Order of Extinction (Ep. # 12, Prod. # 12, Mar. 2012)


A plot failing! Sith Lord Darth Sidious, in his efforts to take control of the galaxy, has created his own private army of bounty hunters to carry out his evil deeds. But, thanks to the treachery of Boba Fett, the army has slowly fallen, and the Jedi have unknowingly found Sidious' lair in the dreaded Valley of the Sith Lords.

As a full-scale battle takes place between the Republic and Separatist forces, Sidious does all he can to defend himself, including looking for a new defense….


Another Separatist AAT tank was blown away by a Republic AT-TE walker. In truth, this was not a surprise. Both sides had been taking turns destroying each other's forces for a few days. It seemed like the battle droids wouldn't let their base fall easily.

The clone troopers wouldn't give up, either. They knew how important it was to destroy the base. The missile launchers the Separatists had built were almost fully operational. One nuclear missile had already been launched at a Republic base on Felucia. Hoping to save other planets from the same fate, Jedi reinforcements were sent in.

Unfortunately, the Separatists had sent in a droid fleet under the command of General Grievous himself. He stood on the bridge of his Dreadnaught-class cruiser, the Invisible Hand, overseeing the space battle.

"The Jedi have sent reinforcements!" he growled. "They must be desperate to destroy this base."

San Hill raised a finger. "Ah, but General, perhaps we should order the base to launch more missiles, intimidate the Republic into surrendering."

Grievous turned to face the Muun, who recoiled as their eyes met. "And what happens when we run out of missiles, you fool?"

The Banking Clan chairman and Separatist leader objected, "Count Dooku will not tolerate such talk."

Grievous roared and whipped out one of his lightsabers. "And Count Dooku will not tolerate you disrespecting the commander of his army!" When Hill was silent, Grievous deactivated the weapon and addressed the ship's captain, Lushros Dofine. "Captain, begin landing our troops."

"Yes, sir," replied the Niemoidian. He pressed a button on the console on the arm of his chair. On his signal, three H-shaped C-9979 landing craft took off from the main rear hanger and flew down to the battle zone, carrying over a thousand battle droids and about 450 tanks, all ready for combat.


Outside of the Valley of the Sith Lords, not far from the battle, clone Captain Rex stood at the command center, awaiting the arrival of the Jedi who would lead the rest of the attack. When an artillery blast landed a little too close for comfort, he muttered, "Where's a Jedi when you need one?"

Finally, he saw them. Several LAAT ships were descending into the atmosphere, carrying clone troopers and tanks. When they landed, the side doors of the nearest gunship opened to reveal Jedi Generals Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker and clone Commander Cody.

Rex approached them and saluted. "Glad to see you made it, sirs."

"Is Shaak Ti still here?" asked Obi-Wan.

"No, sir. She just left to analyze the situation on Felucia."

"And what about Ahsoka?" asked Anakin eagerly.

"I'm afraid she was transferred back to Coruscant for recovery," answered Rex sympathetically. When Anakin was silent, Rex added, "You should be very proud of her, General. She's been through a lot since you last saw her, and she's learned a very hard lesson."

Obi-Wan cleared his throat. "What's the situation here, Rex?"

"It's not looking too good, sir. When we landed, we were assaulted by the droids. They were being led by bounty hunters. Slick must've tipped them off."

Cody shook his head. "I still can't believe he infiltrated the army and kept his cover for so long."

"Do you know who hired him and the bounty hunters?" asked Anakin.

"We couldn't get a straight answer from any of them. Though we suspect it was Count Dooku. Ahsoka and I were attacked by statues and skeletons on Slick's command. Someone powerful had to have bewitched them."

"Where did this happen?" asked Anakin.

"Darth Bane's tomb in the Valley of the Sith Lords."

Anakin cracked his knuckles. "We're going to check it out."

Obi-Wan placed a discouraging hand on his friend's shoulder. "Anakin, don't you realize we're walking into a trap?"

Anakin brushed the hand off. "Dooku nearly killed Ahsoka! My padawan! You think I'm going to let him get away with this?"

"Exactly the point!" stressed Obi-Wan. "Dooku wants you to go after him. He knows that if he hurt someone close to you, you would want revenge. He wants to kill you, Anakin. Besides, those tombs are said to be haunted by the spirits of the dead Sith Lords. If you go in there to fight Dooku, you won't come out unharmed in any way."

Anakin glared at Obi-Wan in growing frustration. Finally he let out a sigh and was calm. "Fine. We'll do this your way."

Obi-Wan nodded. "Good." He then turned to the clones. "Captain, Commander, prepare the troops to march. We're going straight to the Separatist base. No detours, no pauses. It is imperative that we destroy the missiles before any more are launched."


Darth Sidious paced in front of the stone casket of the ancient Sith Lord, Darth Bane. He was in a tricky dilemma. A full-scale battle was taking place right outside the tomb - his lair! He couldn't escape without the Jedi discovering him.

Luckily for him, they believed Count Dooku was the Sith Lord who had hired the bounty hunters and was inside Darth Bane's tomb. And after what had happened to the other Jedi, they wouldn't risk going inside.

But he had to escape. He needed to carry out his plot. But his volunteer army was failing him. Who could he rely on? He looked at the casket, deep in thought. Darth Bane had established the Rule of Two, stating that only two Sith Lords could coexist, to prevent their extinction.

But the Dark Side of the Force had grown abnormally strong. That meant only one thing; there were more Sith Lords in the galaxy. That's it! Sidious needed a Sith Lord. But Count Dooku had failed him recently, so would he be an asset for the plan?

Perhaps if Sidious gave him another chance, he could. Not that he was very confident in Dooku, but he was desperate. And if the Count still didn't qualify? Simple; find the other Sith Lords and bring them to Korriban. Then, a contest could be staged to determine who would kneel before him.

All he had to do was find them.


When the Republic reinforcements arrived at the battlefield, they saw that the droid forces were attempting to advance on them. However, the clone troopers and tanks had formed a defensive line which they were using to destroy the droids and their tanks.

Several of the AT-TEs and HAV-A6 Juggernauts had been disabled, and were being used as cover. The reinforcements wove through the broken tanks and fallen troopers to get as close as they could.

Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi took cover behind one of the broken tanks and Anakin surveyed the battle through a pair of macrobinoculars. There was a line of battle droids attempting to march forward, and behind the droids were a few AAT tanks. In the top turret of the lead tank was…

"There!" exclaimed Anakin. "Cad Bane's in that tank. He's commanding the battle."

"Well," said Obi-Wan, "Let's see if we can't give him a little push." He pressed a button on his wristcom and ordered, "Artillery, open fire."

The heavy turrets on top of the AT-TEs fired several explosive shots at the battle droids.


In the turret of his AAT, Cad Bane oversaw the battle, while firing the heavy cannon at the clones. Then he saw movement behind the wrecked tanks. There were more tanks and clone troopers joining the battle. "Republic reinforcements have arrived!" he announced.

Right after he said that, blue balls of energy rose into the air from behind the enemy line and landed on the droid forces. The artillery blasts shook the tank and sent droid parts flying.

The holographic projector blinked to life and the hologram of a battle droid commander appeared. "Mr. Bane, sir? The Republic has sent reinforcements."

"I can see that!" replied Bane. "Their artillery fire is tearing us apart."

"Uh, what should we do?"

"Fall back and wait for extra troops!"

The droid nodded. "Roger, roger." It moved to push the button to turn off the transmission, but hesitated. "Uh, but won't the clones get closer to our base if we retreat?"

Bane smiled deviously. "We'll have a few surprises waiting for them."

The droid scratched its metal head in confusion. "Uh, sounds like… fun. What are we doing?"

Bane slammed his fist on the control panel, cutting the transmission. He yelled to the other droids in the vicinity, "Turn the troops around!" In the cabin of the AAT, the pilot turned the tank around and drove away.

All of the other battle droids followed yelling, "Retreat!" and "Roger, roger."


Anakin Skywalker lowered his macrobinoculars. "They're falling back! All troops, advance!" Upon his command, the combined Republic forces chased the retreating droids, firing shots at them.


Count Dooku was sitting at his desk in his palace on the planet Serenno. He was watching a hologram of General Grievous and San Hill, who were reporting on the battle on Korriban.

Grievous clenched his metal fist as he said, "I assure you, Count. The Jedi will not get away with this. By the time they come remotely close to this base, we will have launched all of our missiles." He cackled until he started coughing.

Dooku frowned. "Do not be too confident, general. The Jedi's love for life will keep them determined to destroy the missiles at all costs."

Grievous bowed. "Of course, my lord. We will deploy all of our forces to stop them."

Hill interrupted, "But, my lord, this base and the missiles represent a significant investment. If the Jedi destroy them…"

"You will be compensated for your losses, chairman," assured Dooku. He pressed the button to turn off the holotransmitter, but as soon as the holograms disappeared, the device began to beep, signaling another message. Dooku was genuinely surprised. The transmitter was displaying a special frequency used only by Sith Lords.

Dooku pressed the button again, and this time, the hologram of Darth Sidious sprang up. He hadn't expected his master to call him so soon. After his failure on Kashyyyk, Sidious had cut him off. Thankfully, this was only a recording, so Dooku didn't have to talk to him.

"I am surprised to hear that you are alive and well. The Sith Order has indeed grown powerful. Yet, the Jedi are slowly stepping ahead of us in the war, and we cannot afford a Jedi victory. As we speak, there is a battle outside of my lair. My army of bounty hunters has failed, and I am forced to take on more… desperate measures.

"That is why I have decided to give you another chance. Meet me in Darth Bane's tomb on Korriban. I will have quite a challenge awaiting you." With that, the hologram winked off.

Dooku didn't make his decision easily. He had to think for a long time. He knew that Darth Sidious was the cruelest, most deceptive, most manipulative being in the galaxy. It could very well be a trap. He could have found a new apprentice and wanted to test him by having him kill his predecessor.

On the other hand, Sidious could be telling the truth. He was as unpredictable as he was deadly. If he really was under attack, and he was forced to resort to a group of mercenaries, Sidious probably did need help from a Sith Lord.

Finally, Dooku typed a frequency into the transmitter and ordered his pilot droid to prepare his ship for departure.


Deep in the Outer Rim was the planet Dathomir. From one side, it appeared green with blue oceans. But the other side revealed its true colors. It was shrouded in a deep, blood red fog, which concealed the dry and barren landscape, strewn with thorns and the skeletons of unfortunate animals.

It was the inhospitality of this planet that attracted the even more mysterious inhabitants. Apart from the monstrous rancors and sarlaccs, Dathomir was aptly nicknamed the Planet of the Witches. The Dathomirians used ancient magic powered by the dark side of the Force. Yet, the witches were very different from the Sith.

Although they did not like the Sith, one of the witches was once a Sith apprentice. Asajj Ventress was taken from the Nightsister clan as an infant and fell under the tutelage of exiled Jedi Master Ky Narec. When he was killed, Asajj turned to the dark side and became Count Dooku's secret Sith apprentice.

But, recently, Dooku betrayed her (under the discrete orders of Darth Sidious) and left her for dead at the hands of Jedi Knights Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi. She limped back home and enlisted her kin in her new mission; to kill Dooku.

But, after an attempted assassination attempt on him, Dooku sent General Grievous and the droid army to massacre the Nightsisters. Asajj was the only survivor. She left Dathomir and became a bounty hunter to survive.

Asajj was currently sitting in a cantina on Tatooine. She was flipping through a series of files on a computer, trying to decide who to go after next. Suddenly, she heard a faint beeping. She reached for her belt and pulled out her holotransmitter. She raised her eyebrows in confusion. Who would be contacting her?

She pressed the button and a hologram appeared. It was Darth Sidious! How did he find out she was alive? Before she could question further, Sidious spoke.

"I am surprised to hear that you are alive and well. The Sith Order has indeed grown powerful. Yet, the Jedi are slowly stepping ahead of us in the war, and we cannot afford a Jedi victory. As we speak, there is a battle outside of my lair. My army of bounty hunters has failed, and I am forced to take on more… desperate measures.

"That is why I have decided to give you another chance. Meet me in Darth Bane's tomb on Korriban. I will have quite a challenge awaiting you."

After the hologram disappeared, Asajj thought for a moment. If Sidious was offering apprenticeship to him, it had to be better than killing low-lives for a living. She decided to take advantage of this opportunity.


The Nightsisters were not alone on Dathomir. On the other side, deep in the snowy mountains, resided the Nightbrother village. The Nightbrothers were all of the Zabrak species, and had vestigial horns crowning their heads, elaborate, colorful full-body tattoos, and two hearts that made them more resistant to pain.

The Nightbrothers and sisters would, by custom, mate with each other to form the mixed Dathomirian species. After birth, the males would go to the mountain village, while the females went to the forest temple. The Nightbrothers possessed no magic, but they were strong and fierce warriors.

Recently, two former Nightbrothers returned to live in the village. Not only were they brothers, but they were also Sith warriors: Darth Maul and Savage Opress.

Darth Maul had been taken at a young age to become the Sith apprentice of Darth Sidious. But, during the War of Naboo, he was sliced in half and knocked into a reactor pit by Obi-Wan Kenobi. But, unbeknownst to the Jedi, he was kept alive by his desire for revenge.

He acquired a cybernetic lower half and fled to Lotho Minor in the Outer Rim. He went into a state of near madness, and his memories were lost to him. He lived in this solitude for nearly twelve years.

More recently, Nightsister Asajj Ventress came and tested several Nightbrothers to serve as Count Dooku's new Sith apprentice. Savage Opress passed the test and was brought to Talzin's clan, where he was mutated into a hulking monster, designed to learn the dark side from Dooku and, when the time came, aid Asajj in killing him.

But when that day came, Savage was betrayed by both Sith, and limped back to Dathomir following a fierce duel with both the Sith and two Jedi Knights. Talzin told him about his lost brother, who would teach him the ways of the dark side. She gave Savage an enchanted talisman that would lead him to Maul. When Savage found Maul, he brought him back to Talzin to be completely healed.

Now, they both lived in their former home, one training the other in the dark side of the Force. At the moment, they were in the midst of a sparring match. And they appeared to be equally skilled. Both wielded red double lightsabers, and Maul's martial arts style cancelled out Savage's brute strength. Maul was covered in red tattoos and wore black Sith robes, and Savage had yellow tattoos and wore special Nightsister armor, with an enchanted bladed staff strapped to his back.

Maul attacked with a series of kicks coupled with his lightsaber swings, but the kicks barely affected Savage, and he was strong enough to block the swings with his own lightsaber. Maul goaded between pants, "You defend well, Savage. But have you the strength to attack?"

Savage growled and swung his lightsaber with such ferocity that Maul's weapon was forced away from its owner's body. Once he found an opening, Savage grabbed Maul's wrist and flung him over his shoulder. As Maul hit the ground, his lightsaber rolled away. As Savage stomped towards his fallen opponent, Maul unleashed a Force blast that knocked his brother backwards and into a cliff wall.

Maul stood up and retrieved his weapon. "How disappointing. Powerful, yet so subtle."

Savage replied in his deep voice, "You are too weak. You cannot expect to defeat a worthy opponent with skill alone."

Maul shook his head. "Neither skill nor strength determine the outcome of a battle. Fear is everything. It makes the strong weak, the brave cowardly, and vice-versa. Fear is my ally, and a powerful ally it is."

Savage panted. "You speak with wisdom, I'll give you that. But you are afraid, too. I can sense it. Your fear usually outweighs your enemies, but one day you will meet someone who is not afraid of you, and when that day comes, you will not survive."

Maul frowned. The fact that his brother may have been right crossed his mind briefly, but he replied, "We will see."

Their conversation was interrupted when Savage's holotransmitter began to beep. Savage pulled out the device and pressed the activation button. The hologram of Darth Sidious sprang up and relayed the same message he had sent to Dooku and Ventress.

"I am surprised to hear that you are alive and well. The Sith Order has indeed grown powerful. Yet, the Jedi are slowly stepping ahead of us in the war, and we cannot afford a Jedi victory. As we speak, there is a battle outside of my lair. My army of bounty hunters has failed, and I am forced to take on more… desperate measures.

"That is why I have decided to give you another chance. Meet me in Darth Bane's tomb on Korriban. I will have quite a challenge awaiting you."

When the hologram disappeared, the two brothers stared at where Sidious had stood, and then at each other. How had Sidious learned of their survival? And what was he planning for them?

After a silent conversation, they decided they would go. But at the same time, they wondered what their challenge would be.


Back on Korriban, the Republic troops had driven the battle droids back towards the Separatist base. It was a large space with several small buildings and missile launchers, all surrounded by four tall, thick walls. At the front of the base was an extended drawbridge.

Obi-Wan Kenobi surveyed the base from atop an HAV-A6 Juggernaut. The base was surrounded by battle droids and AATs, and on the other side, the C-9979 landing craft were deploying more tanks and Multi-Troop Transports, which contained 112 battle droids each.

Obi-Wan turned to Anakin Skywalker. "There are landing craft deploying even more droids. They're behind the base, so we can't reach them."

"We'll take care of them," assured Anakin. "Right now, we need to storm the base while it's still vulnerable."

Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow. "You never foresee traps, do you?"

Anakin chuckled. "You never foresee when there are not any traps."

Obi-Wan smiled. "Fair enough. But we should approach cautiously. We don't know what other defenses they have."

Anakin shook his head in surrender. Then he jumped off of the tank and landed amid the clone troopers who were still shooting at the battle droids. "Press on! We need to get inside that building!" He ignited his lightsaber and began deflecting shots from the droids. At the same time, the clones yelled in encouragement as they ran towards the base, Obi-Wan's tank behind them.


In the turret of his AAT, Cad Bane watched as the clone troopers charged towards the base. He chuckled. "Those Jedi never seem to know when something's coming for them. What a pity." He activated his wrist comlink and ordered, "Raise the drawbridge and activate the turrets."


Anakin Skywalker's heart lurched as the drawbridge that allowed entrance to the base was raised and locked into the wall. Then thirty panels in the wall opened and a single ball-and-socket turret appeared from each one. Each turret immediately began firing a steady stream of blaster bolts at any enemy that came too close.

"Fall back!" ordered Anakin. As the clones turned around and ran for their lives, Anakin attempted to deflect as many shots as he could. The Juggernaut was slower to turn around, and was peppered with blasterfire. Obi-Wan Kenobi jumped off the tank just before it exploded.

Once the clones were out of range, the turrets retracted. Anakin wiped his brow. "Well, looks like someone will have to go around and destroy the turrets from the inside."

Obi-Wan sighed in defeat. "Fine, Anakin, you can go. But," he stressed, "do not take any detours; go straight to the base as quickly as you can."

Anakin smiled. "I will." He turned and ran back through the lines of Republic troops, a smug smile on his face. He said he wouldn't take any detours, and he said he would get there as quickly as possible. But what if his route went through Darth Bane's tomb?


General Grievous watched as the space battle over Korriban unfolded. Republic Venator-class Star Destroyers and Separatist Munificent-class star frigates were firing at each other with their turbolasers. Three-seated clone ARC-170 starfighters and Y-Wing bombers were holding against the droid tri-fighters and vulture droids.

Grievous growled as he watched a Separatist frigate being blown apart by a Star Destroyer. "I don't know how much longer we can hold up." He pulled out a holoprojector and typed in a frequency. "K2-B4, do you copy?"

The hologram of tactical droid K2-B4 appeared and replied, "Yes, General."

"Has the clone detachment crumbled yet?"

"Not yet, sir. They are holding out of the range of our turrets."

"Then what are you waiting for?" demanded Grievous. "March forward and attack!"

K2-B4 nodded in acknowledgement. "Roger, roger. I calculate that they will be crippled within 2.48 hours. Then we shall be victorious."

After the hologram flickered off, Grievous turned back to the main viewport and watched as the Invisible Hand and another frigate closed in on the Star Destroyer, tearing it apart.


On the other side of Korriban, A brown, seed-shaped solar sailer dropped out of hyperspace with its enormous plasma-absorbing sail extended in front of it. The solar sailer was powered off of solar radiation from nearby stars, so it did not need it use its engines when the sail was utilized. This allowed the ship to pass through freely without being detected on scanner or radar systems.

That was why Count Dooku used it so. He could slip onto planets as heavily guarded as Coruscant and not be detected. This also allowed him to sneak past the space battle over Korriban and land in the Valley of the Sith Lords.

Dooku stood up from the passenger seat and clasped his regal brown cape around his neck and checked to make sure his curved-hilt lightsaber was attached to his belt. He turned to the FA-4 pilot droid and instructed, "Have the ship prepared to leave at any moment."

The back hatch of the ship opened and Dooku strode out proud and tall. As he walked through the valley, he could hear the sounds of blaster fire and explosions in the distance. He didn't normally like to participate in battles, but there were those rare exceptions.

He approached the tomb of Darth Bane with alertness. He knew that these tombs were laden with tricks and traps, and Darth Sidious himself was inside. There was no telling what the "challenge" would be.

Dooku waved his hand and used the Force to open the door to the tomb. It was pitch dark inside, but he didn't need his eyes to see. He strode straight forward into the next chamber, in which sat the casket of Darth Bane. Suddenly, the chamber was illuminated by torchlight, revealing one other figure. But it wasn't Sidious. It was…

"…Ventress!" Dooku ignited his blood red lightsaber.

Asajj Ventress laughed triumphantly. "I had a feeling you would be here, Count. I would never miss a chance at revenge."

"Neither would I," growled a low, deep voice. Both turned towards the entrance to see Savage Opress. Then he stepped aside to reveal a second person, whom they were astonished to see.

"Darth Maul?" breathed Dooku. "How did you survive?"

Maul replied, "I didn't survive. After my defeat and resurrection, I went into exile. For too many years I lived in madness. I had no company, no memories. And now, I have a chance to reclaim my title as the true Dark Lord of the Sith."

Asajj sneered. "You are all traitors!" She ignited her twin lightsabers and assumed a defensive pose. "You shall pay for your treachery!"

Savage ignited his double lightsaber and growled. "You betrayed me! All the time I thought you cared, you were using me like a decoy!"

"As I said before," said Dooku, "a failed apprentice makes for a foolish master."

Asajj pointed one of her blades at her former master. "You are responsible for all of this! You and your desire to take an apprentice, only to dispose of her like a dirty rag! You broke the balance of the Dark Side. If anyone here deserves to die, it's you."

Maul ignited his lightsaber as well and held it threateningly. Savage turned to face him. "And you? Would you really kill your own brother?"

Maul nodded his head with a sad smile. "As unfortunate as it is, only one of us can live. That is the rule of the Sith."

Savage growled. "You really are a traitor! You never cared about me! You were using me to do your dirty work!"

Maul replied, "That is the role of the apprentice."

The four combatants stood in separate corners of the room, waiting for someone to make the first move.


Anakin Skywalker ran up to Darth Bane's tomb and threw open the door. He ignited his lightsaber and held it aloft, using it as a lantern in the darkness. Whoever was in here almost killed Ahsoka. His Padawan! Anakin was determined to make them see the error of their ways!

Anakin snuck slowly through the dark hall, with his lightsaber casting a blue glow on the walls. He could make out carvings that depicted Darth Bane's life and accomplishments. As if Sith Lords ever accomplish anything worthwhile….

Suddenly, without warning, the pure blue turned to blood red. Anakin gaped at his lightsaber, which was now the color of a Sith weapon. He whirled around, keeping alert for any sign. Then, he saw another red blade appear at the other end of the hall.

Anakin held his weapon ready and confronted this new player. "Who are you?" he demanded.

The figure slowly walked forward. As he drew closer, Anakin could make out his features. Or, at least, what features were visible. This person was wearing a black, hooded cloak that concealed most of his face. Anakin could, however, notice the person's pale, wrinkled skin.

Darth Sidious replied, "In time, you will call me 'Master.'"

Anakin growled. "You think I can become a Sith? After what you did to my Padawan?"

"No, I know you will become a Sith. I have foreseen it long ago. I know much about you, Anakin Skywalker. You come from a troubled past, full of pain, hate, betrayal. You crave for something more. More than any Jedi has ever dreamed of."

Anakin panted heavily in fear. Whoever this person was, he was right.

Sidious continued, "You were born to join our ranks, Anakin. The Force is strong with you. A powerful Sith you will become. Join me, and we can end this…"

"SHUT UP!" interjected Anakin. "I will never turn to the Dark Side! Never!"

Sidious cackled. "But you are already on the dark path. I can sense all of your strongest emotions growing. All of your fear, your anger, your hate…"

Anakin let out a yell that shook the tomb and lunged at Sidious, who easily blocked the blow with his own lightsaber.

"You will never defeat me, young Skywalker," coaxed the Sith Lord. "No matter how strong your dark emotions are, they will never destroy me!"

Anakin pressed his attacks, swinging at Sidious' head from three different directions. But Sidious still did not yield. Then it was his turn to attack. And he was deceptively strong for an old man. It required all of Anakin's strength to defend himself.

Sidious suddenly flipped backwards out of Anakin's reach. "You are certainly well-learned in saber techniques, but can you defend yourself against the Force?" He lifted his hands and unleashed bursts of Force lightning. But Anakin raised his lightsaber just in time to absorb the lightning with his blade.

Sidious cackled in triumph, fueling Anakin's anger even more. Anakin continued to pant, then, with another yell, unleashed a Force blast that threw Sidious against the door to the next chamber. As the Sith Lord stood up, Anakin charged with his lightsaber over his head. As he swung, Sidious defended himself with his own lightsaber.

They exchanged a few more powerful blows, and then Anakin drove Sidious backwards into the chamber, where four Sith Lords were already locked in a four-way duel.

As a Jedi, Count Dooku had been a master swordsman in fencing. Despite his old age, he was far more dangerous than ever. Asajj Ventress, however, integrated acrobatics into her style. And with Darth Maul's martial arts and Savage Opress' strength, they were all equally matched. Then, as the two new combatants were caught in the conflict, Sidious' powers and Anakin's emotions turned the duel into a six-way free-for-all.

The speed of the duel made it impossible for a bystander to follow all of the combatants' moves. It was every man for himself. When two people locked sabers, they were forced to pull away to defend themselves against another person. There were brief moments in which two- or three-person duels separated from the main duel.

At one point, Savage, Asajj, and Maul were locked in a duel. When both Zabraks swung at her at the same time, Asajj swung both of her lightsabers outward, and then flipped herself backward to land behind them. Savage and Maul clashed, and when they noticed Asajj preparing to stab them both, Maul kicked her in the face to stun her, and Savage unleashed a Force blast that knocked the other two into the air.

Meanwhile, Anakin and Dooku were dueling with each other while Sidious watched from the sideline. Dooku moved elegantly, attacking and defending with grace and ease. Anakin, with an angry expression carved into his face, swung wildly and blocked strongly.

As their blades locked, Dooku leaned in over Anakin's face and taunted, "Your emotions make you powerful, Skywalker. You would be a great asset…"

"NEVER!" roared Anakin, pushing the Count to the ground. As Anakin brought his lightsaber down, Dooku rolled out of the way and unleashed a short burst of Force lightning that catapulted Anakin to land at Sidious' feet.

Sidious chuckled deviously and tortured Anakin with more lightning. But the entranced Jedi was ready for the attack and absorbed the bolts with his blade. Then, when the lightning stopped, he flipped backwards to land on his feet and resumed his duel with Sidious.

As she and Maul hit the wall, Asajj was the first to recover and charged at Savage. But, unexpectedly, she stopped short and threw out her hands. Green mist burst from her hand and engulfed Savage's head. His head began to pound, and he couldn't see anything beyond the mist.

But Savage remembered something his brother had taught him. He was able to see using the Force. He closed his eyes and calmed his mind. As Asajj brought her lightsabers down over her head, they were blocked by Savage's blades. As they both pushed their weapons as hard as they could, Savage felt for his enchanted Nightsister blade, which was still strapped to his back. In one swift movement, he drew the blade and used it to stab its creator to death.


Meanwhile, back at the Separatist base, Obi-Wan Kenobi was getting impatient. "If Anakin disobeyed orders again…" He didn't bother finishing his sentence. The turrets were still online and the battle droids were pressing their attack. Obi-Wan sighed. "I'll just have to do it myself, as usual." He turned to Captain Rex and Commander Cody. "Hold here and wait for my signal."

After the clones affirmed their understanding, Obi-Wan ran towards the base. As he turned a corner in the canyon, however, he was met with Cad Bane in an AAT. Bane snarled, "Kenobi! I've got a score to settle with you!" He lowered the cannon to point at Obi-Wan and fired.

Obi-Wan leapt into the air to avoid the blast and brought his lightsaber down through the barrel of the cannon, disabling it. He jumped on top of the turret to strike Bane down, but the bounty hunter pulled out his blasters and began firing them in rapid succession. Obi-Wan deflected the bolts with his lightsaber, but he was being driven backwards onto the cannon.

As Obi-Wan carefully stepped across the narrow pipe, Bane pulled levers in the turret, causing it to rotate and elevate up and down, attempting to knock the Jedi off-balance. Obi-Wan's foot slipped and he fell, grabbing what was left of the barrel and hanging by one hand. But Bane didn't stop trying to shake him off. Then, at the top of the cannon's elevation, Obi-Wan let go and used the Force to propel him towards the turret. He kicked a startled Bane in the face, knocking him off the tank.

While Bane lay dazed on the ground, Obi-Wan stood over him, threatening him with his lightsaber. "It's over, Bane. I never thought of you as a war commander, and, apparently, I was right."

Bane shook his head, chuckling. "I ain't in this for your damn-fooled idealistic crusade. I'm in it for the money. I expect to be well-paid for this job."

"And who hired you?"

"I'm not talking to you, Jedi filth!" On that last word, Bane extended his arm and activated his wrist-mounted flamethrower. Obi-Wan used the Force to divert the flames away from him, but that gave Bane time to fly away using his jet boots.

Obi-Wan used his lightsaber to deflect Bane's blaster bolts as he watched the bounty hunter flee. Then, Bane deactivated his jet boots and disappeared behind the wall of the base. Obi-Wan ran to jump on top of the wall just in time to see Bane's personal starfighter, the Xanadu Blood, take off and disappear into the sky. Obi-Wan sighed in frustration. Bane had escaped again!

But Obi-Wan didn't have time to dwell on this loss. All of the battle droids in the base had seen him on the wall and were firing their blasters at him. The Jedi used his lightsaber to deflect the shots and ran along the wall until he was right above the control building.

Obi-Wan slid down the sloped roof and swung by the edge into the building, catching the battle droids and K2-B4 by surprise. Blasterfire filled the room, and when it stopped, all of the droids had been destroyed, including the tactical droid. Obi-Wan then ran to the control panels and began searching for the controls to deactivate the turrets and lower the drawbridge. After he had found them, he used his lightsaber to slice through the panels, rendering them useless. He joked, "That was easy enough," and then ran out of the building.

With the turrets destroyed and the bridge down, the clone troopers were storming into the base shooting the droids. When the tanks arrived, they used their heavy weapons to blow apart the walls and blow up the missile launchers situated on the scaffolding. After that was finished, a clone trooper bomb squad ran around, deactivating the missiles.

All of the Republic forces cheered. They were victorious!


Asajj Ventress was dead, and her spell clouding Savage's vision lifted just in time for him to see Maul and Dooku preparing to attack him. While the three men were dueling with each other, Anakin was beginning to tire from his duel with Sidious.

As their lightsabers clashed, Sidious let out a sinister laugh. "Yes, you have fought well, young Skywalker. But you cannot go on. You are too exhausted. A true Sith would not…"

"I am not a Sith!" protested Anakin. "I am a Jedi, now and forever!" He reached out with the Force and attempted to throw Sidious backwards, but the Sith Lord countered the attack and Anakin was thrown instead. He hit the ground, and Sidious advanced on him.

Then, he got an idea. He used the Force to break the ceiling of the tomb and brought large chunks tumbling down. As the Sith Lords dodged the rocks, Anakin took advantage of the opportunity and fled from the tomb.

But first, he looked back at the chamber and watched as Dooku and Maul dove to avoid being crushed by the debris. Savage, however, wasn't quick enough, and Anakin felt a terrible sting as Savage was crushed to death.

Dooku pointed his lightsaber threateningly and Maul and said, "It's just the two of us, now. Both former apprentices of Lord Sidious."

Maul held out his lightsaber in a ready stance. "We shall have to see who is the more powerful, Count. I will regain my title as Sith Lord."

"You will try." With those last words, the two villains engaged, with their master watching in anticipation. Neither opponent seemed to be gaining the upper hand. Dooku's elegant attacks so often caught Maul off guard, but he retaliated with kicks. After a while, Dooku's handsome face became cut and bruised.

When Maul defended a downward stroke from Dooku, he pushed their weapons above their heads and kicked Dooku in the stomach, sending him stumbling backwards and tripping over a fallen piece of the ceiling. Maul leapt into the air and held his lightsaber over his head, ready to make the kill. But Dooku knocked Maul away with a blast of Force lightning.

Dooku stood up and approached his fallen opponent. "How disappointing. I had expected more from you, Lord Maul. Do you not have any skill at all?"

Enraged, Maul pushed himself up off the ground and drove the handle of his lightsaber into Dooku's chin. While Dooku was apparently stunned, Maul spun around and drove his blade through Dooku's stomach…

…If Dooku hadn't sidestepped and drove his blade through Maul's heart! As Maul gasped in sudden pain, Dooku leaned into his ear and whispered, "I learned from Qui-Gon's mistake." He pulled his lightsaber out and, as Maul fell, sliced through his midsection, the same way Obi-Wan Kenobi had so many years ago.

As Darth Maul's body crumpled to the floor, Sidious applauded. "Good, good. You are indeed powerful." Dooku knelt before his master. "You have earned the right to participate in the next part of my plot to destroy the Republic."

Dooku was pleased that he had regained Sidious' trust, but at the same time… "What about Skywalker? After he saw what just ensued…"

"He will think it was a mere hallucination. My identity is safe, but now, we must leave this tomb. Rise, my apprentice."


Anakin Skywalker limped back to the Separatist base. He knew he still had to destroy the turrets. But when he arrived, the base was in ruins, the missiles were destroyed, and Obi-Wan Kenobi was overseeing the cleanup. As Anakin approached him, Obi-Wan became stern. "Well, what took you so long?"

Anakin cleared his throat, and then went into a coughing fit. "The, uh… the fastest way to get here was…"

"Through Darth Bane's tomb?" finished Obi-Wan. "So, while most of our troops were destroyed waiting for you, and I had to sneak in and destroy the turrets myself, you disobeyed orders to serve your personal feelings? And what did you accomplish?"

Anakin panted for several seconds before responding. "There were… Sith Lords… everywhere, attacking me. Dooku was there! And my lightsaber! It turned red…." He drew his lightsaber and activated it to show Obi-Wan what had happened to it, but, to his surprise, it was once again pure blue.

Obi-Wan shook his head. "See, Anakin? I warned you that the tombs drove people mad. And you fell right into the trap I tried to help you avoid!"

Anakin was struck dumb. Had he really only imagined it? Was it all a trick of his mind? Before he could ponder these questions, the sound of an engine caught their attention. Then a ship took off from behind the tomb and flew away.

"That's Dooku's ship!" exclaimed Anakin. "Maybe we can catch him!"

Obi-Wan grabbed Anakin's wrist and scolded, "You've already gotten into too much trouble today. You're not going anywhere without my supervision. I'm beginning to wonder if you're capable of controlling your feelings."

Anakin stared at his former master in frustration. Obi-Wan didn't even listen! How can he punish Anakin when he was wrong?