《Creating Zerg In Star Wars》


 Chapter 1: Amon

    Chapter 1: Amon


    I¡¯m running out of time. But isn¡¯t that always the case? Whether in this life or the last, I was always running out of time. The difference is that in my last life, I was struggling to survive such an extremely mundane existence. In this one? I¡¯m fighting against the tides of Darkness and Destiny about to wash over this whole fucking Galaxy.


    It¡¯s already 965 of the Ruusan Reformation Calendar. Shit has already been hitting the fan for quite a while and it¡¯s about to get much, much worse, everywhere, for everyone. I understood that from the moment I was born into this grimdark hellscape of a ¡®Galaxy Far Far Away¡¯.


    Okay, it isn¡¯t all doom and gloom. Realistically, I don¡¯t ¡®need¡¯ to do anything. I know that without my interference, everything will still work out fine. Sure, trillions to quadrillions will die or be enslaved, but that¡¯s already the case, all the time, everywhere. I¡¯ve always had the option to just stop. I¡¯ve always had the ability to escape.


    With the Force working its magic, I¡¯m sure thing will probably work out for the best if I just mind my own fucking business¡­ I don¡¯t need to be the savior or destroyer. There are plenty of places in the Galaxy that will be totally fine.


    ¡°Mao~!¡± The cute cry brought me out of my thoughts.


    I looked over towards the cute little black cat and smiled wryly, ¡°No, this isn¡¯t food.¡±


    ¡°Mao~!¡± Unfortunately the brat didn¡¯t believe me and just kept sitting there, staring up at me with those pretty golden eyes and crying for a taste.


    ¡°Master.¡± I heard a deep, rumbling voice in my mind and smirked, turning my attention back to the cute little critter floating in between my bloody red hands. It was a purple caterpillar-like creature that was covered in a protective black carapace on its back, dozens of little legs on the sides, big-ass pincers and a bunch of glowing red eyes on its shell of a face. A few long and slimy purple tendrils stretched out from the mouth and tried to lick me, but they couldn¡¯t reach.


    ¡°Mao~!¡± Midnight was only a silly little cat I created based on my pet in my last life. Nothing particularly special. To be fair, I created him when I was a toddler. My ¡®Lifecrafting¡¯ skills weren¡¯t that impressive back then.


    ¡°Midnight, you got your own food over there.¡± I looked over at the food bowls and noticed that they were completely empty.


    ¡°Maaaaooooou~!¡± The kitty cried loudly and sadly, rubbing his face against my left calf and tickling me with his whiskers.


    ¡°Master. Hungry.¡± Then I heard that voice in my head again and sighed dramatically, looking at the big-ass bug floating above my palms.


    ¡°Of course you are.¡± I sighed dramatically and allowed her to fall into my hands gently. Then I hugged the giant bug against my chest and looked around the cabin. It was pretty clean and cozy, for a prison cell. The rounded walls were lime green and smooth. Same with the floor and ceiling. Basically a small cylinder.


    Thankfully, I had all the necessities. A toilet, shower, sink, bed, even a little kitchenette. Not a sonic shower by the way, but a regular old-fashioned shower with actual running water. Hey, not like I¡¯m complaining.


    ¡°Maaou~!¡± Midnight meowed at me again.


    ¡°Maou~!¡± So I meowed back.


    ¡°Maou.¡± He replied.


    ¡°Maaaou~!¡± I did the same.


    ¡°Master. Hungry. Require Biomass.¡± Unlike my silly cat though, my newest creation really was hungry. Not just a whiny crybaby.


    ¡°I know. Don¡¯t worry, there¡¯s plenty of biomass for you to gorge yourself on.¡± I carried my little Larva over to the egg-shaped fridge and looked inside through the insulating forcefield. Why couldn''t they just use glass or some transparent material? I have no clue. Probably an aesthetic thing, or maybe for convenience? A tiny bit of convenience to allow me to put my left hand through the forcefield, instead of having to open the door, and it probably used up like 5000 times more energy than the little bit of heat that would have been lost.


    ¡°Maoou~!¡± Midnight put his paws up on the forcefield, but it blocked him from eating the pre-prepared cat-food I made specially for him. Mostly just chicken, duck, rat or other types of generic meats.


    ¡°This should do it.¡± I grabbed the cube of pulsating purple meat and smirked, ¡°This should be plenty for now.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Master.¡± My Larva responded excitedly as I walked over to the nearby table and put her down right next to the hunk of meat. Obviously it didn¡¯t take long for her to use those mandibles and tentacles to tear the bloody muscle tissue apart. Lots of pinching, squeezing and ripping¡­


    ¡°It¡¯s kinda hilarious how weak and pathetic Larval Zerg seemed in Starcraft.¡± I grinned and caught the silly cat midair, ¡°Middy, you can¡¯t eat that.¡±


    ¡°Maoou~!¡± He didn¡¯t agree.


    ¡°I designed you to be a normal cat. You can¡¯t eat chunks of random alien meat.¡± The meat was actually one of my experiments that didn¡¯t quite work out the way I hoped. Creating Zerg in the Star Wars Universe wasn¡¯t as easy as I thought it would be as a kid.


    It took a fuckton of trial and error to reach this stage, but now I¡¯ve finally figured it out. For the most part. I still need a lot of genetic samples to keep improving and evolving my Swarm, but with this adorable Larva, the first and most difficult step of my journey has-


    ¡°Master! Enemies!¡± The anxious little Larva had already finished eating and was glaring at the only entrance or exit to the room. A vertically sealed dark-green door.


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t call them ¡®enemies¡¯ exactly.¡± I smiled wryly and watched as the sides of the door slid into the walls smoothly. Revealing the beautiful blue-skinned woman with black hair and yellow eyes. She was pretty small, only up to my chest, but she had an air of authority to her¡­ Though her outfit was just a simple brown tunic. She didn¡¯t even have any weapons on her tiny body. Behind her back were two slightly taller men, who were also wearing similar brown tunics, but they were at least carrying spears in their hands.


    *Ting!* Which were too long to fit through the door¡­


    ¡°Honestly.¡± The woman rolled her golden eyes and shook her head in irritation, ¡°How many times will you fools make the same mistakes?¡±


    ¡°Sorry Mother.¡± The man on the left apologized while the one on the right just smiled wryly and looked embarrassed.


    She let out a long sigh and walked up to me, looking down at my black boxers and back to my face, ¡°At least you aren¡¯t naked this time.¡±


    ¡°I knew you¡¯d be stopping by, Mom.¡± I snorted when she scowled in annoyance, ¡°What¡¯s wrong this time? Need me to pump out some more cats and dogs?¡±


    ¡°You know exactly why I¡¯m here, Amon Kal.¡± She glared up into my eyes and then looked over at the newest ¡®pet¡¯ I created, ¡°I¡¯ve warned you countless times. Yet you still defy me!¡±


    ¡°Mom, we¡¯re running out of time.¡± I frowned and pointed at the cute Zerg Larva on the table, ¡°But look! I finally did it!¡±


    ¡°You did ¡®what¡¯, exactly?!¡± My mother screamed at me hysterically, ¡°Created another monster?!¡±


    ¡°I mean, yeah, pretty much.¡± I shrugged and reached out to the Larva. It scurried off the table and jumped onto my arm, then I hugged it against my chest and smiled at the three of them.


    ¡°Ew.¡± My brother Kalen gagged and took a step back, while the other one, Dalon just raised an eyebrow curiously.


    ¡°And what exactly is the purpose of this disgusting beast?¡± Mom cringed and took a step back, ¡°Though I¡¯m sure there are plenty of foolish aliens out there who would be willing to purchase it as a pet, the last giant bug you created was a disaster that nearly killed your cousin.¡±


    ¡°Okay, that¡¯s not my fault. The dumbass snuck into my lab when I was taking a shit and started opening cages that had big-ass warning signs on them! I¡¯m sorry he lost a leg, but for fuck¡¯s sake, it¡¯s not even a permanent injury! It wasn¡¯t even that big of a deal!¡± I mean seriously, nobody even died and I¡¯ve been under house arrest for over a year now!


    ¡°Amon Kal!¡± She shouted at me, ¡°You are fortunate that your father and I have protected you this much already! If you were an adult back then, you might actually be in prison now!¡±


    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    ¡°Maou~!¡± Midnight cried excitedly as my stupid brother started putting some chopped up chicken chunks in his food bowl.


    ¡°Dude, he already ate like three times today. Don¡¯t let him trick you.¡± I warned the two blue brats and turned back to my little mother, ¡°Mom. I¡¯m glad you guys didn¡¯t let me get imprisoned, but we¡¯re running outta time.¡±


    ¡°I know we¡¯re running out of time.¡± She looked at the Larva that was squirming around in my arms and asked, ¡°But do you honestly believe that ¡®this¡¯ is the solution to our problems? Giant bugs?¡±


    ¡°Giant Force Sensitive telepathic bugs that can resist blaster fire, survive in the vacuum of space, tear through durasteel and reproduce rapidly.¡± I pet the smooth, slimy carapace of the Larva¡¯s head and smirked, ¡°Plus they¡¯re really cute, right?¡±


    ¡°No. No they are not. And no you should not be creating them!¡± Mom glared at me and trembled for a few seconds before calming down a bit, then she sighed. She watched my brothers play with the cat for a while, ¡°Amon, I know you are a genius. And I am proud of what you have accomplished at such a young age.¡±


    ¡°Aww, thanks Mom.¡± I chuckled and put the Larva back on the table. Then I tried to give her a hug, but she dodged backwards with a disgusted expression, ¡°Uh, I love you too?¡±


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t finished speaking.¡± Mom frowned and looked up into my eyes, ¡°I thought that a year would be enough for you to reflect on your actions and change your ways, but I was wrong. I¡¯ve spoken to the Magi and it has been decided that you will have your Forging abilities removed.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, what?¡± I blinked a few times and wasn¡¯t really sure if she was serious or just fucking with me, ¡°That¡¯s a joke, right?¡±


    ¡°No. This is very serious, Amon.¡± Dalon walked over with his fancy green spear pointed upwards, nearly scratching my ceiling.


    ¡°Yeah, just because you¡¯re a Forger, doesn¡¯t mean you can do whatever you want.¡± Kalen came over as well, but his spear was left to the side and he was hugging Midnight in his arms. The little traitor was purring and rubbing his head against the brat¡¯s hairless chin. Well, I call them brats, but they¡¯re actually a few years older than me. Just much shorter because of racial differences. They¡¯re both more ¡®Ferroan¡¯ like their mother, while I¡¯m more ¡®Langhesi¡¯ like my father.


    You¡¯d think that red and blue would make purple skinned kids, but it¡¯s just generally either red or blue. Maybe different shades, but that¡¯s about it. We all have black hair and golden eyes like our mother though, which¡­ Honestly, I look like I could be a Sith Pureblood, but I have normal facial hair instead of tentacles.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry Amon, but this is out of my hands now.¡± Mom sighed and shook her head, ¡°Your father and I both tried to argue against it. Even the Forger¡¯s Guild created a stir and tried to get the decision overturned. But this is beyond even the Magi¡¯s control. This is an edict from the World itself.¡±


    ¡°Sekot ordered it herself? What the fuck?¡± I mean, I kinda get it, but still¡­ It really pisses me off.


    *Rumble~!* The whole room shook when I accidentally let the rage flow through me for a second. But then I calmed down and breathed out a sigh.


    ¡°Master, kill?¡± My baby was so adorable.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, Larva.¡± I pet her head gently and looked over at my three anxious family members. They were afraid of me. I could see it in their eyes and feel it in their hearts. Not particularly strange or surprising though. They¡¯ve always been afraid of me. Even when I was a baby or a toddler, or a child. My father wasn¡¯t as bad, but he also couldn¡¯t be bothered to see me more than a dozen times in my life thus far. Too busy working on that planetary Hyperdrive for our lovely Zonama Sekot.


    ¡°Mao~!¡± Midnight suddenly freaked out and scratched my brother¡¯s face!


    ¡°Ah, frakking cat!¡± He let go of the kitty, who quickly ran over to my left leg and started rubbing on me again. Midnight was still my baby after all.


    ¡°Amon, I know what you¡¯re thinking, but you cannot simply run away from this.¡± Mom backed up and blocked the door with her body, while my brothers grabbed their spears and pointed them at me. I could see a group of red and blue skinned men standing down the hallway with green swords in their hands, a few of them even had green blaster rifles.


    ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯ve been saying for years now, but if Sekot wants to run away like a pussy, that¡¯s her choice.¡± I turned away from the door and walked over to my bed. I put the Larva on the bed and started going through my drawers, finding clothes and important personal items. Various things I¡¯d need to pack in a suitcase and take with me.


    ¡°How can you speak about our precious World that way?!¡± She screamed at me and I could hear the men marching down the hall, closer to the doorway.


    ¡°Amon, if you just apologize and beg for forgiveness, She might forgive you! She might actually change her mind!¡± Dalon looked like he was gonna cry, it was kinda cute.


    ¡°Mao~!¡± Midnight jumped on the bed next to the Larva and started smacking it around with his paws, but obviously it didn¡¯t do anything. The Larva couldn¡¯t even feel it.


    ¡°I¡¯m not a fan of lying and I¡¯m definitely not sorry.¡± I tried to keep the rage down, but you know how it is¡­ Dark Side and all that nonsense. Technically our people believe in the Potentium, so this sensation would just be the perversion of the naturally ¡®Good¡¯ Force. Or something like that.


    ¡°Amon, we can¡¯t let you leave! Not like this!¡± My mother rushed over and grabbed my right arm with both hands, ¡°Why can¡¯t you just stay here and live with us in peace?!¡±


    ¡°Peace is a lie!¡± I retorted subconsciously and tried to calm myself down. Turning back to the cute little Larva, I smiled and rubbed its head again, then I pet my cat. Eventually I turned to my mother¡¯s pretty blue face, ¡°There is no peace. It¡¯s only an illusion. Everyone knows it, that¡¯s why we¡¯ve been preparing to run away all this time. Meanwhile, how many Langhesi are still by the Tsinimals? How many wars and civil wars are happening at every moment across this fucking ¡®peaceful¡¯ galaxy? Huh? There is no peace, only war, and war never changes.¡±


    Seriously though, in Star Wars, it does feel like war never changes. They¡¯ve used a lot of the same technologies for tens of thousands of years now. And there has never been a moment of peace, because someone, somewhere is always in a state of warfare. The Clone Wars would be a massive conflict that would stir shit up, but ultimately how many people actually fought in that war? Even when the Yuuzhan Vong invaded later on and trillions died, it was still a relatively low number compared to the actual number of people in the galaxy. Rather than death, slavery is more common. Forcing everyone to live in hellish conditions, worse than death really. Especially in this world with something like the Force.


    ¡°So what are you going to do?¡± My mother seemed to be resigned, pushing away from me as the men with swords and guns poured into my room. A few of them had red skin, not just the more common blues.


    ¡°I¡¯m gonna fight. Obviously.¡± I looked over at the guys with blasters and they nervously raised them towards me. My brothers and mother were still the closest, but she was unarmed and they clearly didn¡¯t want to try to stop me.


    ¡°Amon Kal! You¡¯re under arrest for crimes against the Great Sekot! Do not resist!¡± The biggest and burliest man shouted at me while approaching with green vine-like handcuffs. He was flanked by some guys with guns and swords.


    ¡°Honestly Mom, when you gave me a name like Amon, you should¡¯ve seen this shit coming from the start.¡± I grabbed the Larva and used it as a shield to deflect a red blaster bolt! It flew right back and blasted the dude¡¯s head clean off!


    ¡°Bastard!¡± Another guy screamed and charged at me with a sword, but I threw the Larva at his face and well, there wasn¡¯t much of a face left afterwards!


    ¡°Hey! Careful where you¡¯re aiming!¡± I had to Force Push my stupid brother out of the way or he would¡¯ve been missing a big chunk of his abdomen. Then I twisted my body and avoided a stab from the guy with the organic vibroblade, reaching my palm towards his face as he screamed in agony and terror!


    ¡°Aaaaaaah~!¡± His blue flesh writhed and bubbled, before melting off and revealing the purplish muscles, greenish fats and red blood vessels underneath! Then I kicked him into his friend¡¯s sword to put him out of his misery! Except he didn¡¯t actually die because it only went through his lower back and out his abdomen¡­ Oh well.


    ¡°Seriously guys, is this really worth it?¡± I would¡¯ve felt bad if they weren¡¯t trying to murder me. As long as they¡¯re trying to kill me, why should I care whether they die horribly for their efforts?


    ¡°Amon! Stop!¡± Mom screamed at me as I grabbed two people by the throat and slammed their bodies together! They fused into a dude with two heads, four arms and uh, well, all the other organs were doubled too. Really not great, especially since their clothes were also fused inside of their bodies.


    ¡°For the love of Sekot, Brother, stop this madness!¡± Kalen also begged me to spare them even as the assholes nearly blew his head off while trying to kill me!


    ¡°I¡¯ll stop when they stop!¡± I pushed my right hand forward and a shockwave blasted five people into the wall. Then metallic vines erupted from the wall and wrapped around their throats, arms and legs, trapping them but not hurting them too seriously. Probably. Assuming that someone could rescue them before they suffocated?


    ¡°Enough.¡± A soft and feminine voice echoed in the room. No, maybe it was only in our minds. The remaining warriors stopped attacking me and immediately fell to their knees, just like my mother and brothers. Then the vines were sucked back into the wall and the five guys were released to kneel piously as well.


    ¡°Your Majesty.¡± I bowed casually and snapped my finger, preventing the pudgy Larva from jumping on the next victim. It already ate way too much anyway. Midnight came out from under the bed and rubbed up against my left leg again. Licking some of the purplish-blue blood off my calf.


    ¡°Such unnecessary violence and destruction.¡± Sekot whispered into our minds, ¡°This was not my intention. Yet I must still take responsibility for the actions of my overzealous children.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s how it goes.¡± I looked up, then down, then all around, but I couldn¡¯t figure out which ¡®direction¡¯ I should be facing to talk to the planet¡¯s living consciousness. In the end, I just shrugged and asked, ¡°So what now? Are you gonna smite me? Sever me from the Force? Take away my Langhesi ability to sculpt life?¡±


    ¡°I do not wish to see my children destroy another Galaxy.¡± As she said that, I could feel an intense weight pressing down on me. Almost like the gravity imposed on my body was getting higher, or maybe it was just the Force.


    ¡°You highly overestimate my ability to fuck shit up.¡± I snorted and laughed. But then I looked around at the mangled corpses and the dude with two heads that was screaming in agony on the ground.


    ¡°Amon, I have watched you from the moment you were born until now. I love you as I love all of my children. I also know how dangerous you are¡­ ¡° As she ¡®spoke¡¯ into my mind, it felt like I was going to get crushed into paste at any moment! But then the pressure was suddenly gone and I was able to breathe again.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯d be able to do it either.¡± I cracked my neck and stretched my back. Then I reached down and grabbed the two dudes that were melded together, splitting them apart into two complete bodies again. I went over to the guy with a sword through his gut and his flesh melted off¡­ I reached down and forced his skin to grow back, though it was a little more purplish than blue? Whatever, he wasn¡¯t going to die immediately. Someone else can fix him up better.


    ¡°Leave. Never return.¡± The living planet gave me her verdict. It was a little simple, but the message was pretty clear. I was banished from my homeworld.


    ¡°Fine by me.¡± I shook my head and continued packing my things, ¡°Just don¡¯t come begging me for help in the future. You made your bed, you can go ahead and shit in it.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Master.¡±


    ¡°No wait!¡±


    <h2>Author¡¯s Note:</h2>


    Okay, so I had this idea for a story for a long time. Basically, Zerg. Something something Zerg. Really wanna do something with Zerg. But I went through ideas like Warhammer 40k, Steven Universe, Arcane, Warcraft¡­ I guess I could¡¯ve gone with Warcraft and done something similar, where the MC ¡®creates¡¯ Zerg of his own using the materials available in the universe already. But in the end, I thought about Star Wars because¡­ I don¡¯t know, why not?


    There are an insane amount of plots and plot holes in Star Wars between the Canon and Legends, especially when you combine them together into an AU. Everyone does it, but most of the time they don¡¯t cover ¡®everything¡¯, they just cover some minor plots and either crash out or go balls deep and get lost in the sauce.


    I¡¯ve fucked around and found out that Star Wars is stupidly complicated and convoluted, while also being extremely simplistic and realistic from time to time. For example, the Force is absurdly overpowered and so is their level of technology. There are many races that are just biologically superior but have super low technological abilities or they can¡¯t use the Force. While there are other races that have godlike technology, but then they¡¯re just regular humans for the most part. Or maybe they had godlike Force powers and they died to infighting like the Celestials. Or they were literal incarnations of the Force and they died to infighting. Or they were a massive super empire that ruled the entire Galaxy with an iron fist and they died to infighting¡­


    One plot point that I feel is extremely important is that bullshit with the ancient civilization that created the stargate system across the galaxy. Yeah, that exists in Legends, not sure about canon. There was this one plot point where the Dathomirian Witches wanted to blow up Coruscant? Or something like that. And then Quinlan Vos, like¡­ Blew it up? Somehow reversed the thing that was gonna blow up Coruscant and uh, conveniently destroyed the entire Stargate-like network created tens of thousands of years ago. Yay! Good thing that doesn¡¯t exist anymore, because it¡¯d be super over powered and really useful!


    I¡¯m sure you all can list about half a million other similar situations and bullshittery that occurs between the Canon and Lore. Not to mention the World Between Worlds and the time-travel, parallel universe nonsense. There are just so many possibilities that it becomes a little unnecessary to add anything into Star Wars.


    Star Wars is big enough. It has enough characters already. I don¡¯t need to create OCs aside from the MC and his relatively unimportant family members, et cetera. I can literally just use characters that exist in Star Wars already and I would never run out of characters to pull out of my ass at any given time, for whatever reason.


    Does anyone even know about Zonama Sekot? I certainly didn¡¯t before researching Star Wars for a fanfic a while back. Because it¡¯s almost never mentioned or used in fanfics. It¡¯s a fucking living planet! They have a race called the Langeshi that¡¯s described to look like the Sith Purebloods, basically humans with red skin. And they have similar abilities to the Yuuzhan Vong shapers or whatever. Except they¡¯re not as limited as the Vong in terms of the Force, so they can also use the Force¡­ And their powers are probably related to the Force anyway.


    The Sith also used to do some crazy shit in terms of bio-engineering though. Like seriously, most of the monsters out there are just creatures that were experimented on and transformed by Sith at some point. There are also lots of naturally evolved or born creatures out there that are pretty overpowered and ridiculous, like the Star Dragons.


    Okay, I¡¯m gonna stop rambling and try to keep writing.

 Chapter 2: Izsha

    Chapter 2: Izsha


    The semi-organic ships of our lovely Zonama Sekot are considered the fastest in the Galaxy. Is that actually true? I have no idea. I¡¯m sure someone has faster ships. There are countless space faring civilizations across the Galaxy. A lot of them are hidden away in corners that the Galactic Republic don¡¯t even know about.


    Unfortunately, getting a super fast, sentient and living personal starship wasn¡¯t part of my banishment deal. Probably for the best, because they had this pesky fatal flaw where they would croak if Sekot cut off the life-link with them. Do I understand how to build them myself? Of course not.


    My dream is to recreate Zerg in the Star Wars Universe. I did take some classes on mechanical engineering as a kid, but I didn¡¯t do very well. Way easier for me to make puppies and kittens than puppy or kitten shaped Droids.


    ¡°Mao~!¡± Midnight was sitting on a little round table by the window and pawing at the transparent durasteel.


    ¡°I know, right? It feels so unreal.¡± I walked over and sat down on the chair, petting the kitty¡¯s black fur as I gazed out at the beautiful planet below. She might be a bitch, but Sekot is pretty at least. Big ass ice cap, surrounded by a massive jungle, then an arid desert region, with the southern hemisphere hidden under silver clouds. A bunch of big lakes dotted the world, but no oceans.


    ¡°Farewell, Amon. I hope that I do not regret releasing you upon this Galaxy.¡± As the soft voice echoed in my mind, the scenery outside transformed into streaks of white light, with a dark blue background. Literally another fucking dimension called ¡®Hyperspace¡¯ that we just casually travel through to reach insane distances in very short periods of time.


    ¡°Kinda feel like I¡¯m gonna puke.¡± I had to stop looking outside. Thankfully, Midnight didn¡¯t seem to be bothered and kept staring out the window without any issues.


    ¡°Master. Evolving.¡± The deep voice in my head drew my attention to my youngest ¡®child¡¯. The Larva had grown a lot bigger since it was created yesterday. Now it was at least a few feet long and very fat. Almost like it would pop at any moment. Instead, it spewed out a bunch of pink and purple fluids from both ends. Within a few seconds, it managed to wrap itself up in a cocoon.


    ¡°Be careful Sweetie.¡± I walked over and knelt down next to the throbbing, meaty egg and placed my palms on the rubbery surface. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, trying to help her Mutate in the right direction. After all, she did have a few options to choose from already. If I left it to chance, then she might end up becoming a Zergling or Roach, or maybe something else entirely. Something that I didn¡¯t program into her genes intentionally. Accidents happen, often.


    ¡°Good girl, that¡¯s it, right there¡­ Yeah, good job.¡± I smirked and guided her in the right direction. Genetically. Weaving the strands, as the great Abathur might say. It felt amazing. Like my body was being ripped apart and reassembled in my mind. The pain wasn¡¯t as intense as the relief that came afterwards. She was so bloated and uncomfortable after eating so much. But now she was free to create a much more powerful and useful body.


    ¡°Master. Metamorphosis Complete.¡± As she said that in her unnecessarily deep telepathic voice, the egg exploded in my face!


    ¡°Mao!¡± Midnight was scared, but he quickly licked the slimy pink goop off his fur.


    ¡°Uh, don¡¯t eat that?¡± I really wasn¡¯t sure whether it was edible or not for a cat, but I wasn¡¯t too worried. It¡¯s kinda hilarious how easy it is to ¡®fix¡¯ organic creatures. I wouldn¡¯t call it Force Healing. It was more like Force Surgery plus genetic alteration with my Langheshi Forging abilities.


    ¡°How are you feeling now?¡± I turned back towards the huge creature that looked kind of like a scorpion¡­


    I tried to make it as similar to the original concept as possible. Though there were also a bunch of different versions of the Starcraft Drones. I find the ¡®Classic¡¯ to be more aesthetically pleasing, personally. Plus the head is more protected by a thicker carapace. Aside from the head, there were a few more shield-like plates that went down the spine, with a short tail that stuck up in the air a bit. Eight legs covered in black carapace, with a bright purple fleshy membrane between them. The face only had two eyes, one on each side, with a bunch of pretty chompers in her big mouth. Two mandibles on the sides of her jaw. Then there were those big-ass pincers attached to long arms, meant for mining crystals or tearing prey apart.


    ¡°Float Bladder Activating.¡± As she said that, her mouth made some clicking noises and I could feel the strange energy field she was releasing from her body. There were multiple versions and tons of possibilities, but I decided to go with an anti-gravity trick because this is Star Wars and anti-grav bullshit is super easy here.


    ¡°Use the Force to push yourself around mid-air.¡± I gave her instructions, but it was really unnecessary. I already programmed everything into her genes. She could manipulate her body with subtle telekinesis pretty easily and effortlessly. Floating around the room in three dimensions, as if gravity didn¡¯t exist.


    ¡°Convenient. Artificial Gravity, unnecessary.¡± She brought up a good point. Artificial gravity really was kind of ridiculously overused in the Star Wars universe. The really amazing thing wasn¡¯t the artificial gravity, but the inertial dampeners. For example, when we¡¯re moving around in space, if we don¡¯t have something dampening the inertia, we¡¯d be getting thrown around at thousands to millions of G¡¯s. A single G wouldn¡¯t be able to do shit against that fuckery.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    ¡°What¡¯s the energy efficiency like though?¡± I reached up and she floated down to me, placing her purple scorpion claws in my big red hands. She wasn¡¯t as big as she could potentially grow. In fact, since she was a Drone, it was possible for her to transform into gigantic ¡®buildings¡¯ as long as she got enough biomass and other necessary resources. It wasn¡¯t like she could just eat some random animals though. She needed ¡®minerals¡¯ in a sense. Not necessarily the special magical crystals in the Koprulu Sector.


    ¡°Energy loss, negligible.¡± She was hungry, but she wasn¡¯t starving or weak. It wasn¡¯t necessary for her to keep her Float Bladder active at all times though. She slowly landed on the ground and used her eight legs to stand up easily enough.


    ¡°I¡¯ll make you something to eat.¡± Standing upright, I looked around the room at the mess she made. Then I closed my eyes and held my palms facing upwards in front of my waist. It took a few seconds, but all the goopy purple shit everywhere was gathered together into a sphere. About the size of a bowling ball at first, but then it was condensed into a baseball. I thought about the different flavors for a moment and realized that it was actually unnecessary. She wasn¡¯t Midnight and wouldn¡¯t need ¡®chicken¡¯ or ¡®salmon¡¯. Just generic Zerg biomass was totally fine to her taste buds and digestive system.


    ¡°Thank you, Master.¡± She took the hard and meaty orb with her claws, drawing it to her mouth and tearing it apart easily with those fang-like teeth.


    ¡°You¡¯re welcome.¡± I smiled and looked over at the silvery metal door. I could feel someone walking past. They didn¡¯t stop and just kept going.


    ¡°Danger?¡± My Drone asked seriously as she crawled over to the wall near the door, then up the wall and onto the ceiling. Preparing to pounce on anything that might enter inside our cabin.


    ¡°No. It¡¯s just another passenger. Nothing to worry about.¡± I looked back towards the window and saw Midnight staring outside again. He didn¡¯t seem sick but he also wasn¡¯t begging for food.


    This wasn¡¯t one of ¡®our¡¯ ships. Just one of the random traders that came by from time to time. My people didn¡¯t really leave Zonama Sekot if they had a choice, but whether it¡¯s the Ferroans or the Langeshi, they settled on Mommy Sekot. And not that long ago either. Only about a hundred years ago for the blues and about fifty for the reds.


    In other words, there were Ferroans out there in the Galaxy. The ones on Zonama Sekot were only colonists. They actually have their own system and homeworld. The Langheshi are currently enslaved on their homeworld because their biotechnology and abilities were considered heretical by some religious assholes called the Tsinimals. In the mass migration, the refugees didn¡¯t all head to the same place.


    ¡°Mao~!¡± Sure enough, Midnight lost interest in the Hyperspace tunnel and went back to being a hungry boy.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I brought plenty of your food along with us.¡± I basically filled the fridge and freezer of this cabin, since we could be on the road for weeks or months. Reality isn¡¯t like the movies or shows. Traveling along Hyperlanes, it might only take a day or less to travel from one end of the Galaxy to the other. Unfortunately, Zonama Sekot was out in the middle of nowhere and it took a lot of jumps in and out of Hyperspace to reach the nearest Hyperlane.


    ¡°Master, let me.¡± My Drone said that and plopped down from the ceiling in front of the fridge. Then she used her pincers to reach inside the forcefield and take out the already prepared portion of cat food.


    ¡°Maaaou~!¡± Midnight seemed scared of the giant purple and black monster at first, but then he saw and smelled the food. Before it was even placed in the food bowl, the silly cat tried to take it from those big ass claws.


    ¡°Good job.¡± I smiled at the Drone and was honestly really proud of her for not only taking the initiative, but being able to perform such a ¡®simple¡¯ task that my stupid cat hasn¡¯t been able to figure out after all these years. Speaking of which, it¡¯s almost his birthday. I created him when I was two, so that¡¯s like¡­ Sixteen years old now, huh?


    ¡°Master, do you require sustenance?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m good. But if you¡¯re hungry, go ahead and eat the biomass chunks I prepared.¡± I kept a few big blocks and spheres of purple meat in the fridge. I would¡¯ve taken more, but I was being banished so I wasn¡¯t really given that much time to prepare extra supplies.


    ¡°I think I¡¯ll call you Izsha.¡± I sat down at the table next to the window again, watching the silly black cat and mostly black Drone gorging themselves.


    ¡°Thank you for the designation, Master.¡± She responded telepathically again, looking up at me with those glowing red eyes. I reached out and rubbed her smooth, armored head and could feel her elation. Maybe this is how Kerrigan felt?


    ¡°I¡¯ve gone through a lot of experiments to create you, Izsha.¡± I pulled my hand back and watched the naughty cat drinking from ¡®my¡¯ glass of water. I pet his soft, fluffy head and neck, down to his tail. He kept lapping up the water regardless.


    ¡°I named them a lot at first. The cats, dogs, bunnies, Zerglings¡­ But I stopped because it made me get too attached to them.¡± I looked up into those glowing red eyes again and watched her using her mandibles to drag the raw meat into her fang-filled maw.


    ¡°I will not fail you as they have.¡± She was genetically programmed with a lot of knowledge already, while her personality was also something I designed. Zerg are supposed to act as a cohesive Hive or Swarm, but they are still individuals when alone. The ones with the strongest personalities, mental strength and psionic powers take the lead, while the weaker ones follow orders efficiently and effectively.


    ¡°They didn¡¯t fail me.¡± I shook my head and sighed, ¡°I was just too weak to make them perfect in Essence. I¡¯ve been training since the moment I was born and I¡¯m still missing a lot of pieces of the puzzle.¡±


    Things like Midi-chlorians were actually way simpler and easier to manage than genes on the surface. After all, they exist in all life, even some semi-organic creatures have them. If you want something to have more Midi-chlorians you can transplant them from one creature to the other. You can boost your own Midi-chlorians the same way. The ancient Sith did that kinda shit all the time. Stealing the lifeforce and lives of others to make themselves immortal or whatever. Honestly kinda obnoxiously convoluted from my perspective.


    If I want to create an immortal creature, I just need to turn off their aging. They might get cancer more often, but cancers can be removed and the immortal functional organs and cells can be regenerated infinitely. I figured that shit out when I was like two or three and perfected Midnight.


    Most of the ¡®pets¡¯ I created were either given to friends and family, or sold to traders who would then sell them to rich assholes across the Galaxy. I never created livestock because it felt¡­ Wrong and meaningless. What¡¯s the point in making livestock when I can grow big hunks of their meat or other organs so easily and casually?


    After eating, the Drone suddenly floated over to my left side and hugged me!


    ¡°Master, thank you for creating me.¡±


    ¡°Aww, you¡¯re so fucking cute.¡± I snickered and hugged her back, ¡°I don¡¯t remember programming you to be so adorable though.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Master.¡± She apologized but knew that I wasn¡¯t upset. After all, she was literally telepathically linked to me. Probably why she knew I needed a hug. Why she thought to offer one. And why she needed one as well.


    Obviously Izsha wasn¡¯t perfect. Not truly Zerg. But neither was I. Not yet at least.

 Chapter 3: Creep

    Chapter 3: Creep


    Floating in the void, I could see countless stars around me in the distance. It was chaotic and confusing at first. But after a few moments, the distant stars faded into the background and I was able to focus on the lights around me. There was a small yellow light on my right, touching me with his warmth. Directly in front of me was a glowing red star.


    I reached out and touched it, but the star shrunk down so small that I could easily hold it in my hands like an egg¡­ Or a cocoon. She was sleeping inside. Resting and waiting for me to awaken her for the battle ahead.


    ¡°Yes, the Langhesi Forger is on board.¡± The voice was soft and feminine. Almost like a purr. I turned to the left and an image appeared before me. A girl with brown skin, small horns across her forehead like a Zabrak and big cat-like ears near the top of her head. She had long black hair that was pulled into a ponytail.


    ¡°Good, we¡¯re two jumps away. Be careful.¡± Hearing the man¡¯s gruff voice, the girl smiled.


    ¡°See you soon, Cas.¡± Turning off the little transponder, she frowned and looked over towards my direction. Standing up and looking at herself in the mirror, naked, showing off her mostly hairless feminine form. Then she grinned and started looking through her cabinets for something to wear.


    ¡°We¡¯ve got a problem.¡± Another voice caught my attention and I looked down at the Rodian man who was polishing his shiny silver blaster. He was talking to someone in a Mandalorian helmet on a holographic projector, ¡°I heard a rumor that the target is a Jedi.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s not a Jedi.¡± A woman¡¯s voice came from behind that helmet, ¡°Might be Force Sensitive though. We¡¯ll need to act fast before the Jedi get involved.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t we always?¡± The green-skinned bug-headed dude grumbled, ¡°I got a bad feeling about this one.¡±


    ¡°You never do, Jak. And that¡¯s why you¡¯ve got that trashy reputation.¡± She sighed and told him seriously, ¡°Listen, the client wants a pet-making slave, not a corpse. If you frak this up, Mandalore help me, I¡¯ll kill you myself.¡±


    ¡°I know that, but Vhonte¡­ This guy is dangerous. I can feel it.¡± The Rodian looked up towards me with his big black bug-eyes and I could see his antenna trembling, ¡°I can hear that nasty bug crawling around again. I¡¯m telling you, this job was a mistake.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t be such a coward. When the time comes, I¡¯ll handle the boy, you can squash the bug if it makes you feel better.¡± The Mandalorian chuckled and turned off the hologram from her end.


    ¡°Master.¡± Hearing Izsha¡¯s voice, I opened my eyes and saw her staring at me from only a few inches away. Surprisingly enough, her breath didn¡¯t stink. She didn¡¯t really have a scent at all. The cat on my right was also nearly odorless. Why would I make him smell bad if I could prevent it?


    ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± I looked down at my crossed red legs and ran my fingers over the hairless calves. My flesh rippled and writhed, hardening and getting darker. Until it was brownish-red, almost black. With purple lights appearing on the surface, blinking like little eyes.


    ¡°Hunt?¡± She was excited. After all, she saw those bounty hunters and heard what they said.


    ¡°Soon. Not in Hyperspace though.¡± I looked over at the window and saw the white lights zooming past, ¡°They might have set explosives or something.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Master.¡± She was really obedient for a two day old child, but that¡¯s the way Zerg are meant to be¡­ Obedient to their Master. Unless the Master became too weak to control them, then they¡¯d rebel in a heartbeat.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay though. We have plenty of time.¡± I extended my left arm and ran my right hand from my shoulder down to my fingertips. The soft and squishy red flesh was rapidly replaced by hard, black, purpilish-black carapace. The muscles and joints couldn¡¯t be too rigid. That would be kind of pointless. I did lose a bit of flexibility though and it wasn¡¯t quite as ¡®comfortable¡¯ as my normal flesh.


    ¡°Do you need assistance?¡± Izsha turned her ass towards me and that little stubby armored tail opened up, leaking purplish ooze onto the floor that foamed upon impact. The ¡®Creep¡¯ rapidly expanded and bubbled up onto a small tumor with bony spikes jutting out of it randomly. Microtendrils started drilling down through the carpet and devouring it, even the metal flooring would be penetrated sooner rather than later.


    ¡°You can help with my back.¡± I didn¡¯t really ¡®need¡¯ her help, but it was definitely faster and easier if she was involved in the process. Plus, it would give her some practice and training for later.


    She was literally the Heart of ¡®my¡¯ Swarm. That¡¯s why I gave her such an iconic name. Whether she can live up to my expectations is another matter entirely. Hell, being named Amon is one of the main reasons behind my decision to go balls deep into the whole Zerg aesthetic. Could have just been lazy and gone with Xenomorphs. If I gave the Xenomorphs guns and made them way more OP, then I could call them Tyranids.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    ¡°Ow.¡± I groaned as my spine grew sharp bony spikes that pierced out of my back. Izsha smoothed them down a bit and they turned into armor plating. I used my gauntlet-like left hand to transform the right, the muscle fibers became much, much stronger, denser and more durable. Then the skin was hardened and turned into reddish-brown armor, with pitch-black nails on my fingertips. My chest was covered by throbbing purple carapace, my pectoral muscles were big but they didn¡¯t look like tits. My abdominal muscles down to my crotch were quickly covered by dark-red armor and my squishy internal organs were protected a lot better. Sure, it didn¡¯t look as sexy as abs, but my odds of getting disemboweled were much lower now.


    ¡°I guess I don¡¯t need to copy the Queen of Blades too much.¡± I snickered and felt my throat tighten a bit too much. The armor on my neck was about to give me a panic attack, so I quickly transformed it back into my normal red flesh.


    ¡°Master, weakness.¡± Izsha warned me as she caressed the back of my head with her pincers. My short black hair grew rapidly and was quickly coated in purple creep that hardened and transformed into hundreds of thick dreadlock-like armored tendrils. I have no idea what purpose it served for Kerrigan, but for me, they could hold more neural tissue. Plus, more mass, more room for Midi-chlorians.


    It should be noted that Midi-chlorian count is per cell, not per entire body. Anakin was so overpowered because even with the body of an ordinary human, his Midichlorian density was insane. About 30 to 40 thousand per cell. It affects how easily the Force can flow through his body and how much control he can exert over the Force.


    Ultimately though, he¡¯s only a human. There are races of the same general size, but with several times the density. If their Midichlorian Count is only half or a third of his, they could still theoretically be equal in terms of total Midichlorian Count, but is that what really matters? Nope, otherwise there are loads of ways to cheat and become the Chosen One.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never been able to ¡®force¡¯ more than ten thousand Midichlorians into a single cell.¡± I sighed and touched my soft cheeks with my hard, dark-purple fingertips. My black claws pressed into my flesh but didn¡¯t pierce my skin.


    ¡°We will Evolve.¡± Izsha floated above the snoring kitty and landed on the slimy purple creep in front of me, ¡°We just need more Essence.¡±


    ¡°I know. I need more gene samples. Need to run more experiments.¡± I looked over to the window again and smiled, ¡°Zonama Sekot was a great starting point. A relatively safe location at a relatively opportune time. I was able to learn a lot from Dad and Aunt Anyi, but I was also limited. Even in Starcraft, the Zerg still needed to find an overpowered Psionic prodigy like Kerrigan to create the Queen of Blades. Maybe I should go to Tatooine¡­¡±


    ¡°Tatooine has prey?¡± As her voice rumbled in my mind, I turned my head towards the door. She shot up off the floor and flipped around, embedding her pointy ¡®feet¡¯ into the ceiling.


    *Beep!* There was a noise, followed by a cute voice, ¡°Mister Kal, I¡¯m sorry to bother you, but the other passengers have filed several noise complaints. Our sensors also detected damage to the ceiling and floor of your room. Please open up so that we can investigate.¡±


    ¡°Uh, yeah, sorry about that.¡± I snickered and stood up unsteadily. My legs felt a little weird. My toes wiggled a bit, my long black talons digging into the slimy purple creep on the carpet. It wasn¡¯t quite perfect yet either. The Creep in Starcraft was supposed to make it possible for Zerg to easily glide across it or some such bullshit. I¡¯ll need to work on that in the future.


    ¡°I¡¯ll open up right away.¡± I looked over at Midnight and saw him looking at me curiously. Then he quickly scurried under the bed to hide. I walked over to the door and it opened automatically. A short human woman was standing there in front of me, blonde hair, blue eyes that were widened in shock. She pulled the trigger on her black blaster rifle and I felt a mild burning sensation on my abdomen, along with a mild shock. In fact, the heat that rushed across my face was a lot stronger.


    ¡°Aaah!¡± Then she was screaming on the ground with her hands and forearms mangled beyond recognition. A few big pieces of metal from the gun were also piercing her abdomen. Seriously, people are so fucking stupid sometimes.


    ¡°Frak!¡± There was another human, a guy in a gray and black outfit like the girl. They were security on this ship. I saw the two of them when I boarded.


    ¡°Seriously. Have you ever heard of trigger discipline?¡± I crouched down and saw the dumbass pointing his blaster at my face, ¡°Do you want me to heal her or kill you? I can multitask.¡±


    ¡°Uh, no, go ahead.¡± The guy was smart enough to put his blaster pistol away completely, so he survived. I turned my attention back to the girl who I honestly couldn¡¯t be bothered to find out her name.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­¡± I quickly and efficiently plucked the pieces of twisted metal out of her gut with my right hand, while using the left to rapidly repair the wound. Then I grabbed her wrists with both hands and she screamed even louder as the carbonized flesh peeled away, the shattered bones reassembled and aside from the hands that were completely gone, everything else was basically restored to normal. Almost as good as new!


    ¡°Aaaaaaah~!¡± Then she started crying and screaming again as I drew the biomass from her body fat to regrow her lost hands in a matter of seconds. She looked like she would turn into a mummy, but it really wasn¡¯t that big of a deal. Just a matter of eating and sleeping a lot for a week.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± The door next to mine opened up and a cute cat-girl poked her head out to check on the situation, ¡°Never mind.¡± Then she disappeared back into her room a moment later.


    ¡°So anyway, my pet took a shit on the floor.¡± I stood up and grabbed the dude¡¯s shoulder, dragging the terrified man into the room.


    ¡°I-I see that¡­¡± He swallowed loudly and then gagged a little when noticed the teeth jutting out of the pulsating purple flesh that was spreading rapidly across the blue carpet.


    ¡°Yeah, sorry about that.¡± I patted his shoulder and smiled wryly, looking up at the drooling black and purple Drone. The extremely acidic saliva dripped down and landed on the floor in front of us, burning a hole through the carpet and the surface of the metal beneath that.


    ¡°I¡¯ll¡­ I¡¯ll talk to the Captain and explain the situation. Sorry for the umm, trouble, and disturbance. Have a nice day.¡± The security officer was so terrified that he almost left without his nearly mummified partner.


    ¡°Humans, fragile.¡± Izsha plopped down onto the carpet and then skittered out into the hallway like a spider. She leaned down and used her mandibles to pick up a bloody finger. She took a taste and then chewed it up, swallowing. After a few seconds she continued speaking telepathically, ¡°Weak Essence. Low Midichlorian Content. Low nutritional value. Taste is¡­ Adequate.¡±


    ¡°Pretty much.¡± I didn¡¯t have much trouble getting human ¡®biomass¡¯ before, since they¡¯re pretty common in the Galaxy. The Star Wars humans weren¡¯t much better than the kind from my past life, except that they age a bit slower, can ¡®potentially¡¯ live a lot longer and on average have a lot of extra gene sequences taken from aliens. The odds of humans remaining ¡®pure¡¯ for tens of thousands to millions of years of interspecies contact is absurdly low. I would be surprised if there are any pureblooded humans in the Galaxy at all.


    The only races that might be truly ¡®pure¡¯ are the ones that haven¡¯t had contact with aliens yet. There were plenty of planets like that in the Galaxy. Completely untouched by interstellar civilizations.


    ¡°We should probably clean up this mess.¡± I looked over at the purple Creep that was devouring the carpet and took a few steps toward it. The meat churned and writhed, quickly getting drawn into my toes and crawling up my legs. Izsha also came over to help out, slurping up the Creep into her mouth.


    ¡°Maouu~!¡± Once we were done, Midnight came out from under the couch and started crying for food as usual.


    ¡°We don¡¯t know what¡¯s gonna happen, but it¡¯s best to be careful what we leave behind.¡± I tapped my armored foot on the shiny metal floor and smiled at Izsha, ¡°Can¡¯t let them start making countermeasures for us already. We haven¡¯t even conquered our first planet yet.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Master!¡±

 Chapter 4: Bounty Hunters

    Chapter 4: Bounty Hunters


    *Eiiih-eeeih-eeeih~!* An annoying siren woke me up, followed by a rumbling throughout the whole damn ship.


    ¡°Red Alert! Red Alert! All crew to battlestations! I repeat, all crew to battle stations! We¡¯re under attack!¡± A man was shouting through the speakers and hurting Midnight¡¯s ears. Mine were fine, but it was still annoying.


    ¡°Master, what are your orders?¡± Izsha let go of me and floated a few feet above the bed.


    ¡°Get ready for battle, I guess.¡± I yawned and looked over at the silly cat that was trying to cover his ears with his paws. I reached out and placed my palm on his head. Some glowing purple goop oozed out of my wrist joint and engulfed the kitty before he could escape. I wiggled my fingers a few times and then the slime transformed into a rubbery cocoon. It was durable and could keep him alive in the void for a long time, if necessary.


    ¡°Inefficient.¡± My cute Drone gave a critique, ¡°He is our weakness.¡±


    ¡°I know, right?¡± I snorted and chuckled as I pushed off the bed. Taking a breath, I hovered for a few seconds, before falling down onto the metal floor. It¡¯s wild how you can just release a certain frequency of energy waves and counter gravity.


    I waved my hand behind me and Midnight¡¯s cocoon flew over to my back and stuck there. Then I looked over to the green suitcases. They were made by my people. A semi-organic material that they use for a lot of their technologies. It could block blaster fire if necessary, not to mention surviving in a vacuum. Makes you wonder why they didn¡¯t use it to make body armor?


    ¡°I guess it¡¯s the same reason that the Jedi run around in robes and tunics instead of armor.¡± If you think about it, the Jedi used to wear armor way back in the Old Republic days. And then they only started wearing some armor during the Clone Wars. Or at least a few Jedi started doing it. Like ¡®General Kenobi¡¯.


    ¡°Master, focus. Battle imminent.¡± Izsha actually scolded me! How adorable!


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Kid, I¡¯m getting serious now.¡± I wrapped my hands around my throat, covering the red skin with purple slime. The goop moved up across my face and ears, morphing into a simple and convenient black mask. The material covering my eyes was transparent. Even if I could use the Force or grow some extra eyes, it¡¯s a little unnecessary.


    *Pew-pew~!*


    *Boom~!*


    *Rumble~!*


    There was fighting in the hallway. The ship outside hadn¡¯t even boarded us yet, but I guess the bounty hunters inside couldn¡¯t wait.


    ¡°Jakoli! I should¡¯ve known you¡¯d be here!¡± The Zygerrian hybrid was using a glowing yellow energy whip to strangle that random security dude I saw the other day.


    *Pew-pew~!* The green-skinned Rodian dude fired a blaster pistol and blasted the poor bastard¡¯s head off, but the cat-girl managed to avoid taking any damage. She darted back behind a big ass Ithorian that stupidly left their room at the wrong moment. A blue beam flew past and burnt a hole through his left arm, before melting the surface of the wall behind him!


    ¡°Echuta!¡± Jakoli shouted as I took a step outside my room. I saw him pull out a silver orb from his hip and press a button to make it start beeping rapidly. Then he threw the ball at my face with all his strength, before darting inside the open door to his left.


    ¡°Thermal Detonator?¡± I caught it and pressed a few buttons, deactivating it immediately. What? Was I supposed to just take a grenade to the face for no reason?


    *Crack~!* I reached back with my left hand and caught the energy whip that was constantly trying to electrocute me. Sparks shot all over the place and my palm was getting kinda toasty.


    ¡°Langeshi! Surrender to me or you¡¯ll die like everyone else on this ship!¡± That nameless Zygerrian girl was holding what looked like some kind of detonator in her free hand, while the other was holding the energy whip.


    ¡°Okay.¡± I looked up and so did she, just in time to watch those pincers come down on her shoulders!


    ¡°Aaaaaah~! No!¡± Was all she had time to say before Izsha chomped down on her pretty little head. The cat-girl¡¯s body went limp and floated upwards, affected by the energy field around the Drone.


    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    ¡°Zygerrian Essence acquired.¡± She bragged as she continued ripping apart the headless corpse, tearing the cat-girl¡¯s pretty blue outfit to shreds in the process¡­


    *Beep-beep-beep~!* The grenade in my hand started beeping suddenly!


    ¡°Shit.¡± I threw it into my room and ¡®pulled¡¯ my suitcase out, before closing the door!


    *Boom~!* The ship rocked! The sirens went even crazier than before!


    ¡°Master! Escape!¡± Izsha threw away the Zygerrian remains and floated over to my side.


    ¡°Yeah, we should probably go now.¡± I placed the big rectangular green case on Izsha¡¯s back and she secreted some gooey purple slime to hold it in place.


    *Boom~!* Another explosion rocked the ship and the sirens shut off, so did the lights and even the gravity! Red emergency lights came on and then the gravity returned, but only about a fourth of what it was before.


    *Taao-taoo-taoo~!* A different blaster sound came from down the hall. There were also some screams, before a tall figure in red and gray Mandalorian armor appeared. She was holding a gray blaster pistol in each hand and aiming them at me. But then she started firing at Izsha!


    *Tao-tao-tao-tao~!* The green bolts hit the armor on her head and bounced off to the sides, but left behind scorch marks.


    ¡°Cut that shit out!¡± I reached out with both hands and ¡®Force Grabbed¡¯ her wrists, turning the guns away from us. She bent down and a fucking rocket shot towards us from her ¡®jetpack¡¯! I moved out of the way and Izsha did the same, but when the rocket reached the end of the hallway behind us it obviously exploded! The flames engulfed the whole damn corridor!


    ¡°Eiiiiii~!¡± Izsha let out a high-pitched screech and I was in a lot of pain as well. More importantly, Midnight¡¯s cocoon was burning!


    ¡°Maaooou~!¡± I could hear him crying in pain and feel him struggling to escape.


    ¡°Master! It hurts!¡± Even her telepathic voice sounded much higher pitched and desperate.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± I breathed out a sigh and the fire was instantly extinguished. The ground and ceiling creaked, warped by the heat and pressure. The Mandalorian ahead of us was fine. She raised her right hand and shot a wire out of her wrist. It wrapped around my throat and tightened. Then a jolt of electricity shocked me slightly.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for being so passive.¡± I took Midnight¡¯s charred black cocoon off my back and placed it on top of the green suitcase on Izsha¡¯s back. Then I darted over in front of ¡®Vhonte¡¯ and took a blaster bolt to the face. But I grabbed her throat under the fancy helmet and growled, ¡°Stop.¡±


    ¡°Surrender!¡± She shouted at me and tried to fight back, but no matter how much Mandalorian training she had, no matter how much of a ¡®supersoldier¡¯ she was¡­ She was just a human.


    ¡°No.¡± I pulled off her helmet. Bright red hair, just like her armor. Pale skin, probably from wearing the helmet all the time. Blue eyes¡­


    ¡°You¡¯re gorgeous.¡± I smiled behind my mask, then I tossed the helmet away and placed my right hand on the side of her face: ¡°I can fix that.¡±


    ¡°Wait! Wait, aaaagh~!¡± She actually didn¡¯t scream that much or that loudly considering how brutally I was rearranging her muscles and bones. Actually pretty impressive tolerance for torture.


    After about a minute of having her face and skull ¡®massaged¡¯, she shouted: ¡°We can talk about this!¡±


    ¡°Talk about what?¡± I raised an eyebrow, ¡°I was just punishing you for hurting my cat. Now I¡¯m gonna feed you to my daughter.¡±


    ¡°Hiss~!¡± Izsha floated over and used her pincers to remove the wire from my throat.


    ¡°Credits! Fifty thousand!¡± She had her facial features returned to their previous pretty proportions, though that didn¡¯t really mean much to a monster like me.


    ¡°Fifty thousand Credits for your life?¡± I looked at her helmet and then her armor, ¡°The Beskar in your suit is definitely worth more than that.¡±


    ¡°Not for my life. For your bounty.¡± She raised her left hand and aimed her wrist-mounted flamethrower at my face, but before she could do anything, her whole body seized up.


    ¡°I can literally turn you into a Womprat.¡± I removed my mask so that she could see my handsome tomato face, ¡°If you¡¯re waiting on your friend, he¡¯s probably about to steal your ship.¡±


    ¡°Jakoli has no friends.¡± Vhonte struggled to breath, not to mention speak, but she still managed somehow.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t come here alone.¡± I looked over to the right and ¡®felt¡¯ someone over there. A strong will, but not much in the way of the Force. Maybe another Mandalorian.


    ¡°No. I didn¡¯t. Now you can either come with me and accept your fate, or we can both die together.¡± She had a serious expression on her cute face. She was really willing to die with me rather than failing her Bounty Mission.


    ¡°Vhonte, that¡¯s enough.¡± A somewhat familiar voice came from a communication device on her right wrist.


    ¡°Jango, what the frak are you doing?¡± She glared at her wrist.


    ¡°It¡¯s over.¡± Jango motherfucking Fett was apparently her partner, ¡°What¡¯s your name, Kid?¡±


    ¡°Amon Kal. Not gonna lie, I¡¯m kind of a fan.¡± I snickered and finally let go of the ginger girl¡¯s throat. To make sure she didn¡¯t do anything particularly stupid, I didn¡¯t remove the paralytic venom coursing through her veins. She just kinda slumped to the floor as I took the communicator off her wristguard.


    It was a small disk with some buttons on it. I pressed one of them and a small holographic image of the Mandalorian Bounty Hunter appeared. Silver armor with some blue on the faceguard of his helmet. Brought back memories of my first childhood.


    ¡°Always nice to meet a fan¡­¡± Jango didn¡¯t sound very enthusiastic, ¡°Fifty thousand Credits. You have my word that we¡¯ll leave and won¡¯t bother you again.¡±


    ¡°Damn it Jango!¡± The girl somehow managed to shout before coughing violently and nearly passing out.


    ¡°Fifty thousand Credits is nothing to me.¡± I shook my head and made a counter-offer, ¡°Okay, how about this, a million Credits and a ride to Tatooine.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not paying a million Credits.¡± He refused immediately, ¡°Fifty thousand and a ride to Tatooine.¡±


    ¡°Is fifty thousand Credits a lot?¡± I looked towards the limp girl on the ground and she just glared at me. She couldn¡¯t even speak anymore. If I didn¡¯t remove the venom soon, she might actually die or at least get brain damage.


    ¡°For fifty thousand Credits, you could buy a decent ship.¡± He didn¡¯t seem very impatient considering the circumstances.


    ¡°A small ship on Zonama Sekot sells for like a million Credits though.¡± I shrugged and complained, ¡°Hell, my Mom was selling my puppies and kittens for five thousand Credits each!¡±


    ¡°You could buy a human for less than that on Tatooine.¡± Jango groaned, ¡°Fine. Instead of Credits, I¡¯ll give you a thousand Peggats. If you¡¯re headed to Tatooine, then you won¡¯t be needing Republic Credits anyway.¡±


    *Rumble~!* The ship shook and then an automated female voice announced, ¡°Self-Destruct sequence initiated. Please evacuate immediately.¡±


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll settle for a thousand Peggats, whatever.¡± I hung up the call and stuck the tiny holoprojector back onto the girl¡¯s wrist. Then I spat on her face, administering the antivenom in a safe and painless way. It started working quickly, but I still kindly grabbed her ankle with one hand and her helmet with the other, dragging the Mandalorian towards the airlock at a brisk pace.


    ¡°Master, humans are dangerous.¡± Izsha whispered into my mind. Even though she had already healed from the mild burns before, she was still traumatized from the experience.


    I leaned down and rubbed my face against her smooth head, ¡°They might be weak and fragile, but they¡¯re still the most dangerous monsters in the Galaxy. Always remember that.¡±

 Chapter 5: Jango

    Chapter 5: Jango


    Onboard the famous ¡®Slave-1¡¯, I was sitting in a small lounge area. I placed the blackened cocoon on the table and took a breath. Using my claws, I cracked it open and saw my cat curled up in a ball. He was covered in glowing purple slime and crimson blood.


    ¡°Maoo!¡± I opened his eyes and glared up at me as usual. Aside from being ¡®filthy¡¯, he was relatively fine.


    ¡°Than God you¡¯re okay, Middy.¡± I breathed a sigh of relief, even though I already knew he was alive and well.


    Izsha placed the heavy green suitcase next to the table and then floated over to my right side, ¡°What God do we worship, Master? Zonama Sekot?¡±


    ¡°Fuck Sekot.¡± I reached out and sucked away all the Zergy gore from Midnight¡¯s body before he could try licking it away, ¡°I¡¯d rather worship Mommy Abeloth than that planetary bitch. Okay, that¡¯s a joke, don¡¯t actually start worshipping eldritch horrors. The Zerg don¡¯t need Gods or Xel¡¯Naga. We only need each other.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Master.¡± The cute black Drone cuddled up against my side like a giant scorpion-spider with purple webbing on her legs.


    ¡°Mao~!¡± And of course, Master Midnight jumped onto my lap and started crying as usual.


    ¡°The cat seems¡­ Unnecessary. What is his purpose?¡± Izsha tilted her armored head to look up at my face.


    ¡°Cuteness mostly.¡± I tried to pet the little bastard with my left hand, but the claws scared him, so he ran away. A few seconds later, I saw him running over with a small yellow mouse-like creature that had a head on both ends of its body.


    ¡°And exterminating small animals across the Galaxy.¡±


    ¡°He is not Zerg.¡± She clicked her mandibles, ¡°He will hold us back.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, probably. But that¡¯s just how it goes.¡± I scratched under her nonexistent chin and ran my other hand down her slimy armored plates, ¡°He¡¯s an anchor. That¡¯s his true purpose. A memory from another life. An important milestone in this one. A lovable little monster. Just like you, Izsha.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡± That telepathic voice wasn¡¯t as deep or inhuman anymore. Almost childlike, really.


    *Tshh~!* The metal door opened on our right and all three of us turned our heads.


    *Thump-thump-thump~!* Jango walked across the metal floor in his full suit of Mandalorian Armor. Midnight jumped onto the couch to my right as the dude slammed a heavy durasteel case on the similarly metal coffee table. It opened automatically and revealed a thousand golden coins. Not that they were necessarily made of real gold, but they were golden in color.


    ¡°A thousand Peggats. As promised.¡± He didn¡¯t sound happy to be paying me, but he also wasn¡¯t stupid or dishonorable enough to shoot me in my exposed face with the blaster on his right hip.


    ¡°Cool.¡± I¡¯ll be honest, I didn¡¯t actually give a fuck about the Credits or Peggats. They were useful, but they definitely weren¡¯t necessary. Izsha closed the case with her claws and placed it on top of my green luggage, which was next to the coffee table.


    ¡°I¡¯ve met a few Langhesi before.¡± The armored man sat down on the simple gray couch that was across the table from us, ¡°They were a lot less-¡±


    ¡°Handsome?¡± I smirked.


    ¡°No.¡± He didn¡¯t laugh, ¡°Dangerous. Their abilities were negligible. They fetch a high price on the Black Market though. They¡¯re talented doctors and geneticists. But I¡¯ve never seen a Langhesi Jedi.¡±


    ¡°Neither have I.¡± I smirked and shook my head, ¡°Force Sensitivity is rare for some Species, but it¡¯s super common in others. I¡¯m half Langhesi, half Ferroan, born on a living planet that can use the Force. My parents, grandparents and great grandparents were all Force Sensitive to some extent. I edited my own genes when I was a toddler to make myself stronger in the Force.¡±Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    ¡°Lucky and crazy. A scary combination.¡± Jango finally snorted and chuckled a bit, ¡°So why Tatooine?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re afraid I¡¯ll fuck with Jabba and get you in trouble?¡± I put Midnight on my lap and started petting him as gently as I could with my claws.


    ¡°Yes.¡± He took off his helmet and revealed his surprisingly young, tan face. He did have a couple scars here and there. Brown eyes and a full head of short but thick curly black hair. I guess he¡¯s probably still in his twenties now, huh?


    ¡°I mean, I did wanna collect some Hutts for genetic experiments. Heheh~!¡± I laughed, but his expression was stony and serious. Breathing out a long sigh, I complained, ¡°Fine, I won¡¯t fuck with Jabba¡­ In the near future.¡±


    ¡°I should¡¯ve talked Vhonte out of this bounty when I had the chance.¡± He leaned back on the sofa and looked at my suitcase, ¡°Any chance you brought some Zonamian Ale with you?¡±


    ¡°Nope. It¡¯s mostly clothes¡­ Which I guess I don¡¯t need anymore, huh?¡± I looked down at my reddish-brown carapace. There were also some pretty glowy purple bits here and there. I looked at my right hand and was tempted to transform back to my soft, squishy red flesh. But then I decided against it.


    ¡°Mostly clothes.¡± He asked, ¡°Anything I need to be concerned about?¡±


    ¡°Nah, just some gene samples and experimental notes. A few books that contain secrets of the universe and knowledge of future events. Some porn, okay, a lot of porn. Emergency rations. You know, normal stuff.¡± I didn¡¯t bother lying, but I doubt he¡¯d believe in prophecies or future knowledge anyway.


    ¡°Right¡­¡± He looked at my twitching tentacle hair and asked, ¡°As long as you don¡¯t leave behind any bioweapons on my ship.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯d never leave my cute little bioweapon behind.¡± I pat Izsha¡¯s back and she hissed in agreement.


    There was an awkward silence for a while before I offered, ¡°I can increase your blood alcohol level directly?¡±


    He put his hand on his blaster, ¡°I can increase the temperature of your face directly.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a great idea!¡± I can¡¯t believe I didn¡¯t think of that before, ¡°I could use the Force to create a blast of microwave radiation!¡±


    ¡°I have a feeling the Jedi are gonna ¡®love¡¯ you.¡± He chuckled and took his hand off his blaster.


    ¡°Aww, I love the Jedi too. They¡¯re so cute and innocent.¡± I smirked and scratched under Midnight¡¯s chin, but he freaked out and jumped off my lap, hiding under the table.


    ¡°Maaou~!¡± He cried angrily, probably scratched him a little too roughly with my talons. He¡¯ll be fine though.


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t kidding when I said that Tatooine was on the other side of the Galaxy.¡± Jango suddenly brought the topic back to reality, ¡°We¡¯ll need to stop for fuel and supplies on the way. Have to drop off a few bounties as well.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s fine with me.¡± I¡¯m running out of time, but a few days won¡¯t make a big difference in the grand scheme of things. I¡¯ve spent over a year under house arrest and before that, I had to walk on eggshells to keep Zonama Sekot from getting mad at me. Now I¡¯m ¡®free¡¯. My chains have been broken.


    As long as the Force doesn¡¯t give me the Sarah Connor treatment and send Droids from the future to come back and murder me, I should be totally fine.


    I wonder if the World Between Worlds is still easily accessible through the temple on Lothal? Maybe not, since the Big Three are still alive and well. Not that I really believed that they could die so simply and easily, but I probably don¡¯t need to worry about them either.


    Whether it¡¯s the Force or the Father, Son and Daughter, they generally just let things happen. Abeloth was the one that ¡®made¡¯ things happen on purpose, but she was more an agent of Chaos. Not necessarily Light or Dark, good or evil, just kinda Chaotic Neutral.


    ¡°Master, the human has left.¡± Izsha spoke into my mind while making some clicking noises.


    ¡°He probably has to go take a shit or something.¡± I shrugged, ¡°Probably takes a while to remove the armor.¡±


    ¡°Defecation is inefficient.¡± She commented.


    ¡°It really depends on the perspective.¡± I looked down at Midnight¡¯s face peeking out from under the metal coffee table, ¡°On an individual organism level, excreting waste is an inefficient use of resources. But in terms of an ecosystem, one creature¡¯s shit is another¡¯s sustenance. The ecosystem of a planet lives and thrives off of the exchange of resources like that.¡±


    ¡°We are not in an ecosystem now.¡± Izsha pointed her claw towards the wall, ¡°Waste is wasteful.¡±


    ¡°I think they actually have machines that filter the piss and turn it back into water. While the shit gets turned into fuel, that creates electricity. Or something like that. I¡¯m not totally sure what this specific ship does. Might just have a septic tank and then spray everything out into the void.¡±


    ¡°What happens to feces when ejected from the ship during Hyperspace travel?¡± She asked a pretty interesting question.


    ¡°If I had to guess, probably the same thing that happens to debris from ships that get destroyed in Hyperspace¡­ I think they¡¯re just stuck in this dimension forever. Traveling at insane speeds and potentially hitting some unlucky motherfucker in the far-off future, or past. For that matter, you¡¯d think more planets would get destroyed by ships crashing into them at nearly the speed of light, right? I¡¯ve literally never heard of that happening before.¡±


    ¡°Wasteful.¡± She wasn¡¯t wrong. And that¡¯s how I feel about it as well. But realistically, accidents happen. Ships jump to and from Hyperspace not far from planets, not to mention all the crazy spice addicts and Sith out there. Wasn¡¯t there that one bitch that blew up like ten stars by accident while using Naga Sadow¡¯s overpowered supernova-creating starship?


    ¡°The Cron Drift, I think it was called? I wonder if those Sith Crystals still exist?¡± You wouldn¡¯t think they¡¯d survive the destruction of the ship amidst nearly a dozen supernovae but then again, this is Star Wars. With the Force involved, anything is possible.


    ¡°Master. The cat is excreting waste.¡±


    ¡°Yep¡­ He sure is¡­¡±


    <h2>Author¡¯s Note:</h2>


    I feel like there isn¡¯t much dialogue from Jango Fett in Canon. In Legends, he has a bit more, but he still doesn¡¯t really talk that much. And his dialogue isn¡¯t particularly¡­ Complicated?


    He wasn¡¯t totally antisocial though. He did have a lot of friends. He managed to pull together like 75 Mandalorians, including Vhonte Tervho and formed the Cuy¡¯Val Dar. There were also 25 non-Mandalorians who he brought along to help train the Clones.


    Anyway, now it¡¯s time to decide how badly I wanna fuck up canon.

 Chapter 6: The Force

    Chapter 6: The Force


    As an Isekai Protagonist, I need to decide how hard and fast I wanna fuck Canon in the ass. Sorry, I mean ¡®Destiny¡¯. Because that¡¯s effectively what I¡¯m gonna be doing, only a matter of sooner or later, where and when.


    Realistically, every action I take should have a massive butterfly effect. But not to mention the Force itself, there are actual people like Palpatine who will go out of their way to make sure that things go a certain way. Even if I flap my metaphysical wings, Fate won¡¯t have an aneurysm immediately.


    For example, even though I took a ride with Jango Fett, it most likely won¡¯t have any effect on his very near future decisions and opportunities. If I remember correctly, Count Dooku has some apprentice that got like¡­ Kidnapped by crazy drug-addled cultists? Something about getting tortured into becoming one of them and falling to the Dark Side in the process. She¡¯s an embarrassment to Dooku, so he hires Bounty Hunters to assassinate the unlucky girl.


    Yeah, the Star Wars Universe is pretty fucked in general. But it¡¯s also beautiful and amazing. I was born on a living planet. Born with the ability to manipulate and create life on a whim, or at least with a lot of training and experimentation.


    I definitely don¡¯t regret being reborn in such an awesome setting. Especially with such an overpowered ¡®Race¡¯ like the Langhesi. Relatively speaking, the Yuuzhan Vong also have a lot of cool biotech abilities, but they¡¯re religious fanatics and super rigid. I would 100% end up being considered a Heretic and get myself killed before I had a chance to grow. Plus, they¡¯re not connected to the Force, which is a huge weakness.


    The Force is honestly amazing. Nearly omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient. Without the Force, I never would have been able to accomplish everything I have. A normal Langeshi Forger isn¡¯t so ridiculous, or they wouldn¡¯t get enslaved and have to become refugees.


    ¡°There is no emotion, there is peace.¡± A soft, feminine voice echoed across the Galaxy and reached my ears. I looked over towards the countless stars, waving my hands to blow them out of the way. A path opened up, like a yellow brick road, but made of purple flesh. A carpet of Zerg Creep through the stars.


    ¡°There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.¡± That girl¡¯s voice was cute. Made me curious. What did she look like?


    ¡°There is no passion, there is serenity.¡± Everytime she spoke, I took another step forward down the astral road. I could feel my mind getting farther away from my body, probably not a good sign. But I¡¯ve always been a little reckless when it comes to metaphysical bullshit.


    ¡°There is no chaos, there is harmony.¡± Almost there¡­


    ¡°There is no death, there is the Force.¡± I can see the big blue star now!


    ¡°Master, I think I sense a disturbance in the Force?¡± As she spoke, I got close enough to see her face! Blue skin, like my mother, gray lips, pale blue eyes, nubs instead of ears¡­ And a bald head with a thick tendril coming out of each side. A Twi¡¯lek, Rutian specifically.


    ¡°Master?¡± She looked around in confusion, kneeling on some soft white sand. I could see some peaceful blue waves splashing against the beach to her right. Was she on an island of some sort?


    ¡°Hi.¡± I raised my hand and greeted the girl as I stood on the pulsating purple Creep carpet.


    ¡°Hello¡­¡± The Jedi was wearing a simple white tunic and pants. They seemed extremely clean and spotless at first glance. But I did notice a few blood stains and frayed edges. In her bright blue eyes, I could sense a hint of fear.


    ¡°Am I really that scary?¡± I looked down at my right hand and noticed that my skin was still red. No, it wasn¡¯t red. Only my hands were red and they were both drenched in fresh blood. My forearms looked pale and hairy, veiny, with familiar moles here and there. I guess I still see myself as a human, huh?


    ¡°Who are you?¡± The girl tried not to look below my waist, focusing on my eyes instead. I wonder what she sees in them?


    ¡°Amon Kal.¡± I smiled, hiding my teeth. Even if I made them perfect in reality, they still feel ¡®wrong¡¯ here.


    ¡°Amon¡­¡± She pursed her grayish lips and asked, ¡°Are you a Jedi from the Main Temple on Coruscant?¡±


    ¡°In other words, you¡¯re not a Jedi from the Main Temple on Coruscant?¡± I guess it¡¯s not that strange. There were actually quite a few wandering Jedi out there, including famous Masters like Fay. I remember her because she was basically a hot elf-looking ¡®near-human¡¯ that was pretty popular for obvious reasons.


    She stood up from her kneeling position and took the simple gray hilt off her left hip calmly. But then she ignited the blue blade and glared at me, ¡°You¡¯re not a Jedi!¡±


    ¡°Careful Young Padawan, anger leads to the Dark Side.¡± I smirked and took a step onto the soft white sand, but then I quickly pulled back. It was too damn hot!


    ¡°What are you?¡± She was still on guard, but she stopped glaring and seemed to calm down a bit. Scanning my naked body quickly, her eyes returned to mine.


    ¡°Just a Wanderer from Afar.¡± I mean, I really am Xel¡¯naga in that sense.


    ¡°Master, we¡¯ve arrived!¡± Izsha shouted from the distance behind me.


    ¡°Master?¡± The pretty Jedi frowned.


    ¡°My apprentice is telling me to wake up, so I gotta go.¡± I chuckled and waved goodbye as the Creep carpet pulled me backwards rapidly, ¡°See you next time, mysterious Padawan!¡±


    ¡°Wait! Come back here!¡± Unfortunately I didn¡¯t catch her name, but that¡¯s fine. She¡¯s not Aayla Secura, so the odds of her being an important character in the plot are pretty low. I¡¯d be surprised if she survived until the Clone Wars. It¡¯s probably better if I don¡¯t get too attached.


    ¡°It¡¯s a shame though. She was really cute.¡± I looked back and saw her standing on the edge of the beach with the lightsaber still drawn. A moment later, the whole area transformed back into a blazing blue star. Then it got farther and farther away, until it was only a sparkling dot in the distance.


    I turned back towards the big red ball of fire at the end of this Creep highway. I took a few steps forward and it was right in front of me, quickly transforming into a cute little black drone with glowing red eyes. She clicked her mandibles and sucked the drool back into her toothy maw, licking her fang with a few big pink tentacle tongues.


    ¡°Master, I was concerned.¡± She spoke normally in this meditative dreamworld. Something I didn¡¯t really design her to be capable of in reality.


    ¡°So we¡¯re finally here?¡± I looked up and so did she. Above us was a pretty tan and dark-red planet. There were a few tiny white clouds in the atmosphere, but they were negligible compared to the size of the entire world. The big sections of orangish-tan were deserts, while the dark red elevated areas were craggy mountains. It actually looked a lot like huge continents of craggy mountains separated by seas of sand.


    ¡°I sense danger.¡± Izsha pointed with her claw and drew my attention to a small squadron of starfighters. Only about three of them, but the Slave-1 wasn¡¯t a particularly huge ship either. Jango bragged about stealing this Firespray-31-Class Patrol and attack craft from the prison moon Oovo 4.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.


    ¡°We¡¯ll be fine. Even if Anakin Skywalker was in one of those junky fighters, he wouldn¡¯t be able to deal with the Slave-1 piloted by Jango Fett.¡± I ignored the T-shaped green and red helmet looking ship that was easily blasting apart the tiny fighters, while avoiding a few proton torpedoes. Turning my attention back towards the planet below.


    ¡°I can¡¯t see him.¡± Izsha commented softly in a cuter voice than before. Higher pitched, more feminine, almost childish though. She¡¯s working on her preferred voice. Understandable, she¡¯s only a few days old.


    ¡°The Force is hiding him.¡± I pointed towards a small dot down below, that was briefly covered by a huge cargo ship. Once the fighters were dealt with though, we started getting closer to Tatooine¡¯s atmosphere.


    ¡°Mos Espa or Mos Eisley?¡± She guessed, since those were the only two big cities on the entire planet. The two cities had large starports and covered a massive area, hence why they were so easily visible from space.


    ¡°Mos Espa is where the Chosen One lives. But whether he¡¯s actually there right now, I¡¯m not sure. What if the Force is actively protecting him from us?¡± I scratched the back of my head and my metaphorical bloody hands made my imaginary hair all sticky¡­


    ¡°Unfortunate.¡± Izsha looked over towards the orangish ocean of sand, ¡°His Essence would be useful.¡±


    ¡°Maybe.¡± I shrugged and also turned towards the Dune Seas, ¡°Honestly, rather than Anakin, my real purpose for coming here is that it would make a great place to start growing our Swarm. There are at least three different creatures that I¡¯d love to take apart¡­ And that¡¯s not even including the Hutts.¡±


    There were at least two Hutts on this planet at this time. Probably more. Unfortunately it¡¯s a massive taboo to kill a Hutt. Unless you¡¯re also a Hutt or get hired by one to kill the other. It¡¯s a little too early to deal with all that bullshit.


    *Tshh~!* I opened my eyes when I heard the door to our little cabin open. I was floating above the bed with my armored legs crossed. Midnight was sitting upright next on Izsha¡¯s back plates, glaring at the intruder. She was floating above the bed next to me.


    ¡°We¡¯re about to land.¡± The sexy Mandalorian girl was wearing her red and gray armor, including the helmet. The two of them barely took their gear off the past few days. Partially because they were afraid of me, but also because shit happens, all the time. Don¡¯t wanna have to waste time putting on your suit when there¡¯s an emergency.


    ¡°I know.¡± I stretched my arms and back, then stood on the bed lightly. The artificial gravity slowly taking its hold on me once again. The ship shook and she grabbed the side of the doorway. ¡°Looks like we¡¯re breaking through the atmosphere now.¡±


    ¡°You figure that out with your fancy Jedi tricks?¡± She turned her head slightly towards Midnight and asked, ¡°You sure you want to take the cat with you?¡±


    ¡°If you want one, I can make a new one.¡± I snickered and ran my clawed right hand down Middy¡¯s back, which he arched and stuck his tail up in the air.


    ¡°I want one, but not for five thousand Credits.¡± Vhonte shook her helmet-covered head and sighed, ¡°Besides, I¡¯ll never know if you¡¯ll be using him to spy on me.¡±


    ¡°If I wanna spy on you, I can just use the Force.¡± I smirked, looking up and down her armored body, ¡°Kinda takes a lot of the fun outta voyeurism when it¡¯s so easy though.¡±


    ¡°Yet another reason to hate the Jedi.¡± She snorted and laughed, ¡°So five hundred Credits for a baby cat?¡±


    ¡°Sure.¡± I shrugged, ¡°What color do you want? What kinda fur? Eye color?¡±


    ¡°I like red, can you do that? Not orange, but red-red. Like my hair and armor. The eyes¡­ Green like mine, I guess.¡± She looked at Midnight again, ¡°I like the fur length on yours.¡±


    ¡°Male or female? Or genderless?¡± I looked at the shed hair on my right hand, then excreted some crimson goop from my other palm. Pressing them together, I felt around using the Force. I keep lots of gene samples for future reference, but when it comes to making kittens, I can always use Midnight¡¯s ¡®Essence¡¯.


    ¡°Is there a big difference?¡± As she asked that, the red blob was already taking the shape of a small semi-transparent womb. Inside was a rapidly growing embryo.


    ¡°Male cats are usually a lot more affectionate and social, but realistically, it varies from cat to cat. Look at Midnight. He¡¯s more like a girl cat in terms of personality. Because I designed him that way.¡± I was basing him on the cat from my memories after all, ¡°So would you rather have a cuddly and loving cat, or an absolute menace?¡±


    ¡°Cuddly. And¡­ Male. Will he be able to breed?¡±


    ¡°If you want him to¡­ I can make him infertile if you¡¯d prefer.¡± I really didn¡¯t give a fuck about the potential ecological disasters that might be caused by my ¡®pets¡¯ breeding, but I usually made them infertile. My Mom was the one taking the commissions and selling the pets back then, so I basically just did whatever she wanted. She would sell infertile puppies and kittens for about 3 to 5 thousand Credits, while the fertile ones would be over 10k. But she wanted me to give them really low fertility and make it so that their windows of fertility were super low.


    ¡°What good is being fertile if there aren¡¯t other cats around? Or can he breed with Tookas and other kinds of feline creatures?¡± She took a step closer and even removed her helmet to watch the rapidly growing kitty fetus inside the floating womb.


    ¡°Vhonte, I can make it possible for him to get you pregnant and make cute Zygerrian babies together.¡± I raised an eyebrow, ¡°Now that I think about it, why did I bother making an artificial womb when I could¡¯ve just used yours for this?¡±


    ¡°Amon, you really have to work on your flirting skills.¡± She glared up at me with her pretty green eyes and then turned back towards the almost fully-formed kitten, ¡°Just make him able to breed with other kinds of cats. Not Zygerrians and Togorians.¡±


    ¡°Togorians¡­ Aren¡¯t they the tiger and lion people?¡± I honestly never knew they existed before I was reborn, but there were a fuck load of random Species across the Galaxy. I¡¯ve found a lot of them on the Holonet that I really wanna find and research, but there are still a lot that are totally obscure.


    ¡°Maybe. How big will it grow?¡± Vhonte pointed at Midnight, ¡°Is he an adult?¡±


    ¡°Yep. They reach maturity pretty fast even if I¡¯m not speeding things up.¡± I looked over at Middy who ¡®meowed¡¯ and then back towards the tiny womb that was starting to get stretched out. The fetus inside was basically a fully formed kitten, but I pushed things a little farther just to be on the safe side. It wouldn¡¯t need a mother to nurse from, since it was already past that stage of development.


    *Thump~!* The ship shook as we landed, but the Mandalorian barely moved. I put some finishing touches on the kitty and then the womb burst like a balloon! Splashing amniotic fluid all over the two of us.


    ¡°E chu tah!¡± She cursed loudly and spat the slimy goop onto the floor, ¡°You did that on purpose!¡±


    ¡°Sorry, zoned out for a second there.¡± I snickered and held the discombobulated blood-red kitten on my right palm, while I used my left hand to suck up all the juices that splashed around. They absorbed back into my purple carapace. No point wasting biomass or ¡®moisture¡¯.


    ¡°Sure you did.¡± She put her helmet back on, took the mewling kitten from my palm and asked, ¡°How do you want me to pay you? Digital or physical Credits?¡±


    ¡°Just take care of our baby.¡± I leaned down and kissed his adorable fluffy red forehead, ¡°Be a good boy and take care of your Mommy.¡±


    ¡°Wait a second¡­¡± She watched me grab the vine-green hand of the heavy Zonamian suitcase, ¡°You son of a Rancor!¡±


    ¡°Oh yeah, Rancors! Almost forgot they existed on Tatooine! Thanks for reminding me!¡± I grabbed the silver case of Peggats with my left hand and followed Izsha out of the room quickly.


    ¡°Amon!¡± She tried to follow me down the hallway, but the kitten just happened to jump onto her visor and block her vision. She couldn¡¯t just rip the baby boy off her helmet, so she had to carefully remove him with those fancy Mandalorian gloves on.


    ¡°I gave him a similar digestive system to you, so you can just feed him whatever you can eat for the most part!¡± I shouted back towards the girl as I reached the end of the hall, which led to a small cargo bay/prison. There were several cells on the left side of the room where various men and women were being held. Including a green Rodian, uh, Jakoli? He was a Bounty Hunter, but most Bounty Hunters also have Bounties.


    *Tssshhhh~! Eennng~!* The noise from the ramp opening up and lowering was pretty loud. Middy was definitely scared and annoyed. But he stayed perched on Izsha¡¯s back instead of jumping off.


    ¡°Oh yeah, that¡¯s hot.¡± I felt the temperature shift instantly. The heat blasted up into my face from the dusty, dry and cracked ground outside.


    ¡°Maaaou~!¡± Midnight was very unhappy the moment the hot suns beat down on his pretty black fur. He couldn¡¯t see anything, just flicked his ears and closed his eyes while crying loudly.


    ¡°Yeah, this is it! This is what I¡¯ve been looking forward to! Hahahah~!¡± I spread my arms wide and took in the scorching sunlight! My carapace absorbed the sunlight and converted it into energy quickly!


    ¡°It feels really good, Master!¡± Izsha was also excited and happy to feel the sun on her purple webbing and black carapace. This is the first time we were irradiated by sunlight since we left Zonama Sekot. But even back then it wasn¡¯t this strong. Not even close.


    ¡°Maaaou~!¡± Midnight cried again, reminding me that he was annoyed and uncomfortable.


    ¡°Do you wanna go back in the cocoon again?¡± I suggested and he immediately shut up. The little shit wasn¡¯t telepathic, but he seemed like it sometimes. Maybe it was the Force? Or maybe I just made him a little smarter than I originally intended. Not really sure.


    ¡°Hey! Watch out!¡± Someone shouted from nearby. I looked over and saw a human on a speeder bike weaving through the ships, people and cargo. Behind him was a green-skinned Twi¡¯lek guy on a similar looking hover bike thing. But he quickly crashed into a shipping crate that landed in front of him!


    *Boom~!* Fucking exploded in a big fireball and pieces of shrapnel shot everywhere!


    ¡°Aaaah~!¡±


    ¡°My leg~!¡±


    ¡°Mama!¡±


    ¡°E chutah!¡±


    Men, women and children were screaming in agony. While some Droids were beeping and making noise as well.


    ¡°Welcome to Mos Espa, Kid.¡± Jango chuckled as he patted me on the left shoulder with his armored hand, ¡°If you change your mind, I¡¯ll be here for a few days.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s been fun, but I¡¯m good.¡± I turned to the slightly shorter dude and hugged him tightly, ¡°Thanks for the ride, Jango. Try not to get yourself killed. You¡¯re the first friend I¡¯ve made since leaving home.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re not friends.¡± He pushed me away and complained, ¡°I¡¯m more worried that you¡¯ll really try to kidnap a Hutt.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be careful.¡± I looked over to the red-armored Mandalorian with the adorable blood-red kitten on her left shoulder, ¡°And you be careful too, Vhonte. I¡¯m worried you¡¯ll get our son killed.¡±


    She drew the blaster on her hip and aimed it at my unprotected face, but didn¡¯t pull the trigger. In the end she sighed and holstered the gun on her hip again, ¡°Good luck, Amon. You¡¯re definitely going to need it.¡±


    ¡°May the Force be with you¡­¡± I waved and slowly walked backwards, but they just kept walking towards me, ¡°Uh¡­ We¡¯re going in the same direction, aren¡¯t we?¡±


    ¡°Unless you¡¯re headed out into the desert.¡± Vhonte chuckled and walked past me. Then the Jango pressed a button on his wrist to close the ramp, before walking past me as well.


    ¡°Master, can we collect that unused biomass?¡± Izsha drew my attention and pointed to the mangled green corpse of what looked like a Gammorean, but it was hard to be sure.


    I looked around at the chaotic situation and shrugged, ¡°I don¡¯t see why not?¡±

 Chapter 7: Mos Espa

    Chapter 7: Mos Espa


    The city center Mos Espa was inside a big ass crater, where it was harder for the suns to reach and the temperature wasn¡¯t quite as extreme. There were lots of pretty huge buildings and honestly, it¡¯s amazing to me how the whole damn planet could only have a million people living on it. But then again, just because there were only a million people who ¡®lived here¡¯, there were likely tens of millions that were just passing through.


    The tourist industry was thriving for sure. Lots of criminal syndicates, slave traders, regular traders, gamblers and sex traffickers everywhere. A lot of people bet on ¡®Pod Racing¡¯, but realistically speaking, the majority of gambling took place in the massive luxurious casinos in the crater.


    I didn¡¯t go down there though. My prey was up here somewhere. The tan and simple-looking buildings were pretty sparse, but there were still plenty of people walking around. Some were riding or pulling bipedal lizards or the furry Banthas. Others were driving on hover bikes, trucks, almost every vehicle in Star Wars seemed to hover or have a bunch of legs.


    ¡°I was a little worried we might stand out, but I guess I was thinking too much.¡± I was about two meters tall, but there were plenty of random Species that were taller than me.


    ¡°Euuuueeeeeiiieieieiuuue~!¡± Like the Wookiee that was holding a blaster and extorting protection money from the red-skinned Togrutan man who was selling¡­ Junk. Everyone around here was selling Junk. Random pieces of machinery, metals, plastics, various tools and equipment that may or may not work. It¡¯s a mystery.


    ¡°Awwaiiinga!¡± A couple of tiny Jawas were arguing with a Zabrak woman near another stall. There were huge piles of metal garbage piled up in fenced off areas behind small buildings. Along with just rows and rows of speeder bikes and other random vehicles that had varying degrees of damage.


    ¡°So much Essence.¡± Izsha was salivating as she looked at the various new and interesting Species that we hadn¡¯t ¡®sampled¡¯ yet.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. There¡¯s no rush.¡± I watched a pair of cute yellow Twi¡¯lek girls walking around in generic ¡®Slave Girl¡¯ outfits that have been around since the Old Republic. One of them giggled and rushed up to hug a random human guy, wrapping her lekku around his back as she started making out with him. For a moment I thought they might know each other, but then I noticed the other one casually swiping something off his waist and slapping him on the ass. The two girls laughed and ran away, the dangly brown cloths lifted up, exciting some of the men and women who were watching.


    ¡°Master, do you want me to capture those breeding slaves for you?¡± Izsha¡¯s telepathic voice brought me back to reality.


    ¡°Nah, I¡¯m good.¡± I sighed dramatically and shook my head, ¡°If I wanted a random Twi¡¯lek girl, I could just make one myself.¡±


    It wasn¡¯t a particularly difficult gene sequence to get my hands on, even back on Zonama Sekot. I have samples from a dozen different individuals already. Obviously that¡¯s nothing in the grand scheme of things. There are a bunch of different types of Twi¡¯lek, with different coloring and features. For reference, I have tens of thousands of gene samples from Ferroans, Langhesi and various creatures that are native to my homeworld. Plants, animals, fungi, bacteria, viruses, everything and anything. So a handful or a couple dozen samples isn¡¯t enough to do any serious research. However, if I have someone¡¯s genes, it¡¯s easy enough to clone that specific person without much trouble.


    ¡°If I was hornier, I¡¯d probably be an absolute menace, huh?¡± I chuckled and continued walking down the dusty road.


    ¡°Maaaaaaoooooouuu~!¡± Midnight finally couldn¡¯t take the heat anymore it seems. I looked under the floating Drone and saw the kitty hiding in her shade, but I didn¡¯t design him to have super-feline stamina. Actually, he was probably just really thirsty. Usually drank a lot of water all day, everyday. But we¡¯ve been walking around for an hour now and he hasn¡¯t had a lick.


    ¡°Hey, you¡¯re selling water, right?¡± I walked over to a random vendor, a Bith girl. Big bulging tan head, giant glassy black eyes, bunch of skin flaps along the middle of the face instead of a nose¡­ Mouth kinda looks like an asshole.


    She held up three fingers and placed a metal canister on the counter, ¡°If you want more, it¡¯ll cost you twice as much.¡±


    ¡°That seems kinda weird, but whatever.¡± I put down the big green suitcase with a loud ¡®thump¡¯ and kicked up a bunch of dust. Then I placed the silvery case on the counter of her stand and opened it up, the golden coins drew a lot of attention, obviously. She looked at me like I was an idiot when I handed over three Peggats, ¡°I know you meant Wuipiupi. Give me a keg.¡±


    ¡°Keg¡¯ll cost ya more.¡± She reached a hand into the case and tried to take a whole damn handful, but her body froze as I tapped my right index fingertip in the middle of her massive forehead.


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    ¡°It¡¯s a shame that such pretty eyes don¡¯t seem to be able to see very well.¡± I pulled my finger back and drew a line of crimson blood from her forehead. I turned my finger upwards and all the blood gathered into a swirling orb, ¡°Probably too much sunlight. Maybe you should try wearing sunglasses?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m a Moisture Trader working for Gardulla the Hutt!¡± She broke free of the ¡®stunlock¡¯ and shouted at me, taking the handful of coins and pushing over two small canisters of water. ¡°Don¡¯t think you can just threaten anyone and get away with it!¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± I looked over and pointed at the Wookiee that was pointing a blaster at the Togrutan man, ¡°What about that guy?¡±


    ¡°He works for Gardulla!¡± She looked at my case and reached out to take another handful, but then her body froze again.


    ¡°Maaaou~!¡± Midnight cried again, walking out of Izsha¡¯s shadow and rubbing up against the back of my leg.


    ¡°It¡¯s kinda amazing how you¡¯ve managed to survive this long.¡± I flicked the drop of blood and it shot back inside of her forehead.


    ¡°Aaaaaaaaaah~!¡± She screamed and clawed at her own head while falling backwards, knocking over boxes of metal canisters.


    *Pop!* Then her head burst open and a huge pink brain floated over to my finger, floating there where the blood had been before. It was pretty damn big.


    ¡°Shame that having a big brain doesn¡¯t mean you¡¯re smart.¡± I shook my head and looked over at the Wookiee, ¡°Pull the trigger.¡±


    His hands holding the gun shook as I heard people quickly scrambling to get away from the area before the shooting started. Well, some of them. Others just pulled out guns of their own. Either pointing them at me or taking cover.


    ¡°Aww, so boring.¡± I sighed dramatically when the Wookiee pussied out, ¡°Whatever. I promised Jango I wouldn¡¯t fuck shit up until after he left.¡±


    I walked around behind the stall and grabbed the girl¡¯s brown robe and lifted her up off the dirt. The blood, flesh and bone twisted around the floating brain, warping until they at least looked about the same on the outside as before.


    ¡°So wasteful.¡± Izsha grumbled as she took back all the Peggats with her pincers and placed them back inside the case. Midnight was already lapping up some water that sprayed from a busted canister. He didn¡¯t care about the Bith blood or sand. He¡¯s a cat.


    ¡°Eueueueueueah!¡± The Wookiee made Wookiee noises and went back to harassing the Togruta guy who seemed more afraid of me than the dude extorting him. There were also a lot of onlookers that seemed horrified. Not to mention the dumbass that had her brain removed for a few seconds.


    ¡°Monster!¡± Was the only thing she said before trying to escape, but she tripped on a canister and busted her skull open¡­


    ¡°Okay, don¡¯t do that again.¡± I put her big-ass head back together and complained, ¡°I¡¯m gonna go now, okay. If you break again, I¡¯m not gonna fix you a third time.¡±


    ¡°Why are you doing this to me?!¡± She screamed hysterically and started crying. Well, she didn¡¯t have tears or snot, but she maid whiny noises and looked very distraught.


    ¡°You ripped me off. I ripped your brain out. Seems totally fair to me.¡± I patted her on the head and she wailed even louder, ¡°Okay, so I¡¯m gonna go¡­ Uh, good luck in therapy, I guess?¡±


    I¡¯m sure they probably have therapists on Tatooine, maybe? Whatever, not my problem anymore.


    We kept walking until we came to a bigger market area. It was pretty crowded and hectic, with lots of humans or humanoids wearing protective hooded robes. But from time to time, there were also women or even men walking around half-naked. Not sure if they¡¯re just not bothered by the heat or if they¡¯re really trying to ¡®sell their wares¡¯. Then again, Twi¡¯leks are from a desert world, so they¡¯re able to handle pretty intense heat and sunlight compared to humans and a lot of other Species.


    ¡°Master.¡± Izsha pushed my arm and pointed towards a certain market stall, ¡°Can we purchase biomass?¡±


    There were a bunch of bird-like creatures that had already had their feathers removed and were hanging upside down. The person operating the stand was cooking kebabs on a grill. She looked like a Quarrian. No wait, that¡¯s from Mass Effect, I mean a Quarren. Squid-headed motherfuckers. She had her tentacles wrapped around two canisters of water and took sips from time to time. Honestly, an aquatic race trying to survive on Tatooine is wild. I have no idea how they break even in terms of costs. Water is just too damn expensive here.


    ¡°That line is kinda crazy though.¡± I looked at the dozen or so people who were waiting and looked around at the other food stalls that weren¡¯t as busy.


    ¡°Hey, get back here!¡± A three-eyed goat-headed guy, umm, a Gran, shouted as he pushed Izsha aside!


    ¡°Watch where you¡¯re going, asshole!¡± I shouted at him, but he probably didn¡¯t even hear anything over the noise of the market. Then I saw a stall collapse and an angry Ithorian fighting with the Gran over it. Karma, probably.


    ¡°So anyway, why don¡¯t we find an actual restaurant? I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever eaten in a restaurant since I was born.¡± I¡¯m not even kidding. They just didn¡¯t exist in the conventional sense on Zonama Sekot. There were markets in the village where I grew up, but that was about it. At most, neighbors would invite each other over for meals or people would eat with their families. My parents did that kinda stuff when I was a kid, but as I grew up, Dad was busy and I was even busier.


    ¡°Maaaouu~!¡± Midnight suddenly screamed and I saw a little kid carrying him away. Some little green Rodian brat.


    ¡°Master, the cat is being abducted.¡± Izsha stated the obvious but didn¡¯t try to stop it from happening.


    ¡°I know you think Midnight is a weakness that we should get rid of, but he¡¯s practically your older brother.¡± I thought back to my own older brothers in this life and smiled wryly. I mean, I wouldn¡¯t let them die or get kidnapped, but we also aren¡¯t that close. Same with my parents from this life.


    ¡°You programmed me to avoid harming children.¡± She snapped her pincers a few times really loudly and said, ¡°Hands would be more useful.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Those claws are only temporary. You won¡¯t be a Drone for much longer.¡± I looked over to where the boy was taking the cat and smiled wryly, ¡°First we find Midnight, then we eat at a restaurant, and if we can¡¯t find the Chosen One by the end of the day¡­ Well, he might not even be in the city at the moment.¡±


    Although he didn¡¯t leave Tatooine in Canon or Legends until he was 9, he did have a lot of random short stories where he would have to go to Mos Eisley or maybe he could be out pod racing? Who knows?


    It should be pretty easy to find Watto¡¯s Junk Shop though. Just need to ask around. I¡¯m sure that somebody around here will know something. Unless I¡¯m on the wrong side of the outskirts of the city¡­ After all, it¡¯s a massive crater.


    ¡°There¡¯s gotta be some kinda map, right?¡± I don¡¯t believe there aren¡¯t any maps. I just gotta figure out where to find one. What kinda store would sell holomaps?


    ¡°Master, I see the Rodian child.¡± Izsha floated high above the crowd and I followed along on foot. Nobody seemed particularly concerned or impressed though. There were plenty of hover vehicles floating around above the market as well.


    ¡°Just keep an eye on them. I wanna see where he brings Midnight.¡± If he was stealing my cat for some gangster, then that¡¯d be a lot more fun and enjoyable than just snatching my cat back from a random child.

 Chapter 8: A Simple Solution

    Chapter 8: A Simple Solution


    ¡°Master, look!¡± The little boy held the black cat up to a human woman in a thick brown robe. She was smoking space-crack, I mean, ¡®spice¡¯ from a long pipe and had big bags under her eyes.


    ¡°Maaaou~!¡± Middy cried out before clawing at the woman¡¯s dirty hands when she tried to grab him.


    ¡°E chu tah!¡± The crackhead shouted angrily and tried to smack my cat, but he dodged and she ended up hitting the boy so hard that he collapsed to the ground. She tried to stand up out of her chair, but wobbled and fell back down, taking another deep puff of spice.


    ¡°Master, I¡¯m sorry¡­¡± The boy cried, but his Master just groaned and ignored him. Honestly not sure whether Spice is more like crack or heroin yet, I¡¯ll have to do some research. Either way, it¡¯s really not that great for human consumption.


    ¡°Maaaou!¡± Midnight ran back over to my feet and rubbed up against my shin, ¡°Maaaou, maaaou~!¡±


    ¡°Master, do you want me to kill them?¡± Izsha floated down in front of me and glared at the crying child, along with the glassy-eyed human woman.


    ¡°Nah, I thought this would be something interesting. Oh well.¡± I ignored the slave boy and his owner. I was about to leave, but I heard something inside the house that the crackhead was ¡®guarding¡¯.


    ¡°Aah, ow, stop, please!¡± I breathed out a long sigh and told Izsha, ¡°The Force really likes to force you into moral dilemmas.¡±


    ¡°Morality is relative.¡± The Zerg Drone said that as she ripped the metal door open with her scorpion claws.


    ¡°Exactly.¡± I followed inside at a leisurely pace. The stench was nasty, Spice didn¡¯t smell as bad as the cigarettes or pot from my memory, but it wasn¡¯t much better. Maybe more like crystal meth? I¡¯ve heard it smells pretty bad but I can¡¯t remember if I ever actually smelled it before. Actually, I think people said that meth smelled worse than-


    ¡°What the frak?!¡± A man shouted anxiously and then started screaming his lungs out as his body was being vivisected by sharp pincers. Midnight stayed outside to guard the suitcase and money case.


    ¡°Papa!¡± The little human girl screamed anxiously as she watched her abusive father being mutilated. She had a lot of bruises on her exposed skin, which was most of the skin. Not hard to figure out what was happening. But now what?


    ¡°Die!¡± A teenage boy fired a blaster pistol at the Drone, but the bolts bounced off the carapace, exploding on the ceiling and sending sharp pieces of rock down on everyone. Izsha quickly covered the little girl, while I casually Force Pushed the boy out the window behind him.


    ¡°Waaaah~!¡± The little girl started crying loudly, her voice replacing the Rodian slave child outside that stopped crying because of the noise in here.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.


    ¡°Now what?¡± I groaned, looking at the mutilated corpse on the ground. The piece of shit definitely deserved to die. But what would happen after he was dead? See, a lot of people don¡¯t really think about what will happen to children after their abusive, rapist parents are punished for the fucked up shit they¡¯ve done. What happens to the kids? Do they really think that their future is going to be any less traumatic after they lost their parents? Nah, this kid will almost certainly end up as a sex slave sooner rather than later.


    If the brother was letting it happen, no, he was probably involved as well. So the big brother will become the abuser instead of the father now. Probably gonna pimp out his little sister for Wupiupi, assuming that their crackhead mother wasn¡¯t already doing that.


    ¡°Master, we could just eat them all?¡± Izsha came up with a simple solution to the moral dilemma. Can¡¯t suffer if you¡¯re dead, right? But with the Force, that¡¯s debatable. And look at me, if I can reincarnate, then why can¡¯t everyone else? What if by killing someone to put them out of their misery, it will just send them to literal hell?


    ¡°Fuck it. I¡¯m too lazy to deal with this moral bullshit.¡± I reached out and grabbed the Papa-Chunks with the Force. The pieces were rapidly rearranged and assembled. Entrails repaired and restored back into their proper places. What about the mangled brainmatter? His last brain obviously wasn¡¯t that useful anyway.


    ¡°Tanya¡­ It¡¯s okay, Sweetie, don¡¯t cry¡­¡± The tall and muscular tan-skinned dude crouched down to hug his crying daughter. Even after he hurt her so much, she still trusted and loved him. It¡¯s kinda funny and adorable how dumb humans are. But I can relate.


    ¡°Papa?¡± That teenager peeked in through the window and seemed horrified to see his father alive and well again. Then he looked at me and was even more terrified, because I threw a purple centipede at his face! ¡°Aaaaah! No~!¡± He screamed in terror and tried desperately to pull it out of his nose, but it was a little too late. His face twisted and writhed, his eyes twitched, turning from brown to a pretty light-purple shade for a moment, before returning to normal.


    ¡°Izsha Sweetie, you can handle the mother.¡± I had a simple solution to the problem. I mean, wasn¡¯t it always going to come to this anyway?


    ¡°Yes, Master!¡± Only a few moments after she went outside, I heard her voice whisper into my mind happily, ¡°Infestation successful!¡±


    I could feel them. All three of them. They were¡­ Zerg. Not quite Infested Terrans, nothing quite that extreme. But a good start. They weren¡¯t contagious. They had Zerg parasites in their brains puppeteering their bodies to a certain extent. Making them more¡­ Efficient? At the very least they wouldn¡¯t mistreat the two uninfected boy and girl, or each other.


    ¡°Anyway, we should go.¡± I didn¡¯t want to stay too long and draw attention to their little family. Midnight meowed angrily at the scared Rodian child, but I didn¡¯t bother saying anything to him or them. It was kinda pointless.


    ¡°Wald, you can¡¯t tell anyone about what you just saw.¡± The former crackhead gently caressed the boy¡¯s smooth green head as she stared at my back, ¡°Not even your friends. Okay?¡±


    ¡°Y-yes, M-Master!¡± Whether he would keep his promise or not was debatable, but I wasn¡¯t too worried about it. The parasites have safeguards. They won¡¯t be so easy to find or research. Besides, this is Tatooine, not the heart of the Republic. The Hutts might be the ¡®law¡¯ here, but their actual level of surveillance and control is kinda pathetic.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go find somewhere to eat. I know you¡¯re starving.¡± I was talking to Izsha, but Midnight immediately started meowing in response. That¡¯s fine though, even if they don¡¯t have cat-food, I can always make some myself. That¡¯s what I usually have to do anyway.


    ¡°Yes, Master!¡± Izsha wiggled her webbed legs and floated along beside me like a Zerg Drone balloon. I left behind a few Peggats so that the newly infested family could afford to fix their roof and head back into the market area while carrying along my two cases. I would put one of them on my daughter¡¯s back, but it was more energy efficient for me to carry both.


    Besides, Midnight hopped up onto her back again and was using her as a mount. The suns were still beating down on his black fur, but he endured the discomfort silently. Clearly getting kidnapped has made him realize that he isn¡¯t the cat king of Tatooine just yet.


    The streets were noisy and crowded, even out here in the outskirts of the city. There¡¯s no fucking way that the population of this big-ass city is less than five million. If you include the whole planet, it¡¯s gotta be over 10 million at least.


    ¡°I wonder if it¡¯s because the slaves aren¡¯t considered people? Or maybe their census data is just wrong?¡± I wasn¡¯t sure, but either way, it¡¯s a massive amount of Essence and Biomass. But it¡¯s too soon for that. For now, we¡¯ll just find a restaurant, have lunch, search for a Chosen One and then head out into the Dune Sea.

 Chapter 9: Cantina

    Chapter 9: Cantina


    *Do-dah do-dah do-dah-do-do-dah do-dah do-dah dah do~!* I was startled when I heard the eerily familiar ¡®Cantina Music¡¯ playing, but there was no live band. Just a holographic projection of a popular band that was likely playing live in the city center. Immediately entering the building, there was a slightly deserted bar on the left and on the right were some sparsely occupied tables.


    ¡°Watch it!¡± An orange-skinned Twi¡¯lek man shouted at Izsha as he carried a tray of food past her drooling face. Midnight also looked like he was about to pounce, but in the end, he was a bit more well-behaved than that.


    ¡°The food looks pretty good.¡± I looked at the holographic menu projected from the bar counter and saw a lot of random shit that seemed kinda fancy. Might be why the place wasn¡¯t crowded though. In the outskirts of the city, so close to the slave quarters, very few people have the disposable income for ¡®fancy food¡¯. Of course, it could also be factors like the time of day or the quality of the actual food. It looks fine, but what about the taste?


    ¡°Master, how much Biomass can we afford?¡± Izsha asked a serious question. Even with a thousand Peggats, we¡¯d probably go broke if either of us wanted to be ¡®full¡¯. And for her to Mutate, she was going to need a fuckton of Biomass.


    ¡°We¡¯re just here for the taste and to enjoy ourselves a bit. Don¡¯t worry about quantity. Focus on the quality.¡± I saw a cute dark-skinned near-human girl walking over in a simple white tunic. Yeah, they wore a lot of tunics on Tatooine. Hell, tunics were common across the Galaxy.


    ¡°Hi there! Wow, I¡¯ve never seen your Species before!¡± The waitress smiled and looked between the ¡®three¡¯ of us and asked, ¡°Table for three?¡±


    ¡°Two is fine.¡± I smiled at her and she giggled, leading us to a random table. It was all very familiar and yet so weird. The whole experience was¡­ Odd. Something so mundane, but on Tatooine. Izsha and I ordered some random things, Bantha Steaks, Womp Rat Pie, Rancor Burgers, though they weren¡¯t actually made of Rancor meat, that would be insanely expensive. I even managed to get a Coruscant Salad. It wasn¡¯t actually from Coruscant by the way, it was just like a Caesar or Greek Salad back on Earth.


    ¡°Mao~!¡± Midnight wanted to taste a little of everything, but I had to be careful not to make him sick. It was so tempting to just turn him into a Zergling sometimes¡­ But I refrained as usual.


    ¡°Would be cool to have fish, but I guess it¡¯s not that common on Tatooine, huh?¡± As I casually mentioned that, a Mon Calamari woman at the table nearby started looking at me, ¡°What¡¯s up?¡±


    ¡°If you¡¯re looking for seafood, you need to go to the city center.¡± She had a surprisingly similar voice to a human, ¡°I was surprised too when I first saw it, but Mos Espa actually has an aquarium and several fish farms. They import from offworld as well, so there¡¯s always plenty of seafood¡­ If you can afford it.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯d be cheaper to take a trip to Ooo-temiuk or Andooweel to have a meal than eat in those overpriced eateries!¡± The orange Twi¡¯lek waited complained as he came over and brought the Mon Calamari girl her order of¡­ Bantha Balls. Literally what it sounds like. They were massive, but that¡¯s pretty normal for the size of the beasts.


    ¡°Would it really?¡± I honestly didn¡¯t know.


    ¡°Of course not.¡± That cute near-human girl came over and refilled Midnight¡¯s little bowl of Bantha milk, while petting his head and neck, ¡°Aww, your friend is so adorable!¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s more like a son.¡± I chuckled and looked at her slightly pointed ears. Aside from having pointed ears and golden eyes, like mine, she basically looked like a normal Human. A lot of humans were like that too though. The genes were so mixed with random ¡®aliens¡¯ that very few purebloods actually exist. Even Mandalorians weren¡¯t strictly humans, but just a warrior culture that was primarily human.


    ¡°Master, you think a lot.¡± Izsha commented telepathically, before making some hissing and clicking noises with her mouth.


    ¡°Thank you! You¡¯re very pretty as well!¡± The waitress giggled and asked, ¡°Did you want some more Pallie Juice?¡±This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.


    She made some clicking noises and hovered up and down slightly, prompting the girl to refill the metal cup in the black pincer. Then she refilled mine as well without even asking.


    ¡°Thanks!¡± I smiled at the waitress and she giggled, prancing away to take care of some other customers.


    ¡°Master, that humanoid wishes to breed with you.¡± Izsha whispered into my mind, while pointing at the waitress that was bending over to talk to a table full of Jawas.


    ¡°I know, right?¡± I shrugged my shoulders and took a bite of my salad, ¡°It¡¯s amazing how people wanna breed with you when you¡¯re tall, handsome and rich. She doesn¡¯t even know how crazy I am yet.¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t height, appearance and wealth easily changeable?¡± The Zerg Drone was confused, ¡°Shouldn¡¯t Essence be the most important?¡±


    ¡°Essence is the potential to change and evolve. Ours is way higher than most.¡± I took another bite of salad and felt something squirming around inside. I looked down at the writhing green serpent and asked, ¡°Hey, is this creature normally part of a Coruscant Salad?¡±


    When I pulled out the half-eaten snake with my fork, the waitress came over and shouted, ¡°Oh no! I¡¯m so sorry! Are you okay?!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not a big deal.¡± I tossed the squirming snake body past Midnight, who tried to catch it, and into Izsha¡¯s toothy maw.


    ¡°Maoou~!¡± The kitty complained, but the creature was extremely toxic even for a human, not to mention a cat.


    ¡°Are you okay? Do you need me to call a medical droid?¡± Even the Twi¡¯lek dude came over to check on me.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. Just a tanglevine snake.¡± From a planet called Tenoo, I¡¯ve collected their genes before. Kinda weird for it to be in a salad, but hey, shit happens.


    ¡°Tasty Biomass.¡± Izsha made some clicking noises and ordered some Tanglevine Snake Soup, with living snakes.


    A few minutes later, a black humanoid Droid came out with the soup and a second Coruscant Salad minus the snake,  ¡°We¡¯re so terribly sorry about that mixup! Here, this is on the house!¡±


    ¡°Aww, thank you!¡± I smiled at the Droid that looked eerily similar to an old HK assassin model from way back in the Old Republic era. But then again, Droids weren¡¯t really my thing. If HK-47 wasn¡¯t so popular back in my last life, I wouldn¡¯t have even thought of him. But I¡¯m pretty sure he¡¯s in a crashed starship somewhere on like Mustafar? Something like that. This Droid was probably just a similar looking model to the infamous HK series.


    ¡°You¡¯re very welcome!¡± After he said that, the Droid turned around and went back towards the kitchen to keep cooking for other guests. It was all pretty normal. Half-expected him to suddenly try to murder me or something, but nope. Nothing happened.


    *Paou-paou~!* There was some blaster fire outside, but nobody in the cantina seemed to give a damn.


    ¡°Hahaha~! Just some normal Mos Espa noises! You¡¯ll get used to it.¡± The random fish-head girl said that, but she also didn¡¯t try to go outside, even though she was already finished with her meal and paid her bill.


    ¡°So¡­ Does anyone know where Watto¡¯s Junkyard is located?¡± I was asking anyone really, but most of the guests ignored me.


    ¡°You a Bounty Hunter?¡± A tan-skinned Zabrak with a robotic left arm was the one that asked. He had what looked like a black flightsuit on and even had a blaster pistol on his hip.


    ¡°Does Watto have a bounty on his head?¡± I raised an eyebrow and the guy laughed.


    ¡°Not yet, unfortunately!¡± He sighed and shook his head, taking another sip of some glowing green beverage.


    ¡°Watto¡¯s place is a few kilometers north of here if I remember correctly.¡± The Mon Calamari girl pulled out a holo emitter from her purse, which showed a map of the whole planet at first, then zoomed in on our general location. FInally she tapped on a spot and said, ¡°About right here. Yeah, that¡¯s it. Watto¡¯s Junkyard.¡±


    ¡°Thanks! You¡¯re awesome!¡± I smiled at the fish girl and she giggled in response¡­ Well, I think I know why she hasn¡¯t left yet.


    ¡°Is there any special reason you¡¯re looking for Watto¡¯s Junkyard?¡± She asked curiously, ¡°I¡¯ve been there before. He¡¯s an obstinate wupiupi-pincher who will rip you off at any chance he gets.¡±


    ¡°And you aren¡¯t?¡± A random humanoid that was completely covered up was the one who spoke, ¡°Who was it who charged me a thousand Credits for a broken Astromech Droid?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re lucky I even take Republic Credits! Watto doesn¡¯t.¡± She looked at the case of Peggats that I opened to pay the bill and smiled wryly on her fishy face, ¡°I guess that¡¯s not a problem for you though¡­ What was your name again?¡±


    ¡°Amon. Amon Kal.¡± I introduced myself and then patted the Zerg Drone on her armored head with a ¡®clack¡¯, ¡°This is my daughter, Izsha.¡± Then I pointed at the kitty, ¡°That¡¯s Midnight¡­ My son?¡±


    ¡°I can see the resemblance!¡± The waitress giggled and took the money happily, especially when she saw the tip of an entire Peggat, ¡°Wow! Handsome and generous! I¡¯m Tris, just Tris!¡±


    ¡°Amona, of Amcala¡¯s Mon Cala Cargo!¡± The fish-head girl also introduced herself and handed over a fancy plastic business card that actually projected a simple map of her business.


    ¡°Nice, so you¡¯re not far from here?¡± I saw that it was only a few blocks away. Basically nothing in the grand scheme of this massive fucking city.


    ¡°Exactly! Once you see Watto¡¯s prices, come by my place. Guarantee it¡¯ll be much cheaper and much higher quality!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not much of a sale¡¯s pitch!¡± That covered up dude scoffed and suggested, ¡°Why don¡¯t you head over to Bopo¡¯s and check out their prices instead? It¡¯s only a few blocks northeast of her place.¡±


    ¡°Bopo¡¯s trash is almost as bad as Watto¡¯s garbage!¡± She retorted and then the two of them started arguing back and forth even more¡­


    Anyway, I knew where Watto¡¯s place was. No need to stick around and get to know anyone better. I didn¡¯t wanna form any unnecessary attachments.


    The more I get to know people, the more I¡¯ll care about them and the harder it¡¯ll be when the time comes¡­

 Chapter 10: Watto

    Chapter 10: Watto


    *Buzz~!* As soon as we entered the small shop, the sound of wings buzzing attracted our attention. The Toydarian man was flapping his wings rapidly and hovering in the room, blowing dust and sand around while making a lot of noise. Fortunately he only did it for a few seconds before landing his fat ass on a stool behind the counter, ¡°Weclome, welcome! I heard you were looking for my place specifically!¡±


    ¡°Your news channels are impressive then.¡± I snickered and walked into the building pulling the green suitcase that hovered above the ground behind me. The other case full of heavy coins was on Izsha¡¯s back, but that little bit of weight was nothing to her, especially after eating so much earlier.


    ¡°Maoou~!¡± Midnight complained as he blinked his pretty yellow eyes and looked around at the shiny ¡®junk¡¯ decorated everywhere around the room. It was called junk, but realistically, there were all kinds of stolen and scavenged goods that worked perfectly well. Everything from starship engine parts to blasters and droid pieces. Then the cute kitty put his head back down and fell asleep on the Peggat case he was ¡®guarding¡¯.


    ¡°Hah~! News channels?¡± He laughed and told me, ¡°That schutta Amcala taunted me and told me about some rich pretty-boy tourist who was looking for me! So tell me, ¡®Amon Kal¡¯? Is that name even real, or did you just make it up on the spot after she introduced herself?¡±


    ¡°I honestly didn¡¯t even think about it until now, but it is kinda wild how similar our names are.¡± I snorted and laughed a bit, but then shook my head, ¡°Anyway, I don¡¯t really give a damn about you. But you won a pair of slaves in a bet three years ago. I¡¯m here for them.¡±


    ¡°And why would you care about two random human slaves?¡± He asked while looking back and forth between me and Izsha. His right hand was already on the blaster pistol holstered on the left side of his yellow belly via a thin belt.


    I pointed to my face and told him seriously, ¡°Isn¡¯t it obvious? I¡¯m Anakin¡¯s father.¡±


    Watto scowled and glared at me with his big golden eyes. His trunk scrunched up as he scanned my face for a minute or so, ¡°I won those two fair and square in a bet with Gardulla the Hutt! I don¡¯t care if you¡¯re his father, brother, sister or other mother, he¡¯s my property now and has nothing to do with you anymore!¡±


    ¡°How much for both of them?¡± I put the suitcase down with a loud thump and then pushed Middy off the side of the money case, opening it up to reveal nearly a thousand Peggats. I barely spent anything thus far.


    ¡°I-I umm¡­¡± Watto was practically drooling when he saw the shiny golden coins, struggling to regain his composure, he closed his eyes and looked away painfully. Breathing deeply, he sighed out and focused on me again, ¡°I¡¯ve grown quite fond of the boy¡­ I¡¯d be willing to part with the mother for¡­¡± He looked at the number and I could tell he was counting them quickly, ¡°Only nine-hundred and ninety-three Peggats. But the boy is worth far more than a normal slave! So you¡¯ll have to make a better offer than that!¡±


    ¡°Master, can I infest him now?¡± She asked as she floated over to the counter and rested on it, glaring down at the greedy Toydarian.


    ¡°Unfortunately, we don¡¯t have any research on Toydarians. Our parasites aren¡¯t omnipotent.¡± I responded to her telepathically while walking over to the counter and narrowing my eyes at the surprisingly courageous bastard.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    ¡°I don¡¯t like the way you¡¯re looking at me, Boy.¡± He glared back at me and held his hand on his blaster hilt, ¡°You might have that fancy armor covering your body, but I can put a blaster bolt through your head before you can blink!¡±


    ¡°No. You can¡¯t.¡± I smirked as he struggled to pull out his blaster and started panicking, ¡°You-when did you?!¡± He felt the sticky purple Creep cover his hand and weapon, grimacing.


    ¡°I used the sticky side of the Force.¡± I turned my right palm upwards above the counter and the violet ooze floated up out of my flesh, swirling around in the form of a pulsating ball of meat.


    ¡°You¡¯re a Jedi?! Impossible!¡± He shouted anxiously and fluttered his wings, but quickly got stuck in a web that covered the whole wall behind his back! He looked around anxiously and was visibly sweating, ¡°Wait-wait-wait! You want the slaves, right?! You can have them! Only¡­ Only nine-hundred Peggats!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m surprised. I expected you to mention Gardulla.¡± I snickered and the purple orb writhed above my palm, unraveling into a pretty black centipede with glowing purple eyes. I stretched out my hand and it reached out, only a few inches from his little elephant-like trunk.


    ¡°You¡¯re no Jedi! I know what you are!¡± As he said that, the centipede clawed its way inside his nostril and his eyes rolled back, ¡°Aaaaaaah~! Stop! Please! Wait! Aaaagh~!¡±


    ¡°Interesting.¡± I could feel his immune system fighting off the parasite pretty effectively. At the very least, it couldn¡¯t take over his brain and manipulate him like a puppet. It was also having trouble surviving inside his body¡­ But it also sampled his Essence. It tasted his blood, his brains, his everything. It was researching him from the inside out. Sending countless smaller parasites throughout his body to try to figure out how he worked. How Toydarians worked.


    ¡°We can-we can make a deal!¡± He thought he still had leverage, ¡°Anakin! He has a bomb in his body! If I die, he dies! Both of them do! Both of them will die!¡±


    ¡°I know.¡± I looked up at the blue and yellow ¡®man¡¯ in the purple web, ¡°But it¡¯s pretty easy to find and remove a couple bombs. On the other hand, how easy is it to remove a deadly parasite that¡¯s attached to your brain? Hmmm, it¡¯s almost like you¡¯re the one with the bomb enslaving you to my will now, huh? Kinda funny, isn¡¯t it?¡±


    ¡°Yes! Hahaha! Yes¡­ Master! It¡¯s very funny!¡± Watto was crying on the surface, probably thinking about ways to get out of this internally. He was actually pretty smart and brave, but everyone has their breaking point and weaknesses. To be completely honest though, I didn¡¯t give a fuck.


    ¡°Where are Anakin and Shmi?¡± I looked around the shop with my eyes, even the junkyard beyond that with the Force, but neither of them were in the area. Probably at home. But I didn¡¯t know where exactly.


    ¡°They¡¯re in the Slave Quarters! They-they have the day off, I¡¯m not a cruel Master¡­¡± He wasn¡¯t totally lying, he was a relatively kind Master compared to most. Hell, a lot of people treat their employees worse. There were countless people in the Republic who worked for ¡®slave wages¡¯ and lived in even worse poverty and squalor than the Skywalkers. They basically have their own house and belongings, which is wild. But that¡¯s actually not that strange for the slaves on Tatooine.


    It¡¯s kinda ironic, but while people kill each other all the time here, they generally don¡¯t dare to kill someone else¡¯s slaves.


    ¡°I need a map. I¡¯m new to Tatooine, remember?¡± I rolled my eyes and told Izsha, ¡°Deal with the evidence.¡±


    ¡°Wait!¡± He was terrified as the relatively giant Zerg Drone got closer to his face. But then she just spat out a bunch of saliva all over his body. Within a few seconds, he was all lubed up and could wiggle free of the spider web. Then she started devouring it and converting everything into biomass. Best not to leave any overt evidence of Zerg infestation just yet¡­ Even though there¡¯s so much weird and crazy shit in the Galaxy that I doubt anyone would care until it¡¯s too late anyway.


    ¡°Here! Here¡¯s your damn map!¡± The Toydarian handed me a holoemitter that projected the whole planet, then quickly focused on Mos Espa, finally zoomed in on the Slave Quarters nearest to us where Anakin and his mother lived.


    ¡°Thanks. You¡¯ve been really helpful.¡± I snickered and took a few Peggats out of the box, tossing them into the bastard¡¯s shaky hands, ¡°Now what do you say?¡±


    ¡°Thank-thank you, Master!¡± He grimaced and clenched the coins in his hands tightly, buzzing his wings and flying out the back of the store.


    ¡°Master, are we really going to capture the Chosen One?¡± Izsha was reasonably worried. Not about the Jedi or the Sith, obviously they had no idea that Anakin even existed yet. Even if they did, he wouldn¡¯t be much of a threat or asset at this time. No, there were other beings that were far more powerful and a lot more dangerous.


    ¡°There are timelines where he dies or doesn¡¯t exist.¡± Is what I said, but honestly, I was just as worried about what might happen if I actually went through with this shit.


    Not to mention destroying Canon, I could piss off the Force itself. Fortunately, we¡¯re like three years from the start of the ¡®plot¡¯, so I have time. For now though, it¡¯s time to meet the Chosen One.

 Interlude 1: Shmi Skywalker

    Interlude 1: Shmi Skywalker


    Slaves never really had a day off. At least Shmi never did. She was a 37 year old single mother, desperate to make sure that her son could hopefully escape from this hellish existence someday. Thankfully, her new Master was a lot more benevolent than the last.


    Not only did she have a whole floor of the two-story house for just her and her boy. Today she was busy in her little workshop, with her back to the kitchen/dining room. She used a ¡®fancy¡¯ Aeromagnifier given by her Master to clean computer memory devices. It didn¡¯t pay well, at all, but it did pay something. For a slave to make money wasn¡¯t too strange on Tatooine, but it was still a luxury. At least until you consider that she had to spend almost all of the money she made on food, because her cheapskate Master was too lazy to provide them with more than the bare minimum to survive.


    That was the problem with being a Slave Master after all. It was just like having a pet, except at least a slave could actually provide services and potentially make money. It¡¯s funny how you can just give a slave a bit of freedom and not only will you have to spend less money on them, they¡¯ll even thank you!


    Whether it¡¯s the Cartels or the governments in the Republic, they all understand this. It¡¯s why they¡¯re the Masters of the Galaxy and the number of their ¡®free¡¯ slaves was innumerable.


    *Tsst~!* The sound of welding came from Ani¡¯s room down the hall and Shmi leaned back in her chair, looking over towards his door. Her little workstation was tiny, just like her room. While she gave Anakin the master bedroom, which was attached to the bathroom and had enough room for his own personal workstation as well. His door was closed, but she could imagine him with his welding goggles on, putting together that Protocol Droid he¡¯s been working on for the past year now.


    ¡°Better that than that damn podracer.¡± She already had to watch him crash and nearly die so many times now. He¡¯s only six years old! Even if he was a prodigy and won most of his races, he still made a lot of mistakes. Most importantly, he didn¡¯t cheat. Unlike all his opponents and their masters.


    Shmi breathed out a long sigh and got back to work, occasionally looking over at the little mirror on the right side of her desk. She looked at her face and smiled wryly. Even if Humans lived for up to two-hundred years, she¡¯s had a hard life thus far. Those dark eyes focused on her thick brown hair, checking for gray or white, but thankfully nothing thus far.


    ¡°At least we¡¯re not moisture farmers.¡± She chuckled to herself as she picked up the metal container and took a sip of water. It was relatively cool inside the house, but that was only relative for Tatooine. If she didn¡¯t keep water inside sealed containers, it would evaporate and get wasted. Sure, they had miniature vaporators in the house, but they didn¡¯t operate at 100% efficiency.


    Getting back to her mindless work of cleaning computer memory, Shmi zoned out. She closed her eyes for a moment and saw her parents. Dad¡¯s twisted and agonized face on his severed head. Mom¡¯s screams and cries as she was being tortured by those pirates for fun¡­


    ¡°Frak!¡± She cursed and shook her head, rubbing her tired eyes as she tried to get back to work. But in her hands weren¡¯t computer memory drives anymore. It was the controls of a starfighter! She quickly avoided getting hit by a few turret blasts and zoomed past the side of a cruiser, firing a proton torpedo at dangerously close range to the engines of the massive starship!


    ¡°Good work, Shmi! Get back here and don¡¯t scuff up my ship!¡± She heard her old master¡¯s soft voice and felt a tinge of fear shoot down her spine. A moment later, she was serving food and drinks to her Master¡¯s crew. Watching as they played with their newest prey. Men and women that she helped them capture.


    *Slap~!* She felt a shock and pain on her ass, looking over at the blurry face of the human man.


    Why doesn¡¯t he have a face?


    *Pew~!* A blaster bolt flew over and turned his head into smoldering slag.


    Ah, that¡¯s why. He died.


    She looked around at the people she practically grew up with, watching them getting slaughtered by the sexy Twi¡¯lek girls they captured. They let their guards down. That¡¯s just the way it goes.


    Not everyone was killed though. That would be wasteful. A bunch of Trandoshan men and women boarded the ship, capturing and enslaving everyone. Well, for her, it was just moving from one prison to another.


    I just want to escape! I just want to be free!


    ¡°The Force will set you free.¡± A deep voice whispered from somewhere in the back of her mind. She rubbed her throat and coughed a few times, reaching for the canister of water on her desk. But what she saw was slimy green flesh instead. She panicked and started massaging harder, more seriously. She didn¡¯t want to upset her Master!


    Shmi struggled not to cough, even as the Spice smoke combined with the natural fragrance of Hutt slime made her want to just suffocate. Unfortunately she kept breathing and living. As usual.


    I¡¯m too stubborn to just die.


    Looking up at the hot suns above her head, she saw a golden serpent slithering around the heavens. Those pretty blue eyes peering down at her, ¡°Mom, please, don¡¯t leave me!¡±


    ¡°Ani¡­¡± She whispered his name and saw a glimpse of the handsome man he would become in the future.


    I can¡¯t die. Ani needs me!


    Shmi opened her eyes and took a deep breath, smelling the smoke from the other room! She got up from her seat and rushed towards Anakin¡¯s door! Hitting the button on the side, the metal door slid open automatically and a bunch of black smoke billowed out!


    ¡°Ani!¡± She shouted his name as she searched through the dark smoky room!


    ¡°Mom? Where are you?!¡± His voice sounded faint and distant, which was strange because logically the room shouldn¡¯t be that large.


    ¡°I¡¯m right here! Follow my voice!¡± She shouted as loud as she could, but he didn¡¯t seem to hear her voice anymore.


    ¡°I can¡¯t breathe¡­ Mom, I¡¯m scared! It hurts so much!¡± As his voice got closer, she could feel the flames getting hotter! It smelled like sulfur and burnt flesh! Something¡­ She was unfortunately familiar with¡­


    ¡°Anakin, I¡¯m here! I¡¯m here Baby! Hold on!¡± She found the manual release for the fire suppressant system on the wall and pressed it! The cold gases blew down and chilled her from head to toe, but a moment later, the smoke and fumes were all sucked up into the ceiling vents!


    ¡°Anakin Skywalker is dead.¡± A deep voice bellowed as she felt a tight grip around her throat!If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    No!


    As she was lifted off the ground by her neck and turned around slowly, she saw that ominous black armor. She heard the breathing apparatus working slowly and loudly, *Ouuuu~! Ehhhh~! Ouuuuuuu~! Eeeeeh~!* It almost sounded like the monster was struggling even harder to breathe than she was¡­


    ¡°You killed him.¡± He pushed and her back slammed against the wall! She broke through the building and rolled across the sand!


    ¡°Mom! Hold on! We¡¯ll make it through, just stay with me, please!¡± Anakin was crying and trying to pull her along, but he was so small¡­ The little boy, her precious baby boy, was so strong for his useless mother.


    I need to live. I can¡¯t let him face the Galaxy alone. Not yet. It¡¯s not time yet.


    ¡°I¡¯m okay, Ani. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll stay with you. I¡¯ll always be with you, okay?¡± She was so thirsty, she could barely breathe through the rags around her mouth and nose, but wasn¡¯t her son the same? He was only six and he was already so strong. He wouldn¡¯t be like her¡­ He wouldn¡¯t be a slave forever.


    ¡°Anakin, I love you.¡± Shmi pushed herself up and hugged her son as the sandstorm raged around them.


    ¡°I love you too, Mom.¡± He wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her tightly. The wind was so strong that they could barely stay upright.


    Why did we get lost in that sandstorm again?


    She couldn¡¯t remember. But she knew it was just a memory. Just her sleep-deprived mind running wild as usual.


    ¡°Mom, someone¡¯s at the door.¡± Ani whispered into her ear as he shook her shoulder, ¡°Wake up.¡±


    ¡°Unnm¡­¡± Shmi groaned and then sat-up in her bed quickly! Her heart was racing and she was breathing heavily!


    ¡°Ani?¡± She called out and looked around, but her son wasn¡¯t there! Getting out of bed, she wobbled a bit, but before she opened the door to her small room, she looked over at the full length mirror. Well, she was in pretty damn good shape. Her breasts weren¡¯t very large and had burn marks in various spots. There were also a bunch of knife scars and burns across her back, ass and thighs.


    *Tang-tang-tang~!* The sound was loud, like someone was hitting the door of the house with a hammer. She quickly put on her usual gray tunic, with a darker gray robe over that. As for her messy bed-head? She didn¡¯t have time to worry about that.


    ¡°I¡¯m coming! One moment please!¡± She called out as she left her room and headed for the front door as quickly as she could. But once she got there, she sucked in a deep breath and calmed herself down. The matte red door had no peephole, but there really wasn¡¯t much she could do if they wanted to cause trouble anyway. She was only a slave.


    Pressing the button on the door, it slid over to the right. A man was standing there in biological armor, which looked like it was made of the carapace of some large insect. Reddish-brown in places, black or purple in others. Probably really expensive. His actual skin was almost blood-red, with pretty golden eyes, some black facial hair so she knew he probably wasn¡¯t a Twi¡¯lek hybrid¡­ His hair did look strange though. Clumped together like twitching purplish-black tendrils.


    He is pretty handsome though. For a non-human.


    It was actually fairly normal for a Species to be more attracted to their own kind than other Species. That¡¯s the main reason why ¡®Normal Human¡¯ features hadn¡¯t been completely bred out of existence. A lot of other Species weren¡¯t even reproductively compatible anyway.


    ¡°Is there something you need?¡± She looked behind his back and saw the strange creature floating there. It looked very dangerous, but it seemed rather docile.


    ¡°Yep.¡± The mysterious man smirked at the short human woman, ¡°You.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m flattered, really, but you should speak to my Master instead.¡± Shmi wanted to close the door, but then she saw a tuft of blonde hair in the distance. That little head poked up above a stone wall. For a moment, she saw his bright blue eyes clearly, then he ducked down below the wall again.


    ¡°Talked to Watto already.¡± The armored man looked around behind her head, seeing the kitchen and even her workstation pretty clearly, ¡°He tried to scam me out of a thousand Peggats for you and your son, but I haggled my way down to a more reasonable price.¡±


    ¡°I-I see¡­¡± She obviously didn¡¯t believe him immediately, but then she saw the simple silver device he pulled out of his case filled with golden Peggats.


    That¡¯s the detonator!


    It originally belonged to Gardulla. The pirates before had never bothered to implant a bomb inside her body. Explosive or shock collars worked just as well.


    ¡°Then I suppose you¡¯re my, our new Master now¡­¡± Shmi looked up into those golden eyes for a moment and quickly turned her gaze away. After all, looking your Master in the eyes was often a dangerous game.


    ¡°Pretty much.¡± He chuckled and took a step forward into the house as she quickly backed into the kitchen to avoid him, and his¡­ Creatures.


    ¡°Would you like some water, Master?¡± She made sure to keep calling him Master and emphasize her submission. At least on a surface level. She was still somewhat suspicious and cautious, since she didn¡¯t actually see Watto or hear anything from him directly.


    ¡°Nah, I¡¯m good. Just ate at that Cantina down the road, uh, can¡¯t remember the name. Has a Droid cook.¡± He chuckled and casually left the heavy case of money on the floor, then put the detonator on the table seemingly without any worry at all.


    He¡¯s tempting me.


    She wasn¡¯t a naive little girl anymore. She understood that all these ¡®Masters¡¯ were never as foolish as they let on¡­ There¡¯s a reason why they were the Master and she was the slave. Though she outlived quite a few of her previous Masters.


    ¡°So where¡¯s Anakin?¡± He sat down at the table and the small oval chair created under his weight.


    He cares more about my son than me¡­ Probably expects Ani to be a Podracing star in the future, like Watto.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll be home sooner or later. He¡¯s a child and today is, was, our day off. I¡¯m sure he¡¯s playing with his friends or scavenging for parts somewhere.¡± Shmi looked at the crying black feline creature and decided to pour some Bantha milk for it. Seeing that her Master didn¡¯t object, she assumed that it was fine, but it could also be another test.


    ¡°My name¡¯s Amon by the way.¡± The man finally introduced himself, then patted the armored head of the floating crab-spider creature next to him: ¡°This is Izsha.¡± He pointed at the cat, ¡°Midnight.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Master.¡± She replied calmly and asked, ¡°May I make myself a drink?¡±


    ¡°Go ahead.¡± Amon waved his hand casually and watched the woman¡¯s back, seemingly peering through her thick clothes.


    Maybe he¡¯s interested in me as well?


    Shmi could ¡®feel¡¯ his gaze, but she wasn¡¯t sure whether he was treating her as a woman or¡­ Food. After all, she had no idea what Species he was and anything was possible. The scary thing was that even if he wanted to literally eat her alive, there was nothing she could do about it. He owned her now.


    But there has to be a way for Ani to escape, if it comes to that.


    She couldn¡¯t help looking at the detonator again. It was just sitting there on the table. Only a flick of a switch and she could deactivate the bomb in her son¡¯s body, then destroy it before the bastard had the chance to reactivate it!


    ¡°This place is actually pretty damn nice.¡± Amon suddenly spoke and snapped the girl out of her delusions, ¡°I¡¯m serious. It might be considered a hovel in Mos Espa, but there were plenty of people in my hometown that lived in tiny mud-huts and treehouses. Hell, I spent the past year under house-arrest in a room that wasn¡¯t much bigger than this kitchen.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Master. I have grown quite fond of this house these past few years¡­¡± She smiled wryly and sat down across from him, taking a sip of water. Then she explained, ¡°Before we were won in a bet by Watto, we lived in communal quarters with many other slaves. This home was originally partitioned into several apartments, but the previous owner before Watto had opened it up and sealed the other two front doors.¡±


    ¡°It definitely looks a lot better this way.¡± The man closed his golden eyes and smirked, ¡°Your son¡¯s room is pretty huge. Yours, not so much.¡±


    Echolocation?


    Shmi looked at his twitching ¡®head tails¡¯ and guessed they might be some sort of antennae, ¡°Anakin is the most important to me. More than anything.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re an amazing Mom.¡± Amon sighed and shook his head, ¡°Not sure if Anakin is lucky to have such a loving mother¡­ Or cursed because of it.¡±


    I¡¯m the chains holding him down.


    ¡°We don¡¯t get to choose our parents.¡± She smiled wryly and looked over to the open door behind him, ¡°Where we¡¯re born. Under what circumstances¡­ Often, we¡¯re offered little choice at all in life.¡±


    ¡°Even slaves have free will, Shmi.¡± His eyes peered into hers and she trembled as she looked down at the detonator in her hands.


    When did I take it?!


    Without a moment of hesitation, she pressed a button and turned a knob. It was so quick and easy. Just like how she practiced in her mind countless times. Just like that, her son was¡­


    ¡°Free?¡± The man¡¯s voice whispered into her mind. She looked up at his smiling face and back down at the device. Then she heard him ask, ¡°Is it really that safe to just turn it off? Won¡¯t he still have a bomb inside him?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Master.¡± She breathed out a long sigh and placed the device on the table, looking up into those menacing yellow eyes again. Shmi suddenly saw her son¡¯s face! Behind a black mask, burned and scarred, but not unrecognizable! Those eyes!


    No! I need to focus! Stop hallucinating!


    ¡°Are you having a vision?¡± Amon was suddenly sitting on her left and his clawed right hand was caressing her cheek!


    ¡°Master?¡± Shmi wanted to pull away, but she restrained her instincts, like always. She just smiled up at the handsome face and answered, ¡°I¡¯m just¡­ Tired. I¡¯ll be better after a little sleep. Able to serve you however you wish.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s hot.¡± He snorted and tilted her head back, then he looked up her nose and asked, ¡°So anyway, does that device tell you exactly where the bomb is or what it looks like? I can see a few pieces of metal in your body that might be bombs, cybernetic implants or shrapnel.¡±


    Izsha put down the heavy green suitcase and floated over the other side of the woman, making some clicking noises that sounded a lot like Geonosian. Something about disassembly?


    ¡°I do have a few implants, Master. A thyroidal regulator, a menstrual nullifier and a gallbladder replacer.¡± She pointed towards her right ribcage and continued, ¡°My ribs have been replaced here, here and here.¡± Then she pointed at her hip, ¡°My hip was injured in a crash when I was younger. Along with my left femur.¡±


    ¡°Damn.¡± Amon smirked, ¡°Maybe you should¡¯ve just replaced everything and then you wouldn¡¯t need to worry about the bomb anymore?¡±


    If only it was that easy.


    ¡°Are you really going to remove it?¡± She still didn¡¯t understand the logic behind his actions. Maybe some kind of trick to get her to follow him more sincerely?


    ¡°Found it. Hold still, this is gonna feel weird.¡± He turned her head facing towards the open door and she saw the little blonde boy rushing into the house!

 Chapter 11: A Good Mother

    Chapter 11: A Good Mother


    ¡°Stop! Please! Don¡¯t hurt my Mom!¡± The little boy rushed into the room and I could feel the Force whining and writhing in his presence!


    ¡°Ani! It¡¯s okaaaaay-aanh~!¡± Shmi¡¯s eyes rolled back as the side of her head opened up for me. Whether it was hair, skin, muscle, fat, bone, everything was easily malleable.


    ¡°MOM~!¡± Anakin screamed as the whole building shook violently!


    ¡°Calm down, Kid.¡± I plucked the tiny rectangular object off the side of her brain very carefully and then put the woman¡¯s head back together again.


    ¡°Get away from her!¡± The brat shouted, but he didn¡¯t rush over and attack me. The house also stopped shaking.


    ¡°Ani? What?¡± Shmi looked confused for a moment, but then she saw the tiny bomb in my palm and rubbed the side of her head where I performed the ¡®surgery¡¯.


    ¡°That¡¯s one down.¡± I flicked the bomb past the boy¡¯s head, causing his hair to flutter around. The moment it hit the ground outside, there was a *Pop!* and a bit of dust puffed up. That was about it. It would be dumb to put an extremely powerful explosive in a slave to threaten them, because then they could also threaten you.


    ¡°Is it really gone?¡± She seemed stunned, ¡°I don¡¯t understand. Why would you do that? Master.¡±


    ¡°Mom?¡± Anakin also seemed stunned after he heard her say that word, ¡°What happened? Who¡¯s this guy?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s your-¡±


    ¡°Father.¡± I cut her off and shocked both of them, ¡°Ani, I am your father.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure about that?¡± The brat pouted as he walked over to my side and looked up at my face fearlessly, ¡°Mom said I don¡¯t have a father.¡±


    ¡°Well, you do now.¡± I smirked and wrapped my arm around his mother¡¯s waist, pulling her up against my purple chest, ¡°Would you rather call me Dad or Master?¡±


    ¡°Anakin, this is Amon Kal, your father.¡± Shmi glared at her silly son and blinked a few times in a way that she thought I couldn¡¯t see, ¡°He was a Guest of our old Master Gardulla the Hutt.¡±


    ¡°Okay, you don¡¯t have to create a whole smutty backstory.¡± I rolled my eyes and let go of the horny woman, ¡°I¡¯m your Master now. But more like the Jedi kind.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re a Jedi?!¡± The little boy¡¯s blue eyes lit up immediately, ¡°Does that mean you¡¯re gonna train us to be Jedi too?!¡±


    ¡°Are you really a Jedi, Master?¡± Shmi was a bit more skeptical than her son apparently.


    ¡°No.¡± I snickered and patted the kid on the head, ¡°But I know some tricks that they¡¯d probably find¡­ Unnatural.¡±


    I wanted to split his head open and take the bomb out of his skull, but there was something blocking me. There¡¯s always a sense of resistance when it comes to taking apart living creatures. The Force doesn¡¯t really like that. But Shmi was a little Force Sensitive, making it harder. When it came to Anakin, I couldn¡¯t really do anything at all. The Force loved him way too much. It actively prevented me from ¡®hurting¡¯ him, even if what I was trying to do was actually helping the kid.


    ¡°Unnatural how? Like what you did to take the bomb out of Mom¡¯s head?¡± He didn¡¯t seem afraid at all. Instead, he was super excited, ¡°Can you do that for me next?! Do you know where the bomb is? If I knew, I would¡¯ve taken it out on my own a long time ago!¡±


    This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.


    ¡°A long time ago? You¡¯re like six.¡± I couldn¡¯t help laughing again, ¡°And yeah, I can see it. On the back of your brain. But I might have to do this the old fashioned way, since the Force isn¡¯t cooperating.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the old fashioned way?¡± The boy asked as Izsha floated over behind his back, snapping her claws a few times, ¡°Wait, wait! If you know where it is, we can just get a medical Droid to-unnnm¡­¡± He fell asleep once the venom was injected into his bloodstream. Then it was a simple and easy matter for Izsha to use her mandibles to open up the back of his skull, remove the bomb with one of her many tentacle tongues and use some Zerg Creep to glue everything back together again.


    ¡°You should put him to bed. He won¡¯t wake up for a while and it¡¯s not like you guys need to worry about going back to Watto¡¯s place tomorrow. You both need some rest.¡± I stood up and stretched my body out a bit.


    Shmi picked her son up into her arms and carried him into his room. Once she laid the boy down on his bed, she came back over to the dining area and asked, ¡°Master, were you speaking truthfully when you said we would be your Apprentices?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not a fan of lying, so yeah. You¡¯re kinda Force Sensitive and your son is¡­ Well, he¡¯s ridiculously Force Sensitive.¡± I lifted the green suitcase up off the ground and placed it on the table next to where Midnight was somehow sleeping. I placed my palm on the side and a book was pushed up out of the surface.


    ¡°I know you¡¯re both more mechanically gifted, but this is a Beginner¡¯s Guide to Langhesi Bioengineering.¡± I handed the book over to Shmi. It¡¯s not something I wrote, but I did put a lot of annotations inside.


    ¡°So strange.¡± She opened it and read the words on the first page, ¡°It¡¯s not a Holonovel? How quaint.¡±


    ¡°Nope, just a good old fashioned hardcover book.¡± I tapped on the box and a whole compartment opened up. There were a bunch of shirts, tunics, pants, socks, boxers and even a couple pairs of shoes inside. I took everything out and placed it on the table, ¡°I don¡¯t really need any of this shit anymore. You can keep them or sell them, I don¡¯t really care.¡±


    Coincidentally, I¡¯m about the same height and general size that Anakin would be when he grows up, but I highly doubt he¡¯ll be needing my hand-me-downs in ten years. I still haven¡¯t decided whether to mold him into my ¡®King or Queen of Blades¡¯ yet, but he¡¯s definitely a strong contender.


    ¡°You came to this world for Anakin, didn¡¯t you?¡± Shmi looked up at me and asked, ¡°Will the Jedi come for him as well?¡±


    ¡°Yes, and probably.¡± I took the much lighter suitcase off the table and put it back on the floor. Then I sat down on the chair again and started petting the sleeping kitty. The cute human woman sat down across from me and placed the open book in front of her on the table.


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t think a Jedi would ever come to a place like Tatooine.¡± She smiled wryly and looked down at the words on the words on the title page, ¡°But I suppose a Langhesi Forger is even rarer.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not so sure about that.¡± I scratched my neck and chin carefully, trying not to rip my soft flesh off. ¡°Tatooine is actually a fairly important place for the Jedi and the Sith. An extraordinarily large number of them have died on this damn dustball. I¡¯d imagine that there would be loads of archeological finds out in the desert. As for Langhesi, I¡¯m not sure about Forgers, but I¡¯m sure there are plenty of slaves that pass through Tatooine.¡±


    ¡°I see¡­¡± Shmi turned the page and then again, before reaching the actual beginning of the textbook. But she was enthralled by it. I smiled and waited for her to return to reality. She actually had a bit of blush on her cheeks as she glanced up at me, ¡°Sorry Master.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s understandable. I was the same way back when I got started¡­¡± I tried to think back to how young I actually was, ¡°Maybe seventeen years ago? It took me a year to learn how to read Langhesi.¡±


    Obviously I didn¡¯t give her a book written in Langhesi. Though I¡¯m sure she probably could¡¯ve understood it to a certain extent. A lot of languages are very similar to each other.


    ¡°How old are you, Master Amon?¡± She looked at my face for a few seconds, ¡°If you were a human, I would guess you were only a teenager.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯d be right.¡± I shrugged, ¡°I¡¯m eighteen. As soon as I turned eighteen, I got banished from my homeworld. Technically I¡¯m half Ferroan, I just look more Langhesi because of the red skin, golden eyes and black hair. Then again, I¡¯m a Forger. If my parents weren¡¯t already so beautiful and handsome, I probably would¡¯ve just altered my facial features to be more attractive. It¡¯s stupidly easy.¡±


    ¡°If you took your skills to the Core Worlds, you could become extremely wealthy.¡± Shmi touched her cheek and chuckled, ¡°Around here, you¡¯re more likely to be targeted by Crime Lords.¡±


    ¡°What makes you think that the Core Worlds would be safer than out here?¡± I shook my head and watched Izsha finally closing the front door, ¡°A place like Coruscant, the heart of the Galactic Republic, is the biggest fucking cesspool in the whole Galaxy. Even worse than Nar Shaddaa.¡±


    ¡°I have trouble believing that.¡± She frowned and looked into my eyes again, ¡°What about the Jedi?¡±


    ¡°What about them?¡± I shook my head, ¡°If the Jedi went down into the lower levels of Coruscant, they¡¯d be in just as much danger as everyone else down there. There are three trillion people on that planet. There are only like twenty or thirty thousand Jedi in the whole damn Galaxy.¡±


    Coruscant was actually one of my ideas for a starting point. If I went down to the depths of that hellhole¡­ Well, maybe I¡¯m just not ready for that yet. I¡¯m not the Queen of Blades. Or Darth Vader for that matter. I can¡¯t just kill billions or trillions of people without batting an eye.


    ¡°Anakin idolizes them. The Jedi.¡± Shmi sighed and looked back towards the closed door to his room, then back towards me again, ¡°He¡¯s still a child. Dreaming about becoming a Jedi Master and roaming the Galaxy, saving people¡­ Freeing slaves.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s a good kid.¡± I looked into her dark-brown eyes and she looked away, ¡°There are a lot of good kids in the Jedi Order too. Unfortunately, the Light always attracts the Darkness.¡±


    ¡°Are you the Darkness?¡± She turned to look me in the eyes again, ¡°Master.¡±


    ¡°My people believe that the Force is only Light, and that the Dark Side is a perversion¡­ Something created by the evils of Sentient races.¡± I leaned forward and pushed Midnight to the side. My palm pressed against the table and purple Creep spread across it rapidly! ¡°But the thing about corruption is that it always goes both ways.¡± I reached out and took her hand, ¡°People use the Force for their concept of good, it learns from that and tries to amplify those qualities in people. People use it for their idea of evil, it does the same. The Force has done this over and over again for billions of years. A seesaw of Light and Dark.¡±


    Shmi watched as her hand was rapidly covered in purple slime, but she didn¡¯t freak out. Just gazed back into my eyes calmly, ¡°I would do anything to protect my son. Terrible things.¡±


    ¡°You will.¡± I held her hand tighter and reached across the table with my other hand, carefully pushing her messy brown hair behind her left ear, ¡°Because you¡¯re a good mother.¡±

 Chapter 12: Sandstorm

    Chapter 12: Sandstorm


    ¡°Master, I¡¯ve analyzed the Chosen One¡¯s Essence.¡± Izsha whispered into my mind as the wind and sand whipped my carapace. The sun was blotted out by the crazy sandstorm. I finally had to ¡®wear¡¯ my mask again, because it was just too annoying.


    ¡°Good job.¡± I followed the Zerg Drone that was skittering across the sands instead of floating, ¡°What¡¯s the verdict?¡±


    ¡°Relatively normal human genome. 23 chromosomes from his similarly normal human mother. The other 23 chromosomes are from another normal human father.¡± Although that might sound ¡®normal¡¯, it was actually extremely odd and unlikely in this Galaxy. As mentioned previously, most humans are not really that normal-looking on a genetic level. Both Shmi and Anakin are too ¡®pure¡¯. It¡¯s unnatural.


    ¡°Have you figured out why his cells can hold so many Midichlorians?¡± Although I could analyze the tissue and blood samples myself later, I wanted her to get some experience and do the initial testing. She was only a few days old. No matter how much I¡¯ve programmed her genes and transmitted information to her psychically, she still needs to learn some things on her own.


    ¡°No. His cells are ordinary in size, shape, function¡­¡± She skittered around the right side of a large rock and I walked around the other side, ¡°I don¡¯t understand what makes him different from the tens of thousands of other humans we¡¯ve researched.¡±


    ¡°To be fair, we haven¡¯t really researched them that thoroughly. Not really. What I have found is that different organs usually contain different quantities of Midi-chlorians per cell.  Anakin for example, has over thirty thousand per cell in his blood, which is fucking impressive. But his actual organs and bones often have over forty thousand in most cells. Of course, this might go up and down as he ages and either becomes more or less attuned to the Force.¡±


    I¡¯ve done quite a bit of research on Ferroans, Langhesi and the various woodland creatures, or even the woodlands themselves. It definitely is possible to make someone Force Sensitive by simply transplanting the Midi-chlorians into their cells. You need to do it to ¡®all¡¯ of their cells though. All their cells need to have at least 7,500. That might seem like a lot, but even the average human has at least 2,500 per cell. There are also other ways to increase or decrease the Midi-chlorian count within your cells, including various types of radiation, toxins, stress, or even some metaphysical shit like doing ¡®good¡¯ or ¡®bad¡¯ deeds.


    Sometimes the Force just likes somebody. Sometimes the Midi-chlorians decide to make a baby inside a random slave girl on Tatooine? I mean, theoretically it was brought on by Darth Sidious and Darth Plagueis fucking around and finding out that they can in fact artificially create a Vergence in the Force. Just that they didn¡¯t really know where or when, or how it would turn out.


    I don¡¯t know exactly what they did, but I wouldn¡¯t wanna copy their bullshittery anyway. Maybe I¡¯m a little arrogant, but I know that I¡¯ll probably create quite a few Vergences in the future. It¡¯s not that impressive though. I know of so many fucking Vergences. In the grand scale of the Galaxy, they¡¯re super rare and special, but realistically, there are still a lot of them.


    ¡°Master, was it wise to leave them behind with so little protection and surveillance? We didn¡¯t even transform them into Zerg.¡± Izsha actually questioned my decisions, that¡¯s a good sign. Although the Zerg are supposed to follow their Master, blind obedience is kinda useless for high-ranking members of my Swarm. Especially the ones that will be more like my own children than just some random biological combat robots.


    ¡°Anakin is a genius and he probably gets a lot of his talents from his Mom. I could make them Zerg, but I¡¯m not omnipotent or omniscient.¡± I mean, even the real Xel¡¯naga weren¡¯t that overpowered, ¡°With those books, my notes, those samples and that much money, they should be able to find their own way.¡±


    ¡°They might become our enemies.¡± She wasn¡¯t wrong. Shmi wasn¡¯t some kinda saint. She definitely did some fucked up shit to survive so long as a non-sexual slave. Likely betraying a lot of her former Masters or even killing them. But I wasn¡¯t her Slave Master, we were more like Master and Apprentice. Hopefully not the Sith kind, because those relationships never ended well. Not even the similarly tragic Jedi apprenticeship program.


    ¡°If they become our enemies, then that¡¯s just the way it goes.¡± Okay, I am pretty arrogant. ¡°If Anakin Skywalker and his Mom can manage to beat me when I have an 18 year head start over them, then I deserve to lose this Game of Galactic Thrones.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Master.¡± Izsha didn¡¯t bother arguing with me and just kept skittering ahead into the sandstorm.


    We weren¡¯t burdened by our luggage or a certain adorable kitty cat anymore. I was just gonna cocoon him, but he freaked out. Thankfully I have two useful Apprentices that can take care of the cat for a while¡­ Also, it¡¯s not like I didn¡¯t leave any surveillance or protection behind.


    ¡°Stop.¡± I called out telepathically and the Drone stopped immediately. Then I caught up with her and knelt down next to a few rocks. There were cacti with special fruits growing out of them. Something the Jawas and Tuskens loved. Hubba Gourds¡­ Of course, they weren¡¯t the only ones interested.Stolen novel; please report.


    ¡°Underground.¡± Izsha stated as we both watched and waited for the creatures to emerge from the sand. Furry little black Womp Rats, which honestly just looked like regular rats with some lizard-like features. They didn¡¯t notice us, even from such a short distance.


    ¡°It¡¯s coming.¡± I warned my daughter and the two of us took a few steps back. The sandstorm covered up a lot of the vibrations and sound, so it¡¯s not surprising that the dog-sized Womp Rats would miss it.


    *Squeak~!* One of them freaked out and tried to warn the others, but when they didn¡¯t react, it abandoned the tasty gourd and ran for its life! Smart, but unfortunately it ran in the wrong direction.


    *Crunch~!* I could just barely make out the noise as the massive thick dark-scaled lizard chomped down on it from above! A two meter long rat was devoured by a nine meter long Dewback just like that. Not just one Dewback, there were five of them. The huge beasts had almost ox-like beefy bodies, super thick tails and enormous heads with tiny golden eyes.


    ¡°Wait.¡± I stopped the eager Drone from charging out there.


    ¡°So much Biomass.¡± Izsha felt disheartened because a dozen Womp Rats was actually a pretty huge quantity of meat. The Dewbacks were even bigger and beefier than bulls, standing at two meters tall at the shoulder. Their backs were covered in furry scales that, similar to their name, would accumulate some morning dew. Though if I had to guess, it was probably secreted by the creatures themselves since Tatooine was so damn dry.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay. Dewbacks are very common, so are Womp Rats. Their Essence isn¡¯t hard to gather.¡± But our real prey was a different matter entirely. The sand shifted underneath one of the Dewbacks and it let out a loud, low roar! Then a huge toothy maw emerged from the ground!


    ¡°Ooouuuuuouu~!¡± The Dewbacks cried out loudly and quickly scattered, while the surviving Womp Rats did the same! The colossal head was about the size of the entire Dewback! Those fang-like teeth tore and ripped apart the beast that struggled in its mouth, but that didn¡¯t last long. Pretty soon the whole lizard was swallowed down the long, serpentine throat of an even bigger lizard.


    ¡°It really does look like a dragon.¡± I could see a blue scaly head with four gigantic horns curling back, those giant orange eyes following the escaping Dewbacks, unbothered by the sandstorm. That long purple tongue licked the blood from its lipless and noseless ¡®snout¡¯.


    ¡°Now, Master?¡± The tiny Drone was only a meter from where that enormous neck was protruding out of the sand. I closed my eyes and ¡®felt¡¯ the even more massive body lurking below the surface. It wasn¡¯t a fully grown adult. Those could reach over 100 meters, which is insane to think about in terms of normal biology from my previous life. Even the Blue Whale rarely broke 30 meters long. This was the Galaxy Far Far Away though, not the Milky Way or anywhere near Earth.


    ¡°I don¡¯t sense anything or anyone else nearby.¡± I was hoping there might be a ¡®bigger fish¡¯, but it looks like the 70 meter long Greater Krayt was gonna be the catch of the day.


    ¡°Hunting!¡± Izsha shouted in a raspy but high-pitched telepathic voice as she jumped up and latched onto the creature¡¯s ridiculously thick neck like a tick! Those pincers that could tear through durasteel were actually having trouble piercing the blue scales and pink meat underneath!


    ¡°Roooaaaaaaaaaaaaah~!¡± Needless to say, the Krayt Dragon was not very happy. That huge neck slammed down towards the sand, trying to crush the little ¡®bug¡¯ that was causing so much pain and discomfort. But the little Drone just crawled around to the other side of the neck before the impact!


    ¡°It¡¯s resistant to my venom and infestation, Master!¡± She shouted telepathically as I jumped up out of the way of the colossal neck that came swinging my way! I almost got carried away by the wind and sand, but I reached out and pulled myself onto the creature¡¯s head with the Force!


    ¡°Aaarrrraraaaah~!¡± It screamed as my toe talons and claws dug into the meat on its crest!


    ¡°Raaaah~! Hahahaha~!¡± I couldn¡¯t help laughing as I rode on the head of a motherfucking dragon! It dove down under the sand and the resistance was even stronger than the storm aboveground!


    ¡°Careful Master!¡± Izsha warned me, but I was already crawling around and hiding behind the dragon¡¯s horns before it could headbutt those big-ass boulders! I ripped and tore at the flesh with my hands, long spiny tendrils emerged from my palms and started drilling down through the meat. The bone was so damn hard though. Like unreasonably strong.


    ¡°They¡¯re not Star Dragons, but Sand Dragons are still pretty fucking overpowered, huh?¡± I looked over to the left and felt the giant object approaching me! I scuttled around the side of the horn as the gigantic tip of that insanely large tail stabbed behind the beast¡¯s horns! Then I could feel Izsha avoiding a colossal claw that tried to scratch her out of existence!


    ¡°Master, what should we do?!¡± My cute little Drone girl was panicking, but I was surprisingly calm.


    ¡°Gotta go inside.¡± I knew they had some pretty strong acidic saliva and stomach acid, but their blood wasn¡¯t quite so difficult to deal with, ¡°You take the belly, I¡¯ll go through the back.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll try, Master!¡±


    ¡°Do or do not, there is no try!¡± I couldn¡¯t help cackling out loud as I let go of the beast for a moment, allowing it to move ahead a few dozen meters and then latched onto the bastard¡¯s upper back! The scales were so damn strong and considering they were meant to keep out sand or allow for the dragon to swim around down there, I¡¯m kinda amazed at how rough and thick they were!


    ¡°Remember this, Izsha.¡± I clawed through the meat as the Krayt Dragon tried to scratch me out of its flesh! I was too small though and burrowed inside the monster¡¯s back way too quickly¡­ Once I was inside, I kept digging as the roars and movements reverberated. Then I told my daughter, ¡°The bigger you become, the easier it is for smaller creatures to crawl around inside you¡­ This is a weakness for individuals, but the Zerg aren¡¯t alone. We are the Swarm.¡±


    ¡°I understand, Master!¡± She drilled through the meat even faster than I did, meeting me in the middle of the dragon¡¯s torso. There was a massive beating heart nearby, not the only heart in the insanely large creature, but that didn¡¯t make it any less vital. If we wanted, we could kill the beast easily enough.


    ¡°Are you ready, Izsha?¡± I caressed her adorable armored head and honestly, felt a little scared. She¡¯s literally my child. I¡¯ve only had less than a week with her, but it took me over a year to create and program her genes, even longer than a mother would carry a child. And way more complicated. Sixteen or seventeen years of training before that. Literally my whole second life has been dedicated to this moment.


    ¡°Sufficient Biomass, Metamorphosis possible¡­¡± Izsha wrapped her claws around me and nuzzled her face against mine, ¡°Awaiting your orders¡­ Father.¡±


    ¡°I love you, Izsha.¡± We hugged for a while longer, before she pushed me away and started drinking up the insane amount of blood around us. A few moments later, she excreted purple Creep all over her body and wrapped herself up in a cocoon that was bigger than me. This wasn¡¯t a video game though. I swam closer to the throbbing, pulsating mass and placed my palms on it.


    ¡°Metamorphosis has begun.¡± She whispered into my mind with a somewhat shaky voice, ¡°I love you too, Master.¡±

 Chapter 13: Metamorphosis Complete

    Chapter 13: Metamorphosis Complete


    I was originally going to name her Ichi, because she was the first successful Zerg Larva I had created. I didn¡¯t know whether she would survive. Not her body, that was much simpler and easier to fix. The real difficulty was her¡­ Soul. Not her mind or personality, those can be programmed, reprogrammed, deprogrammed, whatever I wanted. The Soul was a bit different though.


    Purity of Essence is the potential for change. Purity of Form is related to great psionic potential, or in this case, the Force. The Xel¡¯naga wanted to merge the two aspects together to create more of their own kind. In the end, it was Kerrigan, a ridiculously powerful Psionically gifted human who became even more overpowered when she became Zerg, that was ultimately able to Ascend physically and spiritually into a godlike Xel¡¯naga.


    In other words, while the Protoss are badass, they aren¡¯t exactly necessary. If he doesn¡¯t go the Darth Vader route and get heavily nerfed, mentally and physically, then Anakin could possibly become a Xel¡¯naga with my help. Assuming he¡¯d actually wanna do that in the first place. He probably wouldn¡¯t. And that¡¯s fine too.


    I can understand. I still haven¡¯t completely transformed my head. What if the change in brain chemistry affects my Soul? It¡¯s too risky. If something happens to Izsha, at least I¡¯ll still be there to realize what¡¯s wrong and try to fix it. But if somethin happens to me, she¡¯s way too young and inexperienced to deal with it.


    As for the face, there really isn¡¯t a huge difference between transforming my skin into carapace and growing armor that can be removed or altered. In fact, the whole transformation to my entire body can still be reversed or changed. It¡¯ll just hurt like a bitch.


    ¡°Master, are you still there?¡± Izsha¡¯s soft voice startled me out of my thoughts. The huge cocoon was throbbing like a massive tumor next to one of the Krayt Dragon¡¯s hearts. The beast was obviously in a lot of pain and discomfort, roaring and writhing from time to time. But ultimately there wasn¡¯t much it could do to save itself.


    ¡°I¡¯m here.¡± I ran my fingertips across the pulsating meat and could feel the giant scorpion swimming around inside, ¡°It looks like your Drone body hasn¡¯t fully broken down yet.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m close. My Metamorphosis is almost complete. I just wanted to hear your voice again.¡± She was terrified, but also really excited. It was understandable. She was going to fulfill her purpose.


    ¡°I believe in you, Izsha. You can do this.¡± I caressed the surface of the flesh as the temperature of the bloody liquid around my body increased. Zerg tendrils were reaching out in every direction and infesting the massive beast slowly but surely. A little fever couldn¡¯t stop the infection.


    ¡°Thank you, Father.¡± After she said that, her body broke down completely. For a moment, it felt like she died, but it was only a moment. That enormous bubble finally burst and knocked me back into a rib!


    ¡°Fuck!¡± Cursed as the wall of meat started crushing me against the bone!


    ¡°Rooaoaaaaaar~!¡± The Greater Krayt Dragon started struggling even more desperately! It tried to breathe, but its lungs were being devoured! One of its hearts was ripped out and swallowed by that huge suction-cup like mouth! Gigantic fangs on the outside were drilling apart the internal organs and flesh. Five meter long fang-like teeth ripped through everything, even the bones of the Krayt Dragon were cracked and chipped from the force of those collisions!


    ¡°Master, are you okay?!¡± Thankfully Izsha was still in there, ¡°My Metamorphosis is complete!¡±


    ¡°I can see and feel that, holy shit!¡± I didn¡¯t get some silly magical System that creates Zerg just based entirely on the video game I played in my last life. Every lifeform I created had to make sense to me and used references from genetic samples I already had access to in reality.


    ¡°We have a Hatchery now!¡± She shouted excitedly, because this really was the start of our first Zerg Colony. The top half of her body was like a small mountain of squishy meat, with long armored purple tubes that were meant to collect various resources from the Drones. Long and powerful black tendrils reached out from the bigger and smaller tubes to collect the biomass all around us. Of course, at the very tip was a huge gaping maw, which was able to swallow things as well. The lower body, what would normally be below the surface, was essentially just a bunch of extremely long tentacles. They would spread Creep from the underground to the surface and ideally be able to reach the various other ¡®organs¡¯ of the Zerg Base, like the Spawning Pool, Evolutionary Chamber, et cetera.


    Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    At the moment though, they allowed Izsha to swim around inside of the Krayt Dragon¡¯s absurdly large torso. Seriously, it wasn¡¯t even the largest it could get, but it was still more than twice as long as a Blue Whale and stupidly massive in terms of overall volume.


    ¡°Master, come inside me!¡± Izsha said something unintentionally hilarious and then grabbed me with a giant tentacle, pulling my body inside of one of the bigger armored tubes. I noted that inside of the tube there were fuckloads of black centipedes swimming around in the blood and gore. They weren¡¯t Larva, just the generic Zerg parasites I designed.


    ¡°Smart.¡± I commented on her decision, ¡°It seems you¡¯ve learned.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Master. Although I have an immune system and a digestive system, there needs to be a defense mechanism between regular Zerg Units and microscopic Zerg parasites. Otherwise someone or something could infiltrate inside of me rather easily.¡± As she said that, the tentacle finally pulled me up to the very core of the Hatchery. There were lots of stomach-like chambers that could digest biomass, even various types of ¡®minerals¡¯ and inorganic matter. But she brought me to a different area. It was essentially a womb, filled with surprisingly clear amniotic fluid and countless little eggs that floated down from the sphincters that opened and closed around me.


    ¡°Any problems with egg generation?¡± I watched the thousands of tiny eggs rapidly grow and burst around me, transforming into little black or purple creatures. Mostly looking like centipedes, scorpions and leeches.


    ¡°No, Master. All of my features are functioning as designed.¡± Izsha was really happy and so was I, but I was still worried that something might go wrong. So I started taking control of parts of her body to check her gene strands, search for potential cancers or other issues that might crop up. I captured and scanned the bodies of various organisms that hatched from the eggs, but didn¡¯t notice any problems. They were my designs, she was just pumping them out at a rapid pace.


    ¡°Are you enjoying your meal?¡± I chuckled as I felt the Krayt Dragon finally succumbing to its injuries and starting to die. It lasted a surprisingly long time to be honest.


    ¡°Yes, Master! Krayt Dragon Biomass is very nutritious and valuable! It¡¯s unfortunate that they are so rare and require such a long time to mature.¡± She was already planning to raise them like fucking pigs.


    ¡°As long as we analyze their Essence properly, then it wouldn¡¯t be too difficult to incorporate their genes into the Zerg.¡± The main theme of the Zerg is ¡®Change¡¯ and Evolution. They aren¡¯t static, so even though I really wanna create all the standard Units and buildings from my memory, it¡¯s not like I can¡¯t incorporate other creatures into the Zerg or get a little creative with it.


    ¡°Their ability to swim through the sands will be useful for our Nydus Worm research.¡± She commented as a few larger eggs dropped down slowly and were deposited near the main exit, ¡°Should I begin spawning larger organisms?¡±


    ¡°These are regular sized Larvae.¡± It wasn¡¯t long since I finished making my daughter and she¡¯s already morphed twice, now she¡¯s pumping out babies. It¡¯s kinda crazy to think about from the perspective of a human, but hey, I¡¯m not a human either.


    ¡°We can wait, if you think it is too soon.¡± Izsha could literally abort them and reuse the biomass for something else, but it was totally unnecessary.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine to start pumping out Larvae now. Just don¡¯t go past the limit.¡± Even if this wasn¡¯t a game, no, because this wasn¡¯t a game, we had to be more careful not to overextend ourselves. We don¡¯t want to end up like this poor Krayt Dragon. Being eaten alive from the inside out would not be a fun experience.


    ¡°My Midichlorian count per cell is lower now. But my upper limit does not seem to have changed.¡±


    In other words, about 10k is still the upper limit. Don¡¯t get me wrong though, that¡¯s perfectly fine for becoming a Jedi. In fact, most Jedi are around that level. It just feels weird that the Midichlorians actively refuse to reproduce more than that within a single cell. Theoretically, you could even become a decent Jedi at only 7k per cell, but the higher the count per cell, the more attuned your entire body is to the Force. The easier it is to manipulate, the easier it is to defend against as well.


    ¡°With Yoda and Anakin as examples, the total Midichlorian Count in the entire body isn¡¯t as important as the Midichlorians per cell in regards to Force attunement and manipulation.¡± I removed my mask and inhaled the amniotic fluid into my lungs. It was a little uncomfortable, but perfectly safe with my Zerg biology.


    ¡°Anakin is an outlier. A Vergence in the Force.¡± I rubbed my chin and watched some of the little centipedes swim over, munching on the mask I removed. Then they quickly left through the main cervix.


    Izsha suggested, ¡°We need to capture and experiment on Yoda or others of his kind.¡±


    ¡°Maybe not Yoda¡­¡± I thought about another Jedi Master of the same species, ¡°Yaddle is destined to die. I doubt Count Dooku would mind having some help hiding the evidence?¡±


    Alternatively, we could capture her while she¡¯s still alive and have a living test subject. As for whether it¡¯s right or wrong, or whether she deserves it or not? That¡¯s debatable. How many hundreds of years has she been a Jedi? How much questionable shit has she been involved in over the centuries?


    Hey, I¡¯m not judging. I¡¯m not a fucking saint either. Not saying I wouldn¡¯t judge a piece of shit like Palpatine or Vader, but it takes a lot of effort to be that generically evil. Even the Queen of Blades wasn¡¯t that bad and she killed what? Billions of people? Even after she was outside Amon¡¯s influence and totally under her own control, she still did some fucked up shit.


    ¡°Master, the eggs are hatching.¡± Izsha snapped me out of my thoughts again and let me watch the ¡®birth¡¯ of her first real children. The purplish-black eggs burst open and revealed the six adorable little Zerg Larvae. By little, I mean that they were about a foot long and this is their smallest state.


    ¡°Hungry.¡±


    ¡°Need Biomass.¡±


    ¡°Master, orders?¡±


    Three of them spoke to me telepathically, while the other three communicated with Izsha instead.


    ¡°Mother, nutrients are required.¡±


    ¡°Food.¡±


    ¡°Rip and tear!¡±


    Well, they¡¯re definitely adorable little murder machines. I telepathically whispered to Izsha, ¡°Six is enough for now. Focus on eating and digesting the Krayt Dragon. I¡¯ll start analyzing the Essence. The best case scenario would be to give you some more mobility.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Master!¡±

 Chapter 14: Under the Dune Sea

    Chapter 14: Under the Dune Sea


    How the fuck does the Greater Krayt Dragon ¡®swim¡¯ through sand? They aren¡¯t Force Sensitive. So they didn¡¯t cheat that way. Their scales are extremely smooth, they have lots of legs, a really thick and strong tail, a long neck and the ability to use infrasound to vibrate the sand ahead of them. How did they survive while being so damn big and heavy? Their muscles, bones and organs were just really fucking strong.


    Ultimately though, while the Greater Krayt Dragons are definitely ¡®cool¡¯, they aren¡¯t super efficient. They aren¡¯t Zerg. They produced lots of waste, like most animals. In fact, Krayt Dragon shit was probably what kept a lot of smaller creatures alive and fertilized lots of plants.


    ¡°Well, this is pretty wild.¡± I took a step out of the dragon¡¯s open mouth and looked around, ¡°I knew there was no way there¡¯d be ¡®no water¡¯ on a planet like Tatooine.¡±


    In front of me was a massive underground lake. The ancient caldera was enormous. I could see tons of glowing fungi everywhere, with some tropical-looking plants in between. Even in the dark water, there were lots of vines and even plenty of fish swimming around. Yes, the vines were swimming around too.


    ¡°Squee~!¡± A pig-like squeal attracted my attention, so I looked over at the source. There was a giant grayish-blue lizard with a bunch of legs, looking up at me with a small creature in its mouth. The small creature had rough and thick lumpy tan flesh, four legs that ended in sharp points, while the head was¡­ Well, the head looked like a big ass suction cup with tentacles shooting out of it.


    ¡°What are the fucking odds?¡± I thought I¡¯d need to go hunt down the Sarlacc that Jabba keeps as a pet.


    ¡°Convenient.¡± Izsha whispered into my mind, ¡°More Essence would be preferable. We should still hunt the adult Sarlacc.¡±


    ¡°I mean, yeah-¡±


    ¡°Death!¡± A tiny purple figure fell down from above! The thick mantis-like upper arms came down and tore into the blue lizard¡¯s scales! At the same time, the toothy maw opened up and bit a big chunk of meat from the much larger creature¡¯s side! The dog-sized Zergling let go and fluttered its wasp-like wings, kicking off the ground and avoiding the death-roll of the ¡®small¡¯ lizard that was already the size of a giant alligator.


    ¡°Squee~!¡± The baby Sarlacc screamed and tried to escape! It scampered off into the thick brown mushrooms nearby. A moment later, it was sent rolling across the sandy soil with big gashes across its belly that were bleeding green juices. A hulking figure emerged from the fungal foliage, nearly as tall as I was at the shoulder. Not to mention the huge white spikes sticking up from its long black lizard-like head, down across its ape-ish back. The scaly flesh was dark-brown, with some bright purple stripes along the extremely muscular arms, torso, legs and tail. On the hands and feet were super long white talons.


    ¡°Resistance is futile.¡± The lizard actually spoke in Galactic Standard, with her mouth full of giant fangs. Those three pretty golden eyes glanced at me on one side and glared at the struggling Sarlacc on the other. Within a moment, the beast pounced and bit down on the middle of the little Sarlacc¡¯s torso, nearly snapping it in half. However, Sarlaccs are pretty damn durable, so it wasn¡¯t even dead yet.


    ¡°Don¡¯t kill it, Prima.¡± I told the lizard-ape, then yelled at the other brat, ¡°Lingling, try not to die!¡±


    ¡°Yes, Master.¡± The Primal Zergling answered calmly, releasing the dog-sized creature onto the ground where it writhed in agony. I crouched down and touched the wounds, warping and weaving the flesh back together.


    ¡°Roooaaaaar~!¡± The baby Greater Krayt Dragon cried out loudly as it was suddenly attacked by four Drones. They looked almost identical to Izsha a few days ago, though maybe they were a little bigger and bulkier. After all, they¡¯ve gorged themselves on what was likely this poor bastard¡¯s father or older brother the past few days.


    ¡°Squeee~!¡± The Sarlacc struggled and tried to escape the moment I finished helping it heal. The creature didn¡¯t really have organs in the typical sense, being more like a plant than an animal, which was fascinating. Even without my help, it might have survived and regenerated over time.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay. There¡¯s no point running away. There¡¯s nowhere you can run from the Zerg.¡± I picked it up and looked into that huge funnel of a ¡®face¡¯. Then a beak shot out and tried to bite my nose off! It was blocked by one of my ¡®bangs¡¯, then some armored ¡®hair¡¯ on the sides of my head entangled the tentacles that tried to grab me next.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.


    ¡°Master, my pack has captured the prey.¡± She really fell into the role of a Primal Zerg as We remembered them.


    ¡°Prey, captured. Unfortunately.¡± Lingling was really¡­ Murdery. Murderous? Yeah, murderous. I¡¯m not sure why though. It¡¯s not about turning into a Zergling, because that decision was made afterwards. Could have something to do with the Dark Side, or it could just be a personality quirk.


    ¡°Father, should we infest this place or leave?¡± Izsha whispered into my mind as her purplish-black tendrils reached out of the colossal gaping blue maw. Mushrooms and plants were swept up, along with various insects, dirt and sand, before being drawn inside the mouth again. The rest of the body was hidden behind the rocky wall of this enormous cavern.


    ¡°No. We¡¯ll gather a few more Greater Krayt Dragons and Baby Sarlaccs if we can find them. If there are any dragon eggs or Sarlacc spores that¡¯d be great. I doubt we¡¯ll find any Canyon Krayts down here, but we might. That¡¯d save us a lot of trouble.¡±


    I didn¡¯t wanna ruin this little ¡®paradise¡¯ underground. It was also somewhat dangerous to wait around for another Krayt Dragon to show up. Izsha was pretty big now, but that would actually make her a target.


    ¡°Yes, Father.¡± Izsha has been calling me that a lot lately. I guess it makes her feel special, since I¡¯ll be having a ton of her own kids calling me Master from now on.


    ¡°Roooaaaaaar~!¡± A deafening bellow came from up above! Then I saw a huge figure falling down from the ceiling along with lots of boulders!


    *Thump-thump-thump~!* The noise was loud and the dust blinded us, but thankfully the Force guided all of us to avoid getting crushed. At most, one of the Drones lost a leg. The Sarlacc was still trying to escape from my grip, but I held it tightly against my purple tits, I mean pecs.


    ¡°What the fuck was that?¡± I immediately got the answer to my question, because a huge claw grabbed Droanna!


    ¡°Master!¡± She cried in pain and fear as her body was ripped in half!


    ¡°Son of a bitch!¡± I was pissed off. I mean, she wouldn¡¯t die that easily, but it was still really annoying!


    ¡°Rancor! Kill!¡± Lingling didn¡¯t hesitate or wait for orders, just buzzed her wings and jumped off the ground, flying onto the monster¡¯s back. Those powerful claws and mantis-like blades were able to penetrate the ridiculously tough flesh, but she couldn¡¯t really deal that much damage. In a lot of ways, a Rancor is even stronger than a Greater Krayt Dragon. At least in terms of how tough its skin can be¡­ But just like a Krayt Dragon, it wasn¡¯t invulnerable.


    ¡°Take this.¡± I tossed the baby Sarlacc to Dronii, who caught it with her pincers and quickly carried it inside the half-buried head of that giant blue Greater Krayt Dragon. Then watched the other Drones carry the top half of their sibling, along with the head of that baby Krayt into the mouth of the dragon as well.


    ¡°Prima¡­¡± I looked over and saw the sneaky bitch running away! ¡°Are you fucking serious?!¡±


    ¡°Father, perhaps we gave the Zerglings a bit too much free will?¡± Izsha grumbled in my mind.


    ¡°Blood!¡± Lingling finally managed to break through the ugly Rancor¡¯s flesh and drew a little blood. The creature had really long and powerful arms, with three fingers and a thumb on each hand, but it still couldn¡¯t reach back to the spot she was attacking.


    ¡°We can deal with Prima later. For now, I¡¯m gonna kill this motherfucker.¡± I rushed forward and jumped onto a huge boulder, but I was still only to the Rancor¡¯s waist. It was probably about ten meters tall.


    It obviously saw me with those comparatively tiny yellow eyes¡­ Why does everything have yellow eyes?


    ¡°Roooaaaar~!¡± It screamed and swung a huge claw down, smashing the boulder I just kicked off of! Negating the gravity mid-air, I Force Pulled myself towards the bastard¡¯s face! My clawed left foot dug into the huge nostril that was actually above the beast¡¯s eye level, and also even bigger than the eyes.


    ¡°Aiirruuuuuoooooo~!¡± They roared in pain again, using their clawed hands to try to tear me off their face. It didn¡¯t have a giant dick dangling around, so I figured it might be female, but I wasn¡¯t really sure.


    ¡°Hate you Force-Resistant assholes!¡± I punched it in the forehead hard enough that I was sent flying upwards and away from the claws that smacked into its own face. A giant barbed tendril shot up from underground between the Rancor¡¯s legs!


    ¡°Aoiiiiiiuuuuuuuuu~!¡± Uh, the poor bastard really screamed now¡­ I shot bladed tendrils out of my palms that whipped to the sides and then hooked straight into those beady yellow eyes! I yanked them out and the giant tendril drilled upwards even farther inside the beast¡¯s bowels or reproductive system, maybe both? Thousands of small Zerg Parasites were being shot up into their body and devouring their insides.


    ¡°Surrender, or lose your offspring.¡± Prima suddenly reappeared nearby with a little brown baby Rancor that was actually a little larger than its own hulking figure.


    ¡°Aoiiuuuuouuu~!¡± The baby cried for its mother, asking for help, unable to comprehend that its mother was totally fucked already.


    ¡°Oiiiiuuuuuuuuuooooo~!¡± Another roar came from the distance¡­ Then another, and like twenty more.


    ¡°Master, I think I miscalculated.¡± My silly daughter quickly dragged the screaming baby Rancor into the mouth of that dead Greater Krayt Dragon, while I was still floating in midair with two big eyeballs in my hands.


    ¡°Okay, fuck this, we¡¯re retreating.¡± I sent a message to everyone and landed on the eyeless bitch. The eyes in my hands warped and transformed into two big bloody red worms that drilled into her empty sockets. Her hands were busy trying to remove the massive tentacle from her ass, so she couldn¡¯t really protect her face.


    ¡°You¡¯re coming with us.¡± As I said that, the sandy soul under her feet broke open to reveal another few spiky tentacles. She was wrapped up quickly and pulled down without being able to do anything to stop it. With the Zerg worms rooting around in her brain, it really wasn¡¯t long before she stopped struggling altogether.


    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have fucked with us. But hey, everyone makes mistakes¡­ Welcome to the Swarm.¡±


    Why does it kinda feel like the Zerg are the Borg? Hmmm, well, anyway, time to go. Need to find a place to actually settle down and start our base. I¡¯m thinking about the Mospic High Range. We passed through there to reach this part of the Dune Sea, although we did get dragged along pretty far by the Greater Krayt Dragon, it wasn¡¯t going in a straight line. Izsha should be able to swim that far at least.

 Chapter 15: Zerg Base

    Chapter 15: Zerg Base


    The sky was pretty pink, with a surprising amount of clouds. For a moment, I wasn¡¯t sure I was actually still on Tatooine anymore. But then I noticed the two suns on the horizon, sinking down at about the same time. One after the other, a few minutes apart. As night fell, it was the perfect time to start constructing our base.


    *Rumble~!* The dry and rocky ground cracked open in front of me, a massive toothy maw slowly emerging from the earth. We were basically in a small valley between several large black mountains. The Hatchery tunneled out of the ground completely, looking like a meaty purple and black hill under the pretty starlight. Well, stars, starships, space stations, you get the point.


    ¡°Okay, that¡¯s¡­ Yeah, perfect. Right in the middle.¡± I helped Izsha position herself right at the very center of the valley.


    ¡°We are ready, Father.¡± She whispered into my mind and I smiled wryly. This was it, the real beginning. Mos Espa was hundreds of miles away, but that distance was nothing when you consider that landspeeders travel through these mountains all the time at a thousand kilometers per hour. There are also loads of starships, satellites. We¡¯ll be able to keep ourselves hidden for a short time, but it won¡¯t be long before the war starts.


    ¡°Do it.¡± I wasn¡¯t too worried though. This is Star Wars, not Starcraft. They don¡¯t know what we are. Even if they knew, the Hutts would be trying to find a way to use or sell us rather than destroy us.


    ¡°Establishing Base of Operations. Now.¡± With her telepathic orders, a thick carpet of purplish-brown Creep started spreading across the ground. The black rocky surface was actually broken down and transformed into nutrients. We¡¯re the Zerg. We don¡¯t need a fucking oasis. We can survive anywhere, even on a fucking asteroid in space. Though I¡¯m sure I can make the process easier if I capture a few of those Exogorths, or space worms. There are also Mynocks that look like bats and can live and fly around in space somehow. I need to catch a few of those fuckers for research. Not sure if they exist on Tatooine though.


    If they are here, they¡¯ll probably be in these mountains. Along with the Canyon Krayts, Tusken Raiders, Rancors and plenty of other prey.


    ¡°Hunting!¡± Lingling screamed excitedly as she charged out of the giant tube towards a Womp Rat in the distance.


    ¡°Master, we need to expand our pack.¡± Prima lumbered over to my left side and rubbed her scaly face against my shoulder.


    ¡°We gave you reproductive organs.¡± I rubbed my face on her cheek and she growled in irritation.


    ¡°That would be¡­ Inefficient.¡± She pulled away from my side and grumbled, ¡°I do not wish to become a Primal Hive.¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t design you with that capability in the first place. Though I could definitely figure it out.¡± I looked over towards the four Drones floating around. This isn¡¯t a game. If it was, then I¡¯d be the developer. I programmed them to be like the Drones in the game, only able to transform into buildings or gather resources for the most part. But if I stepped in, I could easily transform a Drone into a Zergling or a Zergling into an ¡®Infested Terran¡¯. It¡¯d just be a pain in the ass.


    ¡°Change is not always for the better.¡± Prima pointed to her Drone sister with her super long index claw, ¡°They are different from us, Master.¡±


    ¡°I know.¡± I sighed as I watched Droanna chose a spot not far from us to settle down and spin a cocoon around her body. The Creep provided all the nutrients and materials she required, so the process was far quicker than what Izsha had to go through. Especially since Droanna wasn¡¯t trying to turn into a Hatchery¡­ A few minutes passed and her massive cocoon burst open, splashing green juices all over the two of us!


    ¡°She lives. But she is not an individual.¡± The lizard-ape walked over on all fours, while I got closer as well. There were lots of brown tubes reaching down into the earth, some connected to Izsha, while others reached down, searching for underground water sources and mineral deposits. Even with what little she had, it was still enough for the thick rubbery brown ¡®mouth¡¯ to start filling with toxic green sludge. At least, that¡¯s what it looked like at first glance. The toothy maw was a Spawning Pool, while the green goo wasn¡¯t dangerous to us at all. In fact, it was more like a hot spring for Prima and I to enjoy.


    ¡°She¡¯s part of the Swarm. An organ of sorts.¡± I got comfortable inside the gigantic heated pool that used to be my daughter. Of course, it still was Droanna, but her mind¡­ No, I guess she was always just an extension of Izsha. This is just returning to her mother.


    ¡°I am not an organ. I do not wish to become an organ either. I am an individual. A Hunter. Leader of a Pack.¡± She got comfortable next to me and her spines fortunately didn¡¯t hurt the thick flesh behind us, ¡°I can change, grow, improve¡­ In my own way.¡±


    ¡°I know.¡± I sighed and caressed that smooth, scaly face, those three eyes blinking at me in turn, ¡°You¡¯re my child. No matter what. Even if you told me you wanted to go to Coruscant and become a Jedi, I wouldn¡¯t stop you from trying.¡±


    ¡°That¡­ Is not such an unreasonable decision.¡± Prima grinned, or maybe she was always grinning, maybe I should¡¯ve given her lips? ¡°I am a Youngling. I am Force Sensitive. The Jedi would not turn me away.¡±


    ¡°Maybe. But they¡¯ll analyze your genes and probably keep records of shit that will end up on Palpatine¡¯s desk sooner or later. I mean, he¡¯s not Chancellor yet¡­ But Dooku is also still a Jedi, and already working for him, probably.¡± I¡¯m not sure the risk was worth the reward of placing a spy in the Jedi Order.


    ¡°Father, Anakin would make a much more reasonable spy.¡± Izsha whispered into my mind specifically, ¡°Also¡­ More trustworthy.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s sad but true.¡± I didn¡¯t program my kids with blind obedience. Not even Izsha. That was probably a mistake. But it¡¯s not that big of a deal either. They were just the first batch. Future Zerg will be less individualistic. More and more like cogs in the biological war machine.


    With Prima, I hoped to create a Dehaka or Zagara type figure, but now that I think about it¡­ Well, both of them weren¡¯t really that trustworthy. With Lingling, I think she turned out kind of special, but it shouldn¡¯t be a big deal. She¡¯s just a Zergling.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    ¡°Blood for the Blood God! Skulls for his Throne!¡± Wait, where the fuck?


    I felt in her direction and saw a top-down birds eye view of her general vicinity. There were a bunch of Tusken Raiders using blasters or pointy sticks to attack her, but the purple bug moved so fast that she was like a blur to them. A claw slashed over and easily decapitated a man, then another stabbed through a female Tusken Raider¡¯s back. A lucky shot hit that armored spiky black forehead, but the blaster bolt bounced off and flew up into the sky before fizzling out eventually.


    Lingling didn¡¯t show any mercy and I didn¡¯t bother giving her any orders. She chopped off a few more heads and disemboweled a couple other people. Then she ignored their corpses, not even bothering to collect their Essence or devour their Biomass.


    ¡°Inefficient.¡± Izsha commented, ¡°Two out of six were defective. We will do better in the future, Father.¡±


    ¡°You really don¡¯t wanna know how many times I failed before I created you. No, I guess you already do, because I basically programmed my entire memory into your genome.¡± I sighed and watched my murder-hobo daughter heading in the direction of Mos Espa.


    ¡°We need more Overlords.¡± Izsha suggested.


    ¡°Yeah, we really do.¡± I forced the wayward Zergling to return, though she didn¡¯t offer much resistance. Although she was a murder-hobo, that was actually pretty normal for Zerg combat units. Under normal circumstances, a little bit of autonomy was good. But you need a ridiculously overpowered motherfucker like the Overmind, who was actually controlled by Amon, to keep the Swarm in check. If not them, then you need a Queen of Blades. Or a Queen like Zagara.


    ¡°We need to give them less Midi-chlorians per cell.¡± She came to the same conclusion that I did. I mean, it would be great if we could make a whole Swarm where even a random Zergling like Lingling had the same potential for the Force as the average Jedi Knight, but the problem is that their supreme overlords were also on the same level.


    ¡°We don¡¯t have to intentionally cripple them, but we can just leave it up to chance, rather than wasting so much time, energy and resources on each of them.¡± I had a dream of creating my own little team of Zerg Heroes, but the issue with those Heroes is that they¡¯re totally unnecessary. Izsha is more like the Overmind and I¡¯m somewhere between Abathur, Kerrigan and Zagara combined.


    Oh well, you live, you learn, you evolve.


    Speaking of which, I could see another huge organ cropping up nearby. It was Dronii. She transformed into an Evolution Chamber. It looked kinda like a big-ass glowing purple heart that was beating slowly. There were giant spikes poking out of one side and a brown rib cage covering another section. Lots of thick brown tubes were reaching into the Creep carpet, connecting it to the rest of the organs.


    ¡°I¡¯ll give you a pack, but you have to actually be able to control them.¡± I ran my fingers through the green ooze and caught a handful of tiny black Larvae. Within a few seconds they curled up in cocoons and then the cocoons burst, revealing dozens of baby Primal Zerglings. They all looked very similar to Prima, but their Midi-chlorian count wasn¡¯t much higher than a normal human and they obviously didn¡¯t have nearly as much potential.


    ¡°Thank you, Master.¡± She bowed her head and let me dump the dozens of little sisters on her spiny black scalp, ¡°I will protect and nurture them into powerful hunters.¡±


    ¡°I believe in you.¡± I patted her on the cheek and smirked, ¡°I also believe in your subtlety and discernment.¡± I looked over and saw a huge spiny purple tube burst out of another cocoon in the distance. It looked a lot smaller in the game, but the Spore Crawler had to be capable of shooting acidic Creep at hypersonic speeds at aircraft in the upper atmosphere. Obviously it would be bigger in reality.


    ¡°What are your orders, Master?¡± Prima caught one of her sisters that fell off her head and put it back up there with the others.


    ¡°Search the mountains. Rancors, Krayt Dragons and Mynocks, especially Mynocks. Catch them alive if possible, but don¡¯t make unnecessary sacrifices. If you lose members of your Pack, you¡¯re gonna have to replace them yourself.¡± I rubbed her scaly neck and patted her beefy chest. No breasts, just solid muscle covered in incredibly durable scaly flesh.


    ¡°What about Minerals and other resources?¡± She purred softly, ¡°What about the Tusken Raiders?¡±


    I thought about it for a moment and told her, ¡°I doubt there will be any kids, but assuming there are, try to capture them. The male adults are worthless. Females are more valuable, but also not a high priority.¡±


    I know that for the most part, the ¡®Tusken Raiders¡¯ were literally mountain bandits. Generally adult men, with a few women here and there. They came to the mountains to prey on the people passing through the valleys. I¡¯m sure they did have some villages and there might even be cave systems where they live, but they generally didn¡¯t stay in this particular mountain range. It was just too close to Mos Espa and would make them an easy target.


    ¡°As you wish.¡± As she jumped out of the pool, I had to catch a few of the brats that slipped off her head again. I tossed them onto her spiky back, but their bodies were so small that those giant spines were just way too big to actually hurt them.


    *Splash!* Before I had time to relax, a wild Zergling appeared! Specifically, Lingling, who swam over to me and growled in a high-pitched tone. Those mantis claws clamped down behind my shoulders and her huge maw opened right in front of my face! And then she licked me like a dog.


    ¡°Violence?¡± A simple one-word question. But the implications were obvious. She was full of energy and wanted to go around murdering some more people and/or animals. But thankfully she was still under my control for the most part. Puppy-like obedience, where she might listen to me or she might try to bite my face off randomly.


    ¡°Soon, Lingling.¡± I looked around the valley and saw a huge tentacle emerge from the last cocoon, towering nearly a hundred meters above the ground! It was almost as tall as the Hatchery and that was just the normal length. It could stretch much, much longer than that.


    ¡°Oh about I give you a mission?¡± I ran my fingers through the slimy water again, pulling another handful of tiny Larvae out of the Spawning Pool. They were immediately wrapped in purple cocoons and only took a few seconds to burst free, completely changed into cricket-sized purple and black Zerglings. They had wings just like their big sister, because why not?


    ¡°Massacre?¡± She asked hopefully.


    ¡°If you¡¯re a good girl and kill the bad guys for Daddy.¡± I let the baby Zerglings fly over onto their sister¡¯s back, ¡°For now, guard the base. We¡¯re very weak at the moment and need to make sure nobody attacks us before we¡¯re ready to fight.¡±


    ¡°Always ready to fight!¡± She hopped up above my head and splashed my face with a bunch of green slime! Then there was a sonic boom as she buzzed her wings rapidly! She shot off into the sky before landing on a distant mountain top¡­ Most of those tiny Zerglings were left behind, but they quickly trailed after her wake.


    ¡°We should remove her wings.¡± Izsha made a serious suggestion.


    ¡°We¡¯ll see how she acts first.¡± I didn¡¯t dismiss the possibility entirely, ¡°Even if we got rid of the wings, she¡¯d just burrow underground or maybe develop the ability to warp through time and space to go murder us in the past?¡±


    ¡°Father¡­ You are joking, correct?¡± She thought I was kidding at first, but we both knew about the World Between Worlds, or Vergence Scatter. A temporal bullshit nexus that canonically exists within the Star Wars Multiverse.


    ¡°I¡¯m just saying it¡¯s possible.¡± I smiled wryly and leaned back, looking up at the night sky, ¡°We need to control Lothal though¡­ And actually, isn¡¯t there some ancient bullshit on Dathomir that could let us teleport to different planets? We need to go back and pick up our luggage soon. The Evolution Chamber would be a good place to keep the genetic samples.¡±


    ¡°There are many Force Sensitive Younglings that would make excellent targets for assimilation.¡± Izsha reminded me of a certain little protagonist who was probably only a year old at the moment, or maybe she was just born recently? It¡¯s hard to say.


    ¡°Ahsoka, Grogu¡­ How old is Ventress now? She might still be on Dathomir? I¡¯m not sure if she¡¯s older or younger than Anakin.¡± I knew the canon and legends locations of various ¡®protagonists¡¯ at different time points, but if I start abducting them randomly, then the Jedi will probably notice. Maybe the Force will actively help or fight against me? It¡¯s debatable whether my Zerg are in the best interest of the Force.


    ¡°We need to build more defenses before the night ends.¡± As she said that, I could feel Izsha spawning new full-sized Larvae. They weren¡¯t given much special attention. With the potential to become many archetypes, but in the end, their destiny was to become Drones. Those Drones moved to strategic positions around the valley and morphed into massive structures. Mainly Spore Crawlers. The design was nice, because it didn¡¯t limit them to one location. They could either uproot and walk around or even burrow underground if necessary.


    There were also a dozen Spine Crawlers. Not all of them were the same exact size and their sizes weren¡¯t static either. They could grow or even shrink depending on the circumstances. All Zerg structures were like that, because they¡¯re all living organisms. It¡¯s a weakness, but also a massive strength.


    ¡°Make some more Drones to gather resources.¡± I gave my firstborn an order, though it was a bit unnecessary. Then I closed my eyes and started relaxing a bit for real.


    I wonder how Midnight is doing?

 Interlude 2: Midnight

    Interlude 2: Midnight


    Midnight has had a pretty rough life the past few years. Back in the olden days, he was the Lord of the Forest, King of his Homeworld. A benevolent ruler who would bring joy to any citizens that he came across, while also exterminating various pests to keep the peace of the realm.


    Unfortunately, his useless Servant angered the World Soul and forced the two of them to be confined to a tiny, yet well-furnished prison cell for what felt like centuries. Just when Midnight thought the big red cat would finally learn his lesson, he created a giant bug and angered the World Soul beyond redemption¡­


    They were banished. Cast out into the void. Forced to flee from planet to planet, before they finally ended up on a disgustingly hot and dry dustball called Tatooine. Or as it would be pronounced in the Feline Tongue: ¡°Maaeeeouuu~!¡±


    This world was truly horrible. One sun was perfect, why would a Cat Lord ever need two? It made sunbathing unbearable! So once again, he was confined to a small space, but at least this new palace was much larger than the last. They didn¡¯t need to shit, piss, eat and sleep in the same room like savages anymore.


    ¡°Purrr~!¡± Waking up from a pleasant sleep, Midnight did some regal stretches and dug his nails into the bed. There was a tearing noise as the sheets were damaged, but it wasn¡¯t a big deal. The Servants would repair that later.


    ¡°Oh dear! Master Anakin, the furry beast has awoken!¡± The silvery metal slave called a ¡®Protocol Droid¡¯ was making a lot of noise and annoying His Majesty as usual. But Midnight was a tolerant King. He didn¡¯t bother punishing the foolish mechanical creature and just hopped down from the bed, walked across the floor and headed straight for the bathroom.


    The metal door wouldn¡¯t open automatically, so C-3PO had to walk over and press the button manually. Midnight scanned the darkness carefully, before he was suddenly blinded by the bright light!


    ¡°Maou!¡± He screamed in irritation at the silly Droid! Obviously he could see perfectly fine before! He meowed a few more times before finding his royal litter box and going inside to take his morning shit. Well, it was morning for him, but basically the middle of the day for everyone else in the house.


    Days are long on Tatooine though and nights are very brief, so most people were used to sleeping in the ¡®daytime¡¯. The cooling systems within even the slave hovels were extremely advanced though. It felt fairly comfortable even by Midnight¡¯s picky standards.


    ¡°Mao~!¡± Now that he was finished shitting, it was time for a royal feast! He quickly avoided the metal legs and waited patiently for the slow Droid to wobble over to open the bedroom door for him. In the meantime, he decided to lick his paws, then his side, down to his crotch and up his legs and tail¡­


    ¡°Threepio, did you say Middy woke up?¡± The yellow-haired Kitten finally reacted and turned away from the Red Cat¡¯s evil scriptures. He wobbled a bit as he got out of his chair, but fortunately he was still a cat in the end. Able to use his right paw to catch the wall before he actually fell.


    ¡°Master Anakin! Are you all right?!¡± The silver slave rushed over to his creator but Midnight ignored them and headed towards the kitchen. He suddenly sprinted and hopped off the floor, easily and lightly landing on the dining table next to another one of those damned cursed books that the Red Cat scribbled!


    ¡°Maoou~!¡± He demanded the brown-haired servant girl to prepare his kingly meal, but she took a few seconds to react! So he swatted his paw on her face and she almost lost an eye to his sharp claws!


    ¡°Bad Boy!¡± Shmi blinked her tired eyes and caught that dangerous paw, then flipped His Majesty onto his back in a blasphemous rebellion! She started petting and scratching his belly, even as he hissed and threatened to end her measly life! But then her scratching and massaging felt too good¡­ So he decided to let the pathetic mortal live for the time being.


    ¡°Threepio, can you prepare food for us?¡± Anakin asked his silver slave as he walked over to the chair next to his mother and sat down, placing his own book next to hers. The two cats were obsessed with reading. They were just like the Red Cat. Well, now he was more like a purple-armored Bug-like Red Cat. But he was still the same deranged Servant that raised and nurtured Midnight, so didn¡¯t shun or cast him out like others might.


    ¡°Maou~!¡± Speaking of which, Midnight hadn¡¯t seen the Red Cat in a few days¡­ Or has it been weeks? As an immortal God King, he really doesn¡¯t have a good sense of time anymore.


    ¡°Immediately, Master.¡± C-3PO worked as fast as he could to use the complicated devices around the kitchen to prepare a royal meal for the three of them.


    ¡°Ani, we need to go out and buy some things.¡± Shmi looked at the shiny silver box that was still on the table. She was actually afraid to spend any of those golden coins, even though the Red Cat told her it was fine.


    ¡°Mao!¡± Midnight suddenly remembered the ¡®Cantina¡¯ place they visited a year ago! They had so many delicacies!


    ¡°Mom¡­ I think he wants to¡­ Go to a restaurant?¡± Anakin actually understood him pretty well. For that matter, C-3PO could also understand the cat.


    ¡°Are you sure about that?¡± Unfortunately, Shmi wasn¡¯t quite as linguistically talented. Or as strong in the Force.


    ¡°Meouw~!¡± Midnight sat his royal ass down on the book in front of her and glared into her brown eyes, ¡°Mao!¡±


    ¡°Yeah, Mom, I¡¯m pretty sure.¡± Anakin giggled and started petting his Royal Highness, ¡°I¡¯ve never eaten at a restaurant before, Mom.¡±If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    ¡°I¡­ Neither have I.¡± Shmi almost started crying when she thought back to the past 37 years of her wretched life. Maybe she went to a restaurant as a baby or a toddler? She can¡¯t remember anymore though. She couldn¡¯t remember a lot of things anymore.


    ¡°Then we should go! We¡¯re free now, Mom! And rich!¡± The cute and innocent kitten didn¡¯t understand that even the mightiest of Kings could still be laid low. But that was probably for the better. Let the yellow kitten dream a bit longer, before the cold, harsh reality finds a chance to crush him once again.


    ¡°Mao!¡± Either way, King Midnight was going to eat those delicious things once again! So the Silver Slave didn¡¯t need to make meals for them either. They left him at home to guard the place and protect the valuables they left behind.


    Anakin and Shmi wouldn¡¯t be crazy enough to bring a thousand Peggats with them in a shiny money case. Hell, they couldn¡¯t even carry the damn thing. That¡¯s one of the reasons the case and luggage hadn¡¯t been moved yet. They simply couldn¡¯t physically do it.


    ¡°Maaaaou~!¡± The moment Midnight stepped outside, he instantly regretted it! He rushed back inside the house and demanded that his servants bring him back plenty of food from the Cantina!


    ¡°Umm, okay Middy, we¡¯ll be back soon. Watch the house with Threepio!¡± Anakin giggled and held his mother¡¯s hand as the two of them headed out into the hot streets of Mos Espa for the first time in a few days.


    ¡°Mao!¡± The black cat rushed back outside and into the shade of the much bigger brown-haired cat.


    ¡°You changed your mind?¡± Shmi smiled at the silly creature as the door to their hovel closed and locked.


    ¡°Meow!¡± Obviously Midnight was there to make sure his useless servants didn¡¯t forget to bring him what he wanted¡­ Though he also wasn¡¯t sure what he wanted yet, which is why he would have to brave the unbearable heat and go to the Cantina in person!


    ¡°I wonder what Master Amon is doing now?¡± Anakin asked his mother, though those triangular ears pointed up to pay attention to his words as well.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I hope he¡¯s safe.¡± Shmi sighed dramatically, ¡°Even if he¡¯s a¡­ Like a Jedi, the Dune Sea is a dangerous place. I worry that he¡¯ll be reckless and get himself killed.¡±


    ¡°Mom¡­¡± The little boy looked up at his mother and asked, ¡°Are you sure Amon isn¡¯t really my Father?¡±


    ¡°Of course he isn¡¯t.¡± She chuckled and shook her head, playing with her son¡¯s pretty blonde hair.


    ¡°Mom, I know how babies are made.¡± Although he was still very young, the kitten had seen and understood a lot of things she wished he hadn¡¯t.


    ¡°I know you know.¡± Shmi frowned and rubbed his head, ¡°From the story he told, that brat hadn¡¯t left his homeworld until just recently. I¡¯ve been here on Tatooine all this time. Even if that wasn¡¯t the case, he¡¯s only a teenager. He would have been far too young-¡±


    ¡°Mom, I¡¯ve already read through his notes. Not the ones in Galactic Standard that he gave you, but the ones in Langhesi.¡± Anakin smirked up at his mother, ¡°He knew about me. He wrote those notes before I was born. He said¡­ I was the Chosen One. A Vergence in the Force. He knew I would have a lot of Midi-chlorians and that I would make a good research subject.¡±


    ¡°Mao.¡± Midnight commented from behind them.


    ¡°Yeah, he made Middy when he was only two years old.¡± The little boy giggled, ¡°Maybe he really is my Dad?¡±


    ¡°When you say it like that, it¡¯s all a lot more suspicious.¡± Shmi breathed in the dusty hot and dry air, pulling her thick brown hood over her head to block some of the sun¡¯s rays. She looked down at her son whose hair seemed to glisten with a blinding gold in the light, ¡°I¡¯ve heard the Jedi are able to see visions of the future. Not only the Jedi, but those who are blessed or cursed by the Force have shown similar abilities. So far as I know, the most accurate prophecies are the self-fulfilling kind.¡±


    ¡°Even if he didn¡¯t make me, Master Amon still knows who did.¡± Anakin smiled, looking out at the dusty road ahead of them. Their home wasn¡¯t far from Watto¡¯s Junk Shop. In fact, they could already see that familiar little building and the junkyard beyond it from where they were standing. Similarly, the flying blue and yellow peasant was glaring at them from where he hovered above the roof.


    ¡°Mao!¡± Midnight glared back at the ugly bird, wondering what flavor of chicken it might taste like?


    ¡°Mew~!¡± A high-pitched cry came from down the street and startled His Majesty! Not to mention the two cat servants!


    ¡°Maaaaaou~!¡± Midnight ran as fast as he could towards the distant cry for help!


    ¡°Wait, Middy! Don¡¯t run so fast!¡± Anakin shouted anxiously and chased the cat, while his mother was a lot slower. However, she was also desperate to make sure her Lord was safe. After all, if anything happened to him, the Big Red Cat would be furious.


    ¡°Son of a Sarlacc!¡± A woman¡¯s voice came from up ahead, ¡°Let go of my cat!¡±


    ¡°You took my cat from me, so I¡¯m gonna take yours! Mandalorian Schutta!¡± There was a particularly ugly and hairless giant monster cat. No, that thing wasn¡¯t a cat at all. Midnight darted through the legs of several of the lumpy-headed gray Klatoonian Bounty Hunter¡¯s minions!


    ¡°Hey Boss, I think I saw another cat?¡± A yellow Twi¡¯lek man tried to get the giant¡¯s attention, but it was a little too late. That ferocious and majestic King jumped off the ground, dug his claws into the dusty metal armor on the big guy¡¯s back and quickly jumped again! Mid-air, Midnight made eye contact with the pretty crimson kitten and then looked over at the surprised Mandalorian woman. She was wearing her helmet, so there wasn¡¯t much in the way of facial expressions, but Midnight could tell from her body language and scent that she was surprised at his amazing presence!


    *Pew~!* A red flash flew straight through Midnight¡¯s torso and into the sky. His eyes went wide in shock and horror! Was that it?! Just a pull of the trigger and the King was dead?!


    The wrecked body bounced on the ground dirt a few times and the dying cat tried to meow, but his lungs were just gone. He looked up blankly and heard his little sister crying, ¡°Mew~!¡±


    ¡°No! No! Middy~!¡± Anakin screamed and desperately tried to push his way over to the mangled carcass, tears in his eyes.


    How could this happen?! How could his Legacy end here?! He was the Chosen One! He was supposed to unite the Cats! Not die like a dog!


    ¡°Castas! You absolute fool!¡± Vhonte shouted and used her dual blasters to burn a chunk of the guy¡¯s arm off, so that her kitten could escape safely! When she tried to finished the man off, he managed to dodge and avoid, even putting down a flat personal shield that deflected her bolts! Then the ground of henchmen started firing at her and she was knocked around a bit, though the armor was still sturdy enough to protect the most important parts of her body.


    ¡°Anakin, be careful!¡± Shmi finally made it over there by the time the shooting started! She watched her son scramble over to the dying black cat and pick up his body, before miraculously escaping, even as blaster bolts were flying everywhere!


    A gout of flames shot out of the Mandalorian¡¯s wrist and engulfed the whole street! A few people managed to take cover behind the shield or behind each other, but everyone else was screaming and burning!


    ¡°Mom! We have to go!¡± Anakin shouted at his mother, holding the cat carcass in one hand and pulling her wrist with the other!


    ¡°No, no, no again-¡± Unfortunately, Shmi was having a PTSD moment and totally stunlocked. A blaster bolt fly right past her left ear and burned some of her hair, snapping her out of her hallucinations! She blinked a few times and then picked her son up, sprinting back home!


    Once they were inside the house, she put her son down and started panting, hyperventilating really.


    ¡°We can¡¯t let him die!¡± Shmi looked at the furry carcass that had a sizzling hole blasted through its torso. Really, it was amazing that the body was still in one piece at all.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, Mom! He¡­ He isn¡¯t dead yet¡­ *Sniff~!* We can, we can fix him! We have the technology¡­¡± Anakin hugged Midnight''s scorching hot body against his chest and walked towards his open bedroom door.


    ¡°Do we?¡± Unlike her genius son, Shmi hadn¡¯t even finished reading the book yet. But the 6 year old Chosen One had¡­ And he understood exactly what he needed to do to keep his friend alive, and to keep his new Master¡¯s wrath at bay.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ We-we do, but you¡¯re not gonna like it.¡± The child looked towards his mother¡¯s teary eyes and sniffled again, turning back towards his room. If they wanted to save Midnight, there would need to be sacrifices. There were always sacrifices. Whether it¡¯s some dark ritual or a simple medical procedure.


    ¡°Oh! Master Anakin, you¡¯re home so soon!¡± C-3PO looked at the two of them in surprise with a duster in his hand, ¡°Oh-oh dear¡­¡± Then he saw the dead cat and his voice trembled, ¡°Has the beast perished?¡±


    ¡°No. I¡¯m sorry, Threepio, but I¡¯m gonna need your help to make sure he stays that way. I promise I¡¯ll make it up to you later.¡± Anakin sniffled again and firmed his resolve to do what was necessary. Or at least what he thought was necessary, based on what little he actually knew and understood about Langhesi Forging.

 Chapter 16: A Symbol of Peace

    Chapter 16: A Symbol of Peace


    ¡°Master, Midnight has fallen.¡± A quiet voice whispered from the distance. For a moment there, I thought I was hallucinating. I looked over towards the northwest. The direction of Mos Espa and smiled wryly.


    ¡°Middy isn¡¯t dead. I would¡¯ve felt it.¡± I focused a little harder and then saw through the eyes of the invisible centipede that was crawling across Anakin¡¯s ceiling. He was frantically working on some contraption, while some machines were pumping oxygenated blood into Midnight¡¯s severed head. The cat was unconscious but still technically alive. Otherwise his Force Ghost would probably be over here bitching and complaining by now.


    ¡°Father, do you wish for me to send a Drone?¡± Izsha asked curiously, ¡°A Drone should be perfectly capable of replacing his missing body.¡±


    It really wouldn¡¯t be that hard to clone a new body for the cat. In fact, that wouldn¡¯t even be necessary. Midnight has immortal cells. He can theoretically heal from any wound as long as his brain isn¡¯t too damaged. He might not have Wolverine or Deadpool level regeneration, but it¡¯s at least on the level of a regular Zergling. As long as he was placed in a Creep Cocoon he could heal in a matter of hours or days at most.


    ¡°No. I¡¯m curious now. I might as well let my Apprentices get some experience.¡± I snickered and shook my head, ¡°Even if they fail and Middy dies for real, it just means that it was his time. He probably did some stupid shit and got himself killed again.¡±


    Yes, again. This wasn¡¯t the first time he almost died. Not even the tenth. Usually it¡¯s from eating something poisonous or toxic to cats. Or getting bitten by venomous insects¡­ Some of which I created myself during my experiments. I¡¯m just kinda numb by now.


    If he dies, he dies. It¡¯s kinda fucked, but what am I gonna do? Cats aren¡¯t meant to be immortal anyway. If he was a regular cat, he¡¯d be dying of old age soon anyway.


    ¡°Sometimes I feel like I¡¯d fit in well with the Jedi. At least in their ability to not give a fuck about life and death most of the time.¡± I sighed and returned my focus to my own body. I was in one of the three Evolution Chambers. One of them was completely hogged by a big-ass Rancor momma, another one had the baby Sarlacc, Rancor and Greater Krayt Dragon inside¡­ I was in the third. It was a lot more peaceful and serene without all the roaring or growling, or just the heavy breathing.


    ¡°I doubt the Jedi would tolerate our existence.¡± Izsha whispered into my mind as I leaned back into the pulsating fleshy chair. In front of me there were seven large black and smooth spheres. They had stary lights in their centers. Three were green on the left, one was blue, then an orange, yellow and finally just plain black.


    I reached out and pulled the black one towards my hand. It was the size of a¡­ Bowling ball? Something like that. They were all pretty big. The biggest Krayt Dragon Pearls we managed to find within the stomach of that poor bastard we devoured from the inside out. The other twelve were only about the size of baseballs. They still looked pretty, floating in front of the white bony wall.


    ¡°Kyber is such an interesting¡­ Organism.¡± I squeezed my hands, forcefully crushing and warping the black ball down! Smaller and smaller, until it was only the size of a tennis ball at most. It roared and screamed in discomfort, pain¡­ The Force was agitated by the crystalline lifeform¡¯s suffering.


    ¡°I wonder if the Jedi know or care how much they torture their poor Kyber buddies?¡± I smiled wryly and shrugged my shoulders, ¡°Or maybe these Kyber Crystals enjoy the pain a bit too much? Are they screaming in agony or pleasure? Maybe a bit of both.¡±


    I thought for a moment and the blackened palm of my right hand opened up with a slit. Crimson blood flowed up and engulfed the condensed Krayt Dragon Pearl. My wound closed with a thought. Then I molded the blood into the shape of a simple cylinder that was rounded on one end and concave on the other. It quickly started hardening, with the blood transforming into organs, muscles, veins and arteries. The black crystal at the center like a throbbing heart.


    ¡°Hmmm¡­¡± I pursed my lips and tried to think, ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­¡± I muttered as I quickly covered the center with bony white ribs, then a spine down the back, a reddish-brown carapace covered everything else in layers of armor, but the white bones were still visible on the outside. The concave part looked like an open toothy maw, but there was no tongue, only pinkish meat.


    ¡°That should do it?¡± I wasn¡¯t totally sure it would work. So I put on my mask just in case it exploded in my fucking face.


    ¡°Father, wouldn¡¯t it be more logical to make a shield, rather than a blade?¡± Izsha suggested, ¡°Jedi and even Sith are rarely very durable. A Zergling with a personal shield and Force Powers should be able to handle most enemies.¡±


    ¡°Because that¡¯d be way too overpowered. Obviously.¡± I squeezed the hilt a bit and it screamed in response! A huge black beam of deadly plasma shot out from the gaping maw and kept going! Arcs of purple lightning shot out everywhere and struck other Krayt Dragon Pearls floating nearby! It looked scary, but they were totally fine and didn¡¯t explode or anything too dramatic.


    There was a huge bloody and burnt wound in the wall though. The Evolution Chamber roared and cried from the pain of being torn a new asshole randomly¡­


    ¡°Okay, so maybe I should¡¯ve tested this shit outdoors?¡±


    So anyway, I released my grip on the lightsaber hilt and the plasma blade shrunk rapidly. The Kyber kept the hilt from melting or exploding as it was meant to, but it seems like my organic forcefield technology is a bit¡­ Okay, very sketchy.


    Conventional Langhesi Forging involves merging biological organisms, usually plants rather than animals, with regular old-fashioned technology that you can find anywhere in the Galaxy really. They don¡¯t even use special engines, warp drives or shield generators in their million Credit bio-ships. The thing that makes them awesome is the way they¡¯re able to form a psychic connection with their pilots for the most part.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    I did study it a little bit, but honestly, it¡¯s not my forte. One of the reasons I wanted Anakin was because I figured he would probably be a lot better at the cybernetic and mechanical aspects of Langhesi Forging. I much prefer the biological side. Genetic manipulation was fun and extremely overpowered, but then again, everything was overpowered if you got it to a high enough level. At the lowest level, everything is trash regardless of how much potential those things might have.


    ¡°Shields take power. Kyber amplifies that power dramatically. Normal shield generators are usually expensive to power. Takes tons of energy that can¡¯t really fit in such a small space. Otherwise everyone would just wear personal force field generators that worked constantly and still allowed them to interact with the world normally¡­¡±


    Izsha suggested, ¡°Perhaps we can grow our own Kyber Crystals? Or at least amplify their growth.¡±


    ¡°The Jedi actually know how to make Synthetic Kyber and there are fucktons of other types of crystal that can replace Kyber.¡± I couldn¡¯t remember most of them, because it wasn¡¯t really something I memorized in my first life. However, the fact that there were so many Lightsaber Crystals aside from Kyber¡­ It meant that we should be able to make our own variations.


    ¡°On the other hand, since there are so many different crystals that can replace Kyber, not to mention the fact that Kyber isn¡¯t stupidly rare¡­ Why bother making our own version in the first place?¡±


    I walked along the brown creep that glistened and writhed in the harsh sunlight. It was really squishy and lumpy. A few sharp teeth or spikes emerged from time to time, but they moved out of my way. In fact, if I didn¡¯t feel like walking, I could just stand still and allow the Creep carpet to push me along.


    The Protoss had Khaydarin Crystals, which were basically Kyber Crystals for the most part. I don¡¯t think they were the ¡®Minerals¡¯ that Terrans, Protoss and Zerg could miraculously turn into anything they wanted, but they were definitely pretty useful. The Xel¡¯Naga left behind the Khaydarin Crystals and the Protoss used them in practically everything, which is why they all had personal shields and psionic weaponry.


    ¡°Maybe I should try to make some wrist blades?¡± I looked at the hilt in my hand and aimed it away from me, and the ground, then squeezed slightly. The black beam shot out again, this time not quite as dramatically. It only reached a couple dozen meters, black sparks shooting off randomly. I focused my will on the blade and condensed it down, tighter and tighter, until it was a little thinner than the hilt in my hand. Then it was a matter of condensing the plasma farther by shrinking the forcefield¡­ Using the Force.


    ¡°This seems very inefficient and unnecessary.¡± Izsha grumbled.


    ¡°The smaller crystals wouldn¡¯t have such a stupidly large amount of power behind them.¡± I smiled wryly and wondered, ¡°Maybe we should¡¯ve started with the normal sized Kyber and worked our way up to the biggest Krayt Dragon Pearls?¡±


    ¡°Condensing the pearls seems unnecessary as well. Using the large pearls for long-range weaponry or shields would be far more effective.¡± She sent images of the Death Star blowing up a planet with a superlaser, then of a giant laser drill from Starcraft that was used to breach the door of a Xel¡¯Naga temple. It was also something that the coop commander could use and was kinda OP. A map-wide death laser that kills shit automatically¡­


    ¡°Actually, I was kinda thinking more about the possibility of using Kyber Crystals to create some sort of Stargate. Or maybe a Hyperdrive. They¡¯re attuned to the Force really strongly and can amplify energy, while also preventing energy from overloading and reducing overheating. Hell, could even make solid holograms like in Star Trek, or maybe the Crystal Gems from Steven Universe?¡±


    Okay, I was getting a little ahead of myself. But there were a lot of possibilities. A lot of which were completely valid in Star Wars and even Starcraft. Stargates reminded me that I had to conquer Dathomir before those fucking morons ended up wasting a galactic stargate system. Besides, there were only about five thousand people on Dathomir and there were a lot of Force Sensitives. Loads of Rancors, Sarlaccs and other creatures, not to mention all the plants and minerals.


    ¡°Anyway, the purpose of the lightsaber is a symbol.¡± I held the extremely powerful but difficult to control ¡®beast¡¯ in my right hand, staring at that pitch-black plasma blade as arcs of purple Force Lightning sputtered around me uncontrollably. When the Creep was struck, it burned and died, but it became food for the other Creep and soon¡­ All the damage was repaired.


    ¡°A symbol of ¡®Peace¡¯?¡± Izsha asked sarcastically.


    ¡°A fancy death-laser to guard the peace and justice of the Galaxy.¡± I narrowed my eyes and looked up towards the blue sky, ¡°Looks like they¡¯ve noticed us already.¡±


    ¡°The Jedi?¡± She wondered, then realized: ¡°Father, we¡¯re being surveilled!¡±


    I could see a glint in the sky and when I focused my vision more, I could actually see the starfighter in the upper atmosphere. Using the Force, I could ¡®feel¡¯ a few lifeforms inside. It wasn¡¯t an unmanned vessel, there really weren¡¯t many of them to be honest. At least not yet.


    ¡°Feels hostile.¡± I couldn¡¯t tell if they had Droids onboard, but I could definitely sense the three people who were on that ship. As they got closer, probably to see us more clearly, I could actually see inside the cockpit. My vision was stupidly powerful when I wanted it to be¡­ Maybe not superman levels, but pretty damn impressive.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that the Rodian? Umm, I forgot his name. The Bounty Hunter that was on the ship back then¡­¡± I muttered to myself, though Izsha obviously could hear everything easily, ¡°Shoot his ass down.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Father!¡± She excitedly aimed her Spore Crawlers towards the trajectory of the starfighter. They shrunk down, then with a deafening *Boom~!*, they fired one after the other! There was a green misty halo and trail through the air, but the projectile was so fucking fast that even a Starfighter couldn¡¯t react at all!


    I could see their shields partially block the clumps of green goop that had slowed down to supersonic speeds by that point. However, most of the acidic Creep managed to splatter across the hull and wings of the small vessel. The Spore Crawlers weren¡¯t finished either. There were only five of them, but each was a gigantic cannon that could nearly launch their projectiles into space.


    ¡°The effects are decent.¡± I watched the ship billowing black smoke as it was hit by the second volley. The vessel lost a wing, and the other wing¡¯s engine exploded, causing the starfighter to flip and tumble through the air. It passed over our valley and crashed into the nearby mountaintop. Big chunks of black rock came pouring down, along with bits of molten metal and other shrapnel.


    ¡°The range needs to be improved. Too much loss of momentum above ten kilometers. They will not allow us to defend against orbital targets.¡± Izsha was disappointed, but I was pretty happy with the results. Spore Crawlers were never really meant to attack orbital targets in the first place. They were anti-air at most. For enemies that far away, we¡¯d need ¡®starfighters¡¯ of our own.


    I turned off the lightsaber, then ignited it again slowly. Carefully controlling the beam length and power level. The lightning stopped. The air around me stopped quaking. It was serene and silent, just like the void. Umm, not the ¡®Void¡¯, but like the void of space. I think the Void had an atmosphere, so sound would probably travel pretty damn far. Can you imagine how loud the stars would be roaring constantly?


    ¡°Although it¡¯s inefficient and imperfect, I kinda like it.¡± I waved the blade around a few times, before turning it off again. The toothy maw shut, while a few small yellow eyes opened up along the sides, blinking and looking around, before closing again to rest.


    ¡°Unlike a normal lightsaber, it¡¯d be much more difficult for some random asshole to steal these and using them without the Force would be extremely dangerous. No, for that matter, if it wasn¡¯t someone that we allowed to use the blade, then¡­¡± I watched as a scorpion-like tail emerged from the back of the hilt, stabbing the back of my hand with enough strength to pierce most armor. Not mine though. Especially not on my hands.


    ¡°Worst case scenario though, it could also just explode.¡± I didn¡¯t demonstrate that feature, because it was unnecessary.


    ¡°Perhaps it¡¯s time for Banelings and Scourge?¡± My daughter suggested that we¡¯d start creating children who would become suicide bombers.


    ¡°This isn¡¯t a video game.¡± I thought about it a bit more seriously, ¡°If we create something like a Baneling or Scourge, suicide bombing could be an option, but more of a last resort. They still have claws and teeth. Banelings can spew acid, so can Scourge. If they die, they explode, but if they don¡¯t die, they can still be useful.¡±


    *Rumble~!* There was a huge landslide, but it really wasn¡¯t that big of a deal. The Spore Crawlers and Spine Crawlers dug themselves out, walked around on their four spiky giant legs and picked better spots to dig themselves into the rocky, sandy black dirt again.


    ¡°Send some Drones to scavenge the wreckage. Might be something useful. At the very least, make sure they aren¡¯t sending our location to anyone else or calling for reinforcements.¡± I knew they were just Bounty Hunters, but those fuckers usually worked for the Hutts. Ships crash on Tatooine all the time though. I see wreckage burning across the skies every night. It¡¯s debatable whether these assholes will be missed.

 Chapter 17: Research

    Chapter 17: Research


    Unsurprisingly, that Rodian and his partners on the starfighter were dead by the time the Drones arrived. Not a big deal, their Essence was still collected and catalogued. Their Biomass was broken down and turned into food for the Swarm. The parts of their ship were gathered up and brought onto the Creep. It was relatively easy for a group of Drones to use their anti-gravity fields to carry insanely heavy objects when working together.


    ¡°The Hyperdrive seems intact. Hypermatter also seems stable and fine.¡± I watched the Drones take the ship apart, though it was already broken into a bunch of pieces in mid-air, then the crash did even more damage. The Engines were fucked, but that¡¯s fine. The Hyperdrive wasn¡¯t something we needed, but the Hypermatter was different.


    ¡°They were communicating with someone before their demise.¡± Izsha whispered into my mind as a cute little Drone floated over and handed me a disk-shaped holo emitter. I pressed the buttons and looked through their recent calls. Holographic images popped up, a Twi¡¯lek girl, a Twi¡¯lek man, a Rodian woman, and finally the most recent one was a fatass slug.


    ¡°Jabba?¡± I wasn¡¯t totally sure, because there was no name displayed. Jabba would make the most sense though, since Gardulla had tits and¡­ That was about it. Aside from the tits, they both looked about the same to me. Of course, if I saw them in person, I could pick up a lot more minute details. Cheap-ass holographic projectors like these didn¡¯t even have proper coloring. Everything was just blue.


    There was no recording, just the option to call him back or not.


    ¡°Eh, fuck it. Why not?¡± I pressed the button and the thing beeped a few times, finally a hologram of a Twi¡¯lek dude appeared. He was particularly ugly, even by my generous standards.


    ¡°Who are you? Where is Jakoli?¡± He asked while looking around, I guess he was expecting to see other people around me. At most, the cute Drone by my side was being picked up on his side of the projector.


    ¡°Amon Kal.¡± I smirked, ¡°Were you the dumbasses that hired that fucker to hunt me down in the first place?¡±


    ¡°So you¡¯re the Langhesi slave that bested Jango Fett and his schutta?¡± He sneered, ¡°How foolish of you to come here to Tatooine. Fortunately His Excellency Jabba Desilijic Tiure of Nal Hutta is a magnanimous and generous ruler. You will do well to surrender yourself peacefully and serve your new Master well.¡±


    ¡°Sure. Where¡¯s he live? Give me a map and I¡¯ll go there to turn myself in right now.¡± I snorted and couldn¡¯t help laughing, ¡°No, seriously, tell me where. I really wanna know.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not as foolish as I thought.¡± The moron smiled, revealing his sharp teeth, ¡°Very well, I will send you the coordinates. His Eminence is a great and kind Master, you have made a wise decision.¡±


    His body transformed into a map of the planet, which was still blue. The world turned and there was a link from my location to Jabba¡¯s Palace. He was in the mountains, but not these mountains. It was over to the east, about a couple thousand kilometers. Not that far honestly.


    ¡°Thanks for the info.¡± I smirked and crushed the projector in my left palm. Tossing the fragments to the Drone to digest, I said, ¡°Alright, pack it up. We¡¯re moving.¡±


    Orbital bombardments were way too easy. Although they barely did that shit to the main characters, there are tons of examples of orbital bombardments against people with extremely low plot armor. I didn¡¯t wanna test my luck just yet.


    ¡°Reclaiming Creep Carpet.¡± Izsha started sucking up all the brown Creep that covered the blackened ground into her organs. Whether it was the giant Hatchery, the Spawning Pool, Evolution Chambers or Spore and Spine Crawlers, they were all part of her body. Part of the Swarm. They absorbed the Creep within a matter of minutes, then they all submerged underground, leaving behind some holes, but no other evidence that they were ever there.


    The Drones were still collecting pieces of wreckage from the crash at a leisurely pace though. They didn¡¯t really have any reason to rush yet. Dragging the parts down into the holes, then heading back out to pick up more pieces of debris. Every hunk of metal could be broken down and used later. Although they weren¡¯t particularly rare, there was also no reason to waste resources.


    I held up the lightsaber I created and smiled, extending the black blade, ¡°Izsha. I didn¡¯t need to create the Zerg. I could¡¯ve chosen so many other paths, but I picked this one. Do you know why?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Father.¡± Of course she did, ¡°We chose this path because it was¡­ Cool.¡±


    ¡°Exactly.¡± I turned the blade off and placed it on my right hip carapace. It stuck there easily. Then I walked over to the hole and hopped down, my feet seemed to be gliding along invisible rails as I hovered down rapidly.


    ¡°The most efficient decision isn¡¯t always the best. It¡¯s usually more important to pick the most enjoyable path.¡± Like sliding down into the abyss and avoiding various sharp rocks that occasionally fell down around me. It wasn¡¯t necessary at all. But it was fun.


    ¡°I see¡­ Father, did you create me for entertainment purposes?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d say it was more of an art project, but there¡¯s also the practical aspect.¡± I quickly caught up to her hind tendrils. The bottom of her fleshy purple meat mountain was a gaping, toothy maw. It opened and a tongue shot out, wrapping around my entire body and sucking me inside. I was brought through some soft and squishy flesh rapidly. It wasn¡¯t long before I found myself inside the Evolution Chamber with the Krayt Dragon Pearls again.


    ¡°I¡¯m something of an artist myself.¡±


    ¡°Pft~! Hahahah~! I know you are. You¡¯re my daughter after all.¡± I snickered and honestly looked forward to the ¡®art project¡¯ she was working on. It was actually something I planned to do myself, but I decided to give her the potential, knowledge and power to make decisions on her own. She was an individual, just like Prima and Lingling. The rest of the Zerg were not. But that¡¯s probably for the best.


    Too many individuals would make things far more complicated. The Zerg Hivemind would be far too loud and chaotic. I¡¯m not a Jedi, but I still like my fucking serenity and peace. I spent way too much time in my last life in a state of constant annoyance.


    ¡°Anyway, let me know when we reach our destination. I¡¯m gonna try to get some research done on Kyber usage.¡± Replicating them wasn¡¯t actually that difficult. Just a matter of finding the crystals within rocks and ores, then harvesting them and inducing rapid growth. If we tried to make our own crystals from scratch it¡¯d be a lot more convoluted and silly at this point. That¡¯s a future research project when I don¡¯t have so many other things on my plate.


    ¡°We could use a Netti and a Force Sensitive Togruta.¡± Izsha mentioned it casually and I couldn¡¯t help rolling my eyes.


    ¡°Where the fuck are we gonna find a Netti on Tatooine? Togrutas aren¡¯t as rare, but Force Sensitive ones¡­ Where¡¯s Shili anyway?¡± I couldn¡¯t remember anymore, but that¡¯s why I created her to have such a good fucking memory.


    ¡°Expansion Region, Ehosiq Region, Ahsoka Tano should be one year old. A few years from when she was found by Master Plo koon. Shaak Ti is also an option.¡±


    ¡°Shaak Ti should be a Knight or Master already? I can¡¯t remember. I know she was already a Master on the council in 32 BBY.¡± I vaguely remember her being in the room when Anakin went there the first time.


    ¡°Father, as far as I remember, Shaak Ti was inundated into the Jedi Council in the period of time between the Battle of Naboo and the Clone Wars.¡± Apparently I programmed her memories to be better than my own. To be fair though, it¡¯s a lot more dangerous to fuck with your own brain chemistry than to design a new one that works more effectively.


    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, then she might still be a Jedi Knight at the moment. Definitely not a Padawan though. It usually took a long time to go from a Padawan to a Knight to a Master, though most Knights never became Masters in the first place.¡± I tried to remember where she might be and when, but honestly, Shaak Ti didn¡¯t really have much of a presence in the Lore until the Clone Wars.


    ¡°A child would make for a more useful experimental subject. Especially a baby.¡± Izsha said something kinda fucked up, but she wasn¡¯t wrong. Ahsoka Tano would be a pretty useful test subject. Also much easier to mold and groom a baby or toddler than an older child. The Jedi were masters in that particular technique. Ironically, the Sith preferred targeting teenagers and adults instead.


    I wonder if that¡¯s why Anakin killed the Younglings? Or maybe he just likes killing kids? Wasn¡¯t the first time either. Hmmm, I might need to keep an eye on him.


    ¡°Murder!¡± Speaking of which, I was distracted once again by Lingling¡¯s telepathic shouting. I sat down on my meat-chair and leaned back, sending my consciousness across hundreds of miles of mountains and desert. I could see the little menace approaching a massive Sandcrawler. The massive 20 meter tall and 40 meter long metal land-ship was big enough to fit an entire Jawa Clan.


    ¡°Should I care?¡± I¡¯ll be honest, whether it was the Sand People or the Jawas, I didn¡¯t have much empathy or sympathy for them. The Jawas weren¡¯t quite as bad as the Tusken of course. But they weren¡¯t much better either. They would capture and enslave a human just as easily as they would a Droid. They generally didn¡¯t attack Moisture Farmers and shit like that but it¡¯s not because they were ¡®nicer¡¯, it was just that they were more interested in trade most of the time.


    Ugh, I¡¯m too fucking soft-hearted. But it is important to have some boundaries and limits, otherwise it¡¯s way too easy to fall completely to the Dark Side and get manipulated like a puppet.


    ¡°Lingling, don¡¯t kill the kids.¡± In other words, I didn¡¯t care if she slaughtered everyone else.


    ¡°Kill the kids!¡± And of course she conveniently misinterpreted what I said.


    ¡°Goddamn it.¡± I sighed dramatically and ¡®zoomed out¡¯ to a more strategic perspective. A bird¡¯s eye view of sorts. I could see dozens of Zerglings kicking up sand and dust as they sprinted across the dunes. Those tiny crickets had grown to the size of large dogs, not much smaller than their big sister.


    You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.


    ¡°Master, I¡¯ve discovered something interesting.¡± I heard another voice, deeper, feminine and much more mature than Lingling¡¯s childish thoughts.


    ¡°What¡¯s up, Prima?¡± I turned my vision towards the Primal Zergling and her Pack. They were stealthily lurking on a cliff across from a small cavern. I could see a huge Krayt Dragon sleeping soundly in the warm sun. It honestly looked like a giant tan lizard with horns. The size was enormous though. Thirty meters long, essentially the length of a full-grown blue whale, just not quite as bulky. It was still ridiculously large for a land animal though.


    ¡°I¡¯ve located the Canyon Krayt Dragon. I was going to attack, but I noticed that we aren¡¯t the only hunters here.¡± She marked a location on the psionic map. It was within her vision, so I could see it as well. A group of several dozen Tusken. They had blasters and their usual heavy metal sticks with a blunt and a pointy end. I didn¡¯t really see how the fuck they¡¯d be able to even come close to dealing with a Krayt Dragon¡­


    ¡°Wait, that¡¯s¡­¡± I could feel something obscuring my vision. The Force didn¡¯t want me to see them. Unfortunately for the Force, our Psionic Network was more than just the Force. It also included more conventional methods, everything from radio waves and pheromones to quantum data transmission. If I relied entirely on the Force, I¡¯d be an idiot.


    ¡°Or a Jedi.¡± Izsha added to my own thoughts.


    I focused on the area that was obscured before and it cleared up rapidly. I could see them clearly. A group of Tusken. Nothing strange at first, but two of them in particular were sending out ripples in the Force. An adolescent boy¡­ And his father.


    ¡°Sharad Hett.¡± Izsha pulled the name from my own distant and vague memories, ¡°Father of Darth Krayt.¡±


    ¡°A¡¯Sharad Hett.¡± I smirked and focused more on the kid than the adult. The boy was holding a Tusken stick weapon, rather than a lightsaber hilt like his father. They were both humans, but their Essence would definitely be very useful. Especially the boy. I can compare them against Anakin, who is also a ¡®normal human¡¯ on Tatooine and maybe glean some secrets from the Chosen One by comparison.


    ¡°What are your orders, Master?¡± Unlike Lingling, Prima was far more cautious and honestly a lot more reasonable.


    ¡°If I had to guess, Sharad is probably trying to get a Krayt Dragon Pearl to use in a lightsaber for his son. Either that, or maybe just as a feat of strength as the leader of a Tusken Clan.¡± I don¡¯t know whether he lives nearby though. If their clan is in the mountains, then he¡¯d have a reason to deal with the Krayt Dragon as well. A lizard that large would need to eat a lot, and aside from the Sand People, they also kept Banthas and other large beasts around that might attract attention.


    ¡°Father, we¡¯re surfacing.¡± Izsha warned me right before the whole room shook and I was snapped out of my bird¡¯s eye view for a moment. I closed my eyes again and watched as the blackened ground burst open in a different valley that looked almost identical to the other. The purple meaty mountain that is my daughter was the first to emerge. Then around her as the core, there was a Spawning Pool that looked like a closed toothy mouth that opened extremely wide to reveal the pretty green ooze inside, followed by the Evolution Chambers and the many Spore Crawlers and Spine Crawlers.


    The massive Hatchery spewed out massive amounts of brownish purple Creep that rapidly expanded across the black dirt and rocks. The other buildings, even the Spore and Spine Crawlers were also able to spray plenty of Creep everywhere. The roots dug deep into the earth, even that entire partially collapsed tunnel we came here from was infested by the Zerg superorganism. It was a combination of various types of fungi, lichen, moss, mold, bacteria and fuckloads of microbes that were beneficial to the Zerg and terrifyingly dangerous to unassimilated or prepared creatures. It could even eat the rocks, sand and dirt if necessary, if not necessary, it would just coat the surface and digest things slowly.


    The Zerg Creep carpet I created could photosynthesize with a pretty high efficiency as well. Just like all the Zerg. It¡¯s one of the reasons why we¡¯re above ground instead of staying safely hidden underground. The other reason is because it¡¯s easier to breathe. And while my Zerg can survive for a while in an anaerobic environment, they can¡¯t survive there very easily. Something I need to work on in the future.


    ¡°Keep observing for now, Prima. Let me know what they end up doing. If they fight and if they look like they¡¯re losing, try to save Sharad and A¡¯Sharad. They¡¯re the two-¡±


    ¡°I know who they are, Master. I will make sure to keep them relatively safe¡­¡± Prima told me that and cut off the communication. Well, we were still connected, but the connection wasn¡¯t as intense unless we were actively focused on each other.


    ¡°Carnage!¡± Lingling screamed and I had to turn my attention back to the troublemaker. The swarm of winged Zerglings buzzed through the air and latched onto the outside of the reddish-brown Sandcrawler! The huge metal beast was even bigger than the Canyon Krayt Dragon by a lot. The Zerglings looked so tiny in comparison.


    But it wasn¡¯t long before they ripped through the aged metal plating on the outside and started pouring into the labyrinth of chaotic compartments and corridors inside. Lingling found an unsuspecting Jawa that was torturing a random Protocol Droid. Before the poor bastard could react, he was ripped in half!


    They weren¡¯t defenseless though. Within a few seconds, I could feel a horrible agonizing pain shooting through the Swarm! Turning my attention that way, there were three Zerglings that were being burned alive in the upper decks! Not together, but spread apart. There were multiple booby traps set up to deal with intruders, even a few mines and some Jawas managed to throw grenades before getting ripped to shreds!


    ¡°Fuck.¡± I know they were just Zerglings, but it still felt like shit to actually lose them. Their deaths reverberated through the Swarm, enraging and cautioning the other Zerglings who were fighting within the Sandcrawler. Except for Lingling, the others were more careful.


    *Boom~!* A deafening explosion erupted near the core of the giant vehicle, as several more Zerglings were ripped from the Psionic Network. Lingling jumped up towards the ceiling to avoid the molten floor that was threatening to engulf her whole body. It was like time slowed down as she punched a hole through the metal ceiling, buzzed her wings, darted down the corridor, then avoided a gout of fire from a vent. She was so damn fast, it was pretty impressive to be honest.


    ¡°Retreat!¡± She actually gave the order to run away. The dozen or so survivors were already escaping though. They drilled through the holes they entered from and then kept flying away from the Sandcrawler before it exploded into a massive fireball. Almost like a damn tactical nuke went off, well, maybe more like a mini-nuke from Fallout.


    ¡°Goddamn it.¡± I sighed dramatically and gave out the order, ¡°Lingling, get your fucking sisters back to base. Now. You¡¯re grounded.¡±


    ¡°Returning.¡± She didn¡¯t argue. Just started jumping and flying back towards the mountains that were hundreds of kilometers away. The other Zerglings followed along at a similar speed. I¡¯d say they¡¯d be back here in under an hour if they maintained that speed and didn¡¯t get distracted.


    ¡°Father, we need Overseers.¡± Izsha complained about that again.


    ¡°I know, I know.¡± I smiled wryly and shook my head, ¡°I wanna work on Overlords too, but we¡¯re just not there yet. We need more research on creatures like Mynocks¡­ Okay, I know, it¡¯s not really necessary to make them spaceworthy or capable of hyperspace travel with only their own bodies.¡±


    Technically, if you have shields, hypermatter, hyperdrive, inertial dampeners and all that other shit cybernetically attached to a biological creature, you can achieve Hyperspace travel pretty easily enough. That¡¯s what they do in normal Langhesi Forging.


    ¡°Father, we don¡¯t need the Overlords to fly. In fact, flying would make them easy targets and attract unnecessary attention.¡± Izsha telepathically sighed, ¡°We need Overseers to oversee the Zerg within the Swarm so that we can focus on research.¡±


    ¡°I know.¡± I smiled wryly, ¡°Okay, fine. I¡¯ll focus on making Overseers first. When Lingling gets back, we¡¯ll put her on house arrest. Can¡¯t have her running around and distracting us. I just hope Prima is able to handle things on her own initiative.¡±


    ¡°What about Anakin and Midnight?¡± She asked curiously, ¡°The Chosen One needs more protection.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯ll be fine.¡± I stopped playing with my lightsaber and pulled up a meaty brown desk from the floor. A sphincter opened up on the ceiling and spewed out several pulsating red maggots filled with various blood samples. Humans, Twi¡¯leks, Rancors, Krayt Dragons, Sarlaccs, I needed to study them all to a certain extent.


    I focused on one maggot in particular. I picked it up and smiled as I felt the genetic strands inside those blood cells revealing their mysteries to me. The Force tried to stop me. It tried to obscure the truth, but the fact that it was trying to hide shit was only making me more curious.


    A few more maggots fell down. I picked up a few more that belonged to the same test subject. Inside were everything from brain and heart cells to egg and uterus cells. I needed to know why¡­ What was so special about Mommy Skywalker that made her the perfect vessel for the Force itself to impregnate?


    Was it spiritual? She was a virgin. There was some symbolism there. Ritual significance perhaps. The Sith do love their fucking rituals.


    But I think it''s more than just metaphysical. Anakin is physically extremely attuned to the Force due to his Midichlorian Count being outrageously high. The little microscopic fucks generally didn¡¯t like cramming together in such tight, confined spaces. Why was Anakin such an outlier?


    Why was his Mom so weak in the Force in comparison? She would barely even make it as a Jedi. Not that her aptitude was nonexistent. It was just way too low for this Era of Jedi to even consider training. And that¡¯s if she was an easily malleable child, not a 37 year old woman.


    ¡°Unless her Force Sensitivity was much higher in the past.¡± I couldn¡¯t help thinking about the other Skywalkers. The child navigators of the Chiss. They were all women. All extremely Force Sensitive as children, but would lose their powers as they got older, until they were just normal Chiss by the time they were adults.


    ¡°Only one way to find out the truth.¡± I snickered and picked up the maggot with Shmi¡¯s blood inside. It squirted out a tiny droplet. Then a black larva fell from the ceiling, only the size of my hand, I fed the droplet to the adorable Larva and within a few seconds, it formed a pinkish cocoon round itself.


    I felt around inside and made sure it was morphing in the right direction. I fed some more blood cells, then also added in some nutrients and helped tweak some gene chains here and there. I didn¡¯t do anything too dramatic though. Just allowed nature to take its course.


    ¡°The midichlorian count is growing rapidly.¡± It was normal. When a child is conceived, the Midichlorians inside will be lower at first and ramp up as the embryo grows. At least that¡¯s the case most of the time.


    ¡°Hmmm, weird.¡± I noticed a steep drop-off almost immediately. The Midichlorians were still reproducing, but they were just spreading into the new cells, not filling them to the brim. This was common. I usually had to manually force the Midichlorians to crowd inside the cells and have little orgies constantly. Or whatever the fuck you¡¯d call their reproductive methods. They didn¡¯t have genders. They just reproduced through mitosis and cytokinesis. Just like amoebas for the most part.


    ¡°Wait a second.¡± Why the fuck didn¡¯t I think of something so goddamn simple and obvious?!


    I took out Anakin¡¯s blood sample and quickly took a droplet out. Then I narrowed my eyes. I narrowed again. Looking deeper and closer. I could see the cells. Then inside the cells. I ignored the bacteria, viruses and all the other shit squirming around, focusing entirely on the Midiclorians.


    ¡°It can¡¯t be that fucking simple, right?¡± It was so stupidly obvious that I couldn¡¯t believe I didn¡¯t figure it out sooner. Or that other people didn¡¯t figure it out already.


    ¡°Father, maybe they did know. But the Jedi and Sith purposefully obscured the information.¡± The Galactic Republic and later the Empire, or technically the Sith Empires that came before them, and the New Republic that eventually emerged in the end¡­ They must¡¯ve known, right?


    ¡°Unless Anakin is actually unique. I need more Jedi to test the theory. But if this is the case, then things become much, much easier and simpler. Fuck, now I¡¯m getting a little scared.¡± I looked around anxiously, not just inside the room, but my ¡®sight¡¯ spread to the surroundings outside the Evolution Chamber.


    I could sense the Force getting a little anxious too. But I¡¯m not sure if that was my own fear creating a feedback loop. After all, the Force was often just a mirror. Not like an inanimate object, but more like an autistic person.


    Okay, I¡¯m talking about myself. But the point is that the Force is likely just fucking with me because I¡¯m fucking with myself. I need more test subjects to find out whether this is unique to Anakin and whether it¡¯s actually replicable at all.


    *Plackgh~!* The cocoon burst and splattered goop all over my face. I looked over and saw the tiny human baby sitting there quietly. She stared at me blankly for a few seconds before asking, ¡°Orders, Master?¡±


    I looked into her dark brown eyes for a few seconds, before narrowing mine. My vision zoomed in until I could see inside of her ocular cells. The Midichlorians were still replicating and separating as they did before. Little fuckers refused to stay with more than three thousand of their relatives. They reproduced asexually. Just like amoebas, they split into two daughter cells, then again, and again. When they reach a certain capacity, they find it way too cramped and decide to spread out a lot more. More hunting grounds; they ate bacteria, actual amoebae and other microbes. It was pretty natural and normal. Understandable.


    Then I looked deeper into the genes of her cells. Checking for abnormalities. I zoomed out and back inside the Midichlorian cells, checking their DNA as well. It was obviously heavily linked and similar to the Cloned human girl. But different enough in certain areas that one of them formed a human and the others were merely little single-celled organisms. Yet those single-celled organisms were able to allow their host to manipulate something like the Force.


    ¡°I know what you¡¯re thinking.¡±


    ¡°We have checked the air and soil, although Midichlorians are everywhere, they do seem to be merely conduits to assist in accessing the Force. They are likely not the Force itself.¡± Izsha whispered into my mind, ¡°The Force does seem to be metaphysical by our current biological and technological knowledge.¡±


    ¡°It could easily involve Higher Dimensional fuckery. Then there¡¯s no real point in even bothering with figuring anything out.¡± I mean, the World Between Worlds, Multiverses, all kinds of shit existed in both Canon and Legends. So many different crazy technologies that make no sense by standard logic and science. Hyperdrives work by transporting you into another dimension where you can travel faster than light easily, then you transition back to reality and miraculously lose all that inertia and avoid growing to the size of infinity while also not really using that much energy for the most part. That other dimension isn¡¯t necessarily a higher or lower dimension though, just a dimension that exists within the Star Wars Universe.


    The Force is also intertwined with Hyperspace. There are other Dimensions as well, but I don¡¯t know much about them. Even Izsha doesn¡¯t remember much, because I wasn¡¯t that much of a Star Wars loremaster in my last life. A lot of what I know is from Fanfics or researching nonsense in Fanfics to try to figure out what in the actual fuck was happening and why¡­


    ¡°Master, Orders?¡± The tiny human baby asked again. Her telepathic voice was high pitched and childish. Almost like a toddler or small child.


    ¡°Your genes are stable. Your body is healthy and growing properly.¡± I blinked a few times and my vision returned to normal. I caressed the infant as gently as I could with my clawed hands and then tossed her aside. She bounced on the squishy floor a few times, before getting sucked through a tube. Then she was sent straight out into the Spawning Pool, where she would finish her maturation process.


    ¡°Can you believe it took nine whole years for a civilization of professional cloners to create and train only three million human clone soldiers?¡± I shook my head, ¡°Anyway, Prima, I need samples from those two. Don¡¯t need to fight or capture them, but I need their cells for research purposes.¡±


    It took a while, but eventually she answered me.


    ¡°I will retrieve the Essence, Master.¡±

 Interlude 3: Prima Kal

    Interlude 3: Prima Kal


    ¡°Careful, Sisters. Our prey should not be underestimated.¡± I whispered to the rest of my pack through the Psionic Network. The 27 Primal Zerglings created by my father were so small a few days ago, but now most of them are comparable in size to my current form. If their Psionic and mental capabilities weren¡¯t weaker¡­ Well, fortunately my Master took that into consideration when he created them.


    ¡°Patience.¡± I placed my right claw on Secundo¡¯s left shoulder. Pulling her away from the edge of the cliff. The thick black scales on our backs blended in well with the environment. So too did their dark-brown scales on our almost ape-like bodies, but the purple tiger-like stripes were a little flashy. The big white spikes down our backs were also not very good camouflage in this particular environment.


    ¡°We need to change.¡± I felt my scales tingle as I altered my coloring. Keeping two of my eyes scanning behind me, I made sure to imitate the scenery at my back. The sky? No. We would still cast a shadow, we would still be noticeable. We need something more subtle.


    Blackened rocks were all around. Our scales were already mostly black. It was a simple matter to shift from dark-brown to the same coal black that surrounded us. Our spines were white, but they could not be changed as easily as scales.


    ¡°Grrr~!¡± I growled as my spines fell out onto the ground, the wounds in my back healed rapidly as new, darker spines emerged. The same with my claws¡­ And teeth. An acceptable loss of biomass. We would regain more soon anyway.


    ¡°Grrrr~!¡± My sisters also growled. ¡°Hiss~!¡± And occasionally hissed in pain. We didn¡¯t speak though. Their minds were very simple compared to mine.


    ¡°Prey. Hunt. Eat.¡± Their sentiments were roughly as simple as that. Thankfully they were much more obedient than my sister Lingling. It was unfortunate that we lacked wings to fly and burrowing through this hard rocky ground would cause far too much disturbance. It would startle our prey.


    After our bodies were as black as our environment, I led my Pack down the cliff-face. Carefully, slowly. Just as slowly as our targets were approaching their own prey. That colossal beast seemed unaware of any danger. It¡­ No, He, thought that he was safe. He slept peacefully in the light of the suns.


    The Swarm needs his Essence. If possible, we are meant to capture him alive¡­ I very much doubt that we will have that opportunity or ability. Our highest priority are the two Force Sensitive humans disguised amongst the Tusken Raiders. The father, Sharad Hett, is a Jedi Knight. His son, not yet a Padawan, but I would not underestimate the future Sith Lord.


    We reached the valley eventually, the suns moved but not too far. Perhaps an hour or two passed. The Tusken Raiders were setting their traps: Mines, mostly. Placed in the path of their bait. A pile of dead Womp Rats.


    They spread out, some were on the cliffs, hidden above the creature¡¯s lair. Others were hiding behind rocks and taking cover, all around the beast and the simple trap. They waited and so did we. The suns moved slowly. My Pack became more impatient by the moment.


    ¡°Behave.¡± I glared at Tertius. She sneered at me. Then turned to the Tusken and started drooling again. Her saliva was too acidic. It corroded the rocks and created a stench. It was nothing compared to the Womp Rats, the Krayt or the Tusken, but it was still an unnecessary risk.


    I noticed that the Massifs among the Tusken started sniffing in our direction. They reminded me of tailless alligators with spines along their backs and pit-bull like bodies. They were only the size of ordinary Zerglings and their threat to us was minimal. However, they could find us and reveal our position.


    My knuckles dug into the rocks. I lifted my left hand and looked down at my shorter, obsidian claws. I could also see the Sand People, the Krayt Dragon, and the surroundings¡­ My six eyes could focus on many things and my mind was designed to handle that information effortlessly. Yet¡­ It was still distracting.


    I closed my eyes and took a deep breath of the dry, hot air. It vibrated around me. It always did. I reached outwards, as if I could grasp my target from this distance. Then I opened my eyes and scratched downward!


    *Shhhh~!* Sparks flew as a few scales were ripped from the sleeping giant¡¯s snout! It only took a moment for the beast to wake up screaming in pain and fury! Those bloody red eyes glared at the pile of rat carcasses and the beast spewed a stream of corrosive acid in irritation!


    ¡°Patience.¡± I whispered to my Pack. A moment later, there was a deafening explosion as the blindingly bright fireball emerged from where the trap was laid.


    ¡°Ouuuouuuouuu~!¡± Sharad, the Tusken Warlord, let out a loud warcry and ordered the assault. It was too late for them to run or hide. The beast would have found them one by one. Only by killing it could they possibly survive.


    *Piao-piao~!*


    *Diao-diao-diao~!*


    The plasma bolts screamed across the air and exploded on the thick scales of the giant lizard. The damage was minimal, but not nonexistent. It¡¯s the reason why our creator designed us to deflect, rather than endure blaster fire.


    ¡°Rooaoaaaaah~!¡± The Krayt Dragon wasn¡¯t seriously injured, but it was very angry at what little damage was done by the tiny creatures assaulting it. A huge tail whipped across the cliff-face, tearing open the rocks and sending several of the Tusken Raiders or pieces of their bodies, falling farther down into the valley.


    The lizard spewed acid at a distant sniper and melted his body, along with the rock he was using for cover. A few of the braver warriors actually climbed the sides of the beast with melee weapons¡­ The effects were negligible. So inconsequential that the beast didn¡¯t bother dealing with them.


    *Wizz~!* A blaster bolt missed my shoulder by a few centimeters. We were close enough that we could get caught in the cross-fire now. A moment later, Septima moved her head to the side and avoided a bolt, only to cause Decimus Nonus to get hit in her left eyes!


    *Boom~!* There was an explosion and she screamed in agony, while rolling around on the ground!


    ¡°You will recover.¡± I turned to Septima and ordered, ¡°Take her away before she reveals our position.¡±


    Even though she was loud, everything was loud. They were throwing grenades under the beast, planting fixed explosives on the beast¡¯s back, which detonated before they could escape the blast radius. The noises echoed around the valley constantly.


    ¡°Raaaaoouuuuurrrraaa~!¡± The Canyon Krayt Dragon was more seriously injured now. It was growing weaker. But it would take more than that to defeat the creature. The number of Tusken Raiders was diminishing by the second as well.


    My Pack were more careful. A gout of venomous acid splashed in front of us, but there were many spaces in between the puddles. I saw a small Tusken woman hiding behind a boulder with an overheated blaster rifle, she was trembling and terrified. The Massiff next to her was also whining and nudging its master to urge her to escape.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay. Everything is fine. We can¡¯t run. We need to keep fighting. If we don¡¯t win, we die.¡± She was speaking in Tusken, a language consisting mostly of consonants, shrieking, barks and other discordant sounds. Fortunately it was programmed into my genes by my mother, along with many other languages.


    ¡°Hiss~!¡± The Massiff noticed us approaching, especially focusing on me. My eyes were pitch-black, but no matter how dark my body was now, I wasn¡¯t invisible.


    ¡°Shh~!¡± I held a claw up to my maw and leaned in close to the tiny woman, ¡°You don¡¯t want to die. You want to live. To live, you must surrender peacefully.¡±


    ¡°I-I don¡¯t want to die¡­ I need to surrender peacefully¡­¡± She put the gun down and her pet whimpered, cowering as he was easily captured by Secunda. Tertius moved forward and grabbed the girl, leaving the weapon behind as she carried the captive back the way we came.


    I picked up the blaster rifle and looked at it for a moment, before shaking my head. I left it behind and started walking on my knuckles again. A large Tusken man was raising his staff in the air and shouting, ¡°Holes! Aim for the holes! The holes are the weak points!¡±


    This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    ¡°Shut up! You¡¯re not helping!¡± The smaller man next to him shouted back as he fired his silver blaster pistol, but the green plasma bolt missed the nostril and left a tiny crater in the dragon¡¯s snout.


    ¡°Hiss~!¡± The dragon was infuriated and charged in this direction.


    ¡°Run!¡±


    ¡°No, you run that way!¡±


    The two of them ended up both running to my left. The Krayt Dragon only took a moment to reach their side, that massive head came down and chomped on the top half of the taller one. Blood and entrails sprayed everywhere, the thick Tusken clothing didn¡¯t do much to protect his squishy body at all.


    ¡°Aaah~!¡± Then the other one was screaming in agony because his left leg was crushed by that monster¡¯s chin.


    *Tssh~! Raoooaaaa~!* Finally, I heard that familiar sound. Something from my father¡¯s memories. At least the first half was familiar, the sound of that crimson plasma blade extending. The second half was a deafening roar that it emitted because of the nature of its Kyber Crystal: A Krayt Dragon Pearl.


    The Jedi Knight was standing atop the beast¡¯s massive head in the guise of a Tusken Warlord. Before the beast could react, that ¡®tiny¡¯ blade stabbed down into his skullcap. There was no resistance.


    I could feel the danger from that blade, from his aura, my senses were warning me, my instincts, the Force itself was warning me to escape. I couldn¡¯t fight him and win. It wasn¡¯t about tricks or tactics, it was almost as if he was Fated to win against me if I decided to duel him.


    ¡°Raooooaaaaaaar~!¡± The massive Canyon Krayt Dragon kept squirming and started rolling, so the Jedi had to hop away. He leapt dozens of meters through the air easily. A feat that should have been impossible for his fairly normal human physiology.


    *Whiz~!* I looked over and saw a pointy stick flying at nearly supersonic velocity. It was one of those weapons that the Tusken wielded. Thrown by the Jedi¡¯s son, A¡¯sharad Hett. The weapon struck the hole his father carved very accurately, even as the beast was mid-roll. It writhed and squirmed for minutes afterwards, as my Pack slowly and carefully captured or eliminated every Tusken that was still alive. Many of them were wailing in pain from various injuries and couldn¡¯t resist being caught, so it wasn¡¯t particularly difficult.


    ¡°Stop.¡± Sharad spoke calmly with the lightsaber in his hand, my claws only a centimeter from his son¡¯s back.


    ¡°I¡¯m surprised it took you so long to notice us.¡± I watched the startled ¡®Tusken¡¯ boy roll forward and quickly hide behind his father¡¯s back. He was young, but the Force was strong with him. It was surprising that he allowed me to get so close to his back.


    ¡°I noticed you. But there was nothing I could do to stop you.¡± His saber roared as he waved it slowly to the left and right, walking forward at a calm pace and holding the hilt to his side with both hands, pointed upwards.


    ¡°My Master wants to meet you both.¡± I felt the Force flowing through me, protecting me from his manipulation. My eyes returned to their usual yellow, purple stripes appeared on my arms, shoulders, thighs and sides, most of my scales also returned to reddish brown. The claws, spines and fangs remained obsidian, since they required more time and effort to change.


    ¡°Your Master? Have the Jedi come searching for me?¡± He had a Tusken mask and goggles covering his face, so I couldn¡¯t see his expressions. However, the Force was surprisingly peaceful around him.


    ¡°My Master is no Jedi.¡± I turned my head towards the southwest and he looked in that direction as well, ¡°His orders were to capture you and your son unharmed if possible.¡± I looked over at the writhing, dying lizard and sighed, ¡°Along with the Canyon Krayt Dragon.¡±


    ¡°Your Master is very demanding, it seems.¡± He looked around at my Pack, each of them holding at least one of his Tusken Raiders as a hostage. Though some of them were only holding Massiffs. It was still the same threat.


    ¡°Father¡­¡± A¡¯sharad whispered, ¡°We can¡¯t go with them.¡±


    Sharad sighed and deactivated his lightsaber slowly, ¡°I will go with you, but you must allow my son and my Clan to escape first.¡±


    ¡°Father!¡± The boy obviously wasn¡¯t happy with that ultimatum.


    ¡°Are you sure about that?¡± I pointed towards a few of the more seriously injured Tusken men and women, ¡°They will likely perish soon. My Master can easily treat their wounds. Even restore their destroyed limbs and organs.¡±


    ¡°We have Medical Droids. They will be fine.¡± He was surprisingly firm about it.


    ¡°Very well.¡± I shrugged and ordered, ¡°Release the captives.¡± Then I reached out and pulled his lightsaber into my palm with the Force. He didn¡¯t resist or stop me at all.


    ¡°Father, you can¡¯t be serious!¡± The child shouted anxiously, ¡°They¡¯ll kill you! And then they¡¯ll come after the rest of us!¡±


    ¡°I was not destined to die today, A¡¯sharad.¡± The man spoke in a calm tone, though it was still in the Tusken language, so it sounded odd. He placed his hand on his son¡¯s shoulder and spoke quietly, ¡°Until I return, take care of them.¡±


    ¡°Disable the beast.¡± I waved my left claw and ordered my Pack to deal with the Canyon Krayt Dragon. It was dying, but not dead yet. If we worked quickly, it might be possible to bring it back to the base alive.


    ¡°Hiss~!¡± Secunda shouted excitedly as she charged forward with her knuckles smashing holes in the blackened ground.


    ¡°Roaaaar~!¡± Then it was Tertius. She grabbed the tip of the massive tail. Even though she was whipped around a bit, she hugged the tail tightly and then bit down into it. Injecting her venom. A few more of my Primal Zergling sisters latched onto the gigantic tail, weighing it down. Then a couple dozen of them hopped onto the back of the belly of the beast, while it was breathing heavily and lying on its back. Those long spines and horns got embedded in the ground below it, making it harder for the monster to move.


    They injected the creature with their venom. Slowly but surely, the dozens of injections started to have an effect. I noticed one of the Tusken men taking up his blaster rifle and aiming it at the back of Quintus.


    ¡°Even though the blaster will not hurt my sister much¡­¡± I glared at the ¡®tiny¡¯ man with my right-side eyes, ¡°I won¡¯t stop her from devouring you afterwards.¡±


    ¡°Kl¡¯takt, follow A¡¯sharad back home. Protect our Clan. Live.¡± Sharad gave an order and the angry Tusken man obeyed, lowering his weapon reluctantly. There were others with weapons as well, but they were mostly just clubs or staves. Nothing particularly threatening or long-ranged.


    ¡°Father¡­¡± The boy held his father¡¯s hand for a few seconds, before letting go and breathing out a sigh, ¡°I will protect them until you return. Please, return.¡±


    ¡°I shall.¡± The Jedi Knight was very confident. It didn¡¯t sound like he was merely comforting his offspring. Then he looked up towards the sky, ¡°Friends of yours?¡±


    ¡°The Drones are here. Do not be alarmed.¡± I warned them to avoid unnecessary casualties. The black armor of the Drones blended in with the rocky environment, but they also had bright purple accents, including the webbing between their eight legs. There were dozens of them that floated down into the valley and quickly surrounded the unconscious Canyon Krayt Dragon.


    ¡°Drones?¡± Sharad actually spoke in Galactic Standard this time.


    ¡°Worker Drones.¡± I turned my left hand upwards and a small drone was beckoned over, floating above my palm, ¡°They are designed to gather resources, build structures, though they aren¡¯t designed to heal wounded, they do possess some medical skills.¡±


    I ordered the small Drone to float over to a nearby wounded Tusken woman. She screamed and panicked, but the purple Creep that the Drone vomited onto the gaping wound on her abdomen was able to seal up the wound immediately. Not only was the wound sealed, but the Creep would act as an anaesthetic and also help in the healing process. Whether she would be infected with countless microscopic Zerg parasites, Creep Molds and other microorganisms in the future? That wasn¡¯t my concern.


    ¡°Fascinating.¡± Sharad didn¡¯t stop the small Drone from sealing up the wounds of the other Tusken men and women. A few Drones also managed to find some surviving Tusken that my Pack had missed. In fact, there were a few that were only partially digested by the Krayt Dragon and removed from its stomach. Along with a handful of small and large Krayt Dragon Pearls. Compared to the ones from the Greater Krayt Dragon, they were much smaller on average, but there were still a few large ones.


    ¡°Here. Although the beast did not die, your Clan has defeated it fairly and at great cost.¡± I guided the Drones to hand the pearls over to the confused and startled Sand People. The biggest one going to A¡¯sharad Hett, who dealt a great deal of damage to the creature without even using a lightsaber or blaster.


    ¡°You are very generous.¡± The Jedi Knight bowed to me sightly, then shouted to his people in Tusken, ¡°Victory! Return home and feast!¡±


    ¡°Yay!¡±


    ¡°We won!¡±


    ¡°Victory!¡±


    The silly Tusken Raiders cheered excitedly. His son on the other claw, seemed rather distraught, thought it was difficult to tell because of the mask covering his features. His presence in the Force was unstable however.


    ¡°Father¡­ Be careful.¡± The boy hugged the man briefly, then went to guide his people ¡®home¡¯.


    ¡°May the Force be with you.¡± Sharad spoke calmly in Galactic Standard, watching the group of Tusken leaving triumphantly. Then he turned to the scene of the Drones wrapping the giant lizard in a massive purple cocoon.


    It took a while, but soon enough they were able to wrap the entire creature. Then they worked together to levitate the cocoon and carry it close to the ground, over to the large cave that the Krayt Dragon considered his Lair. There were no other Krayt Dragons inside, unfortunately. But that was fine.


    ¡°Follow me.¡± I left my Pack to guard the cave and started leading the Jedi Knight toward the other side of the valley. He didn¡¯t say much as we climbed the steep cliff. Following behind me at a surprisingly fast speed given his inferior human physiology. The Force was strong with him.


    ¡°You are tempting me.¡± Eventually the man spoke when we were at the edge of another cliff, leading down into a steep valley.


    ¡°Yes.¡± I turned to glance at his surprisingly uncovered head. He was bald, with tan skin. Maybe in his thirties or forties, though it was hard to tell human age in this Galaxy compared to my father¡¯s past-life memories.


    ¡°I feel the shadow of the Dark Side surrounding you, Youngling.¡± His dark brown eyes moved from one side of my face to the other, then he gazed towards the horizon. We were dozens of miles from my Master, but anyone with a little Force Sensitivity could feel that place very strongly.


    ¡°The Dark Side has enshrouded Tatooine since ancient times.¡± I was looking at him, the black mountains, the sky, as well as the distant tan Dunes simultaneously. Then I closed my eyes and took a breath of the hot, dry air. Handing over the lightsaber to the dangerous human.


    ¡°So it has.¡± Sharad took his weapon but didn¡¯t ignite the blade or try to Force Push me off the cliff. He just hooked the hilt onto his belt and introduced himself, ¡°Sharad Hett, former Jedi Knight, now¡­ War Leader of the Tusken.¡±


    ¡°Prima Kal, daughter of Amon Kal, my Master.¡± I wasn¡¯t sure how to introduce myself properly, as this was literally my first time. So I added, ¡°Pack Leader of the Primal Zerg.¡±


    ¡°Primal Zerg? I am unfamiliar with the ¡®Zerg¡¯. What planet is your Species from?¡± He asked as we both started hopping from stone to stone, quickly making our way down the jagged rocky mountain.


    When we reached a less steep hill, I turned to him and explained, ¡°My Master is a Langhesi Forger, from the planet Zonama Sekot. The Zerg are his creations, his children¡­ His Obsession.¡±


    ¡°I see. I have heard tales of the Langhesi Forgers and the bio-ships of Zonama Sekot.¡± He didn¡¯t seem too surprised or concerned, just walked alongside me as we trudged through the black valley. Eventually he asked, ¡°I am impressed that he was able to create a youngling as Force Sensitive as you¡­ Have you considered joining the Jedi Order?¡±


    ¡®Yes.¡± I replied with a nod, ¡°I am unsure whether I would qualify as a Youngling by Jedi standards. Although it has only been a fortnight since I Hatched, my mother programmed me with genetic memories, passed down from our Master and creator.¡±


    ¡°Many exceptions have been made in the past.¡± Sharad sighed and shook his head, ¡°The current Council has been encumbered by many traditions and rules that run counter to the Jedi Code and what the Jedi are meant to be¡­ We have become enamored by fame and chained down by responsibilities.¡±


    ¡°It seems as if you are convincing me to avoid the Jedi.¡± I chuckled softly and continued walking with my knuckles. Although it did fit my gorilla-like body shape, this method of locomotion wasn¡¯t exactly the most efficient or comfortable. Dehaka had the right idea, though I don¡¯t understand why he would not simply heal his partially severed limbs for so long.


    ¡°Whether to join or not is your choice. Perhaps if given the choice back then, I would have stayed with my family¡­¡± He smiled wryly, his lips chapped and dry. It wasn¡¯t long before he wrapped his head back up and put his mask back on, ¡°I will need to meet your Master before I decide to advise you whether to stay here or join the Jedi on Coruscant.¡±


    ¡°Ultimately it is my Master¡¯s decision, not mine.¡± I knew that my father would likely support whatever choices I made, so long as they didn¡¯t negatively influence his plans or endanger my safety too much. However¡­ I worry that he is becoming more¡­ Zerg.


    Not all change is good or necessary. He knows and understands, but he might still succumb to his obsession eventually. Should I stay here and try to prevent the inevitable? Or simply escape and free myself from this unnecessary burden?

 Chapter 18: Rancor

    Chapter 18: Rancor


    ¡°Not very aesthetically pleasing.¡± Was the best way I could describe a Rancor. Maybe that was just my own personal perspective, but I think it was a fairly common sentiment across the Galaxy.


    ¡°I agree.¡± My daughter, who was effectively a giant meat mountain, thought the same.


    ¡°They do have some pretty big advantages of course.¡± I held the cute little baby Rancor in my claws as ¡®she¡¯ growled and swiped at my face, ¡°The skin is coated in a slimy substance that helps deflect blaster fire and protects against instantaneous high heat. Their eyesight is decent at night, but poor in daylight. Could be upgraded easily enough.¡±


    The tiny Rancor squirmed and screamed as I warped her body to my whims. The eyes were raised, the nostrils were lowered, the head was protected by a few tan plates. The armor was thick and would protect her from heavy blows to the skull, not to mention blaster fire. Even a lightsaber would glance off, though it wouldn¡¯t protect from superheated plasma over a long time. Not many things could do that. Even Beskar gets hot and melts eventually.


    ¡°Speaking of Beskar, we really need to get some. And Cortosis is nowhere near as durable as Beskar, but it is useful in dealing with plasma weapons and force fields. That¡¯s the trick after all. The reason Cortosis fucks with lightsabers is because it creates a power surge in the forcefield generator or whatever. Not because it¡¯s just indestructible or magical.


    ¡°This might seem really stupid, but most lightsabers aren¡¯t even waterproof.¡± I couldn¡¯t help remembering a certain Nautolan Jedi who had a ¡®special¡¯ lightsaber that could be used underwater properly.


    ¡°The concept is interesting, but a plasma blade is still a plasma blade. Energy weapons involving force fields are actually quite common in the Galactic Republic and beyond. It is the Jedi themselves that are powerful, and the Force Abilities they wield.¡± Izsha commented as I continued altering the Rancor¡¯s facial features.


    There weren¡¯t enough teeth. Just a few fangs, the mouth was unnecessarily large. I shrunk it. Then added mandibles to the sides. The head was a bit too large, so I made the torso, arms and legs larger.


    ¡°Umm, I feel like I¡¯m just making another Primal Zergling.¡± I noticed that the Rancor was also ape-like, ¡°Maybe I should just keep you ugly.¡±


    Maybe not quite so asymmetrical though. I reverted the baby Rancor to its original appearance. Correcting whatever damage I did to her genes, I decided to have a simpler, minimalist approach. She had three long fingers with longer white talons, the arms were long, while the legs were short, the shoulders were somewhat armored already, just like the back. The face was¡­ Unpleasant, but intimidating at least. When people saw her, they¡¯d know she was a fucking Rancor.


    ¡°Now for the upgrades.¡± I kept the nostrils above her eyes, because that¡¯s her natural appearance. Just evened them out a bit and made them look less lumpy. The head was also smoothed over a little. I casually gave her some long black hair for a moment, before removing that and replacing it with jagged purple spines that ran down her back. On her shoulders were also some spikes. I got rid of the pot-belly and replaced it with thick, powerful abdominal muscles. She also had bulging pectoral muscles now, but nipples were a little unnecessary. I didn¡¯t even have nipples anymore.


    The thick and rough skin was powerful enough, a bit scaly. I picked her up and flipped her over, avoiding her whipping tail that was longer than before. I covered her groin with protective purple armor. She didn¡¯t need to reproduce sexually, so I removed those organs. She didn¡¯t need to excrete waste, so I removed her anus and a decent amount of intestines as well. She would become more efficient just from that upgrade alone. I improved her digestive system, including the stomach and lower intestines. Added in some symbiotic Zerg larva and other organisms inside her belly to fill out some of the wasted space. Then I placed her down on the hard black carapace-covered table and smirked in satisfaction.


    ¡°Yes. This is it. This is my Zerg Rancor.¡± As I said that, she screamed at me angrily and jumped off the table to attack my face again.


    ¡°Father, you forgot the most important part.¡± With Izsha¡¯s telepathic words, the beady little eyes glowed bright purple. Then the brat calmed the fuck down.


    ¡°Hungry! Angry!¡± She was part of the Zerg now, for real. The most important part was the mind being connected to the Psionic Network. And also being capable of connecting. She had maybe five thousand Midichlorians per cell, not particularly high or low. Better than the usual human at least, but it was kinda average for a Rancor.


    ¡°What if we put a spore crawler on the back?¡± I picked up a little Drone off the table and rapidly morphed it into a generic purple and black Spore Crawler. Placing the bottom onto the back of the beast, the legs clamped down and the claws dug into the flesh. Causing the brat to scream in pain and discomfort.


    ¡°No! Itchy! Annoying! Hate!¡± Little Rancor was kinda pissed off, but the real issue was whether her spine would be able to handle the pressure when the Spore Crawler actually fired at ful blast. On the small scale it would work fine, but once¡­ No, I guess the Spore Crawler would never get anywhere close to the normal size, because Rancors only grew to about five or ten meters at most. I picked ten for the sake of simplicity. A small Spore Cannon on the back would provide anti-air capabilities or even potentially long-range artillery¡­


    ¡°Master, my host is annoying.¡± Unfortunately whether it was the Spore Crawler or the Rancor, neither wanted to be attached to the other. They weren¡¯t very compatible. It would be better to Morph them both from Larva at the same time if I wanted to have them be more useful together.


    ¡°Father, perhaps we could try a plasma-based weapon?¡± Izsha lowered a tendril and placed a tiny Kryber Crystal on the table. The blue crystal was taken from a random piece of rock that was mined by Drones from the mountainside. It was small, but it could grow larger in the future.


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    ¡°It could work.¡± I removed the Spore Crawler and tossed it away. Grabbing a tiny black Larva off the table, I fed it the Kyber Crystal and then warped its body rapidly. The toothy maw opened wide and drooled as I changed the internal organs drastically. It became more rounded and elongated. The inside was transformed into a straight and narrow tube. Coated with the heat-resistant slime of the Rancor on the inside, it would hopefully prevent it from overheating and exploding later. There was a forcefield generator to surround the plasma, a special gas producing organ or two, plus a chamber to fire up the plasma ball that would be surrounded by the forcefield. Everything seemed¡­ Fine. But it could still explode.


    Fortunately it was so tiny that it shouldn¡¯t do too much damage if it bursts during testing. The spines on the Rancor¡¯s back were removed as it screamed, then I placed the little larva cannon along the spine. Umm, maybe I should¡¯ve tested it before I connected it to the Rancor? Eh, I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll be fine.


    ¡°Die!¡± The brat aimed the plasma cannon on her back at my face and fired¡­ Or at least she tried to fire, but it took like five seconds to charge before it actually released a tiny plasma bolt that bounced off my left cheek and exploded a few meters in the air. Dealing precisely zero damage to anything or anyone.


    ¡°We should destroy Rancor-1 before it becomes another Lingling.¡±


    ¡°Izsha, Lingling is my cute and adorable baby Zergling. Sure, she might be a murder-hobo, but she doesn¡¯t wanna murder ¡®us¡¯. I think this brat just needs to get put in time-out for a while.¡± I wasn¡¯t too worried about a slightly disobedient Rancor child. She was basically a baby at the moment. She¡¯ll grow up and learn better, because that¡¯s what most animals do¡­ They have to experience things on their own to learn and improve.


    Ultimately though, she was a combat unit. She was meant for warfare. Maybe she would die before her first birthday if she was unlucky. Or maybe she¡¯d still be alive in a hundred thousand years? Who knows?


    ¡°Anyway, for now¡­ Zerg Rancors can be considered as Siege Units. Artillery with melee capabilities.¡± I tossed the brat off the table and into the tube at the edge of the room. I didn¡¯t want her to fuck the place up.


    ¡°What should we do with the originals?¡± Izsha was talking about the mother and son that we captured underground.


    ¡°They¡¯re already infested.¡± I looked through the eyes of a Zergling and saw the mother covered in pulsating purple tumors. Giant tendrils whipped around randomly. There were two right arms and the left hand was replaced by another Rancor head. It was chaotic and unnecessary, but that¡¯s just how it goes.


    The child had long blades for arms, his body was elongated and more like a Canyon Krayt Dragon. The head was covered in armor and there were mandibles on the sides of the mouth. A casual attempt at creating an Ultralisk. A failure of course, but not totally useless. Plenty of data was gained. I learned a lot of lessons. And it¡¯s not like the mother or son were dead or even brain-dead. Their minds were intact, their bodies significantly improved. They didn¡¯t hunger as much as before, they weren¡¯t as angry as before. They were somewhat content. Just relaxing calmly outside. Loitering around, sunbathing. Not really doing much at all, because they didn¡¯t need to do much.


    Just like the Zerglings were loitering around and simply existing. They didn¡¯t need entertainment, food, anything really. The only exception of course was¡­


    ¡°Order 66!¡± Lingling screamed excitedly as she escaped from her tentacle cage, charging out of the underground prison and up towards the surface.


    ¡°Oh for fuck¡¯s sake.¡± I rubbed my aching head and debated whether I should actually top the brat or just see what happens¡­


    ¡°In terms of strength, reflexes, agility and endurance, a Zergling far outclasses any human.¡± Izsha giggled telepathically, ¡°Lingling isn¡¯t helpless when it comes to Force Sensitivity and Abilities either. She could win.¡±


    ¡°If it was one on one, maybe.¡± I smirked as I watched and listened to Prima chatting with Sharad Hett. The two of them suddenly stopped when they approached an ominous cave entrance on the side of a mountain which had lots of sharp white fangs. There was also a long, slimy purple tongue squirming around inside.


    ¡°This is the entrance to your Master¡¯s territory?¡± The dude was obviously skeptical and concerned.


    ¡°It is a valley. There are many entrances.¡± My daughter explained calmly, ¡°Although it looks like a mouth, it is mostly aesthetic in nature. There are no muscles or bones, just flesh, teeth and rock.¡±


    ¡°I would argue that the tongue is a very powerful muscle.¡± Sharad approached the maw and took the hilt off his hip, ¡°Something is coming. Something dark and dangerous.¡±


    ¡°Unfortunately.¡± Prima sighed dramatically at the exciting shrieking that was coming from the spasming maw!


    *Tshhraoaar~!* The Krayt Dragon Pearl powered lightsaber roared as it ignited! Then he jumped upwards and swiped downwards, but still missed the supersonic Zergling missile! His body was blasted to the side by the wind as the sonic boom deafened both of them!


    ¡°It¡¯s¡­ Kinda scary how a fucking Zergling can reach this point. She¡¯s only a couple weeks old too.¡± I chuckled as I watched the little monster knock her sister flying into the mountain wall!


    ¡°Is this a test sent by your Master?!¡± Sharad shouted as his lightsaber clashed against a mantis claw for a moment, before slicing through!


    ¡°The way is open!¡± Lingling screamed into his mind, ¡°All you know, all you hold dear, everything will burn to nothing!¡±


    ¡°What the fuck is she quoting?¡± I couldn¡¯t help wondering what the hell kinda genetic memories were planted in the poor kid¡¯s brain by Izsha back then. Even she didn¡¯t really know how her two daughters turned out that way, because those first few Larvae were kinda casually created.


    ¡°Don¡¯t let her get into your head!¡± Prima shouted as her body rapidly started transforming. Her back straightened up, her hind legs became longer, her massive arms split into two smaller ones. I couldn¡¯t help remembering Dehaka for a moment, but Prima¡¯s arms were a lot larger in comparison to the ancient and unnecessarily crippled old Zerg.


    ¡°Embrace the Void!¡± Lingling screamed as she squirted ink everywhere! The black slime was blasted away by the Force before it could hit Sharad, but Prima was completely coated in the gunk. Instead of worrying about mildly acidic ink, the Primal Zerg girl darted over behind the Zergling and tried to grapple. Unfortunately, those wings buzzed and Lingling shot up into the sky like a missile for a moment, before turning and darting down like a bullet.


    *Tshaa~!* That red blade cut through one of her mantis arms, but a sharp blade-like forelimb plunged into the poor bastard¡¯s chest! Then two hands grabbed her wings and another two grabbed her back legs!


    ¡°Enough, Sister!¡± Prima screamed angrily and tore her sister¡¯s wings and legs off!


    ¡°Never enough!¡± Even though Lingling said that, she still carefully pulled her blade out of Sharad¡¯s chest and fell to the ground. She dug into the black rock, quickly escaping underground¡­


    ¡°It seems¡­ I failed your Master¡¯s test?¡± Sharad collapsed to the ground as his lightsaber deactivated. The gaping jagged wound in his chest was spurting out copious amounts of blood, not to mention the blood he was coughing up from his damaged lungs and stomach.


    ¡°How could you fail?¡± Prima had a sinister grin on her pretty lizard face as she held the dying man in her arms, ¡°My Master hasn¡¯t even started running any tests yet.¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t design her to be so overdramatic.¡± Izsha grumbled.


    ¡°I think it¡¯s adorable.¡± I snickered and shook my head, ¡°Prima, stop fucking around and bring the bastard here before he becomes one with the Force!¡±


    ¡°Yes, Master!¡± She wouldn¡¯t take long to get here. As for Lingling, she came back up to the surface to reattach her wings and limbs, then burrowed underground again. Who the fuck knows where she¡¯ll go or what she¡¯ll do now?


    ¡°Whatever, she¡¯s just a Zergling. What¡¯s the worst she could do?¡± I mean, it¡¯s not like she was a Drone or even a Primal Zergling with reproductive capabilities. A single Zergling would never be too much of a threat.


    I mean, it¡¯s not like she could go find Abeloth¡¯s planet and bathe in the magical bullshit godly waters that turned Abeloth into an Old God, right?


    ¡°Father, perhaps you should stop giving her ideas and tempting Fate.¡±

 Chapter 19: Unnecessary

    Chapter 19: Unnecessary


    ¡°A¡¯sharad! No!¡± The bald dude shouted anxiously as he sat up on the bed.


    ¡°Prophetic nightmare?¡± I leaned back on the hard metal chair, watching the confusion fade from Sharad¡¯s eyes as he turned to face me. It looked like a hospital. Or maybe a prison cell. Simple white walls, fluorescent lights on the ceiling, gray tile floors.


    ¡°I¡¯m still dreaming, aren¡¯t I?¡± He closed his eyes and ¡®felt¡¯ everything in the room, then frowned and opened his eyes again.


    ¡°What? Why so surprised?¡± I snickered and took a bite of an apple as red as my face, ¡°Did you expect to wake up in the belly of a giant monster?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Sharad responded succinctly, looking down at the scar in the middle of his chest and then over at my glowing purple tits. I mean, armored pecks.


    ¡°I¡¯m Amon Kal by the way. Though I¡¯m pretty sure you already figured that much out.¡± I tapped his sternum with my left index fingernail and asked, ¡°Do you wanna keep this? I can make it like you never got your ass kicked by my baby girl.¡±


    ¡°A scar on the chest isn¡¯t shameful.¡± He said something that gave me flashbacks of a certain green-haired pirate hunter.


    ¡°Fine by me.¡± I leaned back in my chair again and took another bite of my apple. The taste was better than I remembered, but then again, those apples from the grocery store were nowhere near as fresh and perfect as the ones I grew myself.


    ¡°Is this Mos Espa?¡± Sharad asked.


    I smirked, ¡°If you can¡¯t tell whether we¡¯re in a city or the middle of nowhere, then your Force Senses are a little fucky now, huh?¡±


    ¡°Fucky? I have no idea what that means.¡± He was genuinely confused, ¡°My connection to the Force is¡­ Different. Something has changed.¡±


    ¡°No shit.¡± I snorted and pointed at his chest, then his flesh warped and opened up. He gazed down at what I was doing without the horror I expected, but just a sense of curiosity. Kinda lame.


    Even when he saw that his heart was covered in a purple carapace and red worms squirmed around the outside of his lungs, he just breathed calmly and asked, ¡°It has been a while since my biology classes in the Jedi Academy, but would surrounding my heart with armor not cause issues?¡±


    ¡°I mean, it depends on how flexible the armor is¡­¡± I poked it with my fingernail and there wasn¡¯t any damage, but the material was still able to flex and move freely. I smiled as I put his sternum, pectoral muscles and flesh back into place within a few seconds, ¡°Anyway, I¡¯ve been working on Rancors lately. The way they can reflect and resist blaster bolts. In the off-chance you get shot in the heart by a blaster in the future, you should be able to survive for a little while at least. Realistically though, it¡¯d be better to have external armor as well. Especially if you¡¯re dealing with Zergling claws or lightsabers.¡±


    ¡°It is not everyday that a man gets stabbed in the heart by a lightsaber.¡± He clearly didn¡¯t seem too concerned, just focused on studying my face instead. After an awkward silence, he looked at my apple and asked, ¡°Do you have any other fruit?¡±


    ¡°Fuckloads.¡± I chuckled and stood up from the chair. Walked over to the door and opened it. Outside was a beautiful grassy plain. Hundreds of huge green trees were filled to the brim with apples, oranges, pears, apricots, peaches, plums, walnuts, almonds, nectarines, cherries and a few other types of tree fruits that I pulled from my memories. Like lemons, limes, bananas, coconuts, et cetera. Yes, it was a single tree that grew all those different types of fruit. It was way simpler and more efficient that way, right?


    The grass smelled amazing, the birds chirping were annoying but familiar, the cute deer were prancing around in the field, plus some cute doggies barking, sheep and goats, even cows and horses¡­ It was a beautiful verdant valley in the mountains of Tatooine.


    ¡°Incredible¡­¡± Sharad walked out into the field and looked down at the grass between his toes, ¡°How is this possible?¡±


    ¡°Oh, so now you¡¯re impressed?¡± I rolled my eyes and complained, ¡°Is it really that difficult? Sure, it might be a little hot, but how hard is it to adapt some plants to the desert climate? There are plenty of deserts in the galaxy that are just as bad or worse than Tatooine. A lot of them have plants and animals living there.¡±


    ¡°That is¡­ True.¡± He calmed down a bit but still seemed pretty interested in the serene nature of this little paradise I casually created the past few days, ¡°Where do you get the water from?¡±


    ¡°Hydrogen and oxygen are literally everywhere.¡± I raised my palms towards the sky and clenched my fists. The hydrogen and oxygen in the air was separated from the other elements, then condensed. With a flash of purple lightning that startled the guy, not to mention the woodland critters, the gasses fused into two balls of really hot steam. The steam rapidly cooled and turned into a small amount of water. It was kinda sad how little water was created, but what I did was just a simple and easy trick.


    ¡°Obviously I don¡¯t make the water myself. And there are loads of other methods. But the fact is that water is everywhere so long as oxygen and hydrogen exist in the atmosphere.¡± I tapped my right foot on the grass and a bunch of tiny Zerglings buzzed their wings, scattering in different directions. Then the ground split open, revealing a toothy gaping maw. The pink tongues whipped around and a little beak chomped onto my big toe.


    ¡°Is that a Sarlacc?¡± Sharad obviously recognized the creature. Then looked around his own feet cautiously.


    ¡°Found this brat deep underground. Apparently there are pockets of underground jungles, lakes and rivers all throughout the planet. Personally, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s very surprising at all.¡± I shrugged, ¡°You¡¯d think somebody else would¡¯ve figured it out by now.¡±


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    ¡°Perhaps they have, but the information was intentionally hidden.¡± The bald Jedi sighed and shook his head, ¡°Never underestimate the greed of a Hutt.¡±


    ¡°Or a human.¡± I reached out and a pear flew into my left hand, then I dropped it down into the baby Sarlacc¡¯s mouth. It stopped biting my toe and started eating the fruit happily. I chuckled and kept walking next to the naked dude, ¡°By the way, did you want clothes? My Drones washed, dried and repaired your Tusken outfit. It¡¯s back in one of those cabinets near the bed.¡±


    ¡°That would be nice.¡± He smiled wryly and looked over at the small, simple building. There were large and small Drones floating around, placing metal sheets, wiring and pipes. They were trying to build a house. Or maybe a tower? I¡¯m not totally sure.


    After Sharad went back inside and got dressed up like a Tusken Warlord again, minus the mask, he came back outside to ask, ¡°Why did you bring me here? What is it that you need from me?¡±


    ¡°I already got what I needed from you, and your son.¡± I smirked and noticed his hand moving towards the hilt on his right hip, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I just needed blood and tissue samples. I still need more naturally Force Sensitive creatures to know for sure, but I¡¯ve basically confirmed my theory already.¡±


    He frowned, ¡°Your theory?¡±


    ¡°My theory about Midichlorian density and what makes some Midichlorians different from others¡­¡± I grinned, ¡°Basically¡­ Some Midichlorians fuck. And the ones that fuck and reproduce more are the ones that will cram inside a single cell and stay there. As long as I can figure out how to get the little bastards to keep fucking in the clones though. It¡¯s so annoying.¡±


    ¡°Clones?¡± Sharad furrowed his brows and scowled, ¡°Amon Kal¡­ There are consequences to toying with life. Many civilizations in the past have learned that lesson the hard way.¡± He sighed and shook his head, ¡°Aside from that, Midichlorians are not everything. They are not the Force, merely an indicator that someone is sensitive to the Force. You are putting the cart before the Bantha.¡±


    ¡°I know that. The Force won¡¯t let me cheat so easily.¡± I groaned and spread my hands, ¡°But there are fuckloads of Species that are naturally gifted when it comes to Force Sensitivity. So there¡¯s definitely a way to mass produce them.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± The Jedi looked around at the garden I casually created, ¡°With your talents, you could make money. Buy anything you wanted, including Force Sensitive slaves from across the Galaxy. Why bother creating them?¡±


    ¡°Why bother making your own lightsaber?¡± I waved my hand and my fancy purple and black Zerg-saber hilt flew into my palm from a random bush nearby. It squirmed around, before straightening up and chittering in irritation.


    *Tshaaaaaah~!* The black blade erupted from the maw of the hilt with a roar and blocked the crimson blade that ignited at the same moment!


    ¡°Seriously.¡± I rolled my eyes and easily overpowered him with one hand. Sending the dumbass skidding across the grass before his back hit the thick trunk of a giant tree, ¡°No amount of training or Force fuckery is gonna allow you to kill me.¡±


    ¡°Your arrogance will be your downfall, Amon.¡± He suddenly disappeared in front of me and a moment later, I felt a searing pain through my chest and abdomen.


    ¡°That¡¯s some bullshit.¡± I grumbled as my top half started sliding down diagonally, but then I took a breath and tendrils emerged from the two severed halves. Whether inside or outside, the armor, organs and flesh that were sliced through were rapidly reorganized and repaired. I turned around and saw him looking back at me in shock, ¡°Should¡¯ve aimed for the head.¡±


    I swung my saber upwards and deflected his blade, then to the left, the right, still only using my right hand while he had to struggle to put a lot of weight and Force Strength behind every blow. There was just a massive difference in physical strength. I didn¡¯t just make myself look like this for kicks and giggles, okay? It¡¯s not just aesthetically cool looking.


    ¡°You can move at supersonic speeds in short bursts.¡± I had my suspicions at first, but actually fighting against the dude, I realized that it was more than just moving faster. He was slowing me down, mentally and physically. It was like he had a special aura that kept me from using the Force against him. I couldn¡¯t even prevent him from Force Pushing me a few dozen meters into the metal wall of that house my Drones were building. My back left a big dent in the metal and it hurt a little, but the damage was fixed within a few seconds. Uh, not the damage to the house, the wall was still fucked up. I mean my body.


    ¡°You¡¯ve got a higher Midichlorian count than I do¡­ Only slightly though. Probably decades of experience more than I do¡­ And formal Jedi Training.¡± I spoke calmly as I walked over towards where he was breathing calmly and waiting for me with his red blade pointed upwards at an angle. He held the hilt out in front of him and closed his eyes as if he was meditating or some shit.


    ¡°Your Midichlorians are the horny kind though. Mine are just lazy prudes.¡± I frowned and used my left wrist to block his lightsaber, but it cut right through easily. My armor could resist blaster fire but for some reason it did nothing against his lightsaber, specifically when he was wielding it with the Force helping out.


    ¡°You¡¯re making it harder for me to heal myself.¡± I watched him knock my hand away with a kick as his blade swiped towards my face. I lost a Zergy dred, but was able to parry the blade with my own. The Force I concentrated into the weapon wasn¡¯t affected as much by his influence. I could still easily block and parry his attacks. I tried kicking him, but he cut my left foot off.


    ¡°Ow.¡± I frowned and pulled back, rapidly regenerating the lost hand and foot.


    ¡°You treat this as a game. A test of my abilities.¡± Sharad opened his eyes again and it almost looked like they were glowing a blindingly bright yellow, but I know they weren¡¯t. At least not in reality.


    He moved forward and swung his blade down hard enough that my legs bent slightly when I blocked. My armored feet dug into the dirt, the ground trembled under us. The air was so thick and heavy. Almost like I was getting crushed under the gravity of a much larger world than Tatooine.


    ¡°Countless Sith have fallen to the Jedi because of their hubris. I do not believe you to be evil Amon. But you are still far too young to understand just how dangerous of a game you play.¡± He breathed heavily with the lungs I gave him, his heart beat more rapidly, I could feel it inside his chest. There were countless Zerg parasites and larvae inside his body.


    ¡°I understand a lot better than a guy who let his family die while running around the Galaxy, saving random strangers.¡± I snickered and pushed the blade aside, reaching out and grabbing him by the throat. My claws clamped down hard enough that his neck was bleeding from the sharpness of my fingers.


    ¡°Is that really all it took to fuck up your mental state and weaken your connection to the Force? Bringing up your homeworld and the family you lost¡­¡± I sighed and shook my head, tossing the dumbass onto the grass, ¡°Like I said. It¡¯s impossible for you to kill me. At least not in this situation. In this place.¡±


    As I spoke, the ground trembled. Huge tentacles and meaty towers erupted from the mountains around this valley. Spore Crawlers and Spine Crawlers were completely surrounding this little paradise. Otherwise there would be all kinds of Tatooine wildlife showing up to make a mess.


    ¡°What are you going to do with me? With my son? With this world?¡± Sharad probably understood the situation pretty clearly. That¡¯s why he made a desperate attempt to try to kill me while I was letting my guard down. Not probably, definitely. I knew, because we were connected now. He was infested.


    ¡°I need Overlords.¡± I took a step forward as he sat there and looked up at me, his roaring lightsaber turning off at the same moment as mine.


    ¡°Overlords?¡± He didn¡¯t understand.


    ¡°Yes, Overlords.¡± I snickered and pointed at his bald head, ¡°You¡¯ve already been a Warlord for a long time, so I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll make a great Overlord too!¡±


    ¡°I still don¡¯t understand what you-Ugh~!¡± He cringed and dropped the lightsaber hilt onto the grass. Looking up at me, Sharad pressed his left hand on his chest and begged me, ¡°Please¡­ Spare my son.¡±


    ¡°Oh don¡¯t be so melodramatic. I¡¯m not a monster.¡± I snorted and couldn¡¯t help laughing as the man screamed in agony, writhing on the ground as his body was contorted in various scary looking angles. Purple creep oozed out of his pores and his whole body was quickly covered by a thick purplish-red cocoon.


    ¡°Master¡­ Is this truly necessary?¡± Prima walked over next to me, her upright body towering over mine.


    ¡°Were those necessary?¡± I pointed up at her scaly brown tits, all four of them.


    ¡°More defined pectoral muscles were useful.¡± She used her four claws to squeeze her scaly chest muscles, ¡°I find them aesthetically pleasing.¡±


    ¡°Anyway, his kid and Tusken buddies are definitely gonna try to save him. You should go capture them before they run into Lingling.¡± I handed her my lightsaber after she picked up Sharad¡¯s off the ground, ¡°I really don¡¯t want Lingling to die. But she¡¯s becoming a problem. If you accidentally kill her, it¡¯s not a big deal.¡±


    Prima actually managed to scowl, ¡°It would be a big deal to me.¡±


    I patted her on the waist, ¡°Then try not to kill your sister.¡±

 Chapter 20: Overlord

    Chapter 20: Overlord


    ¡°It feels kinda¡­ Wrong, for some reason? I mean, I guess we don¡¯t really know how the originals reproduce and shit like that. They do look very similar to a lot of Zerg as well. So¡­ Hmmm, I don¡¯t know. I think he looks badass though.¡±


    I looked at my new ¡®Overlord¡¯ that just emerged from his Zerg cocoon. He was a head taller than me now and I¡¯m about seven feet tall. My body was bigger and bulkier, he was just taller because of his elongated and ridged head, plus the digitigrade legs. And that was with him slightly hunched over and his upper knee bent downwards. Blue skin, muscular torso, protruding hips, three fingers and a thumb, but that face was the most striking. No nose or mouth, just skin over bone. Those eyes glowed with a bright yellow light as his long tendril-like nerve cords danced around behind his back. He floated a meter off the ground and glared down at me.


    ¡°Amon Kal¡­ You are truly foolish.¡± He wanted to attack me, but he didn¡¯t. He just slowly floated down and stayed there, his muscles flexed and then loosened. I could feel his emotions calming rapidly. His fury was replaced by serenity.


    ¡°Why did you transform me into this form?¡± Even though he asked that, obviously he was able to see bits and pieces of my thoughts and memories. He was connected to the Psionic Network. But not everything was public knowledge.


    ¡°It¡¯s badass, right?¡± I smirked as he floated back down onto his feet, wobbling a little awkwardly for a moment before standing upright. When his legs straightened a little higher, he was even taller.


    ¡°I wanted something cool, but also functional. So I went with this Protoss model I¡¯ve been thinking about. Able to survive in a vacuum, doesn¡¯t need to eat or drink, can withstand fucktons of radiation, even has a damn personal shield powered by a motherfucking Krayt Dragon Pearl! Telepathic abilities are way stronger than before, even your connection to the Force¡­ Okay, well, maybe that¡¯s about the same since I couldn¡¯t boost your Midichlorian count any higher and you¡¯ll have to do Jedi cultivation or whatever to get better at Jedi things¡­ By the way, the color doesn¡¯t have to be blue.¡±


    I poked his chest and then from there, the skin across his whole body turned as tan as the desert around us. I poked his chest again and he turned pitch-black, then purple and finally blue once more.


    ¡°Can you give me my mouth and nose back?¡± He rubbed his face and then looked at his hands, ¡°And my fingers.¡± Then he looked at his legs and feet, ¡°I understand what you want from me, but this form is mostly unnecessary. There has to be a better way.¡±


    ¡°Well, you can either look like this¡­¡± I raised my right hand and a massive purple Overlord floated down from the sky, ¡°Or you could look like that.¡±


    ¡°This is fine.¡± He decided not to turn into a giant lobster balloon with a spider-like head. Seriously, Overlords have long crab arms and legs, a big-ass, mostly-hollow torso that could fit an Ultralisk inside, then a spider-head with tons of glowing purple eyes and some antennae. Although I think they¡¯re kinda cool and cute, it wouldn¡¯t really be that beneficial to transform the poor bastard into one.


    ¡°I¡¯m still working out the kinks. They can¡¯t travel through space or enter hyperspace¡­ Yet.¡± I sighed dramatically and shook my head, ¡°We¡¯ll fuck that bridge when we find it. They can still fly and transport troops or materials though. As long as you ride inside the head, you can pilot it like a starfighter¡­ Kinda. Probably, I don¡¯t know, I¡¯ve never really flown a starfighter before.¡±


    ¡°You want me to ride in that creature and command your Swarm? To what end?¡±


    I shrugged, ¡°Obviously you''re not gonna be commanding the Swarm. You¡¯re just an Overlord responsible for corralling the Zerg in a small area. In terms of hierarchy, you¡¯ll be pretty low in the command structure, but you¡¯ll still be above the basic Zerg units like Drones and Zerglings.¡±


    ¡°But you¡¯ll be below my daughters.¡± Izsha finally chimed in, making her presence known to the newbie.


    ¡°Very well.¡± Sharad telepathically sighed, ¡°What about my son and my Clan? Do you plan to transform us all into this¡­ Shape?¡±


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    ¡°Of course not.¡± I rolled my eyes, ¡°A¡¯sharad has way more potential than you. And he¡¯s still just a child. If he wants to Ascend into a Protoss, it¡¯d be better if he grew up as a human first. Besides, I need to run a lot of tests on him and it works best if he¡¯s a human, so I have a better baseline to compare other human Force Users against.¡±


    Aside from Jedi, there were the Witches of Dathomir who were also human. Plus, there were plenty of other Force Sensitive human groups around the Galaxy. It¡¯d be cool to find some Sith Purebloods to see just what the fuck makes them so special. That¡¯s something for later though.


    ¡°Anyway, the moral of the story is that you work for us now. Do a good job and you¡¯ll be rewarded. Do a bad job and you¡¯ll probably wind up dead before I get the chance to punish you¡­¡± I shrugged, ¡°That¡¯s about it. Any other questions?¡±


    ¡°Too many.¡± He looked down at his crotch and asked, ¡°Am I infertile?¡±


    ¡°Hah~! Horny bastard.¡± I looked at his smooth crotch and explained, ¡°You¡¯re an Overseer, not a Hatchery. Reproduction isn¡¯t something you need to worry about. If you¡¯re that desperate, I can clone you a human body and you can use it to fuck whoever or whatever your lusty heart desires-¡±


    ¡°No. This is fine.¡± He cut me off while raising his right hand, the air vibrated around him and his voice could be heard in every direction, ¡°My only concern at the moment is my son and my Clan. Am I allowed to go to them?¡±


    ¡°Go ahead.¡± I pointed to the sand dunes behind him, ¡°Prima was supposed to go capture them, but she¡¯s been hunting Lingling instead. Fortunately I have my very first Overseer now.¡±


    Dozens of dog-sized Zerglings emerged from the sand around us. They had wings, but they could still burrow pretty quickly and easily. Especially in sand. There were also a few larger Drones that emerged.


    ¡°What stops me from taking my child and escaping Tatooine?¡± He glared down at me with his glowing yellow eyes, his voice reverberating in every direction, ¡°Or simply killing you here and ending all of this madness?¡±


    ¡°Aww, you¡¯re so cute.¡± I floated up and patted his hard right cheek with my claw, ¡°Even if I let you escape, would you really do that? Would you really run away and hide again? After gaining this much power and a method to seek vengeance for what happened to your family?¡±


    ¡°Revenge is not the Jedi way.¡± He narrowed his eyes at me and used the Force to try to push me away, but he couldn¡¯t anymore.


    ¡°Okay, not revenge. Call it Justice, whatever. Those fucking pirates raped and pillaged on your world. Slaughtering millions. Kidnapping even more. Maybe some of your family members are still out there, getting used as sex slaves or working in mines somewhere? Meanwhile you¡¯ve been out here, living your best life as a Tusken Warlord. Trying to make the Sand People play nice with the Moisture Farmers, but how long could that possibly last?¡± I sent some visions and images into his mind. Memories and things that Izsha kept stored for me. About the inevitable disaster that would occur when Jabba the Hutt decided to make the Sand People and the human colonists go to war so he could sell some old blasters.


    ¡°Sharad, my father might be very forgiving and kind, but I assure you that I am not.¡± Izsha growled through the Psionic Network, ¡°The Swarm has no need of traitors or defectors. If you escape, I wonder how many worlds will suffer in your wake?¡±


    ¡°Seriously Izsha, you¡¯re making us look like the bad guys.¡± I snorted and laughed, then dropped down to the sandy ground with a bounce. Spreading my hands, I asked, ¡°So, what¡¯s it gonna be? Run away like a pussy or accept your fate and make the most of it?¡±


    ¡°Fine.¡± His eyes lost that ominous glow and returned to a tired brown, almost human appearance. His skin also shifted into a tannish color that blended in with the environment somewhat. Finally, he asked, ¡°What about clothing? Am I meant to walk around naked as a punishment?¡±


    ¡°Wear whatever clothing you want. Just cause I¡¯m a nudist, doesn¡¯t mean you have to be one.¡± I shrugged and pointed at the giant cockpit-sized head of the Overlord that was floating nearby. ¡°Obviously your old Tusken outfit wouldn¡¯t fit anymore, but you¡¯re free to make a new one and wear it. I don¡¯t really give a damn either way.¡±


    ¡°Very well.¡± Accepting his fate, the badass Protoss of my own creation, walked over beneath the dangling legs of the Overlord and started floating upwards. There was a gaping slimy slit down the middle of the belly that accepted him inside. Following him, the Drones and Zerglings also crammed into the belly of the colossal beast.


    ¡°It seems that everything is going according to plan, Father.¡± Izsha seemed pretty excited.


    ¡°Pretty much.¡± I snickered as the Overlord floated up and away, then tapped my foot on the sand a few times. The ground vibrated and rumbled. A few moments later, I was lifted up into the air while standing on the head of an enormous purple-scaled Krayt Dragon. The beast¡¯s many legs and super long tail were still under the sand, but just the head and neck along were massive.


    The long black horns sticking out from the dragon¡¯s crown were aesthetically pleasing. The beast had three sets of eyes, in the event that some of them were damaged or destroyed. There were long tendrils dangling from her chin, with a big horn sticking up from the tip of her nose. I felt like she would look better with actual lips covering her giant fang-like teeth, similar to a more conventional dragon.


    Everywhere she swam through the sands, she left behind a trail of Creep under the surface. Creating massive tunnels that stretched for hundreds of kilometers through the desert. She released infrasound that allowed her to swim through the sand so easily. But it also had another effect.


    ¡°Raooaaaar~!¡± The dune up ahead burst open and an even bigger Greater Krayt Dragon emerged! It had rough brown scales that had many craters and pits. The old man¡¯s tiny red eyes stared at the two of us for a moment before it roared again, ¡°Aaaaaarraaaaaaah~!¡±


    ¡°Rah-rah go fuck yourself.¡± I raised my middle fingers at the horny bastard and then my daughter charged forward! She raised two huge crab-like arms up and bit down on the bastard¡¯s throat before he could react! His body was much larger and he was definitely a lot older and more experienced. But that didn¡¯t help him much. His forelimbs were clamped by those giant pincers, while her other feet ended in terrifyingly sharp and powerful blades! That dug into his underbelly, while her tail stabbed into his groin violently!


    Zerg Larvae, Zerglings and Drones were injected directly inside of his body! Eating the poor bastard from the inside out, while she was locking him in place and tearing out chunks of his meat to devour from the outside!


    ¡°Hahaha~! Yeah, fuck him up!¡± I floated above the catastrophic battle, watching the two beasts toss and turn in the sand. A mixture of red and purple coated the dunes. The red was quickly swallowed up by the purple Creep though.


    An omen of things to come, I suppose.

 Chapter 21: Overpowered

    Chapter 21: Overpowered


    It¡¯s kinda ironic that I created the Protoss after the Zerg. Though I guess my version of Protoss is just a type of Zerg, but still. Their name means Firstborn, right? I guess in a million or billion years, nobody will really remember who came first though.


    ¡°We will.¡± Izsha¡¯s voice commented on my thoughts as usual.


    ¡°I¡¯m not so sure about that.¡± I soared through the sky as the wind whipped the transparent screen in front of me. The six purple tendrils whipped around behind my back like wings. They grew out of my shoulder-blade carapace to provide me with an anti-gravity field like what the Drones and Overlords use.


    ¡°You designed me to preserve your memories for eternity. I will not fail in my primary purpose for existence.¡± She was still young. Hell, I¡¯m still young too, but I¡¯ve lived and died once already. I know how hard it is to actually hold onto something for a human lifetime. Not to mention some bullshit like millions of years. I can¡¯t even imagine that, yet.


    ¡°We¡¯ll see what happens in a million years. For now, I¡¯m gonna worry about the pres-ow!¡± I felt something pass through the tentacle on my back. Then I got hit by a few more tiny projectiles that left little pits in my armor!


    I could hear gunshots once I slowed down and stopped. The bullets pierced my shield easily since it wasn¡¯t really meant to deflect solid objects or projectiles. At most, it was a wind-screen and could deflect energy bolts.


    ¡°Seriously?¡± I looked at the angry Tusken Raiders who were shooting me with their ¡®primitive¡¯ Cycler Rifles. So-called ¡®Slugthrowers¡¯. They were surprisingly effective against energy shields and squishy flesh, while not being very useful against armored targets or anything that had electromagnetic deflector shields.


    ¡°I always found it odd how solid projectiles were so rarely utilized in the Galactic Republic. Even if Droids and Clone Trooper armor could block ordinary bullets, you would simply need to use specialized projectiles designed to deal with specific targets. Fire a piece of Durasteel fast enough and it will deal with any armor that might exist.¡± Izsha had a point, but she forgot something important.


    ¡°Money. Not that blasters are cheaper by the way. They¡¯re definitely way more expensive. And that¡¯s precisely why they¡¯re so widespread.¡± I turned my head a bit, dodging the bullet that whizzed past my cheek. Then I pulled the Zerg-saber hilt off my right hip, igniting a purple blade that roared and hissed as it extended.


    ¡°I suppose greed and the military industrial complex does tend to fuel a lot of inefficient and illogical decisions.¡± My daughter commented as I used my blade to try to block a bullet. As I expected, superheated gas and boiling metal came out the other side of the plasma sword. I mean, I knew it would happen, but I still wanted to test out the age-old theory of whether a lightsaber can actually block a bullet.


    ¡°Ow.¡± I wiped the molten liquid off my cheek as the burnt flesh was rapidly healing. I got a little annoyed. A little angry. The rage flowed through me and then, the bullets stopped in mid-air. I glared down at the Tusken who were still shooting at me pointlessly and sent about a dozen rounds wheezing down through the body of one of them. Ripping him to shreds.


    Then I released some of the pressure on my lightsaber. The blade became much less focused and a lot weaker, but the length grew instantly to over a hundred meters! I condensed it and made it thinner, longer, then swiped it across and sliced a dude in half, along with the rocks he was using as cover. A big skinny line of glass also appeared in the sand below them. I swung my blade a few more times and thought it was kinda hilarious.


    ¡°They¡¯re so fucking dumb.¡± I almost felt bad for them. But if they¡¯d attack me, they¡¯d attack anyone. Regardless of whether they were an adult or a child. Allowing them to live would be like killing innocent people. Something that a lot of superheroes never really seemed to comprehend.


    ¡°They are as intelligent as humans. Though that isn¡¯t saying much.¡± Izsha giggled in the back of my head as I turned off my lightsaber. The super long blade took a long time to retract. It was important that it retracted and didn¡¯t just dissipate, because the plasma itself was actually a physical thing that would need to be replenished. Not just a simple laser beam or whatever. Otherwise you could just let the gas escape in every direction like an explosion. Umm, also another reason why it¡¯s important to retract the lightsaber instead of allowing the superheated plasma to escape randomly, huh?


    ¡°Speaking of Humans, I think the Terran Dominion idea is pretty good. Can¡¯t put all our Zerg Eggs in one basket.¡± I smiled wryly and floated down towards the desert below, where the remaining Tusken were fleeing on the backs of the cute and furry giant brown Banthas. They were sort of like mammoths, but they had curvy ram horns, long lizard-like tails that were covered in hair, plus there was no long trunk. Their faces were huge and they had wide mouths, big ears that poked up out of the fur near the bases of their horns. One interesting thing about them was their super long tongues that had grippy knobs and even breathing holes.


    ¡°Protoss, Terrans, Zerg, but ultimately they¡¯re all part of the Swarm.¡± She muttered in my head, ¡°If they find a way to attack us through the Psionic Network, it would be problematic.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s why the Terran Dominion will be a separate force. Something outside the Psionic Network. This is Star Wars, the Ghosts and shit could just be Force Users. It¡¯s not even that difficult to create a Force User, just that we can¡¯t mass produce Jedi Master level monsters. Not sure if we even should.¡± It wasn¡¯t really necessary. If everyone was at that level, then it kinda diminishes the value and power of someone or something that can use the Force.


    ¡°Clones or recruitment?¡± My daughter asked as I landed lightly behind the horrified Tusken man. The Bantha was freaking out as well. But no matter how much it bucked, I wouldn¡¯t get knocked off the harness. The poor rider wasn¡¯t so lucky though. Getting tossed out onto the sand. I picked up his gun, aimed and pulled the trigger.


    *Crack~!* With the loud shot, his head exploded pretty spectacularly. It looked like an old-timey lever-action rifle, but it was basically a 50 cal anti-material rifle. I tilted my head and avoided another headshot from up ahead, ¡°A hundred quadrillion sentients. Fifty million inhabited worlds. More than half the population of the Galactic Republic is human. Not sure the exact numbers, but quadrillions of humans for sure. It¡¯s wild that only three million Clones were needed for the Clone Wars.¡±


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    The more I thought about it, the more unreasonable it seemed. But it is true that every world had its own military for the most part. So the Clones were more like a mobile elite strike force. Their Star Destroyers and other extremely powerful war machines probably played a bigger role than their usage as disposable infantry units.


    ¡°Should we create Terran Marines or Space Marines? How will we create the ships and other vehicles?¡± As she spoke, I reached out with my left hand and tiny tendrils shot out of my palm. The Tusken dude shot me in the chest but the bullet didn¡¯t do much. Then the tendrils squirmed and his body was ripped into dozens of pieces. The tendrils shot back into my hand as I made a fist. The chitinous black plate on the back of my wrist lifted up and glowed bright-purple for a moment before a plasma bolt shot out. An instant later it passed through one Tusken¡¯s back, then hit a second one and exploded. Blasting the entire upper half of his body into meaty chunks.


    ¡°Space Marines are¡­ Kinda garbage. Not that they¡¯re weaker than Terran Marines. They¡¯re definitely much more powerful. But they¡¯re also just kinda overly complicated. They¡¯re a lot like blasters in that sense.¡± I put away the bioblaster on my wrist and aimed the ¡®simple¡¯ Cycler Rifle at the last remaining Tusken man. He roared defiantly and fired a blaster pistol which missed by a lot. We were pretty far away after all. I pulled the trigger and his head exploded. The enemies were dead. But the Banthas¡­ They would join the Swarm.


    I tossed the rifle aside and released hundreds of tiny flying scorpions. They flew over to the dozen Banthas and crawled inside their flesh. Mutating and transforming, infesting them¡­ The Banthas stopped freaking out after a short time. Accepting their fate. Their minds were already connected to the Psionic Network. Their bodies would be transformed slowly afterwards. There was no rush.


    ¡°Space Marines are fairly convoluted. However, the concept is still reasonable. In fact, Terran Marines are also genetically and cybernetically enhanced humans. Whether it¡¯s Space Marines or Terran Marines however, they are still just infantry units. Their armor and weapons are more important than their bodies in most cases.¡± Without the armor, even the extremely powerful Space Marines would just get turned to mulch by their enemies.


    ¡°I could make biological armor, but I feel like that would just defeat the point.¡± I smiled wryly as I floated up into the sky. I didn¡¯t stop ascending. Moving faster and faster. The wind was blocked by my personal shield. The air got thinner and thinner, until it was gone. The twin suns tried to irradiate me, but the sunlight didn¡¯t hurt or burn. I felt good. Warm and comfy, even floating in the void outside the atmosphere.


    ¡°It would be counter-productive¡­¡± Izsha was silent for a while, as I kept drifting farther away from the planet, ¡°As long as we have currency, we can purchase materials¡­ No, we don¡¯t need to purchase anything. We can mine and manufacture our own materials. We can create-¡±


    ¡°Zerg structures that can act as manufacturing facilities. We can make Zerg specialized in creating non-Zerg buildings and structures. Terran armor, ships, everything¡­ We can create Zerg who can create things. Well, either that or just assimilate people who know how to do that shit already.¡± I couldn¡¯t help thinking about Anakin and his Mom.


    ¡°What if we searched for the Star Forge?¡± She was obviously joking, ¡°It would be safer to just capture a Trade Federation world where they construct Droids.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s really not that big of a deal.¡± I saw a Starfighter getting closer. It was gray and boxy. I could sense a few people on board, maybe a few Droids too, but that was harder to tell.


    ¡°Although Zerglings, Drones and Overlords can fly, we do need to work on actual aerospace units like Mutalisks, Scourge, Corruptors and Guardians.¡± We didn¡¯t need to follow the Zerg units religiously, but as a baseline, we might as well start there.


    ¡°With Sarlaccs as a reference, we might be able to get some Leviathans. But I really do need to find some Mynocks to cross-reference some shit. Not sure if the silicon based lifeforms will be compatible with the Zerg though.¡± I couldn¡¯t help thinking of Exogorths as well. Also silicon based, and if you find an Exogorth, you can find Mynocks in their stomachs.


    ¡°Leviathans would be useful. However, we have not even conquered Tatooine yet. They are not a high priority.¡± Izsha sighed telepathically and asked, ¡°Do you think I should remain a Hatchery or start my transformation now?¡±


    ¡°We have ten other Hatcheries. There¡¯s no reason for you to shackle yourself. If your new form isn¡¯t perfect, you can always perfect it later. Just like mine is always improving¡­ Changing. That¡¯s just the way of the Zerg, right?¡± I dodged the giant blue plasma bolt and then ignited my purple lightsaber, deflecting another bolt back at the gun that fired it! The turret on the ship exploded, along with the dumbass inside the gunner seat.


    They tried to escape, but I was already on top of their ship in a moment. My toes dug into their hull as I reached down and punched my fist through the metal plating easily. Their air vented out of the ship rapidly, almost blasting me away. The humans inside were terrified, obviously, but there wasn¡¯t much they could do to stop me from barging inside.


    It wasn¡¯t like a sci-fi show where a little hole in the roof would suck everyone through and smash their bodies to paste. The PSI difference between inside and outside wasn¡¯t that ridiculous. A piece of metal got stuck to the roof and blocked off the hole I made with my body.


    *Pew-pew~!* The woman with a cybernetic eyepatch fired at me twice with a blaster pistol. I deflected the bolts with my purple lightsaber. Killing her two companions. Then I reached out and her face was pulled into my hand.


    ¡°No-no-no~! Please, spare-agggh~!¡± She gagged and choked as the centipedes, scorpions and other Zerg phenotypes drilled down her throat from my palm. I pushed her limp body off to the side as her stomach bulged rapidly. A moment later, dozens of black and purple Larvae emerged from her corpse. They devoured the biomass that was available in the Starfighter as the sirens blared constantly.


    ¡°So do you think there might be some Exogorth-infested asteroids in this system? Or should I not even bother looking?¡± I watched one of the Larva spin a cocoon. The others just kept eating. Not just the people, but they also had some rations on the ship. Also some cargo, plenty of biomass, even some Essence we didn¡¯t have before now. Random shit, fruits and veggies, random animal meats. Not particularly useful in terms of combat power, but maybe something to add to the garden later.


    ¡°Father, if there were Exogorths near Tatooine, that seems like something that would be common knowledge. Someone in Mos Espa would know. Shmi might even know.¡± As she said that, the cocoon burst and a baby human girl emerged. The child had brown hair, brown eyes, tan skin. Rather than a newborn, she looked more like a toddler.


    The kid stood up easily and hopped up onto the pilot¡¯s chair, not even bothering to look at me as she asked, ¡°Where would you like to go, Master?¡±


    ¡°Just take the ship back home. The Hypermatter will be useful when we figure out how to make biological Hyperdrives. The other parts could be taken apart and broken down or reused in the creation of the first Terran Command Center in the Garden.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Master.¡± The little Shmi Clone had a slight smirk on her adorable face as she turned back around to pilot a starship for the first time. It was like she¡¯d done it a million times before though. After all, Shmi was an amazing pilot. Almost as good as her son. And that¡¯s without using the Force to cheat.


    ¡°One major benefit of using Clones is that we can create them really fast, really easily, loyalty isn¡¯t an issue, we can program them with knowledge and skills from their original or even from other people¡­ I guess I could do the same to regular people too though.¡± I put away my lightsaber before I accidentally destroyed the ship. Then I walked over and sat down in the co-pilot seat. Watching the planet getting bigger rapidly. The ship had shields to protect us from atmospheric entry, so I didn¡¯t need to worry about that hole that was barely covered by a sheet of metal.


    ¡°They are resistant, almost immune to Zerg infestation. This will become problematic if they escape our control or if they get captured and experimented on by our enemies.¡± The Shmi Clones were literally only human. Even if they were birthed by Zerg Larvae, they were still human. And their immune systems were incredibly powerful.


    ¡°They might be immune to infestation, but they¡¯re not immune to bullets.¡± I rolled my eyes and reached out to carefully pat the little girl¡¯s head as she giggled happily, ¡°It¡¯ll be fine. I¡¯m not sure whether we should design them to self-replicate or simply breed to reproduce.¡±


    ¡°We could make most of them infertile and then have Queens designed to reproduce.¡± Izsha gave a somewhat fucked up suggestion, but it wasn¡¯t that bad of an idea.


    ¡°Now I¡¯m thinking about Xenomorphs¡­¡± I couldn¡¯t help myself, ¡°I mean, Xenomorphs are very similar to Zerg anyway. It¡¯d be fine to use them as like¡­ I don¡¯t know, infiltration units? They¡¯re kinda sneaky.¡±


    ¡°Xenomorphs would be fairly easy to create. Would you like to create Predators as well? The Tusken would make a decent baseline to start with¡­¡± I¡¯m not sure whether she¡¯s kidding or serious, but it is true that Tusken kinda remind me of Predators. Predators are prettier though.


    ¡°Anyway, I¡¯ve been putting it off for a while now, but I should really go check up on my son.¡±


    ¡°Anakin?¡±


    I sighed and shook my head, ¡°Midnight.¡±


    The real Firstborn.

 Interlude 4: The Dark Wanderer

    Interlude 4: The Dark Wanderer


    Mos Espa was uncharacteristically quiet today. The streets were as dry and cracked as usual. Some small Womprats scurried around, munching on the food that was left out in the stalls or the broken, rotting carcasses on the ground. Everyone was inside. Hiding from the sandstorm that was rapidly approaching.


    As the darkness and deafening winds washed over the massive city, a black-cloaked figure landed gently from the sky. Something writhed underneath his cape, but calmed down as he started walking calmly down the street. The man was massive, as tall as a Wookiee, but with wider shoulders. Every step of his armored purplish-black feet caused the ground to crunch and crack.


    Those glowing golden eyes scanned the buildings curiously. A smirk appeared on his dark-red lips. His face was an ominous shade of crimson. Almost like he was trying to look like a villain at first glance.


    ¡°Master! Please! Please let me inside!¡± A young Twi¡¯lek woman was desperately banging on the door to a house as her naked green body was whipped by the wind and sand.


    ¡°Shut the frak up, you nasty schutta!¡± A man¡¯s voice came from inside.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry! I promise I¡¯ll never let those pigs touch me again!¡± She begged and pleaded as her sensitive Lekku were scraped by the sandstorm.


    ¡°I forgave you the first seven times, but I¡¯ll never forgive you this time! If I didn¡¯t love you so much, I¡¯d kill you myself!¡± The guy inside the house was crying as loudly as the woman outside¡­ It was all very dramatic.


    ¡°Aaaah! Master!¡± The girl screamed desperately when a Womp Rat the size of a dog chomped down on her left leg, dragging her away from the door that opened, revealing a human man with a blaster rifle.


    ¡°Let go of her!¡± He fired a plasma bolt, but it missed and was back-hand deflected by the Dark Wanderer who happened to be watching the show. The bolt flew off into a market stall and exploded.


    ¡°Master~!¡± The Twi¡¯lek was screaming anxiously as her ankle was ripped off, with blood spraying everywhere. The sand getting in her open wound definitely didn¡¯t feel great either.


    ¡°E chuta!¡± The man fired again and again, with the accuracy of an Original Trilogy Storm Trooper, he actually blasted the left arm off the woman he was trying to save. The Womp Rat did get scared away by all the explosions and heat though. Not that it really mattered much at that point.


    ¡°No!¡± The man cried out and hugged the dying girl in his arms, ¡°Please no! Somebody! Hey, you, call a Medical Droid or a doctor, something! Please!¡±


    ¡°You know¡­ I¡¯m something of a doctor myself.¡± The devilish man smirked as he knelt down in front of the Master and Slave.


    ¡°I umm, I don¡¯t have a lot of Credits¡­¡± The Master started getting nervous as the ¡®doctor¡¯ was about to administer treatment for the girl that was already unconscious from blood-loss and shock.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± The man snickered ominously and placed his black claw-like hand on the guy¡¯s bare shoulder, ¡°The Swarm has free healthcare for everyone!¡±


    ¡°The wh-aaaaagh~! No~!¡± The man screamed desperately as beetles drilled under his flesh and up his neck, down to his hairy chest and even infested his beer belly. At the same time, the man¡¯s other hand was placed on the nearly-dead Twi¡¯lek¡¯s sternum. Between those massive green breasts. A moment later she opened her glowing purple eyes as a new third eye emerged in the middle of her forehead! Then dozens of other eyes opened up along her head-tails! That bloody shoulder stump erupted with a slimy purple tentacle that quickly swelled up, getting covered by segmented black carapace, ending in a big crab claw¡­


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that better?¡± The Dark Wanderer grinned at the horrified man as the guy¡¯s eyes rolled into the back of his head, then fell out of their sockets. It was fine though, because bug-like compound eyes took their place. His stomach opened up into a toothy maw, with a long slimy purple tongue hanging out.


    ¡°Yes¡­ Master.¡± The guy growled from the new mouth on his abdomen.


    ¡°Now she¡¯ll never get raped again and you¡¯ll never get cucked!¡± The devil stood up and towered over the two of them as they groveled on the ground in the sandstorm.


    ¡°Thank¡­ You¡­ For¡­ The¡­ Help¡­ Master.¡± The Twi¡¯lek girl¡¯s face twitched as her teeth fell out, replaced by sharp and powerful fangs. Those many eyes were pelted by the wind and sand, but fortunately they had protective transparent eyelids so that she wasn¡¯t bothered.


    ¡°Anyway, you guys should get back inside.¡± Their new Master reached down and casually picked up the severed green arm, tossing it to the woman¡¯s crab claw. She pinched it and then started chomping down on the meat, even biting through the bone, while her former master started eating her hand with his bottom mouth.


    ¡°It always feels good to do a good deed.¡± In a happy mood, the mysterious stranger continued along his way.


    Where are you? Who are you? What are you?


    Opening her eyes, the Rutian Twi¡¯lek girl took in a sharp breath. She stared out at the beautiful ocean and muttered to herself, ¡°Amon Kal.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re thinking about that boy again?¡± A two foot tall green goblin-like woman walked over and sat down on a simple white beach towel. She was wearing white and brown Jedi Robes, just like her Padawan.


    ¡°Master Yaddle, the Force is trying to warn me about him. I know it.¡± The pretty teenage girl looked at her 500 year old Master and frowned, ¡°Why are you laughing?¡±


    ¡°Heheh~!¡± Yaddle shook her head and patted the girl on the thigh, ¡°When I was your age¡­ When I was a couple hundred years older than you, I felt the same way about a certain boy.¡±


    ¡°This isn¡¯t a childish crush, Master.¡± The Padawan rolled her bright blue eyes and asked, ¡°Did you find out anything about him? How many Amon Kals could there possibly be in the Galaxy?¡±


    ¡°It really is an uncommon name.¡± The middle-aged space goblin nodded her head, ¡°Only a hundred and fifty billion Amon Kals on record. Less than a hundred million are confirmed alive today. Only a hundred thousand of them have red skin.¡±


    Only a hundred thousand¡­


    ¡°In other words, this monster is out there somewhere and we have no idea who he is or how to find him?¡± Those long head-tails drooped onto the hot sand. Suddenly she saw a massive dune sea! A city inside a huge crater! Blackened mountains-


    ¡°Eldra.¡± Yaddle¡¯s voice snapped the girl out of her vision, ¡°The Force often shows us glimpses of possible futures or even things that happened in the distant past. It is entirely possible that this Amon Kal you¡¯re worrying about has died ages ago, long before even Master Yoda was born.¡±


    Is that really the case?


    Eldra furrowed her dark brows, ¡°Why would a ghost from the distant past be haunting me now?¡±


    ¡°From my experience as a Jedi all these centuries¡­¡± The goblin girl smirked, ¡°That¡¯s something you¡¯ll probably figure out when it¡¯s far too late to actually do anything about it. Heheheh~!¡±


    ¡°Master!¡± In the end, her teacher wasn¡¯t really much help at all. Telling a teenager to stop worrying about a potentially existential threat to the Galaxy was usually pretty counterproductive.


    He¡¯s on a desert world. There¡¯s a city in a crater. Black mountains. Slavery¡­ The Outer Rim most likely. That girl was a Twi¡¯lek, so maybe Ryloth? But they weren¡¯t speaking Twi¡¯lek. Galactic Basic is also common on Ryloth as far as I know. I can¡¯t just fly over to Ryloth though. That¡¯s on the other side of the Galaxy. No matter how much freedom my Master likes to give me, she¡¯ll never allow something so dangerous and ridiculous.


    ¡°Mos Espa.¡± A name flashed through her mind!


    ¡°Master, have you ever heard of a place called Mos Espa?¡± She breathed a sigh and smelled something burning. Looking over, she saw a tall and dark figure standing there with a blazing red lightsaber in his hand!


    Then she looked down and saw her Master¡¯s decapitated corpse, those big eyes staring blankly at the sky. Thunder cracked in the sky and rain started falling around them. The white sands were slowly dyed red from the bloody rain. It burned. But it also felt¡­ Good.


    There is no emotion, there is peace.


    ¡°Peace is a lie.¡± The voice was deafening and shook the skies like thunder! Eldra looked up at the sky and her eyes widened in horror! Massive purple tendrils reached down from the sky, stabbing into the ocean and the ground! The world shook like an earthquake and a ridiculously huge gaping toothy maw took up most of the sky!


    ¡°There is only War!¡± The creature roared so loudly that she felt like her body would rattle apart! Her ear-nubs burst open and her Lekku exploded! The world spun and everything disappeared into darkness¡­


    ¡°Hey, you. You¡¯re finally awake.¡± Eldra opened her tired eyes and immediately noticed that her wrists were bound. She was sitting on a creaky old-timey wooden cart and freezing her ass off in nothing more than a linen cloth around her tits and a dirty loin-cloth covering her crotch. The Jedi quickly closed her hairless blue thighs and looked up at the man who was speaking, ¡°You were trying to cross the border, right? Walked right into that Imperial ambush.¡± She looked over at the white armored Storm Trooper driving the cart on her left, then back at the handsome red-skinned boy across from her who was still yapping, ¡°Same as us. And that thief over there.¡±


    ¡°Damn you Rebels¡­¡± Another red-skinned man, also with yellow eyes, but a circle of blood-red around his irises, but he was bald instead of having long black hair, and there was a crown of horns around his skullcap. He also had black markings around his eyes, face, ears, jaw, nose, basically his whole head was covered in them. The Zabrak man growled, ¡°Hoth was fine until you came along. Empire was nice and lazy. If they hadn¡¯t been looking for you, I¡¯d have stolen that ship and been half-way to Tatooine.¡± He looked towards the girl and said, ¡°You there. You and me, we shouldn¡¯t be here. It¡¯s these Rebels the Empire wants.¡±


    Amon retorted, ¡°We¡¯re all brothers and sisters in binds now.¡±


    ¡°Shut up back there!¡± The Storm Trooper shouted back at the two of them, continuing to drive the cart through the snowy wasteland of Hoth.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with him?¡± The Zabrak Thief asked, looking towards the little blonde boy who was gagged and bound like the rest of them.


    ¡°Watch your tongue! You¡¯re speaking to Anakin Skywalker! The Chosen One!¡± Amon shouted at the other man.


    ¡°Anakin¡­ Darth Vader?¡± The Zabrak Thief looked at the boy in shock, ¡°I thought you joined the Empire? Hunted down and slaughtered all the Jedi¡­ Since when did you join the Rebellion?¡±


    ¡°Wait, what?¡± Eldra finally couldn¡¯t keep her mouth shut anymore and couldn¡¯t help asking, ¡°What do you mean he hunted down the Jedi?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that. Different timeline.¡± Amon shrugged his shoulders and leaned back, easily snapping the ropes around his wrists. He was cloaked in a black robe, but it seemed a little drafty. Well, very drafty. With his legs spread like that, he really wasn¡¯t hiding anything.


    ¡°Different timeline?¡± The Twi¡¯lek was confused, especially since the surroundings were rapidly warping again. From a carriage to her meditation chamber on her Master¡¯s T-6 Jedi Shuttle.


    Wait, am I still on Dantooine? When did I get on this ship?


    If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    ¡°Yeah, different timeline.¡± The Langhesi boy chuckled and pointed out the open door, towards a pretty middle-aged Togruta woman. She was dressed in a white Jedi robe and using two white lightsabers, training in various forms. The Force felt so warm and soft around her, yet there was a cruel and cold darkness hidden underneath.


    ¡°Who is she?¡± Eldra asked curiously as she stood up and almost collapsed from dizziness, but her face pressed against the man¡¯s warm abs¡­ He was so tall!


    ¡°Ahsoka Tano.¡± Amon hugged the blue girl gently, ¡°She¡¯s about one year old at the moment. I really wanna kidnap and experiment on her-¡±


    ¡°I knew it! You¡¯re a monster!¡± The girl pushed him away and his appearance transformed! His sexy red flesh was transformed into black and purple armor, while only his handsome face remained the same! Even his long black hair was turned into slimy, bug-like tendrils!


    ¡°Oh please, as if the Jedi are any better.¡± He snorted and laughed, pointing at the woman in the other room. ¡°Poor kid was groomed from childhood into a soldier for the Republic. Fights in a war from 14 to 17, hell, she even dies at least once and comes back to life. Ahsoka was framed as a terrorist, imprisoned, betrayed by everyone she thought she could trust, everyone except her Master¡­ But let¡¯s just say that she was smart to run away from that bullshit while she still had the chance. After all, her Master became-¡±


    ¡°Stop, stop trying to trick me!¡± Eldra pulled a lightsaber off her hip and realized she was wearing her Jedi Robes again, then extended the blade and pointed it at the giant monster! The two of them were suddenly standing in the middle of a scorching hot desert!


    *Tshh-raaaaaah~!* Amon¡¯s purple lightsaber ignited with a deafening roar! The hilt looked like some sort of black and purple insect, similar to the rest of his body! There were six tentacles wiggling around behind his back as he floated off the ground.


    ¡°Is this where you are?! This desert world?!¡± The crazed Padawan reached out and used the Force to pull the bastard towards herself! Then she clashed against his lightsaber, but was sent flying across the sand!


    ¡°Maybe? Or maybe I¡¯m on Hoth? Maybe I¡¯m on Dantooine? That¡¯s where you¡¯re at now, right?¡± Amon snickered as he stepped onto the sand and slowly walked towards the tiny Twi¡¯lek girl, even though she attacked him with all of her strength, a casual swat of his lightsaber would send her flying dozens of meters through the air or across the sand!


    ¡°Tatooine! That¡¯s the name of this planet! That¡¯s the name the Thief said!¡± Eldra screamed as she pushed him back with the Force! But it only took a moment for him to appear in front of her again! The purple blade slashed down and knocked her own lightsaber through her face!


    ¡°Aaaaah~!¡± Eldra screamed in agony for a moment before her jaw was gone, her breasts were burned away and even her legs below the knees were chopped off before her own lightsaber finally turned off¡­


    ¡°Seriously though. You¡¯d think they¡¯d put some fucking safeties on these things, right?¡± Amon started laughing as she was writhing in agony on the scorched and bloody sands.


    No! No! This isn¡¯t real! This is a vision! This is just a dream!


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Tis but a flesh wound.¡± That devilishly handsome face grinned, revealing those terrifying fang-like teeth as he knelt down in front of the horrifically wounded girl, ¡°Aww, don¡¯t be afraid. You know¡­ I¡¯m actually a pretty fucking amazing doctor if I do say so myself.¡±


    Please no! Master, save me!


    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t be such a baby.¡± He cupped her mutilated face in his claws and chuckled, ¡°Besides, I¡¯m your Master now, Eldra.¡±


    ¡°Never~!¡± Eldra woke up screaming her lungs out! She felt like her face was still a mess, but at most, she just had some sleep in her eyes and a runny nose. The Jedi Padawan was usually pretty good at controlling her feelings, but she couldn¡¯t help curling up in a ball and sobbing on her side.


    Master, where are you?


    She sniffled and eventually got out of bed, looking around the ship for her Master. For a moment, she thought this was another nightmarish vision, but her mind started returning to calm as she remembered the past few days.


    Master Yaddle went to Coruscant for a Council Meeting. She wanted me to go back to Dantooine to take care of her dog. Can¡¯t have her exotic pet breeding with a Kath Hound and creating an ecological disaster¡­


    ¡°Lady Katis, have you awoken yet?¡± A masculine voice rang out through the speakers in the small dormitory.


    ¡°I¡¯m awake, what¡¯s wrong, Hikari?¡± The Twi¡¯lek sniffled and took a deep breath, calming herself down even more. Leaving the room in a gray sleeveless top and a long white skirt that reached her knees, she made sure her lightsaber was safely on the right side of her belt. Then adjusted her headdress, the tight leather bindings were uncomfortable, but they kept her focused. It also prevented her lekku from wiggling around and touching things on their own¡­


    ¡°We¡¯ve received a distress signal from a small freighter. As per standard Jedi protocol, I have assured them that we are on our way to offer any assistance they might require.¡± Although it seemed a little suspicious and odd, Eldra wasn¡¯t some newbie Padawan. She¡¯s been a Padawan under Master Yaddle for over a decade now. At 18 years old, it would be fairly normal for her to become a Jedi Knight by now.


    ¡°Any idea what we¡¯re dealing with?¡± Eldra didn¡¯t take long to reach the cockpit and sit down next to the skinny humanoid Droid that was piloting the ship.


    ¡°According to their distress call, they were being attacked by pirates.¡± The Droid paused for a few seconds as the ship exited hyperspace, revealing bits and pieces of what used to be a starship of some sort.


    ¡°How long ago was the distress signal sent?¡± The young woman frowned and closed her eyes to ¡®feel¡¯ for any lifesigns, but unsurprisingly, there wasn¡¯t much. At least nothing like a human.


    ¡°Several weeks ago. It is rather unfortunate, but it is entirely possible that some species could have survived.¡± As soon as the Droid said that, they both noticed some signals popping up one after the other, ¡°It appears that the Force is with us! Look, these are escape pod signatures!¡±


    ¡°I can see that, Hikari.¡± Eldra smiled wryly, ¡°Let¡¯s hope that the Force is with them as well. Just because they made it to an escape pod didn¡¯t mean they made it there in one piece¡­ And we don¡¯t know how well equipped the escape pods of this particular ship were¡­¡±


    ¡°Oh don¡¯t be so pessimistic!¡± Hikari chuckled and then set a course to the nearest pod, ¡°You would be amazed at how resilient organics can be when it comes to survival!¡±


    ¡°I hope you¡¯re right.¡± She sighed and leaned back in her comfy chair.


    Why am I disappointed there were no pirates or slavers to fight?


    ¡°Entering Hyperspace, now.¡± It was only a few seconds before he announced, ¡°Exiting Hyperspace.¡±


    The ship reappeared in real-space and the first escape pod was right in front of them. Just a simple metal sphere that looked busted up and severely damaged.


    ¡°How unfortunate.¡± Hikari shook his head, ¡°The life-support systems are compromised. Perhaps we¡¯ll have better luck with the next one-¡±


    ¡°Wait.¡± Eldra raised her right hand and closed her eyes tightly. She tilted her head slightly and felt something, somehow, someone was still alive in there. Amazingly enough, ¡°I think there¡¯s actually a human in there?¡±


    Maybe she had an exosuit available?


    ¡°I¡¯m engaging the tractor beam now.¡± Within a few seconds the pod was lined up with the airlock, though since the pod was so damaged, the airlock couldn¡¯t establish a proper seal.


    ¡°I¡¯ll have to put on a suit. It¡¯s fine.¡± Eldra left the cockpit and headed through the ship, reaching the airlock room. There were several large and small space suits inside. A few were the size of Yaddle, while a few were her own size. They just looked like a skin-tight blue rubbery material that covered her whole body from the neck down. A transparent plastic bubble covered her entire head. There was a white utility belt around her waist and a long dangly white loin-cloth to cover her crotch and ass. Otherwise it would be a bit too revealing.


    ¡°Okay, vent the atmosphere in the airlock.¡± She gave the order and her Droid followed it immediately. A few seconds later, she walked over to the metal door and opened it, revealing the damaged pod doors. She took a breath and then used the Force with both hands to pull the doors to the sides!


    Knew it.


    She smirked when she saw the unconscious human woman that was wearing a thick black space suit. Only her face was visible through a durable transparent plastic cover. The woman looked surprisingly healthy considering that she was likely starving and dehydrated for weeks.


    Didn¡¯t know humans could even survive that long without food or water. Though it¡¯s possible that she was recycling her urine and sweat. As for food, the pod probably had something. Not sure how she managed to eat it, but when push comes to shove, humans will do whatever it takes to stay alive.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay now. You¡¯re safe.¡± Eldra smiled as the blonde girl opened her blurry blue eyes, ¡°Everything is going to be fine.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re¡­ A Jedi?¡± The woman saw the lightsaber hilt and felt relieved, ¡°Thank you¡­ Thank you for saving me, Jedi Knight.¡±


    ¡°Eldra Kaitis, you can call me Eldra.¡± Eldra chuckled, easily pulling the floating human out of the damaged escape pod and into the airlock. The doors shut automatically and then the air started returning rapidly. Pressurizing the small room so that the woman could finally take off her suit after weeks.


    ¡°I¡¯m only a Padawan though, not a Jedi Knight.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± The blonde girl smiled as she slowly took off her suit, revealing her extremely skinny and bony naked body, ¡°Even a Padawan is still a Jedi. Plus this ship¡­¡± She whistled and shook her head, ¡°You might not be a Langeshi Forger, but you¡¯re definitely worth the suffering I¡¯ve endured the past month.¡±


    E chuta! It¡¯s a trap! Of course it¡¯s a trap!


    ¡°Lady Katis! We have a problem!¡± The ship rumbled and sirens blared as Hikari shouted through the intercom, ¡°We¡¯re being ambushed!¡±


    ¡°Hahaha~!¡± The blonde girl cackled for a moment, before she was punched unconscious by a blue fist.


    ¡°Frakking pirates! Always so arrogant!¡± Eldra had to resist the impulse to just toss the woman out the airlock. In the end, she dragged her over to the brig and locked her away. Then headed to the gunner seat near the back of the vessel. Hopping in the seat, she started firing at the pirate starfighters, blasting three of then into pieces within only a few seconds!


    I wonder when it was that I stopped feeling bad about killing people? Well, there is no death, only the Force¡­ And Jedi aren¡¯t supposed to have emotions.


    *Rumble~!* The ship shook violently and she asked, ¡°What¡¯s going on Hikari?!¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re being boarded!¡± The Droid shouted anxiously, ¡°They have us in a tractor beam! There¡¯s so many of them!¡±


    As the ship was forcefully turned around, Eldra was horrified to see the massive frigates that surrounded them! Each ship was 200 to 400 meters long, but there were also plenty of Starfighters and shuttles about the same size as her own ship¡­


    Master¡­ What the frak do I do in this situation?


    She was well and truly frakked. Aside from some sort of divine intervention, there was almost no possible way she could escape or survive this situation. No, there were ways to survive, she knew that she could survive¡­ They wanted her alive.


    But is it worth it? Maybe I can survive long enough for Master Yaddle to come save me, but¡­


    Eldra closed her eyes and calmed herself down again, ¡°There is no emotion. There is peace.¡±


    ¡°Lady Kaitis, what should we do?! I¡¯ve locked down the ship but it won¡¯t take long for them to break through to the cockpit and take control!¡±


    ¡°There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.¡± She took the hilt off her hip and got out of the chair, walking outside of the room. She was still wearing her space suit, which was nice, since the atmosphere in most of the ship was vented by now.


    ¡°There is no passion, there is peace.¡± She spoke calmly as she deflected a blaster bolt back at a man¡¯s face, blasting his helmet open and exposing him to the vacuum to die horribly.


    ¡°There is no chaos, there is harmony.¡± She murmured as she hacked and slashed apart half a dozen humanoids. Their blood and entrails splattering around the room, spraying across her helmet and blocking her view. But it was the same for the others in the room who were firing wildly at her, but mostly just killing each other.


    ¡°There is no death, there is the Force.¡± Eldra stabbed her blade through the back of a Quarren woman who screamed in agony as her internal organs were superheated, then her entire abdomen exploded inside of her space suit.


    ¡°Hikari, activate the self-destruct.¡± She wasn¡¯t giving up, but she wouldn¡¯t allow them to take the ship or the Kyber Crystals and other very valuable items stored inside. Even Hikari would have to be destroyed, rather than captured.


    If they capture him, then they can target other Jedi. I can¡¯t let that happen.


    ¡°I understand¡­¡± The Droid sighed melodramatically, ¡°If you survive this, please tell Master Yaddle that I¡¯m sorry I failed you both.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not your fault, Hikari. You were only following protocol.¡± Eldra smiled wryly and wiped the scorching hot blood from her helmet, ¡°I hope¡­ I believe I¡¯ll see you again, Hikari, somehow. May the Force be with you.¡±


    ¡°I wonder¡­ Can Droids become one with the Force?¡± As soon as he said that, the ship started shaking even more violently! They were finally pulled inside the flagship!


    ¡°You¡¯re alive, aren¡¯t you?¡± The Twi¡¯lek girl couldn¡¯t help tearing up again as she walked over to the open airlock, ¡°I hope I¡¯ll see you again someday.¡±


    There was no response.


    The ship is about to explode. But where do I go? What can I do in so little time?!


    She didn¡¯t want to give up! So she jumped down and deflected a few blaster bolts! She was in a hangar bay and there were obviously starfighters available nearby!


    I need to grab a ship and get out of here before the whole place-Wait, what?!


    She was being yanked back towards the ceiling! At first, she thought she was fighting a Jedi, but then she realized it was just a tractor beam¡­ Not only that, but the ship wasn¡¯t exploding. It didn¡¯t explode. It just stayed there silently.


    *Tshhh-daou~!* She kept swinging her lightsaber around and deflected everything she could, but the blue stun-bolts eventually started hitting her suit! The suit shorted out and her air supply was cut off¡­ She took off the helmet to keep fighting, but eventually she started getting clipped by tasers again. She used the Force against the Tractor Beam but that was useless. Just made her get hit by more stun bolts!


    No! No, I can¡¯t get captured!


    She held the lightsaber up to her own throat and wanted to end things, but then the hilt flew out of her limp hand and hit a magnet far off in the distance¡­


    ¡°Master¡­ Save me, please¡­¡± She couldn¡¯t help but remember that silly Twi¡¯lek schutta from her nightmare.


    The Force was warning me¡­ Not so literally, but in metaphor and allusion. I was so stupid.


    As her consciousness faded, she saw that bony naked pirate girl. She had a broken nose and blood dripping down her face, but she was smiling. Grinning from ear to ear. After all, as she said, Jedi were worth a lot on the black market. Especially a young and sexy Twi¡¯lek Jedi.


    Hoth¡­ Tatooine¡­ Amon Kal.


    Her last thoughts were about that monster again. She needed to stop him. She needed to warn her Master. She needed to warn everyone¡­


    Unfortunately, the Force didn¡¯t seem to give a damn about her obsession. It never cared about the atrocities that mortals committed upon each other. Why would it?


    ¡°Would you care about the individual microscopic parasites inside their body? Would you even know their names or care about their stories? Would you kill a thousand ¡®evil¡¯ bacteria to save a singular ¡®good¡¯ bacteria?¡± Amon¡¯s voice echoed in her foggy mind as she felt her numb body being stripped of her space suit, poked and prodded by cold metal, then¡­ Frozen.


    Carbonite maybe? Could be worse.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be happy too soon. What if they left your ass unfrozen and used you as a sex toy while you¡¯re trapped?¡± He casually mentioned something horrifying, but not very realistic. If they did that, her ass would become necrotic pretty fast. Since the rest of her body, including her heart and brain, were still ¡®frozen¡¯.


    How am I even thinking anymore?


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s a mystery. You know what they say about dreams though.¡± The deep voice whispered into her mind as it slowly went completely silent.


    ***


    The skinny blonde pirate girl was standing in front of the Jedi Padawan encased in carbonite with a wry smile on her haggard face. She breathed out a long sigh and shook her head, ¡°Jedi are always so frakking arrogant.¡±


    ¡°Good work! Hahaha~!¡± A massive blue-skinned T¡¯surr man was grinning as he stomped over and patted the tiny human girl on the shoulder! His four red eyes glowed ominously, ¡°I honestly can¡¯t believe your plan actually worked! Between the Jedi, her ship and the cargo on board, we¡¯ll be making a fortune!¡±


    ¡°As long as I get paid, Krayn, I couldn¡¯t care less what you do with the Jedi or her ship.¡± The woman put on some tight purple pants and a similar leather-looking purplish jacket. She had a bunch of beads dangling from her belt that had some memorable significance, a fancy buckle, a special silver blaster pistol and a silver helmet that she used to tie a purple veil from one side to the other. Then her skin transformed, becoming gray and rough, with her nose splitting down the middle and becoming unusually high compared to her lips. Her blue eyes widened to the sides and her sclera disappeared.


    ¡°You look a lot better this way.¡± The giant monster said to the shapeshifting Clawdite Bounty Hunter, ¡°Zam, are you sure you don¡¯t want to stick around to enjoy the festivities?¡±


    ¡°You know I¡¯m a workaholic, Krayn.¡± The woman chuckled in a raspy voice, ¡°Jango¡¯s got another gig lined up. Something big.¡±


    ¡°Jango Fett¡­¡± The huge T¡¯surr growled the name, ¡°One of these days, that man is gonna get you both killed. Mark my words.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d say the same about you and this slavery business.¡± Zam shook her head, ¡°Sooner or later, slaves always rebel. It¡¯s what we always do, right?¡±


    ¡°I know.¡± Krayn groaned and shook his giant blue head, ¡°I¡¯m planning on retiring within the next five or six years. The damn Hutts can find someone else to rule Nar Shaddaa.¡±


    ¡°They already have someone else ruling Nar Shaddaa.¡± The shapeshifter chuckled, ¡°You won¡¯t be missed.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll see about that.¡± He didn¡¯t plan on going down without a fight, though he hoped his contingency plans would be enough to save his ass in case something really did go wrong. Or the Hutts thought he was getting too powerful and greedy for their tastes.


    ¡°By the way, what happened to the girl I was impersonating?¡± Zam asked randomly, ¡°That security guard.¡±


    ¡°The smuggler?¡± He rubbed his hairless chin and frowned, ¡°She stole a starfighter. Probably half-way to Tatooine by now. Probably one of Jabba¡¯s schutta¡¯s.¡±


    ¡°Jabba or Gardulla. None of my business either way.¡± She couldn¡¯t help feeling like she was jinxing herself. Hopefully Jango¡¯s new job didn¡¯t have anything to do with Tatooine or the Hutts.

 Chapter 22: The Mandalorian

    Chapter 22: The Mandalorian


    ¡°So how do you feel about kidnapping babies?¡± I asked the gorgeous ginger girl as she calmly took a sip of glowing purple booze.


    ¡°Frak off.¡± Vhonte rolled her pretty green eyes and gave me the middle finger with her free hand.


    ¡°Why not? It¡¯s just a baby. What¡¯s the big deal?¡± I don¡¯t see how it¡¯d be any worse than the normal fucked up shit that Bounty Hunters usually did.


    ¡°I¡¯m a Mandalorian. I have a sense of honor.¡± She chuckled, ¡°Something you¡¯ll never understand.¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± I rolled my eyes, ¡°Mandalorians kidnap and murder kids all the time.¡±


    ¡°Say that again and I¡¯ll blast your face off!¡± She pointed her left wrist guard at my face. A little barrel appeared out of the red metal.


    ¡°I got one of those too now!¡± I pointed my biological wrist blaster at her face as well, ¡°But I also have personal shields.¡±


    ¡°Personal shields?! What the frak?!¡± She put her drink down and reached out to touch my face with her left glove, ¡°I don¡¯t feel anything stopping me.¡± She pinched my nose and slapped my cheek while snickering, before taking another drink.


    ¡°It¡¯s for use against blasters. Not as effective against a Jedi though.¡± I still didn¡¯t really understand how to deal with a Force User one-on-one without the Force. Then again, there¡¯s a difference between a Pseudo-Master like Sharad Hett and a Padawan. When it comes to biological manipulation with the Force, I¡¯m better than Yoda. But he could probably twist me into a pretzel without much effort and I doubt I¡¯d be able to resist at all.


    ¡°I don¡¯t take bounties on kids. Maybe teens, but that¡¯s just a maybe.¡± Vhonte smiled wryly and finished off her glowing green alcoholic goop, before belching loudly and complaining, ¡°Even if I wanted to take your job, that Sarlacc Shlucker left me here without enough money for a ride off this dustball!¡±


    ¡°Can¡¯t you just steal a ship? There¡¯s loads of ¡®em just laying around out there.¡± I pointed out the window and from this vantage point, it was possible to see the massive spaceport in the distance. This hotel/casino was pretty damn big after all. It started from deep inside the crater and reached all the way up into the sky! Okay, it only reached a couple dozen meters above the crater¡¯s edge, but it was by far the tallest building in Mos Espa. Also one of the most expensive, which is probably why her dumbass is broke now.


    ¡°I¡¯m a Bounty Hunter, not a thief!¡± The mass murderer was offended, ¡°You can¡¯t just steal a ship in Hutt Space. Even Pirates have to pay taxes to the Hutts. If I stole a ship, I¡¯d have to pay taxes on the theft or they¡¯d hunt me down and take the stolen ship for themselves.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s so convoluted, I love it.¡± I snorted and laughed, ¡°But then again, it¡¯s not that different from regular governments.¡±


    ¡°In the Republic it¡¯s even worse. All the regulations, insurance, banks, does anybody even own anything in the first place?¡± She shook her head and sighed. A shiny golden Droid that had some feminine features came over and poured the Mandalorian alcoholic another glass of green goop, ¡°Why do you need me to abduct some baby anyway? Plenty of Bounty Hunters, Pirates and Slavers would do it without a second thought.¡±


    ¡°The baby¡¯s special, obviously.¡± I smiled wryly and started eating my plate of assorted seafood chunks in squirmy pasta with some garlic-like sauce. I placed a pulsating purple slug on the table and it projected an image of an adorable orange Togruta girl with white and blue Lekku. Well, the Lekku were super short ¡®cause she was a baby. She had big blue eyes and four white markings on her face, basically just big white dots that would slowly change over the course of her maturation process.


    ¡°Togruta aren¡¯t cheap.¡± Vhonte commented.


    ¡°Especially not Force Sensitive Togruta.¡± I smirked and she spat out her drink towards my face, but I Force Pushed it right back down her throat.


    Causing her to cough and choke for a whole minute before she screamed at me, ¡°Are you insane?! You expect me to go steal from the Jedi?!¡±


    ¡°You wanted to kidnap me. I¡¯m a fucking Adult Langeshi Forger.¡± I raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°If I knew you could use the Force I wouldn¡¯t have taken that damn job!¡± She retorted angrily, ¡°Speaking of which, that¡¯s the reason I¡¯m broke now! Jabba wanted a Langeshi Forger and when I couldn¡¯t deliver, I had to pay a penalty!¡±


    ¡°In other words, you have a long history of making shitty decisions.¡± I continued eating my delicious meal as the slug showed the planet Shili, then the star system, et cetera. I looked up at the red-faced ginger and explained, ¡°This girl is going to be kidnapped by Zygerrian Slavers sooner or later. The Jedi might find her, or they might not. The Force wants me to save the brat. I want to save the kid for my own purposes as well. But¡­ I can¡¯t be everywhere at once. And to be completely honest, I trust your work ethic and morality more than that of my own creations. Don¡¯t get me wrong though, I¡¯ll definitely support you and make sure you get the job done.¡±


    ¡°What are you going to do with the girl?¡± Vhonte frowned, looking down at the slug, then at my purple tits, then at my pretty face, ¡°I¡¯m not abducting a baby girl for you to use as a test subject or groom into a sex slave.¡±


    ¡°What about a teenage girl?¡± I snickered and a teenage girl appeared this time. Bone-white skin, big blue eyes, angular facial features, half her head was shaved while she had some ear-length hair combed over onto her left side. An image from my memory of the girl, though I¡¯m not sure how accurately it would translate to reality. After all, The Clone Wars was kinda stylized and cartoonish.


    ¡°What¡¯s the deal this time? Let me guess, Jedi Padawan?¡± She asked sarcastically.


    ¡°Yes. Actually, not just a Padawan, but she has a ton of potential. Just like the other girl. Both could be Masters if they survive that long and get the right training.¡± I watched her facial expression cringe and chuckled, ¡°There are two possibilities. She¡¯s currently stranded on the planet Rattatak with her Master, a Jedi Knight. Umm, I think his name is Ky Narec-¡±


    ¡°Frak.¡± She grimaced, ¡°You¡¯re saying that¡¯s where Ky went? He¡¯s been MIA for years now¡­ Figured he was dead or undercover somewhere.¡±


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    ¡°You know the dude?¡± I was kinda surprised, but I guess it wasn¡¯t that strange. Jedi Knights got around and so did Bounty Hunters, ¡°Well anyway, he¡¯s either dead already or about to die soon. Then his Padawan will obviously turn to the Dark Side, well, the rest probably won¡¯t happen because of too many butterflies. In fact, they might already be dead for all I know. But Rattatak is most likely where they¡¯re at¡­¡±


    ¡°If I rescue them, I¡¯m not bringing them back to you to be turned into lab rats or slaves.¡± Vhonte sighed and stole some food off my plate with a glowing yellow fork. A plasma fork. Yes, I¡¯m not even making that shit up. A fucking plasma fork.


    She munched a few times on the chunks of meat, ¡°I owe Ky a lot. Can¡¯t save his ass just to have him get tortured to death by you.¡±


    ¡°Why would I torture him to death?¡± I glared at the tipsy woman, ¡°He¡¯s way more valuable to me alive than dead. And I don¡¯t torture people unless they really piss me off. What I did to you could only be considered mild interrogation at best.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, sure.¡± She still held a grudge just because I warped her meatsuit for a few seconds.


    ¡°So anyway~!¡± I poked the slug and it showed a map of Rattatak, or at least a star map of the general location. She was a professional. If she couldn¡¯t figure out how to get there on her own, then she wouldn¡¯t have survived this long as a Bounty Hunter.


    I poked the slug again and it showed another image, ¡°Okay, this one shouldn¡¯t fuck with your moral compass, right? Gene sample collection. I mean, living creatures are definitely better. But samples are fine too. I just need the genes. Here¡¯s a list of the most valuable ones to me.¡±


    Everything from Space Whales and Exogorths to Star Dragons and a giant space octopus called a Summa-verminoth. There were small creatures too, like Mynocks and Force-resistant lizards called Ysalamiri. Plus various plants from different worlds.


    ¡°If you want me to personally catch these creatures¡­ It would be difficult and expensive. If you just want their DNA, can¡¯t you put a post up on the Holonet? Or just go to the auctions in Mos Espa. Why would you need me for any of the Bantha Poodoo?¡± She started drinking again and her pretty green eyes started to look a little heavy. Though her speech still wasn¡¯t slurred, yet.


    ¡°Like I said, I¡¯m not expecting you to do this shit alone or without help.¡± I ordered the slug to slide over to her side of the table. It suddenly grew legs and wings, jumping off the table and latching onto her right shoulder.


    ¡°Ew.¡± Vhonte grimaced but didn¡¯t do anything else. Just watched as the creature melded onto her red pauldron, transforming into a purple Zerg insignia that wasn¡¯t quite flat, but still pretty damn thin.


    ¡°This will let you control your new pets.¡± My left palm opened up and dozens of tiny eggs fell out onto the table between us. They were red instead of purple. They swelled up and burst, sending acidic slime all over the metal table.


    ¡°Sir and Madam, I hope you know you¡¯ll have to pay for that.¡± The Droid came over again and seemed pretty upset.


    ¡°Sure thing.¡± I waved my hand casually, ¡°Put it on Jabba¡¯s tab.¡±


    ¡°Jabba?! Are you insane?!¡± Vhonte shouted at me.


    While the Droid seemed terrified, ¡°I-I need to speak with my Master!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I didn¡¯t just come to this hotel to chat with my sexy Mandalorian girlfriend.¡± I snickered and watched her roll her eyes, crossing her arms in irritation, ¡°You¡¯re a girl and you¡¯re my friend. It¡¯s not wrong. Anyway, Jabba wants me to go meet him in his penthouse in this specific hotel. Weird coincidence that you¡¯re here, but hey, that¡¯s life.¡±


    The dozens of cute red furballs on the table were already devouring my food. They looked like kittens on the outside. But their bodies were filled with countless Zerg Larvae. They were adorable little biohazards.


    ¡°Feel free to sell these brats if you want.¡± No matter where they go, they¡¯ll still be part of the Swarm anyway. The Force and Hyperspace make it possible for the Swarm to stay connected even across Galaxies. At least for now. Problems might arise later, but for now, it works pretty well.


    I can still feel that random security guard that I healed back then. She¡¯s still alive, not exactly well, but she is alive at least. My connection to a random Creep Cluster or the tiny Larvae inside someone¡¯s rectum isn¡¯t super intense though. I can¡¯t see through that woman¡¯s eyes, I still don¡¯t even know her name. I just know her general location and that she¡¯s headed this way. Fear, anxiety, hope, desperation¡­ Lots of emotions were carried along through the Psionic Network and through the Force.


    ¡°Let me guess. They look like kittens, but they¡¯re actually bombs?¡± Even though she said that, the brave Mandalorian still picked up one of the cats and looked into its bright green eyes. The mouth opened up and dozens of tiny pink tentacles shot out! She quickly pulled her head back to avoid the attack and frowned at me, ¡°Did you think I¡¯d be tricked by something like that? Seen plenty of adorable tentacle monsters.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sure you have.¡± I snorted and shook my head, ¡°Anyway, they¡¯re not like your little pet. They¡¯re certified combat units. They¡¯re gonna grow a lot bigger than your little pussy. They¡¯ll eat it if you aren¡¯t careful.¡±


    ¡°I have a feeling that was supposed to be innuendo, but I don¡¯t really get it.¡± Vhonte put the danger cat down and took another swig of her green goop. Then she belched loudly and asked, ¡°How much are you paying?¡±


    ¡°For Ahsoka?¡± I smirked and leaned back in my chair, staring into her hazy eyes for a few seconds as her cheeks flushed, ¡°I¡¯m starting a little side-business.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t like where this is going.¡± She groaned and took another sip.


    ¡°You can make as many Credits as you want, but it¡¯s just a bunch of numbers in the end.¡± I smirked as a hologram projected out of her shoulder into the air above the table. It was an emblem. A golden bird inside a broken triangle. The Terran Symbol from Starcraft. Which meant absolutely nothing to the unimpressed woman.


    ¡°I¡¯d rather have Credits, thanks. Or Peggats, either way.¡± She waved her hand and tried to get rid of the hologram but it just changed to something else. A naked girl. Specifically, a 3d image of her own naked body. On the left side were some numbers and letters in Mandalorian. When she read them, she didn¡¯t get upset. Just looked up at me and asked, ¡°Are you serious?¡±


    ¡°Think about it, Vhonte. Why be a Bounty Hunter when you could be a General?¡±


    ¡°A General of a Clone Army? That¡¯s ridiculous. The Republic would never allow it.¡± She sighed and shook her head, ¡°Besides, why the hell would I want you to make an army of Clones based on my genes?¡±


    ¡°Jango¡¯s gonna do it.¡± I smirked.


    ¡°You made him this offer first? And he actually agreed?¡± She raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°Of course not.¡± I shook my head, ¡°He¡¯s going to take an offer from Count Dooku to create a Clone Army for the Galactic Republic. He¡¯ll probably end up asking you to help train them.¡±


    ¡°You have to be joking. There¡¯s no way¡­ That¡¯s absurd¡­¡± She looked at my face and then back at the Clone, which turned into many clones. They were naked at first, but then they were wearing thick and heavy Marine power-armor. If their round helmets weren¡¯t transparent, it would be hard to tell that there were actually women inside. Most of them were holding heavy gauss rifles, which were essentially electromagnetic railguns that could fire an insane amount of metal spikes per second. Others had canister rifles or even blaster rifles. The suits were much bigger than the girls inside, which actually made them a lot safer than if there were beefy dudes in there. The armor plating was thicker and more random bullshit could be hidden in the armor.


    ¡°How is it so strange? I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve seen the signs by now.¡± I shrugged my shoulders and watched my kittens finish the last of the food on the plate. Then they started fighting and wrestling with each other. Knocking my glass of water off the table. Though it wasn¡¯t real glass, just transparent plastic. It bounced a few times without breaking but it did make quite the mess. Which the kittens quickly started cleaning up on their own.


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard some things but¡­¡± She looked at the huge four-legged gray mechs in the hologram and asked, ¡°Are those Basilisk War Droids?! There¡¯s no way you have those!¡±


    ¡°Of course I don¡¯t.¡± I rolled my eyes and complained, ¡°But Mandalore has the schematics to make them. With enough money and resources, not to mention a few stupid Droids, you can have your own fleet of Star Destroyers.¡±


    ¡°Star Destroyers?¡± She chuckled and shook her head, ¡°Now I know you¡¯re just frakking with me. Even the Republic doesn¡¯t have any operational Star Destroyers anymore.¡±


    ¡°Which is why they¡¯re gonna start building them for the upcoming war.¡± I yawned and shook my head, feeling my dreadlock tendrils smacking into shit, ¡°Anyway, I don¡¯t do mechanical bullshit. I¡¯m a biotech specialist. I can give you as many Clone Soldiers as you want or need, but if you can¡¯t do the rest, then what the fuck do I need you for?¡±


    After all, I had a lot of other options to choose from. I just thought it would be really fucking ironic if I had my own army of Mandalorian Clones to make the Clone Wars a little more hilarious.


    ¡°Father, a sandstorm is approaching Mos Espa.¡± Izsha suddenly whispered into my mind. I stood up and looked over towards the window.


    ¡°What is that, two sandstorms in a month?¡± I shrugged and turned back towards the tiny ginger girl that was watching holograms of her own Clone Soldiers fighting and winning against the Clone Army of the Galactic Republic.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take the job. Jobs¡­¡± Finishing off the glass of green goop, the stood up and put on her red helmet. Looking up at me at an angle, ¡°A General in your army, huh?¡±


    ¡°A General in the Terran Dominion.¡± I corrected the woman, ¡°But yeah, I¡¯ll probably be your boss¡¯ boss.¡±


    ¡°Oh? Then you¡¯ve already got somebody else lined up to deal with the paperwork?¡± As she said that, I couldn¡¯t help seeing a few figures flash through my mind.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. There are plenty of talented people out there.¡± I looked towards the sandstorm again, ¡°Whether they can actually live up to their potential.¡±