Star Wars 1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Realisation

NOW

" I must note, while the mind subjugation was successful in erasing any humanity he once had...he is still plagued with Vanity. I have noted a number of custom modifications to his faceplate and armour."

The tall white haired Sith Lord held a familiar look of superiority upon his aging face as he spoke.

A shrouded figure looked back at him in the form of a holoprojection,

"Yes...yes"

The almost spectre like projection began to reply in a clear precise tone,

"Be mindful of any problems the experiment may breed, this bionic technology may prove to be a useful tool for the dark side in the years to come"

The figure remained deathly still now, only the static interference in the transmission would make the projection jolt from time to time.

The white haired Sith Lord inclined his head slightly in what could be seen to be a small bow like gesture.

" As you wish, my master"

The holonet projection now fizzled out in a haze of static noise as suddenly as it had appeared to him.

Yes, Dooku would be mindful of the problems his new experiment would breed, mindful indeed.

THEN:

General Grievous, once commander of sentient beings, his many victories against his peoples enemy, the Huk, unparalleled by any other, now lay relatively helpless on a specially constructed operating table. The pain he had felt up until now, paled in significance to the sudden rush of information that ran up what remained of his spinal cord.

Muffled voices became clearer until he could recognise them as belonging to Genosians, and he was acutely aware of someone placing something over what remained of his face, it's cool surface resting on what little skin he had left.

It was then he found himself able to open his eyes. The sudden influx of light making him squint until his vision cleared.

The chattering and clicking noises of the Genosians stopped suddenly, the silence only being broken by the sound of the fluttering of many wings as the Genosians wisely kept their distance high up in the alcoves that littered the walls of the room Grievous lay in.

For a long moment, Grievous was confused, he remembered the crash, waking up in that force forsaken bacta tank feeling nothing but humiliation at the thought of being denied a warriors death. He could even remember the deal he had made with IBC chairman San Hill, his so called chance to redeem himself.

But before that?

He remembered little or nothing before that, save for the fact he had once been a respected warrior of his home world.

Not only was the fact he could not remember even a flicker of the life he had before the crash disturbing...even more distressing, was the fact his brain was sending signals to his spinal cord indicating he could now move limbs he had most certainly lost in the crash.

It took a moments concentration, his golden eyes narrowing again in the bright light, and in one fluid movement, a white armourplast plated droid hand crossed his line of vision. For a split second, Grievous moved his head and looked to one side to see who, or what, the arm belonged to.

His gaze trailed down the armourplast plated forearm, and then up until he could see where the arm was fused to a mechanical shoulder joint, covered by another off white armourplast plate.

In that one moment, realisation hit him harder than any impact of any shuttle crash could have...the arm was his?

Flexing his skeletal fingers as if to confirm his new discovery to him, the sound of small whirs met his hearing sensors, as the wire like tendons that were housed inside his arm, moved back and forth accordingly.

If Grievous could have felt sick, he would have. Instead, all he felt was a burning anger, increasing in potency every moment since he had woken.

"You will have to surrender even more than you have now, you will no longer know the pleasures of the flesh" Hills words came back to haunt him.

" Flesh is weak, you only need to gaze upon me to see that" He repeated his own words aloud, his voice, though mostly synthesized, indeed sounded like his own..even down to the accent. Little touches like that did nothing to appease the anger within him, nor did it answer the question that was the cause of all this anger, pain and humiliation. Who, had caused the shuttle crash? He had checked that ship over himself.

The Kaleesh General sat bolt upright, catching a brief glimpse of now mechanical legs before his attention was drawn towards a door on the far side of the room. Standing in the doorway, as the panels slid back, was a tall platinum-white haired human male.

Grievous noted, by the way this human dressed, and held himself, there was a certain air of superiority about him. Even before the human opened his mouth to speak, he knew he would not like him.

Dooku was regarding the Genosians work with some surprise, it seemed they had indeed surpassed themselves this time.

" Ah good, you are awake.." Dooku almost crooned, giving no real sound of surprise.

Grievous, who had been sitting on the edge of the table, was already stalking towards the old man with intent to harm. What had they done to him? What had he so stupidly agreed to?

Dooku had already anticipated the Generals move, and with one simple gesture of his hand, a large blue raysheild was activated between himself and the cyborg.

Grievous' cybernetic fist impacted hard on the rayshield, causing him to grunt in anger. The fiery rage not quenched any when he eyed the old mans particularly smug expression.

" Now, lets not be too hasty General...you have not heard what I have to say, what 'information' I have that may...interest you."

Grievous' golden eyes narrowed more so,

"Who are you?"

Information could come later, first he needed to know who he was dealing with.

"My name?" The old man sounded surprised now, giving a slight over confident smile, he continued.

"I am Count Dooku, political leader of the CIS...I understand some of my affiliates recovered you from the Jenuwaa sea?"

Arching a brow at the now still cyborg, his rage upon entering having pleased Dooku, now all he need do was direct that rage in the right place. That, he thought, would be all too easy. He could already see the anger and humiliation the former Kaleesh General was feeling, his thoughts betrayed him.

" A most unfortunate event I must say, and it seems during their investigations my affiliates carried out, they discerned one thing."

Pausing, Dooku wanted his next words to have impact, he could see the Generals eyes narrowed to mere slits now, he had his attention.

" There was no malfunction of your ships onboard systems, no...It seems your ship had been sabotaged."

Grievous had never for a second doubted it, there had been the hint of a suggestion from San Hill that it had been sabotage, but this brought it all to light.

" And do you know who did this?" Grievous asked in a low threatening tone, he guessed this little conversation must be going somewhere.

Turning his back on Dooku, he stalked back towards the table, placing his hands flat down on the shiny metallic surface. He could now clearly see the reflection of the white bone-like face plate that covered his charred face, a crude imitation of the mask he once wore as a Kaleesh warlord. The faceplate minus the ceremonial paint and markings. To him, he looked more like a droid himself than a would be leader of droid armies.

The anger within boiled up again, and before Dooku could reply he had slammed his fists down into the tables surface, where he had seen the reflection of himself, leaving behind deep, knuckle sized imprints.

" WHO, did THIS?" He demanded, turning sharply to face the count, his magnetic clawed feet making an ear piercing screech as they moved with him.

Dooku had not lost his air of superiority in the slightest, nor had he failed to produce another cruel smirk,

" Why, the very same who sided with your enemies, who brought terrible consequences upon your people, those who work with, and for the republic."

And now it was Grievous' chance to answer his own question. As he stilled, his voice lost none of the anger contained within,

" The Jedi."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 : Fate

High above the table that the Kaleesh General had been laying upon, a small Genosian poked her snout out past the others that had crammed into the small alcove with her. Taking a step forward to peer over the edge of the ledge beneath her feet, her semi transparent wings quivered with curiosity.

Below her, she could see the count had now de-activated the shield that surrounded the cyborg, and was in deep conversation with him.

In turn, the cyborg had stopped being so aggressive, and was merely listening to what the old sith lord seemed to be proposing. If she had not been so nervous now, she would have smiled. Her design, in her eyes, was a work of art, and here she could see that work of art come to life for all to marvel at.

"Piqu!"

She heard her name shortly before she felt a bony fingered hand on her shoulder. Turning, she came face to face with a rather gnarled old Genosian, he was one of those she could recall Archduke Poggle the Lesser holding in high regard. However, she could not recall his name, nor did she wish to, he unnerved her more so than she had been already.

" Your presence is required in the primary hive" He added, his stance and tone indicating that this meant emediately.

Piqu made a slight noise of uncertainty, she had hoped to stay with the others to watch what was unfolding below them. Possibly the only chance she would have to see her design in action. Years worth of toil and hard graft, only to be denied the chance to see the final results.

A rough shove in the right direction, told her she would not get that chance.

The main entrance to the primary hive was grand indeed, in Genosian terms at least. Gnarled decoration adorning it's doors indicating to outsiders this particular hive held great importance amongst the Genosians. And because of it's importance, security here was tight, though you would not have been able to see them at first glance, several Genosian Guards tucked themselves away inside alcoves in the wall, becoming part of the gnarled decoration.

Piqu had been lead to a small ante-chamber just outside the main audience hall where the Archduke would meet with various people of importance to discuss matters concerning the war. A war Piqu herself wished would end soon, and yet, she had contributed to it's perpetuation in so many ways through her innovative designs, for various weapons and droids.

Poggle the Lesser, now limped into view from the audience chamber doors, his gimmer stick clicking along the red sandy floor after every unsteady step. Behind him, followed Dooku, flanked by two imposing super battle droids.

Piqu's wings quivered as they always would when she became nervous, and she inclined her head respectfully. The presence of Dooku, while being somewhat imposing in its self, was also unusual. The work she had been commissioned to do, had been set down by Dooku, though this was the first time she had seen the count close up.

"The experiment has so far been a success Piqu, you should congratulate yourself and your team." The Archduke mused in their native tongue.

Piqu's black eyes flittered between Poggle and Dooku, her expression clearly indicating a certain amount of curiousness, perhaps uncertainty.

" My Lord Dooku wishes however, to clear up a few small facts..." Poggle added as he waved a knobbly hand in motion for the Count to pose his questions.

Taking a single step towards the small, and now very skittery Genosian female, he paused tapping his fingers together, a thoughtful look upon his aging face. It was almost as though the Count was in a silent conversation with someone, Piqu thought.

His cold gaze met her own in a movement so sudden, Piqu flinched visibly.

A small chuckle of amusement escaped Dooku's lips before he calmed.

"Yes, indeed, while I am more than satisfied with the outcome of this experiment, I am keen to know one important thing..."

The Sith Lord, leaned down to her level, a worried look flashed across her face, her wings quivered again making a noise likened to the rustling of dried leaves.

"Y-yes, of course...a-and that is?" She inwardly cursed her stammered reply.

"Your colleagues who performed the mind alterations I requested...were they successful?" He paused,

"More importantly, the node you designed...will it be strong enough to keep such 'alterations' in place?" Dooku still looking her in the eye sceptically.

Piqu did not realise it, but she had already begun to nod before replying, and quite frantically too.

" Yes they were, they reported a 100 percent success upon analysing neural patterns, a-and as for the node...it is strong enough to withstand as much as he can himself. In short my Lord...it will last a lifetime."

Dooku clasped his hands together at the small of his back, a pensive expression replacing the sceptical one.

" Good, then I shall inform my master once I have put the experiment under more stringent testing."

Piqu was about to breathe a sigh of relief, but something told her he had not quite finished with her as yet.

And right on cue,

"One last thing...did you back up all of your work? Pass you knowledge onto those working under you?"

Piqu stiffened, dark orb like eyes growing larger again. She was so unsure what would be the 'right' answer. Having heard many tales of force sensitives abilities, she concluded, that the truth in this case, would be best.

"I have detailed files, design schematics, and even a log of thought processes concerning the whole project...I-I have never worked with designing anything for sentient organics before now...none that needed this extent of...Improvement." She felt the need to justify herself.

The Count however, was unreadable, a state uncommon for humans Piqu noted.

" I found it important to document the process, so that if any problems arise, they can perhaps be located and solved quickly. And should we need to repeat the procedure again...everything is mapped out." She concluded, still trying to read the Sith Lords expression.

It was no use.

Dooku now shot a raised browed glance to the Archduke, who had been observing the whole conversation. The elderly, battle scarred Genosian merely nodded once to the count. A gesture that confused Piqu, as no word had been spoken between them. Something was terribly wrong here.

" I trust you did not make records of the Generals memories, those I requested to be erased?" Dooku spoke again, so many questions.

The Sith Lords back was turned to her now, he was slowly making his way to the door at the back of the ante chamber.

Piqu shook her head slightly,

" No my Lord, that information had been destroyed, as you requested."

She had spent a full 24 hours prior to the procedure simply talking with the bacta tank bound, kaleesh warrior, and she remembered it well. Their speaking had not been without purpose, it had been relayed to Dooku, and he in turn had specified what needed to go memory wise. Piqu remembered at first feeling a great amount of sorrow when she first saw the state Grievous was in. And more so, how not only was his body broken, but his spirit too.

He had spoken of the war that had raged on his home world of Kalee, how he longed to get back to the heart of the battle, to redeem himself, bring aid to his people. And then of his obvious failure which overshadowed all else. How he had been so painfully denied the death he deserved. He was disgraced, and he knew his people would not hold any honour for him if he returned now, like that. He could not bear the thought of his wives and children having to bear the brunt of his humiliation, they were better off thinking he was dead for now. Redemption was the only way he could ever return to Kalee.

Piqu at this point had spoken in reassuring terms about what they proposed to do. It would be a true work of art, Genosian design technology at it's finest, pushing the boundaries of new 'weaponry' in this war where the Jedi had stood in their way for so long.

It was halfway through her obsessive musing, Grievous had cut her off, remarking how she sounded just like 'that muun'.

Piqu wasn't quite sure who 'that muun' was she had been likened to, but she could tell by the tone of voice the Kaleesh had spoken in, it wasn't a compliment. It mattered little, he would not remember her or any of this little chat come morning anyway.

The nervous impromptu fluttering of her insectoid wings, brought her out of her thoughts, and with it a sudden realisation...the secrecy of those deleted files would never be completely safe. Not as long as she still held the information within her own mind. And due to her own insistent backing up of notes and files. She had just made herself rather expendable. She was a liability.

Piqu didn't have to look up to know the heavy footfalls she heard approaching on either side of her, were those of the super battle droids that had accompanied Dooku into the room previously. Firm, cold metallic hands grasped her stick like arms, encompassing them fully.

Dooku was now standing in the doorway, silhouetted by the light from the main audience chamber, back still turned to the ante chamber.

" Thank you so much for your efforts, they have been most appreciated, however, I regrettably have to inform you, you are no longer required."

With a simple, arrogant wave of his hand he closed the door behind him. Poggle made his own exit to one side of the room, not so much as meeting the dark watery eyed, gaze of the Genosian female, who's fate it seemed, had just been decided for her. /lj-cut 


	3. Chapter 3

In addition to the work the Geonosians had done saving Grievous' life, they had begun to modify some of their IG series droids to serve as the Generals personal bodyguards.

These quickly became known as 'Magnaguards' and had some higher programming, so they could 'learn' from what Grievous decided to teach them in the ways of combat.

It had now been several weeks since he had been 'reborn' and he intended not to waste a single second of his time since everything had been explained to him by Count Dooku. Training was a necessity if he was to gain his revenge against the Jedi, and he had yet to become used to his new body. Certain 'improvements' baffling him at first.

He now had 4 arms to think about, and powerful magnetic claws on his feet, which is he was not concentrating, would suddenly grip any metallic surface he stood on or near. That 'magnetism' had been the cause of much humiliation, when during training set down by Dooku, he would falter against an opponent as unworthy as a battle droid.

Though in recent days, he had improved, and Dooku had deemed it appropriate to move up to the next level of training. The addition of the Magnaguards, in some ways, was a welcome touch to Grievous' new life, perhaps due to the fact he had been told he had once had flesh and blood body guards when he served as a General on Kalee. Still…these were droids, and in some ways a stark reminder of what he had become himself...a droid.

Grievous' eyes narrowed in the eyeholes of the faceplate covering his scarred flesh.

No, he was not a droid, he was very much alive.

He had not dared to look at himself since that fateful day he had woken, and then caught sight of his reflection in that table. And he had grown to despise the sight of the parts of his body he could see. Donning a long White cape to conceal the majority of his droid body. That would have to do for now.

" And again.." Dooku's voice shoving the General from his thoughts.

Grievous had been training against several of the Magnaguards for almost 3 hours straight. He was untiring, relentless in his attacks, and counter attacks. But his eagerness to kill played on Dooku's mind somewhat.

" Patience, do not be so eager to inflict the final blow!"

The Count had cautioned.

Grievous stopped what he was doing to take in the Counts words, the lightsaber he had been lent was humming in the air between them. His skeletal hand gripping the hilt with no intention of letting go.

" Let your opponent wear themselves down, then you can strike" Dooku added.

"I understand" Grievous replied in that rasping tone, before turning to face one of his Magnaguards again.

The droid then activated it's electrostaff and twirled it in an onward attack at the General. Droids of course, never tired, but these had been programmed especially for this purpose, which was just as well, because they also had a nasty habit of not surviving a training session. This irked Dooku beyond belief, why the Cyborg insisted on inflicting irreparable damage on the droids was beyond him.

The Count looked on, no finesse, he thought, no flourishes at all, no grace, just linear droid like movements.

Grievous parried attacks with precise moves, and at incredibly fast speeds, the lightsaber he held crackling sharply in the air as it met the end of the droids electrostaff. All that filled the Generals mind at first, was his going through the motions he had been taught , and then, as he changed direction, to attack the Magnaguard, he caught sight of his reflection in the droids, large , red photoreceptor., his thoughts suddenly plagued by anger...

The Jedi would pay for this outrage, they would pay with their lives for what they had done to him, and more so, what they had brought upon his people.

Pure hatred coursed through the flesh that remained, his attacks becoming faster, more relentless and strong. The Magnaguard was struggling to keep up it's defence, faltering with every strike it made.

Still the old Sith Lord looked on, his face set in some rather grim and disappointed expression.

A sudden 'SHROOMHISS' noise made Dooku shake his head slowly in quiet annoyance. The smell of smouldering alloy met his nose, followed by an expected hefty 'CLUNK' noise as the Magnaguard fell clean in two.

For a moment, both Dooku and Grievous regarded each other in silence.

The General knew fine well it irritated Dooku when he decimated another of the rather costly droids. And deep down, Grievous relished the idea of being able to get to the aged Sith Lord in some way. Just as Dooku could seem to cut him down with that sharp tongue of his.

Never one to miss a chance, the Count tutted, a patronising tone to his voice as he spoke,

" Hopeless."

He then continued,

" I think I have seen enough for one day, we shall resume tomorrow, and see if we can't improve on today at all."

Flashing Grievous a rather impatient look, he extended his hand to take back the lightsaber he had let the cyborg use for the purpose of his training.

Grievous had not yet disengaged the weapon. Looking now to the Counts outstretched arm, it would have been all too easy to end his humiliation here. But where was the challenge in that?

No, Dooku was a necessary evil, his means to revenge. He disengaged the sabre and reluctantly handed it over.

" As you wish, my lord" Grinding out a reply as he bowed slowly.

Taking a couple of heavy steps backwards, watching Dooku depart from the room without another word.

Hearing the sudden mechanical hiss of the doors to the hall open and then close again, General Grievous' eyes narrowed slightly. The now familiar whirring of mechanical tendons in his right arm, could be heard clearly in the deathly quiet room.

His bony digits curling in towards his armourplast palm to form a fist. Grievous would have struck out at the nearest solid object, he wanted to, and every fibre of his being was telling him he should. Even if it was just to take out his immense anger on whatever, or whoever he pleased. But one single thought stopped him mid strike.

If he had been re-built in a sense, if he had been improved...what was to stop him from gaining further improvements? What, indeed?

Stalking towards the doorway, he made his way back to what had become 'his' makeshift quarters for the time he had been here.

The space was filled with everything he required to maintain his new body. A large chamber like structure that resembled a bacta tank dominated the centre of the room. Various tubes and wires hung ready inside the chamber. Most of these used for maintaining the nutrient levels in his synthskin gut sac during the times the General would spend, 'sleeping'.

He had wondered, over the weeks, if he could indeed refer to spending time in that chamber as, sleeping. He could shut down various components of his body during that time, and yet his mind was constantly active. A state Grievous himself likened to dreams. Though it couldn't be true sleep, he was fully aware of all going on around him, eyes open or shut.

A mechanised insomnia without the onset of tiredness.

During his stay on Geonosis, the General had been given access to a plethora of information concerning the war that was brewing. Something to keep his strategical mind on the go. He had also been privy to the design and manufacture schedules of entire droid armies, perhaps in case he had the need or want to calculate numbers for prospective invasions or battles.

In addition to this large amount of information, Grievous had been intent on knowing one thing. The process that had been used to create the body he now inhabited today.

Of course the separatists had only been too happy to oblige, seeming to tell the entire story.

Dooku could now control what and how much information got to Grievous, unbeknown to the cyborg.

And here the General found himself again, searching for answers to fill in the gaps in his mind which had been replaced by anger and pain.

Bony fingers activated a large holoscreen in front of him as he called up the information he required. He began looking through various sets of design schematics concerning his new body, it was his thinking that each one should contain some kind of signature. After all, what designer did not sign their work?

The General grumbled irritably when the small digital signature he did find was near unreadable.

The thought of asking Dooku for information only sought to irritate him further.

It then occurred to him, that the signature was undoubtedly Geonosian. And who better to decipher it than a Geonosian? Deactivating the holoscreen, Grievous stopped only to collect a datapad before going in search of the one bug he knew had overseen his 'progress'. The Archduke himself.

The hour grew late, and Archduke Poggle the Lesser was growing tired of hearing various reports from his drones how unidentified ships had been allowed to land near the newly built droid foundries. A costly mistake indeed.

It transpired, that one ship his warriors had found, belonged to a Jedi, the other to someone another member of the confederacy wished dead. Something that Poggle was only too happy to arrange, in some show of Geonosis' loyalty to the CIS.

The old haggard Geonosian had been considering retiring for the night , it had been a productive day. The Jedi and the senator were being 'taken care of' as he thought, if there were any complications, he would be contacted. Which was why he wasn't entirely surprised when he heard the hiss of the doors behind him.

Turning in a rather hobbled motion, he made a small noise of surprise when he saw who had entered the control room.

General Grievous stood a good few feet taller than the gnarled bug, towering over him imposingly.

Poggle arched a knobbled brow curiously, and took a few cautious steps back to distance himself from the cyborg. Grievous' short temper had become widely known about during his stay here, and Poggle had no intention of being on the receiving end of it.

" General, this is most, unexpected"

Grievous was lucky in that inside his hearing sensors, was also a translator. He could now listen to most spoken languages, and understand them as if it were his own.

" I need you to look at something" The General replied in a quick and to the point fashion.

He now held out a datapad towards the Geonosian.

Gingerly, Poggle took the pad, and began skimming over the information with his beady black eyes.

" The signature at the bottom is fragmented and unreadable," Grievous added.

Poggle nodded, it appeared that way, yes. But to his eyes its appeared also to just be a small personalisation of the signature its self. 'One of Piqu's quirks' he thought inwardly.

" Not fragmented General, merely embellished." The Archduke corrected.

Grievous, not really appreciating the correction, ground out another couple of demands.

" What does it say? Who does it belong to?"

Poggle fell into silence. Why was Grievous asking this? What was so important about this? He would give the General the information he asked for, and discuss this meeting with Dooku immediately after.

" The signature is a name, 'Piqu'." He began,

" She was responsible for designing the body you now inhabit, and for overseeing the procedure itself."

Poggle now noted a clear look of thought in the Generals eyes. His pupils were dilated considerably, making him appear ever so distant.

" And where can I find this Piqu?" Grievous asked sounding just as distant as he looked.

Poggle took another staggered step backwards.

" She committed an act of of treason shortly after completion of the project, she was found to be leaking information of some of the work done here to those in league with the Republic."

Pausing, the aged Geonosian wondered if the General was going to believe his bare faced lie. Silence told him he must have, and he continued.

"Her actions have caused a few to try and locate us, she will be executed tomorrow, along with those she brought here."

Whatever lies he had told, they must have worked, because the cyborg nodded once decisively,

" That is all I wish to know" He replied rather flatly, turning on one foot to head out of the room, just as he had breezed in.

Poggle was left too contemplate now, just what had happened.


	4. Chapter 4

Piqu lay in a small holding cell, curled up on the red sandy floor, back facing the door.

Her desperate sobs had long since died out, all her hope had diminished, and her biggest regret? That she would never get to see her finest creation in action.

She had been informed from the moment she had been thrown in here, that her execution was to be in the morning. She had been spared the humiliation of a public death thanks to the arrival of two Jedi and a senator.

'At least this way it will be quick' She thought as her mind mulled over other thoughts in anguish.

How had she been so stupid? All her work, all her loyalty for what?

She had even been denied the privilege of a last request.

Feeling silvery tears well up in her jet black eyes once again, she curled up more so, pushing her snout into her hands to stifle her sobs.

She would not give the guards outside her cell door the satisfaction of hearing her pain.

If it was one thing a Geonosian lower down the hive hierarchy loved, it was to see someone like herself fall. And oh how the mighty had fallen.

The guards outside her door had fallen silent now, she noted inwardly.

Normally they would have been chattering to one another, perhaps they had heard her after all?

The sound of the door opening made Piqu's stomach start to churn, was it dawn already?

She did not care for what her executioners would think of her, turning to face them with a tear streaked, bruised face.

Her expression of sadness soon turned to confusion, and perhaps fear, when she saw standing in the doorway, the very product of what had gotten her in this mess. General Grievous.

Piqu fluttered to her feet throwing up clouds of red dust , causing both herself and Grievous to cough uncontrollably until it settled.

The sound of Piqu's wings quivering in anticipation filled the room now. Grievous growled irritably as he took an imposing step towards the small Geonosian female, silencing the noise she made by backing her up against the wall so her wings would lay still against her back.

Her eyes wide, she went to ask why he was here, surely Dooku had not meant her to die at the hands of her own creation?

Her voice caught in her throat, and came out more as a strangled squeak with no meaning to it, than a sentence.

"You are Piqu?" It wasn't so much of a question as it was a statement from the cyborg.

And Piqu did not answer verbally, merely giving a nervous nod of her head.

" Good, listen closely, there is something I want you to do."

Piqu could tell by the tone of the Generals voice, that whatever it was he wished of her, the situation was not negotiable.

Lowering his head so that their gazes met, faces only inches apart, Grievous continued imposingly.

" It has become clear to me, that while you may have put thought into certain 'improvements' I now possess, your design was ultimately flawed."

The General blinked away the mucus that had been collecting in his eyes. When he reopened them he found himself looking back into a rather flabbergasted Geonosian face.

Piqu clenched both her bony fists, 'flawed? FLAWED!' she thought angrily, her design was perfect! What could she have possibly missed?

It was in knowing what the cyborg should be capable of , that stopped her from voicing her protests. If she was to survive this encounter at all, she would have to tread carefully.

" Flaws? May I a-ask wh-her I went wrong? What I-I missed?" She enquired,

Stammering more through outrage than nerves.

"Fool!" Grievous spat back, "Is it not obvious? Do your kind not do your research before you carry out such procedures!"

The General pushed away from the wall with one hand, and began pacing back and forth infuriated.

Piqu had drawn her hands up in front of her face protectively, in case he should strike out.

"THIS..." he waved a hand in front of his faceplate, "...Is a crude attempt at recreating a traditional Mumuu skull! My ancestors would turn in their graves if they could see what I have become!"

Piqu quirked an brow in curiosity, she had tried to do her best where image was concerned, but function had been paramount over aesthetics.

And here he was hiding all her fine work under that cape!

"Do you find something , amusing?" The General wheezed out upon seeing her gaze turn into more of a stare.

"N-no, that is to say...umm" Piqu could think of no excuse to fit, and it was just as well.

"Silence...enough of your mindless babble." The General cut in, " I will explain what you are going to do...Firstly, we take the teeth of the Karabback beast and attach them to the Mumuu skull, a very prominent feature, and one you so clearly missed."

Piqu scratched her head, teeth? That would be easy enough to recreate.

" Secondly, if you had researched anything at all, you would know, that my people adorn their Masks with the ceremonial marking of our ancestors, this is done with the blood of the Karabback, and tradition states that the masks must be painted on the eve of battle."

Grievous paused to contemplate this. He would be in many battles, almost consecutively. He would have need to make the markings more permanent. The absence of the markings would only anger the spirits of his ancestors more so.

He was now aware of the small Geonosian trying to say something, squeaking out barely audible responses.

"What is it!" Grievous rasped out demandingly ,

Whirling round to face her again, the flow of his cape accentuating his movements.

Piqu grimaced visibly,

" I would need to return to my workshop to get the tools and materials required...I am scheduled to..to be executed at dawn."

Her eyes were downcast, sadness evident in her voice.

She would find no sympathy here.

" I am well aware of your situation, and it concerns me little."

Piqu let out a small sigh, that would be the mind alterations speaking for him.

" Getting you to your workshop however, will not be a problem,"

And with that, Grievous turned to face the door.

"You will follow me out of here, and then direct me to your workshop, one attempt to escape and I shall crush you like the parasite you are...do you understand?"

Piqu nodded once.

Grievous thought now about how much the bug like geonosians reminded him of his home worlds enemy, the Huk. Though the Geonosians were much smaller in height, and would undoubtedly make less formidable opponents. This trail of thought brought him to wonder about the life he had led before this. Did he have family? He must have had parents, else how could he exist? Did he have wives? Or even Children? And did they know what he had become? Every memory he once had, was eclipsed by the terrible rage that flowed through him.

The lights to the workshop flickered on upon their entry, flooding various work stations and consoles with light.

Piqu buzzed into the room, whizzing over to the far corner to open several containers.

"Take a seat over there by the main work station." She offered as she continued to skitter about.

Grievous regarded her suspiciously at first. She was a traitor after all, not to be trusted, and she would get what was coming to her. He settled in the seat beside the work station anyway. Constantly keeping one eye on her.

After several moments, Piqu buzzed over to the Generals side, arms full of strange looking equipment. Setting down various bits of tools on the work bench, she turned to him now handing him a datapad.

" Are these the marking you speak of?"

Looking down to the small datapad screen, Grievous could clearly see an image of the mask he had once worn when he had been whole.

" To carve the markings on the cheekbones would weaken the structure of your faceplate...those above the eyes are not a problem at all." Piqu added.

Grievous gave a simple nod, this would have to suffice for now,

" So be it."

Piqu picked up a precision laser knife, and checked the frequency of the blade.

Grievous eyed her suspiciously once more, she could easily cause him harm here. And yet, he knew he could just as easily kill her.

" Hold still...I do not want to slip" Ever the perfectionist, Piqu placed one nobly hand on the side of his faceplate to steady herself, the other began carving a perfect straight line from the eye hole upwards. When she reached a far enough point, she added what looked like half an arrow head shape at the top of the line in some kind of embellishment.

Repeating the process on the other side of the faceplate shortly after.

Grievous was silent for the whole time. It was only when Piqu began attaching the dura steel karabback style teeth, to his faceplate, that she herself broke the silence.

"What will happen to me once I finish this work?"

Nervously trying to stop her wings from rustling so much.

" You are a traitor to the confederacy, you will die." He said plaintively without second thought.

Piqu hung her head in sadness, the whole colony must have heard of her supposed treachery. There would be little point in denying the lie, the damage was done. This was her one chance at freedom, she could learn to live u exile, in hiding.

"You won't remember our last meeting...but I imagine that now you remember little about the life you had before anyway?"

She mused while she worked on the lines he requested to be carved into his chest plate.

The pupils of the Generals eyes narrowed to jet black slits,

"What do you know of my life before now?"

He did not believe that she knew anything, Piqu could tell, but she would indulge him anyway, this would be her revenge on Dooku.

" The day before I oversaw the procedure that put you in this body, I went to speak with you. You were still relying on the bacta to prolong what little life you had left." She paused to finish the markings on one side of his chest plate, then continuing,

"General...you have family, and they are all too aware of what we proposed to do. Several of your wives and children came out to Geonosis to see you after the crash, they thought their prayers could somehow ...call you back to life, or ease your passing...one of the two"

Grievous was sure he felt his heart stop, a fit of coughing taking him by surprise and when he did catch his breath, all he could manage was a hoarse ,

" You lie!"

And it seemed to take several moments more before his body reacted. Grasping Piqu suddenly by the throat, he pushed her up against the wall behind painfully hard. The joints in various limbs of hers, making cracking sounds on impact.

Eyes wide with fear, she shook her head from side to side in silent protest. Eventually she managed to choke out a response,

"It's the truth! why would I lie!"

Grievous hand about her neck tightened for a moment, before he then released her, letting the now frail looking Geonosian fall to the floor.

Why would she lie? She was a traitor! And then ...she really stood to gain nothing from telling him this, did she?

Anger told him he should put her out of her misery right now, but the faint flicker of a memory, the last spark of the life he once had told him otherwise.

" You said my 'wives'...and offspring saw me after the crash? They were not...ashamed to see me in such a state?" He questioned,

Ignoring the fact, Piqu was still trying to regain her breath.

"Yes...wives...5..of them, and offspring...12..." she paused to take breath again, gasping for all the air she could take into her small lungs.

" I am...no...expert in Kaleesh emotion...but they seemed...more concerned about you...returning to good health...returning home."

She closed her eyes now taking another deep breath.

" Then why is it I do not remember them? Why is it I can remember great battles, many victories, but nothing of my life out of the field!"

He was still threateningly close to her, his rasping tone still showing much anger towards her, she wasn't out of the woods yet.

Piqu could hardly tell him that is was her own tampering that had caused him to forget deliberately. Nor could she say that this was done on Dooku's orders. To do so would only seal her doom. So she did what all good Geonosians were good at, she lied.

" The force of the crash must have caused memory loss as it did great concussion, this, along with the severity of your injuries, must have been highly traumatic."

She took another breath, somewhat worried he would not take her word for it.

"Severe trauma can cause loss of memory also."

Again Grievous seemed to mull this over, and it was a good few moments before he even so much as moved, let alone said anything.

Every so often the translucent membrane of his eyelids would close, only to open again and pupils would come to rest on Piqu.

" You speak the truth."

Although this was not a question from the General, Piqu felt the need to answer anyway.

"I speak the truth," she repeated.

Grievous turned his back to her suddenly as he stood again, Piqu found herself almost feeling sympathy for the cyborg, and yet she was so proud of her greatest creation, she almost forgot that a life had been decimated to create it.

He had given her his life for her ultimate creation, she owed him.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5- No Regrets.

Upon their departure, Grievous' wives had given the Geonosians many of the Generals personal effects. Most of which, had been destroyed shortly after. But Piqu had kept a few for her research. Also, if the experiment had failed the small holo images of his family could be used in some form or blackmail perhaps? Along with these holo's she had kept hold of his original Mumuu mask. All else had been destroyed on Dooku's orders.

Buzzing over to a small desk like structure, Piqu opened a small compartmented drawer, there inside lay the holo's she had thought about.

Taking them in her bony hands, she glanced back over at the General.

'One last chance to escape all this' She thought again.

Grievous had been silent for many moments now. A brooding look in his eyes, his mind was doing overtime. She 'was' telling him the truth, somehow he just knew it. But this family he may have had, they remained faceless, ageless to him. That cursed crash, it had cost him more than his body, it had cost him his whole life!

No, the Jedi had cost him his life, and not just his, but that of his family too. The sound of mechanical tendons tensing was broken by Piqu's shrill Geonosian voice.

" These are yours," She stated,

Extending her hand to him as she landed beside the General. Opening her hand out, two Holo discs could clearly be seen in her palm.

Grievous' eyes widened slightly as he focussed on the items.

He then snatched them out of her hand so suddenly, that Piqu flinched, skittering back into a pile of containers that had been, until now, neatly stacked. Sending them crashing down to roll about the floor as she tumbled.

Sitting amongst the toppled containers, Piqu could only watch on in dear of the Generals reaction.

Grievous activated one of the small holos he now held in his skeletal droid hand.

An image sprung to life from within the disc.

A group of Kaleesh females sat down in a formal looking fashion, with several Children at their feet. The children not looking quite as orderly, but appearing to have tried their best to sit still. A family, HIS family.

Again, somehow he just knew it. Although inside him, something was doing it's best to try and get him to deny the fact. Why had dooku not shown him this? Why had this been kept from him!

He deactivated the first holo, and activated the second. The three dimensional image of a Kaleesh adolescent male appeared.

" I...I was informed that he was your eldest son, and heir so to speak..." Piqu informed him gingerly, scooting back more so across the floor.

Grievous did not so much as acknowledge he had heard her, despite the fact he had.

He continued to stare at the image in disbelief, if he had had a jaw, it would have more than likely been gaping open by now.

The image of the boy stared back at him, looking painfully familiar, and yet not at the same time.

The adolescents red/brown mottled skin was adorned with several painted symbols Grievous recognised as the traditional Kaleesh symbols for a males coming of age ceremony. A ceremony he could not remember. Had he even been there for his son as his father must have been for him?

Pain turned to anger just as every feeling he had these days did. And more anger continued to seep into his thoughts when he noted how painfully thin the boy looked.

Granted, the Kaleesh were thin by nature, but every bone seemed to be pronounced, making the boy appear rather feminine looking. Grievous winced inwardly, if his eldest son looked like that, what state of starvation were his wives and other children in? In the large group holo, they had been wearing long robes which would conceal the tell tale signs of malnutrition.

The true extent of just how the Republic, the Jedi, had decimated the lives of he and his people, was reiterated by these images. Serving only to strengthen his pure hatred for them...All of them, Masters, down to the lowliest of Padawas, they would ALL pay.

The General showed no sign of gratitude to Piqu for allowing him this memory at least, and Piqu expected none, they were even now. To tell him everything would be to unleash pure destruction on the confederacy, and despite the fact Dooku had double crossed her, she could never side with the Republic. It was beyond her now.

And so she remained silent, having finished her work, waiting to be returned to her cell, or clinging to the hope she may be turned loose to go into hiding.

The sudden hiss of the doors to the workshop opening , startled both Grievous and Piqu at once.

Turning to face the door sharply, the Generals golden eyes came to rest upon the familiar form of Count Dooku, who was accompanied by several Super Battle Droids.

Dooku's gaze moved swiftly from Grievous to the cowering form of the Geonosian female, who sat amongst the containers she had toppled previously.

And in that instant, The Count let a cruel smirk play across his lips.

" Ah, good. General, I see you found our escapee?"

Quirking a brow, Dooku continued before Grievous had chance to reply.

" It seems that our little friend here has somehow informed the Jedi of our operations here."

The Generals gaze darted to Piqu suddenly. Piqu frantically shook her head in protest as she tried desperately to skitter to her feet.

"The Geonosians apprehended only hours ago, two Jedi and a senator loyal to the republic, our operations here had been kept completely secret, until we realised we had a traitor in our mists." Dooku's explanation was flawless, two Jedi and a senator had indeed arrived on Geonosis, but the reason behind their being here, or how they had come to know about operations on Geonosis, was unknown to Piqu.

"No! It is not true! I have only ever been loyal to the Confederacy!" she began in a loud shrill verbal protest.

"What of all the work I have done for this cause in my years here? Why would I provide you with such innovative ideas if I were only going to betray you!"

She fluttered to her feet now still edging away.

In amongst the flurry of raised voices, General Grievous discerned only one thing. The Geonosian was a traitor, a traitor with a death sentence on her head, and SHE had brought the Jedi here. Just as the Huk had brought the Jedi to his home world.

There was no honour in what they had done, an act of cowardice. They had to die for their actions, the Kaleesh' s hatred for their old enemy renewed. He know now what he had to do.

Piqu had no time to think before she found herself pressed against a harshly cold durasteel wall. Only the warmth of the blood trickling down the side of her face stirred her from the threat of unconsciousness. If she could have seen behind her, she would have seen that the General had pinned her in lace with one foot.

Dooku watched expectantly, that ever present look of superiority on his face.

Grievous paused for a second, she knew things, about his life, she had been able to tell him things about his life as an organic that until then had been forgotten, concealed from him. The feeling of the holo discs in his droid hand, a sharp reminder of what had transpired here. General Grievous, Kaleesh warlord, flesh and blood, would have thought that after all this Geonosian had done for him, she deserved the chance to explain herself. But that life was far behind him now, she had braught the Jedi here, his now sworn enemy.

Piqu had somehow managed to twist in his grim, so that she faced him. Deep Black eyes wide with fear, almost doing all her pleading for her. She opened her mouth as if to speak, but it was all too late.

A powerful, mechanised leg, lifted her from the ground. A grip so tight she could feel her ribs crack one by one beneath the magnetised foot that encompassed her torso.

As the very life was crushed out of her, Piqu realised in her last agonising moments, that she had gotten her last wish. She would indeed get to see her finest creation in action, first hand.

CRACK! Another final rib gave way

The sound of her own desperate gasps for air did not reach her now deafened ears, she no longer felt pain as her spine was crushed as easily as if it had been made of flimsy. All faded to black, her last thoughts fading with her,

'no regrets.'

The sound of Piqu's lifeless body slumping to the ground echoed off the walls, shortly followed by the sound of a few shirt claps as Dooku applauded, if not somewhat sarcastically, the Generals move.

Grievous stared down into the lifeless eyes of the Geonosian female, he himself emotionless. He wondered, shouldn't he feel something? Pity? Remorse? Disgust even? Yet there was nothing, nothing but the faintest trickle of anger winding its way back into his mind.

"You have done well, consider this a test passed." The Count mused arrogantly.

"However, we should be on our guard, the Jedi that were captured, may have had chance to get word out to the rest of the council, if that is so, they will undoubtedly send more to rescue the prisoners.

Grievous turned to face his mentor,

" If that is so, consider the Jedi taken care of." He rasped.

Dooku gave another quick condescending smile, before turning to exit the room, briefly ordering one of the droids to 'clean up the mess.'

Dooku had given no mention of his thoughts concerning Grievous' new adornments to his armour. Though it had raised a few questions in the old Sith Lords mind. He would note these things along with others.

Grievous waited until the Count had left the room to turn to the battle droids who were disposing of Piqu's corpse.

" Have all of this Geonosians personal effects and records searched, send all the details to me as soon as you have them."

The droid in turn speaking out a tinny sounding,

"Yes sir."

The General then took his leave to lay in wait for the Jedi that would inevitably come. It began here.

NOW:

Orbiting Geonosis, the Invisible Hand, was an imposing and impressive sight.

Dooku had informed the General, along with this magnificent ship, he had something else he wished the cyborg to have.

"This once belonged to an old friend of mine, and now it is yours, as reward for your impressive training."

The Count held out the familiar silvery hilt of a lightsaber, Grievous in turn reached out with one armourplast hand, to take the weapon.

" The Jedi shall fall to their own weapon..." The count sounded confident, but could never miss a chance to stick the proverbial vibroblade in.

" No one has ever received a lightsaber as a 'gift' before, especially not a DROID"

That word grated on Grievous nerves now more than ever. Is this how people saw him? As a mere droid!

And now the old Sith Lord was expecting him to show gratitude?

The only thing Grievous felt right now, was Anger and bitterness. He would not give Dooku the satisfaction of seeing his humiliation again.

Dooku departed, clearly satisfied he'd made the General know his place.

The anger inside Grievous however, did not subside. And eyeing out the only targets worth taking his anger out on, he leapt into action.

The Magnaguards, who had just become test subjects for Grievous' new sabre, all chimed mechanically in unison, asking over and over what was wrong. Had their leader malfunctioned? Their efforts to stop him were futile, as e sliced ad slashed through them with ease. The smell of smouldering alloy filled the air, accompanied by the sound of mechanical screams, as each droid was dispatched as easily as the last.

Only when the droids were in a state of complete disrepair, did Grievous stop.

Reaching into his cape with one free hand, he pulled out two small and slightly battered holodiscs. Eyes narrowed as he remembered.

" I, am, NOT, a DROID!" he ground out loud as if his ancestors would hear him.

" I am General Grievous!"


End file.
