Chapter 14 - Mystery Weapons

Author's Note: I hope y'all are enjoying the story! :) I'm curious to hear everyone's thoughts/opinions about the direction this is going. :D

~ Amina Gila

Ahsoka has never hated bugs quite as much as she does now. It doesn't help that their constantly flapping wings, when there's hundreds of them in here, is seriously annoying her montrals. They're nonstop chattering is also driving her up the wall, almost literally, given that she's currently chained to it, a distance above the Queen's throne.

Because apparently, the Geonosians have a queen.

She doesn't know if it's better or worse that she also knows Anakin is never going to listen to her warning to stay away. He'd contacted her again, and the signal had been fading in and out, but it was enough for her to yell at him not to come after.

The bugs smashed her comm before she could say anything more, and that in and of itself is reason to know that he's not going to stop searching until he finds her. And she has no idea what the bugs have going on here, but it's obviously something they're fully confident will be able handle whatever Jedi come. There's something more going on, and she's not sure what.

But she has the distinct feeling it has something to do with those worms the other Geonisans are taking from the Queen. What even are those things? Some type of larva?

It's then she feels a slight shift in the Force, the way it always burns and brightens when Anakin's approaching. Of course, he's coming.

Except, the first person to step into the room isn't Anakin – it's Luke.

"You Skyguys never listen to orders, do you," Ahsoka calls, twisting a little in the restraints. She hates being trapped here.

Thankfully, Jai is elsewhere – he's the least skilled of all of them. She wouldn't want him to be in this mess, which he undoubtedly would be if he were here. They've only known each for a couple years, but they're... close. Having a padawan gave her a new understanding of how Anakin must've felt towards her, even if for him, she thinks he saw her more as his child than a padawan. There is a difference, even if she doesn't really know what it is – she shouldn't be closer to anyone than master and padawan, anyway.

Even if her connection to Anakin definitely runs deeper than that.

"Only when they make sense," Luke replies, lightly.

"I believe our degrees of sensibleness and stupidity are very different," Ahsoka huffs.

"You are the creatures who attacked Geonosis," the Queen snarls, "Why have you come before me?"

"You attacked us first," Luke retorts, and off to the side, Ahsoka can see the clones silently entering the room, taking up positions behind the bugs. They're planning something – or at least they better have a better plan than this, because they're hopelessly outnumbered.

"You have tried to destroy our planet, but you will fail. My empire is forever," she snarls. The way she talks makes Ahsoka very badly want to cough or clear her throat. How can a living being sound so hoarse? That shouldn't even be possible.

"It doesn't seem that way to me," Luke responds, standing his ground. He doesn't look the slightest bit scared, which is impressive for someone not raised a Jedi, if Ahsoka's being honest. Anakin is training him well, despite his concerns. "Geonosis has almost been defeated. If you surrender, the Republic's judgment might not be as harsh."

"No, Jedi, no," she retorts.

"I'm not a Jedi – "

"I destroy you," she hisses, "I no submit to you. I control you. I devour you. Before I had but one Jedi, but now I have three."

Clearly, she just noticed Anakin approaching, who exchanges a silent look of communication with Luke.

"Now, watch as my child enters your Jedi friend, and once inside, her mind becomes my mind, her thoughts, my thoughts."

Ahsoka's eyes widen the slightest bit as a bug flies over to her, carrying a worm, setting it down on top of her montrals. She twists her head, trying to shake it off, but she doesn't have nearly enough leverage. And the sensation of the thing crawling across her is disgusting. "Now would be a good time," Ahsoka hisses.

"It's a hive mind," Anakin realizes, and moves suddenly, motioning in the darkness.

Lights flick on from all the clones' helmets, momentarily blinding Ahsoka, but from the bugs' shrieks, it's obviously much worse for them. Anakin instantly ignites his lightsaber, sprinting across the room to cut Ahsoka free, as Luke rips the worm off her with the Force, bisecting it.

And then, total chaos breaks loose.

The Geonosians start shooting at them, and Luke runs for Poggle, snapping binders on his wrists and pulling him after them as they hastily retreat back into the catacombs, shooting down the supports for the building as they go.

It slows the bugs down, but it's not nearly enough – these things are zombies and unless Ahsoka literally chops them in half, they keep fighting, no matter how many times they've been shot.

Finally, though, they make it back to the surface. "That was close," Ahsoka pants.

"Those things were disgusting," Luke says, flatly, "What even were they?"

"Are you alright?" Anakin asks.

"I had mind-control worms crawling on me," she grumbles, "But yeah. And I thought I told you not to come after me."

"And you actually thought we'd take your advice?" Anakin throws back, smirking, and she huffs.

"No, but I had to tell you, anyway."

"I still can't believe Reva was insistent than we should," Luke says.

"She did have reason to be cautious."

"Why do people keep saying that?" he asks, irritated, "If we can help rescue anyone, why shouldn't we?"

"It's a matter of calculated risk," Ahsoka points out, "But it's a good thing you came. At least we have Poggle." But that might not say much if the Queen just takes his role. She's almost certainly still alive down there along with her zombie army, and Ahsoka can only hope they aren't going to make it to the surface.

Either way, the fighting will continue, and she knows that. They can just hope the Geonosians have been damaged enough that they won't be able to rebuild their factory right away.

**w**

"We have a complication," Reva says by way of greeting, when they finally get back. Somehow, Luke's not surprised to hear that.

"What is it this time?" Anakin asks.

"Master Cere Junda contacted us," she explains – one of the Council members, Luke remembers. "She said we received a distress signal from our forces on Dantooine. Knight Trilla Suduri's forces need immediate medical supplies. We can obtain these supplies at the medical station near Ord Cestus."

"Poggle has to be taken to Coruscant immediately before the Separatists try something," Ahsoka objects, "And we could get useful information out of him."

"One of us can deliver the supplies, while the rest of us transport Poggle," Anakin suggests.

"I can do it!" Luke offers, instantly.

Anakin has that look on his face that he gets when he's sensing something, and from the slightest hint of worry on his face, he must've picked up on something... not good. "There may be some... complications. Perhaps another should go with you."

"Why would there? It's a simple delivery," Reva objects.

'Something is... not right," he replies.

"I would send Jai, but he's still out of action," Ahsoka says.

"I'll go then," Reva decides, and Luke suppresses the urge to groan. Why do they keep getting paired together? "Let's get this over with quickly."

"We will rendezvous with you as soon as we are done," Anakin assures.

That time couldn't come sooner, Luke grumpily decides, as he follows Reva to the ship.

**w**

Finally, Luke has to ask the question nagging at the back of his mind and has been ever since Ahsoka was captured back on Geonosis. "How can you think it's alright to leave people behind?" he asks finally as he and Reva sit across from each other in the cafeteria. They'd tried – and failed – at sleeping for a while. He hadn't been able to find enough calm to rest. Something is wrong, and he can't place what. Reva didn't seem too much better off.

"It's the Jedi way not to risk many for one," she replies.

"But that wasn't even about risking," Luke argues, "We won, because we went after Ahsoka. This isn't about attachment. It was about the right thing to do. As Jedi, shouldn't you try to go after others?"

"It depends on the risks," Reva answers, "And considering the situation on Geonosis, the odds were more against us."

"If we hadn't, we wouldn't have won." He doesn't understand why that seems so hard for the Jedi to understand. It's such simple common sense.

"Perhaps under this circumstance," she concedes, "But that isn't always true."

"That doesn't mean abandoning them is right."

"Not all circumstances in war are... desirable," she points out.

Anakin has always told him that the best thing to do when you can't see eye to eye with someone is try to find middle ground. "That's true," Luke concedes grudgingly. "It's not like I thought it would be. And it's dragging on with no end in sight."

"Geonosis will be a major blow to the Separatists," Reva points out, "It would be easier if more were willing to push harder for victory."

Luke glances at her, mildly surprised. It's the first time he's heard someone other than himself say that. "I know," he agrees, mildly surprised that he's capable of agreeing with her about anything. "I don't know the Jedi way of life the same as you, but it does sometimes feel like they don't try hard enough. Like there's more they should be doing."

Reva nods. "Yes."

Something prickles in the Force, and Luke tenses a bit, looking up as the door opens and a group of clones enter. They can continue their conversation later. Something is wrong, and Luke doesn't know what it is. It feels... nearby, though. "Hey," Luke calls to the clones, perking up, "Care to join us? We could use some company." Is it just that he wishes for... someone else's company other than Reva? Probably.

It's relieving to know that they don't disagree on literally everything, but he still doesn't particularly like her.

Except, for some reason, instead of responding, the clones just stare at them, something dead and empty on their faces.

"Is... everything alright?" he asks, uncertainly.

The clones raise their blasters suddenly, firing.

It's only through sheer instinct that Luke is able to dodge aside, whipping out his lightsaber. Reva flips over the table to give them more cover – so much for trying to eat, not that he has the mind to care about that when his own men are shooting at him and he has no idea why.

He throws one of them against the wall with the Force, knocking him out. A stray shot hits the other one in the shoulder and he goes down. Luke stands, still holding his lightsaber, stepping out from behind the table. "What was that?!"

"They're your men," Reva says, like that's supposed to answer something.

"I know that!" And that certainly isn't helping matters. It's leaving him completely shaken and confused, though it answers what the disturbance was. It feels stronger now, though. Closer. Worse. He has no idea why this is happening. No member of the 501st would ever do this. They're loyal. All clones are, but the bonds they have are especially deep

The only thing that makes him feel marginally better about it is that he can feel Reva is as confused about it as he is.

"They wouldn't just turn on us," he objects.

"Clearly, that is not the case."

"What's wrong with you?" Luke demands, approaching the still conscious clone.

He moves suddenly, leaping to his feet, a worm starting to slither out of his nose.

Oh.

Force.

Oh no.

He shoves him back, throwing him into the wall hard enough to stun him, as Reva slashes the worm in half.

"How did these things get on board?!" How could nobody have noticed?

"Who knows how far this has spread?" Reva replies, grimly, "We must determine if we still have control of the bridge."

Except, predictably, no one is answering their calls when they try to contact them, so they sneak into the halls, trying to avoid the clones.

They're turning another corner when Luke hears voices. He pauses, cautiously peering into a room off the hallway, to see a group of clones crowding around several others, trying to infect them too.

He's seen plenty of awful things during the war, but something about this is just... disgusting. It makes him sick to watch, on multiple levels. "We hafta stop them."

Reva shakes her head. "If we catch their attention – "

"That's gonna happen anyway! We have to find some way to stop them!"

"Then we should contact someone off the ship for help, to look into this. And we need to warn Master Junda of the situation." She's probably right about that this time, but that doesn't mean he has to like it.

But they don't have the chance to back away, because one of the clones looks up sharply, spotting them. "There!" he shouts.

Luke draws his lightsaber instantly, yanking whatever free worms he can see over to him, slashing them apart. But it's not nearly enough, because aside from the couple they just saved, there's more than a dozen infected clones in here.

They have to find a way to stop this, but he has no idea how or what to do, or – anything. Except fighting, and trying not to kill anyone when the clones start shooting.

One of them tries to jump Reva, and she shoves him off, running him through with her lightsaber, before they scramble back out of the room, taking off. A knot of horror twists inside of Luke, anyway as they run. Yes, it was a tight circumstance, but that doesn't mean... It wasn't the clone's fault. It was one of Anakin's men,and now, they're killing them.

But he needs to focus on staying alive right now. "The vents are a good place to hide," Luke says, breathlessly. He can hear footsteps coming closer behind them, already.

Reva nods, swiftly ducking around another corner to yank off the nearest vent, and they scramble inside, sliding the grate back in place barely in time. A group of clones circle in the hallway down below, and he practically holds his breath, hoping they can't hear his pounding heart. Because he's pretty sure the whole ship could right now.

But, finally, they pass below, and he dares to breathe a sigh of relief, before they start crawling.

The communications room is thankfully empty when they get there, but it probably won't stay that way. "I'll keep watch," Reva tells him, moving to the door, as Luke hastily contacts the 501st.

"Commander?" Rex's hologram asks, obvious worry on his face. "The General's been trying to contact you."

"We have a situation," he replies, breathlessly.

"What is it?" Anakin inquires, stepping into view – it's beyond relieving to see him. It makes him feel safer, even if Anakin is too many light years away to help. "I sensed the danger."

"Those worms are on the ship," Luke explains, "They're controlling most of the clones. I don't know what to do. Is there any way we can neutralize them?"

"I will see what I can find," Anakin replies, "Stay out of sight, and wait for my call."

"We will," he promises, ending the call, and dialing Cere next.

"You have to bring the supplies in," she replies, grimly, after he finishes explaining the situation, "We'll find a way to contain the parasites."

"Are you sure?" Luke asks again, anyway. "You don't know how dangerous these things are." None of them do, and the last thing they need is for it to spread.

"The only way to analyze them will be if we study them," Cere answers, "We will take precautions to ensure they don't spread."

"Alright," he concedes, deflating, "We'll do it, but... I don't have a good feeling about this."

They leave it at that, before he and Reva climb back up into the vents, near the bridge, to wait. He has no idea how long they're going to be sitting here waiting, but cramped up next to her in this small space is not what he had in mind for this mission.

He doesn't know if he's more tense or relieved when the alarms for coming out of hyperspace go off. They drop down onto the bridge, knocking out the clones and taking control – releasing all the escape pods so no one can get out, then wait to be boarded.

Luke just hopes that this doesn't go very, very badly, because he has the terrible feeling that it might. At least, he knows, a lot of people can – or will – get hurt in this. They don't have much choice, though.

"We can help," he says finally, too restless to stay still anymore, "If we stunned the clones, it would help contain them." He can hear the distant sound of blaster fire, and... he doesn't know if the other Jedi will have much restraint about killing the clones, either.

Reva agrees – surprisingly – so they take the nearest blasters they can find, and head off.

Finally, they reach the boarding area, to see Cere and Trilla gathered, with some of their clones. They're all wearing protective gear against the parasites, and Luke can only hope it was enough.

With the ordeal finally over, he suddenly feels thoroughly exhausted.

**w**

Talking to Poggle hadn't gotten Anakin anywhere – he wasn't very inclined to talk, and even... threats didn't seem very effective. There was little else he could do, other than that.

"I'm sure he'll be fine," Ahsoka had assured him, "If he's anything like you."

"He doesn't have that training," Anakin had told her, shaking his head. He's not nearly skilled enough in using the Force to have to deal with something like that. And Anakin would never trust Reva with protecting him, at all.

"He's a Commander now. It's something he'll have to learn to handle," she'd replied, firmly, "Besides, if there's anything you excel at, it's stealth. I'm sure he at least knows how to hide."

That... was maybe a small measure of comfort.

Luke was trained to hold off the clones, yes – he couldn't be more grateful for all the... stunning lessons he'd given him now, but that wouldn't help against those parasites. Not if they possessed Reva – who's a trained Jedi Knight and more than capable of using those skills against Luke. Anakin wouldn't even let himself... think of that, because once someone is controlled, he has no idea if it's something that can be undone. The Force wasn't warning him of things going nearly that far, but still.

It's still beyond relieving, when he finally sees Luke in person again.

"Are you alright?" Anakin asks, as the boy darts over, skidding to a stop in front of him.

"Yeah," he replies, "But that was... disgusting. And no one knows if the clones are going to make it."

Anakin nods, grimly. So many of his men could be lost here, for nothing. "There must be some way to stop them. We only have to find it," he assures, anyway. Or at least, he can hope so. As their General, he's supposed to take care of them. He's trying. It just... sometimes feels like it's not enough. "You need to rest," Anakin tells him. "I know this has been... hard for you."

"Yeah," Luke mutters. He looks exhausted.

Silently, Anakin just hopes for a time where... he won't always have to worry about this.

**w**

It's not often that Anakin and Luke are able to call Leia, and it's even less often that she's able to pick up the call when they do. Usually, they're only able to communicate a little through comm messages, so she's barely able to suppress a most undignified squeal of excitement when she gets an incoming call that evening, after her work for the day is done.

"What?" Qi'ra asks, eyeing her. All four of them were going over the next day's work together.

"My brother," she explains, hastily, "I'll be back." She slips into her bedroom immediately, shutting the door – they don't know about Anakin yet, and no matter how close they are, it's not really something she can tell them.

"I almost thought you wouldn't be able to answer again," Luke greets, as their holograms materialize in the room.

"It's about time I did," she replies, gaze darting between him and Anakin, "Do you have long?"

"Unless there is a sudden interruption, yes," Anakin confirms.

She smiles, a warmth flooding her. "Good. I've missed you."

"I miss you too, little one," Anakin tells her, softly.

"I'm still collecting those droid fingers," Luke promises, drawing her gaze back to him again.

Sometimes, with the war and all, she doesn't know what to think of him anymore. He still has a light and cheerfulness that he did before, but in many ways, he's... become darker. He's not so young or naïve anymore, either. The changes are expected, but she... doesn't know that she likes it. It doesn't help that they've drifted apart so much in the time they've been away, it feels like another lifetime that they once did everything together. How much he's truly changed, she doesn't think she'll really realize unless they get to be family again, the way they used to be.

"What's going on?" Leia asks, "How's the Geonosis invasion? If you can discuss it." Sometimes, their missions are classified, after all, or at least some details of them.

"It was awful," Luke replies, flatly.

"But we did win," Anakin answers, "There will be a Republic presence there for a time, to ensure they do not try to rebuild their factory."

"What was awful?" Leia asks, "The bugs, the sandstorms, the –"

"The worms," Luke interjects, shuttering, "They have mind-control worms there."

"What?" she yelps, eyes widening.

"It was dealt with," Anakin assures, "But there were... losses. The ship was barely contained."

Leia winces. "Is there any antidote?"

"We would have to find a way to kill the worms, and we have not."

"There was also something strange in space near the planet. I don't know what it was," Luke adds, "You didn't see any mysterious objects flying by Naboo, did you?"

"... no? What do you mean?"

"It appeared to be a massive space station," Anakin replies, "But it jumped to hyperspace before we could investigate further."

"I didn't think space stations even could be that big," Luke supplies.

Leia does not have a good feeling about this, even if she can't say... what it is. "I'll keep an eye out," she offers, "But I doubt they'd bring it anywhere near Republic space."

"Unlikely," Anakin agrees, "They are going to great lengths to hide it. Something about it is... not right."

She can sense it, too. There's something far bigger going on here. "I sense it, too," Leia admits.

"Whatever it is, I'm sure it'll turn up again," Luke offers.

"So as long as we can find it before it's complete," Anakin reminds, grimly.

Because they don't need another Malevolence, or worse. She knows how bad that ship was, and it was only by chance that they were able to take it out. Sometimes, she wishes there was something more she could do.

They get interrupted soon enough, but at least she had the chance to talk to them.

Leia slips back out to join the others, before long. "Anything too explosive?" Pooja asks, cheerfully.

"That really isn't funny," Qi'ra deadpans.

"This time, there isn't," Leia concurs, sliding into her seat at the table. "The Separatists are building a superweapon, something bigger than the Malevolence."

Jyn twitches, looking up. "How do they know?"

"They saw it briefly, before it could jump to hyperspace," she explains.

"But that's... impossible," she protests. "... Isn't it?"

"You would think," Pooja says, shaking her head, "But I suppose there isn't much we can do about it."

"It's not like they'd use it on Naboo," Jyn agrees, a sudden amount of fear coloring the Force around her.

"I'd doubt they'd bring the war here," Leia concurs. Or so she can hope.

She shrugs off the strange inkling she gets, for a moment, that that's not quite what Jyn meant.

Because there's constant work to do with supply lines, and ensuring she's feeding her people – not to mention whatever relief supplies they can send elsewhere – to have to deal with actual war on their surface.

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