Disclaimer: I don't own the Star Wars universe, Disney does. They also own all the characters and worlds contained therein. The characters created by me for this story are all that I own.
"Conflict breeds progress. It ends stagnation. It tests who we are. Though it should not be the norm, the potential for it and from it needs to be ever-present."
A Discovery
It was late morning on the Sith world of Korriban. A survey and excavation team was busy at a site about a hundred miles beyond the abandoned Sith academy and the Valley of the Dark Lords. The death of Darth Malak and the end of the Jedi Civil War began a downward spiral on Korriban and the only populated site on the entire planet was the Dreshdae starport, though its heyday was now long past. Those who normally populated Dreshdae tended to be either the dregs of the galaxy looking for somewhere to hide, or unfortunate employees of Czerka who had previously upset one of their superiors and were now posted in Dreshdae as a punishment. Members of the Jedi Order came to Korriban very rarely, usually when some piece of gossip or information grabbed their attention and they felt the need to investigate. As for the Sith, Korriban was now something of a holy site, where its current members would come on a pilgrimage of sorts now and again when a desire arose to pay homage to those members of their order from the distant past. Perhaps blessedly, those pilgrimages were few and far between these days. Truly, interest in Korriban was in worse decline than most of the structures that marked the planet's surface. Most of the tombs in the Valley of the Dark Lords were almost completely plundered by the Sith since before the end of the Jedi Civil War, and anything that was left was usually considered beneath the notice of both the Sith and the Jedi. Czerka Corporation itself didn't dare take anything from the Valley, or the academy, as the Sith would most certainly visit violent retribution upon Czerka should they ever dare. Czerka enjoyed something of a positive relationship with the Sith, even now, and jeopardizing that relationship would be bad for business. Of course, independent archeological groups like the the survey team that was now on the planet got away with studying the ancient Sith sites because they simply documented and studied their findings and never took items that they discovered off the planet. Sith artifacts, even the most mundane ones, were believed to be tainted and the risk associated with possessing them was not one worth taking. Fear, as it turned out, was an amazing security system.
The survey team felt a little more secure than expeditions of the past since they were significantly far away from the Valley. The terrain at the site was like most of the rest of Korriban, a cold barren wasteland. What had drawn the team to this spot was a sensor scan that had revealed the possibility of a buried structure, a large one. At this exact moment they were trying to find the top of the structure so that they could carefully excavate it and eventually gain access to its inside.
"According to the latest scans the very top of the structure is about twenty feet below where we're standing," said the foreman of the excavation team.
"How long will it take to reach that depth?" asked the survey team's leader.
"Only about three hours with the equipment we've got here," replied the foreman.
"Then please get started," said the team leader. "I want to begin the preliminary examinations while it's still light out."
"Right on it," said the foreman before turning away and going over to the excavation team.
"We've uncovered the apex!" said one of the workers.
"Finally," said the foreman, who had been pacing anxiously since the digging began. He and his team moved over to where the worker said he discovered the apex. "Okay, careful now! We don't want anything damaged. Whatever this is, we can't risk losing any potential information that its outside surface might have inscribed on it."
The foreman made several signal gestures to the excavation team and the big machines that had gotten them this far were moved back and replaced by droids specifically designed and programmed for a more delicate approach. As they worked, the survey team began getting holographic recordings of everything. The team leader didn't want to risk missing anything and possibly losing invaluable information that would help them later.
The apex of the structure was now fully exposed and measured almost fifty feet across. It was a square and made of a single piece of stone that did not match the landscape that contained it. The survey leader found that significant and continued to take notes. As they looked at the apex the entire team discovered some sort of ring was present on the apex. It was lying flat on the apex's surface, its edges were raised, and had a diameter of thirty feet.
"It must be some sort of ceremonial circle," said one of the team members. "Likely for rituals or prayers."
Before anyone else could say anything, another member of the team waved to everyone to get their attention. "Look at this everyone!" he exclaimed. "There's something written in the center of the circle!"
The team leader moved over to where the other team member had indicated. Sure enough, a single word rune written in the ancient language of the Sith was etched into the very stone. The team leader took a brush and made sure to completely expose the rune, and thus avoid any inaccurate translation. He then ran his fingers along the surface of the rune, feeling the word physically while he searched his memory for the meaning behind the word.
"Can you read it?" asked one of the team.
"What does it say?" asked another.
The leader stood up and looked at his team. They could see that he had gone slightly pale was now sweating despite the fact that the air barely held any real warmth. "Victory," he said to them simply. His voice was almost a whisper, as though he was trying to avoid being heard.
"What's the significance?" asked one of the team members.
"We must halt our progress here," said the team leader ignoring the question. "We have to get word to the Jedi. They'll want to see this. And we would be very foolish to proceed without their presence."
"Why?" he was asked again by one of the team.
"This is the site of something very sacred to the Sith," he finally answered them. "Stop all recorders and pack everything up. We're going back to Dreshdae."
"I don't understand," said a team member.
"It's best if you don't" said the team leader. "At least for now. It'll be safer that way. Once we get back to Dreshdae, lock the recorders up. Whatever you do, don't tell anybody that we've found anything! I'll alert the Jedi myself."
The team clearly didn't understand what was going on, but they could clearly see that the team leader was frightened and didn't feel it prudent to press the matter further. Once they began packing things up, the excavation foreman came over.
"What are we doing?" he asked.
"We're going back to Dreshdae," said the team leader. "Gather your men and your equipment and get it back to the settlement as quickly as you can."
"You mean just pack and go?" asked the foreman. "Do you realize what it took and what it cost to get all this stuff out here in the first place? Now you want us to take it all back?"
"Yes," replied the team leader. "Look, if it's a matter of cost, I'll cover it. Just do as I ask."
"If that's what you want," said the foreman. "It's your money."
"It's what I want," said the team leader as he fumbled into a pouch at his side. Drawing out a nice amount of credits, he handed them to the foreman. "This is for your trouble, and to give you incentive to not tell anybody at all about today."
The foreman just stood there agape for a few seconds. He then proceeded to look at the offered credits, then to the team leader, and then back again to the credits. Before he had a chance to say anything to the team leader, the team leader walked away to end the conversation and oversee his team's dismantling of the site.
The entire expedition made it back to Dreshdae shortly after nightfall. Once they had, the survey team moved inside to finish taking care of business while the excavation team stayed outside to secure their digging equipment. While the rest of his men made sure that everything was being taken care of outside, the foreman went inside and headed for the starport's main visitors' center. Once there, he walked right up to the receptionist who initially looked bored, but soon perked up when she saw that someone had actually come in.
"I've got some information," he said to the receptionist. "And I think it'll be something that your boss will want to contact the Sith about."
To be continued...
