A/N: Hi everyone! So here's the next chapter, and I hope you like it. It has a bit more action than previous chapters, but not much, but I hope you like it all the same. Please read, review, and enjoy, and I hope to see you again soon (I just don't know when that will be)!
Criminals captured! Jedi Master Plo Koon and Padawan Ahsoka Tano successfully thwarted an attempt on Mace Windu's life, killing bounty hunter Aurra Sing in the process. Since that time, young Ahsoka has grown strong in the ways of the Force. Now, after several harrowing adventures alongside her Master, the two Jedi have returned to the Temple on Coruscant to receive their next mission….
Three weeks had come and gone since the disappearance of Satine and the rise of Death Watch on Mandalore. Despite what Satine had thought, Death Watch had been able to secure somewhat of a foothold on the planet, but it was tenuous, and the people weren't that interested in them staying. They opposed Death Watch however they could: denying them food and supplies, turning them away from lodgings, refusing to sell them anything. Satine had never stopped communicating with her people, and the fact that she was always able to get messages of hope and peace to her people kept them fighting and resisting Death Watch. Death Watch, in turn, wasn't able to track her transmissions or locate her, allowing the people to keep her in their hearts and defy Death Watch.
Not even Almec was able to convince the people to accept him as their leader after all he had done to betray them, and Pre Vizsla was unable to rally the people behind him either. All in all, the situation was resolving itself as Death Watch was pushed more and more out of the cities and towns of Mandalore, especially with the arrival of the Nite Owls.
Bo-Katan, taking the advice of the half-Nautolan and Kit Fisto to heart, had come to the city of Sundari with her warriors. But not to fight. They came with food and medicine for those Death Watch had labeled as criminals and fugitives, helping them escape from prison and hiding them throughout the city. The people had quickly come to see the Nite Owls and Bo-Katan as saviors and helpers of the people, and Death Watch was hard-pressed to stop them from winning the support of the people.
Especially with Satine telling her followers that even though her sister was a warrior, she was a warrior with the people's best interests at heart and that her cause should be supported and strengthened at every opportunity.
With the situation on Mandalore so unstable and a refugee crisis on the rise in the galaxy, Senators Amidala and Organa had decided that something needed to be done to address both issues. To that end, they had called a conference on Alderaan to figure out a solution. But as Padmé was packing, she received a visitor in the form of Ahsoka:
"Senator," Padmé's captain, Gregar Typho, addressed Padmé as he came into the room with Ahsoka, "Padawan Ahsoka Tano is here to see you."
"Senator Amidala," Ahsoka said by way of greeting, which was greeted with much more enthusiasm from Padmé, "Ahsoka, it's so good to see you," embracing the Padawan and immediately making Ahsoka feel a bit better, "How have you been?" the Senator asked as they walked over to a settee.
Instantly Ahsoka remembered why she was there, saying, "Honestly, I've been better," gripping Padmé's arm, "I'm worried for you, Senator. I sense you are in grave danger," immediate Typho went on the alert, knowing a Jedi's premonitions weren't something to be ignored.
"What makes you believe that?" Padmé asked, to which Ahsoka said, "I've been having dreams….bad dreams. Padmé, I know you're in danger. I just know it."
"What kind of danger?" Typho asked as he walked over to join them, already making the calculations to increase security as necessary. One of the upsides of being in charge of Senator Amidala's protection was that he had plenty of experience protecting her and knew when to draw on that experience.
"I believe that a very dangerous bounty hunter is out to assassinate you," Ahsoka said as Padmé sat down, causing Padmé to sigh and say, "This is troubling. Captain, please take all necessary precautions."
"You're leaving?" Ahsoka asked in surprise, wondering how Padmé could be so calm about what might be a credible threat.
"Yes," Padmé said, "Bail Organa and I are leading a conference concerning the refugees from the war. I leave for Alderaan in the morning."
"But the threat to your life…." Ahsoka started to say, but Padmé wouldn't let her finish, "Ahsoka, the refugee situation is much too crucial to ignore. I called this conference. It could make an enormous difference in policy. It's vital that I go," turning and walking away, leaving Ahsoka no choice but to say, "Yes, senator," knowing there was no convincing her otherwise.
She and her Master were much too alike sometimes.
Ahsoka left after that, but Padmé knew she would be back if she genuinely believed something was wrong. And she did, coming just as Padmé was about to leave and almost begging to be allowed to go with her. Seeing her desperation and near fear, Padmé had relented, knowing it wasn't just her that would be glad to see her.
While not officially on the calendar, the half-Nautolan had called another meeting on Alderaan and was already there and waiting for her to arrive. Ahsoka might as well as listen in on that meeting and see what, if anything, she could do to help.
Finally arriving on Alderaan, the Senator and the Jedi were greeted by Bail and given rooms to relax and refresh themselves before the meeting and conference. By the time Ahsoka had relaxed, somewhat, the meeting was already underway, so she had to run to get to the room where it was being held. Entering, she was surprised to see the half-Nautolan was out and about in the room, not hiding away from anyone that could come in, but then Padmé explained: "She is so strong in the Force that she can make herself invisible to anyone she wishes to. She doesn't do it often, but it is often enough to fool anyone who isn't expecting it."
Ahsoka had nodded slowly before sitting down a bit away from the half-Nautolan, who only raised an eyebrow but let it go. Seeing her now, in the full sunlight, Ahsoka couldn't help but admire the young woman. She was strong and capable, in body and in the Force, and was actually quite beautiful. Someone had taken the trouble of braiding her hair into multiple braids down her back, turning her long hair into almost twenty individual braids. A few started along the top of her head and kept going to the ends of her hair; others started normally and went all the way down. Two went over her shoulders, and looking at the design, Ahsoka thought it looked like how Kit Fisto wore his head-tentacles when on land. Her features were well defined but carefully accented, leaving Ahsoka to wonder how someone like that could exist in the first place. Her necklace was still about her neck, making Ahsoka wonder why it was so important to her that she always had it with her, even when fighting. It seemed too delicate for fighting.
The half-Nautolan was still dressed in her usual blue with her multi-divided skirt past her knees, and looking closely at her boots Ahsoka could just see the knives she had hidden there. It left Ahsoka feeling slightly confused since she didn't understand how the half-Nautolan planned to fight off a Sith or even a Jedi with just a couple of knives.
Suddenly realizing she was staring, she looked up and saw that the half-Nautolan was watching her with a rather amused expression on her face. Turning to the Senators gathered there, she blushed slightly and said, "I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention."
"It's okay, Ahsoka," Padmé said softly, "She has that effect on people, and she knows you are curious about her. She just can't answer the questions you undoubtedly have right now, which frustrates her more than you, surprisingly. You just have to be patient."
"I know," Ahsoka says, "I am trying, but it isn't easy. With the threat to your life and the war, I can't help but wish I knew what was going to happen if this Conspiracy failed. Is what you say actually going to happen, or is it just everyone here guessing and acting out of fear?" turning to Padmé and Bail as she asked this.
The two senators looked at each other, but movement caught Ahsoka's eye, and she turned to the half-Nautolan, who had stood up and walked closer to Ahsoka. She extended her hand to the Padawan, asking her to take it. Ahsoka hesitated; even though it had never been said she couldn't touch the half-Nautolan, there had always been an unspoken assumption to not do so. In Ahsoka's mind, it was akin to touching something too sacred and revered. But Padmé said softly, "It's okay, Ahsoka; she just wants to show you what will happen if the Conspiracy and the Republic fail. She won't hurt you."
Ahsoka stared at the hand for a moment longer before looking up into the half-Nautolan's eyes. Something in those eyes told her it was okay, that she needed to do this to understand what was happening, and after a few seconds, she took the half-Nautolan's hand.
It would have been a shock to those watching if they hadn't seen and experienced it in the past. Ahsoka's body went rigid, her eyes rolled back in her head, and her jaw clenched as the Force filled her body to more than it could handle, but the half-Nautolan was there to control it. Ahsoka spasmed for a second, almost as though she was about to have a seizure, but moments later, it was over, and Ahsoka came back to herself as the half-Nautolan let go. Ahsoka didn't collapse; she only stared straight ahead for a few seconds as the half-Nautolan returned to her seat. Finally, she looked up at the other woman, who only stared at her, before turning to the senators gathered there and asking, "Is it true? Some Jedi don't believe in visions, but is what she showed me true?"
Mon Mothma was the one who answered, "Even though some Jedi don't believe in visions of the future, Ahsoka, Master Fisto has assured us that her visions are the truth. While some Jedi do believe visions of the future aren't something to be paid attention to, with her having such a high midi-cholrian count, Kit has told us that if she sees it happen, it will happen. If she sees something like that, it will happen if we don't act. She has shown all of us this, and we truly believe the only option is to help her. That is why we have to act now, while we have the chance. It is the only way."
Ahsoka nodded slowly, thinking it over, but then Padmé added, "And there is the fact you are here based on the fact you are seeing visions of the future. That must mean you believe something will happen; otherwise, you wouldn't have come."
Ahsoka smiled slightly at that, "I guess so. It's just a shock to realize that what she showed me will happen if we don't put a stop to it."
Hearing that, the half-Nautolan smiled inwardly; Ahsoka was invested in this even more and would do what she could to help. The conversation moved on then to other things, with Padmé and Bail revealing what the half-Nautolan wanted: documents about the Trade Federation and their involvement in the war and the transaction accounts of the Republic and how they were spending money. Hearing this caused a bit of amusement among the senators, with Bail saying, "So long as we don't have to give ourselves headaches looking over these documents. If you want to dry out your eyes reading and analyzing all this stuff, be our guest."
The half-Nautolan smiled tightly; she wasn't looking forward to going over all those accounts either. Remembering what Padmé had said earlier made Ahsoka realize something, and she asked Padmé, "Can she really not talk? I don't think I have ever heard her say a word."
Padmé hesitated a moment before looking at Bail and Mon Mothma. The two senators only turned to the half-Nautolan, who nodded after a few seconds, causing Padmé to say, "She can speak, Ahsoka; it just won't make a difference if she does. She suffered a head injury a few years ago that was so serious it has caused her to forget how to speak Basic," Ahsoka immediately looked horrified. Padmé continued, "She can speak her native language, but it is so secret that protocol droids aren't programmed for it. Threepio could be here right now, and he wouldn't have an idea what she said. The only one who can speak it is Kit Fisto, and he isn't here right now. He taught her Basic when she was younger, but that head injury caused her to forget. He has been teaching her again, but it is a slow process. She does understand Basic, though, which is a good thing. When he was teaching her the first time, Kit had to teach her to understand it as well."
Ahsoka nodded slowly before asking, "If she can't speak Basic, how do you know what she wants?"
Padmé smiled slightly, "She usually sends Kit a message, and he passes it along to us. That way, no one gets confused about what she wants, and we don't have to guess about it. And we have gotten rather good at reading you," turning to the half-Nautolan, "It isn't too hard to figure out what you want sometimes, although the rest of the time we are left guessing a bit. Like now. You have Chuchi getting documents about the Trade Federation; why do you need us to get even more?"
The half-Nautolan only looked at her a moment before pulling out a small datapad from one of the pouches on her utility belt. She powered it up and tapped a few icons on the screen before passing it over to Padmé, who looked it over with the other senators. After a few moments, Ahsoka couldn't resist asking, "What is it?"
Padmé only shook her head while Mon Mothma said, "She has Chuchi getting a list of the Trade Federation's business partners and the Banking Clans if she can, while she wants us to get what the Republic is doing with the money. She also wants us to find where it is coming from and how much debt the Republic is currently in," she turned to Bail and Padmé then, "That's what it is. Chuchi and Pantora are having issues with the Trade Federation right now; there are a lot of documents being traded back and forth, making it possible for Chuchi to send some of them your way," turning to the half-Nautolan, "but Chuchi has no reason to look into the Republic's finances as a whole. We are on various finance committees and can do so without raising red flags or unwanted attention."
The others nodded while Ahsoka shook her head, "This is all too confusing for me. I'm better at fighting and protecting than dealing with all this money stuff."
Padmé laughed while Bail and Mon Mothma looked incredibly amused. Even the half-Nautolan looked as though she was resisting the urge to laugh, "It's alright, Ahsoka," Padmé said, "I think I prefer a good firefight over reading financial documents as well. It's a lot less boring."
Ahsoka smiled at that, and then Padmé turned to Bail and Mon Mothma, "We can get those documents easily enough, but let's get through this conference first. There is still the issue of the threat to my life, and Aurra Sing is likely close. We need to deal with those threats first. And there is the issue of Satine and Mandalore. Has anyone seen or heard from her recently?" there were head shakes all around with Padmé looking at the half-Nautolan, "But you know where she is and that she is safe?" the half-Nautolan nodded, with Padmé sighing and saying, "And only you and Kit know where she is, correct?" the half-Nautolan nodded again with a slight smile, leaving Padmé to shake her head.
Bail only said, "As long as Satine is safe to continue her work and inspire her people, that is all that matters. She can't be threatened or her life taken if only two people know where she is. And one is just as likely to talk as the other. Master Fisto won't betray her, and neither will you," looking at the half-Nautolan, "Very few people know you are linked, and even those that do don't entirely understand how. And I won't push on the issue now," he added as he saw the half-Nautolan start to frown, "that is for you to tell when you want to."
The half-Nautolan settled then, but Padmé said quickly, "The conference is about to start, we need to start preparing for what may happen. And you, my friend," turning to the half-Nautolan, "Should get a move on before someone sees you. The Republic does consider you a traitor, after all. It may be what you want, but it makes it dangerous for you to be here. You should go; we'll be alright."
The half-Nautolan only stared at her, asking if that is what she really wanted, but Padmé was resolute, "It'll be alright, old friend; I have Ahsoka here to protect me. You trust her skill, don't you?" the half-Nautolan nodded immediately, and Padmé smiled, "There you go, I'll be fine. You really need to go now, before someone sees you. Kit said you needed to head for Kamino; you need to get there before the Separatists. We'll be fine."
The half-Nautolan stared at her a moment longer before nodding slowly and looking at Ahsoka, measuring her. After a few seconds, she clearly decided to trust Ahsoka's skill since she only stood up and headed for the balcony, jumping over the railing and jumping down to the ground a few hundred feet below. Ahsoka raced over to see and was just in time to watch as the half-Nautolan disappeared into the forests surrounding the palace. The senators had followed more slowly, and they all watched as a ship took off from a clearing deep in the woods, with Bail saying, "At least now we know about that other ship she has. I was wondering how she was able to disappear so thoroughly sometimes. Everyone in the Republic and the Separatists is looking for a beat-up old starfighter, not a beat-up old freighter. She certainly knows her disguises."
"It's in better shape than the Twilight," Ahsoka commented lightly, "Master Skywalker is always working on it in his free time to make sure it doesn't explode mid-flight," turning and heading back inside. The senators only looked at each other before Padmé shrugged and turned to follow Ahsoka, knowing the young Padawan was well-used to danger and daring, following Anakin Skywalker around and learning from him.
Surely the half-Nautolan's freighter wasn't as dangerous, even if its pilot was more dangerous than Anakin could ever hope to be.
Separatist attack! After the destruction of the Republic outpost on the Rishi Moon, General Grievous and Asajj Ventress plan an attack on the planet Kamino, home of the cloning factories. Meanwhile, aboard a Jedi cruiser, Jedi Knights Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi examine an intercepted message from General Grievous….
A few days after leaving Alderaan and getting the all-clear from Bail that Padmé had survived the assassination attempt, the half-Nautolan had arrived on Kamino. She was just in time and got there before the Separatists arrived, smuggling herself into Tipoca City before it went into lockdown. When the attack began, she was able to avoid the fighting, not wanting anyone to know she was there. Racing through the hallways and avoiding the various fights, she eventually ran into Ventress, who only said, "I'll keep the Jedi away from you, but if Grievous sees you, he'll want to fight."
The half-Nautolan only nodded and continued on her way, deciding not to think about what Ventress had done to get so close to the DNA room, finally making it outside just as the sun came up and the weather cleared. Having left her heavy boots on her ship along with her long skirt and her hair in a long single braid down her back, she now ran barefoot along a walkway towards a landing platform where Kenobi and Grievous were fighting.
Kenobi was the first to see her and was so surprised that even Grievous turned around to look. Seeing her there, running towards them and clearly unarmed, Grievous turned away from Kenobi and headed for her. The half-Nautolan only ducked under both his blades before running again, dodging around Obi-Wan and diving into the ocean far below, and Grievous turned back to Kenobi. A few blows later and Kenobi was in the water as well but was quickly saved by a whale-like aiwha for the second time that day. He wasn't in the ocean long enough to look for the half-Nautolan, who had dived deeper than he could swim and had no choice but to return to the surface. From there, he had returned to the command center to debrief, hearing from Skywalker the DNA of Jango Fett was secure, and Ventress had fled along with Grievous.
As this was happening, the half-Nautolan was searching beneath Tipoca City for something she knew had to be there. During her briefing for this mission, Nala Se had told her that even though the inhibitor chips in the clone's heads were biological, they still had a receiver in them to get the signal needed to wipe the clone's brains and turn them against their generals. And that receiver was controlled by a transmitter on Kamino. She just had to find it and sabotage it. There was no guarantee it would stop the clones from turning against their generals if given the order, but not doing so would guarantee the Jedi would die.
The half-Nautolan may not like the Jedi, but she didn't want them to die because of their own naïveté.
Diving deeper and deeper, the half-Nautolan finally reached the ocean floor and started searching around. Relying on eyes that were evolved for no-light conditions, she searched for the transmitter among the muck and mud of the ocean floor. Nala Se had said it wasn't that big, but big enough to be found quickly if you knew where to look. Unfortunately, Nala Se hadn't known exactly where it was and hadn't been able to get the exact location for it, and so the half-Nautolan was left guessing over where it could possibly be.
Which left her in the position of having to find the transmitter and avoid the predatory saberjowl that haunted the waters around Tipoca City. The activity of the battles happening above had stirred one, and she was taking every precaution she could think of to not become its next meal. She had actually rubbed herself in the muck of the ocean floor to disguise her scent, but she knew the creature had eyes evolved for the dark as well.
Above the water, a clone trooper fired a rocket launcher, taking out a Separatist Trident attack ship and causing it to fall into the ocean and nearly hit the saberjowl. The creature roared and swam towards the city, looking for the ship and then tearing it to pieces. The half-Nautolan, seeing how aggressive it was, immediately tried to keep clear of it but was unsuccessful when the creature's eyes picked her out of the darkness and saw her as another meal. He raced over quickly, the half-Nautolan speeding off and heading for the depths where she knew he couldn't follow. She swam as hard as she could, using the Force to aid her speed, and eventually reached the edge of an underwater canyon. She raced down the side, going deeper and deeper, the saberjowl on her heels as the pressure increased.
She kept going, knowing that eventually, the pressure of going so deep would become too much for the saberjowl, and it would give up. And while the pressure at this depth would have been deadly to humans, and even some Nautolans, she knew she could survive this pressure for a bit longer than was expected.
Two kilometers.
The creature kept following, not tiring and not giving up.
Four kilometers.
The creature roared in frustration because his prey was getting away as he started slowing down.
Four and a half kilometers.
The saberjowl roared in fury as it swerved suddenly and gave up his attack, unable to keep going at that depth and leaving to find an easier meal. The half-Nautolan kept going for another hundred yards or so before becoming convinced the creature had indeed given up, then turned around and swam back for the surface. She swam slowly and easily, knowing if she went too fast her lungs wouldn't be able to take in all the air she was giving them fast enough and it could lead to her death.
Ten minutes later, she had reached the surface, breaking through and looking around at what was happening above water. She was a few clicks away from Tipoca City and could see that the Republic had successfully repelled the droids. Even from this distance, she could just make out clones getting to work repairing the damage to the city and securing the destroyed droids. She stayed on the surface a few minutes longer, letting her lungs recover from such a deep dive before submerging again.
She headed back to Tipoca City, getting there in good time and diving again to look for the transmitter. This time she found it easily since the saberjowl had cleared some of the silt and muck away when it swam after her. She was able to turn the transmitter on and access the files within seconds. Her comlink broke the encryption codes with ease, and she was soon scanning the files and codes written into the device. As she read and decoded the commands the transmitter had been programmed to obey, her brow drew down into a deep frown.
This might have been what she had been expecting, but to see it physically in front of her made it all the more real. She immediately turned to her comlink, plugging it into the transmitter and uploading a virus. But while some viruses deleted code or stole data, this one didn't. Yes, it stole data and saved it on her comlink as proof, but it also altered the codes of the signal the inhibitor chips would receive. No longer would the chips get the signal to kill the Jedi if ordered to; instead, the chips would short-circuit and the clones would be free to make their own choice.
Uploading the last of the virus to the transmitter, she also uploaded another program to the device, making it look like nothing had happened and the transmitter was still in working order. If anyone came looking or came to perform maintenance, it would look like nothing had happened, and the virus would even survive any updates, even though Nala Se had told her it wouldn't happen.
When the Kaminoans had placed the device, they had assumed they would only need to program it once and that was it, so they hadn't done anything to secure it or give it better security.
Clearly, they didn't think anyone knew about the device or would try and sabotage it.
Going over everything one more time to make sure she hadn't missed anything, the half-Nautolan shut the transmitter container and started heading for the surface after covering the device in some silt and muck to make it look like nothing had happened. Reaching the surface a few minutes later, she started swimming for Tipoca City, staying just beneath the surface so that no one would see her, but she would be able to see any predators coming her way. None approached, and she was able to ride a wave as high as it went, almost to the lowest platform of the city. It came up a little short, but in the end, she was able to grab onto the edge of the platform and hang there, using her arms to raise herself up and peer over the edge of the platform, looking for anyone that could stop her.
There was no one there, and so she hauled herself the rest of the way up and climbed onto the platform, looking around carefully as she did so, staying crouched and ready to spring into action if needed.
Not carefully enough, apparently, since a voice to her right said, "Well, well, well, look what the loth-cat dragged in," and she whipped her head around to see that Anakin Skywalker and a few of his clones were standing there with lightsaber and blasters ready. A movement to her left caught her eye, and she turned to see Shaak Ti and a few more clones were standing there as well, cutting off escape from that direction. Behind her, she could sense a gunship approaching, and looking over her shoulder, she could just make out Obi-Wan Kenobi and his clones ready to fire as well. And she was armed with nothing more than her fists and her feet.
Not very good odds against blasters and lightsabers, even if she had faced worse odds in her life.
Turning to face Skywalker, she only looked at him, and he said, "Whether you believe it or not, we are actually under orders to bring you to the Temple. The Council wants to speak with you."
That was the last thing she intended to do, and she needed a plan, fast, to get out of this situation.
Watching the half-Nautolan closely, Anakin could see she was unsure about what to do. By far the most expressive part of her face, her eyes were moving slowly over all those surrounding her, making calculations and weighing her options. She was still crouched on the platform, one leg under her and the other out to the side, her hands keeping her balanced in front of her, ready to spring into action at any moment. She just didn't have any way forward that she seemed comfortable with and was clearly thinking over every option she could come up with.
And Anakin hoped she would make this easy for them and just surrender.
On the other side of the half-Nautolan, Shaak Ti was watching her closely, her lightsaber ready for whatever came next. The young woman was frozen in place, her light blue briefs with their small skirt and her light blue half top accenting her tanned skin, looking over everyone there. She seemed to be waiting for something or was thinking over what she was going to do next. Her bare feet were covered in muck from the ocean floor and her hair had some in it also, her leggings gone to reduce drag while she was swimming. Her hands were in fingerless gloves, and her arms were wrapped up to the elbows in blue wraps, her comlink on her right wrist. Her necklace was about her neck as always, but she wasn't paying attention to that as she focused on the clones and Jedi around her.
Minutes passed like this, the half-Nautolan staring at the Jedi and clones, and the clones and Jedi staring right back. It was clearly an impasse, but how it would end was impossible to tell. The clones were ready to stand there all day and wait her out, as were the Jedi, but the half-Nautolan had no intention of staying. She watched them carefully, perhaps looking for a way out she could exploit. Behind them, Obi-Wan and Cody waited in the gunship, watching as the half-Nautolan finally looked behind her down at the water far below, clearly thinking of doing what she did on Naboo.
Seeing this, Anakin said, "Don't even think about it," and the half-Nautolan turned back to face him, "There are clones in the water; they will catch you," he smiled suddenly, "You're out of options."
The half-Nautolan's eyes grew hard then. Suddenly, she was the killer they had gotten a glimpse of in the Petranaki arena on Geonosis. Her expression hardened, and the Jedi were surprised to feel the anger and contempt well inside her before she was forcing it back down. After a few moments, her expression softened but her eyes remained hard, and she again scanned the clones surrounding her before suddenly turning to Shaak.
They made eye contact, and that was the exact moment chaos ensued. Not even a second after their eyes locked, Shaak fell back with a small cry as she blacked out for a moment, the force of suppressed memories taking over her mind and causing her to collapse. The clones with her were quick to catch her, but seconds later, an explosion rocked the platform. One of the support columns had been blown to pieces, causing the other two to not be able to compensate for the weight, and the platform started listing to the side. Everyone started scrambling to get to safety and sure ground, while Anakin headed for the half-Nautolan and tried to head her off as she ran for the other side of the platform.
She only ducked under his swing, which was off-balance because of the listing platform, and gave him a kick in the stomach that sent him reeling. He tried to gain his footing again, but she only pushed him back with the Force to safer ground and kept running. Before anyone could think to stop her, she was leaping off the platform and onto the old starfighter speeding towards the platform. They all watched from stable ground as she and her starfighter disappeared into the rising sun.
Only once they were truly gone did the gunship land on another platform nearby, Obi-Wan and Cody heading over quickly as Anakin knelt next to Shaak. She was being held up by one of the clones and was still unconscious, but as Obi-Wan approached, her eyes fluttered and slowly opened. Confusion was in her eyes before she asked, "What happened?"
"You tell us, Master Ti," Anakin said as he and the clone helped her to her feet, "One moment you were fine, the next you were collapsing as the platform gave out," he turned to Obi-Wan, "She must have rigged an explosive to take out the support column so she could get away."
Obi-Wan only nodded, but his attention stayed on Shaak as she tried to make sense of everything. Her eyes were closed, a hand resting gently on her forehead, trying to understand the flood of memories suddenly there for the taking. The clone behind her stayed close, ready to catch her again. Anakin belatedly realized it was Kix, the medic taking his responsibility very seriously, even if it involved a Jedi. Finally, Shaak opened her eyes and said softly, "I've seen her before."
"Yes," Obi-Wan said softly, not entirely understanding what was going on and not wanting to upset Shaak, "We have all seen her before."
Shaak shook her head, "No, I mean I have seen her here, on Kamino, before. A few years ago, but I don't know why she came. And I don't know why I forgot completely until now," looking at the other two Jedi standing with her. The clones had spread out to look for more explosives, with only Rex, Cody, and Kix staying close.
Hearing this Obi-Wan froze, while Anakin said, "How did she get here last time? And what was she doing?"
Shaak only shook her head, "I don't know, Master Skywalker. I wish I could remember more, but I do remember rounding a corner and coming face-to-face with her. Before I could react, she was already moving, and before I could call or signal for help, I was unconscious. I think…." trailing off before saying, "I think she altered my memory so that I wouldn't remember and caused me to forget. It must have been a block on my mind that only she could remove because the moment we made eye contact, the memories were released like a river flooding a dam," turning to Obi-Wan as she said this.
Obi-Wan stroked his beard in thought before saying, "I've never heard of such a thing, but it sounds possible."
"How?" Anakin asked impatiently, "Master Ti is a powerful Jedi; how could this half-Nautolan alter her memory?"
Obi-Wan only shook his head, "If you think about it, Anakin, Jedi can manipulate the minds of weak-willed people to do as we ask. It would make sense that if someone practiced that skill enough, that person could manipulate a mind to forget and remember at that person's will. But doing so to a Jedi would be no easy task. To accomplish such a thing, the other person would have to be strong-willed, more strong-willed than a Jedi."
Shaak was already nodding along with the idea, "That sounds like a possibility. But how did she get here in the first place? Then, and now? There was no battle to distract us back then, and she made it clear she was here this time. Why sneak around the first time but make herself known the second time? Especially after the Chancellor made it clear she was to be arrested if seen on a Republic planet?"
"All these questions don't really have answers, do they?" Obi-Wan said after some thought, "but I think the most logical one is the simplest one: she didn't want anyone to know she was here and what her plans were. Altering your memory of your encounter with her guarantees she stays secret a while longer and allows her to continue whatever she was doing at the time. Cody," turning to his commander, "Have a full sweep of the city carried out. Ensure she didn't leave any other surprises for us and check every room and computer terminal for sabotage the Separatists didn't cause. I want to know what she did."
"Yes, sir," the clone said, standing at attention for a moment before walking away to give out the order, Rex coming with him to contribute his own men to the sweep. Kix hovered nearby for a moment longer, but then Shaak turned to him and said, "I'm alright, Kix; you may return to your company."
"Yes, sir," the medic said and followed Rex and Cody back into the city, leaving the three Jedi alone on what remained of the platform. Once they were truly alone, Obi-Wan turned to Shaak and asked, "Are you sure you're alright?"
Shaak smiled at his concern, glad to see it after such a hard fight, "Yes, Master Kenobi, I am. It was just a shock to my mind, and the power of the Force that was directed at it was more than my mind could take. I've never felt anything so strong in my life, and I get the sense she wasn't trying that hard. It was something she would have done every day, like waking up and getting dressed," she looked at the two Jedi with her, "She is much more powerful than we realize, I think."
"Yes, and she is still loose in the galaxy," Anakin said, looking out where the half-Nautolan had disappeared, "And we have no idea what she was doing here. The clone subtroopers haven't found anything out of place down below, and none of the city supports were sabotaged. It's like she was just here for a swim and then left as soon as we found her. I wish we knew what she was up to."
"For now, there is nothing we can do," Obi-Wan said, "We can report this sighting to the Council and add it to what we know about her, but first, we need to get the city set to rights again. We have a lot of work to do."
"Agreed," Shaak said, following Obi-Wan back into the city while Anakin stayed a few moments longer before also following. Whatever happened with the half-Nautolan next was out of their hands, just as it always seemed to be, and now they had no other option but to wait and watch for her next move.
As usual.
Deep in space, the half-Nautolan met up with the Ghost and docked in the cargo bay, hopping out and quickly heading for the refresher, knowing she was starting to stink from the ocean muck of Kamino. A few hours later, she reappeared, clean and dressed, heading up to the bridge and seeing that the progress report from Kamino had come in while she was cleaning herself up. She only browsed it for a few moments before settling into the pilot's seat and setting coordinates for the planet Troithe in the Deep Core.
It was time to see how the device she and the Kaminoans had created was doing in a manufacturing setting and if it would hold up to the more rigorous conditions she wanted it to be able to operate under. Hopefully, it would hold up under any number of scenarios the clones found themselves in and would be up to the task of nullifying their inhibitor chips en masse.
There was only one way to find out.
Back on Kamino, the Jedi had delivered their report to the Council and included what had happened with Shaak. There was silence for a few moments before Yoda said, "Most troubling, this news is. Uncertain I am, how to proceed now."
Mace also looked troubled, "It is disturbing, that she could do such a thing to Master Ti. And even more disturbing that she was on Kamino before and wasn't seen or stopped. That suggests either a high level of planning or someone helped her avoid everyone in the city the last time."
"A spy?" Obi-Wan asked, "It certainly wouldn't be the first time such a thing happened. But how do we find them now? Just because they were on Kamino then doesn't mean they are now. Besides, this half-Nautolan doesn't seem to stay in one place for very long, and as far as we have been able to ascertain, she doesn't double back to planets she has been to before. This is the first time that we know of, but I don't think we will be seeing her back on Kamino anytime soon. She knows we are actively looking for her now; she won't make it easy to find her. Not that she was making it easy in the first place."
Nods and murmuring were heard around the Council, but then Ki-Adi Mundi said, "We have had almost no success finding her in the last few months, ever since she revealed herself. Our attempts to find her in the Force have failed, and it is clear she is much too strong for us. Perhaps the possibility of a spy needs to be considered, but perhaps we need to consider the fact that the Force is working more with her than with us. It may come down to us waiting for her to decide to reveal herself again and getting there in time to capture her. I don't see another way right now."
"Neither do I," Mace said, "But let's not rush into this blindly. That is what will set us up for failure; we must have a sure way to get to her and get her to trust us. We don't want to spook her."
There was silence for a few moments before Anakin said hesitantly, "The Chancellor will want to know about all this and what plans we have in place to find her."
"Personally meet with the Chancellor, I will," Yoda said, "Decide what is best to do, we shall. Find a solution, we will. But proceed carefully; we must. Perhaps, only scratching the surface with this half-Nautolan, we are. A danger she could be, to herself and us, but a strong ally she may be as well."
"And our efforts should include finding Master Abazza as well," Master Plo said, "There are answers there as well, if we can find them."
The Jedi gathered all nodded, and the meeting ended, with everyone wondering how they were going to find two people that were so skilled at disappearing into the galaxy without a trace.
Well….almost everyone. There was one there that knew how to find both of them, but he kept that secret to himself as he went about his responsibilities in his fleet, knowing it wasn't time for either the half-Nautolan or Sundali Abazza to reveal where they went and were.
Yet.