Ahsoka Tano - Undeserving

8

Breathe.

Ahsoka took a deep breath in and held it, feeling the air expand her lungs to the point where it was beginning to feel painful. Only then did she exhale, a loud release of air that relaxed her muscles and senses. She stretched out her neck and rolled her shoulders, then opened her eyes and looked back at the troops behind them.

Her master stood with crossed arms as Ahsoka approached him. "Master? The men are ready to strike."

Their travel to the stronghold had not taken long, as they'd camped close to it the night before. Early this morning Ahsoka had awoken and left with her battalion and master, noticing that Skywalker and the 501st were still only preparing to leave due to their attack on the ground level being easier to travel towards. Captain Rex was polishing his helmet as Ahsoka walked by, and he waved to grab her attention. "Hey, kid! Good luck today."

Ahsoka gave him a small smile. "You too. I'll see you on the other side."

He gave her a little nod of acknowledgement as she walked away, then his smile turned into a perplexed frown once she was gone. That kid was strange, alternating between a bright, cheerful kid into a reserved, scared one. He hadn't quite figured out the reason for her drastic shift between moods, but it was interesting all the same.

The general shrugged a pack over his shoulders with a little sigh, turning to Rex. "You ready to go give the Separatists another headache?"

Rex smirked lightly. "Always, Sir." He replied, standing up as well and putting his helmet on. He observed as half of Krell's battalion, along with Ahsoka and the Jedi himself, began their trek to the stronghold. "Lets hope all goes as planned."

The other half of the battalion merged into the 501st with warm greetings all around; the bonds of brotherhood ran deep, especially when the two groups were about to face death together. Rex turned back to Anakin, knowing it wasn't the time to bring up this topic but deciding to anyways. "Sir... The padawan... Has she seemed stranger to you since we arrived?"

Anakin gaped jokingly. "Wow Rex, I didn't take you for a softie when it comes to kids."

Rex chuckled lightly. "Eh, depends on the kid." He sobered. "But I have noticed she gets real quiet and scared around her master."

The Jedi sighed lightly, all humor dissapating from the conversation. The grim look on his face gave Rex all the confirmation he needed as to what the general was thinking, and the captain's thought process was similar. Rex wasn't certain on what the Jedi rules were about a master abusing their power, however he believed there had to be something set in place in order to keep a padawan from being severely injured. Hopefully, given Skywalker and Kenobi's relationship, they knew nothing about those rules.

"Yeah." Anakin replied, short and firm meaning the conversation was over. Rex understood why; Ahsoka and Krell's master-padawan relationship was not anything they could trifle in, and they had more pressing matters at hand as of now anyways. The Jedi looked up at the sky, using his hand to block the harsh sunlight as it began rising more quickly over the horizon. He took in a deep breath, forced every ounce of tension out of his upper body, then turned back to his captain. "Master Krell should be well on his way by now; gather the men. It's time to go."

Meanwhile, Ahsoka treked lightly alongside her master while their half-battalion trailed closely behind them. They had only been traveling for about half an hour before her master held out a hand to stop. Everyone immediately froze, and Krell turned back to his men. "Prepare your grappling equipment; soon Skywalker will contact me when he plans to begin, and then we will make our move." He then turned to Ahsoka. "Do not misstep this time, my young padawan."