Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

A Long Time ago, in a Galaxy Far Far away.....

It is a period of Celebration for the Rebel alliance. Following The Destruction of The DEATH STAR by Rookie Pilot LUKE SKYWALKER, The Rebel fleet celebrates on YAVIN IV. However where there is Celebration, there is also rememberance. Many are reminded of those who fell to the Empire leading to this moment.

Rebel Heros such as Cassan Andor, Jyn Erso, Obi Wan Kenobi, Bail Organa, Biggs Darklighter, Galen Marek, Rham Kota, and The Ghost Crew are remembered as The celebration continues....

Luke stared into his drink as The Rebel Alliance continued to celebrate in the hanger, which had been filled with jubilant Rebel forces, however a group of Soldiers had gathered with Luke to remember fallen Comrades both past and Present. "Hey, remember that one crew? Um what was it? Spirit?" One of the Pilots from Blue Squadren asked. "No Carson it was The Ghost crew." Another Pilot responded, "Damn shame too. Probably wouldn't have even had a chance without them." 
"Yeah especially with two Jedi aboard. Really wish they'd survived. Can't imagine how much help they could've been." Luke perked up as he heard the mention of the Jedi. "Who were they?" The pilots looked at him surprised. "Oh that's right, you got here what, about a week ago?" Luke nodded. "Well the Ghost crew were comprised of six very talented Fighters. There was Kanan Jarrus, a Jedi Padawan who survived the Purge, he was kind of the defacto leader. Next was a Lasat named Zeb. As far as we know, he was the last of his kind. Next was Chopper. He was a pretty old Droid, hell damn thing broke down more than he fixed stuff! Still, He was really handy in a battle scenario." "The next was Ezra Bridger. From what I heard he was a street rat who robbed Emperial supplies to survive when they found him. Turned out, he was pretty strong with the Force, whatever that means, guess it's some Jedi Hulabaloo. Anyway, Kanan took him as his Padawan, and trained him up until his death. Then there was a Twi'lek named Hara. She was a pretty thing.. Great pilot too. Kanan was pretty lucky to have her. Finally there was Sabine. She was a Mandolorean with a bit of an attitude, but I'd be damned if I wasn't jealous of Ezra's ability to tie the knot with her." Luke sat listening before asking the question formost on his mind. "What happened to them?" Some grim looks were shared between the Pilots, before Carson began to speak. "It all started when we were looking for a new base. Dantooine  had become way too dangerous to stay at, so The Ghost was sent out to find a new place. Now.. The story varies depending on who you ask, but one thing is clear.. They never returned. According to what I'd heard, They were attacked by an Emperial fleet on their way to the Emperor's Speech for Empire Day in Coruscant. They fought valiantly, but had to fall back. Unfortunately, they had to split up. Kanan and Herra took the droid, and drew the fire from The others. It's at this point we recieved a garbled transmission. We believe they were trying to speak with Ezra and the remaining crew, but instead got us. It was.. 'The Force be With.. I'm proud of you Ezra. Stay St-' Then it cut out. Simultaneously the transponder stopped. We think they were destroyed that moment. As for what happened to the rest, that's where the story varies. Some say they were blown up. Others say they were captured, tortured and Executed. Others still claim that They got away, and Some pilots have claimed they've actually seen the Ghost attack Emperial ships when all seems lost. I don't believe any of it though." Luke Nodded as Carson held up his drink "To our fallen allies! May they forever be remembered!" 
"Here Here!" Came the cry from the various pilots as each downed their drinks.

Coruscant:
A black Mandelorian armored man sat silently at his darkened booth. Quietly he finished his Bothan Whiskey before silently ordering another. The Bartender silently approached with a bottle before stopping. "Don't you think you've had enough? This is your 10th drink tonight." From the dark, the man stared at the Bartender before speaking. "Pour. The drink. Now." 
"Fine. But after this, You're cut off. I don't care how much you've spent here, you're heading home after this." No answer was given, just a single glimmer from what the Bartender thought was an eye staring at him from the darkness. He shook his head and poured the Emerald Liquid into the cup and walked away. A black gloved hand grabbed the cup, before downing the contents in under a minute before the man stood, and placed his helmet on. As he did, the bartender gasped as he saw scarred flesh on the man's neck, before the Jet black helmet covered it. Quietly the man approached and placed his money on the counter before walking out. As he walked into the Neon lit walkway, he looked to the sky as he felt a tear drip down his face. "I'm sorry..." Quietly he walked to the nearby hastily built hanger where a rather beat-up looking Ship sat. It almost looked like two ships weilded together. Quietly he walked up the entrance ramp and pushed the button to close it. 
 He walked up the ladder, and stopped when he found himself in what was the corridor to the Crews Quarters. He felt another tear as He remembered The Twi'lek who had stayed in the room to his right. Continuing, He passed the brightly painted multicolored room that belonged to a Mandelorian at one time. For a moment, he could've sworn he heard the hiss of a paint can.
He passed without looking at The Room That had once belonged to the Lasat and Boy.. Too many painful memories remained in the ship.. He stopped outside his room. Quietly he opened the Door, and stepped in. Of all the Rooms, this one... well it brought him the most peace, but.. It still hurt just as much as the others. Quietly he stripped out of his armor. With a clunk the Helmet, Bracers, chest piece, Cloak, leg plates and Boots each landed on the floor. Finally his Underclothing joined his armor. He stopped in thought. When did he start sleeping nude? He'd been doing it so long now, he'd forgotten. It had to be before Zeb and Sabine disappeared at least. Maybe even before everyone died or got captured.. Shrugging he crawled into the bed. Pulling the covers over himself, he then removed the Eyepatch that covered his bad eye. He lay silently as he remembered the bickering of the crew, imagined how every night the Chorus of Goodnights would call from behind the doors. Sealing himself he called out to his memories. "Goodnight guys! Sleep well!" With that he closed his eyes and allowed sleep to take him.

He ran quickly down the Corridor to the cockpit as another shot rocked the ship. "What's going on?!" He asked  as he stepped inside. "Emperials! Must be headed back to Coruscant for Empire Day!" Hera replied struggling with the controls. "Damn, we might need to evacuate. I've got no controls!" She said as She turned to him. "Whatever happens, I love you."
"I love you too, Hera." Another shot rocked the ship as he fell. "Go! Get out of here! Now! Take Phantom and go!" Quickly he ran to Spectre as his com Crackled to life. "Listen up! Spectre 2, Spectre 3, Get up here, I'm going to need you! The rest of you, get to the Phantom and evacuate! We'll draw the fire!" Within minutes he was seated in the gunners seat as Zeb and Sabine took off, He watched in silence as Hera began to open fire on any ships nearby, quickly gaining the attention of multiple ties and the large Destroyer. Suddenly his com again crackled as another hit rocked The Ghost. "Ezra.. Listen to me. We aren't getting out of this. No matter what, Take care of everyone, You're Spectre 1 now.  I know you'll be the Jedi you're meant to be. May The Force be With You Ezra. Always. I'm so very, very proud of you. Stay Strong. Hera Look-" The transmission died as a large green bolt rocked the ship, splitting it in two as a large explosion erupted from the hole. In stunned silence he was shocked when another large blast hit the Phantom knocking the right wing off. As they spiraled to the ground he heard Sabine scream his name. "NO!" Quickly he sat up as The ship exploded, only to find himself back in bed. His body glistening with sweat. Quickly he crawled from bed and stepped into the corridor.  Quietly he walked to the cockpit. Where he'd found them, still strapped in. They'd fought to control the ship the entire way down. He placed his hand on The seat where Kanan had taken his final breath before becoming one with the force. "Please Kanan, help me find them..." 

He awoke a few hours later in the Co-Pilot's seat. Quietly he stood, and made his way back to his room. Quietly he slid on the lower portions of his armor and clothing, before walking into his armory. He glanced around at the various weapons, armor, and Trophies he'd kept since winding up on this Force forsaken planet. Quietly he kept a long gaze on the half burned Lightsaber on the wall. Beside it lay an equally damaged Blaster. Silently, almost reverently, he ran his hand over the Lightsaber, wishing that it's former weilder had survived those five years earlier. After a few moments of silent contemplation, he slowly turned and grabbed the toolbox he'd left in there, turned and walked out. As he did, he swore he heard a voice long since past call his name. He stepped back outside the ship and began his work on the Repairs that seemed to never end. He had no idea why he bothered. Nostalgia maybe? Honestly it would just be easier to buy a new ship and rename it, but, it wouldn't be the same. This was his home, where he spent 7 years of his life. The happiest 7 years he'd ever had. Every inch of the scorched ship held a memory for him. Duels with Kanan, pranks played on old friends, His own wedding. He suddenly realized he again was crying. Why? Why did he always have to think of her? About the child he'd never see? Was this his only lot in life? To suffer? Quietly he returned to work, welding the engine components back together. He felt lucky that most, not all, but most of the parts had been easily salvageable. He'd found most of the ship nearby Before the Empire did, using the last of The Crew's money he bought the hanger under a fake name, and stored the parts here. Thankfully no one questioned it. Private hangers seemed to pop up all the time around here. Over the next year, he'd managed to track down and buy every piece of The Ghost he could find, resulting to bounty hunting to pay for each. Over the course of the next four years he rebuilt the ship from the ground up. Still, his work wasn't done. In that four years, The Ghost was barely 70% done. Sure it was flyable.  It could even be used in combat. But it broke down every day, or caught fire, or the guns wouldn't fire, hell, half the engine and weapon systems weren't even original, he'd had to buy so many replacements. Still, he wouldn't stop until the ship was 100% again. After 3 hours he completed the engine work, and returned to the dining area to eat. He ate in silence, not that there was anyone to talk to if he wanted to. Still.. "Computer, play memory sequence 8793-A." A hologram began playing from the table. Around him the Crew manifested, laughing and talking to each other. "Heh, gotta say, that was fun! Never saw bucketheads run so fast!" The holoZeb said with a smile. "You always had em running Zeb." He responded with a smile. "It may have been fun, but you two need to be less reckless." Hera said appearing in the doorway. "You know you loved it, I heard you laughing too!" He said with a chuckle. "Come on Hera, haven't you heard the old adage 'Boys will be Boys?'" Kanan said with a smile. "Hey, I'm no boy, I'm a grown man!" Came the duel responses from Zeb and The Man. "Oh please if you're a man, I'm the Freaking Queen of the Universe!" Came the voice of Sabine. "Computer freeeze!" The hologram froze as He stood. He slowly approached the image of his wife. Oh.. how he wanted nothing more than to touch her. To kiss her. To hold her in his arms. He honestly didn't know if she was even alive. When he'd woken, three hours after the crash, Zeb and Sabine were gone. Emperials were crawling around every portion of the wreck, and he was severely wounded. Still he'd managed to fight them off and escape before reinforcements arrived. He'd heard rumours of two Rebel spies being captured that day, while three more died. He could only assume it had been The Ghost crew. 

He quietly ran his hand and thumb against what would be her cheek. "I love you... Computer, Terminate Memory Sequence." The Holograms flickered and disappeared, before he turned and entered the corridor to the Crew's quarters. Once back in his room, he pulled on the remainder of his armor, before opening the chest he kept by the bed. In it, was a number of Items he deemed essential to him. He grabbed about $300 as well as A blaster. As he did, something fell onto his hand. "What the.." He silently picked up the item, surprised as he held it. It was a Lightsaber, his Lightsaber. "How did this get in here?" He went to drop it back in the chest, before something stopped him. He could only describe it as an urge. An uncontrollable compulsion. Silently he stood and pushed the switch, with a snaphiss A blue blade grew from the hilt. He gave it a few experimental swings, smiling at how after Five years it still felt completely natural. Deactivating it, he tossed the blaster in the chest, and clipped his Lightsaber to his waist.  

He slowly made his way to the Cantina. He sat at the same booth, his face blocked by the shadows as he removed his helmet. He came here daily. It was surprising how many people put out hits or Hired him as a bodyguard. Today seemed no different. A small pitiful looking man sat in the seat opposite of him. "I'm looking for hired muscle." 
"2,000 a day. If we run into issues, it's an extra 100." The man seemed slightly taken back. "I can assure you, there will indeed be issues. I need someone to help me break someone out of an Emperial Prison." He silently raised an eyebrow. "Who?" 
"My son. He was.. arrested for.. Terrorist activity." He smiled in the shadows. "1000, an extra 100 if we run into trouble. I'm more than happy to take the Empire down a peg." The man smiled. "Done! Name's Belccore. Leo Belccore. My son's is Adam Belccore." The man smiled. "Call me.. Spectre."