"Anakin, were you able to contact Master Luminara?" "Yes, Master. She's busy with a fleet of Separatist reinforcements nearby. She won't be able to give support until she's turned them away."
"Our bombers will attack at high speed to avoid the enemy's ion weapon. We'll concentrate our firepower on the bridge superstructure, here. We destroy Grievous, we can bring the war to a quicker end."
―Anakin Skywalker briefs Shadow Squadron on a plan to counterattack the Malevolence[src]
The Malevolence's ion cannons explode during the Battle of the Kaliida Nebula.
A Confederate fleet was dispatched to aid the fleeing Malevolence and prevent the warship's destruction at the hands of the Republic forces. However, Jedi General Luminara Unduli intercepted the Confederate force and engaged the Confederate fleet. Skywalker contacted Unduli, seeking reinforcements for the continued attack on the Malevolence. Unduli informed Skywalker of her situation, but despite her inability to assist her comrade, she still planned to help his forces once she had dispatched her opponents.[3] Unduli was later able to defeat the Confederate reinforcements.[7]
Unduli: "Another bold strategy by Skywalker, I presume."
Tano: "That's my Master."
Koon: "Once they make it off that ship, we'll need reinforcements to finish off the enemy."
Unduli: "I'm on my way, Master Plo."
―Luminara Unduli reports to Plo Koon and Ahsoka Tano that she is on her way[src]
Unduli promises her support to Koon and Tano.
During the course of the Republic's attack, SenatorPadmé Amidala was tricked into traveling to the battlefield.[8] Upon her arrival, she was pulled aboard the Malevolence, as Grievous intended to use her as a hostage to guarantee his and the warship's escape. Skywalker and Kenobi boarded the Malevolence to rescue Amidala, and Jedi General Plo Koon and Jedi CommanderAhsoka Tano—who had accompanied Skywalker and Shadow Squadron to the nebula—contacted Unduli via holotransmission for support against the Malevolence. Once the Senator had been rescued, the Republic fleet would need reinforcements to destroy the Confederate warship. Unduli promised her support, heading over to the fleet. Skywalker was able to sabotage the warship's navicomputer, and he escaped the warship with Kenobi and Amidala. Before Unduli arrived with her reinforcements, the Malevolence attempted to jump to hyperspace, and Skywalker's sabotage caused the warship to crash into a nearby moon.[3]
The battle was first mentioned in "Destroy Malevolence," an episode in the first season of the 2008Star Wars: The Clone Wars television series. The battle featured the introduction of Jedi Master Luminara Unduli,[5] although she only appeared in a hologram during the episode. The battle served as a backstory for the episode, but as the episode's main focus was the Battle of the Kaliida Nebula, the battle near the nebula only received a side mention, not appearing in the episode. Aside from Unduli herself, none of Unduli's forces that were involved in the battle were identified.[3]
↑ 7.07.1During "Destroy Malevolence," after Anakin Skywalker reports that Luminara Unduli has engaged Confederate forces nearby, Unduli later states to Koon that she is on her way to reinforce the Republic forces in the Kaliida Nebula. It is therefore assumed that Unduli was able to successfully dispatch the Confederate forces.