Hera had just made her way to Dodonna, ready to ease the General's distress, when she heard Zeb call for help.
She turned to find the Lasat awkwardly supporting Kallus. Inwardly, she cursed herself for not insisting they look him over, treat his injuries, but the man had seemed so reluctant, so wary, that Hera had hesitated.
From past experience, she knew to take extra care when treating those who'd been captured, perhaps tortured. They often needed space, more time before they could be handled and cared for without overly distressing them, but there was a fine line between waiting for them to accept help and treating the injuries that so desperately needed attention.
I obviously chose wrong this time. Hera chided herself as she hurried to Zeb. By the time she reached him, Zeb managed to move Kallus' limp form into a somewhat more maneuverable position. One arm was supporting his back while the other was looped under Kallus' legs.
Forehead creased, brow furrowed, Zeb took a few steps forward and then looked to Hera. She could almost hear the question written all over the Lasat's face. Now what do I do with him?
Kanan motioned to Zeb, directing his attention to the common room table. "Set him here."
Hera nodded and Zeb obeyed. It wasn't ideal, not for the long run, but it would do for now.
Sabine and Tristan were there, giving extra support as Zeb set Kallus down. Hera lifted a corner of Kallus' shirt, finding that angry patches of swollen red, purple flesh marbled his skin.
Well, that's not good…
She was able to remove Kallus' vest easily enough. Then, Sabine and Tristan lifted his arms as Zeb continued to support him. The quiet groan Kallus gave as his arms were raised wasn't missed by Hera. She frowned. The man must have been fighting hard to remain conscious. Hera slipped the shirt up over his head, revealing the full scope of Kallus' battered torso. He seemed to be bruised just about everywhere, but the dark swollen mess around his left ribs appeared especially dreadful.
"Whoa, that looks painful…" Ezra said, but quickly silenced himself after a glare from Hera.
Hera let a soft sigh escape. "Ezra, go see if we have any medical supplies that can be spared."
She was glad to see the three Rebels in charge of inventory, supply procurement and repairs clear out of the room as Ezra left. An audience was probably the last thing Kallus wanted at the moment.
Gently, they lowered Kallus onto his back. It would have been nice if they had a blanket to lie over the cold, hard table, but, Hera reminded herself, this was only temporary. They would find an empty bunk after this and let Kallus rest. No, she knew better than that. The bunks were all claimed by weary, injured Rebels. They would have to assess those already in the bunks and decide whom, if anyone, should give their spot over to Kallus.
Leaning down, she listened to Kallus' breathing. It was steady, strong. She guessed that he had bruised, cracked ribs, but, most likely, nothing was broken. There wasn't a lot they could do about the ribs. Meds and time were what that injury required. The chaffed, bloody wrists, would require the same.
Carefully, Hera reached out, guiding a hand delicately around Kallus' face. His pale skin had a sheen of cold sweat.
He didn't react to her prodding, so there probably weren't any fractures. Slowly her hands hovered around to the back of his skull. There she found a large angry knot radiating heat.
She signed. "There's a pretty big welt. He probably has a concussion."
Kallus gave a sudden pained groan, louder than the last, and Hera glanced down at Zeb, who was pulling his clawed hand away from the ex-agent's right knee.
"Zeb! Be careful," Hera hissed, but upon seeing the sheepish guilt crossing the Lasat's face, she immediately regretted her tone.
She looked back at Kallus, surprised to find his glossy eyes open. His gaze was wandering around the room, not appearing to settle on anything in particular. Hera leaned closer, hoping he'd be able to focus on her.
"Hey."
His gaze shifted to Hera. She could see the exhaustion in his eyes, but she could also see his continued struggle to regain control. It was as if he couldn't accept that his fight was over, that he was safe.
"Take is easy," Hera said softly. "We're going to take care of you."
Kallus' gaze shifted again, and Hera realized that Kanan had come up beside her.
Hand raised, Kanan uttered a single word. "Sleep."
Kallus let out a low sigh, and his eyelids slid shut.
"Thank you, Kanan," Hera whispered. "He needed that."
"He's carrying a lot of conflict within himself," Kanan replied. "I don't think he'd planned on making it out of the Empire alive."
Hera had suspected as much, but it was still hard to hear.
"Well," Zeb huffed, "he did make it out, and now he's one of us. And we take care of our own, so he's just got to get used to it."
"Yes, he is one of us now, but…" Kanan paused as if searching for something through the force. "Not everyone in Rebel Alliance will welcome him, or learn to trust him. Among the Rebels, there still will be dangers for him, and, I believe, Kallus knows that."
Hera wanted to argue that, but, as she reflected on what Kanan had said, she realized that she was still carrying around her own distrust for the ex-agent. Even as he lay beaten before them, because he'd tried to give the Rebels warning, she still found herself imagining Kallus turning on them one day.
"The Empire, most likely, has sent out orders to kill Kallus on sight. They can't be thrilled with having an ISB Agent as a defector." Kanan continued. "I feel uncertainty and fear from Kallus. He is unsure of his place in the universe now, and with enemies on all side, his path will be difficult."
Silence engulfed the room. Hera couldn't help but look to Kallus. She studied the man more carefully. After listening to Kanan, Kallus appeared so…broken. He wasn't that unyielding menace that had hunted them for so long–not anymore. He was lost. He was a misfit by most standards. He was…
"You're thinking about it, aren't you?" Kanan asked, snapping Hera from her thoughts.
"No," she replied, "Well, maybe…"
"What?" Zeb questioned. "The rest of us don't have special Jedi skills, so if you'd mind letting us in on whatever it is you're talking about."
Kanan gave a smirk. "Hera's considering taking Kallus onto the Ghost crew."
"On a trial basis," Hera added.
"There was a time I would've never believed that was a possibility," Sabine said, warmth in her voice, "but, now, I get it. Plus, this is what you do, Hera. You take people in when they've nowhere else to turn. You did it for the rest of us. It only makes sense that you do the same for Kallus."
The common room door slid open, and Ezra sprinted back in with two bacta patches and a stimpack. "I was able to get these," he said, handing the supplies to Hera.
Honestly, she was surprised the med workers had that much to spare, but before she could set to work on Kallus, Hera felt the Ghost drop out of hyperspace, and her heart sank.
Scooping up her helmet, Sabine shot Hera a sad smile. "This would be our stop. I'm sorry, but we have to get back."
"I understand," Hera replied, and she did. She didn't have to like it, but she understood.
In a flurry of motion, Sabine hurried forward and wrapped Hera in a hug.
"We'll see each other soon," Sabine whispered.
Holding Sabine tight, Hera gave a murmur of agreement, but her heart warned her otherwise. How long would their luck hold out? One day, her crew, her family wouldn't all return to her.
The embrace ended and Sabine turned to Kanan and Ezra.
"Transport in five, okay?" She didn't wait for a reply. After giving Zeb a quick hug, she hurried out of the room with Tristan trailing behind her.
"We will see each other soon," Ezra confirmed, as came in to give Hera a hug as well.
As she had with Sabine, Hera held Ezra tight. They had almost lost everything. Hera had almost lost all of them at Atollon. She wanted to keep holding on, to never let them go, but, that wasn't how wars were won.
She released Ezra. "We will be there to help Clan Wren as soon as we can," she said, hoping her words sounded stronger than they felt coming out.
Ezra nodded and then looked to Kanan.
"Go, gather our gear," the Jedi commanded.
After giving Hera one last grin, Ezra turned to leave. He paused and glanced at Zeb.
"I'm not hugging you." Ezra grinned. "It would take forever to get that stink out of my clothes."
With one great growl, the Lasat leapt forward, scooped Ezra up and gave him a hug that, from Hera's perspective, was borderline cruelty. As soon as Ezra was free, he raced out of the room.
Hera watched the scene unfold, a smile creeping onto her face. How was it that her little rag-tag group always knew how to brighten her spirits? Then, Dodonna stepped forward.
His voice was quiet, pensive. "I'm going to go down the cargo bay and see how the med workers are holding up. When I get back, we can continue our planning."
"I'll be here," Hera said, but she was reluctant to let Dodonna go.
The General was carrying a new guilt and the sight of the wounded could cause that guilt to fester. She watched him leave, sure that later she'd regret not stopping him.
"Zeb," Kanan placed a hand on the Lasat's arm. "Could you find a bunk for Kallus? I know things are tight, and it might mean moving some people around, but, could you?"
"Of course," Zeb replied, "and…uh…Kanan…I'll see you soon, yeah?"
Kanan smiled and that seemed to be enough of an answer for the Lasat. Without another word, Zeb left.
Hera set down the bacta pads and stimpack on the table next to Kallus.
"Are you going to tell me everything will be alright, that we will see each other soon?" She asked.
"No." Kanan answered. "I won't"
She moved to him, and he was quick to pull her in close. Closing her eyes, she soaked in his warmth, his smell, the feel of his heart beating.
The weight of the Rebel losses, of her responsibly, of her duty came crashing down on her then. Cradled in Kanan's arms, Hera felt a few hot tears slide down her cheeks.
They stood in that silent embrace for the next few minutes, and then Hera pulled away.
"You should get going," she said at last.
"I know," Kanan replied, he turned, ready to leave, but paused. "I believe in us. I believe in our cause and our skill, and while I can't say with certainty we will see each other again, I believe, with all my being, that we will."
Upon hearing that, Hera finally felt her confidence returning. She'd needed those moments of solitude with Kanan. She'd needed to release some grief, and now she felt ready to begin her work anew.
"Thank you, Kanan."
Kanan gave a slow nod and then left. Hera stared at the common room doors for a while, some part of her hoping the Jedi would return, but she knew better than that.
Finally, she stirred herself to action. There was much to do. Mentally, she ran through the long list of items requiring her attention. First, she'd see to Kallus. Zeb would be able to settle the ex-agent into a bunk after that. Second, she had to check in with Rex and make sure their next hyperspace jump was on schedule. After learning that Thrawn had tracked Dodonna's fleet, Hera was tempted to make several more hyperspace jumps for safety, but the fleet was too battered, too low on supplies for such an undertaking. No, they had no choice at this point.
If Dodonna wasn't back from his walkabout by the time Hera was done with Kallus and Rex, she'd have to track the General down. It would do him no good stacking his guilt with images of the wounded. Plus, they had far too much planning to do.
And maybe, just maybe, if Hera was lucky, she might be able to catch a bite to eat and a quick nap before they reached Yavin IV.
Hello all! A little different this time. I backtracked on my story a bit and tried my hand at Hera's voice. I hope you liked it! Next chapter will be back to Kallus again. I'm thinking there will be two, maybe three more chapters to this story (that could change, of course), but I've also got a few ideas for additional stories in a possible series with Fulcrum's Zero Hour.
Rabbit887 - I'm very glad you liked the chapter! Kallus has been a wonderful character to write for. I try very hard to keep the character's voices as close to what I feel they are in the show. Of course, it's always my interpretation of things, so it is far from perfect!
Mistress Malica - Thanks for the comment! Though I'm sure there was plenty in the chapter that needed a tweak. I am a butterfingers at the keyboard!
Silverfox22 - Thank you! I love writing for Kallus. He is so complex. I'm so glad they are starting to develop him even more on the show. I really hope he becomes a member of the Ghost crew!
Lynn Friedman-kinsey - I'm very humbled by your feedback. I'm glad I could invoke such emotion. I hope that I can keep this up! *crosses fingers*
Kaitan ISB021 - Well, since you asked for it, I had to deliver! Luckily, this chapter felt like it wanted to write itself. I was just the lump of flesh at the keyboard.
Julia - I can't agree more! Season 4 is too far away. Heck, that's why I had to start writing. I can't wait that long!