Note: As always here are the options to vote on as to what I work on next!
#1. In the Path of the Ravager - Episode 15 Part 5
#2. Marek of the Rebellion - Chapter 12
#3. Diary of Nitheal - entry 2
#4. King under Heaven - Chapter 1 (Story I am working on and haven't released. A novelization/slight-AU of the Manga 'Kingdom'.)
#5. To the Top - Chapter 1 (Story I am working on and haven't released. A novelization/eventually-AU of Tales from the Borderlands.)
let me know via review which you want me to work on next and release. :)
Even though I consider Nar Shadaa finished, we still need to have a kind of 'epilogue' to the arc to show how things are effected and we need to have our heroes begin looking for Kota.
This is a very short chapter because of that. I don't want to jump into the next chapter at the end of this one and leave the next chapter substantiouly shorter. Rather, if a specific set of events are short, just let it be short.
I also do not plan on showing how they find Kota. Sorry to disappoint. I looked up the canon (I refuse to acknowledge Disney's bullshit about Starkiller not being canon) and found that Kota's lore from Nar Shadaa to Cloud City would prove incredibly difficult to portay them figuring out. Starkiller and Falon have little in the way of espionage and spies and information gathering beyond a single mole for Falon, and this wouldn't help them find just some blind old man getting on a transport and leaving. Especially with Kota putting effort in hiding. In short, I feel that TRYING to figure it out may only shoot the story in the foot.
If you try to do something that you feel is impossible, it comes out that way.
If you just leave it up to the imagination and say it happens, it may be a short-cut at times, but it also keeps from shooting your story in the foot as much.
So instead the next chapter will be from Kota's point of view up to the point that way say "FOUND HIM!". Because... honestly. I have no clue how Starkiller and Falon are going to find the guy without using visions, which is just a cheap story plot trick. The two simply lack resources, the skills, connections, and organizational skills to pull off the hunt properly. Which is what makes Kota so important. If we had Kota looking for Kota, sure he could do it, but we have two amateurs to this kind of thing. Starkiller is a fighter, not a tactian or espionage and information gathering expert. Falon is just a general leader/Padawan trying to do the best he can to not have his men die on him and help people around him.
Not exactly man-hunter material.
If anyone can give me a decent idea on how Starkiller/Falon manage to pull off looking for Kota, then yeah, I might make a chapter showing how they did it. But until I get an idea that makes sense, I would rather just say its up to the imagination. Besides, I think showing the events leading up to being found from Kota's point of view is a very strong character development choice. It was my first choice to begin with even before I realized I had no idea how Starkiller could do it without pulling the cheap 'vision' card.
"A real hero doesn't expect to be thanked or even recognized." - Tom Collins
-Palpatine-
-Imperial Palace-
Palpatine, as he did on a daily basis, meditated on the Force from the confines of his throne. He felt the gentle ripples of the universal energy flow. While both Jedi and Sith felt the ripples and recognized the Force as a kind of metaphorical river through time, the Jedi and Sith incorporated it differently. The Jedi gave themselves to the river and let the river refresh and nourish them while the Sith collected the water inside themselves, changed it, shifted it, tamed it to their means. The Force soothed the Jedi and coiled angrily inside the Sith.
Palpatine allowed his many acolytes and Vader to have access to the river, but there was no confusion on who it was that now owned the river. Palpatine felt he could reach out with both hands and encompass the whole ocean of the Force within himself.
He knew it was impossible, he was mortal despite much evidence to the contrary, but he wasn't going to settle for anything less than complete control and ownership of it. If he couldn't hold the whole ocean within himself, he would simply be the only one allowed to control it.
With that in mind, he sent ripples through the Force himself. To a child, it might be like tossing rocks across a lake.
Someone who was trained in the Force enough to recognize the ripple, such as a Master Jedi or Vader, would feel and recognize Palpatine's ripples as a normal thing. The Master's might see it as a taunt and reminder, and Vader as a reminder of his slavery and an annoyance. Vader was very easy to annoy. While Vader came off as neutral to livid to everyone, not many could push his buttons and live to tell about it.
The man had a lot of buttons and Palpatine loved pushing them all. Kept him in line.
Vader should be in the process of tracking some malcontents and sympathizers to the Jedi. The biggest one on Palpatine's list being a few people who were a little too close to the former Mrs. Amidala (or Mrs. Skywalker as the case may be). Palpatine didn't settle for waiting for his enemy to come to him, he searched them out.
The Emperor had a whole team devoted to recording and analyzing every Senate session going back to the Clone Wars.
It was subtle, but there were a few Senators that had a heavy past of moral upstanding that were a little too silent now. He would have to upgrade their surveillance if they kept it up.
To a degree, the Emperor preferred the Senators that spoke openly and honestly. He could put them down with the same openness and honesty. They were compliant easier. The ones he didn't like were good, honest people that were smart enough and wise enough to stay silent in his den of wolves. They were potential enemies.
Palpatine sent another ripple through the Force as he thought idly of who to purge away, only to balk when a ripple responded back.
That… couldn't be right. It had to be a mistake.
Palpatine didn't touch the Force, but watched closely.
Another pulse, larger than before.
Palpatine gnashed his teeth together angrily and examined it closer. It wasn't a mistake. Someone of great power was daring to step into the domain of what was his! The ripple was small enough to tell Palpatine that the person was not a threat, but it was larger than it should be. Periodically he would feel small ripples from his acolytes and the few Jedi who dared touch the Force and incur his wrath, and there would be large ripples wherever Vader went. This was too large to be a mere acolyte, too small to be Vader, and in a different point of the galaxy entirely.
Again, a ripple.
Palpatine couldn't pinpoint where exactly, but it felt distant and was coming from the direction of the Hutt Cartel.
No more ripples.
"How dare they…" He seethed. Palpatine turned his anger into thought and planning and plotting. He wouldn't let his anger and wrath sit uselessly. He would make use of his energy.
Did the Cartel get a Jedi of their own? Was a Jedi Master rising in the Cartel's domain?
Palpatine hit a button and told his attendant to have Lord Vader answer his communication immediately.
Naturally Vader was on the field and couldn't attend to him immediately. He would give Vader half an hour to get his robotic butt in his place so Palpatine could have a little word with him.
There was a Jedi to hunt.
It was while he was in the process of having his attendant get in contact with the 501st that a communication came to Palpatine. It was marked urgent. Palpatine gave it a glance. At first, it was just another notice like any other he ignored and passed on to another. But there was something too… coincidental about it. Something that made it worth noticing.
The Hutts and Empire had a conflict. One of Palpatine's acolytes had started the battle, and while the fighting was localized to only Jabba's men and the Empire, it was spreading across all of Nar Shadaa. The communication then went to encourage the Emperor that the Governor would take care of it. He had a plan in place to turn the other Hutts on Jabba and bring the situation under swift control.
Good solid plan, and on any other occasion Palpatine would put it outside of his mind and just delegate it to someone else. But that ripple… It couldn't be a coincidence.
He would still delegate it, but to someone ruthless enough to ensure it would be done properly.
-Starkiller-
-At the rendezvous location-
Following the plot of bringing the Cartel and Empire into a skirmish to mix things up and provide an escape, leaving the system was as easy as stealing a ship capable of hyperspace and ripping out the IFF chip so they wouldn't be tracked. Jowwarr had used the injection on himself, as they agreed, and now PROXY was flying them to the rendezvous with Falon Grey.
"You seem irked. Why is that?" Starkiller observed. For the moment he deemed not to wear his mask.
"It is nothing. It will not affect my duty." Jowwarr said neutrally as he continued to polish the wood on his shields.
Starkiller sighed and turned his attention to the window. "If you insist on hiding your thoughts and feelings you will find I won't trust you easily."
Trust was not something he found easy anymore. He could allow people little trusts, such as jobs and understanding within risks, but never with anything that could hurt him or backfire too much. Starkiller expected Jowwarr may not be in the happiest of moods, but if the Wookie would keep his thoughts concealed like this he can't say how the Wookie would respond in the future.
"You question my oath?"
"Stop asking whether I question your oath or not. I'm not dumping you on the street like a child. But it is important to me that I understand your thoughts and know what to expect from you. Otherwise you won't be of much use to me."
Jowwarr hesitated to respond, but by the time he finally decided to, they had left hyperspace.
"Master," Proxy interrupted. "We have entered the rendezvous. I am finding a fighter on our radar."
"IFF?" Starkiller asked. He fingered his mask in his lap.
"The ship is not signaling any affiliations."
"Send a message, ask if they are affiliated with our mutual Jedi friend. Ask for a name for validation."
"Yes, Master." Proxy acknowledged. The droid changed form into a male human officer of the Imperial military and used the person's voice.
Jowwarr said, "What I find troublesome, master, is how I was used and deceived."
"Explain?"
"You used deceit for me to ignite a war between the Cartel and Empire!"
"How did I deceive you?" Starkiller asked simply. "I gave you simple orders to play on the Hutt's side to appear sympathetic and ignite it on their side. I also told you to expect conflict. At no time did I say otherwise that it would be a walk through roses."
"You told me you would tell me when it is my time to die, and yet you threw me into a fierce battle between two super powers."
"And here you are." Starkiller argued. "I haven't forgotten, and I will tell you when it is time. However, this wasn't that time, so why should I tell you to die? Do you have a death wish?"
Jowwarr looked away. "I do not."
"Then stop crying like a baby!" Starkiller reprimanded him harshly. Jowwarr growled but said nothing. "If you that was dangerous, then you have no understand of how deep we will go. That was a conflict between the Cartel and the Empire. It was not a conflict between us and anyone else. The time when it truly becomes dangerous is when they are after us, instead of us slipping in and out of the sidelines and letting the big guys duke it out. When the assassins and Sith and Star Destroyers and full might of the Empire sees us as an enemy, then you will be allowed to cry."
"Master." Proxy prompted.
Jowwarr grit his teeth. "I will not cry!"
"Then don't start now. We've only just begun."
"Master." Proxy prompted again.
"What?"
"The fighter says Falon Grey wants us to follow them to the hideout."
Starkiller nodded in thought. So… they already had a hideout. That would be convenient.
"Follow them." Starkiller agreed.
After Proxy relayed the message, the fighter pilot turned the ship around and entered hyperspace. Proxy followed.
The journey took them from Nar Shadaa space and into Deep Space.
The existence of Deep Space was based on the base principle that space was full of environmental hazards including black holes, asteroid belts, and dangerous nebula in addition to space life including herds of space whales or the massive leviathans.
When you travel at a speed many times faster than light, you tend to be in danger of colliding with objects, and slowing down only does you so much good. Due to this, all over the galaxy are 'roads' where past nations have found a clear path between these dangerous obstacles.
These roads are under constant supervision to ensure safety through the use of military patrols, radar monitoring, and space station checkpoints that act as a refuel station, police/military checkpoint, shuttle rental, and generally a small city.
It is through these roads that shuttle pilots can safely enter hyper-speed and arrive at the next checkpoint with minimal chance of danger.
In addition, the area immediately around various systems are cleared of hazards.
The result is that only a small portion of explored space is cleared of space debris, and the area between roads, where it is full of dangers, is called Deep Space.
Deep Space is mapped and explored and monitored only enough for the Empire, and formerly the Republic, to know the danger presented there. It is this lack of security that makes it a safe haven to criminals, thieves, terrorists, scavengers, gold-diggers, and now, a Jedi and his men.
Generally a civilized placed.
Over the course of two hours they made short hyperspace jumps, turned, changed direction, and made more jumps. On the radar, Starkiller could see them pass between volatile nebula clouds and ship graveyards and other clutter that would have destroyed them on impact. While everything was easily light years apart, it felt like they were inching their way in when you move at many times faster than that.
It would be like trying to fly fifty miles per hour in a gap that is ten feet apart. The only way possible is with short movements and sudden stops.
Eventually the guide brings them to a cluster of asteroids. No scan is necessary. Starkiller can see a landing pad on one of them.
"Land here. Master Jedi Falon Grey is expecting you." The guide says.
"Thank you, private. Your assistance is appreciated." Proxy responds before cutting the connection and smoothly landing on the landing pad. A man with glowing sticks guides them in and a few soldiers run up to them.
Starkiller puts the mask of the Harbinger on and says, "Let's not keep our new friend waiting. Proxy, stay in character."
Proxy's identity, so far as Falon Grey would know him as, was Slavian Aeterna, a former honorary captain in the Imperial military for human psychology. The identity included a story in that Slavian had been assigned from Palpatine to Vader as a kind of joke, and Vader had not appreciated it. Vader had him migrate around the navy before landing him in the Harbinger's lap where he wound up staying.
If Falon delved into Proxy's story, they would admit it was fake, but also reveal it was a cover for his real identity, which would appear to still be a human. Unless Falon used a scanner he wouldn't know Proxy was a robot.
Whether or not Falon figured out the truth about Proxy or not, Starkiller didn't much care. Proxy wouldn't tie him to Vader any more than any other droid would at face value until you delved into its memory. If anything, whether or not Falon would dig into Proxy's story was a test to see how much Falon trusted them.
Starkiller was unsure of how much he could trust Falon, and how much Falon trusted him. It was, to an extent, merely a trust of convenience, of having a mutual enemy for the moment, and perhaps a need. Starkiller did know that Kota was alive. For the moment that was his ace up his sleeve, and he needed to keep that ace in his possession until he got Kota onboard. Then Falon could go to hell for all he cared. (If he didn't, even better.)
Finding Kota was the next step. Everything revolved around that man. Starkiller had no doubt he could do serious damage to the Empire, and he had a few cards in his sleeve that could turn the Empire on its head… but Starkiller was no fool. He recognized the overwhelming power of the Empire.
Starkiller may be able to kill thousands of Imperials, but he couldn't fight thousands of worlds. He might be able to get as far as Vader, but he would be so exhausted from fighting an nearly endless army that he wouldn't stand a chance. Vader was his superior as one man and had the reach of hundreds of Star Destroyers at his disposal to add to it.
And Starkiller was not an army man. He couldn't wrap his head around the concept of a team. He knew how to follow orders and reverse role to give a few, but an army was much more than that. Starkiller couldn't even begin to grasp the scale, the complexity, the responsibility and understanding and insight. It made him recognize further how weak he was compared to Vader, because while Vader was more powerful than him and more ruthless and cold, he was also more brilliant. Vader was the 'general' of the most powerful battalion in the Empire, the 501st. It was not just due to the 501st's skill that they were the greatest, but because of Vader's skill as a general and leader.
Compared to Vader… Starkiller was a child.
The guide landed his fighter parallel to them and left his ship. It was an old Clone-Wars era A-Wing. The soldiers asked for him to hand over his weapons, and he allowed it. Starkiller handed over his lightsabers. "Do as they say." He ordered. Jowwarr reluctantly dropped his shields and Proxy handed over a pistol. The guide walked up to them and guided them into the complex.
The base itself was a bunker built into the inside of the asteroid with a landing pad on the outside. Starkiller observed the layout as they walked. The base was outfitted with a number of old fighters, six transports, a large turret, and a bunker. The place was very old. Dust was everywhere, broken parts, and a whole pile of offline confederacy droids. Starkiller's boots crunched on empty magazines and shrapnel. The concrete was full of holes and plasma burns.
The entrance to the bunker was a garage door that lifted up. Behind it were was empty space for whatever reason dictated, and a set of stairs heading down in the far back. They walked down the stairs into the depths of the base.
The inside was abuzz with activity. Men and women working and attending to business. The place looked like nobody had been there in a long time. The lights were finicky and the walls were either rock or rusted metal or exposed wiring with sparks. A series of blast doors lined their path. The first few were locked open, one couldn't decide if it was supposed to be open or closed, and the last one was locked shut. The guide called for a few to come and pry the door open manually, but Starkiller just gestured with his hand and it slammed open.
"Heh, Falon did the same thing." The guide commented.
Through the blast door they entered a catwalk. Starkiller noted a number of anti-infantry turrets on the ceiling around them, only one of which worked. Below them was a very large room. An AT-TE tank, a relic of the Clone Wars, sat in the corner covered in dust and rust. It was outfitted with a giant ray cannon rather than the normal one and was too small to hold troops in its belly. It seemed to be designed to be a mobile anti-space turret more than a troop transport.
Despite the presence of the decaying relic the room was abuzz with activity of its own in the form of chatter, a group of children laughing and running around, a juke box hanging from the rafters playing cheesy classics, a couple of television screens relaying holonet news, a make-shift bar serving a few drinks, and lines and lines of tables and benches filling half the room into a cafeteria. There were a set of windows on the wall showing a line of food down the line for the men to pick up what they wanted.
Starkiller looked on it all in wonder. He had never seen the like.
He felt little need to socialize or act like them, but it was a new thing to him to see. He looked on it with all the curiosity of watching insects scurrying across the deck of the Executioner. They simply didn't matter, until his eyes landed on Juno Eclipse playing with some of the kids, namely one excitable little girl and a boy in a wheelchair. Juno didn't participate as much as offer bright smiles that lit the room and give them her attention.
Nice to see she was happy here. He wasn't sure why, but it warmed him. His lips quirked and… just maybe… he had the barest hint of a smile.
The smile immediately disappeared as they crossed the catwalk and into the next room where Falon Grey stood before a projector showing the immediate area in a three-dimensional map of this corner of the galaxy.
Time to find Kota.