In Akusho, Click and Korg remained awake as the two other commandos and the recon team left behind to support them slept. Click lazily looked over a communique on what their new surveillance role entailed. It was just to keep an eye on the Imperial military's movements and marking possible weak points. A beeping noise began to sound off on one of the scanners. Shutting the alarm off and analyzing the readings, Click tapped Korg and explained what was wrong.
"Seismic activity on the scanner. Coming right at us. Prepare for an earthquake." He calmly said.
Korg sighed and pressed some settings on a datapad that activated a force field encompassing the building. While the shield generator was meant to protect against an attack, it could be adjusted to boost the building's integrity in a pinch.
Korg would comment on their current situation, "Sir, I thought this continent was supposed to be geologically stable?"
"It is." Click answered, "All those geological surveys made when the Republic first got here all came to the same conclusion that this place rarely suffers from earthquakes. But the key word is 'rarely'. Guess it's just that time."
"Should we wake the others?" Korg said as he knew commandos could sleep through even an active battlefield. An earthquake wouldn't be much of a step up to them.
"Yeah, wake them up. We've gone through this building and it's naturally sturdy. But just in case…"
Korg got up and woke up his two comrades. He then moved to wake RT2. Lieutenant Evo would ask what was happening and Click would answer his question.
Understanding the situation, Evo suggested, "We should contact the base and General Deova who's with the Princess right now."
Already knowing that he had to do that, Click attempted to make the call but would be distracted by a crowd of people calling out to them outside. Setting up the men at the windows, readying for a possible attack, Click would yell out the countersign as he peered out a viewport and could see that the crowd seemed to consist mostly of women.
"Armor man, I don't remember the password! Uh, is it 'smelts'?!" The one woman leading the group said.
Activating his night vision, he recognized that the woman was one of their many contacts. Click ordered for the force field to be lowered around the door and opened it to answer the woman but kept his weapon ready. He was no stranger to human shields from an enemy.
"Eh, close enough." He said to the woman but remaining cautious, "What do you want?"
"I can feel an earth-shake coming. Would it be too much to ask if we can stay with you?"
Click looked at the group. He recognized most of the women in the group. They were mostly half-human hybrids who were homeless and some were even the slaves they had let go. Relaxing slightly, he would consent to them coming in as he saw that quite a number of them were already working for them as informants and he had seen on many worlds that animals tended to get spooked before the coming of a natural disaster noting the individuals with animal characteristics. He also didn't want to lose any of their contacts if they could save them.
"Yeah, sure. Come on in. But duck and cover your heads." He instructed. He would also quietly instruct his men on the internal comms to keep an eye open just in case.
As the crowd quickly entered to take cover, Evo spoke up, "Should we warn the neighbourhood?"
"Well, it's not really our job. We're supposed to be inconspicuous but," Click said as he looked to his fellow commandos, "Why don't you and your men do it, Lieutenant? We still have a call to make."
Agreeing to his assessment, Evo took his troopers out and began spreading the word to the local citizens. Evo and his men would begin asking people to clear out of their homes and go to the middle of the street away from the buildings. Although, there were a few stubborn citizens who couldn't quite believe an earthquake coming. Turning back to his comlink, Click called Eila to apprise her of the situation.
"General," He said.
"Y—Yes? W—What's wrong?" Eila groggily said having just woke up to the beeping of her comlink.
"One of our scanners has detected an earthquake coming our way. Suggest you prepare, General."
"Thank you, Click. Have you informed the base?"
"Next on the to-do list, ma'am."
"Good. Well, hunker down and prepare yourselves." Eila said before cutting the transmission.
While the commandos readied themselves and Click called the base for them to prepare, Eila quickly got up from her bed and dressed herself. She would wake RT3 and tell them of the situation. Once assembled, she would move on to inform Pina about it so her people could get ready.
When Eila told her, Pina was initially skeptical but remembering that she should keep an open mind as she quickly concluded that the Republic would have technology that could predict such things, she began giving orders to the guards to secure the Capital.
Unfortunately, the guards wouldn't be able to complete their task quickly enough since the ground began to shift below them and a powerful crashing noise surrounded all of them as they found it hard to stand still. Some of the Capital's buildings began to strain from the stress. Shouts to take cover and stay out in the open away from any falling objects sounded out as stone pillars, large trees, and other vulnerable structures began falling over. After almost a minute of constant shaking, it finally began to subside. In Akusho, the commandos were laughing that the building hadn't suffered any damage at all which confused their guests while Lieutenant Evo and his men were already helping in treating or rescuing the stubborn citizens who brushed off their warning. Back with Eila, she shook Pina out of her frightened state.
"Are you alright, Princess?" Eila asked as she offered her hand to Pina who dropped to the floor to protect herself.
"I'm—I'm good." She answered while taking Eila's hand and straightening herself out. She then became concerned about something. "My father!" She yelled. She quickly rushed off to get her formal clothes. Noticing that Eila and RT3 weren't following her, she beckoned to them, "Won't you join me?!"
Eila gave a confused look at Fordo before turning back to Pina. "You want us to come with you?" Eila questioned.
"Why not?!"
"Maybe because your father is the Emperor and we're still technically enemies of the Empire?"
Pina was dismayed that she had forgotten that detail, but she pressed on as she felt she needed their presence as a confidence booster, "Please, just come with me. Besides, I would have had to introduce you anyway to my father at some point."
Despite her misgivings at meeting the Emperor this quickly, Eila agreed to follow but Pina added a stipulation that if Eila was worried about her father seeing them negatively, she suggested that they only bring two troopers. Agreeing to her condition, Eila ordered Fordo and Fick with her, while the rest of the troopers stayed behind to help any injured.
Moving on to the Emperor's quarters, the guards were too frightened by the earthquake to question why they were there. Many of them crying out why Hardy was mad with them. Stopping outside her father's quarters, Pina asked them to wait while she softly broke her father into accepting their presence. While her father got dressed, Pina would bring them into the throne room and would instruct the Palace staff and the guards who stopped cowering in fear to prepare services, bolster security, and call all the Ministers and Generals. Eventually, the Emperor entered the throne room and took a seat. While walking to his throne, Eila noticed that the Emperor seemed to be carrying something in his robes.
Clearing his throat, Molt noted the otherworldly appearance of his guests. A woman in monk's clothing with two white armored soldiers flanking her. Figuring out who they were having read Pina's letter, he began with saying, "So, you must be from the Galactic Republic."
Pina quickly introduced them, "Yes, father! This is General Eila Deova of the Galactic Republic and two of her clone troopers. Captain Fordo and Lieutenant Fick."
The three of them would bow to him.
"A General, hmm? And clone troopers?" Molt questioned. "Ahh yes, Pina. You mentioned them in your letter. The duplicated soldiers." He motioned to Fordo and Fick, "Come now. I wish to see your faces. I want to see if it's true."
Both troopers would look at Eila and she nodded to let them show their faces. Removing their helmets, Molt's smile widened as he could see that they were identical in appearance. Although, there was a part of him that wondered if they were just twins.
Pushing the doubt aside, Molt turned his attention to Pina, "Well, daughter? Why did you bring them?"
She was dreading her father's question but confidently answer, "They knew about the coming of the earth-shake. They have amazing technology that foresaw it and I have mentioned that they are willing to help us in my letter."
"Yes, fantastic technology." Molt said with a deep sigh. "I've already caught wind of the Senators coming in the morning to propose that I formally begin peace talks with them."
Pina was startled at her father's foresight of knowing the Senators' intentions that she set in motion but didn't say anything. It wasn't really a problem to Molt. People just had a hard time keeping their mouths shut around him when it came to matters affecting the throne. Particularly, Marcus. Seeing that she didn't respond further to his statement and interested in the Republic's technology, what he would do next would stun them all. From his robe, Molt casually pulled out the hilt of a lightsaber.
Activating it, he repeated, "Yes, fantastic technology."
He commented on the blue colored lightsaber while lightly moving it around, "Such an elegant but dangerous weapon, isn't it? I had a sword master try to use it but he accidentally cut off his arm. By his words, it has a different feel to a traditional blade, feeling heavy at moments and lighter in others. And obviously, it punishes the slightest bit of inattention to the wielder's movement. But I'm sure you're quite proficient with it, General?" He eyed Eila's lightsaber while he deactivated it.
Eila remained wide eyed while Molt went on with his comments about the saber but her shock quickly changed to a subdued anger as she hissed, "Where did you get that?"
Ignoring her hostile tone, her answered, "A gift from my son."
Extending her hand, Eila grabbed the saber with the Force. Molt was momentarily surprised when the saber was forced out of his hand but quickly returned to his default stoic expression. He finally understood that Pina wasn't exaggerating about the 'sorcerer warriors' known as Jedi that she mentioned.
"These aren't gifts!" She shouted to Molt.
Pina fearfully looked back and forth between the two of them, expecting a shouting match about disrespect to break out but her father actually laughed off the situation, surprising her and their guests.
"Haha! Oh my daughter! You weren't joking at all in your letter!" He turned back to Eila, "I guess I should apologize. I took your property and you obviously wanted it back. You should come again next time. We'll have a banquet to begin these peace talks."
Eila wasn't quite sure how to respond at Molt's passiveness but she nodded along having unexpectedly achieved a primary goal of their purpose in the Special Region. She thought she would have encountered more resistance from him. Pina was equally confused at her father's sudden friendly demeanor and casual acceptance to the peace talks.
For Molt, he now understood that the Republic was certainly a frightening force that they couldn't hope to match in a thousand lifetimes given what he had witnessed. He thought to himself that the Republic should be treated as an ally just as Pina wrote in her letter if they were willing to help but should quietly be pushed aside rather than defeated when their usefulness was at an end. He understood that trying to defeat them would be futile given that they had control over many worlds as written in Pina's letter, while he only controlled one. For him, he was hoping for the Republic to leave through the Gate willingly when they both had learned all they could from each other and for the Gate to close so that the Republic couldn't interfere in their affairs. Although, for the Gate to close, it would take an act of god for it to happen, in his view. Molt was ultimately choosing to play the long game with the Republic and he was now expecting not to live to see his plan reach its end. However, he was hoping his descendants would adhere to his idea closely. Unfortunately, Zorzal to him, seemed too headstrong to understand the need for patience for a plan with a long time-frame while he thought that Pina and his other son, Diablo, would be too soft to push the Republic aside. He resigned himself into believing that his descendants should at least get close enough where the Empire remains the dominant power of the world.
Zorzal and his entourage suddenly barging into the throne room would interrupt Molt's thoughts and the rest of them. Brushing past Eila, Fordo, and Fick without even noting their presence, Zorzal called out to Molt, "Father! It's good to see you well! Come! We should leave while we can! She told me there will be more earth-shakes!"
"We can't just leave, brother! I've called for an assembly. And who's she?" Pina said.
'She?' Eila thought. It slowly began to dawn on her that if the lightsaber was here, then a particular friend would be close by.
Zorzal would go to his goons who were holding someone by a chain in the shadows of the room. Again, Eila's eyes would widen in shock as her realization came true when Zorzal presented a dishevelled but a familiar woman into the light.
"V—Vania?"
Just before the Uscru incident…
Vania Solon waited for Eila to join her. She really wanted to see Squid Lake with her. The reviews for that opera had so far been stellar enough that the performance was having its time at the Galaxies Opera House extended for the next few months. It probably helped that Chancellor Palpatine was personally fond of it. Vania was in a rush to see it with Eila as her time off was about to end. She would be returning to protecting supply lines once again in the Outer Rim in the next two days. After the opera, she hoped that she and Eila would take a swing around the bars in celebration in meeting each other again after almost a year apart. Although, she thought to herself that Eila will likely have the more interesting stories while they were drinking as her job of protecting supply lines was hardly glamorous. The occasional Separatist fleet was the only interruption she had to meditating and staring at the empty void of space while aboard her ship.
Tapping on a guard rail and looking out at the city landscape while she waited on one of the Uscru district's major streets, Vania suddenly felt a tremor through the Force and began walking in the direction where she felt it. She would soon see a Gate in the middle of the street with three clone shock troopers already investigating. She walked right behind the clones who hadn't noticed her presence yet and was about to ask them regarding the Gate. But like the clones, she would suddenly hear a horn.
Vania along with the clones would quickly be overwhelmed when they would be knocked down by a stampede of horses. Luckily, the horses managed to not crush her under their hoofs while the clones weren't as lucky. Unfortunately, falling backwards onto concrete, she would be knocked into unconsciousness by the stampede and her hands and arms would be badly injured as she had raised them to protect herself. She would be unaware that some of the Empire's soldiers would take her when they began their retreat.
Being brought to the other side and waking up in front of Zorzal in his quarters, she groggily managed to say, "W—Where am I?"
Zorzal ignored her question and ordered the two men holding her to strip everything off. Unable to fight back since she was still in a haze and could hardly move her injured arms and hands, he commented on her naked body.
"Ooh, truly magnificent!" He said, "A fine catch from the expedition! Hmm, pointed ears? And dark skin? A dark elf? No matter. Another fun woman to add with Tyuule."
While the men continued to hold her, he moved on to what little belongings she had. He played a bit with her comlink but grew bored when it did nothing. Seeing the opera tickets, he tossed them aside since he didn't understand the language written on them. He examined her robes but considered them unremarkable as he thought that the fabric was similar to what they already had. He smiled a bit at the gold and silver Republic credits she carried in one of the robe's pockets and thought that they should fetch a good price. Initially disappointed at the lack of anything more intriguing, his interest would peak when he moved on to her lightsaber.
"What is this?" He wondered aloud. Fumbling around with it, Zorzal unwittingly activated her lightsaber. He nearly skewered himself through the face toying with it carelessly.
"Whoa!" He called out in surprise but like a child with a new toy, he began playing around with the saber. Swinging it around, he ended up cutting cleanly through a nearby chair and table in a single stroke.
"Ho! Ho! Ho!" He chuckled, "Father will certainly enjoy this!" He deactivated the saber and threw it to one of his men, "Make sure he gets it! A fine gift from his loyal son!" He ordered.
"W—Where? E—Eila?" Vania said in her confusion as she tried to get a bearing on her surroundings. She would then look at Zorzal, "W—Who are you?"
Zorzal gave a sadistic smirk at her question and cupped her face with his hand.
"Oh, you'll know soon enough, woman." He said while creepily taking a sniff along her neck.
Present…
"General. Isn't that General Solon?" Fick said as he observed the chained woman wearing the typical garments of an Empire's slave but with a crystal around her neck.
Eila would ignore him as she began walking towards Zorzal and his group. Fordo motioned to Fick to put his helmet back on. He was starting to become concerned at what she was about to do.
"You again?" Zorzal said as she approached and then looked at Pina who would be startled at her brother's stare. Although, immediately after saying his statement, he and his band of men would all be pushed away. Eila had shoved them all out of the way with the Force. Kneeling next to Vania who had fallen her knees after her handler had been pushed, Eila removed her restraints, tried to get her up, and looked into her open but empty eyes.
"Vania! Vania! It's me, Eila!" She pleaded.
Vania gave an eerie smile but her eyes remained empty and gave no response.
Assuming that she was likely delirious, Eila tried harder to get her standing, "Come on. I'm taking you home." She finally managed to get Vania up proper.
"But I don't want to come home." She said, pushing away Eila's hands once she was up.
Eila would be confused by her statement as her friend seemed to tower over her, "W—What do you mean?"
Her smile disappeared as she reaffirmed, "I don't want to go home."
"W—Wha—"
Eila didn't get to finish as she would be Force pushed across the room by Vania. She crashed against a wall, knocking down a hanging portrait, and fell to the ground. As she tried to regain her senses, the saber she got from Molt, flew from her hand to Vania's.
Activating it, she repeated, "I don't want to go home."
"V—Vania?! Why?!"
She didn't answer but began to charge at Eila with her saber ready to strike. Fortunately, she wouldn't get very far since Fordo reacted quickly and shocked her with his electrified grappling hook from the side. She fell to the ground unconscious.
While Eila remained stunned that Vania had chosen to attack her, Zorzal got up and smirked, "You'll pay dearly for attacking me."
Snapping his fingers, his goons and the Imperial guardsmen advanced on Eila and Fordo. Even though Fordo hadn't even personally hurt him and he himself wasn't even seriously hurt by the push, this was the excuse he had been waiting for to arrest them all.
"Sir, the General!" Fick called.
Fordo ordered, "Support her."
Fick quickly moved near Eila to support her while Fordo readied his dual blasters. With another snap, the men charged at Fordo and Eila's positions. Fick blasted the men trying to get to her as she continued to remain stagnant; the whole situation seemingly fading away in her head as she looked solely on her unconscious friend. Some of the men would become unnerved at the gruesome wounds blasters inflicted on the others charging her but the Prince encouraged them to press on to try to get Fordo. They wouldn't stand a chance. Fordo stood his ground and casually blasted them all without moving an inch from his position.
The last attacking man promptly fell and the few survivors cowered in fear having thrown their weapons aside. Zorzal would be curled up on the ground as he was frightened at how easily his men were killed. The sound of their death cries unnerving him. Fordo twirled his blasters back into their holsters. Seeing that Eila was still in shock and not responding to Fick calling to her, he turned to Molt and said, "We'll be taking the Prince's 'prize' home with us. I'm sure there are no objections."
Pina eagerly nodded her head in agreement while Molt simply gave a wave of his hand for them to leave, maintaining his stoic expression despite that deep down, he was both impressed and shocked at the weapons the Republic had. The demonstration of the Republic's ease in killing their men furthered Molt's thoughts on the necessity of having them as an ally. Fordo moved to carry Vania while Fick moved to shake Eila out of her shock given that she didn't react to his calls.
"General." He said as he placed his hand on her shoulder. Eila jumped at his touch but stayed silent and took his hand in getting up. Joining Fordo at the door, they were just about to leave when Zorzal had to open his mouth.
"Cowards! Fighting with magic! How ridiculous! And all this trouble over one concubine?! You should be lucky my father's letting you go!"
Fordo merely sighed as he knew what was coming next. While he didn't know that Vania was actually a personal friend of Eila's, it didn't take a genius to understand that downgrading a Jedi to a whore wasn't going to sit well with a fellow Jedi. Pina also shifted uncomfortably at Zorzal's mention of Eila's friend being a 'concubine'; noting her own lineage. As Fordo predicted, he saw Eila move away from them and walk up to Zorzal who had positioned himself sitting on the floor.
"What? What are you going to do?!" He hollered.
Eila didn't even dignify him in responding with a threat when she swiftly broke his nose with the Force. Zorzal howled in pain at the sudden snap but continued to try and mock her in-between pained gasps and watery eyes . Feeling a murderous rage that she had never felt before in the Clone Wars or even to Krell, she chose to break another part of him. One of his teeth would do. He again cried out in pain as a tooth flew from his mouth. Eila then began inflicting more precise injuries on him such as cracking the bones in his fingers or one of his ribs but not fully breaking them. She would remain eerily silent throughout the whole ordeal as she intended to maximize his suffering. The surviving Imperials who were witnesses to the spectacle would both be unnerved at the injuries the Prince was receiving without being touched and that they could swear Eila's eyes seemed to flash a fiery yellow when she blinked at times. Eventually, she raised her hand and he would be lifted off the ground. She began to bend his limbs in various directions, intending to permanently deprive him the use of his arms and legs. Zorzal, being the coward he is, was seriously considering begging for mercy knowing what she was about to do and both Molt and Pina were feeling that the spectacle was going too far. However, her concentration would be broken when Fordo called out to her.
"General, that's enough! General Solon requires immediate medical attention!" He called.
His interruption broke her hold on Zorzal and he fell to the ground groaning in pain. A certain bunny eared woman came running in from the shadows and began tending to the Prince's injuries.
"T—Tyuule!" Zorzal managed to say amid the surging pain he felt from the injuries inflicted upon him.
"Please," Tyuule said turning to Eila, "Please cause no further harm to the Prince. Take Vania and go. This fight's over."
Eila glared at Tyuule who returned the same stare. Despite feeling something deceitful about the woman, Eila turned away and joined Fordo and Fick at the door.
Zorzal, still not learning his lesson, would again try to speak but Molt would interrupt him, "Zorzal! It would be in your best interest to remain silent."
He attempted to oppose his father's command but kept his mouth shut in the end. Pina would also try to call out to them, but her father shook his head in disapproval at her attempt.
Once they left the throne room, Molt called to a few of the surviving guards, "You men! Tend to the Prince's injuries." He would then motion to the rest of the survivors and the dead bodies, "Clean this mess up!"
"Yes, your Majesty!" They managed to proudly respond and would begin carrying out the order with one group taking Zorzal out with Tyuule following behind them while the other group began grabbing the corpses and getting them out of the throne room.
Leaning back on his throne, Molt said his thought out loud, "They love their people too much."
"Father?" Pina questioned.
"They love their people far too much. That can be easily exploited."
Ironically, the average Republic citizen living in the bowels of the Coruscant underworld might have a different opinion on Molt's thought along with the Separatists who were former Republic citizens. Nevertheless, Pina thought on his statement.
"That is true," She said, "There was once a country that existed in our history that thought the same and was destroyed by barbarians since they didn't invest in making their military or political stance stronger. But unlike that nation, father, you should think of the Republic as a mother wolf. What happens when you attack one of her cubs? In fact, I did not mention this in my letter, but the Republic is currently fighting a war on the other side with an enemy similar to them and it has only served to increase the development of their already formidable military strength. If anything, our war with the Republic is but a minor nuisance to them."
Molt contemplated Pina's explanation. He had thought he had found a weakness but if it was exploited as he had intended to try, it would only galvanize the wrath of an already angry Republic that was at war with someone else. He didn't find it hard to think that the Republic had the capacity to support both wars. Although, in a scenario where the Republic didn't want to waste resources, Molt could see them crushing the Empire in mere hours and then casually turn back to their own war if they wanted to expedite matters. He ultimately returned to his original plan of handling the Republic in the long term. Although, his thoughts would linger on the Jedi and their powers. The Jedi were something quite different from the mages that existed in the world. They used 'magic' casually and without uttering a word for a spell. The magic he had seen other mages perform, while more varied, were inefficient due to the limitations of the natural world. It tended to take a lot of time to cast one spell and it would be obvious a mage was about to attack when they'd start mumbling and have a blue aura around themselves. That weakness is easily exploitable. It would be these reasons mages are not used as military assets along with them being more academically inclined than politically or militarily minded. Yet, his son had somehow managed to 'tame' one of Jedi despite their gifts. He could tell that one wouldn't break without some kind of serious effort but his son had somehow done it. Although, it was obvious from the display he had seen that they weren't invincible even with their abilities since a 'regular soldier' of the Republic took one of them down with ease. Ultimately, while he had entertained the idea of maybe turning Eila against the Republic as his son had with her companion, it would be pointless since they had also thought up of countermeasures against a rogue.
Seeing that a path of non-violence was the only way for the Empire to survive just as his daughter had been pursuing, he conceded to Pina's point. He also took note that she was the first to his side once the earthquake hit. Despite Zorzal being closer to his room, Pina was immediately there for him. Because of these two points, he felt that congratulations were in order.
"Hmm, when did you become so good, Pina?"
Pina looked at her father with confusion.
Gathering RT3 and calling a LAAT to get back to base quicker to assess Vania's medical condition, Eila sat by while watching Ramius examine her. Twirling the familiar crystal she plucked that was around Vania's neck with her fingers, she stared at her friend unconscious on a stretcher and there were now two conflicts waging within Eila's head. One side was that she really wanted to retaliate against the Empire for what they did to her friend. She could imagine Y-Wings bombing the Imperial Capital into dust. Her troopers gunning down Imperial soldiers without mercy. Her capturing Zorzal and showing him the full extent of what the Force can do to a person. Rory would probably break into cheers if she were to order such things. War was her fetish given that she served a god of war and it was starting to become the favored opinion among the people who lived in the town near their base and of the clone troopers that the Empire had arrogantly overextended its reach for power. 'They need a kick in the pants', Eila remembered, having heard the statement in passing from a trooper.
But on the other side, Eila would be reminded of the people she's met from the Empire. People like Pina and her knights or the Senators. They simply didn't understand why the Republic acts the way it does. It was something they had to learn. It has been consistent with primitive civilizations in their own galaxy that the Republic should have a higher tolerance for patience and prudence in dealing with primitives since they don't know the Republic's standards and the Republic likewise doesn't know theirs. And even if they weren't really affiliated with the Empire; Tuka, Lelei, and Yao might disapprove of a sudden aggressive strategy. She and her troopers had already built up an image as a benevolent force in the Special Region in the eyes of the indigenous people. To do a sudden shift would seem jarring to them. Master Yoda's words were also calling back to her, to let go of what she fears to lose.
While still waiting to arrive at the base, Eila repeated the words to herself. It was something she should have paid closer attention to. She had felt a coldness when she was inflicting pain on the Prince. That coldness both felt extremely empowering but also extremely terrifying, as she knew she had tapped into the Dark Side of the Force. That feeling now felt disgusting to her. She felt equally disappointed in herself since she had betrayed all her years of training in the Jedi Temple. That training had served her well for so long since she didn't feel that much excessive hate and anger when Krell was around or in a some pitched battle on a far off planet. She also felt disappointment in herself since her one selfish act had likely undone all of the effort her troopers, Senators Amidala and Chuchi, and herself had put into creating their relationship with the Empire. It is why she was taught that while the Dark Side of the Force can feel gratifying in the short term, it ultimately leads to a feeling of emptiness and remorse in the long term and she was definitely feeling them now. She had hurt the Prince, which felt gratifying, but her actions didn't improve her friend's condition and had likely hurt their position with the Empire, hence the emptiness and remorse.
Finally landing at the base, they would be greeted by Wrench. He would become surprised when he saw who it was on the stretcher. He knew that Eila and Vania were friends. Just before Ramius and the rest of RT3 would carry Vania to the medical facility, Eila ordered that they keep her sedated until the base doctor could determine whatever the Prince had done to her. Eila ordered Fordo to join them as a counter in case she burned through the sedatives quickly. Once they were out of sight, she took a breath and pinched the bridge of her nose at wondering how they were going to recover from this. While she thought of a solution, Wrench would approach her.
"General?" He said but she didn't respond. "Eila?" He tried again.
Acknowledging him, she decided to be open, "Wrench. I did something very bad."
Wrench was expecting that she probably killed some slave master based on him seeing Vania being taken away in ragged slave clothing. He didn't really think that would be bad.
"I used the Force on the Crown Prince and hurt him."
"Oh!" He exclaimed. Even if she didn't kill anyone, the fact that she harmed royalty would be a serious blow to the diplomatic relationship. Although, he felt that her action was justified since Vania being taken away to the medical facility obviously meant that the Prince did something awful to her.
Despite being a justifiable reason, he knew the repercussions that could result from this, "What do you want to do, General?" He asked, "Should we still continue with the peace talks or…?" He silently thought of retaliation if she ordered it.
Eila shut her eyes and shook her head, "I—I don't know, Wrench." After a moment of thinking, she spoke again, "Can you—can you contact Princess Pina if she and her father are still okay with going through with the talks? She has a holoprojector with her for communication."
"You still want to talk to them after what they did?"
She hesitated to answer for a moment but said, "It was only one person who did it. And I—" She paused and changed what she was going to say, "We have to salvage this effort. I'll make a personal apology later."
"Yes, General."
"I'm—I'm sorry. I need to be alone for a moment." She began to walk off.
Wrench watched her leave and thought that she looked even more gloomy than when he chastised her choice to take on the fire dragon alone weeks ago. Walking to his own office, Wrench called Pina through the holoprojector.
Pina appeared before him, "Oh? You are…Commander Wrench was it? I'm sorry but it's sometimes hard to tell with you clones."
Noticing a part of her difficulty, he removed his helmet, "It's alright, Princess. The General is wondering if you and your father still wish to continue with the talks."
Pina was surprised, "R—Really?! Even after what my brother did to your companion?"
'I thought the same thing.' But, he silently nodded to her statement.
"W—Well, if you still want to, my father has agreed to the talks. Some of the Ministers and Generals who came in after your people left were a bit upset especially after being told what had happened but they are loyal to his word. My father has seen that the Empire can't stand against you so he feels that it's prudent to try to bring a peace. My father instructed me to present your case to the Imperial Senate tomorrow."
"Okay. That's good to hear." He sighed with satisfaction that a primary goal had at least been achieved despite everything else. He continued, "By the way, the General will make a personal apology about this incident at another time."
"An apology? That's not necessary, Commander. We did something wrong as well. That person my brother had. She was a friend of the General's wasn't she? It's understandable she would get angry."
"I know, Princess. But I know she would insist."
Pina thought on it for a moment and agreed, "Alright. I will accept the General's apology. I'll contact you again Commander, when an opportunity arises for us to meet again."
Wrench and Pina nodded to each other and cut the transmission.
After a few days, Eila decided to stop keeping Vania under sedation. She needed to know what was going on in her friend's mind. Ordering everyone out of the room, in case Vania decided to go wild, Eila examined the medical report the base doctor gave to her while sitting next to the bed.
The report read out that Vania was actually in relatively good health. She wasn't suffering from conditions usually associated with slaves like malnourishment though she did have some bruises along with a few scars on her hands and arms. Instead, her blood work indicated several chemicals the Republic knew had a mind controlling effect as well as specific brain chemicals that were on a higher level than normal. Those brain chemicals were connected to making a person feel happy. Whatever the Prince did to her, Eila could see that Vania would have enjoyed it. It made sense to her now why Vania wouldn't want to come home. Having written the report, the base doctor had already taken steps to slowly re-balance Vania's brain chemicals and counteract the mind controlling agents so at least if she were to wake now, she should be back to her old self. The doctor was also already researching a possible defense. Although, Eila still pondered on why there was a kyber crystal roped around her neck before.
Soon enough, Vania began to stir. She jolted awake but when she tried to get up, she couldn't since her arms and legs were restrained to the bed.
"Wh—what?" She said but then looked around and saw that she was in room common to a Republic base with a familiar face next to her.
"E—Eila?" She inquired.
Eila paused as she looked into Vania's eyes. They weren't empty anymore. She responded, "Yeah, it's me, Vania. You remember me?"
Vania slowly nodded and asked, "W—Where am I?"
"You're on a Republic base, on the Empire's side of the Gate."
"The E—Empire? The Gate?" A flood of memories came back to her. However, there were still sizeable gaps she couldn't recall in-between. Still, the events she could remember were masked under a bizarre euphoria but she was beginning to understand that the joy she felt was a lie and began to tear up, "I—I—"
Vania openly sobbed. Eila hesitated but moved off her seat to comfort her. She had been evaluating Vania through the Force and it wasn't indicating any danger. Moving to the bed, she slowly stroked her head and soothed her, "It's okay. It's okay. You're home now."
"The Prince! The Prince! He—He—" She was starting to remember what Zorzal did, vividly.
"I know. I know. You're safe. You're safe."
In-between sobs, Vania began to repeat over and over, "You weren't there! You weren't there! You weren't there!"
She would try to shake Eila but her restraints prevented her from doing it properly. Eila understood her mantra to be that she hadn't been there for her during her darkest moments.
"I know. I'm sorry. I'm sorry." Eila felt immense guilt for not acting sooner in locating her. There had just been far more pressing issues that pushed that personal goal aside. But the best she could do now was try to bring some peace to her friend.
After some time had past of her continuing to soothe Vania, Eila used the Force to put her to sleep. It would be one small part of trying to calm her mind which was jumbled with all sorts of emotions. Feeling worried that he hadn't heard from Eila since ordering everyone out, Wrench entered the room.
"General?"
"Wrench?"
Walking towards them, he would see Eila continuing to lightly stroke Vania's head. He would ask, "Is General Solon, alright?"
She nodded, "Yeah. She just needed some time to cry it out."
"I know it may seem inappropriate but is General Solon…?" He just wanted to be sure.
Thinking for moment, she answered, "No. I don't think she's been turned. What happened back at the Imperial Palace; it was whatever the Prince put into her. I've also felt her impressions through the Force. Confusion. Pain. Violation." She paused, "I'm sending her back to Coruscant when the doctor feels she's ready to be moved. The healers at the Jedi Temple can do a more complete treatment for her. Particularly for her mind."
Trusting her assessment, he wondered, "Hmm? Something I don't understand, General. General Solon is a Jedi. Why didn't she escape? Shouldn't the Force have protected her from any kind of mind control?"
"I'm sure she would've tried to escape, Wrench. But the doctor tested some of the mind controlling chemicals found in her. She was given a rather excessive dose and the doctor determined that with that much stuff flowing through her, she could have been made to believe you were her mother. As for the Force, I'm not sure what the Prince did to get around it. The healers at the Temple might be able to figure it out."
Unbeknownst to them, the mind controlling agents had been enchanted with magic to enhance their effect. The crystal Eila plucked helped intensify the effect even more than just the magic alone. Zorzal didn't know that what he was using had magic, but Tyuule certainly did. For Tyuule, even though she didn't truly know exactly who Vania was, it was just another level of assurance to guarantee a person would comply with any order, even hers if there was a moment where it was needed.
"I wonder if that's happened to all the other people?" Wrench wondered.
Eila turned aside and thought the same. She wondered if the other people taken from Coruscant were also living out some delusion. Believing they were rightly serving their masters in bliss, not recognizing the truth behind their position.
After a few moments, Wrench would speak up again, "This must be hard for you, General. To see your friend like this."
She turned away from him again and after a while, she gave a light nod with her tearing up a bit, "She taught me more than Krell ever did about being a Jedi. I kind of hoped I could have been her padawan when I was making my way to knighthood. But she never accepted an apprentice despite having had enough years of experience to handle one. She also introduced me to a life outside the Order. She believed that the Order's monotony and insistence of detachment can be just as bad as having unhealthy attachments that can lead to the Dark Side of the Force. There has to be a balance. But I feel like I've proven her wrong. My attachment to her made me tap into the Dark Side. I would have probably kept going if Fordo didn't snap me out of it."
Wrench only had a vague understanding of the Dark Side and of the Force. Though it was quite obvious that the Dark Side was a bad thing given its name alone. Still, he felt that Eila was mistaken, "No. I think General Solon is still right. From what I've seen, attachment isn't an inherently evil thing. As an example, I love my brothers. I'd do anything to get them through these wars and so far, it looks like it's been working. But I do know one particular clone, early in the war, who thought he doing the right thing for us but he just ended up endangering the very people he was trying protect. Attachment for him was twisted into something wrong. I've come believe, it's how we approach attachments that makes it good or evil. And yes, while your attachment to General Solon did make you tap into this Dark Side thing, how you handle it from now on determines whether it will be a good or evil thing permanently."
Eila thought on his words and a small smile developed on her face as she lightly joked, "Wow, Wrench. Maybe you can take over for Master Yoda back at the Temple."
Removing the dressing over his nose, Zorzal lightly touched his nose but flinched at the pain he still felt. Growling angrily at the injury, he rolled into his bed and fumbled with a letter he was handed by a courier. Entering the room, Tyuule approached Zorzal and could see he was having a bit of a laughing fit.
"What seems to be the matter, your Highness?"
"Haha! Read this!" He tossed the letter to her.
Quickly going over the letter, Tyuule stated, "An apology?"
Zorzal broke out in laughter, "Hahaha! That crazy bitch! That crazy Republic! They willingly humiliate themselves to us! Hahaha!" He accidentally grazed his nose, "Crap! Get me some ice, Tyuule!"
While Tyuule skittered away, Zorzal's brother, Diabo, would keep him company with a discussion on intelligence, foolishness, the throne, and a dismissive attitude to the peace talks their father had approved. Grabbing some ice, Tyuule wondered how she could use the situation to her advantage.
To her, for the Republic to apologize was a rather odd move. She felt perplexed at why they would do such a thing. In a moment of weakness, she thought if she could just run to them for asylum given the soft response they had given to what should have been a trigger for more war. She had likewise had been hearing the stories of them helping people regardless if they were human or not. But that moment snapped away as she remembered her ultimate goal. News from her infiltrator, Bouro, had mentioned that Vania has already been moved away from their reach. It was too soon. Gritting her teeth, she felt that she had missed an opportunity to use Vania as a catalyst to spur the Republic into destroying the Empire. It was the reason she let them take her away in the first place without protesting. She needed a new plan. Getting called back by Zorzal, she rushed to his side with ice. Handing it to him, he asked her on the status of the other 'prizes' taken from the Republic.
"A number of them have died in occupational accidents. Mining collapses, bandit raids, the earth-shake. Though there are a few left who are still alive. Some are attached to Senators as attendants." She explained, "Those Senators are willingly handing them over after it was explained to them by Princess Pina of who the Republic is and their goals and what one of their people did to you."
"That's outrageous! We need slaves to do the jobs we don't want to do!" Diablo shouted.
"Calm yourself, Diablo. Let them take back their people." Zorzal said.
Diablo recoiled at his brother's sudden kindness. It was weird. But then he quickly realized, "You want to make yourself look like one of those pro-peace cowards?!"
"Yes. And that will validate me as a worthy successor to father and not you."
Diablo cringed at his jab. But Zorzal just wanted to push that he was the favored son.
Zorzal continued, "Becoming father's successor will give me all the power I need to then destroy the Republic when they let their guard down. Simple tactics, brother."
Diablo would promptly leave in disgust of his brother's ambitions and suicidal plans. Diablo had also been there at the Imperial Senate when Pina made her case about the Republic. Their intentions and their strength. It surprised the Senators and they would be even more surprised when numerous Senators, who were at Pina's party, came forward and candidly proposed peace negotiations without hesitation. It astounded them and him that his father accepted it immediately. Although, while he didn't like the defeatism in the Senate, he understood that standing against them militarily would be useless given the descriptions Pina gave. She even used the holoprojector she had with her to push her point. He saw no reason that Pina would lie. But he felt that they could defeat them in other ways. Nonetheless, if they were still going to lose, he had unknowingly aligned himself with his father's ideals on preserving the Empire's status rather than destroy it in a suicidal gamble to take down the Republic like Zorzal.
"Still," Zorzal wondered out loud once he and Tyuule were alone, "What will I do with the Republic? Father's gone soft on them. So has the Senate. I must act and strike at the Republic now."
Tyuule moved into the bed to comfort him but made it careful not to utter 'patience' in his haste to defeat the Republic. It would be simple suicide to challenge the Republic but Tyuule wanted Zorzal to gather the whole Empire under his banner before making a move.
Wanting to slow him down a bit, she suggested, "You can weaken them first, your Highness. Why not talk to those who have survived fighting them? They'll have insights in how to fight now that they know the Republic."
"Hmm? That's actually a good idea, Tyuule!" Zorzal said as he groped her, "Although, that bitch is going to be a problem. Her magic is troublesome. How cowardly to use it in a fight!"
"M—Mmm! Yes! Very cowardly, your Highness!" Tyuule moaned and then she stumbled into an idea, "W—Why not turn her? Vania is apparently like her. She could also use that 'magic' and the light sword too."
Zorzal's eyes lit up as he tightened his grip on her, "Yes. Yes! Vania is like her! Tyuule! You've done it again!"
Author's Note: Finally! Another one down. I've also addressed Dreiundzwanzig's review in a PM. I felt that it would be too long to address it here. Thanks again for reading!