Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Season 1 Episode 15
Year is 22 BBY
A GALAXY AT WAR
Chapter Two
Blizzard on Orto Plutonia
A heavy snowstorm was coming down on them as they landed on the surface of Orto Plutonia. Zenovia was indifferent to the billowing winds and heavy snowfall whereas Masters Kenobi and Skywalker had to exert themselves. She followed closely behind her master as they exited the shuttle with the clones filling out behind them. A sense of awe filled her at the sight of the blizzard. The endless visions of snow were comforting to her. Despite the contrasting natures of weather between Pantora and Orto Plutonia, Zenovia felt secure in the tundra landscape. Upon hearing the two Jedi Knights converse Zenovia snapped out of her daydream.
"And this is the planet's tropical zone." Master Kenobi sarcastically stated.
"It's not Tatooine, that's for sure." Skywalker retorted. She found it to be of a peculiar meaning to compare the two seemingly polar opposite planets' geographies. There were some commonalities and reflections to be made in the vast emptiness and uninhabited terrain. Both planets only held hardy flora and fauna to survive the threatening conditions. Zenovia was perplexed as to why Master Skywalker had such an interest in the desert planet before remembering that was where he was from.
"Captain Rex, have your men survey the area. Place as many sensor beacons as you can before dark." Skywalker instructed the snow-suited clone.
She followed Master Kenobi as Skywalker gave instructors to Captain Rex about setting up their base. Standing alongside her master Zenovia peered up at him and noticed he was surveying the land. Following his gaze, she too peered out across the visible horizon. He asked her what she saw before them and Zenovia took a moment to pause and reflect. There was not much, ice plains stretched on as far as the eye could see with some interruptions from tors. Other than the base beside them there did not appear to be much of anything.
"Master, this planet seems to be unpopulated and is composed of a frigid climate with icy plains and protruding rock formations."
Master Kenobi approved of her observation and was about to elaborate when the Chairman of Orto Plutonia called out to him. Zenovia turned to see the Pantoran party approaching the three Jedi and she smiled at Senator Chuchi. From the Chairman the young Padawan sensed discontent, hostility, and above all other emotions... fear. Before he even finished speaking she knew he would be a difficult person.
"Chairman Cho, Senator Chuchi, I suggest you wait here while we can secure the area." Master Kenobi said. In the Padawan's eyes, she found it to be an unemotional request for their safety- yet the Chairman was bothered. While her master's advice to their political entourage was reasonable and meant in respect the Chairmen was still offended.
"I respect your judgment, General Kenobi, but I will go where I choose. This is sovereign Pantora territory."
"I thought this planet was uninhabited, and therefore, it's not aligned," Skywalker interjected.
"Our moon of Pantora is the only civilization in this system. I am the one who asked the Senate to protect this planet. This wasteland belongs to us." Chairman Cho spoke with indignation. Zenovia could not wrap her mind around why the obtrusive dignitary would be interested in the 'wasteland' as he called it. The Chairman was vehemently fighting for his moon's right to govern the frozen land. Politics was something the new Padawan was inexperienced in that and piloting spacecraft.
"With all due respect, Chairman, this is for the Senate to decide, not us," Kenobi stated having grown annoyed.
"Ah, but the Jedi report to the Senate, which is Senator Chuchi of Pantora." He countered, refusing to back down.
"Technically speaking, Master Jedi, the Chairman is correct. Since the planet is uninhabited the moon of Pantora reserves the right to continue as its protectorate." The Senator confirmed calmly.
"Point taken, Senator," Kenobi said conceding in the hope that the issue was, at least temporarily, laid to rest. In his efforts to move on with the mission objectives and get away from the Chairmain, Master Kenobi instructed Skywalker to remain with the politicians while Zenovia accompanied her master to secure the base.
Gathering her senses to a composed state she followed her master inside. The double doors split open and the reflective white light seeped inside. The clone squad had their blasters drawn ready to fire at the first sign of danger. The apprentice thought that the only hostile being was the Chairman. She longed for some space between herself and his negative mood. In her adolescence Zenovia had developed her Force-sensitive skills to an advanced degree- oftentimes she withdrew within herself to meditate and reflect on the Force. Even now she was certain that there were no other life forms in the base aside from the Jedi and clones.
Inside the base was a bizarre scene. In a half-moon shape, there were long wooden spears with helmets from clones placed upon them. She had never seen anything like it in her studies at the Temple. Curiously she turned towards her master to see if he had any sharable thoughts on the matter. He offered no remark and was instead lost in a pensive appearance. The bodies of the dead clones had no blaster marks anywhere on their armor, Zenovia noticed as she peered around. Rather distastefully Chairman Cho had decided to follow them inside.
"I don't get it." Captain Rex admitted with a shrug. He turned to look at the general and had the squad fan out.
"It must be Separatists." Chairman Cho stated.
"I am not sure." Her master spoke slowly.
Placing the helmet back down Master Kenobi followed the clones to the upper levels of the base. Zenovia followed behind him and noticed that there were no droids anywhere. Along the way, she noticed more supporting evidence that this was no ordinary attack, much less involving the Separatists. As she looked around the stairs leading up to the central command room there were no traces of the attackers. Upon entering the larger room it appeared deserted, aside from the few fallen clones. She noticed that none of the control boards or screens were damaged.
"Do you think the Separatists are building a forward base to attack Pantora?" The Chairman asked the Jedi General.
Kenobi paused before speaking, his gaze peering down at the front row. "I don't think we are dealing with Separatists. These computers have not been touched."
A small spark of validation appeared in her mind at her master's observations. He reached the verdict first but she had not been far behind in drawing the same conclusions. Suddenly, Captain Rex alerted the general that their scouts had spotted a droid base on the other side of the ice ridge. Before giving orders to the troops Kenobi turned to his Padawan.
"Zenovia, I want you to stay here with the Senator and Chairman. Anakin and I will go and investigate. We will report back to you as soon as we have something." He said handing her a comlink. She felt slightly letdown at the prospect of not getting to see their discoveries firsthand. But it did make sense for her to stay behind with the two politicians at the secured base. She watched as they left with a team of clones on speeders. The Chairman began barking out orders to get the base up and running. His words were only to make preparations for war. The Senator was opposed and questioned the Chairman, his rash response created unnecessary tension in the air. As much as Zenovia wanted to voice her approval and support for the Senator she remained silent. There was not much of anything for her to do and she found herself drawn to go outside.
Mindful not to stray far from the base she stood a handful of yards away from the doors. The snow swirled around her as the wind refused to let up. She closed her eyes and listened to the sounds around her. Stepping one foot in front of the others she observed the crunch of the snow beneath her boots. The noise the wind made threatened to freeze the air. The frigid cold billowed around as the base began to resume operations. Zenovia heard the ice crack on the exterior walls as the heating began to take effect. In the midst of all that she heard something else. Another creature was moving.
Peering all around her the young Jedi sensed something. As she slowly opened her golden eyes Zenovia was greeted by a group of animals. They were a dark midnight blue color with long shield-like faces. They had manes of spikey blackish-blue fur, long bodies, and even longer tails with fan-tipped ends. She stared at them as they did her. In the snow flurries, Zenovia counted four and assumed there were more nearby. They show no signs of sentience or humanoid intelligence. She regarded them as tundra-dwelling beasts. One of them approached her, its large paws creating deep trails in the snow. It circled her and she remained still and collected. Both parties were merely curious. The Padawan had never seen a species such as this.
They stayed like that for a while. Walking around one another, interests peeked. It was not until Zenovia's grey comlink lit up with her master's voice that they parted. The feline beasts vocalize to one another before turning and running off. With a sigh, she reached down and pressed the button to respond.
"Zenovia, we're on our way back now. We have found an intelligent species here- the Talz. We'll explain more when we return to the base." Kenobi informed her.
"Yes, Master." She said and began walking back to the loading bay doors. The sun was beginning to set on Orto Plutonia and it was well after dark when the two knights returned.
The two of them flew in on the speeders along with their troops. Two of them were carrying a large mold of a pawprint and it resembled the animals Zenovia saw earlier. The large blue beings had a tri-pointed paw and the size of the mold seemed exact to her earlier encounter. As Captain Rex greeted Skywalker she went to her master. She was glad for his return as the Chairman was still on his course for war. Zenovia recognized that Senator Chuchi was in an uncomfortable position, but the Chairman's bloodlust made her uneasy.
"How were things here?" Master Kenobi asked, taking off his hood and goggles.
"Uneventful, Master." She began and then gestured to the pawprint cast. "I saw some of them. They were peaceful." She informed him. Before Kenobi could ask more on the subject they were interrupted.
"What did you find?" Chairman Cho demanded.
"It seems we have stumbled onto an inhabited planet," Kenobi stated in a manner of fact that did not bode well with the Chairman.
"Impossible." The politician refused to believe the Jedi's words. "Our explorers have spent much time here over the long history of Pantora. No one lives here. They're trespassers."
"With respect, Chairman Cho, these creatures, the Talz, are not advanced enough to master space travel. I think they may have been here longer than Pantora." Sensing the waves of anger flowing off of him Kenobi responded.
"Whoever they are- they belong to us." He countered darkly. "This whole system belongs to us."
"Your Majesty, if there are life forms here, the Senate must decide jurisdiction." Senator Chuchi stepped in, hoping to quell the brimming emotions. The Chairman only turned on her.
"They are savage. Look at what they've done." He said. "They've slaughtered your troops." He pointed to the fallen clones.
"They only want to be left alone," Kenobi said, defending the Talz. "The droids attacked them and I'm afraid our outpost got caught in the middle." He explained further.
"They must be subdued, they are dangerous. Captain Rex, prepare your troops for battle!" The Chairman said decidedly.
"We promised their chief there would be no retaliation." Skywalker protested to no avail.
"We've arranged a meeting between their High Council and you, along with the Senator. They want peace." Kenobi said in an attempt to calm them all.
"We can't send troopers. They'll think we lied." Skywalker said supporting their pursuit of peace.
"These creatures are little more than animals. You can't lie to an animal. They can't be trusted."
"But, Your Majesty-" The Senator tried once more to appease him.
"No! It is obvious these creatures are not covered by the Convention of Civilized Systems. The Jedi Council has no say in the matter."
"If the Jedi are able to communicate with them, then their status is in doubt." Chuchi counter, the growing blizzard of tension was making Zenovia uncomfortable.
"Do you stand against your Chairman, Senator?" Cho turned on her. The Senator assured him that she was not against him. The Padawan was relieved when her master spoke.
"If we are to meet with Thi-Sen and his council at the arranged time, we will have to leave now," Kenobi said, putting a pin in the threatening conversation.
Zenovia turned to face him and wondered if she would be invited to come on this excursion. Truthfully she was nervous, she had little battlefield experience and with the Chairman's fixation on fighting, she was concerned that violence would break out. She worried that they would not be able to keep the clones and Senator Chuchi safe in a bad turn of events. On the other hand, she also did not want to stay put at the base. The Padawan longed to see her master in action as she had heard so many accounts of his skills. After he spoke to Senator Chuchi, Master Kenobi turned to his Padawan.
"Come along, Zenovia. You'll be riding with me." With a wave of his hand, Kenobi motioned for her to join him on the speeder bike. The weather was picking up again and turning into another chilling snowstorm. She had overheard Rex telling Skywalker that the gunships were unable to take off due to the conditions and that they would have to leave some men behind at the base due to the limited number of speeders. Zenovia's golden eyes brightened at the instruction and stepped into the backseat of the designated speeder. One by one each of them took off and flew out of the loading bay doors. She was quiet and peered out of the small cockpit. It was dark outside and her inquisitive mind was turning over all the possible ways this meeting could go.
"I sense your nerves, my young apprentice," Kenobi spoke, causing Zenovia to become embarrassed. "It's quite alright, don't worry." He continued reassuringly. "You are doing well, far better than Anakin did on our first mission. You heed my words and instructions without fault. It's a welcome change from Anakin and his Padawan." He said with a comedic tone. "Zenovia, you have nothing to be afraid of- I would not have agreed to bring a new Padawan on this mission if there was a safety concern. Now, tell me about those creatures you saw earlier."
"They were curious and approached carefully." Zenovia began retelling the encounter. "They are rather large, somewhere around twenty feet long. Their tails are fan-tipped at the end like half a snowflake. I believe they are apex predators due to their muscle mass and carnivorous build. Their faces are large and flattish with spikey furred manes. Their dark blue color benefits them for the tundra landscape and nighttime hunting." She finished and saw that her master had a small smile on his face.
"The Talz sit astride these Narglatches, they are a rare species."
"Master, they are following us now," Zenovia said noticing the shapes moving around the speeders.
"Yes, I expected they would," Kenobi confirmed. They traveled the rest of the way in silence till the speeder squad stopped at the meeting destination. After the bike was parked Kenobi instructed his Padawan to wait outside the former droid outpost. She obeyed his commands and waited near Captain Rex and watched as the Chairman's anger approached a boiling point. The political party entered the outpost and Zenovia only sensed tensions rise the longer they were in there. She even heard Chairman Cho shouting and hoped C-3PO would not get wrecked just for translating his words of rage. The Talz that were stationed outside seemed to become irritated by the shouting from within. Zenovia focused on her breathing to relax. She did not wish to draw her lightsaber against the indigenous people of Orto Plutonia.
Even from the outside, she could feel the negative emotions rippling off the Talz and Chairman. Not before long they stormed out of the meeting and parted. She watched as the Talz rode away on their Narglatches and the Chairman demanded something of Captain Rex. At the sight of her master, Zenovia approached him while he and Skywalker spoke to Senator Chuchi. The only words the Padawan heard were that they needed to return to the base to contact the Speaker of the Assembly. Suddenly Zenovia felt that Rex, the clones, and even the Chairman were close to danger. A vision of ice breaking...
"Master, I sense that Captain Rex and the Chairman are at risk." She expressed her feeling.
"Let us hope we can return to the base before this comes to pass," Kenobi said as they climbed into the speeder bike once more.
Their party flew over the snowbanks and hurried to reach the base as quickly as possible. Zenovia remained quiet at her master's side, her vision replaying over and over within her mind. She blindly followed them inside as the weather lessened. Her thoughts were too preoccupied to notice that the snow was falling in only flurries now rather than turbulent winds. Once they were inside they established a connection with the moon Pantora and Senator Chuchi was able to contact the Speaker of the Assembly. Zenovia listened as the Senator was granted the authority to make peaceful negotiations with the Talz and the Chairman was reprimanded for his actions. She followed her master and Skywalker as they left with Chuchi to head for the gunships. As they were joined by more troops and took off Kenobi asked a question.
"Senator, now that you have the authority, how do you plan on making peace with the Talz?"
"Actually, Master Jedi, since you are far more experienced I was hoping you would negotiation on Pantora's behalf." She asked, a bit flustered. Zenovia was taken aback and wondered if that was even possible. The Jedi were there to keep the peace and if needed protect the Senator. If Master Kenobi was to take this action upon himself she felt that would not be right since it was a Pantoran affair.
"I'm afraid that's not possible, Senator," Kenobi confirmed.
"I don't understand. The Jedi serve the Senate," Chuchi continued attempting to enforce diplomatic policies. "I must order you to-"
"Senator," he cut her off. "it is your people the Talz are at war with. If the violence is to stop it must be you who represents your people."
Zenovia grew uncomfortable with Chuchi's words and view of the Jedi. They did not serve the Senate, they severed the galaxy. They were not supposed to take sides in this war or any other... and yet they already had. Zenovia was concerned with how it seemed the Jedi were viewed by some people, not to only fault Senator Chuchi, they were not some superpowered collection of people to deal out orders as they or others saw fit. They were meant to be the defenders of peace. Or so she thought at least. This war seemed to be changing the Jedi Order and the public's view of them.
The rest of the flight was silent until they arrived on the ridge nearby Captain Rex's remaining forces. As they stepped off the gunship Zenovia saw her vision had already come to pass. As she followed behind her master her eyes wandered over the clones who had died and she noticed that the rest were all in bad shape. They had set up a makeshift defensive formation with their remaining speeder bikes against the Talz. The action came to a standstill as the two Jedi Generals spoke to Rex. Glancing over at the Senator, Zenovia noticed that she had a deeply pained expression on her face.
"Good to see you, sir." Rex addressed them.
"You okay, Rex?" Skywalker asked with genuine concern.
"Eh, it's just a scratch." The Captain said, brushing off the worry.
"What's going on here?" Skywalker continued seeking an update on the troops.
"We're in quite a mess, sir. Eleven dead, the rest wounded, including the Chairman."
The Padawan had momentarily forgotten about Chairman Cho. She noticed that his two personal Pantoran guards were not with the remaining squad and realized they did not survive. Turning her head Zenovia peered out over the frozen blizzard-filled landscape to see that the Talz warriors had temporarily come to a halt. They were tending to their own wounded or dead. She wondered if they were at all swayed to retreat by the arrival of the gunships and reinforcements. Her attention was brought back to the Chairman when the Senator spoke.
"Chairman, can you hear me?" Chuchi asked him.
"Senator, good. You must avenge me. As my final command as Chairman of Pantora, I order you to destroy the Talz." Cho huffed, struggling to hold his head up and speak. Zenovia felt his strength fading and they had no medical assistance to try and heal the severe wounds. She watched as he slumped over more using the speeder to support most of his weight.
"I'm afraid I cannot do that. The Pantoran Assembly has called you out of order. I am to negotiate peace." Chuchi declared resoundingly. Zenovia saw his eyes widen in disbelief.
"No, impossible! Peace? Never... I died for our... people..." Cho managed to spit out the words as he succumbed to the wounds. The Padawan was unbothered by his death as she knew he wished it on others. If he had managed to survive she would have abided by their instructions to protect him and the Senator. However, that was no longer the case. In the final moments, Chuchi signed and closed her eyes. When she opened them again they were filled with determination.
Chuchi stood up, seemingly taller than she was before. She reached for Cho's helmet and looked out across the land. Zenovia followed her gaze out to the Talz as the Senator picked up one of the spears from the Talz's attack. Unexpectedly the Senator made eye contact with the Padawan and asked that the protocol droid come with her. She also requested that Zenovia accompany her as well.
"Master Jedi, please allow your Padawan to stand beside me."
Looking to Kenobi he nodded and Zenovia was surprised to be asked. If any of them she expected it to be her master since he had previously spoken with the Talz and was the leader of the mission. If the Senator was concerned for her safety in this endeavor Zenovia thought it would be best to have one of the generals go with her. Nevertheless, the three of them stepped out from the defensive hold and into the ice field. Zenovia was silent as they walked over the snow to meet the Talz. A small splinter faction of the Talz approached them, led by Thi-Sen. He rode the largest Narglatch. For a moment, he lingered before dismounting the beast and came to stand before Senator Chuchi.
In an endless snowfall, they looked at one another. Zenovia wondered if Thi-Sen would know that Chuchi meant him and his people no harm. She had been a consistent voice for peace and to properly recognize the Talz. The Padawan was unsure as to if the Talz leader would accept terms of resolution now that he had lost some of his own. With a raise of the spear, Chuchi instructed C-3PO to translate. In a tense second, Thi-Sen's grip on his spear tightened as the Senator's motives were unclear. She sunk the spear into the ground and spoke.
"To die for one's people is a great sacrifice; to live for one's people is an even greater sacrifice." Chuchi placed the helmet on the protruding spear end while never faltering in her eye contact with Thi-Sen. C-3PO translated and the Talz leader had no discerning expression at the message. "I choose to live for my people. What do you choose?" The Senator finished and awaited his response.
Zenovia sensed no dangerous emotions or intentions from Thi-Sen as he spoke in the unfamiliar language. Gripping his spear he pointed at Chuchi and the Padawan knew that if her life was truly in danger she would step in. For a split second, she sensed Chichu's doubt and held her breath. Thi-Sen raised his spear and plunged it into the ground crossing the Senators. C-3PO announced that the Talz leader had also chosen to live for his people. The relief that flooded them all was welcoming. The Senator stated that they would leave the planet of Orto Plutonia under the watchful eyes of the Talz and that they would formally recognize their sovereignty. They were now officially free and independent people in the Galactic Republic. They respectfully bowed to one another and returned to their parties. Zenovia walked alongside Chuchi back to the gunships when the politician turned to face her.
"Padawan Royce." She began, holding something in her hands. "I wanted to thank you for being a representative of Pantora for the Jedi. There aren't any others of us in the Order and I know you will continue to make us proud." Chuchi said to a speechless Zenovia. The Padawan had never imagined this type of praise and recognition. "I want you to have these- if you are allowed of course," Chuchi explained and handed her a few small pieces of Pantoran jewelry. There was a small circle golden hairpiece that Zenovia fitted over her bun and a short chain of trapezoid diamonds with a tiny gold arrowhead tip (identical to the larger ones the Senator wore in her headdress). Zenovia fastened the chain into her braid and knew that it would be alright with the Order's customs since it was a manner of cultural expression.
"Thank you, Senator Chuchi," Zenovia said accepting the gifts.
"I am glad to see that you have been paired up with Master Kenobi, he is a fine Jedi and I'm sure you will learn a great deal from him." The Senator said with a nod of approval.
"Yes," Zenovia began while turning to look at him. "I am very grateful."
They began walking again and started to board the gunships to return to the transporter to meet up with the spacecraft orbiting the planet. The two generals praised Chuchi for her impressive work in negotiating and having found a peaceful resolution. Kenobi also urged her to let this be a successful example of ending wars across the galaxy so that others might find the same hope. As they connected with the transporter Zenovia wondered what they would do now. There was not currently another mission lined up for Master Kenobi to attend to. She was not accustomed to the life of a Padawan and began speculating what her new master would instruct her to do. She thought it could be any number of things such as a mission debriefing, a written report on the excursion, maybe a follow-up meeting, or even getting swept up in another mission before returning to Coruscant. The Jedi parted ways from the Pantoran senator and Zenovia said her goodbyes to Chuchi. The three members of the Order stood on the bridge of Skywalker's flagship when it made the jump to hyperspace.
"Well my new apprentice," Master Kenobi began as the blue vortex swirled around the star destroyer. "there's a successful first mission for you. When we arrive at the Temple you may take the rest of the day off. I will see you tomorrow morning at 0700 hours in the sparing rooms for some lightsaber practice." She nodded in response and felt her heart sink a little. Zenovia began to worry that Master Kenobi might decide to rescind his request to train her after he saw firsthand just how much her swordplay skills lacked.