PART 2: RAXUS GAMBIT

CHAPTER 6: FLIGHT FROM THE HANGER

The entire tale of what happened on the Separatists prison ship with the droid creature was told to Mon and Bail and then retold to Padmé, Mina and Lux when they arrived. Starkiller was in some pretty bad shape and had to be limped into the cargo hold of Mina's much larger passenger ship. Starkiller fit well enough but Padmè's smaller ship had to be moved to one side to allow for it.

Down in the hold Obi-Wan was busy replacing gear casings in one section of the ship while he listened to the pirates colorful conversations happening on others.

"Hay Skyguy?" Ahsoka asked.

"Yeah?" Anakin's voice sounded closed off, Ahsoka could tell something was still bothering him and had been for several days now.

"That Senator's son, Lux, he keeps looking over here, do you think he wants to help?" Ahsoka glanced over at the boy standing near the docking bay doors.

"I think he wasn't to ask you if you want to go up to the observation deck," Anakin said. "If you get my drift" he added.

Ahsoka glanced over at Lux again and straightened up a little self aware now that she realized why he was watching her. "He does not," she challenged.

"You don't think I know what I'm talking about?" Anakin asked as he fit another socket into the row.

"I think you think you know what you're talking about, I've seen you giving women the side eye and you almost never ask them to go look at the stars with you," Ahsoka said.

"And who exactly have I been giving the side eye?" Anakin asked, slightly incredulous, his mood lightening for the first time since the prison ship.

"That pretty senator for one, you know with the big dark eyes," Ahsoka teased.

"And you wonder why I call you Snips," Anakin said, shaking his head.

"Hay, I call them as I see them," Ahsoka replied, she glanced back over to the door, Lux had moved closer to the ship.

"Can I help you?" Ahsoka asked.

"Oh." Lux seemed to have been unprepared for her to address him, "no… it's just that, well we have some parts I thought might help your ship. If you like I could show them to you?" Lux said slightly awkwardly.

Ahsoka looked down a moment and caught Anakin's 'told you so' look, and then said "um… sure." and jumping down from the roof of Starkiller she left with Lux.

"Hay wait a moment, I need the next socket?" Anakin called after her, but Ahsoka didn't stop.

"I'm afraid your protégé is already gone off with her new friend," Obi-Wan said, offering the next socket to the young pirate.

"Great," Anakin muttered.

"How's your wrist?" Obi-Wan asked, he had noticed that the pirate was avoiding using it.

"Fin," Anakin said, not looking at the Jedi as he worked on the sockets.

It worried Obi-Wan that the Separatists seemed to have such beings at their fingertips as the droid creature that he had met on the prison ship. It also worried him that so many force sensitive children had been missed by the Jedi. The shroud of the dark side had been veiling things far longer than the Jedi had thought. All three of these pirates should have been found and brought to the Jedi temple for training as small children long before the Sith had revealed themselves. Now they were too old. Obi-Wan felt it was a pity, all three were strong with the force, and the boy… Now that Obi-Wan had been introduced, he remembered the boy from Tatooine during the Naboo incident.

Anakin Skywalker had been powerful in the force, with a potential to rival that of master Yoda. Even half trained Anakin was still powerful and from what Obi-Wan understood from Bail Organa, still had a propensity towards helping people. He would have made a good Jedi. Now, Obi-Wan knew that there was no chance of that. Anakin was at least nineteen, far, far too old to even consider training.

"Obi-Wan?" Anakin cut into the Jedi's thoughts quietly.

"Yes Anakin?" Obi-Wan looked up from the sockets he was holding and into the blue eyes of the pirate.

"Who taught you about the force, to use your powers?" Anakin asked. Obi-Wan had easily defeated the droid creature. Anakin had been at his last limit and the Jedi had simply starched forth a single hand and defeated the creature without any trouble.

"Master Qui-Gon," Obi-Wan said "the Jedi you met as a small child-".

"I know who he is," Anakin cut Obi-Wan off, "where is he?" Anakin wondered if Qui-Gon could somehow come back and finish what he'd started with Anakin's training.

Obi-Wan looked surprised a moment, then saddened a little "Anakin, Master Qui-Gon was killed" Obi-Wan said. He supposed that the pirate wouldn't have known that.

Anakin's eyes widened a little then dropped to the part he was working on "oh, I'm sorry I didn't know that''. Anakin could feel the other man's grief still a faint shadow.

"I'm too old to be trained by the Jedi aren't I?" Anakin asked his voice low and still looking down at the part.

"Yes, I'm afraid you are." Further conversation on the matter was cut short as Asajj appeared.

"Where's Ahsoka got to?" she paused as she headed to the other end of the ship carrying a box of parts.

"Went off with that senator's son to find extra parts for Starkiller".

"How romantic," Asajj rolled her eyes. "Are you almost done with this?" she leaned down into the pit where Anakin was fitting the last of the sockets. "I have a bad feeling about hanging around her much longer?" she added in a low voice.

"Yeah I'm almost done, I've got a few fuel lines to check and one or two minor things but she'll fly us as far as we need. But when we get back to Tanga – 3 Starkiller's going to need some serious repairs." Anakin also used a low voice. He had been getting the same bad feeling himself. Whenever he got those feelings usually it meant sticking around was not a good option.

Padmé came onto Starkiller looking for Obi-Wan but found the young male pirate. She had noticed he was quite handsome but every time her mind went there she shook her head and laughed at herself. Anything between them was more than stupid, she was a senator with a highly respected position and he was a pirate. Not to mention she had to be at least five years older than he was. She had never really spoken to him, it was ludicrous to even entertain the idea. "Excuse me?" Padmé asked,

He glanced around surprised; Anakin had not been expecting anyone to come onto the ship. "Yes?" he said, she was very pretty, and familiar, Anakin knew he knew her from somewhere, however, he also knew that he'd never met a senator Amidala before.

"I was just looking for Obi-Wan… I'm Padmé," she added

"Obi-Wan's not here, I think he went up to get something to drink," Anakin said, he paused a moment and said "Padmé?".

"Yes, that's my name," she said.

"I thought it was Amidala?" Anakin said, suddenly he thought he recognized her, but last time he had known she'd been a peasant not a senator.

"That's my profession title, my real name is Padmé," she said,

"Last time I knew, you were Padmé the present," Anakin accused.

Padmé blinked a moment, "Ani?" she asked, the name Anakin had not registered with her other than seeming slightly familiar.

Anakin was thrown for a moment, no one called him that anymore, Asajj had never picked up on the nickname thing and Ahsoka had dubbed him Skyguy almost from the start. It almost felt strange to hear his childhood nickname now.

"Yeah," Anakin said, "so I guess you were lying about who you were?" Anakin asked, he supposed that was average for the course on Tatooine.

"I had to," Padmé quickly related what had happened during the Naboo blockade, "I never thought I'd seen you again… how's your mother?" Padmé asked.

Anakin was quite a long time then finally said "she's dead." Not looking up.

"Oh, I'm sorry, when did it happen?" Padmé asked. She was a little saddened to learn of the woman's passing. Shmi Skywalker had been a very kind woman.

"A while ago," was all Anakin said, he finally looked back to Padmé from the fuel lines.

"I can't believe we met after all these year, how did you end up being a pirate, and I see that you found a way out of slavery?" Padmé asked.

"Yes, I did," Anakin voice took a slightly steely tone as he said this.

"Padmé?" Mon's voice drifted in from the ship's ramp.

"Coming," Padmé said and turning back to Anakin added "it was nice to have met you again Anakin." and left the ship.

Anakin finished with his last few repairs and then washing up went to the stateroom where food had been left out. Lux and Ahsoka were in there, Lux was listening and apparently very impressed as she detailed her part in several heists.

"Anakin," Obi-Wan said as the pirate came to stand by him near the drink dispenser. Anakin nodded to the Jedi, "is your ships together then?" Obi-Wan asked.

"As much as I can manage here, she'll fly as far as I need her to." Anakin filled a cup and took a drink.

"I wanted to talk to you and your friends about coming back to Coruscant," Obi-Wan said knowing that the pirates would never come with him. "The Jedi still have many questions that need answered and it seems you're the one with all the answers. I still haven't learned where you received your training?" Obi-Wan said.

Anakin didn't have time to reply; suddenly the peace of the stateroom was broken as alarms sounded and the ship's passengers collected in there.

"What now?" Asajj growled.

"It's a Separatists patrol, they can't find any of you on my ship," Mina said as she entered the room.

"Prepare to be boarded by command of General Grievous." came a hacking voice over the ship's intercom. It boomed in the Stateroom and Anakin felt a shiver run through him, it was that metal creature again.

"Dock on their port side," Asajj said heading for the stateroom doors "move it" she added to the senators who were still staring at Mina.

"What's your plan?" Padmé asked as they hurried down the corridors with the pirates.

"We're going to get off this ship, and you're going to pay us once we do," Asajj said, glancing at Bail.

"If we live," Bail agreed, sounding somewhat skeptical.

"Oh, we'll live," Asajj promised, "Everybody on board". The crew piled on and a few minutes later were strapped into Starkiller.

"What about my ship, if they find it they'll know it's a Republic craft," Padmé said.

Pressing several buttons on the dash Asajj aimed the hold-out cannon at the little Naboo craft and blasted into it several times. The little silver ship was a smoking pile of twisted metal that only closely resembled a ship a few minutes later.

"Not to worry," Asajj said,

"What now?" Mon asked her voice tight as they heard the clang of the two ships docking.

"Alright Jedi it's time to earn your keep, open the docking bay doors," Asajj said as Starkiller's thrusters rumbled to life beneath them.

Obi-Wan closed his eyes and stretched forth a hand, concentrating, a moment later the hanger door opened.

Anakin maneuvered the ship out of the cargo hold, while Ahsoka was looking for a destination. Starkiller scrapped one side along the cargo bay wall and then was free into space. Starkiller complained faintly as they held in a position where the larger prison ship couldn't see them with Mina's passenger ship between them.

"Got it," Ahoksa said and putting the destination into the computer added "anytime Skyguy."

Grimacing slightly from the pressure being put on his wrist Anakin pulled back slowly on the hyperspace leaver and they jumped into star lines, passing under the large Separatist prison ship.