Epilogue - Bandomeer
Time has passed since I received Obi-Wan's letter and finally I feel capable to tell you the end.
You now know how Obi-Wan and I parted and you know the reasons he gave for it. I doubt him though, even now, even if it is bad to speak ill of the dead. I do not understand why and I am angry at the Spider, at myself, at the King, at MacLeane; but most of all, I am angry with Obi-Wan. Unfair, I know, but that is how I feel. He failed when it mattered the most and now the Jedi is dead, the Spider and his accomplice are still free, Palpatine remains King and I am alone. My world is falling apart and it seems to me that the enemy is winning both within and without.
So I finally come to the final stage of this story and this shall be the last that I write because there is nothing else left in me or out there. This is how the Spider won, the Jedi died and how Lord Dooku came into my life.
My story began with a daring Jedi mission and so that is how I shall end it; with his last journey into the Fallens' lives. It all happened in Bandomeer- a southern region of Naboo.
Obi-Wan knew Amidala was under threat from the Spider. MacLeane told me of the night the Jedi had seen the Spider and his accomplice, and like me, Obi-Wan refused to tell him who the Spider was. The Spider had really gotten under Obi-Wan's skin; he had pushed his way into our lives. The Jedi decided it was time to push back.
A member of the League had been captured. The Jedi let the mole know that he was going after their imprisoned comrade. On the day before the false rescue, the Jedi allowed himself to be arrested for some minor offence. The soldiers took him to the prison where he waited a night and a day. On the second night he freed himself from his cell.
The Jedi crept along dark corridors to the cell where his League member was being held. They waited together, but dawn approached with no sign of the Spider. With no time left, the Jedi decided it was time to leave. The Jedi opened the cell door, and as he did so, a blade slid into his back. The Jedi turned to look at his former ally.
"He offered me money," was the only explanation given.
The cell door opened from the outside and the Spider stepped in.
"Sorry, Jedi, but your tricks will not work on me." He drew his sword slowly. "I win."
The wound to the Jedi's back was not fatal; he could have survived with just another scar. It was not enough for the Spider. Slowly he pushed his sword's tip into the Jedi's stomach.
"As you lie there, Jedi, I hope your lies comfort you in this moment." The Spider left him there to die. He and the League betrayer fled in the morning light, leaving the sign of the Spider in their wake.
It did not take the guards long to find him, weak and vulnerable as he was. They could see that he would not live long, yet still they sent for MacLeane, who by some miracle, reached Bandomeer within the hour. The Jedi remained on the floor of that cell and his final words were not spoken to me, but to MacLeane. He spoke of betrayal and treachery, the only things that could ever defeat him; the man who defied a king, the man who no walls or bars could keep out and the man who was a symbol to the ever-hopeful died because of trust. He told MacLeane what had happened and then he died.
MacLeane did not send me a report, instead he came to my door in the middle of the night, having raced back to the capital, the body of the Jedi with him. The Liberators seized the Jedi's body and held it in the place where it was eventually burned.
With faltering words, MacLeane told me how Obi-Wan died. He assured me that no one yet knew the identity of the Jedi, though he was unsure how long that would remain. MacLeane kept me from the body, knowing that I would have to lie if asked his identity, or worse tell the truth, neither of which would be good for me. It brought the League some time to plan, to hide, and to decide what to do, now that their leader was dead. Eventually, the League broke up, disheartened by their most recent tragedy. I can't say I blame them, we all needed time, which is something we have, for now.
So, now I am back in Theed, back at my master's side. With the Jedi dead I no longer have a task to focus on and I find myself drifting. Maul is in Coruscant still as far as I am aware though with the Jedi dead his task is less urgent than it was. Now it is just a secret Palpatine is curious to know. The treat is gone; the rebels are divided, the League gone and I am even without MacLeane, a man who became my friend.
Our hero is dead, what shall we do now? What can we do? We need a leader, yet none can be found. We have a course with no direction. We are alone; we have no allies. So what now? What now?
When Dooku came to see me I had yet to be assigned a new case. I had scarcely stepped foot off the boat and returned to my rooms in Theed when his Lordship came to visit me there.
"Lord Jinn," he greeted me when I answered the door. "I hope you are well."
"Well enough, my Lord." And just as Obi-Wan had, I could hide myself behind masks; mine was usually a sneer, not a laugh, a scowl not a smile, contempt, not affection. I was as good as my Obi-Wan had ever been. "What can I do for you?"
"Since the Jedi's death, you have lost your post, and indeed your direction, yes?"
I did not answer his question but simply waited for him to continue.
"The Spider denied you the chance to complete your task and capture your nemesis. After all these years of hunting, it must be frustrating."
Once again he paused, waiting for some kind of response from me. I gave him none.
"I like that about you, Jinn, you're strong and give nothing away. I have a proposition for you - come and be on my team and have the opportunity to find the one who denied you your victory. A man such as yourself needs a worthy advisory, and with the Jedi gone, who does that leave?"
The connection between the Jedi and the Spider was still unknown. It was thought that the Spider and Jedi accidentally went for the same victim and the Spider had won their confrontation. I thought about the proposal. I did not want to work for somebody else, however, he was giving me the chance to get the one who had destroyed me and Obi-Wan's happiness and then killed my beloved. I could search with enthusiasm, with my peers believing it was because of my stolen victory. Only one would know the real reason for my search and he, too, would welcome the chance to find his friend's killer.
"I only have one demand," I said at last. "I want my partner to be Lieutenant MacLeane."
Time has passed since I received Obi-Wan's letter and finally I feel capable to tell you the end.
You now know how Obi-Wan and I parted and you know the reasons he gave for it. I doubt him though, even now, even if it is bad to speak ill of the dead. I do not understand why and I am angry at the Spider, at myself, at the King, at MacLeane; but most of all, I am angry with Obi-Wan. Unfair, I know, but that is how I feel. He failed when it mattered the most and now the Jedi is dead, the Spider and his accomplice are still free, Palpatine remains King and I am alone. My world is falling apart and it seems to me that the enemy is winning both within and without.
So I finally come to the final stage of this story and this shall be the last that I write because there is nothing else left in me or out there. This is how the Spider won, the Jedi died and how Lord Dooku came into my life.
My story began with a daring Jedi mission and so that is how I shall end it; with his last journey into the Fallens' lives. It all happened in Bandomeer- a southern region of Naboo.
Obi-Wan knew Amidala was under threat from the Spider. MacLeane told me of the night the Jedi had seen the Spider and his accomplice, and like me, Obi-Wan refused to tell him who the Spider was. The Spider had really gotten under Obi-Wan's skin; he had pushed his way into our lives. The Jedi decided it was time to push back.
A member of the League had been captured. The Jedi let the mole know that he was going after their imprisoned comrade. On the day before the false rescue, the Jedi allowed himself to be arrested for some minor offence. The soldiers took him to the prison where he waited a night and a day. On the second night he freed himself from his cell.
The Jedi crept along dark corridors to the cell where his League member was being held. They waited together, but dawn approached with no sign of the Spider. With no time left, the Jedi decided it was time to leave. The Jedi opened the cell door, and as he did so, a blade slid into his back. The Jedi turned to look at his former ally.
"He offered me money," was the only explanation given.
The cell door opened from the outside and the Spider stepped in.
"Sorry, Jedi, but your tricks will not work on me." He drew his sword slowly. "I win."
The wound to the Jedi's back was not fatal; he could have survived with just another scar. It was not enough for the Spider. Slowly he pushed his sword's tip into the Jedi's stomach.
"As you lie there, Jedi, I hope your lies comfort you in this moment." The Spider left him there to die. He and the League betrayer fled in the morning light, leaving the sign of the Spider in their wake.
It did not take the guards long to find him, weak and vulnerable as he was. They could see that he would not live long, yet still they sent for MacLeane, who by some miracle, reached Bandomeer within the hour. The Jedi remained on the floor of that cell and his final words were not spoken to me, but to MacLeane. He spoke of betrayal and treachery, the only things that could ever defeat him; the man who defied a king, the man who no walls or bars could keep out and the man who was a symbol to the ever-hopeful died because of trust. He told MacLeane what had happened and then he died.
MacLeane did not send me a report, instead he came to my door in the middle of the night, having raced back to the capital, the body of the Jedi with him. The Liberators seized the Jedi's body and held it in the place where it was eventually burned.
With faltering words, MacLeane told me how Obi-Wan died. He assured me that no one yet knew the identity of the Jedi, though he was unsure how long that would remain. MacLeane kept me from the body, knowing that I would have to lie if asked his identity, or worse tell the truth, neither of which would be good for me. It brought the League some time to plan, to hide, and to decide what to do, now that their leader was dead. Eventually, the League broke up, disheartened by their most recent tragedy. I can't say I blame them, we all needed time, which is something we have, for now.
So, now I am back in Theed, back at my master's side. With the Jedi dead I no longer have a task to focus on and I find myself drifting. Maul is in Coruscant still as far as I am aware though with the Jedi dead his task is less urgent than it was. Now it is just a secret Palpatine is curious to know. The treat is gone; the rebels are divided, the League gone and I am even without MacLeane, a man who became my friend.
Our hero is dead, what shall we do now? What can we do? We need a leader, yet none can be found. We have a course with no direction. We are alone; we have no allies. So what now? What now?
When Dooku came to see me I had yet to be assigned a new case. I had scarcely stepped foot off the boat and returned to my rooms in Theed when his Lordship came to visit me there.
"Lord Jinn," he greeted me when I answered the door. "I hope you are well."
"Well enough, my Lord." And just as Obi-Wan had, I could hide myself behind masks; mine was usually a sneer, not a laugh, a scowl not a smile, contempt, not affection. I was as good as my Obi-Wan had ever been. "What can I do for you?"
"Since the Jedi's death, you have lost your post, and indeed your direction, yes?"
I did not answer his question but simply waited for him to continue.
"The Spider denied you the chance to complete your task and capture your nemesis. After all these years of hunting, it must be frustrating."
Once again he paused, waiting for some kind of response from me. I gave him none.
"I like that about you, Jinn, you're strong and give nothing away. I have a proposition for you - come and be on my team and have the opportunity to find the one who denied you your victory. A man such as yourself needs a worthy advisory, and with the Jedi gone, who does that leave?"
The connection between the Jedi and the Spider was still unknown. It was thought that the Spider and Jedi accidentally went for the same victim and the Spider had won their confrontation. I thought about the proposal. I did not want to work for somebody else, however, he was giving me the chance to get the one who had destroyed me and Obi-Wan's happiness and then killed my beloved. I could search with enthusiasm, with my peers believing it was because of my stolen victory. Only one would know the real reason for my search and he, too, would welcome the chance to find his friend's killer.
"I only have one demand," I said at last. "I want my partner to be Lieutenant MacLeane."