Thanks for the kind words Melon1627! It definitely did get dark- the next story I have brewing is going to be a lot lighter, for sure! I hope everyone enjoys this next chapter! I think I'm down to about two more chapters and this one will be good to go! Enjoy! :)

Chapter 11: Justice Served

The gentle crackle of flames behind her pulled Ahsoka out of her shocked stupor. There was so much rampant destruction around her, and now was not the time to wallow in self-pity. There was work to be done! Steeling herself, she took a deep breath and snapped back to her senses. Now reinvigorated, she swiftly reached for her comlink, "Tano to Captain Rex. Do you copy? SOS. I need your assistance, immediately."

The reply was instantaneous, "I'm here, Commander! What's the situation?"

"I need landing cruisers down here with as many Clones as you can muster. Make sure we've got some medical supplies handy. The Refugees in Camp One have been...eliminated by the enemy, I do not know the status of the other camps. I suspect that only this camp was hit, but we need to prepare for a worst-case scenario. Our enemy is armed and extremely dangerous."

"Moving out now, sir! We'll be down in twenty minutes!"

"Make it fifteen, Captain!" Ahsoka hollered back. Swallowing her despair, Ahsoka set out to salvage what she could from the remains of the Refugee Camp. Anything that could be reused could be life-saving for the Refugees in the other encampments. There were also literal fires she needed to put out, and there was the matter of preparing graves for the casualties.

Taking one final moment before rising up to the challenge of her duties, Ahsoka closed her eyes and reached through the Force, sending one final message. I know you'll do the right thing. Knowing that this was the final plea she could make, she could only hope her Master would listen to her. Otherwise, she knew that he would regret his actions for the remainder of his life.

Across the plains near the cliffside base, a hooded figure roamed in the shadows. Concealed in the darkness, Anakin silently stalked the winding corridors of the Syndicate's base, walking slowly and deliberately to his targets. He was in no hurry, as they had nowhere to run to. At the end of the long hallway stood an enormous, military grade blast door. This door was the final barrier separating Anakin from his targets.

He could feel them gathered together on the other side of the door. Judging by the feelings of ecstatic joy and relief he could perceive from outside of the room, they were in the process of celebrating their "victory". They didn't even know what was coming for them. As Anakin finally reached for his lightsaber to slice open the door and eviscerate his enemies like the animals they were, he felt a disturbance in the Force. It wasn't a colossal wave or a premonition, but merely a tiny ripple that permeated through dark energy that surrounded as though it were a pebble, gracefully skipping off the water.

He didn't know why, but he felt compelled to reach out and experience the ripple. Closing his eyes, he realized the ripple contained a message. I know you'll do the right thing, Ahsoka's words resonated in his head. The weight of the word's meaning hit him like a steel wall. In an instant, the darkness that had clouded Anakin's evaporated, only to be replaced by intense guilt. Ahsoka's pleas echoed through his mind on repeat. Free from the haziness of his despair and rage, he now understood what his Padawan was trying to do for him.

He fully became aware of how horrible his actions were making his Padawan feel, and knowing that he was causing her pain broke his heart. Despite being possibly the most powerful Jedi to ever live, time and time again Anakin still had managed to fail nearly everyone who mattered to him. It seemed like no matter what he did, he always made the wrong decision.

With more clarity than he'd ever had in his life, the way forward appeared before him. There was no backing out now. He knew what must be done. With not even a moment's indecision, he activated his lightsaber and reached out toward the door with his left hand.

The Syndicate, much like the Hutt Cartel, spread across the entire Galaxy, seeking to gain territory, power, and influence wherever it could. Many different sub-branches operated in conjunction with each other in nearly every Star System. The leader of this branch of the Syndicate was a Quarren named Kyp Horn. He had earned this prestigious position because of the skills he developed over a long, miserable life full of lying, cheating, stealing, and killing.

Years of living such a bitter existence warped his mind and robbed him of any sense of morality or sanity. He was past the point of caring about anything other than inflicting as much suffering as he possibly could. It made him the perfect candidate to lead such a twisted group of people. His men respected his brilliant, if not maniacal, criminal mind, but also feared his manic tendencies and unpredictability.

He laughed gleefully as he reveled in his triumphant revenge against the insufferable vermin that had dared to deny him their loyalty. Reflecting upon their screams and tears brought a twisted smile to his face. Surrounded by his remaining gang members in the mess hall of their base, Kyp had never felt such satisfaction.

His crew, however, were significantly more apprehensive of their current situation. One particularly hardened Nautolan, who had served with him for nearly a decade was the first to speak up, "Boss...don't you think it would be a good idea to get these kids off-world and get our profit? The Jedi have to have figured out about our operation by this point. They'll be heading this way any minute..."

Kyp's smile immediately turned to a sour frown. He swiftly pulled out his blaster and pulled the trigger, putting three blaster bolts in his associate's chest. The other crew members jumped in shock at the sudden violence, and Kyp's eyes darted around the room rapidly.

"Any other cowards want to offer up their opinion?...please... after all, I'm always open-minded, boys!" His words were sarcastic, but there was no humor in the delivery. No one said a word. "The Jedi are so delusional and altruistic. I bet right now they're meditating about whether to bury the dead men or women first!" He broke into another fit of uproarious laughter.

His laughter was immediately silenced by the sound of a blast door being pried open. Sparks flew as metal gnashed against metal as the mighty door was bent to the will of a much more powerful Force. A hooded figure emerged through the wreckage where the blast door once stood, a striking flash of blue light illuminating the outline of his torso. Kyp's eyes widened in terror as he laid his eyes upon him. A Jedi!

No one made a noise as Anakin slowly strode to the center of the room. The Syndicate gang member's collective heart rate began to skyrocket as he inched closer and closer, his footsteps echoing around them. Some inched their hands closer to their blaster, knowing that conflict was coming at any moment. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the hooded figure whispered, "Where are they?"

Kyp regained his composure and cackled, "Well hello there, Master Jedi. You sure made a grand mess of things down here, didn't ya? How many of those damn freeloaders did you manage to let die...?"

"Where. Are. They? I won't ask again."

Rolling his eyes dramatically, "Oh spare the theatrics. The little brats are in the brig down stairs. Is this the part where you show me the error of my ways and ask me to turn over a new leaf? Where I renounce my wicked ways and turn myself in...? Because here's the thing, Jedi..." Kyp growled, biding time for the opportune moment, "that's not gonna happen!" As he finished his declaration, he quickly redrew his blaster and expertly aimed a shot at Anakin's head.

To his surprise, the blaster bolt remained frozen in mid-air, a couple feet from the end of his weapon. He blinked a few times to make sure his eyes weren't playing tricks on him. He turned his attention to his adversary, who merely had his left hand casually held in front of him.

Anakin slowly began moving forward again, clenching his left hand inward to dissipate the blaster bolt. It evaporated into a fog of red smoke. Then, with a gesture from both hands and a slight grunt, he pushed his Force energy outward, sending the other gang members flying across the room. They hit the wall with enough force to knock them unconscious, or at least incapacitate them for a few moments. Now only Kyp and Anakin remained.

As he moved closer, he spoke, "To answer your question. I am not here to appeal to your morality. I'm not here to change your ways. I'm here to see that you pay for all the evil things you've done in your miserable life."

Now completely petrified, Kyp frantically fired several more shots. Lightning fast parries from Anakin's lightsaber redirected them, causing them to reflect harmlessly off the ground and ceiling. Outstretching his hand again, he used the Force to pull Kyp's blaster to him. It traveled across the room at tremendous speed into Anakin's hands, where he promptly tossed it to the side.

His tough demeanor evaporating in the face of what he believed to be certain death, Kyp dropped to his knees and pleaded, "Please! Have mercy on me! I surrender! You don't have to kill me!"

Anakin now stood only a few inches away from him, staring down on the pathetic lifeform. "How many people stood where you stand now? Begging for their life, while you brutalized, stole, and murdered? How many times did you laugh in their face while they cried like you're doing now?"

Kyp could only whimper in reply.

"The people you killed today were good people. You slaughtered them like animals."

Kyp was now sobbing, begging for mercy, "Please, I don't want to die!"

"Believe me, scum. If it were my choice, I would have already crushed your windpipe with my bare hands," Anakin growled as Kyp cowered, "but I will not allow those poor souls to be burdened with your blood on their hands. Too many lives have been lost today. It ends now."

Kyp fearfully looked up as Anakin, who towered over him, "In the name of the Galactic Senate, you are under arrest. Your days of terrorizing the Galaxy are over." In a swift move, Anakin back-handed the Quarren, causing him to fall abruptly to the ground, unconscious.

Anakin closed his eyes and sighed deeply, feeling the burden of his hate slowly loosening its grip on him. He opened his eyes and secured a pair of electro-binders over Kyp's hands so that it would be easier to keep him contained when he awoke. Now, the only thing that remained was locating the most important part of his mission- the missing Refugee children.