Good afternoon, everyone! How are you all doing on this warm weekend day of Saturday, October 23, 2021? I'm doing well, as I finished my reflection paper a couple days ago and traded in some more comics for a good sum of money a few hours ago. And I'm waiting on my previous two chapters to be updated, but it will take a while, considering how I made my last two chapters quite large, and my Beta Reader will have his own stuff to take care of. But it'll help me learn more about patience, so that's an unexpected treat. But it doesn't mean I can't get started on Ch. 7 even if I might have to revise a bit of this draft in order to match the changes in the previous two chapters. I hope you're all ready for a big surprise or two in store for the characters and the story. And I think I'll try and include a bit of the Chiss Ascendancy and Jedi Traitors in here, as both of those storylines will have to be moved along a good deal. Oh, and this chapter will also wrap up both the Jedi and Sith's failed efforts to capture Daala and escape the Red Twins System before it's destroyed. That'll be a blast to write, pun intended. Well, I'd best get started. May the Lord be with us all in these dark and difficult times for so many, and Long Live the Expanded Universe!
(Tuesday, October 26, 2021, Addendum) Hey, everyone! I hope you all are having a good day. I'm doing okay, aside from being a bit under the weather and sluggish, but I'm sure it'll pass soon. Unfortunately, since I'm not feeling at my best right now, I ought to let you know that it might take me a bit longer to write this chapter, so I ask for your patience with me. In other news, I'm going through J.R.R. Tolkien's The Nature of Middle-Earth, and it's a masterpiece of various manuscripts and notes. Then I'll probably read a Star Wars novel, and then mix it up with some history. Now, I'd better get a little more writing done before I rest a bit more for today. Stay strong and healthy in these mad times.
Shedu Maad, Jedi Temple
Within the Grand Master's Office
The typically stoic and composed Jaden was not at his best today, his trademark goatee and cropped hair typically showing greater signs of grey, and his eyes bloodshot from the many sleepless nights he had been forced to endure over the last few months.
But the intelligence Grace and her two Aquilian escorts provided to Grand Master Katarn and his most trusted fellow Jedi, called to attendance considering the halted summit, would both dishearten and elevate each of their weary bodies. Grace's people had just managed to complete their work on identifying all the Sith spies within the Jedi's support staff, and they had found forty-three members that fit the treasonous criteria.
Sadly, what threatened to break each of their hearts was how the comms frequency and tactics the enemy agents used were also being used by seven Jedi Apprentices to communicate with their supposed relatives. The One Sith's dark and cancerous rot had wormed its way deeper into the Jedi Order than anyone could ever have imagined.
When the war was over, the Jedi Order would have to do a great deal of soul searching and reevaluating its recruitment criteria to try and prevent such a catastrophe from ever occurring again.
But until that time came, Kyle, wearily rubbing his eyes and sighing, gratefully thanked Grace, "I don't think we would have uncovered the depths of this spy network without your help, Paladin Lieutenant Grace. When all is said and done, you and your people will have the entire Jedi Order's eternal gratitude."
Respectfully bowing at the compliment, Grace humbly replied, "We were just doing our job, Sir. The question now is how we are to best apprehend the traitors before they realize they've been discovered. The Order is critically short on trusted manpower right now with all the crises demanding your attention."
"Maybe Master Skywalker and the rest of his people could divert here after catching Daala and help us take down all of the Sith's collaborators." Senya, the taller of the two Aquilian soldiers who were protecting Grace, bluntly suggested. "He's got enough Sith-fighting professionals backing him up that can sweep up any loose ends you might end up having."
"Tactlessly put, but that's actually an excellent idea." Cilghal agreed. "Their presence alone might actually encourage any other possible traitors to divulge themselves."
"A brilliant plan, but there's just one glaring problem with executing it." Jaden reluctantly admitted. "Not long ago, the Kam Iteration brought to my attention that Master Skywalker's force was under attack by both the One Sith and an unknown third party, the latter composed of two pods of cybernetically enhanced Oswaft and Space Grazers. When we tried to reach the task force, all of their fleet's comm frequencies were unresponsive."
That was not news anyone wanted to hear. If the fleet sent to bring Daala to justice was under attack by a different player, then this was the worst time for such a scenario to occur.
With the Jedi-Sith proxy wars escalating throughout every corner of the galaxy and spreading their forces increasingly thinner, there was no way the Alliance of Light could spare anyone to help them.
For all intents and purposes, Luke and his friends were on their own. Everyone just hoped that this battle would not be their last.
Ten Minutes Later
Batuu
Within the Black Spire Ruins
Inside Dician's Command Center
Xasha Xizor, puppet leader for the Freedom's Riches cult and One Sith agent, did not know how much more she could possibly stand of Dician and her retinue's increasingly dogmatic control over every tiny facet of their anarchic proxy, even as they were conversing with their Sith overlord in their meditation chambers.
The waiting was making her go mad with worry if the director of Sith Intelligence was onto her and her new role as a double agent for the Batuu resistance and their patrons of the Alliance of Light.
The highest ranking Sith Lady on the fringe world did always have an obsessive tendency to toy with her enemies before finishing them off for good. Even the barriers Xasha had erected to shield her mind from Force Users' mind probes would not long withstand the kind of interrogation Dician used on her prisoners.
But if this Jedi-led alliance could get off their karking laurels and find a way to break through the blockade with the intelligence she gave Mandalorian clan leader Din Djarin and his native allies, then it would give Dician much more to worry about than her people's loyalties.
Fortunately, Dician interrupted her thoughts by arriving with her top-ranked acolytes, and each of them appeared quite unsettled from whatever Darth Krayt had conferred onto them.
Playing the part of the loyal servant, Xasha cautiously approached the Sith master, and fearfully asked, "Lady Dician? Is everything alright?"
Before Dician could offer any remark, the facility's communication systems activated, and the holographic image of the fleet commander appeared.
Glaring at the interruption, Dician snarled, "What is it, Tonith?!"
"Begging your pardon, my Lady, we have a critical situation rapidly approaching our blockade." The Muun admiral professionally cautioned his Sith superior. "The Alliance of Light has played their hand and are launching a full-frontal assault on our forward position."
"Then drive them back and capture who you can. Defending the system from any incursions is precisely what I recruited you for." Dician snapped, surprising both Xasha and the spacefaring admiral with this abrasive dismissal.
Normally, the Sith Lady would demand every detail on any potential problem as part of her lifelong strategy to best counter her enemies and turn each of them to her advantage. To simply order Reep Tonith II, one of her top subordinates and the last surviving high-ranking relative of infamous Confederacy of Independent Systems admiral Pors Tonith, to handle the problem however he saw fit was not like her at all.
What could have Lord Krayt told her that unsettled her so deeply to disregard her typical plans? She would have to discover whatever it was, at least so it did not risk her own plans to dismantle her fallen cult.
In Orbit Above Batuu
Aboard the Providence-class Carrier/Destroyer Haazen
"I remember my task quite well, Lady Dician, but there are several factors I believe might require your attention." Reep hid his astonishment for his patron's atypical attitude by advising her, "We've scanned the fleet's configurations and identified several high-profile targets from your intelligence reports. One of which was a Vigilance-class yacht recently outbound from Falleen and carries quite an explosive cargo."
Judging by the glint of recognition crossing Dician's eyes, she began to recognize the severity of what was coming her way. Recomposing herself, the Sith humbly apologized to Reep, "Please forgive me, Admiral. I am under a great deal of stress right now from my ever-increasing workload."
"Transmit every scrap of data you can gather on the Jedi fleet to me. I will have my acolytes aid you in the coordination of your force, while I prepare our groundside defenses for whatever stray enemy ships that manage to slip past your blockade."
"As you command, my Lady." Reep deferentially bowed as the transmission concluded. Truth be told, he held a distaste for those Sith Sorcerers and their reliance on an arcane energy field over good old-fashioned cunning and force. Regardless, though, he could not pass up the advantages such abilities would grant his fleet when the enemy force was ripped apart from the inside.
Those kinds of abilities would certainly be of great benefit against the mixed force of smugglers, Antarian Rangers, GA commandos, and Hutt crime lords arrayed against him. He long relished the chance to relive Pors Tonith's greatest exploits in the Clone War before his capture on the communications hub world of Praesitlyn.
Fortunately, he knew better than to grow overconfident in battle, nor play around with any prisoners he might capture. That was what ruined his great-uncle's reputation when the reckless then-Jedi Padawan Anakin Skywalker captured him at the prelude to the Outer Rim Sieges, and he would not repeat those mistakes.
Glancing towards the bridge's lead sensor-officer, Reep ordered, "Status on the invading force?"
"They're starting to launch fighters, and sensors have picked up at least ten baradium missiles spread throughout their lead attack squadrons and corvettes. We're working to isolate the prime targets as we speak, and we should have the first batch identified within two minutes."
"Excellent. Give theirs' and Wraith Squadron's destruction the utmost importance." Reep ordered, strongly emphasizing his next words, "They will be the true test of our cunning and force."
Glancing at the enemy fleet, the naval man in Reep could not help but admire the strength and variety of ships and people that were arrayed against him. Even as his blockade outnumbered the mixed coalition at least six-to-one, they charged in without fear and hesitation, and when his forces were at their most vulnerable from their shift rotations.
Such courage and determination were crucial traits he hoped to instill on all beings, even if he believed the Alliance of Light's cause was a doomed one.
Philosophical debates aside, the galaxy needed a firm and strong hand guiding it towards a genuine and lasting peace, and the One Sith were the best hand to do it. They had the resolve to make the decisive choices needed to protect the innocent, without constant bickering and weaknesses that undermined every democratic government in existence because of the Jedi and their moralistic principles.
In fact, even the Jedi-sympathetic Imperial Remnant under Gilad Pellaeon and his reviled Moff Council were unable to protect its citizens when the Yuuzhan Vong bombarded Reep's homeworld of Muunilinst when they invaded the paltry territory. And no one, not even the vaunted Luke Skywalker and his handpicked team to locate the Vong seedling world of Zonama Sekot could save the billions of lives obliterated in the first incursion.
He could not, and would not, let such an atrocity happen again for his people and would do whatever it took to protect them from all their enemies. It was the least he could do to pay tribute to his dead family when they sacrificed his life to ensure his own when the Vong commenced their rebuffed onslaught on the then-shadow of a galactic power.
Ten Minutes Later
Red Twins System
Aboard the Omen
"Has the Bestoon Legacy arrived?" Wyyrlok asked the docking officer.
"Affirmative, my Lord. We have a surgical team bringing Ochi to the medical wing to be treated for his wounds."
"Good." Despite Ochi's failure in dispatching Corran Horn, he still sent a message to Luke Skywalker that his friends' days were numbered and would almost certainly have eliminated the Jedi Council member, were it not for a dead Togorian of a Jedi Knight.
And the One Sith would not dispatch one of their most experienced and dedicated agents so freely. Such acolytes would be needed more than ever once the dark order went underground.
"My Lord, there's a wormhole opening up around Sector Six!" The warship's sensor officer suddenly reported to Wyyrlok, interrupting his musings.
"Excellent." The Chagrian calmly responded. "Our reinforcements have arrived."
Before anyone could seek clarification, the wormhole opened and about a refurbished Hoersch-Kessel Drive, Inc. LH-3010 capital freighter and five times as many corvettes and frigates emerged. As the predecessors to the Lucrehulk-class LH-3210 cargo freighters used in the Trade Federation's final years, they operated as unorthodox fleet carriers for the One Sith. And the single 3000-meter flagship held plenty of surprises in store for the cybernetic pods.
Turning to the ship's commanding officer, he ordered, "Open a line to all known frequencies the Alliance of Light use."
"Sir?" The commander confusingly questioned.
"If any of us hope to escape this system in time, then you will do as I say. Lord Krayt and I have devised a plan for us to survive, but we need to act fast and do what we must to survive this massacre." And that meant swallowing his disgust at having to work with the arrogant Jedi and their stooges for just this one battle.
How the Dread Lord managed to work with Skywalker when they defeated Abeloth in Beyond Shadows eluded his understanding. But he would follow his master's lead, put aside his feelings for the greater good, and do what he must to save the Grand Design and the Dread Lord's great vision for the galaxy.
After a minute of waiting, the comm officer reported, "I'm connecting you and the Dark Heart through all Alliance frequencies."
"Very good." Wyyrlok nodded. Now, the true gambit began.
Aboard the Chimaera
"Just when we already had more than enough Sith, cyborg giants, and an apocalyptic explosion to deal with." Tors gritted his teeth through his barely controlled anger.
"It's worse than you think, Vice Admiral Remal." Luke severely stated. "If what I'm sensing is correct, then we're about to go head-to-head against Darth Krayt himself."
"So, he's here aboard the old Trade Federation hulk." Tors deduced. Obviously, the One Sith's founder and leader was taking matters into his own hands to save the remainder of his followers. But the Alliance had no chance to take him out, and unless he had a master trump card or superweapon to destroy the enslaved cyborgs, then the Dread Lord had just doomed himself and his so-called Grand Design to oblivion.
"Sir, we're getting an open transmission from the two Sith flagships, designated Omen and Dark Heart." Billibango informed both leaders. "They're, well, proposing an alliance with us and our combined force to escape this doomed system. And they requested to speak with you, Master Skywalker."
Both Luke and Tors could hardly believe what the Xexto Jedi Knight reported. After all the times they were double-crossed by the Sith and their servants, such an offer was simply too ludicrous to behold. Still, every force was in dire straits, and every option had to be considered if they were to escape.
"Are Sidon and Sabine getting all of this?" Tors sought out.
"Yes. And they're being quite vocal about the absurdity of it all to both ship's COs." Billibango politely answered.
"Open a line to the Omen and Dark Heart, on the double." Luke ordered. If this was a trap, the Jedi Master and his friends would discover the truth and shut down any deceptions. But, on the off chance this offer was genuine, then they had to take this gamble. It was their only hope to escape this doomed system.
But even so, Luke could not help but offer his unspoken sorrow for the doomed souls in the system's sole world of Acherin. A longtime victim of Imperial oppression, its few surviving inhabitants had lost every piece of their once-illustrious spacefaring capabilities and remained trapped on their ruin of a world.
If there was more time, the Alliance could try to evacuate what they could of the planet's impoverished population. But without any knowledge of where to start looking for civilians, no one would ever be able to escape the doomed system in time.
Connecting the comm signals to the two Sith capital ships, the Chimaera's bridge was barraged by a string of curses in both Mando'a and Huttese by Sabine and Sidon, and neither were even close to finishing their rants.
But then, a powerful and commanding voice eclipsed their own, one Luke could never forget for his help in Beyond Shadows, "Enough. I asked to speak with the Jedi. Call them up, or I will need to take more drastic measures to get your attention."
"I'm here, Krayt." Luke quickly answered. "What do you want?"
"Ah, Skywalker. You're here. Good. Matters are dire, and we have much to do to save both our fleets before time runs out." Another voice come through, one just as strong, but more guttural.
"And who do we have the pleasure of addressing?" Tors gruffly interjected. Though he had no pleasure in attending this meeting, he would wring every scrap of information he could out of these Sith. At the very least, he could use it to minimize his casualties going forward.
"My follower's name is inconsequential at this time, Vice Admiral Remal. What matters is we destroy the enemy force and escape this doomed system." Krayt pressed Tors.
"And I assume you know of the full situation and have come up with a plan to stop these marauders." Luke deduced.
"Correct." Krayt confirmed. "We need to take control of or destroy enough of the cyborg Oswaft and turn them against the rest. Then we each can open a wormhole to escape and fight another day."
"Skywalker and his Jedi already tried that, you di'kut. They're immune to any mind tricks." Sabine scathingly remarked.
"Not if we target their cybernetic components through the Force, ion-based attacks, and a few computer viruses. They are grafted with enough machinery to leave them vulnerable to such methods." The deeper voiced Sith knowingly countered.
That remark rendered everyone speechless, having been too rattled by the series of misfortunes to consider that possibility. Sidon broke the awkward silence by asking, "I don't suppose either of you happen to have an arsenal of ion weapons that can help, or can hack their communications?"
"This is no time for jokes, Captain." Krayt bluntly scolded the privateer. "Time is crucial, so we had best get started immediately."
"Agreed." Luke concurred, before killing the connection and warning Tors, Sabine, and Sidon, "Stay on your guard, and observe the Sith fleet very closely. Any hint of treachery, and we work to take Krayt down with us."
"Good. I can die with that final notch on my belt." Sabine vindictively agreed.
"In that case, perhaps we should prepare a few contingencies of our own for the Sith." Sidon proposed.
"What do you have in mind?" Tors inquired.
"Perhaps it's time we take a page from the wise naval man and abandon our attachments to our prized ships." Sidon enigmatically suggested. "It's more important to save our crews at this point than our pride."
Coruscant, Senate District
Aboard the Ronto-class Assault Pinnace Infiltrator Power Balance
Kajin could hardly believe the atrocity that nearly consumed his life, along with almost every soul that once resided in the inferno of the Galactic Senate's headquarters. In their fanatical desire to complete their final contract, the Maladians detonated several zinethium-laced bombs as a last-ditch effort to destroy the Galactic alliance's leader.
However, what the assassins failed to account for were the YVH droids, whose scanners detected the build-up from the explosive mineral, and the Jedi and Galactic Alliance forces that had several vessels ready to evacuate the chief of state and his primary defenders from the building if the battle turned against them.
Even the Cerean's worst fears did not expect the Sith-funded mercenaries and their Senate pawns to go to such lengths in trying to dispose of him. The guilt at sending all the soldiers and the five Jedi deployed to defend him threatened to send him spiraling into depression, for he hated risking other people's lives just to protect his own. He would especially long mourn the death of his chief of staff for his inability to save her from the attack. But he would ensure that Sorsa's family would be well-cared for in return for her selfless loyalty and devotion to him and the people she loved so deeply.
And while Kajin would love to resign and walk away from this terrible war, he knew that there was still much work to do before the galaxy could rebuild what was lost, and the leader could finally rest. He still lived, and the politician remembered the oaths he swore to uphold when he took office, along with protecting the rest of his citizens that could still be saved while the Galactic Alliance and its fellow galactic powers waged total war on all their enemies. It was the least he could do to honor those who gave their lives to save his.
But first, he had to reassure the galaxy's populace that he was alive and well, before the Sith could seize the momentum and regain their advantages over the Alliance of Light, or complete anarchy ensued over Coruscant and its population of over one trillion. That meant that the interrupted summit with Head of State Fel and Grand Master Katarn had to resume within the next couple of hours, before all hope of peaceful reconciliation faded away.
Fortunately, he had just what was needed aboard this vessel to do so. He just needed to work quickly on setting up the connections with Shedu Maad and Bastion's holonet relays, and have General Loran commandeer every news network on Coruscant for what he would soon say. After all, he would only have one chance to avoid using deadly force on any rioters still at work across the capital world, a possibility he did not want to entertain.
Ten Minutes Later
Falleen
Aboard the Dominance
En Route to Port Nowhere
"You sense the dark forces moving against us. Don't you, Vestara?" K'Kruhk noticed from the fidgeting Sith defector who was studying the intelligence reports on the slimy spaceport of their destination.
"A blink Uvak could sense them." Vestara retorted. "I'm certain we're walking into a trap on this one, and Phasma and Malleus have their best people waiting to ambush us."
"But you know we are more than capable of surviving them. So, what is it that is truly troubling you?" The Whiphid Jedi Master calmly replied.
"What are you, the Rude Awakening's psych counselor?" Parja snorted while she and her brother studied the reports from their monitor.
Ignoring the barb, K'Kruhk counseled Vestara, "You are also worried about Ben and Edaan, correct?"
"Not just them, even though I know they can take care of themselves." Vestara nervously admitted. "There's something powerful on the move in the galaxy. It's not Abeloth, but it's almost as malicious as she was in her prime. I can sense Master Luke and his forces are in grave danger, and it's not from Krayt and the Sith. Anything that can go up against both the forces of Light and Dark cannot afford to be underestimated."
"I see. But there's a deeper concern that's eating away at you. If I may, allow me to offer you some wisdom I learned the hard way in my long and arduous life." K'Kruhk kindly offered.
"What kind of advice? I'm not in the mood for Jedi proverbs right now."
"Nothing of the sort." K'Kruhk sagely smiled. "I merely wanted to tell you that you don't have to carry every burden on your own shoulders. Trust in your friends and loved ones to help you with your struggles, and they will give you the strength to carry on when all seems lost. And I find it helpful to remember all those that came before me, and the example they set and the impact they had in my life."
"And if I don't have too many of those left from all of my wrongdoings? Or that most of my loved ones were twisted by the Dark Side or those I betrayed?"
"Then find a goal or point to strive for and turn your pain and suffering into determination and hope if you want to change your fate. It is precisely what kept me going after Order Sixty-Six and the deaths of most of those I cherished."
"But do not forget to keep your mind focused on the here and now. Losing focus during a mission will prove fatal to everyone around you."
"I'm not one of your Younglings to train, Master K'Kruhk. I know how to stay focused." Vestara irritably reminded him.
"I know. But everyone could occasionally use a little help. And you need to know this, I promised to help Edaan save you, which means I intend to make sure all of his work was not done in vain."
"At least you're being honest." Vestara appreciatively noted. "And I have no intention of letting him and Ben down."
"Then have a little more faith in yourself, Vestara, and share that hope with others. The journey from darkness into light does not happen overnight, or in giant leaps, but through the smallest acts of kindness and selflessness one gives throughout their lives. Those tiny gestures are enough to push back the darkness and light a candle of hope for others to seek out and better themselves."
"You sound like one of those old religious scholars we hear on the holonet." Bralo noted, almost approvingly, but guarded for fear of ruining the moment.
"I like to think my travels and the countless beings and cultures I have interacted with have impacted me for the better, young Mandalorian." K'Kruhk gently smiled at the young boy's inquisitive nature and friendly nature. Even as he still held up his guard around most members of the Mandalorian culture from his traumatic decades in exile, he could not help but not like Bralo's pleasant and humble nature.
"Edaan understood that very well, even as he continues to struggle with his deepest anger and fears. I still remember the first day we met quite vividly, and how he convinced me to cease my wanderings and take up my lightsaber again for the galaxy and the Jedi."
"How did you two even meet in the first place?" Vestara asked, deciding to assuage her curiosity and kill some time. "I'd have thought a survivor of Sidious's Jedi purge would rush to rebuild the order that raised you from near-infancy. What made you wander the galaxy for so many decades?"
Eyes growing guarded ever so slightly, K'Kruhk cautiously admitted, "You're not the only one with past failures weighing you down, young Khai. My scars run deep, but I will not give them up to all of you so easily."
"I'll tell you another time, after I get to know you better and we have more time to talk and work through our mutual pain. For now, I think we had best follow the kids' leads and study more on our mission. We still have about ninety minutes before we arrive at the RV point."
That was rather disappointing for Vestara, but she could understand what K'Kruhk meant and could not blame him at all for his guarded mindset: he did not fully trust her yet, and he would not want to admit any shameful deeds or past traumas to just anyone.
Quashing her curiosity to focus on the mission, Vestara quietly gestured to her surrogate nephew and niece to keep preparing, and everyone kept to their stations in an uncomfortable silence.
Five Minutes Later
Red Twins System
Aboard the Alchemy
Cylo-IV prepared for the probability of the Jedi and Sith banding together to try and stave off their ultimate destruction. They formed temporary pacts many times when faced with a superior force over their millennia-long feud.
He factored in their strengths and weaknesses, and all their best abilities and strategies. And he prepared himself for their attacks with his intellect and his creations' superior speed and maneuverability. But he did not expect the mixed force to specifically target the cyborg's cybernetic components with a combined barrage of ion blasts and a bit of the ancient Force abilities of mechu macture and mechu deru.
Already, they had successfully disabled just over a fifth of his herd and forced another tenth to turn against their fellow species, ramming and attacking fellow Oswaft and their adjacent Space Grazers. This disarray allowed the worst of the disabled enemy ships to withdraw and beign escape through various Force Wormholes.
But there was another opportunity available now, one that could destroy the One Sith and cripple the Jedi in one fell swoop if Cylo's gamble succeeded.
Darth Krayt had personally entered the fray to save his people. This terrible loss, when adding his second-in-command, would be enough to decapitate the Dark Siders order's leadership. And with the remainder of his pods ordered to ram into the Alliance of Light's command ships, the Jedi's soldiers would be stuck inside the doomed system.
A bit too brazen for Cylo's tastes, but it would get the job done, and that was what mattered most right now. No witnesses could afford to survive and bear word of what was transpiring here. And only forty-five minutes remained before his task was done.
Five Minutes Later
Aboard the LH-3010 capital freighter Dark Heart
"Are the payloads prepared for delivery?" Krayt asked the ship's captain. As his strategy was working against the rogue force, there was still the matter of the Alliance fleets.
"Primed to your specifications, loaded onto the torpedoes, and ready to launch at your order. None of them will be any the wiser until it is too late." The Cerean woman devilishly smirked. "The lead Oswaft is heading straight for us, but they'll only be the first to fall under our control."
"Good. Then launch at will." Krayt stoically ordered.
Although he knew little of the scope of danger this unique and highly dangerous enemy posed, he also knew how determined both they and the Jedi were to destroy him and stop his plans.
Luke Skywalker and his allies needed to be obliterated here and now, and their deaths would be pinned solely on this new foe, giving Krayt and his followers a bit of much-needed breathing room to maneuver throughout the galaxy once their proxies were disposed of. This was the best opportunity to kill at least half a dozen enemy mynocks with one blaster bolt when they unveiled the Sith scientists' best computer-based weaponry.
How ironic it would be, when the Jedi and their Alliance would lose many of their prized fighters and leaders with a weapon derived from the New Republic's first capture of Kuat.
True, the devices were used once before on Falleen against their anti-royalty resistance in their mountain stronghold, but this brand-new batch of coding would be impossible to crack in time. And besides, if a good weapon was not broken, then why bother replacing it in the first place?
Aboard the Chimaera
"Everything is squared away?" Tors questioned Luke through his comlink.
"Yes. We're all ready. But there's still room for you to join us if you so desire." Luke offered the vice admiral one last time. If this plan worked, then the bulk of the Alliance fleet would escape the system, and Darth Krayt and many of his followers would be destroyed along with this system. At the very least, Luke, Corran, and their friends would be free to fight another day.
"Someone has to command our remnant and keep our enemies in the dark." Tors politely declined. "Just keep my people safe and stop the Sith, and I'll be at peace."
"Very well. It's been a privilege knowing you, Vice Admiral Remal." Luke gratefully bade Tors farewell.
Looking back on his long life and the many wrong choices he made, Tors regretted many years of misplaced loyalty. But this, giving his life to save his crew and allies was a small legacy he could be at peace with. He just wished that he could have done more to give the galaxy order and stability, but still hoped the next generation could carry the torch of hope and change he held onto for so long.
Facing the dozen crewmembers that stayed on with him on this final mission, Tors told them, "All right. We know our orders. Let's give Krayt and these mystery raiders a reminder that the galaxy's defenders won't go down without putting up a good fight."
"Sir, several torpedoes just launched from the Dark Heart at the enemy, and it looks like they're opening up another wormhole!" The sensor officer reported, before correcting themselves. "Wait. It looks like- you've got to be kriffing with me! Three more wormholes are opening up, one each around part of the Sith fleet!"
So, the Sith were trying to double-cross them and were even abandoning them before their surprise did them in. Then it was fortunate the Alliance acted on their hunch. "Give the order for everyone to break camp. Tell them to escape before they get caught in whatever trap Krayt's got planned for us."
Two Minutes Later
Aboard the Alchemy
Seeing a certain SoroSuub Horizon-class Star Yacht lead a rushing convoy of ships out of the Chimaera made Cylo-IV see that he had lost this round against the Force Users, especially with several additional wormholes open and enveloping the surviving Alliance ships. If Master Skywalker decided to save the entire fleet and deplete his own energies, then at least he could die from the effort.
Even so, it hardly mattered since the Jedi and Sith were going to escape, continue their war, and risk the Olpaka Hegemony's survival with their snooping around. But Cylo-V would learn from his predecessor's mistakes and come back stronger and smarter than before when the time came to launch the Knights' final campaign.
The sensors indicated a computer virus in the enemy torpedoes designed to corrupt a system's friend-or-foe system and turn entire fleets against each other. It was of a design he did not recognize, even as several of his creations and the Chimaera began to fall prey to its effects. And with his force already having to endure many losses, the statistics did not look favorable for destroying the surviving Alliance vessels, even if they would soon be destroyed by either the virus of the upcoming supernova.
All that remained now was to await the inferno that would consume his cyborg constructions in less than thirty-five minutes. But he would relish returning to the greater galaxy again when the necessary decades passed, and his intellectual offspring ruled the galaxy as part of the Knights of Olpaka.
Ten Minutes Later
Csilla, Cssplar
Within the Convocate Hall
"State your names for the record." Aristocra Saganu, coolly addressed the Alliance of Light's three representatives of the galaxy's less reputable elements. As the Chiss official assigned to question the coalition's leaders and reassure the Syndicature of the outsiders' good intentions, he would not hold back on his borderline interrogation of the last of Alliance commanders. His anti-Jedi hardliner stance certainly made him a favorite to the Syndicature's isolationist majority.
With the Jedi and their military commanders having already stated their case to the Forty Great Families, all that remained were their underworld and black-ops allies to finish convincing the politicians to put their full efforts into accepting aid for their war effort.
"Mirax Terrik Horn."
"Khedryn Faal."
"Jan Ors."
"And do the three of you swear to speak the truth, and nothing but the truth?"
"Given the horrific stakes for every one of us, we'd be mad not to." Mirax bitterly quipped, earning her a brief glare from her two peers.
Normally, the information broker and dealer of antiquities would be more diplomatic with such a prestigious audience and her role in this proxy war, but her mind was all but consumed with fear for her husband due to the wounds he suffered by a Sith assassin. It was only through her son telling her how Corran would quickly make a full recovery that kept her sane after all her familial losses.
But that would amount to little if she blew the Alliance's only chance at winning over the Syndicature. If the Chiss Ascendancy's governmental body was willing to fully cooperate with the Jedi and their allies in fighting the Sith-backed raiders and rescuing its citizens from the Sith's prisons, then winning this series of proxy wars would be immeasurably easier.
"Very well." Saganu accepted the unorthodox vow. "Then you may proceed."
"Thank you, Aristocra." Khedryn gratefully acknowledged. "As I am sure many of you are aware from your intelligence reports, I am a well-known figure on Fhost for my leadership, intelligence, and influence on the region of Wild Space that borders your territory. I have kept the worst of smugglers, scavengers, and other various ne'er do wells from threatening your people."
"We are well aware of your consortium of underworld elements and your many racketeering and scavenging schemes." A Xodlak Syndic dismissively summed up Khedryn's explanation. "But as I recall, you have little love for the Jedi from your time in the ruins of Outbound Flight and the loss of your former first mate, Marr Idi-Shael after he was captured and killed by Natasi Daala for his allegiance with the Jedi. If both facts are true, why would you work with the Jedi and their friends in this fight?"
Outbound Flight. Khedryn quietly seethed. A Jedi grand scheme by Jorus C'Boath to take fifty thousand colonists and eighteen Jedi from the Old Republic to explore beyond the Unknown Regions and seek out life in the bordering galaxy. But it quickly went awry when the already-arrogant C'Boath quickly grew drunk on power and took over every aspect of the people's lives before provoking the Chiss who would be known as Grand Admiral Thrawn to all but destroy his pet project.
That left the few dozen survivors to etch out an existence among the wreckage on the Chiss's hidden redoubt for nearly five decades. It was only thanks to a combined force of the Chiss, the Empire of the Hand, and Luke and Mara Jade Skywalker that Khedryn and the straggler finally escaped their tomb of a home.
While he held little hatred for the Jedi, he certainly did not wish to get involved in their struggles, especially after Jaden failed him when their shared friend needed their help the most.
But thanks to Grace and her passionate pleas, he found himself doing just what he swore he would never do again: help the Jedi and their friends fight their battles and do what he believed to be right.
And he would not let one pompous Chiss rile him up and trick him into making a fool of himself and his compatriots. That meant he would remain calm and counter the fool by making an appeal to the entire Chiss people to protect all they held dear, with the hopes of gaining more than they could ever hope to achieve on their own.
Archaic tactics, to be sure. But they were those that has been tested true countless times throughout all of history. And there was no reason to doubt they would fail here.
"I could return the verbal attack with one of my own, Syndic. But I will not stoop to your level." Khedryn predatorily smirked. "Instead, I'm going to convince all of you on the necessity of allying with us if you're to rescue the hundreds of Chiss citizens the Sith and their followers have captured. And you'll also be able to enact retribution on all the enemies who seek to tear down the order and stability you have provided for the Ascendancy and countless other worlds bordering your domain for centuries."
Catching many of the Syndics' attention, he continued, "I'm going to tell you a few things about my life and the challenges I had to face. Things that will help you see the futility of your typical political infighting and refusal to accept our unique kind of help."
Five Minutes Later
In Orbit Above Batuu
Aboard the Azalus II-class Hutt Dreadnaught Bareesh Fenn'ak Torill
Everything was proceeding as efficiently and predictably as Azzim and the Alliance's leadership foresaw for this opening battle. And Admiral Tonith and his blockade were as stubborn and powerful as Clan Djarin warned them.
The Sith-backed fleet were not giving an inch in their defense, even when half of the Alliance's dwindling stockpile of baradium-laced missiles blew gaping holes in the Muun's force, for his fleet's configuration allowed it to plug the holes with their reserve force. And the level of coordination between the enemy fleet was too precise for the Hutt's liking, and he knew from Darth Caedus's tactics at the height of the Second Galactic Civil War how the Sith were controlling the weaker minds of their force.
The Antarian Rangers had even intercepted calls from the planet of at least two dozen capital ships being prepared for deployment to orbit. They would be ready to move in no more than one hour.
He now saw why his uncle warned him not to underestimate Dician and her vast intellect. This was truly about to be the ultimate test of his skill and cunning. But now it was time for Din and his allies to uphold their end of the bargain before the battle fully turned against the Jedi-allied force and the blockade proved to be impregnable.
Ten Minutes Later
On Batuu
Within the Black Spire Ruins
Inside Dician's Command Center
"Well, it appears Admiral Tonith is living up to his predecessor's reputation." Xasha found herself impressed with the Sith-backed military leader. He had kept her new allies off Batuu much longer than she had imagined, even with the high losses his fleet was enduring.
And with Dician readying her personal attack squadron to join the battle and aid Reep, the Alliance had to make its move now. So why was Din and its force waiting so long to launch its counteroffensive?
"Indeed. He will be a valued ally for me in the months to come. I even believe he will play a vital role in the Dread Lord's ultimate plan." Dician, through her holographic projection, boldly admitted.
"And what of me, my Lady?" Xasha found herself asking. If Dician was onto her betrayal, or thought she was expendable, then her days were even more numbered than she had foreseen.
"I may still have many good uses for you." Dician neutrally mused, betraying no hint of emotion in her voice or expressions. "But for now, focus on managing your cult. Once the enemy fleet is repelled, only then can we discuss cleansing your followers of all of their weaknesses."
Barging in, one of Dician's non-Sith aides rushed in, along with a Sith acolyte, and the short lieutenant apologetically interrupted, "Humblest apologies, my Lady. I know I'm not supposed to come in without your orders, but we have a situation erupting across the entire planet!"
"What kind of situation?" Dician demanded.
"The resistance and Clan Djarin are launching simultaneous attacks across fifteen of our supply depots, recruitment centers, spaceports, and even an enemy scouting party has been spotted infiltrating your main excavation site. Din Djarin and his top followers are reported leading the main attack force on our greatest facilities." He quickly warned.
Hiding a gleeful smile beneath her honest shock at the increasingly desperate prospects the Sith were facing, Xasha faux-anxiously advised Dician, "This could pose quite a few problems to your strategy."
"Just shut up." Dician ruefully grunted.
Six Minutes Later
Void Station System
Aboard the New Dawn
"Are you doing okay, my love?" Adari asked her husband as Edaan prepared to enter his meditative trance for opening a Force Wormhole to Yavin IV.
The last three hours of prayer and meditation had done wonders for his troubled soul, calming the dark fires that raged inside his being. And staying off the Holonet kept him from erupting into another tirade about the evil and madness still devouring the galaxy.
But with the time drawing near for the two Palpatines' honeymoon and retreat to truly get underway, he had to ensure that the dark essence Krayt put into him would not do more than ignite his anger.
If the Dread Lord and his Sith acolytes could track Edaan down on the Jedi outpost moon, then the Jedi Knight would never forgive himself for putting his beloved in such harm's way. That was why he was strongly considering asking Adari if they could take a detour to Ossus for a few tests, at least to see if the Jedi there could probe the foreign darkness in his soul and measure its strength.
"With you by my side? I will be." Edaan offhandedly assured her, amending his statement after Artoo whined, "And you too, buddy."
"I know that look, luv. You've got a new plan. Wanna let me in on it?" Adari sweetly smiled at her husband. But whether she would keep smiling depended on her response to his theories.
Before Edaan could tell her, he suddenly felt as if he was having an aneurysm, falling onto the hard and unforgiving floor from the screams of anguish and death that echoed throughout the Force.
Somewhere, many people had just been murdered, and fear was spreading like wildfire through the Force. Focusing on the source of the vision, Edaan could see a familiar, mushroom-shaped building appear, and he knew he was seeing a vision of Coruscant, where he spent his childhood years before being accepted into the Jedi Order. But not even a moment later, he saw the Senate District engulfed in fires and explosions, and saw his longtime friend, Kajin Bar Yimmon, being flown away by Master Hellin before the fires swept over the area.
Immediately after seeing the Cerean saved, he saw the familiar masked face of Darth Krayt behind it, glaring at him with a sense of longing.
It was clear to him that someone backed by the One Sith had just tried to assassinate the Chief of State, and they were willing to throw the whole planet into chaos to see it done, probably to keep the galaxy divided over their discoveries in the Empire.
But who was on the Dark Siders' payroll for this particular attack? And why commit such an act of indiscriminate slaughter that could very well solidify the entire galaxy's resolve to destroy them all? What was the strategy there?
But not even a moment later, he witnessed another vision. It was an all-consuming fire that enveloped an entire star system, one that Edaan did not recognize. The destruction was so quick and widespread, it was as if the sun was artificially triggered into a supernova.
He first assumed the One Sith were responsible for this, but then he saw glimpses of Jedi Masters Skywalker and Horn, along with a heavily tattooed Chagrian Sith Lord escaping the system with their fleet's remnants. The visions continued by witnessing a sight that repulsed Edaan: cybernetically enslaved Oswaft and Space Grazers, under the command of an aged human man with his right eye a Rodian's, and the sight of Natasi Daala escaping justice for all her war crimes, incensing the Palpatine heir.
The older man's face was slightly familiar to the Jedi Knight, although he could not place it right away. But what did this set of visions mean? What was the Force trying to warn him about this time? Was there a third party interfering in the Jedi-Sith War, one opposing the Force itself, just as the Star Cabal tried to do for over thirteen centuries before it was dismantled?
Well, he would not find the truth lying unconscious. He had to get up and tend to his wife, and then he could worry about the potential future.
Groggily waking up from the shockwaves that knocked him out, he woke up to a sight that made his blood run cold: Adari was lying right beside him, with blood coming out of her nose and her eyes twitching in and out.
The echoes of the attack must have hit her far worse than him, given her weaker resistance to wounds in the Force and incomplete training.
But the circumstances hardly mattered, he had to get her immediate medical treatment to help her right away before her life force ebbed away! And that meant getting her to the Jedi, but the best and closest facility was on Shedu Maad. It would take the New Dawn at least two days to get there through hyperspace, and Adari likely did not have that kind of time.
That only left one option for instantaneous travel, and it would endanger Edaan almost as much as his wife. But it was the only option he had at his disposal. However, he first needed to alert Grand Master Katarn of the change in itinerary and have him prepare a team of healers for the two of them.
Turning to a blaring Artoo, he found the astromech droid plugged into the holocomm, and groggily told him, "Tell… Get me a link to Grand Master Katarn, now!"
Fortunately, the loyal droid already had the same idea, and the hologram of Edaan's one time teacher quickly materialized. Getting right down to the crux of the matter, he quickly asked, "Artoo filled me in on the basics. Are you both all right?"
"Aside from the splitting headache, I'm fine. But I need you to get a bacta tank ready for Adari right away at the temple, and a medical bed for me to rest on. She's hurt really badly and needs immediate treatment, and I'll be pretty drained from opening a wormhole straight to the temple."
"I can't let you and Adari come to Shedu Maad, Edaan." Kyle remorsefully denied. "We've got a nest of problems here, and I can't risk them affecting you two."
"What kind of problems?!" Edaan practically shouted. How could Kyle turn him away at this critical juncture, when his wife could be dying as they argued?
"Aside from our war against the Sith and their many agents and Master Skywalker's fleet of wounded coming down from their failed Daala hunt, the kind you had me look into after Kesh. It's worse than you could ever imagine." Kyle grimly admitted, calming Edaan down as he realized that Kyle had figured out who the Jedi traitor was. That was a sufficient answer to soothe the rising fury and desperation in Edaan's soul. And if Luke and his followers were arriving in bulk to the Shedu Maad facility, then the temple's healers would be hard-pressed to keep up with the swarms of wounded.
But that still left one colossal problem Edaan had to address, "What about Adari? Where can I take her?"
"Continue with your original plan, just kick it into overdrive. Meanwhile, I'll alert whichever Jedi academy or outpost you arrive at to give you two the necessary care." Kyle answered.
"All right, I understand." Edaan reluctantly nodded. "May the Force be with you on your end."
"You as well, Edaan." Kyle's hologram fizzled out, and the second it completely faded away, Edaan instantly ordered Artoo,
"Go prep the med-droid while I get Adari situated. We're gonna need to work fast here."
Artoo simply warbled in compliance as he hurried ahead to activate the ship's built-in medical droid and its secondary computer systems, while Edaan gingerly carried his bleeding wife via bridal style, praying to the Celestials that she would last long after they made it to Ossus.
If she died while he did everything he could to try and save her, he might very well lose himself to the Dark Side's grip then and there. And should that come to pass, the culprits that caused her death would not know anything other than sleepless nights for the remainder of their pitifully short lives.
But then again, if the Sith knew of his destination from their traitors, then perhaps it was time to change up his strategy, and travel to another Jedi academy in the Outer Rim. One that would be a natural fortress and be a perfect retreat for him and Adari all wrapped up in one convenient package.
Quickly making up his mind, he prepared his body to open a wormhole to the Quelli Sector and its Jedi Academy on the planet of Dathomir. He just hoped Jedi Council Members Streen and Kirana Ti would be ready for his unexpected and grand entrance on their Jedi academy.
Well, I think this is a good place to end the chapter! I'm glad I wrapped up a few plot threads, and now others can open and keep the story going. So, how are you all doing on this cool weekend day of Saturday, October 30, 2021? I'm doing well, as I did some homework yesterday, and some volunteering as well. And I gave blood two days ago, so that's a good thing to be proud of. And I read a bit more of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Nature of Middle-Earth, and it's coming along well. I hope you're all doing all right in these mad times, and I hope you're all staying strong and praying hard. I hope to get this chapter revised and published in a week or so, as I still have my Ch. 6 draft to revise. But I'm not in much of a hurry, as my Beta Reader has his own life to lead, and I can't rush him along. So, I think I'll upload this chapter to a safe place, and then I'll relax for the rest of the day. I hope you all have a blessed day. May the Force be with you all, and Long Live the Expanded Universe!
(Saturday, November 13, 2021, Addendum.) Hey, everyone. How are you all doing two weeks later? I'm doing well, as I am almost done with college and getting my bachelor's degree, with just over a month left in my final class. Things are going to get hectic soon, so I'd better write a lot after I get a jump start on my final project. And I'll have to publish one more chapter after this one, which will conclude Part 1 of my story, and allow me to jump ahead a little to move the plot along. Oh, and I'm going to get both Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy III: Lesser Evil and Star Wars Insider: The Fiction Collection Volume 2 next week if all goes as planned, so those will be very fun reads. Well, I'd best get this chapter published, as I have a lot to do, and so little time to do it in. May God be with us all in these dark times, and Long Live the Expanded Universe!
