Star Wars: The Rogue Knight

Jedi Temple, Coruscant

Padawan Ahsoka Tano was cooling her heels in her small room in the temple. Apparently the time she had spent in the presence of Delkatar was deemed a "bad" thing and she was put under intense scrutiny. She was in what amounted to a house arrest as a result. But that was not the worst – many of the older Jedi and even a significant number of her friends were giving her wary glances when they thought she was not looking at them! That was... It was frustrating! What did she do wrong?! It's not like she had become a murdering Sith like Dooku or that skank Ventress! But did the other Jedi see it that way?

"It's not fair!" she grumbled quietly.

She jumped from the small bed on which she was sitting cross-legged in a futile attempt to meditate. She simply could not clear her mind and concentrate. It was supposed to be "simple"! Just stuff all your emotions in a tiny mental box, lock it up and throw away the key. And the box while you were at it. Well, it did not work!

Tano started pacing around her room. She was exhausted by the unspoken accusations! Even since Anakin had run away to Naboo where the damn clankers had released a bio-weapon of all things she was left alone in the temple.

Her ordeal had started innocently enough – a strange look here, a whispered word there. Then she was summoned in front of the Council where they interrogated her in excruciating detail about every second she had spent near Delkatar. When she had refuted their thinly veiled claims that he was trying to turn her into a Sith Ahsoka could sense that most of the masters did not believe her. Interestingly enough, with the notable exception of Master Windu none of those who were vying for Delkatar's blood had even spoken to the man! By what she could gather from their questions they had no evidence that he had done anything wrong. In the past three thousand and six hundred odd years at least.

What she had "overheard" from his conversation with Master Ti did not really count, right? Ahsoka would be the first to claim that torturing those ancient Jedi was anything but acceptable, however if anyone had something approaching a just reason for such action it surely was Veil!

She shook her head ruefully. Won't this madness end at last?

Her brooding was interrupted by the chiming of the doorbell. Ahsoka looked at the entrance to her humble home and smiled. She could sense Rex outside!

The Padawan hurried to open the door and grinned at the clone who was wearing his armor sans helmet. The man was looking at her with amused expression on his face.

"Commander Tano, I am bringing you 'requests' from Generals Skywalker and Veil to attend the Senate hearing which will be held this afternoon. I am here to escort you to the visitor's chambers of the senate." he declared in a calm, professional tone.

At hearing that her face was stretched by a huge grin. She summoned her lightsaber which was resting on a table near her bed and eagerly nodded at the clone.

"By all means, commander! Lead the way!"

Rex gave her a very proper salute, spun on the soles of his feet and marched down the corridor as if he was on parade.

Ahsoka followed suit. She carefully wiped the grin from her face and did the best she could to give herself an outwards appearance of serenity. She wondered what stunt, Delkatar was trying to pull off this time.

Minute later both of them heard a frantic call from a republic general on Rex's com. They looked at each other and ran down the corridor.

They reached the huge hall leading to the main entrance of the temple and Tano heard the roar of forced engines. She looked at the huge, half-closed doors and saw three shuttles heading straight towards the opening.

She stared in the approaching sh.i.p.s with disbelief. The few Padawan and Jedi knights in the huge hall mirrored her reaction. This was the Jedi Temple! No one dared attack it ever since the Sack of Coruscant!

Ahsoka was still staring at the onrushing doom when Rex turned around, grabbed her across the waist and picked her up as if she was a little girl. The trooper ran to the closest row of columns lining the hall and used one of them as a cover. He was just in time because a missile flew through the opened doors and slammed in the ground nearby. The blast wave threw them off their feet under a rain of smoking pieces of marble.

The commander acted on instinct and grabbed Ahsoka again. He dragged her away to another column.

The entry hall shook when the first shuttle battered its way through the gates. Its wings were sheared off but its main body remained intact and it crash landed on the floor. The craft was deadly wounded – it would never fly again on its own but it did its intended purpose. Its passenger survived the crash and the moment the shuttle stopped scrapping along the ground ramps on its sides opened. Its two companions used the whole it battered to fly in mostly intact. They slammed into the ground further along the long hall.

A dazzled Ahsoka could see a young Padawan – no more than twelve trying to running towards an older Jedi who was laying bleeding on the floor near the first craft. The human girl looked up at the shuttle and gasped. Her hands scrambled to grab her lightsaber and yellow blade came to life. She managed to deflect the first six blaster bolts which splashed harmlessly on the armored bulk of the shuttle before a shot slipped through her defense and pierced her right shoulder. She shouted in pain and her arm dropped uselessly. The young girl had a moment of horrified realization before she was torn apart by a hail of blaster fire.

Rex scrambled to his feet and activated the comm built in his left arm-guard. He asked for help but did not hold much hope for reinforcements arriving any time soon. With the bases around the Senate attacked it was clear where the bulk of the Republic forces on the planet would be heading.

He glared at a commando droid which jumped from the first shuttle to crash into the temple. The machine raised its weapon and shot the bleeding Jedi multiple time. The commander drew his pistols and took aim but held his fire. More clankers were exiting the wrecked shuttle. Amongst the machines were two figures wearing black cloaks. One male and the other female judging by the curves of their armors. Those two activated blood red lightsabers and looked up. Six masked Jedi wearing light brown robes and light armor underneath jumped in front of the droids and their leaders. Each of the Order members had a saber staff which when activated revealed short yellow blades.

As if that was their cue, eleven more droids exited the shuttle. They had gray cloaks slung over their right shoulders and force staffs in their arms. The ends of their weapons sparkled wickedly with purple energy.

Beside Rex, Ahsoka shook off the after effects of the explosion that stunned her and jumped on her feet. She activated her lightsaber and moved to join the Temple Guards but the commander grabbed her left hand and shook his head. He pointed at the other two shuttles which had disgorged much more droids and another five men and women brandishing crimson lightsabers.

=RK=

Jedi Temple holding cells, Coruscant

Count Dooku allowed himself a small smile when he heard the subdued sounds of explosions. He knew that his master and the CIS won't leave him to rot in the Jedi's clutches. Despite the ancient shackles dampening his power, the former Jedi retained connection to the Force that was strong enough for him to sense what was happening beyond the door of his cell. The surprise of the two Temple Guards who were lounging behind the armored door was a profound source of amus.e.m.e.nt for him. The taste of their stunned disbelief was like a sip of well-seasoned wine.

"It's about time." he muttered when his s.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e hearing detected the approaching "whoosh" of rocked engines.

That was followed by the "snap-hiss" of activating lightsabers and rapid blaster fire. Dooku's cell shook and the one armed man had to struggle to remain sitting on the hard bed. He shook his head in an attempt to banish the ringing in his ears caused by the five explosions which rumbled along the corridor where his cell was located.

The Sith could sense the death of one of his prison guards and the agony wracking the other one. That was ended a moment later and he could feel a familiar presence on the other side of the door. So his Acolytes came to his aid.

A minute was spent in silence while the armored door glowed orange and started melting. It was time to leave the Jedi's dubious hospitality.

=RK=

On the other side of the Temple and few hundred meters down was another cell where Asajj Ventress was stuck. Needless to say the young woman was bored out of her mind. The "interrogation" attempts of the Jedi were bloody useless but at least they were her one source of entertainment. But for more than a week she was left alone with no contact if you discount the opening of a small slit in the door barring her way out from where her meals were delivered. She had to admit that boredom was a better method to force her into revealing information than the sessions she had with the Jedi. Their pathetic attempts to bring her to the light were laughable. Cast off the Dark side? And for what? To become an emotionless drone?

She scoffed at the very thought.

Ventress was in the middle of her daily training regimen – the only thing with which she could fill up her time while stuck in that bland cell when she felt the floor shaking lightly. It was not an earthquake. Not on Coruscant. She grinned like a hungry predator who had just smelled freshly spilled blood.

Suddenly Ventress found herself on the floor when the corridor outside was engulfed by the edge of a massive explosion. She g.r.o.a.n.e.d and spit a mouthful of blood. Asajj had managed to bit the inside of her cheek when she fell. She coughed from the dust that was filling her room and blinked at the door. Something was hissing and burning the armor.

Her boredom was at its end.

=RK=

LAAT Gunship, near a Secret Republic prison, Coruscant

My mind was made up when I felt sudden shock and pain from a weak connection through the Force I did not knew had formed. I could sense the distant presence of Ahsoka from the direction of the Jedi Temple. She was hurt and in danger. Bloody hell! That was a complication that I did not need! Besides I already got an apprentice and she was a bit too young for my tastes to consider her as anything else... besides a friend.

That thought froze me. Its been a long time since Vael had someone who he trusted enough to give such a title. And no matter how much I might have wanted to deny it, I had merged with the echo of the man. His memories, his past, they were mine too. They felt, they were as real to me as my own. I winced. If anyone ever tries to tell you that the Force comes without a lot of strings attached, they are shameless liars.

I called to the pilots.

"Head towards the Jedi Temple." I turned my attention to the clones who were in the troop compartment with me. "Prepare for battle. I doubt that whoever attacked the Temple has come with something less than what they deem sufficient numbers to at least hold off a lot of Jedi for some time."

What left unsaid was that if that was anything more than a raid the enemy would most likely have enough troops deployed there to make our contribution irrelevant. But I deemed such an outcome unlikely. The fact that whoever was orc.h.e.s.trating these attacks had tried to have Grievous released meant that the most likely target was the rescue of Dooku and perhaps Ventress.

I activated my com and called for any forces which were not busy cordoning the senate to head towards the Temple. Don't get me wrong, a bunch of Jedi getting themselves a real taste of war and getting killed in the process was not something awful in my books. But I had an image to create and uphold. When the time to face off with the Jedi Council came I wanted to have the moral high ground amongst other things. Me coming to their rescue would be remembered by the Jedi who were not to far gone thanks to the Order's indoctrination. Besides I did like the kid. It would be a damn waste if Ahsoka got herself killed.