Chapter 11 War Escalates Part 1

The Clone Wars were now only a few short months old and little had happened in the time, a phony war some were saying and the wider galaxy held its breath as both sides prepared to face each other on mass.

On Coruscant a group of clones constantly monitored the frontier, watching for any enemy movements or sign of invasion. Nothing conclusive had been proven yet as to what worlds the Separatists were targeting but the Republic was far from being idle.

With the initial batch of Z-95 Headhunters and the brand new Venator-class Star Destroyers finally being delivered to the fleet and a core of military commanders drawn from the Jedi Order and Judicial Forces to lead them the spear point of the Republic War Effort was finally prepared.

- x -

Rhen Var, the Outer Rim…

The snowy world of Rhen Var was a seemingly lifeless planet except for the ruins of an ancient civilisation hidden by the great blizzards that covered the planet. Excavations there in years past had even linked them to the ancient Jedi with artefacts found but aside from that the planet served little use to any one.

But intelligence decoding of enemy chatter had revealed that the Separatists were building a listening post there. Its position in the galaxy allowing it to monitor a vast area of the Outer Rim and would give them the ability to spy on key Republic worlds, outposts and fleet movements. However the reverse was also true, if the Republic had one there then they would be able to monitor Separatist fleet movements, worlds and outposts over a great part of their space.

So given the importance of the target an entire legion of clones and two Jedi had been assigned to the attack and capture the outpost before the listening post came online, Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi would lead the new and powerful 501st Legion into battle and to ensure victory Haron Ordo was overseeing the mission personally given its importance.

Acclamators under escort of the Venators made their way to the snowy surface and landed some distance from the Separatist camp, AT-TEs quickly deployed as did the clone troopers in their snow gear. TX-130 tanks were being rolled out in support as the snow was so thick and they would not be affected. LAATs and fighters would have been useful but scans had revealed some anti-air positions had been set up in the city so they would have to be taken out before air cover could be implemented.

Anakin and Obi-Wan wearing their thick cold weather gear stepped out with their men and behind them was Haron in his full Mandalorian armour, looking completely unaffected by the cold. He looked out across the plateau and ruined city, looking for the best positions.

"If we march up the main street then we are certainly going to be ambushed, the environment on either side of the city is too unstable for the heavy vehicles and the clones. So we have little recourse but to clear each building out as we go forward." Haron told the Jedi, neither he noticed were coping with the cold as well as him Anakin was even shivering.

"Aren't you cold?!" Anakin asked him, amazed at the lack of cold weather gear, Haron just smiled under his helmet and said.

"Not really." The in-built temperature regulators in his suit and a warming charm kept him perfectly comfortable he thought with a smirk before setting to work.

- x -

A plan quickly evolved, Haron and Anakin would split an advanced force in two so they could clear both sides of the street ahead of the main army which Obi-Wan would be leading.

So a short while later Anakin was enjoying himself as he moved through the building, moving through the ruined buildings with his lightsaber in hand on a mission to save the Republic.

He had never felt more certain of his place in life than now, in some ways he was glad of the advice given to him by Haron Ordo the man was disliked intensely by the Jedi but had been a great help to him. Anakin had been lost and broken after his duel with Dooku on Geonosis, sure he would never again be as good as he had been after losing his arm.

Well no, Anakin thought with satisfaction he was better than ever as he cut down some Super battle droids who had been hiding in hope of ambushing them as they came down the street. He had been using the time at the temple to do as Haron had suggested and learn more to fix his weaknesses, practising all his moves and learning new ones and had been stringing them together in his own unique method. His skill was better than ever and growing with every practice and even Obi-Wan was complimenting him on his advancing skill.

That made Anakin feel more confident than ever, the ever critical Obi-Wan actually was proud of him...that he felt with joy was something he had always wanted. While the pair had their share of problems, he was the closest thing to a father Anakin had ever really known apart from the Chancellor.

Ahead of him in the corridor he saw a bunch of B1 droids lining up with blasters drawn, Anakin was about to advance on them when behind him a quick succession of blue blaster shots took them all down. He turned to see a clone captain with a very distinct blue paint scheme on his helmet with two blaster pistols in hand.

"Sorry, sir. Were they yours?" The clone asked him and Anakin was surprised at the impressive shooting and quick reactions of this captain.

"Not at all captain, they were yours. What's your name?" He asked, curious now about this clone feeling somehow that he was much more of his own person than many of his 'brothers' as they called themselves.

"CT-7567, Clone Captain of the Torrent Company, 501st Legion but most call me Rex." He said and Anakin smiled feeling far better now he had a name to call the soldier beside him.

"Well captain, we've got a job to to do." Anakin said with a smirk as he lit his lightsaber and charged straight forward into a mass of droids which had appeared ahead while Rex was left to chase after him shaking his head slightly and with a groan leapt with his new Jedi commander straight into the fight.

- x -

Haron meanwhile was feeling a little better for seeing actual combat even if it was against useless droids, he was enjoying the stress relief of taking his frustration out on the droids as he shot down a bunch of pathetic B1s.

All too soon the main objective came into view, the Separatist camp with the way now clear. He saw a vehicle refuelling station preparing a bunch of their tanks which were about to roll down the road and right over the clone army.

He tutted with distaste, that would never do he thought and seeing the fuel tanks out in the open with little cover he fired off his rocket from his jet-pack. The droids started screaming in panic but none of them had any real time to do anything else before the rocket hit the highly combustible fuel and exploded.

He saw the tanks which where sitting next to it blow up and smirked, the clones led by Kenobi and Skywalker began the main assault now the danger of ambush and the tanks had been taken care of.

However an urgent blipping alerted him to a high priority signal from Coruscant, seeing that he was secure for a moment he activated the comm link and Palpatine's hologram appeared before him.

"Duke Ordo, you are needed back on Coruscant immediately. The Jedi led assault on Hypori has been devastated and I need your skills as an analyst to see how big of a blow this is to the Republic. There is speak of a new dangerous Separatist general." Palpatine told him with concern, Haron sighed.

"I told the Jedi the foundries would only be left that vulnerable if it was some kind of trap." He said with frustration but they had ignored him to prove that they didn't need him or his advice, well look where it got them he thought with anger but pushed it aside and told the Chancellor. "I will return to Coruscant as soon as possible, Kenobi and Skywalker have the matter well in hand here."

"Then at least we have that." Palpatine said with apparent relief but Haron was too suspicious of him to take anything at face value.

So he closed down the transmission and with as much speed as he could activated his jet-pack and flew straight back to the landing ship at best speed, leapt in the Razor's Crest which thankfully he had brought with him and started making the long trip back to Coruscant to see how badly the Jedi had fucked up.

Unknown Sector, the Wild Space…

Neville was struck by the sight of two hundred Dreadnaught-class Heavy Cruisers just hanging there in space, completely abandoned with their interior and exterior lights still on. It was spooky and through the force he could feel a little echo of the death of all the crew on board each one, sending a very cold shiver down his spine.

The transport that was carrying him and the boarding party approached the flagship of the fleet and the ship that it got its name from the Katana. The ship was nowhere near as large as some of the other ships in their small fleet but at six hundred metres long it was still a considerable sized vessel and would take awhile to search properly.

He secured his helmet and in full armour and gear since they had no idea just what might be waiting for them inside those drifting hulks he and the boarding team would be taking no chances. They waited while a secure docking seal was made and the airlock made ready, their tension high as the heavy doors opened.

Neville was in some ways unsettled by the brightly lit corridors they could see beyond, he had been expecting dark and sinister looking wrecked hallways so the opposite was in some ways even more disconcerting to him.

"On me, keep alert." He said to his team, eight strong with different skills who nodded and like the professionals he had expected they kept quiet as they moved into the ship.

The silence of the ship was strange and unsettling as they moved through the ship section to section, seeing the decomposing skeletons all around from the two thousand crew that had once operated this vessel was disturbing as they knew these people had been left to rot here after dying violently from a horrible disease and the sight of the All Terrain Personal Transport Pods or AT-PT as they were known sitting gathering dust...it was just too unsettling Neville thought as he suppressed his own feelings and led his team onwards towards the bridge.

Fortunately despite their fears nothing happened, no automated defences or mad still living crew came after them and soon they arrived on the bridge which unlike a lot of vessels was built more centrally so it was protected by the heavy clam like armour that covered the ship.

It was a smaller bridge than normal for a ship this size Neville noted and was a little awkward and uncomfortable but he got down to business without paying it too much mind.

"Right, slice into the system get a damage report. Twenty years of floating around must have caused some damage." Neville said and the two techs on his team went over to the navigation console while the rest stood watch, still being careful.

"Frak me, this is the worst system I have ever seen!" One of the techs exclaimed loudly as they hooked their slicer gear into the mainframe. Her colleague agreed fully with her statement and added his own wisdom.

"What do you expect?! This ship has below average sub-light engines and a slow hyperdrive, a bad quality sensor package, underperforming power plants, old style computer systems which were never updated and while her shields and weapons are powerful enough, they just can't compete with other designs. This is why the Republic by large abandoned the design and only keep the existing ones they have because it is more expensive to replace them than keep the old ones running in comparison."

"Cut the chatter, just get me that report." Neville said sharply to get them back on track and they shut up at the rebuke and quickly went to work. It only took a few moments for them to give him the news.

"Aside from some micro-meteor scars on the hull the ship's systems only need a reboot to bring fully on line sir." The female tech told him, followed by her male partner adding.

"The ship's tech might be slow or awkward but it is very hard wearing, the slave circuits are fully online and give us an hour and we can have all hyperdrive systems ready to move the fleet."

Neville nodded, knowing already that they were moving the fleet to a more secure location closer to their hidden droid factory and shipyards. Once there shipwrights would begin analysing the design of the ship and its technology to find out how to improve on the design. Two thousand people was a small amount compared to what the original crew requirements were, sixteen thousand with a minimum of nine thousand but it was still too much to be practical on a ship like this. That Neville thought with disbelief was a wasteful amount of people when greater automation could easily cut that number down even more.

It was somewhat ironic Neville supposed with a slight shake of his head as these ships were based on old Mandalorian designs that they would one day form the backbone of the Mandalorian fleet once they had managed to refit them into useable condition. While droids could solve a lot of the crew requirement issues they would still need people in charge not to mention fixing the numerous issues with the current design before they were remotely useable.

The Jedi Temple, Coruscant…

Master Yoda had been in deep meditation for days, resting beneath the largest waterfall in in the Room of a Thousand Fountains seeking some kind of guidance from the force over what he should do if his worst fears were justified.

Haron Ordo's words only seemed to confirm it as did the feelings of great danger he got when trying to see into the future. He felt like some great disaster was coming for the Jedi, what exactly he had no idea but he could sense some kind of betrayal but nothing more than that. And with the recent slaughter of so many Jedi on Hypori and all those lost on Geonosis, something that stabbed straight at his old heart he knew action was required should his fears come to pass.

In all his years he had never felt anything like this before and knew it would require an unusual solution, one that he could not reveal to the rest of the council just yet not until it was well underway. It was far too big of a job for him to do by himself especially as his disappearance would arouse suspicion and so he would need others to do the work in his place...people who he could trust.

So in a little used meeting room of the Jedi Temple he sat with an eclectic group of his fellow Jedi who were all wondering just why they had been summoned and waited for him to explain.

"Well old friend, care to explain why we must meet here instead of in the Council Chamber? I assume therefore this is something you don't want the rest of the council too know." His old friend Tera Sinube said with his ancient grin that would usually make Yoda smile but not today.

"Indeed Master Sinube, foresee a great threat to the Jedi I do. This war, brings a great danger to our order it does." Yoda started explaining before he was interrupted by someone else.

"Master, what possibly could this war bring that would threaten us?" Master Glaive said with a considerable swagger that Yoda felt was unbecoming of a Jedi let alone a master with a padawan. Young Zule Xiss at his side would do well not to learn such arrogance from her master.

"Clearly someone wasn't paying attention at Geonosis." A sharp female voice said, silencing Glaive instantly. An'ya Kuro had many unique skills which made her an exceptional Jedi but she was raw and teetered too close to the dark side for the taste of many. Glaive looked unsettled and wanted to argue but a look from his fellow Jedi stopped him so Yoda could continue to explain himself.

"Rumours the Jedi have uncovered say that the senate, under the influence of the Sith it is." Yoda revealed which caused more than a few gasps of shock and looks around the room but he was able to press on. "Looking into this we are, but if the worst comes to pass and the Republic turns on the Jedi...ready we must be." He said with a jab of his stick to get to the point of the meeting.

"And we will be the ones doing this." Master T'ra Saa said, the strange Neti Jedi Master was one of the Order's greatest yet unknown members and her wisdom and skills would be very useful in this task he had for them.

"Yes, a most important part." Yoda said, nodding his head with gratitude that they were getting to the point. "Places to hide, the Jedi must have if the worst comes to pass. Places that are safe and secure for us to recover. Many old sanctuaries and temples lie abandoned across the galaxy, restored they must be and new ones created while mentions of them are removed from the Jedi Archives." Yoda said now getting to the important part.

"Master Sinube, research and find these places in the archives and remove the mentions he will." Yoda said as he got to their individual roles.

"The Grey Pilgrim, a ship not officially listed as Jedi will carry the rest across the galaxy." Yoda said turning to Master Rak, a Bothan Jedi Master who had refused to become involved in the war and instead to do aid work around the galaxy to help those suffering alongside his padawan Maris Brood. The pair had not been easy to get here but they had agreed to come nor had Yaddle or Master Fay who had likewise been difficult to convince. Master K'kruhk sat there looking deep in thought, too he had been hesitant to get involved in the war and perhaps this assignment would be more to his liking.

"Restore the temples and sanctuaries you will and ensure they are hidden with resources I shall arrange for you secretly, a great task this is but if the Sith should succeed...vital it will be." Yoda said leaving many looking very alarmed at their greatest member would actually suggest such a thing...that it was possible they could lose.

The Office of the Supreme Chancellor, Senate Building, Coruscant…Same Time...

Haron sat down in one of the chairs of Palpatine's office while Ki-Adi-Mundi stood in front of him, the Chancellor and members of the Loyalist Committee to explain what had happened on Hypori. He had just finished the story when Haron felt compelled to speak as he was worried about a particular part of the events.

"This Droid General..." Haron said with concern as the Jedi who had gone to Hypori were hardly incapable and it had been a fairly large team of them too. Not only had they suffered a complete rout in terms of casualties with none of the clones making it back at all but more than half the Jedi being slaughtered by this 'droid' personally. "I assume there is some kind of footage."

"Indeed sir, the ARC team captured some images of him as we were extracting the General and his team." The Clone Captain Fordo said with his red and white armour shining before he put up some of the holo images that his team had captured of the thing that had destroyed their assault force on Hypori so completely.

The images were a little grainy in places but there was enough detail for Haron to make out the thing that had attacked them. It appeared to have four arms and be able to use its crawl-like legs as a third set of arms, move very fast, with great agility and more disturbingly was using lightsabers at a terrific speed which would be near impossible for an organic being not being enhanced by the force or cybernetics to match. Its body was very strange in its design and while it would have been easy to mistake it for a droid there was a brief shot of its face...the skull like mask which was almost certainly designed like that to intimidate but what Haron saw was its eyes. They were purely organic, raw red muscle surrounding a pair of yellow eyes which were slitted like a cat's.

"That is no droid." Haron said with an understanding of how it was capable of such innovative thought and why it had surprised everyone so easily. "Look at its face, whatever its species, it is an organic being enhanced to an unheard of degree by cybernetics and trained at least a little in the Jedi Arts."

"I quite agree and I already have our intelligence units looking into the identity of this general, so far they have only managed to find a name...General Grievous." Palpatine said with worry making the lines on his face seem more pronounced.

Haron too was concerned, whatever or whoever Grievous was now he had proven to be an extremely effective killer and a highly capable general. The threat he posed was considerable to say the least and he was now wondering if he should reach out to his own sources for information just in case he had to fight him some day.

Ki-Adi-Mundi would likely never underestimate Grievous again Haron noticed with the shock and defeated expression on his face being such a turnaround from the arrogant look he had seen there before. It was almost enough for him to feel some sympathy for the fool but his arrogance was such that it would soon return.

He however had more issues closer to home to concern himself with, Satine it seemed was extremely angry or so he was told at him being the Military Advisor to the Chancellor. He smirked a little as he knew she would be horrified at him being involved in the war at all but also some might think that he was currying favour with the Republic to prepare for a coup against her perhaps why she had created an alliance of her own, the Council of Neutral Systems. Mostly made of Republic Worlds who wanted to avoid the war and a few outsiders.

Haron knew full well these suspicions about him making deals with the Republic could be damaging to his credibility but the House Leaders he worked with knew better and he was making preparations of his own to bolster them and his own forces. The recent discovery of the Katana Fleet would hopefully if they could retrofit the ships up to useable condition advance their plans by years and give them something to show to the houses to ensure their loyalty.

But right now he had to leave as soon his guard detail would be arriving he thought with annoyance.

While he had been determined to keep those exposed to the dangers here to a minimum it was expected and prudent for him to have guards here, a small group that could not only help protect him but also carry out tasks that he could not be seen doing. He had been unable so far given how busy he was to start setting up an information network or make many contacts of his own yet so it would be a great deal easier to do if he had people who could move around undetected.

So after leaving the Chancellor's office he walked down to the landing bay where next to the Razor's Crest a small freighter was landing. It touched down with a smooth thump and its ramp lowered almost immediately, allowing a small group of Mandalorian warriors to swiftly disembark.

They came up to him and stood to attention which he acknowledged with a nod.

"Welcome to Coruscant, this place is one of the most rotten and corrupt places in the galaxy despite appearances. We are here to ensure the Republic does not become a threat to our people and to see if we can gain anything by being at its heart. I have a base at 500 Republica which is where we will be staying for the foreseeable future, so keep your wits about you understood?" Haron asked sternly, making sure these warriors were alert to the danger which he would brief them more deeply on later.

"Sir, yes sir." They all said back at once and Haron nodded before suddenly noticing a small figure at the landing ram entrance.

"Din, what are you doing here?" He asked firmly and feeling his worry grow over the dangers here and seeing his adopted son who he had sent back to Reijar to keep him safe here raised his anxiety level considerably. He could already feel the tension in his body building.

"I wanted to make sure you were safe." Din said with a timid voice that belied his brave core. Haron sighed knowing he would be stuck here for awhile till he could have someone else come and pick him up so he told him.

"Then you will be happy to see that I am, you will learn from the warriors here and me for as long as you are here. You will obey whatever instructions I give, understood?" Haron pressed and Din instantly seemed to become smaller but nodded very quickly.

Haron was incredibly annoyed at this unexpected development but pushed pass it to see to his warriors.

"Well then I should show you where we are staying for the time that we are here." Haron told them his voice cold to ensure none of them said anything about this and he maintained discipline.

A short while later Haron was standing once again in the war room, overseeing a battle on the planet Teyr albeit remotely since the Jedi commanding the battle an Ithorian named Roron Corobb had perished early in the fighting and so the Clone Commander was requesting assistance.

"The droid army is advancing towards the canyon and there is no other path through the dense vegetation and swamps sir." The Commander told him and the sounds of blaster fire could be heard clearly in the background. Haron nodded and quickly looked at the holo display of the environment and get a hold of the situation before giving his orders.

"Have your men fall back to the entrance of the canyon and lure the enemy's heavy units and the bulk of their army into the canyon after you. Then have the heavy cannons and tanks blast the walls of the canyon over them. Bury them in rock while sending as sizeable force as you can manage through the path at grid seven one point eight nine. Its a long narrow path through the swamp but it should allow you to flank the enemy and get to the core ship." Haron ordered and the Clone Commander like a good soldier, nodded and said.

"Yes sir." Before closing the link and going to see to his orders. Haron watched as his strategy was being put into action, the clones falling back along the canyon and drawing the droids into his trap and then once the droids had committed nearly their entire force through the narrow but fast route to the Republic camp the heavy artillery cannons and tanks started blasting the walls of the canyon.

The high energy impacts easily fractured the rock and sent tonnes of heavy rock falling down on the droids below. Electronic screams from the battle droids could be just heard over the crashing the boulders and the explosions of the tanks and heavier droids as they were crushed by the rocks.

The clones could be heard cheering over the comm link and Haron allowed himself a little smirk as with this was another victory. He was glad in some ways that the late Master Corobb had taken the decision to attack the Separatists through the canyon rather than across the plain as while it was more difficult it had given him options to deal with them, if they had fought on the plain then his only real option as they had no real air cover was a costly charge against them in a head to head struggle with no means to limit the losses taken.

The door opened and Haron turned to see Anakin walking in looking very proud of himself the reason being Haron suspected was his now severed padawan braid which meant he had been promoted to Jedi Knight, Haron gave him a small smile.

"Congratulations." Haron said simply with his arms folded. Anakin still smirking asked.

"How goes the battle on Teyr? I heard Master Corobb was killed in action." Anakin probed while trying to be respectful for the loss of his fellow Jedi but Haron was able to show him the situation was well in hand.

"Using one's environment to the best advantage is one of the greatest lessons any tactician can learn. Which actually reminds me, I have something for you...think of it as a graduation present." Haron said and passed him a datapad.

Anakin was intrigued and his eyes widened as he saw the contents.

"How did you get these?!" He exclaimed loudly with shock. "Revan's writings are forbidden to all Jedi except those on the Council!" Anakin said with shock and Haron smirked.

"You forget my family name, we have a connection to him however distant." Haron said referring to his distant ancestor Canderous who had been one of the great Revan's famed companions. Seeing Anakin had a tendency to lean more towards the grey areas of the force this hopefully would allow him to draw on the darker aspects on the force and himself without having losing himself too it. And given how successful a general and statesman Revan had been it could only help Anakin in the struggles ahead.

It also was helpful in forging a bond of trust between them, Haron thought or hoped. Given Palpatine's own interest in Skywalker he was hoping to lessen the man's hold on Anakin should the man want him for his next apprentice, the old creep could only bring them all harm should he succeed Haron thought with dread at all the man could accomplish if they didn't find a way to stop him.

"Well once the battle is over if you have some time we could do some sparring?" Haron said with a smile, trying to dismiss his dark thoughts and Anakin still staring at the datapad with awe only nodded and for the first time in his life was eager to read something.

Reijar, Ordo System…

The testing area was set up with captured Separatist battle droids and a few traps, in the centre of it all was a droid that could at a distance pass for an actual humanoid soldier in heavy armour. Its chassis was completely sealed and had a Mandalorian style T-shaped visor helmet on, lifting a heavy blaster rifle around like it was nothing and already scanning the area for possible threats.

Deera was standing in the control room watching with great anticipation, behind her was all the allied house leaders looking at the droids with derision which she fully understood but hoped that they might see just how important this project could be.

"Begin the test." Deera told the technician who nodded and activated the droids.

As Deera and the rest of the audience watched the B1 and B2 Battle-droids activated and started charging at the Skytrooper who with unusual agility for a droid started side stepping and bending around to avoid most of the blaster fire and the few shots that did hit him were shrugged off by his heavy armour plating. It then raised its large rifle and with an accuracy that would put some of the galaxy's best snipers to shame started shooting back while moving quickly to throw off the enemy's targeting system.

Yellow bolts started striking the battle droids tearing a hole in them and destroying them almost immediately while the Skytrooper just kept on shooting, activating its jump jets to fly over the mine field that had been placed as a trap and while in flight, took down six more droids in quick succession before landing and throwing a grenade to demolish a group of droids that were shooting from behind a small barricade...then went right on clearing out the rest of the droids.

The biggest challenge then appeared, a captured AAT tank moved into view but the Skytrooper just activated its jump jets again and flew quickly through the air, avoiding its cannon fire before landing on top of it, forcing the hatch on top open and throwing another grenade inside. Jumping away just in time for the tank to blow up from the inside out.

It was over in twenty minutes, all the enemy droids were down and as good as scrap while the Skytrooper had only a couple of blast marks on its armour.

Deera turned around to face the other house leaders who looked at the scene before them and with looks of either being surprised, impressed or dismissive perhaps in some cases all three.

"The Skytrooper is based on the versions used by the Eternal Empire over three thousand years ago with a few improvements of our own. They might not be as quick or as cheap to create like the Trade Federation's battle droids but as you just saw they are infinitely superior." Deera told them proud of the work they had done on improving the design and the results it had achieved.

Yal Taken was staring at them with his eyes calculating, as if imagining the usefulness of such a battle droid but Ceta Farr who was more a traditionalist said with disdain.

"To use battle droids is an affront to our people, to the warriors especially!" She said through gritted teeth. "They are mere machines, not true warriors."

"Which is why we lose to the Republic time after time." Harian Cadoruso said with a tired voice which surprised them all. "They might not have true warriors like we do but they had not only the Jedi and enormous numbers on their side." Harian said knowing if it came to war they would probably lose again.

"And even the greatest warriors can fall to the multitude." Yal Taken said with a quiet and careful voice. Deera taking the stunned silence they had created to push her point.

"These droids will supplement our warriors, not take over from them. They can be the grunts of our new army and allow us to increase the size of our forces three fold or more." Deera said showing them that this was not going to change their culture that fundamentally. Droids were used all the time everywhere even in Mandalorian Space. "Not to mention my family has been creating a secret factory where we can produce worker droids and astromechs to help built up our facilities in anticipation of war. Some of Ordo's vassals are already receiving this assistance and now we are extending it to you all plus our factories now have a new starfighter and corvette production line." Deera said, taking the risk of revealing that they had secret factories to the rest of the house leaders so would hopefully not come back to bite them in the ass but if they wanted to maintain their trust they had to give it in return.

"We also have a secret shipyard that has automated production lines to speed up construction. Right now we are ready to create starfighters and corvettes but within a few months cruisers too will be possible and then in a year or so capital ships. At the same time as we are building up our public facilities in preparation for the restoration of the Mandalorians as a military power in the galaxy." Deera told them with a smile as she baited the hook.

The mention of the secret factories did surprise them but the potential of improving their own facilities and having secret ones to fuel their growth was a very tempting advantage. Not to mention having a force that could fight alongside their warriors and potentially even the odds against larger space faring powers like the Republic.

Some like Ceta Deera noticed were very uncomfortable with the idea while others like Harian and Yal were completely up for it. Deera had some reservations herself but if they were truly to become strong enough to properly fight a war again then they would need these things.

She only wished that they were more united though she thought with distress, despite being allied together and occasionally sharing knowledge and resources this alliance was very loose and often they attended to their own affairs. She cursed the weak leadership of Satine Kryze and if the opportunity to remove her from power came within the rules of their own culture she would ensure they took it.

Her thoughts were brought back to the present though as the house leaders made their decision.

"If we too can benefit from these advantages of yours, then we stand with you." Lila Kast said with a grin that would almost seem sinister given the number of facial scars she had.

Deera nodded, glad of that and out of the corner of her eye saw Zara give her an encouraging smile.

- x -

Elsewhere on Reijar Ara was sitting at the desk in the main office reading over the reports from the different vassals they had and saw to her relief that not only were their industrial build up projects now going ahead but they were recovering nicely from the civil war in terms of numbers.

She sighed as the scale of the work took her away from her children but was glad that she had help from Hannah and Neville or she would likely not see them at all. A beep from the console alerted her to an update from the engineers they had assigned to fixing and improving the Dreadnaught-class design, she took a moment to speed read it and saw that they were claiming to be on time and would have the faulty computers fixed soon.

She smiled as she saw Hannah come through the door with Markus and Astoria in tow. She got up from her desk and walked over to them and without hesitation hugged her tightly which made her smile wider, enjoying the feeling of her children in her arms.

- x -

Luna was watching her students practising their telekinesis as part of their daily exercises while her latest student, young Lelia Ordo was sitting in meditation to start feeling the force.

Luna was glad to have the little girl as her student, she was always so eager to try and excel which she knew could cause problems later in life but for now she was calm and starting to find her own connection to the force.

Lelia opened her eyes smiling, Luna gave her an encouraging nod sensing the girl had touched the force and told her.

"Good, through the force you will see things; the past, the present, the future, other places. The force can guide you but when you reach out then others might sense you and corrupt your vision. That is why we must always be careful with what we see." Luna said gently hoping not to scare the little girl too much but Lelia nodded, not looking scared at all and said brightly.

"I will." Her eyes were bright and sparkling which made Luna's heart ache with sadness as she hoped that Lelia would never lose that energy and that good heart.

Senate Building, Coruscant...Two Months Later...

Haron looked at the display which showed the progress of the war so far. Many fronts he noticed were going reasonably well with a few important victories here and there broken by occasional defeats.

However the new general of the Separatists, Grievous was making his presence known and every battle he seemed to fight in went his way. Jedi who faced him nearly always died with a few exceptionally lucky survivors and as he won more victories and achieved more Jedi kills the fear he created grew.

That Haron thought, couldn't go on. If he became the ultimate bogey man in the minds of planets then just him showing up above them would be enough to have planets surrender to the Separatists. He frowned as he looked at the displays in front of him and saw that Grievous was moving towards Abregado-rae. A Republic allied planet that served as a trading hub but more crucially it was a major stopping point of shipments of bacta from Thyferra.

If Grievous managed to take the planet then it cut off a vital trade route and not only hindered movement of the clone army but meant they would be starved of bacta. The clones that were injured desperately needed it as did the wider galaxy, a lot of planets might actually defect if the Separatists were able to hold the supply of the crucial medicine hostage.

That couldn't be allowed to happen Haron thought with urgency, trying to think of a plan that could enable him to not only break Grievous and his strategy but dispel the myth of his invincibility.

So he called an emergency meeting with Anakin, Kenobi and Plo Koon. Mace Windu curse him decided to invite himself and while he could do without the stuck up senior master he had no real reason to get him to leave or means to do so. So he explained to them Grievous' ultimate objective with this particular campaign.

"There is one place we can intercept him before he reaches Abregado-rae, Mi'kell Ultima." Haron said finally coming to the point, pointing the small planet out on the star chart in front of them. "If we don't then there is a good chance that Grievous will create a stranglehold on the bacta supply for the entire galaxy. Hundreds of planets might defect to his side so they have access too it."

"We stand a far better chance at fighting him at Abregado-rae, there we can assemble a larger force and have the facilities of the planet to sustain it. There is nothing at Mi'kell Ultima." Mace Windu said with a dismissive look which annoyed Haron at how short sighted it was.

"And Grievous knows that and will no doubt be expecting us to do it, if we fight him there he has a whole planet to scare and civilian targets to make us separate our forces. That is playing straight into his hands, I wouldn't be surprised if they have some agents in place to sabotage the facilities and defences there to coincide with the invasion." Haron told him sternly which only made the Jedi Master glare at him harder.

"At Mi'kell Ultima we choose the battleground and without civilians around we don't have to divide our forces." Anakin said with a feeling of anticipation, looking forward to slaying the monster that had killed too many Jedi already, He had been reading Revan's writings as Haron had suggested and was struck by how much he agreed with the ancient figure about the force and the galaxy at wide.

Revan had been incredible Anakin remarked with awe, finding ways to channel his darker impulses and even use dark side abilities to achieve the common good for the entire galaxy. He had not had the chance to test his words just yet but this he thought might just get it.

"It is better not to risk civilian casualties if we can help it." Plo Koon said with his seemingly unbreakable calm. "Besides with all that is at stake we cannot afford to take the chance of him taking Abregado-rae. While we engage him at Ultima it would allow us time to gather a larger force to defend Abregado-rae and to prepare a strategy."

"Excellent point Master Plo." Obi-Wan said stroking his beard as he considered their position. "It also gives us the chance to break Grievous's momentum and any idea of his invincibility. Too many are already afraid of him and we need to ensure the galaxy sees that he can be defeated."

"So be it, I will assemble a force at Abregado-rae in case you fail with Master Plo." Mace Windu said and the Kel-Dor master nodded before Haron interjected.

"Actually I need Master Plo for my strategy at Ultima." Haron said and when all them looked at him strangely he elaborated. "Master Plo has five star destroyers under his command, I need him to detach two of them to the Florana Sector. Then they must pretend to be hunting for pirates and put out enough comm traffic for all five ships, mentioning him as being there to command the force in-particular."

The other Jedi looked confused but Anakin then caught on to what he was doing.

"You want to convince Grievous that Master Plo is further away than he actually is." Anakin said with a smirk knowing exactly what Haron was planning.

"Exactly." Haron said now smiling too and explained to the other Jedi. "I want to hide Master Plo's cruisers here, on the far side of Ultima where they can wait until they are called for." He said pointing to the star chart of Mi'kell Ultima. "Meanwhile Generals Skywalker and Kenobi will meet Grievous on the battlefield openly then at the given signal, General Plo swoops in and ambushes Grievous's forces right in the flank. You will have Grievous outnumbered and outgunned." Haron finished.

It was a daring plan but it was their best chance to stop Grievous here and now, they all knew that and if any Jedi could stop him it was Kenobi and Skywalker.

Mi'kell Ultima, One Week Later…

The system of Mi'kell Ultima had never been colonised largely because there was nothing here worth pursing. No resources of any value and no real strategic position at least until the Clone Wars.

The small planet was barren and rocky with nothing else too it, a single small planet orbiting around a red dwarf star.

Aboard the flagship of the Jedi Taskforce Anakin was standing on the bridge feeling increasingly bored with each hour that passed. He knew from intelligence reports that Grievous was coming but it would be another hour or so before they engaged him.

Anakin was never one for meditation like other Jedi but he needed to deepen his connection to the force so he did do it when he had too but through Revan's writings he had discovered a meditative practice seemingly unknown to the rest of the Jedi...meditation through movement.

A single set of exercises and movements that you did while keeping your mind clear and empty so you could just let go, Revan himself had used the basic moves of form seven Juyo as his and Anakin had adapted it for form five for himself and honestly Anakin thought with astonishment he had never felt more calm and relaxed after meditating. It was like he had burned away his worries and could think far more clearly than before not to mention using his own unique form of lightsaber fighting enabled him to practice more and improve his skill and the ease with which he could do it.

He was surprised that more Jedi didn't do this, it worked so well for him and he knew some other Jedi like Master Secura for example would be well suited to this. Obi-Wan too Anakin realised would benefit greatly from this as his teacher's ability to let go of himself in the force was even better than nearly any other Jedi. Anakin once upon a time might had been jealous at this and resented his master for not sharing with him the secret of such things but now Anakin realised to his own embarrassment that it was not a secret...just how his former master connected to the force in his own special way as Anakin was learning his now.

He smiled a little as his relationship with Obi-Wan had improved dramatically since his own promotion and especially after he had read Revan's writings. He had realised how childish some of his beliefs and feelings over the galaxy and people were and that he needed to see it through the eyes of others. He and Obi-Wan were now equals in many ways and it was a nice change for them to talk to each other as such.

"Still on the bridge sir? I would have though you would be getting your ship ready." A voice said from behind him and he turned to see his new naval officer, Captain Gilad Pellaeon. A Correllian native who had replaced Admiral Yularen when he had been promoted to head of the Internal Security Service.

"Already is Captain." Anakin said with a bored tone.

"I see, sir. The waiting before action is joined...always the worst. Its a shame there's no women on this ship. Nothing better than that for passing the time." Gilad said with a small grin which only made Anakin smile a little back, the captain was known for having a bit of a roving eye were women were concerned but when it came to actual duty he was one of the most devoted military officers Anakin had ever met.

"Now captain, a little decorum." Anakin said with a slight mocking drawl but without any heat to it which only made Gilad smile wider.

"I know sir, shouldn't even suggest such a thing to a Jedi." Gilad said before giving his general a nod and returning to his duties. Anakin let him get on with it, the man was a good officer and worked well with the clones especially as they were so professional but he still could crack a joke every now and again. A sense of humour that Anakin liked.

Rex then came onto the bridge and gave Gilad a nod which was quickly returned before he came up to Anakin and said.

"Sir, all squadrons report ready. We just need the word to launch."

"Good to hear Rex, I just hope we don't have to wait too long." Anakin said with annoyance coming back at the waiting.

- x -

When an hour later the Separatist taskforce finally arrived the actual battle was a relief as Anakin deployed with his pilots out the of the enormous hanger bay while on the bridge of the flagship Obi-Wan commanded with Pellaeon assisting.

The sight of the uniquely decorated Providence-class warship that was known as Grievous's flagship Anakin felt his anticipation rise and his hands tightened on the controls, getting ready for action.

Increasing the speed of his Delta-7 fighter he led the Republic's large collection of fighters forward, a smirk on his face as the fight ahead heated his blood.

- x -

Grievous on the bridge of his flagship gave an electronic laugh as he saw the Republic ships ahead of him, the chance to take apart the Jedi and their clones servants honestly was his favour pastime and he was eagerly awaiting their end with almost salivating level hunger.

He gave his orders, almost leaning forward in his command chair.

"Forward, close the gap and open fire."

"Roger roger." The stupid droid said, at least competent enough to do what he told it.

The ships began moving forwards as his fighters raced towards the Republic ships, meeting in an almost dazzling display of laser fire.

Grievous watched as he came into firing range of the Republic's three cruisers which unfortunately had better range than his own ships. He saw their blue turbolaser fire striking his shields which held while he got into range.

He saw the ship leading the formation of Republic scum as the Negotiator, the flagship of Obi-Wan Kenobi and his excitement grew. The chance to kill the Jedi Master himself was enough to get him up from his chair alone but he knew that were Kenobi was, Skywalker couldn't be far behind.

Getting to kill them, he thought with his remaining biological parts buzzing like his cybernetics and taking their lightsabers his collection...that would be a great achievement.

So as his ship engaged Kenobi's ship he got up to lead a boarding party once its defences were down when suddenly rocked by a large impacts as its shields failed, making him grasp to his chair to stay upright. Turning to the stupid droids he demanded angrily.

"What was that?!"

The droids seemed to take a moment to register he had even asked which was enough for him to loose his temper and with a roar grab one of the droids, throwing it against the blast doors before one of them actually did as he commanded.

"Three more Republic cruisers have appeared from behind the planet and have opened fire on the fleet general." The annoying robotic voice said. Grievous looked at the tactical display, roughly pushing past the droid to see and realised it was annoyingly right, three more cruisers had been laying in wait for him and much to his annoyance he saw that the Triumphant, the flagship of Plo Koon was leading the second squadron and had cut off the retreat of his fleet.

This infuriated him as he had been assured that no other Republic forces were in the area and that Koon was in fact on the other side of the galaxy chasing pirates.

He honestly was so furious that he just screamed with rage before rushing off the bridge without saying anything to the droids and headed down to the landing bay where his personal starfighter was waiting. He was not going to die here as some pointless gesture whatever Dooku said, he was getting out of here and would take his revenge on the Jedi another time.

He quickly arrived on the flight deck and jumped quickly into his fighter and took off without a backwards thought using his own outnumbered ships to cover his own retreat, jumping to hyperspace as soon as he was able.

CURSE YOU KENOBI! Grievous screamed to himself, CURSE YOU!

- x -

"The lead ship's shields have buckled sir, their vital systems are exposed." Captain Pellaeon said to General Kenobi who nodded.

"Well then captain, let's clean up this enemy." He told the captain who nodded before giving the orders.

"All gunners concentrate fire on the ship's left ventral side. Bombers and heavy fighters, engage the frigates and order Avenger and Formidable to engage the destroyers." Pellaeon added and the clones professional to a fault did as they were told.

"Aye sir." They all answered back.

Kenobi watched as the ship's main turbolasers now tore into the weaker ventral section of the Providence-class warship. The fighters and other warships now began tearing relentlessly into Grievous's taskforce and they seemed unable to counter them. Kenobi was confused as Grievous was known for far better tactics than this and was wondering if he had somehow tricked them somehow when Pellaeon came up to him looking irritated by something.

"General, sensors tracked a starfighter registered to Grievous leave the flagship and jump to hyperspace a moment ago. Sir it looks like he escaped us." Pellaeon said something annoyed that the chance to crush the bloody monstrosity had been denied them.

"And sacrificed his own fleet to cover his escape." Kenobi said with a thoughtful gaze. "That means we have learned something else about him captain."

"What is that sir?" Pellaeon asked cautiously, not wanting to contradict a higher ranking officer than himself by guessing.

"That he is a coward." Kenobi said, willing to do anything to ensure his own survival at the expense of anything else. Dooku he realised would not be pleased about him abandoning his fleet in the middle of a battle, but Kenobi could at least drawn comfort from one thing. The myth that Grievous was invincible had been broken and that they had shown the galaxy that he could be defeated.

Dooku's Palace, Serenno…

Count Dooku was sitting in meditation, pondering the failure of Grievous to ensure that the Separatists took a firm hold of the galaxy's bacta supply. He had been counting on the intimidation the general created and the leverage provided by the bacta to convince more worlds to join his alliance but the general had not only failed but he had abandoned his post the moment the battle had turned against him to ensure his own survival making many stop fearing him and view him as a coward.

He would certainly be having a very intense conversation with the general when he decided to stop hiding and came back but he was more concerned with how the Republic had so brilliantly countered his plan and led the general into a trap that had completely destroyed his forces and ruin the strategy. None of the Jedi were responsible as his master had just informed him, instead it was the military advisor to his master Duke Haron Ordo that had realised what their true objective was and created the plan to stop them, one that had done its job perfectly.

This irritated Dooku as he knew the Mandalorian would likely have never gotten involved with the Republic if the idiotic members of the alliance had not attacked his people, with him guiding the Republic's war effort and ensuring good decisions were made the tide of war was slowly turning in the Republic's favour.

That he could not permit Dooku thought with annoyance, he might have counted on his own puppet Mandalorian Pre Vizsla to deal with him but he was no fool even if Vizsla was. Pre had no chance of unseating House Ordo and would likely be destroyed if he tried, isolating Ordo might have helped but many followed where Ordo led and he had little to no leverage at the moment to change that.

So he thought with his fingers interlaced on his desk, the best option was to eliminate Ordo and other key members of the Republic. His mind calculated how best to do it and he wondered if he should use one target of his to get his main one.

Reijar, Ordo System…

Haron was glad of the break from Coruscant, setting foot on his own home soil again was a big relief after being away for so long.

Just the mere sitting with his children during breakfast was a pleasure that he would never take for granted again.

"DADDY!" Markus screamed out in excitement when he saw him and broke free from his mother and charged straight at him as fast as his little legs could carry him. Haron swooped down and caught him in his arms, spinning him around, giving his son the tightest hug he could manage. Markus holding onto him tightly and laughing while they spun around, Haron stopped turning before he made his son sick and looked at Ara and their daughter Astoria who were both smiling at him.

Haron walked over and while still holding Markus in one arm wrapped his other arm around Ara and kissing her deeply before their children began making sounds of disgust, not comfortable with their parents doing that before the four of them were enveloped with a hug.

They stayed like that for awhile, Haron was enjoying the feeling of having his children and wife with him. Not just the physical feeling but through the force/magic he could feel their auras and it was like a balm to all his worries.

They stayed like that for a long while before finally he had to let them go and allow the children to have their morning meal, sitting them down at the table with Din following and Lelia coming down later on her own. Gods Haron thought with sadness, she had grown so much since he had last seen her but when she saw him she squealed in delight and ran forward. He give her a hug and listened while she babbled on about all she had been learning from the others while he had been gone.

He listened calmly and told her he was really proud of her which made her beam with pride. He laughed before sitting her at the table and soon Deera joined them with a guest he noticed.

"Haron, this is Zara. Zara this is my older brother Haron, the head of House Ordo." Deera told him and he frowned a little as the other woman came up to him and offered her hand.

"It is a real pleasure to meet you your grace. I work with your sister on the Iokath project." Zara said and while he shook her hand he regarded her with suspicion and said.

"Good, then you must be skilled."

He said nothing more and went to the table, seeing the look of worry on his sister's face nearly made him get back up but he was suspicious of anyone that tried to date his sister. He knew she could take care of herself but it didn't stop him from feeling unsettled at someone who might take advantage of her.

Everyone took their seats and began to eat while Haron read the reports of all the projects since he was unable to get regular reports on Coruscant for obvious reasons.

The other houses had surprisingly agreed to using the Skytroopers and now the production of Skytroopers, astromechs and worker droids had begun at the factories. With additional equipment from the factories they could now expand their facilities, Clan Yelde was finally being let off the hook for not supporting them in the civil war and now their shipyards would be expanded to allow them to dock and refit or even potentially build Lucrehulks should they ever need too. The shipyard belonging to Deera's family too was being upgraded and expanded so they would not keep all their eggs in one basket. The fact it was making his sister a very good living was a good bonus though and it also increased his worry of people coming after her for her money and power.

With the proper facilities to maintain their fleet and arm themselves in even of war, Haron turned to the shipyards and smiled as he saw starfighter production had now begun and the refit of the Dreadnaughts was starting up. Reducing the crew requirements and fixing the structural and system failures that dogged the ships.

He turned back to his breakfast before a message from his cousin Erryk arrived. He was currently dealing with a rush of refugees that had arrived from war torn areas of the galaxy hoping for safety and some had been settled on Aq Ventina to repopulate the planet after it had been abandoned with himself as its leader and support of House Ordo. The first worker droids off the line were going there to rebuild the colony and expand it.

"Please be nice to Zara, I know you worry about me but I can handle myself." Deera said quietly to him from across the table which made him smirk a little.

"That is me being nice to the person who has the guts to date my sister, if I wasn't going to tolerate her then she wouldn't be here. I know you can take care of yourself Deera, never think otherwise but that doesn't mean I am going to stop worrying. Just take it slow and we will see." He said, not promising her to accept Zara straight away but saying he would not stop her.

Deera nodded, knowing that was all she could expect even if it did drive her a bit crazy.

The Senate Building, Coruscant...Two Weeks Later…

Haron was not in a good mood upon returning to Coruscant, especially as Din had once again come with them. The young lad did not like him being here alone and was determined to be here to 'watch his back'.

Haron was touched in a way, that Din actually cared that much about him but at the same time he was not pleased at him being here in such danger. He was going to have to have a conversation with him about this soon enough that he could handle himself and that he needed to stay put when he was told too.

Having never handled a child of this age before Haron was unsure of how to make this clear to Din however, Din had been told these things but it only seemed to encourage him to be here more.

He sighed, wondering if his biological children were going to be like this when they got older but he had little to know guidance or knowledge on how to deal with children, in their last life he and Daphne had never had them and with his bust up with the Weasleys they had obviously not allowed him to even meet any of their new generation.

However he could not concentrate on that right now as Senator Amidala had apparently called a secret emergency meeting with the Loyalist Committee and the Chancellor and apparently his presence was required so he reluctantly turned to his attention to whatever she felt was so important.

"I was contacted in secret by my old friend Senator Freca Graf'o of Balmorra. He and a faction of the government want to return to the Republic but are concerned about Separatists reprisals if they should defect to our side." She explained to her fellow senators and the Chancellor. "He says that enough of the planet's population is in favour of the return given the difficult economic problems forced on them by the war."

"The factories of Balmorra would be a great coup for the Republic if they returned to us." Orn Free Taa, the Ryloth representative said while popping some delicacy he had brought with him into his mouth. The sight was disgusting as he slowly ate the whatever it was before continuing to eat and Haron could scarcely contain his own disgust, no wonder the senator was so fat if he ate that much.

"The corporations are the ones that really hold power on that world Senator Amidala and they are making good money from their dealings with the Separatists. If they are against this move then it is unlikely the government or the people will have any say in the matter." Ask Aak, the Senator of Malastare said in huttese. Haron had to agree with him as big businesses had often got governments in their pocket, Balmorra had been for a very long time and that wasn't likely to change given their wealth and power.

The civilian government could potentially overthrow them Haron accepted but it was a long shot especially if the corporations were being backed by the Separatists.

"The civilian government has managed to convince some of the corporations to come over to their side but they want reassurance from the Republic that they will be protected from any reprisals." Amidala said. "To that end they want a meeting with both me and Duke Ordo on Balmorra to prove the Republic can protect them."

The mention of his name instantly made Haron sit up straight and his suspicions rise. That was a strange request as he could potentially meet them in a far safer off world location or through intermediaries yet they wanted a face to face meeting on the planet itself.

"Senator I have to be honest this seems like a great deal more involved than it need be, if something goes wrong then the Republic would not be able to help us. Not to mention I am not convinced of the claims that the civilian government and corporations are willing to come over to our side. This seems like a trap to me." He said with concern and the senator seemed affronted at the idea.

"Freca and I have been friends for years, he is one of the most trustworthy people I know. If he is saying his government wants to come back then it will want to come back to the Republic." She said looking at him annoyed and insulted but he just stared her down, not in the least intimidated.

The Chancellor seeing the tension between them waded in on the issue.

"Nevertheless the advantages of Balmorra returning to the Republic are far too great to be ignored, I am sure we can arrange a team to get you and the Senator in and out without too much trouble." The Chancellor said and Amidala then interjected.

"Sorry, Chancellor but it has to be just myself and the Duke. The meeting is being kept to the fewest people possible to stop any chance of the Separatists discovering it. We must go alone."

That really made Haron suspicious, wanting him and the senator to go alone? Without any guards or assistants? Now he was convinced it was a trap and said as much.

"Senator this is far too dangerous to even attempt alone." Haron said and was about to leave when the Chancellor nodded but not in agreement with him.

"I am inclined to see this as some sort of trap but on the chance that it isn't we cannot ignore the opportunity presented here. Take every precaution possible." He told them and Haron was about to tell them he was not going when suddenly hit with a tremor in the force, he managed to keep his feelings hidden but somehow he knew this mission needed him to be there.

Sending Amidala straight into a trap? Could Palpatine be trying to kill her and him as well? To tighten his grip on Anakin? Make him afraid of losing people? Maybe something else about this mission might be that important Haron thought with confusion, not liking this at all since it would be just himself and the Senator on a hostile world. Far from any help if his gut feeling that this was a trap was right. Frustration getting the best of him he allowed it to show on his face and said.

"If we even entertain this plan then we certainly can't go in my ship or your attention grabbing silver bird." He said angrily knowing this would come back to haunt him. The Senator looked a little surprised at his turnaround and his agreement to go but the Chancellor said quickly looking very pleased.

"Oh I am glad to hear it, I will arrange an unmarked starship to take you both to Balmorra. Hopefully this will be a good day for the Republic." He said smiling but Haron was already preparing himself for whatever might await them on Balmorra.

Din meanwhile would be left with the guards he had brought here, Anakin he hoped might be willing to keep an eye on them all since he was on Coruscant right now. While he was confident in his guards he would appreciate a little more security on his ward before he could send him back to Reijar.

Balmorra, Three Days Later…

Haron's mood had not improved as he piloted the L19 Heavy Freighter that he and Amidala had been given. It was a former smuggling vessel that had been seized in a Judicial Forces raid a while ago and had been impounded ever since.

The ship was reasonable albeit its shields were weak and its weapons subpar, Haron also had noticed a shudder in the hull when you pushed it beyond a certain speed at sublight which didn't improve his impression of the ship. The fact he had to carry 120 tonnes of cargo as a cover didn't help either as it weighed the ship down.

Amidala had at least been quiet for their journey here, she had kept to herself and he had been glad of that as he concentrated on getting them there and keeping them alive.

When they dropped out of Hyperspace though and Balmorra finally came into view that was broken when she came into the cockpit and sat down in the co-pilot's seat.

"Finally, I just hope Freca is okay. He was a big help to me when I got started in the senate." She told him without being asked and Haron dismissively told her.

"People change senator, besides I think he is safer than we are." Haron said as he nervously looked at what was surrounding the planet. The Senator was about to say something when she looked ahead immediately realised what he meant by that last comment.

A large Separatist fleet surrounded the polluted planet, not a single fleet but easily enough to occupy several star systems with everything from regular fighter patrols to enormous capital ships encircling the entire planet. Padmé was shocked as she had not imagined such a presence around the planet when a message chimed up. She eagerly opened it when she realised it was from Freca.

A hologram of a purple and white skinned Twi'lek male in his later forties appeared, he looked mournfully at her and said simply before cutting the connection.

"I'm sorry Padmé that it had to be this way."

"Freca? FRECA!?" She shouted stunned at the holoprojector while Haron noticed a flight of droid fighters had changed course and were now heading right at them. Swearing he opened the throttle as far as it would go and tried to raise the shields but a laser hit their aft section, rocking the ship. They both hung on to their seats while Haron did his best to get them away from the fighters long enough to make a hyperspace jump when he saw a flashing red light on the console that took the situation from bad to terrible.

"And they took out the Hyperdrive! This place of crap!" Haron yelled with anger as he adjusted his course down towards the planet. His actions did not go unnoticed by Padmé.

"Where are you going?! We need to get out of here!" She shouted at him, still reeling from the fact that her friend had led her into a trap.

"We can't make the jump to hyperspace, there's nowhere else to go!" He said knowing that if they were lucky enough to get this thing down in one piece perhaps they could effect repairs but that was unlikely Haron realised as the droid fighters began to catch up with them.

So Padmé stayed quiet as as the plunged into the cloudy atmosphere in hopes of throwing off their pursuers but the droids were closing too fast and to his growing frustration, the twin mounted laser cannons this pathetic ship came equipped with were forward mounted so he was unable to fight back.

His day got worse as the proximity alert sounded and he saw a pair of missiles were closing on his position, rather than swear more though he let himself connect to the force and let it help him guide his hand.

He began pushing the ship into some very tight turns as he went lower towards the surface and saw some mountains with a lot of cloud around them. He knew it was his only real hope and started winding his way around the peaks as tightly as he could to hopefully throw off the missiles. The tightness of the turns made it very hard for him and Padmé to hold on to their seats and would have flow across the cockpit had they not been strapped to their chairs.

The missiles were almost on them but with a turn so tight they nearly clipped the mountain peak finally got them off their back when they slammed into it, allowing Haron and Padmé a brief moment of respite before the droid fighters managed to catch up, now firing their blasters.

The impacts rocked the weakened shields and Haron felt sweat running down his head inside his helmet as he coaxed the ship into incredibly tight turns to try and throw off their aim but the ship they were flying just didn't have the manoeuvrability he needed or the speed as the engines were now on the verged of overheating from maintaining such a high speed and such tight turns at the same time.

Haron knew his options were very limited, the cloud cover was dissipating and soon the droids would be able to be right up his arse and then just when he thought things couldn't get any worse the ship's fire sensor was triggered, a fire had started in the engine room.

He was in trouble and struggling to come up with a way out of this when he saw in the distance a vast city with a number of large skyscrapers come into view. Adjusting his height and heading as much as he was able he set the autopilot. Turning to Padme who was looking just as worried as he was at this point he yelled.

"COME ON! MOVE IT!" He unbuckled himself and thankfully she followed his lead and did the same, also running just behind him to the port side airlock. Without asking knowing they had only one chance at this he grabbed a firm hold of the senator by the waist and blew out the airlock door before waiting just a second for the right moment to go, feeling a push from the force he suddenly jumped out of the ship with the senator.

The air was rushing past them as they spun around in its harsh winds but a roof of a building was just within reach and Haron with a quick burst of his jet-pack managed to land roughly on it with the senator, rolling a little before coming to a stop just before the edge.

They turned their heads just in time to see the droid fighters blast their ship into pieces and it hurtle towards the ground in flaming pieces.

They struggled to catch their breath and only when the world had stopped spinning and they were steady enough on their feet did they get up and look around.

The situation was bleak and they both knew it, neither speaking as they were faced with the very real problem that they were now trapped on a Separatist planet with no way of getting help from the Republic or means to get off world.

- x -

Providence-class Dreadnought 'Ravager', in orbit of Balmorra…

The displays in the situation room reported that the Republic ship had been shot down, the man at the centre of it all then gave his instructions to the forces on the ground.

"Investigate the crash site, find their bodies. If there are none report to me immediately." He ordered before closing down the comm link. While it appeared that Haron Ordo and Padmé Amidala were dead it was foolish to ever presume anything.

He used the force to pull his lightsaber from the table where it lay into his hand and clipped it to his belt. A message came in from Count Dooku as he was clearly watching the situation from afar.

"I see the trap has succeeded, if they survived the crash then hunt them down Tol Skorr and deliver their heads to me. Do not fail me."

"As you command master." Tol said to the hologram of his master.