Child of Balance

Schematics and Soldiers

    Two days had come and gone before Ahsoka and Rex finally arrived on Mandalore. Ezra waited in the palace hangar, with Ro and Sabine at his side as their ship touched down. The boarding ramp hissed open and the two of them stepped off. Ahsoka smiled and gave him a brief hug. She brushed a hand over Ro's neck.

    "Where's Bo?" She asked.

    "With Feton and my mother, making some more plans," Sabine replied. "They're expecting some other Clan leaders to arrive soon."

    "How many Imperial forces are you expecting?" Rex asked. They fell in step and headed towards the war room.

    "We don't know. I assume if its a planetary wide attack, Gideon will be leading it."

    "With that Inquisitor too," Ezra added.

    "And Ania?" Ahsoka still held a hopeful gaze in her eyes.

    "There's been no sign of her and we haven't heard anything. Ro and I can't reach her." Again, he sent a tug along their bond. There was no reply. It felt weaker than normal, he realized with a brush of fear.

    A hand fell on his shoulder and he met Ahsoka's warm gaze. "She'll be all right. We have to do what we can for Mandalore." He bit his lip and nodded.

    They reached the war room and entered quietly. Bo switched off the holotable and turned to face them. "You grew into yourself," she said, looking Ahsoka over.

    "It took a while," Ahsoka laughed in reply. "It's good to see you Bo. We'll help however we can."

    "Any help is appreciated," Feton replied.

    "What's your plan so far?" Rex asked.

    "It's very loose, since we don't know how many to expect on either side." Feton switched the holotable on and brought up their schematics.

    The door hissed open behind them again and Kit entered, followed by Cyana and Kein. R3 rolled in after them. Cy and Kein eyed Ahsoka warily as they took their places. "Can we expect any help from the New Republic?" Ursa asked.

"I talked to Leia and she said she'd speak with the Senate, but nothing has been confirmed," Ahsoka answered.

"What about help from neighboring systems?" Rex suggested. "There must be someone out here who would send help. Have you reached out to Onderon or Kashyyyk?"

Bo nodded. "We did a while ago, but they won't send help without New Republic intervention."

"It's just us, then." Ahsoka raised a hand to her chin.

Ezra furrowed his brow, thinking. Suddenly, an idea popped into his mind. "What about Naboo? I know they're further away, but Queen Corvina is unconventional and I know Tolsa would get her to send whatever help she can."

"Naboo is still a peaceful planet. They don't have many fighters to spare," Bo pointed out.

He arched an eyebrow, unimpressed. "This is Mandalore. You guys were built from warfare. You have more ships and weapons than most could ever imagine."

"A lot of that was destroyed when Satine became the Duchess. The rest of it was stolen when the Empire took over," Ursa said.

"No, he's right," Feton interrupted. "We need whatever help we can get, wherever we can get it. If Naboo will send help, we should reach out to them. We don't have much time before the Empire comes. I won't be surprised if they're here tomorrow."

Bo narrowed her eyes, but nodded. "I don't want to risk sending any more off world transmissions. Gideon could intercept them. Ezra, Ahsoka, will the two of you go to Naboo and speak with the Queen? I need everyone else here."