Ever wandered who Dooku's new assassin is going to be? Me too so I decided to make a story out of it. Have fun reading.
The red mist of Dathomir's twisting forest was thick as usual upon this day. A pack of carnivorous Kath hounds greedily ate away at a freshly killed Rancor. This Rancor was just an infant that got separated from its pack which made it easy prey for the hounds. As the wild Kath ripped meat off the bones, off in the distance, a much deadly hunter lurked.
The first of the pack was killed without the others being alerted. It wasn't until the second and third Kath was killed by a silent bolt of bright purple light that the remainder of the pack became aware of the danger. They howled loudly and sniffed around, searching for their attacker. One after another the pack of Kath was killed off until none were left.
Swift and silent, that was how she and the rest of her clan hunted. A young Dathomiri Nightsister sat upon a branch high up in the tangling trees. The young witch was an adolescent, tall and slender with pale white skin and short silver hair. She wore the same red tribal garb that the rest of her clan did with a hood and mask that covered most of her face.
Hunting was more than just recreation to her. It was more of a test of skill than a need to kill. She folded up her energy bow and slid it on the back of her belt before leaping off the high branch. Gliding down with grace and silence, she hit the forest floor, not making a sound. The Kath hounds were easy prey for her and she killed them to test her archery and for their teeth. Kath hound teeth made excellent jewelry and could be fashioned into durable weapons or brewed into potions and poisons.
The Nightsister unsheathed her Rancor-tooth knife and extracted the hound teeth. She killed an Alpha Rancor once and fashioned one of its fangs into a knife hilt which she cherishes as her most prized trophy. It was a hobby of hers to collect trophies from challenging kills. A pack of Kath hounds was hardly a challenge for the huntress but she was requested by a woman whom she respects greatly to gather Kath hound teeth.
With a satchel full of Kath teeth, Asimi of the Nightsister clan leapt back up into the trees and stealthily made her way to her village…
The hidden Nightsister village was as quiet as it always had been. Despite being the home of hundreds of female warriors, it was never loud or noisy. The village lied deep within a cave inside a hollow mountain. It was dimly lit with only the torches and the glowing light green lake surrounding the village providing light. Many of her sisters went about their business, some leaving to hunt and others in the middle of performing and practicing spells and rituals.
The tall pillar in the center of the dark village was the home of the wise and powerful Nightmother Talzin. The young Nightsister was about to knock on the door when a voice came from within.
"Enter young Asimi," The Nightmother said. It always surprised Asimi that Mother Talzin always knew when she was coming. She entered the home and found Mother Talzin meditating on her crystal ball, eyes closed and concentrating. Asimi approached the Nightmother, placing a satchel on the table.
"Udvolzlet, Mother Talzin," Asimi greeted in the ancient Dathomiri language. "The Kath hound teeth as you've requested," She said with a short bow to show respect.
Mother Talzin opened her eyes. "Excellent work sister," She said and levitated the satchel off the table and onto a nearby shelf full of other exotic ingredients. "Come, sit, I have news to discuss with you." Mother Talzin said with the chair next to her moving back as she gestured to it.
Asimi had a strange feeling about this but she sat anyways. She pulled back her hood and mask to reveal her face. "What is it Mother?" She asked.
Mother Talzin took in a deep breath a released a long breath. "Where do your loyalties lay, sister?" Talzin asked which confused Asimi as it was a rhetorical question.
"With you and the clan, Mother," Asimi said a little too hastily. "Why do you ask such a question?" She asked. A strange feeling was nagging at her senses. Something was wrong here.
Mother Talzin shifted her gaze to the crystal ball and then back to the young witch. "I'm afraid your loyalty to us must be sacrificed for the greater good of the clan." She said gravely.
Asimi was taken aback by the statement. "Mother, what is happening? Is our clan in danger?" Asimi's feeling was now turning into a storm within her mind, the Force was strong within her and it was warning her of something.
"You are aware that our clan presented a Nightbrother named Savage Oppress to Count Dooku to be his personal assassin, yes?" Talzin asked.
Asimi nodded uncomfortably. She never met Savage but she did see him once, before he left to serve Dooku. Asimi doesn't scare easily but the glow of Savage's eyes was enough to give her a fright. One of her clan's former kin, Asajj Ventress, had used the Nightbrother in a plot to kill Dooku but it failed and now she and Savage were missing. The one thing she didn't know was what any of this had to do with her.
Talzin looked solemnly at young Asimi. "The Count is furious with Savage's betrayal and is now demanding we provide another assassin for him. I we do not comply he will send an army to our home and slay us. You are the clan's only hope of survival. You must serve Dooku."
Asimi stood up so fast that her chair fell over. "How could he Mother? How could that man threaten us like this? Why must it be me who serves him? Please Mother, why is this happening to our clan?" Asimi was high with emotion now, Talzin could sense it.
The Nightmother stood and placed her hands on Asimi's shoulders. "Calm yourself sister, I did not want to ask this of you but if Dooku learned of our involvement in Savage's betrayal, he will wipe us out. You are most gifted in the Force and have more potential than any of our sisters, including me."
She didn't know what to make of any of this. Yes, she was gifted in the Force, a trait passed down from a father she never knew. She was the best hunter, a talented spell caster, and an expert in the ways of the shadow. But still, she could never imagine bowing before anyone other than Mother Talzin, the women who's guided her ever since she was a child. "Is there no other way Mother?" Asimi asked. It was a last attempt to convince the Nightmother to not send her away.
Mother Talzin saw her as the child she closely raised over the years. She loved her like the rest of her sisters but it was for the protection of every other Nightsister. Talzin remembered the time when she had to give up Asajj as a child in order to safeguard the clan. The look on the infant's face as she was taken away still plagued her mind after all these years. "Forgive me dear Asimi, I wish there was another way. Please do not hate me for it. I will do my best to help you whenever I can."
With a sad look, Asimi looked up into Talzin's eyes. "Will you watch over me mother?" She asked with eyes full of sadness.
The Nightmother pulled the sister in for a hug, a heartwarming hug that comforted the young sister. "I will always be watching over you. The Nightsisters never abandon their kin."
Asimi cracked a weak smile and nodded. "Thank you mother, that is all I ask,"
"Come with me, I have parting gifts for you. They will be of much use to you." Mother Talzin said and gestured her to the next room.
Mother Talzin's vault was filled to the brim in ancient artifacts and tools she has collected over the century. Crystal, poisons, spell books, scrolls, weapons, and all sorts of other rare objects filled the shelves of the circular room. The Nightmother stood in the middle of the room and stretched out both hands. Three objects from the selves levitated from their places and landed gently in her hands.
"Asimi, you're comprehension of shadow spells is far greater than most sisters, so to further your understanding of it, I present to you a copy of The Book of Shadows. It is one of the first ones ever made with many spells and rituals that have not been used in centuries." Talzin said and gave the thick, dusty book to Asimi.
The sister wiped the dust of the cover and was amazed by the intricate black onyx engravings on the cover. She was tempted to begin to read it right away but she held that temptation back.
"Next, I have a potion that can be used to strength your powers by tenfold. I've brewed it myself but I dare not ever use it unless it was a last resort. It will make you invincible, but only briefly, and then you will suffer an immense amount of pain that could possible kill you. Handle it with great care." She said and presented the glass veil of bright pink liquid.
Asimi impressed such a potion could be made but the drawback almost seemed too great of a price to pay.
"And finally, the greatest gift I present to you is this." Talzin revealed to Asimi a lightsaber.
Asimi was again confused. "A Jedi weapon?"
"Yes," Mother Talzin said. "You will need it to survive the Count's grueling training. He will push you to your limits and if you are not capable enough, he will kill you."
How such an awful man became the leader of a galaxy spanning confederacy, Asimi would never figure out. She knew he was a Sith Lord, but killing her because she was weak just seemed too coldhearted, even to her, a Nightsister. She took hold of the lightsaber and got a feel of the grip. It was smooth and cold, with black rings around it for a tighter handling. With the press of the activation switch, a blue blade of plasma came out of it. It was dazzling to look at but awkward to hold. All the weight was in the hilt and the blade itself was weightless. She was used to knives and swords so a lightsaber will take some time to get used to.
Asimi closed down the lightsaber and placed it on her belt, parallel to her Rancor-tooth knife. "Thank you mother, I am eternally grateful to you and the clan." She said with a deep bow.
The elder Nightmother smiled. "Rise sister, you are now our savior. It is you who I and the clan are grateful for." She said and did a curtsy before the sister. "A ship arrives for you at dawn, be ready to depart by then."
"Yes mother," Asimi said. At least she had one more night here, amongst her clan. It will probably be the last time she will ever see home so she was going to make it count.
For the last hours she had left, Asimi said her goodbyes to all her sisters. Each sister knew each other and for one to be taken away caused a great sadness throughout the whole village. It was hard for Asimi to say so many goodbyes at once. The sorrow was nearly overwhelming but she suppressed her feelings as well as she could. She was the hero of the clan now and she needed to keep her emotions at bay. If only she could see her parents for once. She didn't know much about them other than that there were both killed by Jedi, whom she hated with a burning passion. Perhaps serving a Sith Lord will present her opportunities to exact some vengeance…
The Separatist shuttle landed in front of the village entrance at the foot of the cave. Asimi stretched out with her senses to see if her new master was on the shuttle. She was grateful that he wasn't. Before getting on the shuttle she turned to Mother Talzin one last time.
"Thank you mother, for everything, I will make the clan proud." She said. The courage in her was high right now.
"The blessings of the shadows are with you sister. And know that the Nightsisters too will always be with. Sok szerencset kedves hugom," Talzin chanted. It was a good luck chant that is given to a warrior before braving a perilous trial.
"Bucsu, Mother Talzin" Asimi said goodbye one last time and bowed before walking up the ramp of the shuttle.
"Bucsu, sister Asimi," Talzin said as the ramp closed. Asimi sat down in an empty seat. No one was on the shuttle except for a droid pilot. She looked out the view port to see her home world slowly get smaller and smaller until it finally disappeared entirely when the ship jumped to hyperspace…
Count Dooku, Supreme Commander of the Confederacy of Independent Systems, master swordsmen and Sith Lord, stood patiently in the courtyard of his palace on Serenno. It was an elegant and sat upon a high hill overlooking a vast city that was just as elegant as the palace. He had just recently had the place refurbished and cleaned up from the last assassination attempt on his life by a group of three unknown Jedi. Just like before, he needed a new assassin to perform many important tasks for him just as Asajj and Savage once did. This time though, he was going to make sure this witch does not betray him like the last two.
He then sensed a strong presence in the Force, one that is both strong and yet silent. His new assassin was concealing her presences very well, but he was a master of the Force and can sense her clearly as the shuttle descended into the atmosphere and landed in the courtyard.
The ramp lowered and he was a little surprised to find his new assassin to be a teenager. As the Dathomiri witch approached him, he studied her carefully, taking note of the weapons on her and how well she was able to maintain a low presence in the Force.
"My lord," Asimi said with unease and bowed. "I am Asimi of the Nightsister clan. Mother Talzin sent me to be your new assassin."
Dooku raised an eyebrow. "Indeed, but it remains to be seen if you are capable of becoming my assassin." He said and then began to circle her, studying her even more. "Are you prepared to do whatever I say without hesitation?" He asked.
"Yes my lord," She replied.
"Does your loyalty lye with me or your clan?" He asked again.
This was hard for Asimi to say but she was prepared for it. "You my lord,"
"If I teach you, will you listen? Will you obey?" He asked yet again.
"Yes my lord," Once again she said.
He stopped in front of her, looking straight at her with a piercing gaze. "Are you strong young one?"
The question seemed unnecessary. Of course she was strong, that is why she was chosen to go in the first place. "Yes my lord,"
"Prove it," He said and took a few steps back. With a snap-hiss his red curved-hilt lightsaber ignited. He held it with the grace and ease of a master that Asimi couldn't help but envy.
She responded by igniting her newly acquired lightsaber, it's blue blade coming to life as she activated it. Never has she handled a lightsaber in combat, but that won't deter her. If she fails here, she will die and the clan will have to give up another sister to serve Dooku. That is if he doesn't decide to destroy the clan after all.
Being an aggressive huntress, Asimi made the first move, leaping high and coming down on the old man with a downwards strike. Dooku blocked with ease, not budging an inch as her lightsaber collide with his. With a swift uppercut, Dooku nearly took Asimi's arm off if she hadn't pared in the last minute.
She stroked wildly at the Count, treaty the lightsaber as if it were a metal sword she was used to dueling with. Again and again Dooku pared and deflected the strikes, hardly moving as he did so.
"You have nothing but raw technique, if you wish to survive, you must learn." He said coldly and hit her blade with a crushing strike. The lightsaber was knocked out of her hand and then Dooku blasted her with a wave of Force from his free hand. Asimi flew backwards and slammed into one of the many pillars that dotted the courtyard in a grid pattern.
Dooku moved over to where she had landed to find that she was gone. "Impressive, you hide yourself quite well," He said and then stretched his senses outwards. "But there is no hiding from the Force,"
He reacted before he heard it coming. Asimi had sneaked around and retrieved her lightsaber. She then ignited it at lunged at the Count with a stabbing blow. Dooku was five steps ahead of her. He caught the blade and let it slide along his own harmlessly. Asimi grimaced and jumped to the side to narrowly avoid another blast of Force from Dooku. She performed several acrobatic flips before coming to a landing atop of one of the pillars.
The Sith Lord smiled. "Good," He said with a grin that disturbed Asimi. "You are learning after all. Let's see how long you can last." He said and then used the Force to send his lightsaber spinning towards the pillar Asimi stood on. The lightsaber sliced the pillar in half and Asimi jumped off it to another pillar before it collapsed. Again Dooku's saber came around and sliced the pillar she stood on. She jumped high and landed on the ground and rolled behind another pillar, escaping Dooku's sight. But she knew better, his Force senses were far superior to hers. She needed to find a way to get close enough to hit him with one of her spells.
"Hiding will not protect you from me." He called out and a red lightsaber slashed through the pillar Asimi was hiding behind. The pillar fell over on top of her and she had no choice but to catch it with the Force. After pushing it to the side and letting it fall to the ground, she leaped high again only to run into Dooku's saber in midair. In a split second, Asimi hastily activate her lightsaber to deflect the incoming projectile. The spinning red blade bounced off hers and caused her to lose forward momentum and fall to the ground. She landed on all fours like an animal and then had to spin to the side again to avoid the lightsaber as Dooku used the Force to send it down upon her. But that turned out to be a mistake for the old man.
Dooku's saber missed Asimi and jammed into the ground. Not wasting a precious second, the Nightsister jumped with fury at the weaponless Count. She only hand a half a second to strike while the Count's saber was stuck in the ground, all the time she needed. Or so she thought.
The Count smirked cynically and then raised his hand at her. She anticipated the Force blast and so she jumped to the left but it wasn't a Force blast that the Count would use. Blue arcing bolts of lightning jumped from his fingers at Asimi. It caught her by complete surprise and when it struck it felt like a thousand knives driving into her body from all directions. She screamed in pain and lost the grip on her lightsaber. Falling onto the ground, she did her best to block out the pain but it was too much for her. She had never witnessed such power.
After several agonizing seconds, Dooku stopped his lightning attack and used the Force to retrieve his lightsaber. "It's a shame, I was expecting more from the Nightsisters strongest witch." Dooku said mockingly.
It aggravated her that that this old man was able to strike her won so easily. She hated him, she hated his power and she wanted to kill him for it! With shaky legs, Asimi pushed herself to her feet. The Count raised an eyebrow. He could now sense hatred brewing within her. That put a tight smile on his face.
"I'm not… I'm not done yet," She said in between breaths.
"Oh really?" The Count said nonchalantly like he was not impressed. "What could you possibly due to me in your condition?" Again he mocked her to get a reaction.
For the first time since she left her home, the young Nightsister smiled. Not a smile of joy but rather a sinister smile that reflected her inner hatred. Taking a deep breath, she centered her spirit into the shadows and called upon the ancient magic that runs deep within her clan's bloodline.
"Furentes flammas inferna!" She yelled with a mystical voice. Upon finishing the incantation, she breathed flames of red hot fire and sent them spiraling at Dooku. The Count raised both hands to deflect the flames to his left. The spiraling flames crashed into several pillars and incinerated them into ashes.
Now it was the Count's turn to be surprised. He looked at the witch, baffled by her strange sorcery. Asimi cursed silently as that was the one spell she could summon fast enough to take him out in one blow. Now she expected another barrage of lightning to hit her… but it never did.
The Count smiled greatly, a true smile that should he was truly impressed. He clapped his hands several times to applaud her strength and determination. "Well done young one, well done indeed. Your unorthodox skill in stealth and sorcery will prove most useful to me, although you lack lightsaber technique that can be changed." He then turned and started to walk towards his palace. "Your training begins the first thing in the morning. If you are late, I may change my mind a kill you after all." He said coldly and left her in the courtyard.
Asimi legs finally buckled and she fell down to her knees. That was the most challenging fight she had ever fought. If this was just a test, she couldn't even begin to imagine what the training will be like. But she did it; she saved her clan from inhalation. All she had to do now was please the Count and serve him as his assassin for who knows how long. Perhaps, in time, as she becomes stronger she may try to kill him. That will take a while though…
Ta-da, what do you think? Say whatever you want to say about it. I'm overly optimistic when it comes to reviews. Want to post something totally negative? Go right ahead, I'll appreciate it anyways!