The third year of the war is in full swing. From the initially 'controlled' war, it has grown into a full-blown conflict. Hundreds of planets fighting and massacring each other. Neighbors and family of the past years now draw weapons on one other due to their difference in ideology.
The only regions relatively unaffected are the Mandalorian Federation regions and the Hutt controlled space. Even the under levels of Coruscant controlled by the Mandalorians and other cartels are doing better than some planets.
As days crawl on into months the fighting is increasing in intensity. Battle lines shift each day. This has both sides worried and looking for that one punch needed to take out the other side.
In the midst of chaos, the 'Charitable' foundations run by the Mandalorians have become a ray of sunshine to many displaced people. It's during hardships that it's the easiest to influence people's minds and way of thinking. Homes are provided for families. 'education' for the young and anyone willing to learn. That is the beauty of being Mandalorian. It's not a race but an ideology. A way of living. Like this while the galaxy tears itself apart the Mandalorians slowly spread their influence.
Even if either side knows about this there is nothing they can do. As they have to concentrate on the war. And especially because these camps are on a few border planets within Mandalorian controlled space. After the people are 'educated' very few of them go back into the galaxy. They are instilled with a sense of pride in 'learning' the Mandalorian way. Plus, most of these people are slowly integrated into the Mandalorian society after extensive screening. Thus, further increasing our ranks.
But everything seldom goes according to plan. Sometimes spies are found in the midst of the refugees. But most of all Republic black-ops units pop up on our fringe territories where the camps are located. But that is a very rare occurrence.
(Cato- Neimoidia)
After the death of Nute Gunray and unquestionable evidence of the trade federation partnership with the Separatists was revealed to the senate by an anonymous source. Due to the unrelenting pressure from the senate and threat of imminent sanctions they unceremoniously joined Dooku in the open. The banking clans turned neutral playing both sides.
But the funny thing is Cato-Neimoidia remained 'loyal' to the Republic. Thus, to reclaim their rightful territory the separatist had launched an all-out invasion of the planet. The battle was wide-spread and intense.
Republic and Separatists forces clash in space and within the atmosphere of the planet. Leading the charge in one of the battlefronts are Jedi knight Anakin Skywalker and his padawan Ahsoka Tano.
(POV Ahsoka)
It has been a week since the battle to defend Cato-Neimoidia had started. All it can be called is a slog.
Right now, we are launching an offensive to dislodge separatist forces from one of the major chock points in the region. Due to the world's unique topography, the ultimate victor is the one who can control both space and air dominance. Thus, most of the fighting is in the air.
Soon we launch our fighters. Our job is to engage all droid fighters and clear the way for the transports.
The orbit around the planet is a blaze of combat as separatist frigates try to push back the fleet of republic cruisers.
"Ahsoka lead your squadron and help punch a hole through the droid fighter screen. Leave the fighting to the other squadrons. Our mission is to land these troops and get a foothold on this planet" said Anakin.
"I know the drill Master," I said.
I lead the squadron of fighters on the left flank while Anakin does it on the right. A short distance after launching we run into swaths of drones that converge on us like rain. But we somehow manage to break a hole through the formation long enough for the transports to make it through. But it came at a cost. We had suffered heavy casualties. Even then we had to persist, as a group of tri-fighters was in pursuit.
After taking down a few more of our fighters they launched missiles at us. My system blared a warning to bring the threat to my attention.
"Lookout. Incoming missiles" I called out over coms. I did some evasive maneuvers and got out of the way.
"No problem," said Anakin in his usual overconfident tone and dodged the missiles. The missiles overtook us and detonated to release buzz-droids. They flew back and attached themselves onto Anakin's starfighter.
"Umm… slight problem" he corrected himself and again went with his overconfident tone "when will these droids learn never to mess with the wrong Jedi". He then uses force push to remove the droids on top of his fighter.
"Looks like you are clear," I said.
"Just keep watching and learning Padawan," he said in a snarky tone. Just then his starfighter starts trailing smoke. "Uh oh," I hear him say.
"What's happening?" I asked.
"Nothing. Just a small problem" he said. Then everything went quiet.
"R2. Is everything ok there?" I asked. But he replied that Anakin was unconscious.
"What do you mean unconscious? SIGH. Get back to the ship" I said. But apparently, there was some engine trouble. "Roll over let me have a look," I said to the astromech. But what I saw wasn't that encouraging. The bottom of the starfighter was crawling with buzz-droids.
There was no other choice but to crash land the ship. Luckily there was a cliff ledge nearby. "R2 land the ship on that ledge. I don't care how short it is. R7 takes over. Somebody has to save his skin" I throttled down and opened the latch. I had to risk it and jump across to the other fighter. SIGH. This is cutting it close.
I make the jump just as the ship touches the ground. It kept skidding towards the ledge. I used the force to rip open the canopy and pull Anakin out before jumping for it. R2 detached and used his thrusters to escape as well. That was really cutting it close.
Just as we were catching our breath Anakin wakes up "What did I miss. Wait a minute wasn't I flying. Where is my fighter?" he looked around puzzled.
"Oh. Nothing much. Fighter crashed. I save the day. You are welcome" I said with a snarky tone. And walked off for extra dramatic effect.
"Fuuu alright then," he said getting up before calling for a pickup.
Just then a holo form master Yoda came. "Return to the Jedi temple you should. You and your Padawan" he said.
"We are kind of busy here master," said Anakin.
"The reason we need you important it is. Bombed the temple hanger has been. Your assistance to find the terrorist we need" said Master Yoda.
"But who could successfully bomb the Jedi temple?" I asked. Anakin shrugged slightly.
"We will be right there master," he said and cut the coms. Just in time for our pickup to arrive. "We better get going," he said leading the way to the LAAT.
(Coruscant- Council chambers)
"How could the separatists infiltrate the temple?" asked Anakin.
"Worse than that it is," said Master Yoda solemnly.
"What could be worse, Master Yoda?" I asked. They all looked at each other. Worry evident in their eyes.
"Everything is on the table. We have to look at the possibility that it could be anyone in the temple. Even a Jedi" said, Master Windu.
"If a Jedi this is. Gone to the dark side they have" said Master Yoda.
"I can't believe a Jedi would attack a sacred place like the temple," I said with both worry and uncertainty in my voice.
Master Windu sits up and looks at us seriously and said: "You will lead the investigation. You and Ahsoka will provide an impartial view. We can't trust anyone that has been here. Even Jedi".
"Careful. You must be, Skywalker. If willing to attack the temple the attacker is. To great lengths they will go to keep from being caught" said Master Yoda.
"Then we will have to go to even greater lengths to catch him," said Anakin seriously.
(Temple- Hanger *Bombe to shit*)
"I can still hear their screams. SIGH" said Anakin.
"Do you believe what they said, master? That a Jedi could do this" I asked.
"Not every Jedi supports this war. There are many political idealists among us" he said.
"But a traitor?" I asked.
"I am afraid one can become the other. Remember Count Dooku and General Krell. That's how they started too" he explained.
"Only analysis and investigation will prove what's true or not," said the droid that was taking scans.
"Who are you?" asked Anakin.
"I am RUSO-ISC crime scene analyzer for the Jedi. I will be working with you on this case. I was assigned by master Windu" the droid explained.
"Ok RUSO. You and Ahsoka should interview the witnesses" said Anakin.
"I would rather interview them alone. The rumor of a Jedi being behind this has spread. It might prove unfavorable during the meetings" explained the droid.
"Many Jedi, maintenance crew, and clones were killed during the blast. Take Ahsoka with you anyways" ordered Anakin.
(Infirmary)
The investigations have proven troublesome. Many of the victims have been looking at me through eyes of suspicion. Even the ones that have been working at the temple for decades.
I was slowly losing hope in finding something substantial when an injured worker from the side spoke up
"I think I know who did it," he said.
"Who?" I asked.
"I believe it was Jakar Bomani," he said.
"Who is he?" I asked.
"He is one of the maintenance crew in the hanger" the injured worker explained.
"Why do you think he did it?" I tried digging for more answers.
"I passed him while going for my shift change. He had been working the whole morning in the section where the blast came from. It was the last place I saw him" he further explained his suspicion.
"Is this him?" asked RUSO showing the details of the suspect on his holo-pad.
"Yes," said the worker.
"I need to know. Have you seen him since the explosion?" further inquired RUSO.
"I haven't. To be honest I haven't seen much after the explosion" he explained in grief.
"Thank you," I said gently patting his shoulder.
At least we have a lead now.
(Deep core.)
In a dark office room within the bowels of the ship, a hologram pops up. A person can be seen sitting in a chair.
"I everything in place?" asked the person. He slowly leaned forward.
"Everything is going as predicted. The package is in place and waiting. Do you want to spice things up?" asked the person on the other side.
"Stick to the script for now. Find the source. And acquire the product. It might prove useful" said Thrunn standing up slowly "I have dispatched two people to assist.
"Roger that. I will see to it Mand'alor" said the voice before cutting out.
Thrunn walks out of the shadow. And looks out the viewport. In the vast expanses of the system. Titanic constructions can be seen taking shape.
"This era will soon draw its last breath," he said, a smile adorning his face.
"No more clones. Stop the fighting...." The crowd kept chanting.
There was a large crowd gathered in front of the temple steps. Most of them were relatives of those caught in the explosion at the hanger. To hold them back there was a small force of riot troopers and Jedi temple guards were deployed. Leading them was Cin Drallig, the battle master of the Jedi.
"Master Cin. They all family and friends?" asked Anakin skywalker.
"Yes. Looking for answers" replied Cin.
"So am I. This is the man we suspect is behind the bombing. Keep an eye out for him and inform me if he is spotted" said Anakin showing a holo projection of Jakhar.
Just as he was about to leave a woman rushes out from the crowd shouting "That is Jakhar"
"Do you know this man?" asked Anakin.
"That is Jakhar. He is my husband. I have been trying to reach him since I heard of an explosion. Where is he?" explained the woman.
"I need you to come with me," said Anakin. Escorting the woman into the temple.
(Infirmary)
"Lean back. You will be all patched up soon" said Ahsoka to a wounded maintenance worker as she helps him find a place to rest.
"Hello Ahsoka," said Tal Devin.
"What brought you here Tal," asked Ahsoka.
"I had been helping with the wounded at the other infirmaries. I came here to offer them my help but didn't expect to run into you here" said Tal.
"Well, I initially came as a part of the investigation into the bombing. But stayed to provide what little help I can till my Master calls" explained Ahsoka.
"Made any progress?" asked Tal.
"Not much. Just a single lead. A guy named Jakhar seems to be involved somehow. If you see him inform us immediately" said Ahsoka showing Tal a holo of Jakhar.
"I will keep an eye open for the suspect," said Tal.
Just then Ahsoka's communicator beeps "Looks like my master is calling. See you around Tal," said Ahsoka leaving.
(BOMBED TO SHIT HANGAR)
"From the trajectory, the blast came from there," said Ahsoka while going through data from the scene.
"But why isn't there any bomb residue?" asked RUSO.
"So, you think whoever did this triggered a ship to explode?" asked Anakin.
"We think so. RUSO is trying to analyze the shrapnel to piece this together. The witness says he saw Jakhar working in that area. Maybe Jakhar planned this and kept quiet. Or, this was really done by a Jedi" explained Ahsoka her tone becoming melancholic towards the end.
"I found something. AN anomaly. Something that should not be here" said RUSO walking through the debris while analyzing data "These pieces come from the blast origin. They are covered by microscopic droids of a highly volatile nature" he explained.
"Nano droids?" asked Anakin.
"Yes. Nano droids" confirmed RUSO.
"Great now we are chasing NANO droids," said Ahsoka.
"Go through security footage. See if Jakhar visited other parts of the temple. We will go and see how he got his hands on these nano droids" said Anakin leading Ahsoka out on their investigation.
The two walked into the nearby control room. A droid handed them the required data.
"He was an ammunition expert," said Ahsoka.
"Jakhar was the foreman of all the gunships bombs and weapons. His specialty was nano weaponry" said Anakin in an exasperated voice.
"We have to find this guy," said Ahsoka.
They approached RUSO accompanied by a new droid processing videos at very high speed.
"Who is that RUSO?" asked Anakin.
"New series of droids sold to the temple at cheap prices. Performs multiple tasks from data analysis, maintaining framework to handling security infrastructure. They are advance and can perform many more functions. At this speed, they can go through thousands of recordings in half the time we older versions can" explained RUSO.
"That's impressive," said Ahsoka genuinely impressed.
"Has he found Jakhar yet?" asked Anakin.
"No," said RUSO.
"SIGH. I will gather some Jedi and search the temple" said Anakin.
"Instead of Jedi, I will send droids. They are much faster" said RUSO while talking to a group of droids.
(lower districts)
Anakin and Ahsoka finally found the bomber. Or at least a part of him. The unfortunate soul was the bomb. The nano droids were in his bloodstream. Now they search his apartment for any clues.
"This is not the nicest place," said Anakin looking around.
"I would have thought working for the Jedi paid better," said Ahsoka with a bit of concern in her voice.
They knocked but no one answered. They knocked again. Still, no one answered. Finally, Anakin used the force to unlock the door.
"Letta. Are you here?" called Anakin as they entered the rundown apartment. No one answered.
"Look around for the droids. But remember, he was an ammunition expert. I rather not set off another explosion today. I will search if he left any notes or documents" said Anakin.
They continue searching. Ahsoka scans room by room corridor by corridor. Till she finally stumbles on something.
"Master!" calls out Ahsoka. Anakin runs over. "The sensors are picking up signals from the disposal. The droids were in the food" said Ahsoka.
"Now the question is, did he eat them willingly? Or did someone feed them to him?" said Anakin.
"What are you doing here?" asked Letta who was surprised by their presence.
"We learned Jakhar was involved in the bombing," said Anakin.
"That can't be true," said Letta in denial.
"See if she has any nano droids on her Ahsoka" commanded Anakin.
"Nano droids?" asked Letta. Ahsoka proceeds to scan her.
"She is clean" confirms Ahsoka.
"What do you mean nano droids?" asked a confused Letta.
"We believe someone set Jakhar up and made him the bomb" explained Ahsoka.
"I don't understand," says Letta in confusion.
"Letta, we want to bring you in for some questioning. Maybe you can help make sense out of all this" said Anakin slowly walking up to her.
"I will answer any question I can," she says and accompanies Anakin and Ahsoka.
As soon as they are out Letta makes a break for it. The chance continues for a few blocks. She is then cut off in an alley as Ahsoka drops down in front of her (AN: Spiderman would be proud).
"Letta stop!" shouts Ahsoka.
Letta slowly tries to back away but is blocked by Anakin.
"Running means, you know more than you are telling us," said Ahsoka.
"Let me go. Jakhar is dead now you are trying to blame his murder on me?!" she exclaims.
"Nobody ever said he was dead," says Anakin slowly stepping up.
"But running proves you had something to do with the bomb" accuses Ahsoka.
"You don't know what you are talking about," Letta says with scorn.
"People blamed Jedi because of you. People were killed because of you!" Ahsoka points at her in anger.
"You can't prove anything" defends Letta.
"Did you feed the nano droids to Jakhar? You will answer me. Now!" snarls Anakin who was becoming angrier by the minute.
"I did feed the nano droids to Jakhar" Letta finally admits.
"You set up your own husband to die?!" snarls and angry Ahsoka.
"You are dealing with things you don't understand" defends Letta.
"Ho. Where you are going you will have plenty of time to explain everything" said Ahsoka with a huff before grabbing Letta.
(Jedi temple)
"We have Letta locked in the cells below awaiting further questioning" Anakin explains to master Windu and Yoda.
"I have further good news. After thorough scanning, no further traces have been found in the temple. Plus, after going through the recording Jakhar Bomani was found to have acted alone. That means no Jedi was involved" explained RUSO.
"Thanks, RUSO. Good Job." said a pleased Ahsoka.
"Did this woman say what her reasons were for attacking us?" asked master Windu.
"Not yet. But we are working on that" explained Ahsoka.
"I think we can guess her motives easily enough. Public opinion is swinging against the Jedi. That is becoming clear. This war is becoming less and less popular every day it persists" explained master Windu. He and Master Yoda then walked away to do their duties.
"I wouldn't know what to think if it was Jedi master?" said Ahsoka in a downcast tone.
"There will always be Jedi who disappoints us Ahsoka. But as long as there are good Jedi who fight the good fight. It makes it all worthwhile" said Anakin in a serious tone and starts walking away. Ahsoka stands there with a worried and contemplative expression for a few seconds before she runs to catch up with her master.
(Quesaya system)
Palpatine has sent his hounds to snoop around in this border system.
A squad of black-ops clones had landed on this planet with a shuttle. These are among the most elite troops trained by GAR. They answer only to Palpatine and do his bidding without question.
They have been here for more than half a day. They had gotten a lead saying that an informant wants to receive asylum. The informant carried sensitive information.
"Do you think this lead is legit?" asked black four.
"It has to be. Either way, we got direct orders to secure the asset. If the intel proves useful, we will have an edge over the Mandos" replied Black one.
"Hope this pans out," said Black two.
"I have got movement," said Black three "Seems like it's our target. And she seems to be running from something," he said.
"Wasn't she coming in her shuttle?" asked Black two
"The keyword here is she 'was' supposed to. Something doesn't seem right. Be on guard" said Black one.
They slowly descended into the small valley while on high alert. Their nerves were on the edge as they weren't the top hunters in this part of the galaxy. They slowly came in front of the defector.
"Halt. State the password or we will open fire" said Black one.
"hah…. Hah… please wait. Don't shoot. The password is 'The darkness is eternal'…. Hah…. hah… get me out of here. We are not safe" she said panting. She had a ragged appearance. Like she had been on the run for a few days without any rest.
"Her voice and the password check out," said Black two.
"What happened to you? You are late. And you were supposed to arrive on a shuttle" asked Black one.
"I was shot down by a cloaked ship. I never saw it coming. I was on the run non-stop for the past three days. We have to get out there. I feel like we are in trouble" said the woman.
"You 'feel like' we are in trouble? Lady this simple pickup mission just went FUBAR!" said Black three.
"He is right we have to extract now," said black one before going for his coms "Black five get the ship here pronto" ordered Black one. But he was met with static. "Black five do you read?" he asked again.
"This doesn't feel right," said Black two. Just then they heard a large explosion from a short distance away.
"Isn't that where our ship is?" asked Black four.
"Yes. Everyone double time. We have to try and salvage the long-range coms equipment if we want to call for a ride out" said Black one.
"You want to go towards the explosion?" asked the woman incredulously.
"We have no choice. This is an off the books operation. There won't be rescue unless we explicitly ask for it. And this is an uninhabited planet. There are no ships to steal" explained Black one.
"Plus, we need to get out of this open valley or we will get kriffed," said Black two "I will take point," he said slowly getting up from the kneeling position. Just as he starts walking a high-velocity slug round shatters his helmet and burros through his head. The high-velocity round blows up his head throwing skull fragments and brain matter on the others behind him. The round also clips the woman on her shoulder after passing through Black two.
"Hostiles!" shouted Black one going prone behind a nearby rock cropping. He looks over to see the woman crawling on the ground while screaming in pain. Half her shoulder missing. Black two a few meters away missing almost the entirety of his head.
"Anyone sees where that shot came from?" asked Black three.
"No clue. They took out our recon first to blind us. They are even using slug rounds" said Black one.
"Well, this mission is Kriffed," said a Black four in a monotonous tone.
"We need to break out if we want to complete the mission. Three lay down covering fire in that general direction. I will drag this woman, four run to the entrance of the valley pass and secure it" explained Black one.
"Roger," said black three. He gets up and starts putting down a wide arc suppressive fire. Black one carries the lady while Black four runs towards the farthest cover. Just as he reaches halfway he gets nailed by a high-velocity sniper round and is rag dolled backward. The round left a bloody hole in his chest. Just as one duck behind cover as another round zip by nailing three in the head. He suffers the same fate as Black two.
"SHIT! This mission just got botched hard" said a frustrated Black one. He turned to the woman and said "You have to escape back to the Republic. I will distract them as much as possible. When I draw their fire run" the woman could only nod. She could only continue running. Even with bacta closing the wound on her shoulder she was still in no condition to run. But that was her only hope.
They looked at each other and remained quiet for a few minutes. They could hear movement coming towards them.
"Now!" shouted Black one slowly getting up and laying down covering fire. The woman starts running as fast as she could.
She keeps running for a few dozen meters before getting shot in the leg. She tumbles to the ground and starts crawling. She looks back to see Black one take a couple of blaster round to the chest and fall.
She leans against a rock and just sits there. Black one could be seen slowly crawling away from the place he was downed.
Then slowly out of the darkness four armored figures de-cloak. One makes his way towards Black one and looms over him. He then put a few stunner rounds into the back of the downed clone.
"Status report?" asks the leader of this group.
"All hostiles eliminated. One enemy unit captured and our oh so lovely HVT is also here" said another.
"Good," said the leader turning on his coms "This is Omega-1 package secured. We have an additional prisoner as well, Requesting pickup ant my pos"
"You can't stop the inevitable Mando," said the woman.
"The Mand'alor knows of your kind intruder. You can hide from the rest of the galaxy and scheme. But you can't hide from us. You might think of yourself as a hunter. But you are just prey" said Omega-1 Shooting the woman with stunner rounds "Patch them up and prep for transport" he ordered.
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