Author's Note: Hello, all! I generally prefer not to do any personal notes because I wish for my story to stand on it's own merit, but here goes - Sorry I haven't posted anything, I've been in a funk since going through a nasty break-up which ended an altogether bad relationship, and my muse has simply been gone for quite some time. But, the bus has come back, and my brain is open again!

I'd like to thank everyone who has kept up with this. I only have one simple request - I have been re-reading this and been finding countless careless grammar and spelling mistakes which are quite simply unacceptable. I was wondering if anyone would like to volunteer to be a beta-reader for this story. This would include checking both new chapters and fixing mistakes in the first ten chapters of the story so that I may update them and have a peace of mind.

And without further babbling on the part of a mere author, let us return to the real event - the story:

16 GRS, Korriban
3 Weeks after the Execution of Order 66

It had been a bit of a drive through space since Obi-Wan had linked up with the clone troopers on Corellia. Altogether the ship ride had been relatively the quiet, with Obi-Wan practicing deep meditation in the break room while the clone soldiers went about the business of keeping the ship up and running. In some respects they moved like robots, always knowing exactly what to do and in most cases moving in perfect sync. It almost reminded him of a force technique he had once heard of.

Of course, it wasn't fair to compare them to the droids. Given their demand to be called by personal first names it was clear to Obi-Wan that these clones had developed their own personalities. This of course raised all of it's own questions in Obi-Wan's mind, particularly whether or not this was an anomaly or all the clones felt like individuals. If this was the case, Obi-Wan had certainly been cold and apathetic in his capacity as a Jedi. Not that he had callously thrown away his soldiers, like some Jedi did.

But still, the thought of them possessing autonomy unsettled him, particular with regards to the common Jedi perception of souls, which in theory ruled out clones. He pursed his lips as he tilted over and over the lightsaber in his hand. It belonged to a boy he once knew – a klutz, who as it turned out had a very bad habit of losing his lightsaber. He wasn't quite sure if that kid still existed, and it was this thought that kept him cautious of this "Lord Vader" on several levels. For one, he was operating under a Sith name. He could easily be deceived, though if this was a deception it was a needlessly elaborate one.

He was snapped out of his spiritual wanderings as one of the clones – Obi-Wan believed his name was Fixer – sat down across the table from him. His jaw was set firmly, and while the others seemed to be somewhat resentful of Obi-Wan's presence on the ship, he had noticed that this one was one of the few who just genuinely did not seem to care. He simply followed orders. A 'normal' clone.

"We've just entered orbit around Korriban. Lord Vader's personal starfighter will rendezvous with us on the surface. 1138 ordered me to brief you for the finer points of this mission, so here I am." Without further prompting he pushed a large button on the table, bringing up a large image on the holoprojector. The picture was of a large facility on the surface, what looked suspciously like a temple. Obi-Wan could not help but feel shiver down his spine as a single word crawled along his subconscious.

"Sith." He spat like venom from his mouth. The clone looked up at him for a moment, before shrugging and looking back at the hologram. He pointed to various locations, one at the center, then three underlying rooms and finally a wall on the outside of the temple. Each of them were highlighted red on the blue diagram, and yellow forms in the uppermost room wriggled uncontrollably, while green mists occupied the three interlocking rooms and purple denoted thousands of figures outside of the temple.

"Alright, listen up." The clone cleared his throat, pointing at the room with the yellow figures.

"This is where the children are being held. There seems to be some sort of presence assaulting them, but what we cannot tell. Lord Vader suspects some form of Sith torture installed by the late Emperor." The clone paused awkwardly, as if he had touched on a subject uncomfortable even to himself. He regained his composure quickly, though.

"The only way to enter this place is to go through one of three interlocking rooms underneath, each of which can be entered from a separate outside entrance to the temple." He pointed to the green and purple, respectively.

"Now these figures outside are droid troopers, reactivated from old Separatists factories that have only just been recaptured. It appears the Emperor has commandered these for a personal vendetta to keep these kids locked away in his own personal fortress. Seems he didn't trust clones enough to do the job for him." The trooper seemed to be speaking about his former boss with more confidence and subtle disdain this time, though he still seemed a little uncomfortable at his own little personal rebellion against the deceased authority figure.

"We can insert you guys into the fray relatively close to this place." He looked around the station with no small amount of pride. "We are very good at what we do, sir. That said, we cannot take down over a thousand droids with seven clones and two Jedi, regardless of how rough and tough we think we are. Rule Number Twelve – If you can't win the fight, change the odds."

He paused, and the diagram shifted into motion, showing what was clearly their ship hovering over the army, blowing away large chunks without hesitation and dropping multiple figures off right by the entrance.

"Now the plan is this – we shall direct you two into the catacombs, and then Delta Squad will set up a barricade at the door to cover your backs are then we'll stage a fighting retreat around the temple to draw them away from you. Meanwhile the two of you will traverse these catacombs, reach the center and grab the kids, then exit out this back catacomb to rendezvous with us at the base of the temple." The clone finished laying out the plan.

Obi-Wan leaned back in his chair, stroking his facial hair in deep thought. He nodded and leaned forward once more, looking carefully at the diagram. He pointed at the catacombs underneath the prison.

"Are there any more droids that we will need to take care of in here? It appears to be empty, except for some sort of mist." He asked politely enough.

The clone sighed, gazing at the spot intensely.

"Our sensors don't pick up anything in there, but Lord Vader has insisted that we not enter. He believes that evil spirits haunt the place. And not the type that you could just shoot and forget about." He looked longer at the spot, his eyes burning a hole into it. Was that fear in his eyes?

"Frankly, I agree with him. I would rather face those droids than go in there." He cracked his knuckles, standing up and looking about. He rigidly saluted Obi-Wan, who once again returned the gesture only haphazardly.

"Lord Vader will be arriving soon. I have a few more things to tend to before we reach the surface." The clone turned on his heel, walking towards the edge of the room. He paused for a moment at the door, his eyes once again lingering on the catacombs.

"Sir?"

"Yes?"

"Good luck in the catacombs down there." The clone told him. As he left, he muttered quietly under his breath -

"You'll need it."