Chapter 18
Chapter 17
Disclaimer: Same as previous chapters.
Warning: We are now at the final battle of episode 2 but in this chapter it is going to go a little AU.
Chapter 17
As they were being led out to this grand coliseum Andrew wondered why they would be executed in such a public manner.
Padmé looked at Faith and sighed, “Faith before we go I’d like to say that I do care for you, a lot.”
Faith grinned, “Really? What about the forbidden thing, can we get past that?”
She nodded and kissed Faith deeply and whispered, “We’re probably going to die in a couple of minutes so it probably doesn’t matter.”
Anakin was staring at Padmé and looked at Andrew and smiled sadly, “I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you from this.”
Andrew smiled and whispered, “It’ll be alright, I promise,” and reached over and kissed Anakin, surprising him. “Sorry,” he whispered, “I think Padmé is right; I’m willing to try this if you want?”
“Yes,” Anakin nearly shouted as they were led out into a large area, he kissed Andrew back and said, “We’re going to make it.”
As they were led out into the light Andrew noted all of the Geonosians hooting and calling and he felt that at least they were going out with a large audience, he saw Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan there.
“See Obi-Wan,” Qui-Gon said trying to lighten the mood, “I told you our Padawans would come and save us.”
“Oh they did a great job,” Obi-Wan sighed, “Didn’t they? And now they are here with us.”
Faith and Anakin smiled sheepishly at their masters and Qui-Gon sighed, “Did you at least send the message to the council?”
“Yes she did,” Anakin said, “And we decided to come and rescue you.”
Obi-Wan looked around and said, “Great job.”
Anakin and Faith sighed as they were being chained to the pillars; Andrew winced as they roughly pulled his arms back and tied him to the pillar.
Dooku walked into the balcony and Padmé noticed several people behind him: the Techno Union, the Banking Clan, Nate Gunray and the bounty hunter wearing Mandalorian armour. She sighed; Dooku had managed to get several powerful allies.
Andrew listened to Dooku make some grandiose speech about them being executed for crimes against the CIS.
As Dooku looked at the young Padawans as he had heard about the two of them, a pity they had to die here but Andrew might not have to. He looked at Jango and said, “If the boy Andrew survives, he is to be brought to me.”
Jango nodded, he was going to look forwards to this as he held his clone son close to him and they watched the creatures coming out.
Andrew looked at the creatures coming out and he could feel their rage and hunger; they were being mistreated and starved. He heard a whisper in his mind say, Exile, do you feel their minds? Reach out and touch them, feel the rage the anger and learn to manipulate them.
‘What the hell!?’ Andrew thought but shook his head as he reached out through the Force, remembering the lessons he was taught by a priest of life and combined it with what the voice said.
The first beast stopped coming and it looked at Andrew almost expectedly as Andrew sent out a feeling of brotherhood and friendship.
It looked at its handler and suddenly turned on it, attacking viciously and eating it whole as Dooku looked on impressed, ‘The boy would make an impressive apprentice.’
Faith saw Padmé under attack from another creature and using strength she didn’t know she had, ripped herself free of the chains and rushed over to help Padmé.
Nate Gunray yelled, “She can’t do that!! Somebody stop her, kill her, kill them both!!”
Jango looked at him and said, “Sir, what did you expect her to do? Let the creature eat her?”
The creature Andrew had befriended had rushed over to its new friend and began to gnaw at his chains, freeing him as Anakin managed to get free.
Obi-Wan saw Anakin rushing over to Andrew’s side and muttered, “Great, he’s forming an attachment to him.”
Qui-Gon smiled, “It’s going to be alright Obi-Wan, I can sense it.”
“Very well,” Obi-Wan said, “But maybe we should worry about the massive beast rushing our way,” and managed to push it away with the force, “And then we can talk to Anakin.”
“Indeed,” Qui-Gon said as he jumped onto the back of another beast and managed to calm it down.
Dooku looked impressed; his old apprentice was still as skilled as he was when he was still a Padawan. He heard the Viceroy scream, “Summon the droids!!” and commanded Jango to go down there and kill them all.
Before Jango could go down to the arena a violet lightsaber came in front of Count Dooku and Mace said, “Count Dooku, this party’s over.”
“Master Windu,” Dooku said, “So good of you to join us.”
All around the arena Jedi switched on their lightsabers and they jumped down into the arena followed by Mace, two Jedi threw lightsabers to Anakin and Faith.
Andrew jumped onto the back of the creature, fumbling around his robes looking for the hidden lightsaber and he ignited his lightsaber and jumped down in front of Padmé.
She looked shocked, ‘Andrew has a lightsaber? That was incredible; does he know how to use it?’ “Be careful Andrew,” Padmé whispered, “Mom’s going to kill you if you lop of your own foot.”
He laughed nervously as he stood in front of her, ready to defend his sister.
Dooku had Jango enter the fray and he rushed over to Andrew, sure that Dooku would pay him more for catching the boy alive.
Mace glared at Andrew and thought, ‘The boy has a lightsaber? Impossible.’ as he saw Andrew defend himself properly; he would be questioning this matter later.
Andrew saw Jango coming for him and looked uneasy as this guy looked good, he was about to get ready to defend himself when Mace rushed in and began to fight Jango, Andrew paled at the skill Mace was using as it seemed angry.
‘Crap,’ Andrew thought, ‘He’s going to kill Jango and I for one wanted to talk to Jango about his involvement.’ Just before Mace killed him Andrew yelled, “No!!”
Mace stared and growled, “What do you mean, ‘no’?”
“Because I want to talk to him about his involvement,” Andrew said, “And besides, he’s down for now.”
“Very well,” Mace snarled as he ran to the battle.
Jango stared at Andrew and nodded, “You have my thanks kid, I doubt I’d show you the same mercy.”
Andrew sighed as he pushed Jango to the side and got back into the battle.
From the shadows Sion and Atris were watching the battle with disdain, Atris shook her head at the sloppiness of the new Jedi, ‘These Padawans should be ashamed of themselves.’
As for Sion, he stared at Andrew with disgust, ‘Sparing the Mandalorian’s life was weak, I’d have killed this Jango Fett,’ he moved in to start fighting when Atris pulled him back and said, “You fool, look at all the Jedi.”
Sion snarled, “Let them attack, they look like they could barely hold me off.”
Atris glared at Sion and decided that this alliance may have to come to an end if Sion couldn’t listen to her orders.
Andrew felt ill, ‘This is going badly,’ he saw Jedi falling and these new droids were good, better than the old ones that was for damn sure. As they were being pushed into the centre he saw Anakin look angrily at the droids and hold his lightsaber in front of him.
Dooku walked up and said, “Master Windu, you and your forces have fought admirably, worthy of being recorded in the annuals of the order but now you must surrender.”
Mace yelled, “We’ll never surrender to you.”
The droids readied their weapons and were about to fire when a low rumbling caught everyone’s attention and Andrew muttered, “We got an army?”
The troopers came down firing guns and Andrew saw Yoda directing them, he almost felt giddy as they might live after all. Anakin and Obi-Wan went to go help the troopers.
Atris growled, “Sion, we have to act now: you go after this Dooku and ones following him, I shall handle the Exile and Revan,” she walked out the shadows and towards where Andrew was about to join Anakin and them when he was pulled back and slammed into the wall
Anakin was about to jump out when Yoda touched him and whisper, “Help him I will, along with Faith and his sister.”
“Alright,” Anakin snarled as he went to join Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon.
Padmé looked past her and started shooting at Atris while Faith rushed over to her, lightsaber blazing green and struck at Atris using the force.
“You still haven’t learned, have you?” Atris said her voice calm as a glacier, “You are nothing to a true master of the Force and now the Exile is here too.”
Andrew looked at her and muttered, “What is it with you people and attacking my family!?”
Atris looked at him coldly and struck him with bolts of lighting and laughed bitterly, her eyes yellow now, she whispered, “So pathetic, fumbling around, you both not knowing your pasts, well its unimportant now,” and blasted both of them with electricity when Yoda walked up and blocked the lighting.”
“Away from them you will stay,” Yoda said calmly.
Andrew got up and reignited his lightsaber, he stood behind Yoda and looked angrily at her, Faith got up and all three of them rushed towards her fighting, Andrew dodged one of her attacks while Yoda jumped around her, striking at vulnerable areas.
Faith snarled while trying to strike at her side and managed to wound her while Andrew’s lightsaber strike scarred her face.
Atris laughed at Yoda and whispered, “You protect them? Do you know or care what they have been up to? They mock the code that I wrote.”
Yoda nodded, “Yes, code you wrote but now is a new age, perhaps old ways are best forgotten.”
She rushed towards Yoda and attempted to kill him when Jango got up and whispered, “Good bye,” and threw a thermal detonator towards her.
Yoda pushed Atris into the grenade’s path and got everyone out of there, Andrew whispered, “Is she gone?”
“No but follow us she will not,” Yoda stated.
As they rushed out to join the rest of the army Yoda clutched his chest and he whispered, “Hate, I feel pain.”
Jango sighed as he looked back and said, “I’ll get him,” and picked up Yoda he looked back and whispered, “Boba.”
Andrew looked up and realized that it was the name of the boy he had seen Jango with; he looked at Faith and said, “We can’t leave a child alone here.”
Faith nodded and said, “Don’t worry, some of the Jedi cleaning up the rest of the droids there will find him, we’ll send word to them to look for him.”
“It seems,” Jango muttered, “I owe you two times over and I always pay my debts.”
Meanwhile Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon had followed Dooku along with Anakin.
Anakin looked worried and grumbled, “We shouldn’t have left Andrew back there.”
Qui-Gon smiled, “They’re fine Anakin, Yoda was going back there for them.”
Anakin nodded and muttered, “I just feel like there’s something’s wrong.”
“Keep your mind on what’s important,” Obi-Wan yelled as they chased after Dooku’s speeder, “We can end this war if we catch Dooku.”
“Yes,” Anakin growled as they followed Dooku to landing bay.
As Dooku walked out he felt something angry, he looked out into the darkness and saw a badly scarred man walk out of the shadows and he felt ill, the man was strong in the Dark side.
“So you are a Sith lord?” the man mocked, “I don’t see it. You are pathetic old man using words, hiding behind your ideas of civility. I am the true Sith lord, I am Darth Sion.”
Dooku felt shock at the name, “Darth Sion is dead, he died over four thousand years ago.”
“You know the name?” Sion mocked, “Good.”
Sion ignited his lightsaber and rushed towards him; Dooku barely stopped Sion’s strike and sent out a wave of lighting towards Sion.
Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon rushed in and both looked shocked at Sion’s appearance, he looked at them and sent a wave of energy their way, pushing them into the wall.
Dooku sliced at Sion’s arm while he was distracted only for Sion to deflect the blow and push Dooku into the wall.
Qui-Gon hit Sion in the side while avoiding one of Dooku’s strikes.
Sion looked around, ‘The old Sith was as tired as the old Jedi,’ he looked at the old Jedi and began to viciously attack Qui-Gon, his strikes were quick and brutal.
Obi-Wan felt ill, ‘This was like with the other Sith,’ his eyes darkened, ‘I nearly lost my mentor there, I’m not going to lose him now,’ he rushed over to Sion and impaled him through the stomach causing him to cough.
“That was impressive,” Sion coughed out violently as he got up, the injury healing itself.
The four men looked at each other and Sion realized that he could win but not without dying himself, he rushed over to where Atris was.
Dooku got onto his shuttle and knew he had to inform his master that this game had just become even more dangerous.
TBC
Did Andrew do the right thing by sparing Jango? Should Jango and his son follow Andrew and co. around? Should Andrew fight in the Clone Wars?
I hope you all liked the Jedi vs. Sith battles in this chapter.
Please rate and review.