The winding path to peace is always a worthy one, regardless of how many turns it takes.
A lot had happened since the Battle on Kamino. Anakin and Ahsoka had bravely fought and defeated Grievous at the Battle of Bothawui. They had lost Artoo during the scuffle, but managed to retrieve the lost droid before his memory could be hacked into and recorded. Artoo had more information concerning the Republic than any spy since Anakin refused to erase the droid's memory.
Thanks to Senator Amidala and Representative Binks, Nute Gunray, Viceroy of the Trade Federation, had been successfully apprehended and taken into Ahsoka and Master Luminara's custody. However, Count Dooku sent his Assassin and a traitor to the Republic, Captain Argyus, to rescue him, despite Ventress' previous failures. Together, the duo succeeded in rescuing Gunray, but failed to kill the Jedi aboard.
Ventress would never forget the two Jedi Masters and their Padawans who had foiled her attempt at getting Jabba's son. Oriana was a special case as far as Dooku's assassin was concerned. The moment she had met the young Jedi Padawan, she felt threatened by her. She, somehow, was afraid that this young girl would take her place at Dooku's side.
It was a concern, a fear, she had every right to be obsessed over.
Count Dooku had finally been tracked down. Anakin had been the brave one to go out and try to capture the traitor, only to disappear off the radar. Obi-Wan and Oriana headed out to try to find Anakin, and stumbled upon a lone Separatist frigate.
Both Jedi were silent as they cautiously crept inside the frigate through one of the emergency air locks. They used only hand signs and gestures to communicate between them. Something Anakin could not do, because he did not bother to study them while he would study at the temple.
They both quietly slipped down to the detention hall, undetected by any of the wandering droids. When they finally made it down to the detention level, the silence was finally broken.
"Well," said Obi-Wan quietly. "Let's see which one of these has our good friend in it." He turned to open the first door.
"I don't think he's-" Oriana started as the door opened. There were two prisoners in them, but neither of them were Anakin.
"Don't bother to get up," said Obi-Wan. "You're not the prisoners we're looking for." He shut the door before either of them could get out and turned to the next door.
"Master-" again, Oriana was cut off by the opening of another door. The room appeared empty, but Obi-Wan could sense that not all was as it seemed. Oriana stood outside the room, in case any battle droids were to wander into the detention level.
A figure dropped down from the ceiling only to find himself facing two light sabers, one blue and one purple. Anakin just smiled, looking from his former Master to Oriana.
"Oh," he said. "It's you two."
"This is how you thank us?" asked Obi-Wan. "Pounce on me from the ceiling."
"Kind of difficult without a..." Obi-Wan held out a familiar object. "... light saber. Thanks," said Anakin as he took his weapon back.
"Did you manage to locate Dooku before landing in jail?" asked Obi-Wan, a slight tease in his tone of voice.
"I know he's on board," replied Anakin. "Might have been able to do something about it if I'd had my weapon."
"It was important for you to arrive without it so your capture would be convincing," said Obi-Wan.
"Oh, they were convinced all right," said Anakin. "But how come I'm the one getting caught all the time?"
"Master Plo Koon did tell me a lot about your adventures," said Oriana, "and it does seem you do get caught an awful lot. Will that happen to me when I become a Jedi Knight?" Anakin glared at her, but she ignored him as she listened to Obi-Wan's reply.
"Not unless you make the same reckless decisions as Anakin does," he said. Seeing the infuriated look on Anakin's face, he continued, "When you become a Jedi Master, you can make the plan."
"That's just it!" retorted Anakin. "How can I become a Jedi Master if I'm always getting caught?"
"At least you're a master," said Obi-Wan, "at getting caught."
"Very funny," said Anakin. Oriana quietly snickered, earning a look from Anakin. She merely smiled back sweetly before following Obi-Wan.
They found Count Dooku. He was on the bridge, quietly sitting on the floor meditating. To any normal person, this older man seemed harmless. The three Jedi in the room knew otherwise. This man was more than just dangerous. He was deadly to the unprepared. The Force enabled them to come to a deeper understanding how precarious this handsome man really was.
"Surprise, surprise," said Obi-Wan pulling out his light saber. Oriana and Anakin followed suit. Two blue sabers and one purple rose into the air, ready for a fight. "If it isn't Count Dooku."
"Obi-Wan Kenobi," said Dooku, his eyes closed. "I thought I sensed an unpleasant disturbance in the Force. I see you've freed young Skywalker. Where might he be if you weren't always around to rescue him?"
He opened his eyes, but they didn't meet with Obi-Wan's blue ones, nor did they find the bright green eyes of Anakin. They settled on Oriana's dark eyes. He could sense her feelings of jealousy towards Anakin, even though she had them well hidden from her two partners. The dark side fed on those emotions, so he could sense them despite her efforts to conceal them.
Perhaps he could use those jealous feelings...
Suddenly the ship was rocked by cannon fire.
"Sir! There's a Republic cruiser attacking," said one of the battle droids.
"Your ship is surrounded, Count," said Anakin. "Republic troops are boarding as we speak."
"Jedi fools!" hissed the Count before the floor beneath him opened up. Anakin followed him down the hole.
"What are you doing?" asked Obi-Wan.
"Following him," said Anakin.
"Not that way," said Obi-Wan. "We need to cut him off."
"Oriana's already on it," said Anakin. "You do that, and I'll meet you at the hangar."
Obi-Wan turned to find that Oriana had indeed taken off milliseconds after Dooku had vanished from her sight. She was dashing madly for the hangar, and barely managed to get there when Dooku did. Battle droids fired at her, but she blocked the blasts. Surprising her, Dooku ordered his droids to cease fire.
"You must be Obi-Wan's new Padawan," said Dooku. Oriana raised her light saber defensively. She had heard from Obi-Wan on their way there to save Anakin that Dooku knew how to use the dark side to attack with electricity. Oriana recognized it as Force lightning, something that had been rumored about when she was younger, and mentioned by her former Master.
"I am," she said simply. Dooku could tell that this young woman was nothing like Anakin. She knew it too and was jealous of him because of it.
"I wonder how well you get along with your Master's former Padawan," he said.
"We get along fine," said Oriana, a little defensively.
"I'm sure you do," said Dooku knowingly. He Force pushed her into the closed blaster door, and the collision set her in a daze long enough for Dooku to get on his ship and escape. Obi-Wan arrived just in time to see Dooku's ship take off. For a moment, Obi-Wan worried that Dooku had killed or captured Oriana. He looked to find Oriana still recovering from her daze with a few cut down droids around her feet.
"Sorry, Master," she said as he approached her. Relieved that she was not dead nor captured, Obi-Wan embraced her.
"I'm glad you're okay," he said. He released her. Oriana, a little stunned by such actions, looked around for a way to follow Dooku, and spot a ship, unguarded.
"Master," she said as she pointed it out. Obi-Wan looked over momentarily before turning back to her.
"Are you okay to continue?"
"Yes, of course, why are you even asking?" she said as she worked her way over to the ship.
Anakin had somehow fell behind Dooku, and found his way to the hangar just as Obi-Wan and Oriana were taking off. Both Master and Padawan were in the pilot seats, preparing to follow Count Dooku's solar sailer. Anakin was not happy to find Oriana flying the ship.
"I thought you were following Dooku," said Obi-Wan to Anakin.
"I was," he replied. "I followed him here."
Oriana's flying was similar to Anakin's, but only Obi-Wan noticed this. Oriana's flying, no matter how much alike it was to his, still made Anakin nervous, and he did not bother hiding it. Oriana ignored Anakin and focused on Dooku and his entourage. He had four vulture droids escorting him away from the battle field.
"Ahsoka, Dooku managed to escape," said Obi-Wan. "We're in pursuit, but we could use reinforcements. Follow us in what ships you can round up."
"We'll get there as soon as we can," said Ahsoka. Obi-Wan and Anakin began firing at Dooku's ship and the vulture droids as Oriana carefully maneuvered the ship to give them a better shot as well as avoid any return fire.
One of Obi-Wan's shots hit Dooku's ship as Anakin took out two of the fighters. "Well that was easy!" shouted Anakin.
"Lucky for you, I'm an excellent shot," said Obi-Wan. Oriana dodged the debris and found their ship getting attacked by the other two fighters. Their ship was hit by enemy fire. With no stabilizer, their ship was on a collision course with what Oriana recognized as the planet Vanqor.
Oriana was an excellent pilot, and while her skills were not up to par with Anakin's, they were still beyond the average Jedi's skills. The landing, to say the least, was not smooth, but even if Anakin had been flying, it would not have been much better. She managed somewhat to keep the ship mostly intact in the landing.
"Not one of my gossamer landings," she said. "Better than dead though."
"Next time," said Anakin. "Can I fly?"
"No," said Obi-Wan. "I like Oriana's flying much more then yours."
They had landed only a short distance from where Dooku's ship had crash landed. There were no droids around, and Dooku was no where to be seen. His ship had suffered slight damage to the engine, and he had placed a homing beacon on the hull.
"Looks like the distinguished Count is waiting for help," said Anakin. "He can't be too far away."
"I don't think he's going anywhere any time soon," said Oriana. "His engine is damaged."
"He's not going anywhere," agreed Obi-Wan.
"Not without a homing beacon," said Anakin as he quickly destroyed it with his light saber. They looked around carefully for any places that Dooku might be hiding.
"There," said Obi-Wan pointing towards some openings in the rocky terrain. "Caves are a good start."
"Well, you two can go," said Oriana. "I'm gonna go and get in touch with Ahsoka, see how she's doing and if she's on her way."
"You do that," said Obi-Wan. "We'll take care of Dooku."
Oriana nodded and returned to the ship. The communications weren't damaged, but there wasn't enough power to get them up and running. After a few tries, Oriana gave up and decided to find Obi-Wan and Anakin when she heard a ship landing just a short distance away. Thinking it could be Separatists come to pick up Dooku, Oriana fled from the ship and hid in the rocks close to the caves. They were not Separatists, nor were they with the Republic.
"Pirates," she muttered under her breath. Great, just what they needed.
"Indeed," said a deep masculine voice. Oriana turned around to find Count Dooku standing behind her. "It seems you are a little smarter than your Master or his former Padawan."
"What do you mean?" she asked pulling out her light saber. "What did you do to them?"
Dooku didn't answer. He studied her intently. Dark hair and dark eyes with a pale complexion made a stunning mix. Her Jedi garb hid her femininity, but her face was beautiful enough. If she had not become a Jedi, there wouldn't have been a man in the galaxy, no matter what species, that could resist such a dazzling face.
"What did you do to them?" she repeated, disturbing his musings. She hadn't noticed that he had been studying her intently.
"If you fight me now, you will only attract the attention of the pirates, is that really what you want?" he asked in return.
Oriana lowered her weapon and retracted the blade. She knew he wasn't going to tell her, so that meant there was a way for her to save them, whatever it was that he done to them. Dooku, however, wasn't about to let her try. He started walking away, and when she turned, he quickly knocked her out using the pressure point on her neck. Once she was out cold, he left her lying there just outside the cave Obi-Wan and Anakin were trapped in.
Hondo Ohnaka and his band of Pirates were currently taking what they could from Dooku's ship when Count Dooku approached him. The little Kowakian monkey lizard on his shoulder studied the Count carefully with his owner.
"Well, well, what do we have here?" said Ohnaka. Behind him, two of his man were brawling when one of them managed to hit the other hard enough to knock the man off his feet. Ohnaka's little red pet laughed at the spectacle while Dooku and Ohnaka merely glanced at the man now sprawled out on the ground beside Ohnaka.
"Who are you?" asked Dooku, looking away from the pitiful sight.
"More importantly, my friend, who are you?" Ohnaka asked in return. All of his men gathered behind him, looking intently at the Count.
"Your solar sailer is very beautiful," said Ohnaka. "It's a pretty rare ship. Very expensive. What are you doing all the way out here?"
"I sustained some damage in an asteroid storm and had to make a landing. Feel free to help yourself to it," replied Dooku. Ohnaka's pet had perched itself on Dooku's shoulder, only to receive a look that sent chills down the little creatures spine.
"If you need transport, the nearest planet is Florrum," said Ohnaka as his pet jumped off of Dooku's shoulder. "It's six parsecs away."
"Is it civilized?" asked Dooku.
"That depends on your definition of civilized," replied Ohnaka, "but you would certainly be more comfortable there than here. Vanqor is no place to be after dark." The pirate captain turned and headed for his ship, followed by the Count.
"Perhaps I should take you up on your offer," said Dooku.
"Very good," said Ohnaka. "Now all that's left to do is, uh, settle my fee."
"Fee?" Dooku asked, playing the part of a rich man who had never dealt with pirates before.
"Just a little something to cover my expenses," said Ohnaka. "It shouldn't be a problem for someone so obviously wealthy, as yourself."
Dooku calmly tried to cover his light sabers. "I'd be happy to compensate you for your services."
"That's it boys!" said Ohnaka. "We are going home!"
Just as the pirates left, Oriana woke up from her painfully unconscious state. She watched the circular ship take off with Dooku aboard, before standing up and heading for the cave. The entrance was caved in, by Dooku, obviously. There was a chance Obi-Wan and Anakin were still alive inside. Ignoring the slight pain that shot through her joints every time she moved, she got to work moving rocks using the force, trying to uncover the entrance.
As she began painstakingly removing rocks and boulders carefully, a thought occurred to her. She was still alive. It made her pause for a moment. Count Dooku was known throughout the Republic Fleet for his ruthlessness towards his enemies, especially Jedi. He had even put a price on their heads. So why leave her alive? Were all the stories she had heard wrong? Was there something he wanted from her in return for sparing her?
Something didn't add up, and while she was determined to find out, she realized that any chances of doing so were long gone with pirates. She looked back at the spot where she had last seen the ship Dooku had boarded. She could only hope that sometime in the near future she would find out.
Ahsoka arrived a short while later to find an exhausted Oriana trying hard to uncover the entrance to the cave. Captain Rex and Commander Cody were with her. Oriana was so tired that she was no longer able to remove rocks using the force, she was removing them by hand.
"Oriana! Are you okay?" Ahsoka asked after they found her.
"Yeah, I'm fine," said Oriana breathlessly. "Master Obi-Wan and Skywalker are trapped."
"Leave that to us," said Rex. "We'll get them out."
They managed to blast the entrance wide open, and out stumbled Obi-Wan and Anakin, choking on poison gas."
"Master!" both Padawans cried. Both Masters were coughing and gasping for breath, as toxic gas was being released into the air.
"Looks like I got here just in time," said Ahsoka.
"What do you mean 'just in time'?" asked Anakin.
"You were in very big trouble," said Ahsoka.
"Trouble? We were simply searching for Count Dooku," said Obi-Wan. Oriana simply shook her head, still recovering from her attempt to free them from the cave.
"Yeah," said Anakin. "We had the situation well under control, my little Padawan."
"Oh, I see. So which part of the situation did you have under control?" asked Ahsoka. "The blocked entrance? The poison gas? The gundark behind you? Or, Master Kenobi, your exhausted Padawan trying to get you out?"
"Wait, gundark?"
"Oh, you mean the one that's too far away to worry about?" asked Obi-Wan. Sure enough, they could see a large red-skinned gundark stomping through the caves towards the coves entrance.
"Block the entrance!" ordered Ahsoka. The clones shot at the roof of the cave causing it to cave in, caging the gundark.
"There's still Dooku to deal with," said Anakin.
"You let him get away?" said Ahsoka.
"No, not get away, exactly, just..." Anakin trailed off. Ahsoka gave him a look, and he turned to Obi-Wan for assistance. "Chime in, any time."
"Oh no," said Obi-Wan with a chuckle. "I'm enjoying this far too much."
Aboard the Republic cruiser, the four Jedi received a transmission from Mace Windu and Yoda concerning Dooku's capture by the pirates. Oriana already knew that Dooku really was with them, but she covered up her thoughts and feelings well and said nothing of the sort.
"His only stipulation is that you arrive unarmed," said Mace.
"Unarmed?" said Anakin.
"We know very little about these pirates," said Obi-Wan. "We maybe walking blindly into what could very well be a hostile situation."
"We can't let Dooku slip through our fingers again," said Mace.
"If I may be so bold, Masters," said Oriana. "I believe these pirates will use Jedi to triple their payment. After all, Jedi are the official Generals of the Republic Fleet and are crucial to the Republic's army. However, if two Padawans go, they might think that they are not worth enough and just get payment for Dooku, if he really is there. Perhaps Ahsoka and I could go."
"No, not Ahsoka," said Anakin.
"What? Why not?" asked Ahsoka.
"Count Dooku is dangerous," said Anakin. "You're not ready to face him yet."
"And I don't think you are either, Oriana," said Obi-Wan.
"Master, if Dooku is being held there, then they have to be holding him fairly securely, or they wouldn't have risked contacting us, especially if there is any chance that Dooku could escape. If Dooku really isn't there, then we have nothing to worry about." Obi-Wan carefully ran his hand through his hair. A nervous gesture he had developed as soon as he had started growing his hair out. He could see what Oriana was saying, but it was still so dangerous.
"Skywalker and Oriana, go to Florrum, they will," said Master Yoda. Oriana was surprised to hear the small Jedi Master speak up concerning the matter. Obi-Wan was ready to reject, but Mace stopped him.
"We don't have time to argue, report back as soon as you arrive," said Mace. Oriana and Anakin looked at each other. Anakin wanted to go simply because this was an opportunity to see Dooku behind bars. Oriana had entirely different reasons.
Why didn't he kill her?
Oriana and Anakin took his ship, Twilight, to Florrum. With neither of them carrying any weapons to protect themselves, they were on their highest guard. They landed quietly, but as the got off their ship, they found themselves completely surrounded by blaster wielding Weequey pirates when one of them approached them with a scanner. When it showed up negative for any weapons, he told them to follow him inside where they would meet Ohnaka Hondo.
"Welcome to you both," said Ohnaka. "Can I offer you something to drink?"
"No thank you," said Oriana as he passed them a drink any way. "Congratulations on your capture of Count Dooku. Very impressive."
"Yes, it was," said Ohnaka. "Even a Sith Lord is no match for my warriors." Most were drunk, like Ohnaka, or passed out. "He put up quite a fight," he continued waving his hands around in exaggerated motions. "Blasters, cannons, that glowy thing, voom voom..."
"You mean a light saber?" asked Oriana.
"That's it," said Ohnaka. "I don't need to tell you, but those things can do some damage. Carved up some of my best men pretty good 'fore I could get the jump on him." Anakin saw Ohnaka's pet holding his light saber, and he immediately concluded Ohnaka had found it and taken it. Oriana knew otherwise.
"And how exactly did you get the jump on him?" asked Anakin. "With this?" He used the force to snatch his light saber from the little lizard monkey's grip. Every drunkard in the room raised a blaster at him until the weapon was safely back in the little creature's hands.
"We have no interest in disagreeing with you," said Oriana. "All we want is to confirm you have Count Dooku, and we'll leave."
"I will arrange a meeting," replied Ohnaka.
It was strange for Oriana to see Count Dooku held in a pirate's cell suspended by a force field. Anakin had dreamed of seeing the Count like this, so he took great pleasure from this sudden turn of events.
"Look how the mighty Sith Lord has fallen," said Anakin. Oriana said nothing, merely looked at him. Her question for him ringing in her head over and over again. She remained silent. Dooku could sense, however, what she wanted to ask him. He smiled internally. He had her.
"This place really suits you Count," Anakin continued.
"It wasn't so long ago that you, yourself, were in similar surroundings," said Dooku, "on my ship."
"Yeah, but now I'm free, and you're not," said Anakin.
"I'm confident the situation will rectify itself," said Dooku as he turned from Anakin to Oriana. "Soon."
"Soon, you'll be brought to trial," said Oriana finally, "and most likely spend a very long time in a cell very much like this one."
"And that's if you're lucky," said Anakin.
"Oh, my naïve young Jedi," said Dooku. "You mustn't be overly optimistic if you think these Weequey's plan to let you leave this planet."
Anakin laughed. "Their planet hopping thieves looking for a quick score. They have no interest in picking a fight with Jedi."
"They are devious and deceitful, and most importantly, stupid," said Dooku. Oriana stared at the Count for a moment before turning to leave.
"Come on Master Skywalker," she said.
"You underestimate them at your own peril..." Dooku whispered. "Oriana."
"I don't know about you," said Anakin, "but I could use some rest."
"Master Skywalker," said Oriana. "I think this could still be a trap. Let's just contact Master Kenobi and get this over with."
"You're not worried about Dooku are you?" asked Anakin.
"No, it's these pirates," said Oriana. "I think they're up to something."
"Jedi, now that your business is complete we invite you to join us in the grand hall for a banquet," said one of Ohnaka's right hand men. "And a true Weequey banquet is not one to be missed."
"We'll think about it," said Anakin.
"We need to make contact with the Republic," said Oriana.
"Indeed," he replied. "You are still invited to join us."
Aboard the ship, she and Anakin contacted Chancellor Palpatine. "No question they have Dooku. Send the ransom," said Oriana.
"He is being securely held then?" asked Palpatine.
"Yeah," laughed Anakin. "And very cranky about it."
"Good, Senator Kharrus and Representative Binks will be dispatched immediately," said Palpatine. Oriana and Anakin joined the pirates in their banquet, quietly promising to be extra careful with whatever they were given.
"Now, can I persuade you to join us on a drink?" asked Ohnaka. "It's a tradition, in the name of friendship."
"All right," said Oriana, "but nothing alcoholic for me. I'm underage."
"Bring our guests some refreshments," said Ohnaka.
I have a very bad feeling about this...
Oriana woke up next to Anakin, much to her chagrin. Her head ached a little and her movements were sluggish. Anakin was still asleep, and Oriana was quick to realize that they were handcuffed and tied together. As she studied her surroundings, she noticed that Anakin wasn't the only one she was tied to.
"Good morning," she said. He merely stared at her for a moment before speaking.
"I helped your metabolism deal with the drugs a little faster," said Dooku.
"Why?"
"You have a question for me, don't you?" he asked back.
"Yes... I do..." she said a little sheepishly. She hadn't really bothered to hide it from him. "Why didn't you kill me on Vanqor?"
"Perhaps because you were simply not worth the effort," he replied. Such a statement would have elicited an angry retort from Anakin, but Oriana was different. She merely looked away, seeing the truth to his words. Everything she had done up to this point had been miniscule in the war efforts. Perhaps she wasn't worth killing.
Dooku smiled as he could sense her conflicted emotions. This was turning out to be easier than he thought. She was just as easy to manipulate as Anakin was. Perhaps this would be the opportunity he needed to ensnare her permanently.
Anakin woke up sometime later. "What happened?"
"We were drugged apparently," said Oriana.
"Why would they risk losing the ransom?" asked Anakin.
"I was right from the beginning," said Oriana. "They are trying to triple their payment. Ahsoka should have come with me. Two Padawans wouldn't have meant much to them."
"A shrewd observation," said Dooku. "It seems the Jedi Council is not as smart as you, Oriana."
"Oh great," said Anakin. "It's you."
"I did warn you these pirates are devious," said Dooku. "You'll notice our shackles are bound together. I have tried to separate us, to no avail."
Anakin, now standing along with Oriana, grew more frustrated with every word that came out of Dooku's mouth. "It's bad enough we have to share the same cell," he said, "but could you spare me the sound of your constant chatter?"
"Master Skywalker," said Oriana, holding him back.
"And while I hold my tongue, the two of you will devise a brilliant strategy for getting off this godforsaken planet."
"Yes!" both Oriana and Anakin said together.
"Excellent."
"Well, I'm not sure what to do," said Oriana. "How about you two?"
"I'm working on it," said Anakin. Count Dooku resisted the urge to roll his eyes. As smart as Oriana seemed to be, perhaps she still needed some work.
"Allow me," he said as he approached the door. Using the Force, he telekinetically lifted a plate of food that one of the guards had left behind. Anakin and Oriana watched intently, curious as to what the Count would do next.
"Don't you think our priorities should be escape first, eat second!" said Anakin. Ignoring Anakin, the Count gently guided the plate away from the table before lifting the knife into the air and dropping the plate.
"Master Skywalker," said Oriana. "Please, we need to get out." Dooku couldn't help but smile. There was hope for her manners yet.
Anakin glared at his master's new Padawan. He was about as pleased to be stuck with her as he was about Count Dooku. He had been jealous of her and all the time she spent with his former Master. Palpatine had even suggested she was trying to steal Obi-Wan from him.
Despite that, however, he would not let anything happen to her. Obi-Wan probably would never forgive him for it.
Dooku inserted the knife into the slot, and the door opened. "Well done, if I do say so myself," he said.
"Very impressive," said Oriana. She wasn't sure if she had meant it sincerely or sarcastically. Anakin said nothing as they followed the Sith Lord out of the cell. After following him for several minutes, however, Anakin could not be silent any longer.
"We do know where we're going, don't we?" he asked.
"I don't know," said Oriana. "Do we know?"
"Quiet!" Dooku ordered her before he knocked out one of Ohnaka's men. The poor fellow happened to be on his way to guarding the three that had just knocked him out. "I was brought this way when I was captured. It was open then."
"Hey! I found the door key," whispered Anakin.
"This is the way to the hangar," said Dooku as he lead them to a door.
"Yes, but," said Oriana unsurely. "Are you sure it's safe?"
"The key works!" said Anakin.
"Is it safe?" Oriana asked again.
"Of course it is."
They were back in their cell almost as quickly as they had gotten out. Anakin was hardly happy about it. Oriana was disappointed to be back to point A, but still had hope they could get out. Ohnaka stalked around them like a jaguar targeting prey.
"What were we thinking?" asked Anakin. "Following a Sith Lord." Oriana merely shook her head at Anakin. Ohnaka let out an exaggerated sigh.
"What to do, what to do? I don't want to kill you... per se. In fact, you seem like decent people, even you Count, and especially you, Oriana." He got a little closer to her, as if to prove his point. When Dooku suddenly stood between them, almost protectively, Ohnaka backed off. Oriana and Anakin looked at the Count suspiciously, Oriana's eyes wider than dinner plates, and Anakin's narrowed in a glare. It was very out of character for him.
Count Dooku, however, was merely trying to win Oriana's trust. He wanted her to join his cause, and every little thing helped, and as cold and cruel as he was, it disgusted him even more that a creature of such low class, a Weequey, to try to seduce a human woman. This solidified his determination to bring human domination to the Galaxy.
"This is just business," continued Ohnaka, "and once I get my money, we can go back to being friends. It's very simple. Now try not to complicate things by breaking out again."
"What the hell was that?" shouted Anakin. Oriana had not been able to peel her eyes away from the Count since he had stood between her and Ohnaka.
"It was disgusting to see that scum looking at a woman like that," said Dooku as if it were obvious. Oriana felt her face get hot, realizing the stupid thoughts that were crawling through her subconscious. She was a woman, she told herself. It was only natural for such to go through her mind when a man does something like that. She just had to let go of those stupid natural reactions and forget it.
"Come on," she muttered, clearly embarrassed for herself. "We've got to get out of here before the Republic arrives with the ransom."
"For once," said Dooku, secretly smirking to himself, "I agree with you."
Oriana tried something a little different from what Dooku had tried. She didn't like manipulating the simple minded, but they had to escape some how. However, security had been beefed up since their first escape. So they had to be a little more careful.
She stood at the door and looked at the guard. With a slight gesture, she spoke to him. "You do not want to stand guard."
"I-I do not want to stand guard," he repeated.
"You want to deactivate the cell bars and go out drinking," she continued.
"I want to deactivate the cell bars and go out drinking." He had no problem with this since it was partly true. He didn't want to stand guard. He wanted to go out drinking. So, he deactivated the cell bars and left.
"Hey, not bad," said Anakin.
"Oh yes, most impressive," said Dooku. "It's good to see that Master Kenobi is learning from his past teaching mistakes." Anakin glared at Dooku. Suddenly Oriana lost it on both of them.
"All right, do you two want to get out of here or not?" she hissed loudly. Both men were stunned to silence at her sudden outburst and nodded numbly. "Okay then, I know this is going to be hard, but if you two could get along for maybe a few minutes, we might have a chance of getting out of here. Think we can deal with that?"
It finally occurred to Dooku that this woman was trying to order him around, and he did not take kindly to that. "I do not answer to you."
"Fine, then we can sit here and fight," she said. Dooku snarled at her. "Fighting isn't going to get us out of here, all right. Let's just try to get along for a short while and as soon as we're out, you and Anakin can go at it all you want."
Without waiting for any argument, she walked off, almost dragging both stunned men with her. Anakin had nothing more to say, and Dooku was silently fuming.
They got pretty far before they were discovered, which was ironic, but it also said how much Oriana had the two men on her leash. They were close to getting out when they ran into trouble.
"Hey!"
"I think we should run now," said Anakin. They ran past some cargo, and Dooku was smart enough to try and block the path with it. The alarm was going off, and more and more of Ohnaka's men were hunting them down.
Anakin kicked down a door that lead to the outside. "Now to get beyond that wall," said Oriana.
"Let's go!" shouted Anakin. They quickly got up and Anakin grabbed a pole, intending to pole vault over it. Only Anakin managed to get a hold on the edge. Ohnaka's men began firing from below, and Oriana decided to try and swing both her and Dooku onto the edge of the wall, but that ultimately failed when a laser broke the cord binding them together. Oriana caught Dooku as he fell. Anakin nearly lost his grip from the sudden jolt.
"Hey! What are you guys doing?" asked Anakin. He tried with all his effort to pull himself as well as his female partner and his hated enemy up with him. "You're too heavy! I can't... do it... Drop Dooku!"
The laser fire suddenly stopped. Ohnaka stood over Anakin as he let out a sigh. "I guess this means we won't be friends," he said.
Anakin was furious, and Oriana was disappointed with herself. The only bright side to any of this was that the three of them were finally separated. Oriana let out a defeated sigh before looking up at Anakin.
"We have to find a way out of here before Senator Kharrus and JarJar arrive with the ransom, or we'll look like fools," she said.
"I think it's time to lose the dead weight," said Anakin as he approached the Count. Dooku returned Anakin's glare with one of his own.
"Master Skywalker," she said putting her hand on Anakin's shoulder. Just then, the door to their cell opened and three of Ohnaka's men walked in.
"You," the first one said pointing at Anakin, "come with us. Ohnaka wants a word with you." Anakin got up and exited the cell. The three didn't follow him though, they were confident that he would not try to run off and leave his partner behind. Anakin wouldn't dare leave Oriana.
"All right," said the first to Oriana. "Don't move."
She did as she was told as the Weequey pirate brought his hand up and injected sedatives into her shoulder. She fell to the floor with a thud, and Anakin, who had seen, tried to get back in to help her.
"Hey! What did you do to her?"
"Ohnaka's orders," he replied. "She'll be fine. Now let's go."
Anakin was lead away, but not before he yelled at the Count.
"If you do anything to her, I'll kill you! I swear I'll kill you!"
As soon as the boy was out of ear shot, the Count smiled and replied. "Oh don't worry, I won't do anything. She'll do it all herself."
JarJar and four clones were the only survivors when some of Ohnaka's treacherous men shot down the ship. They returned and had stolen the spice before JarJar and his men managed to get it back. Now, they were trying to deliver the spices to Oriana and Anakin, but were cut off by the pirates and some tanks of theirs. The clones hid behind some of the boulders on the terrain while Representative Binks headed out to try and negotiate.
JarJar stood before the leading tank. The man driving it peered over the hull and glared at the Naboo Gungan.
"What are you supposed to be?" he asked.
"Mesa Representative Binks," said JarJar. "Mesa comin' to deliva' de spicin'."
"Where's the army Turk reported?" the first driver asked one of the others.
"Dunno," he replied. "Let's fry this one and look around."
"No, if he's a Representative," said the first. "He might be worth something as well. You! Representative Bink! We'll take you to you're Jedi friends so then you can, uh, negotiate."
"Okie day," said JarJar as he climbed aboard the tank. He slipped and fell onto the driver. The tank spun out of control and hit one of the other tanks, causing it to crash into the nearby power lines, thoroughly knocking out the power.
Inside, this gave Dooku the opportunity he had been looking for to escape. The door opened easily, and using his cuffs, he strangled the guard standing outside.
Meanwhile Anakin was being tortured when the power went off. He used the force to snatch his saber and cut his bonds. Before anyone could blink, he had his light saber at Ohnaka's throat and carefully dragged him towards the door.
"What chance do you really have, Jedi?" Ohnaka asked Anakin. "Now let me go, and I might let you live."
"Approach us," said Anakin, thoroughly ignoring Ohnaka, "and he dies." He stepped carefully through the door only to hear the approach of two tanks.
"Looks like your armies were defeated, Jedi," said Ohnaka.
"Ani!" shouted JarJar. "Mesa have arrived with the spicin'!"
"That's great JarJar," said Anakin. "Now let's just hope that these pirates still have Dooku to trade."
Almost as if on cue, Ohnaka's ship lifted into the air and took off. No doubt, Dooku had taken off. "Ah well, guess that answers that question," said Anakin. "Captain."
"Yes sir!"
"Hold him. I'm going to go get Oriana."
"Yes sir!" Anakin handed Ohnaka over to the captain before running off towards the detention center. He got there and the door was open, but the cell empty. Only a dead Weequey and some empty shackles. Oriana was gone.
"Oriana? Oriana!" Anakin came to the only logical conclusion. Dooku had taken her.
"General Kenobi," said Admiral Yularen. "We've found a transmission I think you should see."
"Put it through," said Obi-Wan. Count Dooku appeared before him, and Obi-Wan knew immediately something had gone terribly wrong.
"If you can hear me, Master Kenobi," said the Count. "I think you should know that you do a very poor job keeping your Padawans safe. I had your former Padawan, Skywalker, and now, I have young Oriana." Panic filled the entire room. Oriana had been captured. "Rest assured I will take good care of her, but I promise you, rescuing her will be far harder than rescuing Skywalker was."
"Can you track the signal?" Obi-Wan asked.
"No sir," said Yularen. "It's coming from multiple signals, there's no way to locate it's exact location."
"Blast!" said Obi-Wan. "I knew she shouldn't have gone."
Ahsoka stood by Obi-Wan, watching the transmission play over and over again. Her good friend had been taken captive by Separatist forces, and there was very little chance of ever getting her back. She felt tears burn at the bottom of her eyes.
"Oriana..."
TADA!
Dun dun dun duuuuuun! *insert dramatic music for emphasis*
Holy Crap! This was the chapter I was waiting for. I don't know about all of you, but this was it! Dooku Captured and The Gungan General were the episodes that inspired this story, so getting to this part of the story was like finding the holy grail. I was so excited to get to this part of the story, I was practically jumping off the walls just to get this out! Another thing that inspired me to do this was Jurious's fanfic Eclipse. Fair warning if you're going to read it: it's dark and you might want to be Dooku fan.
PLEASE leave a review. They make me smile, and I want to hear your feedback. Your opinion, to be specific, about the direction this is going. Does it spark your interest even more? Do you think you might have to stop reading because it's so horrible?
You could even tell me to stop writing these stupid long notes. Whatever it is, tell me. Now.
"You will click on that review button." *does the Jedi hand motion*
Is it working? Lol!
