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Chapter Text

Agent Kallus had always prided himself on his ability to outmaneuver the rebels, to anticipate their every move and strike them down without mercy. But on that fateful day, the tables had turned, and he found himself at the mercy of those he had once considered his sworn enemies. 

He hardly could believe it. He was the highly skilled officer, smart and cunning, backed up by the entire great Empire machine and they were, well, rebels. A determined and creative bunch, but easily outnumbered and with the vast lack of equipment. The shouldn’t be able to stand a chance in this encounter.

However, in the end of the day, it was him sitting bound and disarmed, the weight of his predicament settled heavily upon him. The sound of footsteps echoed down the corridor, signaling the approach of his captors. Kallus braced himself, his jaw set in determination despite the uncertainty gnawing at his insides, swearing to himself to stay strong, no matter what happens. 

The door creaked open, revealing the rebels who had bested him. Their eyes bore a mixture of suspicion and curiosity, their weapons at the ready in case he tried to resist. Kallus met their gaze with a steely resolve, refusing to show any sign of weakness in the face of his captivity. 

The rebels wasted no time in securing him further, their movements efficient and practiced. Kallus remained silent, his mind racing with thoughts of escape and retribution. Once he’ll be back where he belongs, these ruffians will regret it. Every and each one of them. The Empire will crush them.

As the reality of his situation sank in, a sense of resignation washed over him. He knew that his fate now lay in the hands of those he had once hunted relentlessly. Nobody in the Empire knew where he was and he had a sickening feeling of not being important enough to be rescued. Hostages and losses were calculated risk. A collateral damage. Despite that, Agent vowed to stay strong, refusing to give them the satisfaction of seeing him falter. He knew he had to bide his time, wait for the perfect moment to strike back. He’ll manage to escape on his own. All he needed was to get to the ship and get out of there to the any Imperial-controlled planet. Maybe he’ll even come back with some useful information about the rebels. This way, his failure may be forgiven.

As the rebels put him to questioning, he remained tight-lipped. Amateurs, he thought. They were persistent, but only verbally. In comparison to the Empire’s methods, it was a child play. He had been trained better than to give up to something like that.

In the end, they left him alone, discussing their plans regarding him.

‘’Let’s leave him at the base,’’ Sabine suggested. ‘’Let the others deal with him. We don’t have time for him acting like a prima ballerina. We’ve got other urgent missions. We can’t be tagging him along.’’

Hera nodded in acknowledgment.

‘’That sounds like a good idea. Force know he’ll only cause trouble. We’ll be back soon enough. Maybe he’ll be more talkative after he comes around with his new position.’’

‘’He certainly could use some good humbling,’’ Ezra muttered. ‘’I wish I could wipe this smug smirk off his face.’’

‘’Maybe, but that’s not the point,’’ Hera replied. ‘’We knew it won’t be easy. He’s been trained and prepared for this. I wish it went faster as well. Time is of essence, but that’s all we’ve got.’’

‘’For now,’’ Kanan added.

‘’For now,’’ Hera echoed. ‘’The course for the Atollon it is. I told you organized Rebellion is the good point.’’ She addressed those last words to Kanan, who reluctantly nodded.

At the Chopper Base, Kallus was met with a mix of curiosity and hostility. The Rebels eyed him warily, unsure of what to make of this high-ranking Imperial officer now at their mercy. Kallus, for his part, remained defiant, refusing to show any sign of weakness despite the pain throbbing through his body. His hands were bound firmly, while Zeb’s strong hand clutched his arm mercilessly. Sabine held her hand on the blaster, while Ezra and Kanan on their lightsabers. Clearly, this time he was outnumbered.

‘’You have no chance with the Empire,’’ he spoke as they shove him into the dimly lit cell. ‘’Maybe you won once or twice, but it means nothing. Absolutely nothing. Empire is too powerful.’’

‘’Pride comes before fall, Agent,’’ the Twi'lek Captain said calmly.

Alexsandr felt a surge of anger at her words, his pride stinging at the implication that he was on the losing side. He clenched his fists, as much as the bounds let him to do so.  

"You underestimate the might of the Empire," he retorted, his voice laced with conviction. "We have the resources, the technology, the sheer force of numbers. You rebels may have had your victories, but they are nothing compared to the power we wield. The Empire will not be brought down by a group of insurgents. This is insane."

‘’And yet you are here, Agent.’’

Hera’s unwavering calmness was getting on his nerves.

‘’Not for long.’’

‘’Hope is a beautiful thing,’’ she said confidently.

‘’If you say so, Captain,’’ Alexsandr replied through gritted teeth.

‘’See your round, Agent. I’m leaving you in the capable hands.’’

Little did Hera knew, she would soon be regretting her faith put in the fellow rebels.

Chapter Text

Coming back to the base seemed like home. The Ghost crew was planning to return much sooner, but days turned into almost three weeks. Truth being told, nobody cared much about their prisoner during that time. They had plenty to worry about. As far as Kallus was stuck in the holding cell and couldn’t mess with their operations or otherwise foil their plans, they were plenty satisfied.

Finally, after submitting all the reports that had to be submitted, Hera decided it’s high time to visit the duo in charge of Agent’s safekeeping and interrogation: middle-aged Bothan man named Kai Tu'Lya and young Miralian female known as Thara.

‘’Captain Syndulla,’’ Thara exclaimed. ‘’We’ve been expecting you. Came to ask about the prisoner?’’ 

‘’Hello, Thara. Even to see him,’’ Hera replied.

‘’That won’t be a problem,’’ the Miralian assured. ‘’There are always two guards by the door. Just ask them to let you in, Captain. They won’t say no to someone like you.’’

Hera raised her brows.

‘’Only two?’’

They both looked embarrassed.

‘’We don’t really have more manpower to spend, Captain,’’ the Bothan explained.

‘’As far as he’s still there,’’ Hera muttered more to herself than to her interlocutors. As if she didn’t know how every rebel counted. They couldn’t afford to waste a single pair of hands.

Despite her concerns, Kallus still was kept safely inside. As she entered, he was sitting in the corner of the cell, one hand shackled to the wall.

‘’Hello, Agent Kallus. It’s been a while. I hope you’re enjoying your new surroundings,’’ she greeted him, not without a hint of sarcasm.

No verbal reply, but he raised his head. She approached him closer.

‘’Not so pretty anymore, don’t you?’’ She asked in the firm tone, but at the same time she felt uneasiness looking at his split lip and bruised cheek and if it was just her imagination, or did he look thinner? Besides that, he was still wearing the Imperial uniform he got captured in and his hair color started to resemble ash-blond from most probably dirt or dust. A miserable look, to be honest.

‘’Are you finally ready to cooperate?’’ She came straight to the business. She wasn’t there to gloat, after all.

He just kept looking at her with alert eyes.

‘’Loth-cat got your tongue? Giving me a silent treatment? Suit yourself.’’

There was no use denying this was frustrating. Time hasn’t been exactly her ally on this one. The Rebellion needed all the information they could get as soon as possible, yet this stubborn Imp refused to give them that.

‘’Well, see you round, Agent,’’ she said, hoping her annoyance wasn’t visible outside.

As she turned to leave, she was stopped by Kallus finally speaking. ‘’Captain Syndulla,’’ he called in the coarse voice, swallowing what was left of his pride. ‘’Could you bring me some water?’’

Slowly, she turned back to him, eyeing him with steely gaze, her distrust evident in every line of her face.

‘’What game are you playing?’’

‘’It’s no game. Please. Please.’’ He repeated desperately.

He clearly looked exhausted, that cannot be denied. The plaintive tone sounded geniue. Despite her reservations, a part of her couldn't help but feel a twinge of compassion for the man who had once been a formidable adversary. Still would be, given the right circumstances.

‘’Fine. Stay put,’’ she agreed reluctantly. She returned promptly with a glass of water and handed it to Kallus without a word. He drank it gratefully, the cool liquid soothing his parched throat. 

"Thank you," the blond man murmured, his voice still hoarse but sincere. He couldn't help but feel a glimmer of gratitude towards the Captain. He knew he was in a precarious position, relying on the goodwill of those he had once fought against. So far, the goodwill vastly lacking.

‘’Something else hurts?’’ Hera inquired.

‘’It hurts when I breathe. I think my ribs might be fractured,’’ he admitted reluctantly.

For the prolonged while, the Twi'lek eyed him in silence, before storming off abruptly, leaving the IBS Agent regretful he even said something. As if that wouldn’t be used against him. He really should have known better than to indulge into such a moment of weakness. What certainly didn’t help was that indeed the ribs hurt with every breath.

He didn’t delude himself that’s the worst the rebels could do to him. He still refused to share any Imperial secrets and now, with Captain Syndulla and most probably her crew being back to the base, it could have been only the beginning. He can easily imagine the Jedi and the Lasat wishing to settle the scores. Perhaps even young Ezra, for the Empire ripping his parents from him or the Mandalorian, for her homeworld’s occupation. What the kriff made him think confiding into her was the good idea?

Without any problems, Hera found Kai Tu'Lya and Thara in the same place as before. She took a deep breath in order to conduct this conversation in the most civil manner she could muster. The loyal as always Chopper follower her tirelessly.

‘’Already back, Captain?’’ This time it was Kai Tu’Lya who spoke first.

‘’This was enough time,’’ she forced herself to remain calm, though boiling inside.

‘’Have you talked to the prisoner?’’

‘’I did.’’

‘’I hope that he gave you some satisfying news, Captain.’’

‘’Actually, he did,’’ Hera said gravely.

‘’That’s great news,’’ Thara chirped, completely unaware of Captain’s true feelings. ‘’You’re not the first one who requested to see him, but so far none were successful.’’

‘’That was quite an enlightening encounter,’’ Hera carried on, her tone low and eyes fiery. ‘’It looks like you weren’t generous with food. Or water.’’

‘’He’s getting enough to keep him alive. We can’t afford overfeeding him. You know how hard it is to make ends meet for us all here,’’ the Bothan replied, confirming Hera’s suspicions.

‘’Those bruises are also the effect of shortages?’’ She asked openly.  

‘’He should pay for his crimes,’’ Kai Tu’Lya replied matter-of-factly.

‘’In such a way?’’

The Bothan shrugged.

‘’He only got what he deserve and it’s still not enough. He’s an Imp. A tough one, still refusing to talk. We should push him further.’’

‘’Do you want him to think of us as barbarians?’’ Hera exclaimed angrily.

‘’He already does.’’

‘’Good job in proving him right, than,’’ she sneered. ‘’Enough is enough. I’m taking custody of him. I brought him here and he’s my responsibility. Me and my crew.’’

‘’If you want to make him your problem, feel free,’’ the Miralian agreed easily, but the other one seemed disappointed to lose his favorite chew-toy. Not that Here gave it a kriff. ‘’I’m sorely disappointed in you,’’ she added as goodbye. ‘’Rest assured, I’ll notify your superiors.’’ Chopper added a few insults on his own as he followed her.

Once again, Hera entered the cell. The Agent looked up, a mix of defiance and curiosity in his eyes. 

"You're coming with me," Hera stated firmly, her voice brooking no argument. 

Kallus raised an eyebrow, clearly surprised by the turn of events. "And where exactly are we going?" he asked, a hint of skepticism in his tone. 

‘’To the Ghost. We’ll patch you up and feed you.’’

‘’What do you expect in return?’’ He inquired.

‘’A thank you would be nice. And take a shower. You could really use it. Kanan will borrow you some clothes and you will wear them without complaint.’’

‘’Yes, Captain.’’

‘’Good. This is my ship and I will not tolerate any insubordination. You are to treat me as you would your Imperial officials. Obeying orders, that’s something you’re actually are good at.’’

Unsure how to respond to that, Kallus stayed silent. Thankfully, Hera didn’t push him for it, taking his behavior as the agreement on this matter. ‘’Extend your hands,’’ she ordered him curtly instead.

After the short moment of hesitation, Agent obeyed. The cuffs have closed with a sharp click.

‘’Stand up,’’ she ordered again, her blaster threateningly pointed to his ribcage. ‘’I will fire if you attempt to run.’’

He didn’t doubt that.

‘’Yes, Captain.’’

After taking him aboard, the rebel lowered her blaster a little bit and looked him in the eyes.

‘’I know we gave you little reason to trust us, but you’re safe here. What happened to you in this base, this should have never taken place,’’ she explained, as her expression softened a bit.

The prisoner narrowed his eyes, studying Hera carefully.

‘’I had been trained to endure much worse torture,’’ he finally spoke.

‘’I bet you had, but that’s not the point. You’re not exactly looking like you were having a good time.’’

Before he gave the answer to that, Agent heard muffled voices followed by the laughter coming from the corridor.

‘’Hera?’’ One of the voices rang out more distinctively. Was it the older Jedi?

‘’Hera, we’re ba…‘’ Kanan started to call, his voice louder as he approached, before abruptly cutting off mid-word as the saw the prisoner. ‘’What the kriff is he doing here?’’ He asked, his eyes sharp and probing.

At the very same moment, the rest of the ship inhibitors appeared. Agent Kallus found himself standing eye to eye with the entire Ghost crew.

Chapter Text

‘’Is that Kallus?’’ (from Ezra) ‘’Shouldn’t he be under lockup?’’ (from Sabine) echoed simultaneously in the air. Zeb just stared in stunned silence.

“He will be,’’ Hera assured. ‘’On the Ghost. Things got awry. I had to intervene. I promise I’ll tell you everything, but first I have to take care of him.’’

‘’Let me give you a hand,’’ Zeb finally grumbled. ‘’I’m not letting you stay alone with this Imp scum the second longer than it’s necessary.’’

‘’Nice seeing you too, Garazeb,’’ Kallus said through clenched teeth. ‘’Captain, I would gladly take that shower you were kind enough to offer.’’

She nodded stiffly.

‘’Of course. Follow me.’’

Washing away all the dirt accumulated for weeks felt exceptionally good. Almost as good that he could have forgotten for the second where he was. With his skin and hair regaining their natural color, he started feeling himself again.

Next, Hera took him to the medbay in order to perform the full bodily scan.

‘’It looks like you were right about the broken ribs. Also some internal bleeding,’’ she announced as the examination was complete. ‘’The good news is, in the end of the day your injuries should heal on your own.’’

‘’I’m a lucky one,’’ he scoffed. It didn’t escape his notice that Zeb winced hearing the diagnosis.

‘’You still need something to dull the pain,’’ the Captain said softly. ‘’Here,’’ she handed him two absolutely average looking pills.

‘’I’m sure you have better uses for those,’’ he made an effort to avoid swallowing the meds of the unknown source.  

‘’Take your meds,’’ her tone started to carry a note of impatience. ‘’I hadn’t gotten through all this only to poison you.’’

Poison maybe wasn’t it, but he harbored a suspicion these pills are given to him to make him more inclined to speak.

‘’I’d rather not.’’

Hera put her hand on her hip, staring at him intensely.

‘’I’m starting you think you actually enjoy being in pain.’’

‘’I can handle it,’’ he assured.

It all was the good interrogator, bad interrogator game. Pretending to be showing him a bit of kindness in order to make him more cooperative. Not the most popular scheme within the Empire, but it happened. Carrots and sticks, just in the right proportions. So far, there were only sticks. Now rebels tried switching to carrots.

‘’I’m not going to shove them right your throat, but by refusing to take them you’re only making it worse for yourself. If you’re stubborn enough to be hurting for the sake of it, fine. Just don’t collapse on me,’’ the Captain warned him.

‘’I won’t.’’ He felt a little lightheaded, but that didn’t matter.

Hera didn’t seem to buy that, but let it go.

‘’Zeb, still bring him water and energy bars. More food in the morning. I don’t think he could handle it now.’’

She turned back to the prisoner with stern expression, hint of steel behind her green eyes.

‘’We’ll be keeping close eye on you. One wrong move, Kallus, and you’re not going to like the outcome.’’

‘’I wouldn’t expect any less from you,’’ Alexsandr replied solemnly.

Zeb crossed his arms and grunted with the condescending amusement. ‘’Just look at him. He’s a tad better and already mouthing off.’’

Ignoring the last remark, Hera looked at Kallus thoughtfully.

‘’Now, let me think where to put you?’’

‘’Can’t we cuff him to the radiator?’’ Zeb asked with hope.

‘’Zeb,’’ she sent him a disapproving look.

‘’Just kidding,’’ he raised his hands in the gesture of mock surrender.  

Swiftly, Hera made her decision.

‘’Kanan won’t be pleased, but we have to lock Kallus in his room. He’ll move in to mine.’’

‘’I actually think he’ll be delighted about that,’’ Zeb said in the teasing manner.

Oh, that was interesting. Kallus had harbored the suspicions something was going between these two for quite a while before falling into rebels’ hands. Now he had a proof it wasn’t only his suspicion.

‘’I’m doing what’s the most reasonable,’’ Hera replied stiffly.

‘’Of course,’’ Zeb agreed with the strange smile, before leaving the room.

This way, Kallus found himself escorted to the Jedi’s bedroom. He couldn’t really put himself to complain. That were better conditions that he genuinely ever expected from the Rebellion and definitely better that what he could have hoped after what happened to him from the hands of rebels already. He carefully checked whether the doors were closed, but indeed that was the case.

Truth being told, he hasn’t been even surprised. The Ghost crew wouldn’t make such a basic mistake. Besides, he could have really used some good night’s sleep. His eyelids were closing themselves and this bed looked rather comfortable. Resigned, he cautiously laid on the bed, hoping that someone, most probably the Lasat, wouldn’t smother him in his sleep. Force knew, they had more than one reason to.

At the same time, Hera gathered everyone to talk over the most urgent matter.

‘’All right, the all the doors are closed and secured and Chopper’s guarding Kallus for now. Let’s talk,’’ she announced.

‘’I was planning to ask whether to talked to Kallus, but it looks like we already got we answer,’’ Kanan started, letting the small smile.

‘’I wasn’t planning to take him here,’’ the Twi'lek admitted. ‘’Not originally. I just couldn’t leave him like that.’’

‘’Why he looks like that? Someone lost their temper?’’ Sabine inquired.

‘’It was worse than that,’’ Hera explained solemnly. ‘’Deliberate and long-term.’’

‘’So what? Kallus doesn’t deserve a speck of our sympathy,’’ Ezra remarked coldly.

Hera sighted in exasperation.

‘’I know, but what they were doing to him was pure vengeance. We should be better than the Empire.’’

‘’Vengeance is not the Jedi way,’’ Kanan claimed calmly.

‘’Okay, but what shall we do with him? Ezra asked impatiently. ‘’We can’t keep him here. He’s too dangerous to let him roam free. Are we now on the babysitting duty?’’

‘’He’s got a point,’’ Sabine agreed. ‘’Even subdued, he’s still a viable danger. Now with another reason to hate the Rebellion. Now he has nothing to lose,’’ she pointed out, a note of caution in her voice.

‘’Good point,’’ Ezra backed her up promptly.

‘’What do you think of this?’’ Here turned to Zeb. ‘’You’ve been strangely silent.’’

‘’I don’t like the guy. Don’t expect me to pity him, but, karabast, Hera and Kanan are kinda right. I don’t think I can stand the thought about someone being actively tortured in our base and we do nothing.’’

‘’Actively tortured?’’ Ezra asked.

‘’It looked bad and had a potential to turn into worse,’’ Hera clarified. ‘’Like they treated him as the frustration vent.’’

‘’Don’t tell me you never wanted to slap him yourself.’’

Once again, Hera felt a sudden surge of anger.

‘’It went further than a slap. You’ve seen him.’’

‘’I was too surprised to see him to actually take a closer look,’’ Ezra said defensively, but there was something about his posture that betrayed the growing uneasiness.

‘’Remember what I said about the path to dark side,’’ Kanan reminded him. ‘’As the Jedi, you have to learn to let go, for your own sake.’’

‘’Look, if it’s going to work, we’ll all have to be on the same page about it. I know we all have history with Kallus, especially Kanan and Zeb, but we have to push it aside. I won’t be tolerating any sabotage on my ship, is it clear?’’ Hera’s voice wasn’t angry, but it was final.

Kanan looked at the group, a sense of resolution in his eyes. "We'll take shifts watching over him. Keep him secure but also ensure he's not mistreated.’’

‘’So it is. Babysitting,’’ Ezra commented.

‘’It can’t get worse than babysitting you,’’ Sabine couldn’t let an opportunity for this jab.

‘’Quit squabbling. This is not the time,’’ Hera cut them off impatiently. ‘’We’re in the middle of the war and Kallus might be a golden mine of intel. We just have to play this right.’’

‘’He hasn’t proved to be the helpful so far. Those Imps are nothing but trouble,’’ Zeb grumbled.

‘’One way or another, he’s stuck with us and we’re stuck with him. May the Force be with us. We’re going to need it,’’ Kanan commented.

Once he and Hera stayed on their own, with the rest of the crew departing to their respective quarters, Hera sighed heavily.

‘’Thank you for backing me up.’’

‘’How could I not? I’m always here for you,’’ Kanan assured heartily.

Their hands matched for the swift moment.

‘’I feel awful,’’ Hera confided in him. ‘’Kallus was my responsibility from the start. I let this happen to him.’’

‘’You couldn’t have known,’’ Kanan consoled her. ‘’None of us could. You fixed it as soon as you found out.’’

‘’I thought the rebels are better than that.’’

‘’We are…mostly…’’

‘’Do you believe that?’’ She sounded doubtful and suddenly very tired.

‘’I believe there are more good guys here than not,’’ Kanan claimed firmly.

‘’Many of them are here because of vengeance. Empire had taken someone or something from them.’’

‘’Is that not you case? Or mine? Still, we don’t really beat prisoners for fun. Or at all,’’ the Jedi clarified. ‘’No matter how tempting it may seem.’’

She let out a small smile.

‘’True.’’

‘’I’ll check on him later,’’ he offered. ‘’See if there’s a way for me to help.’’

‘’Thank you.’’

‘’It’s not you who should be thanking me.’’

Next morning, Kallus got woken up by someone’s presence next to his. Immediately, he pulled himself to the standing position with one swift move. A sharp pain in the chest made him realize this might have not been his brightest idea.

The presence turned out to be Kanan Jarrus, holding a tray in both hands.

‘’It’s high time to wake up, Agent Kallus,’’ he greeted his captive. ‘’You slept like a log. Must have really been exhausted.’’

‘’I had a couple rough days.’’ the ISB officer attempted to cover shame with sarcasm. Sleeping like that went against all the rules instilled at the Imperial Academy. Constant vigilance, no matter what. That one should be a golden rule especially once he found himself in the close company of the rebels. Unfortunately, his organism had the different opinion on that one and somehow managed to overcome the hard-earned discipline the Agent used to be so proud of.

‘’Heard so,’’ Kanan replied, unfazed, as he put the tray of the nightstand. The food actually looked not only edible, but also quite appetizing. Much more than whatever he was eating for the last couple of years. It smelled good too. Alexsandr’s stomach twisted painfully.

‘’I volunteered to bring you breakfast, but there’s more,’’ Kanan picked up more straightforward tone, carrying a note of warning. ‘’I know it was told you yesterday, but I feel I have to stress it. You’d better not give Hera any trouble. Remember, it was her who actually saved you. She could have left you to rot. She hasn’t, cause she’s a better person than you can imagine.’’

‘’You seem to care a lot about the Captain,’’ Agent remarked.

‘’Indeed I am. While nobody here will hurt you unnecessarily...’’ Kanan left it hanging, but it was more than clear to Kallus.

‘’I won’t be giving you troubles,’’ he promised. For now, he added in his head. He calculated his chances quickly. Open confrontation was out of question for the time being. Underestimating the enemy had been what landed him in this situation in the first place. For all his flaws, Agent tended to learn from his mistakes.

‘’Good,’’ Kanan said shortly. ‘’Eat your breakfast. Then, I’ll check whether I can speed up your healing with the Force.’’

Chapter Text

For the next couple of days, Kallus was continually distraught, even though doing quite a good job at hiding it from his captors. There were too many thoughts in his head for him to stay calm and unbothered, none of them particularly optimistic. The longer he was away from the Empire, the direr his situation looked like. It was really crucial to get out as soon as possible. Sadly, the rebels took the precautions. Having little choice, he focused on his current predicament.

He started to regret not taking the meds Hera offered him. If the rebels were to drug him, they might have as well added something to his food or water. However, he was too proud to just ask for them. The Imperial officer should be invincible, immune to pain. After Jedi’s intervention, the bruises and the split lip got healed, but the ribs still hurt. Kanan had admitted regretfully that Force-healing has never been his strong suit. It sounded almost as apology, making Kallus uneasy about how to feel about it.

He got confined to his makeshift cell, except of the scheduled breaks to the fresher. Not the big surprise there, he was too great flight risk. Despite the visible change of the conditions he was distrustful, wondering if there was another shoe to drop. Trust had never come to him easily, since he had to fight for resources as the lower Coruscant young boy. Maybe not the street rat, as Ezra, but close enough. The Imperial Academy was his way to get the chance at different life and leaving this all behind. Once he left, he never looked back. Until now. He really had too much time to think. At least, with being stuck in one place with pretty much nothing to do, he could have healed properly.

‘’They really did the number on him,’’ Ezra remarked quietly once to Sabine. ‘’I mean, we’ve seen worse many times, but from the Empire, not from our own…I still don’t like him being here one bit, but this is wrong. I talked to Kanan, besides there are things I just feel through Master – Padawan bond. Internal bleeding…. Kriff…’’

‘’Yes,’’ Sabine agreed solemnly. ‘’Now knocking some sense into him will be even more difficult.’’

‘’Difficult?’’ Ezra looked at her with surprise. ‘’I’m not sure it’s even possible.’’

‘’Impossible is what we do here,’’ Sabine replied casually.

‘’Riiiight,’’ Ezra said, dragging the vowels. ‘’I should have gotten used to it by now, but I still can’t believe that we have an Imperial – the Agent kriffing Kallus – on our ship as the permanent resident.

‘’Permanent resident is the nice way to put it. Never would have suspected you for such a subtlety.’’

‘’I’m full of surprises as well,’’ Ezra shrugged.

However, Sabine turned out to be the first that paid Kallus a longer visit.

‘’You must be bored out of your mind,’’ she greeted him.

‘’I can’t say I’m not,’’ the Imperial agreed surprisingly smoothly.

‘’Fancy the accommodations?’’ The Mandalorian asked, a hint of sarcasm in her tone.

‘’They’re vastly preferable to the last place I was held captive,’’ Kallus said matter-of-factly.

‘’We pride ourselves in being hospitable,’’ Sabine replied with a wry grin.               

‘’What do I own this visit?’’ Kallus asked straightforwardly.

‘’Does there need to be a specific reason? Why don’t you think I dropped by of the goodness of my heart?’’ There might have been slight tease in the Sabine’s tone.

‘’There’s always a specific reason with people like you and me,’’ the Agent replied, his eyes fixed firmly on the visitor.

‘’All right. You’ve got me. I came to tell you the story.’’

That wasn’t something he expected.

‘’The story? I’m all ears.’’

‘’I was once just like you, you know. I had this clad-iron belief in the Empire,’’ she let out a bark of mirthless laughter. ‘’I still can’t believe what an idiot I was. The end. That could pretty much covers it.’’

Kallus looked at her in disbelief.

‘’Miss Wren, this is the shortest story I’ve ever heard.’’

‘’I’m certain you already know the details. I won’t believe if you claim you hadn’t read the file on my past,’’ Sabine said.

‘’I haven’t read it, Miss Wren. I made it,’’ Kallus corrected her. ‘’Reorganized the notes and kept adding new facts.’’

‘’Have you ever tried to understand my motives?’’

‘’I had, obviously. Without much luck, Miss Wren, so if you would be so kind to enlighten me…’’

Sabine pretended not to hear the sarcasm in the prisoner’s voice.

‘’I used to be so proud of the weapon I built. I even called it after the great Mandalorian ruler, Satine. I so strongly believed it would be used for peace. You know these lines. Peace and security to the galaxy. Instead, the Duchess was used against her family and her people. I couldn’t take it. I just ran off. I had no plan, little savings, no support, but I couldn’t stand the thought about working for the Empire the day longer. You most probably know I worked as the bounty hunter at first. Joining the rebels took me a while, but I never regretted it. Not once. I couldn’t change the past, but I still could change the future. Stop causing harm. Actually start doing something good.’’

‘’Wreaking havoc in the smoothly ran Empire?’’ Kallus questioned.

"We fight for freedom," she replied. "Something you and your Empire know nothing about." 

‘’You call it freedom?’’

‘’Look, I know how hard it is stopping lying to yourself. I know you’re also brighter than to blindly follow. I know how it’s easier not to ask questions, to follow the routine. I know how effective the Empire programming is, but it’s not unbreakable.’’

‘’Are you suggesting me I was being brainwashed?’’ Kallus asked in the weird, surprised voice.

‘’Continuously for years,’’ Sabine said in such a tone as if she was telling him something obvious.

‘’That’s not the case,’’ he insisted.

‘’Admitting it is the what happened is always the first step. Perhaps the most difficult,’’ the Mandalorian said calmly.  

The visits from Ezra turned out to be much more light - hearted. The youngest crew member pretty often came to deliver him meals. This time he was followed by the  C1-10P droid.

‘’That’s me,’’ Ezra sing-songed. ‘’Your favorite jailer.’’

Kallus crossed his arms on his chest.

‘’You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?’’

‘’Moderately,’’ the young Jedi grinned. ‘’I’ve been caught so many times by the Empire that it feels like a fair play.’’

Alexsandr sent him a tight, tentative smile.

‘’Next time I catch you, I promise you’ll get all the comforts.’’

Ezra laughed heartily.

‘’Joke’s on you, Kallus. As if the Rebellion is ever letting you go. Also, I believe Empire isn’t the biggest fan of keeping their prisoners in the decent conditions.’’

Chopper started to grunt impatiently, rescuing Alexsandr from having to address this accusation.

‘’What do you want this time?’’ Ezra asked the astromech. ‘’Ah, this. Your oil bath can wait.’’ Chopper spoke further in droid, making the teenage Jedi wince. ‘’No, this is not the emergency. C’mon, Chop. Learn some patience. Kanan will gladly give you a few lessons.’’

Chopped let out the most undignified squeak.

Ezra looked back at Kallus. ‘’He’s offended, but don’t worry. He’s offended more than a half of the time.’’

Hearing this, the droid somehow managed to sound even more offended.

‘’You’re the one grumpy astromech, aren’t you?’’ Kallus kneeled down and asked Chopper directly.

Ezra chuckled.

‘’I wouldn’t say it better.’’

Chopper let out the extremely outraged sound.

‘’He’s got his moods, but he’s very loyal,’’ Ezra explained. ‘’He’s the member of the crew. When once Zeb and Kanan gambled him…’’

‘’Zeb and Kanan gambled him?’’ That was quite a surprise. ‘’He must have been really irritating.’’

Chopper huffed in annoyance.

‘’They believed they can’t lose or something,’’ Ezra explained. ‘’One way or another, let’s say you don’t want to see Hera furious like that.’’

‘’Noted.’’ Kallus smiled at the astromech almost fondly. ‘’You certainly have more personality than the Imperial droids taken all together.’’

Chopper exclaimed something excitedly, making Ezra laugh.

‘’You’re scoring some points with him. Color me impressed.’’

Without a warning, Chop sent a small bolt of electricity through Ezra’s hand.

‘’Ugh,’’ the boy exclaimed. ‘’I’ve changed my mind. One day, Hera or not, I’ll sell you for the spare parts. Telling you, Kal, this one is more trouble than he’s worth.’’

‘’Are you all right?’’ With a great surprise, the Imperial found himself asking.

‘’This was nothing,’’ Ezra said dismissively. ‘’Not my first time with this metal ruffian. This junk has absolutely no manners.’’

‘’Careful, or he’ll shock you again,’’ Kallus said in the tone of the warning.

‘’For sure he’s capable of that,’’ Ezra replied dismissively. ‘’C’mon, Chop, we’ve got the work to do.’’

Saying this, they disappeared behind the doors leaving Kallus back to his own devices. At least the rebels were kind enough to provide him with some reading material. Nothing on the current political situation, but something to keep him less bored.

Kanan and Hera also dropped by from time to time, but not really a surprise, the hardest to endure was the visit from Zeb.

‘’Why do I think you have something personal against Lasats?’’ The purple rebel once asked openly.

‘’Because I do,’’ Kallus admitted honestly. ‘’If you think I don’t know of what kind of cruelty your kind is, you’re mistaken,’’ he said in the hostile manner.

‘’Lasan used to be a peaceful place, at least before your lot came by.’’

‘’It happened on Onderon,’’ the Imperial started to explain. This was the first time he was actually telling this story, even though the memory of the Lasat mercenary stayed with him for years, sometimes visiting him in the nightmares, even years and promotions later.

After he finished his tale, Zeb’s ears flattened.

‘’So you concluded we’re all monsters? All this because of one Lasat?’’ He sounded positively wounded by that accusation.

‘’I was nineteen. It was my first unit. I had good reasons to be scared,’’ it hurt to admit that, but Kallus did it nevertheless. ‘’Things like that always stay with you. Besides, I was just following orders.’’

‘’Of course,’’ Zeb said dryly. ‘’Only following orders covers it all, doesn’t it?’’

Rebel's words cut through Kallus like a knife, forcing him to confront the truth he had long tried to avoid.

‘’Lasan wasn’t supposed to look like that,’’ the Imperial confessed, his throat suddenly tight and eyes starting to burn suspiciously. He sucked a deep breath, doing his best to regain his emotionless façade. ‘’When I realized the Empire wanted to make an example, things were already in motion. The whole situation got out of hand.’’ He shifted his eyes to the floor, but Zeb impatiently grabbed his chin and forced him to meet his eyes.

‘’Out of hand? You’re talking about the genocide,’’ he exclaimed forcefully.

Once again, Agent’s eyes began to water.

‘’I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Garazeb. I should have known better,’’ he apologized heartily. ‘’We were told to weed out a few rebels.’’ Saying this Kallus wondered briefly when Zeb will finally break his neck, but the Lasat stayed impressively still.

‘’And ended up slaughtering entire population? I think deep down you know Empire is evil, Kal.’’ He just said.

‘’After Clone Wars it seemed like a salvation.’’

‘’And later?’’ Zeb pressed.

A beat of silence.

‘’It’s not a crime refusing to spend one’s life as the scavenger hunter.’’

‘’No, it isn’t. I know how it feels when you have to get out, but this doesn’t justify all the next steps on the way.’’

These talks were making him uncomfortable, challenging his belief into the Imperial system, making cracks on the perfect façade of training and commitment. A part of him knew that he never asked the questions to avoid getting the answers he wouldn’t like. Now the answers came to him all at once and he had no one to blame, but himself.

Chapter Text

After about the week and a half, the Specters decided to let Kallus out of his room and move round the ship, as long as he was accompanied by someone all the time. As far as it wasn’t his perfect scenario for the Imperial, it was vastly preferable to being stuck in the four walls of the very limited space. What turned out to be the biggest surprise for him was strangely domestic atmosphere, worlds apart from the rigid structure upheld by the Empire.

At first guarded and tight-lipped, he watched the rebels from the safe distance, waiting for something terrible to happen to him. His ribs were still in the process of the healing and he would rather not give excuses for someone to lose their temper with him. Obviously, he knew too well the excuses weren’t even needed.

‘’You can stop sulking, you know,’’ Zeb finally told him, noticing his aloofness, though interpreting it incorrectly.

‘’I’m not sulking,’’ the Agent declined. ‘’I’m merely trying to stay out of your way. Isn’t that what you want me to do?’’

‘’Have you thought we brought you here for you to just look at us having fun?’’

‘’I wouldn’t put it above you,’’ Kallus admitted.

‘’Karabast. Empire really messes up with one’s mind.’’

Since that moment, Alex had slowly opened up, spending his time listening to Kanan and Hera bickering, playing Dejarik with Ezra or Sabine and even cooking with Zeb. Still, he had kept himself in the alert mode. Once, when Zeb raised the knife to chop the carrot, Kallus instinctively took a step back, at the same time ducking his head as if expecting an attack. Slowly, cautiously, the rebel put the knife down on the counter.

‘’Karabast, Kallus, I thought we were rather clear on nobody hurting you,’’ he said in the voice he hoped was calming.

‘’Unless you deem I deserve it,’’ the blond man reminded the Lasat, the warnings he heard upon arrival ringing in his ears.

Zeb shook his head slowly with something akin to sadness in his eyes.

‘’Kal, we’re not like those folks who painted you black and blue.’’

‘’I’ve realized this by now,’’ the Imperial admitted.

‘’So what’s the problem?’’ Zeb asked in the almost gently manner.

The problem was that Kallus started to believe that he, in fact, deserved to be hurt by the rebels. Avoiding the pain seemed wrong. Physically he was much better, but psychologically he was stuck between rock and hard place.

He most probably wouldn’t be welcomed back by the Empire with the opened arms. It’s been too long. His credibility would be undermined, his loyalty called into question. Someone has surely had been given his position in the ISB. The felt awful, stuck between the world that abandoned him and the one that he couldn’t identify with. Or could he? The rebels had shown him a different way of life, a way that made him question everything he had ever believed in.

But could he truly turn his back on the Empire? Despite their betrayal, despite the doubts that now clouded his mind, a part of him still longed for the structure, the order, the sense of purpose that the Empire had once provided. Empire was all he knew, after all, since he was a little boy, since he was a bright-eyed, bushy-tailed cadet. Empire gave him home and sense of purpose.

He had associated the Empire with the stability, peace and the end of the Republic corruption. A new greater world. Now he was beginning to realize the Empire was based on fear. Darth Vader, Grand Admiral Thawn, the Emperor himself…Those were fear-striking figures.

Captian Syndulla was a strong leader, who wasn’t to be trifled with, but it was somewhat different. The Ghost crew truly cared for each other, risked for each other a lot. Rescued each other, even if the situation seemed to be hopeless and it would be much easier to let go. The unique bonds of friendship forged in fire, the geniue sense of camaraderie.

He hadn’t got a true friend since childhood, since he has a little boy in the late Clone Wars era. Nobody shed a tear about him gone. He was just a number.

He had to admit that since Hera’s intervention no one laid a hand on him. He got food, often better quality than he was given during his service for the Empire, medical care, rather comfortable place to sleep, company and from time to time he was let into the common areas. Kanan’s clothes were ill-fitting, but considering the state his own uniform had been, he knew better than to complain. Even Zeb, who had every reason to extract his revenge, was surprisingly civil towards him.

Kallus almost wished Hera just walked away after finding out how her fellow rebels treated him. This way, he wouldn’t have been facing all these dilemmas. There was something bizarre about his situation, about their coexistence.

With horror, he starting catching himself on the longing to be the part of their found family. He felt awful about being so pathetic. Torture, he could endure, but a little bit of kindness and he was falling apart.

He looked into Zeb’s electric green eyes.

‘’This was really irrational of me and won’t happen again,’’ he claimed fiercely. He could tell the Lasat wasn’t satisfied with this explanation, but thankfully, he didn’t push further. For the moment, the subject Kallus feared so much got dropped, but it didn’t last.

Once, when it was only him and Hera in the common space, sitting together in the silence, she actually surprised him and spoke up. ‘’I can basically hear you thinking, Kallus. My credits are on that you’re torn.’’ she remarked with a knowing look.  

The Imperial hesitated before responding, his tone guarded. "I'm not sure what you're insinuating, Captain."  

"I believe you are," Hera persisted.  

‘’I swore my oath to the Empire. I stand by my commitments," Kallus asserted.  

"Sometimes, there are commitments that shouldn't be upheld," the pilot countered.  

"These aren't the sentiments I anticipated from a rebel," Alexsandr remarked, his voice tinged with uncertainty.  

‘’We have Imperial defectors among us, you know,’’ she revealed. ‘’More than you would have guessed.’’

The prisoner’s gaze softened, a hint of vulnerability breaking through his tough exterior. “I don’t know if I can change,” he admitted quietly. ‘’Feels like I’m too far gone.’’

Twi'lek pilot placed a hand on his shoulder, offering a reassuring squeeze. “We’ll be here to support you, every step of the way. I know trust has to come both way.’’

“Why would you show me kindness after all I’ve done to your cause?’’ He asked openly. ‘’After what I’ve done to you personally?”

‘’I won’t lie to you, you were quite a nuisance. However, it’s not up to us what your punishment should be. We can’t really put you on trial, so I guess this is the best we can do right now.’’

“No one would blame you for being less honorable.” he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

‘’I would blame myself.’’ She nudged him gently. ‘’I’d hate for you to think the rebels are the bloodthirsty bunch because of the deeds of the few.’’

‘’They were quite a few,’’ he clarified. ‘’Though, I’m starting to believe this isn’t how the majority of rebels are.’’

‘’Good,’’ she yawned. ‘’It’s getting late. I’ll call it a day.’’

‘’Are you walking me to my room?’’ He asked politely. Walking sounded much more innocent than escorting. He couldn’t let himself forget his place on this ship, for his own sake.

She sent him an easily smile.

‘’I think you know the way perfectly well without me.’’

That night, he felt the lightness he hadn’t felt for years.

For some time, the life on the Ghost carried on rather smoothly, until Hera got notified about the new mission. The Specters didn’t find themselves surprised. Except for the simple supply run, there has been the lull recently and it was only the matter of time they were assigned to another operation. In fact, they were even itching for the action.

The real problem, though, was what to do with the prisoner.

“I still don’t trust him. How do we know he won’t turn on us the moment he gets a chance? Isn’t it bad enough he has free reign around Ghost?” Kanan asked. ‘’Sure, his behavior has been positively flawless recently, I’m giving him that, but remember what he had been doing for quite a while.’’

‘’We need all hands on deck with this one. Kallus will have to stay on his own,’’ Hera decides. ‘’Under lock and key, of course. I know it’s not the perfect situation, but that’s how most of our operations are. Far from perfect circumstances.’’

‘’Except that time we did it to ourselves,’’ Ezra chimed in. ‘’Why do we love to complicate our lives so much?’’

‘’We can’t drop him off to the base, too much risk. I tried to bring the Kallus’ abusers to the justice, but the result weren’t great,’’ Hera admitted with the undertones of anger.

‘’All right, I may not be the biggest fan of that man, but leaving him to the place where he will presumably be mistreated doesn’t sit well with me,’’ Kanan agreed.

For the first time since his capture, Kallus was on his own, which seemed almost unreal for him. Such a chance was not to be wasted. Once he dealt with that lock on the door the rest should be easy enough.

He could run. He should run. Maybe his days as Imperial officer were over, but he still had a chance at freedom. At getting a part of his life back. He owned these rebels nothing. They kept him on their ship against his will. He has been waiting for this day for over the month. Now his prayers must have finally been answered. He could make it.

He could have called himself a street kid and even if that was long time ago, he knew a thing or two about picking locks. He had some less honorable moments before joining the Academy. Usually, he avoided thinking about that, pushing away the part of him that didn’t fit to the perfect Imperial cadet and later the officer, image, but this time he could really use this knowledge. Since the room he was kept wasn’t intended to serve as the cell, that shouldn’t have even been more difficult than usual, even taking into the consideration that his skills might be rather rusty.

He fiddled with the system for quite the long time, a few unsuccessful attempts on the way. He almost thought he would never make it, but this didn’t discourage him from another try. In the end, something finally clicked the right way the doors opened widely, as if inviting him to grab his freedom. Then, the he swiftly moved to the operating panel. His heart was being rapidly, rush of adrenaline in his veins. Despite everything, he missed that feeling. He almost considered himself free, one step from leaving everything behind.

His plans were thwarted by none other than Garazeb Orrelios.

Chapter Text

Getting out of the ship, the first thing Kallus felt was the cool wind on his face. He barely realized how much he missed this. He desperately looked round, searching for the best way out, but the peculiar scene appeared in front of his eyes.

Garazeb, clearly unarmed, was held on the blasterpoint by the man in the Imperial uniform. No other Spectres where in the viewpoint. It looked like he was ambushed on the way back to the Ghost.  

Before he could think properly, Alexsandr reacted on the impulse. He run closer to them, putting the finger of the trigger of the blaster he had stolen from the Ghost as the precaution, though he didn’t predict it would come handy in such a way. 

‘’Get away from him,’’ he growled to the Imperial, his voice firm and almost threatening, eyes blazing dangerously. One could have suddenly see the IBS Agent he used to be for so long, despite the slightly disheveled hair and hand-me-down jacket.

Garazeb stared at him with the shock in his eyes.

‘’Another rebel? Isn’t that delicious,’’ the Imperial bared his teeth in the wolf-like, predatory grin. ‘’Two birds with one stone.’’

Kallus fired without the second warning. He hadn’t been shooting since he got captured, but years of the training kicked in immediately. One clean shot and he had a dead body of the Imperial officer at the ground.

The man trained by the Empire shouldn’t be ridiculously easy to beat.

This was just the moment Hera appeared. Kallus swiftly realized how bad it looked for him, especially with the blaster still pointed into Zeb’s general direction.

‘’We gave you a chance and you….’’ The Twi'lek pilot started furiously, her eyes flashing dangerously and her hand halfway to her own blaster.

‘’Hera, stop!’’ Zeb yelled desperately. ‘’Hera, he saved me.’’

Hera's expression softened as she turned to the fellow rebel, her eyes filled with concern and understanding. "Saved you?" she repeated, her voice laced with surprise. 

Zeb nodded, his gaze unwavering. "Yeah, he did. Kallus risked his own life to protect me. Totally got this Imperial scum.’’ He nudged the lying body on the floor with his foot with the evident disgust on his face. 

Kallus nodded, a sense of gratitude washing over him for Zeb's intervention.

Hera swept the scene once more. ‘’Back to the Ghost. Now,’’ she ordered, especially with the rest of the crew showing within the eyeshot. ‘’And hand me the blaster back.’’

With his escape attempt foiled rather spectacularly, mostly out of his own accord, Kallus simply obeyed.  

Leaving Kanan and Sabine in charge of flying, Hera approached him herself once they were back aboard.

‘’A word, Agent,’’ she said in the tone as freezing cold as the temperature on Hoth.

‘’At your service, Captain,’’ Alexsandr replied immediately. He had no doubts he could avoid this conversation.

‘’What the kriff happened today?’’ Hera demanded answers, straight to the point.

‘’I saw Garazeb in danger and reacted on the spot,’’ Kallus said simply.

She crossed her arms on the chest.

‘’So you weren’t trying to escape?’’

‘’I was,’’ he conceded. ‘’But I couldn’t.’’

‘’You couldn’t?’’ She echoed, voice heavily laced with skepticism.

‘’It didn’t seem right,’’ Kallus explained simply.

‘’To run away?’’ Hera pushed further.

‘’To leave Garazeb while he faced the enemy.’’ The ex-Imperial clarified.

"You stayed because of Zeb?" Hera asked with disbelief.

‘’It looks that I did,’’ Kallus confirmed.

She stared at him, incredulous.

‘’Why the kriff you hadn’t just run away in the Ghost? Why bother going out?’’

‘’It didn’t seem fair to leave you without a ship,’’ Alexsandr replies matter of-factly.

Hera studied his expression carefully. ‘’Go to your room,’’ she reprimanded him after a while as if he was an unruly child. ‘’Don’t even think about leaving until somebody comes to fetch you.’’

Kallus nodded, stood up and departed, accepting the reprimand without protest.

As he entered the room and dutifully closed the door behind him, he took a moment to reflect on the events that had led him to this point, immediately feeling a pang of guilt as he remembered the atrocities he had committed in the name of the Empire. Memories flashed before his eyes - the orders he had followed without question, the lives he had destroyed in the name of loyalty to a ruthless regime, the worlds he had helped to oppress. He knew he had a lot to answer for, and he wasn't sure if he deserved any kindness from the rebels. Especially not from Zeb. Hot tears started to spring to his eyes, the long-forgotten feeling. He hasn’t wept like that since he was a teenager. Maker, what had he done? What had he been doing for years? He served Empire with fierce commitment and to make the matters even worse, he was outstandingly good at it. He took pride in being the model officer. How could he not connected the dots earlier? How come he was even still alive? The Rebellion would be well within their rights to execute him, especially after he stubbornly refused to talk. The small part of his crimes should have been enough to guarantee him a death sentence. In the common space, Hera gathered the rest of the Ghost inhibitors.

‘’This has been going on for too long,’’ she announced with finality. ‘’Kallus is either our enemy or not. No middle ground. We either keep him as the prisoner or let him out. Not whatever was going on lately.’’

‘’He saved my life. That stands for something,’’ Zeb spoke up, his tone grateful.

‘’As an ex-Imp, I have to give him a vote of confidence after what he did,’’ Sabine added.

‘’From the ex-thief, people sometimes change. Apparently even Imperials. He may be not a rebel yet, but no longer an Imp,’’ Ezra made a point. ‘’Truth being told, I would have run in his position as well.’’

‘’As the Jedi, I can confirm I sense no malice or plans to harm us,’’ Kanan affirmed.

Chopper started spinning round furiously, moving his claws in the air.

‘’You too?’’ Hera asked. ‘’All right, so, as much as I can’t believe it, we’ve got a unanimous verdict. Even Chopper had accepted him. Came to like him, even.’’

‘’That’s unheard of,’’ Ezra muttered. ‘’Someone pinch me, this is not happening. Chop, buddy, are you all right? Have you gotten any bugs recently?’’

Chopper grunted something in binary.

‘’Yes, that’s exactly your problem,’’ Ezra replied, outraged. ‘’I’ve heard you insulting him more times than you can count, you two-faced pile of metal.’’

‘’Boys, not now, really,’’ Hera admonished them with the tone of the tired mother of the family.

‘’I’ll tell Kallus the news,’’ Ezra volunteered. ‘’Everything not to spend a second more in the company of this sorry excuse for the droid.’’ He bolted off without waiting for the response.

Hearing someone’s footsteps in the corridor, Kallus hastily swept the remnants of tears with his sleeve, hoping his eyes and face weren’t too red from crying. The doors opened, revealing surprised Ezra.

‘’You’re really here,’’ the boy exclaimed.

‘’Where else should I be?’’ Kallus asked, tonelessly.

‘’True,’’ Ezra chuckled. ‘’No matter how old you are, when Hera tells you to go to your room, you go to your room.’’

‘’Have you come to rub it into my face, Briger?’’ ex-Imperial asked, clearly annoyed.

‘’Oh no. This was reasonable. Maybe your self-preservation instinct isn’t that bad.’’

‘’I’m certain I lost it totally from being with you.’’

‘’True, we must have completely lost ours, because we decided, unanimously, let me add, no longer treat you as the prisoner.’’

Kallus blinked in utter surprise. Out of the things he expected to hear, that was certainly not it.

‘’That’s reckless,’’ he finally said.

Ezra grinned way too enthusiastically.

‘’As you said – absolute lack of common sense.’’

‘’Are you certain about it?’’ Alexsandr asked cautiously, still not quite believing his ears.

‘’Are you insisting on looking the gifted Loth-cat in the mouth?’’

‘’Absolutely not. I just don’t know if I understood correctly.’’

‘’You’re free to leave,’’ Hera, who had just appeared in the doorway explained. ‘’Or to stay, if that’s what you wish for.’’

‘’Do you really want me around?’’ Kallus asked doubtfully.

‘’As far as we won’t have to keep eye on you, you can’t be more troublesome than the rest of this bunch,’’ Hera replied with a small smile, glancing at Ezra pointedly with the corner of the eye.

‘’Thank you, Captain.’’

‘’Hera, please,’’ she corrected him with a small smile. ‘’It’s about time.’’

‘’Thank you, Hera,’’ Kallus replied gratefully. ‘’May I go see Garazeb?’’

‘’Sure. He was the first one to speak for you.’’

Wasting no time, Alexsandr departed.

‘’May I?’’ He asked, knocking at the door.

‘’Come in,’’ the Zeb’s voice from inside invited him. ‘’I assume Hera told you the happy news?’’

‘’Yes. Ezra and Hera, to be exact,’’ Kal nodded, taking a step inside.

‘’Against all reason, these two seem to like you.’’

‘’I’ve heard you vouched for me.’’

‘’It’s nothing,’’ Zeb brushed it away. ‘’I got myself caught like a fool, like some kind of novice on the first mission. If that Imp shot me, I clearly deserved no better.’’

‘’I know the feeling,’’ Kallus half-smiled, going back in his head to the day he got captured by the Rebellion. ‘’Happens to the best of us.’’

‘’You must be elated to be free again.’’

‘’That’s something new,’’ Alexsandr admitted. ‘’I never thought I’d be in such a situation. Many wouldn’t just let me go.’’

‘’Welcome to the Rebellion, where miracles never cease.’’

‘’This sounds like the recruitment slogan.’’

‘’You know, that Imp took you for the rebel,’’ Zeb pointed out.

‘’I’d say that was fair assumption, given the circumstances,’’ Kallus replied cautiously.

‘’I thought you’d be outraged by that,’’ Zeb remarked.

‘’Not anymore. I was so terribly wrong, Zeb. So terribly wrong. If I could have done at least one good thing…’’

Once again, Kallus couldn’t hold back the tears, but this time but he was beyond caring at that point. Instinctively, he threw himself into Lasat’s arms.

‘’That’s all right, Kal. I’ve got you,’’ he heard Zeb’s gentle tone.

This only made him sob even harder.

For Zeb, this day was full of surprises and wasn’t over yet. The shock from Kallus saving his life hasn’t worn off when replaced by another one, namely having an armful of ex-Imperial in the middle of the emotional breakdown. Why Kallus had chosen him to for his breakdown remained a mystery to the Lasat. Ashla, he was least suited to this job out of the all the people on this ship. Nevertheless, he held his once-rival tightly, until Alexsandr finally composed himself. 

‘’I apologize. I should have never acted like that,’’ Kal said sheepishly, deeply ashamed by his lack of control, once the tears stopped flowing.

‘’Like what? A perfectly normal human being with emotions?’’ Zeb retorted, his voice laced with the hind of sarcasm.

‘’Showing emotions or rather, to be precise, having them in the first place, is grave weakness,’’ Alex said in such a tone as if he was reciting something.

‘’Says who? Empire?’’ Zeb asked, but carried on without waiting for the confirmation. ‘’Kal, haven’t you realized by now what Empire says and does is banthashit?’’

Kallus laughed in embarrassment and Zeb caught himself gazing with affection at the eyes that seemed to shift the color from amber to golden, depending on the light and strawberry blond hair, with the single lock of hair falling to frame the freckled face. At that moment, little had Kallus resembled a ruthless enforcer of the Empire.   

‘’Hera offered me a chance to stay,’’ he informed Zeb.

‘’Will you? Stay?’’

Was it hopefulness in the Lasat’s voice, or Alexsandr just heard what he wanted to hear?

‘’I’m uncertain this is the right way,’’ he just replied anyway. ‘’After all that happened, after everything I’ve done…You must be itching to finally get kid of me.’’

Zeb sighed with resignation.

‘’It’s not only Hera and Ezra who have the soft spot for you. Count me in. Karabast.’’

‘’You really like me?’’ Kallus asked and immediately regretted it. He sounded like some lovelorn teenager and, truth being told, that was pretty much how he felt.

Zeb cupped his cheek gently. ‘’I do, so stop crying your pretty eyes out.’’

Without another word, Alex snuggled into the soft Lasat fur, holding for dear life.

Chapter Text

When the next day Kallus appeared in the common area, everybody else already was there.

‘’Hello, Agent. Just in time for the breakfast. Waffles or pancakes?’’ Ezra greeted him as he entered the common area, a warm smile on his face. 

‘’Waffles, please. Also, could you stop calling me Agent?’’

‘’Sure, Kal,’’ Ezra replied flippantly.                                                      

‘’My first name is Alexsandr,’’ the ex-Imperial felt inclined to share.

‘’It starts with A as well. All right, Alexsandr. May I call you Alex?’’

‘’My pleasure’’, he responded, a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips. ‘’Hera?’’ He turned to the Twi'lek.

‘’Yes?’’ She lifted her eyes from the datapad.

‘’I want to talk. I’ll tell you everything I know about Empire. On my honor,’’ Kallus announced earnestly.

‘’It took you a while,’’ she replied bitterly, but the look in her eyes betrayed she was glad with such a turn of events. ‘’I’ll arrange the meeting with the higher command.’’

‘’I always knew we’ll set you straight and narrow,’’ Sabine remarked.

Kallus raised his hands in defense.

‘’Fine. You were right from the start.’’

‘’He said it. He said the words. Force help me, this is the best moment of my life. Top five, anyway,’’ Ezra exclaimed triumphantly.

‘’May the Force be with you, Alex,’’ Kanan wished him. ‘’You’re going to need this.’’

‘’Thank you.’’

As soon as the Ghost landed in the Chopper Base, Kallus got taken to the interview. Names, places, plan, the details on the Imperial training, codes. All the intel he kept hidden for the Rebellion for weeks was now flowing freely and willingly. He dutifully extracted every detail from his memory. Each and every word recorded in order to be later put to the analysis.

This was an easy part. The much harder to endure was meeting the mentioned earlier by Hera higher command in the person of Commander Sato. 

"You have disclosed the great deal of useful information to us, that’s not to be denied, but you have blood on your hands, Agent Kallus. The massacre of Lasan, poisoning supplies on Lothal… Even for an Imperial, that’s a lot. How can we trust you to truly change?" The rebel asked, skepticism written on his face.

‘’You can’t, sir,’’ Kallus admitted honestly. ‘’I have nothing, but my word for this. I know this is nearly not enough.’’

‘’Well said, Agent,’’ he replied, stone-faced.

‘’I know I have no right to ask for this, but please give me a change to right at least some of my wrongs. I can do more good actually working than sitting in the cell in shackles and using your supplies.’’

‘’You want to atone?’’ Sato asked sharply.

‘’Of course I do.’’ Kallus claimed without a beat, remorse evident on his face.

‘’Good, because you’ve got a lot to make up for, Captain. Prepare yourself for a lot of hard work.’’

‘’Does it mean?’’ Kallus asked hopefully. Despite his plea, he fully counted with the perspective of being court-martialed and most probably executed or imprisoned.

Sato nodded.

‘’We’re willing to give you a chance. Consider yourself on probation. If you prove yourself trustworthy, well…. than we can agree that what happened in your service to the Empire is in the past.’’

Kallus nodded stiffly, though a glimmer of hope and gratitude shone in his eyes.

‘’I’m eternally indebted for the chance I don’t deserve.’’

‘’It’s not up to you, what you deserve, young man,’’ Commander Sato said in stern voice, but not without an undertones of reassurance.

"I will do whatever it takes to prove myself to the Rebellion," Kallus vowed, his voice filled with determination. Perhaps the rebels were indeed more forgiving than the Empire. He doubted he could ever put some things in the past. He burden of guilt laid to heavily on him, pressing down on him like a leaden cloak. Still, the was light in the end of the tunnel.

‘’Hello, stranger,’’ the Lasat greeted him softly, when he came back to the Ghost, tired but happy.

‘’May I introduce myself. Rebel Alliance Intelligence Officer, Alexsandr Kallus,’’ the ex-Imperial exclaimed with pride.

‘’The Intelligence Department always gets the prettiest boys.’’

It didn’t take long for the news about the former ISB Agent and Rebellion captive turning into actual rebel to spread and unsurprisingly, to kindle strong emotions. Obviously, the Ghost crew was incessantly fiercely protective about their new friend. This was perfectly to be predicted, but when Hera and Zeb were once approached by Kai Tu'Lya, they couldn’t really believe the nerve of this man. How after everything he has done or allowed to do could he claim to have the higher moral ground? At least this time his Miralian companion wasn’t involved. Hopefully, she had rethought some matters.

‘’My favorite pilot’’ the Bothan greeted Hera with the fake sweet voice. ‘’I assume you know already that the Imp is running free around here?’’

‘’Kallus is where he belongs – at the service to the Rebellion.’’ She replied, stone-faced.

‘’You can’t really believe that. He was where he belonged, but for some reason someone decided to play the sister of mercy,’’ the Bothan said, glancing meaningfully at Hera.

‘’You will treat Captain Kallus with due respect, understood?’’ She replied in the sharp voice. ‘’He’s now not only your fellow rebel, but also your superior. There won’t be a second warning.’’

Kai Tu'Lya laughed in the unpleasant, leering way.

‘’You may be good in what you do, but that’s not up to you.’’

‘’Let me rephrase what Hera said,’’ Zeb spoke up very slowly and menacingly. ‘’If you cause Captain Kallus any harm, you will not weasel out of this so scot-free as the last time.’’

‘’All this fuss about the few bruises. I bet you gave him more yourself,’’ the Bothan said flippantly.

Zeb’s eyes flashed dangerously.

‘’I might be from Outer Rim, but I’m not the heathen like you. Look at him the wrong way and nobody will find your body.’’

‘’You can’t be serious. All this for the Imp scum?’’ Kai Tu'Lya exclaimed in disbelief.

‘’Do you want to find how serious I am?’’

There was something very eerie about Zeb’s tone. Realizing the Lasat wouldn’t hesitate to carry out this threat, Kai Tu'Lya snorted angrily.

‘’I don’t want near him again anymore.’’

‘’Very well,’’ Hera agreed icily. ‘’We’ve got an agreement. Besides, Captain Kallus is more than perfectly capable for fending for himself and this time, you won’t have an upper ground.’’ She considered there was a possibility, not so small, of Kallus refusing to actually defend himself, being too guilt-ridden, but Kai Tu'Lya didn’t need to know that.

‘’I don’t doubt that,’’ the Bothan sulked. ‘’I hope you won’t regret your recklessness. I thought the seasoned rebels like you won’t be seeing world through the pink-tinted glasses.’’

Even with Kai Tu'Lya refraining from taking further action, the Bothan had been the subject of close scrutiny from Zeb, especially after he get Kallus to confess that the former jailer threatened him with electrowhip back when he was on his mercy.

‘’Electrowhip,’’ Zeb grumbled, his tone low and dangerous. ‘’I’m going to kill that bastard.’’

‘’It was just a threat. He didn’t use it. It’s nothing, Garazeb,’’ Alexsandr attempted to brush it off.

‘’The threat is not nothing. Here, in Rebellion, we care about our own and now you’re one of us. Nobody will be threatening you without consequences,’’ Zeb informed the former Imperial.

‘’I remember how you wanted to cuff me to the radiator,’’ Alex reminded him.

‘’Who says I don’t want anymore?’’ Zeb asked with a hint of playfulness.

‘’I’m afraid might be a while for me to enjoy this kind of games,’’ Kallus sounded positively apologetic.

‘’Karabast, don’t you dare to be blaming yourself for that. Alex, I won’t lie to you, you have plenty to be sorry for, but don’t be sorry for someone treating you like a punching bag. Fellow rebel or not, if he hurts you, just punch him back.’’

‘’I don’t that would help me be accepted.’’

‘’They’ll come round…’’ Zeb promised. ‘’One day. As I did.’’

Kallus shuffled closer, staring at the Lasat with admiration.

‘’You’re cute when you’re moving your ears,’’ he whispered.

This was the exact moment where into the room strolled both Sabine and Ezra, only to find Zeb with their once-enemy actually sitting in his lap.

‘’Oh, c’mon guys. You’re even less subtle than Hera and Kanan,’’ the Mandalorian half-smiled.

‘’You’re like that stray Loth-cat,’’ Ezra joked to Kallus. ‘’Forcing you to do anything doesn’t work, but all it takes for you to open up is a bit of cuddling. If we knew it was so easy, we would have sent Zeb to you a long time ago.’’

‘’Don’t you have something to do, kids?’’ Zeb grumbled, clearly unhappy about their presence. ‘’Or somewhere to be?’’

‘’We could ask you the same,’’ Ezra pointed out mercilessly.

‘’Is this how my life is going to look like now?’’ Alex risked asking.

Sabine smiled rakishly.

‘’You’d better get used to it.’’

***

The path to full liberation of the galaxy was rocky, leading through Lothal and many others to Endor. Once again, the light side had won. The great, invincible Empire had started to crumble. With the Emperor and Darth Vader, the pillars of the old regime, dead, nothing seemed impossible no more. The whole galaxy was celebration, but nowhere the celebration was more joyful than on Endor.

A lot had changed for the former Agent Kallus. Wearing the orange Rebellion pilot jumpsuit, the visible sign he chose the right side in the time of need, he reflected on what happened since he switched sides. He had found out what did it mean to feel accepted and even loved. To have a family.

It hurt to think about all these who didn’t live to that day: Kanan, Obi-Wan, Cassian Andor, Jyn Erso along with the entire Rouge one squad, to name only a few. There was also one name that still ignited the flicker of hope that one day he’ll be able to see the better world with his own eyes or rather, to live in it.

Alex missed Ezra, especially in the moment like that. He grew quite fond of the boy during their time together. If there was a slightest chance he could have survived, it was worth the chance. It was the safe bet that Hera and Sabine would start looking for him once the war dust settles.

‘’It’s not over yet,’’ Hera’s voice pulled him from his thoughts. ‘’There’s still a lot of to do, but seeing the Empire fall…The rise of the New Republic…Have you ever thought you’ll live to it?’’

‘’No,’’ he admitted. ‘’Especially not that I’ll be so glad to see it. So kriffing happy.’’ If someone told him this years ago, he would have surely sent them to the psychiatric evaluation, if not worse. Sometimes he still couldn’t believe that the rebels took him in, having known what he had done.

As if reading his mind, Hera rushed to assure him. ‘’Stop beating yourself about the past. It’s high time to forgive yourself.’’

‘’It’s not so easy,’’ Kallus admitted openly. ‘’Maybe it’s the hardest thing I ever had to do.’’

A small smile appeared on Twi'lek’s lips.

‘’You’re a tough one, Kal. I’m certain you’ll handle it.’’

Just then, Zeb showed up next to them, a playful glint in his eye.

"Hera, are you stealing my boyfriend?" he asked teasingly, his tone mock-accusatory.    

Hera chuckled.

"Just borrowing him for a while. Here, he’s all yours.’’

Zeb stared at him lovingly.

‘’What are you thinking about?’’

‘’Still not believing my luck.’’ Alex admitted, his voice filled with joy and gratitude.

Zeb pulled him into the passionate kiss.

‘’Me too, Ashkerra. Me too.’’