We left the Imperials with Darth Ausar returning to the holocron. Hey... review, willya?
Grand Admiral Thrawn was watching the Emperor as the man- boy, really, he seemed no older than twenty- sat in a trance, Palpatine's holocron lying on his knee. There was a scarlet glow surrounding the Sith, and shadows shifted, mist swirling around the gallery.
There was a buzz as the door opened, and Thrawn strode through the statues and holograms to learn who dared visit his sanctum.
It was Pellaeon. "Sir, we've had a transmission from one of our underworld contacts. They say they wish to speak with you personally."
"Where are they transmitting from?"
The human shook his head, and shook his head in apology. "They have called us through secret channels and roundabout routes. The signal cannot be traced, and they refuse to answer questioning to anyone but you."
With a semi-dramatic sigh, Thrawn received the portable transmitter Pellaeon offered him. "This is Imperial Grand Admiral Thrawn."
The voice that answered him was thickly accented, an Outer Rim accent laden with Huttese tones. "We've caught some prisoners the Imperials might be interested in."
"My ears are open."
"What would you give us for Skywalker and a Jedi kid?"
Thrawn's eyes widened. "You couldn't have captured Skywalker."
"Oh?" There was a nasty chuckle, and the voice continued. "You'll never know unless you come to our headquarters to negotiate. It was actually rather easy- I think that he held back because he knew he couldn't fight in the small space we had him pinned in without slicing his student to bits."
"What is your asking price?"
"Business. We have fuel. The Empire wants fuel. Simple supply and demand."
Thrawn considered the idea, then spoke. "I'll visit your compound."
"Good! Bespin's Cloud City, level 4. Our contact will meet you at the hangar." The transmission ended.
Pellaeon spoke up. "Sir, what if they don't have Skywalker? It could be a trap."
"They were correct that the Empire is in need of fuel. Even without Skywalker, a profitable negotiation can be achieved. One does not need to win all objectives to gain a victory."
A voice interrupted at Thrawn's elbow, startling both him and Pellaeon. "And if Skywalker IS there, I wish to deal with him personally."
Thrawn regained his composure, trying to hide the fact that he had not heard Ausar sneak up beside him. "Of course, your Highness. You are the only Force-user among the Empire, after all."
The crimson eyes fixed him a glare. "I am not only a Force-user. I am Lord of the Sith."
"My apologies, my Lord and Emperor. I was quite aware of that."
With this, Ausar returned to his seat and the Holocron, leaving a rather flustered Admiral in his wake.
The desolate terrain of Korriban was now almost home to the young Emperor, even though he knew it was all a trick. Mere illusions provided by Palpatine to serve as training grounds.
While hours passed in the outside world, months had passed in Ausar's mind.
He knelt before Palpatine, simmering with anticipation. "My master, Skywalker has been captured and I am to confront him."
The wrinkled facade of the former Emperor- former, no matter how much he believed to be in control- smiled, and he waved his hand over Ausar's head in benediction. "Good, good! Your test is at hand. You are almost a full Lord of the Sith."
At this depricating remark, Ausar's eyes flashed. "I AM a Lord of the Sith."
"Can one be fully a Sith Lord without having killed a single being?"
Palpatine had a point- he had to prove his ruthlessness. But an idea struck his mind, and Ausar grinned. "Must it be a Jedi that I kill?"
"Who else could provide you with the challenge necessary to develop your skills?"
"A Sith." He rose to his feet, and activated his lightsaber- a dark crimson, darker and thinner than most lightsabers. Raising the blade to his brow in challenge, he lunged at the old man.
Startled, Palpatine raised his arms and shot spidery lightning at Ausar, but a dark cloud surrounded the boy, absorbing it. Palpatine had no choice but to raise his own blade in defense. "Brave, my young apprentice- but foolish."
"Treachery is the way of the Sith." Ausar easily blocked Palpatine's attempt at a counter-attack.
This world was of Palpatine's creation, but it was all an illusion. And Ausar was a master of illusions.
The fight was over in a depressingly short time. Palpatine lay dead at Ausar's feet before the boy had even broke a sweat. Gazing around himself almost calmly, he raised his hands.
The world reshaped itself according to his whims.
Smiling blackly, Darth Ausar savored his victory as he recreated the universe.
Thrawn studied the meditating form of Ausar, remarking to himself that the boy was as still as a marble statue, until he was knocked backwards by a flash of golden light emanating from the holocron.
As he regained his feet, he noticed that the holocron had changed. It was no longer red, and no longer a cube. Instead, it was a pyramid of gold, with exotic foreign etchings on its surface. A loop was on the square side, and Thrawn figured that it was meant to be hung- possibly as a necklace.
Ausar's eyes snapped open, and glanced down at the treasure in his hands. Looking up at Thrawn, he rose to his feet.
Before Thrawn could protest, he opened a case which held an ancient Mon Calamari glass vase and knocked the vase to the ground. Thrawn only barely caught it as Ausar placed the pyramid within the case. "If anyone touches this, they die. Understood, Admiral?"
From the floor, Thrawn could only nod meekly at the Emperor.