Stand Up Together

It was a dream Ephraim Bridger had grown familiar with.

 

He would open his eyes and find himself standing amid the grasslands of Lothal, the landscape dotted with rock formations, the sky warm with orange and gold as the sun set.

 

Laughter just ahead would draw his attention, and there was his son, having lured yet another loth-cat out of its nest to play. At his side, Mira took his hand in hers and leaned into him, standing on her toes to kiss him. Ephraim would wrap his arms around her, closing his eyes as he took in the peace around him, holding onto the dream as long as he could.

 

This time, though, the dream changed.

 

Ezra’s sudden silence broke him out of his reverie. When Ephraim found him again, Ezra was far ahead, his wild blue-black hair barely visible above the tall grasses. His son stood stock-still, transfixed by the sudden appearance of a white loth-wolf that towered over him.

 

The boy didn’t look frightened; he stared in awe at the creature, even as Ephraim’s heart leapt to his throat and he pulled Mira along, sprinting towards Ezra. The loth-wolf watched as Ephraim ran, but the creature made no move to attack. Instead, it laid down and waited patiently, yellow eyes studying him. The loth-cat Ezra had been playing with scrambled up the wolf’s back, coming to rest on its head.

 

Ephraim called out for Ezra, and the boy turned to him. His face split into a wide grin, showing his missing front teeth. “It’s okay, daddy!” he called, patting the loth-wolf’s leg. “It’s time to stand up!”

 

Ephraim woke in his cell, still reaching out for Ezra.

 

*

 

“You’re quiet,” Mira murmured as she sat beside him to eat. The pristine Imperial detainment center encased them, as devoid of expression and as militant as the stormtroopers that guarded it. The morning broadcast toting the Empire’s propaganda droned on in the background of the mess hall, masking their quiet conversation. Ephraim had learned to tune the noise out.

 

“I had a dream.”

 

She smiled knowingly, age lines crinkling around her eyes. “Ezra?”

 

He nodded as his throat tightened. “He told me it’s time to stand up.”

 

Mira choked on a laugh, then quickly sobered as a trooper guarding the door turned sharply to look at her. Once the trooper resumed his stance, she lowered her voice while picking at her rations. “I hope he remembers that.”

 

“I think we told him often enough.”

 

“He was so little. Young, I mean.” She paused thoughtfully. “Do you think he’s taking after you or me, height-wise?”

 

“We’ll find out, one day.”

 

She rested her head briefly on his shoulder, her headwrap secured around her hair. That had been one decency the Empire allowed her. The other had been allowing him to keep his beard, instead of being clean-shaven. He briefly kissed her forehead. The greatest mercy the Empire had shown was allowing them to stay together.

 

Of course, any time the officers thought Ephraim and Mira were speaking too loudly, too pointedly about the flaws of the Empire, or were found encouraging an ever-growing group of prisoners, they were threatened. Threatened with labor, with death, with separation. They had been punished in the last seven years of their captivity, but so far, no extreme penalty had befallen them.

 

Seven years. Had it really been that long?

 

He held his cup tightly, watching as droplets fell from the rim where they’d sloshed. Not a day went by that he didn’t think about his son. His little boy was fifteen now. How old would he be when Ephraim finally got to see him again?  

 

Mira’s voice pulled him from his isolation. “Do you remember,” she said, trying not to laugh, “when he turned on the broadcast when we’d gone to the market?”

 

Ephraim ducked his head to hide his smile from the troopers. “And announced to anyone still tuned-in that he’d drawn a picture of a Jedi in a ship fighting back against the Empire.”

 

“I didn’t know you could run that fast. You reached him minutes before I made it back.”

 

“I swear, I locked the hatch to the room.”

 

“I know – I watched you do it. He just had a knack for getting into places he wasn’t supposed to be.”

 

“Like the roof.”

 

“Oh!” Mira put a hand to her chest, as though the memory still made her heart flutter in worry. “If Tseebo hadn’t climbed up after him, I don’t know what I would have done!”

 

“I would have come over myself to get him, if you’d needed me to,” a gruff voice broke in.

 

A broad-shouldered man with sun-tanned skin and a white beard set his tray down with a huff across from them. A dark purple circle ringed his eye.

 

“Ryder.” Mira raised a hand to examine the bruise. “What happened?”

 

The former governor of Lothal waved her away. “I’m alright, Mira. Got into a little scuffle with the guards, that’s all.”

 

“What? Why?”

 

After making sure none of the troopers were nearby, Ryder pitched his voice low. “I caused a distraction for two of the new inmates. The Bothan and the Mon Cal? They were able to hack an outlying terminal and get a map of the facility.”

 

Leaning closer, Ephraim asked, “Are they planning something?”

 

Ryder shrugged. “Seems like they want to, but they don’t have any ideas past getting a layout of the place. Figured it was a good opportunity to get –”

 

The speakers buzzed; the words of the calm Imperial broadcast cut off in a burst of static. Frowning, Ephraim glanced around. Others had noticed as well; guards and prisoners alike looked to the speakers in surprise.

 

The static continued, and he heard an officer call over her comm to check the holonet signal. After a few moments, the interference ceased, and a strangely young male voice reverberated around the mess hall.

 

“We have been called criminals, but we are not. We are rebels, fighting for the people, fighting for you. I'm not that old, but I remember a time when things were better on Lothal.”

 

Ephraim’s heart stopped. Mira seized his wrist, her knuckles white.

 

“Maybe not great, but never like this. See what the Empire has done to your lives, your families, and your freedom? It's only gonna get worse…unless we stand up and fight back.”

 

An officer was yelling orders to cut the connection, but there was nothing they could do; the Imperial broadcasts were hardwired to play consistently throughout the prison. And now every prisoner stared at one another – dissenters, fighters, activists, and so many others – and Ephraim saw a spark in their eyes as the transmission continued.

 

“It won't be easy. There will be loss and sacrifice. But we can't back down just because we're afraid. That's when we need to stand the tallest. That's what my parents taught me. That's what my new family helped me remember.

 

“Stand up together. Because that's when we're strongest—as one!”

 

Another burst of static crackled over the speakers, followed by a ringing silence.

 

Tears filled Ephraim’s eyes, and he let them fall, his heart swelling with so many emotions he thought it might burst. Relief, pride, concern, love, all swirled into a bubble that finally broke through as a sob.

 

Mira’s hands were shaking as she gripped him tightly. “He’s alright,” she whispered against his cheek. “Ezra’s alright.”

 

“Ezra?” Ryder frowned. “You think that was him?”

 

“She’s right,” Ephraim murmured, pulling her close. His tears stained her headwrap, but it didn’t matter. “The way he spoke, the phrases he used – it’s the same things we’d say in our broadcasts.”

 

“His voice sounds just like you when we were younger.” Mira smiled through her own tears. “He’s out there, fighting for the free galaxy we wanted for him. And with a family – Ephraim, someone’s looking out for him.”

 

The buzzer sounded, alerting all detainees that they were to return to their cells. The stormtroopers seemed rattled; they snapped at the closest prisoners to move faster, grips tight on their blasters, helmets swiveling as they scanned the mess hall.

 

Ephraim stood, but a lightness in his chest made him pause. He met Mira’s eyes; determination danced in her gaze, and she nodded once. Their son was out there, standing up for others, standing against the Empire. And it was high time Ephraim and Mira joined him.

 

Ryder glanced between them. “I know that look,” he muttered uneasily.

 

Ephraim clapped him on the shoulder. “Stand tall, Ryder. It’s time to act.”