From Flames, I Soar

by Kurenaino

With the Empire at the height of its power and the shadow of a greater threat hanging above all those who would oppose Palpatine, the Specters, led by former Jedi Padawan Kanan Jarrus, are forced to contend with the Sith Lord that set the galaxy ablaze. Sequel to In Chaos, I Thrive.

39. Relics of the Old Republic

AN: Ok, this chapter is a monster. You lovelies enjoy, I'm going to go have a coma.

Chapter 39: Relics of the Old Republic

"I don't trust any of this..." Kanan muttered, keeping an eye on the tank as he worked with Sabine to repair the engines of the Phantom, the parts needed to replace the badly damaged components as part of the deal that Obi-Wan had worked out with Rex. The clones were acting amicable enough, but Kanan knew better. He had seen how quickly they turned, he had seen how brutally they executed their friends and allies. The nonsense about being compelled and controlled by a chip implanted in their brains was absurd, a thin and feeble excuse to absolve themselves from their treasonous actions. Actions that effectively ended both the Jedi and the Republic.

"Shadow King trusts them," Sabine said with a shrug. "And they're giving us the stuff we need to repair the Phantom so we can leave."

"It's probably broken..." Kanan muttered. "Or bugged so they can sell us out to the Empire."

"Oh please..." Sabine said with a roll of her eyes. "If these clones really did save Ahsoka, then they're on our side. The Clone Wars are over, Kanan. Hanging on to it is part of what's keeping rebel cells from uniting, both Separatists and Republic aligned people are against the Empire."

"Yeah, I know..." Kanan said, his gaze falling to his work on the engine. "But it isn't so simple as you're making it out to be. You weren't there, you don't know what it was like. Working with people who were once Separatists is one thing, but the clones..."

"You trust Cody," Sabine said, pointing to the man below as he glowered at the tank and treated his injury with a strip of bacta from the Phantom's first aid reserves. "He's a clone."

"Hey, don't you dare compare me to them!" Cody hissed, quickly stepping out into the sun to look up at the two on the top of the Phantom, his bronzed skin covered in dust and sweat and bruises and his graying hair unruly from the helmet he had worn before. "I am nothing like them! I was killing Jedi before it was cool to kill Jedi! I was free, I made my choice!"

"Further proof that betrayal runs in the blood of clones," Kanan spat bitterly. "You realize you are no different from them, right? You betrayed the Jedi, just like all the rest of them!"

"Wouldn't you?" Cody sneered in return, quickly climbing the ladder on the side of the ship to join the Jedi and the Mandalorian at the engines. "If you found out that the people you were serving beside, the brothers you were grown with were not an army, but slaves to the people that claimed to be our friends and allies..." Cody ground his teeth together, his hand tightening into fists by his side as he glared daggers at the Jedi before him. "In an instant, they could make us do anything they wanted, whether we wanted to or not, could rob us of our free will and our identities on a whim should they wish it...would you not want revenge on the people that lied to you and called you friend when you were actually a slave?"

"...we didn't know either, Cody," Kanan said quietly, though he couldn't quite meet the clone's eyes, and despite his innocence in the matter, he couldn't keep his chest from aching with guilt.

"Maybe not, but someone knew," Cody growled. "The Chancellor, the Kaminoans, the politicians, hell, maybe even some of the Jedi knew. But someone did. Someone knew they were making a slave army." He groaned softly as he knelt down and sat beside Kanan and Sabine, grabbing a wrench and looking into the engines to help with the repairs. "What I did was nothing like the other clones..." Cody continued softly. "I chose to serve the man that freed me, I chose to fight against a Republic that would treat my clone brothers as lesser beings and enslave them. What they did, they did at the behest of their masters. We may have both betrayed the Jedi, but it was different. They betrayed you because they were told to. I betrayed them because they betrayed me first."

"Rex said he broke free," Sabine said when Kanan stayed silent. "He says that he and the clones on the tank removed whatever it was that controlled them. They say they didn't betray the Jedi."

"That very well could be..." Cody mumbled. "It would match up with what we know about the final days of the Republic. One of my brothers had infiltrated Skywalker's battalion and triggered the chip in a susceptible clone. It's very possible that the Captain learned of what rested within them and took steps to counter it." He growled softly, his teeth grinding together and his hand tightening on the wrench. "He did save Ahsoka, so..."

"I still don't like it..." Kanan muttered. "He might be Ahsoka's friend, but he's no friend of mine. We should stay on our guard."

"Oh, I completely agree," Cody said quickly, a devious smirk on his face. "In fact, do you know what we should do? After the ship is repaired and we have what we need, we should kill Rex. Without their commander, the other clones are no threat at all! We cause panic, chaos, cut off the head and then kill them all!"

"Didn't Kenobi already talk to you about this?" Kanan drawled, the anxiousness he had been feeling slowly beginning to lessen. A soft buzz at the back of his mind instead of the unbearable, itching nag he had been feeling. "I seem to recall him being very cross with you on this exact subject."

"Obi-Wan Kenobi is sick," Cody said firmly. "For perhaps the first time in his life, he's got the flu and a taste of what it's like to be mortal like the rest of us. He has no idea what he's saying!"

"He seems to trust Rex and the other clones anyway," Sabine said with a roll of her eyes, sitting back on her heels and frowning when both Cody and Kanan gagged. "What! He does! Even though he was the leader of the Separatists! He's overcome the lines drawn by the Clone Wars!"

"Well, well, your Shadow King can do no wrong in your eyes, can he?" Kanan teased, smirking when the girl's face turned a fierce shade of red as she glared at him. "As I said, it isn't so simple as that, Sabine. It would be really nice if war could be neatly divided into sides like that, but it is never that clean. At the end, the lines between Republic and Separatist began to blur, and it's worse now than ever with the Empire and the rebellion in the mix. It doesn't matter of we're all on the same side now, or fighting for the same thing because old wounds are difficult to forget."

"It's always been simpler for the boss," Cody quietly agreed. "He doesn't need to worry about things like rebel or Imperial, Separatist or Republic, Jedi or Sith. All he concerns himself with now is the Force."

"But he does take sides," Sabine said, and swallowed her next words when Cody gave her a look that made her feel stupid.

"Does he?" the clone asked softly. "His path has already been carved for him, all he does is follow it, and the Force that guides him cares nothing for sides."

"Must be nice to be so certain about your path..." Kanan grumbled, and Cody chuckled softly, his hands working swiftly inside the engines.

"His path is simple, yes, but I didn't say it was easy. Quite the contrary. The Force asks things of him that no man should have to do." Cody sat back, wincing in pain when he turned slightly, the clone having forgotten about the wound in his side. "Like letting Skywalker's clone commander live. Nobody should have to do that." His jaw tightened, his eyes narrowing in a sudden flash of rage. "I had him. I had him! One moment longer, and my blade would have cut through him and he'd be dead!"

"Now, now, dearest..." the thick, accented drawl of the Sith Lord said, the group looking down to see Kenobi being carried in Zeb's arms, the man visibly worse for wear after the battle, Ezra and Rex followed behind, each carrying small crates of supplies, and both Kanan and Cody looked at the clone suspiciously, their guards up and ready to engage an enemy if necessary. "I do believe we talked about this, yes?" Obi-Wan continued, his voice slightly slurred as he fought to stave off sleep. "As per our agreement, Rex falls under my protection for the duration of our stay in the ungodly hell, just as we fall under his."

"The word of a slave means nothing, sir..." Cody growled, locking eyes with Rex and feeling his blood begin to boil with rage once again. "They have no will and mind of their own, its their Master that dictates who they are and what they do. Who's to say this isn't a trap that will be sprung the moment our guard is down?!"

"Because, you ridiculous twit," Obi-Wan snarled, his hand tightening as he pulled Cody off the Phantom, the man grunting when he hit the sand, the tiny grains sticking to his sweat-slicked skin when he quickly rose. "He has been freed from his chains, he is no longer a slave! And unless you want to make dear, sweet Fulcrum very, very cross when she shows up in a few minutes, I suggest you use your kriffing brain and understand that we are out numbered, you're wounded, and I'm dying!"

"You aren't dying, you're sick!" Cody snapped, stomping over to the Sith Lord when Zeb put the man down on his feet, and the clone quickly supported Obi-Wan with an arm wrapped around his waist and the Sith's arm draped over his shoulders. "Kriffing hell, I wonder what it's like to be you. You've seen what sickness looks like, did you truly believe you were above such things?"

"I truly believe that I threw up on a clone..." Obi-Wan choked. "And twice into the sand. There's nothing left inside me, Cody and it keeps coming!"

"We really need to get you back to the Umbra..." Cody muttered, walking the man into the Phantom and laying him down on the seats, the Spectres following them inside and Rex and Ezra placed the crates in the corner and quickly began unpacking them. "Sabine, how long before you can have the ship up and running?"

"I don't know..." she said absently as she rummaged through the boxes. "A few hours, I suppose, maybe less with some of this stuff."

"Don't use it all," Ezra said, taking out one of the larger pieces. "Rex gave us things to improve our com signal. We get this thing hooked up and we should be able to contact Hera and Ahsoka."

"Don't bother with Ahsoka, she's already on the way..." Obi-Wan muttered, a soft, delirious chuckle in his voice, his eyes sliding out of focus and the golden glow intensifying and giving way to bleeding red as it so often did when he gave himself over to the Force.

"Ahsoka..." Rex muttered, a small smile on his lips as he took the device from Ezra and the two began working to hook it up to the shipboard comlink. "I can hardly believe it. It's been such a long time since I've seen her. Is she really coming?"

"She really is," Ezra chirped, handing the clone the pieces he needed. "She said you'd be a huge help in our fight against the Empire."

"Did she now..." Rex said softly, walking to the back of the ship and whistling up at the tank. "Alright, boys, bring her up!" A long, low mechanical groan reverberated through the air, and a loud clang was heard on the top of the Phantom, Kanan quickly taking his lightsaber in hand when the ship shuddered, but kept from igniting it when Ezra quickly laid his hand upon his. "There are some very nasty predators living beneath the sands here," Rex calmly explained, holding tightly on to a handhold by the door as the ship was lifted into the air by the magnetic clamp on a crane the tank carried. "The tank's too big for them to do anything about, but I think they might be able to eat your ship. And I like to keep moving, you understand."

"Right..." Kanan growled, suspicion and menace tight in his chest. "Keep moving so Ahsoka can't find us, right?"

"Ahsoka," Obi-Wan drawled in a flat monotone, "is uniquely gifted with the Force and trained by the greatest tracker that ever graced the galaxy. She'll find us. She's coming." The Sith turned blank, unfocused eyes on the Jedi, and Kanan couldn't help but shiver. "Can't you feel her?"

"Uh, no, because my connection to the Force doesn't border on extremely creepy like yours does, Kenobi," Kanan muttered, quickly turning away from the Sith Lord and putting his hands on the control console, shutting his eyes and wincing when the Phantom gently landed on the deck of the tank with soft bang, but to the traumatized Jedi, it almost sounded like war. "Is it fixed yet?" he asked, leaning over Ezra and Sabine as the two teens worked. "Please say it's fixed. I don't want Hera to worry about us."

"Calm down, lover boy, it's fixed," Sabine said, her hand on the device and rolling her eyes at the Jedi.

"You sure did fix that quickly," Rex said, leaning in the entry hatch and seemingly oblivious to the hostility within Kanan and Cody. "Think you could have a look at our systems? Sixteen years and hundreds of sandstorms really clutters a system. We've made repairs as we could, but..." He shrugged. "We're not experts."

"Yeah, I'll have a look," Sabine said quickly, smacking Zeb and Ezra on the arm as she passed by them. "Come on, boys, let's give mom and dad some privacy, yeah?"

"R-right," Ezra said, laying a hand on Kanan's shoulder before he left, Rex sighing and starting to follow but was quickly stopped by Cody, a face identical to his but contorted in fury, his face clean-shaven while a white beard graced Rex's cheeks, a full head of peppered black and gray hair on Cody where Rex had none. They may have been clones, perfect genetic copies of each other, but they couldn't have been more different.

"You can't be trusted..." Cody whispered mere inches from Rex's face, but the Captain held his ground. "None of you can be trusted. I'm going in there to watch after my team so I can keep them safe from you." A slow, cruel smile spread across Cody's face. "Got a problem with that?"

"Not at all, Commander," Rex said sweetly, gesturing out the door. "It would be a great pleasure to have you aboard, CC-2224." With a sneer of disgust, Cody pushed Rex out of the way and started to follow the Spectres, but was stopped when he felt a gentle tug on his hand but felt nothing touch him. He turned to see Obi-Wan reaching out to him, grasping his hand with the Force and insistently tugging him back. With a heavy sigh, Cody's features softened significantly, his defensive anger forgotten in favor of sitting beside the man and threading his fingers through his sweat-damp hair.

"So help me, Kenobi, if I catch this nasty Jedi cold of yours because you literally can't function without me, I'm going to puke on all your things." Cody looked up at Rex, his face hard and cold, but the blinding wrath was gone. "Those kids are important to Obi-Wan. You said they're under your protection, and I am holding you to that, slave."

"Between the two of us, you're the traitor, let's not forget that," Rex said as he turned to go. "No harm will come to them, I can promise you that." When Cody didn't respond, didn't bite back to have the last word, Rex chanced a look over his shoulder to find his counterpart tenderly caring for the debilitated Negotiator, the close bond between them clear as day, and though the resentment Rex had for Cody ran deep, he couldn't help but feel a tug of kinship for his lost brother. The war had taken its toll on everyone, and perhaps this wayward clone was no different, and like Rex, was simply clinging to all he was left with.

Kanan breathed a sigh of relief when Rex left and removed the tie from his ponytail and shook out his hair, his fingers running through the shoulder-length locks and smoothing it out. He felt like he hadn't slept in days, the adrenaline slowly leaving his blood creating an overwhelming sense of fatigue, though his swiftly beating heart refused to calm. He was anxious, ruled by his fear like he hadn't been since he was a child on Kaller after Order 66, forced to live in hiding like some rat for a month while the clones mercilessly hunted him. Grey and Styles, his close friends turned instantly into his enemy, and little Caleb Dume didn't have it in him to murder the clones he held in such high regard.

He closed his eyes and breathed deeply, reaching into the Force for comfort and found it immediately, the warm, gentle breath across the back of his neck coaxing him to let go his fears and worries, though Kanan still couldn't release it completely. He could feel Cody, the clone just as worried as he was, the scars just as deep, a fear for the Sith Lord he cared as deep as the close bond they shared. He could feel Obi-Wan, fearless as always, lethargic in his illness, a spark of hope hidden beneath the irritation and the nausea, though the black haze the man sat in was too dark for Kanan to see why. He could feel his fellow Spectres, his ragtag band of survivors so carefree and easy, secure in their safety, trusting and brimming with excitement at the prospect of new allies.

But hanging above it all like a cloud was the clones, ten men with an identical presence, one that Kanan knew all too well, had remembered despite his attempts to forget. And within them, he felt fear, the likes which he had never remembered feeling before from the soldiers of the Republic's grand army. He couldn't find it in himself to trust them, he wouldn't, but these clones, these survivors of the war that supposedly never betrayed the Jedi, but these men were just as frightened as he was.

"Kanan?" With a sharp gasp, Kanan opened his eyes, coming out of his meditations to look at the concerned hologram of his beloved Hera, and he could feel the tension leave him immediately his fears melting away before the warmth that flooded him, and he absently reached out to run his fingers through the holographic image, the faintest smile coming to her face. "You were really out of it for a moment there. Everything alright?"

"No," he answered quickly, and immediately regretted it when the woman's eyes widened with sudden panic. "I mean, yes, everyone's fine-"

"Except for me!" Obi-Wan called from the back, and the Twi'lek rolled her eyes, chuckling softly when she heard Cody hiss for him to be silent.

"We got off to a rocky start here, Hera,,," Kanan said, rubbing the back of his neck and averting his gaze from her when the pulse of shame spread within him. "We're...fine now, but we almost killed each other, and it's my fault..." When Hera said nothing, Kanan nervously looked back up at her, expecting to see irritation or frustration, but instead only found the endless patience she always showed him when they were alone. "They're clones, Hera..." the Jedi whispered, and understanding flashed across the Twi'lek's face.

"I can see how that could be messy, yes. Are you alright?"

"No, I'm not alright!" Kanan said, his voice tight with tension as he tied his hair back up. "I'm sorry..." he whispered, his teeth grinding together as he felt the agitation return and tried to keep himself from taking it out on his lover, though he knew his tone was unnecessarily harsh. "I thought I was over this."

"Well, Ahsoka's full of surprises..." she muttered. "An odd choice to send a Jedi and the leader of the Separatist army to pick up a bunch of clones after what happened."

"I know, right?!" Kanan said, throwing himself back in his seat and sighing. "Honestly, I don't think she believed she'd actually find them. She must have thought this would be a trap, or she'd have just come herself like Kenobi said."

"So you don't think this is a trap?" she asked, a sly smirk on her lips, and she laughed softly when the Jedi looked away. "That's good. I can see why things didn't get off to a good start, though. You didn't kill anyone, did you?"

"No, no," Kanan quickly dismissed. "Cody almost killed their Captain, though, I guess they have something of a rivalry that goes back to the Clone Wars. Kenobi ended the hostilities...somehow. I didn't ask, I just want to leave. Clones are dangerous and they can't be trusted. We aren't safe here."

"You know..." Hera said slowly after a moment of watching fear and anxiety burn in her lover's eyes. "I remember a time when the Jedi and the clones fought side by side. They saved billions of lives, including my own." Kanan sighed heavily and leaned back in his seat, pinching the bridge of his nose as he tried to push his fears away.

"I know..."Kanan said softly. "You're right, I know, and I know Ahsoka said to trust them, but I can't."

"I understand, Kanan, you know I do," Hera said gently, her holographic image reaching out to brush her hand over his cheek. "But maybe these clones are different. They must be for Ahsoka to trust them. And Obi-Wan made peace with them, right? That says a lot." With a slight smile, she turned her attention away from Kanan. "I've got to get back to these repairs if we want to leave the system. Come back to me soon, love. You sound like you need me."

"Understatement of the century..." Kanan muttered, his shoulders relaxing slightly when he saw the promise in the Twi'lek's eyes.

"Com when you're en route, Kanan. Take care of the kids."

"You know I always do." Flashing him one last smile, Hera cut the com, and Kanan leaned back in the chair and sighed, his eyes closed and warmth spreading through his body as he pictured his lover, suddenly seeming so much closer now that the mission was coming to a close. He didn't move until he heard the distant whine of a ship, a smile spreading across his face as he stood, his gaze briefly drifting to Cody and his Master as he began to leave.

"Ahsoka's here," Kanan said, lowering his voice when Cody put a finger to his lips. "Are you coming?"

"What, and miss this momentous occasion?" Cody whispered, Kenobi's head in his lap and the Sith's arms wrapped loosely around his waist. "Not a chance. It's such a rare thing for him to actually sleep, usually he just lets the Force take him. I'd hate to disturb him."

"...he gonna be alright?" Kanan asked quietly, and the clone scoffed slightly at his concern.

"Yeah, he'll be alright. He just needs some rest and he's not getting any. When we get back, I'll make sure he does." Cody shrugged, his eyes drifting toward the open door as the sound of the approaching ship grew louder, its approach heralded by the warning shouts of the clones and the swift, sharp barks of their Captain as he ordered them to stand down. "I'd go with you, of course, but I fear my presence will...complicate things," Cody growled. "And I don't much trust myself out there. You saw what happened when we arrived."

"A little difficult to judge you when I behaved the same way," Kanan muttered, his hand drifting unconsciously to his lightsaber. "I'll keep watch on things out there. Make sure our Negotiator gets some rest."

"Will do," Cody said gently, watching as the Jedi sighed and slowly walked toward the hatch. "Hey, Jarrus." Kanan stopped and looked back at the clone, the man chewing on the inside of his lip and frowning like he had something distasteful in his mouth. "May the Force be with you. Or whatever..." Flashing him a playful grin, the Jedi walked out of the Phantom, squinting against the light and shielding his eyes as he looked up to see the ship approaching, a small, single man pod he recognized as the Umbra's auxiliary ship that Kenobi had acquired when he and Hera had gotten into one of their frequent pissing matches about who had the better ship. Hera had always been quick to point out that the Ghost had the Phantom, the secondary shuttle allowing them a versatility that the Umbra lacked. Obi-Wan had conceded the point, and the next day had appropriated the small, as of yet unnamed vessel as his own from the rebel fleet.

Kanan kept his hand on his lightsaber as the ship hovered above the tank and slowly began to set down beside the Phantom, the clone behind him nervously pointing their weapons at the ship despite Ezra and Rex and Zeb insisting that it was fine. Sabine was notably absent, presumably still inside fiddling with the tank's systems, the girl often lost in her work when an idea struck, as it so often did with the inspired girl. When the ship settled down with a low hiss, the small cabin depressurizing as the high whine of the engines powered down, everyone on the deck was still, the tension tight in the air, nobody knowing what to expect with the arrival of this newcomer since their last guests brought such turbulence. The fragile peace they had now could be easily disturbed, and they all knew it.

When the ship's cockpit opened, the clones peeked out of their cover and aimed their weapons, and Rex gasped beside Kanan and slowly, cautiously stepped forward when he saw the high cones of blue and white striped montrails, the orange skin, the familiar white facial markings of the female Togruta as she stepped out, a full grown woman where his memories held an adolescent, but she was unmistakable. This was Ahsoka Tano, the child he had helped save grown into beautiful adulthood.

They didn't say a word to each other as they strode across the distance between them, not a word when the long strides became a swift run, not a word when they came together and tightly embraced, Ahsoka's head nestled into the crook of Rex's neck, the clone's hand on the back of her head and holding her as close as he was able. Kanan took his hand off his lightsaber when he felt the tension in the air release, the soldiers behind him lowering their weapons when they realized who it was they were looking at. Slowly, the other clones began to creep closer, whispering at each other and pointing to the Togruta that Rex was embracing.

"Ahsoka..." Rex whispered, clutching the woman tighter when he felt her shoulders shake. "Ahsoka, I am so sorry for what General Skywalker..." He choked on his words when the Togruta's hands grasped his back tighter. "For all he has done. In the Jedi Temple, on Colstev, on the Enigma. I-I didn't get to tell you when last I saw you, but I-"

"Peace, Rex..." Ahsoka whispered. "You aren't responsible for what Anakin became. He was a good man once."

"He was..." Rex said, softly kissing her forehead when she sniffled. "It's why I followed him. Why I kept following him. Even after he changed, I just...I didn't see it until we started hunting you." He laughed sadly and shook his head, holding Ahsoka closer. "Maybe I didn't want to see it. An army to hunt one little girl..." With a sigh, he held her at arm's length, smiling softly as he looked her over. "When we saved you, I wasn't sure if you'd survive out there all on your own, but I somehow knew you had it in you. And just look at you now. You've grown up."

"And just look at you..." Ahsoka said, laying her hand on Rex's bearded cheek. "You've...grown old." They were still for a moment before a wide grin crossed Rex's face and the man started laughing, the Togruta quickly smiling and laughing along with him. "I've missed you, Rex."

"And I've missed you," Rex returned, turning to his men and pointing at the Togruta to make sure they somehow didn't miss her. "You look good, Ahsoka. How have you been, what have you been up to?"

"Starting a rebellion..." she said coyly. "Against the Empire. Against the people that took everything from us. And now that I've found you and your men, I was hoping you'd join us."

"Ah..." Rex said awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck and quickly waving his men off, the other clones slowly going back to their business, but staying on th deck to keep an eye on their Captain and the Togruta. "Ahsoka..." Rex said quietly, draping his arm over her shoulders. "The boys and I are getting old, we've been retired for a very long time, and this fight against the Empire...it isn't our fight."

"Not your fight?" Ahsoka repeated, drawing away from the clone and turning to face him, the man's eyes averted from her and filled with guilt."Not your fight, Rex, this fight belongs to all of us."

"Yeah, maybe so," the man said, leaning on the railing and looking over into the sand below. "But I was already part of a war, Ahsoka. Billions of innocent people dead, and for what? What was it that we were even fighting for?" Ahsoka was silent, staring at the clone and uncertain of what to say. There wasn't an answer for the questions these clones had. "And besides..." Rex said, looking over his shoulder at Kanan. "I don't think your Jedi likes me much. Don't suppose he ever will. And that's to say nothing of the Negotiator and his clone." Rex sighed when Ahsoka leaned on the railing next to him, her eyes focused intently on him in a way that only a Jedi could. "Not that I blame them. They have a right not to trust us, especially after what my brothers have done..."

"So you won't come with me?" the Togruta asked gently, and Rex shook his head.

"I'm sorry. It sounds to me like you need team unity, and I think my presence will cause a rift in your team. If you are truly going to stand against the Empire, you must be united." Rex laughed softly as he looked over the deck of the tank at his clones as they talked and laughed with Zeb, at the wary Jedi and his young, excited student. "And really, Ahsoka? The kriffing Negotiator? How did you manage that?"

"One day, when the war is over, I'll come back to tell you," Ahsoka said, a small, sad smile on her lips. "I don't agree with your assessment, Rex, but I understand your position. Just know that if ever you are ready for it, there is a place for you by my side."

"You may want to reconsider that, Fulcrum..." Ahsoka and Rex quickly turned around when they heard the flat monotone to face Obi-Wan, the Sith Lord walking in a slow, even gait, his eyes blazing and distant, a dark undercurrent in the accented tones of his voice that wasn't his own. He was pale, sickly, dark rings around his eyes making his face seem almost skull-like and the blazing eyes seem even brighter in contrast, and though his body looked worse for ware, Obi-Wan moved like a man untouched by weariness or illness. Cody walked behind him, quietly pleading with the man to return to the Phantom to rest, but the man didn't seem to hear him.

"You look better, Obi-Wan..." Ahsoka carefully ventured, her hand on Rex's chest and making him back up as she did when the Sith Lord drew ever closer.

"Can you feel it?" the Sith Lord asked, the smooth, even tone of his voice affected by the Force and making Ahsoka shiver with sudden cold. She could feel the Force rolling off him in thick, dark waves that seemed to make the bright sun overhead dim, like a cloud had passed overhead, though the sky was clear. The strange tension and the sudden change in the man didn't go unnoticed by the clones, and they quickly raised their weapons, pointing their blasters at the surrounded Sith Lord, though Kenobi didn't seem to notice.

"What's the meaning of this, Negotiator?" Rex asked, his voice tight with tension, his eyes narrowing when Cody quickly stepped between him and the Sith Lord, both clone laying their hands on their holstered weapons. "We had a deal, traitor," Rex growled. "We fall under the Negotiator's protection! He promised us safety!"

"Yes, he did, he was very clear on that with me," Cody said in almost a whisper, the hushed tones carrying not just fierce protection for the Lord of the Sith, but a fair bit of uncertainty that wasn't lost on Rex. He pointed to Obi-Wan, the man's head tilted back as he gazed up into the sky toward something that only he could see. "That isn't the Negotiator, slave. That is what you clones, the Jedi, the entire Republic learned to rightfully fear. That's what slaughtered your brothers on Umbara, that's what committed genocide on Dathomir, and if your men don't lower their weapons now, they're going to learn very quickly that there's a huge difference between Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Lumis."

"And I bet you're just itching to see that happen," Rex growled, earning himself a harsh laugh from Cody.

"Oh, if only!" Cody said gleefully before he took a deep breath and shook his head. "But no, not this time. Obi-Wan insisted that the peace be kept, and I'll be damned if I don't do everything in my power to see his word be upheld." He ground his teeth together and looked back at the Sith Lord. "Even if it means getting in the way of that."

"...men, lower your weapons!" Rex commanded, the clones slowly, uncertainly doing as they were told.

"Can you feel it, Ahsoka..." Lumis muttered, his eyes closed as he breathed deeply, the Togruta slowly inching closer to the man as the clones and the other Jedi stepped further away. "I can. I can smell it on the breeze, I can taste it in the air, I feel it deep in the very heart of me, in my blood, in my bones, and it is like fire and ice and pain and pleasure like you cannot possibly begin to understand until you've tasted it yourself..." The Sith Lord finally opened his eyes, blood red and glowing gold darting between Ahsoka and Kanan, Rex and Cody, and slowly, he began to grin, a sinister, malicious thing. "But this is none of those things. This is all hatred and anger, revenge and ambition and a lust for blood. Darkness is coming, Fulcrum, but I did not summon it." He pointed a long finger at the group of clones on the deck of the tank. "But they did..."

"What does that even mean?!" Rex asked desperately, his chest tightening when agitation and unease spread through the soldiers, the already nervous Kanan resting his hand upon his saber when the Sith Lord began chuckling.

"You will see soon enough..." Lumis whispered, his eyes drifting lazily over to the door to the tank's control room, and not a moment later, Sabine stormed out, a datapad in her hand and her eyes narrowed in fury.

"The clones sold us out!" Sabine snapped, brandishing the datapad before her like it was a weapon and pointing it accusingly at Rex. "They sent a message to the Empire and told them we were here!"

"What?!" Rex said, drawing back slightly when the Spectres looked at him with betrayal in their eyes. "No, we wouldn't do that, none of us would do that!"

"Everything is right here!" Sabine snapped back. "Binary transmissions to the Empire with coordinates and details of our current situation, including information about our disabled ship and Kenobi's weakness due to illness! There are even messages here from Ahsoka to you, Rex, and you never answered her!"

"I never got any messages from Commander Tano!" Rex said, genuine shock in his voice, and he quickly took the datapad out of the Mandalorian's hands, his eyes swiftly running over the information. "This is impossible, there must be some sort of mistake!"

"I knew it!" Kanan snarled, swiftly stepping forward and pointing an accusing finger at Rex as he drew and ignited his lightsaber, the clones around them quickly raising their weapons as the Sith Lord chuckled menacingly. "I told you, they can't be trusted!"

"Kanan, wait!" Ahsoka said quickly, laying a hand on his chest and grabbing the lightsaber in his grasp, the Jedi's arm shaking in her grasp, and the Togruta quickly turned to face Rex. "Tell me this isn't true, Rex, tell me there's an explanation."

"Of course there's an explanation..." Rex muttered, his jaw tightly clenched as he drew his plasters and pointed them toward the group of clones. "Someone here betrayed your people! So which one of you was it?!" The clones were still, shocked, their weapons lowering as they looked at their furious Captain. "We had a deal," Rex growled. "We promised these people safety while they were here, so which of you made a liar of me? Which one of you called the kriffing Empire down on us all?!"

"And there it is..." Lumis drawled, his piercing gaze directed at a clone near the edge of the rail, the man not just nervous, but ashamed, his eyes averted, his weapon tight in his hands, and a moment after the Sith Lord felt the ripples in the Force, Rex saw what he did.

"Wolffe..." Rex said in disbelief, shaking his head as he stepped forward. "Tell me you didn't do this thing." When the man didn't respond, the other clones slowly backed away, their weapons now trained on their comrade. "Why," Rex demanded, and Wolffe looked up, his one good eye only able to meet Rex's betrayed stare for a moment.

"I am protecting you, brother," Wolffe growled, looking up to meet Rex's gaze, his face hardened and determined, the shame gone from him. "I did it for all of us! The Jedi are a death threat, just having one among us makes us guilty in the eyes of the Empire for harboring fugitives! They have people to hunt them, they know, they always know, and we'd go down with them!"

"We're already guilty of harboring fugitives, Wolffe, we saved Ahsoka Tano when the order was given instead of killing her!" Rex shouted, throwing the datapad at the isolated clone. "The war is over, Wolffe!'The Jedi aren't our enemy, the Jedi have never been our enemy!"

"I know!" Wolffe growled in a flash of anger before he sighed and hung his head. "I know...Ahsoka never did us any wrong, this other Jedi never did us any wrong." His gaze hardened, his eyes narrowing again with the resolve of his actions, and he pointed at Obi-Wan. "But that is the Negotiator, brother, and he is our enemy." When the other clones slowly lowered their weapons, looking between Rex and Wolffe and the Lord of the Sith, Wolffe scoffed with disgust, a bitter, angry sneer on his face. "You know what he does to clones, brothers. You all know the stories. He's a mind controller, a man that can make anyone do anything he wants, he has taken our brothers right off their ships and enslaved them, just as he has done with his commander there," he snarled, pointing at Cody as he casually drew his blaster and aimed it right at Wolffe's cybernetic eye. "And if he can make a battalion turn against millions of brothers, who's to say he hasn't enslaved these Jedi as well..."

"Are you absolutely mad?!" Kanan snarled, pushing past Ahsoka, his lightsaber blazing dangerously in his hand. "Is this how your kind justified betraying the Jedi?! Is this the sort of delusions you came up with to excuse your betrayal?!"

"No, I do what I must do to protect my own!" Wolffe shouted back. "What do you suppose the Empire will do to us if they discovered that we had not just renegade Jedi, but the leader of the Separatists among us?! I was never a traitor to your kind, Jedi, none of us here were, but if we help that man, we will be!"

"Wolff, the war is over!" Rex said again, this time stepping forward and grabbing the man's shoulders. "We are free men, but this...living in fear of the Empire isn't freedom, it's just another kind of slavery! We escaped the Republic's chains, don't you dare go shackling us to the Empire now!"

"It's too late, Rex," Wolffe said almost frantically when the clones once again raised their weapons and pointed them at him. "What's done is done, the Empire is on the way."

"...then fix it," Rex growled dangerously, pointing a finger on Wolffe's chest. "Contact your Masters, tell them you were mistaken." When Wolffe didn't move, only narrowed his eyes and glared at Obi-Wan, Rex grabbed his shirt and pulled him close, shaking him as if it could put some sense in him. "The Empire won't hesitate to kill us too, you fool! You think selling out the Jedi will save you?! You would give up Ahsoka to the people trying to kill her, the people we saved her from?!" At that, the clone's gaze fell, his cybernetic eye flicking up briefly to look at the betrayal on the Togruta's face.

"Y-yeah..." Wolffe muttered. "I thought they were lying about being sent by Ahsoka...to get us to drop our guard..."

"And this is why we don't trust clones!" Kanan snapped, quickly grabbing hold of Sabine's arm. "Go to the Phantom, warn Hera to keep an eye out for Imperial ships. When that's done, get those engines fixed. We need to leave."

"Kanan, those repairs will take time, I said a few hours, and I meant it," Sabine said quietly, and the Jedi pushed her toward the shuttle.

"Well find a way to do it faster," Kanan stressed. "There isn't enough room in Ahsoka's ship, and I don't want to risk the Ghost or the Umbra with the Empire on the way, and I don't trust these clones not to shoot them out of the sky!" With a swift nod, Sabine ran off toward the ship, and the Togruta quickly took Kanan's arm, her hand sliding over his and coaxing him to relax.

"They wouldn't be able to find us anyway," Ahsoka whispered. "I took so long getting here because I was stuck in a sandstorm, and it's headed this way, and very quickly. We'll be lost in the storm soon enough, and Hera won't be able to find us, but neither will the Empire. If we can't get away in time, we'll at least be hidden long enough to think of something."

"No..." Obi-Wan drawled absently, and Kanan and Ahsoka drew closer to each other and stepped closer to the Lord of the Sith. "The storm is of no consequence. We will not be hidden, not from them. They see us." With a deep, shuddering breath, Obi-Wan looked at the pair, the blood red out of his eyes, his face relaxed and a familiar, cocky smirk on his lips, the man weary, but once again familiar to them. "The Empire is already here, and they brought Inquisitors."

"Probe droid!" Sabine's voice echoed across the deck, followed by the high, sharp sounds of blaster fire, and the Mandalorian came tearing around the corner, followed by red plasma bolts shot from a black, spherical droid. The clones immediately jumped to action, raising their own weapons and rushing at the droid as it began to flee the tank, hovering through the air quickly as it dove over the side and rushed down toward the sand. The clones were leaning over the rail soon after, the sharp shooters among them raising rifles and looking through the sights, and as the droid sped away, the sharp, consecutive pulse of several blasters firing sounded through the air, and the black sphere was penetrated by bolt after bolt, the remains of the Imperial droid falling into the sand.

"How long do you suppose that thing's been watching us?" Ezra asked, leaning over the rail and looking at the smoking scrap in the sand.

"Long enough,..." Kanan growled, glaring at Wolffe as he struggled and fought against the other clones as he was restrained, Rex standing menacingly over the man.

"Long enough to send a transmission to the Empire, certainly," Obi-Wan said, walking across the deck to stand beside Rex, his hands clasped behind his back as he looked at Wolffe and smiled pleasantly. "Long enough to see you boys aiding known rebels and Jedi fugitives. "I would like to congratulate you. In your misguided attempt to protect your brothers, you have not only drawn the Empire right to you, but have branded yourselves traitors in the process."

"Yeah, rub it in, why don't you!" Wolffe snapped, and Obi-Wan grinned even wider.

"Why, yes, thank you, I will." With a casual gesture of his hand, Obi-Wan lifted the clone into the air, them and struggling under the grip of the Force, his legs kicking to find contact with the ground that was just out of reach. The other clones slowly backed up, their weapon's pointed at the ground but at the ready, all their eyes on Rex, who stood tensely beside the Lord of the Sith. "In a moment, Imperial forces are going to be looking for us," Obi-Wan said softly. "Based on information from your message and the probe's last transmission, they will use our last known location to begin flying search patterns in an attempt to find us. And they will find us."

"There's a sandstorm on the horizon," Rex said, pointing out toward the horizon and the dark, menacing cloud gathering there. "It'll scramble their scanners, and if we can get in there-"

"No, no, it isn't going to matter," Obi-Wan quickly dismissed. "They won't need scanners to find us, we have Jedi, and they have Inquisitors. Understand? Force sensitive Jedi hunters, they will find us in an instant, and there will be no hesitation to kill the lot of you just to get you out of the way so they can focus on bringing the Jedi down." The Sith Lord stroked his beard, his expression thoughtful as his eyes closely examined Wolffe. "No, they will find us. We need not focus on how to avoid them, just on how to defeat them."

"O-or how to get them to leave!" Wolffe choked, and after a moment of examination, Obi-Wan slowly lowered him to the ground, the man coughing and sputtering as he caught his breath. "This is my fault..." the clone said slowly. "I didn't mean to betray my brothers. Please, I'll contact them, tell them I was wrong. Let me set this right."

"Pathetic," Kanan scoffed. "This is why I don't trust clones! Fickle, unpredictable traitors! This does not make this right!"

"Kanan, stop," Ahsoka said calmly. "What's done is done. All we can do now is deal with the situation thrust upon us."

"And just wait for another one to stab us in the back?!" Kanan said nervously, backing up closer to the Sith Lord as he looked at the clones around him. "No, I won't do it. Not again."

"What choice do we have?" Obi-Wan asked softly, laying a calming hand on the Jedi's shoulder. "These men have just been betrayed as well. For what it's worth, I believe they will stand with us. They don't have a choice either."

"You sure they're going to fly those search patterns, Negotiator?" Rex asked, holding the datapad up and looking very cross. "They might just call to confirm." He gasped in mock surprised and thrust the datapad at Wolffe. "Oh, look at that. Incoming Imperial transmission. It's for you, Wolffe."

"They're calling back?" Wolffe asked nervously, holding the datapad up and looking at the Imperial insignia displayed on the screen. "They never call back..."

"And you call me traitor..." Cody casually drawled, a cruel, smug smirk on his lips as he eyed the furious Rex. "Sounds to me like you've had yourselves an Imperial informant in your midst for quite some time. No wonder they never found you, they already knew you were here."

"I was protecting my brothers!" Wolffe snarled. "What were you doing?!"

"Freeing them," Cody said in a cool, even voice devoid of any emotion at all. "Where we could, when we could, we broke the chains the Republic put on us. You simply chained your brothers to a new Master, Imperial, so fix this." With a sneer of disgust at Cody, Wolffe held the Datapad up, waiting for Rex to finish waving the others off, the rest of their brothers rushing into the tank to prepare the vehicle for battle, leaving the deck clear for the communication, the Spectres standing well out of range, but close enough to listen in. With a heavy sigh of resolve, Wolffe answered the transmission, and the image of Agent Kallus appeared on the screen.

"CC-3636," the Agent said upon seeing the clone. "Commander Wolffe, is it?"

"Y-yes, that's me," Wolffe stammered. "What can I do for you, sir?"

"Please transmit your current coordinates so that I can investigate your reported Jedi sighting," Kallus said, and Wolffe laughed nervously and rubbed at the back of his neck, quickly looking up at Rex for guidance as the Captain crept closer.

"Right, about that..." Wolffe said, tapping the his cybernetic eye. "I was mistaken, this damn thing's acting up again. Never has been right since the war's been over, and what with all the reports out of Lothal about the rebel Jedi..." He shrugged casually. "Guess I'm getting paranoid, the boys always said I was."

"He always has been jumpy," Rex said, quickly moving into frame, and Kallus frowned, his eyes narrowing as he looked at the new clone. "Sorry for wasting your time."

"Really..." Kallus drawled, his voice flat and disbelieving, and the screen flickered, displaying an image of the tank on the screen as it slowly zoomed in on a very clear image of the Spectres and the clones carrying boxes toward the Phantom. "This image was taken by one of our probe droids in the area," Kallus said in a cold, warning voice. "Harboring known rebels, are you? No wonder your kind were discontinued." The image flashed away, leaving them looking at the stern face of the ISB agent. "Now surrender them or be destroyed. There is no other option."

"I really don't take well to people threatening my men," Rex growled. "If it's a fight you want, I hope you brought a better class of soldier than those stormtroopers," he said with a smirk, and Kallus returned the clone's smugness with an arrogant grin of his own.

"They serve the Empire well and I have a great many of them..." Kallus said dangerously, and Rex chuckled softly, meeting the agent with a challenging stare.

"You're going to need all of them." Off to the side, Zeb chuckled deeply, a clawed finger pointing at the clone Captain.

"Oh, I like this guy!" the Lasat said, and Kanan rolled his eyes, muttering soft curses under his breath which only made Zeb laugh harder.

"If need be, I will," Kallus said. "But it won't be necessary. Given the nature of the fugitives you are harboring, we are sending you Inquisitors," the agent said smugly, leaning forward and a wicked smile on his lips. "Three of them. One would be more than a match for you, I doubt you've faced their like before. Now, surrender the rebels before I am forced to slaughter you all."

"Wait, wait, wait!" Obi-Wan said quickly, pushing his way between Rex and Wolffe and snatching the datapad out of the clone's hands, and the smug smirk on Kallus' face was instantly replaced with confusion, disbelief, and then horror.

"The Negotiator..." Kallus said breathlessly, his head slowly shaking. "Obi-Wan Kenobi, the Negotiator..." Kallus laughed nervously, high pitched and tense and tugged at his collar. "I know the report said the Negotiator was there, but I thought the clones were just giving a familiar name to the face of a new enemy when they saw the Jedi...but you're actually him..." He quickly shook his head, his eyes narrowing, though he couldn't keep the fear and the confusion off his face. "No, this is impossible. You're supposed to be dead, I watched your execution!"

"Yes, yes, big surprise, I know," Obi-Wan said, dismissively waving his hand. "But please, Agent Kallus, you're being a touch narcissistic. Let's just stop talking about you for a moment so we can talk about me," he said, laying a hand on his chest. "I am deeply, deeply offended. The report said I was here, you knew I was here, and while you may have been out of this particular loop, I can assure you that important people in the Empire are well aware of my survival." He scoffed in disgust and flicked his hand in the air as if warding away something distasteful. "And this is all I get? Three Inquisitors and you." The Sith chuckled softly and shook his head, a cruel smirk on his lips when he looked at the agent and saw a man trying to put on a brave face over his mounting fear as his mind slowly began piecing together who it was he was dealing with, not just the old leader of the Separatists, but a threat he had faced before, however indirectly. "I know I may not be feeling well, but this is insulting."

"Y-you're the Shadow King..." Kallus choked, and Obi-Wan's face cracked into a broad smile and he began clapping, the datapad held up by the Force, though the clones beside him scrambled to catch the datapad that never fell when the Sith let go of it.

"Oh, well done!" Kenobi said sarcastically with a roll of his eyes. "It took you long enough. Not the sharpest one, are you? Kriffing hell, you are slow. There's a word for people like you in Mando'a. Would you like to hear it?" Kallus stuttered, but somehow couldn't find his words, and the Sith Lord laughed softly, his hand waving dismissively in the air as he leaned in toward the datapad. "Don't worry, I'll tell you. Mir'osik." Obi-Wan grinned, looking over his shoulder at Cody when the man snorted. "Shit for brains, in Basic."

"The Inquisitors are coming for you!" Kallus growled, truing to sound menacing, but it somehow fell flat, and Obi-Wan scoffed.

"Inquisitors, yes..." he drawled lazily. "And only three. I was hoping for Maul, my dear, sweet pet. Or Vader, have they finished repairing him yet? I don't suppose you'd know, you aren't important enough to know..." Obi-Wan bemoaned. "Three Inquisitors, honestly. You know I'm going to kill them, right?" the Sith Lord asked, and when Kallus only stared with his jaw clenched, he just rolled his eyes. "You bore me. Where's Thrawn? You all knew I would be here, so where is my lovely Chiss, hmm? Why hasn't he come for me?"

"Thrawn?" Kallus asked softly, the fear giving way to surprise. "Admiral Thrawn, what do you want with him?"

"We have a date..." Obi-Wan softly moaned. "We've had several dates, but that tease keeps standing me up!" he said with a lusty grin. "I think he's shy. Our flirtation has been going on for some time, but I am growing tired of foreplay. That little minx must know that or he wouldn't be so nervous to come play, because I am going to ravish him when I see him." Chuckling softly, he winked at the suddenly appalled Kallus. "When you see him, dear, please do tell him not to be nervous. I don't bite. Much."

"There will be no need to deliver that message because I'm going to kill you today, Shadow King!" Kallus snapped, finally managing to push past the fear he felt. "In a moment, there are going to be three Inquisitors hunting you, and I will send as many Stormtroopers as it takes to bring you down! Word in the report said you're not well," Kallus said smugly. "How hard can it be to kill one sick man?"

"Harder than you like," Obi-Wan growled dangerously, and the agent's eyes widened, his breath held when the carefree, playful man disappeared and something far more frightful stood in his place. "Being sick has made me irritable, and I'm greatly looking forward to returning home so I can take a nap, so let me tell you exactly what's going to happen." He drew closer to the datapad, and Kallus slowly scooted back. "In fifteen minutes, I will leave this world. Send your Inquisitors, and I will kill them. Send your soldiers, and I will enslave them. Send your ships and I will tear them out of the sky, and so help me, if you believe you can have reenforcements here before I leave, I welcome you to bring them, but they had better be no less that Thrawn himself for you to have a fighting chance." With a swift smile, Obi-Wan shrugged. "Or, you can go about your business and forget we were here, and we can both put this whole mess behind us. The choice is yours, Kallus. Choose wisely."

With a swift swipe of his hand across the datapad, Obi-Wan ended the transmission, and he closed his eyes, his hands sliding into his hair as he breathed deeply. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I think I like this guy," Rex said, nudging Wolffe in the ribs and pointing to the Sith Lord, and the other clone softly grumbled his agreement.

"Fifteen minutes..." Obi-Wan said absently as he looked at the horizon at the fast approaching sandstorm, and he reached out, grabbed hold of the railing, and vomited over the side of the tank.

"Obi-Wan, the Inquisitors are coming," Ahsoka said tightly, Kanan and Ezra looking at each other nervously as the Togruta moved to stand beside the heaving Sith Lord, her hand resting on his scarred back. "I didn't feel them before, but I feel them now. They're coming, and they're close."

"I will handle the Inquisitors," Obi-Wan said softly. "That storm is going to be on us soon, and while it won't impede the Inquisitors, it will be a major hindrance to any Imperial force they send, but we can use it to our advantage if we're smart. It doesn't need to be a disadvantage to us as well, because unlike them, we have the Force to guide us. If you and Kanan and Ezra lead the clones-"

"Then we can take them out without the Empire even seeing what hit them," Ahsoka finished, turning to Rex with a smile on her face. "Well, Rex? Think you and the boys could follow the Jedi into battle one last time?"

"Anything for you, Commander Tano," Rex said, laying a hand on the girl's shoulder. "It would be my honor. And I can't say that I haven't missed this."

"It is what we were made for, after all..." Wolffe said softly, sheepishly approaching the Togruta. "This is my fault. I want to make this right. I know I have no right to ask for your trust, but...damn it, we're soldiers, and we're just waiting around here to die. If I go down, I want to go down fighting like I was meant to do."

"With any luck, we won't be going down at all," Ahsoka said swiftly. "Not today. Get the men ready." With a swift salute, Wolffe ran into the tank, shouting for the men to prepare their weapons, and Kanan quickly moved to Ahsoka's side, opened his mouth to speak, and the Togruta quickly covered his mouth with her hand. "I know, Kanan," she said softly, her face understanding, the Force in her touch warm and comforting, and Kanan couldn't help but shiver as he was forced to relax. "I know. But if we're going to get out of this, we're going to have to work together with them. I'm not asking you to forgive them Kanan, and I'm not even asking you to trust them. I'm asking you to give them a chance." She smiled at hm, a hand cupping his cheek when he looked away from her, and she pointed out to the nearby cloud of sand. "They're going to be blind in there, but a Jedi won't be. They need you to help lead them."

"And we're going to need all the help we can get..." Ezra said, pointing out across the sand at three hulking figures, the heat and wind distorting the image, but it was clear to the rebels what they were dealing with. "AT-AT walkers," Ezra whispered. "They're faster than this old piece of junk, Kanan, they're going to catch us. What are we going to do?" The Jedi looked around the deck at the clones that were running in and out of the tank, the two on surveillance whistling and impressed with the sheer size of the improved Imperial tank, Rex who was looking expectantly at the Jedi as he commanded one of his men to push full speed toward the storm, at Obi-Wan who sat cross-legged on the deck, his eyes closed in meditation and his twin sabers floating gently around him as he centered himself for battle.

"Alright, alright!" the Jedi growled, running his fingers through his hair and breathing deep with his resolve. "Zeb, you keep with the clones, help them man the weapons. You aren't going to be able to see in there, but you've dealt with AT-AT's before, and they haven't, and experience it invaluable. Show them what you've got."

"You got it, boss," Zeb said, mock saluting for a moment before running with some of the clones inside the tank to sit at the weapon stations.

"Sabine, I need you to keep working on the Phantom and keep trying to reach Hera or the Umbra. We'll be able to hold against them for a while, but we need an exit strategy, and you're our best bet for that." He sighed heavily and closed his eyes. "It'll be a tight fit, but the Phantom should be able to evacuate us all, and if we can get Hera flying down here to give us air support, we should be able to get away without being shot down."

"I'll get it done, Kanan," Sabine said with a cocky smirk, pulling her helmet on her head and rushing off to the shuttle.

"You're with me, Ezra," the Jedi said, laying his hand on the boy's shoulder. "Once we're in there, nobody's going to be able to see anything, but once we take that shot, they're going to know our position, which means we get one chance to do as much damage as possible. You're going to man the main cannon and take that shot when I give you the order. The clones can't see in there, but we can. Just trust in the Force and you'll shoot the way you need to."

"I'll do my best, Kanan," Ezra said confidently. "What about you?"

"I'll be guiding the whole operation," Kanan said with a sigh, looking over at Rex and Ahsoka and pushing away his nervousness and the tightness in his chest. "If you and your men can trust me, Rex, I can get us that shot and I can get us out of here."

"I always trust my General," Rex said sincerely, and Kanan bit his lip and had to look away.

"...Cody," Kanan said, and the clone looked up from where he stood vigil over Obi-Wan and frowned, his entire posture going rigid. "You aren't going to be any help to Kenobi out here, so you're in with us. I need you working with Rex to make sure operations run smoothly, commander."

"Oh, kriffing hell!" Cody snapped, staring in disbelief at the smugly smiling Jedi. "You must be joking."

"The clones know war, but they don't know the Empire," Kanan casually drawled, pointing a lazy finger at the outraged Cody. "But you do. You've been fighting the Empire since it was called the Republic. There isn't anyone here save for Kenobi that knows the Empire so well as you, and as any good commander knows, a wealth of experience means more on the field of battle than anything else, or so my Master always said." He shrugged, the smirk on his face growing as he watched Cody's jaw clench and his fist tighten at his side, and through the Force, he could feel the clone silently, bitterly agree with him. "And if that isn't enough, I need someone to watch my back in there in case something goes wrong. I'll be in the Force, and I'm going to need someone to be my eyes here."

That settled it for Cody, and with a heavy sigh, he gave his helmet to Obi-Wan, the Sith Lord smiling gratefully and whispering something to his clone in a language that Kanan couldn't understand. With a swift nod to the Sith, Cody turned from him and came to stand at Kanan's side. "So..." Cody said tightly, eying Rex suspiciously and very pointedly avoiding the relieved and grateful looks that Ahsoka was giving him. "Shall we begin?"

"Yeah, let's get this over with," Kanan muttered, stopping to look out at the Sith Lord, the man kneeling on the deck and breathing deep and even as he centered himself in the Force. "Obi-Wan." The gold eyes opened and flicked up to the Jedi, calm and weary, the toll taken on him obvious for just a moment on his face, and Kanan understood that this trial was in some ways just as difficult for Kenobi, the man forced to look at his own scars left by the war, and the Jedi knew there were many, far more than he would ever truly know. "May the Force be with you."

"And also with you, my brothers," Obi-Wan said, a soft smile on his lips when he watched a sudden surge of emotions flit across the Jedi's face, and with a grumble and a hand on Cody's shoulder, Kanan disappeared inside the tank with Cody and Rex, leaving the Sith Lord alone with Ahsoka. "You better go with them, my dear," Kenobi said, his voice raised as they drew closer to the storm, the wind in the air and the thunder in the black clouds above intensifying as they drew closer. "They will need you to keep the peace. As set as they are on getting along right now, there are too many clones in too close quarters for Cody and Kanan to feel safe. They need you."

"I know," she said, smiling gently at the Sith Lord and taking a few long strides to stand beside him when he got to his feet, Cody's helmet tucked under his arm. "You sure you want to deal with the Inquisitors on your own? You haven't been feeling well, and I would gladly stand beside you."

"I'll have an easier time if I don't need to worry about keeping you safe, dearest," he muttered, gently kissing the line of her montrails. "Besides, I have something special planned, and I need the Inquisitor's help with it."

"Oh, that doesn't sound good..." Ahsoka said, wrinkling her nose. "Do I dare ask?"

"Nothing too sinister, just an idea I had to rid myself of this damnable illness, or at least to help set me on the path to healing."

"You know..." Ahsoka said, wrinkling her nose as she frowned. "Most people just put themselves to bed, have some soup and sleep it off. I've never heard of a cure for the flu that involves murder."

"I've never heard of a flu being caused by the Jedi, those creatures are filthy," Obi-Wan sneered. "Serves me right for being foolish enough to allow one to touch me. Honestly, if we can throw Yoda against Sidious, we may be able to debilitate him with migraines and vomiting. It just may be our best shot at killing him."

"Well, let's just hope your former Master is as susceptible to the light as you are," she said quietly, reaching up to stroke his cheek right before he slid Cody's helmet over his head. "You sure you don't want me to stay?"

"You're needed elsewhere, and I somehow doubt you'd approve of what I'm going to do." He gently nudged her toward the tank. "Go on then, Fulcrum, to arms. See us to safety." With a sigh, Ahsoka nodded, and Obi-Wan watched her as she walked away and disappeared into the tank, and left alone with the storm and the sound of ships overhead and the walkers quickly gaining ground behind them, Obi-Wan touched the Force, felt the chill of the currents in the river he waded into, felt the prowling of the beasts in the shadows only waiting to be called upon for the kill, could feel the Force tug and pull when others reached out to call upon it.

He could feel Kanan's quiet command, the almost beautiful way the Jedi so naturally drew power to himself, the waters calming and warming with his touch. He could feel the ripples caused by Ezra, his hand much more unsteady, his presence more unsure, but the warming comfort of the light was drawn to him anyway soothing and easing the boy's tension away into focus. He could feel Ahsoka, her very presence diverting the flow of the river, though she had yet to truly draw upon it, her fingers brushing the water but not yet bending to drink from it. But above all else, he could feel them, the Inquisitors, powerful and brutish and stirring the beasts within the shadows, whipping them into a bloodthirsty frenzy when the savage Dark Side was tightly grasped and chained to their will, an unwilling slave to creatures without the skill or the experience to coax it into willing partnership.

He didn't need to wait long for the whine of ships to roar above the thunder and the wind and the sound of whipping sand striking against his helmet, the piercing sound of blaster fire from the three ships interrupted by the deep pulse beneath his feet and the roar of the tank's cannons as the clones within opened fire, their only chance to do so before vanishing in the cover of the storm. It was enough, and the three ships scattered, pulling off on their attack vector and circling out and around, reforming for a moment before diving in once again. With the threat of losing the tank in the storm and the additional difficulty of striking them with their scrambled sensors, the three ships dove in close before pulling up once again, and seconds later, three hard, hollow snaps could be heard as the Inquisitors landed upon the deck.

Obi-Wan immediately made his presence know, standing tall and tugging hard on the Force, and he could feel all three heads snap in his direction, six eyes burning in his direction behind the shielded visors of their helmets. Slowly, the three began to draw closer, separating from each other as they moved to flank him, their lightsabers drawn from holsters on their backs and ignited, their low thrum reverberating menacingly through the howl of the wind. Obi-Wan felt them through the Force as they forcibly reached deep into the well of anger and hate to draw more power, the tides of darkness thrashing around them in a fury, fueling their powers, but also making them easier for the Sith Lord to see.

Obi-Wan reached out to brush their consciousness, the small and incredibly slight female, the much larger male that towered head and shoulders over his companions, the lithe, athletically built second female, all of them covered head to foot in the dark, tight uniforms of their Order, all of them different species' warped and twisted by darkness. Through their pull on the Force, Obi-Wan felt the taller female to be the most dangerous of the three, the most powerful, and he began formulating his plan of attack, closing his eyes when he found the whipping sands to be little more than a distraction so he could focus simply on the feel of them, the churning of the memories he read, the command of the Force that they each exerted, their fear and apprehension, their animosity between each other. Each piece of information he gleaned was a weapon, just one more thing he could use against the trio.

"I thought the clones were mistaken," the taller of the two women drawled, her voice low and sultry. "They are obsolete and defective, we thought they mistook the Jedi for their old enemy. But look at you..." she said breathlessly. "The scar across your chest, just like our Master said you would have from the time Lord Vader nearly killed you. The way the Force pulls toward you, our inability to sense you. You are the Negotiator, you're Darth Lumis."

"And you are the Fourth Sister," Obi-Wan said, the three hissing and drawing back, and Obi-Wan slowly pointed to the other two. "Eleventh Sister. Ninth Brother. Tell me, did my former Master finally send me a gift, after all these years? Is this because he wants me back after what I did to his little pet?" The Sith Lord chuckled softly and kicked lightly at the ground. "I'm usually the one doing the seducing, I confess I don't know what to do! Sweet Force, I feel like the prettiest girl at the club!"

"We are not a gift!" the towering man snarled, stepping aggressively forward, his lightsaber pointed menacingly at Obi-Wan, and Kenobi laughed softly and shook his head, his burning gaze settling down upon the man, and he quickly stopped, his confidence broken when he felt the Sith Lord's burning gaze upon him.

"Really..." Obi-Wan drawled, his voice lazy and affected, but there lay the undeniable current of danger just beneath the surface. "You had better hope you're a gift, or you're nothing at all, and if that were the case, I may be inclined to be insulted. You don't want me to be insulted, do you?"

"Our Masters said the one that defeated you would be made Sith," the smaller female said in a soft, dangerous whisper, and Obi-Wan gasped in understanding, his eyes focused on the other female, the Forth Sister, as they slowly began circling him again, predators sizing up their intended prey.

"Quite a reward..." Obi-Wan drawled. "Are your Masters not moving to replace the Grand Inquisitor?" They visibly tensed, their shoulders tightening, their sabers rising and the Force chilling with the sudden rush of anger, and Obi-Wan chuckled wickedly. "He serves me now, of course, and serves me very well. You will not have such a privilege."

"Don't listen to him, he's lying..." the Fourth Sister said, though her voice lacked the conviction and the certainty of before.

"Am I?" Obi-Wan asked. "When I told him that I would hunt and execute his Brothers and Sisters of the Inquisitorius, he was very quick to tell me that there are only twelve of you left, eleven after I destroyed the one that stood between me and your Lord Vader. I wonder what he's going to say after I tell him that I killed you three." With the Inquisitor's on guard and slowly beginning to band together, Obi-Wan took a threatening step toward them. "Tell me, did you ever stop and consider why there is suddenly an opening for another Lord of the Sith? Is it, perhaps, because I trashed Darth Vader when we recently met on Lothal?"

"Liar!" the Ninth Brother snarled defensively, but he and his two sisters took a cautious step back, their confidence becoming uncertainty and nervousness, and Obi-Wan seized upon the feeling when the Force trembled, a low, wicked laugh in his throat as he took a small step forward.

"You would think so, of course..." Obi-Wan said, light and amused with the sudden fear that began setting in. "You aren't important enough to know the truth behind your Master's sudden disappearance, and the Lords of the Sith certainly hold no value in your lives if they would send you to me with the promise of such a reward in the off-chance that you may get lucky enough to catch me off guard. Did you never consider why such a fine thing was being offered?" he chirped softly, unable to see their faces through their shielded visors, but he could feel their fear none the less, Vader's absence suddenly explained in a way that effectively answered the questions they had. "Dear, sweet Vader fell before me, Inquisitors. Twice. What hope could you possibly have?"

"The clone's report said you are terribly ill, Lumis," the Fourth Sister said firmly, the bravado returned to her voice as she drew up tall, her lightsaber pointing casually at the Sith Lord. "What chance have you against three of us when sickness diminishes you?"

"It's true I am unwell, yes..." Obi-Wan said softly with a heavy, weary sigh, his hand coming to touch the side of his helmeted head. "You catch me at a time when I am certainly not at my best, and of you lot were Vader or Maul or Sidious, that may have meant something. But for you..." he hissed, drawing up tall, his grip on the Force tightening, and the three Inquisitors stepped back again, their blades quickly moving to defensive stances. "All this means is that you stand between me and a nap, and the quicker I end this, the sooner I can get to it."

"If you think we will go down easily, you are sorely mistaken!" the Fourth Sister snarled. "There are three of us, we won't be so easy to kill!"

"Oh, I sincerely hope that to be the case," Obi-Wan said as he drew his lightsaber, the red blade hissing as it extended and he shook out his other hand, small blue arcs of electricity dancing along his exposed skin as he drew the Force to him, and the Inquisitors gasped and stumbled forward, struggling to maintain their balance and their center as the Dark Side was drawn away from them and to the Sith. "I've always liked a challenge, but I fear you lot aren't up to the task." Blue electricity shot from his fingers and struck his blade, the arching blue surrounding the blazing red and crackling as it danced along the length, the electricity held suspended by the energy of the plasma. "Today is the day you die, Inquisitors. Are you ready?"

"Y-you don't frighten us..." the Eleventh Sister stammered, and Obi-Wan admonishingly hissed, his blade spinning in his hand and leaving a trail of the arching electricity sparking along the sand particles in the air.

"Search your feelings, Sister, and you'll know it to be true," Obi-Wan drawled. "Honestly, did your Masters teach you nothing of the Force? You have to die. I've seen the future, and you're not in it, but more than that, I have this...apprentice, for lack of a better word. He's something of an avid collector of Imperial helmets. He has quite a variety, it's actually quite impressive." He laughed softly and shook his head when the Eleventh Sister and the Ninth Brother drew back, but the Fourth Sister held her ground, pulling back on the Force and reclaiming the strength that Obi-Wan had stolen. Just think how excited he will be when I round out his collection with an Inquisitor's helmet!"

"You would kill us for a helmet?!" the Ninth Brother asked, stepping back again when he felt Kenobi looking right through him.

"Oh, my dear, I would kill you for less than that. This is why you will never be Sith, there is too much fear in you. Shall I show you how a true Lord of the Sith conducts themselves?"

He didn't wait for an answer, his hand extending and balling into a fist before him, and the Force lanced through the Eleventh Sister, the cold flow snapping frozen like a thousand knives piercing through her veins, sending the small woman screaming to her knees, dropping her lightsaber as she clawed at her chest and her helmet. With a howl of fury at seeing one of his Sisters down, the Ninth Brother held his lightsaber out and another blade extended out the other side of the hilt, the circular device beginning to spin rapidly as he charged the Sith Lord. With a fair distance between them, the Brother threw his saber, the rapidly spinning blade humming in the air as it flew toward the Sith.

Obi-Wan breathed deeply, watching as the saber as it sliced through the air toward him, the blades hissing and thrumming as the sand in the air struck the blazing plasma, and the Sith closed his eyes, standing as still as he could as he immersed himself deeply within the Force. Right before the thrumming blade struck him, Obi-Wan stepped forward, ducking under the spinning saber at the last moment, and as the weapon went spinning in the air behind him, he reached out and grabbed hold of the weapon with the Force, and as he spun around, he circled the spinning saber out around him and threw it back twice as fast as the Inquisitor.

The Brother gasped, his chest tightening as he watched his own spinning blade slice rapidly toward him, and he stood his ground, preparing to attempt to catch the blade instead of diving out of the way when the Sith Lord sprinted toward him, his electrically charged blade sparking behind him. The Fourth Sister ran around out of the trajectory of the blade, her own weapon in her hand as she attempted to intercept the Sith Lord, but Lumis extended his hand and let loose a blast with the Force that sent the woman slamming against the tank's steel wall, the impact denting the metal and making the dazed Sister drop her weapon.

Bracing himself, the Ninth Brother managed to catch his saber, the weapon pulling him off balance as he suddenly stopped it's rapid movement, and allowing the spinning blades to cut through the floor as he swung it around, the Inquisitor sliced up with the weapon in an uncontrolled slash to bring the weapon under his control. The hard strike came a moment too early, and just as the blades passed by his field of vision, he saw Darth Lumis place his hand on the ground and slide past him. A second later, the Inquisitor felt his entire body jolt with impact, his teeth knocking together with the hard drop, and after that was only blinding pain, an anguished scream torn from his throat when he realized his legs had been severed at the knee.

With two Inquisitors effectively disabled, the Fourth Sister quickly stood, her saber back in her hand as the Sith Lord turned his attention on her, his movements easy and fluid as he approached her at a languid stride, the Dark Side swelling and raging with the pain and suffering of her Brother and Sister, the power filtering directly toward Lumis and filling him with strength. He greedily drew it in, the Dark Side running simultaneously cold and hot with the fear and pain of the Inquisitors, and the elation of the Sith as he drank in the power he siphoned from them. The Fourth Sister slowly retreated, her hands tightening around her saber as she tried to center herself in the Force, struggling to maintain her hold over the Dark Side that swiftly slipped through her fingers to answer the beaconing call of the Sith Lord.

With a snarl of fury, she threw herself at Lumis, her blade moving as fast as she could manage, but the moment her blade collided with the Sith's electrified saber, she felt the shocking jolts of lightning with each strike, the excess arching dangerously across the grains of sand in the air, and she quickly disengaged when she felt her grip loosen in her tingling, convulsing hands. With each movement toward her, the Inquisitor stepped back, her breathing coming fast and afraid as the screams of agony intensified, and she chanced a glance toward her sister, the anguished sounds louder as she tore off her helmet, her long fingers clawing at her face and leaving long, bloody trails across it as she tried to tear the maddening feel out of her brain. The screams reached a crescendo when the Eleventh Sister raked her fingers across her face, her strong digits sinking into the softest point as she clawed her eyes out.

The Forth Sister looked on in abject horror as the other Inquisitor sobbed uncontrollably with pain, her voice hoarse with irreparable strain, and her moment of distraction was enough for the Force to close around her, a sharp, gasping choke in her throat as she was lifted from the ground, her legs kicking wildly in the hopes that the jerking motions would see her released. She froze when she felt gentle fingers hook under her helmet and take it off, squinting to keep the sand out of her eyes as she looked at Darth Lumis, the Sith Lord taking off his own helmet and letting both drop to the ground, the red and gold eyes clearly visible through the storm and glowing fiercely with a hunger and lust that made her heart race.

"Oh, you are beautiful..." Obi-Wan muttered, stroking the woman's cheek, her body stilled when the Force held her tighter, her limbs shaking with the effort to free herself. "Look..." he said, gesturing broadly to the deck where the two fallen Inquisitors writhed and out in the hazy distance toward the loud, thundering sound of the towering shapes of the AT-ATs, the three mammoth vehicles closing in on the tank they could not see. "Very soon, your Brother and your Sister will be dead, my Jedi and my clones will take action against your walkers, and all your efforts will be for nothing."

"Y-you said the Grand Inquisitor serves you," she choked when he loosened the grip on her neck, his fingers tracing down her throat and hooking beneath her chin. "I-I could serve you in ways he couldn't!"

"Mm, you're right, you could..." Lumis said, his attention diverting to the Inquisitors on the ground, and with the slightest gesture of his hand, the Eleventh Sister shuddered on the ground, pushed herself to her feet on shaking arms, and turned toward her Brother on the ground, the hollow pits of her eyes boring through him and sending the man scraping along the ground in fear when the woman lit her lightsaber and slowly advanced upon him. "You will serve me..." Lumis continued, his attention turning back to the woman in his grasp, a deep, shuddering breath in his chest as he felt the fear and the pain in the air as she watched the Brother grasp for his own lightsaber in an attempt to defend himself. "All three of you will serve me. Empire Day is coming, and it would be so rude not to return Sidious' gift with a gift of my own, but you dearest, are going to be my favorite part of it..."

Her protests were silenced when Darth Lumis covered her mouth with his own, kissing her hard and hungry as he pinned her to the wall of the tank. Her whimpers of protect quickly became moans ripped from the very core of her being as the Dark Side flooded her with pleasure she hadn't known since the early days of her addiction to darkness, and though the screams of pain and terror tried to pull her to the grim reality around her, she was unable to resist the current of lust and need that rushed through her. When the Ninth's Brother's screams stopped with the hissing hum of a lightsaber as it pierced through his armor and his heart, she was far too gone to notice, oblivious to everything but her own need when the Sith Lord tightened his hand and the Eleventh Sister dropped to the ground, her hands at her throat as the life was choked out of her.

Each death sent the Dark Side howling in triumph, the surge of power rushing through the Sith Lord as he broke away from the last remaining Inquisitor, a wolfish grin on his lips as his hand closed gently around her slender neck. The heavy steps of the walkers sent tremors through the deck of the tank, their close proximity unnerving, but the Imperial vehicles slowly passed by them as they fanned out to cover the most ground. Soon, soon, Kanan would order the shot that would destroy the nearest of the walkers, and with the other two past, the cumbersome AT-ATs would have to turn around before they could be engaged, which gave the clones in the tank a dangerous advantage. With the Force guiding their aim, all three walkers could be destroyed before there was even a chance for the Imperials to return fire.

With the plan quickly unfolding, Lumis pushed deep inside the Inquisitor with the Force, the woman shivering and groaning softly as he reached deep into the very heart of her, the shadowed claws of the Dark Side tightening around the pulsating life within her, and with his heart pounding with anticipation, he ripped the very Force from her as he had done so many times before. The woman's eyes widened, the Sith Lord's hand around her neck tightening and preventing her from screaming as the life was forcibly drained out of her, her own hands trying vainly to pry Lumis off, her movements becoming increasingly weak as he became stronger. It didn't take long for the woman's already pale skin to become ashen, her eyes dull and sightless, her presence in the Force non-existent as Lumis tried to drain any last hints of life from her lifeless body.

The feeling of intoxication hit him hard, the wash of mindless bliss pumping through his blood like a narcotic as the Dark Side roared in triumph and lust and hunger for more, and Lumis only just managed to maintain control, groaning softly as he managed to stagger toward the Phantom, the bodies of the Inquisitors dragged with the Force behind him. The moment he entered the shuttle, he collapsed against the wall, sighing in satisfaction and staring off into nothing through hazy eyes as he lost himself in the high of the life he stole, the Force raging through him as it repaired damage and the wear caused by age.

"Are you feeling alright?" Sabine asked, the Sith only barely managing to turn his attention on the Mandalorian in the pilot's seat, and he slowly managed to nod before his head lolled to the side.

"What's our status?" he managed to ask, his voice heavy and thick, and he struggled to keep his eyes open, trying to stave off the high of the Dark Side, but his will was rapidly failing.

"Hera's on the way with the Umbra to extract us, she says Imperial reenforcements are incoming, but they're not close enough to pin us if we can get out within ten minutes." The tank suddenly shuddered and a deafening roar filled the air, followed by the sound of an explosion and the groaning of metal as it bent and twisted, the familiar sound of destruction the reward for the true shot of the Jedi-guided cannon. The tank lurched with movement as the tank went in full reverse, keeping its forward cannons fixed on the AT-ATs as they retreated, taking well-placed shots on the walkers as they fled.

"Sounds like getting away won't be a problem..." Obi-Wan muttered, running his hand through his hair and closing his eyes. "Are the engines repaired?"

"All ready to go," Sabine said, a smirk on her face and terribly pleased with herself. "All we need is a chance to get away, and if we can take those walkers down or lose them in the storm, we'll have that chance."

"Please make certain that Ahsoka brings the clones with us, they're all going to die if they stay behind," Obi-Wan muttered. "If they don't want to join us, we can at least get them to safety. And when you see Cody..." He gestured carelessly out the open hatch at the gruesome bodies on the ground. "Tell him to bring them, I need them for Empire Day. And I left his helmet on the deck." Kenobi slid lower to the ground. "And there are Inquisitor helmets for Ezra, if he wants them."

"I'll be sure they know," Sabine said, getting up from her seat and walking over to kneel beside the Sith, the Mandalorian hissing when she laid her hand on the man's forehead. "Ka'ra, Kenobi, you're burning up," she muttered. "You sure you're alright?"

"Absolutely..." Obi-Wan said breathlessly. "I'm going to take a nap. Don't wake me up."

"Wouldn't dream of it."

With a heavy, pleasured sigh, Obi-Wan surrendered himself to the blissful rush of the Force and drifted away, the Dark Side curling around him, restful and sated with blood and death, calm with their assured victory.