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Breathe. Feel the force.
All living things were connected to the force, it was from them and through them it flowed, touching each star, each asteroid, each planet, even every tiny little metal cup.
Every tiny little metal cup that wouldn’t. Kriffing. Move.
Luke reached for the cup, letting the force flow, just like Kanan said, he pictured it in his mind, thought of lifting it, and bringing it to himself. It didn’t so much as rattle.
“Try closing your eyes. You’re too tense Luke, you need to visualise it.” Luke held back a groan but complied, he remembered where it was exactly. It was easy to place.
He visualised that spot and tried to pull, as thoughtless as moving his hand. That was how it was supposed to be. If the cup would just co-operate. It was never this hard when his father was teaching him.
His father, who killed Old Ben right in front of him. His Father who kept him a prisoner, insisting that he should somehow take over the whole karking Empire. His father who still held Owen and Beru. He was probably torturing them right now for info on places Luke would run to.
There was a crunch and then Luke was knocked out of his thoughts by a swat to the back of his head. ”Dark Side, Luke,” Kanan snapped. There was a plink as the metal cup rolled to the ground, falling from the now crushed crate that it was balanced on.
“Well, I did move the cup,” Luke said.
“I thought you wanted me to teach you to connect with the light.”
“I do, it’s just… this works,” he waved a hand towards the crushed crate. “If I use the Dark then at least I can help everyone out.”
“For how long though, Luke? The Dark Side corrupts,” Kanan insisted. “It turns pride into arrogance, knowledge into jealousy, love into obsession.”
Didn’t Luke know the half of that?
“I’m sorry, I’ll try again, I’ll get it this time,” he insisted, he rose to start walking to the cup, but Kanan gently pushed him back a step.
“Not today Luke, I think you need to take some time to refocus. We can try again tomorrow.
“But Kanan, I can do it now, I know that I-”
“No buts. Take a break Luke, you don’t have to master the Force in one day.”
“Fine,” Luke huffed. “I’ll go get Ezra, let him know that we’re done.”
“Wait Luke, that’s not-” Kanan was cut off as the door swished shut behind Luke. Immediately he felt a burn of shame. Kanan was trying to help him, after Luke himself asked, and he was acting like a little kid. He should go back in and apologise, it’s what Uncle Owen would tell him to do.
A real man owns up to his mistakes, or something like that.
But doing was a lot harder than thinking. He set off to find Ezra. The ghost was currently docked with one of the larger ships in the rebel fleet, and Luke took extra care to keep his connection with his father closed. He really didn’t want to accidentally lead him there. There was plenty of space for training, but Kanan insisted that he and Ezra do so separately until he properly assessed Luke’s skill level. Which seemed to be disproportionately low when he couldn’t rely on the dark side.
Ezra made it look so easy, and cool, with that cocky smirk and the confidence he wielded his saber with. And his dazzling eyes, and perfect hair.
A door opened in front of Luke that led to a busy mess hall. He’d just let his feet lead him, but unsurprisingly they took him exactly where he wanted to go.
“No way! That was my snack cup, you can’t just take it,” even with a dozen other conversations going on, it was easy to pick out Ezra.
He was sat opposite Zeb, trying to snatch something from his meal tray while the lasat firmly covered the whole thing with his folded arms. “You know, maybe the service droid didn’t see you down there, it’s easy to miss you sometimes.”
Luke rolled his eyes as the argument continued, he’d only been with the Ghost crew for a few days, but it didn’t take long to figure out Ezra and Zeb’s pattern. He crossed the mess hall, trying to ignore the furtive glances and whispers of ‘Skywalker’ that he heard as he passed. Maybe the association with his father would have excited him once upon a time. Now it just made him feel like a fraud.
“Hey Ezra, hey Zeb,” Luke settled down next to Ezra.
“Oh Luke, you’re done already? I thought you and Kanan would be at it for at least another hour,” Ezra asked.
Luke plucked a tuber stick from Ezra’s tray and crunched into it, holding back on making a face. If there was one thing he maybe missed about Mustafar, it was the food. “We uh, finished early,” he said, swallowing it down with a grimace. “You can probably work on some stuff with Kanan now, if you’re ready.”
“Are you alright, Luke?” Ezra asked.
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
“Alright then … Guess I’ll go see Kanan,” Ezra slipped out of his seat, as he passed by Zeb, he casually waved his hand and a small, sealed package floated from between Zeb’s arms into his hand.
“Hey, you little!”
“Sorry Zeb, need the energy for Jedi training,” Ezra shouted over his shoulder as he ran from the mess hall.
Zeb frowned after him for a moment before settling down with a grumble and picking at his own meal. Luke mirrored him, starting on what Ezra had left over. It was getting cold, and was pretty bland, rehydrated and reheated. But it was better than going hungry.
“You better not start trying to steal my food,” Zeb poked a fork in Luke’s direction.
“No need to worry about that.”
“Good. Shrimps like you don’t need as much,” Zeb declared.
“Right, won’t be needing the extra energy anyway,” Luke poked some of the leftover protein paste with his spoon, not wanting to try a taste.
“Uh, okay, I know I’m not great with this stuff, but you seem pretty upset. I get if you don’t wanna talk with Ezra, but maybe you-”
A loud warbling boop and the determined tromp of Hera’s boots saved Luke from having to have a heart to heart with Zeb. She stopped next to their table, and Chopper rolled up right behind her.
“Zeb, you’re not busy are you? We got word of an abandoned cruiser a short way out. I was going to go and check to see if it had anything useful aboard.”
“Um, actually Hera. I need to do some… weapon maintenance. My blaster’s been jamming up lately, can’t leave this for later. Hey, maybe you could ,take Luke along,” Zeb suggested, unsubtly tilting his head in Luke’s direction.
Luke tried to hide his face in his hands. The pity was even worse than the sympathy.
Hera for her part, took it in stride. “Sure thing, get your blaster fixed. Luke, you’re with me, Sabine and Chop. Let’s go.”
“Hera, I-”
“Luke, you want to be a part of the rebellion? You help out with the little things as well as the big, let’s go.”
“Does Jedi number three think he’s too important to help with scouting?” Chopper teased.
“No, I don’t. I’ll come.” He stood up from the table and followed behind Hera as she led the way to the Ghost’s docking bay.
Chopper’s head swiveled around from where he was following Hera, and he pointed an arm at Luke. “You better not try floating me. Ezra and Kanan tried it before, they’re lucky I didn’t blast the both of them. You might not be.”
“Chopper’s pretty ornery,” Luke said.
“Don’t worry, it’s when he acts all nice and friendly that you know something’s up,” Hera patted Choppers dome and the droid booped happily.
He’d already been threatened more than once with the droid’s electro rod. He wondered what he’d have to do to get the kind of treatment that Hera did. Maybe an oil bath would smooth out some wrinkles, Chopper got in a few scraps by the sound of it, maybe his circuits needed cleaning. Mechanics at least was something he didn’t have to relearn.
Hera tapped a few buttons at the docking bay, and the door slid open.
Once they were on the Ghost, Luke couldn’t help the little smile that came to his face. Mustafar always felt so cold and hostile. The Ghost was grubby, garish, a little run down and there was a strange persistent smell that he couldn’t quite place. But it felt warm as they stepped into the crew lounge and it reminded him of the Lars homestead on tattooine. Last he’d seen of that place, it was going up in smoke.
“Sabine, we’ve got a change of plans?” Hera called as they stepped onto the ship.
“What? The mission’s not cancelled, is it?” Sabine called back from the cockpit.
“No, but I need you on the turrets for this one.”
There was a distant click and the approach of footsteps as Sabine spoke. “Why? Isn’t that Zeb’s spot?”
“Zeb’s not coming, Luke’s filling in,” Sabine finally stepped into the lounge as Hera explained.
“You confident with your flying?” she asked.
“I’m the best bush pilot on the outer rim,” Luke declared proudly.
“Bold words, since I’m right here,” Hera said and Chopper warbled a laugh.
“Right uh, well, I can manage co-piloting.”
“I’ll take you at your word for it.” Sabine inclined her head towards the cockpit. “I’ve already done the preflights, Hera, we should be ready for take off.”
She just… took Luke at his word. People normally brushed him off as an arrogant kid when he talked about his piloting. They might not fully believe his claim, but it felt good to be given the chance.
He strapped himself into the copilot chair and ran his eyes carefully over the controls. They seemed pretty standard for a freighter, and he was pretty confident that he’d be able to fly the Ghost.
“Magnetising myself now.” Chopper declared as he wheeled into the cockpit.
“I’m sure there’ll be no need for that,” Hera said. She sat down in the pilot’s seat and strapped herself in. Even though Sabine said she’d done the preflight checks, Hera still took a moment to check everything over. She caught Luke watching a gave a small shrug. “Can’t blame a woman for looking after her ship.”
“So, what can she do?”
“I could spend the next few hours explaining the Ghost’s stealth capabilities, its modifications, firepower and speed. But I think any pilot would best appreciate a ship seeing it in action.”
She flicked a few switches, undocked, and started up the engines. “Now, it’ll only be a small jump to get to the cruiser, but I figure we could give the Ghost a warmup.”
Luke grinned as he took hold of the Yoke.
Flying the ghost, flying with Hera, it was unreal. Wedge was the best pilot back home, and the only one who’d really been able to keep up with Luke’s reflexes. It was the force he’d later learned, that helped him react so well. Hera though, had years of experience. He was mature enough to admit that he was outclassed, even if only to himself.
Each turn he took, she anticipated and compensated for, the balancing of thrusters, the flow of power through the ship, the minor imbalances in some of the systems. The ship sang under her touch and Luke was as much along for the ride as he was helping to direct it.
They flowed seamlessly in and around the other ships in the fleet, receiving a few confused pings of exactly what they were doing. Luke was pretty sure they could push it closer, but he also knew that if he pushed too far, then their little flight would be called off.
When he was flying, truly free like this, he became so aware. He could feel Sabine and Hera so clearly, even Chopper, stubborn droid that he was, had a semblance of a presence. His awareness began to spread over the fleet, he could see each ship, how they’d move, where they’d go. For one shining moment, he truly felt the Force.
“I’ll admit it Luke, you’ve got some skill,” Hera said as they finally pulled away from the rest of the fleet.
“It’s not just me, this ship is… wow.”
“I’m glad you appreciate it. Maybe keep that in mind when I ask you to pick up after yourself.”
“Got it.”
Hera brought up the nav-computer and started to plan their jump. “You two done showing off down there?” Sabine called from the turret.
“It wasn’t showing off, Sabine, I was seeing what Luke was capable of,” Hera shouted back. “You did well,” she said more quietly to Luke.
With a pull of a lever, the hyperdrive was activated and the stars streamed into solid bars around them.
Luke took a moment to admire the view of hyperspace. It was his second time seeing it. The first was with Ezra after their escape from Mustafar. The trip to Mustafar was largely a blank in Luke’s mind, he’d been sedated, then kept hidden deep within Vader’s ship.
“It’s a beautiful sight,” Hera said softly, taking in the view.
“Yeah, I never really expected to be out here. Before Vader I was going to ask my aunt and uncle if I could go to the academy.”
“You were going to join the empire?”
“I dunno, I just… I always thought there was more out in the galaxy than sand and vaporators. There weren’t many other routes off of Tattooine that I could see.” In hindsight, a boring life with his family didn’t seem quite so bad now. He wished he could sense where his aunt and uncle were. He wished he knew if they were even still alive.
“I don’t think this is the way that any of us expected to step out into the galaxy, but we do what we can. Just know Luke that it’s okay to share these things. We’re all fighting for our home, one way or the other.” Hera took hold of his hand, her touch was warm and sure and it was nearly enough to make Luke tear up. He managed to swallow it down and gave her a small nod.
“Thanks Hera, that means a lot.”
“For what it’s worth though, I wouldn’t want to be dealing with you in a TIE,” she added with a teasing smile.
“You’d dust him in less than a minute.”
“Thanks for that Chopper,” Luke barely managed to say between choked out laughs
–#--
Sabine came to join them in the cockpit as they came out of hyperspace. There was a jolt and a shudder as the galaxy stabilised around them once more. There, floating before the viewport was a star destroyer. But there was no light coming from the ship, no flicker of the engines, nothing.
It sat there, dead in space, slowly floating on through the void.
“Creepy,” Sabine whispered.
“Agreed. It’s strange though, the ship doesn’t look damaged. Why would the Empire leave a whole star destroyer floating dead in space?” Hera murmured.
“Are you going to claim it for the rebellion?” Luke asked.
“It’d be useful, but we’ll need to figure out why it was left here first, I don’t want to be dealing with any nasty surprises. Chopper, can you give us a scan on the ship?”
“What do you need?”
“Let’s focus on structural damage and life signs,” Hera said.
Chopper whirred softly as he interfaced with the ghost, starting the scan. Several seconds later Chopper finished his scan and warbled. “No signs of life. Engines and generators are shut down, but otherwise no damage.
“Wait, so someone what? Just shut down the power and gave up on the ship? That doesn’t make any sense,” Luke spat, he leaned forward in his chair, staring down the dead ship.
“It doesn’t. That’s what’s got me worried,” Hera said.
“You think it’s a trap,” Sabine’s hand had somehow already found its way to her blaster’s handle.
“It could be. Chopper, when we dock, I need you to go across and access the ship’s logs.”
”What? Why me?” Chopper threw his arms up in protest.
“Because none of us can survive in a ship with no oxygen or heat,” Hera reminded him.
Chopper warbled sadly and dropped his arms before wheeling away towards the docking bay. Hera took over full control as she pulled the Ghost into one of the cruiser’s docking bays. The crates and equipment that littered the bay were drifting about slowly through the air. Strangely there were no other ships to be seen, not so much as a single TIE fighter. The energy shields were down and Hera had to manually engage the Ghost’s magnetic landing gear to stop themselves from drifting away.
“What could have happened here?” Luke wondered aloud. It was as if the whole place had simply shut down.
“We haven’t heard about any other rebels pulling something like this off lately, have we?” Sabine asked.
“If someone had, there wouldn’t be any question that we’d have heard about it.” Hera flicked a few switches, and there was a thunk as the landing ramp lowered. Luke watched as Chopper jetted his way across the hangar to an access port.
“Maybe it was sabotage, or infighting?” Luke suggested.
“This seems too thorough for that, and too clean.” As Hera finished speaking, a blue glow lit up the hangar as Chopper set up emergency power and the environmental shielding came to life. Then a series of thumps as gravity reasserted itself on the floating cargo.
The comm’s crackled. “There’s your oxygen and heat.”
“And that’s Chopper asking for some help,” Hera unbuckled and stood up, gesturing for Luke and Sabine to follow.
As he walked out of the Ghost, Luke could feel the vibration of the Star Destroyer coming to life beneath his feet. The air was still a little thin, but it became easier to breathe with each lungful, and warmth gradually returned to the air.
When they reached him, Chopper was still interfacing with the ship. His link whirred and clicked for a few moments before he disconnected.
“What have you got for us, Chopper?”
“Logs are all deleted,” Chopper booped.
“Deleted, what do you mean deleted? A ship this size has got to have backups or something?” Luke demanded. He moved to take a look at the port, only to get a sudden stab of pain as chopper whacked him in the shin.
“They’re deleted, I triple checked.”
“That does make our job more difficult,” Hera rubbed at her forehead. “We’ll need to do more of an investigation. Okay, Chopper and I will head to the engines to see if they’ve been damaged, we won’t be able to salvage the ship without them. Sabine, you and Luke check out the command deck. Maybe there’ll be some clue there.”
“Got it,” Sabine said, the filter of her helmet made her voice strangely tinny. She clicked her light on and motioned for Luke to follow. “We’ll stay in comms, Hera.”
“Good luck you two, and stay on your toes.”
–#--
“So, is this your average mission?” Luke asked Sabine as they made their way down the ship’s corridors. She kept her blaster low and at the ready, Luke had his own saber in hand. The pained moaning of the crystal within set him on edge, but it was the best defence he had.
“I don’t really think there is a ‘normal’ for us. Stealing supplies, giving relief, crashing parades, dealing with pirates, seems every day is something new.”
“Sounds exciting,” he twisted the lightsaber in his hand.
“Things can get pretty hot. So, why’d Zeb tag out for this mission?
“He was busy with weapons maintenance,” Luke said quickly.
“Uh huh, and the reason he couldn’t do this maintenance during the flight here was…?” Sabine left the question dangling, but Luke could easily see her coming to the truth anyway.
“Jedi stuff has been… difficult, I’m having a hard time connecting to the Force the way that I should. I don’t want to drag everyone down, but it feels like I’m parsecs behind Ezra.”
“Luke, if you’re measuring yourself by Ezra, I’d really say you’re looking at this the wrong way.”
“You’re right, Ezra’s so… so cool, you know?” Sabine stopped dead in her tracks and luke bumped into her back. “What is it? Did something happen?”
“Did you just… call Ezra cool?” a distorted snort came from her helmet.
“Yeah, I mean, isn’t he? He’s so confident and quick and the way he broke me out of Mustafar was so-”
“He wears a bright orange jumpsuit,” Sabine interrupted Luke.
“Is there a problem with that? I think he can pull it off,” It looked pretty good to Luke, the colour somehow made his bright blue eyes pop.
Sabine turned to look at Luke and he hurriedly crossed his arms, trying to look professional. He could feel her scrutinizing him and it brought a faint blush to his cheeks.
“Oh no, you don’t… you don’t have a crush on him, do you?” Her voice rose close to a squeal of disbelief.
“That’s-I, no, of course not. What do you even mean by that? I just … respect him.”
“Uh-huh,” Sabine sounded thoroughly unconvinced and unimpressed.
Luke sighed and drooped. “Please don’t go telling everyone.”
“If you go fawning over Ezra like that, I don’t think I’ll have to.”
“Sabine, just … he can’t know, okay?” There was no way Luke’d ever have a chance with Ezra.
“Alright, I won’t tell him. But, for what it’s worth, I think you’d be cute together,” she teasingly patted Luke on the head and he couldn’t even begin to comprehend what she meant by that.
Luke just decided to count his blessings as they stepped into a turbolift to the command deck. The eerie red lights overhead and the soft whirring of the lift somehow stifled conversation and Luke couldn’t help the shudder that climbed up his spine.
“Sabine, something feels wrong about-” The turbolift doors swished open. “This,” Luke whispered. All around them were littered bodies, most were still frosted over, preserved by the cold. Something had torn through the command deck, slaughtering dozens of troopers and officers.
Luke recognized the wounds on some of the nearby soldiers in an instant. There was a deep slash across one trooper, his plasteel armour had melted into his chest as it had been cut. An officer a little bit further off was cut fully in half just above the waist. The worst part was that the two halves were separated by a few feet.
“Lightsaber wounds,” Sabine observed. She crouched down next to one of the bodies. Luke couldn’t see her expression through her helmet, but he could almost feel the disgust that crawled off her.
“Is there some other jedi in the rebellion? One who’s a bit… or a lot more bloodthirsty, than Kanan?”
“None that I’ve heard of.” Sabine tapped a finger at the side of her helmet, activating her comms. “Hera, We’ve found some of the crew up here. Someone tore through them with a lightsaber.”
There was a beat of silence as Hera responded, but by the sharp breath that Sabine hissed, he could guess the news wasn’t good.
“You think it was an inquisitor?”
More tense silence, Luke’s gaze drifted towards the floor, towards the mutilated bodies, but he forced his eyes back to Sabine.
“Yeah, it seems a bit much for even them. I’ll check out the logs here.” With that she turned off her comms and stood up again.
“What’d Hera say?”
“They found more bodies down near the engines, but they were piled outside, like they were trying to force their way in. It took Chopper a while to even unlock the doors.”
“They were locked out of the engines…” Luke carefully picked his way over the bodies towards the command consoles. He had a hunch about what had happened, but he’d need to check to be sure.
Sabine pulled up a chair at a console next to his and started pulling up some menus. “All the camera footage has been scrubbed,” she said.
“The communication logs have been too,” Luke frowned at that, there was little doubt now that it was sabotage, but there was one way to make sure. He pulled up some of the ship’s command logs.
“Whatever happened here, whoever killed everyone, they really wanted to keep it a secret.”
Luke hummed an agreement as he began to scroll back through the ship’s command logs, he passed by everything Chopper had done, the lift controls and the like, until he found what he was looking for.
“There, right there!” He pointed at the screen, the small line of text glared back at him. “Someone initiated a complete emergency lockdown, then fully shut off the ship’s engines and life support.”
It was done with an override code that he recognized well from Mustafar.
“They left everyone to suffocate in the cold, wow that’s… intense. It really doesn’t sound like the work of a jedi to me.”
Father would disagree. Luke thought, but then again, he blamed the Jedi for everything it seemed, from Luke’s ‘kidnapping’ to his mother’s death. Luke felt a shiver run up his spine, and a creeping cold sensation settled over him. At first he brushed it off as simply being a memory of his father, then he shored up his shields in case he was trying to break through them again.
But the cold did not abate.
A notification popped up on Luke’s screen.
‘Shuttle docking in bay 3.’
“We’ve got ships landing,” Luke muttered.
“Exactly what we needed,” Sabine activated her comms. “Hera, we’ve got company, a ship just docked.”
“I’m pulling up the camera feed.” Luke pressed a few buttons and soon he had a clear view of the hangar where the Ghost was docked. Beside it, a pair of TIE fighters docked, and a figure in black climbed down from each.
“Oh, it is too soon to be dealing with them again,” Sabine hissed. “Hera, it’s Inquisitors, looks like the same two who attacked me and Ezra before.”
Inquisitors. Luke hadn’t seen them before, but his father had warned him of them. They were fanatically loyal to the Empire and ruthless in their hunt for Jedi. But they were treacherous snakes. They’d be all too happy to hand Luke over to the Emperor. His father had always said that would be a fate worse than death. He didn’t believe much of what his father had told him. But that… that never rung false.
“Got it.” Sabine clicked her comm off as Luke watched the monitor, his guts slowly tied themselves in a knot, and he tried to hide his presence, but this close, he feared it wouldn’t be any use. “Luke, we’ve got as much as we can for now. We don’t want to engage. We’ll try and outmaneuver them and get back to the Ghost.”
“And if they’ve bugged the ship.”
“Chopper and I will take care of that.” Sabine plugged a datapad into her console and tapped a few keys. A few seconds later, the datapad chimed softly. “Okay, we’ve got full schematics.” She took a moment to scroll through them, “It looks like there are some maintenance tunnels running parallel to the main hallway, if we stick to those, we should be able to avoid the Inquisitors.
“Sounds good.” Luke fiddled with his saber for a moment, making sure it was properly attached as they set off. The crystal’s pained wailing was dampened through his shields, but he couldn’t help but worry the Inquisitors would hear it as well.
They started off and as they rode down the elevator, away from the common deck, a shiver ran up Luke’s spine like an icy hand.
He must have made some movement, because Sabine’s helmeted head swiveled towards him. “Luke?”
“I just have a bad feeling,” He murmured, feeling a bit foolish. Of course he would, they were on an all but dead Star Destroyer whose entire crew had been massacred for unknown reasons, and on top of that some Inquisitors had shown up.
“Karabast,” Sabine started checking over her blasters, making sure they were loaded and unobstructed. “Whenever Kanan or Ezra says that, things tend to go south quickly.”
As the doors slid open, Sabine forced Luke towards the edge of the turbolift and peeked her head out slowly to examine the hallway. Luke dutifully pressed himself to the wall, only moving once she signaled that the way was clear.
As Luke stepped foot outside the turbolift, a shiver ran over him. A creeping cold played at the edge of his mind. Not the dark sun of his father, or the constant oppressive cold of Mustafar, but the chill of a scalpel against his skin. He balled his fists, trying to tighten his shields until he was invisible. But the hairs on the back of his neck still stood on end, and it was an effort to force his feet forward.
“Luke, come on! Hurry!” Sabine hissed. She pressed against one of the wall panels and slid it aside, revealing the hidden maintenance corridor.
Luke shook himself, hoping against hope that the Inquisitors hadn’t sensed his presence. He forced himself to follow Sabine into the maintenance corridor, closing the door behind him with a soft click.
The dim red emergency lights and whirr of machinery that filled the air did little to alleviate Luke’s building nerves. There was a clunking rattle from somewhere off in the distance, and both he and Sabine froze until the noise subsided.
“Probably just some of the machinery stuttering,” Sabine said. She glanced back towards Luke, and despite the helmet covering her face, he got a strange sense that she was trying to reassure herself as much as she was him.
They started creeping down the corridor, silently as possible. Each of them flinched at any tiny noise, and Luke clenched his jaw so hard that it ached. His hand never left the hilt of his lightsaber.
Which was useful, as a flash of alarm burst through his mind.
Acting on instinct, Luke spun on his heel,igniting his saber as he went. The beam of searing red light flashed to life just in time to block a blaster bolt. A strange droid was hovering before luke. Five pincers dangled from its black saucer-shaped body.
The droid dived at Luke, and he took a clumsy swipe at it to try and ward it off. It swerved beneath the blade of his saber and drew close. A shock prod sprang from its body, and darted towards Luke’s arm like a striking viper.
Electricity ripped through Luke and he screamed as his arm spasmed. His lightsaber fell from his twitching hand. He fell to one knee as he clutched his arm to his chest, painful, shooting tingles ran up and down the whole limb.
The droid’s photoreceptor flashed with red light as it charged up a shot. But it was too slow. A pair of blasts, one after another, ripped through its metal body in a flash of light, sending it to the ground in a heap of scrap. Luke dazedly turned his head to see Sabine holstering her blasters.
“Thanks Sabine,” he murmured. She offered a hand to him, and he gratefully took the aid in standing.
“No problem. Besides, you stopped it from shooting us in the back,” She scooped up Luke’s Saber and passed it back to him.
“What was that thing?”
“A seeker droid. And if it saw us, that means the Inquisitors know we’re here. We need to move. Fast.”
With that, Sabine set off into a sprint. Luke followed as fast as he could, shaking his arm to try and get back some feeling.
They barely made it a dozen steps down the hallway when the blade of a lightsaber stabbed through the wall, nearly taking Luke’s head clean off.
“Kriff!” He stumbled back a step as the lightsaber began to carve an opening.
“Change of plans, this way!” Sabine pulled Luke back and pressed on a panel on the opposite wall, revealing an opening into a sterile hallway.
They stumbled into it and continued their sprint. There was a loud clatter of metal from the opening behind them and Luke tried to force his legs to move faster. His father once said that the force could allow one to move at superhuman speed. Luke wished he’d spent a bit more time teaching him that, and a bit less telling him to ‘use his hatred’.
They took a right, then a left and another right two junctions later. Sabine led the way with cool confidence, and Luke wondered if she’d memorized the map, or if it was imprinted into her helmet’s display somehow.
They were getting closer to the hangar with each step, but Luke could feel the cold weight of the Inquisitor caressing the back of his neck. The touch made him shiver, and his heart pounded furiously from more than just the physical exertion.
Just as it seemed the Inquisitor would overtake them, Luke caught sight of the hangar’s ray shielding. The blue glow and the Ghost promised freedom.
“We’re gonna make it, we’re gonna make it,” Luke puffed to himself just before him and Sabine burst into the hangar.
And a swarm of seeker droids descended upon them.
The clicking, swooping droids showered them in blaster fire. Luke managed to block a few bolts with his saber, and Sabine jumped and rolled out of the way. The droids continued on harassing her, swiping with electropods and shooting at her heels, driving her further away.
Luke was about to take off after her to help when a cold hand seized his torso and threw him aside.
Luke’s head slammed into the ground and his vision swam as he saw the Inquisitor stride into the hangar. She casually adjusted her gloves and spared a glance at Sabine fighting off her droids, before she looked back to Luke.
“Well, well, well, I was expecting someone else. You’re new,” her voice was tinny and reverberant.
He scrambled back to his feet and squinted against his swimming vision. Blindly, he thumbed at the switch to his lightsaber and the blade sprung to life, its red glow bright against his closed eyelids.
The Inquisitor sucked in an interested breath and her steps paused for a moment.
“I know what you are, and I won’t let you take me.” Luke tried to sound resolute, but it came out more like a weak plea.
“Oh? Defiant, are we? Where did you get that lightsaber, little boy? It’s not the weapon of a Jedi but… I think you know that,” She tilted her head and her mask receded, revealing a strangely normal mirialan woman. Luke had always thought the Inquisitors would be horribly deformed, especially by what he’d seen of his father.
“It was a Jedi’s weapon once. It can be again.”
“Oh! Was it your master? Was it someone I know?” she cooed. “They’d be disappointed in you, I can smell the darkness, the way it clings to you is intoxicating.”
His father would be disappointed about many things, that wasn’t one of them. Luke warily kept his guard up and tried to circle around the Inquisitor. He could see Sabine over her shoulder struggling against the horde of droids.
The instant his eyes drifted from her though, the Inquisitor sprung into action. Her blade burst to life, whirling on its handle, and she dived at him. Luke barely brought his own blade to block her. Once, twice, thrice. On the third clash their blades locked together and she leaned in close.
“What is that? Form Five? You’ve had some training, haven’t you? Is there a whole nest of Jedi stashed on that ship?” Luke aimed a kick at her and she danced back a step before she was back on him.
When he’d sparred with his father in the past, he’d known that he was going easy on him. Against the Inquisitor he keenly felt the difference. She lacked Vader’s crushing might, but as she landed blow after blow on Luke in wild succession, he was hard pressed to even defend himself, let alone find an opening.
The dark side whispered in his ear the whole time as fear gripped his heart. If he just used it, grasped hold of his terror, then she’d fall. Her training was stunted, and pathetic. He was the son of a Sith Lord. It was his right to rule, to dominate.
“You’re holding back. Can’t you hear the force whisper?”
“Quiet!” Luke hissed, gripping his saber tighter. He wouldn’t use it. He couldn’t afford a slip like that. Even if it would save him, and Sabine.
“If you’re not ready now, we’ll have plenty of time to get you used to it. It’ll be fun to break you down, I can already tell,” she feinted to the side, then swung in from below, knocking Luke’s guard wide and flinging the saber from his hand.
She advanced, her blade pointed towards his chest, and he was forced to back up, step by step until his back hit the wall. His chest heaved and wheezed like a pair of bellows.
“We’re going to have so much fun together, I assure you,” she stroked a hand over Luke’s cheek and his skin crawled at her touch. He looked over her shoulders, praying to the force for some help from Sabine.
But it wasn’t her who came to the rescue.
An enormous explosion rocked the hangar, sending the Inquisitor off balance, the second her blade was away from his chest, Luke dived to the side. He rolled as he landed and took off running towards his saber.
A second explosion rocked the hangar and a door on the far wall blasted open. Another Inquisitor came staggering out. He fell to his knees, coughing violently as Chopper rocketed over his head, smacking him with a metal arm as he flew by.
Hera leapt by him a split second later and Luke felt hope surge in his chest. Sabine too had finally managed to fight off the swarm of droids, leaving their broken parts scattered around her.
We’ll be okay, we’re gonna get away.
Then an invisible grip grabbed his ankle and pulled. He toppled forward to the ground.
A warning shrieked at him through the force and he rolled aside, dodging a swipe from the Inquisitor. He reached for his lightsaber, but it was just beyond his grasp. With a flick of her wrist, the Inquisitor sent it skittering away.
Then she grabbed Luke by his jacket and yanked him close. She spun him around and held her saber below his neck.
“Freeze!” She commanded.
Hera and Chopper were both halfway across the hangar, but stopped at the command. Sabine’s blasters were raised warningly, but stayed cool.
“That’s better. Now, I’ll be leaving and taking this darling boy with me. I’ll be magnanimous this time, and let the rest of you off with a warning to stay away from Imperial property.”
“What about your partner?” Hera gestured towards the other Inquisitor.
“He’s not my problem.”
“Good to know you’re all so close,” Luke muttered. He glared at his lightsaber, a dozen paces away from him, tauntingly inert. He focused and tried to call on the force, but it was just like the cup.
There was no need for a saber, the darkness whispered. He could crush a crate with a thought, the woman’s bones would crunch just as easily.
Hera stared at him, her hand hovering near her blaster’s handle. There was no panic on her face, no fear, just that same quiet concentration she showed when piloting the Ghost.
When piloting…
In that moment, when luke was flying, he’d truly felt everyone, and everything. In his euphoria, he’d hardly thought about it … but he’d connected to the Force, without rage or fear, he’d done it.
He took a shaky breath and tried to ignore the burning heat scant inches from his throat as his eyes flickered shut. He had to let go, stop thinking, stop panicking, and feel. When he flew he didn’t think, he let his instincts guide, like when he moved his arms, or took a step.
The Force couldn't be… forced. It had to be felt.
He felt the Seventh Sister’s chill at his back, the fear that Hera hid, the frustration Sabine showed, and the pitiful moaning of his saber, fallen on the ground. With a twitch, it shot back to his hand.
He ignited the saber and forced away the Seventh Siter’s blade. He staggered forward a step and Sabine covered his escape with a flurry of blaster bolts.
“Hurry Luke!” She shouted. He didn’t need to be told twice. He worked his legs harder than he ever had before, and was soon pounding up the Ghost’s ramp. Hera ran ahead and Sabine followed behind. In seconds the ship was taking off.
He grabbed one of the ramp’s struts for support as the ship shuddered against an invisible grip. He gaped down at the Seventh Sister where she held one arm outstretched, pulling against the ship’s thrust.
“Not this time you don’t,” Sabine muttered.
She grabbed a small canister from her belt and threw it at the Inquisitor. It burst into a cloud of yellow gas with a deafening bang. The Ghost lurched once more, then shot off into space as the ramp finally closed.
Luke fell back onto his rear, tipped his head back and gave a disbelieving laugh.
He was still alive.
He was still free.
–#--
“You’re in a better mood. Did the mission go that well?” Luke’s head shot up from his half-eaten lunch as Ezra plopped down onto the bench beside him.
“Did you use the force to figure that out?” Luke asked, wiping some crumbs from his mouth.
“Didn’t have to. It’s all over your face,” Ezra said with a smirk. “So tell me, what happened?”
“Alright, but… keep it secret,” Luke gestured for Ezra to come closer and the boy’s eyes lit up at the prospect of secrets.
“Hera let me fly the Ghost,” he whispered in Ezra’s ear.
“What!?” Ezra slammed his hands down on the table. “That is so unfair.”
Ezra flopped forward and buried his head in his crossed arms. Even his pouting was endearing.
“If it makes you feel any better, I get what you meant when you told me that my escape went smoothly.”
“Is everyone alright!?” Ezra’s head shot up immediately.
“Fine, we’re all fine. I’m not excited to see an Inquisitor again any time soon,” a shudder ran over Luke at the thought of that woman.
“Luke … if you want to continue learning about the Force, then those guys are gonna keep coming for you,” Ezra said softly. “It’s probably not too late. If you want to be dropped off at a safe planet-”
“No,” Luke firmly cut off Ezra. “This is where I’m meant to be. I know it.”
Ezra met Luke’s gaze and nodded. “You’re right.”
Neither broke eye contact quickly and it felt like there was something simmering beneath the surface. Luke ever so slowly leaned forward, like a comet caught in Ezra’s gravity.
“Ezra, I- yaaah!” Luke yelped as a sharp shock ran through him.
“Chopper what wa- ow!” Ezra was shocked a moment later.
“Kanan wants you both for training. You should spend less time on your staring contests.” Chopper warbled as he wheeled away.
“We’ll get him for that later.”
“Definitely.”