Kindred

"Kindred" is the seventh episode of the fourth season of the animated television series Star Wars Rebels. The episode premiered on Disney XD on November 6, 2017. It is also the sixty-sixth episode of the series overall.

Official description
The rebels look to move a stolen Imperial hyperdrive and flight data recorder off Lothal, while the mystery of the loth-wolves deepens.

Retrieving the hyperdrive
Kanan Jarrus, meditating near the Rebels' camp, is approached by Hera Syndulla. She tells him that the others have already left to retrieve the hyperdrive, and that she's surprised he didn't go as well. He responds that it seems as if the Spectres always find themselves returning to Lothal. Hera states that the planet is Ezra Bridger's homeworld, and he has a strong attachment to it. Kanan points out that they were drawn to Lothal before they ever met Ezra. Hera asks him if he's saying they were destined to meet Ezra, and Kanan responds noncommittally.

At the crash site of the TIE Defender Elite, Governor Arihnda Pryce informs Grand Admiral Thrawn, via hologram, that the site has been secured, but that the prototype's flight data recorder and hyperdrive are missing. Thrawn notes that the Rebels must be trying to return the recorder to Rebel Command, and Pryce responds that, given the size of the hyperdrive, the Rebels probably hid it nearby. In response, the Grand Admiral tells Pryce that he is sending some specialized help to locate the Rebels. She states that she does not need help, and he counters that the Rebels' presence on Lothal and the theft of the prototype, recent failings of hers, are evidence that she very much does. Thrawn states that his agent, Rukh, will be there shortly.

Nearby, Ezra and Jai Kell, disguised as scout troopers, sneak around the rocks. Garazeb Orrelios, waiting with a speeder bike, asks whether Ezra has found the hyperdrive yet, and the Padawan responds that it was dark when he hid it. A white Loth-cat appears, perched on top of a rock, and Ezra tells Zeb that he'll follow it. Zeb is skeptical, but the two pull down the rock to discover the hyperdrive behind it. They pause as an Imperial gunship flies overhead. It lands at the crash site, and is met by Governor Pryce, who states to the sole passenger that he must be Rukh, Thrawn's assassin. The Noghri sniffs the air, and states that he smells Lasat nearby, and that he isn't alone. He takes off running in the direction of the Rebels' position.

Thrawn's assassin
Jai, watching through electrobinoculars, tells Ezra that they have a problem. Ezra, seeing Rukh approaching, tells Zeb to deal with the hyperdrive while he handles this. Flipping their visors down, Ezra tells Jai to follow his lead, and the two approach the assassin. Ezra attempts to pass them off as scout troopers who have just finished searching the recent area, but Rukh doesn't fall for it and smacks Ezra aside. In the ensuing fight, Ezra uses the Force to throw Rukh into a rock, away from Jai. The two eventually escape on a speeder bike, and Rukh pursues, as Governor Pryce and several stormtroopers arrive as backup. The Imperials begin to fan out searching for Zeb, who is hiding up on one of the rock spires with the hyperdrive. Seeing the Imperial Troop Transport, Zeb decides to steal it, and jumps down and throws out the driver before escaping, as Pryce is forced to jump out of the way. Zeb contacts the base camp, reporting that he has the hyperdrive. When Hera asks him about Ezra, he replies that Spectre 6 is fine.

Ezra and Jai are pursued by Rukh and two scout troopers into a maze of rock spires. The Noghri assassin pulls up to their bike and attacks with his electrostaff, which Ezra blocks with his lightsaber. Ezra asks Jai if the bike can't go any faster, and he responds that it can't. Rukh is forced to break off to avoid a boulder blocking his path, and fires a tracking device, which attaches to the back of the Rebels' bike. Ezra and Jai don't notice as they flee deeper into the maze. Rukh continues to pursue, along with the two scout troopers, and Ezra plants a detonator on a partially-collapsed rock spire as he and Jai pass under it. When the explosive goes off, it takes out one of the scout troopers, and the other is forced to stop. Rukh, bringing up the rear, rides his bike over the obstruction, and Ezra manages to shoot and destroy the assassin's vehicle before he and Jai flee. The assassin is left clinging to a rock spire, glaring, as the bike speeds away.

Escaping with the data
At the Rebel camp, Sabine Wren states that she should just be able to install the hyperdrive on Ryder Azadi's U-wing, but that since the ship is old, it may not work. Hera responds that she's confident Sabine will manage it. As Sabine walks away, Hera is approached by Kanan, who asks her if she thinks she's given enough to the Rebellion. She responds that maybe, when the Empire has been overthrown and the galaxy is free again, she will. He asks her if she's thought about what she's going to do afterward, and she responds that she hasn't. Kanan replies that that probably means she's never thought about them, and Hera tells him that they've talked about this. As they lean in, they are interrupted by Ryder, alerting the camp to an incoming troop transport, and Hera runs off to check. Kanan is left extremely frustrated. Ryder, Sabine and Hera train their blasters on the transport's door when it opens, and narrowly avoid hitting Zeb when he emerges. He sheepishly states that he should have told them he had stolen a transport. Ezra and Jai then arrive on their bike, and Sabine gets to work installing the hyperdrive.

Meanwhile, Rukh reports to Governor Pryce that he has located the Rebel camp, and is transmitting his coordinates. She tells the assassin that reinforcements are coming. At the camp, Sabine, installing the drive, tells Hera that there's a fifty-fifty chance it will or won't work. Just then, Ryder reports approaching Imperials, and the Rebels ready to fight them, Hera telling Sabine that the job will have to do as there is no more time. The Rebels rush to evacuate the camp. As Hera prepares to leave, she finds Kanan in the U-wing's hold. He tells her that he's worried about her, and she responds that she has to do her job. As Kanan expresses his worry, Hera kisses him. At the barricades, Sabine elbows Zeb to get him to turn around and see this, and the other Rebels all smile. Breaking off, Hera and Kanan briefly touch foreheads before he disembarks from the U-wing. She tells him, "May the Force be with you." The ship takes off with Hera and Chopper onboard.

On one of the approaching tanks, Rukh informs Pryce that he could have taken all of the Rebels out himself, and she coldly responds that based on what she's seen of him so far, she's not impressed. They see the U-wing take off, and Pryce contacts Thrawn to alert him to the escaping Rebel vessel. Ryder tells Jai that they'll make contact when they get to safety, and Jai escapes in a landspeeder loaded up with crates. As the Imperials close in, Zeb asks how they will escape, and Ryder remarks that they still have the troop transport. It is then destroyed, leaving the Rebels with only a speeder bike left, and Zeb wonders how many of them will be able to escape on that. The Rebels take cover behind stacks of crates as the Imperial tanks approach, and Ezra hears howling. He sees several Loth-wolves running through the rocks, and draws the others' attention to them. Ezra suspects that they know the way out, since they helped before, and he suggests that they follow. Ryder is skeptical, and Zeb tells him that things getting weird is usually a good sign. As he follows the Spectres into the rocks, Ryder wonders how they've survived this long.

The wolves' assistance
Pryce, informed that the Rebels are fleeing, coldly notes that there is no way for them to escape. Rukh tells her that he can handle the Rebels himself, and she responds that they already escaped him once, so this will be dealt with her way. She orders approaching TIE bombers to turn the mountains into rubble. In the rocks, the Rebels come to a clearing where three wolves, including the white one Ezra met before, await them. Ezra asks him if he knows the way out, but the wolf does nothing, and Ezra realizes that it is looking at Kanan. He comes forward as well, and the wolves head into a tunnel underneath a rock at the back of the clearing. The rebels follow. In the tunnel, Sabine and Ezra note cave paintings, showing people following wolves. Entering a larger area, Ezra tells Sabine to turn off her flashlight. The three wolves await them. The ground begins to shake from the force of the bombing raid, and the white wolf offers Ezra his tail. Ezra grabs it, and tells the others to join hands. As they do, Ryder expresses skepticism that this is going to work. The wolves lead the Rebels into a tunnel, which begins to glow like hyperspace.

Above Lothal, Hera is chased by TIE fighters amid the Imperial blockade. Chopper beeps, and Hera responds that she's not concerned about the fighters, but being cut to pieces by the Star Destroyers. Onboard the Chimaera, Thrawn is informed by an officer that Hera is pinned, as she is heading for the construction modules. Hera aims her ship at one module's hangar bay, where stormtroopers gather to fire at her, and orders Chopper to calculate their hyperspace jump. The ship jumps to hyperspace through the bay, setting everything inside on fire with the force of its passage, and the officer nervously informs Thrawn that Hera has escaped.

Passages
The Rebels wake up inside a cave, disoriented. The wolves wait, as they go outside to check their bearings. Ezra, Sabine, Zeb and Ryder find themselves on a ledge cut high into the side of a mountain, with a circular canal visible in the distance. Sabine does some calculations, and tells Ezra that although they were in the northern hemisphere, they have now travelled to a location in the southern hemisphere, on the other side of the planet. When asked how he knew the wolves could do that, Ezra says he didn't.

Ezra goes back inside the cave and finds Kanan with the white wolf. Kanan asks Ezra to tell him what he sees, and Ezra says that the location reminds him of the Lothal Jedi Temple, with the cave paintings that tell a story. His master agrees, wondering what the story is telling, and Ezra responds that it seems to be about people coming from space and following the wolves. He further adds that he thinks the people are Jedi. Kanan asks the wolf why it helped them, and the wolf says "Dume", shocking him. Ezra says that the wolf said that before, and wonders what it means. Kanan tells his apprentice that "Dume" is part of his birth name, Caleb Dume. He takes off his visor and touches the wolf, feeling it, and tells Ezra that the wolves are deeply connected to the Force, and specifically to Lothal. Kanan speculates that the Empire is doing something worse to Lothal than what the rebels already know. The wolf disappears into the wall, exposing the cave painting fully. Ezra reiterates what Kanan told him once about how, "All the paths are coming together." Kanan corrects him, saying he doesn't like what awaits them in that path. Ezra asks Kanan if he thinks that Hera escaped safely, and he replies that he knows she did. At the Great Temple on Yavin 4, Hera lands the U-wing near the Ghost, and is met by Mon Mothma and Erskin Semaj, who are both pleased to see the Defender Elite's flight recorder.