Chapter 15
Anakin and Farra returned to Coruscant. Over the next 5 months they continue to train Ryal sometimes going on missions when needed. If they think it is too dangerous for Ryal they leave him at the temple. Ferus uses these 5 months to develop his dark side powers under the tutelage of Dooku, not letting on that he knows that Dooku is going to die. He also maintains pretence of being a good Jedi. He had become a full Knight not long after Anakin and Farra did. He had not taken a Padawan, as he had not had the desire to do so. Farra and Anakin had told the council about Palpatine but the Council had decided it was too soon to act. Also they knew that when it came down to it that it would be Palpatine's word against that of Farra's so they decided that it would be best to actually catch Palpatine doing something that would prove he was the Sith Lord.
5 months after Farra and Anakin had returned from Dagro they were selected to lead a rescue force of twenty thousand clones to Praesitlyn to rescue those in a communications base there that had been attacked by the Separatists. They landed on the planet in four waves, with Anakin landing in the 3rd wave and Farra in the 4th. Everyone made their way to the command base where they discussed their next moves.
Anakin and Farra were to be battlefield commanders. The battle did not go well for the Republic and the transport Anakin was in was hit on the way out but he and his pilot managed to get out before it blew. Farra and her forces began to try and fight their way through the separatists but the Separatists tapped into the communications center and ordered the shells to keep falling. As the clones were being taken apart by their own artillery the attack had to be called off.
The leaders regrouped and Farra and Anakin were relieved to see that they had both survived unhurt. Farra ruled out another frontal assault when it was suggested as the droids they were fighting were too entrenched. Anakin then suggested they go in and get the hostages and try taking the command center while they were at it. Instead of this being a large operation it would consist of only two shuttles. The shuttles would carry the pilots and several ARC troopers and a contingent of armored clones. Upon landing the clones secured the landing site while the Jedi moved into the buildings. An ARC trooper blew the doors open. Farra and Anakin lead the way in their lightsabers deflecting bolts from the droids who appeared. After fighting their way through numerous droids the two Jedi found the prisoners all in one room.
"Good they are all here" Farra said to Anakin after doing a quick head count.
The two Jedi took out the guard droids and when they were finished doing that, Reija Momen, got up and hugged Anakin. As she did so a droid appeared in the hallway and took a shot at Anakin. Farra moved to deflect it but got hit in the arm. She glared at the droid and promptly destroyed it. Then the Jedi moved the freed prisoners out to the transports and loaded them on. Just as the transports were going to leave Farra noticed that Anakin wasn't with them.
'Ohmigosh Anakin's not here. Where is he' Farra thought looking wildly around.
"Wait we cant' go. Anakin's not here" Farra said urgently.
One of the transports was destroyed because of the wait so the survivors took the other transport and left. Farra had refused to go and went back into the buildings looking for Anakin. She found him moving quickly towards Pors Tonith's bunker.
"What are you doing love? We were waiting for you" Farra said.
"I want to capture Pors Tonith" Anakin said.
Farra followed Anakin as he destroyed the doors to Tonith's bunker and entered the bunker. The two Jedi quickly rounded up Tonith and some technicians whom they took prisoner then left the building. Anakin had wanted to kill Tonith but Farra had reminded him that the Force should only be used for good. The droids around the building had been turned off by one of the technicians under Farra's orders. Anakin had rehooked his lightsaber to his belt but not turned it off so Farra reminded him to do so and he did. Back at the command center the two Jedi learnt that a massive enemy fleet was on the way. They got their fighters and flew up to join the fleet. They managed to breach the fighter screen which was ahead of the larger enemy warships and Anakin destroyed one of the warships by using a missile against its engines. By then the Republic had disrupted the enemy formations enough. Farra ordered the fighters back but Anakin was damaged while leaving. He spoke to Farra via comlink.
"I don't think I will make it love. Don't be sad for me. Continue the fight and destroy Sideous"
Anakin then engaged the Separatist flagship and destroyed it. However he was caught in the blast. Through her tears Farra landed her ship and made here way to where the ground staff were celebrating. The enemy fleet was withdrawing and the ground troops were destroying the remaining droids on the ground.
"Anakin is dead" Farra announced. This sobered the crowd
Suddenly Farra heard a ship landing and turned. It was Anakin's ship. She quickly reached into the Force and discovered that Anakin was still alive. The top of Anakin's ship was fused shut so maintenance droids opened it. Anakin climbed out and he and Farra embraced.
"I thought you were dead love" Farra said.
"I thought I was going to die but I used the Force to enter hyperspace just as the missiles donated on the flagship" Anakin said.
Farra was hugging Anakin and the two just hugged for a while. Then Anakin lifted Farra's head and guided her lips to his and the two kissed hungrily. Farra was holding Anakin close hardly able to believe he was still alive.
"Stars Anakin you really gave me a fright out there. I don't' know what I'd do without you. You are everything to me," Farra said.
"I am glad I survived. I didn't want to leave you alone either" Anakin said.
Farra started to cry then the shock of everything catching up to her. Anakin held her close and comforted her as she let her emotions out.
Back on Coruscant Anakin and Farra resume their training of Ryal. During that time they are asked to find an exploration vehicle that missed a deadline checking in. They find the craft floating adrift in space with signs of recent battle and broadcasting a Jedi distress signal. When they entered the ship they found an old friend of Obi Wan Kenobi's, Quinlan Vos, fighting some kind of attack droids.
"If we get out I'll explain everything" Vos promised
"Lets go" Anakin said.
The four Jedi fought their way out and jumped into a pool to escape an explosion caused by a droid.
"We need to keep moving as Ventress and Skorr are following me," Vos said.
However Ventress had sensed the Jedi and dispatched a group of special attack droids.
On the way to the hanger bay Vos recounted how he'd come to be on the ship. At the same time Ventress's attack droids attacked them. The four Jedi were forced to run right into Ventress., who was bent on capturing torturing and breaking Farra for escaping from her castle previously. Farra and Ventress faced off while Anakin fought with Skorr. Anakin quickly dealt with Skorr, rendering him unconscious then turned to help Farra. Ryal was helping Farra and was making life hard for Ventress. While they fight Ventress tells Farra she will break her.
"This is not what Ky Narec would have wanted of you Ventress" Farra says.
"I don't care what Narec would have wanted"
"You'll never break me," Farra says, blocking yet another blow.
"If I don't break you Ferus will" Ventress warned.
"Ferus won't break me. He's a Jedi" Farra says.
Ventress continues to fight Farra.
'She doesn't realize what Ferus has become or his desire for her' Ventress realizes. Finally the four Jedi escape when Ryal manages to distract Ventress. They leave Ventress and Skorr without transport off the ship. However Ventress takes a ship and follows them back to Coruscant. After Anakin and Farra attended a meeting of the Jedi Council went to go and find Ryal, as they wanted him to do some training. Unfortunately Ryal had gone off with some of his friends from the Temple but had left a hologram for them. Anakin and Farra took the hologram and flew to the industrial section and listened to the message. Ryal told them he'd be home later, apologizing for not being there for training that afternoon. While they were watching the hologram Ventress appeared having followed them. She stole the hologram and told them she'd go and kill Ryal then come and find them both. Anakin and Farra both ignited their lightsabers recognizing Ventress as a serious threat to Ryal. Ventress decided to kill them then kill Ryal and attacked them. In the end they were fighting on some skeletal buildings high above the ground and Anakin managed to entangle Ventress in some electrical cables then suspend her over the edge of the building while the cables were shocking her.
"You wont' kill me. Its not the Jedi way" Ventress sneered.
"Anakin don't. It would be a mistake," Farra said stepping forward.
"Fool" Ventress hissed.
She swung her lightsabers at Farra commenting sarcastically that she liked Farra's new hairstyle and that she wished she'd cut off Farra's head and not her hair. Anakin was afraid that the blows Ventress had aimed at Farra would connect so he let Ventress go, protecting Farra. Ventress falls out of sight.
"Well I guess that's the end of her," Anakin said.
"At least you didn't kill her in anger or simply to kill her," Farra said.
She hugged Anakin then the two went to find Ryal and bring him up to speed on what had happened.
A month later Anakin and Farra are on leave on Naboo when Obi Wan lands his star fighter right next to them while they eat breakfast. Obi Wan tells Anakin he needs his and Farra's help to stop an assassin that Dooku is sending to kill a Corellian merchant. The three Jedi fly to the Maramere system and after they've waited awhile for something to happen a large ship drops out of hyperspace. Anakin spots some Super Destroyer Droids on the hull, that he and Farra quickly blast off, before the three Jedi land in the hanger to investigate. As the Jedi move through the ship they find it littered with bodies then they find the body of a Corellian who is probably the one they are looking for. Bending down for a closer look Anakin spots something in the Corellian's hand. Almost too late he sees it's a thermal detonator. Obi Wan throws him across the room saving him from the explosion.
When the smoke clears Anakin sees Farra stretched out on the floor.
'Sithspawn the explosion got Farra' Anakin thinks
He rushes to her side
'Oh thank the stars. She's just unconscious' Anakin thinks after discovering she is still alive and merely unconscious.
At the same time Anakin realizes they've walked into a trap and that the person who set the trap was Durge. Anakin and Obi Wan battle Durge but every time they think they've beaten him he's back up again with another wisecrack. Finally Obi Wan decides to go and look for Durge's ship leaving Anakin to fight Durge on his own. However Farra who has regained consciousness, joins Anakin. Together the two Jedi fight Durge and with their combined powers are able to defeat Durge. They are forced to kill him knowing he will kill them if they don't. The three Jedi return to Coruscant.
Four months later General Grevious manages to capture Palpatine and the Jedi are asked to rescue him. Anakin and Farra volunteer for the mission and subsequently fly their Jedi Star Fighters up into Coruscant airspace. There they find Grevious ship and fly towards it. Missiles come streaking towards them and the two Jedi have to roll and lead the missiles into one another to avoid being blown up. The return to their course only to be attacked by Buzz Droids. Farra has three land on her fighter and one attacks R3 her astromech droid. Before Farra can do anything R3's top is ripped off rending the droid useless. Farra tries some maneuvers to dislodge the remaining droids but they cling to the hull of her star fighter.
"Move to the right love so I can get a clear shot" Anakin says.
Farra does so and Anakin shoots two of the droids off. Then he flies extremely close to Farra and scrapes his wing along hers dislodging the remaining droid.
Farra approaches the ship only to see that its shields are still up.
"The shields are still up love" she says.
"Sorry about that" Anakin says and fires missiles at the generator, which promptly blows. The shields go down and Farra flies into Grevious' ship. As she is out of control she has no choice but to crash her star fighter. Anakin has followed her in and he makes a more controlled landing. The two Jedi pop the tops of their star fighters and leap out, their lightsabers ignited. They make quick work of the droids in the hanger then head to a computer jack where Artoo plugs in and locates Palpatine. As he is at the top of the ship the two Jedi will have to make their way up. They find an elevator but its not working so Farra asks Artoo to activate the lift. Anakin has cut a hole in the roof with his lightsaber and he leaps up just as the elevator starts to move. Unfortunately the elevator is moving the wrong way so Farra asks Artoo to reverse its direction.
Anakin is left hanging at the entrance of the elevator shaft. Several droids discover him and order him to hand over his weapon. Just then the elevator comes back up the shaft. Anakin leaps to the other side of the shaft then on to the roof of the elevator as it goes past. He rejoins Farra and looks at her with a grin. When the elevator reaches its destination the doors open and the Jedi are met with more droids.
"Drop your weapons" the droids order.
The Jedi make no move to do so.
"I said drop them" the droids repeat.
Anakin and Farra look at each other and then their lightsabers are in their hands and ignited and they are slashing at the droids, reducing them to smoking piles of metal.
Chapter 16