Return of the New Blood

By Michael Weyer

Eclipse of the Empire

You'd think the fact I'm going off an established story would help the writing go faster. However, was hit with a block on this chapter for far too long a while, hope to push it aside in order to finally get the damn thing done.

The morning dew was light as the Rebel crew made their way to a large ridge overlooking the shield generator installation. It was quite imposing with the massive Walker nearby the three-story landing pad and the huge dish pointed upward. The clearing leading to it was open, making it nearly impossible for anyone to sneak into it, even without catching the attention of the stormtroopers marching about.

"Not so bad," Han noted as he lowered his macrobinoculours. Chewbacca growled at his friend. "Come on, Chewie, we've gotten into more heavily guarded installation than this." At the Wookie's questioning grunt, Han frowned in thought. "Well, the spice vaults of Gargon, for one." Chewbacca looked unsure as he growled. "Yes, I'm sure!" Han stroked his chin. "Now, if I can just remember how we did it…"

Wicket was pulling on Leia's arm as he chattered in his own language. "What's he saying?" Leia asked Threepio.

"He says there's another way," the droid answered. "A rear entrance to the installation that is not as heavily guarded."

Han's eyes widened along with his grin. "A back door! That's how we did it!"

"Back doors," Faith smirked. "My specialty."

"Oh, curse my dirty mind right now," Xander sighed as the group moved to follow the Ewok. It took a half hour to circle the large woods before they reached their new destination. It was a small black bunker entrance with metallic doors with a small clearing ahead of it. Four troopers in scout armor stood with a quartet of speeder bikes nearby.

"Not bad," Han noted from their hiding place. "Only four."

Mara frowned. "This isn't right."

"Oh, really?" Han glared at her.

Mara waved her hand at the bunker. "Only four troopers for an entrance? Back way or not, there should be a lot more. Something about this stinks."

"Stand downwind then," Han snapped.

"It only takes one of them to sound an alarm," Leia pointed out.

"Then we'll do it quiet."

Leia rolled her eyes upward just as Wicket chirped up. "Oh, dear," Threepio said. "General Solo, I'm afraid one of our little friends has…gone and done something rash."

Leia and Han frowned before looking back to the bunker entrance. Their eyes widened as they saw a brown-furred Ewok named Paploo making his way to the speeder bikes parked nearby. He mounted one, working the basic controls to fire up the engine. The stormtroopers spun around to see him, three immediately racing to him. They were too late as Paploo set the bike racing off, screeching as it left. The three scouts got onto their bikes and took off after him.

"Not bad for a little furball," Han noted. "There's only the one left." He turned to the others. "Okay…Faith? You stay here and keep an eye on Jade and the droids. The rest of you, with me." He made his way through the underbrush, the rest of the Rebels following, Xander sparing a brief glance at Mara before going with them.

Mara saw Faith giving her a sly smile. "So…what shall we talk about?"

She could feel him before the elevator stopped. It wasn't through the Force, either. Somehow, even as changed as they both were, she knew what he was like, that aura of danger, savagery and wicked glee, it called out to her. As the doors to the lift opened and Vader led Buffy and Luke into the Death Star throne room, her eyes focused on the dark-garbed figure waiting for them. He smirked that damnable sexy evil smirk at her. "Buffy."

"Asshole," she returned as she calmly walked forward. Like Luke, her hands were manacled in front of her but she kept herself calm as she entered the room. It was quite large, dark black all over with a series of gangplanks and platforms overhead. A few walkways passed over the large chasms leading down to the reactor chambers hundreds of feet below. A series of steps led to the platform where a large and ornate chair was turned toward a large window that afforded a view of the Endor moon and the space around it.

As the group walked forward, the chair slowly turned around to reveal Emperor Palpatine. Figures, the guy's as much a drama queen as the Master, Buffy thought to herself. Despite all the warnings, she was still jarred to see the man up close. It wasn't just his appearance, the savage wrinkles and sunken yellow eyes. It was his aura, the sheer waves of pure evil he gave out, it was overwhelming in the Force. She had to steel herself as the man stared, taking them both in. "Welcome, young Skywalker. You will not need those." He waved his hands and the manacles around the Jedi's wrists unlocked and fell away. Buffy rubbed her wrists, glancing at Luke, both knowing the Emperor was trying to intimidate him with his casual use of the Force.

"Guards," Palpatine spoke up. "Leave us." With a bow, the two red-garbed figures walked around to the rear elevator. Palpatine waited for them to be gone before speaking. "This has been a long time coming, young ones. I look forward to completing your training. Soon you, like Vader, shall call me Master."

"Yeah, really not seeing that," Buffy stated.

Palpatine smiled. "Such fire. Such passion. Much like Mara Jade but even greater with your power. You shall be a fine Sith, young Summers. But Skywalker…oh, to have you join us shall be a crown jewel."

"Kind of bending the whole 'Rule of Two' thing, aren't you?" Buffy noted.

"That rule was created to allow the Sith to survive in a dark time," Palpatine brushed off. "Now…it is time for us to grow. The Rule of Two shall become the Rule of One. The Sith itself. And that force shall ensure the safety of this galaxy forever."

"Yeah, yeah, that old song," Buffy scoffed.

Palpatine rose from his seat, slowly walking toward them. "You believe my path to control was merely revenge upon the Jedi, girl? No. What I have done is to aid the entire galaxy."

"Oh, I have to hear this."

"There are forces beyond this realm. Forces of greater power than you could imagine. The Republic, weak, divided, corrupt and the Jedi, pathetic and unwilling to embrace the true power of the Force…they would never be able to stand against the darkness to come. I had to wipe away the old, create a new order to keep this galaxy together."

"And with you on top of course," Buffy noted.

Vader extended a hand to place the pair of lightsabers into Palpatine's. "Ah, yes, the weapons of a Jedi. Your skills are almost complete. Yoda taught you well." He smiled. "He could hide his presence for years but his death was too great to not be felt in the Force. With him gone, my power is the greatest of any Force-user alive. And soon, you will learn to respect that."

"You're mistaken," Luke finally spoke up. "We won't turn."

"Oh, no, my foolish young friend," the Emperor sniffed. "You shall discover it is you who are wrong. About a great many things." He turned to walk back to the throne.

"Soon, we'll be dead," Luke announced. "And you with us."

"Perhaps you refer to the imminent attack by your Rebel fleet."

The remark was made so offhand and casual that it took a moment to sink in. Buffy's eyes widened but Luke took it much better, keeping himself steeled. "Your overconfidence is your weakness."

"Your faith in your friends is yours," the Emperor returned as he sat back onto his throne. "All that has happened here has been of my design. Do you not know the proper components of a Jedi trap?" He motioned to Vader. "Your father could tell you. He designed a few in his time."

Normally, Angelus was never a fan of the whole "brag your plan in detail" thing but he had to admit getting a kick out of the expressions on Luke and Buffy's faces as Palpatine began to explain. "The first component is irresistible bait. In this case, both myself and our greatest weapon, seemingly unprepared and out in the open. The second is a location, remote but not too much so in order to be believable. I could have built this at Despayre as I did the first but Endor was more suitable for what I had planned. The final part is allowing just the right amount of information to sneak out, plans that were true to the most part but held back just a bit more." He arched an eyebrow. "You, my children, are standing in the middle of the perfect Jedi trap."

"Oh, shit," Buffy whispered as Angelus chuckled.

"Your pitiful band on the planet are done for. An entire legion of my troops are waiting to stop them and my fleet is placed behind the moon, out of sight but ready to move in." He leaned forward, his voice taking on a mocking sympathy. "Oh, I am afraid the deflector shield will be quite operational by the time your fleet arrives." He broke off into a sharp cackle as he sat back.

Buffy was just staring, feeling the shock of the reality of the situation, her thoughts of her best friends walking right into enemy hands flowing over her. She barely registered Angelus' presence until he was right behind her, leaning in to whisper in her ear. "Game. Set. Match."

Willow adjusted her seat once more, staring out the window of the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon at the blue and white tunnel of hyperspace. Lando was sitting before her, adjusting the controls. Next to him sat his co-pilot, Nien Numb, a Sullustan whose aquatic-like face was calm as he sat in his own red uniform. It was odd seeing anyone but Han and Chewbacca flying the ship but Willow was ready for this. She had wanted to be in the front, feeling it not right for Buffy and Xander to be in the field of fire while she sat on a main cruiser. Besides, one never knew when a witch could be in handy.

"Okay," Lando called out. "Here we go." He pulled back the throttle as the hyperspace tunnels vanished. In blasts of air that actually carried into the vacuum of space, the entire Rebel fleet fell back into real space, cruisers moving into position as the fighters of all types flew to follow the Falcon.

"All wings, report in," Lando announced into the comlink.

"Red Group, standing by," announced Wedge Antilles, the veteran pilot ready for another Death Star run. One by one, the other wings reported in with a final voice grousing out. "Slave I reporting in."

"Lock S-Foils into attack position," Wedge called out and the wings of the X-Wings extended to their namesake shape while the B-Wings extended their own out too. Before them, the Death Star waited, the half-completed shell still intimidating in the open space.

"May the Force be with us," Admiral Ackbar called out from his ship.

Lando was about to order the initial run when the communicator crackled. "Calrissian," Boba Fett's voice came out. "Break it off, that shield's still up!"

Lando frowned. "We're not getting a reading."

"You're not, I am. My scanners are better than yours, they can cut through the jamming."

Nien Numb uttered something in his own language and Lando frowned. "They're jamming us? That doesn't make sense, how can they be jamming us when…"

The penny dropped.

"When they don't know…we're coming," Willow breathed as she stared at the Death Star which suddenly looked like a spider's web.

"Break off the attack!" Lando yelled into the comlink. "The shield is still up!"

"I get no reading, are you sure?" Wedge asked.

"Pull up!" Lando yelled. "All craft, pull up!" He yanked back on the controls as the Falcon turned aside, slews of fighters following, breaking in various directions. Two X-Wings and a Y-Wing were unable to turn in time, smashing into the invisible barrier, exploding across empty space.

An old military axiom is that "no plan survives contact with the enemy." Admiral Ackbar knew that but he hadn't expected the carefully laid strategy to be blown completely out of the water in just five seconds. Chaos instantly gripped the Rebel fleet as cruisers halted in place, a secondary wave of fighters having to narrowly dodge the first wave flying back. Ackbar was firing off orders to keep things together when an aide yelled out to him. Turning, Ackbar saw the holographic map of the Endor moon suddenly covered with large and ugly grey dots. "It's a trap!"

"No screaming shit, Sherlock!" Willow couldn't help snapping. From seemingly nowhere, dozens of Star Destroyers had appeared from behind the moon, the massive shape of the Executor at the center. In seconds, the window seemed overwhelmed by TIE fighters and Interceptors flying at them, screaming out as they fired off lasers. Dozens of dogfights erupted as the two fleets clashed, fighters zipping past each other with red and green bolts criss-crossing about.

Like any true gambler, Lando was able to adjust his game plan to the sudden change. "Accelerate to attack speed! Draw their fire away from the cruisers!"

Willow bit her lip as he listened to the calls of various pilots over the comlink.

"There's…too many of them!"

"Two of them coming in, twenty degrees!"

"Cut to the left, I'll take the leader!"

"Red Four, watch out!"

"I'm hit!"

"They're headed for the medical frigate!"

"Hang on back there…"

"We've got five breaking through at point oh six, Green Wing, they're all yours!"

Lando was throwing the Falcon into a wide dive, sweeping around the elongated arm of the fleet's medical ship, the men in the cannon bays doing their job firing off the lasers on both the top and underside of the ship to take out a quartet of TIEs. Nearby, Slave I was also flying fast, making its way right toward a pack of fighters. At the last moment, Fett threw his ship into a steep dive, firing something off from his rear. The metal globe flew into the middle of the pack before detonating, blasting the entire squadron apart.

"Make a note, Calrissian," Fett growled. "I'm adding more to my bill with every fighter I take out saving my own ass!"

"Gold One, permission to use friendly fire," Kasen's voice came over the comlink, Willow feeling happy to hear her still alive.

"Put it aside for now, Red Four," Lando commanded as the battle continued and the space became chaos.

"I still say we need to find a better place to hide," See-Threepio was stating once more. He, Artoo, Faith, Mara and Wicket were on a small hill overseeing the bunker, behind some bushes.

"As much as I hate to say it, I think Goldenrod raises a point," Mara stated. "We're still too exposed."

"Chill, Red," Faith stated, her eyes on the bunker. One Rebel was outside it, clad in the armor of the remaining scoutrooper, keeping a regular eye on things. The rest of the team had entered minutes earlier, hoping to get inside to plant the charges quickly. Artoo let out a sharp whistle as Threepio stiffened. "Oh, no! Mistress Faith-"

"Please don't call me that, gives me very uncomfortable feelings."

"Madame-"

"That's not much better."

"Please, listen! Artoo is detecting a large wave of troops coming toward us with communications scrambling to bring them to our location!"

Mara and Faith shared a look before moving back, finding themselves a better spot after all, the droids quick to follow. The roar of speeder bikes came first, troopers moving in and pulling out their blasters. The Rebel seemed ready to speak but saw the guns aimed at him and realized there was no point in bluffing, raising his hands. Soon, more troops were appearing, many in regular armor as well as various officers in grey uniforms. One officer pointed to the bunker and a squad of stormtroopers quickly hustled inside.

"Oh, no!" Threepio said. "They'll be captured!"

Wicket was making a series of noises, pulling at the droid's arm. "He says that the Ewoks are ready to fight back if need be."

"That'll do a lot of good," Mara snorted.

"They might," Faith said as she reached into her pocket. "As long as they get a bit more support."

The commandos had just broken into the main control room of the bunker, Han in the lead to pull a pistol on the waiting officers and technicians. "Okay, get in the middle, in the middle!" he yelled out. Chewbacca was moving in toward them, his sheer size intimidating the Imperials to back up. Xander was already leading several troops in breaking out the bags of explosives to set them up.

Leia checked a scanner nearby and cursed. "Dammit, Han, the fleet's under attack!"

"All right, all right, get them set up!" Han was calling out, grabbing a bag just as another officer showed up, aiming a gun at them. "Freeze!"

Immediately, Han threw the bag, knocking the man over a railing toward the power generators below. But more were coming in, troops and officers emerging from compartments around the room, their guns aimed right at the rebels. "You rebel scum," one snapped as he yanked Han's blaster away.

Xander frowned as he was disarmed as well, glancing at Leia. Her face told it all, so devastated as the truth of the situation came over her. This had never been a Rebel opportunity, it had been an Imperial trap. They'd been the Alliance's last hope.

And they'd failed.

Boba Fett considered himself a practical man. He didn't take risks if there weren't proper rewards and he never indulged in something as petty as revenge. A job was just a job. But he had to admit, this battle was stirring up something in him. He actually felt a thrill as he sent his ship circling around a Rebel cruiser to blast a TIE apart. The old Mandalorian spirit deep within him was coming to the fore as he piloted his ship through the chaos of battle.

Lando was throwing his own ship into a wide dive and then spinning it around to take out a trio of TIE fighters. He was balancing it out when he caught sight of the massive fleet some distance ahead. "Only the fighters are attacking, I wonder what those Star Destroyers are waiting for."

"Somehow, I don't think we'll like it," Willow stated as they returned to the fight.

On the bridge of the Super Star Destroyer Executor, Admiral Firmus Piett watched the battle unfold. He was calm and reasoning as he listened to the reports of the battle and his men running about. He and his Fleet Commander were watching when another officer stepped up behind him. "All ships are in position to strike, sir."

"Hold here," Piett ordered, turning briefly.

His Commander frowned. "We're not going to attack, sir?"

"I have my orders from the Emperor, himself," Piett said with pride. "He has something…special planned. We're only to keep them from escaping."

He turned back to the viewscreen showing the battle, a soft smile on his face. This was history in the making and he was determined to be a major part of it.

The view of the battle was distant from the throne room but still quite clear, the bolts of red and green energy flashing about in between the various ships. "Come, children," he said, motioning to Buffy and Luke. "See the end of your fleet. Your friends on the moon have failed."

"Not yet," Buffy stated.

"Oh?" The Emperor smiled softly. "Well then. Perhaps it is time you witness the firepower of this fully armed and operational battle station." He flicked a button on his console. "Fire at will, Commander."

In the main control room of the station, Jerjerrod nodded at the command. He felt a touch of sadness as this meant the end of the state of war he cherished. But the ability to cause mass destruction was more than enough to balance it out as he called out the orders to his underlings. Switches were thrown and buttons pushed and in the middle of the station, the massive reactor fired to life. On the outside, the dish glowed as five beams of light shot out from its edges, coming together to let a single beam fire outward. The green beam lanced forward, striking a nearby Rebel cruiser and instantly incinerating the vessel.

The flash of light from the explosion rocked through the cockpit of the Falcon. Lando blinked as he realized what had happened. "That blast came from the Death Star! That thing's operational!"

Willow's jaw fell at the sight. She realized the ship had been the Liberty, the cruiser she had originally been set to be on when she decided to go with Lando. She'd known people on that ship, people know reduced to drifting atoms and more were ready to join them.

Lando was doing his best to recover as he leaned to the communicator. "Home One, this is Gold Leader."

"We saw it." Ackbar's voice was heavy with defeat. "All craft, prepare to retreat."

"We won't get another chance at this, Admiral."

"We have no choice, General Calrissian! Our cruisers can't repel firepower of that magnitude!"

"They can't," Willow softly said, her eyes narrowing. "I can." She leaned in. "Take us as close as you can to the Death Star."

Both Lando and Nein Numb gaped at her but Willow's face was marked with a determination that frankly scared Lando deep inside. He swallowed and banked the Falcon to the side and rocketed it high. Nien Numb was grumbling over their closeness to the monstrous station as Willow unbuckled her belt and rose up, placing her hands together. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath and centering herself. She let herself reach out to touch that power, the one she'd long tried to distance herself from but now knew she had to touch. Because so much was riding on this, much more than just herself or even her soul.

"You're more powerful than you can know, Will. You just have to believe it." Buffy's words a while ago came to Willow as she felt that energy flow into her. But she also allowed herself to reach around it, to make sure she was the one in control, not it. She wasn't going to use it to its utmost, not now. No, she just needed enough…just…enough….

Her eyes snapped open, now deep black as they locked onto the dish before them. Her mouth moved but no words came out and yet something in her spoke at a volume higher than could ever be heard. Her hands extended toward the dish as she hissed and threw that power outward, letting it slide past the shield, past levels of metal and into consoles and reactors. She could see the sparks flying about and technicians yelping as they leapt away, startled, power conduits fading and screens going blank.

With a gasp, Willow fell back into her seat, heaving for breath. Lando threw the ship back toward the battle as he looked to her. "Are you okay?"

She sniffed, wiping away the blood dripping from his nostril. "Think…I slowed it down….But can't count…on being able…to do it again…."

"Then we use it," Lando stated as he moved back to the communicator. "All ships, this is Gold One. Move in closer to the Imperial fleet!"

"Are you serious?" Ackbar had to blurt.

"Yes, you heard me, get closer!" Lando yelled. "That way, that cannon comes back, they can't fire at us without hitting their own ships!"

"At that close range, we won't last long against those Star Destroyers!"

"We'll last longer than we will against that Death Star! And we might just take a few of them with us!"

"No one has ever gone nose to nose like this!"

"Great!" Lando said. "We're inventing a new kind of combat!"

"We know nothing about the tactics of such a confrontation!"

"We know as much as they do!" Lando yelled. "And because we're doing it, they'll think we know more!" Bluffing in your last hand was always dangerous but sometimes you had to take a risk to win. And Lando never played to lose.

Unable to fully bite his lip (due to not having teeth), Ackbar decided he might as well follow this strategy. "Tell all cruisers to head in, shields on high," he commanded. "Let's take the fight to them!"

The Rebel fleet began to move in as the lasers of fighters were joined by the blast of heavy cannons in a way no one had seen in the galaxy for decades.

Buffy and Luke were staring out the window at the chaos of the battle. Buffy couldn't help but smirk a bit at Palpatine's frown when he felt a shaking in the station. "Commander," he snapped into his comlink. "What is wrong?"

There was a very long pause before a clearly frightened Jerjerrod spoke up. "Ah…my Lord. We appear to have a…malfunction. We are working our hardest to correct it…"

"Sound like you still have some bugs to iron out," Buffy said with a smile.

Palpatine glared before hitting the console again. "Commander…When you are operational once more, on the chance the Rebels are able to destroy the shield generator, turn the station around to destroy the Endor moon."

"But….My Lord….We have several thousand troops there…."

"That is my command."

"Yes…yes, my Lord."

Palpatine clicked the console off and smiled. "There. A minor setback to be sure. Your Rebellion shall still be crushed." Luke glared at him and his eyes glanced to the lightsaber on the armrest. "Ah, you want this, don't you?" The Emperor said, stroking the hilt. "Your hate is so great. Take it. Use it. I am unarmed. Strike me down. Give in to your anger."

Buffy was flexing her fingers as she looked to Luke. She knew he was struggling, the lessons of Yoda against the temptation before him. She knew he was a good man deep down, wanting to do what was right. As for her…

She was the Slayer. She was in front of a monster. She knew her duty.

Her lightsaber flew off the armrest and into her hand as she ignited it. She swung it forward only for a snap-hiss to erupt and a red blade to cut off hers. Angelus was grinning wickedly at her as Luke let his own blade fly out to his hand. His attempt at Angelus was blocked as Vader's own blade met his.

In between the four lightsabers, Palpatine's smile was a terrible thing to behold.

The Rebel commandos were escorted out of the bunker into a now very crowded clearing. Hundreds of stormtroopers were assembled with various officers as well, several Walkers also circling the area, all with weapons aimed at the group. A pack of commandos were already been held prisoner nearby, including a trooper still in stormtrooper armor with helmet off. Xander sighed as he was marched forward with a crestfallen Han and Leia. "You know, seen a lot of movies with this situation."

"What happens next?" Han asked.

"Well, usually, the cavalry would be coming in out of nowhere."

"Don't think they got those horse things on this planet."

It was at that moment that Artoo and Threepio entered the clearing, both chirping away at each other. They stopped in place, staring out before turning to move as quickly as they could out of the way. "That was the opposite of helpful," Xander noted.

The droids came to a small hill where Mara stood, her hands behind her back. "I hope this works," Threepio said. Immediately, a group of troopers were there, aiming their rifles. "We surrender," Threepio said.

With no warning but a loud series of screeches, a pack of Ewoks fell from the branches above to tackle the stromtroopers. One shook an Ewok off and was about to fire his gun when a blur of motion came and a teenaged human female kicked him in the face, grabbing to throw him against a tree. Chief Chirpa and Logray arrived to see their fellow Ewoks pound on the troopers with axes and hammers to take them down.

High in the trees, an Ewok lifted a horn to his lips and blew a sharp war cry. Another Ewok in another tree took up the call as everyone in the clearing looked around in utter confusion. From the bushes all around, hundreds of Ewoks rose up from hiding and fired slews of arrows into the clearing. Some bounced off metal but others struck the less protected areas of stormtroopers, hitting necks and backs.

Never one to ignore an opportunity, Han grabbed the nearest stormtrooper and threw him around, grabbing his gun in the process. Chewbacca tossed his guard onto two other troopers while Leia kicked a man down and fired a blast up to strike the pilot of a Walker before he could duck back into his vehicle. Xander was rolling to grab a rifle and fire a blast when a blur of motion got his eye. He stared as a trio of teenage girls in modern-day clothing arrived, each moving with incredible speed as they attacked a group of troopers. In moments, the heavily-armored soldiers were on the ground courtesy of the trio. "Holy…"

"Nice, huh?" Xander turned to see Faith joining him, grinning as she fired a bolt off a crossbow. "I told you I could get some reinforcements if need be."

Xander watched as a Japanese teen leapt high, somersaulting before kicking two troopers down. "Slayers," he numbly said. "They're…all Slayers."

"Let's just say, we've upgraded lately," Faith smirked before going back to the fight. Around her, the battle was chaos as troopers took to bikes to take off after Ewoks with others heading out on foot into the forest.

Conventional wisdom would say that the Ewoks did not have a chance. The Imperial forces were crack troops, specially chosen for this job, several members of the infamous 501st division. They had the best in weapons and armor, highly trained and much better armed. They were larger than their opponents and lasers seemed no match for bows and arrows. This should have been an utter mismatch in every way imaginable.

However, conventional wisdom failed to take several factors into account. First of all was home field advantage. The Ewoks knew every inch of their world and how to use it. Many a trooper found that out as their chases led them to falling into traps of sharp wooden stakes and rock spears. Troopers on bikes literally ran into clotheslines left hanging up, limiting their ability to help. Indeed, the size of the troopers worked against them as they made the critical mistake of underestimating their enemy. After months of seeing their home abused and ravaged, the Ewoks were finally fighting back with all their fervor, their weapons more accurate and deadly when used. They were also using their surprise to their advantage as troopers brushed off arrow strikes until they fell to the ground gasping for breath from the poison on the tips.

It was rocks vs lasers. And the rocks were winning.

That was without the help the Ewoks were getting. Chewbacca had come to love these creatures, almost like country cousins and thus threw himself into a full-on Wookie rage against any stromtrooper unfortunate enough to be attacking an Ewok in his sight. For their part, a pack of Ewoks gathered together to do nothing but follow Chewbacca and throw themselves on any troopers who looked to be getting the upper hand with him. Then there was the aid of the Slayers, the girls quick on the attack and backing away as soon as they were done so troopers had no idea where to attack first.

The soldiers in the bunker had been smart enough to immediately slide the control doors shut as soon as things started going wrong. Han and Leia were moving to it, Leia firing her blaster as Han punched at the keypad. "Damn, they changed the code!"

"We need Artoo," Leia said, lifting a comlink to summon the droid. Han killed some time by firing off his blaster at every Stromtrooper in sight as the various Rebel commandos had grabbed what weapons they could find to take the fight to the Imperials. Mara was behind a tree, peeking out when a stray shot came her way. Her reflexes kicked in, yanking back so the blast struck at her throat. She gasped as she felt the impact, reaching up to the now-ruined collar. She broke it off and tossed it aside, rubbing her neck as she felt the rush as her connection to the Force was restored.

Mara looked up to see Xander ducking past a series of blaster bolts. A trio of stormtroopers were moving toward him, firing off their weapons as Xander found himself crouching behind a log, trying to keep cover. Mara just stared at him, cornered and on his own and the men she had once counted as allies ready to kill him.

"Oh what the hell?"

A trooper was drawing a bead on Xander when his rifle suddenly flew out of his hands. He was turning as he saw Mara coming forward, firing away, her red hair a flame behind her as she kept attacking, cutting down the three troopers in moments.

Xander was peeking his head over when he saw her looking down at him, those brilliant green eyes staring down at him with a blaster in hand. She grabbed him by the front of his shirt and yanked him up, pressing her lips on his hard. Xander was stock-still before returning it, Mara breaking it off to let him gasp for air. She grinned at him. "Get it together. We've got work to do." With that, she leapt into the forest to take the fight to the stormtroopers with a wondrous Xander staring.

Artoo and Threepio had just come to the bunker, the astrodroid moving to the console. He had plugged in his attachments to open the door when a trooper fired a blast right at him. Artoo wailed as he was sent flying back, smashing into the other side. He shook about before ever one of his compartments sprang open and he let out a low whistle. "Oh, Artoo!" Threepio cried out. "Why do you have to be so brave?!"

Han sighed. "Well, maybe I can hotwire this thing." He moved to the panel as Leia gave him covering fire with her blaster. In the woods, Faith was running to kick a stormtrooper down and smashed his rifle into the face of another. "Kennedy, tell them to watch it!" she yelled out as she saw the Walkers moving in. "Try not to get crushed!"

She leapt out of the way of an exploding bolt. Nearby, Ewoks were using catapults to try and knock some Walkers down, to little avail. Also, the attempts to trip up the Walkers pretty much just dragged the Ewoks along. But they weren't giving up, swinging on vines to knock troopers down and refusing to quit. It was a wild, strange battle.

Like their seabound counterparts of another time and place, the Rebel and Imperial fleets moved aside each other, each blasting away with everything they had. A Rebel cruiser on fire managed to limp close to a Star Destroyer before exploding, taking the Destroyer with it. Fighters of all types flew back and forth to take shots at the capital ships as each fleet tried the daunting task of damaging the other without taking as many hits themselves.

On the bridge of the Executor, Piett was shaking his head. "They're insane," he stated to his Fleet Commander. "They know they can't win."

"They have done damage to our communications ship, sir," his commander pointed out. "She is pulling back for repairs but they are intent on the attack."

"Increase power to shields and have our heavier ships move in flanking positions," Piett stated. "Up close, we have the superior firepower, we can wear them down and-"

"Sir!" a man at a nearby console called out. "We have ships incoming!"

Piett frowned as he leaned over the bridge and looked down at the pit area below. "From where? We sent for no reinforcements."

"Unsure, sir," the lieutenant stated. "They just dropped out of hyperspace at our rear! We're attempting to…." He stopped, staring at the readouts on the screen before him. "This…can't be right."

"What is it?" Piett demanded.

The man looked up. "Sir…those are….Dreadnaught-class cruisers."

Piett stared at him uncomprehendingly. He then turned his head to the window to see the dozen ships fly in, massive craft of a design unseen in decades. They were already opening fire, their blasts ripping into the rear of the Imperials, one Destroyer already in flames. He couldn't accept it but he could not deny it either.

"The Katana fleet."

Aboard Home One, Mon Mothma stood at the center of the dais, staring in confusion at the holographic representation of the battle. She had been doing her best to remain calm as they realized the trap the Rebels had flown into but the sudden arrival of these ships was baffling. There was static before a strong and very familiar voice came over the main communicators.

"This is Senator Garm Bel Iblis, offering my official services to the Rebel Alliance."

Mothma blinked in amazement before leaning to open the line on her end. "Garm? I….we thought you were dead."

"Just out of circulation," the voice continued. "As you can see, I brought some help. Amazing how many smugglers you can get for skeleton crews." There was a pause before he continued. "That is…if you want it…"

Mothma smiled. "Engage at will, General Iblis."

Flying the Falcon around a Destroyer tower, Lando shook his head in wonder as he saw the ships arrive. "I don't believe it…."

"What…where did those come from?" Willow asked, her eyes wide.

"Back before the Clone Wars, the Republic put together a fleet of 200 Dreadnaughts," Lando explained. "But things went wrong, a virus got loose and they all blasted into hyperspace. No one' seen them since, they became a legend. Hell, I spent time looking for them myself." He smiled. "And old Bel Iblis found them."

"I…heard he was dead," Willow stated.

"Evidentially not," Lando grinned as he threw the ship into a wide turn. "Which means the luck in this game has just changed."

The Katana fleet may have been several decades old but had been the top of the line when it was constructed. As such, they were able to take it to the Destroyers with powerful cannon blasts as several smaller smuggling craft zipped about to add their firepower to things. In moments, the Imperials had gone from the trappers to the trappees as the battle took a wild new dimension.

The criss-cross of lightsabers cackled throughout the throne room. Luke and Vader were battling down the steps as Buffy and Angelus moved toward the nearby bridges over the reactor pits. The clash of red and green blades produced loud flashes and light as the Emperor watched it all from his seat. "Yes," he whispered. "Such anger, such spirit…" Had anyone been paying attention, they would have seen it was Buffy his eyes were focused on, not Luke.

She was ignoring it, totally in the zone. She kicked at Angelus, knocking him back and moved in with a sweep of her saber. He blocked it, grabbing her and pulling, sending her flying off past the elevator. She rolled with the attack, somersaulting on the floor to come back to her feet with a fighting stance.

Angelus chuckled as he moved closer. "You really should just quit. Come on, think about it, you and me, together again, causing havoc on the galaxy! Makes for some hot times."

"Only hot time waiting for you down below," she spat.

He cocked his head. "You can't even see it, can you? You can't see how close you already are. You think killing me is gonna solve that?" He moved closer, his blade raised. "Killing in cold blood's not the Jedi way."

"Not a Jedi today. I'm a Slayer."

Angelus smiled. "And there we are. Oh yes, this will work. Your boyfriend there? Either he gets killed by his old man or he kills him and joins us. How about that, two boyfriends going evil after you sleep with them, gotta be something seriously wrong about you-"

Snarling, Buffy lunged, Angelus blocking her blows as she pounded away at him. They backed away, further from the main throne room, under several catwalks, so intent on each other that neither saw the flash of light from high above. Buffy kicked and punched Angelus before slashing away at him, the vampire ducking to let out a savage kick that knocked the wind out of her. He followed it with a boot to her face, holding his blade up for a beheading stroke. "Then again…We have far too many issues to work together now. Best to just end it."

"I could not agree more."

Both Jedi and Sith froze in place at the voice. It took a moment for each to register they were actually hearing it. Both slowly looked up at the figure standing on the catwalk above them. The dark trenchcoat billowed behind him as he twirled the large metallic sword in one hand. He leapt down to their level, reflexively brushing back his dark hair before letting a soft smile reach his lips.

"I don't know about either of you," the human Angel stated. "But I think it's long past time we finally settled all this."

Don't worry, already working on next chapter so won't be another year and a half wait for it to be concluded. Thanks for your patience and all comments welcomed.