Order of the Sith Lords: Rule of Two

by lordtrayus

According to Darth Plagueis, thirty Sith Lords existed in the time between the Seventh Battle of Ruusan and the rise of the Sith during the Battle of Naboo. Yet we dont know who these Sith are. But now, here is a complete history of the various Sith Lords, who's millennia of scheming allowed for the Sith to destroy the Republic and eradicate the Jedi

3. The Contagion-Dark Times of the Sith

Disclaimer: I dont own Star Wars

Order of the Sith Lords

The Contagion Spreads

Darth Segraetor

Species: Togorian female

Birth Name: Eltara Merrin
Reign: 625 BBY-611 BBY, 611 BBY-597 BBY

Info: Formerly a Jedi, Segraetor was always frustrated with the increasing incompetence, bloating and corruption of the Republic. That, combined with her nature as a Togorian, meant that every day as a Jedi was a struggle to remain in control of her emotions, despite the tutelage of her Quarren master Quenda. Wishing to enforce change on the Republic which she was not able to do as a Jedi, she was deeply frustrated, particularly with their actions in the Brainrot epidemic where they let millions die because they were too lazy and incompetent to organise a response. It was her assignment to Taris that brought her to the attention of Darth Praetor, who had orchestrated much of the brainrot plague. Organising an attempt upon the life of the senator, Quenda was killed and Praetor got his hands on the apprentice, and eventually goaded her into giving in to her anger, and her nature and she ascended to the rank of full apprentice. Now determined to use the dark side to one day affect change on the Republic, she studied the dark side intently under her master, becoming a loyal supporter of the Sith. In time she and her master became lovers, though both of them questioned if they would have the ability to continue to enforce the Rule of Two due to their relationship. However, despite this the two continued to advance the plans of the Sith, Praetor using his medical company and knowledge to weaken the Republic and the Jedi, while Segreator turned her attention to the outer rim, sensing that that would be the future of their plans. In time, she came to the realisation that she could end the practices of Praetor, his company and still cause havoc in the Republic at the same time. Sabotaging a batch of antibiotics, she allowed the drugs out onto the market, and when her master fell ill with the illness that the drugs that would be needed to treat (due to her infecting him), she gave him the drugs then revealed their sabotage, and regretfully gave him a heart attack and became the master, though she did mourn the loss of her lover.

Now the sole Sith, Segreator began to advance her plans, and began to stoke resentment in the outer rim territories, and was the first Sith lord to realise that mega corporations would be an invaluable weapon against the Republic and the Jedi. To this end, the Commerce Guild became her weapon of choice. However this was not done quickly. Realising that by becoming involved in such power plays would be dangerous she spent many months researching these corporations and eventually settled on the ones to remove in order to exploit others for the ends of the Sith. Czerka was her main opponent, which had grown into a considerable pain since the end of the last war. Redubbing itself Czerka Arms, it had moved away from the outright corruption and evil doing though still acted illicitly behind the scenes. This became clear on the small outer rim asteroid field of Vergesso. Segraetor, having dissociated herself with the collapse of her masters medical company, had become a corporate judge, and while she didn't possess precognition, her intuition was great, and through her agents had learned that there were several large deposits of phrik alloy in the asteroid field. The Commerce Guild wanted to lay stake to the claim but Czerka wished to use the alloys to create weapons, however Segraetor wasn't inclined to let that happen. Czerka moved first, sending in a survey team along with an armed escort. Segraetor couldn't allow them to succeed and took her ship to rendezvous, under the guise of helping them stake the claim. Once on the escort ship, she set loose with the Force, destroying the ship and its claim, allowing it to fall into the asteroids and be pulverised. On her orders, the Commerce Guild then moved in, unaware that Czerka had been there first. Czerka then lodged a protest with the senate, while the Commerce Guild began to mine the phrik. Due to the distance of Vergesso, the senate was slow to respond, and in response, Czerka sent a task force to take back the asteroid field. A Commerce Guild ship was destroyed, and Segraetor then brought evidence to the authorities, proving Czerka had committed an illegal, as far as anyone knew, attack. Czerka was forced to withdraw, however Segraetor's actions had earned her their ire. On the other hand, the Commerce Guild petitioned to create its own powerful security force, which it did in order to protect its claim and began to mine the phrik, distributing it throughout the outer rim. Segraetor encouraged this, knowing that the core would exploit the workers in the outer rim and increase further resentment, and that Czerka, in retaliation for the guild getting the phrik, would continue to make matters worse.

Seeking to capitalise on this, Segraetor began to move events into motion. Knowing that the Sith plan depended upon Corellia and its eventual rebellion against the Republic, she needed to set up an economy, which of course wouldn't be possible until the outer rim had a sustainable economy of its own. To this end she attended a lecture on Cato Neimodia, where a prominent Neimodian banker with ties to Aargau and Muunilinst was speaking. Hearing him speak, it became apparent that he wished to pilot a scheme, a commerce zone in the outer rim without Republic trade restrictions, that would give a fair deal to those in the outer rim and make it worth their while to actually live there, without the core or corporations taking advantage. Segraetor realised that this man was the one she needed the help of, and as she approached him, she realised he was Force sensitive, not exceptionally powerful, but powerful enough to make a grand Sith lord. Asking for a private meeting, she realised that he sought to end Republic oversight, and as such, she allied herself with him, and while he continued to promote the cause for a free trade zone in the outer rim, she would attend to developing the resources that would be needed to one day bring about an end to the Republic.

When not meeting with the Neimodian and helping him set aside resources to set up the free trade zone without the interference of the Republic, Segraetor continued to expand the power of the Commerce Guild, and included the Corporate Alliance, the Techno Union and the Banking Clan among others in these schemes, getting them to mineral claims or investment opportunities first, while defying powerful groups such as Czerka, as she sought to reduce the power of the arms lobbyists, as she was attempting to build up an arsenal without relying on them too much. Meanwhile, she took special notice of deposits of minerals and resources that could be used for later use for war, such as those used to build ships and taking special care when she discovered deposits of things like phrik and cortosis to set them aside for later use against the Jedi. However, as Czerka was being increasingly forced out of the market, she was garnering negative attention. When Techno Union agents discovered a large source of aurodium, Segraetor again allowed the Commerce Guild to take the contract, which resulted in another security expansion. Czerka however was furious, as the world was within their space. Contesting it, Segraetor went before the courts and argued that while in their space, the Techno Union had discovered it and Czerka had no stake, which the courts agreed with, and the guilds got sole access to the valuable resources, which cost Czerka potential billions.

Meeting with her Neimodian ally on Cato Neimodia, she met him in his tower on one of the bridges, and he had invited her to hold a meeting of share holders there. With various representatives there, in her guise as leading advisor, she settled their problems and had them head off, all the groups eager for more money and power. However as the meeting disbanded, Starfighters attacked the tower, slaughtering the heads of the companies and their security details. Segraetor used the Force to get the Neimodian out the room, and she joined him, and they were confronted by mercenaries hired by Czerka to kill her. She slaughtered them with her lightsaber, and revealed herself to the shocked Neimodian, and offered him the use of her lover's lightsaber which she kept as a backup. Shocked, the Neimodian accepted the weapon and became her apprentice, and combined, the two of them slaughtered their way out. Training him as she went, Segraetor led her new apprentice on a bloody slaughter. Capturing a gunship, she then followed the trail along with Darth Opes back to Czerka headquarters on Denon where they slaughtered the board and sent the company into chaos

With a new board of leaders in charge of the various guilds, Segraetor's influence diminished. However, now that she had helped them establish themselves, and established new rules and methods for them to follow, including allowing them powerful security forces, she was content to withdraw, allowing that situation to trundle on itself. Instead she devoted herself to teaching her apprentice, and working with Opes, setting aside funds, highlighting resources for later use, allowing the corporations to become stronger while stoking outer rim resentment and fuelling the fires of independence and the cries of freedom from the Republic. As a teacher, Segraetor was patient and hard, and taught Opes the intricacies of the plan, using the outer rim and Corellia as flashpoints that would help bring down the Republic, which was all the more likely with his help and his plan to create a corporation and tax free trading zone in the outer rim. Segraetor instilled in her apprentice the belief that while people ought to be exploited and ruled, power shouldn't be used for powers sake, and hence the extravagance of previous Sith was to be discontinued, and that one didn't have to be a maniac to be a Sith. She argued that the galaxy was inherently flawed, and that the Sith's responsibility was to fix it, and ensure peace, which the bloated and corrupt Republic would never allow nor would the decadent Jedi. Unknowingly however, this too was a mark of the contagion that had infected the Sith teachings, though neither she nor Opes realised it at the time.

After having trained her apprentice for ten years, improving the power of the guilds and hence the dissatisfaction of those in the outer rim while the core grew fat on the profits, Segraetor was helping the Commerce Guild lay claim to a world with rich nova deposits, with the help of Opes. However, Czerka, which had suffered greatly after the two Sith had dismantled the upper echelons of their organisation, had regained some ground and were looking for revenge. They knew that Segraetor was involved with their woes, and many blamed her and her involvement with the guilds for Czerka's recent plunge in fortunes, as many staff had lost their jobs and the leaders of the company had had to resign or worse to them, take pay cuts. So when she organised the mining operation on Sembla, Czerka, eager for revenge, employed GenoHaradaan assassins to try and kill her. Opes was with her, however the sabotage of a nova refinery separated the two, and the assassins descended on the site en masse. While both Sith fought valiantly, the assassins gained the upper hand, and Segraetor was killed while her horrified apprentice watched on

Darth Opes

Species: Neimodian male

Birth Name: Sethul Haark
Reign: 607 BBY-597 BBY, 597 BBY-573 BBY

Info: Born into a life of privilege on Cato Neimodia, Opes was unusual, being the only child of a wealthy couple. Upon reaching the age of five, his mother revealed that she had killed all but him, using her own marginal sense of the Force to realise that of all her children, he was, in her words, 'the only one who would be worth a damn'. Raised to inherit his father's shipping business, he was enrolled at school on Coruscant, learning tricks and trade secrets, and also branching out into finance, further developing the fortune of his family. On Coruscant, he mingled with various sons of commerce and trade, and upon yet another banking crisis, which further undermined confidence in the Republic and led to more and more people wanting a change as they were fed up of the constant scandals diminishing the value of their money. To that end, he started consulting in debating societies, and was sounded out by the Muun senator along with his friends to give their opinion. As part of his work with that, he graduated from university and became a consultant to the IBC and a personal adviser to the Muun senator, working with him until the end of the Muun's term as senator. It was during this time that he postulated to the Muun that they set up a free trade zone, away from the corruption of the Republic and free of their influence, an idea which the Muun supported and Opes began making pushes to bring this about.

However, he was called home when his father died of the Brainrot epidemic. Assuming his role as leader of the family company, Opes now had access to vast sums of money, and was frequently involved in negotiations with groups such as the Commerce Guild. Frustrated with the Republic inability to help his homeworld, and disgusted by how the government left his people to dry, he began seeing his proposed free trade zone idea as a means to end the Republic: by creating a new government, one that wouldn't fail its people and use the Jedi as a crutch. He expanded his business and began funnelling funds towards the end of creating his Republic free zone, and wrote many articles on the subject, and was asked to consult various planetary governments and help them set up their own operations and power bases without Republic interference. He used their backing to further advocate his Republic free zone, and gave a series of lectures about the subject as people began to believe he could make it work. It was this action that brought him to the attention of Darth Segraetor

Consulting with him in a private audience, Segraetor realised that he sought to destroy the Republic by replacing it with something new and better. Promising to help, she used her resources and knowledge to help him build up his power base. Opes, for his part, realised there was something different about the Togorian woman and would always make time for her, as her visits became more and more frequent as he accelerated towards creating a new governmental blueprint. Opes continued to build up his support and power base, despite increasing senate attention, seeking to prevent him creating his Republic free zone.

Inviting Segraetor to Cato Neimodia to hear her thoughts on the world he had selected to be his prototype, Etti IV, she hired a suite from him and asked him to observe her dealings with the heads of the various guilds. The meeting was attacked by Czerka, bombarding the tower and slaughtering the guild leadership. Segraetor got Opes out, only to be confronted by mercenaries. Killing them all, she was exposed as a Sith, and offered Opes the chance to become her apprentice. Upon his agreement, tantalised by the power she wielded and the desire to destroy the Republic, she gifted him Praetor's lightsaber, and the two killed their way out of the trap, stealing a gunship. En route to Denon, she gave him brief instruction in the dark side, and granted him his Sith name, explaining the Rule of Two and the nature of their partnership before slaughtering the board of Czerka directors.

Withdrawing from guild leadership roles, Segraetor spent her time training her apprentice, instilling her beliefs that might made right, and that they, as Sith, had a duty to save the galaxy from itself, which agreed with Opes belief that the Sith should help those they could, in order to better use them as pawns to achieve their ends and to contribute to peace and stability. Involving herself in his plans as the Etti IV system, with his backing, became essentially independent from the Republic. The Jedi attempted to bring Etti IV back to the fold, but they were rebuffed by Sith manipulations. Segraetor continued to teach her apprentice, revealing to him the entirety of the plan and the two worked together, building up resources, stimulating crises, all with the aim of making the Republic look weak. The plan advanced, and now the political situation was maturing, weapons were being built, an economy was flourishing, all they needed to do was stimulate a crisis and deal with the Jedi, and the Sith would exact their revenge, and Segraetor made it obvious that while they would not succeed within a few decades they could precipitate the end of the Republic

On a mission to Sembla in which his master allowed the Commerce Guild to exploit a new nova deposit, Czerka who had been frequently undermined by Segraetor and frequently screwed over were seeking revenge. While the board had been slaughtered, others in the lower echelons who were now the new board, knew of Segraetor and figured her role in their sudden advancement. As such they hired the GenoHaraadan and they descended en masse, attacking the two Sith, who were eventually overwhelmed and Segraetor was mortally wounded. A horrified Opes overcame the last of the assassins, and Segraetor entrusted him with the continuation of the Sith imperative as she died

Unexpectedly finding himself the master, Opes now had to continue the aims of the Sith while finding his own place as a master and finding an apprentice capable and worthy of carrying on his legacy. His first order of business was to deal with Czerka and the GenoHaradan. To that end, he infiltrated Czerka's headquarters, and set a baradium bomb. Allowing that to go off, he slaughtered virtually the entire leadership of the company, sending them into disarray, and at the same time, acting through various agents and hired thugs, pirates and mercenaries to attack Czerka holdings and assassinate officials. With his actions, Czerka was decimated and unable to recover from the damage done to it, sending it in a downwards spiral that eliminated them as an impediment for decades if not centuries to come. The assassins guild were a different matter. Allowing Etti IV to develop according to its own devices, Opes infiltrated the guild and began systematically picking people off, eventually killing its leading members and sending them into chaos and disorder. Satisfied, Opes returned his attention to Etti IV, and with his sponsorship, allowed for two more systems to join the free zone, further weakening the Republic and convincing an increasingly belligerent Corellia, among other worlds, to set up their own free trade zones free of Republic influence.

For the next several years, Opes continued to back these various independence and Republic free movements, knowing that they would eventually be the key to destroying the Republic. He did however realise that their plan thus far depended upon their ability to destroy the Republic, and while a war would weaken the Jedi, it wouldn't destroy them and he needed to fix that oversight. However, while he used the dark side to meditate on the future of the Jedi and how to solve that problem, his agents alerted him to the knowledge that someone was searching for the Sith. At first Opes ignored the warning, believing it was some sort of crank, however as time went on, he heard more and more reports that someone was searching for the Sith, following whatever whispers they could, and Opes knew he had to act before they drew the attention of the Jedi.

Seeking out this mysterious pursuer, Opes finally encountered him on Anchoron. Having been following the same rumours this searcher had (and silencing a number of those spreading such rumours, while allowing just enough to survive to let them know there was something to be scared of) he came to a prophet of the dark side who had left Dromund Kaas. Recognising the man for what he was, Opes laid in wait and finally, a man appeared, asking for information to find the Sith, which the prophet (who was an exile) was only too happy to provide. However Opes then entered, using the Force to rip the eyes out of the prophet's head before using his lightsaber to decapitate him. He then turned his attention to the man, intending to kill him and end his search.

The man stayed Opes hand by using a rudimentary aspect of the Force. Curious, Opes then asked why he was searching for the Sith, and the man revealed to him an asteroid mining facility where much darkness resided. He believed it to be a nexus of dark side energy, and curious, Opes cautiously agreed to accompany him to this asteroid. Upon arrival he discovered the dark side nexus there, along with the Force phantoms the man was capable of creating. Impressed with his power, Opes offered to teach him the ways of the Sith, and the man accepted, becoming Darth Vectivus.

Opes found Vectivus a difficult apprentice, however the dark side asteroid and his own power meant that he could not act against him, and laboured on with his training. Vectivus was already an adult, and had a large family and host of friends that he cared about. What was more, he also possessed a moral code, and believed, as Opes did, that those with power should use it to better the lives of others. Not realising that this was a dangerously grey area for a Sith due to his own apprenticeship, Opes continued to teach him, and indulged his apprentice's fascination for the Sith, allowing him to study as much as he could while he continued to forward the plans of the Sith, capitalising on various crises, stoking the independence debate, empowering the guilds and setting up alternatives to the Republic, and operating through the female Twilek aide that became the de facto leader of the Sith. With the help of Vectivus, Opes also learned how to use Force phantoms, using them as his agents (including dealing with Czerka employees from a distance should they try and rise again). He also sent these phantoms to plague the Jedi temple, using them as spies and occasionally having them attack Jedi only for them to disperse after the deed was done. Opes instilled his belief that the Sith had the right to rule, and while Vectivus understood his masters points, he refused to commit to the Grand Plan, forcing Opes to do more and more on his own.

Eventually, the tension and what Opes believed was Vectivus lack of commitment to the Sith came to a head. Opes had made great strides with the Republic free zone, stockpiles were being built of weapons to use against the Jedi, the Sith now had active interests in several large guilds, businesses and shipyards across the galaxy, he was encouraging further dissent against the Republic and more and more planets were beginning to follow Corellia's lead and desire for freedom, the economy was in flux, the Republic had failed its citizens many times and there were now alternatives and he was slowly beginning to form a plan which would lead to the Jedi being eradicated, and he intended to use the phantoms to bring this about. Opes consulted his apprentice, who knew more about the phantoms thanks to his study, and Opes was enraged when Vectivus refused to help. Claiming that his masters hatred of the Republic and the Jedi, along with the cruel streak it seemed that most Sith possessed, would be a hindrance to the galaxy, he didn't believe the Sith should plan the downfall of the Republic, and instead believed that when the time was right, the Sith would rise to power naturally, and that it had to be deserved. Opes then asked him straight if he believed in the Grand Plan, and Vectivus said he didn't, saying that the Grand Plan would only cause harm to the galaxy. Disgusted, Opes exiled his apprentice, proclaiming him a waste, and prepared to kill his apprentice. He struck, and his apprentice vanished, and Opes realised too late that Vectivus was actually a phantom. The real Vectivus then used his lightsaber to stab his master through the eyes (echoing their first meeting which had cemented his belief in the cruelty of his master) and Opes died in the tunnels of the Home, and Vectivus jettisoned his body into the void to enure his master's spirit didn't strike back at him in revenge

Darth Vectivus

Species: Human male

Birth Name: Lloycar Barcsdale
Reign: 586 BBY-573 BBY, 573 BBY-557 BBY

Info: Growing into adulthood unaware of his Force sensitivity, he grew up with family and friends who loved him. Becoming the director of a mining company, he established his headquarters on an asteroid near Bimmiel which had a heart of ore. He later realised as workers started to go mad from visions and assume beast like capabilities, and came to realise the asteroid was a dark side nexus and started to develop his Force powers. Eventually, the various problems caused by the nexus became too much and he manipulated events so that the asteroid was shut down, though he remained behind and set up a home there, allowing him to indulge his pre-existing fascination with the dark side of the Force and with the Sith, which prompted him to leave the asteroid and go in search of the Sith, who it was said by some, still existed hidden from the Jedi.

His desire to find the Sith eventually attracted the attention of the networks that reported to Darth Opes. Meanwhile Vectivus had travelled the galaxy, and at last came to an exiled prophet of the dark side on Anchoron, which is where he encountered Darth Opes, who killed the prophet and prepared to kill Vectivus. Vectivus displayed his Force powers, and told him of his dark side asteroid, bringing Opes to the Home (and alarming his master with his fondness for brightly painted protocol droids) and Opes agreed to take Vectivus as his apprentice, relocating the Sith to the Home as their new headquarters, far removed from the events of the galaxy.

While Darth Opes continued to advance the Grand Plan, Vectivus studied everything he could about the Sith, absorbing all the knowledge his master provided, and becoming proficient in Niman. However, his existing moral code and dedication to his family and friends were viewed as an impediment by Opes, who sought to break Vectivus out of these teachings and ways of thinking, to no avail. Opes tried to instil in him the belief and fervour to deliver the Grand Plan, but other than studying the Sith, Vectivus had no overall aims, believing that their inherent cruelty and desire for power would lead to doom for the galaxy should the Sith succeed. This eventually led to a fight, however, Vectivus, using his mastery over phantoms, deceived his master and allowed him to attack a phantom while he himself killed his master in the same way he had killed the prophet on their first meeting, and then jettisoned his body out into space so that he could not become a vengeful phantom in the asteroid

Now the Sith Master, Vectivus built a home in the asteroid and moved his family there, using his own mastery of the dark side to prevent his family and friends from going insane. During this time he mastered the use of the phantoms and created a holocron, furthering his own power in the dark side and learning everything he could about the Sith. Under his reign the plans of the Sith continued running apace though without his involvement, as he had no desire in the Sith taking over, believing, according to his ethical and moral code, that they would cause great harm upon the galaxy. He eventually took his nephew as his heir, and sensing the latent Force power in the young man, began to teach him in the ways of the dark side, allowing him to become Darth Gravid.

Gravid was an adept apprentice, and embraced his master's teachings, however while he could see how his uncle's teachings could be used for business, he didn't believe that was the destiny of the Sith, and as such began to study all the other Sith lore, and came to believe that while his uncle's teachings, combined with various teachings of other Sith that had more of a light side feel, were all very well and good, other teachings, such as those of Bane and others, were being ignored. It was then that a member of the network came in search of Opes, and learned that the Sith plan was being derailed. Gravid, intrigued and enticed by power and thoughts of glory, decided to learn more and realised the extent of the Sith plan. Furious that his uncle had allowed such a thing to go to waste, he disavowed his uncle and declared that he was no longer a Sith Lord, and was certainly not part of the Rule of Two. Gravid left and Vectivus lived out his final days in peace, surrounded by family and never saw his nephew again.

Dark Times of the Sith

Darth Gravid

Species: Human male

Birth Name: Clide Barcsdale
Reign: 566 BBY-557 BBY, 557-552 BBY

Info: The nephew of Darth Vectivus, Vectivus took him under his wing, teaching him his business practices and once he reached a certain age, he took him as his heir and his apprentice. However, his uncle's teachings were found insufficient, and he began to study the teachings of other Sith that had gone before him, realising that his uncle had warped the dark side aspects of the Sith. While he had the greatest respect for his uncle, he didn't believe that the light side should become the sole domain of the Sith and began to study the dark side of them too. It was only when a minion of Darth Opes arrived on the Home and revealed the truth about the Sith imperative that Gravid realised the extent of his uncles actions, and his denial of the Sith and their true destiny. Enticed by the thought of power and wealth beyond all imagining, and disgusted that his uncle had been drawing the Sith away from the vision that Darth Bane and Zannah had set down, and driving them more towards a light side philosophy, he disavowed his uncle and left the Home with the agent, going out into the wider galaxy.

Now proclaiming himself the Sith Master, the agent informed him of the various details of the Grand Plan, and Gravid worked hard to get to grips with them quickly. The agent was a great help in this regard, and Gravid began to desire her, but she was dedicated to the Sith and refused his advances, proclaiming herself as the Sith's most loyal servant. While annoyed, he was impressed with her devotion, and learned that she was Force sensitive. Stating her loyalty to the plan and to the Sith, he saw a way to get her to become his, and named her his apprentice, Darth Gean. With her intricate knowledge of the plan, as she had as the main agent for years despite her youth and had inherited control upon their death, she helped her master forward the plan, bringing her own ideas into it, which allowed him to focus less on the plan and more on the Sith, as they had relocated themselves to Jaguada following his abandonment of his master at the Home. Upon learning of his death, Gravid began to lament the loss of his uncle, and began to take a new approach to his teachings, while Gean took care of the Grand Plan and its forwarding. Studying his teachings, Gravid was increasingly worried by his apprentice. Gean delved into the history of the Sith with a massive thirst for knowledge, and she was always pushing herself to learn more dangerous and powerful techniques, the likes of which Vectivus and Gravid himself didn't approve of. She was fascinated by Bane's actions, and took pleasure in the violent history of the Sith, incorporating nearly needless violence into her saber form, as she studied Juyo. Gravid began to fear his apprentice, as her involvement in aspects of the Grand Plan, which she was accelerating to allow the Sith to exploit it and assume control over the galaxy within a century, was becoming more and more violent and dangerous, at least in his eyes. He continually studied Vectivus teachings, and when they were inappropriate, he studied the teachings of his predecessors, and became increasingly reassured that the light side could be incorporated into the Sith's teachings, as he had begun to fear, as his uncle had, that a Sith taking over the galaxy would allow them to give into the base desires that so ruled them. He began teaching Gean one on one more and more, attempting to instil the light minded teachings into her, but her own hungry knowledge of the Sith led her to continue following only the dark side teachings, resulting in a considerable alienation between master and apprentice.

Gean by this time was beginning to doubt her master, wondering why he was so determined to incorporate light side teachings into the Sith, and began to consider that her master wasn't entirely stable. Things began to come to a head due to two of the actions that she used to forward the Grand Plan. The first of these happened on Cadomai. A militant organisation was gathering support, and wished to overthrow the pro-Republic government and join Etti IV and become part of the developing Republic free zone. Gean had travelled there several times, setting up connections and arming them, stoking their resentment and preying on the leader of the group, who was infected with a rare genetic condition called the Blood Code. He intended to overthrow the government and declare its isolation, and she was helping. To Gravid's surprise, she instigated a riot in the town square while the president talked to his people, and following the dictates of the Force, she helped the group seize control of the planet before departing. From there she continued to instruct and support them, wholeheartedly supporting the executions of the Republic loyalists. While she did this, she used an alter ego to contact the Republic, alerting them to the war crimes taking place on the planet. The Republic rallied the Judicial fleet and sent it to liberate Cadomai, only for the weapons that Gean had supplied the Snivvians to be turned on them, and a third of the Republic fleet was destroyed. In response, the Republic admiral commenced an orbital bombardment upon the planet, causing a massacre in the capital city. There was a galactic outcry, and the Republic was condemned, even further so when the new ruler of Cadomai was revealed to have survived, having been tipped off by Gean beforehand. The Republic was forced to retreat in humiliation, the admiral was sacked, and many more planets began to look for alternatives as there were cries that the government was becoming a tyranny. Gravid was furious with Gean, who replied that she was simply advancing the plan, and now, the Republic military had been proven inefficient at even preventing one planet, and so from now on they would rely on the Jedi, which would force the Republic and the Jedi into a position they couldn't get out of. Gravid was alarmed by his apprentices scheming and the extent of her loyalty to the Sith, but above all, her savage pleasure in engineering the deaths of thousands made him fear for the future of the Sith, and he feared Gean's mania, and her legacy, would corrupt what he believed to be the legacy of the Sith and doom the order and the galaxy to chaos, disorder and death, and as such, when she was away securing the next part of her plan, he sealed all the teachings she so loved away, to try and break their hold over her.

With the conflict on Cadomai developing, Gean now turned her attention to Ruuria. A simple insectoid species, she planned to use them to advance the conflict on Cadomai. The Republic asked the Jedi to retake Cadomai, and to that end they asked for the help of the local Tiss'Sharl. The Jedi retook the planet, and installed a new pro Republic government, which opened them to further dissatisfaction and protests, and once again, the leader of the coup fled, heading to nearby Ruuria on Gean's recommendations. While the death toll was fairly negligible, the fact that Cadomai technically had to be conquered by the Republic turned many people against them, and there was still the capital city to rebuild and the high death toll to count against them. The Jedi and their forces rallied, heading to Ruuria in order to end the conflict. The Snivvian rebels were hiding in a hive, and the Jedi intended to go in with the Tiss'Sharl and end the conflict quietly and peacefully. Gean allowed them no such option. She alerted one of the Hives of the Unified Ruurian Colony, and the Ruurians were put on high alert. Believing themselves to be under attack due to a recent policy that the Ruurians had passed which was frowned upon by the Republic, the hive rallied to the defence as the Jedi and their allies entered, and fought the Jedi, believing they were there to force the Ruurians back into line. The Jedi were confronted by the Ruurian warriors and Snivvian rebels, and upon being forced to kill Ruurians in self-defence, some Tiss'Sharl and even some troops turned on the Jedi. The Jedi were forced into a corner, and either way had to fight their way out. Eventually reaching the Snivvian leader in exile, he then detonated a bomb, destroying his rebel movement and killing several Jedi. The fallout was immense. Hundreds of Ruurians had been killed by the Jedi, and while it was in self-defence, few believed this and turned on the Jedi, accusing them of murder, was crimes, savagery and barbarism. The Tiss'Sharl soldiers bodies were exhumed and some were discovered to have been killed by Jedi as well, enraging their populace against the Jedi and the Republic. The Ruurian Massacre was a complete disaster for the Republic, and most of all for the Jedi. The Jedi had been forced to kill virtually innocent warriors who were simply trying to defend their home, and by so doing had been forced to turn their sabers on others who were mistakenly trying to protect the simple Ruurians who were merely protecting themselves. The Republic was condemned galactically, and despite their protestations, the result was a loss of confidence and trust in the government, and the populace turned on the Jedi, and anti Jedi sentiment swept across the galaxy, and people began to question whether it might be safer for the people of the galaxy to remove the Jedi permanently.

Gravid was horrified, and his mind broke, while Gean was delighted. As she went to meditate on a job well done upon her return to Jaguada, he decided to act. Terrified that such actions would continue to plague the galaxy, he believed the Sith needed to be destroyed. He had tried to incorporate light side teachings, and had failed. Now, he intended to destroy the Sith, reveal their plans to the Jedi, and end the threat he believe they presented to galactic peace, freedom and security. His first act was to expose many of the vast Sith networks across the galaxy, reporting them to the government or to police forces, and as one the network began to collapse piecemeal as he turned more and more people in. He then sealed the fortress and began to destroy the accumulated centuries of Sith knowledge. While he did this, he tried to contact Coruscant, intending to reveal himself to the Jedi, expose the Sith and have them come and bring an end to their order once and for all. Believing that the light and the dark could coexist, while also believing they couldn't, his attempts to try and justify a new path destroyed his mental state, and he came to believe that he was the new Sith'ari, who would destroy the order in order to remake it, and started to plan to defect to the Jedi. Driven insane by his attempts to conciliate both teachings, he believed the Sith had to be destroyed and it was only when he began to destroy holocrons that Gean realised her master was doing. Breaking through the energy shields, an enraged Gean disavowed her master, proclaimed him a traitor and a buffoon. Gravid, caring for her as he did, tried to redeem her and draw her to the light side, but she refused his advances, and reluctantly, he pledged that he would kill her and surrendered himself to the light side, casting aside the trappings of the Sith. Gean spat at her master, proclaimed him a traitor, registered her disgust and contempt, and with that the two engaged in a vicious duel while his call to Coruscant waited to be put through to the Jedi Council. Giving in totally to her rage, Gean beat back her master, who nonetheless severely maimed her, giving her crippling wounds. As she fell he rushed to the screen to connect the call to the Jedi, to reveal all. Gean then used the Force to drain his energy, which she had learned from the ancient teachings, slowing him down and then proceeded to slam him around the room, before crushing his body, electrocuting him with lightning and finishing her weak and pathetic master by cleaving him in two from head to groin, then slicing the halves into thirds, before she cast her masters remains into the fires that burned as a result of their duel and his attempts to destroy the Sith.

Darth Gean

Species: Twi'lek female

Birth Name: Lesha Maya'tor
Reign: 557 BBY-552 BBY, 552 BBY-545 BBY
Info: A former errand girl, Gean was recruited and at the age of sixteen and quickly became aware that her employers were keeping things from her. Quickly proving her competency, her bosses brought her in to the secret nature of the Sith networks, and she continued to rise through the ranks, and became one of their de facto leaders who continued to advance the would be plans of the Sith during the time when they had no contact at all with their Dark Lord masters. Gean however wished to find them, and eventually, after a lot of studying, found out where Darth Opes was last seen and headed there, and when there she found Darth Gravid, who she told of the whole nature of the Sith imperative, luring him away from his master. With her help he quickly retook control of the Sith imperative, and it was clear that she was a vital part of the plan. Quickly growing to desire her, he tried to make advances, and he was rebuffed, with Gean informing him her only loyalty was to the Sith. Impressed with her devotion despite the refusal, he then offered her the position of his apprentice, and she accepted, and became Darth Gean.

With an intricate knowledge of the Sith plan, her own thirst for knowledge made her an ideal pupil, and she studied every aspect of the Sith she could find, and took particular pleasure in studying the violent history of the Sith and admired the previous dark lords. However, her thirst for such dark knowledge and her predilection for savage acts and her quest for greater control and power alarmed her master, who was beginning to consider that the Sith would be a lot safer if they could integrate light side teachings. Gean took over responsibility for the Grand Plan, allowing her master to focus more on advancing his teachings and the knowledge of the Sith while she forwarded their plan in preparation for their assumption of power within a century. However Gravid continued trying to instil light side teachings into her, leading to a considerable alienation between the two and Gean began to question her master's competency to lead the Sith as he seemed determined to make the Sith into something they weren't. Despite this, her focus was the plan and her own antics took precedence, though she did keep an eye on her master, becoming increasingly concerned with his favour to light side teachings.

She orchestrated the Cadomai Coup, a bloody conflict that weakened the Republic considerably and severely undermined the Jedi, with the aim of adding Cadomai to the Republic free zone. She precipitated the coup on the planet, intending to have the pro Republic government overthrown and have Cadomai join the free zone. While assisting the coup, she was also the one who alerted the Republic to the mass murders of Republic loyalists, forcing them to get involved in the situation. The weapons she had supplied the Snivvians with were turned on the Judicial forces, destroying a third of the fleet. Alerting the new president to the possibility of a Republic reprisal, he escaped while they commenced orbital bombardment on the capital, which killed thousands. Thrilled with her success, she reported her actions to her master, who was instead alarmed by the sheer pleasure she had taken in orchestrating the entire affair, resulting in thousands of deaths and the failure of the Republic military, which would force them to rely more on the Jedi. What was more, even more planets were now petitioning for either a change in government or to join the free zone and Gean considered the plan a success, and she was only half done. However, Gravid was alarmed with the extent of her scheming, and tried once more to teach her patience, compassion and other Jedi traits, which she refused to hear, and as a result he locked away the Sith teachings that she thrived on in an attempt to break her of the habit.

Gean was becoming increasingly alarmed by her master's actions, and resented his attempts to make her something she wasn't. However the Cadomai conflict was taking up too much of her time, and while she was concerned about her master's actions, she had to turn her attention to forwarding her plans. Tipped off to the Jedi intervention, she alerted the coup leader that the Jedi were coming to depose him and he escaped with his closest supporters while the Jedi reconquered the planet with the help of Tiss'Sharl warriors. The conquest of the planet proved a backlash for the Republic which had had to retake a planet which they had already made several errors in dealing with. Having the coup leader hide in the nearby Ruurian hives, she informed the Ruurians that the Jedi were coming in order to make them withdraw their petition to join the free zone, putting them into a state of high alert. The Jedi, who had intended to enter quietly and resolve the conflict, were forced to fight their way through hundreds of Ruurian warriors and were forced to kill them in self defence, which prompted the Tiss'Sharl and some of their soldiers to turn on them. Backed into a corner, the Jedi had no choice and murdered hundreds of Ruurians who were simply defending their home, and they couldn't even prevent the Snivvian leader from detonating a bomb which killed even more people. The Ruurian Massacre was a massive embarrassment for the Republic, leading to a rise in anti Jedi sentiment and desire for emancipation from the Republic, and best of all some began to call for the Republic to disband the Jedi Order. Gean was delighted with her machinations, and went to report to her master. Gravid however was horrified about what she had done, and realised that if the Sith were to come to power, massacres and chaos would follow, and so he resolved to end the Sith threat.

Realising he had failed at every turn to make Gean embrace the light, he resolved to act and destroy the Sith for the good of galaxy. While Gean meditated on her next move, he activated the force fields of the fortress and began turning the various Sith networks into the authorities, destroying them piecemeal. Having tried and failed to amalgamate both Jedi and Sith teachings, he, in his delirious state, believed he was the new Sith'ari, and that he had to fashion a new order from the ashes of the old. He began to destroy the Sith knowledge they had accumulated, and began trying to contact Coruscant, in order to inform the Jedi that the Sith still existed, and hand him and his apprentice over to them. Now totally insane, Gean sensed his actions when he destroyed the holocron of Belia Darzu and she quickly rushed into action, and as she fought her way through the forcefields, she watched as he destroyed more and more Sith lore. Enraged, she finally broke through, confronting her thoroughly insane master. Having turned to the light side, he made an effort to redeem her, which she spat on, proclaiming her master a fool and a traitor and exiled him from the Sith. Engaging him in a deadly duel as he waited to be put through to the Council on Coruscant, she gave in fully to her rage, and his weak alignment to the light was no match as she beat him back. However, in an effort to prove the light superior, he briefly gained the upper hand, and severely maimed his apprentice just as the call started to connect. His fallen apprentice, stimulated by fury at his treason, unleashed the full power of the dark side, draining his power, immolating him with lightning and crushing his body before cleaving his body into parts, and ended the call just before a Jedi answered.

Furious and grievously wounded, Gean was then attended to by droids, who gave her prosthetics to replace her wounds and allowed her to take stock of all her master had done. He had destroyed many Sith teachings, and what was more, he had effectively crippled the various networks that the Sith had spent centuries building up. He had also written his own corrupt teachings and had added his thoughts to writings of previous Sith, and had also donated large chunks of the Sith fortune to charities and even revealed corrupt senators who served the Sith. Devastated by this turn of events, and the loss of so many teachings that she prized, and fearful of her future as she was now the sole Sith, she realised that the duel with her master had considerably shortened her lifespan, and now she had the responsibility to rebuild the Sith, retake control of the grand plan, find an apprentice and ensure their survival all while she still felt like the apprentice while coming to terms with her own, decreased life span.

Her mind whirling in despair and in pain, as she drifted in and out of consciousness beside her masters charred remains, she was then visited. Darth Bane, Zannah, Cognus, Taral and others appeared before her, and gave her their encouragement, applauding her actions and telling her how to proceed. Bane himself talked to her and told her she was the heir to his legacy, and with the backing of her predecessors, she rallied herself, awakening from her drugged stupor and began planning to remake the Sith, and retake the initiative.

Her first move was to evacuate Jaguada, and, in order to remove herself from any possible light side taint, she evacuated to Ziost, relying on the ancient dark power there to further boost her power. Building a mansion come fortress on the planet, she bought a legion of droids to protect the Sith artefacts and teachings at all times, and immediately set out trying to rebuild lost contacts, concerning herself primarily with finding Sith lore to replace that which Gravid had destroyed. Survival was now her main aim, and she believed the Sith couldn't survive without the knowledge to pass on to the next generation. While doing this, she also had to try and rebuild their networks, while dealing with unwanted Republic attention. The exposure of their networks had attracted the attention of the Jedi, who were curious as to who would be behind these networks. A Togruta Jedi sentinel by the name of Fargo Asklaan joined forces with a group of bounty hunters and Antarian rangers who were all determined to discover the truth behind these events, and Gean now had to deal with the threat of exposure as well as everything else. Unable to act for fear of alerting the Jedi, Gean travelled to Anzat, and came to the temple of the assassins who were trained on the planet. She hand picked the assassin she wanted to use, and he after some effort, killed those looking for her, making it seem like an accident, and she was again in the clear.

Now free to continue, she slowly began to rebuild the Sith finances, and actually employed the prophets of the dark side to help her with investments so she could make the money back quickly. While a pain staking process, Gean did quickly begin to repair the damage done by the Sith finances, which in turn allowed her to start creating new networks which she could use to repair and rebuild her network and influence across the galaxy. However, the resurgence of one particular network caught the eye of the apprentice of the Jedi she had had killed, as they had been alone in their suspicion that someone had ordered the death of his master. Joining forces with a disgraced Antarian ranger, the apprentice, a Koorivar named Yarrik Sneeiv, began to investigate the network, and found one of the resurgent ones. Dismantling it, the leader of the network contacted Gean as the two of them made their way through, and alerted her just before the Jedi found them. Furious, Gean once more hired the Anzati she had hired before, and he lured the two into a trap and killed the two of them, and it was made to look like it was someone settling a score with the ranger who had gotten the Jedi by accident. Barely avoiding exposure, Gean was forced to shut down several of her new networks and move others, setting the Sith back even more.

With the networks in the wind as she moved or hid them to try and keep them from Republic and Jedi view, she was increasingly angered by the fact that the Republic was regaining the initiative, and the free zone was beginning to crumble without Sith support, despite the various things that were standing in its favour. Her finances were still not repaired either, limiting her effectiveness and furthermore, the Jedi were looking far too closely at any Sith fetishists, believing cults of various sorts were behind the recent troubles, so she couldn't acquire Sith knowledge without attracting suspicion. Corellia's independence movement was also flagging, and the weapons build ups in the outer rim had been undermined by Gravid, and the guilds had had legislation passed against them which had limited their effectiveness while Gean was otherwise occupied. Fearing she would indeed be the last Sith, she knew she had to act quickly, and to her delight, the Force provided.

The Republic had been getting bolder, trying to impose themselves in the free zone and on Corellia. Corellia's independence faction was lingering behind, and the pro Republic faction was gaining momentum. In unison, the free zone was also lingering, and Gean saw a way to bring both of them back to the forefront. She once more hired the Anzati assassin, and paid him a larger sum than usual to lure the heads of the independence movements and the Corellian government into a trap. Having the Etti invite them both to a meeting, she also had them request Jedi mediation, in order to negotiate a possible return to the Republic. The Jedi agreed, and the Master of the Order, Yoda, sent a Yarkora Council member, Scerchet Scthugard, to settle the dispute. The group were to meet at a space station in the Corporate Sector and they travelled there for the negotiations. Gean however had learned that the Republic was planning to arrest the leaders of the Corellian independence movement, and if necessary the leader of Etti Iv, and had assembled a task force, which would allow the pro Republic Corellian to return home and retake control. The Jedi were unaware, and she planned to make the most of it. The meeting went ahead, and during a recess, the assassin struck, and killed one of the two independence leaders. This caused an uproar and the Jedi turned her attention to discovering the truth of what had happened, stalling the negotiations. Gean then travelled to the station herself, preparing to act. The Anzat assassin had framed it perfectly, and the Jedi had no choice but to conclude that the Republic had organised the assassination. This stiffened the resolve of the remaining dissenters, and even the pro Republic leader of Corellia was shocked. The Jedi, sensing something amiss, asked for more time, and planned to expose the truth. She hunted down the Anzat, who had infiltrated the independent Corellians security team. Chasing him down and cornering him, she demanded to know who he was working for, and began to use the Force to try and get answers. It was in that moment that Gean, her presence cloaked, killed the Yarkora and blasted her out the airlock. She then used the Jedi comm to send a transmission that brought the Republic task force to the station. The independent leader, believing they had been lured into a trap and that they were betrayed, then killed the Corellian president, and the Etti leader condemned the Republic. Claiming it had been a trap, the Etti and Corellians summoned their forces to the neutral zone and fought off the Republic task force, while Gean escaped with the Anzati assassin.

The fallout was immense. The presence of the task force itself made it look like the Republic had always planned to strike the leaders of these factions, and as a result, the free zone's resolve was hardened, and using the tyranny of the Republic and Jedi as a rallying cry, they rallied their people to their cause once again, condemning the Republic. The Jedi claimed ignorance, but anti Jedi sentiment was still strong and was strengthened, believing the Jedi were planning to help in a Republic led coup to restore their power on these worlds. The rapidly expanding Corellian movement garnered more support and the independence leader became the new leader of the government, forming a strong friendship with the free zone. With simple tricks, coincidences and manipulations, Gean had revitalised the Sith plot, and had reinvigorated anti Republic resentment and anti Jedi sentiment. Citing the Republic as an unbending tyranny many more worlds began to consider their departure as calls to disband the Jedi rose, as Gean had predicted, and even better the gazes of both bodies were then distracted by other concerns as a result of the fallout. And what was more, the Anzat assassin then became her apprentice, becoming Darth Anthema.

Despite her crippled abilities and reduced life span, by simply fanning the embers, Gean ensured the survival of the Sith plan. She had recruited a new apprentice, and had evaded exposure to the Jedi. She had to a large extent rebuilt the Sith fortune, and had rebuilt several of the Sith networks, but she still knew there was much work to be done. Focusing on rebuilding the Sith, Gean kept half an eye on the galaxy while training Anthema, using him to further undermine the Jedi and the Republic when she could, hardening the resolve of those she planned to use to destroy the government and rebuild it in the Sith image. She stoked resentment slowly on many frontier worlds, including financing a workers revolt on Apatros and other places, which once more sucked the Republic and the Jedi in to a moral dilemma, as they had to support Outer Rim Oreworks even though they disagreed with their practices. When a Jedi was killed in a miner's revolt, the Republic withdrew their support, claiming that ORO had to give the miners what they wanted. When they refused, the various worlds devolved into civil unrest, for which the Republic and Jedi were blamed, and in the end, the Republic nationalised the company and reduced ORO, giving the miners what they wanted and making them look weak.

All the while, she sent her apprentice to secure Sith teachings, holocrons and artefacts that she could find while furthering his training, indoctrinating him with the rule of two and the points she laid down for victory. She gave him several commands that must be followed when he assumed leadership of the order. One- rebuild the Sith fortunes. Two- rebuild the information networks of the Sith. Three-gather as many Sith artefacts and teachings as possible. Four- build relationships with beings that further the Sith imperative. Five- further the Grand Plan. Six- find an apprentice and continue the Rule of Two. Having hardwired these into his brain, Gean was confident her apprentice would be a worthy successor. He served her for many years, and it was only when her prosthetics began to fail that he decided to make his move. One day, his master was meditating on the future of the plan, and sneaking in like a shadow, he drained her of her soup, and left her lifeless body on the floor, assuming mastery of the Sith

Darth Anthema

Species: Anzati male

Birth Name: Lyrrik Rell
Reign: 551 BBY-545 BBY, 545 BBY-538 BBY
Info: Formerly an Anzati assassin, he was hired following the Sith's brush with exposure when Darth Gravid lost his mind and revealed the Sith networks to the galaxy's authorities. With Jedi and Antarian rangers looking for evidence that the Sith still existed, Darth Gean couldn't act and feared the Sith would end with her. As such she instead hired the Anzati assassin to help throw the Jedi off her trail, and killing them and making it look like an accident, he threw them off the trail, allowing Gean to rebuild her power base once again. However the former apprentice of the Jedi who was killed then began to investigate a resurgent network, and Gean was forced to once again hire the same assassin in order to throw them off the scent. This succeeded, and Gean continued trying to repair the damage Gravid had caused to the Sith. Realising the plan to shatter the Republic was losing ground, she once again hired the assassin, luring representatives from the Republic, Corellia and the Free Zone to a meeting. The assassin then sabotaged the meeting, resulting in a massive crisis for the Republic, and Gean took the assassin as her apprentice in order to protect him from Jedi reprisals, and named him Darth Anthema

Gean spent her time hardwiring the rule of two into her apprentice's brain. Knowing that her time was short, she focused on rebuilding the networks and resources of the Sith while continuing to forward the Grand Plan, while Anthema was tasked with securing stores of Sith knowledge and teaching to replace those lost when Gravid went insane. He was also tasked with recruiting skilled individuals who could be used to forward the plan, and to keep an eye out for any potential spots where the Sith could exploit the situation to the detriment of the Republic. Anthema did this on Alpheridies. Having long held an interest in the Miraluka, Anthema learned of a centennial event that could act as a threat to the Sith. The Foreshadowing gathered together the greatest seers of the species, and Force groups, other Force sensitive species and of course Jedi were all invited to this gathering. While many more had happened during the time since Bane, recent events caused by Gravid made him and his master fear that, in their weakened state, the Sith might be exposed so he travelled to the planet to thwart the ceremony. Perceiving a threat, the Luka Sene and the Jedi began to protect the High Oracle who would lead the ceremony. Anthema couldn't allow this to happen, and conceived a plan. Knowing the Jedi and their allies would be on their guard, he hijacked a Hutt slave ship, carrying thousands of refugees who were to become slaves in Hutt space. Killing the crew he kept the slaves locked up, and instead headed to Alpheridies. Entering the system just as the Foreshadowing began, he left the ship, issuing the self destruct order as he did. Giving himself just enough time, he used his fighter to get to the planet surface as the transport emerged above the Foreshadowing, where it exploded. The explosion caused panic, but the loss of so much life temporarily blinded the Miraluka. While the Jedi tried to restore order, the Luka Sene escorted the High Oracle away, all of them suffering, and as a result of the ceremony, the Jedi's abilities were thrown into disarray as they had been melded with the seers at the time. This gave Anthema the chance he needed, and when the Oracle was left alone when her bodyguards rushed to check the security which he had triggered as a ruse, he killed her, draining her soup and stealing away, leaving the Foreshadowing in crisis and the event was cancelled, though not without suspicion. However, due to his study of the Miraluka, Anthema knew they would stall any attempts at an investigation as they would see it as an insult to the dead who hadn't foreseen the calamity, and reluctantly the Jedi were forced to let the matter go. Gean was very pleased with his actions, and he sensed that his time was coming.

Gean, knowing her own life wouldn't last as long as she had hoped, gave Anthema several orders to follow when he assumed control of the Sith. These were: One- rebuild the Sith fortunes. Two- rebuild the information networks of the Sith. Three-gather as many Sith artefacts and teachings as possible. Four- build relationships with beings that further the Sith imperative. Five- further the Grand Plan. Six- find an apprentice and continue the Rule of Two. Anthema took these to heart and carried them out religiously, all the while noticing that his master's reflexes were getting slower and her prosthetics were weakening her. While she lay in meditation, he attacked, draining her of her soup and her power and proclaiming himself the master

Anthema took his masters orders to heart, and his early reign as master was spent in complete secrecy and silence, rebuilding the faculties of the Sith which had been so squandered by his predecessors. His first order of business was to relocate to a more central location, Gean had used Ziost in order to strengthen herself, but he had no use for such a thing. Instead, he relocated to Anzat, taking a private residence in the snowy wastelands, where he was linked up to the galaxy. From there, he formulated alliances with various assassins guilds and bounty hunter chapters, along with keeping an eye on any potential threats, using a Sith oracle stone that he had recovered for Gean to keep an eye on the galaxy. It was during that time that he noticed a fallen Quarren Jedi by the name of Voshta Santesh. Keeping her in mind, he built up his networks, using the oracle stone to dedicate his times to act, and built upon Gean's success, rebuilding the fortunes of the Sith and then using them to further construct the Sith information and data networks. He frequently left Anzat, liberating collections of Sith lore from collectors and assuming it for himself, rebuilding their resources as quietly and quickly as he could. Anthema was a great force for stabilising the Sith, and focused less on the Grand Plan and more on rebuilding the Sith following the damage that Gravid had done to them. He made deals with Hutts, senators, warriors and whoever else may suit his ends, but by and large avoided a public persona, preferring to remain the enigmatic and eccentric oddity that he was believed to be. Many of the networks and allies of the Sith were rebuilt during his time, in a slow and gradual process that he made certain didn't trip any alarms within the Republic.

While his networks began to bear fruit, he turned his attention to the matter of his apprentice, and believed that Voshta Santesh would be an ideal candidate. To this end, he sought to entrap her in the situation developing on Lamaredd. ORO had illegally claimed the planet, ignoring the fact that there was a sentient species who lived on the world. The administrator used illegal methods and hence gathered himself a small army of aquatic species to use as workers when they were little more than slaves. As a result of their living conditions, the poor treatment and the variety of species interspecies violence was common, which Anthema was keen to promote. Santesh came to the planet, seeking to begin a new life, but upon her arrival on the world she realised the situation that was on the planet. Disgusted with the actions of ORO, which was now owned by the Republic, Santesh tried to negotiate better conditions with Hugo Bartyn, who ignored her and then used his security forces to force her into the same indentured slavery as other members of her species. Anthema then travelled to Lamaredd in order to claim Santesh. He first appeared to take pity on her, and forced Bartyn to give better conditions to the slaves. Bartyn tried to take action against both Anthema and Santesh, resenting their interference in his planet and business. Santesh protected them, and the two fled, Anthema giving no indication as to what he was. He then took her off the planet promising his assistance in helping the people who had been deceived into going to Lamaredd.

Santesh worked with Anthema, trying to negotiate better conditions for the indentured workers on the planet. Anthema slowly began the process of trying to turn her to the dark side, realising that her past as a Jedi meant that he had to be more careful than he usually would be. With Anthemas help Santesh began to negotiate with Bartyn, but while he appeared to be on her side he was also guiding Bartyn on how to defeat her at every turn. After weeks of stalemate, Santesh returned to Anthema and was close to giving in to her anger as she was making no progress. Infuriated, she began to ponder doing something more drastic which Anthema encouraged, but he overplayed his hand, and she realised too soon that he was trying to turn her to the dark side. Realising what he was, and connecting his existence with the fallout of Gravid's actions, she confronted him, and a livid Anthema was forced to kill her in a duel, setting him back to the drawing board.

With no apprentice forthcoming, Anthema began to consider how best to preserve the Sith legacy, as there was still a great deal to be done to rebuild the damage Gravid had done. Lamaredd was trundling along itself but he had to do more in order to advance the aims of the Sith and the Grand Plan, but if his gaze was occupied finding a new apprentice he couldn't keep up the imperative in the free zone or in the Corellian sector. In his studies and attempts to protect the future of the Sith by triplicating written texts and dispersing them to safehouses, he came across the mention of a hand, and realised that by having a skilled hand could allow him to continue to preserve the Sith legacy. As a result he decided to forestall the look for an apprentice, and instead looked for a hand who he could use as an errand boy to carry out parts of the task to free him to focus on the Grand Plan and to stimulate the developing situations to bring about the end of the Republic. In the spaceport on Anzat, he encountered a Dug assassin, who had a substantial amount of Force potential. After sending him on a few assassination, kidnap and sabotage missions, Anthema revealed himself to be a Sith and offered the Dug the position of his hand

Anthema taught the Dug, who took the name Haemerro to show that he had moved on from his previous life. Anthema taught him the basic principles of the Rule of Two, and the basic premise of the Grand Plan. Haemerro was confused, as other than the mere basics, Anthema didn't teach him any more information and instead he turned his attention towards the Grand Plan and protecting the Sith legacy. This continued for months, with Anthema using Haemerro as little more than a glorified spy and assassin, who was furthering the Grand Plan but wasn't even being clued in to the reasoning behind all of the missions his master made him undertake. While he was short-changing Haemerro's training, Anthema continued to advance the aims of the Grand Plan, and used Haemerro to remove obstacles within the Corellian sector and in the free zone, along with using him to get rid of problematic senators and the occasional Jedi or judicial who were offering the possibility of thwarting Anthema's plans. Haemerro however was growing increasingly belligerent under Anthema's training, as he was given no reason and he could tell that there were things about the Force he wasn't being told. With Anthema focusing on the brewing situation in the free zone and elsewhere, Haemerro began to study the Sith knowledge that his master had in secret. Becoming increasingly anxious by his master's actions as he studied holocrons and teachings of various previous Sith, Haemerro began to believe that, like Gean before him, he was going to have to take action to save the Sith from the master.

Anthema had been scouring the galaxy for a new apprentice, and believed that he had identified one, who fortunately, was becoming a leading advocate of the free zone, and he intended to make him his apprentice, and prepared to kill Haemerro. Seeing a chance to test his would be new apprentices commitment to the Sith, he departed in his shuttle, bidding farewell to his hand knowing that the next time they encountered each other he would be killed. Haemerro watched as his master left to gain his new apprentice. Anthema then noticed a beeping noise, and discovered too late that his hand, who he had convinced was his apprentice and always underestimated, had planted a bomb, to save the Sith and also to end his master's suspected treachery as Haemerro had come to believe his master was trying to replace him. The bomb then exploded, killing Anthema and destroying the shuttle, and a very unprepared Haemerro assumed mastery of the Sith.

Darth Haemerro

Species: Dug male
Reign: 540 BBY-538 BBY, 538 BBY-500 BBY
Info: An assassin and gun for hire, Haemerro was a down on his luck assassin who made a pitstop on Anzat on his way towards Tatooine to try and find a job with the Hutts. However, by this time Darth Anthema had elected to choose a hand to carry out the tasks that he could not, to allow him to focus on getting the Grand Plan back on track and to focus on finding a new apprentice after his efforts to turn the fallen Quarren Jedi Santesh to his side had fallen through. After seeing Haemerro kill a target for a local mob boss with expert precision, Anthema approached the Dug with an offer to make him his apprentice, while only intending to make him his hand, an offer which the Dug accepted.

As Anthema's hand, Haemerro was given a very basic training in the ways of the Sith. The ways of the Rule of Two were explained to him, and he was taught the ability to use the Force and was also begrudgingly taught Ataru by his master, who didn't wish to waste too much time on a minion who he eventually intended to replace, however to keep Haemerro's loyalty he carried out the training. He kept the teachings of previous Sith from him, telling his hand that he would teach him everything in due course, which Haemerro took in good faith originally. Haemerro's apprenticeship consisted of carrying out missions and errands for his master, with little to no explanation being given, and Haemerro began to wonder about the uneven nature of their relationship. Despite this, he was a useful tool to Anthema, carrying out assassinations, inciting uprisings, performing kidnappings, committing sabotage and generally contributing to his master's plan and making the situation devolve for the Republic and the Jedi. However while he was assured by his master that these were contributing to the Grand Plan, Anthema never explained any further, and during missions, he simply allowed Haemerro to continue his saber training, never training him any further than he already had been, and never revealing his plans more than was necessary, knowing as he did that he intended to remove his hand and replace him with a genuine apprentice. One night while Anthema schemed to incite the beginnings of an arms debate in the Republic, Haemerro seized his chance and broke into his master's records and his store of Sith knowledge. When there, after consulting the holocron of Darth Gean, he began to fear that his master was a threat to the Sith and began to plot to remove him. While Haemerro did suspect that his master was using his network of his spies to try and locate a new apprentice, Haemerro, who had become accustomed to his life as a Sith, was determined not to allow himself to be replaced. When his master announced that he was leaving their fortress on Anzat in order to secure a vital resource, Haemerro seized his chance and planted a bomb on his master's shuttle. Bidding his master farewell, he watched as Anthema took off, and when in the air, the bomb exploded, taking out the master and leaving a woefully undertrained and unprepared Haemerro as the sole Sith Lord.

With Anthema now dead, Haemerro returned to his master's stockpiled Sith resources, where he was confronted by the avatars of the remaining holocron guardians, including Bane, Taral and Gean. While Bane and Zannah berated him, Gean defended the Dug and insisted that the fault was not with Haemerro but was rather with Anthema for glorifying a means to an end and not an end in and of himself. Haemerro then began to study Sith history, becoming more versed in Sith matters, however due to the incomplete nature of his training, and despite the help of the holocrons, he remained incomplete. With no guidance, Haemerro merely focused his attention on improving his saber skills, to the despair of the former Sith who disavowed him and proclaimed that he was no longer a Sith. Finding various teachings and concepts difficult to grasp, Haemerro believed he had indeed doomed the Sith. Despite his lack of understanding, and the way Anthema had diddled his training, Haemerro was loyal to the Sith and wished for them to succeed, but lacked the power, skill and cunning to secure this himself.

In addition to that, as he was merely used as a pawn by Anthema, Haemerro had little to no knowledge of what he should do in order to further the Grand Plan. He had Anthema's notes and writings, but hadn't the grasp of politics, subtlety or strategy in order to make any use of the information. He offset this however, by immersing himself in the dark side. Having moved off of the fortress on Anzat, he set himself up in a small compound on Dxun, the nature of the moon appealing to him, and it was in periods of slaughter of the vicious native animals that the dark side spoke to him the most, and by so doing he was able to continue his assassinations of key people, though he had little understanding of what their deaths would cause, but he knew that the dark side was allowing him to advance the plans of the Sith.

However, while he was content to do this, he realised that he was no true Sith Lord. Rather than become depressed and despondent, he instead used the various networks of the Sith (who were getting more rebellious as they sensed that the hand at the tiller was in over his head) to locate other people who might know of the Sith. And by so doing, the Force provided for the Sith and saved them from fading into obscurity.

The resurrected network that Gean had once been part of reported back that one of the foremost academics of Sith history was on Alderaan and was going to be running a series of lectures for the public as well as her students. Leaving Dxun in his ship, Haemerro accumulated all of the knowledge of the Sith and went to attend the lecture. Once there, he discovered an Ithorian woman who it was clear revered the Sith was giving the lectures, and was considerably powerful within the Force. Hearing her talk, Haemerro began to understand the Sith more. For weeks he attended her lectures, including sneaking into the ones where she was teaching her actual students and as a result, his knowledge of the Sith continued to expand. After one class, the woman called him forward and challenged him on his constant presence in her lectures. It was then that Haemerro elected to tell her the truth and revealed himself as the Dark Lord of the Sith. The woman was riveted, and Haemerro told her the basic history of the Sith since Bane. Intrigued to know more of the Sith, and delighted to finally be given a chance to learn more of the field to which she had dedicated herself, she offered herself as a hand to Haemerro, believing he had no use for an academic with a fetish for Sith history. Haemerro however, realising that Anthema using him as a hand had gotten the Sith into this mess, informed her of her powerful affinity for the Force and took her as his apprentice, naming her Darth Toxis.

The two then began their new working relationship, with Haemerro moving into her accommodation as her roommate, moving all the knowledge and teachings of the Sith in with her. With Toxis grasp of the Sith, she and he entered not an apprenticeship but a partnership. Haemerro, who was a master of the lightsaber, taught her how to use the saber, and she began to focus her attention on learning Niman. And with her keen, analytical mind put to the task, she quickly absorbed all the Sith knowledge she could find, growing in strength and power. The two worked together, with Toxis helping her master grasp the tenets of the Sith and the teachings of previous Sith, and the two of them together began to make sense of Anthema's plans and schemes. With that, the two Sith then surged forward, with a new understanding of the Sith and of the Grand Plan. In addition, Haemerro called the various Sith avatars forward, and impressed with Toxis, Bane reversed the decision and named him a Dark Lord once again, and Toxis was also acknowledged as the true successor to the Sith lineage. The two Sith joined forces, and Toxis assumed responsibility for the Grand Plan, advancing that while Haemerro returned to the role he had before, acting as the agent who advanced the plans while she concocted them herself.

Toxis had a long apprenticeship, but with their partnership, the two of them reached new levels of cunning, with Toxis taking the reins and directing the future of the Grand Plan. Thirty two years later, she asked her master to assassinate the leader of the pro intervention faction in the senate who wished to bring an end to the troubles with Corellia and the free zone. Haemerro did so, but Republic security and the Jedi were tipped off, and Haemerro was forced onto the run. As he didn't take his lightsaber on his assassinations, there was nothing to tie him to the Sith. Eventually finding himself cornered on a rooftop, he looked up to see Toxis watching from a passing speeder, and realised that she was the one who had betrayed him. He was then shot by the security forces and his body plummeted into the chasms of Coruscant, and with that Toxis became the sole Dark Lord of the Sith.

Apologies for the long wait, but we are now back on track with the course of the Rule of Two, and we are now halfway through the millennia of the Order of the Sith Lords. As you can clearly see this era was the darkest for Bane's Sith in which they struggled to survive, and this period ends with Darth Toxis assuming the throne, and under her guidance the Sith become stable once again

But she and her successors are a story for another day, so until then please read and review!