Hey guys! So, my plan is to update every Saturday. I have done this for two reasons: to satisfy you readers, and to keep this story from dying half-way through, and just when things get interesting. I got inspired after a 3-day Star Wars: Battlefront II spree with my friends, and I got an idea after watching an old Disney favorite of mine. The Disney thing won't come until later, but I plan to have a bit more emphasis on the other duo in this story who have been stranded together: Anakin and B'dard. I know this whole story is starting to seem really helter-skelter, but trust me, it all will tie together in the end. Enjoy!

CT-07/6734 idly thumbed his blaster. He may have looked bored, but he was nervous. He and CT-99/4111 were sitting in the dead middle of a clearing, thick trees on all sides, and flanked by two hills.

Ordinarily, he would have felt at ease in this situation because birds were singing. On Kamino, his trainer, a tall and particularly emaciated-looking Kaminoan by the name of Ooma Le, had always told him to watch the wildlife because "they will see, hear, or smell the enemy long before you do." That was true in the case of almost any warfare, except this one.

Droids don't trigger the responses in living things that other living things would for several reasons: one, a well built droid is almost soundless, and completely scentless. 07 had heard of the "Chameleon" droids used to attack Ilum that could completely disappear. Two, droids don't give off any electric signals from their body. They are completely insulated. Third: they just aren't alive. Even a brain-dead Vulptreen could tell you that.

So, that fact that the birds were singing like a choir, it was no guarantee that the two clones were not alone.

99 heaved a sigh and shifted his weight. "Well, this is going well. If we don't get sniped, then we'll die of boredom."

07 grunted in response. "After sitting here for three hours, I think that death would be a relief."

"And all this mud is clogging up Daisy Duke!"

There was a pause. "Come again?"

99 shrugged. "Well, since I've been with her so long, I thought it was fitting to give her a name."

07 blinked. "You mean your gun?"

"Yep," he said. "Good ol' Daisy has seen many a battle, and killed twice as many droids."

"And how many droids would that be?"

"Oh, somewhere around eighty."

"That's pathetic. I killed that many on Christophsis!"

"Well, that's only the ones that she's killed! I got at least twenty more with a thermal detonator!"

07 snorted. "That's pathetic! On Teth I saw a bunch of droids Geonosian-transport-ing out of a doorway, so I threw in a TD and guess what? No more droids!"

"You know, 07, that Geonosian transport implies lots of units crammed into a small space, right?"

"…yes…"

"And I know that there couldn't have been that many droids stashed inside that monastery so-"

"SSHHH!"

"Aw, c'mon, just because you think you'll lose in a kill count, you pull rank on me?"

"No, idiot, listen!"

And then 99 heard it. The softest whisper of a gear turning.

His hand flew to his helmet and adjusted the settings. With a magneto-track, he could see three shapes moving stealthily amongst the trees on the valley wall.

Commando droids.

"Do you think we should run?" he whispered to 07.

The latter didn't even give a response, but took to his heels and ran so fast that his helmet might have come off. 99 was soon to follow. That day the two clones ran faster than they ever believed possible.

XXXXX

Anakin Skywalker leaned over a hologram of the valley. True, his plan had been disrupted by the destruction of the bridge, but Anakin was known for his ability to compensate for rapid changes in situation, and this was no exception.

He had planned to stage the attack on the widest part of the plateau, but since he was cut off from there, he had moved the staging area to a wide clearing to the south. It was probably a long disused quarry of some kind, but that was besides the point.

But something was off. He could feel it, but he could not see it.

"I wish Ahsoka were here," he grumbled to himself. "She usually has an eye for this kind of detail."

But Ahsoka was trapped on the plateau with that impudent speck, Codi Ty. He wondered if the two would eventually come to blows after the behavior that the latter had shown; knowing Ahsoka, that was not unlikely.

His musings were interrupted by an approaching B'dard. "What are you worried about Skywalker?"

"Beg pardon, Master?"

"Don't play coy with me. I can sense the anxiety. So, I ask again: What are you worried about?"

Anakin sighed. "It's Ahsoka."

"Padawan problems? At least we have that in common."

Anakin shrugged. "It's not 'problems,' really. I have a very good relationship with my student. It's just…oh, I don't know, I feel…insufficient."

B'dard blinked. "Insufficient? You're the only one I know who can take out twenty battle-droids in as many seconds."

"No, not that way. Ahsoka is progressing through the combat arts like she had been raised on them. I feel like I'm not the best Jedi to have a student."

"I know the feeling. When I was much younger, I took my first Padawan. He was a Duros by the name of Nac Scurr. When he first came to my care, I was terrified that I would be an insufficient teacher. I would lay awake at night for fear that I was raising my pupil to be less than he could be. On some days, I felt that I could be the worst teacher in the world, especially when Nac got owned by the advanced training droids. The next day, I felt like the best teacher in the world when he disarmed Stass Allie in a training exercise." He paused. "Come to think of it, he still won't let her forget it. But that's beside the point. The point is that everyone, Jedi, or teacher, or parent, has days when he feels like he is insufficient. It gets better."

"Have you ever had your Padawan held hostage by a bounty-hunter, who ransomed her life in exchange for opening a Jedi Holocron?"

"No…"

"Or did your Padawan nearly die in a collapsing droid-factory?"

"No…"

"Or, best yet, has your Padawan ever been captured by Trandoshan nut-jobs who hunt people down for sport?"

"Where are you going with this?"

"All of those things happened to my Padawan, and I could prevent none of them!"

"Skywalker, my Padawans were raised in times of peace, so the opportunities for those things to happen to them never came! The fact that your Padawan survived those things just shows that she had enough experience and training., both of which were provided by you."

The young human looked into the Coway's good eye. "Thank you, Master."

"You're welcome Skywalker. I find that counsel is the best way to solve problems."

"GENERAL!"

Anakin spun around to see two clones running Kessell-bent-for-Ysalamir-fur, knocking over a few other clones on their way. He recognized them as Timber and Swift.

"Clones, report!"

They stopped at the holo-table, bent over and holding their knees to catch their breath.

"Sir, (pant, pant) we saw (pant, pant) droid scouts (pant, pant) in the clearing!"

"Did they see you?" Anakin inquired.

Swift removed his ARF helmet to reveal a satisfied smile. "Absolutely."

The Jedi Knight beamed. "Excellent. Go to the mess tent and ask for some Jogan fruit cake. Tell Cookie I sent you."

"Thank you sir," Timber replied, and then he staggered off towards the mess tent, followed by Swift.

B'dard approached his shoulder. "So, what now?"

Anakin crossed his arms over his chest. "Now, we lure the enemy into our trap."

Ooooh! I do love surprises! Next Chapter will involve more Ahsoka/Codi romance, so brace for gooeyness! I hope you enjoyed this one. The next few will describe the battle that Ani and B'dard are about to get embroiled in. See you in a week!