Shadow's Odyssey: A Star Wars Story

"There's still no opening!"

"I know Rex, I'm trying!"

Two fighters then got shot down by the Separatist cannons.

"We're not gonna last much longer out here!"

Another of the fighters was destroyed and Anakin tried desperately to think of something. His thoughts were then interrupted by R2.

"Beep, boop, Beeeeep!"

"Three Republic cruisers? How is that possible?"

Anakin looked at his scanner and saw that there were, indeed, three cruisers approaching.

"Everyone, head for those cruisers!"

The cruisers dropped out of hyperspace and started firing on the blockade. They provided cover fire while the starfighters landed in the hangers. Once they were all inside, the cruisers broke off their engagement, and jumped back into hyperspace.

Anakin hopped out of the barrowed starfighter, ready to thank the clones for saving him but instead a small, black creature walked up to him.

Shadow scowled at Anakin. "Oh great, another one of you."

"So, I'm guessing you're the mysterious creature that everyone's been talking about?"

"I'm a hedgehog. And yes."

"I'm surprised you came to my rescue, considering the reputation you've built for yourself."

"Don't flatter yourself. I came for the clones, not you."

"This is General Skywalker and I can guarantee you, he's not like any other Jedi you've met."

They turned to see Rex approaching. Shadow looked back at Anakin with less hostile expression.

"The clones on Kamino did speak highly of you. Were you really trying to help these clones get back there?"

"I was. I brought a bunch of surgical droids with me to help get the chips out, but then I sort of… blew them up."

Shadow rose a brow.

"He crashed the ship into the Separatist blockade." Rex explained.

"Well as long as the clones are okay with you, I guess you can stay."

"Well good, because I could use your help. Obi-wan and Yoda are trapped on Mustafar and I need to rescue them."

"Two of your Jedi friends, I'm guessing?"

"Yes."

"Not my problem."

Anakin's mouth fell open. "What?"

"I'm not sure if you've noticed, but I'm not the biggest fan of the Jedi."

Rex put his two credits in. "Okay, I don't know much about General Yoda, but I know Cody has plenty of respect for General Kenobi." Rex looked around. "Hey, has anyone seen Cody?"

"Over here!" The clone jogged over. "What's up?"

Cody did a double take when he saw Shadow. He reached for his blaster but was stopped by Rex.

"Whoa, easy! What did they tell you about him?"

"That he's been turning the clones against the Republic and is causing chaos across the galaxy."

"Look, as violent as his methods are, he's trying to help us."

"He destroyed the entire Republic!"

"Well no, he's definitely not helping the Republic. I meant 'us' as in the clones."

As this conversation was going on, the clones from Coruscant were forming a circle around them. They all stared at Shadow warily.

"How is turning us against the Republic helpful to us?"

"Well, that's the thing, he's not really turning us against the Republic. He wants serving the Republic to be our choice."

"How can so many clones choose to abandon the Republic?"

"Well, the whole brain-washing thing might have something to do with it." Shadow interjected.

Cody blinked. "What?"

"Yeah, you were born into slavery." Shadow explained. "We're going back to Kamino to get the mind-controlling chip out of your head right now."

"Mind-controlling chip?" Cody turned to Rex. "He's making that up right?"

Rex's expression said it all.

Cody mouth opened and closed, but no sound came out. He swayed uncertainly, and Rex quickly put an arm around his shoulders. The crowd of clones murmured in confusion. Rex led Cody away to go lie down.

Shadow turned back to Anakin. "I won't help you, but I also won't stop you. You can have any clone who already has their chip out and wants to go with you. But you try to force anyone or take advantage of a clone who hasn't got his chip out and I will kick your ass."

Shadow turned and walked away from the dumfounded Jedi.

The super tactical droid contacted Sidious.

"Report."

"All captured Jedi have been executed, the members of the senate have been arrested, and Coruscant is completely under Separatist control. However, multiple Republic vessels escaped the planet. One of which was a Jedi starfighter."

"Hmmmm. Send a portion of the Separatist fleet to Mustafar. I believe that is where they are going."

They arrived on Kamino. The 212th and the Coruscant guard were taken in to have their chips removed. Anakin went to meet up with Ahsoka, who had ridden on a different ship. She was with Padme. When the senator saw him, she walked angerly up to him and smacked him in the face.

"You kriffing laserbrain! You kidnapped me!"

"Look, we did not have enough time to save everyone."

"The Separatists have hated the Republic senate for years! Do you really think they're going to be left alone?"

"No, that's why I came to get you!"

"So, you purposely left the rest of the senate for dead." Padme accused.

"Look, we don't have time to discuss this. I have to go save Obi-wan and Yoda."

Padme threw up her hands and stormed off. Ahsoka approached Anakin.

"Didn't you say she fainted?"

"Well, technically she did, I just didn't say why."

"So why did you do it?" Ahsoka questioned.

"Well, seeing as how there's no Jedi Order I can be expelled from anymore, I might as well be honest with you. Padme... is my secret wife."

Her eyes widened in surprise. "Secret wife? I know you two had a thing for each other, but you actually got married? When did that happen?"

"It was at the very beginning of the Clone Wars, before I met you."

"Isn't it forbidden for a Jedi to get married?"

"It is. That's why we kept it a secret."

"Is this what you meant when you said you could understand leaving the Order?"

"Yes, I never really agreed with the Jedi Code, or the Order's decisions. But I still wanted to help the galaxy and being a Jedi was the best way to do that."

Ahsoka accepted this easily. "Okay. So, what was that about needing to save Obi-wan and Yoda?"

"The Jedi Council is dead except for Obi-wan and Yoda and they're trapped on Mustafar. I need you to help me round up clones who are willing to help."

"What about this Shadow guy?"

"He's… not gonna help us."

"Well, aren't we going to arrest him or something?"

Anakin counted off points on his fingers. "One, that wouldn't accomplish anything. Two, when Kit Fisto and Mace Windu tried to do that, he threw them in the ocean. Three, almost every clone supports him, meaning we'd have to fight all of them too. And four… I kind of agree with him."

"You agree with him?" Ahsoka yelled. "How can you side with him? He destroyed the Republic!"

"It's not that simple. Look, we can talk about this later. Right now, we don't have time. Now help me look for volunteers."

Ahsoka walked away, but she didn't go to look for volunteers. She went to look for Shadow. She found him in the medical bay. He was watching as the clones had the chips removed from their heads.

"You!"

Shadow turned and gave her an annoyed look. "What?"

"How could you do this to the Republic?"

"Because you're corrupt and okay with slavery." He said this like it was obvious.

"The Republic is not okay with slavery!"

"Oh really? Then how do explain what happened here on Kamino? Or do clones just not count as real people?"

"The clones are not slaves!"

"Really? Then why is it that when I remove these mind control chips from their heads, they don't want to work for you anymore?"

"You mess with their heads by removing those chips!" Ahsoka insisted.

"Really? Mess with their heads? How? They seem pretty normal to me."

"You convinced them to betray the Jedi and slaughter the Kaminoans!"

"No. All I did was remove these chips from their heads. Everything else was because they chose to. I'm not in charge around here. Now that the last of the clones have been freed, I'm going to find the rest of the Chaos Emeralds and then I'm leaving."

"You're going to leave the galaxy in the hands of the Separatists?"

"Well since the Republic's fallen, I guess I am."

"Do you have any idea what the galaxy will be like with monsters like Count Dooku and General Grievous in charge?"

"Can't be any worse than the Jedi and their corrupt senate."

"How can you care so much for the clones but so little for the rest of the galaxy?"

"How much does the galaxy care about the clones?"

This threw Ahsoka for a loop. "What are you talking about?"

"Let's take this rescue mission you're going to go on for example. You're going to be going into heavily protected enemy territory to save your two Jedi friends."

"Yeah. So, what's your point?"

"Let's say for a second here that it wasn't two Jedi that needed saving. It was two clones, and not even high-ranking clones. Just your basic, run of the mill grunts. Would you go on a mission that risky to save them? Or are their lives not as important?"

Ahsoka's anger evaporated. "Well, um…"

"Have you ever gone on a mission to rescue run of the mill clones?"

Ahsoka was silent.

"That's what I thought." Shadow turned away from her and went back to watching the removal of the chips.

Ahsoka thought back to her conversation with Rex. He had said that the chips weren't for keeping clones from going insane. He had said… that Shadow might be right.

Yoda woke up. The first thing he noticed was how sore he was. There were bruises all over him.

"Oh good, you're awake."

Yoda looked to the side and saw Obi-wan. His wrists were bound above his head, chained to the ceiling. Yoda found himself in similar restrains. The chains were short enough that his feet dangled above the floor. Obi-wan's feet were touching the floor, but he could not sit down.

"A message, did you send?"

"I sent the message alright. Unfortunately, the only one who received it was Anakin. There was no one at the Jedi Temple. They're all… gone. And worse, it's exactly what Grievous expected me to do."

"Bait we are, for a trap. With no other Jedi to help, suicide, this mission is."

"Yes, and that's how I know Anakin's coming anyway."