A/N: In the last update, we met Jedi Master Peabody and his Padawan learners, Hayden (Wookie) Penny (Human) and Barriss Offee. Now Darth Shermanus duels the canine Jedi atop the Dathomir temple steps. Enjoy!
The purple lightning made noise as it flashed across the sky.
"It doesn't have to end this way like it did with all the other Jedi I have slain. Surrender and I promise you won't be harmed" Sherman offered.
"I don't negotiate with any agent of Vader" Peabody said, taking the light-saber off his belt and activating it, igniting a dark blue blade.
"It's your funeral, Jedi" Sherman said activating his own. They began to charge at one another and clash their blades against one another. Peabody backed up and defended while Sherman moved forwards to him and attacked the dark sapphire blue blade. Their duel made them find their way to the center of the temple.
The temple center had a large statue of Mother Talzin (From the Clone Wars animated series) holding a glowing green ball of light contained inside a green glass orb. Beside the statues left and right sides were waterfalls of lava that went down to an underground chamber of the temple using stone pipe-ways. And above it was a bridge that lead from one doorway above it to the other.
"You should have just surrendered to the Emperor when you had the chance, Peabody" Sherman said before striking Peabody's blade before the white beagle bounced the crimson blade back by flicking his wrist like a whip and snapped the blade back.
"Jedi never surrender" Peabody said while he took this as an opportunity to attack and Sherman kept blocking each strike the blue blade made against his red one.
"Then you shall join your master" Sherman said raising his hand and shooting out dark blue force lightning. Peabody raised his blade to have it absorb the lightning or deflect it back at Sherman but it knocked the light-saber out of his hand, which caused it to deactivate the blade and land on the stone ground.
Meanwhile, the Padawans, Penny, Hayden, and Barriss stood on the bridge watching at this unfolded.
"You're in the way, just like your master. Now it's your turn to be like him!" Sherman shouted trying to strike Peabody but he dodged it and the blade slammed down against the ground and created a smoking slash mark on the ground.
"Let me see if I can help you out" Sherman said as he approached Peabody who was backed up against the wall. Hayden then jumped off the bridge and took his light-saber off his belt and activated it, the blade glowed dark emerald green. The sound of the igniting blade drew his attention to the Wookie Padawan.
"Never faced off against a Wookie before" Sherman said. Penny and Barriss jumped off the bridge and landed beside Hayden.
"Well, he's not alone" Penny said activating her purple light-saber. Barriss activated her blue bladed light-saber.'
"At least I'm not facing more than one. Maybe Vader will let me keep one of you as my apprentice" Sherman said getting his blade ready to attack.
"Raarrrrhhhhh, Ruuuf! Rrrrrruffffff rarrrgggghhhhh" (Translation: As if I'd ever side with the Empire!) Hayden shouted before charging to attack Sherman, but he blocked the Wookie's attack before he could strike the Sith lord's shoulder.
"Stand down you animal!" Sherman said as he bounced the green blade off his own and started fighting. When Sherman spotted a weak spot, he tried to lunge at Hayden, but was stopped by the purple blade that belonged to Penny.
"You sure seem know how to hold your own for a mere Padawan" Sherman said.
"Save it for when I send your corpse back to Vader!" Penny said as they began to engage and Hayden and Barriss stood close behind in case they needed to defend her.
"I can promise you, with no failures on my Imperial Record, that's not gonna happen" Sherman said as he bashed his blade against Penny's so hard her light-saber fell out of her hand and he cut the blade emitter guard off, so the blade wouldn't come out. Her light-saber was now destroyed.
"Penny! No!" Barriss shouted when she tried to attack Sherman but he used his force lightning to push her away and her light-saber fell into the lava waterfalls by the statue. When Barriss tried to get up and use the force to knock Sherman's light-saber out of his hands to return the favor, Sherman stabbed Barriss Offee in the stomach.
"No!" Penny shouted.
"Raaaarrrghhhhh!" (Translation: Barriss!) When Hayden tried to retaliate, Sherman sliced Hayden's light-saber in half and kicked him in the stomach. Hayden growled in pain and got down to the floor.
"Now you parish with the other Jedi, Wookie" Sherman said.
"Wait!" Peabody shouted before Sherman could stab Hayden.
"If we surrender, you'll only take us prisoner?" asked Peabody.
"Indeed" Sherman said. Peabody looked at his own light-saber and threw it into the lava. Hayden and Penny were shocked to see their master destroy his own light-saber.
"We... surrender" Peabody said. Sherman smiled and deactivated his own light-saber and reattached it to his belt.
"A wise decision, Jedi" Sherman said as he used the force to take the binding rings off his belt and attach them to Hayden, Peabody, and Penny's hands to cuff them. Sherman then pressed a button on one of his gauntlets and spoke into it.
"Lord Vader, I have captured them. And their light-sabers were destroyed. Barriss Offee was the only one to die" Sherman said.
"Very good lord Shermanus, we await your presence aboard the ship" Vader's voice said on the com-link.
(An hour later aboard the Star Destroyer)
Sherman made his way down the halls of the prisoner-containment unit of the star destroyer and stopped at cell 1138. He pressed a button and the doors slid to the right to reveal Peabody, Penny, and Hayden sitting down on a bench tied up in laser chains.
"A valiant try, but now look where you are. No light-sabers, you lost a friend, and now prisoners of Darth Vader himself" Sherman said standing above them all.
"Wait a minute. I recognize those eyes. You are Master Koonakrah's son" Peabody said. Sherman raised his hand and shocked him with force lightning.
"Ruuuuuuufffffffff!" (Translation: Father!) Hayden screamed now about to cry. Sherman stopped and watched as steam came from the captive Jedi's robes.
"You're wrong. Vader is my father, he took me in because my mother abandoned me on the streets of Earth" Sherman said.
"No, she left you to make sure you wouldn't fall into Vader's clutches" Peabody tried to explain. Sherman only responded with another lightning blast.
"RRRAAAAAARRRHHHH! RRRUUUUUUUFFFFF!" (Translation: Dad! Stop it! Please!) Hayden shouted with glimmering green eyes. Sherman did so and got into Peabody's face.
"Get whatever the Jedi told you out of your head. Vader is my father and master. End of story" Sherman said before leaving the cell.
"Are you alright master?" Penny asked.
"I've dealt with far worse Penny. Don't worry" Peabody said, reassuring them with kind words to get mostly Hayden to calm down. He was still a young boy, he was strong with the Force but had a strong emotional bond with Peabody since he was practically his adopted son.
Meanwhile, on the bridge of the Star Destroyer, Sherman made his presence known by making an entrance and all eyes were on him.
"Leave, now. I wish to have some time to think to myself" Sherman said.
"Yes my lord" they all said in unison, Storm-Troopers and Imperial Officers alike left the bridge, leaving Sherman the only one in the bridge. He then made his way to the hologram player table and pressed a button.
"Computer, search the archives for a Master Koonakrah" Sherman commanded. The computer showed a hologram of Mancala Koonakrah.
"Mancala Koonakrah was a Jedi knight who gained several victories on different systems during the Clone Wars and before the great Jedi Purge. When Order 66 was executed, she had killed off whatever troops that served her on planet Dathomir. She then went into hiding on Earth and had a son" the computer voice said.
"Who was the son?" Sherman asked the computer. The computer then showed a hologram of Sherman right next to Mancala, which left him in shock.
"Darth Shermanus, taken in by Darth Vader when he had killed her off on Earth seven years ago" the computer said before playing footage of Vader killing his mother. Sherman was now in tears.
"The Jedi (sniff) he was right. Vader murdered my mother" Sherman said. He heard the blast doors open and shut off the computer and walked towards the door. Vader saw his apprentice in tears.
"What is wrong?" he asked.
"It (sniffle) it's nothing" Sherman lied before leaving. Once the blast doors shut, Vader activated the computer and it showed all the holograms that it showed Sherman.
"He knows" Vader growled before turning around to the door.
"Now that he knows the truth, it's most likely he will turn on us. He must not be allowed to escape" Vader declared.
A/N: Wow, that was dramatic wasn't it? Sherman finds out the truth about his mother, which means he most likely will turn on Vader and free the Jedi. And how was the light-saber duel? I tried to make it at epic as possible. More to come in the next update. Please review, thanks!