Chapter XVIII
Saw and Callan have two different definitions for "guest". Saw's idea of a guest, is to Callan, a prisoner. Callan sits in the back of his cell on a bench naturally formed by the rock while the little girl Idryssa called "Jyn", stares at Callan through the bars of his cell. She sits on her knees and rests her chin on the bars.
"Jyn is it?" Callan asks.
The little girl nods.
"What's your last name?"
Jyn shakes her head, refusing to tell Callan.
"Don't want to tell huh? That's fine, I understand."
Jyn speaks in front of Callan for the first time, and says softly, "Saw doesn't want me to tell it, the Empire took my father, and killed my mother." Jyn quickly wipes away the tears in her eyes with her ragged sleeve.
"I'm sorry to hear that, Jyn." Callan crawls up to the cell door, to talk quietly with his visitor. "Can you help me? I need to contact my friend so Saw can talk to her."
Jyn stares at Callan, debating within herself whether to help him or not.
"Look, you can trust me, Jyn. I'm on your side, a rebel like Idryssa, Saw, and yourself. Can you trust me?"
Jyn thinks for a minute before nodding, agreeing to help Callan.
"Good. I need you to get my comlink back to me. Can you do that?"
Jyn nods before running off to do as Callan asked. As soon as she is gone, Callan sees Idryssa appear from behind the pillar of rock that divides his cell to the next. She leans into it, crosses her arms, and stares down Callan through the bars.
Her face shows no emotion as she says, "I should stop her and report you to Saw for that." She pauses and chills run down Callan's spine. "However, Saw is irrational, he would assume you are trying to use the comlink to reach the Empire, and I don't even want to think of what he will do to Jyn."
"So then you trust me I take it?"
She grins only slightly, "For the time being, yes. I feel you have no reason to lie."
"Then will you help me as well?"
Idryssa nods once.
"I need you to find Ahsoka in Ai-jed, I can can direct her to the city if you will only find her."
"I can do that, if she's as discrete as you are, I'll have no problem finding her."
"Very funny. She shouldn't be too hard to spot anyway, she's a Togruta, with tall blue and white striped montrals. When you find her, call her Ashla."
"Noted, I'll go to Ai-jed now."
Idryssa leaves as Jyn returns with Callans comlink in hand. The girl hands Callan the device through the cell bars. Callan thanks her as he activates its transmitter. Jyn, watches and listens attentively.
Callan holds the mic up to his lips, "Ashla, are you there? Come in."
The comlink crackles, "Callan, I hear you. Have you found Saw yet?"
"Yes, I'm currently, more or less his guest. Have you met with our command?"
"I have, he's….an interesting character."
Callan shakes off Ahsoka's odd remark, thinking to himself that Saw is interesting character as well.
Ahsoka continues, "Shila and I have sent our course for Jedha. How will we find you?"
"Go to Ai-jed, look for a girl named Idryssa."
"How will we find her?"
Callan laughs, "Most likely scenario, she'll find you."
"Got it, we'll be there soon."
Callan turns the comlink off and hands it back to Jyn, he doesn't want to risk Saw randomly searching him and finding it. Now all he can do is hope Idryssa will find Shila and Ahsoka before Saw's hospitality runs dry.
Shila put the freighter down just outside of Ai-jed, she doesn't want an unscheduled Imperial freighter to be landing in the city considering every Imperial airfield crew are likely on the lookout for the stolen craft. Shila, like Callan, left her armor on the ship and got some new gear in the city. She bought the gear from a pawn shop owned by an Ithorian that supplies mostly to bounty hunters.
Her new boots are Echani made, they reach up to her knees and include built in boosters. Two blaster holsters, each holding a DE-10 blaster pistol, are strapped to her thighs and hang by her new belt. The Empire's symbol on her under armour is covered by a white tunic and a black lightweight tactical vest, it may come in handy if fighting on Thakwaa becomes unavoidable. Finally, a brown cloth patrol cap covers her head and shields her face from Jedha's sun.
While Shila tried to convince Ahsoka that she could use some of the equipment the Ithorian had for sale, Ahsoka insisted she is perfectly fine with what she's already got. Besides most of the cloaks he had wouldn't of covered her montrals and she has no need for any other weapons. She might as well use her lightsabers since she is confident that by now, Thrawn must know who she is.
The two walk past a cantina that rests at the street corner. Ahsoka stops Shila as she notices in her peripheral vision, an Imperial patrol with a armored vehicle approaching them from down the street. Ahsoka discreetly takes Shila's arm and moves with her into the cantina's side before looking away from the approaching Stormtroopers.
The Stormtroopers don't even bother to look at them as they pass, whatever it is they are escorting is far more important than stopping to ask questions. Shila waits for them to get far enough away before looking back at Ahsoka.
"I'll scout ahead, Ashla." she says, "Get an idea on what's around us, I'm not sure where this Idryssa person is going to meet us."
"Well as Callan said, she'll just find us."
Shila nods, "None of the less, I'm going to have a look around. I won't be long."
Shila walks off down the street, taking note of any points of interest. Meanwhile, Ahsoka watches the crowd from by the cantina, watching for any suspicious persons who may be Idryssa. Suddenly, a group of people stumble out of the cantina and pass through Ahsoka.
Ahsoka quickly puts her hands on her lightsabers as the drunkards push past her. Years ago on Coruscant, she can remember when she let her guard down and a thief took her lightsaber in a very similar situation. If it hadn't been for Master Tera Sinube and his help finding her lightsaber, her Master would have surely killed her. Anakin was never shy to remind her that her lightsaber is her life.
A jolt goes up Ahsoka's back as she feels something hit her right hand that's still guarding her blade. She looks down to find it's a wooden staff of some kind.
A calm voice is suddenly heard behind her, "No sense in protecting them."
Ahsoka turns around to find an older looking man wielding the staff. He is dressed in blue and red robes, with a white sash going across his body and waist. His black hair is neatly trimmed down to his scalp, much like Rex's once was, only the man's skin is slightly lighter than his. Ahsoka doesn't feel intimidated by him, as his smile makes her feel warm inside. His narrow eyes are white as he is blind, but she can tell behind them is much wisdom.
"Excuse me?" Ahsoka asks the stranger.
"No one in Ai-jed has ever seen a lightsaber before, nor a Jedi for that matter."
Ahsoka steps back, unsure what to think of him. "Who are you?"
He smiles and shakes his head, "There's no need for introductions, as I know you won't reveal your name, and I am just passing through Ai-jed." The man takes a breath. "Something troubles you, I can feel it."
Ahsoka steps up to him again and asks under her breath, "You're a Jedi?"
He shakes his head again, "No, nor a Sith, a servant to the Jedi Order, but that doesn't matter now. However, I don't need to be a Jedi to sense the tension swirling around you."
Ahsoka feels he is no threat, and feels she can tell him about Titus without revealing too much about her or the mission at hand.
Ahsoka takes a breath.
"Someone from my past has come back, someone I've known to be malevolent. He appears to have let go of who he once was, however, I still feel the Darkside around him."
"So then you're not sure if you can trust him or not?"
"Yes."
The man hums as he thinks, "You must trust in your instincts, trust in the Force."
Ahsoka is about to talk when she is interrupted by another voice, "Chirrut!"
Another man approaches them, this one has darker skin and matted long black hair with a scraggly beard. He wears heavily plated red armor with a large canister on his back that feeds a long belt of ammo into his blaster he keeps at hand.
He laughs, "See what happens when you let the Force guide you instead of me? Your lucky that patrol didn't run over you."
"I'm one with the Force; the Force is with me, Baze Malbus."
"So you keep saying." The man pays Ahsoka a quick nod before looking back at his friend, "Now come on, we must be moving along." He walks off down the street, but the other still stands before Ahsoka.
He smiles one last time and says, "May the Force be with you."
The blind man turns around to leave, holds his staff out to use as his guide, and follows his partner down the street. Ahsoka thinks to herself that what he said sounds very much like Anakin.
Trust in your instincts, trust in the Force.
"Ashla?" This time a female voice says from behind her, and uses her name.
Ahsoka turns around to find a woman with dark hair and eyes staring at her.
"Who's asking?"
"My names Idryssa Barruck, Callan sent me to find you. I'm here to take you to Saw Gerrera."