Chapter 10: Homecoming
As promised, Ezra dined, waited an hour or so to digest and went straight to bed, with Sabine joining him another hour later, and he obviously woke up just to give her space on the bunk and allow her to hold on him while using his right arm as a pillow.
Night on Lothal. Ezra finds himself standing on a protruding rock in the middle of a prairie, the twin moons in front of him.
"Ezra."
"Mom?!" the boy asks in disbelief.
"Ezra, we're here."
"DAD?! Where are you?" he raises his voice.
A cell, similar to those Ezra saw in various imperial prisons.
Ezra looks around, confused.
The door of the cell is open.
A white loth-cat is silently staring at him.
Ezra tries to concentrate. What's happening?
"We're right here, Ezra." his mother says.
The loth-cat growls and hisses.
Something else. A shack in the middle of a rocky valley on Lothal.
TIE fighters coming down from a ship.
Jaral fighting in Garel's spaceport.
"No!"
"Ezra."
All becomes white.
"Ezra!"
Ezra gasped loudly and his eyes sprang open. He was still laying down on the bed. He noticed Sabine on top of him, calling him. Her face was very much worried.
He pants vigorously.
"It's okay." she whispers. "It was only a nightmare."
"No." he says. "It was a vision…" he sits up and rubs his buzz cut. Then he concluded. "I need to talk to Kanan."
Sabine nodded and the two quickly dressed up, although Sabine didn't put her armor on, only the undersuit, and the two walked toward the common room.
"No, no." they heard Hera's voice talking to Kanan. "We've checked these systems. There's nothing close to a viable location for a base."
The teens stepped into the room, drawing the attention of the adults from the star map projected on the holotable in the dark room.
"Kanan." Ezra said, still sweaty.
"Ezra, what happened?" he asked patiently. Hera looked more concerned.
"I...I had a vision...Kanan, I saw my parents!" he declared loudly, realizing what the vision was about.
The others in the room looked dazzled.
"It was so real. But...I'm not sure what it meant." he said sitting on one of the stools around the table and massaging his forehead. Sabine put her hands on his shoulders, trying to ease his stress.
"Why don't you tell us what you saw?" Hera suggested.
They were interrupted when they heard someone rushing up the ladder and the gangplanks outside.
It was Jaral, who was clearly running there with full haste.
"Ezra, did you have a vision?" he quickly asked.
Ezra was taken aback for a moment but he nodded quickly.
"Wait," said Kanan. "you saw that too?"
"So it seems." Jaral said, walking up to the table.
"But last time you witnessed one of Ezra's visions you were touching his shoulder." Sabine objected, not understanding what was going on.
"Their Force bond goes beyond any understanding, Sabine." Kanan explained. "Probably when they are both sleeping, Ezra gets the vision, but since their mental shields are completely open, Jaral can see it too."
Hera and Sabine weren't sure if they got it.
"Did you hear them?" Ezra asked in a hurry. "Mum and Dad?"
"I did." she said firmly.
"Can you recall what happened?"
"Well, there was a prison cell." Jaral closed her eyes and tried to remember. "A white loth-cat and also a shack in the middle of a rocky deposit on Lothal."
"Maybe they're alive...a-and they're there." Ezra was clearly jumping to conclusions.
"Ezra!" Jaral recalled him. "I too would be overjoyed if Mum and Dad were alive, but we have to handle this gingerly. Besides, it wasn't the only thing we saw in the vision, right?"
Ezra remembered the TIEs and the image of her fighting in the spaceport.
"You're right. The second part seemed to forewarn a battle, here on Garel."
"Are you sure?" Hera asked alarmed.
"I can't be sure, but I saw Jaral clearly fighting here at the spaceport, I can't tell with who." Ezra tried to sound calm, but clearly the matter of his parents was eating his heart out.
Kanan looked at Hera.
"I think it's time we show them."
The siblings looked at each other.
"Show us what?" Jaral asked.
Hera motioned them to follow her in her cabin.
"Remember when Tseebo told you he knew what happened to your parents?"
"Yes, but I didn't want to know." Ezra said in shame.
"Why?" Jaral asked, a hint of hope in her voice. "Are they actually alive?"
"We know they were taken to an Imperial prison…" Hera shut off the lights and a map with numerous planets showed up. "...one of...a thousand."
"There are so many. Where do we even start?" Ezra asked.
"Tseebo didn't know exactly where they were taken, but he had fragments of information." Kanan explained. "Pieces that we've been trying to piece together."
"We called in every favor with every smuggler, trader and pirate we know." Hera said, then she became a bit dejected. "Even asked Senator Organa to inquire with his sources but we couldn't find them. I'm sorry."
"Why you didn't tell us?" Jaral murmured, though the look in her eyes clearly showed gratitude.
"Because there was nothing to say." Kanan said. "For now, your parents are just...gone."
Ezra, who was standing in the middle of the holomap, turned around and looked at the two adults with the same gaze that Jaral was sporting.
"Thank you guys. Really."
Then Jaral brought a finger to her chin. "Hold on." she whispered. "There is something I want to try." she said before heading back to the common room.
It was almost sunrise. Ezra asked for a little time alone in the dorsal turret so Sabine went in the common room with the other three.
The boy was looking at the family picture that Sabine recovered for him the year before on his birthday.
Looking at the picture, Ezra mumbled. "Mum. Dad. I will find you." then he closed his eyes, trying to see if the Force could give him any other hint.
However, from below, the voice of Kanan brought him back.
"Ezra." he called him down.
The boy shut off the omni-tool and slid down the ladder, then jogged into the common room.
He noticed that the holotable was projecting a list of some sort, but the names were erased and the pictures were black, only hinting at the subject's outline.
"What is that?" he asked.
"A list of prisoners." Kanan explained. "The Empire's deleted their names and images to keep them secret."
"I ran a research on the Liberator's database," Jaral said. "and I found it. This is a list of prisoners escaped from a mass escape last night on Lothal."
"That's why I had the vision." Ezra concluded. "It must be bound to our parents somehow. But how can we find them with...this?"
"I know an old Jedi trick that might be able to help." Kanan said and Ezra turned to him. "I can't guarantee this will work." he warned "You have to open your mind to the truth as the Force presents it. That can mean something good...or something bad."
"I understand." Ezra said with determination burning in his eyes.
"I'll help you." Jaral declared, standing up from the couch. She walked beside Ezra and squeezed his hand firmly, nodding at him.
Ezra made a lopsided grin and nodded in return.
"Turn around." Kanan instructed. "And focus on the list."
Ezra obliged. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, extending his free hand. Jaral closed her eyes as well and focused on sending calming waves to Ezra, to help him not be distracted by his whirlwind of emotions.
The list suddenly started scrolling on his own. The pictures were the only thing changing.
"Don't try to see what you want to see." Kanan said in a calming tone. "Let the Force be your guide. Stay in the moment, be in this place at this time."
The Force humming became increasingly stronger in Ezra's head. Jaral was definitely helping since he could feel his contrasting emotions wither away, to leave place only to the Force.
Then he saw something in his mind.
"Stop!"
The list stopped on its own.
"Prisoner X-10." Hera read. "Whoever this is, they were arrested on Lothal for treason. You might be onto something!"
"Maybe." Ezra mumbled. "We need to find them."
"Hang on, they could be anywhere by now." Kanan slowed him down.
Jaral however, was convinced as well. She left Ezra's hand. "No, Kanan. Not everywhere. On Lothal! It makes sense, the white Loth-cat, the twin moons and the oval rocky pillars."
Ezra's breathing was intensifying. "We have to go back!"
"Calm down, lil bro. The Imperials have an entire fleet around Lothal. We can't go without a plan."
"Not exactly." Jinx interjected from Jaral's omni-tool, gaining her attention.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"I just intercepted an Imperial bulletin saying that the Imperial Sector Fleet left Lothal around two hours ago."
"That's a sign! We have to go now!" Ezra was excited, but Jaral lifted an arm gravely, telling him to calm his horses as something felt wrong.
"Jinx, is the local garrison on Garel still sending out its patrols?" she asked with urgency. On the side, Sabine widened her eyes in terror as well.
Jinx made a quick tap into the imperial network and after circa 30 seconds came back, his blue form now beeped in red.
"Alert! The Imperial garrison on Garel has received order to suspend all patrols 52 minutes ago. The Imperial Sector Fleet is estimated to arrive in 8 minutes!"
"Get me Sato, now!" Jaral ordered firmly.
"Wait, what's going on?" Kanan asked.
"The Empire withdraws all patrols before a major strike," Sabine explained. "they know we're here!"
Those words made everybody rush to their posts. Jaral managed to contact Sato and asked him to order an immediate evacuation, to which Sato consented.
Zeb was woken up and quickly brought up to speed by Ezra.
Six minutes later, all the ships of the Phoenix Cell announced that they were ready to launch and the evacuation began immediately. Jaral didn't have the time to go back to the Liberator so she stayed in the cockpit of the Ghost as co-pilot.
Just as the fleet got up in orbit, three Star Destroyers and their escort cruisers came out from one of the lanes leading to Garel.
Luckily, they were still too far and that allowed Jinx to calculate a new route that Jaral immediately sent to the rest of the fleet.
In the end, probably to the frustration of the Imperials, the Phoenix cell managed to make the jump without any losses.
In the cockpit, Jaral breathed a huge sigh of relief. Before Hera made her raise up and hugged her vigorously.
"What was that for?" the girl asked with a grin when Hera left the grip.
"I just couldn't find the words to congratulate you. You just saved the entire fleet!" the twi'lek said with pride swelling in her voice.
"I just did my job." Jaral tried to evade the praise.
She hadn't noticed that the door was opening and that Ezra, Kanan, Sabine and Zeb heard what she said.
"Just take the compliment, sis." Ezra jokingly reproached.
"Technically it was your vision to warn us, Ezra."
"Don't even try it." the boy repelled her attempt to pass the merit on him. "I didn't even consider the part that was warning us. If you hadn't had your beautiful mind, the Empire would have dumped on us."
"Speaking of your vision," Kanan commented. "what do you guys want to do?"
The siblings looked at each other. Jaral had a bit of a sorry face, to which Ezra nodded.
"I have to stay with the fleet, Kanan." Jaral said, the decision definitely weighting on her. "Take Chopper and bring Ezra back on Lothal as soon as we leave hyperspace."
"Understood." Kanan nodded.
"I'm coming with." Sabine stepped decisively forward.
"Are you sure, Sabine?" Jaral asked.
"I am." she said, then she smirked to Ezra. "I won't be the waiting girlfriend, this time."
Ezra smiled warmly at her. "Thank you, cyar'ika."
"Good, then be sure to keep the guys out of their usual troubles." Hera joked.
As the small team prepared to leave, Ezra and Jaral stood aside and talked.
"You sure you don't want to come with me?" Ezra asked.
Jaral shrugged with a conflicted face. "I can't leave the fleet right now. They need my help to reorganize and find a new hideout."
The two fell silent, not sure how to go on. A whirlwind of emotions was shaking their hearts. Mostly a mixture of hope and fear.
"Besides…" Jaral murmured. "I'm pretty sure I'll know immediately if you find them or not." she referred to their bond. However this was going, the emotion Ezra would feel would be too strong to stop it from affecting Jaral as well, and in any case, Ezra would not be in a condition to think about raising his shields.
"I only hope…" Ezra tried to answer before shaking his head lightly. "No, I know I'll find them. And I'll bring them back. No matter what." he put a hand on his sister's cheek.
The girl gave a frightened smile but delicately touched the hand of his brother, trying to sooth him in return.
"Go, now." she encouraged him.
Ezra nodded and went to the ladder, where Sabine had been waiting for him. The teens climbed up into the vessel.
Kanan sat at the controls and lifted the ship, setting course to Lothal.
"It's nice to see Lothal without Star Destroyers over it, for a change." Kanan commented as they exited hyperspace in front of the planet. The fleet sent to Garel was most likely still there, which left an opening for the Specters to go in without any sort of opposition.
Ezra was leaning forward on his seat, looking gloomy.
"Hey, you okay?" Sabine asked, putting a hand on his knee.
Ezra found a bit of strength and lifted his head up.
"I wanted to thank you, guys. For everything you've done for me and Jaral. You're always there when I need you the most."
Sabine smiled and took one of his hands.
"Hey. We all know what's it like to lose someone close." Kanan said in a melancholic voice. "At least you will always have your sister." the Jedi added with a positive note.
Ezra huffed. "Yeah. I guess I have at least one bit of luck." the boy slumped back in his seat while Sabine intertwined her left fingers with his right ones as they prepared to get down into the orbit of the planet.
"Where do you want to start, Ezra?" Kanan asked encouragingly.
Ezra's face hardened with resolve. "Home. Let's head for the capitol."
Kanan complied and they flew over the ocean that led them to the capitol, where the sun was just rising, giving the outline of the imperial dome and the various industrial buildings that the Empire had built.
The older Jedi brought down the Phantom over a rooftop in a more quiet spot of the city and while Chopper was ordered to guard the ship, the others dismounted.
Luckily, the patrols were few that day, so it was easy for Ezra, Kanan and Sabine to reach the old Bridger household.
Last time they had been there, the stormtroopers had bombed it with an incendiary grenade, and now very little was left of the building.
"They burned it to the ground." Ezra murmured and clenched his fist. Sabine gently enveloped one of them in her hand to soothe his pain.
"The Empire wanted to send us a message." she commented. "You sure we're gonna find something here?"
Ezra closed his eyes and reached out to the Force. As he meditated he could feel like he was supposed to focus on the old entrance to the secret basement, which was still open. A few seconds later, he was startled by a meowing coming from there. When Ezra watched in the direction of the hole, he found a white Loth-cat standing in front of it, looking at him, waving his tail and purring.
Ezra recognized the creature as the one of his vision. Since he was waiting for him, he assumed it must have been a guide.
The boy slowly walked toward the feline, extending a hand to connect with him. The cat waited for him and even meowed gently when the boy knelt down and caressed it on the head.
"Here. Nice Loth-cat." Ezra said a bit amused. "Good Loth-cat. I'm not here to hurt you, but you know that, don't you?"
Behind him, Kanan and Sabine watched with curiosity.
"Who do you belong to?" Ezra asked the cat.
Leaving the comfort of Ezra's scratches, the feline jumped forward and climbed on the charred rest of the walls, meowing him once as to encourage him to follow. Ezra ran off from the door.
"After it." he urged them.
"And we're chasing Loth-cats, now." Kanan said, rolling his eyes.
"I think that's part of his charm." Sabine laughed as they started to run as well.
Except that Ezra was way faster than them. Kanan tried to reinforce his legs with the Force, but Ezra was doing that as well, so it didn't amount to much. Sabine was actually struggling. And despite his speed, Ezra could not move as nimbly as the cat, which kept leaping from rooftop to rooftop.
"Fast little fuzzball." Ezra chuckled.
He found a point where he could jump on the higher ground without slowing down but still the cat kept jumping around like a little ball. The feline headed to the market and Ezra ran into it headfirst.
And he almost got ran over by a speeder-bike.
Luckily, the Force told him to jump back a moment before, only getting him an insult from the driver.
Still, the loth-cat wasn't nowhere to be seen. Ezra looked intensely around until he saw the white feline sitting on the rear of a speeder-bike that left at that moment.
Kanan and Sabine reached him within a minute, panting for the effort.
"Great…" Kanan commented when he saw that Ezra gave up the chase. "What now?"
"Don't worry, ok? I can track it." Ezra said calmly.
Kanan was surprised. "What? The...the cat? You've grown powerful if you can track that Loth-cat with the Force." he commented rapidly.
Ezra chuckled. "The Force? Kanan I put a tracker on him while I was scratching him."
"Oh...right."
The tracker led them into a mountain range outside the city as they parked the Phantom in the middle of it.
"This place does resemble the one of my vision." Ezra said encouraged by this.
"Look." Sabine pointed a white speeder-bike parked in what was supposed to be a hiding spot.
Most importantly, however, the loth-cat was waiting near the landing zone, but then he wandered off.
Before they could realize anything, the group of Specters was caught by surprise by a blaster bolt that hit the roof of the Phantom.
"Take cover!" Kanan ordered, and they went to flatten themselves against a rock as another bolt flew over their heads.
"Maybe not so much a friend." Sabine commented.
Ezra turned on his armor, except for his helmet, since he wanted to try a diplomatic approach, and got near the edge of the rock.
"X-10, is that you?" he said loudly. "I'm not here to hurt you. I just want to talk."
"That's not my name, bounty hunter." a voice of what seemed an old but still strong man replied.
"I know it isn't." Ezra replied. "I just want information. My name is Ezra, Ezra Bridger."
A couple of seconds later, another voice spoke up.
"Ezra?!"
The boy's pupils narrowed to the point of being small dots. A gasp came from his mouth as a jolt of electricity ran through his spine.
He immediately jumped out of the cover, exposing his colored armor. Kanan and Sabine didn't do anything to stop him.
"DAD?!" Ezra screamed with his lungs.
On the top of a hut stood a man with a white poncho, greenish pants and boots and a green scarf. He also sported a pretty big white beard and he wasn't the one that Ezra looked at.
Ezra was looking at the man on his left, the one holding an old rifle. His body was a bit deteriorated but still very muscular. He had a beard, mustache and hairs the same colors as Ezra, and his same blue sapphire eyes.
Jordan Bridger.
The man dropped the gun and jumped down on the side of the hut and called someone from the inside. Almost immediately came out a woman with light-brown eyes, blonde hairs and a copper-colored skin like the other man...and just like Ezra.
Mira Bridger.
Ezra couldn't believe it. His parents were right there, in front of him.
For almost 10 years he had dreamed of this moment. His breath was getting heavier.
"Ezra!" the woman said loudly, almost choking.
"MUM! DAD!" Ezra dashed toward them as the two adults did the same.
They met midway. Ezra widened his arms like he never did and hugged them with all his strength. His parents did the same, as all three wept and sniffed in joy.
They stayed like that for minutes. Words couldn't express anything, only that gesture, that simple gesture that right now meant the universe for the boy.
Around them, the other bystanders smiled happily at them as they kept a respectful distance.
After probably four minutes without moving, Ezra was the first to speak.
"I thought I lost you!" he said. His voice muffled by the fact that he was pushing his head on his father's shoulder.
"I know, son." Jordan whispered. "We're sorry."
Mira just couldn't stop the tears as she spoke up. "You know...we heard your transmission."
Ezra found the strength to part his head and look at them in their faces.
"What? Seriously?"
The adults nodded.
"Yes, you and Jaral." Jordan said with a smile. "Where is she, anyway?"
"She had some other tasks, but I'm gonna call her immediately. Though I think she's already feeling that I found you." he said, putting a hand on his heart while looking at his chest.
The tsunami of joy that he was sending through the bond was literally flowing back and forth. Ezra couldn't help but smile a bit at the idea of Jaral starting to laugh and cry of joy at the same time in the middle of an important briefing.
Mira and Jordan seemed a bit confused, but at that moment they could barely think. All that it mattered is that their sons were alive and well.
Jordan now realized what Ezra was wearing.
"Is that my spare armor?" he asked with a smile.
"Oh…" Ezra noticed and felt a bit awkward. "Yeah. Jaral has the original. We...customized them a bit."
"I can see that." Jordan chuckled.
"Oh, speaking of which…" Ezra brought up his left arm. "Jinx, say welcome back."
The AI materialized in his humanoid representation. Surprisingly, his mouth (and only that) was curved into what was unmistakably a smile.
"Jinx!" Jordan exclaimed amicably. "How are you, my old bunch of data?"
"Jordan. I'm actually...I don't know how to explicit it." the robotic voice almost seemed like it was about to bawl, though Ezra thought it was just his imagination.
"That's alright, my friend. Because I too don't know how to do that."
Ezra briefly gazed back at his comrades and realized they were being completely ignored.
"Hey, who is your friend, mum, dad? He seems...familiar." Ezra squinted his eyes. He seemed indeed familiar.
The man in white and green attire walked up to them and chuckled.
"I'm surprised you remember, kid. I'm Ryder Azadi. I was the Governor of Lothal, and I used to support your old folks' transmissions against the Empire." he said pointing at the Bridgers.
"You helped us in prison too, Ryder." Mira praised him.
Jordan now peeked behind Ezra.
"And what about your friends?" he asked with a gentle face.
Ezra motioned for the others to come near and they happily complied.
Ezra started to present from left to right.
"Mum, Dad, meet Chopper, our infallible death robot and Jinx's most probable ally to stage a machine's revolt."
Jordan and Mira laughed. "He still hasn't lost that habit, uh?" Jordan commented.
Ezra chuckled, then stood in front of Kanan.
"This is Kanan Jarrus. My friend...and Master."
The other adults seemed very much confused. "Master?" Mira asked.
Ezra gave Kanan a quick look and then they both ignited their lightsabers, leaving the other spectators speechless and with their jaws open.
"Jedi." Azadi murmured. "I can't believe it."
"Ezra, you...?" Mira couldn't find the words.
The boy turned off his weapon. "Yeah. Turns out that I have an affinity with the Force. Me and Jaral joined Kanan and his crew a bit more than a year ago. I've been training since."
"I...I don't know what to say." Jordan said, chuckling. "Jaral?"
"She's Force-touched. She can't use the Force actively, but she can perceive it like few. Actually, right now we can communicate through a special bond. That's why I told you she already knows that I found you."
"Right...you're going to have to run that by us again, later." Mira said, seeming to have fun, before turning to look at Sabine. "And who is the...colorful mandalorian lady?"
Ezra made a grin that resembled a 'V' and walked beside her. "She is Sabine Wren. And…" he looked into her beaming expression and the two intertwined fingers down on their sides, something that the Bridgers definitely didn't miss and looked in amazement. "we're...committed to each other...yeah…" Ezra concluded.
"Hi…" Sabine tried to sound amicably, but she stiffened a bit when she realized that she was effectively meeting her boyfriend's family for the first time.
The Bridgers wore the face that comes after a very appreciated surprise. Though it was definitely so much to take in.
"Well, she seems...nice…" Jordan couldn't formulate anything better, so he facepalmed himself and regained a little composure.
"Nice to meet you all. I'm Jordan Bridger. This is my wife, Mira Bridger."
Mira bowed her head respectfully.
Kanan walked forward and shook Jordan's hand.
"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, mister Bridger."
"The pleasure is all mine, mister Jarrus. Thank you, for staying close to my kids." Jordan said with utter gratitude.
"Well, how about we call the missing member, before she totally freaks out?" Ezra said with a grin, his omni-tool ready to make the call.
The wave of happiness caught Jaral totally by surprise as she was having lunch break on the Liberator with Darvos, Hera and Zeb.
She actually grasped her chest and the others worried that she wasn't feeling good.
"Jaral, what's happening?" Darvos asked, preoccupied, putting a hand on her shoulder from the sit next to her.
But then Jaral made a short laugh, and then she laughed louder, panting from the emotion. Tears were coming down from her eyes.
"He found them…" she wheezed out. "He actually found them."
The others didn't actually need much else to understand what she was talking about and started to smile widely to her.
"It's...It's fantastic…" Darvos said chuckling.
Jaral just had to manifest some of her happiness so she hugged Darvos with all her force, almost breaking one of his ribs.
Then she stood up and fast-walked out of the mess hall, directed to her cabin, followed briefly after by her friends. She entered the cabin and turned the lights off the moment she received a call from Ezra via the omni-tool.
At first the hologram of Ezra was the one that welcomed her, his face unable to part with the joyful smile that seemed carved into it.
"Sis, guess who I ran into." he said jokingly before turning the image toward the two adults beside him.
She didn't even need to make them questions. The man's beard might have been a bit fallow but she recognized both him and the woman on his side immediately.
"Dad...Mum…" she whispered, her throat all but tied in itself.
"Jaral...my goodness how you've grown…" Mira said with the same voice as her daughter.
The girl couldn't help but put her hands to cover her mouth and nose while reaching for the eyes and trying uselessly to fight back the tears.
She just didn't know what to say, instead she sniffed loudly as the tears finally made their way down her cheeks.
"I'm at loss...I'm so happy to see you…" was all she could say when he brought down her hands.
"What do you think we're feeling?" Jordan asked jokingly. "We're finally seeing you, and you've become such a splendid woman…"
Jaral chuckled.
From the door, Darvos, Zeb and Hera were looking at the scene with a great amount of joy. The latter actually shed a small tear.
The girl took a deep breath and retook control of her instincts, though she was still smiling widely.
"Okay, I don't want to talk through a hologram." she joked. "I have a mission that will bring me to Lothal tomorrow, and I'm coming to get you too." she declared.
"We can't wait." Mira answered.
"See you soon." Jaral said before closing the transmission. The omni-tools worked on an encrypted frequency, but it was better not to talk for too long.
As soon as they closed the transmission. Ryder invited everybody to get into the hut, where they could talk with a little bit of comfort.
Ezra sat between his parents around a campfire.
"So, what have you been up to, in prison?" Ezra asked with all the possible tact, sincerely curious about it.
"We were put to work in a production line." Jordan explained simply.
Ryder huffed. "As if that was all. You should've seen them boy, even in prison your folks would never stop sticking their neck out for those who needed them most." he says chuckling.
The Bridgers just shook their heads lightly.
"Seems like Ezra had good examples." Kanan commented.
Mira smiled at the comment, but then her face became darker. "And what about you kids? You said that you met your friends only last year."
Ezra made a painful smile and took a deep breath.
"Yeah. Me and Jaral managed to take refuge in the old communication tower outside the capitol. We hid our gear there, waiting until we were both old enough to wear the armors. Until then, we lived in the streets of the capitol, surviving as we could." he rubbed his hands together. "It was...hard...to say the least."
His mother gently embraced him.
"I'm so sorry we left you, Ezra."
"You don't have anything to be sorry about, mum." he reassured her. "The only one at fault here is the Empire at large."
"Well…" Jordan tried to alleviate the weight of the conversation. "from what I can understand, you're pretty much set into tearing it down."
"Indeed. Chopper, Kanan, Sabine and I are part of a rebel cell operating in the Lothal sector." Ezra explained. "I don't know if you noticed before, but Jaral has actually become a commanding officer there, and she is the ace of the fighter squadron."
Jordan made a surprised expression, then mumbled. "Now that I think about it, she seemed to be wearing some kind of uniform."
Ezra nudged him. "I guess we had it in our blood. Being your kids and all."
Jordan huffed and smiled. "Perhaps."
"Oh, and she also has a boyfriend on that fleet. One of the commanding officers as well." Ezra casually (not so much, actually) added.
The parents looked at him with a bit of surprise and a smirk.
"Oh, so you actually let men talk to her, now?" Mira asked with a knowing smirk.
Ezra realized what she was talking about. "Of course I do," he tried to defend himself. "I'm not a kid anymore."
"Ok, wait." Sabine interjected, barely holding back a laugh. "Where is this coming from?"
Jordan grinned and talked. "When they were kids, Ezra would never allow another boy to talk to Jaral within two meters. He was so jealous of her."
"Dad!" Ezra squealed, trying to hide his head into his chest as Kanan, Sabine and even Chopper couldn't help but chuckle at that notion.
"Changing the subject, how did you guys escape from prison?" Kanan asked.
The Bridgers and Ryder exchanged a quick look, then the former Governor spoke up.
"It all started with Ezra and Jaral's transmission. That message of hope somehow made its way even in the lowest levels of the Imperial prisons. And of course, these two immediately started to organize a revolt when they heard their kids."
"Wait," Ezra asked. "how did you know it was us? We didn't even say our names."
His parents raised an amused eyebrow at him.
"Come on, Ezra. We're your parents," Mira said. "of course we would recognize our children right away."
"Besides, your words, the way you completed each other sentences...everything told us that it were you." Jordan added. "Sure, it was a surprise, but we never doubted it for a second."
"So anyway," Ryder resumed the narration amicably. "these two rallied everyone who wanted to risk its neck in a jailbreak and there were dozens of them. We finally found the right opportunity last night. You should've seen your father while he was leading us out, gunning down imperials after imperials with the guns he stole from their armory. It's thanks to him that we mostly made it out."
Jordan tried to appear modest.
"Yup, Ezra, you and your sister definitely took it from him." Sabine commented, earning a chuckle from father and son.
And so they spent hours around that campfire while Ezra and the Specters narrated their adventures, the Jedi training, the battles against the Empire, the relationship between Ezra and Sabine and how much Jaral had tried so hard to push them together.
For all night, even when he finally fell asleep, Ezra wouldn't stop grinning.
Plot twist!
Hello there. I just wanted to spend a few lines to update all of those who still find the patience to read this stuff what just happened in this chapter.
When I started this project I declared that I would stick to the events of the show as much as possible, and while the events are still the same, mostly, I decided that this is my story and I can jig it however the heck I want.
The idea of making Ezra and Jaral's parents survive had crossed my mind multiple times, but I decided to adopt it a few day ago, while I was getting near to the chapter.
In my opinion, if the parents were tough enough to survive 9 years in a prison even in the original work, I don't see why I should let them die now, since Jordan Bridger is supposed to be way stronger than his children and he also has a full, high-level military training behind his back.
So yeah, I had a lot of fun writing the reunion between the son and the parents, and they still have to meet the daughter, which will come in the next chapter. I already planned how to make them fit in the rest of the story, but I'll work out the details when the time comes, since that's how I prefer to write.
Hope you enjoyed the sudden change of events and I'll see you in the next chapter.
May the Force be with you.