Kanan groaned and slowly opened his eyes. He could barely make out his surroundings in the dim light. A moaning chuff made him look round with some effort. Kyber was lying beside him, sides rising and falling heavily. Then Kanan realised they were bound in a net that seemed too small for the dragon. Kanan clutched his head and tried to recall how he got there and why he was trapped in a net. Then it all came back.
Himself riding Kyber to fight alongside his friends in a battle on Florrum. Kyber destroying an AT-AT walker with a single fireball. A net taking hold of the dragon an himself. Unbearable needle sharp lightning crackling over their bodies. The feeling of falling before going into internal darkness.

"Kyber" Kanan muttered, placing a hand on the dragon's neck and rubbing the place.

"Kyber wake up. C'mon I need you right now."

One of Kyber's green eyelids slid open revealing his turquoise coloured pupils.

"Kanan?" He asked quietly.

"Yeah. You okay?"

"I'll live" the Shadow Wing answered.

Kanan activated his lightsaber and cut through the metal ropes. Standing, Kyber threw the net off him and helped Kanan up.

"How do we get out of here?" Kanan asked putting his weapon back on his belt.

"You could shoot a fireball at the ceiling but that could cave us in more. Blast it...uh Kyber? What are you doing?"

The dragon was scraping at the walls.

"I have to get back up there. My family's fighting and so I have to as well."

"Kyber, you're going to cave us in even more making escape impossible. Stop" Kanan told him.

Kyber ignored Kanan and continued to scrap around with the boulders. With a growl of frustration he let a fireball loose.

"Kyber!" Kanan exclaimed sheltering his head as more rocks tumbled from the caverns walls

Kyber unlocked his barbs and swung them furiously at the cavern walls.

"Kyber stop!" Kanan ordered but the dragon wouldn't listen.

He continued to bite, scratch and pull the rocks. Trying to find a weak spot in the cavern. Kanan's eyes narrowed and his voice became sharper.

"Kyber!"

The dragon froze.
The voice.
The tone.
It sounded so familiar.

It sounded so much,

Like Ben.

*Flashback*

"Kyber. How many times have I told you, you need to learn to accept orders" Ben told his dragon.

"Ben, believe me. I listen to orders but I just follow them in my own way" Kyber shrugged.

"You're going to get us both expelled from D.R.A.G.O.N if you keep this up. Fawn's been nagging me to keep you under control."

"Fawn giving you a hard time is she?" Kyber laughed.

"I'm not surprised. Hurricane told me the other night she almost threw a fit when she found out I'd blown up an Imperial Light Crusier on my own."

"Fawn instructed you to give the ship enough damage to malfunction, not blow it to smithereens!" Ben groaned.

"Eh tomato, tamarta" Kyber shrugged.

Ben sighed and put his face in his left hand.

"Kyber what am I going to do with you?" He asked.

"Look I have more power than I know what to do with Ben."

Kyber's voice suddenly changed to a subtle and quiet tone.

"I don't mean to make trouble or cause problems, but my strength can't be contained. I try to let off a measly fireball and a tornado of destruction is created instead."

Ben looked up from his face palm to gaze at Kyber. The dragon's head was slightly bowed and he was gazing at the ground.

"Ben, I want to be able to control my power, but I just can't. Moonshine suggested mediating but it dosen't work. Sometimes I think I'm a monster."

Ben's mouth opened slightly in surprise at the dragon's honesty. Kyber was not normally truthful about his emotions. Most of the time, he kept his feelings concealed so no one would worry about him. He preferred to handle things on his own and thought of himself as an independent dragon.
Ben's surprised expression changed to a concerned one. Walking over to Kyber, he placed a hand on the bridge of the dragon's muzzle.

"Kyber. Look at me" he said.

The dragon's pupils slowly made their way to Ben's face. The man was giving Kyber a solid, yet gentle look.

"Listen to me buddy, you're a lot of things but your not a monster. If you were, Raxia would've banished you a long time ago. But you're a dragon. Sure you can be a little over enthusiastic with your strength, but your power is something to be proud of. Not all dragons can destroy a Light Crusier on their own."

A smile cracked on Kyber's face.

"Listen to me very carefully Kyber. No matter what happens, you're not a monster. You're a dragon, a protector, a fighter, and above all, you're a father. You have three children and a wife. Monsters can barely flirt so they don't have a chance."

"So then you're a monster?" Kyber smirk.

"What? What's that supposed to mean?" Ben asked with a grin.

"I've got a wife don't I?"

"Yeah but you said monsters can't flirt. And by the record of your past Ben, you're without a doubt a monster" Kyber laughed.

Ben lightly punched his dragons front, right leg with a chuckle.

"You're downright trouble Kyber" he sighed, still smiling.

Kyber butted Ben's forehead with his own and Ben put his hands around the reptiles muzzle.

"Thanks Ben. I can't imagine my life without you" Kyber said.

"Same to you buddy" Ben told him.

"You'll stay with me till you die right? I need you" Kyber chuffed.

"Oh really? What do you need me for?"

Kyber looked away sheepishly before replying.

"I need you because you mean everything to me. Without you, I don't feel whole."

Ben smiled warmly at his best friend and hugged the dragon's face to his chest.

"I'm right there with you buddy. I won't leave unless I have to."

Kyber smiled with a purr and closed his eyes, head in Ben's arms.

"I love you Ben" he whispered.

"I love you too Kyber" Ben said softly.

*End Flashback*

Kyber stood staring at the cavern wall, claws still clutching the boulders. His heart was aching terribly as he remembered that day. The day he confessed his biggest secret to Ben. The fact he thought he was a monster. Ben had promised him he wasn't a monster which made Kyber appreciate his rider even more.
Kyber looked round at Kanan and what he saw startled him greatly. Kanan had his hand outstretched to Kyber, face determined.

"Kanan..how did you know you had...?"

"I've known for ages Kyber. I overheard Fawn talking to Colour Fly, Bludgeon and Moonshine about Sabine, Zeb and Hera's Dragon Riding potentials. I heard Fawn say that you sensed the ability in me. I've never told Fawn I heard the conversation because I knew this was entirely up to you."

Kyber looked at Kanan's hand, mouth slightly agap.

"Kyber. This is your decision. You can either accept me as your rider or leave it and we won't speak about this. I know Ben's death affected you greatly, it traumatized you for years. But when you joined the rebellion, I'm thinking you were looking for a fresh start and that's what I'm trying to give you now."

Kyber studied Kanan's hand, his brain fighting a battle of choices in his head.
Do it.
I don't know.
What choice do you have?
Many, but what if I get Kanan killed like Ben?
Ben sacrificed himself, that wasn't your fault.
The mark is a promise! I let Ben down!
The only person you've let down is yourself. You drowned in your sorrow for so long, you became introverted to the world.
Kanan's giving me a chance, I wouldn't be able to live with myself if he got hurt or worse under my watch if I accepted.
You haven't been living ever since Ben died, you've been surviving.

The last thought made Kyber think.

Surviving, not living.

There was a massive difference between the two words. What did Kyber want to do?
Survive or live?
The choice had to be made now. Kyber exhaled and closed his eyes. Everything he'd been through in the rebellion had changed him. He'd opened up more, he'd made new friends.
He'd lived for the first time in years 
Kyber breathed out and knew this choice would bring many outcomes. A majority of them were complicated, but would be good for him and his friends.