It's Crack Friday!
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"Doom! For you who have forsaken the ways..." Mandos began but trailed off. Something was very wrong. He was at the top of a great tower of white porcelain and glass. The tower was part of some massive citadel in a vast city. Chariots flew through the air outside.
Normally, when dispatched to pronounce doom, or to get more tea, the Valar found himself in the presence of the perennially overachieving children of Illuvater. While he spotted a few such seated in a semicircle about him the others were bizarre, twisted parodies. More warped constructs of Morgoth? Whatever they were, they buzzed with a strange power.
"The ways, forsaken have we?" said what appeared to be a Goblin. The other beings leaned forward.
"Yes." said Mandos, who felt he was on firmer ground here. Men and the things of Morgoth were always backsliding over something. Hopefully not tea production.
"I think this is a the work of the Sith." said a Man.
"The what?", although he could feel there was a darkness about the name, it felt strange, unlike the more usual works of the Enemy and his servants.
"He does look like a Sith. Tell us, what is your name." said one of the twisted ones.
"My name..." began Mandos but he was interrupted.
Two Men had walked into the chamber. Mandos spun around and pointed at the younger Man.
"Doom! You, who would reject the gift of Men I call doom. For in thine hubris shall be the seeds of your undoing. All that you seek, all that you desire shall turn to fire and ashes from your folly. Fool and follower of fools! Your base lusts and desires shall bring about terror and calamity. All shall curse your name and call you monster evermore." pronounced Mandos.
There, that was more like it. He felt better. He could also murder a cup of tea.
"So, about that new mission? Who's weird, dark and creepy?" said Anakin Skywalker.
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Yoda regarded the newcomer calmly. The newcomers sudden appearance and prophecy was unusual. Still, it had happened. Now it remained for how they were to respond. Despite Skywalker's initial assessment Yoda could sense nothing about the Dark Side in the being. While clearly powerful, it was something he had never felt before. That however made him intriguing. It was a vast Galaxy in an even wider Universe. Here, was an opportunity to learn.
"Please, your name I would like to know." said Yoda.
"I am known as Mandos." said the stranger.
"Where do you come from?" said Ki Adi Mundi
"And why did you speak that strange prophecy over Skywalker?" said Mace Windu.
"Your questions do not concern me. I must go." the stranger said, he turned and walked a few paces.
"To where must you go?" said Yoda as the stranger paced about. Although completely opaque to the Force he could tell the stranger was agitated.
"Back to Mandos. I have work to do." said the stranger.
"I thought you said that was your name." said Ki Adi Mundi.
"It is both where I work and my common name. Because what I do is what I am." said the stranger.
"What is it that you do?"
"I counsel and watch over the dead. I issue prophecy. I look after the tea." said the stranger.
None of the Jedi could sense any deception or indeed much of anything about the stranger.
"Thank you. Much clarity you have brought. Fellow masters. Adjourn we shall. Much to discuss we must." said Yoda.
The Jedi rose and filed out of the chamber.
"I'm guessing the mission can wait." said Obi-Wan Kenobi.
"You think?" said Anakin.
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The Jedi Council had moved down to the library, shooed everyone but some of the senior librarians out and began an argument.
"Calm, we must remain." urged Yoda after some time and much shouting.
"Calm? We have someone claiming to be 'He who presides over the dead' in our council chamber." said Mace.
"We need to see what he wants?" said Ki Adi Mundi.
"What he wants? He is clearly an agent of Darkness. He may even be our elusive second Sith Lord. We should apprehend him and throw him in the cells." said Mace.
"And if what he says is true, hmm." said Yoda.
"You cannot be serious. We are not currently hosting a God of Death." said Mace.
"Much there is that we do not know. Possible, what he says, true is. Serious I am." said Yoda.
There was a polite cough from Jocasta Nu, the head librarian.
"Your description of the gentle being is concurrent with depictions of Death Deities. There are eighty seven thousand, three hundred and twenty two systems where he could be easily identified as such a being in a local culture. Add in the given name and the range pares down to a paltry thirteen hundred and sixty three." she said.
"Is one of those systems Mandolore?" growled Mace.
"It is Master Windu. However, the gentle being resembles one of their psychopomps more than the traditional Mandolorian Keeper of the Dead."
"Something further to add Chief Librarian?" said Yoda.
"Why yes. The Jedi Order has eighty six verified theophanies on record. In the majority of cases, fifty nine in fact, the issue was resolved by returning the Avatar to their home system." said Ms Nu.
"Thank you for your wisdom Jocasta." said Yoda.
"What of the prophecy made concerning Skywalker?" said Ki Adi Mundi.
"Yes, all the more proof that he is dangerous." said Mace.
"It remains that this Mandos spoke the most to Skywalker. It may that he will be more forthcoming about him." said Ki Adi Mundi.
"Meditate on this we shall. But agree with you I do. Assign Skywalker and Kenobi to this Mandos we will." said Yoda.