Queen Apailana screamed as the Interrogation Droid tortured her. She had been locked in this cell for days now. Officially, she was secluded with the Emperor for high level discussions. No one would even think to look for her. She didn't know how much more she could take. So far, she had been able to resist the droid and insist that she didn't know that the Jedi or Padme were here.
Behind the observation window, Sidious stood quietly. The child in the other room was stronger than he thought. Most gave in to the Interrogation Droids much sooner. It was possible that she wouldn't crack at all. He had probed her mind earlier, and though he could tell she was hiding something, she was able to so deeply bury what it was that even with all his power he couldn't rip it from her. With a snarl on his face, his anger built. How could a child like her resist him?
Deciding to probe her mind again, he dug a bit deeper. A ha. That is why. The blasted Jedi had shielded her mind. Hmmmm, that left what he should do with her. His first instinct was to have her killed out of handand a more, compliant, ruler installed. Or he could leave her in charge, infiltrate one of his spies into her household and hopefully use her to lure the Jedi into a trap. Turning away from the window, he ordered the guards to continue the torture while he was gone. He had an appointment he needed to keep. He would release the brat once he returned.
As he walked away toward his shuttle, he contemplated what he had learned. The most obvious was that the Jedi remained a far larger threat than he had at first imagined. While he had been here, he had received reports of Jedi assaults on Kashyyyk, Ryloth, Jedha and Carida. The attacks on Jedha and Carida were the two that worried him. Carida for the obvious reason that they had managed to hijack three brand new frigates from the facility there along with their complement of V-19 Torrent starfighters. They had also freed all the traitorous scum held in the prison there and taken hostage the cadets that were in training. While the loss of the cadets wasn't really that critical as the Empire had other academies where they were being trained, the ones on Carida had been the best of them.
It was the attack on Jedha that he was truly worried about. Initial reports indicated that the Jedi had staged multiple attacks on the planet disrupting the mining of Kyber Crystals. They had also attacked and emptied the Kyber Temple there in conjunction with the Guardians of the Whills. The loss of the Kyber would delay his project significantly, but overall wasn't that important; there were other sources of Kyber Crystals in the galaxy. What was important was that some treasonous fool had decided to store a copy of the plans for his project at the base there! Imperial Intelligence couldn't even be sure what had been accessed at the base since the entire base had been raided for supplies and equipment and every computer there wiped clean.
He had already ordered the execution of Orson Krennic for incompetence. Any blunder of the magnitude of storing the plans outside of his approved channels showed problems at the very top. He would simply appoint Moff Tarkin to oversee the project. He was quite sure that issues such as this would quickly be at an end.
The final piece of information he had gathered puzzled him greatly. Anakin Skywalker refused to fight him. The Anakin he knew would have rushed headlong into battle with barely a thought to the consequences. What's more, the boy radiated power. Far more than he ever had before. The way he had been able to hold his lightning attack at bay and even aimed it back at him was proof of that. In a fight now, Sidious wasn't sure he could beat Anakin. Before, he would have been able to rely on the boy's instability and doubts to always give himself the edge. But now? What he needed was a way to give himself another edge. He would have to delve deep into the Dark Side and seek a way to do just that.
The one positive to come of letting himself get hit in the face with his own Force Lightning was that he would no longer need to keep the Force Illusion in place to disguise himself. He could wear his own, true face from now on and blame it on the Jedi. This would help his propaganda campaign immeasurably.
_
On Vassek 3, General Grievous was seething. He had been used, betrayed, by the Sith. His armies had been shut down. His navies, disabled. Even his MagnaGuards had been deactivated. He swore he would get revenge on the Sith. Just as he would get revenge on the Jedi. These cults must be wiped from the galaxy.
"General. I see you have realized what happened," Sidious said quietly from the shadows of Grievous' Lair.
"Lord Sidious. You deceived me," Grievous said, pausing to cough. "You will pay for that. Your being here saves me the trouble of tracking you down." Finished talking, Grievous shrugged off his cape and took four of his captured lightsabers in his hands. Igniting them, he slowly advanced toward Sidious.
Sidious called his lightsaber into his hand, and let the Dark Side fill him. The glowing red blade in his hand was matched by the yellow glow in his eyes. Sidious flew into the attack. The sound of lightsabers crashing against each other filled the room. With a flick of his wrist, Sidious sent two of Grievous' hands flying, their lightsabers with them. A few short minutes later, and Sidious plunged his lightsaber into Grievous' chest, eviscerating what was left of his body, his organs bursting into flame. Sidious watched with satisfaction as Grievous burned up, flame shooting out of his chest cavity and being funneled by his droid body to erupt out of his eyes. As Grievous collapsed, Sidious turned and walked slowly back to his shuttle. It was time he returned to Naboo and released Apailana. Hopefully, she would be suitably softened and less likely to aide the Jedi. And if not, well, he was sure his apprentice could arrange an "accident" for her.
_
Shortly after Padme and the Jedi had left Alderaan, Breha approached Bail. "Remember how we had talked about adopting a child since we have been unable to have one of our own?" she asked.
"Of course I do," replied Bail, his voice somewhere between sad and hopeful.
"I think I've found the perfect one Bail," Breha said, her eyes shinning. "Her name is Winter. She's the daughter of your former aid, Sheltay Retrac. With both of her parents dying in the Attack on Coruscant..."
"It would only be right of us to raise her ourselves," Bail finished for his wife. "You're right, she is perfect. I'll get the paperwork started right away." Bail had a huge smile on his face as he pulled Breha into a tight embrace. They had wanted a child for so long. To know they were actually going to have one, adopted or not, filled him with joy, hope and determination. Joy that they were finally going to have a daughter. Hope that she would love them just as much as he already loved her. And determination to ensure that the galaxy she would grow up in would not be one dominated by the Empire.
With his sense of purpose renewed and strengthened, Bail threw himself into the task of organizing the resistance to Palpatine. The Jedi would need every bit of intelligence he could lay his hands on. Not only that, but they would need manpower, resources, supplies, ships, everything to fight a war. Because he knew that the only way to overthrow Palpatine would be a war. Bail was sick of war. But at least this war would be fought for a worthy cause.
_
Jedi Master Kazdan Paratus was hard at work in the Temple's Utility Level. Anakin Skywalker had done quite a deal of work in getting the power back online, but had been elevated to Battlemaster before he could get many of the droids operational. Upon Anakin being reassigned, Kazdan had volunteered to take over for him and oversee the mechanical operation of the Temple along with teaching his class on mechanics.
He was still ashamed over the sheer terror he had felt during the assault on the Temple. He had been in battle numerous times, wasn't entirely unskilled with a lightsaber, but yet, seeing the red blade of the Sith at the head of the Army had completely unnerved him. He had spent many hours meditating on this, trying to purge himself of the crippling fear he had felt. To find a way to overcome it. He thought he had come to terms with it, but he couldn't really be sure. In the end, he had asked the High Council to allow him to remain at the Temple and to remove him from active field assignments. This would be his life now. Overseeing the droids and the various mechanical systems of the Temple and teaching younglings about mechanics. This was his life, and he was content with that.
_
Anakin Skywalker and his group were the first to arrive back on Tython. In the time they had spent traveling, Anakin and the other Jedi had done their best to soothe the younglings they had with them. Being exposed to Sidious' power and corruption was extremely traumatic for some of them. And they had done their best to calm them and purge the darkness that they had been exposed to. That they had mainly been successful in this was a testament to how much clearer they could feel the Force now. There were however, a few younglings that would require a bit more help. Though Anakin was confident they would receive it. The Jedi High Council had done much in the last months to regain his trust in them. He doubted he would ever fully trust the Council, but now it was a healthy doubt of a more mature being not taking everything he heard at face value instead of the blind mistrust and hatred he had felt before.
As Anakin, Padme and Ahsoka escorted the younglings to the crèche, they were greeted by two Padawans, one holding Luke and the other Leia. All four Skywalkers' faces lit up at seeing each other and Anakin and Padme couldn't wait to take their children into their arms. With Anakin holding Leia and Padme holding Luke, they introduced the Jedi caretakers to the younglings they had brought. Wishing the younglings the best and making sure they knew they could always talk to them if they needed it, the Skywalker family retired to their chambers to reconnect with each other.
Ahsoka, meanwhile went to her quarters right next to Anakin and Padme's so she could enjoy a nice long, hot sanisteam in the refresher before visiting the Archives to do some research. Anakin had asked her to find examples of non-Jedi family members being brought with their children when their child was accepted for Jedi training. It figured to be a long night.
_
Master Secura's group returned to Tython one standard week after Anakin's had. She had left Masters Roan Shryne and Bol Chatak behind on Ryloth along with eighteen Knights and Padawans and a platoon of the 501st. These forces would work with Cham Syndulla's men to disrupt the Empire as much as possible and do their best to save as many Twi'leks from slavery as they could. In return, Cham had promised to aid the Jedi when the time came to begin their open rebellion against Palpatine.
For the first time in a very long time, Aayla Secura felt proud to have been part of a mission. It felt good to do something other than just fight a war. Yes, in a very real sense, the Jedi Order was fighting a war that would determine whether or not the Order itself survived. But to see the looks on the faces of the men and women she saved, beings who had given themselves up for dead in all but name, it filled her heart with joy. The feeling that she was finally worthy of the title "Jedi" again, and not just "Soldier."
She had sensed that same sense of pride returning to every Jedi that had served with her. She had even felt it in the men of the 501st. The sense that they weredoing more than just blasting Seps. That this time, they were doing good. They still didn't like fighting their brothers. But they seemed to have developed a way to cope with it. Every trooper in the 501st had started to carry powerful sedatives with them.Whenever they came across one of their brothers, or who they thought might be one of their brothers, they hit him with a stun blast then administered the sedative. Then later on, they would remove the Inhibitor Chip and give their brother a choice. Join with them, or be treated as a POW. So far, at least while she had been on Ryloth, each and every Clone given the choice had opted to join with them. Apparently the IC's as the Clones had taken to calling the chips, were used for far more than just Order 66. She was just as glad that they had been able to rescue those men as she was for every Twi'lek they had rescued. The Clones still serving the Empire were slaves every bit as much as every Wookie or Twi'lek was.
She was also very happy to finally be back home. That thought actually surprised her. For as long as she could remember, the Jedi Temple and Coruscant had been home. But in the few short months since the Order had fled to Tython, it had quickly turned into home for her. And from talking with her fellow Jedi, it seemed that they all felt the same. Most of the Jedi in the Order had all been raised at the Temple. Even Anakin Skywalker, for as late as he had joined the Order, had called the Temple home since he was nine. To see how many had quickly come to appreciate just what Tython meant to them was astounding. In all her years, she had never felt the Order as a whole feel so at peace. Despite everything that had happened, it was as if the Force itself was nurturing them and reassuring them that by returning to their roots, they were doing the right thing. It felt good.
Of course, arriving back on Tython meant other things as well. She had about two thousand Twi'leks with her that had opted to flee the Empire rather than stay and risk being captured again. They all needed help settling on the planet. In this regard, they were lucky. In researching Tython, one of Master Nu's archivists had found that at one time there had been a Twi'lek settlement on the planet not far from the Temple called Kalikori Village. It had apparently been built around the same time as the Temple here. While nothing remained of the village itself, it did provide a starting point for where to establish a new settlement. In this regard, the Twi'leks were aided by membersof the AgriCorps including Jambe Lu and Nam Poorf. In no time at all, the new Kalikori Village was up and running.
They also had Senator Amidala, no, Senator Skywalker, she reminded herself, helping them when they first arrived. As Master Secura's ships came in for a landing, she spotted a large camp already set up with everything that could possibly be required to help the incoming refugees. Padme had really thrown herself into the work. She may be a Senator, but she had the heart of a Jedi.
_
Obi-wan's arrival back in system three days later caused a massive spike of alarm in the Temple. The sudden appearance of three Imperial Navy frigates above Tython led to Anakin scrambling every available Jedi Starfighter for defense. It was only when Anakin sensed Obi-wan onboard, and his amusement mixed with regret at the alarm he had caused, that he and the other Jedi started to relax.
Hailing the ship Obi-wan seemed to be on, Anakin got in contact with his old Master. "Master, next time you're going to surprise us like that, don't. I think you sent half the Jedi on Tython into the Halls of Healing with your arrival."
Sounding suitably contrite, Obi-wan replied, "Yes, about that. My apologies Anakin. We should have commed ahead and warned you of our arrival.Though I must congratulate you. You scrambled those fighters faster than I thought possible."
"Oh sure, try and butter me up. Won't work this time Master. I should tell you, Master Yoda has put me in charge of assigning Jedi to guard duty. And I can assign any Jedi I deem fit."
"Anakin, you wouldn't."
"Report to the front entrance of theTemple bright and early tomorrow morning, my Master."
"I suppose saying 'I'm sorry' isn't going to get me out of this?"
"Sorry Obi-wan. Not this time. Nice ships by the way. Never seen ships like them before. Are they new?"
"Actually yes. Fresh off the production line less than three months ago. But I'll tell you all about them once we land."
"Fair enough Master. See you on the ground." With that, Anakin and the other fighters with him peeled off and sped back to the Temple. He felt much better now knowing that they had three capital ships at their disposal to help defend Tython. While he doubted they would hold off the Empire for long, every minute would count if they needed to evacuate.
_
Master Yoda was next to arrive. Though his mission had lasted the longest, he had a shorter route back home than Master Hett's. He had left Master Kirak Infil'a behind to run the resistance alongside Tarfful and Chewbacca along with nineteen Knights and Padawans and a platoon of the 501st, just as Master Secura had on Ryloth. Master Infil'a had actually taken the Barash Vow some years previously, but due to Order 66, and some pleading by Master Yoda, he had agreed to take up the Mantle of a Jedi once again. Master Infil'a was one of the Order's greatest warriors and was ideal to lead the fight against the Empire on Kashyyyk. The Wookies had quickly come to respect him for his martial prowess and fighting abilities.
Upon dropping out of hyperspace, Yoda was surprised to see what appeared to be capital ships of the Imperial Navy in orbit over Tython. Only a quickly placed holocall from the Council chambers and Anakin and Ahsoka flying up to meet him personally reassured him that no, Tython had not been discovered by the Empire already, but that the ships had been captured by Master Kenobi. Ask Obi-wan about them, he would, Yoda thought to himself.
Upon landing at the Temple he was gratified to see that preparations had already been made for the arriving Wookie refugees. Thinking to himself, Yoda thought "Senator Amidala, a soft spot for beings in need, she always had. Her work, this was. Thank her, I must."
Within three hours of landing, the Wookies had all been cared for and given places to sleep till more permeant accommodations could be made. Padme had ensured that everything was ready for them, just as she had done for the Twi'lek refugees. While that was taking place, Yoda decided to call a Council meeting. There were many things that needed to be discussed.
Slowly making his way to the Council Chamber, Yoda decided to first wander the halls of the Temple for a bit. He wanted to check on his Jedi. As he passed the Halls of Healing, he saw Master Che administering to several Jedi and Clones that had been injured in the various fights the Order had been in. He also spotted several people in Republic Navy uniforms being seen to. Rescued by Master Kenobi, most likely. They appeared more malnourished and neglected than injured, but still in need of care. Good it was to see the Order remembering their original purpose. To aid all who needed it, not just those the Senate deemed worthy.
As he neared one of the many training rooms, he could hear the sounds of numerous lightsabers deflecting bolts from training droids. He paused at the door and watched as Young Skywalker gently coached and guided a group of fifty younglings in the basics of Form I lightsaber combat. Watching Skywalker and the younglings brought warm feelings to his heart. Interesting, it was, to see how gentle Skywalker was with the younglings, while in battle, a rancor he was.
As he entered the room, the young Jedi Master called for his class to put away their lightsabers for a moment and greet the aged Grand Master of the Order. "Hello Master Yoda," the Younglings said simultaneously.
Chuckling to himself, Master Yoda replied, "Greetings, young ones. Does my heart good to see you. Missed you, I did, while away I was. Progressed well, you have."
A chorus of "Thank you, Master" answered him. Laughing a bit to himself, Yoda patted Anakin on the arm and continued on his way. As he left, he heard Anakin tell his students to put their visors back down and power up their lightsabers again.
Reaching the Archives, he watched as Masters, Knight, Padawans and Younglings all busied themselves at the holoterminals or the handful of holocrons that were considered safe for use by all and required no special permission to use. He spotted Young Skywalker's Padawan, Ahsoka, busy accessing a holocron that, from the look of it, was older than he was. That she was in the secure holocron area told him that she had needed special authority to access it. That reminded him of another thing he needed to speak to the Council about. Ready for her Trials, Ahsoka was. A fine Jedi Knight would she make.
In his long walk through the Temple, Yoda found that his Jedi were well settled, content, and generally happy. Pleased him, this did. Too much death had the Order seen. Return to their roots, they must if survive they would. A start they had made, here on Tython. To continue would be the challenge.
As he reached the Council Chamber, Master Yoda thought about just how far the Order had come in the last few months. And just how far they had yet to go. Making his way slowly to his chair at the far end of the chamber, he was reminded again of just how much more comfortable his chair on Coruscant had been. Hmmph. Soft, I am in my old age, he thought.
Calling the meeting to Order, he first decided to debrief Masters Secura and Kenobi on their missions to Ryloth and Carida. Master Secura's was more or less what he expected. The alliance with Cham Syndulla would prove itself quite useful when the time came. It would also be good to have now as a source of information and as something that the Jedi could point to as proof that they still were active in the Galaxy, still serving the greater good. He, and the rest of the Council, were very pleased with the results of the mission.
Obi-wan went next. His mission was also a success. Much more so than originally planned for. The three Frigates in orbit were proof of that. Curious about them, Yoda asked him about them.
"Master," replied Obi-wan, "they are called EF-76 Nebulon B class frigates. They're a new design just being introduced into the Imperial Navy. We managed to capture the Crusader, Enforcer and Dominator. One of the men we rescued, Captain Jarid Sykes of the Republic Navy could likely give us a much better rundown of their capabilities than I can."
"Hmmmm, send for him, we will. Think of new names for the ships as well, we must."
While they waited for the Captain to arrive, the Council finished discussing the rest of Obi-wan's mission. They were all saddened to learn of the loss of another eleven Jedi during the mission. Though they all agreed that overall, the mission should be considered a resounding success and just the type of thing to throw a serious hydrospanner into Sidious' plans. The cadets that they captured, those that were willing to join them, would make ideal junior officers for their new fleet. And the captured coding materials would let them spy on the Empire. At least until the codes were changed once again.
Captain Sykes proved to be a fount knowledge. Not just about the type of ships they had captured, but about the Imperial Navy as a whole. It turns out, that the Empire was rapidly retiring the Venator-class Star Destroyers as soon as they could be replaced by the new Imperial-class. He also happened to know where they were planning on mothballing the ships, having been on the Imperial Navy planning staff before taking his posting at Carida. While the Jedi and their allies were not yet in a position to operate Star Destroyers, they would keep a close eye the situation.
After listening to Jarid Sykes, he was offered command of one of the frigates and a promotion to Commodore, placing him under General Skywalker. Captain Sykes readily agreed as he was more than ready to strike back at the Empire for what they had done. Not only to him, but to all the rest of the personnel that were kept prisoner at Carida. Once he had accepted, he was dismissed and Master Skywalker called to the Council Chamber to be debriefed on his mission as well.
Anakin, Padme and Ahsoka all went to the Council Meeting. Anakin as he was nominally in charge of the mission, Padme as she could best explain the political aspects of it (and their new intelligence network) and Ahsoka to present her findings in support of bringing the initiates' families to Tython. The Council was more than pleased to hear of the addition of sixty younglings to their ranks and to learn of the coalition that Padme and Bail had begun building.
The shock they all felt when Anakin related that Sidious himself had arrived on Naboo as they were preparing to depart could be felt almost physically. That Anakin had had the foresight to leave instead of attempting an ill-fated duel with the Sith Lord brought an immense feeling of pride in his former pupil to Obi-wan. Anakin had truly grown into a wise Jedi. Then there was also the sadness felt when Anakin related how two of their own, Maw and Ameesa Darys, had fallen to the Dark Side and were now serving Sidious.
Their reaction to Anakin's suggestion that the families of the children they brought back with them should be extracted as well, was mixed. Though much progress had been made on the issue of attachment, this was a wholly new issue. It was thought that never before in the history of the Order had parents and children been brought to the Temple when the child was selected for training. It was here that Ahsoka's practice in front of Anakin and his mock Council on Naboo paid off.
She was able to skillfully use the arguments she had first crafted then and refined since to sway the Council to her way of thinking. And while she was mostly successful, she knew that she still needed that one, last clinching argument. This is where her study with the holocrons would come into play.
"Masters, over the last two weeks I've delved extensively into our ancient records and holocrons. In that time, I've found that between five and six thousand years ago, it was not uncommon for the Order to resettle the families of Initiates to help ease their transition into the Order. It also helped the Order in recruiting, as families would not lose all contact with their child, thus making them more likely to allow the child to be trained. This would require a change in the way we instruct our younglings, to help them form healthy attachments, but I believe that this is a change for the best."
Judging by the looks on the Council Members faces, they were very impressed with her arguments. And judging from what she felt from Anakin through their Force Bond, he was very proud of her. The Council's decision was not long in coming.
"Agree with you, the Council does. The families of the initiates, to Tython they will be brought," Master Yoda told her.
Bowing to the Council Ahsoka thanked them for listening to her.
Looking at Anakin, Yoda asked, "Master Skywalker. More to say, have you?"
Nodding his head, Anakin replied, "With your permission, my Master. During our time on Alderaan and Naboo, we found over a hundred beings who were Force Sensitive, but were older than the age you gave us to stay under. In discussing the situation with the families of the Initiates, we stumbled across an idea. The Jedi Service Corps, much as the rest of the Order, has been critically undermanned for decades. What if, instead of training these older individuals as Jedi Knights, we train them to serve in the Service Corps? It would allow us to expand the Corps to be able to provide needed services while at the same time, keeping these Force Sensitives out of Sidious' control."
The surprise that rippled through the room was enough to make Anakin chuckle. Smiling at the Council, he told them, "Yeah, that was pretty much our reaction as well when we thought of the idea. It makes a lot of sense when you think about it."
J'oopi She' was the first to respond. "It does. In fact, it is actually surprising that we've never considered this before. Thank you, Master Skywalker. This is definitely a suggestion that merits further exploration."
Bowing to the Council and thanking them, Anakin, Padme and Ahsoka were just about to leave the Council Chambers when Pablo-Jil and Prosset burst into the room, "The Empire! It's building a planet killer!"