Collision

Problems and Solutions

"Are mummy and Daddy coming?" asked Leia to Cody.

"They'll join us when they get a chance to." Cody responded, not knowing what else to say. He was new to this child care business. He eyed Padme who gave him a small nod.

Walk-running, the two adults navigated the passage way successfully.

Seeing a small red light, Cody walked towards it and pressed it in. A door magically slid open, revealing a brightly lit hangar. "What ship are we taking?" He asked as he saw 4 small and 2 medium ships docked and ready for take off.

"We're taking the Shadow." replied Padme.

Cody instantly knew the ship she was talking about.

Hand built from scratch by Ahsoka Tano, Kenobi's Padawan and himself, the Shadow was built for speed, stealth and destruction. It was armed with four ion canons, two turrets and a rocket launcher, as well as bombs. It was equipped with the best military hyper drive available during the war and had a cloaking device as a countermeasure. On the inside it had a small medbay, a cargo handling system, five cabins with bunks, It was customised with battalion markings, quotes, tallies, art and paint splatters. It was tradition to leave your mark on that ship.

The last time he saw it was just before the Republic fell to the Empire.

"So this is where she's been hiding." He said to himself. His eyes studied the ship's current state. It's paint work had seen better days yet it still stood out from the other ships. His eyes jumped to Padme's position.

Standing next to the ramp of the ship, Padme pushed a concealed button. It activated a retina scanner.

****************************************************************************

Forty eight hours ago, the Executor had touched down on Mandalore but Darth Vader hadn't made his grand entrance. He had concealed himself to his private quarters. As soon as he had entered the atmosphere, flashbacks of the Clone Wars has phased through him.

Forcing the flashbacks out of his mind, Darth Vader pulled his cloak hood over his face. With anger swelling up in his mind, he charged to the secure prison cells that held one of his VIP guests.

"Leave us." he ordered four of his new and useful stormtroopers, as he entered the cell he could see what the clones called their "little sis".

Pinned down on an angled table and surrounded by torture droids, her tired and limp body forced a smile onto her face. "Hey, Anakin!"

"Shut your mouth, sleemo." responded Darth Vader with a short fuse.

"Ok...I see you are having one of your silly moments." Her eyes lurked around the room to see that all of her security cameras were watching her every move, just like they always were. "Anyway...My name is Jade. How can I help you in this fine dark cell?"

"I don't have the patience for this, clone." snarled Vader. "If you want to help me then you can give into these droids and let me use you as a way to track down Kenobi, your old Master."

"Obi-Wan died in my arms." replied Jade, letting an old cursed memory play. "A week after your stupid Emperor, Sheev, decided to say the magical number and convert the Jedi Temple on Coruscant into his personal palace." Her colourless face followed the Sith as he paced around the room.

We'll see how cooperative you are after this." A grin lurked across his face. His luminous eyes glowed even more. He was powerful. He could use his power to break anybody he wanted to, yet things were different with this clone. Physically she had been broken, literally, but mentally she was strong and still had that annoying attitude problem.

Placing his hands on her shoulders, he summoned all of the rage and pain the memories had caused. Using the pain as a weapon, he forced it through his arms and into her body. Increasing his grip on her shoulders he closed his eyes and sank into the Force. It was strong with her but he was stronger than her. His mind yelled at the Force to crush her mentally. He released his grip. He opened his eyes to find her in a myoclonic seizure.

Her muscles twitched like mad. She had no control over her body. Something was attacking her. It wasn't Vader. It was something that felt like him but it felt far away but it was so close. It was almost as if she was being attacked by a parasite. But why?

Feeling a dark force eating at her mind, she knew what Vader was trying to do. He wanted her other half. "I won't...." she panted as she refocused her energy on holding off the dark force swelling in her mind. "let you summon...her."

"I'm not the one summoning her," replied Vader, now walking towards the steps of the cell. "You are." With a swish of his cloak, Vader ascended the steps and vanished around the corner.

Not wanting to unleash her destructive alter ego, Jade reached down for her final source of power. It was what connected all of the Elemental Powers. Yelling out in agony, she unleashed it.

A green aurora surrounded her. 

She felt the darkness inside her cooling off. Feeling the pain going away, she felt stronger than she did before. 

The aurora faded away into thin air.

".....take it to the Cube." She heard Darth Vader's voice order. Instantly knowing where she was, she sighed with relief but feared the dreaded Cube. It was where Satine was held against her will when that Prime Minister of hers framed her.

Suddenly, six Death Troopers entered the cell. One of them lowered her table so she was facing the plain black ceiling. She felt the table move as the troopers began to escort her to her new home.  

"This should make sure you don't attempt to mess up my ship." she heard Vader smirk as he walked past.

Ignoring her old mentor, she scanned the trooper's minds. They were all clones but she didn't recognise any of them.

Around the corner, they came to one of the many turbolifts that connected the busy life of the bustling crew members. Entering the lift, the troopers surrounded her. The lift doors closed.

One of the troopers raised his gun and shot the camera that was watching them. Another began to unstrap her form the table.

What was this? Was this Ahsoka's Rebellion? Or was it a trap?

Sitting up she eyed the trooper that had released her. "Who are you?"