Author's Note: Hello hello! I forgot to include a disclaimer last time, so I'll throw it in now and pray that the Disney overlords don't come crashing down upon me: Any characters or ideas mentioned or referenced in this chapter or any past and future chapters in this fictuous work that have any correlation to the Star Wars universe are property of Disney, not the author.

Moving on! Let's get down into it! I had some great feedback last time, thank you all for your input! I do apologize for the delay, I took a pretty serious injury to my hand that's restricted me from typing with said hand at all. Thank you to all (three) of my fans for your continuous support and patience!

The decrepit ruins had remained untouched.

Crumbling buildings were as they had been, dust and debris gathered on the floor. No life grew, not even the smallest of weeds or insects.

There were several layers of grime and dirt collected on the floor. The very air was untouched, dust from an age long gone floating about drunkenly.

Skeletons lay scattered everywhere, some still wearing their black robes. A few had sinister looking masks and helmets on their heads. Many of them were cut down, missing a limb or two, or in some cases, the entire body above or below the waist. In some cases, skeletal hands still tightly gripped lightsabers. A silence lay over this mass grave, heavy and unyielding. If Death had an abode, it was here.

And yet, despite the ruin, despite the disarray and chaos about the place, the pyrimidine structure stood pristine and unscathed, save for the bodies that littered its structure. At the summit, a crypt, with two lone figures, one in black robes, cut down, and the other in lighter colored robes of muted whites and beiges. This figure was in a more meditative stance, unlike the other skeletons that were splayed out, displaying their dying moments.

It was on its knees, it's hands gripped around the lightsaber that was pointed directly at its chest, a hole having burned through front to back, clear through where it's heart would have been.

A crack disturbed the silence. Stone upon stone, cracking and crumbling. A deep rumbling sound could be heard, echoing around the desolate area. Nearby, it appeared as though a sinkhole caved in, but a closer inspection revealed that the carefully formed hole was in fact a passageway, built by a Force user.

The figure wore a low hooded robe, which, despite the exertion that was apparent from its heavy breathing, it refused to remove. It leapt out of the passageway, landing on solid ground with its red lightsaber drawn. However, the figure soon dropped down to one knee, grunting with the effort of withstanding the sheer overwhelming presence of the Dark Side. It gripped its head, its grunts of exertion slowly turning into loud groans.

It took a few moments, but the figure was finally able to stand, albeit without much balance or sure footing. The figure did its best to approach the pyrimidine structure, pausing every few steps to recenter itself.

Although the figure had let its tunnel out quite close to the structure, it still took well over an hour before it finally reached the stones. It looked up in horror, at the summit. Its eyes trailed down from the summit, falling upon Sith body after Sith body. Even in death, one could feel the sheer Evil of the Sith here. The pain and anger behind their lightsabers. The figures eyes trailed all the way down to the foot of the structure, near which lay a fallen Sith, a lightsaber loosely gripped in its skeletal remains. The figure knelt, reaching out with a shaking hand. It withdrew, wringing its hands in an attempt to shake away the terror.

"Just the nerves," the figure whispered aloud to itself, but even so, its words, barely audible, seemed to echo across the desolate plains. It reached out again, reaching slowly, tentatively, towards the fallen Sith's lightsaber. Its finger hardly grazed the cold dusty surface of the weapon before the figure saw flashes of the history of the saber before its eyes. Mere glimpses but it could definitely feel the hatred behind the weapon, could feel how much pain and sorrow it had caused, how much suffering and rage its owner harbored inside. And though it didn't seem possible given how dead and barren things were, everything seemed to freeze in time. The figure raised its head, looking about.

Something had awoken. Out of nowhere, a thick heavy fog crept towards the structure, clouding the plains from view. The figure drew its own lightsaber, reaching down and making to grab the one by its feet, but glanced at it. There was no way it, or indeed anyone, could handle such a weapon, one that had been stewing in Evil and had been imbued with the Dark Side of the Force for so many years. It was too dark, too powerful now. The figure shook its own head and grasped its own saber in both hands, readying itself.

A black cloud of smoke emanated from the fog. It appeared as a twist of the fog at first and the figure thought that perhaps it was just the trick of the light. But no, it was too dark, and there cloud seemed to act against the flow of the fog. As the cloud grew stronger, it lengthened. The fog gave way as the smoke approached, showing the imposing figure of a man.

The shadowy menace took great rattling breaths in and out, but despite the suggested fragility, the figure could tell it was impossibly powerful, even in death. It's mask was unlike other Sith masks. It did not do what most Sith masks did, which was to mask the emotion behind an expressionless false face. This Sith mask looked closer to a witch doctor's mask: indeed, it appeared to be made not of processed metal, but rather manually hammered out metal. The mask had two vertical lines cut into it. These were to resemble cheekbones, but on an extremely elongated face, and the lines were wider at the top, angling smoothly into a 45-degree angle to allow the user to see. Unlike most Sith masks, which lacked any sort of paint, this was painted with intricate symbols all over. The menace stood well over 10 feet tall, its eight arms crossed.

"I know you." The smaller figure said softly. The shadowy menace remained stoic, watching its adversary. "Darth Morteus."

At once, the smokey figure materialized fully and lunged at the smaller figure, stopping short just inches from grabbing it.

"Who are you? Why have you come?"

"What happened here? I must know."

"Be you Jedi or Sith?"

The figure remained silent.

"With whom do you align? Dark or Light?"

Still, the figure remained silent.

"Fine. Hold your tongue if you must. Listen closely then…"

"Anakin how many times must I tell you, we don't have the numbers to take on such heavily armed numbers!"

"You misunderstand, Master. It would only be a small invading force! No more than five or six!"

"And how exactly do you plan on having a single squad of troopers infiltrate and take out General Grievous and his new ship?"

Navonod watched the two Jedi bicker between themselves. It had been only three months since she had joined Master Obi-Wan at his side. Under his guidance, and at Anakin's lack of thought before acting, they'd gotten into many an adventure. It had taken her quite some time to remember that Master Shaak Ti was not waiting for her back in her room. Still, she wrote it all down in a journal. It was a silly thing to do, keeping a journal, especially in such an outdated method as manually writing one's words by hand when there were machines that could record your words for you. But she enjoyed the process of writing, it soothed her mind.

Thus far, she'd written in quite a few pages already, and had just finished up the last page of her entry when Cody arrived to inform her of her needed presence at the bridge. It was there that she met Master Anakin Skywalker in person. He certainly cut an imposing figure, in some ways more so than Obi-Wan. However, Navonod had soon come to understand that what Obi-Wan lacked in imposing presence, he made up for with cunning, patience, and a powerful presence lurking beneath the surface. And even if she couldn't have sensed it, logic made it so; Obi-Wan was one of the three most successful generals. His battalion had needed the least number of replacement troops as well, mostly due to the daring missions he and Anakin went on, but also in no small part due to Obi-Wan's ability to see ahead and calculate his opponent's moves.

"Well Master, I never said it would be a squad of troopers," Anakin said with a grin. Cody glanced over at Rex, who nodded, and the both of them began to check their gear. Navonod leaned over to Cody, her arms still crossed. One of the advantages to wearing a veil all the time was that she never had to worry about hiding her mouth from anyone who might be trying to eavesdrop at a distance.

"Cody, what are you two doing?"

"Well Commander, whenever General Skywalker has a plan, it's usually Rex and I that get to go along. Which means the four of you will be going."

"The four of us?"

"Better ready up, kid," Rex commented with a nod. Navonod replied with a silent nod, her arms crossed as she stood silently, waiting for the Jedi to make up their mind.

"Well it looks as though you've thought this out quite well," Obi-Wan started, stroking his beard contemplatively.

"Thank you, Master," Anakin saisd with a proud grin, smirking at Ahsoka, who simply rolled her eyes.

"For a Padawan."

"Obi-Wan, come on."

"I'm sorry Anakin, but this is a bad plan. I'd go as far as to say it's irresponsible and, well, stupid."

"Well it might be a stupid plan but it's not the worst."

"I agree, there are greater heights of stupidity."

"Like what?"

"Well that depends, how tall are you, Anakin?"

The bridge erupted in chuckles, and Anakin grumbled to himself. "I'm gonna go get ready." Anakin growled. He didn't much appreciate being humiliated on the bridge in front of his troops. Ahsoka followed along, watching her Master. He was irritated to say the least, but she chalked it up to stress. As it was, Anakin was already beginning to calm down.

"Nav, do you feel up to your next mission?" Obi-Wan asked, gesturing for her to walk alongside him. Cody and Rex both gave her nods as they left to go prepare their gear.

"Yes, Master. Of course!" she replied, eager to prove herself. Master Shaak Ti's words hadn't left her mind. She had to prove to the world, for Master Shaak Ti, how great a Jedi she'd become. If this mission was a success, it would be the first step towards that goal.

"Just remember, patience is key. General Grievous is a dangerous man to underestimate. He's a brilliant strategist, so there's every possibility that he's prepared for this mission. He didn't get to be where he is today without the knowledge he has."

"I've heard stories, he's the one who collects Jedi's lightsabers, right?"

"The very one."

"I'll make sure to try and get a few back," Navonod grinned, but Obi-Wan turned to face her immediately, going as far as to put his arm up to stop her from walking further. She paused and looked up at him curiously.

"Under no circumstances are you to face General Grievous alone. He's difficult enough for Anakin and myself, there is absolutely no chance of me allowing you to face him alone. If you find him, you run and hide till I get there, is that clear?"

Navonod chewed her lip as she looked up at Obi-Wan. Another advantage to the veil across her face; she didn't have to hide her expressions. It made no sense. If she was so inexperienced, why would Obi-Wan allow her to come along on such a mission in the first place? Come to think of it, why was he allowing her near such a dangerous opponent at all? Perhaps he only meant that she should be careful, not that she should run.

"Is that clear, Nav?" Obi-Wan asked again.

She worried then, that perhaps Obi-Wan wouldn't allow her to play as large a role in the mission as she had hoped. She didn't care for the glory of it all, that wasn't the Jedi way and she honestly couldn't care less about her reputation in the war. But she did want to be renowned for her Master. She wanted to be able to tell people that she was the way she was because of Master Shaak Ti's training. But that couldn't happen until she was given more responsibility. What if she was left merely to watch the doors or to keep an eye on the ship?

"Nav?" Obi-Wan asked again, this time frowning in concern.

"Yes, Master. I was just lost in thought is all. I'll be careful."

Obi-Wan regarded her with a squint of suspicion in his eyes but turned and led the way towards Anakin's ship. Ahsoka and Anakin were already on board, doing the usual pre-flight checkups. Rex and Cody had just boarded when Obi-Wan and Navonod entered the hangar.

"Well look who decided to show up," Anakin mocked playfully.

"Well Anakin, you tend to make such a big mess during these missions, I paused to wonder if we shouldn't bring a clean-up crew with us."

"Ha, ha," Anakin replied sarcastically, more focused on getting the ship ready. Rex and Cody were already strapped in and ready to go, and Navonod sat down across from them.

If she had more time, she would have crossed the Force Veil yet again to scour her past life's memories. Perhaps there was a similar mission she had been on? She had to remind herself however, that it was not something Obi-Wan wanted her doing too often.

He'd had her run through a training exercise, to gauge how much he needed to teach her, however she had performed remarkably well, enough so that it was almost as if she had known what challenges were coming ahead.

They had sat down and discussed her performance, where she lacked, what she could improve on, where she'd excelled. It was during this part of the discussion that she'd mentioned her ability, something Master Yoda had recounted to Obi-Wan.

"I admit, I don't know much about the Force Veil. It's a mystery even among the Jedi Council. However, I don't want you using it all the time. You grow not only as an individual, but also as a Jedi, by making your own mistakes, being held accountable for your own actions. Copying someone else's well…that wouldn't make you any better than the droids we cut down. Besides, I've seen how much it wears you down to use it. I can't have you coming into battle with me half asleep, can I?"

She had resisted thus far, and hadn't realized just how often she'd been relying on her past life to get her through. It had taken a few weeks of dedicated meditation for her to learn how to access the Force Veil without consuming so much energy. Even so, the sessions left her drained and exhausted. Even Obi-Wan felt quite tired after meditation, usually a relaxing activity.

Navonod thought back to her first nightmare, the first one she'd had on Coruscant at least. She'd awoken half the younglings in the room with her screams and had to be given her own space. They thought her nightmares had ended when only two nights later, she awoke yet again, screaming in terror.

She sat up straight, her eyes darting left and right, trying wildly to make sense of her surroundings. Her eyes were working faster than her brain, which was still in the dream world. She recognized the opening of the door, but not immediately. A figure in white robes entered, carrying an unusually long lightsaber hilt: A Jedi Temple Guard. Though he did not have his lightsaber lit, he did look ready to use it just in case. Behind him, another Jedi, this one a Twi'lek. She had a brilliant blue hue to her skin and large hazel eyes, and wore a long sweeping brown robe.

It was only now that Navonod realized the screaming she heard was coming from her own mouth. She promptly stopped screaming, hugging her own knees to her chest and rocking back and forth. The Jedi Temple Guard relaxed, but only slightly, standing back in the corner for Aayla to step forward.

"What ever is the matter, youngling? What troubles you so?" she asked, kneeling by Navonod.

"It's the same dream," the youngling gasped out between breaths, still shivering. Her shirt was soaked in sweat, and her bedsheets were knotted and twisted around her, "I keep seeing it again and again. Get it out of my head!" she cried, falling forward and laying her head in Aayla's lap. The older Jedi's brow furrowed with concern and she stroked the youngling's hair as she sat back and thought.

She placed her fingertips on the girl's temples, reaching into her mind with the Force. At once she was met with two things that surprised her. One, the sheer indescribable amount of turmoil within her mind. The second, the strength of the wall that shot up immediately after. She withdrew and looked down at the girl, who didn't seem any wiser as to what had just happened. An intrinsic skill? In any case, Aayla knew she was not the Jedi to handle this. There was only one who could and he was likely not even asleep anyway.

"Come with me, little one. Up you get, that's it," she said gently, providing words of encouragement. Taking Navonod's hand, she guided the youngling through the corridors of the Jedi Temple. As she did, she watched her behavior, noticing that the young girl's attention was drawn to the strangest of places; she didn't look up and around at the vast pillars or the high ceilings of the hall, nor did she look at any of the hanging tapestries of Jedi Masters long passed, unlike most younglings who passed through the halls. Instead, Navonod looked at certain doorways, at random, seemingly inconspicuous, spots in hallways, at certain windows. But finally they arrived at their destination.

"Wait here for me, little one. I promise you, you will be safe. The Jedi Temple Guard will watch over you."

Aayla Secura entered the room after a knock, and left the girl outside with two Guards. She looked up at them curiously, both of whom remained stoic and unyielding. So still were they that she doubted they were even alive and were it not for one of them adjusting his stance, she would have thought they really were statues.

Inside, Aayla Secura sat before Master Yoda.

"Worried you are, about this youngling, yes? Why?"

"I do not know, Master Yoda. I do not believe these to be mere dreams. I gazed into her mind temporarily and…"

"Great turmoil you saw, yes?"

"Yes, Master," Aayla said, frowning with worry, "But also the strength of her mental defenses. It appears to be some sort of subconscious defense mechanism. Or perhaps something hidden deep and repressed. She is terrified. Of herself, of her surroundings. I do not know what it is that causes her such trouble."

Yoda closed his eyes, taking some deep breaths. Aayla did the same, if only to stop from fidgeting. After a few moments of silence, Yoda opened his eyes and stood, grasping his walking stick.

"Worry not. Work with the youngling, I shall. The source of these nightmares, we shall find, yes? The youngling, where is she now?"

"I have brought her with me. She awaits outside."

"Hrmm…Go. Rest. A long day ahead, have you not?" he answered, walking with her to the door. It slid open and Aayla exited, kneeling down beside Navonod, who took a few steps back.

"Calm, youngling. This is Master Yoda. I believe he can help you with your nightly worries. Go with him, learn as much as you can."

The girl nodded and gripped her hands tightly behind her back to hide her nervousness. Aayla nodded and stood, adjusting her robes before turning back to the jade Jedi.

"Good night, Master Yoda."

"Good night, Master Secura. Come, youngling. Trouble sleeping you have, Master Secura says?" Yoda said kindly. He was old and slow, but very kind. And for some unknown reason, she trusted him, despite having never seen him before. She followed him inside. As he walked by it, Yoda tapped a meditation mat for her to sit on. He clambered up on his own meditation pedestal with some struggle.

"Can I help, Master Yoda?" she offered, but Yoda simply chuckled as he settled down.

"Help me? With what? Not so old am I, that I cannot sit, hmm? Worried you are for me in my old age, hmm?" he said teasingly. It earned him a smile on her scarred face. He returned the smile and closed his eyes, a silent command for her to do the same.

Navonod sat down, closing her eyes. For a while, both took deep meditative breaths. "Peace, youngling. Your mind…troubled, it is. Sense much fear in you, I do."

"Yes, Master. I'm scared."

"What of? What is it you see?"

"I see…something. A tall building. It's large, very large. It's raining and it's nighttime. But the lightning flashes and everytime it does I see more and more dark figures on the building. They all have red lightsabers."

"The Sith. Frighten you, do they?"

"No, Master."

Yoda opened his eyes, peering down at the girl, who still had her eyes closed, tightly now.

"No?"

"No. I'm scared because I don't turn and run away. I'm running at them. I want to hurt them, I want to kill them. I do kill them," Navonod cried, getting increasingly more agitated. Yoda sensed this and reached out, placing his palm on her forehead. He, too, looked into her mind and was able to see what she was seeing, if only for a brief moment, before the walls shot up again. However, he managed to work around it rather than break through it, and continued to see. His mental presence in her mind calmed the girl considerably.

"Go on," he coaxed, his voice low and gentle. "When 'I kill them', you say, when use the word 'I' you do, as yourself or as another you are in your mind?"

"I—I don't…I don't know…"

"Look down youngling. At your hands. Are they your own? Your lightsaber, is it your own?"

Navonod played through the nightmare again and again, and realized that he was partially right.

"No, Master. They…aren't mine, but they feel like mine."

"The lightsaber you wield. Connected to it, are you? Or merely a tool, it is?"

"No, Master, it's definitely connected to me. But I don't know why. It feels so familiar. But I know I've never seen it. The hands, I don't recognize them, but they still feel like they're mine. It's not me but…it is me."

Navonod finally broke the connection, slouching forward with the exertion. Yoda was impressed that she'd managed to hold on for so long; even with his considerable help, he hadn't expected her connection to the Force to last as clearly for as long as it did.

Navonod looked up, worry etched across her face. Yoda simply smiled down at her. "Worry not, young one. Come. A walk we shall take, yes?"

"A walk?"

"When walking in a line, in a circle one ends up, yes? A new path you must take, to see a new perspective, hmm?" Yoda replied, standing up and making his way to the door.

"But…a walk?" she said, standing up nevertheless and looking at Yoda's walking stick just as the door slid open.

"Worried are you, that too slow you will be for me? Worry not, youngling. For you, walk slowly I shall, hmm?" he replied with a chuckle, then led the way out of his room. Despite her troubles, Navonod couldn't help but giggle at his jokes. For some reason, she felt as if she'd heard that joke before. But it wasn't possible, it was her first time meeting him. Perhaps she had heard it in passing?

No, she was sure she would have recognized his voice.

As they walked about, Yoda kept an eye on the youngling. He kept her engaged in conversation, noting areas where she paused for no apparent reason, unassuming locations in the Temple where her eyes lingered too often, or where her gait slowed. They had spent the entire night walking about, into the early hours of the morning. It wasn't until then that Navonod noticed they had visited the same area for the sixth time, the doors leading to an unoccupied Jedi's quarters. She stopped abruptly, giving Yoda cause to turn around and face her again.

"Tired, are you?"

"No, Master. It's just…we've been here before."

"Yes, youngling. Passed these halls many times, we have."

"Perhaps I am getting tired, Master, I should have noticed after the fourth time."

"Four? But youngling, only three rounds we have made."

"No, we made six," Navonod replied, frowning with confusion. She looked down at the floor, recalling their walk. "…didn't we?"

Yoda gestured for her to enter the room with him, and so they did. At once, she felt reminiscent. "Master, where are we?"

"Took quite some time, it did, yes. But unearthed the source of your dreams, I have. Come, sit."

Together they sat down, Yoda on the bed and Navonod on the floor.

"A rare ability you have, youngling. Separated from the dead, are the living. But only by a thin veil, hmm? The ability to cross this Force Veil, you have. Your past life, all her memories, strengths, skills…yours now, they are. But her fears, weaknesses, share them as well you now do."

Navonod chewed her lower lip in thought, looking down at the dust by the foot of the bed. Her bed. Or…her past bed? She was already confused. The biggest question she had now had nothing to do with how to deal with the memories, what to do, what the Force Veil was. Instead, she asked:

"Who was I, Master Yoda?"

A simple question, with a complicated answer.

"A difficult answer that is, young one. But give it, I shall. A Jedi Master with us, you were. A teacher to many. A healer. A powerful warrior. But above all these, something far greater you were to us."

"What's that, Master Yoda?"

Yoda looked down at her face, and sighed, his own heart breaking, just as it had all those years ago when he first learned of Master N'aviiya's passing.

"A friend."

Navonod was jerked from her musings when Anakin docked the ship, a rather rough docking. She gasped lightly and looked around, steadying herself against the seat.

"Hey, kid, you alright?" Rex asked, receiving a nod in response.

"Just…lost in thought," Navonod answered, standing up and drawing a lightsaber from her belt. Rex and Cody stood with her, readying their weapons.

"Best not to do that out here, Commander," Cody advised, giving her a nudge with his elbow. She gave a chuckle, her mind now back in the present. Obi-Wan approached the two of them, with Anakin and Ahsoka in tow.

"Alright, we all know what we have to do. Get in, sabotage the hyperdrive, launch the escape pods, demolish the ship's defenses, take down the shield generator, disengage the lateral stabilizers and then-"

"Get back to our ships, and blow this hunk of junk out of the sky," Anakin finished with a confident smirk to the rest of them. Obi-Wan remained silent, but nodded in agreement, stroking his beard as always. Ahsoka smiled to Navonod, who sent her a nod in return. She couldn't exactly smile back, not with the veil in the way. And as much as she trusted the people she was with, she still didn't feel comfortable with sharing her scars. Not yet.

The docking port opened up, allowing entry into the enemy ship, where they were beset upon by a few patrolling droids.

At once, all four Jedi lunged, cutting down the four hapless droids in an instant before any alarm could be raised.

"So much for not stirring up any droids," Obi-Wan commented dryly. He turned to the rest of them, putting away his lightsaber as he did so.

"Alright. Ahsoka, what's closest to us?"

Ahsoka took a few seconds to fiddle with the handheld device, but it soon displayed a map of the ship. "The hyperdrive."

"Alright. Cody, get to the hyperdrive and sabotage it. Rex, head for the shield generator. Anakin, take out the ships guns. I'll take care of the lateral stabilizers. Ahsoka, get to the escape pods and launch them as soon as you can. Leave one, if there's a chance that Grievous may escape, we want it to be in the only pod left. If all goes to plan, he'll be none the wiser till it's too late."

Cody looked over to Navonod before turning and running off. Rex, too, turned and ran off. Ahsoka and Anakin ran off together, as for the time being, their locations were in the same direction. Obi-Wan looked at Navonod, who turned her back to him at the last moment and drew a saber, pretending to keep a guard on the hallway near the docking port.

"Nav…"

"It's okay, I'm just here to keep the ship safe. I know, Master."

"It's not that, Nav. I—"

An alarm began to blare. Obi-Wan groaned in frustration and drew his own saber as the sound of approaching droids could be heard from all sides.

"We're not done talking about this. I'll meet you back here in twenty minutes!" Obi-Wan called behind him as he ran off.

Navonod grumbled to herself slightly and drew her second saber, just in case. However, only a few squads of droids arrived. Furthermore, it was only battle droids, nothing she couldn't handle. She put away one of her sabers, and leapt towards a group of them, cutting through the droids with ease. It only took her a few minutes before all but one droid were destroyed.

"Where's General Grievous?"

"I'll never tell you, rebel scum!" the droid replied in it's surprisingly emotive robotic voice.

Navonod lit her saber, the tip of the blade just inches from the droid's face.

"He's by the lateral stabilizers on the third deck!" the droid cried loudly. Navonod rolled her eyes and cut the droid down, but its news was far too alarming for her to dwell on the droid's emotiveness. Grievous, somehow, had found out, and was setting a trap for Obi-Wan. Navonod rushed off as quickly as she could, both lightsabers lit and ready to go.

She slashed open the door to an elevator, peering down in the shaft. She could see the third deck from here, the door marked with a large "3", painted on the inner side of the elevator doors. She looked up and made sure there were no elevators coming before tossing her saber down the elevator and levitating it with the Force. The still lit saber hovered closer to the door, eventually carving a hole into it through her careful guidance. However, metal creaked from above and she looked up to see an elevator speeding down towards her.

"Oh come on," she growled, putting away the saber in her hand and diving down into the shaft. Terminal velocity could only help so much however. The elevator drew closer and closer even as she fell and Navonod realized she wouldn't have time to control the saber and slow her fall at the same time. She rolled in mid air, her back to the elevator doors she was speeding past, and at just the right moment, used all her might to Force push off the wall. The sudden change in trajectory launched her through her intended target, gate three, with the elevator speeding past not two seconds later. She lay on the floor, gasping for air, her second saber laying unlit and discarded.

She lay there on the floor for a moment, letting the unpleasant churning in her stomach come to a halt. "I'm never doing that again," she groaned, resting her head against the cold metal floors of the ship.

"At least the stabilizers are still in tact, otherwise we'd all be float—Obi-Wan!" Navonod cried out, sitting up instantly. She ran off, holding out her hand and summoning her saber to her. It was wonky in flight and slow to come, but come it did.

She ran down the hall and made her way to the stabilizers. She heard him however, before she saw him. Heavy, clanging steps. A mechanical hacking cough, a heavy Kaleesh accent.

"Prepare the battle droids. I want as many sentry droids as we have. Get destroyer droids, I want them in the front."

"The ones with the shields, General?" a battle droid asked innocently, getting backhanded out of the way as Grievous moved to issue the orders himself, coughing horribly yet again as he did so. He didn't look all that difficult.

Hunched over judging by the bulging of his back, She wasn't able to get a good view of his legs but the heavy footfalls suggested some sort of modification; perhaps mechanical legs to help him walk in his old age? Clearly, by the sound of his voice and the ever present cough, he must have had some sort of health problem in his age, hence the need for whatever device it was giving him the mechanical tones to his voice. She wasn't sure why Obi-Wan was so worried.

With a confident grin, she dove right in, holding out a hand and force pushing several droids off their feet and crumpling them against the wall behind. She drew her lightsaber and deflected a few bolts back, drawing the second and continuing her defense when the bolts became too numerous to deal with. Grievous watched for a bit, then held up his hand as a nonverbal signal for a cease fire.

"And what are you supposed to be?"

"I'm a—really? I'm a Jedi!"

"I think not," Grievous replied, waving his hand for her to turn around and look as the doorway had just opened. Not only were there several destroyer droids approaching but several battle droids as well. Grievous let out an ominous chuckle and turned away again, back to watching the other doorway for Obi-Wan.

Navonod thought quickly, ducking behind some nearby crates for cover. The battle droids from the front were gathering up as well. She wasn't sure she'd be able to work her way out of this.

She prepared herself for battle, ready to deflect bolts coming from the front. Her back was to the crates for now, she was confident she'd be okay.

"Throw your charges. Smoke the Jedi out," a robotic voice replied. Navonod peered out from the side momentarily to see the source.

A tactical droid stood nearby, standing behind a row of destroyer droids. "Damnit," Navonod cursed. She did her best to levitate the smoke grenades away from her but the overwhelming number of charges, not to mention the timing of them meant that, despite her best efforts, there was almost always another grenade sitting there ready for her to throw. She wasn't able to pick them up by hand either, as doing so would mean she'd have to step out of cover. To make matters worse, two sentry guards floated up above, sniping down at her. With the increasing cloud of smoke, deflecting the blasters was getting much more difficult.

Grievous turned back around, eyeing the commotion.

His Magnaguard moved to take over but Grievous growled in response. "Leave it! I'll deal with this child myself." The General began walking forward, cape trailing behind him. Navonod thought quickly and hurled her own lightsaber, using the Force to make the blade spin in the air. The blade sliced through the console on the opposite side of the wall, forcing the door to default to the shut position, much to the dismay of the sentry droid that was caught right under it and severed in two.

Navonod rolled out from the smoke and grabbed her lightsaber, coughing and gasping for fresh air. "Having lightsabers doesn't make you a Jedi, young one," Grievous said with a smirk, reaching into his cape and drawing two.

"Oh? On that, we can agree," Navonod replied, still gasping for air. Her eye's burned and watered, her lungs still feeling the remnants of smoke that she had accidentally inhaled. "Why don't you return those before you hurt yourself?" Navonod asked, gesturing to his lightsabers.

"The Jedi Order must be getting weak indeed if it sends it's worst students after the likes of me."

"You're right, we don't need Padawans for you. Even a protocol droid would be faster than you."

"I think not," Grievous growled, chuckling as he unclasped his cape. He straightened to his full intimidating height, and to make matters worse, unhooked his arms and grabbed the remaining two sabers from his hips, turning all four on at once. "Come, Padawan," he taunted.

Navonod felt a slight twinge of fear. Immediately her eyes darted around the facility, trying to find any form of escape. The door was locked behind her but even so, the droids were cutting through. Besides, even if it was open, there were far too many there for her to simply rush past. Before her, the General himself. And behind him, a similar number of droids, not to mention his two very agile and very dangerous Magnaguard. She wasn't entirely sure she would make it out.

Grievous gave a sinister laugh yet again, throwing Navonod for yet another loop when he began to spin his hands. The sabers in his hands began spinning dangerously, two at his left and right sides, one above him, and one right in front. It was a veritable wall of sabers and Nav wasn't sure she could get through, even if she jumped. Still, she had to try. She reached out with the Force and leapt high over Grievous to give her some space, Force pulling the remaining half of the sentry droid, Grievous was too quick however, and slashed it aside without even looking, while at the same time kicking her hard in the ribs. Navonod let out a cry and was sent careening down the smooth floors. She stood up, and only barely managed to dodge out of the way as Grievous stomped. He was a lot faster than he looked. And his limbs were able to bend and twist in all directions, meaning his only limitation was speed. Even so, his Magnaguard were likely to jump in and protect him at all costs so even if she did get the upperhand somehow, she would have to contend with those two as well. Grievous swung all four of his sabers viciously, and knocked Navonod back further when she tried to block. The narrow hallway made combat difficult as well, as she didn't have the space to walk around him. His sabers were also quite long, meaning that with every swing, at least one of the sabers was cutting into the surrounding walls causing sparks to fly and discombobulate her. Again, Grievous lashed out, savagely kicking her in the gut. He had even gone as far as to put away two of his sabers. His swings were far stronger now, breaking through Navonod's guard with each swipe. She could feel her arms beginning to shake and quiver. She had already overworked herself; she was in no position to take him on.

"Give up, youngling, and I'll make your death a quick one," Grievous smirked. The punishment had been continuing for the better part of ten minutes now. Grievous had long since put away all of his sabers and was taking pleasure in simply beating Navonod senseless. She too, had dropped her sabers and they lay discarded and unlit on the ground. Grievous was holding her up by her neck, and punched her hard in the face before swinging her overhead and slamming her painfully down on the ground.

He laughed again and walked around her, making sure to step on her hand and put all his weight on it before stepping off, causing the Jedi to cry out in pain.

"Give up. Say it. Tell me you quit," Grievous growled menacingly, punctuating each statement with another vicious kick to the gut.

"That's no way to treat a lady," A voice said calmly. Navonod turned her head, looking through the one eye that wasn't swollen shut, and recognized the form of Obi-Wan. However, despite the attempt at humor, his body language said otherwise.

"It's the proper way to treat a Jedi," Grievous replied. Obi-Wan summoned Navonod's lightsabers to him, hooking them on his belt before stepping forward and kneeling down by the Padawan's side. He checked up on her conditioned, clicking his tongue at some of the more serious injuries.

Grievous drew his sabers again this time, ready to use them. Obi-Wan was not an enemy to take easily. The Jedi Master lifted Navonod as carefully as he could, wincing at some of her pained groans.

"Where do you think you're going, Kenobi?"

"Well, you can't fight with a lady in the way. Or a Jedi for that matter," Obi-Wan replied. "I don't want to win just because you tripped."

Grievous growled but nevertheless took a few steps back, if only to give himself some more distance from Obi-Wan. The Jedi Master gently lay her down as best he could by the crates, hooking one of her sabers onto her belt; if for whatever reason she would need a weapon, at least she'd have that. Though in her state, she didn't look like she could even hold her own head up, let alone a lightsaber.

On the other side of the door, Anakin and the rest of the team lay in wait.

"I don't like having to wait here," Anakin growled. Rex nodded but remained silent.

"Master Kenobi might need more time to get Nav into position, that's all," Ahsoka replied, patting Anakin on the shoulder, "besides, the droids are cutting through the door for us, what's the harm in waiting?"

"We could do it faster," Anakin argued, but sighed and nodded, "You're right though. If Grievous still has her when we burst through, the first thing he'll do is kill her. We need to wait."

"Hey! I hear lightsabers in the other side! Hurry! The Jedi must have woken up again!" A droid called out. The others continued to work, with only a few inches left to cut. The tactical droid turned around, scanning the other hallway, which was suspiciously empty.

"You two. Go back to the bridge. And report back to me when you get there," The tactical droid commanded to two battle droids, both of which walked off without a word. So dimwitted were they that they didn't notice the two clones and two Jedi hiding in the shadows.

"We'll be through any second commander!" a droid called out. Anakin nodded to Cody and Rex, who took up positions in the middle of the hallway. Cody threw three grenades into the gathered droids, while Rex aimed with a rocket launcher he'd found stashed away, probably intended for some Separatist planet. The resulting explosion was not only enough to dispatch all droids, but also enough to blow the section of cut door rocketing forward. Obi-Wan, who saw it at the last minute, Leapt backwards brilliantly. Grievous growled and did his best to leap back as well, but it wasn't enough. He took the brunt of the damage, but even so, did his best to push the door to a halt. The Magnaguard leapt in immediately and both did their best to help push the door to a halt. They succeeded, but in that time, Obi-Wan had already grabbed Navonod and had left with the rest of his team back the way they came.

Together, the team rushed back towards the ship, Obi-Wan quickly switching the responsibility of watching Navonod to Cody, who lifted her over his shoulder and continued to shoot. The droids were too many to not warrant as many lightsabers as they could get. The two clones rushed through the docking port and Rex began to prep the ship for takeoff while Cody strapped Navonod into the seat carefully. Not long after, the Jedi rushed in, a few blaster bolts trailing after them.

"Go! Get us out of here!"

"I'm trying, Snips!"

Grievous was not about to let them go so easily however. Although their ship had undocked and was taking off towards the Republic cruiser, Grievous ordered his ship to be turned around so that all guns could target the retreating vessel.

"Blow them out of the sky!" Grievous cried angrily, watching with bated breath from the bridge.

"We can't, General."

"What?!"

"The Jedi disabled our guns. We can't fire."

"Turn us around then, and take us out of here."

"The hyperdrive is still being repaired, sir! It won't be ready for another half hour!"

Grievous let out a loud roar of frustration, angrily smashing the hapless droid to bits. "Foiled again by Kenobi."

The Jedi in question was currently tending to Navonod's wounds, as best he could.

"How's she looking?" Anakin asked, rushing for the cruiser.

"Not good, I'm afraid. The sooner we get her to a medic, the better. I'm afraid the medical droid on board doesn't have the resources needed. I've bandaged her as best I can."

"How did she even run into Grievous in the first place?" Ahsoka wondered aloud. Anakin focused on the flight ahead, unwilling to reply. Obi-Wan knew why but remained silent. He had warned her of how dangerous Grievous was and still she went after him. Still, part of it was his fault. He'd had some reservations about leaving her alone, especially after her cavalier promise. Both were to blame. He had to remember that she was a new Padawan, had never seen the war before. Most, if not all Padawan, tended to overestimate their abilities when they first entered the field. Obi-Wan glanced at the back of Anakin's head as if to reinforce that fact.

"Perhaps the Commander had to hide from approaching droids and ran into him?" Rex suggested with a shrug.

"Or maybe he was looking for her and chased her to the lateral stabilizers?" Cody supplied, pulling out a bandage from his pack for Obi-Wan to use, who graciously accepted it and wrapped her ribs gingerly. They were already turning a motley blue and black.

The group quickly docked their own ship, and a medical unit was on standby.

"Hurry. I've done what I can to help her but she's in grave condition," Obi-Wan said to the medical unit droid, which nodded and ambled off towards the med bay. The Jedi watched it go, hovering stretcher in tow.

Obi-Wan headed up to the bridge, Anakin and Ahsoka not far behind him.

"Admiral, prepare to fire upon the Separatist ship. Anakin, call the Jedi Council. We must inform them that General Grievous is soon to be destroyed."

"With that monster gone, who knows how much easier of a time we'll have with the rest of the droid armies," Ahsoka commented, but as the holo-call was being made, she silenced herself out of respect.

Masters Windu and Plo Koon answered, with the Chancellor alongside them.

"Master Windu, Master Plo, Chancellor," Anakin said, greeting each of his superiors. While the two Jedi Masters simply nodded, Chancellor Palpatine turned to face the young Jedi.

"Ah, Anakin," he said, a hint of relief in his voice, "it's good to see you're safe."

"Thank you, Chancellor. However, I have more good news. General Grievous is currently within firing range and his ships been disabled. We'll be taking him out momentarily," Anakin replied, a smile of pride and victory on his face. The Chancellor's, however, slid off his face.

"Anakin, I'm afraid I must ask you to withdraw that command."

"What? Why?!" Anakin asked, barely able to keep his disbelief in check. The other clones on deck turned as well, looking at the holo-call in disbelief, but quickly getting back to work.

"I'm afraid the other Senators feel that capturing General Grievous alive would be much more useful to the war effort. The knowledge he has is far too valuable."

"You can't be serious," Obi-Wan said, walking into view of the call and stopping beside Anakin, "General Grievous has control over the entire droid army. With him gone, the troops will be left leaderless. Even the best tactical droid couldn't replace him. This is the best—the only—step we can take to end the war sooner."

"Master Kenobi, I would agree with you, and indeed no one wants to see this war end sooner more than I, but the Senators feel that it is possible General Grievous may share the knowledge he knows upon his death. Err…the terminology escapes me."

"A failsafe," Anakin spat, crossing his arms and looking down in dismay, but he was already in agreement. "They're right. We can't afford to risk that. Grievous is almost entirely mechanical, it's completely plausible that he's got some sort of upload device hidden away that'll activate the moment his heart stops beating."

"Yes, I believe that was it," The Chancellor replied, feigning ignorance of the term. It put him in a safe spot in the minds of the present Jedi; from Anakin, he gained sympathy and understanding. After all, there was no way the Chancellor could be controlling Grievous when he didn't even know what a failsafe was. And from the other Jedi, he gained safety in ignorance, for much the same reason. So when Master Windu crossed his arms and pursed his lips in frustration, the Chancellor knew he was in the clear.

"In any case my boy, I'm afraid General Grievous must either be captured alive, or allowed to escape."

Anakin heaved a sigh of aggravation and nodded, gritting his teeth slightly to keep his outburst in check.

"Yes Chancellor. Master Windu, Master Plo," Anakin replied as a goodbye. Before they could finish, he ended the holo-call and ducked his head, breathing heavily.

"Master?" Ahsoka said tentatively.

"It's alright, Anakin. Let's not forget, we've almost entirely disabled his ship. It'll take them far too long to repair it, which will keep Grievous grounded, at least for the foreseeable future. That's a victory in and of itself," Obi-Wan supplied, placing a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder. Anakin grumbled, but let out his pent up frustration in another sigh.

"You're right. Come on, Snips. Let's go check on Nav and get back to our ship. I'm sure there are more missions waiting for us," Anakin commented, walking off. Ahsoka looked back at Obi-Wan, who gave her a comforting nod and mouthed the words 'he'll be fine' to her. Ahsoka sent back a smile and followed after Anakin.

Unfortunately, Navonod was still unconscious after the abuse she'd taken. Though they hung around for as long as they could, Master and Padawan needed to depart.

Navonod didn't awaken for another three days. Obi-Wan came to check on her every day. He had even told Master Shaak Ti what had happened. It was a rude awakening call for the young Padawan. One that she wanted to discuss with Master Kenobi.

"Ah you're awake!" Obi-Wan cried, settling down in the chair beside her bed. Navonod blushed under the veil and fiddled with the hem of the bedsheet.

"Yes, Master," she answered, her voice still a bit strained. Obi-Wan handed a glass of water, which she graciously accepted with a mumble of thanks. He sat back and watched her sip a few times, waiting for her to begin conversation. There was a moment of awkward silence in which both waited for the other to begin. Obi-Wan finally decided to begin.

"So…"

"I screwed up."

"Yes, it was quite the upset."

"I almost ruined the mission."

"Not to mention you almost got yourself killed."

"Grievous was there with a trap."

"Any one of us could have been killed during your rescue."

At this, Navonod finally turned to face Obi-Wan, regarding him with an inquisitive look. "That…doesn't help me feel any better, Master."

"It's not supposed to," Obi-Wan said, sitting back in his chair and resting his ankle on his knee. "We could both sit here and go over all the mistakes you made during the mission," he paused here for effect, "or all the mistakes I made. Or the mistakes Ahsoka made, that Anakin made, that Rex made…you must remember that, in hindsight, everything appears clearer. Remember, we learn by looking back and ahead. Learn from your mistakes," he said gently, leaning closer, his elbows on his knees.

Navonod sighed dejectedly and nodded. It couldn't be helped. Obi-Wan stroked his beard thoughtfully, considering what he knew of her. Master Shaak Ti had mentioned that Navonod tended to be quite hard on herself, especially during failure. It was during these times that humor worked best to get her out of it.

"For example, did I ever tell you about that time when my Master and I were stuck on Tatooine with Senator Amidala? I was a Padawan myself, I had only to take the trials and graduate, and Anakin, well he was just a boy. I remember, the first thing he did when he first arrived on Coruscant…"

For the rest of the evening, Master and Padawan laughed together. It was good for Obi-Wan as well; he hadn't realized just how much stress and tension had built up. It felt good to just let go and laugh. And despite there being a veil between them, he still felt he could trust the Padawan. There were certainly many Jedi in the Order that he would have been happy to work alongside but knew he couldn't trust them as far as he could throw them. Master Pong Krell came to the forefront of his mind.

Obi-Wan finally stood after sharing another hearty laugh with Navonod, who was certainly in much better spirits. "Listen, when you feel up to it, I want you to meditate on today. Don't sink into the what-if's and should-have's. Focus on what happened, as it happened, and what you can take away from it. Come speak to me when you do. But for now…rest."

A/N: I sincerely apologize for my disappearance, folks! I've had quite a few things in the works lately, lots of new projects I started (not just writing ones), and I'd taken a rather serious injury to my hand. That same hand was injured quite a few times before and I was told that I had a 5% chance of it healing normally and that, if it didn't, I'd have to relearn how to do everything—EVERYTHING—with it again. Handwriting, drawing, opening, closing, etc etc.

Thankfully the Force was with me and I have recovered! Back to writing!