ɪᴛ's ᴏᴋᴀʏ... [ᴇɴɢʟɪsʜ ✓]

02. She knows the Risk

Not much of the enemy was left. Most of the droids had retreated, a second wave of defence was certain for the Jedi.

Nevertheless, a few clones were still fighting for their lives and those of their brothers with a bunch of clankers.

Ahsoka had finished everything on her side and now, with only sparse gunfire, ventured a glance at Master Windu, who was still in the midst of fire with his unit.

"Rex, can you handle the rest?", the Togruta called to her captain from a hill, her gaze lingering on the Jedi Master.

The addressed clone fired another shot into the skull of a tin can. "You know us, Commander!"

The young Jedi smiled. 'That's why I wasn't worried' With that thought, she leapt from the rock where she had been taking a survey. Only moments later she deflected a shot that would have hit one of the clones right in his heart.

A little confused at his rescue, he looked to the athletic figure in front of him. His general would never have done such a thing. He was just a simple clone after all.

Ahsoka sensed the unease in the clone, so she covered him for a while longer until he could regain his composure and fully concentrate on what was happening.

After several minutes, the last droid fell. Everything seemed calm, the first battle had been successfully fought. And fear swelled in the young Padawan, through the unpleasant feeling that pointed ever more strongly to danger.

She looked around restlessly, her eyes scrutinising every seemingly insignificant detail of the droid debris.

Her muscles tensed with each flash of the sun on the reflective metal.

Knocked-off weapons lay scattered everywhere next to their associated, inoperable rattle racks.

None of the clunkers stirred even a millimetre. But then her eyes fell on one of the new racks. Their shots did not burn the flesh immediately, so that one was at least protected from blood loss, insofar as the shot did not kill one immediately, but merely tore a deep wound.

The agonised screams of the clones who had died from this weapon only a few minutes ago echoed through her head.

Such a wound only brought gradual death if left unattended. But as yet, the Jedi had never been confronted with such ordnance. None of them knew at this point that one injured by it would be subject to constant blood loss without care.

She stared at the pile of scrap for what felt like an eternity, oblivious to what was happening around her. Which was actually the exact opposite of vigilance. But there was a reason.

Something dark was emanating from the machine that felt like a warning to Ahsoka. A warning to whom? Of what?

And in that moment, she finally understood. The muzzle of the small tank was moving. Very slowly, so that it was barely visible. But it was moving.

Her eyes followed the barrel of the gun to her target, a dark-skinned man in a beige robe who was not aware of any of this. He had his back to the rubble and was discussing something with his commander.

A tingling sensation rose in Ahsoka. Her fear was wiped away. But as much as she disliked this Jedi, she was unable to let him die if she could help it.

As she moved with quick steps to close the few metres between herself and her Master, she went through her options at breakneck speed. Still, everything was in slow motion.

It was too late to warn him, the tank was already loading its ammunition. There was no way to deflect the shots with her lightsaber, they were too powerful for that. At least Ahsoka had not yet learned how to block a tank's fire.

In addition, she would not have been sure she had the strength to do so. Tank shots had it in them. The only way out she saw was to get him out of the line of fire without getting hit herself.

If she was fast enough, she could do it. But she wasn't fast enough. The shot came off and hit its target, a Jedi.