episode seventeen — THE CALL TO CYREMON
the clone wars

Anakin stood in a small confined room, Obi-Wan's voice was completely faded and he focused on a piece of paper in front of him. In truth, he couldn't listen much anymore. The days were beginning to blend, lights were making his head pound, and he was overly exhausted. There were some nights where he refused to sleep, he had reports after reports. It was a never ending cycle, just when he thought his plans were coming to their summit, they instantly fall back down again and he's back where he started. "Are you listening, Anakin?" Obi-Wan'd voice drew him out of his trance. "What? Yeah." He shuddered. "I think you need a new pair of ears, Skyguy." Ahsoka's voice cackled from the other side of the table. "Oh shush, Snips." He scoffed. Ahsoka was like a sister, even in the short time of knowing each other, they fought like siblings.

"We have a new member joining us for this extraction of the Queen." Obi-Wan stated as he stood at the top of the table, then a woman walked in. Her hair was long, and a yellowish blonde. She wore dark robes, almost the color black. She looked human, but her eyes were so blue that they could be deemed fake. She bowed as she stood next to Obi-Wan, "This is Master Iden Pyralays," he stated, looking over to the woman, "She'll be working with us to ensure the safety of Queen Chantal's escape." He crossed his arms.

"Hello." Her voice was high pitched, and sort of heavenly. Ahsoka waved, while Anakin sent a quick half smile. He wasn't very fond of working with others besides Obi-Wan and Ahsoka, and if he was, It was with Plo Koon, or even Shaak Ti. This mission was going to tire him out, and maybe even make him lose his mind. "Now remember, our main objective is to rescue the Queen. The separatist base is not far from the palace, so let's do each other a favor and not alert the thousands of battle droids where we are." The older man joked, but he was also very serious.

These missions were life or death. It didn't matter who it was, death was always involved, and if you're lucky enough, you get to live. Iden moved over to sit next to Anakin, she didn't not say much, but gave him a small smile as they listened to Obi-Wan's details.
⠀⠀⠀.　　　　　　　　　　　　　.　　　ﾟ .　　　　　　　　　　　　　. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　✦ 　　　　　,　　　　　　　.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀　　　　　　*　　　　　　　　　　　..　　　　　　　　　　　　　. 　　⋆✴︎　   　　　,　　　　　　　　　*　　　　　⠀　　　　⠀　　,⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀.　　　　　 　　⠀　　　⠀.　 　　˚　　　⠀　⠀  　　,
The journey to Cyremon was quite bumpy. The atmosphere was made out of smoke and dusty rocks, which made it hard for ships to enter and exit the planet, especially cargo ships. Ahsoka held on tight to the side as Anakin flew, a tight smile on her face as she tried her best not to scream. Unfortunately, Ahsoka was used to his reckless flying sometimes. Anakin was an amazing pilot, but some days were a little rocky. The girl looked over to Iden, who looked perfectly contempt. "How about we actually land the ship before we die, right Skyguy?" Ahsoka raised her voice a little bit over the sound of tiny rocks lifting the metal of the ship. "It's the atmosphere, not me!" Anakin shouted back.

Eventually, they safely made it to ground level, where they would park their ship and steal disguises to get inside the palace. Cyremon had a rocky terrain, and had some spots full of sand. Luckily for Anakin, the Palace was built on a platform along with the city. The foundation was all smooth rock, with golden stairs leading up to the town. It was a beautiful planet, but Anakin had a bad feeling sinking in his chest. There was something that hadn't been uncovered yet, and it definitely was not the Queen.

He looked around the terrain, it hauntingly reminded him of Tattooine. No matter how far he could travel throughout the galaxy, whatever crevice he hid in, his home would always be two steps behind him.

( Anakin Skywalker was a ghost. )

"I'm not liking this very much." Ahsoka spoke from beside Anakin. Everything was strangely quiet, almost serene.

"The corridors should be around here somewhere." Obi-Wan looked on his device. The council instructed them to Cyremon to extract the Queen and any information she has regarding separatist battle tactics. It seemed like they were the puppets or the bait.

But this is how war was, this is how it was won, and this is how it would be. Nothing could stop waves from soaking into the shoreline, and this was exactly that. Despite the quietness, Iden swore that she heard the clanking of metal footsteps in the distance. As she went to go hide around a wall, she noticed battalions of droids covering the front steps of the palace. She pointed, getting the others attention quickly.

"We shouldn't face them head on. It's a suicide mission, we have to find the corridors." The older man spoke, looking to his old Padawan. Obi-Wan signaled them to follow him toward a small hole in the wall. It looks suspicious to Anakin, it was unordinary. Obi-Wan traced the wall as Ahsoka looked out, she knew the battle droids were extremely dull. Anakin looked toward the noise of the rock corridor opening. It was dark, with webs of deceased bugs hanging in every corner. Anakin held his breath for a moment, following Iden in the dark.

Every footstep they took echoed throughout the dark hallway. It felt as if they were trapped in some sort of crypt.

Eventually they reached a wobbly door, and light shined through the small cracks. The hardest part about this mission was that they truly knew nothing about Cyremon, the Queen, or the palace. The extraction would be difficult, Anakin had no doubt about that. They heard the echoes of battle droid's chattering.

"The others in Unit 239 said that she has not moved from her rooms in a week." One robotic voice spoke. "Oh." The other chimed in. Anakin silently laughed at their lack of conversation. He looked out from the small cracks, looking down at the glistening throne room. It was full of light oranges and soft greens. Plants and other greens filled the floor, and the throne shined in the reflection of the sunlight.  "We should infiltrate the west tower, it's our best strategy." Obi-Wan whispered.

However, Anakin obliged. "The west tower will only corner us, I think we should capture the throne room first." He spoke. Obi-Wan shook his head, "No, no, that'll draw too much attention." He fought. "Well I think it's the best plan." Anakin childishly smiled, then opened the hatch door and jumped out, slicing the pair of battle droids sitting below. He looked up, signaling the rest of the group to follow.

Obi-Wan sighed, and then followed. "Is he always like this?" Iden asked, her smile bright in the darkness. "Yup! Anakin never follows orders." Ahsoka nodded, following behind Obi-Wan. Iden smiled, jumping out of the hatch and then using the force to close it shut. Her robes fluttered behind her as she ran.

The solace faded as echoes of blaster shots rang throughout the castle, this was not the quiet mission that Obi-Wan prayed for, it was quite the opposite. Anakin held off the droids as Ahsoka ran up to the Queen's chambers. It was heavily guarded as she hid behind a pillar. She was no longer dealing with ordinary droids, but now Manga gaurds. She took a deep breath, hoping that Anakin would be quiet as he walked toward the chambers.

"Hey! What are you doing here?" Ahsoka's heart sunk, she knew this voice, and she knew she was caught. "Exploring the castle?" She turned around slowly, shrugging and smiling as she met face to face with the droid. "You can't be in here!" The droid shouted. "My apologies!" She grabbed her lightsaber, slicing the droid and then moving around the pillar. Unfortunately, something heated was brought up to her neck. The young girl took a deep breath.

Was this it?

Her mind raced. She prayed that anyone in the group would come around and save her. The Manga Guard would not let her go, she was completely done for. "You should not be here." It spoke, backing up slowly to have its back toward the door. Ahsoka couldn't reach for her lightsaber, as the droid had her hands behind her back. She shuffled against its hold, but any wrong movement would have her head rolling on the floor.

"Let her go!" She heard Anakin's voice boom through the hallway. "No." The guard responded. All of a sudden, the droid collapsed, the rays of its sword lightly stinging Ahsoka as it fell. She backed up quickly, seeing Iden behind the mesh of metal with her lightsaber equipped in hand. "Thank you." Ahsoka muttered. Iden nodded, then looked back to Anakin.

They walked up to the grand door of the Queen's chambers, they would have to retrieve her fast enough, or else the corridors would be flooded with droids of all kinds.

As they opened the door, Anakin looked to the distraught Queen hiding in the corner. She had a dagger in hand and she shook violently. "Get back!" She shouted. "I don't want to hurt you, but I must if it's the gods will!" She yelled, trying to move further into the wall. "We aren't here to hurt you." Iden spoke, placing her lightsaber on the ground and putting her hands in the air. "We were sent by the council to rescue you." Iden took a step forward. Still, the Queen would not lower her dagger.

"I promise you." Iden lowered her stance to match the frightened woman. "We are Jedi, we were sent here to rescue you." She smiled. The Queen glanced between the group, her breath slowing down as she dropped her dagger. "Hey!" A droid shouted. Anakin looked as he fired a shot and it grazed his shoulder. Obi-Wan force pushed the droid into the marble pillar, and then shut the doors quickly.

Anakin groaned, looking at the part of his robe that was cut open by the heat. The wound was bleeding just a little bit, and it was nothing he couldn't handle, but it burned like fire.

"See? We are safe, you are safe." Iden tried to make the best out the situation, using Anakin's wound was not the best choice, but it was the one to make the Queen trust them. "Alright.." She muttered, helping the woman get up from the floor. "We will have you meet with the council, they will decide your safety until we can get Cyremon under control again." Ahsoka spoke, keeping her distance carefully.

The extraction was much easier than the entrance, the group hurried back through the corridor, occasionally getting shot at by the battalions of droids. As they reached the ship, Ahsoka led the Queen to sit in the crew area, she lent her a blanket and some food they had stored away. "Thank you." She smiled, holding the blanket closer to her body. Ahsoka nodded, walking off into the cockpit as Anakin walked into the healing center.

Taking off his robe, he huffed and threw it on the ground. The burn was stinging, it was stinging badly. He wished Lillia was there to help him. Everything was calm around her, the trees, the soil, the air. He believed she was embodiment of celestial matter, she was the one holding the universe together. Without her, it would erupt in complete chaos. She was like the light, and before she came into his life, he was nothing but a an abyss. Anakin Skywalker would choose Lillia in every life.

"Do you need help?" Iden spoke, resting on the doorway with her arms crossed. "Nope." Anakin responded, not turning around and continuing to cut a bigger hole in his robes to access the wound. Iden hummed, then walked over and took the scissors out of his hand. She helped him cut the fabric, and then took some of the bacta spray and sprayed it on the wound. It reminded him of Lillia, but Iden was nowhere close, she was only someone Anakin was forced to work with. "There." She spoke, smiling happily. "Thanks." He dryly replied. Iden was very straightforward, very friendly. Usually, Anakin did not mind kindness, but something about her made him want to run back home and right into his wife's arms.

He longed for a goddess halfway across the galaxy, a goddess he wasn't supposed to have.
⠀⠀⠀.　　　　　　　　　　　　　.　　　ﾟ .　　　　　　　　　　　　　. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　✦ 　　　　　,　　　　　　　.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀　　　　　　*　　　　　　　　　　　..　　　　　　　　　　　　　. 　　⋆✴︎　   　　　,　　　　　　　　　*　　　　　⠀　　　　⠀　　,⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀.　　　　　 　　⠀　　　⠀.　 　　˚　　　⠀　⠀  　　,
Lillia paced the streets of Courscant, holding a shawl close to her body and carrying a few bags. She wanted to gift her family some valuables from the planet when she returned home to Valérian later. She figured they would appreciate something from a different world. Nothing quite stood out to her as she walked along the vendors. She desperately wanted to give something to Circe and Verena, who she hadn't seen in several months. They were her nieces, but Lillia thought of them as daughters. As soon as Helaena would have children, her son or daughter would become Lillia's as well. She thought back to the sleepovers she hosted for the girls, and how they giggled for hours on end. Lillia longed for a family of her own.

As she trailed, she noticed a jewelry stand, full of dazzling gems and shining golds. It did not compare to Valérian jewellery, but she figured the girls would love them. She gazed at them, one with an opal pendant, and the other with an emerald one. "The opal and emerald please." She smiled, pointing to the shining gold chains. "Ten credits!" The woman responded, picking them up and placing them in pretty bags. Lillia handed the woman the credits, then took the bags and made her way to other vendors. Some commotion distracted her as she walked.

"I didn't take anything, sir!" A young girl shouted. Lillia looked over, noticing familiar silver hair and Jedi robes. A man had his arm around her wrist and she tried to fight him off. "Hey!" Lillia shouted, hurriedly walking over. "Let go of her!" She spoke, looking at the man sharply. "She stole one of my fruits!" He argued. "I did not! I was reaching into my bag to hand him the credits." The girl fought back.

Lillia looked down, seeing the young padawan she met a few nights before. "I advise you to let go of the girl, or I'll have guards knocking at your doors later tonight." Lillia stared at him in the eye. The man dropped Illythria's wrist, scoffed and turned away. "Thank you, Your Highness." Illythria smiled, bowing her head neatly.

"No need for such casualties, please call me Lillia." The Queen chimed. "Lillia." Illythria smiled back. Illythria was a wise girl, Lillia knew her family due to their royal status. She was the heir to the throne, and would eventually become Queen, just like Lillia did. Lillia hoped that the galaxy would not be too harsh on her, not as harsh as it was on Lillia. "Is your wrist alright?" She looked down to the girl who lightly rubbed her skin.

"Yes, It just burns a little bit." The young girl answered truthfully. "Oh goodness, I'll bring you back to the temple, okay?" Lillia smiled as she nodded. "How is your training going?" She asked as they began to walk.

"It's alright, I have only been here a couple months, but It's sort of strange to be treated as an ordinary padawan and not a princess." She admitted. Lillia praised the girl. To leave your home at such a young age and have to forget about it, that was completely out of the equation. Lillia Skywalker could never truly forget her home, or her family. Her family was her foundation.

"I understand. One day, when you return, you'll understand how amazing it is to rule." The older woman smiled, carrying her bags of gifts happily. Illythria looked up to the joyful woman, smiling greatly. "Is it scary?" She asked.

Lillia shook her head.

"Nope! It can be scary at first, but when you realize that your nation loves you, it warms your heart in unexplainable ways." She examined the temple up ahead, its height casting a grand shadow over the vendors below. "Do you regret anything, like would you rather give it to anyone else?"

Illythria was quite wise, it surprised Lillia.

"I regret that my 'first day' as Queen was cut short. And even still, my kidnappers lay somewhere in the galaxy," she started, looking to the girl and then back to the temple, "but seeing the faces of small girls back home, and how they wish for a position like mine, you start to see it echo throughout the galaxy, I would give it to anyone who asked." She finished. Illythria smiled, Lillia was like a sister.

"You have a good heart." She spat out, causing the Queen to look over confused. "I can feel your intentions through the force, you are connected with nature in a way I cannot understand yet. You are kind." Illythria held out her hand, facing Lillia and stopping. Lillia took the young girls hand. "But there's something looming over you, something you don't know about." She added. Lillia trembled slightly, she thought of every possible thing, but her mind was too crowded for her to think of anything more.

Dismissing the girls statement, she smiled. "Come, I'm sure Master Nobuku is waiting for you."

AUTHORS NOTE
soooo... I apologize for how horrible this
chapter is. I'm not amazing at writing battle scenes, and honestly the mission scene is rushed because I wanted to get back to the plot 😭 But we have met Iden! I also apologize for the shortness of this chapter, my procrastination took over and I couldn't get through some scenes so I may just rewrite them in the future 🤯 A huge thank you goes out to redwaterlakes && loveysgarden for helping me get through this chapter 😭 love u both! Also we need to appreciate Anakin hating everyone BUT his wife 😭😭😭 Like he's so enchanted by her that every other person is just like blah