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The sounds of buzzing and chirping wildlife from the colorful growing vegetation surrounded Astrid as she stepped over a felled tree. Master Secura walked right beside her. Astrid could hear the quiet footsteps of the six clone troopers walking behind them as their armored boots sunk into the soft ground.
Astrid eyed the surrounding jungle vegetation around them, her senses on high alert for enemies. Astrid touched a comforting hand to her lightsaber at her side.
"It would probably be best if we kept our lightsabers ignited," Master Secura told her quietly as they slunk through the thick vegetation. "We would be more prepared for an attack."
Astrid nodded in agreement as she unclipped her lightsaber and ignited it with a swift press of her thumb on the metal hilt. Her eyes cautiously swept the tree branches and enormous mushrooms above her. Her palms began to sweat around her lightsaber's warm hilt as nervousness blossomed inside her. She was supposed to be the predator, seeking out enemy droids, but somehow she felt like the prey.
A sheep surrounded by wolves.
Astrid heard the sound of a comlink behind her from one of the clone troopers-- most likely Captain Flynn--, but she took no notice of it. If he was receiving important news, then she trusted he would inform her.
There wasn't another clone Astrid trusted more with her life.
Suddenly, the sounds of wildlife around them grew abruptly silent, and Astrid and Master Secura halted. Astrid's muscles tensed as her eyes swept the vegetation, preparing for an ambush, and her lightsaber hummed in the air as she angled it in front of her.
Master Secura raised her hand as she murmured in warning, "Steady," to Astrid and the six clones behind them.
Astrid sensed Captain Flynn moving up towards them, and Astrid asked, "Flynn, do you think the wildlife went silent because of nearby droids?"
"No," Flynn answered in an icy, grim voice, and Astrid startled at the unexpected hard tone of his voice.
Abruptly, Astrid felt an unsettling ripple through the Force, and she had the uncanny sense that danger lurked close-- too close-- behind her. Astrid whirled around in time to see Flynn lifting his blaster gun straight at Master Secura. With a shout of alarm, Astrid threw herself at her master, tackling them both to the wet ground a split second before the blaster went off.
A few feet away, splatters of soft dirt sprayed everywhere as the missed blaster fire struck the ground.
The next instant, Astrid rolled off of Master Secura as she raised her lightsaber in front of her to block the next inevitable round of blaster fire. As she turned her attention to Flynn, she realized all six of the clones had turned their guns to her and Master Secura.
The clones opened fire.
Astrid whirled her lightsaber through the air in a desperate attempt to block all of their blaster fire. Confusion at the clones' betrayal thrummed through her as her heart raced with adrenaline. From beside her, Master Secura rose to her feet and lifted her lightsaber to help defend against the attack. Master Secura leapt forward and managed to slice down one of the clones before she was forced to retreat back beside Astrid.
But only one thought was echoing and racing through Astrid's mind, crowding out all other thought with its insistence.
What's happening, what's happening, what's happening--
Astrid took a step backwards, and her ankle twisted at an odd angle as her foot landed in an unexpected hole in the soft ground. Astrid let out a cry of pain and surprise as pain shot through her ankle and laced up her calf. Astrid tried to step forward, but her foot remained lodged in the hole. It felt as if there was something wrapped around her foot--
Hoping Master Secura would be able to guard her back, Astrid dropped her guard and, leaning down, tried to free her ankle from the vine that had managed to loop around her ankle when she'd stepped through the two foot-deep hole. Astrid gritted her teeth as she yanked at her ankle to free it, pain flaring with each helpless tug.
Astrid heard a shout of alarm from Master Secura, and she looked up to find Master Secura had been shot in the leg. Nevertheless, Master Secura stood her ground as the five remaining clones pressed closer. Crimson blood seeped through the fabric of Master Secura's pants at her thigh.
Master Secura let out another shout of pain as she was shot in the arm, and she collapsed to the ground as her leg gave out from her injury. Astrid's eyes widened as she struggled helplessly to yank her ankle free, and she brought her lightsaber up to block two blaster fire as the clones rounded on her. One of the blaster fire ricocheted off the plasmic bar of her lightsaber and hit one of the clones in the chest.
That left four more clones.
Astrid hissed as one of the blaster fire hit her lightsaber hilt, just barely missing her hand, and Astrid instinctively dropped her lightsaber. As the clones rushed forward to seize their chance, Astrid lifted a hand and Force-pushed all four of them away from her and Master Secura. The four clone troopers flew into the air before landing fifteen feet away with a few shouts and grunts.
Astrid's lightsaber flew into her hand as she raised her hand towards it, and she ignited the weapon before swiftly slicing through the vine that had managed to ensnare her ankle. With a breath of relief, Astrid pulled her ankle free. Except, right when she turned to face the clones, she found Flynn standing in front of her, blaster gun raised to her face. Just behind him, the other three clones were just rising to their feet.
Flynn had been quick to recover from her Force-push.
Astrid stilled at the sight of the blaster gun aimed at her, and her heart raced with a mixture of adrenaline and fear as her gaze met Flynn's unfeeling, cold eyes. She knew he would pull the trigger the instant she made any move to defensive or offensive move. His blaster fire was faster than any lightsaber or Force maneuver she could make.
Astrid's mind emptied of all other thought as she stared down the blaster gun, staring death straight in the eye. She was surprised to find tears springing to her eyes at the thought of death, even though she had faced it so many times by now. She realized what bothered her the most was the way in which she was going to die; Staring down the blaster gun of her own clone trooper.
"Flynn," Astrid choked out before pleading, "Please, stop. Stop fighting me. I don't want to hurt you." When he didn't respond, she whispered in a pained voice, "Why are you doing this?"
Flynn's face remained unmoved as he stared at her as if she was a stranger, as if they hadn't known each other for years throughout the Clone Wars. "Sorry, general," he spoke, voice unfeeling, as he shifted his finger to the trigger. "It's just orders."
Orders? What orders?
Right as Flynn pressed the trigger, Master Secura lunged in front of her Astrid with a shout of fury. Astrid let out a scream of horror as Master Secura collapsed to the ground in front of her, eyes fluttering as blood oozed from the wound in her stomach.
Astrid was so engulfed in surprise and horror at the sight of her master that she momentarily forgot the clones around her until she felt searing heat through her shoulder as one of the shots found her right shoulder.
With a growl of fury, Astrid angled her lightsaber in front of her and, lunging forward, sliced down the nearest clone. She clenched her jaw against the burning pain in her arm as she ducked behind the nearest tree to avoid a round of blaster fire from the other three clones.
As Astrid stood with her back pressed against the tree and her lightsaber angled in front of her, her gaze found where Master Secura lay bleeding out on the ground, all but forgotten by the clones-- as if they already knew the older Jedi was done for.
Red hot anger seized Astrid at the unfairness of it all, and she quickly whipped around the tree with her lightsaber raised to block. She easily blocked the blaster fire as she sprinted to where her master remained on the ground. Blaster fire landed and whizzed all around her, every shot just barely missing her. Astrid came to a stop beside her master, and she stood protectively over Master Secura, guarding her as the three remaining clones-- one of them being Captain Flynn-- continued to fire mercilessly at the two of them.
One of the clones remaining lunged towards Astrid, and Astrid brought her foot up and kicked him in the stomach, using the Force to boost her kick. The clone flew backwards, and Astrid swiftly turned towards Flynn and Force-shoved him against a nearby tree, knocking his blaster out of his hands. Astrid kept him locked in place against the tree trunk as she whirled towards the third clone.
The third clone quickly hefted his blaster gun up to try and shot her, but Astrid sliced her lightsaber through the gun as if it was made of butter before she sliced down the clone with one stroke. She moved to where the other clone was slowly rising to his feet, chest heaving for air.
With lightning speed, Astrid cut him down with a swift slash of her blue lightsaber. The clone fell to the ground, dead, and she felt a pang of guilt at killing her fellow comrade. But she pushed the guilt aside as she hurried to Master Secura's side, leaving Flynn where he was forced against a tree to be dealt with later.
Astrid collapsed to her knees beside her former master and placed her hands on top of the gunshot wound on Master Secura's stomach before applying pressure. A gasp of pain escaped Master Secura's blood stained lips at the sudden pressure on her wound. Astrid couldn't help but remember the time when she'd been stabbed in the stomach in the Underworld, and Anakin had saved her.
Where was Anakin now?
Before panic and worry about Anakin's wellbeing could overcome her, Astrid pushed away all thoughts of him so she could focus on saving her dying master before her.
"Master," Astrid gasped out as Master Secura's eyes fluttered weakly. "Stay with me."
Master Secura's breathing was raspy as she reached up and clutched Astrid's wrist with a hand. "Do not despair, Astrid," she managed with great effort. "I will become one with the Force."
"No," Astrid cried as she shook her head vehemently. "No, you're going to live. Listen, you're going to live. I can't-- you can't leave me. I can't bear it."
Master Secura's eyes swam with tears as she rasped, "I'm sorry, Astrid."
Her master had saved her. She'd sacrificed her life to save Astrid. Tears streamed down Astrid's face as she pressed down harder on Master Secura's stomach in an attempt to stop the bleeding, but blood still seeped between Astrid's fingers. The bleeding was too heavy to be stopped. Astrid's efforts were futile.
"Why," Astrid asked in a pained voice. "Why did you save me?"
Master Secura's brown eyes softened with empathy, and her grip on Astrid's wrist tightened as she spoke breathlessly, "I know about you and Anakin Skywalker. I've always known." Her voice grew faint at the end, and Astrid's breath hitched at her master's words as her eyes widened. Master Secura continued with no small amount of effort, "And I know--" She swallowed with difficulty "-- I know you're pregnant, Astrid. I can sense it with the Force."
Despair, surprise, and gratitude all doused Astrid in relentless waves, and she grasped one of Master Secura's hands tightly in hers. "Master--"
"I thought I told you to call me Aayla," Master Secura interrupted with a weak smile, her breathing growing more shallow with every passing second. She lifted a blue skinned hand to Astrid's cheek and brushed a thumb along her cheekbone, leaving a smear of dark blood. "I understand, Astrid. You're not the only one to have broken the Jedi Code."
Astrid's eyes widened with astonishment. She never would have guessed her master would ever have broken the Jedi Code.
Master Secura continued weakly, "I-- I married Kit Fisto years ago when I was a Padawan, myself." She huffed a laugh before grimacing with pain. She blinked rapidly as she said weakly, "Tell him-- if he's still alive-- tell him that I love him. Will you?"
Astrid choked on a sob as she nodded. "I will," she managed. "But-- but what do you mean if he's still alive?"
Master Secura's eyes began to flutter, a faraway look entering her hazel eyes, and Astrid clutched her hand tighter. "Master," Astrid said firmly, giving her a gentle shake. "Aayla. Stay with me. I know it hurts, but you have to keep fighting--"
Master Secura's hazel eyes focused and found Astrid's, and she wheezed, "Thank you for being my Padawan, Astrid. It was truly an honor." She let out a small gasp of pain as she reached up and tucked a lock of Astrid's hair behind her ear. Astrid dipped her head closer to hear as Master Secura whispered faintly, "You were never a failure, Astrid. You were my greatest success."
Her voice grew weak as her head lolled to the side, and her bloodied hand slipped from Astrid's.
Astrid let out a sob as she bent over her master's body and clutched her to her, her heart twisting with pain and despair. No, no, no she couldn't be dead. She couldn't be. Just this morning Master Secura had been talking about how this would be the final battle, and that they would be headed to Coruscant soon afterwards.
Another sob escaped Astrid as she realized Aayla Secura had probably been hoping to see Kit Fisto on Coruscant after their battle on Felucia was over.
Astrid wept against her master, and when she finally forced herself to draw away, she closed her master's hazel eyes, bringing her to her final rest. Astrid lowered Master Secura's hand to her stomach before Astrid released her hand.
Heart heavy as lead and head foggy with grief, Astrid took Master Secura's lightsaber and clipped it to her belt before she rose to her feet. Anger filled her as she spotted Flynn where he remained pressed against a nearby tree trunk by the Force. Face twisting with rage, Astrid stalked towards him, and she didn't move her eyes away from his struggling figure as her lightsaber flew into her hand and ignited.
Astrid shoved a hand against Flynn's blue and white armored chest, pressing him harder against the tree trunk as she snarled, "Tell me what orders you were talking about, and tell me who exactly gave you those orders, Flynn."
Flynn's eyes narrowed with dislike as he seethed, "Darth Sidious gave me the order to kill any Jedi I see." His eyes were cold as he spat, "Jedi filth."
Astrid stared at her former friend, aghast at his behavior. He was treating her as if she was an enemy, as if they were truly strangers.
And then she fully realized his words, and her eyes widened.
Darth Sidious, the Sith Lord Master who had been in hiding for years, the one Anakin was destined to kill to bring balance to the Force. Anakin and she had seen Darth Sidious in Scarif. It seemed he'd finally made his grand appearance to the entire galaxy.
And somehow, he'd taken control over the clones and turned them against the Jedi.
"Who else received these orders?" Astrid demanded, her throat constricting as she waiting for his confirmation.
Flynn's mouth twisted into a sneer as he replied, "Every single clone commander and captain in the Republic Grand Army."
Astrid nearly collapsed to the ground at his words as she thought of Anakin. He was in Coruscant, surrounded by all the Republic clone troopers in the Jedi Temple in the very heart of the Republic. There was a slim chance he could have managed to escape Coruscant, but the odds were he'd been killed.
Grief and despair rose inside of Astrid in a crushing wave, and she nearly choked on her own tears. "Goodbye, friend," Astrid whispered before she swiftly stabbed Flynn with her lightsaber.
He made a small choking sound before he slumped against her. Astrid stepped back, and he collapsed to the ground with a thud. Numb with grief, Astrid turned away from Flynn, unable to bear the sight of his dead body, and instead she beheld Master Secura and the five other dead clones scattered around the small clearing, which wasn't a much better sight. Blaster scorch marks littered the surrounding trees and ground.
Astrid was encircled by death, and somehow she'd survived.
And it was all thanks to Master Aayla Secura.
Pain blossomed in Astrid's chest-- a disturbance in the Force reverberating there-- and Astrid pressed a hand to her chest as she collapsed to her knees, the immense feeling of thousands upon thousands of Jedi's presences leaving the Force hitting here like a shockwave.
For a moment, she was blinded by the feeling of Jedi dying from all around the galaxy. She sought desperately for Anakin's presence within the chaos of the Force, but she was too overwhelmed by the disturbance in the Force and the thousands of Jedi deaths to find him.
Oh, Anakin, no, I can't lose you, too, Astrid thought as despair washed over her, and fresh tears sprang to her eyes. Her hand moved to her stomach.
The sound of distant gunfire jerked Astrid out of her numb revere, and she realized she needed to get off of this planet before the other clones on the base realized she wasn't amongst the dead. Breathing heavy with slight panic and increasing fear, Astrid heaved herself to her feet and began to sprint towards the direction of the base-- or at least where she thought the base was located. She'd lost all sense of direction in the chaos.
Her left arm and right shoulder ached as she sprinted towards the base like her life depended on it-- which it very much did. The colorful vegetation was a blur around her as she raced through the glowing jungle.
A shot suddenly rang out from her right, and Astrid ducked her head down as the blaster fire flew over her head and hit one of the trees next to her. Astrid didn't stop running as two more rounds sounded off, both of them missing her by mere inches.
She dared a glance to her right and spotted two clones running towards her, blaster guns raised. Astrid ignited her lightsaber in time to slash down the next two shots, and one of the bolts of blaster fire ricocheted and hit one of the clones.
Her right shoulder ached at the movement of swinging her lightsaber, and Astrid gritted her teeth against the searing pain as she turned and fled, her desperation to get off of this planet taking priority over finishing off the other clone. Besides, she didn't want to kill any more of her own fellow troops.
Suddenly, she sensed the one remaining clone closing in on her from behind her, and she began to run in a zigzag pattern to make it harder for him to shoot her. Three shots rang out. One of the shots landed at her feet, the other shot whizzed ahead and hit a tree, but the third shot hit her thigh.
Astrid let out a small shout of pain as her leg gave out, and she tumbled to the ground, her momentum carrying her forward so she nearly landed on her face. Astrid quickly scrambled to her feet-- forcing herself to ignore the pain spearing through her thigh-- and she whirled around and Force-shoved the clone against a tree. Astrid was already running before the clone had crumpled to the soft dirt, immediately knocked unconscious by the force of his impact against the tree.
Astrid felt a pang of guilt at hurting the clone, but she realized she had no other choice. If was either killed or be killed, and she was on survival mode. Astrid shoved away her feelings of guilt as she continued sprinting forward, her breathing ragged.
She spotted a clearing-- the base-- up ahead through the glowing, colorful jungle vegetation, and she forced herself to slow down to a light job to scout the situation ahead. At this point, it didn't matter if this was the Separatist base or the Republic base since both sides now wanted her dead.
Astrid slipped behind a tree for cover as she neared the perimeter of the base. She realized it was a Separatist base when she caught sight of deactivated battle and destroyer droids. Astrid stared at the motionless droids in confusion.
Why were all of them deactivated?
It couldn't be a coincidence that the Separatist droids had been deactivated once the Republic clones turned traitorous. Someone was behind all of this, orchestrating it in secret behind closed doors.
Astrid cast a nervous glance around the quiet base, looking for signs of movement, for Republic clones since the Separatist droids were no threat. When she deemed it safe enough to risk exposing herself in the open area, she darted forward. Her heart hammered in her chest as she rushed across the clearing towards the row of star fighters near the building. Sheer terror leapt up her throat as she waited for the blaster fire that would strike her down.
But she reached the nearest star fighter without injury-- or notice. She used the Force to boost herself as she leapt into the cockpit and strapped herself into the pilot's seat with lightning fast speed. The glass ceiling of the cockpit lowered down above her as Astrid fired up the engines with a flip of a few switches. She cringed at the loudness of the engines against the deathly quiet of the base.
Her eyes flicked up from the controls to see a squadron of clone troopers emerging from the dense jungle across the clearing, their blaster guns raised towards her star fighter. Astrid's breath hitched at the sight of the clones, but she wasted no time as she quickly yanked back the toggle with shaking fingers.
Her star fighter shot off into the sky in a blur of color as blaster fire zipped through the air all around her ship, all of the shots thankfully missing her. Astrid released a shaky breath as she shot higher and higher into the air, moving out of the blaster gun's range.
Just when Astrid relaxed in her seat, having believed she was finally safe, her star fighter gave a violent shudder as an artillery gun shot slammed into the left side of her ship. Astrid's body was flung rightwards in her seat at the impact, and her head slammed into the circular glass wall surrounding her. Stars exploded across her vision. She tried to blink away the dots peppering her vision as she straightened in her seat and blearily spotted the smoke rising from the left side of her ship.
Astrid became aware of the warning alarms blaring insistently around her, and the headache that was blossoming from the blow to her head was only made worse by the mind-scrambling noise.
Recovering herself, Astrid's fingers swept across the controls in an attempt to recover her star fighter from the massive hit, even as her ship rose higher into the air. One of the artillery guns from the Republic base must've hit her or at least grazed her ship since her ship hadn't immediately exploded into smithereens, her along with it.
Astrid cast a worried glance at the smoking left side of her ship. She had no choice but to continued upwards off of this planet. She couldn't stay here, or she would die. She could only hope her star fighter would stick together when she went into hyperspace.
Her smoking star fighter emerged into space, finally free from Felucia's atmosphere, and Astrid quickly tapped in the coordinates to Coruscant into the navicomputer. She would go to the Jedi Temple and find out what exactly was happening.
Surely, Master Yoda or Master Windu would know what was happening. They always knew everything.
The stars blurred around her in streaks of white and blue as her star fighter successfully shot off into hyperspace. Astrid exhaled a shuddering breath as she relaxed back into her seat, head pounding from the earlier blow to her head. She closed her eyes and searched within the strikingly empty, lifeless Force for Anakin's Force-presence.
Despair bubbled up inside her when she couldn't find his Force-presence-- as if his presence had vanished like the other deceased Jedi.
No, no, he can't be dead, Astrid thought insistently as tears of despair began to streak down her face.
Anakin could not be dead. He was Anakin Skywalker, the Chosen One, the greatest star pilot in the galaxy, the Jedi hero. He couldn't be dead.
He just couldn't.
But Astrid's thoughts sounded wishful. After all, didn't all heroes die in the end?
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Hello! I just wanted to thank you all for taking the time to read, comment ,and vote on this book! It truly means the world to me!! <3
Who is your favorite character so far?
--Paradise_Palms