Slayers of the Old Republic
Book I: Arrival/Endar Spire
By Michael Weyer
Author's note: This is exposition for the Buffy fans so KOTOR ones can skip this chapter. For the uninitiated, just put on the John Williams score for the opening of every film and imagine this in big yellow letters stretching across the screen…..
It is four thousand years before the rise of the Galactic Empire. The Old Republic is still the ruling power of the galaxy. It is a time when the Jedi are at the zenith of their power.
But so are the Sith.
It has been ten years since the start of the Mandalorian Wars, when the fierce and battle-hungry Mandalorian clans launched an attack on the Republic. The Republic asked the Jedi for aid but the Council refused, fearing the implications of taking such a stand.
Two young, powerful and charismatic Jedi, Revan and Malak, disagreed with the Council's decision. They persuaded hundreds of Jedi to join them in taking the fight to the Mandalorians. The war raged for five years and was finally won at the battle of Malachor, the entire world ravaged by the attack.
Immediately afterward, Revan and Malak suddenly left for the Outer Rim, beyond the reach of the Republic. Contact was lost and it was believed they had perished. However, less than a year later, they returned at the head of a fleet of ships of a design never seen before. Revan announced himself to be Darth Revan, Lord of the Sith, Malak his apprentice.
The heroes had returned as conquerors.
The galaxy was soon engulfed in a new and more dangerous war and this time, the Jedi could not stay on the sidelines. However, their numbers were soon whittled, not just by battle but by the number of Jedi who turned to the Dark Side and joined the Sith.
Two years ago, the war took a turn when the Jedi laid a trap for Revan. Bastila Shan led a force to capture or kill the Dark Lord. It is arguable who might have emerged victorious but both fighters had neglected one fact: Treachery is the way of the Sith. Malak ordered his ship to fire on Revan's, to destroy his friend and master. And he succeeded.
Malak took the mantle of Sith Lord and has now led the Sith forces. While lacking the tactical mind of Revan, his brutality and the massive army he commands make him a fearsome foe that the Jedi and the Republic have barely been able to stop.
During the fight with Revan, Bastila Shan found a young woman who, despite no training, had a great presence in the Force. Despite her age, the Jedi Council chose to train this woman, now using the name Elianne Somers, as a Jedi.
Her training has progressed well and now Padawan Somers is accompanying her Master on a mission on the Endar Spire. High above the planet Taris, the lives of them, a soldier and a smuggler will take directions that will affect the galaxy…