"I see everything ended favorably," I chuckled, watching Jaro lead five kings from the Alliance of Five Kingdoms out of the ship at once.
The men were all different. For example, among them was a golden-haired, pretty young man who, according to descriptions, was the King of Adversity, essentially the ruler of that country. He glanced warily at Jaro but was calmer than the others. There was also an old man whose face had turned white with fear, which looked rather amusing in contrast to his purple robes. Next to him, trembling with fear and apparently having wet himself, was the fat and somewhat cowardly Ragimond, the King of the country of the same name to the southwest. But the most frightened was a tall, black-haired man. Grond the Bastard...
It was he who, through his stupidity, dragged these countries into war. According to intelligence reports from Emperor Lator, Grond knows how to win people over to his side. He supposedly said that Grond possesses a rare ability to infuse his throat with the Force, or their magic. Now his popularity was clear... Essentially, a well-delivered speech can make a sentient being hate their neighbor, with whom they played football and spent a happy childhood. Who could do that? In Galactic history, many could. But if I dug through my memory, an example came up from that first life. Hitler could pull that off...
Enemies all around, everyone wants to attack us, but I know how we should live... And what to do with the others. These are very dangerous sentients. Grond was doubly dangerous. By the way... That's probably why he had a gag in his mouth, the only one among all the other kings.
"Problems only arose with the talkative one and Gerind of Adversity," Jaro replied. "This Gerind tried to fight me, Master, and Grond tried to subdue me. He used this." He handed me some strange organism. Externally, it resembled a worm with strange, sharp limbs.
"Ugh, disgusting," Celeste grimaced. "This thing looks more vile than a rakghoul."
I brought the organism closer with telekinesis, surrounding myself with a Force barrier. It was still alive...
"Mmmmm," came from Grond. "Mmmmm..."
"And what does this thing do?" I asked.
"He tried to throw it onto my face," Jaro replied. "But I remembered your teachings, Master, and raised a Force barrier. You said you can mock an enemy however you want, but never underestimate him."
"I've never seen anything like it," said Emperor Lator. "What a strange thing." He removed the bandage from his crystal eye and carefully studied the floating organism. "What are you standing around for?" he asked sharply. "The war is over! All soldiers, disperse, including the Alliance's. Now we will talk about peace. This is what you wanted, Light, isn't it?"
"I never deceive, Emperor. More precisely, I only say and promise what I am capable of fulfilling."
"That's treacherous," came from Donovan's direction. "You..."
"Shut up," I waved him off. "If you try to jump above your abilities, if you don't assess them objectively, you'll become the most revered and popular corpse. If you really want to achieve something that's beyond your strength right now, retreat, train, get stronger, and come back."
"That's reasonable." Lator returned to studying the strange organism. The people around began to disperse. The cries of warriors looking for their comrades could be heard. Many began to help their own and even their enemies. "But how unusual, how unusual..."
"Not as unusual as the crystal in your eye," I snorted. "But you're right. Did you find out where this larva came from, or did you just capture him? However... Most likely, this organism was created using the Dark Side of the Force; I can clearly sense the aura of darkness coming from it. Hmm... If he threw this thing at your face... then he was counting on the larva's effect. Grond is known as an orator who uses the Force not only in battle. But is it within the power of the Force-sensitive to influence their enemies? Or those who don't accept his actions? Ideally, we have the ability to forcibly subjugate the mind of any being, but it won't work with everyone... Beautiful. After all, the mind of the strong-willed is not so easy to break. And in the Kingdom, as I've heard, his Kingdom, everyone practically reveres him. Even those who might object to his actions regarding governance, and especially your sister, Lator."
"What are you trying to say?"
"I'm saying that this... larva, let's call it that, is a weapon. An incredibly dangerous weapon. Most likely, it enters the brain of a being, a sentient, through the openings in the head and facilitates control over that sentient," I answered the question. "I use mild drugs, but they're only enough for interrogation. To control a sentient, you need something more serious, right, Grond?" I asked the moaning King.
"Mmmm... Mmmmm!"
"Ah, sorry," I sighed and telekinetically pulled the gag out of his mouth. "Did you want to say something? Go ahead, speak, not into the rag."
"You will pay for this," he spat. "I will turn you all into my servants..."
"Enough," I said, interrupting the sentient's Force influence. He had tried to infuse his voice with the Force. "You do understand that everyone present, without the larva, will not obey you. We are too strong-willed. The kings besides you," I looked at the prisoners, "Gerind of Adversity is also strong-willed. The old man and the fat man won't do anything to us. Roland is bound hand and foot, but even if he were armed, he wouldn't do anything to me. There's no point counting on the others. But I'm curious... I thought similar creatures could only exist with the Geonosian Queens..."
"Queens?" Jaro asked in surprise. "They have Queens?"
"Mmm... I came across information, not in the Jedi library — only hints of it remain there — that the Geonosians had Queen Mothers who were capable of creating worms... With their help, they were able to control even corpses. The worms crawled into the victim's brain, and the victim was no longer themselves... They retained all their skills, so... These beings are incredibly dangerous... If they are your enemies. However, this larva doesn't even remotely resemble the descriptions of those worms," I chuckled. "Where did you get it?" I asked the King. "Are you its creator? Or did someone else manage to create it..."
"Bastards... Do you expect me to answer you?"
"You will answer me," Emperor Lator hissed. "I have endured too long..."
"Endured?" Grond chuckled. "Just don't start pompously screaming about what I did to your niece, Emperor Lator. The North has been eyeing the South for a long time. But you couldn't declare a war of conquest. The Guilds that trade with our countries and at the same time have you firmly by the balls wouldn't tolerate losses for long. So you just let me do all that to your niece. You were just waiting for a pretext... Ah... When I tortured them... Your pathetic sister... And when I raped your niece, you just sat in Haderholt, your residence, sipping gliseram," Grond laughed. "You're a cynical, lying bastard."
"And you're no better, even worse," I said, telekinetically breaking his arm. "You're both cut from the same cloth." What? Lator's daughter, Larana, seemed to be looking at her father in a completely new light.
"You dare compare me to him?"
"And how are you different from him, Lator of Rakaza? You're a two-faced, hypocritical bastard. Will you say no? You could have saved both your sister and your niece... But you didn't. In any case, it's too late to talk about it now..."
"Oh no," Grond replied. "I... Kh... I agree to reveal to you the secret of what this is and where I get these larvae. But I have my own conditions: kill Emperor Lator."
"You've got some nerve," Celeste said coldly. "Should I break your other arm?"
"I'll just inject you with a drug and use Force persuasion to extract all the information I need," I shrugged. "No matter how much of a scumbag the Emperor is, I didn't come here to start a war now. I came for Kizhzhara's beacon. And Kizhzhara," I shifted my gaze to the witch, "will give it to me. In return, she will stay on this planet and never leave it. She will change her name and become an outcast. My second goal just added itself. I want to know, Grond, where do you get these organisms? Or is this your own development?"
"And what will you do with that place?" he asked.
"Naturally, I will destroy it... These are dangerous organisms, and in the wrong hands, they can lead to dangerous consequences. All lives are important, yes, but if they are used like this..."
"It seems I will be allowed to live in peace even here..." a strange voice was heard. No... It was still Grond speaking, but he spoke strangely. As if whispering, but at the same time shouting.
"Light... This is..."
"Quiet..." I interrupted Celeste. "Who is speaking through your lips?"
"What my name is doesn't matter, traveler."
"I'm not so sure about that," I replied to the speaker. "But what do you mean by talking about peace? You created this larva, didn't you?"
"Yes. It is my organism," replied the being standing behind Grond. "Grond found me, far away in the swamps. He used my larvae to subjugate people. In return, he guaranteed me protection from everyone."
"Your power is subjugation... Why did you need Grond? Can't you protect yourself, given your abilities?"
"I can, but I don't want to attract the attention of someone like you," the being replied through Grond's mouth. "Someone who possesses skills like yours."
"You're afraid of me..."
"Yes," the being agreed. "And those like you, who exist in the darkness of space, in the Galaxy. I didn't want to tell you who I am." 'Wanted'? A female... Most likely, this is also an analogue of a 'queen,' some unique being. "I settled here after the humans. And before that, I traveled the Galaxy... But my powers... The powers of my people are unique and dangerous. People like you might consider me dangerous. We originate from the space you call 'Wild Space'... Originated. Not anymore."
"Not anymore?"
"A man named Esva is to blame," the being replied. "There were not many of us, but we owned an entire world. Many queens were alive in that world. Until he came and burned us all out. Everyone he could... I will tell you how we live. The so-called 'queens' are female beings who are born very rarely. When a queen is born, she leaves the old queen and goes to another place to settle it... Nature made it so that no more than twenty-nine queens and one main queen existed simultaneously... She was the one who regulated the population of our species... Until Esva destroyed her. Without connection to the 'main queen,' our species began to decline. Queens died, new ones were not born. I am the last one. All I can do is breed workers and maintain a small number of soldiers. After the destruction of my people by Esva, I traveled through your Galaxy. I already said that I know who you and your companions are. All I want... I want the same thing you offered Kizhzhara." It was still speaking through Grond. Those around us were horrified... Except Lator stood with his sword drawn, squinting as if peering into Grond's body. "You leave and don't kill me. I will not give my larvae to anyone anymore."
"That's an interesting proposal," I snorted. "And you didn't even lie about your intentions. But what guarantee is there that you won't enslave everyone after I leave? I wouldn't want an organism like you to develop here."
"I understand your concerns," the being replied through Grond's mouth. "So here is what I propose to do. I will destroy all the larvae that are currently in the heads of Grond's people. All the memories associated with this man's crimes against others will instantly flood into their minds... A popular uprising will rise in this King's Kingdom. Meanwhile, I will move very far from the place where Grond found me."
"That's good, of course... But what if someone else finds you here?"
"Within a hundred years, I must leave the material world anyway," the being replied. "My life cycle is coming to an end... Such is my fate, the last of my people." She wasn't lying, that was certain. There was no doubt that the being speaking to me was Force-sensitive. And I managed to attune myself, so to speak, to her mind. Even though it was very difficult for me, the being didn't resist... It was as if... she was showing a sign of trust. "Another queen would have taken my place, but the elder is dead... And without her power, I cannot produce a new one. So everything will end with me..."
"You speak about it rather calmly," Celeste remarked.
"For me, there is no end to the material... The end of material life is the continuation of life in the immaterial world... My sisters are there... And I will go there. Such is fate... We all came and went... Found eternity there."
No matter how much I studied games, movies, books — beings with abilities like hers usually only want to expand their influence. To acquire slaves, sustenance, and act as antagonists. But here... Either something is wrong here, or I've met a unique creature...
"And we're going to let this creature live in peace?" the Emperor asked. "Do you trust her?"
"She's not lying... She might be omitting things, but she's definitely not lying..."
"I can formalize your agreements," the being said. "I can swear... Perform rituals that will bind me, if you wish... But allow me to live out my allotted time in peace. If I want to see my sisters, I must leave peacefully, without the hatred of a violent death... Or my spirit will fall... into the boundless abyss and darkness." The Emperor concealed his eye again. "So what have you decided... Jedi..."
"Have it your way. You will conclude the appropriate agreements with all the political forces gathered here. They will protect the truth about you... As for Grond's larvae... Destroy them slowly... We don't want unnecessary casualties. As I understand it, not everyone got them. Many people believe in the King without them... And if the leadership suddenly changes course after lying to the common people... It will be a terrible war. We don't want new wars... Gradually, release people from your control... And... still tell me where you will be."
"This is acceptable," the being said after a minute of thought. "I do not want to fall, so I will act without vengeance... I will be in a cave that is located..." An image of an underwater cave appeared in my head... It was incredibly clear. A thought-form appeared before my eyes. And I can say that by concentrating, I will be able to find this place, even if I start searching from any point on the planet. "I will speak with you through Grond," the being said. "When you are ready to conclude your agreements and rituals, begin speaking about it with Grond..."
"Kh... Kh..." the King coughed when the being stopped speaking through him. "Fucking hell..."
Well... After such a display, Grond wouldn't be king for long. Not only had he done all those things before... but he had also gotten involved with a strange object.
"Leverandila! Leverandila!" he coughed, clearly calling for that being. "Are you here?! Fuck, answer me! What about our agreement?"
"It seems it's been terminated," I replied. "We got all the answers to all our questions. Kizhzhara, now you will lead us to the beacon. And then you will begin fulfilling your agreement."
Well, well... This planet had its surprises... And the surname Esva... Apparently it's Nuso Esva, or more precisely, most likely a relative of his, since Nuso appeared in Thrawn's saga, when the Galactic Empire had already been formed, and that timeline is still a long way off... This organism, Leverandila, essentially had two options with its larvae, as I'd figured out... They could either stay close to her and grow into adults that would work for the good of the queen. Or the larva could interact with the brain of a different species, subjugating it to the queen... She gave her larvae to Grond, didn't even kill him when he exposed her, just to make him back off... Strange civilization they had, from what I understood... According to what she said — and we talked afterward too — legends circulated about a "merciful Goddess who created them.".. Said she was essentially a whole planet that helped their civilization get on its feet... A civilization of pacifists who didn't want to kill anyone in war, right to the very end... Though they did resist Esva, but their civilization hadn't developed enough. Like Jedi on a budget, focused on biotech... A synthesis of the Yuuzhan Vong and the Jedi, many years before the Vong themselves showed up... A unique society, in a way.
Meanwhile, Ki'zhara had hidden the beacon on her ship, whose engine was damaged. I could have fixed it, but I preferred to blow up her ship, which I told her.
"You do understand that I need to make sure you'll keep our... new agreement, right?" I said, watching her ship burn on the field. "The alternative is your life. But you don't want to die, do you?"
"Yes," Deyraksa hissed. "I wanted a new life. I wanted no one to be able to find me and no one to be able to hold me accountable..."
"Was there something to hold you accountable for?" I asked.
"That name won't mean much to you, but Mighella was looking for me... One of my old acquaintances... Also a Dathomirian. She has incredible resources..."
"By resources, you mean Alexi Garyn and the Black Sun Syndicate?"
"You've run into them?" she asked in surprise. "Impossible... Considering your abilities — they'd be dead if they crossed you... Or locked behind bars... Or... You made a deal with them, didn't you?"
"Hmm... I know about those two, that's all you need to know..."
"You didn't answer my question..."
"And I don't have to," I noted. "What good will knowing about my contacts with them do you? What good will it do me? That's unnecessary information. For either of us..."
"Such that you could sell me out to Mighella if you and she..."
"Let me put it differently," I cut Ki'zhara off. "I have no obligations to Mighella. If anything, she owes me. And no, I'm not going to plead for you." I spun the beacon in front of me. "I won't alter the agreement I made with you. You've been pacified. You've pledged not to establish a Dark Side of the Force cult here, sworn — as I understand it — by something particularly valuable," I chuckled. "We have an understanding... Be satisfied with the peaceful life I've left you. Given your abilities, you'll become a notable figure here. Just look at the peace that's been established..." The Kingdom of Garando had been given over to Ki'zhara and her band of cripples... Although she said she could regrow their limbs. Or rather, graft them. She literally cut arms and legs off corpses for her comrades... Ah, and I remember — in that Matukai scroll I never managed to master, there was the secret of regenerating any limb, even ones severed by a lightsaber... Too bad I couldn't continue searching for the medallion's operation back then. There was no time, plus — finding the gifted who might know the scroll's secrets could have been a nontrivial task. On a planet, mind you, that had just gone through a nuclear apocalypse... And the Matukai are warriors. Who could guarantee that the leaders of the Royal Family weren't at that location, on the front line, where a nuclear warhead could have hit... From a blast like that, even ash might not remain, let alone anything else. "That's it for you, Ki'zhara. I'm returning to the Galaxy." I looked into her eyes. "I'll report that you're dead..."
"Wait, cut off my arm."
"Your arm?"
"Yes," she said. "That'll be proof that I'm dead..."
"Sorry, but who's going to believe that? An arm isn't a head..."
"The head," she said. "And a very good one. Hurry up..."
I sighed and severed the right arm she held out to me. Celeste and Jaro watched the proceedings with curiosity, as did all the other Kings and Emperor present. Ki'zhara picked up her right arm with her left and released magic... Green flashes concentrated around her, gradually forming... Her head?
"This is tissue copying... I managed to create a perfect copy of my tissues — dead ones, unfortunately. Otherwise, I'd have spawned clones and you'd definitely be dead. And don't ask — I won't teach this trick to anyone, least of all you, because I'm very angry at you, Jedi. You made me do something I would never have done," she replied.
There wasn't even any Force radiation coming from Ki'zhara's dead head... I touched it... Lips, nose, eyes... She'd literally created everything.
"You can only recreate dead tissues?"
"Yes," she nodded. Her voice was filled with regret. "It's my original technique — 'head drop'... I've fooled many with it. And I'll fool the Trade Federation too. I don't want to see a Lucrehulk-class here someday, so — take it... And get out," she said spitefully.
"You're a funny witch," I chuckled. "Very funny..." I tossed her head up. "Fyoo, fyoo, fyoo..." A familiar little tune surfaced in my mind on its own, and I started whistling it.
"And this is said by a sentient who's tossing someone else's head around to a cheerful little tune?" the witch asked me.
"The tune isn't cheerful — it's actually very cruel and instructive," I explained. "Doesn't quite fit the current theme, although... Considering that selfish desires were the main driving force... It's funny. You got not what you wanted, but what you asked for. That part is very funny. Goodbye, Ki'zhara..."
* * *
"This planet will be very valuable," Celeste noted as we moved away from it through an asteroid field. "They have phrik up the wazoo..."
"Such language doesn't suit a woman," I noted. "That's why I logged the coordinates of this planet. I think... We'll come back here. Phrik is a very useful metal. But for now — our目標 is Tanalorr. We won't give the beacon to the Federation... But we can turn in the witch's head. We'll say we fought on the ocean shore, on the cliffs... I managed to separate her head from her body and caught it, while the ocean took the body. Considering how easy it is to create a cut like from a lightsaber — since we do have lightsabers — no one will question that story. And as for the beacon — she destroyed it from the start, realizing she couldn't win. The main thing," I looked at Jaro, then at Celeste, "is that you both tell the same story."
"I won't let you down, Master... But still... What was that song you were whistling? It seemed dark, but I want to know..."
"Hmm... That song is about a powerful entity that... well, let's say it embodies the dark side, but a very unique, tempting one... Let me tell you that story. Very interesting, in my opinion..."