*
* *
Darth
Maul unlocked the hangar doors, revealing his ship, the Sith
Infiltrator II.
"It's
nice," Lou stood at his side, taking in the sight. "A
little gloomy, but nice."
He
turned his head to meet her gaze. "Thank you," he activated
the controls that lowered the ramp with the Force, not taking his
eyes from hers.
Vedul
put his arms around Lou's and Maul's shoulders, leaning in between
them. "Don't worry, you two crazy kids, I'll drive."
"S'Ritak,
I will leave you
behind," Maul stated.
The
Twi'Lek backed off. "Now now, let's not get grouchy, Master."
Maul
grinned at his apprentice. "Who says I'm grouchy?"
Vedul
headed up the ramp, and into the Infiltrator.
"He
has your cockiness, Maul. You have taught him well," Lou arched
her eyebrow at him.
"That
I did not teach him."
Lou
laughed, following him into the ship.
A
yellow light illuminated on Emperor Palpatine's desk, indicating that
he had a call coming in. He knew before he even pressed the button
that the man on the line was going to ask whether or not to let Darth
Maul leave the surface.
"Don't
let them leave," the old man ordered.
"But
he has threatened my life."
"I
will do more than threaten, Ogden. And your fate will be worse than
death if that ship lifts off."
"As
you wish it, Your Highness," Ogden cut the transmission.
The
Emperor expected this sort of rash action from his former apprentice,
which is why he had enlisted the aid of S'Ritak Vedul. Maul's own
apprentice was loyal to the Emperor, more loyal than to his Master.
A
thin smile curled Palpatine's lips, as his eyes fell on the Statue of
Ongrel. A little-known fact about the grey pyramid was the power
contained within, for inside the three walls was the heart of the
first Sith warrior, perfectly preserved. Palpatine intended to have
his own heart removed, and switched with this fabled one. It was said
that this action would render the new user invincible, as well as
increasing their power in the Force to threefold his original
capabilities.
There
was only one problem: the only beings capable of opening the Statue
were the Kyterians, a race of blue-skinned aliens on the brink of
extinction.
Jareena
was the first Kyterian Palpatine had encountered in almost twenty
years.
And
she was about to get away.
"What
do we do, Master? They won't let us leave," Vedul crossed his
arms across his chest.
Maul
considered his options. He had hoped for an easy departure, but
clearly Palpatine was aware of their actions and intended to
intervene. "Let me talk to him."
Vedul
shrugged, then opened a channel to Ogden in the office.
"Mister
Maul, my orders come directly from Emperor Palpatine. I cannot allow
your departure," Ogden stated the same line he had given Vedul.
Maul
used a mind trick on the man, so that he would let them leave without
a mess. "You will
open the doors, and clear us for departure."
There
was a pause before Ogden came back, "You are cleared for
departure, Sith Infiltrator II.
Please wait while I open the hangar doors."
"Thank
you, Ogden," Maul switched off the comm. "You see, S'Ritak?
You could have done that."
Vedul
scowled at the viewport, waiting for the doors to open.
Palpatine
sensed it as the Sith Infiltrator II
left Coruscant, and took to Hyperspace. He let out an angry cry,
slamming his fist down on his desk. He ordered his Imperial guards to
bring Ogden to the palace.
* *
*
The
blue spherical shape of Coruscant hung in space ahead. Taggart patted
Jenkens on the shoulder. "Good work."
"Hey,
that was the easy part."
Park
flopped down beside Taggart groggily. "Are we there yet?"
"See
for yourself," Jenkens replied.
Park
leaned forward to see out into space around the pilot's chair.
"Wa-hoo!"
"I
suppose you have a plan for finding Lou?"
"Umm...well,
not exactly."
"What?"
he barked. "We've come all this way, and you don't even know how
to find her?"
Taggart
searched the surface for any sign of her.
"You
do realize that this planet is completely inhabited by Imperials,
right?"
"Whoa,
chill, dude. We'll figure something out," Park shrugged.
"We'll
figure something out?! I don't believe this," Jenkens shook his
head in frustration.
"She's
not here, Park," Taggart spoke up.
"What
do you mean she's not here?" both Park and Jenkens demanded at
the same time.
"I
mean she's gone."
"How
do you know?" Jenkens asked.
"Because
he just does," Park stated. "Where did she go?"
Taggart
shrugged.
"Great,
just great," Jenkens shook his head. "I can't believe I got
myself into this."
A
synthetic voice broke in over the radio, "Unidentified shuttle,
state your business."
Jenkens
raised his eyebrows at Park, expecting a response from him. "Uhh..."
"Tell
him we are not staying," Taggart suggested. "And do it
quickly."
"All
this way for nothing," Jenkens grumbled, turning around in his
chair. "Patrol, we are just verifying coordinates for our
Hyperspace jump, and will be out of your hair in mere minutes."
"You
are requested to accompany me to the surface."
"Uh,
negative, there, Patrol. We have no business on Coruscant."
"You
will accompany me to the surface, or be destroyed, Alliance shuttle."
"Brilliant
idea this was, Park," Jenkens spat. "Alright Patrol, lead
the way."
Taggart
leaned back, closing his eyes. "This is not good."
"Can't
you do something?" Park pleaded.
"We're
in a tractor beam," Jenkens and Taggart replied in unison.
Park
slumped in the chair. "I have a bad
feeling about this."
* *
*
"So,
Maul, where are we going?" Lou inquired, sitting in the
co-pilot's seat.
"Where
would you like to go?"
She
shrugged. "I don't know the galaxy as well as you do, Maul.
You're a better judge than me."
Silence
followed. Lou watched the streaking stars pass.
Maul
asked, "Why are you not sleeping?"
"I
had a strange dream. Couldn't get back to sleep."
"Tell
me about it."
Lou
shook her head. "No, I want to sort it out for myself first."
"I
could easily read it from your mind."
"I
know. But you won't."
He
met her eyes. "No, I won't."
"Thank
you."
S'Ritak
Vedul completed his transmission back to Raef Caylon. He sat back, a
slight grin on his face at how easy it was to keep his Master in the
dark. Palpatine had more power than the young Twi'Lek could ever
imagine to control himself. But how long before Maul begins
to suspect something?
Palpatine's
overall plan ran deeper than Vedul knew, but that did not matter to
the apprentice. He was proud to be in direct service to the Emperor.
The
new information passed onto Vedul by Caylon was simply to take
Jareena to Aria to rendezvous with another operative, a certain
Trepur Espen and Corrina Simpson, both humans. Vedul intended to
change their course after Maul had gone to sleep, which he hoped
would be soon. The girl would not know the difference.
S'Ritak,
Maul's voice interrupted his thoughts. It is your turn to
take control of my ship. Be careful with it.
Of
course, my Master. Vedul rose
from the chair, and pressed the door release. He walked the five feet
to the cockpit, and switched seats with Maul.
"Jareena,
are you going to come to bed?" Maul asked her. She laughed, and
he rolled his eyes. "I didn't mean with me." Vedul laughed
at this as well. "S'Ritak," Maul's tone was threatening.
"Sorry,
Master."
Lou
looked out the window at the stars, then back at Maul. "Yeah,
alright, sleep sounds good."
The
pair left the apprentice in charge of their voyage. He waited until
he sensed that they were whispering, before he altered the course to
take the Sith Infiltrator II
to the planet Aria.
Lou
lay on the cot with her eyes closed. Maul was snoring softly in the
cot beside hers. She felt the ship change direction, a sixth sense
she had honed as a pilot. She decided not to worry about it, though.
If Maul trusted his apprentice, then so would she.
She
sighed and rolled onto her side, facing him. "My dream was about
Morty. He was in trouble. Him, and Jenkens and Taggart. I don't know
where they were, it was too dark to see anything. But Caylon was
there. I could feel him. I could hear him laughing. Morty - "
she choked on the words, stopped, then started again, "Morty was
dying. He was in such pain. I felt that, too, Maul. It was so real,
like it was happening now.
How can that be?"
Maul
propped himself on one elbow. "It was just a dream. It does not
mean anything."
"Was
it? Was it just a dream, Maul? I'm not so sure."
Maul
pondered for a moment, an idea toying in his mind. Perhaps
she is a Force-user. "Jareena,
would you permit me to take a Medichlorian count?"
"A
what?"
"Medichlorians
are the symbiotic creatures that give me my special abilities."
"You
think I might have these special abilities, too?"
"Well,
you must train to perfect your skills; you don't wake up at your full
potential one morning. It takes years, decades," he paused,
watching her expression. "But I think you may have the
capability to train. As I have."
"It
always comes back to you, Maul," she smiled.
He
narrowed his eyes at her, then got up off the cot. He opened an
overhead compartment, and took out a medikit. He set it on the cot
beside Lou, then flipped open the lid. Maul took out a blood testing
device, and pressed it into Lou's palm. She flinched at the slight
prick.
Maul
put the drops of blood into the scanner. They waited for the results.
He
noticed that she was worried, he could sense the knot in her stomach.
She feared that, if she was like him, her vision would come true.
"How
long will this take?" Lou asked him.
"A
few minutes."
"Good."
"Do
not worry, Jareena. If what you had was indeed a vision, we can
prevent its occurrence."
"I
hope so," she laid back down, waiting, and watching him.
Maul
looked like he was meditating, sitting cross-legged on the floor, as
the scanner did its work.
Park
and his companions are in more trouble than she realizes.
Lou
sat up quickly. "Wh-what did you say?"
Maul's
head snapped around, the sound of her voice pulling him out of his
Force-induced trance. "I said nothing."
"Yes,
you did! I heard you!
You said Morty was in trouble. What do you know, Maul?" she
demanded, anger mixed with fear for her friend's well-being taking
over her emotions.
"I
did not say anything, Jareena," he remembered thinking that Park
was on his way into grave danger. Emperor Palpatine had sensed him,
Taggart and Jenkens as soon as their ship had entered Coruscant's
orbit, and ordered them captured.
"We
have to help them. Maul, we have to go back! He-he thought I was in
trouble, and he came out to get me," she was pacing. "If
anything happens to Morty, I - it would be my fault."
Maul
took hold of her by her arms. "Nothing
is going to happen to them, I promise."
She
could tell by his eyes that he meant it. Something had changed in
him, she felt it now. Maul cared for her. He was not on a path to use
her, then leave her, as she had thought back in his apartment.
Lou
kissed him softly, sweetly. Maul seemed uncertain at first, but he
soon felt her intentions through the Force. He moved his hands up her
arms, along her shoulders and neck, then held her face. Slow and easy
was a new experience for him; he had never cared about the females he
was with before, or how they felt after making love.
"Maul,
we shouldn't do this. If Palpatine found out - "
"Shh.
I don't care," he shook his head. "Besides, chances are he
already knows."
Lou
smiled at him, and he kissed her again.
* *
*
Park,
Jenkens, and Taggart walked single file, hands bound behind their
backs, flanked by Stormtroopers. They had been waiting on the surface
when the shuttle and the patrol ship had landed. Taggart had
instructed the other two not to speak to anyone they met on the
planet until they knew what it was they were being held for. The
obvious answer was, of course, simply that the three were Alliance
members, but Taggart felt that there was something else in the air.
An
Imperial officer - an admiral, Taggart guessed - approached them and
their entourage. He indicated for Park and Jenkens to be taken to
separate holding cells, then, as they were dragged away, the admiral
turned to Taggart. "Emperor Palpatine would like to see you,
Kenobi," he grinned, betraying how much he knew about the other
and his fate.
Park
heard the name dropped, and he tore away from the Stormtroopers.
"Kenobi? Obi-Wan
Kenobi? The Jedi?"
The
troopers got a hold of him again. He struggled against them, wanting
his answer before he was locked up. One of the troopers smacked Park
in the back of his head with the end of his blaster. He slumped to
the deck.
"Your
companions don't know who you are? How interesting," the admiral
dismissed them. "Be careful, lads, this one's a special case.
He'll knock you dead before you know what's happening."
Emperor
Palpatine gazed out his office window, his eyes taking in the endless
city before him. He was happy. An emotion he rarely allowed himself,
but in this case it was different. He had Obi-Wan Kenobi in custody.
The very man who had eluded the old Sith for three years.
The
doors hissed open.
"Stay
outside the door in case I have need of you," the Emperor told
the crimson-clad guards. He had not even turned around yet.
The
Imperials bowed in synchronization, then left their Master and his
prisoner alone.
"It's
been a long time, Senator," the captive was the first to speak.
"You haven't aged well."
Palpatine
turned to face Kenobi. "Yes, well, these times we live in are
difficult ones."
"Only
because you make them so."
"Only
because you make them
so. I do not lead a rebellion, Obi-Wan. I lead the revolution, the
new future is under my control."
"You're
a tyrant, Palpatine. You always have been. Had I more training and
trust in my instincts I would have killed you years ago. Before you
were ever elected Supreme Chancellor."
"No
use dwelling on the past, is
there?" the old man smiled his thin smile. "Although, I am
curious to hear what you
have been up to these past years. You disappeared. Thrown out by the
Jedi Council?"
"I
quit. I wanted no part in the battles that tore the galaxy apart. I
left."
Palpatine
probed the man before him. "You had a wife?"
"Killed
by one of your spies."
"Recently."
"She
will be avenged."
"That's
not a very Jedi-like thing to say."
"I'm
not a Jedi anymore."
"It
must have been hard, turning your back on the Council when they
needed you most? How cowardly of you."
Kenobi
remained silent. He had harbored the guilt of his betrayal for years.
Hearing it stated so bluntly added salt to the wound.
Palpatine
pulled him out of his reflections. "Tell me about her, Obi-Wan.
Talk to me as old acquaintances should. Was she worth it?"
"I
will not speak of my wife with you,
Palpatine."
"Well,
then let's find something we can speak of."
Jenkens
examined the lock on the door. It appeared to be a standard
electronic key-code lock, eight digits creating the magic access
number. However the keys were on the other side of the room, and
neither he not Park could reach them.
Park,
on the other hand, was seated cross-legged on the floor. He was
sifting through everything he knew about Raine Taggart, trying to
figure out how he could possibly be Obi-Wan Kenobi. It definitely
explained the extra-sensory perception.
"Did
you know that Taggart was a Jedi?" Park asked Jenkens' back.
"If
you didn't know, how do you figure I would've?"
"Good
point," he nodded. "I wonder if Captain Lindsey knew."
"Don't
waste all your wondering on the first hour. Unless you can reach
that control panel over there, and
you know the eight digit passcode to open the door, we're gonna be
here for awhile."
"Sure,
I'll just use my five foot long tongue to reach it..." he said
sarcastically. "Ah, we'll just be here until they kill us,
anyway."
"I
think we're bait."
"Are
you a Jedi, too, Jenkens? 'Cause if you are, I wanna know right
now."
"No,
Park, I'm not a Jedi. If I was, I could open this door without any
effort."
"Think
so? Maybe when they bring Taggart back - "
"They
won't bring him back, Park. If you
figured out that he can get us out, I'm positive
they already know."
"What's
that s'posed to mean?"
Jenkens ignored him. "Jenkens?" Still nothing.
"Jenkens!"
He
just shook his head in amusement.
* *
*
"Welcome
one and all to Aria," Captain Giles announced over the ship's
comm. "We will be landing within the hour."
Deanna
smiled at Breckin. "Dad always does that."
He
shrugged. The two were sitting on the Observations Deck, watching
the stars go by.
"He
must have flown like a maniac to get you guys here in nine hours."
Breckin nodded. "So, what's your relationship with Simpson
like?"
"Uh,
relationship? Well, it's...it's...just sex, really," he averted
his eyes. "I think she's using me, but I haven't figured out
what for, yet."
"Oh,"
Deanna tried not to look happy.
"Yeah,
she doesn't really care about me, you know? The only time she pays
any attention to me is when she's boinking me. The rest of the time
I might as well not exist."
"That
sucks," she moved closer to him.
"I
would tell her off, but...well..."
"It's
better than nothing?" she offered.
"Yeah,"
he nodded. "Yes, exactly. It's better than nothing. Exactly."
He met her gaze, but was confused by the amused grin on her face.
"What?"
"Oh,
come on, Lance. We've spent eight and three quarters of the last
nine hours talking. If you haven't figured it out yet..." she
shook her head.
A
smile made its way across his lips. "Why?"
"'Cause
you're sexy, Babe. And you have a sexy voice. And you're
interesting and funny. You know a lot of stuff. You listen to me.
You're not a drone, like a lot of other people."
"Are
you kidding? I'm a loser! My own Captain
never gets my name right! Come to think of it, neither does my
girlfriend! Trust me, you can do better."
"Why
don't you let me be
the judge of that, 'kay?"
He
arched his eyebrow at her. "Okay, if you really - "
She
kissed him before he could finish his sentence.
Wesley
watched in horror as his twin sister smooched that Broccoli-guy they
had picked up. He rarely spied on Deanna anymore, but sometimes he
could not help it. He felt obligated to look out for her, and
occasionally to step in when he thought she was making a bad judgment
call.
This
was definitely a bad
judgment call.
Wesley
exited his quarters, stepping out into the dimly lit hallway. That's
odd, he thought, turning left to
go to the Observations Deck.
"Hey,
Wesley!" Espen called down the hall to him.
"Oh,
great," he muttered, turning around. "What do you want
now?"
"To
apologize, Boy," Espen jogged up to him. Wesley folded his arms
across his chest skeptically. "Yeah, I'm sorry for beating you
up and knocking you around and all that."
"Why?"
he stayed guarded; Espen was hiding something behind his back.
"Because,"
Espen grabbed Wesley's arm, and drove a hypo into the exposed flesh.
"This is worse."
"HEY!"
he tried to pull away, but it was too late. Wesley could already
feel whatever it was taking its course. He broke out in a sweat,
feeling light-headed, dizzy. "What the hell did you..."
his voice trailed off. He was having trouble staying upright.
"You'll
see. Now let's go find your dad," Espen flung the young man
over his shoulder, and carried him to the Bridge.