Darkness surrounded me from all sides. I breathed heavily, using the last remnants of air, and tried to think frantically... Yes, we got thoroughly beaten today. I definitely felt the fading of Theodor Loy's aura. The man was most likely dead. Before that, there was some kind of explosion... Did the Sith blow him up? Or did Theodor use something like a last resort? But that didn't matter now... How did I survive? Mostly due to speed, agility, and evasion skills. The man we met here moved very fast. To draw an analogy, he was only slightly faster than what I saw from Jonal Ezar. And I can sometimes track and predict his movements. The problem was the speed of my body.
The eternal problem when you possess sufficient sensory perception but a body that cannot realize it. Although this fight taught me a lot. Fighting such a powerful enemy, I didn't stop learning. And this almost cost me my life... However, perhaps it was worth it. Remember that I am currently underground... A mountain is almost pressing down on me. And I have no idea how to get out yet? If I hadn't stopped melting the rocks with my lightsaber, I would have been completely crushed. The decision on how to escape the burial came to me at the last moment. I decided to bet everything on it... And I didn't lose.
But what now? I survived, what should I do next? How do I get out? Move everything with telekinesis? But how? This is literally almost a whole mountain! No matter how much I tried to convince myself about the absence of weight, there are still limits to what's possible. No... The only way is to melt a path out with my lightsabers. Risking burning my clothes or getting badly burned... However, how much worse could it get? Yes, I dodged almost all of the Sith's attacks, but I was hit by the saber a few times. Scratches will definitely appear on some parts of my body... It might seem like a little? But in reality, these scratches... If they were even a couple of centimeters deeper, they could have been fatal.
A lightsaber is not a toy... And in my survival, I must thank my foresight, which, after all, helped me. As well as agility and speed. My focus on the Ataru combat form... Also played a role... After all, those who advised me turned out to be right. I sighed... Now I need to try to get out of the current situation. I took the saber in my right hand, the left blade remained in its sheath. Because I directed my left hand towards the light blade of my right hand, or rather, closer to the point where the blade was emitted. The saber can melt this mountain rock, and I intended to melt it. However, too high a temperature could harm me...
Tutaminis and simultaneous activation of the lightsaber. I began to absorb energy from the molten rock and tried to move the saber, creating a kind of tunnel. There wasn't much air left, judging by the sensations. Therefore, I took out an air filter that could transform almost any gas mixture into what was needed for breathing and continued the procedure, praying to everyone I knew that physics wouldn't kick in and block my passage with new rock. However, the principle of an arch worked here – the passage was so narrow that the peculiar vaults held the mountain... Having made a sufficient hole, about half my height and the full length of the blade, I moved forward.
It became more spacious... Constant Tutaminis was exhausting, but I didn't give up and kept supporting it, drawing warmth from the molten rock. Plus, I tried to transform the energy absorbed by the Force back into the Force... The Force, after all, is just energy. And it worked... I didn't give up and kept crawling and moving the blade until, finally, I felt that the very tip of the blade had come out... A real sign of exit! I immediately stopped and closed my eyes. Behind me were about fifteen meters of path traveled, and what was ahead? I didn't feel any auras of the gifted or ungifted. No droids, which I had learned to distinguish, nothing. Just a considerably reduced room, piled with stones, apparently, still remnants of scrolls, the legacy of the Cai Kingdom.
I trusted my sensory perception, and during meditation. Truly hiding from my senses in such a state would probably only be possible for real monsters of the Force... For example, I felt the Sith almost immediately after entering the library, and before that, I had a bad premonition. Nodding to my thoughts, I returned to the ungrateful task – getting out of the current situation, which reminded me of a complete mess. Being buried alive in a mountain – I hadn't experienced that yet. But on the other hand, what doesn't kill us makes us stronger. I understood a lot in this battle, including the aspect of body enhancement, as well as movements. After all, I watched my opponent too carefully.
It's just a shame that the realization came to me after the fight, and not, like many shonen heroes, during it, which helps them "level up" and get plot conveniences. I, alas, was not like that. First, I got beaten to a pulp, and only now did I understand what needed to be done... To avoid getting beaten again. Finally, the path to freedom was obtained... I took off the filter and deactivated my lightsaber. The room was destroyed... Some scrolls lay there, some burned, some torn, the shelves where they were stored were destroyed. I breathed heavily after everything I had experienced... Yes, I managed to survive... Why? Because even in such a state, I moved forward.
Alright... What about getting out of here? I looked at the exit... It was blocked...
"Fuck!" I exclaimed. "I just got out from under a blockage!" I looked at the tunnel I had made, and then something cold fell on my head. What? I looked up. "Snow?!" But how?
From above, from the mountain peaks, a lot of snow was falling... Above was a yellowed sky... That is, the explosion managed to destroy the "roof" of this object? The mountain literally fell on me! And all these blockages... Some scrolls were lucky enough to survive. I should, by the way, figure out if there's anything useful among them. I closed my eyes, concentrated, and directed the Force towards the scrolls... Only two scrolls seemed valuable in my perception. I pulled both scrolls to me... One was a classic set of katas for training. It also showed with arrows how to direct the Force through the body during movement, and the second again contained Matukai hieroglyphs... Which I couldn't decipher because I didn't know the language. And I couldn't find this language in the Galactic language database. The isolationist policy of the Cai Kingdom, damn it. Which means... I need a Matukai again. Putting the scrolls in my bags, I examined the damage to my clothes. Damn... Burn marks, some places torn, especially the area of the heart, lungs. He almost killed me with Shiako a couple of times...
And I need to return to the "Star Path" and check my wounds... There's a scratch on my left cheek, if not a scar, it will definitely stay with me for life. Exactly! "Star Path"! I activated my datapad and tried to contact VV... The connection... Worked, the droid's hologram appeared before me.
"Master!" the droid's trill sounded. "You're alive!"
"That's right, VV," I sighed heavily.
"For some time, your vital signs were approaching critical, but true to your orders, I didn't rush back to your Order. True to your order, I took the ship off the planet. The enemy left it in a hurry... Besides, my sensors detected two ships taking off. The first one had a slow hyperdrive. And its computer took about five minutes to calculate the hyperspace jump trajectory."
This is indeed the ship from the hangar. Considering that I only felt Theodor's death... Sheydjen... So he survived. All the better. I need a Matukai to decipher the hieroglyphs. I put a tracking program on his ship while I was rummaging through the electronics. So it won't be difficult to track him. In addition, I will need help to destroy this Sith scum.
"Furthermore," the droid continued, "you connected me to the Temple database." I did, VV, I sometimes cleared the memory of certain moments, so, without hesitation, I connected him to the Temple database, logging in with my credentials. "You have been assigned the status of deceased," the droid reported. "Your account has been deleted."
"What, excuse me?" I asked. "But how did they find out about what happened, and so quickly?! And so quickly, without understanding, they did all this?"
I sat down on a stone and propped my head with my hands...
"VV," I addressed the droid. "Bring the ship to my location. There is now... a new gorge, we've slightly adjusted the geography of this Kingdom."
"I'll be there in five minutes," the droid reported, disconnecting the call.
Apparently, the news of my death was brought by a Sith agent. The one who works for him from the Order. And how quickly they did everything... Ha... Shadows and Archaeologists are Sith targets! He has enough operational information about the actions of the Jedi he's interested in. And almost at the highest level. He knows, apparently, the names, the essence of the missions of the Shadows. He was surprised that I appeared before him here... Thought I would stay on Alderaan? Yes... Let's work backward. Who knew that I was on Alderaan on a mission and stayed there afterwards? Jorus, to whom I revealed myself, and Oderis, who works for House Antilles... But both Jorus and Oderis definitely don't have access to this information, which implies knowledge of the Shadow missions! And... Who else?
"Damn it," I cursed, "I don't like this. Not at all, damn it, I don't like it. So, if we separate everything... Is the traitor working for the Sith Jonal Ezar?" I suspected him, but considered him an unlikely candidate, mainly due to his fanaticism in his beliefs and contempt for other gifted individuals. "May a whole rancor fuck a Hutt, Master of the High Council, responsible for the Shadows! And no one else comes to mind! If the Archaeologists could be controlled by many. There wasn't a specific leader for the Archaeologists, unless they could report to the Council of First Knowledge in some cases, or to one of the Masters, again, in some cases."
Archaeologists were primarily Jedi Researchers. They were rarely given boundaries for their research. Unless, sometimes, Shadows were sent if such a researcher had become too saturated with the dark side... Speaking of which. I felt some faint aura directly beneath me. Residual... The ship had already appeared on the horizon, I heard the hum of my ship's engines, but before that... I jumped back and, with a wave of my hand, began to throw aside the stones that separated me and the faint sensation of the Dark Side of the Force. Finally, I finished, and VV flew up and began to keep the "Star Path" in the air, because there was unfortunately no flat surface here. I jumped down to the cleared area and looked closely... It's... I pulled an element towards me with my hand that was emitting faint emanations of the dark side. Then... I closed my eyes and recalled... My lightsaber movement when I even touched his body a little! Yes, it happened then! I significantly damaged his clothes then, and it's a sign, something like a miniature coat of arms. Slightly radiating Darkness! This bastard is so full of arrogance from realizing his strength that he wears something like this? But what attracted me most was not the sign itself, nor the realization that I had managed something in the battle with the Sith.
What attracted me was the symbol in the shape of a triangle with a star in the middle of this triangle. It looks like a company emblem... Did this company create clothes? The apparel was open, and I jumped into my ship, quickly returned to the cockpit. VV almost knocked me off my feet, he was so glad to see me alive...
"Let's get out of here, VV, I didn't like resting here," I sat in the pilot's seat and directed the ship upwards, out of the atmosphere, and then... Where should I go? I need to think...
The Order already considered me dead. A possible traitor – Jonal Ezar. My actions? I can go straight to Coruscant and challenge him, or try to expose him... But what's the proof? Zero point zero... Only indirect guesses. Although it will be difficult for Jonal to get away with everything, he will likely defend his freedom. In addition, everyone knows his fanaticism in destroying any gifted individuals who go against the Jedi. And here I am, all beautiful, accusing him of treason? And what will happen to me? What are the plans of Jonal the traitor, or some other high-ranking Jedi traitor? The Sith spoke of plans for me, but this is an unknown variable to rely on. Any other options? Well... Since I'm dead, I could find a planet to live on, buy a couple of Twi'lek slaves on Ryloth and live happily with a harem, as an outcast... Although, wait. Where did this thought come from? Get out of my head. I'm no longer the same Light who could be tempted by such an existence! Option number three – try to expose this Sith to the Galaxy. Publicly denounce him... But... Do I know anything about him?
I'm dead, I don't have access to the archives and databases of the Shadows. And the information in them wasn't super reliable. I remember I even had to turn to the Bothans. Or is it because Jonal deliberately cut part of the database because he's a traitor? He could have... However... I spun the symbol in front of me.
"Where are we flying, master?"
"Nowhere yet," I held the symbol up to the datapad's camera and took a picture of it. "Come on, let's play Sherlock Holmes. Mr. Holmes, what do you think of the symbol depicted here?" I uploaded the photo to a Google Images analog on the HoloNet. It didn't catch much here, but it was enough for me. After a couple of seconds, I saw the result. "Aha. The emblem of the company 'Taar Investments'," I said. "What kind of company is it?"
Typing its name into the search engine, I began to read about it. It was founded seven hundred years ago in Hutt Space, on Nal Hutta. However, it was a quite respectable firm, engaged in light transport in the Outer Rim. Not poor, but not super-rich either... So... The executive director was Rosamunda Atkari... A red-haired, beautiful woman with regular features... Model appearance, I would say. Hmm... Typing her name into the search, I began to study the latest news related to her. What is her connection to that Sith? Is there any, maybe he's not connected to her? The structure of the firm aroused curiosity. It listed a General Director and an Executive Director. Moreover, according to the public charter, the owner of Taar Investments was the General Director. But there was no data about his name and surname! In all documents, he was listed simply as "General Director of Taar Investments." And I couldn't find his name even in the Republic entrepreneur registry.
Which is very strange. Firstly, he, as the owner, was registered... Wait... He indicated the name "General Director." Very, damn it, ingenious, he literally indicated his position as his name. But this indicates that either this General Director is a super-galactic level troll, or he doesn't want to reveal his real name. And most likely the latter, not the former. There is no data about his place of residence. More precisely, the registration data indicated the address of the head office on Nal Hutta. This, by the way, slightly violated the laws of the Republic. There must be a real place of residence, but there isn't. Which means registration should have been refused. But he most likely influenced the employee registering him with Suggestion. Or bribed, or blackmailed. In short, there were options.
Well... I need to check this loophole... He was probably proud of his suit, just as I was proud of mine, the one that that bitch of a dog tore to shreds. But there was something else... He touched me deeply with this fight... I trained so much like crazy, since birth. I went through so much... And I lost, even in alliance with two gifted individuals?! My pride was trampled... Yes, I understood that I wasn't the biggest toad in the Galaxy... But... Nothing motivates you to put evil in your collar like the proximity of death at the hand of that very evil... Therefore, I felt it... I wanted... I want to defeat him. And for this, I need to find out who he is and where he lives. Only after I understand who I'm dealing with will I be able to understand how to defeat him. Well... The goal is clear, now I need to form tasks in the context of its execution. Through whom should I reach the Sith? Only the thread of the Executive Director came to mind. Rosamunda Atkari... I am currently deprived of access to Jedi databases, and I don't want to fly to the Bothans either... I could be detected. What should I do? Exactly... I can act classically, many companies publicize their actions online to keep competitors, partners, and employees informed.
I copied the executive director's name and pasted it into the search on a news aggregator. This is essentially a site that can pull news from any news site in the Galaxy by topic. Here it is... A news item published three days ago on the Nal Hutta news site, where the firm was registered, in the finance section, stated that Rosamunda Atkari decided to buy new ships to escort the firm's transports, due to increased pirate attacks in the Outer Rim, where the firm operated. And she headed to Kuat. I suspect she is there right now. And I need to head there. Purchase negotiations can often take weeks. Especially since she flew to Kuat, which means she wants to buy something expensive... And serious.
"VV, plot a course to Kuat," I said. "How long does it take to fly there? Four days? By the way, I should install a more powerful hyperdrive, but unfortunately, not in the near future."
Kuat... What is this world known for? Naturally, for its giant orbital shipyards that surround the planet. And also for dreadnoughts, dreadnoughts, terrifying ships several kilometers long. Currently, there is a dreadnought, or a dreadnought, as you prefer, of the "Procurator" class, and if translated, it sounds like "Manager." Although it sounds similar to "prosecutor," which sounds much more menacing. This is a huge ship, two and a half kilometers long, with the familiar triangular shape for a Star Wars fan. The dreadnought was located much higher than the famous Kuat shipyards. Seeing this massive behemoth, any sentient being would understand that it's better not to show off at all, no matter who you are. And I didn't show off. Although I did pull off some trick, playing with the transponder and changing the ship's name. After all, I wasn't completely stupid, and when I had resources and access to Republic databases, as a Jedi Shadow, I created a couple of false identities when I was on Alderaan. Just in case... And today, that "just in case" arrived.
"Kuat planet control – to 'Star Trilistnik', report the purpose of arrival in the system," a serious male voice was heard. What's interesting is that they called me from the superstructure located on the shipyards. Apparently, they placed administration and control right in the ring.
"'Star Trilistnik' – to control," I replied to the man. "My name is Elrond Smith, I've arrived to look at hyperdrives, I'm thinking of changing it on my ship."
"Control – to 'Star Trilistnik'. Do you intend to visit only the shipyards?" the man asked.
"Yes," I confirmed. Shipyards are not just places for building ships. This ring is a full-fledged station with hotels, bars, clubs, and shops. And even residential sectors where the shipyard workers lived. "I have no intention of visiting the planet," and Rosamunda Atkari had settled in one of the hotels in the ring.
"Your hangar is number three hundred and twenty-nine, we have sent you a landing vector. I wish you a pleasant and productive time on Kuat."
"Thank you," I entered the sent vector into the computer and began to approach the station, and also prepared myself. Elrond Smith's appearance suggested short hair and blue eyes. His face was much less pretty. Therefore, I did a little makeup before leaving hyperspace so that my face matched the databases where I had entered it. Otherwise, if instead of a reasonable person with blue eyes and short hair, a purple-eyed, pretty boy emerges – it's strange at a minimum. And at a maximum, it's worth detaining and interrogating. I wasn't going to risk that, having disguised myself completely. Except for my favorite suit, I put it on, having restored it to a decent appearance beforehand. And for the ambiance – a blaster, supposedly for self-defense. Although I knew how to use it and shot perfectly, thanks to the Force. Finally, I managed to get my ship into the hangar, which was located directly behind the shipyards. I flew right over a huge transport ship that was being repaired.
And in the hangar, I was met by those I expected – the border service, who decided to check me and my ship. Naturally, I was warned not to pull any tricks, they grimaced at the presence of rockets and seismic charges on the ship... Well, what can I do? I'm just a sentient being, paving my way in this Galaxy. And I need to know how to pleasantly, in a figurative sense, surprise everyone who covets my hypothetical riches. The Captain also kept glancing at the stygium panels of the ship for a long time. He probably wants one for himself. But, one way or another, I managed to pass the control, having slightly influenced the Captain with the Force Suggestion technique, because he was annoying, and immediately began to study my target. I figured out where Rosamunda had stopped after about two hours. What did I do for this? At first, I wanted to hack into Kuat's network, but then I realized that I could be quickly kicked out. This is the Core Worlds, not the Outer Rim. Kuat's defense system could be much stronger than VV's hacking system. And I didn't want to expose myself at such a moment.
So I just made a list of all possible hotels where she could stay. On Kuat, there was a whole sector for clients. In the center of which were richer hotels, and on the periphery, poorer ones. In general, many Kuatians preferred to live on an orbital station, so restaurants, hotels, amusement parks, and residential modules were located here. And it was impressive, over so many years of the ring's existence, they had built so much. But I was interested in the hotel zone, one of the most prestigious, where clients with fatter wallets ended up. That's exactly where I headed, starting simply and without any fuss, hitting the reception staff with the Force Suggestion technique. The understanding that you are protected better than anyone, and on Kuat, such an opinion existed, because a dreadnought a couple of kilometers long hangs in orbit, and patrols of the security service are encountered here and there on the ring – made the sentients a little slack. And the point is that you can't put a Force-sensitive or a strong-willed sentient on every corner, so my tricks with simple questions about Rosamunda Atkari, which the interrogated person immediately forgot after giving me the relevant information, bore fruit by the tenth hotel I studied. I had no time, so I acted with such impudence. If I had time, I would definitely have stayed at the hotel and properly integrated into society. But my task required something else.
The decoration in the hotels was astounding. From the most top-notch modern to that which resembled the style of aristocratic Europe of the eighteenth century. But everything, without exception, sparkled. So… My target was staying at the hotel "Star of Kuat," which was designed in a modern style. The lobby was huge, with a lot of modern-looking armchairs and sofas. Rich people bustled back and forth; from some, the gleam of wealth was so powerful that it was even slightly irritating. Room three hundred and three, where Rosamunda was staying, was on the third floor. And, of course, the hotel was guarded. However, it was not designed for a Force-sensitive of at least above-average qualification to penetrate. And I was learning to penetrate and kept myself in relative tone. Force Concealment, a slight distraction of attention… But first… I patted my pockets. Strange… Before going to Rosamunda, through the hotels, I asked myself: how will I conduct the interrogation if, for example, Miss Atkari turns out to be ideological? They wouldn't have hired a mere whore for show for her position, which means she has a strong will, strong enough. And breaking such people with Force Suggestion is a thankless task; you can completely break a sentient's mind, turning them into a vegetable. And I didn't want such a fate…
Rosamunda was innocent to me, even if she supported the enemy. But what then? Torture is not an option, nor is constant pressure through interrogations. There isn't much time; soon the enemy will find out that I survived too, or try to get to Sheygen. I couldn't turn to the Order, nor could I use my authority to enlist the meager forces of the Justice Corps. This means I could only count on myself and on limited time. Therefore, having learned Rosamunda's more precise schedule, I immediately ran to her room. She wasn't there right now, and I managed to get to the third floor, where, causing a small, short circuit, I opened the door to her room and immediately closed it. I wasn't in a hurry to turn on the light… But even with the light off, I could fully examine the room, which, I won't hide, was excellent. A huge room, about thirty square meters, contained a stylized aquarium with various fish, a holoprojector, a panoramic window overlooking an artificial park, a huge, double bed, a desk, which I immediately studied, although I couldn't break the security and didn't dare to mess with it seriously, as there was a high chance of raising an alarm. Through the wall was a bathroom, or rather, a jacuzzi, luxurious… It's not forbidden to live richly, though – what am I talking about? I myself am not filled with asceticism, even after becoming a Jedi Knight. And I will never understand those who, with an inspired face, preached that we, Jedi, should be ascetics.
No… We must understand the sentients we want to protect. And how can we understand them if we deny ourselves what others do not deny themselves? How can an ascetic Jedi understand a sentient whose house was destroyed by a dreadnought's shot, if he himself practically has no house? Or rather, the Temple is a home. But it's too small and somewhat exaggerated. Therefore, I was sincerely against those parables that Jonal Ezar spun about deprivations for the common good. The good in the understanding of an ascetic and in the understanding of an ordinary sentient are completely different things. I sat on the bed, which was to the right of the sliding door, and entered a light meditation. The battle with the Sith taught me a lot, including that I noticed a qualitative improvement not only in Force augmentation but also in sensory perception. In general, the logic of the Force is such that through a thrown challenge, you become stronger. I noted this when I exhausted myself with training. It's like with muscles – always give a little more load than last time. And I did just that, essentially jumping to an opponent of incredible level. Now I felt that I still couldn't defeat him, or rather, I would assess our chances as forty to sixty, in his favor… I conducted such an analysis during meditation on my ship, in an attempt to study the experience of fighting with the Sith. This means I will have to resort to trickery; in the future, Rosamunda might give me a hint.
Along the corridor, which I clearly felt through the wall – sentients were walking, and finally, the door to the room opened. And a female figure entered it. I was ready to attack her and the guards at any moment, as soon as the door closed behind them.
"Leave me alone," the figure commanded imperiously.
"Yes, Mistress," a female voice was heard. The door closed behind the first figure, and the woman clapped her hands, turning on the light. I acted quickly, lifting her telekinetically above the ground. She shrieked, but it was too late. I muffled her scream with the Force Technique, essentially a modification of Distraction. Alas, I hadn't mastered it enough to completely cut off sounds. This was a Force Technique, one of those I was learning on Alderaan, and for now, I had only reached the point where I could completely isolate a room so that sounds from it wouldn't penetrate outside. However, the walls here are thick; the clients are elite, after all. So money can sometimes play a cruel trick. And not everyone activates the security system in their room, because they fear for their secrets, especially the rich. And Rosamunda was the same…
"Good evening, Miss Rosamunda Atkari," I greeted the woman. Due to the hood, she couldn't see my face, hovering a meter above the ground.
"Who are you? What do you want?! Put me down, damn it! Bantha poodoo!"
"Well, wow, you know some expressions," I carefully placed her on the floor, which here was represented by a green, velvety carpet.
"What do you want from me? Are you Force-sensitive? How dare you! I'm going to complain! Salara!" she exclaimed. "HERE! I'm being attacked…"
"No matter how hard you try, Miss Salara won't hear you," I chuckled, watching the woman's angry face. Oh, she was truly beautiful. Tall, slender, in a light dress that accentuated all her virtues. Blue eyes and light hair, or is it brown? I never knew the difference. I can distinguish a blonde from a brunette, but no more. Her rather large breasts heaved with anger and drew attention. "I used a Technique. And for now, it's just you and me…"
Wow, the woman pulled out a blaster hidden under her dress, but I instantly extended my hand forward and pulled the blaster from her palm, then she immediately ducked and pulled out a second, small blaster hidden near her left shoe. This time she managed to shoot, however, I raised my left hand and used Tutaminis. The energy of the shot was absorbed by me. While she looked at the vanished blaster shot in my hand in shock, like a child at a magician's tricks, honestly, I snatched the second blaster from her hand and threw it aside.
"Why complicate things so much?" I spread my hands with a smile, looking at the woman. "Do you, citizen, enjoy my company? I can see from your eyes that you don't like me. So let's come to an agreement. I don't need your life or your money. All I need is a name. The name of the one who wields the Force, a lightsaber, and wears this symbol. And also his location. I assume this is your General Director? And you know him."
I carefully levitated the symbol, which I managed to cut from the Sith's clothing, into the woman's hands and watched as shock and disbelief reflected on her face.
"Well?" I looked at her expectantly. "You'll tell me," with each word, I began to press on her with the Force, "who he is and where he is now?"
"You're a Jedi, aren't you?" the woman asked.
"Does it matter?" I tilted my head slightly, trying to keep most of my face hidden by the hood. "Let's just say I'm a simple Force-sensitive, making my way in the galaxy in these difficult times. I had the… displeasure, let's say, of meeting this sentient not long ago. And I want to continue… our acquaintance."
I really want to… I feel, it's more a feeling of the Force, that I'm doing the right thing. The trial, the second battle, in which I will fight him again – will make me stronger. This is not just revenge for a sentient I liked as a person. Namely – Theodor Loy. It is also personal… A challenge that was thrown at me. A challenge to my years of training.
"So?"
"I'll never tell," the woman said. "He spoke of you. You are the Shadow, a secret unit of Jedi who hunt those like him. But," she looked at me defiantly, "I will not betray my beloved, even at the cost of my life."
"You are a naive woman if you think I need to take your life or torture you to achieve my goal. Although it may sound hypocritical, I am a humane sentient. My fellow Shadows are not characterized by such… characteristics. To torture you? To break you? To obtain information at any cost? And then kill you? This is not the path of a Jedi. Although I won't hide it, my method will also be unpleasant. And yet, I want to warn you," I added coldness to my voice, "tell me nicely."
"Go to hell!" she exclaimed. "SALARA! Help!" she rushed to the door and immediately stumbled in the air; I stopped her with telekinesis, slamming her to the floor.
"You only ruined your makeup, or applied a new one, not particularly suitable for your beautiful face," I chuckled. "Since you don't want to do it nicely – so be it. The Force sees, I tried. I won't kill you," I approached her, holding the furiously glaring woman telekinetically, "nor will I torture you. And I won't break you either. You are innocent and do not understand what kind of monster you are guarding. I've seen enough Dark Force-sensitives. And what I felt from him – it doesn't even come close to those I've seen before. It's a disgusting feeling. You should be grateful that you are not Force-sensitive. Well, whatever," I took out an injection from my pouch. "What you see… The name won't tell you anything, but I'll tell you a little about the properties of this substance. But first, a little excursion into my abilities. I am a Jedi," I crouched down in front of her. "And I really don't want to harm you, as an innocent. Nor your mind. But it hides important information, what to do? Jedi cannot force a strong mind to do something without causing harm. But I have invented an interesting method. Alcohol… Or intoxication."
Horror reflected in the woman's eyes.
"You are not a Matukai, nor are you Force-sensitive, to have resistance to various substances. This means… injecting a little light drug. You will become addicted to this dose, but to avoid ruining your life – I will erase the knowledge of your mind having experienced such a state from its memory. Because during intoxication, you will become surprisingly compliant and talkative. But you can still tell me, answer my questions."
"I will endure your abuse, Jedi! You can inject me with all the spice and death-blooms!"
"Ugh, how can you," I said, offended. "I wouldn't call this substance something that can be ranked with spice or death-blooms. I told you – a light drug, a psychotropic. You'll get a little high, and tomorrow morning – take a cold shower, and your whole being will forget everything, as will your mind. So," I brought the injection to her arm with telekinesis. "Where do I need to aim to hit the right vessel? Just kidding… I've studied the anatomy of many species. I'll find where your vein is… How was it? A well-fixed patient under anesthesia doesn't need it. You can't escape my telekinesis."
"Let go!" she raged.
"It's your own fault," the injection hit the vein in her arm precisely, administering the drug. In another five minutes, her tongue will be like a mop. I can press her with the Force and she'll tell me the passwords to the company's bank account. However, the latter interested me little. I watched as the sentient expression in the woman's eyes, filled with rage and anger, changed to bliss. "So, I repeat my question. Who is the person who wears this symbol," the symbol reappeared before her eyes. "Is he your General Director?"
"D… Dha… Ha-ha-ha-ha," the woman laughed. Well, she's never used drugs before. That's why such a reaction. I should have taken a smaller dose; she's really spaced out. Okay, I'm not a doctor, of course, but what about vital signs? The guard's scanner might show that she's high or drunk. Where did I get this substance? Bought it at a pharmacy. In a smaller dose – it's used as a painkiller. I think I should reduce the dose for interrogations, and ideally – calculate it based on the sentient's parameters. Now she got only three cubes.
"Then who is he? What's his name? How to find him?!"
"Mas… Master? Beloved… Master…" she looked at me, and I pressed her with the Force, forcing her to answer. "Set…"
"What?"
"Set Hart," she said, and my body was overcome with a shiver. Was it Set Hart? The one who, a thousand years ago, almost became a new apprentice to Darth Zannah, the apprentice of Darth Bane himself? I recalled everything I knew about him. He was a padawan of Master Obba. Set encountered Darth Zannah, and instead of killing him, she offered him to become her apprentice. Set was a smart Jedi and assumed that Bane had obtained the secret of eternal life through Andeddu's Holocron. Zannah wanted to kill Bane, and while she was implementing the plan, Set managed to find the Holocron and stole it… In the end, he disappeared. But Darth Andeddu's Holocron… These are the same knowledge that I saw through the manifestation of Darth Arrogant, a Sith from Vitiate's time. Mind transfer… Set, according to the information, began to create his clones, and when he reached thirty years of age in one body – he transferred to the next. Set disappeared from history. No one knew if he was alive. And now I've encountered him. The one who has been collecting knowledge about all Force-sensitives in the galaxy for a millennium. Damn it, I spat, this is becoming incredibly, mortally dangerous!
"Set Hart?" I repeated. "And what is your master's common name?" I asked her. "He wouldn't introduce himself by his real name. The Jedi must have revealed him that way…"
"Th… thaaat's wha… what he's ca… called. Weee… weee established seven hundred… years ago," the woman said.
"And the Jedi didn't check on your master?"
"Ma… ma… many attacked his… trail… but… pe… per… perished… One… didn't… fight," she said. "He serves him."
"Who?" could it be a traitor?
"I don't knoow," she was already nodding off.
"Where is Set Hart?" I finally asked. "Where is he?!"
"On… Royce… Royce VIII," she said. "Masteeeer…" she looked at me with a crazy look, "your neexuuss is so thiiirsty for affecction. Pet me."
It seems she finally succumbed to euphoria.
"You see, Rosamunda Atkari," I said, poking the woman in the forehead with my finger, using the Force, she rolled her eyes and immediately lost consciousness, "I didn't do anything bad to you. Your body will expel the substance on its own. I – will just erase the fact that I was here and fed you drugs," working with such a compliant mind after drugs is a pleasure. Before, I didn't think mental techniques were my specialty, but I trained a lot. So now I could calmly erase memories. Especially – if the patient doesn't resist. "Fools just want to save the galaxy, I want to get pleasure too," I quoted an odious character, carefully removing the woman's dress and admiring her beautiful body. Even the increased sweating caused by the drug, and consequently the smell – could not overcome the aesthetic pleasure of seeing the body of this gorgeous woman. "Set Hart, you bastard, not only collects Sith artifacts," I picked her up with telekinesis and lowered her onto the bed, covered her body with a blanket, leaving only her left hand outside, and then approached and checked her pulse. It was slightly slowed due to the drug.
I turned off the light and headed for the window, which I slightly opened by pressing a button. Wait, I stopped and returned to Rosamunda, and then connected my datapad to hers and started copying data. Perhaps she has something valuable… And only after that – headed for the window. Her guard, Salara, is standing at the exit. I wouldn't want to encounter, even theoretically, any problems. Glancing at the room one last time, I jumped down into the hotel courtyard. Guests could walk in the garden. Before that, I calculated so that the camera wouldn't be looking at the spot where I landed, and then telekinetically closed the third-floor window. So… My goal is clear. To defeat Set Hart… I was going to challenge him, one way or another… But I can't do it alone. A duel – that's what I wanted. Or is this a manifestation of that part of me that loved battles? The one whose pride Set Hart trampled on the planet Tsai? Exactly – it is. And it didn't get the better of me. The rational part of my mind wanted to experience what I had achieved during our first encounter. The irrational part – wanted revenge for the humiliation. Meanwhile, I understood that Set Hart is not just another mad padawan. Once, maybe, but now… I need allies whom I can trust. And I know – whom to involve in this. One Matukai and a couple more Mandalorians… The plan formed in my head.
It's good to have a decent ship with a fast hyperdrive. Travel across the galaxy was relatively fast. It's also good to be able to play with your ship's transponder and have access to Jedi databases. I can create a fake persona anytime and disappear from anywhere. After all, being a Shadow has its advantages. We act in darkness to serve the light, right? At the same time, we have incredible resources. Useful, all this is useful… But now, what interested me most was not delivering myself to Ryloth, where, according to the tracking program I installed, Sheygen's ship and Sheygen himself were located, but other allies whom I could acquire. Mandalorians, or rather – a familiar group of Mandalorians from Jacob, Vanda, Hori, and Bombur. I met them when I was getting pearls from the stomach of a krayt dragon.
At the end of the adventure, Jacob gave me his contact information. I didn't think I would ever use it. Nevertheless – that's exactly what I was going to do, dialing the group leader's number.
"Jacob," I said, seeing the holographic projection of the man in Mandalorian armor. Something exploded in the background. "I'm interrupting your work."
"We're almost done, so I accepted your call. You… Judging by the contact, Light," he said. "Long time no see, kid. Calling about something?"
"That's right, Jacob," I received a signal that the course to Ryloth had been calculated, but I wasn't going to jump into hyperspace and break communication with Jacob. Why did I need him at all? The data from Rosamunda's datapad indicated that Set Hart had built a real complex in his mansion where all his artifacts, information, and even clones were located. The most dangerous was the last. All his copies needed to be destroyed. And if I planned to fight Hart myself, I needed a second group to destroy this complex. And for this, I needed Sheygen, as a Force-sensitive and capable of sensing, in theory, traps that Hart might have set, as well as threats. Plus – professional mercenaries wouldn't hurt. "I have a job, and the payment will be quite decent, plus trophies that I will allow you to take."
The shots on the other side subsided, and the rest of his group approached Jacob.
"Long time no see, kid," Hori recognized me even in my hood. "Since our last meeting, you've even grown. Now even Vanda won't call you a child," I heard the Mandalorian woman snort nearby.
"Are you calling to tell us something interesting?" Bombur's voice came through.
"What will the job consist of?" Jacob asked.
"Infiltration and destruction of a guarded complex. Quiet infiltration is not mandatory. The complex will likely have above-ground and underground parts…"
"We can flatten the above-ground part with a ship. Yours, by the way, might be suitable," Hori noted. "Missiles and turbolasers – will take down a lot."
"It won't be enough," I stated. "However, I wouldn't refuse more help from something resembling a corvette. Flattening the ground part with weapons – sounds promising."
"I have acquaintances who have a ship of that caliber. If it's not a settlement you want to work on, but some kind of structure – it will be more than enough," Jacob informed me. "And they need credits. If the job is worthwhile, they'll agree."
"I am a relatively wealthy sentient; I have enough money for such an operation," I cannot attract the Order's funds. But for the sake of destroying Hart – I agree to use my own. "So – listen. I can't say much over the holocomm. Fly to Ryloth. There we will meet another sentient who will really want to help us. He is quite strong…"
"Like you?" Hori asked.
"He is Force-sensitive," I replied. "That's enough for now. Well, are you interested?"
"We'll talk about the reward when you tell us everything," Jacob informed me. "We'll be on Ryloth in five days."
"I'll be waiting for you there, I'll tell you where specifically."
Ryloth is the homeworld of the Twi'leks. A rocky planet with poor soil, so for a long time, Twi'leks have sustained themselves not by agriculture, but mainly by hunting everything that could run on their meager planet. With the discovery of this race, it was found that Twi'leks, in general, are attractive to other races. For example, I myself found them quite beautiful. Naturally, this applied to slender Twi'leks, like those shown in various Star Wars works. Yes, I myself observed Rela, my acquaintance, a classmate. She became a beautiful girl, whose body, at times, my eyes would wander over. They were also the ones who supplied the galactic market with so-called ryll. This is a mineral with narcotic properties. It was a weak version, used for pain relief, that I applied to Rosamund.
Ryll itself has been banned for distribution for about a hundred years, but medical companies, especially those controlled by Neimoidians, were engaged in preparations based on it. And I was able to simply buy it at a Kuat pharmacy, without any extra questions. Sheygen's ship signal originated from the city of Lohem. A small town that was known for the ryll mining shafts located near it. Ryloth did not have much protection, except for one "Dreadnought" hanging in orbit. It's understandable, the planet had long since turned into a slave trader's den, which even Jedi could not do anything about. I landed in a shabby hangar. There was no standard inspection team, they only offered to refuel my ship and update my ammunition. And someone even sent an offer to buy my ship, to which I immediately responded with a categorical refusal, blocked the vessel, switched to siege mode, just in case, and left the hangar.
The city looked poor and unpretentious. Not particularly rich speeders hovered on the wide roads. The main population here are miners, who were represented mostly by strong, tall men. So where is Sheygen? Knowing his character, he would definitely have been noticed, and the rumors could be the most varied. Therefore, I entered the crowd of sentient beings walking down the street and began to listen with the Force. The sentient beings spoke of a healthy man with a tattoo on his face who had appeared in Zello's cantina, a Toydarian who owned an establishment on the outskirts of the city and had been drinking incessantly for almost a week. It's been almost a week and a half since our defeat... Considering the old hyperdrive of that ship, he could have arrived here in such a time... But... A tattoo? Was he promoted to a Matukai warrior? I didn't have much time to think, having gleaned more information that the man getting drunk at Zello's was a tall, blond man, I headed there, having rented a speeder. The scene that greeted me was astonishing... People crowded around the cantina, or rather, around the corpses.
They lay with their throats cut, their hands severed. One was cut in half... Judging by their equipment, they were something between pirates and bounty hunters. Nearby, a wounded man moaned, holding his severed arm.
"Is this their golden demon?" came a voice from the side.
"What group is this now? I heard that someone rich put a bounty on him, but... To go after a Matukai, that's madness."
"Matukai?" asked another sentient being. "Is that something like a Jedi?"
"Yes," they replied. "Only with a glaive instead of a lightsaber."
And near the entrance hovered a Toydarian. He looked sad and dejected. Of course, people looked at the corpses and dispersed, not visiting his cantina. I approached him.
"You clearly have problems, owner," I drew the attention of the hovering alien to myself.
"That, bantha poodoo, is an understatement," he expressed. "When this blond one arrived, everything was going well. Then another one just like him arrived. They quarreled, trashed the cantina. But the second one flew away, and this one got a tattoo after the second one's visit... But he's been drinking, damn it, for three days straight, black. Wookiee tincture, Corellian whiskey, Chandrillian vodka! He drinks everything in sight! I heard that someone rich put a bounty on him," the bug crossed his arms over his chest, "and I myself will soon put a bounty on him! To get him thrown out of my cantina!"
"Does he at least pay?" I asked, tilting my head to the side.
"That's the only thing he does, besides drinking, eating, and ruining my waitresses!"
"You clearly have problems with him," I said, "I'll solve them."
"Uhh... And I won't have to drag your body out of there later?" he nodded towards his cantina.
I drew my lightsaber into my right hand and showed it to the Toydarian. He stared at me in surprise.
"If we don't come to an agreement, I'll take him out myself," I said, twirling my lightsaber and heading into the cantina, leaving the Toydarian behind.