Darth Temnateta

Moraband

"This place is supposed to be important, but I feel nothing." muttered Darth Temnateta, standing at the end of the ramp of a troop transport. She had landed on the surface of Moraband, at the bottom of a canyon that led to an ancient Sith temple within the cliffs of the canyon. There were Sith troopers around her, keeping watch, and also Chief Vizier Daha. Daha walked up to the Sith Empress' side, wearing a black suit with a silver belt, and red patch on her right shoulder.

"It's a tomb." noted Daha, "You owe nothing to it, not even a second-glance." Temnateta took in a deep breath, eyeing the grandiose entrance to the temple, built of sandstone, an arch that rose over twenty feet, and statues of cloaked Sith twice as large. The hot wind pulled at her whitening hair, which was braided into three buns in a triangular fashion.

"I don't have time to scour a cave," added the Sith Empress, "destroy it." Daha looked over her shoulder, looking to the two massive Sith walkers standing behind the troop transport. The three-legged walkers, Sith Empire Triped Assault Walkers - SETA Walkers, were twice the height of an AT-ST, with one single large turbolaser underneath its narrow cockpit, and two smaller dual laser cannons on the side of its body. Daha waved her hand at the walkers, and the pilots understood her orders. The walkers' motors whirred as they took aim, raising their cockpits to lift their main cannons.

The SETA walkers blasted green torrents of turbolaser fire upon the entrance of the temple, smashing through the rocks, cracking the cliff walls, sending stone, rocks, and dust up into the air. Temnateta smirked,

"More!" she shouted. She felt chills down her spine as she watched the temple completely crumble, its stone pillars toppling over, chunks of rock flying into the air, and clouds of dust and smoke rising into the air.

The Sith Empress walked up to the ruins of the temple, stopping at a large boulder that blocked what used to be the entrance to the caverns. Chief Vizier Daha and her soldiers remained back, there was no present danger, and if there were; Temnateta was capable of handling it herself.

She looked down at the side of the boulder that was facing her, it was completely flat, and had some inscriptions and designs in it. She knelt in front of it, placing her gloved hand over one of the markings. It was a swirling design, with two lines crossing through it like an X. It was a symbol she had never seen before or recognized, and ran her fingers across it. A thin layer of dust and sand stuck to her fingertips, and she rubbed her fingers together to shake it off. Temnateta stood back up and held out her hand at the boulder, closing her eyes, and exhaling deeply.

She used the Force to lift the boulder, raising it a few feet off of the ground. Daha and the soldiers watched in complete silence, the stormtroopers' masks hiding their amazement and astoundment to her strength. Temnateta dropped the boulder away from the entrance, the way into the temple was still clear. She chuckled to herself, scoffing quietly. There didn't seem to be a single rock or pebble in the path of the temple entryway. The hall was pitch black and she could hear echoes of crumbling stone deep within the temple. Temnateta chuckled more, walking into the hall, going into the temple.

"I love, love, love, this." she said hysterically, "What have you hidden for me here, father?"


Jedi Temple

"She used brute force, her techniques were meant to overwhelm me - us." recounted Cere Junda, as she sat in her bed with a tray of dinner, a bowl of vegetable soup, beans and carrots from the cleanest gardens of Corulag. Sitting in a chair in front of Cere's bed in her room was her former apprentice, Cal Kestis. The sixty-four year old Jedi Master was worried, he let his elderly and weak Master face off against a Sith and she nearly died doing so. They were dealing with a monster now, someone that neither Cere or Ahsoka could defeat in unison.

"She has no class…" added Cere, taking a slow sip of the piping hot soup. It was dark green in color, with chunks of carrots floating near the top. It was a bit sweet, and she scooped another spoonful. Cere noticed that Cal was visibly distraught, scratching his graying beard and looking downward blankly. "What?" blurted Cere, "I can tell something is bothering you."

"I don't feel good about any of this." sighed Cal worriedly, "Do you think Solo knew about her?"

"About Temnateta?" asked Cere, confusedly, "I doubt it. Solo led the First Order as Kylo Ren, he had nothing to do with the Sith Eternal. I am certain this is the apprentice of Palpatine."

"She needs to be eliminated." noted Cal, "The Galaxy won't rest until she's dead." "Easy, Cal." insisted Cere, not pleased by his tone or even the words he was saying, "We need to get the Jedi Order back up on its feet, firmly on our feet." Cal inhaled deeply and stood up from his chair. He looked between the silk curtains at the bedroom windows, peeking outside. It was nearly sundown. "Did you hear me?" asked Cere loudly, "This isn't the time to do anything impulsive."

"Do not worry about me, Master." smiled Cal, walking over to Cere's bed, patting her hand, "It's Solo we must keep an eye on."

"He's changed…" whispered Cere sternly, "You can feel it in the Force."

"When the Dark Side takes hold of you, there's always a little bit left in you."


Ahsoka Tano

"You're letting yourself get tired too quickly," examined Ahsoka, watching from a stool as Ben Solo practiced his lightsaber forms in a training room in the Jedi Temple, "remember restraint." There were beads of sweat on Ben's forehead as he fought an advanced protocol/proxy droid wielding a green training lightsaber. Ben grunted and swung his blue blade hard, trying to exert strength, and overpower the droid.

"That Sith isn't a machine, she'll have to get tired." said Ben, clashing his blade diagonally against the white-light eyed droid.

"This isn't just about the Sith Queen." reminded Ahsoka, crossing her arms, watching intently as her apprentice continued to use too much energy to fight the droid. The droid swung a leg at Ben's ankles. Ben groaned but he didn't fall over, the pain was stinging. Ben used the Force to push the droid all the way to the back of the room, sending sparks out of its back panel, and it dropped the training saber. Ben caught his breath and deactivated his lightsaber, hearing Ahsoka sigh.

He looked over to his right, seeing his Togruta Master rise to her feet.

"I know how to fight." said Ben, "This is a little useless to me." he shrugged his shoulders.

"Useless?" Ahsoka tilted her head, and Ben instantly regretted his choice of words.

"No, not - not useless. Just…"

"Waste of your time?" Ahsoka asked, waiting for an explanation. Ben bit his lip nervously and shook his head no. "That monstrosity nearly killed Cere and I in minutes," Ahsoka took a few more steps closer to Ben, looking up at the tall young man, "she's powerful… very powerful." Ben put away his lightsaber, deactivating it. Ahsoka looked up at the younger man, who was more than half her age.

"We can take her… together. All of us." insisted Ben, "You, Masters Junda and Kestis, Rey and I… and…"

"Your mother is busy rebuilding the Galaxy," said Ahsoka, raising a brow, "and she's leading the Galaxy now." The two Jedi sensed someone approaching the room and both turned to look at the doorway. Standing in the doorway was droid Master Huyang, staring at Ben Solo,

"I was informed that you were assaulting one of my droids."

"We're just training, Huyang." said Ahsoka. Huyang glanced at the training droid that was deactivated, and then at Ben Solo.

"Very well. Also, Master Tano, you are requested at the behest of Arch-Consul Organa in the Executive Building."

"For?"

"She didn't say why, she just wants to see you and Rey."


Darth Temnateta

Moraband

Ancient Sith Temple

Temnateta walked confidently down the darkened hall of what used to be a Sith temple, yet was now just a shell of its former self. Even though her armed walkers fired upon the entrance, the inside of the temple remained intact. There were cracked and crumbling statues of robed and hooded figures along the hall, typical interior design of a Sith temple. The half-masked woman came upon a circular room with numerous doorways around her. There was a short obelisk in the center of the room with a holocron resting atop it. However, it wasn't a Sith holocron… it was a blue and gold cube … a Jedi holocron. Temnateta scoffed and walked up to the holocron, reaching out to it. Just moments before touching it, a beam of electricity shot out from the corner of the holocron and swallowed Temnateta's entire hand. She jolted back, startled. Not many things startled her… but this was different.

"What sort of Jedi trickery is this?" she muttered to herself, taking off her glove to look at her fingertips. Her hand was pale and skeletal, and she felt a throbbing pain in her knuckles. She held out her hand again, this time, keeping her fingers a few inches away from it. She concentrated on the Force, attempting to lift the cube off the obelisk. The cube began to vibrate, and a ringing sound emanated from the device. A single corner of the cube started to twist and turn, and Temnateta clenched her jaw tightly, exerting as much strength as she could to unlock the Jedi holocron. Sith weren't supposed to open Jedi holocrons. The ringing got louder and louder. Temnateta felt a resisting feeling from the holocron, it was pushing her away. She had to tighten her grip on the Force, flexing her muscles. The single corner of the holocron twisted fully, sending out a boom of thunder, and Temnateta flew back.

Temnateta knelt as she slid back across the sandy and dusty floor, looking down at the ground. She saw a blue light shining on the floor, and slowly looked up. She saw a drop of blood, and felt something at her nostril. She reached for her nose, and looked at her hand. There was some blood coming out of her nose, and she stood up. Floating above the holocron was a hologram of Darth Sidious… and the hologram began to change from blue to red.

"What's this?" muttered Temnateta. She hologram of Darth Sidious just stared back at her. He looked decayed and decrepit, how he appeared after his resurgence after the Battle of Endor.

"You are not strong enough to defeat the Jedi." said the message, and Temnateta shook her head. She was tired of hearing him, and turned around. "What kind of daughter are you?" Temnateta stopped before reading the cave entryway. "A disappointment, a failure, pure rejection."

Temnateta gritted her teeth, spun around, and shot her hands out at the hologram. She wanted to send it across the room and smash against the cave wall. As she yelled, a protective orb encapsulated the holocron, and the hologram of Sidious began to laugh. The orb sent back a wave of energy and Temnateta nearly fell back, yet she held her ground firmly on the cave floor.

"You will never become what you dream of." Force-lightning began to fire out of Temnateta's fingertips without her even consciously forcing it. The blue lightning licked at the bluish white orb surrounding the holocron, sparking and thundering loudly. " - more powerful than I." she lowered her arms and stopped trying to push the holocron. The hologram of Darth Sidious towered over, and she looked up at it with disgust and a bit of fear in her eyes. She turned away from the holocron and ran down the corridor, away from what seemed like the living spirit of Emperor Palpatine…


Mandator-IV class Siege Dreadnought

Temnateta retired to her private quarters aboard her new flagship, an old Mandator-IV Siege Dreadnaught that was built years before the cold war between the Resistance and First Order. She left Chief Vizier Daha at the bridge to command the remains of their fleet, yet they weren't going anywhere yet. Temnateta locked the door to her room and walked over to the medical-like bed that only had a single white sheet on it and thin pillow. The small windows to her room were covered with metallic blinds, allowing only slivers of starlight to seep into her bright gray room.

She didn't know where to go next. She needed a lead to find the ancient Star-Forge. First Order Admiral Driss Bargess didn't have much to go off of from his previous investigation. The First Order was looking for the Star-Forge since its early days, decades ago. And with the Resistance and allies coalescing into a new galactic federation, it won't be so easy to trek across the Galaxy with her fleet. Moraband was out on the edges of the Outer Rim, but nearby planets were in negotiations with forming ties to the Allied Federation… she was running out of time. She took off her blood-red cape and rested it across the back of a chair near a small table in the corner of the room. There was a silver pitcher of water and an empty cup beside it, but she wasn't parched or even hungry. She felt empty on the inside - bleak.

Her father's words were ringing through her mind. That she'd never be enough, she could never surpass his own power. She wasn't a real Empress. Temnateta walked over to the foot of her bed and took off her gloves. They had bits of sand on them from her short excursion on Moraband. She tossed them onto the table with her cape, and then unbinded her bun. Her half-white and half-brown hair cascaded down her slender shoulders and onto her chest. With just her right hand, she reached for her mask. The pearl-white mask that covered the right side of her face and forehead was attached by a simple pin to her hair and a small piece that rested on her ear. She put the mask down on her bed, staring down at it. Upon doing so, a few strands of white hair slowly fell from the side of her head, landing right atop the mask. Her face felt cold and bare, she felt weak, and vulnerable.

Temnateta reached her right hand to her right cheek, feeling her skin. She immediately withdrew her fingertips, the scars were still present. Her deformities were still there. She lowered her hand and stared down at the mask, staring at the eye-hole.


Coruscant

Office of the Arch-Consul

Leia Organa

"I will be sending an assault team to Listehol," spoke Leia, walking over to the small seating area in the middle of her office in the Executive Building on Coruscant, which were just two couches facing one another. Seated on one of the couches was Rey, sitting in her white and beige Jedi tunic and shawl. "There is a small remnant of First Order sympathizers holding the planetary leader hostage in his home."

"Who will be leading it?" asked Rey, curiously. She was itching for a fight against the remains of the First Order.

"I will, and you and Ben will join me." answered Leia, "They have been sending out distress signals according to our new intelligence agency that is still being set up by the Senate, and with help of former Resistance technicians. Distress signals for the Sith Eternal…"

"Do you think Temnateta will show?"

"I'm not sure, but we need to play it safe. There's no telling how many ships she still has in hiding, and if there are any other First Order Admirals out there with ships. There haven't been any other sightings since the Battle of Exegol." Leia let out an exhale, sitting down next to Rey. "We need to take her out, for good."

"Are you sure the two of us can do so? Ahsoka and Cere couldn't even handle her…"

"You're a Palpatine," reassured Leia, "and I'm a Skywalker." Rey smiled, and chuckled to herself. She felt a little more relaxed, and confident that they could handle it. The first time their assault team confronted Temnateta, on her Xyston-destroyer, they were all split up.

"How are things going with the government formation?" asked Rey. Leia sighed and leaned back on the sofa, staring out into blank space.

"I forgot how difficult people can be when trying to get them to do things for the greater good of society." answered Leia, "There's as much skepticism and fear as many people who are eager to rebuild a democracy. Listehol is one of those systems, we need to secure that region of space."

"Mon Cala is our only stronghold in the Outer Rim east, isn't it?" validated Rey, and Leia nodded.

"We can't rely on just one star system for ship production either, they're a massive target. It's why we need to defeat Temnateta and her remaining ships at Listehol."

"How many ships are we taking?"

"All of them."


Mandator IV class Siege Dreadnought

Chief Vizier Ira Daha

The dark skinned second-in-command of the new Sith Empire sat at a black glossy table with a few holograms of other officers displayed in front of her. She was in her private office onboard the Mandator-IV dreadnaught, seated with her hands on her lap and leg crossed over the other.

"We can secure our grip on the northern Outer Rim if we remain at Moraband, it can be our new headquarters." said one of the other officers via hologram. Each of the three holograms were female officers, all wearing black and red uniforms - typical for the Sith Eternal - now Empire. "Is there any word by the Empress herself on specific instructions?"

"No, but all ancient evidence of the Star Forge's existence pointed it to the far galactic southwest." responded Daha, "On the other side of the Galaxy."

"There's no way we can blow a hole through all those Federation systems without any major losses." said a second female officer.

"I am still waiting on her word about that." said Daha, "We may have to go back through the Unknown Regions."

"That'll require over a hundred individual stops and recalibration of our navicomputers…" said the third female officer, "We'd be better off just going through Federation systems, we don't have to engage in battle." there was a ringing coming from a small device on Daha's desk, flashing a red light.

"I'll have to contact you later, Admirals." the holograms each shut off, one at a time, and Daha sat up in her seat. She fixed her hair and stood up, pushing a button near the device to open the door to her office. Entering her office was the Sith Empress, Temnateta.

Temnateta had her mask on, wearing a black jumpsuit and black cape on her back.

"We're going to Listehol." she said bluntly.

"Your majesty, I do not understand the significance of Listehol…" Daha was confused.

"The Skywalkers will be there, and so will the youngest Palpatine." there was almost a hint of excitement in Temnateta's voice, a sense of eagerness. She wanted to go now.

"Are you sure of this?" asked Daha curiously.

"I saw it in the Force. They bought the bait, and are about to fall in the trap I laid for them." her lips started to curl into a maniacal smile, "Let us collect our rewards, Ira."