Slayers of the Old Republic

Book VIII: Leviathan

By Michael Weyer

The interrogation cell was the typical style for the Sith. Clean, methodical, designed to keep such "messy" things like blood or other fluids off the floors and walls. In the center were a quartet of force field cages, holding Carth, Bastila, Buffy and Vance. They had been stripped down to simple underwear and shirts, the guards at the room's edges keeping their rifles aimed despite the cages.

Karath took all this in as he stepped into the room. He calmly strode up to the cages and nodded. "Carth, it has been far too long since we last spoke. I see the recent months have not been kind in your case, I barely recognized you."

"But I recognize you, Saul." Carth struggled to speak, even though the dark anger had fashioned itself into an icy calm. "I see your face every night even as a promise myself that I would kill you for what you did to my home world."

Saul seemed disappointed. "Have you learned nothing in your time spent under me? As a soldier, you should know by now that casualties are unavoidable. It was an act of war..."

"It was a cowardly act of betrayal! Your fleet bombed a civilian target into oblivion without warning or provocation, and the blood of those innocent people is on your hands!" Even without the power field in his cage, Carth could feel his nerves vibrate, every fiber of himself wanting to strike out and make that treasonous blackguard feel the same kind of pain.

"In war, even the innocent must die. The Sith would not accept me until I had truly proved that I turned my back on the Republic by bombing the planet." Saul finished with a shrug, as if he had done nothing more than announce the winning times of a swoop race.

"My wife died in that attack, Saul. And for that, I swear I'll kill you." Carth's voice was of an icy tenor that, Buffy decided, would have made Giles in Ripper mode proud.

"Ah, Carth," Saul sighed. "I had hopes for you, such high hopes. You would have made an excellent Captain in your own right for the Sith. But I suppose Dustil can fill that spot eventually."

Carth's face twisted in rage. "I should have known you'd be behind him joining the Sith."

"On the contrary, it was his own idea. Oh, I did give a letter of recommendation for the Academy and told him it would be good to escape your shadow, forge his own path. I cannot be blamed for abandoning him."

"I thought he was dead, Saul! Dead in the attack YOU caused!"

Saul sniffed. "You used to be a man of action, not of empty words. Cling to your lust for revenge if you must, but spare me your tired threats. I've heard them all before." He sighed and paced back to the control panel in the room's center. "Besides, you are an insignificant part of these events anyway Lord Malak is far more interested in your Jedi companions. He has great plans for them."

Bastila was not to be intimidated. "We will never serve Malak, or the Dark Side. The Sith will be destroyed, Admiral Karath. As will you if you do not turn away from this path."

"Your words are brave, Bastila, but the lure of the Dark Side is hard to resist - or so I've been told." His face twisted into a smile that made Carth seethe. "I wonder if your companions are as devoted to the Light as you are?"

Vance narrowed her eyes. "I know my loyalties."

"Oh, really?" Saul laughed. "I'm sure Lord Malak will find your loyalty to the Jedi...amusing. The Dark Lord would probably reward me if I just killed you once and for all. But, he may want to question you, given the trouble you've caused him...and the history between you."

"History?" Buffy asked. "What history?"

Saul looked to her, studying her for a moment before smiling. "You mean...oh, this can't be true, can it? Oh, you really don't know, do you? You have no idea what's going on here, do you?"

"What are you talking about?" Buffy asked, truly baffled.

The Sith Admiral shrugged. "Well, I won't be the one to deprive Malak of the pleasure of telling you himself. The Dark Lord will no doubt torture you for information and his own twisted pleasure. Eventually, you will tell him everything. The Sith can be very persuasive," Saul said casually. "However, Lord Malak is currently en route from another planet so I suppose I'll have to fill in until then." He turned to a technician. "Activate the torture cells."

The energy field came to life, and a scream was ripped from their throats as the jolts of power coursed through them, pure and cruel. Buffy had felt pain before. Hell, she'd felt death before. But it was still agony to be ripped by the energies in the cell.

"Enough! I don't want you passing out before I've had the chance to interrogate them," Saul said firmly. "Malak would appreciate any information you can give him when he arrives."

The power was cut and the pain stopped, leaving its echoes on his raw nerves. Bastila was shaking a little. Vance was weaving like a drunk while Buffy shivered and tried to regain her senses. The rage pushed the pain from his mind for a moment and gave Carth the strength to speak.

"Don't waste your breath, Saul! We won't answer any of your questions."

"I'm sure you won't, Carth. I know you too well for that," He once again walked over to Vance and Buffy's cages. She was looking glassy-eyed and shaken, but still attempting to put on a brave front. "However, we both know your friend's loyalties in the past to be somewhat...flexible."

"What?" she asked. Her voice was steady to anyone who did not know her well, but Vance could see it in her eyes, the struggle brought on by the intense pain.

"I am the one interrogating you - not the other way around. You will answer questions. I will ask them," Saul said sharply.

He activated her cage and her shriek of pain hit Vance like a physical blow. He would not cry out. He would not beg Saul...he would not betray her. Saul cut the power and Buffy tried her best to keep herself on her feet. She looked up, her face twisted in a sneer. "Buddy…I've been…tortured by pros…You're gonna…have to do better…"

Saul looked at her and slowly nodded. "Yes…I suppose I shall." He made a motion and Vance yelled out as his own cell turned on and raked him with torturing energies. Buffy rose up straight and pressed against the force field, ignoring the painful shocks it gave out. "Leave him alone!"

The shocking energy faded and Saul's genteel voice belied the cold anger beneath. "I tire of these games. Now, I want answers. On what planet is the Jedi Academy at which you were trained?"

"Corsucant, asshole," Buffy snapped. "Are you that stupid to not know?" She screamed along with the others as the electricity ripped through them.

"Enough!" Karath called as it ended. "Do you see what happens when you try to defy me? That first question was a test. Lord Malak already knew the Academy was on Dantooine. It has since been destroyed by our fleet. Dantooine is an empty graveyard now. Nothing remains but a smoking ruin and the charred remains of your former masters."

"You're lying!" Bastila cried out.

"It doesn't matter if you believe me or not, little Jedi. The fact remains that the hideout on Dantooine has been eradicated, along with any hope of someone coming to rescue you. Now, tell me your mission. How were the Jedi planning on using you to stop Lord Malak and our Sith armada?"

"Using me?" Buffy sniffed. "Come on, I'm not that important."

"He's just rattling you," Vance hissed. "Ignore him."

"I will," Buffy said. She looked to him. "I will," she repeated, meaning it. It was going to be hell, she knew. But no matter what she felt for Vance, she wouldn't break. She wouldn't give up any more information. She'd made that sort of mistake before, not again.

"I can tell that I'm wasting my time here," Saul said. "When Malak arrives, you will learn my interrogation techniques are considered merciful among the Sith. I will leave you here in your cells with a small taste of the horrors you will suffer..."

He nodded and all four cells ignited with another huge shock of electricity, greater than before. The howls of all four echoed in Saul's ears as he exited the room and the doors sealed shut behind him. He paused and shook his head. It was too bad for Carth, really. He'd still held out hopes that Onasi might see the light and join him. But he'd chosen his path and there was nothing he could do to stop his fate now. That thought echoed as Saul made his way toward the bridge.

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Despite the tedium it could bring, the soldiers on the Leviathan had learned the hard way to never let their guard down. Darth Malak had made a habit of popping up without warning to check their alertness and woe to those who had been caught lax on duty. With the various prisoners, the soldiers were taking no chances and making sure to patrol the cell areas and that not one of them be on his own.

Two of them marched down a hallway, not speaking to one another, simply checking the space around them and listening to the comlinks for any signs of trouble. Unfortunately, they were only human and as such, they failed to consider every single direction trouble could come from. Thus, while they were quite alert to any trouble in front of them, it never occurred to them to look up.

Faith was pressed on the ceiling, her arms and legs spread wide out to brace herself against the bulkheads. As soon as the two soldiers had passed right under her, she dropped down, twisting herself in mid-air. Each foot caught a trooper right at the back of his head, stunning them both. Landing on her feet, Faith moved as fast as she could, smashing her knees into one soldiers gut and then grabbing his helmet. In one smooth motion, she yanked it off and punched him in the jaw. As he collapsed, the Slayer turned and smashed the helmet into the face of the other soldier, knocking him down and out.

Dropping the helmet, Faith knelt to check out both soldiers quickly. She pulled out a pair of stun grenades and hiked a rifle onto her shoulder. She figured she had five minutes, tops, before they were found and an alarmed raise. No pressure at all.

She made her way down the corridor, hoping the details she'd caught from the soldiers had been correct. She would have preferred to not be seen at all but the stealth field generating belt only had a limited battery and she had run it out fast. So she was now forced to improvise.

She paused and peeked around a corner. Judging from the number of soldiers outside the large bulkheads, she was in the right place. She backed up and took a deep breath. She reached to her belt and plucked out a stun grenade. Flipping the pin off, she counted and threw it around the corner, closing her eyes.

She heard the yells as it detonated and spun around, her rifle up and ready. Two years on Taris, including the security forces, had taught her how to handle a gun and that there were times that "shoot to wound" was not a viable strategy. She let out a series of short bursts and in seconds, the troopers were a pile of bodies on the floor.

It took two seconds to find the key one of them had on his body, five to open the door, ten to cut down the guards and another six to open up the force fields on the cells. "Rock 'n roll, folks, it's Independence Day!" She grinned as the crew began to pile out of the cells. "Sorry, always wanted to say that."

"Very impressive," Juhani noted as she headed to a nearby set of canisters. She opened one and began to pull out their gear. "You must have Cathar blood in you."

"Nah. Boston-bred. Which means I'm used to hard times," Faith said as she tossed her rifle to Canderous. "Let's get the droids and get going fast!"

"I like this woman," Canderous noted with a smile to Jolee.

"And yet I'm not assured," Jolee dryly stated.

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Buffy groaned as she sat up, trying to get her bearings. She leaned against the field, shaking her head. The last time she'd felt pain like that was…well, quite a while ago. She looked to the next cell to see Vance staring at her. "Are you all right?" he softly asked.

"I guess," Buffy said. She bit her lip. "I'm sorry, Vance."

"For what?"

"I…maybe I should have spoken up when he zapping you…"

Vance shook his head. "No. You did the right thing, Buffy. I would have done the same if the circumstances were reversed."

"Oh, you would have subjected me to massive pain? Thanks." Buff was smiling though as she rose up and looked to Bastila and Carth. The non-Jedi seemed the worst off, holding his side and still wincing. Bastila's face was downturn, gazing at the floor. "Bastila?" Buffy carefully asked.

She sighed. "I was attempting to call to the Force…to see if what Saul said was true…The Dark Side must have been blocking it before but now…now…"

Buffy tensed. "It's true?"

Bastila nodded. "Yes. I can almost see the destruction. The Enclave, the Council there…there'll all gone."

Buffy closed her eyes. While she had considered most of the Council complete pricks, especially Vrook, she'd never wished death upon them. Neither had she ever wished pain upon the innocent people on Dantooine, the settlers, the merchants and the rest. She felt another burst of anger at Malak and this time she didn't try to automatically crush it.

"It hurt," she found herself saying to Vance. "To see you getting tortured like that really hurt me. I…I may have talked soon."

Vance smiled. "No. You're stronger than that. I know you are."

Buffy was about to respond when the doors suddenly brust inward. The soldiers were caught off-guard, startled by the sudden explosion. Before they could regroup, Canderous and HK stepped into the opening and cut them down with quick bursts of rifle fire.

Faith stepped in behind them and headed to the control console. "Good to see you guys again," she said as she quickly switched off the cages. As the four carefully stepped out, Faith tossed them several bundles of clothes, weapons and lightsabers. "We'd better get cracking."

"We've got a major problem," Carth stated. "We can't go anywhere with the tractor beam on. We're going to have to switch it off to escape and that can only be done by the main bridge."

"Then that's where we're headed," Buffy said. "You guys get to the ship, we'll go to the bridge."

"I'm coming with," Faith immediately said.

Buffy shook her head. "Faith, I need you to help make sure these guys get on safely."

"B…"

"Faith, please don't argue." After a pause, Faith nodded and Buffy turned to Carth. "Carth, I know you want payback for Saul but there's more at stake than revenge, ok? The tractor beam comes first."

Carth nodded and then paused as he and Faith looked at each other. "Be careful," Faith softly said. "Come back alive, ok?"

"I will," he replied just as softly. He smiled back. "I've got something to come back for."

"Bet your ass you do," Faith said, punching him in the arm.

"Enough of this," Bastila snapped. "Let's go now."

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Thanks to Faith's scouting earlier, they made their way to the main elevator leading to the bridge with relatively light resistance. Their first option had been to take it to a secondary deck and then access another elevator, which would have meant a running firefight through the halls against slews of soldiers and Dark Jedi. Fortunately, Faith had thought of having T3 access the Sith database and the droid had managed to unlock the elevator all the way to the bridge.

It was a short, tense ride to the command deck. Over the comlinks they had retrieved from their belongings, Canderous paged them.

"This is Canderous. We're at the Ebon Hawk. Like we figured, it's under heavy guard. But don't worry. We'll find a way to take care of them. Juhani has some of them distracted. We can take care of the rest."

The signal cut. Carth actually chuckled. "And knowing Canderous and Faith, it's going to be spectacular."

"What's the plan?" Vance asked.

"Go in, wipe out all guards and Dark Jedi, smash up Saul, shut the tractor beam off and get the hell out," Buffy stated, hefting her saber.

"Short but effective. I like it," Carth intoned.

As the elevator moved up, the Jedi all tensed as they felt a dark presence in the Force. "Malak," Bastila intoned severly. "He has arrived."

"Wonderful," Carth muttered as he checked his guns. "Let's hope they keep him under guard long enough for us to pull this off."

The elevator stopped and the group tensed in readiness. The doors slid open and they strode toward the large double doors at the other end of the hallway. The two soldiers standing guard raised their rifles but a sweep of Vance's hand sent them smashing into each other, then against the wall. A mild Force meddling with the lock and the doors swung wide open to reveal the bridge.

There were a half dozen soldiers on duty along with a pair of Dark Jedi. The Sith lit lightsabers and raised weapons at the quartet. Saul turned from his console and calmly looked at them as if they had come by for tea.

"Very resourceful." Saul spared a glance at Carth. "I can assume you had some part in this. You've learnt your lessons well from me."

"The only thing you've taught me is death and betrayal, Saul," Carth spat.

"Don't be a fool," The Admiral said with an expressionless face. "I´m giving you and your companions a chance to surrender. Malak himself is on his way."

"He speaks the truth, Cart,." Bastila said, suddenly fearful. "I can sense the Dark Lord's presence approaching."

"Malak will destroy you, but if you throw your weapons down, I'll ask my Master to be merciful."

Buffy snorted. "I think I've had my fill of Sith mercy."

Saul sadly shook his head. "You always did like to do things the hard way." Ignoring Buffy's confused look, he reached to his wrist. "Lord Malak would have preferred live prisoners, but corpses will have to do!"

With that, he activated his personal shield and aimed a Sith assassin pistol at Carth, who was quick enough to dodge the blast, throwing himself to the ground and firing a few of his own shots. The Dark Jedi standing near the Admiral drew lightsabers and charged at Bastila and Buffy, who managed to stab the guards near the door. A Sith trooper threw a plasma grenade at Bastila, but she saw it coming and pushed it back to the soldier, killing him. Her saber suddenly clashed against the red one, until she leapt into the air and with a flip, delivered a powerful attack that practically sliced the Dark Jedi in half. Carth was obviously trying to get to Saul.

The Admiral fired a shot at Vance, who deflected it right into the face of the Dark Jedi that tried to attack him. Bastila dashed off to kill the Sith grenadiers that barged through the bridge door while Buffy and Vance quickly cut down the remaining troops. Saul surprised Carth with a kick and the soldier fell to the ground. With a victorious sneer, Saul wanted to deliver the final blow with a vibroblade he quickly drew, but Carth kicked out at his leg, his boot falling just above Saul's knee and producing a loud crack.

Saul yelled in pain and fell, clutching his broken leg. Carth grabbed the vibroblade and held it to the man's throat. His eyes were cold as Saul froze, his own face racked with fear as he saw for the first time the pure hatred in his former protégée's eyes. "First lesson you taught me," Carth hissed, a twisted smile on his face. "Never hesitate even if your opponent is downed." He lifted the sword but Buffy caught his arm.

"Carth, no! He's not worth it!"

"Let go," he hissed. "You don't know what it's like to lose your world."

"Yes. I do." Buffy leaned down. "You don't want to do this. It won't bring your wife back."

"But it will even it up."

"Is this what she'd want? Is it what Dustil would want?"

Carth looked at her and Buffy could tell she'd connected. He slowly lowered his arm and backed up. With a look of disgust, he threw it down as he started to walk off. Behind him, Karath's hand closed around a loose blaster and he swung it at Carth's back.

"Carth!" Vance called out. In a blur, the soldier grabbed his own pistol from his holster and spun and fired in one smooth motion. The blast caught Saul right in the chest, knocking him back. He gasped as the blaster fell from his limp hand. Carth slowly lowered the blaster and sighed. "Thanks, Saul. You finally gave me the right chance."

Bastila was working on the console nearby. "I have it!" she called out. "The dock is open and the tractor beam is shut off!"

"Carth…Carth…"

The dying whispers of Saul Karath were clear on the silent bridge. Despite the massive wound, he managed to keep enough strength to beckon to the man before him. "Carth…must tell you something…come closer…"

Although he knew that Karath couldn't be trusted, Carth walked to him nonetheless, crouching beside the wounded soldier. As the Admiral lay dying, he managed to gather enough strength to whisper something that none of the Jedi could hear. Whatever it was, it caused Carth to leap back to his feet. His eyes were wide, his face looking as if he had just stuck his hand into a live power conduit. "No…" he rasped.

"…You didn't know, did you?" the dying Admiral laughed victoriously, coughing. "Remember my dying words… remember them whenever you look at those you thought were your friends…"

With a last pained gasp, Saul Karath´s strength left him and his now lifeless corpse lay on the floor. Carth stared down at his body, shaking his head, his eyes still wide. "He's gone. He said…no, no. No, it can´t be true, it can´t! Damn you, Saul. Damn you!"

"What did he say, Carth?" Buffy was unprepared for the look in his eyes as he turned to her and Vance. He stared in their direction before looking to the other Jedi, his face tightening in rage. "Bastila, it is true, isn't it?" It wasn't really a question… especially when he saw that the Jedi lowered her gaze. "And you knew! You and the whole damn Jedi Council. You knew all the time!"

"Carth, it's not what you think! We had no other choice! You don´t understand!"

"Oh, I understand!" Carth snapped, his face pointing at her. "I understand that you've been lying to us all this time! That you and the Council…you….I can't believe you could do that!"

"Do what?" Vance asked, as confused as Buffy. They saw Carth erupting with rage and Bastila more defensive than they'd ever seen her.

"Carth, I promise, I'll explain but this is not the time or place!" Bastila urged. "Please…trust me this once…"

Carth set his jaw. "Fine…but I'm expecting a lot of answers when we get out of here!"

"You'll get them," Bastila said. She turned to the others and nodded. "Come…the elevator will now lead us to the hanger bay." She quickly walked off, Carth glaring at the two before following. Buffy and Vance shared a baffled look as they went after them.

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It was another brief fight through several guards and Dark Jedi before they made their way to the hallways leading toward the hanger bay. Bastila was in the lead, with Carth behind her, sparing looks at Buffy and Vance. Both had noticed how he had seemed to be more worried about them than the Sith and wondered just what it was Saul had said.

They had just rounded a corner and were headed down the hall leading to the bay when the doors before them opened and there he stood.

Buffy gasped. She'd been in the presence of more forms of evil than any human being had a right to in a dozen lifetimes. But even the First didn't have such a total aura of darkness as Darth Malak did. He stood calm, his lightsaber held but not lit as he gazed at the four before him. He stared directly at Buffy, his cold eyes showing fury, annoyance…recognition? "So, we meet again."

Buffy could not move under the power of that stare but Bastila still had enough wit to act. "Darth Malak," Bastila said, powering on her saber.

Carth had his blasters at the ready and shot both barrels into him. "Down you go!"

Malak laughed off the shots as they seemed to warp around him. With a flourish, he pulled his lightsaber and turned it on while waving a hand to send Carth back to the floor. The blood red blade shimmered under the lights of the hallway as Malak cocked his head, addressing Bastila. "I hope you weren't thinking of leaving so soon, Bastila. I've spent far too much energy hunting you down and your companions to let you get away from me now." There was a cold smile in his mechanical voice, a malice that was absent from even HK-47's homicidal ranting.

His eyes turned toward the two Jedi behind the Knight. "Besides, I had to see for myself if it were true. Even now, I can hardly believe my eyes."

His red saber lifted to mirror her own as he threw his emotions at them, almost causing them to fall. A sense of being cheated, deprived of something he wanted badly.
"Tell me, why did the Jedi spare you? Is it vengeance you seek at this reunion?"

"Reunion?" Buffy asked. "What are you talking about?"

"I must admit," Malak went on. "I never thought we'd be meeting again in this lifetime."

"Life's full of surprises," Vance said. Buffy was caught by his tone, suddenly stronger, more focused and…familiar to Malak. Her lover stepped forward, his lightsaber up and ready. "You want to go at it? Fine, I'm ready for----"

Malak waved his hand and Vance was sent flying back against the wall. He landed hard, shaking his head as he tried to recover. "I don't believe I was speaking to you, Exile." Malak coldly snapped before he turned to Buffy.

She swallowed and steeled herself. She focused the Force around her, let her mind get itself into battle mode. She didn't know what it would be. A quick lightsaber lunge, a blast of lightning, a mental attack. Whatever it was, she'd do her best to be ready and prepared for Malak's power.

What she could not be prepared for…What she could never be prepared for…Were the two words that exited Malak's voice box.

"Hello, Revan."

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Bet you didn't see THAT one coming, didja! Before you ask, no, it's not a trick. Buffy is Revan. And before you ask, yes, I did indeed have this twist in mind all the time before I started writing SOTOR. I warned you that this wouldn't be like the game, didn't I? Next chapter will have the explanation as to how this happened so keep all the comments coming.