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Battle of Raxus5,082 words
Order 662,686 words

Order 66

Corescaunt, Office of Princess Cadance of Crystonia

When the images of smoke rising at the Jedi Temple started to be broadcast across the holo-news many traffic lanes slowed to stare at the flames that consumed the halls of the jedi. Directly above republic cruisers were locking down the area. Senator Bail Organa had left in a hurry to the Jedi Temple and to the Dismay of many senators he had not returned.

Cadence herself could not sleep. Outside her office window she could see the orange flames, painting the sky like a new sunrise over Corescaunt. Her protocol droid interrupted the somber mood that had settled over her,when it rushed into her office.

"Excuse me my lady, but a encoded transmission from Senator Mon Mothma has been received. She wishes to meet with the members of the delegation of two thousand aboard her starship" It said.

"Tell the senator i'm on my way." Cadence said with one last look at the destruction of the Temple. One thing remained certain the jedi and possibly the republic were in grave danger.

Raxus, Ancient Aquduct under Raxus Prime

Sunset and her Master were leading the armor through the narrow straightway of the aqueduct. A dozen Troopers behind them. Commander Shining had fallen back to one of the walkers to attempt to contact Admiral Tarkin. They had little time to take the Senate building, locate the Seperatist leader and extract him. The irony that after the battle of corescant the republic would attempt a similar operation was not lost on her.

Celestia had stopped for a moment and seemed to be lost in thought. "Master?" Sunset asked.

"We are not alone." Celestia said, drawing her lightsaber.

In the darkness up ahead a blaster bolt rang out and struck Celestia's lightsaber deflecting off back where it had come from. For a moment the light from the blaster showed a dozen shadowy forms. Behind them the clones took up a firing postion and opened up. The dark figures fired back, but were quickly overwhelmed by the sheer amount of blasters pointed at them. Behind them more blaster fire but Sunset couldn't identify from where. While she was focused on that she saw a rocket propel forward into the lead walker. It exploded into a fireball that threatened to burn them all in the tight space. But Celestia and Sunset acted quickly using the force to deflect the fire away from thier troopers and and back at their enemies. The one who had fired the rocket launcher was now set ablaze. She screamed in agony and crumpled to the ground trying in vain to put the fire out. I looked at the sight shocked. The insurgent was a teenage Zebrak. They were not of the same lineage but that somehow made it worse to see her charred remains. She would not get the funeral rights they observed.

Commander Sinning ran up behind them. "Generals, are you alright?"

"Yes commander, it appears we have found the civilians." Celestia said with a hint of sadness.

"They used access tunnels to hit us from behind too. These ones aren't dressed like military." He looked back at the destroyed ATTE. "KraytSpit this is gonna take awhile to move. I knew we shouldn't have gone down these blasted tunnels" He said as his holocommicator chirped. "I need to take this. The Admiral is growing impatient."

Shinning joined his null brothers who were already setting up explosives to blow the wreckage in half and let the rest of the walkers through. Sunet joined her master who was hovering over the corpse of the zabrak who had fired the rocket laucher, her skin still smoked.

"Tell me Sunset." The Jedi Master said. "How do we as defenders of the peace justify this?"

"She fired on us first." Sunset said.

"She was defending her home. I sense their are more of them through out the tunnels and underground. Yes many of the civilians have been evacuated to shelters."

"Why wouldn't they just send more battle droids?"

"I do not know." Celestia said gravly. "But to put innocents on the front lines the separatists must be desperate. I fear that by the end of this day we will have done many things that we will come to regret."

Sunset put her hand on her master's shoulder when she felt a terrible impression from the force. Celestia felt it to and they both nearly collpased from the overwelling terror they felt. A great shift in the force had occurred. Many bonds she had formed with Jedi she had known her entire life were severed. Thousands of voices cried out in the darkness, and were silenced. Then they heard the voice they had heard in their nightmares. The voice that had so long blinded the Jedi from seeing the truth, in that moment it was unmistakable that the lord of the sith spoke words of power.

"Execute Order Sixty Six!"

What happened next happened so fast Sunset barley had time to react. Commander Shinning and the Nulls lined up with their brothers and surrounded the jedi on all sides. They all fired at the same time barley giving the Jedi a chance to draw their lightsabers.

"KILL THE JEDI!"

"GOOD SOLDIERS FOLLOW ORDERS!"

"EXECUTE THEM!"

Sunset sent a blaster bolt back at a trooper and hit him in the helmet. She realized she had killed him but had no time to react. Her and Celestia formed a defense circle and kept deflecting blaster bolts. She felt an impression from Celestia and reached out with the force with her to create a whirlwind of force that knocked the troopers off their feet. They took advantage of the situation to sprint away from the homicidal clones. They had put some distace between them when they heard an exswplosion. A moment later the ATTE had cleared the wreckage and opened its heavy cannon on them.

In the tight space they had nowhere to go. The blast through them both off their feet. Sunset hit the ground hard and struggled to recover. Celestia was up before her and was catching blaster bolts with the force with one hand and deflecting them with her lightsaber in the other. She stood between the clones and Sunset, as she tried to get up. She felt an intense pain in her chest, one of her ribs was broken.

Celestia gave a valiant effort, but she was targeted by the ATTE's main weapon. It fired, and Celestia moved forward with all the power the force could give her. "Master! Get back!" I tried to stop her, but the blast exploded on her force shield before it broke. Celestia was flung like a ragdoll a landed with a sick thump. I Ignored the pain and hobbled over to her. She was badly burned and one of the horns on her regal Tagruta crest was bent at an unnatural angle

"Cease fire! I cant see anything!" A clone called from behind.

"Master! Master Please wake up!" Sunset said out of breath, behind her the clanking of armored bodies approaching fast.

Celestia looked dazed but she focused on Sunset's face and looked into her eyes. She smiled that same sweet motherly smile that had greeted her when she first came to the Jedi Temple. Sunset felt tears falling down her face.

"Do not cry my faithful student.." Celestia said, her voice a whisper. "Remember who you are Sunset, follow.. the.. force."

Sunset screamed as Celestia's body disappeared in her arms. All that remained were her Jedi robes torn and burnt. Where had she gone? Had she become one with the force?

"Over Here!"

"There she is!"

Sunset turned around to see the clones coming right for her. Without thinking she reached for Celestia's lightsaber with the force and ignited it with her own. The first clone that appeared out of the smoke she decapitated with a quick stroke. Two more saw her and opened fire. She reached out with the force around their throats. The clone troopers were lifted into the air before being dispatched as she snapped their necks. She felt the power building inside of her again. But this time, she had lost the only person in the world she cared about. The loss still fresh and new, combined with the betrayal of the clones sparked a white hot hatred inside of her. Jedi or not, She gave into her emotions and let the dark side guide her.

Sunset deactivated both lightsabers and drew on the force. A line of troopers along with commander shinning were rushing her. She hated them, all of them. Sizzling bolts of energy were released from her fingertips and into the troopers. They all screamed in agony as she tortured them. She savored their pain and turned her attention to the roof of the tunnel. She grabbed onto it with the force trying to pull it down on the walker and caving them in. It gave way easily. Such power, it was incredible. Why had the Jedi forbid this?

The Rocks smashed down onto the walker, hitting some of the remaining troopers and burying them. She turned to leave, but Commander Shinning ran out of the dust surprising her. He stabbed at her with his wrist mounted vibroblade, which she avoided with ease.

"Traitor!" He spat.

Sunset turned her lightsaber around and removed the Null Clone's hand when he got too close. He screamed and fell back. Sunset was about to finish him off when more clones opened fire on her. They had already started to break through the cave in. One of them tossed a thermal detonator, Sunset caught it in the force and through it back. Using the opportunity to escape. She was running on pure survival instinct and ran with the force. She ran for miles and miles of winding tunnels and pipes before she stopped for a moment to think.

She slide her back against the wall and sat with her hands covering her face. Silently she cried there for a few moments before she found the courage to move on. Her master was dead, and the clones had turned on them. Her first priority was to find out if this had happened all across the galaxy. She had felt hundreds of Jedi be killed through the force. All of them violently. She looked at her comm unit and risked a transmission.

"Twilight this Is Sunset do you read?" Sunset said.

She waited for a response that never came. She wondered if it was just being underground. Or if she had been murdered by the clones as well. She had to get off this planet and return to the Jedi Temple. She pulled up the map that they had constructed through scans before entering the Aqueduct. There was only one way out according to this. The exist near the Separatist senate building they had planned to assault. Those people that ambushed us must have come from somewhere. I felt along the wall feeling through it with the force. I felt something hollow inside. There were creases in the wall too perfect to notice. I backed up from the wall and drew back a force assisted kick. Nothing. I drew both lightsabers and but them through the wall cutting a human sized hole. I removed the chunk of wall with the force. A narrow hallway barley big enough for her to squeeze through. A row of dim lights were on the walls leading off into the distance. I took a deep breath and entered.

Raxus Orbit, Victory 1 Star Destoryer 'New Dawn' Command Bridge

The Republic fleet had successfully repealed a Separatist counter attack when the droid ships had suddenly shut down. Reports coming in from around the galaxy confirmed this was not an isolated incident. It appeared that the clone wars had reached their conclusion with the droid army being mysteriously shut down. Tarkin had watch the declaration of the new order through secure channels. The newly crowned Emperor Palpatine had described a horrible plot by the Jedi to usurp the republic by assassinating him. The response? Complete destruction of the Jedi order. Tarkin admired the man's dedication to doing what was necessary. But destroying the Jedi tall task. As long as one Jedi was left in the galaxy their antiquated religion would persist.

"Admiral, Commander Shinning hails us from the surface." A clone technician said.

"Put him through."

A miniature hologram of the null clone commander appeared at Tarkin's console "Admirial. We received orders to kill the Jedi traitors. The Master is dead but her apprentice disappeared into the tunnel." The clone Commander said.

"Double your search Commander, but do not forget why we are here. Continue to your target but be advised we have a new objective for you. Once you reach the senate building infiltrate the security network and bring down the planetary shield that surrounds the city."Tarkin said.

"Sir are we going to attack the city from orbit?"

"All you need to know is that we need that shield down. Until then find the remaining Jedi, execute both of Celestia's apprentices or you will find yourself on the wrong side of the Emperor."

Raxus Orbit, 'New Dawn' Medical Bay.

Twilight awoke to singing. She hazily opened her eyes. She was back on board the ship; in the medical bay by the looks of it. A pretty human female with a long white lab coat and curly pink hair sung a song that i did not recognize as she changed my bacta bags.

"How long?" I whispered my voice horse.

I must have frightened her because she jumped back. "Oh you're awake! You startled me you know?"

"How long have I been out?" I repeated.

"Several hours, the bacta is healing the concussion you suffered but it need more time to take effect." She said.

I noticed for the first time that my hands were restrained. I looked up at the doctor with an obvious question on my face.

"Sorry we had to restrain you. Sometimes aliens regets the bacta we use and can induce spasms, this facility was made to treat clone physiology after all."

"wonderful." Twilight said sarcastically. "Wheres my master, did they bring the Seperatist leader in?" I asked.

"I'm afraid I wouldn't know such things. I'm only a field doctor and not really a part of the GAR. But I am an expert in alien biology so when you came in I knew I could help you. Although I must say its a once in a lifetime chance to study an jedi, your anatomy is different then the base-model of your species. Your muscles are stronger and your cells seam to be supercharged and regenerate faster." She said.

Twilight didn't have time for this. She wanted to rejoin her master and the fight. But the restraints kept her from moving except for slight movements.

"Look that's really fascinating but I have to get out of here so why don't you undue these restraints?" Twilight said.

"I'm afraid I cant risk it until you've healed more. Don't worry the procedure should only take a few more hours."

The prospect of spending a few more hours with this bizarre doctor who seemed to have an alien biology fetish disturbed her. She reached out in the force to her master. She felt it but there was something else that overwhelmed her all at once. She felt a great darkness sweep through the force and a thousand jedi lives all ending simultaneously. The lights in the medical bay turned off and were replaced with a red emergency light that winked on and off with the sound of the ships alarm going off. The ripples I felt in the force almost made me pass out from the sheer terror of it. My bond with Celestia too was severed. What had happened? So much death, so much darkness. All this almost took me away from the waking world and I barley noticed when the medical bay's door opened and a dozen clone troopers filed in. Without a word, they drew their rifles and fired.

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