DeathTalker 2: Chapter 6

Palpatine sat on a cushion, trying to watch the Naboolian equivalent of TV as the spectral figure blathered on. "Power! Unliiiiimited power!!!" "Will you just shut up?" The figure stopped abruptly and glared at the boy. "During my time, someone who spoke to me that way would have his tongue cut out from his head." "Then I'm glad you're just a…a wassname…pigment of my " "The word is figment you dolt." Now it was Palpatine's turn to glare. "You're pretty bright, though, for a child of your age." Palpatine brightened up. "I do OK in school…when I'm not in detention." "How often is that?" "Most of the time." "Have you ever wondered why you have to play by their rules?" "No." "Why not?" Palpatine shrugged. "They're bigger than I am." The ghost opened his mouth for a second and then shut it. He made as if to speak again. "Look, if I go to your house tomorrow will you just shut up?" The ethereal man opened his mouth again, shut it, and then put his hands together up his sleeves in a wise looking pose. "That will do." ----------------------------------------------------------------- "This place is boring." "Shut up." Palpatine was standing in a dusty hall. He had found the place by following the shade's instructions and spending a few days searching a hill near the town where he lived. All told, it had taken a few weeks, since the ghost had to bother Palpatine quite a bit in order to get him to keep searching. "All this work just to find this stupid place?" "Silence…you are in a sacred temple." Palpatine fidgeted and looked sidelong at the figure. Down here, he looked almost solid. "What's your name?" The specter turned slowly and menacingly towards the boy, his eyes glowed red. "Naga Sadow." Time passed. "OK." The Sith looked put out. "I'm gonna go watch qube-V." "SHUT UP! And don't even think of leaving." "Why not?" "You know what I'm capable of…" The ghost had ruined many hours of QV watching. Apparently, he could disrupt electronics, though it seemed to tire him. Palpatine glared. "Hurry up then." The shad hissed and turned towards the hallway. "C'mon punk." Palpatine shuffled after him. "This, is the hall of waiting…" Naga looked sidelong at Palpatine and noticed his fidgeting. If it were possible for him to sigh, he would have. "…and it's very old and important!" Naga hurried off through the ancient room and headed down another corridor. Palaptine had to run to catch up. "And most important of all is…" "A wall?" The sith looked worried. "It wasn't like this before!" "You mean you don't know where we're going?!!" Naga Sadow recovered. "Of course I do! This is merely a test of your patience!" "I'm outta here." "Right, well you'd better be back here tomorrow!" Muttering under his breath, Naga Sadow flitted around the complex for the room he was looking for. ---------------------------------------------------- Palpatine walked through the dusty hall after Naga Sadow. He had on a head-lamp, not unlike the kind that miners wear. It was the only part of the whole venture that he had deemed "cool." "What are we doing again?" "I need to see if you have true affinity for The Force, or if you abilities are limited to talking to the dead." "Why are we looking for a split infinity?" "Affinity. I need to see if you can use The Force or not." "If I can't will you stop bothering me?" Naga Sadow made a strangling motion with his hands. "Absolutely." "Here it is!" They stood outside a circular room. There were strange hieroglyphs carved into the walls. "OK, so now what?" "Do you see that hieroglyph on the opposite side of the room?" "The what?" "Just walk across the room to the opposite side." "Then can I go home?" The specter hissed under his breath. "Do it!" Palpatine rolled his eyes and walked across the room. He stopped and looked curiously at the carving. He heard disturbing giggling, then laughter. Turning around, he saw that Naga was laughing at him. "What's so funny?" "Hehehe...n-n-negative HA! HA! HA!" Weird purple lighting began to play about the sinister figure. "Hey, that's cool!" The boy moved towards what Naga thought of as "optimum range" when a wind blew up around him. Unseen before, dust motes rose up into the air, obscuring his view. "What the?" The motes seemed to be attracted to him, but they would not hold still. Instead the swirled about, darting towards his eyes. "Stop that!" He closed his eyes and swung his arms about wildly. Suddenly, the motes were gone. Opening his eyes he looked out to see what looked like a translucent globe, with himself at the center. Beyond its boundaries, looking unusually grim, was Naga. "Damn." ---------------------------------------------------------------------- It had been 5 years since the first meeting with Naga Sadow by the brook. Since that time Palpatine had "straightened up" and started behaving. While he wasn't the most popular kid in school, he had, never the less, found of way of at least co-existing with the others. In most respects, he was considered a "success story" in the annals of Naboolian social programs. His councilor, of course, did not believe any of it. "You don't fool me you little twerp!" "Well at least I'm not getting in as much trouble as I used to…" The beefy man squirmed uncomfortably and fingered his side arm. "All right, that's true enough, but I think you're just biding your time." The two people glared at each other. "Well are you two finished saying goodbye?" An elderly woman had entered the room and was smiling brightly at the two of them. With an effort, Palpatine managed a rictus-like grin. His councilor didn't even bother and just glared at her. "He's a bad egg, a sour apple, mark my words, this kid is trouble!" "Well I'll just take that as a 'yes'. Now come along Palpatine, let the nice shrink start shrinking someone else." Palpatine followed her out the door. As they were leaving he stuck his tongue out as his councilor. The man made a sour face and looked at some paperwork on his desk. "I expect you'll miss old Clive. He can be grouchy, but he means well!" "If he meant any weller I'd be dead." "What was that?" "Oh nothing." Palpatine rubbed some bruises and followed.