When the Rebel Fleet uncloaked in front of the planet the Death Star went into even higher alert.
"What!" Tarkin yelped. "How did they? Where did they come from?"
"There's no record of any ships that size having cloaking devices," Tenebris said intently, eyes focused on the Rebellion as they moved to open confrontation.
Tarkin whirled on his subordinates. "Fire the main weapon," he ordered. "Target their cruisers."
Various personnel on the bridge sprang into action and lights flashed around the room. Suddenly a piercing alarm rang through the station.
"What is wrong?" Tarkin demanded.
"There's something wrong with the main weapon sir," one of the Commanders reported. "It is failing to fire. Contacting engineering now."
"Do," Tarkin said icily, turning back to the viewpoint. "Ready our guns."
"The gunners report issues with their cannons and ammunition Governor," a Lieutenant answered. "They are working on fixing the problem, but until they can ascertain exactly what the problem is we won't be able to fire on the Rebels."
Tarkin turned again, fuming, to the window, to see Rebel fighters swarming towards them.
"Launch TIE fighters," he commanded. "If we are incapacitated then we have to stop the Rebels getting close enough to inflict damage on this superstructure."
"I will assist the pilots," Tenebris announced, sweeping off the bridge without further ado. Tarkin paid him no heed as he returned his attention to the space battle that was beginning to be engaged.
Onboard the Rebel flagship Anakin Skywalker stood at the hologram showing the positions of the various ships, issuing terse orders as he looked over the battle, his long dark cloak pulled over his head. His wife stood by the front viewport with her hood up as well. Dark brown eyes scanned the stars, piercing in their intensity, as she examined the Death Star. Various explosions were already erupting on its surface from where the fighters had been able to strike. But the mass of TIE fighters were already flooding out of the Death Star's hangers to engage the Rebellion, and a few squadrons could be seen peeling off to attack the main Rebel fleet.
"General Kenobi," she called over her shoulder, voice steely.
"Milady," he appeared by her side with barely a whisper of sound. The Jedi of the Council had regained their previous ranks while the rest of the Jedi had been assigned titles depending on their status and abilities.
"Tell," she lowered her voice. "Tell Anakin that its time. He'll understand."
Obi-Wan nodded, a little confused, but made his way back to where his former Padawan stood.
"Anakin," he halted by his side. "The Leader says its time."
Anakin stiffened. "Got it," he replied, before raising his voice. "Master Windu, Master Koon!"
The two named Jedi Masters joined Anakin at the hologram. He looked up at them. "Don't question Masters," he told them. "This is important."
The Jedi exchanged glances and then nodded their acquiescence.
"I need you to pull your hoods over your heads and then take a position around the table," Anakin said calmly. "We're going to send a message."
Windu shot a confused glance at Obi-Wan as he complied. He received no further illumination as Skywalker began outlining his strategy further, gesturing to the map as they examined the blinking lights that represented the fighters swarming around the Death Star.
There was the distinctive sound of a holocam.
Windu whirled to see Ahsoka Tano pointing a camera at them. She shot a grin at him from under her hood and hurried off to plug into a comm station.
"What are you doing?" he demanded of Skywalker in an undertone.
Skywalker looked at him levelly. "You remember what my wife said Master Windu?" he asked. "This is more than a military war. This is a war of propaganda."
"Of course," Obi-Wan agreed.
"Well, the personnel onboard the Death Star are loyal to the Empire to the fault," Anakin explained. "So we're going to broadcast this image on a wide-beam transmission to all the fighters. Hopefully it will reach Tarkin and Tenebris."
"What purpose will that serve?" Master Plo asked.
"Tarkin does not believe in the Jedi's abilities, does not believe that the Force exists and that any Force users should be in control of any part of the galaxy," Padme Skywalker explained from behind them. "It may give him brief pause, but nothing more. It will only make him more determined to defeat us, to prove that the Jedi are not infallible. It will make him angry, and therefore reckless."
"And Darth Tenebris?"
She exchanged a significant glance with her husband, laying a hand on his shoulder. He placed his hand over hers, before returning his glance to the Jedi. "We spent ten years trying to track down any element of Tenebris's past that we could use against him," he explained heavily.
"And we found nothing," Padme supplied. "Until recently, when Mara managed to hack into an Imperial database."
"On a mission with the twins," Anakin continued, picking up the thread of the conversation. "Using a high level clearance code that we had obtained illicitly through a mind-trick days earlier, she discovered…"
"That Tenebris was a child similar to her, although he had not been as fortunate as she," Ahsoka chimed in. "The crew of the Ghost and I had been trying to rescue the Force-Sensitive children that Sidious was targeting for his own nefarious purposes."
"Nefarious?" Anakin asked, amusement filling his face. "Good work Snips."
"Shut up Skyguy, at least I have good vocabulary" she snipped back without even looking at him. "Anyway, we'd managed to rescue quite a few Force-Sensitive younglings, we were in the middle of a rescue when we got a call. Only we made it too late to this planet, that I don't remember the name of now."
"Two of the families had got to the safe house which we set up," Anakin continued. "Kanan and the others got the families out on the Ghost while Ahsoka stayed behind to try and track down what happened."
"By the time I found their house it was a smoking ruin, and there were two adult bodies burnt to a crisp in the wreck. No sign of the youngling," Ahsoka finished, remorse filling her tone. "I didn't even know his name. He was no more than five standard years at the time."
"How did Sidious find about him?" Obi-Wan asked.
"I didn't manage to wipe all of the files on prospective younglings from the Temple archives," Anakin said heavily. "I only missed around 25%, and we've spent twenty years trying to rescue those that we failed to shield from Sidious. The rest of the names I copied over, then erased, and we've been finding them and helping those younglings ever since."
"So Darth Tenebris…" Obi-Wan prompted.
"Would have been a Jedi yes," Padme confirmed. "He knows of the Jedi, and he knows of your abilities, but he is overconfident in his own. To see the Jedi allied with the Rebellion will make him more reckless in his pursuit of us."
"And potentially more stupid," Obi-Wan realised.
Anakin shot him a grin. "Precisely. It's gone?"
"It's gone," Ahsoka confirmed.
"Good," Padme said.
"Commander Skywalker," Anakin said authoritatively over the comm.
"Yes sir."
"You are cleared to begin your run to the trench. May the Force be with you."
In the cockpit of his X-Wing Luke Skywalker inhaled once, twice, running through the Jedi breathing exercises and then spoke into the comm in his helmet. "Sky One, Sky Two, you heard that?"
"Roger that Sky Leader," his twin's voice confirmed. "We'll be right behind you."
"Beginning our approach now," Mara supplied.
The three X-Wings dived towards the surface of the Death Star, weaving around the Rebel and Imperial combatants as they headed down to their final target.
Luke wove easily around the ships, trusting completely in Leia and Mara to watch his back. He could sense the malevolent presence of Tenebris somewhere in the battle above them. They hoped that in the chaos of the battle no-one would notice three X-Wings gunning for the exhaust port.
Leia and Mara formed up on Luke's wings as they delved into the trench.
High in space Darth Tenebris swung around with his wingmen, taking out another X-Wing as he spun in an elaborate motion. Out of the corner of his eye he caught sight of three X-Wings exiting the battle and diving towards the damaged Death Star. The three pilots were clearly experienced and talented, odd therefore that they would be exiting the battle so quickly.
"On me," he barked into his comm. The three TIEs dived after the X-Wings.
On Home One Padme Skywalker caught sight of the three Imperials following her twins and ward and she immediately clicked on the comm.
"Commander Skywalker, you have three Imperials on your tail," she said authoritatively.
"Roger Home One," her son replied. "Alright Sky One and Two let's lock it up."
As they continued their descent to the Death Star, strafing the gun emplacements on the trench to the exhaust port, the three Rebels wove and dodged the laser bolts issuing from the Imperials, causing them to impact and cause further damage on the surface. They weaved around the shots with unnatural pre-cognizance.
Tracking them down to the surface Tenebris grew suspicious of the three pilots proficiency in evading their pursuers and launched a probe through the Force. All three pilots burned brightly, far outshining him in the Force. He almost slowed in his astonishment, but pressed on. At that moment his comm began flashing.
"What is it Tarkin?" he demanded irritably.
To his surprise Tarkin's voice seemed less confident than any other time before that the Sith Lord had known him. "You need to see this Tenebris," he said curtly. "It changes the game."
On a small screen in Tenebris's eyeline below left whatever Tarkin was sending him flicked up. It was a holo of a bridge on a Mon Calamari ship, likely one of the Rebel flagships. In it several figures were gathered around a map showing the battle. But the figures were all in brown robes, not Alliance uniforms, with their hoods over their heads. A glimpse of cream and brown robes could be seen underneath the few cloaks that were facing the holocam. Tenebris felt his heart rate begin to speed up slightly. Jedi. There were Jedi with the Rebels. He sank into the Dark Side, channelling every emotion that his Master had instilled in him about the Jedi, to regain control of himself.
"There are Jedi onboard the Rebel fleet?" he demanded icily. "What concern is that of mine?"
"Because the Jedi could be considered dangerous," Tarkin snapped. "I do not believe in the Jedi's abilities, as you well know. Their vaunted faith in the Light did not prevent the deaths of billions in the Clone Wars. They betrayed their own ideals, abandoning their peacekeeping ideals to fight in the Republic's war."
"What is your point Tarkin?"
"My point, Tenebris," Tarkin replied with annoyance. "Is that if the Jedi have crawled out of wherever they are hiding then the Rebellion has done something significant to persuade them to do so. I am not remotely concerned with the Jedi, but I am newly concerned with this mysterious Leader if he has managed to persuade them to join his fruitless cause."
"I still fail to see what concern this is of mine when I am trying to pursue three Rebel fighters Tarkin," Tenebris snapped again. "Inform Imperial Centre and the Emperor if you are that concerned. In the meantime, kindly allow me to do my job!"
He jabbed at the comm with the Force and focussed back in on his targets.
On board the Death Star Wilhuff Tarkin quickly sent the holo, with a covering page report to Imperial Centre. Although he was in the middle of the battle he knew that the Emperor would want to know of this development in the situation with the Rebellion and the Leader of the Rebellion.
The three rebels swept down into the trench and sped towards the exhaust port. Tenebris and his wingmen followed closely.
"Luke," Leia called warningly over the comm, glancing back to see the TIEs gaining.
"I see them," her twin replied calmly. "I've signalled Han to come in. Mara can you try the manoeuvre we were practising in simulation a few weeks ago?"
"Sure."
They continued speeding down the trench for another hundred metres when Mara decelerated suddenly, flipped and shot one of Tenebris's wingmen. The TIE, that had limited shields, exploded into dozens of pieces of shrapnel, knocking the other two TIEs slightly off path. Mara spun herself back round and slid back into her place on Luke's left wing.
Anakin watched the tiny fighters intently, as they came closer and closer to the exhaust port.
"I don't think they know that there's a weakness there," Padme murmured from beside him. "Otherwise there'd be more TIEs going after the kids."
"You're right, love, of course," her husband replied, eyes moving over the rest of the battle. He ignored the flinches from the Jedi around the table at the unconscious term of endearment. "But we are going to be crippled by this, unless…" his hand went down on the comm suddenly. "Lieutenant Jade, Lieutenant Skywalker," he said crisply. "Peel off and assist Gold Squadron."
The startled voice of his daughter came over the comm. "Yes sir."
The two green dots that represented the two girls flew out of the trench and spun to engage several TIEs at once.
Darth Tenebris watched, startled, as the two Rebel wings peeled off and abandoned their leader! He was still attempting to puzzle this out when laser fire strafed their ships from above. His remaining wingman exploded, slamming into the cavern wall, and knocking him out of the trench. As his fighter spun wildly away from the Death Star he caught sight of the irritating Corellian freighter out of his viewport speeding away from the Death Star, pausing only to take out a few TIE fighters. It almost looked like he was trying to get out of an explosion range…
The Sith Lord began frantically fighting for control of his fighter, desperate to get away from the now inevitable explosion.
"Pull back!" Anakin Skywalker ordered, sending the command to all the Rebel fighters. Beside him Ahsoka Tano began ordering the ships to move into position for the jump to hyperspace. Padme Amidala Skywalker looked out of the bridge viewport, eyes trained on the looming mass of the Death Star.
Behind her the kilometres to the exhaust port ticked down as her son drew near to the exhaust port.
Mara Jade accelerated away from the Death Star, followed by a stream of Rebel fighters.
Luke Skywalker released his proton torpedoes and then sped out of the trench.
The whole galaxy seemed to hold their breath.
And then the Death Star exploded.
AN: Please review!
