"Order!" Called the tall, horned Vice Chancellor, Mas Amedda.

He slammed his staff of office into the ground of his platform, sending resounding echoes through the massive, cacophonous chamber which held the Galactic Senate. But the effect of even this normally effective display was muted, nearly ignored.

"Order! We will have order!" He demanded.

"Order?" Called Veedaaz Awmetth from his hovering platform.

"How can you demand order while insisting on this chaos?!"

Many others cheered and called out agreements to his sentiments, a chorus of dissent. Mas Amedda's face fogged with rage, and he made to slam down his staff again, but a raised hand from Palpatine was enough to defuse him. The man looked at the side of his leader's head, and Palpatine nodded without looking at him.

"Recognizing and addressing the Senator representing Sarresh and the Vensensor Sector." Mas called out.

Palpatine stepped forward, raising both hands in a calming gesture.

"Fellows please, I am sure we can resolve this alarm without devolving into exaggerations. I assure you-"

"Exaggerations?!" Veedaaz screamed.

"You've recalled nearly everything, nearly every asset, back to Coruscant! The outer rim sieges are folding like pazaak chips, all but lost! Sarresh is being overtaken as we speak by General Grievous's forces! The Sarresh Defense Force is fighting a battle they cannot win, and we are abandoning them to that fate!"

Palpatine kept a serene composure as he reached out with his mind, floundering the upstart Veedaaz, and creating a gap in his tirad to speak through, though it was not he who spoke. He had long learned that it was best to allow others to be the voice of rebuke when speaking among "peers".

"Is it a trait of your species to be unable to see what is in front of you, or is that your failing alone?" Crowed Senator Saam.

"The entire Kuat Drive Yard defense fleet is in shambles! The Defenders of Axum are mauled and defeated! Many Jedi are dead, and thousands of clones and personnel along with them! This new enemy has departed from the Axum system, practically next door to Coruscant, and you want to risk defeat here, in the very heart of the Republic, to preserve your planet from a temporary Sepratist occupation?"

The Ishi Tib senator scoffed loudly, exaggerating his demonstration.

"The only chaos in this senate is coming from shortsighted fools like you who cannot adapt to an evolving situation!"

"Evolving situation indeed!" Called Ask Aak, the Senator of Malastare.

"Since when did we give the Supreme Chancelor the Authority to recall so many of our forces?" He asked openly.

That was not good, and Sheev stifled Ask Aak, carefully measuring his power. Jedi, many Jedi, were present after all. They stood in the hallways and entryways into the chamber, slicking in the shadows, and hovering behind their supporters. They felt nothing as he silenced the senator, again allowing another voice to speak where he himself might have had to.

"Nonsense!" cried Senator Ister Paddie.

"We have already bestowed the chancellorship with all the power required to orchestrate the war decisively and at his discretion." The member of the Loyalist committee asserted.

"As a member of the Military Oversight Committee, I must disagree." Said Senator Aang, speaking softly, yet being heard through the use of the speakers built into his platform.

Palpatine felt a spike of rage enter into him, and nearly reached out for the Roonian, before realizing that Master Windu himself was seated in the alcove behind the Senator. To stifle him as he had the others would risk too much, and he begrudgingly watched more of the senate's power balance slip away from his design.

"We have given the Supreme Chancellor all this power in regards to the war with the Separatists. But nothing about the briefings we have seen has hinted to me that these...far outsiders are of any relation to the Separatists at all. Therefore, I think we will need to take a vote to determine whether to include this newer conflict into his purview."

"Order! None of you have been recognized to speak! We WILL have order in this senate!" Mas shouted, his staff banging like an oversized gavel.

"My friends." Palpatine said, beginning again.

"Surely you realize that this conflict must not be victim to indecision. Already I have put together a special task force to examine and advise on these outsiders, and as any of you would do, I am acting in accordance to their advice. But I must be allowed to act freely, or neither of these wars will end favorably." He said.

He longed to use his powers openly, to bend these unruly creetons to his will, but the time had not yet come, and the jedi were not yet gone. So again he controlled his expression, as countless voices rose in dissent to his words.

"So we are merely to continue extending your term and power with every new war? That is unacceptable, we must vote." Stated Senator Mon Mothma of Chandrila.

"Is this the same Task force which suggested allying with the Sepratist animals?! Why are you even heeding that kind of advice?!" Shrilled Senator Neb Creip, who pointed a crooked finger at Palpatine's Pulpit.

The words of the two senators caused the room to stir into a fresh Frenzy, and Palpatine felt himself tested as he never had been before. The senate had been in the palm of his hand only a few weeks ago, and now they were rolling out of his control. He needed to secure a temporary alliance with the Confederacy to crush the upstarts, a prospect he had hoped would be more palatable to the Senate after the Republic's recent losses.

But, again, he found his own effectiveness getting in the way of his plans. The Senate had been divided and polarized by design, to keep them weak beneath him, to make them unable to unify and resist him as he used his emergency powers to shape the cradle of his nascent empire. But what once had served as his protection, was now a determined fetter, one he was not certain he could overcome in time. And to add fuel to the growing fire, Dooku was having an even harder time on his end.

As the Republic pulled back, the Confederacy advanced, and none of the senators and interests of that side had any intention of backing down now that they were on the winning foot. All talk of an alliance with the Republic, even a temporary one, had been laughed out of what passed for a senate among the Separatists, just as General Grevious delivered his report on his latest uncontested conquest.

Sheev suspected, from what he sensed, that they were in for a rude awakening, but even if they did fall into place, it would be meaningless unless the Republic was willing to extend an olive branch. And after four years of stoking the flames of resentment and hatred, the would be Emperor now found that the momentum which should have made his Empire and plan all but inevitable, was the very same force jeopardizing everything!

The rage such a thing inspired within him nearly had the master of the darkside raising his voice as the many influences of the Senate struggled for the right to be heard. He made progress towards his cause, he always did. But not enough, not nearly enough. So had it been in all previous meetings. And, he sensed, so too would it be at all future meetings, until the threat was upon them.

But the Jedi were already moving forward with their own plans, that Palpatine could sense keenly, and Anakin had suggested as much to him in their last meeting. And whatever it was they planned to do, their Dark Lord's machinations were also shifting. Perhaps the Republic could not be converted into an Empire, not before it was eaten alive by these new outsiders.

But that meant nothing more than a delay, for Sidious knew, in his black heart of hearts, that his Empire was written into the stars. He would sit the throne of his Galactic Regime, even if it was a throne of Corpses and Ruin, instead of one fashioned from the broken body of the bowed and bent Republic. All things were shifting, but in this, Palpatine's Faith and Ambition were...Absolute.

"You are sure this is the Planet? This is the system?" Asked Orion.

He stood straight and tall in his Cataphractii Armour, looking down upon the world they were orbiting from the massive viewing window of the secondary Bridge. The planet glowed like a star, the thick waves of slightly off color sand crossing its surface making it resemble a massive, divine tiger's eye.

The round man beside him shuffled slightly at the question, spider like legs clicking and scittering automatically to compensate for his weight.

"Yes, my lord. This system is the most analogous to the Sol system in sixty four of our four hundred and eighty three spatial position tests. While that may not seem very similar to you my lord, it is actually an abnormally high amount of correlation when one also factors in the distinct shape and, err, abnormal stellar geography of this whole galaxy." Said the head Astrogator.

Orion nodded slowly.

"And you are sure that it is habitable?" He asked, a bit more skeptically this time.

The large, augmented man flapped his head in an emphatic nod.

"Yes, the oxygen level is well, well within Imperial tolerance ratings. The planet is rich in moisture at high altitude. Our instrumentation indicates to us that the planet was the subject of a manuel exterminatus some tens of thousands of years ago, which is why the oceans have vapolithofied into the atmosphere. We suspect it is that, paired with the silica content of the sands, which is causing the planet to glow as much as it does.

"In any case, Master Phatris, the water can easily be tapped with the right moisture harvesting technology, and the Scions of the Adeptus mechanicus have been proving most...compliant with our requests."

Again, Orion nodded, not looking away.

"Air and water. Will that be enough?" The old Space Marine muttered.

"Of course it will be, Master Phatris. Hydroponics and vat farms are run of the mill technologies, long mastered by the Tech Priests of all the worlds we have adopted into the fold. You are not condemning them, my lord. You are giving them a great honor." Said the astrogator in his most reassuring voice.

He was far from familiar enough to reach out and lay a hand upon Orion's shoulder, but the Chapter Master felt the sentiment and smiled, though only slightly. They had trillions of people to safeguard, and most of their ships could only make calculated jumps, as opposed to the piloted jumps of the navy ships. They needed to unencumber themselves, and they needed to do it fast.

"What you said to the Tempered Hands was wise." The Astrogator added.

"Only the best half of those we have brought can follow. For the others...this is more mercy than even the Emperor would show. Here they will have a chance. Their supplies will last them until they can finish construction of their water towers, and everything else will follow naturally from there."

These words curdled the small amount of comfort the astrogator had imparted to Orion, for he knew those words to be only technically true. If the settlers found their way to a proper location quickly. If nothing delayed their construction, and no disaster of any kind struck, then maybe…maybe the supplies they had would be enough.

But unless the Emperor truly was a God, and truly did bless these people, there wasn't a chance of that happening in Orion's clear mind. He saw several black dots suddenly contrast against the shine of the planet, and he felt his gut clench at the sight.

The first transports, carrying those colonists he and the others among his slowly growing government had judged to be...none essential, as both labor, and skill. It would take a miracle to preserve them. But with well worn discipline, he stiffened his jaw, and hardened himself as he had done countless times.

"Mankind must suffer, so that Mankind may survive." The Ancient Warrior King muttered.

"What was that, Lord?" The Astrogator asked.

"Nothing. Well done Zerventus. I commend your work and your skill. Now please...leave me. I desire to...reflect."

Zerventus bowed with the aid of his spiderlike servo limbs, and exited the room in short order. Orion remained, gazing out upon the enormity of his civilian fleet, watching nearly half of it descending onto a barren planet.

It was upon thoughts of inevitable death that he was dwelling, when he noticed the intruder. Though he could not hear whatever it was, nor see it, nor directly smell it, Orion suspected they had entered through a vent on the aft side of the empty secondary bridge.

His guards stood outside the room, watching the entrance, but for all intents and purposes, this intruder had found him alone. It made its way across the room, from the corner, towards him at the far center. Utterly silent, but Orion could still smell it. Or rather, Orion could very distinctly smell where the intruder had been.

While the hidden thing which approached him had no smell of its own, the coolant pipes it had squeezed through, the rancid home cooking which had blown over it as it crossed through the ventilation shafts, and even the particular tang of the rust which still adhered to the tips of its fingers, all served to give it away.

Additionally, he also suspected he knew who the silent intruder represented. It reached a distance six feet behind him, at which point the Chapter Master chose to turn languidly around. Orion was unafraid of attack, no single strike could slay him while he wore his most holy and potent vestiment. What he found waiting for him confirmed his suspicions, and felt his brow crease.

No figure, man or otherwise, stood waiting for him there. Instead, upon the ground lay a sealed note, stamped in red wax. It was tied to an object via a thin, silver cord. Orion recognized it after a moment, a syringe like device, made to imitate the corrupting organ of a Genestealer. It was partially deformed by exposure to extreme heat, but certainly still recognizable, as was the stylized "I" which adorned the red wax which had been stamped onto the note.

The Inquisition.

Never before had Orion desired an assassination attempt over the message that had delivered in its place. He did not even need to open the note and read it to know what message it contained. The Inquisition was here, had been here, among his fleet, all along. They knew what he had done, what he had ordered the Skyward to do. And they wanted to use that information as leverage against him.

The Chapter Master grit his teeth, but showed little of it. He bent and, with precision born of master craft, he picked up the letter and syringe. A new, infinitely more dangerous player had just entered the game, and they had a hand which could wipe the table of all of Orion's machinations. But the fact that they hadn't, that they sought him as a pawn or as a partner, spoke as loudly as any implied threat of exposure.

Orion felt a fire kindle in his stomach at that, and a fierceness took his expression as he exited the room, something neither of his Guards failed to realize.

"Master, are you...well?" Asked Nellos.

Orion smiled at the man, a visage which nearly stunned the veteran, who after a brief pause, smiled in response.

"A challenge then?" Asked Nellos.

Orion nodded. His smile broadened into a toothy, predatory grin that was common on many marines, but rare for the Chapter Master. Thus far he had played the role of shepherd, though in truth he was a sheepdog by nature. And he had just caught the scent of a wolf.

Mace was shrouded by his robe, wearing his hood up, his arms folded beneath the heavy sleeves of his garb. But though his eyes were hidden, they remained fixed on the Supreme Chancellor, watching with a silent intensity as the Jedi Master lingered in the alcove behind the Roonian Senator's currently fixed platform. He did not blink, and did not watch with only his eyes.

Despite this being the very heart of the Republic, Mace had long sensed a hidden darkness here. At first, he had thought it to be a general sense of the flow of things, but the more and more he moved to and from Coruscant, the more certain he became that this pall of shadow was something more local than he had first guessed. The Darkside was everywhere, strengthening despite the efforts of his order, and the many sacrifices they had made for the Republic.

Meanwhile, the Chancellors vice grip over power in the Republic only grew more and more entrenched. The courts had been slowly but surely filled with his supporters, and while they railed against him now, the Senate was largely in his favor when it came to the handling of the war. And now with this new threat, yet another opportunity was being presented before Palpatine, one which he could leverage to gain even more power, not just in the clone war, but in all wars.

He questioned again whether or not he was making a mistake by going along with Anakin's plan. Would the Order's actions save the Republic, or thrust it further into the hands of the Supreme Chancellor? Mace was not sure, but he put the thoughts aside as he felt a light touch on his shoulder.

"It is time." The hooded Padawan said.

Mace nodded, turning and leaving his place to be occupied by the messenger as he departed to meet with the others. He took a speeder back to the temple, and from there flew his starfighter up to one of the many orbiting Golan Defense Platforms which guarded Coruscant. He docked and dismounted his craft, going to the preordained place, shuttle bay 66.

He kept his hood up as he moved through the station, showing his credentials to the droid attendant who approached him, and entering the bay. The place was packed with refugees from Axum and Anaxes, those who had managed to escape before the outsiders had managed to enclose the system completely.

A surprisingly large amount of civilians had managed to escape, but even so, that only meant that the refugee crisis which was now developing was only becoming more exacerbated. Nearly every single bay on this entire station, and many other stations besides, were packed even more densely than this one was. There were easily five thousand in this room alone, and Mace stepped carefully as he moved around huddled, shrouded forms, makeshift campfires, and rough, temporary dwellings.

He found the exact place in moments, his unnaturally keen eyes locating the sign above the maintenance door, drawn in white the dull silver of the bay walls. The spread wings of the order. He moved there, knocked twice, and entered. Within the confines of the abandoned maintenance room leaned and stood the robed and hooded figures of Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, Master Quinlan Vos, Master Shak-Ti, Master Plo koon, and former padawan Ahsoka Tano.

The center of the dimly lit room had been cleared of everything but a wide table, on which sat two holo-imagers, each one projecting their own holograms. One was of the Planet Axum, the sphere rotating slowly, with several points across its surface highlighted prominently. The other was a figure, a Weequay male dressed in the recognizable motley of a pirate. Windu frowned, but said nothing as he approached.

"...Took a lot to get this, and let me tell you, it was not cheap! Lost more men on this job than I did trying to kidnap that Echani Princess a few years back." The pirate was saying.

"I know, I know, and we are thankful Hondo." Said Ahsoka.

"Thankful? You better be more than thankful!" The Pirate snapped.

"You will be properly compensated for your services to us. I will make sure of that." Said Shak-Ti, who loomed behind Ahsoka, her hood also raised.

"Well, as long as the Jedi in the room says so. I know how honest you tend to be." He said with a laugh.

"Of course," Mace interjected.

"What we offer you will be entirely contingent on how useful what you have to offer turns out to be. So for both our sakes, I hope whatever it is you have to show us is worth it."

The little hologram turned to regard him hatefully.

"Oh you trust me, it's worth it!"

Mace nodded.

"Then why don't you go ahead and show us."

Hondo seemed to step back and looked around.

"Aren't we still waiting for Skywalker?" The Pirate asked.

Mace looked around, his eyes finding Obi-Wan. The armored jedi shrugged, his face suggesting chagrin. Mace shook his head, Anakin was late to his own meeting.

"Proceed, we will brief him when he arrives." Mace said.

Hondo squinted at him, and withdrew a datapad from his ensemble. He tapped away at it a few times before stowing it again.

"OK, with that out of the way." He said, pressing a button on his wrist.

The globe which represented Axum glowed and expanded.

"We managed to ping a whole mess of targets for you in the last few weeks. Smugglers have been having a field day, the new "Imperial" authority is still completely clueless as to how Hyperdrives work, and they don't seem to understand that small ships can carry them. That being said, they are lethal, and they shoot first and ask questions never."

He pressed another button on his wrist and the globe spun and zoomed into a particular location. Displayed before them was a city, Azure city, a massive district in the urbanized landscape of Axum, and one of the wealthiest.

In the center of the image was a pyramidal, flat topped building which was clearly of a different architecture than the city surrounding it, made of gray stone braced with blackened iron in place of the gleaming steel of the buildings around it. It bore stacks upon stacks of gun emplacements, and already was adorned with many skull and angel themed depictions.

"This is one of many fortresses that the outsiders have been building around the planet." Said Hondo.

"It's only been a few weeks, and they've already built this much?" asked Master Plo.

The Pirate nodded.

"They appear to deploy most of the building from space, mostly assembled before it even touches down. They drop in these big boxes and pods, and when they land, the workers on the ground put the rest together. And let me tell you something, these outsiders, they don't take breaks! They have cyborg slaves, or something similar, and those freaks never stop working! It only takes them hours to start adding the skulls."

Vos raised his hand.

"As interesting as their work ethic might be, I gotta ask where this is going. You said they are putting these bunkers up all over the planet. So I guess my question is, what makes this one so special?"

Hondo smirked, shoulders rising in an internal wave of self aggrandizement that Windu could feel, even standing lightyears away.

"Well my perceptive jedi employer, the special thing about this base is that I am 90% sure that this one is the main one! And by that I mean, the one from which all coordination from around the planet is directed."

Mace rubbed his chin.

"Interesting, what leads you to believe that?" The Jedi Master asked.

"We have been intercepting their radio communications. After Anakin gave us the translation matrix for their language, it was not a problem to start figuring them out. Like I said, unless this is a very convincing misdirection, and I do not think that it is, this is the main place. Take this place out, and you decapitate their planet wide C&C."

"That's a good start," Murmured Obi-Wan.

"But even getting that far won't be easy. What do we know about their orbital defenses?" He asked.

"Well, not much, but thats half because we know next to nothing about how their ships work, and half because there isn't much to know." Said the Pirate.

"Explain." Mace insisted.

"They only left three ships behind, well, four really. One of the big ones, about five kilometers long, and two of their smaller ones. You know, the ones that only dwarf your ships by double their size."

"And the Fourth ship?" Asked Ahsoka

"It's a Providence Class Dreadnought. I think it was Admiral Trench's flagship before Anaxes got left to the outsiders. It's docked and secured to the side of one of the smaller ships. I have no idea what they are doing with it."

Mace's eyes snapped up at that, and he found the gaze of master Obi-Wan already directed towards himself.

"The Bomb."

"The Bomb!" They both said, eyes widening in realization and shock.

"Bomb?" Hondo asked, but the two jedi shook their heads.

"Best not to discuss that here or now. But we will need to take care of that ship first. Before anything else." Obiwan said.

Hondo shrugged at that.

"If you ask me, three ships should be too few to withstand the Republic Fleet, but I heard they took next to no losses at Pzob, so maybe it is enough. I don't know. What I do know is that, from their initial invasion of Axum, we can easily see that they never shrink away from a good old fashioned orbital bombardment! Heh, if you plan to fight on the surface, I'd make sure they were tied up, just to be safe." He suggested.

"We will do even better." Said Mace.

"We will show them that their technology and strategy are pointless in the face of the force."

Several of the other masters were nodding at this, a few even smiled.

"And how are you planning on doing that?" Asked the Pirate.

Then it hit him, and his wrinkled face stretched into an unfriendly grin.

"You are going to board them, aren't you?"

Mace said nothing, not denying the statement.

"Well, if you were, I may have some special...merchandise that could help you with that."

"And just what would that merch be, Hondo?" Ahsoka asked, arms crossed but a bemused smile playing across her lips.

"Oh, just some modified space rocks a couple of verpine friends of mine were looking to get rid of. I could sell them to you for cheap, eh, as long as you don't mind mynocks."

Ahsoka smirked and looked at the others, who gave her their opinions without speaking a word aloud.

"We will talk about that after this meeting. But they need to be made available fast Hondo, or no deal, no matter how cheap!" She said.

"But of course! If you were to pay this very second, I could have them in your possession immediately! Eh, not that I'm trying to rush your purchase or-" The Pirate started.

"Enough. Moving on, once we neutralize their fleet in Orbit, we will be limited in the number of objectives we can strike and neutralize. I think we are all in agreement that this main bunker must be disabled and placed under our control. That being said, I do believe we will have the numbers to engage one more objective. What do you have in that regard?" Said Mace

"Well," the Pirate said hesitantly.

"Only two worth considering, in my humble opinion." He said, pressing a button on his wrist, and causing the hologram to shift, changing to the view of a massive, shining temple made in the style of the outsiders.

It appeared only half finished, but its central mass was mostly complete, and gold and silver filigree were being added along with statues and ornaments of the kind the outsiders were being more and more known for.

"They've got something shiny and important hidden away in there." Said the Pirate.

"According to some of the people on the inside, they had an altar there first, with some big thing placed there, but no one was allowed close to it. Over time the altar became a chapel, and then a church, and, well, as you can see, more and more. Now it's basically a fortress, and it is almost as heavily guarded as that main fortress from before."

"So, what do they got in there?" Vos asked.

The scoundrel shrugged his holographic shoulders.

"I have no idea, but whatever it is, it's important. Even if it is just some religious artifact, it could be worth more than the planet itself to seize it and use it against them, or at least to bargain with in the future. My inner pirate cannot look upon such an obvious mark and not, well, mark it."

"And what else did you find?" Asked Shak-Tii.

At this question, Hondo did seem to sober.

"You told me I was dealing with human supremacists. I'd never heard of the Pius Dea before, but then again, I've never been one for history books. But I did my research before I sent my people in...and it did not prepare me for what they were doing."

He pressed another button, and the hologram shifted to a compound. Every face darkened, and a few even gasped, as the view panned and moved closer to reveal what was happening. The camps were full with mostly aliens, though some humans could also be seen. The image changed, moving between scenes of the inside and outside of the horrid place.

Men, women, and children were enslaved. They were being tortured, abused in every way a mind might conceive. Starved, forced to work in fetters, humiliated and scorned by the unrestrained cruelty and depravity of their jailors. These compounds were not just alien internment camps, they were all purpose death camps.

"This is just one location of hundreds. I haven't really been able to notice if any one is larger than the others, since the occupancy rates fluctuate so much. But anyone who speaks out against the occupiers, gets caught committing crimes against them, or if they simply are not human, they get sent to one of these."

"We have to stop this!" Ahsoka said, slamming her hands down on the table, eyes sickeningly fixed on the abject cruelty on display before them.

Mace nodded.

"What is the point behind this? Are they drawing power from this somehow?"

Firing squads, living mass graves, forced labor, gas chambers, death by dropping, death by mass drowning. It was almost as if the outsiders were themselves desperate in the execution of their nihilistic genocides. The only saving grace in all of this was that Anaxes and Axum were, by and large, human dominated worlds. Watching the murder go on, Ahsoka realized that if this had not been the case, they may have chosen to simply ruin the planet from orbit in place of this horrific occupation.

"There isn't any." Hondo said, a note of depression edging his normally chipper or indifferent tone.

"They don't even bother to appropriate their possessions before killing them most of the time. They burn or bury you with everything you had on your person. Wasteful...Not to mention curel, terrible, and unspeakable evil!" He said, adding in the last bit when Ahsoka shifted her glare from the hologram to him.

"You have to understand, I'm not the most reputable businessman myself. Naturally I have a high tolerance for the unscrupulous. But even for a man like me, this is, in every way, inexcusable. It's not even understandable. If they were not dedicating so much manpower to doing this, we probably would not have been able to get nearly as much information as we did."

Mace nodded again as the hologram shifted from a depiction of the horrid acts, to the crest and symbol of the Crimson Razors.

"Give us the location of all of these sites. After we have liberated Axum, our first point of order will be to free these people as quickly as possible." He said.

"Except for the camp we are going to liberate during our initial attack, right?" Ahsoka asked, turning to face the Jedi Master.

He narrowed his eyes at her impertinent glare and shook his head.

"We cannot prioritize the liberation of a single one of these camps over our struggle with the new Pius Dea. If that temple contains something they revere, then it will save billions if there is any way we can use it as leverage, to say nothing of what it could teach us about them while it is in our possession."

"Thats-Thats outrageous!" Ahsoka said.

"The temple will still be there when the fighting is done, you can have your prize then!" she contended.

"We do not know that. It would not surprise me at all if these radical Dea members would choose to destroy their own sacred artifact before allowing it to fall into our hands." Mace countered.

"He does have a point." Hondo's hologram added from the table.

"Intercepted messages have at least hinted to us that if the planet's defenses fall, they intended to detonate the structure to keep you from "Desecrating their Holy Gains". That is part of the reason I mentioned it first."

The Jedi master nodded his head towards the pirate.

"Precisely, we must seize it before they realize the battle is lost. That will be the only way to ensure we obtain it, and whatever it represents. Besides, these camps shall certainly remain after the battle, so I'd suggest you heed your own words."

The former Jedi grit her teeth.

"But the people in those camps won't be." she hissed.

"This is not up for discussion." He hissed back.

"With all do respect, Master, you are being ridiculous! We are the Jedi, we shouldn't prioritize-" She started.

"WE are the Jedi," Mace corrected.

"You are a concerned, and appreciated citizen of this Republic, but you are not a member of this order, or of this council." He said.

Ahsoka grit her teeth even harder, hands clenching at her sides, but she said nothing. Instead she took a breath, exhaled, and began to walk towards the door.

"Well, since I'm not part of this order, I suppose I shouldn't be party to its decisions." she said, pressing the access button to the side of the door, and making to leave.

"Ahsoka…" Shak-Tii started to say, but a raised hand from Windu paused her, and the former Padawan walked out.

Before the door could close, however, two more robed figures ducked in. One pulled back her hood to reveal the puzzled face of Jedi Master Aayla Secura.

"What was that about?" She asked as she and the other came closer.

"A difference of tactical opinion." Mace said dismissively as he turned to fully face the new arrivals.

He gave Secura a smile and nod before looking to the one who stood beside her. Whoever he was, he was no jedi, that much Windu could sense.

"And you are?" He asked.

The clone pulled back his hood with a stern, but friendly expression.

"We've met before General." He said.

"Commander Bly!" Mace said, genuinely surprised.

"I certainly was not expecting your involvement in our orders less...official actions."

Bly stepped forward, standing nearer to Windu, and rubbed his own chin as he seemed to take on a posture of intense consideration.

"Correct me if I am wrong General, but does this 'less than official' action involve invading Axum ahead of the Republic vote in order to force a dedicated, proper counter attack on these religious zealots we are letting run rampant?"

Windu blinked.

"Well, in a word, yes." He said.

Commander Bly smiled.

"Well what a coincidence then! It just so happens that I have a particular fondness for invading, counter attacks, AND I've never had the privilege of visiting Axum before. Now I won't have to after the war."

The Jedi cracked a smile and clasped the clone on the shoulder.

"Then it's good to have you with us, I just hope you can keep up."

"By myself Sir? Not a chance, but luckily, I won't be on my own." The clone said.

"The entire 327th are willing to join our cause." Aayla said.

Mace rubbed his chin.

"Commander, you understand that you are risking a court martial by doing this. You and all your men. We are not acting in our capacity as Generals of the Republic, but in our role as Jedi knights. You are not Jedi, and this could be seen as desertion or worse."

The commander's face stiffened, but he nodded.

"I understand that sir, and I assure you, I would rather face a thousand court martials before letting my General go into battle without her army, especially if it's to drive out invaders. I know where my loyalties lie, and I am, as I have always been, a Soldier of the Grand Army of the Republic! All my men are!"

Windu gave him a sharp nod.

"Then I'll question it no further. Though I cannot promise that Anakin will approve of this alteration to his plan."

"What alterations?"

All turned at the voice, seeing two more robed figures enter the room. Anakin drew back his hood to reveal himself, face branded with his customary cocky smile.

"Commander Bly and the 327th Star Crop have just…" Master Obi-Wan started to say, though his voice trailed off as the second figure drew back his hood.

Shak-Tii shook her head, bemused, while Vos chuckled, despite himself, and Plo tilted his visored face.

"Captain Rex." Mace Windu said.

"Can I assume that this explains your lateness, young Skywalker? And, can I go further and assume the whole 501st will be joining us as well?"

Anakin's grin grew wider.

"Nothing gets past you Master Windu...where's Ahsoka? I thought she would be here."

"She is waiting with the others in the bay outside." Windu said.

"Well then what are we waiting for? Let's get out there!"

"We are in the middle of devising our plan, Anakin. Do you want us to fill you in?" Obi-Wan asked.

"No need," Said Anakin, raising his hand to show off a holo-displayer disk he was holding.

"I've been having Hondo send me the meeting while we moved to get here. It seems pretty clear to me what we should do." He said.

Windu gestured towards the table.

"This is your plan, by all means, inform us."

"Hondo, get those space rocks of yours here ASAP, we are going to need them. Also, you know those assault pods you use to board ships? We are going to need all of them."

The Pirate nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah, sure, but I expect to be paid in full!"

Anakin then turned to Master Windu.

"Their strongest force will be stationed on their largest ship, which we will need to neutralize. That I will leave to you and Master Obi-Wan. Meanwhile, I will take the 501st back to Trench's Flagship, and finish what we started. We will neutralize the bomb and make sure it cannot be used, at least, not remotely."

He then turned to Masters Vos and Aayla.

"Master Quinlan Vos, you will be given the main force going to the ground. You are the most familiar with urban infiltration and assault, so we will be depending on you to take their main bunker."

Vos smiled, leaning against the wall, arms crossed, eyes alight.

"Groovy."

"Master Aayla Secura, you will take the 327th and capture that Temple simultaneously."

Aayla nodded, standing straight and determined beside her trusted commander, who saluted as she answered.

"We can do this."

"What about the last ship?" Asked Master Plo Koon.

"That's where you come in Master Plo. You and a detachment of Pilots will engage them in starfighters. It's just one ship, and you will be flying with other Jedi, but if it does turn out to be too much, retreat back to Coruscant and get help. We will figure something out to hold off while you get back."

The Jedi master seemed to think for a moment before nodding.

"Very well."

"OK, lets go! I'll fill you all in on everything else on the way." Anakin said, turning back around towards the door.

"What's the rush, Skywalker?" Mace asked, coming to stand beside him.

The impetuous Jedi Knight grinned fiercely.

"The word just came in, a few minutes before I arrived." He said.

Mace lifted an eyebrow.

"Then…" Mace ventured.

Anakin nodded.

"The Separatists just started pulling back all their forces, abandoning their weeks of gains. The Pius Dea have reached their borders, and they are likely learning some hard lessons even as we speak. Now is the perfect time to strike, both our enemies are distracted with each other! We can retake Anaxes and Axum in hours if we strike now!"

Mace nodded, eager to be on with it, though subconsciously grateful that Master Yoda would be staying behind to guard and watchover most of the order's padawans and jedi of lesser rank. Yet, as Anakin stepped out into the crowded bay, and leapt atop a tall stack of crates, Windu could not help but feel optimistic about their chances.

Anakin drew his saber and raised it high, activating it. The act was like the lighting of a beacon, and in response, nearly five thousand hidden jedi tossed off their disguises, and lifted their own sabers in answer.

"For master Mundi! For Axum and Anaxes! For the Republic!" He called.

"For the Republic!"

Answered the Unified might of the Jedi Knights of the Republic, Guardians of this Galaxy for over 24 Thousand Years, and now prepared for war in such a manner as had never been seen since the Days Ruusan.

The Chosen one smiled. He would give them victory, even in death, he would give the Republic its Victory.