Star Wars: Infinities – The Apprentice
Chapter 15
By: Christopher W. Blaine (darth_yoshi@yahoo.com)
DISCLAIMER: The characters and situations contained in this story are used without permission for non-profit entertainment purposes only and are ©2002 by George Lucas. This story (pertaining to this chapter and all subsequent chapters) is ©2002 by Christopher W. Blaine and may not be reproduced in any form, except hard printouts for personal enjoyment, without the express permission of the author.
It was a dark rain that fell onto the statues of the long dead Dark Lords of the Sith, a chilling rain that sent ice to the bones for those who stood in it. Ki Adi Mundi raised his head, trying to see if he could see anything through the thick haze of gray and black that swirled overhead. The spirits of the dead were getting more restless, some of them even having appeared before the Jedi warning them of their impending deaths if they did not leave Korriban at once.
No longer was it the minor figures of Sith lore that decided to haunt them, now it was the most ancient of them, the very first Sith wizards whose names were lost forever. Mace Windu had stood his ground before them, claiming that if the dark side were so powerful that Palpatine and his minions would have no trouble dealing with three lowly Jedi.
Ki did not know if he agreed. You did not hunt by going to the prey's lair. You ambushed the prey where it least expected it; the lair is what it would protect the most and stop at nothing to defeat the hunter. He put a hand on his lightsaber, reassuring himself that he had some protection. With all of the dark side energy of this place, there was no telling what he could encounter.
He shook his head, slinging raindrops to either side. He recognized the fears that were slowly creeping into his mind. There were no monsters here; it was a dead world representing dead ideals.
"No, that isn't quite right," he whispered. Palpatine had not gained power solely through use of the dark side. He preached values that appealed to many. He ignited long dead fires of prejudice, biases that had been put down by forced political correctness. Was it wrong for a species to dislike another, to be enraged by the culture of another society? Was that not what life was about, the infinite structures that the Force formed?
Was it natural to seek peace, or was it natural for the strongest to survive?
The Jedi had helped Palpatine the most in that they had helped keep individuality out of the Republic. Everyone was expected to act the same, obey the same rules and have the same manners. The people had finally rejected that when Palpatine had made his move. The people had no frame of reference; they did not understand the meaning of hatred guiding their actions. For a thousand years, the Jedi had worked very hard to promote unity as opposed to individuality.
Maybe it was the wrong philosophy. Perhaps a better one, such as what Frie Ovos, Qui-Gon Jinn and even Count Dooku had suggested, was the way things should be done. Unity was fine when it served the greater good, but individuality should not be suppressed. Jedi candidates were turned away if they, like young Anakin Skywalker, were too old to be made to conform to the Jedi ideals. Instead of taking in a variety of different people to enhance the Order, it had turned away those it could not control.
There was no malice involved in it, Ki was sure of that. Master Yoda and the rest of the Council had only been doing what they thought was correct, himself included. That was the problem; instead of seeing if they were right, they just assumed it, even when people like Qui-Gon Jinn questioned every edict and decision.
Had Qui-Gon Jinn lived, would the horror that was now Palpatine's New Order even existed? Would Anakin Skywalker now be a great Jedi warrior? Ki could not answer those questions, though he desperately sought the answers. He knew that of they survived this test of Jedi faith that changes would have to be made. No one, regardless of age, was to be turned away. The teachings of the Jedi needed to be based more on experience than doctrine. Assigning padawans was fine, so long as they got to do more than follow around their teachers saying "yes, master" and "no, master" and "whatever you wish, master".
"Be mindful of the living Force," Qui-Gon used to say. Examine life as it was happening, not as it you wished it to be. Do not try to bend the future to your will, but go with the flow, accept your destiny and make the best of it. For too long, the Jedi Council had concerned itself with minor events in the present and too much about the future.
At some point, who knows when, the Jedi lost touch with the people who had placed them so high above themselves. The Jedi stopped serving the galaxy and began to serve themselves. It wasn't for domination, it was for peace of mind. Instead of training young Anakin, even though it would be difficult, they had just given up. They had sent him off to an orphanage to give themselves peace of mind.
"At least he's not a slave anymore," Ki had said when the Council had voted. It had given him peace of mind, serenity in the knowledge that Anakin's life was now much better. How arrogant! The boy had come to them with a dream and a hope and received a rebuke instead.
"Maybe we deserve this," he said to the sky.
"Maybe we do, but the galaxy does not," Mace responded as he stepped out of the shelter of an old temple. "Frie is making dinner."
Ki visibly paled. "We were born to suffer."
Mace nodded. "Your thoughts betray you, my friend. What we did was wrong, but the galaxy should not pay for our mistake. This is not about Sith versus Jedi, order versus chaos…it isn't anything so grand. It is about a single man's desire for power."
"But the Jedi were put into place to prevent such a thing," Ki argued.
"And we failed. For the first time in a thousand years, we failed. Now, we must right the wrong or die trying, that is our duty." Mace pulled up his hood to cover himself from the pouring rain. "Once this is done…we will not be reforming the Order."
Ki looked shocked. "What?"
Mace shook his head. "We will allow the individual masters to take on students and those students will go on to train more."
Ki crossed his arms over his chest and scowled at his friend. "If you want to go run and hide, live in solitude, go right ahead. The Order will be reformed if I have anything to say about it. It will just be run differently."
"Then I will have no part of it," Mace said, sorrow in his voice. He turned and went back into the temple and Ki realized what he had just done.
He had voted Mace Windu off of the Jedi Council and started a whole new order. He shook his head and looked back up at the rain. The clouds seemed to be just a little bit darker.
Padme slipped quietly out of the bed and padded on bare feet to the refresher at the other end of the cabin. The ship barely vibrated under her feet, the only hint that they were racing through hyperspace towards Imperial Center, the new name for Coruscant. She closed the door before turning on the light and then look at herself in the mirror.
She seemed to be the same petite and trim woman she had been when she first met her husband after their ten-year separation, but there were some subtle changes. Her eyes seemed darker, but she found it pleasing because she no longer looked innocent. She suppressed a chuckle. Innocent was the last thing she was if the previous night of lovemaking had anything to do with it.
The tattoo she had started just under her left breast was still sensitive to the touch, but she wore it like a badge of honor. It symbolized her ascension to another level in her training. For the Jedi, training could take years. Not so with the Sith and she found it refreshing. For too long she had been forced to wait for everything, but now she no longer wanted to wait. Every minute with Anakin was like something she could grab out of the air and hold. He had awakened passions in her that she had kept buried for so long and now she had an outlet.
She smiled, remembering how she used her powers to force a general to admit that he wasn't deploying his forces faster because he was jealous of Vader's position. That man had been her first kill with the Force, the trial that had earned her the mark now adorning her lower chest and abdomen.
She examined the red jewel on the ring she had been presented with by Palpatine on her wedding night. A piece of the Kaiburr Crystal, an ancient gem that amplified the Force. This small stone gave her power she would not have had before. Instead of manifesting in her character, the Force was now a club she could use to smash her enemies.
"Enemies," she mouthed silently. It felt good to say the word. As queen, she had pick words that didn't offend others. As a senator, she had to do it twice as often. As a Sith, she could say what she wanted when she wanted and to hell with their feelings!
She turned to look at her side profile. It wasn't showing yet, but in time it would. She still hadn't told Anakin, not sure how he would react. He loved her, she knew that and could feel it every time he looked at her. The idea of children, however, she wasn't sure of. Did he want a family? He hadn't said. Were Sith allowed to have children? She had heard stories about Sith children being deformed and that thought frightened her.
If the dark side allowed so many wrongs to be corrected, how could it hurt a child? She wanted to ask him, but was fearful of what he would say. She needed the advice of someone and the only person she could think of was Palpatine. He had always shown a keen interest in her and he was knowledgeable about such things.
She turned back and traced the outline of the purple and silver artwork with her finger, thinking what the next one would be like. Anakin had suggested something on her back and with a devil-may-care grin had added it was always what he wanted to see adorned anyway.
She finished her business and then exited the refresher. Sliding back under the covers, she drifted off to sleep without any trouble.
"Her name shall be Mara," Lindia said as she gazed at her child for the first and last time.
Bail nodded and patted her hand. "I will raise her as my own, hiding her here on Alderaan away from the prying eyes of the Emperor."
Ferrin stood off in the corner, maintaining a protective watch over Lindia. The labor had been extremely difficult, but the Jedi had pulled through. The healer had said after a few days of rest, she would be able to leave. "She must never know of her heritage."
"She is strong in the Force," Ferrin interrupted. Lindia's decision to give her child up still bothered him. It felt like admitting defeat. "At least stipulate that if Palpatine's New Order is toppled she can then be informed."
Lindia shook her head and pleaded with Bail. "No, let her be a princess; let her live a normal life of love and parties."
"I promise," Bail responded. "She will be a princess and I will protect her with my life."
Ferrin was unimpressed. "If it were my child, this would not be happening!"
Lindia turned to her so-called champion. "It will be a cold day in hell before any woman wants to have your baby…by the Force!" She sat up and then shook her head slowly. "I have a mouth too large for brain."
Ferrin smiled. He had glimpsed it as well. One could never say when the future would be revealed, or a possible outcome of events. The Force acted strangely on that, twisting and turning though time, occasionally rounding a bend and giving the viewer a small opportunity to see what was on ahead.
Lindia had spoken out of turn and he took some measure of comfort in that he at least now had some idea of his future and it didn't seem so bad. She looked over at him and he wiggled his eyebrows, and then she started to cry. Bail wanted to ask, but he got the sense that the tears being shed were not so much of fear, hatred or joy, but of irony.
Had he the ability to read into the Force, to sense those things that the Jedi could, he would have seen a future where Ferrin and Lindia would produce a son.
A very powerful son.
Darth Maul sat alone in his private chambers, awaiting his master's summons. The Force was churning, a great disturbance was at hand, a prophetic moment had just occurred and he wasn't sure what it was.
It could be anything for the Force did not discern between light and dark when it was disturbed. Like a pond with a stone cast in it, it sent ripples out that affected all who were in tune to it. An ending was coming to the drama that had started with the invasion of Naboo.
There were times when Maul considered that he should have struck down Anakin Skywalker that night Dooku had brought him to be initiated into the Sith. The Dark Lord knew of the prophecy of the one who would bring balance to the Force, but was Skywalker really that child or a harbinger of things to come.
An able apprentice he was and powerful in the Force, even more than himself he admitted reluctantly. He lacked the focus to wield his power properly. Always concerned with the here and now and never looking at the future. Always willing to listen to any advice that comes his way, but never forming an opinion of his own.
He was not worthy of the title of Dark Lord Maul had decided. His following of the woman, with his nose stuck in her posterior like an oversexed canine was not befitting one who would wield the dark side. Maul had tried to train Anakin correctly, but the boy clung to his emotions and the man was no better.
It was time to end this. Maul would rid the universe of the bastard child of the Force and take his apprentice for his own. The woman, while too thin and delicate for more suitable purposes that females were designed for, but she would be a useful tool. It had been too long since there had been a woman who could properly use the dark side and compete for the title of Dark Lord.
He tried to look into the future, to see if he would be successful, but the Force was churning still. He would simply have to make do with creating a future as opposed to waiting for it.