Chapter One.
Perfect pristine white, a field of untouched virgin snow as far as the eye could see. He looked down at his booted feet, the stark contrast of
his dark almost blood red boots against the snow made his presence even more alien to the landscape. He lifted one foot and gently placed
it in front of him, just so his heel was touching the surface, then slowly he placed his weight on the foot, the crust of snow and ice made a
satisfying crack as his heel broke the surface, then the crunch as his fool crushed the snow under his foot, he smiled. He had made his
mark on this planet. Time and the elements would erase it, it would erase all the marks made. Everywhere. That was the nature of all
things, they fade and disappear. Would this place still show the marks that the Empire had made here in a hundred years ? A thousand ?
He would be dead in a thousand years, he was sure of that, dust in a tomb if he was lucky, another forgotten name in another forgotten
list of forgotten names.
The cold frigid terrain of Hoth matched his mood. How he hated this place. So different from his home planet of Korriban, a hot dry
dusty place, the cold didn't suit him, even with the Force warming him as well as the extreme cold weather gear he wore under his light
outer armour he could still feel it biting into his bones. He yearned for a hot sun. When would he next be on that red planet. He looked
around him again. One thing this cold hell had in common with his home was that it was a land devoid of mercy. Only the strong could
and would survive here.
"My Lord, your belongings are loaded on board the shuttle."
Lord Dondinas, Pure Blood Sith Assassin, spun to face the young human Imperial Navy Captain, the Captain took a step back in
surprise. He stared at the grey mask the Sith wore. He began to shake, and not from the cold.
"Is Talos Drelik on board ?"
"My Lord, he was not yet returned, shall we send out a patrol to escort him back ?"
"Yes, and tell him, the shuttle will leave on time, either with him or without."
Dondinas waited a moment, letting the human shake with fear. Through the Force he could feel that fear, like all who swan in the dark
currents of the Dark Side of the Force, strong emotions allowed him to amplify his strength with the Force, and like others of his ilk, he
was able to feed off the emotions of others, he was not strong in this ability, he had seen some who could almost drain them of emotion. He was strong in the Force, stronger than most, but he also knew he had much still to learn. Almost all Sith Pure Bloods were Force sensitive from birth, those who were not would be left to die. Only the strong survive. He bathed in the Captains fear for a few seconds more.
"Why are you still here ? Do you seek the Emperor's blessing ? You have your instructions now GO !"
He took a dark delight in watching the human stammer a few unintelligible words, then almost trip over himself as he attempted to bow, turn around and walk away all at the same time. His mask hid the smile as he watched the Captain struggle to hurry across the the
snow into the Imperial base.
Talking a last look at the white landscape, he also made his way into the base.
Hovering in the dark space between star systems, and far enough from recognised travel routs, the Imperial Fury class small starship was
hidden. All external marker lights had been extinguished. The ship would only be found by pure luck or if you knew where to look.
Dondinas was in his personal cabin, a low firm bed, a wardrobe, a desk with computer display, a safe and a small shrine with a single
blood red candle. Spartan with no distractions, that was how he liked it. He knelt on the floor before the shrine. His eyes may have been focused on the candle flame but his consciousness was in the void. Nothingness filled his mind, he was empty. He brought his mind in closer to his body, his mind could feel his heart beat a steady slow rhythm, his lungs draw in air. He moved in closer, filling his body, now he could feel the blood flow through his veins and arteries, the air expand his lungs, mind and body became one. He reached out with his mind for the Force, there, he let it flow into him, filling his soul. He almost wept with joy as the power nearly overwhelmed him. Now the exercise of control. With out control the Dark Side of the Force would consume him, he had to master it or it would master him, tearing his soul apart and condemning him to a short life of terror as his own mind would destroy him. Binding the Force to his will, he felt it flow though and around him, dark energy filled him and gave him strength.
Now for the final part of his ritual meditation, he began to recite The Way, or The Sith Code as the Human Imperials liked to call it. To a Pure Blooded Sith like himself, it was The Way, The Way of the Sith.
Peace is a lie, there is only passion.
Through passion, I gain strength.
Through strength, I gain power.
Through power, I gain victory.
Through victory, my chains are broken.
The Force shall free me.
He was in control, powerful, deadly. As he stood a slight tremble in the Force gave him warning of a presence close to him, he stretched
out his hard and reaching with the Force brought his double bladed lightsaber to his hand. Holding it and igniting the twin red blades
with his left hand, he trust out his right hand, fingers splayed ready to unleash a sheet of blue Force Lightning. At the last moment he held
back. Stood in the open door way was the small slim form of Talos Drelik.
"I'm sorry my Lord, did I startle you ?"
"I will say this once, and only once, never approach my chamber unannounced."
"Quite. May I my Lord ?"
The human then walked in to the chamber, he stood looking at the Sith with his hands held behind his back and legs apart. His slicked
back light brown hair sat on a sloping forehead, beneath which sat two half lidded blue eye, a sharp prominent nose and a thin lipped
slash of a mouth finished off with a short weak chin. Talos was no combat soldier, that was painfully obvious, what made up for it though,
was a brilliant analytical mind. Recently seconded from the Imperial Reclamation Service, Talos was an excellent Archaeologist. His
mind was filled with data from digs he had been on from across the Empire. If something caught his eye everything else would be
ignored, he had demonstrated this while on Hoth, as Dondinas had fought a dozen pirates, Talos had been engrossed in the remains of an
old freighter that had crashed on the frozen planet, countless years before. He was totally oblivious to danger, while he was an average
shot with a blaster pistol, his personal file had said that the only reason he had completed his basic military training was because he had
found the remains of a ruin beneath the pistol ranges, and all students had received a paperwork pass to enable Imperial Reclamation
Service's to dig up the entire range area. He was though a very competent field Medic, this was explained, he said, to enable him to be a
better Archaeologist, couldn't dig a site with an injury.
"This is my private chamber, if you wish to speak to me, use the briefing room, that is what it is for."
Talos, looked around him as if seeing the room for the first time.
"Shall I meet you there then, good, on my way my Lord."
With that he then walked straight out of the room. Dondinas contemplated ejecting him out of the airlock. No, what was in that head was
to useful. Dondinas then frowned, he hadn't even said what he wanted. Maybe if he smashed some of his relics, he would just dig up
some more. Clipping his lightsaber to his belt, he made his way to the briefing room.
The briefing room was dominated by a long grey metal table running the length of the room, on each side were six chairs, un padded and
without arms but functional, at the head of the table was a larger chair, this had a high arching back, the top of which finished above the
head of who ever sat there, on the arms were a collection of controls which operated the display system on the wall to his left. It was also
deeply cushioned.
As Dondinas entered he saw that Talos was seated in the seat closed to the door, even so he still had not heard Dondinas walk the metal
floored corridor, and seemed to be concentrating on a small datacron in his hand, turning it this way and that. He walked past him and sat at the head of the table. As the seat hissed air as it automatically adjusted the deep cushioned sides and back to form a perfect fit to Dondinas's shape, Talos snapped his head up, he looked at the Sith Lord sat in his chair, then to the door then back to Dondinas.
"Ahh, my Lord, your here."
Dondinas spread his arm with his palms upward.
"It would seem so, now what is so important that you would ignore basic etiquette when addressing a Lord of the Sith ?"
For a second or two Talos just looked back at Dondinas, then understanding what had just been said to him he leaped to his feet, looking
at the datacron in his hands, he then swapped it from hand to hand before finally placing it on the table. He then looked at Dondinas.
"Forgive me my Lord, I sometimes get distracted by my work, I meant no disrespect."
"None taken. This time."
"They said in the Imperial Reclamation Service that I would not notice my own death if I was on a dig or examining a relic."
He then gave a short laugh.
"Should we test that theory ?"
"Ha ha, yes, very good my Lord."
Dondinas looked back at Talos, the Sith was not wearing his mask, so his face and expression was plain to see. He had known grown men,
seasoned battle hardened troopers grow visibly pale when a Dark Lord of the Sith looked at them. But this small physically weak man, this
Archaeologist, seemed to be of the opinion they were sharing a joke. Using his thumb and index finger he rubbed the engraved brass
piece of jewellery that sat across the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes. Dondinas himself had killed men for more trivial things than
wasting his time before. The Sith were not known for either their patience or their sense of humour.
"I can promise you this, if you do not tell me the reason why you intruded into my personal chamber very soon, you will not leave this
room alive."
Finally Talos seemed to grasp the fact that his new Master did not liked to be kept waiting.
"My Lord, during my time with the Imperial Reclamation Service, I have chased many myths and legends that ended up to be nothing
more than that, a myth. One of those myths was about the youngest daughter of an aristocrat on Alderaan. Being the youngest daughter
she would be married off in an arranged marriage to the son of a allied family. This is the custom on many worlds. It is even common
among Imperial families. Ha ha, I heard of one Major who married his only daughter to his Colonel's youngest son to seek favour, but
because she was so ugly the Colonel sent the Major to a remote outpost in one of the rim worlds."
Talos began to laugh at his story, Dondinas looked at him for a moment.
"Please tell me you have not brought me here to discuss marriage customs across the Galaxy."
Talos stopped his nasal laugh, with slight frown he said,
"Why no, of course not my Lord. Such a thing would be a complete waste of both our time. No, the young daughter I mentioned, the one
from Alderaan, not the Majors, well according to the story she fell in love with a visiting friend of her father. Who just happened to be a
Jedi Knight. Now I'm not sure if you are aware my Lord, but the Jedi are forbidden from having any form of emotional relationship, an
extremely un-natural thing in my opinion. I mean, I love my work, and apply myself to it all the more because of my love of it, it surely is
a strength, not a weakness, don't you agree my Lord ?"
"You wish to discuss the pros and cons of the Jedi Code of Conduct ?"
"Why would I wish to do that my Lord, if you wish it, I could summon Ashara, I'm sure she would be more suited to debate Jedi practices
than I my Lord."
Ashara Zavros was Dondinas's new apprentice, a former Togruta Padawan that had been turned to the Dark Side of the Force by Dondinas himself. Talos began to move towards the door.
"I shall fetch her now my Lord, we can finish what we were talking about later."
Using the Force Dondinas closed the door a fraction of an inch from Talos's nose.
"You will continue. Now."
Talos turned back to face the Sith Lord.
"As you wish my Lord. Please forgive me, but we will proceed much quicker if you try to let me continue uninterrupted."
Would s shock of Force Lightning encourage this infuriating Human to get to the point thought Dondinas, probably not.
"Speak."
"Yes, the now heartbroken daughter vowed that she would win the heart of the Jedi. Apparently she sought out the wisdom of the old
dark gods, a priest from that ancient pantheon in exchange for her soul, so the story says, gave her a jewel, and taught her a song, let me
remember this correctly, "A Song of Darkness and Dismay". She then tricked the Jedi to meet her in a wood close to the family castle, in
the clearing was the ruins of a temple to the dark gods. Why the Jedi did not suspect something may have been amiss is really beyond me.
Surely he must have suspected something. I mean..."
Talos fell silent as Dondinas formed and then began to rotate in his right hand a ball of Force Lightning.
"Oh, I'm sorry, did I brake your concentration. Please do continue."
"Err, yes. So, even though he had rejected her advances once, they met. The myth states that at the meeting, his eyes became dazzled by
the jewel and his mind filled with the song she sang him, and his heart was hers. They married. And like all good stories lived happily ever
after. One would have to assume he left the Jedi order of course. The symbol of their new family was the dazzling blue and green jewel."
Talos, now stood silent, hands on hips smiling. The ball of Lightning began to rotate faster and lifted into the air.
"All this so you could tell me a fairy tale ?"
"No my Lord, while on Hoth I found a data entry on one of the crashed ship wrecks, it was heavily corrupted, but I managed to piece
some of it together. It mentions a failed raid on a castle on a small island on Alderaan. The raid failed when the raiders were killed after
attempting to remove a jewel from a crest in the audience chamber, a "Family badge of Sapphire and Cracked Emerald." Don't you see
my Lord, it exists, and I think I know where it is !"
The ball of Force Lightning winked out of existence. Dondinas began to think. If this jewel was real and it had some form of controlling
influence over a Jedi, it would indeed be a potent weapon.
"Are you sure it exists ?"
"We'll my Lord, most myths are based on a real event or person. But judging on what I have found so far, I would recommend further
investigation. If it would be your preference, I could forward my findings to the Imperial Reclamation Service, they would dispatch a
team to carry out a dig."
"No. We shall look for your mythical jewel."
If the Dark Council found out about this jewel, if it truly existed, then it would soon be taken by one of them. To sit in a dusty vault on a
shelf. No, he would study this jewel, and if it did what Talos said it did then it would indeed be a powerful weapon. Would it only be Jedi
it influenced or any Force user, or anyone, how many at one time could be controlled. Would he be able to controll the entire Dark
Council, or even the Emperor himself. He needed to study this trinket first, no, first he needed to find out if it was real. If it turned out
that it was just a myth, Talos would wish he had never learnt of this jewel. He reached out with his left hand and flicked a switch on the
intercom build into the arm of his chair.
"Andronikos, set a course for Alderaan."