sparky // a padawan story

chapter 59. the transmission.

"One more thing: Padawan Arlo, we have an urgent transmission for you when you get back down to the surface."
"From who? What about?"
"You'll have to see for yourself," Master Windu tells me as the call ends.
Obi-Wan leads me out to a Jedi starfighter. It's orange and white, the same colors as the 212th. "Anakin and I must go rescue the Chancellor. But you have to get back to the surface and see what this message is."
"I don't know why they couldn't have just, you know, told me."
"I know not, my Padawan. And you heard the Council before. The battle is out in space. It's going to be difficult for you to get to the surface, so be safe."
"Aren't I always?"
"I'm serious, Arlo. I know you can fly, but you don't have much experience of being shot at in the middle of space."
"Yeah, I do. Anakin flies us everywhere, does he not?"
"Arlo."
"Right, sorry. I'll be fine, though, really."
"I sure do hope so... may the Force be with you, my young Padawan." He pats on the side of my fighter as I close the cockpit door, then walks over to his own starfighter. I put the small, gold headset on and flick the controls. The fighter begins to hover above the floor of the hangar, and I take off into space. Explosions go off and blasts are fired surrounding Grievous' ship, the Invisible Hand. All of the colors of the rainbow from the gunfire, explosions, and collisions fill the black backdrop of the vacuum of space. A few ways below me is the city planet of Coruscant.
"All right, don't screw this up, don't—" I begin to mutter to myself.
"Not the best attitude to have, Arlo," Obi-Wan says through my headset.
"Oh, hi, Master, what's— holy kriff, they're actually shooting at me!" I say as I begin to fly fast towards the planet, Separatist ships right on my tail.
"Anakin and I are about to take off, do you need help?"
"No, no, I've got this, just... hold on... there!" I blast a Separatist fighter in front of me. "Nice."
"Hey, Arlo, try a spin!" Anakin speaks through the com.
"Arlo, absolutely do not spin—"
I jerk the controls to the right, causing the fighter to do a barrel roll while blasts are still being fired at me. "Woohoo!"
"Arlo, no!" Obi-Wan scolds.
"Arlo yes!" I laugh as I use the momentum of the spin to loop backwards so I'm behind the Separatist fighters, and begin blasting at them from there.
"Nice move, Arlo!" Anakin says. I take out three fighters in a row as I fly forward at them and through the smoke of the explosions, then begin to nosedive for the surface. Two other fighters stay on my tail. One of them lands a hit on me, but the debris goes back to hit the other fighter, destroying it. The control board begins to beep rapidly.
"Well that can't be good," I mutter as my ship starts to rumble, slightly beginning to lose control.
"Arlo, are you—?" Obi-Wan starts.
"I'm fine," I answer quickly.
"Please don't give my a heart attack, possibly?"
"If you don't want a heart attack... I strongly recommend not watching what I'm about to do."
"What—?" I loosen my grip on the controls just enough to give the ship movement over itself, and I start to rapidly plummet towards the planet, as if I had been destroyed and I was going down. Well, technically I kind of am. Because I don't know if the control handles are even working anymore. "Arlo, what are you doing? Pull up!"
"Yeah, yeah, in a minute!"
"You don't have a minute!"
"Just... hold on!" As I barrel down towards the city planet, my fighter turns, facing the Separatist ship chasing me for a split second. I fire at it just in time, destroying it, then grab the handles again and push towards the surface, still slightly out of control.
"Yeah, Arlo! She's giving me a run for my money," I hear Anakin say through the com.
"Anakin, you quit being a bad influence on Arlo. And Arlo, you are never flying in a battle again, and I hope you know that. Absolutely never."
"Eh, I don't like it much anyway... well, this looks like this should be a happy landing," I joke, still speeding towards the planet. "I'll see you all back on the surface. May the Force be with you all," I tell them as I enter the atmosphere of Coruscant. My ship continues to shake and jerk as I fly far too quickly towards the Jedi temple. I land roughly on the landing bay to the side of the temple and skid to a stop. I let out a sigh of relief and wipe the sweat off my forehead. "Ugh. Flying's for Anakins," I mutter as I rip off the headset and hop out of the cockpit to see the back of the starfighter smoking and sparking.
"Not your strong suit, flying is, hm?" Master Yoda asks as he walks over to me, along with Master Windu and Master Plo.
"Not particularly, no," I reply as we walk back inside and through the corridors. "So what's this transmission all about?"
"We don't know. She'll only talk to you, apparently," Master Windu tells me.
"Who? Ahsoka?"
"Ahsoka is hunting down Maul at the moment, as far as we know," Master Plo tells me.
"Then who is it?"
"You'll see," Master Windu says as the door to the war room opens, and I enter alone. I walk up to the holotable and hesitantly press the button.
"...Oga?" I question in disbelief as Oga's hologram appears in front of me.
"Arlo. It's good to see you, kiddo," she says.
"Is everything okay?"
"No, no. There's an emergency on Batuu. Your pops is receiving help from the Separatists again and is planning on overthrowing the Duke. He's lettin' them use our spice routes to sneak those damned droids into the Spire."
"Wait... he's lending the spice routes?"
"You heard me right. Everyone's pissed about it, tellin' me to do something about him. I might be a crime boss, but I ain't no police officer. I hate him as much as the rest of 'em, but there ain't nothing I can do to stop him. But you can. We can't let Batuu fall to the Separatists, it's no good for no one's business except your pop's. The Duke is the only person with the power to keep us neutral, and if he's gone, Batuu is kriffed."
"You're right. And if Batuu turns Separatist, those spice routes can help them sneak around, let them launch surprise attacks on us. The war is so close to ending, but that would completely change the game."
"So taking him down means it would benefit the both of us. Your home needs you, Arlo. Please, help us."
"I will do everything I can, Oga, I promise you. Give me time to consult the Council and figure out a plan, then I will be there as soon as I possibly can. No matter what."
"We appreciate you, Arlo. 'Til I see you then... may the Spires keep you."
—
"Arlo," Master Plo calls out to me in the corridor.
"Master Plo, where is Master Yoda? I've been looking around for him for an hour now, but I can't find him anywhere."
"Him and Master Windu have gone to the Senate building. The Chancellor has been rescued. Master Obi-Wan is on his way back now."
"And Anakin?"
"With the politicians, I believe."
"Okay. Well, thank you, Master Plo."
"You're very welcome. How about we go find your master?"
"Sure." Master Plo and I begin to walk through the halls together. "So you've spoken to Ahsoka?"
"I have, just before all of this happened."
"Was she doing all right?"
"I suppose. She didn't speak much of what she's been up to, though. But it was good to see her."
"I'm sure. We believe things are going well on her front, though we haven't had much communication."
"I do hope it continues going well," I say as we step outside, and I see Obi-Wan step out of a transport.
"I'll leave you to it."
"Thank you, Master Plo." He pats my shoulder as I begin to jog over to Obi-Wan and call out to him. "Hey, what took you so long, Master?"
He halfheartedly smiles when he sees me. "Hello, my dear Arlo."
"Hey, what's wrong? Is it because I almost crash landed sort of on purpose, because I don't have to do that again, you know—"
"As much as I wish that you didn't do that, no. That's not it. Count Dooku is dead, Arlo."
My eyes widen. "What? But that's a good thing! That just leaves us Grievous, then this war is over!"
"No, Arlo. Anakin cut off his hands, had him defenseless, and should've taken him prisoner. But he killed him instead. I didn't see it, I was unconscious at the moment, but..."
"...Oh." My face falls. Anakin can be rash and impulsive, similar to me, but... this is a whole new level of that. "Well, otherwise, are you okay? You said you were unconscious—"
"Yes, Arlo. I'm just troubled now, is all. Come along, let's go inside." I nod and walk beside him back into the temple. "So did you take the transmission?"
"I did, yes."
"And who was it?"
"It was from Oga."
"Oga? From Batuu? Why?"
"It's my father again. Working with Separatists. It's not looking good over there. And I need to talk to the Council as soon as possible."
"I'll let them know. For now, I need to prepare for briefing when Anakin arrives."
"If you need me, let me know, Master."
"I will, my dear Padawan."
—
"Hey, Master," I say as Obi-Wan walks into my quarters, completely unannounced. "Have you told the Council I—?"
"No, Arlo, not yet. I'm sorry." He doesn't sit down, but he paces across my room. He looks more stressed than I've ever seen him before. My heart fills with sympathy for him. They've put him through a lot during this war, but this seems worse than usual.
"Sit down, Obi, I'll make tea, yeah?"
"I'm not sure how much I trust you to do that without burning down your kitchen," he halfheartedly jokes.
"Hey, I remember how to do it! Steep it for seven minutes, just like you told me back when I got stuck third-wheeling on Carlac. And you like yours with one spoon of sugar."
"...All right then, tea would be nice." I get up off my couch and Obi-Wan sits where I previously sat as I walk to my kitchenette.
"Talk when you feel like it, Obi-Wan, I'll wait," I tell him as I begin to make the tea.
He chuckles softly. "I don't understand how we are the exact same, yet complete opposites at the same time."
"I can turn into you when I need to. Like right now. You look terrible, Obi-Wan."
"I appreciate it," he says sarcastically.
"I'm serious. You seem miserable."
"That's because I am." I'm surprised by his completely blatant answer, but I don't say anything about it. I stay quiet and let him continue. "The Chancellor has requested that Anakin be placed on the Council to act as his own voice in our affairs."
"But the Chancellor can't do that, can he? He's stepping into Jedi business, that's too far."
"I know. However, we didn't grant him the rank of Master. He's still so young, and I don't believe they completely trust him. He's too close to Palpatine."
"I agree. But something else is troubling you. I can tell."
"The Council... has assigned Anakin to, well, spy on the Chancellor. It's completely off the records. And he's not at all happy about it."
My eyes widen in shock. "But the Council can't do that either, that's treason. And it's just flat out wrong. Anakin and Palpatine may be too close, but he's still been Anakin's mentor since he got here. We all know that. He looks up to the Chancellor."
"I know. And just so you know, I don't agree with what the Council is doing, either. Anakin, he's been... how do I say this? Distant, moody? This isn't good for him."
"I feel like he's been drifting away ever since Ahsoka left," I say sadly as I take the tea off the stove and pour it into two tea cups. I put a spoon of sugar in Obi-Wan's, one in mine, and carry them over to him. I sit the cups on the coffee table and sit next to him. "I thought after seeing Ahsoka, he'd be back in it again... but I guess not. Maybe we could get Padmé to talk to him?"
"They still don't know that we know, though," he reminds me.
"But this is serious. Something is wrong with Anakin. He's like family to us, and family is always there for each other. So we need to help him."
—
"Padawan Arlo, tell us of this transmission that was sent to you," Master Windu says as I stand before the Jedi Council, some in person and some on holograms.
"It was from an old friend of mine back on Batuu. Her name is Oga Garra. She says that my father, Abraham Casimir, is planning to overthrow the Duke of Batuu."
"Batuu is neutral. We cannot do anything about that," Master Mundi states.
"Actually, we can, Master Mundi. According to Oga, he's letting the Separatists use Batuu's esteemed spice routes to sneak battle droids onto the planet. If Separatists are involved, it's a Republic problem. And you do realize that there are people outside of this Republic need us too, do you not?
"I believe we need to send someone there," the newest Council member, Anakin, says.
"I don't know, Skywalker. This war is almost done. Once General Grievous is destroyed, it's over," Master Windu says.
"Excuse me, Masters," I start.
"Arlo—" Obi-Wan mutters in an attempt to try to stop me.
"Please, just hear me out. If this plan to overthrow the Duke works and Batuu leaves neutrality to become Separatist, they immediately become a major threat. From what we learned on our last visit, the people disapprove of my father's dealings with them, however, they have no power over it because he's the one in control. Batuu's smuggling and spice routes would prove useful to the Separatists. The stealth acquired from those routes will make them unpredictable and unstoppable. It wouldn't matter that Dooku and Grievous are dead. This war may be about to end, we know that much, but if Batuu falls... who knows when the fighting will stop?"
"Agree, I do. Stopped, your father must be," Master Yoda says.
I can't believe I'm saying this, but I know what I have to do. I hesitate slightly before I speak up. "...Send me to Batuu. Let me help my people. And once and for all, put a stop to my father's crime regime."
"Clones, to accompany her, she would need," Master Yoda states.
"Am I not going with her?" Obi-Wan asks. Windu shakes his head no. "...Very well. I'll send some of my men with her."
"If we send you, Padawan, you must stop him at all costs. Do what has to be done, no matter what," Master Windu tells me.
I glance over subtly to Obi-Wan and speak to him through the Force. "Is he telling me to...?"
"...I believe he is." Obi-Wan gives me a reassuring look as I take a breath, then turn back to Master Windu and nod a yes.
"Then it's settled," Master Windu states. "Padawan Arlo will go to Batuu."
—
for some reason i just couldn't seem to get this chapter to piece together the right way and honestly i'm still not completely sure it makes sense. but anyway. bad batch comes out may 4 and i'm SO FRIGGIN EXCITED WOOOO
thanks for reading! -a 🪐