Turn Back- A Star Wars Rebels Fanfiction

Epilogue

"So once I've finished recording my message, you'll deliver it to my friends?" I ask.

It had been one day since I had escaped the Empire, and one day since I had made my decision. Right now, I stood in front of a smuggler who had promised to find the Ghost crew and deliver my holo message.

"Yes, yes." He says, sighing. He wears a large black coat that hide most of his figure. He has the hood pulled up and over his face, so I have no idea what he really looks like. "But are we agreed that if I do this, I get to keep that Imperial ship you stole?"

I nod. "Just let me record my message, and we'll never have to see each other again."

"Alright, get on with it. I have some spice to deliver before noon."

"It won't take long."

For a second, I consider not doing this. Maybe I should go out and find my friends, maybe the Inquisitor would never come after me again.

But I know it's only a matter of time before the chase begins again, and I may not be the only one getting hurt this time.

No. Its time to make the hard decision.

For Ezra.

For all of them.

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"Guys, someone delivered this to us." Sabine said, walking into the main room on the Ghost, holding up a holodisk.

Ezra lifted his head and stared at the holo disk in her hand. Did it even matter anymore? Did anything?

Everybody else was already gathered around the table, so Sabine put the disk in.

Ezra gasped in surprise when Tilah appeared in the holo recording.

"Hi, guys." She said. "I'm not dead."

"Tilah!" Everybody exclaimed.

"Don't start shouting my name because this is a recording and I can't hear you." She said, smiling a bit. "I have some things to tell you all, and.. I couldn't do it in person."

In the recording, Tilah wrapped her arms around her herself and stared down at the ground for a few seconds.

"For the past week I've been with the Inquisitor and my father. My dad helped me escape, and he was killed by the Inquisitor, so you don't have to worry about him now. He...he also gave me this."

She held up a vial with red liquid in it, with an injector needle. "They severed my connection to the force temporarily with this. My father told me that if I overdose on it, it will permanently separate me from the force forever. If I keep traveling with you guys, I'm going to get you killed."

Ezra watched with horror as she lifted the needle to her arm, and injected every drop of the red liquid into herself. For a moment, she looked like she was about to pass out, but instead she straightened herself.

"I will never again be able to use the force. I refuse to become a weapon for the Empire, and I refuse to harm you guys by finding you. After this, I am going to freeze myself in Carbonite so I can't be used as leverage if I'm captured again. I am sorry it has to be this way, but I can't... I just can't go with you guys." She looked like she was about to cry.

"The rest of this message is for Ezra. Please pause it until he can watch it alone."

Ezra hit the pause button as quickly as he could, and looked up at the rest of the Ghost crew.

"What did she do?" Zeb asked quietly, his voice filling the room.

"I...I don't know." Kanan said, looking shocked.

Sabine and Hera didn't say anything, they only stared at the holo image of Tilah, the last fragment of someone powerful and strong.

"I need to watch the rest-alone." Ezra said.

The rest of the crew nodded and walked off somewhere else. Probably to think about what had just happened.

He hit the play button.

"Ezra, I'm so sorry that things turned out this way. When I was captured by them, the only thing that kept me going was the thought of seeing you again." Tilah continued.

Ezra wasn't sure, but it looked like a tear was sliding down her face.

"I love you, okay?" She started to cry, and the sound of her despair made Ezra want to hold her and comfort her, but he had to watch helplessly as her tear drops fell.

"Don't look for me. I've already made arrangements for the carbonite freezing, and I'll be shipped somewhere else when it's over. I'm truly sorry, but this is what must be done. I just.. I just want you to remember me. Promise me that you won't forget me?"

"I promise.." Ezra said.

"I have to go now, but I have one last thing to say. Those moments I had with you were the best of my life. I won't forget them, and I hope that you'll all be okay now."

"Holo-Recording ended. Would you like to replay?" The holo disk asked, freezing the last image of Tilah standing there.

Ezra ignored it, and laid his head down the table, sadness washing over him. She was fine, but she refused to come back to them.

He cried, because he knew that she would never return.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The girl stepped into the carbonite freezing chamber, feeling nervous.

"You're sure that I won't die of Carbonite poisoning in there?" She asked.

"I'm sure. You'll be fine until someone unfreezes you." Someone answered her.

"Alright, please begin."

She stood still, her arms at her sides, while the process began.

She felt cold, then nothing.

Her last thoughts were certainty that now, the Ghost crew would be safe.

The End

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Thank you so much for reading this story guys!

This was really fun to write, but I really have to thank all of you for reading through this story, because without all of you none of this would have happened.

I'm not the best writer, but it means a lot to me.

I don't really have anything left to say at this point, so bye guys!

May the force be with you!

(The sequel is out now, btw.)