Firepower
May 12, 2006
Page 4
"Who are they?" Ketrian asked Grathal. "I thought this was an exclusive showing? Where are the samples?"
There was a creaking as a rear door opened. A tall man in a blue jacket entered -- Ketrian surmised he was the merchant. He wore a blaster low on his right thigh. Ketrian checked and noted that the other people were similarly armed.
"Hello, Ketrian," the merchant said, turning to her. There was a thin white scar high on his cheek. "It's been a long time."
"Mak!" Ketrian exclaimed. "What are you doing here?" She turned angrily to Alikka. "Did you know about this? What's going on here?"
"I knew," Alikka admitted somewhat guiltily. "He said he needs to talk to you, to explain ... "
"Explain!" Ketrian snapped. "Explain what? That he's fooled you the way he fooled me. Is that the truth of it, Mak? Are you here to start another peasant revolt? Didn't you have your fill of blood and death last time? I see you've found more martyrs for your cause." She waved an arm at the group by the table. "Are they ready to die just so you can get even with your father?"
"Well," he drawled, making his way to the table, "I see you haven't changed."
She stared at him. "I'm leaving."
"Please... "Alikka stepped between her and the door. Grathal was nowhere in sight. "Stay, Ket. For me. For my brother." Ket knew he was in one of Pedrin's labor camps. "I wanted you to come here more than any of these people. I couldn't tell you about it where we might be overheard."
"Oh, Ali," Ketrian sighed. "What are you up to now? You know Pedrin suspects you."
"It's as well someone's trying to prevent more Alderaans," a highpitched youthful voice said from the table.
Ketrian turned to the speaker, the young man. "Don't tell me you believe those lies?"
"Which?" he threw back at her. "That Alderaan was planning germ warfare? That we all had an incurable plague? That ... "
"Enough, Merak." A graying man moved to place his hand to the youth's shoulder. "We share your pain, and your mourning for your lost home."
Ketrian stared. "You're Alderaanian?"
He nodded proudly. "One of the few."
Mak stepped forward. "All Merak asks is that you hear him out. He has some holo-tapes he wants you to see." Ketrian looked uncertain. "Not just Alderaan. The Empire's been busy lately."
"So," Ketrian said slowly, "You're working with them now?"
"The Rebel Alliance?" Mak said. "Yes. Best move I ever made. For once in my life I've found the means to really help people. Hear us out, Ket. That's all we ask. Then if you still want, you can go."
Ketrian stiffened angrily. "This ... " she indicated the holomachine, "is the only reason you came here?"
"No," he smiled. It was the same heart-wrenching, gentle smile she remembered. "This was a neat excuse, a chance for me to see you again. Merak and the team could have handled it, but I talked my way in. I've never stopped thinking about you, Ket. About the day I was forced to leave you."
"Forced!" she sneered. "You ran away from your father's threats. Ran to your precious stars. Your father couldn't bear having you marry a lowborn instead of that lady he chose for you. I thought you were willing to stand by me, but you abandoned me."
"We have evidence of the truth behind Makintay's disappearance too," another of the Rebels spoke up. "Your would-be husband spent a year in a penal colony on Garen IV after he was kidnapped and dumped there with a false ID."
"Penal colony?" Ketrian wanted to believe, to heal that old wound.
Mak nodded sadly. "My father made sure I vanished someplace where I'd never be heard of again." He picked up one of the datacards. "Eventually I escaped and came back here to lead that uprising. When it failed, the Alliance contacted me. It's all here."
"Why did you wait so long to tell me?"
He shrugged. "Officially, I was an escaped felon. All I earned from the uprising was a death mark. You were secure, working for the Empire."
She held his gaze for a long moment, then looked away. "So many people suffered needlessly for your uprising. Can't you see the Rebel Alliance is no different? All this making war is futile, Mak. Futile. I'll hear what your friends have to say, that's all."
"Fair enough," Mak agreed, waving her to a chair.
* * *
Deep Spoilers
May 26, 2006
Page 2
As it showdabe, he thought -- and without any malice whatsoever to the brave citizens of Theed. Theed was a city rooted in soil and exposed to sky, like so many other cities on Republic worlds. Otoh Gunga, on the other hand, was mysterious. Far below the surface of Lake Paonga, Otoh Gunga was unaffected by clouds or starlight, representing the most advanced underwater civilization in the known galaxy.
Boss Nass narrowed his eyes and surveyed the crowd. He recognized some of the more distinctive alien species, including contingents from Duros and Moonus Mandel, who waved penants that displayed the names of their favorite racers. It seemed that everyone had been caught up by Bongomania.
Boss Nass noticed one of his advisors, Rep Teers, hopping up to his box. Rep Teers leaned close to Boss Nass and said, "Da Ithorian ambassador sayen dat da Otoh Gunga Challenge is mure exciten dan da Podracen on Malastare!"
Boss Nass grinned. He did not know anything about Podracing, but if the Ithorian ambassador thought it was inferior to bongo racing, that was good enough for the Boss.
Suddenly the crowd gasped, and Boss Nass followed their collective gaze to the monitors. "What gooie-on?!" Boss Nass demanded. "Where da replay?"
Boss Nass had missed a crash in the race tube.
* * *
"Ouches," Neb Neb Goodrow commented as he steered deftly past the wreckage of Friggy Squig's bongo, just before the organic race tube -- engineered to eject slow-moving objects --opened at the side and spat the demolished sub and its seething pilot into Lake Paonga.
Neb Neb wondered, What was dot lame-noggin tinken?! Anyone who perpetrated a twisty in front of Spleed Nukkels was about as stupid as... well, Neb Neb was at a loss for an appropriate metaphor. Sometimes, Neb Neb suspected that Spleed lived to teach painful lessons to show-offs like Friggy. The instant Spleed's extended diving plane had tapped Friggy's fins, she threw her sub forward and pulled up sharply, forcing his fins back against the underside of her bongo. Friggy might as well have steered into the side of the tube on purpose.
Distracted by Friggy's lack of brains, Neb Neb almost did not see Brooboo Seep creeping up along his starboard side. Neb Neb wagged his side stabilizers, which alarmed Brooboo and made him slow down, then sped after Spleed's bongo.
Spleed was right behind Squidfella Quiglee and Tup Tup Grizbain, who were swerving along the interior of the tube, apparently working together to prevent Spleed from slipping past. Neb Neb dropped below Spleed and maneuvered into a narrow opening between Squidfella and Tup Tup's bongos. Neb Neb heard his engines whine as he swooshed between his rivals and was swept up in the wake of the Opee Fleer, which was nearing the race tube's exit. As the Opee Fleer approached the mouth of the tube, Neb Neb deftly hurtled past the larger sub and maneuvered in front of it, then swerved out of the tube and into Lake Paonga.
The Opee Fleer hit Neb Neb's hard wake, shuddered, and slowed. The over-eager Tup Tup slammed into the larger sub's stern, nearly pulverizing both bongos. Squidfella frantically steered his bongo past the disabled vessels and miraculously exited the tube without damage.
Spleed shot from the tube after Squidfella and Neb Neb, stealing a glance to check on the other racers. She spotted Tup Tup, who had abandoned his damaged bongo and was rising up to the surface in his escape bubble. Then she locked eyes on the cockpit of the Opee Fleer, in which three irate Gungans seemed on the verge of strangling one another.
Spleed steered through an open crevice and plunged into the dark depths. She caught sight of Squidfella's navigational lights and chased his bongo, gliding past a school of luminescent fish. Spleed couldn't spot any remote-seein devices in the crevice, but a moment later she saw why: An electric kreetch eel was chomping on the last one -- quite a disappointment to the eager spectators back at Otoh Gunga Garden.
The eel ignored her, so Spleed accelerated and came up alongside Squidfella's bongo. Perhaps Squidfella had noticed that the remote-seein' devices had been eaten, or maybe he was frustrated with Spleed's tenacity. In any event, without any-spectators watching over him, he smiled at Spleed, swung his bongo to the side, and rammed her hard.
Spleed gritted her teeth but kept her composure, swerving in front of Squidfella. Up ahead, she saw Neb Neb's bongo angling through the cavern. Squidfella rammed her again. This time Spleed slowed down, figuring that she would let the goon pass her, but then felt Squidfella's bongo slam her a third time.
He wasn't passing.
Spleed flashed her navigational lights three times at Neb Neb, signalling him that she was in trouble. Traditionally, racers used the signal to warn others of dangerous beasts, but under the circumstances, the signal seemed in order. Squidfella slammed her bongo again, shorting her lights. Spleed didn't want to be anywhere near him, but she didn't much like the idea of flitting about in the cavern without lights.
Fortunately, she still had engine power. She tightened her grip on the controls and sped after Neb Neb's sub, with Squidfella chomping at her fins.
She lost sight of Neb Neb's sub, the only light source coming from Squidfella's bongo behind her. She threw her sub into reverse and bounced off Squidfella's hull.
Bright lights appeared from behind a jagged outcropping of volcanic rock up ahead. Spleed could see Neb Neb's bongo. He had seen her signal after all and turned about. Neb Neb sized up the situation in an instant and headed for Squidfella, aiming his forward diving plane at Squidfella's cockpit canopy. Squidfella's eyes went wide as his rival's diving plane pierced one of the canopy braces. Spleed spun around in time to see the momentary collision, a flash of light, and the look of horror on Squidfella's face as water sprayed him through cracks in his canopy.
While Squidfella tried to secure the canopy and halt the leak, Neb Neb and Spleed gazed out through their own hydrostatic canopies to see Brooboo Seep tooling through the open water in their direction.
Spleed's navigational lights came on, as if on cue. She smiled and stuck her tongue out at Neb Neb, and then both took off, leaving Squidfella with his sinking sub.
Brooboo Seep's purple bongo was now in the lead, followed by Neb Neb and Spleed. Brooboo emerged from the crevice, returning to Lake Paonga, then skirted around a marker buoy and headed for an underwater mountain. The racers veered toward a narrow, rock-walled tunnel cut through the base of the mountain that would take them back to Otoh Gunga Garden and the finish line.
Kella Rand, Reporting...
December 02, 2005
Page 2
"Well, consider your frippin' clearance revoked," he retorted. "I told you, this section's being sealed. So move along, or I'll have you removed."
Kella's eyes narrowed. This kind of hassle she didn't need. But following Aden was just a hunch. Maybe she'd do better to worm her way back into the Council Chamber to watch them sweep up what was left of Barayel -- get some on-the-scene reaction, maybe talk to L'varren. On the other hand--
Undecided, she and the guard were still glaring at each other when the distinctive retort of a blaster shot echoed from around the corner. They looked toward it, back at each other. "Stay here," the Authority ordered, drawing his blaster and heading for the corner. He eased an eye around the stone edge, then hurried on.
Kella followed, hovercam whirring behind.
The corridor they turned into was empty except for several closed doors, but there was another intersection 25 meters down. She trotted after the guard, followed him around the next corner--
And came to an abrupt halt. She'd found Aden, but it didn't look like L'varren's aide would be up to an interview anytime soon.
At least his death had been neater than Barayel's. He lay sprawled on the floor, the charred hole in his chest evidence of the blaster shot that killed him. The officer she'd seen follow him out of the Council Chamber knelt at his side while the burly one gave her a hard look and slowly lowered his blaster.
"I told him to stop, but he just kept going," the Authority kneeling by Aden said, staring down at the body with a furrowed brow. "He just ignored me, acted like he didn't hear. Then he turned around sudden-like, went for his pocket..." He shook his head, voice trailing off. "I didn't think I had a choice, y'know?"
"Just sit tight, Darme, we'll get this cleared up," the other officer said, pulling out his comlink and calling for backup.
Kella took advantage of the momentary distraction. "Hadn't you already checked him for weapons?" she asked.
Darme glanced up as if noticing her for the first time, gaze sharpening as he took in her media badge and the hovercam recording the scene. "No," he said. "How could I? I never got close enough."
"I had the impression he was under detention when you left the Council Chamber," she persisted. "That wasn't the case?"
He stared at her, a hint of wariness creeping into his eyes. "No. I saw him leave, and followed. We had orders to seal this section, and that meant clearing out anyone wandering around back here. All I wanted was to catch him and tell him to leave."
Kella opened her mouth but, done with his call, the other Authority stepped forward and brusquely cut her off. "You, be quiet. No more questions." Holstering his blaster, he squatted down on the other side of the dead aide. "Let's take a look at what he has in there."
Avoiding the charred spot, he carefully ran his hands down Aden's front and patted his tunic pockets, then slipped a hand into one and pulled out a small, flat device. Holding it up, he turned it over in his hand thoughtfully.
Kella craned her neck to see what it was, then remembered the hovercam humming over her shoulder. "Close-up," she told it, and a green light on its front panel flashed, indicating acknowledgement. At the sound of her voice, both men looked up again.
"Turn that burnin' thing off," the burly one ordered with yet another glare, but he promptly forgot her as a squad of booted feet thundered around the corner and he rose to consult with its commander.
Moving aside, she flattened herself against the stone wall in hopes of not being noticed. Already, with the discovery of what appeared to be a detonator in Aden's pocket, she'd found an angle none of the other newsnets had. And as the only reporter on the scene, if she stayed quiet and inconspicuous, she might get still more vidclips of the action as it unfolded.
But no such luck. As several of the new arrivals ringed Aden and a few more took up positions at each end of the corridor, their commander turned away from the burly officer and bore down on her. Cool eyes flicked to the hovercam still humming beside her and he ordered, "Cease recording, and clear the area immediately. This section is being sealed."
Kella tried, though she knew it was probably useless. "Kella Rand, Galactic News Network. I've got media clearance for the entire Council building.''
"I don't care if you're the late Emperor himself," the man snapped. "Media access has been revoked. You and the rest of you newsfleas can get the down-and-dirty later, at the media conference. So get moving, or I'll have you arrested. Then you won't be able to even go to the conference, now will you?"
She opened her mouth to protest, shut it again as he beckoned to the near guard. "Okay, okay, I'm going," she said, quickly stepping away from the wall and moving away from the group gathered around Aden's body. She hated backing down, but she could hardly file her report from the local lock-up. And it might be hours before GNN authorized funds for her bail -- if the Indu legal system even allowed prisoners to post bail. She'd found out the hard way that some didn't.
Half expecting to be hauled around and escorted from the building, she headed back down the corridor towards the Council Chamber. She'd go, but she wasn't through. There were still sources to contact, leads to follow, facts to confirm, and a media conference to crash.
Kella lengthened her stride, prepared to barge past the guard at the chamber entrance. She'd have to hustle to get it all done before deadline.
* * *
The setting sun was casting a spectacular golden-red glow over the city's streets by the time Kella finally trudged up the steps to the Indu GNN bureau. Rustling through her datatote, she dug out her GNN identi-credcard and slid it into the slot on the door.
The scene that greeted her was in sharp contrast to the media circus she'd just left. Two reporters sat at desks, Juloff reading a datapad and Crislyn typing at her terminal, while over in the corner Nostler had both feet up and was scratching his chin as he watched a holo rising from the pad on his desk. The only sounds were the comm scanner spitting out occasional snatches of City Authority chatter, and the muted music accompanying the report that had Nostler engrossed. He looked up as she came in.
"Hey, Kella. Thought maybe you'd gotten lost," he greeted her.
"No, just stuck," she said, looking around for an empty chair. Nostler pointed to a desk opposite his own, and she slid gratefully into its seat. "You wouldn't believe the crush at the conference -- every two-bit station in the system must have sent someone.
"Not that it was all that exciting," she added. "The Authorities gave us a statement, answered about four questions, and walked out." She shrugged -- what's new?-- then asked, "So, how long do I have?"
"Deadline's at 2200, the droid'll arrive sometime after that." Nostler said. "Have your piece ready to go by then, and I'll give you the newsbank access code so you can transmit any updates direct, right on down to the wire."
Here's part four of Evil Never Dies:
Cults and Acculturation
The Jedi heard next to nothing of the Sith after the Battle of Rusaan. There were the vague threats by dark sider Kibh Jeen at his moment of desperation during the Dark Jedi Conflict (circa 150 years before the Battle of Naboo), who spouted seeming gibberish about there always being no more or less than two Sith, but few Jedi gave his mad utterances any credence. But then the Sith cultists began emerging. These "Sith" were disorganized and harmless for the most part. Many were merely youths in rebellion, without any solid idea of Sith doctrine or even any Force-sensitivity. But not all of them.
One of the more dangerous cults was the Thyrsian Sun Guard. Not Force-sensitive, nonetheless these soldiers-for-hire were fearsome fighters. Consolidated in the Thyrsus system by Darth Sidious, the Sun Guard wore helmets reminiscent of the elite Senate Guard, although instead of ceremonial robes these Sith mercenaries were mailed in black armor from head to foot. Several of these Sith mercs guarded Sidious' Coruscant stronghold, and were also instrumental in the Dark Lord's plans surrounding the events of the Battle of Naboo, assassinating a discreet, though pivotal, number of Senators prior to the election for a new Supreme Chancellor. However, after Sidious' schemes ran their course, Count Dooku had most of these devotees killed by his executor Asajj Ventress -- though more than a few of the most fanatical Sun Guards found their way into Chancellor Palpatine's Red Guard.
One Sith cult can trace its origins back to the days of the Great Sith War. Larad Noon was one of the Jedi corrupted into the Brotherhood of the Sith by Exar Kun. When Kun and his Shadow Hand Ulic Qel-Droma were defeated, Noon and the other Sith acolytes fled to various parts of the galaxy. Some flew to the Expanse, dooming themselves and the Sith of House Mecetti.
Noon, however, was forever scarred by Sith ideology and the countless deaths he caused. He distanced himself from the Jedi and became a recluse on the moon Susevfi. Here he discovered a peculiar ore called cortosis capable of rendering lightsabers inoperative on contact. From this ore he fashioned a suit of armor to protect himself against the Jedi he believed would inevitably come, though in actuality, none did. Noon died alone, survived only by his journal in which he wrote extensively on his theory of Jiaasjen or "integrating the shadow." It was Noon's attempt to amalgamate his Jedi learning with his Sith experiences in order to justify the atrocities he committed and to keep himself from going insane with guilt.
Thousands of years later, during the Clone Wars, an Anzat Jedi named Nikkos Tyris learned of his predecessor, the Jedi Volfe Karkko, and how he fell to the dark side. Curious, Tyris made a great effort to obtain Karkko's apocryphal teachings in which he found frequent reference to and snippets from Sith tomes. Looking on Karkko as a role model and lured to Count Dooku by his possession of one of Karkko's most cherished Sith holocrons, Tyris was slowly seduced into the darkness. Claiming he'd found the Saarai or "True Way," Tyris split from the Jedi Order, attracting many Jedi to himself, including the infamous Bpfasshi marauders. However, Tyris and most of his followers were slain by Jedi forces.
Tyris was survived by only a handful of Jensaarai pupils, Sith for "Followers of the True Way." Their training was far from complete, but as such they had not been corrupted as Tyris had. Tyris' primary apprentice felt it was her duty to make certain her master's ideals, or what she perceived to be his ideals, didn't die, and that the "evil" Jedi wouldn't triumph. She took it upon herself to continue Tyris "truth" by finding what Sith texts she could. She was largely unsuccessful, but when she came to Susevfi, she found Larad Noon's journal. The result was the creation of a Force tradition that uniquely blended Sith and Jedi teachings.
Proliferation among the Sith cults can at least in part be attributed to one man, or one Quermian, as it were: history professor Murk Lundi, who made his career exploring esoteric topics. An excellent teacher but a mediocre researcher, he found himself struggling in the "publish or perish" world of academia. In peril of losing his position at the University of Coruscant, Lundi began to explore topics outside of stale classics like Xim the Despot and the Atrisian Empire. Eventually, he zeroed in on a single controversial subject: the Sith. To advance his research, the academician delved into the trenches, creating a communications network between the disparate Sith sects to grant himself greater accessibility to information.
Then, Lundi learned of the ultimate prize. A Sith holocron was buried deep beneath the oceans of the planet Kodai. Lundi attempted to retrieve the artifact, but was stopped by the Jedi. Afterward, one of his classroom students almost succeeded where the teacher had failed, but the pupil was destroyed by one of Darth Sidious' Sun Guard mercenaries and the holocron was restored to Jedi hands. Lundi later went irrevocably insane and died a madman's death. Meanwhile, the Jedi Council ultimately entrusted the Sith holocron to House Pelagia's extensive holocron library in the Tapani sector.
There were actually no pics for Deep Spoilers or Firepower, and I posted the pictures for Evil Never Dies and Reporting - did the not come out properly?
And for the online supplement, there's also:
Ray Park: Darth Maul -- Uncut
Expanded from the magazine, the full text of the interview with Ray Park
(interview with Ray Park who plays Darth Maul)
Morbid Visions
Give your computer that touch of the dark side.
(some really cool wallpapers with a sith feel to them)
Lumiya: Dark Star of the Empire
Lumiya is back in Legacy of the Force, but what more can be learned about this mysterious character?
(short story featuring Lumiya)
From the Dark Side Compendium
Read the words of Darth Sidious himself, from the dark pages of his masterwork.
(excerp from The Dark Side Compendium, Palpatine's book on the dark side)
A Tale from the Dark Side
A short story originally presented in the Tales of the Jedi Companion.
(short story about the dark side)
Celebration of Sith
Bantha Tracks readers send in their original artwork featuring sinister minions of the Sith.
(fan artwork with a sith theme)