Chapter 36: Grave Mistakes

My head throbbed with the worst hangover I had ever had, and almost by instinct something within me longed to reach out for more alcohol to dull that pain.

But I held back. I am not Rick. I am not weak. I don't need to run from my fears.

Or so I told myself, and lies as they might have been, they helped me get up and go on.

I rubbed my temples, and cracked my neck, almost atrophied from sleeping on a chair.

"Urngh!" I moaned, stretching when I caught Ahsoka and Offee looking at me.

"What?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"What? What do you mean what? First you run out of the funeral, looking like you've seen a ghost, and then you came here last night drunk off your wits and just dropped a prosthetic on us as if that ....just!" Ahsoka huffed, worry clear in her eyes.

"What Ahsoka is saying is that we're worried." Offee said. Her first complete sentence in our time together.

Looks like someone has made improvements.

"Exactly! Are you hurt? Or sad? Or ... something. Just tell us. We want to help you. We're friends after all!" Ahsoka cried.

"Of course. But there's nothing wrong. I just had to process some things and ...." Then I realized something and my eyes shot open in alarm.

"Hold on! What's the time?" I asked.

"Noon. Why?" Ahsoka replied.

"I am late! I need to meet someone today. It's important!" I said, jumping to my feet, only to stumble onto the bed, pushing Offee down beneath me.

"Sorry about that." I said, seeing Offee's flustered face and got off her, twitching my legs.

Then, sure of myself, I stood back up and this time I stood right.

I extended Offee a hand and pulled her up with me, before I smelt the stink coming off of me.

"Uh....before I go, do you mind if I use your toilet?" I asked.

"Sure." Offee replied, while Ahsoka looked at me with a certain intensity, and stormed off.

Once I was clean, I walked out, picking up my things.

Just as I was about to leave though, Offee caught my hand.

"Hm?" I intoned.

"Yesterday...you said that you wanted me safe, even if I hated you for it. But the truth is, I don't.

I don't hate you. I don't blame you either.

What happened to master Luminara, wasn't your fault, so don't.... don't blame yourself." She said, looking me in the eyes.

I nodded, bearing a gentle smile, and rubbed her hand.

"Don't worry, I won't."

With that, I left for the jedi council hall.

I had a man to persuade.

And trust to earn

Asking around, I found my way to the jedi council, and found the conference room empty.

What?

"Hey!" I asked a nearby apprentice, "Do you know where I can find master Windu?"

"Master Windu? He is in the hangar, preparing for his newest assignment. He is scheduled to depart today." The apprentice informed.

Wait, he is leaving today?

That means...the siege of Ryloth is about to begin!

I have no time!

He can't be allowed to leave today. Not if I want to have any hope of pulling off my takeover.

I looked around spotting a window behind the padawan, and ran to it, climbing off the ledge when suddenly a force took hold of me throwing me back into the hallway.

"What are you thinking? You were about to jump off the 140th floor!" The boy screamed at me.

"Yeah. I was going to fly to the hangar. Until you stopped me." I snapped back, my sense of urgency pounding at me. Or maybe that was just the hangover.

"How? Can you fly?" He asked, suddenly intrigued.

"Yeah. With my jetpack." I replied, standing back up.

"What jetpack?" He asked innocently.

"What jetpack? My jetpa-" I stopped and a chill ran down my spine, as I felt out for it with my power.

I looked down at myself. Then at my arm.

I patted my back.

Yup. I'm not wearing my armor.

I'm not wearing my goddamn armor!

Of course I'm not. It was broken less than two days ago and I spent half of that time dead drunk.

I turned to the boy and pulled him into a hug.

"You saved my damn life! You...you... What was your name again?"

"Caleb Dume." He replied, raising an eyebrow.

Oh that guy! I realized.

Rebel extraordinaire and the future leader of the spectre cell ghost squad.

I patted his back.

"Thanks a bunch Caleb. I owe you one for that. I got really drunk last night and well, the hangover is killing me. Kinda forgot I didn't have my armor on.

Anyways, gotta go. But thanks. Again. If you ever need help with anything tech related, ask for commander Walker under General Obi Wan. I'll do my best to sort your shit out." I said, running off as Caleb awkwardly waved back.

Rushing into a bathroom, I opened a portal to my room and picked off my forcefield generator, clipping it to my hip, and alongside the blaster I picked off of a droid in the Tranquility.

On second thought, I stepped in closer and opened a drawer, pulling out armlet. Snapping it shut around my wrist, I pressed a button and watched it expand to become a gauntlet of gleaming dark blue with a tiny tilt on the top.

It was my new weapon, I nicknamed the jedi killer.

A taser bolt within a taser bolt.

With that done, I grabbed my shoulder pads and closed the portal.

Then, jacking into the temple system I found out the shortest path to the hangar and took to running, even as I began to place my resource orders through Palapatine's channels and accounts, knowing that he would soon be informed of this and fall into panic, right where I needed him.

Meanwhile, I slid into the hangar, dashing throught he ships and crates before I saw him.

Mace Windu, the most zealous jedi in the order.

And he was boarding his ship.

Fuck! Fuck!

No dammit!

I broke into a sprint, my legs aching from my parkour run across the temple, as the ship began to lift the bay doors closing.

Finally, with no other way out, I decided to take the risk.

I took in a deep breath and shouted at the tops of my lungs.

"Master Windu! Wait! I have information about the sith! Right here on Coruscant!"

This was a big risk considering that the chancellor had spies and wiretaps everywhere.

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If I failed here, I might just have to flee or brute force this part of my plan, something I'd rather not risk.

Thankfully though, it seemed to have caught his attention, just as the bay doors were about to close.

These was a clamoring in the shuttle but I couldn't see it, as I fell to the floor panting.

Even without my beer gut and four months of exercise, I was still in no shape to sprint the 3 or so kilometers I had just done.

A new achievement even, though it came at the cost of the cramps that were climbing up my legs as I spoke.

A trail of footsteps tapped away, nearing me and I lifted my head to see Samuel L Jackson's face staring back at me.

"Who are you?" He asked, his brows furrowed.

"Commander....hah...hah...Walker. Under General Obi Wan." I panted.

"Check that." He ordered one of his officers as he knelt to my level.

"Speak." He said, his eyes staring right into mine, his tone threatening.

"There is a sith lord on Coruscant." I began, "He is a member of the senate. And he has been manipulating the jedi, orchestrating this civil war for some time now. His name is Darth Sidious. Or at least his sith title is. His real name I cannot tell you until you promise me that you will take him down."

"That is treasonous speech, commander. But I will choose to believe you if you can show me the proof."  He said, his grimace lightening.

"Yes, of course." I said, pulling out a transceiver, "I have proof!"

I pressed on a button on the transceiver and a video started playing.

In it Darth Sidious ordered Count Dooku to seek out a deal with the Kaminoans and start preparation on a clone army under the name of the jedi, to force them into battle, while he claimed that he would work to rile up sentiments of secession among his fellow senators.

I pressed the button again, and again, revealing logs upon logs of calls between Dooku and Sidious, as Mace Windu's expression dimmed and darkened, fury replacing his stoic facade.

But he wasn't fully convinced yet.

"How long have you had this?" He asked.

"Four, five months now." I replied, "I stole this when I rescued General Skywalker and his padawan from Grevious's ship."

"And why didn't you take it to General Obi Wan first? Don't you trust him?"

"I do. But he has too much faith in the republic and the senate. He wouldn't have taken matters into his own hands, instead revealing the plot to everyone, allowing the traitors to fake alibis and testomonies or even flee! I couldn't take that chance. The lives of not only the clone troopers bit also the citizens of both the republic and the confederacy depend on it! I couldn't risk it. That's when I heard about you master Windu. You have a reputation for being true to your cause, and a straightforward in your approach. I knew I could trust you to do the right thing for everyone. Besides, you are on the council. Your word will mean more than that of General Obi Wan. And the faster the sith are dealt with, the fewer the lives lost there will be! Don't the jedi believe in peace and preservation of life?"

"I see." He replied, his anger barely contained, "I promise, commander, I will do everything in my power to take down these sith hiding among us. Tell me, who are they?"

Just then, I got a signal from the chancellor's office.

His contacts had called in to confirm my drafts and he was officially in panic mode, calling on Dooku, probably to conduct an investigation.

Perfect. Using my power, I delayed his call to Dooku, while I led the jedi and troopers to the senate building.

"Even better. Let me show you." I said, getting back on my feet, "But before that why don't we call on some reinforcements? Maybe ask master Yoda or master Mundi to tag along."

"No need." He said, full of confidence, the way only someone who believes themselves to be the chosen one could be, "I can take down a sith lord any day. Take me to him."

"If you insist." I shrugged, silently sending an SOS to Anakin and Obi Wan with the chancellor's office as the beacon.

Just because Windu is full of himself doesn't mean I have to be too.

"Follow me." I said, leading him and his troppers up the steps to the tower.

Meanwhile, I engaged Palapatine in a conversation with Dooku, or at least a deepfake of him I had patched together from their call logs. And given that I had used Rick's technology, I was far better than your average fake call, with a whole vocabulary, voice modulation and programmed in speech patterns and body language.

It even had a feedback to me, so that I could control it remotely.

By the time we arrived at his door, he was furiously listing off his contacts and detailing his plans to the A.I. Dooku, when I came to a stop before his door.

"You can't be serious!" Mace Windu whispered.

"See for yourself, master Windu." I said, patching through the live feed from his conversation onto my transceiver, as I pushed open the door.

"....and get in contact with Rothana heavy industries' vice executive, Mon Faran, he has the charters fo-"

The transceiver image shouted just as Palpatine did, confirming Windu's suspicions.

Palpatine, startled by the door being pushed open, turned to face us, and his jaw dropped.

His face soured even more when he saw the naked rage on Mace Windu's face, as his purple lightsaber burst into action.

"Wait! I can explain!" He screamed, while I took control of the simulacra on the holo desk and waved.

"Look here, Darth Sidious!" I said, and the hologram mirrored my waving, "I think there's nothing to explain here. You've been punked, bitch!"

Windu looked at me disapprovingly, and nodded.

The clone troopers levelled their guns at the chancellor, and blocked off his exit.

"Surrender peacefully, chancellor Palpatine, and we may yet let you stand trial in the court of law." Mace Windu said, stepping forward.

"No!" Palpatine screamed, raising his hands, letting loose bolts of force lightning upon us.

Mace Windu instantly stepped forward, blocking the force lightning with his lightsaber, shielding us.

A white and blue glimmer manifested atop his purple blade, redirecting the lightning away from us like a dam on a raging river.

It wouldn't have hurt me either way, with my forcefield active at all times.

But then, using Windu's defensive as his opportunity, he force grabbed his desk and overturned it, distracting Windu, giving Palpatine the upper hand.

In an instant, Palpatine had pulled out his own lightsaber, deflecting our blaster fire back at us, killing two.

Windu on the other hand, crouched low and bolted for his sides, his lightsaber held straight for a thrust.

But Palpatine was no chum.

He heaved his hand as if lifting a great weight, or wading through thick mud, and threw Windu to the glass window, shattering it, sending him tumbling down the senate building.

Then I spotted a glint in his eye, the kind that betrays decisive cunning and cruelty, something I knew all too well.

I raised the taser glove at him, when I noticed something strange.

The sound of blaster fire beside me had stopped.

In that moment, I felt a force push me away, slamming me into the hallway, with enough force to crack my bones.

I felt my shoulder break, rendering my arm inert.

I looked at the troopers beside me and saw their bodies decaying into husks.

Palpatine on the other hand looked younger and healthier than he had been mere moments ago.

I could feel my stomach sink as the realisation dawned on me.

He had improved, beyond what the canon had shown. He had mastered the arts of Plagueis, the method to drain life from someone.

No wonder he was always talking down about Plagueis in the movie, calling his death ironic.

He would obviously feel pride, thinking himself superior to his master, if he had become able to do what he believed Plagueis could not. Stopping death for himself.

A devious smile spread on his face, my stomach turned and my instincts screamed at me to run away.

He stood back up, as I struggled to get my muscles back under my control, and pressed on the transceiver on his desk. Even debilitated, my power could make out the breadth of his broadcast.

And I knew then exactly what he was planning to do.

I reached out with my power, desperately, connecting to the system and taking control.

Dread filled me at the thought of my plans failing.

"Please work please workpleasework!" I cried, pushing my power beyond it's limits.

And I watched him mouth the words.

"Execute order 66."

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