Disclaimer: Still not mine

Chapter 14

Han grinned as his weapons tore through the shields of the X-Wing in front of him, dodging around the fireball as he checked for his next target and how the rest of his squadron was doing. He lived for flying and while personally he held nothing against the Rebellion, his loyalty lay with his General and Prince, the person they had tried to kill. Outright war would never bring Galactic peace and stability, he'd seen that growing up during the Clone Wars. No, either Lord Vader or Prince Luke would have to stage a coupe and ensure an as bloodless as possible take-over. "Seven watch eight, he's got one on his tail."

"I see him." Blade seven, Lieutenant Treviles answered, going to his wing mates' aide.

With his section of sky empty for the moment Han turned his weapons on the trenches, thinning the ground forces to help ensure the General's safety. "Skies are safe." He sent to the Avenger and then saw the landing craft launch on his scope. He looped around and re-engaged the remaining rebel pilots.

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Luke ran from the Sentinel-class shuttle as soon as it touched down, leading his men into the ground battle, lightsaber practically spinning as he deflected enemy fire. The 212th flooded out after him and blaster bolts began flying. Luke was open to the Force to a depth he only ever experienced in combat, moving to defend his men and take down the enemy. Thanks to Solo the ground forces were disorganised and depleted and soon Luke was leading a smaller team into the base itself, splitting up by pairs as they searched for intel.

They entered a corridor and Luke froze as he felt a presence he had felt twice before. He stepped back, making Cody move back with him as Ahsoka Tano and a clone stepped into the hall, it had to be Rex from the reaction he felt from Cody. Luke attached his lightsaber to his belt and inclined his head. "Lady Tano." He greeted.

Ahsoka stared at the teenager before her. He'd added an inch or two in height since the first time they'd met and now wore the uniform of an Imperial General but other than that there wasn't much change. "Your Highness." She gave the same head movement, hands near the hilts of her 'sabers. But as long as he was content to keep this from a fight she would go along with it.

"Thank you for the warning, you saved my life." Luke told her, seeing she was ready to fight if necessary. He glanced at the man at her shoulder and smiled at him. "It is an honour to meet you Captain." He tapped Cody's arm in signal, giving him permission and Cody removed his helmet.

"Cody…Vod?" Rex breathed in shock as he took in the familiar figure. He'd been there when Cody had gained that scar, he'd never forget it. He had always hoped his brother had been spared Order 66, he had looked for him whenever he had the chance amongst the freed men but there had never been any sign of him. He looked older, not as old as he would have if the aging hadn't been stopped. But was he Cody? And then his brother smiled at him and lifted his hand to touch his skull, right where the chip should be.

"It's good to see you Vod." Cody said and that erased all doubt for Rex, Cody was free. But then why stay? He glanced at the young General beside his brother and realised he was looking at the reason, he protected the General's son.

Luke and Ahsoka stayed quiet, letting the brothers speak for the first time in just over fifteen years. She studied the boys Force signature, surprised to find very little sign of the Dark Side at all and she had a feeling she knew exactly what had caused that.

"Why did you warn me?"

Ahsoka stepped closer and he didn't move to attack so she walked close enough to reach out and ruffle the short hair. "Because it was the right thing to do. I know why it was ordered, to destabilise the line of succession and therefore the Empire. Force training or not you are still a youngling and I think we could have worked together against that…."

"Old Fossil?" he offered and she chuckled.

"That works." And was politer than what she had been thinking.

"I could work with you against him, the rest of the rebellion? I don't think I could trust them." He admitted and then they all automatically ducked as the hall shook. His comm beeped and he activated it. "Skywalker."

"General we've taken the Command Centre and are beginning the download."

"Understood." He terminated the call and looked at her. "Guess that intel will be useless."

"Oh?"

"Well won't you tell Command we have it?" He asked curiously.

"Not going to take us in?"

"I don't want to know which of us would win that fight, you have a lot more training than I do."

"We could take you and Cody in."

"But you won't." Luke hesitated, should he say something? But if he came out of exile then the Emperor and even is Father would want him dead. "If you ever want someone to talk about the good old days with you should try the twin suns. Might find an old friend there though he can't leave without being hunted down."

Ahsoka frowned, twin suns…Tatooine. But an old friend? That was too vague to guess from but maybe it would become clear if she went. "Alright."

"Cody." Luke called and his commander nodded.

Cody moved to pull Rex into a brief hug. "Stay safe Vod."

"You could…" Rex sighed. "But you won't. Stay safe Vod." He moved back and saluted, grinning when Cody returned the move before securing his helmet and the two Imperials left.

"Let's get out of here." Ahsoka grabbed her pack and they headed out to get to their ship. She wasn't surprised when the fighters completely ignored them.

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Luke grimaced, curling in on himself slightly as the lightning lashed through his body. He would not let the Emperor know just how much it hurt, he refused to give him the satisfaction. He had decided that despite the fact the mission had incurred few fatalities or injuries in exchange for an entire X-Wing squadron and many ground losses on the Rebels side, not to mention getting all the intel…. because the intel was almost useless the mission was a failure. So, Luke had to pay for that failure as the General in command. He didn't regret it, it was worth it to have Ahsoka as any type of ally.

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Leia and Winter sat on her bed, looking at the various bits of intelligence that were coming in. Winter's incredible memory was being put to use while for Leia it was a lesson on how the Alliance was run. They brought up the battle data and watched as their air forces were wiped out. "Whoever is in charge of Blade Squadron now is good." Winter commented.

"Blade Squadron?"

"General Skywalker's personal squadron. They provide air support whenever he is involved, they are based on the Avenger with him." Winter explained as they watched the sensor data.

"You're right, he's the best pilot I've seen." She admitted softly. "The ground forces never stood a chance." She bit her lip as she watched the brave men and women be bombed with no chance of fighting back. And then the Empires ground forces arrived and they watched as Skywalker himself appeared. "Incredible." She'd never seen just how much damage a lightsaber could cause on the battlefield.

"Interesting…."

"Winter?"

"Look how he moves…. he's protecting his men." She pointed to where the General had just moved, far too fast to be possible, and blocked several shots that would have hit some of his men who were dealing with a threat elsewhere. "He's a good commander, leads from the front, protects his men…...likely they are fanatically loyal to him, despite his young age."

"If only he was on our side." Leia murmured, watching him fight and unable to help feeling admiration for his skills.

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Obi-Wan opened the door to his hut and froze in shock, it wasn't possible… "Ahsoka?"

"It's good to see you too." She offered, shocked by how much her second Master had aged. She hadn't expected him when she'd followed Luke's directions to the planet. But as soon as she'd hit atmo she had felt him, despite his shields.

Obi-Wan looked her over, taking in how much she had grown since he'd last seen her during the mass of a trial and then he looked beyond her and stumbled back in alarm, eyes wide.

Rex saw his reaction and felt a surge of grief. What had his brothers done that day to make him react like that? He quickly un-holstered his blasters and put them on the sand, stepping away from them even though he didn't like doing it. He raised his hands in surrender. "I won't hurt you sir, I'm not a threat."

"Rex?" Obi-Wan asked as he focused past the fact he was a clone, but that name brought back so many memories, memories that hurt so much now.

"Yes Sir. I'm free sir, I don't have a chip."

"Rex is right, he's safe. Saved me when the Order went live and the others turned on me." Ahsoka broke in.

Obi-Wan looked between them and then stepped back into the hut and they followed him. Rex brought his blasters inside but left them by the door. "Water?" The old Jedi asked.

"Thank you." She flashed him a smile and he handed out the mugs and sat down, knowing he was staring at them but unable to help it.

"How did you find me?"

"Luke Skywalker." She answered and Obi-Wan leant forward.

"You've seen Luke? Is he alright?"

"Physically healthy." She assured him. "And not a Sith."

Obi-Wan relaxed back into his chair, relieved to hear it from someone else, it wasn't just him deluding himself that he hadn't lost his last Padawan. But then something Rex had said…. "What did you mean by chip?"

"It's a long story Sir." Rex admitted, sipping the water. "What happened to you when the Order went live?"

"I'd just finished off Grievous on Utapau. Cody gave me my dropped lightsaber and I took off to get to the upper levels. I was half way up the cliff when the Force screamed, then I was in free fall. Thankfully there was water beneath me. When I came up Cody was there with several other clones but…. he didn't sound or feel like Cody, he felt blank." He finished softly, it still hurt to know his trusted Commander had tried to kill him. He had trusted Cody more than any other non-Jedi he knew. How many times had Cody carried him to his bunk when he fell asleep at his desk, without him waking because he instinctively knew and trusted the man?

"Cody had no choice Obi-Wan, he literally couldn't even think of disobeying the Order. As soon as he received it he stopped being Cody and became a living droid. All clones had chips in them that were hard wired with certain orders. Thankfully Rex followed up on Fives' information and had his removed or I'd be dead." Ahsoka explained.

"I know my brother Sir, knowing what he tried to do to you...I think Skywalker told him you're still alive."

Told him… "Cody is alive?" Obi-Wan hardly dared to believe it.

"He leads the 212th under General Skywalker." Rex answered immediately. "He's free Sir, his chip was removed. I spoke with him and he is Cody. He stays to protect the boy."

"He would…." Obi-Wan closed his eyes, hiding his relief. Cody hadn't willingly turned on him, none of their men had. How many Jedi had died thinking their men had betrayed them? And to know he was with Luke was a great relief, other than the man in his hut he could think of no one better to protect the boy.

"Obi-Wan, how did he know to send me here to find you?" Ahsoka leant forward and Obi-Wan looked at her.

"Because his Aunt and Uncle live not far from here. Vader made it clear that I should return to exile here if I wished to keep living. His gratitude for my keeping Luke alive and safe for thirteen years only went that far."

"You taught Luke."

"I did, although not for very long before Vader caught us. His Uncle would not allow me to teach him while we lived here. Luke sends me messages when he can, we've only spoken once via hologram though, too much encryption is needed." He smiled slightly.

Ahsoka watched him and felt so sorry for him. He had lost both of his Padawan to the Emperor, even if the boy had yet to turn. He had lost his brother, his commander, everyone he knew… he clung to Luke's messages in a way he once would have spoken against. It was quite possible he wasn't entirely sane anymore, not that she'd blame him. "Obi-Wan?"

"Yes Ahsoka?"

"What happened? How…how did my Skyguy become that thing?"

"I don't know it all, I was off planet after all." He stood and went to make some food. "I think it started with Dooku's death. A fight I missed due to being unconscious and I never saw the body since it was destroyed in the crash. We were recalled to rescue the Chancellor and then kept on planet, I believe to keep Anakin close. Anakin… something unsettled him but he would not tell me. I even went to Padme and asked her to help him, I didn't realise she was pregnant then although I knew they were together. Everything just…. the Council was scrambling to keep things together but nothing had been right since your trial. I know a group of Masters went to confront Palpatine and that was the night the Temple was attacked…by Vader and the 501st. I used Padme to find him later, we found him on Mustafar. He attacked her Ahsoka, Anakin would never have Force choked Padme." He pleaded and Ahsoka fought down her own disgust, Skyguy would have died for her. "We fought, I don't know how long but in the end, I had the high ground but he wouldn't listen."

"You aimed to bisect?"

He nodded. "But he managed more height than I'd imagined. All of his limbs are now prosthetic. I tried to walk away, he was yelling…I couldn't do it, I pulled him away from the edge and I begged." He swallowed, looking away. "I begged him to come back for Padme and the baby and I was getting through to him but then I had to deflect blaster fire and he… he pushed me back towards Padme. I thought…. but he was making me leave him to save her…" Why hadn't he realised that at the time? "I got Padme on board her ship and left. She died in childbirth but lived long enough to name her son. To keep him safe I brought him here to his Aunt and Uncle."

Ahsoka and Rex listened carefully as he practically rambled, obviously still pained by what had happened. "He would have always chosen her safety over his own. He knew Sidious wanted him so the troopers wouldn't hurt him." Who knows what their orders for her would have been? "You did what you had to Obi-Wan." She assured him. What had happened to her always sure and confident second master to have him second guessing so much. Even if he would leave Tatooine and his exile, risk his life in the fight… how much help would he be now?

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Luke fought the urge to fidget as he stood just below his Father on the stairs leading to the Throne. Why had they had to be back on planet just in time for the start of the Senate? He knew he needed to be see more, get involved in politics but he was fifteen! He felt the slight chiding come from his Father and forced himself to pay attention as any new Senators were introduced before finally the formality ended and the mingling began. Of course, he had to find himself facing Bail Organa but he gave a slight bow to the Viceroy of Alderaan and the man bowed in return.

"It is an honour to finally meet you Highness. I hope you enjoyed your time on our planet?"

"It was very peaceful and beautiful Senator."

"I hope you know you are welcome any time you wish to enjoy the peace. I know I often need it after a gruelling Senate session." He smiled and moved on and Luke found himself pulled into a conversation on ship design with two other Senators.

Bail watched the boy and bit back an amused grin. It appeared he detested politics as much as his Father did. Though it would be interesting to see if he had inherited any of his Mother's skills in that area. How much good could he have done for the Alliance if Vader hadn't found him?

TBC….