Star Wars_ Darth Bane 03_ Dynasty of Evil - Drew Karpyshyn [66]
She understood the risks, but nothing of importance had ever been accomplished without risk. Over the first few years of his training, she would keep a close eye on Set. She would be wary of treachery and deceit as little by little she exposed him to the greater truths Bane had taught her. She would use his lust for personal power as the bait to draw him deeper and deeper into the ways of the Sith.
In time Set would come to accept the teachings and philosophies as she had done. As his understanding of the dark side evolved, he would gain the vision to see beyond his own petty wants and desires. He would recognize their need to destroy the Jedi and he would embrace the ultimate destiny of the Sith.
And if he did not, then she would destroy him and find another to serve her.
All this was running through her mind as she watched the silver-haired Jedi rubbing his chin, contemplating the prospect of becoming her apprentice.
“I accept,” he said at last. “And I am honored you have chosen me.”
“No, you’re not,” she said. “But someday you will be.”
14
We should have force pikes for this job,” Captain Jedder grumbled. “They’ve got twice the juice of these kriffing stun rifles.”
“Force pikes can kill if you’re not careful,” the Huntress reminded him, though she was only half paying attention to the conversation. “The princess wants him taken alive. Besides, you’d never get close enough to use them.”
They were inside the mansion of Sepp Omek, though the Huntress doubted that was the man’s real name. Not that it mattered. She hadn’t needed a name to track him here to the estate on Ciutric IV. The Sith Lord had covered his tracks well, hiding his true identity behind layers of middlebeings and go-betweens and making it virtually impossible for anyone to connect him to the events on Ambria through normal methods. But all his careful preparations couldn’t guard against the Iktotchi’s unique powers. Guided by the images in her dreams and her infallible instincts the Huntress had found her quarry, as she always did.
“How long till he gets here?” Captain Jedder wanted to know.
“Soon,” she replied. “Tell your team to get into position.”
Her visions had shown her the house would be empty when they arrived, just as they had shown her that the owner would be returning this very same night.
“Can you be more specific?” Jedder asked. “Twenty minutes? An hour? Two?”
“It doesn’t work that way,” she muttered absently, her eyes picking out locations for them to set their trap.
She had already scouted out the estate in detail, committing every room to memory as she had gone through and disabled every alarm and anti-intruder system on the grounds. She had even managed to slice her way past the security panel on the small building at the rear of the grounds. At first she had thought it might be some kind of arsenal or weapons bunker, but once she managed to open the door she realized it was a library. Instead of datapads or holodisks, however, the shelves had groaned under the weight of ancient leather-bound books and scrolls of yellowed parchment.
There was something else inside the building that had given her pause, however. Resting on a pedestal near the back of the library was a small, four-sided crystal pyramid. The Huntress had no need to steal from her victims; she had ignored the priceless works of art and other valuables scattered around the mansion. But there was something oddly compelling about this piece. Unsure what it could be, she had somehow felt drawn to it, and she’d slipped it into one of the pockets beneath her robe before continuing her investigation of the grounds.
Once she was done she had signaled for Jedder and the others that it was safe to come in and begin their preparations.
“Something wrong?” the captain asked.
“No,” she replied, annoyed at herself for getting distracted. “Just looking for places to set your team up.”
This job was unlike any the Huntress had ever