It has been a little over a month since the death of Duchess Satine. Obi Wan seems to be handling things much better now than when it first happened, but he chooses not to talk about it. He has come to Anakin and I a few times since it happened, only he never chose to talk about his feelings in depth.
The strangest part of the Mandalore chaos is that Maul has seemingly vanished. The Council has heard nothing of him since his attack, and no one has any idea when or if he will strike again.
Today, our task is focused on something not at all related to Maul. The Council has assigned the 501st with a good old-fashioned mission involving taking out some clankers. The location of this mission is Cato Neimoidia, where a massive Separatist air fleet is beginning their attack in an attempt to gain control of the sector.
Currently, Anakin, Ahsoka, Cal, and I are flying our Jedi interceptors, leading a squadron of starfighters. There's nothing I enjoy more than flying with some of the most important people in my life.
As we dodge Separatist fire, it quickly becomes clear that our choice of flying as a group is not effective. We're going to need a new tactic if we want to limit the attacks from the enemy.
"Anakin, we need to split up." I urge through the comlink system. "We may be able to dodge their attacks, but the starfighters can't."
"You're right, we have to get the fire away from the squadron. You and Cal go left and Ahsoka and I will go right." He plans.
"Roger roger." I say, jokingly mocking the dull battle droids I have become so used to fooling.
I quickly switch the comlink settings inside my interceptor to just communicate with Cal, not wanting to potentially distract Anakin and Ahsoka later on.
"On my signal, take a sharp left." I say.
"You got it." Cal replies.
"Ready...Now!" I order.
Cal and I veer our ships off course from Anakin and Ahsoka, prompting half of the starfighters to do the same. I look to the right to watch Anakin's bright, yellow interceptor drift further away from my own as we head toward the atmosphere of the planet. I don't like it when we are separated during dangerous tasks. We are both more than capable of handling ourselves, yes, but there is no denying that we work better together.
Cal lines his green interceptor up with my blue one as we clear a big enough space for the gunships to get through. They follow behind us as we speed ahead to ward off further attacks.
We dive down into the city of Cato Neimoidia to take out the Separatist fleet. This strategy of weaving around structures works for a little while, until the enemy deploys missiles aimed directly at us.
"Alright, Cal, we need to keep the squadron away from enemy missiles. Think we can handle it?" I ask through our comlink.
"I think we have it under control, Master." He says enthusiastically.
We dive downward and fly even closer to the structures of the city. Within a matter of seconds, all of the missiles are trailing me. I smirk as I realise the advantage this has given me.
I slow down my ship a little to allow for the missiles to gain on my position. I watch eagerly as they inch closer and closer. When they are just about on me, I send my interceptor straight upwards at full speed.
The missiles collide in a massive explosion. Knowing the Separatists, they would have something else planned with those missiles. With the size of the explosion, I know any back up plan would have been destroyed.
"Nice job, Master." Cal applauds.
"It was a team effort." Iaugh.
While caught up in the adrenaline associated with out-manouevring missiles, I completely overlook the absence of Anakin's presence in the Force. Something has happened, only I have no idea what.
I search around frantically until my gaze lands on a thick trail of smoke coming from the bright, yellow interceptor a fair distance to my right. My heart stops beating momentarily as I realise what this means.
"Anakin." I gasp.
I can tell Artoo is still active, otherwise the ship would have crashed by now. That gives me hope that the ship won't crash, but how Anakin will get out is another story.
He needs help, and there is no way I'm going to sit by and watch him remain helpless.
"Change of plan. Head toward Anakin and Ahsoka." I order, my voice stern from my determination to help the man I love.
"What about the mission?" Cal asks.
"The mission can wait." I snap.
I flip some control switches within my interceptor to adjust it for faster travel. I no longer need to worry about making sharp turns and sudden dives. All I need to focus on now is getting to Anakin.
I set my ship to the fastest possible speed. At this rate I am risking blowing up my own engine. Even though I am going as fast as I can, it is not fast enough. I won't be able to reach him in time.
When I begin to lose all hope of saving the one I love most in the galaxy, something unexpected happens. The hatch of Ahsoka's interceptor opens up while she is still in the air, and she climbs out onto the wing.
She's going to leap from her ship to Anakin's.
Anakin's interceptor crashes into the cliff ledge up ahead and glides roughly along the surface with no sign of slowing down. I try to make my ship go faster to prevent Ahsoka from endangering herself, but it's no use.
I watch ahead helplessly as Ahsoka makes the jump from her ship in the air to Anakin's. It continues to travel closer to the edge, when suddenly Ahsoka ignites her lightsaber. She cuts into the ship, opens the hatch and grabs Anakin out. She springs off the wing and lands back on the ledge with my unconscious husband. Soon after, Artoo flies up from the edge and lands back with them.
I hastily land my ship without worrying about the consequences for the mission. Anakin is my husband, therefore he is my top priority. Ahsoka begins to walk from Anakin as I climb out of my interceptor and a smirk appears on my face when she notices me.
"Hey (Y/N)." She calls.
Anakin quickly stands up upon hearing my name and turns to me. As soon as I see his face, I lose all self control. I run toward him, not caring who sees, and engulf him in a tight embrace. If I had it my way, I would never let go of him again.
I break out of his embrace after a few seconds and place my hands on his upper arms.
"Are you okay?" I ask with a shaky voice.
"I am now." He replies with a soft, sweet smile.
I relish in the familiar feeling of his presence in the Force. The previous absence of his presence is something I never want to experience again. It was one of the most concerning and terrifying moments of my life.
Cals coughs to remind us of where we are. When we look at him and Ahsoka, the first thing I notice is the knowing smiles on their faces. I choose to ignore this and instead bring up something of greater importance.
"You saved his life, Ahsoka, by risking your own." I say.
"He would've done the same for me." She shrugs.
I outstretch my arms and pull her in for a hug. Ahsoka is like a younger sister to me so this isn't the first time I've hugged her, but I feel as though it is necessary in this situation.
I don't care if my attachments to the three people here with me is against what the Order stands for. To me, it is right.
Anakin activates his comlink. "Captain Rex, we need a little help."
"Right away, Sir." Rex replies.
As the Republic gunships moves toward our position, my own comlink suddenly begins to beep. I share a look of confusion with Anakin before accepting the transmission. The hologram of a highly respected Jedi appears before us.
"Master Yoda?" I ask more than greet.
"Return to the Jedi Temples quickly, you and Young Skywalker should." Master Yoda urges.
He seems a lot more serious than usual. I don't know whether it's my general intuition or my connection to the Force, but I know something is not right here.
"We're kind of in the middle of something here." Anakin replies for me.
"The reason we need you, important it is, Skywalker."
Master Yoda's figure disappears and is replaced with a hologram of the Jedi Temple. Only something is very, very wrong about it.
"Bombed the Temple hangar, someone has." Master Yoda continues to explain. "Your assistance to find the terrorist, we need. Bring your Padawans, you shall."
"Who could successfully bomb the Jedi Temple?" Ahsoka asks.
"We'll be right there, Master Yoda." I assure him.
The transmission ends, leaving us all with thoughts of the possibilities of the attack and what it means for the Jedi. Regardless of who is responsible, this will have a profound impact on the Order.
The gunships land on the cliff ledge to assess what has happened to us. A group of men from the 501st exit one of the gunships, including Rex and Fives. The latter seems to immediately notice the expression of confusion and sadness on my face upon hearing the news of the Temple.
"Is everything okay, General?" Fives asks as he reaches my position.
Fives is truly one of the best friends anyone could ask for. He always knows when something isn't right, and never hesitates to offer his support. I don't know what I would do without him in my life.
"The Jedi Temple Hangar has been bombed. We don't know when exactly or who did it, only that the Council needs our assistance to find them." I explain.
Before he can reply, Anakin begins to order everyone to hurry into their ships so we can return to the Republic cruiser. Though I love Anakin, his timing is often a little rough.
"We'll talk on the cruiser." Fives promises.
He hurries off to the gunship and is followed by a few other men. Cal and Ahsoka already have their interceptors up in the air, meaning they are now only waiting for me to take off and the other remaining men to board the gunship.
I begin to walk back to my interceptor and cannot help but listen in on the conversation behind me as the clones and Anakin approach their gunship.
"I can always count on you to crash your ship, General Skywalker." Rex jokes.
"Very funny, Rex." Anakin mumbles.
I can't help but chuckle a little at their interaction. Rex and Anakin are about as close as Fives and I. Their friendship is unbreakable.
We quickly head back to the cruiser and meet up again in the docking bay. The trip back to Coruscant is mainly Anakin and I informing Cal and Ahsoka of what to expect when we arrive back there. After an attack of this magnitude, things will not be the same for quite a while. People will be less trusting of one another and accusations will be common.
When we do finally land back on Coruscant, our immediate action is to go to the Council Chambers within the Jedi Temple. We walk in, skipping the normal formalities, to see the members all seated in their respective places.
"Skywalker and (Y/L/N)." Master Yoda greets us. "Glad to see you, I am."
Each of the Council member's contributes a bit of information regarding what happened during the attack and the casualties that resulted. The figures are truly devastating. Clones, Jedi, and general workers were all killed in the blast.
"We originally believed the Separatists infiltrated the Temple to plant the bomb." Master Windu explains.
Separatists? That can't be right. Anakin and I have a hard enough time trying to hide a relationship within the walls of the Temple. There's no way a Separatist could have been here long enough to plant a bomb.
"How could the Separatists infiltrate the Temple?" Anakin asks, beating me to the question.
"Worse than that it is." Master Yoda says.
"What could possibly be worse?" I ask.
My gaze meets Master Ti's from across the room. Her eyes seem distant, as though her mind is not completely focused on the present encounter. She is worried about what has happened and what it could mean for the Jedi Order at large.
"Everything is on the table." Master Windu states. "We have to look at the possibility that it could've been anyone in the Temple, even a Jedi."
"If a Jedi this is, gone to the dark side they have." Master Yoda adds.
The very thought of it being a Jedi sends chills down my spine. How someone trained to bring peace could be responsible for such an attack is beyond my comprehension.
"I..." Ahsoka stutters, "I can't believe a Jedi would attack a place this sacred."
"We'd like for the four of you to lead the investigation. We can't trust anyone who was here during the attack, even a Jedi. You will provide an impartial point of view free of assumptions." Master Windu says.
The four of us make a brilliant team. If we all work together on this mission and cooperate fully, I have no doubt we will find who is responsible.
"We'll do everything we can." Anakin answers.
"Careful you must be. If willing to destroy the Temple the attacker is, to great lengths they will go to keep from being caught." Master Yoda explains.
"Well, I guess we'll just have to go to even greater lengths to outsmart whoever they may be." I smirk.
Master Ti rolls her eyes slightly, clearly not missing my often arrogant attitude toward the tasks I am given. Obi Wan, on the other hand, has a subtle smile on his face. He is, once again, being reminded of how similar I am to his former Padawan.
The Council dismisses us and we hastily leave the Chambers. As we begin to walk away, the closing proximity of a familiar presence gains my attention. I stop and turn around to see who I was expecting.
"(Y/N), may I speak with you for a moment?" Master Ti asks.
I quickly shift my gaze back to Anakin, hoping that he will take this as a sign to go ahead without me.
"We'll meet you out the front of the hangar." Anakin says with a reassuring nod.
I watch for a short amount of time as he and our Padawans leave the space we were in. I want Master Ti and I to be completely alone during this conversation, for I do not have the slightest idea what it will be about.
"Is everything okay, Master Ti?"
"I wanted to speak with you about this mission." She pauses. "You must be careful, (Y/N). We don't know anything about this crime, who did it, or what their motive was. Please just be cautious."
My safety has always been Master Ti's priority. Even now that I am a knight, she often checks in n me to see how my missions are going and to make sure I am doing alright. I admire that caring and gentle side of her.
"Don't worry, Master. I won't let anything happen to us. You can rely on Anakin and I to keep each other and our Padawans and each other safe."
"I know you and Skywalker will do what is right." She sighs. "Just remember to control your emotions. This will be a difficult mission, regardless of if a Jedi was responsible."
I thank my former Master for her advice for this mission before we part ways. I wish I could spend more time with her to simply talk about everything that has happened recently, but I can't. I have a mission to complete and she will likely need to travel back to Kamino very shortly.
I hurry through the Temple until I reach the hangar, where Anakin, Ahsoka, and Cal are all waiting patiently for my arrival. We agree that Anakin and I will search one half of the area while Ahsoka and Cal search the other.
The immediate feeling of pain I feel upon entering along with the echoes of screams of terror is almost too much for me to handle.
Anakin sighs. "I can still hear the screams."
"I can too." I shudder. "It's almost unbearable."
The pain and grief filling this place probably would not be as noticeable to other Jedi. For Anakin and I, the feelings are incredibly strong. That's one of the downsides to the immense power we possess– we feel things far stronger than any other Jedi, or Sith for that matter.
"I don't understand how someone could do this." He says.
As we walk further into the building, the possibility of it being a Jedi seems to become more realistic. I didn't want to believe it when the Council first suggested the possibility, however now I feel I must. The last thing I want to do though is jump to conclusions before we have enough information to determine anything.
"Do you believe what they said, Ani?" I ask.
"That a Jedi could do this?" He asks. "Yeah, I do. Not every Jedi agrees with this war. Sometimes not even you and I."
He's right. We've disagreed with decisions made by both the Council and the Republic during this war. It has corrupted many of the values held by the Jedi Order and gone against the Republic's vision of peace and unity. In all honesty, I don't believe anyone truly knows what it is about anymore.
"I know that, but I'm struggling to come to terms with the idea of a traitor."
"One can eventually become the other." He says.
"Like Dooku and Krell." I sigh.
These are two Jedi who turned against the Jedi Order without anyone suspecting a thing. Dooku has since become one of the greatest enemies of the Jedi and the Republic at large. Krell, on the other hand, was killed during the early stages of his betrayal.
I am a Jedi, so I should not feel anger or hate. Regardless of how I am meant to feel, I cannot help the overwhelming lust for vengeance that consumes me when I think of the two. They have caused so much pain to so many innocent people.
A droid, who I previously noticed scanning the area, approaches us hastily. From his current mannerisms, I can tell he is about to contribute to the conversation between Anakin and I.
"Only analysis and investigation will prove what is true or not." It says.
"And who are you?" I ask sassily.
"I am Russo-ISC, Crime Scene Analyser for the Jedi. I will be working with you and your Padawans on this case. I was assigned by Master Windu."
I understand that the Council has many things to deal with at the moment and all, but would it kill Windu to tell us a little more about the mission? Force knows what else is going to be thrown at us between now and the end of it.
"Okay, Russo, you and our Padawans should begin the interviews. They are somewhere in the hangar." Anakin demands more than suggests.
"I would rather interview the witnesses alone." Russo replies.
Anakin and I exchange a shrug. I've learned from Artoo and Threepio that droids often have minds of their own and tend to disagree with what they hear from others. I respect that about them, but even I must admit that it can be irritating from time to time.
"Why would that be?" I ask.
"Many of the wounded have heard rumours a Jedi was behind this explosion. There will be ill will toward them." He cautions.
Master Ti was right. If news of an allegation is spreading rapidly, the people will absolutely be holding it against the Jedi Order at large. We need to find out who is behind this quickly, otherwise it will tarnish the good reputation of the Jedi.
"There were Jedi killed in the blast, Russo, not just maintenance crew and clones. The Jedi cannot be definitively blamed." I argue.
"Take Ahsoka and Cal with you." Anakin adds.
Russo reluctantly agrees to our idea. We take him to our Padawans and inform them both of what will be happening from this point forward. It may not be ideal for them, but it is necessary.
Once we are satisfied that everyone is aware of their tasks, we part ways with Cal and Ahsoka. They go with Russo to the medical bay while we continue to investigate the hangar for a little while longer in case there is something hidden here.
With any luck, we will find the one responsible and end this investigation soon.