(A/N: Hi all, im not sure how much ill be uploading this week. My wife starts Chemo on Monday, so we will see how much im able to write this week. Please keep us in your prayers! 🤞
Ive also gotten some criticisms on some aspects of the story which i think are completely valid and true. The reason im writing this story is to improve my writing so when i write my own book, i know what im doing.
I appreciate each person who has pointed out my mistakes, as i cant see them myself! The concerns that have been made were of the force not really doing anything to help itself and just kinda letting this happen, which, in my opinion, is a completely true statement. Ive definitely kinda written myself into a hole with that one, as there is no real way to correct it at the moment without making the story weird if you know what i mean.
So ill be making small adjustments to correct that in the future. Please tell me what you think.
Again, i appreciate each of your criticisms, as it helps make me better at writing!
Thank you!)
=== Dooku ===
The silence that had settled over the Council chamber slowly began to dissipate as glances passed between seated Masters, holograms shifted slightly, and the hum of the Force stirred once more. Master Yoda had taken his place in his seat, his decision made and his burden laid down.
Then, rising with deliberate calm, Mace Windu stepped forward, folding his hands behind his back. His gaze swept across the chamber, not just meeting eyes, but measuring hearts, conviction, and resolve.
"If I may," he said, voice deep and commanding, "I would speak."
No one objected.
"Many of you know what happened on Geonosis," He began, "but not all of you were there. Not all of you felt the raw power of what we face now. I have stared into the heart of the Imperium's might. I have fought one of their champions, and lived."
He let the words hang in the air for a moment.
"The Black Templar," he continued, "was unlike anything I have ever faced. Not the Sith of old. Not beast. Nor war machine. He was all of those things, and more. Impossibly strong, impossibly fast. My lightsaber meant nothing to him. My mastery of the Force was tested in ways I did not think possible. And yet…"
He paused, pacing slowly within the circle.
"I survived."
"I say this not out of pride," Mace continued, though there was a steel edge beneath his humility. "I say this because it is proof. We can stand against them. Not alone however. Not as scattered Jedi fighting for diplomacy in a war of annihilation. But together. As warriors. As generals. As defenders of the Republic and champions of the Force."
"For centuries we have been monks. Stewards of peace. Negotiators. That era is over. We are no longer facing mere corruption in the Senate or a rogue Sith Lord hidden in the shadows. We are at war with an entire galactic civilization that sees our existence as heresy. The Imperium is not interested in compromise. They see our teachings as blasphemy, and our allies as vermin."
Murmurs again. Ki-Adi-Mundi's brow furrowed. Plo Koon folded his hands together tightly.
"If we continue to behave as if diplomacy will save us, we will be swept aside. Temple, Order, all of it… gone. But if we organize, if we adapt, if we become more than just peacekeepers…" Mace's voice deepened, "…then we can meet this threat head-on."
He turned now to Dooku, holding his fellow Master's gaze with calm but unyielding fervor.
"Master Dooku is wise. He has trained some of the most powerful Jedi of this generation. He is noble, composed, and insightful. But he does not see what I see."
Dooku's brow lifted faintly.
"He still believes this is a war of ideas. That we are philosophers debating with darkness. But darkness does not debate. It devours."
"I believe the Jedi must become something more than we were," Mace said, turning back to the Council as a whole. "We must form the spine of the Republic's resistance. A military force guided by the will of the Force, yes, but decisive, united, and uncompromising in our mission."
He paused, letting the silence settle again before finishing.
"If you choose me to lead, I will not lead from behind. I will fight on the front lines. I will train our younglings not only in the old ways, but in the ways they will need to survive in the galaxy that is coming. A galaxy of fire and war. I will make sure no Jedi ever stands alone against the Imperium again."
His voice dropped to a firm, quiet final note.
"This is our moment. Not to preserve what we were. But to become what we must."
He bowed slightly, then returned to his seat.
The Council sat in silence, some clearly stirred, others conflicted. The shadows of the war loomed long, and the voice of the Force was quiet.
Mace Windu's words had stirred the Council's soul, bold, forceful, and passionate. Yet for a long moment, Dooku remained still. Seated and unmoved, his hands folded loosely before him, his expression unreadable.
Then, slowly, he rose.
He did not turn to face the circle. Instead, he moved toward the tall windows that encircled the High Council chamber, the duraglass panes casting long lines of light across the chamber floor. Coruscant stretched far beneath them, its endless sprawl glittering like starlight frozen in motion. Sky speeders zipped silently past in layered streams, the hum of civilization alive below.
His silhouette cast a tall, solemn shadow across the floor. When he spoke, his voice was quiet, measured like a teacher's, gentle like an old song.
"Master Windu speaks as one who has faced the abyss and returned," Dooku said. "His valor, his strength, none here would question it. He is wise beyond his years… and his conviction to protect this Order is unshakable."
He paused, the silence long enough that some leaned forward to hear what came next.
"But I fear," he continued, eyes still on the city beyond, "that it is precisely his strength that will lead him, and the order to ruin. His warrior's heart is noble, yes. But hearts that burn too brightly often burn away."
Dooku turned then, slowly, facing the gathered Masters with the weight of generations in his gaze.
"We have all seen them," he said, voice still calm. "The Adeptus Astartes. These giants of war. These angels of death. We have felt them in the Force, blazing, alien, wrong. They are not Sith, yet they reek of slaughter. Of evil. They are not Jedi, yet they wield willpower as if molded from steel. We have fought them... and we have barely survived."
A hush overtook the chamber, the echoes of old battles whispering across the minds of those present.
"And yet..." he continued, letting the moment stretch, "...I would not choose to lead this Order into war against them."
"What are you suggesting, Master Dooku?" Ki-Adi-Mundi asked, tone cautious.
Dooku took a slow breath.
"I would seek to ally with them."
A dozen voices stirred, some shocked murmurs, others startled breaths.
"Ally?" Shaak Ti repeated, her tone laced with disbelief. "You would submit the Jedi Order to these tyrants?"
Dooku raised a single hand, serene, stilling.
"Peace, Masters. Please. I ask not for submission. I would ask for reason."
His voice rose slightly now, edged with cool command. "We have seen the Astartes. We know the scale of what they are. Their ships. Their weapons. Their warriors. You say we must form an army, but against that? Even united, we are but dust in a storm."
He allowed the silence to settle like mist once more, then turned his gaze to the center of the room.
"I met with one of their commanders. Years ago. Maximus, of the Ultramarines," Dooku said, name heavy with meaning. "A being unlike any I have encountered. There was no deception in him. No veiled lies. He was a creature of utter certainty. Unshakable faith. And total conviction."
He stepped forward now, voice stronger.
"He did not threaten me. He did not try to bend me with force or blade. He simply... told me the truth."
Another pause.
"'This Galaxy is ripe for the taking, and we will take it for our own,'" Dooku quoted, voice deep and deliberate.
He let the words hang heavy in the chamber.
"But then..." Dooku continued, more softly now, "he said something else. Something unexpected."
"'If you wish to have a say in how it unfolds, you will join us.'" he recalled.
Master Saesee Tiin leaned forward, brow creased in concern. "And you believe him?"
Dooku's gaze was firm.
"I do."
Another ripple of discontent stirred the chamber, but he pressed on.
"These warriors may be monsters, but they are not liars. Their faith is unbreakable, their purpose absolute. They do not scheme like the Sith. They do not bargain like politicians. They believe."
He looked at Master Windu now.
"And that belief is what makes them terrifying. But it is also what makes them reliable. Predictable. They have told us exactly what they intend. And they will do exactly as they say."
He folded his hands before him, composed once more.
"I am not saying we abandon the Republic. I am not saying we give up our traditions. But I am saying we must be pragmatic. If the Imperium will take the galaxy, then let us ensure that our voice endures within the new order, rather than be buried beneath its boots."
He turned his gaze upward now, to the high window, where the light of Coruscant's sun now burned brighter through the clouds.
"The future is coming on wings of fire and steel. We can stand in its path and be broken... or we can ride the storm and help steer it."
Dooku returned to his seat, his expression unreadable. The chamber was silent, deathly so.
"Masters of the Council," Yoda said, his voice solemn but steady, "time it is, for decision. Spoken they have. Weigh the paths ahead, we now must choose."
He moved to the center of the chamber. Behind him, the circular ring of high-backed chairs, filled with some of the greatest Jedi in the galaxy, looked down with quiet anticipation.
Yoda took a breath, then turned to face them.
His eyes scanned each Master's face. Then, with a small motion of his hand, he activated his holotablet. From hidden compartments within each Master's seat, small tablets slid forth with a soft hum, rimmed in bronze, with a glowing circular indent at the center.
"Cast your votes, you will. In silence. In honesty. The will of the Council… decided now, it shall be."
Each Master bowed their head in reverence.
One by one, they pressed their hands to the tablets. A soft pulse of blue light blinked as each vote was cast. Some Masters closed their eyes, listening to the Force as they made their decision. Others stared at their tablets, conflicted.
Plo Koon's hands hovered for a long moment before he pressed down.
Shaak Ti furrowed her brow, casting a nervous glance toward Dooku before gently activating her own.
After a moment, Yoda spoke once more.
"By unanimous decision of the Jedi High Council… Grandmaster of the Jedi Order, Master Windu is."
For a heartbeat, no one moved.
He looked at the dark-skinned Jedi Master, his expression unreadable. And then he bowed, deeply and without hesitation.
"Serve well, you must, Grandmaster Windu."
Mace stood. His movements were calm, deliberate. He stepped forward and met Yoda's gaze, not with pride, but with solemn understanding.
"I accept this burden," Mace said, voice low but resonant. "For the good of the Order. For the Force. And for the countless souls who now look to us to lead."
He turned slowly to face the rest of the Council.
"We are at war. The Imperium burns worlds on a whim. They kill without mercy, without thought. They spread chaos and hatred. And the Separatists grows bolder with each cycle. The time of passivity has passed. We must stand. We must act. The Jedi Order will become what the Republic needs us to be."
Some nodded. Others remained uncertain, but silent.
Only Dooku's expression remained enigmatic. The elder Jedi did not rise, nor did he speak. He simply observed.
"Continue our duties, we must," Yoda said softly. "And hope… wise the path we have chosen is."
===
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