Emperor's Shadow Part 3

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars. Jarec and Kroder and the Dark Avatar were made up by me though so they aren't part of official continuity. Also thanks to people from the old ImpStar RPG on the JCC for great ideas...

One week later, they had both been tested and had found each other at long last, father and son had been reunited.

They spent the next week together, getting to know each other. One day, while sitting in his spacious quarters, Kroder talked about his childhood. "I spent my childhood pampered, too used to having my way, when I didn't I usually did something bad, that would be how I ended up in prison," Kroder recalled, feeling that it was shit to have to lie to his own flesh and blood like this, but he had no choice, he didn't know if he could trust his son yet. He fingered his necklace for strength, a dodecahedral device its only adornment.

"I ended up in prison fights and managed to really hurt a lot of other prisoners, I guess I got so troublesome, that they had to put me in the freeze," Kroder laughed as he recalled the past, "it was really painful, you felt like you were drowning, I suppose that the warden was so annoyed at me that he refused to sedate me before pushing me in the tube. I certainly most likely deserved that."

He told of being released, finding that his family had all died, that he had responsibility to his family, to his dead family, to keep the family going, how he had found out that he had had a child that he did not know about, how it brought such joy to have found his son. How he regretted not being able to be there for his son, "No child should go through life not having parents, it is a tragedy, How I wish that I was there for you," Kroder said, the words coming from his heart. How could I lie to him about my past, yet also love him so much. He will have to know the truth sometime.

He finished his tale, and Jarec began his. "I only faintly remember my mother, she's a shadow in my mind, I remember that she died, that a cyborg-woman killed her, and took me away. I remember she used to tell me about you, how you were far away and couldn't come. I used to wish that you would come. Now you are here, I'm so satisfied," he hugged his father as he continued his story, "The cyborg-woman was a Sith, she tortured me all day and night, trying to release my rage and anger, to turn me into a killing machine, an animal knowing nothing but hunt and kill."

"Those years were the worst of my life, they were nothing but pain and pain and hatred and anger, the flames consumed me, I became what she had wanted me to. When she thought I was ready, she unleashed me. I remember the shock in her face as my first action was to kill her, I made her explode into a shower of blood, I remember the euphoric feeling of the kill. I grabbed her lightsaber and left to hunt more and kill more, to bathe in blood again. Over the next months I killed and killed, taking delight in the hunt, the kill, most of all, the blood and euphoria." He took a break from his story, taking time for a drink.

"It was then that Master Jacen found me, raving mad, he had been sent to investigate the series of murders that I had committed. When I saw him I swung at him wildly, using the strength of the Force to augment my blows, but he stood there just blocking. It drove me to anger, as I became more out of control, my blows became wilder, became more desperate until he counterattacked, I felt the shock of the lightsaber shearing through my leg and my foot, I smelled the burn, as the Force left me, there was only more pain, I tried to draw on the Force to attack but he blocked my now feeble attempts. Then I saw black and faded."

"When I awoke, I found that I was in a hospital floating in bacta, Master Jacen was standing over me, watching, a sad look on his face. I later found out that it was because I had projected the pain of my upbringing by the droid-woman into his mind, and he felt my pain, for the first time, someone had cared for me. He told me that I had to have cybernetic implants to replace the leg and foot that I had lost in the fight. But droid parts, I could not have them, they would remind me of my pain all the time, I told him I could not have them, I would not have them. Master Jacen relented and said that he would take me to Zonoma Sekot, to get biological implants, even though that had not been done before," Jarec paused to take another drink.

He continued his narrative, "When we arrived, never have I felt so much joy and life, the Force resonated joy through my body. We were greeted by the Yuuzhan Vong and some others. Master Jacen hugged a woman called Danni, it was the only time I saw him show unbridled joy. They were obviously very good friends. But it was to Tekli and Harrar and Sekot that he spoke, he asked them to graft biological implants on me. I don't remember much of the process but when it was finished, I could walk again."

"We stayed for a week, Master Jacen spending a lot of time with Danni while Tekli and some of the Shapers watched over me, to see that I was alright. When I had recovered enough we said our goodbyes and left to Ossus, to see Master Skywalker. Jacen said he intended to take me as his apprentice, to help me work through my tortured childhood. That was about a month ago, and so I have been apprenticed to him, Master Skywalker approved this, and then I found you. And so that's the story of what you missed out." Jarec finished his tale.

"So do you swordfight?" Kroder asked as he got up from the couch, "I think that we should get some exercise," he said as he and Jarec entered another room, this one empty except for one lone rack. Kroder drew a vibrosword from the rack and tossed it to Jarec, he took another one for himself. "So are you ready for some exercise, son," Kroder asked, for the first time calling Jarec his son, "En guarde." Jarec bought his sword up like Master Jacen had taught him and they duelled back and forth, their swords clashing, both having fun, reunited forever.

It was in the night, some time later that Kroder decided that he had to fulfil his first goal in choosing to come to Denon. Kroder put on a black cloak and took one last look at his son, sleeping in his room. He went out of the apartment, ready to bring justice to those who had harmed him so long ago. He walked along the causeway, towards Luke and Mara's temporary quarters on Denon, while he served on the High Council.

When he arrived he slipped upstairs to their door. He felt that they were sleeping peacefully. Drawing on the Force he quietly slid open the door and walked in. Keeping dead silent and tamping down his Force powers he crept along to Luke and Mara's room, he then drew on the full power of the Force and suddenly they were awake, but it was too late, Kroder hit them both on the head, a powerful blow, to addle their mind, making them inchoate, driving them insane, as they had done to him. He drew his lightsaber, a jet black blade shimmering and he burned the words, Justice Is Served into the wall and left closing the door behind him.

Jacen was sleeping in his room in the Solo's apartment on Denon, when he saw a vision of Luke and Mara raving mad, trying to hurt Ben, he saw little Ben crying. He quickly tossed his sheets off and hurried out, to help his cousin. He rushed over to the apartment surveying the scene of destruction, the apartment was a mess. Using the Force he sedated his aunt and uncle and sent Ben to bed, he then had the medical droid come and sedate them with drugs. He walked into Luke and Mara's bedroom, and saw the macabre message scrawled upon the wall with a lightsaber, another vision hit him, he saw, he couldn't believe it, his apprentice scrawling a message with a jet black lightsaber. How could he, how did he get that lightsaber, his is silver, where did he get that black lightsaber. I will have to go over there. The medical droid arrived and assured him that they would be sleeping for hours, and he left to see his apprentice, Jarec and to find out why.