Star Wars Clone Wars
New Defense Program and the Mandalorian Jedi
Coruscant, Three years after the beginning of the Clone Wars,
It has been a few years since the clone Wars started and they don't seem to be showing any signs of stopping any time soon. The Jedi Council had been stretched thin and is starting to reach the breaking point. Obi Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker have been moving from battle to battle and it seems to be catching up to them. Ahsoka Tano has continued her training under Anakin all this time and is getting ready to take her test to become a Jedi Knight. All Jedi apprentices were being pushed into becoming Jedi Knights faster but Master Yoda was trying to put this to an end by requesting that the Senate begin training a new defense program other than the Jedi. The Jedi Council, a number of Senators and Supreme Chancellor Palpatine were currently discussing this very thing.
"Keepers of the peace, the Jedi are." Master Yoda said calmly. "More Jedi, there is need for, but enough time to train them properly, there is not."
"I have spoken with Duchess Satine and, while Mandalore wants to remain neutral, she knows that there are a few Mandalorian Warriors who will be willing to join the Republic in this sort of manner, as long as they don't have to report to Jedi they don't trust." Obi-wan said calmly.
One of the senators cleared his throat. "I happen to know a part Mandalorian who is extremely skilled at finding and destroying Separatist bases." He said with a smile. The senator had dark skin, short black hair and wore a senatorial robe. "His name is Shark Shadow."
"I've heard of him, Senator Lance." Anakin said calmly. "He has a bit of a reputation for blowing things up."
"At least he gets the job done." The senator countered. "My planet of Mengela was in danger of being overrun by the Separatist Droid Army until Shark was able to take out a couple of droid factories."
Mace Windu was the next to speak. "It was my forces that had been sent to your planet, senator, and I've never met this Shark person before." He said calmly.
"That's because he prefers to work in the shadows of things." Senator Lance replied. "He says that by making yourself known to the enemy, it makes you an easy target for the enemy to track and, ultimately, eliminate."
"For this assignment, out of the shadows, he will be." Master Yoda said. "But more to the story, I sense there is."
The senator sighed. "I was hoping you'd prefer to ask him rather than me, Master Yoda." He said as he rubbed his eyes. "Shark has a bit of a history that he isn't proud of and is constantly trying to make amends for."
"What could possibly be so bad that he feels he needs to constantly make amends for?" Anakin asked with a smile, expecting something pretty trivial.
Senator Lance got dead serious and frowned. "He was being trained to be a Sith." He said.
Everyone stopped and was shocked at the revelation. Padme Amidala was the first to recover. "You mean that he is a fully trained Sith Lord and you still trust him?" She asked.
"He is not a Sith Lord!" Lance growled at her. "Shark was kidnapped when he was only 5 years old after secretly witnessing a Sith Lord killing his parents when they refused to hand him over. He was told that it was actually a Jedi who killed his parents but Shark knew better and just played along until he was able to make his escape. After twelve years of Sith Training, Shark and two of his friends, who were also kidnapped under similar circumstances, made their escape. Their friend died but Shark and a female managed to escape and make it seem like they had died."
"How do you know all of this?" Chancellor Palpatine asked curiously.
"He told me one year after his escape, when I hired him as part of my planet's security division, which was three years ago at the beginning of the Clone Wars." Senator Lance admitted. "I personally interviewed him because his test scores were the highest of all our recruits."
"You mean recruits at the time, right?" Anakin asked.
"No, I mean of all recruits period." The senator responded.
Everyone was impressed by this. "What of the girl?" Master Shaak Ti asked. "Did she also join the Defense Force?"
"No, Karona decided to become a dancer at a local club which Shark visits regularly." Senator Lance said with a smile. "She's continued practicing her fighting skills with Shark but didn't want to become a full on member of the Defense Force."
"But she does help out occasionally?" Ahsoka asked curiously.
The senator nodded. "The two are a couple so they will most likely come to Coruscant together." He said.
"A meeting with these two, I would like." Yoda said calmly. "Valuable information on the Sith, they may have."
"I shall contact them as soon as possible." Senator Lance said calmly.
A few minutes later, on Mengela,
At the Mengela Planetary Defense Headquarters, an armored man wearing black Mandalorian armor with red flame decals painted on it entered his private quarters. The room had a holo-screen, a couch, a table and doors that led to other areas of the quarters. There was a kitchen and a bedroom with a bathroom, which had the sounds of running water coming from it. The man then removed his black helmet, revealing that he was about twenty years old and had short black hair, blue eyes and light skin. He hand ran through his hair as he sat down walked over and sat down on the couch. He put his helmet on the table in front of him and then laid back, closing his eyes.
"Rough day at the office, lover?" A female voice asked from the bedroom's door way.
The man opened his eyes and looked over to see a gorgeous woman with shoulder length blond hair wearing only a light blue bathrobe. Her hair was still wet from her shower and her breasts, which were firm perfectly sized, were barely covered by the robe as there was still some wetness to her skin from the shower. The man smiled at her. "Not really, Karona, just getting tired of not being on the offensive." He said as the woman named Karona walked over to him and started helping him remove his armor.
"Remember, Shark, you're the one who decided to stay in hiding instead of going straight to the Jedi after we escaped." Karona said with a chuckle.
Shark smiled as Karona was right that it was his idea not to go to the Jedi Council when they first escaped the Sith. Shark finished removing his armor as Karona went into the bedroom to get some actual clothes on.
Shark's personal Imagecaster, a small holovid communicator that was the size of his palm, started beeping. He picked it up and activated it. A small hologram of Senator Lance appeared over the disk. "Senator Lance, how are things on Coruscant?" Shark asked with a smile.
"Things are alright but I'm calling to let you know that the Jedi would like to talk to you and Karona." The senator said calmly.
Shark sighed. "You told them about our history." He said calmly. The senator's hologram nodded and explained the new Defense Program that the senate was trying to set up. "Well, at least I might be able to help go on the offensive in this war."
"I had a feeling you'd want to join up." Senator Lance said with a smile. "Oh and Master Yoda would like to speak with you and Karona as soon as you arrive."
"I figured as much." Shark replied. "We'll be there as soon as possible." He then got up from the couch and went to the bedroom to find that Karona was dressed in her own Mandalorian armor which was white colored with pink flames decals.
"I had a feeling we'd be heading out." Karona said with a smile as she finished putting their clothes into travelling cases.
"And just when I had gotten my armor off." Shark said pretending to be annoyed.
Karona chuckled. "Get suited up again while I finish the packing." She said with a smile.
"Yes, ma'am." Shark replied with a smile. He then went out and suited back up. Before they left, Shark opened a secret compartment that had a black box in it. He opened the box and inside where different colored Crystals. "My personal stash of rare Pontite Crystals," Shark said to Karona who looked curious about what those were. "They may come in handy."
Meanwhile, on the Bridge of a Separatist Battle cruiser,
Count Dooku sat in the command chair and was discussing his plans for Mandalore with the leader of Death Watch, Pre Vizsla. "Once the army of battle droids has seized control of Mandalore from those fools, my men and I shall use the invasion as a means of showing that Death Watch was right about the Duchess being wrong." Pre Vizsla said confidently.
"Precisely, and once the people realize that Death Watch was right, they will welcome you and your men with open arms." Count Dooku said proudly. "Even if the Republic does send its forces, the people will most likely think of it as Republic interference."
"That will then cause them to rally to Death Watch." Vizsla said with an evil smile.
"Exactly," Dooku said proudly.
"But what of these rumors of a Mandalorian Warrior that has abilities similar to yours?" Vizsla asked.
"Yes, my master told me of him." Dooku said calmly. "Apparently, his real name is Shark Shadow and he is the grandson of Jango Shadow."
"Lord Jango Shadow?" Pre Vizsla asked looking worried. "I recently secured his support by telling him that it was a Jedi that killed his son's family. If he finds out that his grandson is alive, he'll retract any and all support for Death Watch and use that support to destroy our cause."
"Yes, that would prove most troublesome." Dooku said calmly. "We will have to move up our plans and take Mandalore as soon as possible."
"Agreed," Pre Vizsla said eager to finally take over Mandalore.
The Next Day, on Coruscant, Outside the Senate Building
Supreme Chancellor Palpatine watched as the Mandalorian Warriors from Mandalore exited their spacecraft with Duchess Satine who was greeted by Obi-Wan Kenobi. "It's good to see you again, Duchess." Obi-Wan said with a smile.
"Likewise, Master Kenobi," the duchess replied with a radiant smile. The two had been secretly meeting with each other when they could but only to discuss the Duchess's progress in dealing with Death Watch since the people of Mandalore had grown to trust Obi-Wan after he helped prevent their planet from being invaded by the Republic Forces. She leaned in close and whispered, "We must talk as soon as possible. Something serious has come up."
"Of course," Obi-Wan whispered back to her.
Obi-Wan welcomed the five Mandalorian Warriors who had accompanied the Duchess and also seemed welcoming to him but he could sense that there was something off about a few of them. "Is this a private gathering or can anyone join in?" A male voice said from above. They all looked up to see Shark and Karona flying down. Both were wearing their full Mandalorian Armor with jetpacks on their backs.
The armored couple landed nearby and walked up as Karona removed her helmet. A number of people turned their heads at her as if checking her out. One of the Mandalorians was brave enough to try flirting. "Well, hello beautiful," he started but, a second later, he was staring down the barrel of one of Shark's DC-17 Hand Blasters.
"Keep your distance, pal." Shark practically growled.
Everyone was stunned as they had never seen anyone pull a blaster as fast as Shark had. The tension was really high until Karona put a hand on Shark's shoulder, gently pushing it down. "Easy, killer, he's just being friendly." She assured Shark. "Right?" She gave the other Mandalorian a look that said, 'Either you agree or you're dead.'
"Yeah, man, I was just trying to be friendly." The Mandalorian quickly agreed.
Shark twirled the blaster on his finger as he put it back into its holster. "Just don't get too friendly, she's with me." He growled.
Karona smiled. "Sorry about that, Shark's been a little jumpy since we left Mengela." She apologized.
Shark frowned. "You'd be too if you were as force-sensitive as I am." He mumbled as the Mandalorians went with one of the Coruscant Security officers. Anakin Skywalker, along with his Padawan, Ahsoka Tano, and his astromech droid, R2-D2, soon joined Obi-Wan and Duchess Satine in greeting Shark and Karona.
"That was some speed you had there when you pulled your gun." Obi-Wan said sounding impressed.
"Force-speed combined with a battle reflex can do that." Shark replied as he removed his helmet.
Just then an Astromech droid rolled up to Shark and Karona. IT looked a lot like R2-D2 but was black instead of blue. "Oh, hey, D3," Karona said with a smile to the Astromech stopped next to Shark and Karona.
"This is R2-D3, my personal astromech droid." Shark said calmly as R2-D2 rolled up to the other R2 unit. "You could say that he's R2-D2's little brother." The two astromech droids started conversing with each other in their beeping and whistling language.
"Well, at least they seem to be getting along." Ahsoka said with a smile.
Anakin however wasn't smiling. He could sense Shark's power and the power of darkness that was inside him. "You must be the Sith trained Mandalorian that Senator Lance mentioned." He said calmly.
Shark could tell that Anakin didn't like him as he could sense the power of what most considered the Dark Side of the Force. Unbeknownst to Anakin, Shark could also sense his power and saw that deep inside him there was a sliver of darkness. Shark knew from his Sith Training that all Force-users, no matter how pure, had at least a small sliver of the Dark Side of the Force inside them but the one inside Anakin seemed like it was being nurtured and was growing. 'This isn't good.' Shark thought to himself. 'If that thing keeps growing, Anakin could go insane and his personality would completely change from light to dark. I'll have to keep an eye on him.' He also noticed that there was another power that was keeping the sliver from growing even faster than it already had: Anakin had a wife. 'Now this is interesting…' He was curious as to whom it was but decided not to probe any further since Anakin might have noticed.
Anakin could tell Shark was looking inside of him and was a little worried that Shark would notice his relationship with Padme. He also sensed Shark's concern over something he had found inside Anakin but Anakin couldn't tell what it was as he sensed Shark backing off.
Shark walked up to Anakin and whispered four words that were ominous for Anakin: "We need to talk." Shark kept walking past Anakin, towards Master Yoda who was watching from a distance. Shark stopped in front of Master Yoda and dropped to one knee and bowed his head. "Master Yoda…" He said calmly.
"Shark Shadow…" Yoda said calmly as he searched Shark's feelings and what he found was a surprise even the ancient Jedi Master. Shark's powers were indeed what the Jedi considered to be the Dark Side of the Force but for some reason Shark showed no corruption at all. "Interesting, you are. The Dark Side I sense in you, but corruption, there is not."
"Sometimes, what most consider Dark is only in the intent." Shark replied.
"Wise words for someone so young," Yoda said with a smile.
Shark smiled. "I've just had a different perspective to how things are." He said with a shrug.
"True that may be and yet I sense there are some things you wish to discuss with me." Yoda said calmly as he motioned for Shark to stand up and follow him.
A few minutes later, Duchess Satine's Apartment,
Duchess Satine was concerned about her planet's security as she talked to Obi-Wan. "The Death Watch is no longer just a band of hooligans, Obi." Satine said. "We recently found that Pre Vizsla has been meeting with Count Dooku to overthrow my government."
"If Dooku is able to help the Death Watch to take over Mandalore, then the people will think that the Republic has abandoned them." Obi-Wan said calmly.
"But if Republic forces come to Mandalore before the Separatists, then the people will be more likely to join the Death Watch." Satine said sternly.
"Yes, I agree." Obi-Wan said calmly as he thought about it for a while. Before he could think of something, Obi-Wan's communicator started beeping, signaling that he was needed at the Jedi Temple. "I'm sorry but I've got to go. I'll talk to Master Yoda and the other masters. Perhaps we can come up with something to help."
Meanwhile, at the Jedi Temple,
Master Yoda and Shark were seated in a room, Yoda in his hoverchair and Shark on the ground, discussing Shark's past and where he had been trained. Most of what Shark told Master Yoda about the Sith Training methods matched what the Jedi had in their archives. Some of the newer methods had to do with creating more rage and hatred in the Sith Padawans. Shark has been the only one of the Sith Padawans that was able to use the rage to create something called a Battle Rage. Shark explained that it was where the person became completely engulfed in a primal rage and was practically unstoppable. While in Battle Rage, Shark would be unstoppable and completely unreasonable. "The only one who can stop me is Karona because of the connection we have between each other." Shark explained.
"Hmm, a troubling development this is." Yoda said calmly. "Discuss this, I will, with the other Masters."
Shark decided that Master Yoda was the one he needed to talk to about Anakin. "Master, there's something you may or may not know about Anakin Skywalker." He said calmly. He then proceeded to tell the ancient Jedi Master about what he had sensed inside Anakin. Master Yoda seemed disappointed at first when he learned of Anakin's relationship with someone outside the Jedi Order but then Shark mentioned that it was that relationship that was keeping the sliver of the Dark Side at bay. "In my experience, sometimes you need an attachment like the one I have with Karona to act as an anchor for you if you want to remain sane." Shark said.
"Hmm, a good point you have." Master Yoda said.
"Plus, if you ask me the end my relationship with Karona, I won't be working with the Jedi Order, at all." Shark said sternly.
Master Yoda thought for a few minutes. "Perhaps, time it is to change the Jedi rules, yes?" He asked with a grin.
"I'd suggest that you do that." Shark said with a smile.
Yoda used the force to summon enough parts needed to make at least two lightsabers. Two clear, see-through crystals floated into the room as well. "Emotion Crystals, rare these are." Yoda said as he showed Shark the small crystals. "Use them you will, to determine your emotions."
Shark picked up one of the small crystals. "What good will these do me?" Shark asked as he inspected one of the crystals.
"Judge you they will." Yoda said. "Emotions, powerful they are but also trouble. If you don't know what your emotional state is, harm you could cause. To find your answers, meditate, you must."
Shark sighed and nodded in agreement. He then moved into a meditation position on the floor. "Leave you, I will." Yoda said as his hoverchair lift off of the ground and left the room.
Shark closed his eyes and began his meditations by raising the two crystals into the air. 'Focus, search your feelings, find your emotional state.' A voice in the Force told Shark.
"I know…Master Qui-Gon." Shark mumbled as he continued his meditation.
To Be Continued…