Kari's P.O.V.

Two days later...

I'm in my tent, I've taken the cover off and I'm staring at the sky as clouds go by. I close my eyes, and without warning the band of rebels I had met flash through my head.

I look to my left at the strange cube laying beside me. I take it in my hand and look at it. There are strange symbols on the sides and on each side there are openings protected by glass.

What's so special how about this thing? Why would that man have it? I think to myself. It seems totally useless.

I sigh and put the cube down so it rests on my mid section. The empire will probably be looking for me now. Seeing as how I stole from them. I chuckle to myself. Nah. Those Stormtroopers are as smart as a loth rat. They've probably forgotten my face already.

I should probably go to town and see if I can buy some food with these credits. I think as I put my money in my side bag. I stand up and hide the cube under my sleeping mat, put the cover back over the tent and leave for town.

When I arrive the city is as busy as usual. I decide to go to a vender I often do business with. He owes me a couple favors so maybe I'll get something good. I walk to his little shop and find him asleep, leaning back in his chair with a bottle, probably containing alcohol, in his hand. His name is Bardan.

He has a little bit of a drinking problem but he is always fair whenever we make deals. I pick a stick up off the ground and poke him on the head. He shoots up, shouting something in his original language before his eyes land on me.

I put my credits on the table, "I want some food and information." I tell him.

He bends down and gets a small box out from under the table. He slides it to me, I pick it up, open it, and find packets of dried food. I close the box and look at him, "information." I tell him.

"What about?" He asks in his language. He's an Aleena so I have to look down at him to maintain eye contact.

I lean down a little, noticing a trio of Stormtroopers standing a little ways away from us. "I want you to tell me any information you have regarding a small band of rebels here on Lothal." 

He thinks for a moment, glancing over at the Stormtroopers before he tells me, "I hear they've been supplying food to a small settlement out in the fields. I believe it's called Nakoto town."

I nod, "it's named after that one Colonel right? The one that died?" He nods in response. I frown at him, "I already knew that. Any other information?"

He thinks again before his eyes light up, meaning he just remembered something. He leans up a little bit before whispering, "I hear the empire is going to burn that settlement to the ground as an example to the rebels."

My eyes widen slightly, "when are they planning to do this?"

"I hear they started the fire earlier this morning." He tells me.

I clench my fist, "let me guess, they didn't even bother to evacuate the settlers?"

In response he nods. I growl, he looks at me with concern, "what do you plan on doing Kari?" He asks me.

I turn away from him, "never thought I'd be doing this." With this statement I start running away from him. I spot some speeders and jump on one, ignoring the shouts of someone I start the speeder and speed away from the city.

I've got to help those people! I have to! I speed up and keep going, the location running through my head as I go. I see a familiar mountain and know I'm getting close to the settlement. I look up and see a plume of smoke rising in the sky. I nearly crash the speeder when I stop it. I jump off of it and run over the hill. My eyes widen when I reach the top.

Smoke rises into the air, each and every one of the small huts are burning, any crops that they have are probably nothing but ash. I notice the rebels, they're helping a few of the people evacuate.

I run over to Hera, who's treating a woman with a gash on her forehead. "Hera!" I call out.

When she hears me she turns her head, "Kari!"

I reach her and crouch down beside her. She looks at me, "could you hold this rag to this woman's head while I help the others?" She gestures to the rag in her hand.

I take the rag as she gets up. I hold it to the woman's head, I recognize her as the mother of the little girl I gave food to. After a few moments she stirs and her eyes flutter open. She grabs my wrist in alarm before she looks up at me.

"It's okay." I assure her. "You're safe. You're going to be fine." I tell her.

"My daughter..." she whispers.

I look down at her, "what?"

Tears form in her eyes, "my daughter...! She's still inside!" She points to the hut about thirty yards away from us. She grabs my arm again, causing me to look down at her, "please...." she whispers, "I know we don't know you. But please! Save my baby!" She pleads.

I'm almost brought to tears at her plea. I nod, "hold this rag on your wound." I stand up and look down at her, "I'll get your kid back." I tell her.

Saying this I run towards the hut. I run right past Kanan and his eyes widen at me, "Kari! Wait!"

I ignore him and keep running, knowing full well he's going to try to stop me. I run into the blazing house, which seems to be on the brink of collapse. "Hello?!" I call out. "Is anyone still in here?!"

I hear a whimper and my head snaps to the right, I see the little girl. She's pinned to the ground by her leg, which is being crushed beneath a wooden beam. I run over to her, the beam looks scorched, so it must be burning her leg. I place my hands on the beam and push it aside. I look at the little girl, "I'm gonna take you to your mom okay?" I yell to her over the roaring flames.

She nods and I pick her up and dash out of the house. I stand in the courtyard for a moment to catch my breath when I hear the little girl scream at something behind me. I turn my head to see a totem pole falling in our direction. I crouch down and protect the girl with my body, I expect for us both to be crushed. But then, I feel nothing.

I look up and my eyes widen with a gasp. The pole is floating above us in the air just above my head. I look ahead and see Kanan holding his hands out in front of him, he pushes them out and the pole flies down behind us and falls to the ground with a crash.

I stare at Kanan in shock. Is he like Ashoka? I think. Is he a Jedi?

The little girl whimpers, snapping me out of my thoughts. I get up from my position and run over to where the woman is located. She now has bandages wrapped around her head, when she sees us she lets out a sob.

"Mommy!" The little girl yells.

I walk over and place the girl down beside her mother and they embrace each other. They separate and the mother looks at me with a grateful gaze, "thank you... so much."

I blink at her but then nod after a moment. The little girl suddenly jumps up and hugs me around the neck, nearly knocking me over in the process.

"Thank you so much! I was so scared!" She tells me.

I pat her back awkwardly, "um... don't mention it kid." She pulls away from me and snuggles up beside her mother.

I stand up and walk away from them to the edge of the settlement. I stare at the remains of the town, everything is nothing but ash now.

I feel a presence behind me and glance back to see Ezra standing there, he has a smudge of dirt on his face and his clothes look dirty. My gaze turns back to the town, he walks to stand beside me, seeming to be as deep in thought as me.

After a moment, I speak, "they burned it all away..." I mutter, just loud enough so he can hear me. He looks at me. I keep talking, "the people here were just hungry... and you guys gave them food and this happened." I say, gesturing to the town.

I growl and clench my fist, "they didn't care if the people died. All the empire care about is spreading fear and pain." I say, spilling out my inner thoughts. I barely know this boy, I met him only a few days ago, but I somehow feel he understands what I'm saying.

He nods, looking back to the village, "that's what they do. They don't care who they hurt as long as they stay in power." He says.

"Makes me sick." I tell him.

"Yeah." He says to me, "I know the feeling." He turns and starts to walk away. But before he leaves he puts his hand on my shoulder, "by the way. You could've hidden the cube better when stealing it."

My eyes widen and I look at him. He just gives me a smirk and a small shrug before he walks away. I wrap my arms around myself, so many emotions are stirring inside of me. It's overwhelming, I hate it. I hate what the empire has done to these people, and I want to help them. But how could someone like me do that?

With a sigh I turn and look at the rebels one more time before I dash away from the remains of the town. I run away and don't look back.

I run until I reach my camp. I walk inside my tent and sit down on my sleeping mat. I shoot back up when I feel something poke my butt. I see an indentation from the middle of the mat and remember I hid the cube there. I lift the mat up and take the cube out from under it.

I put the mat back down and sit cross legged on it. I stare down at the cube in my hands, I still feel that pull towards this thing... I place the cube down on the ground and close my eyes. I feel that pull again, and it's much stronger that it ever has been. I rest my chin against my palms, my elbows resting on my knees.

"You're a very special girl Kari."

Ashoka's voice suddenly rings in my head.

"It's the energy in the universe. It lives and breathes through us."

I take a deep breath.

"If you ever meet someone like you, show this to them."

Someone like me?

"This is Jedi master Obi Wan Kenobi."

I jump when I hear a voice. I open my eyes and see the cube floating in the air, the corners of the cube are disconnected from the cube and are floating outside on the cube's perimeter. The inside of the cube is glowing blue. In the middle of it all, plays a holo message. I see a man, with brown hair, a brown beard, and blue eyes, he's wearing a robe.

The man begins speaking, "I regret to inform that our Jedi order and the Republic, have fallen. With the dark shadow of the Empire rising to take their place."

The Jedi? Didn't they die in some kind of purge? I think to myself.

The man keeps speaking, "this message is a warning and a reminder for any surviving Jedi. Trust in the force."

My eyes widen, "'the force'?" I repeat in awe.

I keep listening to the message, "do not return to the temple. That time has passed. And our future, is uncertain. We will each be challenged."

I listen intently now, feeling almost as if he's speaking directly to me, "our trust, our faith, our friendships." He seems to look to the floor, a hint of sorrow in his eyes before he looks back up and continues speaking, "but we must persevere. And in time, a new hope will emerge. May the force be with you, always."

With that, the message is over. The cube puts itself back together and floats back down to the ground. I stare at it in awe, my mind is swirling with new information.

I lay down on the mat, and stare at the cube. Who was that man? I think. I don't understand. I thought all of the Jedi were killed. I was told as a child none survived, not one. I scoff, not surprising that the empire lied.

I suddenly hear rustling outside. I shoot up and hear the rustling again, I slowly reach over and grab my blaster from beside me. I stand up and slowly walk over to the entrance of my tent. I place my hand on the tent flap and hear the rustling again, this time accompanied by footsteps.

I take a deep breath and open the tent up. I point my blaster out, the tip rests on something. I look up and see Kanan standing there, looking down at me. I stand up from my bent over position and come out from my tent.

"What're you doing here?" I ask him.

He looks past me and into my tent. He looks back down at me, "I think you have something of mine." He tells me.

I scoff, crossing my arms, "well, you can have it. After I heard that message I decided I've had enough."

I look back up at him to find his eyes are wide and he's looking at me in shock. "What?" I ask, "did I say something?" I question.

"You... heard the message?" He asks slowly.

I nod, "yeah. There was a man named Obi Wan Kenobi talking about the Jedi and Republic and all that nonsense." I tell him.

"It's not nonsense." He tells me. I look at him, "that was a real message." He tells me.

I'm shocked by what he tells me, it was real? Not fake? I go into my tent and get the cube. I emerge from the shelter and hold it out to him, "you can have it back. I don't want it." I tell him.

He seems to hesitate before he brings his hand up and takes it. He puts it in his pocket before he looks at me, "Kari. I want you to listen to me when I tell you this."

This gains my attention and I look up at him. His face is very serious, "that message was totally real. And this cube," he pats his pocket, "is actually called a holocron. The only people that can open it are people who are strong with the force."

My eyes widen for a moment and he continues. "I believe you may be force sensitive Kari. That's why I want to ask you this." He pauses, waiting to see if I'm listening. He must know that I am because he says, "I want you to come with us. Become a member of our team. And... train in the ways of the force."

I look away from him, "I'm not like the Jedi used to be... I'm not like them." I tell him.

"You saved that kid." He tells me, I look back up at him. "That's what we do Kari. We help people who can't help themselves. I think you would fit in fine with us."

I look to the ground, "you can think about it." He tells me.

When I look up again he's gone.

I go back into my tent after awhile, even more confused than I was originally. I lay down on the mat, my body heavy with exhaustion from today.

I saved a life. I heard a message from the Jedi. And I find out I'm 'strong with the force'. This day did not turn out how I expected it would.

The next day....

3rd person P.O.V.

The ghost crew is getting ready to leave Lothal. Hera is in the cockpit, Sabine is painting in her room, Zeb is sleeping in the loft space, Kanan is in his room meditating, and Ezra is sitting on the top of the ship.

Ezra looks out onto the fields, enjoying the view. He can see the com tower where he used to live, and the capital city behind it. He sighs, remembering that girl Kari. She reminds him so much of himself, just a little less selfish. But none the less, he hopes she takes Kanan's offer and joins them.

It would be nice to have someone else to train with, someone else his age. He wonders if she likes practical jokes, she would probably like messing with Zeb as much as he does.

He pulled from his thoughts when he hears Kanan calling his name. He jumps down from the top of the ship and lands on the ramp leading into the ship. He sees Kanan standing on the inside. Kanan sees him, "there you are!" Kanan says as Ezra approaches him.

Kanan looks down at him, "we're about to take off. You ready?" He asks.

Ezra turns and looks outside and into the fields. Guessing what his apprentice is thinking Kanan puts a hand on his shoulder, "it was her decision Ezra. If she didn't want to join us, she didn't have to."

Ezra nods, and turns to walk away when he hears a voice.

"Not planning on leaving without me are you?"

They both turn to see Kari standing at the entrance to the ship, arms crossed. A small smile sprouts on Kanan's face and he walks towards her. He reaches her and puts his hand on her shoulder. "Your decision?" He questions.

She looks up at him with a shrug, "I've got nothing to lose. So why not?" She tells him, giving her answer.

Ezra walks over, "well, welcome aboard! I guess." He says.

She nods. Kari has to admit to herself, maybe life as a rebel won't be too bad. And she could get used to these kind people. She wants to show the empire they can't just get away with whatever they please, she wants to show them that she's not to be underestimated.

Later....

Sabine touches up her newest painting, this one is of the rebel symbol. It's on the ceiling of her room. She steps down from her ladder and wipes the the paint off her face. She hears her door slide open and she turns to see Kari standing there.

Sabine raises an eyebrow at her. Kari scratches her neck, "so..." she says in a nervous tone. "I guess I'm your roommate?" She questions, bringing her hand down.

Sabine chuckles, "guess you took Kanan up on the offer?" Kari nods in response. Sabine points to the top bunk of her room with her paint brush, "you can have the top bunk." Sabine tells her.

Kari nods and walks into the room. Sabine looks at her as she steps back up on her ladder, "one rule. Don't touch my paintings while they're drying." She tells Kari with a somewhat serious face.

Kari nods, "alright. Seems easy enough." Kari walks over to the bunks and climbs up and onto her own bunk. Kari lays down and turns to face the wall, her back to Sabine. After awhile Sabine puts the final touches on her painting and steps down the ladder. She walks over and lays down on her bunk. She falls asleep and Kari is left to her own thoughts.

As Kari falls asleep, she feels the ship launch into hyperspace and she knows that this is just beginning of her own journey in the galaxy. And she hopes she made the right decision in joining these rebels.