STAR WARS: WAR FOR THE OUTER RIM
EPISODE 8:
HEROES ON BOTH SIDES, PART 1
Written by IgnusDei
Spellchecked by WarpObscura
"You will find that whichever side in a war is good or evil depends largely on one's point of view. Remove that, and you'll realize that most wars are, more often than not, fought between good and good."
-Qui-Gon Jinn, Jedi Master.
EXT – PLANET NEDIJ, NEDIJI VILLAGE — DAY
The skies above the snowy peak of planet NEDIJ are clear, the white sun's light reflected brightly on the slopes. At the foot of the mountain is a village, made of wooden bunkhouses decorated with whale bones, home of the planet's natives, the NEDIJI. A primitive people, the Nediji are bird-like humanoids clad in buckskins and furs, wielding tools of medieval sophistication. In the central marketplace of the village, hundreds of them go about their business: Hunters, fishermen and whalers trade their catches for what they lack – fresh tools of the trade, tallow for fuel and maintenance, food preserves for the coming winter.
We follow a tiny lone Nediji boy — IGALUK — as he plays with a wood carving that looks suspiciously like a Z-95 Headhunter starfighter. He makes whooshing sounds, as he imagines himself a dashing fighter pilot, out-flying his people's ancient enemies, those that forced his people to seek refuge in this world of ice and snow. His flight of fancy leads him to the shore of the great lake, a body of water so vast it stretches far into the horizon.
Suddenly, his ears pick up a noise: a dim wail that grows louder and louder. He is the first to look up, and as he shields his eyes from the sun, he takes full advantage of his race's long range vision, peering into the sky for the source of the sound: a RESISTANCE CORVETTE, the PROTECTOR, trailing black smoke from several burning holes in its hull. Far behind it is the remnant of the Resistance fleet, still fresh from the battle at Charon's Belt. Larger ships appear from hyperspace, their hulls severely damaged.
Igaluk is awed by the sight, and calls out to his tribe, pointing at the ship.
IGALUK [in Nediji]
Look! Look, in the sky!
The nearby fishermen and hunters look up, and see the craft. They too are awed by it, not yet knowing that the Protector may very well be their doom.
INT – PROTECTOR'S BRIDGE — DAY
The entire bridge trembles as ELSON, a bald human male fitted with a cybernetic headset, gives orders to the rest of his bridge crew.
ELSON
Divert power from the main drive to the repulsorlifts!
BRIDGE CREWMAN
I'm trying! Primary and secondary power manifolds are offline!
ELSON
Emergency power, then!
BRIDGE CREWMAN
...The super-capacitors just blew!
COMMS OFFICER
Lower decks reporting in! Half our escape pods won't launch!
ELSON [angry]
Damned saboteur!
SENSOR OFFICER
Sir! Secondary sensors are picking up something!
Sapient lifesigns, at least six hundred of them!
ELSON
Please tell me we're not headed straight for them!
HELMSMAN
We're not! Estimated trajectory takes us away from them!
ELSON looks relieved. His ship may be doomed, but at least it won't kill hundreds of innocent people.
SENSOR OFFICER
Incoming jump!
EXT – PLANET NEDIJ, SKY – DAY
Far besides them, one of TAIKA's TOWBOATS successfully completes a very risky close-range hyperspace jump. It approaches the Protector at full speed, and activates its array of tractor beams, the tethers of pure graviton energy grasping the ship at key points to prevent the pull from rupturing the hull.
TOWBOAT PILOT [radio]
We got you, Protector!
The TOWBOAT attempts to slow the Protector's descent, and for a moment it looks like everything is going to be alright.
EXT – NEDIJI VILLAGE — DAY
The NANUK of the village, an elderly woman that serves her people as both chieftain and shaman, steps out of her hut and bears witness to the spectacle above.
NANUK [in Nediji, awed]
The gods! The gods have returned to take us to the promised land!
EXT – PLANET NEDIJ, SKY – DAY
The Towboat keeps pulling at the Protector, slowly putting a stop to its freefall
ELSON [radio]
Never thought I'd be happy to see you damned pirates!
TOWBOAT PILOT [radio]
Heh! Well, we don't work for free, ya know?
ELSON [radio]
Well, send us the bill—
Then, the worst thing that could happen, happens. Half of the array malfunctions, stressing the rest of the tether points until the hull ruptures. The Towboat spins out of control, leaving the corvette to freefall straight towards the NEDIJI village.
INT – PROTECTOR'S BRIDGE — DAY
SENSOR OFFICER
Sixty seconds to impact!
ELSON
Helm! I don't care what you have to do!
CHANGE OUR DAMNED COURSE!
HELMSMAN
Firing verniers!
EXT – PLANET NEDIJ, SKY – DAY
The PROTECTOR's vernier thrusters promptly misfire, sending the ship spinning out of control.
EXT – NEDIJI VILLAGE — DAY
The villagers finally realize the danger they are in, panic and begin to flee. Only two people don't: Igaluk, too awed and to young to understand, and the Nanuk, who implores the gods and the spirits to spare her people from their divine wrath.
INT – PROTECTOR'S BRIDGE — DAY
The ship's own artificial gravity struggles against the spinning and the planet's natural one, and some of the bridge crew who didn't put on their seatbelts are thrown off their chairs.
SENSOR OFFICER
Thirty seconds!
ELSON looks at the ship's emblem behind him: a corvette within a shield, surrounded by six stars. He focuses on the ship's motto: OUR LIVES FOR THEIRS. He knows what he's got to do.
ELSON
Order the magazines to detonate our missiles – we're self-destructing!
CREWMAN [shocked]
Sir, we can't do that!
ELSON
We have no choice! It's either just us or—
CREWMAN
—The hull near the magazine is GONE!
EXT – PLANET NEDIJ, SKY – DAY
CLOSE UP of the tear in the PROTECTOR'S hull, and truly enough, the ship empties itself of its own munitions until almost nothing remains.
INT – PROTECTOR'S BRIDGE — DAY
ELSON and his crew despair – not only are they doomed, but they will take six hundred innocent people with them. They all shut their eyes, awaiting the inevitable. Meanwhile...
EXT – NEDIJI VILLAGE — DAY
The villagers go mad with terror as the corvette – an alien projectile of metal, smoke and fire — is about to hit them at terminal velocity. Some try to flee, others prostrate themselves in religious horror. It's all futile, nothing can stop what's coming.
At the coast, Igaluk feels something, a quiet rumble of energy that slowly builds up as bits of water and snow float up, marking where the wind blows gently, carrying the mist upwards towards the corvette.
INT — PROTECTOR'S BRIDGE — DAY
Gravity's hold on the bridge crew begins to fail, and even time itself feels slow...
EXT — NEDIJI VILLAGE — DAY
The corvette crosses path with the rays of the sun, and so the shadow of the Protector quickly covers everything and everyone below. The people brace themselves for a fiery death...
...Which fails to come. All are silent, but very much alive and it takes a moment before someone dares to look up. The Corvette, no longer ablaze, floats harmlessly over the village's marketplace, held there in place by the FORCE.
UP in the sky, the FIRWIRRUNG is at the center of the RESISTANCE FLEET, having appeared moments earlier before disaster could strike.
INT — FIRWIRRUNG CONTROL TOWER — SPACE
Sitting cross-legged directly below the Kaiburr Crystal of Pomojema, LUKE SKYWALKER meditates, multiplying his reach with the Force. He raises his hand, moves it slowly...
EXT — NEDIJI VILLAGE — DAY
And the villagers watch in awe as the Protector moves away from the marketplace, towards the Great Lake.
INT — FIRWIRRUNG CONTROL TOWER — SPACE
CLOSE UP of LUKE's face as he meditates, his eyes closed. Suddenly, rapid-eye movement kicks in as his mind goes too deep into his trance, and the image of CEADEUS REN flashes before his eyes, feelings of anger and sorrow dancing across his face, intercut with visions of the burning temple of the New Jedi Order. Finally, MARA JADE's eyeless, bloodied face appears for a split second, the shock of the horrible sight causing LUKE's eyes to open wide.
He loses his focus...
EXT — NEDIJI VILLAGE — DAY
The Protector shakes, as the Force loosens its grip on its hull. Luke regains his focus just in time, sparing Igaluk from being crushed. The boy looks on in awe as the ship floats away, until finally the towboat arrives to carry it back up towards a descending FIRWIRRUNG.
INT — PROTECTOR, BRIDGE — DAY
Captain Elson looks to his crew, all visibly relieved.
ELSON
We're saved...
INT — FIRWIRRUNG CONTROL TOWER — SPACE
Luke sighs wearily, and he gets up. He walks over the edge of the top of the control tower, and looks on as several small Resistance ships — Transports and Shuttles — begin their approach.
EXT — FIRWIRRUNG, TEMPLE OF SSI-RUUK — DAY
The city-ship is now completely under the planet's atmosphere, and the lightning shield drops, allowing the other ships to enter.
Atop the ruined temple, with the KANJIKLUB STAR GALLEON still buried in it, REY waves a signal flare, marking the area where the resistance transports and their fighter escorts should land. Hundreds of small craft park themselves all around the temple. REY looks on, the ships practically vomiting people, from where she stands. She hopes to catch a glimpse of FINN, but decides it's best to go looking for him below. She makes her way down...
EXT — FIRWIRRUNG, TEMPLE DISTRICT — DAY
...And finds herself surrounded by more (living) people than she had ever seen in her life. All around, people were tending to the wounded, setting up triage areas and infirmary tents. Shuttles and a yacht from the MERCY arrive, and the emerging medtechs, led by ADASCA, who begins barking orders over the groans of the wounded. REY watches as someone pleads at someone lying on a cot – missing an arm and a leg – to hold on.
The girl feels overwhelmed, by both the swarm of people around her — more than she had ever seen! — and their suffering. She remembers who she's here for.
REY [worried]
Finn? FINN!
She sees a medtech carrying a large medkit approach, and steps into his path.
REY
Have you seen my...
The medtech shoves her aside...
MEDTECH [angry]
Out of the way!
Into the back of a bandaged grey Wookiee, who snarls at her.
REY [distraught]
I'm sorry!
Someone grasps her ankle, their grip loose and weak. REY frees herself easily, and looks down at a RESISTANCE MARINE, laying down on a stretcher. He's badly wounded, his bandages are drenched with his blood.
WOUNDED MARINE [pleading]
Please, nurse! Don't leave me... Don't go!
REY becomes increasingly upset, and is unable to say anything to the poor man. The fact that he looks almost exactly like Finn makes things so much worse.
WOUNDED MARINE
The pain, it's too much...
Someone screams, the victim of rapid battlefield surgery and not enough anesthesia. Nurse CHANI appears from the sea of people, and takes care of the wounded marine. REY proceeds to wade through that sea, going from face to face, hoping to find her friend...
REY [scared]
FINN! ARE YOU HERE?
SNAP
Rey?
REY turns around, and finds TEMMIN 'SNAP' WEXLEY, along with the rest of BLACK SQUADRON's pilots at his side. SNAP strides towards her, and grabs her by the shoulders.
SNAP
You're her, right?
The one we sent to find Luke?
KARÉ
Thank the Maker for you, kid!
You brought us a damned dreadnought right in the nick of time!
NIEN NUMB [in Haya]
Where is he? Where's Luke? He's flying this ship, right?!
REY [frustrated]
Nevermind that! Where's Finn?!
Leia said she'd make him better!
The pilots look at each other, their expression sorrowful.
KARÉ
Kid, I'm sorry...
REY
What? Why?! What's happened?!
They all speak at once:
SNAP
He was Poe's gunner on an ARC...
C'AI
Went up against an Ace!
NIEN NUMB [in Haya]
The way it moved, it had to have been a Baron!
SNAP
They went off into an asteroid storm...
KARÉ
Had to do it, we couldn't have taken
out that ion missile otherwise...
NIEN NUMB [in haya]
It was Seether! I know it was!
SNAP
And then he didn't come out...
REY [angry]
Stop talking all at once
and tell me what happened to Finn!
There is a short pause, and SNAP sums it up.
SNAP
Poe and Finn engaged the Seether.
REY [confused]
Who?!
SNAP
Paxton 'Seether' Fell, a... no,
THE Baron of the Empire, their top pilot.
Poe engaged him, the two of them flew into
an asteroid storm... and it was Fell that came out.
He killed them both. I'm sorry.
REY sees the faces of Black Squadron fall, believing that their beloved commander had perished in the recent battle, while she has yet to process the shock caused by what she had heard.
REY
Did.. did you see it happen?
SNAP
No, but...
REY
Then there's still a chance! Maybe...
maybe there's still there, adrift in space, waiting for a rescue!
NIEN NUMB [in Haya]
Girl, nobody goes toe-to-toe with Seether and lives.
SNAP
I'm sorry, but they're gone.
REY
No...
Somewhere else, someone notices a Glossair Bike approaching. It lands on the street, close to the crowd and its rider – LUKE SKYWALKER – disembarks from the vehicle and approaches the crowd. The members of the Resistance, sailors and soldiers, casualties and caretakers, are struck silent at the sight of him and can only stare as Luke walks among them. We follow his point of view – he's surrounded by haggard, dirty faces, human and alien alike, encrusted with smoke or slick with blood. They speak among themselves in hushed tones, while the Medtechs continue working behind them to save lives.
Nobody knows what to make of Luke – he doesn't look like much, with his unkempt beard and his humble robes and cloak. Some of the people who stare at him make some effort to acknowledge him – polite 'sirs' and nods. Perhaps the welcome would have been warmer, if they hadn't suffered such a terrible defeat.
RESISTANCE PILOT
Is that him?
RESISTANCE TECH
I don't know...
RESISTANCE MARINE 2
Of course it's him, it has to be...
RESISTANCE MEMBER
Thank the Force... the Jedi have returned!
RESISTANCE MEMBER 2
It's too late; what good can they do now?
WOUNDED RESISTANCE MEMBER
Where the kriff were they all this time, huh?
EXT — FIRWIRRUNG, TEMPLE DISTRICT, TRIAGE AREA — DAY
Luke comes across one of the triage areas, and the wounded, lying down in their stretchers, reach out to him weakly. Luke kneels, and reaches back to one of them, a young woman, taking her hand into his, healing her wounds with the Force. Luke, however, is not a healer, and there's only so much he can do. By the time he stabilizes the woman, the medtechs write off five poor souls, covering their faces with white sheets.
Then, he realizes something.
LUKE
You're all just... children.
It was true, from a certain point of view: though there were a few veterans present, most of the Resistance's roster wasn't much older than twenty-five standard years of age, with some as young as eighteen. This detail makes Luke realize the consequences of his long absence. As the Last Jedi, it had fallen on him alone to preserve peace across the galaxy so that the next generation - THIS generation - would never know the horrors of war.
And he had failed in this duty.
C3-PO
Master Luke!
LUKE whirls around, and finds that familiar glint of gold as C3-P0 makes his way through the crowd to meet him. The old Jedi's joy at seeing his old companion is subdued, but no less true.
LUKE [overjoyed]
Threepio! You're alive!
Luke gets on his feet and strides towards the droid, grabbing him by the shoulders.
C3-PO [distraught]
Oh, it truly is you! Master, you could not have
arrived at a more dire time! Our losses alone...
I don't know if we'll be able to
recover from this without Leia or Ackbar to guide us!
LUKE [worried]
Leia? Leia! What happened to Leia?!
EXT – HYPERSPACE
The immense RADDUS streaks across the tunnel of blue light, flanked by the dark shape of the ALEXANDER.
INT — RADDUS, STORAGE ROOM — SPACE
In a poorly lit, windowless chamber stripped bare of its sundries, Leia wakes with a start, finding herself chained upright on a wall rack. She feels groggy, and shakes her head, hoping to clear it of the fog of confusion. There are several Gladiators in the room, shields on their arms and swords in their sheaths, watching her carefully, hands on their swords' handles, ready to be drawn in a instant.
Standing in front of her is CEADEUS, hands behind his back. LEIA's eyes narrow in quiet anger at him.
LEIA [angrily]
You.
CEADEUS
Yes, t'is I.
LEIA
Come to gloat?
CEADEUS
No.
LEIA shuts her eyes, and attempts to send out a telepathic message to LUKE through the Force.
LEIA [telepathically]
Luke! Luke!
CEADEUS [telepathically]
Don't bother.
LEIA's eyes widen in shock.
CEADEUS [telepathically]
It takes special training to be able to commune
with someone through the twisted eddies of the Empyrean,
especially now that it's been... scarred.
CEADEUS
Training you do not have.
Did you think I would risk waking you, otherwise?
LEIA
You don't strike me as very smart.
CEADEUS
Mind your insults, Organa...
They reflect poorly on you.
Your fleet, your army, routed by a fool?
LEIA
Routed by a savage monster, more like.
If the insult LEIA shot at him found its mark, Ceadeus does not let it show.
LEIA
Just get on with the torture, boy.
Ceadeus leans towards LEIA...
CEADEUS
You would like that, wouldn't you?
Pain, to stoke the fires of righteous hate,
To feel yourself justified in your crimes...
He holds her gaze for a moment, then he pulls away, turning his back to her. Revealing the Silver Grimoire in his hands.
CEADEUS
I came to ask you a question:
Why?
LEIA
Why what?
CEADEUS
Why did you have our beloved Grand Kiltias killed?
LEIA is silent, at first, feigning shock at being accused of murder.
LEIA [dismissively]
I don't even know who that is.
CEADEUS
Oh? Has old age ravaged your mind already?
Or... is it the spice?
No matter, let me galvanize your memory.
CEADEUS opens the Silver Grimoire, and from its open pages particles of light surge out, coalescing besides the huge armoured knight into a life-sized holographic sculpture of an elderly Helgas man, clad in the elaborate crimson robes of a religious leader. He is lanky and tall, though not as tall as CEADEUS. If the Master of Gladiators had not been wearing his masked helm, LEIA would have seen the reverence and respect CEADEUS had for the man, and the sorrow at his death... But all she sees is an uncaring monster.
CEADEUS
Grand Kiltias Anastasis...
as he was before that terrible day, when
that band of Mandalorian scum reaved
and ravished their way across Bur-Omisace...
CLOSE UP of one of the Gladiator's hand as it grips the handle of his Brightsword tightly, shaking with barely contained rage. He had been there, and the memory is painful, and enraging.
LEIA, for her part, becomes impassive, and utterly silent as she holds CEADEUS's gaze.
CEADEUS
Nothing?
How about this, then?
CEADEUS conjures up another holo-sculpture: a 1/72 scale Kom'rk-class heavy fighter, spinning gently in the air.
CEADEUS
They came aboard this ship,
through a Wild Path in the twisted Empyrean
that surrounds Valendia...
LEIA tries to shrug, having no idea where Valendia is.
CEADEUS
...The Unknown Regions. Surely you recognize the design?
LEIA shakes her head, the expression disdainful.
CEADEUS
The colour, then?
The golden light wreathing the holo-sculpture of the ship fades a little, revealing the ship's colours – Red and Black. CEADEUS's eyes focus on LEIA's face, as a slight flinch betrays her memory of the ship, the NIGHTBROTHER.
CEADEUS
Still nothing? How about the ship's owners?
CEADEUS conjurs up three more images: A male human Jedi, a Mandalorian woman in painted armour, and an ageing Lasat man.
LEIA knows them, but does not respond.
CEADEUS
No?
...Hm, perhaps I was wrong about all this.
Ceadeus gestures at one of his men, who brings him a cloth sack, filled with two round objects...
CEADEUS
Then again... the holograms
may no longer be up to date.
The GLADIATOR opens the sack, and tosses it at LEIA's feet. Two heads roll on the floor, hidden in shadow, but LEIA whimpers in horror.
CEADEUS
Ah, recognition at last.
Perchance you know their names?
LEIA [sobbing]
Oh, Sabine...
CEADEUS
Ah... yes, Sabine Wren.
That would make the other... Ezra Bridger?
The Lasat must have been Zeb.
I apologize for his absence. He's in no state to see you.
LEIA
You're a monster!
CEADEUS's eyes suddenly flare with sunfire, and suddenly he is face to face with LEIA.
CEADEUS [outraged]
You wish to speak of monsters?!
They murdered a sick old man.
LEIA
You lie! They were good people!
CEADEUS
Good people don't consort with Mandalorian filth!
Seething with rage, CEADEUS points at SABINE's maggot infested head. The sight of it upsets Leia greatly - they had, after all, become very good friends during the dark days of the Thrawn campaign.
CEADEUS
Her Mando thugs... they desecrated our most ancient temple!
Did unspeakable things to innocent vestals of God!
Set children on fire and laughed as they BURNED!
LEIA
Lies! More lies! Wren fought on the side of good!
I refuse to believe she would stoop so low!
CEADEUS
I confronted her with their crimes myself!
Would you hear her reply?!
From the book, Ceadeus conjurs up a recording of SABINE's voice, aged by the long years since the fall of Palpatine.
SABINE'S VOICE
Just more dead imps.
As CEADEUS speaks, LEIA's own righteous anger bubbles over her self-control...
CEADEUS
No more lies, Organa! I know in my very soul
that you're responsible! Answer me! WHY?!
LEIA
HE STOLE MY CHILD FROM ME!
LEIA pauses, taking deep breaths, with the same length and cadence as her father before her.
LEIA
He and Snoke... they seduced my son into an insane cult!
Anastasis deserved to die, he HAD to die, so that my boy could be cured
from the poison that he – that YOU injected in his mind!
CEADEUS
So you admit it!
As she speaks there is a low hum through the Force, and Ceadeus catches it: LEIA is trying something.
LEIA [defiant]
I admit nothing except that I'm glad one of the leaders of your
insane cult died an ugly, ignoble death!
I admit to not giving a damn about your dead women!
I admit to not caring one bit about your barbecued children!
They were all a bunch of Neo-Imperial fascist pigs and they deserved to DIE!
CEADEUS lets out a slow growl, narrows his eyes at LEIA. It looks like he's lost his cool, and is about to kill her with his bare hands...
CEADEUS
Clever girl.
...but it's the angry gladiator from moments before, SACKHEIM, that screams bloody murder, rushing at LEIA with a brandished brightsword. Besides him, another Knight of Ren — GODWIN — moves to stop him...
GODWIN [In Valendian]
Sackheim, NO!
CEADEUS stops the Brightsword's heated edge with his bare hand short of LEIA's head, and puts the enraged gladiator in a tight hold, foiling LEIA's attempt at suicide by knight. Sackheim struggles under CEADEUS' iron grip, crying tears of sorrow even as his face is contorted with rage. GODWIN and the other knights pile on, disarming him.
SACKHEIM [in Valendian]
She admits it! She admits it!
My lord! I beg you! Revenge! Revenge for my son! REVENGE!
CEADEUS [in Valendian]
It's what she wants!
[to GODWIN]
Get him out of here!
Suddenly, the doors leading out of the room slide open, and LIEUTENANT LYNN steps through, and is somewhat taken aback at the spectacle of an upset Knight of Ren being dragged away by his comrades. LYNN approached CEADEUS, keeping a respectable distance.
LYNN
Sir?
CEADEUS [in basic]
What?
Lynn clears her throat and gives a proper salute, knowing of no other way to show respect to a Knight of Ren.
LYNN
You asked to receive notification once
we were 10 minutes away from our destination?
CEADEUS [nodding]
Yes, and?
LYNN [scared]
...We sent it eight minutes ago; you ah... you didn't respond.
CEADEUS' eyes narrow at LYNN, who has heard what happens to those who deliver bad news. She gulps, expecting to be Force Choked for her trouble.
CEADEUS [calmly]
Thank you. You may go.
LYNN excuses herself, and leaves, while CEADEUS bids the rest of his men to leave the room.
LEIA [taunting]
Two minutes. That's how long you've got until my brother
rides out like a bat out of the Maw to find me. And then...
And then he's going to make you pay for what you did to his students.
Ceadeus approaches her again, leafing through his book.
CEADEUS
There's something you need to know.
Anastasis and Snoke are... were mortal enemies.
With him out of the picture and a massacre fresh on our
people's mind... Snoke has gone unopposed for months, time spent
consolidating his power... reinforcing his hold on Kylo, and
securing the resources to reactivate Starkiller.
LEIA's defiant stare dies a little.
LEIA
I don't believe you.
CEADEUS
...Search my feelings, you know I speak true.
Go ahead; my soul is laid bare for you.
Leia narrows her eyes at CEADEUS, peering into the open halls of his mind, and her eyes widen in horror at the glimpses of an infuriated crowd, their rage stoked by SUPREME LEADER SNOKE.
CEADEUS
And let that truth haunt your dreams.
A handful of light particles emerge from the book and spin around Ceadeus's index finger, gathering into his claw. HE presses it on LEIA's forehead, drawing a bit of blood, and an emblem of light appears over the wound. Instantly, she falls unconscious. The tall, masked Knight looks at the sleeping LEIA, and leaves her in the dark.
INT — RADDUS, MAIN HALLWAY, CENTRAL — SPACE
Hundreds of Stormtroopers and First Order sailors move about in the hall, some transporting goods, others trying to get the ship's stubborn systems to stop stalling. The lights, in particular, are recalcitrant, always dim and only occasionally flickering to their full brightness... until CEADEUS steps in, and then the lights brighten, almost as if greeting him.
As Ceadeus steps towards his destination, the Stormtroopers that pass him by stop to salute him, in spite of him not being in the First Order's Armed Force's hierarchy.
STORMTROOPER [saluting]
Sir!
Ceadeus nods back in response, politeness and etiquette compelling him to do so. A handful of steps later, he passes by a group of First Order technicians, who immediately stop what they're doing to salute him, as well. He nods politely at them. Then, more and more people — soldiers and sailors alike — salute him, staring at him in with expressions of mingled awe and fear.
His steps hurry: he doesn't want their admiration or their dread.
He grasps his book in one hand, a small, futile act of self-consolation. The steps turn into strides.
INT — RADDUS, MAIN HALLWAY, CENTRAL — SPACE
CEADEUS sits on a plasteel bench below a large window, sighing briefly as he opens the Silver Grimoire. The archaic paper's black ink surges to life, glowing gold. The letters and diagrams shift into a program that briefly replays LEIA's interrogation, allowing the knight to review it.
KAINÉ
Did you get what you needed from her?
He looks up, and sees KAINÉ REN approaching him, a cylinder in one hand and her scepter, the ROD OF FAITH in the other. CEADEUS looks back down, lest the Rod remind him of painful recent event.
CEADEUS
No. Even in anger she was the consummate politician.
She confessed nothing...
KAINÉ sits besides CEADEUS without prompting, knowing that she was always welcome to be at his side. Ceadeus glances at the ROD as Kainé sets it to rest against the wall, and the sight of it causes him to flash back, very briefly, to the death of Anastasis — The same scepter is on the floor of the Temple at Mount Bur-Omisace, in a pool of blood, darker than wine. The source of the pool, Anastasis, is so thin, so fragile in Ceadeus' arms as his life flows out of his wounds... and with it, hope for a peaceful future. Anastasis reaches out, choking blood— before CEADEUS chases the vision away, eager to get away from the horrible memory.
He clenches his fist, practically burying his claws in his own palms.
CEADEUS
...Nothing that would convince the Judges
to convict her immediately.
Kainé sits demurely and ladylike, and lets the cylinder rest on her lap as she removes her mask. She adjusts a band of finely embroidered black cloth over her beautiful aqua eyes, hiding them from the world to avoid unwanted attention. Her face is obscured as she does this, and when she finishes she turns to CEADEUS with a pleasant smile.
KAINÉ
The Judges are wise, are they not?
Would they not see the truth of
her guilt etched in her very soul?
Kainé's face and voice are as beautiful as a dawn... but CEADEUS pays it no heed, his gaze fixed on the book.
CEADEUS
Only if she allows them to look into it.
Such is the Law.
Otherwise, it falls on the prosecution
to convince them of her guilt.
Kainé grasps the cylinder – an item of finely wrought, silvery tin and glass, and twists it, causing the liquid it contains to bubble and steam to escape from the top. Hundreds of tea leaves swim inside as they blend with the hot liquid, infusing it with their flavour. Quickly, the steam stops hissing, and the glass begins to sweat, becoming opaque with frost. The flash brewing ended, Kainé twists off the top of the cylinder to drink from its freshly brewed content, which she greatly enjoys, judging by the long hum she lets out as she swallows.
With both hands, she tries to pass her drink to CEADEUS, only for him to shake his head.
CEADEUS
Thank you, but caffeine unbalances me.
KAINÉ
But it's sweet, just how you like it!
CEADEUS gently pushes the drink away, and KAINÉ pouts.
KAINÉ
So... what's the problem?
CEADEUS
Leia is an Organa; that's the problem.
Lies and deceit is their stock in trade and even the Judges
are not immune to deception. She'll talk her way
into reasonable doubt. And then... she will be found not guilty.
KAINÉ
But you have a testimony!
Surely, that's enough!
CEADEUS
I could have had Bridger and Wren singing
at court an entire ballad of Leia's part in the Bur-Omisace massacre,
and it would not have mattered. She will deny everything.
KAINÉ
Has Irvine found anything?
CEADEUS
No.
KAINÉ
Maybe he'll have better luck at that base on...
what was the name?
CEADEUS
D'Qar. And he might have found something there...
If our so-called 'General' Hux hadn't glassed the entire planet.
KAINÉ
Oh.
CEADEUS
That leaves a confession, and extracting
one will be difficult with Luke nipping at our heels.
I keep Leia awake too long, and...
KAINÉ tenses at the mention of Luke's name.
KAINÉ
I'm sure you'll find a way.
[smiling]
It's what you do.
CEADEUS [sighing]
How are the wounded?
KAINÉ
The worst is past. All are stable...
[regretful]
Those that I could save, in any case.
Many are still in terrible pain, however.
CEADEUS
I'll bring you another crate of High Potions for them.
KAINÉ
Thank you.
Will there be water, where we're going?
CEADEUS
Yes, plenty... You wish to perform Last Rites for our fallen?
Kainé nods.
KAINÉ
And theirs, as well.
Ceadeus is silent for a moment, surprised.
CEADEUS
I wouldn't bother. They're faithless.
KAINÉ
But even the faithless have souls.
CEADEUS
Empty ones. Snoke saw to that.
And the Republic, well...
A silence falls between them again as Kainé toys with her drink, nervously.
KAINÉ
Tristan?
CEADEUS
Hm?
KAINÉ
What if...
What if Luke finds us?
CEADEUS says nothing.
KAINÉ [frightened]
I'm... I'm scared. I felt his power, even from...
CEADEUS [reassuring]
I won't let him hurt you again.
KAINÉ
But he's so much stronger than you! Than us!
What hope do we have against him, Tristan?
CEADEUS gets up, kneels before KAINÉ...
CEADEUS
We have this.
...and hands her the Silver Grimoire.
KAINÉ
Oh, Tristan, faith can only take us so far...
With a wave of CEADEUS's hand, the book opens itself, revealing its seemingly infinite pages turning and turning into a blur of motion.
CEADEUS
True, but the Ren Herself has left us with more
than scripture to face the trials before us. Look.
The pages stop turning, and present KAINÉ with a mandala. The configuration is complex, with a strange fetal lizard serving as its central symbol. In spite of the complexity of the strange script, KAINÉ deciphers the title.
KAINÉ [reading]
Ysalamir...?
...the BRINGER OF SILENCE.
CEADEUS
Luke is indeed the greatest of all Jedi Knights...
But if the Force were to be stripped away from him,
all that would remain is a Tatooine farmboy.
KAINÉ [fascinated]
I've never seen one like this before...
This could rob him of his power?
CEADEUS
Deny, more like, but it would be effectively the same.
KAINÉ studies the mandala's code, and quickly understands what it can do.
CEADEUS
Can you cast it?
KAINÉ [shocked]
Wait, me?! Tristan, this is your book!
You worked so hard for it,
and Anastasis entrusted this to you!
Ceadeus ignores Kainé's protests as he gently takes her arm by the wrist, lays her hand on top of the book's cover, and covers her hand with his. The act makes KAINÉ blush, but CEADEUS doesn't – or pretends to – not notice. A ring of light appears above their touching hands.
CEADEUS
And so in turn I entrust its power to you.
KAINÉ
No, no! Jadru! Or, or Jerec!
They are stronger in Magicks than I!
They are worthier than me!
CEADEUS
You are stronger than you think you are.
Lines of codes briefly erupt outwards, only to recede as a holographic icon confirms KAINÉ as a trusted user of the Silver Grimoire. KAINÉ looks down, admiring a pulse of golden light that orbits her wrist, tracing a ring of light around it.
CEADEUS
See? The book of the Ren Herself has judged you worthy.
The Silver Grimoire floats up, hovers in the air next to her head for a moment, then moves to rest in her hands. Getting on her feet, KAINÉ is at once moved by CEADEUS's trust in her, and utterly frightened at the responsibility and power that has been thrust into her hands. She hugs the book, treating it like a new teddy-bear rather than a priceless relic of an age long past.
KAINÉ
Thank you! I...!
But before she can express all of her gratitude and love for Ceadeus, duty comes calling through the ship's intercom.
PRIESTESS OF REN [intercom]
Lady Kainé? Lady Kainé!
We need you at the infirmary!
Can she hear me through this thing?
Please, it's urgent!
KAINÉ [disappointed]
I... have to go.
CEADEUS bows slightly in response, and watches silently as KAINE leaves, her long robe flowing behind her. As she vanishes into a corridor, amidst FIRST ORDER sailors, the tall knight notices her little forget-me-not: the tea cylinder, standing on the bench under the window. CEADEUS picks it up, shakes the content a bit, and stares into the liquid as the leaves spin and swirl. A memory surfaces from the back of his mind and he gladly surrenders to it, knowing he is to be taken to better days.
FLASHBACK: INT – NAR SHADAA, COFFEE SHOP - NIGHT
TRISTAN and MARA are sitting on a small metal table on opposite sides of each other, their glasses of iced tea sweating into their coasters as their cold surfaces catch the Nar Shadaa moisture. The walls are plastered with holographic adverts, doubling as illumination for the room, as a droid waiter passes by to serve other customers.
Besides the drinks are three Pazaak decks.
TRISTAN
Nineteen. I Stand.
MARA
Twenty-six... minus six. I win this round.
TRISTAN hands MARA the green cards, and she expertly re-shuffles them in the green deck.
TRISTAN [frustrated]
I don't see the point of playing this... this crappy game.
MARA [amused]
Don't worry, you will.
INT — RADDUS, MAIN HALLWAY, CENTRAL — SPACE
The vision goes away, allowing CEADEUS to stare out into space as the glowing curve of the planet SOCORRO appears in the viewport.
SIDE WIPE INTO:
EXT – PLANET NEDIJ, GREAT LAKE — DAY
The Firwirrung settles into the water at the center of the Great Lake, tens of kilometers away from any of its coasts. The Resistance ships that still have functioning repulsorlifts float around it, sending shuttles down to help transport the stabilized casualties from the ancient city-ship to the MERCY.
A sleek CHISS SHUTTLE approaches the city-ship, its flight path unobstructed. No a single ship stops to inspect it, or hail it as it lands near the centre of the Temple District.
EXT — FIRWIRRUNG, TEMPLE DISTRICT — DAY
The relative darkness of the CHISS SHUTTLE's passenger cabin is cut in two by the light streaming from the outside as the mechanized doors part. We follow THRAWN as he steps out, flanked by two CHISS MARINES. No one in the crowd acknowledges him, too busy with their wounded to care. As far as they were concerned, he was just another alien in Leia's diverse army.
Thrawn, with his bodyguards, walks through the crowd, carrying a SUITCASE. He comes across a disheveled KAYDEL, who had just finished helped a wounded but stabilized marine on his stretcher. Thrawn, having done his homework on LEIA's entourage of officers, knows who she is.
THRAWN
Lieutenant Connix?
KAYDEL
Hm? Yeah, that's me...
Kaydel gives the Chiss a once-over... and doesn't recognize him. How could she? The Thrawn campaign was a long time ago, and Thrawn's SHADES hide his distinctive red eyes. Gone is the white uniform of an Imperial Grand Admiral, replaced by a dark suit that served just as well on the bridge as it did in outer space, judging by its thickness and high-tech texture. A huge stripe of red paint coverrd his shoulder and neck, serving as backdrop for silver insignias of rank. His bodyguards, in full armour, had green stripes to match, with helmets with polarized visors covering their faces.
KAYDEL
...Are you looking for the other Panthorans?
Adasca is still working on your captain, and—
THRAWN
The fleet is in disarray.
Thrawn cracks open the suitcase and hands her a CHISS comm unit, the size and shape of a remote control. She examines it – it's sophisticated, but it has a jack compatible with her headset.
THRAWN [cont'd]
This will allow you to reach the captains.
Relay these orders:
The corvettes are to form a picket around the planet,
and the ships of the line are to enter line formations and maintain
a geosynchronous orbit over this city-ship.
Kaydel is both confused and a bit offended at these orders. After all, who was this man, to command her so?
KAYDEL [annoyed]
Excuse me, but... who the heck are you?
But Thrawn has already moved on, and despite herself, Kaydel patches into the fleet's comms: whatever is coming through her headset, it doesn't sound good:
KAYDEL [to the fleet]
Hey... HEY! Everyone SHUT UP!
...What's our formation look like?
PARIS! I swear to the maker if you bail on us I will HAUNT you!
Thrawn comes across REKSON, a Resistance Marine Sergeant. He's just standing there, a faraway look on his face. He hadn't been on the Raddus, but he had been on one of the ships the ALEKSANDR had torn open with its powers. He had survived, only to watch some of his friends die, either by the failures of medics or the cruel hand of triage.
THRAWN
Sergeant.
Rekson barely acknowledges him.
THRAWN
SERGEANT.
Thrawn's more commanding tone snaps REKSON out of it. Years of conditioning at boot camp kick in, forcing him to straighten his stance and salute.
REKSON
SIR!
THRAWN
Where is the security detail?
REKSON
There isn't one.
There's no need...
THRAWN
Oh, there is.
There are well over ten thousand unknown lifeforms
crawling all over the inside of this ship.
REKSON [shocked]
What?!
THRAWN
I want every able-bodied marine to secure
any entrance to the inside of the ship,
and a round-the-clock patrol
on that hole on the main street.
REKSON
Yes sir! Right away, sir!
REKSON obeys, and turns to two other marines in the crowd.
REKSON
Corbin! Nolan! Gather the men!
Thrawn moves on, stepping through the crowd, seemingly not caring one bit about the quiet suffering that surrounds him. He passes CHEWBACCA, of all people, sitting inside of a stone alcove, a metal bottle at his side. The Wookiee's head is buried in his hands, for he had just heard the news: his brother MAHRRACCOR had died in battle at the hands of one of Kylo Ren's would-be Sith, making him regret not aiming for the heart back on Starkiller. Losing two members of his family in such a short time... it was just too much to bear.
Had it not been so, Chewbacca would have looked up, and recognized Thrawn immediately.
Finally, Thrawn finds who he's looking for: LUKE SKYWALKER. The Jedi Master is at one of the triage centers, hoping to save a young Panthoran Marine with Force Healing. Luke's hand hovers over a gash over the Panthora's chest, the blood being held in place by a pale blue light. At Skywalker's side is SNAP, updating Luke on the recent battle.
SNAP
...And that's when you dropped in in this... this dreadnought.
LUKE
I know the rest. Thanks, Wexley.
SNAP
Skywalker... we followed you here as you asked.
What's the plan now?
LUKE
We wait.
SNAP
...that's it?!
The Panthoran is healed, and sleeps peacefully as Luke moves on to another wounded sailor – a bothan, this time.
SNAP
Skywalker! Waiting isn't going to cut it!
Ackbar's dead, and Leia... Leia isn't here!
We need you to lead us!
LUKE
No, you don't. I am no leader, Wexley.
SNAP
But... ?! You're a Jedi!
LUKE
Nothing good ever came out of Jedi leading an army.
[bitterly]
I couldn't even manage a school .
No, the Resistance doesn't need me as a leader.
THRAWN
But they do need leadership.
LUKE and SNAP look behind them, and see Thrawn standing some distance behind them with his two marines. Luke assumes it's just another Panthoran, and refocuses his attention on healing the bothan. Snap, however, scowls at the former Grand Admiral...
THRAWN
So much so that they had little issue with me
when I gave them orders to re-organize.
SNAP
...Wait, who are you?
Thrawn ignores Snap, and continues speaking to Luke.
THRAWN
But do give yourself some credit.
It was your leadership that turned the tide at Repleta.
It was your quick thinking that saved the day at Tantiss,
And it was you, not Ackbar, that pulled victory from the jaws of defeat at Alkari.
Luke's eyes widen as Thrawn speaks the three names — the few battles the New Republic had won during Thrawn's Campaign.
LUKE
You were there?
THRAWN
I was.
[smiling]
I must admit, I imagined you to be taller.
Such are legends, I suppose.
Thrawn removes his glasses, revealing his unmistakable red eyes. Snap begins to tremble with rage as he reaches for his blaster...
SNAP [seething]
THRAAAWN!
He draws, and fires a photon bolt at Thrawn's heart.
CLOSE UP of Thrawn's impassive face as he looks down at the blue bolt of energy, struggling to finish its course, inches from its goal. He looks at his shooter, and the six green bolts of energy suspended right in front of him, frozen in time. SNAP, the BODYGUARDS, the BOLTS, all are suspended in Luke's FORCE STASIS. Passers-by, who had been alerted by the blaster fire, are struck in awe at this display of Force mastery.
The Jedi Master still doesn't face Thrawn.
LUKE
Give me a reason why I shouldn't let that blaster bolt
bury itself right into your heart.
It takes all of Luke's discipline to contain his own anger. After the battle of Jakku, everyone had thought "this is it, the Empire is defeated, peace is finally here!" That peace had been dashed on the rocks by the very man standing behind Luke.
Smirking, Thrawn steps forward, right into the bolt, allowing its energy to be dispersed by his personal energy shield.
THRAWN
I have a few more, if you like.
But let's just skip to the relevant one:
Kill me and you will lose Organa forever.
Luke turns around, and comes face to face with Thrawn, staring his old enemy down.
LUKE
How are you still alive? You died at Pellaon.
THRAWN
There will be time for stories later.
Is there somewhere more private where we can
conduct our business?
Thrawn looks up at the city's central tower...
INT – CENTRAL TOWER, VERTHANDI'S LABORATORY – DAY
Two dozen of the Resistance fleet's captains, those that could be pulled away from their ships, are gathered in the chamber that had once served as both Verthandi's laboratory and the seat of the city's leadership. Little did anyone know at the time, it would serve a new purpose.
The lights, bright and gold, surge to life with at Luke's behest, impressing all present, including Thrawn, who marvels at the Dagonian architecture that surrounds him.
ELSON
Alright, why are we here?
Thrawn paces around the circular table at the center of the room, cleared of Verthandi's effects. He withdraws from his suitcase a flat holo emitter connected to a computer in the briefcase, and slides it on the table, right into its center.
The holo-emitter, in spite of the background light, conjures up a perfect image of the Galaxy. The holo rapidly zooms in on the KIBILINI SECTOR, then the SOKOR SOLAR SYSTEM, then to the sole planet in the suns green band: SOCORRO. The zooming slows, until the damaged RADDUS and the ALEKSANDR comes into view.
THRAWN
We are here because it just so happens
that we are Leia Organa's only hope.
FEEORIN CAPTAIN
She's alive?! I was told she fell in battle!
The captains talk among themselves, surprised at the news... and growing hopeful.
THRAWN
Quite alive, but held prisoner aboard the Raddus,
under some very deep sedation.
THRAWN looks meaningfully at Luke for a moment, as the Jedi realizes why he can't reach her.
THRAWN
According to my asset on site,
other persons of interest confirmed
to be alive include Commander Poe Dameron,
Lieutenant Tallissan Lintra,
and Vice-Admiral Lumi Celchu.
As if on cue, flat holos of the people Thrawn mentioned appear around the Raddus, with markers highlighting their current positions.
HAPAN CAPTAIN
This is excellent news!
THRAWN
As you can see, the Raddus is currently orbiting the planet Socorro...
TAIKA, now clad in his foppish longcoat, speaks:
TAIKA [worried]
One of the galaxy's largest slave markets...
[pointing]
...and those are a lot of transports coming in.
THRAWN
But not out. It appears they're being resupplied.
KARE KUN
How are they paying for the goods, though?
STATURA
Our hardware.
They must have taken it intact.
Stuff's worth a fortune on the black market.
TWI'LEK CAPTAIN
They have our food, too!
What do they need to resupply for?
THRAWN
Regardless of their reasons to orbit the planet,
it is providing us with an invaluable opportunity
to mount a rescue mission.
What are our options?
HAPAN CAPTAIN
I can have the Stormblood and its marines
ready for an assault within thirty minutes!
KARE KUN
I can have two flights of X-wings
fueled up and reloaded in fifteen!
Confidence rises among them as the plan quickly turns into an all-out assault. Both Luke and Thrawn begins to sigh.
LUKE
Stop, all of you.
All eyes are on Luke.
LUKE
You've all forgotten what that
dark ship has done to you. And even if it wasn't there...
THRAWN
Your combined strength can't take on a Star Defender
long enough for an extraction. No... this calls for subtlety.
This is a job for a Jedi.
DEVARONIAN CAPTAIN
But we've got a dreadnought, now!
The devaronian captain gestures at the room.
LUKE
And its batteries are drained!
THRAWN
This mission calls for sublety.
LUKE
Getting onboard will be the tricky part.
They see any of our ships, they'll start shooting.
Luke eyes the freighters flying to the Raddus. Most of them are light, no bigger than thirty meters to a side, and carry the typical modifications rogues and scoundrels favour – extra hull plating, weapons, sensors ...
LUKE
Do we have anything like those?
Discreet, fast, roomy enough for at least two people
and with a Class ought five hyperdrive?
TAIKA [smiling]
I have just the thing! A custom Corellian Hawk
made just for smuggling! Comes with an ought FOUR hyperdrive
AND a stealth unit for a discreet getaway! It's parked by that temple!
LUKE
Show me.
EXT – CENTRAL TOWER DISTRICT – DAY
Luke and Taika step out of the tower, as Taika happily talks Luke's ear off about the ship.
TAIKA
I managed to purchase her from none other than
Dace Bonearm, who—
LUKE
Is that her up there?
TAIKA looks up, and sees the blur of his beloved spaceship as it streaks across the sky, trailing blue plasma as the hyperdrive struggles against the planet's gravity well. A second later, it is gone, and TAIKA is struck dumb... then becomes infuriated.
TAIKA
WHO DARES?!
WHO DARES STEAL FROM TAIKA?!
CUT TO:
INT – TAIKA'S SHIP – SPACE
RAZOO QIN-FEE takes a SECURITY TUNNELER out of the control console, flips it playfully in the air once, and tucks it back into his jacket. He leans back against the pilot's seat, a satisfied grin on his face as the ship clears the atmosphere. The stars become lines on the main view-port, then space itself twists into a tunnel of swirling blue light.
RAZOO
Ah, free at last.
He reaches down by the seat, and picks up a bottle of Quanya he had found in one of the ship's little nooks. Razoo checks the label: 942 Ruusan.
RAZOO [satisfied]
Great year for Quanya.
Razoo pops the cork and enjoys a sip of the expensive drink. Just as he's done savouring the sweetness and the gentle burn, the comms console beeps. Putting the bottle away with a satisfied sigh the Kanjiklubber flips a switch, accepting the incoming call.
The console's 3D imaging unit displays the bust of a slightly overweight Epicanthix male. His shaved head is covered in a Kanjiklubber's leather hood, and his left eye is covered by a metallic high-tech eyepatch. His facial hair is trimmed into two long mustaches and a small goat beard. This is MASTIFF TENZIN, owner of a Kanjiklub-aligned chop shop. Spaceships, speeders, swoop bikes, if you needed it taken apart or turned into an Ugly, Mastiff was the guy to go to.
RAZOO [smiling]
Mastiff!
Mastiff smiles back, happy to hear from Razoo.
MASTIFF
Hey kid! How's the chase going?
RAZOO
Chase is over... we couldn't catch Solo.
MASTIFF [laughing]
Got the better of you again, eh?
Ha! I guess the salty old dog's still got it.
[encouraging]
Don't worry, you'll catch him eventually.
RAZOO
I mean, not before his own son killed him.
MASTIFF [shocked]
...What?! That's... well, damn.
RAZOO
I know, right?
MASTIFF
And Tasu? How did he take the news?
RAZOO
Tasu's gone, too.
MASTIFF
What?! But you said—
RAZOO
I know what I said, but those Guavian cyborg freaks
were tracking the same signal. We wound up fighting them
over this ancient flying city with lightning cannons, and... well...
MASTIFF
Tell me you didn't lose the Leyak !
RAZOO [shaking his head]
The Leyak's a wreck, most of the fighters are at the bottom of the sea,
the crew's been zombified ...
MASTIFF
WHAT?!
RAZOO
Long story, mastiff.
MASTIFF pinches the bridge of his nose, and sighs wearily.
MASTIFF [angry]
The Kaghan isn't going to like this!
A Star Galleon and squadron of fighters, gone?!
The Corsair fleet can't take losses like this!
Not for a personal vendetta against some old scoundrel!
RAZOO
...I'm sorry.
MASTIFF
No, no... it wasn't your fault. We should have known
Tasu wasn't quite right in the head after getting half-digested.
...Oh well, no use crying about it. Might as well get down to business,
assuming you've got something for old Mastiff...?
RAZOO
I do. A Corellian ship, medium courier.
MASTIFF [annoyed]
Got an ID for me or do you expect me to guess those specs?
RAZOO sits up and pulls one of the touch-sensitive flatscreens to himself, and taps on it.
RAZOO
Hold on, let me check this thing's registry files...
And the model is...
[reading]
Herf, Wesk, Krill, One, Nine, Nine, Five.
MASTIFF
Huh. Sure it's not a two nine oh?
RAZOO [shrug]
Maybe. The registry's been kriffed with a lot.
Name's changed a few times, all variations on "sick bird"
MASTIFF
Heh! Corellians and their birds...
Anyways, the nineteen ninety five is a rare model,
could be worth something on the auction market.
What about the parts, though? Got an inventory?
RAZOO
I could send you a diagnostics file and a list of drivers...
MASTIFF
Drive's open on my end. Do it.
RAZOO types on the flatscreen the necessary command to upload a file through the open comm channel. A progress bar appears next to MASTIFF's holographic head, filling rapidly before the word COMPLETE appears and vanishes along with the bar. MASTIFF, on his end, looks over the files for a bit, until:
MASTIFF [smiling]
Well, well, well... looks like you managed
to get a prize after all. The guns alone are worth more
than a stock ninety-five model. The shields, the hyperdrive...
Where did you get this ship from?
RAZOO
Some pirate.
MASTIFF
Hm... no pirate could have sank that much money
on a courier... no, this is top shelf spec ops military hardware.
RAZOO
Wow, really?
MASTIFF
...It gets better. This thing's got a cloaking device.
The Stygium crystal inside of it...
RAZOO [smiling]
...is worth millions.
MASTIFF
I'll need to have a look at it myself.
When will you arrive?
RAZOO
About an hour.
MASTIFF
Good, I'll set up the table for you and your lady friend.
RAZOO [confused]
Lady friend?
SHOT of a wide-eyed RAZOO as he turns the seat around to face a sleepy-eyed REY.
RAZOO [shocked]
Where in the Maw did YOU come from?!
REVERSE SHOT of REY and RAZOO in the background, with the sleep bunk she had emerged from, its privacy screen open. The pod, and seven more like it, are built into the narrow cabin that leads to the ship's cockpit.
REY [confused]
...Jakku?
RAZOO facepalms.
MASTIFF
I'll leave you two lovebirds alone.
MASTIFF's hologram winks out of existence.
RAZOO [upset]
That's not what I mean!
What are you doing on this ship?!
REY [groggy]
Oh! Oh, well... I was really upset, and I was surrounded
by all those people and ah...
[embarrassed]
I wanted a corner to cry in.
[looks around]
Wandered into this ship, and that bunk looked nice.
Must have dozed off...
CUDDLES skitters out of the sleep bunk.
RAZOO
I thought it was weird the door was wide open.
REY [realizing]
Hey... are we... in hyperspace?
RAZOO [unconvincingly]
...No?
REY [wide awake]
Yes we are!
RAZOO
Look, I can explain...
REY doesn't wait for an explanation, and proceeds to wail on RAZOO, who turtles up in response, protecting his head and groin.
REY [livid]
YOU COWARDLY KIDNAPPING KRIFFER!
RAZOO
OW!
I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW YOU WERE ONBOARD!
REY [furious]
TAKE ME BACK! TAKE ME BACK RIGHT NOW!
RAZOO
OH NO! I'M NOT GOING BACK THERE!
REY [enraged]
DO IT OR I'LL KICK YOU IN THE BITS AGAIN!
RAZOO [fed up]
ARGH! JUST STOP ALREADY!
RAZOO begins to defend himself, and the sound of their struggle echoes...
EXT – HYPERSPACE CORRIDOR – SPACE
…into the empyrean tunnel of hyperspace as the winged raptor-beak shape of the HWK-1995 passes through it, trailing energy from its engine nacelles. Its hull is a dark grey, striped with crimson. On both sides of its nose is printed the mark of a white raven, and its name is printed below it in aurebesh.
This is the RAVEN'S CLAW.
REY
OW! YOU HIT ME!
RAZOO
YOU HIT ME FIRST!
SIDE WIPE INTO:
EXT – PLANETARY ORBIT – SPACE
The Raven's Claw bursts out of hyperspace, and we TRACK it as it makes its way towards the glowing curve of a planet, a marble made up of orange-red landmasses and green-grey waters, wrapped in the pale blue aura of an atmosphere ignited by the orange sun it orbits. Its dark side is lightly dimpled with little bright yellow dots, signs of civilizations that irrigate the land, coalescing into a single cluster on the equator: the planet's capital.
A single elevator shaft tethers the city to a SKYHOOK, a massive saucer-shaped orbital space station capable of servicing a wide variety of size classes of ship... except, of course, dreadnoughts.
Moving alongside the Skyhook, in a parallel geosynchronous orbit, is one such dreadnought: The Raddus. The Star Defenderès massive, ravaged hull is being picked at by hundreds of repair drones, some of which were tasked with painting over the ship's name with a new one.
The Raven's Claw flies by the enormous capital ship, unnoticed and unmolested, on its way to one of the space station's many, many hangar bays. It flies through and around hundreds of bright multicolored hologram adverts, past and along hundreds of other ships - light transports, couriers, private starfighters, and the Skyhook's own heavily armed PatCom corvettes. Razoo takes a scenic route around the space station, until finally he finds what he's looking for amidst adverts of various ship brands: The hangar bay of TENZIN'S GARAGE.
INT – TENZIN'S GARAGE, HANGAR – SPACE
The vast doors slowly open like the maw of a great beast, and the custom HWK moves in, causing the atmospheric force field to ripple as its mass disrupts the barrier of light. Among the dozens of small starships in various states of disrepair and disassembly, a single empty berth lights up, signaling the ship to land there. With its landing gear deployed, the medium courier gently descends as its repulsorlifts roar electrically, making a smooth landing before allowing its engines to rest.
Ramshackle worker droids emerge from their charging stations to scan the craft, while a portly middle-aged man clad in brown leathers — Mastiff— emerges from the DOUBLE DOORS that lead deeper into his garage. He admires the craft with the aid of his eyepiece, then lets out a whistle of approval.
MASTIFF [admiring]
What a piece of work...
The HWK's boarding ramp deploys, allowing RAZOO to step out of the ship, carrying Rey over his shoulder, bound and gagged in thermal tape. She kicks and growls, but it's no use. Razoo's face, however, had paid the price for her capture. For such a skinny girl, Rey could punch really hard.
MASTIFF
You know, with that file you sent me,
I thought I'd be dealing with a over-customized clunker,
like all those Corellian tubs spacers like to mangle...
but this, this has had a lot of tender love and care inflicted on it.
Paneling's intact, barely any rust or carbon scoring...
I might not even chop it. Just sell it whole.
RAZOO [annoyed]
Well, hello to you too, Mastiff.
Mastiff makes a show of "noticing" RAZOO's bruised face for a moment, then breaks into a wide grin as he pats him on the shoulder, prompting him to walk together towards the double doors.
MASTIFF
Domestic bliss, hm?
RAZOO
More like domestic abuse.
REY [outraged, muffled]
Mrgrgr!
MASTIFF [amused]
I'll say. Is she part of that long story?
RAZOO
Boy is she ever.
As they cross the threshold, Rey notices the Raven's Claw and sees its full form for the first time. She stops struggling as her eyes narrow at it, and then doors shut.
INT – TENZIN'S GARAGE, WORKSHOP – SPACE
The garage's WORKSHOP, were ship parts went to get fixed after being pulled out of unsalvageable wrecks or stolen hardware meant to be 'disappeared', was a medium-sized two-story room filled with all kinds of machines and tools – a gearhead's paradise, if paradise's walls were caked in oil, rust, and plastered with naughty pictures of Twi'lek, Zeltron, and Human women. These didn't really bother the only non-droid working in the place: a young Epicanthix woman. In fact, she had put them there.
An unpartitioned area of the workshop had been turned into a leisure area, complete with a patchwork three-seater couch, a single seater couch in even worse shape, a rug, a small table (really a couple of crates an a piece of hull), and a flat holoscreen on which streamed a live titan robot dog race. Next to all that, was a kitchen area.
RAZOO dumps REY onto the single seat couch. Her body's weight squeezes the cushions, causing them to exhale mushroom spores. Not missing a beat, Rey attempts to kick Razoo, but only hits air, as he's already moved to the kitchen, slapping the glass he trapped CUDDLES inside onto the kitchen table, then drops REY's HOLSTER next to the glass.
RAZOO
Medkit?
MASTIFF
Drawer on your left.
While the poor spider struggles to break free, clinking against the glass, Mastiff approaches Rey and gives her an appraising look. Razoo finds the medkit, opens it, and takes out a bacta hypospray.
MASTIFF
Joking aside, with her perfect skin and slender shape...
Yeah, I can find a buyer. She's worth at least 3000 creds. Good catch.
REY [horrified]
Hm?!
RAZOO [disgusted]
What?! Oh, Peck, No!
Razoo jabs the hypo in his thigh, and it lets out a beep as the healing solution courses through the Kanjiklubber's bloodstream, making his bruises vanish.
RAZOO
She's not for sale, Mastiff!
MASTIFF
You come to the slaver capital of the Outer Rim
with this beauty and you don't want to sell her?
RAZOO [exasperated]
I came here to sell you a ship! That's all!
I didn't actually know she was on board!
As he speaks, RAZOO comes up next to Mastiff, who is still appraising Rey.
MASTIFF
I'm assuming she's healthy?
Shuyin could use a new heart...
REY's eyes widen in horror, and Razoo gestures at her to calm down.
RAZOO
She's healthier than you're gonna be
if you keep sizing her up like a slab of Derlac.
MASTIFF [unconcerned]
Meh, that tape's holding fast.
RAZOO
I mean you'll have to answer to her MASTER.
RAZOO takes out the SKYWALKER LIGHTSABER out of his jacket, and gently slaps it against MASTIFF's chest, who takes it in his hand.
MASTIFF
Well, that's a nice little Graflex flashlight, but...
RAZOO presses the activation plate after making sure the emitter isn't aimed at Mastiff's face. It ignites, producing a blade of white-blue light. MASTIFF is awed as he holds up the weapon, reminding him of the green-bladed one that had sparked the rebellion on Nar Kanji, and ultimately freed his people.
MASTIFF
...Is that hers?
RAZOO nods.
MASTIFF
She's a Jedi?
RAZOO
Well... she's still a trainee.
MASTIFF
Who's her master? There's always a master!
RAZOO [sheepishly]
...Luke Skywalker.
SHOT of MASTIFF's face, utterly flabbergasted.
CUT TO:
INT – TENZIN'S GARAGE, MASTIFF'S OFFICE – SPACE
Mastiff paces about his office – a fairly large room with darkened metal walls and exposed pipes. Much of the furnishings you'd expect in an office are there: desk, chairs, even a long couch. The walls are lined with printouts and holos of schedules and schematics, as one would find in a garage, but there are items here and there that betray Mastiff's true profession as one of the agents of the Kaghan: maps, dossiers, signal scanners, tablets running decryption software, and so on.
MASTIFF
Skywalker's alive?!
[realizing]
And you kidnapped his PADAWAN?!
Razoo, sitting on a long couch, rolls his eyes. How many times did he have to explain it?
RAZOO [frustrated]
I. Did. Not. Kidnap her!
I just stole the ship she took a nap in!
MASTIFF [angry]
What, you stole Skywalker's ship, too?!
RAZOO [unsure]
It was some pirate prince's, or something, I don't know!
MASTIFF
Right, as if some pirate can afford a stygium-powered cloaking device!
It's a Jedi's ship, it's gotta be!
RAZOO
Well it's not like it was spelled out on the hull, okay?
MASTIFF
We have to bring it all back, the ship, the girl, the weapons! EVERYTHING!
RAZOO
Yeah, that's not gonna be possible.
MASTIFF
What, why?!
RAZOO [sheepishly]
I ah, deleted the Navcom's history...
MASTIFF
WHY WOULD YOU—
Mastiff regains control of himself, then:
MASTIFF
—You were covering your tracks, of course.
RAZOO
Just like you taught me.
MASTIFF
Commlink?
RAZOO
Didn't have one on her.
And no, I don't have Skywalker's frequency.
MASTIFF
You meet Luke Skywalker and you don't ask his frequency?
RAZOO [sarcastic]
Kinda slipped my mind what with me surviving
a close encounter with a giant fishman with its guts inside out, you know?
At the mention of the creature, Mastiff can only stare silently, mouth agape, at Razoo in utter disbelief. Then:
MASTIFF
...Okay, I think you need to start from the beginning.
Tasu took the Leyak to chase Solo, and then...
RAZOO
And then...
INT – TENZIN'S GARAGE, WORKSHOP – SPACE
Rey looks up at the office's window, as Razoo recounts the story of how he got involved in Luke's rescue. As he does, MASTIFF looks out the window, keeping an eye on REY and discouraging her from escaping.
Suddenly, a high-pitched hum rises along with a splitting headache inside Rey's head, causing her to wince in pain as something keeps trying to get into her mind, but psychically grinds against something keeping the signal at bay. Rey shakes her head, before flashes of Luke's serene face and the dark witch superimpose on each other, only to vanish as quickly as they appeared.
INT – TENZIN'S GARAGE, MASTIFF'S OFFICE – SPACE
Mastiff sees Rey wincing and shaking her head, and wonders if she's trying to kill him with her brain.
RAZOO
...And that's when I called you.
MASTIFF
Hm... one part doesn't add up.
Why'd you leave?
RAZOO
I told you. I didn't sign up for no war.
MASTIFF
Come on, I still got your action figures in my chest.
RAZOO [embarrassed]
Aw, crap.
MASTIFF
You've admired Luke Skywalker all your life—
RAZOO
Half my life.
MASTIFF [cont'd]
—Close enough. Point is, Luke's your idol!
You had the chance to go on adventures with the guy,
but instead you steal a ship and bail?
RAZOO
Well, yeah, I was pretty stoked, but then I realized:
Jedi kill crooks, and I've been a very bad one.
It's a half-truth, and MASTIFF knows it, but he lets it go for now.
MASTIFF
Well, alright.
[sighs]
So. Hosnian Prime actually happened,
and the First Order are on the warpath.
RAZOO
Doesn't bode well for us.
MASTIFF
I wouldn't worry too much for now: the Pacanth Reach
is clear on the other side of the Unknown Regions.
We got our own problems to deal with.
RAZOO
How are things back home?
MASTIFF [grimly]
Not great. Our work saved it from a major famine, but meds are still in short supply.
There's been an outbreak of Sion's Phage in the southern islands.
RAZOO [shocked]
Oh Peck.
MASTIFF
Quarantine's holding, and Tsai's working on acquiring a shipment of the cure...
Besides that, we got a powerful need for flu meds. Honestly? We'll probably lose
more people to that than the Phage.
RAZOO
...Okay, and the situation with the Shogunate?
MASTIFF
Defused... sort of. The Kaghan managed to trick the
Shogunate into a three way staring contest with both the Shinbutsu Theocracy
and the Goguryeo Kingdom, but they're all eyeing Nar Kanji as a prize.
RAZOO [confused]
What do they want with us? All we've got are rhys fields,
and the Hutts nearly pecked us in that regard too, when they left...
MASTIFF
For the Shogunate, it's obvious: More ah...
MASTIFF mimes an injector gun being fired in the back of his head.
MASTIFF [cont'd]
Click-click! "recruits" for their army.
Shinbutsu? More converts. Goguryeo's the big mystery, though.
But look, the Kaghan bought us time, but if we really want to last
in the Pacanth Reach, or even agains the First Order,
we're going to need some firepower...
[smiling]
...and that's where you and your new friend come in.
How good of a Jedi is she, really?
RAZOO
Not to bad – as long as she's got surprise on her side. Why?
What are you planning to do with her?
MASTIFF [smiling]
Oh, something I should have done a while ago.
CUT TO BLACK...
INT – TENZIN'S GARAGE, WORKSHOP – SPACE
We assume Rey's POV as a bag is lifted from her head. She looks down, and sees a feast arrayed before her: plates and platters, filled with steaming bio-printed meats and vegetables, were surrounding a glazed, oven roasted Roba with a piece of round fruit in its mouth. Rey looks up, and sees Mastiff sitting at the head of the kitchen table. He claps his hand once, a smile on his face.
MASTIFF
Alright! Do over! Master Jedi Rey... ah?
He looks to his left, snapping his fingers at a sitting Razoo.
RAZOO
Just Rey.
MASTIFF
I am Mastiff Tenzin! Razoo, you've already met, and this...
He gestures to his right, at the tall Epicanthix woman from earlier, taking her seat. The top of her greasy jumpsuit is now open, hanging from the belt to reveal her tank top. Her hat's gone, revealing black braids.
In spite of being host to a kidnapped Jedi. She seems bored by all this – the attitude of a young woman who thinks she's seen it all.
MASTIFF
And this is my daughter Kuthulun!
First, allow me to welcome you to my home,
and extend to you all the hospitality I can muster.
My food is yours, my water is yours, and my shelter is yours.
REVERSE SHOT of Rey, her mouth still taped up, and with her wrists bound by more tape to her wooden chair's arm-rests. Apparently, Kanjiklub hospitality involves a lot of bondage.
Rey glares in response.
MASTIFF
In exchange, of course, I ask that
you do not kill us all with your mind.
Or your lightsaber.
Or both.
In response, Rey looks up, exaggeratedly pondering whether or not she should try.
MASTIFF [worried]
Please?
She looks down at her empty plate, and sees Cuddles the spider looking up at her from her glass prison. Their stomachs growl, and they silently agree to let Mastiff and Razoo live.
For now.
MASTIFF [relieved]
Excellent! Khuthulun! The tape, please!
Khuthulun casually takes out a sonic emitter, a small metal rod the size of a screw driver. She aims it at REY's restraints and presses its activation button, and the rod emits a burst of ultrasound that causes the tape to slowly harden, then crack to pieces. Rey frees herself, and removes the cracked tape from her mouth. Some bits are still stuck, so she picks them out as she speaks.
REY
First you kidnap me and now you offer me food?!
She frees Cuddles from the glass, who promptly scurries into the forest of bowls to eat. Kuthulun is annoyed at the sight, and looks at Mastiff, silently asking him to let her kill the insect. Mastiff denies her request with a wave of his hand, then:
MASTIFF
As Razoo has said many times already,
it was an accident – he only wanted your ship.
Both you and your ship will be returned, as soon
as your master comes looking for you.
REY
I think I'd rather just leave right—
Cuddles comes back, pushing a bowl of round yellow root vegetables, soaked in the dark brown sauce they were simmered in. The little spider's got yellow bits around his little stubs of fur that serve as his mandibles, and recommends the dish by waving one of its limbs at it and nodding. Rey picks one of the balls, eats one, and suppresses her delight – she was supposed to be angry, darn it.
REY [mouth full]
—After I'm done eating.
MASTIFF
Well, alright then, but where are you planning to go?
REY
Back to Luke, of course.
MASTIFF
Oh, you've got his current coordinates?
REY
Well of course I—
She stammers, realizing something.
MASTIFF
You've never had to work a Navcom in your life, have you?
REY
...No?
Mastiff begins to speak, and as he does so Razoo finishes his mealtime prayer and begins to fill his plate with various items, confusing Rey, who is not familiar with religion. The young Jedi then turns to Kuthulun, who silently chastizes her for not using utensils. Rey tries using two wooden sticks the way Razoo expertly uses with one hand, but gives up quickly, and eats with her hands some more.
MASTIFF
Well, even if you did, it wouldn't matter.
Our boy Razoo here deleted your last known
coordinates from your ship's navcom, and there's at least
a thousand stars on the vector you came from.
Unless you're a Jedi Pilgrim, I don't see you eyeballing your way back.
Rey says nothing, knowing that Mastiff is ultimately correct.
MASTIFF
The best thing you can do right now is stay here,
and wait for Skywalker to find you. Until then...
REY
...I'm a prisoner here?
Mastiff ignores the little verbal jab, and maintains his friendly demeanor.
MASTIFF
No, no. You're free to go wherever you wish. In fact...
The older Kanjikluber produces a small pouch and hands it to Kuthulun, who hands it to Rey. Inside, the young Jedi finds a bunch of polished pieces of metal.
MASTIFF
Fifty platinum.
At the sound of that much coin, Razoo's eyes bulge out and he chokes on his food.
MASTIFF
Enough to live on this station for a couple of months.
Any one of us can show you around the place,
and once you're settled in... well, we don't have to see
each other again, either, if you so wish it.
Rey handles the coins, spreading grease on them. She feels the weight of them in her hand, unsure of what to do with them. She had always been paid in rations, sometimes in trade, but never cold, hard cash...
MASTIFF [smiling]
They feel good in your hand, don't they?
REY
Yeah... yeah they do.
MASTIFF
There's more where that came from,
if you care to listen to a job offer after this supper.
Razoo quirks his eyebrow at Mastiff – he still doesn't know what the man is planning, and he had a bad feeling about all of this.
INT – MASTIFF'S OFFICE — SPACE
Floating about a desk mounted holo-emitter is none other than the RADDUS, whose name is slowly being rewritten by paint drones. Rey and Razoo watch the hologram as Mastiff begins his proposal.
MASTIFF
Say hello, to the First Order Dreadnought Starflare .
REY [shocked]
The First Order is here?!
RAZOO [confused]
They... named a dreadnought after a pop idol?
MASTIFF
...Formerly known as the Raddus, and if what I heard is true,
the former flagship of the Resistance fleet, now home to a skeleton crew of
First Order sailors, an equal number of Resistance prisoners,
and most importantly of all... thousands and thousands of tons of cargo.
Food, fuel, blasters, and lots of spare starfighter parts.
RAZOO
Let me guess: The Kaghan wants it?
MASTIFF
No, no!... well, maybe just the cargo if we can manage it.
What she really wants, the real prize... is her escort .
Mastiff manipulates the haptic interface of his holo-emitter, and the Raddus shrinks, while the smaller vessel by its side expands — it's the Aleksandr.
RAZOO
What the Maw is that?!
MASTIFF
The Aleksandr, owned and operated by some cult
named... ah, something about blood?
REY
The Blood of Ren...
MASTIFF
Whatever, not important.
What's important is that its is – get this!
It's an honest to goodness... bioship .
RAZOO
...I thought those were a myth .
MASTIFF
Well, evidently they're not.
And if they're real...
RAZOO [realizing]
Zonama Sekot has to be, too!
MASTIFF
Ever of Zonama Sekot, Master Jedi?
REY
No...
MASTIFF
According to all the fairy tales, Zonama Sekot is the home of
of the Langhesi Shapers, masters of Axlotl , the art of molding
biomatter into machines, even warships!
Every single one they make is unique,
whole parsecs ahead of anything else in terms of power!
And from what we've been able to piece together,
those starships look a lot like this one here.
Mastiff points meaningfully at the Aleksandr.
MASTIFF
The technology inside that ship alone...
Nar Kanji needs that advantage.
And there could be clues inside
that could lead us to Zonama Sekot itself.
And that is why we're going to steal it!
Razoo's awe deflates, replaced by pessimism.
RAZOO
I'll tell you what I told Tasu when he
thought he could take the Firwirrung with a Star Galleon:
Not gonna happen.
MASTIFF
I know, that's what I told the Kaghan.
RAZOO [disbelieving]
You told the Kaghan no?
MASTIFF
Told her I didn't have the resources to take
a skiff at the moment, nevermind alien battle cruisers.
But with you ...
Mastiff looks meaningfully at Rey.
MASTIFF
...a Jedi! I figure now we got a chance.
REY
What, me?! What could I do?
MASTIFF
Well, the ship is alive, it has a mind of its own...
REY
So?
MASTIFF
...which means it can be... tricked .
REY
That... that could work, actually.
MASTIFF
Good! So you'll do it!
REY
What? No! It's like you said,
I should just wait for Luke!
RAZOO
Yeah, I'm thinking we lay low, too.
From what I've been told by the wounded... that ship's crawling
with these Gladiators of Ren, and they're no joke!
MASTIFF
So... no?
REY and RAZOO
No!
MASTIFF
Not even... for the slaves?
REY
...What slaves?
CUT TO:
INT – SKYHOOK PROMENADE – SPACE
In the core of the skyhook, well above its solar-powered supercapacitor, is a vast central chamber that serves as the skyhook's center of commerce – the Promenade. Corporate Musak resounds across its artificial atmosphere, washing over the residents and visitors, humans and aliens. The giant hologram at the center of the promenade is the area's main source of illumination, reflected by the ubiquitous bare metal, and complemented by the multicolored holographic adverts.
In spite of being host to so many stores and apartments, the Promenade had enough head space to have its own air traffic. There are no full sized airspeeders to speak of, just single-seat sky-pods, but Rey is fascinated by their movements as their lights streak by. The sight that manages to take her breath away, however, is the glass dome above the traffic , allowing her to see the seemingly infinite pillar of nanocarbon extending into the center of the planet.
Walking in the shadows of a walkway overlooking that space, Rey pulls her new cloak's hood up as she joins Razoo and Mastiff in looking down at the level below, where slightly less than a thousand haggard, hungry, fearful slaves march, flanked by both GLADIATORS OF REN and STORMTROOPERS. Socorro SLAVE DRIVERS crack their electro-whips, setting the pace of the march. Onlookers – merchants, shopkeeps, clients — don't bother looking up. Business as usual in Socorro.
REY [horrified]
Oh, stars...
One of these slaves, a vicious-looking Trandoshan whips a small child. A Knight of Ren witnesses this, and stares intently at the slaver as he walks past the scene, but does nothing. As if to taunt him, the slaver grins, then whips the child again.
Witnessing this, Rey's face contorts in anger, and she grasps her lightsaber. She's just about to leap into action when Razoo stops her.
RAZOO
The peck do you think you're doing?!
REY
I've got to do something !
RAZOO
What, break your damned legs?
It's four stories down at 1G!
REY
But...!
RAZOO
Look around you!
We're outnumbered a hundred to one out there!
Rey sees reason, and relents.
MASTIFF
Personally, I prefer droids. Less of hassle to maintain.
And it's not like the First Order can't afford those.
I don't know what they need slaves for, but whatever it is...
It can't be good, can it?
RAZOO
Rey, don't listen to him.
Let's just go, alright?
MASTIFF
Here, look at this.
MASTIFF hands her a pair of electrobinoculars, and points at someone's general direction. Rey puts the device to her eyes, and zooms into none other than Ceadeus, conversing with Paxton.
REY
Who's that?
MASTIFF
Man with the blood stripe? Paxton Fell, the...
REY
...Baron of the Empire.
MASTIFF
Oh, you know about him?
REY [seething]
He killed my friend.
Mastiff smiles: Rey just gave him another pressure point. She doesn't notice, too busy adjusting the binoculars to zoom in on Ceadeus' head.
REY
...And the other?
MASTIFF
The big guy? Ceadeus Ren.
Complete ghost up until he appeared at Ryloth about a month ago.
That was when he and his goons toppled the planetary government.
Word out on the hyperlanes is that he took slaves there too.
Ceadeus turns his head, sensing someone watching him intently. His glowing eyes narrow, frightening Rey back in the shadows, which protect her from his gaze.
Back on the Promenade's main level, Paxton follows Ceadeus' gaze, and sees no one.
PAXTON
Do you see something?
CEADEUS
I thought someone was watching us.
I was wrong.
PAXTON
Well, we're not exactly being discreet, are we?
Paxton gestures towards the slaves.
PAXTON
Ceadeus, I've got enough problems as it is
hiring freelancers for... the upcoming op.
The upcoming op, of course, being the rescue of his son Malek.
CEADEUS
I am aware.
PAXTON
Is buying up a thousand slaves
supposed to help with that?
CEADEUS
No.
Ceadeus' finds himself confronted by Paxton's withering glare. Clearly, the man didn't approve of slavery.
CEADEUS [sighing]
Captain Fell, try to understand...
like you, I have agendas of my own, out here.
PAXTON
...I'm trying to save someone, damn it.
PAXTON's glare becomes challenging, and Ceadeus responds in kind.
CEADEUS [firmly]
As am I.
Several someones, in fact.
Fear not, this won't interfere with your business.
The two men begin to walk and talk, side by side. Again, Ceadeus feels someone is watching them, but this time pretends not to notice.
CEADEUS
Speaking of which, have you acquired enough hirelings as of yet?
PAXTON
No. Not yet.
CEADEUS
...Odd. Socorro is not lacking in villainous scum looking for coin.
PAXTON
Key word being coin. All I've got is cargo.
Turning the latter into the former to pay freelance pilots
is proving a bit hard. Secondhand goods, and all that.
Ceadeus produces a coin out of nowhere, and sends it flipping up with a flick of his thumb. Once it lands into his palm, he shows it to Paxton – It is a golden Valendian GIL, with the image of the Ren Herself – the central figure of Ceadeus' faith — engraved upon it.
CEADEUS
I have plenty more, if you need them.
You need only ask.
PAXTON
Sorry, but your ah... "gills"
aren't worth the gold they're made of.
Platinum, that's what I need out here.
Ceadeus flips the coin between his knuckles, and it goes from gold to platinum, and he hands it to Paxton.
As he does this, a small child in chains, clad in a black tattered cloak, watches Ceadeus. From the glimpses that can be seen of the child's face, something's not quite right – it is pale, sickly, and its skin seems to stretch over something... inhuman.
ZOOM IN on the black voids that serve as its eyes. A dim red glow, like light passing through a mosquito's full belly, comes to life. Through the eyes of the "child" all colour in the world has been bled away, save for the blazing crimson marking hearts and blood vessels in its prey. A thousand hearbeats resound all around, but the loudest... belong to both Ceadeus and Paxton.
CREEPY CHILD
Blood of Kings...
Through those eyes, Ceadeus' blood glows gold and orange... the colours of the lifegiving sun.
PAXTON
Huh, nice trick.
Paxton feels the weight of the coin in his hand.
PAXTON
Feels right. Yeah, these will do.
CEADEUS
I'll have a coffer of these sent to you.
PAXTON
...I can't pay you back, you know.
CEADEUS
I promised I would give you aid.
This is me fulfilling my oath.
PAXTON [grateful]
...Thank you. But Ceadeus?
Ceadeus notices something odd about one of the slaves – not the puncture scars on his neck, no, but a fresh hole, still coagulating.
CEADEUS
...Yes?
PAXTON
I'm sorry, I can't let this go.
The slaves, what are they for?
The Knight of Ren doesn't reply, too busy looking out for something.
PAXTON
I'm staking my future on the notion
that you're a decent person, Ceadeus.
Now, I won't lie, the Empire liked its slaves,
but we had laws, to keep them safe, and...
The creepy child moves among the slaves, staying just out of Ceadeus' sight. What he does see, however, are a few slaves barely containing their terror – they know something horrible walks among them...
PAXTON
What do you intend to do with them?
CEADEUS
I mean to save them, of course.
PAXTON
Yeah, with you religious types,
that could mean any kind of kark'ed up thing.
Ceadeus stops, in front of Paxton.
CEADEUS
Do you have inside you blood of kings, Fell?
PAXTON
What?
CEADEUS
Your mother told you this.
Is it true?
PAXTON
How do you...? Ah, nevermind. Yeah look, we were farmers.
My mum? Well, some parents like to make shit up
so their children can grow up proud, you know?
I never read too much into it.
Ceadeys turns around...
CEADEUS
There are creatures in the galaxy that love blood of kings.
They find it... irresistible.
…and he gently takes Paxton's hand by the wrist. The creepy child hisses, hungrily.
PAXTON
Ah, look, I'm flattered, but...
Ceadeus puts a claw on Paxton's bare palm.
CEADEUS
Do you trust me, Paxton Fell?
PAXTON
This is some kind of test, huh?
[sighing]
Alright, yeah, I trust you with my life,
if that's what you're driving at.
CEADEUS
Then I hope you'll forgive me for this.
The claw draws blood, and Paxton withdraws his hand.
Time slows, as a drop of blood gently falls to the ground, before exploding on the dirty metal floor.
It's too much for the creepy child, whose face SPLITS to accommodate a needle-shaped proboscis made of black chitin. Transparent wings grow out from beneath the cloak, beating rapidly as the creature they're attached to leaps, turning it into a blur of motion as it leaps for Paxton's neck. The older man's reflexes give him just enough time to see the horrible creature, but he's not fast enough to draw his blaster.
Ceadeus, however, is fast enough to grasp the chitin needle inches from Paxton's neck, simultaneously pushing the older man away to safety.
KNIGHT OF REN [screaming]
MIMICUS!
The Knights heed the warning, and quickly position themselves between the creature and the slaves. The MIMICUS' limbs unfold and stretch, each one becoming as long as a man is tall, and each one is tipped with a small, sharp hook. They flail uselessly against Ceadeus' helmet, or the shields of the Knights.
The slaves panic at the sight of their ancient tormentor, and flee, too terrorized by the creature to pay any heed to the whips of the slavers. Some of them stay put, frozen in place by horror.
As they watch, Ceadeus grasps the Mimicus by the neck, providing him with the necessary leverage to tear out the oversized insect's proboscis. The Mimicus, screaming in agony, tries to fly away, but its no use – Ceadeus' grip is tight, and he's far too heavy to be lifted by oversized fly wings.
Light and smoke emerge from beneath Ceadeus' grip, as if he was channeling the power of the sun to burn the creature. Little boils pop from its flesh, just before its limbs are out, then its wings, then finally... its entire abdomen gorged on slave blood
And yet, it still lived, and being thrown to the ground did not end its life. It crawls pathetically on the floor, using its stumps to move... when that proves futile, it tries covering its body with its tattered cloak, as if that would protect it from Ceadeus' quiet wrath. The cloak does nothing to stop the weight of Ceadeus' metal boot to its ruined chest. In spite of the pain, the Mimicus reforms its "face"... and laughs.
MIMICUS
I have a message for you, animal ...
The MIMICUS' voice is as uncanny as its face: Not quite old, not quite young, not male, nor female. It twists its skin into a facsimile of a smile, and continues.
MIMICUS
From the Crimson Queen...
Ceadeus narrows his blazing eyes at the creature...
CEADEUS [angrily]
She is Queen no longer.
MIMICUS
"See you soon. See you veeeryyy veeeryyy soooon."
Hee hee hee...
...and he lets shifts his weight into the boot, slowly crushing the creature to death. Paxton approaches the scene, and stares down at the Mimicus' tiny crushed corpse.
PAXTON [in shock]
...What the kriff. What the kriff?!
What... what was that?
CEADEUS
Sanguisuga Mimicus.
A Jouk.
KNIGHT OF REN
My lord, your orders?!
CEADEUS
Call Irvine, he'll aid you in rounding
up the fleeing slaves.
Examine the rest of them,
Then take them to the Starflare.
Alert the Medicus. The Jouk have returned. Go!
KNIGHT OF REN
Yes, my lord!
Many of the truths we cling to depend on our point of view. From Ceadeus' point of view, he had just destroyed a plague ridden, parasitical abomination. From an onlooker's point of view, who had seen everything from start to finish, one alien just killed another.
But from Rey's point of view, the point of view of a girl who had relocated for a better look just in time to see Ceadeus finish the mimic off... the 'truth' she embraced was simple, free of nuance.
REY
That child-killing monster...
CEADEUS looks up at Rey, not knowing nor caring who she is, and leaves to deal with the local 'police'. Rey thinks he's taunting her.
RAZOO [pleading]
Rey, I know what you're thinking,
but you must wait for Luke.
REY
No.
RAZOO
What?
REY
I'm done waiting for other people.
I'm done waiting for things to happen.
This... this monster needs to DIE.
RAZOO
That's not the Jedi way! You gotta be patient!
She turns to a smiling Mastiff.
REY
If your plan involves their deaths...
MASTIFF
It can...
REY
Then count me in.
SMASH TO BLACK
TO BE CONTINUED
This fanfic was written with the support of 29 Patrons, including:
Kalaong
Andrew P.
CMY187