He pressed his attack further, trying not to let her go on the offensive. He was not going to lose, not to her, to an apprentice of Tyranus. He drew his second lightsaber, a sign that he was about to try to finish her off. Reven knew how he was going to finish her off. Asajj Ventress was not going to survive this battle, and soon Tyranus would follow her.
The battle ensued for several more minutes. Soon enough the opening he needed came. He cut one of her hilts in half; he spun around, knocking her other saber out of the way. Reven saw it now, his victory. His saber came down closer and closer to her neck. He smiled now, as his victory came so close he could taste it.
"That is enough, Reven," Sidious called out to him.
Reven stopped abruptly, just above her neck. He sighed and deactivated his lightsabers.
"Yes, master," he said through clenched teeth.
"Asajj, leave us," he told her, and she complied.
"Is something wrong, master?"
"No, Reven, in fact I am proud of you. You handled yourself well."
"Thank you, master," he bowed, surprised at the praise from his master.
"Now, I need to take my leave, the Galactic Senate is convening in a few hours, and I am needed," he said as he stood and exited the room, leaving Reven all alone.
"How dare you spill your lies unto the senate!" the Rodian senator yelled.
"I am telling you that I am not lying," Supreme Chancellor Palpatine answered.
"Ha, the Clone Wars should have ended long ago! It was your avarice that has kept it going, and your surfeit will become your demise once the war is over!"
"I can assure you that the war will be over as soon as possible. What has kept this wars going is that the Separatists are gaining ground quickly as more and more systems come under their control, whether it be by choice or by force," Palpatine was as calm as he always was.
"I do not believe that you have the best intentions of the Republic in mind!" he pointed an accusing finger at the supreme chancellor, "I move for a vote of no—"
The Rodian moved both his hands to his neck. His fellow representatives stared at him, the look of confusion on their faces.
"Is there something wrong, senator?" Palpatine asked, his voice not changing from its usual coolness.
The Rodian representative started to sound like he was choking; he stumbled around his platform until he fell off the edge.
"Senator!" Palpatine yelled, but it was too late, the Rodian was as good as dead.
Hahaha! Good job with that one, Master! Reven thought to himself from his location on the other side of Coruscant, watching the meeting from live feedback through his Master's eyes.
"In light of recent development, I order that the senate takes a temporary recess and reconvene in three hours."
"There is no emotion; there is peace. There is no ignorance; there is knowledge. There is no passion; there is serenity. There is no death; there is the Force." Jade reviewed the core of the Jedi code.
No emotion, yet I feel hate, a path to the Dark Side. Peace, but there is war in the universe and within myself. No ignorance, but the Sith have no clue what they are doing. There is knowledge, but I know nothing, I am lost. No passion but what about that which I feel for Paul? How could there be serenity with this war? There is no death, but what about those lives being lost as we speak due to the Clone Wars?
Jade's mind flooded with unanswered questions, the Jedi code never seemed to wrong before, so distant from reality. She couldn't stand it. She hated the Jedi Order more than anything now.
"If only the Jedi would fall," she found herself saying.
What are you thinking? That is not like you at all, Jade. She shrugged off the feeling, trying not to think about such hateful things. Such thoughts could lead to the Dark Side.
"I will not turn, I must be strong," she whispered to herself.
She remained in silent meditation, blocking out all distractions.
"Jade?" Paul asked, opening the door.
She jerked out of her meditation, "Yes?"
"The supplies have all been loaded, we are ready to launch."
"I want to show you that thing I got first," she said with a smile.
"Alright," he replied.
She led him to the small armory, which was now full thanks tot he efforts of Paul. She brought him to two large cases sitting in the corner of the room. She hit the release codes and they slid open.
"By the Force," Paul muttered under his breath.
"Like them?" she asked.
"Of course I do, now how did you find two Zaref battle armors on this place?" Paul asked in amazement.
"I have my ways," she said with a certain girlish charm, "Now, let's get going."
"Right," he said, having to be pulled away from the armors to the cockpit.
Ace piloted through the clone fleet. He looked on in marvel at the Star Destroyers lined up for what would hopefully be the final assault on the Separatists. Although he was skeptic on whether or not it would work, it was a good enough plan, he only wished he could be a part of it. The plan was to send a massive fleet to the planet Byss, a place of extreme conflict and loses, for both sides. The fleet would launch ground troops to overtake the Separatists ground forces while the fleet would push back their fleet, hopefully eradicating it totally.
He was flying his trademark ship, the Trump Karrde, an old Corellian Action V freighter, on a mission to search and destroy his brother, Reven Karrde. The Trump Karrde was no ordinary freighter, though. He had it specially modified to suite his needs. It is now equipped with several turbolasers, an extra thick hull, more shielding and a hyperdrive system that makes it almost as fast as a Republic ship. Ace reached out with the Force, trying his hardest to find his brother's location or at least a hint at where he could be. Punching in the coordinates, he entered lightspeed.
Reven walked out onto the docking bay; Dooku was pacing back and forth in front of a Geonosian solar sailor.
"You are late," he announced once he noticed Reven.
"Better late than never," Reven replied, walking right past Dooku and up the ships boarding ramp.
"Watch your tongue, boy."
"Or what?" Reven snapped.
"Or you may find yourself never coming home," he said in a threatening voice.
"We shall see," Reven took the copilots seat.
"Don't start to think that just because you are learning from Sidious that it gives you special immunity."
"You wouldn't dare hurt me, the price you would have to pay would be too high, and you know it."
Dooku answered with silence. Before long they had arrived at Byss, the next major battleground of the Clone Wars. Reven had felt uneasy the entire flight, in fact he had felt uneasy for several days now. He has been having strange dreams, dreams where Jaina visited him and dreams where he had been killed. He couldn't decipher if these dreams were omens, or if they were just nightmares.
Reven was shaken out of his reveries when they approached their base on Byss.
"Our master will brief us in twenty minutes." Dooku announced, leaving the ship.
"Right," Reven followed.
Reven tapped the table with his fingers impatiently. He was getting bored, the briefing was supposed to start ten minutes ago, but for some reason Sidious was late. Humph, briefing in twenty minutes my a—
"Greetings," the appearance of his master threw Reven from his thoughts.
"Greetings," everyone in the chamber replied simultaneously.
The blue hologram of Darth Sidious took a seat.
"I have called you all here to be the defining defense of the Separatists movement. If we lose Byss, our cause will be greatly damaged. The Republic has already sent reinforcements to Byss, with the intention of defeating our forces here, little do they know that we are ready, and will be the victor in this battle. They have sent only four Jedi to this battleground. Four Jedi have been sent to Byss. Eeth Koth and Plo Koon, you two can decide who gets to fight them. But Dooku I want you to take on Obi-wan Kenobi, Reven you take his apprentice—"
"Anakin Skywalker?" Reven asked in surprise.
"So you know him?" Sidious asked.
"Obi-wan and Palius where good friends, I met them both back on Dantooine," he explained.
"Will there be a problem then?" he asked.
"No, sir, I can kill him," Reven replied.
"Good. Now for the battle plan."
Sidious ran through the plan and dismissed everyone, except Reven.
"You wanted to see me master?" Reven asked.
"Yes, Reven. I have received word that your brother is searching for you," Sidious told him.
"Is he? It's the first I've heard of it."
"Yes, he is. If he finds you, you know what you must do."
"He will join us, or die, master."
"No, kill him, there is no need for more of us."
"Right, sir. Is there anything else?"
"No."
Reven stirred in his sleep. Once again he was suffering from a nightmare, the same nightmare that has haunted him ever since he betrayed the Jedi order. In the dream, Dooku attacked him. Dooku's attacks were too much for him, and he was killed.
He opened his eyes, half expecting to see Palius, Jaina and all the other Jedi that he had caused the death of back on Dantooine. Instead all he saw was his sleeping quarters. He stood up, walking towards the window. He saw lights falling from the night sky to the ground below, the invasion had begun.
"I have a bad feeling about all this," he muttered to himself.
"Jedi have the ability to see into the future, you know," a mysterious voice said behind him.
Reven turned around to see whom the voice belonged to. Behind him stood the owner of the voice, the spirit of his lost love, Jaina. He tried to speak, but coarse croak was all that could escape his lips.
"Yes, Reven, it's me," the apparition spoke.
"But, how?" he asked.
"When you killed me, I became one with the Force. And I can appear to you, to help guide you, for a short time at least."
"But, why would you help me?"
"Because I love you, Reven."
"But I killed you. Why would someone want to help someone who killed them, and who turned to the Dark Side?"
"I was hoping to try to turn you back to the Light Side."
"No, once you travel down the Dark Side, forever will it dominate your destiny," he replied, "Nothing can change what I have become."
"No, you are wrong, Reven. You and only you can change what you have become. I can only try to help you."
"Thank you, Jaina. Now, what do you think I should do?"
"I can't tell you what to do."
"Then what can you do?" he was starting to get irritated, it was eminent in his voice.
"I can only try to guide you."
He turned walked closer to her, "Guide me? Guide me?" he raised his voice "Then GUIDE ME!"
"General Kenobi, please prepare for planetary landing," a clone trooper told him.
"Right, thank you," Obi-wan replied and waved the trooper off, "Are you ready, Anakin?"
"Yes, master," he replied.
"Now, Anakin, this is a very important mission, I need you to be in top condition for this battle. If we lose this one, the Republic could fall."
"Yes, master."
Anakin followed his master to the dropship that would take them to the planets surface.