Chapter 12
A/N: I do not own any of the characters of Kim Possible. They belong to Disney. Thanks to everyone for your faves, follows, and reviews. Means a lot to me! Finally, we're getting to parts I never explored haha. Enjoy and let me know what you think!
I.
Three hours. Beta had three hours until he was supposed to launch a massive assault on the Republic garrisons dotting the edge of the New Territories in the Outer Rim. His first objective was to capture the planet Bandomeer, which sat on the conjunction of the Braxant Run and Hydian Way. Taking this point would be crucial to Beta and the Confederacy. It would give him a point to pivot his armies deeper into the Republic using the major hyperspace routes. This would also cut off a major hyper-lane route to Confederate Space.
His main objective, however, was to draw the majority of the Republic's attention to him. Hence he would distract the Jedi away from Grievous and his armies blitzing their way up into the heart of the Republic through the Corellian Trade Spine. With the majority of the Republic armies concentrated on stopping Beta's advance from his slice of the galaxy, Grievous would have free reign in the southern slice of the Inner Rim.
Beta contemplated the operation, gazing out onto the surface of Ord Canfre's blue atmosphere from the Lucid Voice's command spire. He had worked hard for years since arriving in this 'Old-verse' as he called it. Laboring to attain the position he held in the Confederacy, gaining allies and enemies along the way. Preparing for the story of a chosen few to bring balance in the 'New-verse'.
He had given up hope on this prophecy that was taught to him by his former teacher. Then Ron had shown up unannounced on his doorstep. He was beginning to believe his visions were just useless dreams that simply happened by chance. Until Ron had arrived, he was losing faith in the Force.
"General?" he turned around to find Admiral Norith flanked by OM-1 and OM-2 descending down the metal stairs from the elevator.
"What is it, Admiral?" Beta asked turning back to the view of Ord Canfre.
"We haven't received any word back from Aella or Svana for their mission. We still need to order the attack on Malastare as well, to keep their forces tied up in the Mid-rim," Admiral Norith stepped beside Beta gazing with him.
"You have the authority to launch the attack. So why have you not?" Beta asked Norith.
Norith crossed her arms looking away, "Because I still don't fully understand my role in your little plot. Since I don't understand everything… I really don't want to make a mistake."
"Admiral Norith, what plot? This is all part of Grievous's operation and you're a brilliant strategist and tactician. You don't need me to make the call. You're completely within your authority to do so yourself," Beta replied.
"What plot? You're subtle comments about Dooku. Shrugging off the Supreme Commander and let's not forget your little mission to Comra? I know that has nothing to do with the main operation."
"And you believe that my opinions and an undisclosed mission that you weren't privy to are all part of some plot?" Beta asked.
"I'm tired of operating in the dark here! I support you and yet you have you to include me in your schemes with General Xzelas and Naltos. You always have meetings with them that are apart from me and the others!" Norith complained.
"I thought we were past all of this the last time I spoke with you on the bridge. Apparently, I misread the room," Beta sighed. "You know of my identity. Is that not enough for you?"
"Damn it! You're frustrating beyond all hell. I know who you are but I still can't figure out the why? Just forget it!" Norith replied walking back up the stairs to the elevator. "I'll order the strike group to begin their attack on Malastare." She paused. "And why did we order a scant fleet across the entire galaxy to attack Malastare? Why not ask an element of the Sixth Fleet?"
"Breadcrumbs, admiral. If I want the entire Jedi Order and the Republic to attack me, I have to show that my reach is capable. Playing Grievous is only half of the equation to lure the Jedi," Beta explained.
Norith continued her walk back up the stairs to the elevator, "I'll be on the forward bridge if you need me."
Beta sighed, looking away from Norith and averting his gaze down upon the Lucid Voice's superstructure. He didn't like how Admiral Norith had been pressuring him to loosen up as of late. Ron's arrival had caused him more frustration. He hadn't sensed his arrival, yet he was so strong in the Force.
OM-1 stepped beside Beta, "She is only worried about your safety. As are Aella and Svana. They fear of your anxiety. Aella and Svana have brought it up with me before."
Beta shook his head in frustration and grief for his subordinate and former apprentices. He looked at OM-1, "Now they're consulting you to consult me? Tragic." Beta chuckled. "Back then I worried every day that the prophecy was just a fallacy. Just a superstition and I had been sent here on a false hunch. I feared my life was a lie and that I would be trapped here forever. Ever since you captured Ron and Dementor, things have changed."
"Changed how?" OM-1 asked.
"My faith in the Force has been rattled. Now that I suspect Ron is indeed the one, it also brings me grief that the prophecy is real. Ron could indeed be the one that brings about…" Beta explained but trailed off.
"Sir. I understand how important the boy is. It's still important you take care of yourself. Stariki umirayut molodymi." OM-1 advised Beta.
"Zvezda, Prosto ty. Keeping Ron's identity a secret to the New Sith Order and the Old is my top priority. I fear however that the mission I sent him on puts him in grave danger." He sighed, "I've fumbled my cards."
"You're focusing on this prophecy too much as of late, sir. I advise you relax and let things play out," OM-1 said looking out the observation deck with Beta. "As you said with this mission, based on our analysis and intelligence, we could find out if we made the right choice."
"You mean keeping our alignment with the Confederacy? It's a bit late to change sides. If I'm right, staying on this side is the best way to prepare for the conclusion of this farce of a war," Beta answered.
"Are you sure you don't want to inform the admiral? Aella, Svana, most of the Ostari you've trained or brought into your circle know your thoughts on the war. Why not bring her into the fold?" OM-1 asked watching vulture and tri-fighter droids flying by outside.
"Bringing too many into the fold risks our chances of being found out by our enemies," Beta replied walking alongside the giant panes of transparisteel glass toward the forward center of the quarters.
"And what if our enemies already know?" OM-2 asked. "It's not like some of our enemies don't know. If you truly think that the Old Sith Order would work with the New Sith Order, then why wouldn't they inform them—"
"I don't know. Because right now they think they have the upper hand with me? I am Dooku's secret apprentice. The Old Sith and the New Sith are enemies. They work together out of convenience," Beta replied.
"Right now that's all conjecture, sir. We have no idea exactly how that relationship works," OM-1 rebutted.
"You're right. It's all conjecture so we need to focus on the facts we know right now, and continue to piece together the puzzle we're solving," Beta affirmed.
"Do you think the Old Sith… or any acolytes will be on that ship you sent the others too?" OM-2 asked.
"There is a reason I sent those four specifically," Beta answered.
"I know one thing. I have a feeling that after this mission, we will have tied ourselves to the Confederacy completely. There won't be any turning back," OM-1 said almost as an omen. "You're making a bold move. The question is, from here, do you proceed with bolder moves, or are you cautious and fade back into the shadows. How do you combat the threat?"
"We can't risk the Dooku finding our allegiance… my loyalty to be nothing but a farce," Beta replied.
"Then what should we do?" OM-2 asked.
Beta's chest rose with a deep breath. "I'm going to have to speak to Count Dooku. I must ensure that with this little operation, I don't raise any suspicions that I'm betraying him."
"I think that's the only move you can make until Aella and the others finish their mission, sir," OM-1 replied.
II.
Ron stood frozen beside Cecily, both with their blasters at the ready. Behind them, Alex had drawn her blaster. Ron's breathing grew heavier. His heart began to feel like a lead lump in his chest. He had never felt this way before facing an opponent. He could feel the malice seething from them.
The hooded dark assassin smirked at Ron and Cecily's stiff reaction to her. "What's the matter? Were you expecting someone else?" Calm and unnerving, Ron's thoughts of her as she stood there, confident, if not cocky. "If you're here for the good Admiral Walren, I must regret to inform you, he's taken an early retirement."
"What?" Alex asked incredulously. "Are you saying that you just killed the man I was after?" Alex took a daring step toward the mysterious killer. She thrust her pistol forward in intimidation. "Are you? Answer me!"
"You're the one who killed the officers inside, weren't you?" Cecily demanded an answer slowly backing away while keeping her aim trained on the dark warrior. Her master, Svana, had already her taught how to sense the darkness in the Force brought on by their practicers, the Sith. One look to Ron told her he must have felt the same way.
The dark warrior snickered slowly removing her hood with her free hand. "I apologize for your losses. They didn't realize they were in over their heads. Oh well, what they knew was glorious indeed. They should be grateful for the privilege of glimpsing the future."
Ron watched her lean her head to the side seeming to size them up. Her light olive skin seemed smooth and familiar to Ron. Her physical stature and build were also eerily familiar, but what threw him off was the aura he felt emanating from her. Aella mostly focused on teaching him combat and technical skills, yet when she did teach him about the Force, it was intense to say the least. He knew how darkness felt, the dark side of the Force, and this was it.
"What could they know that warranted their deaths? If you ask me, you killed them needlessly and out of wanton desire for blood," Cecily growled shifting her stance. She moved her left arm around her blaster rifle creating a cradle for it to rest in.
"Careful what you ask," The assassin paused drawing a dark smirk on her face, "And… why do you care? Look what side you're fighting on," the young dark lord mocked the hexagonal patch on her leather gauntlets.
"And how is that relevant to you slaughtering the officers in that room?" Cecily shot back.
The dark assassin let out a hardy, sadistic laugh, "You all fight as Separatists! Don't take the high road with me. You send in your battle droids to do your dirty deeds, pillaging innocent worlds! Ha!" The assassin smiled disturbingly. "Honestly, I'm jealous. I wish I could be that unethical."
"What a limited view! You have no idea why we fight on the side we choose. You don't know our character, our merits, our convictions!" Cecily spat back offended by the Sith's words.
The Sith's eyes narrowed, her sadistic smile never wavering, "You're murderers just like I am. You must know that the general assumption in the Republic and conclusion from the Jedi is that the Confederacy is under the control of the Sith."
"And just look where we found you," Cecily smiled slyly. "On a Jedi cruiser, yet your no Jedi."
The assassin smirked, "You're right. I'm no Jedi and yet I'm on a Republic starship. Now, why would that be? I guess that's up to you to figure out." She put a finger on her chin. "Then again, I killed those men. So could you really call me an ally to them?"
"You're right," Ron replied somberly to the Sith. She turned her attention to him. "There is so much to this war I don't understand. I don't understand why there's a war in the first place. And to be fairly honest, I don't even know if what I'm doing is the right choice."
"Yes, I can tell…" the assassin licked her lips seductively. Something about her lips reminded him of someone that he couldn't quite put his finger on. "There's great fear broiling inside you." She closed her eyes drawing in a deep breath through her nostrils. It was as if she was meditating on Ron himself. "You're afraid to take life… aren't you?" the Sith licked her lips at Ron like she was waiting to taste him. Taste his innocence like fresh blood in a kill.
Ron nodded hesitantly. "They might be clones, but I don't know if I could ever see them that way. There might be billions of clones all the same." Ron said timidly, troubled by where his mind rested in the current situation. He was at a crossroads and he could feel it. Part of him felt this piece of life just didn't fit his ideals while the other part longed to move forward on this path whatever the cost. Ron was lost as his morality and his ambition fought it out within his heart. "It's just-"
"Listen," the Sith interrupted Ron. "Heed my advice before your melancholy disposition makes me hurl. You're going to be stuck in an endless loop of death and despair… unless you do something about it."
Ron lifted his head ever so slightly from his blaster's sight, "What do you mean?" The Sith smiled seductively, wickedly so. A smile that would make even criminals cringe. I'm honestly so glad this damn helmet hides my face.
"If you follow the path that has been laid before you or the path your other self yearns for you'll never escape. You'll be caught in an endless loop. Witnessing sorrow and tragedy wherever you go."
"Explain yourself!" Ron demanded. "I don't know what your babbling about, heck I don't know what I'm even saying sometimes but why should I listen to someone who just murdered themselves?"
The Sith shook her head frowning. "You are right. I won't deny what I have done. But you are just as complicit in this tragedy, no matter what way you spin it."
"Don't listen to her Ron!" Cecily shouted. Though Cecily could use the distraction, she wasn't sure Ron wouldn't be tainted by her views.
"Listen to your partner, don't lis-"
"Shut up!" Ron cut Alex off. "You have no right to talk either," he spat never taking his eyes away from the Sith in front of him. Alex grimaced as she backed away toward Cecily's side, sweat beginning to form on her brow.
"You were right in your anger. I saw what she did to you in the hall when you first attacked. She threatened to kill you, did she not? Tell me I'm wrong," her wicked smile returned. The Sith was taking pleasure in her manipulations. Ron didn't answer. "As I thought. Judging by her looks, she's no soldier either. She's a mercenary, she kills for money."
"Hey! That's not all I do! I al-"
"Shut it Alex! I don't care for anything you have to say!" Ron shouted again. Alex looked shocked this time. Ron usually was defensive, she had never seen this side of him.
The Sith smirked snidely in Alex's direction and then looked back at Ron maintaining her seemingly caring guise. "You see, the way you are now. The path you follow, you will always see death, for the rest of your life. As for the life of peace you desire, you would have to know that you held power to help save but instead, let death consume life around you. Either way, you will eventually die, a killer just as I will. Whether that be out of passive-aggressive bull, or out of blissful ignorance, you will know that death surrounded you when you had the power to stop it. There is another way," the Sith licked her lips.
"Who are you?" Ron asked staring her down trying to make some sense of where she was going with her rambling. Just across the hall, he could sense the dark power she held within her. She had murderous intentions. Yet here she stood, red lightsaber in hand talking to him. Trying to help him with the confliction in his heart.
"My name is Katsumi. But that isn't as important as what I was saying before. There is another way to avoid all this bloodshed. What if I told you, that all this only had to happen once… then from thereafter you could control death. What would you say to that?" Katsumi asked. "Join me and you won't have to concern yourselves with the needless calamities of war. You could end this war and silence the turmoil inside-"
"Spare your lies!" Cecily cut her off. She couldn't handle anymore of her guile fraudulence.
"There may be more to this war than we know. But I can say without a doubt that I trust our mentors and their guidance. Yes! I too recognize that I am a killer. I'm no saint nor do I lay claim to any title of righteousness," Cecily had taken her trigger hand off her blaster and was slowly lowering it to her waist. "I'm a killer just like you. I've taken life, much of it innocent. I see myself for who I am, not as someone who is absolved from my transgressions because I believe I have the moral high ground. Unlike you, however, I don't stoop to the depravity and wanton lust that you do! I don't kill needlessly. If life can be saved I will do anything I can to preserve it."
The dark lord glowered at Cecily but before she could speak Ron responded. "She's right you know." Ron had listened intently to Cecily. Thanks! You have no idea how much I needed that Cecily. She had to be feeling the same emotions he was but she still pressed on. She had full faith in their mentors, something he lacked. "I may not be sure of this war but what I can be certain of is you. You aren't someone who I would ever follow. You're truly evil and dark to the core."
Ron could see the Sith gritting her teeth, smiling psychotically. "Fine by me. I won't be disappointed either way. And if you think I'm stupid enough not to see you going for your lightsaber then you're sorely mistaken. I could feel your connection to the Force before the doors even opened. Using blasters might throw off Jedi who have been overwhelmed by this war, but not to a Sith assassin. If you're going to fight me just do so," she rebutted Ron and Cecily taking a defensive stance. "I'll even give you the first strike."
Cecily flung her rifle over her shoulder and pulled her lightsaber from her waistband. She ignited the green blade twirling the sword elegantly in her hands. Ron watched how she handled the weapon. He had seen Beta and Aella handle theirs in similar ways. They were all skillful in swordsmanship and it seemed that Cecily and Svana were no different.
"So you are a Jedi it would seem. A Jedi that fights for the Separatists, how ironic," the dark warrior snickered. "I'm actually quite offended that you thought you could trick me. I wouldn't spare my breath if I didn't see any value in you."
"If only you knew that I wasn't a Jedi," Cecily smirked back taking an offensive posture. "Ron! Alex! Take the shot!" She yelled pushing off with her foot, sprinting toward the Sith. Cecily's saber crashed down onto Katsumi's, who let out a maniacal cackle. She pressed down with all her upper body strength trying to trap the Sith.
Ron and Alex both fired their blasters. They had seen an opportunity and taken it. It wasn't enough though. What shots they got off were quickly deflected as Katsumi pivoted around Cecily freeing herself from the grapple. The assassin Force pushed Ron and Alex back into the wall so she could quickly reengage Cecily.
Cecily and the Sith exchanged a quick fury of rapid strikes upon each other in an effort to gain an advantage. Ron quickly recovered and slung his blaster back over his shoulder. He held the hilt of his lightsaber in his hand but hadn't ignited it yet as he watched his partner duel the Sith.
Cecily spun around bringing her saber over her head in an attempt to overpower the assassin again. The Sith assassin smirked luring Cecily into believing she had the upper hand. She blocked the attack pretending Cecily's attack had worked. When Cecily had pushed her down far enough, the assassin grinned kicking Cecily hard in the solar plexus with her heel.
Cecily's face contorted in pain, Katsumi's heel pushing her back into the wall as she slumped down to the floor breathless. Katsumi seized the moment and lurched toward Cecily. Ron realized he needed to step in and jumped into the fray swinging his blue saber at his opponent's arm which was quickly parried away locking Ron into his own grudge match with the Sith.
Katsumi grinned and stepped back from the gridlock. Too late Ron realized his folly and stumbled forward, his opponent pivoting around him. Her foot lashed out slamming into the back of his knees. He collapsed to the floor, pain reverberating through his legs. Before he could collapse fully, he found her foot slam into his head.
"Trivial for me to even consider you a rival. You need more than strength to win a fight, more finesse. And I wasted so much breath on you, Perhaps you sho-" the assassin raised her saber deflecting shots fired by Alex.
"You still have me to deal with, kriffer!" Alex gritted blasting away at the Sith's defenses.
Ron rolled over while Alex kept up her assault. He pushed his hand against the floor and propped himself back up. His head hurt but he couldn't lose focus. The helmet had taken the brunt of the blow. He looked across to find Cecily also regaining her composure. He had to remember Aella and Beta's lessons, or he wouldn't survive this fight.
III.
Aella and Svana sighed a breath of relief as the last clone trooper fell to his knees after having his shot deflected back at him. Back to back, they took in deep breaths, their sabers illuminating their skin. They looked around at the clone troopers that now littered the floor.
"Ma'am. We have secured the hanger and have detected more life forms throughout the ship. Permission to move out and engage," the command droid asked.
"Permission granted. Fan out and secure the ship section by section. Capture any survivors if you can," Svana replied. The command battle droid saluted and directed the other droids into the hall. Soon all the droids had vacated the hanger leaving Aella and Svana alone.
"Did you feel the presence?" Aella asked Svana clutching her lightsaber tightly. They pressed their backs against each other raising their lightsabers together in defense.
"Yes, I sense the clones were used to test our strength. They didn't fail to impress our adversary. I can feel his admiration and pride. He wasn't trying to hide…" Svana explained looking around the vast hangar.
"Then why didn't he come out earlier?" Aella asked, also darting her eyes around the hangar for the unseen enemy.
"He's the ventriloquist on this ship. No one on this ship could have known he was pulling the strings," Svana explained her theory.
"So this proves Beta's intuition to be true. The Sith also have a certain sphere of influence in the Republic that even the Jedi are unaware of," Aella replied.
"But to what extent that sphere is, and if the Jedi know is still a mystery…" Svana fixated her focus on the dark source of power she had felt. Up above her to her right in a ventilation shaft, she found his peering eyes. Closing her eyes she channeled the power of the Force to crush the shaft where their enemy hid.
Like a maggot, the Sith popped out of the shaft in time before becoming minced by the crushed metal. He somersaulted through the air landing atop a Republic gunship in front of them. With the well-groomed grey beard and hair, he could have easily passed as Count Dooku's cousin. The monocle made him more kin to the role of a Count than Dooku himself.
"Bravo! I must say, I never imagined you both could grasp the situation at hand. Then again you're missing the big picture-"
"Not missing the big picture. Just the proof, which I presume you've already destroyed," Aella replied turning to face the Sith Lord.
The Sith Lord frowned, "Not quite. I'm sure your proteges will find out soon enough that lies are truth. I left the destruction of the information up to my own apprentice."
"Lies are truth," Aella scoffed. "If you're going to stand there all day and spout your nonsense, then let us take our leave," she shot back preparing herself for the fight.
The older Sith Lord sighed, "I feel my insubordinate has nearly purged your apprentices from this life. So if you wish me to purge yours that badly before having a civil discussion, then so be it," he quickly produced a red lightsaber in front him. He jumped down from the LAAT gunship in front of Aella and Svana.
"Shall we," his sinister smile having an uncanny way of inviting either of them to make the first move.
"Although your manners are welcome, they won't make up for your morals," Svana said feinting a strike while Aella pivoted around behind him striking at his ankles. He twirled quickly deflecting her strike up in the air. Svana reacted quickly aiming another strike at his shoulder.
He quickly countered her strike away, taking himself out of the tight spot he had been put in. He smiled looking them both up and down.
"Now this is riveting. Just what I was expecting!"
IV.
Sokol-1 and Ron's other commando droids stood watch near the escape pods. They had been tasked to ensure no one made it off the ship and any clones or officers that made it here had to be captured or eliminated. Yet since they had made their split with the others, eliminating the clone troopers on the way to the escape pods had been effortless.
"Sir. We have received no further instructions from our superiors in thirty-eight minutes. We have twenty-two minutes until mission deadline. I have received a communique from Captain L-23. They've split up into squads and have begun sweeping the ship. They estimate only fifteen percent of clone forces remain," Sokol-2 informed Sokol-1.
Sokol-1 nodded. "Then let Captain L-23 and his forces mop up the clones. We need to ensure no one escapes."
"But sir. The other battle droids have already swept our section of the ship. We should just jettison the escape pods," Sokol-2 argued.
"What are you proposing Sokol-2?" Sokol-1 replied.
"The enemy should have been captured by now. Since we've received no transmissions from either of the commanders, the probability they have been engaged is high. I believe our superiors to have been incapacitated by an unknown variable," Sokol-2 answered.
Sokol-1 understood what Sokol-2 was saying. They weren't just regular droids or even like the improved versions sweeping through the ship currently. They had been infused with personality traits from OM-1 and the others. Sokol squad was trained to think independently and on a level that was thought of as recklessly dangerous. Dementor had left nothing to the imagination when inputting any amount of free thought into their processors.
"Sokol Four and Five! Jettison the pods! Make your way down hall four bravo and eliminate any enemy's that approach. Link up with Naltos and Xzelas. Sokol Three follow us!" Sokol-1 instructed the other commando droids.
Sokol Four and Five didn't hesitate, slamming the controls to the escape pods causing them to jettison into space. They then hurried their way down their designated hall and back toward the hangar, their blaster rifles raised.
Sokol One, Two, and Three ran down the hall towards where Ron and the others were supposed to have captured the intelligence officers.
V.
Alex gritted her teeth in pain, propping herself back up against the wall. She lifted her blaster pistol up, her arm heavy from the pain of being Force thrown. She had managed to last until now against the skilled Sith assassin. But even with Ron and Cecily taking turns attacking her, the assassin stood her ground, not giving anyone an opening.
She needed a new approach and against her better judgment ran up to the fight to nearly point-blank range. She pulled the trigger trying to hit the Sith's leg. She didn't have to hit anything vital, just something to give Cecily and Ron the edge. The shots were quick and successive, she was sure she had her, only to have them deflected into the ceiling.
Before she knew what happened, she watched her blaster skid across the floor, her hand open, cramping from the kick Katsumi had just dealt her. The Sith had kicked Cecily against the wall and Force pushed Ron back into the bridge. Now Alex was at her mercy as she raised her lightsaber over her head.
"I have to say, you were a worthy opponent… for a dog," the Sith grinned devilishly looking down on Alex, a sadistic laugh escaping her throat. This was it, Alex saw no way out as she tripped and fell onto the floor. She looked for her blaster with her hand but couldn't find it.
She closed her eyes waiting for the deathblow. She heard the all too familiar hum of a lightsaber buzz through the air as the enemy's sword came down, only to give way to the sound and heat of crashing energy blades above her.
"Not today!" Alex opened her eyes not to find a cauterized wound through her torso, but Ron's lightsaber straining to hold back the enemy's own.
"I may not be as good as my mentor…" Ron glanced at Alex. "And I definitely don't like her! But I'm not going to let you kill her!" Alex couldn't see his face, but she could tell by a deeper voice coming from within, he had new-found confidence.
"Don't you realize that you can't win! You're trash!" the assassin hissed back. Ron paid no attention to her remarks as he focused his energy on the fight. Ron's strength began to overcome her cumber arms, forcing reality onto the Sith. Albeit he wasn't as skilled as her, he was stronger. He definitely had been trained thoroughly in the basic arts. He had a firm understanding of the first form of lightsaber combat.
Ron pushed back the Sith's saber with all his strength. He understood that he may be the last hope in ensuring Alex and Cecily's safety. Although realization wasn't hitting home fast, it had started to trickle in that he was no longer a sidekick. He might be an apprentice, but by no means did that define him as second fiddle. Now he was a warrior, the apprentice of Beta and Aella. He was just as important.
The Sith slid her lightsaber out of the grapple to avoid being overpowered and trapped, spinning around trying to catch Ron off guard. This time he saw through her movements and moved his own sword to counter her's mere inches away from his shoulder.
Frustrated the Sith retracted her saber back behind her. Ron took a step back from the battle putting his lightsaber out in front of him in a simple defensive position. In this position, it is relatively simple to block an attack from an opponent assaulting you from the front. It is ideal when needing to respond to a general threat ahead of you. Aella's words resounded through his mind. With Cecily recovering he could soon take the offensive.
The Sith's sick orange eyes peered through Ron's black visor. It made Ron gag, wanting to hurl at the sight. He knew people were capable of evil, but this… this was beyond anything he had ever encountered thus far. He could feel the hate and anger emanating from her body.
"Well, let's see what you have? Hmm," Ron gained that the Sith wanted him to make the next move. She must be ready for anything.
Ron tightened his grip on his blade's hilt. It came down to this. This is what Beta had tried to show him weeks ago on Mandalore. If he chose his destined path, death would always be knocking on his door.
"Don't forget about me. I think I'm at your level too," Ron glanced behind the assassin to see Cecily encroaching on her. With the passion in her eyes, he could tell she was grudging for a rematch. Ron focused back on the Sith, who was seething in anger at her new disadvantage. With Cecily at her back and Ron at her front, she had nowhere to run.
The assassin forced a hateful smirk, "So this is what it takes to hold your own against me? Two fake Jedi and a worthless hand for hire that's only good as fodder." She readied her saber above her head putting her other hand out ready to combat all the threats facing her. "Bring it."
Ron could start to see through her movements. Ron looked back at Cecily, "Together?" Cecily nodded back never taking her eyes off the Sith assassin. They both arced their lightsabers, charging. Lightsabers, blue and green whizzed through the air crashing down upon the Sith's red one, photonic sparks crackling.
VI.
"Master. What I have told you is all true."
"This is intriguing. Do you not trust Admiral Norith with certain information?" Count Dooku inquired to the kneeling general.
"To keep the machinations of the Sith secret, I will not consult you in front of mere flag officers that serve no purpose other than pawns."
"So you believe that this operation will further the goals of the Sith and my master?" Count Dooku asked.
"The operation has already commenced and with it, we will be able to further frame the Jedi as the flames of this war!" General Beta held his right hand to his chest, making a solemn promise to the Sith Lord.
"I see. So by using the acolytes you've trained under you, you will make the Jedi complicit for the war, playing both sides?" Dooku reaffirmed General Beta's plan.
"Yes, my master. This is only the beginning. Soon the Jedi will be fighting a war on two fronts. A threat from the outside and the threat from within. They will fail to see the threat from us, my Lord."
Dooku seemed pensive to Beta as if what he had offered wasn't enough for him. Of course Beta knew that Dooku wasn't the Count's only name. Naturally, the dark lord had another name and that was Darth Tyranus. "Darth Atrocious. The progression of your training is nearly complete. Soon we will be ready to take the galaxy for our own."
"Master, I feel that you are not concerned about my training?" General Beta and his newly confirmed alter ego, Darth Atrocious asked.
"My master has become suspicious that a certain individual has infiltrated our ranks. You must find this individual, secure him, and bring him to me… alive." Count Dooku instructed. "Then, I will complete your training."
General Beta, was confused as to what his dark master wanted. What was the Count alluding to? "And this individual is?"
The elderly Count known as Darth Tyranus smirked at Beta, almost mockingly. "The individual my master is searching for is a young man by the peculiar name of Ron Stoppable."