Hera wished it didn't take her and Zeb over an hour to get to Kanan's coordinates; Coruscant was confusing enough without even going below the surface levels of the city planet. Her lekku kept shivering with her nervousness when they got to sector 1313.
"Thirteen-thirteen has a terrible reputation," Senator Organa had told her when she'd let him know Kanan had gotten back in touch after he had vanished on a high-speed cargo train. "Black Sun holds most of the area, so go in armed and unaffiliated. Find your friends and get them out of there as quickly as possible."
That had been Hera's intent as soon as she had watched Kanan cling to that train, and seeing the entrance to 1313 only hardened her resolve.
"Now this looks like my kinda place," Zeb noted as they unloaded from the larger, unmarked speeder that was their operating transport while on Coruscant. "All we need's a decent bar and Kanan'll never want to leave."
"A few years ago, maybe," Hera answered, "but this time we've got a job. Best go get it done."
She ignored Zeb's grumble and kept a hand on her blaster as she led the way through the twisting streets and alleys. As deep down as 1313 was, there was very little natural light for Hera to see by. Maybe one of the few good things Black Sun had done here was ensure the streetlights were working properly, even if more than one had burned out and hadn't been replaced. Hera heard Zeb unsling his bo-rifle warily when they passed more than one Black Sun patrol, though they weren't harassed as Hera double-checked her notes and followed what little sense of direction she had to the coordinates.
The coordinates were at a large square, somewhat cramped with refuse but otherwise clean and open. Hera had no trouble finding Kanan, leaning casually against an Imperial supply crate near the center; it wasn't even surprising to see a stocky woman about Hera's age sitting on the crate just over Kanan's shoulder, one leg hanging off the crate's edge. The woman's clothes – a green scarf that had hidden her face, off-grey jacket and white shirt with bronze-colored accents – showed she was the same hooded blur that struck the convoy. What startled Hera only a little was how much like a knife this woman – Raen Kariya, if she remembered the name right – was. Her blue eyes, about two shades lighter than Kanan's, were the razor-point piercing right into anything she looked at, and the rest of her body was the blade, all edge and metal. From Kanan's descriptions, Hera hated to admit that her initial expectations were entirely off the mark.
The truly shocking thing was how many kids were surrounding them, clumped along the sides of the square. A lot of them were younger than Ezra, and dressed in little more than rags. Most of them jumped when they looked up and saw the two strangers, and likely more because of Zeb than Hera. Close to them a warning growl filled Hera's ears, and she glanced out of the corner of her eye to see a brown-furred Shistavanen hunched on another Imperial crate, yellow eyes narrowed and teeth bared in warning.
"Down, Kyrr, these ones are friends," Raen called as she slid off the crate. Kanan's head had already turned to them, and a grin was spreading over his face as he headed for Hera and Zeb. Hera decided to ignore Kyrr and jogged for Kanan, embracing him tightly around the shoulders before hitting him in the back with a fist.
"Don't you ever do that to me again," Hera insisted only loudly enough for Kanan to hear, but he chuckled and squeezed her reassuringly.
"I'm okay, Hera, promise," Kanan murmured before stealing a kiss to her temple. He turned her loose before stepping back and turn slightly towards Raen. "Raen, these are the crew I brought with me, Hera Syndulla and Zeb Orrelios. Guys, this is Raen."
"It's nice to meet you; Kanan's told us a lot about you over the past few weeks, once we heard what was going on with the convoy raids," Hera greeted her, even offering her hand to shake. Raen instead leaned away slightly, knife-point eyes flickering into Hera's hand uncertainly. Right, this one is easily twice as suspicious as Ezra at the start. Hera lowered her hand before adding, "You're not the only person on Coruscant who wants to see the Empire brought down."
"True, I'm certain," Raen answered, voice low but as sharp as the rest of her frame. "But there's at least ten times that number who'd like to see folks like us ground under the Empire's heel. A lot of it is just about surviving."
Hera noticed Kanan shift a little uncomfortably at that; she decided not bringing it up was a good idea.
"Look, we came all this way for more'n just a chat," Zeb complained. "It's real simple."
"I'll bet it is, but here isn't the place for it," Raen interrupted him and wasn't even fazed by Zeb's startled snarl. "Follow me. We'll talk more once we get somewhere safe."
She turned to activate the crate's repulsor coil and began pushing it off down another alley. Hera sighed and took Kanan's hand to squeeze before resting his hold on her shoulder.
"So, she's…interesting," Zeb began as they followed after Raen. "Thought she'd be more like you, Kanan."
"More like me how, Zeb?" Kanan asked. "If you mean wrung out and trampled by the past, yeah, we're alike. Well, sort of."
"Lot nastier, though."
"She's not being nasty, just suspicious."
"She does know why we're looking for her, right?" Hera asked. "I don't want this whole thing blowing up in our faces and ending up in Imperial custody."
"Yes and no," Kanan replied. "I told her we're with a larger rebellion and figured she would be interested in having additional support. As far as I heard and felt, there's at least one big thing she'll want done first."
"What?!" Zeb groaned. "You mean we gotta stay here longer?!"
"It's Coruscant," Raen called back at Zeb's outburst; Hera hoped she hadn't heard the rest of their conversation. "Here I was thinking a bunch of Rimmers would want to see more of the capital, especially when they're so nicely set up on the surface!"
"…and I told her our covers," Kanan admitted sheepishly. Hera was on the verge of strangling him before Kanan babbled out, "She said they might be useful, gets us places she can't, so that's why I figure she has something in mind."
"…I am still going to kill you," Hera growled.
"But you love me anyway."
Damn this man but I do.
They fell quiet for the rest of the walk, eventually following Raen off the well-lit alleys and into passages that were nearly pitch black. Zeb moved ahead to spot – one perk of having a Lasat around, for the night vision – but Raen called out warnings as they moved deeper. Hera couldn't help reaching up to hold onto Kanan's fingers more than once, and was rewarded with a reassuring squeeze from his grip. Okay, Hera, calm down, we can't have much further to go…
"Here we are, home sweet home," Raen announced as some dim lighting appeared up ahead. Hera peered around Zeb as best she could and could only stare to find a single glowing streetlight shining down over a massive boulder – actual rock – that was sitting in front of what had to be the entrance to Raen's hideout.
"Ya call this home?!" Zeb complained. "There isn't anything here, other'n that giant rock in front of us…"
"Rock?" Kanan asked in surprise. "What kind of rock?"
"Big," Hera replied. "Well beyond anything any of us could lift."
"I thought you said your friends knew you, Kay," Raen prodded as she stepped away from her crate to square herself in front of the boulder. "Not telling them about the old days, what a shame."
"Wait a minute, Raen – "
"I need to focus, so shut up."
Hera looked up at Kanan uncertainly, but his attention stayed fixed to Raen. Hera glanced back to Raen and couldn't help starting back slightly. Raen's hand was outstretched, head bent slightly, but slowly, slowly, the rock began to rise: one meter, then two, then half of another. Hera dimly heard Kanan murmur "I don't kriffin' believe it."
"Someone get my crate and the rest of you get inside," Raen growled. "I can only hold it up this high for so long…"
"On it!" Zeb affirmed, darting for the crate and racing under the boulder. Hera made sure Kanan had a tight hold before following suit after the Lasat, into a darkened chamber beyond not just the first boulder, but a second one on the other side of the wall. Raen grunted as she paced after them, ducking under the first boulder before skipping out of the way of the second before both dropped with a thundering crash. All light from outside cut, and for a few beats Hera realized how Kanan had to feel; a similar darkness was going to hold him for the rest of his life.
"Raen, you did not somehow get one of the heavy training stones down here," Kanan noted in the darkness, "and just lifted it high enough to get us in here."
"Two, and I did," Raen replied before a flare of gold light, paired with the snap-hiss of a lightsaber, lit the area, revealing Raen smirking faintly. "Why do you think there's a hole in that wall?"
"Now what?" Hera asked uncertainly, squinting as her eyes adjusted to the new light source. "We can't be there yet."
"Smart," Raen affirmed. "This way."
"Least it doesn't smell like a sewer," Zeb grumbled as they fell in behind Raen, descending into a warren of tunnels.
"Abandoned for at least half a century," Raen explained. "One of the perks of places like Coruscant and Nar Shaddaa, all the new places demand their own infrastructure, and that replaces the old stuff without actually removing it."
"Giving you a set of bolt-holes that the Empire can't map," Hera supposed. "Not a bad way to throw them off your trail."
"Well, it's what I do best," Raen agreed. In the dim light Hera thought she saw the tiniest of appreciative smiles tugging at her mouth. She likes being valued and supported. No wonder she latched onto Kanan.
They didn't talk much as they traversed the tunnels, only stopping once at a large power hub so Raen could pull a lever that had been grafted onto the generator. Down another set of tunnels in near-darkness, and after descending a ladder (handling the supply crate very well, all things considered) they stopped at a closed bulkhead door.
"And here we are, the den proper," Raen announced before ducking to the control panel. A few keystrokes soon got the door open, and Hera winced at the clear white light that shone out as Raen slid in. "Come on in, the crate can go with the others, let me see if I can get something decent to drink…"
"Here we go, watch the door, step here," Hera guided Kanan as she walked in after Raen. As her eyes adapted yet again, Hera had to stop and take it all in. Raen's hideout wasn't a cramped space stuffed near to bursting with supplies; it was a massive domed structure, the transparisteel ceiling intact and glowing with both installed lighting and the dim yellow lights of 1313 just beyond. Under the dome was a respectably-sized home-like space, split into two levels and nothing out of place. In fact, it reminded Hera very much of the Ghost, the way everything seemed to be arranged.
Hera made sure to do her best to describe the space to Kanan: the dome, the living space and functional cooking area on their level while below seemed to be storage, maintenance, and training. She led Kanan towards the living space and got him sitting down on a sofa that had definitely been reclaimed more than once, while Raen rummaged in the preservation unit.
"This is impressive; I'm surprised nothing else was hiding out in here," Hera commented after Raen pulled out a bottle of what Hera hoped was Gizer blue ale and found containers resembling cups.
"Maybe a hundred years ago this place was nice enough, but there were more than a few critters when I found it," Raen replied. "Had to do a lot of pest control and rewiring to jack into the power system before I could even start thinking about getting the place habitable."
"I guess you had the time to do it," Hera added as gingerly as she could. Her only answer was a nod before Zeb came bounding up from where he'd dropped off the crate.
"Kanan, c'mon, there's somethin' you…agh, yanno," Zeb stammered when he remembered Kanan couldn't actually see anything of interest. "Down below."
"What, I don't get to explain it first, be a host?" Raen asked, almost sounding offended. "This's one of my last Gizer bottles, come on, relax. Plus I gave you guys a good chase."
"That she did," Kanan agreed, and Hera heard Raen snicker before the cap on the bottle popped off of its own accord. Zeb shrugged and sat down with them while Raen poured the Gizer, then passed the cups around.
"So, we're here," Hera noted after they'd all taken a drink; the Gizer was stronger than she'd been braced for. "What is it you wanted?"
"You first," Raen answered, cradling her Gizer as she leaned against a wall. "You're the bunch that wanted to hunt me down without killing me."
"I told you some of it, Raen," Kanan explained. "We're working with a rebel group, and when you jumped onto the HoloNet you got up into their recruitment lists. Especially with your training."
"Such as it is," Raen argued. "If I join up with you, that makes the target on my back a little bigger than I'm comfortable with."
"And what about your regular skills?" Kanan pressed on, as if Raen hadn't spoken. "You can get anywhere you want and just about get your hands on anything. What makes hiding out down here any better than fighting back out there?"
"I hid because that's all I could do, Kay," Raen stated, but Hera heard heat in Raen's voice. "Just like all you could do was run away. I was a kid when the Jedi died, and I'm not a Jedi, not anymore."
"Then why've you got a bunch of Jedi stuff downstairs?" Zeb asked with a smirk.
Hera stared at Raen before getting up and heading down before Raen could stop her, Kanan close with her as she descended. Under the balcony where they had been sitting stood a haphazard display case, stacked with holocrons and datatapes. No wonder Zeb had wanted Kanan to know these were here!
"…how many?" Kanan asked, even as he reached out one hand towards the case though none of the holocrons responded.
"A-at least ten holocrons, maybe more," Hera tried to count, "and the datatapes – "
"Twelve holocrons, thirty datatapes," Raen called down with a sigh, appearing at the railing and still cradling her drink. "Everything I've been able to grab for the past three years. Hence these Inquisitors on my tail."
"So why recover them if you're not a Jedi?" Kanan asked her, and Hera had a feeling Kanan was about to corner her. "Why keep training your abilities if you aren't planning to fight?"
"…I never said I wasn't," Raen answered after a long, long pause. "But unlike you, I don't have the training. Not thorough training, anyway."
"Raen," Hera pressed, "if you come with us, Kanan could help you finish your training. He already has an apprentice, and we can use all the help we can, especially if more Inquisitors come out of whatever pit they call home."
"At what cost?" Raen insisted. "No. If you want me so badly, I need favors. I need to know I can count on you."
"What, I don't count anymore?" Kanan asked with a frown.
"You ran, didn't you?"
There's something more here, Hera realized as Kanan tensed beside her. Of course, it was his prerogative to not tell her everything about his past, but Kanan had once done everything he could to get away from that past. It's not going to end well, that's for sure.
"All right, Raen, let's talk this out," Hera stepped in. "What do you need? Let's see what we can do for you, and in return, at least consider joining us. Coruscant won't be a safe hiding spot for you forever."
"Like that wasn't obvious," Raen noted. But she turned away briefly, and when she reappeared, Raen swung herself over the railing, landing lightly enough Hera suspected she had used the Force. "You and your Lasat friend can do a favor for my contact, and with your covers I'm sure Kay can assist with that, too. The favor for me requires something extra."
"Raen, don't ask me this," Kanan murmured. "Don't."
"You don't even know what I'm asking," Raen retorted darkly. "The second thing, Kay and I go into the Jedi Temple. There's some unfinished business I need to handle, Jedi things."
"What?!" Hera sputtered. Not good, not good! "How necessary is this raid?"
"Extremely," Raen insisted. "Kay probably blabbed I only have a training 'saber. Nice for a light show, but doesn't handle things as well as the real deal. The datatapes I have don't include directions on lightsaber construction, the holocrons won't let me access those schematics, and the Temple is the only place I know to get the right quality of crystal without having to sell my training materials. Either we go in and I get what I need, or you can forget my support – or, for that matter, my inside man."
Hera internally winced. Whoever Raen's contact was, he could give them insights Phoenix Squadron could exploit, not to mention pass on to the rest of the Rebellion. Plus, having an additional Jedi – or Jedi-trained individual, at least – would be incredibly valuable as well, especially if the Empire wasn't actively hunting her like Kanan and Ezra were being hunted. Sacrificing those in the face of anything else could drag on the war longer than it was already looking to be.
"You're talking as if I want to go back in there, Raen," Kanan argued. "I don't. It's going to be a death trap for the both of us."
"It's been fifteen, sixteen years since the clones marched," Raen answered briskly. "The place isn't a war zone anymore. It's a tomb. A few ghosts don't worry me."
"It's not ghosts that concern me."
"Leave tracking any patrols to my insider. Trust is a two-way street. I've trusted you lot with my hideout's location, and you're trusting me not to hand you all in. You want my allegiance; you have to give me reasons to trust you that far."
Raen turned to focus on Hera, and Hera stiffened warily as those knife-point eyes buried under her skin. Hera knew better than to consider Raen a threat, but having her support would be better than just leaving her. And…maybe Kanan could help her. Somehow.
"Do we have a deal?" Raen asked, the fire cooled enough to do business.
It's just another job, Hera had to remind herself, and the payoff had better be worth it.
"We do. Give us the details."