Star Wars: The Ghost Prison - Part II

16 BBY - "The Scimitar II"

Onboard Emperor Palpatine's stealth vessel, the Scimitar II, Moff Trachta looked down upon the Bacta pod where the Emperor lie in repose. He wasn't dead, for the Bacta was working to slow the spread of whatever virus was liquifying him from the inside out. Rather, the Emperor was unconscious for the moment. "This might just keep him alive..." Trachta whispered to himself. Just then, the Moff heard footsteps, and out from the camera lodged into the back of his head, Trachta knew it was Laurita Tohm standing behind him. "We're coming up on Khemenor." Tohm announced. "Lord Vader and I already agreed to go into the Temple there. Do you wish to join us on the endeavor?" He asked.

"That will not be necessary, Lieutenant." Trachta replied. "I failed to protect the Emperor from the Seventh Fleet and the virus they had inflicted upon him. And I will not make the same mistake twice." He continued. Laurita nodded, turning his back to Trachta and heading back to the cockpit of the ship. Inside the cockpit, Lord Vader stood between the pilot and co-pilot's chairs, staring into the endless tunnel of Hyperspace longingly. "My Lord, Moff Trachta wishes to stay with the ship." Laurita said. "I assume the few troops we took with us will stay as well?" Vader did not turn his head to Tohm, but responded nevertheless. "You would be correct, Lieutenant Tohm." He replied. "You and I will explore this lost Temple ourselves."

At that moment, the ship exited Hyperspace. Outside the cockpit window, Tohm could see a planet covered entirely in oceans and clouds; in a way, it reminded him of Kamino, the place where the Grand Army of the Republic had been created. Shaking the thought from his mind, Tohm walked up to Vader, whilst the ship slowly descended through Khemenor's atmosphere. "Are you sure the star map is here, my Lord?" He asked. "No Jedi Temple has as strong of a connection to the Force as Khemenor, Lieutenant." Vader replied. Laurita opened his mouth to speak, but quickly stopped himself; he had learned from his time in The Clone Wars how to decipher cryptic responses like Vader's, most commonly from Jedi. In the back of his mind, Laurita wondered if Vader used to be a Jedi at one point. Or even one Laurita had served under before...

In a few moments, Laurita could see a large, yet thin tower through the cockpit window, illuminated only by the lightning from the thunderstorm outside. The ship touched down on a small landing pad some feet away from the entrance to the tower, which Laurita knew was the lost Jedi Temple. Vader unclipped his Lightsaber hilt from his belt, and Tohm grabbed his pistol, following the Dark Lord outside. Almost as soon they did so, however, Laurita could feel it; the wind. It was strong. Stronger than any other wind he had felt in his life. Thunder boomed in the sky with each step Laurita and Vader took, followed by the sounds of lightning striking the water and causing huge tidal waves to add to the rain, which felt like it was threatening to beat Tohm down. Vader, however, remained unfazed as he marched towards the Temple's entrance.

The two of them approached a large, circular door, with runs etched all around it. Vader reached out with the Force, gently pulling a small crystal ball in the center to the far side of the door. In an instant, the door opened, rumbling as it did so. Laurita followed Vader inside slowly, hearing the door shut behind them, before the Dark Lord ignited his Lightsaber, illuminating the dark halls of the Temple. Tohm felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise, as he and Vader walked through the Temple. He had a feeling that he and Vader both were walking into a trap. The Lieutenant contemplated expressing his concern to Vader, but decided to keep it to himself; judging by how empty the Temple was, it was highly unlikely that there would be any kind of trap. And even then, Vader alone could easily survive it. Eventually, the two of them entered a large chamber, where Tohm caught notice of a shrine. On top of it, there was a round, golden sphere, with runes and symbols etched into it's surface, much like the rest of the Temple.

Vader walked towards the shrine slowly, his Lightsaber humming softly at his side. Laurita kept his pistol close to his face, his one good eye darting all around the chamber. Reaching out with the Force, Vader pulled the small sphere to his hand. Immediately, Tohm started to hear whispers, and could already feel the hairs on the back of his neck rise; something was wrong. And though Laurita was no Jedi in any way, he knew that for a fact. Then, Tohm saw a spark come from Vader's hand, as his left glove ignited. Vader winced, dropping the sphere, before Tohm heard the sounds of multiple Lightsabers igniting all at once. He looked around rapidly, seeing multiple hooded figures carrying multiple blue and green Lightsabers. "Jedi!" He shouted, aiming his pistol at the figures. "They knew we were here for the map!"

One of the figures immediately charged towards the pair. Acting quickly, Tohm opened fire on the Jedi, only to see his blaster bolts deflect off the blue-bladed Lightsaber. Then, out of nowhere, a huge piece of rock smashed into the Jedi, instantly crushing their body. Sparks flew from the body, followed by a metal hand dropping to the floor. "These are no Jedi." Vader said to Laurita, blasting another one of the figures into a wall. "Merely their training droids." Laurita nodded, continuing to shoot at what he now knew to be droids carrying Lightsabers. The training droids acted faster, blocking his blaster fire with speed unlike anything he had ever seen before. Vader reached out with the Force again, hurling several rocks at the training droids and crushing them against the wall. Looking down at his feet, Laurita put his blaster back in it's holster and grabbed the star map up off the ground. Almost as soon as he did so, however, Laurita screamed, feeling the palm of his hand blister with heat.

Unable to bear the pain of holding the star map, Tohm threw it to Vader, who caught it with his now exposed free hand, before driving it into the face of one of the droids. Another droid gripped their Lightsaber with both hands, preparing to slice off Vader's head, until the Dark Lord bisected the droid. Pulling his blaster back out of it's holster, Laurita aimed for the ankles of the droids, destroying their feet with every shot he made. With the flick of the wrist, Vader hucked his Lightsaber at the droids while they were on the floor, his crimson blade slicing them up into pieces. Retrieving his weapon, Vader dropped the star map and reached out with the Force one last time, hurling a fallen piece of the wall at the few remaining droids and crushing them where they stood.

Back onboard the ship, Trachta observed the Emperor closely in the Bacta pod, keeping an eye on his vital signs. Around the pod, the few TK-Troopers he, Vader, and Tohm had brought with them to Khemenor were standing guard, as per Vader's instruction. Out of nowhere, however, Trachta began to hear beeping; not the beeping of the machines keeping the Emperor alive, but beeping from the 2-1B Surgical Droid that was onboard. Through his ocular camera, Trachta observed the droid closely from behind, watching it's golden eyes turn a stark red. "Reprogramming sequence complete." The droid announced. "Prepare to die, meatbag." Immediately, Trachta pulled out one of his blasters, but the droid acted faster, knocking the weapon from his hand.

Fully turning around, Trachta pulled out his other blaster, this time pulling the trigger. Right as he did so, however, the droid bashed it's wrist against his own, causing him to shoot one of the control panels instead. The TK-Troopers in the room raised their blasters at the droid, who seized Trachta by the throat and hurled him against the wall, before turning it's attention to the troopers. Trachta coughed, getting back up and charging the droid, tackling it against the Bacta pod. The droid jammed it's elbow into one of Trachta's cybernetic eyes, grabbing him by the side of the head and smashing him against a pipe. Looking back at the TK-Troopers, the droid pulled out a surgical knife, slicing open the throat of one trooper, before punching another in the face, causing the soldier's mask to crack.

Trachta growled, leaping over the Bacta pod and driving both fists against the droid's head. The last TK-Trooper backed away slowly, blaster still aimed at the droid whilst Trachta attacked it. The droid attempted to drive it's surgical knife through Trachta's heart, but missed, slicing open his right sleeve instead. Trachta made a move to punch the droid, but the droid seized him by the throat yet again, hoisting him high in the air and choking him. "Tell me, Moff Trachta..." A voice coming from the droid began. "How does it feel to have failed in protecting your so-called 'Emperor'...?" Trachta bashed his wrists against the droid's forearm, attempting to break free; but to no avail. "G-Gentis..." He whispered to himself, still gagging.

Suddenly, the TK-Trooper behind the medical droids opened fire, first grazing Trachta's other sleeve, and then hitting the droid in the shoulder. The droid dropped Trachta, marching towards the trooper. Trachta quickly got back up, once again tackling the droid against the ground. The droid was quick to fight back, kicking Trachta in the chest and sending him smashing against the Bacta pod. Trachta groaned, rising back up slowly, as he watched the last remaining TK-Trooper have his neck sliced open. Leaping forward, Trachta tackled the droid and pinned it down against the floor. "You will NEVER be Emperor!" He yelled, driving his fists through the droid's chest and up towards it's head, tearing it apart and instantly shutting it down.

Once Trachta knew he had fully disabled the droid, he ripped his hands out of it's skull, standing back up slowly. He looked around, seeing several control panels sparking from the shots that had been fired, along with the bodies of the dead TK-Troopers and the cracked glass of the Emperor's Bacta pod. Then, out of nowhere, he heard the sounds of mechanical breathing, and turned around, seeing Tohm and Vader standing opposite him. "What happened!?" Tohm asked frantically. "That infernal contraption tried to kill me." Trachta replied, pointing to the 2-1B that now lay in a mess at his feet. "Gentis somehow hacked into it. It managed to kill all the troops we took with us, but luckily, the Emperor remains unharmed." He continued.

Vader stepped forward, holding a round, golden sphere with runes etched into it everywhere. Trachta stared at Vader's left hand, which he noticed was scorched; the glove around it had been completely eviscerated, as were the plates on what he now knew to be a cybernetic hand, much like his own. "That is the star map to The Prism, I assume?" Trachta asked. "You are correct, Moff Trachta." Vader replied. "CASTRE, translate the runes on this device." He added on. "As you wish, my Lord." The voice of CASTRE, the artificial intelligence interface within Vader's mask, replied. Trachta began hearing the sounds of scanning, and folded his arms, tapping his foot lightly until the noises stopped. "The Prism is located on the fringe of Wild Space, my Lord. Specifically in the mass shadow of the sixth moon of Diab." CASTRE announced.

"The sixth moon of Diab..." Laurita repeated. "I never imagined the Jedi's secret prison being located there of all places." Trachta walked around the Bacta pod, picking up his blasters and placing them back into their holsters. "At least we have somewhere to hide until the Emperor fully recovers." He said. "Yes, but what if there's still security there?" Laurita asked. "Like Jedi, or even Clones who didn't receive Order Sixty-Six?" If Trachta still had anything for a mouth, he would have cracked a grin. "Then we deal with them ourselves." He replied, beginning to march towards the cockpit. "I'll pilot the ship, since that droid killed our last one." Trachta added on. Tohm looked at Vader for a moment, and then joined Trachta in the cockpit, before the ship left the landing platform and blasted off, leaving Khemenor behind.

16 BBY - "Coruscant, The Successor"

General Saul Gentis stood at the bridge of his flagship The Successor, arms folded behind his back, as he gazed down upon the ruins of the Imperial Palace. He smiled, not only relishing in the sight of the wasteland that his bioweapon, Aorth-6, had created, but also his achievement; after years of meticulous planning, he had finally taken out Emperor Palpatine. Now the throne was his, and all who opposed him, Officers, soldiers, and even Inquisitors, were to be hunted down and exterminated, just as the Jedi were three years prior. Gentis's smile grew at the thought of his grand design. Moreover, the thought of the Inquisitorius, former Jedi that the Emperor had trained, being hunted alongside their brothers and sisters.

"Sir?" One of the Imperial Officers asked. "What is it?" Gentis asked in reply. "Your visitor is here." The Officer announced. At that moment, the doors hissed open, and Gentis could hear the sounds of shuffling around. "Unhand me, you traitors!" A voice shouted. "Quiet." A TK-Trooper simply responded. The shuffling continued, before the man behind Gentis winced, as he fell to his knees. The two TK-Troopers exited the bridge, before Gentis turned around slowly; opposite Gentis, there was a man with light brown hair, who wore a white Imperial Officer's uniform. Judging by the plaque on his chest, Gentis knew this man to be a Commander too. He chuckled to himself. "Orson Callan Krennic..." He began, walking up to the man. "I am pleased to meet you. Granted, I wish it were under better circumstances..." Gentis continued.

Orson Krennic looked up at Gentis, scowling. "I'm not so pleased to see you...     Saul Gentis, usurper of the Imperial throne." Krennic declared. "Oh, I've been told that a number of times by the other Imperials I have captured..." Gentis quickly replied. "Especially from your good friend Galen Erso." Krennic's scowl grew. "Where have you taken these 'other Imperials'?" He asked angrily. "Erso's being put to work on Narkina Five." Gentis replied. "As are the others." He added on, taking off a holoprojector from his belt. "Now...      Would you be so kind as to tell me what this little toy of he Emperor's is?" He asked, activating the holoprojector to reveal a holographic image of a sphere; a sphere that appeared to be physically incomplete in construction.

Krennic's eyes widened with shock. "When and how did you discover that!?" He demanded. "On the way to Tantiss, my men and I happened to discover numerous suspicious resource allocations from planets like Narkina." Gentis calmly replied. "Eventually, my spies discovered this contraption. Now, let me ask you this, Orson: what is it's name and what is it designed for?" Krennic bit his lip, continuing to scowl at Gentis. "You don't deserve to know what that is." He replied. "It is the Emperor's own project...      And you, 'old friend', are not the Emperor." Krennic continued. "Strike a nerve, did I now?" Gentis asked. "In any case, that tells me you are involved with this project of Palpatine's..." He added on, staring at the holoprojection. "As a matter of fact, I am." Krennic sternly replied. "As is Galen Erso, who you've made your slave on Narkina."

Gentis took in a deep breath, still smiling. "Forgive me, Orson, but I don't believe I summoned you here to be annoyed as you are." He said. "You speak of summoning me here, yet it was through brute force that allowed us to see each other here now." Krennic replied. Gentis looked at the hologram once again, then back at Krennic. "By the looks of things, this...      Project, as you call it, may very well exceed all expectations. Perhaps, once my takeover of this Empire is finished and it's construction is complete, I may use it for my own intents and purposes." Gentis said. For a moment, a smug grin came across Krennic's face, before it quickly faded. ''That weapon will be your undoing, Saul." Krennic declared. "Just like how serving the Republic turned out to be the undoing of all but one of your sons."

At that moment, Gentis's smile finally faded. "You...    You dare speak of my sons in such a crude manner?" He asked. "If the Emperor, the true Emperor is dead as you believe him to be, that weapon in your hands, my Stardust will be your downfall..." Krennic began. "...Just as that petty little virus of yours was his downfall." He finished. Gentis snarled, placing his index finger atop Krennic's head. "You have no idea what it is that you are spouting to me, Orson." He said through gritted teeth. "Oh, I know." Krennic replied. "The worst part is..      You will not live long enough to see the sunrise of your rule because of it." Gentis bit his lip, taking his index finger away from Krennic's head. The door behind him hissed open, and two TK-Troopers forced Krennic back onto his feet, marching him out of the bridge. "Go to Narkina, and rot!" Gentis shouted. "Your 'Stardust' will be mine, and only then will the Empire thrive under my rule..       A rule which you will not live long enough to see!"