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Topic:
Deceptions -- (AU, Epic -- Obi, Dooku, Sidious, and more) -- Ch 10!!! 5/13/08
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earlybird-obi-wan
Registered:
Aug '06
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Date Posted:
6/24/07 9:51pm
Subject:
RE: Deceptions -- (AU, will be epic -- Obi, Dooku, Sidious, and more) -- Ch7 6/24!
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Great update with those characters from the Dark Horse comics. You describe them very well.
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writer and Star Wars fan
FANART [link=http://boards.theforce.net/fan_art/b10020/25793899]fanart[/link]
stories in my bio
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Sionnach-Airgid
Registered:
Jul '05
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Date Posted:
6/24/07 10:23pm
Subject:
RE: Deceptions -- (AU, will be epic -- Obi, Dooku, Sidious, and more) -- Ch7 6/24!
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 Takes moment to go back and drool over cover art again, then reminds self that she should be concentrating on commenting. Sneaks another look . . .
Okay, here goes:
"Must you sit on the floor?" Dooku asked with a sigh, slowly kneeling down to the floor as well once he had reached the Jedi. "It's difficult enough that I'm required to do this whenever Sidious is around."
 I suppose Sith kitchens don't have chairs b/c they eat on the run? I love how Dooku was annoyed that Obi was sitting on the floor b/c he had to kneel! And a dusty kitchen?  Dooku should hire some cleaning droids or have the Accolytes do a wee bit of cleaning!
Obi-Wan gave his food an incredulous look. "I'm not certain. But it's edible enough, so I'm not especially concerned."
 Men. They'll eat just about anything I suppose, huh? 
Obi-Wan just shook his head, trying not to be amused. "You only wish you had long enough hair for it to be messy."
"Now that was simply mean." Dooku said, sounding vaguely offended, though it was clear he wasn't.
 Well, Obi does have very nice hair . . .
You'll be taking Skorr with you, as Tann is busy, Darc is afraid of you, and I thought it would be best to keep you and Asajj separated."
 That's probably a good idea!
Reading more about Alliga as he walked, he didn't sense Ventress until she had entered the corridor with him. Then he sighed.
"Ventress." He greeted her dully, as she strode over. He kept walking.
"Kenobi." She drawled in response. "What are you doing?"
"Walking down the hall, attempting to read this, and holding a conversation with you all at once." Obi-Wan responded flatly. "Quite obviously."
"You know what I meant." The Acolyte said, sounding annoyed.
"I am on my way to the hangar bay." Obi-Wan told her honestly with another sigh, seeing no reason to lie to her as she was simply going to follow him anyway.
"Are we going somewhere?"
"You are not going anywhere." Obi-Wan told her, raising an eyebrow.
Cute! And I love how Asaaj thinks all of the fanblades are hers!
"Kenobi." Skorr's voice came over the comm, and Obi-Wan turned his attention towards it.
"What is it, Skorr?"
"Did Master Dooku say anything about why he didn't feel I wasn't capable of going on this mission on my own?"
Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow, though Skorr couldn't see it. It sounded suspiciously like the Acolyte's feelings were hurt. "Yes, he did." He responded, deciding to pity the former Jedi. "He said that it was mostly that your ship was damaged, though also that you fight with Vos."
"Oh." Skorr responded after a moment. "That makes sense."
Awww, poor Skorr! He thought Dooku didn't think he could handle the assignment all by himself. Nice of Obi to explain otherwise. 
Not entirely, of course; he knew it had to be someone male, someone human or near human, someone nearly exactly his height, and someone he knew and spoke to relatively often. The problem with that was that the only candidates couldn't possibly be Sith... Could they? Obi-Wan had learned something from the mystery of the hidden planet, Kamino, and that was that the 'impossible' was rarely as impossible as it would seem. It had been unthinkable that the Archives could have been tampered with, and yet they had been, and so it was just as possible that the Coucil could have missed a Sith Lord right under their noses. However, Obi-Wan hoped it wasn't so, because both his mind and his intuition pointed to the same individual, and that person was probably the worst one possible to turn out to be a Sith Lord in disguise.
 Hmmm . . . could he be thinking of dear ol' Palpy? Obi's pretty smart, so I think he could have possibly figured it out. Too bad Ani really doesn't have those trading cards . . . In either case, Obi needs to be very very careful. 
And I love how, once he had the opening, Skorr kept complaining about all the planets he had been to on Jedi missions and Obi just ignored him. That was great!
Quinlan lowered his lightsabre as he recognized Obi-Wan and Skorr, regarding them with some surprise. "Obi-Wan?" He said, sounding a bit confused, but Obi-Wan gave him a look that clearly meant he would explain later. The Acolyte quickly shook off his surprise, and instead eyed the ragged appearance of the duo. "What happened to you two?"
"I am going to kill you, Vos." Skorr said, eye twitching as he started forward. Only Obi-Wan reaching out and grabbing the back of his tunic stopped the Acolyte from jumping on Quinlan and attempting to beat him to a pulp.
As it was, Quinlan just raised an eyebrow. "It was only a question."
I take it that Skorr is quite sensitive about his appearance.
"So, that means you're in charge, right?" Khaleen piped up, looking interested. She'd apparently decided that Obi-Wan was not particularly dangerous based on the relatively casual conversation between him and Quinlan.
"At the moment." Obi-Wan confirmed, looking over at her. "Why?"
"No reason." Khaleen said, though there obviously was one as she looked more cheerful than before.
Hmmm . . . I wonder what the reason is? Must be fairly important if Khaleen's so happy about it. Although, if I had been stuck on that planet and discovered that one of my rescuers was a particularly attractive Jedi pretending to be a Sith who goes by the name of Obi-Wan Kenobi and also learned he was in charge, I think I would be quite cheerful too! 
Skorr made an unintelligible noise of affirmation as Quinlan nodded, and Obi-Wan left them to their devices as he returned his attention to his own ship. He opened the canopy, then turned towards Khaleen and offered his hand to help her up to the gunner's seat.
Khaleen smiled, accepting his help and climbing gracefully into the ship.
Looks like Asaaj is going to have some competition, huh? She's not going to like that very much! Khaleen better watch her back, I think.
Hmmm. Quinlan's an Accolyte now, huh? Let's see, there's Skorr, then Obi (although we know he's just playing along even though I'm sure the Sith know and have worked that into their master plan) and now Quinlan? Something a little sketchy's going on here. What's with all the Jedi going over to the darkside?
Killer moss? Ewww! 
Excellent update! I can't wait for more! And I got first post! 
Goes back to admiring cover art . . .
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The Force made me do it! I always follow the will of the Force! My fics: http://boards.theforce.net/fan_fiction_resource/b10304/25405090/p2 Proud Master of yodas_waiter!  One of Courtney_Solo's many knighted padawans  Team Search & Destroy
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Fifilla
Registered:
Mar '06
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Date Posted:
6/24/07 11:42pm
Subject:
RE: Deceptions -- (AU, will be epic -- Obi, Dooku, Sidious, and more) -- Ch7 6/24!
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"I'm hungry, and you are talking about nothing." Obi-Wan responded, raising an eyebrow at him. "Even a Jedi's patience is tested by that."
I loved the whole first part of the chapter. The dialogue between Dooku and Obi-Wan was really funny!
Not entirely, of course; he knew it had to be someone male, someone human or near human, someone nearly exactly his height, and someone he knew and spoke to relatively often. The problem with that was that the only candidates couldn't possibly be Sith... Could they?
 whispers to Obi-Wan: It's Palpatine! 
"In the interest of accuracy, I am a Sith, not an Acolyte." Obi-Wan corrected, prompting an expression from Quinlan he promised himself he would forever remember.
I think, Obi-Wan is enjoying the whole Sith thing a bit too much 
Thanks for the PM 
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"There's always a bigger fish." Fear Of Failure - young Qui-Gon (WIP) > http://boards.theforce.net/before_the_saga/b10475/27642896 Padawan to Valairy_Scot
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Valairy_Scot
Registered:
Sep '05
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Date Posted:
6/25/07 12:22am
Subject:
RE: Deceptions -- (AU, will be epic -- Obi, Dooku, Sidious, and more) -- Ch7 6/24!
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OH MY! I died all through that.
And so, after changing and pulling on his boots, and trying to make his very frizzy hair lie normally--a Sith with bedhead was not impressive, after all.
Oh, yeah, says who?
"Must you sit on the floor?" Dooku asked with a sigh, slowly kneeling down to the floor as well once he had reached the Jedi. "It's difficult enough that I'm required to do this whenever Sidious is around."
Obi-Wan shrugged, not paying much attention as he tried to figure out what the green things in his breakfast were.
"You're still angry with me, aren't you." It wasn't really a question.
"No. I'm annoyed with you." Obi-Wan corrected him with a sigh, taking another drink. "It takes more than someone being difficult to make me angry."
"I imagine." Dooku commented. "You [i]have lived with Skywalker for ten years."
Obi-Wan fixed Dooku with a hard look. "You're quickly approaching actually making me angry. Keep your comments about my Padawan to yourself."
"My apologies." Dooku said, and he almost seemed sincere, though Obi-Wan was pretty sure it was more an apology for being insensitive rather than for insulting Anakin. There was silence for a moment before Dooku spoke again. "What are you eating?"
Obi-Wan gave his food an incredulous look. "I'm not certain. But it's edible enough, so I'm not especially concerned."
Dooku nodded, and there was quiet again, for about forty seconds. "Your hair is quite fluffy this morning."
"Do you have anything important to say?" Obi-Wan asked, sounding faintly exasperated and pulling his attention away from his caf so he could give Dooku an annoyed look. Subconsciously, he patted his hair down into place again.
Dooku considered that a moment. "No, not that I can think of." He finally decided, shrugging elegantly.
"Then why are you here?" Obi-Wan inquired, raising an eyebrow.
"The kitchen is very scenic." Dooku responded, gesturing at the grey, somewhat dilapidated room that was very out of place in the fortress. "Though more so when not occupied by a bad tempered Jedi with messy hair."
Obi-Wan just shook his head, trying not to be amused. "You only wish you had long enough hair for it to be messy."
"Now that was simply mean." Dooku said, sounding vaguely offended, though it was clear he wasn't. "And I return to the 'bad tempered' comment."
"I'm hungry, and you are talking about nothing." Obi-Wan responded, raising an eyebrow at him. "Even a Jedi's patience is tested by that."[/i]
I am so cracking up at that! I love the bad-tempered Jedi with messy hair, especially. Can I have one?
"As for the two of you, you know what you're doing. Take the Fanblades and find Vos and Hentz on Alliga, then return. I expect you can manage this without being noticed or doing anything to create disillusionment with the Confederacy on the planet."
"Yes, Master Dooku." Skorr affirmed, and Obi-Wan inclined his head casually in agreement as well.
Yes, father, the two children agree. Oh, oh, watch out.
"
"Great. Let's go, then." Skorr said, with the barely controlled impatience of someone who wanted to get over and done with their mission already and go back home.
"I had no intention of [i]loitering, Skorr." Obi-Wan responded, rolling his eyes again and this time wishing Skorr could see the gesture. "But as you are so eager, you may go first and be the test for any weapons that may be hidden from our scanners."
Skorr was quiet a moment. "I don't like you."[/i]
Aw, he's pouting. This was as funny as the bedhead stuff above.
...it was kind of fun at times to play being a Sith by messing with the underlings. "Now go."
Watch the company you keep, Obi. You're going Sithly.
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http://boards.theforce.net/fan_fiction_resource/b10304/25405090/p3/?52 Prolific Author thread: list & links there. 2008: Winner: Best Canon/Best Epic. Honored by 13 noms/8 qualifieds in '08, 19 noms & 2? qualifieds in '07. Thank you!
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Kynstar
Registered:
Mar '04
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Date Posted:
6/25/07 5:58am
Subject:
RE: Deceptions -- (AU, will be epic -- Obi, Dooku, Sidious, and more) -- Ch7 6/24!
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LOL about Tholme's ponytail being eaten (if that's the implication meant)
Bet Vos was taken back seeing Obi there! Great work on Skorr!
Can't wait to see how Obi explains this to Vos. hehehe
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Paddy sis to t_s & SarkaVrae/Master to hyperspace_police
Member of Rebel Legion and Jedi Assembly (Kynstar Lans)
Long live fanfiction...for in these tales do our heroes still exist.
See stories/viggies in bio
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G__Anakin
Registered:
Apr '06
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Date Posted:
6/25/07 7:55am
Subject:
RE: Deceptions -- (AU, will be epic -- Obi, Dooku, Sidious, and more) -- Ch7 6/24!
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Great job! You had everything well rounded! Great humor!
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Ascal_Elessar
Registered:
Feb '04
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Date Posted:
6/25/07 12:42pm
Subject:
RE: Deceptions -- (AU, will be epic -- Obi, Dooku, Sidious, and more) -- Ch7 6/24!
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"The kitchen is very scenic." Dooku responded, gesturing at the grey, somewhat dilapidated room that was very out of place in the fortress. "Though more so when not occupied by a bad tempered Jedi with messy hair."
Obi-Wan just shook his head, trying not to be amused. "You only wish you had long enough hair for it to be messy."
Yay for more sarky Obi-Wan. Again great interaction between him and Dooku.
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"HELLO THERE!" Member of the Obi-Wan Kenobi Fan Club
"He's like Fire and Ice and Rage, He's like the
night and the storm and the heart of the sun, He's
ancient and forever. he burns at the centre of time
and he can see the turn of the universe."
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ClaudiaR
Registered:
Jun '07
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Date Posted:
6/25/07 1:40pm
Subject:
RE: Deceptions -- (AU, will be epic -- Obi, Dooku, Sidious, and more) -- Ch7 6/24!
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I am loving this story! And now you added Quinlan and
another Acolyte who is apparently funny and "nice"
I want to see where you are headed here! Obi-wan banter
is a lot of fun! no matter who it is with, though Dooku also
wins kudos for a good performance
Please add me to your PM list!
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LURK&STALK
It takes a specialist to do it right
" Getting to stalk around importantly was quickly becoming the best part of pretending to be a Sith. "
Obi-Wan in Deptions by Amrita_Glittersong
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Amrita_Glittersong
Registered:
Jan '07
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Date Posted:
6/26/07 8:24pm
Subject:
RE: Deceptions -- (AU, will be epic -- Obi, Dooku, Sidious, and more) -- Ch7 6/24!
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earlybird-obi-wan - Thanks! I love the Dark Horse comic characters, so I'm glad I'm doing them justice, at least so far.
Sionnach-Airgid - Still mesmerized? Obi does that to people.
Hehe, I figured the Acolytes and Sith had a dining hall, but Obi was being antisocial and avoiding them. I know I would be. Hehe, now there's an amusing mental image; all the Acolytes in aprons and such, dusting.
Men. They'll eat just about anything I suppose, huh?
Definately. Even I won't eat some of the stuff they will; my dad is always buying the weirdest stuff he calls food.
Indeed, Obi's hair is quite nice; my brother and I have a running joke about his 'fabulous hair', as we call it. It's always super silky and shiny in the Dark Horse comics.
Hehe, poor Ventress is sadly mistaken about the Fanblades. Though she really could use all six, at the rate she loses them.  Poor Skorr. He's an insecure dork. Glad you liked him and his general silliness throughout the chapter.
Hmmm . . . could he be thinking of dear ol' Palpy?
Poooooossibly.
Hehe, I'd pay to see a Khaleen and Asajj catfight. Especially one over Obi, as he'd be mortified.
Thanks for the comments and I'm glad you liked the chapter!
Fifilla - Thanks! Glad you liked the opening scenes with Obi and Dooku, since I kinda' snubbed poor Dooku this chapter.
I think, Obi-Wan is enjoying the whole Sith thing a bit too much
Yeah, probably.
Valairy_Scot - Thanks, and I'm glad the chapters amused you so much. I think we all need a bad-tempered, messy-haired Obi! Eveyone agree?
Watch the company you keep, Obi. You're going Sithly.
Surrounded by the Acolytes, it's hard to resist. He'll probably be very embarassed by his Sithly behavior, even if it's mostly harmless, once he realizes he's doing it.
Kynstar - Yeah, poor Tholme. I love Tholme, but I couldn't resist. Yeah, Quinlan wasn't expecting that. Who would expect Obi as a Sith, after all? Hehe, Skorr was fun to write, but he kept trying to run off and be too silly. Obi and Quin'll talk next chapter, though I'm no guaranteeing any actual explaining. Thanks, and I'm glad you liked the chapter!
G__Anakin - Thanks! I'm glad you liked this chapter and that it was well-rounded; I was a bit concerned it would just be too packed with everything and be all disjointed.
Ascal_Elessar - Thanks! Snarky Obi is fun to write.
ClaudiaR - Yay, a new reader! I'm really glad you're liking the fic so far! Yeah, the Acolytes are ending up being quite the group of misfits. Glad you like all the banter! And I will add you to the PM list right now.
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Deceptions: http://boards.theforce.net/Message.aspx?topic=26426189 My SW videos: http://youtube.com/profile?user=Glittersong "I was trying to sound pompous." "Do you really think you need to try?" -Obi-Wan Kenobi and Siri Tachi
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epithree
Registered:
Aug '06
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Date Posted:
6/27/07 9:30pm
Subject:
RE: Deceptions -- (AU, will be epic -- Obi, Dooku, Sidious, and more) -- Ch7 6/24! Replies~
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Hey hi there.
Absolutely superb!
The interaction between Obi and Dooku is a blast.
No way are they fooling Sidious... or are they?
Please keep it coming.
~epithree
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'And so it is.'
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Amrita_Glittersong
Registered:
Jan '07
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Date Posted:
7/3/07 9:07pm
Subject:
RE: Deceptions -- (AU, will be epic -- Obi, Dooku, Sidious, and more) -- Ch7 6/24! Replies~
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epithree - Thanks! There's lots of Obi and Dooku in this chapter, so hopefully you'll like that too. You will find out what exactly Sidious thinks/knows... Eventually.
------------------
Notes: Oh snap. This was a very difficult chapter. None of the characters would behave, and I had a horrid time with the lightsabre fight. Of course, this is a rather important chapter, which makes it even more annoying that it was so hard to write. I have also been staring at it for the past three days, so I may well have missed some stupid mistakes just from overexposure. But I hope it's not too bad, and that y'all enjoy it anyway!
I'd also like to say how honored I am that Deceptions was nomminated for both Best Ensemble Cast and Best Epic, and that I myself have recieved a nommination for Best New Author. Thank you, and thanks to everyone for reading!
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Deceptions
chapter 8
The hyperspace trip back to Raxus Prime was as pleasant as being stuck in a small ship for five hours could be. Khaleen was polite and friendly after she'd realized Obi-Wan wasn't a danger to her, as the Knight had been unable to bring himself to even attempt to be at all frightening around her. They had talked most of the way back, and Obi-Wan had learned of Khaleen and Skorr's mutual dislike of each other, as well as a multitude of other things. One of which was that it was quite clear Khaleen was absolutely smitten with Quinlan, if not outright in love with him.
The two ships soon landed in the hangar of the fortress, and Obi-Wan was a little surprised by how pleased he was to be back. He opened the canopy of the ship and got out, helping Khaleen out as well before turning towards Dooku, who was waiting for them.
"Something attacked you two, didn't it." Dooku asked, though it was more of a statement as he regarded his apprentice and Skorr, who'd joined them along with Quinlan.
"What would possibly indicate that?" Obi-Wan asked, tone perfectly questioning, before sweeping past the other Sith towards the doorway back into the main fortress. Reaching the door, he stopped to look back over his shoulder. "Vos, I would like to speak with you once you are finished with your report. I trust that between you and Skorr you will be able to give a satisfactory summary."
"Sure." Quinlan responded amiably, and Skorr just grumbled and looked like he was hiding a rude gesture under his arm.
Dooku, meanwhile, was looking back at Obi-Wan with a slightly amused expression that the Acolytes couldn't see. "I will speak with you later this evening as well."
Obi-Wan nodded at him before leaving the room, finding his way back to the kitchen again. It wasn't often he was away from the Temple and still got to have semi-regular meals, even if he had no idea what they actually consisted of. As he entered the room though, he was not expecting the sight that lay before him.
Ventress was wearing a very dusty apron, looking rather miffed as she more or less beat a countertop with an extremely disheveled duster, not so much picking up the dust as causing it to fly everywhere. Obi-Wan blinked at her, and she blinked back.
"Erm." The Jedi finally said, a bit baffled. "...Am I interrupting something?"
"What is that supposed to mean?" She growled, pulling off the apron and tossing it to the side along with the duster, proceeding to act as though she'd never been anywhere near them. "And I see you're back, if a bit worse for the wear." She added, looking up and down at him and raising an eyebrow.
"I am." Obi-Wan confirmed, then raised an eyebrow as well. "I certainly hope this wasn't the project that Dooku had for you."
"What? No." She grumbled, sweeping past Obi-Wan to kick a suspiciously still kitchen droid for what appeared to be no particularly good reason. She then looked back and smiled coolly, apparently appeased by damaging the droid. "I finished that and then Master Dooku mentioned the kitchen was very dusty."
"And so you went to dust it?" Obi-Wan asked, still a bit confused by the whole situation. What was it about Dooku that compelled his minions to be so fanatical about him, anyway?
"Yes." Ventress confirmed, glaring at him as if challenging him to make something more of it.
"...Well, I suppose it's a good use of your time." Obi-Wan conceded after a moment, deciding to drop the entire line of discussion and proceeding to edge over towards the cabinets, hoping to grab something and get out of there as soon as possible. He still had to figure out exactly what he was going to say to Quinlan, after all, and then what he was going to speak with Dooku about.
Amusingly enough though, as he looked back over at Ventress, it seemed the Acolyte was a bit embarassed about the entire thing, if that was even possible. Before, Obi-Wan wouldn't have been sure it was, but she was almost blushing and when she spoke, she even sounded embarassed. "I'm going to go report to Master Dooku that the kitchen is..." She looked around, and so did Obi-Wan. "...Passable." She finished, as a rather large spider rapelled down from a chandelier, pondered the two of them for a moment, then scurried back up as fast as it's little legs could take it.
"...That would be accurate." Obi-Wan agreed.
Without another word Ventress swept out of the kitchen, and Obi-Wan wondered a moment whether he'd somehow returned to an academy filled with teenagers, rather than a fortress for dark-side Force users. He was pretty certain he might have, as Darc entered the room, made a noise akin to a squeak, and hurriedly left as fast as he'd come.
Having easily reached his limit of patience for Acolytes for the moment, Obi-Wan snatched the first edible looking thing from the cabinets and left, making it back to his room rather quickly and breathing a sigh of relief when he didn't encounter anyone else along the way.
An hour or so later, and he was a bit bored. Boredom was not something he was particularly used to feeling, so he wasn't really sure what to do with it, not to mention that he was torn between looking for something to do and just waiting as Quinlan would probably be finished speaking with Dooku soon.
Perfectly timed, there was the now familiar chime at his door that signaled someone wanted in. Checking with the Force just to make sure it wasn't Ventress or someone else annoying, he found that it was indeed Quinlan and Khaleen and allowed them in.
Quinlan entered the room, Khaleen behind him, looking around appreciatively. "Well, this certainly doesn't look like a Sith's room." The Kiffar commented, taking in the gentle blues, browns, and creams.
Obi-Wan shrugged slightly, regarding his friend as he tried to gain any hint as to Quinlan's motives. The Force was telling him the Acolyte was still the same Quinlan he'd always known, but if he wasn't and was now truly immersed in the dark side, telling him that Obi-Wan was only posing as a Sith would not be a good choice.
"So." Quinlan said, leaning against the wall casually as Khaleen took a seat on the chair at Obi-Wan's desk. "I wouldn't have imagined you as a part of all this."
"Likewise." Obi-Wan responded, raising an eyebrow slightly. "Care to explain?"
"Me? How about you? You're the Sith." Quinlan scoffed.
"Yes, and as Khaleen pointed out earlier that means I outrank you. Therefore you go first."
Quinlan raised an eyebrow. "Your well-reasoned logic isn't really intimidating, Obi-Wan."
Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow as well; it seemed he had another Acolyte to add to his 'doesn't take me seriously' list. "I don't particularly care, Quin. Explain."
Quinlan sighed, but didn't argue farther. "I joined Dooku not long ago. I don't agree with the way the Republic is being managed, and if I am on the side of the Separatists, perhaps I can help in bringing about reform with only a minimal conflict."
"That sounded rather rehearsed." Obi-Wan commented, raising an eyebrow slightly. Quinlan had seemed, for all intents and purposes, sincere enough. However, Obi-Wan had known him for over twenty years, and he wasn't fooled that easily. Quinlan was lying, and only slightly better than himself and Dooku. "You're not really an Acolyte, are you." He asked, though it was more of a statement than a question.
Quinlan stared seriously at him, seeming almost shocked at the blunt statement, before looking at Khaleen who now seemed rather worried. "You're a bit too good at reading people." The Kiffar muttered at Obi-Wan, nodding once and looking back at him. "And now I'm going to hope that I was correct in my assessment of you, as well."
"That depends entirely on what your assessment was." Obi-Wan responded, trying not to smile at finding Quinlan was still as much of a Jedi as he was. "But it seems our situations are rather similar."
Quinlan's eyebrows shot up, and Khaleen turned her attention towards Obi-Wan in surprise. Obi-Wan looked over at her, then back to Quinlan. "I am still a Jedi as well. I am posing as a Sith to discover the identity of Darth Sidious."
"And you've fooled Dooku?" Quinlan asked, ceasing to lean against the wall and now standing up straight, looking at his friend intently. "You seemed pretty casual with him before."
"Dooku is in on it; we're working together. Quinlan, I shouldn't have to stress how important it is that no one finds out about this." Obi-Wan told him, looking just as intently back at the other Jedi.
"You don't." Quinlan agreed. "I won't tell anyone, and neither will Khaleen."
"Right." Khaleen nodded her agreement as well. She smiled. "I knew you were a bit too nice to be a Sith."
"She's got a point." Quinlan commented, raising an eyebrow and regarding Obi-Wan. "You're not really very frightening."
"That's what Dooku said." Obi-Wan said, sighing slightly.
"Scary doesn't seem to be something that would come naturally to you." Khaleen commented, still smiling lightly. "Which might not be good for trying to convince people you're a big bad Sith, but is nice to see otherwise. Too many people find that unkindness comes easily."
The Jedi looked at her for a moment, a bit surprised, then turned his attention back towards Quinlan. "And you somehow found someone like this during your shady underworld dealings?"
Quinlan chuckled, crossing the room to put and arm around Khaleen. "Lucky, aren't I?"
Obi-Wan just smiled and shook his head slightly in amusement, not entirely sure what to do with Quinlan sometimes. It seemed the other Jedi was just as enamoured with Khaleen as she was with him, and that was dangerous, but Obi-Wan couldn't bring himself to remind Quinlan of the rules against attachment. Especially not now, as they weren't supposed to be following said rules anyway, or at least not appear as if they were.
"So, what should I call you?" Khaleen asked, changing the subject as she was almost blushing, and Quinlan nodded to show he wanted to know the same.
"'Obi-Wan' is fine, for both of you." Obi-Wan told them. "It's what all the other Acolytes call me, so they won't think twice about it."
"They don't take you very seriously, do they?" Quinlan asked, raising an eyebrow and looking amused. "Skorr certainly didn't seem to be afraid you were going to take his head off."
"I'm not entirely certain Skorr has a large enough concentration of brain cells to make it worth removing his head. Perhaps he knows that." Obi-Wan responded, earning an unlady-like snort from Khaleen.
"Entirely possible." Quinlan agreed."Though I could put the fear of your lectures in him. 'Careful; provoke Obi-Wan too far and he will cause you a slow, torturous death by talking.'" He said lazily, a small smirk on his face.
"Whatever works." Obi-Wan replied, amused. It was quite nice to have Quinlan around, especially a Quinlan that was not actually an Acolyte. While Obi-Wan was getting used to being around Dooku, and much to his dismay was finding he actually liked talking to the Sith, it was not the same as having a friend and fellow Jedi.
"Okay, I don't know about the two of you, but I'm hungry." Quinlan commented, stretching slightly. "I'm going to the kitchen to look for something I can both eat and throw at Skorr if the need arises."
Khaleen laughed and it took Obi-Wan a great deal of effort not to do the same. "I'm coming with you, Quin." The purple haired woman said, getting out of the chair and locking arms with Quinlan.
"I ate while you were giving your report, and Dooku will likely be here soon." Obi-Wan told them. "So I'm going to remain here for the moment, though if you do throw anything at Skorr you will have to tell me about it later."
"Got it." Quinlan agreed, smirking again before leading Khaleen from the room. Obi-Wan just shook his head as they left.
Soon after, Dooku arrived and Obi-Wan briefly debated messing with him by refusing to open the door, but decided with a distinct sense of guilt that the Acolytes were rubbing off on him and changed his mind. Letting the Sith in, Dooku entered the room, taking his usual seat at the desk before regarding Obi-Wan with what was probably as cheerful expression as the Sith ever got. "Skorr's report was... Amusing, to say the least." He told his apprentice, sounding as though he was having a bit too much fun with this.
"Oh?" Obi-Wan inquired. "For some reason, I am not surprised. Skorr is easy enough to get along with, but he is a bit less than helpful."
"You had to save him, didn't you?" Dooku asked, sighing and shaking his head.
"Well, yes." The Knight admitted.
"Skorr is perfectly competent, and yet he acts as though he is not." Dooku lamented. "He is a good Acolyte, though he would be far better if he did things himself without needing others' help. And if he would work with Vos."
"Yes, it was quite obvious they were less than fond of each other." Obi-Wan agreed. "Though they refrained from killing each other during the flight back."
"I should award them gold stars for good behavior." Dooku responded with a nod, before moving on. "What is your opinion on Alliga?"
"It would be suitable for another base, it seems." Obi-Wan responded, shrugging slightly and folding his arms. "Though it is inhabited by rashtahs, extremely foggy, active enough in the Force that it can be confusing, and Skorr would complain the entire time."
"All valid reasons not to relocate there." Dooku commented. "We'll consider some other planets, then. Alliga isn't the only option."
Obi-Wan nodded in agreement, before changing the subject. "What was the project you needed Ventress' help on, while I was gone?"
"Paperwork. I needed her to have some documents sent to me." Dooku responded evenly, and Obi-Wan refrained from raising an eyebrow at what felt clearly like a half-truth. Again, like many times before, he wanted to call the Sith on it, but instead chose to accept it for the moment and move on.
"She was dusting the kitchen when I went in there, you know."
"Really?" Dooku asked, raising his eyebrows slightly. He considered a moment. "I suppose that's a good use of her initiative."
Obi-Wan shook his head in amusement. "I suppose. She said that it was more or less your idea."
"Of course it was." Dooku responded lightly. "If not for Tann and I, nothing would ever be cleaned. There are no housekeeping droids here, and the battle droids make useless maids."
"Anakin attempted to program a remote training droid to clean, once." Obi-Wan said, smiling slightly at the memory. "It deemed Master Windu's boots dirty and so chased him through the halls, blasting away at him."
Dooku smiled as well. "A pity I wasn't there for that. I sounds as though it was something to behold."
"It was, though Master Windu wasn't very pleased with us afterwards." Obi-Wan affirmed. "Of course, it was slightly difficult to take him seriously when he was covered in scorch marks. And his boots really were filthy."
Dooku almost laughed at that, standing up. "You have reminded me of something. Come on." He said, gesturing slightly for the Knight to follow him before beginning towards the door. Obi-Wan didn't move, other than raising his eyebrow in the abrupt delcaration.
"Where are we going?"
"Must you be difficult all the time?" Dooku asked, stopping and turning around, shaking his head in amusement. "We're going to the training room."
Obi-Wan raised the other eyebrow. "Really?" He asked, standing as well and taking a few steps to catch up with Dooku.
"Yes. Why do you always ask me that?" Dooku asked lightly, looking down at him as they both left the room and began down the hall. "I'm going to start giving you a false answer first, simply so I can answer 'no'."
"And you say that I am the difficult one of us?" Obi-Wan responded, shaking his head slightly. "I ask because you tend to tell me what seems like the least likely response you can think of."
"There's nothing unlikely about going to the training room." Dooku said, as if it were obvious.
"Usually, no, there wouldn't be." Obi-Wan agreed, following Dooku down the hallway. "Though I believe the general situation does make it less likely."
"I suppose." Dooku conceded, though he sounded as though he was more agreeing just to agree than anything else, not that Obi-Wan particularly minded.
"Why are we going to the training room?" Obi-Wan asked after a moment. "Is there a particular reason?"
"You're bored, aren't you?" Dooku asked him, looking back and slowing down slightly so the Knight wouldn't have to work to keep up.
"...Yes." Obi-Wan confirmed eventually, trying to remember if he told Dooku that at any point.
"Then I thought it might be interesting for us to spar. Our last fight was under less than pleasant circumstances, after all, so a friendly match would be good for us. I would also like to give you some instruction on Makashi, as you seem well suited to it as well as apparently destined to fight everyone with a lightsabre." Dooku explained.
The Knight didn't think he had a particularly good argument for that, even if he'd wanted one. Truthfully, he was rather interested in the idea of learning some Makashi; it was a rather unique form, and would be a good addition to his usual combination of Soresu and Ataru.
"Alright." Obi-Wan finally agreed with a nod. Perhaps, after some sparring and lightsabre practice, he would have a good opportunity and some idea of how to broach the subject of Sidious' identity again.
They reached the training room a few minutes later, and in contrast to the rest of the fortress, it was well lit and almost cozy. It was obviously a well-used room, with broken droid parts scattered across the floor, weapons of various types strewn about and creating what was probably a safety hazard, and a large pile of mats were haphazardly stacked on each other in the corner.
Dooku raised an eyebrow at the state of the room, nudging a droid part with the toe of his boot. He looked over at Obi-Wan. "Do you understand what I mentioned about the Acolytes never cleaning?"
"Yes." Obi-Wan responded, picking up a rather large blaster rifle from the floor and turning the safety on before replacing it on a shelf. "They're also less than organized."
"I hadn't noticed." Dooku replied, using the Force to collect the droid parts and everything else on the floor into a pile and shove them all into the corner. Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow, but didn't comment.
As the floor was now clear, they had enough room to try sparring. Both adjusted their lightsabres, turning down the settings so they wouldn't accidentally injure each other, stepping to opposite sides of the room.
Dooku flashed the Makashi salute and Obi-Wan adopted a casual ready stance, watching carefully as he waited for Dooku to move. He didn't. They both stood there for a good thirty seconds, staring at each other, before Dooku finally spoke up. "You're being decidedly less aggressive than last time."
"There are multiple good reasons for that." Obi-Wan responded, not moving from the ready position.
"Well, one of us has to go first." Dooku said, earning a slight shrug from Obi-Wan.
"Go ahead, then."
Dooku sighed, obviously seeing this was just heading towards an endless stand-off. "What is the cause of this hesitancy from you?"
"I am a Jedi, and I use Soresu. I'm supposed to be hesitant."
"Is that so? I had thought that you practiced Ataru. You certainly didn't look like you were using Soresu when we fought before."
"Dooku, I was more than slightly displeased with you when we fought before. I was not as inclined to be patient and defensive."
"What you mean to say is that you lost your temper." Dooku responded, raising an eyebrow.
"That is not..." Obi-Wan started to protest, then decided it really wasn't worth denying. "Fine. Yes."
The Sith seemed amused. "I can understand your disdain for the dark side now, you know. If you fight like that when you're angry, you would make a terrible Sith."
"Thank you for that assessment, Dooku. I would never have guessed." Obi-Wan responded, unable to help but roll his eyes slightly. "I thought I was perfectly suited for it otherwise."
"I'm sorry, but it simply isn't for you." Dooku continued lightly. "Though we appreciate your interest."
The Knight just shook his head, trying not laugh. "Are we going to bother to actually sparring, or are we going to simply talk each other into submission?"
"With the two of us? Quite possibly the latter." Dooku responded, looking as though he was seriously considering the question. "Though we could do that without the lightsabres."
"Yes, and I rather like the lightsabres." Obi-Wan agreed. "So we may as well use them."
"If you'd like." Dooku said amiably. "Though perhaps if we stepped within arms' distance so one of us could strike without moving and making it obvious, we would actually bother to do so."
"A good idea, though your arms are longer than mine."
"Details." Dooku waved him off casually, walking over to usual dueling distance. As soon as he was close enough Obi-Wan slashed gracefully at the Count, though Dooku easily deflected it, and the match was on.
Instead of falling fully into his usual Soresu, Obi-Wan began to pay close attention to the sharp strikes and stabs Dooku made, subtly changing his own style to mimic his as much as possible. When Dooku stabbed forward, Obi-Wan parried upwards, locking their sabres together between them.
"Isn't this what always happens?" Dooku asked, as they both called on the Force to enhance their strength in an attempt to win the lock.
"Unfortunately." Obi-Wan responded, having a difficult time maintaining his ground as Dooku's superior height was of great aid to the Sith. "I am not particularly fond of it."
"You're not particularly good at it, either." Dooku commented lightly in response, prompting Obi-Wan to duck out of the lock and spin around to behind him, slashing at an angle at his back. Dooku spun as well and stepped back at the same time, ending up evading the cut and facing the Jedi at arm's distance once again.
"Are you going to use Dun Möch the entire time?" Obi-Wan asked him, raising an eyebrow and holding his sabre up at ready again. "If so, I'm going to warn you that it's a waste of breath, as it's far more difficult for me to take you seriously now than last time."
"I suppose it wouldn't be very useful." Dooku conceded. "I must admit I was surprised it worked so well on Geonosis."
"As mentioned, I was already a bit edgy with you." Obi-Wan responded. Then he sighed. "And we've done it again."
"What, devolved into conversation?" Dooku asked, earning a nod in response. The Sith looked amused. "So we have. It seems we can't stay on task if there's no incentive, so why don't we add some? If you win, you can have... Something. Whatever you can think of. If I win, you have to wake up all the Acolytes tomorrow."
"If you're making that a wager, it must be worse than it sounds." Obi-Wan commented, considering a moment. "And why do they need to be awaken? Shouldn't they wake themselves up?"
"They're Acolytes. There are a great deal of things they should do on their own and yet have to be told to nevertheless." Dooku responded, shrugging elegantly. "Do we have a deal?"
"Aren't you at all concerned about what I might choose as my reward for winning?" Obi-Wan asked him incredulously.
"No." Dooku said, then gave a rather evil looking smile. "I'm not intending to let you win."
"It is not up to you to let me." Obi-Wan replied lightly, smiling slightly in challenge. "As I am going to all on my own."
"You might if you stop talking for a moment." Dooku sent back, before making the first move this time with a small, controlled strike that Obi-Wan casual batted away. The next was low and the Jedi leapt up rather than parry it, giving him the height to strike down the Sith.
Dooku blocked the swing high over his head and rather than come down as one would normally, Obi-Wan used the leverage of the connected sabres as something akin to a springboard, flipping up and over Dooku to land lightly behind him before swinging a blow that was neatly caught by the Sith.
"That was rather fancy. Remember what I mentioned about showing off?" Dooku commented, an eyebrow quirked an amusement.
"And I believe I told you I wasn't showing off, which again is the case." Obi-Wan replied. "However, this is showing off." The Knight said, using the Force to leap up again, this time far higher than before. He alighted gently on top of one of the large chandeliers that were everywhere in the fortress, peering down over the side at Dooku.
"Indeed it is." Dooku agreed, looking up. "And those chandeliers are sturdier than I expected. Now get back down here."
"I rather like the view." Obi-Wan replied lightly, with only a hint of teasing in his voice. "I get to look down at you."
"Enjoy it while you can." Dooku responded. "After all, you have so few opportunities to look down at anyone."
"That was low." The Jedi said, prompting Dooku to shake his head in wonderment.
"You actually have a sense of humor that isn't simply biting sarcasm or overly dry comments?" The Sith marveled, only to get the expected dry response in return.
"No, of course not."
Dooku shook his head again, amused. "Come back down and let's continue the match, or it will go on all night at this rate."
Obi-Wan stepped off the back of the chandelier, dropping back to the floor easily and resuming his ready stance. "Alright." He said to signal he was ready again, before making the first move himself and slashing in a close backhanded sweep upwards across Dooku's chest. The Sith blocked it by turning his sabre to the side, catching the other blade in a low sabre lock they both backed out of immediately.
Dooku stabbed forward and Obi-Wan caught the strike, turning it away, but Dooku turned the stab into a swing back at the Knight. Obi-Wan followed it and blocked, but yet again their sabres locked, with Obi-Wan's blue blade pointed towards the ground and Dooku's crossed with it horizontally. Dooku was easily winning the standoff, and deciding the time had come for desperate measures Obi-Wan concentrated, reaching out with the Force and neatly crushing the power cell in Dooku's lightsabre. The red blade shorted out immediately, and Dooku's expression was rather comical for an instant before the Sith regained his composure. But it was too late, and Obi-Wan's lightsabre was already pointed directly over his heart.
"I believe I win." Obi-Wan stated, deactivating his lightsabre and taking a few steps back.
"I seems as though that is the case, yes." Dooku conceded, still a bit surprised. "Though you're quite the underhanded fighter."
"Yes, well, we never said anything about using or not using the Force." Obi-Wan replied with a slight shrug.
"I suppose, though I must admit Obi-Wan, you would be the last person I ever expected to fight dirty." Dooku commented, his words seeming a bit miffed though his tone was amused. "You seem to be the perfect Jedi in so many ways, and yet you quite obviously don't hold much to the honorable code of swordsmanship."
"And hence why I am still alive." Obi-Wan responded, rather matter of factly. "Though a nice concept in theory, and one I do like to adhere to if possible, 'honorable swordsmanship' is not always effective in a real fight."
"I suppose." Dooku repeated, though he didn't sound convinced as his opened the control panel of his lightsabre to inspect the damage. "Though if you can't win fighting honorably, then perhaps the solution is simply to develop your skills farther."
"Oh yes, because there's always time for that. I had a considerable great deal of time to plan and train for facing a Sith on Naboo, after all." Obi-Wan said, only barely refraining from rolling his eyes. "I told him, 'Wait a moment; I'm not suited to fight you yet, and I wouldn't want to use underhanded tactics to defeat you.'"
"Alright, perhaps there are some exceptions." Dooku conceded, sighing.
"Besides, Dooku, I wouldn't consider your fighting to be perfectly honorable either." Obi-Wan continued, giving him a pointed look. "Perhaps it was today, but dropping a pillar on someone is more than slightly underhanded, especially considering neither Anakin or I were still in the fight when you did that Geonosis."
"You still haven't forgiven me for that, have you?"
The Knight raised his eyebrows slightly and gave Dooku an incredulous expression. "Should I have? Oh, and we mustn't forget that eloquent move of stabbing me through a sabrelock. I don't remember learning that tactic in any of my classes, and I've had quite a few."
"Alright, Obi-Wan. Enough."
"There was also the Force Lightning. We can't forget that, either."
"Obi-Wan, I understand. You may stop now."
"I have more."
"I'm sure you do." Dooku responded with a sigh. "You will be displeased to hear this, but with your talent for arguing you would have made an excellent politician."
"You insult me." Obi-Wan responded, with only a hint of mock affrontment. "Though I prefer to call it debating."
"And you're doing it again." Dooku pointed out, apparently deeming the lightsabre fixable and placing it back onto his belt. "Besides, a politition would call it debating."
Obi-Wan had no good counter to that, especially considering that continuing would only prove Dooku's point farther, so he just glared at the Sith instead.
"You're getting better at that." Dooku commented.
"I'm having a great deal of opportunity for practice." Obi-Wan responded.
"I imagine." Dooku replied, amused. This he became serious again, and he looked at the Knight with an almost exasperated expression. "Alright, what is it?" He asked, and Obi-Wan gave him a slightly confused look.
"What is what?" He asked, raising an eyebrow slightly.
"You've been wanting to speak with me about something, haven't you? What is it?" Dooku elaborated, gesturing casually.
Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow, surprised by the sudden, and accurate, change in conversation. "And why would you have such an idea?"
"I can almost hear you thinking." Dooku responded, sounding slightly amused. "Literally. But it's rather obvious you have something you've been wanting to ask."
Obi-Wan frowned slightly at that, still inwardly a bit surprised. He and Dooku were rapidly getting a bit too good at sensing each other's intentions and emotions, and the Jedi was beginning to wonder if they had formed a delicate Force bond in such a short time. "I wanted to speak with you again about Sidious."
"I already gave you my answer on that." Dooku reminded him, all traces of the earlier humor gone and his expression serious again.
"I know that you have." Obi-Wan responded, placing his own lightsabre back on his belt and folding his arms. "But I am not going to ask you to tell me who he is. I am going to ask that you confirm or deny the suspicion I have."
Dooku seemed almost surprised, though his expression changed very little. "You have a suspicion of who he might be?"
"Yes." The Jedi affirmed, nodding once to accent his words. "I would like you to tell me if I am correct." It was more for ease than anything else, as Obi-Wan was quickly becoming confident he would be able to tell if he was right or not simply by sensing Dooku's reaction.
Dooku considered this a moment, before nodding once as well. "If you are correct, I will tell you." He agreed, looking at his apprentice. "However, I will also tell you that it might be best if you did not guess. If you do know who Sidious is, it will complicate matters."
"Your matters, or mine?" Obi-Wan asked, and when Dooku didn't answer, he knew the answer and decided to continue. "Everything points to one person." He said, carefully choosing the words before he spoke them. "Every time there was Sith activity, he benefitted. Things he has said and done, his choices and viewpoints... The way that the Force feels correct around him, and yet still somehow seems wrong."
"And who is this person?" Dooku asked him quietly, looking seriously at the Knight.
Obi-Wan was silent a moment, watching Dooku's expression carefully before replying. "Palpatine."
Dooku's gaze was even, but Obi-Wan felt a spark of surprise from the Sith. The silence continued for a few moments, before Dooku finally spoke. "He always said that if anyone were to figure it out, it would be you."
In those words, Obi-Wan's galaxy crashed down. "...Are you saying I am correct? That's... Not possible." He said faintly.
Dooku raised an eyebrow. "What isn't possible, that you're correct? We need to work on your self-esteem."
"No, not that." The Jedi said, sounding a bit annoyed even in his shock. "It can't be Palpatine. It was simply a guess; if it was Palpatine, then the Council would know."
"The Council is blind when it comes to the Sith. Otherwise, they would have believed Qui-Gon when he told them that they had returned." Dooku said coldly, turning away slightly and scowling at the floor.
"But this can't be." Obi-Wan insisted, though he knew he was speaking from disbelief rather than logic. "He is Anakin's friend, Dooku. Do you mean to tell me that..." He trailed off, staring into the distance a moment before he turned his focus again towards Dooku. "You said, at the very beginning of all this, that you were concerned that you would be replaced." He said, shaking his head slightly in denial about what he was about to say. "...Sidious, no, Palpatine... He intends to replace you with Anakin."
Dooku looked back over at him, and nodded somberly. "Yes."
"No." Obi-Wan responded, conveniently ignoring that it was him who proposed the idea in the first place. "I don't believe you."
"You must, because it is the truth. And there is more, which may well be worse." Dooku continued.
"I'm failing to think of anything that could be worse than this, Dooku." Obi-Wan said dully, his voice taking on a flat tone.
"He has something else planned." Dooku responded seriously. "I don't know of the specifics, but there is something. Something he intends to use to destroy the entire Order, and we must find out what it is before he uses it, and before he is exposed as a Sith. If the Council or anyone in the Order is told that Palpatine is Sidious, they will act immediately, and they will doom everyone."
"I cannot let him continue being around Anakin." Obi-Wan responded, shaking his head.
"Obi-Wan, Palpatine and Skywalker have known each other for ten years and your Padawan has not been harmed yet. He will be safe for now, as long as we do nothing to alert Palpatine to the fact that you know of his identity, and at the moment that includes informing the Council. He will know it was you."
Obi-Wan wasn't really listening to him, more focused on the implications of what this all meant. "It was all for nothing. Geonosis, and the Jedi that have given their lives in this fabricated war..."
"It isn't for nothing." Dooku responded vehemently. "The Republic is corrupt. It does need to be rebuilt."
"As what, a Sith-controlled dictatorship?" Obi-Wan asked, looking back at him. "That's not better, Dooku."
"At least something would get done." Dooku countered. "I know you have no love lost for politicians and their games; certainly you would understand that the Rebublic does not work."
"Whether the Rebublic works or not is not the issue!" The Jedi argued. "The issue is that the galaxy is at war for no reason other than to make it easy to put a Sith into power. How do you believe the Republic will function after that? The answer is not at all, as it will no longer exist, and neither will the Jedi Order. You have deluded yourself into believing you are doing the right thing, but that is not so."
"Obi-Wan. I do not want Sidious ruling either, and in fact have no intention of allowing it to happen. Have you forgotten the entire point of this ruse?"
Obi-Wan stared at the other, frowning slightly. "And than what?"
"What do you mean?" Dooku asked him.
"And then what? Would a new Chancellor be elected? Or did you have another plan in mind?" Obi-Wan asked, and Dooku was quiet, confirming what he suspected. "You were intending to declare yourself Chancellor, if you could."
"Until order and activity could be restored, yes." Dooku responded, sounding entirely reasonable as though it was nothing particularly outlandish. "I wish to fix the Republic, not take it over. That is Palpatine's desire."
"You both intend the same result, which is a galaxy managed how you wish for it to be, rather than for the best of those in it." Obi-Wan shot back, frustrated.
"That is not true." Dooku said, frowning as he looked down at the Jedi. "I could retire and live peacefully on my home planet Serenno, doing whatever I wish, if I wanted only what was the best for me. I am doing what must be done for the Republic and the galaxy."
"A war is not what must be done." Obi-Wan insisted, though he felt lost and unsure of what was to be done. "Neither is supporting Sidious in his mockery of the government."
"And we will end both." Dooku said gently. "When it is time, and we have discovered his plans against the Order, we will be able to bring every Jedi in the galaxy down upon him. He will be removed from office, if not killed outright, and the war will end if the next Chancellor is capable of bothering with peace talks. The Republic will realize how easily they have been misled by their corrupt system, and changes will be made. Everything will turn out for the best."
"That is a lovely picture you paint, Dooku." Obi-Wan responded. "But it is the best one possible."
"And it is what we must work towards. There is no other choice. We cannot back out now and redo everything; we must continue to move forward." Dooku told him, tone still calm and reassuring, though it was having the opposite of the intended effect.
Obi-Wan shook his head slightly, but he knew Dooku was right. If he gave the Order any information about Sidious' identity, and they did anything about it, Sidious would know and would have a chance to retaliate with whatever he had planned. He had to be allowed to remain as he was, for the moment at least. As for Dooku, Obi-Wan no longer had any idea what side the Sith was on, if any. He had suddenly become just as unknown to him as he had been before he'd ever met him.
And the question still remained. What was he going to do now?
-----signature-----
Deceptions: http://boards.theforce.net/Message.aspx?topic=26426189 My SW videos: http://youtube.com/profile?user=Glittersong "I was trying to sound pompous." "Do you really think you need to try?" -Obi-Wan Kenobi and Siri Tachi
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Valairy_Scot
Registered:
Sep '05
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Date Posted:
7/3/07 9:35pm
Subject:
RE: Deceptions -- (AU, Epic -- Obi, Dooku, Sidious, and more) -- Ch8 7/04
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Congrats my dear on your nominations - you deserve them all. The best of luck to you. 
I loved all the snarkiness in this chapter. As usual.
Amusingly enough though, as he looked back over at Ventress, it seemed the Acolyte was a bit embarassed about the entire thing, if that was even possible. Before, Obi-Wan wouldn't have been sure it was, but she was almost blushing and when she spoke, she even sounded embarassed. "I'm going to go report to Master Dooku that the kitchen is..." She looked around, and so did Obi-Wan. "...Passable." She finished, as a rather large spider rapelled down from a chandelier, pondered the two of them for a moment, then scurried back up as fast as it's little legs could take it.
"...That would be accurate." Obi-Wan agreed. That's my style of housekeeping, too!
"They don't take you very seriously, do they?" Quinlan asked, raising an eyebrow and looking amused. "Skorr certainly didn't seem to be afraid you were going to take his head off."
"I'm not entirely certain Skorr has a large enough concentration of brain cells to make it [i]worth removing his head. Perhaps he knows that." Obi-Wan responded, earning an unlady-like snort from Khaleen.
"Entirely possible." Quinlan agreed[/i]
"Though I could put the fear of your lectures in him. 'Careful; provoke Obi-Wan too far and he will cause you a slow, torturous death by talking.'" He said lazily, a small smirk on his face.
Yup, that would work.
"Dooku flashed the Makashi salute and Obi-Wan adopted a casual ready stance, watching carefully as he waited for Dooku to move. He didn't. They both stood there for a good thirty seconds, staring at each other, before Dooku finally spoke up. "You're being decidedly less aggressive than last time."
"There are multiple good reasons for that." Obi-Wan responded, not moving from the ready position.
"Well, one of us has to go first." Dooku said, earning a slight shrug from Obi-Wan.
"Go ahead, then."
Dooku sighed, obviously seeing this was just heading towards an endless stand-off. "What is the cause of this hesitancy from you?"
"I am a Jedi, and I use Soresu. I'm [i]supposed to be hesitant."
"Is that so? I had thought that you practiced Ataru. You certainly didn't look like you were using Soresu when we fought before."
"Dooku, I was more than slightly displeased with you when we fought before. I was not as inclined to be patient and defensive."
"What you mean to say is that you lost your temper." Dooku responded, raising an eyebrow.
"That is not..." Obi-Wan started to protest, then decided it really wasn't worth denying. "Fine. Yes."
The Sith seemed amused. "I can understand your disdain for the dark side now, you know. If you fight like that when you're angry, you would make a terrible Sith."
"Thank you for that assessment, Dooku. I would never have guessed." Obi-Wan responded, unable to help but roll his eyes slightly. "I thought I was perfectly suited for it otherwise."
"I'm sorry, but it simply isn't for you." Dooku continued lightly. "Though we appreciate your interest."
The Knight just shook his head, trying not laugh. "Are we going to bother to actually sparring, or are we going to simply talk each other into submission?"
"With the two of us? Quite possibly the latter." Dooku responded, looking as though he was seriously considering the question. "Though we could do that without the lightsabres."
"Yes, and I rather like the lightsabres." Obi-Wan agreed. "So we may as well use them."[/i]
"I suppose, though I must admit Obi-Wan, you would be the last person I ever expected to fight dirty." Dooku commented, his words seeming a bit miffed though his tone was amused. "You seem to be the perfect Jedi in so many ways, and yet you quite obviously don't hold much to the honorable code of swordsmanship."
"And hence why I am still alive." Obi-Wan responded, rather matter of factly. "Though a nice concept in theory, and one I do like to adhere to if possible, 'honorable swordsmanship' is not always effective in a real fight."
"I suppose." Dooku repeated, though he didn't sound convinced as his opened the control panel of his lightsabre to inspect the damage. "Though if you can't win fighting honorably, then perhaps the solution is simply to develop your skills farther."
"Oh yes, because there's always time for that. I had a considerable great deal of time to plan and train for facing a Sith on Naboo, after all." Obi-Wan said, only barely refraining from rolling his eyes. "I told him, 'Wait a moment; I'm not suited to fight you yet, and I wouldn't want to use underhanded tactics to defeat you.'"
"Alright, perhaps there are some exceptions." Dooku conceded, sighing.
I just love Obi-Wan's humor, and he and Dooku together are priceless.
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http://boards.theforce.net/fan_fiction_resource/b10304/25405090/p3/?52 Prolific Author thread: list & links there. 2008: Winner: Best Canon/Best Epic. Honored by 13 noms/8 qualifieds in '08, 19 noms & 2? qualifieds in '07. Thank you!
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earlybird-obi-wan
Registered:
Aug '06
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Date Posted:
7/3/07 10:13pm
Subject:
RE: Deceptions -- (AU, Epic -- Obi, Dooku, Sidious, and more) -- Ch8 7/04
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