Chapter Ten; "The General's Past: The Training"
Dooku was very impressed with the General's progress. He was quite a deadly adversary. He seemed to like improvising during the fight, which made it quite exciting.
The Count still thought that Grievous was an abomination, but he was no doubt impressed with the cyborg´s talent with the lightsabers.
Ah, yes! Grievous had a quite fine collection of lightsabers. He had killed many Jedi since the day he took his Loyalty Test and he had kept the Jedi's lightsabers. He was following his kin's ideals. To the winner goes the prize.
Grievous was turning out to be the perfect Jedi Killer. He had already killed more Jedi than Dooku. Did it annoy the Count? Of course not, he was not a bloodthirsty maniac. He was a nobleman, a gentleman; he only killed if he had no other choice.
The Count could have killed Obi-Wan and Anakin back at Geonosis, when he had defeated the two Jedi Heroes. But killing two unarmed foes? That was beneath him. Darth Tyranus would have little troubles doing such a dark deed, but he had orders from his Master not to do so.
But not even Darth Tyranus could claim to match Grievous bloody murders. The cyborg was pure hate, thinking only of revenge towards the Republic and the Jedi Order.
Dooku had decided to train the General in the difficult art that is mastering a lightsaber. Yes, it is a form of art. We are talking about the most elegant weapon of the Universe, excellent at attacking foes and protecting its wielder.
Grievous lacked finesse that much was obvious. Oh, he was quick and agile. But he had the same finesse that a raging rancor, meaning that he had none.
Dooku had mastered the lightsaber. He was one of the best lightsaber duelists. He could use the lightsaber with great elegance, class and finesse. It was almost like poetry. He had proven to be a deadly opponent against the two Jedi Heroes at Geonosis, yet he still wasn't invincible. He had lost a fight with his former Jedi Master, Yoda.
Yoda… How he hated that green midget! The most powerful Jedi of the Order, capable of incredible deeds and feats. Even with the power of the Dark Side, Dooku had failed to beat him. He hadn't been able to defeat Yoda.
But enough about that! The Jedi would be taken care off with time. Darth Sidious would make sure of that.
The Count was now in his training room with the General. It was time for another training lesson.
"Ready yourself, General!" – said the Count.
The cyborg toke off his cloak. His armor shined with the sunlight, giving the General a more menacing look. Not that Grievous needed any support in that department… He was pure intimidation.
"I am always ready, Lord Tyranus." – said Grievous.
The General picked up two lightsabers from his cloak and turned them on. They both had a blue blade that shined like two suns. The cloak fell slowly on the floor.
"The question is… Are you ready, Lord Tyranus?" – asked the General.
Dooku showed the cyborg a gentle smile, which was in fact a farce. Inside the Count, hate and anger were boiling. He hated being mocked by that aberration.
"Let's find that out, shall we?" said Dooku.
The Count turned his lightsaber on, and a red blade appeared. The red was the color of hatred and rage. It was the color of the blood of the innocent. It was the color of the Sith.
Dooku attacked first, with a quick stab at the General's lightsabers, but Grievous deflected the attack easily. Before the Count could step back, the cyborg attacked with a powerful strike. Only with the use of the Force, was the Count capable of dodging such a terrible attack.
Dooku used his momentum to attack the cyborg with various stabs that were all deflected by the General. Grievous then kicked the Count on the belly and Dooku flew against the wall.
"Damn!" – shouted the Count.
Grievous didn't stop his attack, and tried to cut the Count's head. Dooku ducked and was able to escape the deadly blow. Before the General could attack again, Dooku jumped and kicked the cyborg on the head. It hadn't hurt Grievous much, but it had stopped his attack.
Dooku used the Force to push Grievous against the wall. The cyborg tried to resist the formidable blow but his efforts were in vain…
The Count was now attacking with everything he had, through various quick attacks that meant to slash the cyborg´s arms and legs. Grievous started to spin his arms, creating a sort of a whirling of light. This was the General's most powerful offensive style, since it involved attacks few could deflect or dodge.
Dooku was able to dodge the first blows, but had to give up his attack in order to escape the following lightsaber stabs.
The Count was beginning to lose his patience. Grievous was a formidable opponent, very talented at using the lightsabers to attack. But he still had some problems in using the lightsabers to defend. Dooku knew that this was the cyborg´s only weakness… He had to explore it.
Grievous used more than one lightsaber, meaning that he preferred to focus on attacking his adversary. It was commonly said that a dead enemy couldn't harm you. But if you died before killing your enemy, it would all be in vain. Dooku preferred to reach a balance between the offensive and the defensive style. That's why he used only one lightsaber… He wanted to reach the perfect equilibrium in his lightsaber mastery.
That's why he was so feared and respected as a lightsaber duellist. He wanted to reach perfection.
The General preferred to use the lightsabers to destroy and kill. Sure he could deflect a few attacks and stabs, but he wouldn't survive against a lightsaber duellist such as Dooku. He was too impatient; he preferred to rely on his strength instead of his wits. His attacks could be powerful, but they could also be a weakness. It was all a question of finesse, something that the cyborg lacked.
Dooku was able to dodge the General's terrible whirlwind attacks and jumped before the cyborg´s leg almost kicked him on the head.
It was time, Dooku thought.
The Count was able to cut one of the lightsabers and pointed his lightsaber towards the cyborg´s neck. The broken lightsaber fell on the ground.
Grievous looked at the broken lightsaber and then at the red blade that was pointed towards him. He had failed again.
Dooku enjoyed this part of the training. He liked to remind the General who was the best duellist between the two.
"Good show, General!" – said the Count as he turned off his lightsaber.
Grievous nodded and turned off his lightsaber, too.
"Did you really have to destroy my lightsaber, Lord Tyranus?" – asked the General.
Dooku looked at the broken lightsaber and kicked it.
"It was an unfortunate accident, General." – said the Count.
Dooku couldn't contain the mocking smile.
"You have a fine collection already, General. One less piece won't destroy it." – stated Dooku.
Grievous picked up the broken lightsaber and stared at it. Dooku shrugged and left the training room. How he hated the cyborg.
The General threw the broken lightsaber at the wall and picked up his cloak.
He left the training room and found a Human waiting in the Count's meeting room.
"Who are you?" – asked the General.
The Human looked at the General and stepped back against the wall. He looked both surprised and afraid by the sight of the cyborg.
"Hello, General! We haven't met before, huh? My name is Forgan Grimwalk." – said the Human.
Grievous examined the Human and then started to walk towards him.
"Forgan Grimwalk? The one that betrayed the Republic and joined our cause?" – asked the cyborg.
The Human seemed to calm down and regain his composition.
"Why yes… I was responsible for the bomb in one of the shuttles that contained various Republic Diplomats. Surely you must have heard of my deeds?" – said Forgan Grimwalk.
Grievous nodded.
"The Count asked me to come here. He was already here, but had to leave. He said that he would be back in a minute or two." – explained Forgan Grimwalk.
The cyborg was apparently lost in his thoughts.
"Yes. The Count said that he was going to reward me for my brave efforts. Between you and me… I hope that he gives me credits." – continued Forgan Grimwalk.
The General blinked. He then looked at the Human directly in the eyes.
"Count Dooku wishes to speak with you?" – asked the cyborg.
Forgan Grimwalk nodded.
"Yes. Didn't you hear me?" – asked Forgan Grimwalk.
Grievous grabbed him by the neck.
"I try not to pay attention to weak cowards." – said Grievous.
The Human tried to fight the General's grip, but failed.
"What are you doing? I am on your side!" – squeaked Forgan Grimwalk.
Grievous threw the Human against the window. The glass shattered on the floor and you could hear a scream of panic. And then the frightening silence of death.
Two Battle Droids entered the meeting room and pointed their blasters on Grievous. The General ordered them to go away, and they followed the orders.
Dooku entered the room a sort time after.
"What happened? Where is Forgan Grimwalk?" – asked the Count.
Dooku looked at the window and then at the General.
"What happened, General?" – demanded Dooku.
The General looked at the Count and shrugged.
"It was an unfortunate accident, Lord Tyranus." – said Grievous using a sarcastic tone. – "A very unfortunate accident."