Warrior

7

Sal let herself be thrown at the wall... again. The Training Droid she was using wasn't like the ones she normally fought against; this one looked like a battle droid and was holding two training sabers.

And this training room allowed the droid to throw her across the room and into the wall as if it could use the force. Sal stood up and grabbed her training sabers. The droid launched at her, its lightsabers slashing into the floor. Sal gulped and took a deep breath.

Aim for the hands. Kick him down and finish him with Force Judgement.

Sal deflected the droid's strikes and found a way to corner it. She flipped her blades around the droid's hilts and felt the enemy's lightsabers touch her shoulder before she would cut its blades and hands.

Chances your shoulder will be sliced: 75%.

Sal heard someone knock on the training room's door. She turned off the droid and walked over to open the door. Obi-Wan was waiting for her and looked up from his datapad when he saw her answer.

"Sal when is the last time you have slept? Or eaten?" Obi-Wan asked while looking at her eyebags.

"Uh... what day is it?" Sal asked with an apologetic smile. Obi-Wan frowned and grabbed her arm. He dragged her to the mess, where Jedi and Clones alike were eating lunch.

Sal was dragged to a table, which included Obi-Wan, Kix, Demon, Devil, and some of the Jedi Healers. Obi-Wan slid her a serving of rations and Sal stared at it. Sal slid it back and the Medics all glared at her. Whoever taught them how to heal others probably also made them take a "killing glare" course.

"I'm not hungry," Sal explained. "I had ration bars."

"You did not," Kix scoffed. "We checked how many bars you took from the inventory. Zero."

"I'm not hungry," Sal growled. "I have to create a whole lightsaber form and you are worried about how much I eat? The force provides."

"That's not true," Kenobi replied.

"Then why is that your excuse for not eating, Master?" Sal asked while pointing her lightsaber hilt in his face.

"Sal, please," Demon pleaded. "We need you to eat or else we will find a way to get that chip out of your head."

"I'm. Not. Hungry!" Sal yelled. Lightning crackled at her fingertips and she stood in a defensive position. "I will go back and finish drafting Aranov."

"What's Aranov?" one of the healers asked.

"Aranov, meaning Defense in Mando'a, is Lightsaber Form 8. I am still developing it and I will be for quite a long while. My whole life, perhaps," Sal replied.

"Oh, Sal," Kenobi said while passing her the bowl. "The Council is interested in helping. But to do that we must remove the chip."

"I have written most of everything down, so even if I die my work won't be lost," Sal sighed. "I have tried hundreds of methods for Aranov. A few were nearly successful, but it is really hard."

"Eat, Sal," Kenobi ordered. "We will remove it after you finish."

Sal groaned but swallowed the rations anyways. She followed the medics to the bay and sat on the bed. Kix walked over with a syringe and inserted it in her neck.

"Sleep, Sal," the clone said while taking the needle out. Sal felt her eyelids close and her body began to still. She let the drugs take ahold of her conscious and drag her into sleep.

...

"Sal."

"Sal...."

"Sal!"

Sal opened her eyes and saw a togruta. She was wearing Mandalorian garments and looked an awful lot like—

Ahsoka.

"Ahsoka?" Sal asked.

"I go by Ashla, now," the Togruta smiled.

"Why?" Sal asked. "What happened?"

"He happened," Ahsoka frowned. "It was the chip. Sal, remove them! Remove them all!"

Sal wanted to ask what the chip was but Ahsoka's face turned light orange.

"I have to go. Please, Sal. Save them! They all need you!"

Sal snapped awake and put her hands on her head. She felt a bacta patch on her temple. Master Kenobi was looking at a computer and studied the images on the screen. The chip. He was looking at the lightsaber form.

"Ah, Sal, you are awake," Obi-Wan said without turning around. "You feeling good?"

"Yeah," Sal replied. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"I think the Council can certainly help with Aranov," Kenobi added while turning around in his chair. The Medical spinning chairs are the best —and only the good thing— in the medbay.

"Does that mean I can go back on the field?" Sal asked with a grin.

"Yes," Obi-Wan replied. "We are going on a mission together with Master Pong Krell to Umbara. You cannot tell him of Form 8. He isn't authorized to know. Got it?"

"Got it," Sal replied. "Am I going with the 212th or Master Krell's legion?"

Kenobi laughed. "Master Krell is not trusted with a legion of his own anymore. I am taking the 212th while you are replacing Anakin in the 501st."

"Replacing?" Sal asked. "Not trusted!?"

"Just for the mission. He's doing stuff with the Chancellor. Master Krell has an unbelievable death rate. I can trust you with the 501st, right?"

"Yes, Master," Sal replied.

"Good," Obi-Wan nodded. "I hope you have fun bonding with another Jedi Master. It's good to see the techniques of the other Jedi. You may just learn something new from him."

"I bet," Sal smiled. "He seems like an interesting Master."

"Indeed. Well, we better get going, Master Krell will be waiting for us," Kenobi said while helping her up.

Sal isn't surprised that they are sending her on a mission already. She is surprised that they are just now removing the chip. Sure, she said it couldn't be removed in the beginning, but after getting her butt kicked by that droid she realized that she would rather watch the Masters struggle against a droid. Sal chuckled while walking out of the medbay, thoughts of Master Mundi getting thrown across the room invading her head.