A Young Girl’s War Between the Stars
28
Coruscant, 40 BBY/960 GSC.
“Is something the matter?” Obi asked as she grabbed her bag and stepped off the Rusted Silver behind me.
Shifting on my own bag on my shoulder, I shook my head. “No more than normal. I was just reminded why I prefer staying away from Coruscant.”
The noise pressed in against my mental shield, a constant drone of emotional garbage I had to shut out. Thankfully, I was getting to the point where I could keep a mental ear on my immediate surroundings without opening myself up to the greater… emotional pollution of Coruscant.
Then, there was the other thing. I could feel the temple in the Force from here and I didn’t like what I felt. With more time away and more experience, I’d grown to dislike coming back.
The Jedi Temple here sat on a wellspring of the Force. An invisible eruption of energy spouting up into the air, like a geyser. Except all of that Force felt dark. Negative. Inherently wrong in a way that my other brushes with the natural dark side, such as on Dathomir, had not.
We moved through the spaceport concourse and joined Masters Dooku, Qui-Gon, and Kostana in line waiting for a speeder to take us to the temple. Seeing that they weren’t in the middle of a conversation I would interrupt and it looked like we might be here a while given the time of day and how large the line was, I decided to ask.
“Master Dooku, do you have a moment?” I asked, just to be sure.
The older man turned a smile on me, before taking an obvious look around. “It seems we have some time, but I’ll always make time for a student.”
Nodding, I looked towards the temple and back. “How do you deal with it?”
That drew Master Qui-Gon’s and Master Kostana’s curious gazes, even as I felt Obi’s own attention on me. Master Dooku chuckled quietly. “I’m afraid you’ll need to be a bit more specific.”
“Perhaps it is a delicate matter, Master,” Qui-Gon proposed, his tone teasing. “After all, certain aspects of being within the temple can be rather… trying at times. Stifling, some would say.”
Master Kostana rolled her eyes, reaching out and smacking Master Qui-Gon in the arm. “Speaking from experience.”
“Not that,” I shook my head. “I mean, the fact that it’s a dark side Force nexus.”
The three Masters abruptly lost their humor. Master Kostana shook her head, making the immediate denial, “I’ve sensed no such thing. It is sitting atop a Force nexus, yes, but that nexus is neutral.”
Masters Dooku and Qui-Gon, on the other hand, didn’t immediately dismiss the idea. It was Master Qui-Gon who asked, “What makes you believe that it’s a dark side nexus?”
“The same way one senses the alignment of the Force within another. It’s not trying to hide and it’s blatantly obvious to my senses. I’ve had Ilum and Dathomir both to compare it to. The temple on Ilum is on a light side nexus.” At that, all three of them nodded. “Dathomir is wild, with both light and dark in a natural balance.” I pointed towards the temple. “That is dark.”
Once more, the Masters exchanged looks as the line moved. Finally, Master Dooku murmured, “And yet, none of us can sense that it’s dark. Describe it for us, Tanya.”
I nodded. “From the outside, it’s like a big shadow, stretching over everything in the area, growing darker the closer you get to the center. It’s gradual and easy to miss if you’re not looking for it. Going in, it’s like passing through multiple layers of veils blocking off the inside of a room. The first few are thin, barely there, but the deeper you go, the heavier they get. Until eventually, it feels like I’ve got one wrapped around my eyes, nearly blinding me. It impedes my Force senses while I’m inside. Worse, when I come back out, it clings.”
That got a worried look from all three Masters. After a moment, Master Kostana murmured, “That does sound like a dark side effect, if someone wanted to hide something…”
“Or blind others,” Master Qui-Gon added, earning a nod. “What could cause such a thing? And why wouldn’t anyone notice?”
Master Dooku stroked his beard as the line moved forward and we found ourselves in the front, waiting on the next car. Finally, he said, “I was taken in as a boy. Most Jedi were brought in as young children. That is the role of the seekers. If it is as Tanya says, and the exposure to the dark side within the temple has a cumulative effect, then it may be possible that we’ve all been partially blinded and simply can’t see it.”
As the next cars arrived and we began to pile into both taxis, Master Kostana hummed. “The better question is, if this is true, what else don’t we see? Or perhaps…”
“What has been hidden from us?” Master Qui-Gon finished the thought.
“Agreed. It could very well have been enemy action some time ago,” the purple woman nodded.
Obi and I climbed into the second car and after a few moments, it took off. Sitting beside me in the back seat, she asked, “Do you really think it’s true?”
“You don’t sense it?” I asked, and she shook her head.
Frowning, I considered for a moment before taking her hand. “Close your eyes.”
She did, and I reached out to her with the Force. It was clumsy, but our practice, meditation, and general comfort with each others’ presence helped. She reached back and, after a few moments, I was able to let her feel the Force as I felt it. Her eyes opened and she looked around, mouth falling open as a disgusted feeling welled up within her.
“This… it’s awful!” she cringed, pulling her hand away. She became more distressed, making a face as I felt her flexing the Force around herself, to no avail. “I can feel it now! It’s exactly like you said. It’s terrible.”
“Thus why I asked how to deal with it,” I murmured as the speeder brought us closer.
The rest of the ride was spent in silence, until eventually, we came to a stop. We grabbed our bags and got out, rejoining the Masters. Master Qui-Gon noticed something wrong with his padawan immediately and sent her an inquisitive look. “Is something wrong?”
“I can feel it now,” Obi-wan informed him.
Master Dooku frowned. “Most troubling. I will speak with Master Yoda about this before bringing it to the others. Perhaps there is an explanation. Or, if not, a way to stop or reverse it. Until then, it would probably be best to limit your time in the temple when possible.”
Nodding, Master Qui-Gon looked to Obi with a smile. “It looks as though we’ll be spending some more time off-planet soon. I’ll find us a mission and somewhere interesting to go.”
“Okay, Master,” Obi agreed easily.
“I suppose it’s a good thing I have my own ship, then.” Meeting Master Dooku’s eyes, I informed him, “I’ll be bunking there at night.”
“Probably for the best.”
With that, we made our way into the temple. I had intended to spend my time here getting a few days of R&R and then getting back to training, but it looked like I would be spending as much time as possible away from the temple.
I’ll need to clean out my room and move my things to the Rusted Silver. And there’s still Master Dyas’s requests to handle. I should look into that history project on where the ‘no attachments’ rule came from and why as well, but I believe I can set up my computer to run a search, scrape the data I need, and do the actual research elsewhere. Perhaps I can find some new techniques to learn while I’m at it. I should also submit my report to the proper department while I’m here.
I would have plenty to keep myself busy with without having to spend all of my time in the temple. There was no reason I couldn’t do my training, meditation, and research practically anywhere. The only things I really needed to come back to the temple for were information and a sparring partner.
That’s what I’ll do, then. Act like any other student returning from a mission. Put away my things, file my report, visit the library tonight, then take my things and head back to the ship to sleep. Come back in the morning for more time in the library. Spend a few hours being visible. Show up for meals. Disappear. Repeat with decreasing time spent in the temple until they lose track of me entirely.
With a solid plan in mind, I broke off from our group at the hallway leading to my quarters.
Jedi Master Ki-Adi-Mundi frowned as he detected a disturbance within the Force, entering the temple—along with the return of three familiar presences, accompanied by two others. It seemed that Dooku and his little expeditionary force had returned. Good! He couldn’t wait to hear what excuses the old human came up with this time to justify his actions, and just how much insubordination and intentional misinterpreting of orders that old fool Yoda would tolerate from his prize student this time.
Every time with them. It seems there is something deeply wrong with Yoda’s entire line. Dooku doing as he pleases. Qui-Gon, the troublemaker. Dooku’s first padawan, Averross—reckless, prideful, everything Qui-Gon is and worse. Obi-Wan looks to be following in her Master’s footsteps. And now Tanya.
Defying our authority and hiding her true nature behind flimsy excuses. Lording a little talent with a lightsaber over her fellow students, then refusing to take discipline from a Master. Flaunting her flagrant disregard for our rules and traditions with her refusal to attend normal lessons and instead seek to learn at her own pace. And let’s not forget the most egregious mark against her…
A remorseless killer before reaching double digits in age.
How the others don’t see her for what she is is beyond me. But as with most things, they will come around to see my wisdom in time. Hopefully, before she does something to truly harm the Order.
There was one other thing about their return that piqued his interest. It was strange that Master Sifo-Dyas hadn’t returned with the others.
Dyas is as much of a problem as Dooku. He’s probably out sneaking around again, doing something he shouldn’t. I’ll catch him out eventually.
Until then, however, he would have patience, sure in the knowledge that he would be proven right in the end. For the moment however, he had business to attend to.
News had reached Coruscant that Serenno had defeated an attempted coup by Ramil of House Serenno and his sister Jenza was now Countess of Serenno, thanks to Dooku’s intervention on behalf of his family, and that they had also repelled some sort of attempt on their planet by Abyssin pirates. The senate were up in arms, of course. If one of their Outer Rim territories was attacked by pirates, potentially in an attempt related to the coup given the suspicious timing, and had managed to repel them without intervention by the Republic Navy it sent a bad message. People started asking questions that no one in the senate wanted to answer. Questions like, ‘what are we even paying taxes for if you can’t be bothered to send a fleet out to protect us?’
It set a bad precedent and could potentially cause some sort of… secession of Outer Rim territories. One planet withdrawing from the Republic was bad enough and the loss in revenue and, more importantly, resources would be felt in the Core, but if more of those Outer or even Mid Rim planets pulled out and withdrew support, then how were they supposed to feed all of the people of Coruscant and other large, high population density Core worlds that were so vital to the Republic? Coruscant was the beating heart of the Republic and Dooku, in his obstinate utter hubris, had really stepped in it this time.
The actions of one man who couldn’t adhere to the simple rule of no attachments may spark a secession and civil war within the Republic.
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Mundi wasn’t blind or self-deluded. Certainly, the Republic were not blameless—he wasn’t claiming they were. They had grown neglectful, perhaps even corrupt over the years and there was a known problem with pirates, especially in the Outer Rim, that they simply refused to properly address. The Outer Rim planets were correct in that they were being neglected and taken advantage of, being taxed without proper representation and the obligations of the Republic to them left unfulfilled. But the means to address that was through the senate, not by breaking away from the Republic and declaring independence!
Of course, there were arguments to be made that you couldn’t use a broken system to fix a broken system, but Mundi didn’t believe it was that broken yet. The Outer Rim just hadn’t put forth the correct effort in trying to get the problem addressed and those planets talking about pulling out were being rash.
A holo call pulled him from his thoughts and he answered. “This is Mundi.”
“Master Mundi, we could really use your advice for this upcoming senate meeting regarding Serenno. Can you make it today?”
Mundi hummed, letting them wait for a minute. He already knew he could, but it was always better to have one’s time perceived as limited and thus more valuable. “I believe so. Not for very long, unfortunately. How does this afternoon sound? Just after lunch.”
“That would be good!” the man on the other end sighed. “Oh! And one of my colleagues mentioned something about Mandalore and I thought I’d ask your opinion.”
“Very well. We will discuss it later,” Mundi agreed, before disconnecting the call.
Mandalore? Dooku said he was going there to settle an issue before heading on to Serenno. This is no coincidence.
I slipped through the halls of the temple on silent feet, my form an indistinct blur as my optical camouflage formula helped me blend into my surroundings and a noise canceling formula silenced my steps and the movements of my body and clothes. A brown cloak with the hood pulled up covered my body and distinctive white hair, while gloves and a scarf hid the red skin of my hands and face—just in case I had to drop the camo formula for some reason.
Nearing the library, I found my target and made my way into a side room. The Force opened up an air vent on the ceiling and I pulled off my pack and leapt up, pulling myself in, before dragging my bag behind me. I closed the vent up and secured it, then slid through the shaft into the room beyond. Casting a quick formula to look at the blueprints again, I followed them to the primary server room.
Going still, I opened my senses up and listened, feeling for emotions in the vicinity. Only when I was sure no one was around did I undo the vent and drop inside. I took a moment to make sure the room was secure and there were no cameras inside, then got to work. Pulling out my laptop, I connected my hacked together scomp link to the mainframe’s droid data terminal. A quick search turned up what I wanted: planet Kamino, in the Kamino System, in the Abrion sector. I copied the map and nav data to my data disk, then had the server delete it. Once that was done, I ran a new search on a list of terms: attachments, personal attachments, romance, emotion, Jedi code, Force techniques, meditation techniques, and others—such as a few names and dates I wanted to get, out of curiosity.
The computer ticked along as the servers spun up around me and, out in the library where the larger digital archives were stored, I imagined they would be making just a bit more noise as they went active and dutifully performed my search. As results began coming back, I copied everything over wholesale, letting it run and keeping a wary eye on the door and my senses open.
An hour into the data pull, I felt someone approach. Closing up my laptop but letting it run, I placed it on top of the server and left it—as though a maintenance technician had left it plugged in and running. Then, I leapt up into the vent and closed it up—and not a moment too soon, as the door beeped and—
I blinked, frowning as an older padawan strolled inside pushing a trash bin on wheels and carrying a broom. I could faintly hear the sounds of music coming from the oversized headphones over the human girl’s hears as her head bobbed and she went about sweeping the room. She didn’t look up, nor did she so much as glance at my laptop.
Eventually, she emptied the dust pan into the bin and left, locking the door behind her and turning the lights out. I waited until she was gone and felt no one else around before leaving the ceiling vent. I checked the laptop and settled in to wait.
Finally, it finished running and I left back the way I’d come. Wanting to get everything done in one night, I slipped through the dark library to the hidden archive and slipped inside. I ignored the dark artifacts—some of which were now reacting more strongly to my presence than they had the first time, especially a mask that, for some reason I could feel emotions from.
Connecting my computer, I ran the search again and, while it ran, perused the artifacts, keeping well away from anything that felt dark. Until eventually, I found myself stopping in front of a pair of small holocrons floating above a repulsor pad. One was green and triangular pyramidal in shape, roughly three inches to a side. The other was a red cube, within a cube, within a cube—a bit bigger than the pyramid, but not by much. The plexi label below them listed them as holocrons recovered from some place called Tund… but didn’t explicitly say there were two.
I shouldn’t…
Casting my senses out and not sensing anyone, I narrowed my focus down onto the two holocrons. The green one felt like the light side of the Force, while the red one felt like the dark side.
Conveniently color coded, I mused, wondering why they would have a light side artifact here in their collection of dark side artifacts. Shrugging, I snagged the green one and pocketed it to study and eventually bring back later, once I determined whether it was worth keeping and if it was, then after I had learned all it had to teach. Taking out my lightsaber, I prodded the red one into the middle of the repulsor display with the hilt, before hooking it back to my belt and going back to check on my search.
I guess I’m going to be staying up later tonight, once I get back to the ship. A lot of reading to do.
Master Mundi sipped his tea as he took out his data pad and scrolled through it to get to the day’s work. A pair of new entries in the incoming mission reports caught his attention, if only because of the sender and titles.
[After action report: Mandalore, 959 GSC. – Tanya Mereel]
[After action report: Serenno, 960 GSC. – Tanya Mereel]
I wasn’t aware she had a family name, he mused, opening the first one and starting to read through.
The contents were concise and dry, and read exactly like every military report Mundi had ever had the pleasure of reading through. For the most part, it gave only the facts—with only the occasional speculation on Tanya’s part. For as much distrust as he had for the girl, Mundi had to admit that he much preferred her style of mission report to what he was used to seeing from padawans and even other Masters.
Then, he paused, as in his nodding along and reading through the report he read over something that made sense in the context of the report, but which, when taken with the wider context of who it was making the report, became worrying.
‘Detected three enemy scouts monitoring my routine using Force/emotional senses, confirmed presences visually. Began planning to infiltrate and eliminate enemy force.’
It got worse from there.
Mundi’s eyes sped up and his mouth fell open as he read on, faster and faster. “This… this cannot be right!”
Detected the enemy’s presence. Plotted out her own capture and allowed herself to be taken. Engaged the enemy forces. Eliminated twenty-four Death Watch Mandalorians, including their leader. Thirty. That brings her count up to thirty…
His mouth suddenly dry, Mundi raised his cup only to find it empty. He refilled it from the pot and downed it, before refilling it again. Then, he continued reading. As he did, he went from shocked, even a bit horrified at what an eight year old girl had done to fuming mad at the utter disrespect of her joining the Mandalorians without so much as a by your leave from the Jedi High Council.
This is a political nightmare waiting to happen!
Shaking his head, he finished it out and went on to read the next report, only to drop his teacup entirely. Mundi didn’t even notice the liquid soaking his robes as the report started off on a high note and somehow seemed to find new ways to outdo itself as he read it. Whenever he thought he had found the end of his incredulity, the girl’s actions seemed to somehow tap some new, hitherto undiscovered deeper well of even more incredulity.
An EVA jump using only the Force to direct her to hit a target hundreds of miles away, when missing means falling into atmosphere. Thirty-nine ship kills. Potentially hundreds of people on those ships. Multiple ground strikes and a bunker kill, again, potentially dozens to hundreds of lives snuffed out. A months long ground campaign. More kills. Intimidation tactics used to terrorize the enemy. Waking an ancient Sith corrupted dragon and killing it. Master Sifo-Dyas and multiple Serenno loyalists killed in the ensuing battle as collateral damage. Killing the usurper Ramil.
She… she is a walking natural disaster. The others have to know! Something must be done before it’s too late!
Mundi made to stand, only to pause, glancing back at the report. Finally, he took a breath and forced himself to calm.
No. I can’t go off half charged, here. I need proof. Corroborating witness testimony. And thanks to Ms. Mereel’s own thorough report, I have all the names I need to contact, to build a case against her to bring before the High Council.
“Are you lost, little girl?”
I blinked, looking up from my tablet. I’d spent the morning practicing in the park and had even attracted a bit of a crowd when I broke out my lightsabers so I could go through my forms. Then, I’d gone to get lunch and my tablet and come back for some study on the grass in the afternoon. Now, someone was intruding on my study time…
Before me stood a very average looking blue Twi’lek man, wearing very nondescript clothing, and smiling down at me. He offered a glowing red ice thing on a stick—not melted and looking to have come from a nearby cart selling them. I took it and smiled politely. “Thank you. No, I’m not lost, just studying.”
“All on your own?” he asked, his smile growing wider. For all that he appeared harmless, the Force told me he was a low level danger and my emotional senses told me he was as scummy as they came and had bad intentions in mind for me, given the sheer lascivious intent radiating off of him.
My smile grew wider and a thrill of fear ran through him, but didn’t deter him—though it did make him wary. I waved my fingers, a small gesture—it wasn’t even needed really, but I found it helped with the mental focus for the technique. “What was your plan here?”
He went a bit dim in the eyes as he answered, “Get you into my speeder then take you home. Have my fun, then sell you down at the port. Zeltrons are worth a lot.”
I considered for a moment before standing and tucking away my tablet. Reaching out, I took his hand. “Well, we wouldn’t want to disappoint your friends, now would we? Why don’t you call them and we can go meet them together!”
“…Can we still have fun?” he asked, through the Mind Trick.
“Oh, we’re going to have lots of fun. But I want to have fun with you and all of your trafficker friends at the same time. Understand?”
“Right. Got it. Call them to meet,” he murmured, leading me to a speeder nearby.
I patted my lightsaber and blaster hidden under my jacket and smiled. Ah, this is going to be fun~! Maybe I can even get paid! Not that the pay matters. I’m doing the universe a service here. It’s my civic duty, really! I’m a regular Good Samaritan, when you think about it.
Mundi nodded along as Satine Kryze, the newly instated ruler of Mandalore, finished her assessment of the events she had witnessed. As she did, the file transfer she had sent containing a video file of some of the events on Mandalore involving Tanya finished downloading with a beep. “One last question, Ms. Kryze. What is your personal opinion of Tanya Mereel?”
The blonde woman hummed, considering for a moment, before a smile pulled at her lips. “She is a fine warrior and solver of problems. Exemplary of what it means to be both a Jedi and a Mandalorian. I trust her with my life.”
“I see,” he murmured. That was a very political answer—but then, what had he expected? The young woman was a politician through and through—and that was the only fact he had gleaned of her personality in the hour long interview. He considered the direct approach, but immediately disregarded it. She was a political creature and they didn’t do direct. “Thank you. Good day, Ms. Kryze.”
“Thank you, Master Mundi.”
The call disconnected and Mundi frowned as he considered what he had gotten. Everything Satine Kryze said confirmed Tanya’s report, but hers was only one part of the story. He had much more work to do. Starting with reviewing whatever that video was she had sent.
Opening it up, Mundi watched as a scene resolved, showing what looked like a Mandalorian camp of some sort. Within a few moments, a woman in blue armor marched Tanya, in handcuffs, into the camp and stopped before a man in black armor.
Mundi watched as the man, who identified himself as Tor Vizsla, called Dooku. His eyes narrowed as no one seemed to catch the way the girl’s fingers moved and the steel of the cuffs parted at just the lightest pressure—at least, until they finally clinked open and fell to the ground with an audible thump.
Then, his heart hammered in his chest at the utter massacre that unfolded. Then, once more, when he thought he couldn’t be any more shocked or surprised, Tanya surpassed his expectations, as she faced down the man in a duel to the death… toying with him the entire time even as some of the other Death Watch tried to shoot her in the back. The look on her face was like some kind of apex predator playing with its food.
She hasn’t just fallen to the dark side, she’s dived in head first. I have to make them see!
White-silver and blue lightsabers clashed in a rapid staccato and I smiled as Obi panted and I forced her slowly across the room. “You’re getting tired. You should work on your stamina.”
For some reason, the older girl faltered, the red of her cheeks growing darker as she radiated embarrassment. I didn’t hesitate to take ruthless advantage, lunging in—
A violet blade came flying in from the side and I aborted my thrust to intercept the newcomer, batting the blade towards Obi and forcing her to step back, while extending a kick at the other girl’s midsection, narrowly missing as she managed to turn away from it. She came after me hard and fast and I grinned wider.
From behind her, Obi panted out, “Thanks, Siri,” as she took a moment to recover.
“I’ve got this,” the blonde answered, pressing the attack.
“Do you now~?” I grinned as she came in swinging. “Let’s find out!”
Siri Tachi had found Obi and I during one of our spars and Obi introduced us. Since then, we had met every day for what had quickly turned into the two of them either teaming up or taking turns against me.
The fifteen year old girl was earnest, serious, focused, and very driven. She was also good—both with her sword and the Force. I didn’t dislike it at all. Especially when she was so very determined to beat me and just kept coming back for more, time and again.
Unfortunately for her, I was just as determined not to lose!
Mundi frowned at Dooku across from him, calmly sipping on a cup of tea.
“Do you mean to tell me that from the moment you left Mandalore, you left your charge—not even a padawan, I’ll remind you, but a simple initiate!—to her own devices? Unsupervised,” Mundi pressed.
“That’s not true. Tanya had supervision, both from Sifo and Jango Fett,” Dooku countered calmly.
Mundi felt himself growing hot in anger, but it was a distant concern. He had Dooku right in front of him and he intended to nail him to the wall over the unmitigated disaster that was his handling of Tanya Mereel. “Then explain why it was that she was the one who dispatched herself on an unassisted space walk to attack an enemy carrier, putting herself and your entire mission in danger. Explain why she was the one who made the call to fire on the rest of the fleet, then crash the ship into the planet’s surface. Explain why she, in her own reports, was the one seemingly planning, leading, and carrying out nearly every mission this Jango Fett’s Mandalorian strike team was part of! Explain why she dispatched herself on a solo asymmetrical jungle warfare campaign against an enemy with superior numbers and equipment!”
Dooku simply smiled, the sight of it infuriating Mundi. “It’s true that Tanya was given much in the way of latitude to conduct operations, both by Sifo and Jango Fett. I can’t speak to Sifo’s reasoning, but Jango treated the entire thing as an extended training exercise for Tanya. Who, need I remind you, was adopted directly by Jaster Mereel, Jango’s own adoptive father and Mandalore—the military leader of their people. Jaster himself ordered that she be trained. Tanya proved herself competent and earned their trust—enough to be made a Mandalorian herself.”
“Another mistake you should have stopped—”
“You say ‘mistake,’ but the reality is, because of Tanya’s actions, we’ve secured relations with Mandalore and ensured that we have at least one diplomatic representative with connections to the highest levels of their government and military.”
Mundi’s jaw clenched. Taking a breath, he switched tracks. “And what of her campaign of terror against the Abyssin pirates and conscripts? Do you support that as well? We both know those are the actions of a Sith.”
Dooku’s cup came to rest in its saucer with a clink and he stood. “Perhaps you should ask her harshest critic. Master Lene questioned her thoroughly before we left Serenno.”
Mundi stood as well, glaring at the human across the table from him. “I did.”
“And?” Dooku raised an eyebrow, with that insufferably smug look Mundi hated.
“Finding nothing does not mean there was nothing to find.”
Dooku sighed, shaking his head. “I won’t sit here and listen to you cast aspersions at someone who isn’t here to defend herself and, to date, has done everything in her power to advance the cause of the Jedi. I’m done.”
Mundi watched Dooku leave, then closed the door behind him. Sitting down, he pulled over his tablet and began going over his notes. “If you won’t hear me, you’ll hear the High Council.”
Touching his holocom terminal, he placed a call to one of the Jedi in the service corps. “Yes, Master Mundi?”
“Arrange an emergency High Council session for tomorrow.”
“Yes, sir.”