When You Leave

Chapter 14: Conspiracy

Anakin chuckled.

"Fair enough I guess."

He shook his head.

"Sorry, seriously commander, what incident?"

Doom sighed deeply.

"Clone trooper Tup tried to kill commander Katooni."

The entire council went stiff. Anakin was worried, was his now former student's Padawan alright? Why had Tup tried to kill her?

"And Katooni?"

"She's alright, she only got grazed by the shot, shaken up other than that."

Obi-Wan nodded in understanding.

Elizabeth then asked what everyone was thinking.

"Why did Tup try to kill her?"

Doom shook his head.

"We can't figure it out either generals, Rex and Fives said he just kept uttering the phrase 'good soldiers follow orders'."

Anakin was lost.

"Good soldiers follow orders? What does that mean?"

Anakin was getting a very odd feeling about this just from repeating that phrase.

Mace nodded.

"Perhaps brainwashing?"

Shaak Ti disagreed though.

"How? He's been with the 501st the whole time, always accounted for, there's no way he could have been brainwashed."

Mace turned back to Doom's hologram.

"Thank you for reporting this commander, the council will look into this matter."

Doom nodded before his hologram disappeared.

Yoda hummed in thought.

"Disturbing, this news is."

Anakin nodded.

"Agreed master, but what are we going to do?"

Yoda went back into thought for a minute before turning to Shaak Ti.

"To Kamino, the council will send master Ti, and you, master Skywalker. Investigate this matter, you shall."

Anakin nodded, liking the idea. He felt better knowing Shaak Ti would be there, especially given her smart brain could figure out anything, in his opinion anyway.

"You got it master."
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The two council members departed from the temple in a shuttle immediately after the council session ended.

During the ride through hyperspace, Anakin decided to ask.

"Master Ti, can I ask you something?"

She smiled.

"You may ask, I consider us friends Skywalker."

He nodded in thanks before continuing.

"How is Nicholas?"

He realized the question was stupid, obviously Nicholas was doing horribly.

Nicholas hadn't spoken to him since Flora's betrayal, clearly blaming himself for all of it like Anakin feared he would, and it made him despise Flora to the core.

Anakin had run into him in the halls once, but Nicholas had very nervously uttered an apology and walked off.

Shaak Ti had expressed to the council she was at a loss on what to do.