Truth in Conspiracies is now canon with my other Star Wars: The Clone Wars story, A Kiss Goodbye.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Motto: Survival is one step on the path to living.
Newsreel:
Prisoners of the Pykes!
Ahsoka Tano, accompanied by Lux Bonteri and Commander Fox, find themselves prisoners of the criminal Pyke Syndicate. Following the death of Darth Sidious, Ahsoka and her comrades attempted to unearth evidence of collaboration between the Sith and the Pykes. After there attempt to retrieve the data files necessary to uncover the corruption failed, the three infiltrators were promptly captured and imprisoned.
We now find them imprisoned deep within a fortress on the planet Oba Diah...
Lux was a nervous wreck, pacing the cell, the metallic taste of his own blood on his tongue as he gnawed at his knuckle. And it this anxiety was not out of concern for his own well being. If the Pykes found out who he was, then he would most likely be ransomed back tot the Republic, or worse, the Separatists. No, he was more concerned form Ahsoka and Fox.
Fox, for his strong frame, would more than likely be sent to some spice mine on Kessel, where if Lux believed in the stories he had heard about the dreaded planet, would make the Commander wish he were dead. And right now, Lux was beginning to fear the worst for Fox, ever since the clone was taken away by two guards to Force knows where.
And Ahsoka, his dear Soka...Lux shivered at the thought of what would happen to her. Possibly made to serve the pykes int heir palace, or sold to the highest bidder on the slave market. Lux had read the report on the Republics mission to free togruta colonists from the Zygerrian slave empire, therefore he knew how much certain individuals would pay for a togruta slave...
a FEMALE togruta slave.
Said female, Lux was actually surprised to find, was actually quite calm, her frame leaned over as she sat of the hard slab of a bed in the cell, her clasped hands held to her mouth, her eyes staring at the floor as if in deep thought. Though, one thing Lux did notice, is that Ahsoka appeared very tense, the young woman twitching every so often, her face contorting with little winces, her eyes clenching shut as if she was being shocked by some invisible electrical current.
Then she let out a sharp gasp, her hands grasping at her head as tear slipped from her eye.
"Soka?" Lux called worriedly, quickly kneeling before his girlfriend to check her well-being.
"Soka, what is it?"
All Ahsoka had to do was let out a pained whisper for Lux to realize what she was feeling.
"Fox."
And just as she said this, the ray-shield to their cell deactivated, making way for the same two guards who took Fox away, now dragging a barely conscious Fox behind them, the two pykes tossing the clone unceremoniously into the cell, Fox letting out a low grunt as landed hard at Lux's feet, the senator and Ahsoka quickly kneeling to check their comrade's current state. Though the moment Lux saw the state Fox was in, he felt a deep rage overtake him.
"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?!" he bellowed at the guards, standing threateningly to his feet as his eyes burned with anger.
Ahsoka, however, knew that at the present time, it would be wise not to antagonize the guards any further.
"Lux," she whispered urgently, "don't make them mad."
Lux, however, was far to gone to listen to reason.
"Me make them mad?" he asked incredulously as he looked to Ahsoka, only to turn his gaze back to the pykes, shoving one as he spoke.
"HOW ABOUT THEY DON'T MAKE ME MAD!"
The pykes did not like this.
With a grunt, Lux was swiftly yanked out of the cell, being shoved by one of the guards in the direction they had just come from. Ahsoka, against her better judgement, attempted to stop them, only to find herself on the receiving end of a savage shock from the guards electric baton. But luckily, after blinking away the spots from her vision, Ahsoka could see on the guards belt a key-card, one she was certain could help get them out of their current situation. Moving quickly, Ahsoka snatched the card just as the guard turned away, only for the guard, who saw Ahsoka reach for him out of the corner of his eye, to give her another jolt from his baton.
"AHSOKA!"
Fighting back the pain, Ahsoka watched through the reactivated shield as Lux was dragged away. But, at the moment, she knew she had to look after Fox. Shakily moving over to the incapacitated clone, Ahsoka, with some difficulty, managed to roll him over onto his back, the commander letting out a low grunt as his aching body was moved.
"Fox," Ahsoka whispered as she pulled his head into her lap, her hand gently caressing his cheek as the males eyes fluttered open. Well, one them, as Ahsoka noticed that Fox had a very decent shine rover his left eye, the black and blue flesh a clear sign that the pykes were definitely very rough on the hardened clone.
"What happened? You didn't say anything did you?"
Fox, upon hearing the question, sadly shook his head, a mixture of pain and horror seen through his one good eye.
"They didn't even ask me any questions."
Ahsoka was sickened at this. She actually fought to swallowing the bile that had come up into her throat. But, once she did, she just sat with Fox in her embrace, sending soothing vibes through the force, running her fingers through his mussed up hair, a gesture which she was glad to see had some affect on the clone, who seemed to relax under her care. However, Fox was even more surprised when Ahsoka leaned down to place a tender kiss on his forehead, his cheeks instantly turning as red as his armor the day Ahsoka had told the 501st she would not be returning after being cleared of the temple bombing.
Sending soft smile to Fox, Ahsoka let out a little laugh at what Fox said next.
"We've come a long way, Soka," he whispered with a sad smile, shakily raising a hand which was gladly taken by Ahsoka.
"It's been an honor."
"Don't say your goodbyes yet, Fox," Ahsoka replied with a playful, yet hard edge to her voice, release his hand as she reached for something outside of Fox's vision. Confused at first, Fox was surprised to see Ahsoka present to him the key card she had swiped from the guard.
"Rest up," she said softly, placing the key into Fox's hand.
"You're gonna need it."
Meanwhile on Skako Minor...
The sound of blaster fire rang throughout the durasteel halls of Wat Tambor's research facility. As more and more droids continued to converge on the main laboratory, Anakin, along with Hunter, Crosshair, and Wrecker were trying their best to ensure that the droids did get to their friends in the lab itself. After slicing through a few more droids, Anakin could see more on the way.
"HUNTER!" he shouted to the Bad Batch leader, "hold them off! I'll check on Rex, Fives, and Echo."
As Hunter rushed the advancing droid forces with his vibro-blade drawn, Anakin ran into lab, finding Tech still working to figure out a way disconnect Echo from the computer system,all while Rex and Fives knelt by their brother, offering him what they could in the ways of comfort..
"Situation's almost under control out there," Anakin announced to the group as ran up to the terminal, "how's it going in here?" Looking to Anakin, Tech raised his visor as he addressed the Jedi Knight.
"I'm still trying to decrypt Echo's cerebral interface," Tech announced before turning back tot eh console he was working on. "As it turns out, all of autonomic functions; pulmonary, respiratory, you name it, are all controlled by computer generated brainwaves. So until I create a bypass, we cannot disconnect him from this computer system." Turning to the three other clones on the floor, Anakin let out a sad sigh as he saw one of his best man as merely a shadow of his former self.
"How is he Rex?" He inquired of his captain. Standing slowly, a sorrowful expression on his face, Rex answered.
"He's too weak to walk," Rex began as he stood to his feet, "very disoriented. Doesn't even remember how he got here."
"Really?" Anakin inquired in surprise. Fives, still kneeling beside his brother, decided to clarify.
"Well, he remembers being at the Citadel, but, that's about it," he said as looked up at Anakin, who nodded in understanding before turning back to Rex.
"What about the extraction team," Anakin inquired hopefully, hope that was soon dashed by the dejected look on Rex's face.
"We called it in," Rex confirmed, only to let out a sigh a second later, "but no word back." The small group jumped a little at the sound of smashing metal. The pair looked tot he lab entrance just in time to see Wrecker smash a droid against the ground before tossing it into the lab. Letting out a sigh, Anakin knew that they were in a very precarious situation.
"That's no surprise," he said, lowering his head in submission, "we knew when we got into this we'd be on our own."
"It's gonna be more difficult to get out here!" Hunter called to the others, who could know see that they were know trapped in the lab as Crosshair smashed the control panel to the door as Hunter continued to give an update on their situation.
"There are several squads of droids coming in!"
Just as Hunter said this, the droids on the other side of the door managed to pry it open, with one sticking it's head right through the narrow opening.
"Drop your weapons and surrender!" the droid demanded, only for it's head to be yanked off by Wrecker. After managing to close the door once again, Hunter grabbed a pair of micro-fusers from his belt, tossing one to Crosshair before joining him in welding the door shut. Meanwhile, outside the lab, Wat Tambor and two of his scientists glided toward one of the droids.
"Status report?" Tambor demanded.
"The clones have barricaded themselves inside, sir" the droid said.
"Good," replied Tambor, "prepare the Organic Decimator."
And just as instructed, his two colleagues began the activation of a sinister new weapon. On the other side of the door, Crosshair took a step back before lowering his rangefinder, using special tactical lenses built in to get a biological and technical reading through the thick material. What he saw was not good.
"Enemy approaching," he announced dismally.
"Droids. LOTS of 'em."
"How long do you think you can hold them off?" Anakin inquired hopefully.
"How long do you need?" Hunter inquired back, but by the sound of his voice, Anakin knew there wasn't enough time.
"Tech, how much longer?" Anakin urgently inquired.
"Not Yet," Tech answered in a frenzy, frantically typing away at the console, "I need more time!"
Realizing that time was not on their side, Anakin decided that at this point, the most he could do was distract Tambor as Tech continued to try to crack Echo's interface.
On the other side of the sealed door, Tambor watched with gleeful anticipation was his technicians worked on his latest...toy.
"TAMBOR!"
Jumping slightly at the sudden interruption, Tambor quickly turned toward the monitor by the lab entrance to see the pride of the Republic military, General Anakin Skywalker, glaring coldly at the skakoan, said alien quickly overcoming his shock as he moved toward the console, an air of smugness radiating from him as he did so.
"If you are calling to beg for your release Skywalker," he began in a mocking tone of voice, one which made Anakin seethe with anger, "You are wasting your time."
"I don't BEG, Tambor," Anakin snarled, his temper flaring by the minute. But, at that moment, Anakin quickly began to calm himself, knowing that letting his temper get out of hand would get him nowhere with the Techno Union minster.
"But I'll bargain."
Upon hearing this, Tambor let out a loud laugh, his hand clutching at the dials on his suit to regulate the pressure, his voice becoming muffled by the feedback from his vocador.
"We don't want your credits," he countered, his gaze hardening as he glared at Anakin, "that clone was purchased from the Separatists following it's capture. It is a research tool, and Techno Union property. Now, honor the neutrality your senate offered us and surrender."
Anakin couldn't help but scoff at Tambor.
"You seem to forget, Tambor, that with the arrest of Senator Saam, the Techno Union's neutrality has been revoked."
Despite his goggles and face-plate hiding his expression, Anakin could feel Tambor's anger through the force, a small smirk on his face at the little victory he had won. Unfortunately, that victory was short-lived as one of the skakoan scientists turned to Tambor, which allowed Anakin, for the first time, to see a floating, spherical object that was currently emitting a low hum. And at that moment, Anakin felt Tambor's anger shift to glee, which greatly unnerved him.
"EXCELLENT! And now Skywalker, you will see the true power that the Techno Union has to offer...Neutral or not."
Anakin didn't like the sound of that.
"Bring in a test subject."
At that moment, Anakin felt an overwhelming sense of fear sweep over him, the source being a poltec, one of the same poltec's who had escorted them to the city. The tall, lanky alien was being escorted by two droids, his arms bound behind his back as he mumbled softly. At this point, Anakin knew that Tambor must be insane to think he could get away with his obviously sinister intentions.
"NO, YOU CAN'T!" he cried, his eyes wide with alarm as he stared past Tambor toward the poltec, the frightened native staring pleadingly at Anakin, almost as if begging him to stop this. But, Anakin knew all too well that he was helpless to do anything.
"Oh," Tambor laughed mockingly, "but I can. The Techno Union owns everything on this planet...including the primitives."
At that moment, Tambor turned toward one of the scientist, the two exchanging a quick nod as the underling pressed a button on the sphere, causing a series of small probes to extend from it's surface. And in an instant, the probes began emitting a series of a electrical tentacles, the purple hue illumination the poltec as he was forced to his knees.
At that moment, Tambor began to speak as he were giving a presenting to potential buyers.
"The energy tentacles seek organic matter. When one locks onto it's target, the others zero in, and all organic matter is vaporized."
And as Tambor spoke, all Anakin could do was watch as the new weapon did just that. Within seconds, his ears burned with the sound of sizzling flesh and the cries of the poltec, his eyes cursed with the image of the poor prisoners body quickly being vaporized by the electrical charged tentacles, until all that was left was a pair of binders sitting on a newly formed pile of dust.
"Now," Tambor continued, sickening joy radiating from him, "you can surrender Skywalker, or you can be my next test subject."
At that point, Anakin had heard enough. Slamming his fist into the control panel, he cut of the feed that allowed him to see the sickening sight of the demented skakoan.
"No Luck," Hunter sarcastically quipped, instantly regretting it as he saw Anakin's crestfallen face.
"We have to get out of here," he lowly murmured before running back to to Rex, Tech and Echo.
"FAST!"
And if the conversation on the other side of the door was any indication, fast was an understatement.
"We have them completely surrounded, sir," the droid commander informed Tambor, who happily brought his hands to together.
"Send in the Decimator," he ordered.
With a push of a button, the spherical weapon approached the sealed door and instantly began to slice through it with a built in laser cutters, which didn't fail in catching Hunter's attention as he finished welding the door. Retreating back to the second set of doors, Hunter smashed the set on controls, shutting the door before he and Crosshair began fussing it closed. It was really coming down to the wire.
But, luckily, Tech had good news.
"I've got it!" he announced before turning to Fives and Rex, "you can unplug him now!"
Helping Echo to his feet, Fives turned him around so that Rex could disconnect the tubes protruding from the mechanical spine on Echo's back. One by One with a violent hiss, the tubes came free, the sudden relief causing Echo to slump into Fives as the latter struggled to keep his friend on his feet.
"Fives," Echo rasped out as he held on to his brother.
"What is it?" Fives inquired worriedly. After a brief coughing fit, Echo answered.
"I got a big headache," he said with a sheepish smile, resulting in a forced laugh from Fives and Rex.
"Better to feel something than nothing old buddy," Fives joked as Rex moved tot he other side to help support Echo.
"It's a touching reunion guys," Anakin impatiently interrupted, "but we need to get outta here, KNOW!" Letting out a another violent cough, Echo spoke again.
"There's an exhaust vent," he began looking toward the ceiling, which possessed a single circular hatch, "that leads to the cooling systems. Get me to that socket plug, I can get it open." Helping their brother to the terminal, Rex and Fives lowered Echo so he could access the terminal. Echo had no sooner inserted his cybernetic socket arm into the outlet when the group heard the tell-tale sound of lasers cutting through metal.
"They've breached the front door!" Hunter called urgently, "it won't be long before their through the second!" Luckily, Echo found the code to open the ventilation hatch.
"That should get it open," he said. And within seconds the hatch opened up, revealing the groups means of escape. But, when Crosshair inquired how they would reach the opening, Wrecker had an idea. One by one, the hulking trooper tossed his comrades up to the hatch, save for Anakin who used his force abilities to jump himself, leaving Wrecker alone in the lab. Taking advantage of this golden opportunity, Wrecker tossed several thermal detonators at the computer console and stasis pod. No sooner had finished did the Decimator breach the door. Using the force, Anakin pulled Wrecker up, closing the hatch just in time as the Decimator electric tentacles, which deactivated after fifteen seconds.
"What happened?" Tambor inquired angrily, "why did it shut off?"
"No organic targets were detected, sir," the droid commander answered, looking into the vacant lab, "the room appears to be empty." Shoving the droid tot he side, Tambor and his technicians looked through the holes made by the Decimator, only for their goggled eyes to widen in terror at the site of the several thermal detonators that littered the lab, only for them to be blown backwards by the massive explosion that occurred seconds latter. After everything had Settled, Tambor, backed by several droids, entered the now destroyed laboratory. Coming tot he damaged stasis pod, Tambor seethed with anger.
"They took IT!" he shouted in rage, "Techno Union property! they've ruined years of research! FIND THEM!"
Meanwhile, on Oba Dia, Lux's nerves were absolutely shot as he was led force knows where. But, given the state Fox had been in, it couldn't have been good. And, within a matter of minutes, Lux got his answer in the form of room, the only decoration being a medical table at the center, overseen by an 8D-series smelter droid and several guards. But what greatly unnerved Lux was that when the hunched-over droid clapped it's manipulators together, sparks flew.
"Great," Lux groaned sarcastically to himself as the droid approached him. Lux soon found himself int he firm hold the guards escorting him, the two pykes radiating pure glee as the droid drew closer, raising one of it's manipulators towards Lux's face. But, the moment the manipulator was within inches of touching lux, he quickly sprang into action.
Bringing his foot down hard on one of the guards feet, Lux took advantage of the guard release him to wing the other in front of him ,the guard finding himself on the receiving end of the interrogator droids electrical prod. taking advantage of the distraction, Lux quickly grabbed the guards blaster, making quick work of the first guard before firing on the others, destroying the smelter droid in the process. After taking down a few more guards, Lux broke out into a full on sprint, ducking and weaving his way around blaster bolts sent his way, returning fire in kind.
Meanwhile, back in the prison cell that held his comrades, Fox had just gotten enough strength to stand on his own, though his head was most definitely killing him as his vision swirled. Luckily, he had Ahsoka to help steady him. After shaking away the last bit of vertigo from his head, Fox turned to Ahsoka,he immediately slipped the key she had swiped from the guard who had shocked her into his hand.
"So whats the plan?" he inquired, a bit confused when Ahsoka sent him a sly smirk. The confusion greatly intensified when alarms started blaring, the guards standing outside of the cell quickly joining several others in running toward the direction Lux had been taken.
"Lux is a better fighter than people give him credit for," Ahsoka quipped, earning a small huff of a laugh from Fox. Taking a moment to sense if the coast was clear, Ahsoka stepped up to the ray-shield. Knowing right off that the key would be useless from INSIDE the cell, Ahsoka closed her eyes, reaching out her hand, tapping into the force to picture the control panel in her head.
And with a small beep, the shield was deactivated.
"Let's go."
Before long, Ahsoka and Fox and were running through the detention center, desperately looking for Lux, taking out a few guards along the way. Fox even took the opportunity to arm himself with a fallen guards blaster. But, as the duo continued to run, Ahsoka soon found herself falling flat on her rear after bumping into someone who had rounded the next corner.
"SOKA!" the familiar voice called, quickly helping the togruta to her feet. Ahsoka, taking the time to register that it was Lux standing before her, enveloped him in a tight hug, the young man returning the gesture just as tightly. And while Fox was happy to see the two reunited, he knew that time was a very serious factor.
"I hate to reak up this little reunion," he quipped with a roll of his eyes, "but we need to get moving."
Pulling away from Lux, Ahsoka quickly turned to Fox, giving an affirmative nod.
"Right," she said, "get back to the ship. I'll meet your there."
"And where are you going?" Lux called when he noticed Ahsoka starting to to move in the other direction. Pausing in her stride, Ahsoka turned by to look Lux int he eye, the human getting a full glimpse of her determination in that single gaze.
"We have a mission...and I'm going to see it through to the end. If I'm not at the ship in ten minutes, leave without me."
At this point, Lux knew it was better not to argue with the feisty girl. But, that still didn't stop him from grabbing her arm, forcing her to look at him again.
"Then take this for luck."
In an instant, Ahsoka's eyes widened in shock as Lux planted a firm kiss on her lips. Up until that moment, their first and only kiss had been on Carlac, a ruse to fool Pre Vizsla. Any other kiss was just a gentle peck on the forehead or cheek. But now, Ahsoka allowed herself to actually enjoy this true, genuine kiss from her boyfriend, all the pent up passion they both had coming forth in this one moment as she cupped his cheek with her free hand. Fox, feeling slightly embarrassed by witnessing the scene, averted his gaze.
But, alas, the tender moment between the two young lovers came to an end as they parted, Lux sadly letting Ahsoka lose from his as she ran toward her objective.
"Come on Lover Boy," Fox quipped, gently tugging on Lux's arm as he did so, "Let's get moving."
And get moving they did, all while basting guards along the way.
On Skako Minor, Anakin, Rex, The Bad Batch, Fives and Echo made their way through a series of tunnels in Purkoll, the shockingly cold tubes lined with different wires and conduits.
"Interesting," Tech voiced as they moved through the maze of metal ad wiring, "these ventilation ducts act as a cooling system for all the computers in the facility."
How did you know this was up here Echo?" Anakin inquired to the now cyborg trooper, who was currently be helped by Fives and Rex.
"Well," Echo answered, "they got access to my memory...but I got access to the Techno Union database. Plans, schematics, you name it."
"So you can find us a way out of her?" Fives inquired, a hopeful edge to his voice at it was filtered through his vocador in his helmet. Unfortunately, his hope faltered when he saw Echo give a guilty grin.
"Oh there's a way," he said with a laugh, "but you're not going to like it."
"Well," Hunter added, "let's just hope we can get out of here before they find us."
But find them they did, on narrow pipe connecting two of Purkoll's many spires. And while it seemed like they were surrounded, the group of clones and their Jedi general managed to escape after Tech used a recording of the keeredak's distress call. After hitching a ride by jumping onto the flying reptiles' backs, the group manged to evade the pursuing droid forces, who were surprisingly equipped to fly. Now, the group was on their way back tot he poltec village.
"How you holding up Echo!" Rex called from his and Anakin's keeredak.
"Never better, Sir!" Echo called back, before looking back to Fives.
"I'm starting to feel like a trooper again Fives," he said softly, clearly reminiscing about his time with the 501st.
With a soft laugh, Fives rested his hand on his brother's shoulder.
"You never stopped being one Echo," Fives replied just as softly.
Unfortunately, the reunion would once again have to be put on hold. Upon arriving back at the village, the group, along with the natives, were ambushed by more of Tambor's forces. After everything started to calm down, the chief began angrily shouting at the off-worlders.
"What's he saying Tech?" Anakin asked.
"he says we have broken our word," Tech translated, "we have brought the war to his village."
"You're right," Fives quickly interjected, removing his helmet as he spoke, "tell him he's right Tech. Tell him we didn't plan to drag his people into war!"
Looking to Echo, Fives cringed as he remembered that his brother was not the same man he was when he last saw him. Steeling himself, Fives turned back tot eh poltecs, turning their attention to Echo.
"But look what the enemy did to one of our people."
The poltecs gasped in horror as they took in the form of the half-man, half-machine before them.
"They took away his freedom," Fives continued, "his humanity! They tried tot urn him into a machine!"
It was at this point that Tech began translating. When he was finished, Rex stepped in.
"The Techno Union continues to claim it's neutral," he declared, "but they have chosen sides! Now your people have to choose!"
"Couldn't have said it better, you two," Anakin said with pride for his men, a broad smile on his face. Unfortunately, the tender moment was ruined by Crosshair.
"Uh," the sniper interjected, "let's hope it works. Cause I see forces coming. More than we can handle alone."
Unfortunately for Lux and Fox, they were in the same dire situation. try as they might, there were just to many guards blocking there way out of the detention block. The two men were beginning to think that their re-capture was imminent. That is until, Lux heard a call from a nearby cell, the owner of the voice being a wrinkly-skinned weequay, who was currently sharing the cell with a large ithorian.
"HEY! LET US OUT!"
After a moment of hesitation, Lux released the two prisoners, the weequay quickly taking action in knocking out a guard as they charged at Lux, the ithorian following suit by bashing two more guards' heads together, both freed aliens quickly arming themselves with blasters before running to other cells. Within minutes, Lux and Fox gaped in awe as several prisoners, ranging from twileks, to trandoshans, to pantorans, revolted against the pyke guards, the criminals quickly becoming overwhelmed by the sudden onslaught.
"Well," Fox said, his eyes still wide with shock as he and Lux made their way toward the exit, "I guess we got some help."
With that, the two managed to make their way to the lift that would lead them up to the main floor of the palace, a deep appreciation for their unexpected allies who continued to fight against the pykes.
Meanwhile, back on Skako Minor, another alliance was formed.
After some deliberation, the poltec's agreed to help the Republic troopers. In the battle that followed, the clones and poltecs fought together as droid reinforcements, accompanied by two Octupatarra Tri-Droids, laid siege tot he village, resulting int he deaths of many poltec warriors. But, thanks to the cunning and ingenuity of the clones and Anakin, the group managed to destroy the tri-droids and drive back the remaining Techno Union forces. Meanwhile, back at Purkoll, Tambor was approached by one of the returning droids.
"Sir, the attack force has failed," the droid reported.
"Ugh!" Tambor groaned as he turned to his skakoan colleagues, "the loss of the clone is devastating blow to the Techno Union's profit margin!"
"Should we inform Admiral Trench of our loss?" the droid commander inquired.
"All in good time," Tambor answered after a brief moment of contemplation, "We must find a way to recoup on our investment."
Back at the poltec village, Anakin, Rex, Fives, Echo and the Bad Batch were just preparing to board the Havoc Marauder when they were approached by the poltec chief and two of his warriors. With a smile, Anakin approached the chief.
"Thank you, for helping us in our fight," he said, his thanks quickly translated by Tech. Returning the kind smile, the chief addressed the group, with Tech once again translating.
"He said the Jedi will always have an ally here on Skako Minor," Tech translated. After the poltecs had left, the group began to ascend the ramp onto their ride back to Anaxes. But before they could board, Rex and Fives were stopped by Echo.
"Rex, Fives," the cyborg clone called, causing said clones to turn toward their brother, who offered a warm smile.
"Thanks for coming after me."
Returning the smile, Fives enveloped Echo in a gentle embrace.
"That's what brother's do," he said before pulling away. Stepping forward, Rex placed a hand on Echo's shoulder, an apologetic look on his face a she spoke.
"We're just sorry it took so long."
Upon saying this, Rex's face lit up at a thought that came to his head.
"Hopefully it's gonna be just like old times." Removing his hand from Echo's shoulder, Rex turned away to enter the shuttle, followed closing by Fives, leaving Echo alone outside. What the two clones didn't notice, was that Echo took on a look of uncertainty as he gazed at his brother's retreating forms.
"Yeah," he muttered nervously under his breath before boarding the shuttle, "just like old times."
Just like old times.
Ahsoka let out a laugh of amusement to herself as she snuck her way through the compound, the number of guards significantly less than what it was when she had initially infiltrated the refinery, the door to said room down to just one guard. With great stealth and skill, Ahsoka made quick work of the guard, knocking him out with a swift kick to the head. But, just as she was about to enter the refinery, Ahsoka paused when she noticed that this particular guard was a bit more armed, by means of a bandolier lined with thermal detonators.
"Hm," Ahsoka hummed with a smile, quickly relieving the pyke of his cash of explosives, "this might come in handy."
Upon entering the refinery, Ahsoka took extra care to make sure she wasn't seen, ducking and hiding behind machinery whenever a guard or worker passed by, all the while place thermal detonators on pieces of machinery. After placing another detonator on a spice tank, Ahsoka quickly jumped up onto some overhead pipes, just below the balcony that led to the room that contained the computers linked to the pykes database. But, just as she was about to jump up, she stopped herself upon hearing the voice Marg Krim.
And at the same time, she felt a dark presence.
"I assure you," Krim pleaded to the hologram of a cloaked figure, the persons back turned so that Ahsoka could not his face, "this infiltration will not delay things. We will proceed as planned."
At that moment, Ahsoka realized that Krim had caught on to what she, Lux and Fox were ding on Oba Diah. unfortunately, her train of thought was broken by low, sinister voice that emanated from the hooded figure.
"You are but one small piece moving in this mechanism that I have designed...and yet, when you falter, it jeopardizes everything.
Do you understand?"
"I understand," Krim responded, his voice laced with fear, "but the Republic have been cracking down on my operations. Just a week ago, they raided one of my shipments arriving on Corusaunt."
At that moment, the figure turned, forcing Ahsoka to suppress a gasp at the tattooed face of a demon from Obi-wan Kenobi's past, the one who had killed his master Qui-Gon Jinn on Naboo years before the war...
Darth Maul.
"Were there Jedi involved?" Maul inquired in a threatening snarl, making Krim shrink back in fear.
"I don't know," Krim whimpered, his gaze at the grated floor beneath him, "none of my men made it out."
From were she stood, Ahsoka could see Maul frown beneath his hood, great anger radiating from him, even if it was a hologram.
"Then the answer is yes," he growled, the edge in his voice sending a chill down Ahsoka's spine. At that moment, Maul paused in his reprimanding of Krim, his gaze suddenly shifting in the direction Ahsoka was in, the togruta quickly moving to hind behind a nearby spice tank just in time for Maul to look over the railing, only to turn back to Krim a second later, issuing a dire warning to the pyke that he expected no more delays in his operation, infiltration, or not.
After a brief exchange with his Major Domo, Krim was soon approached by a clearly panicked guard, telling him of prisoner riot on the lower levels, prompting their leader to order as many guards to the detention center as possible, following close behind. Taking advantage of what was obviously Lux and Fox's distraction, Ahsoka leaped up onto the balcony, being careful so as not to attract the attention of the lone guard who was left behind.
Making her way into the center of operations, Ahsoka made quick work of placing the last of her thermal detonators underneath tables and desks, placing the last one beneath the main computer. Once that was said and done, Ahsoka quickly inserted a data-disc into the computer, immediately downloading any files she could find linking the Pykes to Darth Sidious. And to her surprise, she was able to find that not had Sidious been in direct contact with the Pykes, but also Count Dooku as well...
From more than ten years before the war started.
But what truly intrigued Ahsoka, was the fact that computer contained an extensive record of...
"Transmission Logs," she voiced out loud, a small smirk forming on her face as she began looking into recent transmissions.
"Alright Tall, Dark, and Ugly," she laughed, finding her description of Maul quite humorous as she found his most recent transmission, "let's see where your hiding."
But the moment she found the location of Maul's transmission, Ahsoka's brows crunched together in confusion.
"Mandalore?" she voiced out loud, quickly typing to find more information.
"What's Maul doing on Mandalore."
Even though Ahsoka wanted to find as much information as she could on Maul, she knew that the links to Sidious where more important. After getting all the information she could find, Ahsoka quickly extracted the disc before bolting out of the room, only to be spotted by a group of guards who had rounded the corner, followed closely by Marg Krim, who noticed the dis in her hand.
"STOP HER!"
But, just as the guards began to chase and shoot at Ahsoka, the togruta gave a devilish smirk as she pressed on button on her bandolier...
A remote detonator.
Before Krim or the other pykes knew what was happening, the doors to the computer center were blown off their tracks, slamming two guards against the wall. But, as Krim and the others tried to steady themselves, a series of larger, more volatile explosions shook the facility as Ahsoka's detonators ignited in the refinery, the explosions causing a massive chain reaction throughout the facility.
And the spectacle could be seen from two fronts outside.
By Lux and Fox, who had barely managed to fight their way back to the ship outside of the compound...
And by three Mandalorians, who watched the display with intrigue.
"WE HAVE TO GO!" Fox yelled to Lux as they reached the ramp, only for Lux to stop dead in his tracks.
"AHSOKA SAID TEN MINUTES! SO WE WAIT!"
Just as Fox was about to argue with Lux, a shout came from the gate they had just run from, the owner of the voice letting a loud scream as he pushed by an unseen force. At first confused, Fox and Lux were soon beaming as Ahsoka ran through the gate, taking out guards along the way. And upon noticing her two boys at the ship, she couldn't help but feel a little annoyed that they were just standing there.
"START THE SHIP!"
Her call having snapped them out of their trance, the two men quickly took action, Fox running to the cockpit to fire up the engines, and Lux firing at the guard who continued to chase after Ahsoka, quickly dispatching them as Ahsoka reached the ramp just as more started to run toward the port. Within minutes, the ship was off the ground, quickly making best possible speed to get away from the pyke capitol. They even had to evade a patrol before they left the atmosphere, unaware that they were still being followed...
But not by who they expected.
"We're set for Corusaunt," Fox announced, only to realize that his announcement fell on deaf ears as all the young couple could focus on was holding each other tight.
"You did good Lux," Ahsoka said with a smile, placing a tender peck on his lips, which the human gratefully returned.
"So did you Soka."
Watching the couple, Fox allowed a small smile to form on his lips as he sent the ship into hyperspace, a random though entering his mind as he thought of another battle that was occurring doing their mission, one which involved Ahsoka's former master.
Hopefully things have changed on Anaxes since we left.
Things on Anaxes certainly hadn't changed since the mission to Skako Minor.
The fort was still in chaos, and Trench's forces had pushed Republic forces to the breaking point. But, there was now a chance that the Republic could turn this battle around. And Master Plo knew this.
"We have over a thousand battlefronts on Anaxes," he explained, "and we are losing every one. But, if Admiral Trench can no longer anticipate our attacks, we have the advantage."
"So, there is a plan then?" Obi-Wan inquired skeptically, standing alongside Luminara, his nervous aura causing a small smirk to form on Anakin's face, but at the same time causing his green-skinned to give his hand a comforting squeeze.
Master Plo, sensing the uncertainty in Obi-Wan, sent waves of reassurance to his colleague.
"As at matter of fact, Wolffe has devised a brilliant strategy," Plo answered as he gestured to his loyal second-in-command, who took this as his cue to step toward the projector, stepping away from Rex and Fives who stood just feet away.
"As I've discussed with General Plo," the one-eyed commander began, pulling up an image of a dome-shaped structure, "we will send the remainder of our forces to the main assembly complex, which is the Remnant's most heavily fortified position." As Wolffe explained his plan, the projections changed to show a images of gunships hovering over the assembly complex.
"From gunships, we will airdrop into the complex to dispatch the droid forces. It should be easier to fight our way out, than in."
"I can improve your chances," a new voice sounded in the area. Turning to the source of the voice, the group took in the form of Echo, now clad custom made armor meant to accommodate his new, as the Bad Batch joked, modifications. A bit unnerved by what Echo was insinuating, Fives glanced nervously at the others.
"Would you excuse me for a moment?" he asked, only to walk away before getting an answer. Meeting Echo halfway, Fives placed a hand on his brother's shoulder to keep him from walking any further.
"Echo," he began, a worried tone in his voice, "I'm sorry, but I just don't think your ready for battle." Casting Fives an incredulous look, Echo was just about to take no for an answer.
"I am not a liability, Fives," Echo said firmly, "I'm the best chance we have at taking back Anaxes."
Before Fives could object, Plo's interest was peaked, inviting Echo to share his plan, which involved Rex, Fives, Anakin and the Bad Batch escorting him to Trench's dreadnought in order to infiltrate the ship's com-vault. Once there, Echo would begin to feed Trench strategies, but the Republic forces would know the strategies ahead of time, giving the the advantage.
"You don't think Tambor would have told Trench by now that he no longer has you or the algorithm?" Luminara inquired.
"Tambor is a businessman," Echo said with a sly smile, "if he divulges his failure's to Trench, or Dooku for that matter, it won't just mean a profit loss. They will have his head."
Pleased with the soundness of the plan, Plo dismissed everyone to prepare for their respective parts of the mission.
Standing alone in the officer's barracks, Echo was preparing himself for the mission which he was certain would bring a Republic victory in the coming battle. Picking up his new helmet, Echo couldn't help but stare at the familiar blue streaks at the top, a dark reminder of what had happened the last time he wore a helmet like that. Soon, seeds of doubt had begun to plant themselves in his head, only to be swatted away by the sound of the barrack's door being opened. Looking to the source of the sound, Echo offered sad smile to Fives as he walked towards him.
"So I hear," Echo began with a teasing smirk on his face as Fives came to his side, "that you uncovered a pretty major conspiracy while I was gone."
Rolling his eyes, Fives let out a soft chuckle as he put his arm around Echo's shoulder, jostling him slightly.
"Well," Fives began to counter, "I wouldn't call it major. Just uncovered a Sith conspiracy to use soldiers bread for battle to wipe out the Jedi with mind-control chips. Nothing special."
Rolling his eyes at his brother's nonchalance, Echo decided to inquire about a secret that his brother had entrusted with him long before their mission to the Citadel.
"I also heard you and Ti went public."
Looking at his brother, Fives offered a sheepish smile at Echo's understanding one. It was true. Apart from Anakin and Rex, who found out by accident, Echo was the only individual at the time that He and Shaak Ti trusted to keep secret their relationship. But now, with the war over and the Jedi law prohibiting attachment abolished, their relationship could now be out in the open.
"We did," Fives responded with a proud smile, which soon turned into one of mischief as he continued.
Smiling at his brother, Echo clapped Fives on the back, the two sharing a laugh, only for the moment to be interrupted by Fives' com.
"It's time," he told Echo.
After taking a few minutes to double check their gear, the brothers left the barracks to join the rest of the team, who were gathered by the Havoc Marauder.
"We all set Tech?" Hunter inquired after grabbing his gear.
"Yep, Sarge," tech responded with a nod, "we are ready. But I still don't know how we are going to get on that dreadnought."
"Don't worry," Rex reassured as he clapped Tech on the shoulder, "Echo's got a plan to get us on board."
Tech, looking to said trooper, simply rolled his eyes.
"That makes me feel so much better," Tech replied sarcastically.
Fives did not like the sound of it.
"What's that supposed to mean?" he inquired, murderous intent in his voice, which actually succeeded in putting Tech on edge.
"W-well," Tech began nervously, "to be blunt, his mind belonged to the Wat Tambor before we belonged. I'm just saying we don't know where is loyalties lie."
Before Fives could respond, Rex stepped.
"Well Fives and I do," he responded coldly, walking past Tech to board the ship, leaving the brainy clone alone with a surprisingly calm Fives, who began to walk toward the shuttle, but not before sending a little warning to the goggled trooper.
"Just remember what I did to Crosshair on Skako, Tech," he quipped in an unnervingly happy tone, causing the commando to gulp nervously before boarding the ship.
Minutes later, the group was off on their mission, which turned out to be a massive success.
Upon arriving on the dreadnought, the infiltration team managed to access the com-vault. Once plugged into the system, Echo intercepted a strategy request fro Trench to Skako Minor. After Tech rerouted the signal to make it appear as if it were coming from Skako, Echo sent a false strategy to send all droid forces to the now under attack assembly complex with the intent of sending a feedback pulse to shut down all the droids simultaneously. Which he managed to do just as Plo and Obi-Wan were overrun by the droid reinforcements. With the assembly complex now secure, and all other fronts falling to the Republic, Anaxes was saved, but not for long. Just as Echo received a disturbing transmission form Trench.
"He's initiated a countdown," he relayed with panic, "there's a bomb at the assembly complex. But, it's big enough to destroy the entire planet."
With that very troubling news, everyone sprang into action. On Anaxes, Plo ordered all troops evacuated as went to disarm the bomb, which was located in the complex's fusion reactor. The problem was, when the bomb was found, it turned out to be ray-shielded. Luckily, Echo was able to give the sequence to disarm the bomb, which Plo managed to do by using the force, that is until Echo's signal was jammed and the ARC trooper incapacitated by an electrical surge caused by Trench. Luckily, Anakin managed to get the last sequence after threatening the Admiral on the dreadnought's bridge. But, when Trench attempted to retaliate, Anakin impaled the harch admiral with his lightsaber before going to the command chair. Entering a series of codes, a small cylindrical device popped up from the arm rest.
"Wrecker is gonna love this," Anakin smirk as he made his way past the dying Trench.
"Admiral," he mock saluted as the Trench collapsed dead on the floor, "it's been a pleasure."
After a narrow escape, the infiltration team managed to get back to the shuttle. And as the shuttle reached a safe distance, Anakin presented his little "party favor" to Wrecker, which turned out to be the dreadnought's self-destruct switch.
"I got a present for you Wrecker."
"OH!" Wrecker gasped in surprise. Finally, after being told throughout this whole experience that everything was stealth, Wrecker would finally get to do what he did best; blow stuff up.
"SERIOUSLY?! I GET TO BLOW IT UP, THE WHOLE STINKING THING?!"
With an encouraging nod from Anakin, Wrecker took the detonator from the Jedi's mechanical hand. Wiping away a single tear, Wrecker proclaimed,
"This is the happiest day of my life."
Pressing the button on the detonator, Wrecker hollered with joy as not only the dreadnought, but all surrounding ships were enveloped in a massive explosion.
Later on Anaxes, Rex, Fives, Echo and the Bad Batch were conversing with each other when they were approached by their Jedi generals.
Plo was the first to speak.
"Captain Rex, Lieutenant Fives, Corporal Echo and Clone Force 99," he began, "you have done a great service to the Republic. Because of your success, Republic shipyards will soon be up an running again." With that said, Plo turned to walk away with Wolffe in tow.
"You have some medals coming your way," Obi-Wan, who was currently escorting a beaming Luminara, said as he and Anakin followed Plo, leaving the clones alone once again.
"I gotta say," Hunter began, "it's been fun, but I think me and boys are gonna head out."
"You're not coming?" Echo inquired in shock.
"Not really our thing," Tech replied with a shrug.
"Accolades," Crosshair clarified.
"Yeah, we're just in it for the thrill!" Wreck said as he stepped forward.
"You sure it's your thing?" Hunter inquired to Echo, the latter now sporting a confused expression while Fives and Rex shared a look on concern.
"What do you mean?" Echo inquired.
"Your path is different," Hunter explained, letting out a gruff chuckle as hr did, "like ours. If you ever feel like you don't fit in with them, well, find us." With that, the Bad Batch turned as they began to walk toward the Havoc Marauder, leaving a very thoughtful Echo behind. Seeing that Echo was truly contemplating Hunter's offer, Fives let out a sigh as he knew he would have to let go of his brother.
"Echo," he began, pulling the distracted trooper out of his thoughts, "we've known each other since Domino Squad. I've watched so many of our brothers fall in this war. I only just got you back, and now it's like I'm losing you again."
Steeling himself, Fives put on a brave face as he came to the hardest decision of his life.
"But, if that's where you feel you fit in," he said, indicating the Bad Batch, "then that's were you belong."
After taking a moment to think it over, Echo knew what he was going to do. Just as he was about to walk toward the modified shuttle, Echo pulled Fives head forward so that there foreheads were pressed together. Eyes clenched shut, the two brothers let a few tears escape.
"Give Ti my love for me, will ya?" Echo asked after pulling away.
"Always," Fives replied with a sad smile, a smile that slowly faded as the watched Echo walk toward his new squad.
As the Bad Batch welcomed their newest member, Echo, quickly followed by the Bad Batch, turned to look at Rex and Fives. After few moments of just staring at each other, Echo brought his socket arm up in a crisp salute, followed closing by Clone Force 99 who did the same. Sporting proud smiles, Fives ad Rex returned the gesture, happy that their brother had found the one place he belonged.
Just a few days later, the freighter commanded by Ahsoka, Fox, and Lux exited hyperspace, it's hull now littered with punctures courtesy of the Pykes. Luckily, the blasts from the pyke ships had hit any vital systems, which Ahsoka made sure of after the initial jump. Now, as the ship descended toward the senate district, the three inhabitants just stared at the immaculate city, a deep silence filling the cockpit as they did. Within no time, Fox brought the ship in to one of the lower loading docks of the senate building, the ship making a series of loud, clunky sounds as it touched down
"I'll be honest," Lux finally said as they descended the ramp, looking up at the massive structure that was the Senate Building, "there were a few times I thought I wouldn't see Corusaunt again."
This earned him a flick to the ear, resulting in a chuckle from Fox as the clone checked on the carbon scoring the ship had on it's plating.
"Well if I hadn't insisted on tagging along," Ahsoka quipped, "you might've been right."
Rolling his eyes, Lux let out a laugh as he pulled his girlfriend close to him, the two staring longingly into each others' eyes.
That is until a new voice broke the moment.
"Isn't this sweet."
The trio quickly turned to the source of the voice, finding themselves int he sight of three Mandalorians, the leader of the group stepping forward, her hood pulled back to reveal the markings on her helmet. Markings that Ahsoka and Lux instantly recognized.
"I see you and your 'betrothed' are doing well Bonteri," the woman quipped as she continued to approach the trio, who had no taking defensive stances.
"What do you want?" Ahsoka snarled, which succeeded in making the taller woman stop in her tracks.
"So you remember me?"she inquired, reaching for helmet. In matter of seconds, Ahsoka and her comrades were face to face with the former lieutenant of Death Watch, now leader of the Mandalorian Resistance...
Bo-Katan Kryze.
"Don't worry," the red-haired warrior reassured as she procured a holo-disc from her belt, "Death Watch is Gone...
And now you and I, have a common enemy."
Just as she said this, Bo-Katan activated the disc, the allowing Ahsoka and the others to take in the holographic image of a red-skinned, tattooed zabrak, the same one Ahsoka had seen Marg Krim conversing with on Oba Diah.
"Maul," she whispered, her curiosity now greatly piqued, her frame relaxing along with Fox and Lux, the two males continuing to glare at Bo-Katan. Seeing that she now had the groups attention, Bo-Katan returned her pleading gaze to Ahsoka.
"I need your help," she asked earnestly, her tone and gaze showing Ahsoka that Bo-Katan was very desperate.
"Once we're under way, I will explain everything."
After giving Ahsoka a small inclination of a smile, Bo-Katan replaced her helmet atop her head, turning away from the group, only to send one last statement over her shoulder.
"You have five minutes to decide."
A few tense moments passed as Ahsoka just stood in silence, her mind reeling at what she had just been propositioned. Truth be told, Ahsoka was feeling a bit overwhelmed. She, her boyfriend, and friend had just barely escaped from a criminal syndicate. They were dirty, worn out, and exhausted. But at the same time, she felt that Bo-Katan wouldn't approach if she didn't think it was important.
Especially after everything that happened on Carlac.
"I think you've already made up your mind," Lux suddenly said, snapping Ahsoka out of her thoughts. Looking to her boyfriend, Ahsoka could see him give a her a sad, but understanding smile. Looking to Fox, she could see him give her a similar smile, with an encouraging nod. At that moment, Ahsoka knew Lux was right. While she wasn't bound by the Jedi code anymore, a code long since abolished, she knew that the teachings she had received instilled in her the will to help those in need.
Ahsoka HAD made her decision.
Before long, Ahsoka was walking up the ramp of Bo-Katan's ship, a small bag packed with some supplies she might need. But, once she reached the top of the ramp, she froze. Looking back down the ramp, Ahsoka gave a soft smile and timid wave toward Lux and Fox, the two men returning the gesture as the ramp closed, leaving them alone on the landing platform as they watched the ship take off, taking Ahsoka toward her next adventure.