Ali paced her tent. She had been pacing it for the last two days waiting for the Troops she was promised. She could sense her captured soldiers were in pain and hoped they would hold out for her to get there.

She was doing everything she could to keep herself occupied. She had visited the Medic tent to help ease her wounded. She helped repair the Mess tent and made a rousing speech to her Troops there. She scouted with Sei to make sure no more surprise attacks were made.

But now there was nothing to do but wait. Sei had become her right-hand officer, and she was thankful for the relief, but she needed her strong-minded Captain and ARC back.

Mal poked his head in, "Is the General busy?"

Ali scoffed, "Do I look busy? Don't answer that." She waved a hand for him to come in. "And no salut—" She turned around to see Mal standing at attention.

Mal looked embarrassed, "Oh, sorry sir." He immediately relaxed.

"Any news at all?" Ali asked anxiously.

Mal grinned, "A cruiser just entered the planet's atmosphere."

Ali's tail started wagging involuntarily. She ran over to Mal and started to push the soldier out of her tent, "Come on, we're going to go rescue our brothers!"

Mal and Ali went over to the landing pad where Sei was already waiting.

"Just one cruiser is landing. General Skywalker's ship is in orbit," Sei reported.

Ali looked up to see the cruiser pass over and loop back around to land. She put a hand on Sei's shoulder, "I'm going to contact Anakin, send the Troops to me."

"Yes sir."

Ali walked over to her command center and punched in the contact frequency signal.

Anakin's hologram appeared around the center. "Master Ali! I see my ship made it safely to you."

Ali dipped her head, "It's landing now."

"Good!" Anakin smiled, "Fives and the Commandos have some extra supplies for you. Just some grenade gifts courtesy of the 501st."

Ali smiled back, "Thank you, I'm sure they'll come in handy."

"Glad to help," Anakin replied.

"General Kora."

Ali looked over her shoulder to see an approaching ARC Trooper. She motioned him over and into the stream.

"Fives! Looks like you made it with no difficulty," Anakin spoke to the ARC.

Another figure stepped into the stream on Anakin's side, "Good to see you made it too."

"Thank you, General, Rex," Fives nodded to both of them.

Rex turned to Ali, "He's a good one, General Kora. He'll help you get Trick and the others back."

"Thank you again, Captain Rex, for letting me borrow a valuable member of your team for this mission," She nodded at Rex and turned to Anakin, "And thank you, Anakin, for the… supplies."

Anakin grinned, "Send him back after you're through with him. Echo won't bend the rules as well as Fives."

"Can do," Ali replied.

"May the Force be with you."

"And may the Force be with you." Ali closed the stream.

She turned to Fives, who saluted her, "General Kora, I am ARC Trooper Fives here on your request."

"At ease Fives, there's really no need to salute," Ali punched in some coordinates on the command center, "Anakin tells me you're independent. Good. I have a plan of attack, but I need to know that if plans change you can handle coming up with a new strategy."

Fives grinned, "Of course, General."

"Good," She glanced back toward the cruiser, "Now where are the Commandos?"

Fives turned and gave a wave. Nine Commandos came running up in perfect order. "A squad of Kal Skirata's finest."

Ali held an impressed look, "Names?"

The lead Commando answered her immediately, "I am RC-217."

"Not numbers, names," Ali said again.

"General, we do not have names. Just Commando designation numbers," RC-217 said.

Ali sighed, "Kal did not give you names?"

"Commander Skirata said that we have to earn our names on the battlefield. And that's what we're here to do," the Clone replied.

"Hm." Ali looked at Fives, "Are all the squads like this?"

"Just the Commandos under Skirata."

"Interesting." Ali wasn't impressed with the way the former bounty hunter demanded experience. She turned back to the command center, "Alright. Let me familiarize all of you on our plan to attack."

She went into detail on how the palace was laid out, she had gotten Trick and Push to scan it not long ago. Fives suggested entering from above, considering that would give them a small advantage over the droids positioned around the area, Ali agreed. She went into the plan to get Trick and the others out of there saying, "We're here for a rescue mission. Not heroics. Do not go out of your way to confront any of the enemy." They finished up the brief and were dismissed, Fives staying by Ali's side.

Both of them were looking at the palace scans when a voiced asked, "General Kora?"

Ali turned to see Sights standing behind her. "Sights, shouldn't you be in the Mess eating? Your shift is over, you must be hungry?"

"Yes, General," Sights removed his helmet, "But I can't help thinking that Captain Trick and ARC Trooper Push being kidnapped is my fault. I was covering them."

Ali let Sights finish before saying, "Nobody is blaming you, Sights. You did what you could and I'm sure Trick and Push are very grateful for that. Now, stop thinking this was your fault and go get something to eat." She turned back around to keep viewing the hologram.

Fives leaned back against the command center with a grin, "General, that's not all he wanted to say."

"Hm?" Ali looked up at him.

"The rookie is still standing here," Fives went on, "He's not very hungry."

Ali turned back around to Sights who instantly snapped into attention and said, "I request to be put on the rescue mission team. I will feel as if I have paid my debt to my brothers by helping rescue them."

Ali sighed as Fives smiled. "Sights, you're a rookie."

"Just give me an order and I will do it, I just need to help."

"General Kora has a point," Fives spoke to Sights, "you're just a rookie."

"I will stand guard and snipe."

Fives chuckled, "You think you're any better than the Commandos?"

Ali sighed and answered Fives, "He's damn good."

Sights stayed in attention as Ali looked up at him. She knew Sights still would feel guilty even after they brought back Trick and Push. He would feel guilty until his debt was paid with those two.

"You will stand guard at the end of every corridor."

Sights began to smile and Fives had a look of satisfaction written all over his face.

"You will give me and your brothers cover, and you will do exactly as I say. No disobeying orders like with the Captain." Ali crossed her arms.

"Yes, General Kora! I will not let you down!" Sights' smile widened.

Ali side-eyed him, "I expect that." She turned back around to the commander center, signifying his dismissal.

Fives turned and set his helmet on the side of the center, "You understand us Clones."

"What is that supposed to mean?" A slight smile played on her face.

He leaned forward and zoomed in on a twist of hallways that they needed to take to get down to the prison cells. "You understand that we are not Jedi, we seek revenge and debts paid for our brothers."

She turned her head to Fives, thinking that this particular ARC was just as Skywalker had said—outspoken. "Fives, you, all of your brothers, and I were trained in similar fashions. You were rigorously taught from when you were an infant to when you became an ARC. You were pushed through certain circumstances that tested your skills, reasoning, courage, and body. The only difference is that you were raised a soldier and I was raised a Jedi. There are times I want revenge on the people or things that took a friend's life, and many times I have paid back a life-debt to a friend in need. We just act on things differently is all."

Fives was looking at her by this point, "I haven't been around many other Generals, but I can tell you that you are as wise as General Kenobi."

Ali let out a bark-like laugh, "General Obi-Wan and I have been good friends for a long time, and it's about time he rubbed off on me." She collapsed the hologram of the palace, "But you'll also find that I can be as reckless as General Skywalker, which I'm sure you're used to."

Fives shrugged, "I've found that reckless Jedi are the most interesting to work with."

"Then you're in the right place," she said, switching off the command board. She messed with the feather she had tangled into her hair when she had passed the trials; it was her way of contemplating a situation.

It was quiet between the two of them for a few seconds before Fives asked, "General?"

"Yes?" she replied, dropping her habit quickly.

"I'd just thought I'd say that I admire how you're giving that rookie a chance," Fives leaned against the center in a casual posture.

Ali smiled genuinely, "I take it you were given a chance?"

"From Captain Rex and Commander Cody personally," Fives grinned as well, "I owe them my title."

Ali raised her eyebrows, "You may owe it to them that they noticed your skills and competence, but you owe no one your title besides yourself. You earned your title."

Fives' eyebrows furrowed together. Nobody had ever told him that he had earned his ARC status; he had always been told that he had been picked to train as an ARC Trooper.

Ali noticed his expression, "You must have shown courage and innovation with a strategy or within battle. Becoming an ARC is a top achievement."

"I know, sir…" Five spoke slowly, "I guess I've just never looked at it that way. I've always thought I got lucky."

"And while luck might have had something to do with it," Ali spoke through a chuckle, "you still were chosen based on skill."

Fives paused in thought, and then said, "That's how you chose your ARCs."

Ali nodded, "I only have one that has shown that kind of innovation and prowess on the battlefront, besides my Captain of course; but I'm always on the lookout for others that exude those qualities."

Fives grinned knowingly, "I'd keep your eye on that rookie then."

"Why do you think he's coming with us?" Ali laughed and started to walk back to her tent before saying, "I'd like for you to go brief Sights, that rookie we're taking with us. After that, get some rest because we leave at dusk."

Fives nodded back, "Thank you, General Kora."