The loading process had already begun when Ahsoka approached the hidden shuttle bay behind Coran's warehouse, the red sun nearly cresting over Mali-Zanai's skyline. Coran was standing nearby a sizable shuttle as hovercrates were loaded into the back hatch by various species under his employ. Ahsoka caught his eye, but he didn't acknowledge her. She pulled her hood up around her face to cover her features as she went to work sliding the crates of contraband onboard. The mercenaries didn't appear to notice or care about her presence; she was just another hired hand working under Coran as far as they were concerned.

A burly-looking human took the crate out of her hands. "Make sure our pilot is prepped, Togruta," he ordered. She figured her anonymity was better than having her name thrown around. She would have to think of a pseudonym to go by when they got to Mandalore. Or didn't, she reminded herself. Ahsoka knew somewhere in Neelo's junkyard Harena was firing up the repaired fighter, awaiting the signal for Ahsoka's retrieval. The comm on her wrist slowly blinked green, meaning connection was established.

Ahsoka walked through a seating area to the front of the shuttle, where the cockpit was closed off by a heavy door. She knocked once.

The door slid open. Ahsoka prepared to step inside, but there was someone blocking her. "Just checking if you were ready," Ahsoka said quickly, turning her face away. She felt the person studying her. Something warm and familiar reached out for her in the force.

"Padawan Tano?" A small voice said. A chill went down Ahsoka's spine. She looked up.

A dark-skinned Tholothian girl stood in the doorway, clad in dark, tough-looking leathers. There was a lightsaber clipped to her belt. Ahsoka had seen that lightsaber before; she had been present when it was first built. Were togruta able to go pale, she would have. "Katooni," Ahsoka's eyes widened. The girl had to have been thirteen or fourteen by now. How long had it been since Ilum?

Katooni stepped aside, her shock still apparent on her face. Ahsoka stepped into the cockpit of the ship and the door closed behind her. The two practically collapsed into a hug. Ahsoka could feel Katooni clinging desperately to her robe. Ahsoka held tightly as the smaller girl broke down in her arms, the weight of finding a familiar face in the galaxy crashing down around them.

"I thought," Katooni cried into her chest. "I thought, we were all..."

"Shh," Ahsoka whispered tenderly, stroking her head. She could feel the raging emotions within her former student's frame; relief and sadness, hope and fear. There was nothing Ahsoka could do for her but share in her pain as she felt everything all at once. She held the child even closer to her chest.

"How did you get here, Katooni?" Ahsoka whispered. "What happened to you?"

Katooni wiped her face with a hand, letting it rest there. Her eyes were closed, but the tears continued to streak down her cheeks. "After you left," she sobbed, trying to recount as best she could, "We all took masters. I was out on an escort mission with my master when everything... everything happened."

"Have you heard from any of the others?" Ahsoka took her by the shoulders gently. "Gungi? Petro?"

Katooni shook her head sadly. "Zatt and Byph were at the temple when it was attacked. Gungi went back to Kashyyyk. I don't know where Petro or Ganodi wound up. I didn't know what to do when the soldiers killed my master." Fresh tears began to flow. "I ran, Ahsoka. We were – we were taught never to run away," she choked. "I left her. I-I ran!"

"Katooni, its not your fault. You got away. You're here now," Ahsoka said quietly, hoping to help calm her. "Your master would have wanted you to live."

"I-I... I left her..."

Ahsoka pulled her into her chest again. The emotions would keep flooding her until she wore herself out. Ahsoka could feel everything she felt, but something else began to leak its way in on the very edge of her mind's eye – anger stained the force black around her. Resentment. Hatred. Ahsoka knew Katooni could feel her anger through the force, but for once in her lifetime she allowed herself to feel it in it's entirety. One thought resounded in her mind: How dare the empire put a child through this.

"Ahsoka," Katooni said quietly. There was a fear in the small voice that caused Ahsoka's anger to falter for a moment. Ahsoka looked down at her as she remembered years of training. The pounding in her ears lessened, the explosion of white-hot rage was lost to the moment. She was shaking.

"I'm sorry," Ahsoka broke away, wrapping her arms around herself. When she looked at Katooni she could see herself at fourteen, a padawan-turned-soldier thrust into the heat of war. It hadn't been fair. It wasn't fair to either of them. Katooni didn't deserve a lifetime of running, she deserved a childhood. Ahsoka couldn't be sure what she herself deserved.

Katooni put a hand on her shoulder. Her eyes were puffy and red with tears and her cheeks were stained, but she had the composure of someone who had survived through a lifetime of hardships. "You got away, Ahsoka," she echoed. "You're here now. There might be even more of us."

Ahsoka nodded, wiping her tears away. Despite the emotions she was feeling, a glimmer could still be found within the darkness of the Force.

Hope.

Someone banged on the door, starting them both. "Konna, we're done back here."

Katooni wiped her eyes again. "Prepped and ready," she called back, her voice still shaky. Whoever was on the other side of the door didn't seem affected by the emotion. They left.

"Ready," Ahsoka nodded. "Thank you, Katooni. It's... it's so good to see you."

"I'm so glad you're okay," Katooni nodded. "We'll talk more after we land. Ahsoka," She hesitated for a moment, then whispered a final sendoff.

"May the force be with you."

Ahsoka had not heard that phrase in years. It was a welcome warmth in an otherwise cold galaxy.

"May the Force be with you, Katooni."

The door opened. Ahsoka exited.

A sinking feeling settled into Ahsoka's stomach as she took a seat in the passenger area among the mercenaries. Her deal with Neelo still stood. Destroy the ship and everyone inside.

Her eyes narrowed as she steeled herself. Change of plans, Neelo, she thought.

The shuttle was scheduled to travel between the Mani-Galea system and Mandalore proper, a trip that generally took between two to four hours depending on the hyperspace lanes. Ahsoka could tell Katooni – or rather, Konna, as the mercenaries knew her – had become quite the skilled pilot since leaving the order. Astrogation had always fascinated her during training, she recalled. Coran must have found having a single jedi on hand useful even if she was a child, especially one willing to fly his ships. Ahsoka was certain Konna was nowhere near as impudent as she could be.

"Hey girly," a Trandoshan leaned over the back of her seat, attempting to make conversation. His breath was like rotten meat. "We've got a long trip ahead of us, we might want to get to know each other," he hissed. Ahsoka's skin crawled.

"What do they call you," the lizard-man continued, ignoring her obvious discomfort.

"Tired," Ahsoka snapped, "and annoyed. In fact," she subtly raised a hand, "I think you would prefer sitting alone for the trip."

The Trandoshan considered this. "I think I would prefer sitting alone for the trip," He hissed as he rose and walked to the back of the shuttle's seating area, putting several rows between him and the other mercenaries.

Ahsoka sunk back into her seat. If only they all were so weak-willed.

The mercenaries talked amongst themselves for the majority of the trip, but Ahsoka refrained from making any commentary. Instead she pulled her legs up under herself and began a quiet meditation, focusing her energies inward.

She had never been good at meditating. Anakin hadn't been an expert of meditation either, but he knew enough to stress its importance in times of need. She had spent a good portion of time on Coruscant meditating before the empire took over. It was significantly harder to focus when a target was painted on your back.

The Force reached out for her, enveloping her form like a warm bath. The ship fell away around her sense by sense. The sound of the engines dulled to nothingness, the slight shake of the cabin becoming imperceptible. She was floating in darkness.

She could feel Katooni ahead in the cockpit, her own energies focusing. She seemed to have kept up her training. Far beyond but rapidly approaching she could feel a darkness; Mandalore loomed in her vision, its surface almost pure white. She could remember the feel of its gravity on her shoulders as her troops formed a defensive line against the Death Watch; the smell of its dirt as their walkers kicked up dust storms in their wake. She could see Bo-Katan and the Nite Owls she led in the charge; she could see Rex and the 501st as they fought against unseen enemies. Her memory quickly turned to a burst of red and green as she clashed with Maul. Power exuded from him in her recollection, his face was nothing more than a red pattern in the shadows.

Mandalore is lost, Lady Tano, His voice taunted. The Duchess is dead. Your siege may usurp me, but it is for naught.

Her heartrate quickened. As Maul overpowered her she was pushed back, the bodies of clone troopers littering the royal palace of Sundari. She could see Rex facedown, his weapons scattered. Bo-Katan's helmet rolled at her feet, the head still inside. It seemed as if Maul was weilding a dozen lightsabers at once. Ahsoka stepped backwards over a body; it was Anakin's.

Now you return to me, Maul whispered. So that you may witness the results of your failure firsthand.

Fires began burning in the capital city. As she watched, the massive planet became engulfed in flames and crumbled into dust.

As she was distracted, Maul stabbed her in the stomach. She felt her insides begin to melt under the heat of his lightsabers. He wrenched. She let out a single gasp as the red blades pulled her apart at the waist.

Her eyes opened with a snap just before the ship exited hyperspace. Sweat was dripping down her face, her heart was racing in her chest. She watched from the shuttle's small windows as the soft blue of hyperspace faded away. Ahead, the planet of Mandalore loomed.