Truth Hurts Worse Than Lies
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Yeah, yeah, I don't want to hear it. Just read and enjoy.
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It's quiet. The ship. It's been...agonizingly quiet for weeks now. Kanan, for all of his bluster about maintaining discipline to Ezra, was about to go stark raving mad within this stifling silence. Hera, Chopper, and Sabine working on improving the Ghost, the weapons systems, or just scouting for new jobs was nothing more than a minor pin drop under a haze of white noise. It barely registered, and when it would it was just...tedious to hear. There was no hum to their work. No grace or tact, or a sliver harmony in their craft. It was boorish and loud, and took hours upon hours for what...what was a simple sneeze to someone else. These random jobs they go on for meager supplies and credits, being shot at for disrupting checkpoints, arrest attempts for being sighted buying - all just pin drops that created a white noise for which he writhed in. Because the second he returns to the ship, or the moment the tiniest...the smallest smidge of silence sets in. There are no pats on the back for a job well done, no hoots and hollers about how the jobs were getting too easy, and there was a severe lack of jubilation. There wasn't this sense of accomplishment Kanan would feel whenever he returned from a dangerous mission. It was all just tense. Tense, tense, and growing more tense. On the verge of snapping, and leaving everything sprawled out and messied to the dirt. And once that happens...a rift will tear the ship apart more than it already has. The source of their pestilence was that hole Katerina left on her departure. A hole Kanan had already started to create.
The tension within ship was suffocating. It's been a good couple of weeks since Katerina left, but the foul miasma left in her wake really tempered a dissolution within the ranks. The trust that was there...it was fading. Not completely disappearing. A more appropriate description would be...mistrust will have to do. It was accurate. Hera and Kanan have always been in their own little world. Having conversations or talking in code only they know, always sneaking off to talk with Fulcrum on their own - Sabine already questioned what was so damn important that they could share with the rest of them. What are they hiding that they can't trust the rest of their crew with? Considering they hid Katerina's true birth from her, they think themselves in the right. They think they can walk around and keep their secrets, and that everyone should fall in line and accept that they had A REASON for keeping quiet about what they know. Kanan and Hera couldn't have been more wrong if they tried. Sabine knows if they just would have told Katerina and them about what they learned none of this - this turmoil - would be happening! Yes, there would be some sort of discourse! A major question of identity, whether or not Katerina was a threat to them, how she wasn't eliminated like the rest of the clones, and...scariest of all...if the Empire knew about her? If the last one turns out to be true...that would mean...that they always knew their plans, where they'd be, and she was leading them on the path to be captured and killed. Could any of that be possible? Or was it easier for Sabine to accept that everyone on the ship has secrets that could tear them apart if they ever surfaced?
Zeb was the most infuriated, and the one who now knows he's foolish to trust someone with blood so stained to her hands she hides her skills as a professional killer. She's told him all about her murder of Trayvis's nephew. What she failed to mention is that she took pleasure in harming any who crossed her. Be they enemy, friend, or the other. And from how easily she killed those stormtroopers, giving no quarter, showing no reservations, and displaying a certain delight...Zeb is now convinced that the girl her fell in love with is nothing more than a farce. Katerina, a girl so reserved in battles, withholding all along that she is just another killer. Hiding that she used to kill people for the sake of...ending her own pain, and exacting her rage on others...and then running away instead of facing her past like a woman. Running seems to be her forte when all become too much for her. For Zeb, that was the ultimate betrayal of one's self and those around them. For Zeb...proves more than ever he was stupid to believe he could have a future again.
Ezra...Ezra didn't know what to think, or feel. It all happened way too fast and in such a bundle that he was scared of being crushed. It didn't all make sense to him. Katerina and Kanan, Kanan and Katerina - that was a dance he loved to watch. How cohesive those two were on the field. They practically read each other's minds, and their bond literally transcended time. They were closer than close! They were practically joined at the hip. Considering Katerina is his clone...Ezra might have to rephrase that. That's another thing! Ezra...doesn't quite grasp why Katerina being a clone bugs him so much. Why he would go so far as to hate her at the drop of a hat so easily? Ezra would kill to have a clone sister. Granted, it would be shocking to learn that a family member is actually a piece of you repurposed, but that should make their connection even stronger. She and Kanan are one in the same, yet lead such different lives. She's methodical in strategy, and Kanan is methodical in combat. They complement one another so well that they were an unstoppable force and immovable objects. Nothing could slow them down. Their stories about the old days and all the trouble they'd get into, and how they overcame their trials - Ezra aspired to become them one day. He wants to be Kanan and Katerina. Individuals, no matter how often they're knocked down, always got right back up and dealt damage back 100 fold. Where one lacked, the other would compensate, and they'd make an upset. All that they stood for came crumbling down faster than the old ruins when Katerina's birth came to light...and Kanan and Hera chose to keep it to themselves...letting the discord grow until it blew up in everyone's face. Now Zeb feels betrayed, Sabine is questioning why she trusts anyone, and Hera and Kanan can't look anyone in the eye. What's happening to their team? What will happen to his family? He doesn't want to be alone again. Not like that. Not because of this.
Hera felt it on every inch of her. A dense pressure more harsh than the oppressive gravity of Malefor, heat and ice that would send Orto Plutonia and Mustafar slinking into burrows in weeping shame, and a tear so vast not even the deepest abysses of Tatooine could compare. Her ship is coming apart bolt by bolt. Hours of superficial repairs to dull out this sensation will not so much as graze the surface of what truly needed mending. The trust on the Ghost was always steadfast, only ever wavering whenever she and Kanan had to meet with Fulcrum or any of their other contacts in secret. They've had their rough patches. No one is ever going to deny that. But this...this took its toll. Hera wanted so desperately for Kanan to tell Katerina the truth! To tell her herself! But he wouldn't allow it! It was so terrifying that someone he loved and lost for so long was the same as those who killed the Jedi, his family. Seeing Kanan break, then Katerina soon after, shattered Hera worse than anything this universe has thrown at her. For her...those two were a symbol that the impossible can become the improbable, which in some twist of fate can become probable. In other words, to all appearances, neither of these two should be alive. Yet here they were. Reunited, fighting side by side, laughing and joking as if no time had passed, closer than anyone Hera had seen in years. And it all came apart with one blow. She should have said something, anything, to Katerina. Maybe...just maybe...then she wouldn't have left.
"Ugh! All this moping!" Hera cursed herself. "Time to go to work!" She and the others need to get up and out. do more jobs to keep their blood in circulation. This will all blow over eventually. It has to. She ventured to Kanan's room, knocking harder than intended, then invited herself in. "Kanan we-" She paused right when the door closed behind her, taken aback by Kanan already strapped up and ready to get moving. In his eyes she saw the stinging red from what could only have been brought on by...tears. He's been crying. "Kanan? Are you alright?" She approached him cautiously.
"We need to focus on our next job!" He responded curtly, charging up his pistol and splitting his lightsaber into its halves. "Keep moving until the heat dies down, and replenish our supplies!" And the heat was intense. Resting in this field was already a risk. TIE's were always doing flybys right over them. If it wasn't for the cloaking, which they needed new energy sources to replenish its strength, they'd have been dead by now.
"I...the Empire isn't too happy with us lately." Hera paced side to side, trying to sound glib at their situation. She was slightly flustered that he was bouncing back from his wallowing. "Ever since Trayvis was exposed, they seem to be out for blood." More than ever. Their biggest rebel cash cow is now revealed to be a snitch.
"That's fine! Let them come!" He dared, fastening his armor plates and belt. "I'll spill theirs ten fold for what they've cost me!" He growled.
"Kanan…" She should have known. She moved in to touch his shoulder, cleave him of this...rancor that clouds him.
"I'm fine, Hera!" He shrugged her off, turning his back to her. He...he doesn't want her to touch him...not right now. "I'm fine!"
Hera furrowed her brow, balling her fingers into fists. "No you're not." She turned on her heels, vacating his room in a huff and storming for the bridge. Her face softened to sorrow, her stride slowing as it hit her again. "Neither am I." She moaned.
xxx
The hospital was swarmed with stormtroopers just a couple of hours after the incident. A saving grace was the patients weren't injured and weren't put under too extreme of stress. The staff and security were able to evacuate everyone without incident. The only ones injured were the stormtroopers who attempted to apprehend, who they can positively ID as the rebel mechanic. APB's were put out for her immediate arrest. Not execution. Her arrest. Which baffled more than just the stormtroopers. Such a dangerous felon on the loose, it made more sense to put her down like the rabid animal she is. Then again, she is their only and closest tie to the rebels casing them so much strife. She'd be perfect to hang them with. If they can track her down and find her. Shouldn't take long. Considering all of Chandrila's forces are scouting for her, her face is well known, and latest reports state she has sustained injuries, they'll have her in their clutches by lunch. Or so they hope.
Triples in photographs of the damage were taken everywhere. From the point of entry their purported rebel used to her exit. They swabbed and scraped up every ounce of of her DNA, scanned for her fingerprints, even used microscopes to find hairs. They were turning over every patch of dirt, questioning everyone and everything. That was literal. A trooper argued with a sentient water droid for ten minutes before it shot bottle sparkling water in his face. Ice packs were on hand. Though it was hard to say if that ice would heal the lumps on their bruised pride. Patients who were being returned, and members of staff gave pretty much the same low down. A crazy girl appeared in the hallway, cornered Senator Mon Mothma and her assistant, and tore the hospital apart trying to kill them. Which lined up with a previous assault report received. The rebel Mechanic infiltrated the Senator's home and proceeded to attack her after a conversation.
It boggled the stormtroopers to no feasible end. A little bird told the good troopers that the GOOD Senator was in league with the rebels all along. Feeding them intel and even safeguarding one by removing all electronic trace of them and redacting them. But if that were really the case, why would a rebel attempt to murder the one protecting them? Could it have been from a separate instance? Maybe the Senator was blackmailing the rebel? Her silence or cooperation for protecting him from arrest, or something along those lines? Or it may have been the other way around; the rebel blackmailing the Senator for full immunity and obscurity, in exchange she won't hurt the Senator or those around her? This whole situation was becoming very confusing. What they anticipated or suspected was far from kosher with what they are learning. And the more they learn, the more apparent it becomes that this animal has broken free of any chains that have shackled her, and she's on a rampage. They will wait for the official confirmation from HQ, but all in all a full protective detail will need to be placed around the Senator.
Mon Mothma with a blanket to her shoulders and hot tea in her hands, and Grim beside her with a few bruises, finished giving their statements in the lobby. All the while, they peered around anxiously to the level of security walking about, very unsettled that another forced detail was going to detain them. Though, to all appearances, they were more nervous about another attack. The two troopers had everything they needed in their report and submitted it to HQ with a Priority tag on it. Within the hour further orders will be given. "Thank you, Senator." The troopers bowed to her. She nodded grimly to them. "Young man, you have our thanks." They shook Grim's hand. He replied with a curt grunt. Their touch was...disgusting. "A heinous rumor is you are friends with the young woman that attacked you."
"Once upon a time…" His neck clenched, chest tightening with maddening anxiety. His adrenaline spiked again, nerves buzzing like a hive. "She...she turned her back on us for a life of crime…" He rasped, having to take a seat. "All she's done is cause me and my workers trouble! It was a terrible gamble to ever trust her! I should have realized my faith should have been placed with those of true power!" He buried his face in his interlaced hands, breathing heavily.
"We're glad to hear it." He was pat on the shoulder. It did them proud to know another has been enlightened by the Empire's grace. Unbeknownst to them, Grim was about to blow his stomach on the floor at all this swill. "Do you know where she's gone to roost? Or where she hides away when things get hot?"
"That is the one bit of information I was never privy to." The first truth he's told. He doesn't know where Katerina hides or hangs when she needs to rest. She always kept that to herself and Kendril. The less people who know the better and all that. "She has a history of running, hiding, and causing drama for others. But she's as ambiguous with her hiding places as she is violent." Another...huh...Grim felt a sting in his core. He's...feeding them what they want to hear...and what will protect Katerina...yet...it was beginning to stir up past grievances. Turning his fairytale...into a biography. "To be honest, I don't care where she goes. I just wish she wouldn't come back." GRR! Again?! He just got jabbed again! What is this!? He doesn't really feel this way...does he?
"I understand." It was high time they moved on. "I can see why she came at you so harshly. She wanted to silence you in case you did know something." Yet he doesn't know anything since she left with the rebels. "Well, you and the Senator are alright in my book. I'll draw up a report and state that very brave individuals stood up for their Empire." Mon Mothma and Grim smirked with pride...loving how easy that was. "If you see her again-"
"I'm killing her." Grim growled. Mon Mothma shuddered. Grim shuddered himself. This...tingly, bubbling sensation gave him a dose of glee. Glee? Why glee? He's threatened to kill her before in play...but...does he mean it now? No...no that can't be right.
"Ha-Ha. Happy trails, sir." They saluted him and went on their merry way.
Grim waited until they were well out of earshot. Turned that corner...waited a minute or two...then he lurched forward and pretended choke on all that crud he spewed! Kissing up to them! How low can he possibly sink?! "I think my mouth needs to be cleaned out!"
"Perhaps you might try out for Improvisation on your spare time afterward." Mon Mothma joked...with a minor edge. "That was very convincing."
"Too convincing." Grim admitted, taking hold of his wrist, strangling those dark thoughts. He dug his fingers into his scalp, shaking his head with despair. "I cannot believe any of this is happening. For it to have gone this far."
Mon Mothma regarded the young Nautolan woefully, patting his back with sympathy. "I know how you feel. There are times I can't believe how out of hand things have gotten." And she lives in the middle of it. She loses track on the number of times the Empire goes out of hand to stake their totalitarian hold on the universe. Anyone who questions them never breathes again. The entitlement to question becomes a death sentence. "You think you're being careful, keeping yourself out of the spotlight as best as you can-"
"And the next thing you know you're in a fire fight with one of your oldest friends, and the Empire thinks you're a traitor." Grim clapped his hands defeatedly. No matter what anyone does, somehow anyone outside of the Empire's circle of pawns will be treated like an enemy. "Katty…"
"She certainly has gotten herself in the thick of it." Mon Mothma chortled. "She always seems to get herself into trouble someway or another."
"This time though she has an entire empire on her heels." Grim rumbled perturbed. There's no where she can go that they won't follow or find her. And for reasons she's yet to explain, she's left rebels and is now committing fraudulent assaults. He rested a hand to the pocket where Katerina hid the holocom. He was nervous to listen to it, but it might come with a full, legit explanation to this madness. "Is it wrong that I want to wring her neck for putting us and her in this position?" In the middle of an all out war.
"Not in the least." Mon Mothma assured him with a warm smile. "I want to wring my own neck for not being brave enough to fight back like her."
"Your way doesn't get innocent people drawn into this!" He snapped back bitterly.
"That's where you're wrong." Mon Mothma curtly remarked, stunning him. "Innocent people were drawn into this mess before there was an Empire. They're the collateral damage they write off on receipts!" She snarled, minding his volume. The walls have ears...and mouths. "But more are standing up because of what people like Katerina do."
"Don't think they'll stand too long when they hear a Rebel attacked a defenseless woman in the hospital." Might set all of their progress in the reverse.
"A defenseless IMPERIAL woman." She winked.
"Doesn't matter." He grumbled. He appreciates what she's trying to do, but right now just wasn't the time. He's being crushed in a vice by this overwhelming typhoon of anger, confusion, and sadness. Why has it come to this? Why was he forced to fake a brawl with one of his oldest friends, and why was she back on Chandrila and didn't tell him until she plotted this assault?! What's going on?! Why does the Empire seem to have their crosshairs fined to only her? And what was she doing at Senator Mon Mothma's?!
"Katerina would be able to help." Mon Mothma gently remarked, patting him on the back. Grim flashed shock at her. Did she just read his mind? Mon Mothma giggled at him adoringly. "I'm a politician. Part of my job is reading the body language of others. And yours is screaming that you are completely in the dark about what's going." Grim slumped miserably, putting his hands in his head. If he was in the dark he'd at least find the smallest speck of light to shed on this mystery. He's in the abyss. Nothing was making sense. "Katerina has much on her shoulders, and even more that she needs to tell you. She just has a difficult time telling others what's on her mind."
"You got that right." He sniffled, then paused for thought, gaping at her. "What do you mean she has a lot on her shoulders? You mean with...her extracurriculars?"
"I'm sure she plans to tell you." She pointed at his pocket. "She left you a present, didn't she?" Grim placed a hand over his pocket. How did she know about that? "You keep placing your hand there. Which tells me its important."
"You're scary." Grim shuddered. Now he understands why Kendril was so cautious around her. Ultimately, she was right. The projector was not only important, but it was also the only clue he has to what's going on with her. "If I'm being honest, I'm scared of what she'll say. But I'm...so worried for her." He hasn't stopped worrying for her since she left. The uncertainty of her returning makes him writhe in the night. He'll get that call...he'll hear that she's gone...an his world will be a friend and mentor down.
"You should go to her. Hear what she has to say." She encouraged him. "I've already heard her."
"You have?" He asked anxiously. His heart skipped a beat. What could she have said? Mon Mothma's face sank somberly, making Grim panic. "She isn't holding up well, Grim. And the fault lies with us from the days of the clone wars."
"What...does that mean…?" What do the clone wars have to do with her?
xxx
Ezra pushed around a metal ball Chopper spit out on the kitchen table. He doesn't know what it is, but he was so bored from not having any training sessions or missions lately that it was all that kept his brain from turning into jelly. In spite of them flying through space on their way to some meaningless delivery job, Ezra can't stand sitting around. "I don't...want to be here."
Zeb tromped on in, immediately digging into the fridge. Ezra regarded him bordely, seeing on his face that he was still very pissed off. Or that could just be his face. Despite how long he's known Zeb, it was hard to tell. With how much food he was piling up on...yeah. He wasn't in a good spot.
"Gonna comment on my weight again?" Zeb growled, slamming it all on the table across from him.
"Not in the mood." Ezra moaned. He plucked something with loads of whipped cream from Zeb's hoard, sticking it into his mouth with little interest. Zeb didn't care either. The ship...just wasn't right. Being stuck in here...without..."Hmm...I wonder how she's doing."
"Who?" Zeb angrily made this strange burrito. Ezra's stomach might explode if he learns why it called for chilli powder and sugar.
Ezra realized he had spoken aloud, turning a light shade of pink. He scratched at his cheek bashfully, and fretted immensely on how Zeb would react when he uttered, "Riina…" A slam and snap had Ezra's soul leaping out of him. He cringed in fright. Zeb had impaled the table with his claws, bending the table so far that it nearly snapped right off. "I-I mean...we haven't heard from her in a while! And we don't really know if she made it to Chandrila! Which is occupied by the Empire and-and-and…" He had to stop. He's yammering. And with Zeb's heated gaze he was breaking into a cold sweat. "Riina may have left...but shouldn't we find out if she's-"
"Who cares!" Zeb roared animally, scaring Ezra out of his seat. He hit the floor hard. he gawked at Zeb utterly speechless. He doesn't care if she's alright?! "Don't look at me like that! She left us to go be on her own, therefore whatever comes at her she can fend off herself!" She chose to make this bed, now he's going to make sure she lies in it! She can die in it for all he cares. "I'm not…" He bit into his lip, hissing to the side, "WE'RE NOT going to drop everything to go drag her back! Not when leaving was clearly her greatest desire!"
"She didn't wanna leave!" Ezra blurted out, rushing back onto his feet. "She just...felt like it was her only option!" Boy, if ever he lacked conviction in his arguments, that one was pitiful.
"Oh really?! Your under developed Jedi powers tell you that?!" Zeb challenged him.
"No, just…" He bristled, stepping away. Zeb seemed ready to hit something. He doesn't want to be in range. "Sometimes...being alone is easier for-"
Zeb rushed him and lifted him off the ground by his collar. He slammed Ezra into the wall so hard he lost oxygen. "DO NOT TALK TO ME ABOUT ALONE!" Ezra's veins were infused with ice. His skin tone went white as the moon. Fear glistened in his electric blue eyes. "YOU AND KATERINA AREN'T THE ONES WHO FEEL ALONE! BUT THAT'S WHY WE BECAME A TEAM! A FAMILY!" His grip tightened, Ezra's back pressing further into the wall. The boy put his feet to his chest, trying his hardest to push Zeb back. Then he stopped, taken aback by the unprecedented. Tears were coming down Zeb's cheeks. His body trembled in desperation to maintain what little ounce of control remained. He was...coming apart. All because...because of HER! "We...could have...she could have...I was...right here…" He sobbed, lowering Ezra. His knees buckled. He dragged his nails on the wall to prevent himself from falling. Ezra stared at him heartbroken. A weight unlike anything he has felt from Zeb was crushing his chest. "Why...am I...was I...not enough?" Someone tell him why! What stopped him from being enough for her.
Ezra...didn't know what to say. What could he say? "Maybe it's because…" Why would someone like Katerina leave like this? He had to think long and hard, put all of what's transpired these past weeks together. Trayvis, her message, her past...the answer is there. "Because...she was scared of losing you eventually. All of us." It was a guess, but it seemed lie the correct one. Zeb seemed to believe it. He ogled Ezra with intrigue. "I don't know. Her story about Trayvis's nephew, her message, and the road she took to meet us, it would make sense that she fears being alone again. That everyone will leave her." He sank miserably. That's the worst kind of loneliness.
"What the Hell do you know?! You're just a kid!" Zeb snarled venomously, swinging his hand. "We wouldn't have left her!"
"She thought Kanan couldn't hate her either! Guess you were asleep for that!" Ezra snapped back. He's sick of Zeb treating him like he's clueless!
"Why you little-" Zeb trudged closer to him, ready to crush him like the gnat he was. Always speaking out of his ass when he doesn't come close to grasping the situation at hand! Always spouting off in heartfelt speeches that he borrowed from someone else! He needs to recognize...he's not a master! He's a child with no experience in this universe and the woes it brings!
"Look, I was just thinking out loud! I didn't want an argument with you!" Ezra stood his ground and shoved Zeb away from him. "You have your feelings, and I have mine! And mine are that I hope Riina is doing alright, and that we meet up with her again! I need someone in my life to come back!" Zeb was caught off guard, stricken by...this overwhelming purity emanating from Ezra. He staggered a bit. I need someone to...come back. Zeb internally kicked himself. Ezra's parents...victims of this war. They too had a fault that should have left Ezra bitter. Instead...he thinks on them proudly. Just as he does Katerina. How can he be so forgiving. "You can go feel whatever you want! I'm not giving up on her! She'll need us one day, and I'm going to be the first to go to her!"
"You don't get it…" Zeb grumbled pathetically, shoulders slumping. The light dimmed in his eyes. "You just don't get it." He plopped into the booth, hands on either side of his head. "I don't want to feel anything for her anymore…" Ezra went rigid, mind splitting in half. He doesn't want to feel anything?! For Riina?! "I wish this would stop." Zeb put a hand to his chest. That blasted organ beating passionately for the future he envisioned with her. All those times he poured his heart out to her...all those times he reassured her that she could come to him...about anything...she ran. She ran away from him! As if leaving her staff behind would make things better! "I wish...I never fell in love with someone...who doesn't love me enough to trust her with her burdens!"
"Zeb...you can't mean that-"
"GUYS!" Sabine came barging in, fresh out of breath with panic in her eyes. "Get in here! You have to hear this!" Zeb and Ezra exchanged troubled glances and chased after her into the bridge.
Hera, Kanan, and Chopper had a live feed broadcasting, both looking sick to their stomachs. Zeb and Ezra, though scared to learn what was up, opened their mouths to ask. Sabine hushed them because any questions they have are about to be answered. A robotic humanoid woman appeared on the hologram with a video broadcast beside her of a hospital. "We bring you breaking news from the planet Chandrila, home of leading Imperial Talks." That was enough to make anyone kill the feed. Unfortunately what came next glued them all, rooted them in place too. "Senator Mon Mothma of the Imperial Senate was attacked at her private residence, and later at the hospital just hours after being admitted." They put the Senator's face on the news, managing to bring tremendous light on her injuries and bandages. Way to make her isn't a woeful victim. "Witness reports state that the attacker was a young woman said to have ties with rebel insurgents," A petrifying ringing flooded the Ghost Crew's ears, all around them going as silent as space. Their eyes frozen like glass, cracking as images of who this insurgent would have been, "Seeking to silence Senator Mon Mothma and her assistant. More on this story when our investigators-"
Kanan slammed a fist to the panel, murdering the feed in a forth mouthed rage. "Senator Mon Mothma?!" He snarled, quaking in a rage. He knows of her very well. She's one of the most influential senators of the whole Imperial Senate.
"Chandrila?!" Hera twisted her head tails at her neck. The Imperial Capital of the Universe, home to a solid 50% of the Imperial fleet.
"A rebel insurgent?!" Zeb clawed at his arm. As if their troubles weren't hectic enough. Now...one of...their own? And worst of all...he has a feeling he knows who it is.
"No way…" Ezra flopped to a chair, staring off in horror. "It couldn't be."
"RIINA ATTACKED AN IMPERIAL SENATOR?!" Sabine screamed at the top of her lungs, slamming a fist into the wall. She tore at her hair, teeth grinding together so hard her gums would have split. "Has she lost her mind?! Now the whole Empire is going to be after her!"
"This doesn't make any sense though!" Ezra threw himself in front of her, arms spread. They don't know for sure it was her...though...they're the only rebel insurgents. "Attacking a Senator out of nowhere?! It's so random! And it puts her so far in the spotlight she'll be killed on sight." Sabine growled in the back of her throat, shoving Ezra out of her way and stroming for her room. "Sabine!" Zeb lifted Ezra by the back of his collar, moving him out of his way so he could leave that stuffy bridge too. "ZEB! WAIT! Guys!" Ezra can't believe this! They can't really think Katerina would do this? The news only said a rebel insurgent! That could mean anyone claiming to be a rebel! It doesn't mean it was Katerina! it being on Chandrila was just a coincidence!
"Riina…" "What have you done?"
"ARE YOU SERIOUS?!" Ezra grabbed him by the collar, fuming in his face. "Kanan! C'mon! This is Riina we're talking about! She wouldn't do something like this! We know her!"
"Do we Ezra?" Kanan muttered broken, unable meet Ezra's hurt gaze. "Do we really know her? Or was she just an illusion?" Ezra shakily removed his hands, backing away nauseated at what he's hearing. He glanced to Hera, and saw her equally as silent, and crestfallen. He shook his head, his spirit taking a massive blow. He knew the dynamic in the ship was off. But seeing first hand here that all faith in the girl they fought side by side with was down to nothing...Ezra got up and bolted for the cargo hold. It was the only place he would have peace, and where he can hold on to the Katerina who was crucial in his training to become a stronger Jedi and Person.
Kanan sat there miserably, rubbing his fingertips to his skull. Thousands of lightsabers were tearing his insides to shreds, a darkness from his own force choking and corroding him. Nothing...made sense anymore. Nothing seemed real. He can't take any of their time together at face value anymore. Her being a clone...his clone...means he put himself and his team at risk. An Imperial puppet. Even when he thinks he escapes their grasp...they show they've always had a chokehold on him. Using the one person he loved more than anyone. "Riina…" He gripped at his chest. "It hurts.
"Senator Mon Mothma…" Kanan heard Hera muttering to herself. "Kendril...Moth...ma…" He arched a brow at her, becoming increasingly worried when she kept mumbling. He couldn't make it out, but from the way her eyes were darting side to side...she was in critical thinking mode. "Senator Mon Mothma. Kendril Motham. Could they be…" It...it never crossed her mind before now. Why is that? Why now? "Could I be overthinking it?" Mothma isn't too uncommon a surname. But, in this case, the alignment is too perfect. For Katerina to be a secret clone trained by a mechanic...who somehow was permitted custody, secretly protected by someone in the senate all these years, familiar with Bail Organa...it can be the only logical conclusion. "Is Kendril related to Senator Mon Mothma?" She said out loud, making Kanan gasp.
xxx
Grim was more than disappointed that the projector wasn't a confession, but instead map with a familiar location on it. Why would she want him to come to their old gymnasium get away? Get away was a bit of a stretch. It was more of a place Grim and Katerina would hang out to blow off some steam and stay in shape whenever work get too hectic. Call them crazy, but a workout where there was a full functioning buffet, coffee, and it took them miles from the garage was relaxing for them. And if they didn't want to workout, there was a swimming pool they could laze about in. It was the cherry on their sundays when they could relax and talk about nothing. The highlight of their 23/6 work week. That is...until it was shutdown. Nothing dramatic. The owners just couldn't afford to pay for it anymore. So they sold it, packed up, and it's been left to kind of rot for the past three years. Katerina can't possibly be hanging around there? Could she?
The good thing about old areas of Chandrila is the lack of traffic. Grim was able to drive in without any problems, and no one batted him an eye either. the heat on him back at the hospital died down considerably, freeing him from that unbearable feeling of being watched. Though he feared for Mon Mothma, leaving her alone with those troops. She assured him she would be fine and encouraged him to go. All would be made clear if he did. So here he is begrudgingly a couple of hours later, staring up at a massive half square shaped building. The plants were still alive. Unbelievable.
For a building that was abandoned for three years, Grim was astonished that it was still in remarkable shape. Boarded off sure, with a few stains. But all in all it looked like it only needed a quick paint job. Grim spotted an opened window with footprints near it. It didn't take a genius to determine that's where a certain someone has been entering at. He sighed heavily in disappointment. She hasn't stopped her streak of breaking and entering. Though he can't scold her too much. He's about to do the same thing.
Time hasn't dulled Grim's sense of direction within the old building. While it was a bug building, Grim had a good idea on where to find her. No, not the pool. There was this storage room Katerina would hold herself up in for that extra alone time. People weren't exactly her forte back in the day. An introvert with an extrovert personality. That's changed somewhat as she's gotten older, but there are times where the solitude brings clarity, and the silence lessens that migraine she gets.
Walking through this old building...he can still hear the plethora of of conversations of the people looking to stay in shape, and see him and Katerina laughing about how they were playing hooky. And how he would tease her with her favorite beverage whenever he found her in the closet. Precisely why, when he found his way to that closet, he held up a can of fizzy grape juice and tossed it up. A hand latched on from the shadows, and the can was pressed up to Katerina's smiling cheek.
"I knew you wouldn't forget." She impishly teased him. "What took you so long, though?"
"Traffic." Was his curt response. Katerina didn't take offense to him being in a sour mood. She's ruined his day for five lifetimes after all. "I can't believe they haven't condemned this place yet."
"I can't believe it still has functioning facilities." Grim shuddered in disgust. He thought he heard a toilet refilling. Katerina laughed at him. His face is so honest. Then...apprehension took its hold. "How is she?"
"Senator Mon Mothma is fine. The Troops took my statement and they've cleared her of any wrongdoing." Katerina exhaled with relief. "Well...it's pending...but she's in the clear. Your assault on her convinced them."
"I'm glad someone was convinced." She leaned to the wall, popping the can. She smirked at Grim. "Though you seemed to take it harder than she did." In more ways than one.
Grim turned red with shame, shying away from her. "What I said...to that trooper...I didn't mean-"
"I don't care. Not right now." She stopped him with a raised hand. "My feelings aren't important right now." Not when others are suffering around her. He took a quick sip of her drink, then hid half her face behind the can. "Grim...this is all my fault. I've put you and Mon in the worst spot!" Grim was startled, staring blankly as her eyes turned red. "THE ONLY REASON MON HAD TO BE ASSAULTED WAS BECAUSE THEY LINKED HER TO ME! They would have done the same to you!" Grim backed away, completely caught off guard by how submissive she was. He can see her coming undone. "They would have killed her if she proved to be an ally against the Empire!" Which shed light for Grim why those Troopers were so insistent that they be on Mon Mothma's coattails the whole time. They worked on the premise that Katerina would come to the rescue and they would trap two rebels in one snare. They didn't see her murder attempt coming by a long shot. "You, Dom, Davey - you're all in danger, and are having your lives uprooted, because of me!"
Grim was stunned, and soon overcome by a shame that ripped him open like he was a science cadaver. Katerina grips her chest the way she is when there's a gnawing agony she can't pry away from. One that only sprouts when she's blaming herself for everything. Even things beyond her control. Joining the rebellion was...noble at first. Now she...she sees...no. No, I can't let her do this to herself. "We wouldn't have lives to uproot if it wasn't for you and Kendril!" Grim meant that from the bottom of his heart. Yes, he has his grievances with her becoming a rebel and bringing all this danger! But he can't neglect what she's done for him and others before hand. "Whatever comes our way, we'll face it with you. We owe you too much not to."
"That's just it! I don't want you to!" She implored him. She set her can aside, grasping at his arms. "I just...I can't...lose anyone else right now!" She lowered her head, placing it to his chest. "I've lost...I can't lose more people I love! Not now!"
"What do you mean?! Oh no!" Grim gripped her shoulders, shaking her in terror. Her coming back to Chandrila so suddenly...don't tell him… "What became of Kanan and the others?! Are they alright?!"
"They're alive, if that's what you mean. Alright? That's…" How is she even supposed to say this without erupting? "That is a very long story where I have zero clue how to begin." She placed a hand to her face, sliding down the wall to her butt.
Grim smiled tenderly, taking a seat right beside her. "The beginning." He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, having her lean against him. "We've been through a lot, Katty. Let me be there for you now."
She relaxed in his embrace, really appreciating that this war hasn't taken everyone from her. She took several deep breaths, mowing through the weeds of everything that's happened, trying to find the root that will guide Grim through it all...and have her come to grips with what is. "I'm a clone." She felt Grim go stiff as a board. She can feel the intense leer of his confusion boring holes into her. "I'm a byproduct of the Clone Wars. The man I loved as my big brother is the source of my existence. I'm Kanan repurposed into a female, but without all the Jedi abilities." A normal person would start laughing or think she's crazy. Grim was far from normal, and was well informed on the Clone Project the Kaminoans performed. He received Katerina's story...and it all began to make sense. He thought, even for being related, that she and Kanan looked too much alike. And this douses his raging curiosity on why she was so adept in combat. Always ready to counter and strike back harder. Mirror images of each other. "He found out...and he hated me. He and Hera tried to keep it secret. I found out anyway because Hera talks loud." The worst way to learn why your own flesh and blood has been so cold. Grim's chest tightened, and his stomach dropped into his bowels. "Bail, Mon, Ken, The Jedi knew. And now the Empire knows my secret. The worst part is, I now know why my file was truly redacted from the public and Imperial eye." And it pisses her off even more now for some reason. Just...all this time...thinking she was hidden because they cared. It was to protect their dirty little secret. "It was all so no one would learn the truth, and to make sure that I couldn't be connected to the Jedi or anyone in the senate from back then!"
"I'm sure that wasn't the only reason." Grim tried to reassure her. Though, if he's being honest with himself, Kendril's behavior towards her when he learned she started training in secret makes a lot of sense. When her destructive behavior became more and more unruly, and how she so effortlessly hurt people long ago...it was making sense.
"Not many people know this, but it was the clones who killed the Jedi. Forced to do it by way of an Inhibitor chip implanted by the Kaminoans who we later learned worked for the Separatists." That startled Grim. All of those Clones were controlled by a chip. Hold on! Grim became terrified and stared at her head. Katerina read his mind and tapped where her scar was. "That scar you saw on my head when you searched my head for lice..." There was an outbreak of lice a couple of years back and Katerina's head was real itchy. Turned out it was just her shampoo. But yes. He remembers her scar, "My chip was removed because it was making me have seizures, and was slowly killing me. But it didn't stop me from going on a killing spree of my own." The seizures were before he came into the picture. But Kendril did fuss about her making sure not to overwork herself in case an episode could be induced. And he had to force her to take week to month long breaks because of the fights she was always getting into with customers and employees. "The hatred and pain I gave into, the one that led me to attack Ken, Mon, and that boy…" Senator Trayvis's Nephew - small universe, "I thought I was passed it. But recently I learned old habits never truly die. And Kanan and the others saw it first hand."
"You fought like you did back then." Grim gravely recollected. The bloodlust that made her eyes shimmer like tainted diamonds, the crazed smile of someone possessed by a demonic lust for agonized screams, the laugh of someone completely devoid and cut off from any iota compassion. The way the blood would drip from her hands, and slide down her body and cheeks...she resembled...she was a monster. "You went on a spree. Cut down anyone that got in your way. And you didn't care if anyone saw."
She touched her nose a handful of times. Its scary how accurately he knows her. "Then I learned that the exiled Senator, Trayvis, wasn't really an exile! He was always an agent of the Empire luring in rebels to either have them watched or killed!" Talk about a plot twist. But wait! There's more! "Bonus round, HA, he's the Uncle of the kid I killed and the big brother of the mom that committed suicide!" Don't let that smile or laugh fool you. She was falling into hysteria again. And Grim doesn't blame her. He almost burst out laughing himself. "Kanan was demanding answers, we fought and bloodied each other!" A very, very crude understatement. They would have beaten the life out of each other if they weren't stopped. Grim was very nauseous by the laser bolt wound in her shoulder. "Trayvis shot me. Don't worry." Grim rolled his eyes. Like that makes it any better. And since when can she talk about being shot like she came back from the grocery store? "After that this huge rift formed. Trust was fading...and I decided I was too dangerous to stay with them." Grim nodded, undertaking that this is what lead her back here. "I left final gifts, and like a coward I ran. I ran all the way back here for answers, and that's how I learned The Inquisitor visited Mon."
"Her and Mon Mothma knew the truth, and he wanted to connect her in order to eliminate a vital source for the rebellion."
On the nose again. "He was watching me talk to her, Stormtroopers burst in, I shot her to prove she wasn't with me, I ran and got into a fight with the Inquisitor, and then we reach the hospital and here." A quick summary to conclude this very sad and pathetic story. She laid her hands open, assuring him that was all she wrote. All of this madness started with the Clones and Jedi, and has once again ruined everything 15 years later.
"Wow…" Grim slumped winded. "That's...a lot to take in."
"Try experiencing it. I cut out a lot." She bounced her shoulders. Grim appreciated it, but then became scared by how much she left out. "You didn't know I was a clone, did you?"
"Not in the least." He grumbled, raising his hands. He feels lied to in a way. "But the way you could take a beating, or those longer hours you worked without ever slowing down - no way you could have been human."
"Oh thanks!" She shoved his face. He laughed and elbowed her in the ribs. She laughed back and pulled at his head tails.
This was...nice. Felt like old times. Rough housing, throwing mediocre insults, laughing about how old the other was getting. Grim and Katerina hadn't had a moment like this in...woof. How long ago was it that she went off galavanting with Rebels in order to change the universe one Imperial Dominated planet at a time? Ha. When did she decide being a champion of justice was going to be healthy for her? She needed this. To be laughing with an old buddy about the good old days, talking about...EVERYTHING!
Katerina told him about her time with the rebels, and Grim went on tangent after tangent about what a crazy, adventurous life he's been leading. A guy actually came in a week ago threatening to blow up the garage if Grim didn't supe up his ride for free. Didn't help him much because he forgot the triggering mechanism, but it was scary. Katerina tried to top him by talking about how her legs give out every so often whenever she becomes overly stressed. Too bad Grim topped her again by talking about an incident where a gear thief tried to make off with their stuff and didn't notice the glue traps for the rats. It wasn't pretty.
One story after the next with these two for a solid hour and they didn't slow down. They'd just spark new stories from the past or what they both had planned down the line. All they needed were drinks and food and this would be a pretty lax reunion. All things considering, it could be worse. This right here made all this trouble worth it in the end. If they had the choice, Grim and Katerina would sit here forever and just...talk. Nothing else would matter at this point. Just them, their past...and maybe discuss what they would do now that Katerina isn't part of the Ghost Crew anymore.
"Come in Rebel Mechanic!" Katerina and Grim shrieked and jumped into each other's arms. The holoprojector spilled out of Grim's pocket. The small bulb was lighting up. "Is this my favorite Rebel Mechanic, slash partner, slash crime buddy? I must speak with you!"
"Vizago?!" It was coming from the Holoprojector in Grim's pocket. How in Obi-Wan's beard did he manage to get this number? For that matter...who did he know she had it? She pushed the button, and sure enough Vizago appeared in a hologram and waved at her.
"Hello, pretty Mechanic! Did you miss me?" He wiggled his brow charmingly.
"How the Hell are you reaching me right now? How'd you even get this number?!"
"Is that really what you want to ask? Or should you be more concerned WHY I'm calling you?" He taunted her.
Katerina growled with a vein pulsing in the side of her head. "If this is to help you on another revenge mission-"
"Nothing so selfish this time." He waved a hand, shooing off the distasteful accusation. His expression went dark, unnerving her and Grim. "Your friend, Dominique..." Their hearts skipped a beat. He isn't about to tell them she got hurt, is he? "Senator Trayvis has captured her. She is being taken to the prison barge of the Odyssey Ruins."
"No…" Katerina went...blank. Then she went pale. Her body started to tremble. Everything went tight, her brain spiraled, images of Dominique's happy go lucky persona gradually faded into a bleak, bloodied, corpse lying in the streets. "No, no, no, NO, NO!" She screamed at the top of her lungs, clawing at her scalp. "WHY HER?! WHY THERE?! SHE DIDN'T DO ANYTHING! WHY DID HE TAKE HER?!"
"Katerina…?!" Grim grabbed onto her, shaking her back down from that cliff she's throwing herself from. "What is this barge?! I've never heard of it?!"
"That's the point!" She ripped his hands off her, storming onto her feet. "The only ones who know about it are ones who have escaped it and lived to tell the tale!" Again, Grim would like to know how she knows about this place. "For 50 years that place has been active. In those years...only five people have escaped!" That's scary impressive. "The rest who don't escape go to die...and with them any shred of evidence they existed!" This place has specialist whose techniques surround around erasing all traces of a person. Online, physical, family and friends, work - nothing will remain. Dominique will fade into nothingness. A fate worse than death.
"And Dominique has been taken to such a place?!" Grim...he began to hyperventilate. He shot to his feet. "Why?! Why would Senator Trayvis do this?! She's innocent!"
"To get back at me for taking his family from him!" She snarled venomously. "Which means he's expecting me to come after her." She ominously deduced. "A trap I'm going to be walking into."
"That is a suicide mission!" Vizago blurted. "Even for you and your rebels!"
Katerina's brow twitched. Vizago's slow on the update. "Since when do you care?!" She snapped.
"I don't! But you and Dominique are good people. We do not need her and you dying." Wow. That had to have been the most sincere thing he's ever said to her.
"Then I won't die." She shrugged. How she can say that with such little regard aggravated him. "At least not before I get her out of there." She won't leave this mortal coil why Dominique was in their snare. "My only issue will be getting inside and out." AGAIN, she makes it sound so damn easy!
"And how exactly do you plan to do that?!" Vizago challenged her, wanting her to hear how idiotic she sounded. She has to know there's no chance of survival. "There's no way you're going to be able to get inside that place! Not without proper clearance, and certainly not past Imperial blackades."
Katerina was about to accept defeat...when a brilliant idea in the form of an Imperial Cruiser engine reverberated the building. "Yes I will." She crooned sinisterly.
"How do you know?" Grim shuddered. Vizago was interested in this as well, and by the change in her demeanor. He can't quite put his finger on it...but she's different.
"Those men who attacked me. They belong to Supply Master Lyst." She recognized their logo and style of armor. "It's time the good Supply Master makes a little detour in his shipping routes." She hummed, licking her lips hungrily.
"And how do you plan to do that?" Vizago folded his arms, daring her to maintain this new backbone. When she snickered so darkly, he worried what sort of madness befell her. Looking to Grim, she's been going down this slope a while. "No offense, Girly, but the Empire doesn't bend for
"You've been out of the loop a while, Vizago. So let me assure you," She faced the two men, terrifying them to the bone with the narrow slits of her crazed leer, and a smile that seemed to bear fangs. "Breaking Imperials is old hat for someone like me." A blade in her hand, she trailed her tongue along the razor's edge, cackling depravely at the small sting to her tongue that would become a searing burn to any who got in her way. This is going to be fun.
To be continued