Author's Note: If any of you readers are 'Luxsoka' fans... this isn't your chapter... just warning you...


-Chapter 7: Extreme Notoriety-

Location: Mandalore

"To have no mercy is to have no weakness."

Several hours ago...

"The Prime Minister of Mandalore, Almec, had been reaching out to us." Scipio was recounting. "You are familiar with Mandalorians, right?" He asked.

"Good tactics. Proud warriors. Deadly efficiency."

"Indeed. Almec had been attempting to undermine the current Duchess of Mandalore to restore Mandalore's warrior heritage, instead of this pacifistic neutrality approach she seems to prefer. His efforts were recently thwarted when a group of cadets discovered his actions and had him arrested."

"Kids? Seriously?"

"Unfortunately yes. However, I want you to travel to Mandalore and-"

"Stage a prison break?"

"No. I want you to kill the four cadets responsible for Almec's imprisonment. Send a message that the Separatists will never abandon their allies." Scipio handed him a datapad. "Through a contact, I've managed to acquire the identities of the four." The soldier examined the information, committing facial features to memory. He paused on one.

"Nephew of the duchess." He read aloud. Glancing up at Scipio, he rolled his shoulders. "That'll cause some mayhem."

"Are you worried?" Scipio wondered.

"No. But 'Korkie' has to be the stupidest name I've ever heard. It's not even a nickname." He muttered. Scipio chuckled in agreement. "Count Dooku has sanctioned this mission?"

"No, it's of my own design." Scipio replied. The soldier glanced up, both curious and uncertain. "Don't worry, I'm sure the Council will be onboard with this..."


Taking liberties. That's what Scipio was doing. The soldier pondered the current state of his mission as he waited on a rooftop, overlooking a nearby alley. He had managed to successfully infiltrate Mandalore and was already working his magic. Already aware of the identities of the four cadets responsible for ratting out Almec, the soldier was looking forward to dealing out more Separatist vengeance.

But he had to wonder if the Separatist Council would really be onboard with this mission. Scipio had reassured him they would be, but the soldier couldn't help but second-guess. The soldier himself was perfectly fine with this mission, it would be a perfect example to spread fear and get some payback.

But it hadn't been officially sanctioned.

However uncertain he may be about the authority of this mission, it was a mission nonetheless. Upon arriving on Mandalore, he had looked into Almec's situation and had learned from reports that not only did four cadets take him down, but they did so with the assistance of Ahsoka Tano: the Togruta female he had first seen on Felucia.

Funny how things come full circle.

He had retrieved a list of the four cadets responsible for Almec's imprisonment: Amis, Lagos, Soniee and Korkie Kryze.

The soldier had to shake his head. What a dumb name.

Moving past his personal bias, the soldier had used his new communications systems to relay an encoded message to each of the four. He couldn't quite remember the message, something about 'impressive work' and 'data on more Separatist activity on Mandalore', either way it was something so positively tempting that the four young adults would have no choice but to listen. He had left coordinates attached, ones that would lead the group to this very alley he was watching. And so, he had been for the past few hours, ever since he sent out the message.

Calmly waiting. Silently planning.

Thanks to his new armament, these cadets would be dead in seconds. What he was trying to figure out was how best to send a message.

It needed to be something visceral.

His planning would have to wait as the foursome arrived one by one at the entrance to the alley. About time. Triggering his audio receptors, the soldier quietly listened.

"Well, this is the place." Amis mused.

"See anyone, Lagos?" Soniee asked her fellow cadet.

"No, maybe we're early?" The blonde replied.

"The message said to meet here in four hours, if anything we're on time." The blonde-haired Korkie stated. "Let's have a look around, see if they left anything for us." He suggested. Agreeing with his suggestion, the group slowly moved deeper into the alley, carefully checking around the walls and various empty crates for anything out of the ordinary... that may or may not be a message. Powering down his comms, the soldier moved to the edge of the roof and crouched, waiting for the right moment to strike. The young adults passed by underneath him, oblivious to the stalker above them. The soldier planned for them to enter the alley in more of a single-file formation, leaving at least one of them at the rear.

They would die first.

Taking stock of his soon-to-be victims, the soldier quickly identified the bald Amis at the rear of the group. Timing his attack, the soldier waited until the group had moved in far enough the Amis was right underneath him. Seeing his opportunity, the soldier jumped down, wrist blades extending from under his hands. He pounced upon Amis, coattails flying about him as he drove his blades through Amis' skull. Blood gushed over the ground as the soldier rode his falling body down, landing with a thud. The other three turned around in surprise, an emotion which quickly turned to horror when they took stock of what had happened.

"Amis!" Korkie cried in surprise as the soldier made to stand, wrenching his blades free and leaving two puncture wounds in his hairless head. The bloody weapons retracted as the soldier rolled his shoulders, ready to spill more blood.

"What is that thing?!" Soniee wondered, fearful of this new development. That's when the light illuminated the Separatist emblem on the soldier's jacket. Korkie saw it and gulped.

"I think we've just discovered a trap." He realized.

"A trap set for you." The soldier growled as he advanced upon them.

"Korkie, what do we do?" A scared Soniee asked as they back away.

"We have to contact someone... police, my aunt, anybody!" He replied. "Lagos, if we hold him off, can you get some help?"

"Got it!" She affirmed.

"I can hear your every word," the soldier rumbled, "and no one is going for help!"

"We'll see about that!" Korkie confidently responded as he charged forward and threw a quick punch, aimed at the soldier chest.

But he caught it and promptly broke Korkie's hand. The boy cried out in pain. "Lagos, go!" He ordered his fellow cadet. She moved to obey just as Soniee moved in to try and grab hold of the soldier. But a swift kick to her gut instantly put her on the ground, wheezing in pain. Painfully twisting Korkie's arm, the soldier turned and snapped up an arm, firing one of his tethers at the fleeing Lagos. The projectile sped through the air and made contact with her body. The blonde cried out as the grapnel dug into her skin.

"Get over here!" The soldier growled as he reefed on the cable, forcibly yanking the girl back towards him. Lagos stumbled and landed on her back, the soldier pulling his tether free and retracting it. Releasing Korkie with a shove, the soldier stalked over to the downed Lagos and picked her up by the hair. Hoisting her to her feet, the soldier switched his hold and grabbed Lagos by the head. Hand covering her face, he summoned his incredible strength and slammed her head into the nearby wall, skull crunching between solid permacrete and mighty fist, shards of bone being driven into her brain.

If that didn't kill her, the blunt-force trauma certainly did.

Releasing her body, the soldier turned back to the final two cadets. Soniee had recovered from his attack while Korkie was still nursing his broken hand.

"She was my friend!" The brunette cried, anger driving her to attack this monster. As she did, the soldier remembered his earlier train of thought about leaving a visceral message behind.

And now, he had an idea.

Allowing Soniee to draw closer, the soldier reached for his knife and prepared to strike. Once she was, he struck with a quick slash, cutting a deep wound in the girl's abdomen. Soniee sputtered as blood stained her clothes, seeping from the grievous wound. Sheathing his knife, the soldier primed an explosive disc and promptly shoved it into the wound, Soniee gasping from the sudden pain. Task complete, the soldier turned around and waited. Soniee staggered back and almost fell before she exploded. Her body was evaporated into a shower of blood, a mighty splatter staining both Korkie and the soldier's back. Her upper body reduced to fragments, everything below her waist remained save for a small meaty chunk of what was once her torso. The remains of Soniee hit the ground and the soldier turned around to face the horrified Korkie. Covered in blood, the menacing Separatist stalked over and hoisted Korkie up by the neck.

"You have the dumbest name I've ever heard." He mused aloud. His synthesized voice sent shivers of the boy's spine.

"Who... are you?" Korkie rasped. The soldier eyed his struggling form before he spoke,

"An agent of the CIS, here to repay you for imprisoning Almec." He responded, arm blade triggering. Whipping his arm around, the soldier impaled Korkie through the gut, blood splashing down his blade. The boy gasped as the soldier delivered the deathblow, still holding Korkie by the neck, watching as he breathed his last. When the body ceased to move, the soldier pulled his blade free with a spurt of blood before carelessly tossing it on the ground. Retracting his blade, the soldier glanced around at the carnage he'd created.

Not bad, if he did say so himself.

Prepared to leave, the soldier suddenly stopped in his tracks. This wasn't enough to leave a message, it didn't feel like it. He needed to do something else. A sudden thought crossed his mind. Turning back to the body of Korkie, he began to craft a scene that would strike fear and horror into the hearts of everyone who saw it...


The soldier returned to his base feeling triumphant, another successful mission accomplished. Walking across the landing pad, metal boots clicking along the polished surface, he had completely forgotten his worries about partaking in a non-sanctioned mission. He entered the base with little concerns on his mind, expecting nothing more than a 'good job' from Scipio and orders to wait for his next mission.

But he was soon feeling something else when he saw Count Dooku's image on the holotable in the briefing room.

"There you are soldier." Dooku greeted him. "We were just discussing your absence." A very notable edge in his voice immediately told the soldier that Dooku was not pleased. He quickly cast a glance at Scipio as if to say, 'you said he'd be on board'.

"As I was saying my liege, the plan was all mine. Please do not be angry with him, if anything punish me instead." Scipio pleaded with the Sith.

"You have just found favor with us, doctor," Dooku nearly growled at the Pau'un, "and already you are taking advantage of our generosity?"

"I thought this would be a noble undertaking!" Scipio replied. "To avenge a cause lost to mere cadets..."

"It is Prime Minister's Almec's fault if he failed because of children!" Dooku thundered. "You are to relay orders directly from us, not to give out your own!"

"I apologize, my liege. It was not my intention to undermine your leadership in any way, shape or for-" Scipio was cut off as breath was suddenly cut from his lungs, his throat being crushed by an invisible hand. He started choking, collapsing to his knees as Dooku used the Force to cut off Scipio's air supply. The soldier rushed over to him. Realizing what was happening, he turned back to Count Dooku.

"Release him." He stated. Dooku was taken aback.

"You can speak?"

"Recent upgrade. I need him, so do you. If he ever does this again I'll kill him myself." The soldier promised. Dooku sized him up for a moment, considering his words. Remembering the soldier's immense value and importance to the Separatist cause, Dooku released Scipio who gasped as air finally flooded his lungs.

"Consider this a warning." He threatened before cutting the communication. The soldier quickly helped the Pau'un to his feet.

"Many thanks... my boy..." The scientist wheezed.

"Nothing unsanctioned." The soldier stated.

"Quite right... I had better learn something from this." The doctor muttered. "I don't expect you to be... called upon any time soon. You better hand me your footage... and then go train..." He recommended, breathing deeply. "And I need to sit down." As the soldier helped him, Scipio couldn't help but thank his lucky stars that the soldier had intervened when he did. The soldier, on the other hand, was quick to realize who was really in control here.

Though he did not see Dooku in person, the old man certainly held all the power.


The next day, on Coruscant...

When Duchess Satine contacted Supreme Chancellor Palpatine with an urgent message, Obi-Wan Kenobi just so happened to be there. As much as the Jedi Master was delighted to see his old flame, Satine's tone told him all was not well. Having been in a meeting with the Chancellor at the time, Palpatine invited Obi-Wan to stick around, knowing his recent involvement during the attempts on Satine's life. The Duchess stood before the two via a hologram.

"I thank you for taking the time to speak with me Chancellor, for something dark has happened on Mandalore." She explained.

"Your earlier communication indicated as much." Palpatine replied, knowing that Satine's worried tone could only mean that something had occurred. Mandalore was proving to be quite controversial as of late.

"First Almec and his schemes... what is it now Duchess?" Obi-Wan asked.

"The four cadets who helped in uncovering Almec's plot have been murdered."

"Murdered?" Obi-Wan was astonished, as was Palpatine.

"And it was not a simple shooting or stabbing, their bodies were butchered! Brutally so!" Satine exclaimed. "My own nephew, Korkie, had been decapitated!" Satine disappeared from the holocom and was replaced with a photo of the bloody alleyway. Prominent in the image was Korkie Kryze's decapitated head speared on top of what appeared to be a pipe, blood dripping down from his severed neck.

"Who could be responsible for such carnage?" Palpatine asked, very concerned. "Is there a Separatist presence on Mandalore?"

"Not that I'm aware of. And this certainly isn't the work of Death Watch either. Their methods are far... cleaner." Satine replied.

"Then appears we have a new enemy, one who's not afraid to leave a mark behind." Obi-Wan grimly mused. "This is obviously in retaliation for imprisoning Almec."

"Any ideas whom it may be, Master Jedi?" Palpatine inquired. "Someone in league with him, perhaps?"

"Not a clue. We could be dealing with a bounty hunter or something else entirely." He replied, stroking his beard. "There have been a trio of recent reports concerning similar occurrences on different worlds. But they were all battlefields, heavily contested planets of interest. Mandalore does not fit the trend."

"I have personally read those reports. The carnage and brutality certainly fits the description. But apart from that... nothing." Palpatine sighed, this was indeed troublesome but only lead to nowhere.

"The reason I'm telling you this is because I fear it may be part of something larger." Satine added. "The Separatists are gaining footholds in the galaxy and this may be part of it."

"We thank you for your concern Duchess." Palpatine thanked her. "We will do what we can should you ask of us."

"That's very kind of you Chancellor. I must go now; my family is still in shock but I believe the grief will be setting in soon enough." Satine excused herself. "Oh, one more thing Master Jedi, I'm not quite sure how to tell Padawan Tano about this development. She was close with those four, even instructed them personally."

"Don't worry Satine, I'll find a way to... break it to her." Obi-Wan reassured her. The Duchess ended her communication, leaving Obi-Wan and Palpatine to their thoughts.

"This situation is most distressing." Palpatine mused aloud. "If the Separatists are not above slaughtering young ones, who knows what could be next."

"My thoughts exactly Chancellor." Obi-Wan agreed. "But what bothers me more is that there is no trace of a culprit. Just like on Malastare, Geonosis and Muunilinst."

"Do you think they're connected?"

"Quite frankly, I don't know what to think." The Jedi admitted.