Chapter 107

AN: Thank you everyone for your kind reviews.

Even after two hours of walking, Ari still could not get over how beautiful it all was. Not even Naboo, from what she would remember, had trees like these. The entire planet was full of life. Without even having to reach for it, she could sense it all around her. It was an amazing sensation.

However, while she was taking all of this in, she also kept alert to spot any enemies or other dangers. She was leading the way along with Bren Derlin. All the Rebels kept their weapons at the ready and made sure to look in all different directions.

During those two hours there had only been one close call. Ari had sensed the presence of two large animals. They were predators of the Forest Moon because Ari could sense that they were hunting. She waved her hand and motioned for all the Rebels to stop and be extremely quiet. In some of the files she had read, there was a mention of something called a borra. They were animals native to Endor and were like a mix of a boar and wolf with standing over nine feet tall, large tusks, claws and a good sense of smell. However, they were still a short distance off since they were already on the trail of some normal prey. The Rebels just waited until Ari sensed they were far enough to no longer even be a potential threat before starting their trek once more.

Finally, they were close to the shield generator and Bren held up a hand to motion for all the Rebels to stop and then motioned for Ari and another Rebel, Javiel, the head of survelliance, to join him. The trio then headed for the edge of the woods to look around the area of the shield generator. The three of them were a good team for this. Bren as the leader needed to see things with his own eyes. Javiel had experience scouting out areas and giving the necessary information to the others. Ari was helpful in using the Force to sense of any dangers that were not immediately noticed.

The generator or what was seen at least, was not very large. However, part of it had to be under the earth due to the amount of power that would be needed to protect the Death Star. There were a handful of speeder bikes near by and and a few stormtroopers milling around the area. Javiel held up one hand slightly, thumb bent to show that he saw four. Ari shook her head in response. She knew they could only see four, but there had to be more. She could sense others nearby, most likely inside the generator. Through the Force, she could tell that part of it was hidden and there were at least another three dozen there. She flashed the number she estimated on her hands like Javiel had done. Bren nodded and the three of them watched to see if they could get any other information. They had a bit of information regarding the set up of the bunker, but they did not know about the troops there.

They took mental notes on small things they noticed then they pulled back slipped back to the others to compare notes. "If we could somehow get the guards stationed there away from the door, it could give us just enough time to surprise the others in the bunker. There are many more inside. A lot of this is going to come down to timing and our ability to think on our feet," Bren remarked. "We won't do anything until we meet again with General Solo and the others."

Silence fell over the group. No one had heard from them. "What if they are not hear by the agreed upon time?" a Rebel asked.

"They will be," Ari spoke, sounding much more confident than she felt. However, just a glance through an opening in the trees showed that it was long past midday and would be dark in about an hour or so. The light she could see was starting to turn red and orange which meant the sun was starting its descent. Then she froze. Something was off. It did not seem dangerous, nor did it seem good. Something just felt different and Ari wondered what it was.

No one else seemed to notice this fleeting moment though as Bren spoke again. "We should retreat a bit and then we will just wait."

"How far should we retreat?" a Rebel asked. They would have to get a relatively far distance from the generator; just to be sure they would not be spotted by a passing trooper. The Rebels could handle a few, but they also had to be sure not to let their presence on the Sanctuary Moon be noted.

"We'll find a proper distance," Bren replied then motioned for them to follow as he straightened from the crouch he was in. He caught Ari's eye then motioned for her to come with him. She shifted her pack then quickened her pace a few steps so she was walking close behind, since the folage made it almost impossible to travel side by side.

"Ari, I think you should lead us," Bren replied. "Just so we are safe from anything that might want to eat us, or any Imperials."

It made sense, Ari knew. After all, she did have the Force. She was not as capable as Luke, but she had sensed those creatures from earlier and had sensed the Imperials earlier. The only thing she might have been mistaken about was the number. There had been numerous lifeforms inside bunker and it was difficult to tell in such relatively small area.

She stepped around Bren then closed her eyes for a moment. She did not sense any immediate threats in the nearby area, but she did feel a calling to a certain direction. As if the Force was telling her to go that way. She did not understand it, but she did know to trust her feelings. She turned about ninety degrees and started to lead the group. It was not as easy as the path that Bren would have taken, but they followed her without any complaints. They finally came to a small clearing. It had not taken too long, but the sun had completely disappeared, dusk overtaking them

"Well, this should be a safe area to rest for a bit," Ari spoke as she sat down on part of an exposed root from one of the massive treets. She took her pack off and gave a sigh of relief as she started to roll her shoulders forward and then back. Siri once told her that Jedi could keep themselves from feeling such physical strains, or at least from being hindered by that. That had not been too difficult a lesson for her. She blocked out how it felt for the time being, but now that the pack was off, she would allow herself to enjoy the small relief.

The Rebels all took spot around the small clearing and felt more free to talk amongst one another as they got out ration bars and their canteens. Many of them were concerned, but there was a slight air of ease around them. Possibly because they were relatively safe or because they knew they needed to have at least a little bit of time to relax before duty called once more.

Ari took out a ration bar of her own, stared at it for a moment and then sighed as she started to unwrap it. She knew it was good for her by giving her some of the necessary nutrients and minerals that would help keep her up her strength. However, the texture was as gritty as sandpaper, and it did not taste much better.

Just as she was finishing it and putting the wrapper back in her bag, so there would be no evidence of the Rebels stopping there, she felt a familiar buzzing sensation on her hip. She glanced down and saw that the light on her communicator was green now instead of red. She had changed her so that she could put it on a vibrate mode. That way if she was contacted in an area where there was a need for silence, it would not alert others of her presence.

"Narabe," she answered.

"Ari, it's Luke."

"Luke," she gave a sigh of relief. "We were starting to worry. Where are you? Did you find Leia?"

"Yes, we found her. In a manner of speaking. Where are you now?"

"In the forest, a bit west of the bunker."

"Alright. Can you send me your coordinates?"

"Yes." She found the coordinates from her positioning system and read them to Luke. Then she heard a strange sound, it sounded like a foreign language, but it definitely did not sound like Luke, Leia, Han, Chewie or the droids. "Luke, where are you?"she asked.

"It is quite a story. I will tell you along the way. I won't be more than about forty standard minutes."

"Alright, we will be waiting," she ended the communication and then went to Bren, explaining what Luke had said. The group of Rebels was informed of what was happening and now they just had to wait for Luke.