Hello! So this chapter is a bit slow, but I promise the next one will have more action. I hope you like this chapter!
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Chapter 5 – Fraction
"Chopper, I know that you don't want to do it, but you don't have a choice here," Hera argued. The droid beeped back at her, and Hera rolled her eyes.
"Oh, don't be dramatic. You only need to re-calibrate the landing system; it should only take ten minutes' tops. Then you can go back to whatever prank you were pulling." Chopper, after letting out an exasperated sigh, rolled out of the control room. Hera just rolled her eyes again and got back to fixing up the ship.
It had taken some damage due to the explosion, and she knew it was only a matter of time before the Empire would be on their trail again. After narrowly escaping the city, she had come back around and landed in a remote location. It was a risk for her to land so soon after they had caused trouble, and it would be a greater risk for them to stay for the time it took for Chopper to fix the landing calibration. But it had to be done.
The door opened, and Hera spun around in her chair.
"Hey Hera," Sabine said. She walked up to her seat and leaned on the controls.
"Hello, Sabine," Hera responded, turning back to her repairs. "What's up?"
"Nothing, and that's the problem. I need more green paint to finish my latest artwork." Hera could not help but smile. Sabine had a creativity that could not be contained.
"Alright, Sabine. You can go to the market – but I also need you to pick up a few things, considering we left the majority of it behind," Hera explained.
"Sounds good to me." Sabine, after Hera explained the things she needed, turned to walk out the door.
"Oh," Hera interjected. "Take Zeb with you too. I think he needs the distraction."
Sabine nodded once more, a look of understanding on her face. Seeing Ezra hurt had put a damper on all of them. As she left the room, Hera turned her attention back to the control panel. She had managed to buy the gear she needed before everything had gone down in flames and had to conduct her own repairs. Hera sighed, her shoulders slumping in her seat as she mulled over what Ezra had said.
There was someone out there who had hunted him for years. And it wasn't the same as the Empire; it was one person who was more than capable of killing him. The only reason he had not was because Ezra still had some use to the man. But what use, Hera did not want to know.
She took a deep breath and resumed replacing the gear, hoping that Kanan would figure out what was going on before it was too late.
Going into his tower, Ezra felt a bit self-conscious. Sure, Kanan had been in there before, right after the spice mines. But he was not actually invited, and he had not stayed long.
But this time, he was actively bringing him into the place where he had lived, and he used the term loosely, for the past eight years. There was not anything of worth in there, at least not to him, and even though it was his home, it did not have happy memoires.
But hopefully Kanan would not comment on his feelings, as he now knew that he could probe his mind. A thought occurred to him. If Kanan could probe his mind, then was it possible that he could probe his?
"Don't even think about it, kid," Kanan said, breaking the silence that they had shared.
"What? I didn't say anything."
"No, but you thought it," he pointed out.
"Yeah," Ezra grumbled. "But thoughts are supposed to be private."
"What was that?"
"You heard me." They had reached the top of the tower, and Ezra hesitated a moment before entering. He felt Kanan's presence following, and felt a bit out of place as he took in the small room. "Home sweet home," Ezra grunted.
He walked over and plopped onto the stiff cot, feigning to be indifferent about the situation. From the corner of his eye he watched as Kanan scanned the room. After a moment of silence, he spoke.
"So, where do we start?" Ezra sat up, nose scrunching as he glanced around.
"What do you mean?"
"Where are the things that you stole?" Ezra looked at Kanan in confusion, and gestured to the whole room.
"This is it." A look of understanding flashed on Kanan's face.
"Okay, but where do you keep small data chips?"
"Ohh, those," Ezra said, smirking as his teacher radiated annoyance. Ezra jumped off the cot and pulled it aside. It landed on the floor and a puff of dust rose into the air. Underneath there were three boxes that elevated the cot. "This is most of the Imperial stuff that I didn't use."
"Alright," Kanan said, walking over and opening the first box. Ezra opened the second box and began sorting through it. He knew Kanan would have no luck; the box he was sorting through was primarily wires and other spare parts. But the box he was sorting through held his more personal possessions.
He shifted through them, searching for the data chip. Upon reaching the bottom and having no success, he put the lid back on it and pushed it into its place.
"Find anything?" Ezra asked, pulling the third box out popping the lid off.
"I didn't find the data chip, but I do have a question." Ezra looked up. "Where did you find this?" Kanan held up a small metal ball, the metal rusted after all of its years wasting away. On the top was a red dot that was not ignited.
"That?" Ezra questioned, and Kanan nodded in response. "I stole it from some ex-Imperial agent. He got caught stealing artifacts and he somehow managed to escape. He was a nice guy, for the most part, but he had zero sense when it came to street skills. That was the only thing that looked somewhat interesting, but I never could figure out how it worked." Ezra began shifting through the third box as Kanan continued to stare at it.
"It's called a droid popper." Ezra's gaze shot up, staring at Kanan with uncertainty and a hint of disbelief. "It was used in the clone wars. You threw one of these, and it would send out an electronic magnetic pulse that would short circuit any droid within range." Kanan let out a small chuckle. "Sure saved my life more times than I can remember."
Ezra nodded; surprised that Kanan had spoken of his past. He admired him for that, after how much he had revealed earlier with his memories. He began shifting through the box again, before his eyes rested on three small cards that had the Imperial symbol imprinted on them.
"Found them!" He shot up from his box, looking to Kanan.
"Them?" Kanan questioned. Ezra tossed them, one at a time, and turned back to put the box away.
"Huh," Kanan mulled.
"What is it?" Ezra asked, turning back from the boxes.
"The man is only after one of these. We'll have to take them all and view them on the ship."
"And how are we supposed to do that?"
"Sabine will find a way," Kanan smiled. "Now, let's get back there and see what this bounty hunter wants from you." He rested a hand on Ezra's shoulder as they walked out of the tower.
Sabine was glad that she had brought Zeb along. Hera had needed more supplies than she expected, and Zeb had the right amount of strength to carry the box. And, if he had not come, Sabine would never have remembered all of the supplies that they needed. It was not really her fault; she was just completely invested in her art. She needed the exact shade of green in order to complete her newest mural, or else it would not work.
They boarded the Ghost, passing a grumbling Chopper on the ramp. Zeb set the box down with a huff and turned to see what the droid was up to. Sabine, knowing how this would end, rolled her eyes and walked through the hallways and into her room.
She set down her green paint and took off her helmet, sliding her bangs out of her sight. She placed the helmet on her bed when she heard her door open.
But something in her gut did not feel right. The door had opened, but no one had spoken to her. Her heart beat picked up as the silence continued for another second, and another. By the fifth second she whipped around, her blasters drawn.
In the doorframe stood a man, his black helmet exactly as Hera and Kanan had described. How he had gotten onto the ship, she did not know. But she did know that she was not going down without a fight.
She needed a fraction of a second to pull the trigger of her gun, nothing more, and nothing less. But the bounty hunter knew this, and he pulled the trigger first.
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R & R
~ Kavella ~