Chapter Text
"Run, Jacen. Run!"
His feet hurt. It hurt to breathe. He could barely see out of his eyes because they were filled with tears. But he kept going. He had to. His mom told him to. And he loved his mom so much.
But as his thoughts dwelled on Hera, he stumbled and fell. His arms went up and kept his head safe, but one knee was definitely scraped. He stood back up, which hurt even more, and limped forward.
He hated this planet. He didn't even know what it was called. He hated being away from his mom even more. Aunt Sabine had once called him Chopper Junior because he stuck to her side just as much if not more than the loyal little astromech. Her presence made him feel steady in a chaotic galaxy. So much of his life had been in hiding at her side.
Hiding from the Empire when he was still a baby. He didn't remember much more than Hera's warmth but when his mother spoke of those times it sounded awful. Constantly aboard spaceships or hidden Rebl bases. His father wasn't there with her and uncle Ezra was missing. She just knew he was out there, she told him. She didn't need the Force to know that. Zeb was nice but didn't know much about human babies and Aunt Sabine was there a lot, but she had her own struggles, not just as a rebel but as a Mandalorian.
So first Jacen spent years in his mother's arms, then in her shadow. She was the closest thing to safety he had ever known. When the Empire fell, she had brightened up. She'd brought Jacen to many planets he'd only heard about in her stories before. The beautiful Ryloth where grandpa resided. The magnificent Naboo where the funny frog man spoke while spitting. Their big furry friends on Kashyyyk. Lothal, their own little home. And a lot more he couldn't remember the names of.
However, then he heard more and more talks of these "Remnants". Hera explained it like little parts of the Empire refusing to die. He wasn't worried. As long as he was with her, he had everything he wanted. And Chopper, of course. They were his family. Everything he needed in life.
Then came Thrawn.
First, he took away Aunt Sabine. And Ahsoka. They weren't gone, mother had told him. They were just really far, far away. But she used to say that about papa Kanan too so Jacen wasn't sure.
Then Uncle Ezra came. He was amazing, and he promised to teach him about the Force! But then he and Uncle Zeb joined the war and went away for that too.
It was only mom, Chopper and him then. But Jacen thought that was enough.
And that's what the Grand Admiral had waited for.
Jacen hated the memory. Blaster fire and the smell of smoke had overwhelmed his senses when those monsters had come for his family. They had barely escaped the attack on the Ghost when the Imperial Fleet arrived. More Imperial ships than he'd ever seen before.
It was a testament to Hera's piloting skills that they hadn't been captured or worse that day. She'd dodged as much as she could and made the jump to hyperspace. Jacen hoped that would be the end of it.
But that was not to be. They had to emergency land on this wretched planet. Mother and Chopper were working on the Ghost when they came. The ship was in no condition to fly as the troopers came. Some of them in shining armor, but most of them looked sickly, unnatural, covered in splintered suits. They'd stunned Chopper and surrounded Hera, but Jacen had been a small distance away. Far enough away to see it happen with no power to interfere. Until he heard his mother call for him to run away.
Every cell in his body wanted to stay with her, but deep inside he knew he couldn't help her. So he ran. As far as he could.
Still limping, he found a rock that didn't look too dangerous for him to sit on and finally paused. His knee didn't bleed too much, but he was thirsty and he didn't remember if his mom mentioned if the water here was drinkable. The yellow-ish color didn't give that impression.
TIE Fighters could be seen in the planet's sky, circling like vultures. And he didn't know how close those troopers were. He was trapped with no way to call for help.
No.
No, there was a way.
There was always a way.
Jacen breathed in.
The Force.
He didn't have much teaching. Huyang told him a few stories and Ahsoka said some things, but neither had mentioned anything like this. So Jacen would have to improvise.
He closed his eyes. He put his hands together to stabilize his stance. And in his mind, he spoke.
"Help."
He repeated the word, over and over. Again and again. He did not elaborate. He knew the message needed to be simple. Maybe, if he lived long enough, he would learn to transmit more, but today, one word was enough.
He sat like that for many minutes. Calling out. Waiting. Hoping.
And then he felt it.
An answer? Something responded, at least. And to his surprise, it wasn't far. It felt close, definitely on this planet.
The next wave of the response shook him out of the trance. It almost felt... violent?
Even the trees on this planet looked sinister, so he decided to stay close to his rock. And waited. He didn't know how long he waited but it felt like forever. He thought about Hera and Chopper and hoped they were okay. The troopers had caught them, after all. Not executed. Not yet. So far. He couldn't lose them. He couldn't imagine a life without Hera there to hold him when he cried. Without Chopper when he grew bored. He didn't know what to do without them. He tried to think about anything else to distract him from that idea-
Until he heard a sound. But not the one he wanted to hear. There were too many of them, he thought. With little time to think, he ducked behind the rock. The footsteps of troopers were fast approaching. He felt so stupid for not picking up a blaster. Or a stick. Anything would be better than facing the Empire empty-handed.
He searched for an answer in the Force, but there was little response.
"Over there." A trooper spoke up, as Jacen collected all his courage and stood up to face his fate.
His eyes met the troopers helmet as Jacen did what a Jedi would do. What his father would do. He raised his arm and made a pushing motion with his hand.
The trooper was not impressed. He did not move an inch, turned his face towards another soldier and-
-promptly flew across the ground as if hit by a rancor. Jacen watched in awe as the trooper flew through the air, until his flight was cut short by a particularly high tree. Wonder turned into horror as Jacen could hear every bone in the man's body shatter upon impact.
And the other troopers were just as shocked. Their surprised expressions would be their last as Jacen heard the all familiar hum of a Jedi's weapon. A lightsaber flew across the distance between several troopers and separated their heads from their bodies, flying in a crescent pattern until it returned to the grip of a hooded figure. The last few standing troopers open fired upon the figure, only for their blaster bolts to be redirected upon one another. The smell of burnt flesh and the sound of broken bones filled the air.
When the smoke cleared, a single soldier was left alive, trying to crawl away. But an invisible force dragged him into another direction, close enough for the lightsaber to pierce his heart.
Jacen had watched the battle unfold with undivided attention, but only now that his hunters lay dead did he realize he had never seen a lightsaber like that before. It was surprisingly long, and emitted light on both sides. The color of which was a vivid scarlet, bathing the cloaked figure in a crimson glow. That same figure turned toward Jacen.
"You called for help, little one."
Her voice was dripping like honey, and Jacen was overcome with the desire to respond.
"You heard that? I've never done it before. Does that mean you have the Force? Well, duh, you have a lightsaber and everything. Why is it red? And why are there two sides? That's so cool! And are you a Jedi-"
While Jacen had begun rambling, the woman had closed the distance between them. Close enough for him to touch, she put her gloved hand on his shoulder.
"Slow down, child. All in due time. For now, know that we share the same goal, and with my power I will protect you from the Empire."
She spoke that last word like a curse, and Jacen couldn't help but agree. He hated the Empire, too.
"Tell me, boy, how did you get here? This planet is... not for the weak."
"The Empire was chasing us and the ship got damaged so mom and I landed here and-" Jacen stopped himself at the mention of what mattered most. His hand reached for the woman's as he spoke.
"They have my mom!"
Under her hood, Jacen could make out her eyes. They looked like they were molten gold, a determined look across her face. He features seemed somewhat familiar, but he couldn't quite focus considering his current situation.
"Not for long." She pressed a button on her belt. "No imperial scum can escape my ship."
It didn't take long for her transport to arrive. With a simple Force Jump and Jacen in her arms, she reached the ship, quickly adjusting it's course. Soon enough they arrived at the landing site.
The Ghost was there, still in disrepair. A few troopers were supposed to guard it. She easily dispatched them as Jacen searched the Ghost, the voices of the troopers screaming for mercy merely background noise. They must've taken Hera and Chopper somewhere else, Jacen soon discovered. Despair gripped him at the realization. He was close to crying as the woman walked in. He couldn't let her see him cry, he had to be strong. He had to be strong for his mother and-
"It's alright, child. It's alright. Do not hold back your emotions, embrace them. It's okay to cry."
At that encouragement, he couldn't hold it any longer. He wept into the women's shoulder as she embraced him. She'd knelt down to his height as well. Then she calmly stroked his back and held him for as long as he needed.
When Jacen collected himself, he looked at her face. At some point, she'd lowered the hood, and now Jacen could see her face. His first realization was that she'd been a Twi'lek this whole time. Her skin was pink, and her eyes an emerald green. Age wise she couldn't have been much older than his mom. Nevertheless, the most interesting part of her looks was found on her lekku. They were the same shade of pink as her face, but they were covered in tattoos, the likes of which Jacen had never seen before. His eyes searched for hers as she spoke once more.
"I suggest you pack your things. We shall continue our pursuit onboard my ship until we find your mother."
Jacen wiped away a tear still on his face as he replied.
"And Chopper. He's our astromech."
She couldn't help but chuckle at such sentiment.
"Him too. Now, do you need help carrying anything?"
Having hidden the Ghost amongst the planet's foliage, Jacen stepped on board of the pink Twi'lek's ship.
"You never told me your name, you know. Probably pretty essential info if we want to find your mom."
Jacen turned away from the planet and toward the woman.
"My name is Jacen. Jacen Syndulla. And my mom's name is Hera. She's a green Twi'lek, like you. What's your name?"
She finished punching in coordinates into the navicomputer and responded.
"My name... is Devon Izara. And I swear to you, Jacen, we will find your family."
She grabbed hold of his hand to emphasize both that she meant it and what followed next.
"And those that took her away from you will suffer my wrath."
Jacen nodded in acknowledgement. Her wrath must be a terrible thing indeed. The images of the troopers she devastated flooded his mind. Perhaps he should've been more shocked, but he felt like they deserved it for taking away his mom. It was their own fault they messed with the wrong Twi'lek.
"Now get some rest. Tracking the Remnants will take some time, I'll wake you when I have an update."
Jacen got up and moved towards his promptly set up little cabin. Before he turned around the corner, he spoke up one more time.
"Thank you, Devon."
The Twi'lek acknowledged him with a tilt of her head before he went on his way, barely reaching his sleeping bag before exhaustion and sleep claimed him.