The Purge
by Lord Zero
Star Wars Episode III.5: The Jedi Purge
The Sith have finally struck out against their age old enemies, the Jedi Knights. In one fell swoop, the Sith Lord and now Emperor of the galaxy Darth Sidious and his new apprentice Darth Vader have destroyed nearly all the Jedi. Very few of the old guardians of peace and justice remain. They're now enemies of the Empire, hunted no matter where they go. The Emperor has put Lord Vader in charge of destroying any remaining remnants of the Jedi Order and he is already on many of their tails….
Casius Zandas: Realizations
Master Zandas was always one of the more level headed Jedi. He never acted without thinking things through. Unfortunately for him, he didn't have much of a choice this time. It was the strangest thing…
Cassius was returning to the temple, after narrowly avoiding being destroyed by his clone troops. He didn't understand why they would have turned on him. He was always kind to them and lead them valiantly into battle against the Seperatists. But that just wasn't important right now. He had to follow the beacons command. He had to return to the Temple. His ship was soaring through hyperspace, a mere hour from Coruscant. That was when it happened. The signal suddenly changed. He was in awe. How could they possibly change it that much? From "Return home, the war is over" to "You're being betrayed and hunted, run and hide." He was reeling with the confusion of just this whole thing. But he knew one thing, that sensation he felt through the force during the clone betrayal must have been more than just a fluke, he had to obey the command, it would go against his very nature to not be prudent. If it was a mistake, he could sort it all out later after he had time to think about it. He pulled his ship out of hyperspace and set a new course…Dxun.
It had been three weeks since that fateful day, but he had heard nothing from any of the others. He didn't dare try to contact anyone with the holonet, if the message was true, it could be a death sentence. All Cassius knew was that when he meditated, the Force wasn't near as lively as it used to be. And he felt a great darkness washing over it. He could sense many friends, people he had grown up with and matured with…fading. It was the worst feeling he had ever felt. But he could also feel a light. It was subtle, at first…before he learned to fix on it. But when he had? He knew that everything would be all right, no matter what happened to him. But he also felt that something dark was growing near him, and it wouldn't be long before it found him.
"Perhaps that is way I chose Dxun, and its forests of beast and not man. I know it's coming, and I can't endanger anyone else…" he murmered quietly to himself as he trained with his lightsaber. It wasn't hard holing up here, there were plenty of creatures here he could use as a food supply, and the forest maze had a so many clearings that it was easy for him to construct his own hut. He was also easily safe from endangering anything save for non-sentient life. Dxun had been abandoned for nearly 4000 years, since just after the Mandalorian and Sith wars.
As Master Zandas trained, he focused into the Force. And that's when he knew it. His time was nearly here. He was about to face whatever it was that was seeking him out. He felt no emotion over this. There is no emotion, there is peace. He felt the cruiser above, and all of the clones manning it. He felt the lone Jedi Starfighter, streaking from its hull and approaching the surface. For Zandas, this was nothing more than another step in his training. A Jedi's training doesn't truly begin until he becomes a Master and fully expands his knowledge. This would be no different. Whatever the starfighter contained, Zandas would learn from it and train himself more. Even if his death awaited, it would not matter, he would learn from it. There is no death, there is the Force.