So, despite the common misconception, I am not falling behind. This chapter was posted on the correct date, there is just a bug with fanfiction that is preventing the notification emails from going out despite who updates or when, possibly even blocking the chapters from going up for all I know, but I expect it'll be fixed... eventually? Anyway, whenever people get to read this, here it is... enjoy! ~F

Chapter Thirty Seven

Secrets of New Terra

Luna had suspected some sort of plot since the first time they had landed on New Terra, but finally there was some proof to justify their accusations and questioning. She interviewed each of the other witches and wizards that claimed to see loved ones or other people that they knew died on old Earth, living and walking about this planet as though nothing had happened.

Even a few had tried to speak with the seemingly returned from the dead, only to learn the sad truth that the memories were completely different, even if the faces were the same. That would at last explain why the planet felt so wrong in the Force. There were few, if any, real living people here, merely these simulacrums that acted like a pale shadow of the people whose faces they wore.

Even as the shuttle ferried them up to the orbiting construction platform, Luna was brimming with the questions she was going to demand of Hermione, if that even was who she was supposed to be as well. It could easily be that the entire planet was a trap from the Sith meant to lure the Jedi into this war. But even as she thought this, Luna knew that it was already too late to stop that from happening, the war had begun and the Jedi were in the thick of it. For them to suddenly pull out of the fighting and leave the Republic to itself would be viewed as the greatest of betrayals.

The shuttle docked, and for the briefest of moments, Luna hesitated at what she knew she needed to do. These ships that Hermione was building were vital to the Republic war effort, but at the same time there was something clearly wrong going on and it seemed that the Sith had a hand in the creation of the planet altogether, and who knew what horrors that they had in store to use the New Terran people in destroying the Republic.

Walking out of the shuttle, it was immediately obvious to anyone watching the group of arrivals that something was off, especially with the group of witches and wizards that seemed almost afraid of the various mage-born 'relatives' that were working on the many ships.

It didn't surprise Luna at all that someone came to inquire on them, and somewhat strange when it was Theodore Granger, the husband of Hermione, who came to speak with them in person. "Welcome, it is so good that you've come to aid us in getting more fleets out to protect the Republic… but from what has been passed around the planet and the station already, there seems to be something wrong between our people and your group of Jedi, could I inquire as to what the matter is, and hopefully we can resolve it swiftly?"

Luna was instantly put on edge of this man, as there was little that could have happened to let him, all the way on this station, know of their incidents before they themselves had arrived. "We just need to discuss some things regarding the planet with dear Hermione…" Luna said, attempting to brush past the man, but he back stepped and moved into her way once again.

"The director is busy overseeing some new weapons developments, and isn't to be disturbed for the moment, perhaps you can discuss it with me in the meantime, so that we have a clearer picture when Hermione is ready to meet with you all?"

"No," Luna said, the Force whispering that she could not trust the man in any fashion, "I'd rather wait to speak with Hermione directly."

She wasn't sure how well she could like the look that crossed the man's face, but he nodded regardless, "In the meantime, perhaps we should introduce you to the various fleet admirals that you will each be working with in the defense of the Republic?"

That, at least, seemed acceptable, so Luna accepted, however ill at ease she felt around this man. She wasn't sure why, perhaps it was the stance of control that Theodore presented, but she simply couldn't feel that she could trust that anything spoken with him would actually make its way to Hermione, the unofficial leader of New Terra.

There were four fleets of ships set aside for them to divide between, as they had decided previously the primary commanders would be Luna herself, Yoda, and Professors McGonagall and Flitwick, while the other Jedi and wizards would be divided between each fleet to give added strength for whatever situations they might find themselves in.

After meeting with and interviewing each of the four admirals, the two Jedi, witch and wizard decided that Professor McGonagall would go with Admiral Gerema Darame, the older witch's background making her most comfortable to be working with a fellow human. As it was one of the newest fleets, it had yet to be named, and the Admiral requested that the elderly witch make the final decision. With a wistful smile McGonagall selected the name of Phoenix, in memory of the old order that Albus Dumbledore once headed.

Professor Fitwick elected to go with Twi'lek admiral Vok'casi, and the fleet named Pursuit of Justice. Despite the grim attitude of the admiral, the almost cheerful nature of the wizarding Charm's Master seemed to balance perfectly. Yoda chose Admiral Edwtys Shobran, and the fleet Terran's Fury.

Those selections done, it left Luna with the final fleet, Vindication, and the Iradonian female admiral, Klergere, who sympathized strongly with the desponded look that the Jedi Knight seemed to wear heavily since the capture of her Padawan.

Throughout this lengthy process, Luna was keen to make note of Theodore's departure through a side door, and his likewise stealthy return when they were finished with meeting the admirals. "I'm glad that we decided to get the assignments done with first," the man said, holding several datapads in his hands, "As I just received initial orders for each of the fleets, to be carried out immediately."

He handed each of the Admirals one of the datapads, who in turn shared the contents with their respective Jedi or Wizarding commander. Somehow Luna was not in the slightest bit surprised that her fleet had been called to the front lines, where the fighting was bound to be heaviest. "Is there time enough to meet briefly with Hermione before we must depart?" she asked, already suspecting the answer.

"Alas, no, she is still quite occupied with her research, and won't be able to meet with anyone…" Theodore said, and Luna could only barely detect the hint of a smile as she turned away.

"It cannot be helped then I suppose," she said, knowing that she and all the others failed to mention that Professor Snape was still on the planet, where he had elected to stay and 'not participate in their Gryffindor-like actions,' as he had put it. Luna had recognized the wisdom of the other man's tactic, and then volunteered to be the bait of the main deflection that was sure to come when they went to ask questions, allowing the subtle Potions Master to get his chance to speak with Hermione alone, perhaps to the discovery of the truth.

But even still, there were other options available to her, up to and including contacting the temple with her concerns and requesting a full scale investigation of the strange happenings, which would work in conjunction with Professor Snape's presence.

So it was with a false sense of surrender that their group divided up without protest, and took to their ships, alongside the admirals, who were all clearly oblivious to the strangeness of the exchanges between the Jedi and the man who was effectively second in command of the entire planet and its facilities.

Before making the jump to Hyperspace, Luna did send off her message, giving Professor Snape plenty of time to make his investigate and collect evidence before the surprise Jedi inspection came to the planet to demand answers of Hermione and her slippery husband.

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Anguis was glad that Theodore was so unfailingly loyal, or at least desperate to stay alive, as failure to notify him of what had almost occurred would have surely meant his death. The Jedi were growing far too persistent in their searching of New Terra, far more than for Anguis' liking, for all that Veneficus wanted them to discover the horrible truth eventually.

Unfortunately, that would spell a great weakening for the side of the Republic, and therefore Anguis' attempts to actually win the war, hence why he had given special executive orders for each of the respective new generals, making especially certain that Lovegood was given the frontlines, just in the off chance that she attract the Sith's attention once more, and further divert all his enemies at the same time.

Naturally Anguis expected that this action would be too convenient for the Jedi and they would indeed suspect something more was off about the planet, but he was willing to take that risk to postpone the inevitable discovery a little longer, so that he could push for a few 'advancements' that would greatly aid in the war effort before the entire world was turned on its head after their darkest secrets were learned.

With a bit of luck, even when they were discovered, Anguis would escape unscathed by the events, as it was more likely that the Sith would be blamed, which was more or less true, as Veneficus acted on his own in creating the planet, and therefore his signature would be all over the hidden places deep in the planet, rather than Anguis', which allowed him to act visible disgusted when they were brought to light.

Although at the same time, he would have to push for the continued use of the facilities to aid in winning the war against the Empire, by the need of the Republic over anything else, naturally.

Several discrete messages to the Chancellor's secret holdings back on his 'homeworld,' verified that none of his projects were in jeopardy of discovery, even if the main aspect of the planet was unveiled to the whole of the Republic. Still, it would be a great hindrance if the Senate were to learn that the Dark Lord of the Sith had cloned almost an entire population for this new planet.

It could easily spell the end of his Chancellorship, which would guarantee the fall of the Republic all the sooner as well as his own personal failure to beat Veneficus at his own game, which clearly was the Sith Lord's plan in the long run.

There was little choice in the matter of how to suppress this however, and convince the Jedi that New Terra was still on their side… unless…

Quickly summoning in his personal Senate Guards, conveniently replaced by some of his own people, Drakis became completely professional and businesslike. "Send word for my shuttle to be prepared. I need to go back to New Terra for a short time, and confer in person with the director of our shipyards."

"As you command, your Excellency." The masked guard replied, and the pair saluted as they turned to obey.

Anguis sent off a single message further to Theodore, warning him on his eventual arrival, and to forestall any investigation until he arrived, and departed his office, picking up his escorts on the way to the Senate landing pads, where his personal shuttle awaited him. There were some advantages to being him at that time, as with the Chancellor's clearance codes none would be able to hinder Anguis as he made a direct route back to New Terra, likely heading off any secret inspection that might be on its way, or assembling even now at the Jedi Temple.

As for anyone that might have been left in secret on the planet, Theodore had been notified to tighten security just in case, and make sure that none contacted Hermione directly with these allegations that she would in no ways be able to justify or understand, with the amount of tampering that her mind had undergone. Otherwise, he had a specific line of dialogue to lead anyone through, which did indeed contain the truth of the planet, but concealed just enough to paint Drakis and the mage-born in a positive light.

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Severus waited until long after Lovegood and the others departed in their various fleets of ships bound of different parts of the Galaxy before making his way toward the ferry shuttles to the orbital space construction yards. He had bided his time gathering information planetside, discreetly using his skills as a spy and Legilimens to probe the surface thoughts of random citizens that by all accounts Severus knew were dead, or at least were back on old Earth last he had checked.

The results had all come back the same. While biologically normal, the fundamental pathways of every mind on New Terra were eerily identical, as though created by one and the same person, rather than grown over generations like the minds of humans were supposed to. It pointed to one glaringly frightening fact. These people had been programmed, much like a droid, to behave as though things were perfectly normal in the world around them, for a wizarding community at least.

The real question left was for what reason. Severus knew somehow that the answers lay with the leadership of the principle export of the planet, Magi-tech industries, and Miss Granger. The trick would be getting in to see her, if the Jedi's group had been so quickly dissuaded from speaking with her, there had to be something preventing access to her completely.

Tapping his wand at his side, Severus waited for the shuttle to dock in the spacious guest hangar, and despite the handful of cautious glances at him, he decided to take a direct approach if any of these human robots got in his way, striding down the landing ramp, allowing his cloak to billow and snap at his ankles like he would back at Hogwarts.

Despite these people having no knowledge of him, the effect was still the same, and Severus was given a wide berth as he moved from the work bays to the administration offices in rapid step. Only when he reached the lifts did he slow, and take a far more cautious approach. Taking key note of the various camera and recording devises, Severus muttered one of his favored spells that he had created back in his own school days. "Muffliato," and smiled as he felt the magic form around him like a shield.

All these audio devises would hear now was an annoying buzzing; preventing anyone he did not want from overhearing him. Ducking out of sight momentarily, a disillusionment charm was added to the mix, which would hinder the camera from tracking him, unless they went into the infrared part of the light spectrum, which Severus bet that they did, but it would take time for anyone watching to make the change.

Every second counted in spy work.

Dodging out of the lift as it halted on the main admin floor, Severus glanced once at the map sign that told him where the main offices were, and started for Granger's spacious main room office, when several security personnel came to investigate the now empty lift.

That took Severus by surprise. It was as though someone had expected this sort of tactic, but had not accounted for one with their same powers to be the infiltrator. Sure enough the security guards never drew their wands once as they started checking around for a possible intruder, as though the mystery person would be easy to find.

That suited Severus just fine, as it allowed him to slip away all the easier, and continue making his way toward Granger's office unnoticed.

Unfortunately, the ease of evasion that Severus enjoyed only lasted till the final stretch before Granger's office, where a familiar, albeit older, ex-student waited with wand raised and pointed squarely at him.

"Well… Professor Snape, what an unexpected surprise." Said Theodore Nott, "I would have thought that the Jedi would leave one of their own to do any snooping rather than one of us, if they felt anything was amiss…"

"Nott…" Severus said, dropping the charms masking him, as they had been detected, but the Potions master did not lower his own wand from the younger man, distrusting one of his own Slytherins as much as he had strived to teach them to distrust anyone that might have cause to harm them. "I see Granger has even bought Slytherins onto her payroll. Step aside; I need to have a long conversation with your boss…"

"You mean my wife…" Nott said, causing Severus to raise an eyebrow in surprise. "And it's Granger now, sir. Unusual yes, but something I've learned to live with."

"Nevertheless, it is Miss Granger… Mrs., now I suppose, that I must speak with…" Severus said, starting to move toward the former Slytherin student.

However, Theodore didn't move, "What about sir? My wife is very busy with aiding the Republic to maintain and build new fleets, and in supporting her I try to make sure that she is only occupied with the most dire of problems that regard our world. We aren't the leaders of New Terra after all, even though most people seem to disagree."

Severus doubted that very much, coming from one of his Slytherins, but said nothing regarding it. He could also sense that it wouldn't matter what he told Theodore, the man wasn't going to allow anyone to see his wife for any reason, least of all the reasons that Severus had. Something, or someone, far above this was at work here, manipulating the strings, probably to control the Director and through her the production of warships for the Republic.

Then it clicked.

"Draco Malfoy is in control here now, isn't he…" he asked, smirking slightly in victory as Theodore flinched. "So the connection between him and Potter is still present, even now that the boy has shown his true monstrous colors… The Senate would love to learn of this."

"That would only be partially the truth, Professor…" sounded a new voice, and Severus was not surprised to turn and see a hologram of Draco himself, standing tall and proud in his Chancellor's apparel, appear on a large viewing platform a slight way away from Granger's office.

"And how is that, Draco? Are you saying that you are no longer affiliated with you schoolyard 'friend', or that you are not in control on this world however indirectly?" Severus asked, looking for lies in the hologram. It was a far harder thing to trust, as he couldn't casually read the surface emotions like he was able to on Theodore, which had also told him importantly that Theodore was a real person, and not a copy of a person.

"I broke with Harry once I learned what he had originally planned for this world, shortly after creating it." Draco said.

"I find that hard to believe, but I will humor you for the moment…" Severus retorted, shifting his weight closer to the door to Granger's office.

"I don't expect you to believe me without proof, which is why I am currently en route to New Terra as we speak to show you in person that the entire planet was intended as a growing and training ground for Harry's Sith army, and I foiled that plan when I learned his true identity as a Sith Lord. Hermione is unaware, and I think it would break her heart if she learned the truth, so I and Theodore have been protecting her as much as possible from learning it."

"Well, I believe that time has run out at the least…" Severus said, glancing once more at the office door, which was opened now with Hermione standing there, hands on hips with the traditional angry woman stance. Even Severus wasn't immune to the slight shudder that both he and Theodore had run through their bodies.

"And when, pray tell, were you eventually going to tell me this information?" Hermione asked hotly, storming into the room. "Perhaps when all was said and done and I had inadvertently aiding in killing one of my dear friends and mentors? Or maybe when he had brought the war to our very doorsteps?"

"The decision had nothing to do with any of that…" Draco said calmly, "It will be far easier for me to explain everything when I arrive in a few hours, just don't do anything rash until then…"

Before anyone could say anything more, the hologram winked out of existence.

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Hermione was tense for the next several hours of waiting. She had immediately invited Professor Snape into her office, and with a glare at her husband and a request for refreshment for their guest, she left him in the corridor and strongly shut the door behind her. "Now then, there is something going on, I can tell, otherwise why would Luna and the new batch of Jedi commanders arrive and then depart again without meeting with me to learn of the features of their ships. It's breaking with the system that I intentionally put into place so I could get to know the commanders of my fleets."

"Yes," the Professor said in response, "There is something afoot here, that you are keenly unaware of, and I highly doubt that the entire truth will be had by Mr. Malfoy, Chancellor of the Republic or not."

He gazed at her silently for a moment before continuing, "aside from yourself and your husband, the many dozens of people that I have scanned with Legilimency since arriving here have all proven positive as clones, or copies of people either dead or missing from our homeworld."

That statement made Hermione feel sick inside, wondering how many of her employees she had interacted with over the years, and to find out they weren't the people she thought they were, and yet pretended that they were. It was sick, and Draco had a great deal of explaining to do once he showed his face here.

"The Chancellor's shuttle is making its final landing approach," the automated announcement stated flatly, as though in reply to her thoughts.

It was with hard stares that welcomed the Chancellor into Hermione office this time, unlike the happy gestures and words that usually accompanied such a reunion. "Sit," she ordered, gesturing at the chair next to Professor Snape, and even the Senate guards that came with Draco flinched at the hostility in her words.

"Leave us," Draco said to them, and the two blue robed men paused for a brief moment before stepping just outside and closing the metal doors behind them.

"Explain what this is about; how all the people of my world are supposedly clones, now…" Hermione demanded, barely concealing her anger. There were so many lies and deceit in her world, and she wasn't sure what she could believe anymore. Glancing at the Professor, he caught her eye and nodded, assuring her that this was in actuality the real Draco Malfoy, and not a clone himself.

"It was all Potter's… no, Darth Veneficus' idea…" Draco started, and Hermione held her breath to keep from gasping at the confirmation of that horrid man's real identity. "He had clearly started planning from the very beginning, all the way back in Hogwarts, of how to use each of us to his advantage, planning for this endgame of his own war on the Republic. This place was to be a testing ground and facility from which to grow his own armies, and in part a prison for you, where you would develop new and lethal weapons for the Sith Empire to use against the Jedi. He promised me many things to aid him, and I pretended to up to a point, but when it was finally time for him to implement his plan in full, I altered the wards of the planet to keep out his Dark Adepts, and shielded the world from his ability to come here, to protect you all. That's when I started pushing for New Terra to join the Republic."

Hermione remembered that day, Draco had acted very strange through that period when Harry had left for nearly the final time, it was starting to make sense, but she felt that there were details missing that were still important. "And this evidence that you say that you have?" she pushed, wanting to know every scrap of truth that the man had to give.

Pulling a datapad from his robes, Draco activated a holographic map of the city, "down below the sub levels of the planet, there was a facility built to house samples of beings to clone, where the population of the planet was made and maintained, to provide a semblance of normalcy and give credit to the Sith Lord's story of what happened on earth. I've only recently learned the truth from the Jedi. Veneficus attacked earth himself, and conquered it after wasting over eighty percent of the life thereon. Most everyone we knew and grew up with, save those the Jedi rescued are dead."

Horror enveloped Hermione, but she gritted her teeth at the tragedy and pressed on, "Show us this place, now…"

"As you wish, Director…" Draco said, rising from his seat and gesturing at the door.

Together the three of them, later joined by the Senate guards once again as well as Theodore, took the small shuttle back down to the planet. From there Draco directed their land speeders to take them to the warehouse district of the city, which had become somewhat rundown and almost deserted since the construction in orbit. In one of the rearmost, dustiest factories, which Hermione was aghast to realize was owned by Harry, now the self styled Sith Lord Darth Veneficus, the Chancellor showed them a secret chamber that was hidden under the metallic floor, with a passage leading deep into the core of the planet.

"When we first arrived, this entire place was a barren, lifeless rock, with no atmosphere and little else to make it livable. Harry, probably through some Sith Sorcery that is well beyond whatever magic we know of, breathed life into this place, forcing an atmosphere into place where one shouldn't have existed, and keeping it and the temperature stable through magic, therefore the core of our world is still a cold and lifeless rock, and there was where he build his factory…" Draco explained, as he pressed a hidden switch, which summoned a very old appearing tram car, which rattled along on a rail until close enough for them to climb aboard.

Once all here situated on it, as the car was quite roomy, Draco activated it again and they plunged slowly into the darkness. What light they had from their wands cast an eerie glow along the honeycombed stonework, with multitudes of tunnel branching off in all directions.

"This was originally intended to be the main hub of the city, and the driving construction yard of all military production for the planet, but I ordered it closed away and forgotten when I thrust Harry from our world." he explained, indicated the massive network of caves as they passed, "but his darkest secrets I couldn't even bear to deal with."

The railcar shuddered to a halt inches from the cold stone ground. Their lights revealed a large tunnel ahead that stretch only a short distance before ending at a pair of solid metal doors. "Power to this place is self contained, or else I would have cut that too, but because of the contents I felt that it would be even more of a crime to kill him rather than allow the knowledge of what the Sith are willing to do die with him."

"Him?" Severus said, speaking for the first time since Draco arrived.

The Chancellor grew quiet, "You will see…" was all he would say as he punched in an access code to the door, and it slowly slid aside with a grinding noise of metal on stone.

The air grew cold as they entered the new chamber, frost billowing before them with every breath. The room was dark save for a column of blue at the far end, but they were too far to make out exactly what it was. There were many others lined up on either side of the massive room, but they were dark. The eerie shadows were rather unnerving to walk past, but Hermione pushed on, her need to know driving her to the very end and that mysterious blue light.

She thought she knew what to expect when they reached the tank, but still the sight of a half naked man floating in the gelatinous water was disturbing, with tubes and other monitors connected all along the naked parts of the man's body. "Why is this man familiar to me?" Severus asked, studying the face closely.

"It ought to be extremely familiar," Draco said, "As its Blaise Zabini…"

"And you just left him in this tank for all this time?" Hermione said angrily, starting to look for the release controls.

"I had to," Draco countered, taking her hand before she found the controls, "the tank is the only thing keeping him alive, sustaining him with nutrients and oxygen." He indicated several surgical incisions on the man's chest, "Veneficus removed several key organs to make it impossible for the man to leave this tank, while simultaneously removing tissue samples from him to clone his army. Naturally after I removed them here he had to have found either another specimen to make them, or he had enough samples to make a compatible replacement of Blaise to no longer need the original…"

"The man is sick," Hermione said angrily, hating how powerless she felt about the whole situation, but at the same time sensing that something was still not right. It felt as though there were things missing, things that Hermione ought to know, but couldn't remember.

"So now you understand why I tried to keep these horrible things from you," Draco said, as though that explained all his actions, "And why it would be most unwise to reveal this to the rest of the Republic. Not only would it destroy our best chance to stop Veneficus, but our entire world could be put in jeopardy as well. Clones or not, those are our people up there, and they depend on us all."

Hermione knew that she ought to still be very upset with Draco, and his proposition was disgusting, keeping this vital truth from the Republic, but it sounded like the only course of action that they could take, and she knew that they had no other options. "So, business as usual then?" she asked, turning away from the horrific sight in the tank.

"I do have several ideas for modifications to help future fleets," Draco said, as he led them out of the dark chamber, "Not to mention it's been far too long since I had time to spend with you and my old Head of House…"

Professor Snape seemed indifferent, or worse uncomfortable with the concept, but there was nothing much they could do until they left this place, at the least.

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Even as part of his plans was revealed, the Eternal Lord, Darth Veneficus was aware of what little Hermione Granger had learned. Far more was powered than just Blaise Zabini's prison in that underground factory, and more than even Anguis had been made aware of.

The little Chancellor was proving to be quite the accomplished liar, to so easily wind the little Director around his finger time and again, even as he manipulated her away from ever helping the Empire again consciously.

This complicated things intensely, even if it was a possible future that he had seen. Anguis' open betrayal was going to cause the Republic to fight harder than he wanted, and cause more death and destruction through it.

From his control room in the lower portions of the Imperial Palace, Veneficus activated a switch that established direct contact with any fleet of his choice. "Commander…" he said as the hologram came to live.

"My Lord!" came the high, excited voice of Bellatrix LeStrange, "how can this servant be of help to you?"

"The time has come to wipe the slate clean of those from our home world that would oppose me. You are going to New Terra. Director Granger and her orbital factory have outlived their usefulness to me." The Emperor commanded.

"We will change course immediately, your majesty." The mad witch replied, bowing as Veneficus cut the communication.

He would right the course that he had set for the Galaxy, eliminating only those that were needful, and unfortunately that now included those last survivors of his world and culture.

He would live with that. The culture of Harry Potter needed to die away, so that none would remember the weak boy that had cringed under the lash of those stronger than him. He was of the Sith now, and had put those fears and memories away for a lifetime. It was past the time for everyone else to remember that this, the Sith Emperor, was the only identity that he had, and none other existed.

While Bellatrix took the fight to New Terra, he would begin the final preparations for the endgame of his plan to eliminate the Jedi and the Republic. Climbing back to the main portions of the Palace, he wondered if his pet Jedi even realized the danger he was now in.

Entering the chambers he had set aside that the boy would feel safe in, the look of fear that crossed the mismatched eyes as he glimpsed him was glorious, moments before the torrents of lightning washed over the Padawan.

Let the Republic fight with his forces through the midgame of this war for a time longer, Darth Veneficus was affirmatively ahead of them, and the turning of Luna apprentice would mark the doom of the Jedi Order.

He had played nice and toyed with the child up till now, but that was all for a reason to prepare the boy mentally for his fall to the Dark Side. Leon's gift of prophecy was not to be denied from the Sith, under any circumstances. The lesser acolytes of the Dark Side might have fumbled about with their methods of breaking Jedi, to varying degrees of success, but Veneficus was the epitome of the Lords of the Sith, he had access to methods that would have shocked and horrified even other Darksiders if they knew.

Ordering a pair of Arcanamach to take the boy and follow, Veneficus led them down into the catacombs of the Palace, to deposit the Jedi in his new chambers until Veneficus felt he was sufficiently broken. Leaving the unconscious boy chained the a customary boulder in the middle of a dark cell, Veneficus turned his attention once more to the movements of his fleets and their continued pressure being placed on the defenders of the Republic.

Gazing deeply at the map, Veneficus allowed his mind to slip gently into the ebb and flow of the Force, and foresee the movements of his enemies. It was past time to refocus from the Outer Rim, which was now devastated and leaderless, and turn all attention toward finally pressing inward toward the Galactic Core.

The noose was set, and it was finally time to tighten it into a stranglehold that would crush the life out of the Republic forever.

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Bellatrix couldn't believe her luck. The Master was entrusting her at last with the destruction of those rebels from New Terra. She had ordered the immediate redirection of the entire Krayt fleet toward the mage-born planet, and would arrive within the hour.

Bellatrix was looking forward to seeing what their people had attempted to build without the guidance of her lord, past or present, and even more to tearing it down. It was high time that the wizarding descendants realized that their entire existence was thanks to the Sith in the first place. Lord Veneficus had showed her ancient writings that he had recovered and restored, dating back to the ancient eras of their world's lifetime, which spoke of dark lords that came from beyond the sky, and had shown the ancient earthlings great wonders and gifted select individuals with great power, trinkets and talismans that amplified their natural gifts with nature and the elements.

Bellatrix had learned much, and while she was not at liberty to reveal all that she knew on the field of battle, she felt that the coming fight for what remained of her people would at last test her knowledge and power to the limits.

Let the mage-born and their technological marvels beware, the arcane arts and secrets that Bellatrix had unearthed would rival anything that Granger thought was their peak of grandeur.

"Commander, exiting Hyperspace in the Terran system," said one of the flight engineers at the controls, and Bellatrix smiled as the starlines ended and reverted to the normal twinkling of real space. The blue-green sphere of New Terra loomed into view, and the Sith Fleet started their final approach.

"It seems that all fully functional fleets have already been dispatched." Admiral Heb'Lolu said, stroking one of her lekku in thought.

"Yes, but you'd still think such a vital station would be better defended…" Bellatrix commented, "Begin the attack, and let's see what madness we stir up in retaliation."

"Shouldn't we wait for the other fleets to arrive first?" the Admiral countered. Along with the Krayt fleet, there were at least three others that were en route to the system, they just happened to divert from their original course first, and therefore arrived first.

"No," Bellatrix argued, "better to see what they'll throw at us, and then have reinforcements, rather than stir the nest with them knowing exactly what they will face."

The ships activated their sublight engines, rocketing toward the orbital rings of the space station with all speed, and once in range, unleashing a full salvo of lasers and torpedoes. Unsurprisingly, the shields around the planet were strong and easily held against the full attack.

"Commander, enemy fighters swarming from the far side of the station." An officer announced,

"Launch ours to counter, while continuing to bombard the shields; I want a hole punched through before the others arrive to support our assault." Bellatrix ordered.

Fighters screamed from the various hangars of the command ship and other cruisers, and a vicious dogfight ensued around them, like tiny buzzing flies around massive beasts of war. Bellatrix watched in earnest, wanting to see what surprises Granger came up with in her spare time, or if the little Mudblood had spent all her time doing as she was commanded of her betters.

Bellatrix's nephew may have been leader of the Republic, but the Emperor gave no commands to protect him if he was caught in the fight, and as far as Bellatrix was concerned that meant he also was an enemy of the Empire, and would be destroyed if she crossed wands with the boy.

"Send out bombers to knock out their shield generators, I want a landing party ready to launch the moment those shields drop." She turned and commanded, before resuming her vigil. Bellatrix wanted to know, so badly, what secrets were being held here that the Emperor wanted silenced for all time. She had a feeling that they would be of extreme interest to her personally, as well as the Empire as a whole.