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With that thought, he decided to send a little computer virus with that evening's data package. The two Sith had gotten into the habit of exchanging information like that in packets, since they could so rarely interact in real time together given Sidious's busy schedule. The virus would activate after a set amount of time and erase all of the rest of the ship's computers in time, including the operating system, save for the hyperspace computer. The ship would then act on a predetermined hyperspace jump to take the ship directly into the Coruscant System's sun. No matter who wins this battle, I will be the one truly victorious!
OOOOOOO
Count Dooku's small yacht came out of hyperspace about as close to Coruscant as he could manage, lost in the truly monstrous amount of space traffic that continually filled the space around Coruscant. The planet's continuous need for food and other resources meant that more ships came and went on a daily basis here than in any other system in the Republic, even the other Core Worlds.
So it was very easy for Dooku's small ship to disappear in the multitude. Still, that was all to the good at the moment; Dooku had no desire for this mission to be interrupted by friend or stranger alike. This was why he was already wrapped in the best Force Stealth he could manage, so that other Force users, both his target and his fellow Jedi, would not be aware of his presence.
Searching the stationary ships scattered like tiny dots around the planet-turned-city, Dooku found the target vessel, and slowly began to make his way over to it. Odd. Considering it is the ship of a Sith, you would think there would be something off about it, something that made it stick out, but then again, that would defeat the purpose, wouldn't it? Despite the upcoming encounter, Dooku had to smile at the whimsical thought.
It took Dooku a while to clandestinely move his ship through the crowd of ships so as to not arouse suspicion in his target. When he was close enough, Dooku, dressed in a spacesuit, exited his ship, using a brief Force push to send himself through space towards his target. An instant later he touched down without a sound onto the surface of the far larger yacht, which was almost the size of a small luxury liner rather than a personal yacht. There he was able to look through a small porthole and take a peek inside.
A moment later, he concentrated, imagining himself inside the airlock. An instant later he was inside, opening the inner door and striding into the ship, shaking his head for a brief second as he pulled off his spacesuit. Teleporting like that truly does take it out of you, but it had to be done. I could have wished for more time training in it, but I had to strike before Demask could disappear once more.
Walking forward, he was unsurprised to see the lights coming on red around him as he walked into a large area, which must at one point have been the central sitting area for the liner, or perhaps a casino before the ship was refitted for personal use. He was also unsurprised to see his target waiting for him.
The instant that Plagueis had felt the splash of Force power, he knew that at least one Jedi, perhaps more, had somehow found him. Knowing that, Plagueis had moved into the only area of the ship that was wide enough to let him use his Force abilities to the best advantage; despite his mastery of the lightsaber, Plagueis preferred to use his other Force abilities, many of which worked best at a certain distance. When he saw Dooku, however, he had to wonder if Master Fay had sensed him in some fashion, or if Sidious had betrayed him for some reason. Still, only one Jedi? The arrogance!
"To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit, Master Dooku? And the last time I checked, invading a private ship like this without a warrant was against the law," Plagueis asked dryly, his bald, slightly-bullet shaped head gleaming in the red lights of the room he had idly thought at one point to change into a trophy room. But Plagueis had always been too busy to bother with such things, so while the original furniture and decorations had been removed, they had not been replaced with more than a few large urns in the corridor containing the ashes of past Sith Lords. The urns seemed to almost soak in the limited lighting of the room, but that was deliberate. Like his apprentice, Darth Plagueis always felt calmer when surrounded by darkness.
"I believe we both know why I am here, Hego Demask, if that is your real name," Dooku replied coldly. "I wonder, is the arrogance of your attempts to sway me against the Senate and fanning my interest in the Sith part of the Sith mindset, or just your own?"
"Ah, so forthright, so righteous!" Plagueis snarled, dropping all pretense. "If you know that much, then why come here alone? Or is that a sign of your own arrogance?"
"No, it is a sign of my guilt. I should have realized the danger you were trying to steer me into, should have spotted you for what you were. But it took the death of your apprentice to warn me and the Order that the Sith were still around, still skulking in the shadows. After that, only my own memories and the Force could lead me to you, such were the illusions and lies you have surrounded yourself with," Dooku replied, activating his lightsaber. It glowed green in the ambient red of the room. "I doubt I truly have grasped the depth of your scheme even now, but the invasion of Naboo and sending your apprentice to attack my former padawan there was a step too far."
Plagueis activated his own lightsaber but made no other movement, the red-bladed lightsaber hanging loosely at his side. "Yes, you Jedi would know all about shadows, wouldn't you? You too hide your true selves behind your Oaths, behind your indoctrination, never comprehending that you have never understood the true power of the Force.
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