Never in all of her life did Ahsoka ever imagine that she would stand face to face with a Sith Lord. Every youngling is taught of the dark side. How corruptive, evil, and vile it is. That to fall to it is the worst thing that a Jedi could ever do. She remembered the histories of those who left the Jedi Order and how there was always at least one anecdote suspecting they had fallen to the dark.
There were rumors that she had fallen to the dark side when she 'abandoned' the jedi order. Even she had heard rumors in the months after she decided to leave. Fighting alongside Anakin and Obi-Wan had seen her make a name for herself. Once she disappeared from the holonet all sorts of rumors circled…
And amongst those rumors were the ones that claimed Ahsoka Tano had joined the Sith. Even though she had been proven innocent of the bombing a large group of people believed she truly was a Seperatist sympathizer.
Saving Mandalore had felt like some kind of redemption. She hadn't even done anything wrong! It was still a chance to prove to, well, everyone that just because she wasn't a jedi didn't mean that she wasn't still a hero. A good person.
She had yearned for Anakin and Obi-Wan to be beside her. To fight with the two men who had led the way through the majority of the clone war for her. Taught her not just how to fight but how to navigate the galaxy with compassion and integrity.
To then find out that she was to face Maul alone. She had been both nervous and proud. Nervous that she would be facing a Sith Lord that had bested Master Obi-wan multiple times. Proud that Anakin believed that she could measure up to the task before her.
To then duel him alone. To be facing down a Sith, alone. She had never imagined standing where she stood. No Bo Katan beside her. No Rex. No Anakin. Just her. She duelled Maul and beat him. Taking care of a threat that had committed countless atrocities. Not just to Mandalore but to the galaxy at large.
She didn't have to be a jedi to do good. The Force cared not for whether she was in the Order or not- it answered her call all the same.
Aboard the Tribunal she headed towards Coruscant with Maul in tow. The truth about Darth Sidious would be revealed for them all. She would be-
A voice cried out through the Force and was silenced. It was not unusual for such events to be felt from systems away.
Another voice cried out.
And another.
And another.
A great storm flooded the entire galaxy as voices crying out in fear and rage were silenced. In their wake a great darkness smugly revealed itself and the warmth of the Force began to dim…
The voices grew louder- Palpatine. Master Windu. Anakin. Anakin! His last words still reverberated through her mind.
"What have I done?"
She had gone to Rex- only for her nightmare to grow worse. He turned on her. That is, he was forced to turn on her. Rex never faltered. His voice and hands never shook in battle. He drew his blaster only when he meant to fight, but he never yelled warnings to those he wanted to kill. Some part of him was able to break through whatever was compelling the other clones to warn her.
"Find him! Find Fives! Fives! Find him!"
She had barely managed to escape the bridge. Suddenly, she was trapped. Her victorious return had turned into what could very well lead to her death. This had Separatists written all over it- or even worse, Sith.
Which led her to where she now was. Where she could never have imagined to be before. Face to face with a Sith Lord. But, most likely not the one behind what was going on judging by the fact that two of the clones had come into the cell to execute him.
She stepped up to the mandalorian vault and hesitated. He watched her with yellow, hateful eyes. He was very curious to see what she was about to do.
Her first instinct had been to set him free to act as a diversion. Let him wreak havoc while she tried to find some way to save Rex.
She had debated it… And realized the flaws with it. She didn't want to kill any clones- and Maul would tear them to pieces if it meant survival. Also, if he managed to escape this ship any harm he committed would be her responsibility. He had already brought a planet to its knees once. He could easily do it again.
She had captured Maul to bring him before the Order to learn what they could about the Sith and for him to stand trial. She hadn't caught him to kill him. Nor could she just let him go to wreak havoc on the galaxy.
Ahsoka was alone on the ship. Maul had reached out to her to aid him to fight Darth Sidious. She knew he only meant to unseat his old master and take his place- but if she beat him once she could beat him again. Every second she thought about what her next decision should be she felt hundreds of Jedi dying throughout the galaxy.
Already the galaxy would never be the same. It would never feel the same.
It was the Force that made her decision for her. As she reached out to it for answers she felt that she had two paths before her and both of them started with Maul. Would she try to work with the Sith or would she let him loose. Leave him to die in her place from the clones. Or try to find some path walking with him.
An ex-Jedi and an ex-Sith…
Every Jedi Master's voice in her mind screamed for her to not dare to work with Maul.
Then again, being told what to do by the Order had only ever cemented her to try it in the past.
She ignited a lightsaber and cut off the part of the vault that muzzled Maul. He didn't flinch as the blade neared his face. He only continued to look at her in curiosity, surprise, and slight apprehension.
"You… you survived?" She grit her teeth and raised the lightsaber towards his face. Her anger was rising. It was a struggle to stay calm.
"Was this you? Choose your next words carefully." She could sense that he knew...something. He had spoken as if they were on the cusp of some grand plan reaching its culmination.
"No. No this was not me." His eyes glanced towards the two unconscious clones, and she could see him piecing things together, "I don't even fully know what has occurred. But surely… You've felt it? The voices crying out. The death..."
She had. It was impossible to hide. At first she thought the Seperatists had completed some secret strategy. Some grand conspiracy to assassinate jedi simultaneously-
Then the clones had turned against her. And a pit opened in her stomach at the very idea that...that…
"...The clones turned against me. Even Rex. I don't know why- they weren't themselves." Rex. Her men. Those who had painted her marking on their helmets out of respect and loyalty. Acknowledging her even though she was no longer their actual Commander.
Her rage flared as Maul quietly chuckled to himself, "Oh, brilliant. Brilliant! I was not privy to my master's plan. But now. Now I see it. He turned the jedi's own army against them." His eyes locked onto hers and she couldn't help the disgust at the realization that he admired the strategy. That he was in awe that his master had made the jedi trust the clones. Build true and authentic bonds and relationships between them. To only strip the clones of their autonomy and their individuality to kill those they had fought alongside for so long… It was sick!
She was sick that she understood herself how effective such a strategy would be. The jedi would never believe themselves able to be fooled so completely. That just because the clones didn't bear them any ill intent they could sense the jedi would believe them incapable of betraying them.
The arrogance that had led the Council to casting her out would believe them incapable of making such a mistake of judgement.
Coming back to the moment she slowly lowered her blade to her side, "Rex told me to find Fives. A clone who had gone rogue and was killed. I think it has something to do with what's happening to them."
"Then why... Did you come here?" His question sounded innocent but she knew the truth. He was testing her. She understood why Obi-wan was so… wary of him now. Maul was another kind of foe. A manipulative and intelligent foe. Much like Dooku had been. Not as simple minded as Grievous…
"I came here… Because there are better odds of surviving with another fighting with me." He smiled and it was cruel and patronizing.
"Yes… I could be swayed to aid you. Together, we could stop Sidious-" Her blade flew back up to shine in his eyes. He snarled and she had to resist the urge to bare her own fangs at him.
"No. One step at a time, Maul. I need to save Rex- I need to."
"Mmmm…" He thought for a few seconds before he spoke, "Then, I would suggest that we form a plan. We are currently aboard an enemy craft, Lady Tano. They will seek to eliminate us both, without mercy."
"I know."
"And we mustn't let the ship reach Coruscant." She hesitated at that.
"Why?"
"One step at a time, Lady Tano." He grinned, "Just know that as imperative it is to you to save your… friend. It is also important that we get off this vessel before it reaches the Core."
"..What aren't you telling me?"
"Mmm, nothing you absolutely need to know at this moment. Now, free me. While you save your friend, I can destroy the hyperdrive."
"Destroy the- That could be catastrophic! The ship could-"
"Do you have a better suggestion? The clones will not cease attempting to execute their orders. You have seen them on the battlefield. There will be no surrender, no mercy."
"Just because they won't hesitate to kill me that doesn't mean that I have to kill them." She could tell that Maul's frustration was growing the longer he was trapped in the vault, but she needed him to understand their… footing. If they were to work together it would not be done his way.
"Fine. Fine, fine, I will try to exhibit mercy should I come across them."
"You will not kill anyone." He gave a scathing laugh and shook his head.
"They are no longer your soldiers anymore, Lady Tano. They are Darth Sidious'."
"You won't. Kill them." He frowned but slowly nodded.
"I will not kill them. They may not thank you for that mercy afterwards."
"They're big boys- you'll see for yourself soon enough."
"So, you are going to free me now, yes? While you save your….mmmm… friend, I will cease the ship's trajectory. That leaves us floating aboard a ship with an army hunting for us and nowhere to go."
"There's a shuttle. The one that took you aboard." She withdrew her blade and holstered it, "We'll reconvene in the shuttle. We'll leave together."
"And after that, Lady Tano? I am sure that we will find a much more hostile galaxy awaiting us once we leave this ship."
She frowned and crossed her arms, "...I don't know. We'll lay low and plan our next move."
"...Yes. Yeeeeeeees, take the time to discover the extent of my master's control… Find the flaws in his grand plan."
"See? It won't be so hard." He actually seemed to genuinely laugh at that and she reached forward and released him. The Force thrummed in the air as the vault released it's captive. Maul stumbled as he stepped out of it. The machinations of his legs whirred as they barely held his body off the floor.
"Together… we have a chance of success. I am surprised to see that you trust me, so Lady Tano."
"I don't, Maul." She turned to go but then hesitated. She could almost feel him waiting, watching, observing her indecision. She quietly touched one of her lightsabers. The weapons that Anakin had kept for her. He had never given up hope that she would return to need them.
She wordlessly slipped one off and held it out towards Maul. He quietly took the blade and ignited it. He waved it making sure to take the time to get a feel for the weight of it.
"I'll be wanting that back. Remember the terms."
"Yes, yes, no killing… You truly surprise me, Lady Tano." She ignored him and peeked outside the hallway. He walked up beside her and looked down the other way.
"Do you know how to get to the hyperdrive?"
"Yes. Here." He handed her one of the wrist coms from the two clones inside, "So you can keep an ear on their communications."
"...Smart." She put it on and then looked back to Maul. She had a gut feeling that this was going to be a mistake. Probably her biggest mistake yet.
With the idea of losing everyone she had ever cared about on the forefront of her mind, she couldn't find it in her to care.
"May the Force be with you." Maul chuckled darkly as she sped down the hallway, his response carrying just far enough for her to hear it.
"And with you, Lady Tano."
She just hoped that this hare-brained scheme of hers would be the kind of crazy plan that really panned out and saved the day- and not the kind that ended up with her being hunted by Trandoshans on an uninhabited moon.
Yeah. She really hoped it didn't end up like that at all.
Travelling in the shadow of Anakin she had learned a thing or two about intimidating your enemies and making your presence more than known. It was Master Plo and Master Kenobi that taught her the art of being sneaky. It may have also had something to do with the fact that while the Separatists focused on Anakin she was free to stick to the shadows unnoticed until the time was right.
He'd always wind up with all the accolades that way, but when it was just them he'd always make her feel appreciated for her contributions. She hadn't minded being in his shadow.
She shook herself out of her ruminations as she almost rounded a corner into an oncoming patrol. The clones were moving quickly in search parties. She slid back, unnoticed, as they passed and took a breath.
'They sure seem to be worried.' She thought as she slipped through the doorway. The clones were sticking to their protocols. Having an in-depth knowledge of those exact protocols meant that she didn't have too hard a time slipping past them.
As she went further in to the ship she finally made it to the droid repair room. She quietly closed the door behind her and didn't turn on the lights. She slowly made her way over to R7 and turned him on.
R7 immediately started whirring in alarm!
"Shhh! Shh! R7, I don't know- I don't know what's happening, shhh!" She couldn't stop her friend's frenzied questions. The droid's cries woke up two of the other droids and the lights turned on. She nearly froze before she realized that both the other droids, G-G and Cheep, weren't sounding the alarm either. The three astromechs looked up at her in concern.
"Guys, I don't know what's going on… But something isn't right. Rex told me to find Fives… R7, can you pull up all files regarding clone CT-5555?"
Her personal astromech whirred an affirmative and accessed the ship's database. It projected the files before beeping at her again.
"One's sealed? Hmm…" Knowing that any chance of helping Rex depended on learning what he had intended for her to find she decided to use one of her secret 'aces', "Try using Anakin's password- 8-1-0-8."
R7 beeped in affirmation and a recording started to play. It was a Kaminoan claiming that an independent investigation showed nothing to do with the inhibitor chip had anything to do with the mental deterioration of Tup…
'That being said, there is a grievance report filed by CT-7567…'
A hologram of Rex appeared. He seemed uncomfortable. Fidgety. Like something was really bothering him, 'There's a possibility that the inhibitor chips the kaminoans put in us…. May have a purpose we don't know of yet.'
Ahsoka's eyes widened. Tup had murdered his jedi commander. Most believed it was some kind of virus that he had been infected with…. But…
Could it… have been by design? Of the kaminoans? But… Why…
Master Windu's words in the last meeting came to mind, 'That depends on the Chancellor.'
"Okay guys- I need to try and save Rex. Will you help me?" She smiled as the droids all eagerly accepted her request. It felt good not to be completely alone.
"Alrighty, then here is the plan- we need to separate Commander Rex from the rest of the clones…"
Maul pushed forwards. There was no time to enjoy his freedom. The clones were on him. They sought his destruction.
They failed.
He stalked forwards down the hallway. Blaster fire was meaningless with the aid of the lightsaber in his hand. It seemed that Tano had given him her secondary weapon; her shoto lightsaber. A smaller blade mainly used in the off-hand.
Perhaps it was calculated in some attempt to diminish his skills in combat. She would be disappointed.
The Dark side fueled him like never before. His anger and rage gave strength to his body as he weaved between the shots he didn't bother deflecting. With but a motion of his hand the paneling of durasteel tore itself off of the walls and began to spin, rapidly. Stray blaster shots were absorbed into the sheets of metal before they were sent careening down the hallway. They knocked four clones to the floor before embedding into the chests of two troopers and pinning them to the wall. Their chances of survival were slim- but they could save themselves if their will was strong enough. If not their deaths were due to their own ineptitude and not to Maul's ferocity.
"Back, back! Close the blast door!" The remaining three clones all staggered down the hallway. 'Good. They are smart enough to flee from me.'
With a savage smile and with almost no effort he caught the last clone's arm and pulled it back. His comrades yelled and tried to pull him back… But, Maul's will would not be overcome.
'Yes… I will merely make them wish for death instead, Tano.' The door closed like a vice- and the arm fell to the ground with a limp splat.
"Trooper! Did you close the blast door? We want to redirect his approach! Trooper, answer me!"
"Oh, I doubt he'll be able to answer anyone at the moment." He muttered to himself. This had marked the second time he'd been taken prisoner against his will.
'Never again! I will never surrender from this day forth. I will never be so weak again. For next time...will surely mean death.' His eyes flickered to an adjacent hallway. Tano would need time if she were to save her 'friend'.
"Of course… the more expedient I am, the less likely she will succeed in that event… Hehehe, yes. Yes. I must be quick- the less of her old life that survives, the more likely my plans will be able to bear fruit…"
With that he sprinted down the adjacent hall, keeping an ear out for any chatter he'd hear from the wrist com.
He would stop this ship now!
Ahsoka watched from her vantage point as Rex led the search parties in scouring the Tribunal to find her. The droids waited for the majority of clones to pass before slamming shut the blast doors. G-G and Cheep then closed the next doors as Rex shouted and pointed his guns at them.
She watched as the hologram recording of her spoke to him. Trying to reason with him and reassure him. Whatever was controlling him wouldn't relinquish control as he turned his guns on R7, "Where. Is. She?"
"I'm right here." She softly said as he spun towards her. R7 was ready to act for as soon as Rex turned to face her the little astromech scooted in close and tazed him!
"Aargh!" He cried as he stood in paralysis for a second before his unconscious body crumpled to the ground.
"Careful! Our goal is to not hurt him!" She picked him up and loaded him onto the three droids, "Come on- the medbay is this way!"
She ran off with the droids following behind her. She felt something in her gut- some kind of warning. A feeling telling her to not falter, to not slow down.
'I bet it's Maul. He better not be trying to sabotage this- or Force knows how me and Rex are gonna get off this ship..'
She was so relieved when she saw the door of the medbay and wasted no time in placing Rex on the medical bed. As she fiddled with the computer system she barked an order to R7, "Scan him for the inhibitor chip, R7! G-G lock the door!"
R7 scanned as quickly as he could- but the result came up negative. "Run it again!"
G-G whined nervously as the clones reached the door to the medbay and began to break into it. R7 beeped frantically as the scan resulted negative once more!
"It has to be there- it has to be there!" G-G was frantically beeping, R7 was erratically whistling and whirring, it was almost getting so overwhelming-
'Remember Ahsoka. The more distressed you are the harder it is to hear the call of the Force. It's important to remember the old mantras when you don't have the time to meditate. They can be a quick fix for stress!' The memory of Anakin came unbidden to her mind but it was exactly what she needed to remember.
She placed her hands on either side of Rex's head and closed her eyes. She shut out the droids, the scans, the clones on the other side of the door.
All she felt was the Force.
"I am one with the Force and the Force is with me. I am one with the Force and the Force is with me. I am one with the Force and the Force is with me-" She continued the mantra, pleading, willing for the Force to help her aid her friend. To find the thing inside of him making everything so wrong-
Just as she was beginning to worry- she heard Rex's voice join her!
"I am one with the Force and the Force is with me. I am one with the Force and the Force is with me-!"
The scan pinged and her eyes flew open as the inhibitor chip was revealed, "Yes! R7, initiate the surgery and get that out of him!"
The Force flared a warning across her senses as she readied her single lightsaber in hand- the clones were almost through the door!
Her blade bathed the room in blue as the door opened! One clone stepped forward to hold the door open as other clones lined up shots at her! The medbay began to smell of atmosphere burn as the deflected blaster bolts impacted on the walls surrounding them. A clone fell and another took his place. And again one fell only to be immediately replaced. A shot broke through her guard and left her wide open and defenseless-
Shots rang out.
The three clones in the doorway were shot down and crumpled lifelessly as Rex brandished his pistols-
"G-G! The door!" The droid wheeled up to the control pad and locked the door back up. This time it seemed the droid wouldn't be taking any unnecessary risks as it began to seal the door shut with its blowtorch.
Ahsoka let out a sigh of relief and turned to face Rex. He seemed pretty spooked. Nervous and agitated. The bandage on his skull helped reassure her that the surgery was successful…
"Rex? You okay?"
"Ah… Yeah. Yeah kid. I'm okay." He slowly caught his breath and tightened his fist, "I'm… I'm sorry for what happened earlier. I, uh, almost killed you…"
"Rex- how widespread is this?" His eyes met her and she knew the answer wouldn't be good. He looked so defeated. Utterly devastated. More grieved then after losing a brother in a mission.
"Ahsoka, it's all of us. The entire Grand Army of the Republic has been ordered to hunt down and destroy the jedi knights…"
That was it. The confirmation of what Maul and her had begun to suspect…
Without the jedi, the Republic would be defenseless. With the clones brainwashed- whoever controlled them…
Controlled the galaxy.
"Ahsoka!" Rex cried and stood up as more clones outside began to break their way in.
"Wait for it!" She stood in front of the door and braced herself.
"Wait for it…" She watched as the clones cut through the metal of the door. Just as they finished she sent her arms forwards with a cry of , "Now!"
The blast door was sent rocketing down the hall knocking every clone behind it to the ground. She followed in its path with her lightsaber blocking every shot sent her way. Rex wasted no time in falling beside her, firing stunners as efficiently as ever. The two effortlessly fell into sync with each other. They systematically incapacitated every clone around them. They didn't stop until the last clone crumpled to the floor.
They ran down the hallway, droids quickly following them, and locking every blast door they walked past.
"Ahsoka- did you hear that Maul escaped?" She winced before taking a calming breath.
"He didn't escape. I freed him… We're… working together."
"What?!" Rex halted in his tracks. It was hard to tell with his helmet on what expression he was making but Ahsoka could feel his disbelief and confusion plainly through the Force.
"Look- I didn't know if I'd be able to save you. I didn't know what I was going to do- but, Rex, I could feel the jedi fall. You've said it yourself- the entire army of the Republic is now hunting down the jedi... " She sighed and looked back at him with sorrow and regret in her eyes, "Rex. I think Maul was somewhat right. I think the Republic has fallen to Darth Sidious' schemes."
He stood rigid and unyielding. Trembling with what she guessed was rage and helplessness. She could sense a tremendous guilt growing in him. She wasn't surprised… Clearly the inhibitor chip stripped them of their free will. All of Rex's brothers were now just as powerless and mindless as the separatist propaganda had always tried to paint them.
"We have to go Rex."
"Yes. Right. This way." He headed further down the hall and they both continued towards the main hangar. It was time to get off the Tribunal.
'Through Passion….I find strength. Through Strength….I find Power. Through Power I find Victory. Through Victory my chains are broken. The Force shall set me free!' The blast doors opened and Maul sprinted into the hyperdrive room. The great fuselages towered above the catwalk as they propelled the capital ship through space.
Maul's sprint did not slow as he neared the command module. The blue blade in hand sliced through the air. The clones were careful with their shots so as to not endanger the machinery, but that only gave Maul even more time to react to each attack.
Three clones had fallen by the time he had reached the center of the room. Two focused blasts of the Force sent the clones on the higher catwalks plummeting to their deaths.
This was self-defense. It was kill or be killed now and Tano would be unlikely to argue this point.
Not that she would know about it after their escape. He had held back enough to where she would be unlikely to press him for more details of his rampage.
'Hopefully, working with her is actually worth the tediousness.'
Maul gave in to his rage as he uprooted the control station. He reached out and summoned all his might. It came rushing like a monstrous wave, eager to answer his call.
The darkside flooded the room. It coiled over the extensive hyperdrives. He clenched his hands and pulled.
He could feel the tension and it elated him. It was just another reminder of how powerful he was. He would reclaim his mantle of Darth and uproot his Master who had dared to replace him!
'Soon, it will be you, Sidious, who begs mercy from me! Your death will mark my ascendancy as the rightful ruler of the galaxy!'
A squad of clones came running out with their blasters raised in his direction. With a smile he flared his power and the hyperdrives collapsed onto them and the walkway! Klaxons started to blare and the room was bathed in red emergency lights.
'Now… To see if my potential apprentice has survived or not…'
Maul leapt over the chasm and exited the room- fire and smoke slowly following him.
Rex finished stunning the officers in the hangar control room and Ahsoka looked out over the main hangar. It seemed clear but the Force was whispering a warning to her.
"R7, open hangar doors." The little astromech scooted forward and started raising the doors. It revealed the shuttle waiting for them.
Then the rest of the doors opened revealing Jesse with a company of clone troopers alongside him waiting for them.
Jesse and the clones lined up in position with blasters ready- putting themselves between Ahsoka and Rex and the shuttle.
"Dammit- they were expecting us…" Rex groaned and then R7 chirped, "Wait- what do you mean the hyperdrive is gone?"
Ahsoka closed her eyes and sighed, "It's Maul. He was adamant that the ship not arrive at Coruscant- so he took out the hyperdrives."
"Of course it was." Rex peeked down at all the clones in front of them, "So, what's the plan? Fight to the shuttle?"
"I don't want to hurt anyone onboard."
"That's great, but they don't care. Those clones, my brothers, are willing to lay their lives down if it means taking us down with them, Ahsoka."
They both grew silent in their respective griefs. It wasn't fair. She slowly stepped to him and took off his helmet. He turned his head away from her, but he wasn't fast enough to hide the tears he was shedding.
'I don't think I've ever seen Rex cry…'
She put her hand on his cheek and locked eyes with him, "You're a good soldier, Rex. So is every one of your brothers down there. And just because they are okay with killing me doesn't mean that I have to kill a single one of them."
"So that's it? We're just going to surrender?"
"No." He scoffed with a bittersweet smile.
"Well, I only see two choices here before us."
She gazed out at the men in formation in the middle of the hangar floor. They stood armed and ready.
An inkling of a plan began to form in her mind as she noticed exactly where the clones were standing-
Then all of the clones raised their blasters and spread out. She could hear Jesse yelling something- before all of the clones opened fire!
She and Rex stepped back only to realize that all of the blaster fire was aimed directly below them.
Her confusion faded away when clones started dropping as they were hit by deflected blaster bolts!
"No! Maul!" She got up close to the glass, Rex beside her, and they both peered down and were just able to make out the Sith- blue blade in hand.
"You gave him one of your lightsabers!?"
"Again, Rex- I didn't think I had a lot of options at the time!"
"By the Force- Ahsoka, he's dropping them like flies!"
"R7! You and the others head to the shuttle! Rex-"
"Got ya, kid!" He attached a grapple to his gun as she cut an opening into the window of the room.
The glass fell to the ground and shattered as Ahsoka landed behind Maul. He was stepping forward with every swing. His style was aggressive and unyielding. It was efficient to an almost cruel degree. The bolts he was sending back were hitting clones in their necks, their faces, or near their hearts- completely antithetical to the style she had been taught that prioritized incapacitation over lethal strikes.
"Maul!" She strode up to him. Her blade was constantly moving as the clones seamlessly split their attention between the two Force users.
"Lady Tano! Come- it's time we leave." He sliced down towards a recovering clone. She saw her markings on his helmet. Saw where the blade would sever his head from his body.
Imagined her lightsaber killing him in front of her.
Maul blinked in surprise as her blade intercepted the strike and stopped it. Both of them had to twirl around to deflect the shots that took advantage of their blades locking.
"What are you doing!?" She snarled in response and pushed a clone trooper back with the Force out of Maul's range.
"I said no killing, Maul!"
Maul roared in rage and sliced at her. Ahsoka struck quickly to parry his blows; preferring to use as much time as she could deflecting instead of engaging him.
"Do you intend to let them kill us both?!" Maul was nothing but anger and rage, and their duel was almost magnetically keeping the focus of all the clones in the hangar.
She smirked and dashed in close. She kept her strikes quick and the footwork Anakin had dogmatically drilled into her served her well as she continuously circled Maul.
Maul engaged in the duel ruthlessly. She kept him largely focused on her which spared more clones then would have been otherwise. It was the most intense fight that Ahsoka had experienced in a long while. She truly had to almost relinquish control to the Force to be able to react in time to Maul's attacks and the clones surrounding them.
After a minute or two of fighting at such close range, Maul seemed to realize that something was up. That she wasn't fighting as hard as she had on Mandalore.
'That's right Maul. I'm stalling.'
She looked over his shoulder and saw Rex giving her a thumbs up from the shuttle. A bolt whizzed past her head as she ducked and twirled around Maul. He locked blades with her for a second- and saw Rex retreating up the ramp to the shuttle.
"Ah. How cunning of you, jedi."
"I'm not a jedi anymore." She leapt backwards and flipped high over the heads of the clones. She landed in a running position. She waited for a second before she heard Maul land beside her. He was frowning but gave her a grudging nod before they both set off towards the shuttle.
She was surprised at how easy it was to fight alongside him. She didn't trust him at all. But in the moment… It was easy.
'Going to have to be careful about that.'
They reached the shuttle and got onboard. The ship rocked from all the concentrated blaster fire until the shields hummed to life.
"Rex! Get us out of here!"
"Right!" She felt the engines thrum and the ship lift off. The clones quickly attempted to close the hangar doors but it was already too late. The shuttle left the hangar and fled from the Tribunal.
Ahsoka was waiting to hear and feel the incoming volleys the ship was sure to fire after them… Only for nothing to happen.
"Rex? What's going on?" Maul laughed beside her and gestured to the viewport in the side of the shuttle.
"It seems that they got caught up in the gravitational pull of that moon...How fortuitous for us."
Her heart dropped as she watched the Tribunal slowly sink beneath the cloud layer of the moon leaving behind a large trail of noxious smoke.
"...They destroyed all the escape pods." Maul nodded from beside her with a grin that made her sick to her stomach. He was proud that all of the clones would most likely die.
"Their deaths are a loss."
"For my old master, yes. We've deprived him of but a drop of the forces at his disposal. We need to find somewhere to lay low… And gather intelligence of what has happened."
"I need to go down there." She heard him turn back to her.
"For what reason?"
"I need… I need to bury them. They were my men."
"Sentiment. Weakness. We need to take advantage of the head start we have."
"You're wrong." She raised the hilt of her lightsaber and pointed at the hilt in Maul's hand, "We also need to leave these behind."
"You wish to leave your own lightsabers behind? To what end? Is it not jedi mantra that your blade is your life?"
"If they find my blades they may assume I died in the crash." That actually made Maul hesitate which gave Rex enough time to enter the hold.
"R7 is waiting for coordinates. What's the plan?" Maul turned to him with a scowl,
"Well, I suggest we head towards the Outer-"
"I wasn't asking you." Rex pointedly ignored Maul and looked at her. Maul's scowl deepend which she wouldn't have guessed was possible.
"Commander?"
"...Tell him to take us down there, Rex. I want to give them a funeral. They deserve as much."
Maul said nothing as Rex headed back to the cockpit. The ship turned towards the moon to descend towards the crash site. Ahsoka knew it was a risk- but, the Force was telling her it was the right thing to do. She silently held out her hand to Maul.
He gripped the hilt of her blade tightly...before he handed it over to her.
"We will need to secure new ones for us anyways."
"That's fine- I know of a place the jedi used to go-"
"Illum?" She felt dread spike her heart and gaped at him.
"The Jedi were terrible secret keepers… Don't be surprised if no temple remains."
She had nothing to say to that as the ship slowly landed. Rex came back and picked up three shovels. Ahsoka took one immediately. Maul sneered before he snatched one of the remaining two from Rex's hand. He then slammed it against the wall.
"I will not aid in this."
"Fine. Guard the ship with R7." Rex shouldered past him and Ahsoka fell in line. They made their way to the wreckage and she looked back at the shuttle as they walked.
"Aren't you worried that he'll take the ship?" Rex smirked at her question and held up a computer board, which looked to be quite important for the ship to take off.
"He's not going anywhere until we're back." She smirked and nodded as they made their way to the wreckage.
It was a few hours later when they were done. They had no words to say. They both just stood in silence out of respect.
There had been no survivors.
Rex headed back to the shuttle with shovels in hand. She looked at the lightsabers in her hand…
Flashes of Anakin came to her mind.
Flashes of Obi-wan came to mind.
Master Plo. Master Yoda. Padme.
A tear fell and she clung to her sabers tightly. She breathed out and kneeled down. She slowly placed her lightsabers down on the ground and then rose. She turned away and left. Leaving the weapons behind.
She headed to the shuttle where she could already hear Maul and Rex shouting at each other with the droids beeping in the interim.
An ex-jedi, an ex-sith, an ex-clone commander, and three droids…
'...May the Force be with us. I think we're really going to need it…'