The Shadow of the Jedi

8. The Dark Spawn

When I consented to Palpatine's invitation to learn more about the force with him, he took me under his wing in secret. He showed me how to mask my force signature so that no Jedi would guess I was utilising the force or detect someone else doing so. This impressed me and made me recognise how much information I had missed about the temple, which irritated me because it meant the Jedi could only teach their padawan what they knew, only giving us a limited point of view.

Although I have considerable knowledge about the dread masters, Palpatine's point of view is unique, which adds to the concept of the force. Palpatine provided me with a comprehensive picture of the force's dark side and awareness that the events he documented did not reflect his point of view. Palpatine has a more distinct message than any other saint in history, yet he prefers to be more discreet. Even when he exploits the dark side by using force, concealment has advantages while remaining in the background. The dread master's ideal of force is based on power and supremacy.

He is more cautious to avoid catching the Jedi's attention, staying hidden and employing trickery to get what he wants. His ambition, he says, is to become Chancellor. I see right away that the Senate controls the Republic, so that's a significant aim, but given the present situation in Naboo, it may work to his advantage if the current Chancellor's incompetence is revealed and a new one is elected.

Senator Palpatine enabled me to train my force talents, including the usual Jedi push and pull. Palpatine would rather I use my common Sith talent, lightning, which is more powerful. Palpatine uses forceful lightning on me so that I may imagine and feel the pain of the lightning in order to build it, as this is the only way I could ever learn it in the first place.

After experiencing severe pain from the force of lightning, I was able to learn about the ways of the dark side under Palpatine's direction. I am forced to feel strong emotions such as passion, fury, and hatred, and the anguish I feel as the dark side seeps into me is worse than my training with the dread masters. The dread masters taught me the principles of the dark side because they understood that degrading me as a young apprentice would attract the attention of other Jedi or the Jedi council members. As I recall from my lessons alongside the dreadmasters, if I tapped on the dark side without training, I would transform into a walking monster imitating a gundark.

Palpatine also told me about his current apprentice, Darth Maul, who was sent to assassinate Queen Amidala in order to speed up or reinforce his rise to chancellor and, if possible, kill Qui Gon. Although it may be difficult to kill Qui Gon, Maul may be able to employ some of his strategic and tactical abilities to his advantage in the struggle.

He was even more astounded by my force training and ability to virtually flawlessly duplicate Palpatine's actions as we prepared to fight, realising that, while I was more formidable than Maul, I would only play a tiny supporting role in the big scheme. However, this also involves Master Dooku, a member of the Palpatine conspiracy. He was instructed to travel to Kamino and recruit Kaminoans in order to clone an army.

I am compelled to establish my own private militia in order to maintain tight ties with both sides of the approaching conflict, but my private army is ready. Even with all of the weapons, the rebel senator on Ord Mantell, who has been successful in negotiating equipment, told me that his militia still needs military leadership and training.

Palpatine then suggests a Mandalorian clan as an element for this task. According to current evidence, Clan Awaud was led by Nam Beroya, the leader at the time, and their clan, which was once among the old mandalorians and on good terms with the new mandalorian. But now that Clan Awaud is preparing for conflict with the Zygerrian, assisting them may allow them to practice and even become used to their way of life.

As recommended, I prepare ahead of time and request that the Rogue Senator contact Clan Awaud to schedule a meeting on Ord Mantell so that we can try to build an alliance against the Zygerrian. All they can provide in exchange is to teach the locals how to handle weapons and follow Mandalorian traditions. As proven by the recent kidnapping of multiple Ord Mantell civilians and witness accounts that the Zygerrian was seen accompanying the prisoners, even though we were able to fight back, they continuously outperformed us due to their Zygerrian training.