Chapter 21: The Ryloth Campaign Begins
POV: Kael Vorn
The war room buzzed with urgent preparations, holographic displays painting the assembled commanders in shifting blue light. Ryloth—the verdant homeworld of the Twi'leks—had fallen under brutal Separatist occupation, its people enslaved and starved while droid factories churned out weapons from the planet's stripped resources.
Mace Windu stood at the center of the tactical display, his presence radiating controlled fury as he outlined the liberation strategy. Despite his obvious reservations about Kael's unorthodox methods, the Jedi Master had requested his tactical expertise for the campaign.
What no one had anticipated was Kael's next declaration.
"Ventress comes with us."
The war room fell silent. Clone commanders exchanged glances. Jedi Masters shifted uncomfortably. Mace's glare could have melted durasteel plating.
"Absolutely not. She remains on Coruscant under guard."
"She's under my supervision," Kael argued, feeling Ventress's presence behind him like a barely contained storm. "Keeping her on Coruscant unsupervised is more dangerous than bringing her into the field where I can monitor her directly."
"And she knows Separatist tactics better than anyone in this room."
Mace's jaw tightened, but before he could object further, Yoda's gimer stick tapped against the floor with quiet authority.
"Test her commitment, this will. In battle, see the truth of one's heart, we do."
[VENTRESS FIELD DEPLOYMENT: AUTHORIZED]
[SUPERVISION RESPONSIBILITY: KAEL VORN]
[CLONE TROOPER CONFIDENCE: SEVERELY COMPROMISED]
The assault ship Negotiator broke through the Separatist blockade under heavy fire, her hull shuddering as turbolaser bolts hammered against reinforced plating. On the bridge, Ventress stood among the Jedi commanders, her presence drawing horrified stares from clone troopers who remembered fighting against her crimson lightsabers.
Captain Rex approached Kael with the careful politeness that meant he was barely containing his anger.
"Sir, with respect—that's the woman who killed my brothers. Why is she here?"
Kael could feel the hostility radiating from every clone on the bridge. These men had watched their comrades die under Ventress's blades, had seen entire squads decimated by her tactical brilliance turned to Separatist ends.
"The Council believes she can be redeemed. I believe she can help us save lives."
Rex's expression remained neutral, but his mechanical precision spoke volumes. "Understood, sir. The men will follow orders."
"But they won't trust her. And they sure as hell won't trust me if this goes wrong."
The moment of tension was broken by proximity alarms. Separatist fighters swarmed around the Republic fleet like mechanical vultures, their laser fire painting deadly patterns across space.
Ventress suddenly stepped forward, her voice cutting through the bridge noise with command authority.
"Vulture droid formation delta-seven. They'll concentrate fire on the port engines in fifteen seconds. Adjust heading two-seven-mark-four and increase forward deflector power by thirty percent."
The tactical officer looked to Admiral Yularen, who glanced at Mace Windu, who stared at Ventress with obvious suspicion. Precious seconds ticked by.
"Do it," Kael ordered, his voice carrying the weight of responsibility.
The Negotiator banked sharply, and the concentrated volley that would have crippled their engines instead splashed harmlessly against reinforced shields. Around them, other Republic ships followed the maneuver, guided by Ventress's knowledge of Separatist attack patterns.
Rex didn't thank her, but his hostility decreased fractionally—a professional soldier recognizing tactical competence regardless of its source.
[CLONE TRUST: MARGINALLY INCREASED]
[VENTRESS TACTICAL VALUE: DEMONSTRATED]
[TEAM INTEGRATION: GRUDGING]
They made planetfall outside Lessu, Ryloth's capital city, where the devastation was immediately apparent. Buildings reduced to rubble by orbital bombardment. Streets littered with the debris of civilization. Twi'lek civilians—those who hadn't been shipped off-world as slaves—moved through the ruins like ghosts, their skin pale from malnutrition, their eyes hollow with despair.
Kael's Force Sense was overwhelmed by the psychic weight of suffering. Thousands of traumatized presences cried out silently, their anguish mixing with the metallic taste of fear that hung over the city like a shroud.
Ahsoka's face went pale as she witnessed the scope of the occupation's brutality. Even Ventress looked affected, her usual mask of controlled indifference cracking as she saw the consequences of Separatist policies she had once helped implement.
A Twi'lek resistance leader approached their landing zone—Cham Syndulla, his bearing proud despite the blaster wounds that marked his blue skin. His eyes swept over the assembled Jedi and clone troopers before fixing on Ventress with obvious recognition.
His hand moved to his blaster. "Why do the Jedi bring a Sith here? Haven't we suffered enough?"
Kael stepped between them before the situation could escalate. "She's here to help make things right. Everyone deserves that chance."
Cham's expression remained skeptical, but the Republic fleet's firepower spoke louder than his doubts. He nodded grudgingly and began coordinating with the clone commanders.
[CHAM SYNDULLA: SUSPICIOUS BUT COOPERATIVE]
[CIVILIAN MORALE: DESPERATE HOPE]
[VENTRESS REPUTATION: SIGNIFICANT OBSTACLE]
The first skirmish erupted without warning. Droid patrols detected their position and responded with mechanical efficiency, battle droids advancing through Lessu's ruins in perfect formation while super battle droids provided heavy fire support.
Kael fought alongside Ventress, their partnership from the space battle translating seamlessly to ground combat. She guarded his flank with instinctive precision while he used Force Push to create openings she exploited with lethal efficiency.
Their synchronization was perfect—too perfect. Ahsoka watched them fight from her own position, and something complicated crossed her features. Not quite jealousy, but discomfort at how naturally Kael connected with someone so dangerous.
"They move like they've been fighting together for years. When did that happen?"
After the battle, Anakin pulled Kael aside, his mechanical hand flexing unconsciously—always a sign of internal conflict.
"She's good in a fight. I'll give her that. But watch yourself, Kael. The Dark Side doesn't let go easily. I should know."
The warning carried weight from someone who walked the line between Light and Dark every day. Kael nodded, understanding the concern behind Anakin's words.
"I'm being careful. But she's changing, Anakin. I can feel it."
"People don't change that quickly. Especially not Sith."
[ANAKIN CONCERN: GENUINE]
[VENTRESS INTEGRATION: PROCEEDING]
[AHSOKA JEALOUSY: EMERGING]
That night, they established a forward base in a secured district of Lessu. Kael found Ventress standing alone at the perimeter, staring at Twi'lek children receiving rations from clone medics. The scene should have been heartwarming—innocents being fed by their liberators—but her expression was haunted.
"I did this," she said quietly, not looking at him. "Not here specifically, but places like this. Dooku sent me to terrorize populations into submission. I told myself it was necessary for the war effort."
Kael stood beside her, close enough to offer support but careful not to crowd her. "And now?"
Her yellow eyes reflected the firelight from burning buildings. "Now I wonder if anything I did mattered, or if I was just another tool in someone else's game."
It was the most vulnerable he'd ever seen her—a confession that went deeper than tactics or politics into the fundamental question of purpose and meaning.
In the distance, Ahsoka watched them from the shadows, her expression unreadable. The dynamic between the three of them was shifting in ways none of them fully understood, bonds forming and complicating in the crucible of war.
[VENTRESS VULNERABILITY: MAXIMUM]
[ALIGNMENT SHIFT: +1% TOWARD BALANCE]
[CURRENT STATUS: 26% DARK]
[TIMELINE INTEGRITY: 78%]
The Liberation of Ryloth was just beginning, but already the campaign was changing them all in ways that would ripple across the galaxy's future. In a universe defined by binary choices, they were creating something new—a gray path that offered alternatives to the extremes that had doomed so many others.
It was dangerous work. It was necessary work.
And it was only the beginning.
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