Merry Christmas everyone. I hope you like the gift.

Big thanks to Firehawk1100 for being my beta for this chapter.

The Clash

Coquer had his eyes closed, leaning on the holotable that displayed Dantooine and the current status of the tug-of-war he was in.

In little under two weeks, he was able to flip what was once thought to be a total defeat into a grueling stalemate where both sides needed to fight tooth and nail to gain territory. He had thought if he made the battle too costly then the Republic would retreat, not wanting to waste good men and supplies for a planet that had no importance. He was wrong.

The GAR probably thought if they backed down now, they would lose face, admitting that the entire campaign was entirely worthless and the lives lost were for nothing. His government wouldn't hesitate either, sinking their teeth into the ripe fruit that lay before it, immediately issuing a smear campaign and publishing it throughout the HoloNet. It also wouldn't inspire confidence among those whose allegiance was still with the Republic. Systems would break ties in groves and join the Confederacy, bolstering their numbers and territory they held.

Those thoughts were neither here nor there, though. He had to think of the now, and the decision that lay before him.

He and his enemy were locked into a painstaking stalemate, with one side gaining an inch of land one day and then losing it the next. Both sides had suffered severe casualties, with his forces being marginally less than the Republic. It was good fortune that the majority of the droids that were lost in battle weren't of his fleet, but under the command of the tactical droid that was assigned to take the planet. He didn't wish for his droids to lose their lives on a planet that didn't matter.

This lead Coquer to his current predicament. The scale needed an extra ounce of weight to tip it in either's favor, crashing the other into oblivion. One decisive strike was all that separated him between total annihilation and the delectable taste of victory.

"What is the latest report on the Republic's movement?" he asked.

"Our recon probes had returned with information showing they are currently amassing their forces," said the tactical droid, KJ-96, on his left. "I predict the probability of them launching an attack soon is ninety-eight percent."

He heard Ventress chuckling on his right. "It seemed you had lost, child." He could hear the condescending smile she was wearing. "I can't wait to hear you admitting your spectacle of a loss to Dooku."

Coquer tuned her insufferable voice out. Her inputs mattered very little to him. Only thing that mattered was information.

"And what of the Jedi?"

"It would seem they are planning to split their forces into two, with a Jedi leading each clone battalion."

He nodded at the piece of information. He had predicted those mystics would lead their men into battle, probably being the tip of the spear that they thought would skewer him dead. They were about to be sorely mistaken.

Coquer opened his eyes, pressing a button on the holotable to establish contact with his flagship. A blue wiry hologram of Watts, a B-1 droid, appeared before the three.

"Watts, how goes the battle in the sky?"

"We are holding them off in accordance with your instructions, sir," Watts reported. "I don't think they could keep up with this fight much longer."

Good. Very good. That was better than he anticipated.

"What of the targeting computer on the Dauntless?" Coquer questioned. "How precise is it? Did they take any major damages?"

Watts looked confused at the question. "Uh, they didn't report any damage to their weapon systems, Commander. So I assume it is still in the ninety to hundred percent threshold."

Coquer grinned, chuckling. That was the last piece of the puzzle that he needed to finish this battle.

"Thank you, Watts. I will contact you shortly with more instructions, until then keep doing what I ordered."

The droid nodded. "Roger, roger."

The transmission ended, returning the display to that of the planet. He glanced at the KJ-96. He hated its kind, the supposedly vastly intelligent tactical droids. They were too cold and calculating with their plans, not at all prepared for a single improvised act from the enemy. If the Republic conducted even a little out of what was considered "logical" they would lose their mind about the invalid calculations and the battle would become lost. It was the reason as to why the droid was losing so greatly before his arrival.

Luckily for the droid, its streamlined thought process was what would save the day.

"KJ-96, we are going to conduct our final strike against the Republic—gambling everything we have on this assault." Coquer continued, "Where would you deploy our droids to combat the Republic?"

The droid took a step forward, not hesitating to input the coordinates of its desired battlefield locations. Two blinking red dots appeared on the hologram planet.

"I predict there's a ninety-seven percent chance that the Republic would move along these paths, where we would ambush and finish them all off."

Coquer nodded, knowing the droid would pick those exact locations. "Very well. Order our troops to move in according to your plans, with you leading your forces and Ventress in charge of the ones we came with."

"As you wish, Commander," KJ-96 said with a nod.

The droid turned and stiffly left the command post, issuing orders to all the battle droids in their last safe haven. It seemed tactical droids had actual usefulness after all.

Ventress made to leave, following the command he issued, but he stopped her, grabbing her by the wrist. She whipped her head to him, snarling as she ripped her wrist out of his grasp. Her hands reached dangerously close to her lightsabers.

"Don't think because you could order me around, that you could touch me with your filthy hands, boy," she sneered.

Coquer glowered at her, wanting nothing more than to thrust his vibrorapier into her heart. While the woman stayed true to her word of following his orders, she didn't hesitate in belittling or mock him at any chance she got. There were many times the thought of ceasing support in the battles where Ventress was had crossed his mind, silencing the shrill voice of hers for good.

He wouldn't though. He was better than that, better than her.

He inched his face close to hers, feeling her wretched breath pelting his skin. "It's Commander, Asajj."

She unhook her lightsabers from her belt, igniting them. "And it's Ventress, Coquer." Her sharp blue eyes narrowed. He could see the hate she had for him plain as day. "You don't have the right to call me by my given name."

They stayed in their current position for a second, waiting for the other to strike the first blow. He was itching for her to give him an excuse, clashing blades with her once more and finishing the job. Why his father made such an insufferable woman his apprentice, he would never know.

Coquer closed his eyes, inhaling and exhaling through his nose. They didn't have time for a petty squabble though. They had a battle to win.

"Fine then, Ventress," he sneered with venom laced in his voice. He relaxed his posture, keeping his hands in eye view of her. "I have a task for you to accomplish."

After a single beat, Ventress lowered her guard. She placed her blades away, then crossed her arms in front of her chest. She eyed him like a child would when receiving a pair of socks on Life Day.

"What is the task then, Commander?" She scowled in disgust at uttering his rank.

He rolled his eyes at the childish behavior, walking back to the holotable. "I need you to leak KJ-96's battle plans to the Republic."

Ventress blinked, taken completely by surprise by his order. "What? Why?" Anger suddenly flashed upon her face, her lips reeling back to show her teeth as she snarled. "I knew you would betray us, you traitor."

Now it was Coquer's turn to be shocked. "What? No. I would never become a turncoat. My mentor would kill me if I did."

The intensity of her glare didn't lessen in the slightest from his words of assurance. "Then why would we give them our battle formation?"

"Because I need the Republic to think that they are about to win," Coquer stated hotly. "Why else would I follow the suggestion of a droid who was about to lose the battle before we came here?"

He could see it in her eyes, his words slowly digesting in her mind. Deception was a key part of battle. A single faulty information could make a whole army crumble into dust.

With an annoyed huff, she eased back the vivid sign of hostility on her face. "I can see your point. In that case, what exactly is your plan?"

Finally, a question that didn't lead into her mocking him. Coquer was sure Amieto and she would get along swimmingly if they ever met.

"The goal is simple," he stated plainly. "Split their forces into two, having them think that this is the final fight for the planet, while I and a platoon of droids infiltrate their defenseless base of operation and make sure they have nothing to come back to."

Ventress hummed. She looked pleased from his response. "I approve of the tactic, but what of the Republic forces that would come to fight us? I would hate to think you're using us as sacrificial pawns just when we are starting to get to know each other," she finished with a sarcastic grin.

Sarcasm. Apparently her second and favorite language she spoke. It was right below belittling, and just above mocking.

Coquer placed a hand out invitingly. "Your wrist comlink, please."

She eyed him curiously, like a cat would do towards a new object in their homes. With a sigh, she unlatched the comlink and tossed it to him. Coquer placed it against the table, giving the device a small smack with his fist. A panel popped open, revealing many tiny wires inside. Grabbing one of the blue wires, he yanked it out of its socket.

She walked to him, looking over his shoulder. "What are you doing?"

He began rewiring the communication device. He glanced at her, smiling. "Making sure you're not a sacrificial pawn."

Ahsoka leaned against the protective railing of the lookout tower, resting her head on the cold handrail, gazing out at the distance. The waning Sun touched the plains at the right angle, portraying a beautiful, and yet sobering scene of the hefty cost it took for the Republic to take the land they designated as their central command.

Craters, large and small, created by thermal detonators going off, pocketed the land as if a meteor shower came and pelted the once thriving grassy plains. Birds flying above, circling the remains they couldn't recover, preparing to dig their beaks into the decaying dinner they presented to them. The whining grating noises of battle droids barely functioning, clinging to life, then the single echoing sound of a plasma bolt returning the land into bleak silence.

When the news of war reached Coruscant, she was so happy to learn she was no longer being shipped out like she was the Jedi's dirty little secret. She thought that as long as she kept the many lessons taught to her in her mind then everything would be alright. That nothing could harm the mighty Padawan she was.

Her eyes drifted to her bandaged left forearm. She sustained a nasty cut in their last attempt to destroy the Separatist threat on this planet. The clone, Kix, said she was lucky. She would've lost the entire arm if the shrapnel struck three centimeters to the left. After some trauma surgery, a few bacta patches, and time, the only thing that would remain would be a jagged moderate sized scar.

It was so stupid on how she attained the wound too. It was one of her attempts to prove herself worthy of Anakin's teachings, charging head first into the unknown dangers that lay in the fog that night. She could've died—should've, if it weren't for that trooper rushing in after her then pushing her away at the last second of a fragmentation grenade exploding.

Ahsoka closed her eyes, grimacing at the memory. She couldn't forget that clone's dead expression, or what was left of it anyway, with the shrapnel and pieces of his crushed helmet piercing his face like a pin cushion.

But that wasn't the only face she remembered. So many clones died while trying to take this rock, and the worst part about it was that she was happy. Happy that it wasn't her getting her scattered remains picked up like litter and shipped home.

She sighed. "This wasn't what I had in mind when I finally got chosen."

Could she really be a Jedi once this war was over? While the only adversary she fought was droids, it didn't help the pain she felt in the Force with every clone that was killed near her. How Anakin and Obi-Wan handled this, she would never know. She guessed that was why they were the masters, and she, a lowly Padawan that barely made the cut.

Ahsoka pushed herself off the railing, huffing. Opening her eyes, she gazed at the ever haunting scenery of war. The Sun was about to hit the horizon, bringing the cool night air and the suffocating atmosphere of not knowing if tonight would yield another ambush under the mask of darkness. Her expert hearing ability picked up the distant sounds of blaster fire and explosions. The final battle for Dantooine had officially begun, it seemed.

A few hours ago, while preparing to strike the enemy, they intercepted a transmission about the Separatist setting up ambushes for them. Based on the information they had, and the one they just received, it seemed they were as desperate as them in ending this conflict, sending everything they had to close the book on this weary battle.

Knowing what the Separatist were planning on doing, and the location of where their droids would be, Anakin and Obi-Wan changed their original assault strategy, into one that ambushed the ambush. It was a simple strategy, but, if everything went according to plan, then this would be the last day she would be on this planet. And she was spending it in the safe comforts of command, being practically useless to everyone.

Anakin had told her that she wasn't coming along for the operation just in case something went awry and she would need to provide immediate aid to them. Although he told her that, reassuring her with words of encouragement, the nasty nagging part of her brain whispered doubts in her ears.

They were winning before she arrived, a guaranteed victory for the Republic. Then, so suddenly, much of it was undone, now locked in one of the most costly battles the Republic had so far.

The timeline couldn't be a coincidence, and Anakin and Obi-Wan no doubt thought the same.

Maybe I should've returned to the Temple.

Ahsoka shook her head at the thought. This was what she fought and cried for for the past three years. The deaths, nightmares, and scars, were a sacrifice she was willing to commit for her dream to be a reality.

She leaned her back against the wall, crossing one foot over the other. Flashes of lights pierced the darkened skies, occurring in tandem with the explosions from afar. It was like a firework and light show happening all at once.

"Huh?"

She sensed something. No, not something—a someone, nearby. Ahsoka hopped off the wall, walking to the protective railing, her eyes scanning the field. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

She closed her eyes, reaching out to the Force, focusing on what she sensed. After a second or two, she found the sensation again. It was definitely a person, but she wondered why their Force signature felt familiar to her. She didn't recall meeting anyone with a signature this weak and feeble.

The longer she focused on the signature, the more she felt her core warming up. It was…pleasant, comforting even. It made her feel like smiling from contact alone. She felt…loved?

Heavy haggard breathing and clashing of lightsabers bombarded her hearing. A small voice spoke, sounding like it was on replay based on the same sounds that were being repeated.

"Argh." Ahsoka crouched down low, wincing and nursing her head.

What was that, she wondered. Stress? A vision? A telepathic attack from that Force signature?

The Force signature!

Ahsoka quickly reached out to the Force, trying to locate that signature once more, but she sensed nothing. The signature was gone without a trace, like it never existed in the first place. No one could completely vanish their Force signature, not even the most skilled of Jedi.

Who was that?

"Contact! Left wall!"

She whipped her head in the direction the clone warned. Her eyes widened, seeing probably tens of battle droids rising from the ground like the undead. How did they get so close? The enemy was loud, able to hear their heavy stomping from miles away. The sounds of battle where Anakin and Obi-Wan were, were too distant to block out the droids' clanking marching sound they made.

The sound of blasters being fired brought her out of her stupor. This was not the time to ask how, though. The clones needed her. She hopped over the railing, cushioning her landing with the help of the Force. She ignited her green beamed lightsaber, holding it in a reverse grip, sprinting to the roaring calls of war.

She reached the barricade, preparing to leap over the barrier and turn the field into a scrapyard, but skidded to a stop, seeing thick white clouds become a wall separating the enemy from her. The droids immediately ceased firing, filling the air in an unnerving silence. The clones slowly calmed their hurricane of plasma bolts, watching for movements. Flood lights from the towers try to pierce the thick cloudy veil, but prove to be impervious from such attempts.

"Sergeant," Ahsoka whispered to the clone to the left of her. "Radio Master Skywalker and Kenboi."

"Already tried," the clone sergeant said. "We're being jammed, ma'am."

Ahsoka cursed under her breath. Was this the Separatist ploy all along? Gave them false information so they could attack their base of operations?

If so, then why commit so many of their droids to battle Anakin and Obi-Wan? It made more sense for the enemy to use the bulk of their forces to attack here, instead of splitting into two. Could this be a diversion instead of an assault?

"Clankers at the rear gate!"

Ahsoka turned to the right, seeing another huge cloud of white smoke in the distance and clones firing at the wispy cloud. How did they get there so quickly and without making any noise? It was impossible.

Looking back at the smoke in front of her, she lifted her hand, flexing her fingers, using the Force to clear the smoke. The thick smoke dissipated in an instant, revealing empty space and blaster scorched ground.

"What the frak?" the clone sergeant said, voicing what was on everyone's mind.

Not even a second later, a clone yelled about battle droids being on the right side of the base, then another warned of a platoon worth of war machines at the front gate. Both had smoke grenades popping off, concealing the attacking enemy.

"How are the Seppies doing this?" one of the clones asked out loud.

How indeed. This tactic was not the doing of a tactical droid. It was too unorthodox. It must be a living being. Perhaps the Force signature she sensed early?

A sharp crackle protruded her ears, followed by the multiple lights that brighten the base suddenly turning off, leaving darkness in its wake. Panic quickly ensued, clones running around and yelling, trying to figure out the root of the blackout. Everything was either down or short circuited. Not even the clones' helmet headlights were working.

A trooper came running to Ahsoka and the sergeant. "We have been hit by an EMP, ma'am," he reported. "Everything is down, including the base's deflector shield."

"What?" Ahsoka questioned. "How? Why?"

She looked at the sergeant. "Wouldn't an EMP blast shut off the battle droids too?"

The clone sergeant grumbled. "You're right." He glanced at the blaster in his hands. "Blasters too, both of ours. Seppies basically disarmed us, as well as themselves."

Ahsoka didn't think of that, too focused on the why rather than the results. Her lightsaber was useless too in that case, though only for a short while. A safety precaution most lightsabers carried, so the affected emitter matrix wouldn't explode. Only those with well enough shielding don't have the safe mode installed, and the materials needed to gather the proper shielding were hard and expensive to come by.

Why would the enemy launch an attack that would basically decimate their own forces, regardless how neutered her clones' ability to defend themselves was? Did the enemy attain a new series of droids that weren't affected by electromagnetic pulses? If so, why not attack? The amount of droids that surrounded them moments ago would be able to swarm them in an instant.

Wait, what happened to the droids?

"Trooper," she called out to the one that reported the cause of the attack. "Has the smoke cleared from the locations where the enemy was attacking from? Were there still droids there?"

"I don't know, ma'am," he answered. "I was working in the command center when the attack happened, then I was told to be a runner to pass along the news of the EMP to you."

"I don't like this," said the sergeant. "Not one bit. What the hell are the Seppies planning?"

"I don't know, but—" A tingle on the back of her neck made Ahsoka shiver. Her muscles tensed, the Force sending signals to run. Fast. Very fast.

"Move!" she blurted, breaking into a sprint, running outside of the safe confinement of the base.

"Commander!" One of the clones tried to stop her but she slipped through his grasp.

A few of the clones joined her in the sudden mad sprint into enemy territory. Most stayed behind, yelling for them to return. It was then that it happened.

The skies shined a bright, almost blinding red. It got brighter and brighter, drastically traveling closer. The red light was a beam, a laser shot from one of the starships above. The laser hit the center of the base, sending a thunderous earthquake and a fierce concussive blast that picked her off her feet and launched her some distance away. Two more were fired, each more devastating than the last.

Ahsoka curled up in a ball, protecting herself from the debris that fell from the sky. Her ears rang a high pitch tune, making her teeth chatter and head hurt.

The rumbling seemed to last forever before it finally subsided, then it took another century for her to dare a move an inch. Slowly she uncurled herself, trying to stand but her legs were too shaky for her to put her weight on. Grunting, she turned to see the damage.

Her eyes widened, completely slack jawed at the sight. "By the Force…"

There was nothing there except a large sizzling crater. There was literally no evidence of the base ever being constructed, or the many people that lived in it.

"Commander." A clone limped over to her, his helmet gone and face pouring with sweat. "Are you okay? Are you injured?"

"Y—yes, I'm fine." Her eyes couldn't stop staring at the massive grave that was created. "I just…"

"I get it, ma'am." He turned to gaze at the destruction—the death that the Separatist caused. "We all do."

One by one, the clones started to bring themselves to their feet, and assisted those who couldn't. Then, abruptly, the ground shook again. Everyone hit the ground, preparing for another volley of lasers firing at them.

The Separatist's ships above had indeed fired another round of lasers, but not at their location. The skies shined an unholy red as two more areas became the next victims to the judgment of the enemy. Realization quickly dawned on her.

Those two locations were where Anakin and Obi-Wan deployed with the clones.

Ventress could only see darkness, and felt as if she was another debris floating in the vacuum of space. Was this the afterlife? Did she die in the services of her master?

"There is still time, little one."

That voice. It sounded so familiar to her. Was it her first master, Haal'sted? Did he wish for her to crush in the skull of another who dared to not pay their debts?

"You can still go back."

No, it wasn't him. The voice was too kind and fatherly to belong to the Siniteen. Hearing them made her feel so happy, but it also made her heart ache in agony.

"You can still be what you are meant to be."

That voice. She knew who it was, now. She needed to get to him. She needed his warmth, his love.

"You can still be…"

No, she thought. His voice was dwindling, becoming softer with each word he spoke. She couldn't lose him, not again. Not when she needed him most.

"A Jedi."

Ky!

Ventress woke up gasping for air, thrashing against the tight bind her unconscious mind had on her body. Her frantic eyes darted to everything she saw, completely deaf to her surroundings. Sensation returned to her, feeling a burn in her lungs and a sharp pain on the back of her head. Deafness slowly subsided to make way to a blaring ringing that gave her a splitting headache.

What happened, she wondered. She remembered fighting the Republic, clashing blades with the Jedi, Obi-Wan Kenboi, and then a loud bang occurred, followed by darkness.

She grimaced sitting up, feeling a throbbing pain at her abdomen. She touched the back of her head, flinching on contact. Bringing her hand around, she saw her blood on her fingertips. She must have banged her head sometime after the loud bang. That would explain why she heard Ky in her head, she was hallucinating during her unconscious state.

Ventress finally looked up, staring at the destruction that was before her, eyes wide with shock. There was a gigantic crater in the center of the battlefield she was fighting Republic forces on. It was like a meteor came and crashed in front of her. In the distance, she could see the Republic forces were in full retreat, frightened about what had occurred.

What exactly had occurred?

"Mistress."

She gasped, startled by the voice of the battle droid. She turned to see a B-1 model standing next to her with an outstretched hand, inviting her to take it.

"Are you injured?"

"N—No."

Why was she acting timid? She had no need to. She was a Sith, and what she had just faced paled in comparison to what she experienced in her lifetime and the tasks her master ordered her to do.

Ventress slapped the droid's hand out of her face. "I'm fine," she said, finding her voice, ignoring the slip of weakness she let out.

She made to stand, grunting in pain, relishing in the ache in her body. Pain was another source to the dark side, one of the strongest conduits of power. Pain made one's mind clear and sharp, completely focused on the task at hand.

"Where are the rest of the droids?" she asked, looking for her lighstabers that were no longer on her person. "How many have we lost?"

"Minimal, ma'am. The Commander's plan worked just as intended."

The commander's plan? Wait, the kid.

Memory slowly came back to her and the discussion she had shared with the boy. He wanted to end the Republic threat once and for all with this battle. He ordered her to make KJ-96's plan of action interceptiable for the Republic so they could move to his tune and dance to the rhythm. Then, during the battle, a starship in his fleet would provide support fire, dangerously close. He heavily emphasized on dangerously close.

Ventress glanced at her wrist comlink that the boy fiddled with before the battle began. He set up her communication device, as well as his own, to emit a steady signal to the fleet so they would know approximately where their friendly forces were at, and where to shoot the enemy.

She walked to the child, curious as well as apprehensive at his intentions. They were about to kill each other not that long ago, after all. "What are you doing?"

He glanced at her, smiling. There was no deceit or hate in his eyes, confusing her greatly. "Making sure you're not a sacrificial pawn."

She thought about KJ-96, and how the droid wasn't privy to that piece of information. How the child willingly let hundreds of droids be destroyed for the mission, and yet, he saved his own army of droids, her included. Did he save her because of her affiliation to Dooku, or because he didn't want his droids scraped.

Ventress continued to look around for her lightsabers in the rubble, getting annoyed with each passing second. Her master gifted them to her once she had come back with Rael's lightsaber in hand. A signal of being his apprentice.

"Mistress, here." The droid revealed her lightsabers in its hand. "I found them while looking for you."

Irritation crossed her face. Then why didn't you give me them in the first place, you stupid droid.

She snatched them out of the machine's hand, igniting them to test if they were still functioning. Satisfied with the gleam they made, she turned them off and hooked them on her belt.

"Gather the rest of the droids," she ordered, turning to the direction the Republic retreated to. The corner of her mouth curled up into a sadistic grin. "Tonight, we're finishing the Republic."

"No."

Ventress was taken back from the denial. No droid ever refused an order, lest of all from her. "What was that?" she asked with a dangerous tone.

"Commander Coquer ordered us to leave the surviving Republic forces be, and return to base," it explained. "Their defeat is clear, he said. No need for extra bloodshed."

That childish boy!

"Listen here, you—" The droid lifted his rifle, shocking her from the traitorous action.

"He had ordered us, if you refuse, we have permission to eliminate you."

Eliminate her? Ha, a joke if there ever was one. Injured or not, she could destroy hundreds of droids with ease.

As she reached for her lightsabers, she saw more and more droids coming out of the shadows, aiming their weapons at her. They had her completely surrounded.

She could kill a hundred droids, sure, but even she would get overwhelmed with the amount that was here.

He planned for this too.

Ventress chuckled, grinning at the thousands of droids preparing to kill her at the drop of a hat. The child had made an enemy today, one that he would need to watch his back on for every step he made.

"Very well," she conceded. "Let's return home, shall we?"

Author's Note: Orbital bombardment—one of my favorite things from Star Wars. Always a great thing to see.

I hope I sold the POV of war in the eyes of a Jedi padawan new to the galaxy. Ahsoka's part was my favorite to write, following Ventress's. Tell me what you think of the Battle of Dantooine so far? I'm making long to make up for the long break between chapters.

Till Next Time