Star Wars - The Gray Jedi - Chapter 7 - The hunt has begun.

[Chapter Size: 1900 Words.]
Third Person POV
Bracca.
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...

While the Stinger Mantis managed to escape the Empire's radar, heading to the next planet, Bogano, the Empire's forces were in turmoil on Bracca.

Amidst the scrapyard's wasteland lay an Imperial fighter, which had crashed some time ago while waiting for reinforcements. It was missing one of its wings, and much of its fuselage was severely dented from colliding with multiple train cars before falling off and landing where it now rested.

The Second Sister, the one who had been battling the Jedi disguised as a scrapper for years here, stood nearby, awaiting her rescue. She was visibly impatient, standing next to her ship, clad in her armor sans helmet, ever since the crash, and waiting for her request to be fulfilled.

Her gaze fell upon the damaged ship at that moment. Despite the dents, her eyes were drawn directly to the scorched portion of the destroyed wing. She couldn't believe what she had seen—lightning emanating from the hands of the very Jedi she had been trying to kill.

‘He used the Dark Side...’ she murmured, unsure of what to think. How was this possible? Not even she possessed such power, yet a target who was supposed to be a Jedi could wield it. This led her to question whether he might be someone masquerading as a Jedi to infiltrate the rebels. Without answers, however, she would have to wait to consult her superiors.

It was at that moment that something glimmered in the sky. All she could initially see was dust, but the light indicated an Imperial ship was arriving to rescue her.

The ship approached and landed nearby. The Second Sister left her own ship and walked toward the new arrival as its ramp lowered.

The Ninth Sister, towering in size, approached, her eyes narrowing as she took in the scene. “What happened?” she asked, looking at the wingless and battered ship, which had only survived due to its resilience against the multiple impacts and its 50-meter fall into the scrapyard.

“It doesn’t matter now... I need to speak to our leader,” the Second Sister replied in a curt tone. The Ninth Sister didn’t seem pleased with her manner but said nothing as they proceeded inside.

“I’m heading to the communication chamber,” the Second Sister said, striding through the ship’s corridors past Stormtroopers working to keep the vessel operational as it took off.

Reaching a room filled with communication equipment and computers, the Ninth Sister followed her. After all, they were part of the mission together.

The Second Sister approached one of the panels and began typing commands into the screen. Moments later, the lights in the room dimmed completely, and in the center, where a holographic platform stood, a blinking light indicated an outgoing transmission.

She stopped typing, and a moment later, a figure materialized in holographic form. This figure made all the Inquisitors in the room bow their heads instantly, kneeling.

The bluish light of the hologram projected none other than Darth Vader. His helmeted visage loomed large in the projection, his mechanical breathing echoing through the room as he stared down at the kneeling Inquisitors.

The Second Sister kept her head bowed for a few seconds. The Emperor's right hand stood silently, already aware they had failed. Despite her fear, she took a deep breath, summoning her courage before speaking.

"Lord Vader," she began, her voice firm but tinged with hesitation. "We encountered a Jedi remnant after intercepting a disturbance in the Force on Bracca... but he escaped,” she admitted.

“So, you failed,” Darth Vader’s voice finally broke the silence. The two Inquisitors seemed to lower their heads even further, terrified of him.

"Yes, my Lord... but there is more. When I faced him..." She lifted her head slightly, hesitating before continuing. "This Jedi... he used the Dark Side of the Force. Lightning. A power he shouldn’t possess. Something even we cannot replicate," she murmured.

Darth Vader tilted his head slightly, his rhythmic breathing the only sound for several seconds before he responded. "Force lightning... from a Jedi?" Vader’s deep, mechanical voice carried disbelief. "This is not common. Explain." After all, even he could not wield this power of the Dark Side, as his body was too damaged for such abilities.

While the Ninth Sister looked surprised at the Second, it was the first time she had heard this. The Second Sister briefly glanced at her before continuing.

"I saw it with my own eyes, my Lord. He was cornered, but... when it seemed like there was no escape, he surrendered to the power of the dark side. It was brutal, instinctive. He doesn’t fully control this power, but the sheer force he demonstrated..." Her voice trembled slightly, though she steadied herself. "He might be more dangerous than we anticipated."

"Not just dangerous. He’s a problem. Who is he? Who is his master...?" Vader seemed confused, and one thing he despised was feeling lost in a situation.

"So he’s not someone planted by the Empire or anything of the sort?" the Second Sister ventured, unable to hold back her question.

"No... I must ask my master directly. But I still need to know more about him first..." Vader hesitated to consult his master just yet. This situation seemed too strange. He had felt a significant disturbance in the Force—it didn’t feel like any Jedi using their powers. It felt like something much greater. Now, with this report, it might even involve this strange Jedi or Sith... he wasn’t certain.

‘Something has changed in the galaxy... but the Force gives me no answers...’ This was his thought as he took a step forward, as if pacing in front of them. The room’s atmosphere grew even darker and heavier with his mere presence in the hologram.

"You said he was on the verge of being captured when he used this power?" he asked.

"Yes... and completely out of control," the Second Sister replied.

"If what you say is true, it seems he doesn’t yet understand the true power he touched. But that means he is vulnerable... and manipulable." The final word dripped with intent.

"What do you wish us to do, my Lord?" the Second Sister asked.

"He must not escape again. If he is strong enough, he will bend to the dark side. But if he fails to serve me... he will be destroyed." His voice was unmistakably clear.

Both Inquisitors nodded immediately, keeping their heads bowed. The Second Sister, however, hesitated slightly, something Vader did not miss.

"So you don’t know where he may have gone, correct?" Vader asked.

"No... they escaped our radars," the Ninth Sister answered, as she had been tracking the Mantis before it entered hyperspace.

"This is troubling... I will assign a few more Inquisitors to assist you. But this time..." His voice darkened. "You had better not fail, for there are things worse than death."

The two Inquisitors bowed even lower, well aware of how bad things could get for them.

Moments later, the hologram flickered off, plunging the room into complete darkness before the lights flickered back on. The Inquisitors stood up immediately.

The Ninth Sister turned her penetrating gaze toward the Second Sister, her towering size making her presence even more intimidating. "What did you say? That Jedi can use lightning?!" she demanded quickly.

"Yes... I don’t know how, but he did," the Second Sister replied.

"But I saw him using the light side when we tried to kill that friend of his," the Ninth Sister commented, clearly dissatisfied with the Second Sister’s response.

"I know... He fought me. But still... it’s strange. If you remember the teachings from the Jedi Temple, this isn’t the first time someone like this has appeared," she remarked.

"Yes, the Gray Jedi, Revan... but that was over 4,000 years ago," the Ninth Sister noted, recalling the story of the Jedi who led the Jedi Order and the Republic in the war against the Mandalorians.

"Either way, we must continue to work together to hunt this Jedi down—before I kill my former master." The Second Sister’s voice was laced with rage, and the Ninth Sister nodded in agreement.

They proceeded to the next room, scanning the screens displaying radar data still hovering over Bracca.

"They entered hyperspace and vanished. No known destination." The Ninth Sister slammed the console beside her, her voice filled with frustration as she watched the holographic trajectory of the Mantis disappear from the Imperial radar records.

The Second Sister, though equally frustrated, folded her arms and stared at the empty star map. "This means we’re dealing with a ship that knows evasive procedures well. They erased their trail before jumping. But they can’t stay hidden forever," she said.

"You seem awfully calm. Without information, we’re literally chasing shadows across the galaxy," the Ninth Sister mocked.

"Lord Vader said he would assign a new team of Inquisitors to assist us. That will ease the tracking process. We can’t act without finding his trail, but I also want more information about this Jedi living as a scrapper here on Bracca. His history seems very unclear, but it’s worth investigating how he lived and what jobs he held," she concluded as the Ninth Sister nodded in agreement.

The Second Sister opened a communicator, and a Stormtrooper commander appeared on the screen.

"Yes, Second Sister," he greeted her respectfully.

"I want all the information you can gather on this individual from this planet," she ordered, sending all the data and footage she had managed to collect of the hidden Jedi.

"It will be done," he replied before the call ended.

Meanwhile, the Ninth Sister was at the ship’s communication panel. "I want reports on unusual activity in nearby sectors. Any signs of unregistered ship movements or local population reports of suspicious sightings," she commanded before receiving confirmation.

The Ninth Sister chuckled softly, turning back to the Second Sister. "This could take weeks. Do you think we have that much time? Vader will crush us long before then if we don’t deliver results."

"We don’t have much choice now," the Second Sister responded. "In any case, we can split up. That will cover more ground," she suggested.

"That might be possible," the Ninth Sister agreed.

"I’ll head to Kashyyyk to assist the Empire in suppressing those rebels," she said, referring to the Wookiee homeworld with its dense forests and vast rivers. The planet was under Imperial occupation, with Wookiees enslaved to aid the Empire’s war effort, but rebel activities had begun to surface there, and she intended to help quash them by exterminating the rebel forces.

"Fine. The Empire is dispatching some forces to Zeffo. I’ll head to that sector," the Ninth Sister replied.

With their plans set, they settled into the ship. The Inquisitor’s black vessel began to ascend, breaking through Bracca’s atmosphere and entering hyperspace. After several hours, it docked with a Star Destroyer, where the Second Sister disembarked to board her own ship. The two Inquisitors parted ways, each heading down different paths in search of the elusive Jedi.

Thus, the hunt across the galaxy for the strange Jedi truly began.