CHAPTER 4: AHSOKA TANO

Krant

Ahsoka watched as Kelia Los'ean stared dumbfounded at her, confusion filling her deadened amber eyes.

"You… I… What?" Kelia whimpered as she tried to comprehend exactly what she'd just been told. "None of that made any sense! The Empire was already founded, you can't just change the past!"

She's actually taking this better than I expected.

In the corner of her eye, Ahsoka caught a glimmer of the Convor Morai alighting on a section of scaffolding outside the window. She turned to the owl for a moment to make sure she was not seeing things, then looked back to Kelia. "I thought that once too, but then Ezra Bridger saved me from certain death on Malachor. There exists a World Between Worlds, a place beyond space and time where one can move between moments in history. It is from there that he saved me from being cut down by Darth Vader as I attempted to save both our lives. The Emperor desired this power, believing he could change history to his liking."

Kelia shook her head, a look of disbelief on her face.

"I know the concept is difficult to process but—"

"It's not that," Kelia interrupted, rubbing her temples. "But depending on the theory you believe, that's not how time travel works at all."

That was not the reaction she expected. "I'm sorry?" the Togruta asked, not sure what the Bothan was getting at. From her admittedly brief interactions with Kev Rel'skar and Lir Sey'les, the Togruta had never expected to be corrected on a metaphysics topic by a Bothan. At least one who wasn't a scientist already that is.

Kelia sighed. "Do you know what alternate timeline theory is?"

"Only in layman's terms, the existence of multiple parallel timelines, right?"

She nodded as she leaned back in her chair, taking her aviators in one hand as she explained, drawing lines in the dust on her desk. "The premise of it, in relation to time travel, is that changing events does not cause a paradox, nor is it pre-ordained in some manner. Instead it creates a divergent timeline branching off the original."

Ahsoka thought she could see where Kelia was going with this. "So you believe my mission is doomed from the start?"

"No, what I'm saying is there are fair odds that nothing you do will affect this timeline, only creating a new one where the Empire never existed," Kelia explained. "How are you even going to go about accomplishing this anyways? Even if you reach the past, a random Jedi appearing out of nowhere isn't going to be able to go very far or do much, everyone of importance will look at you with suspicion at best. Worst case scenario, they think you are an imposter and run a DNA test—no, even worse—what if the Emperor finds out?"

To tell her or not… No, I need her help if I want to have a shot at running the equipment I took from Kothlis, kriff. Sighing, she leaned forwards in her seat. "Do you know what consciousness transfer is?"

Kelia nodded warily, fur rippling uneasily. "Yes, both of my spouses were subject to that procedure during their time as SpyNet agents during the Clone Wars. Though they never took Clone bodies as far as I know. Anyway, Korsk explained the tech to me after the Empire fell, and suffice to say I never liked it to begin with, nor do I like where this is going."

Color her surprised, a Bothan who seemed to have some sense of accountability and morals beyond their own self-interest.

"My plan is to lock on the coordinates of my past self in the period where I had decided to leave the Jedi Order and replace their consciousness with mine," Ahsoka elaborated. "If I can stop myself from leaving the Order, I believe I can stop Anakin Skywalker from becoming Darth Vader."

Real good job at not being a hypocrite Tano, you castigated Fen Kar'fon for trying to do this, but it's okay when you want to do it to younger you, she thought self-deprecatingly.

"What the kriff," Kelia snarled, baring her teeth. "That's kriffed up on so many levels. You're planning to kill your past self, who's still a teenager, and take over her body."

"I am aware…" She sighed as she rubbed one of her montrals. "But it's the best chance I have… One that would be easier if I had help admittedly, if you wish you can—"

"—Not a chance in haran!" The Bothan barked at her, clenching her fists.

"I'm sorry?" Ahsoka apologized warily, holding up her hands in a placating gesture.

Even at fifty-something, Kelia still looked like she could easily try and take her in a fight, and in armor made of pure Beskar she actually stood a fair chance.

Exhaling, Kelia pinched the bridge of her snout as she let herself relax. "I'm sorry for snapping, it's just while I appreciate that you think I could be of use to you… I'm not going to deny a different version of myself her right to exist."

The Togruta blinked in a moment of confusion before gently waving a hand at her. "Please, continue."

Looking away, Kelia closed her eyes and sighed. "Listen, I could give you all sorts of psychological or philosophical osik, but the reality is it makes my stomach queasy to even consider replacing a version of myself who has her own family, who still hasn't had her soul crushed by the weight of the Empire yet and turned into a borderline monster in the vain pursuit of honor, with someone the people they love wouldn't recognize at all."

Ahsoka nodded in understanding. "Even if you're the same person genetically, you are still different people."

"Like the Clones, yes," the Bothan replied with a nod, wiping another set of tears from her snout. "And as much as I want to see Linay again… She wouldn't be the same woman Korsk and I lost. Hell, if I'm wrong about it creating an alternate timeline, I also just want to spend my final moments with my family before we all get erased from existence anyways." There was a soft snort as she glanced back at Ahsoka. "Besides, Lir would kill me if I abandoned my 'punishment' here, running my clan."

Ahsoka raised a brow ridge and smirked ever-so slightly, deciding to poke at Kelia. "I thought you said you weren't going to be philosophical?"

Kelia's blond fur rippled in irritation. "Given Lir's request I forward a Skip Tracer bounty on Fen Kar'fon to my clanmates, I assume you have the casting equipment onboard your shuttle already."

Perceptive enough to connect those dots, she mused. "Most of it," Ahsoka admitted. "I had to leave two cooling towers behind on Kothlis, they wouldn't fit on the shuttle."

Kelia groaned loudly as she realized the effort this would take. "I am going to have to wake up a lot of Bothans... I need to make a few calls, bump up security a bit too."

"It did seem rather light coming in," the Togruta noted as she reclined in her chair. "Not taking me seriously?"

The Bothan across from her laughed darkly. "Tano, if I was taking you seriously as a potential threat I would've had to reveal things I really don't want the NR, or anyone else for that matter, to know I have. Then again you're also technically in possession of illegal technology, so neither of us have a right to fling shtak at each other."

She's not wrong, the Togruta thought. Overwriting a being's mind with someone else's and effectively deleting it is probably banned by proxy under the Concordance's prohibition on torture and weapons that cause unnecessary suffering. Alright, I'll play her game. Besides, it's not like I'm going to be caring about the New Republic Senate for much longer.

"Anyways, I'll get those calls going. Ask Talva and Jag to get some XLT-016s to unload the equipment for you. Keep a careful eye on the droids though, otherwise they might get ahead of themselves and do something stupid. I don't call their line 'Tavs' for nothing," Kelia warned as she stood up.

At Ahsoka's questioning look she chuckled. "Old in-joke between me and Lir. You wouldn't get it unless you knew her chief Marshal."

Nodding in vague understanding, Ahsoka stood up before realizing she was lacking an important bit for information. "Who're Talva and Jag…?" She asked.

Kelia gestured at the door with her snout. "my entourage…"

Remembering the subtle body language Kelia spoke to them with, she decided to hazard a guess on their exact heritage. "Your children?"

"Linay's," Kelia replied flatly. "Mine are with their own families tonight."

Ahsoka bowed her head in understanding, glancing over at the door. "Very well then, I suppose we should get working."

"Yes, we should."

o.o.o.o.o

It was forty long minutes before the XLTs had gotten everything unloaded under the watchful eyes of Talva and Jag Los'ean while Ahsoka meditated inside the temple, contemplating the path before her. The two orange and white furred Bothans had removed their helmets at some point during the operation, casting occasional glances at each other with the knowing looks of close siblings.

She didn't press them about their mother. She knew raw emotional wounds when she saw them. But still, if I can stop the Empire, then maybe they'll never lose her, Ahsoka reasoned as she glanced at the two one final time as they led the droids away.

In that same time period, a wave of transports, including YT Haulers, IDTs, LAATs, U-Wings, Sentinel-classes, and even a Gozanti had arrived, deploying not only Korsk Los'ean and the cadre of ex-Spynet technicians and doctors he'd brought, but three companies of heavily armed soldiers, mostly humans and Bothans but with a dash of other species here and there, wearing Imperial Army Trooper gear, modified Stormtrooper equipment, Mandalorian Armor of various styles, and RIS battle suits.

More than that, Kelia had brought vehicles as well; patrol groups of walkers prowled the perimeter, including modified AT-STs of the same kind as once used on Kashyyyk, no doubt used to hunt down and capture Wookiee escapees in Krant's not-so-distant past. Meanwhile, internal defenses were provided by two platoons of current gen Canderous-class assault tanks, several 2-M Repulsor Tanks, four RX-200 Falchion-class tanks modified with beam-turbolaser emitters, a battery of eight AAC-2 anti-air tanks, a modified Mekuun Heavy Tracker, and a pair of A9 juggernauts that sat positioned around the area.

There was even a full platoon of human men standing guard near the temple entrance, undoubtedly ex-Stormtroopers, who were all wearing Phase II Dark Trooper power armor suits, much to Ahsoka's concern. How the hell did Los'ean get a hold of those? I thought the Empire scrapped the entire program.

Clearly, Kelia's connections to the Imperial Remnants and the Galactic Underworld were deeper than anyone in the New Republic knew.

Speaking of the Bothan, with a DL-44 and Beskad sword at her hip, Kelia began walking towards Ahsoka at that moment, stepping off the excavation site lift. She was flanked by her husband, a shorter Bothan with variegated black and white fur. He wore a dark trench coat over his armor.

Ahsoka sighed, noticing Los'ean grab her husband's buttocks and whispering something into his ear without missing a beat as they came up to her.

Aren't you a little too old for that? Ahsoka thought. However, she decided against addressing the flirtations, and instead chose to speak about the Rancor in the compartment.

"Is all of this truly necessary?" Ahsoka objected as she stood up, gesturing at AT-ST/h clanking down one side of the pit's perimeter, head-mounted floodlights illuminating the brightly colored Krantian forests as a squad of soldiers escorted it. "The more beings who know about this, the harder it is to keep it secret," she pointed out.

Not much further away, technicians connected the Juggernauts and the Gozanti to the casting equipment to provide a stable power supply, some of the speeder trucks carrying power regulators connecting the surface level equipment to the 'base camp' in front of the temple itself.

"If any of the warlords and Imperial remnants still slinking about the Slice were to catch wind of what was going on here, they'd do anything to get through that gateway," Kelia replied after turning to Ahsoka. "And to address your concerns, I only brought those I know I can swear to secrecy. Many of them were involved in the initial archaeological efforts anyways."

That was a mild relief to hear, and admittedly Kelia was right to be concerned with the possibility of remnants and warlords intervening in her plan.

Either they would use the temple's power to try and rewrite history for their benefit, or they would use it to make the Empire all but invincible in another timeline, bringing with them the knowledge of key Rebel sympathizers, events, and planets that would become a thorn in Palpatine's side. Worse still there would be nothing stopping 'past' Palpatine from using the gateway and trying to conquer multiple universes to sate his desire for power if he realized the full potential of the World Between Worlds.

"Kel…" Korsk sighed as he rubbed his forehead in exasperation.

"She's not wrong," Ahsoka conceded, gesturing at the white glow emanating from the structure. "The temple is probably visible from orbit as it is right now. Anyone entering the system on Krant's night-side can see it coming out of hyperspace."

Kelia nodded in agreement. "Hence why I set up an orbital cordon as well under the cover of opposed naval exercises; the Izankul Valley, Kestrel II and their battlegroups are more than enough to keep any attackers pinned down until reinforcements can be mustered from Aereen, the Both System, or Geddes."

"Anyways…" Korsk interrupted before they could go even further off-track. "We've commenced setup of the casting equipment in the location you requested, ah Master?"

"Call me Ahsoka," Ahsoka told him, glad he had asked rather than assumed. "I'm not a Jedi and I'm not with the New Republic, at least not formally. Informally, I am an Observer."

"Right, we've begun setup… But… Well, according to the techs this specific system wasn't designed to be operated with less than the designated amount of cooling towers," Korsk admitted, black and white fur swirling nervously. "We're not sure what will happen if we run it for too long. You may only have one shot at getting through. Plus, there's always a risk it may overheat and…" he trailed off.

One shot, and a long one at that, not to mention all the things that could go horribly wrong if I screw up and make the wrong decisions. Story of my life, she thought bitterly. I know, it's a risk I'm willing to take."

He pulled out a datapad and tapped away at it. "We did scrounge up some additional equipment from the Krantian SpyNet station that's usable. It's not much but it'll improve functionality enough to at least let us operate the casters for slightly longer than we could otherwise."

"That's all you can do, the rest is up to the Force really," Ahsoka replied as she crossed her arms.

"Well, we're ready to begin whenever you are," Korsk informed her before muttering to himself in Bothese as he continued typing away on the datapad.

"Good," she turned back to Kelia and stared at her as she remembered a thought that had occurred to her after she thought of the Palpatine problem involving the gateway. "When the transfer is complete, I want you to either start burying the temple or to completely destroy it as soon as the gate closes."

The Bothan's fur visibly roiled in confusion. "What?!"

"The gates to the World Between Worlds were sealed away for a reason. Ezra used them to traverse time, and that is likely the threat you are most concerned about right now. But what I didn't tell you, and only just remembered myself, is that they can be used to traverse space as well within the same timeframe as one enters, as I did after he rescued me," she explained grimly.

Korsk's violet eyes lit up with dread as it occurred to him. "Meaning that someone could travel between two different places across the galaxy instantly in nearly real time."

His wife's fur, by contrast, went flat in fear as she began realizing the military implications. "And if anyone were to discover how to readily do that, they could bring the Galaxy to its knees with terror attacks, commando raids, sabotage, and assassinations. All launched simultaneously or in such rapid succession on such a scale it would boggle intelligence agencies as to how it's even possible."

They were close, but not quite there yet, so Ahsoka elaborated. "It's more dangerous than that," she stated grimly. "Ezra reached through and plucked me from a moment in time without leaving himself. In our context this means someone can theoretically open a gateway with a repeating blaster in their hands, stick the tip of the barrel through the portal and mow down a massive chunk of the senate mid-session. Without another gateway, nobody would be able to stop them from committing more such acts on a whim.

"Moreover, as far as I know, this is the only uncovered gateway in the Galaxy after the destruction of the Lothal Temple. This means its presence will draw a stream of threats to Krant so long as its location remains visible. It must be concealed or otherwise removed as a factor by whatever means you deem necessary."

The roiling of Kelia's fur told her exactly how the Bothan felt about that. Her loyalty to her homeworld and clan was such that when Cinder was enacted it had been enough for her to throw away the Oath of Krevi she'd made. It would be decades before Krant's rainbow colored forests would fully heal from the deep scars left by the impacts of destroyed warships whose orbits couldn't be stabilized in time.

"And what about you?" Korsk inquired warily, positing the question she'd been waiting for.

"My trip is going to be one way," Ahsoka answered firmly. "I'm not coming back so you don't need to keep it open for my sake. Once I'm gone, I'm gone."

This was something she knew from the moment she conceived the plan. While Kelia's refusal was slightly disappointing given her tactical prowess, but understandable nonetheless, it also proved that she could be entrusted with keeping the Portal safe from those who would misuse it, Imperial or otherwise.

And sure, Ahsoka was squeamish about potentially nullifying the very existence of billions, and not just those who would live or die as a result of her decisions either. But the potential payoff was that countless more beings would have a chance to build their own futures without being massacred or enslaved by the Empire.

No Alderaan, no Cinder… All those atrocities prevented before they could happen. It was a gamble worth making.

"Alright Tano, we'll fill this place in when we're done, build a mountain over the damn thing if we have to," Kelia finally replied, a determined grimace on her snout.

Nodding, Ahsoka walked up to the temple to inspect it one final time, seeing the gateway shimmer dimly amidst the ambient glow.

Someone had solved the puzzle already, though she didn't know how they would've done so. Either way this only made everything easier for her.

She'd sent her goodbyes already, to Sabine and Hera, by the time they got the messages she would be long-gone.

Hera was too busy with the Navy and Jacen for her to visit, Sabine was trying to see how many other Mandalorian enclaves aside from Krant survived Gideon's purge while also looking for leads on Ezra and Thrawn.

And then there was Rex…

He didn't have much longer given his accelerated aging, much to her discontent. Thankfully, due to Kelia's fondness of the Clones he'd been allowed to retire in Los'shtarn with many of his remaining brothers. Of those she was close to, he had been the only one she'd visited in person, which was partially why Kelia had arrived at the temple before her.

It cut deeply seeing how weak and frail he'd become in the scant five years since Endor, barely able to even look up at her from the hospital bed on which he'd been confined.

No words had been exchanged, he knew her well enough to figure out what she was doing.

And then she left, knowing he'd likely pass on before the year was out along with the rest of the remaining first generation Clone Troopers, with the younger clones likely following them over the next decade or so until the final batch's accelerated aging caught up with them.

Really, aside from an offer by Luke to help train the next generation of Jedi, Ahsoka really didn't have much left keeping her around. And while that was indeed a tempting proposition, Ahsoka knew deep down that she couldn't bring herself to train the Force users of the galaxy, not after the old order failed her so thoroughly.

She turned to Korsk, her voice as determined as her expression. "Hook me up."

o.o.o.o.o

It hardly took five minutes before Korsk's people had gotten her prepared, though they continued squabbling amongst themselves about the viability of her plan.

"It's not rated for this, we could scatter her mind across a thousand timelines if what she said is correct," a silver-grey colored male Bothan hissed at Korsk, the latest concern among several others.

"She's willing to take the risk, and we have no room to complain about morality," Korsk shot back.

It was clear he was uncomfortable with the entire affair, but had accepted it happening regardless of his concerns. Likely behavior caused by years of SpyNet work and watching Kelia follow morally questionable or even outright heinous orders from higher up.

"What do we do with the body afterwards, or the shuttle?" asked another tech, a female Bothan with cream and brown fur in a mottled pattern. "Beings are going to ask questions about that."

Kriff, I hadn't thought about that, Ahsoka realized. "Just… Tell Master Skywalker the truth, he can handle the rest."

"I think Kel's already planning on addressing those issues, probably going to be doing exactly as you suggested," Korsk sighed as he adjusted an electrode band around Ahsoka's montrals to ensure it was properly tightened.

That they had gear that fit Togruta didn't surprise her in the least, especially after hearing one of the former SpyNet members chatter away about 'never wanting to experience that level of spatial awareness again'.

"Status!" Korsk barked sharply into a comlink, directed at a group of techs manning a computer bank in the back of the Heavy Tracker, which was now being used as the control room for the casting operation's support equipment.

["Power supply nominal, dropoff within acceptable limits."]

["Standing by with emergency cooling systems."]

["Casting transmitters are focused on target location."]

"Sir, there's…" One of the techs muttered into Korsk's ear and pointed at the temple.

Ahsoka followed Korsk's gaze as it tracked over to the portal, a hooting sound issuing from the ledge above it and attracting the attention of more Bothans.

Perched on the outcropping was Morai, who hooted again.

"Don't mind her, she's helping," Ahsoka assured them.

"Riiight…" Korsk growled unsurely. "I'm not sure how a random Convor is helping but… Whatever you say."

"Are those even found here?" Another tech questioned.

"Morai has her means of getting around," the Togruta explained with a wry grin.

No one seemed to find her comment funny.

"Alright people, just ignore the distraction… Ahsoka, just latch onto a thought," Korsk instructed. "Focus on it, and it'll keep your mind centered while it's ripped from your body. We were taught this in training to keep our minds from potentially fragmenting during the transfer, or getting twirled up with our partner's if multiple agents were transferred at the same time."

She nodded as she focused her mind on Morai, hedging a bet that her old friend would guide her to where she needed to go.

"Ready for casting in T minus, twenty, nineteen, eighteen, seventeen, sixteen—"

Maybe she was being rash, maybe she was moving too quickly. No matter how she cut it though, she was committed now.

"—Ten, nine, eight," the male Bothan voice continued in a calm and practiced manner.

Ahsoka steadied herself, whatever came next was the will of the Force.

"—Five, four, three, two, one. Casting consciousness."

She heard the lever squeak, and then everything went dark.

o.o.o.o.o

Admiral Los'ean

Kelia lowered the brim of her hat as she watched Ahsoka's body go limp.
The transmission towers glowed ominously and then faded. The casting equipment smoked, likely overheated due to the insufficient cooling.

"Probably for the best we didn't do a double transfer," Kelia muttered. "Who knows what could've happened then... Status!"

"Casting… Successful…" Korsk's voice called out wearily as he drew a prepared medical sheet over Ahsoka's inert body.

"Right, give it five and then start cleaning up the equipment, get more droids here too. We've got a temple to bury and casting equipment to put in storage…" She paused for a moment, eyes fixed on Ahsoka's body. "And a body to put on ice, we'll contact Skywalker and get him over here for a chat first thing tomorrow."

At that, she departed the temple, leaving the smoky mess behind. On her way out, Kelia turned to one of the RIS armored individuals, a human in a black and gold painted suit.

Placing an arm over his shoulder, she growled under her breath. "Lieutenant Paster, take a team to Kothlis and scrounge up the remaining casting equipment and any spare components or whatever else the SpyNet has that they can find. Be discreet. This kind of tech can't be allowed to fall into anyone's hands but ours. Fen Kar'fon just proved he's a massive liability when it comes to securing it. If you run into any trouble with the local authorities, I'll run interference with Lir."

"Understood, ma'am," the ex-Novatrooper replied before heading off.

As she turned back to the now dimming temple, an unnatural wind rippled her fur. Kelia saw the convor symbol flap its wings and then vanish. Everything suddenly went dark around the temple except for the floodlights illuminating its structure.

Putting her hands into her coat pockets for a moment, Kelia stared at the temple and then raised her right arm to the brim of her cap in a Republic-style salute as she snapped to attention. "May the Force be with you, Ahsoka."