“In the name of the Republic, you will be brought to justice,” the Jedi said somberly. Grievous laughed as he fought the Jedi and his contingent of clone troopers.  His foot clutched the helmet of one of the clones and he threw him far into the distance as he flipped through the air slicing off another clone’s hands in a smooth motion.  Then he directed his attention back to the Jedi again, pressing forward in a swift and fluid offensive. “Empty words, Jedi,” the cyborg general rumbled.  He felt the implacable anger that the appearance or even mention of the Jedi always caused in him, but he had turned that anger into a precise and lethal weapon, rather than the weakness the Jedi believed it to be. Of course, he wasn’t beyond trying to see if he could get a rise out of them, either.  Count Dooku had said that the Jedi never felt more off-balance than when they felt themselves pulled by their own fear and anger. So as Grievous continued making short work of any clone troopers who got too close and deflecting the blaster shots of the more cautious ones, as well as pushing an offensive towards the lone Jedi Knight, he also attempted a psychological jab at his current prey. “But perhaps you can use those words to comfort your padawan when you join him in death.” He saw the face of the Jedi twitch in anger, though to his disappointment his opponent did not explode with rage as they sometimes did.  The Jedi did strike more forcefully now, though, changing his fighting style from defensive to offensive. As Grievous twisted and turned in all directions, he also used the movement as an opportunity to observe his surroundings on all sides, constructing a 360 degree view in his mind of the battlefield.  It was with that view in mind that he hit the Jedi hard enough on the right side to drive him physically backward as he rotated his own body fluidly around the knight, placing his opponent directly in line of the blaster fire from a clone trooper who had undoubtedly meant to hit Grievous instead. The clone cried out in dismay as the Jedi was felled by the bolt.  Grievous took the opportunity to take his ever-present anger out on the Jedi’s collapsed form.  If the bolt hadn’t killed him, he was certainly dead now.  Then the cyborg grabbed the Jedi’s lightsaber from the ground with his foot and, in one fluid motion brought it around to kill the clone trooper who had accidentally killed his commander as he tried to attack Grievous.  The battlefield was silent.  Around Grievous there was a ring of death. He took a moment to savor his victory, but also to feel disappointment.  Kenobi would never have gone down so easily.  The Jedi Master was his most hated foe, but also his most respected.  They had dueled countless times, neither able to best the other. Blaster fire sounded in the distance,  catching the immediate attention of the cyborg general.  His attention immediately switched back to his main objective.  He turned and moved towards the estate in the distance, leaving his ship, the Soulless One, as well as the cargo shuttle attached to it, guarded by his silent and deadly magnaguard.  As much as he would like to seek out other Jedi to kill, Dooku’s instructions for this mission were clear--his first priority was to rescue the Parliament members who had been stranded on Raxus by the Republic’s surprise attack.  He was to attack only those who got in his way until that mission was completed. Still, if he were lucky, perhaps there would be more Jedi who would ‘get in his way’.

---

Grievous crested the hill and reached the sprawling estate.  The ostentatiousness and unnecessary luxury of the place struck Grievous as distasteful, but then the Separatist Parliament did mostly consist of the rich and the privileged.  In any event, he was uninterested in the politics of his benefactors. His only duty was to carry out their orders, his only reward to be given the chance to decimate the Jedi Order. As he approached the entrance he watched for any lurking foes.  However, it appeared that the Republic hadn’t reached this area yet.  He pressed the alert button at the door panel and waited. A human woman opened the door, looking up at him with wide eyes.  From the records he had accessed from his ship’s computer before traveling to Raxus, he identified her easily. “Senator Bonteri,” Grievous said.  “I’ve come to evacuate the Separatist Parliament members stranded on your estate.” “Oh!  You--you must be General Grievous,” she said, seeming to recover her equilibrium. Come with me!  I’ll let the others know you’re here.” She ran back into her estate and Grievous treaded easily after her.  He followed her down a spiral staircase into what appeared to be a basement.What a terrible place to hide. If the Republic had reached the estate, the occupants would have been trapped in their current location.  Not that he imagined many of them were fighters, anyway. Finally they reached a door at the end of a long hallway.  The senator keyed in a code to open it and they entered to find a large group of senators and dignitaries huddled behind crates or under a large table that took up most of the center of the room.  Grievous sighed.  Ten of them, counting the Bonteri woman and her spawn.  This was going to slow him down considerably. “General Grievous is here to rescue us,” Senator Bonteri said urgently. “Let’s go,” Grievous said.  “I’ve put down a shuttle not far from here.” “That’s good news!” San Hill said, rising from behind a crate and dusting his robes off.  “This planet has become a death trap!” Grievous turned and walked back towards the stairs.  He heard the footsteps of the panicked people following behind him. They walked through the grounds of the estate.  In the distance, Grievous could hear blaster fire.  Nearby, he could detect the heat signatures of the group behind him, following his long stride as best they could. As they approached his ship, he could see the battle had already reached the Soulless One again.  He took out four lightsabers, spinning two of them above him and holding the other two out in front of him. One of the Senators, a blond human man dressed in red and gold, let out a wail of despair.  “We’re all going to die!” Grievous snapped at the panicking senator.  “QUIET!” This, unfortunately, did not have the desired effect, and the man began to shriek.  Grievous would have killed him then and there if Dooku hadn’t made clear that he would consider that a failure on Grievous’s part. Bonteri spoke then, her voice dripping with disdain.  “Stop snivelling, Lestur.  You wouldn’t want to break the General’s concentration, would you?” The man quieted down quickly after that, and Grievous was able to concentrate his attention on the group of clone troopers guarding his ship. “I will handle this,” Grievous said.  “Stay behind me.”  He walked over to the clones.  “Surrender or die,” he said simply. The clones fired a barrage of blaster fire towards him.  He blocked the shots with his lightsabers, managing to reflect some of the bolts back at the clones. “I see you mean to die, then.” He leapt over to them and unleashed a barrage of lightsaber attacks that made short work of the clone troopers.  He guessed that there hadn’t been time for the Republic to learn of the death of the Jedi Knight who had attacked him earlier, and that the clones had simply been intended to reinforce the now deceased Jedi.  He defeated all ten of them easily. Then he mentally activated the boarding ramp to the shuttle and gestured for the Separatist Parliament members to enter with him. Remotely activating the autopilot on his ship, he initiated the takeoff sequence from the planet’s surface.  Within minutes they had reached orbit around the planet. The Bonteri child gasped, pointing out the airlock window.  “Is that--is that the Soulless One?” “Yes,” General Grievous said.  “This transport shuttle has been attached to my personal fighter for the purposes of completing this mission.”  He motioned to the shuttle seating arrayed around them.  “You may wish to prepare yourself for the hyperspace jump.  I will need to pilot the ship personally until we pass the Republic blockade.” He walked into the airlock, closing the door behind him.  He prepared himself for what would happen next by sealing off his airholes and the eyeholes of his mask, flicking their transparisteel covers down like a pair of transparent eyelids.  He heard a tap on the door behind him.  Looking through the clear transparisteel window, he saw the face of the Bonteri child squashed against the window, watching with interest.  Having ascertained that the sound was not a threat, nor of any importance, he then opened the door in front of him to the vacuum of space. Using his magnetized feet, he walked across the surface of the Soulless One and then settled into the cockpit. His clawed fingers keyed in the commands to enter hyperspace.  The hyperspace countdown sequence commenced, though several Republic ships began attacking him soon afterward.  It seemed they had finally broken through the network of Vultures assigned to defend his ship and its cargo of Senators.  One of his pursuers in particular stood out as being extremely difficult to shake.  Grievous wondered with some interest if it was a Jedi that gave it its unerring direction.  He knew the clones could never keep up with his maneuvers.  Still, he had his orders.   He kept up his evasive maneuvers until he saw the signature blue lines of hyperspace in front of him. I’ll be back for you later, Jedi.

---

The trip back to the ship from his fighter had been uneventful.  Hyperspace did not feel to him significantly different than regular space, despite the numerous superstitions to the contrary.  His return to the shuttle was swift, though it seemed that one of the shuttle’s occupants was feeling--excessively talkative. “--and did you know that it’s a customized Belbullab-22 fighter? It has the triple laser cannons of course, but the best part is--” the Bonteri child said, stopping abruptly when he noticed Grievous’s presence. “Er, hello sir.” “I have been instructed to brief all of you on the situation,” Grievous said, pacing around them.    “I expect we will be in hyperspace for three standard days.” “Three days?” One of the senators said.  His expression was horrified.  “In this awful thing?” The Bonteri child looked delighted, however.  “Really?” Grievous sighed.  “Yes.” He couldn’t help thinking what a waste of time this was.  If he hadn’t had to take on all this dead-weight, he could have stayed in the battle. “The shuttle was outfitted with this eventuality in mind.  You will find all supplies required for your survival over there,” Grievous said, gesturing briefly to several crates. “But--there’s nowhere to sleep!” Grievous looked over at the Senator who had spoken.  The human looked both horrified and indignant, crossing his arms and looking up at the cyborg general. “I didn’t say anything about your comfort,” Grievous responded.  “Be grateful that you will live another day, Senator.  Now, in the interests of conserving space, I’m going to return to the cockpit of my fighter.” “Ah, General?”  Grievous turned back to face Senator Bonteri, who looked up at him with a smile.  “I just wanted to thank you for all you’ve done today.  Lux and I are safe because of you.  Please know that you are always welcome at the Bonteri manor.” Grievous inclined his head politely, though the invitation held no appeal to him.  “Thank you.” He turned again towards the cockpit. It was at that moment that San Hill spoke up.  “General Grievous,” he said.  “I also wanted to express my immense gratitude for your help.” “Very well,” Grievous said, his tone dismissive. Gratitude is only so many empty words. The Muun smiled nervously.  “No, truly.  If there is something you would like in return, please don’t hesitate to ask.  You saved my life, after all.  I'd say that means you've been an excellent investment.” Grievous finally turned to face the leader of the Intergalactic Banking Clan and narrowed his eyes.  “Really?  Five more fleets of ships and an entire armada of magnaguards, perhaps?” San laughed.  “You’re thinking too small, my friend.  Of course, you can have that as well if you want.  But I was thinking more along the lines of--upgrades to your current cyborg infrastructure.  Let me know if you have an interest in that.” Grievous tilted his head.  “You know of a way to improve upon my current abilities?” He needed an extra edge over the Jedi.  If there was some enhancement that could give him that, perhaps he could finally fell one of the great Jedi Masters... “Yes, considerably so,” San Hill said.  “When this is over, please don’t hesitate to contact me.” “I will take you up on that offer,” Grievous said. “Excellent,” the Muun said.  “I promise, you won’t be disappointed.”