"In Need of Wings"

Chapter the Tenth

Ahsoka's heart ached. It felt heavy with grief and loss she had no way of understanding. All she knew was that there were loved ones who had been taken before their time, and the Temple was under attack. Whether the two were connected or one had happened as a result of another, she could only speculate.

There were so many that Ahsoka could not even begin to ponder specific people who had been killed. Or what had happened to Council members like Master Plo Koon, Mace Windu, Yoda, or Obi-Wan. Or Anakin…was he all right? Was he safe? Was he even still alive?

After some time, Ahsoka turned the holovision back on. But as she expected, the media seemed to be as clueless as her. She felt her hands shaking. She finally managed to stop crying and headed to the fresher to wash her face. No point in overthinking and making this worse than it already was. Once she looked somewhat presentable, she found Bane's techno-service droid in the back room and switched it on.

"Pardon my saying this, but you don't look well at all. In fact, you look miserable," said the techno-service droid. He had his hands clasped together as he looked up at Ahsoka, almost thoughtfully.
"Yeah, I know…" she said, no emotion in her tone. The physical ache in her chest was growing. Every minute became more of a burden.

"Can I interest you in some hot tea? Always a healthy solution to a bad day."

She smiled sadly and sat on the edge of the bed. "Bad day, yeah…I can't remember my last good day. But sure. Hot tea sounds fine. Thanks."

The droid hesitated. "I wasn't actually going to make you tea. I only suggested that you have some."

"Oh, okay…?" She stood up to make some hot water. "You know, usually when you say something like that, you're implying you're going to make them the tea?"

"I don't make tea for anyone. I'm not a butler droid!"
"Okay! Sheesh…asshole. You take after your master," Ahsoka muttered.

"Mr. Bane? Oh, I'm nothing like him. I actually listen when people are talking about their feelings, and I pick up after myself."

"Do you lie on purpose and then act like it's your fault they hate you?"

"Of course not! And finally, I don't wear a ridiculous hat to make myself feel better."

"Well, at least you have that much going for you…what was your name again?" Ahsoka filled the teapot with water.

"Todo 360, techno-service droid. And I'll have you know, I have a lot of things going for me, thank you very much."

Ahsoka arched an eyebrow. No surprise where the droid had picked up a chip on his shoulder like that. On the bright side, at least he provided a bit of a distraction…

"All right then, Todo. I'm Ahsoka Tano. Bane may have mentioned me."

"Oh, yes! You're the Togrutan teenager with no respect for her elders, loathsome taste in mainstream music, and a chronic attitude problem."

Ahsoka laughed. So that was how Bane had described her to his little droid. "One of those is right. Figure out which."

Deciding that she enjoyed Todo's company, Ahsoka continued to chat with him while she sipped her tea. She learned about Todo's involvement in Bane's job stealing a Holocron, as well as that infamous day Bane led a posse of bounty hunters to take a group of Senators hostage. She learned of how Bane first found Todo taken apart, stuffed in a crate and left in the dump, before he put the droid back together all on his own…that had been almost seven years ago now. And, Ahsoka told Todo what she could of her own story. But there was little she could tell that did not make her cry even more. And she was done crying for the day.

When the conversation died down, Ahsoka tried to get some sleep. But every time she closed her eyes, the heartbreak and sounds of distress she could sense through the Force jolted her awake. Eventually she gave up and tried meditating to clear her mind. The ache still remained, but she was getting used to it by now.

It wasn't until after her meditation that something dawned on Ahsoka. Something that, as soon as it hit her, left her very unsettled.

Bane said he would be back in a couple hours. Ahsoka remembered what time it had been when he left. That was almost six hours ago now.

Ahsoka rubbed her arms and, of course, could not help but glance out the window, but saw nothing except for the regular traffic. It was the middle of the night.

How had she lost track of the hours like that? Had the sense of loss been enough for her to disassociate from time completely? Had it driven her to that point of madness already?

Bane has never done this sort of thing before. He was always hard on me when I would show up late…so what's going on?

"Something the matter?" Todo asked from behind her.

Ahsoka turned around. "He should have been back by now."

"Unlikely he's in trouble. If he needed assistance, he would have contacted me at once."

"I guess." She shrugged. She supposed, if it came down to it, she could try to sense Bane through the Force to see if he were in any danger. It was a long shot. "Of course, he didn't leave me any way to contact him. Just my luck," she sighed.

Then, suddenly, it hit her. And when it did, Ahsoka couldn't stay standing. She felt sick to her stomach.

What if Bane abandoned me?

What if he decided he didn't want anything to do with me anymore, and just got up and left me here?

The more Ahsoka dwelled on this possibility, the more it seemed to parallel her current reality. Her lingering hopes faded away. Bane would not hesitate to get rid of the apartment, or his techno-service droid. Both could be easily replaced. Or Bane could have been using the droid to distract Ahsoka long enough for his escape…explaining why he told her the droid would keep her company.

Maybe she was finally alone again. All on her own in a strange world that was growing darker with every minute.

In the end, everyone had abandoned her.

Six hours earlier

.

Cad Bane didn't fully comprehend what Skywalker meant at first. Then he repeated what he had heard.

"Bring Tano back to the Temple."

"Alive, but unconscious if necessary. For one million and a half credits," Skywalker finished. "Plus the rest of your payment from your last job."

Bane frowned. "No strings attached?"

"Of course not. After this, you can walk away like none of it ever happened."

The clones had frozen still and it seemed all of them were watching the Duros bounty hunter, anticipating what he was going to do next. Fire burned behind them, ravaging the last of the Jedi Temple.

This was wrong…everything about this was wrong. Out of place, a puzzle. The Jedi Order was gone, the clones had killed so many Jedi. And Skywalker had led them to do it.

Bane realized that now. This was Skywalker's doing.

"Why do you need her back?" Bane questioned, figuring it was safe enough to ask.

"Because…she needs me." Skywalker's expression quickly turned bitter, like Bane had struck a nerve. "Every apprentice needs a master. What's the apprentice without the master? We all need one. Master said so. Master said she needs me and I'm the only one who can make her understand…that this is the only way things can be. She'll be just like me. She'll help me discover the secret, and then she'll share my power with me. And then we'll be happy, forever and ever. Master was right about everything."

"Uh…what?"

One thing was for certain. Anakin Skywalker was not the person Bane once thought he was. Whatever changes had come upon him had stolen the good and the light Bane once saw in him. There was only darkness now. Darkness, and a sick, twisted rage.

If he brought Tano to the Temple, Skywalker would want her to become just like him…become whatever sort of dark, frightening creature who now stood in his place.

For the price of a million and a half credits, little Tano would suffer the same fate.

That stupid half-pint. It's her fault I got dragged into this whole mess. She'll owe me one after this blows over.

"Sorry, but I respectfully decline your proposal."

"Really? You're turning down a million and a half?" Skywalker cocked his head to the side, his lower lip jutting out in a childish pout.

"This is a personal affair I'm already too involved in. Find someone else."

His voice grew soft and sweet, like he were speaking to a youngling. "But that's the whole point. You're the only person who knows exactly where she is."

Oh, no…didn't think of that.

"You don't know that for sure."

"But I can feel it. I can feel that you've been in Ahsoka's company within the past few hours. You've spoken with her recently too." Skywalker stepped closer, extended one hand slowly toward Bane, as if he wanted to touch him. He smiled. "You know where she is. Why don't you just take me to her, or bring her here, so we can get this over with?"

"I said No." Bane stepped back towards the speeder.

With that, Skywalker sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I'm sorry…I thought someone like you would take the job in no time. I thought…with you working for me, it would be so much easier. But we all have breaking points." He clenched his jaw and suddenly snarled at him. "I just hate that!"

Bane startled a bit. "You know what? Forget the rest of my payment. I'm gone."

Skywalker snapped his fingers and the clones moved in, surrounding the speeder in seconds. Bane straightened, balancing his right hand just above his holster, holding his breath. He had been hoping it would not come down to this.

"I'm giving you one more chance to accept the job," Skywalker snapped. "Bring my Padawan to me."

I've got to get out of here. Get off Coruscant. After this I'll probably never come back.

He made his decision in a split second. Bane drew his blaster and shot the clone closest to Skywalker, then the other standing near the speeder. Before Skywalker had given the order to open fire, Bane ignited his rocket boots and accelerated nearly ten feet into the air.

"Dammit, Bane! You never cooperate!"

"Sorry to end business like this, Skywalker!"

"That name doesn't mean anything to me anymore," he laughed wildly. He snapped his fingers at the other clones. "Bring him down, but don't kill him."

Bane shot down at more of them, killing two more clones. The others fired several blasts at him, which he was careful to slip out of just in time. But he knew it was over already. There were too many of them. If he had ever stood a chance, Skywalker would have jumped into the fight already.

As he dodged a blast aimed for his head, another grazed him in the upper back, shattering the metal container holding his breathing tubes together. Another blast struck him in his leg. The rocket boot gave out and Bane felt himself drop down to the ground. He tried landing upright but the impact knocked him over.

That wasn't my most thought out plan, he thought. He blamed seeing the burning Jedi Temple as having distorted his train of thought.

A clone planted his foot on Bane's back, pinning him down. He saw Skywalker—unless that wasn't really his name anymore—walk up to him, then kneel down so Bane could look him in the eye.

"I offered you a million and a half credits, and you turned it down. That's just depressing."

"Like I said, didn't want to get involved in a personal matter."

"Too late. You already are." Mechno fingers squeezed Bane's chin, forcing him to look up. "I'm changing the offer because the last one wasn't good enough for you. This time, in reward for telling me where my Padawan is, I won't kill you."

Bane clenched his fists.

"Nice try. But you can't kill me as long as I know where she is."

"Maybe not. But when this is over, I sure as hell can make you wish you were dead. And by the way, from now on you will address me as Lord Vader." With that, he stood up and nodded at one of the clones, his figure silhouetted as fire engulfed the scene behind him. Then everything turned to black.