Hello everyone, we're back for our second regularly scheduled post-hiatus update! This chapter focuses mainly on Zaliza and Phanza Attam on Taaszon and their developing dynamic. Side note: I considered naming this chapter "The Half-Blood Princess" but I felt that was a little too on the nose, maybe in the future though...we'll see just how cringeworthy I'm willing to be.

Secrets of The Outer Rim.

Act II.

The Heart of Darkness.

Chapter XII.

Philosophies of The Sith Order.


I found myself in a limbo of sorts over the next few days, finding myself in a foreign place without much to do. In the Clone Wars, even on leave, Master Avdune and I spent very little time resting on Coruscant - of course, it doesn't help that, by my decision, our last period of rest was interrupted by our mission to help Phanza - always either on a battlefield or on the way to one. It didn't feel right to have nothing to do nowadays, it gave me too much time to spend inside my own head. If it weren't for Palpatine and his Order 66, Master Avdune would still be alive, Commander Warlock and the rest of W Squad would still be our friends, and, yes, there would an awful and pointless war, but at least it wouldn't be this. This horrible tension as I feel like the Empire will eventually close in on me, like I am living on borrowed time, like the universe itself wanted me to die alongside Master Avdune and the other Jedi during Order 66. The only person I knew who was still alive was a Sith Lord herself and now I'm just sitting around at the edge of the galaxy, alive with no purpose, active with no mission, and a Jedi with an Order.

I had vowed to fix the last one, to rebuild the Jedi while here on Taaszon, but, of course, I had no idea how to actually do that. I was a Padawan, not even a Jedi Knight - though, based on some things that Master Avdune said and the lens of me being a half-blooded Sith, perhaps the business with Taaszon could have served as my Knight Trials, to see if I'm worthy of overcoming my own darkness, but after that, things moved far too quickly for anything to materialize. Perhaps that is why Ullara was so concerned when I used Force Lightning on Dxun, I had come so close and then acted in a way that jeopardized everything, it seemed like I had risen above my nature, but then, I acted in such a way that made it seem like I was falling right back into the typical mold of a Sith. I was a Sith, I was associated with Sith, and I was on a Sith world, how could I possibly rebuild the Jedi Order in a place like this? Phanza said she would allow me to do this if I wanted to, but what would that really look like? Was Phanza going to allow me to train Force sensitive younglings? I doubted it, especially as I suspected these Sith, with their limited population, needed whatever manpower they could get in the coming struggle against Palpatine and his newly formed Galactic Empire.

The Jedi Order was gone then? No, it couldn't go out with that, regardless of how unworthy I am. I may be a mere Padawan, but I'm still a Jedi, the last one perhaps, I couldn't just let the galaxy be absorbed in a war between two factions of Sith. The problem is, however, that saying I'm determined to do this is much easier than actually doing it, after all, I don't even know where to begin going about remaking the Jedi. Should I start with a new Jedi Temple? That sounded like a good move, but how exactly would that look? A temple comparable to the one on Coruscant honestly seemed ostentatious, especially if we're supposed to be hidden from Palpatine. We didn't necessarily have to be hidden from Grand Duchess Voytana, but I would prefer to be, after all, while I think I trust Phanza, I'm not as sure about Voytana and the others, so that eliminated these systems, therefore...I had no idea where this hidden, modest Jedi Temple could even be. Taaszon seemed like a no, at least in the long term then, but, perhaps, the people of this world could provide an answer - these people were loyal to the Sith, sure, but I could ask them what they thought of the Jedi, what a reformed Jedi Order could look like - after all, as harsh as her criticism was, Phanza Attam did raise valid points about the state of the Jedi prior to Order 66. Perhaps, using these testimonies from a bizarre source, I could make a Jedi Order that was better, stronger, and less hypocritical.

I walked out of Castle Attam, emerging out in one of the outdoor overlooks. I found Phanza Attam standing in the middle of the overlook, curved hilt black and red lightsaber held high over her head in a Makashi stance as Ruumshi and Avoine circled her, armed with their electrostaffs, ready to spar with their mistress. Avoine, the human, attacked first, running at Lady Attam with her electrostaff, swinging high, Phanza lowered herself to catch the staff as it swung down on her, but she new what was going on, quickly spinning out of the way as Ruumshi snuck up next, slamming down the rear end of the electrostaff right where Phanza was. Lady Attam strained up out of her spin and went on the offensive, hitting her two bodyguards with rapid, light strikes to keep them off balance, but there is a very good reason why Phanza spars with these two, her bodyguards were very capable of keeping her on her toes. Ironically enough, the next move that Ruumshi made was a sweep for Phanza's legs, but Lady Attam jumped over it, however, even in the air, her mission was far from easy, having to use her lightsaber mid air to knock away a thrust from Avoine.

Phanza Attam landed softly and almost floated over to the two again - not actually floating, Phanza didn't seem to be using the Force here, that was very likely the point, allowing the Sorceress to practice her skills with the lightsaber - her black cored lightsaber striking Ruumshi as, with her other hand, she caught Avoine's wrist and pulled. Phanza tripped Avoine over and brought the human bodyguard down to her knees, seemingly about to force her out of the fight, but, despite the human kneeled over like she was about to be executed, she headbutted Phanza in the stomach and twisted back up, attacking back with her electrostaff. Avoine struck directly at Phanza while, behind her, Ruumshi swung for Phanza's head. The Nautolan smirked and dropped to the ground, letting them strike each other's electrostaff, leading Phanza to believe that her bodyguards shorted out their weapons, however, this was a coordinated attack. The electrostaffs, rather than shorting out, locked Phanza in an electrified circle, seemingly leaving the Sith Lord trapped and unable to escape.

Phanza rose her lightsaber directly up before letting go, levitating the blade with the Force while it collided with the two electrostaffs, freeing Phanza out of the prison of lightning, but she wasn't done yet. Phanza, so aware of her surroundings through the Force, attacked Ruumshi with her floating lightsaber while she attacked Avoine with her bare hands. Phanza used her left hand to keep Avoine's electrostaff away while hitting her with quick jabs from her right hand, but Avoine, not to be deterred, stopped Phanza by grabbing one of her tattooed head-tails, yanking it, painfully. I felt it was interesting to see that Phanza let her bodyguards actually physically hurt her - this sparring was meant to be serious, intense, practical combat training - all designed to keep Lady Attam as sharp and deadly as possible, even if, for whatever reason, even refraining from using the Force unless it was absolutely necessary. Credit to Ruumshi and Avoine, they've already forced Phanza to use the Force to escape the trap and Avoine even managed to repel a hand-to-hand assault, however, the Sith Lord was clearly going to win here. Phanza spun around and kicked Avoine in the stomach, despite her robes. At the same time, almost as if coordinated, Phanza deactivated her lightsaber and floated the hilt behind Ruumshi's electrostaff, reactivating right before her neck and forcing her to yield, while, Avoine, who fell over from the kick, fell to the ground. Phanza stepped down on the electrostaff, leaving Avoine holding the staff just above her neck on the ground, forcing the human bodyguard to yield at the same time as her orange-skinned Zabrak counterpart. The sparring match over, Phanza called her lightsaber back while helping Avoine back up. The bodyguards bowed before their Sith Lord before leaving the platform, Ruumshi offering me a friendly glance before she left.

Phanza, having won the sparring match, straightened herself out, the woman stretching in her robes - she was once again dressed in the midriff baring and sleeveless purple robe, showing off her red skin nicely, her hood was done and she gathered her head tails over her shoulders, as per usual - they were rather displaced by the fight, given Avoine literally yanked one - and the Nautolan appeared completely unbothered by the cool mountain air. Phanza loaded my closest with similar sets of robes, but I hadn't worn such robes yet - I was currently dressed in black robes with a couple of red pinstripes for trim - nor did I think I could wear them soon, they required a confidence and a sinfulness I simply didn't have. Though I had to admit that Phanza looked elegant like that, toned skin stretching in the rising sun, rays of light half-blocked by the towering Citadel at the center of Taaszon's capital city. The Nautolan turned around, her large, black eyes, framed by the tattoos coming up her head-tails to her forehead, finding me, the Sith Lord shooting me a gentle smile. I walked over to the Sith Lord, suddenly becoming conscious of the fact that I was outdoors with my double-bladed lightsaber clipped to my belt - even if other Jedi were alive, I had to be the only Jedi in such a state, any other survivors keeping a low profile and hiding the fact that they were Jedi - an odd privilege of my exile amongst the Sith.

"Hello Zaliza, what are you up to?" the Sith Lord asked, Phanza instantly sinking into pleasantness despite having just been in a very real practice fight. I thought that was weird, I was always taught that the Dark Side was seductive, addictive, and consuming, that to tap into it leads down a path of certain destruction, yet here, the Sith Lord, fresh from a fairly significant duel, was nice, calm, and levelheaded. Lady Attam was continuing to confound me and, despite her promises to the contrary, I had to imagine that was intentional in an attempt to bring me over to the Dark Side. Phanza wanted to break down my preconceived notions of the Sith, the Sith Order, and Sith philosophy, thus, making me doubt my Jedi teachings. It was a good plan, after all, Phanza was an intelligent woman, but, I doubt her plans can be very effective considering I see through her schemes...or, at least, that should make her plans more effective. The truth is, despite the fact that I'm well aware of what Phanza is trying to do, her efforts seem to be working and I am not only questioning my own beliefs from the Jedi Order, but I'm curious about learning more about her beliefs. Now, naturally, just reading Sith Philosophy will not make me agree with it, but, there is a chance I will find something I agree with. Nevertheless, perhaps Sith beliefs can fill me in on how to improve the Jedi, again, through unlikely influences, I can create an order of Jedi that avoids both the flaws of the old Jedi Order and the flaws of all these various factions of the Sith.

"I want to go down into the city, alone. I can't handle being stuck in the castle anymore, I need to get out, I need to move around, and I need to breath." I stressed, needing to decompress and wanting to free myself of any lingering, illogical worries that me being stuck in this palace is just a covert form of imprisonment. Strictly speaking, I didn't need to go out alone, in fact, in some ways, going out with a guide might be smarter, but I wanted to be free, alone, to be able to go wherever I want, speak to whoever I want, and take as long as I want, free of anyone else's scheduling or oversight. The fact that this way would add some more secrecy to my new Jedi Order was just a bonus, but the fact is, I truly did want to experience some freedom and some privacy. I didn't expect to actually keep the Jedi Order secret from Phanza, after all, we have that strange Force Bond somehow, but, as I explained, I wasn't as certain about Grand Duchess Voytana and the other Sith, I wasn't sure if I could trust them in the same way that I trust Phanza. Even then, a part of my brain, likely the same part that is trying me to rebuild the Jedi, doesn't want to trust Phanza, fearing her just because she is a Sith and because of some of the things she's told me. The woman literally wanted me to strike down Chancellor Palpatine at one point and, while in retrospect, perhaps that would be the right thing to do for the greater good, but neither of us knew that at the time, Phanza probably had strong suspicions at this stage, but enough to justify a murder? I doubted that.

"Alone?" Phanza asked, well aware of the fact that I didn't know Taaszon well and that it was a strange request, nevertheless, the Sith Lord did seem to understand my emotional state, or at least tolerated it, because she didn't stop me. In fact, Lady Attam not only tolerated this, but she gave me some important advice and some privileges that will make my task much easier "Very well, you know how to contact me if you get lost. Between those robes and your lightsaber, nobody will dare bother you unless you initiate contact. Pacification droids and Chiss officers are common throughout the city, they keep the peace, so you'll be more than safe. There are no restrictions for Sith in the capital city and, while you are a Jedi, these same privileges will apply to you."

"Thank you, Phanza," I thanked her and headed off to the city below. I wasn't sure what to expect, on one hand, Taaszon's capital city appeared to be a small but clean, modern, and safe cosmopolitan city, however, based on what Phanza had said, this city seemed much darker than I had expected. The safety came due to pacification droids, vicious policing, a liberal number of Sith in the city at any given time, and other such instruments of autocracy. The autocracy and inequality of such a place was so great that there were restrictions on who could travel where and why, with only the Sith being above such restrictions, and myself, still a Jedi, but one who Phanza wishes to turn over to the Dark Side, by convincing me, she said. How could she possibly convince me that this Sith faction isn't all that evil when her own capital city is filled with evidence of tyranny and oppression? Phanza seemed too smart to allow her plan to fail so easily, so quickly, yet here she was, letting me go to the city and see whatever I wish, without restrictions of chaperones, she couldn't keep me on rails and ensure I only see a good version of Taaszon, so why was she allowing this? Did she think that her individual benevolence would be enough to make me overlook the crimes of her faction? I was sure what Phanza was playing at and I was even less sure if such a place, a city of tyranny, could actually provide anything for my future Jedi Order after all. I wanted to find the good in Taaszon and at least consider it for the Jedi, but what if there really wasn't any good out there to find? Either way, I was about to find out.


A speeder taxi took me down from Castle Attam to Phanza's private landing pad in the capital city - the other routes were to the Citadel and the other evidently led to some fortress in a different valley - exiting the purple and black taxi and heading out into the city itself, finding myself in a fair amount of activity. Obviously the population of Taaszon is in no way comparable to Coruscant or even Nar Shaddaa, but compared to other planets I've been to in these last phases of the Clone Wars, such as Felucia, Dxun, and Ypherro, this capital city seemed like a hot bed of activity. I would've imagined a Sith planet would be dominated by humans, after all, the Jedi taught me that the Sith have been, historically, incredibly xenophobic, but that didn't seem to be the case here. From just a visual assessment of the people walking through this part of the city, Chiss actually seemed to be the plurality - the blue skinned, red-eyed aliens were, based on my limited reading thus far, native to this part of the galaxy, the rest of Taaszon's people came later in an exodus from the former Sith Empire - this distant area of the galaxy was, and, to the Empire, still is, uncharted space, an ideal location for these stragglers of the ancient Sith to settle.

Speaking of the ancient Sith, those who settled here seem to be disproportionately alien. Yes, humans are the second most common species are the Chiss, but there are also many Zabraks, Rattataki, Twi'Leks, Togruta, Mirialans, and other aliens as well, a remarkable diversity. In fact, I had a hard time finding prejudice in general on Taaszon, I could see men holding hands with other men, women holding hands with other women, nor did there seem to be slavery, despite that being a typical practice of the Sith - perhaps this isn't entirely benevolent, after all, it is a possibility that their ancestors decided that slaves weren't worth transporting to the new systems and switched to automation so they wouldn't have to feed a labor force - there was classism, but beyond that, the capital city of Taaszon didn't seem like that bad of a place to live, at least not as bad as I had feared. Crime was punished severely by the massive pacification droids and the cold, stoic, and vigilant Chiss police, and they would likely crush any sign of protest or dissent with brutal efficiency, but that was to be expected with the Sith. I don't believe Grand Duchess Voytana's behavior is good or that I would do the same in Taaszon, but the place didn't seem like the autocratic, soul crushing hellhole I imagined when I first heard of the pacification droid...this all seemed very contradictory and strange, but, despite that, I felt boosted, I felt like these people could give the Jedi of the future some vital insights and wisdom, insights and wisdom I would be trying to learn.

In an attempt to acquire knowledge and to make sense of the conundrum that is Taaszon, I was first drawn to the tacky, colorful lights of the local cantina. The Jedi did not have a prohibition on alcohol, however, it was frowned upon, nevertheless, even as far back as the times of Revan and the Exile, the Jedi recognized the value of cantinas. The inebriated and relaxed patrons of such venues could be an excellent fountain of information, as well as the bartenders who remained sober and aware as all the patrons around them aired their dirty laundry and told their tales to their drinking buddies. Such an establishment was distasteful, however, I would be able to ask a wide variety of clientele about their views on the Jedi. There were restrictions in the city, such as that the lower classes could no enter rich neighborhoods and that droids weren't allowed in the Chiss districts, but this area of the city was open to everyone. The rich no doubt had their own, segregated cantina, but that didn't stop some of them - likely the younger and more eccentric types - from traveling down here. Thus, ready to speak with the widest variety of people easily accessible to me, I entered the cantina, expecting the reek of booze, death sticks, and...bodily fluids typical of a Clone Wars era Outer Rim bar.

The place was, surprisingly, actually clean and well kept, if tacky, the dim decor lit by liberal use of purple neon lights to produce an effect which seemed like it belonged at a nightclub, but this place was more of a lounge and a bar - then again, there were two back rooms, one of which looked to be a casino room and the other seemed to be more of a sports bar, so perhaps this cantina was meant to be many things at once - and, to their credit, their diverse purposes produced an equally diverse crowd, containing some surprising dynamics. One both contained what appeared to be an eccentric human male Sith telling a raunchy story to a crowd made up of a pair of soldiers, a smuggler, a blind Togruta gambler, and a Twi'Lek dancer on the Sith's arm...truly an odd crowd. I decided to stick to the bar itself for now, seeing a number of active bartenders and deciding to approach the small Chiss woman cleaning a glass in a quiet corner of the bar, that seemed like the ideal place for me to ask my questions, being given a certain discretion and not bothering anyone else. I wondered what approach would get me the most information though - I had a lightsaber, so I was obviously a Force user - but, should I be honest and be myself, a Jedi searching for information, or should I pose as a Zeltron Sith to get more honest information? On the other hand, perhaps posing as a Sith would make the bartender believe that this was a test of some kind, the Sith trying to find out who was loyal or not, so I decided to just be myself, not wanting to scare anyone by coming across as an inquisitive and mysterious Sith asking dangerous questions, that could be incredibly frightening, even to the people who lived under the Sith, perhaps especially to them.

"All those Jedi dead, can you believe it?" the Chiss woman muttered as I sat down, her pupilless red eyes clearly looking at a news report on a screen behind me, despite the lack of clear irises. I wondered how the barkeep knew I was willing to talk about such a thing, after all, not everyone wants to come to a bar to discuss foreign events, but perhaps there truly is something to bartenders have intuition, nevertheless, I was glad that she started the conversation before I even had to steer it my way. At least, I was glad, then, once again, the realization hit me that all those Jedi were dead, the gravity of the bartender's question reminding me of Order 66 and the horrible betrayal that rocked the galaxy. This event was so traumatic and major that it's already common knowledge on Taaszon, a system foreign to the Republic - now, I know they know all about the Republic thanks to their history and long term isolation, but still, news travels fast, tragically fast, fast enough to constantly reopen wounds before they can heal. At least this conversation would, in theory, contribute to undoing the damage that Palpatine did to the Jedi and to the galaxy, rebuilding the Order and letting it be a cornerstone of the Republic one again.

"No, no I cannot. All those Jedi betrayed and wiped out so quickly? It doesn't feel real. Now, with the Jedi gone, the Force itself feels hollow, countless Jedi have been eliminated and it has left an incredible void in the Force. I can't really explain it to someone who doesn't have the Force, but it was cataclysmic, before, I could feel the soft hum of hundreds of Jedi, now...I just feel a dull silence, a disturbing nothingness that I desperately want to be distracted from." I admitted, in the end neither confirming nor denying that I was a Sith, after all, the bartender started the conversation for me, revealing anything concrete now could throw off the flow of it. I would see where this method would get me and, if I'm still not satisfied with the answer, I'll reveal that I am a Jedi and ask my questions through that lens, seeing whether or not that changes what the bartender has to say.

"No one has told me as much yet, but I figured as much. A lot of you Force using types have been in and out of here lately. What'll you have?" the Chiss woman asked, getting down to business but not moving away quite yet. Based on my understanding of bars, this doesn't mean that the conversation is over, rather, this means that she wants to profit off of selling my drinks while enjoying the conversation. This was the moment when I realized that I didn't have any money - or rather, as a Jedi, I wasn't supposed to have any money, only a chip of Republic credits to use when necessary, not for personal expenses - however, on the belt of my robes, as with all the robes Phanza provided me, I found something suspiciously similar to a credit chip. I offered that back to the bartender and she accepted it, however, she did raise a confused eyebrow, which I then quickly realized was because I still haven't actually ordered anything.

"Start me off with a water please, feel free to charge the credit chip." I answered, not sure what Taaszon's policy on water would be, in the Republic, it was supposed to be free at bars, though whether or not that actually applied varied, especially on distant Outer Rim worlds as Clone Wars rationing grew greater and greater. Regardless of the policy, I wasn't going to drink alcohol, but I wanted to talk to the bartender and potentially other patrons, so, I let her charge the credit chip regardless of whether or not water actually cost anything, I doubted that Phanza would care. The bartender didn't seem phased either way by my answer and charged the chip before handing me a cup of water and remaining with me as I talked with her, perhaps slipping into impersonating a Sith as I asked her more "I know this might sound weird to you, but I can't help but think that this is a tragedy, especially with the pretenders in control of the whole galaxy. The Jedi were incredibly flawed, hypocritical, they stayed in a temple high above the actual life and people of Coruscant, and they were consumed by the bloodshed and violence of the Clone Wars, loosing touch of their own code and their own purpose, but they didn't deserve this. They didn't get the luxury or dying in fair battle or got to wither away - perhaps that would be the only correct way for the Jedi to go away - instead, they were betrayed and annihilated. It seems incredibly anticlimactic."

"I don't know about that. Everyone learned about the Jedi hunting down Sith after the Great Hyperspace War and again after the Great Galactic War, purging the Sith Purebloods on Korriban after the former and then leaving Dromund Kaas dead, abandoned, and lost after the latter. The Jedi have purged the Sith before, now they have been purged by a faction of Sith, a faction of Sith who deliberately weaken themselves to two no less. I'm sorry that so many Jedi died here and now, but they brought it upon themselves by forgetting their actions three thousand, five thousand years ago." the bartender replied, revealing much to me in so many words. First of all, this ancient history was very real to the Sith, they were still taught it, what the Jedi considered a terrible, ancient atrocity that was necessary for the greater good, these people considered a genocide. Second of all, because of that very real, very social history, that Wayfinder to Dromund Kaas really is an important artifact. All of the ancient ones were either reprogrammed to lead to Taaszon or lost, but now, now the Sith had a way to return to their old capital, to reclaim a history they perceive as taken from them by the Jedi. This faction of Sith was a strange one, they hardly seemed to be the evil, bigoted, tyrannical state I expected, rather, they were an intelligent, aware, and advanced society that happened to live, relatively happily, within an autocratic state. This shouldn't be a real thing, autocracy was, in my experience, always symbolized by toiling alien peasants held at gunpoint by droids while separatist corporate lords demanded more and more production, working the people to death and robbing a planet of its resources, Taaszon didn't look like that, far from it.

"I did say they are hypocritical, but is a cycle of repeated genocides and revenge what we really want here?" I asked, at this point more trying to get a feeling for the Grand Duchy of Taaszon and their views on the Republic and their mission as a whole. They were a Sith faction so, surely, their nominal goal was to eliminate the Republic and conquering the galaxy but, even through Taaszon is incredibly militarized and deadly, they simply don't have the population and resources to have fought the Republic - they didn't even believe they could fight a sustained conflict against the separatists - now, they were up against an Empire that was as strong as both the Republic and the separatists put together. So, even if conquering the galaxy was still the Grand Duchy's nominal, idealistic goal, it couldn't possibly be in their realistic, short term future, after all, radical change and growth would be necessary to even stand a chance in an asymmetrical, guerilla war against the Empire. It is difficult to win against an opponent with virtually limitless resources, no regard for the lives of their own people, and a ceaseless desire to eliminate any and all enemies with brutal efficiency. Palpatine knows Taaszon exists so, even if we do not wage war against him, he will eventually strike at the Grand Duchy simply because it has the potential of being a thorn in his side and the plotting, calculating Chancellor did not just play two sides of a war and engineer the slaughter of the Jedi to spare a potential rival. Palpatine and his Galactic Empire will be brutal to Taaszon, it is simply in their nature.

"I suppose not, but the Jedi have been overdue for being cut done. Maybe they'll come back better, maybe they won't learn a thing, maybe they won't back back at all, who knows. I just can't believe it happened like this, you are right, it does seems anticlimactic and unfulfilling. No great battle, no attempt to retake the galaxy, just a sudden extermination mere months after we emerged to the galaxy." the bartender revealed, I wondered if she started here not too long ago, my understanding was that bartenders weren't supposed to come off as too opinionated so as to not alienate their patrons, but this woman had no problem stating her beliefs. That being said, that was somewhat of an advantage for me, especially because this Chiss woman just offered me a chance to question her about improving the Jedi, learning what this young woman, evidently quite loyal to Taaszon, had to say. I suppose this is a rather ordinary perspective, after all, this woman was subject to the patriotic, Sith education of the people of the Grand Duchy. I suppose that her education could apply to a lot of the people of Taaszon, especially in her age group, so maybe, for the next person I would ask, I would have to search for an obviously different perspective, seeing what I can find.

"What would you have the Jedi do then? How could you have them be any better?" I asked, wondering what the Chiss woman had to say. Turning back to the Jedi and to the future of the order I could reform. I was a mere Padawan, I was only just starting to accumulate Jedi, and I've been under the influence of the Sith, so, in order to reform the Jedi, I need to accumulate knowledge, accumulate advice, and accumulate influences. A Jedi Order formed with so much Sith influence is perhaps doomed to fail and flawed, but I was going to try and I was going to try and focus on any and all good within Taaszon rather than the bad. I didn't want to use the Dark Side or hurt people, but I did want to see what their philosophy had to offer.

"The Jedi need to decide whether they are going to truly live by their principles or whether they are going to defend the Republic right or wrong. The rise of Palpatine and now the transformation to the Empire is a great example for why the Jedi need to reanalyze their alliance with the Republic, if they do not at least investigate this, then they are perpetually vulnerable to Republic politics. The Jedi must decide between a grand temple and living modestly, they cannot do both, no one is going to fall for it, not anymore, not after the Jedi were proven not to be invincible. The also need to make a decision as to whether they are peaceful or they are warriors, after all, they claim to be pacifists, yet they were wiped out by their own troops on the front lines of a war." the Chiss woman countered, pointing out a number of massive decisions that the Jedi would have to make to return in a time after they've been wiped out. The Jedi cannot simply go back to what they once were or, at very least, if we do return to what we were, we need to have a very good reason for doing so.

"Thank you, you have given me much to think about." I thanked the bartender and made my way out of the cantina, satisfied with the criticisms and the questions that were raised here, some very important decisions that a Jedi Order would have to address. If I had to answer these questions, alone, now - which I wouldn't want to do, as difficult as it may be so soon after Order 66, I would need to form a council for this new Jedi Order...giving me even more difficulties and hurdles to overcome to make this ambition a reality - I would say that the Jedi needs greater autonomy from the Republic. After all, our duty to the Republic is what prevented us from going after the slave-owning Hutts who were allied with the Republic, something I can't help but regret even more now that Thonna Ai'sunn is, more than likely, dead, killed by clones. I also wanted a smaller, more hidden temple, which was rendered necessary by the fact that the Empire would be hunting down this Jedi Order and I couldn't quite trust the Taaszon Sith either. As for the peacekeepers or warriors angle, I have been saying I would rather the Jedi be peacekeepers than warriors - well, we'll have to fight the Empire first, but, after that, I want my Jedi to settle down, become calm, and serve as neutral arbiters, fighting only when necessary - so I found it interesting that this is being echoed by the Chiss woman.


I wasn't very successful upon leaving the cantina - one wise guy human told me the Jedi would be better off if they didn't ask so many questions, meanwhile, on the other end of the scale, an elderly Togruta woman mistook me for a covert Sith testing her loyalty and panicked, not wanting to tell me anything, then there was my attempt to question a pacification droid, which went about as well as one would expect... - and now I found myself heading towards a large square in the city. There was a fountain in the middle topped with a statue of a Mandalorian warrior, implying that the grand structure at the opposite end of the square was the Mandalorian Enclave. The building was maybe five stories tall, but it was wide, grand, and swept down to the sides, the massive entrance styled like the T-shaped visor of the Mandalorians, and, all the while, the monolithic shadow of the Citadel slowly made it's way across the structure, a never-ending tower, but a thin one, one that could never quite block the sun. The Mandalorian imagery was an interesting sight, a reminder of how much the Clones changed during the clone wars - they never looked exactly like Mandalorians, but the aesthetic was far closer at the beginning, but, slowly but surely, it shifted, growing angrier, more menacing, more pragmatic and less idealistic - now, that transformation is complete. Based on various news reports on Taaszon, showing footage of Coruscant - likely discreetly retrieved from Imperial news sources - the colors and individuality of the clones has been stripped away, replaced with bland, uniform, white armor. The clones worked so hard to differentiate themselves, to be unique, now, Palpatine's mind control has reduced them to his generic cannon fodder, mindless troops to serve his evil purposes and -

I once again got lost in my own head, thinking of the horrible last days of the Republic and what Palpatine has twisted that into, and this time, there was an unfortunate consequence. I bumped into a Mandalorian warrior and found myself falling to the ground in a graceless and embarrassing manner. I rolled over and found myself looking up at a surprisingly tiny Mandalorian in red armor, the curved visor of her helmet similar to the kind worn by female Death Watch members - the Mandalorian terrorist group turned unlikely ally against Maul in the Battle of Mandalore...there is no telling what happened to them after Order 66, I can only imagine Palpatine would want to eliminate a loose end and bring Mandalore under Imperial rule - I wasn't sure what to expect from this warrior. A fight was possible, but I didn't think that a little Mandalorian, likely a student, would brazenly fight a Force user in the middle of a populated city with police and pacification droids everywhere, so that was an unlikely possibility. I suppose it was more likely that the Mandalorian would bark out a half-hearted apology and walk away, that way, they would defer to the Sith without sacrificing their honor or their highly independent culture. What I was not expecting, however, was for the Mandalorian to take her helmet off, profusely apologize, and offer to help me up, nor did I expect the person underneath that helmet to be a young Mirialan.

"Oh! I'm sorry! That was my fault! Are you okay?" the young Mandalorian offered, I accepted her hand and got up before she led me off to the edge of the fountain where we both sat down "I'm so sorry, my lord, you're okay, aren't you? I didn't mean to knock you over, but I wasn't paying attention, you see, my handler at the Enclave told me I have to work on my social skills if I'm ever going to be taken seriously as a Mandalorian. She told me that I talk too much and I go on blabbering about nothing, she says it's very unbecoming of Mandalorians, that we should be the strong silent types and...I'm doing it again, aren't I?"

"Don't worry about it, it's fine," I laughed lightly while a dark green blush came over her face, the Mirialan's tattoos seemed to be an odd blend of Mirialan and Mandalorian styles, with two rows of tiny Mythosaur emblems below each of her eyes. Her accent was different too, she lacked the typical posh Taaszon accent that Phanza, Ruumshi, Avoine, and even Grand Duchess Voytana spoke with, in fact, the Mirialan's accent seemed more like a typical Republic accent like my own, which seemed odd. Then again, the Chiss of Taaszon, including the bartender woman I spoke to earlier, mostly used the same accent. There were a handful of heavily assimilated Chiss that spoke with the Taaszon accent - which, weirdly enough, was similar to some of the wealthy, Coruscant elite accents - but those were in the minority. Nevertheless, this strange, rambling Mandalorian seemed like she would be far more receptive to my questions than the rest of the people I've spoken to. Her personality honestly seems like the most open and friendly I've seen on Taaszon which, to be fair to her handler, seems incredibly bizarre coming from a Mandalorian. In any case, I decided to be upfront with her "I'm not a Sith either...well, not a member of the Sith Order anyway, I'm a Jedi. The last one perhaps."

"Wow...how did you end up here? You're not undercover, are you? Am I allowed to be asking you these questions?" the Mandalorian asked, her brain and her mouth moving too fast for her own good. I suppose that, if she can cultivate these skills, she's be an incredibly quick thinker on the battlefield, but, in the meantime, she would have to settle for coming off as endearing, which again, I admit that is an odd quality to see in a Mandalorian warrior. In ancient times, Mandalorians fought against the Jedi for glory, invading worlds not for conquest, but in search of worthy opponents, and, when Jedi and Mandalorians did fight, it wasn't always a Jedi victory. These people are deadly, Jedi killers, yet here I am smiling and laughing with one of them. Taaszon truly is an odd place.

"No, I'm not undercover and you're free to ask me whatever you wish. I fled here after Order 66 and I'm staying with Lady Attam now, I was one of the Jedi who came to assist her during the separatist invasion." I revealed, figuring that, based on how informed the people of this world seemed to be, I gave more than enough information for this red armored woman to trust and accept me. Speaking of, that brought up another issue, we still haven't properly introduced ourselves yet "My name is Zaliza Vyvan by the way, Padawan of the Jedi Order."

"My name is Yevenna Aphlen, a foundling of Clan Ordo," Yevenna revealed, showing off the emblem on her shoulder pauldrons, a long vertical symbol which seemed like it could be some strange, double-bladed weapon or perhaps a space station "That is the Star Forge emblem, adopted as our insignia by Mandalore the Preserver, who fought alongside the mighty Revan to destroy it. Our Clan fought alongside the Republic back then, however, things changed quickly after that, the descendants of Mandalore the Preserver saw the Republic and the Jedi sinking into their old habits after the time of Revan and the Exile, thus, without reasonable Jedi to side with, Clan Ordo drifted away from the Republic, finding a place with the hidden Sith Empire. That, eventually, fell apart, and, joining with a number of Sith survivors, Clan Ordo journeyed here to Taaszon, finding a new home. Then one day, they found a little orphan girl on the streets and accepted me as one of their own...you didn't need to know all that at once, did you? Sorry about that...I just...I talk, a lot."

"It's okay Yevenna, I don't mind at all. I do wonder though, what would you consider a reasonable Jedi? What did Revan and the Exile do that was so appealing to your clan in ancient times?" I asked, genuinely wondering what she had to say, though I suspected it would be quite a bit. She took off her helmet for this conversation, but I wonder how this would all sound through it's filters and voice modulation, I couldn't help but think it would sound silly to hear this rambling coming from a somewhat deeper, more mechanical more threatening voice than Aphlen's harmless soprano.

"I mean, I get that the Jedi are all zen and peaceful, not everyone can be warlike, I know that, but...Jedi need to be able to act when it is necessary. There is a time where Jedi have to drop the pacifism and mercy and be decisive - I'm not saying I don't like Taaszon or that I shouldn't be here, but...the Jedi had two opportunities to destroy the Sith and they failed both times, now we're here, we're still able to present a threat - not to mention Palpatine wiped out the Jedi and now rules on Coruscant. No offense, but the Jedi had the chance to stop this thousands of years ago and you failed. Again, I'm not saying that you brought this on yourself, but..." Yevenna replied, giving a different perspective on these Jedi purges of the Sith than the Chiss bartender. I suppose that's the result of the Mandalorian perspective, Yevenna has been influenced by the Mandalorian Enclave and, despite her attitude being a bit different from the typical mold, that influence is reflected in her. She recognizes that the purges were a tragedy and nearly destroyed a civilization, but she understands what the Republic was trying to do and why they purged Korriban, even noting that, from a war perspective, the Republic should've been even more thorough. From my perspective, considering I'm apparently half of a Sith myself and in contact with Taaszon, the Sith Purge at the end of the Great Hyperspace War felt like an even worse war crime by the Republic now that I know this is exactly the kind of thing that Mandalorians would approve of and do in our shoes, no offense to Yevenna.

"I understand what you're saying and, while I don't fully agree with it, I understand that Palpatine has to be stopped. He won't see redemption or remorse - he talked to the Jedi Masters constantly, got to know them, and he lied in their faces - he executed men and women he saw on a daily basis, men and women who trusted him and protected him with their lives. Jedi died to protect him and he repaid them with Order 66, he is beyond justice." I compromised, admitting that, if it were even possible to depose Palpatine at this stage - the man played the whole galaxy against itself, now, everything is under his control, it is hardly unreasonable to believe he may be unstoppable at this point - he must be killed in the process. A Palpatine that survives is a constant threat to the Jedi Order and to peace, regardless of any theoretical and hellish prison we could invent for him.

"What about Taaszon? I mean...we're a threat too..." Yevenna asked, asking a difficult question that I would have to confront. I didn't want to fight against Taaszon, especially not after everything that Phanza has done for me, agenda or not, but, well, Yevenna was right, the Grand Duchy was a threat to a resurgent Jedi Order and to any reborn Republic...or was it? Quite frankly, I don't want conflict, therefore, if there is going to be any tension between a reformed Jedi Order and the Grand Duchy of Taaszon, it would come from Grand Duchess Voytana. The woman was powerful and frightening - I was scared of the mere visual of her from the mental link with Phanza, the reality of Voytana, with the thick, constant, and almost oppressive presence of her power, as even worse - but I didn't really know what her goals were. She had Phanza contact the Republic to help against the separatists, so clearly the Grand Duchy is too weak to take on the Empire, so galactic conquest can't be her goal, I've established that, so what is her short term goal? That answer to that question would have far-reaching consequences.

"I don't know, I really don't know..." I trailed off, grateful for Yevenna's answers and advice, but having no real response to her very important question. In any case, if I was going to learn about Taaszon's true mission and purpose, I can think of a place where I can figure it out - Phanza's libraries.


The sun had set and Taaszon's rings became the dominant feature in the sky as I returned to Castle Attam, seeing the icy flying debris and the red clouds make a rather beautiful sky - especially when combined with the dark blacks, blues, and purples of distant space dotted with millions of stars, many of those nearby stars hosting the Grand Duchy's other planets, other stars yet hosted foreign civilizations. Some of these distant Unknown Regions civilizations were known to the Republic, but most were not, hence the grand and foreboding name for this part of the galaxy. I had to admit the night sky here was beautiful, but I could stargaze another night, for now, I have a library to get to. I made my way through the castle and eventually found myself in the library, confronted both the rows of datapads and holocrons I was expecting, spread across two floors, as well as a number of actual bookshelves, then a generous number of computers dotted the room. This was Phanza's personal collection, but it seemed comparable to the Jedi Archives, if not more extensive.

I pulled out my personal datapad - another thing unexpectedly provided to me by Lady Attam - and collected a number of interesting sound books on Sith philosophy before heading over to the computer terminal, copying the data over so I could read it whenever I want, before leaving the other datapads on a generously placed rolling droid, watching it head over to the shelves. I had no idea how these little gliding units could actually get the datapads back up onto the shelves, but they seemed to be here for that role, so I'm sure that they're somehow capable for it. In any case, sitting at the library, I started going through the reading list, beginning, sensibly, with an introductory volume on the Sith Code. Unsurprisingly, the text started with the code itself, the very same code that Phanza told me onboard the Ultimate when Master Avdune and I tried to get information off of the Sith...Force that felt like a lifetime ago.

Peace is a lie, there is only passion,

through passion, I gain strength,

through strength, I gain power,

through power, I can victory,

"Through victory, my chains are broken." I looked over to find Phanza Attam entering the room, the red-skinned Nautolan entering the library with her hood down, letting her head tails lay free. The Nautolan walked over to me and started with a laugh "You were thinking about this code so hard it felt like you were yelling across th bond. You do realize you could've simply asked me about my philosophy, right?"

"I know that, but I also know that I'm free to read whatever I want." I countered, taking advantage of the fact that I now felt comfortable with my freedom, willing to speak up to Phanza and resist her a little bit more now. The Nautolan seemed unphased either way, laughing off my resistance as if it was a harmless, silly joke. I didn't know why Phanza felt the need to do this, she was nice and caring beneath her rough exterior, why did she insist on being cruel and demeaning? She didn't have to hit me with a condescending, humiliating laugh when I'm trying to assert myself.

"You are, you are, but please, humor me." Phanza said before offering me her hand. I glanced at it and hesitated only a moment before grabbing it, letting the Nautolan Sith led me out of the library into a different room, still possessing the datapad and all the reading data I wanted. This way, I could both get the knowledge of what Phanza was about to show me and the knowledge of the text itself, it was the best of both worlds, giving me the whole picture. Phanza took me through the castle until we ended up in a room directly below her quarters, emerging into a half circle hallway surrounded by an aquarium on all sides, the water accessible from the bedroom above. This is when I was reminded of Phanza's physiology, the Nautolan woman was from a species that was comfortable in the water, at home in it, easily swimming and easily breathing in it. Phanza felt just as comfortable, if not more so, on land, but this tank provided her the chance to swim and to be submerged when she wanted it, getting back in touch with her natural roots.

"Wow," I eloquently remarked as I looked through the water, seeing magnificent coral reefs, rock formations, and schools of fish all in the tank, all producing a very real slice of sea life here in Phanza's mountain palace, letting the woman fully embrace her aquatic side. I couldn't help but contrast this with Kit Fisto, the Nautolan Jedi who had no such grand accommodations, living in the same quarters as the other Jedi, only really getting the chance to express his aquatic side during the crisis on Mon Cala earlier during the Clone Wars. I didn't dwell on that contrast too much, not wanting to think of the fact that Kit Fisto was almost certainly killed during Order 66, much like all the other notable Jedi, from Master Yoda to General Skywalker. Those were great and powerful Jedi, but even they could be dead, only pure luck, Ullara's sacrifice, Phanza's assistance, and the fortunate presence of R9-W3 allowing for my survival. I don't think any other Jedi was blessed with such a favorable set of coincidences, no one else got the chance to survive. Shaking off the concerns and the horrible memories, I focused in on the centerpiece of the aquatic environment, I pair of actual, functional underwater vents, bubbling lava out into the water.

"Indeed. This is my aquatic sanctum, and those vents, those vents are the keys to my philosophy. In hot vents exactly like this, at the very beginning of time, molecules combined in such a way to form the very first examples of life and, born with them, were Midichlorians, the building blocks of the Force, forever entangled with life. The Force is present in even the most primitive forms of life, in plants, in animals, and, indeed, in people. People who eat supposedly inferior forms of life, animals for meat and plants for grain, people allow themselves to dominate over lesser forms of life. Therefore, I am no worse than anyone else for allowing myself to fully use the Force, from the light side to the dark side, everything is free for me to use. Why? Because I am superior to the Force in the very same way that I am superior to a mere plant or an animal, I can dominate over the Force, bend it to my will, and I will not be consumed by the dark side like you Jedi preach, I will not allow my own power, my own Midichlorians, to overpower me, because I know I can dominate them." Phanza explained, giving her argument for the superiority over the Force, in sharp contrast to the Jedi view. The Jedi believed that the Force is supreme, that it decides our destiny, and that, when we die, it is our destiny to become one with the Force, meanwhile, the Sith view the Force as a weapon, something they can control, not something metaphysical but rather something tangible and usable. It was a stark difference, but, whether or not I subscribe to her theory, her linking midichlorians to evolution itself is a valid argument. It is refreshing to know that Phanza does not view the Force as a weapon out of malice, but actually has an argument and an evidence behind her belief.

"How can you be so sure you won't be consumed by the dark side? What makes you so certain that you're safe from yourself?" I asked, legitimately wondering what she'll have to say about this. The Jedi always presented being consumed by hate and anger as inevitable for someone who taps into the dark side, but Phanza insists this is not the case, and I want to know why this is the case.

"The dark side and the light side are simply labels for different aspects of the Force. I can use the light side to heal an injury and attack with the dark side in the next moment - even you must admit that the dark side is superior in a fight - and I will not fall. To be consumed by the Force, you need to lose sight of your own strength and your own purpose, simply use the Force for the sake of using the purpose. So long as you maintain sight of who you are, what your power is, and how much you can dominate the Force, you will never fall. The ability to manipulate and control the Force is so severe that, using the ancient secrets of Sith Alchemy, a sufficiently powerful and capable Sith can create midichlorians, create life itself. How can you be consumed by something you can literally create?" Phanza replied, revealing that her confidence, knowledge, and self-sureness is precisely what is grounding her despite use of the dark side. There was also the issue of Sith Alchemy I was now thinking about - if a Sith Lord could create life itself, what would be the consequences of that?


Ooh that is a tease combined with a bit of dramatic irony, I can be a half decent writer sometimes. Phanza's take on the Sith is a bit out there and beyond the usual Star Wars fare, I admit, but I will be explaining it more later on and showing how she behaves. In any case, this long one has been chapter twelve and, with chapter thirteen, Phanza and Zaliza will have plenty to do, so stick around.

Ciao!