The Search: Part 1

"I know I can always count on you." Those words rattled through Sabine's mind as she and Ashoka Tano flew away from a Cargo Supply Depot outside of Ord Mantrell System. For almost a month the two women had been following the old Nav Chart Directions and so far, they had not picked up any sign of Thrawn's command ship the Chimaera. It somewhat depressed Sabine, she wanted to find Ezra, she needed to find him. Leaning back, she looked over the rumors that her Mother Ursa had provided from different sources. All of course were just that; rumors. She was surprised that her Mother had placed a bounty on Ezra Bridger for his safe return. She suspected that her Mother had an idea that Ezra was extremely special to Sabine. So special that perhaps he would eventually be Ursa's son-in law. Sabine did not discourage the idea, she herself had thought about it. Throwing down another so-called sighting she frowned.

"I told you, that those were worthless. Your Mother's bounty has caused more problems than solutions." Ashoka stated as she flew her ship towards Tantooine. To a very good prospect. Hondo Ohnaka had contacted them that he found a survivor from the Chimaera on Tantooine.

"I am desperate, Ashoka. I believed that I would find at least the Chimaera by now." Sabine stated as she rubbed her tired eyes. She had not slept well since Ezra had disappeared with the Purgills. Every night she tossed and turned, wishing she told him that he was special to her. Her heart felt broken. Anxiety and impatience was costing her sleep.

"I know, I want to find him too. Have you considered that he might be gone? That we might never find him." Ashoka had not wanted to tell Sabine that but she herself had her doubts. She could not feel Ezra through the Force, but that might be because she was no longer a Jedi.

"No, I would feel it. Do not ask me how or why. But I feel that he is alive and he is just waiting for me to find him." Sabine stared out at the stars and she could feel it, inside her. She was not force sensitive but she did know she had a connection with Ezra. "I cannot explain it."

Nodding her head, Ashoka smiled. "That is evidence enough for me, then. You two are connected in the Force, so you would know. Unfortunately, if you were a Jedi you could probably find him."

As they landed at Mos Eisley Space Port, her small Red Gunship stood out from the rest of the rust buckets and other small Cargo ships. "I believe I will set the locks and anti-theft systems." Ashoka commented as she stood and picked up her cloak. Meanwhile Sabine put her armor on and carried her helmet. Putting it on.

Entering the Local Bar, Sabine saw Hondo sitting with his friend the Ugnaught. Waving his short grunting friend to go. Hondo smiled and waved to them. "Welcome, Welcome my friends. You did not waste any time getting here."

"All I want to know is if the information is true or not." Sabine stated as she sat taking off her helmet.

"Ever since Ezra disappeared I have been searching for him, any information about him or Thrawn's Star Destroyer. I believe I have found someone that might know where the Star Destroyer is." Hondo said excitingly as he leaned closer, not wanting to broadcast that he might know where a disabled Star Destroyer was.

Sabine did not know that Hondo had been searching, she felt somewhat guilty that she had not. She had waited almost five years and now any trace might be cold or non-existent. "So, what do you have?"

"That man, there he claims to have escaped from the Chimaera just after the Purgills dropped out of hyperspace the first time. He will tell anyone who will listen and buy him drinks." Hondo pointed to a man that slumped over a mug, drinking as much as he could swallow at once. Waving to the Ugnaught, who approached the man the little comrade pointed over at Hondo and the man stumbled and stood, then lurched over to sit at the table.

Sabine could smell the stench of alcohol on the man, along with body odor and smoke that bellowed throughout the Bar. "I understand you escaped off the Chimaera just before it jumped into hyperspace with the Space Purgills."

"That is right, sweetheart." The drunken one-time Imperial replied as he leered at Sabine, admiring her face and form. "For a few drinks I will tell you the story."

"I will give you one hundred credits if you can tell me the quadrants where the Purgills jumped in with the Chimaera the first time, where you got off the ship." Sabine offered seeing the man become extremely interested as he smiled.

"Sure, sure. It was just outside this system. Near the asteroid belt at one-four mark twenty-three." The man replied as he pointed straight up. "But it will do you no good, those things jumped again a few minutes later. I have told several scavengers that and they all return within a week upset that they could not find it."

Handing the man, a chip with one hundred on it, Sabine felt somewhat excited. It was the first real evidence that the Chimaera was somewhere, that is if the man told the truth. As the man lurched and stumbled to the Bar to drink down his sudden wealth, Sabine turned to Ashoka. "Can you tell if he was truthful."

"Yes, he was." Ashoka pulled her cloak tighter around her, this place was causing her to feel subconscious. She was older but she had retained a lot of her looks and several of the others in the room were looking at her oddly. Tantooine was still a harbor of slave traders and kidnappers. Scum of the galaxy.

"My, my. Look at that." Hondo said as he pointed to a lone man sitting at a table, with his one leg drooped over a chair. A Wookie was sitting next to the man as they waited for something.

"Who is that?" Sabine asked as she watched as the man smile at her and wink. Rolling her eyes, she looked back at Hondo.

"That would-be Han Solo, General for the New Republic. He has been looking for smugglers to haul cargo for the New Republic. He might be able to locate some information about Ezra if we ask him. I understand it he is married to Princess Leia Organa." Hondo told them as Sabine's eyes widened. Standing she made her way over to the table.

Han Solo looked up at the Armored Woman and smiled. Sure, he was married but he did appreciate beauty and this woman was extremely beautiful, for a Mandalorian. The Woman sat and stared at him. "I do not want to give you the wrong idea, but I am happily married."

"I know, to Leia Organa. I need help and she knows me and she knows someone I am searching for. Can you take her a message and ask her to contact me on this communication transmission code?" Sabine handed Han a data chip.

Han took the chip and shook his head, he doubted that his wife would take the time to contact anyone, she was extremely busy. "Sure, I doubt she will. She barely has any time for me."

"Just tell her that I am Sabine and I am looking for Ezra. She will understand." Sabine stood and went back to the table with Asoka and Hondo. "Let us go, Asoka I want to check the asteroids."

"Do not worry, I will continue to search as well. I have not given up on the boy and I will not until he is found." Hondo stood and flipped a coin to the Bartender. Leaving with his Ugnaught in tow.

Han watched the two women leave, he stared at the cloaked one and saw that she was a Togruta. He smiled, the Togruta may be older but she had retained a lot of her natural beauty. "What do you think Chewy, should I tell Leia or believe that this was just some type of charade?"

Hearing his friend and Co-pilot bark and gruff, Han shook his head. But saw that Chewy was staring at the Togruta woman intently. Then the Wookie stood and followed the two. He barreled through the crowds and burst out the door.

"Chewie, where are you going?" Han asked as he followed the Wookie. Seeing the big behemoth run up to the cloaked Togruta and pull back the hood. Then with a bellow of glee, he threw his massive arms around her.

"Chewbacca, I thought that was you." Ashoka said as the Wookie held her high in the air. Gruffing and howling happily. As Han approached he looked at his friend oddly. Then saw that Sabine was touching her blaster on her right hip, until Asoka had started to laugh. "Sabine, Chewbacca and I are old comrades and friends." She explained as the Wookie set her down and gleamed down at her happily. Then gave a short tale about Chewbacca and her when they were being hunted.

"Well fur-ball you never told me about that one." Han stated as he shook his head. "You know what since you are a friend of Chewy let's go to the Falcon and contact Leia right now."

It took only moments and Leia was thrilled to see Sabine again. After Sabine told her what had happened and that they were searching for Ezra, Leia was willing to help in any way that she could. But there was a problem.

"I am sorry Sabine, right now a lot of our Intelligence Services are focused on the Imperials. I have no pull on where and what they are doing. As soon as I can, I will try to help. Maybe I could get my brother to help you." Leia said over the transmitter. Leia knew that if she told Luke that a Jedi was out there somewhere, he would jump at the chance to go and locate him. Even try to persuade Ezra to join in rebuilding the Jedi.

"I do not know, hon. Luke is just as busy as you are nowadays. Perhaps I can ask a few of my contacts they might know something." Han injected as he leaned against a nearby bulkhead. "If you two can hang around a couple of days I will give it my best shot." Secretly wanting to get out of trying to convince smugglers to transport cargo for the New Republic. He knew that they would make him contact others several more times until they had the numbers needed.

"No, we have been here long enough. We have a lead and I want to follow it up. You have our transmission code you can always contact us." Sabine stood then smiled at the small image of Leia. "It was nice seeing you again. Perhaps after we find Ezra we will come for a visit." Walking off the Falcon, Ashoka shook her head and followed.

"Sabine, you have to have patience. This is not something that we can just rush into. It is going to take time." Ashoka stated as they left.

Leia could not blame Sabine's impatience. If Han was missing she would feel the same way. She would not be able to sit still, she would want to go and search even if it was a dead end. She decided that perhaps she would tell Luke and have him consider it.

Grand Admiral Thrawn stood overseeing the repairs on the Chimaera. The Bridge was almost repaired from what the Purgills had inflicted on it. He still had nightmares of the massive beasts intertwining him in their long tendrils. He was also amazed that he was alive. He frowned, if he was alive then that young Jedi Bridger was probably also alive. He had watched as the Large Creature pull the young man through the viewport and disappear. Looking down at the crewmembers as they rebuilt a lot of the Bridge Controls he shivered.

"Sir, the engines have been tested and are almost ready to be installed." Captain Pelleaon said as he stepped up to the Grand Admiral and handed him a Data Pad.

"Good, how long until the ship is ready?" Thrawn asked as he took the Pad.

"Twelve days Sir, if the repair crew work around the clock." Pelleaon stated as he exhaled, the damage to the ship had been extensive. In the past the Empire would just scrape the ship and list it as a loss. But now the Empire needed every ship no matter the condition.

"Have any of the scouts found the Purgill yet?" Thrawn asked as his red eyes focused on Pelleaon. Thrawn wanted to know what had happened to Bridger, he needed to know that the young Jedi was no longer a threat to him. He cursed himself, he had let his arrogance overcome common sense. Back on Lothal, when Bridger told him to leave and take the troops with him. If he had known that the Emperor would fall he might have heeded the young man's order and left. Then he would still have his whole strike fleet. Now he had to assemble the last remnants together in hopes of stabilizing what was left of the Empire and then start to rebuild.

"No sir, no sign. Do you want them to continue to search?" Pelleaon asked as he considered mentioning that it was a waste of ships, fuel and pilots to search for the beasts that could hide anywhere in the galaxy.

Exhaling Thrawn looked out at the starfield. He knew Bridger was out there and he wanted to know where. Not for revenge, but to apologize. Thrawn had been wrong and he hated being wrong. "No, have them return to normal search and survey." Striding off the Bridge Thrawn headed for his private chambers, he felt somewhat pleased that at least his private collection had not been damaged.

Entering near the Asteroid Field, Sabine turned on the sensors and she felt a slight hope that there was something, anything that would lead her to Ezra. Patching into the old sensor readings from the Ghost, she looked for the only ones that could tell her or take her to where Ezra was. The Purgills.

"Now what?" Ashoka asked as she piloted the ship towards the great lumps of rock floating around.

"Shut down and let us float around a bit. I have the sensors on full search pattern." Sabine replied as she leaned back waiting and hoping.

"What are you scanning for?" Ashoka was confused as she looked at the search parameters. Shaking her head as she saw the readings.

"Purgills, they took Ezra. Maybe they will take us to where they took him." Sabine stated as she closed her eyes and felt that she was getting closer. As she dozed she kept hearing his words. "I know I can always count on you." She hoped that it was true.

A lone figure stood on top of a large hill, trying to get a signal to transmit. Almost five years he had been left on this isolated and desolate world. He had not seen another sentient being in all that time. He also had not seen any ships coming or going from the world. When the Purgill's dropped him here, they also deposited all sorts of items that they had stripped from the Star Destroyers. Only by pure luck there had been enough materials first to construct a primitive lightsaber, a low frequency transmitter and a couple of things to make it livable on this savage planet. Not that there was anything savage on it. Exhaling he went back down to where he had set up camp, near a good portion of the Imperial tech now set. Off to one side sat a half repaired and constructed TIE Fighter. He silently wished Sabine was here, she would have it repaired in no time. That and he wished she was here because he drastically missed her. Though it would not do any good, he did not have a flight suit so he would not be able to leave the planet. As Ezra walked into his camp, he dropped the transmitter with a huff. He still did not know why the Purgill's had dropped him on this world and he silently wished they didn't. Of course, at the time he was suffocating, when the large Purgill pulled him out of the Star Destroyers Bridge. He had been able to grab a Stormtrooper Helmet. Several hours later when he started to suffocate the Purgill had dropped him at the first planet with atmosphere that they could. Then they left him. Shaking his head he realized that his mind kept drifting from one thing to another. Walking into his cave, he looked at the wall. He had painted an image of Sabine on it. He mused that he was nowhere the artist Sabine was or is, but it was close enough. This helped settle his mind. With a slight tear in his eye, he smiled. "Good Afternoon, Sabine. The Transmitter was a bust. Just like you said." Giving a slight chuckle, he imagined her tort reply at his attempt. Sitting and taking out a ration bar from the ten large crates of them, he began to eat. Staring at the image. He missed her the most of all his friends and each night he would stare at the image for hours. He would talk to it and silently hear her replies and her biting responses. Ezra surmised that if it was not for Jedi Meditation he would be insane by now. Running his hands through his beard and long hair he inhaled and kneeled deciding to meditate and flow into the force, at least the music of the world gave him some comfort.