Author's Note: Look, I know I'm slow on the updates for this story. Sadly, that's my life these days. However, if you'd like to keep pace with me when I'm not posting, feel free to join my Discord server; discord. gg/fnfx2EDV
Now, to prove I'm not dead, here's a teaser for what's coming next. Enjoy!
Clones and droids clashed on grassy fields beyond the reaches of Aris' existing civilization. The peaceful calm of nature disturbed by the cacophony of war. The grinding, clunking war machines of both sides shelled each other from afar, Separatist AAT's unloading plasma shells while Republic AT-TE walkers retaliated with booming rounds from their mass driver cannons. Amid them, B1 and B2 battle droids charged Clone troopers in their masses. The white-clad soldiers were not without their defences, however, namely their stalwart Jedi General and Commander.
Anakin slashed his sapphire saber blade back and forth, deflecting incoming rounds from E-5 blasters to provide his men with a better foothold. Beside him, Ahsoka did likewise. Her single emerald blade serving to defend Captain Rex and his men with her characteristic fiery determination. Anakin cast a few sporadic glances at his Padawan as they worked, noting her furrowed brow and focused brightness in her eyes. But coupled with the scar that ran down the right side of her brow and cheek, it gave her appearance an additional edge. She might be a brash, snippy teenager still, but at a glance… she certainly appeared to live up to the stories of Shili huntresses.
I'd say she looks rather fierce now.
"These tinnies just keep coming!" The Togruta complained.
"We need to get rid of those tanks so the rest of the droids are fair game." Anakin surmised as he surveyed the battlefield. He turned to his resident Captain. "Rex! Focus fire on that armored division!"
"Right away, sir!" The Clone responded. His internal comms quickly reached out to the other men on the battlefield, Rex being able to coordinate all from within the confines of his helmet. "Ridge! Oz! Put some heat on those tanks! Walker Two, target enemy armored units!" He barked out orders left and right, the Clones on the frontlines moving to comply as their strategy adjusted. Thermal detonators and the few rocket launchers available to the Legion were unleashed on the tanks as the leading AT-TE walker took aim at one in particular. The mass driver cannon struck the AAT right in the turret, resulting in an explosive detonation that blew out the inner workings of the tank. Fire quickly spread across the ground, blades of grass igniting to form a fiery wall between the Separatists and the Republic as other blazing wrecks contributed to the growing inferno.
"We got them on the run!" Ahsoka realized with a proud smile.
"Well done, Rex." Anakin applauded. "Now to mop up these droids and push them back."
"We're right with you, sir." Rex responded, ensuring his twin pistols were fully charged. "Let's go turn those clankers into scrap metal." The Republic moved forward with confidence, believing they were now on the way to winning this battle.
Suddenly, from the flames, a projectile shot forth. Revealing to be a blazing micromissile, the warhead struck the cockpit of the nearby AT-TE, consuming the front in a concussive hail of fire and shrapnel. The mighty mechanical beast sagged forward on its legs, disabled and inoperable. Stunned, everyone recoiled from the sheer suddenness of the strike, their gaze fully on the burning Separatist line to try and spot the attacker.
From the fires among the Separatists, The Wraith burst forth and bolted towards the Republic lines, hundreds of droids at his back. They sprinted behind him, determined to fulfill their pre-programmed orders as he led the charge against the Republic. "Sir, we've got incoming!" Rex cried out, pistols pointed at the enemy.
"Defensive positions!" Anakin called out. "Hold the line!" Ahsoka, meanwhile, frowned in determination as she spied Wraith sprinting towards them. Her scar burned at the memory of their last encounter and her montrals throbbed as she recalled being so roughly slammed into the floor.
This time would be different. She knew it would be.
Ignoring her Master's shouts, the Togruta bolted ahead as she used the Force to propell her forwards at supernatural speeds. She made a beeline for Wraith, lightsaber poised to strike as her feet pounded through wind-whipped blades of grass. The super-soldier saw her open challenge and met it, blades sliding over the backs of his hands as he adjusted course and made for the Togruta Padawan. His tactical mind quickly analyzed the situation. Ahsoka was a potent opponent, no question asked. She had beaten him once before and he had beaten her, raising the probability of her actively seeking redemption/revenge, elevating her prominence on his personal threat-analysis. The Republic would not succeed here, he would make certain of it. But first, a little detour to ensure there were no hiccups.
They collided in the middle of the battlefield, silver sharpened blades meeting green lightsaber blade that glowed as ferociously as the young woman who wielded it. By now, Ahsoka knew how Wraith battled and he had learned a thing or two about her preferred style. They met with broad, sweeping moves executed with the grace of seasoned acrobats. She growled throatily as her saber ground against his twin blades, like an apex predator asserting her dominance. Executing a backflip to break off, she slid to a halt on the ground as she sized up Wraith with a feral grin that revealed every one of her sharp teeth. "This won't be a repeat of last time!" She vowed. Beneath his optics, Wraith's eyes narrowed. She looked determined. Not so much of a scrawny teenager and more of young, up-and-coming huntress… who knew what she was doing. She would be a challenge. One he would meet without hesitation.
Extending one arm, Wraith beckoned her forwards.
With another surge of motion, they clashed again, blades swinging with determined ferocity as their killer instincts visibly flared. Metal sung as it cleaved through the air, energy hummed with sizzling force while superheating the wind around it. Both were determined to make this a winner-take-all bout. Weaving across the field as they danced a deadly double-act, the battle between droids and Clones grew increasingly distant as super-soldier and Padawan dedicated themselves to being the ultimate end of the other.
While surrounded by forests, the grassy field was bordered by dense forests on one side and a thin crevasse on the other. A deep trench dug who knew how long ago, it was a scar on the world that could prove treacherous if not navigated properly. It was towards this side that Wraith and Ahsoka found themselves, still battling and dueling in a heated frenzy. Their surroundings grew fuzzy and monotone, all that mattered was the other.
Ahsoka lunged at Wraith with her saber held horizontally, driving a hard pushing blow into his raised blades. But instead of parrying her attempt, the super-soldier rolled back and threw her off, sending Ahsoka skittering across the ground as Wraith sprang back to his feet and rebounded into a sprint. The Togruta realized her imminent disadvantage and reacted quickly. Throwing out her hand, a pulse of telekinetic energy reversed the super-soldier's momentum, sending him sliding back across the grass until he came to a halt just before the edge of the crevasse. Ahsoka pounced on him straightaway, driving her lightsaber towards his helmeted face. At the last second, he jerked to the left and her sizzling blade sank into the dirt where his head had been. He jerked right as she tried again, the outcome the same.
Grabbing her body, Wraith took her by surprise and rolled Ahsoka over, pinning her beneath him as their fortunes were reversed and Wraith drew back his arm as his blade redeployed. Ahsoka was forced to do more than jerk her head around as he had, twisting as far as her neck would allow to ensure her headtails were not damaged by his stabbing strike. His blade, and by extension his fist, pounded the earth beneath her as Ahsoka dodged two strikes in a row. Wraith then brought both blades to bear as Ahsoka raised her lightsaber to block, using the Force to strengthen her hold as the super-soldier bore down on her.
The force of their struggle was so great the ground beneath them began to quake and crumble. So dedicated to besting the other, neither of them noticed their perilous situation until it was too late. The lip of the crevasse gave way, both Ahsoka and Wraith sent tumbling down into the abyss. The Togruta fell with a shriek of surprise, Wraith saying nothing as he attempted to fix his precarious state by thrusting one of his bladed arms towards the wall of dirt beside him, attempting to halt his fall with a sudden stop from gained leverage.
But the dirt was dry and loose, coming apart within moments of contact. His blade failing to stick, Wraith tumbled aimlessly once more…
