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Chapter 9: Losses

Four months of fighting had torn the Jedi Order apart. Of forty thousand Jedi at the end of the Mandalorian wars, only half that remained in the Jedi Order. Thousands abandoned the Order for the teachings of Darth Revan and the Sith while others fell in battle or fled. The Jedi Civil War was falling into a retreat. The Jedi could not even call what their situation was a standoff. Wherever Revan attacked, worlds fell. Wherever Revan was, Jedi died. Whenever Revan spoke, Jedi betrayed. The Dark Lord of the Sith wielded a power more dangerous than the Star Forge or the assassin armies of the Trayus Academy. Revan held the power to make those who followed him believe.

The Corellian system was a rich trading world that had managed to survive the Mandalorian wars unscathed. It was also one of the first Revan targeted. The battle was not going well for the Sith. With twice the number of the Corellian Defense Corps, the Sith were baffled by how many men they were losing. So many that Revan had taken from fighting in the thick of battle in his fighter to returning to his flagship. On the bridge of his dreadnaught, Revan cursed as he watched a holo of the battle. The Dark Lord had spent hours devising a plan that would allow them to take Corellia quickly and with as little damage possible to the planet. So far they had not even breached the sixth planet of the Corellian system. The Republic and Corellian forces seemed to counter every attack and exploit every weakness in his strategy. That was the problem, there were no weaknesses in his plan. Revan cursed as another line of his fighters collapsed into chaos and were torn apart by the surprisingly well organized Republic and Corellian forces.

"Send Alpha wing to support Gamma, I want Commander Caine to bring his Interdictor cruisers in the breach at coordinates 9.89 mark 2.4."

Revan eyed the battle warily as he spoke into the open comm channel. His split second adjustments played out, sealing the breach that came at the loss of Gamma squadron.

"How are they doing this?"

Revan spoke in quiet awe as the reinforcements suddenly scattered and were destroyed.

"Can you get me a hack into the Republic's comm frequency?"

Revan asked a nearby technician. The Sith tech nodded and quickly made his way to a communications console. Revan continued making adjustments to his battle plan, sighing in relief when he found a breach in the Republic lines and then scowling when the breach instantly filled.

"No one is that organized..."

Revan snarled as he quickly picked up a datapad and made his predictions of the battle.

"I want to pull Beta and Omega squadrons form the fighting and use them to defend the heavy cruisers. In fact I want all fighters to break up and fire at will."

"My Lord?"

A commander questioned over the comm line.

"It may drastically minimize the effect our fighters have on their ships but it will also prevent heavy losses if the fighter squadrons break apart. No groups larger than five do I make myself clear?"

Revan stated firmly into the frequency. The Commander acknowledged and Revan waited for several moments as his fighters broke apart and swarmed the Republic lines. The lack of structure in his fighter's attacks and the random vectors the fighters choose to attack from made a noticeable difference as the Republic began taking heavy fighter losses.

"Thank the Force we have good pilots..."

Revan sighed in his mind. The Sith Capitol ships quickly took advantage of the chaos in the Republic lines, tearing away the Republic fighters with their turboblasters and firing their blaster cannons against the Republic capitol ships. Revan suddenly shouted into the comm line to pull back the Capitol ships as the chaos in the Republic lines suddenly shifted to what he recognized as an offensive strategy. Caught off guard, the Sith Capitol ships found themselves surrounded by their breach in the Republic lines. The chaos surrounding them suddenly became a well organized and one sided bombardment as the Republic and Corellian ships fired on them from all sides.

"Pull back, all forces pull back!"

Revan shouted into the open comm lines. Falling back to the outer edge of the Corellian system, the Sith fleet awaited reinforcements as their fighters fought desperately to hold the impossibly well organized Republic forces at bay.

"Lord Revan we have breached the Republic secure channel."

A Sith Tech said proudly to Revan. The Dark Lord nodded his appreciation to the Tech as he approached the console and scanned through the hundreds of signals from Republic and Corellian forces.

"The Jedi's plan worked, I can't believe it!"

A young woman's voice spoke in awe. Revan locked onto the channel and waited for the response, his blood boiling.

"The Jedi's plan?"

A round of laughs were heard over the consol as Revan listened.

"Yea I guess that Battle Meditation girl wasn't all talk."

An arrogant voice announced.

"Look sharp Red 5 the Sith fighters are still attacking and we don't know how long Bastila can keep up that Battle Meditation."

A snort was heard from the end of the line as Revan roared in rage.

"Battle Meditation!"

Switching to an open hail, Revan spoke to his fleet.

"We're going back in, to hell with the rest of the fleet we still outnumber the Corellians and the Republic forces."

The comms were dead silent as Revan eyed the Republic fleet's position on his holo.

"I want all Capitol ships to break into groups of three and I want all fighters to use swarm tactics. Attack as randomly as possible, the Jedi are up to a new trick out there and we can't let them see our plans."

Revan quickly drew out what vectors he wanted his scattered fleet to attack from and sent it through a secure comm line to each commander.

"As soon as our reinforcements arrive I want you all to break from your random attacks and into this formation as the reinforcements will take this position."

Revan sent another drawn out design and listened to his commanders as they agreed readily, liking his strategy. The next hour was almost a stalemate. For every Republic and Corellian fighter lost a Sith one would turn to debris and for every Sith Capitol ship lost a Republic one would fall. Revan even took his own flagship into the fighting and was pleased to see chaos descending into the Republic's lines. He knew the Corellians would fight to the last man but the Republic's loyalties were easily swayed. Slowly gaining the upper hand, Revan prepared to call in his reserve forces when the unimaginable happened. A fleet of Republic Interdictor ships suddenly dropped from hyperspace and attacked the reserve fleet.

"What!"

Revan roared as his reinforcements were torn apart within an hour. Snarling in rage, Revan opened a comm line to all ships.

"This isn't over."

Revan then gave the order to retreat as his battered and much smaller fleet returned to the safety of Sith space.

One year of a brutal stalemate followed. Many in the Sith blamed Revan for the sudden lack of victories though in truth most of the battles Revan took place in personally were victories. The Deep Core and the Mid Rim remained in the hands of the Republic while the Sith held dominance over the Outer Rim and only a few parts of the Mid Rim. Hearing that the Jedi had begun using Bastila and her Battle Meditation filled the Dark Lord of the Sith with more dread than even the Yuuzhan Vong had. Revan knew now that it was only a matter of time before he was forced into a confrontation with the headstrong Padawan. Why he had no wish to see her join him or see her dead confused him. This internal conflict did not go unnoticed to those who would exploit what they saw as a weakness, Revan's only weakness. Malak was the first to spread rumors that Revan feared Bastila and her Battle Meditation.

"Not a total lie..."

Malak smiled to himself as he spoke in a private meeting with a dozen Sith Masters and Admiral Saul Karath.

"Revan has shown time and time again that he does not have the power to lead us any longer..."

Malak began in a cold mechanical drone. Murmurs were heard through the gathered Sith until one finally spoke.

"Lord Revan has led us to countless victories against the Mandalorians and the Republic-"

"What about the Vong?"

Another cut off. The Sith fell into silence.

"But there is no beating them... Revan even managed to kill a few dozen of them on that planet he was trapped on... How many others can make that claim?"

There was silence. They all knew that Revan had taken on nearly twenty Yuuzhan Vong alone and had survived with only a few broken bones and cuts while whole squadrons of soldiers had fallen to only a few. The strange aliens seemed to be skilled and unstoppable on all levels of combat.

"We all know that Revan is a skilled warrior... but he does not have the resolve to seek out this threat. Have none of you noticed that he has specifically spoken against using assassins to track down Bastila Shan?"

Saul Karath spoke. Malak smiled to himself as he leaned against the wall and crossed his arms.

"Revan lacks the resolve to end this particular threat."

More murmurs were heard as the Sith continued to speak to each other.

"Bastila Shan is just a child, she can be turned and Revan knows that."

"Yet he hasn't made an effort to capture her... one would think he is... allowing her to continue this."

Another Sith Master cut off the one who had spoken before. The Sith Masters seemed to nod their heads in agreement.

"There is still the matter of Darth Traya on Malachor. With the army of assassins she wields she could easily eliminate each of us here..."

Malak laughed suddenly, causing all the heads in the room to turn to him.

"Her apprentice, Darth Sion holds no loyalty to the witch. With the help of any one of us, he could easily take control and he has sworn to end Traya."

The Sith Lords muttered to themselves as they weighted their options.

"Follow Revan into death or follow me into victory. I assure you that I will end the threat of this Battle Meditation... I may even add it to our own ranks. We all know that after following him for a year, Revan has no wish to see this weapon in our hands."

A gasp came from the Sith Lords.
"Do you think Revan is sabotaging us? We are not the same people we were when Revan promised us the Republic... He may be deliberately sabotaging our forces..."

"Revan would never do that, he knows we need to be strong to fight the Vong and whatever other horrors await us beyond the Outer Rim."

Malak nodded his head to that as did all the other Sith Lords though Malak chuckled as he did.

"I'm sure Revan would not mind adding Bastila's Battle Meditation to our ranks then. He has exploited every other option but that... Why has he not sought her out?"

Malak nodded subtly to Saul Karath.

"There were rumors that he was once good 'friends' with Bastila during the Mandalorian wars."

Malak contained his laughter, knowing full well that Revan could not stomach fighting Bastila. Bastila Shan was a weakness to Revan. He avoided her like she was his own death and Malak reasoned that she likely was.

"There is something we can do..."

Malak spoke thoughtfully through his mechanical filter.

"The Jedi are planning to capture Revan and they want to use Bastila to capture him..."

All eyes were now on Malak.

"Are you saying that she is Revan's weakness?"

Malak would have smirked if he could.

"I am saying Revan is afraid of her."

The Sith that had spoke, nodded. Smiling coldly.
"If we were to place Revan in a position where he could be captured... we could draw out Bastila and the Jedi to use their plan and then-"

"Then we can destroy two threats to our power with one swift blow."

Malak finished, causing the one he had cut off to smile and nod.

"We are with you, Lord Malak."

Malak resisted the urge to laugh in his own triumph. He would finally get his revenge on Revan for what he had done to him and he would gain control of the Sith. With the Star Forge and having the reputation of destroying Revan, none would challenge him.

"Revan is leading our Forces through unknown space to assess the Vong threat. He will be gone for many months. When he returns I will handle how we contact the Jedi, then we can destroy Revan."

There were nods of appreciation until one of the Masters finally spoke.

"What of Darth Traya? She is fanatically loyal to Revan and will avenge him..."

Malak's eyes flashed as he smiled internally.

"I have sent Lord Nihilus to aid Lord Sion in that task. By the time Revan returns all his followers will be dealt with."

Malak's mechanical laughter filled the room, joined by the other Sith's as they swore their oath to remove the threat to their power that was Darth Revan.

Darth Revan was gone for longer than they had thought. Nearly three years into the Jedi Civil War, Revan returned to relieve Malak of his control. Whatever fool idea had led Revan to leave Malak in command was beyond him but he knew Malak would keep the Sith strong. The Vong had been brutal and Revan returned weary of battle. Sickened to his core, Revan stared into his reflection as his flagship was slowly being repaired from the damage a year and a half of fighting the Yuuzhan Vong had done to it. Revan took in his pale skin and his golden eyes. His hair was no longer the light brown it had once been, it now was nearly black. Around the gold, Revan saw the blood that filled his eyes and blinked.

"When the hell did this happen?"

He whispered as he ran his hand over his cold skin. He had made certain that Kreia knew not to attack Bastila. Being the loyal Sith she was, Kreia had agreed to make certain no one touched Revan's 'prize' as she called her. Revan allowed a cold rage to settle into his soul. He had killed many Vong with the massive fleet he had built from the Star Forge. It was really the only reason Bastila's Battle Meditation was holding the Sith at bay. Most of their fleet was beyond known space fighting the brutal alien invaders.

In that year and a half, Revan learned and mastered the Dark Side of the Force. He took no pleasure in anything. Unable to feel the deaths of the countless Vong he and his droid armies had wiped out, Revan had found himself oddly detached from the fighting. He could feel distantly the deaths of the worlds Malak attacked in his absence. Deaths that fell on his shoulders and he found himself filling with hatred.

"I will kill Malak as soon as the coming battle is finished..."

Revan had heard Malak was taking an interest in training an apprentice. He had also heard from several spies that he had spoken with a young man, Bandon and had offered to train him.

"Malak will only spread his incompetence..."

Revan hissed as he eyed his appearance. It was not so different from what it had been in the Mandalorian wars. Running a hand through his hair, Revan frowned as it fell out and into his hand.

"What the-"

Running water through his hair, Revan was disturbed to find that his hair had simply fell away. This had been the first time in a week he had been able to clean himself and take off his armor.

"I think I'm dying."

Revan joked as he eyed his features. Staring at him were two dark brown eyes. The Dark Lord shuddered as he ran a hand through his now light brown hair. Whatever he had caught a glimpse of was something he saw in Malak and the other Sith Lords. He assumed it was a strange bloodlust that resulted in the Dark Side. Whether wanting the blood of the Vong or the Jedi, Revan did not know and did not want to know as he splashed water on his face and resigned himself to train in his quarters, marking off what he saw as a hallucination from lack of sleep.

Bastila Shan bowed deeply to the Council as she stood and made her way to her quarters on Dantooine. The Jedi had chosen to hide her there after splitting the Council between several Enclaves. The threat of Malak and the Sith had grown with the disappearance of Revan. Many rumors ran that Revan had been killed and Bastila fought the dread she now felt at the news that Revan was alive and well. Malak was nowhere near as competent as Revan and whatever iron grip Revan held on the Sith a year and a half ago had vanished.

Gathering her things quickly, Bastila boarded a transport en route to the Republic vessel, Sojourn. Revan's flagship was being repaired after suffering heavy damage in what her mind could only see as some unholy campaign of destruction in unknown space that mirrored Malak's wave of devastation on the Republic. Her Battle Meditation had made a difference, but with Revan's return, the Council believed that the Sith would likely strike with the full force of their power. It was also apparent that Revan had taken a majority of his forces when Republic scouts reported that the already massive Sith Fleet nearly tripled in size at Revan's return, though many of the ships that returned were severely damaged and lacking crews. It would not surprise Bastila if Revan controlled all unknown sectors of the galaxy and the last bastion of strength was the Republic.

Shivering slightly, Bastila sat silently in her room, resolving to herself that the coming confrontation would not end in her death. The Council had sent her and two dozen Jedi Knights to find and capture Revan. It was the perfect opportunity. Spies in the Sith ranks reported that Revan's flagship was defenseless aside from the small fleet that surrounded it and that Revan was overseeing its repairs. Bastila felt the familiar anger in her at the thought of seeing a man she had not laid eyes on for four years. The last time she had seen him she was sixteen.

"He'd be twenty six now..."

Bastila robbed her tired eyes and frowned as the thought crossed her mind. He was not the same man she had been friends with, he was a monster.

"I should have seen it..."

No matter how many times she tried to picture Revan as the heartless and disfigured monster that Malak had become, she could only see that tired young man she had loved who tried with all he had to make things better.

"How did this happen?"

Bastila cried out in frustration as her meditations were again interrupted by the image of Revan's warm smile. Growling to herself, Bastila slammed her hand on the floor, wincing at the pain that shot through it, though it was nothing compared to the sharp ache that had settled in her chest for the past four years.

"Why did you betray us?"

The Padawan's whisper echoed in the silent room as she fought to see that same caring man as the monster he was. Nearly two years before she had been told what he was capable of and how he had no remorse. Bastila allowed a small and bitter smile to play on her lips.

"He never did regret anything... at least that hasn't changed..."

A cold shiver ran up the Padawan's spine at her own words.

"What if he was always like this..."

She knew he was a Mandalorian and by reputation, he seemed to fit in well with his own people. It was discovered that Revan had personally assassinated Senator Yusanis and she knew that the two had been good friends during the Mandalorian wars.

"If he can throw away his friendship with Yusanis..."

Bastila did not even want to think about what he would do to her. This was the Jedi's last chance. Rumors were spreading that the Sith held a weapon, the Star Forge, and that they had endless resources. The fact that the Sith seemed to have endless resources drove the Jedi to want to capture Revan.

"He'll never allow it..."

Bastila realized sadly.

"He will also never change..."

Bastila's eyes shined slightly as she stared at the datapad before her. The image of a sixteen year old Jedi Padawan that had been killed two years before by Revan's hand met her eyes. Wincing, Bastila turned away. It had been her Master's decision that Selene be sent back to spy on Revan and take advantage of whatever favor he held for her. It was also discovered by a spy that Revan had personally tortured the girl and she had died two weeks after. A sudden feeling of resolve came over Bastila.

"I will defeat him!"

Bastila stood shakily as she drove the images of that young girl's torture and sacrifice into her mind.

"I will not allow that monster to take another Jedi's life, he is not the same man I knew."

Feeling confident in her resolve, Bastila struggled to regain her senses as she slipped into a light meditation to prepare for the coming battle. In just a few hours she would board Revan's flagship with two dozen other Jedi and fifty Republic Commandoes to capture or kill Darth Revan.