Jenoria said nothing as they waited for the gunship to arrive and didn't move at all when it finally did. Mona lifted her off her knees and back onto her feet, then walked her to the gunship. She had to turn her around to keep her from walking right out the other end.
"Master..." Jenoria murmured as Mona turned to return to the Shadow Runner.
The ride to the cruiser was dead silent. None of the clones said a thing, out of respect for the child. Rex eyed the girl with concern. Anakin and the 501st had been with her every step of the way since her father left, to the point where Anakin was essentially her second father, and now a big part of that was gone.
Vixen was just as concerned for her best friend as Rex was, though she lacked the prior knowledge Rex had.
Jenoria regained the ability to move on her own when the gunship docked in the cruiser's hanger. The blast doors opened and Jenoria started walking.
"Jenoria?" Vixen called.
"M-hm," Jenoria half responded.
"I think you should know-"
"M-hm,"
"-that we're here for you-"
"M-hm,"
"-if you need anything."
"M-hm," Jenoria entered a hall as doors closed behind her.
Vixen stared at the door, letting out a concerned whine.
"Don't worry," Rex said as he approached the Padawan, "she's one of the strongest Jedi I know. She'll recover, she just needs time."
...
Jenoria stood in the hall, her expression vacant.
'I should've been there,' she thought, 'I could've helped him,' she clenched her fists as tears welled in her eyes, 'I could've done something!' She punched the wall with her full force, causing the entire cruiser to tilt. She dropped to her knees, crying, not through sorrow, but frustration. 'I couldn't do anything.'
"Don't beat yourself up," a voice called to her.
Jenoria looked up and around, trying to find the source.
"Who's there?" She asked.
She received no response. She closed her eyes, trying to reach out through the Force, but found that she couldn't go beyond the cruiser. It was as if there was some kind of barrier preventing her from reaching any farther. Out of instinct, she reached back and grabbed her Lightsaber. She held it at the ready, keeping her guard up. She looked at every doorway, expecting a Sith to walk through any one of them. All at once, the cruiser shook furiously. Jenoria turned around, looking out the window in time to see the light fade. A ship just shot past their fleet at light speed. It was a good thing the fleet had a different trajectory, otherwise the ship might've destroyed them, and itself. Only one question remained at this point, with little else to be done, who's ship was it?
...
On Coruscant, Ahsoka Tano scavenged the abandoned Jedi Temple, not wanting anything to fall into Sith hands. As she sifted through the archives, she felt something strange. It wasn't a disturbance in the Force, more like a distortion. Without hesitation, she used the Force to call an abandoned temple guard Lightsaber. Just as it reached her hand, the doors to the restricted section slammed open. A female figure wearing large, bulky bracers and a helmet harkening back to the days of the Old Republic walked through the doorway, twirling two Sith holocrons in the air above her hand.
"Ahsoka Tano," The woman addressed her, "I trust these are what you're looking for?"
"Who are you?" Ahsoka asked, taking a defensive stance and activating the Lightsaber, "Why are you here?"
"My name is of no concern to you," the woman called the holocrons into her hand and effortlessly crushed them, "just know that my master wishes to speak with you."
"I don't make deals with Sith." Ahsoka prepared herself for a fight.
"I assure you, we aren't Sith," the bracer on her left arm started clicking as it revolved around her arm, "but if you plan on resisting," it stopped and ejected a Lightsaber into her hand, "so be it."
The woman charged at Ahsoka, activating the emerald green blade of the Lightsaber. Ahsoka sidestepped and attempted to strike with the reverse blade, only to have it blocked. Ahsoka realized how outclassed she was as is, this double bladed saber wasn't any good in the hands of someone who had never trained with them. She retreated away from the archives, using the Force to call whatever Lightsaber was no doubt at the ready in her opponents right bracer as she did. She deactivated one of the blades on the guard saber as the new saber reached her other hand, which activated to reveal a Sith's red blade. Even with a second saber, Ahsoka was pushed back, forced onto the defensive, as her opponent pushed her closer to the main entrance to the temple. Ahsoka attempted to use the Force to her advantage again, but whatever distortion her opponent was emanating now encompassed them both, somehow cutting her off from the Force. Her opponent didn't seem to have that problem. Once they reached the entrance, she Force Pushed Ahsoka over the temple steps, yanking the Lightsabers from her hands as she flew. Ahsoka braced herself for the inevitable crash, but it didn't come. Something, or someone, was keeping her suspended in the air.
"You have a lot of potential," a man's voice sounded as Ahsoka was turned around. She faced a man in full Old Republic armor, "If you wish to avenge those you have lost, I implore you to allow me to teach you the true power of the Force."
"What are you talking about?"
"The Light and Dark sides are nothing more than illusions believed to be fact by the Jedi and Sith. I intend to show the galaxy the truth. So please, join my New Order, I beg you. Do not make me kill you."
"This one's stubborn master," the woman called as she descended the steps, "it'll take more than words to convince her."
"Very well," the man reached up and cupped Ahsoka's cheek. All at once, she lost consciousness.
...
With a new faction in the war, how soon can it truly end?