It was with a great sense of pride and a degree of apprehension that I saw Ahsoka Tano off on her mission to Christophsis to deliver a message to Obi-Wan and Anakin Skywalker who had been defending the planet, and to also become the latter's apprentice. I had talked to her at great length about it, and although I could not help but be concerned for her safety, I had done everything I could in order to prepare her for becoming a commander in the army though I held concerns that she would become a padawan to a rather headstrong Jedi Knight. Anakin had his own way of doing things, and I was yet to be convinced that he was a suitable master for Ahsoka. Still, I had trained her since infancy, and I saw great talent in her. Perhaps a stronger hand was exactly what she needed, for I was too lenient with her. She'll learn well, I was assured of that, and perhaps Anakin Skywalker would learn something too.
Knowing that the Force would be with her, I bade farewell to little 'Soka, wishing her good fortune before having to let her go. I stood upon the transport platform with a heavy feeling, knowing that it could be sometime before I saw her again, though I wondered how much she might have changed during our parting. It gave me something to look forward to as I returned to my other younglings and continued to nurture and develop their minds and talents, teaching them as I had done for over five years now, and seeing the older ones also join their new masters though I took no joy in seeing them also go to war.
For the first few months of the war I remained at the temple, teaching as I had before and I was yet to accept a mission for the war effort, putting myself completely out of touch with any military activity, however when Master Yoda personally requested my assistance on a diplomatic mission to the planet Toydaria, to request that the king of the Toydarians, King Katuunko, reassess his neutral stance to join the Republic's side, I found myself unable to refuse. Although I was hesitant to become involved in the swaying of someone's mind to join the war, I could not reject Master Yoda's request.
I still remembered how he had helped me see myself in a new light after my kyber crystal broke and encouraged me to forge myself anew as well as my lightsaber, I felt that at the very least I could go along as an escort. In any case, it was thanks to Toydaria that relief supplies were able to reach Ryloth after the planet was placed under a separatist occupation, causing the people below to starve, so perhaps in the sense of relief, it would not be a bad thing to have the Toydarians allow Republic forces to use their home world as a place to restock supplies and continue to supply necessities to the more affected systems and planets under separatist control.
So, I joined with Master Yoda and went with him to the peace negotiations on a neutral moon where the Toydarian king was scheduled to meet with us. It was my first time stepping aboard a ship outfitted for battle and as I glanced around I indeed saw many soldiers, each with the carbon copy face of their original. I heard that the bounty hunter who had provided the template for the clones had been killed on Geonosis by Master Windu, meaning that without his active DNA samples, there would be no more clones of him once the current supplies ran out. I was uncertain how I felt about tampering with nature in such a manner, using science to create so many thousands of new lives only to alter them to mature swiftly and use them as objects of war. It saddened me, though I kept my thoughts to myself as I stepped off the transport and bowed to Master Yoda.
"Master, it is good to see you." I greeted politely before standing up, Yoda chuckling and nodding his head as he stood with two clone guards behind him.
"Good to see you too, it is. Grown you have, in mind, I sense." Master Yoda noted and I could only take it as a compliment, my mouth tilting upwards in gratitude as he signalled for me to follow. "Know the Toydarians, do you young Jedi?"
"Yes master. They are an honourable people, and I heard of their involvement in delivering supplies to the Twi'lek people on Ryloth. If they were to allow the building of a Republic base on their planet, it would prove an efficient means to provide relief supplies to those who are severely affected by the war." I noted as I walked slowly beside him, the two clones falling behind us as I glanced to them out of the corner of my eye. "Master, if I may, will we be landing in smaller transports or with a larger party of…clone soldiers?"
"Something on your mind, is there?"
"It is just a thought, but I feel that if it were only you and I to go down, our attendance may be less imposing than a military presence." I said, making Master Yoda chuckle in his own odd way, telling me that I may be right but made no further comment on the matter. We went up to the bridge in time to see the moon we were to meet the Toydarian king upon, however it appeared that all attempts to make contact were being met with silence as the officer on deck continued to try and hail the delegation below.
"Toydarian Royal Delegation, this is the Republic Envoy. Please respond." With no answer, the clone officer then turned to Master Yoda as I stood behind him, out of the way of everyone else. "General, the Toydarians' beacon is active on the moon, but all our transmissions are being jammed." A sudden strong sense of warning overcame me and I ended up springing forwards with a desperate cry.
"Evasive manoeuvres! Hurry!" Programmed to respond to orders, the clones at the controls immediately began to move the ship into an evasive pattern mere moments before the separatist combat ship appeared and rained fire down upon us, though thankfully we avoided the initial attack and were able to begin evading as another ship appeared, attempting to close in on us.
"Too late it is. Sprung, is the trap." Master Yoda noted as I quickly grabbed onto something to maintain my balance as the ship was caught by blaster fire, sending alarms throughout the ship as the enemy ships continued to try and pin us down, but we were smaller and faster, able to move quickly to evade severe damage for the time being.
"I must get you to safety, general." The commanding officer insisted, however Master Yoda ordered them to retreat instead.
"Retreat you must. On the moon below is my mission." Starting to turn around and looked towards me where I straightened up and nodded my head, signalling that I would also continue with the mission. It would be shameful of me to leave now, if Master Yoda was adamant to continue then I would stay with him, if nothing more than an extra pair of eyes and a guard. After all, he was of vital importance to the Republic and the Jedi Order. I would rather sacrifice my own life than allow anything to happen to him. "Quickly now, reach the planet's surface, we must."
"In an escape pod, sir? The enemy will fire at anything we launch!"
"Then launch all of them you will, hm?" Unable to help myself, I chuckled as I swept away after Master Yoda, several clones following us in order to reach the escape pods. As we walked I gathered up my hair which until now, had remained loose around my shoulders but now I collected it up and secured it in a long ponytail at the top of my head with two clusters of lilac coloured hair framing my face from the central parting, affording me better control over my locks so that they would not get in my way. I climbed into the escape pod with Master Yoda and three clone soldiers, where all escape pods were launched towards the moon as the battleships turned fire on us all. I felt at ease, however, calmly sitting with my eyes closed as we hurtled towards the surface, and once we were out of range, I knew that we had made it for certain.
"That was a close one." The clone at the controls announced with a strong sense of relief which I found rather amusing.
"General, I think we're out of range." Another spoke, their faces all obscured by their helmets as Master Yoda hummed thoughtfully.
"I agree, but entering another trap, we are." This made the clones all look at one another with alarm, the third one asking Master Yoda if he was certain that this was the truth as the elder master remained apprehensive and wary. "A disturbance in the Force, there is. Feel it do you, young one?" Master Yoda asked me so I opened my eyes, casting my golden specs upon them all.
"There is someone upon the surface who carries a great deal of darkness within them. We should be wary, Master Yoda." I announced as I bowed my head then returned to keeping my eyes closed. As we entered the atmosphere of the moon, the three clones seemed to distinguish themselves as individuals rather than copies as I had first expected, and one of the more outspoken ones talked to me directly.
"Are you meant to be a commander or a general? How do we address you?" One of his brothers quickly admonished him, apologising to me for the candid manner in which I had been addressed but I merely lifted my hand to assure him that it was alright.
"I am Jedi Knight Theca Rouyn. I do not carry a military title, so you may call me Jedi Rouyn." I informed them all, making the three glance at one another and further ask me how I didn't hold a military title. "I am not a participant in the military side of this war, therefore I do not hold a title. I am merely a diplomat, here to assist Master Yoda in the negotiations for peace and aid. Do not worry yourself in formalities, there is no need."
"But you're a Jedi, aren't you compelled by your code to participate in the war?" Once more the clone was silenced by his fellow soldiers, telling him not to be rude to a superior, but I merely closed my eyes once more and chose not to answer their question, merely suggested that we all braced for impact. The next thing we knew, the thrusters were engaging and we were rapidly slowing our descent, though the escape pod could not land cleanly and we ended up crashing against the surface and sliding a good distance before finally coming to a stop. Exhaling the breath I had been holding, I unbuckled myself and disembarked from the escape pod, however as I reached the exit hatch, one of the clones reached up his hand in order to help me down.
"Thank you." I appreciated, placing my hand in his to step down lightly before drawing back my hood in order to take a look at my surroundings. Taking a few steps away from the escape pod, I knelt down and pressed my hand against the ground and closed my eyes, reaching out with my senses to assess the moon and any possible dangers. I found nothing to be overly concerned, except for the presence of an agent of the separatist confederation, and the sense of trepidation meaning that we were soon to face danger. Opening my eyes I stood up as we made contact with King Katuunko, Master Yoda speaking to him over the holo-caster.
"A pleasure it is to hear your voice, Your Highness. Master Yoda of the Jedi Council, this is." He introduced himself as I turned around in order to watch the exchange, seeing the Toydarian king as a hologram.
"Master Jedi, I had worried that Count Dooku had frightened you off." He responded with good nature, making me lift my face towards the direction where I could sense him and his accompanying guards.
"Delayed have I been, but not too far away am I now. Unaware I was, Count Dooku was invited to our meeting."
"The count invited himself." The king informed us rather dryly as I moved closer to Master Yoda, listening to the conversation as King Katuunko continued. "He assures me that, in this time of war, his droids can offer my world greater security than your Jedi." In response, Master Yoda pointed out that this matter was up for debate, however we then heard the voice of the agent whose presence I had sensed also on this moon, someone strong in the ways of the Force, and I wondered as to their identity. I recalled that Anakin had mentioned something of a commander in the Separatist forces that displayed a strong connection to the Force whilst battling over the planet of Muunilinst, and I wondered if this was perhaps the same agent.
"Your Majesty might prefer more than words." She suggested and as the hologram was turned around to reveal her. Her appearance matched the unnerving sense I received from her presence and I noticed the two lightsaber hilts clipped onto the front of her belt. Now standing at Master Yoda's side, we listened as King Katuunko asked what this agent had in mind. "If Yoda is indeed the Jedi warrior you believe he is, let him prove it. Allow me to send my best troops to capture him. If he escapes, join the Republic, but should my droids defeat Yoda, consider an alliance with the Separatists."
"I did not request Yoda's presence here to test him in battle." King Katuunko rejected, however Master Yoda had other ideas.
"Accept the challenge I do, Your Highness. Arrive by nightfall, I will." Cutting the transmission, I immediately asked if this was really the best way to go about this negotiation. "Prove ourselves the superior force, we will. Time consuming, may be, but worth it in the end, it shall be." Bowing to Master Yoda's superior wisdom, I agreed to follow his lead as the clones took a moment to gather their supplies and weapons, knowing that soon enough this moon, peaceful and serene as it was, would soon become an unwitting battlefield.