A/N: Hi everyone! Sorry it took so long to update, but unfortunately I had to brace and prepare for Hurricane Ian. I'm fine and safe but was without power and running water before I bailed and headed for my aunt's house. I still have a roof over my head back home, though, which I know is a rarity considering how bad the storm was. If you can, please donate to local charities and organizations working to help in rebuilding and rescue efforts. It means so much to everyone who will spend years rebuilding their lives and homes.

In the meantime, here's another chapter for you to enjoy. Warning for mature language and a few familiar faces if you're a fan of NCIS. The next few chapters are written and just need a few re-reads and edits before they're good to go. Until then, please read, review, and enjoy!

Secret transmission intercepted! The Jedi Council has intercepted an encoded transmission of General Grievous; however, Republic intelligence officers have failed to crack the new encryption code being used by the droids. Fears escalate that the Separatists are about to mount a major offensive. Having located the source of the transmission deep in Separatist space, the Jedi plan a counterstrike to capture an enemy decoding chip which will allow them to understand the transmission and thwart the Separatist plot….

Two days after Kit had woken and Siri had been found, the Jedi were getting ready for a stealth mission into the heart of Separatist space. To that end, they were getting droids prepared for the mission, since droids were the one thing other droids wouldn't suspect. Mace and Anakin were in charge of the briefing, with Anakin a bit worried about Artoo but knowing the little droid was more than capable of taking care of himself and even outsmarting those around him. Artoo would have no trouble completing the mission, especially after he was given a few modifications to make it easier.

Once the droids had left and the two Jedi were alone in the communication center, Ahsoka came in. Seeing them, she almost turned around and left, but then Mace asked, "Are you here to check on Master Fisto and Master Tachi, Padawan Tano?"

"Yes, Master," Ahsoka said as she turned back to him, "but I can check in my quarters."

"I would like to see how they are doing myself," Mace said, "Go ahead," gesturing at the large holotable as Master Plo, Yoda, Obi-Wan, and Even Piell entered the room.

Ahsoka nodded and returned to the table, and a few minutes later the feed from R6 was up. Ahsoka hit a few buttons on her comlink before shaking her head and saying, "Seeker isn't at Home Base. We can only see what R6 can see right now."

Mace nodded as he looked at the image being displayed. Kit was there, still in the bed and unable to leave it. The feeding tube was still in and so was the nasal cannula, and his eyes were half-closed as he stared off into space, either thinking or resting. It was quiet in the room and Lorelei was gone. The animal that lived there, Annie, was still in the corner and lay on her side, sleeping deeply. Her legs twitched as she dreamed, and Kit smiled as he watched her just as Krista entered the room with a few more IV bags. She smiled when she saw him awake, asking, "How do you feel?" as she began replacing the empty bags.

Kit's eyes opened a bit more as he looked at her, and he said, "Ready to get out of here," smiling slightly as he said this, and the Jedi were heartened to see how much more active he was.

Krista wasn't impressed by his display and had no intention of falling for it since she only said, "Ready to get out of here essentially three days after massive abdominal and thoracic surgery?" she drew in a breath and said, "Might want to pace yourself."

Kit shook his head slightly, clearly tired of being trapped in bed since he said, "I'm going to start pacing myself up and down these walls pretty soon."

Krista smiled slightly when she heard his frustration and irritation, saying, "Well...maybe a friend can distract you," looking towards the hallway door, causing Kit to roll his head that way and stare in surprise as a human entered the room.

The Jedi were similarly surprised because they had never seen him before. He was older, with piercing eyes and silver hair. He was a few inches shorter than Kit, with a softer jawline and a somewhat long nose. But he smiled when he saw Kit staring at him before walking into the room, and Kit got over his surprise quickly as Krista left. Kit finally smiled and said quietly, "Gibbs," causing the man to smile slightly as he sat down in the chair near Kit's bed and gripped his offered hand for a few moments before Kit said, "It's been a while. Did Seeker bring you here?"

Gibbs nodded, "Yep. She said you could use a friend outside of work and family. She also said to brace myself."

"I wonder why," Kit said quietly, the sarcasm more than clear, and Gibbs smiled and leaned forward as he looked closely at Kit before saying, "She was right. You do look like hell."

"I've definitely felt better," Kit admitted with a slight smile, causing Gibbs to say, "But you've also felt worse."

"That's true," Kit said quietly, "Tristan likes to say that some days I'll feel able to take on a train, and other days it will feel like I was hit by a train. Today is definitely the former."

Gibbs smiled at that, and it was silent for a few moments before Kit asked, "Did you come alone?"

"No," Gibbs said, "I brought along a few friends that wanted to come. You've met Abby, right?" Kit nodded, and Gibbs smiled slightly before saying, "You better be ready for her. She's got energy and enthusiasm to spare," Kit shut his eyes when he heard that but still had a smile on his face. Gibbs continued, "She's staying away for now so that I could warn you and say hello to the kids and your brothers. I also brought along a new agent. Her name's Ziva David. She's got a lot of promise; just need to train her to not be so trigger-happy. She shoots first, asks questions later. Not good in her new line of work."

"I'm sure you will have her trained properly in no time, Gibbs," Kit said with a smile, "You're a pretty good teacher if you could train Seeker to learn a few things I could not."

"Where is she?" Gibbs asked as the Jedi listened closely to the conversation, trying to understand it without any context and not having much luck, and Kit shrugged as best he could, "I don't know. She, Quinlan Vos, and Ventress left for a mission a few days ago. I'm not aware of what they are doing, but I'm sure I'll learn about it when they come back."

"Should be interesting," Gibbs muttered before saying more loudly, "What about –?"

An alarm started blaring just then, and Gibbs jumped to his feet while Kit raised his head as much as he could and stared out the door as clones ran past. One of them stopped outside the door and said, "Sir! We got bounty hunters in the hangar! They found the base!" the Jedi surprised and worried when they heard that, as well as confused. How had bounty hunters been able to find a base they couldn't?

Kit nodded and only said, "My brothers and father are in charge right now, captain. Do what they say."

"Yes, sir!" the clone replied and kept running, while Gibbs turned to Kit and asked, "You have your lightsaber?"

Kit shook his head, "Seeker has it," causing Gibbs to stare at him before asking, "Can you stand?"

Kit again shook his head, "I can't feel my legs," causing the Jedi to look at each other in surprise as Kit added, "Tristan paralyzed them so I wouldn't feel the desire to walk before I was able."

Gibbs shook his head and muttered under his breath before looking around and seeing the open door across from Kit's bed. Annie was already hiding inside, her head the only thing visible but that disappeared quickly enough. Gibbs turned back to Kit and asked, "You know why they're here?"

"I can guess," Kit said, "And all of my guesses aren't good for anyone," straining to lift himself up on his elbows before pain and his strength giving out forced him back down, revealing he was much weaker than the Jedi had originally thought.

Gibbs grunted before walking over to the room and looking inside. Whatever he saw was apparently what he was looking for because he turned back and said, "I'll be in here. Anyone comes in, they'll regret it."

Kit stared at him before nodding, and Gibbs almost stepped inside before thinking of something and turning back around to walk back to Kit. Kit stared at him in confusion, but the confusion went away as Gibbs brought forth a large knife and stuck it into the mattress between two of Kit's fingers. Kit didn't flinch, staring at the knife before saying, "Security here is usually better than security at the Temple. How the hell did you get that past them?"

Gibbs only leaned over near Kit's ear and said quietly, "Never go anywhere without a knife," before straightening and heading into the room, leaving Kit to stare at the knife before reaching up and getting it out of the mattress. He hid it in the blankets and sheets then, closing his eyes until they were slits and relaxing as much as he could. Gibbs stayed hidden as outside the fighting got more and more intense.

Kit's brothers had divided the troops defending Home Base amongst themselves and were routing the droids the bounty hunters had brought along, confirming the Separatists had hired them to find Home Base. The brothers and clones gave a good account of themselves and didn't back away from the fight, but a few of the hunters hadn't made themselves known and were wandering the base alone and quietly, looking for their targets.

They weren't just here to infiltrate the base; they had been hired for more nefarious reasons.

One of those hunters, Aurra Sing, found herself in a long hall leading to a hangar. There were several hangars in this base, and she was walking towards the westward-facing one. Her blaster was out and she was looking into all the rooms, looking for someone her employers had said was there. Eventually, she found him, smiling as she slowly walked into a room and saw a lone Nautolan lying in bed. He seemed to be asleep, and Aurra's smile widened at how easy of a job this would be.

She walked over slowly, savoring the moment, before extending her blaster and aiming at his head. Watching the feed, the Jedi were powerless to help, but Kit still had plenty of fight in him, which became clear when Aurra suddenly stopped and gasped in surprise. She looked down to see a knife in her stomach, Kit's hand wrapped around the hilt. She looked up then into his now-open eyes, and even the Jedi were surprised to see the coldness in them. He let go of the knife then and she collapsed to the ground, and Kit sat back into the bed, breathing heavily and clearly exhausted. He caught his breath before reaching for a small control near his hand. He hit a button there while watching Aurra, and Gibbs appeared as the medical droids came. One of them had a syringe, which it injected into Aurra's arm. Seconds later, the bounty hunter was unconscious and the droids were carrying her away while Kit looked at Gibbs for a few moments before looking away, clearly tired and out of strength as his eyes fell half-shut.

Gibbs only shook his head and returned to the room since the danger wasn't gone yet. There were still several bounty hunters left in the base, and a few minutes later another found the room and entered. This one was familiar to Mace, who leaned forward on the holotable as Boba Fett entered the room. The young clone had recently escaped prison and again fell in with Aurra Sing and Jango's old associates. Boba was clearly interested in filling his father's shoes as he stared at the wounded Jedi before shaking his head and pulling out his blaster.

He also aimed at Kit's head, and the Nautolan woke up and turned to stare at him, clearly not having the strength to fight back, nor did he have a weapon. Gibbs, moving more silently than the Jedi would have thought possible, had taken up a position behind the young bounty hunter, ready to jump in. But before he could, a voice behind them all asked, "What are you doing?" sounding more curious than anything else.

Boba jumped and turned around, his blaster still aimed at Kit's head, seeing that the voice belonged to one of Kit's brothers. He was standing in the doorway, watching Boba intently. Boba only said, "What does it look like? I'm killing this Jedi!"

Kit's brother only stared at him curiously before cocking his head and asking, "You're Boba Fett, aren't you?" as he took a few steps into the room.

"What's it matter to you?" Boba challenged, cocking his blaster suddenly when the Nautolan started getting too close, "Watch it! I'll kill him if you come any closer!"

Kit's brother stopped and asked, "Do you know who I am?"

"No, should I?" Boba asked, and the Nautolan cocked his head and said, "I would think your father would have told you about me. My name is Actava Fisto. I was the one who taught your father his trade."

The Jedi were surprised to hear that, while Kit finally moved and looked up at Boba's blaster before looking at his brother, looking like he was wondering what Actava was planning on doing to get him out of this situation. Kit stayed silent, not wanting to surprise Boba or cause him to jump. Boba was staring at Actava in surprise, but that ended as he said, "So what if you taught him? Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill him right now!" jerking his head at Kit.

"Because he is my brother," Actava said simply, while another, deeper voice said behind him, "And my son."

Boba jumped as Tzakara entered the room slowly, and Actava stepped aside so his father could address Boba directly. The young bounty hunter was staring at Tzakara in surprise and what might have been some fear since he apparently recognized the older Nautolan, but that went away as Tzakara stepped closer and Boba cocked his blaster again. Tzakara stopped walking and said quietly, "Put the blaster down, Boba."

"No," Boba said, "We're getting paid good money to bring in his head, and I'm not missing out on a payday like that."

"Put the blaster down, Boba," Tzakara repeated, but still Boba refused. Tzakara stared at him a moment before saying, "I met your father once, Boba, and the one thing that impressed me was his sense of honor. He truly was a Mandalorian, even if he was a foundling. Tell me, would he have struck down an unarmed and defenseless opponent?"

For the first time, Boba seemed unsure, and Tzakara took a careful step forward as he continued, "You know he wouldn't have. Even if that opponent was an enemy, he wouldn't have struck him down when he couldn't fight back. It isn't the honorable thing to do, and I would think you have your father's sense of honor. He must have at least taught you that."

Boba stared at him before turning to look at Kit. The Nautolan Jedi was staring at him, no emotion to be seen on his face, and Boba shook his head before looking at Tzakara and Actava. Actava finally said, "If you don't put that blaster down, I will kill you, Boba. Make no mistake about that. I, right now, don't care that you're the son of my former protégé. If you don't step away from my brother, I will make sure you never leave this base alive. But if you step away now, I will teach you all I taught him and more. You can become a better bounty hunter than your father. But only if you step away and put your blaster down."

The young bounty hunter stared at him before looking down at the ground as he thought over his options, and Mace narrowed his eyes as he watched closely. It was impossible to tell what option Boba would choose, and it was difficult not being there to help their friend. Kit's life was in the hands of his father and brother right now, and it was difficult watching from the sidelines.

Tzakara finally said softly, "Put the blaster down, Boba," the young one looked at him, and Tzakara added, "It's what your father would have done."

That seemed to break Boba's resolve because he finally put the blaster down and then dropped it to the floor, where it stayed as Actava came forward and led him away while Tzakara walked over to Kit and checked on him. Kit only nodded, and Tzakara said, "We have more droids to clear from the base. I'll be back afterward to let you know what happens," as Gibbs disappeared back into the room.

Kit nodded and watched as his father left, one of his brothers coming in a few minutes later and saying with a smile, "Màthair sent me to keep an eye on you and make sure you don't try anything," as he looked around for anything wrong. Finding nothing, he turned back to his brother, who nodded, but seconds later Kit's eyes widened, and he exclaimed, "Matengi!" trying to get up but still not having the strength.

Kit's warning was too little, too late, as Matengi spun around and ducked as a vibroblade tried to take his head off. But he wasn't fast enough to dodge the standard knife in the other hand of his attacker. That knife cut his throat and he collapsed to the ground as blood poured from the wound. His attacker only laughed as he entered the room even more, revealing Raojull Gon. The Nautolan gave Matengi's body a kick, but when that didn't produce a reaction, he looked up and saw Kit. The younger Nautolan stared back, eyes cold and hard as Gon came closer.

As for the Jedi, they were still trapped and unable to help Kit as Gon walked over to the bed. They knew now Gon had tried to kill Kit when he was a child, and now Kit was again in a position where he couldn't get away or even fight back. It wasn't a position any of them wanted to be in. Yoda watched carefully as the Nautolan approached his former Padawan, who had stopped struggling to get up and get to his brother and was saving his strength for whatever came next. This time there was no fear as they stared each other down.

Kit may have been scared for his brother, but there was no way to tell.

After a few more moments of this, Gon finally said, "After all this time, here you are. Right in my grasp," grabbing Kit's throat and squeezing as hard as he could. Kit tried to break free, but his hands were still restrained and there wasn't enough play to break free. But Raojull Gon clearly wanted to savor every moment of this because he stopped squeezing and let go, making Kit gasp and cough as he forced air back into his lungs and hopefully didn't tear any stitches. Seeing the younger Nautolan struggle to breathe was a joy for Gon, who grinned as he looked over at Kit's fallen brother. Gon shook his head at the sight and said, "So much for the famed endurance of the Fistos. One cut to the throat and they're done," he turned back to Kit, his smile widening as he added, "And you are now at my mercy. The hunters and droids are distracting the rest of your family and your guards, and by the time anyone figures out what happened here, you'll be dead and I'll be gone. And after that," he leaned forward and said, "I'll find and kill the half-Nautolan you've been protecting her entire life, and then I'll make sure to find your daughter….and end your legacy."

"Coward," Kit said breathlessly, "You couldn't face me before, and you can't face me now," ignoring the way Gon's face was darkening in anger, "You couldn't fight a healthy opponent without using underhanded tactics, and that will never change. And it won't be you hunting Seeker down; it will be the other way around. She will never stop hunting you," he stared at Gon then, "And as for my daughter," he coughed as he brought air into his lungs, "She will be more than either of us, and her legacy will last longer than both of us. You will never get your hands on her."

Gon had listened to what Kit said, and it was clear his sanity couldn't take it since he suddenly backhanded Kit across the face, whipping his head to the side, and spat out, "Watch yourself, you bastard."

Kit shook his head to clear it and rolled it back to look at Gon, a trail of blood down his chin where he had bitten his tongue from the force of the blow, and Anakin suddenly asked, "Where's that man from before? Gibbs? Or anyone else for that matter?!"

"I don't know, Anakin," Obi-Wan said, "but I don't like how this is going. If only there was something we could do!" his frustration felt by everyone there as they now realized how dangerous an opponent Raojull Gon was to Kit and his family.

Raojull Gon was still staring at Kit as Kit stared back, and that was when Gon suddenly leaned forward and said, "This conversation is over. Make sure to say hello to Rayla for me when you see her in the next life. Your people may believe in reincarnation, but there is no way to know if that is true or not. All the same, tell Rayla she was pleasant company for the few days she was my guest, and that those coordinates she gave us proved accurate," as he got his blaster out and ready to fire.

Kit froze in shock and stared at Gon. His eyes were wide and he didn't pay any attention to Gon's weapon, and a few seconds later was finally able to ask, "What did you do to her? Where is she?"

Gon shrugged before smiling and saying, "Nothing she didn't deserve, and I think you know where she is. I'm sure she's enjoying the hospitality of my king and queen."

Kit's eyes widened, and as Gon reached out, he suddenly sprang into action, deciding to fight one more time. He was still defenseless, except for his teeth. He was too fast for Gon, who recoiled with a cry as Kit's teeth found their mark in his forearm, injecting a dose of venom. He jerked his arm free before backhanding Kit again, making the Jedi fall back onto the bed, which he did, his breathing labored and heavy from the pain. He lay limply on the bed, unable to do anything more as Gon recovered from the bite, and the Jedi watched in surprise and shock as the wound closed in front of their eyes, clearly not feeling the effects of the venom and revealing more about him than anything else they had ever known before that moment.

Raojull Gon watched it close before turning back to Kit and bringing his blaster up, but before he could fire a shot a voice said, "Drop it," as Gibbs suddenly appeared behind the Nautolan and held his own pistol to the Nautolan's head. The Jedi had seen him coming, but the man moved so silently neither Nautolan heard him approach.

Gon didn't, only turned his head ever-so-slightly to look behind him and said quietly, "You're in no position to make demands, human."

"I'm not," Gibbs agreed, "but she is," nodding to the operating room door, where a woman now stood. She was tall with a fit build, her long black hair tied back in a single plait. Her eyes were brown and her skin was slightly tanned. She was also carrying a pistol aimed unerringly at the Nautolan. Her eyes were fixed on him and her face was carefully blank.

"Unless you want to die today, put it down," she demanded as she walked farther into the room, making sure none of her shots would hurt Kit or Gibbs, a slight accent in her voice the Jedi had never heard before, "Now!" when Gon hesitated.

Gon didn't put it down, instead smiling slightly and saying, "I think I'll leave it right where it is," his blaster still pointed at Kit's head, "You won't shoot me. Women don't have the courage for that kind of thing."

The woman's eyes narrowed while Gibbs said, "Shouldn't have said that," even though his attention never left Gon. Moments later, it was proven why that was a good thing when Gon's finger tensed on the trigger, and seconds later, loud bangs filled the room as Gibbs and his companion emptied their magazines into Gon. He went down before he could fire a shot, and seconds later, it was done. While the woman walked over and kept her reloaded gun fixed on Gon, Gibbs checked on Kit, who looked up at him before staring at Gon's body.

Gibbs only said, "Don't think about it too much, old friend; you would've done the same."

"Maybe," Kit said quietly before looking up at Gibbs, "It's moments like these when I'm reminded that in some ways, I am not a Jedi," he went back to staring at Gon, "That is never more clear than right now."

Gibbs only stared at him before shrugging as Tzakara and a few of his sons ran into the room, clearly attracted by the sound of gunfire. They stared at Gon's body for several moments before Tzakara finally got over the surprise and turned to Matengi, who had lain there entirely still the entire time. His father crouched over him and gently turned him over, revealing his throat was deeply cut, but he was breathing. Seeing that, Tzakara bowed his head and sighed in relief before looking up and saying, "He's alive."

Kit relaxed when he heard that, as did his brothers, and seconds later Tristan suddenly appeared and took charge of Matengi, getting him onto a stretcher and out of the room to stitch up his neck. He came out a few moments later to check on Kit, but finding him alright and with no fresh bleeding, he left a few minutes later to tend Matengi. As this was happening, Tzakara walked over to Kit, saying as he passed Gibbs, "You have my thanks, Gibbs. Anything in my power you want, it is yours," he leaned in closer and said quietly, "That is a promise for the rest of your days and whenever you need it filled."

Gibbs nodded and was silent as Tzakara went and sat next to his son on the bed, pulling him in close with an arm around his shoulders. Tzakara looked his son over carefully before nodding, pressing Kit's head against his chest for a few moments with his other hand, closing his eyes and resting his chin on Kit's head as he listened and felt his son breathe. Kit wasn't paying attention to him; he was focused on his brothers as they looked over Raojull Gon, one of them looking up and saying, "The bastard might be able to heal himself."

"You know what to do, Nagala," his father said as he opened his eyes before turning to Kit and laying a hand over his eyes. Kit jerked his head, trying to free his eyes so he could see, but Tzakara held firm. Kit jerked his head again, wanting to see what was happening, but Tzakara still didn't remove his hand. Seeing this, the Jedi were surprised that Tzakara was doing such a thing since Kit clearly didn't like it, but could only watch as Kit jerked his head again. Finally, Tzakara said, "Stop it, Kit; you know I'm not going to let you see this."

Kit finally stilled and stopped struggling against his father, and Tzakara turned to watch as his other sons moved Gon's body onto a sheet and Nagala kneeled down, pulling out a vibroblade as Gibbs and the woman looked on. Seeing Nagala reach for Gon's head the woman suddenly asked, "What are you doing?"

Nagala didn't answer, leaving Tzakara to say, "The only way to make sure an old-breed is truly dead, Ziva David, is to do this," nodding at Nagala as he took up the blade and went to work. The knife was clearly very sharp, with Tzakara saying, "Our people know how to make blades so sharp you don't even feel it when they cut off a limb. No matter how strong the bones, tendons, and sinew, they can cut through anything," as he watched his son work, ignoring Kit's struggles and how unhappy he was about the situation. Kit's jaw was clenched, and he twitched every few moments to try and get rid of his father's hand over his eyes, but it was clear he had more or less given up. Tzakara only shook his head before turning to watch his son's work; the Jedi sickened at the sight before them. Minutes later, Gon's head was separated from his body, and Nagala looked up at Tzakara, who said, "Send it back to Glee Anselm. Burn the rest."

The brothers nodded and picked up the sheet, carrying it out of the room and down the hallway. Only once they were out of sight did Tzakara remove his hand, and Kit blinked a few times before looking at his father and saying, "They found Rayla."

Tzakara frowned then and said, "We'll get her back, Kit. Don't worry. We'll find her and make sure whoever is holding her pays for whatever they did to her. You have my word."

Kit nodded and settled after that, knowing his father always told the truth and would tear the galaxy apart to find her. Without realizing it, his eyes closed and he fell asleep, more than exhausted after the day he'd had. Once he was asleep, Tzakara stood up and left, nodding at Gibbs before saying, "The droids have been destroyed and the hunters taken into custody. We'll figure out what to do with them later. For now, we need to make sure no systems were damaged," he looked back at his son before saying, "We may have to move the base; no easy task."

"We'll stay here until things are settled," Gibbs said, Ziva nodding, "If you need anything from us, we'll be here."

Tzakara nodded and smiled before leaving the room, and it settled down in the room as Gibbs and Ziva reloaded their weapons and stayed on guard. About half an hour later, Tristan brought Matengi into the room and settled him into the vacant bed. A female Nautolan that must have been his mate joined him in the bed as Kailan entered the room and sat next to his twin. The bounty hunter was covered in blood and had a few wounds but didn't seem to care as he looked over his brother. He listened to the abridged version of events from Gibbs with interest and only rasped in response to Raojull Gon's death, "The galaxy is better off without him," before turning to his twin and resting his head on the mattress, clearly worn out. Seconds later, he was asleep as well, and it was silent in the room.

Seeing this, Mace shook his head, "That didn't go as I expected it to go, but I'm glad Master Fisto is alright. He is surrounded by those who protect him and protect him well."

There were nods and murmurs all around, and then Anakin asked suddenly, "Whose Rayla?" the others looked at him as he added, "She means a lot to Master Fisto, and his father knows who she is. Maybe she's his mate?"

"Perhaps," Yoda said, "But find answers easily, we will not," he turned to Ahsoka then, who looked a little disturbed at the sight of Kit's brothers cutting Raojull Gon's head off, "When Seeker returns, let us know, you will?"

"Of course, Master," Ahsoka said before leaving, clearly needing a few minutes to herself to process what she had just seen. Once she was gone, Obi-Wan said, "If they're planning on moving Home Base, we might be able to find it. There's no way a station that big can move easily or quickly; someone is going to notice."

"We can tune our scanners for something that big moving through space," Master Plo said, "But without knowing the exact size and shape of the base, or the general area it's coming from, it will be difficult. Our sensors may pick up a fleet of ships or a swarm of purrgil before they find the base. By then, it could be in its new location."

Yoda shook his head while the other Jedi exchanged glances, wishing that they could do something, anything, in response to whatever was happening at Home Base and weren't trapped on the sidelines. It would make them feel better about the whole ordeal if there was something they could do to help Kit instead of just relying on his family and Seeker to keep him safe. Despite everything he had done and the fact they didn't know why he had done what he'd done, they still felt a desire to protect him as a Jedi.

Secret weapons! The Jedi Council deploys a squad of droids on a desperate mission aboard a Separatist cruiser. Under the guidance of Colonel Meebur Gascon, the droids succeed in stealing a crucial encryption module. Now the Colonel and his droids squad must return the module to the Jedi Temple to crack a Separatist code detailing an impending terror plot against the Republic….

A few days after the attack on Home Base, Seeker, Quinlan, and Ventress arrived at their next mission's location. They had rendezvoused with the cruisers that had brought them out there and were on the bridge staring at the dark planet before them. They were in the Unknown Regions, having navigated through solar storms and herds of megafauna and other space traps to the hidden planet of Exegol. Seeker's Wayfinder had led them true and not failed them once, but now she said, "Keep the ships at this distance," as she turned to the deck officer, "Out here the magnetic fields get all confused. Large cruisers like this one won't be able to tell which way is up out here the closer they get to the planet. And we'll stay out of range of any planetary sensors."

The clone nodded, and Seeker turned to Quinlan and Ventress, "We have to get down there. We'll take the Ghost, get what we came for, come back and get out of here."

Ventress nodded while Quinlan asked, "What do we do if things don't go to plan?" as they started following her out of the bridge and to the hangar. Seeker only looked over her shoulder and said, "What we do best: improvise."

Quinlan exchanged a glance with Ventress before shrugging and following Seeker onto the Ghost. Seconds later, they had taken off and were heading for the planet, cloaking their ship as they did so. Seeker also hid their presence in the Force so that no one on the planet would know they were coming. Finally reaching the atmosphere after passing through a field of red gas and stardust, Quinlan said quietly, "The one thing I don't like about this is that we can't use shields here."

"Why not?" Ventress asked in surprise, and Seeker said, "Because the dry conditions combined with the rubbing of dust particles in the atmosphere create enormous static discharges. They look like lightning strikes when you're on the planet and make the atmosphere too dangerous for deflector shields."

Ventress was silent after hearing that, and soon they were through the atmosphere and heading towards the surface. The planet's surface was barren and rocky with desert flats and covered in enormous fissures that went deep into its crust. Seeker didn't stop the ship or even slow it, knowing exactly where she was going and knowing they would likely have only one chance at this. She headed straight for a large castle on the surface. It was shaped like an upside-down pyramid but missing the pointed top and made of black stone. Barely visible underneath was what looked like an entrance into the underground, and Ventress swallowed hard when she saw that.

Not even her nightmares could have prepared her for this.

A hand on her shoulder had her looking into Quinlan's compassionate eyes. He nodded and she smiled weakly back, facing back around to watch as Seeker went in for a landing in a cave near the citadel. Once they were on the ground and the ship powered off, she turned around and asked, "Everyone up to speed on the plan?"

Quinlan and Ventress nodded, and Seeker looked between them before sighing and saying, "Then let's get going. We need to finish this before someone notices the cruisers. We won't have long to do what we need to do."

She stood up then and led the way out of the ship, Quinlan staying behind to be ready to go. He was too much a Jedi, and his connection to the Light Side would draw any Sith to them like moths to a lamp. He watched from the viewports as the two women left the ship, Ventress looking over her shoulder to wave before following Seeker. Both were dressed in black and had black cowls and cloaks, which they put on to disappear into their surroundings. Seconds later, they had vanished, and not even Quinlan could see where they had gone.

Finally reaching the Citadel, Seeker and Ventress took the platform down into the lower half of the citadel. They looked around as they descended, seeing the massive halls and statues that lined them of Sith from generations ago. The noise was a bit deafening as foundries were brought back online to start the construction of a new fleet of ships that could herald the destruction of the galaxy. Seeker's eyes hardened when she heard that, but that was all. Below them, beings were barely visible in the shadows and darkness, but the evil around them was almost able to be seen. Ventress quickly swallowed her fear when she saw them, knowing if they felt that, they would turn on her and force her to fight them, which would give them away.

Reaching the end of the line, the two women got off the platform and started heading through the hall. With their hoods up and features hidden, the Sith couldn't see who they were and weren't who the Force said they were. The Force was working for them right now and wouldn't fail them. Right now, they seemed to be of the Dark Side to the Sith, but that couldn't be further from the truth. Heading deeper into the Citadel, Seeker led the way to a room of weapons and armor. It was guarded by a Sith apprentice, a Twi'lek, and he let them pass without a second thought.

Once inside, Seeker looked around quickly as Ventress took in the armor and weapons hanging on various hooks and things around the room. Some were clearly antiques and had long been there, but that wasn't why Seeker was there. As Ventress kept looking around, Seeker headed straight for the back wall where a familiar helmet and set of armor were hanging.

This armor and helmet were made of beskar, and Seeker smiled slightly when she saw it. She collected it all, including the various weapons that came with it: the two blasters, the flamethrowers, the whispering birds, the personal wrist shield, the various vibroblades, and the jetpack. Once she had everything, she signaled Ventress, who nodded and went to the apprentice standing guard at the door. Seconds later, the apprentice was dead and dragged into the room to hide him, and they were moving on, heading deeper into the citadel. They passed a large amphitheater, Seeker looking inside for a brief moment and her eyes narrowing at the sight of the large throne in the center, but they kept moving. Using the Force to navigate and avoid the Sith wandering the hallways, they eventually made it to the deepest part of the fortress.

These were the dungeons, so far away from the surface and the sun if it had been visible it would have killed the hope of any prisoners brought there. But there was only one prisoner right now, and Seeker could sense that she wasn't broken yet. Reaching her cell, the two women opened the door and stepped inside, only the fastest of reflexes saving them from being kicked around. The prisoner was more than willing to give them a beating, but that changed when Seeker dropped her hood and said, "Easy, Hulia, it's me. Your daughter sent us."

The second Hulia Abazza saw who it was, she stopped her attack, eyes wide in surprise before saying, "What are you doing here?! It could be a trap!"

"A trap we are ready for," Seeker said as she produced Hulia's armor, "Get ready; we're leaving. We need to get out of here before anyone notices."

Hulia nodded, reached for her armor, and was ready to go in minutes. The second her helmet was on, they were moving out of the cell and down the hallway, Ventress closing the door behind them. Seeker had taken her cloak off and given it to Hulia, hiding her helmet under the cowl. It left Seeker exposed, but again the Force came to the rescue, disguising her in the eyes of the Sith as something else entirely. It disguised her as a Sith and a human, and they could pass the more active parts of the Citadel without being stopped or questioned.

Knowing it wouldn't last, Seeker headed for the labs and foundries, taking a different way out. She led them straight through the foundries before hanging a left at a passageway that would take them out of the underground. But just before they would have gone inside and disappeared, the alarm was raised, signaling someone had found either the apprentice's dead body or the empty cell. Whichever it was didn't really matter, and seconds later they were found and fighting for their lives.

Hulia gave a good account of herself and killed more than her fair share of Sith, with Seeker and Ventress igniting their lightsabers and fighting as one. Between their four blades, they were able to hold off the Sith long enough for Seeker to yell, "Get behind me!"

The others immediately obeyed, and suddenly the Force reacted with violence and aggression. It became the life of the planet and responded to Seeker so completely the Sith looked around in confusion and fear. But before they could react or do anything suddenly the rock above them was groaning and scrapping against itself, and then the roof began to collapse. Seconds later, Ventress and Hulia were running as fast as they could while Seeker stayed behind, and following the tunnel led them to the surface. Once out there, they ran for the hidden ship, reaching it just as a rumbling was heard behind them.

Turning, they looked as the ground surrounding the pyramid collapsed and became incredibly unstable. The pyramid apparently lost some support structures and started collapsing into the ground, and minutes later a large cloud of dust appeared, followed by a great crashing and some explosions. Ventress had no choice but to cover her eyes against the dust while Hulia used her helmet's scope to look for Seeker. At first, there was nothing as the dust started to settle, but minutes later a lone figure was just visible on her scope. Zooming in, she sighed in relief when she recognized Seeker walking towards them, looking none the worse for wear. Reaching them, she said, "We need to get out of here. I think I got them all, but a few might have survived or escaped. We need to get out of here before the rest in the galaxy come back to defend this place, or worse, rebuild everything happening below the Citadel. Let's go."

Hulia and Ventress were more than willing to agree, and seconds later, they were on the Ghost once more. Hulia exchanged a nod with Quinlan as he yielded the controls to Seeker, and she was soon flying them through the atmosphere and towards the cruisers in the distant part of the system. Once safely back in the hangar of the Dauntless, the four of them left the freighter and headed for the bridge. Reaching it a few minutes later, they were greeted by Monnk, who said, "We're ready to go whenever you are, sir. Just give the word."

"Not yet, Commander," Seeker said, "The mission's only half done."

Monnk didn't understand what she meant by that, none of the clones did, but he wasn't given a chance to ask anything else as Seeker headed out onto the bridge, staring out the viewports to the planet far away. A few minutes later, she sat down cross-legged on the bridge, confusing the clones even more, while Quinlan and Ventress could feel the Force starting to gather to her. She closed her eyes and brought her hands together in front of her, cupping them slightly before blowing air into the space between them. She kept her eyes closed the entire time, and as they watched, glowing light started to appear between her fingers. It became brighter and brighter before she finally released it, revealing a ball of energy that Quinlan could sense was of the living Force.

Feeling that and knowing what it meant were two different things, though, so he could only watch as Seeker sent the ball forward with the Force. It floated forward and passed through the viewports, not harming anything, and started heading for the planet, getting bigger and bigger as it did so. As this was happening, Ventress turned to Monnk and said, "You better get the shields going as strong as you can. Turn off all non-critical systems, even navigation and the engines, and send that power to the shields. This is going to be big."

Monnk nodded. Even though he didn't know or understand what was going on, not fully, he knew that whenever someone like Ventress, who knew Seeker better than he did, said to do something when Seeker was doing something like this, it was best to do what she said. He nodded to his crew and they immediately got to work, a communications technician sending a transmission over to the other cruiser to tell them to prepare in the same way.

As this happened, Seeker focused on her task, not paying anyone any attention. Her focus was on the Force and its connection to the galaxy; as she did this, the Force responded. It drew on the life of every being in the universe, every form of life and state of being, drawing power from it all and sending it towards Seeker. She contained it all within her necklace and then sent it down to the planet, feeding that ball of energy as it approached Exegol. As it approached, it got bigger and bigger and more and more powerful, and seconds later, it was ready.

Seeker turned her attention for the briefest of moments to those on the cruisers and, seeing that they were ready, turned back to the ball of energy. For a few seconds, she hesitated, barely remembering something in the deepest shadows of her mind, but that went away soon enough and she was directing the energy to the planet.

On the planet, a few surviving Sith watched as it came closer and closer, so bright it hurt their eyes that were no longer used to the light, and they were helpless to stop it as it collided with the planet.

High above, Seeker drove the energy deeper and deeper into the planet until, finally, it hit the core. Minutes later, there was an explosion unlike anything anyone had ever heard before. Everyone on the ship covered their ears, except for Seeker. Those near windows shielded their eyes too, as the light was so bright it was impossible to see. But finally, it faded away, and they were able to look out and see the planet.

But the planet was gone.

In its place were large and small meteors and meteorites scattered around, and the sun was also gone. All that remained was a field of asteroids and molten rock, quickly cooling in the cold of space. Seeing this, Monnk was shocked and turned to Seeker, still sitting on the ground and recovering from what she had just done. Even though it was something she was more than capable of doing, that did not make it easy. She suddenly coughed, and blood appeared, but that was all, and soon she was settled and only breathing heavily as she got herself under control. As she did this, Quinlan walked past Monnk and said nonchalantly, "And this is why I never get Seeker mad at me."

Monnk nodded faintly while Hulia walked over to Seeker and helped her to her feet. Seeker was a bit unsteady, but that changed soon enough, and then she was heading for the bridge and holotable. Once there, she said quietly, "Let's get out of here and back to the staging area. We need to get to Home Base after this," her eyes hardened for a moment, "I need to meet an old friend."

The others nodded and she kept going, and a few minutes later, she was gone and the blast doors were closing behind her. Once they were shut, Monnk turned one last time to look at where Exegol had been only a few moments before, realizing now that Seeker was so much more than they had ever realized, and this was only one of many displays of power she was capable of if she ever wanted to use it.

Which made her abilities so much more terrifying to think about.

Back on Coruscant, Sidious seethed in silence as he stared out the windows of his apartment. Again he had been outmaneuvered by that half-Nautolan. Again she had gotten ahead of his plans. Even though he didn't have confirmation, he knew she had just destroyed his chance of creating a fleet that would have meant the complete domination of the galaxy. Now he could do nothing; he could build nothing.

He grit his teeth; this game of chess they were playing would only have one winner, and as long as he destroyed her, his plans weren't completely ruined.

He just needed the right opportunity.

Stranded! On a secret mission for the Republic, Colonel Gascon and his intrepid droid squad successfully steal an encryption module from a Separatist ship. During their escape, our heroes crash on the Outer Rim planet of Abafar and find themselves stranded in the strange wasteland called The Void. Now, after surviving against all odds, our heroes must find a way home and deliver the encryption module to crack the Separatist code and stop an enemy attack….

A few days after the attack on Home Base, and Seeker had returned. Ahsoka had let the Council know and set up the feed in the communication center, and when they all arrived in person or via transmission, it was ready to go. Whatever Seeker had been up to wasn't clear, and she wasn't inclined to share it with anyone as she headed straight for Kit's room but made a few stops first. She stopped in to check on Siri, who was already looking better. The Jedi smiled at her and talked with her for a few minutes in the clan language they didn't know, making Seeker smile slightly. Myeko was there and had protected her during the attack, and even though he had been slightly injured, it had healed within minutes. Now assured that Siri was fine, Seeker had headed for the barn to check on the horses, finding Plenty Coup and Aineislis more than happy to see her. The other horses were also happy to see her and crowded around for a few minutes before she left, heading for Kit's room and arriving there a few minutes later, passing Ventress and Quinlan Vos as she did so. The two of them nodded at her but kept walking, clearly having a destination in mind, making Seeker shake her head in amusement as she entered Kit's room. Upon seeing him asleep and resting, she smiled and settled into the chair next to his bed, putting her feet up on the edge of the bed and leaning back into the chair. Within moments she was dozing in the chair, and Anakin said, "I think that's the first time I've actually seen her sleep."

"It is," Obi-Wan said, "She must be exhausted," as he watched the half-Nautolan and wondered what had happened and what she had done to tire herself out so completely. Matengi had recovered quickly from his wounds and left the day before, leaving the bed empty for the next patient. For whatever reason, Seeker hadn't claimed it to sleep, preferring the chair. She was resting her elbow on the arm and her cheek against her fist and was apparently comfortable because she made no move to change how she was sleeping.

She stayed that way for quite a while before Kit finally stirred and woke up. He turned his head and his eyes widened in surprise at the sight, and the sound, of Seeker snoring quietly. He swallowed slightly before smiling and saying quietly, "Hey," and Seeker jerked awake. She stared at him in surprise, and he added, "You want to keep it down? Some of us are trying to sleep."

Seeker smiled slightly as she put her feet down and leaned forward, "Welcome back; you had everyone worried for a while," she said.

Kit frowned then and asked, "Do I know you?" causing Seeker to freeze and stare at him before looking in the direction of Tristan's office. The Jedi were surprised by this as well, wondering if Kit's memory was a bit worse than they thought, but then he smiled suddenly and said, "Got you," barely keeping the laughter out of his voice, and Seeker turned back to him, not looking the least bit amused.

Obi-Wan snorted quietly; that was definitely something Kit would do to a friend.

"Oh, you think you're funny, do you?" Seeker asked as she stood up and started helping him sit up, "How about if I punch you in your stitches?"

"That sounds vaguely violent," Kit said, voice soft and strained as he started to push himself up a bit, "I should probably tell someone."

Seeker snorted as she adjusted the pillows so Kit could sit up more, "Who are you going to tell? The only person with a prayer of a chance of getting me to do anything is you."

"I'm sure I can think of someone," Kit said, and it was silent for a few moments before he said, "Tristan thinks you did very well when you operated on me," she looked up at him, and he smiled, "And I need to thank you for doing it. I know it wasn't easy."

"And we both know why," Seeker said, and Kit nodded as she continued, "But I'd do it again. Without a second thought."

"I know you would," Kit said, "Just like nothing stopped you from operating on Siri. You're a better friend than you think to her, and after everything the two of you have been through, I'm surprised you are the way you are. Any lesser being would have been broken a long time ago."

Seeker shook her head, "Maybe, but I don't want to think about it right now," Kit nodded, and she asked, "How's Gibbs?"

"The same," Kit said with a smile, "Thanks for bringing him out here. It was nice to see him again. His new agent seems more than capable."

"I heard," Seeker said with a nod, "Raojull Gon's death is enough to cause a celebration. The entire clan is glad he's dead. I wouldn't be surprised if the party is still going on," she looked carefully at Kit, "Even though death shouldn't be celebrated in such a way, I don't think anyone is going to be able to stop the clan. He hurt too many over the years, and his betrayal has stung everyone in ways they never thought possible."

"I know," Kit said before shuddering slightly and saying, "He wanted to go after Lorelei and would have if she'd been here. I'm glad her mother took her to Alderaan for a few days to have fun there," a few Jedi feeling relief when they heard that as Kit continued, "They're on their way back as we speak. And thankfully, it was only Raojull Gon, none of the soldiers from Glee Anselm. That would have been a difficult fight for the clones. It was just bounty hunters and droids this time."

"And next time, if there is a next time," Seeker said, "We will be more than ready."

"You don't think there will be a next time?" Kit asked, and Seeker shrugged as she said, "I'm going with Tivann down to the holding cells in a bit to see what can be done about those hunters. We'll probably alter their memories and let them go near a Republic outpost so they can be arrested again. I don't know what Actava will do about Boba Fett, though. We'll meet with him and figure it out. I think he sees potential in Boba; he just can't risk Home Base."

Kit nodded thoughtfully, and it was quiet for a few moments before Seeker looked at R6 behind them and said, "I'm going to need to air-gap him soon. Is there anything you want to say now, or do you want to wait?" Kit looked at her, and she added, "I have to go and pick something up from the Sprizen sector and was planning to air-gap him when I get back. Would you rather wait for then?"

Kit was silent for a few moments before slowly nodding, "I would rather have this conversation in person, you know that. Air-gap him when you get back, and we shall see what happens once I'm up and moving around."

"Moving around without pain," Seeker corrected before standing up and saying, "I almost can't wait to see what that looks like," she headed for the door before stopping suddenly and saying, "Oh….while I was on Coruscant a few days ago I stopped by Didi and Astri's café. They were very upset to hear you were sick but relieved you're recovering, and Astri asked me to bring you some food," she raised an eyebrow, "She didn't really listen when I said you were too sick to eat."

Kit chuckled at that while Seeker added, "She made enough to feed the entire Republic army. I wasn't able to save all of it from the clones, but there is a plate in frozen storage for when you can eat."

Kit smiled at that while Obi-Wan said, "Astri and Didi are in on this as well?" he looked at Yoda, "What is going on here? We are running out of allies and friends!"

Yoda only shook his head but couldn't answer as Kit asked, "Have they left Coruscant?"

"Yep," Seeker replied, "They're on their way to the rendezvous point, where Malani will pick them up and get them here. Once it becomes known they are helping us, the Chancellor will want them arrested, and we can't have that."

Kit nodded thoughtfully, but apparently this conversation and the fact he wasn't completely recovered from the fight a few days ago drained him, and he was asleep in seconds. Seeker only smiled at that before leaving, heading upstairs and finding the mess hall a few minutes later. She found herself some food and was soon settling at a table with it, which was when Ahsoka said, "This is from yesterday. I can change it to the live feed, Master."

Mace nodded and she did so, where they were treated to the sight of Kit having taken a turn for the worst. He was lying in bed and was shivering but sweating as well. Tristan and a few others were there as well, with Tristan saying, "After everything that happened, an infection was a guarantee. How do you feel?" he asked Kit.

Kit only twitched his head weakly as he looked at Tristan with feverish eyes, "Like I got hit by a train. Or a Jedi cruiser."

"We'll do something about that as soon as we can," Tristan promised as Krista ran a damp cloth over Kit's exposed skin to cool him off since he was running a fever. They hadn't put a sleeping tunic on him since he had been brought to Home Base, and now the Jedi could understand why. Seeing him like that was difficult for the Jedi, and they watched as Seeker entered the room. Seeing Kit looking so rung out and unwell clearly affected her since she wanted to stay and keep him company, and nothing Ventress said could convince her to leave and finish whatever mission they had planned.

Seeker just refused to move, and finally Ventress shook her head before looking at Kit. Kit hadn't been paying attention to much of anything with how miserable he was feeling, but when he saw that Seeker was being problematic he asked quietly, "What's going on, Ventress?"

"She doesn't want to leave," Ventress said, nodding at Seeker, "She wants to stay."

Seeker was either ignoring them or didn't care, but that changed when Kit reached out a hand for Seeker. She came forward immediately and took it gently, ignoring the droids, Tristan, Krista, and nurses gathered around taking care of Kit. Kit only gripped her hand gently before saying quietly, "I didn't help those wings grow strong just to clip them now," Seeker looked at him, no emotions to be seen, and that was when Kit added weakly, "You're ready to fly. Go ahead. I'll be alright."

Seeker stared at him a few moments longer before looking at Tristan, who said, "The sooner you finish, the sooner you can get back. Go on."

The half-Nautolan stared at him before finally nodding and standing up, following Ventress out of the room. She hesitated at the door for a few moments, watching the doctors and nurses move around Kit with urgency but not alarm, before sighing and leaving. She headed for the hangar then, and Kit turned away from the door and shut his eyes, swallowing hard and leaving Tristan to ask quietly, "Sick to the stomach?" Kit nodded without opening his eyes, and Tristan left for a moment. He returned a few moments later with a small pill, which he gave to Kit while saying, "Just hold that in your mouth. Don't swallow it."

Kit nodded again and was still, leaving Krista to ask, "What was that?"

"Peppermint candy," Tristan said before looking up, "Peppermint is good at settling an upset stomach and calming the mind as well. It will help while we get everything ready. Lower the flow rate on the IV calories, please," as Krista turned to the bag, "We'll give his stomach a break and let everything settle. Don't let him eat or drink anything for now. I don't want him being sick to his stomach."

"What about the infection?" Krista asked, "We don't know where it came from."

Tristan was quiet for a few moments before looking at Kit and asking, "You bit Raojull Gon, right?" when Kit nodded without opening his eyes, Tristan muttered under his breath, "That explains it," before looking at Krista and saying more loudly, "Gon must have left a poison on his skin, or ingested some before he came here to make sure that no matter the outcome, Kit would likely die."

"That's insane," Krista said, while Tristan smiled tightly and said, "That was Raojull Gon. Him and sanity don't belong in the same sentence."

Krista shook her head before asking, "So what do we do about this? How do we help him?"

Tristan stared at Kit thoughtfully as he trembled and winced before saying slowly, "Raojull Gon was a healer a long time ago for the clan. He was well-versed in poison and toxins," before looking at Krista again, "Thankfully for us, we can figure this out pretty easily. Raojull courted my sister for a time, but she knew something was wrong with him. During that courtship, he bragged about his knowledge of poisons and the different kinds he knew how to use. I've described these symptoms to her, and she's narrowed it down to three. We're just waiting on blood tests to confirm it. The wrong cure could be just as toxic as the poison."

Krista nodded as she looked at Kit, who coughed weakly before wincing, blood coming to his lips. Krista wiped it away before turning to Tristan and asking, "How long will those tests take? It's hard to see him like this."

Tristan looked at her before suddenly looking over his shoulder as a nurse came into the room with a datapad and a tray. Tristan took the datapad from her while she put the tray on the table nearby, revealing a syringe and IV bag. The Nautolan doctor quickly read what was on the datapad before saying, "My sister is a genius."

"Must run in the family," was all Krista said sarcastically, clearly not impressed. Tristan ignored her and said, "This poison is from the northern reaches of Glee Anselm, and we keep the cure stocked for this kind of situation."

"So he'll be alright?" Krista asked, and Tristan nodded as he took the IV bag and set it up. Once confident about the flow rate, he turned to Kit and injected the syringe into his arm, saying, "This will help his body calm down and ease the fever. He should be feeling much better by tomorrow."

"Good," Krista said, looking behind her for something. She apparently didn't find it because she turned back to Tristan and asked, "Where are his brothers? Or his parents?"

"I kicked them out for being annoying," Tristan said, "His brothers were in the way, and his parents weren't being of much use. But if you could track them down and let them know he'll be alright and they can come back now, that would be much appreciated. He'll relax a bit more easily with them around."

Krista nodded and left, and Tristan rested the back of his hand on Kit's forehead and frowned when he felt how high the fever was, but only said, "We got this, lad. You'll be fine."

Kit only nodded weakly without opening his eyes, revealing he was just too miserable to do anything else, and it was quiet as they waited for Kit's parents and brothers to return. They did soon enough, and then the droids and nurses left but Tristan stayed close, going into his office with Annie while Santiana took over the task of keeping Kit cool with the wet cloth. Kit relaxed slightly, but that was it; it was clear he was feeling too sick to engage with his family. Seeing this was difficult for the Jedi, with Anakin asking, "Is anything going to go right for him? First he gets stabbed, nearly dies, survives that, and now he's been poisoned. How much more can he take?"

"I don't know, Skywalker," Mace said, "He's survived more than his family expected apparently, and is finding strength none of us knew he had every day. I think he will keep surprising us and them for quite a while longer."

Anakin nodded as they watched the feed for a few moments, and that was when Ahsoka said quietly, "Seeker's out of range of the feed again, Master. I don't know where she's going or what she's up to."

"And Kit isn't inclined to tell us," Obi-Wan said as he watched the feed, "He's trying to keep the contents of his stomach inside where they belong. We can only guess what she's up to right now."

"Shut down the feed, young Padawan," Yoda said suddenly, "Check it tomorrow. Let Master Fisto alone for now; we will."

"Yes, Master," Ahsoka said. She shut down the feed and left the communication center, heading for Padmé's apartments. There was a Conspiracy meeting there she was already late for, and she knew what the main focus of the meeting was going to be now that Kit had woken up. And frankly, Ahsoka was glad to see that Kit was gaining strength bit by bit every day. Soon he would be back to leading the Jedi part of the Conspiracy, and Ahsoka could take a break from it all. It had been hard enough to get Didi and Astri off Coruscant without anyone noticing, and now she had to prepare for whatever came next in Seeker's plan. Things were heating up, and it was getting harder and harder to know what was coming next, and the secret communication she had had with Kit the other day hadn't given her a lot of confidence and quite a bit of fear.

How in the Force had Seeker been able to destroy a planet?

What else could she do?

Seeker, as she was leaving Home Base and out of range of R6 and therefore invisible to the Jedi, had been stopped by Gibbs, who only asked, "Who's Rayla? What does she mean to Kit?"

Seeker only winced and said, "She's the Geàrd that's been protecting Kit ever since he was brought to the Temple. He has a strong bond with her, and she pretty much raised him as much as the Jedi did. She made sure he didn't forget his people or their history. For Gon to take her must have taken a lot of skill, and there's no telling what he did to her to get the coordinates for Home Base. As soon as his family is convinced Kit's going to be fine, they'll track her down. No matter what happened or where she is, they'll bring her home."

With that, Seeker headed for the Ghost and a few moments later took off into hyperspace. Gibbs only stared after it a few moments before shrugging and heading into the base, deciding to head for the green area and look after the horses for a bit. It would give him something to do while he waited for Seeker to come back from whatever she was doing.

And give him a chance to think about whether Seeker was ready for another challenge.

Finally reaching the Sprizen sector, Seeker quickly found her way to the planet Abafar. The planet was devoid of plants and trees, but did have some native animals. And a few small towns in the middle of nowhere….literally. Pons Ora was the one she was heading for, specifically what remained of the mining settlement there. A contact of hers had said a single clone commando and a few droids had destroyed the settlement there, and she was eager to see what remained of the clone. She knew the droids had gotten away, but now she was looking for the clone.

Landing her ship and walking through the remains was almost impossible, but she managed and was able to find the clone. What surprised her even more was that the clone was still alive, and she quickly took him back to her ship before returning to the settlement and finding what her contact had left her. Things were coming to a head faster than she was expecting, and now that she was back in continuous contact with Senator Amidala and Senator Organa on Coruscant, it was time to start getting ready for a confrontation that would shake the galaxy to the core.

It would soon be time to end the Clone Wars, by whatever means necessary.

Mission accomplished! Colonel Gascon and his droid squad steal an encryption module needed to crack a Separatist code and stop an impending attack on the Republic. After surviving The Void and escaping the hostile planet of Abafar, our heroes finally appear to be headed in the right direction….

By the time Seeker was back at Home Base with the wounded clone from Abafar, the Jedi Council had arrived at the space station where Taylora had first told them about the clan and Kit's history. That space station orbited the planet Carida, and was where the Republic Strategy Conference was going to be held. But right now, the Jedi Council was watching the feed from Kit's lightsaber as it met up with the feed from R6, and they were treated to the sight of Seeker finding another wounded clone.

Whoever he was was impossible to tell, and she didn't say much about him as she handed him over to the medical droids, saying, "Put him in the bacta tank. Echo's out and in a medically-induced coma until we decide what to do with him. Him attacking us as soon as he could isn't something I expected, and I don't feel like dealing with him right now."

"Yes, mistress," the droid said as they took the stretcher away. Once they were gone, she shook her head and headed for Kit's room, where the Nautolan was already looking much better. Whatever Tristan had given him had clearly helped because he was feeling much better and no longer sweating. He smiled when Seeker came into the room and said, "I found another nearly-dead clone on Abafar. Just missed the droids the Jedi sent there, too. Would have been interesting to see what would have happened if I'd been there. Either way, the clone's getting treated and should be fine."

"Sounds like a busy few days," Kit said quietly, "Are things ready in other regards?"

"Almost," Seeker said as she sat down next to him, "I'll finish setting things up when I'm done here," she looked closely at Kit, "We're about to go for one major ride. Think we're ready for it?"

"I don't know," Kit said quietly, "But I think we're about to find out."

Seeker nodded before saying, "It's time. You sure you don't have anything to say you want the Jedi Council to hear?"

It was quiet for a few moments as Kit thought, and the Jedi exchanged glances when they saw how quiet he was. It was hard to tell what he was thinking, making Tarkin furrow his brow at the sight while Yoda stared long and hard at his former Padawan, wondering what was going through his head. If Kit explained everything now, it would make things easier to understand, but with how unpopular the war and the Jedi were becoming, staying silent could make things worse for him. If he ever came near Republic space or Coruscant again without explaining himself first, the Republic would arrest him for treason, and there wasn't much the Jedi could do to protect him.

But after a few minutes, the decision became clear when Kit looked at her and said, "Nothing I say now will get me out of this mess. The truth right now is too unbelievable to be believed, even by the Jedi. You know this," as Seeker frowned slightly but said nothing, "I need to wait until I'm strong enough to tell them in person why I did what I did."

Seeker stared at him before nodding slowly and saying, "You're stubborn enough to not bend on this, so I won't push you on it. You know I don't like the Jedi, but you do what you want."

Kit nodded as Seeker stood up and headed for R6. She turned back to look at Kit one more time, but he was unmoved and nodded slowly. Before Ahsoka could react and get R6 out of the way, the feed went dead, and Ahsoka fumbled for a moment before saying, "I'm sorry, Master, but the feed's dead now. I can't get it back online."

Mace nodded, "We still don't know what is going on with them, and it seems like now we never will. What can we do now?" as he looked around at the other Jedi gathered there. Many were silent, knowing there was nothing they could do, and the Chancellor said via hologram, "I'm afraid the political side of the issue says that if General Fisto ever appears again, the Republic must take him into custody to face a tribunal. The Jedi might have no say over the matter if he were to return to Coruscant."

"That isn't the answer, Chancellor," Master Tiin said, "Something is going on with Master Fisto and Seeker, and we know what happened the last time Master Fisto was arrested. He refused to speak and Seeker came to get him. How do we know the same thing won't happen again? She's proven she's too smart for our traps."

"I'm afraid we don't," the Chancellor said regretfully, "I'm just relaying what the Senate will insist on doing if he ever appears again. Perhaps, for his safety, it would be for the best if he remained away."

"He won't," Yoda said suddenly, "Face us, he will. But on his terms, it will be. Wait for him to return, and he will. For now, proceed with the war we must. Attend this conference we must. With this conference, win the war we may."

Yoda's words were final on the subject, and the conference almost began, but then a hijacked cruiser appeared and nearly destroyed the station, forcing their attention away from what was happening at Home Base as they focused on surviving the explosion. After that, Anakin went looking for Artoo and found him, bringing him back to life and more than relieved the plucky little droid had survived the explosion.

As this happened, Seeker met with Ventress, Quinlan, Kit, and Kit's brothers in Kit's room to say, "It's time to send out the call. I want everyone in the Conspiracy here in four months. They can't be late and need to be ready for our last strike. It's time to end the war."

Those with her nodded and went about the task of sending out the call, knowing that now was the time for the accumulation of all their work to come to fruition.

It was almost time to stop this war and save the galaxy.

Far away, on Coruscant, Padmé rested a hand on her stomach, feeling the life inside and knowing it would soon be time to do more for the Conspiracy than she had ever done in the past. Doing so wouldn't just save her husband; even if she regretted what she would have to do to do so, it would also save the galaxy they both served.

Hopefully, none of them would end up paying a higher price than they were already paying. If they failed, the galaxy would fail.

It was that simple.

And on Glee Anselm, the king and queen stared in shock as the head of Raojull Gon was delivered and left outside their palace on a pike for all to see, revealing that the ones they had thought to cow and beat into submission still had plenty of fight left, assuming they could ever be found again. Those that saw the head were shocked to see it, but then whispers of rebellion started to be heard. Those whispers were quickly beaten down, but in the farthest clans they became loud calls and cries for change, those clans realizing that the only thing keeping them in line was fear. And that fear had just been broken into pieces, pieces the Monarchy wouldn't be able to rebuild so easily, not with the Fisto clan saying they weren't broken yet and were still ready and willing to fight for their lives and their freedom.

And the Monarchy would give them that fight as soon as they found them. They wouldn't allow that defiance to become more than it was.

They would crush them, and destroy them, as soon as they could.

Translations:

Màthair – mother