Dedicated to DaneJLion

     Kyra boarded the transport, talking animatedly with Rex and Ahsoka as they were shuttled back to the Tribunal, a Republic Star Destroyer. They landed in the bustling hangar bay, where the other half of the 501st division was waiting to escort Darth Maul to his cell. The clone officers saluted Kyra, Ahsoka, and Rex as they walked onto the bridge, and the Star Destroyer made the jump to lightspeed.

     After a moment, Rex appeared at Kyra's side and asked, "What's botherin' you, kid?"

     Kyra turned – surprised by how easily the commander could read her – then nodded, "As Jedi, we're trained to be keepers of the peace, not soldiers. But all I've been since I was an Initiate is a soldier."

     "Well, I've known no other way," Rex replied. "Gives us clones all a mixed feeling about the war. Many people wish it never happened. But without it, we clones wouldn't exist."

     A small smile appeared on Kyra's face, "Well, then perhaps some good has come from all of it. The Republic couldn't have asked for better soldiers, nor I a better friend."

     "I couldn't have said it better myself," Ahsoka added as she and Kyra saluted Rex.

     The commander smiled before returning the gesture, their happy moment interrupted when an officer informed Rex that the latest briefing had come in.

     Rex nodded before turning to the Force wielders, "Want to have a look? It might have an update on General Kenobi's efforts."

     Kyra nodded and followed Rex as he started to exit the bridge, both stopping when they realized that Ahsoka was not following. When Rex asked Ahsoka if she was coming, Tano shook her head and explained that she was reluctant to hear more bad news. As the commander and padawan made their way through the labyrinth of corridors on the Tribunal, Kyra suddenly doubled over, voices filling her head.

     "You must choose," Darth Sidious stated as a lightsaber hummed to life.

     "Don't listen to him, Anakin!" Master Mace Windu yelled.

     "It's not the Jedi way. He must live," Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker said, ignoring Mace's order to kill Sidious.

     "He's too dangerous to be left alive," Windu insisted.

     "Please don't," Sidious pleaded.

     "I need him," Anakin begged, urging Windu not to kill Sidious.

     Sidious laughed evilly, "Unlimited power!"

     Master Windu screamed in pain as Force lightning crackled and Anakin asked, "What have I done?"

     "Kyra? Kyra, are you alright?" Rex asked, concern lacing his voice as he gently shook the padawan's shoulders.

     Kyra blinked several times, trying to sort through what she had just heard.

     As Rex helped her to her feet, she said, "Yes, I'm fine. But I can't join you at the briefing. There's an urgent matter I must attend to."

     The commander hesitated, then nodded, "I'll fill you in once the meeting's done."

     "Thanks, Rex. You're the best," Kyra replied before sprinting towards the prison block.

     When she reached the section where Maul was being held, she managed to convince the troopers guarding his cell to give her a moment alone with the prisoner. Once the troopers had left, Kyra stood directly in front of the capsule so that she did not have to speak louder than necessary.

     "Did you hear those voices? The ones you can hear in your head even though no one's speaking?" she asked, her heart racing as the words rushed out of her mouth.

     When Maul nodded, Kyra covered her face with her hands and whispered, "I think I know who Darth Sidious is. It has to be the Supreme Chancellor, the only person that Anakin would trust more than Obi-Wan. By the Force, that means...you were right. You said it yourself, Anakin's been molded into this position his entire life. I've heard General Skywalker talk about how the Chancellor has been a role model for him. That's why. Palpatine's been pulling the strings all along, coordinating the Clone Wars just like you composed the war on Mandalore. The Council, the Jedi as a whole were unable to see—"

     Kyra stopped as she suddenly became aware of the massive flaws within the Jedi Order, "No. Unwilling to see the darkness rising in our ranks. We were blinded by our own arrogance. Blinded because we were so sure the Jedi Order was at the peak of its ascendency, when in reality, we're spiraling out of control. By the time we open our eyes, we'll have already crashed, and there will be nothing left to salvage."

     Kyra locked eyes with Maul, and when he nodded, she knew he understood their grave situation. She started to speak but turned when the electron gate opened behind her and two troopers marched into the cell. Without saying a word, the clones aimed their blasters at Kyra and opened fire, forcing her to dive out of harm's way. When she tried to get up, the first trooper kicked her in the stomach and aimed his blaster at her chest, but Ahsoka ran into the cell and threw him against the wall before he could shoot. Kyra grabbed her lightsaber and sliced the second trooper's blaster in half before using the Force to slam him against the ceiling, knocking him out.

     "Ahsoka, what the bloody hell is happening?" Kyra asked as Tano helped her to her feet.

     "The clones turned against me. Even Rex," Ahsoka answered, her expression clouded as she and Kyra turned to face Maul. "I don't know why, they just suddenly weren't themselves."

     When Kyra looked over at Ahsoka, she knew that they were both thinking the same thing.

     "I've got a bad feeling about this," Ahsoka muttered as she unlocked the capsule and removed Maul's restraints.

     "Don't make us regret this," the padawan growled, keeping her lightsaber pointed at Maul's chest as he slumped to the ground, coughing. "Do you know what's happening here?"

     "I do not know what has occurred, but I know that we all have felt it. The voices crying out. The death," Maul replied, going quiet before suddenly starting to laugh. "Brilliant. Brilliant. I was not privy to my master's plan, but now, now I see it. He turned the Jedis' own army against them."

     Maul exhaled deeply as he got to his feet and said, "Well, you've done the right thing by coming to me. Only together can we survive this. Now, if you will follow my lead—"

     Maul stopped when Kyra aimed the tip of her lightsaber at his throat, "You don't understand. We're not here to team up with you. We need a diversion, and you're it. Now go cause some chaos. It's what you're good at."

     As they cautiously exited the cell, Maul asked, "Care to give me a fighting chance?"

     "We're not rooting for you," Ahsoka reminded him. "Now get going."

     Maul scowled before reluctantly heading deeper into the Star Destroyer as Ahsoka and Kyra made their way to the droid bay. Three astromech droids that waited inside, Ahsoka activated R7-A7, a red, white, and green astromech, who she quickly silenced when he began to beep excitedly. When Ahsoka stated that she and Kyra needed R7-A7's help, he activated the two other droids – RG-G1 and CH-33P – each rapidly asking questions in the form of clicks, beeps, and whistles.

     "I don't know why the clones are doing this," Ahsoka replied, knowing the curious droids would alert the troopers to their presence if she did not quiet them. "But we might be able to do something about it. Are you sure you wanna help? It could be dangerous."

     When all three astromech droids agreed to help, Ahsoka said, "Okay, let's get started. Arseven, patch into the central computer. Bring up every secure file on clone trooper SeeTee-Five-Five-Five-Five."

     As R7-A7 did as Ahsoka requested, Kyra asked, "What does Fives have to do with this?"

     "When Rex...intercepted me on the bridge, he seemed to be straining against something. Almost as if he's being controlled," Ahsoka explained. "Before he succumbed to whatever's controlling him, he told me to find Fives."

     When R7-AT located the files on Fives, Ahsoka scrolled through the data until a hologram of Nala Se – a clone engineer – appeared and reported, "An independent investigation confirmed that the clone trooper See-Tee-Five-Five-Five-Five experienced a malfunction with his inhibitor chip. Both the Senate committee and the Jedi Council have accepted these findings. However, a grievance report was filed by SeeTee-Seven-Five-Six-Seven."

     Before the Kaminoan could continue, Kyra asked R7-A7 to find the grievance report that Nala Se had mentioned. When R7-A7 informed her that the file was sealed, Ahsoka suggested using Anakin's passcode to unlock it. R7-A7 tried the code, and a hologram of CT-7567 – Commander Rex – appeared shortly after.

     "I already know this report is gonna fall on deaf ears," Rex claimed with a sigh, "but I owe it to Fives to record what I saw. I'm not sure I believe it myself, but there's a possibility that the inhibitor chips the Kaminoans put inside of us have a purpose that we don't yet fully understand."

     After watching the holovid, Kyra instructed the droids to find Rex and use the blast doors to separate him from the other troopers. When they had done as she requested, she activated a holographic transmission of her and Ahsoka.

     "Rex, Ahsoka and I think we know what's happening," she said, using the Force to try and read the commander's emotions. "We saw your report on Fives. It isn't your fault. You were programmed. Your mind was altered to do this when you were very young, but we can help you."

     Kyra ended the transmission as soon as she had finished talking, preventing Rex from using its signal to locate her and Ahsoka. They quietly approached the commander from behind, only revealing themselves when Rex threatened to shoot R7-A7. When Rex whipped around to face them, the astromech electrocuted him, the clone commander going rigid before falling limply to the ground. When the other clones troopers – having been alerted to Kyra and Tano's presence – began trying to unlock the blast doors, Ahsoka and Kryze carried Rex to the medical bay. Just as the girls made their way through the first blast door, the clone troopers broke through the barricade.

     The two Force wielders picked up the pace as R7-A7 closed the next blast door and temporarily hindered the 501st division. Once they reached the medbay, Ahsoka and Kyra lowered Rex onto a medical table as CH-33P sealed the entrance shut.

     "Arseven, run a scan," Ahsoka instructed as she removed the commander's helmet. "See if you can find the inhibitor chip the report talked about."

     When the first scan showed no sign of the chip, Kyra asked R7-A7 to try again. Suddenly, CH-33P began to beep frantically, the gray and yellow astromech telling the fugitives that the clone troopers had found them.

     "Argee, if they override the door controls, I'll need you to reseal it fast," Kyra said as she turned to the yellow and black astromech unit.

     As RG-G1 wheeled over to the blast door, R7-A7 informed Ahsoka that the second scan had also failed to locate any abnormalities. Ahsoka gave Kyra one of her lightsabers and instructed her to guard the door before moving to Rex's side.

     Kyra ignited the sabers, keeping one eye on the door and one eye on Ahsoka, who began to quietly chant, "I am one with the Force, and the Force is with me. I am one with the Force, and the Force is with me."

     Kyra recognized the phrase as that of the Guardian's Mantra, and on the third repetition, the unconscious commander began to join in. They repeated the mantra a few more times, when suddenly, the console beeped. Kyra glanced at the screen just long enough to inform Ahsoka that the scan had located the inhibitor chip before turning back towards the door. When Ahsoka instructed R7-A7 to anesthetize Rex and remove the chip, the droid chirped worriedly.

     Kyra and Ahsoka locked eyes for a moment, then Tano sighed and admitted, "I don't know if it will work, but if it doesn't, we're dead anyway."

     After a moment, R7-A7 slid Rex into the surgery chamber and Kyra returned Ahsoka's lightsaber as the 501st division began to break through the blast door. As RG-G1 prepared to reseal the entrance, the two Force wielders ignited the blue blades of their lightsabers and adopted different fighting stances. The blast door slowly raised and the clone troopers immediately opened fire, Ahsoka and Kyra deflecting the blaster bolts with their sabers. Kyra reached out to the Force and extended her arms, shoving several of the soldiers backward as Ahsoka slammed a pair of troopers into the door, another clone continuing to hold up the blast door for his comrades.

     When one trooper went down, two more took his place, and the numbers began to overwhelm Tano and Kryze. One clone trooper managed to shoot Kyra's left hand, forcing her to wield her lightsaber in one hand. As the clone troopers continued to gain ground, Ahsoka told RG-G1 to reseal the door, blaster shots soaring over their head before the droid could do as she was told. Kyra and Ahsoka ducked as Commander Rex opened fire on his own men, allowing RG-G1 to lock the door and seal them inside.

     "Rex? Are you okay?" Ahsoka asked cautiously, keeping her sabers raised as she pulled Kyra behind her.

     "Yeah. Yeah, kid. I'm okay," Rex assured them as he swung his legs over the bed. "I'm sorry about what happened earlier. I almost killed you."

     Kyra pushed past Ahsoka and climbed onto the bed, kneeling in front of Rex as she threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. Rex blinked rapidly, trying to keep his emotions in check as he returned the embrace and Ahsoka asked how widespread the inhibitor chip was.

     Still holding Kyra in his arms, Rex turned to Tano and said, "Ahsoka, it's all of us. The entire Grand Army of the Republic has been ordered to hunt down and destroy the Jedi."

     The trio jumped when the blast door began to spark again, the clone troopers trying to break through once more. Kyra quickly injected a vial of bacta into her wrist before wrapping her injured hand and igniting her lightsaber.

     "How are we gonna get out of here?" Rex asked as he put his helmet on.

     "I have an idea," Ahsoka replied. "Just set your blasters to stun. We're not trying to kill anyone."

     Rex grumbled to himself but did as Ahsoka asked as the trio prepared to face the onslaught of blasterfire. When Ahsoka glanced at Kyra, Kryze knew that they were both thinking the same thing. As the clone troopers finished cutting through the blast door, Ahsoka and Kyra reached out to the Force and launched the door away from them, knocking several troopers over in the process. Rex rushed out first, stunning three troopers as Ahsoka and Kyra positioned themselves on either side of the commander, protecting him from the enemy fire and deflecting the blaster shots with their sabers. Once the corridor had been cleared, Kyra instructed R7-A7 to find the path of least resistance.

     As three more soldiers rushed into the hallway, R7-A7 blocked them off by closing one of the four blast doors. The astromech droids cautiously rolled out of the medical bay as Rex asked Ahsoka what their next move was.

     "The escape pods have been destroyed, so taking a shuttle is our best bet," Ahsoka explained as she headed farther into the ship.

     When a trooper at Rex's feet groaned, the commander said, "The boys are having a rough time of it. Did you hear Maul also escaped?"

     "He didn't escape," Kyra clarified as she followed Ahsoka. "We let him out as a diversion."

     Rex shook his head as he followed Kryze and Tano, who turned left at the first intersection. As the trio ran, heading for the hangar control room, the Tribunal sparked and shuddered, its metal frame groaning.

     "Oh, I don't like the sound of that," Rex admitted as they reached the operations room.

     Rex entered first, stunning the first few officers as Kyra and Ahsoka used the Force to knock the others off their feet. The commander moved over to the main console and informed the girls that the hangar bay doors were sealed, the officers having previously locked everything down.

     "If they weren't trying to kill us, I'd be proud," he added, his grim tone revealing that he was aware of their bleak situation.

     Kyra turned to the droids and instructed R7-A7 to unlock the hangar doors on bay twelve while ordering CH-33P to prepare the shuttle for takeoff and asking RG to find out why the Tribunal was shaking so violently. The astromechs went off to complete their respective tasks and RG-G1 quickly discovered the reason for the Star Destroyer's instability; the Tribunal's hyperdrive had been destroyed and was now offline. When the trio moved closer to a small screen on the console, they saw that the Tribunal was caught in the gravitational field of a nearby moon, the Star Destroyer set on a collision course as it was slowly pulled towards the planetoid.

     When Kyra asked R7-A7 to open the main hangar doors, the large doors slid aside to reveal the celestial body that loomed beneath the Tribunal, growing ever larger as the Star Destroyer plummeted out of the sky. The control room jolted beneath the trio and knocked them off their feet as pieces of the Tribunal – including two of its engines – fell off. R7-A7 quickly completed the task of opening the hangar doors on bay twelve, where the last shuttle waited. When the trio noticed that the hangar had also been containing a legion of clone troopers, Kyra stated that the Republic forces had been waiting for them. ARC trooper Jesse led his men into the main hangar, the clones quickly filing into formation and aiming their blasters at the viewports of the control room.

     "So what do we do?" Rex asked as he turned to Ahsoka and Kyra. "Fight our way to the shuttle?"

     Ahsoka shook her head, "They're too many. Besides, I don't wanna hurt them."

     The commander sighed, "I hate to tell you this, but they don't care. This ship is going down, and those soldiers, my brothers, are willing to die and take all of us along with them."

     Rex became more animated as he talked, but when he finished, his shoulders slumped and he sagged, as if all the fight had gone out of him. Ahsoka moved closer to the clone commander and, after a brief hesitation, removed his helmet. Rex quickly turned away from the girls, but they had already seen the tears streaming down his face.

     Ahsoka placed a hand on his shoulder and said, "You're a good soldier, Rex. So is every one of those men down there. They may be willing to die, but Kyra and I are not going to be the ones who kill them. And I don't think you are, either."

     Rex squeezed his eyes shut and inhaled deeply before asking, "So, we're just gonna surrender? Admit defeat? Is that it?"

     When Kyra shook her head, Rex admitted that he did not see any other option. Kyra moved to the window and looked down at the gathered soldiers below, Jesse pacing impatiently in front of them. When she stated that she had an idea, both Rex and Ahsoka raised an eyebrow.

     "Don't worry. It's a good one...I think," Kyra said before kneeling in front of the droids. "Can I count on the three of you?"

     CH-33P saluted with one of his metal arms as all three droids assured Kyra of their loyalty.

     "Good. I'll explain on the way," Kyra replied as she ran out of the operations room, leaving Rex and Ahsoka with no choice but to follow her and the astromechs.

     Rex put his helmet on and drew his blasters as they ran, the group entering the main hangar bay a moment later. The commander held Ahsoka at gunpoint – as the padawan of Obi-Wan Kenobi had requested – and ordered his men to hold their fire.

     When Jesse and the 501st division aimed their blasters at the trio, Rex repeated, "I said hold your fire, Jesse. I have the situation under control."

     "You have your order, sir," Jesse reminded his commander. "Now execute it or I will!"

     Rex stopped several feet away from the men he had once led into battle, "The order was to execute the Jedi for treason against the Republic. The problem is, Ahsoka Tano is no longer a Jedi. Hasn't been for some time."

     As Kyra snuck into the hangar and hid behind a pair of large terminals with the droids, she heard Jesse reply, "Sir, you said yourself we're under special order from Darth Sidious to eliminate Ahsoka Tano and Kyra Kryze, as well as any other clone who disobeys Order Sixty-Six."

     As R7-A7 plugged his computer interface arm into the terminal, Rex continued to distract his men.

     "Jesse. Jesse, listen to me," the commander pleaded. "We've known each other a long time. If we don't get this right, we will be the ones committing treason, not her."

    The ARC trooper began to lower his weapon, then raised them again, "Commander Rex, you're in violation of Order Sixty-Six. I accuse you of treason against the Grand Army of the Republic. You'll be demoted in rank from commander and subject to execution along with Ahsoka Tano and Kyra Kryze, seeing as you have failed to terminate them yourself."

     Ahsoka glanced at Kyra again, and Kryze signaled that she and the droids were all set. Before the 501st division could open fire, R7-A7 activated the hangar's elevators and dropped the troopers into the lower levels of the ship. Rex – who had been holding onto Ahsoka's lightsabers – tossed the weapons back to Tano as she and Kyra rushed towards the clones. Only a couple of elevators had dropped, leaving several squadrons for the trio to take care of. Rex used his twin pistols to stun his men as Kyra and Ahsoka disarmed them with their sabers. Suddenly, RG-G1 started beeping frantically, and the trio looked over to find Maul sprinting towards the very shuttle that they had planned on using to escape.

     Rex, Ahsoka, and Kyra defeated the handful of remaining clones as they chased after Maul, who threw multiple containers at them with the Force and growled, "You wanted this chaos."

     Kyra leapt over the last container and tried to stab Maul, but he quickly backed away from her and used the Force to send her flying across the hangar. As she slid towards one of the hollow elevator shafts, she tried in vain to slow her momentum, but it was no use. As she went falling over the edge, RG-G1 fired a grappling hook in her direction. Kyra managed to grab onto the wire, holding on with one hand while keeping her lightsaber in the other as the clone troopers beneath her began to regain consciousness. When the troopers opened fire, Kyra deflected the blaster bolts while Rex returned fire with his pistols.

     Hearing engines in the distance, Kyra told Ahsoka to stop the transport as Rex helped her climb over the edge of the shaft. Ahsoka raced across the hangar as she reached out to the Force, planting her feet against the hard metal surface as she stopped the shuttle in its tracks. The shuttle groaned in protest as Maul increased the power of the thrusters, and Ahsoka grunted with effort as she leaned backwards. Kyra rushed to her side and held onto Ahsoka's right arm as she, too, reached out to the Force. Rex followed close behind Kyra and held onto the girls' shoulders, trying to keep them grounded. The trio ducked as another squadron of clone troopers opened fire, complicating their situation even further.

     Ahsoka and Kyra slipped out of Rex's grasp, but when the captain tried to catch them, they instructed him to intercept the incoming troopers. Rex reluctantly did as they asked, Kyra's arms shaking as all of the shuttle's power was diverted to its engines. Rex staggered backwards when a blaster bolt hit his left shoulder, grunting in pain as he told the Force wielders that he could not hold his men off much longer. Kyra looked over at Ahsoka, the two conversing silently through the Force. Kyra closed her eyes before reluctantly releasing the shuttle as Ahsoka did the same, Kryze watching as her mother's murderer raced out of the hangar.

     Breathing hard, Kyra charged towards the clone troopers as Ahsoka stepped in front of Rex, shielding him with her lightsabers as Kyra quickly disarmed the troopers that were not stunned by Rex or their own deflected blaster shots. As another squadron of soldiers raced into the hangar, Kyra joined Rex and Ahsoka at Tano's request, the former apprentice of Anakin Skywalker using her sabers and the Force to cut a circle in the metal floor. Rex looked down at the floor, then at Ahsoka, realizing what she was doing only a moment before they fell through the hangar and into the empty elevator shaft beneath them.

     Rex clutched his injured shoulder as the trio slowly got up, all wincing as each sore muscle protested. The fugitives turned around and found themselves face-to-face with Jesse and the rest of the 501st division, who had not been able to climb out of the lower hangar bay. Rex sighed as Jesse ordered his men to fire, but before they could, CH-33P, RG-G1, and R7-A7 plugged into the terminals and lifted two of the elevators into the main hangar. When Jesse ordered his men to destroy the droids, the trio did not have time to grieve over their inorganic companions because the remaining clones opened fire, forcing Ahsoka and Kyra to deflect the blaster bolts as Rex searched for a suitable starfighter.

     When the captain found a functioning Y-wing, Kyra used the Force to throw him onto the ship as Ahsoka shielded her with her sabers. When Tano yelped, Kyra whipped to find that the former padawan had been shot in the right shoulder. Reaching into the reserves of her energy, Kyra used the Force to push a squadron of troopers away from her and Ahsoka. She then turned towards Ahsoka and used the Force to toss Tano onto the nose of the Y-wing. Before she could clear the gap that sat between her and the bomber, the Tribunal tilted on its starboard side as it was pulled apart by the moon's upper atmosphere.

     Kyra sunk her lightsaber into the metal paneling of the Tribunal, her knuckles turning white as she grasped the hilt to prevent herself from falling into the side of the Star Destroyer. Kyra took a deep breath and launched herself towards the Y-wing as Rex sealed himself in the cockpit and Ahsoka settled into the gunner's seat. Just as Kyra leapt towards the bomber, metal creaked and the ship broke away from its mooring. Kyra was pulled from the ship's hangar, forced to weave around the large hunks of debris as the Tribunal tore apart. She spotted the Y-wing and let go of the iron rod she had been hanging onto, using the Force to maneuver through the wreckage of the Star Destroyer.

     When she saw Rex strap the harness around himself, she knew what he was thinking and altered her course so she was falling towards the cockpit. At the last moment, Rex opened the hatch and Kyra fell into his lap, making herself as small as possible as she wrapped her arms around his neck. Even once the cockpit had resealed itself, Kyra did not let go of Rex, for she felt as though he and Ahsoka were all she had left. The captain grunted with effort as he pulled back on the joysticks and attempted to pilot the Y-wing away from the doomed Star Destroyer.

                                                                      ...

     Once the Tribunal came to a rest on the rocky surface of the moon and debris had finished falling from the sky, the trio buried the fallen clone troopers, propping their helmets on rods of metal. Rex loaded the medical supplies that he had found – as well as the remains of R7-A7 – into the Y-wing, looking back over his shoulder to find Ahsoka and Kyra still standing near the rows of graves they had recently covered. Ahsoka's shawl blew around her legs, a mild wind caressing the gray fabric as she dug a small hole and buried her lightsabers. Kyra fell to her knees in front of Jesse's grave and finally released the tears that she had been holding back throughout the ordeal.

     A miserable, wordless sound of grief and fury escaped Kyra's lips as several months' worth of emotions were finally released, emotions that she had been suppressing since the death of her mother. She heard footsteps behind her, then saw Rex and Ahsoka's shadows as they dropped down beside Kyra and pulled her into a hug. Kyra wiped the tears off her face as she turned around and wrapped her arms around their shoulders. They finally let go of one another after several moments, and when Kyra looked at Ahsoka and Rex, it was as if she were truly seeing them for the first time. Kyra suddenly remembered that Ahsoka was only seventeen years old – thrust into the Clone Wars at the young age of fourteen – and Rex, despite being physically and mentally mature, had only been created two years earlier on Kamino.

     Then Kyra abruptly realized that she, too, was only ten years old. The three of them had been thrown into war at a young age and had become siblings in arms.

     "Where do we go from here?" Kyra asked quietly.

     Before Rex or Ahsoka could answer, the comms system on the Y-wing chirped twice, informing the trio that they had two incoming messages. They made their way over to the cockpit of the bomber, and when Rex activated the first holovid – which had been previously recorded – a small hologram of Supreme Chancellor Palpatine appeared.

     "The Jedi rebellion has been foiled," Palpatine said, his face concealed by the hood of his red cloak. "The remaining Jedi will be hunted down and defeated. The attempt on my life has left me scarred and deformed. But I assure you, my resolve has never been stronger! In order to ensure the security and continuing stability, the Republic will be reorganized into the first Galactic Empire! For a safe and secure society."

     Before the recording ended, Darth Sidious raised his hands into the air as the Senate exploded with cheers and applause.

     "After everything we've done for them," Kyra said after a moment, her blue eyes ablaze with an inner fire. "We were loyal to the Chancellor and the Republic! But in the end, we were just pawns being used in a galactic game."

     Ahsoka placed a hand on Kyra's shoulder as Rex sighed and played the next recording, "This is Master Obi-Wan Kenobi. I regret to report that both our Jedi Order and the Republic have fallen, with the dark shadow of the Empire rising to take their place. This message is a warning and a reminder for any surviving Jedi: trust in the Force. Do not return to the Temple. That time has passed, and our future is uncertain. Avoid Coruscant. Avoid detection. Be secret...but be strong. We will each be challenged: our trust, our faith, our friendships. But we must persevere and, in time, I believe a new hope will emerge. May the Force be with you always."

     Kyra's hand curled into a fist, relief mixing with anger as she muttered, "My father had time to record an entire bloody message but couldn't be bothered to contact me and tell me he was okay?"

     As soon as the words left her mouth, Kyra remembered that – other than her parents – she was the only person who knew the identity of her father. Her shoulders hunched up around her ears as she slowly turned to face Ahsoka and Rex, whose eyebrows were both raised in shock.

     "General Kenobi's your father?" Captain Rex asked incredulously, but Ahsoka just smirked and shook her head.

     "In retrospect, it makes so much sense. I can't believe I didn't see it," Ahsoka muttered.

     When Ahsoka started to remind Kyra that Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi was also dealing with the effects of Order 66, Kryze held up a hand to stop her.

     "I know," she said wearily before changing the subject. "So, what do we do—"

     Once again, the same line of inquiry was cut off when both Ahsoka and Kyra felt a great disturbance in the Force, like a bright light suddenly flickering out. Kyra just managed to keep from falling to her knees as her legs buckled underneath her, and Ahsoka had to lean against the Y-wing to keep from collapsing.

     "Padmé..." Kyra Kryze whispered. "She's...she's—"

     "—gone," Ahsoka Tano finished, her voice also filled with anguish.