I'm sorry that this is so late! Right after I promised to upload every 3 days, too. Yikes.
Anakin watched Covrik pace back and forth through the one-way mirror of the detention cell. The criminal was wringing his hands and muttering incomprehensibly, his sunken eyes wide and darting.
"Anakin," Ahsoka appeared beside him. "I talked to my dad. According to him, Covrik doesn't have any family and very few friends."
"Huh," Anakin said, narrowing his eyes as Covrik ran a hand through his greasy hair, walking past the table and chairs in the center of the room for what must have been the hundredth time.
"What's wrong with him?," Ahsoka asked, wrinkling her nose. "Shili doesn't have a death penalty, and if he doesn't have any friends or family, why does he seem so afraid?"
"I don't know," Anakin replied. It didn't make sense. He was looking at a life sentence in jail, which obviously warranted concern. However, usually those in Covrik's position would sit down and scowl, or stare blankly at the wall, contemplating their future behind bars. Covrik, on the other hand, was acting as if his life was in danger.
"Well there's only one way to find out," Ahsoka said, gesturing towards the door of the cell.
Anakin nodded, following his Padawan— ex Padawan— as she walked towards the door. It almost felt like everything was normal again, to be running off on adventures with Ahsoka. Almost. Back on the mesa, Anakin had felt completely free. He had been reminded of a much simpler, much happier time when it was just Ahsoka, Obi-Wan, and him against the world. But that nostalgia had ended as soon as Ahsoka had gone to call her dad, and Anakin had been reminded of the fact that nothing would ever be that simple again.
Anakin entered the room behind Ahsoka, frowning as Covrik stopped in his tracks and looked at them fearfully. It was almost as if Anakin was looking at a completely different person than the arrogant, greasy criminal that he had apprehended just that morning.
"You will tell us why you attacked the Capitol." Anakin waved his hand, attempting a mind trick.
There was a flicker of smugness in Covrik's eyes. "Jedi mind tricks only work on the weak-minded, Skywalker. You'll find that I am not so easily swayed." Then, Covrik seemed to remember something, and the smug look on his face dissolved. The criminal wrung his hands together nervously.
"Sit," Anakin pointed to the table and chairs. Covrik obeyed, perching on the edge of the chair. Anakin sat across from him while Ahsoka remained standing, her arms crossed. "So," Anakin said, glaring at the man. "Wha-"
"I'll tell you anything you want to know," Covrik interrupted. "But please, you have to help me."
"And why should we do that?" Ahsoka asked, looking at the criminal with a mixture of hatred and disgust. "You just killed hundreds of innocent people."
"I know what I did!" Covrik snarled. "And I don't regret it." He took a deep breath, gripping the edge of the table. "But I can give you information. Anything you want, If you help me."
"With what?" Anakin asked skeptically.
"They put something inside of my head," Covrik said, tapping his finger to his temple. "As insurance. If one of us is captured, all they have to do is flip a switch and," Corvik snapped his fingers. "Gone."
"You want us to remove the implant," Anakin finished, considering the possibility. After they helped him, there was no guarantee that Covrik would talk.
They'll activate it any minute now," he said. "I'm no use to you dead."
"We will take it out," Anakin decided, "After you give us the information we want.
Covrik scowled but seemed to decide that he didn't have time to argue. "Fine, but hurry."
"Who put this implant in you?" Ahsoka asked. "The other people who were with you at the Capitol?"
"No," Covrik said, shaking his head. "The Boss put it in. We all have them."
"All of who?" Anakin asked, leaning forward in his chair.
"There are hundreds of us," Covrik said, lowering his voice as if he didn't want anyone to overhear. "Living right under your noses."
Do you think he's telling the truth? Ahsoka asked.
I don't sense any deception, Anakin responded. I believe him.
"And what is your cause?" Anakin continued.
"To get rid of the republic. By whatever means necessary."
"Are the Separatists involved?" Ahsoka asked.
"Yes," Covrik said, tapping his foot impatiently. "They sent thousands of droids. The Boss is in contact with Count Dooku."
This isn't good, Ahsoka said.
"These droids, where are they right now?" Anakin asked.
"I don't know. I saw them land on Shili, but after that, the Boss took them away."
"You keep mentioning the Boss," Ahsoka said, putting her hands on her hips. "Who's that?"
"Oh, he's horrible," Covrik said, staring off into nothing. "Truly evil. He makes you let your guard down, makes you like him. And just when you think you're safe, that's when he slits your throat."
"What's his name?"
"I have no idea, Covrik sighed. "I don't know if anyone does."
"Well, what does he look like?"
Covrik opened his mouth to respond, but the words never came out. He stared up at Anakin blankly for a few moments. Then, a muffled pop sounded throughout the cell and one of Covrik's eyes rolled back, the other staring off into space. The man slumped onto the table.
"No!" Anakin exclaimed, grabbing Covrik's wrist and checking for a pulse. Nothing. "Kriff, that was our only lead!" He dropped the criminal's arm and it hit the table with a thud.
"What do we do now?" Ahsoka wondered. "We know nothing about where the droids are, or who the Boss is."
Anakin sighed. "Let's meet up with Obi-Wan. Maybe he has some good news.
Anakin and Ahsoka walked up the steps of the treasury, squinting from the bright afternoon sun. They walked through the doorway, marveling at the architecture.
"It's nice to see that not all of Shili's historical buildings were destroyed today," Anakin said, earning an exasperated look from Ahsoka. "What, too soon?"
Ahsoka chuckled, shaking her head. "Definitely too soon."
The Treasury was much smaller than the Capitol building but was no less grand, with a wide staircase going up the right side of the room and marble pillars supporting the high ceiling. The treasury was to be used as a base of operations for the time being, and Anakin assumed that he and Obi-Wan would be staying here.
"By the way," Ahsoka said, "My parents know that I fought in the Clone Wars. I told them after you left."
"Good," Anakin responded. He was glad that Ahsoka wasn't hiding anything from her parents, but he hoped that they didn't hate him too much for putting their daughter in danger.
"I think they already knew, though," Ahsoka sighed.
"Anakin, Ahsoka," Obi-Wan's voice called out from the bottom of the staircase. "Good."
"What's the situation, master?" Anakin asked, walking over to his former master.
"The Senate is debating. Since there is no proof of Separatist involvement, many representatives think that it would be foolish to divert important resources to Shili."
"Well, you can rest assured, because we have evidence."
"Follow me; you can present it to the council," Obi-Wan replied, beginning to walk up the staircase. "How did you get Covrik to talk?"
"It was pretty easy, actually," Ahsoka chimed in. "the person in charge of his group, the 'Boss'," Ahsoka said, using finger quotes, "Put an implant in him that would kill him if we didn't disable it. He gave us information in exchange for his safety."
"How interesting," Obi-Wan said, stroking his beard. They reached the first floor, and Obi-Wan led them down a hallway.
"Unfortunately," Anakin explained, crossing his arms, "The implant killed him before we could get all of the information."
"I see."
"He said that there were hundreds of people working for the Boss. Apparently, all of those people have implants, as well." Ahsoka said.
"According to him," Anakin continued, "They're all living in the city like Covrik was, hiding in plain sight."
"That is most displeasing," Obi-Wan said, stopping at a door. "You said you had evidence of Separatist involvement?" He swung the door open, revealing a room that was similar to the one they had shared at the Capitol, but smaller.
"Yes," Ahsoka said as they entered the room. "There is a battalion of droids somewhere on Shili, supplied by Dooku himself."
Obi-Wan nodded, walking over to a holoprojector on the opposite side of the room, flipping a few switches and pressing the large button in the center of the console. A holoprojector of that size was very uncommon and was only used to transmit very large images. Anakin had witnessed the giant holograms that played in the Senate Rotunda on several occasions, but he had never been the subject of one of them.
The machine beeped a few times before a miniature image of Chancellor Palpatine's podium appeared.
"Members of the senate," Obi-Wan said, clasping his hands behind his back. "As you know, we apprehended one of the criminals responsible for the attack on Shili. General Skywalker has completed his interrogation, and has brought forth evidence of Separatist involvement." Obi-Wan stepped aside, out of range of the holoprojector. Anakin stepped forward.
"According to the criminal, the leader of the rebellion has been in direct contact with Count Dooku," Anakin said. He could hear the faint murmur of the Senate through the machine. "He has sent thousands of droids to Shili, which are currently hidden somewhere near the Capitol."
Palpatine looked contemplative for a moment, the murmurs of the senate growing louder. Anakin longed to see Padme. "Thank you, General Skywalker," Palpatine said, managing a slight smile. Anakin wished that his friend didn't have so much responsibility on his shoulders. "This information is valuable. We will take it into consideration." Then, the holoprojector beeped and shut off, leaving Anakin, Ahsoka, and Obi-Wan alone in the room.
"I have no doubt that they will send reinforcements," Obi-Wan said. "However, they most likely wouldn't arrive until tomorrow afternoon."
"What can we do in the meantime?" Ahsoka asked.
"Well," Anakin said, "We know that there is a huge battalion of droids somewhere near here. There can only be so many places that are big enough to house them. We can do some research tonight and take a look at the different options tomorrow morning. If we find them, we'll be ready to strike as soon as the clones arrive."
"That sounds good to me," Ahsoka said, plopping herself down on the couch and reaching for a holopad.
"Good plan," Obi-Wan agreed, following Ahsoka's lead.
"In fact," Ahsoka said, "I can probably just stay the night here if that's alright."
"I'm fine with it, but I doubt your parents would want you to do that," Anakin responded, grabbing a holopad and sitting down next to Ahsoka.
"That's for me to decide, not them," She said.
"Fair enough."
Anakin turned on the holopad, opening a map of the city.
Suddenly. The holoprojector beeped. Anakin leaped up, answering the call. The Chancellor's podium appeared once again.
"The Senate has reached a decision," Palpatine said. "We will provide military support to Shili. We are sending the 501st Battalion."
"Thank you, Chancellor," Anakin said. The machine beeped one last time and flickered off.
This was going to be simple.
Something fun that happened literally a few hours ago; I got super dizzy and almost fainted! That was nice. If I were smart, I wouldn't be using my computer at all rn, but alas here we are.
Btw I have absolutely no clue how holograms work, so please let me know if this contradicts the lore or something and I'll fix it :)