Star Wars rebels Abducted

Chapter 28: End Game: Part III

Alright. This is a short chapter, for sure, but it has an amazing cliff at the end... I am sorry that the last of the pre-written chapters has a cliff-hangar at the end, but I can't really help that. I am working on the next one right now, though, so it shouldn't be too long in coming. Or something disastrous will happen and it'll come out tomorrow. Either way, I am working on the next chapter, so do not despair!

And thank you all again.

Disclaimer: If you're reading this, you've fallen into another dimension where I have ownership of Rebels. Just kidding, I don't.

It was only the absence of new pain that told Ezra Chip had somehow stopped. Why had Chip stopped?

It doesn't matter. Don't lose focus.

Through the utmost amount of work and concentration, Ezra had not broken. His mind was still his to control, even after Chip's extensive procedures. Sure, he couldn't feel a few parts of his body, and he had a feeling the bot had broken a few ribs, but physical wounds he could handle. After all, what mattered most was that he remained his own.

And Ezra could feel that his resistance was infuriating the Inquisitor to no end. He had been enduring repeated assaults on his mind from the ruthless Pau'an during the torture session, and with each successful repel, Ezra could feel the Inquisitor's patience wearing thin. Whether that was good for him or not, Ezra didn't know. And he didn't particularly care, either.

There was a slight tremor in the floor.

Huh. Maybe they've upgraded the serums to cause body-like hallucinations. Cool.

As much as he hurt, all over, Ezra refused to look down on himself, to coddle himself. That would just bring down his mental shields, and it would all be over. Just one slip, and all that Kanan had taught him would go to waste through the Inquisitor's meddling.

Though that should have discouraged him, or made him nervous, Ezra actually enjoyed having the stakes so high. He always was fond of taking risks, of doing the un-expected. Surviving the Inquisitor and Chip's forced combined would mean that he had done the ultimate bone-headed thing to do, and that was exactly what Ezra Bridger did. Bone-headed stuff. Hadn't Zeb always said that?

Now, with Chip having stopped his procedure, a small sense of victory erupted in Ezra's chest. Had he done it? Was Vader punishing the Inquisitor for coming to Kashyyyk against his orders?

Intense pain in his head as the Pau'an once again rammed into his mental shields denied his hopes. He was desperate, Ezra could feel that. He was running out of time, and he was... afraid? Well. That could only mean one thing.

They had arrived at Kashyyyk, and Ezra still had not been broken. He had gone through an hour of everything Chip could throw at him and repeated attacks on his sanity from the Inquisitor, but he had not broken. If that wasn't breaking a record of some-sort, Ezra didn't know what was.

Don't lose focus. The battle's almost over. Don't lose it at the end.

Ezra didn't know why Chip had stopped. Well, he wasn't exactly sure if Chip had stopped. After all, the 'highest level' of treatment Chip could give had included some nasty procedures on the nervous systems. Ezra was seeing, but his focus on what exactly he saw or heard was distorted, as though he was viewing what happened around him through a haze on a delayed screen.

He wasn't even sure if Chip had left the room or not. And he couldn't be bothered to check. Checking meant moving. Moving meant pain. Pain cause distractions, which would cause him to lose the battle with the Inquisitor, and once again become a puppet for the Pau'an.

Still, though. He was doing pretty well. Ezra was proud in himself for resisting this much, for so long, especially with throbbing broken bones. He'd never been the best student, but he felt it would have made Kanan proud to see how his student had applied and used what he had taught him.

There was a low buzzing, and Ezra once again doubted that Chip had actually left the room. He was probably just getting another operation ready, and this time it sounded like he was bringing electricity back into the mix. Well, that was just great. Chip could do whatever he wanted, the Inquisitor didn't have much time and he knew it. Soon, Ezra was either going to die or the Inquisitor was.

He honestly didn't care which came first.

A huge 'thud' echoed through the small room, reverberating off the walls and vibrating the ground underneath him slightly. Okay... maybe not electricity? There was a soft sound, like someone drawing in breath, but it was so quiet and distorted that he could have imagined it. Well, in his current state he probably had.

There was a light pressure on his left shoulder, one that shouldn't have hurt at all, but still felt like thousands of little tiny knives. He was rolled over onto his back, where he stayed for a few seconds, staring at whatever was above him.

Through his haze of non-receptance, it took Ezra a few seconds to register what had happened. Then, his mental shields dropped completely. Well, how could they not? He had lost all concentration.

After all, Kanan Jarrus was crouching over him.