Episode 3 – Sith in the Senate
The Senate: Massacred! In their initial attack on the Republic, the Sith have wiped out the entire delegations of over half of the Republic's systems! The smoke having cleared, the Republic is asking how it happened! On Coruscant, Supreme Chancellor Leia Organa-Solo awaits the arrival of a special Jedi Investigator, so the Republic can finally have answers!
Coruscant, the Office of the Supreme Chancellor…
Armed guards stood posted around the Chancellor's office as the front doors opened, allowing Leia and her aid, an Arkanian Offshoot woman with solid white skin, long silver hair, and pointed ears named Aleera, to enter. Aleera was in the process of listing Leia's appointments for the day to her.
"-You also have an appointment with the Senator from Onderon, and then Grand General Marek has requested an audience, oh and the Jedi have confirmed the Investigator's arrival on Coruscant. He'll be arriving shortly." Aleera said as Leia sat down at her desk with a sigh that was both relief and minor frustration.
"And how long until my term expires?" Leia asked wryly as Aleera smiled sympathetically.
"One year and two months, Chancellor." Aleera said as Han and Chewbacca entered with C-3PO close behind.
"Well I see you're getting situated already." Han said as Leia brought up a holographic display on her desk.
"I'm just anxious to find out how the Sith were able to infiltrate the Senate Building without our knowing it." Leia said before noticing the guards.
"Guards, you're dismissed." Leia said, the guards promptly turning and leaving the room before a hologram of Leia's droid secretary appeared.
"Chancellor, a representative from Republic Military Command is here with the preliminary investigation results for you." The secretary said.
"Send him in." Leia said as the hologram disappeared.
"This I'm anxious to hear." Han said as he took a seat on one of the couches, Chewbacca roaring in agreement as the doors opened, allowing General Maximilian Veers to enter. Veers, having been captured at the Battle of Hoth, had remained a prisoner of the Alliance until he finally defected to the Rebellion at Endor after learning that Vader had defected as well, and was now a loyal officer of the Republic military.
"Chancellor, General Solo." Veers greeted with polite nods to his superiors, standing at attention.
"General Veers, please tell me you have some answers for us." Leia said as Veers produced a datapad.
"Not as much as I'd like, Chancellor. We've traced the Sith's movements and determined that many of them arrived on Coruscant on a number freighters that had been declared missing or confirmed captured by Pirates in the months prior to the attack. Upon arriving on Coruscant, they remained hidden until the day of the attack where they entered the Senate building by using a set of Senator level access codes." Veers explained as Leia seemed startled when he mentioned the access codes.
"Senator Level? Those are codes that only the Senators themselves are given." Leia said, visibly disturbed by the news.
"Which means that this was an inside job." Han said as Leia turned back to Veers.
"Do we know who the traitor is?" Leia asked but Veers shook his head.
"Regretfully, no. The Sith released a worm into the Senate building's systems, causing widespread data corruption. We were, however, able to retrieve a fragment of the code they used. We've already cross-referenced the codes and narrowed the search down to several senators." Veers said as he handed the datapad to Leia who started to look through the list.
"Some of these senators were killed in the Sith attack." Leia said, continuing to look the pad over.
"Regardless, we are not eliminating them as suspects until we have undisputable evidence that clears them." Veers said as Leia froze at one of the names on the list.
"Hold on, you have Pooja Naberrie of Naboo on this list?" Leia asked, startled to see her cousin on the list of suspects.
"The parts of the Sith access code we recovered matches parts of her own access code. Such is the case with each of the senators on the list." Veers said as the hologram of Leia's secretary reappeared.
"Chancellor, the Jedi Investigator has arrived." The secretary said as Leia sensed the Jedi's presence and glanced at Han for a second, her expression making Han look back at her confused for a moment before a look of realization swept over his face.
"Oh no, you don't mean-…" Han groaned, earning a death glare from Leia as if daring him to continue. Leia then turned back to the hologram of the droid.
"Send him in." Leia said, the hologram deactivating.
"If I should leave I certainly can, with your permission Chancellor." Veers said, unsure of the Chancellor and her husband's behavior.
"That won't be necessary." Leia said as she stood up. The doors then opened, allowing a familiar breathing sound to echo into the room. Veers froze at the sound. Sure enough, Anakin Skywalker entered, flanked by a pair of 501st Stormtroopers.
"I believe you were expecting someone different, Chancellor." Anakin said Veers gulped nervously at the sight of the Jedi Master in his old Vader suit.
"I thought it was going to be Master Katarn." Leia said as Anakin approached, not paying much attention to anyone but her.
"He is here. He is the investigator the council sent. I am here to provide whatever assistance I can." Anakin said as the Stormtroopers assumed positions next to the doors as Kyle walked in.
"Sorry I'm late, Chancellor. I got some static from your guards about my blaster until I showed them my identification." Kyle said as Han stood up.
"Well welcome anyway. It's nice to have someone other than my father-in-law here." Han mumbled, earning a glare from Anakin. Han and Anakin didn't get along that well, most of it stemming from Han's being frozen in carbonite on Vader's order, and Anakin's having been Vader in general, but Anakin did approve of Han's marrying Leia so there was some level of respect between the two. Leia had been informed of the nicer part of her father's past from Hers, Luke's, and Galen Marek's own investigations into the Skywalker family and in the end had forgiven him for much of his dark past as Vader, although there were some matters that just were never discussed in general…Alderaan being one of them.
"L-Lord Vader?" Veers asked, surprised by Skywalker's reversion back to his old suit. Anakin turned his glare to the former Imperial General.
"That name means nothing to me anymore. I may retain my old appearance, but underneath I am Anakin Skywalker, General Veers." Anakin said Veers gulped and gave a courteous nod.
"My apologies milord." Veers said as Anakin glanced away from the General.
"It is I who should apologize. Having been forced back into this…prison has left me in a disputatious mood." Anakin said as he stepped aside, moving to stand next to but not in front of the large windows into the office, standing next to 3PO. Veers was beside himself. He had never seen or heard of Vader apologizing before.
"Oh it's so good to see you again Master Anakin." 3PO said happily, not at all intimidated by Anakin's visage.
"The feeling is mutual, 3PO." Anakin said as Kyle cleared his throat.
"I got a copy of the preliminary investigation report. I think it's best that we not count anyone on this list out until we have proof to the contrary, dead or not." Kyle said as he held up a datapad of his own.
"The Sith are known for doing away with those who have outlived their usefulness. Any of the deceased Senators could easily have been the traitor." Anakin added, quickly turning to glare at Han before he could make a snide comment.
"Do you have any leads, Kyle?" Leia asked.
"Actually I want to take a stab at trying to restore the access code used in the attack. Not meaning to put down the Republic's own team of slicers, but I have a contact here on Coruscant that I believe could pull it off." Kyle said as Veers looked at him suspiciously.
"What sort of contact?" Veers asked.
"The kind that you'd never meet with in years, Max. Want to come along?" Kyle asked as Veers gave him a cold glare.
"A Jedi going into the underworld. How undignified." Veers sniffed.
"Don't underestimate the Jedi. We regularly go where few dare trod in order to find what we are seeking. No one ever said being a Jedi was glamorous or dignified." Anakin said.
"Yeah, I mean come on, why do you think Leia keeps me around?" Han asked with a smirk as he stood up.
"A question that regularly reoccurs in my mind." Anakin muttered, but Han and Leia both ignored it.
"If you want someone to come with you, Kyle, I'll join you." Han said as Chewy roared in agreement.
"I could use the company. Jan's busy running supplies for the Republic and I'd love to have someone to talk to." Kyle said as Han checked his blaster before heading towards the door with Chewbacca close behind.
"Try not to get him into trouble!" Leia called as Kyle gave a bow.
"I'll try, Chancellor." He said before getting tapped on the shoulder by Han.
"I think she was talking to me." Han said as they walked out the door which closed behind them.
"Anyway, back to our end of the investigation." Leia said as Veers cleared his throat.
"I'm afraid it's all pretty much straightforward. I have no more leads to follow. In retrospect I suppose that is why you asked for help from the Jedi." Veers said as Leia nodded understandingly.
"Now I suppose there's only one question left to answer for the moment." Leia said before turning to her father, "Why are you here exactly?"
"To provide whatever aid I can in the investigation. I know who this new Dark Lord is and knowing that, I may be able to help identify the traitor." Anakin said as Leia seemed thoughtful.
"Have you seen the list of suspects? One of them is Pooja." Leia said as Anakin seemed startled.
"Pooja?" Anakin asked, concerned.
"Forgive me, Chancellor, milord, but I'm not sure I fully grasp the severity of one senator's presence on the list of suspects." Veers said.
"Pooja Naberrie is…a close friend of the family." Anakin said, hesitant to mention the fact that Pooja was technically his niece.
"Besides that, Senator Naberrie was wounded during the attack. Last I heard, she was back on Naboo, recovering from her injuries." Leia said.
"Then perhaps we should wait on speaking with her until she is able to meet with us." Anakin said as Veers nodded in agreement.
"I would concur. While there isn't any confirming evidence, we do have security footage of her openly attacking the Sith before being wounded." Veers said as he sat down.
"Chancellor, if I may." Aleera said after having been silent for so long, mostly due to being fearful of Anakin by his mere presence, "In looking at the list of suspects, I noticed that one of the suspects includes the Senator from Onderon. You're scheduled to meet with him later today."
"That's a good point. General, do you think you could stick around for the meeting?" Leia asked as Veers seemed mildly surprised by the invitation.
"I would be honored, Chancellor." Veers said.
"Who is the Senator from Onderon?" Anakin asked curiously.
"That would be Senator Lux Bonteri, Master Anakin." 3PO replied, Anakin suddenly stiffening.
"Father, something wrong?" Leia asked, concerned.
"Senator Bonteri…I think we might have our prime suspect." Anakin said, confusing Leia and Veers.
"Bonteri? What makes you so sure?" Leia asked as Anakin started to pace back and forth in the office.
"During the Clone Wars, Onderon had joined the Separatists but over time, the citizens of Onderon grew weary of Separatist rule and began to rebel. One of the youngest members of the Onderon Rebellion was Lux Bonteri. His mother was Onderon's Senator and Representative to both the Republic Senate and later the Separatist Parliament. She was assassinated by Dooku for even daring to suggest peace negotiations with the Republic, leaving her son on his own. Bonteri became a member and prominent leader of the Onderon Rebellion, but at the same time, he became close to a young Jedi Padawan, a Togruta by the name of Ahsoka Tano." Anakin said as Leia realized her father's train of thought.
"He knew Ahsoka before she fell?" Leia asked as Anakin stopped pacing, looking at Leia.
"Yes." He said softly.
"Excuse me Master Anakin, Mistress Leia, but I'm afraid I'm not quite sure who it is we are talking about." 3PO said, as Veers nodded in agreement.
"I must agree with the droid. Who is this Tano woman?" Veers asked.
"Ahsoka Tano was my Padawan during the Clone Wars. She left the order after being falsely accused of plotting a suicide bombing and when no one but me believed her. She was proven innocent of the charges but her faith in the Order was forever shaken and she left. Her whereabouts after that time are unknown, but there is evidence to suggest that at some point, she came under the thralldom of the Emperor. He trained her in the ways of the Dark Side in secret, keeping her in reserve for a moment when they could both destroy me. However the Emperor was killed before they had a chance. Now, after almost thirty years in hiding, she has revealed herself as the new Dark Lord of the Sith. She has ceased to be Ahsoka Tano, and has become Darth Akul. She is the leader of the Sith threat we now face." Anakin explained.
"And you think Senator Bonteri might be connected to her?" Leia asked, curiously.
"There was a definite attraction twixt the two of them, but beyond that, there is nothing else to suggest a connection." Anakin replied.
"And he was one of the few Senators who was absent when the Sith attacked." Veers added.
"Given his past association with Ahsoka, the fact his codes match the fragment used by the Sith during their attack, and the fact he was absent when it happened seems to implicate him as our most likely suspect." Anakin concluded.
"Then let us see if Senator Bonteri can prove his innocence in the matter. The fact that his codes are a match for our list of suspects does not bode well for him." Veers said but Leia wasn't convinced.
"I wouldn't be too quick to condemn Senator Bonteri. I've served with him in the Senate for years. He's been Onderon's Senator since the Clone Wars, and I know for a fact that he was a private supporter of the Rebellion. He was instrumental in helping the Rebellion take down an Imperial base during that time." Leia said, Anakin glancing her way.
"This is true." Anakin said.
"Then let's see what we can find out from the Senator." Veers said.
Meanwhile…
"This is nuts." Han mumbled as he and Chewbacca, with Kyle close by, walked the streets of Coruscant's seedier districts.
"How long has it been since you got out of the clouds Han?" Kyle asked with an amused smirk.
"Only long enough to get shot at." Han mumbled.
"You miss those days as a smuggler don't you?" Kyle asked.
"Only when my father-in-law's around." Han said as Kyle laughed.
"I'll have to remember to tell that to old Skywalker." Kyle said as Han shrugged, nonplussed about the notion.
"Go ahead. Won't change anything. What's he going to do, freeze me in carbonite again?" Han asked as Chewy roared something with a grin.
"Don't give him any ideas, Chewy." Han said up to the Wookiee.
"So do you think we've walked long enough?" Kyle asked.
"Depends. Are those goons still following us?" Han asked back.
"Yes but they're the ones we're looking for." Kyle said as they stopped, turning around to face a Rodian and two Gran bodyguards armed with blasters.
"Are you lost, human?" The Rodian asked in Huttese.
"Actually it's a friend of ours that's lost. Perhaps you know Griff Vao?" Kyle asked as the Rodian seemed mildly surprised.
"Vao? Why are you looking for-...never mind, who's asking?" The Rodian asked as Kyle crossed his arms over his chest.
"Oh just an old friend Griff knows from an incident on Nar Shaddaa a few years back." Kyle said as the Rodian mumbled something to his Gran guards before stepping behind them, the guards standing between him and the Rodian as he whispered into a comlink, glancing occasionally towards Kyle, Solo, and Chewbacca. After about a minute of hushed conversation, the Rodian walked back towards them.
"Vao's set up a meet at the Biscuit Baron in the Coco District, this afternoon. Bring credits." The Rodian said before walking away with the Gran close behind.
"Biscuit Baron? The fast-food place?" Han asked as Kyle smirked.
"Trust me, I know what I'm doing." Kyle said as they signaled an air taxi.
Back in the Chancellor's Office…
Anakin had withdrawn himself to a side room in Leia's office so as not to intimidate the Senator of Onderon, or any other persons that may enter the room, by the sight of the former Dark Lord. He was taking the opportunity to do something he hadn't done in years: Simple maintenance work on C-3PO. As he sat on a bench, 3PO's chest panel lying next to him and with 3PO himself standing offline in front of him, Anakin couldn't help but notice the nervous glances he was receiving from Leia's aid, Aleera.
"You have nothing to fear from me, Aleera. The Dark Lord I resemble is long dead." Anakin said, not taking his eyes off of 3PO's circuitry. Aleera shifted uncomfortably as she sorted several papers and datapads.
"Forgive me, Master Jedi, I know. It's just…well the legends and stories about you…" Aleera said, her sentence dropping off.
"All of those are in the past. I am no longer the monster that was Darth Vader, I am Anakin Skywalker." Anakin replied, picking up a hydrospanner.
"I know, sir." Aleera said.
"But it is strange to see me performing so mundane a task." Anakin concluded as Aleera blushed slightly.
"Well…yes sir." She said, causing a small chuckle to escape from the Jedi Master.
"I've always enjoyed working with machinery. I've always felt at home working on it. I suppose it's appropriate now that I'm more machine than man." Anakin said with a hint of amusement in his voice, something that Vader would never show. Their conversation was interrupted when Anakin's comlink beeped. Anakin proceeded to raise the comlink, a hologram of one of the 501sts appearing holding a similar comlink.
"Sorry to disturb you, milord, but the Senator from Onderon has arrived and is on his way up to the Chancellor's Office." The trooper reported.
"Thank you for the report, Lieutenant. Remain on guard and monitor any outgoing transmissions from within the Chancellor's office." Anakin ordered, the trooper giving a nod in return.
"Yes milord."The trooper replied before the hologram disappeared. Anakin quickly started replacing 3PO's chest panel, as inside the Chancellor's Office, Leia had just received word from her secretary about the Senator's arrival. General Veers was reviewing the investigation findings again on one of the couches. Soon 3PO and Aleera emerged from the side room where Anakin remained, listening in. Finally the doors opened and Senator Bonteri entered. His hair had turned grey but he maintained it in a well-kept goatee beard. He carried a blaster at his side, a tradition he'd had since helping to win Onderon's freedom from the Confederacy during the Clone Wars. As he entered, he greeted the Chancellor with a friendly smile and a bow.
"Chancellor, it's good to see you again." Lux greeted as Leia bowed back to him.
"Senator Bonteri, the feeling is very mutual. I believe you may know General Veers?" Leia asked as Veers stood at attention, giving the Senator a polite nod, Lux returning the nod with a smile.
"Indeed I do. We met shortly after the Rebellion destroyed an Imperial facility on Onderon during the Galactic Civil War." Lux said as Leia motioned to sit down.
"A pleasure as always, Senator." Veers said as they sat down, Leia clearing her throat as 3PO poured drinks for them.
"Now then, we're here to discuss Onderon's ongoing Piracy problem, correct?" Leia asked as Lux nodded.
"Yes, Chancellor. As I've mentioned before, Onderon has been suffering some supply shortages lately. Entire shipments have simply disappeared. We believe the problem to be Pirates but we have no evidence to back up our assumptions." Lux explained while politely refusing a drink from 3PO.
"Could Sith involvement be possible?" Leia asked as Lux scratched his bearded chin.
"It's entirely possible." Lux said, not noticing the door to the side room open.
"Perhaps it is more possible than it seems, Senator Bonteri." Anakin said, his filtered voice causing the Senator to turn white as a sheet, and slowly turn to see what he assumed to be Darth Vader standing in the doorway.
"I believe you remember my father. Jedi Master Anakin Skywalker?" Leia asked as Lux put his hand to his chest, remembering Vader's true identity and breathing a sigh of relief.
"Force, I'd forgotten. My sincerest apologies General Skywalker." Lux said as Anakin entered the room.
"You say it's possible that the Sith are involved in your homeworld's problems. I'm rather surprised you don't know given your previous association with them." Anakin said, passing behind the Senator towards the couch where Veers now sat. Lux looked confused and insulted.
"What? Me associate with the Sith? Especially after they slaughtered half the Senate?! You may be General Skywalker, but how dare you make such an assumption!" Lux spat angrily.
"Then how do you explain the Sith's use of your access code to infiltrate the Senate building prior to the attack?" Anakin interrogated, Lux now confused and horrified.
"My code? They used my code?!" Lux asked, stunned.
"They did." Anakin replied, staring at the Senator through his Vader mask. Lux leaned against the back of his chair, a look of absolute bewilderment and horror on his face.
"How did they acquire it?" Lux asked, horrified at the implication.
"We were hoping you could tell us, Senator." Veers said but Lux shook his head, still stunned.
"I have no idea how." Lux said as Veers gave him a skeptical glare.
"Is that so?" Veers asked, assuming it to be an act, but was surprised when Anakin put his hand in front of him, motioning to stop.
"He speaks the truth. You truly do not know how your codes were acquired by the Sith." Anakin stated to the Senator as Lux nodded silently, still stunned.
"With respect, milord, but how can you tell?" Veers asked.
"The same way I can. We can sense his emotions and thoughts through the Force. He's telling the truth." Leia said as Veers backed off.
"Then perhaps we should apologize, Senator. We are actually unsure as to whose codes were used to infiltrate the Senate Building. We obtained a fragment of the code and it matched yours as well as the codes of several other Senators. We had to be sure it wasn't you so as to exclude you from suspicion." Anakin said as Lux quickly relaxed, putting a hand to his chest in relief.
"Oh thank the maker!" Lux said, catching his breath.
"So you're excluded from our list of suspects. Which leaves us without a Prime Suspect altogether." Veers said as Leia pondered.
"Then we'll have to hope that Master Katarn can recover the code his own way." Leia said as she turned to gaze out over Coruscant's cityscape outside her window.
Meanwhile…
"Now I feel like a fool." Han grumbled as he and Kyle sat at a booth inside Biscuit Baron while Chewbacca munched in the booth behind them. Kyle was rereading the datapad with the list of suspected Senators and Han sat rapping his fingers on the table.
"You know it's funny. Whenever Skywalker mentions you, the word fool frequently comes up in the conversation." Kyle said causing Han to roll his eyes.
"What's taking this Vao guy so long?" Han asked as Kyle looked over his shoulder towards the kiddie play area before turning back.
"Oh Griff's just finishing up in the ball pit. Shouldn't be too much longer." Kyle said casually, causing Han to suddenly sit up, trying to spot someone in the ball pit but all he could see were a bunch of kids of various races trying to drag an unfortunate Rutian Twi'lek girl back in by pulling on her head-tails.
"Katarn, are you messing with me?" Han asked as Kyle took a sip of a drink.
"Nope."
"I swear if this is a wild bantha chase-…" Han grumbled.
"It's not, I promise you. I know Vao from an incident on Nar Shaddaa and if I know anyone who can recover those codes, it's Vao." Kyle said as Han buried his head in his hands. Finally he heard a young feminine voice speak.
"Hey Kyle, sorry I'm late." Han looked up to see the same Twi'lek girl that was being dragged into the ball pit standing next to their table.
"It's alright Griff. I ordered you the usual." Kyle said, scooting over and allowing the girl to sit down next to him. Han glared at the girl then at Kyle, suspiciously.
"Did you just call her Griff?" Han asked as Kyle nodded.
"I did. Griffon Vao, I'd like to introduce you to Han, he's a good friend of mine." Kyle said as the girl looked at Han curiously.
"You look just like General Solo, you know that?" Griffon said as Han threw his head back in frustration with a groan.
"Kyle, what have you gotten us into? I thought we were on an investigation here, not meeting up for a play date." Han said as Kyle chuckled but Griffon glared at Han in slight annoyance.
"Play date?! I'm no kid! I may be fourteen but I'm no kid!" Griffon argued as Han sighed, burying his head into his hands again. Chewbacca was blissfully ignoring their interactions.
"So Greebie said you were looking for me. What'cha got Kyle?" Griffon asked as Kyle pulled her in close, whispering in her "ear" while showing her the list of suspected senators.
"This is Republic business. We're trying to find out which of these Senators used their access code to infiltrate the Senate Building during the attack last week." Kyle said softly as Griffon looked over the list.
"Hmm, Senator level access codes huh? Anyone in particular you're looking for?" Griffon asked, Han continuing to keep his head buried in his hands.
"Anyone who might have reason for betraying the Republic." Kyle said as Griffon looked the list over some more.
"Hmm…here's something. Senator Bonteri of Onderon. Onderon's been having some issues with Pirates in their area of space and the Republic hasn't really done much to try and help. One of my friends from Onderon mentioned that he saw the Senator meeting with someone a few weeks prior to the attack." Griffon said.
"Someone. No specifics?" Kyle asked as Griffon shrugged helplessly.
"Sorry no. Wait a minute, why are these partial codes? Did you black some of them out to keep me from remembering them?" Griffon asked with a pouty face towards Kyle who raised his hands defensively.
"No, this is all the code we could recover. The Sith unleashed a worm into the system that corrupted it. I was kinda hoping that you could…" Kyle said as Griffon grinned.
"Oh so you're asking for my special service. Okay but this will cost you." Griffon said as Kyle nodded understandingly.
"The usual rate?"
"Not this time. I want something bigger and better." Griffon said as Han glared at Kyle in complete bemusement.
"And that would be?" Kyle asked as Griffon thought for a moment.
"I'll let you know." She replied.
"Alright, so shall we be off?" Kyle asked as a waiter brought a boxed meal to their table.
"We can now." Griffon said as she picked up the box, sliding out of the booth with Kyle following after her. Han rolled his eyes with a sigh as he stood up.
"Come on Chewy, let's go." Han said, earning a roar of protest from the Wookiee.
"It's a boxed lunch, Chewy, you can take it with you!" Han groaned as Chewbacca picked up his meal and followed after them.
…
Moments later, Han, Chewbacca, Kyle and Griffon were seated in an enclosed air-taxi, flying towards the Senate Rotunda. Griffon was snacking on her meal while Han and Chewy remained quiet.
"So you think you can recover the lost code fragments?" Kyle asked as Griffon swallowed.
"Not lost, hidden. It takes a lot to completely erase something from a computer system, even old ones. Even the oldest systems have redundancies built in incase data needs to be recovered. You would have to physically remove specific hard drive systems and destroy them in order to completely destroy something." Griffon explained as the Senate building came into view.
"Just how exactly do you know Kyle?" Han asked as Griffon looked his way.
"We had a little incident on Nar Shaddaa about a year ago. I had kinda run a fowl of a small time crime-boss who sent his goons after me. He was going to make me a part of his harem when Kyle showed up, looking for information on another matter. The crime-boss tried to kill him but Kyle took down the goons and intimidated the crime-boss into freeing us. I helped Kyle find the information he was looking for when I sliced into a computer system controlled by one of the Hutt clans. Kyle helped me cover my tracks and brought me to Coruscant. Now I pretty much make a living on the streets. You know, scamming easy marks, hacking bank accounts controlled by some of the local crime-lords and stealing tiny sums that they'll never miss." Griffon explained.
"That's kinda dangerous, kid." Han said as Griffon shrugged.
"Yeah, but I'm good at covering my tracks." Griffon said.
"Listen kid, take it from me. It's no fun having a price on your head." Han said as Griffon nodded understandingly.
"I know, and after today, I won't have to worry about that." Griffon said, earning a confused look from Han.
"Ah so now we're talking price." Kyle deduced as Griffon smiled up at him.
"You got it."
"So what do you want in exchange?" Kyle asked.
"I've always wanted to examine a Jedi lightsaber, to study its workings. I have some ideas as to how they work, but I want to see. I don't really want to be a Jedi, but I would like to help you guys out. Perhaps I can be of use on Yavin at your Academy." Griffon said as Kyle smirked.
"Well we're not at Yavin anymore, but I think we can arrange something." Kyle said as Griffon reclined in her seat as the air-taxi touched down just outside the rotunda.
Back at the Chancellor's office…
"What I don't understand is, aside from the codes, why suspect me?" Lux asked.
"Do you remember my old Apprentice, Ahsoka Tano?" Anakin asked, Lux looking at him with a mixture of surprise and curiosity.
"Very well. In fact I was just thinking about her the other day. But what does she have to do with this?" Lux asked.
"There is something you should know about Ahsoka, Senator." Anakin said before the comlink on Leia's desk chimed. Leia immediately answered it, allowing a hologram of the 501st Lieutenant from earlier to appear.
"Pardon the interruption, Chancellor but Senator Naberrie from Naboo is here to see you." The Lieutenant reported as Leia's eyes sparkled with delight. Anakin however felt a sudden apprehension towards being there.
"Send her in please." Leia said, relieved to hear her cousin had recovered so quickly from her injuries.
"Yes ma'am." The Lieutenant replied before the hologram disappeared.
"I'll be in the other room if you need me." Anakin said, attempting to escape but the door into the side room suddenly slammed shut in his face. Anakin turned to see Leia with her hand raised slightly. She had shut the door with the Force.
"Don't, please." Leia said pleadingly.
"But I-…" Anakin said, his sentence dropping off. Whenever a member of Padme's side of the family was near or their presence was impending, he tried to make himself scarce, unsure of what their reaction to his presence might be. He still felt guilty about being the ultimate cause of Padme's demise, despite his redemption.
"Please." Leia said softly. Veers, Aleera, and Lux didn't understand the interaction between father and daughter, assuming that he didn't want to frighten the Senator by his presence. None of them knew or suspected that it was because he was technically Pooja's uncle. Anakin refused to back down, prying the doors open with his cybernetics enhanced strength and slipping through into the next room, much to Leia's frustration, mere seconds before the doors to the Chancellor's office opened, allowing Pooja and a slightly older woman to enter. Pooja was walking with a beautiful cane decorated in the same colors as the exterior walls and roof of the Royal Palace in Theed. The older woman was helping her into the room.
"Pooja, it's good to see you again so soon. How are you feeling?" Leia asked as she moved to embrace her cousin in a hug.
"A lot better than I was the last time we met. I'd be even better if my nurse-maid would let me breathe for a moment." Pooja said, shooting the woman next to her a coy smirk.
"My sister has always been an independent spirit, Chancellor." The older woman said, slightly surprising Leia.
"Sister?" Leia asked. She could sense her father's apprehension growing in the next room, revealing that he was listening in. Pooja however, chuckled and smiled.
"Leia, I'd like to introduce you to my big sister, Ryoo. Ryoo, this is Leia Organa Solo, Supreme Chancellor of the New Republic, and our cousin." Pooja introduced as the woman gave a polite curtsey. Veers and Lux both exchanged surprised looks, neither of them having known that Pooja and Leia were cousins in the first place.
"A pleasure to meet you, Leia. I've been dying to meet you for years. I just don't enjoy space travel." Ryoo said, grimacing slightly as she mentioned space travel.
"I heartily agree, Mistress. I've never cared much for it myself." 3PO said as he stepped in to help Pooja into a chair.
"I'm glad to see you're alive and well, Senator. I'd heard that you were wounded during the Sith attack and I feared the worst." Lux said as Pooja gave him a dismissive wave and a smile.
"I'm fine, Lux. Thank you. I just took a blaster bolt to the side. I'm not seriously hurt or terminally ill. But I do have this with me for a while." Pooja said, motioning to her cane.
"So why are you back here on Coruscant instead of on Naboo recovering?" Leia asked as she retook her seat, everyone else sitting down as well.
"I wanted to get back to work as soon as possible. Ryoo said she wasn't letting me out of her sight so she opted to come with me. She's been my faithful caregiver these past few days." Pooja said as Ryoo smiled, sitting down on the couch near Veers.
"I don't want my sister ending up like our…other famous relative." Ryoo said, earning a curious look from Leia.
"Luke?" She guessed but Ryoo shook her head with a smile.
"No, I meant our Aunt, your mother, Padme Amidala." Ryoo said as Veers cleared his throat.
"I believe it's probably safe to correct it now and say her name was Padme Skywalker." Veers said before getting a dark glare from Ryoo.
"It's Amidala." She said slowly.
"Well it's still good to see meet you anyway." Leia said to her cousin while, in the side room, Anakin sat down on a bench, entering a meditative trance. As he meditated, he sensed a sudden disturbance in the Force.
Meanwhile in the Senate Building…
"So this is where the Senate meets. Huh. I'm honestly not impressed." Griffon said as she, Han, Chewbacca, and Kyle stood staring up into the Senate Chamber from the Chancellor's podium in its docking station beneath the Senate Chamber itself.
"Just be happy you're even in here in the first place. Usually only Leia and a few people on a very short list are allowed in here." Han said, leaning against a wall just over Griffon's shoulder as she sat down at the Chancellor's desk.
"But this is also the only computer terminal that has the most unrestricted access to the Senate systems." Kyle said as Griffon cracked her knuckles.
"In that case, this shouldn't take long at all." She said as she brought up a holo-display and started working feverishly, bringing up a list of Senate security code usage and instantly filtering the results by Senator level, then by the fragmented code, bringing up the exact same list that Veers had compiled in the report.
"How long did it take you guys to find this data in the first place?" Griffon asked.
"About a week, give or take." Kyle replied as Griffon gave a pitying chuckle.
"Wow really? I was able to do in a matter of seconds what it takes you guys to do in a week? Geez no wonder they were able to infiltrate so easily." Griffon said as she plugged in a data-stick and activated some sort of program on the stick.
"So how long will it take you to recover the full code?" Kyle asked.
"A few minutes tops. I wrote this program myself and I've given it the code definitions for as many viruses and software worms I can find to help make extrapolating missing code more easily." Griffon explained, Han and Chewbacca both looking at her with blank stares. Chewy then roared something to Han.
"I have no idea what she just said either, Chewy." Han replied as Griffon rolled her eyes, neither of them noticing as Kyle started to glance around the room curiously.
"I mean, it knows how to identify viruses and worms so it can work around them to recover missing data." Griffon explained.
"Why didn't you say that in the first place?" Han asked, Kyle quietly reaching for his Bryar pistol.
"I did!" She argued before suddenly being shushed by Kyle, his pistol drawn.
"We're not alone." He said, as Han and Chewbacca both prepared their weapons.
"What is it?" Han asked.
"Not sure, but I sense a disturbance in the Force. Something is here with us." Kyle said as the computer chimed, Griffon looking at the computer.
"We have it! The code the Sith used to infiltrate is…" Griffon said as Han leaned in close to the console.
"No way! It can't be!" Han exclaimed.
"Who is it?" Kyle asked.
"It's the Senator from-KYLE BEHIND YOU!" Han exclaimed quickly firing towards the Jedi Master who quickly ducked, causing the blaster bolt to strike something invisible. Kyle quickly spun around as a figure in light black armor from head to toe appeared from out of nowhere on the ground behind him, a smoking blaster hole in its head. The figure had a blaster pistol and a vibroblade in its hands.
"I have a bad feeling about this!" Han exclaimed as Griffon quickly downloaded the information from the terminal onto her data-stick before pocketing the device.
"Who is that guy?!" Griffon exclaimed.
"I'd put my money on Sith Assassins!" Han said, opening the door into the hallway just in time for a vibroblade to come swinging down towards him, narrowly missing the ex-smuggler. Kyle quickly fired his Bryar pistol into the hall, shooting down the assassin before holstering his blaster and activating his lightsaber.
"Sith Assassins is probably a safe bet, Han! We need to get out of here!" Kyle said before Chewbacca grabbed Griffon, allowing her to ride on his back as they started running down the hall, almost instantly running into a pair of Republic Senate guards.
"General Solo, we heard blaster fire! What's going on?!" one of the guards asked.
"Sound the alarm, we've got Sith in the building again and they're trying to stop us from exposing a traitor!" Han said as the guards nodded with determined expressions.
"Yes sir! Right away sir!" the guard replied as he put a hand to his earpiece, allowing Han, Kyle, and Chewy to run past. Chewbacca then roared something as they ran.
"Yeah, I know!" Han said to the Wookiee.
"Who was it, Han?" Kyle asked as they stopped, Han reaching into his belt and pulling out a communicator.
"You'll have to find out along with Leia. She's gonna be crushed, I just know it." Han said as he raised the communicator up.
"This is General Solo contacting the Chancellor's office, priority one!" Han said into the communicator, but he received only static. He repeated his message but again, static.
"I have a very bad feeling about this." Han said as Chewbacca roared in agreement.
"What's wrong?" Kyle asked.
"That was the direct line to Leia's receptionist! Someone's cut the communications to her office!" Han said as Kyle looked startled for a moment then reached for his belt, pulling out a comlink.
"What good is that going to do? He just said the comms have been cut!" Griffon said as Kyle smirked up at her.
"The Chancellor's perhaps, but Han, Chewy, and I all know that there's one comlink that's not tied into the Chancellor's office right now but darn near close enough!" Kyle said, Han and Chewbacca looking at each other knowingly.
"Never thought I'd say this, but let's hope he'll take my call!" Han said as he took the comlink from Kyle.
Back in the Chancellor's Office…
"So I've been meaning to ask, but why is there a Republic General in here?" Pooja asked, looking at Veers.
"As a matter of fact, I'm here as a representative of the Republic Military. We've been investigating how the Sith were able to infiltrate the Senate Building last week." Veers said as Pooja and Ryoo looked at him, surprised.
"Really? Any leads?" Pooja asked, neither of them noticing as Leia put a hand to her forehead, wincing slightly.
"A few, actually." Veers said, holding up the datapad.
"Chancellor are you alright?" Lux asked, noticing Leia's reactions.
"No. There's something wrong. There's a great disturbance in the Force. Almost as if-…" Leia said but she was interrupted when she felt a strange sense of shock coming from her father. She glanced towards the door into the side room, not noticing as the 501st Stormtroopers flanking the doors leading into the Chancellor's Office from the hallway both put a hand to the sides of their helmets, listening into their comlinks.
"Chancellor?" Aleera asked, concerned.
"Leia is something wrong?" Pooja asked. Before Leia could reply, the 501sts had raised their blasters towards the most unlikely person: Pooja herself.
"Don't move, Senator." One of the guards ordered, causing Pooja to turn around, startled, and then raise her hands in clueless surrender.
"What is the meaning of this?!" Lux asked, pulling his blaster and training it on one of the Stormtroopers, one of them turning his blaster towards the Onderon Senator. At the same time, Veers drew his blaster and aimed it at Bonteri. 3PO and Aleera were both cowering against the wall nearby.
"We have orders to place the Senator of Naboo under arrest under the charge of high treason." One of the troopers replied.
"On whose orders exactly?!" Leia asked. Her answer came as the doors to the side room flew open, followed by the sound of a lightsaber igniting coupled with a familiar breathing sound.
"Mine!" Anakin said as he entered the room and quickly hurled his lightsaber towards Leia, the lightsaber stopping halfway across the room in midair before slumping to the floor, causing a lightly armored figure in black to appear dead on the floor where the lightsaber stopped. Anakin quickly recalled the lightsaber to his hand.
"Vader?!" Ryoo yelped in surprise as Anakin approached them.
"You thought you could get away with betraying the Republic to the Sith, Senator. Your Aunt would be disappointed in you." Anakin said, looming over his niece with his full height. Pooja looked absolutely stunned yet horrified, but by what was unknown.
"W-W-What?!" Pooja asked in disbelief as Leia looked between her cousin and her father, perplexed.
"We have just received word that your attempt to stop us from recovering the full code used by the Sith to infiltrate the Senate building has failed, Senator. The Assassins you sent after Master Katarn and General Solo have been destroyed and we have acquired the code…your Senator level access code." Anakin said as all eyes turned towards Pooja, with absolute disbelief.
"No. No I would never betray the Republic! I'd never do something like that! You must believe me!" Pooja exclaimed tearfully.
"She's telling the truth." Leia said as Anakin glared at her, startled.
"It was her code. Master Katarn and Solo confirmed it." Anakin replied.
"But I'd never do such a thing!" Pooja cried.
"Then how did the Sith acquire it?" Anakin asked, as Pooja pondered worriedly for a moment before her eyes lit up in horror and she slowly turned towards Ryoo.
"Ryoo…please tell me…please tell me it wasn't you." Pooja pleaded as Ryoo looked at her sister with a sad expression. Ryoo started to turn away slightly before spinning back around with a blaster in her hand, pointed at Anakin who held his lightsaber up defensively.
"You left me no choice." Ryoo said, as Leia activated her lightsaber, stepping in between Anakin and his traitorous niece.
"Ryoo, why?!" Pooja asked as Ryoo snarled towards Anakin. The Stormtroopers, Veers, and Bonteri had their blasters trained on Ryoo now.
"You were too young to remember it, sister. Too young to remember the pain our grandparents and mother felt as we watched Aunt Padme Amidala's body be escorted to her tomb, knowing we would never know who her murderer was! It drove our grandparents to an early grave! Then this woman comes forward with a hologram that shows one Anakin Skywalker, the man beneath Vader's mask, strangling our Aunt to death with his precious Force! I had the hologram checked repeatedly for any sign of tampering but none was found! It was him! Him! The same man that the Republic and the Jedi are protecting! The same man that should be brought to justice for his crimes! Starting with the murder of Senator Padme Amidala of Naboo!" Ryoo almost screamed angrily and tearfully as she kept the blaster trained on Anakin, her hand shaking.
"And so you turn over my access codes to the Sith?!" Pooja asked, tearfully, struggling to stand up from her chair.
"If my father was the one you're after then why hand over those codes?!" Leia asked as Ryoo glared angrily at Leia.
"Because anything that came from that-that-that…MONSTER doesn't deserve to live! For all we know, Vader finally has truly overthrown the Emperor and now rules the galaxy through his daughter!" Ryoo yelled, Pooja looking at her in horror.
"But she's also Padme's daughter! You would kill our own blood kin just because she also happens to be Anakin Skywalker's daughter?!" Pooja asked, horrified.
"Whatever it takes to avenge Padme's dea-…" Ryoo yelled before suddenly dropping her blaster with a horrified look on her face, grabbing her throat as she started choking. Leia looked at Anakin, sensing a Force Choke but Anakin wasn't the one doing it. Instead he raised his hand towards the doors into the Chancellor's office, sending out a powerful Force Push, causing a hooded figure in black robes to appear from out of nowhere as they tumbled the ground, causing Ryoo to drop to the ground as well, unconscious.
"Ryoo!" Pooja exclaimed as Lux and the Stormtroopers moved to help the injured traitor while Leia and Anakin quickly moved to subdue the stealthed attacker. Before either could make a move, the attacker leapt to their feet and ignited a red double-bladed lightsaber.
"A Dark Jedi!" Leia exclaimed as she quickly snapped off a clasp on her belt, causing the skirt portion of her formal attire to drop to the floor, revealing a pair of skin tight white pants with white boots. Anakin wasted no time however, stepping forward and swinging at the Dark Jedi, forcing him to block and bring his lightsaber around to try and strike the towering Jedi Master but found his attack blocked by Leia's lightsaber, the father daughter duo forcing him backwards towards the turbolift. As he backed away, the turbolift opened, revealing a squad of 501st Stormtroopers led by Commander Delta.
"Blast him!" Delta ordered as they raised their blasters, causing the Dark Jedi quickly turn and start deflecting a sudden volley of blaster fire, but that left him open from behind as Anakin quickly stepped in with a vicious swing, slicing the Dark Jedi's arm off at the shoulder, causing the Dark Jedi to drop his lightsaber. The 501sts swiftly shot him down immediately. Anakin and Leia both deactivated their lightsabers, staring at the dead Sith warrior's corpse before them as Commander Delta approached.
"We received word from General Solo of a possible contingent of Sith Assassins in the Chancellor's Office. I have men searching the building but so far, we've found nothing. Looks like they've retreated, milord." Delta reported.
"Continue your sweep of the building. I don't want any more surprises and send for a medical team immediately." Anakin said, turning towards where Ryoo lay unconscious on the ground inside the Chancellor's Office.
"It will be done, milord." Delta replied as Leia approached Ryoo, kneeling down over her and across from the grieving Pooja.
"She's dying." Leia whispered as she sensed Ryoo's life force slipping away. Pooja looked at Leia in remorse.
"I am so sorry. I had given her my codes to help me memorize them. I always have since they rotate them so frequently. I never imagined she'd do something like this." Pooja said before feeling Ryoo's hand squeeze her own.
"I did what I had to. Vader feels no remorse." Ryoo said as Anakin approached.
"You're wrong, Ryoo." Anakin said, the dying woman turning to look at him curiously.
"There is no one else in this galaxy that I miss more than Padme. If there was a way to bring her back, I would jump on it in an instant. Not a day goes by where I don't miss her. You may not forgive me, but I know through the Force, that Padme herself has forgiven me." Anakin said as Ryoo stared at him skeptically but then a look of complete awe swept over her face. For a brief moment as the world around her turned dark, she saw a familiar face smiling lovingly down at her next to Anakin, her hands holding onto his.
"Aunt Amidala?" She whispered before finally closing her eyes, her breath becoming still. Pooja began to openly weep over her sister.
Later…
Anakin, Kyle, and Griffon were standing outside on a landing platform where Kyle's ship, the Raven's Claw sat. Leia, Han, Chewbacca, 3PO, General Veers, and Senator Bonteri were there to see them off.
"I'm sorry it turned out this way, Leia." Kyle said apologetically.
"None of us knew this would happen." Leia said with a sad sigh.
"What will become of Senator Naberrie now?" Kyle asked.
"I don't know. I imagine she'll probably step down as Naboo's Senator given the controversy surrounding her sister's actions." Leia replied as Veers finished writing something down on his datapad.
"I should probably get the finished report off to my superiors. We'll make sure the events that happened here will remain top secret so as not to further disgrace the Senator's family." Veers said as Griffon cleared her throat.
"Take my advice, put it all on a data-stick then wipe the hard drives of any system that may contain it then put those data-sticks in a safe place." Griffon suggested as Han, Chewy, and Kyle each nodded in agreement.
"Better listen to her Max. She's one of the best slicers I've ever seen." Han said as Griffon shot him a smug smirk.
"Not so skeptical of me now, huh Solo?" Griffon asked as Han shook his head.
"Not the slightest bit." Han replied as Leia turned to Senator Bonteri.
"I'm sorry you had to bear witness to what happened in there, Senator." Leia said as Lux shook his head with a dismissive wave.
"My thoughts are with you, your family, and Senator Naberrie and her family right now. I can't imagine what you must be feeling right now, knowing that someone you loved, someone you considered family, was a traitor." Lux said as Leia gave an appreciative nod.
"Thank you, Senator. I pray you never find out for yourself." Leia said as Lux bowed to her.
"Then I shall take my leave, Chancellor." Lux said before turning to leave.
"We'll make sure to send some ships towards Onderon to investigate the pirate problem." Leia said, causing Lux to pause and turn towards Anakin.
"Which reminds me, you mentioned something about my old friend Ahsoka. What about her?" Lux asked as he approached Anakin. Anakin remained silent for a moment before answering.
"The Ahsoka you know, is dead. In her place has risen the leader of the very Sith that threatens the Republic now. She has become Darth Akul, the new Dark Lord of the Sith." Anakin explained, causing Lux's eyes to widen in shock and disbelief.
"Ahsoka…is a Sith Lord?" Lux asked, stepping backwards in shock.
"I'm sorry to inform you of this. I take little comfort in it as well. Ahsoka was my Apprentice during the Clone Wars, and to know that she has fallen to the Dark Side like I did, pains me to no end." Anakin said as Lux gulped nervously.
"Then it would seem that your initial suspicion of me wasn't without reason." Lux said, confusing those present.
"What do you mean?" Leia asked, suspiciously. Veers had taken a sudden interest as well. Lux sighed heavily before looking up at her.
"I've seen Ahsoka recently…on Onderon." Lux said, startling the others.
"What?! When?!" Anakin boomed.
"In Iziz a month or two before the attack. She contacted me out of the blue and asked to meet. She wanted to talk about Dxun of all things." Lux explained.
"Dxun? Who's Dxun?" Griffon asked.
"Dxun is the moon of Onderon. It's so close to Onderon that they actually share an atmosphere." Han explained.
"Why was she asking about the moon?" Veers asked, suspicious.
"When I met her, I knew something was off about her. Her face was covered in tattoos. She said that she had simply fallen in with a bad crowd after leaving the Jedi Order but that this crowd was no longer an issue. She said she had become an archeologist since then and was asking about some ruins on Dxun. I told her that, to my knowledge, the only ruins on Dxun are the remains of an ancient Mandalorian Base Camp dating back to the days of the Mandalorian Wars almost four-thousand years ago. She said that her research indicated there was some form of tomb there." Lux said as Leia, Kyle, and Anakin looked at each other.
"A tomb? Sounds like she might be hunting down a Sith tomb to me." Kyle said.
"You better report this to the Jedi Council while we send ships to Onderon at once." Leia added as Anakin approached the Senator.
"You need to tell me everything you told Ahsoka and everything she said to you. Leave out no details whatsoever." Anakin said as Lux nodded.
"I will…General Skywalker." Lux replied.
End Episode 3.
I own Griffon Vao and Aleera. Griffon is indeed an homage to Mission Vao from Knights of the Old Republic and she is supposed to be a distant descendant of Mission's. Side note, if you own an iOS device (namely an iPhone or iPad) they have the original KOTOR available on the app store for $5.00. It's a great trip down memory lane and a must for Star Wars fans.