159474808X (20 page)

Enter
D
ARTH
S
IDIOUS
above, on balcony.

SIDIOUS

O, perfect, dark, and evil strategy,

Come to fruition, in a trice. Forsooth,

Behold the power of the mighty Sith

As we release our order sixty-six!

The cloak of death we rapidly unveil,

And show the reaper grim who waits therein.

The Jedi, spread throughout the galaxy,

Engag’d in battles with the Sep’ratists,

Shall suffer as no group e’er suffer’d yet.

Those fighting with their little lightsabers,

Or flying into battle in a ship,

Or cruising o’er a planet’s bluest shore,

Each wretched Jedi meets a quick demise.

Go, ravens of the dark side, caw for death!

Feast ye upon the Jedi carrion,

Let each rank body of each Jedi Knight

Fall as you peck them into death’s embrace.

Go, black and lethal banthas of the night,

And trample o’er the weak Republic’s hopes—

Crush all the Jedi who would block your way,

Impale them all upon your vicious horns.

Go, hounds of hell, and fiercely bare your teeth,

Let ev’ry Jedi feel your awful bite.

Rip limb from limb until their skin doth shred,

And flay them whilst they live, that they may scream.

O, pleasure most profound and sensual,

To eat the heart of one’s own enemies.

Would that I could perform the deed myself,

Look into ev’ry pair of Jedi eyes

And watch as they for mercy humbly beg.

O, sight most pitiful and wonderful:

I’d haply run them through, or choke their throats,

Or strike them with the lighting of the Sith—

Then how mine heart would sing as they expire,

My soul would leap to hear their cries of pain.

Die, light, die, any good that ever was,

Die, wisdom; yea, die, virtue, die, respect,

Die, honor, die, nobility, die, right—

These qualities shall perish on this day.

For lo, the Sith do ply their merry tricks,

Come, death: thy name is order sixty-six.

[Exit Darth Sidious.

SCENE 2.

On the planet Utapau and the planet Kashyyyk.

Enter
R
UMOR
.

RUMOR

The Sith, with Rumor’s aid, have hatch’d their plot,

Hell hath no fury like to Palpatine.

Each moment now with danger vast is fraught

For ev’ry Jedi Knight upon the scene.

Against the Jedi rise the troopers clon’d,

Long programm’d with their order sixty-six.

Like dead kings shall the Jedi be dethron’d:

Oblivious when come the Chanc’lor’s tricks.

Forsaken by the ones once known as friends,

The Jedi Order doth face sound defeat:

Herein the Jedi Knights come to their ends,

Eyes, look upon their ruin, soon complete!

Just after Sidious hath giv’n the word,

E’en Obi-Wan shall be by foes beset.

Does not this Rumor fly like swiftest bird?

Is not this fall mine utmost triumph yet?

[Exit Rumor.

Enter
O
BI
-W
AN
K
ENOBI
astride
B
OGA
, C
OMMANDER
C
ODY
,
AND SEVERAL
CLONE TROOPERS
.

OBI-WAN

I pray, Commander, contact all thy troops,

And bid them make ascent to higher levels.

CODY

Indeed, good Master Jedi. Also, sir:

Methinks you dropp’d your lightsaber from up

Above, for I did hear it clatter, yea.

You shall have need of this most noble light

When you do bravely enter to the fray.

OBI-WAN

My thanks, Commander Cody. Let us go,

For we herein must win this battle.

BOGA

—Braaee!

[Obi-Wan and Boga begin to exit.

CODY

Holla, what’s this—a signal doth come through.

Enter
D
ARTH
S
IDIOUS
in beam.

SIDIOUS

My clone commander Cody, th’time hath come:

All now is readiness. By these words I

Command thee speedily to execute

The dread and perfect order sixty-six.

CODY

Yea, lord, it shall be even as you say.

[Exit Sidious from beam.

Ill born it cometh—order sixty-six—

To slay e’en such as Obi-Wan Kenobi.

The man hath ever been a friend to me,

And side by side in many wars we fought,

Yet o’er my mind this order worketh quick

An ’twere some mighty force deliver’d it.

Lo, on the instant, I do feel compell’d,

As though obedience demanded were

By some all-pow’rful spell. Now ’tis most clear:

The Jedi are th’Republic’s enemies:

Thus at the hands of clones death comes anon.

[
To other clones:
] My men, to some lost planet yon blast him!

[The clones fire at Obi-Wan and Boga, who fall into a canyon and land within a lake. Exeunt Commander Cody and clone troopers.

Enter
Y
ODA
with
T
ARFFUL
and
C
HEWBACCA.
Enter
TWO CLONE TROOPERS
near them.

TROOPER 1

[
to other trooper:
] The order hath been giv’n, so let us to’t.

Anon comes death, e’en for a one as Yoda.

YODA

Sense I things have chang’d:

To bring me home death cometh,

Unless first I act.

[Yoda moves quickly, brandishing his lightsaber and killing the two clone troopers.

CHEWBAC.

Auugh, egh, auugh, auugh, egh, auugh!

TARFFUL

—Auugh, auugh, egh, auugh!

YODA

Aye, let us go, friends.

To Coruscant I must fly,

The dark threat to meet.

Adieu, brave Tarfful.

Farewell, fearless Chewbacca.

Miss ye both I shall.

Matters are most grave,

And hastily leave must I

Ere others shall die.

[Exit Yoda, climbing into a Wookiee pod and ascending. Exeunt Tarfful and Chewbacca.

SCENE 3.

On the planet Coruscant.

Enter
D
ARTH
V
ADER
and
A LEGION OF CLONE TROOPERS
,
marching toward the Jedi temple. The troopers stand aside as
V
ADER
enters. Enter
J
EDI
Y
OUNGLINGS
.

YOUNG. 1

Good Master Skywalker, we are afeard,

There are too many foes abroad tonight.

What shall we do, my Master? Prithee, speak!

VADER

Have you said all your orisons this night?

YOUNG. 1

Alas, my lord, what do you mean by that?

VADER

I would not kill your unpreparèd spirits;

No, heav’n forfend! I would not kill your souls.

YOUNG. 1

Talk you of killing?

VADER

—Aye, I do. And shall!

[Vader strikes down the younglings as the clones surround them in a circle.

Enter
P
ADMÉ
and
C-3PO
above, on balcony.
Exeunt
V
ADER
,
dead younglings, and
CLONE TROOPERS
slowly, while
C-3PO
and
P
ADMÉ
speak
.