Countdown to Extinction
Revelations on Muunilinst! After discovering Imperial transmissions on the Banking Clan capital, Princess Leia was dispatched to investigate. Accompanying her was Jedi Ahsoka Tano and Borsk Fey'lya, a shrewd and self-absorbed Bothan politician with little regard for others. After a scuffle in the city of Harnaidan, Tano has discovered that IWAI, and Imperial artificial intelligence gone wrong, may have an involvement in the mystery.
After negotiating with the Banking Clan chairman, Princess Leia was able to come to a compromise and was allowed to summon one ship to the planet to help. But will the help be enough to stop IWAI's devastating plans…
The Sundered Heart, Muunilinst
Ahsoka lay in her bed and was beginning to toss and turn.
Ahsoka's dream
Ahsoka was running down a dark alley at night. Despite how fast she was, the alley seemed to never end. Suddenly, as the smoke cleared up ahead, Darth Vader appeared in front of her. She skidded to a stop.
"Enough of this, child" said Vader "The time has come for you to join me"
"Never!" said Ahsoka "I'll never turn to the dark side"
"But you must" said Vader "It is your destiny to join me. Always has been, always will be" Ahsoka ignited her lightsaber. "Very unwise" Suddenly, Ahsoka noticed that next to him, chained up on the ground, was Luke.
"Luke!" said Ahsoka. Vader began force-choking him. "Let him go!"
"You can end this" said Vader "Come with me and I will let him live" Ahsoka breathed heavily as she looked between the two of them, unsure of what to do.
Back to reality
Ahsoka woke up breathing heavily. As she calmed down, she pulled herself up and sat on the side of her bed, and breathed in. She stood up and walked out to get herself breakfast.
A few minutes later
Ahsoka sat at the conference table with a bowl of cereal. She wasn't eating it rather than looking down into it and giving it the occasional stir.
"Mind if I join you?" said a voice. Ahsoka looked up to see Leia standing near the table with a bowl of cereal in her hands.
"Sure, feel free" said Ahsoka. Leia sat herself down and began to eat her cereal.
"How was your sleep?" asked Leia.
"To be honest, it was a little difficult" replied Ahsoka "I guess I just had so much on my mind that I just couldn't rest properly"
"I know how that feels" said Leia.
"So is there anything I missed?" asked Ahsoka.
"I made the contact with the Liberty; they say they've just arrived and are preparing the men" said Leia "I told them to do it a bit subtlety, so it didn't look like an armed occupation. Also, the Banking Clan council has been rounded up and are being interrogated in case they had an involvement with Astar"
"Whose idea was that?" asked Ahsoka.
"Who do you think?" asked Leia. Ahsoka shuddered at the thought. "I know; Fey'lya can be difficult" Ahsoka raised an eyebrow. "Okay, he can be pretty damn arrogant; but you need to understand there's more to him than that"
"Can you explain further?" asked Ahsoka.
"You may not like Fey'lya, but we need him" said Leia "The Bothans have been some of our biggest supporters in the war and they appointed Fey'lya with the job of representing them. They look up to him because he's strong and has a will to get things done, even though some of the things he use that will for are questionable…to say the least. It's just, we don't want to upset them or they could withdraw support of the Alliance; and we need as many allies as we can in this war, especially after Garm Bel Iblis left"
"I suppose that makes sense" said Ahsoka "Say; you said yesterday that we could tell each other about each other's pasts. I just want you to know that I'd like that"
"Okay; you start" said Leia.
"I was born on Shili but I was raised in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant" said Ahsoka "Jedi Master Plo Koon was on a mission there when he found me. Sensing my connection to the Force, he brought me back to the temple where I trained for years. I learned how to manipulate the Force and how to wield a lightsaber, but my real adventure didn't begin until the outbreak of the Clone Wars. Master Yoda had me sent off to the Battle of Christophsis to meet my master, Anakin Skywalker. We had a shaky start, but we eventually got used to each other. I may have learned the basics at the temple; but with Anakin, I got real experience"
"What was he like?" asked Leia.
"Not the most conventional Jedi" replied Ahsoka "In fact; he disobeyed direct orders from Master Obi-Wan, Master Windu, and pretty much every other Jedi Master. Man, I thought those days would last forever…if only I knew…"
"What happened?" asked Leia.
"Various protests against the Republic and the Jedi Order had formed and they turning violent really quick" replied Ahsoka "Eventually, a hanger in the Jedi Temple was bombed, causing the deaths of many Jedi and temple guards. We captured a suspect and I was talking to her when she was killed. I was suspected of the crime and detained for it. I managed to escape; but before I knew it, I was framed again. I didn't know what else to do so I ran and escaped into the Coruscant underworld. I tried to find the culprit, but they set me up again and I was captured and put before a court, but not before the Jedi Council disowned me. I thought I was doomed, but Anakin found the real culprit"
"Who was it?" asked Leia.
"A Jedi Knight named Barriss Offee, who was a friend of mine and who I thought I could trust" replied Ahsoka "Turns out she just used that trust to use my as a scapegoat. Afterwards; the Jedi Council offer to take me back. I was tempted at first, but…I just couldn't; not after they doubted like that, even my oldest friend Plo Koon doubted. I said goodbye to Anakin and left the temple. After the rise of the Empire, I knew that they were going to hunt me down, so I fled Coruscant but got caught in a stasis pod along the way. I don't know where it came from; but when I awoke, I was on the planet Kowak and it had been seventeen years since the Empire was formed. I made myself a little hut and lived there, with only a bunch of Kowakian monkey-lizards for company. That was until I was approached my Master Jat Chai, who told me of everything that had happened and gave me an offer to rejoin the Order. I was reluctant at first, but I eventually agreed to it. Shortly afterwards, I was sent off to the Battle of Mygeeto to become Luke's new partner, and we've been together ever since. Your turn
"I grew up on Alderaan; my father was the planet's senator, my mother was the queen, so that made me princess" said Leia "It was a beautiful planet; rolling plains, stunning mountains, serene grasslands and forests…just thinking about it makes me miss it even more. When my father started the Rebel Alliance with Master Kota and Mon Mothma, I supported him; but he made sure the Empire didn't know of my involvement whilst I continued to represent my planet in the Imperial Senate. But all of that changed one day; the Death Star was complete, but we had finally retrieved the plans for it so we could find a weakness and finally destroy it before it could cause the galaxy any harm. It was harder than I thought; we were chased down by Darth Vader who captured me, but I had already the sent plans off in R2. He brought me back to the Death Star to interrogate, but I wouldn't give in. So they moved up their methods; he brought me over to Tarkin—" Ahsoka subtlety clenched her fists at the sound of that name. "—who threatened to use the Death Star to destroy Alderaan if I didn't tell them where the Rebel base was. I eventually gave them the location of a former Rebel base on Dantooine, but he fired anyway just to prove a point" Leia closed her eyes. "I could do nothing as that monster ordered the destruction of an innocent and peaceful world and the deaths of almost everyone I knew, including my father. Luke, Han, and Chewie eventually came aboard the Death Star and rescued me. We were able to return to the base on Yavin 4 and use the plans to find a weakness, which we did and we destroyed it"
"Yeah; Luke told me that part" said Ahsoka "You know how you told me that I was Luke's only link back to his father" Leia nodded. "Well; to be honest, he's my only link back to Anakin too. Anakin was like a big brother to me, and he was the only one I knew didn't doubt me during my final days in the Order. When I discovered that he was gone…I just didn't know what to do. But now I do know; I need to make sure that a similar fate doesn't happen to Luke. I may not be a master, but I'll guide him and protect him anyway I can" It was then that Luke entered the room.
"Luke?" said Leia.
"Hey, how's things?" said Luke.
"I didn't know you were coming" said Leia whilst Luke sat himself down at the table.
"When I found out that IWAI was involved, I knew I had to come" said Luke.
"Didn't Ackbar have a mission for you or something?" asked Ahsoka.
"He just wanted to run me through on recent events and planned operations" said Luke "I guess since I've been gone, he decided it was necessary to inform me of it"
"I wonder why he didn't ask for me as well" said Ahsoka.
"Actually, he seemed surprised that you weren't there" said Luke.
"What?" said Ahsoka.
"He asked for me and I guess he expected you would be there with me" said Luke "He never meant for me exclusively" Ahsoka breathed a sigh. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing" replied Ahsoka "I just had a bad run in with Fey'lya. I was in the ship when I saw him come back for a cloak. I followed him through the streets until I reached a cantina, where I found him threatening a pregnant woman for information"
"Wait, what?" said Luke "I can't believe anyone in the Alliance would do that"
"The worst part is that he's getting away with it" said Ahsoka "Can you believe that?"
"That's ridiculous; how can he do that?" said Luke.
"Calm down, the both of you" said Leia "You have every right to be angry at Fey'lya, but now's not the time. We need to find out what IWAI is up to and we need to find it fast, before it is too late"
Meanwhile
Captain Ghetro (a green Mon Calamari captain) stood in the bridge of the Liberty in front of a hologram of Fey'lya and Huus.
"The troops you sent are proving to be very effective" said Fey'lya.
"I'm glad you admire them" said Ghetro "But do we need them? The Banking Clan will be unhappy if troops are simply around"
"They're serving a particular purpose, I assure you" said Fey'lya "I have sent one half to investigate the facilities and uncover any potential clues. The other half have been sent to capture Astar before he can escape offworld; he could hold vital information"
"I understand, and it's a fine plan" said Ghetro "But remember what Princess Leia said; we need to respect the Banking Clan's wishes, she was lucky to allow a single ship to begin with"
"I guarantee you that we'll be discreet" said Fey'lya.
"You had better" said Huus "The Empire already has considerable control over us, we don't need another change of leadership"
Meanwhile
A group of Rebel troopers searched through an office in the Banking Clan's building.
"Nothing here from the looks of it" said a rebel trooper whilst looking underneath a desk.
"If we can't find anything within the next few minutes, we'll just have to search another room" said another rebel trooper.
"But Borsk Fey'lya told us to be thorough" said the first rebel trooper.
"I know; but if something happens in another room on this side but we're not there for it, we're sunk" said the second rebel trooper.
"Over here, I've found something" said another rebel trooper who stood outside a large closet. The other rebel troopers walked over to him. Inside the closet lay a large black sphere with a small blank display panel.
"We better let Fey'lya know straight away" said the second rebel trooper.
Meanwhile
Chelaa Secura walked over to the meditating K'Kruhk.
"Master?" asked Chelaa. There was no response. "I am sorry if I disturbed you, I was just making sure you were alright so—" At that moment, K'Kruhk opened his eyes and breathed heavily. "Master, what is the matter?"
"Find Rahm Kota, tell him to come here immediately" replied K'Kruhk.
"At once, master" said Chelaa. She ran off.
Meanwhile
"Understood" said Fey'lya into his comlink. He got out a hologram projected and brought up a hologram of Ghetro. "I have news, captain; your men have discovered strange black spheres within both sides of the building"
"And what purpose would they have?" asked Ghetro.
"We do not know yet" replied Fey'lya "They are obviously connected to our investigation"
"Fey'lya, we have something urgent" said a rebel trooper through Fey'lya's comlink.
"What is it, sergeant?" asked Fey'lya.
"The sphere; it's some kind of bomb" replied the rebel trooper "It's counting down"
Meanwhile
"We should deactivate them as quickly as possible" said Ghetro "Are there any signs of—"
"Captain, the ship is under attack!" said a rebel trooper from the ship's comlink "It's some kind of droid, it just entered from the hanger. We're holding our own against it but we're being depleted fast; damn thing has a shield!"
"Is it a droideka?" asked Ghetro.
"No, it isn't" replied the rebel trooper "For one thing, it's got only two legs. Wait; I think it's found-AHHHHH!"
"Oh no!" said Ghetro "We're going to need more help"
Meanwhile
A hologram projector that Luke held in his pocket began to buzz. He got it out and brought up a hologram of Ghetro.
"Captain Ghetro, what's happening?" asked Luke.
"Commander Skywalker, we need your help" said Ghetro "A droid is attacking the ship and the men can't stop it because it has a powerful shield"
"IWAI!" said Luke "Just hang on; I'll be there shortly" He switched the hologram off.
"I'm coming too" said Ahsoka "You'll need help fighting him"
"So am I" said Leia.
"With all due respect, Leia; I think it might be too dangerous for you" said Luke.
"You'll need everyone to take down that thing" said Leia whilst grabbing her blaster from the table "I'm coming, whether you like it or not" Luke knew that there was no way to convince her otherwise, not when she had already made up her mind.
"C'mon; we can take the shuttle I brought down" said Luke.
Meanwhile
Kota ran up to K'Kruhk in the memorial garden.
"You wanted to see me, K'Kruhk" said Kota.
"Master Kota, I have urgent news" said K'Kruhk.
"What is it?" asked Kota.
"I was meditating when I felt a dark disturbance in the Force" said K'Kruhk "It was just a flicker at first, but I knew it was dangerous; so I decided to reach out further. I moved myself to higher ground and meditated harder until I eventually traced it to the planet Korriban"
"The Sith homeworld?" said Kota "But it is nothing but ruins; all that is left of the ancient Sith are their spirits, and they cannot interact with the physical world"
"Perhaps not" said K'Kruhk "But from what I saw, things are about to change"
K'Kruhk's flashback
K'Kruhk walked through the Valley of the Sith Lords in an astral state.
"As you know, spirits cannot interact physically with the material world. They can appear to us and even communicate with us, but they cannot physically harm us. But things are always changing…"
Suddenly, a pile of bones arose up from the ground and formed together into the form of a skeletal Sith warrior wielding a scimitar-like weapon. The skeleton screamed like a banshee and charged towards K'Kruhk, who quickly ignited his lightsaber and blocked the attack before performing a powerful spin and shattering it.
"As the war grows, so too does the power of the dark side. And as the dark side grows stronger, their power grows as well. They are getting closer to becoming a physical threat. But it is even worse than that; something is making them grow stronger…"
The ground in front of him started cracking with black mist arising.
"An ancient evil has awakened…one that is growing powerful by every second…"
A humanoid covered in mist arose from the cracks. K'Kruhk's mouth fell open. The humanoid began to utter an ancient Sith language of unknown origin. The black mist around it began to swirl around it. K'Kruhk immediately turned around and began running until eventually vanishing.
Back to reality
"The dark side's power is making the Sith spirits stronger?" said Kota "We have to do something about this. I'll lead an expedition to Korriban immediately"
"No!" said K'Kruhk "We must find out the source of the spirits power first and then go to confront it. Remember, do not go to Korriban without knowing what to do first; if you go unprepared and not knowing what your true objective is, you'll be lost there forever"
"Then we'll find out what this ancient power is" said Kota.
"Good" said K'Kruhk "Remember; do not underestimate the dark side's power, or we will all suffer indefinitely. We'll discuss the rest of this later; right now...I must rest"
Meanwhile
Luke landed his shuttle in the hanger of the Liberty.
"How can we stop him?" said Ahsoka "I mean; I was able to damage him, but not stop him"
"IWAI's intelligent, got a bit too intelligent for the Empire's own good" said Luke "But he's still following his programming, which means he can't be reasoned with. We'll have to take him down strategically, aim for weak points"
"Any advice on any weak points?" asked Ahsoka.
"When Maris encountered IWAI, she said she defeated him by stabbing him through the chest" said Luke.
"Aim for the chest, got it" said Ahsoka.
"If we can get to the chest, that is" said Leia. Luke noticed that she held a lot of grenades on her belt.
"You sure came prepared" said Luke.
"EMP grenades" said Leia "They'll short-circuit any machine; and these ones are modified to stick to almost any surface. Given our chances, we'd better be precise. Also; Fey'lya just contacted me. The troops have discovered bombs in the banking clan's facilities"
"IWAI must have gotten Astar and his henchmen to plant those things" said Ahsoka "How much time do we have?"
"Little less than half an hour" replied Leia "So we'd better hurry"
Meanwhile
"We can't just sit by here and do nothing" said a rebel trooper "Perhaps if we were to take the bomb apart and see how it works
"Then what are we waiting for?" said another rebel trooper. He walked over to the bomb and kneeled down. "Can't see any entry; perhaps I could feel it" He placed his hands on it and tried to feel something that could open it up; but upon touching it, he was electrocuted and collapsed. Another rebel trooper rushed to him and checked his pulse.
"He's dead, sir" said the third rebel trooper.
"We have to alert Fey'lya" said the first rebel trooper "Fey'lya, we've got urgent news. One of our men tried to take the bomb apart but got killed doing it; we're assuming it means we can't touch it"
"Then find some other way to deactivate it" said Fey'lya through his comlink.
"But sir, if we cannot touch it, then how are we supposed to deactivate it?" asked the first rebel trooper.
"Find a way" asked Fey'lya.
Meanwhile
"Sir, good news; we've captured Astar" said a rebel trooper through Fey'lya's comlink "We found his ship and him in it before he could escape"
"That's the news I've been waiting to hear" said Fey'lya "Bring me to him immediately"
"Yes sir" said the rebel trooper.
Meanwhile
"Captain, it's almost at the bridge" said a rebel trooper through the ship's comlink "I'll hold him off as long as I can, but…." The doors to the bridge opened and the body of the rebel trooper was thrown across it. IWAI stepped in, protected by a powerful shield that surrounded him. Ghetro took cover while the rebel troopers aboard the bridge opened fire upon him, but they could not break the shield. A pair of shoulder-mounted cannons retracted out and began shooting various troopers in his way until there were none left. He walked over to a control panel, extended his hands out, and connected into the panel with wires that extended from his wrists. Ghetro looked down and saw a blaster lying on the floor next time. He grabbed the blaster and took a look at it.
"I did promise the admiral I would return this ship safely" said Ghetro quietly "Commander Skywalker, the intruder has reached the bridge and it is doing something to the system"
"Just hang on; we're a few minutes from the bridge, but we're on our way" said Luke through his comlink. Ghetro peered out and looked at IWAI.
"I'm afraid we may not have a few minutes" said Ghetro "Just keep coming; I'll keep him busy" He leapt out and ran over to IWAI, shooting with his blaster. All the shots were deflected by the shield, but it was enough to gain IWAI's attention. IWAI's shoulder cannons turned around and started shooting at Ghetro, who hid behind another control panel. IWAI turned around and walked over to him. Ghetro started shooting again. IWAI reached out of the shield, grabbed Ghetro by the throat, and began squeezing. "You…won't win!"
"I already have" said IWAI. He squeezed harder and harder until eventually suffocating the Mon Calamari. He dropped his corpse on the floor, went back over to the control panel, and connected himself in again. Suddenly, Luke, Ahsoka, and Leia entered the bridge with several rebel troopers behind them. Luke and Ahsoka ignited their lightsabers. "Jedi. Unexpected; but not unprepared for" He turned his shoulder cannons towards them and began shooting. Luke and Ahsoka deflected his blasts with their lightsabers.
"Get to cover; we'll handle this!" said Luke. Leia and the rebel troopers hid behind cover whilst Luke and Ahsoka ran up to IWAI, deflecting every one of his shots.
"He's hacking into the system, Luke" said Leia "Stop him before he takes control of the ship" Luke and Ahsoka threw their lightsabers at the panel, destroying it. IWAI turned around to face them.
"Do you think you have defeated me?" said IWAI "All I need is another panel to hack into, and then I shall have this ship"
"I'm guessing those bombs down there are yours, aren't they?" said Luke "Why attack Muunilinst?"
"You destroyed my legion and forced me to turn to unconventional means of achieving my goal" replied IWAI "The Banking Clan's place in the galactic economy is substantial and cannot simply be removed without permanent damage. The Empire knew this and is the only reason why they were spared. This city is the heart of the clan; without it, the other outposts will fall easily. The galactic economy collapsing, organic lifeforms shall tear each other apart. And when it is over, the remaining individuals will be too weak against my forces. I tell you this because it is not a threat; my plans are already in motion"
"It'll never happen" said Luke "We've found your bombs"
"That may be so; but you cannot touch them once they are active, or you shall die" said IWAI. He began shooting at them again.
Meanwhile
Astar sat handcuffed and locked inside the officer's quarters aboard the Sundered Heart. Fey'lya entered.
"Leave us" said Fey'lya. The two rebel troopers who stood at the door left.
"I was wondering when to expect company" said Astar "Don't worry; I haven't told your men yet that you ran away scared"
"Save your breath!" snarled Fey'lya "I want answers; I know that IWAI contacted you to plant the bombs and the men cannot touch them without dying. Tell me, how do we dispose of them?"
"Do you really think I would know?" said Astar "He was paying us to plant those damn things, not to learn how they work. Besides, I would rather not think about how he cheated us"
"I have no time for your games, scum!" snarled Fey'lya "Now tell me, how do we deactivate them?"
"Well; if you're going to be like that, I'm not telling you anything" said Astar.
"That only implies that you do know something" said Fey'lya. He pulled a shiv out from his pocket.
"You can't be serious" said Astar.
"Are you really going to take that chance?" said Fey'lya. He walked over to Astar and placed the shiv at his throat. "Now; if you know any better, you will tell me everything you know" He began to slowly push the shiv into his throat.
"Wait, there was something!" begged Astar. Fey'lya stopped pressing.
"Talk" said Fey'lya.
"He doesn't know this; but I had him spied upon, no way I was going to blindly follow his orders without having some idea of whatr he was up to" said Astar "One time; it looked like he was programming the bombs and he was connecting with them"
"Connecting?" said Fey'lya.
"He had a cable at the back of his head that was connected with them" said Astar "Once that was done; he seemed to program them without even touching them"
"Of course; they are connected with him" said Fey'lya. He stood up and placed the shiv away. "Remember, we are still within the bomb's vicinity; if you are either lying or don't know, you'll die with the rest of us. And one other thing; don't tell anyone about this" He exited the room. "Princess Leia, I have news for you; I interrogated Astar and he told me something important—"
Meanwhile
"IWAI may be connected to the bombs" said Fey'lya through Leia's comlink.
"I think that's obvious at this stage" said Leia into her comlink.
"By connected, I mean that they are active because he is active" said Fey'lya "I would recommend destroying"
"Got it" said Leia "Luke, we have to get that shield down quick. I've gotten word that we might be able to get rid of the bombs if we destroy IWAI"
"Kind of busy right now" said Luke into his comlink "But we'll do what we can. Ahsoka, let's find cover" The two of them hid behind a control panel. "We have to get that shield down and fast. We'll just need to find what's projecting it" Ahsoka peered out and looked at IWAI carefully. She noticed that a small drone was hovering around IWAI.
"I think I found it" said Ahsoka quietly "He has a drone that looks like it's projecting it, but it's on the inside of the shield"
"Then we use the Force" said Luke quietly.
"We need good concentration so we have to get close, but we can't let him see us" said Ahsoka "We'll need a distraction"
"I'll keep him busy" said Luke quietly. He got up and ran over to IWAI.
"Luke, wait…" said Ahsoka quietly "Always rushing into things…" She put on a small smirk. "Like his father before him" IWAI began shooting at Luke, who deflected each of the shots. Ahsoka crept up to IWAI silently and extended her arm out towards the drone. She slowly began to force-crush it. Suddenly, IWAI turned his head around towards her and shot a cable out from his wrist towards her which stunned her. However, she was able to clench her fist and destroyed the drone, bringing the shield down. Seeing what IWAI was doing to her, Luke leapt up towards him. Suddenly, IWAI turned around and grabbed Luke by the throat.
"Pathetic" said IWAI. Luke desperately stabbed his lightsaber through his chest, but nothing happened.
"H-How…" breathed Luke.
"It is true that my first body had vulnerability in the chest" said IWAI "But I have overcome that weakness" Ahsoka got herself up, ignited her lightsaber, and threw it at IWAI's arm, cutting it clean off and freeing Luke.
"Well you didn't overcome that weakness" smirked Ahsoka. IWAI activate his jets and flew up into the air and began shooting at her and Luke.
"Fire!" said Leia quietly. The rebel troopers pointed their blasters at IWAI and began shooting. Whilst the shots did damage to his body, he still show little sign of weakening and began shooting at them as well. "Luke, try to get him to come down"
"On it" said Luke. He dodged and deflected IWAI's shots. "Ahsoka, could use some help getting up" Ahsoka nodded and ran over to him. Luke leapt at her and she helped boost him up. He grabbed onto IWAI's foot. IWAI attempted to shake him off but he kept his grip firm. He carefully aimed his lightsaber and threw it at his jets, causing him to crash down with Luke leaping off at the last minute.
"Great, Luke" said Leia quietly into her comlink "Now just kept him still" She pulled the EMP grenades from her belt and handed them to the rebel troopers. "Now remember to aim carefully. We can't afford him surviving"
"Did you really think that you could stop me?" said IWAI "I will kill every last one of you and take the ship for myself"
"The makings of your very own fleet" said Luke.
"Everything you did aboard the Tyrannic only delayed the inevitable" said IWAI "I will fulfil my programming and no one shall stand in my—" Suddenly, two rebel troopers shot cables at his arms to try to hold him back. Whilst it temporarily subdued him, he soon broke free and flung them out of the way. He then stomped over to Luke, looking like he was about to break him in half.
"Now!" said Leia, She and the other rebel troopers threw their EMP grenades at IWAI, which stuck to him. IWAI managed to grab one in mid-air. He looked down at it in his palm and realized that it wouldn't come off.
"This is not over" said IWAI before the grenades went off and deactivated him.
Meanwhile
The timer on the bombs faded to black, just as it was about to hit 0:00.
"The timer's disappeared!" said a rebel trooper into his comlink "The bombs aren't active!"
Meanwhile
"Good" said Fey'lya into his comlink "Congratulations, princess; the information I found out was correct, the bombs really were tied to IWAI. The city is safe" At that moment, C-3PO and R2 entered.
"I thought I heard a commotion outside" said C-3PO "Do you know what it was?"
Meanwhile
"That's a relief" said Leia "Alright; let's get this place cleaned up" Luke walked over and kneeled down to the dead body of Captain Ghetro. Ahsoka walked over to him and kneeled next to him.
"If he hadn't stood up to IWAI, we would've lost the ship" said Luke "Because of him, we won"
"I know it's hard; but I know from experience that not everyone's going to survive a war" said Ahsoka "Whether it's close friends or people you know of, their deaths won't ever be easy. But who he was and what he did won't be forgotten. Not while we still have hope"
"What are we to do with the remains?" said a rebel trooper who looked over the deactivated IWAI.
"Destroy them" said Luke "We can't let a single piece survive. If not, he may come back somehow; we can't take the chance"
Later
The Sundered Heart lay on a landing pad on Corellia. Luke, Ahsoka, and Leia sat in the cockpit.
"Well; looks like Astar was able to bribe his way out" said Leia whilst placing away a holopad about Astar's trial "Even when we found Imperial transmissions of weapon dealings onboard his ship. He really does know which strings to pull"
"But what about his involvement with IWAI?" said Luke.
"Since he's not officially affiliated with the Empire, the Alliance can't trial him" said Leia "And he's out of the derestriction of the Banking Clan. He is the most powerful crime lord on Corellia; Corellia's government has been trying to get him in long before the war started. Good thing is he won't be dealing with IWAI again"
"Do you really think he's gone?" said Ahsoka "IWAI I mean"
"He blew up once but survived" said Luke "But we made sure his entire body was disposed of this time"
"The thing is; with the war growing bigger each day, non-Imperial threats like IWAI could be too distracting" said Ahsoka.
"You're right; our forces are stretching across the galaxy, we're growing thinner each day" said Leia "But let's not worry about that right now, you two have a war to return to" At that moment, a police officer entered.
"Excuse me; are you Ahsoka Tano?" asked the police officer.
"Yes" replied Ahsoka "What is it?" The police officer handed her a sheet of paper. "What a second; this is a fine for attempted assault. What is the meaning of this; who issued it?"
"Borsk Fey'lya" replied the police officer.
"I don't believe" said Ahsoka whilst clenching the fine "I didn't do it"
"That doesn't matter" said the officer "You still have to pay nonetheless" He exited. Ahsoka heaved a sigh.
"How could he do this?" said Ahsoka "He's got the police in his pocket as well?"
"This is completely ridiculous" said Luke "There has to be some proof; we have to prove her innocent"
"Luke, I know it's bad; but you can't fight Fey'lya" said Leia "There are some fights you just can't win"
"But we have to do something" said Luke "He can't just get away with this, especially since he was the one who attempted assault"
"Muunilinst is the neutral ground; and as members of the Rebellion, you cannot go back there unless invited" said Leia "And I doubt they're going to invite you back simply to find clues and witnesses"
"Then what should we do?" asked Luke.
"Just stay away from Fey'lya" replied Leia "Believe me, you don't want to drag the whole Order into this"
Meanwhile
Rahm Kota and K'Kruhk walked through the halls towards Mon Mothma's office.
"I still think we should send an expedition" said Kota "With the war going on, we need to stop anything that could provide a distraction"
"As dangerous as the threat is, it would unwise" replied K'Kruhk "We need to the find out what the exact source of their power before going there. If history has taught us anything, going in blind will only lead to disaster. But we cannot ignore it" They reached the door to the office.
"We'll keep a close eye on the situation then" said Kota. They entered the office. However, it was not Mon Mothma who sat at the desk, rather her new aide Lei Sarke.
"Hello, Master Jedi" said Sarke "I wasn't expecting your presence"
"What are you doing?" asked Kota "Where's Mon Mothma?"
"You didn't hear?" said Sarke "She's stepped down as Chief-of-State earlier today"
"Then who's in that position now?" asked K'Kruhk.
"I am" said Sarke "She personally passed the position onto me. Gentlemen, I look forward to working with you; together, we can make a very bright future for the Alliance"
Author's note #1: I hope IWAI's defeat wasn't too Deus ex Machina. I was originally planning for R2 to connect to the bombs and have a full Matrix-style fight with IWAI, but that felt a little too elaborate.
Author's note #2: Yeah, the name Korriban sounds better than Moraband.