Chapter Seventeen
With a power base he could use in a Kaggath, Hyperion seemed to be a little more eased even as Lady Minshuto continued her visits. But he still hadn't done what would truly put him at ease: tell Dantius that Morgana had finally found him. He knew that if there was a file on Morgana in Republic Space, perhaps Dantius could get to work on undermining her connections there. If challenged to a Kaggath, dealing with Morgana's Republic connections (thus ensuring she couldn't return to Republic Space without being arrested) would give him an edge. But dealing with them directly would mean leaving Balmora for more time than Verrin would've permitted even for a long-term mission.
On the other hand, Dantius' title of Jedi Investigator allowed him virtually all the time he needed to rout out Morgana's Republic connections. If he could do that and perhaps even siphon off funding from Morgana's connections to the Sith Empire, he could begin his first true damages upon the Sith. He was already making good progress with the princes and had succeeded in minor military missions but the rewards would be further down the line. Dantius' surgery of Morgana's alliances in his portion of the galaxy would be both immediate and noticeable. For all he knew, the sudden depletion of funds could both force Morgana's hand in challenging him and reveal her treachery against the Empire as a whole.
If the latter, she would be forced to challenge him in order to avenge her honor and even then would only begin to do so if she destroyed him. Either way, it seemed it was the best chance to outsmart her and with good reason too. Through his blood relation to Dantius, he had access to a number of connections from the military and the Jedi Order. But none of them had the kind of financial influence and administrative power that Morgana was likely to have gathered in her search for him. So when he next could, he escaped the military complex to make his next communication with Dantius.
"You're late, brother," Dantius replied.
"Greetings to you too, ass. Be glad I can communicate at all," Hyperion began. Dantius bit back whatever he seemed keen on saying and breathed a heavy sigh to let himself calm. When he did, Hyperion continued by saying, "Training is going well, I'm making hardened but unprepared warriors the Jedi can take out even with Lord Jadus training them as well. He was made the Emperor's Voice in a bid from me to convince the Emperor of necessary political reform the Sith need but don't worry: it's all part of the act so I can give you more info."
"You're playing a dangerous game by persuading them to pass reforms. Does your position as the Wrath afford you access to whatever the Voice has?" Dantius asked.
"It does, I'm sending the intel I have with the next delivery droid to go to the Dantooine Jedi Temple. The package will be under your name and you can take the info to your contacts in the military. But... something else has come up, something that I may not be able to control yet could threaten the galaxy if ever it came loose," Hyperion said.
"What have you done?" Dantius demanded.
"First off, it's not anything I've done here. Not now, anyway. Remember when Patricia mentioned a sister, said she had an older twin training with a Bith Force-sensitive?" Hyperion begaan.
"Yeah, Morgana I think was her name. She liquidated all assets belonging to Brilliante Industries to pay her parents' debts and make off with billions of credits when they died. Why?" he replied.
"Because she's here on Balmorra. She challenged Councilman Mortis to a fight and killed him, taking his seat on the Dark Council under the name Darth Minshuto. After I came up to congratulate her, she revealed herself to me and vowed that she would destroy me when the time was right. My suspicion is that she will challenge me to a Kaggath and formally pit her resources into my destruction, helping spiral the Empire into further anarchy in the wake of her revenge. The difference between her and the other Councilmen is that she's got connections that can spirit her away from Balmorra if things go south where they would be arrested upon fleeing, maybe killed," Hyperion explained.
Dantius nodded, understanding increasing in his eyes before he finally asked the question Hyperion was hoping he'd ask. "If you like, I'll see what I can do about cutting Morgana's ties to the Republic here. Make sure that if and when a Kaggath is finished between you two, she has nowhere to run but into your blade," Dantius offered. Hyperion nodded his acceptance, knowing his brother was his only chance of truly defeating Morgana now. "I'll see what I can dredge up though I make no promises: I'll see what I can do about having my contacts in Republic Police dig up the dirt and have those connections silenced so I don't leave you hanging," Dantius added.
"There's something else, something even worse than Morgana I think I need to tell you," Hyperion admitted. Crassus, whose presence was slumbering within Hyperion, awoke at the mention of something worse than Morgana haunting him. The older spectre knew exactly where this was going as soon as he registered the words and considered stifling Hyperion's admittance. But he was more interested in hearing Dantius' reaction to the news than he was in the ways he could painfully stop Hyperion from telling him. "I think Grandpa Crassus has returned," Hyperion told his brother.
"Impossible, he tried to perform essence transfer on our cousin and failed. There is no coming back from that," Dantius said.
"Not generally, you're right. But Crassus planted seeds of his power within both of us, in your case what little Light Side essence he had left. In my case, he planted enough of his dark power to act as a beacon if he were ever obliterated by our cousin. I can feel him feeding on the darkness in this place which may be why the pull of the Dark Side isn't as strong on me: he's feeding on it to revive himself," Hyperion replied. Dantius mulled it over, stroking his bearded chin at the thought that Crassus could have yet again cheated death.
"The prophecy did say our cousin would destroy him but it didn't say anything about Crassus coming back from it. It also didn't say that Crassus wouldn't find a way to survive even a failed attempt at essence transfer. How strong is he at the moment?" Dantius asked.
"Enough to boost my prowess imperceptibly. Make me strong enough to overcome the best on the Dark Council if I truly need it to happen. But not so strong he can afford to possess me, after what our cousin did he's too cautious to strike just yet," Hyperion said.
Coward, you fear possession by my hand when there are strong bodies that I could take for myself. You are unchanged in fearing me, Hyperion Crassus sneered through telepathy. Hyperion then winced and noted to Dantius that he could telepathically communicate with their grandfather whilst he remained trapped in Hyperion's body.
"Keep him there as long as you can then give him a body that can be defeated. Deceive him into believing you have given him a body of power lest he not make his move," Dantius said.
"Don't you worry, I already have a sacrifice in mind, should Morgana make her move. Someone who looks keen to please her but is not directly infatuated with her. He's also a member of the Dark Council but offers a prize in power and longevity that Grandfather won't be able to avoid trying to grasp," Hyperion told him. Crassus made to ask who could be such a prize then Hyperion mentioned Lord Imperius telepathically. The disembodied spirit was left to think of that while Dantius continued to speak.
"Once he's selected a body and taken it over, he'll be vulnerable to death again. If he fails, he'll be obliterated once more and this time, it'll be for good. Keep me in the loop about what you decide to do with the spectre of our grandfather as well as the rivals you have in the Sith. If you can kill three birds with one stone, you'll be able to do some serious damage to the Empire's resolve and its plans for the galaxy. When I receive the intel that you've promised, my council and I will decide whether or not the time has come to begin planning an assault on the Sith, meantime, keep up the work and inform me at once if anything happens," Dantius told him.
"I will do my best but be warned that I may not be heard from for sometime if Morgana directly challenges me to the Kaggath. No worries, I'll make sure that there's plenty of collateral damage to go around for the Empire and forestall their plans. When Jadus was made the Voice of the Emperor, his old resources were given originally to the Dark Council but Vowrawn gave his portion to me. Something tells me that the old man stands to gain something from watching our rivalry come to its conclusion though what it could be I don't know," Hyperion said.
"Vowrawn is slippery as they come and powerful in the Force," Dantius admitted, "keep an eye on him and his motives. Perhaps it would be wise to consider giving him to our grandfather if you get my meaning." They both chuckled at the idea even as they knew Crassus would never go for it and with good reason too as soon as Dantius cut transmission. Vowrawn was old for a Sith Pureblood and had likely only managed to stay alive due to a combination of cunning and dark rituals.
But in truth, Vowrawn wouldn't have long to live even with the rituals without some sort of long lasting secret. In any case, he wasn't the kind of viable candidate that a fifty-year-old Pau'an would be with six centuries or more of life to go thanks to his biology. More, Imperius could grow even stronger, a considerable thought that made Hyperion and Crassus both smile widely.
Chapter Eighteen
Dantius' latest transmission was a bit troubling for the council he answered to in this mission. "Hyperion has a couple of rivals on the Dark Council who may yet aid us in reducing the Sith to half the size they currently possess before we attack. Unfortunately, there's every risk that even if this happens, we could lose our eyes and ears within the Empire," he explained. The older man to whom he spoke contemplated the situation before him.
What Hyperion didn't know about Dantius' affiliations was that he was part of a classified sect of Jedi known as the Sentience. Developed by Sentinels to coordinate their activities, it had started out as a way Investigators like Dantius could compile data to be turned over to the Jedi Council for further deliberation without the main Order knowing. Under the leadership of Dantius' superiors, it became a way for all Sentinels to compile information for the Council to use in its deliberation about threats of corruption and the Dark Side. Now that they knew the Sith Empire had returned, thanks to Inoy's accidental discovery sparked by Hyperion's request, the Sentience was interested in undoing the Sith wherever and however possible. So when Morgana was mentioned as having possible connections in the Republic meant that the Sith might have connections as well.
In the end, Dantius' superior in the Sentience had to agree as much, making a decision that would be putting the Sentience at risk of discovery. "We'll have our spies look for systems where Morgana had connections and research any history they may have with the Empire. Our deductions will remove such people as threats whether through evidence or by eliminating them as a threat if necessary. We'll go from there to identify individuals who had benefited from connections on both sides to see if they're still sinking any funding into the Empire. Legally, the Jedi Order cannot enter anywhere without a warrant but we have a few connections who are as off the books as Hyperion," said his commander.
"As you wish, Commander. Should I set the Blank Slate Contingency in motion?" Dantius asked. The Blank Slate Contingency was a plan by the Sentience which would allow members full authorization to clear out any and all potential connections to the Sith in Republic Space. Some, especially those who were officially stationed in Hutt Space and what had been neutral systems in the war could do what planetary law allowed them to aid the Contingency. So when Dantius asked if he should initiate them, his superiors were being asked if they wanted to cause such destruction across the galaxy, beings would think the Sith had returned.
But the Sentience was nothing if not anonymous and built to stop the Sith even if that meant breaking some of the conventions of the Order they swore to serve. When Dantius' superior finally made his decision, he ultimately nodded then added, "I will have the others assembled for carbon freezing. Once frozen, you will awaken us in the event that there is any sign of corruption in the Republic once again, after the Sentience has completed its part. If you can, see to it that your brother is extracted safely from Imperial clutches once he has completed his part for us."
"And if he asks for payment?" Dantius asked.
"Unless he has committed the kind of atrocities that endanger important Republic systems, give him what he was promised in full. Meantime, once he is extracted, offer him the chance to join the Sentience has an independently contracted hired hand. The strings we can pull may clear his record but he doubtless still has debts he needs to honor to financial tycoons who would see it paid as soon as possible," his superior answered. Dantius bowed and informed him that he would tell the others to begin initiating the Blank Slate Contingency. For fifteen years, the Sentience had been building up for this moment, born out of a need to continue to root out the Dark Side without dropping the veil of the war's end to the greater galaxy.
Now, they were going to be told to do everything they could to find and cut down the Sith's intergalactic connections to size before a military campaign against their last worlds. "And Dantius?" his superior asked.
"Yes Master?"
"Inform Inoy to have a fleet ready on standby once Hyperion's intel has been successfully delivered. If the Sith get any worse or make desperate power grabs before or after that intel arrives, you know what to do. We have both worlds locked in our sights and we will see to it that the Sith threat is forever stamped out," said the leader of the Sentience.
"I agree, Master. Ever since you trained me as a Padawan, we have been working towards this end. Now, we may yet actually get to see it commence," Dantius replied. Master Mathes Colunga, once the proud co-founder of the Confederacy of Neutral Systems, smiled his and nodded. Thought dead by the Republic and virtually everyone he knew, thanks to wearing his mask when he "died", he would not be recognized by anyone who didn't know him.
In return for a pardon on his defection, along with that of survivors like Dantius, Mathes was allowed to create the Sentience for Sentinels and castoffs like him. It gave them a chance to do the things that would never be allowed or expected of a Jedi Guardian or Consular in the Temples of the Order. And after fifteen years of building the network, establishing contracts with people like Hyperion, and investigating potential Sith connections, they were about to strike at last.
The difference between these people and the mainstream Jedi Order? They didn't always have to abide by Republic law, Senatorial decree, and were answerable only to the Chancellor. In fact, they were off the books precisely because they were a military force and the Chancellor's strongest suit of authority lied in that department. As Mathes made the preparations for carbon freezing with the rest of the Council, Dantius commed every member of the Sentience then said, "This is Dantius Octavian, Senior Jedi Master of the Sentience, initiate the Blank Slate Contingency, authorization: Caius-20716-XL341."
Then he commed the Chancellor, notifying her that the Sentience had decided to initiate the Blank Slate Contingency. This, Dantius knew, would be a day long remembered by the members of this wonderful organization. It'd seen the fall of the Empire, it hoped to soon see the end of the Dark Side itself. And it tickled him to know Crassus survived to see it become reality.
