Unknown Planet

Unknown Time

Anakin and Obi-Wan were sprinting across the plains to the closest team's last known location. After they lost contact with all members, panic was hard to suppress. Kenobi had reprimanded Anakin for deciding to separate the company. Instead of the usual bickering, both set aside the unnecessary argument to search for their missing comrades.

The wind had picked up and the clouds returned with a vengeance and plunged the surface world into a shifting darkness as they passed in front of the sun.

"Ahsoka is closest, or at least we can spot her better in the plains." Anakin panted as they dashed across the plains. Sand and dirt was lightly kicked up by their feet. Obi-Wan force dashed to catch up as he fell behind Anakin's frantic speed.

"Have you noticed something odd?" he shouted over the howling wind.

"What?" Anakin shouted back, but didn't halt or turn his head.

"The Twilight seems to be missing." At the sound of that, Anakin came to a violent skidding stop as he stared incredulously at Obi-Wan. The other Jedi came to a graceful stop beside him. Skywalker looked at the location he knew they crashed at. There had been several large stones by the crash site. The stones were perfectly intact, and everything was where it should be, except one thing. The Twilight had vanished.

"What?" Anakin gasped. The burned streaks in the earth and on the grass remained the same. So did the faint oily smell of the ruptured tanks.

"How did…" Anakin was speechless. Obi-Wan looked on with the same expression of dismay and uncertainty.

"This is a dark place." He said.

"How come we haven't sensed anything in the force then? If this place is so ominous…Why haven't we sensed anything?" Skywalker stared off into the distance.

"Come on, we need to find the others." Obi-Wan insisted. Anakin snapped out of his daze and nodded.

"Right." The two Jedi began to run again. If they moved quickly, they could cover more ground. But, what would become of everyone when night fell? They matched their pace as they ran together. Unexpectedly, the ground gave out beneath them, sending both Jedi falling into a pit in a shower of dirt and leaves. Obi-Wan gasped, Anakin grunted. The fall was stopped short by a large net. Though it was dim, Kenobi took one look before shouting,

"Anakin it's a-" Before the words were out, a crippling shock worked its way up through the netting, into their legs and dominated their nervous systems. Obi-Wan yelled in pain as his body convulsed. Anakin seethed in anger and pain, his fingers curled and locked in place. As soon as it began it was over. The two Jedi collapsed and rolled next to each other on the net, falling unconscious. It was silent. Overhead, the wind picked up fiercely before coming to a stop.

Something crawled up to the pit on long spindly limbs. A large, odd shape peered down. It was a sickening parody of a human. But it wasn't just one. In fact, there were two of them, conjoined at the head by a long fleshy appendage stemming from the temple of either side of their heads. The skin on both was a dark mottled black and violet and was rubbery in texture. The skin was not wet, yet it glistened in the shifting light. The creature on the left had small beady eyes as bright and fierce as a wildfire and small cone shaped teeth filling its wide mouth. The creature to the right had solid black eyes, no shine to them, and tiny square teeth. The creature on the left snorted and snarled through its slit-like nostrils.

"My, brother, what have we here?" its voice was no different than a hissing snake.

"Seems some unwary trespassers have fallen into our trap." The other's voice was deeper, but no more human than the other.

"Pity isn't it…" the left one spoke again, "these aren't clones."

"That must mean the others that arrived in the freighter were the clones we were looking for." The right one spoke. Its long spindly fingers curled into the soft earth below.

"Then what should we do with these?" The left one gazed at the right. "Kahjit?" The use of his name broke the distant stare.

"We'll trade with the Lard Bucket. Surely his Trandoshan bounty hunter nabbed a clone or two. We'll buy one from him." Kahjit spoke. "Now help me Kale."

Kale and Kahjit nimbly crawled down the side of the pit, their long fingers easily gripping the condensed dirt. Kale's fiery eyes regarded the two human Jedi uninterestedly. Kahjit's matte black eyes blinked suddenly as a sharp whistle sounded from far beyond.

"We should move on back soon." Kahjit spoke, lifting either Jedi in his long fingers and handing them to Kale.

"Indeed." He glanced down at the unconscious Jedi in his hands. A twisted giggle emitted from his throat.

"Welcome to Zeres young ones…"

Zeres

Unknown Time

From somewhere deep and unknown, something large hummed steadily. The sound was vaguely similar to the roaring engines of the Resolute. Through her eyelids, Ahsoka knew a light was flickering above her. The humming did not fool her. She knew she was far from the safety of the Resolute. Her body felt weakened, drained almost. Slowly, memories returned to her. She and Motormouth were in the plains. Speeders had approached them, and both set out to discover these strangers. She had encountered a droid. A reprogrammed battle droid had defeated her. Blast. She thought to herself, much too weak to even move her lips. The Jedi desperately called the force to aid her, hoping it could help her sense if her clone commander was nearby. A door opened and she flinched involuntarily, regaining her mobility and senses.

"Awake I see." A voice said somewhere around her. Her eyes still refused to open.

"Don't fret. You won't have to be awake much longer." She didn't recognize this voice. It was different to her. The voice was oddly human sounding, but carried a sinister tone of apathy. Ahsoka tried to move her arm. Not even a finger twitched. No! Don't! She pleaded. Her lip moved. Something pricked the skin of her arm. It felt like a needle. The pinch was over in a second, and in the next, she plummeted back into a dark cove of unconsciousness.

….

The doors slid open. Another figure emerged from the corridor.

"Doctor, are we ready to proceed?" The approaching figure was taller than the doctor, wearing faded white clothing with no pattern or symbols, and had soft facial features. Its hair was pale blonde in thin wisps around the neck.

"Indeed. I have administered a dose for each of the captives. However, we have encountered a slight discrepancy." The doctor spoke, its voice as apathetic and unconcerned as ever.

"Discrepancy?"

"Indeed. The BX Commandos have returned to us a clone that is fully conscious, and a clone that has a serious injury to his left leg."

"I will inform Regis of this. She is ready to insert the chips into the ones that have been sedated."

"I have the operating table ready. She may begin whenever she wishes to." The doctor turned away to move a tray up to a long, flat metal table. The other figure disappeared through the doorway and lifted a communication device to her mouth.

"Director Regis, we have prepared all necessary means for you to proceed with the operations in surgery rooms one, five and six."

"I am on my way, assistant. I'll start in five. Mogens is oh-so eager to examine his catch."

"Headed there now." The assistant responded as she entered surgery room five. Two flat metal tables stood parallel to one another. On the tables were Rex and Cody, sedated and laying on their chests. On each tray beside the table was a small glass box holding a slim microchip. An attempted forced removal of an installed chip would result in death. They were programmed to release toxins into the bloodstream if someone were to venture too far from Eonin, the immense fortress planted several leagues from Iyx Mountain. The door opened. The assistant turned to see Regis. Calling her a fearsome sight would be an understatement. Regis was constructed mainly of metal, steel, and robotics. Hence forth taking the title, Director of Cybernetic mutations. One side of her head was covered in thick ink black hair trailing down to her elbow. The other side was plated in metal with two prongs protruding. Her eyes had been replaced with large circular sensors capable of seeing anything and everything. The left eye was small and yellow, the other was larger and plated in red. Attached to her spine were four large mechanical arms each equipped with whatever device she required at the time.

"Let us get this over with. I wish to examine my prizes as well here." She spoke in a gravely machine voice. The assistant nodded.

"Yes, director." The upper right arm dove down to handle a bottle filled with alcohol. Regis's normal right arm grabbed a small cloth and cleaned the section of skin at the base of Rex's neck. She grabbed the scalpel and very carefully, but expertly sliced down enough to sheath the microchip within. Her left hand grabbed the glass box and uncovered the chip. The bottom right mech arm switched to a very slender head and took the tiny chip, pressing into the spine and under the skin. It activated the chip and withdrew. Pressing the skin together, Regis took a tiny rectangular bottle and sprayed it at the incision. Immediately, the skin joined together again and regrew as if no cut had existed. The assistant cleared away all dirtied materials.

"Onto the next. And the next seven after that." Regis muttered moodily. The assistant left the room.

"I'll inform Mogens they are ready." She said as the director moved onto Cody.

….

"Interesting." She said.

"How do we proceed now?" The assistant inquired, her fingers gently holding the box with the chip. Regis lifted Ahsoka's rear montral. The Togruta was unconscious lying face down on the steel table. Her boots, belts, lightsaber and even padawan braid had been removed and placed into a small plastic tub.

"Well, it will not kill her, but I can place it in her wrist. My only concern is it sliding around under her skin. Even so, it will release the toxin as dictated. But it will not kill her immediately."

"Indeed." The assistant rolled Ahsoka onto her back and exposed her left wrist. Regis repositioned herself to the other side of the table in order to continue with the surgery. On the table to her right was Motormouth, sedated and his surgery already completed. He had been stripped of his armor down to the body glove for an inspection.

Regis resealed the flesh together and tossed away the ruined surgical tools.

"Take her to zero dash zero. Then return back to pick up the clone." She ordered. The assistant nodded wordlessly. In her arms, she scooped up the limp Ahsoka and exited the surgery room. Regis pressed a button with a mech arm and the steel table Ahsoka had been placed on sank into the floor and was covered by a steel plate. Expertly, the arms swung about the space, clearing away and cleaning the room. Regis lifted a small vial of blood that she had taken from Motormouth. Indeed, being a clone his blood would surely match everyone else's. But experiments had to be made. The clone breathed slowly, unaware of the menace lurking within the same room. The door to the surgery room opened. A different figure approached. He was tall and slender. His skin appeared scaly and was a mottled grey. Across the eyes was a thick rectangular lense. And the creature's lips did not cover his narrow teeth.

"Evening, Rallus." Regis spoke without turning.

"Evening to you as well." He spotted Motormouth on the table. "Ah, what a beautiful specimen you have here." He glided across the floor beside the table. His fingers gently gripped the clone's chin as he turned his head about to examine him.

"Hands off. You have yours." Regis warned, closing a surgical drawer.

"Yes, however one of mine has been critically injured."

"I'm aware. What would you have done with him?" Rallus thought for a moment.

"It is his left leg, near his shin. I was planning on amputating it. But now that I think of it, better to harvest his organs now and let him perish. It would be more efficient rather than waste supplies mending him."

"It could. But Tarnus could slice that leg off and cauterize it in a few minutes if you let him." Regis finished cleaning the surgery room and turned to face him. Motormouth's head had slumped down against his shoulder in his sedation.

"Yes," Rallus said slowly, pondering the options, "I suppose he could."

"Not often we can ensnare clones, as far away as we are." Regis continued. "You should savor him, rather than throw him to the grinder." The surgery door opened, halting any more debate. Regis's assistant stepped forward.

"Should I take him down to zero dash zero as well?" though her arms were spindly, she was capable of carrying eighty kilograms worth of human.

"Yes, might as well. I'll examine him tomorrow, when he is conscious enough to respond to the tests." Regis crossed her real arms and leaned against the counter. Rallus laced his fingers together. The assistant nodded and lifted the clone into her arms. His dead weight shifted around out of her control for a moment before she had a grip on him.

"Before I forget," Regis spoke again, "the cold storage for the back room in zero dash zero is still functional, correct?"

"Indeed it is."

"It still effects the whole detention center?"

"Correct."

"Good." With that last remark, the assistant carried the clone away. Rallus rubbed his skeletal chin.

"You know that Kahjit and Kale managed to bag themselves two Jedi?" Regis adjusted the rim to her left eye socket.

"I'm aware." She tightened the rim until it refused to go any more.

"What is to be done with the Jedi? We do not operate with such a specimen."

"Looks like the Howitzers will have to relinquish their catch to the Warden. A case as special as that will not just slide by." Regis chuckled haughtily.

"It pleases you to see them lose a prize?" It was more a statement than a question.

"It does, though not as much as watching Mogens losing a catch." She gave an exaggerated shudder of disgust before a twisted smile appeared on her face.

"Indeed." A moment of silence passed before Rallus floated across the room. "I will see you at a later time then." He vanished from sight through the door, Regis watching with her night vision lense until he turned a corner. Once he was gone, she gave a scoff.

"Imbecile."