Author's Note: Most characters appearing in this fanfiction will be my own, original creations. While canon, film-universe characters may appear or be referenced, they will not be the primary stars of this fanfic. Comments and critiques are appreciated. I do not own Star Wars or any of the characters/plots therein.

A long time ago,

In a galaxy far, far away…

STAR WARS: HUNTER

Chapter I: A Rising Threat

Jedi Master Uldir Orion furrowed his brow, staring out into the dark depths of space lying just beyond the asteroid field in front of them. The bridge had gone mysteriously quiet since they first approached the mysterious sector of space. At times, he wondered if even these force-blind men and women could detect the unease in the air just as he did. He couldn't be entirely sure, not a word had been raised once in the five minutes they had been staring at the perilous field in front of them.

"Master, is something wrong?" A tiny voice spoke behind him, he turned towards his young Mirialan student.

The expression on Ezerea Laatl's face indicating it was less a question she'd asked and more like a request for some kind of affirmation that she wasn't the only one feeling uneasy. The girl had a good heart, she desired to serve the republic like he did… and as the years passed between them and she matured into a fully grown woman, she grew uneasy at the thought that, soon enough, she would cease to be his padawan, instead becoming a full Jedi with all the responsibilities that entailed. The old man had tried his best help teach her some independence, to curve her fear of 'growing up' and help her channel her inner strength, and he was met with some moderate success.

"I see you sense something strange here as well." He beckoned her to the window and reached out gently with a single, dark-skinned hand. Grasping hers carefully by the wrist and placing it against the cold glass. "There's something strange here… a kind of… feeling that I haven't experienced in ages."

Breathing a sigh, his Padawan continued to stare out into the asteroid field, her eyes glazing over as if in a trance. Uldir turned his attention to one of the men at the consoles below.

"Any sign of activity in the asteroid field? Something we should be worried of?"

The nervous man looked up from his console, chewing on his lip. "W-well s-sir… erm… M-Master Orion, s-sir… w-we uh… s-see no sign of confederation ships. If t-they're the ones behind all these merchants a-and smugglers disappearing here… t-they certainly are good at hiding it."

Uldir nodded. "Yet you still seem nervous. Afraid they may have some surprise waiting for us?"

It was as if the whole bridge exploded into a mob of nervous looks and quiet muttering. "W-well… sir… w-we just have a… well a bad feeling about this. W-we've all felt something like this b-before. W-when around c-certain planets. Just… something… something that feels bad. Like we were being watched or followed by some monster bigger than the ship!"

The Jedi Master's scarred face twisted into a frown, he sighed softly. "Once we leave this place… you should report such feelings to the jedi council. They may find the news… interesting."

Uldir turned from the men below him. They were afraid of a monster following a republic frigate? These men were veterans, hardened from the war with the galactic confederacy! Yet they felt some great unknowable terror at the prospect of monsters and myths! He would need to include this in his report to the council, once he was done examining this site.

"Well, we aren't accomplishing anything just standing here." He sighed, rubbing his temple. Absently feeling at the long scar travelling just above it, slashing diagonally down from his lip to the back of his head, speaking of some devastating battle he was blessed enough to just barely survive.

"Ezerea," his padawan turned towards him, eyes wide. "We're going to take a small ship into that field to investigate. Meet me in the hanger."

The Mirialan nodded enthusiastically, though Uldir could see her gulping down her fear. "Yes Master. I'll… m-meet you there." She turned to leave, her hands going to her face, rubbing at the tattoos just under her eyes.

It's nothing to fear… I can protect myself… I can protect myself…

In all reality, she was afraid and she wasn't sure if she'd be able to protect herself, when push came to shove. She only hoped there'd be nothing there that would force her to defend herself…

…

Two Delta-6 Starfighters departed the hanger, thrusters low and shields down. They were approaching the asteroid field as slowly and stealthily as they could. Searching for any signs of an ambush or something being inherently wrong with the rocks.

"I'm detecting something on my navicomputer…" Uldir spoke over their shared comm-channel. "It's… it looks like a man made structure of sorts. It… seems to be fading in and out of the screen. Only a few meters away…" Ezerea swallowed down her fear, weaving between the asteroids as they got closer to the target.

"I… don't see anything." She finally exclaimed, failing to hide the relief in her voice. "Should we head back to the ship now?" There was a pause over the channel. "…Master?" Ezerea questioned quietly.

"Ezerea…" Uldir's voice took a serious tone, something that snapped his padawan's attention to it almost immediately. "…look above us." Ezerea's head twisted upwards, gazing through the half-dome of glass surrounding her and towards the rather large asteroid above them. It was turning, ever-so-slowly, but turning nonetheless. Finally she saw it.

Lights.

A small mining facility was attached to the asteroid, like some leech sucking at the lifeblood of a host too big to notice. It looked broken, battered, and by all accounts dead. Yet she could make out the lights of the facility and faint shadows moving within. Suddenly bright red landing lights flickered to life. Their presence, it seemed, was known.

Ezerea watched her master's ship break off from her to land and loathe as she was to leave the comfort and safety of her own vessel, she followed soon after.

…

No one would greet them at the landing squad. The doors still worked and slid open with a loud, metallic screech. They travelled through what looked like a decrepit welcome area, through a broken mess hall, and through the laborer's dorms. Not once did they find a worker or survivor… or even a corpse. Yet the station looked as though it had been caught in a warzone. Tables were overturned and walls were scorched by blaster fire. They had no clue what had caused such damage, but it seemed to move in a very specific path, cutting a swathe through the entire facility first and foremost, while the outlying areas seemed to show heavier signs of defenses being in place.

"Whatever force did this had a goal in mind…" Uldir spoke softly; even Ezerea struggled to hear him, in spite of walking next to the man. "…They were small, maybe a squad of five men or so. I think they may have been trying to reach something the miners uncovered… and then went back to finish off the rest when they got what they were searching for… it looks almost violent enough to be Mandalorian handiwork."

Ezerea knew of the fierce Mandalorian clans, of their dedication to war, honor… and merciless brutality. If this was their work, she could understand why even the Jedi would have difficulty facing them.

The scars of battle lead them deeper and deeper into the facility, to a place where the lights were dead and the darkness yawned forward, endlessly. Master Uldir ignited his light saber, a calming blue aura seemed to envelop him and force the darkness to yield. She soon followed suit, igniting a green blade that was only a few shades lighter than her actual skin tone. It was not long from where the light faded, that their path ended. A durasteel door shut tightly in front of them.

"Watch our back," Uldir jabbed his saber forward, piercing the center of the door. "We can't allow ourselves to be caught off guard in the dark."

Ezerea didn't respond with words, she felt that if she heard her voice, meek and squeaking, it would destroy any of the confidence she lied herself into believing she had. Turning around, she stared into the dark, battle-scarred hall they'd been previously investigating. She counted her heartbeats as the metal sizzled and screeched behind them.

One… two… three…

There was no one down the hallway, yet she felt as though they were still being watched. Stalked, even.

…four… five… six…

The metal screeched so loudly as the lightsaber cut through it, anyone beyond the door would surely hear!

…thirty… thirty-one… thirty-two…

Eventually a loud clang was heard. The ground shook behind her. She looked over her shoulder only to meet Master Orion's gaze.

"It's a warehouse. There are far too many places to hide here. So be careful Ezerea. I don't think we're alone…" The Mirialan nodded and they slipped through the burnt circular "entrance" they'd made for themselves.

There was a small amount of light let in from the large glass ceiling above them. While they would not rely entirely on their lightsabers for sight… it was still too unnervingly dark for the Mirialan's taste. She followed close to her master, almost wanting to wrap her hands around him and bury her head into his robes as she'd done so many times before. Yet she was to be a true jedi soon enough… she couldn't show fear in such a way if she ever intended to inspire others to courage. Her eyes scanned the room, eventually catching a glint in the corner.

"M-master…" she whispered. "W-what's that?" The Jedi Master turned towards where his apprentice pointed with her lightsaber, he'd have to remind her just how irresponsible such an act was later.

"Not sure…" he took a step forward. "Wait here… I'll check it out." He placed his hand on her shoulder, an attempt to calm the girl. He wouldn't have her break from fear just by moving a few feet away from her in the dark.

Uldir knew that her falling apart would damage her own self-confidence worse than merely experiencing the terror that was currently sending jitters up her body. He moved towards the glint, prepared for any trap that the mysterious object could be. As he drew farther apart from Ezerea, she turned her attention to the darkness surrounding them, a small whimper emitting from her.

The whimper turned into a full blown screech once her focus was off of the old Jedi Master. "M-MASTER ORION! T-TO YOUR RIGHT!"

Uldir's body twisted to the right and soon saw the source of his padawan's terror. In the shadows, standing perfectly still, was a figure seemingly wreathed in the blackness. A cowl covered their face, yet he could make out the disgusting yellow eyes enveloped in a bright red circle, as though the sun in all its fury was eclipsed behind them. He could make out a splotch of red where he assumed their arm was and a strange shimmering in the darkness suggested their other shoulder and arm was wreathed in a cloak.

The visible arm stretched outwards. A hiss erupted from the lightsaber as hot crimson burst from the sheath. Uldir took a step forward, his face serious. "A thousand years since your kind last appeared. A thousand years! Yet are you true sith? Or some 'would-be' imposter who found themselves a lightsaber?"

What Uldir said should've provoked a response. Of anger at the very least… yet all they were met with was silence. Uldir immediately kept a defensive pose while the 'Sith' took a form that Ezerea immediately recognized as Juyo. The standoff seemed to last indefinitely, with those disgusting eyes digging and clawing at Master Orion's resolve… yet Ezerea's master showed no fear.

...When the first blow was struck, it was almost impossible for Ezerea to notice. The dark figure dashed forward with a shocking speed, putting their weight behind a single strike that looked as if it could snap an apprentice's arm in two. Master Orion parried the strike, yet had no time to press the advantage before the next one came down. He was on the defensive for this battle, thankfully defense was something he was exceptionally skilled at.

Blades of crimson and blue each cut through the darkness to strike at one another, barely coming to a standstill or moment of reprieve. The Sith had a particularly odd form of Juyo, one that Ezerea (who had her eyes screwed shut and was trying her hardest to throw the sith off balance with the force) can't say she'd seen practiced before; while Juyo was chaotic and, at times, random… one defining trait was its inherent aggression. Yet the Sith would dance away from battle for short bouts, throwing in strange feints and "tricks" that lacked both elegance and professional form Ezerea had come to expect from lightsaber duels.

It was only when the Sith shot a hand outwards and brought down a stack of heavy-looking mineral crates that Ezerea realized their foe was fighting dirty. Each feint, each sudden kick or surprise attack was so "brutish" that lesser Jedi just wouldn't be able to compensate for the sudden breaks in form.

In what could've been the killing blow, the assailant brought down their lightsaber, only missing Master Orion's neck by an inch… and only then because the old Jedi Master sent the Sith flying backwards with a sudden thrust of the Force. The Sith smashed against a storage unit, causing (much to Ezerea's continued shock) a large dent to mark their hitting the target.

"S-surrender," Master Orion's voice was haggard, exhausted by the energetic and deadly duel. His hand weekly reached out, beckoning the Sith's lightsaber from their limp hand, so as to avoid a pitfall that had led to the end of Jedi and Sith alike. "I will spare you… a-and take you into custody if you do."

More silence.

Keeping his blade ignited, he took a step forward. A bright light flashed in front and Ezerea heard Jedi Master Uldir Orion cry out in pain, a thickening crunch punctuating the horrible sound. He recoiled backwards and fell.

"M-MASTER!"Ezerea lunged forward, only to recoil against a sudden, powerful shove. She fell onto her back. Her head lurching upwards just to watch the scene unfold.

Jedi… are a plague.

The Sith slipped the blaster rifle over their shoulder, back to the hidden sheath below their cloak. Lumbering forward, their hand reached out, the crimson lightsaber flying towards its strong grip. It was ignited once again.

And I, am their cure.

The Sith's hands reached upwards, pulling the cowl back and tugging the makeshift mask down to their neck. The lightsaber was lifted and the foolish apprentice would be able to see her face: A Zabrak woman only a few years older. Her bright crimson skin contrasting against the black tattoos marring her face, they resembled thorns and adding an extra layer of fear to her visage. Her free hand traveled across her scalp, over the horns decorating her forehead and through the raven-black hair she had crudely braided into a ponytail. Her hand She grinned at the girl, then towards the struggling Jedi Master.

I have many names… murderer, rebel, criminal…

The blade was brought down upon the dying Jedi. A single stroke severed the head from the spine, killing the man instantly.

But they will know me, they will fear me, for I will be their HUNTER!

As she turned her attention away from the corpse, towards the apprentice, a smirk fell onto her features.

Run to your little 'republic', Jedi… tell them of me… let them learn to fear me… and let the name Risanda Oene haunt your dreams evermore.

Risanda tore the Master's lightsaber, quite literally, from his cold, dead hand. Appraising the design, she slipped it onto one of the holsters of her belt. She had gotten what she came for after all, it seemed.

And now, her hunt would begin in earnest…