Written in collaboration with and approved by DFM23. Strap yourselves in…

INTERLUDE II

STAR WARS
THE CLONE WARS

"Those we surround ourselves with influence us more than we give credit."

Endgame plot! As the Republic secures key victories during Operation Countdown, intel reports that the Separatists are mounting a desperate invasion of a key Republic stronghold: the fortress world Tranbir IX. Sensing the end of the war close at hand, the Jedi prepare to assemble the largest defense fleet the war has yet seen, spearheaded by the best at their disposal…


Coruscant, 19 BBY

Just Outside Dark Star Lounge

"Anakin, where are we going?"

It was the third time Xur had asked that question as his old friend continued to pilot the speeder through the Coruscant skyways, a distinctive smirk on his face. "This way."

Xur's head fell back into the headrest as he smiled. "You smug son of a bitch…where the hell are we going?"

"I told you, this way," Anakin repeated, keeping his eyes ahead as they raced through traffic, faster than necessary. "I figured we grab something different. Those government rations are starting to taste like duraplast."

Xur reeled in disgust. "Really? They're not that bad."

"Speak for yourself."

Anakin rolled the speeder into a steep dive, throwing Xur's stomach into his lungs as he grabbed ahold of the handrails. "You ass. Don't do that!"

His Jedi counterpart chucked as he evened it out, descending upon the diner only a few blocks from the Jedi Temple. Xur's eyes glistened at the sight. "Oh, come on! Skywalker, this is too much. I haven't been here in…" he couldn't even remember or recall.

"Since the war started, right?" Anakin answered for him, swooping into a parking slot.

It took a moment to regain the reverie, but Xur nodded. "Yeah…not since the war started."

The zabrak lost himself in the moment, his eyes glossing over as the realization hit him. There were a lot of things he hadn't done since the war started…people he hadn't seen, debts he hadn't paid. He figured it came with being a Jedi…but it didn't feel right.

"Hey," Anakin smacked his back as he hopped out of the parked speeder. "Wipe that look off your face and let's go."

Quickly, Xur shook his head and followed Anakin around the side of the diner and to the front door, the two of them approaching side by side. Since Anakin had been taking the lead role, Xur waited for him to enter first…but the brown-haired Jedi just stopped, crossing his arms.

"Go ahead," he flicked his head.

The zabrak narrowed his eyes, feeling confused. "I don't know what you did," he began, pulling at the handle. "But if this is-."

"SURPRISE!" multiple people shouted, making him jump, his hand flinching to his hilt in a flash. Once the initial shock wore off, he was wrapped in a hug…his face buried in blonde hair.

"Uhh…is that you, Effa?" he asked, his voice muffled as he tried to hug her back.

"Mm-hm! It's me!" she said, letting him go, almost jumping up and down with joy. "It's been so long! It's great to see you!"

She looked radiant, much more than he remembered, not to mention how much she had grown from a young teenager to an adult woman. Honestly, she looked incredible, something he wasn't expecting.

"I-it's great to see you too!" Xur replied, still shaking off the sudden interaction. However, his eyes peered over her shoulder, and an even more pleasant view was behind her, a smile on her face as she waited for Effa to complete her greet. As soon as their eyes met, the pull was magnetic…impossible to resist.

Once Effa was finished, they approached each other. "Trilla, you're-."

He was slammed into from the side by another, and Trilla embarrassingly looked away as the zabrak was pulled to the side.

"Horned-headed bastard!" Kaidan Alko grinned, his arms wrapped around his old friend. "How the hell are you still alive?"

Xur laughed, gripping his shoulder tightly. "I ask myself that every day. What are you doing here?"

Kaidan chuckled. "Well, everyone seemed to be on Coruscant at the same time, so Jedi Knight Azulia put this all together," he explained, presenting her in excessive fashion…something that obviously hadn't changed. "We kept you out of it because…," he turned to Anakin, looking unsure. "Why did we keep him out of it?"

Anakin was only watching it play out with his arms crossed, and only gave Kaidan a shrug. The zabrak almost cringed…this had so obviously been staged…but for what?

Everyone turned to Trilla, and she spread her arms out wide. "Happy Birthday!"

It took a moment for it to sink in, but eventually he reached back into his memory, his eyes pointed skyward. "Is it…oh wow…holy shit, it is!"

They all laughed, and Trilla finally took her chance to embrace him, in which he returned properly. "So glad to see you," she admitted.

Happily, he let the moment sink in, feeling comfort with her in his arms again, something he didn't realize he had missed so dearly.

"Awwww," Kaidan mocked, in which he received a hard punch from Trilla, who was still being held by Xur.

"Enough, you cunt," she giggled, and he brushed off the attack.

"Alright, enough of this, let's sit down!" Kaidan insisted.


Trilla couldn't express how happy she was to see everyone again, but she hadn't said much through the beginning of their time together. It was somewhat of a tight fit in the booth, but it was spaced out enough so that everyone was comfortable, even if she subtly didn't mind that she and Xur's legs rubbed up against each other now and then. Her introverted personality had kept her from directly speaking to him often, a frustrating impasse that had driven her insane. Sure, they had met on Ossus recently, but they spent most of that time tense with each other instead of having just a normal, eased conversation.

If only she could steal him away for one minute…

"…bang!" Kaidan smacked his hand on the table, shocking her attention back to the conversation playing out before her. "Mortar fire hits us, and I'm like: 'Damn, which one of y'all pissed 'em off?'"

There were laughs from Xur and Effa while Anakin rolled his eyes, and Trilla only smiled to feel included.

"Mortar fire is nothing," Anakin waved off. "You ever faced a defoliator cannon? That's when you know you've pissed them off."

Xur scoffed. "Not even. Gunships and commando droids are the clear signs. You know those damn things are expensive, and against Jedi? You might as well order new ones right after you send them off," he then nudged Trilla with his elbow. "You should've seen her on Ossus. Separatist billing must've been sky high."

Trilla shrugged as all their eyes fell on her. "Collapse a couple of tunnels, and the droids don't know where else to go. It was nothing, really."

The zabrak shook his head and had his arm around her in a flash, eliciting a blush she quickly tried to hide. "No, she's just being modest. I mean…I might've done all the work but - ow!" he grunted as she elbowed him playfully.

"You ass," she shook her head. "You were out of commission the entire time, if I remember correctly."

When Xur shrugged to a point well made, the table laughed in unison.

"Funny how you left that part out of your story," Anakin recounted. "I remember it being along the lines of 'Republic War Hero Saves Jedi Younglings', not 'Republic War Hero gets KO'd while his Counterpart Does All the Work'."

"Harmless self-promotion," he raised his hands defensively, pulling his arm from her, to her dismay. "You do it all the time, Skywalker."

"There's self-promotion, and then there's lying," Effa interjected with a smile, seated between Anakin and Kaidan. "Jedi don't lie."

Xur scoffed and shook his head, in a state of non-denial. "I'm a shitty Jedi, you guys know this."

Everyone laughed at that.

In a moment of instinct, Trilla bumped her shoulder into his bashfully and affectionately. "I think you're a great Jedi."

Xur didn't take it the way she wanted him too, only smiling to her for a moment before looking away. "Thanks, Trilla."

A silence fell over the table, and she felt the need to bundle herself behind her knees to hide from their prying eyes, but much to her surprise…no one reacted. It was unlike them, specifically Kaidan, to leave any flirty moment be, and part of her figured it was simply the grown maturity of the group; all of them experiencing these feelings one way or another.

The conversation rounds continued, and she once again fell into a listening role, not involving herself too much. Mostly, she found herself touching her face, not used to the amount of makeup she had applied for this event. It was Effa's idea, mostly, since in the field she hardly had the time to keep up her outlook, but part of her enjoyed it. Despite being a Jedi, it was a bit of normalcy that helped ease her mind when she was off-duty, and anything like that was gold during a war…even the simple things.

"You alright?" Xur asked while he also was out of the conversation, catching her while she rubbed underneath her right eye.

Trilla cleared her throat, pulling her hand away. "What?"

Xur snorted, crossing his arms and leaning back in the booth. "Something under your eye?"

"Oh," she waved her hand dismissively. "It's nothing…" she trailed off, and then found herself at a precipice. If she continued on this path, she'd allow him to become lost with the others again…and then he was only one holo-call away from being taken from her again.

Time to take the leap.

"Actually," she grabbed his attention, just before he turned away. "I was wondering if we could…talk."

Xur narrowed his eyes. "We are."

"I meant more like…" she hinted towards the door.

The zabrak caught her meaning and shrugged. "Alright, lead the way, Commander."

As they scooted out of the booth, Trilla struggling to manage her nerves, it was then that Kaidan spoke up. "Hey!" he said. "Where you guys going?"

Trilla paused, but Xur pushed her along gently. "Relax," he eased. "We'll be back in a minute."

She led him out of the diner and into the Coruscant outdoors, the bustling skylanes subtly in the background. The streets were mostly clear of pedestrians, various races pacing around for their daily duties, just before the work rush began again. It was a relief for her, since she didn't want too many prying eyes on their conversation…and the best she could find in the short time was around the back of the lounge.

"Are we coming to a contraband pickup?" Xur joked with their surroundings, and Trilla could only smile once she faced him.

"No. I cut ties with my supplier," she carried on.

He snickered, crossing his arms. "Too bad. His prices were good…so what's up?"

Trilla only now realized that she hadn't thought of anything to say. "Um…well," she stammered, rubbing the center of her palm with her thumb…silently cursing herself for not being prepared.

Come on Suduri…think!

"I wanted to ask you something," she went out on a limb, and then straight to her heart. "Do you think it's right for Jedi to…ignore their feelings?"

The zabrak cocked his head. "What do you mean?"

"Well I was just…" she stopped herself, and eventually shook her head, flushing with embarrassment.

This is stupid. Nice move Trilla.

"It depends," he answered anyway. "You should avoid those that can compromise your judgment, like anger, hate…" there was a pause in his answer, and Trilla spotted his eyes shifting in thought. "No…honestly, I don't think it's right. Why do you ask?"

Ok…he's said it…now take it!

"Do you remember…what you said to me…before you left?" she asked, adjusting her slouch to stand tall, just shorter than he by a few inches.

Xur's face fell. "Trilla…"

It was a moment of madness that possessed her to step forward and press her lips against his, drawing his eyes wide and his hands to her shoulders, pushing her away as gently as possible. "Woah, woah hey!" he protested.

Her face blemished red, and she backed off, shrouded in embarrassment. "I'm…I'm sorry," she apologized. In that moment, she almost turned and ran off, just to spare her the continued pain of witnessing his shocked expression at her sudden and foolhardy move, but the zabrak reached out and took her hand before she could go.

"Look, Trilla…" he sighed, his expression understanding. "You're still…important…to me…but things are really crazy right now. I'm sorry."

It was the worst disaster she could've imagined, absolutely unbecoming of her Jedi training, and certainly something her master would scold her for days about. Cere wasn't wound up tight like other Jedi, but she'd never let something as low as this slide. Not only was it against the Jedi Code, which could land her in the Hall of Judgment, it was a heinous failure to control something easily stifled away.

But that was just it. She couldn't get him off her mind…not since Ossus…not since she witnessed his exposed intestines leaking from his stomach as she ripped a piece of his own fighter from his body. It was a stark reminder that everyone she knew could be gone in an instant, and she had become fed up with letting these one-time moments pass.

For all she knew, he could be dead by sunset.

She gripped his hand with purpose, and he returned the gesture…but if Trilla was good at detecting anything, it was hidden emotions that another kept under wraps…and Xur did not feel the same way about her…at least on the outside. He was harder to read than most; keeping his thoughts inside labyrinths she could become lost in for hours and end up right back at the beginning…similar to how Anakin's mind was wired…but she didn't need the Force to know what was going on.

Thinking of Anakin reminded her…and it all made sense.

Trilla grumbled in disgust and pulled her hand away. "Forget it," she almost spat, crossing her arms and turning away. "I know what's going on."

Xur took offense to her accusatory tone, and it only frustrated her further. "What are you talking about?"

She scoffed, shaking her head. "Really? Anakin's padawan?"

Now she'd wormed under his skin, remnants of the last time. "We are not doing this again," he pointed.

"I expected better from you," she mocked, not gracing him with her gaze.

"Ugh!" he grumbled. "Why are you being such a…a…"

"A what?" she challenged, now facing him, her anger getting the best of her. "Say it! Go on, call me a bitch! Tell me how I'm jealous that some other togruta cunt has won your heart."

"Hey," Xur warned, his tone low.

"Oh? Defensive, are you?" Trilla noticed. "You don't even need to admit it. You wear it all over your face."

"Trilla!" he shouted, but with his hands up in an easing gesture. "You've got it all wrong."

She snorted in amusement. "Do I now?"

Xur was about to continue, until the ringing of his commlink saved them another argument. He winced. "Master Windu. Look, Trilla, I'm sorry I hurt y-."

"Don't…just…" she stopped him with her hand raised, unable to look his way, hearing the chimes persist. "You'd better answer that."

The zabrak only gave her a worried glance before stepping away to take the call, and Trilla took that chance to leave him. She was fuming, and she couldn't control it, but once she turned the corner, that's when she realized what she had done. Something in her had just…snapped, and it was as if another, much pettier and viler version of herself had emerged.

Deep down, she was jealous…jealous of a girl she had never even met, but she didn't care. She hated her, and she'd be dammed if she let her run rampage over her life.

What goes around, comes around.

Then, her own commlink flashed.

When she saw it was Cere, she did her best to shake off her bubbling emotions, but another part of her didn't mind it.

"Yes, Master?" she greeted, Cere Junda's full frame projected before her.

"Trilla, I need you to meet me in the War Room at the Jedi Temple. There's something big going on, and we're being asked to be a part of it," she explained, her expression somewhat grave.

"Understood. I'll meet you there," Trilla acknowledged, and cut the transmission against her better judgment.

Get ahold of yourself, dammit.

Now she was getting out of control. Damn that togruta.

"Trilla, I'm sorry," Xur apologized from behind, catching up to her. She seethed in annoyance, but it didn't deter him. "Please…I can't have us part like this."

She shook her head. "I need to get to the War Room."

Xur paused. "Wait…you too?"

"Yes, me too," she rolled her eyes. "I know it's always a surprise to you but yes…I'm worth something."

"Trilla, come on!" he protested, his hand falling to her shoulder. "That's not what I-."

"Just leave me be!" she whirled, smacking it away, and then stomped off to find her parked speeder, leaving the zabrak alone to watch her go.


Coruscant, 19 BBY

Jedi Temple War Room

The War Room was a technological marvel, and easily the most state-of-the-art section in the entire Jedi Temple. Outfitted with multiple holoprojectors that allowed high command to seemingly alter reality with their fingertips, it was the perfect place to run through the plan, on paper and in practice.

But it wasn't made to house this many Jedi.

Xur had to squeeze his way around the holotable, occupied by Jedi Masters Obi-Wan Kenobi, Mace Windu, Yoda, Ki-Adi Mundi, and Cere Junda. Aside from them squeezed in Anakin Skywalker, who he had managed to find a spot beside, as always, Kaidan Alko, Effa Azulia, and finally, just across from him, Trilla Suduri.

She hadn't laid an eye on him since their argument, orbiting around her master since he had entered the Temple, maintaining an arms-crossed stance. Despite what she may believe, he could sense how frustrated and angry she was, and part of him couldn't blame her, but some of the things she had said were certainly unwarranted. It was fine to be upset…it was another to start insulting a friend of his with needlessly derogatory language.

If he hadn't felt so bad for her, he would've reacted much more harshly. Silently he wished Ahsoka wouldn't show…but that was an impractical expectation at best. Trilla could certainly be counted on to not let things go.

"Hey," the guest of honor squeezed in between he and Anakin, eliciting groans of annoyance from them both. "What'd I miss?" Ahsoka asked, leaning in on the holotable.

Anakin shrugged. "A lot of standing around," he complained, and turned to Obi-Wan. "Master, can we get this thing moving?"

Xur watched Obi-Wan roll his eyes, and then mumbled. "Master Windu, shall we indulge Anakin with his request?"

"We're still waiting on another update," Mace answered, shaking his head. "The attack is on-going."

Cere leaned forward, looking past Obi-Wan. "And where is this attack, exactly?"

"Don't tell me Geonosis fell again," Xur almost groaned. "I still got bug guts on my armor I can't scrape off."

He earned small laughs from his younger peers, and shaken heads from the older, aside from Trilla, of course, whose pettiness could be bisected with only a lightsaber. Ahsoka laughed the hardest, which only fueled it. Usually by now he would've been scolded by a current Council Member for his "lust for battle", a tedious speech he had heard from everyone, and was frankly ready to shove it back down the throat of the next Jedi who gave it to him, but with Master Windu present, everyone tended to keep their mouths shut, and this time was no different.

"To our luck, no," Mace confirmed, activating the holotable, which in turn displayed a map of the galaxy and zoomed in just south of Mandalorian space. That area of the galaxy was perhaps the oldest battleground of the war itself, being the target of the Separatists' first campaigns three years ago. It had consistently been a deadlock, neither side gaining any ground no matter who seemed to have the advantage. "But I wouldn't consider this luck either."

Xur grumbled. Tranbir fucking Nine.

The ninth celestial body of the Tranbir system was displayed to them all, home to the bloodiest stalemate of the entire war. Separatist forces had been landing since the war had begun, and it had become a trench-warfare meat and metal grinder for each side. The Republic had tried detonating multiple nuclear devices to push them back, as well as heavy bombardment from orbit, but both sides were too dug in. Whatever inhabitants had lived on the planet before were long gone now.

When he snuck a look Trilla's way, he could trace her gaze straight back to Ahsoka, who had her own eyes focused on the image. Xur could only grumble to himself in annoyance, but there was nothing he could do about it, not now anyway.

"We have just received word that the Separatists have consolidated much of their fleets, and are now pointing them all towards Tranbir IX," Mace explained, showing a graphic of the converging forces. "Evidence suggests that they intend to break through our defenses, and unfortunately, since we've had to commit so many resources to the planet itself, if it falls, it will be awhile until we halt their momentum again."

Mace stepped back, allowing Obi-Wan to take the lead role. "As I'm sure you are aware, both forces are entrenched here," he pointed, and the planet zoomed in to the heaviest battlefield. There were trenches dug out for miles, and it was truthfully unlike any battlefield Xur had ever seen. "Between the two front lines is a swath; a 'No Man's Land' if you will. It's been outfitted with traps that have even taken a few Jedi, but we believe that if the Separatists find themselves at favorable odds with us, they will charge, and that'll be where we all come in."

The baton was passed back to Mace, and he directed his attention towards he and Anakin. "Skywalker, you will be leading the front line. We've outfitted the 501st for the task, and they will join you once you arrive. That line is in desperate need of fresh troops and strong leadership."

Anakin tipped his head in acknowledgment. "Understood."

"Azulia and Alko will join you," Mace continued, and Ahsoka revealed confusion in her expression, in which Obi-Wan picked up immediately.

"Xur, Ahsoka and Padawan Suduri will act as the right side of a double inversion, while I lead my forces from the left," he drew on the map. "If the timing is right, we should be able to meet in the middle and decimate their front line in one maneuver."

Ahsoka nudged him at the sound of the plan, and he only granted her a half smile…sparking concern within her.

"Master Kenobi…forgive me, but…I believe I may be more useful elsewhere," Trilla suggested, her tone desperately trying not to sound bitter. "I'm sure there are wounded men that I could-."

"Tranbir IX is a bloodbath, Trilla," Xur interjected. "I'm going to need your help to pull this off."

Her gaze didn't change much, but there was notable surprise that he sensed within her, which inspired confidence within him to continue.

"I need people I can trust…Commanders I can trust."

That hit home, and he could see it in her expression, even if she didn't want to admit it.

"Alright," she accepted, and he spotted Cere gripping her padawan's shoulder in reassurance.

"Master Junda. You and I will be running coordination," Mace continued, drawing her attention. "We're going to be monitoring transmissions at all times."

She merely nodded her head in acknowledgment, and that was when everyone became restless to get moving, conversation sparking between different parties. Xur himself was anxious, but he couldn't shake a feeling…like this mission wasn't going to be like any other.

"One last thing," Mace interjected, calling everyone to silence as he tapped a flashing button on the console before him. "The last data dump just came in…and it reads that the Separatists are being led by Admiral Trench…and the Wraith."

Slight gasps shuddered around the room, but Xur didn't follow in their reaction. "Who's that?" he asked with a shrug.

This time, Anakin was the one who answered. "Slippery little bastard. He's a Separatist super soldier. Mean customer. I can't believe he's still alive."

Ahsoka was being eerily and uncharacteristically silent beside him.

"Doesn't sound like much of a problem to me," Xur continued. If he had 20 credits for every Separatist soldier who put "super" in front of their name, he could afford himself a new starship, the works too.

"Do not underestimate him," his former master warned with a pointed finger. "He's earned his reputation for a reason. We've lost a lot of men to him, not to mention a number of battles."

"I don't care who he is. If he gets in my way, I'll take care of him," being careful not to say kill, since he'd have to endure another lecture.

"Yeah, you say that now," Kaidan warned. "Just wait till you see this guy. Carries enough firepower to wipe out a platoon."

"In any case, the plan remains the same," Mace confirmed.

Yoda stamped his cane into the ground. "Good luck, I give you all. The end of the war, near it is. Trust in each other, you must, and succeed, you will."

"Thank you, Master Yoda," Obi-Wan bowed, followed by many others.

"On that, let us begin. Dismissed," Mace concluded.

Xur was the last one out, as usual, taking the time to run through the holomap. No one ever seemed to mind him taking the extra time, as long as he wasn't late boarding the Demeter. He needed a second opinion anyway.

Transferring the data to his holodisk, he exited up the stairs and into the Jedi Temple halls.

Trilla was waiting there for him, her arms crossed. She looked slightly embarrassed and somewhat uncomfortable, but she was there, nonetheless.

"Hey," she greeted.

Xur wasn't sure how to react. "Hey."

Her expression loosened, and it was obvious she was feeling apologetic. "I'm sorry about what I said. I…lost it…I guess."

The zabrak smiled and approached her, giving her a reassuring pat on the back as he led her to walk beside him. "Don't worry about it."

Her hand slid up her other arm, resting on her elbow as she hunched over and kept pace. "Ever since Ossus…I've been…thinking about how we argued," she admitted. "When I saw you laid out on that cot…unconscious…I felt so guilty. You didn't deserve anything I had said-."

"You saved my life, Trilla," he reminded her, his hand gliding to grip her far shoulder. "And trust me, I know I can be a pain in the ass sometimes."

She smiled. "Ha! Well isn't that the truth."

He playfully pulled her close. "Alright, come on, we got a – hey!" he protested as a teenaged boy ran through his leg.

"Oh! Sorry Master Eon!" the red-haired Padawan apologized but continued to run off. "Master Tapal is going to kill me!"

Xur and Trilla watched him go, and she gave him a funny look. "Do you know him?"

The zabrak shrugged. "I think his name was Cal…or…something," he recounted, staring for a moment as the kid disappeared around a corner. "Oh yeah, Bracca. Good kid. Anyway, as I was saying…"

"How did you meet?" Trilla continued to enquire.

"Ah…clean up duty," he waved off. "Not important."

She chuckled. "He's a quick one. Wouldn't want to have to chase after him."

"Are you gonna listen to what I'm trying to tell you, or keep focusing on that random kid?"

Trilla snorted and bowed in mockery. "How may I serve, General Eon?"

He scoffed as he realized she was toying with him. "Fucking hell, forget it."

She laughed as they proceeded to the exit…off to battle together.

At last.


Demeter, 19 BBY

Padawan's Quarters

Her quarters were certainly cozy, and it was a nice change of pace for Trilla, who had spent much of her apprenticeship camping out or sleeping on a cramped shuttle. For once, she had her own space to meditate and center herself, something she desperately needed right about now. Even if she and Xur had made up for now, she still didn't feel at ease.

After setting aside her sporadic possessions and relinquishing herself of her heavy gear, she did just that. Finding quiet in the center of her quarters, she calmed herself, letting go of her frustrations…her fears, insecurities, jealousies…

The chiming of her door brought an end to all that.

She sighed. "Who is it?"

"Sorry to bother you, can I come in?" the muffled female voice came through, and her eyes bulged in recognition. She wanted so badly to scream no, and tell the togruta to go fuck herself and never come back…but who would be the real issue in that case?

Fine…let's see what you have to say.

"Come in," she granted, falling out of her meditative pose and settling for something more comfortable.

When the door opened, she was graced with Ahsoka in all her glory, a lithe teenager who looked more like a front-line fighter than a Jedi Knight. Her twin blades hung at her hips, displayed for her counterpart to revel in as she strolled forward, sitting on her presumptuous ass across from her as the door closed.

At least that was how Trilla perceived her behavior.

"You're Trilla, right?" she asked, holding her hand out. "I'm Ahsoka."

Trilla stared at her orange-skinned hand like it was a parasite, but eventually swallowed her pride and shook it. "Nice to meet you, Ahsoka," she said, holding back vomit from surfacing.

"Xur's told me a lot about you," the togruta smiled, which only made Trilla even angrier. "I'm so glad to finally meet you!"

"Yes, I'm sure," Trilla huffed, her emerald eyes pacing away. "Is there something you wanted?"

Ahsoka's smile somewhat faded, which instilled a level of satisfaction Trilla couldn't describe. "Just…wanted to talk…that's all, you know, since we're going to be working together. I thought it would probably be a good idea to get to know you."

Well, isn't that interesting.

Before Trilla threw another "leave me alone" comment her way, she reanalyzed Ahsoka's last statement. All this time she had been afraid to understand her prospective rival for Xur's affection, but if she was going to defeat this opponent before her, she had to understand her. The togruta was obviously overly jubilant and quick to trust, two traits Trilla could never stomach well, and her initial assumptions painted her as somewhat prissy and presumptuous: expressing her status as Anakin's Padawan to the whole galaxy. However, the ladder was becoming less and less fitting, unless Ahsoka's real reason for being here was to rub it in her face that the zabrak cared more about her than he did for Trilla. If that was the case, she'd feel less guilty about telling her to fuck off.

Alright, horned-headed cunt. Let's play a game.

"Very well," Trilla shrugged, feigning disinterest. "What do you want to know?"

Ahsoka's bright smile returned. "What saber form do you use most?"

"Form II," Trilla answered. "But I've been working on Form V the most. You?"

"Form IV…"

She sat through the initial small talk, merely biding her time to ask the big question, and didn't much care for Ahsoka's responses. It was obvious that she was at least mature for her age, maintaining a military-like discipline consistently through their conversation, but bits of her easy-going and determined personality showed themselves from time to time. Why she appealed to Xur was making more and more sense, furthering her growing distaste for the togruta, but Trilla masterfully kept it hidden. She had a purpose now, using her skills of analytics to her advantage, checking off behavioral cues that revealed more than Ahsoka was probably aware of…not that she was attempting to hide anything anyway.

When Ahsoka finished another long ramble, Trilla struck. "How did you meet Xur?"

She smiled, and Trilla sensed fond memories. "On Christophsis two years ago. He was good friends with Anakin, so it was only a matter of time before we met. Xur was…nice to me, even if Anakin wasn't at first. I learned a lot from him, as I think he did from me. We're good friends…one of the reasons I stayed with the Order."

Good friends…right…a "good friend" would keep you from leaving the Jedi Order.

"How'd you meet him?" Ahsoka asked in turn.

Trilla knew it was coming, and yet it still caught her off guard, but she recovered and stuck to her plot. "Seven years ago…we played a sabacc game in Anakin's dormitory. That's how I met him."

"Ah, of course," Ahsoka recognized. "He's really good. I've tried learning from him, but it's too much analytics for my taste."

And that's why you'll never see me coming.

"Don't worry," Trilla smirked, more at that realization. "I'm not any good either."

That was a lie. She'd cleaned out whole tables of clone troopers before, and every time she managed to convince Cere to play, it never ended well for her master.

The togruta laughed. "He's a bad teacher, as it turns out."

Trilla laughed back, and then punched her ticket. "You like him, don't you?"

Ahsoka scoffed. "Yeah, of course I like him."

"No," Trilla shook her head. "I meant more…"

Like clockwork, and just as Trilla had predicted, Ahsoka's eyes widened. "What? Oh no, no, no, no, no…not like that," she answered, and her confidence revealed she was telling the truth. "He's a great guy and all, but a little too…I don't know…" she became rattled, her security fading, and it brought Trilla more joy than anything to see her smile fade into discomfort. "Just…I don't know…"

Yes you do.

She thought she was so clever. Little did she know that Trilla certainly noticed her private reaction to the sound of the Wraith as Master Windu revealed it to them all. It was all a hunch; a mere suspicion, and yet it had blossomed right before her eyes, and the unsuspecting togruta had no idea what she had just revealed to her adversary.

Trilla waved it off. "Ah, forget I mentioned anything."

Ahsoka snorted. "Alright…you know, it was nice meeting you, but I'd…" she trailed off and rose to her feet. "…I better get back to my master. He's probably looking for me."

"Wouldn't want to test Anakin," Trilla agreed. "I enjoyed our little chat, Ahsoka."

"Me too," Ahsoka nodded, and then turned towards the door. "See you there."

As the door shut, and Trilla was left alone, she sighed happily and proceeded to lie on the floor of her quarters, letting herself smile in pleasure.

I just walked into a high stakes game with no cards and bluffed, while the naïve togruta folded her straight staves. Oh…oh how unfortunate it is to be you, Ahsoka Tano.

This was too easy.


"So this Wraith guy," Xur asked, on the back end of swallowing his "duraplast" government rations as he sat across from Kaidan, engaging in the same act. "What's all the fuss?"

Kaidan spoke while still chewing, eliciting a cringe from the zabrak that his counterpart ignored. "Heesh a fwckin' nightmare."

Xur leaned in. "Sorry, I'm going to need that in Basic this time."

The dark-skinned Jedi shook his head and swallowed, in which Xur only chuckled in mockery. "I said: he's a fucking nightmare."

"Oof. Strong words coming from you. Care to explain?"

Kaidan cleared his throat, his expression demanding his attention. "I'll just say this: when I'm done explaining, if I gave you the choice of fucking the Chancellor and fighting the Wraith, you'd have your pants down and your cock up before I could blink."

Xur almost spat his current bite out in laughter. "You're shitting me! That bad? Alright, I've got to hear this."

The Jedi cleared his throat once again, in dramatic fashion, and then adopted a "scary storytelling" demeanor of sorts. "So, let me begin by introducing our protagonist: handsome, dashing, powerful. His strength and grasp of the Force unparalleled…"

"For fuck sake just tell me what happened you dip-shit," Xur grumbled in annoyance, but still granted him a smile for his effort.

"Fine, fine," Kaidan accepted. "It was on…fuckin'…I can't remember. Taris or some shit I don't know. Anyway, we were on patrol through city ruins…like I mean ruins…like shit's hella fucked up ruins. Like some mofo blasted the shit out of this place."

"Yeah, sounds like Taris. Go on."

"Yeah, whatever. Anyway, my squad and I tore up some clankers, and we might've gotten lost along the way…maybe. We were trying to cut a swath through the swamp, but we also got some target practice with some zombie things…rak-fucks or something like that. Got one of our guys…bad way to go."

"You mean rakghouls," Xur deducted.

"Yeah, yeah those things. You see, then we started coming across dead ones, and I mean dead…like torn-to-fuckin'-pieces dead…but it was systematic, on purpose. It was almost as if whoever was killing them was trying to draw other wildlife in, because dumb ass animals don't know to stay away from the diseased fucks.

"Eventually I got a 'hunch' you might say. Someone was trying to lead lethal predators to us, and sure enough, one by one, my guys were getting picked off."

"You're taking this rather easy for an obviously traumatic experience," Xur noticed, intrigued, nonetheless.

"What can I say, I was impressed, but I'm not even at the best part yet," Kaidan continued. "Eventually it was down to just me and a couple of troops, and that's when I saw him. You're probably going to think I'm crazy when I tell you this, but I swear this guy was a literal shadow. Red eyes bro…I shit you not. I thought he was a fuckin demon at first, hence the nightmare part."

Then he cleared his throat, again. "When he came out, all I heard was a crack, and one of my men dropped dead, his neck snapped before I had a chance to react. The next guy…oh god…I think he pulled his spine from his body."

Xur grimaced.

"He then mumbled a few words in some evil demon language, and then grabbed me by the neck," he explained. "I was pretty sure I was gonna die, but then the last of my men tackled him. Yeah, he might've been killed too, but I took my chance and fired my shoulder particle lance into his chest! Blast knocked the motherfucker into next week, and here I am, able to tell the story."

The zabrak deadpanned. "A particle lance? Seriously? That's the dumbest shit I've ever heard."

Kaidan grumbled. "Alright fine, a gunship swooped in and saved my ass. I hopped in and got the fuck out of there. I had no plans on sticking around with that guy. Hell no."

Xur scoffed. "Well, your story was fantastic. Unfortunately, I feel like I've learned absolutely nothing about the Wraith."

"Come on," Kaidan goaded. "Don't tell me you're not getting the hots for the Chancellor."

"Ugh," Xur spat in disgust, rising to his feet. "You know what…I'm gonna go find Trilla. Uh…see ya on the battlefield, I guess."

"Dead man walkin'!" Kaidan shouted back as Xur walked off. "Don't say I didn't warn you!"


"So…Jedi Knight huh?"

Effa smiled, hiding her inability to suppress the blush that always came from compliments via Anakin Skywalker himself. "Mm-hm! Effective one month to the day."

The taller human rubbed the back of his neck in slight embarrassment. "Sorry I couldn't be there. Things have been crazy recently."

It wasn't anything spectacular anyway. Most Padawans were being knighted even earlier with the war going on, and the fact that they were losing Jedi faster than they could knight them. Because of this many of them had very sub-par ceremonies, sometimes on a Republic Venator due to the demands of their assignments.

There simply wasn't enough time to cater to everyone. Effa was lucky enough to have hers on Coruscant, but it wasn't announced, and only a few Council Members, her master, and Trilla had shown. The fact that anyone she knew had been able to see it was fortunate enough for her.

"You didn't miss anything," Effa waved off.

"Ah…I'll make it up to you…somehow," Anakin shrugged, his eyes on the bridge viewport of the Demeter as they traveled through hyperspace, while Effa found her own pair dancing over his image every now and then. "Have you ever been to Tranbir IX?"

Effa shook her head. "Nope. I've heard its really bad down there."

Anakin grimaced, and she felt an overwhelming urge to comfort his troubled feelings, but knew that on the bridge, it would be far less than acceptable. "You've heard right. Xur called it a bloodbath and he meant it. This isn't the first time he and I have tried to break the deadlock."

She sensed strong feelings within him, even if he tried hiding them. Effa always had a natural affinity for detecting emotions, which was why she usually ended up wearing hers on her sleeve. "And this Wraith…have you faced him before?"

Anakin didn't answer right away, similarly to how he reacted when she usually asked him about a subject he didn't want to talk about. She, unlike others, was perfectly content with allowing him to keep silent.

"Yes," Anakin answered with a tinge of displeasure, crossing his arms.

Effa knew that was all she was getting out of him, and she dropped it. It had always been…hard…speaking to Anakin, especially with how she felt about him. At first, when she had first met him, he was only months into his Jedi training…always alone, always rejected. She prided herself with being the first to open up to the ostracized Jedi, as many had feared him, especially with what he could do.

But she never feared him, and he had never given her a reason to. It took some commitment, but she eventually said the right words to get him to open up to her, and since then they had always found each other when they needed someone to speak to. Over the years, and as they got older, those times dwindled away…and even now, this was the first time she had spoken to him in over a year. Their conversations had become stagnant…apologetic…lifeless.

She felt the importance of this mission, but also the gift she had been given. This moment with Anakin…this mere blink in time…she needed to savor it…for as long as it may last.

"Xur…Commodore Vorchenko," Anakin greeted.

Aaaand it's over.

She must've lost track of time in her little moment of thought, as they were joined by another pair appearing from behind.

"Reyna…excuse me…Commodore Vorchenko has got some ideas for our attack," Xur explained, directed more at Anakin. Effa found it interesting that Xur would first refer to a Republic Officer by their first name, and his less-than-subtle correction confirmed that it was less than ideal nor proper. Still…Effa admired such a connection, as well as the fact that the black-haired commodore didn't seem to mind at all.

"General Skywalker, I must caution you in regard to the traps the Separatists have laid in the 'No Man's Land'. Not only will you face constant mortar bombardment, but they also consist of electro-mines, sonic cannons and hidden ray shields," she explained, brandishing a datapad to display a holographic image before them. "However, we have been able to map many of these traps, and I have taken the liberty of deducting the probabilities of mortar fire striking each zone," she flicked forward and the image displayed bubbles of orange that Effa deducted as danger zones.

Anakin traced his finger along a pathway away from the bubbles and with a minimal concentration of traps. "So we could stay along this route to have the best chance at crossing," he mused. "But there has to be a reason this is so open."

"Indeed," Vorchenko nodded. "The droids used this pathway to plant many of their traps. They have attempted to cover it, but our intel suggests they have had little success in this endeavor."

"You could wait for Obi-Wan and I to complete the inversion, which could draw a lot of mortar fire away from you," Xur tacked on. "Or you could take it head on, which could draw a charge from the droids to hold you off if you make your team small enough."

"So make your job easier, or mine, basically?" Anakin figured. "What do you think Effa? You want easier or more fun?"

Effa smiled. "Whatever you think is best, General Skywalker."

"Heh, in that case," Anakin smirked. "Kaidan's not going to like it, but I think we should try and draw out their attack, that way we'll crush them when we meet in the middle."

"Yeah, just leave it to me to bail you out again," Xur shrugged in a manner-of-fact pose.

"It'd make up for all the times I pulled your ass out of the fire."

"Ma'am," a clone deck officer called from below, directed to the Commodore. "We're about to come out of hyperspace."

"Very good, captain," she nodded, and then took the foremost spot in front of the view port. "Bring us out, fast and quiet."

Anakin smirked beside Effa. "This is where the fun begins."

She could feel it…his excitement was contagious…but she couldn't shake the feeling in the pit of her stomach.

Like this was the last time she'd ever be with him.


Tranbir IX, 19 BBY

Inner Atmosphere

Trilla maintained a death-grip on the gunship overhead handle as the turbulence picked up. She couldn't tell if it was from their atmospheric entry or the incoming anti-air fire from the Separatist emplacements below, and part of her didn't want to know. Each violent shake rattled her in the enclosed space, surrounded by 502nd Legion clone troopers who looked as if this was another routine flight.

If only she shared their confidence.

Xur and Ahsoka hadn't stopped slinging banter since they boarded, and it was beginning to not only annoy her, but make her feel somewhat ostracized, which was one of the reasons she had asked to be relocated in the first place. Despite the seed of anxiety she had planted within Ahsoka, it was still difficult to watch the two of them get along so easily, especially when it reminded her of what she and Xur used to be.

No time for that now.

Another hit rocked the gunship, and Xur laughed. "Looks like we kicked the nest!"

"Time to burn em out!" Ahsoka added, looking to Trilla. "Hanging in there?"

Oh, how badly she wanted to strangle her for even mentioning it. "I'm fine."

The faster they hit the ground, the better, that way she could just focus on fighting instead of pretending to be her friend.

Her wish seemed to have been granted, as eventually they pulled off enough west of the fight for the flak to break away, and it was mostly a smooth ride and landing once they hit their designated zone.

Trilla's initial impression of Tranbir IX was a mesa world, filled with mostly golden-tan rock formations that gave way to flat landscapes that went on for miles. However, with how devastated the world had been by the Clone War, what she saw as she exited the gunship was a barren world that had lost its glory years ago. Natural rocks had been cracked open or spoiled by crashed gunships on both sides, and much of the ground had been scorched black. Her senses spiked as her eyes laid upon a nigh-perfect circle in the distance that had burned itself into the ground.

"Defoliator cannon," Xur answered from behind, pointing as he came up beside her. "The Separatists dropped a few of those on our encampments. Lost a lot of men to just one of those shells."

It almost sang to her, just as a wound would, but she felt no pull…no life.

She couldn't shake it…a feeling. Something about this mission wasn't right…something about this planet wasn't right.

"You've got battle jitters, don't you?" he asked, a smirk on his face.

"Battle jitters?" she asked, confused at his terminology.

"Yeah…don't worry about it. You might start questioning your own purpose in the galaxy, but it'll go away…eventually."

She scoffed, crossing her arms. "How comforting."

Her response didn't ward him off, and instead he had his hand on her shoulder once again, taking her by surprise. "You're gonna do great," he assured, and then patted her back twice before turning back to his men.

It wasn't battle jitters. There was something out there…something hunting.

Hunting for her.

"Commander," a voice pulled her from her trance, and her eyes darted to the ARC trooper Mars, the same she had met on Ossus. "The General is pairing me with you. Good to see you again."

"Ah," she recovered, returning her senses to the here and now. "Yes, right. What's the plan?"

Mars chuckled. "Battle jitters, Commander?"

I don't have fucking battle jitters, you dumb cunt.

"No…I just…sense something," she revealed, hiding her annoyance, and reeling from her own needlessly harsh thoughts. "It's not anxiety…I feel like something is hunting me."

Mars didn't answer right away, and she could feel his fear take on a mind of its own for a moment. His fingers danced, fidgeting towards his DC-17 blaster pistols at his holsters, and a heightened battle sense followed.

"You don't think it's…" he trailed off, seemingly hinting at a word that should not be spoken aloud.

Trilla shook her head. "I don't know what it is."

"Hmmm," Mars mumbled, but turned his attention back to her. "Anyways…the plan is to advance beside this cliff face and into the trench system. There we'll take a small team forward, and once we've completed proper recon, the General will give the signal for the rest of the company to attack."

Her eyes paced around the assembling men. Most of them were front line infantry units, mixed with an array of special forces, but not many. Behind had landed a few TX-130 tanks, and behind them were three AT-TE walkers with heavy cannons. She assumed those would not be much use in the trenches and would be used mostly for artillery.

"How many will head into the trenches?" she asked.

"He, Commander Tano, you and I, Captain Raven, Lockdown and a few of the other boys."

Trilla remembered Lockdown and Raven. The Captain was perhaps the most informal commanding officer she had ever met, while Lockdown was the polar opposite, sticking to the book but oozing with advanced tech. Familiar faces were refreshing, especially since she already was feeling cross about dealing with Ahsoka.

"Well…let's get to it, shall we?" she accepted.


Tranbir IX, 19 BBY

Republic Front

"What's the status Rex?" Anakin shouted over the constant bombardment, and Effa shielded her eyes from the cascading dirt that poured into their trench. The blue and white armored captain of the 501st legion met his General and walked beside him at pace, and it was difficult to hear his response.

"We're locked in tight, General," he said. "The clankers are dug in on the far side of No Man's Land, and their mortar fire is beginning to take a toll on our numbers. We're going to need to move soon."

"Alright," Anakin nodded. "Gather what men you can. We're going to rush the trench."

"Sir?!" Rex asked, stunned.

"I've got a plan. There's a route we can take that's out of their mortar range, just in between two cannons that are too spread out to link. There's enough cover that the droids won't be able to hit us."

"General…there's traps as well. This battalion has tried many times to cross, and they only lost more men."

"Rex, you're starting to sound like Obi-Wan!" Anakin teased, turning to Effa and Kaidan, who followed in tow. "We've got three Jedi this time. It'll work out just fine."

Rex huffed, but Effa could sense the trust he had in his General. "If you say so sir. I'll round up some of our best men."

As the captain trudged around the tight space, occupied by the newly arriving 501st in their shining armor as well as the soiled and cracked armor of the ones who had been here for 3 years, Anakin dipped into a forward passage, bringing them one step closer to the main trench.

"Good to see your way with words hasn't changed," Effa noted, her saber hilt close at hand.

"Heh, just you wait," Anakin joked. "Kaidan, you're being awfully quiet back there!"

Her counterpart kept to himself as he did his best to keep up with the two of them. "Ah…I don't like front line battles much. Give me four men, a fortress to break into and some climbing spikes. That's where I'm at home."

"You like the overwhelming odds?" Effa asked.

"Pfft. You say that like I'm the underdog in that situation."

Anakin brought them to a halt just before they hit the front trench, which was already sounding like a blood bath.

"Brace!" one clone shouted, and Effa could hear the whistling of a shell dropping through the air.

"Heads down, heads down!" Anakin ordered, and they both followed suit. The shell impacted with a loud enough boom to deafen Effa for a moment while more dirt showered from above, sticking itself in her blonde hair. Once the shower ended, and her hearing returned, Anakin waved for them to continue forward.

"Nice call," Effa thanked, gripping Anakin's shoulder just as he stopped, looking as if he was probing the front wall.

"Don't mention it," he said as he clambered up enough just so his head peeked over the top, pulling his scopes from his belt.

Kaidan's anxiety blistered through the Force. "Hurry it up, will you?"

"Relax," Anakin urged, pulling his scopes away and motioning for Effa to join him. "Here, come see."

Effa did her best to find footing adequate enough for her shorter height, but eventually found balance, and took a look through Anakin's scopes.

No Man's Land was a graveyard for everything she could imagine. Insects buzzed over dead bodies that had been left for far too long, and there were so many craters and destroyed vehicles it was impossible to see through to the droid trench. Despite clone casualties, there were countless amounts of droid parts scattered across the area, which explained to her why the Separatists hadn't tried to rush with their superior numbers.

Even with the Admiral's plan, Effa wasn't sure how they were going to cross.

"This looks bad, Anakin," she expressed her feelings, handing his scopes back to him. "So many dead men…it's…tough to see."

"I know, but you can't let it get to you," Anakin acknowledged. "If we pull this off, no one else has to die."

Effa was content with that point of view, and the more suffering she could alleviate from the guardians of the Republic, the better.

"Right behind you, General."

"Sir!" Rex called from below, followed by a group of 501st in a line, as well as some of the others. "I've got our best, as well as a few battered brothers who are itching to make the rush."

"Yeah!" many of them raised their blasters in agreement.

"Alright men," Anakin called, dropping down to the floor, Effa following. "Stick together and follow me. We're going to be particular about this so stay in line. Once we cross No Man's Land, we'll have the advantage, but we will be outnumbered. We'll have to hold out until our inversion forces hit the sides. Understood?"

"Hoo-ha, yes sir!" they all answered, anxious to get moving.

"Anakin. Cody and I are in position," Obi-Wan chimed in through his comm. "Once you start your run, we'll follow."

"Copy that, Master," he replied. "See you on the other side."

"As always."

Effa could feel the excitement, and it only escalated once Anakin hopped back up to his perch, lightsaber ignited. "Commander Azulia…the honor is all yours."

She smiled brightly and obliged, her green blade sparking to life as she clambered up and over the trench wall. "Attack!"


"Guess that's our cue," Xur noted, pulling his scopes from his eyes, able to spot the advancing Republic forces from a slight overlook atop a busted Separatist walker. With a heave, he leapt and landed harsher than necessary, kicking up dirt.

Ahsoka crossed her arms. "One day you're going to snap a femur doing that," she warned with a pointed finger. "All it takes is one wrong landing."

"Alright Dr. No Fun," Xur teased. "I'll take it under advisement," before turning to the rest of their small squad. "Into the trench, let's move."

Their small squad dipped into the end of the dug-out crevice in the ground, and immediately Xur kicked over some busted droid parts without noticing…silently thanking his boots' armored toes. He and Ahsoka maintained their place at point, while Trilla elected to stay in the back with Mars…which wasn't what he had in mind.

She'd been acting…weird…since they hit the surface, swearing she felt something hunting her out there. The zabrak had merely told her it was the "battle jitters" again, which in turn earned him an admonishing look and annoyed scoff. Admittedly, her expressions of warning were always somewhat unsettling, and he found himself running out of words to say once she struck him with one. While it wasn't the fierce annoyance expression that Ahsoka gave him from time to time, it certainly made him want to consider his next words carefully.

The whole "battle jitters" was a joke anyway; a term used to rattle newbies in the field. Just, instead of rattling Trilla, he just earned the "if-you-say-that-again-I'm-going-to-kill-you-in-your-sleep" look…so he decided to end that banter for now.

"Hey…Xur," Ahsoka whispered as they continued down the trench. "I'm kind of worried about Trilla."

The zabrak narrowed his eyes in visible confusion but kept his attention forward. "Why?"

"I don't know…I just…don't think she likes me very much."

Shit. What the fuck did you say to her, Trilla?

He shrugged. "Oh well, you can't win everybody."

"You're not listening to me though," she continued. "She's always cold to me…and even when we talked, she came off as…superficial."

"Hey," Xur warned. "Watch it."

Ahsoka's eyes narrowed. "Watch what?"

"Don't call her that. Trilla is not fake."

"I didn't say she was fake, I just meant that she came off a little-."

"We're done talking about this," Xur growled in annoyance. "If you've got some petty grudge that you girls love to manifest, I suggest you settle that shit later."

Ahsoka grumbled and mock saluted. "Yes sir, General sir."

He ignored her. The last thing he needed to focus on was Trilla's obvious distaste for Ahsoka, and the growing rivalry between them.

Something smelt of feces.

Xur stifled a reaction once they turned a corner in the trench, and he was greeted to the sight of two dead clone troopers, blood covering their neck areas and some of their limbs dismembered.

"Scouts," Xur grimaced, and he heard Raven reel in disgust behind him. "Droids didn't do this. Lockdown?"

The clone commando stepped forward and activated his MAHI, letting the holographic interface scan the two bodies. "Scout battalion," he relayed. "This kill is fresh. I'm trying to scan for footprints."

Admittedly, this was unlike anything Xur had ever seen from a Separatist attack. There wasn't usually this much blood, and droids certainly didn't break bones like this.

Lockdown shut the device down and sighed. "Nothing, General. Whoever killed these men…they did it without leaving a trace."

"And they're probably still close by," Xur noted, his hilt in hand.

"It's him," Ahsoka said, her tone low. "It's the Wraith."

Xur snorted. "Huh. So Kaidan wasn't so full of shit after all."

The togruta pushed past him and knelt beside the bodies, and Xur could tell she was searching for something, both in the Force and with her eyes. It was then that Trilla finally made it to the front.

"What's…oh god," she reeled, covering her nose, and Xur gripped her shoulder in comfort.

"Yeah…it's rough," he admitted, turning to Raven. "We need to keep moving. Whoever did this can't be far, and I'm not letting you get picked off."

"I can find him," Ahsoka offered, rising to her feet. "I'll have to go alone, but I know how he operates."

"Like hell," Xur denied, stepping forward. "By yourself? Not a chance. You'll just get yourself killed."

"I wasn't really asking," she bit back.

He scoffed in disbelief. "Are you fuckin' bat-shit crazy? That's what this son of a bitch wants."

Xur sensed an almost offended reaction to his statement, which baffled him enough to ignore it as simply a mistake. Then again, every time Wraith was mentioned…she became very uncharacteristically quiet…reserved.

"I think you should let her go," Trilla suggested. "She obviously knows more about the Wraith than anyone else present."

Anyone who didn't know Trilla would think she was being supportive of the togruta…but he knew better than that. It was a subtly antagonistic comment that would lie dormant within the receiver until they suddenly recalled it…and suffer its detonation within their mind. He knew…because he'd experienced it before.

Ahsoka wasn't stupid…but she wasn't exactly adept at noticing subtle malintent, especially with people she thought were her friends. Barris Offee helped strengthen her skills, but she was still no match for Trilla.

"I'll decide what we do," Xur pointed sternly, shooting Trilla a disguised warning.

"What would you have us do? Wait here until this Wraith descends upon us?" Trilla questioned, her gaze hardening on him. "You do see what he is capable of, right?"

"I also know what I'm capable of, and this continuous…" he trailed off, danger sense rattling his spine. His eyes narrowed at the source, and his hearing enhanced…homing in on the countdown timer of a detonator hidden within the body of the dead clone.

Xur grabbed both Trilla and Ahsoka with each hand, shoving them back around the trench corner. "Move! Get down!"

The charge exploded, the shockwave ripping through the air just as Xur summoned a Force barrier absorbing the lethality of the explosion, but still managed to knock him backwards, landing atop two clones that had ducked below. His vision struggled to focus as dust filled his mouth and eyes, but he managed to regain enough and rise to his feet. Raven struggled to rise, while Lockdown was quick to recover, assisting his captain while Xur slid in between.

"Ahsoka!" he cried, shaking her motionless body that was faceplanted in the dirt. To his relief, she stirred, spitting dirt from her mouth.

"I'm alright. I'm alright," she assured, rubbing her eyes clear and popping her ears. "I think you throwing me did more damage than the explosion."

Xur smirked. "Sorry. Had to think fast."

"You didn't ask, but I'm alright as well," Trilla chimed in from behind, brushing herself off.

The zabrak winced in embarrassment. "Sorry…" he then noticed the growing bloodstain on her elbow. "You're bleeding."

Trilla hadn't even noticed it, and only now took a look, only to shrug in disinterest. "I've had and seen worse."

"Good," a mechanical voice, best described by Xur as demonic, sounded from above. The owner of that voice was nothing less than a fully armored thing with red optics, armed to the teeth, and with hands that looked as if they could crush a boulder with a snap. "It'll make what comes next easier for you to swallow."

Raven backed off; his blaster brandished. "Sir…that's him."

"Yeah?" Xur questioned, rising to his feet. "Fucking shoot him then!"

Another blast detonated, this one from behind, and Xur felt the deaths of nearly half the squad he had brought along.

"I gotta say, I expected better," Wraith taunted, tossing away his detonator. "All those stories about you…and yet you walked right where I wanted you."

Xur spat. "Fuck this," he then leapt at full speed, barreling through the air.

"No, wait!" Ahsoka warned.

Too late. The zabrak collided into the hidden ray-shield, his skin charring to a crisp as Wraith simply watched him fall back into the trench, unmoving.

He scoffed as Trilla screamed. "Wow. Didn't think that would actually work."

Ahsoka kept her focus while Xur struggled to rise. "It only has one charge, open fire!" she commanded, and Raven gave the order, unleashing the full might of the rest of their squad. Wraith quickly brandished an energy shield from the side of his gauntlet, taking the full brunt of the attack while Ahsoka acrobatically flipped, kicking off the trench wall and over his defense. The Separatist soldier was forced to flip around and block Ahsoka's twin blades with the shield, before plowing into her as it deactivated, taking her down as well as pulling him out of sight of the troopers below.

"Commander Tano!" Raven cried from below.

"I've got this!" she insisted, managing to somehow wrestle Wraith off from atop her. "You're going to pay for that!" she visibly seethed with her sabers before her, while her adversary prowled about in a circling motion.

All Trilla could hear was the clashing of her blades against a resistive surface, and now all she cared about was Xur's scorched skin. He was lucky, as his armor took the brunt of the damage, as well as his insulated fabric, but any exposed skin was cracked and bleeding.

He writhed in pain, mixed with occasional screams through the waves that came. Trilla looked down upon him, visibly upset and distressed, while Lockdown took a knee beside her, his MAHI visible. "General…General are you alright?"

Xur groaned, drool oozing from his mouth. "No…no, I'm not alright!"

"Hold still!" Trilla urged, trying to focus her mind…trying to listen. It was a barrage of noise at first; the cries of pain from the battle beside them, the communication of countless beings, the songs of hundreds of wounds. She saw them all, clones screaming as they held their own guts in their hands, some as they crawled along the dirt, their legs shattered and useless. Trilla had to push past it all…through all the pain…until…there.

She reached out like opposite poles to a magnet, her hand glowing with raw Force energy as she transferred her life force back into the zabrak. Gradually, his writhing stopped, and she could feel his pain ebbing away as his scorched skin repaired itself…removing the swelling, cracks, and all the darkness that ravaged his body.

Once he was healed, the glow faded from her hand, and Trilla fought off the lightheadedness that followed, her thumb then rubbing her palm like an instinct.

"Holy…" Lockdown gasped. "Jedi thing…yeah I see it now."

Raven was speechless. "Well done…Commander."

Trilla didn't answer, and simply helped Xur to his feet as the zabrak shook off the residual pain.

"That's two I owe you," he admitted.

Trilla nodded…and then smacked him across his cheek.

"Hey!" he protested. "The hell was that for?"

"Dumbass," she scolded, before corralling him into an embrace…in which he eventually realized he should return.

"Yeah, yeah sorry," he apologized when she let him go, maintaining a displeased look. "Uhhh…where's Ahsoka?"

"She's…" Trilla was about to say fighting the Wraith, but then realized there was no sound of battle above. Being the quickest, she backflipped over the top of the trench with her yellow blade ignited…only to find that Ahsoka and Wraith were long gone. To her right, however, was the wreck of a Providence-class Separatist dreadnaught. Most of it was either blown away or beginning to show signs of falling apart as it sustained damage from stray mortar shells.

Trilla turned back, looking over the squad. "They're gone."

"What?" Xur gasped, baffled, before leaping to her level to see for himself. His expression fell, and his anxiety spiked to a level that almost transferred to her. "We need to find her," he stated, already making his way to the ship, only to be stopped by Trilla.

"We need to keep moving. If our side of the inver-."

"We can't just leave her!" Xur smacked her hand away. "Are you out of your damn mind? He'll tear her to shreds!"

"If we stop to look for her, Anakin, Effa and Kaidan will all be torn to shreds!" Trilla didn't back down. "Besides…I've never known you to give up faith in your companions, so why don't you put a little in her?"

Xur just stared, looking as if he wanted to continue the argument, but was struggling to look past her words. Seeing that, she switched tactics, calming herself down.

"Look…I'll go find her…but your men…they need you to lead on," she reasoned, hoping that her words hit home.

He grumbled and looked away, and she knew that it was working. "Fine," he accepted. "But you'll contact me if anything goes wrong."

Trilla chuckled. "Just get moving, General. Let me take it from here."

He shifted, somewhat begrudgingly, but mock saluted. "Yes ma'am."

She tipped her head and turned towards the ship, but not before he left the last word. "Trilla…be careful. Please," he urged.

Trilla smirked. "No promises."


"Hold on, hold on!" Effa insisted at the front of the group as they squeezed through the tight passageway Vorchenko had outlined. In her hand was the portable datapad outlining the known traps and defenses, with Anakin beside her, at the ready. "There! Atop the rubble. Ray shield."

Anakin nodded and carefully watched his step for any hidden mines, reaching out with the Force for the warning of the shield generator. All she could see was his probing behavior, until his saber ignited, and he slashed through the rubble, followed by the sparking of shield deactivation.

A mortar shell impacted just behind them, but they had come too close to the Separatist line to be in range. It was very possible the droids never expected them to reach this far, hence the growing ease of their travel.

"Nice," Kaidan praised, visibly uncomfortable, but all in, nonetheless. "How many more traps?"

Effa checked the last trap off their list, and smirked. "Looks like the tinnies are fresh out."

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," Rex warned. "The clankers might've rigged new ones, especially this close."

"Rex is right," Anakin agreed, his voice nearly drowned out by another shell exploding behind them. "And they obviously know we're coming."

"And we already lost a few to mines we didn't have on the list," Kaidan mentioned. "You sure we have the numbers to pull this off, Skywalker?"

Anakin mulled his response, his eyes tracing over the clones lined up behind them. While he thought, Effa took the liberty of climbing atop the rubble to get a look at what was behind.

"Effa, watch your head!" Anakin warned. "The Separatist line is right there!"

Ignoring his warning, she was graced with a glimpse of the open landscape that eventually gave way to the Separatist trench, with mortar cannons lining the back, their barrels pointed upwards as they continued to fire.

Danger sense barely saved her from taking a blaster bolt straight through her head as she ducked back behind cover.

"Effa!" Anakin growled.

"I'm alright, relax. The trench is right there, but we'll never make it. They'll gun us all down," she assured. "Where's our inversion?"

Anakin shook off his annoyance and resorted to his wrist-comm. "Master, come in. Where are you?"

Sounds of battle came through on his end as Obi-Wan replied. "We're just about to make our run, stand ready!"

"Copy that," he then switched the frequency. "Xur…how's it coming?"

"We're running a bit behind," he answered, and Anakin detected some detest in his voice. "Found the Wraith. He's a real charmer…and I seemed to have misplaced your Padawan."

Effa watched Anakin's eyes spread into perfect circles, and his anger sparked a bonfire in the Force itself.

"Get her back, now!" he ordered.

"Anakin…" Effa eased, but he roughly turned away from her.

"Trilla is on it. She insisted. Thought better than to leave you for dead," Xur half-mocked in his response, as if Anakin's accusatory tone was unnecessary.

"She's fuckin' crazy," Kaidan gasped. "He'll kill Trilla even if she finds her."

"Tell Kaidan to keep his opinion to himself," Xur shot back. "Ahsoka seemed pretty sure she could handle it, so I-."

"That's not the issue, Xur!" Anakin roared, and Effa had never experienced such rage from him before…never. "I said get her back, and I mean that."

"I'm doing all I can!" Xur retorted, not backing down. "This inversion is all we got, so you either suck it up, or we lose this fucking battle!"

Anakin growled, and Effa knew that the zabrak was speaking the truth. "Anakin…you trained her…have some faith! If you've taught her all you know, then she'll be fine."

There was detectable hurt in his eyes, as well as unrelenting anxiety…but Effa's words kicked in his battle sense, as well as his common sense.

"We're in position, Xur," Anakin reported. "Make your move."

"Copy that. See you on the other side."

As Anakin cut the connection, Effa stepped towards him, carefully gripping his shoulder in support. "She'll be fine."

He sighed. "That's not what I'm worried about," turning to face her, much to her surprise. "He's a problem…a problem I've failed to rectify…and she's the one who's suffered from it."

Effa inched closer, presenting herself in support. "Come on, General. Let's rush this trench."

Anakin nodded. "Right. Men, ready yourselves!"


Ahsoka vaulted over the metal beam, landing with ease as her boots barely kicked up any sand. Her green blades hummed with energy as they remained ablaze, the sun peeking through the cracks in the capital shipwreck. The adversary she had been tailed by followed quickly, attacking with raw power as his knives cut through the air, impacting her blades and reflecting their energy with cortosis coating.

"Almost had me that time," Ahsoka smirked, counterattacking at full speed with her blades held in reverse, masterfully displaying Form IV techniques. Her slashes and kicks were met with defense via his gauntlets or sheer might of his powerful hands.

"You're getting better," he complimented, batting away her errant leg and kicking her to the ground, hard enough to make her think twice, but not enough to hurt her. "You still overcommit."

Ahsoka flipped back to her feet, holding her blades before her. "Master Windu said you'd be here. Should've known about the detonite charges."

"Crude…but pretty effective," Wraith acknowledged, circling her. "I'm surprised it worked as well as it did."

Her eyes panned away as she grimaced at the loss of some of her men, but that was when Wraith struck, and a quick warning allowed her to roll away as his tackle missed. Retaliating with a force push, the attack picked up sand and Wraith tumbled over, but recovered quick enough to land back on his feet.

"Got me that time," Wraith admitted. "Nice."

"Heh," Ahsoka chuckled. "I'm tough game."

"I know," he nodded, firing a grappling hook from his wrist that wrapped around her legs. Instinctively, she tried to wiggle free, but found him quickly atop her, knocking her sabers loose from her grip.

Wraith held her down, and she grumbled in defeat. "Dammit."

"Impressed?" he asked.

Ahsoka snorted. "Take that mask off and show me why I should be."

She could only hear him huff in agreement as he let her go, moving his hands to deactivate the section seals of his gear, allowing the air to hiss from his terrifying mask. When he lifted, Ahsoka saw the face of a man no older than her, his features nigh-perfect in her eyes.

"Now I'm impressed," she smiled.

Wraith returned that smile. "Been awhile."

"I know," Ahsoka admitted, propping herself up. "I've missed you."

Neither of them wished to prolong it any further, and their heads dipped towards each other, eyes closing in a state of bliss.

A lightsaber ignited.

Ahsoka and Wraith both turned, and the togruta's eyes widened in shock.

"And here I thought your greatest virtue was your righteousness, Ahsoka Tano," Trilla taunted, her yellow blade humming beside her. "Never been so elated to be wrong."


At last, the free-flowing nature of battle had arrived, and Xur was finally purged of his anxiety. There was a simplistic ease to cutting down droids in wholesale, especially with how near effortless the practice was. It was even more adrenaline inducing when he plunged into the Separatist trench, the enclosed space funneling them into his dancing blades as he cut through them with a savagery that would make even the sadistic pause if it had been living beings.

Xur had cut through an entire platoon until the droids finally turned in retreat, Anakin's forward attack thinning the side forces plenty enough for his team to rout whatever forces remained.

However…once the adrenaline ebbed away…he felt it. Danger…but not for him…

For Trilla.


"What are you talking about?" Ahsoka gasped as Wraith quickly pulled himself away from the togruta but maintaining a protective closeness.

Trilla eyed the both of them, trying hard not to smile at her own predictive abilities. "How characteristically ignorant of you. Did you really think I spent all this time listening to your presumptuous attitude and pompous behavior for the fun of it?"

Wraith kept his eyes locked on Trilla, his fingers closing into a fist. "You must be Trilla Suduri," he noticed, turning to Ahsoka with reservation. "You two friends?"

"I…thought so," Ahsoka admitted, rising to her feet. "Although she did strike me as a little…off."

"Indeed," Trilla tipped her head. "I'm sure you thought no one in the War Room noticed your quiet reaction to the mentioning of the Wraith," she taunted, maintaining her ready stance with her blade ignited. "But I knew better. I looked past my own distaste for you to test a suspicion…and here we are."

Ahsoka raised her hands in an easing manner. "Trilla…look, I don't know what I did to you-."

"No?" Trilla spat, arching forward. "It's not about what you've done…it's about your obvious carelessness for those your touch. All this time he raves about you; how great the two of you work together…and how he isn't sure he could make it through this war without you."

She maintained her hard gaze on Ahsoka, her eyes threatening to kill her where she stood. "And then here I see you with…I don't even know what he is," Trilla then leaned in, slowly approaching her. "What would your Master say?"

"No," Ahsoka shook her head, visibly distressed. "Trilla, you can't tell him."

"I wonder…" Trilla began to smile almost wickedly, not bothering to bottle down the corruptive emotions taking control of her. "What would Xur think of his…fierce commander now? Pulling at his heartstrings while she entertains an af-," her words were cut short as Wraith grabbed ahold of her neck and lifted her upwards, cutting air from her lungs in brutal fashion.

"Wait, no!" Ahsoka grabbed ahold of his arm as Trilla tried to claw herself free. "Put her down!"

"She's my target, Ahsoka. The healer. Besides, I've heard enough trash talk come out of her mouth," he justified, maintaining his grip.

Trilla could feel herself beginning to fade, but his enormous strength was far too much for her to wiggle free. Her rage only deepened for the togruta, and all she felt as her last moments approached was hatred. She wanted to kill her…more than anything.

"Wraith…please let her…" Ahsoka begged but trailed off.

In the corner of her eye, Trilla spotted a new figure erupt from below, and in a fraction of a second, a fist crashed into Wraith's skull like a starship against a building, freeing her from his grip. She landed in a heap, sucking in desperate gasps of air as coughs followed, massaging her bruised neck.

"You touch her again…" Xur growled, letting Wraith pick himself up from the zabrak's superhuman attack. "And I'll fucking kill you."

Wraith pulled his glove from his jaw, revealing blood that had oozed from his mouth. "Haven't been punched like that since…well, ever."

"Glad I've impressed you," Xur shrugged, igniting his titian blade and stepping forward, only to have Ahsoka block his path.

"The both of you, stop it!" she pleaded, standing in between two champions of their respective sides of the Clone Wars; two junkyard hounds prepared to hash it out for the glory of the galaxy's fiercest warrior. "No one has to fight!"

"Like hell," Xur growled, threatening to push past her. "Give me one minute with this fucker…just one minute."

"Try it…and we'll see," Wraith replied, his tone a warning. "I could've killed her with only a little more pressure."

"Can't we just talk this out? Please?!" Ahsoka continued.

"Talk this out?" Xur's eyes narrowed. "What? You know this guy?"

"More than you could understand," Wraith answered. "I've known her a long time."

Ahsoka grimaced, but Xur slightly backed off, his eyes returning to her. "Is that right?"

"Look…" she eased. "It's not what you…"

"Tell him…" Trilla gasped, still massaging her neck. "…the truth…or I will."

"What truth?" he asked.

Ahsoka's eyes widened with hurt, looking as if she had been caught red-handed in the middle of an illegal act. Trilla waited for the sweet bliss of her pompous attitude dissipating forever…buried by the endless embarrassment of her foolhardy and reckless transgression being exposed for the galaxy to see. At last…the barrier to her own happiness could be removed.

"Xur…" Ahsoka gulped. "We're…Wraith and I…are together."

It was inexplainable, Xur's reaction to it. Trilla found it easier to interpret through emotions, rather than physical reaction…since there really was none. Inside she felt his heart sink…buried to the bottom of his essence in an impenetrable darkness that could never be breached. After that had run its course, came a rising realization that everything he had ever done to win her affection had been in vain, and the time he wasted with her was gone forever. With that, came anger…a bubbling cauldron that had always been there; a dormant volcano that had been begging to erupt at the right moment.

And its time had come.

His head turned to her, his expression unreadable, and she simply said: "I'm sorry."

The zabrak locked his eyes with her and let them drift back to Wraith.

"I'm sorry too."

What happened next occurred in the span of a few seconds.

Ahsoka tumbled backwards from a lightning fast gesture, and Wraith quickly retaliated with a swung fist, only to see it stopped cold against Xur's own gauntlet. The super-soldier's eyes watched in curiosity as his immense strength was not only matched…but surpassed.

Xur shoved his arm away and swung his blade with a vicious ferocity that Wraith barely avoided with his unnatural reflexes, weaving in between each strike until he ran out of room behind him. The Jedi, engulfed in his own rage, spun and drove his saber towards him with infinite malintent, only to see it bury itself into the metal as Wraith ducked, grabbing ahold of his outstretched arm and twisting it behind his back. Grunting in pain, Xur called his second blade into his hand and stabbed behind, grazing his adversary's ribs as it found its way in between two protective plates.

Freeing himself as Wraith fought off his wound, Xur extended both arms in a hurricane-force push. Wraith cartwheeled back onto his feet quickly and brandished a hidden blaster, managing to fire a shot straight through Xur's defenses and grazing him in the exact same spot. Enraged, Xur charged forward, and the two combatants locked their grips on each other's wrists.

"What's this Eon? Jealousy?" Wraith grunted, holding the force-enhanced man of intense fury at bay. "Jedi usually let go of their rage."

"I don't care. You hurt Trilla, so I'm going to hurt you," Xur promised.

"This wasn't supposed to…get…personal," Wraith struggled, the zabrak's use of archaic magic enhancing his strength enough to push him backwards. "But since you did that to Ahsoka," he growled, and he began to push back. "I'll have to make an exception."

"What's she to you?!" the zabrak shouted, unable to break their deadlock. "You think she'll ever really love you?!"

Wraith roared and blew him over with his raw power, his fist colliding into the ground with a loud clang that reverberated through the air, Xur's roll sparing him a bone-shattering blow. The zabrak kicked in retaliation, only to see his foot caught with his adversary's gloved hand. With one twist, he screamed in pain as his knee's tendons threatened to snap. Instead of accepting the pain as it was, Xur embraced it, pooling energy from the wound to fuel his strength.

Pushing off the ground, Xur flipped his leg back into place and extended his free, the centrifugal force adding to the boot that crashed into Wraith's jaw and knocked him free. His left knee begged him to stop, but he launched himself, landing atop the stunned super-soldier and wrapping both hands around his neck.

"What?!" Xur taunted as he squeezed the life out of him. "Never faced a Jedi like me before?!"

Wraith's eyes locked with an intensity Xur felt down his spine, and both of his massive hands wrapped around Xur's wrists and pried his arms free of his neck. Shocked for the moment, Wraith returned the favor, locking Xur in the exact position his adversary had him. Air was cut from his lungs entirely, and the zabrak couldn't even muster spit to fly from his mouth.

"You should've let us talk it out," he spat, his lips covered in blood, closing his grip.

Enough of this.

Xur placed his hands on Wraith's chest and unleashed his anger in the form of force lightning, electrocuting his strangler while also launching him through the air, landing in a static heap at the other side of the rusted overlook their duel had continued on.

Both struggled to rise, one coughing as his air returned to his lungs, the other managing his spasming muscles as the paralyzing effect wore off.

It was like watching two unmatched titans leap across continents in Trilla's eyes, neither her nor Ahsoka finding it wise to intervene until they exhausted themselves. Wraith's undeniable strength and cunning was met with Xur's raw ferocity and sheer power…but Trilla could see that her zabrak counterpart was only one wrong move from seeing himself killed…and one lucky hit from killing the man Ahsoka was obviously in love with.

That was when the realization hit her…seeing Xur and Wraith fight distracted her enough to notice how her jealousy had not only taken her over…but influenced her to spark the exact bloody confrontation that was playing out before her eyes. It was a wave of guilt that she couldn't describe nor force away, and she knew in that moment that she had made a grave mistake. This deceit and childish infighting wasn't her…it belonged to a persona that kept her awake at night, skulking through her dreams like a dark leviathan.

It was a persona she'd never let come to pass. She couldn't stop what she had done…but maybe she could stop this.

Xur and Wraith finally clambered to their feet, both battered and bruised from their stalemate, but far from done inflicting pain upon each other.

"Wait!" Trilla shouted. "I was wrong!"

They both paused. Whether it was from her voice's distraction or genuine concern didn't matter. She had grabbed their attention.

"This is all on me," Trilla admitted. "Just…hear me out…will you?"

The two of them wanted nothing more than to continue, but Ahsoka seemed to catch on, adding to her effort. "Both of you, please!" she nigh begged. "Enough is enough!"

Xur kept a reserved stance, but Wraith seemed to back off momentarily, giving him a chance to think twice. "Alright Trilla…say your piece."

She swallowed, rising to her feet. "I was jealous…I'll admit it. It's embarrassing really…but I was," she turned to Ahsoka, who tried inserting herself between the two once again. "I let my emotions get to me and I screwed up."

Wraith shook his head. "I don't see how this changes anything."

"Shut up," Xur warned, earning an advancing motion from his adversary.

"For fuck sake, stop fighting!" Trilla exploded. "The two of you so self-righteous…fighting over a girl who has already made her choice!"

Shockingly enough, Ahsoka nodded in agreement. "Yeah, you're both pissing me off!"

Xur and Wraith both locked their gaze upon her. "What?" they asked in unison.

"Fighting over me? Really?!" Ahsoka scoffed. "Not only is that unattractive, but it's cringy and childish!"

"Hey!" Xur protested. "He grabbed Trilla by the neck first!"

"Right after she threatened to expose our relationship!" Wraith justified.

"Oh boo-fuckin'-hoo!"

They both growled and marched forward, but not before Ahsoka held Wraith back and Trilla grabbed Xur by the forearm, pulling him away.

"Just give me one more second with this guy," Xur growled, but not fighting Trilla off.

"Come try it, Jedi, I'll shove that saber up your-."

"BOTH OF YOU STOP!" the combined voices of Trilla and Ahsoka roared through the room, enhanced by their knowledge of the Force projecting it into a scream. Raw, unblemished silence followed, both combatants unwilling to object to the women giving them stern, direct orders.

Shocked straight, Xur cleared his throat. "So uh…wanna talk it out?"

Wraith maintained his look, but another nudge from Ahsoka applied the same reaction. "Whatever you say."


Demeter, 19 BBY

Padawan's Quarters

It was hard-fought and unspeakably brutal, but the Battle of Tranbir IX ended in a Republic victory. They were still a long way from complete planetary control…but now the Republic could focus their efforts elsewhere and stop losing men to the meatgrinder that it was. For Trilla, it was a chance to recuperate herself…and reflect on her decisions.

Never before had she had issues with the Dark Side, but this was the first real threat of it she had ever faced. She had been so sure that she was in the right; pursuing justice for another woman swiping her closest friend from her childhood away…and yet she had descended to new lows she didn't think she was capable of. It was almost as if she had been possessed; that persona she always feared coming to light at last.

She felt sorry, but honestly, she still didn't care much for Ahsoka. What she had done…how she handled the situation with her and Wraith…it was reckless and foolhardy, stomping over Xur's heart without much concern for his own feelings…and not for a second did she buy that Ahsoka had never expressed feelings to him in return.

Nonetheless, it was over now. Xur knew the truth, and even after he had settled things with Wraith after their scrap, he and Ahsoka were no longer sharing moments of banter like before. In that, Trilla felt sorry for him, as she had no intention of ruining a friendship between the two.

Who was she kidding? Of course she had, and if Trilla hadn't saved Xur's life for the second time, he'd probably be genuinely upset with her.

The guilt she felt found their way through her eyes in the form of tears as she sat back against her bed support, Effa sitting beside her.

"And Wraith?" Effa asked, her arm wrapped around her friend's shoulder. "What happened to him?"

Trilla sniveled, wiping her eyes clear. "We agreed to…part ways. The battle was over, thanks to you, Kaidan and Anakin…so, Xur eventually agreed to let him go, not like we had much of a choice in the matter. It was that or the two of them fought to the death, and I wasn't too keen on that idea, neither was Ahsoka."

Effa narrowed her eyes in thought. "It sounds like Ahsoka knew him…were they friends?"

Trilla had also promised to keep her secret, despite her better judgment, but she knew how Anakin would react if he was aware of the full extent of their relationship. Best to leave it under wraps.

"Yes…friends is all," Trilla answered, ready to change the subject. "What about you? What happened to you three?"

Effa smirked. "Ha! We kicked clanker butt. Anakin and I were in perfect sync…you should've seen us. It was as if we were meant to be together."

Trilla laughed, her tears dissipating. "Tell me about it."

"Well, it all started when we rushed over the trench…"


"Just another day…no?" Xur asked, keeping pace beside Anakin as they wandered through the halls of the capital ship, rather aimless this time around. The zabrak maintained a limp in his walk, but it was nothing a bacta injection couldn't ease for now.

"You're looking a little worse for wear," Anakin noted with a smirk. "You're lucky we completed the attack without your help."

"Yeah, well I called in the air strike…call it even?" he smiled back.

Anakin rolled his eyes. "Fine, fine."

In all honesty, Xur had clung to Anakin since the battle had ended, unable to look Ahsoka in the eye. Granted, staying near Anakin was perhaps the worst way to avoid her, but it had worked thus far, and he found it prudent to speak to his old friend.

"You weren't kidding about the Wraith. Nasty business."

Anakin's eyes fell to his knee and he tipped his head. "I can see that. Want to tell me what happened?"

Xur didn't answer right away. There was a part of him that felt obligated to inform his old friend that his Padawan may be in danger, but the stronger portion of his comradery and fleeting respect for Ahsoka kept his lips sealed. Even so, Trilla had promised to stay quiet, and that went for him as well. It felt wrong, but it had to be done.

"Eh. We got in a little fight. Might've twisted my leg up, but not before I gave him a few bruises. He then engaged in a strategic retreat; you could say. Heh…Seppies on the run is hilarious just thinking about it."

"That it is my friend…" Anakin nodded, giving him a brotherly pound on the back. "That it is."

Still…deep down, something nagged at Xur like an errant insect.

What would become of he and Trilla now?


Stinger Mantis, 14 BBY

Surface of Dathomir

Cere let her hand glide over the durasteel hilt in her grip, its silvery finish beginning to fade as it saw little care taken to it. Of all the things she could've taken from the Fortress as she escaped…this was all it had been…a relic of a past life that was long gone now.

The former hilt of her Padawan learner.

It felt like robbery continuing to keep possession of it, as she herself never deserved to hold the weapon of a Jedi ever again. All that rage she had unleashed on that day…after all the pain she had suffered…to see Trilla's eyes as she pulled over that helmet was the final strike that broke her. In the end, as she ran through those halls…she felt she would find some redemption in recovering that hilt, a way of saving a part of her padawan that still remained.

She had felt it…that disturbance in the Force…the same nightmare she had seen Trilla conjuring death fields to consume entire villages…and her eventual descent into absolute madness and insatiable hunger.

Unable to see it any longer, she stashed the hilt back into a small chest.

Cal had left the ship days ago, and still hadn't returned from Dathomir, communication with him shoddy at best. She feared the worst. Dathomir was a nexus of the Dark Side of the Force, and that nagging fear of losing another learner remained. She felt so helpless against it all, and simply put…

All that transpired next was beyond her power.


That was a blast to write, and I hope it was worth the wait for you all. I'd like to extend my sincere thanks to DFM23 for allowing the use of his OC in this chapter, and if you're itching for more, there's plenty more where that came from. If you're interested in a gritty take on the Clone Wars series from the perspective of a Separatist super-soldier, head on over to his page and check out Star Wars: The Clone Wars – Rise of the Wraith. This could not have been done without his help, and I really hope you all enjoyed this massive chapter.

As for where we go from here, this is where all the major conflicts start playing out. This next Act will revisit some old characters, as well as wrap up a few arcs that are ready to play out…all resulting in the confrontation we've all been waiting for.

Thanks for reading, and I'll be back soon with more to come!