What an awful day. Nearly two days, Maelle supposed.

She'd personally seen each and every victim of the bombing, whether in their initial care or in the aftermath. The vile stench of burning flesh and smoke still lingered in her nostrils. She feared it would never clear, just as she knew she would never forget the utter devastation on Master Kenobi's face as he cradled Adrina's broken body, surrounded by fire and pain. She'd nearly fallen to her knees at the force of his emotions. And when he visited her in the Halls of Healing… Her heart broke anew.

And now word came that Ahsoka was behind the attack, behind Letta Turmond, and had escaped detainment. Lies, all of it. Maelle knew Ahsoka was innocent, as surely as she knew Master Kenobi loved Adrina. Perhaps Letta Turmond did have a partner, but it surely was not Ahsoka. Maelle would stake her life on it.

After a grueling thirty hour shift and the most awful of news, Maelle wanted nothing more than to sleep and forget the awful day. She flung herself onto her bed, buried her face in her pillow, and shrieked.

Maelle's comlink beeped. She ripped it off of her belt, prepared to sling it across the room, but the identification gave her pause. An unknown caller? On a restricted line?

Maelle sat up and answered the call. Her mouth hung open. A hologram flickered to life in front of her. "Ahsoka! Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine," Ahsoka whispered. A hood shrouded most of her face and she stood hunched, as if cowering in a corner. Or perhaps shrinking into a shadow. "But I need your help."

"Whatever you need," Maelle answered swiftly. "Tell me what you need."

A choked sob escaped Ahsoka, but she cleared her throat and forged ahead. "I need supplies." She rattled off a few items, all easily obtained, and an address with directions.

Maelle did quick calculations in her head. "I can meet you in forty-five minutes. Well, maybe forty-five? I've never actually... It'll take at least fifteen to gather the supplies, another t-"

"It's alright."

Maelle grimaced.

Ahsoka took a deep breath. "Thank you," she murmured. "Scrub your device after this."

The hologram faded and Maelle lept into action.

Fifteen minutes later, Maelle stepped into a turbolift, clutching a brimming satchel to her chest underneath her cloak. Barriss Offee slipped into the turbolift as the doors closed. Maelle offered her a smile.

"It has been a long while since we last met, has it not?" Barriss commented.

"Since Geonosis the second time around, I believe."

"That's right," Barriss nodded. "You evaluated me following the explosion."

Maelle nodded politely. She repeated Ahsoka's directions in her head. She could not forget them. Could not abandon her friend in her time of dire need.

"Did you hear about Ahsoka Tano?" Barriss asked quietly. Maelle startled. Had she spoken her thoughts aloud? No. Her shoulders dropped in relief. "She escaped from the prison and has evaded recapture. They say she murdered all the clones in her way."

Maelle's smile slipped. "No, I hadn't heard," Maelle lied.

"I don't believe she is guilty. I just wish I had a way to help her," Barriss sighed.

Some of Maelle's unease abated. "The truth always comes out in the end." Maelle adjusted the satchel strap. "The hangar was gruesome. I just hope they uncover the truth quickly so the victims can have true justice."

"You were there?" Barriss sounded surprised.

"Rescue crew." Maelle's eyes unfocused. "I've seen many gruesome things during this awful war, but this was different. Something about the debris, the destruction, it wasn't like other explosions. I don't know why."

"This is our sanctuary," Barriss said softly.

"Yes, but I mean about the explosion itself." Maelle shook her head. She had seen that level of destruction before, true, but never from a singular explosion.

"Nano-droids are highly volatile; they're meant to leave an impression." Barriss shrugged as the turbolift doors opened.

Maelle blinked. A chill ran down her spine. Nano-droids. But she gathered her wits and bowed to Barriss before hastily exiting.

Maelle took a deep breath. She flashed a Temple guard a wobbly smile and ducked her head as she hurried past the pair standing post at the entrance. Maelle forced herself to continue to take measured steps across the pavilion and down the steps off Temple grounds and out of sight of the ever-watchful guards.

Maelle's steps quickened once out of sight of the Temple guards. She lifted her hood to shield her face. She hurried the three blocks down to the nearest train station. Maelle kept her head low and tried to not feel as though every eye on the carriage was trained on her. Rationally, she knew no one even noticed her, but paranoia thrummed through her veins.

Maelle melted into the crowd exiting the carriage, falling into the flow of foot traffic. She silently recited Ahsoka's directions. Within minutes, Maelle turned into the appointed empty alley. She blinked. Empty?

Gravel crunched softly behind Maelle. "You came." Relief dripped from Ahsoka's words. "No! Don't turn around. You need to be able to say you never saw me."

Maelle nodded. She dropped her hand from her heart, quickly set at ease. "Of course I came. Here. Everything you asked for, plus a little extra just in case." Maelle tossed the satchel over her shoulder.

Ahsoka murmured her thanks. "Were you followed?"

Maelle shook her head. "Are you alright? You're not hurt?"

Maelle sensed her sorrow. "You should go," Ahsoka said, ignoring Maelle's question. "Take a different route back, as if you were just on a nightly stroll."

Maelle understood. She hated it. "May the Force be with you," she murmured. "I believe in you. Always. We will discover the truth."

Ahsoka paused. After a long moment she said, voice thick with emotion, "May the Force be with you."

Ahsoka disappeared into the shadows and Maelle was once again alone. She sighed, rubbing her forehead. But she gathered her courage and tenacity and pressed on into the night.

Maelle meandered the lower levels, reassured by the bump of her lightsaber against her hip whenever a particularly seedy individual glanced her way.

Unlike Adrina, who regularly visited the lower levels before the war, Maelle rarely ventured outside of the Temple unless on assignment. She certainly never explored Coruscant's seedy underbelly in the evening. Perhaps that could work to her advantage, should she be interrogated. Maelle shuddered. Who would interrogate her? Would it be kind Master Kenobi? Harsh Master Windu? Perhaps Master Skywalker, though she supposed he really wasn't Master Skywalker, but…..

Before she knew it, the fluorescent lights of the Dog Bowl smiled down on her. Maelle lingered on the corner, observing troopers staggering in and out of the cantina. A little away from the bar, taxis came and went. Maelle clutched her cloak tightly and headed for the taxi stop.

A familiar trooper stumbled out of the bar with his arm draped around one of his brother's necks. Maelle's brow furrowed. Could it be? Her senses confirmed her suspicion. Fives. But wasn't he on Kamino? And why was he wearing a pilot's cap?

Maelle took a step forward out of the shadow of the building. Fives' eyes immediately locked onto her. She stepped back into the shadows and waited.

Fives clapped his brother on the back, sharing a boisterous laugh, and zig-zagged away from the group with a loose wave. Maelle observed his sloppy behavior with a frown. Fives was not known to drink to the point of severe inebriation.

Maelle gripped his forearm with a steadying hand when Fives reached her hiding spot. "Are you alright, Fives? Are you drunk?"

"N-no," Fives stammered. He shook his head, placing a hand to his head. "Drugged. I was drugged. Not important."

"Not important?" Maelle hissed. "Who drugged you? What did they give you?" She should have brought her usual bag with her. If she had her medkit, she could have given himself something to counteract the drug, but in her foolishness she left it in her quarters, lest she arouse suspicion by carrying two bags.

Fives waved his hand dismissively. "There's a plot, a massive plot. I'm being framed. All of us, even the Jedi, are in grave danger."

"Fives, what happened? Where is Tupp?"

"Tupp is dead. His inhibitor chip, the tumor, showed signs of rapid decay. That's what made him kill General Tiplar. He died on Kamino."

Inhibitor chip? "I'm so sorry," Maelle whispered.

"I'm being framed," Fives repeated. "I never tried to kill the Chancellor! There's a plot, a massive plot!" Maelle blinked. Fives swiped at the beads of sweat dotting his brow. "We're in terrible danger." The tremble in his voice did not assuage any of her concerns.

"How can I help you, Fives? Tell me what I can do."

Fives blinked some of the haze from his eyes. "You…you believe me?"

Maelle's gaze softened. "You're my friend."

Fives swallowed hard.

"Do you have a way of getting me the evidence of this plot? Perhaps I could convince the Council… I am sure Master Kenobi would listen. And Master Skywalker, he could help convince the Chancellor. If you could just… if you could just stay in hiding until then, maybe we could clear your name too."

Fives' eyes shuttered. "My life is forfeit. The Chancellor confiscated the hard evidence and you'll never be able to get anyone to believe a clone," the venom in his word startled Maelle, "over the Supreme Chancellor. Especially one accused of trying to assassinate the Chancellor."

"We have to try! I refuse to give up. I refuse! I refuse to allow you to be punished for a crime you did not commit!" She slashed the air with her hand.

Fives stared at her for a moment before chuckling tiredly. "Rex would be a lucky man."

"Rex? What are you talking about?" Maelle blinked. "It doesn't matter. What matters is clearing your name and proving you are right." Maelle planted her hands on her hips. "So are you going to help me or am I going to have to kick your butt across Coruscant? I'll do it. Don't think I won't."

"I'll help," Fives sighed. "But don't delude yourself into thinking I'll make it out alive."

Maelle narrowed her eyes. But she said, "I will contact Master Skywalker."

"And Rex. You'll need him. You'll need each other."

Maelle's finger hesitated over her comlink. Something in the way he said it made her believe he wasn't referring to assistance Rex may provide on the crusade to help Fives. She shoved the thought aside and activated her comlink.

"Master Skywalker, I need to meet with you. Bring a medkit. And Rex. This is important."

"I'm busy at the moment," Anakin snapped.

"Please." Her voice cracked. She bit the inside of her cheek. She tasted blood.

Anakin sighed. "I suppose Obi-Wan can keep going without me. Give me the location."

0

Fives waited inside the abandoned warehouse a few blocks from the Dog Bowl he located for the meeting. Maelle lingered just outside. Scant minutes after they arrived, Anakin and Rex's speeder descended from the upper levels of air must have been in the area. They hopped out of the speeder, muttering words too quiet for Maelle to hear.

Maelle stepped from the shadows. Anakin and Rex's eyes snapped to her.

"What is going on, Maelle?" Rex asked. He handed her the medkit.

Maelle turned on her heel and led them into the abandoned warehouse. "They're here," she called into the darkness, fishing around in the medkit. She produced a small vial.

"Maelle, who else is here?" Anakin asked warily.

"Someone who needs our help." Maelle motioned for them to wait under the flood light in the center of the floor. She disappeared behind crates where Fives waited, clutching his head. She silently handed him the vial and he drank it in one gulp.

Fives managed a small, grateful smile. Slowly, he pushed off of the crates as the medicine took effect. Together they stepped into view.

"Fives!" Rex exclaimed. He glanced at Maelle - quizzically and with a fair dose of exasperation.

"How are you, Fives?" Anakin asked slowly, suspiciously. "And, Maelle, how did you find Fives?"

Maelle pursed her lips. "That isn't important right now, Master Skywalker. You must listen to what Fives has to say." She gave Fives an encouraging smile.

Fives grimaced and took a deep breath. "I was framed because I know the truth. The truth about a plot, a massive deception against the Jedi."

"By whom?" Anakin asked. "Do you have evidence?"

Fives swayed on his feet, but he held his head high. "I can prove that everything I know is true beyond a shadow of a doubt. The proof is in here," he tapped his temple. "The proof is in every single clone."

"What is it?" Rex asked. He folded his arms. Maelle sensed their patience thinning. She clenched her fists.

"Organic chips built into our genetic code to make us do whatever someone wants, even kill the Jedi."

Anakin and Rex glanced at each other and Maelle could tell they were not convinced. Maelle knew how absurd Fives' claims were. She knew how it sounded. Such a plot could only have started before the war even began. And to accuse the Supreme Chancellor of treachery… Fives levied grave accusations indeed. But Maelle believed him.

"Think about it, Rex," Maelle urged. "Remember what Tupp kept repeating?"

Fives' eyes widened. "'Good soldiers follow orders.'"

"But what orders?" Anakin demanded. "This doesn't make sense."

Fives gasped as the realization hit him. "You were there, General Skywalker. You heard it, same as me. Before we made it back to the RMSU."

"'Kill the Jedi'." Anakin crossed his arms. "Fives, what you're suggesting-"

"I know," Fives snapped. He jammed his hand through his hair and began pacing. "I know exactly what I'm saying. And I know that I am right." He slashed the air with his hand.

"But we can't prove it!" Anakin threw up his hands. "We would need to analyze Tupp's inhibitor chip. Where is it now?"

Fives growled. "Chancellor Palpatine has it, and mine too. But you'll never get them from him. He's in on it. I don't know to what extent, but I know he orchestrated much of this. He told me so, in the medical bay."

Anakin's eyes shuttered. "The Chancellor isn't capable of what you claim."

Enough was enough.

Maelle boldly stepped forward. "You need to make up your mind, Master Skywalker," she said, deadly quiet. "Because believing Fives did not try to assassinate Chancellor Palpatine means believing that Chancellor Palpatine is lying - at the very minimum about what occurred in that medical bay."

But why would the Chancellor frame Fives for attempted murder? He would only gain from it if….if he truly was guilty of orchestrating a plot against the Jedi. If he would be eliminating a witness. And if…if….

Anakin's face hardened. Rex rubbed his temples. Finally, Anakin relented with a sigh. "I believe you are innocent, Fives. But that doesn't mean I believe the Chancellor is behind this. He isn't that kind of man. I'm sure it's simply a misunderstanding. We'll assess the evidence."

Maelle stepped in front of Fives. "You can't turn him in until you have it. You know what will happen to him. No court will be interested in the truth if the Chancellor has already proclaimed his guilt."

Anakin glanced at Rex. "It goes against our orders, but… yes."

Maelle's shoulders sagged. She smiled. "Thank you, Master Sky-"

"Stand down, Trooper!"

They whirled. A squad of troopers - their red helmets denoting them as the Chancellor's personal squad - stormed into the warehouse, blasters trained on Fives.

Rex shoved Maelle behind him. "How did they find us?" Rex asked Anakin under his breath.

"We have this handled," Anakin assured the Chancellor's men. "Lower your weapons." But the troopers did not lower their weapons.

"Stand down, troopers," Rex commanded. "That's a direct order from a general!"

"Our orders are from the Chancellor himself," the point man said, almost apologetically.

Maelle sensed Fives' fear. His desperation. His determination. And she sensed the moment he made his choice. "They'll kill you if you do it," Maelle hissed. "We need you alive!"

"And I'm dead if I surrender!" Fives snapped over his shoulder.

But Fives hesitated and slowly, so slowly, his coiled muscles relaxed and he hung his head.

Surrendered.

The Chancellor's men warily approached. Fives did not resist the cuffs they slapped around his wrists.

Anakin stepped to the side with a growl and took a comlink call.

Fives balked as they led him past Rex and Maelle. He looked at them, eyes full of sorrow, and said simply, "It was an honor to serve with you. Both of you."

Maelle knew in her bones that he was saying good-bye. Tears burned her eyes.

And they led him away.

Anakin returned with a heavy sigh. He scrubbed his face. "Rex, go with Fives. I need to return to the Temple. They captured Ahsoka."

Maelle gasped. "They found her?"

"In a warehouse with the explosives used at the Temple. I fear the Senate will call for blood."

Maelle's hands flew to her hips. "But just because she was found near nano-droids doesn't mean they belong to her. You know she's innocent!"

Anakin stilled. He slowly turned to her.

Maelle instinctively moved closer to Rex. "What? Why are you looking at me like that, Master Skywalker?"

Anakin grabbed Maelle's shoulder, ignoring Rex's protests. Pain shot down her arm. "Where did you hear about nano-droids, Maelle? This is very important. How do you know about the nano-droids?"

Rex yanked Anakin off of Maelle. "Maelle isn't the enemy, General."

Anakin shrugged Rex's hand off. "I know that, Rex." He turned back to Maelle. "Look at me, Maelle. Look at me, not Rex. I know you're not the culprit. But we made very, very certain that no one knew nano-droids were the source of the explosion."

Maelle sucked in a breath. She paled. "Barriss Offee. She told me. On the turbolift. She said…." The contents of her stomach threatened to vacate through her esophagus. Maelle began to pace and words began to tumble out. "I said the explosion was different, something was different. And she said.. Oh… She said…" Maelle swept a hand over her hair. "She said nano-droids are meant to leave an impression."

Anakin bolted from the warehouse.

Maelle stared forlornly at Rex. Her shoulders sagged. "It was Barriss, wasn't it?"

Rex bowed his head. "Were you close to her?"

"No, I hardly knew her…. But she was friends with Ahsoka. She is still a Jedi. How could she do something so horrible?"

"I don't know, but you just saved Commander Tano."

Maelle couldn't smile, couldn't rejoice. Yes, perhaps her forbidden knowledge had, indeed, proved Ahsoka's innocence, but the fact still remained that a Jedi was responsible for the bombing. They had still been betrayed by one of their own, betrayed by a friend.

"I need to go…" Rex glanced at the waiting transport. "You should come with me. You shouldn't be wandering these parts alone." His eyes narrowed. "You can tell me later why you were down here in the first place."

Maelle nodded woodenly. Rex gently took her hand only to drop it a moment later. A fleeting touch, but it bolstered Maelle nonetheless.