Dawn of Forever, Part XXV

Annika was still disoriented from connecting with the Borg. "Jorri's dead," she said.

"That's the point, Seven," the Oracle said. "That is the cause of all the sadness, isn't it? Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could undo that tragedy?" Annika said nothing. "You do remember what happened to Ben Skywalker, don't you? Even death must yield to my will."

"That's completely different," Annika said.

"No," the Oracle said. "Only because you do not comprehend what the Dark side can accomplish."

"Ben was dead for minutes," Annika said. "Jorri's been dead and buried for over a year."

"Oh please, use your wits, Seven," the Oracle said with annoyance. "I'm the Oracle. What is time to me?"

"You're twisted, captain," Annika said. "I don't believe you."

The Oracle scoffed. "The Empress no doubt thought the same when I offered to bring back her son. You are all blinded by your dogmatic beliefs that the dark side is inherently evil. Death and life are different sides of the same coin, Seven; do you truly think we can master one and not the other? You already know that Palpatine managed to resurrect Darth Whind from the dead, and he lacked my experience."

"All you have done has been to further the cause of evil," Annika said. "You've allowed untold numbers of people to die in the name of your personal cause, because you've become so obsessed with your guilt that you would raze whole systems to try and satisfy it."

"I'll use the tactics of my enemies against them," the Oracle said sharply. "I have no qualms about that."

"And that shows just how much you've changed," Annika replied.

"Seven," the Oracle said, "think very carefully about what I'm offering here. I can undo the tragedy that has destroyed your son's life. I can save him from despair... and from giving in to his hatred." She held up her hand, and a glowing sphere shimmered in the air. Inside it, amidst the rubble of some world, Sebastian and Ben were battling each other. "Very soon," the Oracle said. "His father... his grandfather... Skywalker men don't deal well with loss, do they?"

"Stop it!"

"You thought it was hard to face Luke?" the Oracle said. "Tell me... how will you feel when Sebastian kills Ben... and takes his place as my apprentice?"

"You - are - LYING!" Annika lunged, but was tossed back by a Force push.

"I don't have to lie, Seven," the Oracle said. "The truth is so much worse than any fiction I could devise. What will you do, Seven, when your daily torture sessions resume, conducted by your own son? What will you do when I send him out to slaughter the Jedi one by one? Especially now, when you can look back and see that the horrible future I foretold to you could have been averted, if you'd only joined with me." The Oracle sat down. "Your decision will not hamper me in the slightest," she explained. "The Empire is about to fall. All it will change will be how many must die afterwards. If you help me, lives will be spared... starting with your own."

Annika fumed. "Even if I went along with this," she said, "you have harassed my family for too long. Knowing your sadism, captain, you'd probably bring Jorri back just so you could kill her again."

"Really, Seven, this irrational hatred for me is getting tiresome. You and your family are dangerous, yes, so we'll have to reach an agreement. Banishment seems fair enough. You and Sebastian help me, and I'll give you back Jorri, Morgan, and a ship to take you beyond the galaxy. Stay out of our affairs, and I'll ensure my Federation stays out of yours."

"In return for helping you destroy the Borg, right?" Annika said.

The Oracle nodded, clearly pleased. "Very astute. With the Empire fallen, the Borg will remain the only significant threat. Between the two of you, I'm certain you can destroy the Collective once again. And really, wouldn't you sleep better at night knowing they were gone?"

"I'll take Borg over Sith any day of the week," Annika said.

The Oracle sighed. "Your stubbornness is irritating, Seven. You are not being logical about this. I have already shown you that my victory is inevitable. It was only by your admittedly clever treachery I haven't already succeeded, but all you've done is delayed me, not denied me. I'm going to destroy the Empire, and the Borg, and the Vong, and I will reunite the galaxies under my Federation, and there is nothing you can do to prevent that. I have already foreseen the outcome."

"Luke said the future is in motion," Annika said.

"If he were so wise, why isn't he still alive?" A smile flickered on the Oracle's face at the sight of Annika's rage. "For someone who so despises the Sith, you so easily embrace anger and hate."

"I have emotions," Annika said. "The difference is that they don't control me."

"Your emotions are the only thing keeping you from recognizing the generosity of my offer," the Oracle said. She got to her feet. "Consider my proposal, Seven, but do so quickly. While I may be unbound by time, you are not." And she walked out, sealing Annika's cell behind her.

Timing was critical. Subtle movements, blending into shadows, finding out-of-the-way places to go unnoticed, avoiding security sensors. Ben and Molly managed to avoid any confrontations until they reached the turbolift. At this point, it was unavoidable. There were six stormtroopers waiting there; against two Sith, they didn't stand a chance. Molly reached out to one and began to Force choke him while stepping forward and cutting another down with her lightsaber. Ben's dual blades and incredible speed allowed him to quickly slip through their ranks and cut the other four down in about one second. The remaining trooper dropped to his knees, grasping futilely at his throat, until there was a sickening crack and he collapsed. The turbolift opened and Ben gestured, and the corpses piled inside out of sight. It'd buy them the couple minutes needed to get to the right floor. Molly liberated a few thermal detonators from the cadavers.

The doors opened on the turbolift, and as expected, someone was waiting. Ben, having put away one of his lightsabers for the moment, raised his hand, and they were all blasted off their feet. Alarms sounded as the two Sith strode out of the elevator. A squad of stormtroopers rushed around the corner, weapons at the ready. Ben pointed at one of the officers that had been waiting for the turbolift, and the unfortunate man was hoisted off his feet, screaming in terror before his body was hit by blaster fire. Ben held out the palm of his hand, and the corpse rocketed through the air at them, hitting two and forcing the rest to scramble for cover. Those who did manage to get some shots off at him found him deflecting the bolts one-handed right back at them. There was no time to waste, however, so Ben followed Molly through the blast door before it closed, then stabbed it with his lightsaber.

General Taar was in his office when the guards burst in. "Sir," Major Dem said quickly, "we have to move you. There's been a security breach."

Taar got quickly to his feet, falling in with the rest of his escort. He assigned people to important tasks that he knew would properly handle them, and his safety had been no different. If they felt this was necessary, there was no time to ask for details before reaching a decision. "What's the nature of the threat?" he asked as they moved.

"Jedi, or Sith," the major said. "I could never tell them apart, sir."

"Given recent relations, equal are likely," Taar admitted. Fortunately he'd taken precautions. "Do we need to leave the ship?"

"They're on the upper levels, sir, not near the vital systems" the major said. "The ship itself doesn't appear to be a target. We'll be able to protect you." Taar nodded, and the group entered the turbolift to head for the lower level, then they quickly escorted him to the safe room.

Automated defenses were triggered, for all the good they did. Ben and Molly easily deflected their blasts right back into the weapons themselves, and some surgical application of Force lightning prevented the number of systems from being overwhelming. The defenses slowed them, but not by much. They reached the end of the corridor, and ducked behind opposite walls. There were about a hundred stormtroopers waiting for them. Ben pulled out his other lightsaber and lit it, then nodded to Molly. She took out the thermal detonators and they hovered in the air before her. She ground her teeth in concentration, then armed the thermal detonators and sent them flying amongst the troopers.

As the explosions went off, Ben dashed around the corner and charged. The Oracle had been right; they were far beneath him, but in numbers even they could be a challenge. He had to move quickly, trusting fully in his instincts to stay ahead of the blaster bolts while the confusion of the moment bought him a few seconds. From the outside, it looked like every movement was meticulously plotted. Ben would swing up with his left lightsaber through some trooper, catch a blaster bolt at the top of the arc and deflect it back at another trooper, pivot and bring it around and downward to decapitate another and cut yet another's blaster rifle in half. At the same time his right lightsaber deflected two blaster bolts, skewered a trooper in the face while catching a third bolt, then slicing two troopers across the chest through his pivot. Even Molly was astounded at his movements. And he's only second best? she thought.

Ben was horribly outnumbered, but the troopers had to avoid hitting each other, and with him wading amongst them, there were only so many that could get in line of fire in the first place. And Ben was always moving, and there seemed to be no pattern to his attack. Blaster fire scorched the air around him, but he himself was always untouched. As impossible as it might have seemed, Ben eliminated half of the stormtrooper forces in those first twelve seconds. However, the troopers soon adapted, and half the group backed away from the Sith, getting out of his range and taking aim. That's when Molly sprung. She wasn't as fast or as brutal as Ben, but she had surprise. By the time the troops rallied Ben had finished off the other troopers and joined his companion. At just over thirty seconds after the thermal detonators exploded, the last stormtrooper helmet hit the floor and rolled several meters. Still, time was on the Empire's side, so as soon as the stormtroopers were eliminated Ben and Molly sprinted in the direction of the war room.

Blast doors had been closed, naturally, but it only slowed the two Sith down. There was a steady rhythm heard throughout the deck of the heavy armored plates toppling and hitting the deck as they worked their way closer and closer. More stormtroopers appeared, only to be cut down while the Sith continued towards their goal.

As they reached the war room, another massive stormtrooper force appeared. Ben ground his teeth, but he knew that without another distraction, charging would be suicide. He deactivated and put away both his sabers, then began assembling the light-fan he'd used back on the space station when he'd first rescued Molly all those years before. It was an effective weapon, but never very satisfying. He clicked the pieces into place, then activated the four blades. They spun rapidly, then with a quick movement he threw it, causing it to tear through the trooper ranks like a diamond drill through talc. Molly took advantage of the distraction to charge while Ben carefully held the weapon in a Force grip. Unfortunately, a lucky shot struck the center of the weapon and it exploded, taking out another five troopers. Ben cursed; the weapon had taken a great deal of time and ingenuity. He pulled out his sabers, lit them, and vented his rage on the remaining troopers until he and Molly were surrounded by bodies.

Ben and Molly quickly sliced through the doorway into the war room. They were met by blaster fire, but it was from Imperial officers, feeble men and women who were only operating on base survival instincts. It would be unfair to describe the annihilation of the stormtroopers outside as a slaughter, because it would leave no suitable word to describe the quick, brutal, and efficient extermination of everyone in that room. After that was complete, Ben and Molly destroyed the electronics as well.

Reinforcements had arrived outside the room, and now it was going to be an even more serious fight. Earlier, that would have pleased Ben, but after having done all this, it felt hollow. All he'd done was further the Oracle's goals, nothing more, nothing for himself. It stripped the entire affair of everything, so that it felt utterly meaningless.

"We're heading back to the docking bay," he announced to Molly.

"I thought you wanted to stay a while and enjoy yourself?"

"Just do it!" Ben snapped, then charged into the mob of troopers.

The safe room was designed to live up to its name. Its walls, floor, and ceiling were made of the same material they used to armor hulls. The life support was independent of the rest of the ship, so contagions couldn't be introduced. Hundreds of armed stormtroopers with weapons of every sort, from blaster rifles to slug-throwers to E-webs to ion weapons were stationed all around it, and the door was locked on a circuit that could only be controlled from inside the room. Once inside, the only way to hurt the occupants was to blow up the ship. But General Taar always believed that when it came too safety, it was hard to go too far. That's why, despite the confusion it had caused in his staff, he had ysalamiri put behind his chair, in case the Jedi decided to make good on their threat against him.

The door was sealed. Major Dem stood in the room with him, along with his most trusted guard. Both had their blasters out and ready, just in case it should come to this. It was ridiculous, really, to think they could stop what the small army outside could not, but Taar found himself pulling out his own blaster anyway.

Suddenly, there was a sickening cracking sound, and the two guards were clutching at their throats. Taar had heard enough about Lord Vader's means of discipline to know what was going on, and he quickly looked about the room, but saw no one. Still, the Force reached through walls; he'd heard about what had happened to Ozzel. In the bubble created by the ysalamiri, there was nothing they could do to him, so he just watched helplessly as the two men dropped to the floor, dead.

Taar jumped as he heard the sound of a lightsaber igniting. But the room was empty! He whirled around and pointed his blaster in the direction of the sound, and-

And the blood froze in his veins. Standing there was Grand Admiral Thrawn, a burn mark on his chest from where he'd been run through. Fear took hold of him for a moment, and in that moment, Thrawn raised the saber and tossed it end over end. It plunged into Taar's chest even as the old soldier caught the hilt, holding it in place. He felt the cold grow through his body, but it was nothing compared to the sight of the approaching Thrawn.

Then Thrawn stepped into the bubble, and he evaporated, leaving only a blue-skinned Twi'lek woman. She reached down, took hold of the lightsaber, and removed it. Taar coughed weakly, and despite the situation, he had to smile a little. "It was.... so artfully done," he admitted. And then General Delric Taar died.

Go To Part XXVI
Back to Dawn of Forever