21 BBY
Geonosis, Outer Rim
Never again, did Jaika think that she would have to return to the bug-filled dust ball that was known as Geonosis. It had been barely a year since the outbreak of the clone wars, and she had been dragged back to the planet where it all started.
Letting out a heavy sigh, Jaika stood up from her bed as she prepared herself for the upcoming conflict. The girl tightened her belt around her waist, securing her Jedi robes into place; while she slipped on the wrist cuffs and fingerless gloves. After tying back her hair, Jaika inspected her appearance in the small mirror that was hung above the tiny sink. She had faint markings on her face from previous battles. She had no idea how long the war will go on for, but at this rate, Jaika speculated that she will have a lot more scars to collect along the way.
A chime beeped out from her communicator, signaling to Jaika that her presence was needed on the bridge. Inspecting herself one last time, Jaika walked towards the door. Before she was close enough for it to open, the girl quickly stopped in her tracks as she got caught in her thoughts. Jaika slowly looked down towards her belt, observing the lonely lightsaber that hung from her belt. As she looked up again, a faint hum came from behind her, as the girl felt drawn to her bed behind her.
Turning on her heel, Jaika slowly walked towards her bed, before crouching down as she pressed a button to unlock one of the compartments attached to her bed. The door opened and Jaika was exposed to her few belongings. The Skywalker girl quickly scanned the drawer, before her eyes fell onto the object that was attracting her. Reaching her arm forward, Jaika picked up the hilt and held it in her palm.
The girl had kept the lightsaber that she used in the first battle of Geonosis. Jaika had no idea why she kept it, but something within her was telling her to not get rid of it or return it to the Order. Instead, Jaika decided to keep it. Now looking at the lightsaber in her hand, Jaika could understand why the force wanted her to keep it.
She recalled many of her recent missions, from Geonosis to Khorm. Where Jaika would somehow end up using two lightsabers to fend off any attackers. Even if the aim of the mission was to keep a low profile, Jaika always found herself dueling an enemy with two lightsabers. It had taken her a while to work it out, but Jaika had a feeling that the Force was trying to guide her in a certain direction. And she was going to follow it.
Letting out a breath, Jaika stood up and attached the second lightsaber to her belt before she turned around and walked out of her quarters. As she walked through the halls, Jaika felt the weight that was constantly sitting on her shoulders suddenly disappear; as she felt a stronger connection to the force than she had previously.
The automated doors whooshed open and Jaika walked into the briefing, where she met Obi-Wan, Ki-Adi Mundi, Anakin and Ahsoka and the Jedi Council on a holocall. Jaika placed herself beside her brother, as she folded her arms over her chest to look natural. "Our ships are in position and we are ready to begin our campaign against the Geonosians." Obi-Wan explained to the Council, as the hologram displayed images of their upcoming plans.
As far as Jaika was aware, they had to secure the droid factory that Poggle was running, which has previously proved itself to have a large force of security. The girl also heard that they had to eliminate the other Geonosians, as they were refusing to surrender to the Republic. In any other mission, Jaika would not mind, but something about inflicting violence upon people not joining their side didn't sit comfortably with Jaika.
Anakin must have sensed her uneasiness, as he leaned over to her ear. "You're late. Everything alright?" He whispered, as he was usually the one that was late to meetings, while his sister would turn up early. Jaika kept her eyes on the hologram, but tilted her head in his direction before subtly nodding. Anakin couldn't bring himself to believe her, not completely. "And what about Poggle? Any report on his location?" Mace Windu asked over the call.
"It seems he's holed up at the primary droid foundry here. The factory is protected by a shield generator. Anakin, Jaika, Ki-Adi and I shall attempt a three-pronged attack through their defense lines to a staging area just short of the the shield. Once we have landed, we shall knock out the shield generator. That is our primary target." Obi-Wan explained, showing various locations on the holomap.
"Isn't it risky committing three generals to one area of the attack? If something went wrong, we could be dealt a serious blow." Chancellor Palpatine expressed. From beside her, Jaika noticed Anakin nod along to the Chancellor's statement. Jaika frowned slightly at his actions, as Anakin had never proved himself to be the type to agree with precaution.
Yoda turned to Palpatine, "To ensure that rise again, Geonosis does not, capture Poggle we must." the elder Jedi explained. "Of course, As always I shall leave the strategy to you Master Jedi." Palpatine spoke, quietening down from his previous statement. Jaika could not place it, but she always had a strange feeling about the Chancellor; but she did not think too much of it, out of respect. She recalled the random chats that the Chancellor would pull her into, which always centered around her Jedi training and her growth in knowledge. After each meeting, Jaika started to show that she was less and less interested in committing to those meetings with Palpatine, and after a few more weeks, the Chancellor stopped inviting her for chats and made it seem as if he forgot she existed.
"Our thanks, Chancellor." Obi-Wan spoke, as the other Jedi showed their respect to the Politician. Jaika quickly forced a sincere smile, as the wrinkly man in the hologram peered down at them with a deep grin. "May the force be with you." Mace Windu granted, before the holocall disappeared. Jaika let out a deep breath that she didn't know she was holding.
The doors whooshed open, as Rex, Cody and Jet walked in towards the briefing table. Obi-Wan acknowledged Cody and informed him on the rendezvous location, who in response informed the Jedi on a good tactic on how to hit the factory. The clone went into detail on the order that each battalion should land and strike, going into detail about timings and coordinates that everyone should meet at. While Jaika drowned out Obi-Wan and Anakin's petty jabs to each other, the Skywalker girl glanced across the table at the three clones, who were hidden in their armor.
Looking over at Rex, the clone must have noticed her gazing as he dipped his head downwards in respect; giving the clone Captain a small smile she returned the gesture, before Luminara Unduli interrupted the men fighting, as she reminded them of the plan at hand. Jaika mentally thanked her for stopping their child play, as the Jedi deiced to assemble for the upcoming battle.
~☆~
Jaika walked through the hanger, keeping to herself. Many engines roared around her, as Y-Wings started to ascend out of the hanger and towards the atmosphere of Geonosis. The Skywalker girl observed the fighters as they flew away, before she turned her attention back to the clone trooper transports. The fighters always seemed to give Jaika a sense of peace, but of course she knew all too well by now, that the peace never lasts.
From a distance she could see Obi-Wan talking to Cody as he boarded one of the transports. Jaika walked a bit closer, before she stopped in her tracks and stood with her arms crossed over her chest once again. Jaika was just out of earshot of their conversation. Glancing about, she noticed a few surrounding transports shut their doors and drift out of the hanger, which told the girl that she needed to go.
Once Obi-Wan stepped onto the transport, the door closed, leaving Cody to himself. Turning around, Cody noticed Jaika and walked up to her. "Apologies, Lieutenant. General Kenobi was telling me about his past experience on Geonosis." Cody apologized. The two started to walk towards one of the remaining shuttles.
Jaika shook her head in amusement, "Of course he was." Jaika stated, aware that Obi-Wan held a lot of pride for being able to hold himself together in the arena. Cody chuckled at Jaika's remark, as the two continued to walk before they jumped into one of the shuttles.
The transport lifted into the air and flew out of the hanger. Holding onto one of the over-head handles, Jaika observed the many clones from the 212th who had changed into armor that was designed to help them against the harsh climate of Geonosis. The girl looked down at the two lightsabers that hung from her belt, as she felt the anxiety within her build. The familiar stench in the air that filled the entirety of Geonosis, returned to Jaika as she felt as if she was transported back into her body from over a year ago.
For the first time in months, she felt helpless and weak. All that played in Jaika's mind was her watching Soleil's death, as she knew she had the power to stop it, if only she had the strength to step in at the time, she could have saved her. Jaika shook her head in an attempt to brush the painful memory away. Although it was no longer playing at the front of her mind, she knew that the thought would not completely disappear.
A hand to her shoulder startled the girl, as she looked at the armored hand before following the arm as she looked upon Cody, who had removed his helmet. The clone commander wore a sympathetic look on his face. Although Cody was one of the more obedient and tough clones, he still broke some protocols to help his brothers. In this moment, he could tell that the Skywalker girl was suffering internally, and although he did not know how to deal with emotions, due to the clones being forbidden to show any, he still wanted to give Jaika a small ounce of comfort, as he appreciated that she often retuned the same gesture to the clones.
Breaking out from her thoughts, she gave the smallest smile before nodding her head to show her appreciation. After a few moments, Cody removed his hand before he put his helmet back on. Jaika turned away from him as she watched the ground from below through the thin windows. The distant sound of blasters and explosions caused shivers to run through Jaika's bloodstream.
The ship shook about as it traveled towards a more remote area. A sudden crackling sound caught Jaika's attention, as she looked towards Cody. "Cody, Come in! Get the tanks down!" Ki-Adi Mundi's voice directed through the radio. Jaika looked from Cody, towards the pilot. "Copy that. Pilot, begin landing sequence." Cody ordered.
Immediately, the transport descended towards the sand-covered ground, as nearby transports did the same. The doors to the ship whooshed open as many troopers ran out with their guns ready, while Cody shouted orders. Jaika stepped out of the transport, keeping her hands near her lightsabers, as she inspected the area; while AT-TE's were dropped down onto the ground. "Here they come. Bugs are coming." A clone shouted, as explosions went off nearby.
In an instant Jaika took out one lightsaber hilt and held it in her right hand. "Man down! Man down!" another clone shouted, as more explosions went off. Jaika started to move forward, a few steps ahead of Cody as she inspected the area. The girl inhaled deeply, feeling the sand particles infiltrate her system. Jaika's ears rung from the close proximity of each explosion, while she tried to locate where the Geonosians were through the force. "General Kenobi, don't land. The zone is hot." Cody shouted through the radio, making Jaika glance over her shoulder to look at him.
"We're hit. We're going down." Obi-Wan's voice shouted through the radio. By now many more transports and crawlers had landed, as they formed a protective circle for cover. There were blasts coming from all directions, making a lot of the clone forces hide behind the transports. Jaika knelt down on the ground, peering from behind the ship as she looked ahead into the cloudy distance where she could just about see the towers where bugs were firing from. "Not good. The bugs are spitting up." A trooper spoke, after looking through his binoculars.
The sound of approaching footsteps caught Jaika's attention, as she turned around to look at two clones who ran up to Cody. "Boil reporting as ordered, Sir." Boil spoke, before straightening his posture. "Waxer reporting as ordered, Sir." Waxer spoke, also straightening his posture as Cody turned his attention towards both clones. "We've got a downed gunship five klicks east. We believe it's General Kenobi's. I need you to get out there and check for survivors." Cody ordered, before the two clones ran out from the cover and into the battlefield, avoiding blasts from the bugs.
As they ran, Jaika noticed some of bugs direct their tanks towards their huddled area. Looking from the tanks to the AT-TE's, she noticed the fire increase as bugs flew around with guns. Finalizing a few thoughts, Jaika slowly stood up before igniting the lightsaber in her hand. "Lieutenant..." Cody started, making Jaika glance towards him, "....be careful." He finished, knowing that he would not be able to stop the Jedi.
Jaika sent him a nod, before she faced the fire-fight in front of her. In an instant, she ran out from behind the gunships, swinging her lightsaber around as blasts came her way. The girl sprinted through the sand, twisting her arm around in all directions as her celeste blade lit up the area in the heavy sand-filled wind. Jaika raised her other arm and used it to block the sand from going into her eyes.
Stopping by one of the legs by an AT-TE, Jaika swung her saber about, deflecting shots. By now the battle had increased, as more bugs started to fly towards the cluster. Multiple curse words flowed through Jaika's head, as she continued to block blasts with her lightsaber. A bug rode a bike towards the group with a blaster in hand, shooting at their forces. Acting quickly, Jaika reached her free hand out and took control of the bike, making the ignition systems fail as the bike smoked before exploding and making the bug fly off into a bolder. "Nice one, Lieutenant." a trooper praised from behind Jaika.
The girl acknowledged the statement, before she heard a scream from on top of one of the AT-TE's. Looking around frantically, Jaika's eyes landed on a bug trying to pick up a clone and fly off with them. Glaring in the bug's direction, Jaika quickly ran towards the AT-TE, before leaping into the air and rolling onto the top of the crawler. The bug turned to her and hissed as it continued to pull the clone away.
Jaika quickly ran towards the bug and sliced through the bug, letting the trooper drop back into the cannon seat. "Thank you, Lieutenant." The trooper panted, making Jaika send him a nod. Now that she was standing on top of the crawler, she was exposed to many blasts and bugs. Moving along the crawler, Jaika deflected more blasts, before she jumped onto another gunship and moved her saber about more.
A bug quickly flew towards her and before she could react, she was suddenly picked up as she started to ascend higher into the air. Jaika struggled to move her ignited lightsaber to slice the bug, as it kept fighting against her, while the rest of her body dangled. She looked from her trapped right arm that held her celeste lightsaber, to her free left arm and smiled. In an instant she took out her second hilt and ignited the blade through the chest of the bug; making it instantly lose altitude.
Jaika pushed herself out of the bug's grasp, as she fell towards a gunship. Jaika quickly rolled onto the top of the ship and stood with both lightsabers ignited, with her right one held horizontally in front of her, and the other pointing forwards. She didn't give herself a lot of time to recover, as the girl went back to swinging both lightsabers around, as she blocked the shots that came from the Geonosians that flew around the area. Turning around she saw a bug drop a bomb towards the gunship that she was stood on, making her chest tighten as she jumped off the ship in a panic.
As she landed on the sand, the ship exploded as a wave of shrapnel flew her way, making the girl quickly curl herself up and duck as she tried to avoid the damage from the debris. Slowly straightening her posture, she looked upon the damaged ship before parts of her arm and face started to sting. Jaika did not have enough time to worry about a few cuts she got from the explosion, as she quickly went back to blocking more blasts.
"Retreat, go, go!" A trooper ordered, as many troopers started to back away from the gunships towards the centre where Obi-Wan and Cody were. Jaika also joined them, twirling both blades around. Jaika spotted a bug hovering above the group with a blaster, making Jaika twist her blade as she deflected its blasts as the lasers fired back at the bug, making it fall to the ground. "Make every shot count. Give it all you got." A trooper shouted.
Jaika glanced over her shoulder and noticed how Obi-Wan was slumped over a pile of crates. The girl could sense that his energy levels were weakening, as he struggled to keep his eyes open. Obi-Wan slowly glanced towards Jaika, who looked away from him as she continued to fight off the Geonosians. Obi-Wan watched as she fought, swinging two lightsabers around. He had to admit that Jaika was very skilled with both blades, as it was a hard thing to do, especially with both being full sized blades. He wasn't sure if it was due to his exhaustion, but Obi-Wan could not take his eyes of Jaika while she fought, as the way she swung the blades around helped calm his nerves and fill him with a sense of serenity.
Realizing the desperation within the battle, Jaika moved herself to the front of the battalion, as she tried to take as many blasts as she could. While she fought, Jaika felt a shiver run up her arms as the ground trembled. "Reinforcements! The reinforcements have arrived." A trooper shouted, grabbing Jaika's attention and making her glance off into the distance where she saw multiple Y-Wings approaching.
A huge gust of wind blew over Jaika as the Y-Wings flew past and dropped bombs onto the Separatist forces. Jaika lowered her ignited blades, while the troopers around her cheered, making the faintest smile appear on her face. Once the bugs had been cleared, the troopers ran out to scan the area, while many approaching footsteps came near.
Jaika watched as Anakin and Ki-Adi Mundi's battalions stormed the area. She watched as the clones swept through the area, pointing their guns at any surviving Geonosians, while Ahsoka and Anakin checked up on Obi-Wan. Jaika stood a few meters away from the Jedi, lost in her thoughts as she reflected on the mission. Despite the Geonosians being dangerous and producing another droid factory; the way that the mission was conducted seemed strange to Jaika. The Jedi almost felt dirty.
"Jai." Anakin's voice said from behind her, making Jaika turn around to face her brother. The girl quickly looked down and realized her blades were still ignited, which made her quickly turn them off. Jaika looked back up at her brother, and from the glint of emotion that glossed over her eyes, she knew what he was thinking. In response, she took a step back and shook her head. "I'm fine, Anakin. Don't worry." Jaika spoke.
Anakin walked closer to his sister, so that the other Jedi could not hear their conversation. "Jai, you don't have to hide how you feel from me. You know you can tell me anything." Anakin spoke. Jaika's eyes quickly got distracted as she watched as many clones came back and joined them, some with deceased bugs in their arms. Anakin followed his sister's line of vision, before inspecting her face and seeing the unsure look in her eyes. "I know it's not nice to see, but it's justified. If we didn't do anything they would have hurt a lot more people." Anakin explained, while Jaika watched the clones come back.
Anakin stepped away from his sister, while Jaika attached her hilts to her belt. The girl glanced around her surroundings, before turning her attention towards the Jedi who were surrounding a hologram. Jaika placed herself beside Ahsoka, who quickly glanced up at her with a small smile, Jaika gazed towards the Padawan and sent her a nod, before focusing on the hologram. "Our combined forces should be enough to destroy the shield generator. Anakin, you'll need to take a small squad through the shield, as close as you can get to their gun emplacements. From there you'll be able to temporarily jam their scanners so they are unable to target the incoming tanks. Once the tanks knock out the shield, Master Mundi can bring the rest of the of the troops in with the gunships." Obi-Wan explained, as tanks appeared on the hologram, displaying Obi-Wan's plan.
Jaika stood with her arms crossed over her chest, as she looked from her brother towards Obi-Wan, who was still sat on the ground with a battle-dirty face. The girl could still tell that the Jedi was weak from the crash earlier, despite being injected with bacta. "Consider it done, Master." Anakin replied. After a few moments of finalizing the plans, everyone went their separate ways to prepare.
Ki-Adi Mundi walked towards one of the gunships, before he stopped in his tracks and turned to face Jaika who observed the area. The older Jedi jerked his head, motioning that the girl can join him. Jaika did not hesitate, as she quickly ran towards the gunship and hopped on board. The gunship took off as the doors closed, leaving Obi-Wan with a few clones in their previous position. Jaika's eyes gazed about the insides of the gunship, acknowledging the clones that were preparing for the strike.
Letting out a quiet sigh, Jaika turned her attention back to the world outside the ship. The distant sound of explosions and cannons were all that she could hear, as the ship trembled in the high winds. A sudden large explosion ruptured from nearby as the sound of crumbling resonated along with it. Jaika tried to look outside the gunship to see what was going on, but she could not see properly due to the thin windows. "General, the shields are down." The pilot alerted, instantly grabbing Jaika's attention as her eyebrows lifted in surprise.
"Good. Put us down." Ki-Adi Mundi replied. From inside the ship, Jaika saw the red ray shields slowly dissipate as they flew closer towards the battle field. The moment the gunship landed on the ground, the doors whooshed open as multiple clones piled out. Jaika grabbed both of her lightsabers and ignited them, as she ran alongside the clones and Ki-Adi Mundi, towards the area that Anakin and Ahsoka were in.
Jaika twirled her blades around, blocking multiple shots, and repelling other blasts. Jaika ran ahead, as she joined her brother's side where a group of Geonosians were stood helplessly with their blasters in hand. Jaika held both of her ignited lightsabers in hand, as the clones arrived and aimed their blasters at the bugs, who started to surrender.
Smiling slightly at their success, Jaika lowered her blades slightly before she caught Ahsoka's gaze, who was looking at her with awe. The Skywalker girl realized that Ahsoka was not looking at her, but instead her two lightsabers in hand. Ahsoka quickly realized she was staring at the girl for too long and met Jaika's gaze, who in response gave the girl a smile.
~☆~
Once the battle had finished. Jaika returned to their original landing site, alongside Anakin and Ahsoka, where they found Obi-Wan sitting against the crates. The three Jedi jumped from the gunship as they approached the Jedi.
Obi-Wan noticed the three Jedi nearing him and put all his weight onto one of the crates, as he pulled himself up onto his feet. Feeling desperate to greet and congratulate them, Obi-Wan went to take a step forward, but his condition was too weak, which made him stagger about before he started to fall towards the ground. Before Obi-Wan could brace for the impact of the sand-covered ground, an arm snaked its way around his upper back, holding him up and stopping him from falling. Obi-Wan panted slightly in shock, before he turned his head to look upon Jaika who had caught him. "Don't worry, I've got you." Jaika reassured, showing the smallest smile known to man.
Jaika straightened her and Obi-Wan out, as they stood upright so they could walk forwards. Now with his arm draped across the girl's shoulders, the Jedi felt a lot more at peace; though he worried about whether the girl could deal with carrying him, before Obi-Wan once again reassured himself as he had seen the girl's capabilities within the force and new that she was just as strong as her brother.
As she walked closer to the gunship, Anakin joined their side and walked beside the pair, deciding not to take over from Jaika's job of helping Obi-Wan. As the three of them neared the gunship that just landed, Ahsoka walked over to them. "So Master, what's your total?" Ahsoka asked. Anakin shook his head at Ahsoka as he looked out for Jaika in case she started to struggle. "Not now, Ahsoka." Anakin groaned, as the trio walked past the young girl.
"Come on, are you afraid you lost this time?" Ahsoka joked, as she joined Anakin's side, who in return looked down at her with a slightly annoyed glance. Jaika gazed towards the girl with a hidden smile on her face, as she enjoyed how Ahsoka was one of the few Jedi who could aggravate and compete with her brother. "Fine. 55, that's my count. And you?" Anakin stated, as he walked past Ahsoka, who stopped in her tracks.
Jaika could sense a small ounce of amusement within Ahsoka, which immediately made Jaika smirk as she helped Obi-Wan onto the gunship. "Sixty. Looks like I won." Ahsoka boasted with a smug grin on her face. Jaika turned around with Obi-Wan still hanging onto her and sent the girl a proud smirk, while Anakin frowned in defeat. "Yeah, but I called in the airstrike. Tie." Anakin negotiated, making Jaika roll her eyes at her brother.
"An airstrike doesn't count, Bantha brain." Jaika responded, making Anakin look down at her with an offended look on his face. Anakin never thought that Jaika would side with Ahsoka when it came to their competitions, as the two siblings always fought in competitions as children, so to Anakin, it only seemed natural that Jaika would side with him. In response to Jaika's statement and Anakin's offended face, Ahsoka smiled and rolled her eyes. "You're impossible." She spoke, before walking away.
"I'll never understand how you can simplify these battles into some kind of game." Obi-Wan spoke, as Jaika moved him further away from the door of the gunship. Jaika glanced from Obi-Wan to her brother, who in response shared a devious look with his sister. Both Skywalkers competed in those games, even before the two of them were reunited, it was part of their childhood and identity, and both of them strived to spread their childhood through the Jedi Order.
"Well, take care of yourselves. I expect to see all three of you back here by the time I've destroyed the main factory." Anakin spoke, as Ki-Adi Mundi joined the other side of Obi-Wan and gently took the Jedi off from Jaika's grasp, freeing the Skywalker girl. "We shall do our best." Obi-Wan commented.
Ki-Adi Mundi smiled at Anakin, which started to worry Jaika as she had no idea what was going through the old Jedi's mind. "Sixty five, Skywalker." Ki-Adi Mundi spoke, making both Jaika and Anakin frown at the same time out of confusion. "I'm sorry?" Anakin questioned, not quite getting what the old man was talking about.
"My total, 65. So what do I win?" Ki-Adi Mundi spoke, making a grin rupture across Jaika's face, making her bring her gloved hand to her face to conceal her laugh. Anakin in response looked at the Jedi with a lost expression, as he tried to process the situation. Anakin glanced towards Jaika, who moved her eyes towards Master Mundi, telling Anakin to answer the question, while Obi-Wan gave Anakin an amused smile. Anakin panicked before looking back at the Jedi, "My everlasting respect, Master Mundi." Anakin responded, bowing his head down.
Ki-Adi Mundi responded with a disappointed "Oh.", making Obi-Wan turn to him. "That is a gift Anakin rarely bestows, I assure you." Obi-Wan replied, making sure Anakin could hear as he stared at the two male Jedi. Anakin shook his head slightly before nodding towards one of the clones, making the gunship slowly ascend.
Before the doors could completely close, Anakin did not fail to miss the statement that Jaika signed to him, as the girl learned sign language from interactions with the sand people. Anakin frowned and rolled his eyes at his sister who signed 'get wrecked' to him. As the ship turned and flew higher into the planet's atmosphere, Anakin turned towards his battalion as they prepared for the upcoming battle.
(5066 Words)