In Service of Chaos. (SW\B5)

[NecronLord]

<Insert Fanfic Disclaimer Here>
Warning. This Fanfic contains very minor spoilers for Revenge of the Sith. These spoilers are mainly about a vessel featured in the film, and are from the Incredible Cross Sections book.

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In Service of Chaos.
By Joseph Wilson

Chapter One

The fifteenth outer rim patrol fleet was, honestly, outdated. But its record in combat against the manifold foes in the rim was enough to justify keeping its older, clone wars era ships in operation rather than risk the drop in performance that would be incurred by replacing the ships.

As such, the patrol fleet sported no less than three old Venator class star destroyers in addition to its complement of Tector and Imperial class vessels. These flanked the massive command ship, the Veterator, named for its wide array of electronic countermeasures, several of which were unique systems that had been tested on it, but deemed either too expensive or too energy intensive to include in the rest of the Imperial Starfleet.

Given the number of carriers and scout ships in the patrol fleet, it was no surprise to see a long range scout ship skip out of hyperspace. Its pilot, a clone of the famous war era ace Sanjit Kaan, skilfully navigated it back toward the first of the venators, an aging craft called the Skilled Hunter, banking around a star frigate with practiced ease.

It was a manoeuvre he had done a thousand times before, in the slender TIE scout. But this time it was different.

This time he had returned without his wingman.

The TIE scout swung into the bay of the Venator, the pilot, Kaan Seven-eighty, finally consented to switch the engines off and relay control to the ship’s tractor beams, and turned, flinging himself from the bucket seat and into the rear of the scout. The sensor operator there was still trying to make sense of what had happened on their expedition, and Kaan pushed past him toward the scout’s rear hatch.

He jogged out onto the huge bay of the Venator carrier, and blinked inside his black helmet at two storm troopers aiming their weapons at him. A black clad deck officer whose nameplate read Teeg also held a pistol. Looking at the officer, Kaan couldn’t recognise him. No surprise, given that the ship had a crew of almost eight thousand, but he could tell he wasn’t a clone. A short term enlistee no doubt.

“Sidearm,” the officer demanded, and Kaan carefully took his pistol out of its thigh holster, using only two fingers, and passed it to one of the stormtroopers.

The officer stepped forward, and Kaan took his helmet off. “Why have you been missing for no less than forty eight hours?” he demanded.

“I’ve been looking for Mo- for my wingman,” he said, placing his helmet under his arm, “And I need a new ship. Something faster. A hyper-capable fighter,” he said, “to look further.”

“You are going nowhere but the brig, solider,” the sub-lieutenant said, “You have derilicted your duty and disobeyed your orders. Take him away.” One of the Stormtroopers took Kaan’s shoulders, and began hauling him away from the craft.

Stalking up the ramp, the officer laid his hand on the scanner-chief’s shoulder. “What happened out there?

“It was,” the analyst started, and looked up at him, “you won’t believe me.”

“Tell me what happened,” Lieutenant Teeg insisted.

“It was something, alive. Black. Like a bug of some sort, but bigger. And the scream…”

“You landed somewhere?” Teeg asked.

“No,” the other man replied, “A living creature in space. It took them! We were lucky to escape alive!” He sounded on the edge of a strange hysteria, brought on by lack of sleep, rest and food. He’d spent hours on end watching the same footage again and again.

“Guard!” Teeg shouted down the ramp at the back of the scout ship, “Take this man to medical. Have him sedated.” The lieutenant’s words were thick with distaste.

----

Audio-Visual record sequestered by the Ubiquitorate:

Two bulky TIE scouts coast through space, toward a desolate planet. They are a bulky vessel, despite their resemblance to the Sineiar Systems TIE fighter, they have a large rear compartment for up to two analysts and their sensor equipment. The first is crewed by Kaan, the second by a Pilot named Morden. This is in fact his second name, but he has always found it unsettling if people used his first name. Rumour has it that his first name was something phenomenally embarrassing.

“Some strange readings from up ahead,” he says, “Repeating pattern. Neutrino bursts.”

“Odd,” replies Kaan, “break off and check it out,” he orders.

“Right.”

Morden’s scout turns to the left, diverting toward the ruined planet. Suddenly the centre of the image of the planet contorts, rippling as something terrible appears. It appears to have sixteen projections from its central hull, its surface is a black oil, seemingly braced by viens of something. Fluid seems to run underneath its surface.

Four voices variously yelp and scream at something only they can hear. Finally, Kaan gathers himself, “What is that. Full scan.”

“It’s - it’s some kind of life-form,” his analyst, identified and Falar, B, says.

“What?” asks Morden.

A proximity alarm sounds, and Morden’s craft veers away from the black vessel.

From the vessel’s underside a beam weapon is fired, purple, clipping the radiator fin of the vessel flown by Morden, which pitches into a spin as its twin ion engines malfunction and one of them engages.

Kaan’s craft rolls about its axis, preparing for an attack run on the enemy, but it is too late. Another shot from the legged vessel, now quickly closing on Morden’s vessel, disables the malfunctioning vessel. They collide, and the TIE disappears as Kaan begins his attack run.

Green laser cannon bolts slash through space that is suddenly devoid of a target.

[CJvR]

Intresting idea, but you had better feed the Shadows some steroids if they are going to take on the Empire.

[NecronLord]

Intresting idea, but you had better feed the Shadows some steroids if they are going to take on the Empire.

To quote a future character of this fanfic, "There are alternatives to fighting..."

[NecronLord]

Chapter Two

Leia Organa looked out of the window of her senatorial apartments on Coruscant. These apartments had been home to a lot. They had been home to endless trade meetings and agreements, but infinitely more importantly, numerous covert meetings with disaffected senators, who wanted more than trite words from the Emperor about safety and security, those few who cared about the lost democracy of the Old Republic, and who wanted freedom.

With a sigh the young woman resigned herself to no such excitement today. The boredom of the routine work of the Galactic Senate troubled her no end. This afternoon she had been scheduled for the boredom of a routine meeting with a race she had never even heard of. Vorlons, they called themselves apparently.

She was the youngest representative, accounting for differing species maturities, in the Imperial Senate, and she often found that curious. Her father, however, tended to consider it best if he kept away from Coruscant and on their home planet of Alderann. Away from the centre of power – and surveillance – so that he could continue his work more easily.

On the desk of the office, a hologram of one of her attendants appeared, “Milady, the Vorlon Ambassador has arrived.”

Leia sighed once more, and worked her way behind the desk. “Send him in,” she said.

Grand Moff Tarkin surveyed the completed orb of the Death Star with the pride of a father whose child has finally grown up. Orbiting the prison of Despyre, the great battle station, a vast monstrosity that mounted awesome weapons capable of reducing an entire planet to rubble, looked truly unique. The governor’s shuttle banked toward the station’s equator, and it loomed ever larger from the forward window of the shuttle.

The shuttle closed with a large bay in the side of the station, its wings folding upward with an audible whirr. The hangar bay was huge, filled with thousands upon thousands of white armoured soldiers. The shuttle touched down slowly, and the aging Tarkin pulled himself up straight. Almost three years work had finally come to fruition, he was about to take command of the single greatest power in the universe.

He strode confidently down the ramp, a spring in his step despite his age. Now, at last, Wilhuff Tarkin would go down in history as the man who secured the New Order for all time, and not simply as a power hungry thug who had murdered thousands on Ghorman, a minor incident in his illustrious career that rebel propagandists constantly flaunted to the masses. Rather than think of him as the mastermind of their security from pirates, slavers and vagabonds, even the people of his homeworld considered him a murderous hatchet man no different from Vader.

Now, with his new doctrine, he would be known as what he wanted to be known as, the visionary pioneer of the new Order. As he strode down the shuttle’s ramp, the legions of stormtroopers and naval guards snapped to attention, a defening rumble of polished heels clicking echoed through the bay.

“Ah,” he said, descending the ramp, “Admiral Motti, General Tagge,” he smiled at both men.

“Sir,” they said in unison. “May I be the first to welcome you to the crowning achievement of Imperial Science sir,” Motti said, saluting.

“Be careful not to let it go to your head sir,” Tagge added, glancing at Motti, who, despite having been aboard for weeks, seemed far more excited about the station than Tarkin was, just arriving.

Wilhuff laughed, “I’ll try.”


The Vorlon was, Leia had to admit, strange. If it weren’t for the air filters on its upper section, occasionally flexing, she would have said it was a droid. It was orange-brown, with green sections on its, suit, and various nozzles lining the ridge. From the suit, hung long robes, patterned in purple and gold, and on, what Leia guessed was its chest, was a panel of lights, that reminded her of a more ascetically pleasing version of Darth Vader’s famous outfit.

The creature had a single eye, in the centre of its head that glowed a reassuring green. It stood there for a long moment, looking at Leia. After a few moments she leaned forward, looking at her visitor, “Can I help you?”

When it spoke, its voice was accompanied by strange, almost entrancing song-like sounds, barely heard, “Yes,” it said, tilting its head to one side.

She looked at it for a moment, “Yes?” she said, “How?”

“You will know,” the vorlon said.

“I see,” she said, her hand carefully sliding under her desk. “Then, why are you here?”

“That is irrelevant,”

“I see,” she repeated herself, eyebrows rising in incredulity, “Then who are you?”

“Good.”

“Good? You are good?” she narrowed her eyes at the creature…

“You are,” it said.

“Would you at least care to tell me your name?”

“Kosh,” the Vorlon said, “Thank you for your time.” It nodded once, and turned to leave, leaving Leia simply staring after it in confusion.

[Admiral Bravo]

Pretty good concept. I look forword to the next chapter.

[Imperial Overlord]

Hmmm. Interesting.

[consequences]

Now why do I have this feeling that the Shadows will end up working through the auspices of the Rebel alliance?

[NecronLord]

Now why do I have this feeling that the Shadows will end up working through the auspices of the Rebel alliance?

To a point, the Rebels would be beneficial to both the Shadow Agenda and the Vorlon Agendas, the real question, is after the inevitable fall of Empire, what happens, thats where the two plans differ.

[CJvR]

To a point, the Rebels would be beneficial to both the Shadow Agenda and the Vorlon Agendas

Considering the Vorlonian passion for order the Empire would seem like the better deal, though it might need new management in their opinion. The Shadows are the natural enemies of the Empire, a triumphant Empire would effectively end their style of conflict oriented evolution.

[NecronLord]

Considering the Vorlonian passion for order the Empire would seem like the better deal, though it might need new management in their opinion. The Shadows are the natural enemies of the Empire, a triumphant Empire would effectively end their style of conflict oriented evolution.

"Yes."

[CJvR]

"Yes."

I see that Kosh has had a bad influence on you.

[NecronLord]

Chapter Three

Like all dreamers, Leia was unsure if she was dreaming. The environs and circumstances were certainly surreal enough to be a dream, and she had no clear recollection of how she had gotten where she was, or what she wanted there.

Finding herself standing in the cold stone of the Imperial Palace’s grand hall, she slowly approached the raised dias. The figure of Emperor Palpatine was shrouded in his usual darkness, cloaked as he had been ever since the end of the clone wars. The figure of the Emperor stood, speaking in a voice that was wrong for him. With a jump of surprise she realised that it was her voice saying, “do you know who I am?”

“Me?” she asked.

“You are the Hand,” said another figure, of a tall man in jedi robes who loomed over the shoulder of the ‘Emperor.’

Leia turned to see another version of herself, dressed in the deep red uniform of the Imperial Intelligence division known as the Ubiqtorate. On this version’s shoulder a massive black bird perched, and she held a dagger, a slick blackness marred the sheen of its blade, and she realised that it was blood. “The dagger is yours,” the apparition said, and Leia found herself turning away again.

A tall woman, dark haired, dressed in flowing white, stood bathed in light from below, though the floor seemed dark. Her auburn hair was littered with white flowers, and on her shoulder was another bird, with white plumage. In her hands she held a sceptre of silver, with a brilliant corusca gem in its head.

With a start, she realised that this was her mother. She remembered something of her real mother, even though conventional wisdom said that the idea was impossible. The white figure extended the sceptre, and Leia took it. Examining the object, she found a diamond cunningly worked into a button on its side, and pressed it. With a flash and a snap hiss, the sceptre created a blade of shimmering energy from the gem, which flashed and danced with white lightning.

Leia gasped and dropped the lightsaber, which clanked to the floor, and turned again. The vorlon stood there. “Why are you here?” Leia asked.

“We were never away,” Kosh said, his solitary eye narrowing.

Leia took a step forward, but seemed to come no closer to the creature. “Why am I here?” she asked.

“You were never away,” he said, and Leia turned at a sound behind her. Her mother, she recognised her as someone else now. A senator who had been instrumental in the early days of the alliance, Padmé Naberrie. She held the sceptre and the dagger, “They are yours,” she said, “Take them.”

Leia took the sceptre, and looked at the woman. “You have already wield the dagger. Learn to master it.”

Hesitantly, Leia wrapped her slender fingers around the dagger’s hilt, and took it.


“What is thy bidding my Master.” Darth Vader, dark Lord of the Sith, said, kneeling at the foot of the throne from Leia’s dream.

The wizened man in the chair leaned forward, “There is a disturbance in the force.”

“I have felt it, my Master.”

“Something has changed, something that I have not forseen.”

“Yes my Master,” Vader said, “Do you wish me to investigate?”

“No Lord Vader, you are to go and meet Tarkin aboard his new battlestation as planned. Ensure that he does not gain any ideas above his station.” A hacking cough of a laugh came from the Emperor at his weak pun.

“As you wish, my Master,” Vader said, rising and turning.

“And, Lord Vader,”

“Yes Master?”

“When he does, teach him the true depth of his folly.”

“Yes Master.”


C3-P0 didn’t really find the dusting and minor work around the apartments of the senator particularly boring. It gave him something to do, which in his electronic mind, was happiness. So, he spent time every morning doing such menial work. His mistress usually slept in until later, and thus he had noting more important to attend to.

R2-D2 however, found such things immeasurably dull. He had been in the vanguard of battle after epic battle in the Clone Wars, seen and killed the most fearsome war-droids of the Confederacy of Independent Systems. Overridden the controls of vast armaments factories and starships. As such, cleaning was rather beneath him.

Both however, were surprised by the sudden arrival of Princess Leia. She looked rather the worse for wear, and threepio took it upon himself to fuss immediately. He doddered over to her and asked in his prissy and annoying, in R2’s opinion, voice if there was anything wrong.

“Not really,” she said, “just a disturbing dream. Here’s a question for you, you’re a fairly old model yes.”

“But far from obsolete!” Threepio said in alarm, and managed to get a laugh from Leia.

“I’d never replace you Threepio,” she said, patting the droid on the back. “But anyway. Here’s the question. Do you know anything about Senator Padmé Naberrie?”

R2 rolled over, beeping and warbling madly. “What’s happened to him?” Leia asked.

“I haven’t a clue Milady. He gets like this sometimes. He’s claiming he remembers her, which is quite impossible… and… oh my.”

“Threepio,” Leia said curiously.

“I think I had better get you a drink before translating Milady… This is going to be a long day.”

R2 warbled plaintively at the delay, and contemplated attacking 3PO’s leg with his welding arc.


Admiral Motti left his quarters in his dress uniform. They were going to test-fire the superlaser, a ceremony doubtless worthy of commemoration. Another man who wore a civilian outfit, black haired with a slightly unsettling manner occupied the turbolift he got into. “Ah!” he said, “Admiral Motti. I was just about to look for you. This will only take a moment of your time Sir, I can see you’re a very busy man.”

Motti squinted at him. “What do you want?”

“That was just what I was about to ask you. What do you want…”

[Crown]

Looooooved it! There aren't too many good crossovers with dis-appropriate strenghts, but this is working out a treat. Although why did you use the 'Sheridan Dream' sequence for Leia? I still haven't figured out what it meant the first time, bastard!

[NecronLord]

Allow me to explain.

"Destiny is a three edged sword. One edge has been shown."

Really. That explains it. IMO.

[Crown]

Allow me to explain.

"Destiny is a three edged sword. One edge has been shown."

Really. That explains it. IMO.

<Grimes from Black Hawk Down>Oh yeah, right!?!?!</Grimes from Black Hawk Down>

Bastard!

[Kruk]

Like it. I have one question - are those "original Shadows" or "warsified-Shadows" (with GE as YR's and Shadows/Vorlons on the FO's levels)

And can the Shadows/vorlons use Force here?? Perhaps Vorlons created Jedi (or better to say - force users) as they created telepaths in B5 and Shadows created Siths just as they have made Drakh's they servants in B5.

And what with other FO's?? I can see Walkers as creators of Centerpoint Station and Maw Cluster

[NecronLord]

While the first ones have apparently existed in the Wars Galaxy, their technological capabilities are the same as they are in the B5 series. It's far more interesting that way IMO.

[Crown]

And can the Shadows/vorlons use Force here?? Perhaps Vorlons created Jedi (or better to say - force users) as they created telepaths in B5 and Shadows created Siths just as they have made Drakh's they servants in B5.

Non-Force telepathy exists in the SWverse, so that isn't necessary (thank God).

And what with other FO's?? I can see Walkers as creators of Centerpoint Station and Maw Cluster

Yeah, too bad that the YR's would kick their collective asses though, eh?

[Crazedwraith]

Slick. Unfortunatly I ain't seen B5 so I cann't make any sense of thee amazing parallels you keep drawing. Oh well.

[NecronLord]

Slick. Unfortunatly I ain't seen B5 so I cann't make any sense of thee amazing parallels you keep drawing. Oh well.

Get thee to HMV.

[Crazedwraith]

Slick. Unfortunatly I ain't seen B5 so I cann't make any sense of thee amazing parallels you keep drawing. Oh well.

Get thee to HMV.

thee give mee sume moneye and i shalle goe to HMV.

Well it my birthday in a week so if i have mone after that... I still couldn't watch them for a wile. A little thing called AS exams in a month.

[Xon]

Looooooved it! There aren't too many good crossovers with dis-appropriate strenghts, but this is working out a treat. Although why did you use the 'Sheridan Dream' sequence for Leia? I still haven't figured out what it meant the first time, bastard!

It is a physiological intimidation tactic , it doesnt actually have to have a rathional meaning.

And personally I've always disliked the entire FO bullshit.

[Coalition]

Very good. The Shadows managed to get Morden onboard the Death Star, but I wonder if he'll get off in time?

[Kruk]

The questions is "If he will need to get of". Shadows can... well, convince rebels that it's not healthy to attack such nice battlestation

[NecronLord]

It is a physiological intimidation tactic , it doesnt actually have to have a rathional meaning.

I assure you, in this case, it does. You just have to think about it religiously. Symbolism and so forth.

And personally I've always disliked the entire FO bullshit.

You probably won't enjoy the rest of this then.