Chapter Text
“Hey kid, it’s time to wake up. Jacen Syndulla, you in there? You alright kid?”
Jacen opened his eyes blearily, trying to place the voice calling his name and the gentle hand on his shoulder. He froze, eyes wide in alarm, and shot up from the cot he was lying on. Mom, Chopper, the Ghost; none of them were anywhere in sight, he was in a dark room, alone with a stranger.
The stranger noticed his alarm, and made a comforting gesture to soothe him. “Hey, hey, it’s okay, you’re not in any danger, just take a deep breath.”
The voice had a familiar Wild-Space edge to it, but the face it belonged to was not one Jacen knew. Brown hair, brown eyes lit with concern, lips twisted into a frown. The stranger was an adult human male, and he wore a grey-black uniform with a circular blue patch on the shoulder. Jacen backed away slowly, but the man made no move to stop him.
“Who are you?” he asked quietly.
The man winced slightly, then took a deep breath, using a calm expression to mask his discomfort. “I’m Lieutenant Commander Eli Vanto of the Chiss Ascendancy Defense Fleet, but you can call me Eli.”
“What-“
“Do you know your name?” the man cut him off.
Jacen nodded. Eli was looking at him expectantly and Jacen realized he was waiting for him to say it out loud.
“I’m Ja- I’m Caleb,” Jacen corrected partway through. The man lifted an eyebrow, probably suspicious, possibly amused. The man, Eli, if he wasn’t convinced by Jacen’s answer decided to let it slide though.
“Right. Caleb. How many fingers am I holding up?”
“Three.”
“Good. How old are you?”
Jacen paused warily.
“Ja- Caleb?” An alarm bell rang in Jacen’s mind. He hadn’t been awake enough to recall the man calling Jacen’s name when he was asleep, but it was clear Eli knew more than he was letting on. Does he know my name? How does he know my name? Why would he pretend he doesn’t?
“Caleb, do you know how old you are?” the man repeated.
Jacen eyed his adversary up and down. “I do, but I’m not going to tell you,” he said firmly. His left hand was shaking, so he slipped it behind his back to hide his fear. Eli reached out a hand instinctively to comfort him, but thought better of it and let it fall back to his side. He then crouched next to the cot, sitting with one knee down on the ground and one bent. This placed his head and face in a position lower than Jacen’s, who was sitting tall and straight on the cot. Jacen changed position slightly to look the man in the eyes. He was earnest, he could see that. Scared, too, or maybe just worried. Whoever he was he didn’t seem to mean any harm. Jacen felt a knot of anxiety loosen in his chest, but another one took its place as he remembered his surroundings.
“Where am I?” Jacen bit his lip, trying to ignore the quaver in his voice. “Where’s my mom? Where’s Cho- where’s my droid? The orange C1P?”
Something hard flashed across the man’s face, and he grimaced. He thought a minute to himself, then looked back at Jacen and asked, “How much do you remember?”
“I..” Jacen frowned, racking his mind. Scenes and images flashed in his mind; mom asking Chopper for a bioscan of the planet, the humid fog of thick jungle wafting into the ship as the ramp lowered, the smell of mom’s jacket as she hugged him, the feel of her lekku brushing him slightly when she leaned down to kiss him goodbye. Her hand as she brushed his hair out of his eyes. The sound of her voice. “I’ll be back soon, stay in the Ghost with Chopper. Chopper will lock the ship as soon as the ramp is closed. The distress signal is close but I’ll need to go on foot from here. I’m going to take a look around and see if I can find anything. If you pick up anything on the scanners or the comm, let me know right away. I’ll be back soon. Stay on the ship, okay?”
In his memory Jacen nodded, and mom smiled. “Good. I love you, stay safe, I’ll see you soon.”
Jacen had smiled back, nodding. “Love you too mom, see you soon.”
That was the end of that memory. He took a deep breath. “We were- my mom was training me, teaching me how to fly a ship.” He left out the system name, and the fact that his mother was teaching him advanced tricks few his age could master. He also left out the fact that his mother was the great once rebel pilot, now Republic General Hera Syndulla. “We received a distress signal. A Republic transport crashed on a nearby planet, and mom went to check it out. My droid, Chopper, and I, stayed on the ship.”
Jacen frowned, sifting through his memories. This was where things got foggy. “I…I remember waiting for mom to get back, and I heard a hatch open, and…I heard Chopper- he was yelling, I heard fighting, I think, but Chopper went down, and I saw a flash of gray, and…” Jacen swallowed. “That’s all I remember,” he whispered.
Eli grunted, but said nothing. His face was a difficult tangle of emotions to try and get a read on, but there was a grim hesitance in the way he moved. Jacen shuddered.
“What happened? Are the others okay? My mom? Chopper?”
Eli nodded quickly. “Yes, they’re fine, don’t worry. You’re the one we were worried about actually, you-“ Eli took another breath, forcing himself to slow down. “The medics gave you a clear bill of health, everything’s fine, your mother’s okay, your droid’s resting in the room next door-“
“Chopper’s here?” Jacen interrupted. “What do you mean resting?”
The corner of Eli’s face twitched, and Jacen got the distinct sense he was suppressing another grimace. “He’s powered off right now, but he’s fine. He’s just undergoing some basic maintenance.”
Jacen edged away from Eli, a chill growing. The only one who could turn Chopper off was mom. Chopper wouldn’t let anyone else do that to him, and he didn’t like it when she did either. It was an emergencies only situation, and not something he went through willingly.
“What kind of maintenance?” Jacen asked carefully.
“It’s mostly just a checkup and cleaning, making sure his systems are all functioning properly and he doesn’t have any issues. He’s in surprisingly good condition for a droid that old, but I’m told he’s a rather important part of your family, so I suppose that tracks. And it follows that you would be able to get the parts you need for him, given your family background.”
“You..know who I am, don’t you?” It was more of a statement than a question.
“I do, Jacen Syndulla, I do. At least I know what the reports say and what I’ve been told. You’re the son of Republic General Hera Syndulla and Jedi Knight Kanan Jarrus, otherwise known as Caleb Dume. You were born not long after the ‘liberation’ of Lothal and have spent most of your life flying with your mother on the Ghost.” The way he said liberation was odd, almost like it was a bad thing.
“Are you a part of the Republic?” The uniform Eli wore wasn’t of any Imperial form or fashion Jacen had seen, but it also wasn’t like any Republic uniform or garb he’d ever seen anyone wear. And pirates didn’t wear uniforms, and neither did smugglers.
“Are you from the ship that crashed? The transport?”
Eli pursed his lips, but shook his head. “No, I’m not. That ship didn’t have any passengers.”
“What?”
“It was a decoy. Bait, if you would. It was meant to separate your mother from your ship without any fighting, and it worked.”
Jacen’s eyes widened in shock, and Eli made a pacifying gesture, continuing calmly. “No one was hurt, your mother, Chopper, and you are all safe. Your mother isn’t here right now but she’ll be here within a day or so. Your droid is having his weaponry removed so he stops trying to taze people, but I’m sure your people can replace that when you get back. Lomar was even talking about sending him back with an upgrade if things go well. It would have a greater output, multiple settings he can use, and won’t drain his circuits so much. If Lomar gets his way, that is. Khabarahk was rather against the notion, though I guess I can’t blame him. He’s tough, but no one’s that shockproof.”
Eli stopped, realizing he had begun to ramble. “Anyways, my job is to brief you- to make sure you understand what’s going on, and, more importantly, to make sure you’re okay. You can ask me anything you want and I’ll do my best to answer. If you need anything, let me know and I’ll do my best to get it for you. Do you have any questions?”
Jacen’s eyes flicked to the unfamiliar patch on Eli’s uniform. “If you’re not Republic..” Jacen let the query trail off.
“I’m Eli Vanto of the Chiss Ascendancy Defense Fleet,” Eli reintroduced himself. “The Chiss are a humanoid species that live in the Unknown Regions. The Ascendancy is their government, the defense fleet is their navy.”
“You are a human though,” Jacen stated.
“Yes,” Eli replied. Eli smiled faintly, and Jacen caught a note of approval in his voice. “I am,” he continued. “I was not born or raised in the Chiss Ascendancy, or in the Unknown Regions.”
“Then why..? How did you join? If they’re in the Unknown Regions, how did you find them?”
Eli’s smile grew a little thinner. “I had help,” he said simply. Then, before Jacen could ask another question, he kept going. “The Chiss are currently looking for allies- there’s a lot of dangers in the Unknown Regions and some are more deadly than others. Some of them have had their eyes on both the Chiss of the Unknown Regions as well as the people of the known regions, from before the fall of the Empire and even before the end of the Clone War. And as time goes by, their forces grow, and so does their appetite for conquest.” A solemn, almost mournful expression passed his face, then he spake more soflty. “Many species and worlds have fallen to them already, and many more are at risk. If they are not stopped then they will destroy everything and everyone in their path. The Chiss are hoping to stop them before their forces become insurmountable, but we can’t do it alone. That’s why we took you.”
Jacen stared wordlessly for a moment. It was wild story, but the man sounded sincere. Fearful, even. Jacen summoned his best glare, which equated to a semi-threatening, semi-endearing pout. “Why take me? Why separate me from my mom?”
“The…standard methods of communication were somewhat unavailable. We needed to get her attention in a more…unorthodox manner. The Chiss don’t currently have any contacts in the Republic, though we’re hoping to change that soon. The only contacts we have are in the Empire, which is why we have had to go to such extremes to speak with your mother.”
“You’re with the Empire!?” Jacen exclaimed vehemently.
“I’m with the Chiss Defense Fleet, and am currently on loan in service to Grand Admiral Thrawn and the Chimaera; Admiral Ar’alani decided to dispatch me to maintain Chiss interests and the Grand Admiral decided I would be the least threatening face for you to wake up to. If you’re up to it, the Grand Admiral is interested in making your acquaintance, but he has chosen to leave that up to you. If you do choose to meet him you’ll probably want to eat first though, I don’t know how long it’s been since you last ate but I imagine you are quite hungry.”
“I’m not hungry,” Jacen lied. If they were Imperial, then they might try to poison him. Eli raised his eyebrows, but didn’t challenge him on it. Instead he keyed on his wrist comm, bringing it to his mouth as he eyed Jacen casually. “Commander Vanto?” the voice on the other side chimed.
“I’m here.”
“What can I do for you sir?”
“I need some food brought to the room. A double portion of whatever you’re serving in the mess hall; assuming it’s edible, of course. And throw in something sweet if you can,” he added lightly.
“Acknowledged. Anything else sir?”
Eli gave Jacen a questioning look but Jacen shook his head. “No, that should be all.”
“Very well sir, we’ll get that to you as soon as we can.”
“Thanks. Vanto out.” Eli keyed his comm back off, returning his attention to Jacen. “What?”
“I told you I’m not hungry.”
“You’ll be eating exactly what everyone else on the ship is eating, myself included. If you have any allergies we’ll need to know, but otherwise there shouldn’t be any issues.”
“I’m not hungry,” Jacen persisted, valiantly resisting the growing pain in his abdomen.
Eli chuckled affably. “Say what you want, but I’ve never met a boy your age who wasn’t hungry.”
Jacen blushed with embarrassment, earning another small chuckle. “You may change your mind after you see it, but I promise you it tastes better than it looks. After we eat you can decide what you want to do from there.”
“I can decide?”
Eli nodded. “The list of activities is rather limited of course, but it’s still better than sitting around in an empty room all day.”
“What can I do?”
Eli scratched some nonexistent stubble on his chin. “Well, you can ask me questions, I’m sure there’s a lot you want to know, you can meet the Grand Admiral if you want, once your droid is awake we can go visit him, I have some games on my questis- that’s a Chiss datapad- my little sister recommended some to me, and, well, I’m open to suggestions. I’m afraid warships don’t have a lot to do for fun. If the New Republic and Empire were on more friendly terms I’d give you a tour of the ship, but I’m afraid you’re a bit too vent-sized for that to be wise. Afterall, I’d hate for your mother to arrive with you half starved and lost in the ventilation system when she gets here.”
Jacen chewed his lips. He could make this work, probably. He could still glean some useful information from Vanto, get a better bearing of his situation, figure out a plan B with Chopper…meet the Grand Admiral. Jacen shivered. The thought terrified and thrilled him. Ezra had returned from isolation nearly a month ago, and Jacen remembered well the way he and the others spoke of Grand Admiral Thrawn. Mom had spent weeks trying to convince the council of the impending danger Thrawn’s return meant. In the end, she hadn’t been able to convince them that Thrawn was a threat, especially since he had disappeared as quickly as he had reappeared. At the time he had yet to make a move, though mom had been certain Thrawn was up to something. Which apparently, he had been, only it wasn’t something any of them had seen coming.
Thrawn’s return made mom afraid, so the thought of meeting him was frightening, especially with the stories he had heard. As well as the fact that he was involved in dad’s death. His sacrifice- dad’s sacrifice, and Ezra’s sacrifice. Dad, Ezra, and Gregor- they all sacrificed to save Lothal and its people from Thrawn. If it weren’t for Thrawn, dad and Gregor never would have died, and Ezra would never have had to leave. They would all be home, and Jacen never would have had to pretend to know what they were like, wonder what they looked like, what they liked to eat for breakfast, what they sounded like- never would have had to wonder if his dad’s beard was scratchy or if he gave good hugs. Never wonder how excited Gregor got over Joopas, or wonder what made Ezra smile. Most painfully, he never would’ve needed to wonder what his dad would have been like. What kind of dad he would be, how he would treat his son. Would he be proud? Mom said he was, but hearing it from her wasn’t the same. Mom said Kanan loved him, and Jacen felt that was true, but he’d never heard it from his dad in person. Maybe if he became force-sensitive, if he became a jedi, maybe then he would be able to talk to his dad. Ahsoka and Ezra had talked to Yoda, the old jedi master, through the force even after Yoda had died. Maybe if Jacen learned how to use the force, became strong enough, sensitive enough- maybe he could finally meet his dad.
A thought sparked in his mind. “Do you know anything about Jedi?” he blurted.
Eli gave him a puzzled look, pursing his lips and glancing at the door before answering. “I would hardly say I’m an expert,” he replied diplomatically. “but I can do some research if you want. It probably wouldn’t be anything you don’t already know though.”
Jacen nodded sullenly. He shouldn’t have expected anything. Eli had been to the Unknown Regions, and the thought of it had excited him. Eli had been places no one else had- or at least, that no one else Jacen had met had been. That didn’t mean Eli would know anything others didn’t about Jedi though. It was kind of a stupid question to ask. Jacen didn’t know what had come over him.
Jacen heard footsteps outside the room, and he looked up sharply. The door chimed then slid open, and Jacen got a peek out into the room’s outer defenses. He saw the shadows of stormtroopers standing guard outside the door. Beyond them was a red ray shield and another pair of troopers. Then the woman at the door entered and the door shut. She wore a crisp gray Imperial uniform, had curly but neatly trimmed black hair, and held a large tray of food in her hands.
Jacen felt his tummy rumble, and looked back quickly to see if Eli had noticed. Fortunately for Jacen, his oddly polite captor had already risen to accept the tray from the newcomer and give her his thanks before she left. Jacen’s hunger went unnoticed, for now. The door opened, the room beyond was revealed momentarily, and disappeared as the door closed again.
Eli cleared his throat, and Jacen jumped. He hadn’t realized Eli was still watching him. Eli handed Jacen a plate and some utensils, and Jacen accepted them bashfully. Eli crossed to the right wall, held the tray with its remaining plates with his off hand, and pressed a couple buttons on the wall. A slab slid out of the wall at waist height, and next came two, well, they looked like they were meant for sitting but they had popped out of the wall? Eli set the tray down on the slab and settled onto one of the wall-chairs. The slab, apparently, was a table. Or a desk. Something like that. Eli took a dish from the tray, setting it across from him in front of the other chair. Jacen peered at it curiously, trying not to show his interest by staying on the cot instead of getting up to investigate. ‘ It looks like ice cream ,’ Jacen thought longingly. He looked back at the plate Eli had given him. It didn’t look like anything he had eaten before, but it smelled good and Eli was eating the same thing; he looked quite happy to be eating it actually.
Jacen raised a spoonful of the substance to his mouth skeptically, then took a bite. Then he took another bite. And another bite. And another. Soon the food was gone, and Jacen stared blankly at the barren plate. Had he really just eaten all of that? That quickly? How long had it been since he’d last eaten? Had it really been that long?
How long have I been gone? Suddenly Jacen felt like his stomach was full of rocks. Mom must be worried sick. Where is she? Where am I?
Jacen drew his knees up to his head and wrapped his arms around his legs.
When am I going to go home? Am I going to go home? His eyes became watery, and he buried his face into his arms.