For Carrie. Long Live our Princess. And for Sir John. safe travels, Doctor.
Note: Here are the incomplete plans for my Rebels "Expanded Universe" chronology: (BBY = Before Battle of Yavin/ ABY = After Battle of Yavin ). It is tentative and can change.
5 years BBY – "Star Wars Rebels season 1" (Disney XD series)
5 years BBY – "The Truth in the Lies" (In Progress - Part One of the Mandalore Trilogy)
4 years BBY – "The Loss of Hope" (Completed and Updated)
0 years BBY – "A New Hope" (In Progress part 1 of the Star Wars Trilogy)
0 years BBY – "Blood and Water" (working title – coming soon)
2 years ABY - "Revenge of the Death Watch" ( working title - coming soon – Part 2 of the Mandalore Trilogy)
3 years ABY – "The Empire Strikes Back" (coming soon – part 2 of the Star Wars Trilogy)
3 years ABY – "Rise of the Duchess" (coming soon – part 3 of the Mandalore Trilogy)
4 years ABY – "The Return of the Jedi" (coming soon – part 3 of the Star Wars Trilogy)
5 years ABY – "In the End, At the Beginning" (Coming soon)
9 years ABY "Revenge of Thrawn" (Coming soon)
Star Wars Rebels
A New Hope
Chapter 4: Battle of Heroes pt. 2 Great Men Are Forged in Fire
"It can't be… you can't be…" Ezra shook his head, "Vader killed you… I felt you die…"
"Just like you always did, you frustratingly failed me," Adeptus said with a sick chuckle.
"Why? You'd never … you would never fall to the Dark Side…" Ezra shook his head in disbelief, tears forming in his eyes as his heart broke into a million pieces.
The Inquisitor reached up and removed his mask. Ezra dropped to his knees and stared at the face behind the mask. "Please no…"
What's wrong, Kid?" the yellow-eyed Kanan Jarrus said with an evil smile, "Surprised to see me?"
"Why…" Ezra shook his head in defeat, "Why, Kanan?"
"Lord Vader broke me, yes, but after he reformed me, rebuilt me. Made me better..." he removed his glove to reveal a cybernetic prosthesis. "And he showed me the truth."
"Truth?" Ezra croaked, glancing up at his former master.
"Lord Vader isn't the evil monster we thought, Ezra," Kanan said, pacing around the young man. "He is only doing what's best for not the Empire, but the galaxy itself. It is his destiny to bring Order to Chaos."
"You can't believe that! Vader killed the Jedi," Ezra exclaimed in disbelief "He helped the Emperor overthrow the Republic!" Ezra frowned when Kanan burst into laughter.
"Vader and the Emperor did no such thing," Kanan shook his head, "That's propaganda fed by those who have lost power under Emperor Palpatine, but the truth is the Republic didn't change, the Emperor and Lord Vader simply removed the façade and revealed what it truly was. It hasn't been a Republic for many generations, Ezra."
"That's a lie…" Ezra shook his head.
"Have I ever lied to you, Ezra?" Kanan replied, "You and the Rebellion are fighting for a fantasy dreamed up by Hera and others like her. They are longing for something that never existed." He then held out his hand, "Lord Vader has a plan. The Emperor is evil; the Rebellion has that much right. Lord Vader has trained me as a secret apprentice. Together, we are going to overthrow the Emperor and bring true peace to the galaxy. Under our control, we will finally know real peace." Kanan smiled at his former Padawan, "Join us, Ezra… don't throw your life away so meaninglessly…"
Ezra lowered his gaze to the floor. "Then if you won't, I'll go to the others. All of together, again, Ezra… just like old times… I'm certain they'll see reason… if not… it's a pity."
The sound of Ezra's lightsaber's pop hiss filled the room as he stood to his feet. "You made me promise, a long time ago…" Ezra said as the two locked eyes yet again.
You got the touch…
Tears of pain and sadness lined the young Jedi's determined eyes as he stared at his former master's sickly yellow ones. "I promised you that… I would take care of them… that I would protect them…I'd protect them from anything that would do them harm…"
You got the power…
"Even you…"
Adeptus barely got his crimson saber up in time to deflect Ezra's leaping downward slash. His yellow eyes widened at the surprise offensive. He didn't know where he miscalculated; the boy he remembered should still be reeling…
After all is said and done
You've never walked, you've never run,
You're a winner
The pain was still visible on Ezra's face but he had renewed purpose, he had a cause. If he couldn't save Kanan, he could at least save the others from him…
You got the moves
You know the street
Break the rules, take the heat
You're nobody's fool
The Inquisitor and the Jedi locked sabers and stood nose to nose, faces inches apart. "You always threw your life away so recklessly…"
You're at your best when the goin' gets rough
"You're one to talk…" Ezra responded, Force shoving the floor, propelling himself away from his former Master.
You've been put to the test, but it's never enough
Adeptus made a slash toward his former friend but Ezra effortlessly flipped backwards, dodging the attack, before springing forward again, narrowly missing his own attack.
You got the touch
You got the power
When all hell's breakin' loose
You'll be riding the eye of the storm
The Inquisitor gritted his teeth as he locked blades with Ezra again, but deep inside the darkness of his heart, as he was being pushed back toward the door leading to the open walkway over an airflow tower. In a place inside that was overwhelmed with darkness a small flicker of light sparked back to life.
You got the heart
You got the motion
Ezra switched his lightsaber to blaster mode mid swing, and hit the Inquisitor in the shoulder, then followed through with a round house kick that struck him in the chest the combination of hits sent him tumbling through the door. As the Inquisitor screamed in rage, inside him Kanan Jarrus was proud of his student.
You know that when things get too tough
You got the touch
Ezra stepped to the edge of the walk way and saw Adeptus pulling himself to his feet and the two stared another a moment before Ezra turned and walked away, hurriedly making his way back to Obiwan and Sabine.
-SW-
Meanwhile, on the detention block, Luke, Han, and Chewy tried to defend the 'rescued' Princess Leia Organa from the legion of Storm Troopers who were firing on them. "3PO, is there another way out of the cell block? We've been cut off! What was that? I didn't copy."
"I said, all systems have been alerted to your presence, sir," C-3P0 responded, "The main entrance seems to be the only way in and out. All other information on your level is restricted. Oh no…"
"There isn't another way out!" Luke shook his head.
"I can't hold them off forever!" Han shouted, firing his blaster at the horde of Stormtroopers. "Now what?"
"This is SOME rescue!" Leia sassed her rescuers, "You came in here, did you have a plan for getting out?"
"He's the brains, Sweetheart!" Solo yelled at the petite princess, who then released a growl of frustration before grabbing the rifle from Luke.
She turned to the side and blasted a hatch off a garbage shoot. "What the hell are you doing?" Han shouted.
"Someone has to save our skins!" She said, crossing the hall, firing at the troopers, before tossing the blaster back to Luke, "Into the garbage chute, Fly Boy!" She said, before diving in herself.
"Get in there!" Han yelled to Chewbacca, who roared in response, "I said get in there you, big furry oaf! I don't care what you smell!" once Chewy was in Han glanced to Luke, "Wonderful girl! I'm not sure if I'm going to kill her or I'm beginning to like her!" He said as Luke jumped into the chute. He fired a few more times before he jumped in himself, landing in a wet slimy mess of damaged metal and waste.
"Oh! A garbage chute was a really wonderful idea!" He said turning to Chewy, "what an incredible smell you've discovered! Let's get out of here…" he said aiming his blaster at the door.
"NO! WAIT!" Luke called but it was too late, and Han's blaster bold bounced off the door and around the chamber before dissipating. "Will you forget it! I already tried it. It's magnetically sealed!"
"Put that thing away, you're going to get us all killed!" Leia snapped, glancing around the trash compacting chamber.
"Absolutely, Your Worship!" Han yelled, throwing his arms out, "Look, we had everything under control until you led us down here. You know, it's not going to take them long to figure out what happened to us?" he said, sticking his finger in the Alderaanian Princess' face.
"It could be worse…" Leia replied, followed shortly by a growling roar coming from beneath their feet.
"It's worse…" Han sighed.
"There's something alive in here…" Luke said, glancing around in the knee deep water.
"That's your imagination…" Han said hopefully.
"Something just moved past my leg!" He said as an eye-like object peaked up out of the water before diving back down. "Look! Did you see that?"
"What?" Han said, drawing his rifle.
"HELP!" Luke cried as a tentacle wrapped around his leg and pulled him underwater.
"LUKE!" Leia called out, trying to reach for him in the water.
"LUKE! LUKE!" Han called, also trying to find the young man.
suddenly Luke surfaced, completely tangled in a tentacle, "LUKE! GRAB HOLD OF THIS!" Leia called, holding out a pipe to him.
"Blast it, will you? My gun's jammed!" Luke called out.
"Where?" Han called.
"ANYWHERE!" Luke screamed. Han opened fire all in the water, and Luke was pulled back down.
"LUKE!" Han yelled after him.
Things grew deathly quiet except for Chewbacca's worried roars from the corner. A moment later Luke bobs free in the muck. "GRAB HIM!" Leia called as she and Han grabbed him by the arms and pulled him up. "What happened?"
"I don't know, it just let me go…" Luke breathed, "And then disappeared…"
"I have a bad feeling about this…" Han said, glancing around.
Suddenly the sound of roaring engines and grinding metal filled the chamber as the walls began to close in. "THE WALLS ARE MOVING!" Luke shouted.
"Don't just stand there! Try to brace it with something!" Leia called as the four began to use metal beams to hold the walls, but it wasn't even slowing them down.
"Wait a minute," Luke said pulling out his com, "3PO! COME IN 3P0! 3PO? WHERE COULD HE BE?"
"Get back from the door, Kid!" A gruff voice called from the com.
A moment later the door exploded, and a Twi'lek in a rebel flight suit stood in and offered a hand to the group. "Wasn't a Sabine Special, but it did the trick." Hera smiled at Solo and Chewbacca, "Good to see you again, Chewy, your sidekick, too." She said as Zeb peaked in behind her.
"Captain Syndulla!" Leia called out, jumping forward, as the Ghost's captain helped her out of the compactor, "If you're here…" her eyes lit up in delight, "That means Ezra's here, too! FINALLY, someone who knows what they're doing!"
"Hey!" Luke complained.
"We're standing right here," Han said, pouting slightly. Both men turned a glare to the Wookie who was chuckling. "Something funny, Furball?"
"Where is Ezra?" Hera asked, "Sabine and Master Kenobi, too?"
"They're taking care of the tractor beam," Han said.
"Great, take it down and we all should be able to get out of here," Hera said, turning on her heel, "Come on, the Ghost isn't far from where they're holding the Falcon."
"I hope R2 and 3PO are ok," He said as the group made their way toward the hanger.
-SW-
"That should do the trick," Sabine said as she armed another explosive and placed it in the tractor beam's housing.
"Wouldn't it be easier to just turn the device off?" Kenobi asked curiously.
"Sure," Sabine shrugged, "But it'd be just as easy to turn back on, either here or remotely. But if we blow it up good, they can't turn back on scrap."
"You are quite wise, Ms. Wren," Kenobi smiled at the girl, and a flush crossed her cheeks.
"So… I've been wanting to talk to you about something…" Sabine started to say, but she noticed a sad expression cross his face as he looked past her. She turned to see what he was watching and she saw Ezra approaching with a solemn and sad expression. "Ezra? What's wrong?" She asked as she met him part way.
"Not now, Sabine," Ezra tried to walk past her, but she stopped him by placing a hand on his arm, and to her surprise he jerked away, "I said Not Now!"
"Ezra?" Sabine asked, and even with her helmet he knew she was eyeing him with concern.
"Are we done here? We need to go," Ezra stated, looking to the tractor beam core.
"Not till you tell me what happened," Sabine crossed her arms.
"An Inquisitor," Ezra said, glancing to the Jedi Master, "He got away…"
"I imagine it won't be the last you see of him, young one," Ben said with a knowing smile.
"It'll be too soon," Ezra said, as the three started toward the exit. Once they reached the hallway, Obiwan stopped suddenly.
"Master Kenobi?" Ezra asked.
"You two, go ahead to the ship," Obiwan smiled kindly, "I'll be right behind you."
"But… I…" Sabine stepped toward him.
"You mentioned you have questions of me, my dear," Obiwan nodded, "The answers to them, well, the ones that truly matter, will be revealed to you soon enough." He patted both of their shoulders, "Now go. I'll see you soon. May the Force be with you… Always."
"And you, Master," Ezra nodded, and the two reluctantly left him. Obiwan smiled after them almost sadly, as he pulled the hood of his cloak over his head and waited patiently. It wasn't a long wait as the sound of Vader's breathing apparatus filled the silent hallway.
"I've been waiting for you, Obiwan Kenobi," Darth Vader said, stalking toward the old Jedi. "We meet again, at last. The circle is now complete." The two former friends drew their lightsabers, and faced one another. "When last we met I was but a learner; now I am the master."
"Only a Master of Evil…" Obiwan said, "Anakin…"
Vader lashed out with his crimson lightsaber colliding with Obiwan's awaiting one. "Your powers are weak, old man," Vader growled, making a swipe at the Jedi who rolled beneath the blade, and Vader narrowly used his saber to block the slash from his former master.
"You can't win," Obiwan said, blocking Vader's powerful downward slash. "Strike me down, and I will become more powerful than you can imagine."
"We shall see about that…" Vader pushed on through the hallways in a dance of lightsabers.
Meanwhile, Han, Leia, Chewbacca, met up with Ezra and Sabine and the droids in the Falcon's hanger. "You guys made it!" Sabine said to the trio.
"Thanks to your captain's help," Luke said, causing Ezra and Sabine to look to one another.
"Glad to hear Hera's ok," Ezra stated, as they all started to sneak onto the Falcon.
"Look!" Luke said, and the group looked to the far entrance to see Obiwan dueling Vader.
"Oh no…" Ezra breathed.
"It's the end of our conflict," Vader said to Obiwan. "The Force has abandoned you… As it had your old Order… your time has passed."
"The Force is with me far more than you can ever imagine," Obiwan said, glancing to Luke and Ezra watching with their group. "It has granted me one final beautiful gift. And for that. I am prepared." Obiwan said, glancing to Sabine, before turning to stare into the faceplate of the Sith Lord. Memories flooded him of their time together. He raised him. Trained him. Laughed with him. Struggled with him. Fought side by side. Experienced gaining and losing friends and even loves.
"My dear Obiwan," He could hear Satine's voice. "I loved you always… I always will."
A smile crossed his age face. He had faced losses more than even his former apprentice and partner knew. And focusing on her, clinging to her memory. He knew he was ready for what he had trained for so many years on Tatooine. The armored monstrosity that was once his best friend was right about one thing. His time had passed. The time now was for a new Jedi, not corrupted by fear of the Dark Side. Starting with two. "Great men are forged in fire, Vader…" Obiwan took a deep breath, glancing toward the two young ones, "It is the privilege of the lesser men… to light the flame."
Obiwan closed his eyes and braced himself, "Satine…" he whispered before Vader slashed with his lightsaber, and his cloak fell to the floor empty.
"NO!" Luke and Sabine both cried out, drawing attention to the group.
The group of Rebels opened fire on the Stormtroopers as Vader stomped the empty cloak in confusion, before turning and stomping toward the group. "Come on!" Leia called out. "Luke! It's too late!"
"Blast the door, Kid!" Han ordered, shooting down a group of Troopers.
"Run, Luke, Run!" Obiwan's voice spoke in Luke's head and he shot the control and a blast door closed between them and the Sith Lord.
On the far side of the of the ramp, Ezra and Sabine fired on the Stormtroopers, Sabine in a rage that Ezra hadn't seen before. "Ezra, Go," Obiwan spoke to him as well through the Force, "protect my daughter."
"Sabine, we need to get out of here, blow the tractor beam," Ezra said, but she acted as if she didn't hear, blasting Stormtroopers without hesitation, "Sabine!" She finally looked toward him, holstered one of her blasters and pulled out her remote as he pulled her up the ramp. Once they were on board, she pressed the button and the sound of her explosives going off filled the area. Normally this brought her joy, but not this time. "Solo! Get us out of here!" Ezra said as they entered the interior of the Falcon and Sabine stomped ahead of him.
Ezra looked around for Sabine, and first found Leia comforting a grieving Luke. "There wasn't anything you could do…" he heard Leia consoling him.
He continued on, following the sound of things being thrown around. He found Sabine in the storage compartment, throwing boxes around in a rage. "Sabine."
"Leave me alone, Ezra," Sabine hissed.
"You know I'm not going to do that," Ezra said, standing patiently. She finally stopped her raging, and Ezra cautiously approached her. He knew Mandalorian tradition. Anyone else doing what he was about to do would die for it quickly. But he also knew he was the only one who would be allowed to do this. Well, maybe Hera. But ever so gently he placed his hands on either side of her helmet and cautiously removed it. It tore at his heart seeing her tear stained face and swollen red eyes. He sat her helmet to the side, and touched her cheek. "Sabine…"
"I never got to ask him… Now I'll never know… I…" She half growled half sobbed.
"Your father was proud of you," Ezra whispered softly, causing her breath to catch.
Sabine froze and her eyes widened as his words sank in. Ezra saw her struggling to fight back the tears, and pulled her close, letting her face turn from his so that he wouldn't see. "Let it out, Sabi…" He whispered, and with a choked sob, the tears flowed.
The two companions, friends, perhaps more clung to each other as their grief over Obiwan's death washed over both of them.
They held each other for some time before the ship shook violently. "Gotta go to work…" Sabine said, pulling back and taking her helmet. "Time for grief later."
Ezra and Sabine made their way to the bridge of the Falcon and found Leia and Chewy working the controls. "What's going on?" Ezra asked.
"TIEs," Leia replied as Chewbacca roared. "Luke and Han are on the guns."
"I'll help Chewbacca fly, Ezra, keep the deflectors up," Sabine said, sitting down in the captain's chair. "Wait, how do you fly this piece of junk? The stick's missing!"
Chewbacca released a roar of frustration as he hopped up from the copilot's chair and grabbed Sabine, sitting her roughly in the seat he vacated and took control. Sabine looked over the new control panel before her and her eyes lit up. "Is this forward guns?" She asked, and Chewy nodded. "Good… Mama needs to vent…"
Sabine vaguely heard the chatter between Luke and Han as they fired the Millennium Falcon's upper and lower guns, while she herself was blasting any TIE that had the bad luck to get in her path. "Ghost to Millennium Falcon, we need to get out of here!"
"Ghost, this is Spectre Five," Sabine replied, "Any idea which way to go?"
"I'm sending the coordinates to the current Alliance Base to you now, Ghost," Leia piped in through her head piece.
"The Alliance?" Ezra breathed. "We haven't had contact with them since…"
"Course locked in," Sabine said, looking over the console, "Book it, Chewy! Next stop… Yavin IV!" She said as the two freighters jumped into hyperspace.
To Be Continued…
Song credits: Ezra's theme: "The Touch" – Stan Bush
So sorry for the long wait, but after the passing of Carrie Fisher I just had to get this back in the air, and then Sir John Hurt, wondering if anyone will catch the nod to the great War Doctor I put in in his honor. Next chapter will have some nods to Rogue One. Everything of that movie will happen as it did, but with the absence of Hera Chopper and the Ghost. Because, honestly, I loved that movie so much… anyway, I hope you enjoyed and this was worth the wait!