Thanks to everyone for the very kind reviews. I try to be as prolific as possible so that people don't forget about me. Each chapter only takes about an hour to write and no matter how busy my schedule gets I always have at least an hour per day that I can dedicate to my writing. Hope you guys like this chapter. I've had the idea floating around in my head for a long time now. Please leave a Review!
To the untrained observer it is simply another normal night on Coruscant. The view from the Chancellor's apartment at 500 Republica would seem to support this. Holographic billboards advertise their products, the skylanes are filled as ever with traffic and the distant skyscrapers are lit like brightly colored gems, bright enough to hold off the darkness of night. But tonight is not like other nights. History is being made tonight, right here, right now. In this single moment of time history shall change forever, as shall the life of one man who until now has dangled by the skin of his teeth over the yawning chasm that threatens to consume him.
In this lavish apartment two men are sitting across from one another, sipping drinks and discussing current events with one another. One knows what is going to happen tonight, the other does not.
"I must admit my friend that I am surprised that you have come to see me. After your rather public resignation from the Order and your vicious denunciation of the Republic I would have thought that you would have stayed as far away from the capital as possible."
The newly minted Count gets up from his chair and proceeds to the window, his gaze falls upon the ever busy skylanes, his cape billowing behind him.
"As much as I detest the corruption of the Senate Chancellor I cannot help but be drawn back to Coruscant. There is something about this planet that is quite alluring."
The Chancellor gets up and joins the Count at the window. "And what is that which you find so alluring?"
The Count takes a moment to think about just why he wants to be here. "There is an undeniable power here, a power that attracts all beings from all tracks of life with the promise of greatness."
"And here I thought all this time that the Jedi did not seek greater power." The Chancellor responds.
"I am no longer a Jedi Chancellor." The Count is quick to answer. "This is one of the reasons behind my resignation. The Order has tremendous power, but the Council wastes our potential. They fear power when they should embrace it. We could do so much more, we could be so much more. But we have bound ourselves in chains body, mind and soul to the Senate. We have allowed their impurity to taint us. The Jedi are nothing more than the servants of a corrupt government that prevents us from achieving true victory in our struggle against evil.
"Through power, I gain victory. Through victory, my chains are broken. The Force shall free me." The Chancellor says.
The Count turns and stares at him, seemingly dumbstruck. "The last few lines of the Sith Code?"
The Chancellor gives the Count a knowing smile. "You seem surprised my good Count."
"I am merely surprised that a politician should know those words by heart." The Count replies.
The Chancellor shakes his head and chuckles, "Dooku, Dooku, Dooku; I have found it necessary that if one is to fully understand the great mystery they must take a, how should I put it? Larger view of things, and that means studying everything in detail, even the nature of the Darkside. Besides, don't those lines of Code essentially sum up your point of view on the Jedi and what their role in the galaxy should be?"
The Count takes a moment to compose his thoughts.
I have him now. The Chancellor thinks.
"I suppose that what you say is true Your Excellency, but it is most unwise of you to take such lore close to heart." The Count's voice lacks any real firmness, but rather it seems hollow, as if it doesn't really even believe what it is saying, but merely repeating what has been drilled in.
"Oh really Count? And why precisely is that?" The Chancellor asks.
"The Sith are animals Chancellor; mindless brutes whose selfishness brings only anarchy."
"The Sith are, Count? I'm no expert in the precise mechanics of grammar but don't you mean the Sith were? After all, have they not been extinct for nearly a millennium now?"
The Count shifts his weight, seemingly uncomfortable by the direction that the conversation is going in. Good.
"During the liberation of Naboo my former apprentice Qui-Gon Jinn was murdered by a Zabrak trained in the Darkside. The Council has no doubt now that he was a Sith." The Count says.
"What is there to worry about then? Wasn't this Sith destroyed by Jinn's Padawan?"
"Indeed Chancellor, but both Qui-Gon and his Padawan describe this Sith as a brutish thug, intelligent, but not nearly intelligent enough to be the sole mastermind behind the occupation of your homeworld. All of the evidence, what little of it there is points to there being another Sith Lord, probably a Master."
The Chancellor stares at Dooku for a few moments, and for a split second the Count feels as if the Chancellor is looking into his very soul. Finally the Chancellor speaks. He does not say what Dooku expected him to say.
"You blame the Council for Qui-Gon's death, don't you?"
Dooku is stunned, but nods in the affirmative. For the first time Dooku confides to anyone his feelings of betrayal by the Council,
"The Council should have sent at least a dozen knights when they heard Qui-Gon's report about the Sith attack on Tatooine. Instead they sent one knight and his apprentice alone. The arrogance that the Council displayed will never ceases to sicken me. As a Jedi I placed my trust in the Council, believing them wise enough to govern the Order and make sound decisions. But after this act of recklessness I knew that I could never trust anyone on the Council again. Their incompetence lead to his death."
"Is this why you left the Jedi Count?"
"Qui-Gon's death was the straw that broke the Bantha's back Chancellor, but my grievances with the Order have gone back many years before this. The problem I face now though is trying to figure out what to do next. I am a Count now, a man of great wealth and influence. And yet I find myself not knowing what to do with any of it."
Come into my web said the Spider to the fly. The Chancellor thinks to himself. Then he speaks. "Perhaps, since you know not what to do with your wealth or yourself you could help me."
Dooku looks skeptical at the idea. He won't be for long.
"Help you? Chancellor while I respect your commitment to restoring the Republic I feel that is ultimately an act in futility. The corruption runs far too deep. The system is broken beyond repair and will never be fixed no matter how hard you try."
The Chancellor gives a knowing laugh. "You think that I am trying to restore the Republic Count? I had thought that your level of political acumen would allow you to know better. My goals are not to reform the Republic, but do away with it."
"Do away with it?" Dooku asks, intrigued despite himself.
"It has always been my goal to inevitably get rid of this Republic and replace it with something… better, an Empire perhaps."
"This sounds like treason. Why would you tell me this?" Dooku asks.
"Because I know that you believe as I believe Dooku. Those graced with great power have the right and the obligation to do with it as we please. We can bring order to chaos and wipe away the filth that infests this galaxy. Let me show you something."
The Chancellors eyes, once bright blue become a sickly glowing yellow. To those in tune with the subtleties of the Force a barrier is lowered slightly, enough for those in the vicinity to sense the Darkside but not enough for the Jedi to detect from their far off Temple.
Dooku collapses into a chair. "You! You!" he sputters. It is all that he is able to say.
The Shadow offers a predatory smirk and gives an answer to the unasked question. "Yes Dooku, it was I. I have observed you from afar for many years now. You have great potential, potential that shouldn't have been wasted on the Jedi. You and I are not so different you know. We both want more. We both want to leave our marks on history. We both believe that we know what is best for the future of the galaxy, and we both believe that only we and we alone know how to institute the change necessary for the future, a change that can only be brought about with us and us alone as the undisputed leaders of this galaxy."
The Count finally realizes something. "You masterminded the invasion of your own homeworld. All those people who suffered and died, they died so you could get enough sympathy in order to be elected Chancellor."
The Shadow smiles in appreciation. "You are as perceptive as I had thought Count. Rest assured that those who gave their lives died for a greater purpose. My purpose. I intend to rouse the galaxy from its stagnation and create a better universe. I can only do that if I have complete control of everything. Other people cannot be trusted to govern themselves and so I must do it for them."
"You had Qui-Gon murdered." There is tone of anger in the Count's usually refined voice. Good. Let the hatred build. The Shadow thinks.
"That accusation is both correct and incorrect." The Shadow responds. "It all depends on your point of view." The Shadow begins circling around the chair the Count is sitting in. It is almost over.
"The Sith and the Jedi are irreconcilable enemies. One must inevitably destroy the other. It is the only logical recourse. I could no sooner have asked my old apprentice, Darth Maul to refrain from killing Master Jinn than I could ask a bird not to fly or a fish not to swim. If anything the Jedi Council is more to blame than I am. They should have sent more reinforcements, they should have known better than to place Qui-Gon in such a precarious position. It is unfortunate though. Perhaps Qui-Gon would have seen reason as you have. Perhaps he would have joined us." I know better. I know he would never have joined us. Qui-Gon Jinn may have had his disagreements with the Council but he never would have joined the Sith. But I will say anything to get Dooku on my side.
Dooku understands and believes what I have said. The Shadow continues.
"You have spent your entire life prostrate before the altar of lies that is the Jedi Order. You were a protector of the status quo, a servant of a crumbling old regime. But I know you; you have always been fascinated with the ways of darkness, tempted by the secrets and the promises of power that it whispers into your ears. Join me and together we can rule the galaxy."
"You admit to having done such terrible things. What is to stop you from doing even worse?" Dooku asks, his voice wavering.
"I have done only what is necessary my friend." The Shadow responds. "Every death serves a greater purpose. I seek to remake the galaxy in my own image. In order to do this the weak must be expunged. The process will be painful, but the end result will be more than worth it. But I cannot do it alone. Maul was an able warrior, but he lacked the keen insights that you possess that would become essential to helping me achieve the ultimate plan. Use my knowledge Dooku, I beg of you."
The Shadow gestures towards the window and the vast cityscape that extends from horizon to horizon. "Ask for anything, anything in the entire galaxy that you desire and I shall give it to you. Become my apprentice and together we shall bring down the corrupt Republic and achieve true peace and security. Join me and the stars themselves shall be at your beck and call. What do you say Dooku?"
Silence reigns supreme throughout the room. Seconds turn to minutes, and the minutes feel like hours as The Count of Serenno deals with his inner demons. A war of conscience and desire rages throughout his body, but the end result is a given.
The Count gets out of the chair he was sitting in and kneels before his liege.
"I…I pledge myself to you and to the ways of the Sith."
The Darkside gathers strength as an unholy ceremony begins.
"Do you forever reject the teachings of the Jedi?"
"I do."
"Will you do whatever is necessary to achieve the ultimate victory of the Sith?"
"I will."
"And will you forswear all former friendships and alliances in order to fully dedicate yourself to the cause of the Darkside?"
"I will."
"Then it is finished. Today you are reborn, liberated from the chains that bound you as a servant of the Light. You are no longer Dooku, Count of Serenno.
From this day forward until the end of creation itself you shall be known as Darth… Tyranus, Dark Lord of the Sith."
Dooku closes his eyes, and Tyranus opens them again. He raises his head. Brown eyes meet yellow and a mutual understanding is formed, a dark bond between master and apprentice.
"Thank you Master…" Tyranus pauses.
"Sidious." Answers the Shadow.
"Master Sidious." Tyranus repeats.
Yes, Dooku shall serve me well thinks the Shadow. He shall serve as an excellent placeholder and scapegoat until young Skywalker is old enough. For now though Tyranus shall be a suitable substitute.
"Rise Lord Tyranus. There is much that I must tell you."
The new Dark Lord stands before his Master and the two begin to discuss their plans for the future.
The conversation lasts long into the night and well into the morning.
