Commander Tano Meets Commanders

Riff Tamson

This is an AU from Monnk's one-shot earlier on. Enjoy!

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Chapter 15: Commander Riff Tamson, during 'Prisoners'

Don't bite something that can bite you back.

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"Ahsoka! Ahsoka, listen! Prince Lee-Char is engaging Tamson!" She froze at the panic in Anakin's tone, "I repeat: Lee-Char is engaging Tamson! You need to stop the Prince from being killed!"

"I'm on my way, Master!" She started swimming before turning off her commlink, knowing that Lee-Char would stand no chance against the ferocious Separatist Commander.

She used the Force to propel her through the water which used up a lot of her sparse energy but was necessary if she wanted to get to the Prince's location in time. The Karkarodon and Mon Calamari were having a stand-off next to the prisoner camp that was now empty.

She started to near them and ignited her lightsaber- as Anakin still had her shoto- when she saw how close Tamson was to tearing Lee-Char's arm off with his teeth. "Hey, ugly!"

With a boost from the Force, she delivered a swift kick to Tamson's nose, dislodging his death-like grip from the Prince. Lee-Char fell backwards, clutching his shoulder but not bleeding- fortunately. The Mon Calamari were fast healers.

The Prince tried to put himself between them as Tamson recovered from the blow. She understood that he was trying to prove himself to his people, but he couldn't prove anything if he was dead. Extending a hand, Ahsoka sent a burst of Force towards him, pushing him into the camp and allowing the electric shield to activate with him behind it. Her job would be a lot easier now she didn't need to worry about him.

"Surrender, Tamson, it's over!" She pointed her lightsaber at the Commander, hoping she wouldn't be forced to kill him. It was scary to watch Anakin kill out of rage, and she didn't want to pick up on his bad habits.

The Karkarodon laughed, revealing all his teeth, "Is a little Jedi Padawan asking me to surrender?"

"I'm not asking." She replied, pushing her blade closer to his face, "Your army has been defeated, and I can promise you that Dooku won't send you any reinforcements. The Republic court may be merciful if you come quietly."

He opened his jaw and roared, managing to hit the hilt of her lightsaber with something that made it short circuit and spark. Ahsoka dropped it as a jolt of electricity went through her hand, burning through her gloves.

There was no time to retrieve her weapon as Tamson swung at her and managed to hit her helmet with his big fist. There was a horrible cracking sound and suddenly water was filling her mouth and nose. Ahsoka kicked his stomach, temporarily winding him as she tore off the rest of her helmet so no shards of broken glass would impale her face.

She slammed her mouth shut and tried to hold her breath, throwing more punches towards Tamson's chest and stomach. If she could injure him, then Anakin could come and finish the job. But he was halfway across the city. Maybe locking Lee-Char in the prison wasn't her brightest idea.

Tamson grabbed her arms, easily pinning them to her sides, "Let's see how long it takes you to drown, youngling!"

That struck a nerve. When Ahsoka was first brought to the Temple, she would constantly have nightmares of drowning in the middle of an ocean. It got so bad that the clan leaders couldn't bathe her without getting covered in scratches and teeth marks. This was a living nightmare.

Ahsoka kicked him where she knew it would hurt, breaking his hold as Tamson curled inwards on himself. Her lungs burned; she needed oxygen. She blamed her species for having smaller lungs than humans meaning that they couldn't go for as long without air.