Chapter 12

Bellum, Part I

The engineering bay was a flurry of activity as maintenance droids scurried in myriad directions, desperately attempting to put out fires and shut down sparking electrical circuits. Kaine surveyed the controlled chaos. His gaze swept the entire bay, stopping to linger on one vital piece of equipment after another before continuing on for a full assessment.

The droids were making remarkable progress despite being completely uncoordinated in their efforts. The two primary detonation points had been contained by emergency containment fields, and the auxiliary reactors had already been brought on line. The redundant systems that his master had derided during initial construction had proved invaluable in holding the battle station together. Barely.

Yoda's placement of the charges had been prodigious. The first blast had shut down the main reactor. With only the auxiliary reactors available to supply the main deflector, the particle-beam power had been reduced to less than ten percent of maximum output. The second blast had proved more crippling than the first, destroying the main inertial dampening systems, the primary ion drive coils, and the gravitational control systems. As a result, the auxiliary reactors had to operate at full power just to maintain operation of the backup systems that kept the battle station from tearing itself apart.

Remarkable.

Kaine frowned.

Somehow, Yoda had located and deciphered the plans to the station in the main computer, obtained detonation devices, slipped through Kaine's substantial security protocols, and planted charges in just the right locations. Even more astounding to Kaine was that he had managed to accomplish all this—completely disable the battlestation—in less than an hour!

Not completely.

The fire-control systems were still online. The battle station could still engage the main deflector weapon, though at a much lower capability than before. The weapon's power would likely still destabilize the planet's orbit, but there would be no spectacular explosion. Of course, taking that course of action would be a death knell to the ship. It would divert all power from the already overtaxed auxiliary reactors. The cascade of systems failures would undoubtedly end in a catastrophic explosion within minutes of firing the weapon.

Brilliant.

Destroying Migruna III would eliminate her attackers at the same time. Kaine shook his head and wondered silently if Yoda had truly understood the implications of his actions. Perhaps Yoda had simply hoped that by shutting down the main reactor, the planet would be safe. More likely, Yoda believed that any attempt to fire the weapon would be halted by the ensuing overload. Kaine smiled. He was convinced that the weapon would fire before the systems failures began. The firing would be brief, but effectual.

Kaine pursed his lips as he contemplated his options.

The sudden slowdown of activity in the bay brought to Kaine's immediate attention the fact that the ship was no longer being wracked by violent gravitational shears. Knowing full well that the droids would have assigned lowest priority to correcting a fault in the artificial gravity systems, he understood at once that Rizza had corrected the problem. His master seemed to have a much greater understanding of the construction of his battle station than she had let on. The abrupt understanding that she did not need him opened a void in his stomach.

Wish to ally yourself with me, you do. Convinced, you are, that destroy your master I will, before I let Migruna III die.

Kaine frowned.

An unexpected dizzying surge in the Force as powerful as the earlier gravity shears sent Kaine staggering into the bulkhead. His suddenly sweaty palms made holding on to the durasteel walls nearly impossible. He turned and fell against the cold metal surface, leaning hard to remain standing.

Kaine snapped his head upward and directed his gaze at the ceiling. To any other being, all that was visible were the scurrying movements of more droids along the solid metal crown above engineering. To the Dark Lord of the Sith, the ceiling was not even there. His perceptions slipped past the physical obstructions to vision and connected him directly with the source of the disturbance in the Force.

His eyes widened.

A deluge of light spouted from a single point and cascaded about the control room above, crashing hard against a seemingly impenetrably void. The surges in the Force were overwhelming, but Kaine could not look away.

He peered harder.

Yoda was an irresistible force.

Rizza was an immovable object.

The implications of his precarious position regardless of the outcome of this confrontation came in the form of a chill that ran from the base of his spine to the tips of his fingers.

Kaine closed his eyes against the scene and leaned his head against the wall. Thoughts and images flashed through his mind at a dazzling rate. His suddenly dry throat made his attempts to swallow painful. He clenched his fists.

For years he had waited. He had been patient. He had planned. He had schemed. He had followed orders.

He pounded his fist against the wall.

Enough.

Kaine pushed himself off the wall. Glancing briefly back into the engineering bay as he headed out the doorway, he scowled at the warm-up sequence in the fire-control systems. A quick mental calculation told him that the weapon would fire in the next two minutes.

He was running out of time.


Calm.

Yoda turned slightly to center himself on Rizza. In the Force, she was an abyss. She seemed to be gathering the Force to her. Yoda smiled inwardly. Whatever darkness she drew on, he would counter with a more powerful calling of the Light. No matter how powerfully she struck at him, he was prepared.

Yoda was ready for anything.

Except laughter.

It began with a snicker, barely audible above the hum of his waiting lightsaber. The snicker became a chuckle. Her smile widened. Within moments her mouth fell open, and the chilling sound of maniacal laughter filled the space.

At length, her laughter subsided, and Rizza placed her hands implacably behind her back. She lifted her chin, pointing it at Yoda with a broad smile.

Yoda drew the corners of his mouth downward. It felt as if they would never turn upward again.

Rizza chuckled.

"Not on the bargaining table?" She seemed genuinely amused. Yoda blinked. "Yoda, my love, your allegiance has always been on the bargaining table! What do you think this is about?" She walked back to the console. When she turned to face him again, her face was contorted with rage. "We are at war, Yoda! Don't you ever forget it! The Jedi are the scourge of the galaxy. We are the solution to the rampant machinations of the Order."

It was Yoda's turn to smile. "Delusional you are, if think, you do, that two Sith can destroy the entire Order."

"And the Jedi think the Sith are arrogant!" Rizza spat. "There are only two sides to this conflict, Yoda. It is us against them for all eternity."

"The imbalance you create in the Force will be wiped out."

"By this 'Chosen One' who doesn't exist?" She chuckled and waved her hand dismissively. "You and Dorran can debate that ancient prophecy all you want. I, for one, believe in the here and now."

She moved toward Yoda, a pleading look on her face.

"Think of it, my love. We could end this war together. With you at my side, we could destroy the Jedi. We can outlive them all. We could rule the Galaxy!"

Yoda shook his head. "Learned your lessons, I have."

"Not all of them, Yoda. There is still much I can teach you."

"Not interested in what you teach, I am." Yoda glanced up at the chronometer. One minute, thirty-two seconds. His gaze drifted to the viewscreen, filled with the image of his home. "Stop this, Rizza. Destroying your home, too, you are."

"Is that a request, Yoda?" Rizza smiled. "You know the price."

Yoda nodded. He brought his lightsaber in front of him and angled it downward toward his former lover.

"Indeed. But know the price you do not."

Rizza's brows drew together.

"Enough of this!" There was no amusement in her voice. "This is your last chance." She flicked her wrist, and the intricate chrome hilt of a lightsaber appeared in her hand.

"Join me."

"Never."

Rizza's lips curled into a snarl.

"Then die!"

Lightning erupted from her hand.

Yoda felt himself in the grip of invisible hands, hurtling into a wall and being struck simultaneously by her electrical storm. The suddenness of the attack was only slightly more disorienting than the coordination.

His body crashed hard, and his lightsaber slipped from his fingers, skittering across the obsidian floor.

Power continued to engulf him.

After an eternity, the pain subsided.

Rizza crossed the distance between them with slow, deliberate steps.

"You're going to die today, Yoda."

The smell of burning cloth drifted up into his face. Yoda extended his hand weakly and called his fallen lightsaber. It rose from the floor and glided through the air, only to stop halfway between them.

Rizza smiled.

"Your weapon is of no use to you, Yoda. You cannot face the power of the dark side. You aren't strong enough."

Yoda swallowed hard and drew a deep breath.

He visualized his weapon.

He could feel the currents of dark energy grasping at it.

There is no emotion; there is peace.

In an instant the hilt alighted to his hand, and Yoda hurled himself over Rizza's head, landing lightly on the other side of the room.

"Die today, I may."

His weapon sprung to life.

"But die at your hands, I will not."