Chapter 21
Count Dooku

Obi-Wan struggled for calm and patience as he strained ineffectually against the stasis field. The shimmering bluish energy held him almost totally immobile with special attention given to his feet and hands. And the tilted angle that he hovered at made the whole experience decidedly less than comfortable.

This particular holding chamber seemed ideal for holding a Jedi. Obi-Wan could see no guards, certainly no biological guards, that could be mentally influenced into letting him go. And the controls for the stasis field were also nowhere to be seen so he couldn't try to use the Force to free himself, though with his hands frozen there was very little he could do anyway. So, for the rest of the foreseeable future, he was stuck right where he was.

He was jolted from his mental bemoaning of his situation at the sound of a pair of boots plodding in his direction. The stasis field rotated around, forcing him to face the dim entrance to the one tunnel in and out of his chamber. And within moments, the person connected to those boots appeared.

In his youth he'd met his Master's former master a few times. The older man had always seemed so refined and regal, every bit the Count he could've been had he not become a Jedi. He was wise man, a talented speaker and mediator, and a saber master with few equals and fewer betters. Obi-Wan's own brief encounters with the man had left him in awe, though he truly never knew the man.

Now, seeing him again after several years, he looked older, but still just as regal and refined as ever. He was no longer a Jedi Master, having left the Order in disgust after Qui-Gon's death, and had taken up his birthright, the title of Count. With his newly acquired wealth and political clout, he had ended up a leader of the Separatist movement, a growing group of systems dissatisfied with the current state of the Republic. And as Obi-Wan now cautiously scanned the ex-Jedi, he could clearly sense the taint of the Dark Side in him. It made the Knight's skin crawl.

"I'm sorry Obi-Wan; things have gotten out of hand." Count Dooku apologized and even managed to sound sincere about it.

"Yes, I would say so." Obi-Wan snorted.

"I will do my best to clear up this misunderstanding and send you on your way." Dooku assured him.

"I'm certain that you will," Obi-Wan replied in a tone of voice that suggested the exact opposite was true. "What are you doing out here anyway?"

"Mere political meetings, nothing dangerous." Dooku lied smoothly.

"Yes, political meetings that deal with joining armies of battle droids and turning on the Republic are perfectly safe, everyday events." Obi-Wan snorted with thinly veiled sarcasm.

"Please don't take our discussions out of context Obi-Wan," Dooku chided. "The Republic has become hopelessly corrupt. The entire Jedi Order knows this and yet they do nothing!"

"It is not our place to do so. We are guardians, protectors, and mediators, we are not politicians." Obi-Wan retorted. "You know that."

"Normally I would agree with you, but I have learned something." Dooku replied calmly, dropping his voice to a near whisper and leaning in conspiratorially. "I have discovered a terrible truth. The Senate is lost, the Republic cannot be saved."

"Why?" Obi-Wan asked warily, wishing he could lean away from the Count.

"The Senate is under the sway of the Sith Lord." Dooku informed him. "The Republic is well on its way into darkness and ruin. Those of the Separatist Movement simply seek to distance themselves from that fate, that is all."

The very idea that the Republic was already in the hands of the Sith was preposterous. Obi-Wan knew that. But despite his knowledge, he still felt chilled to the core. He held onto his calm though. "You expect me to believe that?"

"No, I don't. Your Jedi upbringing and training leads you to mistrust anything I might tell you for you sense the Dark Side in me. Your perspective is limited and that is unfortunate. If Qui-Gon had lived…he would've understood." Dooku turned to stare at a wall, apparently lost in thought. "Like the Jedi, I seek to destroy the Sith but, unlike Jedi, I have not limited myself. If Qui-Gon were here he would help me."

"Qui-Gon would never join you." Obi-Wan glared, choking down a wave of anger. His Master may have been a rebel, a radical, but he would never agree with what his former master was doing here.

"Well, speculating on what might have been does us no good." Dooku sighed, visibly pulling himself free of his musings. "Since Qui-Gon is no longer among us, would you, his last student, aid me? Together we could destroy the Sith!"

Obi-Wan fought not to visibly cringe at the sight of the elderly ex-Jedi, his eyes glowing with a dark, feverish enthusiasm. Some Jedi speculated in whispers that the former Jedi Master had been so crushed by the loss of his last student that he had forgotten himself, that now he was mad for revenge against those who had killed Qui-Gon. Now Obi-Wan found himself believing that theory. To his eyes, Count Dooku seemed quite mad.

"I think I'll have to decline your offer, Count." Obi-Wan replied tensely.

"I see," Dooku nodded, looking disappointed and disdainful. The older man turned to leave calling out over his shoulder, "it will be difficult to secure your release." And then he was gone.

And Obi-Wan alone with yet more to ponder and worry over.

Vader fought to keep from pacing the length of the Nubian yacht's cockpit. Instead of indulging in pointless motion, he forced himself to stay seated in the pilot's chair and stare down at the instruments. They didn't tell him much; the ship was still in hyperspace.

He couldn't help but wish that Padmé had found them a different ship to use. This ship, while sleek, fast, and nimble, was ridiculously flashy. It was all curves, fragile slenderness, and silvery mirror skin. If anyone on Geonosis saw it, and he was sure they would, they would be drawn to investigate it and their secretive self-imposed mission would be blown. This little trip, besides being insanely dangerous for the both of them, was doomed to failure.

He'd even gone so far as to inform Padmé of his professional opinion on the matter, repeatedly. She wouldn't budge a micron. No matter what he said, she simply reiterated that she was going, he couldn't stop her, and if he wanted to do his job he'd just have to follow along and help her out.

The urge to pace briefly shifted to the urge to bang his head against a wall, or perhaps the piloting console, to numb his mind against the aggravation her irrational actions were causing him. With two attempts on her life already and some of her servants dead, one would think she would have the sense to obey her protector so that she might live and continue to be useful to the people she herself served. But no, the death and threat of death seemed to drive her into near madness.

She's such a damn fool. Who's idea was it to elect such a hard-headed idiot to office anyway? Why couldn't she have stayed Queen? Or, better yet, left politics altogether? If only Obi-Wan was here… She'd listen to him! He'd find a way to make her listen to reason…

Obi-Wan was a Jedi Knight. A real Jedi! Not an imposter as Vader was. He was fully trained in the ways of the Jedi Order and fully dedicated to their ideals. Obi-Wan would, if need be, die to fulfill his orders.

Flinching involuntarily at the thought of Obi-Wan dying for any dumb reason, Vader scowled down at the ship's scanners. If Obi-Wan were gone, he'd have to pick a new 'master' and they, whoever they were, would be let in on his little secret. That was risky and would probably turn out badly for him. And even if it didn't, he'd have to acclimate himself to a new master. That was not something he wanted to go through.

A beeping alarm dredged him up from his thoughts. The Navi-computer indicated that translation to normal space was a minute and a half away. Sighing in a mixture of anticipation, resignation, and dread, he shifted in his seat and prepared to bring them out of hyperspace.

"Senator Amidala, we will drop out of hyperspace in a minute." He called over his shoulder.

Barely a second after he finished speaking, she strode into the cockpit and dropped into the co-pilot's seat. Vader shook his head slightly and put his full concentration on the task at hand. At the precise moment indicated by the computers, he threw the lever and they dropped free of the craggy blue mists of hyperspace into the black void of normal space.

Before them hung the reddish-orange orb of their destination, the planet Geonosis. It was ringed with a debris field, the bones of a long-dead moon. The surface of the planet itself looked quite desolate. Vader could see no oceans or major bodies of water. There might be lakes, but they were too small to be seen from space. Somewhere down there, Obi-Wan was being held prisoner.

"Last chance to turn back," Vader murmured.

"Take us down to Obi-Wan's ship." Padmé ordered coolly, totally ignoring his warning.

"As you wish Milady." Vader sighed wearily and did as he was told.

The pretty shiny ship responded instantly to his commands, smoothly diving just below the planetary ring and into the atmosphere. To his right he could see Padmé strapping in, as if he would make such a rough landing that restraints would be necessary. Somewhere behind him he could hear Artoo whistle something shrill and worried.

If you're saying that this is a bad idea, Artoo, then I'd have to agree with you…