A Gift for His Master

“Oh! A Sith Holocron?! Mistress will love that!” 2V said happily as he piloted the ship through the fierce sky battle that took place in Giju’s upper atmosphere. With how many Sith fighters swarmed through the air, it was clear that the Sith were going to win this battle, it was only a matter of time. Wes looked out the viewport and saw more and more Imperial transport ships land to drop off more troops to secure the base from whatever remained of the Republic forces. As their ship broke through into outer space, the two witnessed more and more Sith starships arrive out of hyperspace to reinforce their new gains.

“Master must be beaming right now,” Wes said as he witnessed the true strength of the Imperial Fleet as it arrived. “She was able to use a small force to take over this planet and now other Sith are rushing to get some of the credit. All the while, the planet’s conquest was merely a cover for me to retrieve this,” Wes said as he held up the holocron. It’s red glow illuminated half his face as he looked upon it in all its glory.

The Fury class interceptor quickly made its way through the debris of the Republic Defense Fleet that had once guarded this Republic world. Now, it lay in ruins as Sith troops secure the planet as the Imperial Fleet ensures no Republic reinforcements reach the planet.

“Apprentice, welcome back,” the familiar voice of Lady Mutaria came over the intercoms. “I take it you have my artifact?” she asked softly yet with a very stern undertone.

“Of course, Master, I have your Sith holocron,” said Wes, giving away he knew what the artifact was.

“Ah, so you figured out what it was? Good, good. Perhaps you are even more capable than I first thought. Hurry back and we shall see the knowledge that is hidden away in this holocron,” Lady Mutaria told her apprentice.

“As you wish, master,” Wes said before the call ended. Wes and 2V quickly made their way back to their destroyer while the orbiting Sith Fleet continued to wipe out any remaining Republic ships that were attempting to flee or had come in as potential reinforcements.

“Welcome back, my Lord,” the deck commander said as Wes came down the ramp of his ship.

“Where is my master?” asked Wes as he continued to walk, the commander followed slightly behind him to answer his question.

“Ah, Lady Mutaria is on the bridge overlooking the final throes of battle,” informed the commander.

“Your reliability will be remembered, commander,” Wes said as he stepped onto the turbolift to the bridge. Wes waited patiently as he listened to the hum of the turbolift as it lifted him up to his destination. I wonder what secrets this holocron holds? Perhaps an ancient Sith technique that will give my master and I power far greater than any of the current Darths? Perhaps the secrets of how the Emperor has lived for so long? Ah well, I hope my master shares its secrets with me, else I may have to force it out of her later. Wes knew it was the Sith way to hide information from each other, even Masters and apprentices, so he would have to try to pry as much information out of his master before he would eventually kill her, as per Sith tradition.

The turbolift doors opened to Lady Mutaria and Captain Rashel overlooking the battle through the bridge windows. Wes peered through the window to see what the two were viewing only to see a pack of destroyers that were firing upon a Republic capital ship. The Republic ship was clearly already crippled but the destroyers continued firing on the ship. The ships continued their barrage until their goal was finally met as the ship exploded in a fiery spectacle for all who watched.

“Well that was a waste,” Wes said as he walked up to the two ladies who stood in front of everyone on the bridge.

“And why do you say that, apprentice?” asked Lady Mutaria as she and Captain Rashel turned to face him.

“Well, first off, anyone who was put in charge of a capital ship is either very important in the Republic or a skilled commander who has intimate knowledge of Republic defenses. As such, that person would make an excellent captive to torture for all the information they know,” started Wes as he reached his master and bowed before continuing. “Combine that with any advanced technology on that ship, we could reverse engineer it to either add it to our own ships or figure out how to best bypass their shields and make ours more resistant to their weapons,” continued Wes. “Finally, we could even capture the ship, repair it enough for hyperspace travel, and use it as a way to sneak troops behind enemy lines to a major shipyard as an early strike to cripple its defenses before a fleet arrives to decimate the shipyards,” finished Wes.

“Ah, such a sharp mind you have, apprentice,” complemented Lady Mutaria. “All of those are excellent reasons as to why we should capture that ship instead of destroying it. Alas, we have no say over what happens,” informed Lady Mutaria.

“Why’s that?” asked Wes, who thought all these ships were from his master’s master.

“It seems that once other Darths heard that my master was sending ships here, they wanted to steal whatever they could from him so they sent their own fleets who are applying a scorched earth policy. Destroy everything so we can collect nothing,” explained the full-blooded Sith. “But unbeknownst to you, this entire battle was merely a distraction so you, my dear apprentice, could get the real prize,” she said as she licked her lips and held out her hand. Wes immediately knew what she wanted and brought the Sith holocron out from his pocket and held it above his master’s hand.

“What is on this holocron, master?” Wes said with a clear indication he wanted to know her plans.

“You want to know my plans, do you? Very well. You’ve proven you are worthy enough and I believe you won’t betray me, at least not so early,” the wise Sith woman said. “Both of you come with me,” commanded Lady Mutaria as she headed to the turbolift. Wes and Captain Rashel quickly followed their leader as she entered the turbolift.

“I’m sure once you two hear what I believe is on this holocron you will understand why I was so secretive about it. And you two are bright enough to figure out my plans once you know the knowledge on this holocron.” She once again emphasized the importance of the information on this holocron. The doors opened to Lady Mutaria’s private study where they were greeted to the sight of the twi’lek Jedi apprentice chained naked to the side of her desk.

“Master! How may I please you?!” she eagerly asked as she crawled over to Lady Mutaria.