AN: Hi everyone. I'm pretty awful, because I haven't event touched my ROTG fics and now Star Wars Rebels has completely consumed my life.
If anyone has any forums or suggestions for getting over new chapter block, I would really appreciate it. Or if anyone would like to do any joint writing work I would be open to that too!
This story is actually finished in draft and the rest of the chapters just need to be spell checked.
Hope you enjoy!

Growing Pains

It was an easy mission.

Minimal Storm Trooper presence; grab and fly. It was an empire loyalist laboratory on the outer rim planet of Nyrue.

"The planet has naturally occurring noxious properties, that's why the Empire has settled their newest biochemical labs smack in the center of this point here." Sabine tapped her index finger on a dark patch of the holo planets display. The model of the planet pulsed where it was touched and a white light appeared.

"Have we got enough hazed equipment to go around for a job like this?" Kanan asked the mandalorian .

Sabine sat back in her seat and looked impressed. "That's the thing, Nyrue's toxic properties are located only in the soil. The air is oxygen rich and even the water is drinkable for carbon based forms. Though its incredibly rich in iron. I wouldn't recommend it."

"How much cargo?" Zeb asked, directing his question to Hera.

"Fulcrum needs several sets of samples but its no more then a crates worth."

Kanan nodded approvingly, pinching his chin in thought.
"Great. Then the only question is how soon we start."

Erza had been off world Lothal before, but only to other manned planets where the Empire's reach was average at worst. He'd never been somewhere so foreign that he needed a breathing tube to survive. He was street smart, not alien jungle smart. To Ezra, the planet map showed it to be round and dotted with hills and valleys. It looked so strange to see an entire planet mapped without a straight formed line in sight.

He interrupted his own thoughts when he heard himself say, "Wait, so we're the carbon type right?"

The table was silent and all four sets of eyes and an octoscope were pointed in his direction. Apparently, that'd been the wrong question. Chopper made a sound that was two lowering tones, Ezra scowled at the astromech, clearly having heard "dum-dum".

"You've been out the outer rim before right?" Sabine asked hesitantly.

Ezra shrugged. "Well yeah. Of course." just not to unmanned planets, he added mentally.

Zeb shook his head and rolled his eyes. "Look kid, don't eat the ground and you'll be fine."

"I wasn't planning too!"

"Enough, we have a job to do." Kanan cut in shortly, signalling that the fight should end now before it could start. Sabien cut the holograms program, and the schematics faded out.

Hera stood,"I'm going to go set the coordinates, Sabine will prep the transport. You boys can prep the phantom. And Ezra?"

"What?"

"Yes, we are all the carbon type." She told him gently, making it clear she wasn't making fun.

He folded his arms and pulled away from the table. "I was just double checking. I'm not that thick."

Zeb followed him through to the cargo hold, ruffing the boys hair up with a playful knock. "Are you sure the force can get through this?"

A hyper space jump later, the crew was boarding the Phantom. The four of them strapped themselves in while Kanan ignited the thrust and departured from the Ghost's bay.

"Good luck," Hera wished them.

It was a short flight, but probably one of the coolest sights of Ezra's short life.

They came up on Nyrue slowly. Sabien hacked the Phantoms signature and the security barrier around the planet granted the ship access, under the guise it was the usual security change over.

"Hey, Ezra." Kanan inclined over his shoulder towards the boy, "Come up here for a minute."

Ezra obediently climbed out of his seat and came up on Kanan's left. "What is it?"

"Take a look."

Kanan leveled out the Phantoms nose and the plant of Nyrue came into sight from underneath.

The atmosphere was a deep soulful blue, and the planet's surface glowed in the darkness surrounding it. The plant surface was a deep indigo swirl dotted with brilliant blue, violet and green.

Ezra leaned over the Jedi's shoulder and gaped. "Whoa. I've never seen a planet that didn't have the Empire crawling all over it."

"Thought you'd like it." Kanan said proudly. They exchanged a smile.

They landed on the surface without issue. Before Kanan released the door he looked back at Ezra and put on a stern face. "Stick close to me and we wont have any problems." Ezra nodded eagerly and casually saluted his master.

"Sir- yes, Sir."

The hatch opened and they went to work.

The mission went smoothly until they reached the extraction.

Sabine located the labs, and Zeb led the way through the foreign jungle with his BO-rifel. The planet surface was mostly covered with thick swampy vines that formed large mangroves, and Zeb sought them the quickest path through the terrain. The team skirted the labs, a white two story block supported on stilts that were cut into the root system. The empire touch seemed more invasive then ever before here on the untouched surface.
Ezra scowled at the deep holes cut into the earth, then located the right air duct and took out his tools.

He made his way through the building via the venting systems and after a careful surveillance of the second floor lab, he dropped quietly down and deactivated the security system at the door.

The skeleton pass code Fulcrum had supplied Hera with: worked, and Kanan appeared in the door followed by the team.

Sabine located the samples and after a quick heist, the cargo was ready for transport.

They maneuvered the hallways, avoiding the single trooper and several oblivious lab techs with ease.
And then they were out.

The upped the anti gravity on the transport crate and escorted the cargo nearly all the way back to the Phantom. They were in sight of the ship when Ezra felt the ripple of awareness crawl up his spine.

Kanan shouted "Down!" but Ezra was already shoving the cargo cart away with a push from the force. The team scattered and TIE fighter rays hit the spot the crate had stood a second before.

Zeb was on his feet and firing back from the top of a tree, while Kanan had rolled neatly to shelter of a mangrove and was return firing precisely while the tie fighter showered the area with energy shots.

"Get the cargo onto the ship! We'll cover you." Kanan ordered between shots. Ezra and Sabine quickly regrouped and together they collected the crate and pushed it towards the ship.

Sabine pulled out her com as they ran, "Specter 5 to Specter 2. We have company. We'll be coming in hot."

The com crackled to life as they reached the phantom's hatch.
"Rodger that Specter 5. I'm dropping in for a fly by."

Ezra turned and watched from the hatch doors, hand on the release, ready to bring the door down the moment the two were aboard. Sabine rapidly inputting coordinates at the control panel.

Kanan and Zeb were slowly tracking backwards towards the ship. One of Kanan's shots hit a weak spot in the wing fold and the TIE Fighter began to smoke, and rapidly descended towards them, but not on top of them.

It collided with the earth and exploded is the usual satisfying way.

Ezra pulled in a breath too 'woop' in triumph when the cold ringing wriggled through his mind again.

He was moving before he knew why exactly, just that he needed too. He barreled into Kanan's chest and threw them both into the splintery mangrove floor, narrowly avoiding the red lasers that burned holes in the roots where Kanan had stood.
They rolled over the hard trees and Ezra noted a sharp pain in his wrist before they came to a sudden stop with his back to a tree.

The force of the fall drove the breath out of their lungs. And then suddenly Zeb had them both on their feet. The Lasat steered Ezra back towards the ship while Kanan, un-fazed, shot at the backup fighter. It circled up and back again, skimming deep along the ground towards the Phantom.

And then the sky roared and the Ghost burst through the cloud level, aiming straight and shot down the fighter in two shots. It sailed shakily, and crashed into the tree line in the distance. Leaving a blackened trail in the sky.

Kanan slipped into the pilot seat as Sabine closed the hatch behind Ezra and Zeb. The Jedi fired up the engine,"Thanks Specter 2. We're on our way out."

Ezra had just enough time to buckle his seat before the Phantom raced up into the atmosphere.

"It was an updated security pattern." Sabine told the crew. "We went in with the outdated schedule. We were right in the new flight path. Otherwise we'd have gotten out clean."

They'd arrived in one piece and without a single sample broken- which was apparently a bigger deal then Ezra had realized. If he'd known how the samples could have reacted if exposed to un filtered oxygen- he might not have pushed them so carelessly out of the way.
Hera had gone to update Fulcrum on the mission before jumping into hyper space.
Zeb and Sabine were charged with storing the samples.

In a moment between the safety of the ghosts doors closing behind them and the hyper jump, Kanan clapped a hand on Ezra's shoulder.

The boy jumped, but Kanan pulled him around to face him and smiled.

"Nice moves out there, Kid. Real Jedi stuff, Padawan." And in a moment of affection and pride, he pulled the boy closer and bumped his forehead agaisnt Ezra's.

The words and gesture put a hot flush of pride in Ezra's cheeks and he grinned bashfully. "What can I say? I have a good Master."

Kanan chucked and pushed the boy away with a smile. "Go help Chopper prep the Phantom. We're eating on world tonight."

"Really?" Ezra asked, not hiding his excitement.

"Really." The Jedi assured him, climbing the ladder to the cockpit. "We've earned it today."

Ezra was pretty sure he heard a 'you' in that 'we'.

Ezra smiled and let the pride wash through him. Kanan was not the easiest too please. But sometimes Ezra got it right.

As the ship jumped into hyper drive, Ezra lost his balance and threw his hand out to grab the ladder rail. A sharp burning sensation filled his wrist. Ezra sucked in a breath between his teeth in pain and surprise, catching his fall on his knees.

The ship eased into hyper space and he felt the pressure in the cabin stabilize.

Ezra un-curled arm from his chest and felt about his wrist, looking for the cause of pain. There was a thin hole in his gloves and he pulled it off to see underneath.

Just below the heel of his right palm was a dark long splinter, pierced deep into the flesh of his hand. Only the very tip was visible just under the surface of the skin, which was pink and sore to the touch.

Ezra cursed. "Aww Hutt Slime."

This is my first whole Star Wars Fic, I've never been a Fan until the Rebels Series came out and now I'm trying to catch up on all the terminology and rules of the universe. If I got anything Wrong or any mistakes brought you out of the story, please let me know.
R&R for good Karma