In one of the ship's corridors, Mandalorian guards and clone troopers were locked in fierce combat with a small battalion of super battle droids, their blasters lighting up the narrow space with bursts of red and blue energy.
Steve led the defensive line, his vibranium shield spinning through the air as it ricocheted off the walls and sliced through the droids like they were made of paper. As the clones and Mandalorian guards behind him pressed forward through the wreckage, something suddenly slammed into one of the guards with bone-crushing force.
From the shadows, a hulking figure in scarred gray armor emerged. An elongated limb shot out with unnerving speed, enveloping the guard in a bone-shattering embrace before retracting, leaving only a crumpled form in its wake.
"We meet again" Durge roared.
"Oh, damn it—not him again," Steve muttered under his breath, raising his shield defensively. "Fall back! Everyone fall back now!"
Captain Rex immediately opened fire on the bounty hunter, his twin pistols blazing as he tried to draw Durge's attention while the others retreated to safer positions.
"Anakin," Steve called over his comm unit, dodging a vicious swipe from Druge "We've got a serious problem down here."
"What's the situation?" Anakin's voice crackled back with obvious concern.
"Durge is on board the ship."
"What?!" Anakin's shock was evident even through the static. "How the hell did that maniac get past our security?"
"That's just fantastic," Natasha said sarcastically as she rolled behind cover. "How exactly are we supposed to deal with him?"
"Captain Rogers, we can't let him run wild on the ship," Captain Rex shouted over the sound of blaster fire. "he will slaughter everyone aboard!"
"Do you have any plan?" Steve called back, narrowly dodging a Durge fist that left a sizeable crater in the wall where his head had been moments before.
"We need to get it off the ship," Rex replied.
Steve immediately understood Rex's plan and nodded grimly, hurling his shield at the towering Durge.
"Move! Move!" Steve shouted to the guards and clones, and they began fighting their way toward the nearest escape pod bay, using every piece of cover they could find.
Steve quickly messaged Anakin, Natasha, and Matt to rendezvous with them while doing everything in their power to stay ahead of Durge's relentless assault.
Meanwhile, on the bridge...
Obi-Wan ignited his lightsaber with a sharp hiss, the blue blade casting dancing shadows across the command center as he faced the Senator who held Satine in a deadly embrace.
"Welcome, Kenobi. You are expected," Tal Merrick said with a cold smile.
"Senator Merrick, you're under arrest for treason against the Republic," the Jedi Master declared, his voice steady despite the tension. "Release the Duchess immediately."
This situation was far from ideal for the Jedi. For the briefest moment, Obi-Wan had assumed that Merrick was simply armed with a standard blaster—something he could easily disarm using the Force. However, as his eyes focused on the device in the Senator's hand, he realized with growing dread that it wasn't a weapon at all.
"I'm afraid I've taken certain precautions," Merrick said, holding up the detonator for Obi-Wan to see clearly. "I've wired the ship's main engines with explosives. One press of this button, and we'll all be atomized."
Satine struggled against Merrick's iron grip, but the Senator was far stronger than her slender frame could overcome. Looking desperately at the Jedi Master, she spoke with quiet dignity. "Obi-Wan, if you have any respect for me—and for the lives of everyone aboard this ship—you won't do anything reckless."
"Satine..." Obi-Wan's voice was barely a whisper.
All the Jedi Master could do was watch helplessly as Merrick began backing out of the bridge, dragging Satine with him while keeping the detonator prominently displayed. Not wanting to lose sight of them, Kenobi began to follow at a careful distance, his mind racing for a solution that wouldn't end in catastrophe.
Back in the escape pod bay...
Anakin, the clone troopers, and the Avengers were now fighting desperately in the confined space, trying to force Durge into one of the escape pods before he could tear the ship apart from the inside. The bounty hunter was already running rampant, having brutally eliminated several Mandalorian guards and more than a dozen clone troopers with ruthless efficiency.
He showed no mercy and seemed focused solely on its primary directive: eliminating every clone trooper and Mandalorian warrior it could find.
"If we don't stop this thing right now, it's going to tear through the entire ship," Matt warned, his enhanced senses picking up the damage Durge was causing throughout the ship.
"Get that escape pod ready!" Anakin ordered, directing several clones to prepare the launch sequence on one of the pod's control panels.
Steve moved forward with renewed determination, throwing his shield in rapid succession and watching it bounce off Durge's armor. Natasha joined the assault with her twin blaster pistols while the remaining clones added their firepower to the coordinated attack.
The overwhelming barrage of attacks momentarily staggered Durge, and that brief hesitation was exactly what Anakin had been waiting for. The Jedi Knight raised both arms high and stepped forward, feeling the Force flowing through every fiber of his being like liquid lightning.
With a powerful grunt of effort, Anakin unleashed a devastating Force push that sent Durge flying directly into the open escape pod. Moving with lightning speed, he telekinetically sealed the hatch and used the Force one final time to trigger the launch sequence, Durge into the cold vacuum of space.
The entire group collapsed in exhaustion until the distant sound of blaster fire echoed from the corridors around the corner, reminding them that their troubles were far from over.
"Anakin," Steve said, catching his breath while checking his shield for damage. "You need to find Obi-Wan. We'll handle whatever's happening down here."
Anakin simply nodded and sprinted off toward wherever his Master might be, his lightsaber ready for whatever new threat awaited them.
While moving through the ship's winding corridors, Merrick suddenly encountered a Separatist boarding craft that had penetrated the Coronet's hull with a thunderous crash. Still keeping his eyes fixed on Kenobi, the traitorous Senator activated his wrist communicator to contact his Death Watch allies.
"This is Merrick. Stand by to extract me," he commanded, then turned his attention back to his hostage. "Goodbye, Duchess. It's been... educational."
"Obi-Wan," Satine said, her voice filled with quiet resignation as she met his eyes. "It appears I may never see you again after all." Her voice grew softer, more vulnerable. "I don't know how to say this properly, but... I've loved you from the moment you first came to Mandalore to help me all those years ago."
Merrick looked at his hostage with obvious confusion, then let out an exasperated groan. "Oh, for crying out loud..."
The confession had caught Obi-Wan completely off guard, and he found himself at a complete loss for words. How could he possibly respond to something like that under these circumstances?
"Satine, this really isn't the time for—"
But when he looked into her eyes, the words died in his throat. Staring back at him, he could see nothing but profound sadness mixed with a love so pure it seemed to pierce straight through to his soul. Memories of their shared past flooded through his mind—the happy moments, the sorrowful partings, and all the times they had been together as their friendship had slowly blossomed into something deeper than either had dared to acknowledge.
"If that's truly how you feel," Obi-Wan said quietly, his voice heavy with emotion, "then I would leave the Jedi Order."
Despite everything, Satine felt a surge of pure joy at hearing those heartfelt words coming from Obi-Wan's lips. However, that precious moment of happiness was quickly shattered as her captor interrupted with cruel finality.