Chapter 19: The Road to Damnation

Warning: This chapter is... Siri doing very bad and immoral things. Minor timeskips between each scene.

Also, this chapter is rated M for Mature.

Siri rarely got downtime from Sidious between missions. Mostly, that happened when he was busy... elsewhere, and she finished a mission early, not sending any signal to indicate she was done. She generally spent that free time either training to use Zannah's lightsaber, practicing Makashi or Soresu, learning Sorcery from Zannah, or prowling the lower levels of Coruscant looking for an excuse to let out her darker tendencies and vent. More often then not, people (scum) tried to take advantage of a lone young woman, either to mug or assault her. They always ended up dead, and Siri just a tad more satisfied returning to the compound than she had been leaving.

Siri plodded down a run down street, taking in the hustle and bustle of the underworld in a single glance. She wrinkled her nose at it all, passing over the area with her senses to see if there was anything of interest. The only thing that somewhat stood out was a young rodian woman sitting in a doorway starting to light up a death stick, stressed out. Siri walked over and snatched it out, crushing it underfoot. "There are better ways to kill yourself than this."

The rodian jumped up and started spouting angrily, "Ha! Kill myself? The brats will do it for me soon enough! That was my one way to take the edge off between jobs you bitch!"

Siri's senses flickered inside, feeling the presence of a large cluster of young beings. "Running a daycare while spiced out of your mind is a bit irresponsible."

The rodian glowered at her. "I'd like to see you handle all those brats!"

"Do I get paid for it?" she asked mockingly.

To her horrified amazement, the rodian just stalked off. Siri stood there in a slight stupor, before locking onto the rodian's presence and deciding she was going to kill the woman later on. There was no other adult in the building, and the woman just left them in there? Not even sure Siri was actually going to do it, or checking her credentials for that matter? Irresponsible, and beyond criminal. Siri didn't particularly care about the children, they weren't her problem, but it was the principle of the matter...

She sighed and walked into the building, a run down apartment. She stood in the hallway for a moment, watching children of various species howl and jump around. Well... this was different then the temple creche, that was for certain. None of the little monsters paid her much attention, a few of them were rolling on the floor, struggling and punching one another before knocking into a holovision stand and knocking it over right ontop of...

Siri held out her hand and caught it with the Force, her temper flaring. "ENOUGH!"

She projected the command in through the Force into each and every one of their heads, and they all grew still, standing and turning towards her. She waved a hand and put the holovision back on its stand before motioning the children into the... living room maybe, was that what it was called? There was a torn up couch, a cracked table, some board games scattered around, and a broken window with glass on the floor near it, bloody glass, one of the children had probably cut themselves on it before. The room was utterly trashed.

"Clean it up," she said in a warning tone, pressure them through the Force.

Children, of course, had basically no resistance. They obeyed without question, eyes blank, moving as a unit to make the run down room at least somewhat respectable.

"Line up," ordered Siri, eyes watching as the children did so, blank eyes staring at her, waiting.

There was a... thrill that went up her spine. At commanding. At being obeyed. She felt a hunger. To mold. To make her own...

And a slow smile crept across her lips, she motioned them forward. "Come to me."

She examined the minds of the young with open curiosity as they encircled her, comparing differences to what she could recall from those she had peered into before. So defenseless, so easy to mold. She could lace compulsions in, and it would affect them for the rest of their lives. Their still developing minds could be built around her desires...

"Do you want to please me?" she asked, a hushed whisper escaping her lips.

She pushed the notion into them, and a choir of, "Yes Mistress," echoed around her.

Well... Mistress had a certain ring about it that Siri more than liked. "Good, good."

Siri hesitated briefly before pushing the thought aside; now was as good a time as any to practice compulsions. "Do you wish to serve me?"

"Yes Mistress."

She let the Force flow from her, into their minds. "You don't like your life in these slums, do you?"

"It's awful down here."

"Mom hits me."

"Dad was shot a few days ago."

"There's scary people walking around."

"Someone peeked into my window last night and tried to get in."

Siri let it all wash over her, pressing the distress, the discontent, and fear into their minds. "I can help to deliver you from this place, would you want that?"

"Yes Mistress!"

"Please Mistress!"

"Shh children, shh," said Siri, placating them, and began to press the dark, one at a time, into their minds, "I can show you how to help yourselves. How to hate this life, and desire to be free of it. But I can't do it for you, you have to free yourself..."

She tilted her head, an ironic smile crossing her face. "You have to break your own chains."

"So listen, and listen well children," she said, kneeling down, "Hate this life. Resent it. Crush anyone that would keep you down here. Let nothing stand in your way from escaping this place, from making a real life for yourself, for becoming intelligent, ruthless, important, and powerful. Just remember... that is was your Mistress that helped you break your chains. That you owe it to ME. That if I come calling one day, for you to repay your debt, you will gladly give everything, up to and including your lives, for ME."

Her smile turned sinister as she wove the compulsions easily into their innocent and defenseless young minds, carefully placing them so the developing brains would simply build over and hide them for her. She had given them the drive, it was up to them to see if they could break free. If they did... well... they were potential tools to use one day in the future if they made anything of themselves. It was her first taste of a long term plan. If she could call it that. It wasn't a fallback, or a contingency, or anything like that, just... leaving herself potential openings in the future if she and they were in the right place at the right time. There was slim chance of that with so few...

This isn't right... they're just children...

She pushed aside the thought, after all, she was helping them in a sense. She wondered...

"Children," she asked, her smile devious, "Are there any other daycares around here...?"

"Siri darling!" cried out Zannah, her gatekeeper bursting to life, "It's been so long!"

"It's hardly been a month since we last talked," said Siri irritably, flopping down on her bed in the Coruscant compound, "I'm tired, and going to sleep."

"But Tachiiii!" whined Zannah, "I've come up with a solution to your weakness!"

And then any thoughts of resting vanished in a instant. Her heart seized for a moment and she bolted upright, cold, and glowered darkly at Zannah.

A sly smile crossed Zannah's face. "To your little 'infatuation'."

"Infatuation," said Siri flatly.

"Yes, infatuation," said Zannah dismissively, "Honestly, I've poked around enough in your head-don't give me that look! It comes with the territory of using a Holocron, get over it. As I was saying, you were what, kind-of-rivals-kind-of-friends with the boy? Then you share a near death mission, kiss once, and then pine for the boy all this time? It's nonsense, a first love you just refuse to ditch like the baggage it is."

Siri's fists tightened. It wasn't like she hadn't thought that before... it just... she didn't want to let it go. The memory of Obi-Wan was one of the few things she still had that wasn't tainted by the Dark Side or picked apart... perhaps the only thing these days.

"So, I have a question," said Zannah, raising her eyebrow suggestively, "Ever fantasize about doing the dirty with him?"

Siri flushed. "E-excuse me?"

"Come on, surely you wanted to do more than just hold hands," mocked Zannah.

Siri glared, but knew she wasn't keeping the blush out off her face. "I... that's none of your business!"

Zannah rolled her eyes. "Children."

"I'm almost eighteen!"

Zannah scoffed. "Sooo old and mature."

Before Siri could respond, Zannah continued, "Anyway, since I have no clue where and what the boy is doing to just have you go and nip the problem in the bud properly with a lightsaber through his gut," Siri's stomach churned, "I thought about just getting the desire out of your system."

"What... do you mean?"

"You yearn and hunger for him, so why not sate it?" asked Zannah coyly, "You do know, illusions can be cast on others, not just yourself, right?"

"You're point being...? What?" asked Siri, not liking where this was going.

"Find a redheaded human boy, make an illusion over him to make him look like your little infatuation, kriff him, and get it out of your system," said Zannah.

Siri went completely silent for a long moment. "You're not serious."

"Probably need to do it a few times to sate it," mused Zannah, "But after, that little infatuation should go away."

Siri just stared at her. "I might have been a Jedi, but even I know love is more than just sex."

Zannah sneered. "What use does a Sith have for love except to use against others? A Sith does not know love. I sure as hell never did."

And Siri... didn't know if she should feel pity for Zannah for that or not. She's not also sure if its true or not. Probably truth for Zannah as long as she had been a Sith, but before? Well... she doubted Zannah would ever tell her of before...

"Well? Get to it," said Zannah dismissively.

"I haven't agreed..."

"I don't recall giving you a choice," said Zannah coldly, the eyes of her Gatekeeper flashing coldly, "Unless you'd rather I inform Sidious?"

Siri tensed, a hiss escaping her lips. "Do you want to be destroyed Zannah?"

The Gatekeeper crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. "Why are you so stubborn about this? Are you, or are you not, a Sith Apprentice?"

"I am..."

"Then stop pretending you're not," snarled Zannah, "A Sith has no hesitation. A Sith has no weakness. And a Sith cares for no insignificant Jedi. A Sith takes whatever they want. So go and take what you want, and get rid of this chain holding you back. It's a ridiculous first love infatuation, burn through it, and move on. It's frankly embarrassing."

Siri stared at Zannah silently, struggling, before she slowly turned and stalked out of the room. Her anger roiled around her, cool and viscous. How dare she? How dare she? Slap Obi-Wan's face on some random person and kriff them? What was Siri then, a whore? What was Obi-Wan then, some object to be used? He was hers! That memory belonged to her, something precious, to be kept locked up safe in the back of her mind and occasionally peeked at, not something to be sullied, used, and cast aside...

Honestly, kriff Obi-Wan and be done with it, really?

She flinched a little, at the tingle, the jolt, actually thinking the thought brought her though. Obi-Wan had always been a cute boy, he'd be rather handsome now...

She shook her head, was she seriously even considering this for a second? It was just some sick little fantasy Zannah wanted her to go through...

A fantasy like any dream of her and Obi-Wan had ever been... even if she hadn't fallen, they never would have gone any farther than they had as Jedi. It was forbidden, and deep down, she knew, if she hadn't fallen, she doubted either of them would have been able to break free of the Order and go off together to start a family, to be happy...

Her fists shook, whether in fury or grief, she didn't know. She held onto a lie, she knew that she did. She just... she didn't want to give it up.

Then don't...

She pushed away the thought, away Obi-Wan's voice. She hated her conscious, she really did. Why it even bothered anymore she didn't know. If Obi-Wan knew even half of the things she'd done, he'd hate her. Especially Garen... murdering their friend... if he knew, he'd turn his back on her. Turn his back for so many things she'd done all in the name of attaining the power she needed to kill Sidious...

And what happens after Sidious?

Siri pushed the thought away, that was decades away. Decades more of sins and crimes...

Whats the point of this power, if it costs you everything? If you don't end up killing me, Sidious will when he enacts the Grand Plan...

Siri hissed. "Shut up."

You'll kill Sidious, and then end up no better than him...

She stopped walking, pressing her forehead against the nearest wall and covering her ears. "Shut up. Shut up. Shut up!"

She focused her hate, of Sidious, of Zannah, of the Sith, of the Republic, of the Jedi, of herself, and wrapped it around her, shutting away the voice. She took a few deep, ragged breaths, and decided she really hated that voice too. Zannah said her little plan should cut away Obi-Wan, if not, maybe it would finally kill that inner voice. She stalked out of the compound into the Coruscant night, hiding away her Force Presence, and moved to the lower levels. Her eyes washed over the degenerates, the scum, and the hopeless, sensing and probing as she went.

Finally, she found one that looked roughly the right age, a human boy, adolescent close to the last age she had seen Obi-Wan at, red hair and blue eyes, dressed in obvious hand-me-down clothes. She didn't detect any diseases or illnesses in this one. She pressed into his mind, 'You will go into an alleyway.'

He stopped walking for a moment, looking confused, and obeyed. Siri followed, 'You will go around the trash compacter'.

He did so.

'Turn'

He did, and Siri lashed out, grabbing his throat and pinning the boy up against the wall Force imbued strength. "Be silent."

The teenage boy squeaked in terror, a high pitched voice, so unlike Obi-Wan's, begged, "P-please don't kill me!"

She pulled him back and slammed him into the wall, hard. "I said shut up! Do what you're told, and you might live."

He clammed up, shivering. Siri drew on the Dark Side, closing her eyes, and imagined Obi-Wan. She weaved the deception around the boy, and when she opened her eyes, she choked a little at the sight. "Obi..."

The fake-Obi-Wan opened his mouth, confused, bit Siri tightened her grip on his throat. "I told you not to speak."

Siri, don't do this...

She reached a hand up, caressing fake-Obi-Wan's face, her head leaning forward. "Obi-Wan..."

It's rape Siri!

She hesitated for a moment, a heavy swallow of bile going down her throat, her hands shaking. "I... I don't care anymore. Whats this compared to half the other things I've done? That I will do?"

She pressed her body against the fake-Obi-Wan and kissed him, deeply, passionately, possessively. Her hands gripped his head tightly, pulling him deeper into her grasp. The tingling sensations running down her body were strange... were good. She pulled back, slightly out of breath, face flushed. "My Obi-Wan, mine."

She took him to the ground, lips hungrily smashing against his. It was a clumsy, possessive tangle. She pulled back again, licking her lips, the taste... wasn't what she imagined it would be. There was a slightly foul sensation, something he had eaten recently made her wrinkle her nose. What's worse was the fear on Obi-Wan's face...

"Stop looking at me like that," she snarled, "Obi-Wan wouldn't be afraid of me."

"I'm not whoever the hell this Obi-Wan is you crazy freak!" cried out Obi-Wan in someone else voice.

Siri seethed, her fantasy fracturing. She grabbed his head and smashed it back against the wall again and again. "SHUT UP!"

Obi-Wan had a dazed look afterwards, blood running down his nose and out of his mouth, a bit on the wall behind him. She kissed him again, and this time, the blood on his lips drowned out the other taste, and it was sweet. She paused to consider what she was supposed to do next. She understood anatomy, they had that class in the temple, she knew what went where, but she didn't... didn't know what else to do. She had the urge to roam her hands all over his body, have his over hers, to press against him, a hunger in her core, but nothing she really understood.

She went with what she knew, briefly pulling away to take off her lower clothes, doing the same for Obi-Wan. She stared down at the organ between his legs, she reached out and touched it, watching it twitch. Her own legs were twitching, there was a heat between them that had her in a confused flux. She pressed herself against him, kissing and tasting blood again, growling under her breath as she shifted back and forth ontop of him. She looked down when she felt something poking between her butt. His organ had grown in size. She grabbed and positioned it before shoving down on it.

Her breath briefly hitched as a sharp and quick pain hit her. It was nothing compared to taking Force Lightning, just... strange, deeper, a continual pain and a bit of pressure where he was. There was a brief groan from Obi-Wan, not... not how he sounded. So she reached over and wrapped her hands around his throat to shut him up as she brought herself up and down clumsily. Each was an uncomfortable spike of pain, and a sensation like she was rubbing skin against something to roughly and quickly, wasn't this supposed to feel good? She went a few more times before Obi-Wan half-cried-half-gurgled and shoved upward, and she felt a twinge of a warm, wet sensation in her. She frowned a little, and kept going for a little bit until he fell out, smaller now.

She stared down, incredulous, at the bloody looking thing (was that her blood?), a small trickle of white goop dripping down from her with the blood. Was that IT?! A surge of anger overtook her, and she lost control of her illusion, and then Obi-Wan was gone, and there was some sobbing half-dead redhead boy laying there in a daze. She absolutely lost it, she took him by his throat, squeezing with Force enhanced strength and smashed him against the wall behind him, pulling him back and smashing him again, over and over again, snarling in rage...

Until her fingers dug in and ripped out his throat, blood gushing out at her and to cover his chest. She sat there for a moment, and then let loose a scream of anger. She smashed his head into a blood pulp and then stood up, fuming. What a worthless waste of time. The boy broke the fantasy over and over again, it had hurt, hadn't felt good at all, she now needed to get a contrafertive... contraceptat, whatever the hell it was called to make sure she didn't get pregnant...

You raped and killed him...

...and all she really got out of that was a sicking lump in her stomach, more guilt to lump with the rest, just with self-disgust to throw in now. She leaned over the corpse, pressing her face against the smooth metal wall, and took a ragged breath. She pulled away and grabbed her clothes, putting her lower half back on. She knelt down to wipe the blood on her hands off on his clothes before grabbing the corpse and dumped it in the trash compacter, stalking out of the alleyway, pulling her hood up. No one nearby even batted an eye in her direction. No one cared.

She stalked the streets in a dark haze, hating the boy, hating herself... hating Obi-Wan even. Just hating everything. She took her memories of Obi-Wan, and she shoved them deep down, as deep as she could, and made her way to a store to get something to make sure she didn't get some worthless bastard's baby in her...

Siri grumbled under her breath, hiding on ceiling pipes as she spied on a trade meeting on the planet Saleucami, in its capital city of Talecema. A circular city of towering buildings, a kind of mini Coruscant until the outer parts where one could actually see greenery. The Techno Union was apparently trying to claim the world as one of it's 'Mechworlds'. Sidious wanted this deal to go smoothly, so she was to observe and make sure nothing went wrong. There was an air of trepidation in the Force, but it didn't feel directed at the meeting itself, it was... elusive.

She shook it off and refocused. The Techno Union was being represented by one Wat Tambor. She had done a bit of research, and had found the Skakoan to be a bit of an upstart within the Union, very quickly rising through the ranks. If she had to guess, he'd end up Foreman before the decade was up. He had a decently impressive history, especially as a combat engineer, developing the skills on the planet Metalorn. She briefly pulled out her personal datapad and flagged Tambor as someone to keep a loose eye on. He could have uses down the road. Though, chances were Sidious was already ahead of her in this regard. Her Master had her fingers deep in the Trade Federation, the Techno Union, and all the big conglomerates after all.

From what she could see and hear, the deal appeared to go off without a hitch. No assassinations, no backstabbing, nothing, simple and easy. So, she made her exit, crawling through air vents, and popping out the side of the building, landing below with the Force to cushion her fall. She stretched briefly, and quickly made about making herself scarce, twisting cameras away, and taking a Force assisted leap over a security fence. She pulled her hood tighter to her, and slipped quietly between buildings and into the streets. The city was the world's primary spaceport, and thankfully had individual launch pads. All she had to do was get back to her ship and the mission was a success. Not that it had been particularly trying.

She made her way to the outskirts of the city, paid her toll to the shipping authorities, waded through hallways of spacers and tourists, and slipped into her docking bay...

And froze.

Standing there between her and her ship was an aged Jedi. Gray hair, sideburns, beard, and mustache sat on an older, lined and stern face. His brown eyes were sharp, appraising her silently, hand moving to rest gently on the curved lightsaber hilt hanging off his belt. He wore only his brown tunic and pants, no outer robes. He was... vaguely familiar to her, she knew she had met him once or twice...

The Force was blaring an open warning to her now, the trepidation from early now turned into a dire threat.

A cultured voice rang out, deep and pointed. "Iris, I presume."

Siri's breath hitched for a moment, but she didn't respond otherwise. She cursed Master Ur Manka silently for sending that transmission to Yoda, the Jedi knew she existed. Not who or what she was, but that there was a darksider out there.

"You were quite difficult to track down," mused the Jedi, "I suppose I owe my grandpadawan greatly for confirming your race, and hair color."

Siri's eyes furrowed under her hood. What was he going on about? She had encountered no Jedi that she had let live who had actually seen enough of her to get a description.

"That, and your tendency to frequent checking up on the trade conglomerates," said the Jedi mildly, "You are quite thorough in masking your presence, but you missed a camera here and there. I will confess, I guessed where you'd end up this time, between several important meetings or trade deals."

Siri scowled, but again, refrained from speaking. Her hood kept her identity a secret, she wasn't going to throw that away by speaking and perhaps risking him recognizing her voice, or sharing the memory with someone who could. To be more safe then sorry, she grasped her hood firmly with the Force, willing and anchoring it down, pushing that focus to the back of her mind in whatever conflict was about to happen. He could hurry it up though, he liked to hear himself talk alot. Perhaps she should hurry that along.

She unhooked Zannah's lightsaber from her belt, the only one she wore anymore, and activated one end. She was confident enough to use the lightsaber with Makashi and Soresu now, but she'd stick to one end active unless she absolutely needed the other. The aged Jedi eyed the hilt, tracing its length, nose wrinkling in distaste, he probably recognized it as a saberstaff. Though, that dislike of it... that was vaguely familiar...

The man unhooked his lightsaber, igniting the blue blade... and did a Makashi salute.

Oh kriff.

Kriff kriff kriff!

That was Master Dooku!

New plan. RUN! She didn't stand a chance against him in a lightsaber duel yet.

Siri turned and bolted back down the way she came. There was a derisive scoff from Dooku, and she felt him give chase. The ship she had was non-descript and disposable, it had nothing of value on it. She'd find another way offworld, or maybe circle-back if she could loose Dooku. No, stupid idea, he'd have put a tracker on it. She slashed a door open, shoving through it, then flung the pieces behind her at Dooku with the Force. He bated them aside without stopping. She briefly glanced back and swore, for an old bastard he was fast.

People scrambled out of her way, and Dooku's, as the two ran. The moment they exited the building, he put on a burst of speed and caught up with her. It took her a split second to realize he had waited until they were not in the middle of civilians to do so. She rolled as he swung at her back, coming up and pivoting as she swung. He deflected with graceful ease and riposted at her shoulder. She shifted downward, barely making it miss, and rolled again, swinging up as him as she did. He twirled away from the attack.

She staggered to her feet, coming to her feet and coming to a Soresu opening stance, two fingers pointed at him, blade angled downward. He appraised the stance for a brief moment before smiling. It was the smile of someone who had decided they already won. To be fair, if it really came to a lightsaber duel, he would win. But that wasn't what she was going for. He closed the distance, taking the bait, and made for an opening swing...

Only for a bolt of lightning to surge from her finger and slam into his chest. He staggered back in a brief, surprised gasp, hand going up to clutch at his chest. She aimed her hand full on and released a burst of Force Lightning at him, trying to take advantage. Instead, he raised his lightsaber and caught the attack, hand dropping away from his chest, a dark scowl on his face.

"You delve into dark arts that are best forgotten, young one," said Dooku in a warning tone as they began to circle eachother, "Did you learn this from your dark master?"

If he thought Force Lightning was the worst she could do, he was sorely mistaken. Him keeping his distance was to her advantage.

"For a darksider, you are rather quiet," said Dooku, "No boasting of your power?"

But, she wasn't sure she should reveal any more of her abilities, especially in the open where people could see, and against a foe that she didn't think she could actually kill.

"Perhaps your silence is because of shame," Dooku mused, "After all, you do Master Ur Manka and whoever your original master was such due credit."

Siri flinched.

And Dooku struck, thrusting forward for a quick, lethal strike. Siri could only manage to deflect downward and away, not enough to escape her momentary lapse in concentration cleanly. His lightsaber burned into her outer thigh, earning a hiss of pain as she staggered back. Kriffing hells!

Dooku advanced again, lightsaber raised...

And Siri thrust her hand forward, giving a furious cry, and launched him backwards with the Force, sending him head over heels into a crown of watchers.

Watchers.

Civilians.

She should have thought of that to begin with! She couldn't escape him if his speed was evident enough, and she doubted he'd stop chasing her, so she had to force him to back off. She turned, aimed a hand at a random civilian, no, scratch that, pick the child, and pulled them across the distance to her. There was a surprised yelp, and a cry from perhaps their family, before Siri had a young Twi-Lek in her grasp, lightsaber pressed close to its throat. Dooku had just recovered and separated from the crowd before pausing, narrowing his eyes at Siri.

"And thus how far the lost have fallen, have you no shame?" chided Dooku, "Using a child as a shield?"

Siri began to back away, her thigh flaring in pain as she did, and dragged the child back towards the entrance to the docking bays. Dooku followed behind at a distance, a number of authorities at his heels, blasters drawn. "Let the child go, Iris."

She felt the persuasion in the air, but kept her shields tight to her, letting it roll around her like a waves upon a rocky shore. She rechecked her shields while she was at it, tight as they had been at the start, even with that momentary lapse, he shouldn't have been able to get any kind of read on her Force Presence. She slipped down the hallways of the port, and back to her ship. She'd take it to... Alexi, he ought to be able to scan for a tracker. Though, she'd need to send a message to him first as to not risk leading Dooku to anywhere important.

She reached her ship a few minutes of backpedaling later, fiddling with the control in her pocket to lower the ramp. She paused briefly at the foothold, considering the child in her grasp. She glanced up, at Dooku in the doorway to the docking bay, eyes raptly on her, critical of her every move. She was tempted to kill the child out of spite towards him, but he could probably close the distance before she shut the ramp if she did so. She'd take the child with her then, give them to the Black Sun to do with as they pleased.

"I will find you again, Iris," said Dooku calmly, "You and your dark master."

She pursed her lips. Siri was one thing, Sidious was another. If Dooku delved to deep, all he would find would be death or damnation. She didn't particularly care to warn him, and merely dragged the child onboard her ship, closing the ramp behind her. She dropped the child with a sleep suggestion and made for the cockpit, willing her thigh to stop screaming at her. She was in the air a moment later, making for space. She keyed in the comm for Alexi's personal number and waited.

Then Garyn's pretty-boy face lit the holoterminal, an eyebrow raised. "Well look who it is, you wouldn't believe the news channel that was just brought to my attention a few minutes ago."

Siri just groaned. "Please tell me that it isn't what I think it is."

"I had a man keeping tabs on a certain deal being made on Saleucami, you wouldn't believe how surprised, and irritated, I was for him to interrupt a meeting to bring it to my attention," said Alexi before going smug, "Was it just me, or did that Jedi manhandle you for that few moments you fought him? Mighella was positively elated to see you running with your tail between your legs."

Siri pinched the bridge of her nose. "That was Jedi Master Dooku, he's out of my league for the moment. I need either a ship exchange, or a scan to find a tracker."

"Done, I'll send you coordinates," said Alexi, "And I'll throw in a bacta patch, that hit on your leg looked like it hurt, dearest."

"Thanks Lex," she said, giving a brief smile, "I've got a gift for you in return."

"Oh?"

"Want a twi-lek kid?"

"Mmmm, I can find some use of it," said Alexi dismissively, "Do you need a place to lay low for awhile? It has been awhile since the three of us has shared company."

Siri shook her head. "No, I need to get back to Sidious and..."

She froze. "Oh kriff."

She had just been seen, and recorded (not her face thankfully), and let a Jedi live through an encounter.

"Sidious is going to kill me," she said flatly.

Alexi frowned briefly. "Hard to tell through the connection, was that a serious 'kill me', or beat the shit out of you 'kill me'? I can arrange for you to disappear if you need to."

She sighed. "No, no, I'll... live. I'll probably wish I hadn't, but I'll live. Running will only either make it worse, or make him actually kill me."

Alexi shrugged. "Your choice I suppose. The doors of the Black Sun are always open to you S..."

"Iris," said Siri with a snap, "Call me Iris when we're not in the same room, and if you have any files or recordings or anything with my actual name, edit them to Iris. That's the name the Jedi know, and they can't find out my real one."

Alexi rolled his eyes. "Iris dearest, you are creating such a hassle."

She grinned lazily. "Entering hyperspace now Lex darling, catch you later."

"Oh? I'm a 'darling' now?" he managed to say, raising his eyebrows suggestively.

She responded by cutting the transmission and entering hyperspace, acting like Zannah did could be fun...

Siri knelt at Sidious foot in the Coruscant compound's meditation chamber, saying nothing, and waiting.

The Dark Lord stared down at her silently for a long moment. "What do the Jedi know of you, and how."

Straight to the point then, and considering the pressure building both against her throat and mind, best not to lie. "I... when I was poisoning Siolo Ur Manka, he sent a transmission to the Jedi about me. To them, my name is Iris, I'm a fallen Jedi Padawan who was abducted from her murdered master and tortured to the dark side by an unknown powerful darksider."

Sidious considered her for a moment, betraying nothing. "And Yan Dooku is the one in search of you."

"It... would appear that way," she answered.

His next response stumped her.

He tilted his head thoughtfully, a wry and sinister smile on his face. "Well now, that is an opportunity I didn't think I would have so soon."

"An opportunity?"

"To have Dooku chasing into the dark," said Sidious, lips peeled back into a sneer, "You see my apprentice, Dooku isn't the steadfast Jedi many would consider him to be. He is conflicted, he dislikes the council, detests the complacency of the Jedi Order, loathes the corruption in the senate."

"You think he can be of use?"

"I know he can," said Sidious with finality, "I've had my eye on him for a long time now. All he needs is temptation, and a bit of a push, and he could serve as a public pawn of the Sith."

Siri absorbed the information. Dooku's political views, even to the padawans and initiates, wasn't hidden. She could vaguely recall having known of his issues with the senate, temple gossip was an virulent thing. She wouldn't have guessed on him being a potential front for the Sith though. She wasn't in a position to spy on Jedi and figure out who had the potential to fall or not. It was something she made a mental note to mark as a thing she needed to pick up on in the future. Sidious gave little hints of strategy and long term plans here and there, she made an effort not to miss them when they were dropped. It felt like grasping for scraps from a dinner table. Sidious was a stingy bastard after all.

"While I am not pleased that your existence was revealed so soon," said Sidious in warning, closing off Siri's throat for a brief moment and letting her struggle before releasing her, "This may have a long term benefit, or at least save me some time perhaps."

Siri squinted. "So soon? You planned to reveal me?"

"There is a conflict brewing," said Sidious slowly, "A prelude to the beginning of the end for the Jedi. There are a few more strings to pull before then, but it will happen before the decade is up, and there, you will reveal who and what you truly are to the Jedi, and announce their end."

Siri swallowed.

Sidious paused for a moment. "What were your observations of Dooku?"

"He talks, alot," said Siri flatly before frowning, "He does a good Dun Moch without even realizing it. I think, if he put his mind to it he could really mess with people. He's persistent, and managed to track me down through little but scraps of hints and connecting the dots. He figured I spent a lot of time trailing the trade conglomerates and guessed where I'd be."

"Then I suppose we had best change your schedule up." said Sidious before he reached down and grasped her chin, yanking it upward. "Your training needs to take focus over missions for the time being. That display against Dooku was sloppy. You must be skilled enough to defeat Jedi Masters, even ones such as Dooku. Until I'm satisfied you can at least hold your own for a few minutes against him, you and I will be spending time in the training room."

Siri held back a spike of fear. She didn't like sparring with Sidious, at all.

"What of Dooku?"

"It's normal for the trail to go cold at times," said Sidious dismissively, "It will pick back up in time, and we will leave hints of you here and there, along with temptations to draw him closer to the dark..."

Siri's body ached.

It was all she could think about after a month of getting smacked around by Sidious. How she hated that bastard, she really did. She did however learn a great deal from him, he made Dun Moch an art-form, words twisting her own logic against her, filling her with doubt, mocking her into fury, and the like. Sidious's saber-style, no matter what form he used, was lethal, lethal, lethal, always a killing blow, at least when he wasn't mocking and toying with his prey. When it wasn't with him, she was training on her own, or having Zannah critique her. He had finally deemed her 'adequate enough' to leave the compound again. He had given her a list of people or groups to kill and sent her on her way.

It wasn't the first time he'd had her kill before, not even close. But a list? He made it seem like she was picking groceries up from a store. To him, it was probably close to the same thing anyway. He was dismissive enough about it, and so was she. She had punched in the coordinates and entered hyperspace without even bothering to look up the planet in question. When she finally dropped out of hyperspace... she raised an eyebrow.

The world in question was a dump. Even from space, she could see large swaths of blackened, devastated landscapes and large cities with a glow visible from space. Probably had some internal war. She reached for her datapad and pulled up the relevant details for her target... wait... the AgriCorps? She was targeting members of the Jedi Service Corps? Her eyebrows furrowed, why in the hell was Sidious sending her after washouts? Strange... she was to kill an entire crew of the AgriCorps stationed on the planet. Roughly twenty individuals. She rechecks to make sure her presence is sufficiently masked, and then reached out... there, they are all gathered in one area. She's rather surprised she can feel them so clearly from space. Their presences are open, unhindered... and doing something with the Force that makes her just a tad confused. Perhaps she'd do a bit of recon before she'd kill them.

She sets down a ways away on a hilly landscape, nestling her ship between two hills, masked by one of the few trees that isn't burned down in the area. There is the remains of a woodland in the distance, burnt to the ground. Judging by the proximity of one crispy tree or trunk to another, all it would have needed was a single blaster bolt, grenade, mortar, or whatever, to start a fire that took the whole forest down. She sticks to the hilly side of the landscape, and makes her way towards the band of washouts. She crests a hill, and goes to her stomach, peering down.

Her first thought is rather embarrassing to her: That's a grievously frivolous use of the Force.

The members of the AgriCorps, dressed in various clothes and belonging to various species, hardly looking as uniform as the Jedi Order did, are levitating dozens and dozens of saplings out of a huge container attached to the bottom of a ship, rather than just manually lift them. Other members are helping to plant, and a further few are in meditative poses on the burned landscape. The latter ones are the ones drawing her attention. They are just... open... in the Force. It's like they are treating themselves as a conduit for the Living Force, weaving it into the damaged and charred landscape, healing it, encouraging it to grow.

This...

Wow...

This sure as hell isn't the farming Jedi Initiates fear their fate to be if they don't get picked by a Master.

Siri watches with a slight childlike awe, not unlike the first time she saw Jedi Masters really go at it, or learned about more exotic and enticing uses of the Dark Side. This is an aspect and use of the Force she hadn't known about, hadn't even a clue. She knew the Force could be used to heal people, but heal plants? Heal devastated landscapes? She watches as the AgriCorps move with a swift, practiced efficiency; it will take time to help the landscape recover, but, she can see, can feel, the difference they would have made here. She shifts her attention to the members themselves. Some of the younger ones are disquieted, discouraged, 'washouts' if Siri ever saw one. The older ones though... they are content, happy even to be doing their work. They are right where they want to be. They are making a difference, and they are satisfied.

She can feel it in them, their rather open and unguarded minds.

She takes note of that difference. They feel nothing like Jedi Knights or Masters. They aren't keep an open awareness of the area around them, they aren't on guard, aren't always ready for whatever comes their way. They are relaxed even. Its a completely different mindset from that of a Jedi Knight. Not to mention not one of them has a weapon that Siri can see. She purses her lips a little, but holds off on just going down there. She... well... she wants to watch and learn. So she does, for a few more hours.

What she likes best, childishly, is the so called 'frivolous' use of the Force. They used it for everything, even levitating their canteens from a box, something she would have gotten readily admonished for in the Order. And she's not blind to see how quickly, easily, and readily they can call on the Force. Like... that's Master level speed, if not better. Even from some of the middle-aged ones. It takes her only a little bit to figure out why, and it's kind of flooring to realize how obvious it should have been. The Force is kind of like a muscle, the more one uses it, the more it develops. They don't need to concentrate or focus at all, it just reacts. They are using the Force every day, actively, more than the average Jedi would do in a week, if not longer. Jedi are controlled, conservative, except when its time to do their duty. The AgriCorps just... are.

She rather likes that, and decides shes going to personally adopt that mindset herself. The Force is hers to use as she wills, by her birthright as a Force Sensitive. Why listen to stuffy old Jedi Masters and their rules? Especially considering she's a darksider. Not to mention... Sidious has never made that kind of comment to her. She wont act frivolous around him, no, she wants it to be kept secret, another form of 'training' to one day hold over him. But sure as hell, she's going to use the Force as she wants to from now on. And the thought makes her smile darkly. She wonders how doing what the ArgiCorps are doing, sowing the land with the Force, would work with the Dark Side. She considers that, and Force Illusions. Oh... that's enticing, she's already theorizing how to weave her Sith Sorcery, creating an area of illusions embedded in the landscape itself, to confuse and perhaps drive mad anyone who walks into it; she's full on grinning with sinister delight.

An idea to test another time. Siri doubted Sidious intended for her to really gain anything out of this aside from more corpses at her hand, but she's rather appreciative of the mission she was given. She hopes shes sent after members of the other Service Corps, to see if she can learn anything from them too. She finds she rather approves of the work the AgriCorps are doing, perhaps its not as bad as a fate she had once feared, that doesn't mean however she isn't about to kill each and every one of them. Dusk is starting to set, it's about time she got her mission over with.

Don't do it...

She rose to her feet and started down the hill casually. None of the AgriCorps are even paying attention to anything but their task.

They're doing good work... for a good cause...

That's true, and perhaps after she's killed Sidious, she'll either let the AgriCorps as a whole live and continue to work for her, or rebuild them if he's enacted the Grand Plan prior to her ascension. Her Empire could use an organization like this.

You might know some of them! They could be old friends...

Her eyes flicker to the younger members, some of those faces are vaguely familiar... maybe they were initiates she had known once. Perhaps even out of her own youngling clan. But why should that matter? She killed Garen, and he had been a close friend. Her eyes flicker as one of the AgriCorps finally notice her approaching, but there is no suspicion or hostility, just mild curiosity and a greeting thrown her way. So trusting... that's something she'd have to eliminate in her own AgriCorps when she either took over or remade them.

She draws and thumbs Zannah's lightsaber on, the red illuminating the landscape around her ominously.

Ah, there's the fear.

She grins with malice.

And then she's moving, going for the older ones first before they can marshal any reaction.

They're screaming, all the meanwhile she's faintly hears herself screaming on the inside, and when they stopped screaming, she had not...

I never wanted this...

"A report to make, do you, Master Dooku?"

Grandmaster Yoda watched as his former padawans hologram rubbed his eyes tiredly. Even through the hologram Yoda could see the bags under his eyes. He was tired, and pushing himself heavily. Yoda could feel the Jedi Council as a whole studying Dooku's appearance with varying levels of apprehension.

"I had another encounter with Iris," said Dooku tiredly, "She's getting better."

Yoda frowned. "Oh?"

"It is strange, it has only been a few months since our initial meeting, but she's grown far faster than someone her age should. Even considering the harsh methods darksiders are known to use, her lightsaber skills are vastly above where they should be. I can't get an accurate read of her through the Force with the shields she uses, however... she's grown in all regards," said Dooku before scowling, "Including cruelty."

Yoda's heart sank, and he sighed. "Failed we did, to find her with Ur Manka, knew we did, that fall back into darkness, she could."

"Fall back into, and far deeper," said Dooku, "She didn't hesitate to kill any who got in the way of our duel, not to mention throwing large objects at civilians to draw my attention. I had to let her go lest I allow a body count to climb."

"Why did you confront her in a populated area?" asked Mace Windu.

"She was in a museum," said Dooku, "Inspecting a recent donation."

"Why?"

Dooku brought something out of his pocket, an odd ornament with a jagged symbol on it kind of like a wind chime, or a dream catcher, that set Yoda ill at ease. "There was a dark side artifact there. I haven't been able to figure out what it's purpose is, but it fits a pattern I've noticed from her. She's hunting for such artifacts, and darker, forbidden knowledge. I've tracked and just missed her at a number of old Sith worlds or other such museums. Managed to drive her away from a few old texts written in ancient Sith I believe. I haven't been able to decipher them yet."

"Dooku," said Yaddle sharply, "Look into such dark things, you should not. Seal away, and return them to be isolated in the temple or destroyed, you should."

On that, Yoda agreed, nodding his head and humming his agreement.

Dooku scowled. "Understanding Iris and her Master is important. Especially with what they are seeking. Some of the rituals I've been able to gleam information from these texts on... I fear they are trying to learn the powers of the Sith."

A tension roiled through the council. Yoda's ears flicked wearily. "Try to recreate the Sith, you fear they wish to do?"

Dooku nodded. "I've only seen Iris preform Force Lightning thus far, but I think its a given she, or at least her hidden Master, have probably discovered more. If this threat is not eliminated, it may lead eventually to their rebirth."

Ki-Adi-Mundi scoffed. "From just the two of them picking up what scraps they can find?"

"More, there could be," pointed out Yaddle, "Possible it is for more to be in hiding, when chase we do the obvious one."

"Only two there were when they last ended," pointed out Master Poof, "The two that survived the thoughtbomb on Ruusan tried to hide and blend in that way, before the last one died on Ambria. All it would take is one, and the knowledge could spread like a taint."

"If there's even enough knowledge to recreate that disease of an order," spat Windu, "Our ancestors took great effort to wipe out knowledge of the Dark Side. The Sith are over, long gone. Perhaps they could create another dark side cult, a threat to be sure if the Bando Gora aren't example enough, but the time of the Sith is long over, the Jedi won that fight almost a thousand years ago."

The council settled down at that, but Yoda... isn't so sure the potential threat should be so readily dismissed. He keeps his own council on that thought though. "Need more aid, do you, Master Dooku?"

Dooku shook his head. "No, I am still well above her. Its her mobility that is currently an issue, if I could lock or pin her down I can easily win."

"Having another Master there would help with that," pointed out Plo Koon.

"Unless it's an experience Master, or a council member, I fear they will throw their lives away," countered Dooku, "Iris will not hesitate in the slightest, a simple lapse in judgement or a moment of hesitation, and she will kill you. Few have experience facing the Dark Side to not let it affect them while facing it in battle. If I can't catch her within the next few years, she may start proving to be a decent challenge in a fight."

He scowled. "I also think she's amused by leading me on a goose chase."

"You caught her by surprise the first time," said Master Piell, "Its possible she's intentionally leading you on now."

"Possibly, but to what end, I don't know," said Dooku.

"Away from her mysterious master perhaps?" suggested Master Tiin.

"How could she lead me away from someone we have no knowledge or hints of?" said Dooku with a scoff, "It's half the reason this chase isn't done yet. I can't decide if trying to capture her and perhaps get information on her master is worth not simply putting her down."

Yoda doesn't like that. Him referring to a sentient being, a former member of their Order, as an animal to be euthanized. He still toys with the idea Master Ur Manka had before he died, redeeming the fallen. He knows Ur Manka came close, he can feel it in his bones, and in the Force. He doesn't want to give up on this lost child of the Order, but he's not ignorant. There has to come a point when the loss of life and the damage isn't worth the cost of bringing her in. They know so little of what Iris has actually done, only what Dooku has observed. Its highly possible she's done significant more damage and killed many more people then they suspect. There is a reason they say that once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny.

Mired so deep in darkness, they can't find their way out anymore, even with a light to shine the way.

Yoda watched Dooku's hologram flicker out, and wonders if he, Qui-Gon, or Obi-Wan would have to be Dooku's light before this is all said and done.

He fears Iris's light has already come and gone with Master Ur Manka's passing.

He supposes it depends on just how much of her darkness is her own, and how much her Master forced upon her.

If what Dooku has been reporting is any indication... by the time they do catch her, if they ever do, it might be to late for her, far to late...

Author's Notes:

I could keep going, with little short stories of her time between now and the Phantom Menace, but I think it's rather evident, Siri's going downhill very fast, and is only going to get worse and worse between now and then. I'll also leave this time period a bit open, to use as flashback material if need be. Next up is the first part of the Phantom Menace. I think... its roughly going to be split into 3-5 chapters. I'm not wasting time/words retelling the initial events from Obi-Wan/Qui-Gons PoV, it will be similar enough, but mostly from Siri's PoV.

So I'd think Tatooine - Coruscant - Naboo at a bare minimum.

Perhaps a chapter from Obi-Wan's PoV slid in here or there.

Review Responses:

Nerdman3000: Maverick Kenobi best Kenobi, will still have a bit of sassy-Kenobi in him for later on though. Qui-Gon/Obi-Wan will be the only reason Dooku hasn't already fallen by TPM timeslot, considering what Siri/Sidious are trying to set him up to be seduced to the Dark Side. As for the Garen revelation, it's going to be... a bit sad, I'm not going to reveal much, since I don't want to spoil what I'm going to do at the end of TPM and what the storyline is going to look like afterwards, not yet.

Obi-Wan... probably does have enough clues to piece it together, but as you said, wont even consciously think of it, not till she's looking him straight in the face...

JimmyHall24: Glad you enjoy the story.