The Hunt (Star Wars Rebels)

Padawan Braids

Kanan steered the Phantom closer to the large ship in the sky. Roy stood nearby, staring out of the viewport at the ship. Scaly Trandoshans wandered the deck like ants.

"I've never actually seen the ship before," Roy admitted.

"We'll have to be careful," Kanan warned the others. "Trandoshans aren't like stormtroopers. They have claws and bigger blasters. They're also very strong and fast."

"We can handle them," Zeb said, cracking his knuckles.

"Sabine will shoot to cause some commotion and then fly over the ship. The rest of us will jump and find that cure. When we get it, Sabine can pick us up again and we can take the cure to Ezra," Kanan explained.

"Why do I have to drive? I want to fight," Sabine complained.

"Because I need to be down there finding the cure," Kanan said. "No arguments."

Kanan stood up and Sabine took his place. Kanan led the others to the back.

"Do you know what the cure looks like?" Kanan asked Roy.

"No, I've never seen it before," he replied.

"So we're going in blind?" Zeb asked.

"We'll have to," Kanan said. "For Ezra."

"For Ezra," the others repeated.

"If you're going to jump, jump now!" Sabine shouted. The others had been so deep in thought that they hadn't noticed when Sabine had given them the opening they were looking for. Kanan opened the Phantom's back doors and jumped. Roy and Zeb were close behind.

They landed on the Trandoshan ship amid smoke and debris. Sabine had done her job well. The Trandoshans were screeching in their harsh language, rushing to man the turrets and fight back.

"We'll split up and look for the cure," Kanan whispered to the others. "If you find it or get into trouble, use your communicator."

The group split up, each person running in a different direction. Kanan headed for the main building. It was bound to have the most guards, but it also had the largest possibility of holding the cure. He shot two Trandoshans, quickly disabling them, before rushing into the building. He froze in horror at the sight that met his eyes.

It appeared to be a trophy room. Pelts and heads lined the walls. Dozens were distinctly wookie pelts. The heads were almost worse. Heads of animals, as well as heads from sentient beings. The room was scattered with glass cases and battered wooden chests. At the far end of the room was a glass case with a velvet box at the base. Almost dreading what he was going to see, Kanan stepped closer.

The box held rows of lightsabers. Most of them were old and unrecognizable, but one was clean and newer than the rest. It was Ezra's lightsaber. Kanan grabbed that lightsaber before glancing at the glass case.

The glass case contained padawan braids. Kanan recognized them because he had had one himself when he was a padawan. Padawan braids were a sign of a padawan learner. For beings who didn't have hair, they wore a strand of silka beads or something similar.

Kanan felt a flicker of rage and horror at the sight of the braids. He had heard stories, but he had never guessed at the truth. These Trandoshans were Padawan hunters. Each of these braids belonged to a padawan who had never been rescued, who had died before their master could save them.

"I won't let you join them, Ezra," Kanan said softly, squeezing Ezra's lightsaber tighter.

"I know enough to recognize a Jedi master when I see one," a raspy voice growled from behind Kanan. He turned around to face his opponent. It was a scaly Trandoshan, grinning at him with its needle teeth.

"You must have come for your padawan," the Trandoshan continued.

"What do you know about Ezra?" Kanan asked.

"Enough to know that he will die before you ever get this cure to him," the Trandoshan said, raising a claw. He was holding a small syringe. "I will receive the honor of his death, because I was the one who caught him. And a fine catch he was. Too bad he didn't last long enough to hunt."

Kanan activated both his and Ezra's lightsabers. He pointed one in the Trandoshan.

"You say you can recognize a Jedi Master, but I'm sure you've never fought one," Kanan told him. The Trandoshan raised his rifle.

"I'm willing to bet I can kill one," he replied.