Saga LEGACY OF THE SITH #1

STARWARS
LEGACY OF THE SITH
PART TWO




13/02/08


The small starship engaged its cloaking device almost instantly the moment it emerged from hyperspace well inside the Coruscant system, and continued on sublight toward the capital world. The ship resembled a long wedge with a large sphere mounted onto its rear, and twin side mounted crimped wings. The pilot had received an entry code that would clear him through the orbital security grid and allow him to land at any spaceport on the planet. However, secrecy was of paramount importance, even at this stage in their plans.

The ship moved silently on, finally descending into an area of Coruscant known as ?The Works.? From his vantage point in cockpit of the sleek vessel, the pilot now studied the distant building growing steadily larger through the forward viewport.
Central to a complex of other structures, the building was more than three centuries old and going to ruin. The superstructure was topped with a rounded summit and supported by massive fins. The buildings four faces were adorned with antiquated gear-toothed docking gates spaced at regular intervals. Many of the windows were broken, their ledges crumbling due to the acid rain that frequently fell in the sector.

Approaching the structure now, the pilot directed his craft though one of its gates and into a cavernous room. Unlike the rest of the floors in this building and others round about, the floor that served as a landing area gleamed, polished daily by custodial droids. The engines shut down with a gentle whine and a few moments later an aft hatchway opened, metal stairs lowered, and a black clad figure emerged into dim light.

?What news do you bring Lord Maul?? A rasping voice asked from the darkness. The other drew back his hood, exposing a hairless scull, studded with short hooked horns.
His red and black tattooed face lowered in shame. Darth Maul took a deep breath and let it out slowly. ?The Jedi have escaped me my lord.? ?Escaped?? The other spoke the word in a low hiss. ?My ship is faster, I jumped ahead of them. I intend to be waiting when they arrive here-? Darth Sidious moved out from under the shadows toward his apprentice, the hood of his cowl was raised over his lined face, the hem of his robe trailing on the gleaming floor. ?Failure must be punished. Lessens must be learned.? Sidious removed his hands from the ample sleeves of his robes coming to a halt a few feet away. ?Give me your lightsaber.? Darth maul unhooked the weapon from his belt and quickly handed it to his master. ?Stretch out your arm.? Again Darth Maul complied without the slightest hint of hesitation. Darth Sidious flicked on the activation stud, igniting one of the shafts of pure energy. The younger Sith lowered himself to one knee bracing himself for what he knew must come next. But even now, on the cusp of utter pain and humiliation, Darth Maul?s only thoughts were of how he would better serve his master in the future. How he would learn from his mistakes, and how he would use his new pain and anger against the Jedi, the ultimate cause of all his suffering.

Darth maul raised his eyes toward the hypnotic intensity of the burning magenta blade poised in striking position above him and he found his thoughts drifting back to his early childhood?

Darth Maul found himself standing in a brightly lit room inside the Jedi Temple with twenty other younglings, children only four of five years old. Battling training droids with miniature lightsabers. Being an Iridonian child, at this stage in his life Maul had not yet developed his vestigial horns, and since the Jedi had taken him from his home world at birth, his family had never had the chance to mark his face with the tattoos of their clan. ?Don?t think, feel,? Master Yoda had said time and time again during the sessions. ?Stretch out with your feelings? feel the Force, help you it will.?

Maul remembered stretching out, grasping the Force, and channelling it through his arms to block an incoming energy bolt. Then the joy brought distraction, and the

 

STARWARS
PART III
LEGACY OF THE SITH


28/02/08


The body of Qui-Gon Jinn lay upon a burning funeral pyre, the flames consuming all.
A small group encircled him. Among them, Queen Amidala of the Naboo, and her Governor Sio Bibble. Boss Nass and his general Jar Jar Binks, Obi-Wan Kenobi and his Padawan Anakin Skywalker. Others included a selection of the Queens handmaidens, Jedi Knights, Captain Panaka, and the recently elected Supreme Chancellor of the Republic, Palpatine.

Off one side, Mace Windu turned to speak with Yoda ?There is no doubt. The mysterious warrior was a Sith.? Master Yoda huffed his approval. ?Always two there are. No more, no less. A master and an apprentice.? Mace turned back to the gathering, his eyes fixed on Dooku, Qui-Gon?s former master, whose head was bowed in sadness. ?But which was destroyed, the master, or the apprentice??

The following day there was a grand parade to celebrate the victory over the Trade Federation and to publically recognize a new alliance between the Gungan people and the Naboo. Crowds lined the streets as a procession of Gungan warriors marched though the capital. Everyone was there, with the exception of one.
Moving though the deserted back streets of theed, the sounds of the nearby celebrations playing nearby, Dooku, his brown cowl raised high over his proud features, approached a larger hanger complex and slipped inside. A handful of Naboo ships were grouped inside, their gleaming noses pointing toward a large opening in the north wall. On the far side of the hanger sat a uniquely different type of craft, as far removed from Naboo aesthetic as one could get. Shovel nosed, and angular, its wings were canted inward in a design the Jedi master had not encountered before.

The ship had been impounded by Spaceport officials and was awaiting secure pickup and transport back to Coruscant. There it would be studied meticulously by the Republics best technicians and droid mechanics. But not before Jedi Master would have first crack at it. Approaching the sealed aft hatchway, Dooku waved a hand across the hold, using the force to unlock its security mechanisms from the inside.
Moments later he was inside the ships cockpit, combing the interior for any clues to its former owners base of operations. A red light winked at him at of the corner of his eye. Turning around in the pilots seat, Dooku noted that the light indicated a stored message in the ships databanks. Pressing the button, he was greeted with a six inch holographic representation of a humanoid cloaked in a Jedi-like robe. The figures tiny face, what little could be seen under the hood, was grim and unforgiving. When he spoke his voice was a harsh rasp, his tone that of one accustomed to instant obedience. ?Lord Maul, I have lost communications with the Naboo invasion force. Viceroy Gunray has failed to report.? The other snarled. ?I am anxious to hear your assessment of the situation. For both your sakes, I hope it is not bad news.? The figure waved a hand at something off camera and the image dissolved into nothingness.

Dooku stroked this neatly trimmed beard, thinking. Then, after about five minutes, Dooku moved back to the dashboard, his long fingers moving swiftly to re-established a return connection with the host signal. Clearing his throat, Dooku began the recording: ?To the one who dares to call himself Sith. We both know that any attempt at triangulating a tacking signal will be a futile waste of time and resources. Therefore I will use this opportunity to present my case to you.? Dooku paused, choosing his next words carefully.

?I would imagine that by now you are aware that your apprentice is dead.
I can certainly understand the anger and resentment you must be feeling at this time, for I too feel it over the loss of my own, Qui-Gon Jinn. However, larger issues are at stake, and one must concede personal feeling and matters of moral justification. To that end I wish to arrange a meeting, this will be a private arrangement, and the Jedi will not be made aware that such a gathe