© & TM 2016 Lucasfilm Ltd.
Cover illustration by Wojtek Fus
All rights reserved. Published by Disney • Lucasfilm Press, an imprint of Disney Book Group. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher. For information address Disney • Lucasfilm Press, 1101 Flower Street, Glendale, California 91201.
ISBN 978-1-4847-0567-4
Visit the official Star Wars website at: www.starwars.com.
Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Chapter 01
Chapter 02
Chapter 03
Chapter 04
Chapter 05
Chapter 06
Chapter 07
Chapter 08
Chapter 09
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Acknowledgments
About the Author
To the Royal Handmaiden Society.
We are brave, Your Highness.
MANDALORE BURNED.
Not all of it, of course, but enough that the smoke filled the air around her. Ahsoka Tano breathed it in. She knew what she had to do, but she wasn’t sure it would work. Worse, she wasn’t sure how long it would work, even if it did. But she was out of options, and this was the only chance she had left. She was there with an army and a mission, as she might have done when she was still Anakin Skywalker’s Padawan. It probably would have gone better if Anakin were with her.
“Be careful, Ahsoka,” he’d told her, before handing over her lightsabers and running off to save the Chancellor. “Maul is tricky. And he has no mercy in him at all.”
“I remember,” she’d replied, trying to scrape up some of the brashness that had earned her the nickname Snips the first time they’d met. She didn’t think the effort was tremendously successful, but he smiled anyway.
“I know.” He rolled his shoulders, already thinking of his own fight. “But you know how I worry.”
“What could happen?” Acting more like her old self was easier the second time, and then she found that she was smiling, too.
Now, the weight of her lightsabers in her hands was reassuring, but she would have traded them both for Anakin’s presence in a heartbeat.
She could see Maul, not far from her now. Smoke wreathed his black-and-red face, though it didn’t seem to bother him. He’d already put aside his cloak; battle-readiness oozing from his stance. He was in one of the plazas that wasn’t burning yet, pacing while he waited for her. If she hadn’t known that his legs were artificial, she never would have guessed they weren’t the limbs he’d been born with. The prosthetics didn’t slow him down at all. She walked toward him, determined. After all, she knew something she was pretty sure he didn’t.
“Where’s your army, Lady Tano?” he called as soon as she was within earshot.
“Busy defeating yours,” she replied, hoping it was true. She wasn’t going to give him the pleasure of seeing how much his calling her Lady Tano hurt. She wasn’t a commander anymore, even though the battalion still treated her with the same courtesy they always had, because of her reputation.
“It was so nice of your former masters to send you out alone and spare me the exertion of a proper fight,” Maul said. “You’re not even a real Jedi.”
Malice dripped from his every word, and he bared his teeth at her. His was the kind of anger that Master Yoda warned the younglings about, the sort that ate a person whole and twisted every part of them until they were unrecognizable. Ahsoka shuddered to think what Maul must have suffered to become this way. Still, she was smart enough to use it to her benefit: she needed him angry enough to think he had the upper hand.
“It’ll be a fair fight then,” she retorted, looking him up and down. “You’re only half a Sith.”
That was rude for no reason, the type of thing that would’ve had Master Kenobi rolling his eyes, but Ahsoka couldn’t bring herself to regret it. Taunting one’s enemy was customary, and Ahsoka was going to use all the cards she was dealt, even if it wasn’t polite. He was right, after all: she was no Jedi.
Maul was stalking sideways with a dark feline grace that was oddly hypnotic and twirling the hilt of the lightsaber in his hand. Ahsoka tightened her grip on her own lightsabers and then forced herself to relax. She needed him to come closer. It was a bit like meditation, this waiting. She knew it had worked against Maul before, on Naboo when Obi-Wan beat him the first time. She reached out to the Force and found it waiting for her, a comfort and a source of power. She opened her mind to it and listened with every part of her that could. Then she moved, mirroring Maul across the plaza and taking one step back for every step he took toward her.
“No Jedi, but still a coward,” he said. “Or did Skywalker forget to teach you how to stand your ground before he threw you aside?”
“I left under my own power,” she told him. In the moment, the words felt like the truth despite the pain that lay underneath them. She ignored the hurt and refocused on her sense of balance, on Maul.
“Of course. And I volunteered for that garbage pile, and those first monstrous legs,” Maul said mockingly. She felt his rage swell within him, almost to the breaking point but not quite yet.
He activated the lightsaber and quickened his steps. It was easy for her to pretend he’d caught her off guard, to stumble backward, away from his vengeful charge.
“I’ll bet you volunteered for this, too, Lady Tano,” he crowed. That much was correct, but he could perceive only her weakness. His anger blinded him to all else. “One last attempt at glory to impress a master who has no further use for you.”
“That’s not true!” she shouted. Just a little farther now. He was almost ensnared.
He bore down on her, cruel laughter scraping out of his throat, and still she waited. Then, just before she was in his reach, she sprang the trap.
The familiar green energy sang as she activated her lightsabers and moved to engage, one last feint. Maul lunged forward and Ahsoka took a quick step back, drawing him past the point of no return. He swung down, directly at her head, and she responded with all her strength. Her weapons locked with his, holding him exactly where she wanted him to be.
“Now!” she commanded her unseen allies.
The response was fast, too fast for Maul’s distracted defense. Ahsoka threw herself clear just in time.
The ray shield came to life, trapping her prey with his lightsaber still raised against her.
SHE WAS ALONE, something she was never meant to be. Her people were tribal, blood and bond, and her ability to use the Force gave her a galaxy of brethren from all species. Even after she left the Jedi Temple, she could feel the others when she wanted to—the ebb and flow of them in the Force around her.
Until, of course, she couldn’t.
Now she almost preferred the solitude. If she was alone, she didn’t have to make choices that affected anyone other than herself. Fix a malfunctioning motivator or not, eat or not, sleep or not—dream or not.
She tried to dream as little as possible, but that day in particular wasn’t
good for it. Empire Day. Across the galaxy, from the Core to the Outer Rim—though somewhat less enthusiastically in the latter—there would be festivities commemorating the establishment of order and government by Emperor Palpatine. It was the first such celebration. The new Empire was only a year old, but the idea of celebrating the day at all nauseated her. She remembered it for entirely different reasons than peace.
Mandalore had burned, and even though she, Rex, and the others had managed to save most of it, their victory had been immediately undone with such violence that Ahsoka could hardly bear to think about it. So she didn’t.
“Ashla!” The voice was loud and cheerful, wrenching her from her memories. “Ashla, you’ll miss the parade!”
Living in the Outer Rim had its benefits. The planetary populations were small and not highly organized, making it easier to live under an assumed name. She could also easily stay far away from any of the major hyperspace lanes. Most of the planets in the Outer Rim didn’t have anything interesting enough to attract Imperial attention anyway, and the last thing Ahsoka wanted to do was attract attention.
What she hadn’t accounted for was the attention of her neighbors, the Fardis, a local family who seemed to have their fingers in every bit of business that happened on Thabeska. They took her under their wing—as much as they could with Ahsoka maintaining her distance. She was still grieving, in her own way, and it helped if she told herself that she didn’t want new ties, new friends.
Thabeska suited her. It was dusty and quiet, yet there were enough newcomers that she didn’t stick out. The planet did a brisk trade in water and tech, but nothing on a large scale. Even the smuggling operations—luxury goods and off-world food for the most part—catered to a relatively small number of people. No self-respecting pirate of Ahsoka’s acquaintance would stoop so low. It was as good as any new place for “Ashla” to call home.
“Ashla, are you in there?” the girl outside shouted again. Too cheerful, Ahsoka thought with a shake of her head. Empire Day wasn’t that exciting, even if you believed in the propaganda. The girls were up to something, and they wanted her to know it.
Ahsoka considered her options. She was known for wandering out onto the flats alone. There wasn’t anything dangerous there, and certainly nothing that would be dangerous to her. So she could sit quietly, pretending she wasn’t home, and if anyone asked later, she’d just say she’d gone for a walk.
She stood and crossed the floor of her tiny house. It wasn’t fancy enough to have rooms, or even room dividers, but one of the things growing up in the Jedi Temple prepared a person for was austerity. If Ahsoka didn’t own things, she had less to carry with her when it was time to go. She tried very hard not to think about the empty weapon belt she had kept, though she didn’t wear it.
She had heard the warning in the girls’ show of cheerfulness as they called to her, but she needed more details. The only way to get them was to open the door.
“I’m coming, I’m coming!” she said, hoping she sounded enthusiastic.
Ahsoka had met the Fardi clan at the shipyards when she’d arrived on the planet. They ran most of the shipping from there, legal and otherwise. Ahsoka would have avoided them entirely, except the younger ones followed her about like ducklings and she hadn’t worked up the bile to discourage them yet. She opened the door and found four of them staring up at her, with a couple of the older girls behind them. The older ones didn’t look as carefree as the little ones did. Ahsoka tensed and then forced herself to relax. She reached out with her senses, very carefully, but if there was something to feel it was still too far away.
“Ashla, you have to come right now,” said the eldest. There were so many Fardi children that Ahsoka struggled to remember which name belonged to whom. She looked down at them and had a nagging feeling that she was forgetting something.
“Yeah!” said one of the gaggle of children. “Dad’s got fancy guests asking to meet any new people, and you’re new, so you should come! You can sit with us for the parade and flyby.”
A year’s residency still qualified Ahsoka as new, even though it was the longest she had stayed on a single planet since she’d become Anakin Skywalker’s Padawan.
“There are a lot of ships in the yard right now,” the eldest one said carefully, as though someone might be listening to her every word. “For the flyby. From all over the place. Security’s a disaster as they try to log everything.”
Out here, fancy guests meant clean clothes. Even the well-off Fardis were always coated with the dust that blew in off the flats. Ahsoka imagined the crisp lines and dull colors of Imperial uniforms. They would make an impression on Thabeska.
Ahsoka knew what the Fardis would do. They had their legitimate businesses to consider, not to mention all the family members. They would tell the Imperials anything they wanted to know, and Ahsoka couldn’t hold it against them. She had apparently made a good enough impression to warrant the visit and the hint about the shipyard. It was as much as Ahsoka could expect.
“Why don’t you guys go on ahead?” she said, and nodded solemnly to the older girls. She didn’t know if their parents knew they were here, but she wanted to let them know she appreciated the risk they were taking. “You can save me a seat while I clean up. I slept in a bit this morning, and I can’t go to the Empire Day parade like this.”
She gestured down at her clothes. They were the only ones she owned, and everyone knew it, but it was enough of an excuse to get the job done.
The little ones chorused entreaties that she hurry up but promised to save a place for her. The older two stayed quiet and herded their siblings back toward the center of town. Ahsoka didn’t watch them go. As soon as they turned around, she shut the door and took a moment to gather herself.
She didn’t have a lot to pack. Her single room was bare except for the bed and thick floor mat where she might have entertained guests, had she ever received any. She rolled the mat aside and uncovered the compartment where she kept a little currency and her blaster. She threw everything in a bag and put on a short cowl that would cover her face. She was going to have to get a new one soon: her head had grown again, and her montrals were almost too tall for the hood.
As she shut the door of her house for the final time, the air was split by an all-too-familiar whine. The flyby had started, and it seemed that the Empire was showing off the maneuverability of its latest fighters.
The streets were deserted. Ahsoka could hear the music, raucous and martial at the same time, as the parade passed along the main avenue several blocks over. She couldn’t figure out why there were so many Imperials all of a sudden. Surely Empire Day wasn’t the only reason. But the planet didn’t have much besides dust and the Fardis. And a survivor of Order 66.
Two armored Imperials rounded the corner. Ahsoka held her breath and reached out. There was nothing familiar about them. They weren’t clones. They were the newer recruits, the stormtroopers. Nothing much to worry about then.
“What are you doing here?” They raised their guns. “Why aren’t you at the festivities?”
“I’m on my way,” Ahsoka said, careful to keep her face pointed at the ground. “I was out on the flats this morning, hunting, and lost track of the time.”
“Move along,” said the stormtrooper, though he didn’t lower his gun. The other one said something into his comm that Ahsoka couldn’t hear.
“Happy Empire Day,” she said, and turned down an alley in the direction of the music.
She didn’t wait to see if they would follow her. She jumped to a first-story window and climbed up the building until she reached the roof. So close to the main Fardi compound, the houses were nicer than her little shack. They were taller and had flat roofs. More important, they were built very close together, to save on construction costs. It wasn’t a perfect traveling path, but for someone with Ahsoka’s abilities, it was passable enough.
Hoping that no one could see her, she ran along the tops of the houses. Even with the danger, it
felt better than anything Ahsoka had done in a long time. She didn’t use the Force to run—there was no point in taking unnecessary risks—but she did use it to make sure each jump across the streets below was safe. Every time she looked down, she saw more stormtroopers patrolling. They didn’t appear to be searching for a specific target, though. The pair she’d talked to must not have raised any alarm.
Ahsoka reached the edge of the row of tall houses and crouched, looking down over the shipyard. There were two under the Fardis’ control, and this was the smaller one. The bigger one would have had a larger selection and possibly more holes in its security system, but the smaller one had a roof approach, so Ahsoka decided to take her chances here.
The ships were mostly Imperial, and therefore not good targets. They would have been registered and tagged, and probably had some kind of tracking device. Ahsoka looked at the troop carrier with some regret. Of all the ships docked there, it was the one with which she was most familiar, but she couldn’t take the risk. Instead, she focused on a small freighter tucked in at the very back of the yard.
It was a Fardi ship, one of the legal ones, but Ahsoka knew it could be made less legal very quickly. The Fardis paid her to tinker. She was a good mechanic, and she’d earned their trust through diligent work. The ship was also unguarded. Ahsoka didn’t know if it was an invitation or not, but she wasn’t about to let the opportunity pass her by.
There were maybe twenty stormtroopers in the yard. Before, when she could openly use the Force, that would have been no trouble at all. Now, with just her blaster, Ahsoka took a moment to consider her options.
Anakin would have crashed right through, regardless of personal risk. Even without his lightsaber, he’d have been fast enough and strong enough to make it. It would have been very noticeable, though. Explosions had tended to follow close behind her old master. She missed the excitement, but this was not the time for it. Master Obi-Wan would have tried to charm himself through and would invariably have ended up making as much noise as Anakin anyway.
“When are you going to admit you’re on your own?” Ahsoka muttered. “They’re gone. They’re dead, and now it’s just you.”
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