BO-KATAN

The plan was simple. Using mercenaries hired by Mobba the hutt, they created chaos on Mandalore, sending them to terrorise the most important cities of the planet, including Sundari. New Mandalorians, indecisive and weak, thanks to their abandonment of the old ways, were unable to stop them, leading to huge losses and fear spreading through the population. It was a perfect way for the Death Watch to enter and bring back the order on the planet by stopping acts of terrorism, gaining the popularity in Mandalore, allowing them to rule the planet without much opposition.

The only one who didn't like the plan was Adas Kallig, who was saying that it was quite boring to use the same plan he already realized on Nar Shaddaa, but he agreed to it after some convincing and additional promises from Pre Vizsla. Promises he didn't plan to realize, but that was a problem for the future.

For now, there were other problems on her mind. Like the fact that she was about to overthrow her own sister, kill her supporters and destroy her dream. She knew it was neccessary, as mandalorians wouldn't be able to survive by clinging to some stupid ideology of pacifism. The galaxy was too dangerous for such a lofty dream to have any hope of working. Still, part of her really didn't want her to be the one who made Satine realize it.

She didn't have a choice though, not anymore.

She looked around. She was in their base in Sundari, located close to their were there because the Death Watch was preparing for the attack on the royal palace. After the recent reforms passed by the senate, Mandalore was forced to strengthen their military in response to separatist threat. It was against her sister's wishes, as she wanted mandalorians to be peaceful, but unintentionally it worked in her favor, as the Death Watch couldn't just enter her palace without resistance anymore, thanks to many troops stationed there.

It would be a difficult task, as even with newly gained popularity, Death Watch was not that numerous, meaning that even these weak-minded new Mandalorian soldiers could be a threat for their group. They would need to take over the palace as fast as possible to stop new Mandalorians from sending reinforcements. With the palace in their hands and Satine defeated, they could seize power over the planet with the help of recent popularity.

It was one of the reasons they allied themselves with a sith lord. His strength would be used to destroy palace guards, minimizing casualties among the death watch and tiring the sith, making him easy to defeat after the coup.

Or at least that was Pre Vizsla's plan. Bo-Katan wasn't sure if it was a good idea anymore. She met many jedi during her life and not one of them gave her such a dangerous vibe as the sith staying with them.

She looked at Kallig. He was chatting with his monster and cultist at the moment, unconcerned by the tense atmosphere in the room. Every death watch member was stressed, readying themselves before the most important battle in their lives and he was treating it like an afterthought, preferring to just relax with his subordinates.

She wasn't sure if it was because he was that powerful or because he was just an airhead and she didn't really want to find out as either would cause problems.

She decided to approach him, because there was one thing she had to be sure of though.

When she was getting close, Kallig and his subordinates turned in her direction. The red monster was looking at her with obvious aggression, though she already learned that it was its default emotion, so she ignored it for now. The beast was dangerous, but it wouldn't do anything without its master's approval.

The twi'lek cultist was watching her with suspicion, probably wanting her to leave them alone. From what she was able to observe so far, the girl was completely obsessed with Kallig, her every action directed towards satisfying him. She would probably prefer Kallig staying with his cult, but she was too loyal to Kallig to suggest that.

She couldn't detect any emotions from Kallig. His mask made it impossible for her to see his face and his body was relaxed, with no sign of stress or being on guard. He was looking at her, waiting for her to speak. She took a deep breath and spoke.

"Darth Imperius" she started, deciding to show respect to his sith title. She wanted to ask him for a favor after all. "We will commence the operation soon. As you are our strongest member, you will be in the front, taking care of the security force. It also means that you are the one most likely to meet Satine Kryze first " She hesitated, looking at Kallig, who was watching her with curiosity. He didn't say anything, waiting for her to continue. "...can I ask you to capture her alive and unharmed? She would be more useful for Death Watch alive than dead" She heard about the sith of the old republic. They were battle maniacs, slaughtering anyone in their path without remorse. She would prefer it if it wasn't the case with Adas Kallig. He was already going to be a problem, even without potential homicidal tendencies.

"And it has nothing to do with the fact that she is your sister?" Asked Kallig with a small laugh, apparently amused by her request. "No matter, I have no reason to disagree. Especially as I am only here to support my allies. I have no intention to intervene in mandalore political matters." What? Was he being serious? He had to suspect that the Death Watch wouldn't follow him just because he helped them. There was no way he trusted them to uphold their end of the bargain.

What was Kallig's plan?

Her group consisted of her, Kallig, his two subordinates and fifty Death Watch members. They were tasked with attacking the royal palace from the front, bringing all soldiers stationed inside to them, focusing all antention in the palace on them. It would allow other mandalorians, led by Pre Vizsla, to enter the palace unnoticed, sabotaging new mandalorians and cutting them off from reinforcements. It would end with Satine's capture.

The other objective, one not shared with their 'allies', was to make Kallig exhausted from the fighting, making him an easier target. Of course it would be preferable if he were to die on his own during the battle, but they didn't expect that to happen.

They reached the gate of the palace. There were some soldiers guarding it, but it wasn't hard to dispose of them without anyone noticing. Apparently not wearing a beskar armor has some negatives, who knew?

They approached the gate. It was more than ten meter tall, too huge for a person to open. It was also locked from the inside, making it necessary for them to blow it up. She was about to signal her subordinates to plant the charges when she was stopped by Kallig.

"Don't bother," He said, casually approaching the gate. He thrusted his arms in front of him, releasing a huge pressure, pushing everyone back. The gate, ripped from its foundations, flew into a building, destroying the entire room behind it. She could hear the screams of dying and injured soldiers, crushed by the gate or debris created by the blow.

She could only watch destruction in silence, unable to believe what just happened. She knew that jedi could use force to lift objects in the air, but nothing on this scale. How was that possible?

Seeing that no one moved to enter the building, Kallig turned around.

"So, can we continue or are you going to just stand there?" He said. Bo-Katan shook her head. She had to focus. Kallig's power was greater than expected, but for now they had to capture the palace. They will have to worry about it later. She ordered everyone to move out. Some of her subordinates were still in shock, but they were trained enough to follow orders even in this state. She only hoped that it wouldn't make them distracted during the fight.

Not that it mattered because Kallig showed them just how much they underestimated him. In contrast to tense Death watch members, he was casually walking through the palace, not caring about the soldiers trying to attack him. Every soldier in his proximity would just die, falling on the ground motionless without any visible reason. His every step led to another corpse, as every new mandalorian closing to his location would just collapse, unmoving. In seconds, the corridor previously full of soldiers was empty, filled with fresh corpses. She didn't have time to shoot even once, the same as other mandalorians.

Bo-Katan was horrified. Just what kind of monster was Adas Kallig?! How could such strength go unnoticed for so long?!

It took them only minutes to reach the throne room. They expected a long battle, which would give time for Pre Vizsla to finish his objectives, but now the whole plan sounded like a sick joke. She started to panic, thinking about Pre Vizsla's plan. What will happen to them? She looked at her subordinates. They were shaken as well, unable to comprehend the power of the sith accompanying them. Can she expect them to even try fighting Kallig? Can she even force herself to do that?

They approached the throne room. Before she was able to do anything, Kallig blasted the doors open and entered inside. She could only do the same, still numb.

Looking inside the room, she saw Satine and her entourage, surrounded by the remaining soldiers. She could see that Satine was terrified by the display, but she stood strong and confident, as a ruler she was. Despite everything, she was proud of her sister, seeing how much she changed. She only hoped that Kallig would honour his promise.

"Satine Kryze. I am Adas Kallig, also known as Darth Imperius, and I am here to negotiate your unconditional surrender" started Kallig cheerfully, completely at odds with the tense situation in the room. Despite the weird sense of humor displayed by the sith, Bo-Katan sighed in relief, happy that the sith lord wouldn't just kill everyone in the room.

Satine was silent for a while, not sure about his real intention. She probably didn't know if she could trust someone as dangerous as Kallig, not that Bo-Katan would blame her. But then she looked at Bo-Katan, as if looking for advice. Many years passed since they had seen each other and they found themselves on opposing sides in this conflict, but Satine still trusted her. It warmed Bo-Katan's heart. She nodded slowly, desperately hoping that Satine wouldn't try to fight the sith.

After seeing Bo-Katan's reaction, Satine spoke.

"Will the safety of me and my subordinates be guaranteed?" She asked, still trying to be diplomatic, even in this situation.

"Well, of course. I am only here as an ally of Pre Vizsla. I don't intend to interfere with Mandalore's politics. I won't hurt anyone here as long as you are cooperative" he said. Satine looked at him, trying to understand his real intentions, but after a while she sighed and spoke in a defeated manner.

"...It would seem that the peace I have dreamt of was impossible after all. I failed. We surrender." She said, full of sadness. Bo-Katan understood. In her own naive way, Satine also wanted to help Mandalore. It was a shame that her way was impossible from the start.

"Now, now, don't be so gloomy. I am sure you did your best" spoke Kallig. Bo-Katan wasn't sure if he was sarcastic or if he really tried to console Satine, but she was too exhausted to care.

It was at that moment when Pre Vizsla entered a throne room, followed by many mandalorians. He smiled seeing captured Satine, knowing that their plan ended in victory.

"I see you were able to capture our dear Satine '' he said with obvious ridicule in his voice. Satine didn't react, still trying to act dignified, even in defeat. Not waiting for a reply, he slowly approached the throne. He then sat on it, signifying the defeat of new mandalorians and the victory of the Death Watch. He then turned to Kallig.

"It wouldn't be possible without the help from you, Darth Imperius. you have my thanks" he said. Bo-Katan knew what was coming next. She felt fear overwhelming her body. Please, don't do it Vizsla. "But I am sorry to say that Mandalore must stand alone, without any outsider trying to control us. You can surrender or you can die trying to fight the true sons and daughters of Mandalore." Most of the Death Watch members raised their guns, pointing them at Kallig and his followers. She didn't though, the same as most of the people from her group. She knew the power of the sith and everything inside her was screaming to not fight him.

Red monster and Twi'lek cultist raised their own weapons in response, ready to fight, but Kallig did nothing.

"Seriously?" Said Kallig, looking at people aiming at him. He noticed Bo-Katan not doing the same, watching her for a second before turning back to Pre Vizsla. "Are we really doing this? I would expect someone from the clan Vizsla to have more honor. Come on, do you really think it's worth it?" Seeing that mandalorians didn't lower their weapons, he shook his head and sighed. He then looked straight into Pre Vizsla's eyes. Seeing something in them, he said. "Very well. I would prefer to end this peacefully, but I guess it was too much to expect mandalorians to be rational"

Pre Vizsla started to scream. Everyone turned to look at him, surprised by the sound. Their leader was always composed, so hearing him crying from pain was completely unexpected. What they saw was horrifying. Blood was flowing from his eyes, nose and mouth. It was flying to Kallig, creating a growing ball of blood, levitating before him. Everyone was mesmerized, not able to turn away from a spectacle, no matter how scared they were.

Pre Vizsla was losing more and more blood, his skin becoming grey and his figure thinner. He tried to stand up, but he failed falling from his throne into the ground. He slowly raised his head, looking at Kallig with obvious fear. The blood was no longer leaving his body, leaving him extremely weakened, but alive.

"You know, Lana never liked mandalorians " Kallig started to speak while manipulating the collected blood to form into a solid shape. "She thought you were wild animals, beautiful, but too predatory to cooperate with." Blood started to crystalize, turning fluid into some kind of solid matter "I disagreed with that, as Shae was a great ally, who was able to turn mandalorians into something more" the process ended with some sort of club made from blood in Kallig's hand "And I still believe that mandalorians can be great allies. It's just.." kallig suddenly hit Pre Vizsla in the head with a club made out of his own blood, obliterating the head completely "...sometimes you have to thin out the herd, to get rid of rabid individuals"

Everyone was silent, looking at the corpse of their former leader. No one knew how to react. Their strongest member and leader was killed effortlessly in such a morbid way. Who would dare to fight after seeing such a horrible spectacle?

Kallig, not caring about the horror felt by mandalorians in the room, approached Bo-Katan. She flinched when he put his bloodied hand on her shoulder.

"Congratulations Bo-Katan, it looks like you are the next leader of Mandalore" He said with a happy voice, acting as if he didn't just murder Pre Vizsla in extremely gruesome way "I look forward to working with you in the future"