𝐀𝐏𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐊𝐍𝐄𝐒𝐒

𝟎𝟐𝟓. 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤. 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐞.

025. CHECK. YOUR MOVE.

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Seth didn't like that he felt helpless to act in his current situation. He hadn't heard from the Admiral nor the General since they had landed in the Florrum system, with each passing moment the girl became more of a threat than a pawn in his overall grand scheme of things, and now it seemed that he would need Kylo Ren to return as well since no one had been able to locate wherever he had hidden Vader's wayfinder. He massaged his temples to deal with the stress.

He had assumed that once he had accepted the witch's antics that everything would grow simpler; however, she only grew more stubborn and insistent that he wasn't actually playing whatever game her sick mind had formulated.

"Why has everything gone wrong?" he asked out loud.

As if summoned by his ill mood, the witch retorted a response, "You cannot best an opponent that you know nothing about."

"You hadn't mentioned that I would need to," his eyes remained closed as he continued to massage the sides of his head.

"You never asked," she shrugged, "Besides, I can't do everything for you."

"Then what can you do?"

"Keep you on your toes," she replied with a mischievous grin.

"So now I must sort through which parts of your advice are helpful?"

"You always had to," she shrugged, "This is nothing new."

"Might I remind you what is at stake, witch!" he said as he faced her and started to approach.

The witch frowned and stretched out her hand. He was thrust backward and pinned to his throne, unable to stand. A small wind rustled his hair, but it very quickly changed as the wind rushed around the room as if to form a twister. The witch's eyes turned white as an enraged expression that he hadn't seen before crossed her face. The guards must have known something was wrong because they rushed into the room, but they were unable to act as the wind carried them off their feet and forced them to circle around the room among some of the remaining debris.

"No," she shook her head, "Allow me to remind you that the force does not just reach out to you. There are beings out in the universe that have a stronger connection than you realize and it would be in your best interest to avoid provoking them. I am not here as some prisoner, I am here because it benefits me to be here. You do not control me, no one does."

The lights within the room flashed off. The wind stopped. When the lights flickered back on, the witch was gone as if she had never been there in the first place. The guards stood from the ground, disoriented from the sudden fall and decided that it was in their best interest to resume their posts. Seth regained his breath once he realized that he had been holding it the entire time that the witch spoke. He had assumed that she was just a witch of unorthodox practice. He knew she was sensitive to the force, but he had falsely assumed that it only granted her visions. She was stronger than she appeared. Perhaps that was the lesson she had attempted to teach.

"Supreme leader," an officer's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

"What?" he snapped not wishing for any more disappointing news.

"General Hux has activated his beacon and requests to be picked up."

"Has he located the girl?"

"He claims to have located the entire resistance base."

Seth raised an eyebrow, "To the Sertar sector then?"

The officer shook his head, "The beacon seems to be coming from the Crait system."

"I thought that planet had been swept clean of resistance forces months ago?"

"It had," the officer nodded, "It seemed that they returned."

"And why wasn't an outpost formed there to prevent such an occurrence?"

"Supreme Leader Kylo Ren didn't find it necessary, Sir," the officer replied.

Seth frowned at the mention of Ren's former title, "Then set a course for Crait. I want another unit of the fleet to meet up with us. There shall be no escape this time. I want those forces quashed and expelled from the galaxy."

"Yes, Supreme Leader," the officer nodded again before leaving the room.

Although this may have been the change of tide that he had been searching for, Seth planned to leave nothing to the caution of the wind. He would do his research and learn what he could about his opponents. All of them. He may not have considered Ren a threat, but he too had evaded his grip for the last time. If this was to be a war, then he would know his enemies' next move five turns before they made it. Now he understood, this was the game.