"Anakin, you can't be serious."
Obi Wan glared at the man he thought of as his closest friend and couldn't help but reconsider his options of whom else could fill that role. The afternoon sun had just started softening. In the tinged yellow light, Anakin Skywalker grinned as he adjusted the two branches poking out from his hair. He threw up his hood, his face now hidden from the world. The grin remained as General Rhok looked between Obi Wan and his "disguised friend" with an amused enthusiasm.
"Come on, Master," he insisted. "It's not much, but it'll fool 'em for long enough to get into the village."
Anakin proceeded to do a spin and Obi Wan had to admit, from the back it definitely looked like a Togrutan silhouette. General Rhok chuckled, crossed arms and patting his lekku in what could only be the equivalent of Obi Wan stroking his beard.
"You'll have to keep your heads down," he added. "But I assume you won't be needing stealth for the way out."
The General offered him a forked branch held together with some bandages. Anakin stood back, proudly folding his arms across his chest.
After a huff, Obi Wan conceded. "Alright. I'll wear the tree."
He felt the distinct sense of achievement rippling through the force and he knew that Anakin was bathing in this small victory.
"West from the outskirts would be your best entry point - that's where most of the farmers are working. It'll be easier to move with the crowd at the end of the shift," General Rhok informed them. The force was thickly swirling around them, more so than usual in Anakin's company. Obi Wan could sense it nudging them back down the tunnel along with their Togrutan friend and the effect was off putting.
"Good luck, Master Jedi." With a final heavy nod, General Rhok melted into the shadows.
Shaking off the rest of his hesitation, Obi Wan stuffed the twigs into his hood, interrupting Anakin's wistful stare down the tunnel. He slapped on a smirk and lead the way, hastily throwing up his mental shields. Obi Wan hadn't seen his former apprentice this sentimental in a long while. That fact reinforced his wariness of the mission.
They trudged through the thickening forest in an agreed silence and naturally his mind wondered to Kohma's final words. Beware your heart… The Father had warned them - had warned him. The Chosen One. The hormonally charged, reckless individual who's back was to him now.
The little boy he met on Tatooine.
It wasn't that he forgot about the prophecy. Knowing that the weight of the known universe was resting on the shoulders of the man he practically raised was hard to forget. Of course, it had been difficult to put out of his mind during the early days of their apprenticeship, so soon after Qui Gon's death. But after so many years, he'd stopped thinking so much about what he was rather than who he was.
His flaws shone through clearly. The boy had no impulse control. His political views were polarising at best. His charismatic overconfidence could only be eclipsed by his lack of emotional tact. Among his own men, there were solid bets placed on how he was breaking a particular Jedi rule with a certain senator and it was only made worse knowing that he'd never confided in him about this, nor about any of his other attachments. Not even come the death of his own mother…
He was emotional, reckless, confident, intelligent, powerful and compassionate to a fault. He had heart.
Despite it all, Obi Wan Kenobi had grown used to Anakin Skywalker simply being Anakin Skywalker.
Reminders that he also had to be "the one who would bring balance to the force" was a concerning shock to the system. If he could describe their time on Mortis as anything, it was that. Between being confronted by etherial force wielders, the illusion of Qui Gon's ghost and Anakin and Ahsoka's dip towards the dark side, there was much from that time that he'd prefer to forget.
He wanted to tuck their experiences away as an anomaly. But Kohma's voice, her wisdom about the will of the force, unbiased by Jedi hangups… It reminded him too much of his former Master. Had Qui Gon lived to experience Mortis himself, he wouldn't have ignored it's warnings. He wouldn't have been pacified by the council's wishes. As the two Jedi slunk around farmland, Obi Wan had to restrain a sad smile when imagining how well his Master would've gotten on with The Father. He knew that Qui Gon would've done all the things he couldn't - the things he refused to. And that knowledge hurt more than anything.
"Are you good to go, or are you just gonna stand there burning holes into my back?" Obi Wan snapped back to the present as Anakin stopped in front of the clearing of workers dragging their crop bales into town. He hadn't turned around. Obi Wan re-centered himself. It was time for action - not thought.
"Whenever you are," he replied and the two crept into the outskirts of the crowd effortlessly.
The village was far bigger than Kohma's. Civilians bustled along the streets, marking the end of the day. It seemed like an ordinary scene had it not been for the Separatist shuttle parked outside of the west entrance archway. Anakin and Obi Wan stuck to the shadows behind huts and barns, listening for the footfalls of clanking metal. The sound was distant but ever present and Obi Wan could swear he heard the echoes of a wheezing cough.
"You were right, the good general is here," Obi Wan muttered, leaning against the cool stone walls. Anakin's hand rested on his hip, where his lightsaber hung.
"He wouldn't miss out on the fun," he snarked. "But from what I can sense, there can't be too many droids…"
Obi Wan focused once more to confirm his observations. From the sounds of their feet to the anxiety coming from the other villagers, he could guess there were at least two squads of droids.
"Separating Grevious from his reinforcements would be our best bet. Once we rearm the clones, it'll be easier to retreat," he supplied.
Anakin flashed him a sneaky grin.
"You just want a rematch," he said.
"I never said I had to be the distraction," Obi Wan replied matter of factly. "But if you insist, then I accept.."
The two nodded turning back to gauge the Main Street. Any ambush would have to come from the side alleys and they had to be careful not to let the clones get caught in the crossfire before they had a chance to fight back. However, with Grevious out of the picture, it was definitely possible.
"Alright. If catch them at the west corner, then you gotta drag Grevious east. How showy are you prepared to get?" Anakin asked.
Obi Wan huffed, readying himself. His head injury from the previous day had become a dull throb but it was manageable. Manageable enough for the likes of General Grevious anyway.
"That depends on your definition of showy," he quipped, quirking his eyebrow at the most over the top Jedi he knew.
"Eh, just do something I'd do and you'll be fine." His self awareness was a pleasant change. "Meet us back here and we can reinforce you on the way out."
Obi Wan tightened his jaw. Luring Grevious back to his companions didn't feel like the best strategy but he knew that it came from a place of concern.
"Sounds like a plan." Obi Wan rolled his shoulders back, grasping his lightsaber. Anakin got ready to skirt around the back. The swell of thoughts and mismatched puzzle pieces blended together watching him leave.
"Obi Wan?"
The young man turned back to face him this time. His voice was steady. Almost, for once, mature.
"May the force be with you."
The sentence was well worn by now but just as comforting to him as ever. Although the sincerity may have been forced, Obi Wan appreciated the reassurance all the same. He replied with the only thing that made sense to him.
"And with you, Anakin."
Even after trudging from village to village like cattle, half starved and most likely dehydrated, Torq couldn't help but feel grateful that he still had his shooting arm. The fact that he was missing an arm was most definitely a downside but he had always been an optimist. It was the one thing the droids couldn't take away from him.
Torq felt Kix dragging his feet behind him, aware of his less than peak condition. The Captain and Commander brought up the rear, keeping a close eye on everything ahead of them - the number of droids, the weariness of their brothers, the position of the sun in the sky. Leading the way down the dusty road was Fives and a couple of the other more experienced troopers. He'd mistaken the peripheral scuttling of villagers for their Jedi Generals too many times that day. All of his brothers, including himself, revered the Jedi as powerful, loyal warriors. But with the looming figure of the Seperatist's Cyborg General at their heels, he couldn't shake the feeling that they'd been left to fend for themselves; A sore spot where his unending optimism had started to wane.
"Uh, sir? We've been marching for hours and there's still no sign of the Jedi," a brave B1 battle droid piped up next to him.
In an unusual display of calm, the General continued to march. "They are here."
"But sir, how do we know-" in a blinding slash, the droid was split in half. Torq flinched violently and Kix quickly pushed him along.
An incessant beeping arose from behind them and the General raised his wrist com.
"General Grevious - we have come into contact with a Jedi sir," a tinny voice blared out of the device.
A wave of adrenaline buzzed through him. Had they come back? Or had they been captured?
"Then what are you waiting for? Shoot and detain them!" He snarled, halting the group.
There was a wash of white noise before a response echoed back.
"Uhhh we tried that sir but were unsuccessful."
"What do you mean?" The raspiness crept back into his throat and Torq tried to muffle his excitement.
"Sir, you might want to look up," it whined.
The whole entourage of clones and droids spun around to look behind them. In the distance atop a two storey barn stood a figure in beige robes with a ruffle of ginger hair. He unfolded his arms, casually waving a battle droid head at them.
"He says he wants to 'negotiate' sir…" the com link buzzed.
The General buckled in what would've been a belly laugh but seemed to result in a loss of lung capacity.
"Of course he does." He snarled into the com link before raising his head to bark orders at the commando droids. "Stay alert and pull the prisoners back to the ship. Where there is Kenobi, Skywalker will surely follow."
With that, the General thundered off to greet "The Great Negotiator". Torq and the rest of the shinys quickly glanced at their superiors, ready for the signal to act. Commando droids begun to flank in closer, some leaping up to scale the rooftops. Captain Rex and Commander Cody continued their firm march to the west village entrance, much to his surprise. Wasn't General Kenobi's grand appearance supposed to be whatever their "cue" was?
As the wooden pillars to the outskirt of the village drew nearer, Torq's breathing quickened. They needed to do something now, or they'd be right back in a Separatist cell with no hope. As much as he tried to keep optimistic, his strength was fading with each step closer to the ship. As they begun to pass under the archway, several commando droids raised their arms to their head pieces.
"B1096, beware your-"
In a split second, four commando droids had been sliced and diced by a fantastic flash of blue. General Skywalker had dropped down from the archway, making quick work of cutting their chains whilst simultaneously deflecting blaster bolts. Fives leapt into action, jumping on the back of a commando droid and yanking its head off with the chain binding his wrists. Cody used his to whiplash the nearby pillar, knocking down three B1 battle droids, tucking and rolling to pick up their weapons and pass them to his brothers. Rex was beside Skywalker immediately, covering his flank and wielding two blasters, far more sizeable than his usual twin pistols. More droids continued to pour out of the nearby ship.
A droid reached up from the ground, aiming for a shot square on Kix's back. Torq desperately looked around amidst the chaos. He was too far away to reach him in time. Beside him, lay a droids arm. Without thinking, Torq kicked it up into his hand and harpooned it in the droid's direction, making the bolt careen into another B1. Kix spun around at the sound. Spotting the droid, he knocked the blaster out of its hands and stomped on its circuitry for good measure.
As the dust settled, he caught the General's eye. Having seen his display of thriftiness, he smirked and gave Torq a casual two fingered salute. It was only the moment afterward that Torq realised it was with his robotic hand and a wave of gratefulness coursed through him.
"Good to have you back General," Rex said, finally letting his exhaustion show.
"It's good to be back, Rex. Now we just gotta hope Obi Wan isn't too late -"
Before he could even finish his sentence, the General in question peaked out from behind a forest shrub. He seemed a bit tattered but overall intact. However his concerned expression was troubling.
"Too late but already ahead of you, my old apprentice," he called out, beckoning them over. The troopers hurried along into the thick grass and tree cover with Skywalker bringing up the rear, obviously confused.
"Obi Wan, how did you-" he began.
"We fought, but Grevious stopped pursuing me and left the village. I don't know why…"
General Skywalker's face darkened. "We have to get back to the ship, now."
The steel in his voice was a far cry from his jovial liberation of his brothers moments before. He followed along with their pack through the thicket, tailing just behind their Generals. For the first time that day, he was not only optimistic, but he felt safe. And yet, for some reason, the Jedi's expression nagged away at him. If they weren't the ones in trouble, then who was?
We're back! Thank you for your patience - I am finally on holidays so get ready for some updates!