Star Wars: Rebels: The Promised Day

Disclaimer: Star Wars Rebels and all Star Wars characters and Lore are not my property, as they are all owned by Lucasfilm and the Walt Disney Company.

A/N: Well, here we are, everyone. The final chapter of this trilogy. I know at this point at least a fair amount of you were caught off-guard by the death and violence of the last chapter, as well as that cliffhanger I will admit wasn't that easy to write. Nonetheless, please rest assured, this isn't over just yet. So now, without further ado, let us begin! The Promised Day has come to pass, and the fate of the Rebellion as well as the embattled Ghost crew remains to be decided!

Warning: This chapter contains scenes of intense and graphic violence including blood, impalement, and character death. So, please be advised if you are sensitive to such content.

Chapter 12: Requiem

As Ezra's deep blue eyes remained wide and his jaw still hung open in disbelief and horror at the sight that lay before him, the young Padawan began to feel his entire form trembling. A mixture of emotions, terrible, unwelcome emotions surged within his very being. Desperation, hurt, anguish, anger, rage, hatred, all of it. His face morphed into a mask mirroring the stuff of nightmares, and this time, nothing and nobody remained to bring him out of it. Not even bothering to turn to face the orphan from Lothal as he looked down at the broken, bleeding body at his feet, the orphan from Evocar spoke knowingly and contemplatively, not a single shred of remorse or doubt in his tone.

"I recognize that face you're wearing. I know it, as I too wore it before. It was just like this, when servants of the Hutts murdered my parents right before my eyes. This is the reality each and every being is born into, a reality where all precious life can be destroyed in an instant, and those of us who remain have to decide what to do without the ones we love. I lost my mother, my father, my brother, my sister, my best friend, and my lover all to this absolute reality. The cycle is endless, hatred and violence only beget more hatred and violence. Those who cannot see this reality for what it is will never be able to surpass it, never find the power to make fantasy into reality. So," at last, he turned and shifted his crimson eyes to peer into the blues of his young enemy, "with all of this in mind, I ask you now one final time, young Jedi, Ezra Bridger, do you hate me now?"

Teeth clenched and jaw tightening, hands shaking and tears streaming down his face, Ezra Bridger did the only thing he could do, and let out a tormented, anguished scream that reverberated throughout the chamber, the raw energy of the Dark Side having permeated and now surging forth from within him. Remorseless crimson eyes didn't even look amused as Nachtgeist drew and reignited his custom-built lightsaber in his right hand, waiting for the young man to return to his feet.

"That's what I thought."

"I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!"

Spit flying with his words, voice hoarse with hurt and fury, Ezra rolled over to his right and tore out what remained of the pike keeping his remaining hand impaled with his teeth, giving no care to the blood splatter that hit his face as he immediately leapt to his feet, drawing and reigniting his own lightsaber before charging and jumping through the air, the power of the Dark Side amplifying his movements and blinding him to his pain as he brought all the darkness within to bear against Nachtgeist, who paid the fearsome display no heed while raising his blade with one hand to counter the Jedi. All the while, out of sight and focus from either opponent, the broken and bloody form of Sabine Wren twitched slightly from where she was pinned under the pike to the floor beneath her.

Enraged beyond the point of reason, Ezra lashed out with the fury of a provoked nexu. Switching to Form Two, Makashi, Nachtgeist used the refined style in stark contrast to Ezra's wild slashing and hacking to effortlessly counter the young man's vicious assault. Using his free hand, the Grand Inquisitor sent another blast of Force lightning into Ezra's already badly wounded form. Screaming in pain, the young Padawan was thrown back onto the floor, and barely had enough time to avoid the blade being thrust at the spot where he lay. Closing his eyes as he winced in pain, Ezra held his own blade up defensively as the menacing Dark Side master walked over. When the young man opened his deep blue orbs again, however, Nachtgeist felt his crimson ones widen in surprise as he stopped short.

The deep blue eyes of Ezra Bridger were glowing a light gold, and a matching aura of this energy was forming steadily around him. Instinctively, the Grand Inquisitor shifted his gaze back to the holocron, and he had to stifle a gasp as he saw it too was glowing in the exact same color. The residual energies of Revan himself were coming to the aid of the young Padawan, despite the fact the boy had neither the strength of mind nor the energy to unlock the holocron. The implications of what this meant were not lost on the Evocii, who returned his focus to the boy, his expression one of both disbelief and awe.

"You… you're his progeny?! His blood flows within you?!" there was no fear in his voice, just complete, blindsiding disbelief.

"What're… what're you talking about…?" Ezra asked weakly, his eyes and aura still glowing in the same shade of gold. Hardening his expression once more, Nachtgeist knew he couldn't let this unexpected turn of events erode his focus. He sharply retorted as the young man climbed back to his feet.

"It doesn't matter. You lack the knowledge or the strength to make any effective use of this boon. The outcome remains the same."

With that said, the battle resumed once more, but neither the Grand Inquisitor nor the descendant of a legend before him caught sight or sensed the same golden Force energy was forming in an aura around the daughter of Clan Wren not far from either of them as well.

While the fighting inside the Infinite Reformer continued on, the battle outside the ancient, massive capital ship had taken a sudden turn. The arrival of both Mandalorian and Separatist holdout reinforcements had been an unexpected boon to the doomed remains of the Rebel fleet, sparing Hera, Sarusan, and the others immediate destruction. On the bridge of the Providence-class carrier/battleship, a familiar droid general relayed instructions to his crew of B-1 battle droids.

"We'll be advancing towards the fleet over the planet to draw their fire away from the Rebels. Send in bombers and fighter escorts to keep them occupied as we close in with the rest of the fleet!"

"Roger, roger!" one of the B-1's replied from his console. Turning back around, Kalani moved to finish coordinating with his allies for this assault. A live holofeed of the two Mandalorian veterans awaited him out of the floor projector at the very center of the bridge. They were one man and one woman clad in the armor of supercommandos.

"We are ready to proceed with the assault, warriors of Mandalore. I trust you are ready to join us?" once Kalani finished, the male veteran was the first to reply, serious and resolute.

"Don't insult us, droid. Mandalore specifically ordered us not to return until we've done some damage. I do not intend to return to him in failure, not now, not ever!"

"Can you try not to hog all the glory to yourself, brother?" the female remarked in a snarky tone, crossing her arms over her chest while peering at him. She knew a battlefield wasn't exactly the time or place to push her older sibling's buttons, but Iria Shysa couldn't help herself. Fenn Shysa was quick to offer his irritated rebuttal, just as he always was.

"Are you questioning the intentions of a superior officer, my most dear little sister?"

"No, I'm questioning you," she retorted without hesitation. She grinned beneath her helmet, knowing without seeing it he had a brow twitching under his.

"I'm your superior officer, damn it! I don't know why Mandalore assigned you to this operation!"

"I don't know, maybe my husband actually has more faith in my abilities than you do?"

"It's not your abilities I constantly find myself second-guessing, it's your willingness to remain focused on the task at hand!"

"Ahem!" the two bickering siblings shifted their focus back to the veteran droid general, his interruption reminding them of where they were. And with the coordinated assault finalized, the joint fleets resumed course to face the Imperial fleets that awaited them.

As the battle outside resumed, Kanan at last fought his way into the control room for the main reactor. Five Arakyd mark IV service droids were on duty at their stations, but were quickly cut to pieces by the Jedi's lightsaber. Trying to remember the description of the controls of the room, the door he'd just come through flew open in a sharp hiss. Immediately spinning around with lightsaber raised, Kanan blocked one of the twin red blades of his opponent. Jerec's grin was back, as was his demented chuckling.

"You've come further than you were supposed to, pesky little korrslug. Your death will be oh so satisfying!"

"I'm done trying to reason with you!" the blind Jedi Knight snapped, the haunting memory of Zeb's passing fresh in his mind. He growled upon hearing the blind Inquisitor shift back to full blown laughter as their duel resumed in earnest, this time within the tighter confines of the control room.

Outside the paneled windows above the diagnostic consoles, the giant, shielded sphere of layers of metal plating five feet thick encased the core of the main reactor, which continued to hum and vibrate loudly at a higher level setting, the primary source of power for the ancient capital ship. Neither adversary heard it, however, for the whirling and clashing of their lightsabers remained the only sound registering in their ears. The two fleet-footed former disciples of the Jedi Order kept up with one another in the close quarters blow for blow, Kanan dodging the second blade on Jerec's doublesaber as it was thrust at his head like a spear. His attempt to flank the Dark Side practitioner was parried, and he yelped when a boot to his stomach knocked him to the floor.

Before his hidden eyes even had time to blink, a heavy downward slashed knocked his lightsaber out of his grip. Another kick, this one harder than the last, sent him flying into the back wall, narrowly missing a comm station console to his left. The impact broke Zeb's deactivated bo-rifle off of his belt, but it also reactivated it right into melee mode. Activating the spinning function on his doublesaber, giving it the appearance of a saw blade just like at the start of the fight in the atrium, Jerec moved to leap over and bring the rotating blades down into the Jedi, a wicked laugh escaping him as he did so. Simultaneously, Kanan summoned the bo-rifle into his grip, narrowly rolling to his right and out of reach of the spinning blades just in time, which effortlessly sliced repeatedly into the floor and wall before Jerec raised the weapon back up while turning to face the Jedi again. This time, however, it was too late.

Hurling the weapon of the Lasan Honor Guard like a javelin with all of his Force-empowered might, Kanan could sense the moment of impact as the polearm went right through Jerec's midsection, the impact so severe he was sent flying across the room, losing his grip on his doublesaber, and going directly into the controls for the coolant systems for the reactor, the end of the shaft that had protruded out from his back going directly into the controls instantly and breaking the pumps for the coolant fluids. Without them, it was only a matter of minutes before the reactor overheated and suffered a core meltdown. To his credit, Jerec didn't give any indication he was in pain until he gasped and coughed up blood, his face transitioning back and forth from a pained grimace to disbelief at what appeared to be the sudden end to his duel with the Jedi. He tried in vain to tear the bo-rifle out with both hands, but found it was too deeply embedded into the newly-destroyed control console behind him. Kanan felt slightly unnerved as he got back up and retrieved his own lightsaber through the Force; Jerec's demented cackling returned, this time broken intermittingly as he coughed and hacked up blood. An alarm sounded immediately after, indicating the reactor was in danger.

"No less than you deserved," Kanan stated grimly at the doomed man before him. A chuckle escaped Jerec's blood-soaked lips before he retorted.

"Perhaps, but there are worse ways to die… Jedi. My only regret is I won't be around for the many battles and glorious slaughter to come!" as he spat blood at Kanan's feet, the latter took a step back, uncertain of what the traitor meant.

"What are you saying?"

"My superior, along with Lord Vader and the Emperor himself have seen what is coming. A tremendous, great power is on its way to our Galaxy, and only a unified Empire has any chance of standing against it! You doom everyone and everything you care about, just like the Jedi of old! You, and your Padawan! You damn fools! Hahahaha! HAHAHAHA!" even on his proverbial deathbed, Inquisitor Jerec refused to let his victorious enemy have the last laugh.

"I'm done, here," Kanan stated simply, and turned to leave without another word. Still, the crazed, maniacal taunting of the treacherous former Jedi followed him as he departed through the doorway.

"Shall I send you all holocards from hell?! I'll be laughing at you fools all the way down! Hahahaha! HAHAHAHAHA!"

Frantically running and rounding corridors, stepping and leaping over the remains of fallen battle droids on the floor, Kanan desperately attempted to make his way back to the turbolifts. He only had a few minutes left to find Ezra and Sabine and get them to safety. However, after a couple minutes of this, he ran through an open doorway just a few yards from his destination only to be bashed over the head by the twin barrels of the blaster cannon built into the right arm of one of the battle droids. Effectively knocked out by the brutal strike, the Jedi was helpless as the droid proceeded to take aim. Within the next instant, the mechanized soldier moved to face a new target, but was felled by multiple blaster bolts before it could get off a shot. Cassian ran over, reaching down with his free arm to pull Kanan up. A few more minutes later, a lone escape pod jettisoned from the starboard hull of the massive capital ship. Before it was out of range of the many weapons emplacements currently firing on both Mandalorian and Separatist warships and fighters, the main reactor of the Infinite Reformer went into total meltdown followed by an immediate implosion.

The ensuing detonation was a cataclysmic explosion that rocketed all nearby vessels away, the radiating heat enough to cause strain and damage to them, even. The entire aft end and midship of the ancient capital ship was incinerated in the blast, only leaving the forward section of the superstructure plus the bow and barrel of the Reformer Cannon. On the Ghost, both Hera and Rex had to shield their eyes from the blinding glow of the explosion, and neither could shake the sinking feeling in their chests as the reality of the situation set in. The hope they'd been granted by the arrival of reinforcements was seemingly dashed in an instant.

"No…" the Twi'lek pilot pleadingly whispered under her breath.

All the while, Munificent-class frigates and Fett-class cruisers covered the Rebel ships as they moved out of range of the Imperial fleets. The Imperials possessed superior firepower, however, and steadily began wearing down the shields of the new arrivals. It was quickly becoming apparent this was going to be an extraction mission, and not a long-term battle with total victory in mind.

Spinning out from the blast zone, the forward wreckage narrowly missed several Imperial warships as it moved out of control into the upper atmosphere of Evocar. The remains of the Observation Tower steadily fell apart, the top chamber breaking off, collapsing, and rolling over the front of the superstructure and into the top of the barrel, the heat of re-entry threatening to burn and tear all that remained of the ship apart. On the bridge of the falling wreck, Captain Suradasa and his staff were desperately attempting to regain what little control remained. The respected Human officer struggled to keep his footing as he relayed urgent instructions to his subordinates.

"Get starboard bow thrusters up at maximum, now! Fire up portside thrusters to steady us out! Extend all flaps and drag fins! If we don't cushion our descent, there won't be a wreck left for us to crawl out of!"

"We're on it, sir!" the same lieutenant from earlier replied immediately without looking up from his console, frantically at work to help save what remained of the ship as the surface steadily approached out the large, forward viewport.

By the time the forward section of the Infinite Reformer slammed into the surface of Evocar, her speed had been slowed enough and control had been restored to a point where she didn't disintegrate or smash into more pieces, but instead remained relatively intact as she crashed into the waters of a shallow lagoon surrounded by tropical landmass and ocean. Her keel and lower decks, including the bottom rim of the barrel of the Reformer Cannon, became deeply embedded in the wet sand beneath the water almost instantly. On the bridge, Suradasa and his men were sent flying off their feet, the violent impact still far too severe for anyone to remain seated or standing. Falling to the floor, or into their consoles or each other, the Imperial officers were either knocked out or left close to unconsciousness.

Out on the exterior on the wreck, various pieces of the hull and broke off and fell away into the water below, having been seared loose by the heat of reentry and finally shaken off by the force of the crash landing. What little remained of the ship's power and control systems broke down, leaving the charred, fractured wreck completely inoperable, but relatively stable where she lay in the lagoon.

Amidst the few remaining pieces of the Observation Tower on top of the barrel of the Reformer Cannon, a badly wounded Ezra Bridger and Sabine Wren lay unconscious just several feet away from Dunkel Nachtgeist, who himself had been knocked out by the blast. All three had not emerged unscathed, their respective uniforms now torn, ripped, and burned, along with parts of their skin. The Grand Inquisitor's half-mask still concealed the lower half of his face, but most of his right sleeve had been taken off along with the glove on his hand, revealing the pale yellow skin that matched his face along his refined bicep and forearm, which were now bruised and lightly burned in multiple locations. His left sleeve was still mostly intact, but the glove on that hand was gone as well. In addition, his tattered cloak billowed in the wind as dark grey clouds gathered overhead. Most of Ezra's sweater had been burned and torn off, leaving only tattered rags dangling on his lean, toned torso. Both of his own gloves were gone as well. His chest and arms were similarly bruised and burned. As for Sabine, her helmet was missing, her jumpsuit was ripped apart in various locations, both of her vambraces were smashed and fractured beyond function, and parts of her armor were charred to the point where the custom, painted designs were no longer recognizable. The pike that had kept her pinned to the floor was still stuck straight through her body.

Groaning weakly, Nachtgeist was the first to come to, Ezra slowly blinking his eyes open just moments later. His eyes were back to their normal shade of deep blue. The Grand Inquisitor felt his own go wide as he climbed back to his feet and the realization of what happened and where they were sunk in.

"No… no it can't be! Damn you, insurgents! I cannot return to him in failure! I refuse to fail my Emperor!" there was desperation in his voice, and a tinge of fear, two emotions neither Ezra nor Sabine had ever heard from him before. Rising back to his own feet, exhausted and weak from physical exertion and his injuries, Ezra couldn't resist the mean-spirited, satisfied smirk that formed on his lips.

"Looks like you no longer have that option!" the young Padawan couldn't resist chuckling as he thought about it as well. This time, when those two crimson eyes shifted back to him, nothing but murder was written in their expression. Ezra did his best to steel his nerves once again as he recalled lightsaber back to him.

"I will not allow my people to be at risk from any potential retribution he may seek upon me. I won't return to Coruscant empty-handed!" summoning his own lightsaber back into his right hand, Nachtgeist felt the hilt trembling in his grip as he reignited the blade. He finished with a roar, "You know suffering at last, now know death!"

Quickly reigniting his own weapon, Ezra didn't even have time to blink, as the Grand Inquisitor was upon him in less than a second, "I thought you were all about breaking the cycle of hatred?! It sure doesn't look that way right now!" he yelled while desperately attempting to block and dodge every violently-empowered lightsaber swing that came at him at high speed.

"The cycle has to be broken somewhere for it to be broken at all! The complete destruction of you, that girl you love, your master, and the rest of your Rebellion is a good enough place to start!" fury radiating with every word, the Dark Side amplified his speed and power to the point where he easily overpowered the young Padawan and sliced through the exposed portion of his lightsaber's hilt, destroying the weapon entirely. Ezra felt his eyes go wide, and with a strangled gasp, he was hoisted up into the air through the Force with his remaining hand being made to clamp tightly around his throat, the remains of his lightsaber falling and blowing away as the winds picked up. The menacing Dark Side master had recollected himself, only the cold intent to kill radiating from his hardened expression, "It was a worthy effort, but a futile effort nonetheless. May your heads be enough to appease my lords!"

As he raised his saber in preparation to run it through the defeated young man held aloft by his grip, the piercing shriek broke through the howling winds, and the Grand Inquisitor turned just in time for the shimmering, black blade of the Darksaber to go straight through his chest, a battered and bloodied Sabine holding the hilt tightly in her grip. She wheezed and panted, clearly in no shape to keep fighting herself, the same pike that had kept her pinned to the floor still stuck through her. His concentration shattered, the Dark Side master was helpless to prevent Ezra from falling back down onto the top of the wreckage, gasping freely now as the immense pressure that had been holding him in place and keeping his fingers wrapped around his throat evaporated away.

"You may believe your cause is just, but your means only bring more suffering and death! You will never hurt him, or kill anyone else, ever again!" Sabine spat viciously, eyes narrowed and teeth clenched together. She fought through her blinding pain with her beskar-clad resolve and the gift afforded to her by the holocron. Ezra looked over from where he fell on his side. At this point, the rain had picked up, thunder rumbling from off in the distance.

Crimson eyes wide as a pained gasp escaped his lips, Nachtgeist raised his blade up once again, but his grip slackened. Sabine easily moved back, unable to remove her own weapon in time, as the Evocii destroyed the hilt of the Darksaber with his lightsaber. Clutching at his chest with his free hand and struggling to remain on his feet while stumbling over, Nachtgeist looked upon both of his enemies once more, his disbelief fading into resignation as he shifted his gaze up to the sky above. Rain poured onto his face as a bolt of lightning crackled overhead.

"For you… Evocar…"

With that, Dunkel Nachgeist tumbled over the side to his left, his entire form moving out of sight and tattered cloak flapping in the wind as he plummeted down into the windswept and raindrop-pocked waters of the lagoon below. Then, he was gone, moving on into the abyss.

"I gave our people the means to carry on without me. Emperor willing, they will prosper as they did before... a worthy addition to his domain in exchange for their freedom, exactly as I intended. The torch passes... and I have no regrets..."

Several days had passed. While the Rebels had succeeded in their primary goal to bring the Infinite Reformer down and prevent her from being delivered to the malignant hands of the Emperor himself, neither they nor their rescuers had the numbers or the firepower to fight off the combined might of the Imperial Fourth and Seventh Fleets. As a result, after being given an opening to secure her surviving crew thanks to two full squadrons of Mandalorian and Separatist fighters, Hera concurred with Sarusan that it was best to evacuate the battlefield while they still had the second chance afforded to them by their allies. And so the Ghost, the Preserver, and the two R-22's piloted by Wedge and Hobbi got clear the Interdictors and made the jump to hyperspace while the joint Mandalorian and Confederate fleet held their would-be destroyers off. The survivors later learned upon returning to Dantooine from General Dodonna that their rescuers were largely successful in their own getaway, including with both of their respective flagships. It was only a partial victory for the Rebellion, however, as the entire coalition had lost just about every last one of their naval vessels and respective personnel in the assault. Mon Mothma and Bail Organa agreed that, henceforth, the Rebellion would operate as a single and united front. All efforts to rebuild would have to be combined to avoid mitigating the strength of the cause, at this point.

The sky over the farming world was fading into night through a striking shade of orange and yellow as the sun began setting over the horizon in the distance. Earlier in the day at Sandril Base, a memorial service had been held for all the personnel lost in the battle, including Zeb. His loss was a deep blow to the Ghost crew. On the voyage back, Ezra had briefly lost his composure, and it took a tight embrace from Sabine to hold him together, which he reciprocated without delay. Truth be told, she had tears in her eyes same as his, and so did both Hera and Kanan who joined in their own embrace. Rex and Chopper were less obvious about it, but they made it known they shared in the pain. The Lasat warrior would be missed, his sacrifice yet another in a growing number as the war with the Empire intensified. Much remained to be done, but those who carried on were determined to make sure no life lost would be a loss in vain.

Beyond the dimly-lit corridors within the ruins of the old Jedi Enclave, Kanan Jarrus sat alone in a cross-legged position on the pathway that wrapped around the remains of the fountain in the rooftop courtyard. The blind Jedi Knight, still bandaged in multiple spots on his torso, arms, and legs marking where his wounds were still in the process of healing, was deep in a state of meditation when his ears picked up the sound of a starship engine closing in on his location.

Hera brought the Phantom 2 to rest off to the northeast side of the courtyard, on Kanan's right. He remained seated and silent as the boarding ramp extended on the aft end, and both Hera and Sabine walked out moments later. Hera, like her usual protective self, couldn't help but split her focus between the Jedi and the Mandalorian, as the latter was still heavily-bandaged and not fully healed as of yet. Nonetheless, when Sabine heard Ezra was meditating in the ruins with Kanan, Hera knew she wouldn't be able to talk the young woman out of joining her in heading out to meet them. The Twi'lek pilot had made it known to the teenage Mandalorian that she had a secret to share with her longtime Jedi companion, but had given no details beyond that. Hera wanted Kanan to be the first to know, besides herself.

"Ezra's in the council meeting yard, where we encountered that presence earlier," Kanan told Sabine simply and calmly without moving in the slightest. He could easily sense why she had come, when he was so strongly in-tune with the Force energy permeating the ruined enclave.

The blind Jedi Knight had to restrain himself from losing his cool at what he sensed going on with Hera, however. He figured it would be best to wait for her to tell him, as difficult as it was. If either Hera or Sabine noticed how he jerked back slightly in surprise, neither of them said anything. Sabine made her way over to the smaller courtyard where she and Ezra had both fallen unconscious courtesy of that mysterious presence over a week prior. The moment the teenage Mandalorian was out of sight, Hera focused her eyes solely on Kanan. Clearing her throat, she began in a somewhat unsure voice, but she relaxed somewhat upon seeing his lips curl up in a well-meaning smile.

"Kanan, um, I'm not sure how else to say this, so I'll just say it. I'm… well…"

"Pregnant, with our child. I could feel it in you through the Force. I knew you'd want to tell me, though," his tone was gentle and even, his voice and presence soothing her nerves. Reaching up with one hand, he waited for her to accept it and pull her down to sit beside him. She couldn't help but smile at the gesture.

"I should've known it wouldn't be a secret to you," she chuckled lightly as he turned to face her.

"I keep telling you to give me some credit. Aren't I due that much?" he inquired lightly with a cheesy grin. It wasn't until she softly pulled off his mask and caressed his cheek when she replied.

"Yes, you are, and more," her gaze shone with happiness, and he held a similar expression as he caressed her face in turn, leaning to kiss her lovingly, and she gladly reciprocated instantly.

Meanwhile, over in the smaller rooftop courtyard that had served as the meeting place for the enclave's council in ages past, Sabine found Ezra sitting alone on the ledge of one of the alcoves behind the circular patch of grass in the center. She smiled warmly as she watched him for a moment. His face held a serene expression as he remained deep in meditation, at peace with his surroundings. As his sweater had been lost in the battle, he was now wearing a brick red, short sleeve tee shirt. He'd been given a new left arm in the form of a cybernetic limb, chrome silver in appearance with a black underlay beneath the plates and joints. Various cuts and bruises still marred his features, bandaging accompanying several, but Sabine knew those wounds would heal alongside her own in time.

A smile formed on his lips when he sensed and heard her approach. He opened his eyes and turned to face her as she sat next to him, and for a moment she felt herself caught in the gaze of his deep blues. So full of devotion and kindness, and something else she could feel making her heart swell. Swallowing a lump in her throat, she decided it would be best if she spoke first. She nearly jumped when she felt him slide his right hand into her left gently.

"Ezra… remember all those months ago on Ord Mantell when you told me you cared about me?" she asked him, smiling in good nature as she noticed his cheeks become a bit pink as he recollected the memory.

"Yes, of course I do," feeling emboldened by the way her hazel eyes looked into his deep blues with such warmth and depth, he decided it was now or never, "Sabine, I- I…", he jumped slightly again, this time with wide eyes, when he felt her press a finger to his lips to silence him. She had to suppress a giggle at the sight. She felt her cheeks grow hot as she readied to tell him the truth that had been building in her for some time, now.

"I love you, too, Ezra," she told him sincerely, looking him straight in the eyes so he'd have no chance to miss how serious and sure she was. She grinned upon hearing his breath hitch, and pulled her finger away to let him speak again.

"You, you do? Oh- oh, wow! I mean, yeah, you, well you said it before, but here, now? Uh… ugh! I'm not very good at this, am I?" he hung his head in shame at his stammering, looking up at her once he heard her chuckle lightly. Reaching over to him again, this time running her hand to the back of his head, she began pulling him to her as she leaned in closer.

"You're exactly as you need to be, and that's good enough for me," she whispered against his lips, and he closed the distance between them, wrapping her in his arms as she brought her left hand up to join the other keeping him to her. He deepened their kiss as he pulled her against him, like her, unwilling to let go. No, they'd never let go, not now, not ever.

Across the stars over Evocar, the Imperial Fourth Fleet had resumed full blockade over the recently-restored planet of rainforests, mountains, and tropical oceans and islands. Among the ancient wonders of the world to be recreated had been the beautiful stone and marble port city of Caraba, built directly in and around a natural cove on one of the coastlines with a wall and gates on the city limits inland. Both Starkiller and Commander Barca had tried for days in vain to locate any sighting or word of their mutual superior, but none was to be found. Already fearing the worst, the Commander of the Sacred Bands, who'd reluctantly taken up the role of political leader for the world, ordered preparations for a memorial to be built in recognition of their missing savior. Treated as honored guests, the Imperials in charge of a military envoy deployed to the surface, Inquisitor Starkiller and Fleet Commander Eclipse, were given lofty accommodations in the city.

She found him on the balcony outside his room that overlooked the harbor. Smiling sadly, knowing he couldn't possibly be unaffected by the loss of the man who taught him the ways of the Inquisition, Juno walked over to his side, and he turned to face her slowly.

"I'm not sure what the future holds for myself or my peers without him or Jerec, but I'll trust in the judgement of Lord Vader," the young man told his lifelong companion, and she slipped a hand in his.

"He taught you everything you need to know about how to carry on, and I think, if he truly is gone, that's what he'd want for you. He was cold and intimidating, to be sure," she paused for a moment to look down in memory before looking back up at her close associate, "However, I know he believed in you. And… so do I. You know that, right?" she offered him a more well-meaning smile, and he nodded, a likewise expression forming beneath his helmet.

"I do, thanks Juno."

"Anytime, Galen."

The two shared a warm embrace, a light summer breeze blowing his cloak behind him. The following day, more transpired over at the remaining wreckage of the Infinite Reformer. In the aftermath of the battle over a week prior, in the absence of his superiors, Captain Suradasa took command of the survivors on the wreck. After restoring power to a backup generator and reestablishing contact with both Thrawn and Paelleon in orbit, Suradasa was instructed to keep the wreck secure and await the arrival of a high-profile official from the Imperial Department of Military Research. So, when word came in that a sleek black Imperial shuttle outfitted with top of the line features from Imperial Intelligence was entering upper orbit under escort from two TIE fighters, Suradasa knew right away what it meant. With a squad of the ancient battle droids accompanying him, the navy captain stood by as the shuttle arrived in one of the few hangar bays on the wreck still safely intact enough to land a ship in. When the boarding ramp extended, a squad of Imperial Death Troopers descended, flanking the leader of the IDMR, whose elegant white cape flowed breezily behind him.

"Director Krennic, sir, welcome aboard what's left of this once mighty vessel. I have orders to ensure your inspection proceeds without any further delay," the top graduate of the Imperial Academy greeted as he stood at attention in respect.

"Then let us proceed immediately, captain. The project I'm representing here, the purpose for which the Emperor authorized the retrieval of this ancient relic in the first place, has already been delayed far too long," the aging, ambitious Imperial informed his host immediately.

It was indeed fortunate that the forward section of the Infinite Reformer was the section that emerged from the battle relatively intact, because the projection arrays that ringed in the back of the barrel of the Reformer Cannon are what Krennic wanted to inspect in person. With this piece of hypertechnology reverse-engineered and replicated, Dr. Erso and his team would have no further excuses in their continual stalls in finalizing the systems for the superlaser of the Emperor's ultimate weapon, which as far as Krennic was concerned would surely be his crowning achievement, his enduring legacy.

As all of this was taking place, a great many lightyears away, far beyond the edge of the Far Rim of the Galaxy, a violent thunderstorm was thrashing about on the surface of Dromund Kaas, ancient founding world of the Second Sith Empire after the original fell at the end of the Great Hyperspace War nearly five thousand standard years prior. Across the towering, illuminated skyline of Kaas City, the gigantic, imposing structure known as the Imperial Citadel stood over the northern boroughs. Within a large chamber, dimply lit with deep red light, at the very top of the citadel, a lone figure sat alone on a throne of polished silver crafted with intricate lines. Obscured beneath a cloak of royal purple, the figure held his chin with his right hand, which was encased in an armored glove of matching color, in a contemplative gesture. Another figure, this one concealed beneath a crimson red cloak, walked to the foot of the throne and bowed in absolute respect.

"You sent for me, my master?" the figure hidden by the crimson cloak inquired, his voice mechanized from what must have been an armored mask under his hood.

"Indeed I did, old friend. Summon the rest of the Inner Circle at once, we have more to discuss," the voice of the cloaked man who sat on his throne replied, his own voice disguised by a similar means.

A/N: And so it ends, for now anyway. Now, it's time I share a not-so-real-secret with you all: I've been planning to continue this series after this trilogy since near the beginning, working out various concepts for a sequel trilogy and other stand-alone/in-between stories in my head. I'm currently planning three in-between stories before the sequel trilogy begins, the current working title for the first one being "Star Wars: Rebels: Hearts of Warriors". I expect to begin writing it in the not-so-distant future, and I will be sure to keep you all updated on its progress.

Once again, and as much as this really should go without saying at this point, a special thanks is once again due to WikkedGrin for his tireless support in being my beta for this story, as well as each and every one of my reviewers, followers, favorers, and readers in general. Your constant support and sharing of your thoughts on this trilogy have been nothing but the absolute inspiration I required to see this through, and as I've said before, it's always been all of you who have made this all worthwhile. I look forward to continuing this journey with you guys and gals. Best wishes to everyone, and may the Force be with us all! :) Until we meet again, my fellow fans!

Update 1: Helo again, everyone! I trust you all had a good Star Wars Day. I figured today would be a good day to let you all know Chapter 1 of "Star Wars: Rebels: Hearts of Warriors" is in progress, and should be up sometime before the end of this month. I won't give too much away, but it's set two years further down the timeline, and the beginning is written to be concurrent with the events in "A New Hope". References to both that movie and "Rogue One" will be featured in Chapter 1, but the story itself will be primarily Ezrabine-centered with a rather strong, traditional Mandalorian presence.

Each of these three upcoming in-between stories will be shorter than the stories in this trilogy, and each feature a separate main plot line, but all will also be tied into each other and feature both references and lead-ins to the upcoming sequel trilogy. I'm also formulating concepts for one or two prequels set before this first trilogy in addition to all this. Needless to say I will be providing more updates for all of this further along, but for now, the fourth installment, "Hearts of Warriors", set at the start of the Original Trilogy films, is coming soon!

Update 2: Chapter 1 of "Star Wars: Hearts of Warriors", is now up!