Author's Note: Well, I found some spare time and managed to type this up. Shoutout once again to SAK-96 for an idea that was too good to ignore!

Need some feedback from you all, so I've posted a poll on my profile page. Go over there and vote... once you've finished reading this, of course! :)


-Chapter 15: Tools of the Trade-

Location: Cono

"What doesn't kill you will only strengthen your resolve."

Pain. Unrelenting, sharp and sudden. It collided with him again and again, striking fiercely and mercilessly. It shot through his arms as metal crushed his bones. It filled his neck as his throat grew constricted, choked by an invisible assailant. It consumed his body as he was shocked by lightning. Pain and agony drove him to his knees as the battle ended and his emotions settled.

For the first time ever... he felt afraid.

Fear and confusion filled his mind. Never before had he faced someone so powerful, someone with enough strength to bruise him and crush him without breaking a sweat. He felt fear as he realized there was someone stronger than him, someone who wanted a servant and a slave... not a soldier.

But this assailant was supposed to be an ally of some kind. The highest authority to which he was supposed to submit to... but was also torturing him. What kind of ally was this? What kind of leader was this?

In the corner of his gaze stood Count Dooku and an unknown Pau'un, dressed in a plain gray jacket and black boots. They did nothing to aid him, adding to his fear. They simply stood by and watched as this scene played out before them.

The pain came again, searing and unrelenting. It attacked his mind without hesitation, driving him to his breaking point. It was rewriting his mind, changing how he thought, turning him into the servant he was supposed to be. It built his confusion. Why was he enduring this? Why did he have to suffer this? Each command that was ingrained into his mind, forcibly branded there like with a hot iron, changed him a little more... it forced him to forget certain aspects of himself and gain new, unknown ones their place, confusing him further.

Then came a most startling and unexpected command.

"You feel nothing for Ahsoka Tano!" A voice growled. His gaze looked up to reveal a hooded individual, showing only the lower jaw of man with a mouth full of crooked teeth curled into a snarl. The sight of this man was chilling and the command he issued sent another pang of fear surging through his mind.

He didn't want to forget her. He needed to remember her, wanted to always remember her.

He fought against the command as best he could, summoning the last ounces of his mental fortitude from the depths of his confused and pain-addled mind. He tried to circumvent it, to avoid it, to get out of saying it. But an onslaught of lightning drove him over the edge, forcing him to scream out the declaration in one final attempt to end his suffering.

"I FEEL NOTHING FOR AHSOKA TANO!"

Ahsoka awoke with a start, gasping for air and covered with a sheen of sweat. She was alone in her quarters at the Jedi Temple and had once been fast asleep in her bed.

Until this vision erupted in her mind.

Ahsoka had seen visions before, visions that helped her prevent the assassination of Senator Amidala. But this was something else entirely. She appeared to be witnessing something as it was happening. She didn't know where it was but a few faint clues indicated through whom she was witnessing this.

The scattered armor laying across the ground, the forgotten dark blue jacket bearing a proud Separatist emblem... and the telltale helmet discarded to one side.

It had to be... it had to be The Wraith.

"But why?" Ahsoka wondered out loud. Why indeed. Why was she witnessing this apparent torture of The Wraith? And through his eyes?

But another, darker question appeared as she recalled her vision.

"Who was that Sith?" She wondered. The amount of power he radiated was enormous. He appeared to be very strong in the Dark Side of the Force, especially if he was capable of throwing Wraith around like a rag doll and crushing him like a piece of plastic.

She didn't even think that Wraith could be hurt.

Under normal circumstances she would've been glad to see that monster suffer, to experience such harsh pain like he had inflicted on her Master. But the amount of fear and confusion she felt in his mind made Ahsoka feel... sorry for him. Like his suffering was unjust and was simply for the sport of whomever this Sith Lord was.

If Count Dooku, who had greatly supported Wraith during the fight on Tibrin, was confined to the sidelines to simply observe such a beating... this Sith Lord had to be really powerful.

Ahsoka moved to a seated position, resting her feet on the floor of her room. Rubbing her face, she wondered what she ought to do about such an occurrence.

Perhaps it would be best to go and speak with Master Yoda about this... or better yet, bring the matter before the whole Jedi Council. Given their deep concern over the presence of The Wraith, especially after he had beaten down Anakin, maybe they should know about this.

Especially this Sith Lord.

Shaking the last few ounces of sleep from her pajama-clad body, Ahsoka rose to get dressed and go before the Jedi Council.


As Sidious bombarded Wrath's mind with the Force, an unintended consequence came about as the result of the Sith Lord's forced effort to cleanse Wraith's mind of any and all feeling for Ahsoka Tano. In his pain-ridden state, Wraith accidentally reached out to the young Togruta with his mind. While he did not possess the Force, the combination of his mentality with Sidious' Force-based torture resulted in something neither of them would ever know about... the creation of a vision. A vision Ahsoka experienced as she slept that night while Wraith was enduring his brutal 'reconditioning'. The solider had no idea Ahsoka had witnessed his pain and agony and suffering at the hands of Darth Sidious, he didn't even realize what was happening through the Force.

The power he mocked and thought so little of was proving to be more powerful with every encounter he had with it.

Little did Wraith know that he had also accidentally revealed something incredible to the young Jedi he'd grown so fond of: the identity of the second Sith Lord.

With the vision still fresh in her mind, Ahsoka walked through the now silent halls of the Jedi Temple towards the council chamber on the uppermost floor. Flashes from her vision shot through her mind, forcing her to remember the massive amounts of fear and the unbearable amounts of pain. She found it hard to believe that someone could endure so much and found it even harder to believe someone could be so heartless.

After witnessing Anakin's beating, she didn't think it was possible for anyone else to be so cruel and violent. Apparently it was.

Arriving at the entrance to the Council chamber, Ahsoka paused as she thought about what she would say to them... and how she would even introduce this revelation to them. This was something of a first for her, to witness things from the enemy's perspective, and she had to wonder if there was anything she should leave out in an effort to stay on topic.

Should she even be here? Should she wait until morning?

Ahsoka began to quickly go over the details of her vision, hoping to be as quick and precise as possible so she didn't take up too much of the Council's time.

The sound of Shaak Ti calling her name snapped Ahsoka from her reminiscing, remembering that fellow Jedi could sense her presence. Almost sheepishly, Ahsoka slipped into the Council chamber and appeared in full view before the entire Jedi Council.

"I'm sorry to interrupt you, Masters," she began, "but... there's something I need to tell you." Many of the Masters cocked their heads in curiosity or leaned in, wondering as to what she had to say.

Only Master Yoda had an idea.

"Troubled your mind is." The wise old Grand Master stated, reading her through the Force. "Seen something you have." His report drew a few more curious glances from the other members of the Council. Ahsoka nodded.

"I... I had a vision." She told them.

"What was in it?" Obi-Wan inquired. Ahsoka took a deep breath as she began to relate what she had viewed in her nightmarish revelation.

"I saw The Wraith... he was being tortured by a Sith Lord. Not Count Dooku." She started. Mentioning those first few details, she could see many of the Council members visibly stiffen and bear looks of concern. "I could feel his fear and his pain. He was confused and trying to figure out why this was happening to him." She continued. "He... He was afraid of this Sith Lord, whoever it was. A-And I thought that, if The Wraith is afraid of someone, maybe the Council should know about it." She explained. Several members nodded as they digested the information she had presented.

"You were wise to bring this before us, Padawan Tano." Mace Windu praised her. "But I sense you witnessed something else... something you haven't told us." Ahsoka quickly searched her mind, trying to think of some detail she could've possibly over-

Oh. Well... there was that one thing...

"It... It appears the Sith Lord was trying to cleanse Wraith's mind..." she nervously replied, feeling very hesitant to disclose the information. Her feelings were quite obvious to the other elder Jedi.

"It's alright Padawan," fellow Togruta Shaak Ti reassured her, "you can tell us." Ahsoka nodded in understanding and took a deep breath.

"A-Apparently... Wraith has, er-well had, feelings... for me." She admitted. "The Sith Lord forced him to feel nothing for me... he was using the Force to change his mind, like he was re-writing it." This information both puzzled and created grave concern among the Jedi Masters.

"How curious." Master Mundi simply stated. "The Wraith feels emotion. Perhaps he is not the droid some of us once thought him to be."

"And yet to feel something for a Jedi... something so very contrary to how he acts towards the rest of us." Aayla added, being something of an expert on affection. Being a Twi'lek (and a near flawless one in terms of physique) meant she had earned the gazes of more than a few men over the course of her time as a Jedi. She was well aware many men were capable of lusting after a female Jedi, despite their disconnect from physical pleasure in any form.

"Masters, I didn't try to do anything to encourage this! I swear!" Ahsoka quickly moved to defend herself, thinking they might deem her responsible for Wraith's feelings.

"We believe you Ahsoka." Shaak calmed her. "But you are an adolescent Togruta, on the cusp of becoming an adult. Your body is maturing and as a result you may attract a few more stares than you might like... evidently The Wraith is included in that category."

"Ew." Ahsoka shuddered, feeling suddenly disgusted by the idea that Wraith might've thought about her in that way. "Trust me Master Ti, I do not reciprocate his affection." Ahsoka firmly replied.

"That is good to hear." Mace nodded, pleased Ahsoka was keeping the Jedi Code. Being the apprentice of Anakin Skywalker, the Master Jedi sometimes had his doubts about what the Chosen One was teaching his apprentice. Master Yoda spoke next.

"See this vision, I would like to." He calmly told Ahsoka. "Recall it for us, can you?"

"I'm really seeing only bits and pieces Master." Ahsoka admitted. "It was all so sudden and it was over so quickly."

"Help you, we can." The Grand Master stated. Turning to his fellow Jedi, Yoda instructed them to reach out to Ahsoka through the Force. Closing their eyes, the Jedi focused as Ahsoka did her part to recall the vision.

By working together, the brief moment was recalled in full and the entire Council was able to witness what Ahsoka had seen. Once the vision had ended, the Council slowly returned to reality.

"It is troubling to see a Sith Lord of such power." Plo Koon mused. "And that there is someone capable of subjecting even The Wraith."

"I agree." Obi-Wan agreed, feeling a little bewildered by the revelation. Shaak Ti said nothing but was deeply perturbed by the fact that Wraith, the bloodthirsty and cold-hearted monster, felt something for Ahsoka.

Force knew that couldn't possibly end well.

The other Jedi nodded, realizing that such information needed immediate attention... no matter how late it was.

"For bringing this to us, thank you, we do." Yoda thanked Ahsoka on behalf of the others. Ahsoka nodded and took that as her que to be dismissed.

"Ahsoka." Mace called after her. "Be very careful around The Wraith. Given that he appears to have some level of attraction towards you, it would be wise if you avoided any solo encounter with him. We don't want him acting upon any kind of desire." Ahsoka nodded in understanding, but a shiver shot through her spine as she momentarily wondered as to what Wraith might do if he ever managed to get his hands on her.

The thought was creepy at best.

"I will, Master Windu."


Days later...

It had been several days since Wraith destroyed the Republic's Apex Company and the super-soldier was looking forward to his next assignment, eagerly anticipating another opportunity to put an end to a Republic force.

That is, until his encounter with the Master Sith Lord known as Darth Sidious.

Ever since Sidious had made an effort to influence his thoughts, Wraith had been silent and solemn. Instead of his usual, pumped-up self, Wraith walked around the base at a slow and deliberate pace. He trained and studied with a machine-like quality, leaving Scipio to wonder what exactly Darth Sidious had done to his mind. No longer did his creation freely speak his mind and he appeared to be deeply bothered by something. But Scipio couldn't get a word out of him otherwise.

The Pau'un doctor had a feeling there was only one way to get his Wraith back. And he found it soon enough when a most urgent call came in, straight from the Count of Serenno himself.

Scipio immediately informed Wraith of a new mission of top priority. Wraith had been busy training but quickly made his way to the briefing room where Scipio was waiting with the most intriguing details.

"They shot down a whatnow?" Wraith wondered, finding the information he had just been given rather hard to believe.

"A cargo transport engineered to transport various prototype weapons." Scipio repeated.

"I was not aware the CIS had such a department."

"Oh yes. A special wing of R & D has been devoted to the advancement of Separatist firepower. It's funded and operated by joint Techno Union and Trade Federation scientists and engineers, the perfect combination of manufacturing and brainpower." The Pau'un explained. "An assortment of weaponry was being shipped to a secure testing location, but was intercepted and shot down by a small group of Republic fighters over the world of Cono. Given it was a transport, they stood no chance of surviving a direct assault."

"How did the Republic know about such a transport?" Wraith asked, suspecting someone was listening on Separatist conversations. Scipio's reply was immediate.

"They didn't. It was by happenstance and pure luck that it was discovered. That transport had CIS logos painted all over it, literally screaming 'shoot me' to any passing Republic operative."

"I'm guessing you want me to go and retrieve the weapons?" Wraith wondered.

"As much as I advocated for such measures, Count Dooku says there are simply too many, and too many volatile ones at that, for you to handle on your own." Scipio replied. Wraith cocked his head, now questioning his involvement entirely. "You are to move in advance of the salvage party and secure the crash site, ensure the Republic gets away with nothing. Those weapons are very powerful, Wraith. To have even one of them fall into Republic hands would be an issue."

"But how do they know what's in that transport? It wasn't specifically identified, was it?" Wraith asked, still assuming the worst.

"Far from it." Scipio firmly stated. "But it was actually thanks to your bug on Coruscant that allowed us to intercept a communication from Palpatine to a joint 212th Battalion and 501st Legion task force, ordering them to investigate the crash." Wraith felt a little better, knowing work he had done helped to acquire such information. But the army designations quickly informed him the raiding party would be no joke.

"Skywalker and Kenobi." He mused. "When was this intercepted?"

"Roughly ten... maybe fifteen minutes ago." Scipio replied, double checking the time stamp on the data portfolio he had received.

"Then I'm wasting time. I should go now." Wraith replied. "But first, give me some stats on this planet the transport's wrecked on." Scipio nodded and quickly moved to pull up the data on the nearby holotable.

"Cono is an empty, barren world in the Bestine system, located in the Mid-rim territories. It's lifeless, nothing more than a pile of scorched rock." Scipio reported. "The only life forms you'll encounter there is the Republic."

"So... nothing to worry about?" Wraith surmised. Scipio had to arch an eyebrow at Wraith's questioning tone. Usually he thought little of the Republic and welcomed any opportunity where he might slaughter Clones in droves.

"For you, no!" Scipio exclaimed. "The Republic has never stood a chance against you." He turned to face his creation and cocked his head, giving Wraith a quick once-over. "Are you feeling well, my boy?" Wraith did not reply for a few moments, seemingly mulling over his response in his head.

"I'm just... I just want to make certain I don't bite off more than I can chew. And that I'll be able to do this within the defined perimeters of the mission." He finally explained. Scipio was aghast at such words.

"Defined perimeters?! My boy, it will be you alone versus the combined firepower of the Five-Oh-First Legion and Two-Twelfth Battalion, led by a trio of Jedi who are no doubt hungry for revenge after your victories on Tibrin and Gwori. I have no doubt that you will have to improvise at some point!" Since when had Wraith ever thought like this? Usually he'd be spoiling for a chance to wipe out the Republic however he could. Such second-guessing thoughts were not only unnatural for him, but also worrying. However, Scipio believed the best way to get the old Wraith back was to thrust him into a mission the old Wraith would enjoy. "I think what you need is a good fight in order to kick your brain back into gear." Scipio replied, laying a hand on Wraith's shoulder. "You've always impressed us before, there's no need to second-guess yourself now." Wraith nodded in understanding. But the way Sidious had tinkered with his mind had left him feeling a little... insecure. Something that maybe he alone was capable of fixing. "But, before you do," Scipio quickly strode over to a nearby table and returned carrying what appeared to be a new jacket, "this is the exact same design as the one you currently wear, but has been shaded in desert camouflage colours. Perfect to help you blend in with those dusty rocks on Cono." He informed him with a grin.

"Indeed. Thanks doctor." Wraith replied as he pulled off his current blue jacket and put on the brown and sand-shaded replacement. It felt no different from his other one, but still needed to be broken in.

Something this mission to Cono would achieve in full.

"Excellent!" Scipio beamed, crossing his hands behind his back and admiring Wraith's new 'desert camo' look. "Oh! I should inform you, I've been having a little trouble getting your video feed up and running again. Something must've been broken or knocked out during your bout with Darth Sidious. I'm still looking into the problem, but I'll be without visuals for this one." Scipio informed him.

"Understood." Wraith nodded.

"Now, off you go. You've got an army to waylay!"


Earlier, on Coruscant...

Anakin Skywalker was walking around.

For the first time in a long time, the Jedi Knight was able to stand and move on his own two feet without assistance and without being hindered by any pain. With a slight grin on his face and a bright demeanor, the Jedi Knight strode around the Temple in an effort to stretch his legs and shake up his freshly healed body. For too long had he been stuck in bed after his bloody beating at the hands of The Wraith, now the Chosen One was more than ready to get back into the action he had been missing out on. Many of the Jedi he passed in the halls of the Temple were very pleased to see him, greeting him with a smile, a nod and a few comments on how well he looked. To which his response was something along the lines of "never felt better", as if his bludgeoning was nothing more than an annoyance or phase.

But out of all the Jedi he met, it was Ahsoka and Obi-Wan who were most pleased to see Anakin up and walking.

"Looking good Master!" A very chipper Ahsoka greeted him with a broad smile.

"Thanks Snips. I've never felt better." Anakin replied with an equally broad smile. The Jedi Knight turned and gave Obi-Wan a nod. "Master. You're looking well."

"As are you. I had no doubt you would recover, but it is good to see you milling about with my own two eyes." Obi-Wan mused, crossing his arms and smiling. "Admittedly, you seem to have made a very speedy recovery."

"Nothing a little Force stamina and some Chosen One star power can't fix." Anakin quipped. Both Obi-Wan and Ahsoka rolled their eyes in response.

Suddenly, Anakin's demeanor shifted quite suddenly.

"All this time in bed has made me realize that I need to do whatever I have to when I meet Wraith next." He stated, gaze suddenly shifting into a glare as he remembered the armored assailant that put him in the Halls of Healing in the first place. He turned back to Obi-Wan. "I want a rematch with him. But this time, the outcome is going to be very different." Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow.

"I'm not sure I like your tone." His former Master stated, taking a very strong dislike to Anakin's sudden change of voice. Even Ahsoka was put on edge by his sudden shift. "But, while we're on the subject of enemies, the Chancellor needs us on Cono. Apparently a mysterious freighter bearing Separatist markings has been shot down and want us to investigate the wreckage." Obi-Wan explained. Such was the reason for Anakin walking about. Having been cleared by the Healers, Anakin had been contacted by Obi-Wan and told to join him and Ahsoka on the upcoming mission to Cono, having been instructed by Chancellor Palpatine to investigate. Both Obi-Wan and the Healers had deemed the mission of low threat and therefore acceptable for Anakin to carry out. He may have recovered, but no one wanted him to wear out his body so soon. "No Wraith for you until you're back to maximum capacity." Obi-Wan clearly stated.

"Well, I better get well soon then." Anakin replied with a begrudging nod. "When do we leave?"


On Cono...

Scipio's intel certainly wasn't wrong, Cono was nothing to look at. From space, all that could be seen were dust clouds and vast empty fields of sand and dirt. The odd rock formation jutted up like an unsightly scar every so often, sometimes resulting in the presence of canyons or buttes.

Still, it was hardly the number one vacation destination.

Given the desolate landscape, it did not take Wraith long to find the wrecked freighter. Small columns of smoke billowed from various spots around the crash site and the dirt had been blackened and scorched from the impact. Landing in a field of rocks and the odd piles of boulders, there was almost no tactical advantage to be found.

Fortunately, Wraith was here first.

Landing his craft near the rear of the wreck, Wraith disembarked the shuttle, pausing to gaze up at the towering remains of the ship as he stood under it's shadow. Surprisingly, the wreck appeared to be in moderately salvageable condition. Slowly making his way around the hulk, Wraith took note of a few holes in the side of the metal behemoth as well as a series of scorch trails marking the hull, no doubt made when the ship entered the atmosphere. Approaching what he assumed to be the bow of the ship, Wraith was met with a pile of twisted metal. The bow had seemingly broken off during the impact and had been crushed into a pile of junk when it crashed.

Wraith had to question the structural integrity of the ship and if such ships should be allowed to carry valuable cargo.

As he stood there, gazing at the piles of indistinguishable scrap, the voice of Scipio came over his comms.

"Well my boy, anything to report?" The doctor inquired. Wraith turned to the skyward facing stern section as he offered his description of the scene.

"Looks like the engines were shot out. That would explain the angle of impact." He stated, noting the damage while he'd circled the wreck in the air. "A chunk of the bow has been destroyed, probably on impact. It's weird how the whole front half is a scrapyard now, while the stern and body are sticking straight into the air." He mused.

"Well, if that's the case, we can probably write off the command deck." Scipio replied, making the logical assumption that the crew had all been killed. "On the bright side, the cargo hold should be just fine. Hopefully it's contents haven't been smashed to bits."

"Any idea what it was carrying?" Wraith wondered as he ventured into the minefield of debris and shorn metal. "I know you said prototype weapons, but I don't exactly want to walk into a cloud of toxic gases."

"Quite right, my boy. I'll pull up a manifest while you get inside." Scipio replied before going silent. Wraith eyed up the raised stern portion from his new angle. Taking into consideration the damage to the ship, Wraith quickly surmised his best point of access was right in front of him.

"There must be a hole, from when the bow broke off." He mused. Kneeling down near what he could only guess was the connection between the stern and the bow, Wraith brushed away dirt and sand until he discovered more twisted metal. Triggering his arm blades, he quickly cut open a small opening which he pried apart to form a larger access hole. "Yeah, this'll do." He muttered before dropping inside. The now dusty and dimly lit corridor was tall enough to accommodate his broad form, but direction both forward and backwards was hampered. Behind him stood a wall of dirt, both impassable and leading nowhere. Before him stood a single door, but with no power would not be opening for him anytime soon.

Good thing Wraith was more than able to work around such variables.

Stepping forward on the slanted floor, Wraith used his brute strength to shove the door open, revealing another hallway. This one had a single light that flickered on and off. "There must be some power left in this part of the ship. Could be a good thing." He mused. Moving forward, Wraith discovered another doorway before him, shaped exactly like the one he had just pried open. "These must be bulkheads." He surmised, taking stock of the size and shape of the entrance before him. "Guess that means I'm near the cargo hold." Brushing off the fact he was starting to speak out loud to no one save himself, Wraith examined the door before him. A single electronic lock kept him from accessing the rest of the ship. Shouldn't be a problem to bypass. Kneeling next to the depowered lock, Wraith pulled a cable from his gauntlet and plugged it underneath the pad. The functions of the lock appeared in holographic form on his gauntlet, allowing Wraith to bypass the need for full power and to simply access the lock's functions from his arm.

He had to admit, Scipio was something of a genius.

After hacking the simple system, Wraith was greeted with a hiss as the door slid open on its own. Pulling the cord from the lock, Wraith stood and entered into a massive cargo hold. He could tell it was massive based upon how little of the room was illuminated by the light behind him. It was easily bigger than any room he'd ever seen before. "Bigger than I expected. Maybe even bigger than most cargo holds, I'll bet." He whistled. "Must be keeping either a lot of stuff in here... or one big gun." Still uncertain as to the cargo he was dealing with, Wraith vaulted over the railing before him and landed with a metallic thud on the sloped floor of the hold. Queuing up his comms, the soldier reported in to Scipio. "Doc, I'm in the cargo hold. Got that manifest yet?"

"Pulling it up now my boy." Came the reply. Deciding it would be easier to see what he was working with, Wraith switched his optics to night vision mode. Immediately the cargo hold became completely visible and Wraith could see the majority of its contents. "What do you see in there?"

"Lot of crates. Some broken open but the majority's intact." He stated.

"That's good news. Most of those weapons should still be functional then." Scipio noted in a positive tone. Checking his surroundings, Wraith soon found a breaker switch that appeared to control power in the room. At least, that's what his scans told him.

"Real dark in here. Found a switch that should bring the lights on." He informed Scipio as he walked over to the large switch. Deciding to switch off his night vision, just in case the lever did as he hoped it would, Wraith grabbed the lever with both hands and reefed it down. A shower of sparks erupted as the lever made contact with electrical components. Stepping away, Wraith looked up as the hold's lights began to flicker on. "Bingo." He happily mused.

"Found the power, have you?" Scipio asked.

"Yeah. Now I can see what I'm doing." Wraith replied as he turned back to the many crates before him.

"If you'll recall, I'm having some issues with your visual feedback systems. You'll have to open those crates and tell me what you see." Scipio told him. Wraith nodded and went work, using his blade to pry open the nearest box. Shoving the lid over to the side, Wraith peered inside before he lifted the contents up and into the light. It appeared to be a rifle of some kind, but was very big and bulky, sporting something like the barrels of a rotary cannon running down the middle towards the end.

"I got some kind of a rotary cannon-assault rifle hybrid here." Wraith told Scipio. "Pretty hefty piece of kit." The doctor scrolled through the list before him until he found what matched the soldier's description.

"Ah, that would be the A-One Machine Rifle. Sounds promising. Able to fire up to one hundred rounds in the span of three seconds." Wraith was astonished.

"You're kidding!" He exclaimed. "Not even my carbine has a rate of fire that high!"

"That's why these are prototypes." Scipio reminded him. Feeling excited over the prospect of uncovering new and even more extraordinary weapons, Wraith set the machine rifle down on the floor and moved on to the next crate. This one was significantly shorted in height but very long and wide. Throwing off the lid, Wraith discovered what could only be described as a rotary cannon with two sets of barrels.

"Found two rotary cannons mashed together."

"That must be an X-Series Rotary Turret." Scipio replied. "It's supposed to be mounted on an AAT and replace the side guns."

"Not bad." Wraith left the weapon in its casing and moved on. Finding a smaller box that had tumbled down, Wraith flipped over the dented and scratch case and pried it open as well. Inside, he discovered a pair of thick-bodied hand-held weapons. "Not quite sure what I'm looking at here. They look like fat pistols." He reported, relaying his odd discovery.

"Let me check..." Wraith waited as Scipio went through the list. "Sounds like CBA Hand Cannons. Those suckers pack the force of a small tank turret into the size of a blaster." He reported. Wraith was thoroughly impressed. A growing desire to try out these weapons for himself was building within him with each new tool he uncovered. Hopefully, an opportunity would present itself if the Republic were ever to show.

Moving to the next crate, Wraith pulled out a rather boxy-looking weapon sporting not one but two barrels. Describing its shape to Scipio, the doctor discovered it moments later. "An NAS Slugrepeater." He announced. "Imagine the ammunition of your slugthrowers being fired at the rate of a blaster carbine."

"That'll wreck your day. Probably even faster than the machine rifle would." Wraith quipped.

"Indeed it would." Scipio chuckled. Finding himself drawn towards another rectangular crate, Wraith decided to investigate one last weapon before making arrangements to protect this horde of powerful tools. The top of the case slid off easily and the soldier found himself face to face with a rather odd looking weapon. A long, cylindrical barrel extended forth from a boxy housing, forming what looked like the turret of a tank. Picking the weapon up from its storage, Wraith discovered a series of straps and a single handle equipped with triggers.

It appeared this weapon was meant to be arm-mounted.

Wraith promptly called on Scipio to determine the nature of this new tool. The response was quite startling. "What you are holding there is an M-Ten Fusion Caster. The box-shaped base holds a particle accelerator that generates energy from particle collisions and channels it into the cannon." Wraith couldn't help be be vastly impressed by the perfect combination of science and technology to create such a weapon of potentially devastating power.

"I really want to try this one out now." He mused, setting the cannon down. Inspired by such a remarkable discovery, Wraith continued to dig through crates and uncover the most outlandish and fanciful weapons he'd ever seen, including something called a G-6 Thunderer that was supposed to fire a beam of solid electricity! After a half-hour of unpacking and examining weapons of all shapes and sizes, Wraith found himself staring that what could only be the most incredible arsenal of weapons he'd every seen. Each one of them, by themselves, could be used as to bring death and destruction to the Republic army.

And he had a little over a dozen to work with!

"Remind me to give those R and D folks a proper thanks for building all these things." Wraith mused.

"I'll be sure to tell them for you." Scipio replied, making a note for his debriefing. Eyeing up the weapons once more, Wraith determined that the cargo was definitely secure.

"Going to investigate the outside. Don't want anyone sneaking up on me." He reported. His built in scanners would detect and incoming presence long before anyone found him, but he did want to make sure nothing was faulty. Scipio applauded his strategy as Wraith ascended back up to the catwalks surrounding the cargo hold. But instead of retracing his route in, Wraith triggered his blades and cut open a hole in the side of the ship, one big enough so he could either exit the ship or look out at the landscape and see if the Republic was coming. His plan was to fortify the wreck of the freighter by using these experimental weapons to repulse any and all invaders.

But almost as soon as he looked out, he saw something that made him realize the time for planning was over.

The Republic had arrived.

Two Venator-class cruisers floated high in the sky, silhouetted against the sun and casting large, ominous shadows across the land.

"They're here. Two cruisers worth." He growled, quickly moving back into the cargo hold.

"Then you'd better get ready." Scipio informed him. "I've gotten into contact with the nearest fleet. They're in route to your position but you'll have to hold out until then." Wraith took that as a piece of good news as he hurried back to his collection of weapons. Reinforcements would come, he wouldn't have to do this forever. Pausing as he stood before the armament before him, Wraith took a moment to consider his plan of action.

Although he originally planned to fortify the wreck and use the tools within to keep the Republic at bay, a lone thought lingering in his mind kept him from fully carrying out his plan.

The last thing he wanted to do was disappoint Darth Sidious or do something contrary to his will. These weapons were prototypes, meant to be worked on until they were completely operational. They were for the benefit of the Separatists, not just his own. Although he desperately wanted to put these tools to good use against the Republic, should he really be expending such potentially valuable resources for his own personal gain? These meant for the greater cause and should possibly be left alone so they could be returned to R and D in pristine shape so they could be improved upon. Wraith was here to protect these weapons, not use them. But he so badly wanted to...

Would these weapons truly improve his chances of winning? Or would they just quench his bloodlust for a moment?

In wrestling with this question, Wraith realized he had very little time between now and when the Republic would be on his doorstep. Given the two armies that he would have to deal with, his job would be significantly easier if the Republic was being constantly bombarded by additional weaponry. But again came the matter of pleasing Darth Sidious. What would his master say? What would his master expect? How could he please hi-

Another, sudden and thunderous thought invaded his mind, suddenly kicking his old tactical mindset into gear. Never before had he bothered with pleasing a Sith like Sidious, so why should he start now? His only bother was to propel the Separatists to victory, by any means necessary. This was his mandate, this was his mission ever since his creation.

To hell with Sidious. Let fate judge his actions.

Wraith unclipped his belt and pulled it off, pistols and all, dropping it along with his carbine on the floor. Scipio heard the sounds of metal on metal and grew concerned.

"Wait a minute, what are you doing?"

"Gearing up." Wraith stated as he loaded shells into the hand cannons. "I'm going to put these weapons to good use."

"But they haven't been properly tested yet!" Scipio replied, worried.

"Consider this a field test." Wraith replied, clipping both weapons to either side of his waist.


Instead of landing to deploy their forces as one, Obi-Wan and Anakin decided to divide their forces, just in case Separatist forces arrived from above. Obi-Wan's cruiser, the Vigilance, made to land on the surface of Cono while the Resolute opted to deploy its tanks and troops via LAAT's and gunships.

Regardless, the combined force was a most impressive display of the Republic's finest.

Rows upon rows of Clone Troopers, flanked by a series of fighter tanks and supported by one colossal juggernaut tank, marched towards the wrecked freighter. Their intent was to secure the crash site and retrieve whatever the cargo was being transported... and clear out anyone who got in their way. The Jedi trio of Anakin, Obi-Wan and Ahsoka led their men forward, expecting a relatively easy mission but also anticipating any potential threat that might lay within this freighter.

"What bothers me most is the small shuttle detected on the opposite side." Obi-Wan mused, remembering the results of the area scan his men had performed. "If my memory serves me correct, it appears to be the same shuttle that transported Aurra Sing back on Naboo." That was a dark day indeed.

"So the Seppies are hiring mercenaries to do their dirty work?" Ahsoka wondered, trying to put the pieces together?

"It could be. Or that shuttle could belong to someone else entirely."

"If I'm not mistaken," Anakin jumped in, "wasn't Wraith or someone else with her?"

"Yes, that's right." Obi-Wan nodded in remembrance. "But they were never identified."

"Remember the bodies of those guards? My credits are on Wraith." The Jedi Knight tasted, convinced the one responsible for wounding his wife and killing Jar Jar Binks was the same one who had beat him on Tibrin.

"That remains to be seen." Obi-Wan was growing concerned with the way Anakin was seemingly obsessed with this Separatist commando. Part of him couldn't blame him because of his devastating defeat at the hands of Wraith, but the rest of him was afraid Anakin might be willing to do whatever it took to see Wraith stopped... even if that meant abandoning the Jedi Code and risking the lives of those around him.

If this wasn't dealt with properly, Anakin's dangerous obsession might effect all of them.

But as the Republic continued to march towards the crash site, Wraith was busy making final preparations for their arrival.

The first thing he'd done, once he had selected his chosen weapons for defending his position, was turn the scrap that had once been the bow into a kind of defensive wall. Behind this position, he laid out his weapons by size and firepower. His plan was to use his cover to switch between armaments and hopefully thin the Republic forces before they got too close. From there he would employ his natural skills and abilities in conjunction with his other weapons in order to repulse them and prevent the Clones from ever entering the ship. All he had to do was keep them at bay until Separatist reinforcements showed up.

Simple, really.

As Wraith was finishing his preparations, which involved hooking the G-6 Thunderer up to a makeshift power pack he had built from parts of the ship's now defunct engines, Scipio called.

"I trust you're nearly ready for the arrival of the Republic?"

"Pretty much." Wraith mused, surveying the weapons before him and the defensive wall behind him.

"How many are there?" Scipio asked, wondering what kind of forces Wraith would be tackling. Wraith quickly poked his head over the scrap wall.

"Definitely two armies worth. A whole mess of Clones, three Jedi, quite a few fighter tanks... and one juggernaut." He counted. Scipio whistled.

"That's a lot of Clones. Think you can kill them all?"

"Please. If anything, I'm overqualified for the job." The solider remarked. Scipio couldn't help but grin, knowing Wraith had returned to his confident old self.

"Now that's the Wraith I know! Go give them hell!"

"My pleasure." The soldier replied and reached to heft the G-6 over his shoulder.

As the Republic drew nearer to their destination, Anakin and Obi-Wan called a halt as the debris field became evident. Portions of twisted metal had blown out, away from the wreck and would pose a problem for their vehicles. The Clones could easily maneuver it, but both Jedi wanted to keep their vehicles on hand at all times. As they were debating on how to move forward efficiently, a lone figure stood up close to the wrecked ship. Ahsoka was quick to point him out.

"Master, look!" Ahsoka called, pointing to the debris field. "It's Wraith!" Anakin turned and saw their foe, sporting a dirt-shaded jacket and standing tall with a large rectangular object mounted on his shoulder.

"I knew it." Anakin growled.

"Republic!" Wraith called to them from his perch. "I see you've brought your war machines. Now allow me to introduce you to mine..." The Thunderer began to power up, a brilliant blue glow forming inside the barrel of the gun. "Behold... my instruments of destruction!" Wraith announced, the biggest grin plastered to his face underneath his helmet. Taking aim at the Turbo Tank, Wraith pulled the trigger.

The kickback was enormous, almost enough to throw Wraith to the ground. Barely managing to stay standing, Wraith looked on as a torrential blast of pure electricity shot through the air and ripped clean through the tank, tearing a hole from front to rear.

The vehicle promptly exploded in a massive fireball seconds later.

"I think I love this gun!" Wraith mused, eyeing the weapon hoisted over his shoulder. Unfortunately, the power had been completely drained from the pack he'd designed, meaning the Thunderer could not be used again. While it was bittersweet to fire such a magnificent weapon only once, Wraith was heartened by the fact he had numerous other tools at his disposal. Discarding the weapon on the ground next to him, Wraith reached for the rotary turret...

The Republic forces were shocked by the intense display of firepower and took cover as their biggest vehicle was reduced to a burning husk. Everyone, Clone and Jedi alike, stared in shock at the catastrophic damage dealt by a single shoulder-mounted weapon.

"What the slag was that?!" Ahsoka cried.

"Bad news. Very bad news." Obi-Wan grimly stated. "It looks like Wraith has found himself some new tools to use against us."

"Just our luck." Anakin growled, thoroughly frustrated by the new development. "Rex, order your men to dig in here. I don't want to find out the hard way what other kinds of toys that monster's packing."

"Right away sir." Rex saluted as he turned and relayed the order to his men.

"Cody, move your troops forward and solidify a defensive position." Obi-Wan instructed his commander. The Clone immediately moved to obey. Soon enough, blue-streaked troopers were taking up positions behind boulders and in nearby trenches while orange painted troopers deployed makeshift barricades and worked to create a perimeter around their comrades.

At that moment, Wraith reappeared from behind the scrap wall and hefted a giant two-barrelled cannon up and over his lone defense.

"Uh, Masters, we've got trouble!" Ahsoka alerted Anakin and Obi-Wan to the sudden development. Both Jedi looked up and were shocked by the size of the tool Wraith now carried. Even Rex and Cody were astonished. They'd never seen something so... peculiar before.

"Smile!" The Separatist gleefully cried as both barrels quickly spun up.

"Duck and cover!" Anakin ordered, moments before a hail of red laser fire peppered their position. Wraith was literally raining down blaster fire from his turret as he raked his deadly aim back and forth across the lines, brute strength holding up the giant twin cannons like they were a common rotary cannon. Rex's men managed to find proper cover and took shelter as they waited for the assault to cease.

But Cody's men weren't so lucky.

Wraith cut them to pieces as they stood exposed, busy working on building their defense. Their armored bodies were ripped apart as high-caliber blaster fire absolutely shredded their position, destroying all potential defenses as Wraith put an end to the members of the 212th. Suddenly, the barrage came to and end. The barrels wound down and smoke wafted up from the tips of the weapon. The Republic slowly peered out from their hiding places and took in the sight of the slaughtered 212th members, their corpses lying still and riddled with scorch marks. "Do you give up? Or are you gluttons for punishment?" Wraith asked in a taunting tone. While Obi-Wan stood agape at the devastation, Anakin was already moving.

"Rex, tell the tanks to bombard his position! Now!" He ordered. The Clone captain was quick to obey and soon enough, the tanks lined up their turrets with Wraith. "Guess you are gluttons." Wraith mused as he disappeared behind his cover. "Surprise, surprise." Thunderous tank rounds slammed into his defense, pounding away at the wall of durasteel that stood between him and getting destroyed. Setting down the rotary cannon, Wraith reached for his next weapon of choice. "Hopefully this'll do what I hope it'll do." He mused. The weapon in question was the RX Shock Cannon: a powerful two-handed weapon engineered to fire concussive blasts of destructive energy.

Enough power to, hopefully, destroy a tank.

Waiting for a lull in the bombardment, Wraith charged up the weapon and planned his next move. He might only have a few seconds before the tanks opened fire again, so he would have to aim and fire at the nearest tank as quickly as he could.

Fortunately, his mind had been engineered to calculate such variables within a fraction of a second.

When the lull came, Wraith stepped out from behind his cover and fired a single blast at the nearest tank. The whole front of the vehicle was crushed by the wave of energy, splinters of metal and fragments of armor raining down as the vehicle was thoroughly rendered useless. To the astonished Jedi watching, it were almost as if the tank had been crushed by the Force.

"Holy-!" Ahsoka gasped as she viewed the scene.

"Language, Padawan!" Obi-Wan reprimanded her.

"I wasn't gonna-!" She started to say but was stopped when Wraith managed to fire off a second blast, which crushed another tank as if gravity itself were at his command.

"Fire! Open fire already!" Anakin cried. The remaining tanks did so, now aided by additional fire from the Clones. Wraith was quick to duck back behind his cover, narrowly avoiding the second bombardment. To his surprise, the Shock Cannon powered down in his hands, momentarily drained of energy. He reached for his comms.

"Scipio, make a note that the RX Cannon needs to be able to fire off more than two rounds before overheating."

"I shall do so immediately." Came the reply. Setting the gun aside, Wraith decided the Republic was close enough to make things personal. Strapping the machine rifle to his back, Wraith armed the slugrepeater and waited to go over the top.

Those tanks were still going to be a problem though. Fortunately, he'd had plenty of experience from his mission to Muunilinst. All he had to do was make the tanks come to him.

Leaping over the wall amidst the heavy assault, Wraith trained his sights on the nearest Clones and opened fire. The quick spray of slugs was enough to kill all three of them with bloody headshots.

That was one thing he loved about slugthrowers: you could always count on them to leave a mess behind.

Turning to his left, Wraith gunned down another pair of troopers, squeezing the trigger for a few extra seconds so as to pump them both full of lead and splatter their blood across the ground. He was quick to move on, knowing time was not on his side, and rushed towards the nearest tank. The Republic had brought five, six including the juggernaut, and three of them had already been disposed of. Part of Wraith wished he had brought along an explosive projectile of some kind, maybe one he had yet to uncover within the cargo hold. But, if Muunilinst had taught him anything, his explosive disks were an easy match for the Republic vehicles. Leaping back and forth to avoid the incoming cannon blasts, Wraith slid beneath the tank and stuck a pair of disks to the underside. The soldier rolled out moments before they exploded and the tank crashed to the ground. Rising to his feet and scaling up the side, Wraith ripped open the top hatch and filled the cabin, and crew, with slugs. Leaping off the disabled tank, Wraith found himself staring at innumerable blasters pointed right at him. Rolling his shoulders, he cocked his slugrepeater in preparation for the coming fight. "Game on." He muttered, smirking beneath his helmet.

He always enjoyed a good carnage.

Those closest to him fell first. Slugs flew from the twin barrels of his weapon and ripped through the bodies of Clones, courtesy of acid-lined shells. Blood flew in all directions as Clones were ripped apart by a weapon they knew nothing about. Despite their attacks, more and more Clones continued to fall. Orange and blue striped bodies piling up before Wraith as he mercilessly slaughtered anyone who dared to oppose him. Blaster bolts attacked him from all sides, ricocheting off his indestructible armor and blaster-proof jacket. They were fighting against an invincible force, against which they would gain no victory.

But Wraith was forced to pause when his slugrepeater suddenly stopped firing.

With blaster fire streaking past him and occasionally colliding with his frame, he checked the magazine only to discover it was empty. With a growl of annoyance, he tossed his weapon to the side and reached for the two weapons on his hips.

Meanwhile, the Clones were growing increasingly flabbergasted at their lack of effect on Wraith, despite a near-relentless barrage of blaster fire.

"We're not doing anything!" One of them cried.

"Any advice trooper? I'm all ears." His commander asked, equally frustrated. Without another word, the trooper rushed forward, ready to bash The Wraith with his rifle.

"For the Republic!" He cried, winding up and ready to swing. But he slowed to a halt when he found himself staring down the barrel of Wraith's latest weapon.

"For the Separatist Alliance." The solider growled before pulling the trigger. The powerful blast shattered the Clone's helmet and blew his face apart, the round nearly tearing clean through his head. Stepping past the dead body, Wraith opened fire with his new weapons. These hand cannons certainly packed a punch, if the recoil were anything to go by, the only downside being they lacked a large ammunition clip. Gunning down the squad before him, Wraith held the now defenseless commander at gunpoint. "If I were you, I'd ask the Jedi for help." Wraith mused. "Good thing I'm not you." He growled, promptly killing the Clone with a single shot to the chest. Looking up and seeing more troopers approaching, the soldier surmised he had no time to reload his cannons. Strapping them back to his hips, Wraith reached behind him and drew the one weapon he had been eagerly waiting to test out: the machine rifle. Stepping forward and ignoring the blaster fire sailing past his position, Wraith trained his sights on the nearest group of Clones and opened fire. Each and every Republic attacker died within seconds of him squeezing the trigger, their bodies falling to the ground with scorch marks covering their armor.

Wraith was right. The rate of fire for this gun was significantly higher than any other weapon he knew about. This made it devastatingly effective and earned a special place with the super soldier, who was quite tempted to request one for his own use. "Could you at least make this a challenge?" He wondered aloud. "Or am I asking too much of you duplicates?" He chuckled, gunning down more Clones.

The Jedi witnessing the carnage were reluctantly cautious about what their move would be. They knew from experience that Wraith was too fast, too powerful and too cunning for just one of them to handle. But the fact that numerous Jedi had fallen to him on Gwori made them question the wisdom of confronting him at all. But their troops would not last long against this onslaught, not even their vehicles could defeat him... let alone survive and attack from him.

Someone had to do something.

Anakin Skywalker had had enough of being told to avoid Wraith. He'd had enough of being forced to avoid and open confrontation. His men were dying and he would not idly stand by while one opponent steamrolled over them. The Jedi Knight deemed it time he took action, regardless of what anyone said.

Sprinting towards the fight and ignoring the calls of Obi-Wan, Anakin's freshly healed body could feel adrenaline surge through him as he anticipated his coming fight.

He was convinced this rematch would end differently.

He scowled as he neared the fight and ordered the troops to back up. The Separatist was finishing off a group of Clones when he looked up and saw his Jedi rival step forward. Knowing Skywalker would be rather incited by the field of bodies behind and before him, Wraith smirked as he realized he had another opportunity to prove his superiority over the Jedi. "Anakin Skywalker!" Wraith called out the him, sounding almost pleased to see him. "Glad to see you're up and walking again... means I get to knock you down a second time." He grimly stated as he holstered his rifle behind him.

"You know Wraith, we have a saying back at the Jedi Temple," Anakin replied as he switched on his lightsaber, "'what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger.'" Wraith took note of Anakin's grim demeanor, mildly amused that the Jedi was angry with him.

"I too have a saying, Skywalker: 'I don't care.'" Wraith dismissively retorted before lunging forward with a high kick that connected with Anakin's lightsaber. Momentarily impressed that his blade did not pass through the boot, Anakin quickly moved to attack, having learned to never give Wraith an opening of any kind. But Wraith was quick to recover and even quicker to block the incoming strike. "I don't care how resilient you think you are, how powerful you are, how determined you are," Wraith growled as his gauntlet ground against Anakin's blade, "all I care about is putting you down!" Pushing the saber out of his way, Wraith launched a high kick that connected with the side of Anakin's face. The Jedi was knocked away and stumbled for a minute before he managed to get his bearings. In that brief amount of time, Wraith executed a lunge kick and drove his foot into Anakin's ribs. Growling in pain, and feeling a bruise coming on, Anakin quickly recovered and attacked again. But Wraith back-flipped away, avoiding the strike by many feet. "Have your bones fully knit?" Wraith wondered. "I'm looking forward to breaking them again."

"Never again!" Anakin boldly stated. "Today's the day I end you!"

"So presumptuous. And still so egotistical." Wraith chuckled. "Glad to see my beating didn't hamper that prideful spirit I so love to tear apart." He jabbed. With a growl, Anakin thrust his saber forward. Wraith quickly sidestepped and responded with a pair of high kicks that connected with Anakin's chest.

"This time I'm gonna tear you apart!" The Jedi thundered as he recovered and rushed back in. Wraith couldn't help but chuckle as he dodged Anakin's attacks with over-exaggerated ease.

"Ah, Skywalker, you have no idea how much I missed this banter of ours." He commented, jumping over a low sweep.

"Shut up and let me hit you!" Anakin growled as he fought to land a blow. But Wraith was practically dancing around him, making a complete mockery of the Jedi Knight.

"Don't tell me your 'A' game has gone out the window? I'd hate for the Jedi poster-boy to be all ego and no flashy moves." Wraith shot back as he hopped over another low sweep and quickly balanced on one foot, dipping parallel to the ground in order to avoid another upward slash from Anakin only to cartwheel away. Growling in frustration and annoyance, Anakin quickly dropped everything the Jedi had taught him about controlled fighting and allowed raw emotion to guide his strikes.

No longer dodging, Wraith began to parry Anakin's relentless assault. A combination of Force-precision and emotion-fueled power allowed the Jedi to unleash himself upon the Separatist soldier. "That's more like it!" Wraith stated, enjoying the adrenaline that coursed through his whole body. He watched as Anakin grew angrier with each parried strike, knowing that the Jedi was only acting this way in an effort to gain the upper hand.

Something he was not receiving at all.

Anakin repeatedly brought his lightsaber crashing down into Wraith's raised gauntlets, slipping into a frenzy as his emotions drove him to avenge his men and his own pride.

"Just! Die! Already!" He growled angrily. Wraith only chuckled as he continued to deflect, parry and block each strike. Just then, Scipio's voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Wraith, I've received an update on the reinforcements. A pair of cruisers should be at your position within a few minutes." The doctor informed him. Wraith was pleased. Soon the Republic would be on the run and he would've fulfilled his role once more. All he had to do now was keep Anakin occupied until Vulture Droids and Hyena Bombers showed up to wreak havoc.

But until then, he still had a fight on his hands. A fight he was winning.

Anakin thrust his blade forward, trying to stab his opponent. But Wraith managed to sidestep and grabbed Anakin's arm, promptly twisting it behind the Jedi's back and wrenching his lightsaber from his grasp. Anakin grunted as his arm was violently re-positioned.

"You appear to be getting sloppy. Did Tibrin teach you nothing?" Wraith growled in Anakin's ear before he kicked the Jedi in the back and sent him sprawling. But before Wraith could move in and inflict further pain on the Jedi, a squad of Clones led by Rex showed up and surrounded Anakin, opening fire on their opponent. Rex and another trooper helped Anakin to his feet and the Jedi quickly called his lightsaber to him as they escorted him back to Obi-Wan and Ahsoka. Wraith was mildly amused by the sudden retreat but gladly welcomed the opportunity to destroy more Clones. Anakin tried to shake himself free of the trooper's grip on him.

"Why'd you do that Rex? I was just fine!" He snapped at his captain.

"General Kenobi ordered me to, Sir." The captain stated. "He wants you back with him and Commander Tano."

"Right..." Anakin huffed as he proceeded onward, without assistance. As he did, the screams of dying Clones and the sounds of repeated blaster fire continued to irk him. They didn't stand a chance against Wraith... but someone had to do something!

By the time Anakin had made his way back to the others, Obi-wan appeared less than pleased to see him.

"What were you thinking Anakin?! In your condition, you should have nothing to do with Wraith!" He firmly stated, scolding his former apprentice.

"And what was I supposed to do? Nothing? He's slaughtering my, no, our men without hesitation and we're supposed to just stand by and do nothing?!" Anakin shot back, sounding very irritated. "Besides, I'm perfectly healthy."

"That's not what I was referring to." Obi-Wan muttered, thinking about Anakin's mental state. "Wraith is a strategist, clearly able to out-maneuver us at any given moment. So we just need to think smarter than him." The elder Jedi stated.

"But what do we have that could even stop him?" Ahsoka wondered, having no idea what to do. "Our tanks clearly can't stop him and the Clones are just piling up at his feet." As she spoke, another pair of Clones were dispatched by some well-aimed shots. Wraith was quickly thinning the combined armies and soon enough, he would be overrunning their position.

The Jedi no longer cared about securing the mysterious cargo. Now they just wanted to defeat The Wraith.

Hearing Ahsoka's words, Anakin suddenly had a thought.

"No forces here... but maybe elsewhere..." he mused aloud, a plan coming to mind. Turning to Rex, Anakin quickly relayed a new order. "Rex, contact the Resolute. Tell Admiral Yularen to locate out position and acquire targeting coordinates for an orbital bombardment." He commanded.

"Right away sir." Rex nodded and turned to go find a trooper with radio equipment. Obi-Wan overheard the brief exchange and grew concerned.

"Anakin, please tell me you're not planning something crazy."

"This isn't crazy. All I'm doing is calling an orbital strike on Wraith." Anakin explained, as if it were a simple battle plan. Both Obi-Wan and Ahsoka were not convinced.

"Yeah... that sounds a little crazy to me Skyguy." The Togruta admitted.

"Ahsoka, we have an opportunity to put down one of the greatest threats to the Republic. What could possibly be wrong with this?" Anakin replied, sounding very hellbent on fulfilling his idea.

"I'm more concerned about the blast radius." Obi-Wan interjected, giving voice to his concerns. "Yes, you'll eliminate Wraith, but who else along with him?"

"Obviously we're going to pull back, I have thought this through!" Anakin countered. "What do you think I am, crazy?"

"Well... the thought had crossed my mind." Ahsoka quipped. Anakin rolled his eyes.

"Just tell the men to pull back, Snips." He sighed. Ahsoka did as she was told.

Wraith was mopping up a few final Clones when the order was given. The Republic troops quickly backed away as the remaining tanks opened fire on him. Wraith was quick to start dodging their shells, but noticed that the tanks were also pulling away. It hit him that they were covering a retreat and were only firing on him out of necessity.

He had won.

Rolling to his feet after narrowly avoiding yet another tank round, Wraith stood up and watched as the Republic called in a full retreat.

"Nothing more satisfying than knowing you've done your job." He mused, placing his hands on his hips.

Anakin stood with Obi-Wan and Ahsoka as their troops filed past them, moving further and further away from the wrecked freighter and their opponent. Wraith stood tall, watching them leave and not bothering to pursue them. Evidently his job was to protect this wreck and not to destroy them. Anakin thought there no doubt Wraith was feeling pretty proud of himself, feeling very triumphant in his victory over them.

Anakin couldn't wait until Wraith saw the surprise he had planned for him.

The Jedi turned as Captain Rex arrived with news.

"General, The Resolute has acquired bombardment coordinates and are awaiting your orders." Rex reported. Anakin turned back to look at the lone Wraith, standing by himself as the tanks pulled further away from his position. With a slight smirk, Anakin uttered a single word,

"Fire."

As the Republic began to grow smaller in his vision, Wraith was feeling very triumphant. Not only had he repulsed a combined attack force, but he had also managed to fulfill his own curiosity and test a few highly-effective experimental weapons.

But his moment of glory was short-lived, a few heavy echoes resounding in the distance.

Wraith looked up to see a blue glow descending from the sky, growing bigger and bigger as it filled his vision. He froze in place as he suddenly realized the grave danger he was in and the mere seconds he had left to act.

The Jedi had called an orbital bombardment upon him... and he had nowhere to run or hide!

Now the retreat made sense. Now his victory did not seem so sound. Now he didn't feel so triumphant.

Dropping his hands to his sides, Wraith looked back at the distant Republic and could've sworn he saw Anakin's cocky smirk all the way from his position.

"Well played, Skywalker. Well played..." He growled, moments before the blasts consumed his position. A massive shockwave accompanied each titanic blast, blowing the surrounding terrain to pieces as each thunderous impact scorched the ground and reduced mighty boulders to rubble. The Republic shielded themselves as dust and debris flew wildly about, pitched high into the air as a series of cacophonous explosions accompanied the most brilliant glow any of them had ever seen.

It was all over in a matter of seconds. When the dust settled and dirt finished raining down, only a burning, smoking crater remained where The Wraith had once stood. Anakin shook the dust from his hair and blinked his eyes as he adjusted to the glorious sight before him.

"Looks like today's the day I did end him." He said aloud with a grin, feeling quite proud of himself. The moment was cut short when Rex reported in.

"Sir, we've detected multiple Separatist ships heading to our position. Way too many for us to take on." The captain reported.

"Never mind them, tell the men we're pulling out." Anakin replied. He turned back to face the still burning blast crater, a smirk growing on his face. "We've accomplished something far greater." He mused, feeling very triumphant indeed.

No one could've possibly survived that.

At best, the fearsome Wraith had been blown to pieces and was no longer a threat. At worst... well... there was still a recognizable body left to recover.

Both Obi-Wan and Ahsoka couldn't help but feel a little relieved themselves. It looked like Wraith had finally met his demise, overwhelmed by something infinitely more powerful than him.

As far as they were all concerned, The Wraith was dead and gone.


Later on, elsewhere in the galaxy...

Pomel Scipio was a wreck. He believed he was suffering from a nervous breakdown, something he had never once felt in all of his days. The Pau'un scientist paced back and forth in a medical lab, worrying about countless things.

But there was still one thought that held his undivided attention.

He remembered the moment with vivid clarity and how he had felt in that situation. He'd been informed by a droid commander how they had searched and, to everyone's surprise, in the midst of the fire and flame, surrounded by blackened earth and scorched rock, they found their target laying still amongst the rubble. His jacket in tatters, bits of flame licking at small patches of fabric. His clothes torn to pieces, flesh burned and blackened by innumerable scorches. His helmet burnt and sparking from various tears in the metal. They immediately summoned their medics and did whatever they could to keep him alive as he was shipped across the galaxy to his home base. Scipio had taken over from there. The doctor turned to the bacta tank behind him and the source of his worry.

Wraith was suspended inside the bacta tank, tubes and wires hooked up to his body as the healing salve bathed his burnt and blackened body. The orbital blast had nearly fried him, reducing his body to an appearance like that of charcoal. Much surgery was required to cut away his destroyed clothes and armor, some of it having been fused to his skin due to the intensity of the blast.

The worst part was, when hooked up to life support machines, there was no pulse to detect.

Scipio had at first assumed his body had gone into stasis, forcefully locked down by a life-preserving command written into his enhanced genetic structure. But days and days had been spent in this tank and there was still no heart rate.

Scipio sighed, prepared to give up hope. He did not want to resort to Operation: Legacy, but it seemed he had no other choice. His creation was gone and he was left with only the experience to try and improve his next attempt. He had grown rather fond of this boy, having practically raised him from infancy. He had been there through every injection, every test, every procedure. He knew everything there was to know about this boy and now he would be forced to start over. It appeared fate had no other choice for him.

But fate had yet to yield an unexpected reward.

Just as Pomel closed his eyes and was ready to admit defeat, a single beep echoed from the heart rate monitor.

Snapping open his eyes, he turned to the machine and watched in astonishment as the line jumped again, accompanied by another beep.

"Impossible..." he breathed, rushing over to the equipment. But his eyes did not deceive him, nor was the equipment faulty, there was truly a pulse to be read. The beeps came quicker, leveling out into a normal pulse and heart rate. Scipio looked up in amazement at the figure in the bacta tank, who remained motionless despite all indications he was alive. "It's a miracle you survived that bombardment." Pomel whispered. He knew his creation was engineered to withstand almost all kinds of punishment... but to survive an orbital blast...

Just what had he created?

"But it is my fault I did not prepare you for such an extreme situation." This was true. Scipio never thought for a moment that the Republic would resort to such an extreme assault. Then again, giving the immense notoriety of The Wraith, he should've expected them to try anything and everything to stop him. "I have failed you in this regard, my boy. I will not do so again." He confidently whispered, determined to ensure Wraith's survival.

As he did, Wraith slowly opened his eyes...


Author's Note: sorry to end on such a cliffhanger... but you know how school gets. I'll post again once I have some time and something written down. Promise!