Orders

"Fives continues to push for answers regarding the mystery of the clone contamination and secures an audience with Supreme Chancellor Palpatine. But the situation quickly collapses when Fives is accused of attacking the chancellor, and he must flee deep into the Coruscant cityscape while pursued by his fellow clone troopers."

The shuttle bearing clone trooper Fives, Jedi Master Shaak Ti and Kaminoan scientist Nala Se arrives at Coruscant. While Shaak Ti is not watching, Nala Se injects the sedated Fives with an unknown drug.

The shuttle lands at the Grand Republic Medical Facility, where they are met by Mas Amedda and escorted to meet the Chancellor. Fives pleads his case that the chips are part of a Separatist conspiracy to cause aggression in the clones, rather than inhibit it as Nala Se claims. Palpatine suggests that he discuss the matter with Fives alone, and Shaak Ti objects. He assures her he will be safe with his security guard. As they wait outside, Palpatine calls for help, and Shaak Ti rushes in to see Fives overpowering Palpatine's guard and taking his rifle which he points at the Chancellor. She throws Fives aside with the Force and he flees from the room with Shaak Ti in pursuit. Palpatine rises calmly and hands the chips to Nala Se. Fives races through the center's reception hall, and barely manages to leap through the blast doors as Shaak Ti orders them to be closed.

At the Jedi Temple, Shaak Ti tells the Jedi Council what has happened in a conference with Yoda, Anakin Skywalker, Mace Windu and Plo Koon. Skywalker cannot believe that Fives would try to assassinate the Chancellor, and finds it odd that the Jedi have not been asked to assist in the search for the rogue trooper. Windu suggests they investigate discreetly, and Skywalker volunteers to lead the investigation, as Fives will trust him and Captain Rex as his commanding officers in the 501st Legion.

Fives takes an air taxi driven by Jay Igno to the clone bar 79's. He is unable to pay for the cab ride, and tells Igno to "bill it to the Republic," which amuses some drunken clone officers who accompany him inside and give him an officer's cap. In the bar, Fives recognizes fellow 501st troopers Kix and Jesse. As a squad of shock troopers from the Coruscant Guard arrive and begin to check IDs, Fives approaches Kix in the refresher and gives him coordinates to arrange a meeting with Anakin Skywalker and Captain Rex. He evades the shock troopers and steals a Flitknot Speeder Bike to escape from the bar, but is followed by a probe droid to a warehouse on Level 1325 of an underworld portal.

Skywalker and Rex arrive at the warehouse after being given the coordinates by Kix. Fives asks them to put their weapons down, and then activates a Ray shield around them. He outlines the plot against the Jedi, to use the biochips in every clone to force them to kill their Jedi generals. Fives becomes angry that Skywalker and Rex don't believe him, and insists the Chancellor is in on the plot, having told him in the medical bay that he had orchestrated it. Commander Fox and his troops enter the warehouse and order Fives to stand down, but he reaches for one of Rex's pistols, forcing Fox to shoot him. As he dies in Rex's arms, Fives says the conspiracy is bigger than any of them and he only wanted to do his duty, but that his missions and nightmares are finally over.

In the Chancellor's office, Palpatine tells Mace Windu and Yoda that his personal doctors have examined the "tumors" provided by Fives, and that Nala Se had missed the true cause of the clone troopers' behavior: a parasite native to Ringo Vinda, for which an innoculation has been developed which will be administered to the clones.

At his palace on Serenno, Dooku acknowledges that he has received the biochips from Nala Se. As Darth Sidious, Palpatine tells Dooku to destroy the evidence so that no one can stop Order 66.

• "Launch Pad" — Star Wars Insider 148