Author's Note: Hey, guys. I am so so so sorry about this uber late update, but I've been so busy, and so has Megan (but to be honest being this late is all my fault). Being only 16 and having work and school and extracurriculars, it's hard to find a lot of free time, but that's no excuse. Anyway, here is-finally- the next chapter, and there is a gift along with it. This chapter is a whole 1.5k LONGER! WooHoo! I hope you guys enjoy, and at the bottom of this, I have a really important question that I would like your opinion on. Enjoy!


Episode 2


Boom.

Another bombs falls upon the Republic forces occupying Raxis. Many clones run to take cover as well as find any undamaged goods that can help them maintain control of the battle. Together they work to hold off all approaching enemies, but the incoming amount seems endless. One by one, they begin to be overpowered. Just as they lift their heads from shelter after another explosion, they see a flash of blue and of green and observe as their two commanding Jedi join the fight.

"I'm glad we decided to stay here in case the Separatists tried again to reclaim Raxis," Luminara tells Obi-Wan as they fight.

"Yes, they do seem to find this planet important," Obi-Wan observes. He cuts down another droid before twisting to deflect the shot of another. Seeing that they are slowly being overpowered, he calls out for his second-in-command.

"Sir!" Cody shouts in response upon hearing his name being called.

"We are too outnumbered. Call the men back, we need to get out of here."

"Right away, sir." Cody shoots multiple times at the attackers before beginning to back up.

"Men," he calls, "fall back!" He continues firing as his men begin to run past him and into the canyon. No sooner than they reach it, Obi-Wan turns back to see droid star fighters bombing the very place they were standing moments ago.


General Ack-Var, commander of the Separatist fleet, sits stiffly as his superior fires orders at him. His face remains impossibly stoic as he mentally refuses his body to tremble in fear as many do when facing the man he is currently listening to.

". . . there is no room for error," he hears. "The Separatist need Raxis. It contains some of the purest elements underneath all the rock."

"Understood, sir," he responds with a nod of respect.

"Do not fail me." The transmission of General Grievous fades away. With his emotionless expression still on his face, Ack-Var turns to his droids demanding a report.

"They seem to have gone into the canyon, sir," a droid tells him. Ack-Var narrows his eyes and tightens a fist.

"Find them," he demands. "I will not have them ruining my plans."

"Roger, roger." The droid salutes before turning back to the others. "Send out the probes," he orders.


"Sir," Cody says, drawing the attention of his leader, "we need a plan." Obi-Wan crosses his legs and strokes his beard thoughtfully.

"Agreed, but how to proceed? Luminara?" He turns to the female in question. She, too, has a thoughtful look on her face.

"When we strike, we need to hit their essentials," she explains. "I believe we should split into four teams. Two teams should sneak to the ground base and take out the heavy weaponry. The third will stay here. No doubt the droids are looking for us, so they will lead them on a wild goose chase while you and I," she motions to Kenobi, "will find the commanding vessel and take it out."

Obi-Wan sits still, contemplating. "Hmm, that is good. We should proceed as soon as—"

"Droids!" a clone interrupts, pointing in the direction of where he sees them. He turns to say something else, but a shot straight in his chest silences him forever. Obi-Wan stands quickly and draws his saber.

"Split up and move ahead with the plan," he orders. The men nod and turn to run further into the canyon. They move as one making sharp turns through the maze. As soon as they lose the droids for the slightest of seconds, the groups separate as planned.

Two teams make a sharp turn and crouch lowly, watching the droids run past them. Obi-Wan and Luminara do the same at a turn up further. They linger in the shadows in case some droids stayed behind. When they hear nothing, the step into the sunlight before force jumping out of the canyon and onto the edge of the cliff.


Cautiously, Luminara and Obi-Wan Kenobi observe the Separatists from the cliffs above. Their eyes study every inch of it, looking for the commander. They look over it once. . . twice. . . a third time, yet they still do not see anything.

"Well, this certainly does complicate things," Obi-Wan states. Luminara turns away from the base to look at him.

"How are we to put a stop to this, if we do not even know who is in charge?" she questions. Rather than answer her, he lifts up his arm and clicks on his communicator.

"Cody?" he asks. He waits patiently for a response.

"Sir."

"It seems we are in need of a new plan. We cannot find the commander or his main fleet," he explains.

"Well, there's nothing down here but droids, sir." Obi-Wan releases a sigh of irritation. He goes to respond, but Luminara stops him.

"Wait," she says. "What is that? In the sky." Obi-Wan glances to where she is pointing and sees a small speck of black that is slowly growing larger.

"Give me a moment, Cody," he says into the com link, before turning his whole body in the direction of the speck.

"Awaiting further orders, sir," he barely hears. He lifts his dominant hand to block the sun as he squints his eyes. He strains his eyes trying to make it out before they widen in realization. He turns to Luminara, who has also realized what it is.

"Never mind, Cody," Obi-Wan dismisses. "We've found what we were looking for. Proceed as planned."

"Got it."

Kenobi turns back to his partner and asks, "Shall we?" nodding his head towards the hovering vessel. Luminara nods with a small smile and together they jump onto the vessel when just reaches their range.


"Okay, gentlemen, here's the plan. Teams of two will hit each of the essentials swiftly and silently. We'll rendezvous back here where team one will meet us. Understood?" Commander Cody questions. Each clone nods his understanding. "Good. Teams are as ordered: Jesse and Puck, Blaze and Shifter, Net and Blaster. Hothead, you're with me. Everyone good? Then let's get moving."


Silently, the pairs of men separate and move to their designated locations of attack. They weave like shadows, slipping into every crevice in order to remain unseen. As one man infiltrates, the other guards. Their motions show signs of experience and familiarity with both the situation and each other.

As soon as each unit has set their charges, they all move back to the rendezvous point. For every pair that returns, the chances of victory increase. When Cody mentally head counts and comes to the conclusion all of his men are back, he still demands a vocal assurance.

"Everything's good, sir," Shifter tells him. "Now what?"

Cody turns and looks to the sky before answering, "Now, we wait."


Obi-Wan and Luminara move swiftly through the hallways, hoping to come in contact with little amounts of droids. They pause thinking they hear a large group. Luminara looks around for a hiding place while Obi-Wan peaks his head around the corner. He starts to cautiously yet quickly back away when a droid turns and spots him.

"Hey, you!" it shouts, drawing the attention of the others and pointing his gun in Obi-Wan's direction. "Stop." Obi-Wan turns back to warn Luminara buts sees that she is already climbing into the air vent. General Kenobi knows he cannot simply disappear, otherwise the droids will warn their commander and Obi-Wan will no longer have the element of surprise on his side. Instead, he places his hands up in the air as a sign of surrender. "You're coming with us," the same droid tells him."

"I was merely wishing to speak to your commanding officer," Obi-Wan responds.

"Uh, okay," the droid says while scratching the top of his metallic head. He pushes the built-in com link in his arm, calling his superior. "Commander," he calls hesitantly, "we have a situation."

"What is it?" Obi-Wan hears the dead, flat voice ask. He easily picks up on the disinterest of the man receiving the call.

"There's a Jedi here, sir," the droid explains. "He says he wants to meet with you."

"Bring him to me," the commander demands.

"Okay, sir." The droid ends the call before looking towards the others. "Grab him." Two super battle droids easily lift Kenobi off the ground and begin walking to the ship's deck. Before they fully turn the corner, Obi-Wan glances back one last time to see Luminara coming out of her hiding spot and running in the opposite direction of Obi-Wan and the droids.


"It's a pleasure to finally meet the infamous General Kenobi," Obi-Wan hears a strong voice bellow. He takes quick notice of the lavish surroundings before turning his attention to the well built Zygerrian sitting at an expensive looking desk across the room. The floor-to-ceiling windows let in endless amounts of light, but Obi-Wan is unable to make out the face of his adversary due to the shadows cast by the chair's high back.

"I would say the same, however, I am unable to make out your face," Obi-Wan replies. He tilts his head slightly to the left as to better see within the cloak of darkness. His capturer releases a deep, raspy chuckle before standing with his arms out wide.

"I am General Ack-Var, commander of this fleet, and you are my latest conquest," he introduces. He stands tall and at attention with an air of power surrounding him.

"Am I?" Kenobi questions. He studies Ack-Var's face carefully, taking note of the deep scars that cover the right side of the Zygerrian's face. They are a bruising purple and red that almost fit with his skin tone. His mouth is almost undamaged from the defect, except for one line that runs directly through both lips. His right eye is slightly more closed than the left and the eye itself is a lighter color.

Ack-Var nods at Kenobi's rhetorical question with a smirk on his lips."Well, if you're so sure," Kenobi responds smartly, "then you would not need these droids to continue to suspend me." He motions to the two droids holding his forearms with his thumbs. Ack-Var laughs again and motions for the droids to let Obi-Wan go. Obi-Wan lands gracefully and removes imaginary dirt from his robes. He bows slightly and says, "Thank you."

"But of course," Ack-Var replies. "Now how about we discuss your terms of surrender over some refreshments." He waves over to the side of the room where a table sits with food and drinks upon it. Obi-Wan walks calmly to the table and graciously takes his seat. He lifts his steaming cup to his nose and takes a whiff of the sweet smelling concoction. He watches the steam swirl into the air as his mind drifts back to his partner.


Luminara watches as the droids drag Obi-Wan around the corner before dropping to the floor below silently. She runs in the opposite direction until she reaches the end of the hallway where it splits in two directions. She looks down both and realizes they look exactly the same. A sigh escapes her lips at the impasse she has reached. She continues to look down the hallways hoping for the answer to come to her.

Minutes pass and as she finally decides on a choice, she notices the shadows of droids coming in her direction from the right hallway. Upon seeing no hiding spot, she quickly sprints down the left. Her footsteps are silent as she runs and runs. The gray walls around her show no sign of direction and she prays to the Ones that she is going the right way.

She slows to a jog when she sees a red light up ahead. She silently pulls out her light saber and walks cautiously forward. The closer she gets, the more clearly she hears gears turning. She reaches the end and looks around the corner to see the power core she has been searching for. She clicks her light saber off and steps fully into the room.

A massive sphere of yellow energy sits suspended between two magnetic fields that are placed on the floor and ceiling. The whirring sound of turning gears fills her ears as she walks around looking for an off switch. Just as she reaches the other side of the orb, she runs into numerous battles droids accompanied by four droidekas. A B1 battle droid lifts his gun and shouts at her, "Stop right there." Luminara, knowing better to reach for her saber, raises her hands in the air as a sign of surrender.


The pristine glass is gently raised to his lips as Obi-Wan takes a gentle sip. He places the cup back down before reaching and adding just the tiniest bit of sugar. He lifts the spoon silently and stirs the cooling liquid. Once, twice, he taps it to remove the excess drops before placing it back down. He focuses intently as if it were an arduous task, though he only wishes to buy more time for his partner. He again lifts the cup and takes a small sip before starting the process over again.

General Ack-Var watches the display with calculating eyes. "General Kenobi," he says with a tilt of his head, "if I did not know any better, I would think you are deliberately wasting my time. Perhaps you have something up your sleeve, hm?" Obi-Wan's eyes flicker away from his task at hand to look at the stiff Zygerrian in front of him. His lips quirk up in a playful smirk as he raises and eyebrow.

"Surely you do not believe I have such a plan, General?" Obi-Wan answers with a question back. Ack-Var's eyes narrow dangerously at the response.

"Surely you do not think me a fool, Jedi?" he asks back rhetorically.

"Why, not at all—I was merely enjoying the silence," Obi-Wan replies smartly. Ack-Var's hands tighten into fists of anger. His eyes flash before his features and body language relax and a look of antipathy masks his face. He stands with a natural grace and places his hands behind his back and walks towards the wall of windows. He glances back at his enemy and afterwards turns to look at the world down below. Minutes pass as the two remain silent. Kenobi watches the near-human man cautiously, and nearly jumps when he is suddenly spoken to.

"There is a tradition of sorts on my home planet. When a Zygerrian general finds and claims a planet, they call forth the strongest dweller and challenges him. If the general wins, he brings honor to his people and keeps the Zygerrian rule strong, but should he lose, he is seen as weak and unfit to call himself one of the people. The first commander, as a right, is to strip his superior of his title and end his existence." Ack-Var turns back to face his opposer and stands strong.

"You are an honorable man, and you have won many battles. You are strong, a protector of the people below us and a worthy adversary. Is it not my right to challenge you as is tradition? Am I to leave and show this galaxy how weak the Zygerrians are, or am I to fight and defend my name, my honor? You are as a Jedi are sworn to protect those who wish to cause others harm, but are we not doing what we were made to do? The galaxy must have order, and the only way to achieve it is for one race, one power, to guide those weaker than us and show them them what they are made to do."

"And that is to what?" Kenobi asks. "Serve you? These people deserve to chose how they want to live." He stands and moves forward until only few steps remain between them. "The Order will not tolerate this," he says sternly. His accent runs thick in his speech as tension fills the room.

Ack-Var spreads his legs and hangs his arms tightly by his sides. He looks to Obi-Wan with the promise of battle and defiance in his eyes. His knuckles crack individually as his fingers curl towards the palm of his hand. "Then let us fight," he growls before shooting forward, his fist up and swinging.


Cody and his men sit silently in the shadows, observing their enemy's every move. They wait for the signal from their superiors to take out the heavy artillery. Most of the squad sit with their backs against the wall in utter boredom while Cody and Jesse keep watch. Cody listens as they whisper jokes and tales and "Remember that time when…" back and forth. He shakes his head at one of the more recent stories regarding Net, multiple cups of Spirit, and a beautiful other-worlder that turned out to be male. He chuckles himself at the end of it and Net smacks his teammate for sharing such a thing about him.

Blaster goes on to begin another memory that he can recall, but Cody shushes him when he stops Jesse's hand movements.

Get down, they say. Patrol.

Cody signals them all to the ground or further in the shadows to prevent being spotted. The men scoot back altogether. Net and Blaster move back into the supply crates, barely out of sight. Net goes out of his way not to touch Blaster for he is still mad at his embarrassing night being retold. Blaster pulls him back and playfully locks him in a hold and whispers with a chuckle, "Lighten up, Trap." He chuckles again at the spontaneous nickname which his captive does not seem to find very funny.

They continue to play fight in between the crates slowly growing louder as the fighting turns rough. It grows to the point where the crates around them begin to shake heavily.

"Let me go!" Net yelps.

"Knock it off," Cody commands harshly. They continue to struggle, however, until Net thinks to place his feet on the crate in front of him and push back with all his strength. The two go tumbling back with the crates out into the open. Several droids come running towards the racket and find the pair in a heap on the floor. The rest of the hidden team look with agitation on their faces, not looking forward to the upcoming fight.

"Hey," one droid realizes while scratching its head, "you're not supposed to be—" he's cut off as a bullet pierces through his metal plating.

"Wha?" another droid asks before realizing what has taken place. "We're under attack!" he shouts. "Help! We're under attack! We're under attack—!" He too is shot in the head and taken out, but it is too late and the others have been warned. The clone squadron becomes beleaguered by endless amounts of droids. Knowing they need to shake things up if they want to survive, Cody pulls out the detonation trigger and pushes it, setting off all of the charges. The ground shakes and the droids stumble. The team finds an opening in the circle and take it, running to cover.

"After them!" a B2 droid commands with a monotone robotic voice. Several assassin droids begin marching forwards, and the clones retaliate by shooting as many as they can. Cody squats down behind the cover and lifts his arm to call the Jedi.

"General Kenobi, this is Cody, come in. We have engaged the enemy and are taking heavy fire. We need back up. I repeat, we have engaged the enemy, and we need help." As he waits for a response, he stands back up and takes out multiple droids. He ducks as a blast misses his head by mere centimeters. He stays down and tries again. "General Kenobi, do you copy? Master Unduli, do you copy? Does anyone copy?! We are taking heavy fire and are in need of support!" Again he receives no response. He looks up at Jesse who is watching him try to make contact. Cody sighs and gives a slight shake of the head. "It looks like we're on our own boys. Keep going. We will try to hold out until we receive word from the General."

"Sir, yes, sir!" they all respond strongly. No one, they think, is going to die today.


Luminara Unduli stands tensely with her hand raised in surrender and her fingertips barely brushing the cloth of her head piece. Her eyes flicker around looking for possible escape routes. Three droidekas along with two B2 droids and multiple B1 battle droids surround her. They all stand in silence, each unsure what move to make. She is so far unsuccessful in finding a way out, until the solution is presented to her on a silver platter. Her com link beeps it usual tone and lights up in fast green flashes. She ignores it and instead keeps her eyes on the droid in front of her.

"What is that?' one droid off to the side asks, looking towards the others. The one in front of her takes a step towards her and lowers its blaster just the slightest bit.

"I think it's coming from the Jedi," it answers. It takes another step forward just as the room is filled with Commander Cody's voice.

"General Kenobi, do you copy? Master Unduli, do you copy? Does anyone copy?! We are taking heavy fire and are in need of support!" A sliver of concern reflects in the Jedi master's eyes as she processes what has been said, but she refuses to let the concern mark her features. The droid who is now closest to her turns its back on her and scratches its head.

"I think it's a communication device," it explains.

The first droid who is still off to the side replies with, "Destroy it." The middle droid walks forward and reaches out hesitantly to grip Luminara's arm to grab the device from her wrist. Luminara, seeing the opportunity, grabs the droid and turns it so its back is to her chest as a shield.

The startled droids in front of her shoot at her but hit their fellow droid instead. As its body falls apart, Luminara force pushes the droid away and into the others. While pulling out her saber, she force jumps out of the circle and cuts down the others as she goes. The droidekas pull up their shields as they open fire at her. She dodges and runs around the core trying to get them to follow. They do so without hesitance and roll towards her with their shields down. Luminara stops mid-sprint, pivots, and cuts down the three one at a time. She walks back around the core to find one last droid whose legs have been severed by her saber. As she calmly approaches with her light saber ablaze, it looks to her and whines desperately, "Wait, no!" It tries to scurry away, but before it even moves an inch, Luminara separates its head from its body. Luminara clicks off her saber and releases a quiet sigh of satisfaction.

"Now," she mumbles to herself. "How to destroy the core?" She places her hands on her hips and looks around for the answer. She looks around quickly yet efficiently for a way to deactivate the core. Her eyes search and search for a way, and she grows internally frustrated at her failure.

Knowing that she is running out of time, she gives up looking and runs to the panel attached to the core's suspenders. With fast reflexes, she clicks on her light saber and slashes anything and everything. She waits a moment for something to happen and lets a rare smile slip when she hears the machinery begin to slow to a halt.

"I've got it," she says aloud and mentally gives herself a job well done. She spots the mass of energy begin to waver and runs through the door and out the room not waiting for the explosion she knows is going to come.


Pieces of glass from the priceless artifact sail through the air and pierce the maroon walls. A groan of pain escapes Obi-Wan's lips as he lifts himself up from the ground and removes a sliver from his thigh. He uses to wall to balance himself as he looks upon the other being. He feels blood trickle down his chin, and he raises a gloved hand to wipe it away.

He stumbles forward and attempts a punch, but his opponent sidesteps him and locks his throwing arm in a hold. Obi-Wan struggles to break free but is unable. Ack-Var kicks the inside of Obi-Wan's knees, immediately sending the latter to the floor. Still holding his arm, Ack-Var pulls Obi-Wan up so that only his knees, calves, and toes touch the floor. He takes his free hand and grips Obi-Wan's hair tightly and yanks his head back.

"I once thought you to be a mighty opponent, General Kenobi," he tells the weak Jedi. Ack-Var looks down at his bleeding form with a frown. "It seems I was wrong."

Obi-Wan coughs and more blood spills out of his mouth. He looks Ack-Var in the face and responds with a slight wheeze, "Truthfully, I had hoped your ship would be destroyed by now." It may have been a coincidence, but as soon as the words leave his mouth, the floor shakes heavily, throwing Ack-Var across the room. Obi-Wan stands unsteadily and removes the spilt blood. "Finally," he mumbles to himself. He attempts to stand straight and watches as Ack-Var climbs to his feet. The ground beneath them sways, yet Obi-Wan stays strong. "I do believe our time is up, General," he says as a final line. Using a majority of his strength, he force pushes the general through the glass window and down to the platform twenty feet below.


Obi-Wan semi-gracefully lands on the platform below. He watches as his enemy slowly tries to stand. He knows Luminara has finished things on her end, but has yet to hear from his second-in-command. He lifts his com link and pushes on the green flashing circle.

"Cody, it's Kenobi, is everything alright?" He awaits a response. He receives none and motions to call again. As soon as he reaches for it, it goes off. He quickly clicks it on and barely makes out Cody's voice over the sounds of battle.

"General Kenobi, are you there?" Obi-Wan hears more shots fired and his men shouting.

"I'm here," Obi-Wan confirms. "Cody, what's going on?" he asks with a reprimanding tone.

"We've engaged the enemy, sir—Hey, watch it!" Cody shouts. Obi-Wan waits for him to continue his explanation. "We're heavily out numbered. I don't know how much longer we can hold out." Obi-Wan's tired eyes flicker back to his almost standing opponent.

"Hang on, Cody. I'll be there as soon as I can."

"We'll be here, sir. Just get here fast—" Multiple blaster shots go off and the signal becomes momentarily lost.

"Cody?" Obi-Wan calls worriedly. "Can you hear me?!" More shots go of and Obi-Wan hears incomprehensible shouting.

"General Kenobi." Obi-Wan sighs in relief until hearing the rest of the message. "There's something here! Something—What the hell?!"


Commander Cody fires shot after shot at the enemy, unwilling to give into capitulation. He is refuses to let the sound of his men fall hinder him as he continues to fight. Though he supposes it will do him no good, he silently prays to The Ones for aid to come. His numbers are dwindling while it seems the enemy's size is rapidly growing. He ducks back down as a shot comes too close for comfort. He turns and spots Jesse holding his wounded shoulder. His eyes are hazy and unfocused. "I'm fine, Commander," he hears over the sounds of battle. Cody reaches over and places his hand over the wound to add more pressure.

"You will be," Cody says determinedly. He turns his head to look across the gap in coverage and calls to his other men. "I need a medic!" he hollers.

"Medic!" another clone echos, and the others follow suit. Another grabs a near by bag and quickly darts across the opening. Puck crouches in front of Jesse and gently grabs at the wound. Cody watches as he sifts through the bag and pulls out a shot of adrenaline.

Cody, seeing that his friend is in good hands, nods and turns back to the fight. He returns the rapid fire with shots of his own. His hears more and more of his men falling to the ground dead. His grip tightens around his blaster to the point where his gloved knuckles are sure to be white.

Another trooper cries out in pain as a bullet pierces his armor and burns his flesh. Puck, having finished with Jesse, prepares to run to the wounded soldier. He takes the first step and steps out into the open just as another clones shouts out, "Bomb!" It rolls to his feet and detonates before he can even react. Cody's eyes widen, and he releases a hissed breath between clenched teeth. He prepares to strike back just as his com link beeps. Another grenade goes off and he can only make out a few syllables of the message.

"General Kenobi, are you there?" he asks. He barely makes out the static over the battle, but the second message is much more clear than the first.

"I'm here. Cody, what's going on?" Cody sighs in relief upon hearing his commanding officer.

"We've engaged the enemy, sir— Hey watch it!" Cody shouts as friendly fire nearly hit him. He glares at the poorly aimed clone through his visor. "We're heavily outnumbered," he continues. "I don't know how much longer we can hold out."

"Hang on, Cody. I'll be there as soon as I can." Cody nods though Obi-Wan cannot see it.

"We'll be here, sir. Just get here fast—" Cody hisses in pain when a when a stray shot unarms him. He turns to see a droid feet away from him and drawing closer. He runs and engages it, though it isn't much of a fight. He steals the droid's gun and uses it to beat the metal android. He fires once at another droid before fighting off more and more in hand-to-hand combat. He barely hears Obi-Wan call out his name as he fights. Cody grows anxious as he and his men become swarmed. There are so many, he can barely make out the members of his squadron.

He fights stronger and faster, unwilling to go down and refusing to accept defeat. He feels his muscles tighten as the possibility of losing enters his mind. He knows he mustn't concentrate on the doubt, but now that it has entered his mind, it will not go away. His teeth are clenched and his heart is racing in his ears. He is so focused, he does not take notice of the unnatural cloud heading his way, nor does he notice the sound of hooves stomping on the ground.


Jesse fires a clean shot at the head of an oncoming B2 droid. The metallic head separates from the body and flies backwards a few feet. If it wasn't such a serious time, he would have found it funny.

He glances out of the corner of his eye to see his commander fighting weaponless and shakes his head. "Woah," he starts, throwing his body back to avoid the oncoming swing. He takes to the ground and rolls outward before standing, turning, and firing a single shot in its back. The droid falls cleanly to the dusted rock.

He pivots his body to find another enemy to engage when he spots a voluminous cloud moving towards the battle. He studies it carefully for something feels off about it. He activates his visor, zooming in on the dust cloud. Nothing is visible. He continues to analyze as he's still shot at by incoming droids. He cleanly kills them off without removing his eyes from the cloud for more than a few seconds.

Jesse is about to turn away and fully return to the squadron's location when he spots hooved animals racing within the dust. His head involuntarily tilts in curiosity and suspicion. Why would these animals be racing towards the fight? With all the noise and blasters firing, they should be running in the opposite direction. He lifts his hand and zooms in his vision to see the silhouettes of men on the back of the animals. His eyes narrow as one animal-assuming it holds the leader-comes further out of the dust.

His body is covered in brown cloth that billows behind him. He rides fiercely with his body leaning forward and one hand on the reins. His other hand raises up with a long sharp shooter clenched tightly in his fist. In total, he's about twenty meters away.

Jesse turns and runs back towards Cody to warn him about the approaching cavalry. Everyone is still in heavy combat and are unaware of what is headed towards them. He pushes himself faster as he shouts, "Commander Cody!" Cody is still fighting and does not hear his name being shouted across the battlefield. Jesse shouts his name again as he runs past his fighting comrades. He turns to look back at the man-made dust cloud to see it is now ten meters away. He realizes he will not get to his commander in time and turns to look at the rest of the team. "Men," he calls, "get down!" They all take to the ground as the dust brutally covers the field.

Their ears fill with the sound of shots fired and animal whines. They look around for each other as they try not to fall from the force of the wind. Jesse slowly makes his way to where he last saw Cody. "Cody," he shouts as he looks around. Even with his high-tech visor, he cannot see anything more than a couple of inches from his face.

He goes to take another gaping step when the body of one of the animals walks inches from his body. Jesse falls to his feet as it slowly moves, and he looks up to see yellow-glossed night vision eyes look down on him. He holds his breath as the rider points his shooter at him. He waits for the pain, but instead the gun turns upward and fires a single shot. Jesse's ears ring from the sound, and all he can hear is his own quick-paced breathing. A moment passes before the body of a B2 battle droid lands beside him. The rider and his animal sit for another moment before moving on.


Jesse cautiously gets to his feet and continues his trek towards his lost commander. He is now weary of where he steps, and he takes it slow as he heads towards what he believes to be the right direction. He calls out for Cody but receives no clear response. He lifts his foot to take another step and trips over the back of one of his squad members. Jesse falls gracelessly on top of the other clone and hears a muffled, "Ompf!" Rolling off his solid armored cushion, he stands up and offers a hand to help his friend.

"Thanks," Blaze says. He grabs his blaster from the ground and turns to Jesse awaiting orders. Jesse pulls him in close so his orders will be heard clearly over the loud winds.

"Blaze, round of the rest of the men and get them out of here," Jesse commands.

"And what about you, sir?"

"I'm going to find Cody. Once I find him, we'll meet up at the rendezvous point. Now, go!"

"Sir!" Blaze calls, reaffirming that he heard his orders. He turns and walks heavily in the opposite direction. Jesse watches as Blaze lifts his forearm to see if he can get ahold of any of the others. Jesse stands dumbfound as he realizes he could have used his com link to get a hold of everyone when he noticed the incoming cloud.

He shakes his head as the thought floats away, and he focuses back on more pressing matters. He realizes he has minimal time to find his commanding officer and get them both out of there. He moves with more speed but just as much caution until he picks up unclear voices dead ahead. "Commander Cody!" he shouts just loud enough to be heard by someone close by. The voices stop, and Jesse slows his movements when he hears no call back from his commander.

Jesse moves at a snails pace and he is just able to make out the blue hue of a hologram positioned at chest level. He looks in the direction the hologram is looking and recognizes the shape of the lead being riding the hooved animal. It his speaking in a low grovely tone that Jesse can barely hear over the harsh winds. He can hear the auto tuned sound of the person in the hologram speaking, but he is unable to make out what is being said. He does, however, hear bits of what the figure responds. "More. . .anticipated. . .pull back. . .bombs. . ." Jesse's eyes widen as the last word rings in his ears, his mission has now reached dire levels. He goes to step back and work around the figure when he catches the end of the transmission. "Awaiting command. . .Śikariňa."

Jesse takes another step back and as he picks up the next foot to turn around the figure gets knocked to the ground by an unspotted droid. His holodisc sails through the air and lands on its base. It smoothly slides across the solid ground and lands at Jesse's feet. He snatches it to hack into later, and he pivots and runs.


General Ack Var glares at his Jedi opponent as he slowly makes his way to his feet. He spits out the excess blood pooling in his mouth and scrapes his tongue against his teeth to get rid of the metallic taste. He feels the strain on his body but refuses to let it affect him. He's a little wobbly as he takes his first step, but he grows sure of himself as he takes many more and launches his body towards Kenobi.

He analyzes in seconds how Kenobi positions his body to take the oncoming attack without taking too much damage himself. The two are seconds from impact when Ack Var is pushed back by an invisible force of power. His body rolls to the near edge of the platform before he successfully comes to a stop. He shakes his head the slightest bit to get rid of the dizziness before he looks back up to gaze upon the newest member of the fight. The other Jedi, Luminara it seems. Knowing he is outmatched, he subtly presses a button on his wrist sleeve and stalls until what living droids come to his aid.


"It seems you've decided to join me then?" Kenobi asks Luminara with subtle cheekiness. Luminara, ignoring Obi-Wan's comment, goes to give her report as her eyes drift to their foe.

"I destroyed the power core and with it the flight stabilizers. In a matter of minutes, this airship will impact the planet." As she explains, the ground beneath them starts to tilt in a wave-like manner, making it difficult to stand steady. "We need to secure the General and remove ourselves or we will become part of the wreckage." Luminara's voice wavers as she focuses on staying on her feet.

The two move to take action when the hear the opening of the bay doors behind them. Together they turn to see countless droids marching in formation out the wide doors. A deep, guttural laugh flows through the wind and into their ears. Obi-Wan turns skeptically to see Ack-Var raising to his feet. His laugh grows louder as he stands taller.

"Do you really believe," he asks," that you will have time to both defeat my army and capture me before we hit the ground? Even a glorious Jedi such as yourself knows that you do not have enough time." The droids open fire on the two masters and try to surround them. Obi-Wan and Luminara try to deflect as many as they can as well as make their way to the General, but it seems to be an impossible task. Obi-Wan uses to force to strongly push back the wave of droids coming from behind.

"Go!" Luminara commands, and with a nod, he flees to catch Ack-Var. He cuts apart all droids entering his path, and he forges on. His eyes watch intently as Ack-Var takes the last few steps backwards towards the very edge of the ledge. A sardonic smile creeps its way onto Ack-Var's face as he lifts his hands up, palms facing the sky. Obi-Wan, realizing what he is going to do, sprints forwards.

"Until we meet again, General Kenobi," he hears clearly just as the body of his foe drops over the edge. Kenobi is prepared to jump after him only to hear the whirring of a fighter's engine, and Kenobi sees the general in a separatist star fighter lifting higher before shooting far into the sky.

Knowing there is no way to catch the now escaped man, Obi-Wan focuses on getting off the falling base. He looks over the edge to see the ground rapidly approaching. He pivots to look at Luminara and sees her holding her own, however, they need to leave. Now.

Obi-Wan runs to her but does not stop. Instead he grabs his arm and pulls her to the end of the platform. Luminara, who is lost in confusion, tries to find her feet.

"I think we should be going now," Obi-Wan says.

"What?"

"Jump!" Using the force, the two launch as far as they can from the base. They sail quite a distance away and crash into the ground just as the base impacts. They roll for a good distance raising loose dirt into the air. As their bodies roll to a complete stop, they release a series of coughs to expel the dirt from the lungs.

Obi-Wan lifts his head to see Luminara's form covered in patches of red. He looks to the sky as a shadow begins to descend upon their bodies. He catches sight of a large piece of debris heading right towards them. "Move!" he calls and pushes Luminara out of the way. He covers her body with his as more hunks of metal land around them. He holds his position a few moments, making sure everything has settled. He stands and grips Luminara's hand, gently helping her to her feet.

"Well," Luminara starts as she gazes around, "I suppose that could have been worse." Obi-Wan laughs lightly.

"Agreed." The two recognize their success as well as their failure at capturing General Ack-Var. Rather than let it disturb them, they take in the sight before them before turning and heading into the direction of their squadron.


Jesse walks around the camp his commanding officers set up until they are recovered from their mission. He notices numerous faces he has become accustomed to no longer present. He walks silently to give a moment of peace for his fallen comrades. His fists tighten and unclench. He raises his open palm he feels the heavy weight of the holodisc sitting there as he gazes upon its scratched metal surface. Jesse looks around for his three commanding officers and finds them standing together in discussion. He walks tall towards them and stands a few feet away.

"Sir!" he calls to Cody.

"Jesse." It is not Cody who responds, but Kenobi. Jesse holds up the holodisc for the three to see clearly. "A holodisc?"

"I retrieved it during the battle, sir. It was being used by one of the riders during combat." General Kenobi nodded his head in understanding.

"Yes, Cody was just telling me about them. They appeared suddenly and disappeared just as quickly, without and trace. He believes they were meant to be here and aid in the defense against the separatists. What do you think?" Jesse's eyes drift towards Cody before focusing back on Kenobi.

"I agree. I came into contact with one, and rather than shoot me, it went after a droid that came up behind me. But, sir, why aid against a fight that is not their own? And if they are our ally, why the secrecy?"

"All good questions, Jesse. And ones we yet to have answers for." Obi-Wan brushes his fingers down his beard in thought.

"Perhaps they wish to maintain secrecy so they cannot be targeted in the future by Separatists," Luminara inputs.

"That is a possibility, but I feel it is not the answer," Obi-Wan responds. "It seems there are certain things we are in the dark about." Obi-Wan starts to turn and head towards the arriving gunships to take them back to space, but Jesse stops him.

"Sir, have you ever heard the name Śikariňa?"


Done. First and foremost, if there are any mistakes, feel free to point them out and I will change them. Now, on to the question; Do you guys want one last chapter that helps put this show in a time frame and keep it true to the original show, or do you want me to skip it? It takes place on Kamino with Tup, Fives, and Anakin, but there is a twist in it. . . would you guys like me to post that chapter or skip it? Leave your answer in a review!

Hope you guys all enjoyed it! Sorry for such a late posting I hope you guys R&R! :)