Attention: This chapter is presented as a hypothetical possibility for linking this story with my story To Survive Betrayal. This should not be considered a canon part of either story.

Before Ahsoka opened the door of her quarters, she felt some sort of commotion pulsing through her montrals. Ahsoka was shocked to see a countless number of people running through the hallway to the first exit they could find.

"Get to safety. The temple is under attack by clones!" someone yelled in passing. Ahsoka didn't recognize the person, but she found the statement peculiar.

Clones? That can't be right, Ahsoka thought.

Ahsoka nearly lost her balance as another explosion rocked the temple. Suddenly, she recalled a secret passage that she and her Clawmouse Clan classmates discovered by accident long ago. If she could find it again, just maybe she could escape without being trampled in the commotion. She quickly returned to her room and grabbed a small box. As she left her quarters for the last time, she ran through the hallway. She was determined to find that secret passage if at all possible.

As she turned a corner, nobody else was around. Walking to the other end of the hall, she sensed the secret panel to her left.

Thank the maker I remembered where it was! she thought.

She opened up the secret panel and entered the dark passage, making sure to pull the panel closed behind her so that nobody else could follow. As she looked inside, she remembered why this secret passage was so popular with younglings. The stairwell was so narrow, there was no way two adults could comfortably pass each other. Still, she worked her way down the stairwell as quickly as possible while being careful. She relied extensively on her montrals and the Force to navigate the dark, unlit stairwell.

As Ahsoka passed each floor, she sensed the increased chaos. She briefly lost her footing when two more explosions rocked the temple. After a quick yelp, she regained her balance. The last thing she needed was to lose her balance and injure herself falling down the stairs.

Finally, Ahsoka made it to the hangar level. She slowly cracked the door open just enough to squeeze through the opening. A number of disturbances now rippled through the Force. Clones were already in the hangar and opening fire. Ahsoka watched in horror as the clones shot down fleeing Jedi as easily as B1 Battle Droids. Although she felt sharp pains of discomfort, Ahsoka spotted a small ship at the far end of the hangar. She felt determined to navigate the chaos to get to the ship and make her escape.

Meanwhile, Darth Vader looked on as his clones attacked the Jedi frantically trying to escape.

"Sir, look at this," a trooper said. He handed Vader a set of macro-binoculars. Her presence surprised him, but her attempt to escape didn't.

"You... and you," Vader said, pointing to two troopers on his left, "see to it the Togruta doesn't get out of here alive. Destroy anyone or anything necessary to make it happen!" he commanded them.

"Yes sir!" the two clones replied emphatically and obediently. One shot laser fire towards Ahsoka. The other armed missiles for destroying the spacecraft still docked inside the hangar.

Ahsoka turned around as she navigated the growing chaos of fleeing Jedi and dead bodies. She hoped what she saw wasn't real.

Anakin? No!? It Can't be! But … but it is?! Ahsoka thought. What was he doing with the clones that shot down her colleagues? As she tried to shake off her growing discomfort, a voice echoed in her head.

There are many contradictions in you. And in him. Be warned. You may never see your future if you remain his student! her older self warned her on Mortis.

A missile exploded next to a nearby ship and spread shrapnel. Ahsoka narrowly missed being impaled by the airborne shards. Shaken back into the present, she realized she had to escape as soon as possible.

Ahsoka quickly drew her lightsaber. However, she stopped herself from igniting it. If she deflected any laser fire shot at her, the stray bolts might hit and kill other Jedi. She couldn't do that. She wouldn't do that—not after being wrongfully accused of murdering Jedi not even two standard months ago. The last thing she wanted was to have Tarkin somehow appear and arrest her again. He'd arrest me just for being born if he had his way, she thought. She figured she'd probably snarl and try to bite his fingers off if he even thought about cupping her chin again.

Ahsoka's montrals suddenly buzzed, bringing her back into the moment. She saw laser bolts heading right towards her. Without realizing it, her inborn Togruta survival and flight instincts began to reassert themselves. She quickly leaped into the air and twisted her body so that the bolts raced harmlessly past her. As she landed and regained her footing, her efforts to run to safety led to her bumping into another Jedi. In the collision, she dropped her box. She didn't expect him to stop and offer her what looked like a small hand-held device with two buttons on it.

"Here, take this. Go to the preprogrammed coordinates and press the black button. Go forward, select new coordinates, and then press the green button. Hurry! And may the Force be with you!" he yelled before pushing Ahsoka forward again. She didn't know who had helped her, nor did she have a chance to thank him, but time was off the essence. She picked up her box of possessions and started to run again.

The clones continued their attack and shot down more panicked Jedi. The pain and death that rippled through the Force made it difficult for Ahsoka to focus, but she continued to make her way to the ship.

Almost there, can't give up now, Ahsoka thought.

As another explosion knocked her off her feet, she used a leaping somersault to continue to move forward. Thanks to her echolocation, she evaded more laser fire as she entered her ship of choice. She quickly powered up the engines and activated the navicomputer. Once the former came online, she programmed it to take her to the coordinates displayed in the strange hand-held device. As she left the hangar, one last explosion provided enough of a distraction for her to leave the Jedi Temple. She flew as fast as she could without overloading the engines. Destroyers appeared to be preparing a blockade. Fortunately, they appeared to ignore Ahsoka and her ship because it lacked markings identifying it as a Jedi vessel. Ahsoka looked at the Jedi Temple one last time. The smoke that poured out from various parts of the massive structure reminded Ahsoka of what happened over a month ago.

I hope others make it out safely. May the Force be with them, she thought. She shook her head before she checked her instrumentation and continued her escape route.

As Ahsoka fled, Darth Vader assessed the carnage in the hangar. The troopers from the 501st slowly ceased fire.

"Did we get her, sir?" one of his clones asked.

Vader closed his eyes for a moment. "No. She somehow escaped. That's not a surprise, though. I trained her well—too well. But, it won't matter soon," he replied.

"Should we pursue her, sir?"

"No, I will track her myself and send a team or two to intercept her. You did your job here with peak efficiency. I will take over from here."

"Yes sir," the clone replied instinctively.

Ahsoka made the jump to lightspeed and set the auto-pilot. She didn't know how long it would be until she arrived at her final destination. However, she knew the longer she traveled in space, the more likely it would be that someone would track her down again. As her ship cruised in lightspeed, her built-up emotions were ready to burst. In spite of her Jedi training, Ahsoka gave in and let her emotions flow freely.

Skyguy, how could you do this?You always rallied against senseless slaughter. Now you're leading it? How could you do this to me? What did I ever do to you? Is this because of what happened a month ago? It was bad enough I almost died because of Barriss and her crimes. I wanted to leave after that, but you convinced me to stay. Is this how you make me feel welcome again? Why would you of all people want me dead? raced through Ahsoka's mind. She started to cry uncontrollably. As she felt tears run down her right cheek marking, she buried her face into her hands.

Ahsoka thought back to the past few years and all the good and bad events during her years as a padawan. However, she couldn't stop thinking about the warning on Mortis. It seemed to be coming true, much to her horror.

Would I have been safe right not had I left the Order like I wanted to do? Ahsoka asked herself. Unfortunately, she wasn't so sure. The Force didn't feel the same to her when she briefly reached out to see what she could sense. She wasn't sure if something was truly amiss, or if her emotions clouded her judgment.

Ahsoka did her best to stop crying. She needed to think about her future now.

If I do end up somewhere else, what will happen to me? What will I do? Will I always have to fear being hunted down and killed? she thought. She also wondered if the local natives would accept and welcome her. Most importantly, what would her destiny be? Without a master, she would never complete her training and become a Jedi Knight. The uncertainty of her future was enough to start her crying again.

Ahsoka continued to reflect on her recent emotional letdowns. She had asked Anakin to do something to show he accepted her again. But now, he had turned against her. He ordered clones from their own command to open fire on her. This time, they shot to kill and not to stun. She didn't know how she could move past her master's betrayal of her.

A sound from the ship's display panel interrupted her thoughts. Also, she noticed a blinking green light on her instrumentation panel. She had finally reached her coordinates.

Taking one last deep breath, she thought, I made it! Here goes nothing.

Commentary: This rewritten version of the opening chapter from my story To Survive Betrayal incorporates the events from season five's finale. Ahsoka's feelings of betrayal by both Barriss and Anakin made this version even more of an emotional chapter, despite its non-canon/unofficial status.

Thanks to everyone that supported this story. Its popularity far exceeded my own expectations. For that, I'm sincerely grateful.

END