"You listen to me, Kardan," a voice called out.
Cyr'rnin and Jorgan moved into the room slowly, taking a defensive position behind a large piece of equipment.
"You've already put my operation at risk." The speaker wore an Imperial officer's uniform and was flanked by two Imperial soldiers. "You will do exactly as I say, when I say, or-"
"Or you'll what, Captain?" Jek Kardan said. "I'm not one of your lock-stepping drones. I never signed on for that." He motioned toward a door behind him. "You clean up your own mess. End of discussion."
"How dare you-" the captain began.
Kardan spotted Cyr'rnin and Jorgan and said, "Intruders!"
The Imperials drew their weapons and turned toward the Republic soldiers.
Kardan said, "Put those blasters on the floor, soldiers. Nice and slow."
"Imperial soldiers," Cyr'rnin said with disgust. "You're a traitor, just like Tavus and the others."
"I'm not Imperial, soldier," Kardan said. "I'm just a man helping his team. Now put that weapon down or- A Havoc badge? Is this a joke? No, no- you must be the new recruit Tavus told me about. So you survived after all."
"I'm not interested in compliments from a traitor," Cyr'rnin said.
Kardan shook his head. "It's not treason when the Republic betrays you first; it's self-preservation."
"What are you waiting for, Kardan?" the captain said. "Kill them! Or do you lack the true resolve to fight for the Empire?"
Kardan shook his head. "My loyalty is to Tavus. Not to your Empire. I don't kill good soldiers or civilians. I'm heading down to the Works to make sure everything is prepped. But, in the spirit of this alliance-" He hit his command console, and the door behind Cyr'rnin and Jorgan locked. "Do yourself a favor and die now, soldier-before everything you fight for collapses."
The Imperials dropped behind the control console and opened fire, and Kardan ran out another exit. Cyr'rnin watched Kardan leave then fired on the Imperials.
"Not a great situation, ma'am," Jorgan said.
"No shit!" Cyr'rnin threw a flash-bang grenade.
The captain hit a control on the console, and a turret lowered from the ceiling and started firing.
"You're shitting me," Jorgan said.
They dropped their heads below the equipment as blaster fire tore into the machinery. Cyr'rnin looked over their options. Their concussion grenades were too heavy for an enclosed space. She had an ion grenade, but she'd have to expose herself to throw it. She needed to think fast. Their barricade could stop rifle fire, but the turret would eventually cut a hole in it. She was working through more options when something heavy hit the locked door. A moment later, an orange lightsaber blade stabbed through the door and cut away the lock. The door was thrown open, and Agenord, Kira, and Teeseven rushed in. The blaster fire immediately switched to the new targets. The Imperial captain tried to take control of the turret but was too late. The concentrated fire from the turret was much easier for Agenord to deflect. He sprayed it across the console, forcing the Imperials into hiding, then turned it back on the turret, blowing it apart.
"Master Agenord?" Cyr'rnin said.
"Cyr'rnin. Sergeant," Agenord said while deflecting blaster fire. "I hate to tell you this, but I need them alive."
"That might be difficult, Master Jedi," Jorgan said.
"Just a minute," Agenord told him and advanced on the Imperials. He threw the two soldiers into the wall with the Force and pulled their rifles from them. He ran at the captain, blocking the officer's desperate blaster fire, and severed his hand. "Now tell me-" Agenord began.
One of the soldiers drew a pistol and fired at Agenord. The Jedi deflected automatically, killing the soldier. The other soldier threw away his weapon and raised his hands.
"Where is the research team?" Agenord said to the captain.
"Oh," the captain said. "In there." He indicated a side door. "But you're a little late."
Kira ran into the room, her saber ready. They heard voices, and she came out a moment later, shaking her head.
Agenord asked, "Who was the other voice?"
"One of the engineers," Kira said. "He didn't last, but he told me Tarnis is a Sith Lord."
The captain chuckled.
Agenord looked at him. "Don't push me, Imp."
The officer backed down.
"Cyr'rnin," Agenord said. "Give me a hand. We need these two tied up and locked in that room."
"We can request a team from General Garza," Cyr'rnin said as she and Jorgan secured the soldier.
Agenord shook his head. "I want SIS to have them."
"You'll get nothing from us," the captain said.
"Should we kill you now?" Agenord asked.
The officer looked at the dead soldier. "Not necessarily."
"Yeah," Agenord said. Once the prisoners were secure, he contacted Agent Galen. "Agent Galen, we found the team, but-" he began.
"The research team is dead," Galen said. "We detected the launch of the satellites, but they cloaked as soon as they were in the air."
"We captured two Imperial soldiers," Agenord said. "Send a team to this location to get them. And one of the engineers survived long enough to give us a message. Tarnis is a Sith Lord."
"That explains a lot," Galen said.
"What about the generator?" Kira asked.
"You won't believe that part," Galen replied. "The heat signature coming from the Jedi Temple."
Kira said, "Oh, you've got to be kidding me."
"The Temple?" Agenord said. He turned to Cyr'rnin.
"I'll take care of this immediately," she said to her holocomm.
"Good," the comm replied. "Garza out."
"Cyr'rnin-" Agenord began.
"We thank you for the help, Master Agenord," she said. "But we need to-"
"I need to speak with your commanding officer immediately," Agenord said. "Teeseven, use the command console to set up a conference call." He turned back to Agent Galen. "Agent, I need a holo-conference with General Var Suthra and General Garza. How long will that take?"
Galen said, "The clock is ticking, Master Agenord."
"Trust me, Agent," Agenord said.
Galen nodded. "General Var Suthra is here; General Garza is down the hall. This won't take long."
Teeseven plugged into the console then remotely accessed the comm signal. After a buzz of static, Agent Galen appeared to be standing next to them. General Var Suthra soon walked into view, shaking his head.
"A Sith, working as my chief scientist!" Var Suthra said. "How can I defend the Republic if I can't trust my own people?"
"What's this about a Sith?" General Garza asked, entering the conference. "And why is Havoc Squad standing around."
"A Sith infiltrator was the head of one of our research teams," Agenord told her. "He has the Planet Prison, and he's about to set it off. He and an unknown number of Imperials are in the ruins of the Jedi Temple. If we're going to stop them in time, I need Havoc Squad."
"Havoc Squad is currently two people, Master Jedi," Garza said. "Not enough to take on that many troops."
"I didn't mean Havoc Squad alone, General," Agenord said. "But no one on this planet knows the layout of the Temple better Cyr'rnin."
"I don't know if that's true exactly, Master Agenord," Cyr'rnin said.
Agenord smiled at her. "How many maps have you gone through?"
"Two-hundred and twenty-three," she said with a shrug.
"Out of?"
"Two-hundred and, uh, thirty-one. That I could find, that is. But those maps only go back four centuries. Uh, four-and-half. Technically."
Agenord looked at General Garza.
"Havoc Squad is on a time sensitive mission, Master Agenord," Garza told him.
"I'll help them with it," he said. "It'll go fast."
"Ma'am," Jorgan said. "He might be right about that."
Cyr'rnin asked, "Any idea why they're in the Temple?"
"They didn't find it," Agenord told her.
"Find what?" she said.
"We don't know," Agenord said. "But the attack on the Temple never made tactical sense."
"He's right," Garza said. "The Temple was nearly empty. Most of the Jedi were deployed for the war. That attack only makes sense if the Sith were looking for something."
"Could we get a map of the Temple?" Cyr'rnin said.
Teeseven whistled, and a map appeared.
Cyr'rnin centered the map on one spot and zoomed in. "If they're looking for something, they'll go through the Entrance Hall. It gives them access to the Archives here, the secondary Council room here, and this elevator. It's thought to still be functional, and would take them to this section of the Works, which is a very defensible area." She looked at Sergeant Jorgan. "Kardan said something about the Works."
Jorgan nodded. "He had to go to the Works to set something up."
"If he said that," Garza said. "It's something that'll need explosives. I'll send you a demolitions team."
"We'll need more than that," Agenord said.
"Lieutenant," Var Suthra said over his shoulder. "Contact General Davurs. We need a Sentinel team. Highest priority." He turned back. "Anti-Force sensitive training. It sounds like you'll need them."
Agenord nodded. "We can't go through that elevator. That section will be too well defended. We don't have the time. Does the Temple have a back door?"
"Two, actually," Cyr'rnin said. "Maintenance tunnels here and here. The collapse might have filled them in."
"They've had time to clear out the tunnels," Agenord said.
Var Suthra said, "Those tunnels would be a choke point."
Jorgan said, "Get me some snipers, General. I'll get you through."
Var Suthra nodded.
"This makes sense," Galen said. "If this Kardan is anywhere, he'd be here. But I have to warn you, the droids in that area are rebelling."
"Droids don't rebel," Agenord said. "They've been reprogrammed. The Imps are using them for cover."
Garza said, "I've informed Master Satele of the situation. She's sending another Jedi that was already in your area. And she's asked to join the call."
"Teeseven," Agenord said.
Teeseven beeped, and Master Satele appeared.
Master Satele looked at everyone and nodded a greeting. "So, Bela was more right than she thought. How much time do we have?"
"Just under three hours," Galen said.
Satele shook her head then stopped suddenly. "Cyr'rnin?"
"Master Satele," Cyr'rnin said. "It's an honor, ma'am. It's... it's always an honor, ma'am."
Satele blinked. "You... grew."
"It's been known to happen," Cyr'rnin said. "I'm still shorter than Master Agenord. By six whole centimeters."
Satele looked at Agenord as if to say, "Master Agenord?"
Agenord shrugged with his eyes.
"Lieutenant," Jorgan said. "Is this balcony intact?"
"Unknown," Cyr'rnin said.
"If I could get the snipers up there, we could control this whole area." He indicated the Entrance Hall.
Kira said, "We need to go through them to get up there, don't we?"
Teeseven whistled, and whistled again.
"What's wrong, Teeseven?" Agenord said. "Is it Timmy?"
"Timmy?" Satele asked.
"The son of a droid mechanic," Kira told him. "He's bonded with Teeseven. He gets into trouble a lot."
Teeseven whistled a negative.
Agenord said, "If it's that important, use the console."
Teeseven's scomp link spun rapidly.
"Teeseven partner Ven Zallow," Kira read from the console.
"He was owned by Master Zallow?" Cyr'rnin said.
"Yes," Satele said. "Yes, he was."
Kira continued, "Teeseven Temple maintenance shaft. Teeseven Temple- access codes!"
Master Satele said, "Yes, he does."
Agenord said, "Teeseven, you just became the most important droid on this planet."
Teeseven whistled his happiness.
"Agent Galen," Agenord said. "We're going to need some low-light goggles."
Galen nodded.
Garza said, "Your team will meet you at the entrance to the Works. While you're doing that, I will send troops against the elevator. That might get them to send out more troops."
Master Satele said, "I'll add a couple of Jedi to that attack, or they won't believe it's real."
Cyr'rnin said, "Now we just the data from the Justicar-" She looked up, and Yvie and Qyzen entered the holo call.
Yvie said, "Hey, Agenord, Master Satele, Cyr'rnin. You're going to help me with the Noetikons, or whatever?"
"Is this Master Kriranda?" Jorgan asked.
Yvie replied, "Do I look skinny and flat?"
Agenord said, "This is our other cousin, Yvisnusiish."
"Oh," Jorgan said. "It's an honor, Master... Jedi."
Yvie rolled her eyes. "Y-vis-nu-si-ish. It means 'she-who-watches'."
"Of course," he said.
"So," Yvie said, "You're getting me to the Archives?"
Agenord shook his head. "We need to stop the superweapon first."
"Actually," Master Satele said. "Master Yvisnusiish needs to get to the Archive as soon as she can. Especially if Imperials are in the Temple. The fate of the Jedi Order is at stake."
Agenord scanned the map and nodded. "This will work. We can't be caught between two groups. The Archives would be mostly empty. The Sith wouldn't want the regular troops damaging anything. If the snipers and the Sentinel team can hold off the Imperials, we'll have enough time to clear the Archives."
"Good luck," Garza said.
"And may the Force be with you," Satele added.
Jorgan chuckled. "Three Force sensitives, ma'am," he said to Cyr'rnin. "I'm starting to think the ambassador was right."
"Four, if you count Mau'te," Yvie said.
Cyr'rnin exhaled sharply and turned away. Everyone looked at her except Agent Galen. He looked at Master Satele.
"We don't count Mau'te, do we?" Agenord said to Yvie in a low growl.
"Mau'te?" General Garza asked.
Yvie nodded. "He's Agenord's twin brother."
"Fraternal twin," Agenord snarled. "We are not identical."
Garza said, "I take it he's not a Jedi?"
Master Satele gave her a warning look, but Garza ignored it.
"Not anymore," Yvie said. "He was expelled from the Order for what he did to Cyr'rnin. He's a Sith Lord now."
Everyone stared at Agenord, except Galen. He still watched Master Satele.
"That's why we don't count him," Agenord said.
Yvie shrugged.
"Master Agenord-," Var Suthra began but couldn't finish.
General Garza looked at Master Satele, found nothing, then turned to Agenord. "Master Agenord, what would you do if this Mau'te was in the Temple."
Agenord turned a hard gaze toward her. "I would kill him." He gave Teeseven a slight push with the Force, disconnecting him from the console, and ending the call from their side.
"Master Satele?" Garza said.
Satele nodded.
Garza continued, "Agent Galen, secure the line. Everyone else, out of the room." After a moment, she said, "We're clear. Did he give her those scars?"
"Yes," Satele said. "I don't know the exact details, and the four of them won't tell us."
"Four?" Var Suthra said.
"Master Kriranda," Satele said. "The Cathar mentioned her."
"Sergeant Jorgan," Garza told her. "Master Satele, please tell me what happened to my lieutenant."
Satele took a deep breath and let it go. "We encourage the Padawans to go through the Archives in their free time, to discover lost knowledge. Mau'te found a ritual that was supposed to transfer Force sensitivity from one person to another. Some of it, anyway."
"There's a ritual that can do that?" Galen asked.
Satele shook her head. "No. It doesn't work. I think Mau'te would have known that if he'd looked closely enough, but he saw a way to help his cousin. That's all he cared about. He contacted her, and she spent every credit she had on a ticket to Tython. She was fourteen."
Var Suthra said, "It sounds like she trusted him."
"She loved him," Satele said. "He was her favorite." She sighed. "Her parents were a bit upset. She claimed she was just there for a visit, and her parents believed her. We promised to send her back on the next shuttle. Until then, she wanted to spend time with her cousins. She left with Mau'te that afternoon, to look at some ruins they told us." Satele paused, remembering her last image of Cyr'rnin before the scars. "I think Agenord sensed something. That's always been one of his strengths. He and Kriranda found the ritual in Mau'te's room and went after them. They didn't tell anyone, to save Mau'te from the Council, but they were too late. The ritual woke the Dark Side in Mau'te, and he was hurting Cyr'rnin. Kriranda called for help, and Agenord..." She paused again. "Agenord tried to kill his brother. When we got there, they were unleashing power I have never seen from Padawans."
"How old were they?" Var Suthra asked.
"Sixteen," Satele replied. "It took six Masters to pull them apart. I still have the scars from it."
"Agenord's scar?" he asked.
Satele nodded. "Courtesy of his brother. Mau'te has one of his own." She took another breath. "We expelled Mau'te, but that wasn't enough for Agenord. He convinced their family to disown Mau'te completely. And they still wanted to kill each other. Agenord was still a Jedi. Mau'te's only chance to survive a fight with him was joining the Sith."
Garza said, "Why do they have attachments this strong?"
"Their power didn't manifest until they were nine," Satele replied. "We don't know why."
"Why let them join the Order?" Galen asked.
"Because," Satele said with a painful laugh, "Mau'te and Agenord are the strongest Force sensitives since Revan. They're too dangerous not to train."
"Which one is stronger?" Var Suthra asked.
Satele said, "Twins, even fraternal twins, usually have the same strength in the Force. It's thought they exchange power in the womb and reach parity. It's true with Agenord and Mau'te. They tied in everything."
"Can we do anything about this Mau'te?" Garza asked. "Do we even know where he is?"
"Dromund Kaas," Galen said. "The Council asked SIS to keep track of him, but didn't tell us why. Or who he was."
Satele said, "In answer to your question, General Garza, we can't do anything severe. Power like that exists for a reason. Until we know the reason, we could be killing ourselves. But, we're not ignoring it either. We have something in place, and I've been told it's looking promising."
"That doesn't reassure me," Garza said.
"I understand," Satele replied. "But it's not a situation that lends itself to absolutes."
Var Suthra said, "That doesn't change the fact that the Empire has him as an asset."
"They don't know," Satele said. "The Empire would frown upon that kind of power in an alien. He won't reveal himself to them until he's ready."
"That thing you have in place," Garza asked. "Do you trust it?"
Master Satele smiled. "Yes, I do. Quite a bit."
"Good enough for now," Garza said. "We've got more immediate issues." She looked away. "Message from the lieutenant. The droid sliced the data. They're on their way to the Works. I have to admit, that was damn fast."
"Sounds like a plan, General," Cyr'rnin said to her holocomm.
They stood at the elevator to the Works, waiting for the support team.
Garza replied, "Kardan could help us convince everyone to surrender peaceably. Make him see that, otherwise we're only going to kill them all. Garza out."
"They're here," Agenord said.
"Lieutenant Onoka?" one asked. Cyr'rnin nodded. "Sergeant Mathin. Demolitions, ma'am." He indicated two other soldiers.
"Lieutenant Odan, ma'am," another said. "Sentinel team three. Do we really have Sith on Coruscant?"
"We do," Agenord said.
A female trooper stepped forward and saluted. "Sergeant Krasha, ma'am. Snipers." She looked at Jorgan. "Are those Deadeye colors on your rifle?"
"Used to be," Jorgan replied.
"It'll be an honor, Sergeant," Krasha said.
Agenord said, "Sentinel team and demolitions, you report to Lieutenant Onoka. Snipers, you report to Sergeant Jorgan. They report to me. We will be blowing a communications array then infiltrating the Jedi Temple. We do not know how many Imperials are in the Temple, and we do not have the time to find out. We have two and a half hours to get this done, or thousands of people are going to die. Let's make this happen."
They split between the two elevators and headed down. A repair team stared at them as they exited.
"Are you here for the droids?" their foreman asked.
"Not exactly," Agenord said. "But I'm afraid you're going to lose your droids."
"Yeah," he said. "I can see that."
With three Jedi, fourteen troopers, and Qyzen, they cut a path through the droids in under five minutes. When they were near the array, Cyr'rnin stopped the team.
"Demolitions team, that array is your target," she said. "But General Garza wants our man alive. Wait here. I'm going to try to talk him down. As for the Imperials, we don't have time for prisoners of war. Snipers, if things go bad, the Imps are yours."
The snipers nodded and got into position. Cyr'rnin and Jorgan moved in slowly, weapons out. The four Imperial soldiers spotted them and drew their weapons, but Kardan held up a hand to stop them.
Kardan said, "Still alive, huh? You really should've gotten out of this while you were ahead, soldier. Now, you're a risk to Tavus and the rest of my people."
"If you cared about Tavus and the others, you wouldn't have let them defect," Cyr'rnin said.
"I've made my choice," Kardan said. "Those soldiers are like my children. And I abandoned them. I resigned and left them to fight alone, just to make a point. They need my help now more than ever. I'm not going to abandon them. Not this time."
Cyr'rnin replied, "If you want to help your people, you'll help me bring them in alive."
"So Garza can have all their heads and be done with it? I don't think so. I know you're trying to get into my head, soldier, but it's not going to work."
"Think what you want, Kardan," she said. "Doesn't make my point any less true."
"All I know is that you're really trying my patience, soldier. I'm trying to keep my people alive, and it's your mission to kill them. That's all there is to this."
"I served with your people, sir," Cyr'rnin told him. "I don't want to kill them."
"Well, you've certainly taken your time trying to kill me," Kardan said. "You've already compromised the relay. Even if we take you out, it's only a matter of time until Garza has this place slagged for a klick in every direction. By now, Garza will know exactly where all of the defector bases are. They'll be tethered banthas, cut off from each other."
"Excuse me, sir," one of the Imperials said. "But shouldn't we be-"
"The Imperials might offer help, but it won't be much," Kardan said, ignoring the Imp.
"Tavus and the others will follow your lead," Cyr'rnin said. "If you come in peacefully, they will, too."
"Damn," Kardan said. "I can't believe it's come to this."
"Sir?" the Imperial asked.
"All right, soldier," Kardan said. "I'll go along with this. But if you harm a single one of my people, you will be dead within the day. Understood?"
Cyr'rnin nodded, "You have my word on it, sir."
"Let's get on with this, soldier," he said. "What is your name, anyway?"
"Lieutenant Cyr'rnin Onoka, sir."
"You're a good soldier, Onoka."
"Sir," the Imperial said. "I can't allow you to go into enemy custody alive."
"Are you still here?" Kardan said. "The op's over, people. Finished. Mission failed. So get out of here, while you've still got the legs to carry you."
The Imperial soldier raised his rifle. "You leave me no choice, sir. Ready your weapons, men!"
Three sniper shots hit the Imperials, dropping them in an instant. Cyr'rnin killed the fourth.
"What the fuck?" Kardan said.
Cyr'rnin said, "I told you, sir, we wanted you alive." She turned around. "Demolitions team, move in."
"All this for me?" Kardan said as the assault team appeared.
"No," Agenord told him. "Do you know how many Imperials are in the Temple?"
"The Jedi Temple?" Kardan asked.
"Any idea how many Imperials on Coruscant?" Agenord asked.
Kardan shook his head. "They didn't tell me that."
"Demolitions team," Cyr'rnin said. "You won't be needed for the Temple. Escort Mister Kardan back to General Garza."
"Is this about that Tarnis guy, the Sith Lord?" Kardan asked.
"Yes," Agenord said.
"Good," Kardan said. "That guy's an asshole."
Cyr'rnin pointed toward opening of a maintenance tunnel. A group of rogue droids guarded the area.
"That tunnel is our best bet," Cyr'rnin said.
Agenord nodded. "Move in slowly. This is where it gets dangerous."
The group moved in, and Agenord's lightsaber flashed suddenly, deflecting a sniper shot.
"Where did that come from?" he asked.
"There," one of the Sentinel soldiers replied.
Agenord said, "Snipers, can you find the target?" He deflected another shot.
Jorgan said, "I think I've got him."
Before Jorgan could fire, two blaster bolts came from behind a far corner and hit the Imperial sniper.
"That was unexpected," Kira said.
Agenord closed his eyes and searched for the shooter. He laughed when he found him. "I can sense you, Xal!"
"That's cheating, Agenord!" a voice called out.
Xaldiba and Corso walked into view.
"Miss Cyr'rnin, ma'am," Corso said once they got close.
"Mister Riggs," she replied.
"Did I say your name right, ma'am?"
"Yes, you did."
He smiled. "Been practicing, ma'am."
"Hey, Agenord, Cyr'rnin. Oh, hi, Yvie," Xal said. "Hello, pretty sniper lady."
Agenord smacked him on the back of the head.
"What?" Xal said. "She's got to have a life, am I right?"
"Yeah," Krasha said. "I've got a life."
"What did I tell you?" Xal said.
"We could use your help, Xal," Agenord said. "We've got Imperials in the Temple. We don't know how many. I need people I can trust."
Xal said, "I just got a line on my ship..."
"No one is going into the sky for the next two hours," Agenord said.
"Captain," Corso said. "It's a chance to help Miss Cyr'rnin."
"Corso..."
"But, Captain, it's a chance to help Miss Cyr'rnin."
"I'm really not the hero type," Xal said.
Agenord pointed at the Imperial sniper.
"That was luck," Xal said. "Is what that was. Just luck."
"Lieutenant?" Krasha said. "Was that luck?"
Cyr'rnin shook her head.
Krasha walked up to Xal. "Captain...?"
"Xaldiba Onoka, ma'am, at your pleasure. Quite a bit of it," he said with a smile.
She leaned forward, whispered in his ear for a while, and stepped back.
Xal thought for a moment and said, "My baby sister needs help, I gotta help. That's what I'm saying."
Jorgan said, "I guess she does have a life."
"All right," Agenord said. "Let's clear these droids."
Xal took out four of the bipedal droids with one shot each while the others focused on the heavier units. Krasha gave him a look.
"What?" he said. "I'm having a good day."
Cyr'rnin said, "Focus, Xal, or I'll tell her about your medals."
Corso said, "Medals, Captain?"
"Droids," Xal said. "We've got more droids." He shot three more.
Once the droids were down, Agenord said, "How long is this tunnel?"
"Long enough to need speeders," Cyr'rnin said. "We just need to grab some from the Imps."
Teeseven whistled, rolled to the entrance, and accessed a console. A section of wall screeched open, and a rail car slid out into the center of the tunnel.
"Is he one of the Works droids?" one of the Sentinel team asked.
Agenord said, "He was a maintenance droid at the Temple on the day of the attack. He's going to do a lot once we're inside. Let's pile in. It's a tight fit, but it's all we've got."
Fifteen minutes later, the end of the tunnel came into view. Agenord stopped the car a couple of minutes later, when the track became too damaged to use.
"Can you see anything?" Agenord asked Jorgan.
The sergeant sighted down his scope and said, "Six strong heat signatures, four weak, probably droids. A lot less than I expected."
"The others are guarding the elevator," Agenord replied.
Jorgan switched from thermal vision to low-light. "I think the tunnel is set with charges," he told them.
"Yvie," Agenord said.
Yvie waved her hand.
After a wait, Lieutenant Odan said, "Nothing happened."
"It'll happen," Yvie told him.
"Sergeant," Agenord said. "You're up."
Jorgan and the snipers got into position, identified their targets, and, after a countdown, fired simultaneously. The walls near the opening the tunnel sparked as every fuse on the charges burned out at the same time. The snipers fire two more times, clearing the opening of the tunnel. Once they were past the tunnel, Teeseven guided them to the maintenance shaft. He inserted a rotating arm into a socket and spun the door open.
"Teeseven," Aganord said, "Give us a map of the Entrance Hall. We will come out in the corridor behind this balcony. Teeseven has the access codes to the building. He will disable any security they might have reactivated, and he'll knock out the lights, so get your low-light goggles."
"Captain Onoka," a Miraluka trooper said, "You can have mine."
Agenord continued, "The snipers will stay on the balcony, and the rest of us will attack the Archives. You will hold the door against the Imperials while Yvie, Qyzen and I clear this area out. Yvie and Qyzen will remain behind, and we will attack the Council Chamber."
Lieutenant Odan said, "Do we have any tactical information on the Temple?"
Agenord said, "Cyr'rnin, you're up."
She took them through the basic structure, the amount of damage to the building, different rooms the Imperials might be using, and optimal defensive locations. With the final strategy in place, they climbed the maintenance shaft, Agenord first, then Teeseven and the rest. The droid plugged his scomp into access and blinked a control light twice to confirm the connection. Agenord scanned the balcony with the Force and indicated eight enemies. Cyr'rnin, Jorgan, and the Sentinel team drew their combat knives. Cyr'rnin's vibroknife was silver with a bright blue blade. The other knives were more subdued. Agenord, Yvie and the special forces soldiers moved into position near a large arch. They set their low-light goggles to thermal, and Agenord waved to Teeseven. The droid turned off all the lights in the Temple, and the team moved in.
Two Sith were among the enemy troops on the balcony and sensed the attack. They called out to their men and ignited their sabers. Agenord and Yvie jumped over the regular troops and attacked the Sith. Agenord's opponent died quickly, and Yvie's soon after. The Imperial soldiers turned to fire at the orange and blue blades, and Havoc squad and the Sentinel team knifed them from behind. One Imperial didn't die fast enough and fired off a spray from his blaster, alerting the other Imperials.
Jorgan called to the sniper team. Barely a tenth of the balcony was accessible, but he spread them evenly, and gave them their assignments.
The rest of the team ran down a stairway toward the Archives. The Jedi leapt over large holes in the stairs and reached the ground first. They ran at a group of six Imperial soldiers. Agenord killed three on his own, and Yvie and Kira killed the others. They turned toward the center of the Entrance Hall and blocked blaster fire until the rest of the team reached them. They killed a second team on the way to the Archives. At the entrance, Agenord and Yvie pulled a broken section of a column in front of the team as a barricade.
"This shouldn't take-" Agenord began, and the lights came on. "Teeseven!" The droid rushed to the nearest console and shut off the lights. "Good luck. And, Xal, try to be extra lucky."
Xaldiba holstered one pistol and attached a scope to the other. He held the pistol like a sport shooter, and scanned the Entrance Hall for targets.
"That's where I've seen you before," one of the Sentinels said to him. "My sister was in a pistol competition six years ago. Different division than yours. I remember you got a lot of attention."
"Did he win?" Odan asked.
Xal fired three times, but only two targets dropped. "Shit!" he said. "By three points."
"No shit?" Odan said. "That must have been a hell of a final."
"It was indeed," Xal said and dropped the third target.
"Just droids, so far," Odan said.
"They know why we're here," Cyr'rnin said.
Xal said, "The sniper support will get us across the Entrance Hall."
"It will," Odan said. "And after that-" He looked at his team. "For the Republic," he told them.
"For the Republic," they echoed.
Agenord killed three Sith Lords before Yvie could get to them then rushed another group.
What the fuck, Agenord? she thought.
She saw two more emerge from an isle and ran at them. She killed the first quickly then got into a decent exchange with the second before finishing him.
"Don't play with them," Agenord said.
Qyzen finished off a group of droids and ran to her side as three more attacked. They killed one, but the other two were more skilled. The best Yvie and Qyzen could do was hold them off until Agenord killed two others and joined them.
With the last two down, Yvie looked at the body count and thought, It figures.
"Do you sense any more?" Agenord asked while scanning the room with the Force.
She reached out with her mind. "The deaths are clouding the room."
Agenord nodded. He'd sensed the same thing. "I can't wait, Yvie."
"We'll handle it," she told him.
"Good luck," he said and left.
She wrinkled her nose at the bodies and thought, Where do I plug in the Noetikons? Oh, that must be it.
"Cyr'rnin," Agenord said when he returned to the team. "Get two of the snipers down here."
She signaled to Sergeant Jorgan.
"Their troops haven't attacked," Agenord continued. "I don't think they're anti-Force sensitive. Kira and I will have less to worry about. Our goal is to get Teeseven through their troops so he can shut down the generator."
Jorgan and Krasha reached them.
"Sentinel team," Agenord said, "Keep the Sith distracted. Kira and I will be throwing a lot of debris at them. Mix in some flash-bang grenades. They're less likely to sense those as an attack. Everyone else, focus on the troops. When we have an opening, Kira and I will move in. Take control of the barricade from this side and take them down. That will get us to this long hallway. There is no easy way through it. Kira and I will defend. You will push them back. Do not stop moving. On the other side of the hallway, we need to punch a hole so Teeseven and I can get to the Council Chamber. That is the only thing that matters."
They moved in slowly, and the attack began. The Imperials had trusted their barricade and their numbers. They hadn't anticipated a Sentinel team, and had held back most of their Sith Lords. The combination of the Jedi attacks and the anti-Force sensitive tactics broke their focus. They destroyed the first group of defenders and moved to the hallway. As expected, the Imperials had held back their best. The Battle of the Hallway took over twenty minutes, with Agenord and Kira defending their team the entire way. By the end, Agenord's saber was moving too fast for anyone to follow, as if a solid wall of flame were advancing on the enemy. When he and Kira reached the end of the hallway, they pushed a large group of soldiers away from them in a wave. Agenord rushed in with Teeseven close behind. Kira remained behind, defending the team and attacking anyone close to her. Agenord destroyed a droid, threw it at a group of soldiers, and killed two Sith Lords before reaching the entrance to the Council Chamber. A smallish Sith Lord blocked his way, but one doesn't judge a Force sensitive by his size.
Agenord attacked with all he had, pushing the small Sith Lord back down the short hallway. He was disappointed he couldn't draw out the fight. This was the best Sith he'd fought yet. He could have learned a lot from his opponent, but he didn't have the time. He finally pushed the Sith into the Chamber and killed him.
"I'm departing Coruscant now, Father," Tarnis said to a holographic cabal of Sith. "The Planet Prison deploys in minutes. The Republic will have no choice but to surrender."
"You return to me as a hero of the Empire, my son," one of the cabal said. "Our victory-"
"What's this, Tarnis?" a different Sith said. "A loose end?"
Tarnis turned around. "Master Agenord. Have you come to die?"
"I don't die easily," Agenord replied.
"Who is this boy?" the first Sith said.
"Agenord Onoka," Tarnis said. "He was supposed to be special, but he spent the last two months chasing a shadow."
"Onoka," one of the other Sith said. "How do I know that name?"
"The apprentice of Darth Baras," the second said.
"Oh, yes," said the third. "Another arrogant Twi'lek."
"Challenge him sometime," Agenord said. "Tell me how it goes."
The first Sith said, "Channel your rage, my son. Don't let this Jedi steal your moment of triumph."
"I am of your blood, Father," Tarnis said, igniting his lightsaber. "I cannot fail."
Tarnis was good. Agenord had to admit it. Better, even, than the last Sith. But Tarnis wasn't good enough. At the end, Agenord twisted Tarnis' saber out of the way, severed his arm, and stabbed him through the heart. Tarnis gasped once and dropped at his father's feet.
"You... Jedi... filth... you killed my SON!"
"He'll die for this, Master," the fourth Sith said.
"You've no idea what you've unleashed, Jedi," the first Sith said. "There's no place in the galaxy to hide from my wrath."
"I won't be hiding," Agenord replied.
"I will inflict unimaginable suffering on your people. Billions will die because of you. My son's death will be avenged on the entire Republic- and you will bow down before I let you die."
"You might be wrong about that," Agenord told him.
The Sith said, "My hatred makes me stronger than you can possibly know."
"Yeah," Agenord said.
The Sith continued, "Tell your pathetic Masters that Darth Angral has returned. This time, there will be no mercy."
The transmission ended.
"Such a charmer," Kira said from the doorway. "I miss him already."
"The Planet Prison-?" Agenord began.
"Is officially scrap metal," Kira said. "Thanks to Teeseven. Looks like we saved Coruscant."
"And them?" Agenord asked, nodding toward the other room.
"Surrendered," Kira said. "When they sensed their master's death. The soldiers followed."
"How many did we lose?"
"Two," she said. "Of the Sentinel team."
"Oh."
"Considering what we did-"
"I know," he said. "I know." He looked over at Teeseven. "Record this. Kira." He put a hand on her shoulder. "I couldn't have done it without you."
Her jaw dropped. "You got that, right?" she said to the droid.
Teeseven nodded his upper disk.
"Let's go," Agenord said. "I need to check on Yvie."
When they appeared, Odan asked, "Did we win, sir?"
"We did," Agenord said. "With twelve minutes to spare. And, I'm sorry."
"We remember, sir. We don't apologize."
Agenord nodded. "Cyr'rnin, Xal, Tarnis was the one looking for Kixi. She's safe now."
"Good to know, sir," Jorgan said.
"Has she been a problem?" Agenord asked.
"She really hasn't," Cyr'rnin said. "She understood."
"It was just one more thing, sir," Jorgan said. "But-" He looked around. "I guess she earned it."
Agenord turned toward the exit just as Yvie and Qyzen walked in.
"Did you stop it?" Yvie asked.
"We did," Agenord said. "Any problems?"
"I learned the ritual, then three more Sith arrived, but we killed them."
"Good," he said. "I need to ask the Noetikons something."
"The Sith damaged them," Yvie said. "They need to be repaired."
"Master Agenord," Cyr'rnin said. "I contacted General Garza. They have control of the Works, but the Imperials damaged the elevator. It'll take a little while to cut their way in."
"That's okay," Agenord said, sitting down. "We earned a rest."
"No one saw this coming, Master Satele," General Var Suthra said. "Not even the Jedi Council."
Agenord, Cyr'rnin, Kira, Jorgan, and Teeseven entered the War Room. Generals Garza and Var Suthra, and Agent Galen were in a holoconference with Master Satele.
"We sensed it for weeks, General," Master Satele said. "If you'd told us of your secret project, we might have averted this disaster."
"Master Kiwiiks had a vague idea of impending danger," Garza said. "She couldn't identify Tarnis or the Temple specifically."
"It's why the Imperials gave weapons to the gangs," Agenord said. "Spreading out the threat made Master Kiwiiks vision less clear."
"A clever tactic," Garza said. "I'll make note of it, Master Jedi. Lieutenant, your work was exemplary. And it seems Master Agenord was right. Lieutenant Odan told me your tactical knowledge was vital to the success of the mission."
"Just doing my job, ma'am," Cyr'rnin said.
"Just doing your job?" Garza said. "You were outnumbered four to one and attacking a highly defensible position, and you only lost two soldiers. That's impressive by any standards."
"If you say so, ma'am," Cyr'rnin said.
"We all say so, Cyr'rnin," Satele added.
"Thank you, ma'am," Cyr'rnin said, then paused. "Is that a Norsam J-273 beam collimator?"
Agenord turned away to hide a smile.
"Uh, yes," Satele said.
"I thought those went out of style," Cyr'rnin continued.
"They did," Satele said. "I modified it. It gives me more blade control."
"Oh, yeah," Cyr'rnin said. "That makes sense." She looked at Agenord then said. "Is it blue?"
"It is blue," Satele replied.
Cyr'rnin looked at Agenord again. "Blue is traditional." She said it like a victory.
"If you're done, Lieutenant," Garza said.
"Yes, ma'am. How is Mister Kardan?"
"We're currently negotiating the extent of his contribution," she replied. "But his help will give us quite and edge against Tavus and the others."
Kira said, "Those Planet Prison satellites are still up there, you know."
"And they will serve the defense of Coruscant," Var Suthra said. "Once we can build the infrastructure."
"And fully reprogram them," Agent Galen added.
"Who is this Darth Angral?" Agenord asked.
"And why is he shouting at us on the comm channels?" Kira said.
Master Satele replied, "Darth Angral personally led the forces that sacked Coruscant in the last war."
"He was furious when the Emperor signed the treaty," Var Suthra said. "Looks like he's back to finish what he started. The Empire has formally disavowed Darth Angral's actions, saying he's gone rogue. It's a lie, but the Senate refuses to authorize a military response."
"For good reason," Master Satele said. "Neither the Republic nor the Jedi are prepared for another war. We would lose. Billions would die." She turned to Agenord. "Did you discover what the Sith were searching for?"
Agenord shook his head. "The Sith we captured were told to collect any and all artifacts and to send them off-world. They weren't told which artifact, specifically, to look for. I planned to ask the Noetikons, but Yvie said they were damaged."
"Yes," Master Satele said. "We're having them shipped to Tython. Our engineers will reconstruct them."
Var Suthra said, "Master Agenord, we want you to lead the search for Darth Angral. His obsession with you might cause him to make mistakes. SIS is tracing Tarnis' transmission."
"We'll find him for you," Galen said.
Kira said, "I'm going, too. Master Kiwiiks left me here to help."
"Agreed," Master Satele said. "Take Kira, Master Agenord. Train and protect her like she's your own Padawan. She has great potential, but she needs guidance to unlock it."
Agenord nodded. "That's a good way of saying it."
Master Satele stifled a laugh.
Kira said, "You better be a good teacher after that."
Master Satele said, "I must inform the Council of these developments. Travel safely-"
"I have a request," Agenord said. "We found six barrels of lightsaber crystals at the Temple. The crystals can improve the efficiency of a blaster. I'd like to shape one for Cyr'rnin's rifle."
Cyr'rnin gasped.
Master Satele looked at Cyr'rnin, and her face softened to an almost motherly expression. "She has certainly earned it. May the Force be with you all."
The transmission ended.
"Master Agenord," Var Suthra said. "You've been assigned a starship. Transfer what you need to it, and prep it for takeoff. You'll leave as soon as SIS can give us a target."
"Understood, General. Kira, Teeseven." They departed.
"Lieutenant," Garza said. "You've earned some time off. You're dismissed. Sergeant Jorgan, we'd like to speak with you privately." She waited for Cyr'rnin to leave. "Sergeant, how did she do?"
"Better than I expected, ma'am," Jorgan said. "She focused on the objectives, maintained control, got the job done. I wasn't sure about her, but I think she's a good choice."
"Very good, Sergeant," Garza said. "Now tell us about Master Agenord."
Jorgan sighed. "I didn't think anyone could live up to the Lieutenant's description of him, but he got damn close. I haven't worked with a lot of Jedi, but he's the strongest I've ever seen. He's also one of the most natural leaders I've ever met. If he were a soldier, he'd have 'General' written all over him. He also doesn't have the... reluctance a lot of Jedi do. When the job calls for something difficult, he does it."
Var Suthra said, "It sounds like you respect him."
"I don't know much about Jedi or the Force," Jorgan replied. "But I know a good soldier when I see one."
"Thank you, Sergeant," Garza said. "You've earned the same time off. Dismissed."
After Jorgan was gone, Var Suthra said to Galen, "What do we know about this Mau'te?"
"He's on Dromund Kaas," Galen said. "He trains constantly."
"Like he's preparing for something," Garza said.
"He's considered strong," Galen continued. "Very strong. Our people there tell us he's too strong to take out. No one we sent would stand a chance."
"Any hint of this 'purpose'?" she asked.
Galen said, "The Council is not exactly forthcoming."
"Meaning, they don't know," Var Suthra said.
"Ask SIS to keep us informed, Agent Galen," Garza said. "Otherwise, we have work to do."
