The Jedi From Earth: A Star Wars Story #Wattys2023

Part 197

Star Destroyer Devastator

   Shawn stared out of the side viewport at the blue swirling of hyperspace for a few seconds until it turned into white lines, and then Earth came into view. Immediately he sensed that there was a lot of pain and fear coming from the planet, and he thought he could see smoke rising from where cities such as London, Los Angeles and Vancouver were. Vader's approach made him snap from his thoughts. "Lord Vader, Vice Admiral Sloane wishes to speak with you" Captain Corssin said. "Very well Captain" Vader replied and headed to the holoprojector, Shawn turned around to see who it was that wanted to speak to Vader.

The hologram flickered fo life and showed a woman in her mid forties in an Imperial uniform, from her rank plaque Shawn knew that this was the Vice Admiral. "Yes, Vice Admiral?" Vader asked her in a flat tone. "My lord" Sloane replied with a slight nod, "I was informed you wish to take a shuttle down the surface, in an area where our ground forces are not even close to?" She asked. "That is correct" Vader responded, "but it is not me who is being sent there, it is him" he continued and beckoned Shawn over. Shawn walked up the holoprojector and looked up at Sloane who gave him a dismissive look. "Why him?" She asked Vader. "Because it is the Emperors command Vice Admiral, and he is one of the Emperor's agents" Vader explained. "I see, well in that case then I suppose you may take him where the Emperor commanded you to" Sloane said and her hologram flickered off.

"Come, Mendes" Vader said and headed for the turbolift as Shawn did the same.

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Vader took Shawn down personally in a single stealth shuttle. The whole way down Shawn saw that they were heading toward the Nevada area, a desert area, which was in mid-dusk. "Obviously the soldiers will confiscate your comlink when they take you" Vader said. "Therefore, if you have not been heard from in quite some time then I shall strike". "How long is 'quite some time'? Shawn asked. "That is not your concern" Vader replied as he landed the ship on a mountain and powered it down a little. Shawn quickly undid the straps of the seat and headed for the ramp as it descended.

   Just before it touched the ground he walked outside and took in a deep breath, relived at the fact he was back on his homeplanet. He also took in his surroundings as Vader walked down too, a decently sized mountain range and small light green plants all around, while the wind blew slightly across the land, and how it felt much warmer here than on Coruscant even though the sun was almost down. Had it not been for Vader's respirator sounding right next to him it would've been beautiful out. "Now, head towards those lights" Vader said while pointing down into the valley, where Shawn saw the lights of a large facility of some sort about eight miles away, on a large salt flat. Shawn then started down the mountain and looked back to see Vader head back into the shuttle before it took off ten seconds later, and flew off into the sky. Now that he was alone, he look out a sigh of relief from the weight of constant scrutiny being lifted from his shoulders. Then he continued on his excursion down the mountain.

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When he was near the bottom of the mountain he spotted a series of orange posts all lined up heading north and south. Shawn knelt down to look at one of them and tapped it, nothing happened other than the sound of his hand patting the metal, though what really caught his attention was the sign about thirty yards away which read. "U.S Air Force installation, unauthorized personnel prohibited, use of deadly force authorized". Shawn was a little hesitant about going any further but did so anyway, all the while attuning his hearing for any motors and sensing if any people were around.

Though when he was about three hundred yards into the perimeter he heard something and stopped moving, it was a whirling sound, like a faint buzzing sound coming from above. Shawn looked up and saw a drone hovering overhead and knew now he was being watched. The lights on the drone blinked green and blue in a sequence of some sort before turning red. A small puff of air was fired from it and Shawn felt a prick on his neck which jolted him. He reached up and felt something metal which he yanked out and saw it was a dart of some sort. Then he heard a car coming but when he looked over to see where it was coming from his vision became cloudy and disorientating. Shawn realized he had just been tranquilized with something, something strong enough to where he called on the Force with all his might to resist it and nothing worked.