May The Invisible Hand Be With You - (Star Wars CK2-Style Quest)

[Panory]

A Difficult Responsibility​

Galvin gave a grunt as he hefted the carapace from the trolley onto Galen Erso's workbench. "Try not to waste this. Those Taozin are stupidly difficult to dissect. At least we know this stuff lives up to the hype."

"Thank you for getting me a sample to work with." said Galen, sparing Galvin a glance before looking down are the rough chunk of exoskeleton before him. "Having a sample small enough to run through the machines will really speed my research along. It's fascinating how anything you throw at them just… slips off."

"Frustrating, more like." grouched Galvin. "I had to trade around a lot of favors to get access to the industrial presser that finally cracked a piece off. Even then I was worried I'd have to explain how in the galaxy I broke an industrial crusher."

"Well it's appreciated." Galen grabbed the edges of the shell, and his eyes widened as he tried to lift it. "Oh dear." Galvin intercepted the scientist on the way to the floor, helping to lift the bit of Taozin. "Thank you. Right over there."

Following the gesture Galen made with his head, the two carried their burden across the room, placing it under a scanning hood. Galen set the machine running, then let out a deep sigh. "That'll take a bit. Can I offer you something to drink while I wait?"

"No thanks." Said Galvin, shaking his head. "What you can offer me is some answers. You know what we're going to use this stuff for, right? I thought you were super opposed violence or whatever."

"Yes well, short of using it as a club, it would be hard to directly kill someone with that thing, so it's not technically a weapon. Of course, that's the kind of semantic argument that would make Lyra furious with me." Galen paused and paled. "If Lyra ever asks, this research is to create super durable mining vessels that can travel closer to a planet's core, understand?"

"My lips are sealed."

"Good. Truth is, I know that if I manage to synthesize taozin carapaces it'll be used as battle armor or something that will be used in the war." Galvin could hear the weight on the scientist's voice. "Thrawn even asked me to take a look at the nodules and their effects on the Force. Who knows what he'd do with that kind of information."

"So then why do it at all? I'm not trying to talk you out of it or anything. I've certainly appreciated that Cheriss has had more free time since you showed up." Said Galvin, half joking. "It just seems to go against this whole pacifism thing you got going on."

"I'm doing it because it's the most I trust myself to do. I'm no fool. If no one fought back against the tyrants, the galaxy would be a worse place. War is something to be avoided at all costs, but sometimes it's unavoidable. And then it's everyone's duty to end it as quickly as possible and restore peace."

"So then why the 'no guns' rule? Do you secretly suck at making them?"

Galen actually laughed at that. "On the contrary, it's because I'm terrified of what I could do if I walked down that road. Some of my research, if taken to extremes, could produce enough energy to destroy a planet with a realistic amount of time and resources. I don't make guns, because even if they ended this war in a day, it wouldn't lead to peace. It would lead to fear."

"Are… are you serious about the planet destroying thing?"

"I crunched the numbers back when I was in the Academy, just as a thought exercise. The hardest part would be building a space station big enough for the cannon." nodded Galen grimly. "This kind of research allows me to help end the war more quickly without jumping onto that slippery slope. Or at least, I hope it does."

"So you make armor instead of guns to end the war faster without blowing up planets." Galvin whistled. "I don't think I'd have that kind of self-control."

"Sometimes I wonder if I do either. It's agonizing every day, looking at all the suffering in the galaxy and thinking that I could end it. It can be difficult to remember that it wouldn't be an end to violence, but an end to peace."

"See, this is why I'm a mercenary. I'm not cut out for all this moral crisis stuff." said Galvin, waving his hand dismissively as the scanner pinged an alert. "Well, that's my cue to get out of here before you ask for help moving it back." By the time Galen turned around from looking at the scanner's display, his boss's cousin had vanished.



AN: IDK, some Galen stuff.

 

[Dr. Snark]

[X] Militia Standardization: The fact of the matter is that the CNS military is more of a patchwork of the various members' militaries. Help create a standardized system for equipment and it would help make them more cohesive...and a much stronger fighting force should it become necessary. Chance of Success: 80% Reward: CNS militia forces increase in quality.

Rolled: 58 + 15 (Bonuses)+ 20 (Omakes) = 93 (Critical Success)

By leaning on your various contacts and using the sheer terror of the assault on Mandalore to your advantage you've managed to get a considerable push for more active defense fleets and planetary defense forces - arms deals have been getting set up across CNS space almost effortlessly and the shipyards over Taris have had near-constant demands for more ships.

Wherever Trench chooses to strike he's going to find that there's going to be a lot more resistance than he expects.

Reward: High increase in quality for CNS defensive forces

[X] Paramilitary Support: There are many paramilitary organizations in the galaxy, from Kligson's anti-Trade Federation militia on Grohl, to the pro-Jedi Antarian Rangers, to Lok Revenants and Mere Resistance and others, not to mention Kal Skirata's clone commandos. Offer support -- intelligence, logistics, medical care, safe harbor -- to each in exchange for their cooperation on future actions. Chance of Success: 60% Cost: 150 Upkeep: 75 Reward: Martial bonus; paramilitary groups confirmed as anti-Palpatine assets
-[X] Grievous

Rolled: 5 + 10 (Bonus) + 20 (Omake) + 19 (Grievous) = 54 (Success)

Grievous had something of a rough time convincing some of the groups to work with him, but he refused to take "no" for an answer and managed to rally quite a few paramilitary groups together, even managing to get some of them to come to Kalee for "in-person evaluations" as he put it.

That being said there was a bit of a snag where one of the people who showed up was the Feorin pirate Nym, who didn't back down even when faced with Grievous himself and proved to be quite uncooperative, going so far as to actively challenge his authority. Naturally things escalated into a full-on fistfight between the two - and according to witness reports it was a surprisingly even fight with no clear winner, though by the end of it tempers had cooled enough and enough mutual respect had been garnered that things went smoothly after that. Suffice it to say you can now count on these groups as assets should their aid be necessary.

Rewards: Martial bonus, paramilitary groups confirmed as anti-Palpatine assets

[X] Making Inroads In The Republic Military: Now is a good a time as any to begin dechipping and potentially subverting different groups in the Republic military. Any clone not chipped means one less clone that will try to kill you once you make your move, and of course you can always use more support when the time comes. Chance of Success: 60% Cost: 100 Reward: Chosen group targeted for dechipping/subversion
-[X] 212th Attack Battalion: Led by Obi-Wan himself, this group has served alongside the 501st in many engagements and specializes in assault tactics. (Targeted by Yularen)

Rolled: 43 + 20 (Omakes) + 5 (Bonus) = 68 (Success)

Yularen's success proved to be a considerable boost in your own negotiations with Obi-Wan. (To be continued in Black and White)

[X] Negotiating With "The Negotiator:" With Obi-Wan's decision to stay on Mandalore for the near future, you have an unprecedented opportunity to get one of the best Jedi Masters on your side - and more importantly a Master you know very well and who would actually be willing to listen to you. It's an opportunity that cannot be ignored. Chance of Success: 60% Reward: Obi-Wan Kenobi brought into the anti-Palpatine conspiracy (Free Action)

Rolled: 98 + 20 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) = 138 (Extreme Critical Success)

Here goes nothing... (To be continued in Black and White)

[X] Shards Encased In Iron (CNS): You know that Cheriss is a Shard these days, but according to her there are others like her who are skilled engineers and filled with wanderlust. It might be worth using the CNS to get in contact with the Shard worlds to see if you can get the chance to recruit some of them for yourself...oh and get them to apply to the CNS of course. Chance of Success: 70% Reward: Contact with Shard worlds established, potential to recruit Shard engineers

Rolled: 32 + 20 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) = 72 (Success)

It's been a long time coming, but you've finally managed to get ambassador teams sent to Orax, and so far the results have been rather positive.

Though with the journey there some interesting details about Cheriss surfaced during the trip when she was described to the Shard collective by a curious member of the team - apparently she was/is something of an anomaly among Shards in general. While she shared similarities with other Shards that inhabited droid bodies and left the planet like an incredible hunger for knowledge and exploration no one was entirely certain about how she managed to put together her original frame - according to them and some cursory research after the meetings there was never any trace of her frame on the planet to begin with. While it was a relatively common experience for Shards to be voluntarily placed into droid bodies to travel the galaxy none of them seemed to be worried about being "outed" as a Shard, choosing to take control of frames that were blatantly mechanical. Cheriss on the other hand ended up inhabiting a frame designed to replicate the appearance of an organic, took up an organic name, and most curiously no one had any idea who helped her put it together - she had to have had help for obvious reasons, but none of the Shards had any idea who built it and/or helped her build it to begin with.

None of this diminished your trust in her by any stretch, but it does raise some rather unnerving questions about her past - she did mention something about her leaving during a "rebellious teen phase" but aside from that it's reminded you just how little you know about the history of your brightest engineer...

Aside from that everything went smoothly enough, and you've managed to bring on a few more engineering teams from the Shards and encouraged them to join the CNS.

Rewards: Bonus to engineering rolls, increased chance of Shard planets joining CNS

[X] Between the Light and Dark: While you have a number of Force users on your staff right now it might be worth looking into getting into contact with other Force using groups in the galaxy that aren't necessarily aligned to the Jedi or Sith and see if you can gain something from contacting them. Chance of Success: 70% Reward: Contact with chosen organization established
-[X] Ysanna: A technologically primitive Force-sensitive community on the planet of Ossus, the Ysanna defend the ruins of Great Jedi Library from intruders. They developed the original 'Blazing Chain' projectile techniques, and never lost the ancient technique of becoming Force ghosts. Talking to them will actually let you study them and the ruins without you getting attacked in the process.

Rolled 96 + 20 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) = 136 (Extreme Critical Success)

This shouldn't have worked. This should not have worked.

Your diplomacy teams shouldn't have been able to do what they did on their own. They shouldn't have been able to get into such a strong negotiating position with the Ysanna and have things go incredibly smoothly at that. They shouldn't have managed to get agreements to have your analysis teams observe their styles. They shouldn't have managed to get a hold of documents that contain critical insights on Force ghosts and how to potentially form them - a critical key to understanding Vectivus' current state and potentially getting him a new body. And most of all they shouldn't have managed to wrangle access to the ruins of the Great Jedi Library even if it was under supervision.

Suffice it to say every single being on those teams were thoroughly rewarded for their efforts.

Rewards: Extremely positive overtures with the Ysanna, information on Force ghost creation gained, free archaeology action for Ossus next turn with a +10 bonus

[X] Taming A Lone Wolf: Quinlan Vos is going to be a problem, not only to Dooku but to you given the chance. That being said outright killing a man who has a known history of being a covert agent would be a waste, so you could try to turn him given the chance. Chance of Success: 40% Reward: Quinlan Vos subverted
-[X] Silas Cata
-[X] 6 Watcher Teams

Rolled 20, Rerolled to 89 + 15 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) + 14 (Silas) + 6 (Watchers) = 144 (Insane Critical Success)

Quite frankly you weren't expecting the results or information Silas brought back with him. (To be continued in Howls in the Dark)

[X] The Burning Rain (CNS): The planet of Honoghr has recently been hit by a Separatist bio-weapon and is a perfect target for Silver Cross efforts - in fact its so perfect and with Palpatine's handiwork clearly in play you're a bit more paranoid about it than usual. Send in teams - with a decent escort just in case - to have some relief brought to the planet. Chance of Success: ??? Cost: 250 Reward: Relief sent to Honoghr, ???
-[X] Personal Attention

Rolled 3, Rerolled to 32 + 20 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) + 44 (Personal Attention) = 116 (Super Critical Success)

This might be a trap, so you're going to have to prepare yourself as best you can... (To be continued in Planet of Death)

[X] Sienar Custom Vessel: Now that you've partnered with Sienar you can request customized ships from them for a price. You can either send them a plan of your own, or give their engineers a base concept and let them work out the details. Chance of Success: 90%
-[X] Dedicated Salvage Vessel: Given the amount of perfectly legitimate salvage work you do it can't hurt to have a heavily armored vessel capable of storing considerable amounts of materiel within it for uh...salvaging. Yes, salvaging. Cost: 200 Reward: Salvage Vessels/Heavy Transports designed/produced
-[X] Interdictor Vessel: With the Pride of the Core and the Malevolence running around it may very well be vital that you have some way to pin down one of the ships to keep them from causing more damage. Raith should be able to put together some kind of ship that should do the job. Cost: 200 Reward: Interdictor vessels designed/produced

Salvage Vessel: Rolled: 20 + 10 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) = 50 (Success)
Interdictors: Rolled: 89 + 10 + 20 = 119 (Super Critical Success)

Raith was all too happy to push through a second contract this quarter, and it's quite apparent which one he put more time and love into.

The salvage/transport vessel he designed was to put it bluntly ugly as sin with it being a boxy and steel-grey ship covered in heavy armor and a handful of laser batteries and it was clearly designed for functionality over aesthetics. While it masked a number of more novel features like an internal drone squadron for salvaging or the fact that it could be conspicuously re-purposed into a transport for heavy materiel, there wasn't too much exciting about the ship itself. The new Sarcophagus-class ship good at what it does, but it's not why Raith was particularly excited this quarter.

His real pride and joy was the customized and one-of-a-kind interdictor design he managed to put together - merging a quartet of gravity well projectors with a frame resembling the Star Destroyers in use by the Republic Navy was only the beginning. Raith had gone and engineered the ship to have two separate modes depending on what it would do: If the gravity well projectors were off, the ship would automatically divert power towards its engines so it could reach its deployment zone faster, and once deployed the ship would shunt power towards shields and weapons. However the more inspired part of Raith's design was how he dealt with the issue of the sheer amount of power the ship would need to actually activate its gravity well projectors - if activated, the ship would only have a tiny fraction of power available to divert to shields and weapons leaving it highly vulnerable. To that end Raith chose to sacrifice the traditional hangar bay in favor of installing a reactor exclusively dedicated to the gravity well projectors, ensuring that even once they are activated the ship would still be able to withstand close combat.

While he's sent over designs for a smaller and more economical variant of the ship, the customized Venator-sized interdictor was quietly delivered to your people - according to him it was a "gift for actions taken on my behalf." While he was content with the designation of Vornskr-class ships he was quite insistent that the lead vessel maintains the name he personally gave to it - Tarkin's Folly.

...Admittedly it wasn't a hard sell in the slightest for you.

Rewards: Salvage/Heavy Transports designed/produced, bonus to salvage rolls, one-of-a-kind interdictor ship built, regular interdictor designed/produced

[X] Oust Shu Mai: You know you have the momentum. SoroSuub is staying out of the way. The mining companies you've been investing in would be more than happy to back you. Rumbles of discontent come from more Commerce Guild members as quite a few of them have joined the CNS. Dooku wants her gone. You have a chance to oust Shu Mai from the Commerce Guild, though given her stranglehold over Castell it won't be easy. Chance of Success: 40% Reward: Shu Mai ousted from Commerce Guild and new leadership chosen
-[X] Priam
-[X] Talesan Fry

Rolled: 68 + 10 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) + 15 (Priam) + 12 (Fry) = 125 (Super Critical Success)

After all of the buildup, the final fall of Shu Mai was depressingly boring.

Once you put the pressure on and got the parts of the Commerce Guild loyal to you to make their move it was clear that she had nothing to fall back on. Her commandos had been completely subverted by you, the population of Castell hated her, the rest of the Commerce Guild simply shrugged once it was clear that SoroSuub wasn't going to contest the change in management, and all of that was before Priam and Fry's combined efforts managed to pin quite a few crimes on her (both legitimate and fake). In the end the coup didn't end with a loud firefight or a an angry mob dragging her off to be executed but with pathetic pleas and toothless threats as she was hauled out of her office by her own men. You're honestly disappointed all things considered.

Right now the Commerce Guild is currently debating who's going to take charge. SoroSuub's Bribbs seems to be an obvious favorite for the succession, but with your influence and the dirt Fry and Priam have gotten on the rest of the Guild you could option virtually any candidate and have them win. Still, it's not a huge priority and the final decision can wait until after you've dealt with the more pressing issues of Honoghr, Talzin, and Trench.

Rewards: Shu Mai effortlessly ousted. Additional benefits to be determined by vote during Part 2 of the turn results.

[X] The Revolution Will Be Televised: Helping with the Pantoran blockade has given you a unique opportunity as the planet is home to a massive information network under the control of one Baron Notluwiski Papanoida, and also boasts considerable success as a media mogul. Given that you're going to need a solid propaganda machine going if you're going to counter Palpatine in any meaningful way, surely there's a deal that could be made here... Chance of Success: 80% Cost: 150 Reward: Media network set up with Baron Papanoida

Rolled: NATURAL 100 + 10 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) = 130 (Extreme Critical Success)

Papanoida remembered what you did for Pantora. And more importantly, he was expecting you and had a deal ready the second you got into touch with him.

The man had already been keeping tabs on the various news outlets you've been setting up across the galaxy and drew up a chain of deals that would unify them under one collective network, jointly run by you and him. Even better, Paponoida already had a healthy dislike for Palpatine and openly suggested using the new network against him given the chance.

The stage is set, but this level of success has also presented quite the conundrum: once you get the anti-Palpatine propaganda truly going the sheer scope of it means that you simply can't go halfway on things. Thankfully it's a conundrum that can be put on hold while the more pressing issues are dealt with.

Reward: Interlinked media network established and ready for a propaganda war. Other details to be determined by vote during Part 2 of the turn results.

[X] Real Bad Moon Over Coruscant: There is an unlisted cloning facility on one of Courscant's moons, no doubt filled with clones waiting for an order from Palpatine to kill anything that tries to get in his way. You can't afford to worry about that kind of liability while you're tying to assassinate Palpatine - that facility must be destroyed. Chance of Success: 50% Reward: Palpatine facility destroyed
-[X] Silencer

Rolled: 19 + 20 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) + 14 (Silencer) = 73 (Success)

When the Silencer came back you were surprised to hear zero news about a sudden explosion on the surface of Centax-2, but the Silencer had decided to take some liberty with his orders and instead of reducing the facility to rubble he opted for the quieter approach and inserted several viruses into the facility's systems that would effectively neuter it once they were activated by you. Same result, less publicity.

Aside from that he actually had very little to report; the facility relied largely on "security through obscurity" much like the base on Ourobouros and was relatively easy for the Silencer to infiltrate, though his report naturally omitted any potential issues he had or people that had to suddenly vanish.

Reward: Palpatine's Centrax-2 cloning facility sabotaged

[X] Autonomous Hunter-Seeker Teams: You've got so much on your plate that you can't really be bothered to handle them yourself. Set up some teams that can handle operations that are too simple to really go wrong but too complex for a random Watcher team to handle on their own so that you can get more things done. Chance of Success: 90% Cost: 150 Reward: Teams set up to handle actions that are guaranteed successes with reduced bonuses

Rolled: 25 + 20 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) = 65 (Success)

The teams have gotten off the ground and are ready to go. You expect to hear good news next quarter.

...That's about it really. This was one of the simpler things to handle in all sincerity...

Reward: Teams set up to handle actions that are guaranteed successes with reduced bonuses

[X] Strike Palpatine's Inner Circle: It's time to go on the offensive. Chance of Success: 40% Cost: 150 Reward: Targeted member/group discredited/neutralized/etc
-[X] Armand Isard: You know his name from Seti's exile, and as the head of Republic Intelligence he's also the man behind the Covert Ops troopers killing deserting clones - and that is just off the top of your head. While Palpatine can always get a replacement Armand is admittedly a quite talented intelligence officer and it would be quite difficult to find a fitting replacement in a time like this...
-[X] Jango Fett

Rolled: 74 + 20 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) + 15 (Jango) = 129 (Super Critical Success)

You've given Jango all the help you can give - from here on in it's up to him to bring down Isard. (To be continued in Fortune's End mini-arc)

[X] Research Alternative Force Schools: While the Jedi and Sith are the most well-known Force users in the galaxy there are certainly others that have mastered more esoteric techniques that could be useful to you. You already have information on them from the datachips so it shouldn't be too difficult. (Choose 1 below) Chance of Success: 70% Reward: Learn techniques from other Force users
-[X] Disciples of Twilight: Located on the isolated colony of Dyspeth and founded by a former Jedi in the aftermath of the Ruusan Reformation, the Disciples specialize in illusion techniques said to surpass even the Fallanassi light-benders.

Rolled: 94 + 20 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) = 134 (Extreme Critical Success)

Quite frankly you're almost disturbed at how effective your teams combined with the Blackguard were, given just how wildly successful they were.

Within a few months you've not only got a complete record of the Disciples' techniques but your people have already gone ahead and disseminated them among the Agents and Walkers for further study. Not to mention that apparently over-the-table negotiations have gone very well and the Disciples have confirmed that they would be willing to train your people on the grounds that their skillsets and methodologies are already highly compatible with their own - though you're only willing to let potential Walkers go to training lest the Disciples start asking questions about why and how you're sending so many people their way.

So that happened. You're hardly complaining but still...

Rewards: Force Cloak, Shadow Vision, and Force Illusion studied and integrated into Agent programs. Increased Abysswalker promotion rate due to availability of DoT trainers.

[X] Archaeological Expeditions: There are very famous sites in the galaxy that are dying for someone to lead expeditions to...and potentially locate Force-related artifacts. Chance of Success: 70% (80% on planets with a *) Cost: 50 Reward: Expedition to chosen location launched
-[X] Aliston Nor: A planet said to be the home of the "Jedi Builders," a sect that uses techniques similar to mechu-deru to design ships and buildings. While the planet's existence and history is well-documented, you'd like to be sure that there's something worth stealing studying before you commit to the planet.

Rolled: 56 + 20 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) = 96 (Critical Success)

Quite frankly you weren't sure what you were expecting from Aliston Nor - the Builders sect seemed real enough but from what you could tell the sect had gone extinct some centuries ago. Even so, you sent a couple of Agents with greater engineering knowledge to the planet along with the usual teams to see if they could figure out anything.

When they came back the two of them immediately demanded access to something, anything to write up schematics on. By the time they were done the two of them had created blueprints for a prefab medical building that could be rapidly deployed, had enough armor to withstand extreme environments and blaster fire in equal measure, and was cost-effective to boot. When they were questioned about how they came up with the design they weren't entirely certain as to where it came from, only that it suddenly appeared in their minds in startling detail while they were investigating the planet.

You have to get in on this.

Rewards: Prefab field hospital design created giving +50 Karada income and +50 Silver Cross income. Ability to set up "Builder Programs" from the Home now available.

[X] The Hunt For The Jebble Box: By (perfectly legitimate) coincidence you've managed to get an excellent lead on the location of the Muur Talisman: it's apparently stored in the infamous "Jebble Box" that's been passed around various collectors' hands since its discovery. You'll need to track it down and acquire it - whether through money or coercion - to ensure that it's never going to be used by Sidious. And there was something about someone being stored in the Box, but they have to be dead after four thousand years... Chance of Success: 50% Cost: 200 Reward: Jebble Box/Muur Talisman secured
-[X] Cheriss Sair

Rolled: 22 + 20 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) + 13 (Cheriss) = 73 (Success)

You're placing a lot of faith in Cheriss - hopefully she won't let you down. (To be continued in Prison and Prisoner)

[X] Non-Human Genemods: The Arkanians have developed mods for the Human/Near-Human families, but more research is going to be needed from them if they're going to be able to genemod other species. They have a good start from the mods thus far so research on this shouldn't take too long, especially with the facilities of the Arkanian Legacy at their disposal. Chance of Success: 70% Cost: 100 Reward: Genemodding available for non-human species

Rolled: 19 + 30 (Bonuses) + 20 (Success) = 69 (Success)

The Arkanians had nothing particularly exciting to report - the project was completed as quickly as they expected, and at long last there is now a selection of Non-Human genemods available for your forces, and they have assured you that there will absolutely be no side effects should a Near-Human get Non-Human genemods or vice versa. Probably.

Reward: Genemodding now available for non-human species

[X] Anti-Force Research: There are some esoteric creatures and substances in the galaxy that could blunt Force usage but they're difficult to recover and hard to research due to their nature. Chance of Success: 50% Cost: 200 Reward: Anti-Force subject researched [Takes 2 turns]
-[X] Taozin: A creature that somehow negates Force vision and precognition, maybe studying could let you figure out how it even does that in the first place?
-[X] Galen Erso

Rolled: 94 + 20 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) + 18 (Galen) = 152 (Insane Critical Success)

Report On The "Taozin" And Its Properties:

Locating a living taozin seemed like something of a fool's errand to the majority of my team - as far as we were aware we were chasing a creature that was presumed extinct for some few centuries. However with data I was able to gather from the Celebratus Archive and some further extrapolations on my part I was able to track them down to their source: the forest moon of Va'art. To my surprise and in hindsight slight horror we were able to locate one of the creatures both alive and healthy, and after some considerable efforts on our part we managed to subdue it and transfer it to the new facility on Kalee for further analysis.

While I still intend to continue research on the creature for the time being to ensure that information on it is documented for future generations I have agreed with the rest of my team that we have gained everything of value we can from it. We were able to analyze and synthesize armor plating from the taozin's carapace, albeit at incredible cost and difficulty - while it is possible to produce the armor in question it is not viable for mass production, and taking too much from the taozin risks killing what might be the last of its kind. In addition, according to some of the other team members it is apparently possible to combine parts of the taozin's skin with the armor to make its wearer completely invisible to detection by the Force, though for obvious reasons I have no way to confirm this for myself. Even without the carapace the skin alone when concentrated in sufficient quantities seems to have a similar effect for anyone in close enough proximity.

...Truth be told this research has frightened me considerably. Admittedly it is partly because of the implications of it, but the main source of my fears is that this level of anti-Force tactics is even necessary to begin with. In the event that this research never occurred, I imagine it would only have been a matter of time before someone else followed in my footsteps out of fear of Jedi falling and causing another tragedy on the scale of the Temple Massacre, and the idea that the Jedi themselves have fallen so far from grace in recent days is frightening.

Much as I would like to believe otherwise, I fear this is a sign of worse to come and I can only wonder what will become of the galaxy.

-Galen Erso

Rewards: Taozin research finished immediately. Live taozin located and transported to Kalee to ensure constant source of skin and chitin for analysis and fabrication of amulets/armor. Taozin amulets and taozin carapace armor now available in highly limited qualities.

[X] Annoy Padme (Free Action, no bonuses): It's tradition. Chance of Success: Yes. Reward: Entertainment

Rolled: 92 (Critical Success)

Hmmhmmhmm~ (To be continued in Pt. 2 of turn)

[X] One Mean Witch: You need to know where you lie with Talzin, and if things go south you need to let her know that you're not going to stand for her getting in your way. You may have been unnerved by her power before, but that was before you became Darth Traya and gained the Dagger of Mortis. You're not going to let her have her way again. Chance of Success: ??? Reward: ???
-[X] Personal Attention
-[X] Asajj Ventress

Rolled: 20 + 15 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) + 44 (Ciaran) + 14 (Asajj) + 10 (Force Bond) = 123 (Super Critical Success)

It's time you let Talzin know just where you stand. (To be continued in The Great Mother)

[X] Under The Knife: With the facilities of the Arkanian Legacy at their disposal, the Arkanians can easily genemod anyone you want to go through the process. Chance of Success: 70% Cost: 100 Reward: Selected Hero Unit genemodded
-[X] Choose 1 Hero Unit:
--[X] Thrawn: Ambivalent to the idea, but if you want him to go through with it he will.
-[X] Choose 1 Genemod:
--[X] Voss: A species that has a natural disposition for foresight with the Force. (Lore, ???)

Rolled: 37 + 25 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) = 82 (Success)

(To be continued in [REDACTED])

[X] Thrawn - Unravelling The Spider's Web: Quite frankly, the only being in the entirety of the Abyss Watchers who will be able to predict Trench's next actions is Thrawn - you might be able to use shatterpoints to get ideas but you might have to focus on whatever else crops up this quarter. Have him analyze everything on Trench and figure out where he will strike. (Uses Martial Bonuses, Thrawn must be assigned to this action if chosen) Chance of Success: ??? Reward: Thrawn determines Trench's next move, ???
-[X] Thrawn
-[X] 4 Watcher Teams

Rolled: 31 + 15 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) + 41 (Thrawn) + 4 (Watchers) = 111 (Super Critical Success)

(To be continued in [REDACTED])

[X] HK-47 - Write the Book: No one has more experience in fighting, defeating, and killing Force Users - Jedi and Sith - than HK-47. While getting him to write an actual manual might convince him to turn on you out of sheer frustration, having him program some scenarios against Force users for your sim centers on Kalee would be an amazing aid to your troops. Hopefully HK won't get too carried away... (Uses Lore Bonuses, HK-47 must be assigned to this action if chosen) Chance of Success: 80% Reward: Anti-Force user simulations designed, ???
-[X] HK-47

Rolled: 55 + 20 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) + 17 (HK-47) = 112 (Super Critical Success)

HK-47 apparently both loved and hated what you asked him to do.

He hated it because he couldn't kill anything in the present, but he did love the opportunity to revisit his best assassinations and fights with Force-users.

That worked out very well for you because he was able to put together several dozen simulations based on the various Jedi and Sith he had fought throughout his existence. Once they started hitting the facilities on Kalee they were immediately declared to be both the most valuable and the most frustrating sims available - you're admittedly not sure how but HK seemed to figure out how to program a decent facsimile of a Force user's boosted instincts, the effects of some of their powers (to a point, a hologram can't send people flying with a push), and on and on.

Though quite frankly even you're impressed by the sim versions of Revan and Meetra - so far no one has managed to beat either of them, and admittedly the chance to fight two of the most fearsome Jedi ever to live - even if they're only simulated - is a tempting proposition if you can find the time.

Once again though, HK has reminded you that he hasn't had the chance to assassinate anything in over half a year, and he's of the mind that Bulq was "unsatisfying" in his own words.

Rewards: High-grade Anti-Force user sims designed, complete with Revan/Meetra as "bonus bosses." Significant boost to combat against Force-users for regular troops.

[X] Mungo Baobab - Mergers And Acquisitions: With everything happening you personally don't have time to handle your bigger deals with some of the larger companies in the galaxy, so why not have Mungo approach them on your and the Baobab Merchant Fleet's behalf? (Uses Stewardship Bonuses, Mungo Baobab must be assigned to this action if chosen) Chance of Success: 70% Reward: Chosen company contacted, ???
-[X] Hoersch-Kessel Drive: This company helped produce Lucrehulks like the Oracle, but has been suffering from considerable mismanagement and financial losses. Surely they would appreciate an investor like yourself.

Rolled: 22 + 10 (Bonuses) + 20 (Omakes) + 30 (Mungo) = 87 (Success)

The plan had been to just get into contact with Hoersch-Kessel, feel out their situation, and maybe work out some short-term deals while looking forward to longer-term ones.

That was before Mungo showed up and dropped his name, and within a matter of hours he was flooded with requests for loans, leases, and basically any form of money for the company to get its hands on to at least keep it afloat. After confirming the validity of the many deals Mungo took the initiative and contacted the rest of his family on Manda, who after considerable persuasion agreed to invest in the flagging company. This has made the Baobabs a major shareholder, and with that you were able to use your connections with the merchant fleet to encourage the H-K execs to work out some deals that will give your proxies controlling interests in quite a few of their shipyards.

In short: A mess, but one that turned out to be far more useful than you expected.

Reward: Controlling interest in H-K shipyards allowing production of ships for CNS planets, +50 investment income

4 Watcher Teams died to bring you this update.

AN: Things will be happening. Anyway a couple of comments:

First, the Aliston Nor thing is going to be a Home upgrade because the planet is too specific to have a full-on base dedicated to it but forcing you to waste a full action on setting up trips to the planet is a bit much.

Second, yes, I couldn't resist setting up another potential plot thread, god help me. In this case though it's tied to Cheriss, so that should be much more interesting and Fun to play out should it progress. Or it can remain a mystery~

I'm honestly cool with either option, though.

I'll get around to acknowledging omakes (since I've fallen behind on that a bit in the excitement of the new turn) after the update settles.

Edit: Also feel free to suggest a name for your new pet taozin. (If I don't hear a good one I'm going to be forced to call it something stupid like "Terry the Taozin" or something)

(i wouldnt actually do that its more just for fun)

(but you gotta admit terry would be a hilarious name for a bus-sized worm right)

 

[Barondoctor]

Return of A Jedi
​

A few days after I was knighted, I got a call to my ship from my Matukai Master Jansen.

"A dear friend of mine, someone I've trained in the past, is leading a group going to Ossus interested in contacting the Ysanna to learn from them. Given your recent ascension to Jedi Knight, it was felt that there might be a benefit to your assistance. Do you have the time free?"

I knew what that meant. There was a Watcher diplomacy team going there and this was an official request. It was an official request that didn't involve combat. Throw in that I already had the translation module on my datapad for anything in the Library at Ossus I might come across, and this could be a lot of fun.

I sent Jedi Master Rogan a short message.

"Master Rogan-

I'm going off-planet for a bit. My Matukai master asked me to help a friend's archaeology expedition to an old Jedi heritage site. I'll make sure you guys get a copy of anything I find.

-Knight Althean"

I told Darra what Veskasa told me; that a friend of my old master was going to Ossus and she wanted my help.

"Riphath, you have got to be the strangest Jedi to ever make Knight. No training until you were already an adult, born with no real power to speak of, seek out the Jedi yourself rather than them finding you...but a Jedi Knight you definitely are. I'm doing a little investigating of my own, so I might not be here when you get back," she said, giving me a brief kiss. "We'll be together again soon," she promised.

I got in the Nuffin Doin' and headed for Ossus. It wasn't as long a trip as I was expecting. The Perlemian Trade Route would take me there easily, and I'd have plenty of time to study up on the history of Ossus, the history of the Jedi Order in connection with Ossus, and how history has a tendency to rhyme.

I passed the planet Castell, where I knew the Commerce Guild would be changing leadership soon. I hoped the Watchers would put their weight behind Public Cola. The droid was sorting and filtering all the information from numerous specialists and likely wouldn't find it too hard to add "providing order to multiple galaxy-spanning corporations" to that list.

I passed the planet Roche, where I had heard Space Curling had gotten its start due to the Roche Asteroids.

It wasn't long after that before I reached Lianna, the rendezvous point where I would meet up with the diplomat team. I'd been informed that I'd go to the Surprising Discovery Cantina and order an Emerald Fogblaster.

Lianna being a big city-planet wasn't that off-putting to me. I'd spent years on Byblos, so big cities weren't that weird to me. It didn't take me long to get to the cantina in question, though what I would find there was a mystery. I took hold of the handle and opened the door.

It was what I'd heard of in my college days as a "quiet bar", the sort of place you could sit and talk without being overheard but while still being able to have a conversation.

I got my Emerald Fogblaster and met the diplomatic corps. They were excited to meet and work with a Jedi Knight. "I'm probably the strangest Jedi Knight you'll ever meet. I got named a Jedi because they felt I was what they wanted, and then they more or less rushed my knighting because my betrothed is a Jedi Knight and they didn't want her to outrank me," I joked. "Tython Jedi. Ever since the Temple Bombing, some Jedi left Coruscant because they wanted to not be associated with the War. Which is a good thing, as I understand it. It'll let the Jedi determine how they want to define themselves as Jedi, in relation to the Force and the people of the Republic, instead of in relation to a war or a Senate. The data files and images from Tython...yeah, I sent those. We get anything good from them?"

The conversation went back and forth. That stuff isn't important. The people...look, they told me not to give their names or descriptions. That their work was enough.

So we went to Ossus on board their ship. "Four thousand years ago," I began in the crew quarters over caff, "the Cron Supernova seared, irradiated, and otherwise seriously messed up the planet. It was during the Great Sith War, the series of battles just before the Mandalorian Wars. The Jedi knew it was coming and managed to evacuate a lot of important artifacts and information, but not all of it. Legend has it that Exar Kun attempted to steal treasures from the temple, and a Neti Jedi Master by the name of Ood Bnar stopped him, becoming a tree and taking root over a number of ancient lightsabers. After the disaster, some of the Jedi survived, but with the radiation nobody would come to evacuate them. Eventually their descendants became more tribal, protecting the Great Jedi Library and calling themselves the Ysanna. They use the Force and call it their magics, and they largely stand for Jedi philosophies."

"When did you become an expert in ancient Jedi history, Ossus, and the Ysanna?" the leader of the diplomatic corps asked.

"Well, it isn't exactly a short trip here from Tython, and I had a lot of quiet on my ship with not much else to do. I thought it might be a good thing to learn a thing or two, and I have a knack for remembering things I'm pretty sure is the Force," I answered.

"That trip is less than a week, and you summarized the briefing packet that took me the better part of the past month to pick up to the point where I can talk about this stuff like I know what I'm talking about," the leader replied.

I blew out a breath. "I cheat. I use the Force to remember things. It's...not something I would recommend, because it came with a world of scary things that have been very good at almost killing me, but it's worked out for me thus far. Right, Jedi Philosophy. That's the thing you brought me here to actually be an expert in, although I imagine actually knowing the history of Ossus and the Ysanna won't hurt."

"Well, no," one of them said. "Might even help. So, Jedi Philosophy."

I cleared my throat. "The Old Code might help, the one before there was a well-meaning oversimplification that led the Jedi down a path of impossible absolutes for mortal and finite beings. Emotion, yet peace. Ignorance, yet knowledge. Passion, yet serenity. Chaos, yet harmony. Death, yet the Force. To have feelings but not let them rule you is the way of the Jedi. To acknowledge that you do not know all things yet but constantly strive to learn is the way of the Jedi. To have deeply-held convictions about the way things should be and urge the world towards them in a calm and peaceful way as much as possible is the way of the Jedi. To have a unique perspective, understanding, and voice while acknowledging the value of shared goals and efforts and contributing to a united task in the way one can is the way of the Jedi. To acknowledge mortality but be connected to all life through a supernatural energy field that sustains everyone is the way of the Jedi. At least, that's my understanding of the Old Code. There are some other things. Little bits I've heard in training or heard students reciting to themselves."

I knit my brow in thought, remembering. "Jedi are the guardians of peace in the galaxy. Jedi use their powers to defend and protect. Jedi respect all life, in any form. Jedi serve others, rather than rule over them, for the good of the galaxy. Jedi seek to improve themselves through knowledge and training. I'm not sure how much of this will have been maintained by the Ysanna, but it's at least a window into the mindset they're going to carry with them."

The leader of the group smiled. "So we tell them we're looking for an end to the war currently tearing the galaxy apart, that we do not seek to rule but to serve the people caught in the middle and we think that the knowledge in the Jedi Library might help us. To that end, we brought with us a Jedi. You. You're here to arrange for our Force teachers to learn their Force styles, to learn their insights on the Force. To be an acceptable visitor to the Jedi Library and pave the way for the archaeology teams."

"So, no pressure, right," I laughed.

"Arrogance, overconfidence, defeatism, stubbornness, recklessness, aggression. These are the enemy of Jedi discipline. Treat people well and acknowledge that they have a right to privacy greater than my desire to invade their minds and acquire their secrets. Be honest. Keep your word. Respect your students, your teachers, and your authorities. Value life, and follow just laws. Assist others, defend the weak, and do what you can to ensure things will not become worse once your ship hits vacuum again. You are already so good at these things, but some of them will be a challenge for you your entire life. How do I know this? I have my own challenges, and I acknowledge that I am mortal. Limited. The Force is infinite, and as we listen to it we join our voices in harmony with its melody and create a song that will echo through time and space." The voice of Master Rogan resonated in my memory. He'd spent a lot of time teaching me the ways of the Jedi, while we were healing their war-wounded and weary. It all seemed solid and sensible, when approached as a set of maxims and guidelines for living.

I'd told him that the whole "will of the Force" thing was something I was still working on, something I might struggle with a while. I still remember his response. You will know, when you are calm. At peace. When you ask what the next obvious thing is to the benefit of other living beings. It's been all I've been doing for the last thirty years. Keep my calm and ask what the next obvious thing to do is. Sometimes that next obvious task is for me to submit to sleep so I can be capable of handling things tomorrow.

The group of diplomats approached a village near the Jedi Library. I walked among them, wearing my green Matukai robe in the manner similar to the Jedi, with my lightsaber at the ready, on its belt clip with my hand near it. We'd just gotten out of some dense woods and reached a clearing. Every fiber of my being screamed "trap". The killing ground, the seeming ease of travel, the fact that I know Grievous would let someone get in close enough to smell what they were looking for before closing the net around them and never letting them out until they were demolished.

"DOWN!" I called, my lightsaber going to life as I bounded across the open space between me and the first tribal-rifle-wielder, whose projectile launcher I severed. Another weapon spoke, sending an arrow at one of the diplomats. I waved my hand at the arrow, sending it harmlessly into the ground. "I am a Jedi, and these people are under my protection. I have injured none of your people and come in peace." I extinguished my lightsaber, gesturing to the diplomatic corps leader. "Go ahead, man."

The exact phrasing I don't recall, mostly because I was only partially paying attention. It was, as advised, something about seeking their wisdom to stop a galaxy-spanning war. Most of my attention was on the other slugthrowers wielded by several different ambush parties. A closer look and I started to put together what they were. Imagine a cross between a bowcaster and Grievous' favored Outland Rifle. Rather than shooting bullets, they shot a vicious-looking bolt. Arrow. Whatever. A big enough thing that the shooter could track it, and thus affect it with the Force more easily. Exactly the sort of thing I could see Grievous getting excited about. By the Force, I had to make sure he never discovered these things.

I pored over everything. Recorded everything I could get my hands on. Another approach to Blazing Chains, and an approach to creating Force Ghosts. More ships started coming to Ossus. Trainers, archaeologists, the Watchers were coming in earnest, and the initial uncertainty of the meeting was over. My part in this was done, and the call came that they should take me back to my ship.

The Disciples of Twilight were teaching their skills and as a Walker I was on the short list of people who the organization felt needed to learn them.

A/N: Being able to legitimately present the Ysanna a Jedi like out of their mythology and know the philosophy they live might help give the diplomacy team a strong bargaining position and get a lot from the Ysanna.

 

[Dr. Snark]

Forefather's Charm
On Final Approach to Nar Shaddaa

Silas felt his heartbeat speed up as he entered Nar Shadaa's atmosphere and made his way towards the landing pad closest to his meeting location with Vos. There were a lot more unknowns than he liked - Vos had suggested the location himself, it wasn't anywhere near Ciara's properties in the slightest, and worst of all he had no idea if there would be any old enemies down there waiting for him. After touching down and making his way into the streets he could feel some kind of tension in the air, his instincts from years of smuggling and the like starting to warn him that something was about to happen.

Even so, the Nar Shaddaa streets seemed normal enough. Granted, Silas did see three muggings and at least five spice dealers on the way to his meeting place, but that was just part of the local atmosphere. As he looked around it didn't seem like anyone else was looking at him oddly or moving out of his way, so he was reasonably certain he wasn't heading into a trap. Still, he couldn't shake the feeling that something was off...

Just before he went into the dodgy cantina that would serve as the meeting place he surreptitiously swept the area around him, trying to see if he was being followed. It didn't seem like there was anything out of place, but his feeling that there was something out of place stuck with him. Unnerved but concluding that he'd probably be safest the sooner he got to Vos, he entered the cantina to the familiar sounds of loud music and the noise of the crowd.

After weaving through the center floor he spotted Vos staring out towards the center of the cantina, looking bored at first glance...but Silas had been in the game long enough to recognize that he was a lot tenser than he looked as he made his way over to the Kiffar, who looked at him with mild surprise as he sat down.

"Surprised to see you here, old man!" Quinlan said, his face lighting up slightly in amusement.

"If you start cracking wise about how 'I'm too old for a place like this,' I'm leaving," Silas replied with a smirk. "I was visiting dives like this before you were even born."

"In that case, I'm amazed you didn't drink yourself to death!"

"Well, I..." Silas' eyes wandered slightly as he saw an attractive Zeltron woman stroll by him. "I had plenty of exercise. Not that you'd know," Silas quipped as he tore his eyes away and briefly glanced towards the entrance. As he turned back to face Quinlan he noticed that the Kiffar's eyes seemed to have stayed on him the whole time...

"...You get the feeling that someone was following you?" Silas asked carefully, his instincts starting to scream at him that something was wrong...

Quinlan's lack of an immediate response caused Silas' paranoia to go up a few more notches. "...So...are you expecting company?" Silas said as he started to reach for his blaster -

Only to freeze as he felt a hand softly grab his.

"Please don't, Master Cata. I assure you that I come in good faith."

Silas slowly turned to face the speaker, a man with a rugged face and a vivid scar over his right eye, which Silas noticed appeared to be cybernetic. As he casually walked over to sit alongside Vos he noticed that he seemed to be using a cane, though he couldn't tell if it was only for appearances' sake or if he actually needed it.

As he sat down Quinlan spoke up again. "Sorry for not telling you myself, but we both wanted to make sure that nothing about this meeting got traced. Silas, I'd like you to meet my former Master Tholme."

Silas looked warily at the newcomer. "The pleasure's mine, I guess..." he muttered out before he focused on the new arrival. "So what exactly brings you here?"

Tholme clapped his hands together slightly. "It's quite simple really. Vos and I would..." he glanced at Vos, who shrugged. "...how do I put this...I think the best way to put it is that the two of us are requesting that the Abyss Watchers grant us asylum in whatever capacity is possible."

Everything seemed to go quiet as Silas tried to process the words he had just heard.

"I...I don't think I follow. The hell do you mean, 'grant you asylum!?'"

"It's exactly as it sounds, Master Cata. Quinlan and I are requesting asylum within the Abyss Watchers or Council space itself if the first option is not possible," he said as the Kiffar in question nodded in affirmation. "I understand there would be some issues with that given both our circumstances-"

"T-that's not what I'm concerned about right now!" Silas hissed. "Why in the hell are you asking me!? And more importantly what do you want protection from!?"

"I chose to approach you and not the Lady Ciaran because you perceive things differently than she would," Tholme casually replied. "From my understanding she has her own perspectives on the Jedi Orders that might color her decisions - I could be wrong in that regard, but I felt that I would have a greater chance at persuading you than I would her."

"Plus, I got a feel for you and I don't have a feel for her," Quinlan pointed out. "What, you didn't think I was getting a read on you while you were doing the same for me?"

"I..." Silas clenched his fists, not liking how he had lost control of the situation. "Alright, but that brings me to my second question-"

Before he could finish he noticed Quinlan and Tholme's faces visibly fall, a detail that unnerved Silas greatly.

"...Perhaps 'asylum' was somewhat too leading of a term," Tholme said quietly, before his gaze on Silas intensified. "Allow me to explain. As the war began I came to the conclusion that the war in the shadows would be far more important than the war in the light. To that end I worked with Quinlan to set up a spy network within the Separatists, and had him go so far as to act as an apprentice to Dooku alongside various other acolytes. But..."

"...It almost destroyed me," Quinlan softly interjected. "I did a lot of things that I'm not proud of in the slightest, and I kept justifying them as 'sacrifices for the greater good' and 'necessary evils to find out more about Dooku and his master.' I was told to infiltrate the Republic as a double agent, which let me work with my friends back in the Order while still looking like I was in Dooku's good graces. Then...then the Temple Massacre happened."

"The Massacre threw our plans completely out of the window. The majority of Dooku's acolytes died during the mission and Bulq's betrayal also caused significant issues that threatened to blow Quinlan's cover. Faced with that I was prepared to simply have him abort his mission and return to the Temple..." He trailed off, and Silas' eyes narrowed.

"So what's the issue? Things got crazy, and you thought it'd be a good idea to pull out. Seems legit to me, so where the hell does this asylum nonsense come in?"

Silas suddenly felt a chill go down his spine as Tholme focused on him again with incredible intensity. "Simply put, I have come to the conclusion that the Coruscant Order has already lost this war and there is nothing that can be done to prevent that. The Coruscant Temple is no longer safe, and the Tython Order is currently too isolated for us to continue our work."

"Wha - Y-you're dancing around the issue," Silas growled out, trying not to let Tholme's comment about "already lost the war" rattle him. "What are you afraid of!?"

"The Coruscant Temple is now the site of a wound in the Force," Quinlan said flatly.

The moment Silas heard those words he felt something go cold in the pit of his stomach. He didn't know much about the Force, and didn't care much for it.

But Ciara did.

Once he finally managed to pry details about her trip to Malachor out of her she explained the phenomenon to him - apparently it was a location where enough death and pain had occurred that it created a Force anomaly that caused bad things to happen to anyone present - nightmares, hearing echoes of the event that caused the wound, and other things that would generally drive anyone insane if they stayed there for whatever foolish reason they had.

That description alone had unnerved him once he fully processed it, but hearing it now was...!

"It would seem that you already have some idea of what Quinlan is referring to. Good, that save us a considerable amount of time," Tholme said, interrupting Silas' processing. "Now then, let me reiterate my request, but with an additional incentive: I request that Quinlan and I be granted asylum in whatever capacity the Watchers can grant us, and in return we would be willing to give you information on the current state of the Coruscant Order that I believe would be vital to Lady Ciaran's continued survival."

That last comment from Tholme caused Silas to shoot the Jedi a vicious glare before he leaned back and sighed. "Quite frankly I don't have the authority to do something like that on my own, but I could convince Ciaran and the rest of our people to help you two out. That being said," Silas said coldly as he leaned forward, looking Tholme in the eyes, "I don't trust you at all, what with this showing up out of nowhere and suddenly demanding asylum and all this. So I'm not doing a damn thing until you explain why you threatened her life like that."

Quinlan looked somewhat concerned as he glanced at Tholme, who was in deep contemplation before he spoke again. "Not here. Too many ears. If we could continue this conversation somewhere more private?"

-------------

Bolthole #253

"You know, you take us to the nicest places," Quinlan muttered sarcastically as Silas shut the door to the cramped bolthole, the room just barely big enough for the three men to stand at arm's length from each other.

"There's no one on the planet who can hear us now aside from me," Silas said, internally thankful that he wasn't sure if this particular location had any cameras or anything similar - no way for Tholme to read his mind. "Now spill."

"I have every reason to believe that the majority of the Jedi Council are being affected by the wound in the Force and are becoming increasingly vulnerable to the corruption of the Dark Side," Tholme bluntly said without hesitation. "The wound has been causing nightmares for every Jedi staying in the Temple, and while I haven't spoken with the Council in person for reasons I would hope are obvious at this point I've received reports that their behavior is starting to becoming more erratic."

Silas snorted. "That's a hell of a thing to say, which means you're going to have to really convince me."

"It's more of a subtle thing, but the signs are there if you know where to look. The Tython Order is a particularly hot topic for one; some Masters have suggested taking 'punitive measures' against them, though so far no one can justify it. So far."

"Okay...who is making those suggestions? I've had to testify in front of the Council before so I know some names. Lemme guess...that sounds like Mace Windu, that Cerean one also seemed like the type..."

"Ki-Adi-Mundi." Quinlan helpfully said.

"Riiiiight, the hypocritical one! Mr. 'No Emotional Connections But It's Fine If I'm Married Because I'm A Master And Also Screw You.'" Silas said, rolling his eyes as he rattled off the nickname. "I remember now. I liked him even less than Windu when I found that out..."

"If it makes you feel better, those two were the primary voices involved."

"Called it, but those two are kinda obvious. Okay...what about...what about Yoda? I actually kind of liked him, one old bastard to another. He'd better not have been supporting this whole 'punitive whatever' thing."

"He..." Tholme's eyes closed briefly before they reopened. "...I don't know. He barely spends any time in the Temple anymore, and no one has any idea where he's been going when he leaves it. He doesn't leave for long stretches of time but..."

"The Council basically has one less member who doesn't have their head up their ass, got it."

Quinlan snorted at that, earning him a look of annoyance from Tholme. "Yes, well, crude imagery aside the wound has also expressed itself in other forms. Other members of the Council who would oppose such a measure are becoming more and more obsessed with ending the war, no matter the cost to themselves."

"Are we talking 'throwing themselves headlong into fortified positions' or 'sending wave after wave of men to their deaths?'"

"The former, for what little good that does. I have reports on me that will confirm that - in particular how Masters Fisto and Gallia in particular have been noted to be increasingly less concerned with their own safety and have been taking on missions at a rate that-"

"Trust me, I know the signs of someone pushing themselves too far," Silas interrupted. Truth be told he had known that Ciara had been hiding those signs from him in particular but that... "The point being that you can confirm everything you just said with reports and so on?"

Tholme nodded, wordlessly handing over a datapad to Silas, who quickly grabbed it out of his hands and began skimming it over, his eyes widening slightly as he did. "You know if I didn't know better, I'd say you've been spying on your own side here," he commented as he looked over a set of transcripts.

"When I started hearing worrying news from some of the lower-ranking Knights, I feared the worst and took matters into my own hands," Tholme coolly replied.

Silas finished his skim and looked back at Tholme. "Okay, so let's say I'm starting to believe you. Problem is there's still a pretty damn big hole in your story."

"'Why oh why have they not just left the Temple or something?'" Quinlan said resignedly. "That's the one, right? Well, you're probably going to love that one of the biggest reasons is politics."

Silas did his level best to contain his reaction to Quinlan's comment, fully grasping the implications of how Sidious was likely already pulling strings. "It'd be bad if the Jedi up and left while the Republic's debating on how best to punish them, right. If they ran away that might as well be an admission of guilt..." He shook his head. "But hang on, aren't most Council members double timing as generals? I don't get the Force, but it seems to me like you need to stay in that 'wound' or whatever to have the worst of it affect you."

"That is...partly accurate, not to mention that there is a small but constant stream of Jedi leaving Coruscant and making their way to Tython that should be able to shake off the worst of its effects. However there is another, more insidious problem that is exacerbating its effects; there is a genuine fear within the Coruscant Order that they are under attack," Tholme began to explain. "Not just from the Sith or Separatists as usual, but from the Tython Order, from the Watchers, and it would not surprise me if I began to hear whispers that the Republic itself is to blame for their misfortune in the coming months." He folded his arms and sighed resignedly. "...I meant what I said. The Jedi Order as Quinlan and I know it has already lost. Even in death, Bulq managed to do more damage to the Jedi in one night than the Sith have managed to do in a millennium. And in light of what is happening now the two of us concluded that our best hope was to work with you and Lady Ciaran to try and stop the Sith from finishing their work. Hoping that maybe we can at least protect the rest of the Jedi on Tython if nothing else..." He trailed off, staring blankly at the floor as Quinlan folded his arms and leaned against the wall, clearly deep in thought.

Silas went quiet, trying to figure out what to say before groaning and cracking his neck slightly. "If it makes you feel better...your situation might not be as hopeless as you think it is."

That got both Jedi's attention as they quickly focused on Silas. "I can see it in your eyes...You know something - some truth about all of this!?" Tholme said, the intensity in his voice clear as Quinlan's face began to light up.

"Now hold on a minute. You two have to talk to Ciaran if you want any more details, that is not negotiable. But if you're serious about this...my ship's on a landing pad near here. If you end up somehow stowing away on it, well I can always say that you two managed to mind trick me or something, what a shame."

-------------

As the Forefather's Charm climbed up and made its way out of Nar Shaddaa's atmosphere, Quinlan and Tholme were settling into the ship's main hold, Quinlan idly fiddling with his lightsaber while Tholme was going over a datapad. The pair's concentration was interrupted when the two of them heard a loud "DAMMIT" come from the cockpit. Tholme looked at Quinlan who simply shrugged and went back to work while he went to the cockpit to see what had happened.

"Is something the matter?" Tholme asked as he saw Silas crash into the back of his seat and groan loudly. In response, Silas turned to shoot a halfhearted glare at the Jedi before leaning forward and beginning to work with the controls.

"Sorry about this, but it looks like the meeting's going to have to wait - Ciaran's busy with the whole Honoghr thing and you're not going to be able to get time...to..." Silas trailed off as he saw Tholme's face visibly tense up after the name "Honoghr" was dropped, and Silas could tell that he was in deep thought before his eyes snapped back to attention.

"We're not waiting. We're going to Honoghr," Tholme stated without any room for argument. He waited for some kind of protest from Silas, only for him to tilt his head in slight surprise as Silas started punching in the coordinates for the devastated world.

"Again, I'm no Force user, but I've spent enough time around them to notice when they get the feeling something bad is about to happen and to not argue with them when they do," Silas said out loud as his movements visibly hastened, his hands flying across the controls as he kicked the Forefather's Charm's thrusters to maximum, the ship rocketing away from Nar Shaddaa's gravity well. As Silas prepared the jump to Honoghr, one thought was going through his mind...

Please be safe Ciara...

AN: So this is happening now. I actually had this ready a couple of days ago, but for hopefully obvious reasons I really wanted to make sure this was well-polished.

First off, you'll notice a lack of rewards, and no, it's not because I'm trying to screw you over or anything. That's actually because for once in this quest I actually have an honest-to-god continuous story arc planned out that will take place over the course of most of these interludes. I know, it's insanity! I'll be nice and even give you an "episode guide":

Howls in the Dark -> Planet of Death -> The Great Mother -> Black and White

With the other two interludes coming somewhere in the middle of that or afterwards depending on the whims of my muse (though I'm almost certain that the Jebble Box thing is going to come out right after "Black and White" for thematic reasons) and the [REDACTED] one last. Anyway, the rewards for those four things will all be collectively written out at the end of "Black and White."

Aside from that...yeah, yeah I admit that I've basically screwed over the Courscant Order at this point. I honestly have nothing against them personally (no, really!), buuuuuutttt I did mention a while back that I wasn't planning on pulling any punches if/when they made mistakes and I'm not one to sugarcoat the ramifications of your/others' actions so here we are. Fun! (In the Dwarf Fortress sense of the word)

Anyway, stay tuned for the continuation of this arc (man it feels satisfying to say that)!

 

[Dr. Snark]

"...It's funny, now that I think about it. Manipulating shatterpoints for myself gives me the power to change my future. But once I do so everything I see happen is completely unavoidable no matter what I do.

It's almost hilarious in its irony. The power to change fate, at the cost of having that new future be set in stone..."

Honoghr

As the wind blew across the surface of Honoghr, a flower gently waved in the wind before a droplet of dark purple liquid collided with it, and within seconds the flower began to disintegrate, the wind quickly tearing the flower apart as the wildlife around it began to quickly decay from the horrific bioweapon that was ravaging the planet.

As it spread, a man with spiked black hair and a concerned expression looked out over the sight, recording what was happening on his scanner.

"Why here, of all planets...?" he muttered.

"General En?"

Rii'ke shook his head as he turned back to the clone trooper that had volunteered to stay with him on such a dangerous mission. "I'm trying to figure out why this planet was hit. Surely you understand that there's no strategic value here whatsoever..." He shook his head resignedly. "Sorry, you were saying something?"

"The shuttle's sensors have detected some transports coming in. IFF has cleared them as Silver Cross vessels. In addition it's been confirmed that among them was Lady Ciaran's personal cruiser."

Rii'ke's eyes widened briefly before he sighed resignedly. "While I am grateful that they're providing aid, that also means that our mission just got a lot more complicated. Still, our goals aren't contradictory," he said as he made his way towards the ships he saw entering the atmosphere and beginning to land, "so I can't imagine there will be any..."

He trailed off as he felt like he was being watched for a moment, and the trooper with him seemed to feel the same sensation as he raised his rifle and moved to be back-to-back with Rii'ke as they scanned the environment around them, but it seemed like nothing was there...

"We're joining with the relief party," Rii'ke said coolly as his eyes darted to and fro, trying to see if he was missing something as he started to get back on track. "If there's a threat here we need to protect them."

"Sir."

As the two of them reached the now landing relief party and seeing various people running to and fro and setting up equipment, they saw Ciaran walk down the ramp of her personal cruiser, looking around with a noticeable sense of unease before she faced Rii'ke. For a brief instant the Jedi got the unnerving sense that an intense gaze was on him even though the woman in front of him was blind...

"...I didn't know that there would be anyone else here," she said as he and the trooper with him walked over to her. "Are we intruding on a GAR operation, or...?"

"Nothing of the sort, ma'am. We're just here to determine what drove the Separatists to use a bioweapon on this planet in particular," Rii'ke explained, noting that Ciaran seemed visibly uninterested in what he was saying.

"Is that right? Well given what we're doing here odds are the scanners and the like should pick something up sooner or later," she said disinterestedly, not even bothering to pretend to make eye contact with Rii'ke as she looked around the quickly forming base camp.

Rii'ke couldn't help but be concerned; everything he'd heard about the...controversial Lady Ciaran was that she was a woman who seemed to enjoy getting under people's skin, always wanted to get the last word in a conversation, and...the woman in front of him wasn't acting like that at all, for some reason.

"...Pardon me for asking, but...is something wrong, Lady Ciaran? You seem...preoccupied with something."

Her head quickly turned back to Rii'ke and the Jedi suddenly felt like he was being analyzed by her for some perceived quality before she sighed and shook her head. "I think you've noticed that I haven't been getting too much sleep lately is all," she said as she made her way out towards the camp-

Suddenly the sounds of screaming began to echo through the air.

"So it's time, then," Ciaran muttered before dashing off towards the source of the screaming, and without a word Rii'ke and the clone trooper with him started to follow her. As they arrived on the scene they were greeted with the sight of grey-skinned humanoids throwing spears towards a group of panicking aid workers, many of them managing to strike them in the chest or head as others began to charge in wielding knives. Without hesitating, Rii'ke ignited his lightsaber and charged into the fray, trying to draw the alien attackers' attention as the relief team quickly began to evacuate the area. While he managed to hold his own against the increasing numbers of enemies, a part of him was dimly aware of the distinct sound of a spear piercing through armor followed by the sound of a body hitting the ground. As he continued to fight a part of him knew that he would not be leaving this planet alive, but he pressed on-

His concentration was soon broken by the sight of Lady Ciaran slicing through a group of the attacking aliens with a lightfoil, though to his worry he noticed that she was beginning to pant heavily and lose her tempo the more the fight went on. Suddenly she yelled out in pain even though she was not visibly wounded and staggered briefly, though she managed to catch herself and stab an unfortunate alien in the chest as he tried to impale her with a spear. While Rii'ke tried to break through to her it was too late; before he could get close she fell to the ground and began to writhe in agony. At that point one of the aliens struck her directly in the face, shattering her visor and knocking her unconscious. They quickly moved to grab her and haul her away, and with that the rest of the aliens broke away from the fight, leaving Rii'ke alone on the corpse-filled battlefield. Quickly determining that a rescue attempt would likely get them both killed, he began to sprint back towards his ship as fast as his legs could carry him.

By the time Rii'ke made it back to his ship he had already rehearsed his distress call a dozen times in his mind before he noticed that there was an incoming call on it from an unknown frequency. Confused, he activated it, seeing the image of a man he didn't recognize appear. "This is Jedi Knight Rii'ke En, who-"

"I am Master Tholme," and as he spoke Rii'ke ship's computer confirmed that he was using an Order cipher. "and that is all you need to know right now. What is the situation on Honoghr?"

"Not good. A Silver Cross team led by Lady Ciaran arrived here just a few minutes ago, but they were ambushed and she was captured-"

He heard muffled shouting on the other end as Tholme glanced to his side. "We will be there momentarily. Hold position, do not do anything rash, and do not inform anyone else about this under any circumstances. Once I arrive we will work together to recover Ciaran."

"Don't inform-!? Master, what are you-!?"

"I will explain after I arrive, but you must trust me. Tholme out."

-------------

Ciaran forced her eyes open, her vision blurry as she tried to make out where she was and where the...the...was it Noghri? Everything seemed so...hazy...

As she tried to look up she saw a haze of green smoke appear in front of her, slowly resolving itself into the appearance of a viciously smirking Talzin. As she appeared, enough adrenaline began to course through Ciaran's system to help her remember...

She had charged towards the Noghri, igniting her lightfoil and beginning to strike down anyone who got close to her. While she was being overwhelmed she was prepared to use Shatterpoint on the ground beneath her to destabilize it, disorienting the Noghri and giving her a chance to escape. She had seen this fight play out in her visions-

Suddenly she felt her legs start to give out as though the strength had been suddenly sapped from them, and as she struggled to stay upright she felt the sudden weakness spread throughout her body. The pain eventually caused her to topple over onto the ground as she began to writhe in agony from the sudden pain that seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere. The last thing she remembered was the clenched fist of a Noghri impacting her and shattering her visor-

"Talzin, you..." Ciaran was cut off as a wave of pain went through her body with a gesture from the witch.

"Do not think that you have any power anymore. This is punishment for your betrayal."

"...My betrayal!?" Ciaran growled out as she focused a hateful glare on Talzin. "You were the one who betrayed me. I-" She gritted her teeth as she felt another wave of pain. "You somehow drove the forces that attacked Mandalore insane-"

She screamed out as she felt a sharp pain in her chest as Talzin viciously sneered at her. "Foolish. All you had to do was grant Maul his wish for revenge and I would have no reason to kill you."

Ciaran was silent for a moment before she began to chuckle darkly. "...If you really mean that...then we were destined to be enemies from the day we met." Talzin didn't reply, so Ciaran continued. "Since we're being so honest with each other I'm going to be nice and warn you about something: No matter what happens next, Asajj will kill you."

"She would never betray her Mother."

"You'd be surprised-" Before Ciaran could get another word out she felt something hit her back, and as Talzin's image dissolved she looked up to the sight of what was undeniably a Rakatan temple.

She'd seen the temple in her shatterpoint visions before, but even so a part of her couldn't help but admit that if she had to die here, she could do far worse than having a temple of the Infinite Empire as a mausoleum.

As the Noghri dragged her inside she also noticed the shapes of what appeared to be deactivated droids leaning against some of the walls - it seemed that the Noghri didn't realize that the temple's defenders still slept here, waiting for an order that would likely never come...

Ciaran's thoughts were cut off as the Noghri threw her onto the ground in front of what appeared to be thirteen elders of the species, dressed in ornate robes and commanding clear authority over the others presence. She tried to force herself to stand, but Talzin's curse had weakened her too badly and she flopped to the ground with a groan of agony. With a grunt in a language she didn't understand from the lead elder she felt the arms of a pair of Noghri wrap around her own and drag her to her feet, bringing her face-to-face with the thirteen elders. As her vision started to blur again the lead elder spoke.

"You stand accused of the greatest of crimes against our people."

The rest of the Noghri chanted a word Ciaran didn't understand - though she guessed it was something along the lines of "murderer" or "guilty." As the chanting subsided, she used every ounce of strength left in her body to force herself to make eye contact with the Noghri. "You...you speak Basic?"

"The language of the sky gods is a strange one but known to us, though I am the most familiar with it," the elder replied. "As Dynast of Clan Khim'bar, I have been given the privilege of sentencing you to death for the destruction you have wrought against our people."

"...Why me?"

"You are dressed as a leader. The robes you wear are far more grand than those of a mere soldier."

"I..." Ciaran winced as she felt another wave of pain go through her. "That...may be true, but...I don't understand...what "crimes" are you referring to? My people came here to help-"

"Your people brought this devastation to our world!" the Dynast roared out, his words quickly followed by the enraged chanting of Noghri.

"That...that's insane, they were here to give aid..."

Ciaran trailed off as she suddenly noticed a glint of steel illuminated by the dim lights of the temple, and as she focused on it she could tell that it appeared to be a fragment of a warhead of some kind. It had shown up in her visions but it had been too blurry to make out at the time...

"...What is that?" Ciaran said, throwing her energy into jerking her head towards the warhead piece. With another barked order a pair of Noghri picked up the piece and brought it close enough to Ciaran for her to make out what was undeniably the symbol of the Silver Cross emblazoned on it.

A part of Ciaran wanted to laugh hysterically at the sight. This kind of false flag operation was one of the oldest tricks in the book, one easily disprovable under normal circumstances...but to a primitive species that had little to no contact with the outside galaxy and were looking for someone to blame for the bioweapon ravaging their planet...it may as well have been the undeniable word of their gods she was up against.

Even if the curse ravaging her body hadn't been a factor she had to admit that she still would have been captured by the Noghri and blamed for what was happening. Despite the pain throwing her thought process off she managed to put together Palpatine's plan: with the Noghri killing off a significant amount of the Silver Cross response team and a clone trooper, Honoghr would have been locked down by the Republic while they figured out what happened. The response team would have "somehow" found the warhead piece along with other evidence that was likely present elsewhere and concluded that somehow she had provided the Separatists with the bioweapon destroying Honoghr. Granted it was a PR fight she could win, but it would be a significant drain on her resources while she was fighting it and it would only serve to incite further conflict as details about the attack were presented to the galaxy. And of course, there's the off-chance that she would just get killed - a longshot, but one with little to no consequences for failure.

Talzin choosing to strike now was simply a stroke of incredibly good fortune for him.

"I...gah...don't suppose you'd believe me if I...ghhk...I told you that was forged specifically to frame me?"

"What reason would we have to believe your lies?" the Dynast coldly replied.

"Hah...because I...I came here to...to heal your planet. T-that is what that symbol truly means. It is a sign of healing and-" Ciaran trailed off as she felt her vision start to swim.

"...You are ill," the Dynast said quietly.

"Did...did you not notice up until now!?" Ciaran snapped, her vision briefly clearing up as rage-induced adrenaline went through her system. "If I wasn't being cursed right now a lot more of your people would have died trying to capture me," she spat out, briefly managing to ignore the pain and refocus through sheer anger towards her captors and frustration at her current state.

"Hmph...it matters-"

The Dynast was cut off as another Noghri shouted something towards him, and the two of them quickly had an exchange before the Dynast focused back on Ciaran. "It would seem that there is another who may prove your claims true."

Once again Ciaran had a feeling that something would arrive to save her through her visions but she had no idea what. "Wha..." Her vision started to blur again. "What are you...talking about..."

"Three more intruders have arrived. One bears the same scent as you."

"I...I don't..."

"Our people can smell the blood that ties family together."

Ciaran tried to get out a retort, to scream something out, but before she could her the world around her started to go black.

Just before she fell unconscious she heard-

"CIARA!"

As Silas tried to charge towards the altar he was restrained by the Noghri around him, and he continued to spit relentless curses at them as they dragged him up towards the Dynasts. Meanwhile Tholme and Quinlan were forced into the room at spear-point by other Noghri, both men's eyes widening as they saw what was happening.

"YOU LET ME GO OR I'LL KILL EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU BASTARDS!" Silas screamed out as he tried to wrestle out of the grips of his captors to reach his unconscious granddaughter, whose body had now visibly gone pale. As the Dynast that had spoke to Ciaran approached him, Silas tried to break free again only for the Noghri to tighten their grips. Even so the glare that Silas was giving the Noghri was fierce enough to give the Dynast pause before he spoke again.

"Your child stands before us accused of-"

"I don't give a damn about what you're accusing her of," Silas said in a low growl. "Either you let her go right now or I swear that I will do whatever it takes to make sure every last one of you bastards dies."

The Dynast blinked. "You care for her that much," he said quietly.

Silas didn't say a word, only continuing to viciously glare at the Noghri in front of him as Tholme and Quinlan slowly began to reach for their lightsabers...

Suddenly the Dynast barked out an order that prompted an argument among him and the other twelve Dynasts present that went on for a long moment before the first Dynast turned to face Silas again. "I suggest you focus on healing your child instead of fighting pointlessly."

With those words the Noghri let go of Silas and Ciaran both, Ciaran starting to drop to the floor before Silas managed to catch her. He gave her a once-over before turning to face the Dynast.

"I do not know what afflicts her," he said, answering the unspoken question, "but it is no disease any of us have seen."

"If I may," Tholme said from the back, causing everyone in the room to focus on him, "I am a healer by trade. If you would be willing to give my apprentice and I a room where we can treat her..."

The Dynasts quickly debated among themselves for a moment. "That is acceptable. You will be escorted to a chamber where you can perform your healing - but you will not be allowed to leave until she has been healed and you and her are judged by us." Having said his piece, the Dynast shouted out a command to the rest of the Noghri, who quickly formed a corridor for their captives to move through.

A pair of Noghri started to move to pick up Ciaran, but respectfully moved away as Silas gave both of them a vicious glare. With a grunt of pain he lifted her unconscious body up and moved to join Tholme and Quinlan. Once grouped together the three of them were escorted into a nearly empty room save for a circular slab in the middle of it. As Silas moved to gently lay Ciaran down on it and Tholme and Quinlan cautiously followed him in, the Noghri behind them grunted, then visibly moved to either side of the door - out of sight, but clearly still present.

Once he had set her down, Silas placed the back of his hand against Ciaran's head, his eyes widening at how cold her body felt. "Wha-"

"Master Cata, I need you to get out of our way," Tholme brusquely said as he pushed Silas to the side, placing his hands on Ciaran's body as Quinlan looked at her intensely.

"This...I've felt this energy somewhere before..." he muttered.

"What the hell are you talking about!?" Silas shouted.

"Someone is using the Force to try and kill her," Tholme coolly said as he prepared to channel the Force into Ciaran though pointedly looking at Quinlan. "You said you felt something like this before. Where, and who?"

"Dathomir. This feels like Nightsister magic." As Quinlan said that he noticed Silas' eyes go wide. "Got something you wanna tell us, old man?"

Silas cursed internally as he realized he let something slip in his panic. "That's-"

Before he could respond, the sounds of Noghri shouting something at each other came from outside, to the visible concern of everyone in the room. As Silas and Quinlan tried to go outside they were blocked by a cross of spears, and despite both of their best efforts they couldn't see what was going on. Before long though the spears parted and Silas nearly choked on his spit as Asajj was escorted into the room much like the rest of them had been. Quinlan stared at her in confusion for a few moments before his eyes widened in recognition and he started to reach for his lightsaber-

"Don't. I'm not here to kill either of you," Asajj coldly said, brushing past the visibly stunned Silas and Quinan, looking over Ciaran's unconscious body and Tholme intensely focusing on Ciaran, though his eyes briefly darted to Asajj before he focused back on his work. "...It would seem this is just as I feared."

"What is happening to her?" Silas questioned, his voice shaking.

"A curse from the Great Mother herself. Healing her will only delay it, if it is allowed to progress further she will die no matter what any of us do," Asajj explained. "The only way to stop it is to destroy whatever Talzin is using as a physical anchor for it."

"Meaning...?" Quinlan said nervously.

"Ideally we would go to Dathomir, destroy it, and kill Talzin," Asajj coldly explained. "Right now we do not have that luxury. However..." She looked at Tholme, then back at Quinlan and Silas. "Do not interrupt us."

Without waiting for a reply Asajj closed her eyes and began to reach out across her Bond with Ciaran...

Asajj?

I leave your side for one moment and you're already half dead.

How did you know...?

...I could sense what was happening to you.

Hah...right...so is my number up? I-

Don't you dare finish that thought.

...You have a plan then?

One that is unlikely to work.

My favorite kind. What do you need me to do?

I can guide you to the source of this curse. But you will have to destroy its source yourself - it will take everything I have to get you there.

.......Alright.

Asajj reached out with the Force, feeling Ciaran's presence weakly following her as she sought out Talzin. She slid deeper and deeper into a trance as she saw a trail of green smoke in her mind's eye, and she followed it as it left Honoghr's atmosphere and trailed through space. After what seemed like an eternity she saw it reach Dathomir, and she followed it down to its surface, into the caverns the Nightsisters called home, and finally into a dark chamber where Talzin was holding a stone figurine resembling Ciaran above a cauldron filled with green liquid. As Asajj reached that point she felt Talzin's eyes upon her, though after a moment they widened in slight surprise.

"...Why are you here, Asajj?" she said quietly.

"This is why," and she felt Ciaran use the last of her strength to reach out towards the cauldron, cracks already beginning to appear on its surface.

"So she was-"

Talzin was cut off as the cauldron exploded, sending Asajj flying backwards and slamming against the wall of the room to the confusion of everyone in it. Their attention quickly shifted back to Ciaran as she started to cough violently before suddenly waking up, pitching over on her side, and vomiting up a steam of green smoke. As it dispersed everyone stared at her as she gasped for breath, and after a brief moment she turned to face Asajj with a ragged grin.

"No offense, but your mother-"

"The only reason I'm not hitting you right now is because it might kill you," Asajj retorted.

Ciaran started to reply but before she could she felt Silas' arms wrap around her, and she couldn't help but let out a slight "eek" of surprise as he started to crush her in a bear hug. "G-grandpa, need to breathe..."

Silas let go, though as he stepped back Ciaran could see his visibly teary face. "...Y-you have to stop scaring me like this, Ciara. I don't know if I can keep taking this."

With a groan, Ciaran unsteadily got to her feet before taking a deep breath and feeling the pleasant sensation of her muscles being strengthened by the Force, letting her recover in a matter of minutes as opposed to hours or days. "In my defense-" She trailed off when she noticed the two other people in the room, one of whom she immediately recognized as Quinlan Vos. She looked at them, then back to Asajj, then back to them, then back to Asajj...

"...There is no way this looks good for me, is there?"

"No," Quinlan coldly replied as Tholme nodded wordlessly in agreement, his eyes now locked on Asajj.

Before Ciaran could begin forming her usual set of lies and excuses she heard the Noghri guards shouting something. There was silence for a brief moment before a large group of Noghri came into the room, pointing their spears at the group and herding them together before they were marched back towards the altar...

-------------

"So, you still live," the Dynast said as he looked over the now much healthier Ciaran standing in between Silas and Asajj. Among the crowd of Noghri Tholme and Quinlan looked at the proceedings nervously, occasionally glancing around at the rest of the Noghri.

"I'm stubborn-" She winced as Asajj jabbed her in the side, "-and more importantly I had good help."

"I see," the Dynast coolly replied, seeming uncaring about Asajj's actions. "In any case, do you know why all three of you are standing here and being judged as one?"

"Not really." "Nope." "No."

"To our people blood and loyalty is everything. We could smell that you three shared that blood, though her scent is much weaker," the Dynast said as he gestured toward Asajj. "Your elder's desire to protect you and his fearlessness in doing so was worthy of praise, so we were willing to grant him the opportunity to let you be healed. That being said all three of you shall be judged-"

"I'm going to stop you right there," Ciaran said, pointedly ignoring how many of the Noghri began to grumble at her interruption. "As I was trying to say while I was busy nearly dying, that symbol you saw is a sign of healing, relief, and charity in the rest of the galaxy. That weapon was not built by me. I despise those kinds of things."

"She does," Asajj said. "It is quite annoying to hear her enraged screaming about the matter."

Ciaran looked at Asajj as though she had just stabbed her in the back while Silas pointedly averted his gaze from Ciaran and tried to whistle nonchalantly when Ciaran looked at him for affirmation.

"Mere words," the Dynast retorted. "We desire proof."

"She is telling the truth," Tholme called out from within the crowd of Noghri, all of them turning to face the Jedi Master. "Lady Ciaran is a respected philanthropist and renowned humanitarian. She would never-"

"Once again, there is no proof of your words," the Dynast shouted back, ignoring the glare Quinlan was shooting at him. "If there is no way you can provide that proof, we will have no choice but to find you guilty."

Ciaran racked her brain for an out for this situation, drawing a blank at first before part of her mind that had to have been influenced by Grievous gave her an idea.

"Would I be wrong in assuming your people take pride in strength and prowess through combat?"

The Dynast's eyes narrowed as Asajj facepalmed, Silas looked at Ciaran with a look that screamed "what are you thinking," and Quinlan and Tholme looked at Ciaran with barely hidden shock on their faces.

"...You are not wrong," the Dynast said slowly, weighing Ciaran's words.

For various reasons everyone held prisoner by the Noghri had the same thought at the same time: I can't believe this might work.

"I suppose if you wish to prove your words through combat it would be acceptable to us. Very well!" The Dynast shouted in Honoghran that set off a wave of chants, eventually leading to a particularly tall and muscular Noghri stepping forth from the crowd and onto the altar. Getting the message, Asajj and Silas backed off to a respectable distance; the former visibly resigned to what was about to happen while the latter was visibly concerned at what his granddaughter was trying to do.

After an exchange between the warrior and Dynast, the both of them turned to face Ciaran "This is Hrak'vokh, one of the finest warriors of Clan Bakh'tor. He will be the judge of your skills and intent."

Hrak'vokh's gaze was intense as he stared down Ciaran, though she was unfazed after seeing many similar looks from the Kaleesh.

"Since this is a trial of combat, you will be allowed to use one of our weapons," the Dynast explained as a quartet of Noghri walked up to the altar, accompanied by the chanting of the Noghri around them. One of them moved to hand an ornate spear to Hrak'vokh while the other three moved towards Ciaran, each of them holding out a weapon: a spear, a knife, and a steel blade respectively. With a slight smirk on her face Ciaran picked up the blade and gave it a few experimental swings, nodding to the Dynast once she was pleased with her choice.

As the weapon-bearing Noghri departed the chanting from the rest of the crowd slightly diminished while Hrak'vokh and Ciaran squared off against each other. Ciaran centered herself, strengthening her muscles and giving herself clarity-

Which quickly proved vital as she dodged a swift jab from Hrak'vokh followed by him closing the distance to Ciaran's slight surprise. She was undeterred however as she shifted into Form II, and while the added weight of the blade was throwing her off slightly she quickly took the advantage, dancing through Hrak'vokh's attacks and getting in a few slices. While the damage didn't seem to affect his fighting abilities, it was clear that he was actively surprised by Ciaran's skill. Evidently the rest of the Noghri felt the same as their chanting had died down in favor of shock at the fact that this outsider was gaining the advantage against one of Honoghr's finest warriors.

Hrak'vokh was far from finished though, as Ciaran realized once he threw his spear past her and shifted into pure melee combat. To her shock he was able to regain the advantage against her, laying into her with a series of brutal punches and kicks - though once again to Hrak'vokh's visible surprise Ciaran was able to take the punishment he was inflicting on her. At this point the fight began to shift towards more of a stalemate - Ciaran's swordsmanship was able to keep Hrak'vokh at bay to some extent and she was still able to get a few slices in, but Hrak'vokh was agile enough to dodge many of Ciaran's attacks and get in a few hits of her own.

At this point the only question would be who would go down first - though internally Ciaran was fairly certain it would be Hrak'vokh one way or another. Ciaran had assumed that she could simply outlast her Noghri opponent, but his own skill and tenacity would likely force her to kill him - and she wasn't particularly looking forward to the reaction of the Noghri if she killed their designated champion.

She got an opportunity when Hrak'vokh broke away, visibly cut up and clearly trying to reevaluate the situation. Doing her best to shift her body language to seem as neutral as possible, Ciaran slowly lowered her sword, noticing a curious look from Hrak'vokh but no reaction yet. Afterwards she tentatively walked towards him and held out a hand, and after a moment of hesitation, Hrak'vokh firmly grasped it to the audible shock of the crowd, not to mention the stunned expressions of Quinlan and Tholme. As Hrak'vokh turned to speak with the Dynasts, Silas rushed over to Ciaran.

"Ciara, what did I say about not giving me a heart attack?" he said with a mixture of anger and concern in his voice.

"In my-"

"No. No excuses. Stop doing that to me."

"For what it is worth, her response, while...unusual was probably the right one," Asajj commented as she glanced between Ciaran and the conversing Noghri. "I would hope you've been around the Kaleesh enough to recognize a society that respects martial strength."

"I get that, but you shouldn't have done that after you nearly died!" Silas said as he rounded on Ciaran again, who simply sighed in resignation knowing full well that arguing with her grandfather at that point was completely pointless.

Though before Ciaran could say anything more she heard the voices of the Dynasts rise in intensity as they conversed with the stoic Hrak'vokh before turning to confer among themselves in hushed tones.

"Don't get too confident, but that looks like the kind of argument where we don't all die horribly," Ciaran said quietly to Asajj and Silas, who both nodded in agreement.

After another moment the Dynast that had been speaking to Ciaran stepped forth as Hrak'vokh cast an unreadable look in her direction. "Hrak'vokh has testified in your favor. It would seem that you managed to earn his respect, outsider."

Ciaran looked at the Noghri warrior, who continued to remain stoic as the Dynast spoke, though once he finished Hrak'vokh spoke for the first time since he had arrived.

"Warrior. Not criminal."

Ciaran glanced back at the Dynast.

"Hrak'vokh knows some of this "Basic." though only some words," the Dynast explained. "What matters is that he has chosen to recognize you as a fellow warrior worthy of being heard out. As such, we would be willing to place more trust in your words."

"I see," Ciaran said, politely bowing slightly towards Hrak'vokh before turning back to face the Dynast again. "If that's the case, let me start over from the beginning..."

She went on to explain how their world had been attacked as part of a strategy to spread fear and hatred to the rest of the galaxy, how she had been framed in the hopes of tarnishing her name, and how the Silver Cross had come to try and mitigate the damage the bioweapon had caused. As she spoke the Dynast quickly translated for the convenience of the rest of the Noghri, who started muttering and nodding amongst themselves as Ciaran finished her explanation.

"It would seem there is much we do not understand, but at the same time it cannot be denied that your tale is far too...grandiose, I believe is the right word, for it to be a lie. It is so far-reaching and yet stays consistent in its logic. As such, we have agreed to trust you in this matter. You will be free to go, and your people will be allowed to help us heal our world so long as they are willing to be watched over by us while they are doing so."

Ciaran nodded affirmatively. "Reasonable enough. On other thing, the two men there," she said as she gestured towards Quinlan and Tholme, "are also with me. I ask that they be given the same protection as the others."

The Dynast nodded. "Very well. Since there is nothing more to be said, you may go," he said as he and the rest of the Dynasts turned to leave, and the crowd of Noghri began to break apart as well. Though before she could leave she felt a hand tightly grip her shoulder, and on reflex she spun and prepared to punch her assailant - only for her hand to be caught by a stern-looking Hrak'vokh.

"Weak. Could be stronger."

Ciaran didn't detect an insult in his words, so... "I think you mean that I'm unskilled. I have to admit that you'd probably be better in a fistfight than I would be right now."

Hrak'vokh nodded, seeming to understand Ciaran's words. "Need teacher."

"Are you offering?"

He nodded slightly. "Curious. Have potential. ...Unexpected."

With that Hrak'vokh walked away.

"You seem to have a way with the warrior types," Silas muttered.

"Of course she would," Asajj replied. "Weren't you paying attention?"

Ciaran blinked owlishly. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm surprised you didn't notice. You had a smirk on your face for most of the fight."

Before Ciaran could say anything else she saw Tholme and Quinlan stride up to her with equally matching expressions of suspicion.

"I think you owe us both an explanation," Tholme said as Quinlan briefly but pointedly focused on Asajj.

"I could say the same," Ciaran retorted. "How-"

"I brought 'em here," Silas interrupted. "They were asking for asylum and were talking about a wound in the Force forming at the Jedi Temple."

Ciaran's face paled dramatically. "...What!?"

AN: And scene. We're at over 6k words now so I figure it's called for. And also all of that happened.

Aside from that the only real comment I have to make is that if it seemed like Hrak'vokh was using a particular fighting style he was - there weren't any detailed descriptions of what the martial art style the Noghri used so I ended up basing it off of Bajiquan if you want to look up more details on that.

Aside from that any other comments I would have would have would spoil the rest of the arc. Rest assured that I'll be covering the loose ends next time around.

It will also have Ciaran and Asajj's Excellent Witch Hunt, so look forward to that!

Edit: Edited this extensively to address some (valid) complaints people had about the chapter. Hopefully that fixes things!

 

[Dr. Snark]

The Kell Dragon
En Route To Dathomir

Fortunately for Ciaran, an active assassination attempt on her life made it easy for her to convince Quinlan and Tholme that they had to kill Talzin right now, and despite their visible reservations about working with Asajj they quickly agreed. Tholme even dryly noted that every one of them was likely marked for death by the witch at that point anyway, so what other choice did they have? After quickly sending away the Jedi that had been sent to examine the planet with a situation report that quietly omitted the majority of the conflict with the Noghri as well Tholme and Quinlan's presence, the duo decided to stay on board the Kell Dragon during the trip to Dathomir, and with that the unlikely team left Honoghr behind and made their way into space.

Once the Kell Dragon had entered hyperspace with the Forefather's Charm and Vectivus right behind it Ciaran went through a brief but very tense conversation with Tholme and Quinlan, going over their story and ensuring that she had the facts straight. Once she confirmed it, she sealed herself away in her quarters - though not before telling the two Jedi that their conversation was far from over and would continue after Talzin was dead. Her isolation was ostensibly to help her concentrate on a plan to help deal with Talzin, but in reality it was to let her process what she had just heard:

A Wound in the Force had formed at the Coruscant Jedi Temple.

If ever there was a sentence she never wanted to hear in her life, that was unquestionably it.

Aside from the Wound at Malachor Ciaran really didn't have much concrete information to go on with Wounds; sure there were plenty of recorded instances of them throughout history but from what she could glean from them the traditional solution to them was "keep away from them until they vanish," a solution that would not do in the current situation.

Unfortunately for Ciaran as she poured over various records of Force Wounds in her quarters, she had no idea what to actually do about it.

Just tell the Jedi? Oh sure, it's not like they distrusted her even before the Wound started to affect them and the certainly weren't going to try to use the opportunity to get her thrown in jail at saberpoint or something equally ridiculous at this point. With the Order's increased paranoia, that wasn't really an option.

Get them to leave? Political issues aside (which were bad enough as it was even after the Tarkin scandal), if an active terrorist strike on their home wouldn't get them to leave, nothing would. Fabricating a disaster of some kind was also right out given the increased security, some of which Ciaran herself was responsible for inspiring.

Create some kind of ritual to fix it? Assuming the Jedi would let her do it, (they wouldn't) or that they would trust some outside group to do so (nope), or that they would trust Tholme and Quinlan to do so at this point (unlikely), said ritual didn't exist. Meaning it would have to be created from scratch, tested, and so on, and at this point that would take up time she didn't have.

She'd gone over the information she had for several hours straight, but as far as she could tell the situation with the Wound was every bit as hopeless as Quinlan and Tholme had made it sound.

Shaking her head Ciaran reminded herself that she had a far more immediate problem to deal with, and it was proving to be quite the issue. With no idea of how long it would take for Talzin to try another assassination she had to get to Dathomir now, and that meant that she didn't have time to call in proper reinforcements. Either they were too far away, or they would have to deal with the increased security in that region of space due to Dathomir's relatively close proximity to Mandalore and Taris. Most of her best fighters were also busy with their own critical missions, so there weren't any reinforcements coming. It would be four Force users and Silas (who had no business being in a fight like that to begin with and would be staying in the Forefather's Charm no matter what) against the entirety of the Nightsisters and Talzin. Those were incredibly long odds.

Fortunately, Ciaran had one last ace up her sleeve. And as she felt the Kell Dragon exit hyperspace she knew that getting the Singing Mountain Clan to fight with her was a longshot, but at this point it was the only option she really had left...

-----------

As the sun began to set on Dathomir Ciaran, Asajj, Tholme, and Quinlan made their way towards the eponymous Singing Mountain the air between the quartet was incredibly tense. It only increased further as they caught sight of the Singing Mountain Clan's warriors in clear sight yet conspicuously not attacking them at all, merely watching over them as they made their way to the base of the mountain.

Once they reached its base they were greeted by a much larger crowd of warriors lead by the regal Augwynne Djo standing at the front of them. Ciaran stepped forward, getting a quick read on Djo before she spoke and noted that she seemed pensive but not hostile - though the clan mother seemed to be visibly focusing on her for some reason or other. With that in mind she started to open her mouth-

"I know why you are here," Djo interrupted. "You wish to kill Talzin, and you need our help."

Ciaran looked at her, visibly confused and noticing that she now looked visibly resigned for some reason. "Er...yes...but how did you know?"

"Our elder foresaw that this day was coming. She told us that a pair of Jedi, a...Nightsister-"

"Former Nightsister," Asajj coldly interrupted.

"...At any rate, she told us that your arrival would signal the end of our struggle with the Nightsisters one way or the other," Djo said, and Ciaran noticed that she was quietly omitted from the description of the people arriving...

Before Ciaran could ask the relevant question, Tholme stepped forward. "Forgive me for saying this, but this seems incredibly convenient. From what I understand your clan was merely feuding with the Nightsisters up to this point. And now that we're here you're willing to push it into open war?"

"...He has a point," Ciaran admitted as she mulled it over in her head. "From the sounds of it you're willing to presume that random strangers showing up is a sign of the end times."

"Are you so willing to turn down our aid?" Djo said.

"We're more wondering what's in it for you," Quinlan interjected. "You're taking a big risk here; what makes you think-"

"Enough," Ciaran interrupted. "Quite frankly it doesn't matter what she wants. Skipping the whole 'can you trust me' bit sounds nice, so why don't we just cut to the chase and figure out what needs to be done?"

Asajj grunted in affirmation, and while Quinlan glared at Ciaran he quickly backed down. Tholme shrugged, muttered "At worst we can easily fight our way out" under his breath, then nodded respectfully towards Djo. "My compatriot is right. We should focus more on our common enemy. Shall we?"

Djo nodded. "My sisters will guide you to a suitable meeting place then," she said as she gestured towards a group of clanswomen that were visibly armed. Though as everyone moved to follow them Djo gently put a hand on Ciaran's shoulder. As Ciaran slowly faced Djo, she could tell that she was visibly unnerved - not by her though but...

"Mother Rell wishes to see you, if you would be so kind," Djo said in a tone that indicated she wasn't making a request. "It will take some time for some of the other clans to arrive, and it seems your comrades have things well in hand."

Ciaran glanced over her shoulder to see Asajj looking over her shoulder at her, still following the others but with her hands drifting ever so slightly towards her lightsabers...

"...I suppose that'd be fine, given everything you're doing for us," Ciaran said slowly. Djo nodded coolly before letting go, and as she gestured for Ciaran to follow her Ciaran glanced at Asajj and gave a slight nod. With that Asajj nodded back, turning away and letting her arms relax.

------------

As Ciaran arrived at Rell's dwelling higher on the mountain she noticed that there were a number of Singing Mountain clanswomen just out of sight - while they were hidden visually by both terrain and the darkness of the night Ciaran easily spotted them through her Force vision. Though oddly enough they didn't seem to be preparing to attack, and as she glanced at Djo she could tell that the clan mother didn't seem to be readying herself for a fight...

Once they reached the door to the dwelling Djo called out "Mother Rell. She is here." And from behind the door came a soft and ragged "She may enter, then."

Djo stood to the side, gesturing for Ciaran to enter. Increasingly suspicious but having no reason to argue (yet), she cautiously opened the door, its primitive hinges creaking as she entered to the sight of various charms hanging from the ceiling and walls covered in hand-painted pictures that Ciaran didn't understand the context of. Though what caught her attention was the sight of the old woman within it - or rather her presence in the Force. It was very strong, but it looked...strange to Ciaran, as though it were being pulled in two different directions towards...somewhere. As Rell turned to face Ciaran, she could tell that the Mother was very old, her body nearly skeletal presumably from age.

"Ah...so here you are...yet you were not here before," Rell said. "The one who is not in the past but who seems to be the one who will decide the future."

Ciaran sighed resignedly. "Please tell me you're not going to be this cryptic the whole time. I've heard it before and..." She frowned as her annoyance faded and she started to parse over Rell's words. "...Wait. What do you mean, 'not in the past'?"

Rell smiled softly. "The Force has gifted me with sight, though it is both of the past and future. Sometimes I see the past. Sometimes the future. Often it is difficult to tell...especially when the past is changed."

That caused Ciaran to tilt her head slightly in confusion. "I'm not sure I understand."

"The past is set in stone," Rell replied. "And for most, their destiny is decided long before it is ever realized. But..."

Ciaran suddenly felt a heavy weight descend upon her as Rell's eyes locked on her.

"You were not here. Until a few nights ago you were never here. Our struggle against the Nightsisters continued. Yet here you are now, and our struggle is reaching its conclusion. And when I was able to see the altered future you were there, but you were also absent. In all my years...I have never seen anything of its like.

Why are you here?"

For a moment it seemed as though Rell's voice was infinitely more commanding, though Ciaran was unfazed. "I am here to kill Talzin. That's it. Aside from that I have no other purpose on this planet nor do I intend to return once my business here is done. There is nothing more for me here."

Rell remained silent.

"Do you have anything else-"

"You do not seem to understand what it is you are doing or what you are," Rell interrupted suddenly.

"Trust me...I'm a lot more aware of what you're implying than you think I am," Ciaran retorted.

Rell continued to stare at Ciaran before nodding slightly. "...Perhaps you are correct. You carry many echoes with you that I cannot hope to comprehend." With that, she slowly sat back down.

"If there's nothing else, then I wanted to ask...that whole thing about the four of us showing up, was that a lie?"

"Oh no. I saw your three companions standing with us. You were...present, yet absent. It was one of the reasons why I wished to speak with you. That is all."

Ciaran nodde, bowed slightly, and left the dwelling without a word. As she got outside, Djo stood before her with her arms crossed.

"I think she likes me," Ciaran said coolly.

"...I do not know what you are," Djo said slowly, "but know that I am only trusting you because those people with you are the same that Mother Rell saw in her visions."

"Good enough for me," Ciaran replied. "By the way, if you were going to try and kill me afterwards you would have needed more fighters."

Djo remained silent for a moment before turning, saying "We should rejoin your people," and heading down the mountain, Ciaran close behind her...

-----------

As the sun started to rise on the day of the battle Ciaran glanced around at the army that was marching alongside her. Hundreds if not thousands of warriors from what seemed to be a dozen different tribes made up the vanguard, and close behind them a line of Rancors stomped forwards, each with a woman saddled on them and holding reins that didn't seem sufficient enough to control such mighty beasts...

Any chance you could teach me how to keep a Rancor under control one of these days? Ciaran asked Asajj telepathically.

I doubt any of them would be willing to part with theirs, Asajj replied.

Though the real surprise for Ciaran was the tribes of Kwi that had arrived to join in the fight - large cobalt-blue lizards that stood on a pair of hind legs, had stubby clawed arms, and from what she saw mouths filled with black teeth that looked like it could tear through anything short of steel.

You know, a part of me wishes that the Kwi weren't somewhat sapient. I want one. Or two. A pack actually.

Ciaran felt a sense of annoyance come from Asajj. Perhaps it is for the best that is the case then.

Killjoy.

Outwardly Asajj was looking straight ahead as the exterior of the Nightsisters' fortress came into view. Beside her Quinlan was actively scanning the horizon to see if anyone was hiding out of sight, while Tholme had taken up the rear guard to help coordinate some of the forces. Djo herself remained on the Singing Mountain, largely to prepare rituals to bolster their forces and counter whatever Talzin or the other Nightsisters would throw at them.

It was a force to be reckoned with and much more than Ciaran had hoped for. Even so as the fortress grew closer it became visibly apparent that the Nightsisters had deployed in force, with an army just as large as their forces and with a large number of Rancor riders in their own right. They didn't seem to be advancing though...

Once the Singing Mountain forces were close enough to make the Nightsisters visibly ready themselves for a fight, they stopped suddenly after a few barked orders were shouted out.

Showtime, Ciaran thought to herself as she and Asajj slowly walked forward.

"We want to parley!" Ciaran shouted out towards the Nightsisters, who were visibly confused by the request.

"You heard her right," Asajj called out in affirmation. "We wish to negotiate and avoid more fighting than is necessary."

"We ask that you send forth a representative so that we can go over terms with them."

There was a considerable amount of grumbling from the Nightsister lines before someone replied "I will go!"

Asajj's eyes widened slightly as she recognized the woman that was stepping forth - Saato, the one-time acolyte of Sora Bulq that she had spared back in the Coruscant Undercity. She resolutely marched forward to where Ciaran and Asajj were standing, though once she arrived her gaze fell squarely on Asajj.

"...So it's true then," she said softly. "You have betrayed us. You've betrayed our Great Mother -"

"Your Great Mother," Asajj interrupted. "I hold no loyalty to her. Not anymore."

Saato was silent, before looking at Ciaran with fury in her eyes. "What did you do to her!?" She hissed out.

"I gave her her life back," Ciaran replied. "If it wasn't for my help she would be dead."

"That, or little more than a madwoman endlessly chasing after revenge," Asajj added quietly before staring Saato straight in the eyes. "There were no tricks. No deceptions. I am standing alongside Ciaran of my own volition, and nothing will ever change that."

"B-but...the Nightsisters..."

"I haven't been on this planet in years, Saato," Asajj explained. "I have no ties to the people in front of me. However, I do not wish to fight this battle unless I have to. We can avoid the fight ahead if you would hand over Talzin."

Saato balked at Asajj's terms. "W-we could never hand over our Great Mother, why-!?"

"She tried to kill me and if left alone would do so again," Ciaran explained. "I'm not leaving this planet until I know she's dead."

Asajj noticed that Saato didn't seem to be surprised by Ciaran's explanation. "You killed her son," she retorted, though her voice betrayed her lack of conviction.

"I killed her son," Asajj declared. "He was little more than a mad beast when I did so; even if his body had lived on his mind was already shattered."

Saato was visibly dumbstruck, giving Ciaran the chance to surreptitiously press a button on her comlink before she could recover. "...I-If that is the case...then Great Mother Talzin will show no mercy to either of you." While the threat was clear, it was obvious to the both of them that her heart wasn't really in it.

"That's fine," Ciaran replied. "Also, thank you."

"...For what?"

"Being an excellent distraction."

Asajj promptly punched Saato square in the face, knocking her unconscious. As the Nightsister army started to react they turned towards the sound of an aircraft getting closer-

Within seconds the Forefather's Charm dove down and began strafing the Nightsister army with a relentless barrage of laser and missile fire, sending warriors flying and panicking any rancors that survived. It sped across the Nightsister lines, continuing its run before breaking off as the Singing Mountain army approached, Silas knowing full well that he would be doing far more harm than good at that point.

"Don't die on me, Ciara..." Silas muttered as he turned the Forefather's Charm towards the Singing Mountain.

Meanwhile on the ground the battle had fully begun in earnest; warriors from both sides were colliding against each other, dueling with swords or trying to pick off opponents with energy bows. Rancor riders charged through the melee, sending people flying as they carved a warpath towards the enemy. Some had even engaged each other, the rancors clawing at each other in a brutal fight to the death.

Ciaran and Asajj were right in the thick of this, back-to-back as they fended off dozens of warriors that had surrounded the duo. Even so it was clear that they held the advantage over the Nightsisters as anyone who was unfortunate enough to get too close was almost immediately cut down, and any arrows fired at them would be effortlessly deflected.

Their concentration was broken by the roar of a rancor that was beginning to charge towards them, though before it could reach them a pack of Kwi launched an attack - some bit down on the rancor's arms and pulled it down while others jumped on its back to keep it from standing back up. Within seconds the rancor was being ripped to shreds by the fearsome lizards.

"See, this is why I want some of them!" Ciaran shouted to Asajj.

"Would you shut up and keep fighting!?" Asajj shot back.

Elsewhere, Quinlan had entered into the combat trance of Vaapad and was slicing through any Nightsister he could see. When he spotted a rancor menacing some Kwi who were being cornered, he charged towards it, sliced off one of its arms in a brutal swing, and dodged under the swipe of the other arm. From there he leapt up onto its back, stabbed its rider through the chest, then stabbed his lightsaber deep into the rancor's skull. With it slain he leapt off of it as it collapsed to the ground and continued his rampage.

At the rear Tholme was concerned; the battle had been going well to be sure and he hadn't had to intervene yet, but this seemed to be going far too well. He knew that the Nightsisters had to have other tricks up their sleeves...

He was proven right as ominous chanting began to fill the air and green mist poured out of the fortress' entrance, quickly flooding the battlefield. As the Singing Mountain army wondered what was going on the Nightsisters visibly backed off slightly, as though waiting for something...

Then the screaming began.

Decaying corpses clawed out of the earth and began to attack the Singing Mountain army - while it was clear from their tattoos and what was left of their clothing that they were once Nightsisters, they were now little more than feral thralls attacking everything that wasn't a Nightsister. They would leap onto warriors and Kwi and begin biting and clawing at them, or if they were faced with a Rancor they would simply begin swarming it, bringing it down through sheer weight of numbers.

"The hell are these things!?" Ciaran shouted as she sliced apart a pair of zombies that were trying to grab her.

"It would seem these are dead Nightsisters brought back through one of their rituals!" Asajj replied, cutting down a trio herself.

"Since when could the Nightsisters create a zombie army!?"

"It is certainly difficult, but far from impossible-"

"Wait, are you implying you can do it too!?"

"Not to this extent-"

"You can create a zombie army of your own!?"

"WILL YOU SHUT UP ALREADY!?" Asajj shouted, punctuating her frustration by pushing away a group of zombies with the Force.

Meanwhile Quinlan was holding his own against the newly risen zombie hordes, wondering when exactly everything had gone mad. Quickly concluding that he needed to rejoin Tholme to figure out a new plan, he began wading his way through the undead Nightsisters towards Tholme, who had now drawn his lightsaber and was actively cutting down anything that got close. As Quinlan arrived Tholme gritted his teeth and faced towards the fortress entrance. "We need to get inside and stop this ritual, or we're going to die from attrition!"

"If we leave the rest of the army behind these undead are going to tear them apart," Quinlan retorted. "We need-"

He stopped as he suddenly felt a sense of empowerment come over him, and as he glanced around he saw that the Singing Mountain army was beginning to rally, forming up in tight groups to better fend off the encroaching undead and remaining Nightsister warriors.

"Battle Meditation...so that's what Djo's counter was," Tholme muttered before turning to face Quinlan. "I'll stay out here and rally the troops for a counterattack. Find Ciaran and Ventress, get inside that fortress, and end this madness. Hurry!"

Quinlan nodded, rushing over to Ciaran and Asajj, who had come to a similar conclusion and were already heading for the fortress entrance themselves. Though before they could get inside they were halted by a massive roar, and from its entrance a titanic rancor covered from head to toe in body paint and tattoos stormed out, hungry for blood.

"Oh good. We're up against the king of all rancors," Ciaran said.

With another roar the rancor charged forwards at a speed far faster than its size would suggest, and began swiping at the three intruders. While they were able to wound it with their lightsabers, it only served to enrage it further as it began to pound the ground with its fists in the hopes of smashing its foes, cracking the earth beneath it. At the same time the situation was rapidly degrading as undead Nightsisters were beginning to move towards them in greater numbers, forcing Quinlan to break away and hold them off.

Ciaran looked at the situation and realized that there was probably only one way out of this. "Asajj, get up on its head and try to calm it down!"

Without a word Asajj dodged to the side of one of its ground pounds before leaping on its head, pressing her palms against it and commanding it to submit. Unfortunately for her it was proving to be quite resistant to her, and it began thrashing around in an attempt to throw off Asajj.

"Uh...Force it down! I'll try to follow your lead!" Ciaran shouted out as she charged towards the rancor, the beast falling to its knees as Asajj put everything she had into ordering it to kneel. Once it did Ciaran pressed her hands against its head and began pushing out, trying to match Asajj's commands to stop struggling, to calm itself...

After a moment Ciaran felt her and Asajj's commands synchronize and amplify themselves, the tandem effort serving to reinforce the commands. Within a few seconds the rancor's eyes dulled slightly and it finally stopped struggling.

Go fight the Nightsister armies, Ciaran and Asajj commanded in unison, and after Asajj jumped down to the ground the rancor stood up, roared once again, and began to charge towards the undead trying to surround Ciaran, Asajj, and Quinlan. With their entry route secured the three of them nodded at each other before sprinting for the entrance...

-------------

As the trio made their way into the fortress they were struck by just how quiet and empty it was - none of them could sense anyone trying to ambush them, and apart from the distant sounds of combat there was nothing to be heard.

Once they arrived at the center they slowed down and stopped, seeing none other than Talzin herself standing before them, clearly waiting for their arrival.

"I knew that each of you would come here to kill me one day," she said as an eerie reverb backed her words before pointing at Quinlan. "You have stood against the Nightsisters in the past, and I will be sure to avenge those you have slain." Then Ciaran. "You were the one who orchestrated the death of my beloved son, and slew his brother." Then Asajj, and her hand shook slightly as her face contorted in fury. "And you. You killed Maul. You betrayed us."

"I struck down a walking corpse," Asajj retorted. "Maul was mad, and by the time I found him he was little more than a vengeful shell of a being."

"HOW DARE YOU!" Talzin screamed out, the walls of the fortress slightly shaking. "You DARED to stop me when I tried to exact my revenge. You betrayed your Mother-"

"YOU TRIED TO KILL MY SISTER!"

As Ciaran heard that she turned toward Asajj, visibly taken back. Quinlan was equally as stunned, wondering why it was that Asajj Ventress was willing to say such a thing about anyone.

"You weren't there when I was left to die. You weren't there when I was lost and uncertain of my place in the galaxy. You weren't the one who helped me realize that my path would have left me blindly obsessed with vengeance like your son was. But she was. I won't-"

Asajj was cut off as Talzin snarled in fury before holding out a hand and launching a beam of lighting at Asajj, who barely managed to hold it back. Ciaran quickly whipped out her blaster pistol and tried to shoot at Talzin, but she held up her other hand and generated a green sphere around her, blocking her shots and Quinlan's attempt to charge in. Before either of them could react Talzin amplified her lightning, causing it to explode in Asajj's face and send her flying towards a nearby wall. It visibly cracked as Asajj's body slammed against it, then Asajj's unconscious body toppled forward onto the ground as Ciaran stared at her, wide-eyed, her blaster falling out of her hand.

"Both of you will die," Talzin snarled, letting her shield drop. "But her death will be slow." With that she drew a line of green smoke followed by a slight curve in the air, and as she finished tracing the shape the smoke expanded into the shape of a sword with a dragon's head hilt, the blade alight with sickly green fire.

Quinlan started to raise his lightsaber before he felt Ciaran's hand tightly clamp down on his shoulder. "Go. I'll deal with her myself." The flat tone of her voice brooked no argument, and as Quinlan looked back he could see the raw fury in her eyes. He nodded, and began to move towards the source of the ritual that had raised the dead. Talzin begin to turn towards him, but she was interrupted as Ciaran moved and locked her saber against her sword.

"Foolish," Talzin boasted as she pushed Ciaran back, bringing her sword down on her - but Ciaran quickly dodged it and sliced at her side, though Talzin was able to easily block the strike. From there, the pair exchanged a brief set of blows before Talzin smirked and raised her barrier again, pushing Ciaran away. "You cannot defeat me." With that she began to charge up another beam of lightning...

Ciaran stood eerily still, though her Moonlight Blade had begun to destabilize, the lightsaber pulsing with uncontrolled energy. Then she slowly held out her free hand to her side, and from beneath her robes the hilt of the Dagger of Mortis floated into it, her fingers tightly closing around it as the blade materialized. As Talzin fired her lightning at Ciaran she quickly dodged to the side before charging at Talzin and slicing straight through her barrier with the Dagger, the sphere disintegrating into smoke as her expression morphed into one of fear. She didn't know what Ciaran had done, but the essence she had put into that barrier had vanished once it had been pierced.

"You know, it's funny," Ciaran said quietly as she slowly stepped towards Talzin, the witch now actively backing away in terror. "When I first got here I was terrified of you. Of how strong you were. Of how you seemed to know so much more about the Force than I did. But then...then I found people willing to teach me. I learned that I had potential not yet realized, gifts that would make me stronger if I could master them. But honestly? None of that matters. After all..." Ciaran pointed the Dagger towards Talzin.

"Why would I be afraid of someone who's already dead?"

Talzin launched herself back, manifesting as many additional swords as she could and telekinetically throwing them at Ciaran, who either dodged or deflected every blade thrown at her. Still, she was slowed down enough for Talzin's final gambit - she reached out and pushed into her mind, searching for what she feared-

Ah. You want to know what I fear most? You seem to be quite sure it will save you from your inevitable death.

Talzin felt something entrap her as Ciaran's mind produced a vision of a world she didn't recognize, one that had sweeping mountains, rolling green hills, and bright blue seas-

Very well, I will humor you. Allow me to show you what I fear more than anything else in this galaxy.

The air suddenly went still, the seas dried up, the grass turned into dust, and the water evaporated. Before Talzin could react she felt a [---------] appear behind her, and as she turned to face it she saw a figure in black robes wearing a bone-white mask. She lashed out at it with her sword, managing to crack its mask-

And for a brief instant she saw Ciaran's face beneath it.

Then [---------] surrounded her. She saw [---------], she felt [---------], she-

She screamed in terror as she charged forward in desperation, abandoning any pretense of skill or finesse as she sliced wildly at the monster in front of her in the hopes of cutting her down. While Ciaran was able to counter her easily, she wasn't able to get an opening for the finishing blow-

Suddenly she heard her blaster pistol go off and saw a bolt fly towards Talzin out of the corner of her eye. On reflex she started to redirect it and felt that same resonance from her bond with Asajj as earlier, the bolt quickly darting around Talzin's frenzied swings before hitting her in the hand, forcing her to drop the sword. With that Ciaran rushed in and plunged the Dagger into Talzin's chest.

Her scream shook the fortress once again as her body began to dissolve into mist - slowly at first, then faster and faster, more and more of her vanishing-

And then the fortress was empty, as though Talzin was never there to begin with.

Ciaran didn't bother taking in the kill, though, immediately running over to the now barely conscious Asajj, who was trying and failing to push herself off of the ground. Ciaran reached out a hand towards Asajj, who didn't hesitate in grabbing it. Ciaran hauled her up and leaned Asajj against her for support as she looked around, sensing that the ritual had been ended and that the battle outside had come to a close. Sure enough Quinlan arrived, glancing over the pair. He moved to help Asajj, but she weakly pushed him away as she and Ciaran slowly made their way outside alongside him, looking out and seeing that the battlefield was rapidly emptying. After a moment Tholme made his way over to the trio, slightly worse for wear but still standing.

"Well it would seem that you managed to win this battle for us," Tholme said coolly. "The Singing Mountain forces have already started to gather prisoners and head back to the mountain. I doubt they'll mind if we-"

He trailed off as he noticed Quinlan, Ciaran, and Asajj staring into the distance, and as he followed their gazes he saw what seemed to be a bound Nightsister being held at sword-point by a pair of Singing Mountain warriors. Once they got close enough Asajj and Ciaran could recognize that the Nightsister in question was Saato, looking downcast as she approached. Once they reached the quartet the warrior on the left spoke. "She surrendered immediately after regaining consciousness, but requested the chance to speak with you," pointing towards Asajj.

"...Why?" Asajj asked, trying to force herself as upright as she could.

Saato was silent for a long moment before she kneeled and bowed her head towards Asajj. "Great Mother."

Asajj frowned. "I am no Nightsister. And the clan is as good as dead now-" She winced slightly.

"...You saved my life, twice over even."

"I knocked you unconscious."

"Honestly I didn't do anything myself because I thought it-" Ciaran was cut off as Asajj glared at her.

"More than that though...I helped kill Talzin," Asajj said quietly. "Don't you hate me for that?"

Saato fell silent for a long moment. "I...know I should but..." She trailed off. "...Great Mother Talzin couldn't believe it when she learned that you were the one who killed Maul at first. She refused to believe that you had betrayed us...but I still had a few sources from my time with Bulq and his acolytes. I learned about what he tried to do. Found out how obsessed he was with revenge and destruction. When I approached her the Great Mother said his revenge was justified but...look at what Talzin's desire for revenge did to us."

Asajj closed her eyes. "And then someone showed you that there was another way." They snapped open again as she pulled herself up straighter and faced the Singing Mountain warriors. "I want her to be in my custody."

"You heard the woman," Ciaran said, nodding in affirmation. "Surely Mother Djo wouldn't mind if we took her with us?"

The two warriors glanced between each other before nodding. "Very well. We have no use for her anyway." With that, they left, leaving the five of them alone on the now empty battlefield.

Not going to lie, I had a feeling you'd willing to speak up for her, Ciaran said to Asajj over their bond.

...I appreciate your support, Asajj replied.

She's entirely loyal to you and is already trained as an operative. Saato here will make for an excellent Walker.

"Since you know how to pilot a ship, you'll be taking Asajj's back to where it came from as your first test since she's not really in a state to pilot it," Ciaran explained, gently setting down Asajj before slicing through Saato's bonds. "Shouldn't be too hard, but I do need proof that I can trust you."

Saato bowed lightly. "I trust it is back at the Singing Mountain?"

"Mhm. It's the one that isn't the shiniest, but is better looking than the piece of junk that's also there. You'll know it when you see it." Ciaran waved her hand vaguely. "Go on then, get going."

As Saato sprinted into the distance Ciaran looked over her shoulder at Quinlan and Tholme. "You two are riding with Silas, and that's final."

"Well, where are we going then?" Quinlan asked. "Now that Talzin's dead, we need to talk."

Ciaran sighed resignedly. "We do. But there's someone else that needs to be involved in the conversation now." She activated her comlink, bringing up a holoimage of Silas. "Hey. We're done."

"Right. So...you're still sure about this?"

Ciaran nodded affirmatively. "Quinlan and Tholme are going with you again just so you know."

Silas sighed in resignation "...Alright then. See you soon."

As Ciaran shut off the comlink she turned to face Quinlan and Tholme, Asajj leaning up slightly.

"Gentlemen, our next stop is Mandalore. I think it only makes sense to inform Master Kenobi of what's happening. Wouldn't you agree?"

AN: FINALLY

Writer's block hit me hard for the start of this, then I got my drafts eaten twice. But this finally came together, and I hope the wait was worth it.

So, comments: First, while I initially used the prophecy thing as a bit of a shortcut I did have fun exploring the implications of what Fracture Manipulation does to seers. It's gotta be a hell of a trip when your vision of the future suddenly changes from "decades-spanning feud" to "the final battle between light and dark is happening tomorrow."

Second: Did you know that the Kwi are basically super raptors? Because they're basically super raptors. Dathomir is an amazing planet.

Third, as it turns out Asajj can in fact raise the dead. Look it up, I was honestly as surprised as Ciaran was. I doubt it will ever get brought up again since it's honestly pretty situational, but hey. Neat detail, right?

Fourth, everything Talzin did is canonical, believe it or not. Yes, she can shoot beams of lightning. Yes, she can manifest flaming swords that can block lightsabers out of thin air. Because yes. She does seem to be a bit of a glass cannon since her crazy powers come straight from her lifeforce though.

Fifth, no I was not expecting Saato to actually become a recurring character. She's got a few sentences worth of description on Wookiepedia that boil down to "generic mid-boss." But then I expanded her backstory, and it made sense for her to be on Dathomir for the final battle, and now I've given much more depth to a one-note character than they probably deserved. Again. (Speaking of which I really need to find a way to write another scene with Seti in it now that I think about it...)

Aside from that once the ball got rolling this was really fun to write (I'm fairly sure you can tell what my favorite part was), so I hope you enjoyed it!

 

[Dr. Snark]

Dathomir

The slow walk back to the Kell Dragon for Ciaran and Asajj was entirely silent, neither of them willing to talk about what had happened during the fight in the presence of Quinlan and Tholme. The two Jedi had moved ahead slightly, quietly discussing something among themselves but remaining inaudible. A cloud of fog had gathered around them, thin enough to see through but still obscuring the area around them to a noticeable degree.

"Sure would have been nice for the Singing Mountain clan to lend us a ride or something," Ciaran grumbled to herself, shortly followed by a grunt of agreement from Asajj. "I get the distinct impression that they didn't really want to deal with us once they had an excuse not-"

They were interrupted by the sounds of something large stomping towards them, and as Quinlan and Tholme ignited their lightsabers Ciaran realized that what was coming towards them was...familiar?

Before long the rancor that she and Asajj had barely managed to tame came into view, and without breaking stride simply strolled past Quinlan and Tholme up to Ciaran and Asajj. Now that they could get a closer look at it they could see broken chains around its neck and arms...

Once it closed the distance the rancor simply stopped, staring at the pair.

"Uh...hi?" Ciaran said nervously. "Looks like you broke out of whatever the Singing Mountain people had you in...do...do you..."

"Apparently we managed to do a better job of taming the rancor than I thought," Asajj said, groaning as she hauled herself up slightly. "It would seem that this one is still loyal to us, especially if it came all of this way to reunite with us."

Ciaran looked at her, then back at the oddly docile rancor standing before them, then back to Asajj, and a plan began to form-

"Yes, I wouldn't mind if - " Asajj gave the rancor a once-over - "he carried me the rest of the way. It's either that or..." She trailed off, shaking her head before gesturing towards him, and in response the Rancor slowly reached out a claw, carefully grabbing Asajj and lifting her up, using its hands to form a cradle Asajj could lie in before turning to face Ciaran.

"Right...well...uh...keep following me? I guess?"

The Rancor didn't seem to respond at first, but as Ciaran caught up with the very confused pair of Quinlan and Tholme he began to dutifully follow behind.

"...Why do I get the sinking feeling that this sort of insanity happens to you often?" Tholme said as he slowly facepalmed.

"Because that feeling is 100% accurate," Ciaran replied. As he started walking again she turned back towards Asajj. "You know, we're going to need to name him."

From her position in the rancor's claws, Asajj sighed in resignation. "Of course you want to keep him." She leaned up slightly. "Very well, do you have any ideas?"

"How about...'Cuddles?'"

"...No. What kind of fool would give that name to a rancor?"

The rancor growled, seeming to agree with Asajj's sentiment.

"I-it was a joke, I swear!" Ciaran said, shaking her hands in a "I didn't mean it" manner. "Hm..."

"Something that big deserves a fierce name," Quinlan said. "How about 'Juyo?' Like the lightsaber form?"

"That seems like a name that could cause some confusion," Tholme replied, bringing a hand to his chin in thought. "Hm...a name of a great warrior then? It may be a rather storied name, but perhaps 'Ulic' would suffice."

"If we're going historical, then I think 'Marr' would be a decent name for him," Ciaran said.

"If by 'historical' you mean yet another figure from the Jedi Civil War," Asajj replied indignantly.

"That's not fair! It's someone from right after that period," Ciaran retorted, and the look of annoyance from Asajj indicated she had an idea of what Ciaran was talking about. "You have a better idea?"

"He is a rancor. He will tear apart anything that gets in his way. We should go for a simple name that indicates how fearsome he is."

"Hm...well, we could always call him 'Adenn.'"

"And that means...?" Quinlan asked.

"It's a Mando'a word that means 'merciless.'"

Quinlan pondered the suggestion briefly before shrugging. "It's not a bad idea, but I still think 'Juyo' would be a better name."

After a few more moments of debate, the quartet arrived at their ships, with Silas leaning against the entry ramp. Without a word he glanced at the rancor holding Asajj before shrugging slightly and turning to face Quinlan and Tholme. "Right then, unless you two want to stay on the Planet of the Witches, you'd better get on board."

"Actually, I believe Mother Djo wanted to speak with us about something," Tholme said, and as Quinlan nodded in affirmation he turned to face Ciaran. "Would you mind going ahead of us?"

Ciaran shot a slight glare at Tholme. "I can wait. I won't interrupt whatever it is you're doing but we should stay together, for safety."

Tholme nodded coolly. "Reasonable enough." Without another word he made his way towards the nearby village with Quinlan close behind, and as they exited earshot Ciaran turned to face her grandfather.

"...So should I operate under the assumption that I'm going to have a Dathomirian cousin soon?"

Silas guffawed as Asajj leaned up slightly, a look of disgust on her face. "Normally I would not make those sort of assumptions about someone, but with you that is a reasonable question."

"Cut me some slack, I wasn't even here that long! Do you seriously think I could-"

"Yep." "Without question."

"Tch! No respect for your elders, I swear..."

Before Ciaran could continue, she realized something as she turned to face the yet-named rancor. She quickly darted into the Kell Dragon, found a tracker, and came out with it, walking slowly towards the rancor as he tilted his head slightly.

"So I don't have space in my ship to take you with me. But I do plan on coming back for you soon. Just keep this on you," Ciaran said to the rancor as she gingerly put the tracker on him, "and it'll let me find you once I get back. Got it?"

The rancor nodded slightly.

"Good boy."

The rancor growled in clear annoyance.

"O-okay, apparently you don't like being patronized, got it..."

--------------

After the Jedi duo returned and boarded the Forefather's Charm, it and the Kell Dragon climbed upwards and exited Dathomir's atmosphere. Once it made the jump to lightspeed, Ciaran sighed and made her way back into the ship's quarters where Asajj was lying back on the bed. As Ciaran entered, she turned her head slightly to face her.

"Are the bacta patches helping?" Ciaran quietly asked.

"...Some. I'll be fine soon, but I'd prefer getting some time in a tank to make sure I don't have any serious internal injures."

The two of them fell silent.

"...Are we going to talk about what you said back there?" Ciaran said, though Asajj started to turn her head away. "Once everything settled down I started to realize that Talzin trying to kill me...I can't imagine what that must have felt like to you over-"

"It was the most terrifying thing I've ever felt in my life."

Ciaran blinked owlishly as she processed what Asajj had just told her.

"...You don't realize what it's like, do you?" Asajj said quietly, still not facing Ciaran. "Being alone for so long. Keeping yourself distant from others, fearing that getting close to anyone again would bring you more pain. When I felt you starting to die I..."

She trailed off, trying to find the words she wanted to say.

"...It made me realize...that I haven't been this close to anyone since my Master died. How...warm it felt. ...How cold it would be if I lost that again."

Ciaran remained silent. Asajj rolled over slightly to face her, and for the first time Ciaran could see a look of genuine fear on Asajj's face.

"I don't want to lose you. I...I don't know if I can go through that kind of loss again. I..."

Asajj trailed off again, though this time Ciaran had a reply.

"Do you know why I've been saying that you're my sister?"

Asajj went silent, though it was clear that she was curious about the answer.

"Before I can answer that, I need to ask you one other thing: Do you know what Nihilus represents to me?"

Asajj shook her head.

"Nihilus isn't just some figure from the history of the Miraluka, or someone who can act as a boogeyman to scare people. Not to me. Not after Malachor. To me he..."

Ciaran breathed in deeply, steadying herself.

"...He represents what I could become if I ever gave in to my hunger, and simply began to take what I wanted without any regard for the consequences, to consume everything in sight without a second thought. In a sense I have to fight him every single day because that hunger is always there, and if I falter for even a second...then there wouldn't be any difference between him and me."

Ciaran closed her eyes.

"...You...help me fight that hunger. Maybe even more than anyone else. Every time you chide me for getting too arrogant or make a snide comment at my expense...it brings me down to reality and helps me stay in control of myself."

She opened them again, locking eyes with Asajj.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is that the thought of you dying is equally as terrifying for me," Ciaran softly explained before a bitter chuckle escaped her lips. "It's kind of cruel, isn't it? We keep each other sane, but at the cost of knowing that if one of us dies, the other will fall."

Asajj let out a rueful chuckle of her own. "Then I suppose we should both do our best to not die before the other does. Though now that I think about it...it's not that cruel. You're the kind of stubborn idiot who refuses to die after all."

"Hello pot, my name is kettle~"

"Hmph. At any rate..." Asajj grumbled as she laid back. "I shouldn't be moving too much. And you'll need to be ready for Kenobi."

Ciaran opened her mouth, closed it, then nodded slightly and left the quarters. As she headed towards her office she went over what she was going to say to him in her mind...

---------------

"It would seem that this will be the last time we see each other face-to-face. Do you truly believe you are ready for the battles ahead?"

"We both know that it's not a matter of me being ready. I can't stay here anymore."

"Your words betray your uncertainty."

"I won't deny that. But even so I'm not going to hide away here. That wasn't why I was looking for you."

"So you have found your answers then?"

"...No. But for the first time in years I feel like they're within reach. They're just not here."

"You are risking much if you believe she can guide you towards the answers you seek."

"I know. That's still not going to change my decision."

"Then take care that it remains your choice no matter what happens."

AN: I debated having the Obi-Wan stuff be a part of this, but then I realized it wouldn't really fit the tone of what the next interlude would be going for, so consider this an "intermission" like before.

Only real detail I want to comment on is that there was a Rancor actually named Cuddles in Forces of Corruption. Have I mentioned that it's a great game? Because it is. Anyway, the rancor's name here will be up for a vote later, but it was a fun way to relieve tension and have some little character moments.

 

[Dr. Snark]

Sundari, Mandalore
Local Time: 23:55

As the light of Concordia shone down on the nearly empty Sundari streets, three robed figures were making their way to the Royal Palace. While occasional passers-by would notice the odd trio they would quickly lose interest in them, either simply blocking their passage from their mind or simply not wishing to interrupt whatever business they had.

Once they reached the entrance to the Palace they were stopped by a pair of guards, who looked them over before silently nodding and opening the doors. Without a word the trio entered the building and made their way to one of the palace's secure meeting halls - normally used in case of active planetary emergency, but now playing host to a clandestine meeting.

As they entered the room, its sole occupant Obi-Wan looked up at them - quickly recognizing a conspicuously visor-less Ciaran, then-

"...Quinlan!?" Obi-Wan said, visibly shocked as the man in question tossed his cloak aside. "When Ciaran said that she was bringing company-"

"I doubt you were expecting us, Master Kenobi," Tholme said as he shrugged off his own cloak. "Our apologies for not announcing ourselves, but recent events have required us to remain discreet."

Obi-Wan's eyes darted between Quinlan and Tholme before settling on Ciaran. "If you're here with them...then I think this conversation is far more important that I was initially led to believe."

"You're right," Ciaran replied flatly, worrying Obi-Wan as she sat down, everyone else quickly doing the same. "...Now then. I'm going to level with you: I wasn't looking forward to this talk before today, and quite frankly what you're about to hear is even worse than what I initially planned on telling you."

Obi-Wan remained silent before Tholme began to speak up. "Master Kenobi. The reason we wanted to seek you out was because we learned of a terrible event - a Wound in the Force has formed at the Jedi Temple."

Obi-Wan's face shifted between shock and disbelief for a moment before settling on horrified. "You...that can't..." He trailed off. "...No, I suppose it does make sense. All of those Jedi dying, killed by those they trusted and being killed by them in turn...all of that grief, that fear would be more than enough, wouldn't it?"

"Afraid so," Quinlan said quietly. "We think it's already starting to affect everyone still present there. Including most of the Council." He slid a datapad across to Obi-Wan, who caught it but didn't pick it up.

"I..." He looked Quinlan in the eyes. "I believe you, as much as I don't want to. It's just..." He closed his eyes, bracing himself. "How bad has it gotten?"

"We're beginning to enter a worst-case scenario," Tholme said coldly. "From what I understand at this point the rest of the Council is compromised to some extent barring maybe Master Yoda - except he's been leaving Courscant more and more to try and find out the truth. If we could find him we might be able to figure out a way to heal the Wound, but even so the Council has already begun to exhibit signs of corruption - to say nothing of the rank-and-file Jedi present at the Temple."

"...I hate to say this. Really," Ciaran interrupted. "But that's only half of the bad news we came here with today. Though if it makes you feel better, I'm the only one who knows about the other half right now."

Obi-Wan stared at Ciaran, visibly searching for some kind of deceit. "...What are you talking about?"

"Indeed," Tholme commented. "You-"

Without a word, Ciaran brought out the same holoprojector she had shown Yularen, and pressed the play button. The three Jedi's faces morphed into shock as they saw the conversation between Dooku and Sidious play out.

"Recognize his voice?" Ciaran asked mirthlessly as everyone turned to face her. "It's a bit affected, granted, but I'd hope you'd recognize the voice of the Supreme Chancellor."

An oppressive silence descended upon the room.

"...He was right there...he was right there that whole time!" Quinlan muttered to himself, his hands clenched into fists.

"Impossible..." Tholme said, his voice shaking slightly. "How...how could we have been so blind..."

Obi-Wan said nothing, simply staring intensely at the message that continued to play out before him.

"...You did hear that part about how I'm a target, right?" Ciaran said. "Quite frankly...I need all the help I can get. But..."

"I trust you didn't say anything before now because it would have forced the Council's hand," Tholme commented in monotone, stil trying to process what he had learned. "There would have been no other choice, and if he managed to reach the Chancellorship he has to have plans in case of his death..."

The room went silent again, though it was Obi-Wan who broke the silence.

"You cannot have found this by simply 'knowing some people,' nor can you claim innocence when a Sith Lord considers you to be a large enough threat to his plans that he would single you out," he said coldly. "I know you have your connections. That you have ties to unsavory elements of society. Before now I was content with ignorance. But given what's happening I think you owe us answers."

Ciaran laughed mirthlessly. "Like what?"

"For starters, perhaps you could explain why it is that you have Asajj Ventress working with you?" Tholme said coldly.

Obi-Wan's expression hardened on hearing those words. "...I thought her death on Kamino was a bit too convenient for someone as stubborn as her, but I never had any reason to question it...until now."

"I saved her life," Ciaran flatly replied. "Not just by getting her off of Kamino alive. I gave her a second chance."

"How am I supposed to believe that?" Obi-Wan said, his eyes locked on Ciaran's.

"Perhaps it would help if you heard it from me, then."

Ciaran closed her eyes as she heard Asajj's voice echo through the room. "You're supposed to be recovering," she said, not facing Asajj.

"I can at least walk," she replied, taking a seat next to Ciaran as Obi-Wan looked at her dumbfounded.

"Ventress...you've grown out your hair, I see."

"While your sense of humor hasn't gotten any better," Asajj shot back.

"Funny. Usually by now you'd be trying to kill me."

Asajj started to retort, but visibly held her tongue before she spoke again. "She was telling the truth. When she saved me from Kamino...when gave me a chance to start my life over again...I was saved. Otherwise I would have been no different from Maul, blindly and endlessly thirsting for revenge."

Obi-Wan was thrown off guard, not just by Asajj's words, but by her presence. She felt more centered. Her body language was visibly relaxed. Even though he knew for a fact that this was the same woman he fought against time and time again she was nearly unrecognizable.

"...I see." Nodding in satisfaction, Obi-Wan turned to face Ciaran. "That being said, I still have my doubts."

"Would it make you feel better if I told you Yularen and Ahsoka also know about this?"

Obi-Wan sighed resignedly as Tholme stared at Ciaran, visibly disbelieving what he had just heard. "...You're saying that you've subverted one of the most prominent naval officers in the Republic."

"And the 501st. And Yularen's told me that he's just about done subverting the 212th, so Commander Cody will-"

"Stop. Please." Obi-Wan's face was now in his hands. "...This. This right here is what I'm talking about. I know you're still hiding things from us." Quinlan and Tholme nodded in agreement, neither of them interrupting Obi-Wan. "Which is why I'm so worried that working with you sounds like a better idea the more I think about it."

"Agreed." "No argument here."

"Still...do you have a plan?" Obi-Wan said, grasping at straws. "Something besides 'kill the Supreme Chancellor and hope for the best?'"

"I had frameworks for plans...but that was before I heard about the Wound," Ciaran said, leaning back slightly. "I'll be honest. Up until now my plans assumed that the Republic and Jedi Order were salvageable entities that might be able to survive what would happen in the future."

"With the Wound destabilizing the Order, and Palpatine destabilizing the Republic, that seems to be far less likely," Asajj said.

"I hate to agree with the Sith...but she's got a point," Quinlan said morosely. "If one was able to remain stable we'd have a chance, but..."

"I believe we must all begin to consider a future where the Republic and Jedi Order as we know it are unable to survive the coming days to be a far more likely one," Tholme said, his voice cold. "From what I understand we have been operating under the assumption that both entities were salvageable, however it is now clear that alternate solutions must be considered."

The room fell silent as everyone processed the harsh truth of Tholme's words, not really knowing what to say in response.

"I want to trust the rest of the Council," Obi-Wan said to himself. "They're my comrades. But the corruption from the Wound..." he muttered before trailing off, thinking to himself.

"...I...I was so close..." Quinlan said to himself, his voice starting to raise in volume. "I was such an idiot. He was right in front of me! I could have killed him! I could have stopped all of this!"

"Quinlan, what are you talking about!?" Obi-Wan asked worriedly.

"I was on an assassination mission for Dooku at one point. When I had his target and Palpatine in my sights he told me that one of the two people in front of me was the second Sith we'd been searching for. But I thought that there was no way-"

"Of course you would have been blinded to the truth," Asajj interrupted. "Did you truly think that he wouldn't be able to deflect attention given his abilities?"

"I don't think there's anyone in the galaxy better at manipulating minds than him," Ciaran said in agreement. "I'm not sure whether it was him using the Force to cloud your mind or just him being that good, but you would never have even considered that he was a Sith Lord."

"Dammit all," Quinlan muttered, not particularly soothed by either of their words.

"Still, that's an excellent reminder of what we're up against," Ciaran said, using the opportunity to get the conversation back on track. "I won't mince words. We are outnumbered, any of our initial plans are now effectively useless, the galaxy is a lot smaller when you know that most of it is against you, and thanks to the Wound telling the rest of the Council about this would be a recipe for disaster. The only way we're going to win is if we get as much support as we possibly can and use every dirty trick in the book to win. It's going to be bloody. People would hate each and every one of us in this room if they knew what we're trying to do. But the alternative means we all die and let Palpatine rule the galaxy unopposed."

Everyone nodded grimly, fully agreeing with Ciaran's assessment of the situation.

"We need to diversify. Yularen's work has already gotten the anti-Palpatine forces even more to work with in a few months, but we can do more."

"I can reach out to some uncompromised Sentinels," Tholme said. "Besides them I still have some contacts I might be able to lean on if we are truly desperate."

"There are plenty of Jedi outside the Order or those who are staying far afield," Quinlan noted. "We need to get in touch with as many of them as we can, if only to tell them to lie low if we fail."

Obi-Wan had closed his eyes in visible contemplation, his silence all the more noticeable once Quinlan stopped talking.

"...You're not a bad person if you want to protect Siri."

His eyes snapped open and locked onto Ciaran's with incredible intensity. "I cannot allow my feelings to jeopardize what we are trying to do."

"You say that like getting her onboard with us is a bad idea," Ciaran retorted. "She already trusts you implicitly, could help subvert the clones and ships under her command...there's really no reason not to approach her first."

Obi-Wan's gaze had not wavered. "While that might be true, we both know that Anakin must know about this sooner or later."

"I agree wholeheartedly. But he's not here right now."

Obi-Wan stared at Ciaran for another minute before nodding grimly, his shoulders sagging slightly. "Point taken. I'll get in touch with her as soon as I can then. On a related note...are we going to tell Duchess Kyrze about this?"

"Not until the last second. No offense, but telling her about this any sooner would guarantee that our cover is blown. Pacifist she may be, but she is still a Mandalorian at heart. She wouldn't take that lying down."

Quinlan chuckled, earning him a half-hearted glare from Tholme.

"I...can't say I disagree," Obi-Wan admitted. "In that case, after I contact Siri I think my best move would be to help Yularen with his efforts. At the same time Master Tholme and I can work together to find Master Yoda - if we can find him we'll have a fighting chance at healing the Wound on Courscant. Do we have anything else to discuss?"

"I must speak with Lady Ciaran in private," Tholme said, nodding to Quinlan and receiving a nod in return. "The two of us have unfinished business."

"Right," Ciaran said, standing up and turning to leave. "Oh, and just so we're clear - you two treat Asajj kindly while I'm gone."

She was smiling lightly, but her eyes betrayed that she was far more serious about that comment than Obi-Wan expected. As the two of them left, Obi-Wan turned to face Asajj.

"She uses your first name?"

"They are quite close, I have to admit," Quinlan commented neutrally. Asajj's only response was to scoff and lean back slightly in her chair.

"Well, judging by what I've seen so far, I think it's safe to say that the two of you are a perfect match for each other," Obi-Wan said casually.

"...What are you implying?" Asajj said, her voice cold. "I know you. You are definitely implying something."

"All I'm saying is that I hope that the two of you have a long and happy relationship," Obi-Wan replied, a small smirk coming across his face.

Asajj blinked before processing what Obi-Wan was getting at, and her cheeks immediately turned scarlet. "S-shut up! Don't you dare say another word!"

------------

"So I imagine this is about the whole 'asylum' thing you mentioned," Ciaran said to Tholme, her arms folded.

"Correct."

"Well, now that we're talking about it, I want to know why the hell you decided that I would be better off to ask than, say, Satine or Zinnerman. Grievous would have been a more logical option even. Why the Watchers? Why me?"

Tholme was silent for a long moment. "...Because quite frankly from what I know of your organization, it is the only one in the galaxy that is fully capable of making people like Quinlan and I disappear."

"Not inaccurate. But what exactly do you know?" Ciaran's eyes narrowed. "I'm fully aware that there will be a future after Palpatine, and I'm sure a man like you understands how stressful knowing a loose end is out and about in the galaxy."

"I know you're the real force behind the Council of Neutral Systems. I know that you have connections within Hutt Space and to various mercenary groups. I know that you've aided the Order at times, and with considerable investments and risks on your part during said times. I know that your influence stretches much farther than anyone fully understands - myself included. I know you were able to find the truth of this war when everyone else was blinded to it. ...And I now know that you managed to turn one of the most dangerous assassins in the galaxy - a Sith - over to your side and ensure her loyalty without question."

"In other words, enough to know that I'm the kind of woman who could hide a pair of rogue Jedi. I suppose that leads me to my second question: what do the two of you plan on doing next?"

"What needs to be done."

"How much blood do you think you'll have to spill to do that?"

"More than I hoped for in the past."

"...It sounds like we'll get along just fine then," Ciaran said coolly. "What about your pupil?"

"Quinlan would probably be at his best if he worked with you directly. I can give you a complete dossier, but he is an expert agent and would serve the cause far better if he was more active than I would be."

Ciaran nodded in understanding. "That being the case, do you have any other requests for me? I can't guarantee that they'll be possible depending on what I hear, but if it's something like having a constant stream of intel that should be doable."

"That is appreciated and would be welcome, though..." Tholme trailed off, and Ciaran could tell that he was internally debating something before he spoke again. "There are...two people of interest that I would request you also grant asylum."

"Uh huh. Names and a quick overview first."

"First is Khaleen Hentz. Female human ex-Separatist agent, now effectively on the run."

Ciaran scoffed. "Easy. She'll have a new identity by the end of the week. And the second?"

Tholme went silent, and Ciaran raised an eyebrow in response. "...Ah. I think I'm beginning to understand what's really going on here. Are Khaleen and Quinlan married?"

"Not yet. In time though..."

"I understand. So who is so important to you then?"

"...T'ra Saa. She is a Neti Jedi."

"Hm...Neti? That's not a species I'm familiar with."

"They are a species of sentient plants that are capable of shapeshifting to a significant degree."

"Huh. Neat."

Tholme blinked owlishly. "I assumed that would surprise you."

"I'm not one to judge. One of my cousins is dating a Shard," Ciaran admitted with a shrug. "Anyway...more difficult for obvious reasons, but should be doable. Anything else?"

"Nothing at this present time."

"Right...well then, if that's all, then I think this is the start of a wonderful relationship." Ciaran offered a hand that Tholme shook without hesitation. "Honestly I'm glad things worked out so well between us all things considered."

"At this point we must band together or die alone," Tholme replied, his face stern. "Whatever differences we have are irrelevant in the face of such a great evil."

Rewards for arc:

Quinlan: Tholme and Quinlan Vos are fully brought into the anti-Palpatine conspiracy. Information on Wound in the Force at the Jedi Temple and state of the Courscant Order gained. Tholme will roll with a +15 bonus (innate skill + Yularen/Obi-Wan assistance) for independently bringing in assets every turn, beginning with Jedi Sentinels. Khaleen & Tra automatically will be given asylum by the beginning of the next turn. Quinlan Vos gained as Hero Unit.
Honoghr: Ciaran (barely) manages to survive Palaptine's/Talzin's assassination attempt. False-flag operation to frame the Silver Cross/Karada foiled. Renewal efforts commenced on Honoghr. Hrak'vokh now available as alternate martial arts (Stava) trainer.
Talzin: Talzin is erased. Pet Rancor (name TBD) adopted. Abysswalker Saato recruited. Ciaran/Asajj's Force Bond trait improved. Ciaran gains "Echo of Katarr" trait.
Obi-Wan: Obi-Wan Kenobi fully brought into the anti-Palpatine conspiracy. Siri Tachi will be automatically subverted next turn. Yularen gains a +10 to his subversion rolls thanks to the combination of Obi-Wan and Tholme's assistance.
Yularen: 212th subverted without issues.

AN: IT IS DONE.

This was a doozy - keeping Obi-Wan in character for something like this was hard. But I think I made this work - though even in-universe this is a bad situation for him to be in with everything happening.

Aside from that, here are all of the shinies! Look at them, they're so sparkly. Also I will never apologize for Tsundere Asajj. Ever.

Give me some time to update the front page with everything Aside from that, enjoy~

 

[Dr. Snark]

Kyrimorut, Mandalore

"We're really doing this, aren't we?" Kal muttered to himself as he leaned on a table, glancing across at Jango before focusing back on the holoimages of Bail Organa and Seti Ashgad hovering in the center. "Our mutual benefactor really told you to bring down Armand Isard himself? She understands what that means, right?"

"Lady Ciaran certainly understands that there are many ways Armand can fall, and it speaks volumes of her confidence and faith in the Mand'alor to give him such leeway on such a vital task," Seti said coolly. "That being said, such flexibility in this situation will be absolutely vital."

"Armand's job is largely to cover the tracks of Palpatine and his cronies," Bail commented as he folded his arms. "If we wanted to make his fall public, getting evidence on him that will actually stick - legitimate or not - is going to be difficult either way since we don't want to blow our cover."

"Which is why one of my potential plans if we go that route is to leverage the Covert Ops Troopers angle," Jango explained. "I was given a pristine suit of armor for this mission should it be necessary, and I could use it to fake an operation going bad. Have a deserter assassination get spotted, and with the various news outlets Ciaran has we can spread the images of it across the holonet in hours. The public will call for Armand's head-"

"And as far as anyone knows it was just because a CI trooper failed spectacularly. That being the case it's a bit too convenient for Palpatine not to figure out what really happened," Kal pointed out. "It's a good plot, but the kind that he'd see through in a heartbeat."

"Perhaps we shall consider this to be the 'crude but effective approach,'" Seti noted. "There is of course another weakness he has - his daughter Ysanne."

"Seti, we can't involve an innocent child in all of this," Bail protested. "She-"

"Would not be harmed. We are not savages. But at the same time we cannot ignore her value as a hostage."

"Too risky," Jango replied. "Trying to use hostage situations like that to your advantage is never a good idea, especially when it involves family. The mark is guaranteed to act irrational in those situations and ruin anything you've planned for."

"...Fair enough. I defer to your expertise in this matter, Mand'alor."

"Maybe we're looking at this the wrong way," Kal pointed out. "Maybe we should treat him like he's just another one of your marks, Mand'alor."

"What's the angle then, Kal?" Jango replied, his brows narrowed slightly. "It sounds like you have a plan of your own."

"The angle is that we use the Covert Ops armor like in our other plan, but have it so that whoever fires the killing shot would be seen wearing that armor."

"Republic Intelligence would start tearing itself apart hunting for a traitor that doesn't exist," Seti said, bringing a hand to his chin. "It is hardly the most subtle of plans, but if it worked the chaos would provide us with an effective smokescreen...but at the same time it would only last for so long."

"They would likely end up jettisoning quite a few contacts and assets that they considered 'questionable' in that situation," Bail noted. "Wasn't it true that they had been hiring on outside help to assist in codebreaking?"

"I can confirm that," Jango replied. "Ciaran's people managed to track down a few encrypted 'recruitment guides' for a 'Cryptanalysis Department' sent out to some slicers who were conspicuously unwilling to take on any other job offers. But from what I've heard from her they're thoroughly vetted by Armand and are heavily monitored once they're hired besides."

"There might be an opportunity we can exploit there. Have a new hire act as a whistleblower for the actions of the Covert Operations troopers," Bail suggested. "It's more plausible and given the situation said person would have every reason to stay anonymous - or at least keep under the radar long enough for us to help him disappear."

"Or we could use Armand's assassination and the inevitable confusion and panic that would follow as an opportunity to insert a few of our agents," Seti said. "We could forego the idea of destroying Republic Intelligence and instead use its infrastructure to our advantage."

"That sounds really damn risky to me. RepInt basically reports to Palpatine himself," Kal pointed out. "He's going to be keeping a very close eye on it for that very reason."

"And knowing him he has eyes and ears within the Intelligence branch that we don't know about right now," Bail said, though it was clear that he was still considering the idea. "That being the case...we could also do that if we went with the public outrage route. The risks are great, but if we could find those sources and work around them..."

"Before you two go any further with that, I'll remind you that our stated objective was to eliminate Armand Isard and ensure that Republic Intelligence's threat to our plans is diminished to whatever degree is within the scope of our abilities," Jango said firmly. "I'm not against the idea, but we should at least remember that it's not the end of the world if we just kill Isard and keep it quiet, or just cause enough chaos in RepInt to keep them busy for the next few months."

"I am well aware of that, but at the same time we cannot ignore the potential opportunities present," Seti replied.

Jango folded his arms and closed his eyes, going over the options in his mind. Assassinating Armand would be easy enough - while the security around the man would be high he had his ways of getting around them, not to mention that this time around he'd have the resources of the Watchers to call on.

At the same time though, there were plenty of opportunities for plans that had far more risks involved but with far greater rewards. Causing a public outcry and bringing down RepInt through their outrage, using the opportunity to cause internal strife, maybe even get a shot at getting moles inside...

So many options...the real question was though how Palpatine would react to whatever the effects of Armand's removal were - lethal or not...

[] Keep it simple. Kill Armand, don't make it more complicated than that.
[] Use public outrage to bring down Armand and cripple Republic Intelligence by embroiling them in controversies that will disrupt their ability to function.
-[] Have someone act as a Cryptanalysis Department whistleblower and break the news about the actions of the Covert Ops troopers across the holonet.
--[] Use the opportunity to insert moles into Republic Intelligence.
--[] Don't take any chances, just go with the plan as it is.
-[] Fake a CI assassination of deserters going horribly wrong and use various news outlets to stir up a controversy.
--[] Use the opportunity to insert moles into Republic Intelligence.
--[] Don't take any chances, just go with the plan as it is.
[] Kill Armand, but use the opportunity for a plan to weaken Republic Intelligence.
-[] Have the assassin wear the stolen CI armor and be "discovered," creating the illusion of a traitor within the ranks of Republic Intelligence.
-[] Use the cover of the ensuing chaos to insert moles into Republic Intelligence.

[] Write-in. Maybe there's some other plan that hasn't been considered? (Plans can be vetoed by GM)

AN: A bit short I know, but this is one of those situations where I figured that you guys would really want to specify exactly how Armand and potentially Republic Intelligence is brought down.

I'm pretty sure I've covered my bases here, but if you guys can think of an even more insane plan than I have I'd be more than willing to hear it out~

Spoiler: Non-Update Thing

Since I don't know when else would be a good time to announce it, I wanted to let people know that due to a desire to have a source of stable income and a need to pay bills I've decided to open up a Patreon.

Just to be clear, you should not feel obligated to donate if you don't feel like it - I will never stop updating this quest so long as I can still type, and I fully intend on both completing this and potentially starting new projects even if I don't get a dime. It is entirely your decision to donate that money or not.

 

[Dr. Snark]

Kyrimorut, Mandalore

Jango closed his eyes in contemplation, going over the options in his mind. Though as he did a pattern began to emerge, a realization that the concepts presented to him were not mutually exclusive...

It could work. He had the resources, he had the people, putting them all together made sense...

His eyes snapped open, drawing the attention of everyone in the room.

"We'd be limiting ourselves if we just chose one of the suggested plans," Jango began to explain. "The fact of the matter is that no matter what we do we're going to draw a lot of ire from Palpatine. So...we can't afford half measures."

"A multi-layered assault," Seti commented, nodding in agreement as he realized what Jango was suggesting. "A plan that involves many moving parts though-"

"Not necessarily. This is the kind of plan that can be run in relatively self-contained stages; not only will it help pace things out, but it'll make things more plausible to the general public."

"That...makes sense," Bail said, glancing at Seti before focusing back on Jango. "If there's anything we can do-"

"I've already got the resources I need. Kal and I will handle this ourselves, and it's best if you know less about this."

"Agreed," Seti flatly replied. "Best of luck, Mand'alor."

With that Bail and Seti's holoimages faded out and Kal let out a breath he was unconsciously holding. "We're...we're really doing this, aren't we Jango?" he said quietly. "That look in your eyes..."

Jango nodded silently.

"I'm going to help keep my boys safe. I'm going to protect the ones trying to desert. I'm going to make sure that a gun isn't going to be pointed at their heads," he said rapidly, clenching his fists. "So...why do I feel like I'm walking into a trap!?"

"Because after this there's no turning back."

Kal looked at Jango, who suddenly looked as though he was incredibly exhausted, his eyes distant.

"Up until now you've had the luxury of working against Palpatine without actually crossing him. Sure there's been some light espionage and sabotage, but nothing that would put you on his radar. But now, while it's indirectly you're going to be putting a target on your back." Jango closed his eyes and sighed resignedly, knowing full well that Kal wouldn't back down from this no matter what he said. "Now you understand how I've felt ever since I learned about the real burden of becoming the Mand'alor."

"You're not saying you'd prefer never having the title?" Kal asked, visibly worried.

"No I'm not. When I see the look in Boba's eyes, that's enough to remind me that it's worth it no matter what burdens I have to bear." Jango's eyes refocused squarely on Kal. "And it's enough to remind me that given the choice, I'd rather work with Ciaran than be ground into the dirt under Palpatine."

"We're not that different from the Mandos in the days of the Ultimate, are we?" Kal said resignedly. "Pawns dancing on the strings of others..."

"At least this time around we have the luxury of seeing the rest of the game board," Jango flatly replied. "There's no Sith Lord hiding in some distant star system pulling our strings."

Only the one right in front of us...

But at the same time if a future for the Mandalorians...a future for Boba is what I get for playing along, then I think I'm content with being a pawn for now.

"We're getting off track," Jango declared, placing his hands on the table in front of him. "Now then, the plan's going to work in three phases..."

Day 1
Agomar

"Both of you in position?" Jango asked over the comms.

"Roger." "Confirmed."

"The less takes we go through the less likely we are to get picked up by any unwanted visitors. Remember, it needs to be choppy enough to look real but coherent enough that it can't be denied."

"You know, when I joined the Cuy'val Dar I didn't imagine I'd be getting into show business," Wad'e Tay'haai quipped as Jango saw him check over his Covert Ops armor and sniper rifle one last time. "Nor did I expect to be ordered to open fire on the Mand'alor himself."

"Hey, at least he's wearing armor," Cort Davin shot back, brushing a layer of dirt onto his clothes to make him look "authentically ragged" for his role as a civilian who stumbled onto the scene and saw a little too much. "I have to trust that you're not going to shoot out one of my eyes."

"Alright, enough complaining," Jango ordered, checking over his fake Phase II armor. "On my mark. Three. Two. One. Mark!"

"Action!" Wad'e commented as Jango began to slowly move forward through the surrounding area, smoke hovering in the distance over a blasted field covered in craters. He glanced around him almost constantly - while he was hardly nervous he had plenty of visual references for someone trying to lie low and make their way out of a hot zone.

After a moment and as Jango started to wonder whether Wad'e was actually paying attention he heard the sound of a sniper rifle firing and felt the bolt graze the side of his helmet, as though Wad'e had just barely missed his shot. Without hesitating Jango began to run for cover, dodging the increasingly rapid and only barely inaccurate shots from Wad'e.

As he managed to get into cover, he turned to see Cort slowly making his way out from Wad'e's firing zone. He had been very clear that if Cort was seen, the "take" would have to be scrapped since there was no way a CO trooper would let him live and he had no armor to protect himself. To his credit Cort managed to get away "undetected," and as Jango started to break away himself Wad'e fired a few more shots at him for effect and to make sure that Cort's audio was properly authentic.

"And cut," Wad'e said over the comms. "Cort's gotten far enough away from what I can tell."

"Confirmed. Audio had gone quiet."

With that the trio reunited and looked over Cort's fake video, looking properly amateur as Cort threw in some stumbles and shook his camera around to give off the effect that he was properly frightened by Wad'e. More importantly there were plenty of shots of Wad'e opening fire on Jango, looking for all the world as though a clone trooper was trying to assassinate one of their own.

"Alright, looks like we nailed it on the first try," Cort said after looking it over. "Any objections, Mand'alor?"

"None that I can see," Jango said after playing it over a couple of times to be sure. "Let's set the holonet on fire."

----------

Day 2
Armand Isard's Apartment, Courscant

Armand sighed in resignation as he looked over the report that he'd taken home over the CI trooper scandal that had suddenly erupted on the holonet. While he was fairly certain that the video had been faked and that it had spread just a bit too quickly across the holonet, all he knew was that people were starting to ask uncomfortable questions about the CI troopers in general as well as the concept of clones deserting from the GAR.

Still, it was nothing he couldn't solve. As he started up his personal computer he was already beginning to form a plan of how to best discredit and suppress the news...

That was when he heard the door to his apartment open. Without hesitating he opened a drawer in his desk and took out a holdout pistol, beginning to quietly make his way towards the entrance. This was hardly the first time an assassin was sent to try and kill him, though even so it was odd that-

Armand's thought process was cut off as he saw a blur of motion out of the corner of his eye, and before he could turn and raise his pistol in time to kill the intruder it was blasted out of his hands, followed by a bolt hitting him in his flank and knocking him to the floor. As he groaned in pain he looked up to see a figure in CI armor looming above him, a pistol pointed straight at his head.

"...Palpatine or Ciaran?" Armand spat out, his breathing increasingly ragged. "You have to be working for one of them. You wouldn't have managed to get this far without either of their help or had the nerve to pull the trigger on me without one of them backing you, and I'm too well-shielded from Dooku."

"Irrelevant," the armored figure replied, their voice heavily modulated.

"Haaah...well, what are you waiting-"

Armand's eyes widened before he started to chuckle bitterly. "Ahhh, so that's what you're doing," he said, realizing that there was probably one camera in his apartment that would "conveniently" capture the image of a CI trooper firing the killing shot. "Clever. A shame I have to be the victim, but I can't help but admire what you're about to do."

"You are remarkably calm, given that you are about to die."

"The Isards make their own luck. It may take a generation, but Ysa-"

The sound of a blaster bolt impacting flesh echoed through the apartment. The armored figure quickly checked over it to make sure his task was complete before exiting, leaving behind Armand's body.

Unbeknownst to him, a young girl made her way out of the closet and looked at the body of her father.

And in that moment a seed of vengeance was planted in Ysanne Isard's icy heart...

------------

Day 3
Cryptanalysis Department, Senate Bureau of Intelligence Central

Jorda Veir had never been a more terrified Bothan than in the moment she walked into the Cryptanalysis Department building for the final time.

She'd enjoyed a cozy job up until that point, riding high off of both the salary that Republic Intelligence was paying her as well as the generous pay from the Abyss Watchers for ensuring that her work within RI would make its way into their hands in due time.

That ended once she'd gotten a package with a datastick and a message:

"Bring this to work with you. Insert it into the computer you use, and a program installed on it will do the hard work. From there, you will return home where our people will be waiting to escort you off-planet. Failure is unacceptable, and we will know if you have failed."

That was stressful enough, but SIB Central had erupted into pandemonium after news had hit that Armand Isard - the Director himself - had been assassinated in his own home. She knew that the chaos was meant to be a distraction for her, and if anything it was better than she expected as she found that the room her workstation was completely empty. Sighing in slight relief she glanced around and made sure no cameras were on her before she booted up her computer and inserted her datastick, seeing a progress bar pop up on her screen...

While she wasn't interrupted, Jorda was constantly hearing sounds of enraged shouting echo around her - while she wasn't able to make out what anyone was saying in particular she was certain that people were starting to try and redirect blame for Armand's assassination or make power plays in the wake of his death.

If she wasn't preoccupied as it were she would probably have been doing the same.

Once the program finished its work, Jorda recovered the datastick and started to make her way out of the building only to be confronted by a coworker whose name she hadn't bothered to remember, but the look of near insanity in the Weequay's eyes was hard to miss.

"Jorda! Why are you leaving!? We have a chance to become kings among the rest of these-"

She shoved him out of the way and tried to make her way towards the door, only to be blocked by the stern visage of her supervisor. Though he hid it well, he had a similar look of madness in his eyes.

"Jorda...I just wanted to let you know that I've always valued your work greatly, and that I have faith in you during these troubling times. If you're willing to support me, I'll make sure that you're duly rewarded once I'm able to-"

"I-I have to go!" Jorda shouted, now starting to actively panic and bolt for the exit as she felt an indescribable pressure beginning to push down on her. Everything started to blur around her as she ran as fast as she could-

The next thing she knew she was back in her apartment facing down another Bothan dressed in a stylish suit and wearing dark shades, looking incredibly self-assured even as Jorda started to panic.

"Well well well, you managed to get out of the madhouse in one piece. So you still have the stick?"

Jorda nodded rapidly, quickly grabbing it and shoving it into her counterpart's hands as though it were explosive.

"Very nice. I wasn't sure about this whole thing at first, but I can't exactly argue with results," he said as a holoscreen behind him broadcasted news about Armand's assassination and described how he was apparently killed by one of his own men. "So, today's officially your lucky day since you'll be leaving this rock for the next ever."

"W-who are you?"

"Before I tell you, why don't we move this conversation to someplace more comfortable?" he said as he threw an arm around the visibly shaking Jorda, guiding her outside and into the passenger seats of an airspeeder. Once they entered it started to move without a word from anyone, hurtling through the skyline of Coruscant towards an unknown destination.

"So, the name's Gulan Terrek," he said to Jorda as he passed her a credstick, her eyes widening slightly. "And for starters, you're now a very wealthy young woman. But that's just the start of the generous 'retirement package' we're giving you..."

-----------

Day 4
Kyrimorut, Mandalore

"...And back to our top story, protests have continued over the actions of the Covert Operations branch of Republic Intelligence after an anonymous whistleblower revealed their standing orders to, quote, 'terminate any deserters with extreme prejudice...'"

The news report continued in the background as holoimages of Seti and Bail looked at Jango with barely hidden expressions of disbelief.

"I must admit that I underestimated you, Mand'alor," Seti said to Jango as Bail shook his head slightly.

"I've got to agree with Seti here. RI is in shambles at this point after what you've pulled. The military intelligence branch should recover in due time, but their political power has been completely destroyed."

"You do realize what this means though. There will be repercussions for what you've done," Seti coldly pointed out.

"Well, now Palpatine has one less vector to get at us," Jango retorted. "Granted, he probably has plenty of other spies and moles and the like, but getting actual actionable intel for the rest of his co-conspirators is going to be much harder for him from now on. And besides, from what I understand you should be happy to see him gone."

"That I am - he was one of the two people responsible for trying to destroy my future," Seti replied, his voice icy. "I will not deny that there is considerable satisfaction in knowing that he is dead and that everything he built has come to ruin. But we cannot afford to ignore the consequences of what has been accomplished in the past few days. Ashgad out."

With that Seti's holoimage faded away, and after a deep sigh from him Bail's faded away as well. With that resolved Jango went looking for Kal, who had conspicuously not been attending the meeting...

Only to find him just outside Kyrimorut's main dwelling, staring into the distance.

"Kal." "Mand'alor."

"Some mess we made, eh?" Kal said quietly. "Still, after seeing what he's been doing to our boys Armand deserved every bit of it. And now I know that they aren't going to be shot in the back for wanting to get away from a war they have no stake in."

"Are you still worried about what's going to happen next?"

Kal shrugged. "If this is the reward I get for being a pawn-"

"I'm content to play along," Jango finished, perfectly understanding Kal's sentiment. In response the grizzled warrior sighed before tossing a datastick over to Jango.

"The back door to the Treasury. ...I've got no good reason to keep the damn thing from her anymore, and honestly I don't care about what she does with it at this point. As far as I'm concerned the Republic can go to hell."

"Haven't you heard? By the time we're done there's probably not going to be a Republic anymore, or at least nothing that resembles the Republic of now," Jango flatly replied. "They've been talking about it more openly the past few months, and given that we've openly crippled a part of the government that hides corruption and the like, it's pretty clear that there's not going to be much left standing afterwards."

"Heh, if you ask me the di'kutse have had it coming for a while now."

"I can't say I disagree."

Rewards: Armand Isard assassinated and major chaos created within Republic Intelligence along with considerable public outrage towards the organization. Other effects to be determined as time passes. Kal Skirata surrenders his back door to the Republic Treasury. Also Ysanne has sworn to avenge the Isard name by any means necessary, but that probably won't be a problem for another 10-ish years. It's fine.

AN: It's here! Been busier lately and that delayed things but it's here now.

Not much to say. Want to have a much better second anniversary message written up later this evening.

That's all. Enjoy and stuff.