Excerpt from Private Memoirs of Mitth'raw'nurudo:
When I told my colleagues about the fact that the Voss genemods seem to have had no effect on me in regards to gaining sensitivity to the Force, many of them responded similarly. They offered me their sympathies, and admitted that the process was experimental and unpredictable to begin with, but that I should not be concerned with the failure.
While such words are understandable, even this "failure" presents opportunity. True, my closest colleagues may be aware that I am still not Force-sensitive, but many others are not aware of that fact. So I shall tell them the truth. They will learn that "Thrawn has been genemodded with Voss DNA, a species that is precognitive and natrually sensitive to the Force." Those words will spread and disseminate through the ranks, and as rumors inevitably do they will travel outside of the Watchers.
And of course, the truth in rumors is often distorted. So those words will - with only the slightest amount of guidance - be twisted into the phrase "Thrawn is capable of seeing the future." After all, many of my allies and opponents alike are already of the belief that my abilities border on precognition as it is - and in the heat of battle, how could a foe tell the difference between a skilled tactician and an actual precognitive?
So I will let those words spread. And in time they will become a weapon far more powerful than any starship.
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Kalee, Ausez Megafauna Museum and Research Landing Pad
"Careful, careful!" a worker shouted as he led a team that was moving the rancor recovered from Dathomir towards its new home. "Do you want to piss that thing off!?"
The rancor growled as if in agreement, and as his handlers nervously continued to lead it off, Asajj watched them go before noticing Saato approaching her.
"It's good to see that the recovery went smoothly."
"Yes, though he was slightly uncooperative at times, I will admit," Saato replied, and Asajj noticed that she seemed...unsettled, for lack of a better word.
"What seems to be the matter?"
Saato looked at Asajj with a face that showed she had no idea what was going on. "Ah...Lady Ciaran sent us a message about the rancor's new name..."
Asajj facepalmed. "Just...just tell me what it is."
Saato nodded slightly before bringing out a datapad. "Um...according to her his name is now 'Lord Deathmittens Esquire the Third,' or 'Mittens' for short."
"Of course-"
"Ah...I wasn't finished, Sister," Saato clarified as Asajj looked at her with deadened eyes. "He is...apparently...also to be given the titles 'First of His Name, Keeper of Kalee, Former Deacon of Dathomir, He Who Arises in Might, The Black Foe of the World, Ambler of the Abyss, Alleged Tender Lover, Possessor of Many Titles, Yes You Do Have To Say the Whole Damn Thing Every Time," with that Saato looked at Asajj, who herself looked like she wanted to die. "T-that was in there, I swear! Then 'Purveyor of Cuddles, and Official Abyss Watcher Mascot, Long May He Reign, Abundantly May He Be Adored, and Forever May He Be Remembered."
"...Are you done?" Asajj asked in a monotone.
"Y-yes."
"I'm going to kill that woman myself the next time I see her..." she grumbled.
"I-is this normal for her?" Saato asked nervously.
"Unfortunately...yes," Asajj grumbled as Saato looked at her in a mixture of confusion and fear.
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Luxus Resort, Naboo
On the surface, it seemed like Ciaran had arrived at her resort to do the usual celebrity things; spend lots of money wastefully, lord over people by flaunting her wealth, the usual gossip rag material.
In reality though, once she had arrived in her soundproofed room, Ciaran had almost immediately toppled onto the room's bed and slept the better part of a day away. By the time she got back up she was refreshed, but could still feel the pressure of everything that had happened recently.
She was nearly killed once again, this time without a convenient medical facility to heal her.
She learned about the Wound at the Jedi Temple, a nightmare of a problem that would massively complicate all of her plans.
She had single-handedly brought an end to the Nightsister clan and killed Talzin out of desperate necessity - and used the Dagger of Mortis on a living being for the first time.
She had finally brought in Obi-Wan and Anakin on the plot against Palpatine - not to mention whatever had happened to Anakin himself that made him so...different.
And of course, there was everything about the battle of Kalee - not to mention that explaining it away to Zsjni was the definition of pushing her luck (and even then she was positive that the woman only relented because there wasn't enough evidence to do anything else).
Really, it seems like with every day that passes there's some new disaster or crisis that threatens to ruin everything, a frustrated Ciaran thought to herself as she rolled over in her bed, trying to sleep but unable to fully drift off. Is it too much to ask for the galaxy to not throw some new problem my way every other day? I thought that trying to assassinate the damn Supreme Chancellor who is also a Sith Lord would be enough-
Her train of thought was cut off as she heard her comlink go off. With a groan, she brought it out and activated it, not caring what the other agent on the end would think. "What is it?" she snapped at them. "In case you didn't know, I'm on a break. Do Not Disturb."
"Ah...well, Boss, this is the kind of issue you specifically told us to inform you about immediately no matter what," the agent sheepishly replied.
Ciaran groaned. "Fine, dammit. What is it?"
"Uh...well, and again, you specifically told us to call you about this...but apparently Senator Amidala is...wearing an engagement ring?"
Ciaran's eyes widened under her mask as she bolted upright, the exhaustion she had felt completely vanishing. "Where?"
"Ma'am!?"
"Where is she tell me immediately"
-----------
While she had gotten a burst of energy from the news, there was no denying that Ciaran was still incredibly exhausted - not physically, granted, but definitely mentally. But still-
"Oh Padmeeeeee~"
The look of sheer terror on Padme Amidala's face as she turned to see Ciaran made the surprise "visit" to her home completely worth it. "L-Lady Ciaran!" she squeaked out, very conspicuously hiding her hands behind her back. "S-so good to see you! What brings you here!?"
Ciaran's grin could only be described as "malicious;" she didn't even say a word as she continued to stare at Padme, just continuing to smile...
"L-listen, I appreciate you stopping by but I uh...have...important Senator things to do. Very important a-and time-consuming! C-can you come back later? Please!?"
She looked at Ciaran pleadingly, but found no signs of mercy. As she began to understood the inevitability of what was about to happen, her shoulders sagged as her hands drifted out from behind her back - and sure enough, she was wearing a ring on her finger. It was honestly quite simple-looking; a steel band topped with a bright blue sapphire, but...
"He finally did it," Ciaran said, not even bothering to hide the glee in her voice. "So how was it where did he propose how long were you in shock details woman I need details"
As she nagged for details, Padme's face continued to become redder and redder. "I-it was on the fields not too far from here, it was quite lovely, and that's all you need to know," Padme said firmly, though the effect was ruined by her clear embarrassment.
"You know what this means, right?" Ciaran said, her grin going from "malicious" to "feral."
"Noooo-"
"Bach."
"No no no-"
"Elorette."
"Not! Happening!"
"Party."
Padme's response was to shriek in terror, recoil in fear, and tightly shut her eyes as she waited for the inevitable. She continued to brace herself until she started to hear Ciaran cracking up, at which point she opened her eyes and started glaring at the now hysterically laughing woman.
"Y-you - you really thought-" Ciaran couldn't continue speaking after that, having doubled over in a massive and uncontrollable fit of laughter. "I can't-" As Ciaran continued to howl with laughter Padme continued to glare at her "friend" in exasperation. It went on for what seemed like a solid minute before she finally started to recover.
"Are you done?" she said flatly as Ciaran's laughter finally trailed off.
"Yeah, yeah I'm good," Ciaran said between chuckles as she finally recovered. "Ohhhh, believe me, you have no idea how much I needed that. But still. We are going to have a bachelorette party, and you are going to enjoy yourself. Just not right this second," she said as she regained her posture and flashed a now considerably less sadistic smile.
"I'm still not interested, but that doesn't matter, does it?" Padme said with a long sigh.
"Nope!" Ciaran said gleefully before her face noticeably softened. "But in all sincerity, if ever there was a time to have it, it's definitely now."
Padme tilted her head slightly in confusion before her eyes slightly widened, followed by her shoulders noticeably sagging. "That...I understand that part, at least."
"We might as well enjoy ourselves while we can, right? After all, we have no idea what tomorrow's going to look like," Ciaran pointed out...and to her surprise it seemed like Padme's eyes had locked onto hers, even with the mask in between.
"...You sounded tired just now," Padme said quietly.
Ciaran's response was to chuckle mirthlessly. "That obvious? I must be slipping."
The room went silent after that comment before Ciaran shrugged and turned to walk away, waving behind her as she went. "See you later, then! I'll let you know when everything's set up...if I feel like it~!"
As she left she only barely noticed the loud groan of exasperation Padme let out as she made her way outside, then started heading out into the fields, not particularly caring about where she was ending up. After a minute or so of walking she eventually stopped and let herself topple back onto the soft grass, enjoying the feeling of the light breeze and bright sunny day. After a moment she reached out and-
Hey. Asajj. You there?
The rancor came in today. I hate the name. And the titles. Especially the titles.
Knew you would, Ciaran shot back as she grinned lightly.
*sigh* What's wrong? If that's the best comeback you have then I know something's happening with you.
Just...needed a breather is all. Wanted to know how you were doing.
...Clearly something is wrong. Where are you? And are you on spice or something?
Ciaran cackled to herself slightly. Cut me some slack. A lot's been happening and I thought I could use a bit of a break to get myself back in the game. Sue me.
That had better be all it is. You know what's-
I know, Asajj, Ciaran shot back, not even trying to hide her ire. After that, things went silent before-
...You do realize you may not ever get the chance to run away like this...at least not for a long, long time.
Course I do. That's why I'm enjoying it while I still can.
Once again, things went silent before Ciaran reached out to Asajj. Hey...so what do you plan on doing after all of...this?
...You must be joking.
I'm not. Honest.
Hmph. You seriously expect me of all people to trust in your honesty?
Asajj went quiet for a long moment.
...I don't know. I admit, the idea of "afterwards..." Well, I didn't think there would be an "afterwards" for me for a long, long time. ...Besides, you're asking a Sith to have thought about plans for the future aside from "gain more power" and "kill anyone who you think has wronged you."
Ciaran let out a laugh at that. Point taken.
Still, I don't think there is going to be an "afterwards" for people like us, or at least not the kind most people would want. There's always going to be some trial we have to overcome or some enemy we have to defeat.
...I hate that you're probably right.
No you don't. If there wasn't anything you had to deal with you'd be complaining about how bored you are and how you wish something exciting would happen - that, or you'd go out on some adventure going on nothing more than a fleeting rumor. Much as the rest of the galaxy would believe otherwise, peace isn't in your nature.
Mmm...you know what? That's honestly fair. But you do know I'd drag you along with me given the chance.
Much as I wish otherwise, yes, I do know. At this point I've given up on trying to get you out of my life anyway.
Even if you did, I bet it wouldn't be more than a day before you started to miss me.
Tch.
Once again the world went silent save for the sounds of the breeze rolling across the Naboo plains until-
While I am thinking about it...Skywalker. You must have known what happened to him.
Honestly, no idea, Ciaran replied as she sat back up, stretching out a bit before heading back towards the resort. I'll admit that I helped him start with...whatever he did, but after that I really do have no idea.
Surely you must at least have theories. I could feel...it when he arrived in the Kalee system. It was...
He felt like power. Like looking into the Force itself. That sound about right?
Yes. That is the only way I could describe it myself.
Again, I don't know. I've known he's had incredible potential for a long long time now, but even with my influence I wasn't expecting...that. Ciaran shook her head. The closest idea I have from what happened before he left and what he told me is that he went through some equivalent to the Trial of the Dark Spirit, but usually facing your inner demons like that does not cause you to practically radiate with the Force afterwards.
Says the woman who faced off against an echo of one of the most dangerous Sith Lords in history.
I don't think that trial usually involves facing a Sith Lord that also doubles as the embodiment of your innermost fears in single combat. Er... Ciaran tilted her head. Actually, he did that before he showed back up at Kalee, so yeah, I really don't know what happened.
How-
Mortis.
That - you...really don't have a better explanation, do you.
Nope. Most of the things that happened there by all rights and logic should have been impossible. Not to mention the Dagger I got from there that also shouldn't exist and shouldn't be capable of what it is. When Asajj didn't have a reply, Ciaran shrugged. Anyway, I'm sure you have things you'd rather be doing, so...go do those things, I guess. This is so much more awkward when you can't just hang up a comlink-
Just shut up already, and don't talk to me again unless it's important.
Ciaran shook her head and smiled to herself as she headed back to the resort, trying to enjoy the brief moment of respite while it lasted...
Genemod Results: Thrawn has gained the "Voss' Foresight (False)" trait.
AN: *falls out of carbonite freezing chamber*
My eyes - I cant see - no wait, it's gone now.
Okay. Time for the real talk. I did not mean to go on such a long hiatus. I did not mean to keep breaking my promises about this update coming Real Soon Now. I'd like to have some convenient scapegoat that I could say "this is what kept me away for so long," but really, it was just...life. Not even in a bad way - I'm definitely in a better position than I was before the hiatus - but there's just been a lot of stuff keeping me away. That's ending now, Force help me. I'm back, and once I get some sleep/come back in about 8 hours-ish I intend to stay back. Even if it takes me another several months to write another update (it shouldn't, circumstances are changing in a way that should keep me from feeling burnout right now and I'm going to make a very concerted effort to really get back in the game), I don't plan on going into radio silence again.
But uh...even when I was vaguely checking in I could see you crazy bastards were still writing omakes like crazy. Could someone get me a list of them so I don't have to trawl the thread? It'd help get me back in the game. (And for the record, the ones I have been seeing are quite excellent). Also point out what needs updating on the front if I miss something (that's also going to be fully updated after sleepytimes).
Okay, all that aside, specific update notes:
-Just because Thrawn can't use the Force doesn't mean he won't find a way to spin his situation into his advantage. Really, a guy like him doesn't need precognition anyway...
-I know the rancor name with all the titles technically lost, but they were too hilarious and in-character not to use, so I threw them in with the winning name. You're welcome!
-Consider the crit for "Annoy Padme" to be a setup for The Bachelorette Party to End All Bachelorette Parties. We'll see how many details I actually include when that rolls around...(not for censorship's sake or anything, but because the omissions would be way funnier)
-Honestly I wasn't trying to make that conversation at the end between Asajj and Ciaran so...uh...real? For lack of a better word? Guess it's true what they say about writers putting their feelings into their work or something. Huh.