Battle of Christophsis (Final)

Galactic Standard Time, 9:00 p.m., August 12, 22BBY, Crystal City, capital of Christophsis.

Under the despairing gazes of countless Christophsians, the clone troopers boarded the Acclamator-class assault ships once more, preparing to withdraw.

Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano escorted Volm Lotham, the Army General of the Confederacy of Independent Systems, slowly aboard a shuttle. No one spoke along the way. Only Volm Lotham kept muttering, begging Anakin to spare him.

But neither Anakin nor Ahsoka paid him any heed.

They had succeeded. Their final, do-or-die assault had captured Volm Lotham, the overall commander of the ground battlefield on Christophsis, and forced him to halt the droid army.

Yet they had also failed. The Republic army had suffered a crushing defeat on Christophsis. Even capturing Volm Lotham was of no use.

By this point in the battle, much of both sides' intelligence had become transparent. The Separatist commanders were General Trench and the infamous Sefrans Tann!

According to the Republic's intelligence on Tann, Volm Lotham alone was nowhere near enough to impede her. Once she learned of this and took over Army command authority, the droid legions would tear the Republic army to pieces with an even more terrifying and ferocious offensive!

The only thing Anakin and the others could do was withdraw as quickly as possible before Sefrans Tann reacted.

The shuttle flew into the Acclamator-class hangar. Several clone troopers came over, took Volm Lotham away, and locked him in a cell. Anakin took a deep breath, his eyes filled with exhaustion.

"Master..." Ahsoka Tano came up behind Anakin, lowered her head, and clasped her hands together. Even the head-tails atop her head drooped. If this had not been a battlefield, if they had not been in the military, she might already have burst into tears.

No one could blame