Geonosis

Darth Mainerd · Geonosis

I hope the length doesn't deter you.

Part I
An alarm blared, waking him up. His tired eyes snapped open, instantly alerting
himself. The timer ticked down and he pulled the lever, exiting from hyperspace. Taking
control of his TIE Defender, he flew it towards the planet looming in front of him. The
red, craggy surface of Geonosis became clearer, its ring of asteroids now clearly visible.
Moments passed and a transmission came in on his communicator.
“Craft, please identify yourself.”
“TIE Defender, pilot, Jark Gnagson.”
“We’re running your identification now.” The dull, metallic voice signed off, the
static from the Geonosis comm tower faded.
Jark Gnagson was the name that he selected when making the fake ID. It was not a
real name, though. He had erased all the registration for it so it could not be traced, then
he registered it, via hacking, to Jark Gnagson, an unknown renegade from Coruscant. He
had taken time selecting it; both Jark and Gnagson were very uncommon names, even on
densely populated worlds such as Coruscant.
“ID scanned. What is your business here?”
“Is this protocol?” His response came.
“Yes,” the comm said flatly.
“I’m looking for someone. No one specific, just a general someone who can help
me.”
“With?” He inquired.
“Repairs,” he said with little hesitation. It was true that his ship wasn’t totally
repaired, but he could manage that himself, mostly.
“We have shops you can come to.”
“No, thank you.”
“As you wish,” the comm said with a slight sigh of annoyance. He admitted,
though, that he was being sort of suspicious.
The reason he was here was to find a master; someone who could train him in the
ways of the Dark Side. On Coruscant, he had trained himself extensively with the Force,
lifting objects and manipulating people’s minds, as well as physically training himself on
various buildings. He also had a vibro-sword, but it was lost on Coruscant when he
escaped. There were no prints on it; he was wearing gloves, but even if there were, it
wouldn’t help them find someone who didn’t exist. Someone who had erased their past
and identity. He had a fake ID card, but it had too many links with stores, shops, and other
various places on Coruscant. That was why he had made a new fake one.
He was no one, detected and known only by a few Jedi.
He was Mainerd.
“You are clear to land, Mr. Gnagson. Yard 7, Platform B.”
“Thank you.”
The planet was getting significantly nearer so that he could see the lights of some
towns. It was dark on the side of the planet he was landing on. The coordinates for 7-B
were fed to his computer, and he flew towards it.
Moments later, he was there. He exited the TIE using a ladder they had for him.
They pulled it away when he got off, and a woman approached him.
“Jark Gnagson?”
Mainerd nodded, his hand near his blaster not suspiciously just in case.
“I will lead you to the city. There you can look for whoever you are looking for.”
“How are we getting there?” Mainerd asked, telekinetically adjusting the strap on
his rifle hanging on his back.
“A cab will drive you there. I’ll point out a few key locations, and from there you
can keep renting the cab or rent a speeder, whichever suits your finances.”
He nodded again, and they got in the cab.
He began to wonder. Since they arrived, he had not seen a single Geonosian. Were
they all in the cities, or did they all live out in the rocky, hive looking spires? He pushed it
back in his brain, still keeping it ready in case it became relevant later.
Mainerd was a thinker. He dwelt on things until he had several possibilities, so it
was difficult to simply push it back. It was a skill he was working on to avoid brain clutter
and to keep concentrated on what was happening in the present.
“You may also need to hire a translator droid,” the woman said from the front.
Mainerd, from the back, tilted his head up and asked, “To communicate with
Geonosians?”
“Probably not. Most of them have reclused themselves to their spires.”
He was right.
“There are a lot of outlaws et cetera here who you might need to speak to. Why
exactly are you looking for someone out here?”
“Is this protocol?” Mainerd asked again.
“No, just wondering.”
“Then you’ll have to keep doing so.” This was a bit rude, he knew, but he wasn’t
going to be interrogated by a cab guide.
The tour of the city was fairly short, only about thirty minutes.
“Do you have a place in mind?”
“Yes,” he said. “The Chimaera Cantina.”
“Rough place. You sure?”
“Positive.” The Force was tugging him in that direction. He wondered why it was
called what it was called. “Do you know why it’s called the Chimaera Cantina?”
“I believe it’s because the owner has chimaerism, having two DNA’s or
something.”
“Yes,” he confirmed. “He’s taken advantage of that, hasn’t he?”
“Oh, I don’t know about that. He runs the cantina, and that’s it. Everything else
that happens with him is unknown to everyone.”
The one I’m looking for? he wondered. He decided not to dwell on this until he
could meet this person. A couple of minutes later, the cab came to a halt in front of the
cantina.
The cab driver named the amount and Mainerd paid it, exiting the cab and walking
to the door. To his surprise, the woman came with him.
“Yes,” she said, as if knowing what he was going to ask. “This is protocol. All
guides must see their people to their destination safely.”
Mainerd grinned to himself, the half smile he used not showing on his face. Not
many people were able to predict his actions. She must’ve picked up on his actions.
The two entered the cantina and she motioned to the chimaeric alien, a husky,
brisk looking creature with bluish pale skin.
Mainerd approached, the guide following him.
“I’ve never heard of anyone asking him for help. Don’t know if he’s dangerous or
not.”
“I’m sure he isn’t,” Mainerd said.
“One can never be too sure.”
Again, he grinned imperceptibly to himself. That was one of his favorite sayings.
He was very cautious about almost everything.
“What’s his name?”
“People just call him Chimaera.”
He walked forward, continuing his stead pace, not wanting to walk too fast nor
too idly.
“Chimaera,” he said, feeling a surge of tension in the woman behind him.
The alien turned around. It was ugly, and he seemed angry.
“I’m looking for someone. Can we talk for a moment?”
His anger seemed to increase greatly.
“Make it quick,” he growled, walking around the counter.
“You may leave now, this is private business from here on out.”
“All right then. Enjoy your day.” With that, she turned and left, and Mainerd took
a seat from across the table of Chimaera.
“Whado you want?”
“I’m looking for someone. Do you think you could help?”
“Who?” He demanded furiously, the light skin turning darker and bluer.
“Someone who can help... teach me.” He picked his words carefully. He was fairly
eloquent, and he didn’t want to say something too vague or too specific.
“A teacher? Fa! You’re in the wrong place. Ev’ryone here’s a low life scoundrel.”
“No, you are incorrect. I am here and I am not a low life, nor am I a scoundrel.
And if there’s one, there can be more.”
Being corrected like this must’ve really made him mad, because his skin was
growing darker and his sparse, stubby hair was sticking up.
“There’s no teachers here, boy!”
“No trainers? Instructors? Educators? Anyone who could provide information
about anything about any of the mentioned peoples?”
With this, the blue stayed about the same, darkening slightly, but he was thinking.
His small, horizontally thin eyes squinted further.
“On a second thought, there may be someone.” Looking around, he shook his
head. “He’s gone.”
“Do you know where he is located?” He asked, hiding his slight anxiety.
“No, of course not, fool boy! Who d’you think I am?”
“My apologies,” Mainerd said, hiding his mild amusement. “Has he indeed gone or
has he not yet come?”
“He comes back every now and then. Usu’ly once or twice a day. Why?”
“I’m in kind of a hurry.”
“Haste makes waste,” he quoted.
With a slightly sardonic smile, Mainerd said, “I can wait for tomorrow. You
asked.”
With that, the alien stood up, picking up his flask with a four fingered hand.
“Come back tomorrow. Rent a hotel. There’s one across the street.”
“Thank you for your time, Chimaera.”
With that, and without ordering anything, he left. The place smelled rancid, like
years of the worst scoundrels and aliens, smoking, drinking, and stinking the place up with
their dirty bodies. Mainerd had never quite gotten used to that kind of smell, but this place
was worse, like it wasn’t maintained.
Via the Force, entering the alien’s mind, he could tell that he had earned a small
portion of Chimaera’s respect by not being intimidated by him. He could also tell that
Chimaera was still mad at him. He didn’t care though. Relations between him and others
didn’t matter if he was leaving to never see them again.
He rented a room in the hotel, and the next morning, he was sure that the smell
from the old hotel had saturated on his clothes. Another thing that didn’t matter to him.
He was going back into the cantina anyway.
He was ready quickly, and was standing by the room’s only window, feeling with
the Force the man that was described to him by Chimaera. After about an hour of
searching, he felt him and immediately left the building, walking into the bar. He threw a
quick glance at Chimaera, who nodded his head towards a corner. He nodded, although he
knew exactly where he was
He sat across from him.
He’s not Force-sensitive. Not the guy I’m looking for ultimately.
“What can I do for you?” He asked gravely, almost with a hint of politeness.
“I’ve heard you can help me find someone. A teacher, specifically an instructor.”
“Mmmm...” the man murmured. “Yeah.”
“Can you take me to him, or else direct me to him?”
“Yeah.” He was smiling.
“The catch?”
“You’ll have to prove yourself.” His smile broadened.
“How?”
“You,” he said, getting up. “Are going to have to fight me.”
Mainerd almost laughed. He stood up.
“If you insist,” he said with a slight smile of his own.
The man swung a fist, but Mainerd turned, grabbed the arm, brought it forward,
and turned himself so the man was directly behind him. He kicked backwards, hitting him
in the low gut, then, released his right arm, using it to thrust his elbow behind him, hitting
him in the face. All this was done in one swift motion, knocking the man to the ground.
Instead of becoming angry, like he expected, he stood up and wiped the blood
from his nose with his sleeve.
“Well done. I’m very impressed,” he said, sitting back down. “I can see continuing
will get me nowhere. I’ll tell you where he is. Several miles from here there is a spire. The
guy you’re looking for lives there. I know you’re wondering what it looks like, how you
know where it is, blah, blah, blah. I’ve got the coordinates at my place. As soon as I’m
done here, I’ll take you there, give you the coordinates, and you’re on your own.”
Mainerd was taken aback slightly by how easy that was. The man wasn’t lying, this
he was sure of.
“Excellent,” Mainerd said. “I’ll stay here until you’re done. Not here at this table, I
mean,” he added, seeing the frown on his face. The man simply nodded and dismissed him
with his hand.
The man was ready in about an hour, and he led Mained to his house, just like he
said, handing him the coordinates and going back inside his home. He went to the place
the woman had said loaned speeders, and he rented one. A fast, fairly expensive one, but
he was able to buy it. He hired a slicer to wire several thousand credits to his account,
giving the slicer fifteen percent as payment.
A gun then pointed at his head, the barrel leveling equal to the very back of his
head where the spine entered.
“Don’t move.” It was the guide woman from the shipyard.
“What are you doing? I’m not doing anything wrong, nor have I.”
“I’m not a cop,” she said. “And I’m not here to bring you in.”
“Then why are you pointing a gun at my head?”
“I’ll be truthful. I’ve been stalking you since you think I left.”
No way! Mainerd thought. I should’ve detected here. Another flaw in his sensory
skills.
“That’s nice. Thanks.”
“Shut up.” She said this like she was annoyed. “Bottom line,” she began. The gun
lowered and she pulled his arm to turn him around. “I’m coming with you.”
“What?” He said, almost laughing. “Why on this ugly red rock would you need or
even want to come with me?”
“I’ll tell you on the way there. It has to do with another lie I told you. When I said
that the Geonosians reclused themselves, that was false. We’ve pushed them back there
unfairly. I need to speak with the Archduke.”
“What was the first lie?” He asked.
“I am a cop. Sort of. I’m a member of the Geonosian Secret Police.”
“So you’re going against them to do this?”
“Yes,” she replied, with slight hesitation.
“You have everything?”
“Yes,” she said again. “I’ll tell you the whole story on the way there.”
“Wait, you know where they’re at?”
“Yes.”
“Is it here?” He held out the datapad.
“No.”
Great, he thought. Now I’m caught up in an ex-Secret Police’s mission to return
native species to cities. He didn’t want to let his impatience get in his way. Perhaps this
side-course was for a reason.
“All right,” he conceded. “I’ll take you there. However, you’ll have to come with
me on my original reason for going.”
“I know.”
“Okay then.” He got in the speeder, and she did likewise. The droid was put in the
back, and they set off to the spire, the woman giving the directions and plugging the
coordinates into the computer.

Part II
The landscape zoomed past them as they soared over the dusty, rocky plains of
Geonosis. If you would call them plains.
“There’s an abandoned spire,” she pointed out loudly, to overcome the sound of
the engine. “The Geonosians used to dwell there before they were kicked out.”
“It’s out of the city, though,” Mainerd responded.
“I know.”
She was genuinely concerned about them. Mainerd, on the other hand, could
hardly care less. It was out of the way of his mission, for one, and for two, the Geonosians
didn’t have a very nice history with their primitive arenas. Perhaps they had changed,
though.
“That droid of yours is rather quiet,” he remarked. “Unlike other protocol droids
I’ve encountered.”
“I know, isn’t it nice,” she said. “I had him programed like that. To keep his
vocabulator shut until I need him to translate. Or just to talk to him.” A brief period of
silence passed before the woman told him to turn slightly to keep on the course.
“You know, I never got your name,” he said.
“Yes, I know.”
“What is it?” He said after a few seconds.
“Angela,” she said.
“And you know who I am.”
“Do I?” She turned her head to face him. “You seem like a shady character. I’m
not sure if that’s an alias or not.”
His head kept facing forward, his eyes not moving. “You can’t be, you’re right.
And you should know that I’m not going to tell you.”
“Which is why I didn’t ask.”
He grinned to himself again. The landscape didn’t change for several minutes.
“Just how long away is this spire you’re looking for?”
“The Archduke lives very far from the city. Don’t get jittery, it’ll be quite a while
before we can get there.”
“From there, can you get a form of transportation?”
“I could probably mount some kind of a steed, why?” She gave him a mildly
confused look.
“My mission is urgent. I should take care of it as soon as possible. If it’s going to
take too long, you’ll have to find your own way back home.”
Her head turned forward again. “That’s not my home. Nor is it on this planet.”
“You work here.”
“Correct.”
“Homeless?” He asked, turning to face her. She didn’t answer, she just kept
looking forward, her face unreadable, her eyes steady. He turned back, checking the
monitor. The ETA was not posted.
“A craft like this is not equipped with an ETA indicator,” Angela told him. He
nodded. “Where is the place you’re looking for?”
“Not sure. The coordinates are in this data card.”
“Relatively?”
“Haven’t even looked at it.”
“Not even to make sure?”
“Keep in mind I was going to use this speeder’s computer to access it. And it’s not
worth possibly veering off course just to look at it.”
“Just wondering,” she told him. “Because if you want to, you can go to wherever
you’re needing to go first. My matter isn’t as urgent.”
“Unneccessary,” he said. “If this person is who I think he is, he knows whats going
on.”
“He’s expecting you?” She faced him with a puzzled complection.
“No, unless he is who I think he is.”
“And that would be....”
He didn’t answer, his expressionless face keeping ahead, glancing briefly at the
monitor and adjusting his direction.
“Someone who has a ton of information?”
“You could say that.”
She looked back ahead. The droid sat in the back, unmoving and not speaking.
“Your droid hasn’t moved at all since we started. Did you deactivate him?”
“Yeah,” she said hesitantly.
“What?”
“You haven’t looked back once.”
Not wanting to give his secret away, he said, “I didn’t hear any gears. Before he
got in I could.”
“Huh.” She paused briefly, then said, “Yes. I did.”
Another spire was passed.
“Colonized?” Mainerd asked.
“Couldn’t tell you. I haven’t been out this far. Everywhere else I know like the
back of my hand.”
“Like I know Coruscant,” he said. Right after he said it, he wondered why he did.
“From the big capital, huh? What in blazes brings you out here to the remote
planet of Geonosis?”
“Looking for someone.”
“You came in in a TIE Defender. That’s an old Imperial craft. Judging by what I
know about you, I don’t think you own it. It’s a rare craft, the Empire only made a small
number of them.”
“Judging only by what you know,” he responded cooly.
“So how did you come across it? Something like that would be in maximum
security, probably not on your average Coruscant ship yard.”
“Judging only by what you know,” he said again.
“Seems there’s a lot I don’t,” she said, smiling.
“Indeed.” He glanced at the monitor again, making sure everything was okay.
“Think we’ll have enough fuel to make it there and back?”
“There, definately. I’m sure they can refuel us.”
“You mean me?”
“Of course. My mistake.”
A long time passed before any words were spoken. She broke the silence asking if
he had brought anything to drink. He said he didn’t, and another long period of silence
passed. Then, she pointed to the screen.
“We’re here. It’s the tallest one, the one in the middle.”
“Going in.” Switching off the monitor, he navigated it to the landing area, where a
group of Geonosian warriors came out to greet them. He reached back and switched on
the droid.
“The leader says that we may proceed to the next landing.” This they did, and they
stepped out, the soldiers flanking them. Leading them to the spire, they placed them at the
door. A Geonosian came out, unarmed. He was some kind of important figure, judging by
his dress.
“The Archduke?”
“No.”
“He wonders why you are here,” the droid translated the akward Geonosian
dialect.
“Tell him I have very important news for the Archduke.” The droid translated and
got his response.
“He says that the Archduke is ill and is not seeing anything.”
“But it’s important!” She persisted. The droid relayed it and the Geonosian spoke.
“He wants to know just how important this is.”
“Important enough to perhaps help the Geonosians greatly.” The clicking, tongue
like words were exchanged, and the droid turned back to Angela.
“He says that he will ask the Archduke and give him your message.”
“Tell him thanks.” It was too late, the messenger had already went into the hive,
with three guards following.
Mainerd stood still. Angela turned to face him.
“Aren’t you leaving?” She asked.
“All guides must see their people to their destination safely,” he said, teasing her
slightly by quoting her earlier statement. She smiled and turned back.
Moments later, he returned and clicked his tongue a few times.
“He says that the Archduke will see you.” She smiled triumphantly. “Tomorrow,”
the droid finished. More clicking from the Geonosian and the droid said that they had a
place for them to stay. Still smiling, she told the droid to translate her thanks.
“Good-bye, Angela,” Mainerd said.
“Bye, Jark.”
“Are you sure you have a way back?”
“If not, can I contact you?”
“No,” he said flatly.
“Okay then. Thanks anyway.” She smiled, and he bowed. Turning back and
entering the speeder, he put in the datacard. It loaded the coordinates, and he flew
towards the destination indicator.
The entire trip went on, with nothing at all but flying across the planet. His
thoughts began to wander, about this place, her assignment, the people, and her herself.
Her eyes were clear, her hair brown. Her skin was slightly darkened, probably because of
being here on Geonosis. She was beatiful. He snapped himself out of it, focusing on
altering the course of his speeder.
It was the first time he had thought this way about a woman. Again, he came back
to the present.
By the end of the voyage, he had been able to totally suppress his feelings, trying
to completely kill the thought. Dismounting, he approached the spire indicated on his
monitor.
Seemingly from nowhere, a Geonosian came up with a spear. Mainerd barely had
enough time to duck. Still not wanting to give away who he was, he stood back up,
grabbing the spear when it was thrusted at him. He shoved the spear forward, sending the
creature with it, then kicked it in the back of the head hard, sending the alien to the
ground.
The beating of wings was heard. Judging by the sound and frequencies, he counted
three. He pulled out his pistol and fired, knocking one of them out of the sky lifeless. The
second landed on the ground that Mainerd was once standing on before he lept out of the
way and shot the Geonosian. The third one found its mark, catching Mainerd off guard,
hitting him in the shoulder with the spear. Gritting his teeth, he pulled the rifle off his back
and swung it across in one quick motion, hitting the Geonosian’s head to the side,
snapping its neck.
The guns suddenly left his hands, hitting the spire and bouncing off. He froze; not
because of shock, but because he couldn’t move.
“Well done,” a voice said, and Mainerd instantly knew that he’d found his person.
The guns had been pulled out by the Force, and so was he frozen by. “Very impressive.”
The Force grip was released, and he sunk to his knees, recovering from the
momentary paralysis. The Geonosian he kicked was on his feet, walking weakly to the
black robed man who was now suspending the two guns in front of him.
“Come with me, Mainerd.” He obeyed, entering the spire unarmed. “You won’t
need these,” the man said, setting them down telekinetically on a table. He sat in a chair
that the Force called to him, and used the Force to set one beside Mainerd, who sat.
“So you’re...” Mainerd began.
“Yes,” the other interrupted. “I sensed your precense as soon as you left Coruscant
after killing that Jedi Knight. I know what you’ve been doing and what you’ve done. I can
feel your thoughts and read your mind. Set up your mediochre barriers if you want to, but
that isn’t going to stop me. You would require a great deal of training. A great deal.
Which is why you are here. You believe that I can direct you to someone who can help
you. To answer your question, no. But I can direct you to someone who is looking for
anyone to train. A large group of someone’s. A Sith alliance.”
Mainerd was listening intently to the man.
“This alliance was established to rectify the old ways of the Sith, before Darth
Bane and the rule of two. Before Darth Bane, there were many Sith. Renegade Jedi. They
broke away from them in search of power. Their lust blinded them. They fought the Sith
Wars, a series of conflicts in which the Sith fought against the Jedi Order and the Old
Republic. Eventually, the Sith lost the war. Their lust for power and supremacy blinded
them. They tore themselves apart, fighting each other, killing each other, until there was
only one. He trained an apprentice who trained an apprentice, and the line carried on and
on, the Sith keeping secret, the Dark Side clouding the arrogent minds of the Jedi. For
many generations of Dark Lords this happened, until Darth Sidious was trained. He was
the genius who finally brought the Sith out of hiding, years upon years of masters training
apprentices who learned everything and expanded it, learning more, then killing their
masters and taking on an apprentice of their own to train so they could learn everything
and expand it, learning more. His first apprentice, Darth Maul, failed, taking a powerful
Jedi Knight with him. He took on Darth Tyranus, who started a Seperatist movement,
starting the Clone Wars. Eventually, he died, being one of Darth Sidious’s many pawns.
Sidious was after someone more powerful. Anakin Skywalker. He turned this Jedi to the
Dark Side, killing a powerful Jedi Master. Skywalker was named Darth Vader, and he
took the Jedi Temple, killing many Padawans, as well as other knights and the sword
master Cin Drallig. Sidious executed Order 66, which wiped out ever Jedi in the galaxy.
Those who survived were persued by Darth Vader. Two important Jedi Masters escaped,
training Darth Vader’ son, Luke, who ‘redeemed’ Darth Vader, who killed Darth Sidious.
Darth Sidious was killed because of his lack of vision. He foretold everything but his
overconfidence was his downfall.”
Still listening to the wise man, Mainerd sat, taking in every word. Some of this he
knew. Most of it though, was new to him.
“This new Sith order has been constructed to bring the former glory of the Sith in
the days of their prime back. To correct the foolish mistakes they made and to destroy the
newly erected Jedi Order and bring back what we once had, and more. A war has been
made with the Galactic Alliance, a large group of our enemies.
“That is the story. I can direct you to a meeting place of theirs where you can find
them and obtain a master, who will complete your training. Then, young Sith, you will join
the war and fight against our sword enemies and bring back the glory of the Dark Lords of
the Sith.”
He paused, letting Mainerd soak it in.
“What must I do?”
“You have done it, Mainerd. You have sought me out. All you need to do is seek
them out.” He extraced a data card from his sleeve like a card trick. “This data cards gives
the coordinates for the place where you can find these Sith.”
Suddenly, a twinge in the Force disturbed Mainerd. He put his first two right hand
fingers to his forehead.
The Sith murmed a humming sort of sigh. “I feel your emotions.”
“Someone’s in danger,” he said, letting his hand fall back to his side. “I’ve got to
go help her.”
“Your emotions betray you,” he quoted. “This girl is insignificant. She means
nothing. You have an assignment, Mainerd.”
“She’s hurt..... she’s a captive.”
“Yes, but it is irrelevant.”
“No!” He exclaimed, standing up. “I have no assignment from anyone. I do this on
my own will and I will not let her suffer.”
“You have feelings for her,” he said, stroking his dark beard. “Yes.”
His anger grew. As did his concern. He felt her growing steadily worse. Stretching
out with the Force, his rifle flew in his left hand, his pistol in his right. The pistol he
shoved in the holster, the rifle was slung around his back. He headed for the doorway
when the man spoke again.
“There is grief in you. And anger.” Mainerd turned and the Sith stood. “Use
them.” Mainerd nodded, and ran out into his speeder, hopping in and setting off, using the
card that he still had to display the coordinates.

Angela lay on the ground, bleeding at the head. Three guards stood in front of her.
On their chests were badges, displaying GSP on them.
“Betrayal,” the leader, signified by his colors, said. “Is intolerable.” The two others
left, their shock sticks in hand. She looked up at him with pain and hatred in her eyes.
“Traitor,” he said coldly. He kicked her hard in the abdomen and spat. He left,
shutting the prison door and leaving the highest room in the spire. Geonosians stood
outside the spire, captivated. The Archduke had a black cover over him and he was being
led elsewhere to be disposed of.
“This,” the leader said loudly, so all could hear. “Is what happens when you violate
the law and go against the Geonisis Secret Police. Take them away!” The prisoners were
led off and the two guards approached him.
“Set up a guard. Occupy the spire and the surrounding area. No one gets in, she
doesn’t get out.” The two saluted and transfered the order to the rest of the men, who
carried it out.

Part III
Mainerd soared across the Geonosian surface in his speeder at top speed. He could feel her life force. It was fading slowly. After several minutes, it dropped. Not depleted, like it had before; it dropped. A little bit later, it dropped again.
They’re torturing her, he thought. The speeder could not go any faster. A thought occurred to him; what about her mission? He didn’t care, though, about her mission. All he cared about was her. He flew past a spire, then glanced down at the monitor. He was closing in. Then, he abruptly stopped, the speeder taking several meters to come to a complete halt.
He had felt something. He stretched out with the Force, feeling for what was ahead. After a moment, he had it. The Geonosian Secret Police were the people torturing her. They had guards stationed up ahead, and the twinge in the Force had warned him about it. Another thought occurred to him; how was he going to get in?
Another drop. Haste was critical. If he didn’t find a way in and get in soon, she was going to die. Making the decision, he dropped his concentration on Angela and focused completely on how to enter. All he saw was a straight fight, but if they noticed him, they would surely execute her.
Feeling the extent of the radar, he flew his speeder to it, keeping about a meter away from it. Then, he exited and began to run. The men were up ahead, and their radar was fairly short ranged. The area was fairly rocky, and with some Force distractions, good stealth, and speed, he should be able to get in undetected. Taking off his cloak, he rubbed it in the dirt, completely covering it with the same reddish orange dirt of the planet. He rubbed it then on his hands and gloves, camouflaging himself in case he was spotted. He put it back on and covered himself completely with it.
Walking into visual range, he crouched down behind some rocks and peered over the edge of one. He saw six of them, all armed and alert, searching the area for anything and everything. He needed to make a diversion to get to the next area of rocks. With the Force, he picked up a small rock and cast it far away from him. All six guards snapped their heads in that direction, giving Mainerd enough time to dash crouching over to the next stones.
A stalagmite shaped rock stood several meters in front of him. Unfortunately, a guard stood in between them. Beyond the stalagmite, there was nothing but the three spires. The one on the left was the closest to him, but there was a guard there. Another guard stood by the one on the right. One guard stood by the one in the middle, and the last one stood elsewhere, in the open. He sensed more, and they were positioned behind the spires, out of his field of vision.
Reaching out with the Force, he began to choke the one standing by the right spire. The guard in front of him shifted his attention there, and the guards by the other two spires and the one he slipped past earlier ran over to help him. Releasing his grip, he slipped past the guard in front of him, ducking behind the stalagmite. The guard looked down, but only saw part of a camoflaged cloak, not giving it a second look.
"You all right?" He asked.
The guard nodded as he stood up, coughing, with two guards flanking him and one in front. Using the Force to block the guard who asked him if he was all right’s ears, he dashed away in a crouching position to the left spire. He got down so that he looked like a rock. The guard he choked was led into the middle spire by the two flanking guards. The other one stood in front of the middle spire. Mainerd touched his mind, telepathically telling him to move forward. Then, he sneaked behind him, using the Force to keep him from noticing him.
To his fortune, the guards, in their quickness of getting their hurt comrade in, had left the door unlocked and slightly ajar. Mainerd crept in, sneaking behind a crate as the two guards left, their hurt comrade elsewhere. He took off his cloak, removing his camoflage, which was no longer effective in the much darker interior of the spire. He used the inside to brush the dirt off his face, mostly.
He got out of his cover. If he was going to get to the very top in time to save Angela, he was going to need a weapon. Stealth was too slow, and time was short. Looking into a corridor, there was a guard on each side of the exit. He felt for more, but there were none. They were the only two guards on the floor. Taking advantage of this, he used the Force, constricting their windpipes and killing them. He ran up to them and checked their weapons; a blaster rifle and a stun baton. The rifle wasn’t a silent one, so the baton would have to do.
He estimated, by the outside, about five floors. There was no way he was going to get there that soon. Feeling for Angela, he saw that her life force had gone down significantly since before he removed his contact with her. Removing it again, he got one of the guards out of their uniform, putting it on and equipping himself with his gear. He took out his fake ID and replaced it with the guard’s ID. Hiding the guard in a supply crate, he ran up the flight of stairs.
"Officer, why aren’t you at your post?" A guard asked as he ran up the stairs.
"The other guard," he said, panting slightly to sound convincing. "He’s, he’s dead. He just... died."
"What?" The guard demanded.
"He just choked, keeled over, and died." He rested his hands on his knees to breath easier.
"You two!" He shouted. "Follow me! You, officer, go up to the fourth floor and wait for us." Jotting a quick note, he handed it to Mainerd. "Here’s clearance. Come one!"
With that, he was gone. Mainerd smirked to himself, jogging to the stairs and up them, to the third floor, showing the guards his clearance. He did the same with the fourth floor, but there were several guards there. There would be no way he could sneak up to the fifth floor, the floor that Angela was on.
"Sir," he asked the guard cheif. "Are these walls soundproof?" The door automatically shut behind him.
"Yeah, why?" Asked the confused chief.
"Good." Extracting his pistol and holding the stolen rifle, he shot the guard clean in the chest. Before the other guards in the room could react, he took down three of them. The shots were exchanged and he ducked behind a crate for cover, firing still, taking another one of them down. Dropping the rifle, he shot the pistol, hitting one of them squar in the head. He took out the baton and lept through the air, dodging as a laser shot past him. He landed, the baton crashing on a guard’s head. He ducked, letting a laser go over his head, and returning fire, killing a guard. As soon as he fired his killing shot, he threw the baton, hitting a guard in the face, knocking him over. The last guard ran to the door, but a bright red flash stopped him.
He opened the door, stepping through quickly, walking in the corridor.
"Hey," a guard said warningly. Mainerd raised his hand, telekinetically snapping his neck. Another turned to fire, but Mainerd shot him in the side, sending him to the ground. At the end of the corridor was a large pillar. Beyond the pillar was the staircase to the fifth floor. However, killing those two guards had taken his concentration from the rest of the room. There were more guards, stepping out from the walls at the end of the corridor and from behind the pillar.
Mainerd jumped back, using the Force to propel it. Leaping back, he opened the door and stepped outside, taking cover behind the wall, returning fire, leaning back for cover, and leaning back out, firing.
This kept on for a few minutes when the guards began to fall back, five of them dead. Using the Force, he sprinted after them, running faster than he ever had before. Too fast; he couldn’t stop himself. Upon approaching the pillar, he jumped, landing one foot on it, propelling off, hiting the wall with his other foot, firing at a guard, and shooting him in the side of the head. He landed back on the floor, his sprint stopped by the jump from pillar to wall. He grabbed the dead guard’s rifle.
No! He thought. He ran into the stairwell, firing upward, nailing a guard in the leg. Before he could scream in agony, the Force killed him by cutting off the air from his lungs. The snap of a door opening was heard. With all his strength, he jumped up the stairwell, running to the open door that was closing. He was in before it closed.
Lasers were exchanged as Mainerd lept to the side, firing his weapons, striking a guard in the stomach an one in the area where the shoulder meets the chest. Three important looking officials, pulled out pistols. One was shot by a rifle in the clavicle. A burst of red came out from the head, striking Mainerd in the left leg. Gritting his teeth, he returned fire, nailing one in the neck. The GSP leader leveled his blaster to shoot again, but Mainerd snapped his wrist with the Force, sending the pistol to the ground, then Force pushing him back.
Mainerd stood, limping heavily. Lifting the GSP leader up, he choked him. Defenseless, he stared shocked before his eyes rolled back into his head, his lids shut, and his resistance stopped. With a cry of rage, he threw the guard over. He hit the wall and crumpled to the ground.
Mainerd sank to his knees, grabbing the spot on his thigh that he had been shot in. Crawling over to the body in the middle of the floor, he turned her over. Her eyes were shut. Removing his right glove, he put his fingers to her neck, feeling for a pulse.

There was none.

Her lifeless face was scathed with a blow to the head. Some of her body was burnt, her clothes torn in several places. Marks of torture were evident.
"No..." he gasped hoarsly. "No..." Emotion surged through his body. Anger, hate, grief, sadness, a desire to kill.
He sensed guards coming. Limping down the stairs and past the pillar, he opened fire on them, catching them by surprise. Mainerd yelled in fury as he fired without relent, killing all of them with little opposition. They almost instantly retreated as he limped as fast as he could towards them, his blasters live with fire, spitting out red flame that struck the wall, the floor, boxes, control panels, and guards.
They ran from the spire, setting up a defense in the room where Mainerd took his cloak off. Eventually, he came there, but he had a surprise. He had taken two thermal detonators and he then threw one, blowing up the room, killing everyone. No one had time to run from it, and as he came in to the room, smoke, carnage, and fire where everywhere. His personal rifle would be destroyed, but he didn’t care. He had one of the guards’ rifles, which was of similar make.
None of the guards stood out side; all of them were in the defensive that was now gone. The thermal detonator he had left, he threw at the spire in rage and watched it explode, leaving a huge gash in the side.
He dropped to his knees, furious, grieved tears on his dirty, dusty, bloody cheeks. He stayed kneeled for a while, looking at the spire.

He had failed.

They must’ve executed her as soon as the first guard entered and told them. Too angry and sad for words, he stood up and limped towards his speeder. He took off an armored pad from his arm and tore off the clothing, wrapping it around his bleeding thigh. He winced as he tighened it and put in the coordinates to get back to the Sith who had the datacard containing the coordinates to the Sith gathering. Undoubtedly, the Sith knew what had happened. Nothing could be done here and he could do nothing about Angela. Furious thoughts raced through his head as his speeder raced across the surface, refuled by the Geonosian station. His revenge was complete; he would do nothing more.
The entire way to the Sith, his mind was on her. Thoughts going through his head as well as possibilities; what he should’ve done. After a while, he arrived, easing himself out of the speeder and limping to the door. A Geonosian guard stood there, grimacing at the person who had hurt him earlier. A look from Mainerd was all it took to intimidate the guard and have him step down from his post. The door opened automatically, and the old Sith sat in his chair, his eyes focused on Mainerd.
"While you have my sympathies, young Darth, her death was a part of fate. An event planned out since the beginning of time. It was meant to happen for a reason."
Mainerd returned his look, staring at him with his face full of various emotions.
"Look at you now. You’re stronger, more determined, more focused. You have changed." He stood and walked towards him. "You will become a powerful Sith, Mainerd." He handed him the datacard. "Go. Fulfill your destiny," he quoted.
Mainerd said nothing, but bowed to the Sith. As he turned to leave, he noticed that he was hardly limping. The Sith must’ve healed him while he was standing.
"May the Dark Side of the Force be with you," he said as Mainerd approached the exit. He turned his head and nodded slightly. In his thoughts, he thanked the Sith for everything and the Sith returned the thanks similarly.
As he climbed back into his speeder, he looked at the fuel tank. The Geonosian must’ve refilled it, but he was gone now. He soared off to the city, his face an expressionless stone.
He returned the speeder to the rental place and got back in his ship, lifting off from the planet and plugging in the coordinates. Gazing at the stars, they became lines as he flew into hyperspace. The lines became a bluish diminsion. Leaning back in his chair, he shut his eyes and slept.