I don't own Star Wars or any of the characters.

The endless storm swirled around and in Xesh. The Force Hound could sense it wanting to pull him in, to tear his mind apart and leave him insane. Skal'nas noticed the struggled in his Hound and was not pleased. Did he have to tell these pitiful creatures how to do everything?

"The sigil, Hound! Focus on the sigil!" angrily ordered Skal'nas.

"Master…I obey…" replied Xesh.

Xesh did as his master commanded. He focused on the sigil in his mind. The feelings of confusion and insanity subsided, allowing the Predor and Force Hound to descend to the bottom of the Chasm. The Chasm pit bubbled with a boiling purple acid that reeked from the stench of cooking Flesh Raider corpses.

"At last! The Infinity Gate—a prime gate leading everywhere—needing no other gate to complete the journey! Through it lies the galaxy and unlimited power! Through it I will renew the Rakata and rule the Infinite Empire!" declared Skal'nas.

XXX

Back at the top of the Chasm, Sek'nos continued to fight against the Flesh Raiders. The Sith barely noticed the winged-Rancor that landed on the cliff and Je'daii Master Quan-Jang come to his aid.

"Sek'nos Rath! You live! We'd given you and Lok for dead!" surprisingly spoke Quan-Jang.

"The stinking Rakata forced us into slavery aboard their ships!" told Sek'nos.

Quan-Jang rushed into the battle, forcesaber drawn.

"But Lok and Shae may both be dead by now—they jumped into the Chasm after Skal'nas and Xesh!" explained Sek'nos.

"What?! Why?" questioned Quan-Jang.

"Lok yattered about a portal to other worlds at the bottom of the Chasm! He said Skal'nas means to open it and use Tython as a staging ground for galactic war!" exclaimed Sek'nos.

"Impossible! They'll never make it past the Chaos Wall!" stated Quan-Jang.

There was no more time to talk. Sek'nos and Quan-Jang were overwhelmed by Flesh Raiders, fighting back to back as they tried to find a path of escape.

XXX

Deeper within the Chasm, Shae and Lok had finally made it to the Chaos Wall. Butch began to scream and buck, nearly knocking the two Je'daii off her back. Shae tried to calm the Rancor, sending soothing waves through the Force.

"Butch! No! Easy, girl! Don't let the Chaos Wall get to you!" gently spoke Shae.

"Focus on the sigil I've put in your mind, Shae! Command the beast to obey me now—I will put it into her mind, too!" stated Lok.

"Get out of my mind, Lok! Get out, or I'll throw you off Butch and you can fall the rest of the way! And stay away from Butch!" angrily yelled Shae.

Lok was pleased by the girl's show of aggression. It made her presence almost tolerable.

"I can feel the darkness in your mind, girl. Good. Good! There is power there. You've gotten darker, tougher. I like it. You can increase your power with anger. Think of how Xesh betrayed you…betrayed all of the Je'daii…!" maniacally spoke Lok.

"He didn't…not deliberately. That Rakata…Skal'nas…has Xesh under his thrall!" insisted Shae.

"I can feel your emotions, Shae Koda. Like everyone you love deeply, Xesh has abandoned you! Like your parents did, dying in a battle they should have won. Like Xesh. You gave him your heart and he has betrayed you. Hasn't he?" manipulated Lok.

Shae refused to believe that Xesh had abandoned her. She did do as Lok said though, letting him put the sigil in Butch's mind so they could get past the Chaos Wall.

XXX

Back on top, Sek'nos and Quan-Jang were having a hard time holding off the continuous stream of Flesh Raiders coming at them. Quan-Jang tried to call in reinforcements but his comm. wasn't working.

"My comm. isn't working! We must escape—let the rest of the Je'daii know what is happening in the Chasm!" warned Quan-Jang.

Sek'nos was not listening to the master. A familiar Force Signature had caught his attention. It was the signature of one he had once cared for deeply, but now only felt rage and anger towards. Trill.

The female Force Hound wickedly smiled at the Sith, reveling in the anger he felt towards her.

"I thought I smelled the stench of a slave! Predor Skal'nas will want you back…" laughed Trill.

"Worried about what Skal'nas wants, Trill? You should worry about what I want! I Want Your Head!" yelled Sek'nos.

Trill dodged the savage swing of Sek'nos' Force pike.

"Ha! Je'daii. You seek balance and that makes you weak! True power lies in the Dark Side!" stated Trill.

Faster than Trill could react, Sek'nos grabbed the Force Hound by the throat.

"Does this feel like balance to you, betrayer?" growled Sek'nos.

""Let…go of me! Or I'll…" gasped Trill.

"Kill me? I don't care anymore, Trill. Live or die, it doesn't matter—as long as I get to kill you first." snarled Sek'nos.

Sek'nos had Trill pinned to the ground. He slowly increased the pressure on the female's air way. Trill clawed at Sek'nos' hands, trying to free herself. Quan-Jang saw what the young Sith was doing and knew what it would mean if he killed the one he felt betrayed him.

"No, Sek'nos! Don't let the darkness consume you! Do not become like them! You are Je'daii!" screamed Quan-Jang.

"Je'daii!" muttered Sek'nos.

Realising what he had been about to do, Sek'nos released the traitor's throat. Trill laid unconscious on the ground. Sek'nos flung the female over his shoulder, following Master Quan-Jang out of the Chasm.

XXX

Shae and Lok had finally reached the bottom of the Chasm. There they saw what had to be the Infinity Gate, Skal'nas and Xesh standing beside it. Lok jumped off Butch, drawing his weapon.

"Skal'nas! It's time, Predor, time that I killed you!" shouted Lok.

"Away with you, slave! Die!" yelled Skal'nas.

Skal'nas sent a stream of Force lightning at Lok. The Je'daii rolled to the side, dodging the lightning.

The lightning scared Butch. Ever since the first time she flew during the Force Storm, the Rancor had hated lightning. Butch took to the air, flying as far away as she could from the lightning.

"Butch! Stay! Stay!" called Shae.

"Let her go, Shae! You should flee as well." spoke Xesh.

Shae glared at Xesh. She drew her saber and charged. Xesh drew his own weapon, parrying and attacking the red head's every move with his own.

Lok and Skal'nas crossed blades. The fight reminded Lok much of when he had slayed Queen Hadiya. Hadiya was the worst villain known to the Tython system in the last century. If he could kill Hadiya then he could kill Skal'nas.

"You wouldn't know, of course, but I've had experience killing arrogant warlords full of their own pride!" gloated Lok.

"These warlords—they were not Rakata. They were not me. You are nothing, slave. Nothing but meat for the table." hissed Skal'nas.

"Forcesabers. Journeyer's toys. I have nastier weapons with which to play!" insisted Lok.

Shae ducked Xesh's forcesaber.

"You should not have followed me down here, Shae." snarled Xesh.

"You won't kill me, Xesh. I can sense the conflict within you! This isn't you!" stated Shae.

Xesh's anger rose. He swung his saber at Shae's legs. She jumped up, easily missing the forcesaber.

"You were wrong about me. I know who I am. Skal'nas restored my memories—all of them. I know who I am—and everything I have done. I was more than a slave. I was a willing participant, destroyer of worlds, bringer of death! That I could have be anything but a Force Hound is just your own false hope." angrily exclaimed Xesh.

Shae spun to the left to avoid another of Xesh's attacks. She aimed for the Force Hound's dominant arm, careful not to inflict any damage. Xesh blocked her blade, parrying it without breaking a sweat.

"No! I took you into my heart! Now look into your own! I know what you felt! We shared a bond that was real! Don't lie—to me or yourself! The Rakata only ever showed you the Dark Side! It was all that you were allowed. When exposed to the Light Side you drank of it like a man of dying thirst!" exclaimed Shae.

Xesh continued his attack. Shae noticed Xesh's maneuvers had slowed; his strikes less accurate, attacks less aggressive. Somehow, someway, Shae was getting through to him. She had to keep going.

"No matter what the Rakata have done to you, I know that at the core of your being you are not Xesh the slave—you are Tau! Choose your own path! You are more than just a Force Hound. If Skal'nas tells you differently, then he is a liar!" stated Shae.

Lok had Skal'nas where he wanted him. The dark Je'daii preformed a mind twist on the Rakata Predor. Skal'nas stopped his attack, face contracting in fear.

"What…is…this?!" gasped Skal'nas.

"Me. Crawling around in your mind. Like it, Rakata?" laughed Lok.

"Welcome." said Skal'nas.

Dark images encircled Lok. The faces of millions of dying and suffering people flashed before his eyes.

"Oh no…no!" muttered Lok.

"Oh, yes. Become me. Enjoy my memories—all the deaths in the Force that I have experienced. I devoured some of my victims as they died. Taste what I am and despair, little Je'daii." wickedly laughed Skal'nas.

Lok fought back against the visions.

"Let go of me! Let go of my mind!" screamed Lok.

"Too nasty for you, slave? I release you." spoke Skal'nas.

Skal'nas plunged his pike into Lok. The Je'daii's body fell to the ground, lifeless.

"Hound! Stop playing with your kill! Finish her! We have work to do!" commanded Skal'nas.

Shae and Xesh crossed blades, each trying to gain the upper hand.

"You stand at crossed paths. You can be Xesh, the Hound, the slave—or you could be Tau, the free man. Bound to the past, or open to the future. Your choice!" honestly spoke Shae.

The ground beneath their feet began to quake. Shae and Xesh paused in their fight, turning to see the pit of bubbling goo turn into the night sky. It was the Infinity Gate! They were too late. The galaxy was doomed.

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