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Chapter Text

Chapter 1 

"…and of course, we have had our fair share of Grysk encounters since entering the New Republic's territory." Senior Captain Ziinda sighed into her thoughts before giving a short laugh. "It seems the New Republic has narrow vision when it comes to external threats. They still seem to think that the Empire was the worst of evils."

"Well, that is what you get when you place armed activists in power. They have all the gumption but none of the expertise to run politics or an effective military. Though, from my research, it seems Admiral Akbar is doing a fine job on his own." Faro admitted, glancing down at the Questus and back up again. She had been reading a lot these days, trying to catch up on what had happened during her imprisonment.

"Though not even he is spared the backlash of political affairs, one of the representatives from Bothawi seems to have some kind of scandal on him. It is causing a great deal of trouble." Lieutenant Dawel chimed in from across the room.

"Speaking of trouble," Faro glanced at the Senior Captain, "How much longer do you think we'll be out here for? I fear I may sound petulant, but would it not serve us better to not wait around for the New Republic to find us?"

She was half expecting Ziinda to be upset with her. After all, the Chiss had done things scarily effectively in the past. She almost regretted asking.

"It is not my idea of a solid plan, but they are orders," Ziinda stated. Even through her thick Chuenh accent, Faro could hear the tiredness in her voice. She didn't want to be here either, but she was a dutiful warrior. "As I said, waiting out here is merely a checkpoint to see that your shuttle wasn't followed."

Faro could understand that, even though she was developing a rather impatient mentality over the last three days. With so much happening, and with Thrawn's confession, it left her on the edge of her seat to find out the proper actions so she may see him at last.

"I understand," Faro replied and meant it. Orders were orders.

The rest of the dinner was peaceful. It came and went. With Faro being so used to a structured day, the first 48 hours of freedom left her surprisingly clueless about "free time".

"I need to talk to you."

"Blast it all! Kelta-Pik, whatever your name is." Faro jumped as the blonde Deathtrooper seemingly appeared behind her in the hallway on the way to her quarters.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"'What's wrong?'," she echoed, "you frightened me, damn it. Were you just standing there waiting for me to leave and decide to pounce the moment I round the corner?" Her tone was scolding, but she was still waiting for her heart to slow down. She was not used to surprises, and it seemed like she needed to get that fixed quickly.

"Didn't think admirals scare that easily," Pik muttered with a slight grin.

Faro's face warmed with indignation.

"You know I liked it better when you troopers wore your armor and said nothing except when taking orders." Her eyes narrowed.

"I'm sure you felt more empowered than you were entitled to."

Faro clenched her teeth.

"And what does that mean?" She demanded.

Pik threw his hands up in mock surrender.

"Are you ordering me? Or do I get to have free will?" he asked. Faro deciphered his tone to be one of humor, but there was something in his eyes that seemed to resonate a deeper meaning.

Faro's eyes darkened.

"I may have been out of commission for a while, but I'm fairly confident that position and rank still apply." She hissed. "It would be a shame for the Grand Admiral to hear about my treatment."

Pik's black eyes somehow also grew darker.

"I've put my life on the line for him more times than I can count; it was my job. Now it's my choice. Don't forget that I was there to bring him back to life while you were being awarded for being his favorite. I may be a lower rank, I may be just another lackey to you, but to him, I'm as much of a warrior as you are."

Faro swallowed. Pik's full stature seemed to suddenly be known to her, and she felt small in his shadow. So that's what this was about, respect?

"Didn't think Deathtroopers were capable of feelings." Faro couldn't help my smirk as she turned away from him.

She didn't bother with continuing the conversation that Pik wanted to have. If it was important, she'll hear it later, but she could do without his sarcasm and bitterness.

"I still need to talk to you." Pik's voice grumbled behind her.

"If it's important, tell it to Senior Captain Ziinda." She called over her shoulder. Faro walked to her quarters and locked the door behind her.

She collapsed onto the armchair in the room, letting herself sink into the cushions. The soft texture and lofty support of the chair were a welcome change from the prison ones. The silence, too, with the exception of the slight hum of the ship, was nice and peaceful.

Faro played Thrawn's recording on the Questus that was given to her.

Of course, she would accept his offer. Of course, she would choose him.

Her own family probably hated her. Faro's own mother would turn her over to the New Republic for ransom money. She didn't know what her sister would do, but it would probably be whatever their mother instructed. Thrawn didn't know about her relationship with her family, but the choice to retire and "live out her days" was a thoughtful one at least.

She still couldn't believe how incredibly lucky she had been. Yes, escaping the prison was an amazing feat, albeit a tragic on,e the way Pik handled it. But Thrawn's confession, in his own words stating that he longed to hold her-was one of the most incredible things of all.

She had always respected her commander, but straight-up adoration was something she refused to let herself admit.

The intercom beeped, calling her out of her thoughts. Ziinda's voice came over loudly and quickly.

"Admiral Faro, you are needed on the bridge, immediately." Faro snapped to her feet.
 

"On my way, Senior Captain." She replied and hurriedly walked to the bridge. A quick two minutes later, she arrived at the Greyshrike's bridge.

"We have a strong reason to believe they will be here within the hour." The Senior Captain informed.

"How did you come about this information?" Faro asked. Ziinda frowned at her.

"How we came about it is irrelevant." She said in a tone that demanded she would not discuss it further. "We do not know what is waiting for us, but there is a decent chance it may be too overwhelming for us."

Faro frowned. However, they predicted their future, which seemed to confuse her even more. But what could they do now?

"Have the Chiss ever engaged in a fight with the New Republic? Have they seen your craft, design, and architecture?" Faro asked.

Ziinda gave her a patient look.

"I hardly think they have a tactical genius with an art fascination on their side." She all but rolled her eyes at Faro.

Faro had to keep her own expression in check at that remark.

"No. I mean, have they seen the Chiss species at all?" Faro simplified.

"No, this would be the first known Encounter in at least a thousand years," Ziinda said. "I see your point, Admiral. But what is your idea?"

"Who says I have an idea?" Faro said. "You're the ship's commander." She pointed out.

"Yes, a ship's commander who's bringing Grand Admiral Thrawn's Second in Command, you must have something lined up already." Ziinda folded her arms.

Faro was quiet for a moment. She was right in two regards, one, she was Thrawn's second, and tw,o she did indeed have a plan in mind.

"Well, first of all, let's ditch the stolen shuttle, wouldn't want to be caught with the contraband," Faro suggested. "We should ensure that the shuttle is destroyed, but not so completely to be unrecognized by our pursuers."

"By loading the shuttle full of explosives?" Ziinda asked.

"Precisely, that way, we can ensure that they won't find bodies or similar inside. When they do go to take a look, we should be long gone by then."

"Or cloaked," Ziinda said thoughtfully. Faro blinked at her, nearly forgetting that Chiss ships have cloaking capabilities.

Faro shook her head.

"We can't cloak," Faro said. If they were tracking that ship, we won't be far enough away in time for them not to be able to scan for life forms." She reasoned. "Can we just jump away, or is there another checkpoint I'm unaware of?"

"We can." She ordered, but there was a hesitancy in her tone. "There's one other part to our mission: to gather information about the New Republic fleet. We want to know what they're willing to send us to get to you."

"Is that 'we' want to or the Grand Admiral?" Faro asked.

"They are orders, but we do have a first priority." Senior Captain Ziinda acknowledged.

So that's why we were waiting so damn long out in the middle of nowhere. It was a checkpoint, alright. Checking up on the enemy.

"I see," Faro said, trying not to sound too dry about it. "In that case, we do a bit of acting."

"None of us speaks basic all too well, except for me," Ziinda replied.

"You don't have to. You're a lifeboat now. You are refugees from the unknown regions. When the shuttle found you, they wanted to come aboard, but when you refused, they threatened you, and they faced the consequences." Faro said.

Ziinda nodded her head slightly, processing what she said.

"It could work," Ziina said thoughtfully. "It can give us just enough time to survey their ship."

"How quickly do you think your crew can get to hyperspace?" Faro asked. Ziinda smiled a little as if she had just said something amusing.

"Quickly," Ziinda assured.

"Good." Faro let out a small sigh. She silently hoped this would be straightforward enough. But there was something itching in the back of her mind that suggested that this could go horribly wrong.

Hi everyone, I'm back! Don't worry, I didn't forget this series, I just struggled to find a place to start; the first chapters are always the toughest. Let me know what you think so far! 

Chapter Text

Chapter 2

Faro's throat tightened. She did not like this at all. Damn the New Republic. Damn it all.

"Escape now, take your escort, we will lead them away." Senior Captain Ziinda handed Faro some kind of data card. "Review this in a safe location, we will rendezvous here, if not the Greyshrike, then someone on our side."  

Faro pocketed the card. "Senior Captain, may I suggest one more thing?"

As if Ziinda didn't look stressed enough, her glowing red eyes indicated a less-than-patient look.

"You may."

"Use Turbolasers only, no breacher missiles, no plasmaspheres. I have a feeling it's far too early to reveal all Chiss assets before the war has even started."

Ziinda considered this. "You're right. But your window of escape is closing. We may barely make it out of this, but you have a better chance on your own. Go now!" She ordered.

Faro glanced around at the bridge searching for Pik, and found him by the doors giving her an urgent look.

"Yes, ma'am." Faro nodded and saluted Ziinda before she left.

She and Pik followed two Chiss warriors down the halls and lifts to the alien escape pods.

"You're sure they won't scan these? It would be a pretty instant death." Pik said.

"Chiss crafts are very uniquely designed. They have cloaking shields." She sat down in the co-pilot's seat next to him. "They won't even see us."

"let's hope you're right." He muttered as the pod came to life. Faro resented that remark, she did not consider herself to be a proud person, but the way Pik doubted her did have an effect on her pride. The doors behind them sealed shut with a loud, startling hiss, right before they jettisoned from the warship. 

Faro felt her body being forced back into the seat as the pod's speed increased. As their rate stabilized, the forced feeling went away and the artificial gravity allowed her to sink better into the chair.

In a matter of minutes, the barrage of the New Republic's laser cannons on the Greyshrike was silenced.

 "We're out of their scanning range," Pik informed her. Faro glanced at the star map, on the nav computer there were only a few moons and planets out there. She took out the data card and plugged it in.

"Yaga Minor." She read aloud. "the rendezvous is on Yaga Minor." It wasn't the closest civilization nearby, but she understood why the meeting place would be there. It was a shipyard world, with just enough traffic that two outsiders could blend in. 

The only thing was, there was hardly enough fuel to get them there. If they had any problems getting there, they would be stranded.

Faro felt her throat tighten. Pik was thinking the same thing, she could tell. He had this grim expression on his face and a hard look on his brow.

"We'll be fine." He said, being surprisingly assuring. Faro let his words hang in the air. "Your plan was a good one, by the way. Turning the warship into a refugee ship. Ziinda really sold it."

"Are you mocking me?" Faro snapped.

"No." He said firmly. "I mean it. The New Republic is very empathetic to struggling people groups. Had it not been for the numbers they had, and their trigger-happy commander aboard. We might have gotten away with it."

Faro still wasn't sure how the Chiss could have possibly predicted that attack. Whatever technology or Jedi they had aboard, they needed one of those in the Empire.

"Well…" Faro struggled to find her voice, trying to comprehend the compliment he gave her. "Thank you." She didn't let her words linger. "I still don't understand why they fired at us first, it's not like what I've read about the New Republic at all. Ziinda's words posed no threat. Sure, the ship configuration was foreign, but, why fire?"

"I don't know what compromised us. All I know is that the New Republic has been rather twitchy lately. It's probably not even your fault. As I said, they had a trigger-happy commander."

"Senior Captain Ziinda said she saw Grysk forces coming closer to the mid-rim territories. Do you think it's likely the New Republic is aware of their presence?" Faro asked him.

"Even if they had, and the New Republic assumed us to be them, they should know that open communication is not a trademark of the Grysk. Even the former Assistant Director Ronan was smart enough to pick up on that." He replied.

Faro pondered a moment. She had always despised the arrogant, idiotic man that was Brierly Ronan. He hated Thrawn and the Chimera and actively plotted against him and stuck his nose in their operations. If he wasn't kissing Director Krennic's boots, blinding him to reality, that kind of loyalty would almost be inspiring. 

"Whatever happened to him? Is he still with the Chiss?" Faro asked.

"he was shipped off with Admiral Ara'lani, as you know. About three weeks later, the Grand Admiral was informed that he had tried to make a break for it. He stole a ship and tried to leave. When the Chiss tracked the ship down, they found that he had died trying to bargain with Wild Space smugglers." 

"Oh," Faro replied, trying to sound more sorry than she felt.

"He wasn't very bright was he?" Pik's black eyes glanced at her.

"No." She said, poorly trying to keep the humor out by not smiling. Faro cleared her throat.

"We have four hours until we arrive. I suggest you get some sleep." Pik encouraged.

Faro was going to protest but then reality caught up with her. Once they reached Yaga Minor, they were going to need to be awake and alert. She nodded to him in acknowledgment and tried to make herself comfortable in the Co-pilot's seat.

Faro relived the recent events in her mind. She wished she could have handled with the situation on board the Greyshrike better. She had always considered herself to be more capable than that. She should have seen what was coming.

"You're nothing without him…" The old echo in her mind returned.

Maybe it was true. Ziinda had counted on having Thrawn's second to handle a relatively simple situation. The Chiss were a proud species, the fact that she had wanted an alien's input was nothing short of an honor. And she had failed her. Maybe if Thrawn had been there, he would have had it all figured out the moment they knew the New Republic was coming.

After so many years out of Imperial service, maybe she was losing her touch.

Faro let her sobering thoughts encourage her tiredness. Closing her eyes, she let sleep carry those thoughts away.

-

When Faro woke, she felt warm, and sort of safe in a strange way. She found that a compression blanket had been laid on her while she was sleeping.

"What the…?" She mumbled.

"You looked cold," Pik said, his eyes not looking at her. "I found it in the back, figured you could use it."

"How thoughtful." She said with a touch of humor. She had to admit for sleeping in a chair, she was pretty comfortable. But she was confused. The ex. Deathtrooper actively undermined her and questioned her judgment and authority. Was this him actually being nice? Or was this some kind of protocol?

"We're about to reach orbit. Figured you'd want to be awake." Pik indicated to the screen. There are some clear spaces next to the spaceport. We'll land out there and make our way into the city on foot."

"Sounds good." Faro agreed, removing the blanket from her lap. Sitting upright in her seat, she assisted in preparing to land.

Getting down to the planet was easy enough. There were no disturbances and no incoming calls.

Yaga Minor was a relatively quiet, smuggling world and scrap yard. But, it was still running within New Republic Territory, which meant their heads would still need to be on swivels.

 It must've been a fall or spring month on the planet, there was a light chill for this time of day, and relatively high humidity.

For the last several years, Faro had endured synthetic air flow in New Republic prison. Even after being out for a few days now, she was still sensitive to the changes in pressure, temperature, and humidity.

The forest was quiet, except for the call of the wildlife every now and then.

"Yavvitiri Spaceport is 3 and a half clicks west of here." Pik's voice was quiet, matching the hushed tone of the forest. "If we keep going without stopping, we'll have the sun behind us until we reach the spaceport in broad daylight."

"Is it safe to move in the dim like this?" Faro asked, feeling stupid for asking.

"There are worse forests to trek in the galaxy." he shrugged.

"So, yes?" Faro raised an eyebrow.

"If it makes you feel better, sure." Pik started ahead of her. Shaking her head, she followed after him.

Happy Valentines Day lovely people! I think I might make Tuesdays a regular posting time. I'm not super happy with the last two chapters, but it's just simply set up. Have a great day! 

Chapter Text

Chapter 3

The Yavvitiri Spaceport wasn't the most crowded city she had been to, but there was more foot traffic than she had expected for a planet that was supposedly infamous for its repaired and fixed space and land craft. It wasn't that there weren't roads where speeders could drive on, but the simple fact there seemed to be a lack of speeder traffic in general.

"Why is everyone on foot?" Faro asked Pik as they slowly made their way through the main road. There was no immediate response.

"Interesting how you can see the absence of speeders, but you can't see the poverty inflicted on the people." Another back-handed comment, Faro thought to herself.

"I see them." Faro replied. "but even in towns like these there is usually a class system. Did the fall of the Empire really affect the Outer Rim territories this badly?"

"This is the first time I'm seeing it up close too." He replied. "Imperial credits are worth virtually nothing. Honest laborers were hit the most. But even upper-class groups were affected too, if they couldn't change their assets quickly enough, they suffered too. The only people groups that unanimously survived are smugglers and criminals. In war, out of war, they always profit."

Faro felt another twinge of hatred towards the Rebel Alliance and the New Republic.

"I believe it was Grand Moff Tarkin who oversaw trade routes through here for Project Stardust, as you know it, the Death Star."

"So when the trade stopped, the money stopped." Faro thought aloud. Pik hummed in agreement, as he kept his eyes trained around them.

"I don't suppose you know where specifically we were told to meet?" He asked that low rumble in his voice again.

"No." She replied.

"We can't be wandering out here all day, people will start to notice."  He whispered behind her. Faro knew he was right. She could only pretend for so long to be interested in shopkeepers' wares  before some vendor would get pissy at her for not buying something already

Faro spent the rest of the afternoon and evening wandering about the small city, with Pik in tow behind. They didn't stop to talk to anyone. During the years locked in a New Republic prison, Faro hadn't adequate exercise, so she found herself quite tired, and her feet sore.

The sun was starting to cast long shadows over Yavvitiri. And it was starting to match Faro's mood.
 

"We can't stay out on the street," Pik said, walking up behind her as she passed by yet another fruit stall. Faro nodded tiredly in agreement.

"I don't think whoever we're supposed to meet is here yet."

"Could have told you that hours ago," Pik said.

"and what would you have done hours ago?" Faro snapped, turning towards him. The sarcasm was getting more and more on her nerves. Her fatigue, combined with his attitude was starting to create a sour mix.

"Fair enough." he conceded. "There's an inn a block back, I suggest we get places to stay, we don't want to be out here during nightfall."

Faro nodded, knowing full well that smugglers tend to operate at night and other people of a poor reputation in polite society. She did not want to get caught up in something inescapable.

They retraced their steps back to the inn. And just in time too, Faro was becoming increasingly aware of blisters forming on her ankles from the boots she wore.

"Two rooms please," Pik said, setting the credits on the counter.

The Innkeeper was an Ithorian, with a translator box on his mouth. But Faro didn't need him to speak to realize his hesitancy. He looked at the credits, then at something on his data pad.

"I'm sorry." He said, "but this will only get you a single room."

"Your rates posted outside said something different," Pik said, sounding annoyed. The Ithorian man's eyes seemed to wince a little.

"I know, I am sorry for that. I'm not trying to swindle you. Those rates were good up until last month, I'm waiting for a buddy of mine to make a new sign for me."

"I take it business is not good," Faro said.

"It's not our inn's fault, I promise you that." He said indignantly. "My grandfather ran this business, and my sister is always telling me I'm going to run it into the ground."

Faro clearly had accidentally touched a nerve with the innkeeper.

"Look, I'm sorry, that's just family drama. This is the going rate now," he showed them on the data pad. Faro and Pik looked at the price. For two rooms it was certainly more than what they had.

Pik glanced at her, probably trying to guess what she wanted to do.

"We'll take the single room," Faro replied. It wasn't a big deal. She could sleep on a cot for something. It would be just like basic training. 

"I can get you an extra cot, if you'd like." The Ithorian said as if reading her mind.

"Yes please," Faro replied. They exchanged the credits for the key card. Pik and Faro went upstairs. The room was pretty spacious as far as rental rooms went. Pik let her shower first and after cleaning up, she discovered they had brought the cot and set it up. She was about to sit down when Pik's sharp tone cut into her tired thoughts.

"What are you doing?" He demanded.
 

"I was… just going lay down," Faro replied. "Is that a problem?"

He pointed to the bed.

"That is where you sleep."

"No it's alright," Faro assured. "I can be quite comfortable on the cot."

"If Grand Admiral Thrawn learns I let you sleep on a cot, I doubt he'd be very pleased."

"You know about that?" Faro asked him.

"About what?"

"Err… nothing. Why would be displeased? I thought you said you were a warrior too. Why should I get the bed and you get to sleep in the cot? I thought you dispelled all rank." She was half serious and half poking him for his earlier behavior.

Pik took in a sharp breath.

"just do it, please," he said tiredly.

Faro looked into his black eyes. "yeah, alright." She quietly surrendered. She sat down on the bed, the cushion and blankets her soft on her skin, and she had to admit, this was far more comfortable.

Pik sat down on the cot and caught her eye once again.

"I'm confused." Faro said into the silence. "perhaps you can help."

"I'll see what I can do," he replied, tiredness creeping into his tone.

"Ever since I met you, you've been cold, sarcastic, respectful, kind once or twice, and argumentative. I can't keep up with your mood swings. I suppose it all boils down to a single question, why?"

Pik laid down on his back and inhaled. Faro was pretty sure he wasn't going to reply, until…

"Ever since I pulled the Grand Admiral out of that wreckage, I've felt different. No one was giving me orders, there was just one person to protect, and answers to find. But that whole experience rattled what I knew, and changed who I was. I was more than a Deathtrooper. Am more than a Deathtrooper."

"You've found yourself liberated from your training." Faro thought aloud.

"Exactly. I am more than a title or a servant. I'm a warrior, yes. But I am a person with needs and wants, just like you."

Faro thought about that. For years she had fallen into despair because of her failing as a leader and feeling aimless since Thrawn's supposed death.

She remembered her Interrogation with Kallus in the New Republic prison, how she had told herself to think for herself, to save herself from pain and suffering. Instead, she had still committed herself to Thrawn, the Empire, and the secrets shared with her.

If She had thought for herself, she would not have suffered. She probably would not have gone to prison. If she had thought for herself, she would not be on her way towards Thrawn, but away from him where she could live out her life elsewhere, where she would have the liberty to do whatever she wanted.

But, she was thinking about her crew, when she surrendered to the New Republic and the lives under her care. She was thinking about Thrawn, and fighting in his name to honor his sacrifice. She was thinking about her failures to do better. And even now she was thinking about serving a higher purpose, greater than herself. And as odd as a concept as that was, she was fine with it.

"It's not an excuse for my behavior, I am sorry for that."

"You are discovering yourself." Faro nodded. "I understand."

"Well, I still apologize. I never want to upset you." Pik said, that low rumble in her tone again.

Faro nodded slowly. Processing what he said. She laid down and pulled the covers over her shoulder. It would explain her behavior. She had heard a little about what kind of training Deathtroopers had to go through, and only a few rumors about the medical procedures they undergo. Whatever kind of programming they used, it was broken now. He was a person now.

"He loves you, doesn't he? Isn't what he told you in that data card you were given on the Greyshrike?"

Faro tensed a little bit in her bed.

"How did you know?" she asked.

"Because Thrawn wouldn't want you to sleep on a cot either."

Faro shut her eyes. She didn't want to have his conversation while she was this tired.

"Goodnight, Pik." She said firmly.

Despite her exhaustion, Faro's mind was still very much awake. She was on the bridge of the Chimera, she could remember it clear as day, Hammerly, Pyrondi, and the others at their stations, Thrawn was just ahead of her, his hands clasped behind his back. He glanced over his shoulder at her.

"Karyn," he said. It was clearly informal, but she did not mind. Her name coming from his mouth was sweeter than anything she ever tasted.

"Sir." She replied. She herself was still rigidly formal and unsure. She started to walk over to him when suddenly the glass on the bridge shattered, with a loud crash. In a single instant, Thrawn had been standing there, and then he was gone, sucked out into space. The other officers screamed in panic and pain as they tried to hang on as she was. The vacuum of air that resulted was so loud it was ringing in her ear, almost over the curdled screams of her crewmates being sucked out into the frozen space. Faro hadn’t realized it, but she was also screaming. She was terrified. He was there, he was right there and now he was gone. She could not do anything to prevent it. She was helpless to save Thrawn.

Faro woke up in a panic.

"Faro, Karyn! Hey!"

Someone was gripping her arm. She swung into the darkness and landed on something firm.

A tense, "Oof!" Could be barely heard above Faro's panicked breaths.

"Pik? Oh, I- I'm so sorry!" 

"It's fine." He said wincing.

"Where did I hit you?" She asked.

"Not important." He said, and a moment later he turned on the light. "Are you okay? You started screaming."

"Yes, it was only a dream," Faro assured him.

"hell of a dream." Pik scratched his neck tiredly.

Faro shivered, bordering on tears. Unfortunately, Pik noticed.

"Are you okay?" Pik asked his hand on her shoulder. Faro nodded an affirmative, but anyone could tell she was lying.

She turned into him, overcome with the nightmares of the past of Losing Thrawn. She knew he was alive, but he felt so far away.

Pik let her calm down in his arms, he was unsure of what to do, or how to help, but he figured just being there was enough.

Faro let him go, as she tried some breathing exercises, which felt sleep-inducing.

"Are you going to be okay?" Pik asked her.

"Yes," She check her chrono, she probably had another hour or so before it was considered appropriate to officially awake. "I'm-I'm going to return to sleep, for a little while." Pik nodded and after watching her lay back down, he left to shower.

Faro did not get to return to sleep. She lay there, her eyes wide open. She watched as the light was starting to make objects more visible in the room. Just then she heard a knock at the door.

Faro sat up and cautiously went to the door. She could hear the shower still running. Pik wouldn't be able to help her if it was trouble. She couldn't see who it was. She would have to open the door.

Who could it be? At best, housekeeping, at worse? Who could have possibly known who they were? Or know they were here? Did the New Republic find them? The soft knock came again.

If it was the New Republic, they probably would not have even bothered knocking.

Faro opened the door and froze.

In an orange jumpsuit and brown vest. Faro knew exactly who it was. He was older, sure, the facial hair indicated as such. But she would never forget him. Never.

 The man before her was Ezra Bridger.

Everyone's favorite Space Aladdin is here! yay! Apologies for not posting last Tuesday, this was a huge chapter, and I  write in my spare time between my classes.  

Chapter Text

Chapter 4

A mix of anger and frustration swirled inside Faro's mind. How was he here? Why? She didn't understand it, she didn't want to understand it. She just wanted to kill him or hit him or something.

"You!"  She swung her right arm at his face. Landing the hit, she had knocked him into the hallway. He stumbled backward trying to regain his balance. "You son of a--."

"Karyn-! No wait!" a familiar voice said in a panic. Someone grabbed her arms and restrained her. Faro turned her head to see who it was and stopped.

"Eli?" Faro recognized him. For a moment she forgot about Ezra, and she threw her arms around Eli. 

"Hey, Admiral." he returned the hug. "it's good to see you."

"You're here! I can't believe it." It had been so many years since she had last seen him. They used to be such good friends. And finding out he was alive after all this time, well she was relieved. "What- why… why are you with him?" Faro turn around to Ezra, who had properly distanced himself from her.

"We were sent to get you." Eli replied. "he's with us."

"yeah, I'm on your side." Ezra agreed, massaging his nose.

"Sure you are." Faro narrowed her eyes at him. "You are the singular reason we're in this mess." 

"No one told you?" Eli asked her.

"Told me what?" She replied.

"I made a deal with your Grand Admiral. I can tell you about it," Ezra glanced around, "but… probably not the best place to do that."

"We both were sent to find you, but we had to sneak past New Republic forces to get in. I think they may have found your crash site." Eli said.

"Then we better hurry," Faro replied.

"Wait, where's your escort?" Eli asked her.

"In the shower, I think."

"Wrong." Pik's voice called. Faro glanced back inside the room only to find him just time for him to put on his shirt, she averted her eyes. But the fresh image of seeing that was hard to remove from her mind. "Commander Vanto," Pik greeted him as he walked to the doorway. "Good to see you."

"We-." Ezra was about to say something when shouting came out from the first floor of the Inn. Faro could hear the Innkeeper loudly yelling at someone.

"we'd better go, now," Pik said, his arm wrapping around Faro and ushering her toward the rest of the hallway.

"You can't see seen here, Bridger," Eli muttered quickly in alarm.

"Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. Is there another way out of here?" Ezra asked no one in particular.

"You can't go up there those are paying guests!" Faro heard the Ithorian's frustrated voice call up the stairs. At once, the four of them started running down the hallway.

"There should be a window just ahead of us," Pik said.

"You've been here before?" Faro asked him.

"I saw it from the street." He said, rounding the hallway corner. Sure enough, there was a window that was conveniently open too.

Pik ran and jumped out the window, Ezra did it too.

"Jump I'll catch you!" Pik called to her. Faro swallowed hard, it wasn't the scariest thing she had ever done, but looking down like that was unnerving.

"Eli, here!" Ezra offered.

"You first Admiral," Eli said encouragingly.

"Wait! Stop right there!" A man's voice ordered them.

"Together then!" Faro said, and they jumped down together. Pik caught her in his arms, and Ezra caught Eli using his force powers. Watching him use his Jedi sorcery created a mix of feelings she would have to deal with later. 

"Run!" Pik ordered them, but they didn't need to be told as they already sprinted towards the alleyways, trying to get off the street.

"Was it the New Republic?" Faro asked.

"Who else could it have been?" Pik gritted his teeth.

"I don't suppose you could tell your friends to call off the hunt?" Faro asked Ezra.

"These people are not my friends," Ezra said, trying to sound assuring while also being out of breath.

"Really? You'll forgive my skepticism." Faro said in annoyance.

"I told you, he's on our side," Eli said. Faro followed Pik to an adjacent street.

"Do you two have a ship?" Pik stopped In the alley, he seemed fine, but everyone else was wildly out of breath.

"We do, docking bay 43," Eli said, panting. Faro just now became aware that Eli was wearing a Chiss Ascendancy uniform, only it possessed no patches or markings. She had heard that the fibers of the uniform also stop blaster bolts.

"How far is that?" Faro asked.

"Not far," Ezra said. "I remember where it is, wait-." there was an awkward pause. Faro noted that Briger was standing ridged for a fraction of a second. Before she could ask what was wrong, a large RZ-68 troop transport loomed overhead. The sound of the rear thrusters was deafening as it appeared to land at a spaceport located at the end of the road beside them.

Large crowds started to form, flocking to the outside of the port. They all seemed to be wondering what the New Republic was doing here. It was a good enough cover, and Pik was starting to figure that out.

Faro could hear the crowd starting to ask questions and clamoring to see what was going on. If this was an Imperial investigation, they would have troopers rounding witnesses up for questioning, and kept them from getting involved and in the way. But this wasn't Imperial, and Faro was partly curious to see what they would do, and the other part wanted to get out of there.

She nearly jumped as some people started filling up the alleyway, standing right next to the group of four.  She gave Pik a side glance, and he gently nodded his head at her. He grabbed her wrist and started walking into the crowd.

Faro looked behind her to see if Eli and Ezra were following behind them, and they were. They waded through the crowds, which contained a healthy mix of aliens and humans alike. Suddenly the crowd erupted into a single noise. At first, she couldn't make it out, but then it became clear to her that they were expressing sounds of disapproval, by booing, yelling, and hissing.

Faro couldn't believe it. They were booing the New Republic. The civilians were booing the New Republic. Suddenly they fell quiet and the four of them stopped in their tracks. Faro looked through the many heads and found a familiar face.

"Is that…?" Ezra's hushed voice trailed off.

"You dear ex-agent Kallus?" Faro said, her jaw set a little, remembering the torture he inflicted on her. "Yeah, that's him." 

"Cooperation is key, if you have any information, there will be a reward. If you recognize these humans…" another round of disapproving sounds from the crowd. "Help us help you," he continued even louder. "…keep the planet safe. One of the Humans is a high-profile ex-imperial officer, Admiral Karyn Faro, there are others not yet identified but if you have seen. We will start by asking questions, if you know anything, we'll start by forming a line…"

Faro ducked her head down, as his voice suddenly went quiet. Had he seen her? She held her breath, Pik's hand tightened on her wrist.

"Faro, I see you. No need to make this difficult."  Kallus said, and some parts of the crowd started turning their head looking straight for her. Ezra had already ducked, And Eli was watching her, with just as tense eyes as she had.

Pik's hand squeezed her even harder.

 "Split up and run." He said with a low growl In his tone.

"Stop them!" Kallus called. Pik and Faro broke out into a sprint. With Pik's speed greater than her own, he was practically dragging Faro.

Some of the crowds were making things difficult for them. One Rodian grabbed her free wrist and tried to pull her away.

He grunted something about needing a reward and yanked on her arm. She tried to fight him off but it was difficult with their forward motion. Pik finally stopped and turned around long enough to notice. He swung at the Rodian, landing the hit, and kicked him in the knees. Faro winced as she heard something snap. She did not have time to dwell on that as he resumed taking her arm and running.

"We don't know which port it was," Faro said.

"We need to find cover and regroup," Pik said. "We'll worry about the port later." Faro panted as she tried to catch her breath. They ducked into an indoor marketplace.

Faro's foot caught the broad side of a crate and stumbled, very nearly biting the dirt, before Pik caught her.

"Kriff, I'm so sorry," She said breathlessly, all this running was starting to tire her out, the pain in her foot diminishing quickly as the adrenaline was starting to kick in.

"It's alright, we've to keep moving."  He retakes her hand and they start running through the market once more, finding no clear path out but to continue straight through the main aisle. 

The aliens in the marketplace were greatly upset at the uproar and incivility of the chaos. Even as New Republic Troops passed by, gaining on Pik and Faro, they didn't seem especially appreciative.

"They're catching up." Faro panted, and doubt was starting to seep in about their success.

"I know," Pik said darkly. "here." He turned so sharply that Faro was practically swung to the left. They ran out into a street and found two speeders. Pik ran up to one.

"get on," he ordered her, and faro climbed onto the speeder, as Pik was quickly starting to bypass the ground lock. He snapped something off with his own hands and climbed onto the same speeder behind her. His arms reached over her to the controls.

With a sudden lurch, they took off. A loud explosion crescendo-d behind them, as the docking bay, where the troop transport had landed, erupted into flames.

Faro's heart pounded in her chest.

"Did Eli do that?" Faro asked.

"Commander Vanto has been given an order, he's helping to secure our escape," Pik said.

Faro wondered how Ezra Bridger felt about this. Bombing his own people. Maybe it wasn't a bombing, but it sure as hell looked like it. In addition to the sound of their transport, Faro heard other speeders getting closer, she looked glanced back as best as she could.

"It's Kallus!" Faro said.

She heard Pik utter a curse under his breath as she heard blaster fire start to ring out. Faro was protected enough from the blaster fire, but Pik was exposed.

Before she could think of something, a loud stun shot make contact with Pik's body as he collapsed on top of her. Faro quickly tried to reach for the controls as the speeder slowed, but it had violently turned. Pik slipped off the speeder as a result of the momentum and Faro, who didn't have enough reaction time was also thrown off.

Her body rolled over and over again. She felt a sharp pain in her chest, head, and arms as she skidded into the dirt.

She lay there for a while. Her mind and memory were soft for a moment. She was sure she had died. She should have died. They were so close, Eli and Ezra came to rescue them, and Pik went undercover in a prison to rescue her. Yet it was never enough. All she wanted was to be united with Thrawn. Apparently, that was becoming more difficult than terrorists bombing the Death Star.

Another moment passed by, and Faro discovered that she could move, a little. Her vision blurred from the pain. Tears poured from her eyes also as a reaction. She found that her neck was not broken, and though her arms were bruised, they weren't broken either. Her ribs were a different story, but it was enough to prop herself up somewhat.

"Pik…" She called trying to locate where he fell off. She found him, his face down in the dirt. "Pik!" She yelled, her heart plummeting.

Kallus had parked his bike and started to walk over to him.

"No! Please, leave him alone!" Faro ordered. She tried to move, but a violent pain in her chest made her cry out.

Kallus stopped examining Pik and started to walk over to her. He also examined her, shaking his head.

"I told you, there was no need to make this difficult." He chided.

"Go to hell," Faro growled.

He smiled at her and quickly glanced back at the smoking spaceport and started speaking into his comm. "Kallus to Ghost, need a pick-up at these coordinates." he tapped something and then pulled something out of his belt. "See you in the morning, Faro," he said and jabbed her in the thigh.

Faro's vision blurred. She tried to fight it.

"I'm going to kill you." She hissed.

"I'm sure you will." He shrugged. Even as Faro has jolting herself to stay awake, she found that her body was betraying her. Eventually, she succumbed to sleep.

*SHARPLY INHALES, KEYBOARD SMOKING NOISES* But seriously, that was a lot to unpack there. Hopefully, it was easy enough to follow. I'm thinking about renaming the series, "FARO: and the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad, decade." lmao anyway, hope you guys enjoyed it so far!   

Chapter Text

Chapter 5

Faro awoke as if lightning struck her. She instantly found that her ribs didn't hurt, even though she had prepared herself for the sharp pain. She breathed deeply, inhaling and exhaling to calm herself. She was in an unfamiliar place. The air felt a little stale and the soft humming of the walls and bed she was sitting up in, suggested she was in some kind of space-faring aircraft.

She glanced at her hands, feeling cold metal binders on her wrists. She frowned at them and then glanced around. It wasn't a cell at all, but rather a ship's bedroom. She would have thought she'd be back on a prison transport by now. Her breath shortened at the memory. She remembered feeling numb when she surrendered to the New Republic. She just wanted to make sure her crew was treated fairly-that was all she could hope for when everything else was taken from her.

She remembered seeing the blank expression on her face in the reflection of the glass which separated her from the rest of the interrogators. She had looked so lifeless, and so empty of hope and fire that her younger self once had. Now she was likely returning to a max security prison, or a rough interrogation followed by a potentially brutal execution. She was starting to get an uncanny sense of déjà vu.

 She swung her feet to the side of the bed and stood up, eyeing the door. She trudged her way there and she found the door slid open for her. She had been right, this was a ship, but not one she had ever ventured on. She quietly walked out into the hallway, wondering why she hadn't been locked up somewhere. But perhaps they didn't need to. She had been out of combat for some time now, and she wouldn't be able to put up a fight with the drugs still lingering in her system.

She heard voices ahead of her, and she cautiously crept toward them, trying to get a better understanding of the situation.

"He wasn't there, I told you already." a woman's voice said. It sounded like she was starting to get heated.

"You didn't search hard enough." That was Kallus's voice. "He's got to be close by. If Thrawn's people are starting to show up, that must mean Ezra is nearby too."

Suddenly Faro's chest exploded with pain as she felt her body violently pushed to the ground in the center of the room she was been listening to. She gasped sharply in pain.

"Caught this one eavesdropping." A gruff voice growled.

"Zeb, she was healing." Another woman's voice said.

"Yeah, I don't care," Zeb said.

"Do you know who we are?" the woman asked.

"You're the… Lothal rebels." Faro winced, her chest feeling beyond bruised.

"Then you know why we're looking for Ezra." Faro identified Sabine Wren was speaking, as she peeled herself off the ground and upright into a sitting position.

"It's because he's your friend, is that it?" Faro asked.

"He's part of our family," Hera said calmly. Faro all but rolled her eyes.

"Yes, I'm sure destroying the livelihoods of decent workers has brought you all very close," Faro muttered.

"Do you want me to introduce your face to the floor again?" the Lasat, Zeb said, posturing up in a threatening manner.

His tone indicated a sense of malice, and the threat was not lost on Faro, given her current recovery state.

"Zeb. " Hera waved a hand calmly. "We just want to find him, Commodore."

Faro measured Hera's face. She seemed genuine enough, an excellent face for a band of sympathetic sufferers. She could see why she was chosen to lead the rebellion under the former Commander Sato.

"And I'm just supposed to tell you?" Faro said. "What do I get in return?"

"I don't throw you out the airlock," Zeb growled.

"You won't face a firing squad," Kallus said equally as quickly.

Faro glared daggers at the both of them and Hera shut them both down before tensions escalated further.

"We can't release you. I know you understand that. You're a tactician, a good one. It's too risky to have you run off to the imperial remnant."

"You're right, for the failing New Republic, it is risky for someone to come in and restore order. But am I to think that you'd never want to have your precious Bridger again? I thought you rebels loved risks." Faro's face was neutral now. She was working now, her brain functioning fast about the optimal way out of there.

"We also know the power of sacrifice." Sabine countered, her tone was reminiscent. Faro recalled they had lost the Jedi, Kanan Jarrus when Governor Price fired on the all-too-important-to-lose (But it was lost anyway,) fuel tanks.

"We would sooner find him on our own terms than surrender you."

"Not even to trade?"  Faro asked. They were all silent seeming to ponder that option.

"Where is Thrawn?" Hera asked her.

"If that isn't the million credit question, I don't know what is," Faro muttered. "If I knew that, I wouldn't be here with you would I?"

"But you know where Ezra is?" Zeb raised an eyebrow skeptically.

"I've seen him." Faro stared back at the purple Lasat.

"Yeah right." Zeb huffed. "That’s a load of Bantha Shi-."

"You're lying," Kallus demanded.

"If there's one thing I know, Alexsandr is that you wouldn't know the truth if it was strapped to a torture chair and faced the business end of torture droids." Faro hissed.

Hera and Sabine turned to Kallus. Sabine had folded her arms as Hera's eyes widened.

"You tortured her?" Hera demanded.

"let's not do this in front of the Imperial." Zeb shook his head.

"Did you know about this?" Hera waved a finger in front of Zeb but glanced between both of them in astonishment. "You both know better! We don't do that to people!"

Sabine moved towards Faro, grabbed her by the binders, and walked her out of the room as Hera scolded the both of them.

The noise silenced as the door slid shut behind them.

"Do you really know where Ezra is?" Sabine gave her a hard look.

"I don't know *where* he is at this moment, but I did see him," Faro said.

"You know, with an answer like that, you're not exactly helping your whole "bargaining for your freedom strategy"." Sabine looked at her skeptically. Faro frowned at her.

"I don't see how it wouldn't help." She said. "I just told you I don't know where he is, but only that I have seen him. If I wanted to lie, I would have fabricated a location or other evidence that would benefit me in my escape."

"Maybe, or maybe you haven't seen him at all and this conversation is just a deception." Sabine folded her arms and leaned against the wall in Infront of Faro.

"You can lead a Mandalorian to beskar, but you can't make them wear it." Faro thought to herself, shaking her head.

"he's aged a little. He doesn't look like the kid we had in the old Imperial profiles. He has facial hair now, but he still wears orange. Bridger sounds very much the same, but his voice is deeper. He still exhibits strong Jedi magic too."

"That could all be lies," Sabine said, her face portraying frustration and anger.

"Is that a risk you're willing to take, Mandalorian?" Faro's brown eyes glittered.

Sabine's bottom lip curled slightly as if restraining herself from saying something she'll regret.

Faro wanted to ask questions but knew that of all the "Specters" Sabine Wren would be one of the last to answer them.

The door slid open after a few minutes of quiet, and Hera stepped into the room, a look of preparedness and vague exhaustion on her face.

"So, what did you find out?" Hera asked Sabine but eyed Faro closely.

"Just more imperial lies. She claims she saw Ezra but doesn't know where he is."

"Where did you last see him?" Hera asked.

Faro was startled a little by Hera's excepting attitude toward the truth.

"Yaga Minor. He was on Yaga Minor." Faro said.

"If he was there, why didn't he try to escape?" Hera said. "He had to have known we were there."

Faro swallowed hard. Remembering that Ezra said he made a deal with Thrawn, whatever that deal was, it was important enough for him to desire evasion of his old friends.

"I don't know," Faro lied. "I suppose the security was too tight. I wasn't kept around him for long, my escort had taken me to the hotel to stay the night, that's where the New Republic showed up." She added a bit of distaste at the end.

She looked at both of them, trying to see if any of them bought it. Sabine still had the same skeptical look, but when she glanced at Hera, her expression changed.

"Alright, Commodore," Hera said. "You're going to stay here for now." She opened the door to the bunked room she had awakened in earlier.

"Don't get too comfortable, we might just send you straight to the compound," Sabine said with spite.

Faro laughed a little.

"As long as I am not being tortured, I'll be comfortable anywhere." She said. Her last words were another silent jab at Kallus's treatment of her. She knew that Hera had experienced such treatment before, and the use of those methods from the supposedly morally just might help Hera feel more compassionate about Faro's situation.

It seemed to be working well so far.

The door closed behind her and Faro was left alone. Again.

She laid down on the bottom bunk, letting her back and ribs relax. She still felt bruised from earlier, and with no kolto or Bacta, she would have to heal the old-fashioned way.

The door slid open with a soft hiss. Faro's eyes opened after apparently falling asleep. She had expected to hear heavy footsteps, a grunt, a sarcastic comment or being pulled out of the bed forcefully. But nothing happened. In fact, Faro was pretty sure that no one was there, given how quiet it was.

She turned her head and just about jumped out of her skin.

A small, green-haired child, with green-tinted ears and bright blue eyes, was standing in the middle of the room staring at her.

Faro was so creeped out by its eerie presence that her movements in sitting up were slow.

"Are you the Imperial?" the creature asked.

"Y-yes." Faro found her voice, trying to get over herself, it was just a creepy kid. The kid scrunched up his nose.

"I thought imperials were scary," he said.

"Am I not scary?" Faro asked, leaning forward and placing her elbows on her knees.

The child shook his head.

"Not really." He said. Faro glanced up at the door, who was supposed to be watching this kid anyway? "I just thought they looked scary. My mom said they were evil. What's your name?"

"Karyn, Faro. What's yours?" Faro asked conversationally.

"Jacen Syndulla." He said, with a seemingly proud smile that he even remembered his full name.  "Are you a stormtrooper? Where's your armor?"

Faro smiled a little at him. Syndulla, Hera's last name. According to the old files, she recalled that Hera had procreated with Kanan Jarrus. She had nearly forgotten about the Twilek and human halfbreed. It made her wonder.

"No, I'm not a stormtrooper." She said, amused. "I work on huge ships called Star Destroyers."

Jacen's eyes widened.

"Your ships destroy stars?" He asked, sounding terrified.

"No, no, they're just called that." Faro laughed.

"That's a silly name, then," Jacen said.

"It is." Faro agreed.

"Are you a bad guy?" Jacen asked. Faro shivered a little at the question. Why did a child's voice have so much power in a question like that?

"No. I'm not." Faro said. "We have these big ships to help protect people from threats. Some people use that kind of power to do evil. But there are people who use that kind of power for good, like me and my friends. You just don't hear about us because there are a lot of bad people out there." She turned back to Jacen, hoping that made enough sense for an 8-year-old to understand.

"Oh." That was all he said. His face scrunched up in thought again. "Uncle Zeb and Uncle 'Sandr said you hurt people."

"I don't hurt people, or at least I try not to. I try to protect people. There are a lot of poor and starving people out here who need looking after, that's why I work for the Empire, for hope."

Stars, did she really just say it? The rebellion buzzword: hope.

Jacen's eyes lit up and he smiled broadly.

"We fight for hope too! That's what my mom says."

Faro's smile tightened.

Two sides want the same goal. Two different ways of achieving those goals. Then again, they weren't so different, both sides would do whatever it takes.

But Thrawn wouldn't. He wouldn't sacrifice everything pointlessly just to get a win. He would see the advantage in aligning their goals. Is that why there is not an all-out war yet? No massive Imperial takeover?

That's what the New Republic was expecting anyway and Thrawn was good at doing the unexpected. The New Republic didn't know Thrawn, not really anyway. And if the New Republic's attitude doesn't change, if they cannot see that their goals align…

They had attacked the Greyshrike, an alien craft with zero to little warning. Kallus and perhaps many other like-minded people would sooner torture and kill to get what they want in the name of peace. If Grand Admiral Thrawn and Ezra Bridger could put aside their differences for something, would there be hope for the entirety of the New Republic?

The gears started clicking for Faro. The New Republic was antsy, desperate. They would act before thinking. If they weren't careful, they would bring ruin to their own agenda. They would start what they had already stopped; a war.

Hey all! Spring break is officially over so I am back at it! Kudos and Comments are always appreciated. Love Y'all!

Chapter Text

Chapter 6

The door hissed open and a wide eyed Sabine Wren charged through the door.

"Jacen!" She yelled and put herself between the boy and Faro. "Your mom was looking for you." She gave the kid a hard look.

"I didn't hear her." Jacen mumbled guiltily.

"That comm on your wrist isn't just a cool accessory." Sabine said sharply. "Make sure you turn it on."

"Calm yourself Mandalorian." Faro said coolly. "I wouldn't harm a child."

"Like hell you would." Sabine muttered under her breath. "I know how you imperials think. You would find some kind of advantage and use it you help you escape."

Faro shook her head. How low did these Rebels really think about her? She did everything she was supposed to. She followed the rules, she followed orders. She wasn't a bad person, she had dedicated her life to helping and protecting others. She had sent people to their deaths in other to keep the greater galaxy safe from external threats, while Sabine and the others created problems from within. This crew made her life miserable. They took people she cared about away from her. Killed her friends and coworkers.

Faro was not personally responsible for the death of Kanan Jarrus. Hell, she wasn't to blame for any action the Lothal rebels provoked the Empire into doing. She would be damned if she had to suffer another person who looked at her as if she was greatest evil in the galaxy.

"Whatever our political differences are, I would never stoop so low." Faro said firmly, her brown eyes intense and sincere as she matched Sabine's look.

"'We fight for hope'." Jacen said quietly. The two women looked at the kid, who's eyes were trained on the floor.

"Yes," Sabine said slowly and unsure of what that has to do with anything. "We do."

"No, that's what Karyn said." Jacen looked up to Sabine. "but I don't understand, if we fight for the same thing, why is she evil?" His face was puzzled once again.

Sabine shot a look at Karyn. It was clear by her expression that she demanded to know what kind of "propaganda" she had served him.

"Well, we do fight for the same thing, peace and security." Faro explained.

"The difference is we don't hurt people to get what we want." Sabine said.

Faro's eyes darkened.

"Is that what you think?" Faro said. "War is all about hurting people to get what you want, Mandalorian. The rebellion inflicted suffering on itself to stir up martyrdom instead of resolving political differences peaceably. I can't speak for all imperial's motivations, but you cannot claim a moral high ground with all that you and your crew inflicted."

There was a silence. Sabine looked like she wanted to tear into Faro, and she mentally went through the known weapon loadout the Mandalorian was known to have, trying to mentally prepare for whatever tools of decimation she would choose to use.

"Sabine, Jacen, report to the bridge, please." Hera's voice came calmly on Jacen's comm.

Faro glanced at the comm. Jacen had accidentally opened a line to his mother and evidently the twi'lek had heard the whole conversation.

 "We're on our way." Sabine said, giving Faro another sharp look before disappearing from the room with the boy.

Faro softly exhaled, as she leaned back in the bed. She let herself reflect on those she had not heard about yet. Lomar, Pyrondi, Hammerly, Agral. She wondered what was happened to them, but she did not dwell on it too long.

From Pik's description, it was a miracle Thrawn and Ezra were alive. He didn’t mention any other survivors except whoever was not on the bridge of the Chimera.

A thought stuck her and guilt too for thinking about this sooner.

Pik! What happened to him? Was he here to? Or… ? Did he… was he…?

Faro had knots forming in her stomach, worried about were her escort was. She never really got along with him, but she would not let herself believe he was killed just to help her.

He had already been through so much. She could only imagine what he had to go through to help piece back the Grand Admiral, a messed-up crew and a wrecked star destroyer.

He wasn't dead. He couldn't be.

…

The lights had dimmed as the ship had grown dark. Faro was fully awake after sleeping intermittently this whole venture on the Ghost.

She lay staring the bottom side of the bunk, trying to mute the fear and uncertainty in her mind. Faro hadn't heard anyone move about in a while. She was sure they were all asleep or otherwise keeping their voices down.

She got out of bed and slipped into the hallway. Once again, that door was not locked. She moved to the cockpit, and found it was empty. To her surprise, they weren't in hyperspace. Stars glittered contrasting to dark vastness of space.

The fact they weren't on their way to somewhere, means they haven't decided what to do with her. Why wait otherwise? They were more than likely considering her deal.

She sighed a little. It offered some relief that they at least had not made a decision yet. 

She turned to walk back to the room, when a green twi'lek's figure was walking out of the shadows. Hera crossed her arms.

"You're not supposed to be up here." She said.

"You should put lock on your doors." Faro said with a touch of dry humor. Hera walked passed her to sit in the pilot's seat. "besides," She continued. "It's not as if I want to lead you straight to Thrawn."

"You don't know where he is anyway." Hera commented a smile touching her lips as she stared out the viewport.

Faro sat next to her. Of course she had figured that out.

"It happens when you're out of commission for a few years." Faro added, she too looked out the window.

There was a short silence.

"What you told Jacen, about hope, do you really believe that?" Hera asked her.

"I do." Faro said. "There's a reason so many people were loyal to Thrawn. He valued the lives of his crew and those he was supposed to protect, including civilians."

Hera's face hinted at un-comfortability.

"What happened on Lothal…" words seemed to fail her. She had always hated talking about that planet. "Thrawn's TIE defenders were equipped with shields to protect the pilots. More than that, he never intended to use them against the Rebellion. Lothal was the most convenient world for the Empire to dump in his lap. They gave him resources, and he had to play by the Emperor's rules. A lot of people didn't know this, but Thrawn was in deep water with the Emperor before the Battle of Lothal. When I read the report I almost couldn't believe it. I know he would have never done what he did, if it wasn't absolutely necessary."

"He fired on Capitol City." Hera said, her voice was calm and rational.

"I respect you, commander to commander. But you don't know Thrawn. What he did, that was not his call. That was the Empire forcing his hand. I know what you see, but what I've always seen is someone forced to make the best out of awful situations. His own people send him away." Faro paused watching to see how Hera would react to this information.

"For what?"

"Pre-emptive strikes." Faro said. "He did what he needed to against a threat to his people. They sent him here to gather information on this threat, and he became an Imperial. No matter how much he promised the Emperor and assured his peers, I know his true loyalty was to those under his charge, his people and his crew."

Her head nodded slowly, visibly processing what Faro had just shared. She might not believe what she was saying, but at least she was receptive to listening.

"You mentioned threats, what kind of threats?"" Hera's green eyes searched her carefully.

"External threats from the unknown regions. Creatures without mercy or reason. They have ways of taking over cultures and people groups and subduing them to their cause." Faro said.

Hera's eyes widened a little and Faro continued.

"Thrawn's biggest concern was never the rebellion or the Empire's politics, it was the Grysk, and their client species."

"And you've seen them?" Hera asked.

"I have. Thrawn studied them and fought against them before…" a lump formed in Faro's throat, grossly remembering that she was talking to one of the people responsible for disrupting everything in her life. "Before Thrawn was summoned to Coruscant and then back to Lothal. They are terrifying creatures, what they're capable of, the trails they leave, it still makes me sick. They way I approached it, if Thrawn considered them a threat, then it was a danger to everyone."

"I want to believe you, Faro." Hera said. "But sometimes, loyalty, or... affection, can blind us to what a person really is."

"Affection?" Faro echoed, her voice was still quiet but confused. "Where would you-."

"I see it in your eyes. Its alright. I don't fault you for that." She almost smiled at her. "But Thrawn made himself known to me in a very personal way that resulted in the destruction of my home and in the end, I lost someone I loved, I can't forgive that."

Faro tabled her thoughts on Hera's comments.

"I'm not asking you to. I'm warning you about the threat that's coming and it's not the Empire. We don't have to forget…" Faro's thoughts flashed to Hammerly, Pyrondi and even Pik wherever he was. "Those that we lost, but if we can't work together, these wars will continue, until we're wiped out by the Grysk." Faro looked over to the view port. The ship was still dead in space. "I can't expect you to take my word for it. But I thought I could at least warn you."

"For what it's worth I do believe there are things unseen that are great threats. As a pilot I've often wondered what is in the Unknown Regions what you're saying about the Grysk has merit. But I have a hard time believing that Thrawn was innocent in his attack on Lothal, Ezra's been missing for so long now because of him."

"I'm telling you I know that he's with Thrawn, let me go, and you can have him. That way, you can get Ezra back, and you know about the Grysk threat. We can stop any further wars from happening."

"You must be the first Imperial I've ever met who actually believes peace is possible." Hera said, with a touch of amusement.

 "I used to think it would never happen." She glanced at Hera. "if we weren't fighting you, we were fighting the Grysk."

"I See." Hera said. "I'm not going to pretend the New Republic is doing a great job. But the senate would never turn over power to the Empire."

"General Syndulla," Faro said with a near laugh, "I cannot speak for future actions, I am talking about the here and now. I'm talking about survival. If my survival and the survival of those I care about, depends on the New Republic's survival, then by all means I'm for laying down our weapons. I also know that the New Republic is outmatched when it comes to firepower, you will need the Empire when the Grysk arrive, if they haven't already."

Hera's face was full of concentration.

"You make a good case, I'll give you that." Hera said. "let me talk it over with the others before I make my decision."

Faro silently exhaled, her eyes still scanning the stars.

"Thank you, for listening." Faro stood up, walked back to the room she was supposed to be in, the binders on her wrist clinking a little as she did so. 

I love this peaceful little dialogue and I really like Hera's character. She is a character that listens and I made Faro figure that out rather quickly, we'll see if it leads to anything... 

Chapter Text

Chapter 7 

A violent quake stirred Faro from her thoughts. She knew that quake all too well, someone had fired on the Ghost. There was a glimmer of hope in her heart she was being rescued. Somehow, she had been found, and at last she would see Thrawn.

Another quake and Faro had hit her head on the bottom bunk. She wanted to massage the injured spot, but with the binders on, holding on to the bedframe for stability was more important. She found her footing, and walked along the walls to the door. The sound of the Ghost's engines and shield generators hummed loudly in their respective actions.

The floor opened and Faro stumbled in to the hall.

"What's Happening?" She called out to the cockpit.

"Some ship with unknown configuration just attacked us out of nowhere." Zeb said, his tone was less than chipper. "You stay put until this is all over." He growled the order as he ran down to what Faro suspected to be lower cannons.

Faro stood in the hall a moment. An alien warship? Could it be the Greyshrike? Did Senior Captain Ziinda find her?

"Did you see Zeb?" Sabine's voice called behind her.

Faro turned as the ship rocked violently once more.

"Yes." Faro said.

"Where did he go?" Sabine asked.

"Down there." Faro pointed as best she could with the binders on towards the trap door.

"Good." Sabine said. Before Faro could say anything, the Mandalorian had grabbed her by the binders and practically dragged her back in the opposite direction the cockpit.

"Wait where-?" Sabine cupped Faro's mouth firmly. Kallus joined them in the hallway.

"Phantom's ready." He said in a low but hurried tone. "You first, I'll be behind you both." Sabine then disappeared up the ladder they were standing next too.

"You're next." Kallus demanded.

Faro didn't argue and climbed up the ladder, the binder's rubbing raw on her wrist as she struggled with their clunky nature against the railing, while also trying to hold on for dear life as she felt the Ghost maneuver quickly. Faro could hear Hera's panicked calls over Kallus's commlink and an echo from Sabine's just up ahead. Whatever they were doing, it wasn't obeying their General. 

Faro made it to the top, with no assistance from either of them, her wrists raw.

"What are we doing here?" Faro demanded quietly, after discovering that she had climbed into a smaller ship, she decided to be the Phantom.

Kallus made it up the ladder behind her, and all but shoved her into the seat, as he passed her to sit next to Sabine.

"We're detaching now." Sabine said, Faro could hear the tensity in her tone.

The ship lurched with a great force as they were in mid Maneuver. Faro's eyes fixed out the viewport, as the stars swirled around them and slowing quickly as Sabine was trying to take control of the craft.

That's when she saw it.

it wasn't the Chiss after all. It was a Grysk Warship.

"What the hell is that?" Sabine exclaimed.

Faro's throat tightened.

"It’s a Grysk warship." Faro found her voice. Had it not been for her complete lack of faith in these rebels to keep her alive, she would have almost been relieved that Hera and everyone else could see the threat she was talking about.

"A what?" Kallus grunted. Faro sighed, so Hera hadn't had the chance to tell them yet.

"Whatever you're doing, you can't abandon your general in this fight, they will kill her and us." Faro said emphasizing the importance of their survival.

"its cute you care, but Hera can handle herself." Sabine said, veering away from the warship.

"This is not the time for your pride, Mandalorian, I've seen what the Grysk are capable of and seen the atrocities of what they leave behind. General Syndulla and your Lasat friend may be able to handle themselves, but that child wont."

"More lies." Kallus growled, he turned around and wrapped something around Faro's mouth, gagging her. All she could do was squirm in protest. She watched the display as they were accelerating farther and farther away from the Ghost. Hera's protests on the commlinks were silenced.

 Faro could do nothing but watch them prepare and enter hyperspace.

Faro fell against the back of the chair in shock of what she had just seen. A tear even escaped her eyes.

Crying for the enemy.

She truly would never wish the Grysk on her worst enemy, not even them, and especially not on an innocent child like Jacen.

Faro found herself trembling quietly as the whole cockpit fell deadly silent.

Sabine glanced back at her once, her expression was almost unreadable, only… Faro did understand.

She reflected on what the young Mandalorian had said earlier, about understanding the power of sacrifice. Sabine was wired with the base programing of doing whatever it takes to look out for people she cared about, meaning she sacrifice anything and everything, including herself to save Ezra.

In some ways made people like her far more dangerous than any Empire. Imperials have and did sacrifice others, but rarely their own friends and family and even less likely, they would not compromise themselves or their station.

That was her experience anyway.

 The atmosphere was muted Sabine and Kallus talking In muted tones for hours, barley audible to Faro. From she figured, they were talking about what she had just done.

When the ship entered normal space, Faro had discovered they had returned to Yaga Minor.

She heard Kallus open an open communication line. If any imperials were still in the area, they would be able to receive the following transmission,

"This is Alexander Kallus, I'm here on behalf of the New Republic. We are looking for Jedi Ezra Bridger, and have Admiral Karyn Faro in our possession. We know the Empire has Ezra, surrender him to us and no further harm will come to Admiral Faro. We'll be waiting."

Faro's breath quickened. So far during her capture, she had not been intentionally harmed. She didn't count the shoving as general harm. She watched Kallus end the transmission, and stand up. His shadow passing over her.

"Now then, lets make this believable, and hope someone is listening."

Fear crept up Faro's spine, knowing that the pain was coming.

But unknown to Faro, someone was listening, very intently…

Who could it be??? Warning: New perspective for next chapter, just telling you in advance so no one gets confused! 

Chapter Text

Chapter 8

The muted hum of the room created a rather meditative atmosphere. A number of elements outside of auditory contributed to this. The lights, for example, had been dimmed for optimal eye care and prevention of retinal damage. The air was clean too, especially thanks to the engineers who routinely kept the air quality to a pristine condition. The collection of art in the room, despite many being damaged, was arraigned ornately and purposefully. Everything from the colors to the textures of the collection added a visually pleasant element.

But perhaps the most serene element of the room, Eli Vanto decided, was Grand Admiral Thrawn himself.

Ever since Eli and Ezra Bridger came back empty handed at Yaga Minor, Thrawn had withdrawn himself to his office. Eli was starting to worry about the Grand Admiral. He knew that getting Faro back was very important, they needed more capable and above all loyal leaders. Faro would be a prime target, and Eli knew that. On a more personal level, Eli knew her skill during the war and loyalty were undeniable. She wasn't blind in her following but rather pursued learning, just like Eli himself did. 

He recalled seeing her on Yaga Minor. Fresh out of prison and on the run from the New Republic would make anyone look less than normal, but Eli was rather surprised about how wild she looked- Her punching Ezra notwithstanding. She was thinner, visibly weaker.

That was the description Eli had given Thrawn.

But what Eli hadn't mentioned to him was the mental state she was in. Ezra had told Eli later about the conflict in her mind, how fearful she was. He confided also that her escort, the Deathtrooper Pik, had some well-hidden desires that made Ezra uncomfortable to talk about. Eli didn't particularly enjoy that Ezra could see people's minds like he did, but he had gotten used to it over the years.

With how tense Thrawn seemed now, Eli didn't want to add any unnecessary details. Eli had a suspicion about Thrawn having some sort crush on Faro a long time ago. But that was ages ago. Eli had pretty much forgotten about that with everything that's happened so far, living with the Chiss, and helping Vah'nya and Ezra train a new generation of Force-sensitive Chiss children.

Eli almost didn't care about the Empire falling, had it not been for his poor parents being caught up in the wave of persecution that Faro had also went through. He was determined to find out what had become of them, and to help and old friend bring back stability to an otherwise shaky galaxy.

But that "old friend" was getting distracted. Eli cared about Faro as much as anyone else who fought beside her, but there was a number security issues with the New Republic now on high-alert.

Thrawn was a rational person, he wouldn't risk it all for one old ally.

But would he do it for someone he considered to be something else?

Eli scoffed at the idea.

"What is it Commander Vanto?" Thrawn looked up from his displays. His glowing red eyes seemed brighter in the dim light.

Eli nearly jumped, apparently he had made some kind of coughing noise while he was in his thoughts. He tried to recover has best as he could from what must've seemed like a rude entry.

"Captain Pellaeon just hailed us, Sir. He says two of our spies on Yaga Minor are reported in on the Secure Emergency Channel." Eli walked over to the desk, and handed over a datacard. "Both of them said that someone had opened a system wide channel with a message recorded on this datacard. Pellaeon just verified that the broadcast hailed from a modified Corellian VCX-series auxiliary starfighter."

"The Phantom." Thrawn said, his tone suggested that he had been expecting this.

Eli watched him plug in the datacard, Eli's throat tightened a little. There could be a number of things on the card, but he didn't have to have Thrawn skills in strategy to know what the Lothal Rebels wanted.

As the images appeared he found he wasn't wrong.

 "This is Alexander Kallus, I'm here on behalf of the New Republic. We are looking for Jedi Ezra Bridger, and have Admiral Karyn Faro in our possession. We know the Empire has Ezra, surrender him to us and no further harm will come to Admiral Faro. We'll be waiting." 

Ezra watched Kallus walk out of camera view for a moment. Eli spared a glance at Thrawn to see if the normally unreadable Chiss gave any obvious signs of emotion. Like normal, however his face was placid. Then suddenly, a new kind of intensity seemed to make his red eyes burn brighter. Eli followed his gaze to see what he was seeing, and he too could not help but watch with vehemence.

Faro was being dragged into view by bounded hands. She had been gagged and it was clearly giving her a great deal of pain. One could see how tight it had been tied. There were fresh bruises forming on her arms, there was no telling what harm had been done where they couldn’t see.

"If you need proof, she's right here. Surrender Ezra, and this ends." Kallus hit Faro's already dazed body, striking her across the face. The admiral had crumpled to the floor, anger and determination seething in her expression as she tried to right herself into a sitting position.

Eli had to admit, Faro looked weak in body only, but her mind was still sharply intact. Knots formed in his stomach seeing his friend suffering.

"Captain Pellaeon said the channel is still open and running. This is very obviously a trap. New Republic forces are probably getting ever closer to their location." Eli somehow found his voice.

Eli waited for a reply but there was nothing. When he looked up to Thrawn, Eli suddenly felt fearful, but not for himself. There was a ferocity in his eyes unlike anything Eli had ever seen. Suddenly, Eli felt Thrawn was vaild in every attempt to bring her back. He almost hated himself for thinking that Faro wasn't worth the resources earlier. She didn't deserve that, no one did. 

And Thrawn? Eli couldn't say how he felt other than awed. He hadn't seen him worked up over much, not even the near destruction of the Chimera and a tremendous loss of the crew was enough to warrant even the slightest indication of anger on a level like this. Thrawn genuinely cared for her. It did not matter what Eli thought of it, they were going to save her regardless. 

Suddenly Faro was kicked down to the ground, a gargled scream of pain erupted from the recording. Her bounded hand were trying to hold in vain the area of greatest pain. Kallus had continued talking but Thrawn cut it off and stood up.

"What do you want to have us do, s-sir?'' Eli said, trying to get a grip.

"Inform Master Jedi Bridger of his new assignment. Inform also Captain Pellaeon to wait for my instructions." Thrawn adjusted his uniform as he began walking with that usual calm. Even while seeing someone he cared about suffering his thoughts remained ever organized. The Lothal rebels know nothing about what they just unleashed. Eli almost felt sorry for them, but he was just as eager to save Faro. Whatever consequences came from what they did, they brought on themselves. 

Thrawn's glowing red eyes turned once again to Eli.

"Prepare the Chimera for combat readiness."

Ugh I loved writing this. Let me know how you feel! ;D