Chapter 1: A Victory and Pursuit

It was another day won for the Galactic Republic in the Clone Wars. Upon the green fields of the planet Muunilinst far away from the regular hustle and bustle of the many cities that dotted the world, the Jedi and the clone troopers battled the Separatist battle droids as they had so many times before. Each day making it out alive felt like luck, but each victory felt like a blessing, reaffirming their purpose.

It had been several years since the declaration of war from the Confederacy of Independent Systems had become official. It was no longer a cold war, it had become full out fighting. The first battles were vicious and unrelenting and left everyone from the average person to the clone troopers worn and weary. Yet after so much time had passed, the skirmishes remained fierce.

The Jedi and the troopers still found cause to celebrate though. After each battle, they were all weary and tired. Yet perhaps it was because of the ferocity of the fighting that they were able to enjoy the peace afterwards. Even in those fights where the carnage had hit it’s peak, they were grateful to still be alive and have each other’s company.

More now than ever. The Republic forces had just taken a base that was vital to the Separatists’ operations on the planet of Muunilinst. This planet was one that liked to play both sides, receiving the backing from both the Confederacy and the Republic. That was all the more reason the clone troopers fought like their lives depended on it, securing it for their side and not the enemy’s. It was not the first time Anakin and Obi-Wan had fought on it’s soil before thanks to the machinations of the Muun Banking Clan. This battle now was nowhere near as brutal, yet no conflict in the Clone Wars was ever easy. They had wondered at the logistics of even doing such a thing given what a fickle world it was.

The base they just took was a part of the greater Separatist transportation network throughout the galaxy. As such, it was heavily fortified. Given the strategic important of this location, it also conducted it’s rendezvous operations with other Separatist ships at night to prevent would be invaders from launching any surprise attacks. So the Republic offensive started in the morning.

There were still a few things that seemed odd. None of the Dark Acolytes were present, and even Ventress was nowhere to be seen. In their absence, the Jedi were expecting to see Dooku or General Grievous ready to defend this base. But they too were also missing. Even in that post battle high, everyone was waiting to see what else might happen today.

Still, even with the absence of the Separatist vanguard, it had been a trying conflict. It was far away from the city of Harnaidan where a similar battle rocked it years ago when Anakin was only a padawan, and though urban warfare presented its own set of nightmares, no one present would have called this battle easy. The compound they were aiming to take was on top of a tall hill in the outback and the perimeter was lined with surface to air missiles. So there was no choice in taking the fight on foot.

It was a trying battle and from their position, the battle droids had the advantage, blasting down on their foes with cold and calculating precision. If it were not for their Jedi allies reflecting shots back at the battle droids, the clone troopers would have suffered far heavier losses than what they did. Worse yet, just as there were surface to air missiles designed to prevent aerial bombardment, so too had the base had been fortified with heavy cannons raining chaos down on the Republic forces. When it came to that problem, the Jedi could not simply use their lightsabers to protect their allies. All they could do was use the force as best they could to predict where to disperse and alert the clone troopers accordingly.

But it had to be done. It was the first time that Republic intelligence had reported that any of the Dark Acolytes, let alone Count Dooku or General Grievous, were not present at the base. It would not be wise to let such a rare opportunity slip through their fingers. That figure was helped by Quinlan Vos who was currently away on a mission spying on Dooku. He confirmed that Repubic intelligence was correct. So the order was given the go ahead.

Despite this victory, Anakin still felt a great sorrow. He was standing outside the base, looking over the smoldering destruction about. Atop the hill he stood upon, the sky was a clear blue and the billowy white clouds crested and sailed like ships of legend unconcerned to the plights of the mere mortals suffering upon the earthbound under them. The wounded clone troopers had been put in the bacta tanks stored onboard his personal vessel, the Resolute. There were now only a few left.

He breathed wearily. He had risen from a mere slave on a desert plan notorious as an outpost for the criminal underworld to becoming an actual Jedi Knight. It was a station of no small standing, and as a Padawan, he sometimes thought if he would ever attain the same level of prestige so many other Jedi had before him. But he had.

Yet right now, he hated it. If he had known this life was the one that awaited him, he might have even preferred staying on Tattooine with his mother. It was a thought that had often occurred to him. Just like her, he had been powerless to protect those closest to him. Even having a wife that loved him, sometimes he wondered if things would have been better if Amidala and the Jedi had never come to Tattooine.

Nor did the sight before him offer any solace. On the horizon it was nothing but verdant fields and more of that same blue sky. But despite the calmness of it, he did not feel peace. All he could think of was how austere it seemed in it’s serenity, desolate even. He knew that many more such battles were being fought on such peaceful lands, under such beautiful skies. It was awesome and it was tragic that something as awful as war could come to such a place. No matter where he went, it seemed his life would never be free of tragedy.

Not that he had much time to ruminate on such things. As he was lost in his thoughts, he was suddenly hit from behind by a someone tackling him. He was not so mired in sorrow that he didn’t know who it was. Even without his strong connection to the force active in such a situation, he knew.

“Master! We won!” It was the voice of Ahsoka. He looked back and saw the small Togrutan. Her eyes were beaming at him and she had a big smile on her face.

“Yeah,” he said. He couldn’t stay down for too long with that infectious attitude of hers. “Yeah, we did.”

“I saw you looking rather morose,” said Obi-Wan, walking out of the base. “I didn’t know what to say to comfort you. But Ahsoka here had just the right idea.”

“Are you feeling better now Skyguy?” she said.

“Of course I am Snips!” he said. “How couldn’t I be? We just won.”

Obi-Wan smiled and shook his head. Though Anakin was no longer strictly under his tutelage, he still knew his Padawan very well. Despite taking the role of teacher himself with Ahsoka, there was still a lot about him that hadn’t changed.

“Things could have been a lot worse,” Ahsoka said.

“But things can still be better, can’t they?” Obi-Wan said.

Despite those words being the opposite of Ahsoka’s cheeriness, it warmed something in Anakin more than his Padawan’s exuberance. He looked past her at Obi-Wan. “Yeah they can be,” he said.

“But we still won. We should be grateful for that.”

“And we still have each other,” Ahsoka said.

“Yeah, you’re right,” Anakin said. But as much as those words cheered him up at first, they stung harsher than ever the more he thought about it. The Separatists suffered a heavy blow this day. That only meant they would get more violent in the time to come. More than that, he knew that the likes of General Grievous and Ventress were not ones to lay down lightly. Even if someone like Dooku, hardly the most pleasant of souls but still the most reasonable, were to see reason and surrender, those two in particular would only revive the movement and fight on.

“General Kenobi, General Skywalker.” It was Rex. He saluted them, never once looking at Ahsoka. “We have done a thorough search of the area. The only ones left inside beside the dismantled battle droids were scientists and they all surrendered without a second thought. We did not find any traps either.”

“Good,” Anakin said. Though his mind had been left adrift thinking on other things, that announcement took a heavy weight off his heart. The lack of Grievous and Ventress at this battle had nagged at his mind more than a few times, making him wonder that even after all the fighting here if this battle had been too easy, knowing fully what the Separatists were capable of. But even though his worries still left him with doubts on what path the future might hold, he felt his spirits cheering up already.