After the Storm

The olive skinned Jedi sat in her confined cell in the Republic prison. All around her were the most vile criminals in the galaxy.
Her freckle shaped tattoos across her nose scrunched up as she thought of how that arrogant knight, Anakin, had exposed her for her wrongdoings.
Barriss buried her face in her palms as she contemplated how long she would be trapped in this wretched place.
And then a voice said over the intercom;
“There’s someone here to see you.”
With that she rose and moved through a small door at the back of the cell where there was a long desk bolted to the floor, and it was separated down the middle by a thick piece of transparisteel. On the other side of this sat a human male dressed in dirtied old rags as if he had been digging through garbage.
The clones who had escorted him in gave her a cold look through their visors and then left the room.
She sat down across from the figure.
“What is it Tut--” She was cut off as the man said;
“I told you never to use my real name out loud. I’m Tsk Marc.”
After glancing around the room he waved his hand and all the security monitors, including droids, blacked out.
“Now we can talk.” He said opening up his ragged wardrobe exposing the Jedi robes beneath.
“Tutso, I can’t do this for you anymore. I used the technique you taught me to kill the witness, Letta, and frame Ahsoka.”

“You did what needed to be done Barriss.”
“I can’t believe I fought Anakin like that. It’s like something possessed me. And when he turned me into the courts it wasn’t me who spoke.”

Tutso Mara just sat there and smirked.

“That was me.” He revealed.
Barriss looked at him in disbelief

“Yes,” He continued.
“I’ve mastered the ancient Sith art of Transfer of Essence. I knew there was some parts of my plan that you couldn’t carry out so I took the liberty of doing them for you.” As he spoke a gray shadow passed over his eyes.
“And now I am more powerful than ever.” Barriss found herself saying as she recoiled her from her chair.
“How does it feel, my little puppet.” He said with a cold charismatic smile.
“Why did you come here? To gloat?” Barriss said with new found anger.
“No . . . “ He said coldly.
“To do this.”
Suddenly Barriss was on her feet when she blacked out.
She woke up on the floor with clone guards looking down on her.
She rose and saw the transparisteel barrier shattered and dismembered rags strewn across the floor on the other side where Tutso had been sitting.
“What happened?” She demanded.
“Don’t worry, we saw everything.” One of the guards said, something in his voice suggested something was afoot.
Two of the clones grabbed her arms and held her tight.
“What are you doing!” She demanded
“C’mon, we’re moving you to a high security cell for assaulting an unarmed citizen.”
“What? No! That wasn’t me!” She screamed and kicked as the clones dragged her away.
As Barriss kicked futilely she heard Tutso’s voice in her head say;
My little puppet
“No!”. She screamed before she blacked out again.