The Sabers of Itara
Anakin Skywalker yawned loudly, earning himself a disapproving glare from Obi-Wan.
"What?" the young man asked.
"That was most… most…" Obi-Wan yawned. "Do not say anything," he finished.
Anakin grinned.
He looked around as the chamber doors opened. Both rose and bowed to Master Windu and Master Yoda as the two Jedi entered the room.
"Masters," Obi-Wan said, smiling. "What did we do to deserve this honor?"
Master Windu nodded for them to sit. Master Yoda floated over on his hover chair and alighted on a meditation plinth, facing the door.
"Sorry to call you so early," Master Windu said. "Especially after you have just returned from rescuing Chancellor Palpatine."
"The Separatists wait for no man," Obi-Wan quipped, making Anakin roll his eyes. "What can we do?"
"Soon know, we all will," Master Yoda said, his craggily voice low but clear.
Obi-Wan and Anakin exchanged glances.
"What do you mean, Master?" Anakin asked.
"We were contacted a short while ago," Master Windu said, "by… well, he is no Jedi, but he is an old friend of the Jedi. We could not readily ignore his request."
"Not a Jedi?" Anakin asked. "He… he isn't a Sith?"
"No."
"Then—"
"Did you really think that the Force only graced the Jedi and Sith?" Windu asked incredulously. "Even with the extent of the Order now, it is impossible to find every Force-sensitive person in the galaxy. Groups and cults have risen in the Outer Rim and elsewhere, groups that are revered by the less knowledgeable as sorcerers and gods. The Conclave of Itaraian Sorcerers is one of the most prominent."
"Itara?" Obi-Wan asked.
"Itara?" Anakin echoed. "Aren't they those weird zealots that believe the Dark and the Light sides of the Force to be mere theory?"
"Be more open minded, Anakin," Obi-Wan said. "Their thoughts have always fascinated me, no matter how impractical they are."
"Indeed," Master Yoda said. "Strange they are, but believe they do in their logic."
Anakin snorted. "What does the Conclave want with the Jedi council?"
"Nothing."
Anakin jumped and almost fell off his chair. Obi-Wan started, as did Windu. Master Yoda merely blinked at the two forms by the door.
"Strong you are at hiding your presence," he said, gesturing for the dark robes to sit. "Seated be you, Sorcerers."
"It is an honor to speak with the great Master Yoda," the taller cloak said, sliding across the floor on silent feet. "And you, Masters Obi-Wan, Windu and Skywalker."
"Anakin isn't—" Obi-Wan started, but stopped before said former pupil could complain. He eyed the dark robes. It was strange. With his own eyes he could see a man there, standing five eleven and moving with the effortless grace of a serpent. Yet, in the Force, there was no one. He was invisible to them, as if he did not exist.
Obi-Wan glanced to the other robe. It was incredibly short, smaller perhaps than Master Yoda. It was a child, had to be. He was pulled from his musings by Anakin's blunt conversation starter.
"What do you want, Sorcerer?"
The man smiled from within the dark recesses of his hood. "Introductions first, young Jedi. I am Grand Lord Zelini."
"Anakin Skywalker," he said.
"I am Obi-Wan Kenobi."
"Master Mace Windu."
"Yoda I am," Master Yoda said, gliding up and closer to Zelini. "And you?"
Zelini threw back his hood, revealing oily black hair and — as Obi-Wan had suspected — serpentine features. His gold eyes flashed as his pointed fangs bared in a polite smile. "I have given you my name, Master Yoda."
"To you, I was speaking not." Yoda hopped off his hover chair and smiled kindly at the smaller figure. "Hmm? Your name, Youngling?"
"He is my apprentice," Zelini said, dismissively. "Now—"
"Introductions said you," Yoda said, turning to look up at Zelini. "Introduced he is not, hmm, yes." The small Master turned back to the boy. "Name yourself, if please you."
"C-cursr Jurnani," the small apprentice stuttered, bowing low, his hood completely hiding his face.
"Difficult, it was not," Yoda said, patting the boy's head and then turning to Zelini. "Business discuss you now."
Zelini sniffed through slit-nostrils. "My masters have reason to believe the Separatists are leading a fleet to Itara. We wish the Republic to send a fleet to aid us."
"Why can't you do it yourself?" Anakin asked.
"We are few in number and docile in nature," Zelini hissed.
"Somehow, I doubt that," Anakin muttered.
"What do you mean, too few in numbers?" Obi-Wan asked. "Surely you have some kind of defense? Especially in these times. I had the understanding that the Dominion of Itara had a defense fleet."
"But not the Conclave," Windu said darkly. "Itara is sure of its place, but the Conclave is not. The Dominion and the Conclave have always been at odds. Grand Lord Zelini, you are worried that the Dominion is joining the CIS to rid you from the planet?"
"Yes," Zelini said bluntly.
"Hold on," Anakin said, raising a hand as if to stall the conversation. "Why can't you do this yourself? You're Jedi — I mean not Jedi, and you aren't Sith, but you still have power."
"But not nearly enough, Anakin," Obi-Wan said, as if imparting some sacred knowledge that Anakin should cherish for the rest of his life.
The young man resisted the urge to roll his eyes again.
Zelini watched Anakin with his own eyes, their unblinking depths filled with deep seated malice. "You make a valid case, young Jedi. With the Force on our side, the CIS do not stand a chance. However, if we use our vast power, the Dominion will fear us more than they do. Although they fear us with right cause, my masters want as little conflict with the infidels as possible. They wish peace between us."
"Besides," Windu said, his stern gaze falling on Anakin. "We should not incite battle on their front."
"Why? All of the Order's Jedi have become Generals," Anakin countered, defensively. "We fight almost every day."
"But we use the Force in a defensive roll," Windu said, calmly. "The Lightsaber is our major mode of offensive combat. The Itaraian Sorcerers have no such skill."
Anakin looked at Zelini. The Itaraian nodded, his fanged smile widening to what would have been painful on any other species.
"Would you want us to use the Force to crush an entire starship into nothingness, Jedi?" he hissed.
"They're filled with droids anyway. Who cares," Anakin bit out, feeling the eyes of his masters on him. His face grew hot and he snapped his mouth shut. They treated him like a child, even when he presented logic far superior to their own.
No one spoke for a second. Zelini's apprentice broke the silence with a slight shuffle of his feet. The child's master snarled at the smaller cloak and then turned to Master Kenobi. "Well? Do we have an accord?"
"If you want a Republic fleet to assist you," Obi-Wan said. "You should have joined the Republic. On that precise note, this is a matter for the Senate. The fleet movements are decided by the Chancellor."
"Even if the Jedi command them?" Zelini said, practically spitting the words out. Anakin felt the smallest tremor of what felt like fear, permeate the room. He tried to find out who it was, but the presence was new and gone just as quickly as it had come. It was unlike anything he had felt before.
"Even if the Jedi command the troops," Windu said. "However, your Master Elric is an old friend of mine, so I would be willing to bring this to the attention of the Chancellor."
"That is most generous, Master Windu," Zelini hissed, rising and drawing his hood over his head. "How long should I wait?"
Master Windu's shoulders rose and fell in an impossibly rare shrug. "A few days, perhaps."
Zelini's teeth flashed again. "Excellent, Master Jedi. We will stay on Coruscant to await your decision." He turned to his apprentice, the slick white scales of his face darkening slightly. "Come, boy."
Obi-Wan let out a long sigh once both had departed and the doors hissed closed. "I have never met such an unpleasant man. Well, Dooku excluded."
Anakin nodded in agreement before voicing his question. "Was it just me, or were both of them masked from the Force?"
Windu nodded solemnly. "The Itaraian Sorcerers have nearly perfected the art of hiding from others. It has been a long time since I met one in person, so I had forgotten how strange it feels. They are methodical in nature and skilled hunters too. Many Itaraians are Force-sensitive, and join the Conclave at a younger age than even our Order."
"Powerful, they are," Yoda said, still watching the door. "Jedi thought with Sith skill, yes. Powerful. Difficult to master the Shadow technique is."
"Shadow technique?" Anakin asked, instantly intrigued.
"Hiding oneself from the Force," Obi-Wan supplied. "It is difficult. It borders on Sith teachings."
"Their practices do not disturb me," Windu said. "It's his request that does."
"What about it?" Anakin asked. "Seems reasonable to me. He should have gone to the Senate and not the Jedi Council, but still…"
"Anakin," Obi-Wan said, patiently. "Since when has any system had warning against the Confederacy fleets? The Conclave is strong, but not that strong. I sense ulterior motives."
"As do I," Windu said.
"Indeed," Yoda said, turning back to them. "Turbulent is the Force. Both sides of the line, Zelini does walk."
"Huh?" Anakin hated admitting he was lost, but it was true.
"Think, Anakin," Obi-Wan said. "Zelini and the Conclave know of an imminent attack. They ask for a Republic fleet, and yet have not aided any Republic ships that passed the Itara system. The Dominion has yet to choose a side in this war, and the Conclave wants to gain status in the eyes of the Dominion."
"It's a set up."
"Correct."
Anakin shook his head. "They contacted the Confederacy and told them a Republic fleet would be passing their way. They tell us a Confederacy fleet is heading for their home world. Basically, whoever is alive after the fight is the side the Dominion will support, and the Conclave will take credit for picking the winner."
"Almost perfect," Obi-Wan said. "Well, Master Windu?"
The older master sighed, too exhausted to do anything else. "I know what the Chancellor will say. We are stretched too thin protecting more important targets. Even a fleet is too much at the moment. But I will contact Chancellor Palpatine nonetheless. But in the morning."
Anakin suppressed a grin as Master Windu suppressed a yawn.
"Lord Vader?"
Anakin opened his eyes. Vader? Who…? A dream? No, a memory. He thought he had destroyed them all, all the memories of those a mere year ago.
"Lord Vader?"
Darth Vader reached out with the force and activated the switch that lowered his helm. The fool had disturbed him during his meditation; even with explicate instructions not to do so before reaching Kashyyk. He would pay.
The door opened and Darth Vader strode out, towering over the much smaller Star Destroyer Captain. "What is it, Captain?" he breathed, the rasping of the respirator telling of the man's impending doom.
"We—" the man faltered, but continued bravely. "We have arrived at Kashyyk, my lord. Your shuttle is waiting."
So the incompetent had followed orders. Still, he was unsure, and Vader — though he hated to admit it — was in a bad mood. He needed to take his anger out on something, or someone, and a perfect incompetent stood before him.
As Darth Vader ran through these thoughts, the Captain lay gasping on air that could not reach his lungs. Finally there was a sickening crack and Vader stepped over the corpse.
A nearby Lieutenant caught Vader's eye.
"Lord Vader," he said, coming to attention.
"What is your name?"
"Lieutenant Yet Korynn."
"You are now Captain Korynn."
"Thank you, Lord Vader."
The new captain looked after Darth Vader as the dark lord billowed toward the hanger. Captain Korynn then turned to a stormtrooper. "You there."
"Sir."
"Get the former Captain off my bridge. He is bleeding on my deck plates."
"Sir."
The massive trees of Kashyyk burned. The Wookies and Stormtroopers clashed on the beaches and nearby cliffs. Vader observed this from the copilot's couch, the Imperial pilot guiding the Lamba transport down to the cliff landing zone.
"Sorry I could not get you closer, Lord Vader," the pilot said, lowering the ramp.
Vader ignored him and strode out onto the battlefield. He missed it in a way. The scream of TIE fighters, the thundering of heavy cannons, the whine of blaster carbines. The roar of enemy troops.
"Lord Vader."
The voices of inept commanders. Why were they always such fools? How did they become Field Commanders if they were such hopeless… fools?
"Commander," Vader rasped.
The Imperial officer flinched as a TIE exploded overhead, spiraling down into the lower tier of treetops. "My apologies, Lord Vader. We were ambushed—" the man started to gurgle as he rose into the air.
Vader absently surveyed the field. "I do not want to hear about your incompetence, Commander. I am here on a mission of my own. Do not get in my way."
The man gasped as he fell to his knees. He looked up to watch the Dark Lord of the Sith walk calmly past a Wookie, blasting the creature through a tree with a flick of his wrist.
