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Chapter 40 - Chapter Forty: The Fire Within

Coruscant – Jedi Temple, Early Morning

The temple stood proud, an ancient beacon of light atop the city-planet's core. Its gleaming towers pierced the dawn, but beneath the surface, a storm gathered—silent, deadly.

Suddenly, the heart of the temple shattered.

Explosions rocked the central spire, shaking crystal walls and throwing statues to dust.

Sirens wailed.

Jedi scrambled.

Flames erupted in sacred halls once untouched by war.

Grand Hall

Master Windu stormed through the chaos, lightsaber ignited. His eyes burned with fury and sorrow.

"Find the source! Protect the Council!"

Ahsoka Tano sprinted beside him, breath ragged, her heart a tempest of pain and anger.

"This is a message," she said. "They want us afraid."

"We will not be," Windu replied.

Temple Courtyard

Jedi Padawans fled, clutching wounds and each other. Some faces were too young to understand what was unraveling.

Ahsoka stopped at the edge of the courtyard, looking up as smoke curled into the sky.

Her mind raced.

How did it come to this?

Coruscant – Senate District

News spread like wildfire.

The Jedi Temple—attacked.

The Republic—breached.

Fear gripped the galaxy's heart.

Undisclosed Location – Dark Corridor

Ahsoka's steps echoed.

Her hand hovered over her lightsaber, but she did not ignite it.

Memories flooded her.

Betrayals.

Whispers.

The faces of those she once trusted.

Flashback – Siege of Mandalore

The weight of loss pressed down.

Clones she'd fought beside… turned.

Allies disappeared.

Her own path fractured.

Present – Dark Corridor

Her breathing quickened.

A shadow fell inside her—a crack where light once lived.

Doubt.

Anger.

A hunger for justice... or vengeance.

Coruscant – War Room

Palpatine's voice was calm as he addressed the assembled leaders.

"Order 66 is in effect."

In that instant, across the galaxy, clone troopers turned on their Jedi generals.

Ahsoka's comms buzzed violently.

Jungle Battlefront – Felucia

Commander Rex hesitated as his squad opened fire on the Jedi leading their men.

"Stand down!" Ahsoka shouted.

Blaster bolts flew.

Rex's helmet was riddled with scorch marks. He was torn.

The betrayal was personal.

Temple Halls

Jedi Masters fell, their sabers extinguished by the very clones sworn to protect them.

The temple became a battlefield.

Ahsoka raced through smoke and fire.

Coruscant – Council Chambers

Yoda and Windu gathered survivors.

"Survive, we must," Yoda said. "Regroup. Rebuild."

But their eyes told another story: the Order was broken.

Ahsoka – Secret Refuge

She knelt beneath a shattered holocron, her hands trembling.

"What am I now?" she whispered.

The shadows called.

And she listened.

Zereth Prime – Distant Watch

Serion observed the chaos, his face unreadable.

The fall of the Jedi was a seed blossomed.

His moment was near.

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