Three hours ago...
Tyrannus' ship landed on the side of the Republic Judiciary Central Detention Center, which was a really long name for 'Coruscant's biggest jail'. The building hid their whole ship from the view of the city, and since Sideous had prearranged for the jail to let them land there it was perfect for waiting out until it was time for Phase 1.
The Sister sat in the room she had been given for the jaunt to Coruscant, which was little more than an unlocked jail cell. Tyrannus certainly didn't feel any incentive to treat her nicely. There was dim lighting, terrible bedding, and absolutely no decorative details added. She didn't bother to ask for food; she had had a feeling that he wouldn't feed her. Instead, she had taken extra with her from Dromund Kaas, along with her lightsaber and nothing else. She didn't own anything else, not even her ship, truly.
She kneeled on what was supposed to be a mattress and ran over what she was to memorize from the recording Darth Sideous had left on her bed. She knew it back to front. Her instructions had been very clear, as were the true plans for the evening.
This much both Sideous had told both Tyrannus and the Sister: The entire senate would be at the gala save for Palpatine, who had an 'emergency' to take care of that could not wait. Skywalker would sense them coming to 'kidnap' Palpatine from a distance and come after them.
This is where the Sister knew the truth and Tyrannus had only heard a lie. He thought that they were to subdue Skywalker and take him with them to Dromund Kaas. The Sister knew that Tyrannus was being set up to duel Skywalker to the death. The winner would be Sideous' new (or continuous) apprentice, one way or another. Then the Sister would hide out below ground until it was convenient for her to come out again, after Phases 2 and 3.
The Sister's role was simple. Lead on Tyrannus until he Skywalker found him, then 'guard' the Chancellor until after the duel was over, all while threatening him, just like she had told Skywalker. It was easy, but not if Tyrannus tried to interfere. The Sister hoped his fruitless loyalty to his soon-to-be-ex Master would hold out until the duel, or she might not make it to tomorrow either.
When the ship landed, the Sister took a chance and left her cell. She walked out to the cockpit, but she couldn't see much from the inside since the rest of Coruscant was hidden by the ugly gray walls of the jail.
"Lovely view," she commented sarcastically. "Has the gala started yet?"
"Not yet," the Sith replied, refusing to look at her. "The Jedi have left, though, to begin preparations."
The Sister nodded. "When does the plan begin?"
"In one hour, right before the sun begins to set. By nightfall, we will be at the rendezvous point."
There was nothing else to say, at least, not for the Inquisitor. She turned to wait out the hour in her cell, but Tyrannus had other ideas. "Look familiar?"
The Sister didn't respond. She knew what he was trying to get her to say, but she wasn't going to pick this fight, not when she was so close to getting rid of him.
"It seems not too long ago that I picked you up from this cursed rock for Sideous. Good thing I will leave your dead body in the same place."
The Sister stayed no longer but went back to her cell. The door sealed behind her, and she wanted to scream from frustration, but she refused to give Tyrannus the satisfaction of getting to her.
Wait, she told herself. Patience is the key. All things come to those who wait.
Eventually, the time came for the two to take off. The Sister clasped her lightsaber to the hook on the back of the red sash wrapped around her waist. She spared a moment to remember how she had made it.
Months ago, when Sideous had finally trusted her with a lightsaber, he had given her two new kyber crystals. These had been found especially for her but hidden since Sideous had made sure that she did not have a weapon during the first part of her training. She wouldn't need one anyway, since that time had been devoted to physical conditioning, mental conditioning, ethical conditioning, and loyalty conditioning. After three months of nonstop strain in all forms, she had finally been allowed to construct a lightsaber.
She had been given crystals that were stolen from a Jedi's lightsaber. She learned a lot about kyber crystals that day and about how to make them bleed red, the signature color of a lightsaber that belonged to a Dark user. It was difficult, especially after all that her old Jedi master had taught her earlier, but she had done it: she had made the crystals bleed. After that had been completed, she was free to construct her weapon to her liking.
The Sister knew she would one day face opponents such as Skywalker and other Jedi who were well-versed in the art of saber dueling. Her own skills were good but weak compared to her adversaries, so she had improvised. She carefully constructed the saber so the blades would spin around the handle, giving her an edge over whoever she was facing. Not only would she move the saber in a fight, but the saber would move the blades, so the Jedi would have to watch for not only one but two sources of movement. It was a small change, but a huge advantage.
A novice dueler would have relied on only one of these movements. They would either move the saber while standing still or still the saber while moving. They might even become fluid at switching between the two, but the true potential of her lightsaber came when both the wielder and the weapon were functioning at the same time. The speed of the blade tips increased exponentially, and the range of its reach expanded multiple times over. It made up for the Sister's lack of experience and allowed her to challenge people like Skywalker.
Today, though, she would not be challenging anyone. If everything went according to Sideous' plan, she wouldn't be fighting at all. After Skywalker and Tyrannus dueled she would be useless unless something went wrong with Phases 2 and 3. All she was doing tonight was convincing Skywalker that she hated Palpatine, which wasn't hard after their adventure on Corellia. All she had to do was stick to what she had said before.
She walked out of her cell one last time and made her way down the ramp of the ship. Tyrannus was waiting for her at the bottom.
"Enjoy this mission, Sister," he seethed, his voice dripping with venom. "It will be your last."
Either my last or yours, she thought, but she just smiled sweetly. "All of this work, and time, and preparation, and the Republic is finally about to fall."
They walked to the corner of the jail building, ignoring the cameras that were watching them. In a few rotations, it wouldn't matter anyway.
"I can't see the Senate Building from here," Tyrannus muttered under his breath.
The Sister resisted the urge to snort in amusement. She knew Coruscant quite well thanks to her preparation a few hours before they had left Dromund Kaas, but clearly Tyrannus had not done the same.
"It's that way, past the Jedi Temple," she pointed. "If Skywalker is where your master said he will be, he will sense us for sure, especially if we are getting that close."
"Then let us draw out the Hero With No Fear," Tyrannus declared, and they darted off in the direction of the Temple.
When the clones noticed them running past the jail they began firing, but they simply dodged the fire. They didn't need to worry about the clones, Palpatine had already deactivated their communications.
They ran past, and the Sister, with better eyesight than the Sith, saw Skywalker rush a couple of people into the Temple as he sensed them coming. It looked like the Jedi who had attacked her factory on Kiros, and when the Sister saw them she sneered. Of course, they had made it out alive.
Alive, but not completely safe. Their minds were poisoned with the influence of Darth Sideous, as was Skywalker's now that she focused on it. Here, on Coruscant, so close to the Sith Lord himself, his grasp on the Chosen One was stronger. The Sister suspected that Sideous had warped his mind more than anyone else's since it was him that he wanted as an apprentice. The shadow he cast over the Temple was Dark, and more powerful than the dying Light that used to radiate from the building. Where there was once healing and life, there was now death and decay. The Light was dying from the inside out.
After today, the Sister realized, the Light would be all but extinguished. Order 66 would wipe out the Jedi completely unless a few managed to escape the clones. Darkness would reign in the galaxy. Nothing would be able to stop the Sith, no one would be strong enough to stand up to them. Once the Dark Lord had secured the Chosen One as his apprentice, the balance of the Force would remain forever in the Darkness.
As they ran and leaped past the Temple, the Sister looked over and saw that Tyrannus was sweating quite profusely. She hid a grin and turned back towards her destination. Apparently, the Sith apprentice wasn't used to physical exertion, at least, not for such an extended period of time. If it was a shorter burst he would probably have been fine, but long distances were not his forte. The Sister, on the other hand, had been forced to condition every day she wasn't on a mission and was quite used to running. She could probably run for hours, maybe even a full rotation, before she needed to rest. If she didn't die from Tyrannus' threats she promised herself that she would try it one day. It would be a fun experiment. Right now, she needed to focus.
She felt Skywalker begin to follow them from behind, but Tyrannus was slowing. The Sister looked for an alternative, and she saw a light rail-less train heading towards the Senate Building. She diverted her course and Tyrannus followed her, catching a ride on public transport.
Tyrannus glared at her, understanding full well what she was silently suggesting, but he held his tongue. Soon, he thought. After Phase 3, after the plan, then you can kill her. Wait.
The two rode silently on the train, watching for Skywalker and for the Senate Building. They came into view at the same time, but Tyrannus used Force Shadow to conceal their presence. The Sister could do it too, but she couldn't hold it for long and she could only hide herself, so Tyrannus did it instead. Unseen, they made their way to the roof of the Senate Building right as Skywalker was darting inside.
Let the games begin, thought the Sister, breathing deeply and focusing on the task that lay before her.
Step one: Get to the Chancellor.