A long time ago in a galaxy far,
far away...
STAR
WARS
EPISODE IIIb
THE WAYWARD PADAWANS
The evil and power-hungry Darth Sidious tightens an ever-increasing stranglehold on the galaxy, hoping to quell any chance of rebellion against his new Empire before it can begin. All across the galaxy, systems are invaded and resources are seized to expand and power the Imperial War Machine.
DARTH VADER and his INQUISITORS continue their mission to destroy the last remnants of the Jedi Order. Among the survivors, Star Butterfly and Marco Diaz seek refuge on the frozen world of Orto Plutonia, where they continue to hone their Force-abilities with the hope of freeing the planet Mewni from Imperial occupation.
Meanwhile, the Imperial Army prepares their latest prototype for its first field test. . . .
From the bridge of the Imperial Star Destroyer Moonshadow, Galen Erso watched the asteroids drift silently through the vacuum of space. So peaceful, he thought to himself. He gave a dejected sigh that he hoped the destroyer's captain didn't hear.
The doors behind him slid quietly apart. "Well, Galen, are we prepared to begin the test?" asked Director Orson Callan Krennic as he stalked briskly onto the bridge, followed closely by a black astromech droid. He shuffled past the large control panel which sat in the middle of the walkway, stepping carefully over the power and communication cables running to and from it. The panel was not standard equipment aboard a Star Destroyer. It controlled the prototype attached to the underside of the hull, the inner workings of which took up most of the destroyer's hanger.
Galen checked over the readout on his datapad. All systems were green. Unfortunately. "Yes, Director. My engineers have just completed their final diagnostic checks. The prototype is ready."
"Very good, Galen, very, very good. The Emperor will be most pleased."
"Indeed."
The pair spun around to find the black astromech droid projecting a life-sized holo of Darth Sidious, watching them. The hooded figure smiled, sending a chill down Galen's spine.
"I am most excited to witness this first test of our new weapon," Sidious said."Despite it being merely a prototype, I believe its performance will be quite...illuminating."
Galen shrank back slightly. He'd never met the Emperor before, and he found the man terrifying. Director Krennic, on the other hand, did not appear even remotely moved and replied with his usual air of confidence.
"We're so pleased you could take time out of your busy schedule to witness this display, your Excellency. Galen here has just informed me that the prototype is ready and the test may commence whenever you are ready. I would be happy to bestow upon you the honor of giving the command."
"How very thoughtful of you, Director. What is our target for this initial test?"
"Asteroids, my Lord. I selected this asteroid field here in the Outer Rim as a prime location for this demonstration, such that our project will not be seen by wandering eyes. It is the remains of a small, uninhabited moon, the result of a super volcano that literally ripped said moon apart. There are still some rather large pieces of rock that will make perfect targets for our scaled-down prototype."
"Very good, Director." The astromech made its way over to the forward viewscreen, allowing the hologram of Sidious to see the debris field. "You have served me well."
Galen took a cautious step backward. He honestly didn't care if he received credit for his work or not. He much preferred that the Emperor not even know he existed.
Sidious pointed to the largest chunk of rock he could spy, slowly tumbling through space. "There. That one. Point six-one-seven-four-two, cross two-oh-niner."
"Yes, my Lord," Krennic replied with exuberance. "Right away." He relayed the coordinates to the technicians seated at the control panel.
"Target locked."
Krennic smiled. "All set, your Excellency."
"You may fire when ready."
Despite the target being a worthless hunk of rock, Galen could not bear to watch, so he kept his eyes trained on the datapad's readout. He could hear one of the technicians behind him say, "Commence primary ignition," but his eyes remained down turned.
A low tone resonated from the hanger several decks below. A few moments later, the focusing array affixed to the underside of the Star Destroyer's hull focused four individual beams of green energy into one huge, supercharged laser. The beam tore through space with deadly accuracy, and in a split second the large chunk of space rock from the dead moon was obliterated by the laser's explosion.
The single most evil sound that had ever assaulted the ears of Galen Erso finally caused the prototype's designer to tear his downward gaze away from his datapad. It was the hologram of Darth Sidious, laughing.
"Excellent! Excellent!" the Emperor chuckled. "You have done very well, Director Krennic."
Krennic's lips curled into a conceited grin. "All in loyal service of you, my Lord."
Sidious's hologram turned back to the viewscreen. "Fire it again. That one this time, over there."
"Yes, sir! Absolutely!"
Galen Erso closed his eyes, silently pleading that this test would soon be over.
Security Officer Rosado slowly stepped out onto the boarding ramp of the Mentis Mal, taking a deep breath. The humid air did not make for the most enjoyable inhalation, but Rosado always felt that, despite the air scrubbers onboard, the oxygen in spacecraft always got a little stale during lengthy space travel. The first breath of fresh air was still rejuvenating.
Another world to search, he thought to himself. This is taking forever.
Which is not necessarily a bad thing.
Three months had passed since the search for the escapee Padawans had begun. The inquisitor's attempts to read the memories of the deceased senator Eclipsa Butterfly had yielded helpful results. During a conversation with the young Jedis' smuggler friends, Captain Ordonia had let it slip that she had a hideout hidden somewhere in the Outer Rim. Any details regarding the planet where the hideout was located were lax, but at least they had a place to start.
Unfortunately, the Outer Rim accounts for a lot of planets. A lot of planets. And Rosado, the inquisitor, and the squadron of stormtroopers under their command only totaled eighteen. It was not easy to search an entire planet for two teenagers with such a small party. Nonetheless, search they did, until they were satisfied that the two Padawans and their friends were absolutely not there. Then they'd move onto the next planet and start the search all over again.
The inquisitor roughly pushed past Rosado and strode to the end of the boarding ramp. He watched as it stood, straight, still, and silent, confused by its demeanor. Descending the rest of the way down the ramp, he stopped beside his black-clad partner. It did not acknowledge his presence. "Um...Inquisitor?"
"They're here."
"...What?"
"They're here. Butterfly and Diaz. I can sense them." The Jedi hunter whirled around, addressing the stormtroopers that were slowly making their way down the ramp behind them. "Those twerps are here! All troops in pairs, fan out and find those kids! Do not engage! I don't want them slipping through our fingers again."Rosado swallowed a nervous lump in his throat as he watched the inquisitor's gloved hands tighten into fists. "We have them this time. Those little pests are as good as dead."
Explaination: I wanted to skip a good chunk of time (three months) and the most logical way I came up with to do so was to basically start a new "movie," hence the second title crawl.
So, welcome to Act 2 of Star (Wars) Vs The Forces of Evil: Episode IIIb - The Wayward Padawans.
