Battle on Carlac
A brief battle took place on Carlac during 20 BBY. The participants included R2-D2, Lux Bonteri, Ahsoka Tano, and warriors from Pre Vizsla's Death Watch. The conflict ignited when Vizsla's Death Watch soldiers began setting fire to the Ming Po town. Tano was captured while trying to stop the massacre, but she eventually broke free with the help of R2-D2 and Bonteri.
Background
Following their failed attempt to seize Mandalore and their subsequent desertion by Count Dooku, the Death Watch established a new base on Carlac. They oppressed the residents of a nearby Ming Po village, abducting the women to serve as their servants.
Simultaneously, on Mandalore, during the Confederate–Republic peace conference, Lux Bonteri accused Count Dooku of assassinating his mother, Mina Bonteri. The Separatists apprehended him and presented him before a holographic image of Count Dooku. During his conversation with Dooku, Bonteri activated a tracking device to determine Dooku's whereabouts. Dooku ordered Bonteri's execution, but Ahsoka Tano, who was with the Galactic Republic delegation, rescued Bonteri from the droid army. They escaped the planet aboard the Phoenix. Opting not to align himself with the Republic, Bonteri incapacitated Tano and steered the ship to Carlac, intending to provide the Death Watch with Dooku's location. Upon arrival, they were greeted by Bo-Katan Kryze and several Death Watch warriors who were expecting Bonteri. To conceal her identity as a Jedi Knight, Tano introduced herself as Bonteri's fiancee and instructed R2-D2 to conceal her lightsaber within his frame. Unable to remain with the ship without revealing themselves, Tano and R2-D2 accompanied the Death Watch warriors back to their camp.
Later that evening, as the Death Watch celebrated, Chief Pieter from the local village arrived, demanding the return of the women and the departure of the Death Watch from their planet. Feigning agreement, Vizsla and the Death Watch brought the women to the village the following morning. However, Pre Vizsla fatally stabbed the Chief's granddaughter, Tryla, and commanded the Death Watch to destroy and burn the village.
The Battle
Despite being without her lightsabers, Tano attempted to defend the Ming Po from the Death Watch. Spotting a Death Watch warrior aiming his flamethrower at a villager, she seized a pole, hurled it, and impaled him. She assaulted two more Death Watch members, knocking them down, before being attacked by Vizsla wielding his darksaber. She evaded his strikes but was then restrained by the cables of several Death Watch warriors.
Announcing the capture of a Jedi, Vizsla ordered Tano to be dragged back to the camp. Witnessing Tano's capture, R2-D2 sought assistance from the other droids in the camp. Having recently repaired them all, they agreed to help him rescue Bonteri and Tano as repayment.
Meanwhile, Bonteri attempted to persuade Vizsla to release Ahsoka. However, Vizsla was determined to kill the Jedi, asserting that they had committed numerous crimes against Mandalore. Just as he was about to behead Tano, R2-D2 interrupted, wheeling around the tent, emitting smoke, and distracting the assembled warriors. Bonteri broke free, shoving Vizsla away from Tano and heading towards the tent's entrance. R2-D2 quickly rolled up to Tano and passed her lightsabers to her. Tano severed the cords binding her and, in a swift motion, beheaded the four Death Watch warriors who had been holding her.
Vizsla ordered his warriors back, claiming the Jedi as his own. Tano instructed Lux to find a ship before turning back to Vizsla. He activated his darksaber and attacked her. They dueled around the tent before Vizsla kicked Tano through the entrance and outside. R2-D2 had gathered the droids outside with Bonteri and, as the Death Watch followed Tano outside, they engaged them. Tano continued her duel with Vizsla while Bonteri and R2-D2 commandeered a RGC-16 airspeeder, and the droids were systematically disabled by the Death Watch. Leaping over Vizsla, Tano managed to slash his jet pack, forcing him to drop it to the ground, where it immediately exploded. The explosion provided Tano with enough of a distraction to jump onto the back of the airspeeder, and all three fled the camp.
Vizsla ordered Kryze to pursue the speeder with two other warriors of the Nite Owls. Using their jetpacks, they caught up with the speeder and fired at it. Tano deflected the blaster bolts back at one of the warriors, causing his jetpack to explode. The second warrior flew down to the airspeeder, knocked the lightsabers out of Tano's hands, and attempted to strangle her. However, R2-D2 sprayed oil on his helmet, obscuring his vision and allowing Tano to use the Force to push him off the speeder. Kryze landed on the speeder, quickly overpowering Tano and knocking her off her feet, leaving her hanging off the edge of the speeder. Preparing to shoot Tano, she briefly lost her balance as Bonteri swerved the airspeeder. Swinging herself back onto the airspeeder, Tano attacked Kryze again, fighting her hand-to-hand, this time managing to push her off the front of the airspeeder with the Force.
Consequences
Tano, Bonteri, and R2-D2 successfully escaped the planet aboard the Phoenix, leaving the Death Watch on Carlac. Bonteri subsequently decided that, while he was no longer allied with the Separatists, he could not join the Republic. He ejected in the escape pod, leaving Tano and R2-D2 on the ship.
Production Notes
This battle was first depicted in "A Friend in Need" and was later referenced in "A War on Two Fronts."
At the conclusion of "A Friend in Need," Lux Bonteri, Ahsoka Tano, and R2-D2 manage to escape, but they leave the Death Watch on the planet, presumably still capable of destroying the Ming Po village. However, the encyclopedia entry for Tryla states that she "did not live long enough to see her town liberated," suggesting that the village was eventually liberated.