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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

Saga Dusk (Tano, Ventress, Offee Post-Order 66)

Discussion in 'Fan Fiction- Before, Saga, and Beyond' started by Kablob, Sep 13, 2014.

  1. TheSilentInfluence

    TheSilentInfluence Retired Manager star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 15, 2014
    I feel like crying, to be honest with you. Well, my heart does anyway.That was just heartbreaking. Especially when Ahsoka found the slaughtered younglings. but it was good of Asajj to snap Ahsoka out of it, and how she explained that this was the worse thing she ever did see. And now Ventress knows now that Shaak Ti was trying to cover up Anakin turning traitor.

    Keep up the good work.
     
  2. King Joker

    King Joker Jedi Youngling star 1

    Registered:
    Sep 13, 2014
    Wow. Very powerful chapter. Amazing.
     
  3. Kablob

    Kablob Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 24, 2014
    Chapter 11: Casualty Report

    The archives were in a better state than Ahsoka had expected. There was the same blaster scarring and shattered rubble that filled the rest of the Temple, but most of the holobooks were intact. Parts of it were so well-preserved that she almost expected to run into Jocasta Nu updating a database, or a bored Initiate on guard duty taking a quick nap when they thought nobody was looking.

    The only Jedi she did find were dead, of course. She came across eight that she was barely acquainted with, and judging from how they had fallen they must have attempted to destroy the archives rather than let them fall into the hands of the Sith. Unfortunately, they had failed…or maybe it was fortunate, Ahsoka thought. She was beginning to form an idea, but filed it away for after they had reset the beacon. She had to keep track of which row she was in. The last thing she wanted was to get lost in here.

    "What the hell is this?" Asajj blurted out suddenly. Ahsoka looked over her shoulder to see what had startled her. Ventress had stopped next to one of the few busts of the Lost Twenty that remained standing. It was one of the newer ones, its features still sharply defined as those of an older, bearded human man. Asajj looked at it like it was obscene, her familiar scowl on at full force.

    Ahsoka stepped over, reading the inscription beneath it aloud. "Jedi Master Yan Dooku. Apprenticed to Grand Master Yoda. Former member of the High Council. Master of Qui-Gon Jinn and Komari Vosa. Left the Order in good standing in the year nine-hundred sixty-eight after the Ruusan Reformation due to disagreements with the Jedi Council, taking up his family title of Count of Serenno. May the Force be with him." She could have almost recited that inscription from memory; she had polished these busts countless times as a youngling as punishment for some misbehavior.

    Ventress' scowl deepened. "I can read what it says, Tano. What is it doing here?"

    Ahsoka shrugged. "He was a Jedi Master once, they put it in when he left."

    Ventress only looked more incredulous. "Sorry, what is it still doing here?"

    "It's to remember the Jedi that he used to be, not the man he became. They only remove these if the Jedi rejoins the Order." It had never happened, to her knowledge. It wasn't a decision made lightly - she knew that better than most. "He's not the only Sith Lord with a bust in here." Ventress' befuddlement was almost enough to put a smile on her face. Almost, but not enough.

    Ventress considered it for a moment, then shoved Dooku's bust off its pedestal, slowing its fall with the Force at the last second so a clang didn't echo throughout the Temple. Asajj smirked at it as it slid spinning across the floor.

    "Do you have one of those in here?" Ventress turned her smirk on Ahsoka.

    Ahsoka actually laughed this time, though it was short and somewhat bitter. "Oh no, those are only for Masters who leave the Order. There's only ever been twenty."

    Asajj scowled once again. "Of course they are," she muttered darkly under her breath.

    Ahsoka ignored her companion's latest grudge against the Jedi, trying to avoid thinking about it. She wasn't very successful. Jedi Master Ahsoka Tano…that had been her dream once. Instead she was a dropout who didn't even make Knight, and because of that she was one of the few who were still alive. If they did give busts in the archives to Padawans who left the Order, what would her's say? Ahsoka Tano. Apprenticed to Anakin Skywalker, accomplished little, left the Order out of childish self-pity, a critical thought drifted through her mind. Wearily, she shut it out. This was the last time or place to reflect on that.

    They found another body along the way to the beacon who Ahsoka knew well. Jocasta Nu looked as peaceful in death as she had in life, even with her body tossed carelessly between two data towers. Ahsoka fought against recalling any more painful memories as she picked up Master Jocasta's lightsaber and put it away. What was one more friend to say goodbye to, after all she had already seen?

    "Goodbye, Madame Jocasta," she whispered.

    She was about to move away when she felt a tremor that stopped her. She looked back down at Jocasta and heard a strange sound that was eerily musical.

    "Do you hear that?" Ahsoka asked.

    Ventress looked at her in confusion. "No?"

    Ahsoka crouched down, and the sound intensified. As it got louder she realized that she had heard it before, on the frozen world where she had gotten the crystals for all three of the lightsabers she'd wielded. She felt through Master Nu's pockets, slightly guilty at the violation of her corpse. The guilt vanished when her hand brushed against a small, hard object. Ahsoka pulled it out and held it in the light.

    Ventress stepped over to get a look at it. "What's that?"

    It was similar to a lightsaber crystal, but it was smaller and shaped more regularly. "It's a holocron crystal," Ahsoka said. "It carries data on it that can only be read with one of the holocrons."

    Her earlier idea began to grow. Ahsoka pocketed the crystal and motioned for Ventress to follow, which she did without comment. Beacon first. It took them another ten minutes or so to reach it - even with the advanced data-compression that the archives possessed, they were still physically massive. They entered the room housing the beacon, the soft blue light of the archive data towers giving way to the sickly green glow of the data room. The path narrowed considerably; this area was normally off-limits to all but maintenance crew. The only way in was a narrow corridor between two massive data towers.
    Ahsoka hadn't been in here in years, so it took her some time to find the controls. When they did, a series of red "active" lights were flashing urgently.

    "Here it is," Ahsoka said, taking the chair in front of it. She tapped the console and read its readout, trying to find how exactly she could reprogram the beacon. As a Padawan, she'd never been trained on it. Maybe she should have let Shaak Ti come instead, she would have known how. And maybe it would have saved her all of that heartache…

    But the first thing that appeared on the screen was not at all what Ahsoka had expected.

    BEACON STATUS: ACTIVE
    LAST MODIFIED: TODAY, 0806 STANDARD HOURS
    MODIFIED BY: KENOBI, OBI-WAN
    Ahsoka glanced at the chrono. That had only been about two hours ago! Her breath caught in her chest and she pulled up the message that the beacon now broadcast.

    THIS IS OBI-WAN KENOBI
    REPUBLIC FORCES HAVE BEEN TURNED AGAINST THE JEDI
    AVOID CORUSCANT, AVOID DETECTION.
    STAY STRONG.
    MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU.
    She motioned Ventress over, a feeling of excitement briefly overpowering her emotional void. "Look at this! Someone got here before us!"

    Ventress read it quickly, and her eyes widened in surprise. Asajj gave a short laugh. "I should've known Kenobi would make it," she said, smirking. "That man is too stubborn to die. Think he's still around here?"

    Ahsoka stared at the screen, burning the simple words of warning into her memory. "I doubt it." Obi-Wan wouldn't want to stay here any more than she did. He would follow his own advice and get as far away from Coruscant as possible. And even if she never saw him again, just knowing that Obi-Wan was alive made hope stir inside her. If two members of the Council had made it, why not more? Why not Plo Koon, why not Yoda? Wherever Obi-Wan Kenobi had gone to avoid detection, they would never find him.

    Maybe he'd gone to look for Anakin.

    Ahsoka forced her imagination to stop. There was no use in getting her hopes up, only for them to be dashed again. She'd thought those kids would be alive too…

    Ahsoka inhaled sharply. Stop it, she scolded herself.

    Mercifully, Ventress interrupted her thoughts. "So this was just a giant waste of time?" She half-smirked, half-scowled at the terminal.

    "Not entirely," Ahsoka said, standing up from the console. "I've got an idea."

    "Oh, this should be good." Ventress raised an eyebrow.

    Ahsoka ignored her and continued. "If I can get into the holocron vault, I can use that crystal to copy some of the archives onto one. Maybe I can save something of the Jedi from being destroyed by the Empire."

    Asajj scratched her chin. "I'm not sure why you'd want to," she said. The response on Ahsoka's face to that was enough to make her quickly add: "But I don't care what you want to do, go ahead. You know where they keep those things."

    Ahsoka glared a few seconds longer before she let herself relax. "Okay, it won't take long." She was a few meters down the path back before she realized Ventress was not following her. She stopped and looked over her shoulder to see that Ventress was sitting at the security terminal.

    "Ventress?"

    Asajj waved her hand dismissively without looking up. "Go take care of it, I want to check on something."
    Ahsoka thought about asking, but something made her decide it was better not to. She left the data room and began double-timing it to the Holocron vault.

    ----------

    Asajj pulled up the security records and played the last night's footage of the archives, backing it up until she saw a sequence that made her slam the pause button and swear a blue streak under her breath. Tano had been right after all, then. Anakin Skywalker was alive. He stood in front of her, in miniature translucent blue, skewering the older Jedi woman whose body they had passed on his lightsaber.

    This was bad. No, this was worse than bad, this was the worst case scenario. Of all the Jedi who could have defected, it had to be the one that had so much raw power that some idiot Jedi had actually thought he was created by the Force itself. And there was no mistaking it, Skywalker had fully embraced the Dark Side of the Force. His face was a mask of volcanic fury, and he didn't hesitate to kill once.

    As she watched more of the recordings to see if Skywalker still had weaknesses to exploit, she realized that Sidious himself might not be able to stand against his new apprentice. Skywalker was a whirlwind of destruction that tore through the Jedi like they were paper. All but a handful of the fights were over in seconds. A woman wielding two green lightsabers nearly decapitated him once before Skywalker brought a column down on her, but nobody else even came close to touching him. She saw a duel between him and a long-haired human who put up the best fight, but even he was quickly overwhelmed and killed. Watching Skywalker slash through the Jedi's shoulder, Asajj had to admit that he would rip her apart now that he had become a Lord of the Sith. He had killed nearly a hundred Jedi in a matter of hours and hadn't even broken a sweat. They weren't exactly the elite of the Jedi, but it was still a stunning feat.

    A third Jedi had been able to stand her ground against him, and the sight of it filled Asajj with fury.

    Lying schutta!


    Shaak Ti barely managed to escape from him, his weapon opening a gash on her arm in the process. Recalling the Jedi's words, she realized that Ti had never said Anakin was dead - as if she somehow thought that meant she wasn't lying about his fate. Typical Jedi. When she got back there, she was going to give the lying Master a piece of her mind…

    Asajj froze as the feed switched to the courtyard outside, filled with living Jedi apprentices. She slammed the control to switch cameras as soon as she saw Skywalker enter the frame.

    Damn it Skywalker, what the hell is wrong with you?

    Studying his berserker tactics closer, she thought that maybe a real master of the blade could outlast Skywalker's onslaught until he did something stupid - the Dark Side couldn't have helped his intellect. But there were only a handful who had anything near a hope, and most of them were likely dead. To think that she had dreaded Ahsoka's reaction to finding Skywalker dead. If they found him alive…. Well, Tano wouldn't have long to be upset. Asajj knew what using the Dark Side like that did to someone - he would kill Tano without a second thought.

    What was that noise? Asajj looked up suddenly only for comprehension to dawn on her. Oh hell. Groaning, she looked down again. Her stolen communicator was beeping urgently; there were clones nearby. She shut off the security feed and unclipped her lightsaber, leaving it deactivated for now. As she ran back towards the Archives, distant blaster fire echoed down the halls. Asajj swore and ran in its direction. What had Tano stepped in this time?

    ----------

    Ahsoka left the holocron vault, clutching the intricate crystalline cube in her hands. Surprisingly, they had all still been inside. The Empire must think they had as much time as they wanted to plunder the Temple, Ahsoka decided. She had no doubt that the new Emperor would suppress all knowledge of the Jedi that he could. She was going to deny him this one, make sure that some of the Jedi's teachings survived. Ahsoka wasn't sure why she had picked this one in particular; it had just felt right, somehow.

    Blame the Force. It told her which Holocron to take, but it wouldn't lift a finger to help those who'd died here. Or show that blasted vision to someone who could understand it. Someone who could have done something about it. Yoda, Obi-Wan, Anakin, anyone but her. Ahsoka found a terminal that still worked and practically fell into the chair, her legs giving out beneath her. Getting angry at the Force was like yelling at the wind - the epitome of futility.

    There was a slot in the computer where the crystal could be placed; she inserted it and began downloading information. Its capacity was not infinite, so she kept it as barebones as possible. Jedi history, basic meditation techniques, lightsaber forms, that sort of thing. There was a good chance that most of it was already on the holocron, but she wasn't going to bet on it. Before long it was done, yet Ahsoka found herself unable to move. She stared blankly at the screen, a compulsion slowly working its way up from the depths of her mind.

    She had to know.

    Ahsoka logged into the GAR Personnel records. Her own profile had been deactivated when she resigned her commission, but she remembered seeing another's one day on the Resolute, years ago.

    USERNAME: CT-7567
    PASSWORD: TORRENT501
    It still worked. Thanks, Rex old buddy. I hope you're doing alright out there. Ahsoka ignored her mental image of Rex's body mangled by a Jedi's lightsaber and navigated to the Jedi database. Her heart sank when she saw the number of active profiles. 257. Out of an Order numbering over ten thousand Jedi, that was how many had survived. Gulping, she pulled up the list of the survivors.

    GRAND MASTER YODA - MIA KASHYYYK
    HIGH GENERAL KENOBI, OBI-WAN - MIA UTAPAU
    HIGH GENERAL TI, SHAAK - MIA CORUSCANT
    That was all that remained of the Jedi Council. Yoda's survival was good news, but Ahsoka felt a tear slide down her face. Goodbye, Master Plo. She had never said that to him in life, she'd been too angry at him for not doing more to support her. Ahsoka was almost glad she hadn't, fearful of what she might have said to him. She would never get a chance to mend her relationship with the man who was the closest thing to a father she had ever had. He had been her mentor, the one who she could ask any question she had, the Master who would never judge her. If she asked his advice now he would tell her not to mourn him, only to remember and move on. So she did just that.

    GENERAL UNDULI, LUMINARA - MIA KASHYYYK

    Ahsoka felt an inexplicable surge of anger at Luminara Unduli that she was immediately ashamed of. She should have been happy to see the Mirialan master alive. Or at the least, she should have felt sorry for her. Ahsoka had been so wrapped up in her own pain at the betrayal that she'd never stopped to consider what Luminara must have felt, Jedi Master or not. Luminara couldn't have done anything to stop it; Barriss had chosen her own path. She had to believe that. Shuddering, she moved on.

    GENERAL CHOI, TSUI - MIA KASHYYYK

    That made for three survivors from Kashyyyk. Had the clones of Kashyyyk refused to follow the order? From what Shaak Ti had said, that was impossible. Maybe the Wookiees had aided them in escaping. She wished more planets out there were as Jedi-friendly as the homeworld of the great hairy giants, then maybe this travesty would never have been allowed to happen.

    GENERAL K'KRUHK - MIA BOGDEN 3
    GENERAL KOTA, RAHM - MIA KOTHLIS
    GENERAL HETT, A'SHARAD - MIA SALEUCAMI
    GENERAL IT'KLA, YLENIC - MIA CAAMAS
    GENERAL RAHN, QU - MIA SY MYRTH
    GENERAL SHRYNE, ROAN - MIA MURKHANA
    GENERAL CHATAK, BOL - MIA MURKHANA

    She skimmed down the rest of the list of Jedi who she barely knew, searching desperately for the one name that she needed to be on it. But as Masters gave way to Knights and Padawans, he was nowhere to be found.

    COMMANDER DUME, CALEB - MIA CORUSCANT

    That was the last entry. Maybe there was a mistake, he could have been reported dead but survived somehow, unknown to -
    "No," she whispered. It was true, she knew it. Ahsoka had known it somehow since the moment this had all begun, but she had refused to admit it to herself.

    Anakin Skywalker was dead.



    For some reason she searched for his name anyway, knowing exactly what she would find.

    GENERAL SKYWALKER, ANAKIN - KIA CORUSCANT (OPERATION KNIGHTFALL)
    Knightfall. That's what they had called this. Was that supposed to be some kind of sick joke? What sort of monster could have destroyed everything she had ever known and made a joke out of it? Ahsoka was incensed, but the edge of her anger was taken off by her despair. KIA Coruscant. Somehow reading that was harder than seeing a body - the death of her master reduced to nothing more than a single, impersonal line of text. Killed in action. Killed in action. Killed in action. Killed in action. The phrase kept echoing in her mind. Anakin was lying somewhere within this ruin, killed by his own troops. The man who was somewhere between her teacher and her older brother, the one who stood by her to the end, the Jedi who laughed in the face of death, the Hero with no Fear who feared for everyone he loved, the Chosen One whose destiny turned out to be a lie. Skyguy was gone. With a cry of frustration, Ahsoka punched the screen hard enough that it a spiderweb of cracks and made her hand throb in pain.

    "Goodbye..." Ahsoka croaked out, so softly she could barely hear it. Before she could say Anakin, her head collapsed forward onto the console and she sobbed into it, losing track of everything but what had been ripped away from her forever. His last words to her echoed perfectly in her head.

    I understand wanting to walk away from the Order.
    If only he had done it. If only he had gone with her and-

    Click.

    She dove out of the chair just as the first blaster fired.
     
  4. TheSilentInfluence

    TheSilentInfluence Retired Manager star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 15, 2014
    Did I see Kanan's former name on there? Nice.

    Anyway; this hit me right in the feels. Good chapter, a little emotional though; because most of those people are dead now. Or will be within the coming years. Hmm. But Ahsoka must be feeling worse. It's bad enough to think that Anakin is dead, but wait until she finds out what really happened to him.

    And Asajj looking at the video footage was good too. She was seeing that Anakin was the traitor, but also reflecting of what the dark side could do to people. Nice touch.

    Anyway; I look forward to seeing more. :)
     
  5. Kablob

    Kablob Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 24, 2014
    You did indeed. ;)

    There were also allusions to TFU (Kota), Dark Forces (Rahn), Legacy (Hett), Dark Lord (Shryne and Chatak), Luminara's new survivor status, and of course the ever-awesome K'kruhk.
     
  6. TheSilentInfluence

    TheSilentInfluence Retired Manager star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 15, 2014
    I did notice some of those names. Nice job. Now I'm interested as to how you're setting all of this up for the future. Or would that be a spoiler? ;)
     
  7. EGKenobi

    EGKenobi Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Apr 27, 2005
    Great story, would wondering if Asohka will appear in Star Wars Rebels...

    You have written this so well, would you be so kind as to let me know when you update this.

    EG
     
  8. Kablob

    Kablob Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 24, 2014
    Chapter 12: More Than A Number


    The Jedi dove out of the chair as he fired, the blaster bolts flashing over her head and causing the terminal to explode in a shower of sparks. She rolled once and sprung to her feet while drawing a green-bladed lightsaber. A flash of confused recognition went through the back of the Clone's mind, but his instinct beat it back down. Good soldiers followed orders. He backed away and crouched behind some rubble, pelting the Togruta with shot after shot, and signaled for the rest of his squad to open fire. Just as he'd planned, she was caught in a crossfire - even a Jedi couldn't fight that.

    Or so he had thought. A bolt skimmed across her right thigh, prompting a hiss of pain, but as she reached her free hand out a silver blur shot out of a bag lying on the floor. As it landed in her hand a snap-hiss was almost drowned out by the whine of a dozen deecee fifteens. Now armed with two sabers - one green, one blue - she was dodging or reflecting every shot that came her way.

    The back of his mind knew that he'd seen that way of fighting before, but that was irrelevant. Good soldiers followed orders, after all. He noted that she hadn't tried to kill any of them yet, but he only let himself think of it in terms of tactics. His orders were to eliminate the Jedi, so that's what he would do. This straggler was trapped - her death was only a matter of time. Something felt vaguely wrong about that, but he wasn't sure what.

    Over his helmet comm he heard a strangled cry in his own voice. His heads up display reported that one of his men had taken a direct hit. The Clone grimaced beneath his helmet. Forget waiting her out, he needed to finish this now.

    Good soldiers followed orders, even if they felt wrong in a way he couldn't describe.

    He pulled a grenade from his belt and threw it at her, simultaneously shouting into his comm for his men to hit the deck. The Jedi tried to jump free of it, but she was just a second too slow. Whatever barrier she had put up with the Force wasn't enough; she screamed briefly as the shockwave hit her midair and shrapnel lacerated her limbs, then the air blasted out of her lungs in a pained grunt as she landed hard on top of a table. He felt like hearing that would have made him panic once, but now he only moved in to check if she was dead.

    If she lived, he would correct it. The rest of his squad moved up with him to observe the fallen Jedi. Her lightsabers had been knocked out of her hands and her tunic was in tatters; blood seeped through the gashes in it and the visible cuts on her skin. He stopped when he noticed her shift weakly; the others followed suit.

    He had to do this. The clone raised one of his blasters, aiming between the two pointed montrals on her head.

    It was his duty.

    But before he could pull the trigger the Jedi's eyes flew open and the desperation in them gave him pause. The moment didn't last long, however. The Clone could feel the air around him crackling with power and pulled the trigger.

    But he was too late. The Jedi jumped to her feet and his shot thudded harmlessly into the table. Before he could correct his aim she threw her arms outward and screamed in a bereaved rage. The Clone was thrown backward by an invisible wall of force and crashed into one of the bookcases so hard he nearly blacked out. His helmet was blown off and he lost one of his pistols, but he found he still had the other. He heard the sound of a lightsaber activating and forced himself up, raising the blaster as the Jedi ran towards him bellowing a war cry.

    But she stopped mid-swing just in front of him, the humming blade so close to his neck he could feel heat. The anger had fled from her face; her eyes were wide with shock. The Jedi sighed wearily, a sound filled with a pain that had nothing to do with her wounds.

    "Rex," she said breathlessly. "It had to be you, didn't it?"

    Rex's blaster was still aimed at her heart but he couldn't bring himself to shoot her even with all of his instincts compelling him to.

    "Ahsoka?" That was her name, Rex remembered. Flashes of memory cut through the fog of his mind, but he could feel part of himself straining against them, denying that she was anything more than an enemy.

    Her eyes moved down towards his blaster. Bizarrely, she smiled at him. "So we both have the other's life in our hands, then? That almost sounds normal."

    Even though she was smiling, it was unlike any smile Rex had seen on her face before. It wasn't happy or even sarcastic, and it threw him even further into confusion. She was smiling at the absurdity of the idea of the two of them killing each other, he quickly understood. He had to focus on the memory of her, if he let up for even a second then the compulsion to kill her would overwhelm him.

    "What are you doing here?" Rex found the act of simply speaking to her took all of his willpower. "You…you left."

    He seized on that memory to fight his instincts, even though it almost felt like the memory of another man. The news that even though she had been found innocent, she was still lost to him and the rest of the 501st. Nobody had wanted to say anything in the barracks that night, but more than the rest Rex had been utterly enraged and heartbroken by what was done to his Commander…the Commander he had at gunpoint now. She had deserved better than that and she deserved better than this too, but knowing that didn't make him lower his arm a millimeter.

    "I don't even know," Ahsoka said quietly. "Wishing I'd been here for them, I guess." She looked directly into his eyes, her own sky-blue irises looking out of place next to the raw redness surrounding them. "Why are you here?" She asked him.

    Rex took a step back, even more confused. "What? I…" He reached up with his free hand and rubbed his temples, aware of a sudden pounding headache. "Good soldiers follow orders," he mumbled absentmindedly.

    Ahsoka raised a white eyebrow marking that was partly marred by red. "Really? That doesn't sound like you, Rex."

    Rex stiffened at her words, and he could feel his finger start to curl around the trigger. "It's my duty," he said seemingly independent of his actual thoughts. "Order sixty-six, in the event of Jedi officers acting against..."

    He let the recitation of something he had known instinctively trail off as a thought occurred to him.
    "You're not a Jedi," he said. His aim began to shake as he took hold of the idea, just like it had the last time he held a Jedi at gunpoint. Not a Jedi! It doesn't apply to her, she's not a Jedi!

    But he still couldn't lower it. What was wrong with him? Shooting Jedi had seemed like the most natural thing in the world just a minute before, but now he didn't even know what was going on anymore. It was like on Teth, when Asajj Ventress had invaded his mind, and he'd contacted General Skywalker even though he was screaming at himself not to.

    "No," Ahsoka said. Her eyes looked glossy, like she was trying not to cry. "Rex, I'm sorry. I am so, so sorry. It's just like Fives said, you don't even know what you're doing, and now I have to..."

    Rex's gaze flickered to her blade, and he knew what the unspoken end of her sentence was. That should have made him open fire before she could do it, but he still couldn't. He was at war with himself, and he almost preferred letting her end it for him to losing the battle. He was aware now, and if he killed Ahsoka Tano while he knew what he was doing, he would never be able to live with himself.

    But instead of flashing through his neck, the lightsaber blade retreated into its hilt. Ahsoka stood up straight and looked him in the eye again, silently pleading for him to...what? What was she trying to say?
    Rex heard a clatter and knew that she had dropped her weapon. The Jedi had always said that their lightsabers were their lives, and now Ahsoka had dropped hers at his feet.

    The seconds felt like an eternity. His eyes stung as sweat dripped down from his short hair.

    "Fives," he said. She had mentioned Fives. Fives, who had talked to him as a friend after Ahsoka had left. Fives, who was killed by a brother for a reason he now knew was a lie. "The mission...the nightmares...he was talking about this..."

    "This isn't you, Rex." Ahsoka had thrown her life into his hands out of despair, he could see in the way she looked at him. There was only one thing he could do with it, but he refused with every fiber of his being.

    "They want me to kill you, but..." Rex struggled to control himself as his head threatened to split apart under the strain of his rebellion. That blasted chip, the secret that Fives and Tup had died for, it wasn't going to kill Ahsoka too.

    His blaster rose unsteadily, until he beat the instinct just long enough to swing it towards his own head.

    "I won't!" He yelled, rejoicing in his victory.

    Ahsoka rushed toward him. "Rex, don't-"

    He pulled the trigger.


    ----------


    Ventress heard an explosion and swore again, increasing her pace. If she had stopped to think about it she might have turned the other way and left Tano to her fate like she had threatened to all morning, but she did not stop. She vaulted over a fallen column and sped forward.

    Damn it, if anyone was going to kill Ahsoka it would be her for the girl being foolish enough to let clones get the drop on her!

    Seconds later Asajj spotted her in an area that looked like a whirlwind had torn through it. Tano was leaning over the body of a clone who looked higher-ranked than the rest, and as she got closer Asajj saw that the Togruta looked like she had been through a blender. Her clothing was shredded and matted with the blood that was also smeared across her skin. Whatever explosion had torn apart this section of the archives had done a real number on her.

    Ahsoka looked up as she approached, a few lines of blood marring her white facial markings. "He's alive," she said.

    Asajj stopped and groaned inwardly. She had a very bad feeling about this. "What the hell are you talking about?"

    Ahsoka looked back down at the clone, who Asajj could tell was indeed alive. "He stunned himself. He could have killed me, but he wouldn't do it."

    "Great," Asajj said. "Let's go before you start bleeding a trail for them to follow."

    Ahsoka glared at her and opened her mouth to retort. Asajj cut her off.

    "You can't save all of them, Tano."

    "Do you think I don't know that?!" Ahsoka said with a vehemence that surprised her. "Everyone's dead, Ventress!" She looked back down at the clone. "Anakin's dead."

    That revelation took her aback, though not for the reason Ahsoka would think. "Are you sure about that?"

    "Of course I'm sure. You think I would say that if I thought there was a chance?" Ahsoka's voice broke at the end. "I found the list of who's alive. Anakin isn't."

    Asajj watched Ahsoka look down at the unconscious clone and wondered if she should tell her. No, she quickly decided, That unenviable task would go to Shaak Ti.

    "And who is this," she asked instead. "Another friend of yours?"

    "Yes," Ahsoka said without looking at her. "His name is Rex. And I'm getting him out of here."

    Asajj snorted in disgust. For all of her experience, Tano had not learned one thing. "Your funeral," she said. "I'll wait for you at the speeder, but if you want to drag the Jedi-killer out of here, do it yourself."

    "Like you're any better," Ahsoka spat at her as Asajj walked away. She could hear the sound of plastoid armor scraping on the floor, and found herself silently hoping that another squad of clones didn't come across Tano. Even if she was stupid enough to deserve it, the idea of her getting herself killed over a bloody clone was just depressing.
     
  9. WarmNyota_SweetAyesha

    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Aug 31, 2004
    REX! Oh deliriously wonderful plot twisty [face_dancing] [face_dancing] Woohoohoo! (Can you tell I'm glad?) ;)
     
  10. Kablob

    Kablob Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 24, 2014
    Chapter 13: The Nightmares



    “Here’s the place,” Asajj said, bringing the airspeeder to a halt outside of a med clinic in an extra run-down neighborhood of Level 1309. “Make it quick.”

    “Alright,” said Ahsoka. Ventress scowled at her and didn’t move, but she hadn’t expected her too. Asajj had barely spoken to her since she had dragged Rex out of the Jedi Temple, not that her opinion needed stating. Ahsoka left her lightsaber on the console - she didn’t want to attract attention. She stood up and walked over to the back seat where Rex lay. Ahsoka had stripped off his armor and left it behind to make him easier to carry, so now he only wore the black bodysuit that went underneath. Even still, if Ahsoka only had to rely on her physical strength to move him she would still be carrying him through the Temple. She bent over and put a hand on his forehead, gently probing into his mind. His psyche stirred weakly at her touch, but she projected a feeling of calm into him and he settled back into unconsciousness.

    Just hang in there. Ahsoka wrapped her arms around his torso and braced his weight against her shoulder, then pushed him up until he hung over her shoulders. Carefully she walked away from the speeder, across the narrow street, and into the clinic. The partially burned-out sign outside proclaimed the place as Qhorin’s, and her first impression was not good. The interior was just as dilapidated as the outside. Ventress thought that this place could do what Rex needed? She wasn’t sure she would trust someone here to treat a stomach ache, much less brain surgery. The bare ferrocrete walls were covered in stains and scorch marks, the origins of which she didn’t want to know. One of the lights was slowly flickering and emitting a low-pitched whine, and the seats in the waiting area were nothing more than bare canvas cots. Behind the counter a lavender-skinned Twi’lek girl was dozing in her chair; Ahsoka guessed she was about the same age as herself. Ahsoka set Rex down gently on one of the cots and went over to the counter.

    She cleared her throat. “Hello?”

    Startled out of her nap, the girl’s head shot up, then she stared wide-eyed at Ahsoka and exclaimed something in the Twi’lek language. Before Ahsoka could get another word in the receptionist flipped on an intercom. “Qhorin? Someone just came in, they look pretty bad,” she said, switching to Basic.

    A moment later Ahsoka heard a door slide open and she turned to see a Nautolan man with mottled orange skin running through it. He stopped in front of her and quickly looked her over with his huge dark eyes. “Bruises and skin lacerations. Dried blood. Hmm…” He rubbed his chin with one hand. “Shrapnel wounds?”

    Ahsoka blinked, surprised by his forwardness. “Uh, yes but-”

    “Looks recent, but healing well. Hmm. Someone jump you? No, robbers don’t normally use anti-personnel grenades, and you still have your possessions. Gang attack? Can’t be a gang member or you would have your own medics. A bystander? Didn’t hear explosion, couldn’t have been in this area. Hmm...”

    The man talked so rapidly that she wasn’t able to get a word in until he paused. “I’m alright, actually. I’m here for my friend.” She pointed towards Rex.

    The Nautolan - Qhorin, she presumed - turned his head, making his array of tentacles whip around like a startled sea creature. “Oh. Unconscious. Bad sign. Lyra, help me get him into the back.”

    The girl at the desk got up and ran over to Rex. Qhorin and Lyra lifted his cot from either end and began carrying him to the door that Qhorin had emerged from. Ahsoka followed them in, and was surprised to find that the room beyond was much cleaner than the entrance was. In fact, it wouldn’t have looked too out of place on a Grand Army medical frigate, though the equipment wasn’t as advanced as she was used to. Not to mention the handful of security droids standing around the door, which would have raised quite a few eyebrows in the GAR.

    Soon, they had Rex hooked up to a scanner. “Hmm. Appears to be in perfect health. Odd. So, what happened to him?” Qhorin asked her without looking away from the readout.
    Ahsoka swallowed, unsure of how to explain. “He has this...tumor, in his brain. He needs to get it taken out.”

    “Tumor!” Qhorin exclaimed. “Lyra, get that droid and do a brain scan.”

    Lyra ran off and returned a moment later with a med droid floating behind her. Suddenly disoriented, Ahsoka leaned her back against the wall. Despite what she’d said earlier, she could probably use some medical attention. She had blocked out most of the pain and was using the few healing techniques she knew, but she was seriously regretting not getting Barriss to teach her some more when she had the chance.

    Oblivious to her, Qhorin was pouring over Rex’s data. “Hmm. Neurons show evidence of a close-range stun blast. Intriguing. DNA shows signs of replication degradation. Genetic therapy for previous illness? No, it’s too widespread. Wait, they also have signs of...growth acceleration? Hmm. Could be. Is he a clone?” He glanced at her over his shoulder.

    “Yes,” Ahsoka said. “Did you find the tumor? It should look artificial, I think.”

    “Artificial? Now that’s interesting. Hmm. Yes, here’s something. An extra gland, artificially constructed out of cells. Releasing hormones not usually present in a human body. Fascinating! Appears harmless, though.” He turned to look at her suspiciously. “Is he here voluntarily?”

    “Yes!” Somewhat. Ahsoka stood up fully and glared at the Nautolan. “And it’s not harmless, it messes with his mind! If he was awake he’d be trying to kill me!”

    Qhorin absentmindedly stroked one of his head-tentacles. “Trying to kill you? That doesn’t really make me feel any better about your intentions.” He narrowed his eyes.

    Ahsoka sighed. “Look, Rex stunned himself so he wouldn’t kill me. I just want the real him back, okay?”

    Qhorin’s expression softened. “You seem to be telling the truth,” he said. Ahsoka remembered from her interaction with Kit Fisto that Nautolans could sense pheromones. The thought of him sent a fresh pang of grief through her heart, she hoped that Palpatine had killed him painlessly.

    Thankfully, Qhorin jolted her out of it. “Lyra, start prepping him, this should be a simple operation. In the mean time, I suggest you get in a tank.” He gestured towards the far back of the clinic.

    “Bacta?” Ahsoka groaned. She hated bacta tanks. “Oh come on, I’m fine. Just take care of Rex.”

    Qhorin seemed to perk up. “Kolto, actually. From Manaan. Bacta’s almost impossible to get with the war on. If it hasn’t ended already. Anyway, cheap substitute for bacta. Frankly, I’m surprised you’re still standing.” He seemed to get a new thought and looked at her with more scrutiny, then looked back at Rex.

    “Clone with Republic insignia on clothing, and in extremely fit physical condition. Would his template happen to be-”

    “Jango Fett,” Ahsoka completed, wishing the man was less curious.

    “Yes!” Qhorin turned back around excitedly, looking at her with a manic grin. “And you! Quick to heal, stamina far beyond what one would expect for your body type. Pheromones indicate extremely high stress levels. A clone trooper was trying to kill you against his will. Who is the Republic currently targeting? A Separatist wouldn’t try to save a clone, only option is-”

    “I am not a Jedi,” Ahsoka said through clenched teeth. The words were loud and forceful enough that Lyra looked up and glared suspiciously at her before going back to her work.

    “Really?” Qhorin stroked another of his tentacles. “Not a Jedi...” His eyes widened with comprehension. “Female adolescent Togruta. Not a Jedi, but has characteristics of one. I thought your face reminded me of a wanted poster I saw a few-”

    “Alright, fine,” Ahsoka snapped. “I can tell you watch the news. Do you harass all of your patients like this?”

    Qhorin blinked, then took a step back. “No, no. I’m sorry. I get curious, is all. You’ve got nothing to worry about, Miss Tano, I’ve got no intentions of turning you over to the Republic. Empire, I mean, have to get used to that. A Jedi helped me set this clinic up, I’ve always had good relations with the Order. Do you know a Master Rig Neema?”

    Ahsoka felt her stomach drop. She lowered her eyes to the floor. “Yes.”

    “Oh.” Qhorin seemed to understand her meaning. “I’m sorry. She was a friend." And awkward silence hung between them for a moment. "But really, you should get in the tank while I take part of your friend’s brain out.” He turned away and walked back to Rex’s side. “Lyra, I’ll take it from here. Can you help our other friend into one of the kolto tanks?”

    Ahsoka realized she wasn’t going to get out of a dunk in the sticky tank, so she resignedly followed the Twi’lek to the back. She started to strip off her ruined clothing as Lyra was activating the tank.

    Lyra glanced over her shoulder at her. “So did I hear right?”

    Ahsoka was pulling off one of her gauntlets - those were still useable, at least. “Yes, I used to be a Jedi. No, I don’t want to talk about it. How did you wind up here?”

    Lyra looked away, blushing. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude. I grew up on the streets around here, and Qhorin set up shop about five years ago. He would always give me food and fix me up for free whenever I came by." She smiled at the memory. "I think he’s got a soft spot for orphans. One day I guess I never left.”

    Now Ahsoka was removing her grey leggings, which were now completely useless. “Oh yeah, how much will this be?” Ahsoka still had the credits from Riyo; she hoped they would be enough.

    “Not as much as you’re expecting,” Lyra said as the top of the healing tank retracted into the ceiling. “He’s not really in it for money.”

    “Sounds like somebody I used to know,” Ahsoka muttered while she pulled off her bloodstained tunic. She looked down at herself and winced. It looked like she might have a few new scars at the end of the day.

    "Were they a Jedi too?" Lyra asked innocently.

    Ahsoka paused before answering. "Yeah. She was."

    “I guess that’s why he got along with you - them - so well.” Lyra didn't seem fazed by seeing so much of Ahsoka’s body, not unexpected for someone who worked in a clinic.

    “Get me out when he’s finished with Rex,” Ahsoka said, climbing the steps to the top of the tank and putting on the breath mask. She wanted to get this over with; who knew how long Ventress was going to wait for her. Ahsoka plunged into the tank and let herself fall into a trance as the cool liquid washed over her.

    --------------------

    Ahsoka was on a narrow walkway, a dark grey metal wall on one side and a drop into molten lava on the other, all beneath a pitch black sky clouded with poisonous fumes. She looked around, confused and with a vague feeling that she had been here before. Something about the whistling of the wind and the regular booming of pockets of lava below made her shiver despite the intense heat. She found herself moving forward, like something was drawing her inexorably towards it. She was filled with a simultaneous feeling of hope and dread, unlike anything she’d felt before. Far ahead on the walkway she could see a figure looking out over the hellish landscape, and she knew that he was why she was here. Ahsoka walked faster until she found herself running, but the figure barely seemed to get any closer. His identity was impossible to tell since he was wrapped in a black cloak with the hood drawn up that rippled in the wind behind him. She ran faster, overcome with desperation. She felt like she knew the figure, but she couldn’t place who he was. She had to know, even though her dread increased with every step she took.

    “You can’t stop him, Ahsoka.”

    Ahsoka skidded to a stop as she heard the voice, a voice that she hadn’t heard for months. She whirled around to find the source, and sure enough Barriss was sitting with her back to the wall, looking up at her. She was clad in a dirty orange prison uniform, and her hair was much longer than Ahsoka had ever seen on her. There was a new scar running along the side of her face that looked like it had come from a lightsaber. Where could she have gotten that?

    “Who is he?” Ahsoka found herself asking.

    Barriss only looked at her with pity. “You know who he is.”

    “No
    Barriss, I really don’t,” Ahsoka said, balling up a fist in frustration. “Why can’t you just stay dead?”

    “If only,” Barriss muttered, which confused her. “Don’t go looking for him Ahsoka. It will only end badly for you.”

    Ahsoka glanced over at the cloaked figure and saw that somehow they had moved much closer to him.

    “You’re one to talk about bad endings,” Ahsoka snapped at her. Barriss’ look of pity only increased.

    “You followed the warning because of what I did, even though neither of us knew it. Follow this one too, or you still may never see your future.”

    Ahsoka took a step back, confused. What was she talking about? What warning?

    “Or you could see a future even worse than none,” Barriss said, getting a far-away look on her face. “Like I have.”

    Ahsoka turned and ran from Barriss, towards the cloaked figure. She reached out to grab his shoulder, but just before she got to him the entire vision dissolved into smoke.
     
    Vader'sGoodHand likes this.
  11. skygawker

    skygawker Jedi Knight star 3

    Registered:
    May 25, 2014
    Great chapter! I liked the dream sequence at the end.
     
  12. Chris0013

    Chris0013 Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 21, 2014
    Will there be more to this??
     
  13. Kablob

    Kablob Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 24, 2014
    Yes.
     
  14. WarmNyota_SweetAyesha

    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Aug 31, 2004
    Glad that Rex and Ahsoka are both getting needed treatment. Lyra and Qhorin seem compassionate and competent both. :) Qhorin is a curious one though ;) but thankfully not a snitch.
     
  15. Imperial Reject

    Imperial Reject Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Dec 6, 2012
    This is great so far, I don't normally read a lot of Fan fiction but this intrigued me, I will be watching this thread with great interest! You really captured the feel and characters of The Clone Wars I could hear them as I read. I love how much of the EU you put into it I kept finding myself recognizing so many names and places. Will this go on through the rest of ROTS? Will Ahsoka always be 2 hours behind Obi-Wan? I was surprised to see Rex in there and you achieved something that not many films or books can do: You genuinely tricked me I really thought Rex took his own life.I have no clue where the story is headed next but that's the fun!
     
  16. Kablob

    Kablob Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 24, 2014
    Chapter 14: Siblings

    A change in the solution around her jolted Ahsoka awake. Her eyelids fluttered open, giving her a distorted view of someone touching a hand on her tank. She sensed the lid being lifted away, and propelled herself upwards. Pulling herself out and climbing down, she made sure to keep her mouth closed. This kolto stuff probably tasted as bad as bacta did. But at least it didn’t seem as sticky; the fluid was quickly running off her into the drains in the floor.
    “Glad to see you up,” Shaak Ti said. Surprised, Ahsoka turned her head and saw that the Jedi Master was indeed standing next to her. Shaak had changed out of her ruined tunic at some point, now she wore a simple blue and green civilian outfit.
    “When did you get here?” Ahsoka asked, grabbing a towel from a hook nearby to dry herself off. Her pain had faded to a slight ache, and she could barely see her wounds. Either the temperature or the last vestiges of her dream was making her shiver. Thankfully, Shaak Ti had gotten Ahsoka new clothes from wherever her own had come from. She found a sleeveless dark grey-green shirt and black pants and quickly started getting dressed.
    “A few hours ago,” Shaak Ti said, gesturing at another tank. Ahsoka followed her gaze and saw that Katooni was suspended inside it.
    “Oh.” She’d been in the tank that long? Ahsoka looked around the rest of the room. Rex was still sedated and Qhorin was watching his medical readouts, while Jinx sat on a cot nearby practically boring a hole into the clone with his eyes. His lightsaber was gripped tightly in his right hand. Great. She should have known he would react badly to Rex. Lyra sat next to him trying to strike up a conversation, Jinx was responding as little as he could while still being civil.
    “Ventress brought us here after she dropped you off. She said you had a lot to explain to us.” Shaak Ti tossed something to her and Ahsoka dropped the towel to catch it. It was a small transparent slide containing a slice of raw pink flesh. “I assume this is what she was referring to?”
    Ahsoka glanced over at Rex before responding. “Yes. Is he alright?”
    Shaak Ti sighed and rubbed at her temples. “He’s healthy, if that’s what you mean. Ahsoka...”
    She knew exactly where that tone was leading. “Let me guess, this is the part where you tell me what a kriffing idiot I am?”
    Shaak Ti ignored her snide remark. “Ahsoka, what were you thinking?”
    “I wanted to save my friend from being the Emperor’s slave, is that such a terrible thing?!” Ahsoka glared at her.
    Shaak Ti was unreadable, but it was obvious she disapproved. “I understand your sentiment Ahsoka, but you saw what they did. Rex may not be the man you knew anymore.”
    Ahsoka threw Rex’s chip back at her. “You of all people should know better!” She was aware of the others looking at her as she shouted, but she didn’t care. “He could have killed me when he had that thing inside him! He had me at gunpoint, I didn’t have my lightsaber, and he fought it off and shot himself rather than kill me!” Ahsoka pointed a finger in the other Togruta’s face. “We can trust him!”
    Shaak Ti remained silent throughout Ahsoka’s rant. “You’ll have to forgive me for being cautious,” she said at last, sighing.
    “I know,” Ahsoka said, rubbing her own temples. She was starting to think that nightmare had given her a headache, too. “It’s just...you’ve always said how the clones are individuals. Without that thing in his head Rex as just as much of a choice as any of us.”
    Jinx finally spoke up. “Do you really think he would choose us over his brothers?”
    “Why don’t we ask him?!” Ahsoka shot back.
    Jinx looked away from her. “If he tries anything...” He squeezed his lightsaber tighter.
    Ahsoka’s eyes went wide. “Don’t finish that sentence,” she warned him, glaring. “I’ll talk to Rex.”
    Ahsoka could almost feel the worried way that Shaak Ti was looking at her. “If you think that’s best.”
    Qhorin coughed to get their attention. “Sorry. Didn’t want to interrupt your conversation. I’m about to wake him up. Master Ti, Jinx, you should probably wait outside with the Wookiee. From what I’ve gathered, Rex will have the most positive reaction to Miss Tano. He could be...unpredictable.”
    Ahsoka nodded. “That sounds like a good idea, Doctor.”
    Qhorin touched a few controls and then pulled the IV out of Rex’s arm. “Alright, move out. You too Lyra. We’ll be listening in case things get, ah...” He coughed. “Unpleasant.”
    As the others left the room something clicked in Ahsoka’s head. “Where’s Ventress?”
    “Gone,” Shaak Ti said, stopping in the doorway. “She left after she brought us here. Said that she was finding her own way off Coruscant, and to tell you that you were dangerously reckless.”
    Ahsoka raised an eyebrow marking. “Did she really say that?” Ventress was one to talk about recklessness, Ahsoka thought.
    “Well,” said Shaak Ti. “She didn’t exactly put it that way.” The corner of her mouth twitched slightly upward. “I believe her words were “Tell that idiot little hornhead that she’s going to get herself killed.”
    Ahsoka couldn’t help but chuckle, despite herself. “That sounds more like Asajj.”
    This time it was Shaak Ti’s turn to raise an eyebrow marking. “It’s Asajj now?”
    Ahsoka blinked. Had she really used the Dathomirian’s first name? “Apparently.” They would probably never see each other again, and Ahsoka was actually missing her company. Maybe she really was going crazy.
    Shaak Ti’s expression of worry returned. “I’ll leave you two alone, then.” But she didn’t move, seemingly torn between two sides of an internal debate. “Ahsoka,” she said shakily after a moment. “About Anakin...”
    “Don’t,” Ahsoka said, closing her eyes and holding her hand up. That was the last thing she needed to think about right now. “I already know.”
    After a pause she heard the door slide shut. Ahsoka opened her eyes to find herself alone in the room with Rex.
    ----------------------------------------
    “Rex,” he heard a voice say. He felt a pounding headache and a stiff slab of metal under his unarmored back. There was some kind of bandage on the side of his head, the source of the pounding. Kriff, what had he managed to do to himself this time? Kix was going to give him hell about it for days.
    “It’s me, Ahsoka.”
    The memories came flooding back. Knightfall, General Skywalker, the fight in the Archives. Ahsoka, most of all. No wonder he had a headache; he’d vaping shot himself. His eyes opened to a harsh white light and an orange blur. After a few seconds of rapid blinking he saw that Ahsoka was standing over him and smiling. Rex knew all of Ahsoka’s expressions, and right now he noticed that her eyes didn’t smile with her face.
    “Hey kid,” he said weakly.
    Usually Ahsoka would roll her eyes at the nickname, but this time she grimaced. Rex knew that she hadn’t been a kid for two years now. Rex had helped and watched her grow from a wisp of a youngling who was so shiny she blinded those with unprotected eyes into the most capable young woman he had ever had the privilege of serving with. But now the hollow look in her eyes nearly broke his heart. The ferocity and stubbornness were still there, but the spark of innocence was nearly dead.
    “Are you feeling right?” Her eyes flickered over to the bandage above his ear.
    Rex touched it with his hand and felt the strange smoothness of his scalp. His short dyed hair had been shaved at some point. The chip, he realized. It was gone. It had to be, or that same overwhelming compulsion that he had barely triumphed over would be there now, and he would be trying to kill Ahsoka until his last breath.
    “We’re in a med clinic down in the underworld,” Ahsoka said carefully.
    Rex sat up and swung his legs over the side of the table, taking a look around. The place seemed well-equipped, if a bit cobbled together. Equipment from different makers and decades sat next to each other, kitbashed together skillfully but awkwardly. It would have driven Kix right up the wall.
    “It’s gone, isn’t it?” Rex tapped his bandage. “That thing inside my head.”
    Ahsoka nodded. “Yes.”
    “I should have listened to Fives,” Rex growled. “We all should have listened to Fives.”
    “You couldn’t have known-” Ahsoka started, but Rex cut her off.
    “Of course I could have known! I was with him when he died! That shabuir Fox shot him to death, and his last words were to try and warn me! He said it was bigger than any of us!” He balled up his fists and pressed them against his forehead, leaning forward so that his elbows were on his knees. “He knew what was coming Ahsoka, and none of us kriffing listened!
    Ahsoka sat down on the table next to him and took his outburst in silence. “I’m sorry,” she said quietly after a moment.
    “Me too,” Rex said. He shouldn’t have yelled at her like that. “They said that he lost his mind and tried to kill the Chancellor,” he said.
    “I think it was the other way around,” Ahsoka muttered darkly.
    Rex looked at her face and saw that she was struggling to repress an outpouring of emotion. He’d been around enough Jedi to know what that looked like, and whatever they called her now he knew Ahsoka was still one of them.
    “They called most of the troops away from the-” Rex choked on his words, “-from the Temple, to the Senate building. Command said Palpatine was making an emergency announcement.”
    Ahsoka continued to sit there in silence. “Ahsoka, what did he say?”
    She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “He said that the Jedi had tried to overthrow him. And then he proclaimed himself Galactic Emperor.”
    Had he just heard her right? The Republic now had an Emperor?! “I...what?” Rex gaped at her. “He was planning to use us to take out the Jedi all along, so he could make himself an Empire?!”
    Ahsoka looked at him painfully. “It gets worse.”
    Rex gaped at her. “How? How could it get worse?!”
    “Rex...” Ahsoka reached over and grasped his hand in her own. “The Jedi did try to take out Palpatine.”
    Somehow, he gaped even wider. “Why?”
    “Do you know what the Sith are?”
    Rex blinked at her. What did that have to do with anything? “Only from military history. Dooku was one of them, right? Aren’t they some kind of heresy of the Jedi?” He’d always thought of that sort of thing as above his pay grade. He was interested in the Jedi’s combat abilities, they could keep the philosophy to themselves.
    “You could say that,” Ahsoka said. Her face contorted strangely as she tried to find a way to put it into words. “More of our opposite, really. Everything the Jedi aren’t. They only care about their own power.”
    Rex shuddered. “Sounds terrible.” An evil I can’t well imagine, that was how he’d put it to Cut Lawquane on Saleucami.
    “They are,” Ahsoka said. “Ever since the last war with them a thousand years ago, there’ve only been two at one time. A Master and an Apprentice. The idea was that they grew stronger with each generation, since the Apprentice had to kill their Master to take their place.” Her voice dripped with disgust.
    Rex had studied the Battle of Ruusan in tactical school, but this detail was new to him. “Which was Dooku?” he asked. He could feel a strange crawling sensation on his skin. Whatever she was leading up to, he knew he wouldn’t like it.
    Ahsoka looked away. “The Apprentice.”
    “And the Master...” Rex trailed off as he felt his blood run cold. “No. He can’t...”
    Ahsoka still wouldn’t meet his eyes as she confirmed it. “It’s Palpatine. I’m so sorry.”
    Rex put his head back in his hands. Palpatine was Dooku’s master. This entire war had been a conspiracy from the start. Two manufactured armies being thrown at each other until the galaxy was so tired of it all they valued peace more than freedom. Rex and all of his millions of brothers had lived only so that at the right moment they would turn and shoot their Jedi commanders in the back. It was all a lie. Fives’ death, Echo and Waxer and Hardcase and Denal and everyone, they had all died for nothing at all. His entire purpose in life was that tiny growth that had just been cut out of his head, and now he was nothing.
    Either the shock or the meds caught up to him, and Rex fell forward onto his hands and knees, retching up everything in his stomach onto the floor. He felt Ahsoka’s hand on his back as it all came out, and Rex felt himself crying in rage. He’d never done that before. Not when Ahsoka had left, not even when Fives had died. It was all pouring out of him now. All of those years of repressed grief, Christophsis, Teth, Geonosis, Umbara and what felt like half the damn galaxy. It went on for ages, until Rex felt like he had emptied all of the fluid in his body. Then he lurched unsteadily to his feet.
    “I’ll kill him!” He shouted uselessly up at the ceiling, his voice hoarse. “I’ll kill him with my bare hands! I’ll make him beg for mercy!” He threw something across the room with a loud crash and collapsed again, but this time Ahsoka caught him and embraced him. He felt her chest press against his own and her montrals rubbing against his cheek. He heard her whisper words of comfort to him between her own choking attempts to not fall apart herself. In that moment, Rex couldn’t have let go of her if the world had depended on it.
    They stayed like that for a long time until Rex finally went silent, feeling completely empty on the inside. Even still, they kept holding each other. Eventually he pulled away and sat down, knowing that after all of that there was no way she would let go first.
    “Well,” Rex said, his throat so dry that he felt he could drink the entire ocean of Kamino and still be thirsty. “What now?”
    Ahsoka rubbed her elbow and lowered her eyes. “I understand if you want to go back,” she said, then her words started spilling out faster than his ears could keep up. “I can’t ask you to fight your own brothers and you can say that we captured you for information but you were able to escape and-”
    “Ahsoka,” Rex stopped her, grasping her firmly by the shoulders. “I am not going back. I'm Captain of Torrent Company of the 501st Legion of the Grand Army of the Republic. But the Republic is gone, and I didn’t swear allegiance to any scheming Emperor.”
    Ahsoka looked back up again, and he could see on her face that she was relieved beyond words.
    “They’ll think you’re a deserter.” she said.
    “The GAR doesn't exist anymore, but I doubt they'll see it that way. Guess I'm a deserter.” Somewhere on Saleucami, Cut Lawquane was laughing.
    “We’ll be on the run for the rest of our lives,” said Ahsoka.
    “Don’t care.” He honestly didn’t. Let the Empire come, together he and Ahsoka could take them all. “I know what I’m getting into.”
    He knew she wanted so badly for him to say yes, but would never take advantage of him, especially in a time like this. “Rex, we might have to fight your brothers.”
    This time Rex stayed silent for a while, thinking it over carefully even though his mind was already made up. “Ahsoka,” he finally said. “Do you know what the men of Torrent Company used to say about you?”
    “No,” she said, her brow furrowing in confusion.
    “We used to say that we had more brothers than we can count,” he said, and despite the crushing despair he’d felt only minutes earlier he found himself grinning like a shiny in his first set of armor. “But that we only had one sister.”
    Ahsoka’s face lit up in joy and the next thing he knew she was hugging him again, nearly knocking him onto his back. She laughed in a way that took him right back to Christophsis. Honestly, all this physical contact with his former commanding officer was starting to make him a bit uncomfortable, but she was so happy that Rex didn’t care one iota.
    “Thank you,” Ahsoka whispered after she’d calmed down. “I thought I’d lost everyone.”
    Something about the way she said that made him uneasy. “Don’t talk like that,” he said. “There’s got to be-”
    “I saw the list, Rex. Almost everyone is dead. Even…” Ahsoka’s voice faltered.
    “Even Anakin.”
    Suddenly, Rex was extremely thankful that Ahsoka hadn’t let go of him yet. That way, she couldn’t see the blood draining from his face.
    She didn’t know.
    He’d been too focused on himself since he woke up to even think about General Skywalker. But now everything he had done flashed through Rex’s head. Marching into the Temple, killing Jedi, fighting General Ti…
    Those Padawans…
    Somebody had to tell her.
    Ahsoka pulled back and held him at arm’s length. She looked at him curiously with her head cocked slightly to one side.
    “What is it?”
    Rex opened his mouth, but nothing came out.
    The door to the room opened and a group of beings burst in. Ahsoka let go of him so fast she could have jumped into hyperspace and turned to face them. Rex let the air out of his lungs; he hadn’t even noticed that he was holding his breath. His relief quickly turned to confusion and then alarm, however, as he saw who led the group.
    “I’m sorry to interrupt,” Shaak Ti said. She held her unlit lightsaber in her hand. “Rex has quite convinced me of his sincerity, but we’ve got trouble.”
    “Clones?” Ahsoka asked, reaching at her side for something that wasn’t there. Rex felt his heart beat faster. He’d been serious about what he said, but being confronted with the reality that he may wind up killing his own was horrifying.
    “Just the one,” said a Twi’lek kid who glared suspiciously at Rex as Shaak Ti clarified.
    “Not clones. Bounty hunters.”
     
  17. WarmNyota_SweetAyesha

    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Aug 31, 2004
    Oh that gave me all kinds of terrific Ahsoka/Rex feels. [face_dancing] [face_dancing] Have a feeling the action's about to ramp up again. And when Ahsoka hears about Anakin :eek:
     
  18. Chris0013

    Chris0013 Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 21, 2014
    I would say in that last chapter...Rex should have told Ahsoka what Anakin did....Shaak Ti tries to tell her but she says she knows...IIRC...her "knowing" was that Anakin was dead...not the right hand of the most evil bastard in the Galaxy.
     
  19. Kablob

    Kablob Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 24, 2014
    That conversation got interrupted before Rex got a chance to even think about how to tell her. If it hadn't, well...I can't keep Ahsoka in the dark forever, not when everyone around her knows it.
     
  20. Kablob

    Kablob Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 24, 2014
    And thanks to Crimsonight on Deviantart, there is now cover art!
    [​IMG]
     
  21. SatineNaberrie

    SatineNaberrie Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jan 28, 2014
    I wish clone wars was never canceled. I want to know what happens to Ventress and Ahsoka. Glad there is fan fiction. Will this diverge from cannon and be AU or not? I look forward to reading more.

    Nice picture.

    Btw.. I'd like to see Rex teach old Palpy a lesson lol.
     
    Nyota's Heart likes this.
  22. mratm23

    mratm23 Jedi Knight star 3

    Registered:
    May 13, 2014
    Holy crap. Did you make that picture of those three? It looks amazing!
     
  23. Kahara

    Kahara FFoF Hostess Extraordinaire star 4 VIP - Game Host

    Registered:
    Mar 3, 2001
    Hi! I'm still working my way through the middle chapters of this, but saw your other story in the same 'verse posted today. Just wanted to let you know that I think this series is fantastic. :)
     
  24. Kablob

    Kablob Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 24, 2014
    Thanks. :)
    Don't worry, I'm still working on this one.
     
    Kahara likes this.
  25. Kahara

    Kahara FFoF Hostess Extraordinaire star 4 VIP - Game Host

    Registered:
    Mar 3, 2001
    Great! I'm just through Chapter 6. Love the best enemies and grudging sort-of friends dynamic with Ahsoka and Ventress.