our broken promises ~ a.skywalker

Chapter 20: Missing Masters

IT'S BEEN A MONTH SINCE KORA AND ANAKIN LAST SAW EACH OTHER. An entire month since their last conversation which did not end well. As soon as the day was over, Anakin and Ahsoka were sent off into the war, and shortly after Cal and Kora did the same. They've been so busy the past few rotations that Kora had forgotten all about Skywalker. There was no time to think about him when she was fighting for her life.

Kora and her Padawan were on the planet Selonia, planning a surprise attack. The system was currently in Separatist hands, but the goal was to change that. Kora Knight led the way, walking slowly in the shadows. Cal watched her surroundings, making sure no droid was lurking. The 329th Legionnaire trailed behind them, crouching behind the large bushes.

In silence, the Jedi held out her hand so the people behind her could see the signals she was sending. It was too risky to verbally speak, so the 329th and Kora created their own sign language; something the Separatists couldn't decode.

She waited for Cal's signal, alerting her it was safe to finally launch the attack. She was parked behind a large tree, her back pressed tightly against it. There was a droid base up ahead, just barely meters away. It was the main headquarters for the Separatists on Selonia. A few seconds later, Cal came into her view from a distance, using his hands to signal her the coast was clear.

Kora held up her right hand and began counting down from three, making sure it was in the clone's field of vision. 3....2....1....

Blaster fire erupted in the air, disturbing the peaceful silence of the planet. Kora activated her lightsaber and jumped into the action. She threw her saber using the Force and aimed for the large cannons. Like always, those were always the top priority to take out first. The blue laser blade cut the cannon's barrels off completely.

Like a boomerang, the lightsaber returned back to her hand with ease. It was her signature move by now.

She charged forward with a clone squadron and Aim. She smiled at the trooper and he returned the gesture with a salute.

Kora found the closest droid to her and hastily shoved her weapon through its body. It made a cry of complaint just before disassembling. She turned her gaze to Cal and proudly smiled. He was doing just fine on his own -- even better than fine. He has taken his training very seriously this past month, but not to the point of burnout. Kora was always warning him of those.

The legionnaire penetrated the Separatist's walls quicker than she had anticipated. If she didn't know any better, she'd say this base was heavily unarmed. Where were the rest of the droid forces? Usually, there's a lot more than this.

Instantly, her overthinking began. If the war has taught her anything, it's to think of every possible circumstance that's likely to happen. Kora knew something was different.

She allowed the clones to advance with Cal's help but she stayed behind as a lookout. Perhaps the droids wanted to flank them; trap them in an enclosed space and then an ambush? Or maybe the Separatists simply were not expecting an attack of this magnitude? It was most definitely not the latter.

Her thoughts were cut off by an unexpected beep! on her comms watch. Kora furrowed her eyebrows; she never gets contact from the Temple while on a covert assignment. The Jedi know it could compromise her position, so this must be an emergency of some sort.

She tapped the button on her wrist and a holographic image appeared. She recognized it immediately; it was Obi-Wan Kenobi. Kora smiled faintly, pleased to see Master Kenobi after such a long time, but the look on his face was not happy at all.

Obi-Wan Kenobi looked much dimmer than his usual state. It was obvious that in these past many rotations, the constant battle has been taking its toll on everyone. But Kora sensed there was more to the problem. "Master Kenobi, what's wrong?"