Author's Note: I'm on a roll here! Another update sooner then expected. And what would make it even nicer was if y'all would review. Just a few words. That's all I'm asking.
Chapter 72's responses:
G-Anakin 13: Sorry to leave you hanging. Here's more.
The Lure of the Dark Side: Chronicle 1-The Turning of an Era
Episode V: Revenge of the Sith
Chapter 28: The Jedi Visit the Emperor
The Senate session ended with the Emperor and Grievous twins speaking with the press over a span of an hour before they, Mas Amedda and Sly Moore lowered back into the center of the holding office in the Emperor's podium. Immediately, Amedda and Moore were harshly commanded to leave by Sidious, but the twins were allowed to remain. The three were awaiting the transmission of victory at the Separatists Council destruction from Vader and Baynetta.
While doing so, Antellica caught Arica staring at her again. Yet this time when she looked over Arica did not avert her gaze, but held it several moments before lowering it to the floor. Antellica sadly turned away, only to be surprised a trice later by Arica throwing her arms around her in a hug.
"I'm sorry Antellica," she said into her shoulder. "I'm sorry for being so cruel to you."
"No Arica," Antellica dismissed. "I'm the one that should be apologizing. I feel horrible for always overshadowing and looking down on you. I hope we can be friends again," she added wishfully.
Arica gave her a doubtful look. "Perhaps," her tone was as uncertain as her gaze. "But I doubt we'll ever get back that special bond we once shared."
Antellica nodded, though before any thing else could be said, a sudden, loud beep came from the Emperor's desk signaling that the transmission from Mustafar had arrived. Both teens rushed to Sidious' side to see the small holos of Lord Vader and Lady Baynetta standing side by side with slightly bowed heads to their master. Nevertheless, Antellica couldn't help noticing the satisfied smirk that was playing on Baynetta's lips, though Vader was the one who spoke. "The Separatists have been taken care of my master."
"It is finished than." Sidious said with a mockery of a smile. "You have restored peace and justice to the galaxy. Send the message to the ships of the Trade Federation. All droid units must shut down, immediately."
"Very good my lord." Vader said and the transmission ended.
The Emperor was about to turn and say something to the twins when the clasp of his two royal guards at the room's entrance whipped the three of them around to find…
"Good evening Emperor," the small form of Master Yoda said, quite pleasantly.
"Or should we call you, Darth Sidious," Obi-Wan Kenobi said, almost sarcastically.
Arica was beyond shocked, but made to throw herself at the Jedi in attack, only Antellica held her back. She too was also astonished at the Jedi's survival and bold entrance, and took notice of the cold gaze Obi-Wan had set on her; betrayal etched across his face. She pretended not to notice it as she turned to Sidious. "What's that frog doing here! I thought he and the rest of his Jedi friends were killed off when Order 66 was commenced."
"Who cares!" Arica answered instead. Igniting the green blade of one of her recent victims with a snap-hiss, she pushed her sister out of the way and took on a ready pose. "By the time I get through with them, they're going to wish they were killed by the clones."
"You had your chance to kill Kenobi, Zenevieva," Sidious reproved sharply, "and you failed."
In shamed embarrassment, Zenevieva deactivated her lightsaber with a lowered head and clipped it back onto her belt.
Veradisia, however, gave a derisive smile as she eyed the Jedi. "I'm surprised I don't hear the frog croaking in startled flabbergastation. But than you probably saw the incursion on the surveillance holos. I'll have to go back some time to...relive the experience so to speak." She gave an evil chuckle, to which Zenevieva and Sidious joined in on. The Jedi, however, remained expressionless.
"Strange it is Sidious," Yoda abruptly said, bringing an end to the quiet laughter, "that wish to have more than one apprentice you do. Destruction you are asking for if one of them wished to turn against you, do you not think?"
Sidious cackled. "What are you trying to say master?"
"The original structure of the Sith Empire, destroyed it eventually was by the Sith killing each other for more power," the ancient Jedi answered.
"No Master Yoda," Sidious suddenly hissed, all trace of humor gone, "the eventual destruction of the Sith was by the Jedi hunting down and killing them. All of them. Except one. That of course was I. Yes, Master Yoda," he grinned at the small Jedi's widening eyes, "it was I who killed Jedi Exar Kun almost a thousand years ago. I, the only Sith, or person for that matter, to ever discover the secret of immortality. Yes, I am the original Darth Sidious, not just some Sith Lord wannabe who choose to use my name as a way to strike fear into the Jedi and have them remember the old times of the Great Sith War. Of course that, Master Yoda, was long before you were even born."
Yoda simply stood there a moment, seeming to go over the Sith's words. "So the seduction of the Chosen One, a part of your plan it always has been," he finally said.
"But of course and I had a full proof plan that it would work also." A wicked gleam came to his eyes. "My daughter, Lady Baynetta, otherwise known to you as Padme Amidala."
The Sith Lord took pleasure out of the shock that a lit the Jedi's faces at that revelation. "Lord Vader, as I'm sure you know, has always taken a fancy to dear Baynetta. I knew through this, their marriage and love for each other – well Vader's love for Baynetta anyway – that he would do anything for her. Even turn to the dark side for her if he knew she'd die if he didn't."
He gave a dry laugh. Yoda, meanwhile, pointed his gimmer stick at him accusingly. "You it was than. You killed the Royal family of Naboo twenty-seven years ago after Princess Maratina bore your daughter."
"Very good master." Sidious gave a sarcastic clap of his hands. "You're catching on. Yes, it was I who did that. Lord Maul and myself. Just as we killed the rest of the Naberrie family. But I really have had enough of this talk. Unless of course you have anymore questions that you wish to take with you to the grave."
The Jedi stayed defiantly silent, their faces void of emotion.
"I'll take your silence as a no than." Sidious eyed the two in distaste. "I will admit I'm rather surprised the both of you survived. Especially you Kenobi. Your fighting with Lord Tyranus on The Invisible Hand was quite horrible."
Kenobi's face flushed to an extent at Sidious' insult. Nevertheless, he managed to keep it passive.
"Yes Sidious," Yoda said in a somewhat haughty manner, "surprised you are because in your arrogance, naturally assumed you did that every Jedi would die when say you wanted them to."
Sidious' eyes showed amusement at Yoda's arrogant little speech. He smirked. "Your arrogance blinds you Master Yoda. Now you will experience the full power of the dark side."
Raising his hands, and before Yoda could do anything to stop it, he unleashed a blast of Force lightning head on at the Jedi. The result was Yoda being slammed up against the nearby wall and crumpling to the floor at the assault. At the same time, Zenevieva had stepped forward and Force slammed Kenobi into the same wall next to Yoda, knocking him unconscious.
Sidious cackled gleefully at the sight of the two fallen Jedi along with Zenevieva. Veradisia merely remained expressionless.
"I have waited a long time for this moment. My little green friend." Sidious snarled at the fallen Yoda, who was now beginning to slowly rise from the floor, clutching his gimmer stick. The Sith Master than turned to his apprentices. "Take Kenobi down to the prison block below," he ordered. "I'll leave the honors of killing him to Lord Vader. He should get a real kick out of that."
With matching smirks, Zenevieva and Veradisia did as instructed, collecting the unconscious form of Kenobi and carrying him out of the room.
Sidious continued to cackle, as it was now just he and Master Yoda. The small Jedi had fully risen to his complete height of 0.66 meters.
Pathetic, Sidious thought gazing upon him. "At last the Jedi are no more." he pronounced.
"Not if anything to say about it, I have!" Yoda said, suddenly letting go of his stick and sending a powerful Force push at the unsuspecting Sidious.
Caught off guard, the Sith was knocked off his feet and thrown into his desk chair. Falling out of it, he landed on the floor.
"At an end your rule is," Yoda said triumphantly as the Emperor began to rise, disbelief evident of his face. "And not short enough it was," he added making a motion with his hand, implying that Sidious should fight back.
In rage, Sidious flipped through the air, intending on exiting the room and alerting the clones of the Jedi's presence. However, Yoda flipped through the air at the same time so when Sidious landed in front of the exit there Yoda stood, blocking his path.
"If so powerful you are," Yoda challenged, "Why leave?" He activated his lightsaber.
"You will not stop me," Sidious snarled. "Darth Vader will become more powerful than either of us." He activated his own lightsaber.
"Faith in your new apprentice, misplaced may be," Yoda said, swinging his lightsaber around. "As is your faith in the Dark Side of the Force."
Sidious rose his saber above his head to ready the fight. An instant later he struck at the small Jedi, but Yoda jumped out of the way. Twisting, Sidious blocked the swing intended to cut into his neck by the small freak and swung back around. Yoda was back on the floor, swinging his lightsaber and flipped towards him. Sidious caught his blade with the freaks' and they held it in a heated blow before Sidious made a swing at the small Jedi. Yoda jumped out of the way and landed into the Emperor's Podium. Sidious jumped after him and the duel continued inside it. Activating the podium with the Force, it began to rise into the air. Sidious hoped a bypassing Senator or aid would see yet another Jedi attacking him, and alert the authorities.
The duel, as fierce as ever, continued inside the fully risen podium in the center of the empty Grand Convocation Chamber. In between countless strikes and blows, Sidious was finally able to knock the small Jedi out of the podium, causing him to fall onto a nearby Senate pod.
Cackling with delight, Sidious began using the Force to throw various repulsorpods at Yoda, causing mass destruction to the arena in the process, but he didn't care. This would be yet another example of the Jedi's treachery.
As the avalanche of pods continued to rain down on him, Yoda persisted in jumping, flipping, and rolling out of the path of each of them.
It was at this very moment of the ultimate clash between light and darkness that Yoda finally saw the truth: he had lost before he started. He had lost before he was born. In the last millennium the Sith had changed, grown, adapted, become new; while the Jedi Order, under Yoda's leadership, spent the same millennium merely trained to re-fight the last war.
He understood that this new Sith Order could not be destroyed by merely a slash of lightsaber or shout in the Force. He understood that war was not the way to defeat darkness, because war itself had become the weapon of darkness.
With this new insight, Yoda understood that he could not fall right there, he had to share this discovery.
Deactivating his lightsaber, he stood still and awaited the throw of another pod. When it came he was ready. He caught it with the Force of his small clawed hands and after slowly swerving it around ever so slightly, with it getting faster and faster with each spin, Yoda finally let go of it and gave it an almighty Force push.
Sidious, who had been cackling, thinking he'd finally bested the small freak was very much surprised to find the last pod he'd thrown suddenly backfire on him with a great force of power. Trying to get out of the way in time, Sidious was thrown out of the pod he'd been in by the pod and fell into another. Getting up, he looked all around for the small Jedi. A trice later, he was before him, in all his arrogance, lightsaber raised and ready to strike. The Sith merely smirked. He struck the small Jedi once again with a stream of Force lightening, knocking the lightsaber from its hands and into the abyss of the arena. But this time, unlike the last, Yoda caught most of the lightening in his own hands. They battled the lightening back and forth, each proving to be as strong as the other. Sidious soon began to lose the stream of lightening, and Yoda appeared to be winning. He began to panic and an instant later he was suddenly knocked off his feet yet again and blasted back towards his podium with the powerful force of the lightning.
Yoda, meanwhile, was also knocked towards the podium, but on the other side of it. He tried to hold on as much as he could with his little clawed hands, but eventually his grasp slipped and he fell through the abyss of the arena and back into the holding office. Yoda didn't have any power left to continue and fled, contacting Senator Organa via comlink to come and rescue him.
Pulling himself back up into the podium, Sidious angrily barked at the figures of Veradisia and Zenevieva, who were watching nearby, to retrieve a squad of stock troopers and lead a search party inside the entire building to find the green troll. They took their orders with a bow.
An hour later, however, the Sith Ladies and their squad, led by Clone Commander Thire, came up with nothing. Sidious was furious when he was told Yoda's body couldn't be found anywhere.
"Which means he isn't not dead," Zenevieva snarled.
"Double your searches," Sidious barked.
They did so with Sidious joining them this time.
Two hours later, they all met outside the Senate Building empty handed, just as before. But when they saw Sidious approaching with a small Jedi robe in hand, Zenevieva and Veradisia rushed forward with a few clones.
"You found him my lord?" Thire asked.
"No," the Emperor growled. "Just his cloak. He must've lost it when he fell." He shook his head, angrily. "He isn't here, but I know he's still on planet. Commander Thire!"
The Clone Commander stepped forward. "My lord?"
"Lead a squadron of clones to search the planet in its entirety," the Emperor commanded. "Leave no garbage hole unchecked and no home unsearched."
Thire bowed. "Yes my lord."
"And also have a squad guarding Kenobi in the prison block below. I doubt he'll try to escape, but nonetheless."
Thire saluted. "It will be done, mi lord."