, close your eyes, take a deep breath and let the Force flow through you," Kanan said to his student, "Try and levitate that small rock over by the waterfall."
Leka eased his breathing and sat up straighter, placed his clawed hands on his knees and let his mind go blank. The rock began to rise and soon was hovering above the water. Kanan, even blind could "see" that the Force-sensitive Lasat was doing well until...
"No!" Leka cried out, his green eyes wide with fear, "Captain Orrelios!"
The rock fell to the water with a loud splash that startled Kanan.
"Leka," the blind Jedi said in an annoyed tone, "Try again."
"I'm sorry, Kanan, but I saw something in my mind! I saw Captain Orrelios and he's injured...maybe dying! We have to find him!"
Kanan walked over and sat down beside the young Lasat seeing that he was very upset about something he saw in a Force vision. He remembered Ezra having Force visions of his parents before he knew their fate and they had upset him like Leka was reacting now. Kanan knew he had to help Leka but it was hard as this Lasat who was no more than a child, was not only stubborn but strong-willed.
"Leka," he said laying a hand on the youngster's shoulder, "Tell me what you saw."
Leka blinked his eyes that now were full of tears and told his mentor what he saw.
"Captain Orrelios is on a jungle planet...and he's injured! I saw four aliens like the ones Ele and I saw on Nar Shaddaa hunting him down like he is a wild animal! They hurt him, Kanan! They...hurt him!"
The young Lasat put his hands over his face and Kanan saw his shoulders shaking and knew that Leka was probably crying. Force visions were very upsetting to the individual, and especially for a new Force user like Leka. He figured the young Lasat had enough for one day.
"We...We have to help him!" Leka said past his hands. Kanan saw tear streaks on the purple fur of his cheeks. He reached over to place an arm around Leka's shoulders in a comforting manner. That always worked for Ezra and he hoped it would work for Leka as well.
"Leka, Force visions are just that...visions and nothing else. It doesn't mean that something has happened to Zeb. Hera and I are going to begin a search for him and I need your help to find him. Can you do that for me?"
"Yes," Leka said wiping the last of his tears away and stood up feeling a bit foolish for crying in front of the Jedi, "I'm sorry, I don't usually get so...emotional about stuff, but this scared me. This whole Force thing scares me."
"Leka, you won't go through this alone. You have me, Ezra and the rest of the family."
Leka smiled at the word "family". It had been a long time that he felt like part of a family except for Ele and Burley. He turned at the sound of his beautiful bondmate walking up the path and she saw his damp cheeks. She went over and gave the young Lasat a hug around the waist since she was alot shorter than him. Leka leaned into her embrace and felt calmer.
When they returned to the main base, Hera was preparing the evening meal for the family inclusing Rex, Kallus, Ele and Leka. The maternal Twi'lek saw that Leka appeared to have been crying and her heart went out to him.
"Kanan, how did Leka's training go today?" she asked giving him a kiss on the cheek.
"I thought Ezra was a tough student to teach, but Leka is proving me otherwise," Kanan answered, "I almost feel like I'm training a younger version of Zeb."
"Give him time, love," Hera added, "Leka hasn't had the training like you or Ezra had and it will be harder for him. Remember, Kanan, Leka is a Lasat and his temperment will be different than a human's. Also remember this, Leka is not Zeb. He is a boy...a Lasat boy that has abilities that he doesn't know how to use and is afraid of. He'll come around, after all, Ezra did."
"You're right as always, Hera. I think seeing Leka reminds me of Zeb being gone and how much I miss the big guy. Leka had a Force vision about Zeb being hunted by aliens and being injured...maybe in a bad way. We need to search for him...and bring him home. Ayessa won't forgive us if we don't bring him home."
Hera smiled at the mention of the Barrelian female that had taken a strong interest in their resident Lasat the past few months. She remembered seeing how Ayessa would look at him and taking walks with him around the base, showed her that the bond was growing between the two. They were definitely an odd couple but she knew that Zeb liked her too.
"Speaking of Ayessa," Hera said, "Have you seen her around?"
"She's over by the waterfall, sitting in front of her Barrelian prayer stone," Sabine said as she brought Hera some vegetables, "She spends alot of time there, in meditation or prayer. I think she really loves Zeb."
"She does, and her love is strong," Kanan said reaching out with the Force to feel the strong emotions of love the tall Barrelian beauty was broadcasting.
The object of their concern was kneeling in front of her prayer stone and was chanting for the safe return of her "sycha" as she now claimed Zeb as. She was now more determined than ever to help in the search for the lost Lasat so she should declare her love for him. Closing her eyes, Ayessa imagined Zeb kneeling beside her and looking into his luminous green eyes seeing the brave and loving soul within their depths. She remembered their walks to the waterfall and how the Lasat liked to hold her hand as they walked. Being a non-telepath, Zeb showed his affection by touch. The hand-holding had sparked a feeling in her she had never felt before: seduction.
At dinner that night, she would find out that her sycha's family was finally going to search for him and she wanted to go with them. She sat picking at her food wanting to feel Zeb's presence next to her and his hand holding hers. Ayessa sat listening to Kanan, Hera, Rex and Kallus discuss the search parameters with each other and she looked over to see that Ezra and Sabine were becoming annoyed as they found out that they weren't coming along. She stole glances over at Leka and Ele seeing the young couple with equally annoyed looks on their faces. They weren't allowed to go either.
"Hey!" Ezra called out his face in a frown, "Why can't Sabine, Ele, Leka and I go along with you to help search for Zeb? We're his family too!"
"Ezra, this could be a very dangerous mission and the four of you are..." Kanan began to say.
"Too young," Sabine finished her brown eyes flashing with anger, "Maybe we're young, but we've had more experience at dangerous missions than half the people at this rebel base!"
"Sabine," Hera said in her maternal tone, "I know you and Ezra have experience at missions, but this is different. We're dealing with alien beings we have never encountered before and they are dangerous."
"My people have had alot of encounters with these beings," Ele added and looked over to see Leka frowning.
"No," Kanan said in a firm tone, "The four of you are staying here on Yavin IV and that's final!"
Ezra frowned and Sabine stamped her foot in anger. Ele flashed her teeth in a Dathomirian sneer and Leka growled deep in his throat, his green eyes narrowed with anger.
Ayessa sat watching the exchange between her young friends and with her telepathic abilities, she sensed the anger fueled by fear projecting through. The four youngsters were beginning to add a comment when a stern look from Hera stopped them.
"You kids have enough to do while we're gone," she said in mother mode, "Ezra, you and Sabine promised Kanan and I that you would clean the PHANTOM II's exhaust ports and clean the carbon scoring off the hull. That still needs to be done. Ele, you and Leka agreed to help Alexandr with deciphering those coded messages from the other Fulcrum agents. Now you have the time to do it while we're gone."
The Dathomirian girl's face went from anger to an expression of worry. Leka's Lasat features went from anger to outright sadness. The young Lasat's bottom lip was in a real pout getting Hera and Kanan to smile as it was the same look Zeb would get on his face when Hera or Kanan got after him about something. They both felt bad at leaving the two rebels and Fulcrum agents behind but knew that rescuing Zeb could get dangerous and they didn't want to endanger the youngsters.
Kanan, Hera, Rex and Kallus finished with getting the GHOST ready for the rescue and went to retire for the night. Rex and Kallus tried to curb their anxiety by a game of Sabacc, while Kanan and Hera went for a walk along the waterfall. Sabine and Ezra went for a walk to get their tempers cooled off and ended up near some other temple ruins. Leka and Ele walked down another path not far from Ezra and Sabine. The young couple stopped by a small stream that flowed from the ruins of an ancient statue. They sat down near the stream and held each other close.
"Leka, why does everyone that is older than us, treat us like children?" Ele asked as she snuggled close to her Lasat bondmate feeling secure in his arms.
"I don't know," the young Lasat answered nuzzling his face against Ele's, "Kanan treats me like I'm the same age as Ezra. I'm two years older!"
"I know, It's because we are close to their ages and remind them of how young we are," Ele answered looking up at him and caressing his furry cheeks.
Leka smiled as he felt her slim fingers on his fur. He bent his head to give her a tender kiss on the lips. She sighed at his touch and leaned closer to him.
"That's nice," she said softly and reached up to give him a kiss back hoping for more. She felt Leka's response to her kiss and he pulled her closer.
Ele turned around to face Leka and reached back to undo her halter top letting it fall to her waist. Leka's smile showed that he was pleased at seeing her bare tatooed breasts and he reached a finger over to caress one seeing her smile.
"Leka, mate with me..." she whispered and began to undo his tunic to run her hands over his furry chest that was growing warm with arousal. His smile grew and he pulled her close feeling her skin growing warm with arousal too. Ele reached down to open Leka's pants to ready him for a mating ritual. She smiled seeing he was ready and willing. The young Lasat male began to purr with seduction and held her closer, kissing her with alot of passion. Soon the two were mating, their sighs echoing through the jungle.
While the young couple were enjoying an intimate encounter, Ayessa sat in front of her prayer stone and closed her eyes picturing Zeb in her mind. She wanted to make sure she had a vivid picture of her sycha to remember in case he never returned.
"Garazeb," she whispered, her sultry voice shaky with emotion, "Please be safe. Please come...home...I love you."
The Barrelian female crossed her arms over her ample breasts that were covered by a thin top that exposed her muscular middle. She was showing a Barrelian female's expression of affection for her bondmate. That was usually done after the couple had joined minds but she felt emotions that she had never experienced before and it was because of her physical attraction for Zeb. She hungered to feel his hand holding hers, but this time she wanted the touch of his large soft-furred hands on her face, neck and...her breasts. When they were together, she noticed that Zeb stared alot at her body, her breasts in particular. Eyes still closed, Ayessa unfastened her top pulling the material apart, her breasts with the gold markings exposed, golden nipples reacting with a strong feeling of arousal. She ran her hands over the now sweating skin and sighed, imagining that it was Zeb touching her.
"Oh...sycha!" she moaned caressing more, "I need you!"
She opened her eyes and saw what she had done and began to cry. Beginning a prayer of forgiveness, Ayessa felt ashamed at touching her body in such a private way. It was an alien feeling and frightened her. Doing her top back up, the Barrelian female walked back to the rebel base and was relieved when she met up with Ezra and Sabine who were returning from a walk of their own. Through the Force, Ezra felt that Ayessa had been very aroused and he knew she had been thinking about Zeb. He also sensed that Leka and Ele were having themselves quite an intimate encounter of their own and he also sensed Kanan and Hera were doing the same thing.
Towards evening, Leka and Ele Pauen lay snuggled close, naked bodies drying off from post-mating sweat. They had mated several times as if it were the last time they would and it had worn them out. When darkness fell, Hera grew worried not seeing the young Fulcrum agents.
"Sabine?" Hera asked after not having any luck seeing the youngsters around, "Have you seen Leka or Ele? They've been gone a long time. I hope they didn't do anything stupid."
Ezra walked up and smiled knowing where the couple were and what they were up to.
"Hera, don't worry," he said, "They are fine and out in the jungle near those other temple ruins. They uh...are having...uh..."
Hera smiled knowing what the boy was trying to say. In so many words, Ezra was telling her that Leka and Ele were out by the ruins making love.
"It's okay, I know where they are and what they are doing. Why don't you and Sabine try and get some sleep, for tomorrow Kanan and I are leaving to rescue Zeb...and bring him home."
Ayessa lay in front of the prayer stone altar and slept. While she slept, she reached out with her telepathic abilities to Zeb and smiled as she touched his mind that she loved and earlier discovered that she craved his body too.
On the faraway jungle planet:
Zeb lay shivering with the chills of a fever as Ayessa's telepathic touch reached him. The shivers stopped and he smiled feeling the strong emotion of love behind the touch and he relaxed into a deeper sleep dreaming about mating with the beautiful Barrelian...