Chapter 11: Ascendancy
Fifteen years of Imperial rule would be heralded with celebrations, parades, and increased security the likes of which had never been seen before, particularly in the Core Worlds, the bright and shining heart of Palpatine's Empire. Empire Day was still a week out, but already, cities had their risk level rated, and soldiers were deployed accordingly. The population was on edge, not because of the presence of the Imperial's elite Death Troopers that patrolled the streets in large numbers throughout every major Core World hub, but for fear of the Shadow King, whispers of his presence permeating every street, every cantina, every gathering, despite the Imperial attempt to stop the dread name from being spoken, as if simply saying it would summon the man and his beast.
It was a different story in the Outer Rim. Where in the Core Worlds, the name was whispered in fear, those in the Outer Rim treated the Shadow King with reverence, a living legend, a symbol of defiance against the Empire that oppressed and neglected them, and while they were too afraid of Imperial retribution to rise up against their cruel overlords, they kept the fire of resistance alive with words and whispers, the only rebellion they could manage. They could be crushed, beaten down and defeated with force, but an idea, a thought was very hard to kill, and those were the thoughts that would later be turned into action against the Empire.
But that seemed to be a long way off. Tarkin had been Moff of the Outer Rim for ten years now, and his methods were shockingly effective, a testament to the harsh training he endured as a child, and after Kenobi's latest stunt, he had been impossible to get near. The man was cautious, excessively so, his every action to ensure the security of his territory carrying with it the touch of a mild case of paranoia, and it made him dangerous. Tarkin's pacification of the Outer Rim had largely worked, a rule by fear that gave rise to small, violent resistance movements that were quickly crushed with such excess of force that it discouraged others from even attempting to fight back. It was...admirable, really, and Kenobi deeply regretted that Wilhuff Tarkin needed to die. Despite standing on opposite sides, Obi-Wan had developed something of a respect for the man. It was really a shame that he couldn't somehow be brought to his side, but Tarkin's connection to the Empire, to Vader, and to Palpatine were too great to ignore.
It wasn't enough, of course. The Outer Rim was too large, too wild to be tamed by an Empire, let alone by one man, and while fear and hunger did their job in keeping the populations as a whole in line, many Outer Rim worlds still rarely considered the Empire as anything more than an occasional nuisance, choosing instead to focus on their more immediate problems that came in the form of local conflict and rampant crime run by syndicates and pirates. Even the Republic at its height hadn't extended their reach to the Outer Rim worlds, leaving the territory largely ignored, even when systems vied for acceptance into the galactic community, which was part of the problem. The Clone Wars never could have happened if there wasn't disillusionment with the way the major galactic government was being run. All this and more served as lessons for Obi-Wan, reminders of what could happen when the government failed, and it served to provide a guideline of how he should run his own Empire, when the time came.
Never the less, resistance continued to grow, each attack against the Empire prompting harsh, violent retribution that ultimately drove more people to the rebel cause, though in silent, subtle ways. Populations of subjugated worlds provided business for smugglers, a market created for much needed goods that the Empire denied them, and in becoming a valuable part of several ravished communities, the lawless smugglers became something of an asset, unconscious supporters of the rebel cause, even if their motivation was simply profit. Their business required them to work against the Empire, evading local and greater authorities, which ended up creating a group of people that became experts in circumnavigating the Empire. It took some work, but Kenobi was very quietly beginning to make friends in those circles, and in doing so, greatly expanded his reach. Like Hondo, these people would never work with the Empire because it was, ultimately, bad for business. Bounty hunters and other criminal elements may have had deals with the Empire to avoid their careful scrutiny, but smugglers stopped being smugglers the second they submitted to Imperial law. At that point, they were contractors, a thing that flew in the face of the freedom they stood for.
Obi-Wan had a meeting with a particularly notable smuggler, gambler, and self-proclaimed entrepreneur that caught his attention not because of his impressive record, but because of his ship, a Corellian freighter that had been heavily modified into quickly becoming one of the fastest ships ever built, able to outrun even the fastest Star Destroyer, and any ship that could rival the Umbra in terms of speed was worth looking in to. But that wasn't today. Today would be spent in preparation for his favorite day. The best day. Empire Day. A day celebrated yearly with aggravating his former Master, most of the time in ways that were more irritating than actually damaging, but it was becoming very difficult to damage the Empire at all. It had been for years, a goliath that hardly noticed when Kenobi sought to burn it. Except for the Geonosians.
The Geonosian incident five years ago was a critical strike, a single night of terror where the corpses of genocide rained down upon Coruscant, a grisly revelation of the atrocity that had occurred to the people of Geonosis. The Empire was forced to quickly cover the incident, to hide the truth of what had happened, but it was a hard task, one they were still struggling with. In time, those that asked too many questions were quietly executed, and since then, talk of what had happened had ceased, though the memory still remained.
This year, however, Obi-Wan chose to celebrate this momentous landmark in Imperial history not with a large, grand gesture, as he had celebrated the ten year anniversary with a rain of dead Geonosians, but with something quieter, something a bit more personal, something that addressed two pressing needs at once. First, the need to needle Sidious, and second, to change the field in his game with Thrawn.
This year, Obi-Wan was going to get his hands on the Chiss.
His hands tightened around the accelerator of the Umbra, his jaw clenched in rage, his patience wearing very thin as he heard excited shouting swiftly coming closer to the cockpit. He'd get his hands on the Chiss if he didn't kill the children first. And he had promised he wouldn't kill them. It was a promise he was beginning to deeply regret. He still felt the effects of the alcohol from his outing with Kanan. He wasn't drunk, but perhaps he could use it as an excuse. A terrible, drunken lightsaber mistake...
"Just think..." Obi-Wan said to Cody, wincing as the excited cries came ominously closer. "Kanan is home on the Ghost having drunk sex with his hot girlfriend. And me, Obi-Wan Kenobi, the Separatist Negotiator, Sith Lord Darth Lumis and Shadow King of Mandalore...I'm babysitting a Force sensitive idiot, a Mandalorian teenage girl, and a giant purple cat."
"You're getting soft..." Cody said, leaning back in his seat, his eyes closed as he rested. Unlike Kenobi, he actually needed sleep, and the mission they were embarking on was potentially very dangerous. "Do you think Hera will be angry we are bringing her crew to the edge of Wild Space?"
"Nah, of course not," Obi-Wan swiftly dismissed. "We're not actually going into Wild Space, we-"
"Kalee is in Wild Space, brother."
"...we're not going deep into Wild Space," Obi-Wan corrected. "I doubt Hera will mind, in any case. She wanted a babysitter so she can ride her lover in every room on the ship, and she got what she wanted. I could have just as easily left her with a drunk, aroused lover and a ship full of interruptions." Kenobi smirked at the clone. "Regardless of what we do, she'll think me for taking them. Ample sex is certain to smooth her edges."
"Is it?" Cody asked, looking at the Sith out of the corner of his eye. "Seems to me like she's above such simple distractions. And you, brother, are only sharpened by sex."
"It isn't about pleasure anymore, Cody, you know that..." Obi-Wan whispered. "Luminara, Padmé, Satine, they're all I see the moment it becomes about anything other than domination and lust, and that deepens my connection to the Dark Side, either through primal savagery or pain..." He laughed bitterly. "After Satine, after everything inside me burned to ash..." Obi-Wan took a deep, shuddering breath. "Of course it sharpens me, what else is there but the Dark Side?"
"The twins," the clone said swiftly, and a faint, rare, genuine smile passed over the Sith Lord's lips. "And you've got me, sir," Cody said, laughing quietly as he settled into his chair. "And a ship full of kids you promised not to kill."
"So help me, if I don't get my hands on those Chiss, someone's blood will need to be spilt."
"Obi-Wan!" The Sith Lord winced again as pounding feet and loud, excited breathing accompanied the shouting Force sensitive. Ezra Bridger. Kanan's little Padawan. Obi-Wan sneered. He had nothing against the child save for the fact that he was currently inconveniencing him. He was strong in the Force, which was great, but he was rash and undisciplined, which made him a difficult challenge for the Jedi that chose to train him. So difficult that it was a distraction. Even if there were Jedi left, Ezra would never be one, though he did have other potential, just not of the kind his roguish Jedi Master would have approved of.
"Kenobi! Hey, Kenobi!" Ezra said again, his hands on the back of the Sith Lord's seat and bouncing excitedly on the balls of his feet. "Is your rancor on the ship? Can we see it? How come none of the doors will open?"
"Ezra, stop it!" Sabine hissed, rushing in after him. "That's the Shadow King! Have some respect, he's royalty!"
Obi-Wan growled in irritation as Cody began to laugh next to him, and he shot the clone a vicious glare, which Cody responded to with more laughter. "Xaz, nie, irtave kraud kash antsliuz. Irzhol dartol'ne moketi Plejada, tik Zarchas Tsis ir Xiemandokas." Ezra looked at him blankly, and slowly turned his head to Sabine, the Mandalorian looking just as confused as him.
"Hey, don't look at me, Ezra, that's not Mando'a."
"Yes," the Sith growled dangerously, "the rancor is on the ship. No, you cannot see him, and the ship's non-essential cabins are on lock down so you lot can't go sticking your noses where they don't belong!" His hands tightened on the controls. "Also, the ship doesn't understand Galactic Basic, only Ancient Sith and Mando'a."
"I told you you should try talking to it, Sabine!" the boy said, turning to the increasingly cross girl. "He's a Mandalorian King, of course his ship would speak his language. Oh, hey, is that why you have an accent?" the boy asked, his arm draped over the back of the seat and trying to appear cool and relaxed.
"My accent?" Obi-Wan asked, taken aback by the flurry of questions, and Ezra slowly nodded.
"Yeah, where's it from? Because, no offense, you sound like an Imperial." Obi-Wan balked.
"I most certainly do not!"
"You better watch it, kid," Zeb said, his large, clawed feet clacking against the ground as he lifted Ezra up by the back of his shirt and moved the struggling boy away from the pilot's chair. "Kanan said that man can kill you. With his mind!"
"Yeah, but did you see how drunk he was?" Ezra asked laughter in his voice and a wide grin on his face. "Nothing he said counted!"
"Kanan's been saying he's dangerous since before today, idiot!" Zeb snarled, and Ezra crossed his arms and looked defiantly at the Lasat.
"Well he felt safe enough to go out and get absolutely smashed with him, so I think we're going to be alright." A tight, angry growl reverberated in the Lasat's chest.
"Hey, Kenobi," Zeb said forcefully. "Tell the kid that you're dangerous."
"Who, me?" Obi-Wan asked innocently. "No, not me. I believe the word they use to describe me is demure." Zeb narrowed his yellow eyes.
"I don't know what that means..." he growled. "But I don't like it."
"So what are we going to do?" Ezra quickly asked before anyone else could take up the Sith Lord's time. "Are you going to train me? Oh, are you going to give me a lightsaber?!"
"A lightsaber doesn't make you a Jedi," Obi-Wan said as he rolled his eyes. "Yoda, one of the greatest, most powerful Jedi that ever lived, never used a lightsaber." Ezra's eyes narrowed skeptically. "It's true. I fought him on more than one occasion and he never had to draw it. He never needed to, the power of the Force he commanded was strong enough."
"...well, you're powerful," Ezra said, and the Sith Lord nodded. "And you use a lightsaber. You have three."
"Yes, well, how else am I supposed to dismember people?" Obi-Wan asked, as if the boy's statement was the stupidest thing in the world. "Fashita, I am no Jedi. Didn't Kanan teach you anything?" He flicked his hand in the air dismissively. "And I do not think your Master would much like it if I trained you. I can't have another student anyway, my hands are absolutely full."
"Is Kanan that hopeless?" Ezra asked, and the Sith Lord stared at the boy and slowly began to smirk.
"Hardly. Your Master is quite good, but that just isn't the way of the Sith."
"Kanan isn't Sith," Ezra said proudly, and Kenobi sighed.
"No, he isn't. But I am. Dzworokka yun; nyâshqûwai, nwiqûwai. It's been such since Darth Bane ruled as Master of the Sith. I can't have another student, Bridger, and you are too young for what I have to teach." Kenobi smirked. "Why? Are you disappointed in your Master?"
"N-no!" Ezra said swiftly, a deep flush on his face. "I don't want another Master! I didn't want Luminara and I don't want you." He frowned and bit his lip, breaking his gaze from the piercing gold. "You're just...teaching Kanan, so you must be powerful, and I want to learn everything I can so I can help."
"...ask Kanan what he will permit me to teach you," Obi-Wan said softly, reaching out with his senses to gauge the boy and finding the potential for darkness rife within him. In a few years time, this boy could be Sith.
"So if you aren't teaching Ezra, what are we doing?" Sabine asked, dropping into the seat behind Cody and grinning broadly when the clone began softly cursing at her in Mando'a for moving his seat.
"It's nothing much, so don't get excited..." Obi-Wan muttered, bringing the ship out of hyperspace for a moment, making some small adjustments on the navicom as he read the data from the local hyperspace buoy, a necessity for light speed travel when flying off the large hyperspace lanes. A moment later and he activated the hyperdrive, and they were off once again. "You wouldn't be here if this weren't time sensitive, but my window of opportunity here is very small. I wasn't expecting passengers."
"Well, if you didn't bring back Kanan completely drunk, then maybe Hera wouldn't have had to lecture him like I know she's doing!" Ezra said firmly, and Sabine rolled her eyes. "They don't like fighting in front of us."
"Is that what you think they're doing?" Sabine slyly asked. "Ezra, we would have been here no matter what because Hera wanted him to bend her over and fu-"
"No she doesn't!" Zeb quickly interrupted, covering an annoyed Ezra's ears. "They definitely don't do that when we're not around! Or when they think we're not around..." Sabine rolled her eyes just as Ezra managed to wriggle free of the Lasat's grasp.
"Come on, Zeb, everyone knows Hera and Kanan are together. I don't know why you're trying to cover for them," Sabine said, leaning out into the aisle to look at Kenobi closely. "So...what's this mission?" she asked softly, both Ezra and Zeb leaning in closer, listening intently for his response. "Is it for Fulcrum? For the rebellion or whatever it is you work for?"
"I don't work for anybody..." Obi-Wan growled, making adjustments to the hyperdrive from the center console and urging it faster. "And no, this isn't for Fulcrum. This is for me." He shot a pointed glance at the Mandalorian. "Which means you aren't invited. You're all going to stay on the ship." Collective groans of disappointment sounded from the Spectres.
"Can you at least tell us what you're doing?" Zeb asked, sliding into one of the passenger seats. "If you're going to be busting Imperials, I want in!" Quick, excited mutters of agreement came from Sabine and Ezra, and with a groan, Obi-Wan pinched the bridge of his nose and shut his eyes tightly. He was getting a headache.
"Alright, alright!" the Sith Lord growled. If he was going to have these children imposed upon him, so be it. He could put them to use. He wouldn't have attached himself to the Ghost crew if he didn't believe they were competent, and there were worse people to have on a mission than a brutish Lasat, an explosion-happy Mandalorian, and an uncontrolled Force sensitive. Though, without team mom and dad Hera and Kanan, Obi-Wan sensed that the Spectres were untethered, children experiencing freedom as if it was the first time they had ever been out from under their parents' wing. It wasn't, of course. Each of them was a free spirit, a flame that flickered and died under the oppression of the Empire, and broke free as soon as they were able, which is how they had found their way to the Ghost to begin with.
But now, they were new people, and now, mom and dad were away, and they suddenly found themselves in the care of a man that, on the best of days, was murderous, highly dangerous, and really a terrible influence. Judging by their enthusiasm, it seemed they wouldn't have it any other way.
"We aren't looking for Imperials, so don't get too excited. This mission is about...learning," Kenobi said, carefully measuring his words. "We're not exactly sure where we're looking, but we have a general area, and if my sources can be trusted-"
"Your sources?" Ezra said swiftly, excitedly. "Fulcrum?" Kenobi shook his head.
"Much more reliable. Smugglers." Kenobi grinned. "Always trust a smuggler when it comes to matters of profit." Sabine looked at him skeptically.
"Hey, is this another supply run?" She asked. "Because I saw Kanan after your last one and-"
"Not a supply run, no," Obi-Wan interrupted. "Not exactly, in any case. No worries. We're keeping a clear head for this one." His hands moved over the console, the holoprojector lighting up and displaying a rough schematic of a sleek, needle-nosed shuttle, a dark silver vessel no more than fifty meters in length with four long, sloping claws extending from back to front. The Spectres leaned in, looking over the ship carefully. It was unlike anything they had ever seen before. "This," Obi-Wan said almost reverently, "is our target."
"What is it?" Ezra said, scooting in even closer and squinting at the odd, sloping text that labeled the ship's components. "I've never seen anything like it."
"Nor should you have," Kenobi said quickly. "The Chiss rarely venture out of the Unknown Regions. But one of the smugglers making port on Rajtiri was making a particularly daring run in the Bright Jewel Oversector and had to swing wide into the skirts of Wild Space to avoid the Imperial strongholds along the routes from Muunilinst to Jaemus." He swiped his hand over the console, the ship minimized as a map of the galaxy hung before them, and he quickly zoomed in to the sector in question. He pointed to a blank space between the two planets in question, and a third that lay off the connecting hyperspace routes. "Here is where they encountered this ship, and after a failed attempt at communication, they became hostile and opened fire."
"Why did communications fail?" Sabine asked.
"The most basic reason," Obi-Wan said quietly. "They didn't understand the language. Also, it is very likely the smugglers opened fire first. They're a jumpy bunch."
"So they're a couple of Wild Spacers defending their planet," Zeb said, pointing at the small planet drifting just on the edge of Wild Space. "The Empire's been pushing into their territory over the past few years."
"They have, yes..." Kenobi mused. "But that's not it. I happen to know a bit about the planet, and this ship is not one of theirs." He smiled faintly. "The smugglers reported that the female that tried to establish communications with them was a blue skinned, red eyed near-human. A Chiss, from the description, and I have taken something of an intense interest in them. Trouble is, they don't get out much, and information on them is rarer than information on the Jedi."
"And you want to make contact?" Ezra asked in disbelief, and scoffed when the Sith Lord nodded. "They're hostile, and they obviously don't speak our language. If that's their planet-"
"It isn't," Obi-Wan interrupted in a smug drawl as the Umbra flashed out of hyperspace, a beautiful, lush green world hanging in space before them. "Kids, welcome to Kalee, the home world of the late General Grievous." A small, sad smile touched the edge of Kenobi's lips. "Not a Chiss."
"That...makes the Chiss explorers then?" Ezra asked, and Sabine gasped in understanding when the Sith's eyes flashed dangerously.
"No...no, what they are isn't important," Sabine said softly. "This isn't their planet, that makes them alone."
"Ori'jate, ner adiik," Obi-Wan gently cooed, patting Sabine on the cheek. "Seems to me you understand."
"You're going to attack the ship!" she gasped. "You're not making contact, this is an assault!"
"Which is a kind of making contact, if you think about it..." Obi-Wan drawled. "I did say you could wait on the ship. Having second thoughts, Child of Mandalore?" Obi-Wan grinned wickedly when the girl flushed deeply. "Cody, put us in stealth and activate the long-range scanners. If they're in the system, I want to know."
"Already on it..."
"But why?" Ezra asked, his voice calm and curious. "Are these Imperial sympathizers?"
"I don't know," Kenobi said quickly. "As I said, I am here to study. I need to know about the Chiss to fight the Empire, they have a Chiss commander that is proving to be a problem, and I find myself at something of a disadvantage. He knows everything about me, and I know next to nothing about him." He took a deep breath, leaned back against his seat, and pressed the accelerator forward, flying swiftly in orbit around Kalee. "A disadvantage I will soon correct..."
"You can't judge one man by his people," Sabine said firmly. "What if he's different? What if he-"
"You and Cody are both Mandalorian," Obi-Wan impatiently interrupted. "You have different backgrounds, different motivations, different strengths and weaknesses, but if I killed you both and cut you open, all your vital organs would be the same." He frowned as he swiped aside the map of the galaxy and enlarged the image of the Chiss ship, peering at it intently. "I know nothing of the Chiss beyond their physical appearance, and that one of their species possesses a brilliance the likes of which is a rarity among all the races of the galaxy. I need to know how they work, what they're made of, what abilities they possess. They may be Force inclined, like the Korun. They may resist the Force, like the Hutts and Toydarians. There may be something else, I don't know." He took a deep, calming breath, the rage inside him swiftly rising. "But I need to know."
"...alright, when you say cut them open," Zeb ventured cautiously, nervous laughter in his voice, "you don't mean that literally, right?"
"No, I mean it," Obi-Wan said, his voice flat and emotionless. "I'm going to cut them open after I capture them and study them. I've got a week until Empire Day, I've got time."
"Uh...what?" Ezra asked, his mind struggling to keep up with what appeared to be a complete non-sequitur. The Sith Lord, it seemed, was completely insane. No wonder Kanan didn't want him to learn from the Sith. The sudden change of direction seemed to distract the other two as much as Ezra, the horrible implications left forgotten in favor of bewilderment. "What does Empire Day have to do with this?" Kenobi waved his hand in the air, dismissing the question.
"More importantly, you want to capture them?" Sabine asked. "This is a hostile ship, according to your highly sketchy sources. How do you plan on doing that?"
"The ship isn't big!" Kenobi said defensively. "Look, there's room for...six, maybe seven crew, tops. Regardless of the species or abilities, I should easily be able to take a group of that size." He looked over his shoulder at the clone at the controls. "Right, Cody?"
"I don't know, brother," the clone said slyly. "You were struggling to assume direct control over nearly two hundred living beings just this afternoon. You might be getting rusty."
"Oh, ha, ha, you sassy bastard. On reflection, that was suitably impressive." He glowered when the clone simply smiled smugly. "I mean, I'm no Valkorion. Darth Vitiate." Kenobi sighed wistfully. "Now there was a Sith Lord...nearly two thousand years of Sith Imperial rule with him at its head. He mentally dominated thousands of Sith Lord to achieve his immortality." Kenobi extended his hand, and from a compartment under the central console, a glowing red and gold pyramid floated to hang in the air before him, the caps twisting off and the device opening up as it slowly spun, a soft, smooth, seductive voice drifting through the air in a language Ezra didn't recognize, but it...called to him, made him feel hazy and disconnected, like he wasn't within himself. He didn't like the feeling, but he strangely wanted more, despite the voice within him that pushed against the feeling. He focused on that, and slowly came back to his senses.
"He still died in the end, brother," Cody said softly, and the Sith Lord nodded.
"Yes, he did...I will not repeat his mistakes. I shall have to further my studies. If I have in fact achieved immortality, I need to know."
"Is that a holocron?" Ezra asked, his voice distant as he reached out to it, and with a quick gesture, Kenobi used the Force to push the somewhat dazed boy back into his seat, the pyramid closing and coming to rest in Obi-Wan's out-stretched hand. "Kanan has one," he muttered, his voice stronger the moment the seductive whispers stopped. "But it's not like that."
"No, it isn't," the Sith Lord whispered. "What lays within this holocron...you won't find this knowledge within the Jedi." He sighed, the holocron held tightly in his hand as he gazed out the viewport at the planet before them, a dull ache in his chest. "You two are too young to remember," Kenobi said, pointing to Ezra and Sabine, "but the General of the Confederate droid army hailed from this planet." A soft, sad smile came to his lips. "Grievous. There was so little left of his original body, I doubt he'd have been recognized by his own people. And we hated each other, until we learned to respect the other's strength."
"Where is he now?" Ezra asked quietly, and instantly regretted it when he felt a chill run through the Force.
"He's dead," Obi-Wan said absently. "Along with all the rest..." The scanner beeped, and Obi-Wan slowly looked to the readout, a smile growing across his lips. "Looks like we've found our ship..." he drawled, pulling the yoke sideways and sending the ship peeling away from the planet, accelerating off into the star marked space before them. They didn't have a visual yet, but the scanner's beeping became more insistent as they drew near. Finally, they saw the dark ship before them, the long, claw-like protrusions surrounding the sleek body of the ship, the engines alight with a soft, blue glow as they drifted slowly along.
"Plan, sir?" Cody asked, priming the console to input the Sith's commands, Kenobi's eyes drifting over the information presented before him as the Umbra scanned the foreign vessel.
"Keep the stealth system engaged and take us close," Obi-Wan muttered, a cruel smile playing across his face as he closed his eyes, his breathing deep as he fell into the Force. "Ezra," Obi-Wan said, and the boy quickly stood at attention. "Tell me, how many are aboard that ship?"
"Uh..." Ezra's eyes darted about the room, catching Sabine's gaze quickly before he looked back to the Sith, uncertain if this was somehoe a test. "Well, you said no more than seven, right?"
"Yes, but how many?" Kenobi said firmly. "Give me an exact number." He looked at the boy, his gaze patient and unwavering, curious, not judging, and Ezra felt himself relax. "Use the Force. Feel the lives aboard the vessel." Ezra let his jaw hang slack.
"I-I can't do that!" he gasped, looking at the ship as it steadily grew closer, but was still a fair distance away. "It's too far, and-"
"Nothing is impossible with the power of the Force," Kenobi quietly instructed. "In time, you will learn." He drummed his fingers aboard the central console. "Five life forms, two female, three male, all of the same species which feels..." He closed his eyes again, his mouth moving slightly as he muttered to himself. "...near-human, as expected. No sensitivity to the Force." He sighed and smiled, his eyes opening to gaze out the viewport once again. "These are our Chiss, Cody. When I take us in closer, fire the disruptors, I want them disabled, not destroyed."
"Are we capturing the ship as well as the crew?" the clone asked, and the Sith Lord nodded.
"With any luck, we can gain access to their database after I open their minds. We can learn just as much from their system files as we can from the individuals."
"I thought you were going to kill them?" Sabine asked cautiously, uncertain if she wanted the answer, the grisly image of the people on that ship laying cut open as the Sith had said rushing into her mind. It was a turn of phrase made deadly serious and said so casually, it was easy to overlook that he hadn't just proposed something awful. In hindsight, it seemed almost as though it were a throwaway joke, but somehow, Sabine didn't think that was the case.
"We shall see..." Obi-Wan said, distracted as he focused his attention on bringing the Umbra closer to the Chiss ship. "At the very least, the plan is to take the crew alive." He frowned as they drew closer. "Times like this make me wish we had a tractor beam...Cody, can we magnetically lock to the Chiss vessel?"
"Yes, but those arms are going to keep us from docking. I don't even know if we can dock with their ship, the ports don't appear comparable."
"I can work around that," Obi-Wan muttered, easing off the acceleration as the Umbra drifted closer, angling the ship upwards to maneuver the Chiss ship beneath them. "Alright, we're ready, Cody. Fire when ready."
"Are we really doing this?" Ezra asked, wincing as the Mandalorian opened the weapons reticule and took aim. "I mean, they're just minding their own business..."
"How many times have you preemptively struck against the Empire?" Obi-Wan snarled, glaring out of the corner of his eye at the boy. "Every time, I bet."
"No, the Empire started it all!" Ezra indignantly said. "Everything we do we have to because of what the Empire does! I'm an orphan because of them!"
"The Empire has enslaved and subjugated my people," Sabine growled. "We were once a mighty empire, and now, the Empire is stealing our culture away from us!"
"They executed my people," Zeb growled. "All of them, the entire planet. They deserve everything we do to them."
"Yes, and many of the Imperial soldiers are conscripts," Obi-Wan drawled. "People need to work, and the Empire provides most of the legal jobs. We may be fighting for what's right, but don't pretend you're anything other than murderers when you attack first." The cockpit was silent, the three sufficiently cowed as they thought on what Kenobi had said.
"...but these aren't Imperials," Ezra said quietly. "You don't even know what they are."
"No, I don't, but what I do here will help in my fight against the Empire." He looked back at them. "Maybe you hide from the truth of what you are, but I don't. I am a murderer, when it suits me, when I may benefit from someone's death, when I feel the need, when the Dark Side demands it." He took a deep breath. "But this isn't murder. This is business." Cody pulled the triggers, and a circle of blue electric energy shot from the Umbra, the small sphere expanding rapidly as it pulsed through space and struck the Chiss ship, the vessel shuddering as the glowing blue engines shut down as electricity danced along the hull, shorting out the systems. Ob i-Wan quickly moved the ship into place above the distressed ship, and Cody's hands danced over the console as he magnetized the hull, bringing the two ships together and locking them into place.
Obi-Wan quickly rose from his seat and swept from the cockpit, shouting for Cody to keep the ship steady as he left. Quickly looking at each other, Ezra, Sabine and Zeb quickly followed the Sith Lord as he strode through the ship toward the hold and slammed his hand on a wall console, the underside doors folding open, the environmental shielding protecting them from the vacuum of space. They leaned over and looked down at the ship beneath them, blue arcs of electricity still dancing along the hull, draining the ship's shorted systems. Obi-Wan knelt beside the open hatch and observed the smooth contours of the ship, found what he needed, and touched the comlink on his wrist.
"Cody, can you expand our environmental shields to cover the disabled ship?" Obi-Wan asked in a flat monotone, his attention elsewhere and his eyes closing as he shivered, the Force rushing through him and roaring with power as he felt the confusion, the panic, the fear of the beings beneath him.
"I'll have to cut power to other systems," the clone responded.
"Do it," was the swift response, and moments later, the dull thrum of the environmental shielding increased in pitch, the blue field wavering and rippling for a moment before it disappeared from view, the cold of space flooding in, but the oxygen remained, thin, but breathable. "All of you wait here," Obi-Wan said as he stood, his hands extended before him, his eyes closed in focus.
"Why?" Ezra asked, rushing to stand before the Sith, and Kenobi growled in irritation, his focus broken.
"Because this isn't your fight," Obi-Wan said softly. "This is...deeply personal. And I doubt your Jedi Master will be pleased with me for bringing you here." He pointed a finger at Sabine. "Adiik be Manda'yaim, tengaanar ni te ijaat be gar gai bal taylir gar burc'ya gebbar." The Mandalorian balked, looked at the man with wide eyes, and slowly nodded.
"Sa gar sirbur, Dha'alor," she said, grabbing hold of Ezra's hand, and the young Jedi hopeful flushed a deep, red color.
"So, uh," Ezra began, a wry smile on his lips. "What's happening now?"
"He's invoking the Mandalorian code of honor," she muttered. "We're staying on the ship."
"Aw, man," Ezra whined, but he didn't fight it. Something about this felt wrong, starting from the moment he laid eyes upon the sinister red holocron. Perhaps this man was an ally, but he was a dangerous one. A dark one. Kanan may have trusted him, but there was also something...empty about Obi-Wan, something about him that held attention, something that made Ezra see the void within him, and it drew him in with fascination and horror. He didn't know much about the Force yet, but he sensed...danger. Something deep within him that warned him to stay away, and Ezra had survived the past eight years by listening to his instincts.
"Hey, Kenobi," Ezra said to the Sith Lord, watching as the man moved his hand before him, and a hatch on the top of the Chiss ship opened up. "I'm going to go hang with Cody, alright?" Ezra shrugged. "Maybe I can help you from the cockpit." Golden eyes roved over him, and Ezra averted his eyes, backing up slightly and shifting uncomfortably as his head began to feel...funny, like his brain was moving. Finally, Kenobi smiled softly and nodded, and without another glance, he stepped through the hatch and dropped into the disabled ship.
The ship was dark, the only light coming from the static electricity as it jumped over the consoles on the walls, the air filled with the hiss of shorting electronics and the frantic, quick chatter of the ship's five passengers. With a deep breath, Obi-Wan strode down the hallway, his thumbs hooked into his belt, his superior vision in the dark allowing him to see nearly perfectly. Breathing deeply of the thin, cold air, Kenobi felt his heart slow, his breathing deep and even, the Force pulsing around him like a living, breathing beast, and he surrendered to it, melted within it, and became one with the shadows. It took little time before he caught sight of two of the crew, a male and a female as they pulled wires from open panels, trying to fix the sudden damage. Blended into the shadows, he listened to the two as they spoke, the language foreign and beautiful to his ears, a pleasing mix of soft C's and rolling R's that almost sounded like the wind whispering across a cold terrain.
It may have been worth it to enslave a few of them. The language alone would be worth it to learn, simply for the way it must have felt on the tongue, and they were very pleasing to look at. His own rules stated that there was to be no sex on the Umbra, a carryover bred from sentimentality that he knew was both foolish and inconvenient, but Satine's presence still hung heavy in his ship from the few times she had graced it with her radiant being, and he could never bring himself to sully the feel of her within his bed by taking another aboard the Umbra. But it was an easy enough thing to bring a slave elsewhere, and it had been a long time since he had kept a slave.
As he drew closer, one of the Chiss looked up, the red eyes glowing in the darkness, an indication of superior low light vision, and sure enough, the man began to back away, tapping his companion on the shoulder and drawing her back with him, their eyes darting every which way, seeing something in the darkness, but unable to discern it as anything other than shadows. His hand extended, Obi-Wan grabbed the Chiss engineers with the Force and slammed them against the wall, than the opposite wall, the ceiling, the floor, the bodies quickly becoming limp in his grasp as they were beaten into unconsciousness. Releasing the grip, he stepped over the two, checking quickly that they were alive, and moved past them to the sealed cockpit.
Grabbing the sealed doors with the Force, Obi-Wan breathed deep and pulled them open, exposing the three remaining crew members, and their weapons were quickly drawn and pointed toward the open door. The female stepped forward, the uniform she wore black and blue, her blaster pointed straight ahead and her red eyes slowly roving over her two unconscious crew. When one of the males rushed forward to help, she held out her arm to stop him, and he quickly obeyed. Kenobi grinned from the shadows. The woman was the commander.
"Csarcah vehto," she said to the other two. "Ei carcir sah csah." She primed her weapon, the blaster emitting a high pitched whine as the plasma within super headet. "Vit'ecotis vim roncacehe'ah ch'at ch'etet ch'ao'cusecit!" she shouted into the corridor, strong and commanding, and Obi-Wan didn't need to understand to know she was speaking to him, her intent through the Force focused and deadly. He looked back to the bodies in the hall, and with a deep breath, Obi-Wan cleared his mind, focused on Thrawn, the threat he possessed, the danger he wrought, and he pulled on his hatred, deep and consuming, and with the Dark Side guiding his hands, Obi-Wan slipped out of the shadows, yellow eyes blazing as the three Chiss were forced to their knees, their hands grasping their heads as they gasped and groaned in pain. The red eyes of the female squinted up at the Sith Lord as he approached, in pain and still defiant, quietly analyzing the new threat to her and her ship.
"Well look at you..." Kenobi whispered, his fingers hooking under her chin, forcing her to look up at him. "You are a thing of beauty, you know that?" He smirked. "Do you speak Basic?" There was no response, those red eyes blank. She didn't understand. Kenobi sighed heavily. "It was too much to hope for, I suppose. I'll just have to learn your language if we are to communicate." He grinned wickedly and patted her cheek. "If I even need you to talk at all. I can find other ways to use that pretty mouth of yours..." His attention was drawn away from the woman in his grasp when one of the men behind her groaned in pain, his limbs shaking under the pressure of the Dark Side, and Kenobi decided there was no use in waiting here.
Breathing deeply, he closed his eyes, felt the minds of the three Chiss in the cockpit, and dove within them, quickly ripping their will away from them with a penetrating, practiced touch, each rip precise and painful, each tear calculated, and he could feel their minds crumble beneath his touch, strong minds that futilely resisted as their bodies quickly submitted to the will of another. Issuing quick commands through the Force to the mindless males, the two rose up, their glowing red eyes hazy, and they silently shuffled past the Sith Lord into the hallway and picked up their unconscious comrades, dragging their feet toward Kenobi's entry point.
"Cody," Obi-Wan said softly into his com, his voice distant and distinctly not his own as he allowed the Dark Side to rampage through him, the nexus an open channel of the Force as he supplied the will of three separate, sentient beings, a somewhat effortless task when compared to the draining mass-domination earlier that day. "I'm sending four guests up to the Umbra. Make certain that they find their way to the holding cells in the brig."
"Copy that, Spectre Zero," came the light, satisfied voice of Ezra Bridger, and Obi-Wan just rolled his eyes. "Cody's already on the way with Sabine, and Zeb's prepared the brig for you." He could almost feel Bridger's self-satisfaction. "I gotta say, this is more fun than I thought."
"How wonderful for you..." the Sith Lord said dryly. "Now, do you mind keeping com chatter clear while I'm working?"
"Oh, yeah, sure," Ezra said apologetically, and the silence lasted all of two seconds before he quickly chirped, "Hey, can I do anything to help?" Obi-Wan sighed.
"Run two scans for me, Bridger," Kenobi said softly. "First, calculate if the Umbra can safely jump to lightspeed while tethered to the ship." Ezra was silent for a moment, the sound of the console's beeping as it calculated heard in the background.
"No can do, Kenobi," Ezra said after a moment. "The ship's too big to tow, and if that ship can't help keep itself secure, it will just break loose. You've got a few hours before that ship is back online, according to your scans."
"Damn it, I wanted to keep the ship..." Obi-Wan softly complained, his eyes narrowing as he brought the Dark Side down upon the Chiss commander as he began to rise, forcing her to her knees before him, the expression on her face dazed and supplicant as Kenobi ripped through her mind. "Alright, next scan. Find the ship's databrick. If I can't keep the ship, I'm keeping the information."
"Standby, Spectre Zero," Ezra said, the com cutting and Kenobi turned his attentions on the woman, his hand in her hair as he rifled through her mind, her memories, everything within her open to his discerning gaze. He saw a planet of ice, the place of her birth, and many other things, none of which he understood, everything foreign, everything spoken in a beautiful tongue he did not know. But he would. He only had a week before Empire Day, but his battle with Thrawn was only just beginning. He certainly didn't need to dissect all the Chiss he captured. At least one he would vivisect. One he would keep as a slave, both for his own pleasure and as a reminder to Thrawn when he found out that all species bowed before the Sith.
"Hey, I found it," Ezra said swiftly, his voice hushed as he read, the com crackling with static. "It's not far from your present location. On the ground at the aft of the cockpit should be a panel." Kenobi's eyes scanned the ground and quickly found what he was looking for, his hand extended as he used the Force to tear open the panel and remove the datablock, the wires that attacked to the device hissing as they were torn from its surface.
"Got it," Obi-Wan said into the com, commanding the woman to rise to her feet, and after a moment of jerky motions, her body complied with the Sith's commands and she stood. "I'm returning to the Umbra with another prisoner. Have Cody prepare another cell." He cut the com before Ezra could answer and held the datablock in his hands. It had yet to be seen how much information was actually on it, but with any luck, it would be enough to learn something about Thrawn's people. If not...well, Empire Day was a week away. He had time to investigate the Chiss, time to decide what to do with them, time to slowly break them again and again, a necessary reprieve to hone his skills, his cruelty, his hatred into a sharp edge.
Soon enough, it would be time to finally deal with Admiral Thrawn. In the meantime, he had other Chiss to play with.