3rd Person

The Jedi joined The Clone War, despite their better judgement.

Putting aside the ethics of their involvement, both Knights and Masters struggled to find themselves as they took on new, unfamiliar roles.

Jedi became generals.

...

Padawans became commanders.

...

Padawans... more often than not, children.

Throughout the incessant bombardment of death and destruction, it was easy to lose sight of that.

It was also easy to willfully ignore it...

If even seasoned Jedi Knights found such a turbulent transition discomforting, what about the most vulnerable... the weakest among the order?

Putting aside the already... questionable conditioning Jedi youth experienced as a part of their training, what additional psychological damage would the war brand them with?

Children... born into a bloodbath. Children... given command of an army. Children... frequently witnessing their friends and comrades perish.

As they grew in such a harsh, volatile environment, it became both an arduous task for the budding saplings to find their place in the galaxy.

Each of them struggled for survival, at odds with the elements... sometimes at odds with each other.

But, eventually...

The saplings would have to sprout their leaves.

Zevon

Grievous had begun his assault.

I could tell as much, based on the frantic exchanges I'd heard over our communications network.

Additionally, alarms had started blaring in the corridors outside our post.

After taking a quick peek outside, Barriss had relayed another startling piece of information.

Someone had initiated a lockdown; thick, armored doors had completely walled our previously planned escape routes.

"Come in! Come in, anyone!" I barked into my communicator.

Ahsoka, Barriss, and I were all huddled together... enveloped in darkness as I sought out a response.

Within the reactor room situated atop the factory, we were alone...

Without guidance.

Finally, a response came through.

"This is Master Gallia speaking." my master's calm, monotone voice relayed.

"Master, can you tell me what's happening down there?" I asked, trying to emulate her cold rationality.

"Grievous has commenced his attack, though... you probably already knew that. They achieved entry through the factory's exterior with lightsabers. Be on the lookout for magnaguards, as well as a few commandos. " she informed.

Another voice then joined the communications channel, with the sounds of hacking and slashing audible in the background.

"Stay where you are... unless you're attacked. In that case, don't engage... contact us immediately." Luminara ordered, cutting out thereafter.

Ahsoka, Barriss, and I looked back and forth at one another, startled by the multiple revelations.

"Why has the factory entered a lockdown?!" Ahsoka demanded, sounding miffed.

"The answer to that question eludes me as well, young Tano. It may have been the overseer... such a move wouldn't be entirely surprising. Still... he could've just as easily been compromised. There's no way to tell without a response from him." Master Gallia informed nonchalantly.

Barriss and I continued to exchange panicked looks...

Meanwhile... Ahsoka stood up, bearing a determined, defiant facial expression.

Remembering a detail from earlier, I zeroed in on the purple lever adjacent to the reactor.

"Master, shouldn't we shut down the reactor? It's only a risk at this point... plus, it may reverse the lockdown." I pointed out logically.

Ahsoka nodded silently, agreeing with me. Meanwhile, Barriss looked skeptical... as if she knew something more.

Before my master could respond, Captain Rex popped into our dialogue.

"Negative, commander Boltreaver. Ignoring the lockdown's purpose, it's still providing some level of protection against the enemy. Whether that outweighs the disadvantages, I can't say, but Lieutenant Burst and I have our hands tied keeping the workers safe." Rex stated.

"Correct, Captain. We also need to keep the outer beacons lit, otherwise Captain Ryoshi will be unable to navigate back and evacuate the villagers." my master concurred. "Much of the factory can operate with reserve power, but not all. We never received the full layout, so our hands are tied."

"Exactly, General. We'll continue priming the villagers for evacuation, as per your orders." Rex agreed, cutting out.

"Are you sure you don't need us down there?" I prodded, still feeling the thirst to prove myself.

"No. You're exactly where you need to be." my master asserted coldly.

Ahsoka shook her head, annoyed. Barriss gave me an empathetic smile.

"I..." I started, then hearing a lightsaber ignite in the background of the channel.

"I can't speak any longer, padawan. Keep your guard up, and don't lose your focus." my master declared.

With that, she exited the channel, leaving the three of us to fend for ourselves.

"Anything from Master Kenobi?" I asked Ahsoka, to which she shook her head in disappointment.

"Zzzzzhhh!"

The distinct sound of crackling electricity immediately had us grabbing for our weapons.

"Pssshew!" "Pssshew!" "Pssshew!"

Ahsoka, Barriss, and I each activated our blades; Green, blue, green.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

From the other side of the door, we heard metal pounding.

"Kssshhhh!"

A green lightsaber melted through the reinforced plating.

Two IG-101 magnaguards then filed through their makeshift entrance.

One wielded the green blade of plasma that had forged their entry point; the other, the usual electrostaff... sparkling with violet energy.

'How in the force could they have possibly made it past our masters?' I thought to myself, my hand quivering.

"Stay behind me, Zevon. These things are tougher than they look." Ahsoka told me, positioning herself between the assassin droids and I.

I clenched my fist in anger, my resentment amplified by the mounting pressure I felt.

"Please, enough of this... I'm not the damsel in distress. Plus, uh... they already look pretty tough." I groaned.

Suddenly, the duo of dastardly droids bolted forward... ready to strike.

Ahsoka and Barriss jumped in front of me. Subsequently, they performed a combined two-handed force push.

"Clang! Clang!"

The metal fiends crashed against the wall in unison.

Going in for the kill, Ahsoka and Barriss tried to skewer the droids while they were down.

"Ksssh! Shhhk!"

Ahsoka beheaded the the one wielding the saber.

"Zzzhhhh!"

Unfortunately... Barriss was a second too late with hers. Its electrostaff brushed her leg, unleashing a surge of purple voltage through her.

"SSsshhhk!" "AAAH!"

I plunged my emerald blade through the droid's chest, my lightsaber's wail blending with Barriss's shriek of pain.

"Barriss!" Ahsoka and I cried out in unison.

We crouched down to tend to her, but Barriss quickly brushed us off.

"I'm fine. Thanks for that, Zevon." she assured.

Then, oddly enough, Barriss began running for the exit.

"Barriss, where are you going?!" Ahsoka yelled in confusion.

"We... we shouldn't engage them." Barriss insisted, echoing her master's words.

"No... we're supposed to stay where we are!" Ahsoka argued back.

"That was only if they didn't reach us...! You know more will come." Barriss maintained, doing her best to push back.

"And? What of it?" Ahsoka frowned, crossing her arms. "Everyone's counting on us, what would happen if we abandoned our post?"

"I... Ahsoka, please... listen to me..." Barriss started, earning a raised eyebrow from the strong-willed togruta. "I don't think it would come to that... what if we're being targeted as well?"

"What do you think, Zevon?" Ahsoka asked, suddenly.

With the full attention of the two promising padawans, I struggled to come up with a response.

Grievous

"Clack."

"Clack."

"Clack."

My claws scraped against the floor as I walked leisurely through the ugly corridors.

The lockdown would slow them down. Even if they realized I'd slipped through their poor defenses, it wouldn't matter.

Furthermore, I still controlled the factory's eyes. Even now, I could see everywhere within the revolting facility.

Implanted deep within my brain, there existed a neural chip.

This chip directly linked my consciousness with each of my android soldiers. With this connection, I could see what they saw, be multiple places at once, even command my soldiers from afar.

It was impossible to control an entire army remotely with this method, but it worked perfectly with a small, elite force.

Earlier, I'd simply left one of my commandos in that wretched overseer's office. Even now, I could seamlessly view the surveillance system through that droid.

My neural link was the crown jewel of my strategy. With it, I was all-seeing... all-knowing.

I was always one step ahead.

Just like someone else I knew.

'You will infiltrate the Rothana system, invade the planet Irisella, and annihilate the weapons factory located there.'

I remembered his words.

'Dispose of the Jedi as you please... you would do well to kill Kenobi, or Skywalker's young apprentice... but see to it that Skywalker lives.'

Tsk. What a bother.

I would do as he commanded... but only for the chance to kill more Jedi. After all, that's why I'd even taken this position.

I was no slave, no errand boy to anyone. I lived to kill Jedi... as long as that purpose coincided with the Dark Lord's plans, I would play along.

Still... I was growing tired of this farce. The separatists may have had a noble cause, but their crooked leadership was beyond unsightly.

Even Dooku, with his seemingly genuine idealism, too often found himself trapped in political theatre. For such an aged, prudent man, he was incredibly naïve.

'You must allow the natives to escape before the factory's destruction. That way, more systems across the galaxy will be singing our praises.'

That was what Dooku had told me.

"Hahahaha!" I cackled to myself.

Those poor natives, if only they knew... they were but pieces on a larger gameboard.

Dooku was no saint. After all, he'd been a Jedi once.

Yes... Jedi.

No more distractions.

Right now, I had to focus on the work at hand.

Zevon

Ahsoka and Barriss were still arguing, while I tried to distract myself on the sidelines.

I held the fallen magnaguard's lightsaber in my hand.

Well, that wasn't quite accurate. It wasn't the magnaguard's... it had once belonged to a Jedi.

That true owner of the blade was surely dead now, their saber cursed to collect dust on the infamous Jedi killer's wall.

Now that I'd gotten a good look at it, the craftsmanship was... quite poor. The hilt was awkward, clunky... hastily put together.

It was heavy... much heavier than Master Gallia's loaner.

Strangely enough, I already like I could somehow... relate to the original owner.

"Clack."

"Clack."

"Clack."

The approaching sound of footsteps jolted us to our senses.

"Clack."

The footsteps... they didn't sound like any living being.

As the source of the sound made his way through the exposed entrance, our worst fears were confirmed.

General Grievous.

He was as terrifying as the stories claimed.

Draped in a jet black cloak, the droid general's cyborg body was the stuff of nightmares.

His spindly, robotic appendages could have fit on an insectoid.

His ghostly metal face was more of a mask than anything...

And those sunken, yellow eyes... I could almost feel myself being pushed back from the hatred emanating from his gaze.

Grievous surveyed the room, arms behind his back, until his eyes settled on our unsheathed weapons.

"Your lightsabers will make fine additions to my collection!" Grievous exclaimed, coughing twice afterward.

With the general's announcement, I broke out of my momentary spell of shock.

"General Grievous has just entered the reactor room! I repeat, General Grievous has just entered the reactor room! I repeat..." I shouted into my communicator, adding several more repetitions.

"Yes... call for your masters, youngling. They won't be coming." Grievous jeered, then splitting his cyborg arms into four.

"Pssshew!" "Pssshew!" "Pssshew!" "Pssshew!"

Cutting to the chase, Grievous made no effort to hide his full strength.

Two blue sabers... two green.

"Come in! GENERAL GRIEVOUS HAS JUST ENTERED THE REACTOR ROOM!" I screamed, still starved of any response... any form of acknowledgement.

"For a great and powerful general... I'm quite merciful. I don't usually relish killing children, but, well... if you're Jedi..." General Grievous started, raising his four stolen lightsabers. "Then, it's no different than ripping out a patch of budding weeds."

"Great and powerful? In case you've forgotten, I won the last time we faced off." Ahsoka smirked, sounding cocky.

"I remember you... Skywalker's pet. You still won't be a challenge for me." Grievous snickered, then turning his attention to Barriss, unexpectedly. "You must be Barriss Offee. I assume you know who I am?"

Barriss shuddered as the droid general crept toward her.

"You're a coward." Barriss whispered, barely audible.

"I didn't quite catch that, Jedi scum." Grievous taunted, pointing to where his ear would have been.

"General Grievous, the coward. All Jedi within the temple speak of it." Barriss stuttered defiantly.

Grievous coughed in amusement, his keen yellow eyes still transfixed on Barriss.

He took another measured step forward, his clawed foot scraping against the floor.

Grievous then lifted his cloak, unveiling an array of lightsabers clipped to his waist.

"Interesting... and what of these Jedi? What did they have to say?" Grievous questioned, his eyes widening with malice.

The three of us shuddered as Grievous came a little closer.

"We... we should run." Barriss advised fearfully.

"No!" Ahsoka stated firmly. "We stand and fight!"

Just then, Grievous struck. His multiple lightsabers writhed and thrashed, producing an ominous lightshow...

"Kssh!" "Kssh!" Kssh!" Kssh!"

Ahsoka intercepted the majority of his strikes with form V, while I repelled the secondary ones with form I.

To be brutally honest... it was very taxing for me to keep up with all four of the general's limbs at once.

Then again... I'd been sparring with HK-74 for years... this wasn't my first bantha rodeo!

Barriss soon reluctantly joined in, opting for an all-out defense with her preferred form, form III.

"Ssshhhheewww!" Ahsoka took a swipe at the general, but Grievous effortlessly pushed her back with the combined strength of his four sabers.

Thinking I had an opening, I swung at Grievous with all my might...

"KKKKKKKKSSSSSHHHHHH!!"

Five blades of plasma clashed together, with Grievous bearing down on me with his unnatural strength. To his surprise, I pushed back... refusing to let up.

"A contest of strength, youngling?!" Grievous spat. "If that's what you want, then embrace your doom."

It happened so fast, I didn't have time to react. For a moment, I was lightsaber-locked with Grievous. Then... I was face-down on the metal floor, my ears ringing.

I peered up to see Ahsoka and Barriss, still fighting.

We'd been so disorganized... so uncoordinated. Of course we never had a chance.

Soon enough... our lightsabers would be displayed on the Jedi killer's wall too.

...

Our lightsabers?

I grabbed the clunky, unwieldy lightsaber from my belt.

Comparing it with Master Gallia's hand-me-down, I made an observation.

The new saber was far heavier...

"Kkkkkkk."

Suddenly, a voice came through my communicator.

"I got the message, Zevon... I'm on my way." Master Kenobi assured confidently.

With that, he cut out.

That was good news, at least.

...

We just had to hold out a little longer.

Barriss took a step back, focusing on the clusters of machinery behind her.

As Ahsoka leapt into the air with a force jump, Barriss began using the force to hurl fan blades, sharp discs, and other pieces of machinery at Grievous.

"Kssssh!" Shhheww!" "Sssshhhk!"

The machine devil looked almost... bored as he tore through the projectiles Barriss had flung.

Once he'd fended off Barriss's barrage, as well as Ahsoka's jumping slam, his lightsabers began doing something terrifying.

They began spinning, curtesy of the general's cybernetic enhancements.

It wasn't long before all four of his plasma blades had been whipped into a whirling frenzy.

Taking a few steps back, Barriss's gaze settled on the entrance to a ventilation shaft within the floor.

She then dove in...

'Barriss... what are you thinking?' I wondered to myself.

"A wise decision!" Grievous cackled, interpreting her course of action as a cowardly escape.

Glaring at the droid general, Ahsoka closed in.

Ahsoka valiantly attempted to parry on of Grievous's spinning sabers of death, but she miscalculated...

"Crash!"

The force of impact was so potent, it flung Ahsoka into a piece of heavy machinery.

Though she quickly recovered with a kip-up, Ahsoka appeared to be dazed.

"Ugh..." she groaned, caressing her head.

Still weighing the two lightsabers in my hands, I came to a solid conclusion.

'Master Gallia, your lightsaber just doesn't suit me.' I asserted within myself.

"Ahsoka!!" I called out. Once I'd grabbed her attention, I held up the worn, secondhand lightsaber. "Catch!"

I lobbed the weapon at her, with Ahsoka swiftly summoning it to her free hand.

"Psshhew!"

Ahsoka wasted no time, igniting the blade of the second laser sword she'd acquired.

Subsequently, she flipped her grip on each of the twin green, glowing blades.

Dual-wielding reverse grip.

After that, Grievous approached her yet again... his quadruple laser swords still spinning like a whirlpool.

Grievous held the gyrating sabers extremely close to the floor. Therefore... with each rotation, the whirling wheels of light melted through the factory floor.

As a result, red-hot gashes marked the floor behind him.

An effective scare tactic.

The droid general rushed forward, his four plasma blades targeting Ahsoka's vitals.

"Kssssh!

"Ksshhhh!"

"Kssh!"

"Kssssshhhhhh!"

Now armed with twice her previous parrying potential, Ahsoka ducked, weaved, and guarded through Grievous's assault.

Regardless... the half-machine devil was still incredibly difficult to keep up with. Ahsoka was still on the backfoot.

...

She needed an assist.

"Pssshew!"

I activated the heavy lightsaber in my hand... my lightsaber.

"Tap... Tap.. Tap. Tap!"

Lightsaber Form II, Makashi: Severance.

Charging at Grievous, I twisted my torso to generate force. The result was a strong, elegant, severing blow...

"Kssssssssssshhhhh!"

My blade made contact with two of his.

For a brief second, I witnessed the cyborg's eyes widen in shock as he withstood the hefty force of my swing.

Honing in on an opening, I kicked off the ground.

Then, I shot through the air...

Finally... my boot smashed into Grievous's chest area.

I sent the Jedi killer flying. Even though he stopped himself with his lightsabers, he started coughing violently thereafter.

My kick had done its job.

I felt a pat on the back, and then Ahsoka was right next to me... shoulder to shoulder.

"Thanks for the save. This feels... surprisingly natural!" Ahsoka remarked, marveling at the new style of dueling she'd discovered.

"I'm at least glad you have a use for that... antique. I needed something a little more... rough around the edges." I frowned, feeling the clunky, heavy weapon in my hands.

Despite the chit-chat, our eyes were still focused entirely on the monster before us.

"Aaagghhh!" Grievous hacked, clutching his chest. "A lucky hit, but Grievous will not be bested so easily!"

Unbeknownst to Grievous, he would soon be blindsided by a surprise attack.

"Sssssshhhhk!"

Grievous's cybernetics must have come with lightning-quick reflexes... otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to evade the blue lightsaber that pierced through the floor under him.

"Raaaagghh!!" Grievous roared, eluding the azure blade as it continued to chase after him.

Seizing the moment, Ahsoka and I closed in to engage the droid general once more.

Just as we were about to reach Grievous, Barriss burst up through the perforated metal floor.

"About time!" Ahsoka cheered, seeing her friend erupt from the ventilation shaft.

"I almost got him..." Barriss lamented, assuming her form III stance.

"Almost, but I'm the one who's going to bring that tinny down for good." Ahsoka boasted, assuming her form IV stance.

I assumed my form II stance, huddling with my two companions.

"Finally, a challenge!" Grievous roared.

We were finally united. A trio of padawans... three as one.

"We can win this... let's go!" I urged, ready to face the monster in front of me.

"Wait!" Ahsoka barked, stopping me in my tracks. Her following words were spoken with a hushed whisper. "Barriss, we can wear him down... push him back. Before that, though..." she trailed off, turning to me. "Zevon, we'll need you to soften him up."

Barriss and I nodded, understanding her rationale.

With our strategy set in motion, we met General Grievous head on.

"Finally, a challenge!" the devilish droid general roared.

Finally working as a team, we began synchronizing our attacks, succeeding in putting General Grievous on the backfoot.

I would land the big, powerful blows... leaving the general open.

Then, Barriss and Ahsoka went in with their polished swordplay.

Ahsoka was our most valuable fighter... naturally. She was nearly on a novice knight's level with form IV, Ataru, as well as form V, Djem so.

"Zevon... I think I want to keep this." Ahsoka confessed humorously, referring to her second lightsaber.

Burst

Grievous wasn't for us to take on directly. The Jedi... the droid general was their objective.

Meanwhile... Rex and I had ours.

Barricaded within the main assembly room, we two brothers were the Umidori's only line of defense.

We were the only ones standing against the horde.

The horde of commando droids...

I could've gone through my whole miserable life without seeing another one.

"Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!"

The sturdy, armored hatch would keep them out... but only for a bit longer.

Then... I'd be thrown into the thick of it.

Again.

...

I felt Captain Rex pat me on the shoulder.

"Just do your duty, Burst... whatever that means to you." the Captain instructed.

"Yes, sir." I complied, veiling the fear in my voice.

"Sir!" Suddenly, I heard a hiss from behind me. Unfamiliar with being addressed as such, I didn't acknowledge it. "...Lieutenant?!" I heard the voice repeat, at which I finally turned around.

"What is it, kid?!" I demanded, speaking to the one called "Levi," who stood next to his wheelchair-bound sister Athina.

I was on edge... naturally.

"Sorry sir... I was just going to ask if you could spare a few of... those..." he trailed off, pointing at the endless supply of weaponry strapped to my armor. "We want to fight as well, to protect ourselves..."

"Trust me... you wouldn't know how to use 'em." I claimed, brushing him off.

"Are you sure the captain's going to show up, kid?" Rex suddenly questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Mister Ryoshi will come." Athina growled assertively.

"Ssshhhhhewwwww!"

Captain Rex and I steeled ourselves, seeing a blue lightsaber pierce through the armored barricade.

"Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!"

As soon as they broke through, we started blasting.

There were less than expected, but regardless... we were only two soldiers.

"Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!"

They entered in quick succession, and we were soon unable to stop the flow.

The commandos... armed with lightsabers and vibroswords, were soon mere meters away.

With my twin blasters on cooldown... I deployed one of my new toys.

"brum-brum-brum-brum-brrrrRRRR!"

Out of a gauntlet on my right arm, appeared...

A vibrochainsaw.

"BrrrrrrrRRRR!"

I shredded through the opposition with ease.

As Rex, beside me, continued unloading on the clankers with his dual pistols, I detected movement out of the corner of my eye...

A commando, running along the wall.

The flow had started to wane... Rex would be able to handle it alone now.

"Captain, I'm engaging!" I shouted, with Rex giving me a nod of approval.

"Tap! Tap! Tap!"

I chased the elusive metal assassin as it ascended a column of scaffolding that brought us near the electromagnet control room.

When I reached the top, I was ambushed with an overhead chop from the droid's vibrosword...

Needless to say, I'd seen it coming. Despite their surface-level intelligence, once you'd seen one... you'd seen them all.

""brum-brum-brum-brum-brrrrRRRR!"

I bisected the commando down the middle, my vibrochainsaw shrieking throughout.

...

I rejoined Rex as he waited for stragglers.

"How about a thermal, Lieutenant?" Rex suggested.

"Sir, we didn't bring any." I reminded him.

"Oh, yeah. Forgot about that." Captain Rex chuckled, before quick-drawing his pistols again.

"Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!" "Pew!"

We blasted the rest, reducing them to smoking husks of metal.

As I stared at the droids' remains, I once against lost myself in my thoughts...

Droids were... they were hollow replicas of living beings. They weren't even monsters... at least a monster had instinct, a desire to survive.

Droids were just... programming.

If a commando droid was simply a mechanized puppet, and a living being was the opposite...

Where did I land on that spectrum?

...

The stormy silhouette of a sea vessel finally marked Captain Ryoshi's return.

After the Umidori workers scrambled onto his deck, they waved us off with gusto.

"Why aren't you coming?" Athina roared down at us as they began setting sail.

"There's more clankers!" I yelled back, shaking my head. "There's always more..." I muttered in disgust.

The green, shark-like people persisted in their grateful farewells until eventually, their ship disappeared into the tempest's mist.

Rex and I immediately started trying to contact one of the Jedi Masters.

As I repeatedly abused my communicator, a large, red, barrel-like container caught my eye.

The circular symbol painted on the front resulted in instant recognition.

A rhydonium canister.

...

A rhydonium canister.

...

Of course! How could I... how could we have missed that?

Rhydonium was an incredibly volatile, explosive fuel.

It was far too expensive to be used for conventional warfare... in other words, demolitions.

However, being that it was a starship fuel used by countless spacecraft, could it have eluded the blockade's scanners?

"Kkkkkkkk."

We'd finally gotten through to a Jedi.

"...This is Master Gallia speaking."

'Great.' I thought.

"This is Captain Rex and Lieutenant Burst speaking, General." Rex informed her. "We've successfully overseen the evacuation of all galactic citizens."

"Excellent news, captain." Master Gallia stated, with audible splashing in the background.

"General, there's something you need to know." I suddenly urged.

"Continue, Lieutenant Burst." the general allowed.

"Rhydonium, General. Ask yourself this: would General Grievous have been able to slip past the blockade with a cache of rhydonium fuel?"

...

"I never considered that... would rhydonium appear on the scanners? I'm not sure... would Grievous...?" she trailed off, evidently blindsided by my question.

"If I were looking to blow this place sky high, that's exactly how I would do it." I affirmed, sure I was onto something.

General Gallia paused for a long while, still absorbing the bombshell I'd just dropped.

Adi

"Valuable input, Lieutenant." I praised, wading out of the ocean.

Climbing through an external hole created by the invaders, I immediately sighted Master Luminara up ahead.

The corridor ahead of her was crawling with magnaguards...

Multicolored lightsabers and electrostaffs everywhere...

My robe was dripping wet, a fact that Master Luminara immediately picked up on once she noticed me.

"I want to ask how you got soaked, but... that wouldn't be appropriate, would it? Things don't seem to be going well right now." Luminara quipped, maintaining her composure despite our grim predicament.

"Certainly not." I corroborated, gesturing toward the array of deadly droids blocking our path.

"I'd wager we can push right through them... you're familiar with the sword and shield maneuver? More specifically, its variant known as... sword and shield rush." Luminara suggested, assuming her Form III stance.

"I know it well, but... wait just a minute." I instructed. Luminara promptly directed some of her attention my way, glancing out of the corner of her eye with stone-faced curiosity. "On my way here, I encountered more magnaguards... underwater."

"Your hunch from earlier...." Luminara murmured, following my line of thought.

I nodded.

"This entire attack could be a farce. I've lost communication with the overseer, thus depriving us of any surveillance. From this moment forward, we're going through this operation blind... Grievous could be priming those supports for detonation as we speak." I monologued, moving through my logical processes.

"You think we should go investigate?" Luminara continued for me.

"It would be the wise decision. As for the padawans... Master Kenobi is already headed their way." I rationalized.

Luminara paused, the possible scenarios gnawing at her.

"To tell you the truth, I'm more concerned about my padawan right now." Luminara stated bluntly.

...

"Right. To the top, then." I conceded, assuming my Form II stance.

Immediately after, we bolted forward... welcoming the onslaught of vibroblades, electrostaffs, and plundered lightsabers.

With the elegance of Makashi, reinforced by the resilience of Soresu, we joined together in a perfect rush.

When confronted with an incoming foe, our methodology was simple.

"Kssshh!"

"Ssshhk!"

She would parry; I would strike.

"Kssh!" "Sshhk!"

As we sliced and diced our way through the metal fiends, our lightsaber colors blended into a brilliant dance of blue and green.

"Ksssh!" "Ssshhk!"

Our duo continued spiraling through the corridor, blitzing through the horde until we reached the stairwell.

Anakin

My starfighter shot through the sky as I performed another daring maneuver, my body twisting and contorting from the gravitational force.

With three vulture droids pursuing me, I had to shift into overdrive.

Though... I still need to exercise some level of caution.

This would be a battle of attrition... with every forceful maneuver burning through my fighter's rhydonium fuel supply.

The droids were nothing to laugh at either. I'd underestimated them at first, but these unmanned fighters had already displayed intelligence far beyond their normal counterparts.

Grievous had been unable to bring a full army, so it would stand to reason that he would only bring the finest droids the separatists could offer.

Still, they were no match for me. A bit arrogant, sure... but I knew my own abilities...

Suddenly, I caught sight of something ahead of me.

Gas clouds.

The storm forming overhead had darkened the sky, but with the little light still penetrating through, as well as my fighter's targeting systems, I caught sight of the hazy hazard.

"Neeeuuuyyoow!"

My aethersprite starfighter shrieked as I took it into a spiral, evading the combustible clouds of contaminants.

I then directed my spiral upward, all while continuing to spin.

"Pshew!" "Pshew!" "Pshew!"

The vulture droids persisted with their laser fire.

I could even hear muffled explosions as stray lasers ignited pockets of gas.

Then, abruptly...

I reduced my acceleration to zero.

My thrusters extinguished themselves, bringing a calm silence to my cockpit.

Then, I fell.

I fell right through my my trio of pursuers; they had taken evasive action immediately after my unanticipated stop.

My starfighter plummeted from the sky, tumbling from the aerodynamics.

Still...

I was in control.

Even as my spacecraft pierced through one of the clouds of death, everything was as I had willed it.

I guided my fighter through the descent, until I was facing the sky.

There they were... my pursuers, having just finished their sharp turnaround.

As I continued to fall, closer and closer to the sea, I waited... my fingers on the triggers.

Wait...

And...

I witnessed them fly close in proximity to one of the gas clouds.

Now!

"Pshew! Pshew! Pshew! Pshew! Pshew!"

"BOOOOOOM!"

I clamped down on the triggers, unleashed several piercing bolts of energy that, when they contacted the clouds of contaminants, ignited them in an explosive inferno.

Zevon

After our second wind, the three of us had succeeded in forcing a retreat from the slimy cyborg.

When fleeing, Grievous utilized his six limbs to scuttle like an insect.

It was almost comical.

Regardless, we chased him down as if possessed... we couldn't miss this chance!

I spearheaded our pursuit, being the fastest...

As I ran and ran, I wondered to myself...

Should I use it now?

The thought persistently floated around my subconscious, yet I decided against it.

I couldn't rely on that ability just yet.

And, sure enough... my natural speed was still enough.

Leaping forward, I came within range of Grievous at long last.

Lightsaber Form II, Makashi: Severance.

My sweeping slash aimed to dismember his cybernetic legs.

"nnnnnnn."

Infuriatingly, at the last second, Grievous retracted his legs...

"Crash!"

Afterward, he kicked them back, sending me crashing into an amalgamation of pipes.

"Zevon!" Ahsoka yelled, concerned.

The impact disarmed the lightsaber from my hand, the weapon arcing through the air...

"GrrRRRRrrrRrR!"

In an instance of the worst luck possible, my newly acquired lightsaber fell directly into operating machinery.

The delicate device was shredded into a thousand shards almost instantly, its remains being spewed from the apparatus it fell into.

"I'm fine, keep up the chase!!" I yelled, Ahsoka and Barriss complying with my wishes.

Still, I was incredibly bitter...

"Clang!" I punched the floor as I struggled to get on my feet.

Damn it, I just got ahold of that thing!

Peering down at the saber's remains, I saw the twinkle of a green kyber crystal among the pieces.

I quickly stowed the crystal in my robe...

Afterward, I rejoined the chase.

I reunited with my teammates as they pushed Grievous to the factory roof.

With nowhere to run, Grievous was forced to engage us once more.

Before doing so, In a surprising twist, he fused his four arms back into two.

...

Had he overextended himself?

"You'll need this, Zevon." Ahsoka whispered, handing back the secondhand saber.

"Thanks." I acknowledged, then focusing on the cyborg general.

"Hey head clanker, there's nowhere to run now!" Ahsoka heckled.

"You've been cornered." I added on.

"..."

Barriss had nothing to say.

"Pssshew!" "Pssshhew!"

"Exactly right, youngling... however, I think you misunderstand who'll be running." the half-machine general responded, igniting a green lightsaber along with a blue.

Ignoring his warning, our trio attacked, aiming to bring the mighty droid general to his knees.

Perhaps we should have taken his words at face value.

"Ksssh!" "Ksssh!" "Ksssshh!"

Grievous spun his body in a circle, deflecting all of our attacks simultaneously.

"Ksssh!" "Ksssh!" "kSSSSHH!"

He then began doing all sorts of crazy acrobatic maneuvers, with surprising skill.

Earlier, I'd perceived the general's technique as poor, unpolished... It took one to know one.

My earlier assessment had been faulty... Grievous's blades weren't guided by the force, but there was a profound amount of experience behind his swordplay.

He'd been... he'd been going easy on us.

In a swift upset, Grievous disarmed all three of us at once.

Finally... his blades of plasma came down for the kill.

They never reached their targets.

In an absurd feat of hysterical strength, I caught each of the Jedi killer's cybernetic forearms as he brought them down.

I stopped his blades... only seconds before they reached Ahsoka and Barriss.

As the mechanical monster bore down on me, I felt pure hatred and bloodlust radiating from his sunken yellow eyes.

I glared back, and... as I continued to hold him back with all my strength, I saw a glimmer among the hatred.

What that glimmer meant, exactly... I wasn't sure.

After Ahsoka and Barriss regained their feet, they expertly regained control of the situation.

First, they utilized a combined force pull to safely extract me from the droid general's clutches...

Second, they combined their telekinetic powers once more to send Grievous flying.

He quickly recovered by slowing himself with his laser swords, as per usual.

After we three exchanged nods of gratitude, we attacked once more.

"Pssshew!"

Then... In the most astonishing twist of all, Grievous ignited a third lightsaber, holding it with one of his feet.

"Ksssshh!" "Ksssh!" "Kssshh!"

With that, the tides were completely turned, and Grievous began picking us off one by one.

First, he violently kicked Barriss in the abdomen.

"Barriss!" Ahsoka and I cried out.

She crumpled to the ground, groaning in pain.

Secondly, after expertly parrying Ahsoka's form IV, Grievous slashed across her back, leaving a nasty, melted scar.

"Ahsoka!!!" I cried out, enraged.

Finally... after easily keeping up with an unfocused flurry of attack from myself, Grievous struck me over the head with the hilt of one of his sabers.

As I collapsed on the factory roof, I was unable to focus my vision.

My head was spinning...

Regardless, I saw Grievous, standing over me with his lightsaber held high...

'No... not... now...' I faintly thought to myself.

To my surprise, Grievous hesitated for a moment, and I saw that glimmer once more...

Then, he turned his lightsaber away from me.

It's not that he'd decided to let me live, of course not...

Something else had caught his attention...

Grievous turned around, focusing on the rooftop hatch we'd climbed through.

"He will be here at any moment." Grievous stated, coughing a bit.

"Bang!"

"Clang!"

Without warning, the hatch was forced open, its metal covering clattering onto the roof.

A figure leapt out of the hole, flipping through the air before landing on his feet.

"Grievous!!!" Master Kenobi roared, capturing the droid general's attention.

"General Kenobi!" Grievous exclaimed with his arms spread wide, as if he was reuniting with an old acquaintance.

"Oh, how I've missed you... darling." Master Kenobi jeered, mocking the cyborg.

"Really? Then... you'll be disappointed to hear that I'm ready to end this eternal affair." the droid general retorted.

"Psshew!"

Master Kenobi ignited his blue saber, assuming his iconic form III stance.

"nnnnnnnnn."

Grievous's two blades hummed eerily.

"Ksssh!" Ksssh!"

The duel between bitter rivals commenced, With Grievous striking twice to start out.

"Ksssh!"

"Kssh!"

"Ksssh!"

"Ksh!"

Grievous was relentless... unstoppable, but... Master Kenobi made no effort to stop him.

True to Soresu, he efficiently parried and evaded every strike.

He was consistently on the backfoot, but... it was completely intentional.

"Ever the count's loyal servant, I see." Master Kenobi quipped, sending the cyborg into a rage.

"Kssssshhhhh!"

"Kssh!"

"Sssshhhk!"

"nnnnnnnn."

Grievous hacked and flourished his twin sabers like a wild animal, still failing to catch the slippery Jedi Master.

"I'm no servant... I've merely chosen to play Dooku's game. Then again, so have you." General Grievous mocked, attempting to cripple Kenobi with a leg sweep.

Master Kenobi hurdled the attack quite comfortably.

"Ksssshh!"

"Kssh!"

"Kssh!"

Grievous began bludgeoning Master Kenobi with combined overhead strikes from both of his plasma blades... which Kenobi pushed back with an effective horizontal guard.

He wasn't just slippery... he was strong, too.

"I lured all of you here for a reason, Kenobi." Grievous cryptically hinted, flourishing his two blades to try and intimidate his nemesis.

"Oh, now I'm curious!" Master Kenobi exclaimed jokingly.

"The view, Jedi." Grievous uttered, true meaning behind his words still unknown.

Their clash continued, capturing the attention of Ahsoka, Barriss, and I.

Jedi Master Obi-wan Kenobi was on another level.

Gradually, the three of us began to recover.

Barriss got up the quickest... her injuries were negligible.

Ahsoka was probably in the most pain... the gash on her back was shallow, but it burned.

I knew that from prior experience.

I was still lightly concussed, but I was slowly regaining my internal balance.

"Zzzzzhhhh!"

All of a sudden... I caught wind of a deadly, ominous sound.

Electricity, crackling... coming from an electrostaff.

Sure enough, the spindly, metal fingers of magnaguards began creeping over the edge of the roof.

Omnidirectionally, Grievous's reinforcements started summiting the factory, surrounding us.

No... reinforcements was the wrong word.

There weren't many at all... the droid general was running dry.

I smiled to myself.

'This will be over soon.' I assured myself.

As if on cue, our two missing masters promptly popped out of the open hatch atop the factory.

"Master!" Barriss cried out, seeing Master Luminara.

"Barriss... it's good to see that you're okay." Master Luminara smiled sincerely, turning toward the dual dueling generals.

"Master..." I acknowledged, locking eyes with my tholothian mentor.

...

"You've done well to make it this far, padawans. General Grievous is a fearsome foe." Master Gallia stated, focusing her attention on our primary target. "Sorting out any mishaps will have to wait... there's still work to be done."

With that... as five Jedi, united... we ran toward our final goal: General Grievous.

After noticing our approach, Grievous performed a mini-retreat, shielding himself with the last of his robotic warriors.

The now six Jedi, standing before him, had backed the cowardly creature into a corner.

Adi Gallia.

Obi-wan Kenobi.

Luminara Unduli.

Ahsoka Tano.

Barriss Offee.

Zevon Boltreaver.

It had been a rough, chaotic operation, but the end was in sight...

I'd done... well.

Right?

"Surrender, General. You won't get away this time." Master Kenobi advised.

Grievous merely laughed at the threat.

"Finally... it's time. Time for me to reveal my hand." Grievous coughed.

"I'd say it's time for you to be brought to justice." Master Luminara fired back.

"Your tyrannical grip on the galaxy ends here, General Grievous." Master Gallia declared.

"I was hoping to complete this trivial task once I'd killed you all." Grievous lamented, raising one of his cybernetic hands. "You should be thankful, Jedi... before your deaths, I'm going to show you my superiority firsthand."

As General Grievous began cackling uncontrollably, the six of us steeled ourselves, frantically anticipating some sort of bombardment or explosion.

Instead, we heard the distant scream of vulture droids.

Behind Grievous, two specks materialized in the stormy sky.

"Anakin! You've got more company!" Master Kenobi shouted into his communicator.

"I'd better go welcome them, then." Anakin replied, his starfighter changing course.

"Pew!"

We all simultaneously heard the faraway sound of a blaster cannon firing.

A distant, glowing crimson dot indicated that one of the vulture droids had opened fire...

It opened fire, on what... exactly?

The answer soon became clear.

In that instant, one bolt of energy from the vulture droid's blaster cannons became a spark on dry wood.

Then...

Far ahead...

In the distance...

On the horizon...

I witnessed the ocean's surface burst into flames.

It started as merely a tiny, glowing, orange glimmer in the distance.

Then, it began to spread outward from the point of origin.

Waves became ripples of flame... sea spray became blazing pillars of fire, and the scorching shockwave grew ever closer to us.

The vast body of water before us had been set ablaze... a manifestation of the ocean's fiery fury.

Grievous's cloak billowed in the tempest. With his cybernetic, skeletal hand still raised high, the approaching inferno became a backdrop to the general's spiteful resolve.

...

The six of us stood in an apprehensive silence, unsure of our next move.

All six of our minds were moving a kilometer a minute, surely.

I shuddered, but there shouldn't have been any cause for concern.

Fear factor aside, the outer wall would shield us from the sea of fire.

That's what I thought... until I spotted the second half of the droid general's ultimate strategy.

"Gurrroooohhhhh!"

I heard it... the deep, anguished roar of a leviathan.

Its dark, silhouetted form steadily rose from the depths, revealing the true extent of its colossal size... as well as other distinct features.

Elongated jaws, armed with rows of razor-sharp teeth.

Seaworthy wings that propelled its hydrodynamic body through the currents.

Even from so far away, I could see the constant dripping of the noxious contaminants clinging to the creature's wings.

A serpentine body, black as night... stained from the viscous, inky chemicals.

Stygian, thorny spines ran down its back, as well as various crescent-like fins.

Atsuminagi, the Rainbow Dragon... fleeing from the expanding sea of fire.

Though... with that dark, murky, corrupted appearance, it was difficult to corroborate the 'rainbow' part.

One thing was certain.

Atsuminagi was headed on a collision course with the factory.