Star Wars Infinities: The Master

Chapter 11

By: Christopher W. Blaine

e-mail: darth_yoshi@yahoo.com

DISCLAIMER: All of the characters and situations contained in this story are ©2003 by LucasFilm Ltd. They are used here without permission for fan-related entertainment purposes only. This original story is ©2003 by Christopher W. Blaine.

"Master, I don't think I understand," Corran said, trying his best to hold his temper in check. Normally very even-tempered, he only got upset when he felt he was being kept out of the loop. Before becoming a Jedi, he had been a member of CorSec, working underneath his legendary father Hal Horn. If anything, it was his greatest flaw. Corran was naturally courageous and the idea of retreating did not sit well with him when he wasn't sure what he was running from.

"It is very simple, Corran," Kyp said. "Master Durron and Master Vos require your presence back on Tatooine. The political situation is getting worse and they fear what could happen. The Corellians are wanting to attack their home system now that the Death Star has left."

Corran shook his head. "It's suicide! Daala would have left a fleet there. It's a trap!"

Kyp merely shrugged. He understood that Corran was more likely upset that he had not been contacted about the changing situation. Perhaps accepting the Jedi way of life had distanced him from his fellow Corellians, but Kyp doubted very much that Corran had guessed it was that bad. Corran had no idea how much the Corellian people distrusted the Jedi. "When you decided to become a Jedi, you put yourself in a position of objectivity. All we can do is offer our support when it is asked."

He then turned to Leia, unsure of how to proceed. He could sense the Dark Side now as it hung like a fog over her head, but even his experienced senses could not discern its true nature. Was it coming from her he wondered? Her attitude had certainly changed over the course of the last few weeks, but didn't think it was possible she was turning. The Skywalker line always had a little of the Dark Side to it. "Do you have anything to comment on?" he asked bluntly.

She almost laughed. How easy it would have been to just let it all out. Her doubts about her impending marriage. Her hidden desires that she no longer wanted to keep buried. Her anger towards the New Republic over how they had treated her mother. "I wish you luck," she said.

"Why can't we go with you?" Corran asked, not satisfied to let sleeping banthas lie. "For five years we've been everywhere together and, no offense intended master, but I don't see what sort of mission you could be taking that is too dangerous for us."

"It is not about you, it is about the Jedi Order and the New Republic. The Jedi have chosen to ally with the Republic and the Republic needs us. My mission is not for padawans." He ran a hand through his dark hair, wishing that Corran would be amicable. Suddenly he saw Corran approaching him, rage in his eyes. Out of reflex, Kyp threw his hand out, using the Force to push his apprentice back. Even before Corran hit the floor, Kyp's lightsaber was up.

Leia ignited her own and stood between the two. "What the hell are you doing?" she screamed. There was pure rage in her eyes and Kyp found himself confused. He tried to explain that Corran had been attacking him, but she shook her head. "He was just standing there!"

Corran moaned and rolled onto his stomach. "I'm sorry, master; I was just thinking about how I wanted to beat the truth out of you…"

Kyp deactivated his weapon and moved over to help Corran up. Leia tried to stand in his way and there was a brief confrontation of wills. She finally relented but not before Kyp sensed the pure rage simmering inside of her. He helped Corran up. "How did you do that?" Kyp asked.

"I don't know what I did?" Corran confessed.

"You projected your thoughts into my mind visually."

The other man blushed. "I was just getting mad…I actually do that a lot." Kyp nodded and offered his own apologies. "I just want to help out," Corran said.

Kyp sighed and invited them both to sit down at the small table in the room. He could see that Leia was still angry. They sat at the table, Corran rubbing the back of his head and Leia buttoning one more button on her flightsuit. She had hastily thrown it on when Kyp had buzzed their room chime.

"I think I have a lead on a new Sith, the man who may have kidnapped my sister, Mara," Kyp told them. Leia stiffened. For most of her life, she had been led to believe that Mara Mothma had been her half-sister. It was only after the civil war had started and she had been able to get the full story of her parentage from her mother did she find out Mara was actually Kyp's half-sister. "It is feared that it may be a trap to lead Leia into the clutches of Luke Skywalker."

"I can handle my brother," she lied. The truth was she greatly feared confronting him. Her mother's description of him was enough to turn even the strongest warrior pale. Soontir Fel had confirmed those descriptions as well.

"Perhaps," Kyp offered, but her eyes did not soften. He was now questioning the wisdom of leaving her alone with Corran. The other Jedi apprentice looked at his fiancé with rose-colored glasses, Kyp knew, and he always had. Corran was the type of man who treated the woman he loved with total devotion and respect. "However, all of the Imperial activity around us can't be simple coincidence. I've been authorized to request that Dash and Lando escort you back to Tatooine where you will be assigned new duties until I return."

Leia's attitude suddenly changed. "It sounds like a good idea except for one thing: if the Empire is really after me," she then looked at Corran, "or any of us…remember that we're all valuable to them…then maybe we should separate. Give them more than one target."

Kyp tried to get a read on her but got nothing but a red haze. Leia's emotions were running high and he considered that maybe she was fearful that her brother was after her. "It sounds good," Kyp decided. He hoped by including her suggestion in the final decision she would lighten up. It seemed to help tremendously and she visibly relaxed, even smiled.

"I guess I'll go with Lando," she offered.

Corran shook his head and Kyp got the brief picture of Lando smooth-talking Leia into bed. Kyp was not sure what this new talent was but he made a mental note to consult his father on it. It was a powerful gift that almost made up for Corran's lack of other Force-talents. "I'd prefer Dash keep an eye on you; he's a warrior and good man."

Leia almost purred when she agreed. "Of course, darling; whatever you say."

Luke Skywalker slowly opened his eyes and scowled. He had been doing his best to subtly influence his sister by bringing to light the motions she kept long buried. While killing her would have been extremely enjoyable, Luke knew that turning her to the Dark Side would first humiliate her and second would cause great pain to his mother.

His bottom lip trembled as he thought about the woman who had bought him into this universe. For the first eighteen years of his life he had regarded her as the perfect example of motherhood. She had taught him to be strong, had told him to remember his father, a great man who had been betrayed by his master. How like his father he was now, Luke thought. His mother had turned on him just as quickly as Darth Maul had when he and Anakin Skywalker had fought on Korriban.

He wondered what it was that motivated such people to do the things they did. Luke understood power, but he also understood the hierarchy of it. He was the apprentice and Lord Ravage was the master. In time, if he did what he was supposed to, Luke would be the master for surely Lord Ravage could not live forever. From the way his health went from robust to poor, Luke assumed he would be in control of the Empire prior to his 30th birthday.

The door opened and Fresca stepped in. Luke immediately sent a thought-probe into her mind. She fell to her knees and gave a small whimper as he used mental fingers to fondle everything from her most recent encounter with Kyp Durron to her first romantic experience. He found a psychic door there and with barely a push he opened it and her soul was laid bare to him.

He saw that she had been raped at a young age and he considered wiping the memory away. It would have been for her own good he mused and besides, he often enjoyed tearing out a memory or two to see how it affected a person. Luke smiled and instead took the memory out and laid it on the floor of her mind so that she would dwell on it.

There was a tear in her eye as she stood up and she said nothing. Luke merely smiled and shrugged. There was no need for her to report; he had all of the information he needed. Fresca, now wrapped in the despair of reliving a most horrible event, ran into the bedroom and slammed the door. The two burly bodyguards moved to go get her out of the room but Luke held up a hand. "She is not feeling well," he joked as he got out of his chair.

He moved across the room and picked up his black cape. It was a flair for the dramatic he had picked up after his ascension to Dark Apprentice. He held out a hand and his lightsaber flew across the room to his hand and he clipped it to his belt. "Contact the rest of our agents; our targets are getting ready to leave. I want the Jedi taken alive no matter the cost."

The two men nodded and immediately exited the room to carry out their orders. Luke went by the closed door to the bedroom and put an ear to it. He could have easily reached through the Force to sense her pain but sometimes the more mundane way was sweeter. He could hear her crying and sobbing and he felt much better. A little despair before battle always helped.

As he stepped into the passageway where four more guards in civilian clothes fell in behind them. The walked casually through the city in the clouds looking to anybody who would cast a glance like some sort of criminal kingpin with his entourage.

As they moved towards the vehicles that would take them around the perimeter of the city to where the Jedi were at, Luke wondered if there was a reason he was being particularly cruel towards Fresca. Perhaps it was because he had detected her physical attraction towards Kyp Durron? Most likely he had done it because he could and that was that.

As they approached the landing pad, he caught sight of a ship he had read about but had never seen in person. It was an older law enforcement vehicle of Mandalorian design. The pilot in him was intrigued and he tried to remember where it was he had heard about such a ship. It was not something you saw everyday. The Mandalorian warriors were gone now and their weapons, ships and equipment were considered some of the greatest collectors items on the market.

He briefly considered ordering some of his men to go and investigate the vessel. Perhaps he could buy it or maybe he would simply force the owner to hand it over. At first, he dismissed the thought as fancy but the more he considered it, the more he liked it. He called his senior bodyguard to the front of the cabin where he sat; his other men sat in the back away from him.

He instructed the man with what he wanted and the he nodded. There would be no problem in getting the ship and then one of the men would fly it out of Bespin space into the awaiting star destroyer. All of his men were qualified pilots and were part of his personal squadron.

Luke smiled to himself as he mentally prepared for the coming battle. Today would be the day he gained revenge on his mother and got a classic starship in the process.

"Sir, I have finished the required transfer of credits to the private account," See-Threepio said from the communications station in the cargo hold. Chewbacca roared a reply and then activated the automated landing protocols. In order to land without being recorded, Jango had been forced to pay a bribe.

At first, the bounty hunter had been concerned that the person manning the flight control was not the individual he normally dealt with. Luckily, the man they had spoken to was receptive to being paid off and in a matter of seconds; three hundred credits were deposited into a private account at the Galactic Bank of Cloud City. "Over there," Jango said, pointing to a large Corellian freighter parked on the adjacent landing pad. "That's the Millennium Falcon, ship of the Jedi."

Chewbacca nodded and activated the military-surplus sensor package. It came back with some interesting results that were immediately transmitted down to Threepio's station. Jango had found that Threepio's programming allowed him to coax more information out of sensor data than the standard equipment allowed.

The golden protocol droid called up to the cockpit. "Master Jango, I'm afraid I do not understand some of these readings."

"That's a first," Jango joked. He started to laugh but stopped when his arm started to hurt. It had been getting worse lately, no doubt the result of decades of quickdraw reflexes. Age was catching up on him.

"The freighter is heavily modified with both organic and inorganic components. Some additions have been made to the shielding that are considered illegal even in the New Republic." Threepio always made it a point to indicate whenever their prey had more violations then their own ship. "There actually appears to be creatures affixed to the hull plating."

"Mynocks?" Jango asked as the hovered over their own landing pad. Slave 1, Jango's vessel, rotated so that the cockpit viewport was pointing straight towards the planet's north pole.

"Negative, Master Jango…I'm afraid the interface you have with the Encyclopedia Galactic cannot identify the exact species of any of the creatures." There were some bleeps and whistles as Threepio communicated with the droid brain of the communications system. Jango had modified it several years back by implanting an R5 astromech droid's processor inside the main computer. It had trouble conveying information through data screens and Threepio had found that speaking directly to it worked much better. "The computer believes that they are defensive weapons, perhaps some type of gravity-distortion devices. The sub-space field surrounding them is slightly out of alignment."

Chewbacca barked out a command and through his rudimentary knowledge of the Wookie tongue, the bounty hunter guessed his partner was telling their droid companion to quit theorizing and come up with something they could actually use. He glanced down at a secondary monitor that was for the outside cameras and he saw something odd. "Looks like we have company," he told Chewbacca.

The Wookie glanced over at the screen and nodded. "They move too well to be local security…those are Imperial operatives."

Chewbacca asked if Jango thought they were after them, but the Mandalorian shook his head. "There are no warrants for either of us in the Empire or CSA, but I think I know what they are after." It wasn't the first time someone had tried to take his ship. The war had really devastated the military and that had forced many planetary governments to confiscate civilian craft for their security.

That had caused the collector's market to open up as well because real naval fighters were blasting rare vehicles, pressed into military service, into dust. Jango could well imagine that some Imperial Moff on vacation had seen the ship coming in and had decided to take it for himself.

Two years before, Jango and Chewbacca had encountered a governor from the Tarkin Confederacy that had a love for pre-Empire security craft. That man's head was on display in Jango's private apartment deep in the Corporate Sector.

He had hoped to avoid any sort of conflict even though he knew that the Imperials had to be here. Booster Terrik had assured that with his constant broadcasts of the location of the hated Jedi. Jango still wondered about the wisdom of getting together with a bunch of "mind-rapists and spoon-benders" as one Hapan client had once put it, but he had no other reasonable choice. Five years had gone by and he was no closer to getting Malakie and everyone else involved in killing his son.

Slave 1 touched down and Threepio continued discussing the Millennium Falcon with the ship's computer and Chewbacca began putting the ship in standby mode. The outside camera showed at least eight well-armed men and women, all human, standing around the exit doors. There was no Cloud City security anywhere. Jango sighed and elbowed Chewbacca. "You ready, furball?"

Chewbacca gave him a quick lecture in Wookie preparedness for anything and they got out of their seats, climbed out of the cockpit and made their way into the cargo area. Opening up the weapons locker, Jango pulled out his favorite heavy blaster and Chewbacca elected to use his bowcaster. "Mind the store, Goldie," Jango ordered Threepio.

The loading ramp slowly lowered and the two partners exited the rear of the ship.

The stormtrooper captain looked at her men as they took position and nodded to her second-in-command as the back of the ship opened up. Two figures walked out, armed and confident. The Wookie was instantly recognizable, a member of one of the races fanatically dedicated to the New Republic. The second figure made a lump suddenly form in her throat that would no dislodge itself regardless of how hard she swallowed.

"Blasted Mandalorian," someone gasped from behind and she turned to throw a quick, hard stare at her men. Discipline had to be maintained. She should have expected it; it was a Mandalorian ship after all.

Jango stopped several feet away from her while Chewbacca hung even further back. He kept his blaster rifle slung low but ready. "Good day," Jango said in a pleasant voice. His helmet filter made it come out cold and mechanical.

"That's a nice ship you have there," the captain said, putting on her best smile. Unfortunately, years of combat duty had left her with a permanent scowl and there was nothing pretty about her visage. "I don't suppose you would consider selling it?"

"Do I look like I want to sell?"

Her smile faded away. "I suppose not," she said. "I'd like to say it would benefit us both if you did want to…I'm prepared to offer ten thousand credits."

Chewbacca roared and at least two of the civilian-garbed stormtroopers jumped. Jango smiled behind his helmet. These were soldiers used to being in armor, letting their appearance cower others. That told Jango many things about whom he faced. "Not very much, considering whom your employer is," he lied, trying to get some more clues. He knew they were Imperial stormtroopers, the elite soldiers of the New Order. But stormtroopers were assigned everywhere that even seemed remotely important. The fact they were not in armor meant nothing; they were simply part of a bodyguard detachment for someone important.

There were eight of them, however, and he assumed that they were, at the least, only half of the actual group assigned to protect their primary. That meant someone very high up or very important.

The captain thought that she might actually be able to negotiate the purchase of the ship, which would be a real coupe for her and a definite promotion to major. "I could probably go as high as twenty thousand…"

"That's still spare change for your boss. I'll tell you what…you have them contact me and we'll discuss terms…"

The exchange was ended when one of the younger troopers thought they saw Chewbacca starting to raise his weapon. Blaster fire erupted and Jango cursed the luck. He doubted he would be able to leave any of them alive in order to interrogate them. It was always good to know who was interested in what, especially in the New Order.

Chewbacca roared a standard hunting call and ran into a group of three troopers who were surprised to see the Wookie coming at them. Jango ignited his jet pack and soared high into the purple skies of Bespin. He fired two quick shots and was rewarded with one dead stormtrooper. The woman who had done the talking was moving towards Slave 1 and Jango had to admit he admired her bravery.

Then again, he pitied her for her stupidity as well.

"Mind the store" was the command code for activating the defensive subroutines that Jango had placed inside See-Threepio's memory. When he had first found the droid on Yavin 4, he had wondered if there was a practical use for a protocol model. It had occurred to him that nobody ever considered that type of droid a threat and that made them the perfect weapon.

The stormtrooper captain ran up the loading ramp and into the cargo area, looking for a way to the cockpit. If she could override the security protocols and get the ship in the air, she could fly it over to the other side where some of the shuttles could fly escort for her.

She skidded to a stop when the golden protocol droid approached her.

There was a flash from the rear of the ship and a spray of blood and bone. Jango shook his head, wondering how long it was going to take to clean up the mess.