Star Wars : Tanya the Evil

( 31 BBY )

This was an important occasion for the New Temple, and the crowd reflected that. Every available Jedi Knight had been recalled for the ceremony, and all the Temple's clients had been invited as well. Among the attendees, Tan'ya recognised several of her own aunts and uncles, mixed in with a range of nobility from across the Outer Rim. Among their ranks, a baron would be expected to rule over a moon or a continent, a Count would rule an entire world, and a duke would rule a sector.

Most prominent among them were Duchess Satine of Mandalore, and Duke Harrad of Raxus. Both of them were already clients of the New Temple, and powerful ones at that, with Satine being the head of state for the Mandalorian Sector, and Harrad ruling over the Tion Hegemony.

By all accounts, they both governed fractious, and contentious realms where the exact degree of influence they wielded over each world varied, but between the two of them they officially ruled eighty planets. As remarkable as they were, they weren't even the most impressive guests here.

Looming like a shark among minnows, Queen Amidala stood out to everyone. Despite the title of Queen, Amidala was actually a democratically elected head of state. Though her world had been easy prey for the Trade Federation, it played an economically vital role in the Galaxy, and its influence was widespread. Recently the senator from Naboo was nominated as a candidate for the Supreme Chancellor, so clearly its influence was vast, even if its defense was horribly mismanaged. Amidala was a potential client, one that could open very important doors for the New Temple and Serenno.

Then there was Hego Damask II. Officially, he didn't rule anything, but realistically, the muun could be said to be among the most powerful figures in the Galaxy. He was a chair of the InterGalactic Banking Clan, one of five. He was a deca-trillionaire in his own right, but his position on the guild made him even more widely influential than that.

The Banking Clan was a trade guild, similar in concept to the Mining Guild or the Trade Federation, in that it represented all of the Galaxy's banks in negotiations with the Republic. The Banking Clan's word was practically law, as far as the Galaxy's financial sector was concerned. Even Republic Credits were traded at a rate set by the Banking Clan!

Compared to Hego, even the wealthiest and most influential members of the Outer Rim's nobility were nothing, just backwater old money with some charming rural estates! Even the Supreme Chancellor would have to be careful with what he said in a meeting with Hego Damask. If Queen Amidala was a shark among minnows, Hego was a man stooping down to curiously examine a nest of ants.

What such an important person could possibly be doing here, at the tiny little New Temple on muddy, battered Indinor, Tan'ya could only guess. Part of her wanted to believe it was a sign of the Temple's growing influence and great potential, but she knew that was wishful thinking.

While she watched the Palace, Damask had contacted Serenno and requested a meeting with her father. Of course she had promised it to him, at a date yet to be determined. Now she was worried her father wasn't in a fit state to handle such a meeting!

As much as Tan'ya wanted to grow the power and influence of Serenno, most likely Damask was hoping to use Dooku's contacts within the Jedi Temple for some personal matter. Or at least, that was the only explanation Tan'ya could think of. He stood amongst the others with a pair of helmeted Thyrsian Sun Guards flanking him, watching the ceremony unfold.

Under everyone's gaze, Asajj walked through a path marked in the crowd by pairs of assembled Jedi, looking like she was almost overjoyed. Far from the serene, stoic warriors that the Jedi were known as, Asajj was visibly pleased.

The robes of the New Temple Jedi were different from those of the main temple, integrating dark armor and a cape at the neck that could be detached with an iron chain. The outfit looked much more formal and militaristic than the brown and tans that Coruscant Jedi wore, with silver buttons and epaulets. Asajj was the first one to wear it, as the first trainee of the temple to be Knighted.

As Assaj passed each pair of Jedi, they drew their lightsaber behind her and held them up, until finally she walked up the staircase up to the stage where Dooku was waiting. She took out her own lightsaber, and offered it to him. Receiving it from her, Dooku inspected the weapon, before finally lighting it. Using the tip of the blade, he nicked the chain holding her cape on, causing it to fall from her shoulders, before placing a new cape over her shoulders that Master Narec had been holding. Dooku affixed the cape in place with a chain of durasteel, and returned Asajj's lightsaber to her.

She stood, turning to face the assembled as a Jedi Knight, smiling proudly.

Despite herself, Tan'ya felt a surge of excitement for her long time friend. She joined the clapping of the crowd for an embarrassing few seconds, before realizing that she'd let slip her mental control of the Force, and forced it back down. Her father had obviously noticed, glancing over at her, but his gaze drifted back to the crowd.

Feeling mortified, Tan'ya slowed her clapping down, avoiding eye contact with Knight Prialla who glanced back at Tan'ya. Even the assembled younglings had noticed, more than a few of them gaping at her openly.

Tan'ya wasn't just strong in the Force, as it had been explained to her. She was incredibly strong in the Force, already with a level of raw power that exceeded every knight in the New Temple. If she didn't keep careful control of her power, she'd walk around looming over everyone like a thug. Tan'ya wasn't quite sure where she rated compared to her father, or even Master Yoda, but she hoped to one day surpass them.

Thinking of the little green gremlin, Tan'ya realized she hadn't spoken to him in a while. She'd heard that he and her father weren't speaking and that a feud was brewing. Officially, the Coruscant Temple no longer considered the New Temple an official branch, having cut them adrift after her father's actions at Naboo. Master Narec and Padawan Asajj had been captains for two of the ships in the Serenno defense fleet, which was admittedly an inappropriate, private use of Temple personnel.

Still, it was the kind of minor breach that Tan'ya thought it should have been possible to smooth over with a private meeting and a little mutual compromise, but then Qui-Gon Jin had died. Tan'ya had little interaction with the man, but her father was devastated by his death and held Yoda responsible.

Tan'ya thought that was unfair, but then grief was known to express itself irrationally. Whatever the feud between her father and his former master, Tan'ya was sure that one day they'd be able to patch things up again when everyone had a chance to calm down.

She hoped at least, she kind of liked that little old green kook.

After a moment, Tan'ya resolved to give him a call when there was time, just to let him know that he wasn't completely an enemy to her family.

With the ceremony itself over, Asajj and Dooku walked down from the stage together to mingle with the crowd. Servants pushed refreshments on hover tables into the room, and a band began to play soft music with strings and bells in the background. The guests all moved forward to gather around Dooku and Asajj, talking excitedly in a small group together. Tan'ya decided to collect a few refreshments from the table, before going to congratulate her friend.

Shecollected a few peppered Indinorian Lobsters on a plate and took a glass of Erera fruit juice, when someone behind her asked, "What do you recommend?"

Tan'ya turned, and was shocked to find Hego Damask standing behind her, holding a small plate of his own. He was tall and thin, which was typical of a muun, but unusually he had a large breathing apparatus around his mouth, which he lowered down to his neck so he could sample the food. His resplendent formal robes were trimmed with platinum, and decorated with whorls of muunish script that Tan'ya couldn't read. His gaze was clear and steady, evaluating her.

Behind him, a small distance away, the two Thyrsian Sunguards eyed her suspiciously from behind their helmets, rifles still over their shoulders, but held in a way that they could be brought to hand at a moment's notice.

"I didn't think I could surprise you, I would have thought a Jedi in training would know when they were being approached."

Mind racing, she hurried to find an explanation that wouldn't reflect poorly on her training. "My training has been different from the other Younglings. I'm very powerful in the Force, but sometimes I struggle to control its potency. The Force reacts much more quickly, and strongly to me, so if I'm not careful I can cause harm."

"Fascinating." He murmured, stepping past Tan'ya to examine the table. After a few moments he selected a few sweet meats on skewers with cheese and dried fruits, as well as a cup of wine.

Looking over at Tan'ya, he paused to take a breath from his breather, before saying to her, "All force sensitives I know are the opposite. They strain to reach the force, where you struggle to keep it at bay."

...

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