Chapter 11

Ansii stood watching the vid feed for the landing platform, waiting for any sudden movement that would result in the lethal anzati Jedi hunter to escape. She saw master Stral and his padawan appear first, followed by Articus Trang, with the clones fanning out, and finally Conn. As he slowed to summon his ship, the projector in the command center blinked to life. She spun, mostly out of surprise, to see a dark hooded man on the display. It wasn't Dooku, the force he emanated was pure darkness, darker than she had ever felt. The figure from her vision before Trang encased her in carbonite.

"Execute Order 66.", the voice growled.

As quickly as he'd appeared, the projection ceased. Ansii, Ta'ni, and Ko looked amongst each other in confusion. To their surprise, three clone troopers appeared at the blast door. Without a word, or a pause, the trio took aim and fired. Ko had tried to reason, but the sound of lightsaber and blaster fire drowned his plea to nothingness. Ko looked shocked, as much as a Kel Dor could beneath his antiox mask, when the troopers fell to their own blaster fire.

"What was that about?", Ansii said, half panicked.

"That could only have been the dark lord of the Sith!", Ko reasoned. "I fear a much darker plot behind this war."

Ansii took one last look at the landing platform and saw only the four clones lying dead. A knot formed in her stomach as she turned and left the room with Ko and her Padawan. The instant they stepped foot into the corridor, another four troopers spotted them and immediately filled the space between with blue bolts sizzling toward the Jedi. Ta'ni did well to deflect the bolts away from her. Ansii and Ko repelled the fire into their attackers once again.

Before they ran into another corridor, Ansii and Ta'ni decided to attempt an escape for the speeder bikes at the motor pool in the front of the station, crawling into a service hatch to try to bypass the clones now swarming the outpost. Ko would sound the alarm to disorient the clones to some degree, attempt to find the other Jedi, and find one of the ships that could make it off-world.

The service-ways through the base were cramped, not that they were built for comfort, but definitely weren't made with sentients in mind. Ansii struggled to move quietly in the limited space. Ta'ni had a slightly easier time with her smaller frame. They came to a grate above a corridor and saw two clones patrolling side by side, metting up with another patrol.

"Any sign of them yet?"

"Negative, no sign of the three from the control room. How about the landing platform?"

"No, and we've just confirmed their escort to be KIA."

"How about the Mandalorian or the Anzati?"

"The Mandalorian is hostile, and believed to be alive, but unknown as to his whereabouts."

The Mandalorian? They were even trying to kill him? Ansii was shocked, these clones, many who were loyal to she and the other Jedi through some hard battles, were now taking no prisoners and hunting them all like animals. She couldn't imagine what had brought this all about, nor did she have time to think about it. Now she wondered if she could escape it. They'd have to find Conn, or at least beat him to his ship if they were to make it off world.

--

Conn stopped midway across the breezy landing platform a few meters from Trang. A quick survey through his 360 helmet display pretty well had her covered. He raised his left gauntlet and was about to bring up his holodisplay to summon the Dead Bolt when he noticed the clones receiving orders. He paused to see what could have possibly changed. The clones dropped their hands to unsling their rifles. This was a firing squad.

Conn drew his pistol with his right hand and thumbed the selector switch from stun. Two bolts glanced from his armored wrist and chest as he planted a shot into a commandos neck and another into the left bicep of the second trooper that had fired on him. The Jedi whirled their sabers to deflect the bolts. The Mon Cal struggled to keep pace and caught a shot to his bad knee. Conn almost regretted having kicked it. Now the sorry nerf-herder was learning a hard lesson in battlefield protocol.

As he fell, he caught another shot to the arm, dropping his saber. It didn't hit the deck before it sailed through the air into Trang's hands. The clones redirected their fire to her, as she used a stray bolt to break her binders. The Mon Cal slid to her much in the same manner as his light saber had. She wailed in pain as two shots connected with her thigh and another in her shoulder. As Conn helped the young male Jedi finish the remaining commandos, Trang was gone over the edge of the platform with the wounded Jedi.

"Hey kid!"

The zabrak boy looked to the faceless Mandalorian half in horror, half in shock.

"Look, I don't know what's going on, but you'd better find the others. I'll find her. Go, now!"

As he ran back into the shuttle bay, Conn fired his grappling hook and gently jetted over the side of the platform. There was nothing but rock and support struts. As his visual filters adjusted he could see a bit better, but still nothing as he inspected the struts. He cycled through different filters and saw the blues and blacks of cold surfaces. There were a few heat signatures too small to be sentient, until he got to one of the larger struts. It was faded badly, but not moving. It must be the Jedi. Just before he adjusted to investigate, he saw something move. Something cold. The Jedi fell into the foggy marsh below, but strange signature moved from strut to strut. Conn cycled back to his normal filter in just enough time to catch the anzati shrieking toward him. He cut his grapple cord as she tackled him, in a near feral rage. They fell for several feet before his jetpack sent them up and over the platform.

He dropped her mid travel as he landed. She sprinted like a professional athlete, lightsaber drawn. He brought his left wrist up, firing a grenade. She extended a palm and sent the explosive into the large door as Conn was knocked to his back by a kinetic wave. She leapt into the air, the glowing blade poised for his lower abdomen.

Conn fired his jetpack, sliding across the deck as the saber pierced through the durasteel. She stood in frustration and advanced on him. He fired a hail of shots from his wrists, pistol, and even his carbine as he got to his feet. He managed a hit on her bad shoulder, which had oddly healed, along with two more that had connected with a knee and grazed the fingers that gripped her lightsaber. She exhibited a raw focus that didn't show the slightest hint she'd been hit.

She held the saber over her head and swung down, hard. Conn deflected with his left forearm and broke her nose with his faceplate. He swept her legs, sending her to the floor with a dull thud. He quickly loaded his wrist launcher. She began to laugh as she looked up at him. He didn't move.

"It's been a long time since a mere mortal has actually hurt me.", she said, almost sounding thrilled.

"You're just a job, lady. One way or another, you're coming with me."

Rain now danced on the platform, streaking down his faceplate, and sizzled off of the humming blue blade. Conn whipped his pistol at her and fired a wild shot as it flew out of his hand and skittered across the platform. She whirled to her feet, planting a foot across Conns helmet. He used his momentum to roll out of the way of another dangerously close saber swing. He rolled to his back and fired a bola round at her.

The line caught her right arm and went taut when it pinned the arm to her chest. She tried to extinguish the saber, but wasn't quick enough, as the faltering blade haphazardly sent her left shoulder flopping onto the landing platform. She screamed as she felt for her arm with her fingers and ran off, nearly panicked.

He rose to give chase, but more clones stopped him. Conn made short work of them with his carbine before grabbing his pistol.

As the storm picked up intensity, he heard a noise beyond the swamp. Lightning flashed and revealed the silhouette of a separatist landing craft. He set into the station as it broke through the clouds to find the other Jedi, hopefully drawing Trang to them in turn. Regardless, they needed to leave, and soon.

--

The throbbing where her shoulder had been was causing Articus Trang to see spots. She could heal, but it would take a great deal of energy and time. Evading the traitorous clones was a chore to do with both arms. She stopped in a dark corridor and concentrated, feeling for the Jedi.

They were all still alive, thankfully. The boy wasn't far ahead of her. She snuck past patrols and found herself at the end of a long corridor that was a straight shot into the control center. The boy must have thought his compatriots were still there. He disappeared behind the main console that housed the holoprojector, likely hiding. Silently, she snuck closer to the room. Lights from clone helmets flickered as they turned down an adjacent corridor. She pursed her lips and furrowed her brow, and a noise came from another corridor. The clones turned to investigate.

Now just a few meters from the room, she gently tried to calm the boy. Trying to convince him that she would help him escape. He jumped up, shocked to see her.

"Quiet, boy.", she whispered, "They're after all of us. We need to help each other to get out of here alive."

"I've seen what you do. What you are.", he hissed, "you're just using me."

His eyes darted to the outline of a man behind her. The snap-hiss of a light saber preceded the hum of a brilliant green blade.

"That you are, Trang. A means to an end.", Ko chided.

She huffed in disbelief and spun to meet his blade. The crackle flashed sparks all over the threshold to the large room.

"You need to leave, Zim. It's too dangerous here.", Ko continued.

"But Master-"

"Be quick, clones will return here soon. I'll cover your escape. The others have made for the motor pool at the main entrance."

Trang snarled as she tried to break through Ko's defense, frustrated at her new handicap. Zim didn't argue much, he ducked down a hallway as Trang continued to fight the mighty Kel Dor. True to form, the clones did show up. Thankfully for her, Ko was their primary target. As they opened fire, she struck for his arm. He blocked and sent her backward into the corridor as he soaked up some of the blaster fire that overwhelmed his blade. As he fell, the clones loosened their focus on the Jedi and began to target Trang. She retreated to a nearby service hatch in the ceiling as the blast door to the control center sealed shut.

Trang was alone again. But safe. She tried to remember what she'd seen at the entrance when she was brought into the station. Speeder bikes would probably be the best bet for a quick and quiet escape. She fumbled through dark passages until she found another hatch that felt wet with condensation. She opened it to feel the spray of rain. She'd found the roof.

--

Troop movement was heavier the closer Ansii and Ta'ni got to the main entrance. A squad of clones ran toward the innards of the station. They had reached the end of the service tunnel that opened into a staging area before the main entrance. This area was twice the size of the shuttle bay at the rear of the station, still housing some CIS equipment and weapons. Most of the equipment was gone, with what remained of the Republic's speeder bikes and AT-RTs parked occupying the majority of the vacant space, the lone AT-TE that was being repaired by a few clones, claiming the majority.

"C'mon, Ta'ni, it's time for us to leave."

"But which way will we go?"

"We'll use speeder bikes. Conn's ship isn't too far from here."

The young Togruta gave a hesitant nod. Almost as if it were planned, there was a large explosion somewhere within, and the lights flickered, then failed. Backup lights lit the space dimly. As helmet lights flared to life, another squad of troops filed inward toward the commotion.

Conn must have blown the main generator, which served him no purpose. It had to be a distraction. The notion gave Ansii all of the motivation to take on an entire battalion of crazed troopers, no matter how illogical it seemed. Though at this point only six to eight troopers remained, including the few that had been busy with the tank repairs. It was now or never.

Ansii jumped to the ground, immediately rolling into the shadows of a stack of crates. Ta'ni followed, nearly silent. The speeder bikes were on the far end of the hangar, with little in the way of cover in between. The Padawan focused, slowly closing her eyes, followed by several lights popping in a shower of sparks. Ansii grinned at her resourcefulness. Complimenting the newly acquired cover, the Jedi used the Force to pull over a large rack of unused B2 battle droids, giving the pair a few seconds to slip into the darkness of the latter half of the huge room.

Light drifted to and fro as clones tensely combed the room against the backdrop of intense fighting coming from the hallways they had just fled. The pair of Jedi hid from the incriminating beams behind the legs of the giant tank monopolizing the area. They were so close. A thunderclap disguised the sound of a speeder bike buzzing to life and departing the hangar. The clones whipped around to see the fleeing bike and started to mount bikes in pursuit.

There were now only five bikes left, four of which were occupied, mere seconds from being taken. Ta'ni swept the legs out from under one trooper running for the bikes, igniting her saber. In one swift motion, she cleaved another trooper's blaster in two, while deflecting two more shots, one of which randomly claimed the unarmed trooper. Ansii darted straight for the bikes. As two sped out of the hangar, she threw her lightsaber in a dangerous whirling arc, removing the front half of the third trooper's mount, sending him haplessly into a rock formation outside, reflexively reacting to the initial incident. As the saber returned to her, she leaped through the air, catching the fourth mounted trooper square in the head. He nearly cartwheeled through the air, landing on his head, knocked out cold. Ta'ni slashed at the trooper firing on her, ending his assault, then spun and thrust her saber into the still grounded soldier. She extinguished her saber only to see the mortally wounded clone reaching for her. She recognized his markings. She removed his helmet to reveal the face of Mover.

"Why, Padawan?", he rasped.

"I…don't… I don't understand, Mover. What's happening?", she replied emotionally.

"Order 66.", he groaned, "Traitors. Eliminate…all…"

He trailed off as he expended his last breath. He had said enough. Ta'ni swallowed a hard lump in her throat. Ansii sat on the powered-up speeder bike as lightning danced against the easing downpour of rain.

"Hop on, young one. We have a ship to catch.", Ansii said somberly.

Ansii opted to leave the remaining bike for Conn, certain one lone trooper wouldn't pursue through the storm, let alone without any bearings. The rain had eased quite a bit, but what persisted stung as it slapped her face. The only thing illuminated on the small, nimble craft was its navigation. She had keyed in the code for the downed shuttle and flew as fast as she could in the dark, overcast storm that enveloped the planet. As they sped, the Separatist landing craft settled at the foot of the incline leading up to the base. She found herself hoping Conn could escape as much as she silently grieved the inevitable loss of her Jedi brethren.

--

Count Dooku stood rigid, staring out of the enormous viewport of his capital ship, droids dutifully laboring at the controls. The storm that raged in the atmosphere had claimed any conventional means of pinpointing the station from orbit. Thankfully, the droids had precise data and navigation controls to pilot the landing craft to the proper coordinates.

Dooku began a transmission to the outpost and found Typher Ko on the answering end.

"General Ko. I see your occupation is still in place at my listening post."

"I have been cut off,.." the transmission cut out, "..cannot…clones.."

"I'm afraid you'll have to bear the weight of your decisions, my Jedi friend.", Dooku concluded.

As Dooku received word of the landing craft setting down on the surface, another transmission came onto his projector. The translucent blue image of Darth Sidious appeared, imposing his view of Fractis Minor.

"Lord Tyranus, what of the outpost of Fractis Minor?", the Sith growled.

"It is in the process of being retaken from the Republic forces, my lord."

"The outpost is but a trivial asset. Spare nothing there.", Sidious demanded.

"I will do as you wish, Lord Sidious."