The Mandalorian Wars4

It took a little more than a year for Malak to truly see the depth of Revan's plan. They traveled to Dantooine, Korriban, Manaan, Tatooine and Kashyyyk in search for pieces of the fragmented star map she'd only vaguely told him about. Revan was more driven than Malak had ever seen her, even more than she had been when they first left Dantoine. It was as if there were a greater threat that pursued her and she only had a limited amount of time to accomplish her mysterious task. For the first time, Malak sensed fear in her, fear that made her more powerful and more dangerous.

The Revan that now guided the smattering of Republic soldiers and Jedi was a cold and calculated one. She was still guided by the principles of the Jedi, but slowly seemed to compromise them for the "greater good" as she had told him. More and more, she was willing to turn a blind eye or directly violate the Code in order to achieve her goal. She even began to dabble a bit into the darker powers of the Jedi, and encouraged the other Jedi under her command to do the same. She demanded that they become as strong as possible for what she said was an even greater threat to the Republic than the Mandalorians.

And despite this glaring change in her, the people loved her. They absolutely loved her. On each world they traveled to, they showered her with affection and gratitude. They thought that she alone stopped the Mandalorians. That she alone was the savior of the Republic. They had no idea how weak and corrupted she truly was. If they'd only seen her sprawled on the floor of the ancient academy on Malachor V, they would realize their error in judgment. She'd faced the Mandalorians and had almost died in a vain attempt at self sacrifice. He'd faced the Mandalorians and utterly destroyed their space fleet and had become stronger for it. He was now the Master.

But because these were not the thoughts of a Jedi, Malak kept them to himself, trying to fight them off, in vain, by meditating the Code. Like it or not, Revan was the Jedi that would always be considered the strongest. He should not try to prove otherwise – vanity could lead to the dark side. He was destined to stay at her side, her second in command.

All of these thoughts ran through Malak's head as they walked into the great hall of the ancient Rakatan Star Forge, yet another group of people Revan used to attain what she wanted. This massive machine seemed to use the power of a very massive yellow star as fuel, but Malak didn't quite know how they could possibly use it. He also couldn't sense Revan's thoughts on the matter; she'd long-since closed her mind to his thoughts. She still wore the dark robes and armor she'd taken from Malachor V and used to disguise herself, but now slowly took off the mask and hood. She looked around the room, breathing in and out deeply, as if soaking in the power of the star itself.

"Think about it, Malak," her voice echoed. "With this great machine, we will finally be able to save the Republic. Our mission will finally be complete." The other soldiers and Jedi formed a circle around her, in awe of this newly found ancient technology.

Malak could feel the power around him and took a minute to sample it himself. "Save it from what?" he finally asked.

"From itself. The Republic has become weak since the Mandalorians. The people live under corruption. The Senate is too feeble to sustain any permanent sort of protection. The Jedi have once again retreated behind their walls. The only way to truly to insure the survival of the Republic is to conquer it." Soldiers and Jedi alike looked at each other and Revan in confusion. They waited for her to explain herself, but when she didn't they just stood there. They didn't understand her motives, but she'd protected them and come to the Republic's aide when no one else did. There was no question of where their loyalty lay.

" And who will lead your conquered Republic? You?"

Revan looked at Malak slowly and emotionless. "Do you have a better candidate?"

"It was not I whom was nearly killed by Mandalore. It was not I who would have died on that forsaken planet. The very air you breathe is because of my power, my sacrifice, not yours."

"You believe that I am too weak to rule."

"You are unfit to rule."

For a while neither spoke; both seemed trapped in their own thoughts. Malak thought for a moment that he should retract his speech. He was obviously not thinking straight. But as he powered up his lightsaber and took a fighting stance, he realized that he'd gone too far to stop now. His comments couldn't simply be dismissed.

Revan had powered up her double-bladed lightsaber by now but had made no move to attack. She seemed to be waiting for him to make the first move. When the battle finally did start, no one quite knew what to think. The two were moving so fast that the soldiers and most of the Jedi could only see the blur of their armor and lightsabers. Malak powered though each swing, but Revan was agile and still the greater in Force Powers. Every swing from Malak was not only evaded but rewarded with two or three blows from Revan. He would have to finish this quickly if he was to win. As Mandalore had once before, he pinned her against a wall, her saber and his deathly close to her main artery. All he had to do was move quickly and it would all be over. And then Revan delivered a blow that would disfigure Malak for the rest of his life. In one motion, she pushed his saber away, moving the blade from below her lower jaw but robbing him of his.

The pain was like nothing he had ever experienced. He fell to the ground, his odd screams muffled by his bloodless hands. He almost wished he could bleed to death. Anything to end the pain.

Revan gently grabbed his head in her hands and forced him to look her in the eye. "Don't worry, old friend," she said quietly and gently, "if I wanted you dead, you would be. I have no need for a corpse. You however, needed a lesson, and this will forever be that lesson." She released him and stood up her eyes now as emotionless and cold as they once were.

"We have an enemy to fight, and that enemy is not each other," she said loud enough for all those present to hear. "You and I together can help save the Republic from itself. But cross me again, and I will slash you down as mercilessly as I did Mandalore."

Malak, still in pain, brought himself up enough to kneel to Revan and opened his eyes just enough to see her smile. "Good. Now rise, my friend." He did as she commanded, the pain of his wounds mirroring the intense anger he now tried desperately to hide. She glared at him for a moment, then whispered, "I feel your anger, you hatred. Use it. Only then, can you be strong enough to challenge me again." Then she leaned her head back to one of the officers. "Contact the ship. There's a patient waiting to come aboard."

Revan's heart broke as she watched two soldiers leading her old friend away. She couldn't believe what she'd done to Malak, her brother, her friend. But that wound would forever remind the soldiers of the price of crossing her. This is what had to be. In order to save the Republic, she would have to become it's greatest enemy. She would have to become Sith. Her assassin droids had already been sent to various planets to eliminate those leaders who would serve to destabilize the governments. Her actions would force the Jedi to come out of hiding and openly train for war. The Republic militia would learn to anticipate and counter her attacks or fall under her boot. Either way, the Republic would be ready with the Sith attacked. This is what had to be, like it or not. Becoming a pseudo-Sith was the only way to prepare the Republic to stand against the true Sith. Alone, Revan replace the hood and mask and watched as the soldiers and Jedi saluted her, prepared (either through true loyalty or fear) to follow her to whatever end). It was on that day, Jedi Revan withered away, and Darth Revan took her place.