Luke's POV

"All right, let's set up camp here. We're gonna have to wake up early if we want to make it back by noon," the elder man calls out.

Everyone dismounts their Loth-wolf and unpack their tents. Once we were done, night had fallen, the stars shining through the darkness and the twin moons illuminating the camp.

I walked over to the fire the younger human and the Tholothian were using. The human had black hair cropped short and tan skin. He was roasting a piece of meat on a metal rod.

"Hey, I didn't get your names."

"Petro," the human replied.

"I'm Katooni. You'll have to excuse my friend here. He has a hard time trusting outsiders. Especially since what happened at Coruscant," the Tholothian spoke for him.

"Yea, Byph told me how you escaped the wastelands. Tragic."

"But do you know who helped us get off?"

"No."

Katooni's POV

We were running in the streets, trying to evade the Clones without being spotted.

We were almost to the shipyard when a clone with purple markings stood in our path. I was so certain he was going to call for backup but he didn't.

He addressed the two grey cloaked figures, "General, Senator, thank the Force I found you before the traitors did."

I was confused. Wasn't he ordered to hunt us?

"Likewise Commander," the taller one replied, her voice soothing, "Is everything set for departure?"

"Almost, sir. All we have to do is hide the Senator and the younglings before the security checks and start the liftoff sequence."

We were rushed into the shipyard and somehow bypassed security. We were led to the center most section. Sitting there was the heavily modified and armed Super Venator-class Star Destroyer Askari. It bore purple stripes and diamonds matching our escort. It was the only one of its class.

We ran up the ramp and other clones led us to a hiding spot in the vents. They led the Senator elsewhere.

We were told to stay put, but Petro, being the reckless thing he is, disobeyed.

"Petro, where are you going?" I hissed at him.

He turned and said "To the bridge. We need to know what is going on."

"Petro no. We were told to stay put."

"Then stay. I'm going and you can't tell me otherwise."

I heaved a heavy sigh.

I'm so going to regret this.

"Petro, wait. I'm coming with you."

"Good, I really didn't want to be alone."

We crawled up to the Main Bridge and looked down one of the vents. What we saw was a bunch of clones preparing for liftoff as if nothing was amiss. Then the doors opened to reveal the Admiral. She was a human woman in her mid-twenties. Clad in her standard uniform, she walked over to the main Holotable and began work there.

All seemed normal and we contemplated on going back when the doors opened again. Clones bearing identical red markings marched in, their electro-staffs on full power. Fear shot through me. It was the Coruscant Guard, notorious for being straight to the point and un-hesitant.

"Admiral Adda Talka, we have reports of possible traitors on your ship," the apparent leader spoke.

The Admiral calmly looked up from her work.

"I have heard no such thing yet alone file the report you mentioned."

"As our orders state, we are to conduct a thorough security inspection. If we find any evidence that you are harboring Jedi, you will be arrested."

"On whose order? The General's?"

The CG leader said nothing.

"I'll have you know, she does not take kindly to those snooping around her ship without her explicit permission. So, I suggest…"

She didn't get to finish her statement because, once again, the doors opened. All the purple marked clones stood to attention immediately, including the Admiral.

"What is going on here! Why haven't we started liftoff yet?"

The new arrival, Petro and I assumed, was the General. Her outfit complimented her dark skin. She wore a sleeveless low-cut, form fitting red robe with a black tank under. It fanned out to reveal black leggings and dark grey knee-high boots with golden heels and straps. A sash hung from her black belt along with a pair of knives and a com-link. Her neck had a gold choker with a red ruby in the center. A grey cloak rested on her shoulders and flowed back when she walked. Black, fingerless gloves reached to her mid bicep. Her hair, electric blue and shock white, was braided into tiny strands and reached her belt. At the hairline, we could see what looked like silver teeth resting.

From our position, we couldn't make out her face, but her body language suggested that she was furious with the presence of the CG.

She gestured to her troopers and calmly said, "At ease, soldiers."

She then diverts her attention to the clearly unwanted CG.

"What are you doing on my ship?" the General asked in a calm yet menacing tone.

I immediately recognized the voice, but it was no longer soothing. The voice instead sounded infuriated. Petro also recognized it.

"General, they were supposedly given orders to conduct a thorough search of the Askari," Admiral Talka relayed to her superior, "before we are cleared to leave."

"On whose orders?" the General asked, still looking into the ringleader's visor.

"The Supreme Chancellor's, ma'am," he replied.

"Well then, you can go tell his Excellency to either come here himself or you can get off of my ship so I can complete my mission with the rest of the 352nd. Consider how he would react being told to board a ship just so you can do a petty security check."

The next few minutes were tense, the two engaged in a staring contest.

The ringleader broke the silence, "yes, sir."

He turned and left with the rest of his men. Petro and I were so relieved.

We crawled back to the others and told them what happened. A few minutes later, the Askari was in hyperspace. The General herself came and told us it was okay to come out.

We followed the General to a set of rooms. It wasn't small but not big. Perfect.

I was able to see her face and she seemed very familiar.

Then it struck me. I knew her. The tattoos gave it away.

The tattoos on her face resembled unfurled wings, the tips reaching the earlobes of her pointed ears. On her forehead, the tattoos made up her eyebrows, parallel lines coming up from the inner sides. The lines split then rejoined to create a hollow diamond. On the sides, solid diamonds were seen.

I look back at my friends.

"Guys, that's Lady Fulcrum."

Disbelief flashed across all their faces and looked back.

Everyone in the Order knew who the Lady was. Some even believed she was the prophesied 'Chosen One'. She once went by a different name but she left the Order three years prior to Operation Knightfall.

Over the course of a year, she became more attuned with the Force as a whole, completely balanced. The Council found her on her home planet and asked for her return but she denied. They asked again and again until she finally relented on the condition that she was not to be called a padawan, knight, or master. Instead, she said to call her 'Lady Fulcrum', separate from the rest, and to give her full command of a legion of clone troopers . They agreed to her terms, even gave her the Askari. Every initiate adored her.

During the siege of Mandalore, she single handedly made thousands upon thousands of battle droids, with zero chance of survival mind you, into scrap metal with nothing but her wit, will, and lightsabers and brought the former Darth Maul to justice… but he escaped somehow.

She smiled, turned, and left.

Luke's POV

My eyes widened at the tale. I couldn't believe it. What a tense and stressful situation. Then a thought occurred to me.

Was the Grandmaster the General she mentioned.

I tore my gaze from the fire and noticed the elder human and the Grandmaster on the outskirts of our little camp, arms around each other. I wondered what they were thinking.

The Grandmaster's POV

"He's staring at us," I whispered to my love. "He must've been told about a certain little 'situation'."

"Little? Love, I was worried sick. I didn't know if we were gonna die," he retorted.

"Oh shush."

"I'm serious, Love."

I sighed a heavy one then leaned closer to my love. We looked up to the sky, taking in the numerous stars in the twin moons' light.

Luke's POV

I woke up to R2 blaring profanities into my ear.

"I'm up, I'm up. What's going on?"

"They're preparing to leave for the final stretch." R2 responded in his droid language.

I bolted up and ran out of my tent, my droid close behind. The elder human (seriously, I needed his name yesterday) looked up from his stuff with a questioning look.

"A little hasty, aren't we, Luke?"

I gave him a lopsided smirk and started to tear down my tent.

Once I got done and mounted Gungi and Byph's Loth-wolf, I asked Katooni and Petro what happened next.

"Well," Petro replied, "after a few hours…"

Petro's POV

We were in our assigned rooms. We didn't say a word but we all knew what the other was thinking. A knock sounded at the door and I went to open it.

"Admiral Talka?"

"Please, just Adda."

I invited her in and we talked a lot. It felt so good to be able to talk about all that happened in the past day.

"Well, I better get going. We're nearing Zydeco, the halfway point."

"Can we go to the bridge with you?" I asked.

"Sure"

We arrived at the bridge as the ship left hyperspace. The Lady was at the holotable fiddling with the controls, the Senator beside her.

"How are you, Lady?" Katooni inquired.

"Tired," she replied, "Have we landed safely yet?"

This time, the Senator replied. "Yes, all we have to do is find your agent and refuel and debug the Askari. Then it's smooth sailing to the final destination." She nodded in response.

"Um, excuse me but where are you taking us?"

Lady Fulcrum looked straight at me.

"Home"

Luke's POV

"Speaking of home," Byph interrupts, "We're here."

I look up to see…