A Galaxy in Darkness (Book 2)

The Return of Grievous

          It has been several days since the battle on Kamino and Fives has still not said a word to me. He has been staying and sleeping in the barracks instead of with me. I can't imagine the pain and grief he must be going through, but I still did not think that being alone was going to help relieve it. However, now that Grievous has returned, I could not let my emotions get the better of me. Master Kenobi told me all about him when we got the news. He was the leader of the Separatist droid army and was trained to use a lightsaber by Count Dooku. He told me that he has no interest in either side and instead, wishes to see the destruction of all Jedi. My Master witnessed his ship, the Malevolence, implode. Everyone thought he was finally gone, but I guess he got lucky enough to reach an escape pod before it was too late.

           I have been staying in my room the past couple of days, meditating. All I could think about was Fives. I know Master Luminara told me to give him time, but I don't think that is healthy for him. He needs someone to be there for him. I finally made up my mind and went to search for him. I pressed the button to open the door and right as I made my first step to leave, I bumped into Captain Rex.

"Ah, excuse me, sir," he said kindly.

"You're good, Rex. What's up?"

"I was actually coming here to find you. Fives wants to speak with you."

Blood rushed into my cheeks as he said that and I looked at him excitedly and said, "Really? I was just about to go looking for him."

"You two really are the perfect match," Rex responded, laughing. "He is waiting for you in the courtyard.

"Thank you, Captain!", I replied happily as I started to run in that direction.

           Fives was sitting on a bench feeding the many white doves around him with pieces of bread.

"Hey, Kane," he said upon noticing me. "We need to talk."

I sat down beside him, and the doves got startled and flew away. "I don't know what to say. I mean, I've been wanting to talk to you ever since that day, but I just don't know how to form it into words."

"Well, I know what to say," he replied. "I'm sorry." He looked towards the ground and wiped the leftover bread crumbs off of his hands. "I should have never ignored you like that. I just felt so useless. Every time I see one of my brothers die, a piece of me dies along with them. Echo was always a big part of me and my life. There was never a dull moment between us. Even when we were in the midst of a battle, we always made time to joke around and laugh. That's how we were. When I saw his helmet on the ground, all the memories of us together felt like they were being ripped from my body."

"Fives..." I tried my best to console him, but I couldn't stop the flow of tears that began to run down his face.

"I was overcome with shock. I did not know how to react. I have seen so many of my brothers die but Echo was the closest one to me. I did not want to accept the reality of it. I didn't speak to anyone, not even Rex. I did not want to accept the fact that Echo, my best friend, had died."

"I remember feeling the same way too," I said, wondering if it was a good idea to bring Order 66 back up. "When I landed on Umbara, I..."

"Kane," Fives cut me off. He has his eyes sealed shut, almost as if he was reliving the events of that day.

"Please, just listen," I responded. "When I saw you under the effects of the Order, I honestly felt sick to my stomach. I hated seeing you like that. The man under that helmet was not the Fives I had come to be so close with. I tried to reason with you and tell you the truth, but I couldn't get through to you. Your programming took over your mind. Like you, I felt useless. The only thing I could do was to fight and get your Inhibitor chip out so that you could return to yourself."