May The Invisible Hand Be With You - (Star Wars CK2-Style Quest)

Karrabac, Kalee Orbit

"Report!" Sk'ar roared out to his command crew as an explosion rocked the ship.

"Shields down to 20%, and while Trench's flagship has been forced to divert fire to the Oracle and her support ships we're still getting hit hard," a subordinate reported. "Much as we may wish to fight on to the bitter end, this ship will give out well before we do."

"Grr...what about their ship!? How much damage has it sustained!?"

"I - at this angle launching our pods at the ship would be suicide, they'd be cut down in seconds. But if we-"

"Whatever is necessary, do it! We shall cut the head from this beast! Contact whoever you can and tell them to target that ship's turrets as we maneuver!"

As the Karrabac's engines flared to life, the ship began to move through the now completely chaotic battlefield in Kalee's orbit. Ships were being ripped apart left and right whether they were Separatist or Council forces, and fighters rushed around the battlefield in massive dogfights to try and gain supremacy. However time had begun to shift to the side of the Council forces, as more and more ships started to arrive, responding to the distress call sent out from the planet.

Below the battle in the skies of Kalee, two armies charged at each other, exchanging fire before colliding with each other in a vicious melee. While the droids attempted to fire into it, it was dominated by the Huk and Kaleesh as both sides let their hatred of each other loose on their opponents. Screams of Kaleesh fury and Huk terror rang throughout it as Huk warriors attempted to rip apart their Kaleesh opponents, and the Kaleesh were all to eager to respond in kind as they brutally tore apart any Huk they killed.

In the midst of this battle a large group of Huk had surrounded the Silencer and had been trying to bring him down through sheer weight of numbers, though he would quickly respond to that with a burst from a scatter blaster or grenades, cutting down Huk in droves. Each Huk that died only seemed to enhance their terror and made them even more frenzied as they tried to bring down the demon tearing through their ranks.

HK-47 had chosen to deal with the droid forces nearby, opening fire on their lines and darting around to stay out of the firing line. While a number of shots managed to graze him and scar his armor, none managed to hit him cleanly during the melee.

Finally, in the center Grievous, Ciaran, Riphath, and the rest of the Izvoshra were tearing their way through anything that got close to them on their rampage towards the artillery batteries starting to aim for Absemi. Huk warriors and droids alike were cut down as they pressed forward - only to stop short as a familiar metallic screech echoed through the air. The group was suddenly halted as Hssiss droids leapt up from underneath the beach's sands and began relentlessly attacking them - and making matters worse was that the fight was also drawing a fair number of Huk back towards them as well, pinning them in place.

"Go!" Grievous shouted to Ciaran as he stabbed a Huk warrior that made it close to him. "You must destroy those batteries before it is too late!"

"General-!"

"I GAVE YOU AN ORDER! GO!"

While Ciaran started to protest she was cut off as she was forced to fend off a pair of Hssiss droids that had chosen her as their target, and suddenly Grievous found himself cut off from everyone else and pushed towards the water. Fighting continued around him, but the Huk warriors and Hssiss droids had stopped actively attacking, instead slowly moving forward and pushing him further and further back, daring him to attack...

Time slowed to a crawl for Grievous as he heard the sound of a wave crashing behind him.

...Was this what it was like, Ronderu? When you fought your final battle...not knowing whether victory would be assured after your death?

In that sense...I suppose there is one difference between then and now. I know Kalee will stand tall.

But...

He looked at the force arrayed against him, seeing how badly outnumbered he was and how he had been cut off from the rest of his forces.

I may not live to see that. Though in the end, I do not regret dying. Knowing that Kalee will thrive without me...I am ready.

A wave crashed against the shore, and he felt the end of it reach his feet...and something bump against one of his legs. He looked down-

And suddenly the rest of the battle didn't matter for that one moment. For at his feet was something he'd never thought he'd see again...the mask of Ronderu.

He slowly and reverentially picked it up and looked it over, wondering what whim of the gods had brought it to him in this final hour - before he realized that tears had begun to fall from his eyes.

So it was only now that the gods decided to answer my prayers? When I am ready to die?

His other hand tightened around his rifle.

No.

Not yet.

"Not yet," Grievous said quietly as he shouldered his rifle, strapped Ronderu's mask to him, and drew his Lig swords.

"I am Qymaen jai Sheelal. And I intend to survive this day."

He let out a roar of pain and fury as he charged forwards into his foes.

-----------

"MASSIVE CONTACT INCOMING FROM HYPERSPACE!"

Steela's blood ran cold as a gigantic ship appeared from behind the Tarkin's Folly, one that was easily larger than any Lucrehulk.

"Patch us through to Thrawn, now!" Steela shouted out, and within seconds his holoimage appeared. "Admiral-"

"Hold your position."

"Are you insane!? That ship will tear us apart!"

"Do not be alarmed, it is about to be occupied."

"Multiple contacts coming in from right behind it!"

As the Malevolence moved forward dozens of ships came out of hyperspace from behind it, led by a Lucrehulk with weapons that appeared to have been welded on to it at the last minute. Surrounding it was a significant group of corvettes and support ships, and as they exited hyperspace they began to open fire on the massive ship.

Steela was certainly happy to see them, but the Malevolence was already turning to fire at them. "The reinforcements are appreciated, but-"

"They will not destroy that ship, but they can stall it. Maintain the gravity well."

She gritted her teeth as the Malevolence completed its turn, charged up a circle of ion energy, and launched it at the reinforcement fleet - while most of the ships were able to dodge it in time others were caught by the attack and were immediately depowered, listing in space before they were ripped apart by turbolaser fire.

"Dammit, that's not going to be enough to-"

"Captain! One more incoming contact! It's...fighter-sized?"

In the distance a pinprick of light appeared at the edge of the battle-

On the ground, Obi-Wan suddenly stopped in place as he felt something arrive. Ciaran's hair began to stand on end as she felt her Force Bond suddenly begin to resonate.

In the skies, Ahsoka reflexively turned her fighter towards the distance. "Is that-"

Before she could answer her own question, her comm unit crackled to life.

"Sorry for coming back at a bad time, Snips."

"Master!"

The space around the Malevolence suddenly began to erupt with explosions as Anakin began tearing his way through the Vulture droid squadrons it was launching, and the fighters around him found themselves almost reflexively fighting in sync with him as he began targeting the Malevolence's turbolaser batteries, destroying turret after turret on his charge. By the time he broke away the reinforcement fleet found themselves facing significantly less fire from the ship's left flank, and began maneuvering to take advantage of the opportunity while staying out of the firing arc of the ship's ion projectors. Seemingly content with his work, Anakin's fighter streaked across the battlefield towards Kalee.

Meanwhile at the Watcher base, the droid armies had finally overrun the Watcher's outer positions and were beginning to march into the base itself-!

"It's time!" Koliya shouted over the comms. "Everyone, hit the ground if you want to live!"

He dove to the ground and heard the men around him do the same, hearing Piebald's wild laughter-

Then the world in front of him turned to fire as massive explosions erupted across the battlefield, with charge after charge that had been buried underground going off in a relentless cascade of explosions. Within seconds the droid army went from overwhelming to nearly wiped out, and as the smoke started to clear the Watcher forces and 501st began to open fire on what was left.

"HAHAHAHAHA! YES! YEEEES! THAT WAS EVERYTHING I EVER WANTED OUT OF LIFE!" Piebald shouted out over the comms with glee.

Meanwhile on the Jenuwaa beaches, Ciaran tried to make her way towards the artillery batteries on the ground she reached out to Anakin. How-

"I followed the Bond."

She gritted her teeth as she shattered a Hssiss droid trying to close in. Well, how far-

Ciaran trailed off as she reached out and felt Anakin's presence approach - and she couldn't help but be surprised at how he felt more...tranquil, for lack of a better word?

What happened? she asked him.

"I looked in a mirror. Turns out it did me a lot of good."

As she processed that blue bolts slammed into the artillery batteries, causing them to go up in massive explosions as the silhouette of Anakin's fighter briefly peeked through the clouds before vanishing. The Huk around her turned towards the destroyed artillery before letting out a shriek of rage and terror and started to go berserk, attacking both her and the Hssiss droids in a mad rage.

With that, she found an opening and began pushing back towards Grievous, and quickly met up with everyone else as the Huk began to go berserk and attacking anything in sight, making it easy for the Kaleesh forces to mop up.

As they approached, they saw a Hssiss droid try to leap forward, only for a sword to stab through it before retracting, the now deactivated droid slumping to the ground as the Kaleesh behind it collapsed to the ground, covered in wounds.

"GENERAL!" almost everyone in attendance cried out as they rushed towards him - without a word Riphath had already made it to his side and began patching him up as best he could. "If he doesn't make it to a bacta tank in the next few minutes, he will die," Rip reported.

A pained wheeze came from him as Ciaran moved to his side. "Grievous-"

"Qymaen," he said quietly. "My name is Qymean jai Sheelal. I am done grieving," and with that he slipped into unconsciousness...

-----------

Sk'ar roared in fury as his boarding pod pierced through the outer hull of Trench's ship, and he ripped himself out of it and tore apart the handful of B1s around him before beginning to sprint towards the bridge. The rest of the boarding party quickly gathered around him as they advanced, quickly dispatching anything in sight. When a pair of droideka rolled into sight and deployed, the Kaleesh tossed EMP grenades at them, and while it wasn't enough to shut them down it was enough to deactivate their shields. That was all Sk'ar needed as he charged forward and simply ripped apart the droidekas before stomping onward.

As he arrived on the bridge he found that Trench was already standing there, clearly waiting for him as he arrived and visibly unafraid. Curiously enough, there weren't any guards in sight, and while the rest of the boarding party gunned down everyone else on the bridge Sk'ar marched forward and grabbed the Harch by the neck, easily lifting him off of the ground.

"Any last words before I end your pathetic life?" Sk'ar said to him.

"Ha...ha...I may die today...but in death I become eter-"

His words were cut off as Sk'ar crushed his windpipe. "No. You were a pawn, and will be forgotten." With that he dropped Trench's body to the ground, and with the help of the boarding party opened up a channel. "This is Bentialis san Sk'ar. Trench is dead. Any forces attacking Kalee have already lost." Sure enough the remaining Separatist forces began to break away, and the Malevolence began to pull away, pushing through the surrounding fleet before eventually jumping to hyperspace.

With that, the Battle of Kalee had ended as dozens upon dozens of ship wrecks hovered in its orbit.

-----------

At the base of the Shrupak Temple, Ciaran, Obi-Wan, and Ahsoka waited as they saw Anakin's modified Aetherspite fighter touch down, and Ahsoka couldn't help but smile as R2 beeped at her enthusiastically. He ejected out of the fighter as the cockpit opened, and the trio watched as Anakin slowly climbed out and faced the three of them.

He was now wearing white robes over a black bodysuit, and had a hood covering his face before he lowered it somewhat nervously. While he looked the same as he did before on the surface, it seemed as though he was much more...content, as each of them would describe him.

"Master!" Ahsoka said with a mixture of happiness and nervousness. "It's so good to see you!"

"Likewise. Though you don't need to call me 'Master' anymore," Anakin said with a light but warm smile.

"You've certainly taken a long enough vacation," Obi-Wan quipped. "Though it turns out that even with you gone I still haven't had any peace and quiet."

"I had nothing to do with that...mostly," Ciaran said, causing Anakin to chuckle at the both of their comments. "So...how are you?"

"...I'm pretty sure I've never been better in my entire life," he said before his face fell. "Though I say that, but the war's still happening." He looked between the three people in front of him. "...And I know now who's responsible for it all."

"What!?" "Are you sure!?" Obi-Wan and Ahsoka exclaimed, though Ciaran simply responded by folding her arms.

"...We are talking about Palpatine, right?" she said quietly.

"Yes," Anakin replied.

"H-how did you figure it out!?" Ahsoka said, eyes wide. "There's no way you could have...how!?"

"It's..." Anakin sighed. "It's a long, long story. I'd like to explain it, but..." He faced Ciaran. "Right now we should worry about what you're going to say to the inevitable Republic 'reinforcements.' After that we can talk about where I've been, what I've learned, and...what I'm going to be doing now."

She nodded in agreement before turning to face Obi-Wan and Ahsoka. "I'm glad the Resolute is already gone, but-"

"We'll take a shuttle back to it, don't worry," Obi-Wan said. "As far as anyone knows, we were never here."

"You seriously think you can cover up our help?" Ahsoka said to Ciaran, who merely chuckled in response.

"My dear, covering up the involvement of one ship's worth of clones is child's play for someone like me," she boasted. "The Kaleesh will claim that they won this battle themselves, my people already won't say anything, and everyone else understands that the events of today are classified. We can't cover up that a battle happened, but we can make a ship disappear."

"So...what are you going to say, then?" Anakin asked.

"The Pride of the Core is coming," Obi-Wan pointed out. "You'll have to do something spectacular to appease her captain."

"Knowing that there's only so much I can do in this state? This:"

[] "'While we are horrified at the events that have occurred, we will not be taking action until we understand the full details behind this attack. We do not yet know why Trench decided to attack Kalee, or even if he was being supported by the Separatists.' It's not much, but it's by far the least dangerous story I can spin here."
[] "'It may be true that we had to fend off an attack on Kalee, but the Council will find it hard to swallow that the Republic 'reinforcements' arrived well after the battle ended - how are we supposed to trust in protection and security like that? Let alone a military that loses track of one of its most dangerous enemies.' I'll try and turn the tables and have people focus on the Republic's 'incompetence,' which shouln't be too hard a sell with RI in chaos."
[] "'It's clear that with this attack that things can no longer continue the way they are, but the Council must come to a decision on what to do at this juncture.' We'll have to use bureaucracy to stall at this point. It means that there's going to be an answer expected sooner or later, but it'll also give me the most cover to work with."
[] "...Okay, hear me out..." (Write-in)

AN: And I'm back! Sorry for the radio silence - I ended up taking something of an impromptu and brief hiatus as I realized I was getting more and more writer's block when I was writing this. But after some R&R as well as some other good stuff that let me do something other than IH for a bit, I'm back, ready to go, and more than eager to kick things back into gear!

I realize this is a bit of a short update to end the main battle of Kalee, but hopefully it's a satisfying conclusion to the fighting itself - though there's going to be quite a bit to cover for the denouement. Also wanted to toss in a vote to help get things back into motion (and because it's a legitimately important decision to make).

Enjoy~