#Battle of Geonosis

[ventresses]

Star Wars: Attack of the Clones (4/?)

Star Wars + Text Posts & Headlines

[star-wars-forever]

[weregonnabecoolbeans]

What if attack of the clones was my favourite?

[rainintheevening]

What would they have done with all the bodies of the Jedi who died on Geonosis?

There were 187 of them. Seems like too many to take back with them for funerals on Coruscant.

Did they build the funeral pyres right there in the arena? Above the bloody sand? As the red sun of Geonosis set, was there a great pillar of smoke, that all saw, and all fell silent at? Did the clones stand guard above them, and around them—protective rings of an honour guard, tall and straight in the shadows of the coliseum, silent, watching, learning?

And the clones who died? There were thousands. Did the Jedi ask, what their custom was, only for the clones to respond that it didn't matter? Did they quote the Kaminoans: "In water you are born, in fire you die, your bodies seed the stars"? Did the Jedi glance at each other, and nod, and quietly begin leading the clones in building their own funeral pyres? I wonder if they questioned the clones stripping the bodies of all weapons or armor that could be reused.

But in the end it was all the same light, all the same smoke. Mingled together into the night sky.

Did Obi-Wan and Anakin and Padmé all stand together, with their bacta patches and pain-blockers, silent as stone while the orange light flickered over their faces? Obi-Wan with the silver tongue, and not a word to say. Anakin half-blind between the ache in his body and the ache in his heart and the ache in the Force, which were all one and the same, only feeling Padmé's hand in his, and Obi-Wan's arm braced around his waist. And Padmé, torn between fear and defiance, despair at war with her hope, because her nightmares are alive, and she wants both protection and to protect, so she holds Anakin’s hand, and sets her jaw, and holds her eyes open until they burn.

Maybe that was what it was like.

[fiatluxillustration-portfolio]

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[delusionalmultifandomwriter]

Never let you go (fluff, slight angst)

requested?: no

Oneshot: Ahsoka has a very urgent question after the battle of Geonosis

Ahsoka Tano & Anakin Skywalker, Luminara Unduli & Barriss Offee (mentioned)

light angst but happy end (except for Barriss but when did she ever really get a happy end?? (if you want me to write one for her, let me know!!))

Words: 956

Masterlist

Anakin's quarter doors closed behind him with a soft noise when he spotted his padawan sleeping on the end of his bed, curled up tightly and with a lightgrey blanket messily wrapped around her slim shoulders. He smiled softly and put his lightsaber down on the shelf over the headside of his bed.

He sat down on the thin matress and gently touched Ahsoka's shoulder, the white sleeve cloth covering her tawny skin. "Hey Snips." He whispered. Ahsoka grumbled and pushed her arms forward like a loth cat, stirring softly.

"Ugh, what?" She grumbled as she sat up slowly, rubbing her eyes and pushing away the silka beads that were hanging down into her face.

She looked up at Anakin drowsily. "Hey." He gave her a smug smile. "Didn't manage to find your own bed, huh?" Ahsoka huffed and rolled her eyes before she let herself fall back onto the bed dramatically.

Anakin chuckled and sat down on the edge of the bed to take off his boots and the hard parts of his armor. "Come on, what's up? Normally you are more difficult to get to bed." Anakin said with a smile as Ahsoka just kept starring at the ceiling of the bed above her.

"I wanted to ask you something but i fell asleep. It's your fault, you always smuggle in the soft blankets that actually keep you warm. I couldn't resist." She argued and brushed her hand over the thick wool blanket.

Anakin laid back down next to his padawan who scooted to the side a little to make some space for him. He laid down on his back and Ahsoka moved down on the matress to rest her head on Anakin's biceps, her montrals gently nudging the side of his head.

"Of course, my fault." Anakin chuckled. "So, for what did you come around?" Ahsoka hesitated for a second. She bit her lips and Anakin frowned. "Hey, did something happen?" He asked concerned as he gently started stroking Ahsoka's lekku.

She shrugged. "I was just wondering... Rex said Master Luminara would have let Barriss go. Would she really just let her die?" She asked while looking up at Anakin with an insecure glimps in her eyes. Anakin sighed and stopped his movement.

"Yes, that's what she said. I fear." He finally answered in a low tone. Ahsoka moved a barely noticeable bit closer to him, as if she suddenly grew anxious. Anakin wrapped his free arm around her and pulled her a little closer.

"Does Barriss know?" Ahsoka asked. Anakin shook his head. "No, she is unaware as far as i know. Although, i believe she can sense it. The regret was lingering around Master Unduli for a while." He explained. Ahsoka nodded slowly.

"But is Barriss not disappointed?" Ahsoka asked with a certain urgency in her voice. How could Barriss not be at least the tiniest bit disappointed. Anakin sighed, lowering his gaze a little and starring at the grey wall between Ahsoka's lekku.

"Do you feel disappointment around her?" He finally asked. Ahsoka paused for a moment and thought about it. "Not... not really." She said finally. "But why?"

Anakin shrugged. "I guess Barriss got used to it. After all, it is how we are supposed to treat our padawans. You know the rules, dont get attached. Master Luminara is very strongly off the opinion that you should be ready to let your padawan go... when the time has come."

Ahsoka could feel the disdain lingering around Anakin through the force. His mimic looked torn. He could feel the distress around the younger girl. Finally, he sighed and pulled his padawan into a hug, her montrals fitting under his chin as she rested her face against his chest.

Ahsoka clinged to her master, holding onto him for comfort. Anakin tried to shake off his anger and instead sending her security through the force. The girl drank it up like she needed his comfort to survive. "It's okay." He whispered.

Ahsoka pulled back a little and looked up at Anakin like a kicked baby lothcat. "Would you let me go?" She asked whispering. Anakin pulled her into a tight hug and squeezed the air out of her lungs. "Absolutly not, never will i ever even consider doing that." He answered unambiguous.

Ahsoka exhaled a breath she didnt know she was holding and gently nudged her head back under Anakin's chest. He continued to stroke her back and gently twirling Ahsoka's headbeads around his fingers.

"You are worth more than some stupid rules." Ahsoka could hear her master whisper. "I will always come find you, no matter where you manage to get stuck." Anakin smiled softly and Ahsoka chuckled.

"Who comes to save us when we get stuck together?" She asked, relaxing a little. Anakin contemplated his answer for a brief moment. "I'm sure Obi-Wan would come, he would miss us. He just doesn't want to admit it." Anakin laughed softly, Ahsoka could feel the noise vibrating in her montrals.

She pulled back a little and glanced up at Anakin. "After the battle he looked like he wanted to throw a rock at you." She said with a smirk. Anakin rolled his eyes and nudged Ahsoka playfully. "I'm sure that was because of all the dust and his gunboat crash. Nothing to do with us."

Ahsoka nodded sarcastically. "Of course, nothing to do with us. As always."

"As always." Anakin answered solemnly and pulled Ahsoka back closer to him. Ahsoka laughed but quickly sighed in her master's embrace. "Can i stay here?" She asked. "You stay here at least once every standard week and im sure you sleep with Fives and Echo even more." He mocked gently.

"Of course you can stay."

-----

Same work on Ao3:

https://archiveofourown.org/works/55397551

[musewrangler]

So I need to watch the battle of Geonosis for writing reasons. Which is admittedly the best part of the movie. Just—-it pains me to be reminded that Lucas was allowed near the script writing. 😂🤦‍♀️

[i-dont-know-anything-anymore]

THE BATTLE OF GEONOSIS moodboard

[lonewolflupe]

aLoF ch1 | Approaching Storm

I finally present to you: the first chapter of my OC Lupe's story, A Lupe of Faith (aLoF). I currently have about 7 (almost) finished chapters (some still need a bit of finetuning tho), so I have more coming your way. I really hope someone enjoys my stories, at least I had so much fun writing them so far! Please check out the disclaimer in my masterlist (:

Summary: as the First Battle of Geonosis (22 BBY) marks the beginning of the Clone Wars, Padawan Lupe finds herself submerged in the destruction the war brings Rating: Teen and up Tags: canon-typical violence, light angst (death, shock/trauma, hurt/comfort) Words: 2.468k Characters: Lupe (OC), Plo Koon, CT-7567 Rex, unidentified clone troopers, unidentified Jedi aLoF masterlist | AO3 ficlet < | ↓ | > ficlet | > ficlet

22 BBY, Geonosis

Dust erupted from the ground as the LAAT gunships descended into the arena. The air was filled with the sound of blaster fire and shots being deflected by lightsabers. The clanking of metal from marching battle droids and hasty wings as the last Geonosians tried to flee the arena. The soil filled with droids torn to pieces and broken bodies as fallen Jedi lay scattered.

Lupe was standing in one of the descending LAAT gunships, lightsaber in one hand, the other hand clung to the ship to keep her balance. Dread had befallen her during the preparations of the attack, but as she noticed how few Jedi were still standing, a worse feeling took over. But she managed to suppress her feelings, her emotions; it was not the Jedi way to let those guide you.

She was still a Padawan with a lot to learn. It wasn't until recently that her future seemed clear. The Jedi were peacekeepers, and she was being trained to be one. But now it dawned on her she had a different role to play; that of a warrior, a soldier. And although she wasn't a youngling anymore, and she had seen unspeakable things throughout the galaxy already, the thought of being a soldier in a war scared her. Her future didn't seem so bright anymore; no one's, for that matter.

She shook away the dreadful thoughts to focus on the here and now. The clone troopers accompanying her readied themselves to be thrown into battle. They were born and trained to do so, but still, she couldn't help but feel a gust of sorrow thinking about the sacrifices they would make. For the Republic.

"Nearly there, troopers," she shouted, hoping her voice didn't sound as insecure as she felt. The clone standing beside her leaned in closer to her. "Don't worry, sir," he said to her, "this is our first real battle too." Was that supposed to make her feel better? The wry smile on her face disappeared quickly. She appreciated the gesture though.

She couldn't help prying her eyes across the small group of Jedi, still standing and bravely fighting, despite their declining numbers and exhaustion taking over. She hoped to see her Master down below, still breathing and engaged in the battle. He had ordered her to mount the gunship to accompany the clones. She didn't know if he didn't want her in the first attack wave because of a lack of experience, or to spare her. She didn't dwell on the thought, because now, by seeing all the death and destruction below, she was thankful for his choice.

At that moment, she spotted her Master. A feeling of relief, immediately followed by guilt, because of all the Jedi that hadn’t made it through the attack. The gunship had nearly reached the ground, and started hovering above the dry soil, making the air so full of dust that it was hard to see anything. The clone troopers around Lupe started to jump out of the LAAT whilst aiming and started firing their guns at the surrounding droids. It provided enough distraction for the surviving Jedi to retreat into the gunships.

Lupe was still standing in the gunship, offering her hand to any exhausted Jedi willing to be pulled aboard. She swung her lightsaber around occasionally, to deflect any blaster fire, but it seemed that the clones took up the most incoming fire. Her stomach turned.

It was at that moment she felt a hand on her shoulder. The long fingers with armoured talons gave her an encouraging squeeze, and she felt better instantly.

"Master Plo!" she cried out, even before she had turned around to face him. She was happy to see him safe, and mostly unhurt, but she couldn't hide her pain from him, caused by all the loss and destruction of that day. Her Master, Plo Koon, sighed through his antiox breath mask. Although she couldn't see his eyes through the goggles he was wearing, she knew they were filled with pain as well.

---

There was no time to catch up. After saving the last Jedi standing, the gunships had ascended into the Geonosian sky again to enter the next phase of the battle. All Jedi fit enough to still fight were sent into battle again, accompanied by an army of clone troopers. Anyone too injured or exhausted stayed on the gunships, awaiting treatment.

Lupe hadn't left her Master's side since he had regrouped with her on the LAAT gunship. And now she had followed him into battle, on the dusty plains of Geonosis. Her blue lightsaber slashed through the metal droids, severing arms, legs and heads, cutting through torsos and weapons. She didn't feel remorse for any of them. She just wanted to keep any further casualties on their side as low as possible; of both Jedi and clones.

The remainder of the battle went by in a haze. The last droid forces were destroyed or pushed back, and Lupe fell back in pace to regain herself. Her chest heaving from heavy breathing, strains of hair sticking to her skin. She swept away some of the hair with the top of her wrist, whilst looking around her. Mayhem. Suffering. Death.

Just a few steps to her left, a clone trooper lay on the ground, groaning in pain as he struggled for his life. His helmet was blown off, so she could see his injured face. Lupe fell on her knees beside him, taking his hand in hers as a sign of comfort. There wasn't anything else she could do; she felt helpless.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, as she watched the clone's breathing become slower, until it stopped at last. She closed her eyes and hung her head. She felt a lump in her throat.

Any sense of time gone, she didn't know how long she had been kneeling there when she felt her Master approaching. She tried to swallow away the lump in her throat before she dared to say something.

"Master, this is just the beginning, isn't it?" she asked quietly, not letting her sight wander from the fallen clone before her. She was still holding his hand. Plo Koon kneeled beside her and put his hand on her shoulder. "I'm afraid so, my young Padawan," he said softly. His voice was full of suffering; for the souls they had lost during the battle, and for the souls they would lose after this day.

---

Coruscant | Jedi Temple

Back at the Jedi Temple, the atmosphere was tense. The Council had gathered almost immediately after their return, and was still withdrawn to debate the occurred events and deliberate on what to do next. The Jedi healers were working overtime to patch up the wounded Jedi as best as they could. At the hangar bay, fallen Jedi were taken from the gunships discreetly, to ready them for their final honouring.

Lupe was standing in a more public hallway in the outer part of the Temple, overlooking the nearby hangar, watching as clone troopers were running about to escort and support Jedi returning from Geonosis. She wanted to help, but was frozen to the ground as she tried to comprehend what had happened in the last few rotations. She lowered her gaze to her hands, stretched out before her. The adrenaline had worn off; her hands were starting to shake uncontrollably.

"Sir, you need some help?" She hadn't noticed the clone trooper walking up to her. He held his helmet under his arm, his face visible. A cruel wrench in her stomach as she recognised the face. For a second she thought of the clone back at the end of the battle. How she had held his hand as he died. He died, didn't he? She snapped out of the moment when she realised as clones, they all shared the same face. Made the same, born to fight. Born to die.

Shaking her head, she clasped her arms around her stomach whilst taking a step back. "Please, tend to those who need it more," she said quietly, "I'll manage." She knew that wasn't completely true. As she staggered backwards, her head starting to spin nauseously, she heard the clone saying: “You don't look like you're managing,” before it all went black.

When she came back to her senses, she was sitting on the ground, her back against the hallway’s wall. The trooper was kneeling beside her, a concerned look on his face. She tried to get up, but the clone prevented that by pushing her shoulder back against the wall.

“Woah, easy there,” he said to her, a comforting smile on his face. “You alright, kid?” She focussed on her breathing as she felt her head starting to spin again. “I’m feeling a bit light headed,” she whispered, as she put her hands against her temples.

The trooper started fidgeting in the container on his back and pulled out a nervestick. “Here, chew on this, it'll make you feel better,” he said as he handed it over to her. She took it gladly, and as she started chewing on the stick, she felt better instantly. “Thanks,” she said eventually, as she sat chewing silently. The trooper nodded, after which he took the opportunity and sat down beside her, his back arched against the wall. There they sat in silence for a while.

“I don't want to be rude,” Lupe eventually said, her voice small, “but aren't you needed elsewhere?” Her question was genuine; she didn't want him to leave, she was actually grateful for his presence. But as there was still a lot going on in the hangar and throughout the Jedi Temple, she presumed he had better things to do. The trooper looked at her with a kind smile on his face.

“We were ordered to take care of the Jedi, and that's exactly what I'm doing. Keeping an eye out on you, kid,” he said as he tapped her shoulder. She tried smiling back at him before she started chewing again. This stick was glorious; the Jedi should add those to their general gear.

When she finally started to feel like her old self again, she put the stick down, pulled up her knees towards her chest and wrapped her arms around them. She contemplated on her next words before speaking them.

“So how do the clones work, technically? How are you related? And again, I mean no offence. Just being curious,” she said, shrugging slightly at the last words. The trooper chuckled. “I don't want to get technical with you. But we share the same DNA, and we see each other as brothers.”

She went silent for a moment, thinking about all the troopers that had died back at Geonosis. “Then I am sorry for the loss of your brothers,” she said softly, her gaze averted. He glanced over at her, surprised by the involvement and concern about the clones this Padawan had on her mind. He tried to smile at her, although the thought of his lost brothers hurt deep inside. “Thank you, sir.”

“Was this your first battle?” the trooper asked carefully. Lupe looked into the distance, flashes from the battle appearing before her eyes again. She nodded slowly without saying a word. “I'm sorry you had to go through it,” he replied, cursing himself for bringing it up. But before he could change the topic, Lupe spoke again. “Wasn't it your first real battle too?” she asked him, looking up at him as she had finally found the courage again. “Yeah. But we were born and trained for this, kid,” he sighed, as he shrugged. “That doesn't mean it is less frightening for you. It doesn't make the losses easier,” she said as she looked deep into his eyes.

He swallowed the lump in his throat as the words dawned on him. She was absolutely right, but they were soldiers of the Grand Army of the Republic, supposed to fight for freedom and democracy alongside the Jedi. There was no time to dwell on the horrors and losses of this battle until the war was over. And the war had only just begun.

He forced a smile on his face as he was still looking at Lupe. “You're wise for your age, kid,” he said to her, whilst bumping an elbow against her arm to lift some tension. A smile finally started appearing on her face, although it was a wry one. “I guess you grow up fast, in wartime,” she whispered. From there, they sat in silence again.

After a while, the trooper's com device, installed in the inside of his helmet, started beeping. He took the helmet from the floor and listened to the incoming message. “All troops are to return to the hangar to receive further orders,” a static voice spoke, and the message ended. The trooper sighed as he tapped her shoulder a last time. “That's my cue, kid. Gotta run,” he said as he rose to his feet.

Lupe was still sitting on the floor, but turned herself towards the clone before he could walk off. “What's your name, trooper?” she asked quickly, afraid he'd walk off and she'd never know his name. “CT-7567, sir,” the trooper answered stoic, as he had been made to drone on his designation his whole life. “Don’t you have a name?” Lupe asked, confused, her brow raised.

The trooper was slightly taken aback, as he wasn't used to any Jedi, or anyone else besides his brothers, asking for his name. Not his designation, the number he was given at his birth, but the name he had chosen for himself. The only choice the clones had in this life.

“It's, er- it's Rex, sir,” he finally uttered. Lupe's face seemed to light up, and for the first time, he saw a genuine smile on her face. “Nice to meet you, Rex. And thank you,” she said to him kindly, whilst she nodded at him as she spoke the last words. He returned both the nod and the smile, before turning around and marching towards his brothers.

…

Epilogue

The Battle of Geonosis was only the first battle of many in a war that came to be known as the Clone Wars. As the Republic fought the Confederacy of Independent Systems, both victories and losses weighed heavily on the shoulders of the Jedi and clones.

Master Plo Koon and his Padawan Lupe were designated to command the 104th Battalion, which consisted of loyal, hard fighting troopers. Their armour used to be marked with a deep, brownish-red maroon. But after the devastating losses at Abregado during the Malevolence campaign in 22 BBY, what was left of the 104th changed their markings to a flint grey colour, a way to honour those they had lost.

[star-wars-forever]

Attack of The Clones

by @tilian_creative

[trudemaethien]

See What Had Happened Was

Rated T, Graphic Descriptions of Violence, Slick’s Squad plus bonus Cut Lawquane, Canon Compliant, First person narrator (not slick), surprisingly upbeat and wholesome despite the subject matter.

snippet under the cut, cw clone death.

read on AO3 🔒 https://archiveofourown.org/works/53143075

So—the first time I laid eyes on Slick, that day, he was covered in blood and swearing up the dust like it was his nerf-karking profession. He was doing first aid on what was left of his squad, and like with Gus, you can sometimes just tell when a guy’s got sergeant bars on his chest. He was right in the middle of ordering his man Chaff to focus on him and not go kriffing anywhere without his say-so. Chaff had obviously taken a knock to the head, stumbling and dizzy, but he was still conscious when we got there.

The blood all over Slick wasn’t his, it belonged to the rest of his squad, most of whom were already so much meat. Sorry to be crass, but when a trooper’s gone, his body isn’t important anymore unless you need it for spare parts. Not that what was left of these guys would have been any good for that.

But Slick had another couple survivors there. Besides Chaff, there was a guy missing most of an arm and leg on the same side, already tourniqueted up; and the third guy was passed out leaning against a rock with some bandages pressed between it and his head to put pressure on the shredded side of his face.

When Slick saw us, he didn’t hesitate. Like I said, some men really are just meant to be Sergeants. He laid down orders like he’d been laying out the cuss words. We all worked together to stretcher up his non-ambulatories and head for evac. Six to carry, three to be carried. Slick knew where we were on the map and where we should go.

He was like a bloody deity in my eyes that day. I’m pretty darn sure we’d have died without him. Fuck, he was snappish as a strill and twice as driven. Kept us moving, no excuses. Sharp words to prod us into doing what we needed to, even the hurt troops. The bloody face guy, Chopper, eventually groaned, and Slick trotted backwards at the head of his stretcher to check and rebandage his face, all the while barking at us to keep karking moving.

A little after that, the missing-limb guy, Gasper, stopped squirming so much and it made him easier to carry (I was at his feet—well, his foot) but Slick swapped to our stretcher then and kept a finger on his pulse. When Gasper quit moving altogether, Slick finally let us take a knee for a minute.

I wanted to cry then, whether from grief or relief or what, I’m still not sure, but Slick smacked me on the cheek, a little harder than friendly but not too bad, ya know, and told me better not waste water here. He was smart. He talked like an asshole, but he didn’t act like one. Right after that, he gave me a gulp from his canteen ‘cause mine had gotten blasted early-on. Shit like that; he had a weird sort of kindness.

[derickbatista31]

Chatter

[savage-kult-of-gorthaur]

"AS A "STAR WARS" MOVIE, "ATTACK OF THE CLONES" WAS ONE OF THE MOST EXPENSIVE INDEPENDENT MOVIES EVER MADE."

PIC(S) INFO: Spotlight on even more films stills of “STAR WARS: Episode II – Attack of the Clones” (2002), American epic space opera film and the second installment of the Prequel Trilogy directed & co-written by George Lucas. Lucasfilm Ltd./20th Century Fox.

Cinematography: David Tattersall

Visual FX: Industrial Light & Magic

AOTC/TRIVIA FACT: Cast and crew could view instantaneous results live on set.

"Using a digital camera meant that a live feed of the high-definition footage was available to view in the moment from large plasma screen televisions on the set. Whereas in the past, directors hunched over tiny video monitors with black-and-white screens, George Lucas and the crew of Attack of the Clones enjoyed a large, detailed view of their work. This allowed everyone from hair and makeup artists to set dressers to make adjustments in the moment and contribute ideas.

The benefits extended beyond the immediate set as well, as tapes of high-definition footage were copied and transferred to the editorial department where assistant editors could load, input, and begin cutting footage within hours of the cameras rolling. Within the same day, Lucas and team could review the day’s scenes and determine the success of a shot. A typical film production had to wait at least a full day for lab processing of film dailies. No more sleepless nights for the cinematographer, and no more second-guessing about whether to strike a set out of fear that the day’s footage was unusable. As a Star Wars movie, Attack of the Clones was one of the most expensive independent movies ever made, but these advancements allowed Lucasfilm to run the production as efficiently as possible."

-- STAR WARS, ""Clones" at 20 -- 4 Ways "STAR WARS: Attack of the Clones" Helped Change Filmmaking," by Lucas Seastrom, May 10, 2022

Sources: www.starwars.com/news/clones-at-20-4-ways-star-wars-attack-of-the-clones-helped-change-filmmaking.

[imaybelactoseintolerant]

Commander Luthal

Chapter Sixteen: General Lar Nuuk

Word Count: 4223

A/N: General Lar Nuuk isn't a real character in canon, I just needed a random name, so don't worry about this fucker. He doesn't matter.

Masterlist

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The Force is merciful afterall, Arwen thought, stirring from a dreamless sleep, even if that sleep felt like barely an hour-long nap.

Although, when she sat up and stretched, immediately followed by a powerful throbbing across her back and shoulder, she thought it could have been a tiny bit more merciful.

The barest hints of light were slipping through the flaps of the tent, and although it was quite temperate for the time being, she knew it wouldn’t be long before she began sweating through her clothes. She sat on the edge of her cot, doing her best not to disturb the still sleeping clones.

She looked at the hole in her robes, then gently peeled back the bacta patch to take a peek. It had scarred over already, fleshy and pink, but it would take another day or so for that to go away, provided the patch stayed on. She smoothed it back down, then lowered her head into her hands.

Maybe it wouldn’t have been so bad if the blaster bolt struck a few inches over. She would have joined Master Du in the Force, and been spared the suffering.

Her heart lurched, and guilt promptly settled in the pit of her stomach. Master Du would never want her to think that. But how could she stop those intrusive thoughts? How could she settle her mind when she had nothing to do, nothing to distract her?

Master Du would tell her to meditate—the traditional way, for something so important—but Arwen wasn’t sure she could. She was scared to reach too deeply into the Force, only to feel an absence.

Instead, Arwen slid on her boots—still filled with grains of sand, despite trying to empty them the night before—then clipped on her belt and lightsabers, and padded out of the tent. The camp was relatively quiet on their end, but on the opposite side, quite a distance away, she could see a company of soldiers geared up and marching towards their makeshift shipyard.

Arwen headed straight for the medical tents, desperate for something to occupy her mind.

She spent a good few hours flitting between the tent, under the reluctant orders of clone medics who seemed much less desperate for extra hands. They thought she should be resting, but Arwen knew it would be useless to attempt.

She managed to catch Captain Keeli before he was discharged from the medical tent, Mixer as well, and between assigned work like administering stims, bringing water and rations, and taking vitals, Arwen busied herself with talking to the clones and learning the names of those who already had them. They weren’t… traditional names, but she liked them nonetheless, and they suited the clones better than if they had been given names at birth. They were unique to them, and represented something far deeper than, say, her own name did.

Come to think of it, she wasn’t sure what her name meant on Eshan at all, or if it even had meaning. She was an orphan, left to one of the poorest orphanages on the planet, and the chances of her being born to parents who died fighting in one of the many civil wars or simply being given up were equally likely. Her name was likely hastily given, and, as it was with many orphans on Eshan, likely not one that told of any relations to her biological family. Luthal was more likely to be a randomly selected surname, so that she would never be able to make any connections to her biological family without jumping through some considerable hoops.

She didn’t really have a desire to find them anyway—the Jedi, the Order, were her family.

Master Du had been her family.

Captain Rex appeared in the medical tent, helmet tucked under his arm, looking frantic for half a second—when his eyes landed on her, it turned to thinly veiled frustration, “Sir, I’ve been looking for you for ages.”

“Oh, sorry,” she said, a little sheepish. She hadn’t even thought to tell anyone where she was going. They were all sleeping. He still looked disgruntled, but nevertheless straightened up to relay orders.

“We’re shipping out soon. Carriers are in short supply, so we’ll be going over in groups.”

Arwen kept pace with the captain, wondering if she should ask about getting a few pieces of armour to protect herself, but one look at the scant other Jedi that they crossed paths with nixed that idea.

Everyone was still in their usual robes, even though they were fighting a war. Maybe it was simply because there wasn’t enough for the Jedi to wear? Or maybe they needed to be fitted first?

No, she thought. It isn’t the Jedi way to wear armour.

Even during the bombings and skirmishes that occurred during the Separatist Crisis hadn’t driven the Jedi to wear armour. Their training covered deflecting blaster bolts, even if the Jedi in question had never had an interest in fighting, so she supposed she could see why armour wasn’t their main concern, but… wouldn’t it be better, just in case?

Jedi were peacekeepers, they had a duty to protect people, but didn’t they have a duty to themselves as well? Surely wearing armour wouldn’t be taken the wrong way, when it could possibly save their lives?

Could armour have saved Master Du’s life?

She pushed the thought out of her mind as soon as it appeared.

She finally exchanged comm frequencies with Captain Rex—it took longer than it should, as both comms were encrypted and not meant to be shared outside of their own groups.

Rejoining Torrent Company, they went over the terrain of their next battle location, as well as the predicted resistance, and their ultimate goal of capturing one of the few remaining non-droid generals on Geonosis, the Neimoidian Lar Nuuk, believed to have a good deal of information because of his close ties with the Trade Federation. His capture was a high priority, so they would have to check their fire when they closed in on his location. Their drop point was behind a section of tall, craggy sandstones that would offer them plenty of cover while they attempted to back General Nuuk up against the back of a steep cliff.

While the LAAT/i’s refuelled, Arwen and the men exchanged comm frequencies. It was a pain doing it manually, but the technicians hadn’t been given the chance to set up communications more effectively—there were more pressing matters at hand for them. Arwen hoped she wouldn’t need to make use of all the new frequencies for any dire reasons, but it would be incredibly stupid to go into another battle without them.

At the end of the strategy overview, it was decided that Captain Rex would take point in the first trip over—the available ships could only carry about a third of the company’s numbers—and Arwen would travel with the last group, accompanied by Sergeant Appo.

She kept a firm grip on the handhold, even while the ship was still stationary—hers carried the smallest group, only ten of Torrent Company, plus the two pilots, the front gunner, and the two turret operators. Aside from the crew, the other two LAAT/i’s space was mostly taken up by their supplies—extra tibanna gas for their blasters, basic medical supplies, and rations and water in case they got stuck out there for a bit. The first two transport routes had taken not only most of Torrent Company, but also much more heavy weaponry, in case they met extreme resistance.

When the pilots called out they were taking off, Arwen finally allowed herself to feel some kind of relief—they were almost there. She wouldn’t have to wait and twiddle her thumbs for much longer. She would have something to completely occupy her mind soon.

The take off was smooth, and the three ships flew in close formation, relatively low to the ground to avoid being detected. The doors were left open for quick deployment, and in the distance she could see the battles still raging across the sand and in the sky. Everything was too far to make out, too small for her to be able to tell if the clones were winning or losing, but she was hopeful. Most of the droid forces were only digging their heels in enough to destroy information and defend a position long enough for important figureheads—like General Nuuk—to escape.

They would win. It was just a matter of when.

The ship carried them beyond some deep canyons, then across some flats, until they finally reached an endless sea of sand dunes. There were no battles being fought here, where the terrain was incredibly unstable and difficult to traverse, and where both clones and droids would have too much difficulty setting up any point of significance. It was just beyond the dunes where they were headed, and if Arwen squinted and leaned slightly outside the open door of the LAAT/i, she could see where the sloping sands ended.

The stone, a deep burnt orange colour, marked the top of the cliff face General Nuuk would be backed into, and it was a point they needed to give a wide berth, as their troops were far on the other side. The position took a while to get to, but the tactical advantage it gave them was worth it. Approaching from behind, from the dunes and top of the cliff, just meant they gave General Nuuk time to retreat into a much more defensible position. If he made it into the crags, then beyond into another set of canyons, they’d likely never catch him.

Her head snapped up, a warning scream on her lips—

The ship shuddered and groaned, and Arwen lost her footing, managing to stay inside the ship only because of her sure grip on the handhold, even as her legs flew into the air. With her free hand, she caught one of the clones as he nearly went flying out, fingers yanking him by the armour behind her.

Smoke quickly filled the air, thick and black.

“We’re hit!” One of the pilots yelled, “We’ve got six nantex starfighters on our tail!”

The ship began lowering slowly, still maintaining speed as they moved towards their objective, but then it jerked abruptly, and she heard one of the engines stall for a few seconds before starting back up.

“We’ve lost control of the ship—”

“—incoming missiles—”

The ship jerked again, and a thick cloud of smoke erupted again—Arwen’s handhold snapped, and she tumbled forward, straight out the door of the ship.

“Commander—” Sergeant Appo reached for her, but it was too late. Form the corner of her eye, she could see another set of missiles, and without thinking she reached both her hands out and pulled—

Sergeant Appo came tumbling out from the ship, along with two other clones, but they were farther behind. Her back slammed into the sand and she groaned at the impact, but she was able to soften Sergeant Appo’s landing much more, although he would have survived the relatively low fall. The other two clones—her throat tightened. She felt their lives wink out when the ship exploded. They hadn’t been far enough away. She hadn’t pulled them out fast enough.

The six nantext starfighters continued to pursue the two remaining LAAT/i’s, chasing them into the distance as they desperately tried to dodge the incoming fire. They didn’t have much chance of being picked up anytime soon.

Sergeant Appo groaned, but quickly regained his footing, and Arwen followed his example, ignoring the dull ache in her back. She’d be lucky if she made it off this planet with her spine intact at this rate, “Are you alright, Sergeant?”

“Fine, sir. You?”

“I’m alright,” she said, looking over at the two dead clones with a heavy heart. They had landed on their fronts in the sand, and the once white plastoid of their armour was scorched black, burned and warped. The remaining clones on the ship hadn’t made it either, and the scattered pieces of armour and metal from the LAAT/i were half buried in the sand now, smoking.

She looked away, squinting the cliff in the distance.

“The cliff’s a fair way off,” she said, “but by the time we get there, Captain Rex should have already engaged them.”

Sergeant Appo nodded, activating his comm device, “Captain, our ship was shot down. The Commander and I were the only survivors. Medical supplies are destroyed too. The other two are being pursued by six nantex starfighters, coming your way.”

“We’ll call for what air support we can—might be a while before anyone can come and get you two.”

“We’ll approach from the cliff, Captain. We might be able to spot a weakness in their line, or find a way around,” Sergeant Appo’s helmet tilted over to her for approval, and she nodded, “We’ll make our approach now, but it’ll take a while. Don’t hold off the attack on our account.”

“Copy that. Captain Rex out.”

She and Appo took off in a run across the sand, and Arwen wished she had a helmet like his, or a mask at least, to keep the hot sand from getting in her eyes and scratching at her skin. Their run was relatively quiet, save for their pants, and Arwen kept a sharp eye out for any approaching ships, ally or enemy. She and Appo had nothing out here to defend themselves against a ship, and there was no cover, so their best bet would be catching the threat early—even if there was little else they could do.

The distant sound of baster fire suddenly rang out across the sand dunes, and Arwen and Appo spared a glance at each other before picking up the pace. Sweat was pouring down her back, and her face was uncomfortably sticky, but she couldn’t afford to stop. They were only a few klicks out from the cliff—

The blue light of an energy shield popped into view, just the very top of it visible from over the cliff.

“Kark,” Appo said, “guess General Nuuk is better prepared than we thought. How are they going to get rid of that?”

“They’d have to walk right through the shield—easier said than done. Droids probably have it pretty well guarded, even if they can’t shoot through their own shield. We’ll take a closer look once we get to the cliff, see what’s happening.”

“Yes, sir.”

They made it to the edge of the sand dunes in good time, and it felt good to have solid stone beneath her feet. She and Sergeant Appo crouched low as they approached, wary of any lookouts. When they neared the edge, they went prone, and Arwen hissed as the heat of the clifftop moved through her clothes. She pushed on, dragging herself forward, until she and Appo made it to the very edge. The shield was decently large, encompassing a moderate sized droid force. There were more droids than clones, that much she could tell just from a cursory glance, but certainly not enough to turn the battle in their favour, they didn’t have any functional walkers or tanks, and it looked like only one of their heavy artillery cannons was operational. The only thing that was keeping them from being overwhelmed by the clones seemed to be the shield.

Ahead, she could see the awkward position Torrent Company was in; passing through the shield made them too vulnerable to being picked off, as the shield ended where the crags did, the clones only cover. She found the shield generator, relatively unguarded too, and grinned.

She activated her comm, and Captain Rex answered swiftly, “Commander?”

“We’ve made it to the clifftop—we can see your position from here.”

“Any intel for us? A weak point?”

“Their front line looks pretty secure, and their only working artillery cannon is aimed at the crags, so I wouldn’t approach unless that gets taken out.”

“We got the other three, but the four walkers we had are rubble now. General Nuuk is holed up in one of their destroyed dwarf spider droids. Anything else?”

“Shield generator’s pretty unguarded,” she smiled, “so’s their back line. Being up against the cliff and the dunes, I don’t think they’re expecting anyone to turn up here, at least not without tripping some sensors.”

Captain Rex was silent for a moment, “You’re actually considering—”

“Yes,” she cut him off, “It’ll only take a moment. I can jump off the cliff before anyone can spot me, take out the shield generator, then duck back behind some rocks for cover while you guys take out the front line.”

Captain Rex sighed.

“The longer we wait, the better chance he has for escape,” she reminded him, “and air space out here clearly isn’t as secure as we thought.”

“At least take Sergeant Appo with you.”

Arwen looked at Appo and, though his face was covered, she could tell he was nervous. That was okay—she wouldn’t make him do it.

“Commander Luthal out.”

Sergeant Appo looked very stiff, “Sir?” To his credit, his voice was quite steady, and had she not been Echani, she might not have noticed.

“You don’t have to jump with me. You can wait up here, scout for incoming ships. The generator will be easy to take out—it’s just cleaning up the droids and capturing Nuuk that’ll take a moment. The rest of Torrent Company have it handled.”

“No, sir—I…” he huffed, and his helmet looked out over the cliff, “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m not a Jedi—I can’t just jump off a cliff and survive.”

Arwen blinked, “I’ll catch you.”

He snorted, helmet tipping back towards her. Her eyes narrowed, “Bridal style?”

She snorted too, despite herself, “With the Force, you moron,” she elbowed him. Appo looked down again, and she could hear him swallow thickly, “Are you scared of heights?” She asked, her voice soft. She didn’t want him to feel ashamed—really, the cliff was incredibly tall, and it was asking a lot for anyone to jump down. Even climbing down would be a terrifying task.

“No,” he said quickly, “just don’t really want to die this way. Can’t we climb down?”

“Not enough time, and the droids would spot us easily, even if they aren’t really looking this way. Look at us—your armour’s white, my clothes are—well, they were white,” she grimaced at her clothes, covered in sand and grime. They were more brown and orange than anything else, “We’d get shot down before we even made it a third of the way.”

Sergeant Appo said nothing, looking down at the droids below.

“You don’t have to come down with me,” she repeated, “Keep lookout up here, comm us if you see anything,” she rose to a crouch, patting his shoulder as she did, and braced to leap off.

“Wait—” he said, rising too, “I’m coming too, just… are you sure you can catch me?”

“I caught the hull of that ship yesterday, so unless you weigh more than that, I think I can handle it.”

Appo sighed, muttering something in a language she didn’t understand, and too quiet for her to try to discern, “Fine, fine… just… can you push me?”

“... push you?”

“I don’t think I can make myself jump.”

Arwen nodded, giving him a reassuring pat on the shoulder, “Brace yourself, and don’t scream. We don’t want to prematurely alert the droids,” he nodded nervously, gripping his blaster like a lifeline, “I’ll throw you up into the air a fair bit, to give me time to land and catch you.”

He exhale shakily, and began rocking back on his feet, “Okay, alright—yes, sir.”

She smiled one final time, before reaching out, finding his signature in the Force—determined, nervous, terrified, loyal—and lifted him high into the air and over the cliff. She heard his panicked gasp but, to his credit, he contained any other noises, and Arwen leapt off the edge.

The wind whistled past her rapidly, and she kept her limbs straight and close to her body for maximum aerodynamics. She slowed briefly to pass through the shield without issue, then let herself pick up some speed. As the sand rapidly approached below, she looked up, slowing Appo’s descent so he could pass through as well, before finally slowing her descent completely, landing quietly on her feet behind some jagged outcroppings at the base of the cliff.

She reached upwards for Sergeant Appo next, half tempted to try and catch him bridal style just to annoy him, but she resisted the urge. He had placed his trust in her, so readily for someone he didn’t know the first thing about, and she wouldn’t betray that trust.

She slowed his descent, and the sheer terror he radiated through the Force was enough to make her own heart start racing, but she kept her focus. She lowered him gently next to her, pretending she couldn’t hear his ragged, panicked breaths. She opted for another pat on the shoulder.

“Ready to move forward?” She peeked around the rocks, finding only a scant few droids near the shield generator. They would be easily taken out, the rocks nearby would provide excellent cover for them.

“Yes, Commander Luthal,” his voice was far less level now, but he straightened, blaster at the ready.

The pair moved forward quickly and quietly, and Arwen readied her lightsabers. The second she ignited them, or the second Appo fired his blaster, they would be discovered. Destroying the shield generator came first, everything else second.

As they drew closer, they lowered their crouch, and they watched for any movement the droids made.

“I’ll take out the generator and fall back to you. As soon as it's out, they’re all going to turn back on us. Watch my back, okay? Captain Rex’ll take their attention again soon enough.”

“Yes, sir.”

She pressed forward, feeling pleased with her decision to keep Appo back. He’d be safer there, and have a better chance at taking out droids from his position.

She was only a few feet away from the shield generator when she finally ignited her sabers—she sliced them both directly through the metal horizontally, and watched the blue light immediately flicker out. As predicted, the droids turned back, and the heavy artillery cannon began repositioning. She darted back, slicing a B2 for good measure.

“Fall back, Appo!”

Cannon fire landed just a foot or so behind her, and she was knocked off her feet and to the ground. She quickly got back up, deflected a blaster bolt and ducking behind another rock. Ahead of her, she could see Appo changing cover, turning back to fire when he was safe to, and then changing positions again. Behind her, the battle began once more.

It went quick from there, and Arwen and Appo circled around to rejoin with the rest of Torrent Company. The droids went down easily—the shield generator really had been their trump card—and General Nuuk was dragged out of the carcass of the dwarf spider droid, kicking and screaming.

“With any luck, he’ll give up some useful information before the day’s out.”

Appo snorted, “Before the day’s out? Look at him, he won’t last an hour.”

Arwen chuckled lightly, and the pair joined up with Captain Rex to debrief the Forward Command Centre’s commanders of the success, and request evac. It wouldn’t arrive for another few hours now, as airspace was being heavily contested again, so their orders were to fall back to the canyons and find cover.

The march there took only an hour, and General Nuuk was gagged to stop his loud complaining, and although the heat of the sun was near unbearable, she felt relatively at peace while she walked Captain Rex, Denal and Appo. The captain didn’t say much, but she contented herself with listening to Denal and Appo chatter away about inane things—it was calming, and gave her something to focus on.

It wasn’t until they reached the canyons and hunkered down under the cover of some alcoves with their supplies that Captain Rex spoke to her again.

“That was dangerous, sir.”

She felt oddly sheepish. Though technically his superior, she certainly didn’t feel like it. He had the experience, and maturity, that she lacked, “Sorry, Captain.”

He took off his helmet, giving her a sidelong glance, “But good work today.”

Arwen smiled again, “Thank you, Captain.”

They were quiet again after that, but Arwen didn’t mind. Torrent Company chattered quietly amongst themselves, and there was a gentle hum in the Force—it felt strangely warm, and soothing. The absence was still there, stark and foreign, but the hum was like a balm, soothing the sting and easing the ache.

She leaned back against the cool, shaded stone, and finally exhaled. She had never been especially good at discerning feelings through the Force, not amongst the Jedi and padawans and younglings in the temple. But maybe because these men had no such training against shielding oneself, she could sense them a little better.

Arwen wasn’t sure she had ever felt this, not directed at her anyway, because when she looked at Denal and Appo, and the pair looked back, helmets placed next to them, she was certain that she felt acceptance and loyalty.

Friendship.

She felt like she belonged.

[fiatluxillustration-portfolio]

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[intermundia]

honestly one of the things i love best about obi-wan kenobi is that sometimes he's fucking insufferable