Flames billowed out into space, a blossom of savage colour against the lifeless black as Anneke maneuvered her small ship, firing at the Trade Federation cruiser's shield generator. Obi Wan's starfighter shot past hers into the hangar bay. He hit the deck hard and skidded, throwing up a shower of sparks in his wake, reflecting yellow and orange off the parked ships. His damaged ship finally came to a stop, and Obi Wan's lightsaber blade appeared, cutting through the cockpit. Apparently, the controls to open the top were dead as well.

Anneke brought her starfighter to a stop next to her master's, and opened her cockpit. Battle droids were already coming in through the far door, converging on the intruders. As she leapt to the deck, lightsaber in hand, Obi Wan's ship exploded, throwing him clear. She took a step toward him, but to her relief, he landed on his feet, unharmed.

The battle droids advanced on them, firing blasters which the Jedi blocked, their blades flashing faster than the eye could follow.

"Artoo, locate the Chancellor," Obi Wan instructed the astromech droid that had followed Anneke from her ship. R2D2 rolled over to a port on the wall, and tapped into the ship's computers. As Anneke and Obi Wan finished off the battle droids, a holographic schematic of the ship's layout appeared, a blinking indicator visible on the observation platform.

Anneke frowned as she became aware of a familiar, malevolent Force presence. "I sense Count Dooku."

Obi Wan nodded. "I sense a trap."

"Next move?" she asked.

He grinned. "Spring the trap."

"Yuck!" Anneke wrinkled her nose, nearly choking on the smell. Large pipes overhead were leaking a stinking viscous fluid—fuel. With the relative ease born of long practice, she took control over the urge to vomit and pushed it away.

"Turn off your saber!" Obi Wan said as he deactivated his. "The slightest spark will send this ship into oblivion." He nodded at the droids that had been chasing them. "That's why they've stopped shooting."

She switched her saber off and clipped it to her belt. "Then we're safe for the time being."

He stared at her, slowly shaking his head. "Your idea of safe is not the same as mine."

Though not firing, the droids were still coming. Damaging them ran the risk of creating sparks, so the Jedi ran, slipping on the fuel that continued to spurt from broken pipes along the roof. Anneke breathed as shallowly as possible; she would not be sick, not here. Grating, grinding sounds echoed through the halls, and the ship shook under their feet.

"It sounds like they're sealing off this section." Anneke skidded around a corner, catching Obi Wan's arm to balance him as he nearly lost his feet.

"Keep moving," he said. "More droids coming our way."

"There has to be a way out." Anneke stopped at a vent halfway up the wall.

Obi Wan shook his head, eyeing the vent. "Too small."

Anneke reached out with the Force, seeking a larger passageway. The fuel sloshed around their knees now, and was quickly rising. Running was no longer possible. They walked as quickly as they could, searching for an exit. The smell grew as the fuel rose, making it harder and harder to control her gag reflex.

As the fuel came to her waist, she sensed an opening in the ceiling several feet ahead. "This way!" she called, half-swimming forward. By the time they arrived at the opening, they were swimming in earnest, the odorous fluid carrying them up toward a tiny grating overhead. She reached up and grabbed it.

"Are you sure?" Obi Wan eyed the grating dubiously.

"Trust me, Master." She yanked on the grating, pulling it free, then caught the edge of the tiny opening and twisted. "Look: no structure." She ripped a ceiling panel free, revealing a large access shaft they could easily crawl into.

Anneke and Obi Wan clambered out of a hatch into another hallway. Her relief at escaping the worst of the stench nearly made her lightheaded. Obi Wan slammed it shut behind them, and Anneke welded it shut with her lightsaber, taking care not to let any sparks touch her fuel-soaked clothing. She spared a moment to wish they had time to change, that they had something to change into; the smell wafting up from her robes was still enough to turn her stomach.

"That won't hold when the fuel reaches the power dischargers," Obi Wan warned.

"The blast will break out through the hull," Anneke said confidently. "This side's pressurized."

Obi Wan shook his head, unconvinced.

A distant boom echoed through the ship, and the bulkhead around the hatch bulged out, but held. Obi Wan jumped back, staring. "All right, you win." He turned away from the wall. "Let's go!"

Anneke grinned with pride—Obi Wan didn't often admit he was wrong—and followed him down yet another hallway. At the end, they stopped before an elevator, and Obi Wan pressed the call button. A familiar rolling sound reached her ears, and she turned around, saber at the ready. "Destroyers, Master!"

Obi Wan grabbed her arm and dragged her inside the elevator where they came to a sudden stop, facing a group of battle droids that shared the elevator with them. The Jedi exchanged a split-second glance, then activated their lightsabers, and cut the droids to pieces.

The elevator began to move, then ground to a halt. Obi Wan raised a eyebrow at Anneke. "Did you press the stop button?" His voice was mocking.

She copied his expression, folding her arms. He would have seen if she had pressed any buttons. "No. Did you?"

"No!" His lips twitched as if he were trying not to laugh.

She grinned slyly and raised her saber, the blade casting blue reflections around the enclosed space. "There's more than one way out of here."

He sighed. "We don't want to get out. We want to get moving." He pressed an intercom button on the wall. "Artoo? Artoo, do you copy? Activate elevator…" He squinted at the panel. "31174."

Ignoring him, Anneke cut a hole in the ceiling. It didn't sound like Artoo was responding, and patience had never been one of her strong suits. Over the last few months, she found it increasingly difficult to stand still for even a few minutes. Her thoughts veered away, dangerously close to a secret even Obi Wan couldn't know.

"Artoo?" Obi Wan said again. Still no response.

Anneke clipped her saber to her belt and grabbed the edges of the hole she had made in the ceiling. Drawing on the Force for assistance, she hauled herself up and out to stand on top of the elevator car. There was more relief from the stench of the fuel here. Her own clothing still reeked, but at least it was fainter now that she wasn't standing next to Obi Wan's also soaked clothes in a small, enclosed space.

She jumped and caught a handhold on the side of the shaft just as the car plummeted from beneath her feet. Master! She watched in horror as it disappeared from sight. She shook her head. He would be all right. He had to be. She'd seen him come through far worse unscathed. She craned her neck to look around the shaft, and spotted a door. Leaping over to it, she pried it open with her mechanical hand. Stronger than flesh, the prosthetic often was quite useful.

Two battle droids appeared in the hallway just outside the door. "Hands up, Jedi! Don't move."

Sensing something below, Anneke looked down to see the elevator car racing back up toward her. She pushed herself up and flipped into the air, landing lightly on top of the car. Deactivating her lightsaber, and bracing herself for the return of the overpowering stink of fuel, she dropped back down through the hole in the ceiling.

Obi Wan spun toward her, then relaxed and lowered his blade. "Oh; it's you."

She clipped her own saber to her belt. "What was that all about?"

Obi Wan switched his lightsaber off. "Well, Artoo has been—"

She glared at him.

He widened his eyes in mock innocence. "Did I say anything? I didn't say anything!"

She narrowed her eyes at him. "You were thinking it."

"Now you can read minds? Your powers are growing, aren't they?"

She turned her back on him, folding her arms across her chest. No, she couldn't read his mind, but she could feel his amusement, and she had to bite her lip to stop herself from smiling. Of course, it was pointless, as he could read her as well as she could read him… most of the time. If she really focused, she could hide things from him.

A woozy, swooping sensation grabbed Anneke's insides when they stepped from the elevator onto the observation platform. Count Dooku's malevolent presence permeated the very air, and she gritted her teeth, resisting the urge to clutch at her prosthetic arm. It took a moment to register Chancellor Palpatine seated in a large, ornate chair, his wrists manacled to the arms.

"There is no emotion; there is peace," she recited under her breath, trying to bring her traitorous body back under control. "There is no ignorance; there is knowledge."

Obi Wan glanced at her, and she straightened her shoulders, nodding reassuringly at him. He didn't look completely convinced she was okay, but he turned away and approached the Chancellor, his eyes scanning the room. The swish of a door sliding open spun both Jedi around. Dooku strode out onto a balcony, his black cape swirling around his knees.

"There is no passion; there is serenity," Anneke whispered, raising her lightsaber, her insides twisting and roiling. "There is no death; there is the Force."

Obi Wan stood beside her, his shoulder just about touching hers, a solid, reassuring presence. "This time, we do it together."

She managed a half-grin. "I was about to say that."

Palpatine's quavering voice called from behind them, "Get help! You're no match for him. He's a Sith Lord."

"Don't worry, Chancellor," Obi Wan replied, his voice steady, confident. "We know what he is."

Count Dooku leapt lightly from the balcony to stand before them. "Now, Master Jedi. We don't want to make a mess in front of the Chancellor, do we?" he said mockingly.

Obi Wan advanced slowly, his blade glowing green before him. "You won't get away this time, Dooku."

Dooku laughed. "I've been looking forward to this." He slashed with his red blade, connecting with Obi Wan's saber.

Obi Wan retreated, barely blocking Dooku's furious attack, but Anneke was there, her blade connecting with Dooku's and driving the Sith back in turn. Memory of the last time she had faced the Count twisted her insides into knots; angrily, she pushed the fear away, advancing on Dooku in a fury. She was stronger now. She had learned much since Dooku had taken her hand and, nearly, her life. She would not fail this time—she had too much to live for.

With Obi Wan at her side, she followed the Sith as he retreated up the stairs back to the balcony. She could feel her master's concern for her—he could probably sense her anger at Dooku—but she ignored it. There was no time. As they reached the top, a sudden push from the Count took her by surprise and sent her flying. Her left shoulder struck the wall, sending a sharp pain through her good arm, and she fell to her hands and knees, trying to catch her breath. Sensing distress from her master, she pushed herself back to her feet with a growl. Dooku had lifted Obi Wan into the air with the Force, and her master was hanging helpless, choking on nothing.