I took note of a review somebody wrote of starting a series that would explain Anakin's training days. I'll be starting that series and a Clone Wars Series after writing Episode II.
Looks like I have a lot of work for you boys and girls :)
Anakin and Obi-Wan are on their way with a minimum of a backpack of toiletries and extra clothes going towards a shuttle stop point for the temple. The same class of shuttle Anakin remembers from his first days on Coruscant lands folding its wings to land and deploy its ramp for the Jedi. They enter the shuttle awaiting for take off and as any slow day at the temple went, they were the only ones aboard with the pilot as they took off. You could see Anakin was having a hard time focusing, his appearance is that of a teenager first entering college.
"Anakin, it's not going to be that bad."
He sighs rubbing his hand through his hair catching a handful of sweat, "Master, I trust your judgement."
And it dawns on the Jedi Knight that Anakin wasn't equipped with the years of experience, endurance or the persuasion to keep in the light. Anakin could be corrupted as far as Obi-Wan realizes so he sighs regretting.
"If I could exchange Senators, would that appease you Anakin?" He asks with an obvious touch of concern in his usually stern tone.
The Padawan contemplates then he says, "That won't be necessary, but could we please stay together?"
The Knight nods in agreement, "We will stay together, I promise. Anakin, just think, Qui-Gon would be proud how far you came."
"How are you coping with that?"
"Excuse me?"
"I mean, how do you handle the situation, for losing someone?"
The Jedi catches the question's meaning and answers, "As Jedi, we're expected to keep our emotions under control, however that doesn't stop us from having them. My best answer is meditation."
"So there's no action we can take?"
"Sometimes we'll be placed where we feel action is necessary when in fact we sometimes need to slow the engines and observe the course. See our coordinates if you will."
"That makes a lot of sense."
"So now, let us meditate for the short time we have."
And the room goes down silent as the two go silent and focus their energies for the Force., nothing else mattering, nothing else even being sensed, just emotions being focused upon.
Meanwhile in the outer rim, a green arrow shaped starfighter exits hyper space, abandoning its ring to fly towards a grey, blue orb looking more like an atom than a planet with lightning almost at every surface.
"Yeah, R5, this is it." He replies to some beeps of uncertainty.
He guides the ship to a much clearer part of the planet surface then meeting with a blockade of clouds then shortly after an endless dark ocean with waves acting like wild mares. Stratus had to steer away from an incoming wave.
"How does one inhabit this planet?"
He sees red lights I'm the distance that seem to be the answer as he flies closer until he receives an incoming message, "Unidentified craft, leave the area or we will open fire!"
The voice is familiar, but he decides against using familiarity, "This is Jedi Master Stratus, I am here to investigate."
The voice replies more harshly, "Leave now or we're shooting!"
The Jedi says nothing and moments later red blaster fire whiz past his cockpit. He pulls the fighter away to meet with more blaster fire trailing behind him. He barrel rolls and dodges the trail of straight beamed lasers, but could only maneuver so much before he ran out of ideas and ultimately get obliterated. "R5 prepare the front shields."
He sees an incoming wave and immediately he hits the thrusters, using a bit of the Force to support his action and with a big splash and a disruption of bubbles the fighter dove into the wave. The pursuing fighter flew around the wave and investigated the area further. A spot light was turned on when the pilot receives an order, "The man panicked. Turn that thing off and move along!"
And with compliance the ship flew towards the red lights. Fathoms deeper into the ocean, the green fighter still moved forward as it uses propellers to move towards the red lights even under water. The ship gets close enough to rise to the surface to calmer waters surrounding a large tower rising up to support a large metallic platform. Stratus looks up whistling at the sheer size of the platform and other surrounding platforms.
"By the Force, R5, it's a city! I want you too keep careful watch over the ship."
The droid beeps compliantly as it attaches the ship to the tower base using nylon wire. Stratus meanwhile uses a grapple to hoist himself up the tower. Once reaching a maintenance ladder, he climbs up when he reminisces back to his days exploring the sewers of Coruscant. It's amazing how far he's came after a handful of centuries being a Jedi Scholar, now he was doing a Knight's work. He climbs up onto a platform and hides behind a crate when he hears marching. The men are clad in white armor when they stop. The leading Sergeant asks, "Did you hear anything?"
Another Sergeant among the ranks replies, "Negative."
The leading troop stands at attention once more and orders the troops forward causing slow rhythmic steps. Stratus looks over at the shrinking formation and he scratches his scaley chin thinking, "Those soldiers sound familiar too. Maybe they're all from Concord Dawn. Maybe mercenaries..." The Jedi turns towards a large metallic spire and runs towards it with speed enhanced by the Force as no cover was provided throughout the catwalks connecting the rain flooded platforms. He presses himself against the wall looking through the glass door peering around the corner. Nobody was there, so he approaches the out hisses open. Contrasting the dark, dreary background a fluorescent white light blinds him. After his eyes adjust he realizes the whole room is florescent white and unnaturally sterile.
"Whoever lives here certainly has a mind for germs."
He carefully treads through the halls and sees another catwalk, except that it lead indoors and its surrounded by glass like a bubble. He walks in to observe a large room with large towers and complexes of what appeared to be jars. He then looks closer at the jars moving towards the skyscraper sized towers and these jars contained human beings with a hose like device attached to their stomachs like an umbilical cord. He looks, very disturbed at the site before him, millions, perhaps billions of these living beings contained. What were they doing with jarred human children looking similar to one another? He proceeds deciding best to see more of this complex. He notices this hall must have been a maintenance entry as he saw others occupied by Kaminoans, long necked humanoid creatures with large black eyes and almost as revolting as a Nemoidian if not worse. Them being worse due to their known hostile xenophobia thus explaining the absence of Kamino from the Galactic Republic. The beings across do not notice him as they're busy inspecting their portion of the jarred infants. He then proceeds even further down the hall to witness more disturbing things. He sees men in blue tunics combating each other, but if you look closer they were the exact person and surrounding them were also the exact same men surrounding them in a mob. And next to that group was a formation of what appeared to be clones of the same man fighting synchronized while one man different from the rest appears to be their instructor. Stratus proceeds down only to see more armored troops like he encountered earlier, but in battalion sized masses marching with their rifles leaning on their shoulders with a troop in red striped armor contrasting the plain white armor of the mass. The T-shaped visors made them look like an army of Mandolorians preparing for war. Master Stratus could assume that these soldiers probably were clones and those babies are probably hatched into soldiers like what this Jedi just witnessed.
"I have to inform the Council!"
Suddenly he hears voices and he quickly crawls into the lowest vent on the wall.
One voice sounded like the soldiers he encountered, "I assure you, Viceroy there's nothing wrong with my genes."
"It's not the genes I worry about, it's about the process! And I don't want Dooku knowing about this until the time comes."
"As far as the Count is tracking, I'm a mercenary hired as a body guard."
The slimy being cackles in his Nemoidian accent, "Good, good. I think I almost forgive you, Fett."
"You can save the sentiment for my pay check."
"That will come once they're processed for service."
The voices grow further away and Stratus crawls out thinking how he'll follow his target of information without alerting everyone in this unwelcoming city.
Viceroy Gunray purchasing clones from Jango Fett? Does Count Dooku really know?
Stay tuned...