The shadows in the Geonosian caverns were thick with secrecy, and Count Dooku stood in silence before the cybernetic titan.
The creature before him was no longer the wheezing prototype he had shown Cassian months ago. Thanks to Serion's direct enhancements courtesy of the Starforge and Cassian's neural imprint systems the being had been utterly transformed.
His name now was Requam.
Taller than the average droid commander, Requam was clad in obsidian armor reinforced with self-repairing nano-plates. His internal systems fused droid logic, cloned nerve matrices, and artificial genius.
His mind was a tactical enigma, running thousands of simulations every second. He could command orbital fleets and ground battalions with frightening precision, even manipulating battlefield morale through calculated psychological warfare.
"He is ready," Serion said, his voice echoing with cold satisfaction. "Not just a general—but a war philosopher. One who cannot be outwitted."
Dooku gave a rare smile. "Then we name this day the birth of the Confederacy's final sword."
And Serion simply nodded. "Requam will be your edge. Until I say otherwise."
Obi-Wan Kenobi on Geonosis
Meanwhile, Obi-Wan had followed the trail from Kamino to Geonosis and uncovered a devastating truth.
He crouched in the shadows above a high catwalk as Dooku conversed openly with the Trade Federation, Techno Union, Banking Clan, and other rogue industrialists.
The Confederacy of Independent Systems was real. The war was already brewing.
Obi-Wan tried to escape but was captured by Geonosian guards wielding sonic blasters.
Stripped of his weapons, he was imprisoned in a force field cage, left to watch helplessly as the gears of war ground into motion.
The stars above Tatooine were as harsh as the sun below. They did not twinkle. They stared—silent, unforgiving.
Anakin Skywalker's ship touched down near Mos Espa
The weight in his chest hadn't lessened since his nightmare. Every night since Geonosis, the visions had returned.
His mother.
Suffering.
Calling his name.
He hadn't told Obi-Wan. He hadn't told Padmé. But she had followed him anyway.
Now, Padmé stood behind him at the edge of the ramp, watching the sandstorm in the distance.
"Anakin," she said softly, "are you sure you want to do this?"
"She's my mother," he replied, his voice flat. "I should have come sooner."
Return to Watto
Mos Espa had changed little. Anakin's robes and lightsaber made people scatter—no one wanted Jedi trouble.
But Watto recognized him almost instantly.
"Ani? Little Ani? By the stars... it is you."
The Toydarian had aged, his wings now jittery and uneven. When Anakin demanded to know what happened to Shmi, Watto explained nervously:
"Sold her. Years ago. To a moisture farmer. Lars, I think. Outside Mos Eisley. Freed her, married her. Good man... I think."
Anakin didn't respond. He left before Watto could finish.
Padmé followed wordlessly.
The Lars Homestead
Anakin's approach was quiet. The twin suns set behind him as they reached the Lars homestead. He was greeted by Cliegg Lars, in a repulsor-chair, missing a leg.
"She was taken," Cliegg said. "Tusken Raiders. Twenty of us went after her. Only four came back. I couldn't walk after that."
"Where is she?" Anakin asked, trembling.
"Somewhere out in the Jundland Wastes. But she's been gone... over a month."
Anakin turned without another word. Padmé tried to stop him, but the storm in his eyes was deeper than before.
The Tusken Camp
He found it at night.
He moved like a shadow, slipping past sentries, hearing whispers of a mother's breath in the wind.
And then he found her.
Shmi Skywalker, tied to a post, bruised, barely alive.
She opened her eyes just long enough to whisper:
"Ani... you've grown."
"I'm here, Mom," he said, his voice breaking. "I'm going to take you home."
She smiled.
And died in his arms.
The Force trembled.
The Slaughter
The Tusken Raiders never stood a chance.
Anakin became the storm. He ignited his lightsaber, but it wasn't the blade that did the killing. It was his grief. His rage.
He killed the warriors.
He killed the women.
He killed the children.
No witnesses.
The sand was stained red by morning.
Return
When he returned to the homestead, Padmé was waiting.
He collapsed at her feet, shaking. His voice was barely a whisper.
"I killed them. All of them. Not just the men. The women... and the children. They were animals. And I slaughtered them like animals."
She did not speak. She only knelt and held him.
Above them, the binary suns rose unmoved, unmerciful.
Anakin and Padmé Arrive
Anakin and Padmé received Obi-Wan's intercepted distress call.
Despite orders to stay hidden, Anakin's loyalty to his master was stronger than caution.
"We're going," he told Padmé. "I won't let him die out there."
Padmé just as fierce in her resolve agreed without hesitation.
They traveled to Geonosis in secret. The moment they landed, they too were captured.
Arena of Death
Inside the vast gladiatorial arena of Geonosis, Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Padmé were chained to pillars, awaiting execution by monstrous beasts. Before the spectacle began, Dooku addressed them with cold civility, offering Obi-Wan a place in the new order.
Obi-Wan refused.
But as the beasts were released, the three fought with unrelenting tenacity buying time until salvation arrived.
The Jedi Strike Team
From orbit, Mace Windu led a strike team of over 200 Jedi. They landed just as the executions began, igniting sabers in unison.
A chaotic battle erupted in the arena.
Requam entered the battlefield.
He did not fight with a saber. He fought with calculation deploying pulse inhibitors, calling artillery from orbit, redirecting droid waves with cold precision. Jedi began to fall.
He engaged Kit Fisto, Luminara Unduli, and others simultaneously holding them off without ever being overwhelmed.
"Observation," Requam broadcasted. "Organic unpredictability: insufficient for strategic override. Conclusion: Jedi Order statistically obsolete."
Clone Army Arrives
The tide turned with the arrival of Yoda leading the Kaminoan clone troopers in LAAT gunships.
Republic warships rained fire from orbit.
The Clone Wars had begun.
Amidst the chaos, Cassian's stealth ship observed from high orbit. EVA processed battle data at lightning speed.
"Report," EVA stated. "Requam efficiency: 92%. Clone performance exceeds expected parameters. Jedi losses: 17%. Warfront engagement window: 10 years maximum."
Cassian sipped caf silently.
"Let it all burn," he said. "By the end of this war… I'll own what's left."