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Chapter 4: Slavery

Revan's employment with the Exchange lasted about as long as his friendship with Darth Sion and Darth Nihilus. Being a slave as a child had given the once Dark Lord a burning hatred of slavery. He did not even allow it within his own Empire though it was practiced my many fools who found themselves at the end of HK-47's blaster rifle. The Exchange presence on Nar Shadda, said to be its base of operations vanished nearly overnight. Even without the Force, Revan was still a force to be reckoned with. His nearly unhuman reaction time encoded in his Mandalorian blood and perfected by years of Jedi and Sith training had given him the advantage of near premonition. Revan was as quick as ever and the Exchange thugs stood no chance.
The slaves were the first Revan freed, killing their captors without mercy and deaf to their pleas. The scum had offered him money, power, women, even men and it did not half Revan's massacre. Body parts lay severed from torsos, the features of the Exchange member's faces frozen in terror. A shield Revan had raided from a corpse was his defense against blasters and his quick reaction time got him clear of many grenades. Revan moved from the slave pens to the dozens of hostages the Exchange held, freeing them as well and ignoring their thanks. He had not done this for them, but for himself. He could not tolerate slavery or the scum of the Exchange.

Moving deeper and deeper within the Exchange compound, Revan set his dark eyes upon something unforgivable. A young red-haired girl, she was so small in Revan's eyes. Was being dragged from a cell and was lying on the floor, beaten while her captors laughed at her, removing their armor and garments. The crimson light of Revan's saber caused the scum to cease their laughter. Three human males, various ages stared at Revan in shock. The former Dark Lord's hood was up, giving him the appearance of a dark specter. His face was shadowed within the cowl and his eyes gleamed crimson from his saber's glow. Raising an arm towards the scum, Revan spoke in a low and deadly voice.

"You, you, and you."

Revan brought his hand to point at each of the startled men.

"Die."

Within a split second, each of the men lay on the floor, clutching to the wounds in the center of their legs. Revan kicked the nearest man with a look of utter disgust. The Dark Lord drove his crimson saber into the man's abdomen and then moved to the next, allowing their cries of pain and pleas for death to fall on deaf ears. The same as they would have granted the young girl that lay motionless on the floor.

Revan approached the girl, clipping his saber to his belt and removing his cloak. With compassion he had not held since he had been a Jedi, Revan gently lifted the girl and scanned her young body and the tattered and torn garments she wore. She had to have been a refugee child, a slave from his war. For the first time since he had chosen to make war on the Jedi, Darth Revan felt shame. All his efforts on the front against what he saw as the corrupted and stagnant Jedi Order had done nothing for those like this girl. The innocent.

Darth Revan covered the girl with his obsidian cloak to spare her modesty. Still hearing the pained cries of the three men Revan wished he still held on to the Force so he could prolong the men's deaths for days, torturing them until they were driven insane from pain.

Resigning them to their fate, Revan lifted the girl gently and carried her to a quieter area where he could administer any medical treatment she might need. Setting the girl down on a small cot, Revan removed the cloak and treated the girl's injures with a looted medpack. Revan's hands began to tremble with anger as he continued his task. This was something he had seen during the wars and was not something he enjoyed. Cleaning the wounds and wiping the grime away from the girl's face, Revan felt his blood run cold as he gazed at the girl's unconscious form.

Standing, Revan walked to a nearby refresher and soaked the cloth he was using to clean her face. Returning, the former Dark Lord continued to wipe away the grime covering the girl's face, a pain settling in his heart.

"Force how could this be possible?"
Revan stood and turned away, not wanting to see the evidence of his own corruption. He could remember her name now, Mira. She had been a slave three years earlier on a Mandalorian vessel and her parents and all her relatives had been killed either during the raid she was captured in or over Malachor V.

"She was eleven then..."

Revan noted. He had taken her in for a short time, having her stay on his flagship while he made arrangements with the Republic to send her to a refugee camp in the hopes of finding her family. She was one of a choice few who knew his face. Shaking his head in disgust, Revan allowed himself a small satisfaction at the knowledge that he had destroyed a significant section of the Republic. An incoherent mumble drew Revan's attention back to the girl.

"No.."

Mira mumbled in her sleep, beginning to thrash violently. Seeing that she would reopen some of her bandaged wounds and possibly injure herself, Revan raced to her side, placing a hand on her shoulder. The result was instant. Two emerald eyes shot open in fear and the girl's other hand raised, pointing as if it were the most natural thing possible towards Revan.

Revan allowed a moment's surprise to fill him as he was send sailing through the air and struck the wall. A loud pop in his left shoulder told Revan it was either broken or dislocated. Shaking his head from the disorientation, Revan looked up to see the girl had again lost consciousness. Revan knew that it was a reflex in the girl, but the fact that she could wield the Force to a point strong enough to send him across the room like that with little to no training. Had he been a Jedi Master, Revan would have been speaking of the girl's potential excitedly, or as close to that as a Jedi Master could get. Had he still been the Lord of the Sith he would have been pondering sinisterly how he could twist the girl into his own desires.

At that thought, Revan frowned.

"Perhaps the loss of the Force was a good thing for me..."

It felt like his eyes had been opened, as if he had been blinded for the last three years.

"This is not who I am..."

Revan knew his actions during the close of the Mandalorian wars and the beginning of the Jedi Civil war, Malak made sure of that but it had never mattered then. Something had changed with the loss of the Force, it was as if a light had been turned on, exposing his own crimes to him. All the things he set out to change were becoming steadily worse. All the effort he put into his campaign was meaningless and now the galaxy was at the mercy of three Sith Lords whom Revan knew were the most bloodthirsty of all of them.

Malak exercised some restraint, knowing that some targets could be useful to him but Bandon, Sion and Nihilus had no respect for life. Bandon was like a power hungry child who killed anything he felt like killing, including scores of his own men. Sion was broken to the point of insanity by Darth Traya and believed that life was the definition of suffering. In some twisted way the mangled Sith Lord believed he was doing people a favor by killing them. And Nihilus. Revan shuddered at the thought of Nihilus.

The black-clad Sith Lord with the skull-shaped ivory mask was a mystery to him. He had seen on several occasions the strange Sith Lord tear the very Force from someone. It was happening more and more in those final months of his reign and he was speaking with Darth Traya and Malak about ending Nihilus' existence. Malak had not seemed to care but Traya had been equally concerned and had mentioned that they should act quickly. Revan realized his mistake too late. Malak had obviously made a deal with Nihilus and Sion. They would hold power of Malachor while he controlled the Star Forge and the fleet.

Shaking his head once more, Revan threw himself into a chair and gazed at the unconscious slave girl lying exhausted and unconscious on the bed.

"I'm not going to let this go on anymore."

Revan resolved, finding something he had lost years ago within himself once more. Nobility.

"I will end all of this."

Revan frowned as he spoke the words to himself. They were the same things he had said over Malachor V after Mandalore's defeat and his fall to the Darkside. Revan's frown deepened as his mind went over the horrific memories of his reign as the Dark Lord.

"The road to hell is paved with good intentions, Padawan."

Revan allowed a bitter smile as he could almost hear his old Master saying those words. He had never believed them until now. Looking down at the girl that lay in the cot, injured and in a restless sleep, Revan's fists tightened. The leather creaked as the former Jedi gazed sadly at Mira.

"I will stop this. You will never be lost again."

Leaving the girl with his promise, Revan sealed the room quietly, leaving a holdout blaster behind as he made his way to a merchant area to buy the parts needed to make another lightsaber.

Mira awoke to a the sound of scraping. Opening her emerald eyes, the fourteen year old former slave rubbed her face tiredly and sat up, eyes locking with the dark figure sitting at a workbench with his back to her.

"They're gone."

The man's deep voice cut through the silence, causing the Mandalorian child to jump. There was something about the man's voice that seemed familiar. Her last memory being struggling against her captors and being struck unconscious, Mira was wary as she stood and wrapped a sheet around herself.

"Who are you?"

The man stopped his work and slowly turned to face Mira. The girl frowned as she saw the man's face. There was something familiar about him, his voice, his robes. It was then she potted the cylinder at his waist and her mind registered the memory of the man before her.

"Revan?"

The girl questioned. Revan cast his eyes downward in a single nod. Mira thought for a moment. She should be angry with this man for leaving her at the mercy of the galaxy. Revan had gone off to fight what he said were remnant Mandalorians and had returned a Sith Lord. She had been sent to Nar Shadda where she was told by the Republic that promised the man before her that she would be taken care of. The refugee sector of the smuggler's moon was little more than a slum where you had to fight for every little scrap you were given. Being raised most of her childhood by the Mandalorians gave her enough skills to get by, but eventually the Exchange moved in to take advantage of the cheap labor that the refugees could offer.

Deciding that anger would be a waste of time, Mira nodded thoughtfully as she looked down at her appearance with a frown.

"The refresher is in the other room..."

Revan motioned to the room and fell silent. Uncertain of what to say to this girl who should have been trying to kill him for his carelessness. Mira scurried to the refresher, emerging several minutes later clean and clad in a green tunic and dark brown leggings Revan had left there.

"Some place you got here, huh?"

Revan felt a smile pulling at his face at the girl's playful tone but crushed it.

"I'm sorry."

Mira raised an eyebrow as she shook her head and waved Revan off.

"Don't worry about it Rev. Its over now as you said. They're gone."

Mira seated herself on the cot and gazed at Revan intently. The Dark Lord found it unnerving to be under the girl's stare and shifted uncomfortably.

"So what exactly is the Lord of the Sith doing rescuing slaves in the Hutt's space?"

Revan took a steadying breath, his mind playing over the events of the past week.

"I was betrayed by my best friend... watched the woman who was like a mother to be die before my eyes and then beaten by the scum that had done that."

Mira looked shocked for a moment.

"Wow... Some story."

Revan nodded, scowling.

"The scum left me to die and I managed to escape to this place."

Revan motioned his hand around the room. Mira nodded her understanding as she stood and padded over to Revan, punching him in the arm.

"That's for leaving me with the Republic."

Mira said with a scowl. Revan accepted the girl's anger when she suddenly threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly.
"And that's for saving me."

Revan felt that damned smile pulling at his lips again and fought for control, a stupid grin reaching his face.

"Well I'd say we're even then."

Mira shook her head, waving her finger at him.

"Oh no you don't. You got me into this, you're getting me out."

Revan's grin turned to a smirk.

"Well Mira the galaxy is our playground. Where shall we go?"

The former Sith Lord asked, the stress and anger at the past week melting away. Seeing this, Mira smiled brightly and looked down to her clothing.

"I say I get some new clothes and then we try something I've been thinking about doing for a while. We'd make a great team!"

Mira gave Revan a hopeful look. The former Sith Lord laughed and shrugged.

"I really don't have anything else to do... why not."

Happy for the first time in years, the two Mandalorians made their way from the small complex and into the crowded streets of Nar Shadda. There Mira excitedly explained her career choice to Revan.

"A Bounty Hunter?"

Revan frowned as he thought about that particular field. Sure the pay was ridiculously great but many of the jobs were questionable, even for a former Sith Lord.

"Hey don't worry about it, I've got it all planned out. Just you wait and see!"

Revan shrugged, allowing fate to take him along.

"The galaxy will decide if this is the right choice, I really have nothing else to do."

Mira excitedly filled Revan in on her plans to become a famous Bounty Hunter. The former Jedi smiled as he listened to the girl. She had definitely planned it out, Revan noted as he listened intently to the girl's plans.

Three years would pass and Mira's plan worked out as they had expected. Revan and Mira had made a great team, quickly becoming the best bounty hunters on Nar Shadda and soon they were both listed amongst the best bounty hunters in the galaxy. Revan of course chose the alias Raven, choosing to hold off on training Mira. She would manifest more strongly in the Force in time and he knew that without the Force he would not make an adequate teacher if she were to be overwhelmed by the sheer scope of the Force. It was a risk Revan was not yet ready to take, he could not teach Mira to block the hundreds of thousands of echoes in the Force without being able to block them himself.

Elsewhere, others were not so fortunate as the Mandalorian duo. Nihilus and Sion vanished from the Jedi's view, returning to Malachor V and continuing their invisible war as they sent hundreds of assassins after the Jedi. Bandon continued the Sith Wars in a brutal slaughter, killing nearly everything that did now bow at his feet and even killing those that had. Using the endless resources of the Star Forge, Bandon was able to force his way past the Outer Rim and into the Mid Rim, preparing for an assault against the Core worlds. Only one thing held the Sith hordes at bay, the battle meditation of the Jedi Padawan Bastila Shan.

For three years the Republic and the Jedi held the Sith at bay. Three years more than Bandon had thought. The Empire that had fallen so easily to him was now locked in a stalemate with the Jedi and Republic, precisely the reason he allowed Nihilus and Sion to exist. Patience was not something he had, but he was no fool. Sion and Nihilus were slowly breaking through the Jedi ranks, killing hundreds of Jedi and adding thousands more to their own ranks.

Patience was a thing seen in few Sith Lords. Revan had patience, Kreia to an extent, but nothing like Nihilus and Sion. Sion could wait for the very Force to end before he would become concerned. Everything was working slowly, ever so slowly into the Sith's favor. Eventually Bastila Shan and her battle meditation would be added to their own ranks for destroyed. The few other Jedi that possessed the ability were no threat. Nomi Sunrider was too old to make much of a difference for long and Sion knew that he and Nihilus would eventually break the last of the Jedi.

Nihilus was patient, but by necessity. The Sith Lord's hunger grew more and more but he knew he had to wait until the time was right to begin devouring the Force from the countless lives within the galaxy. If he moved too soon, Bandon would see it as a threat to his own power and bring the might of the Star Forge to bear on Trayus or the Republic would see and send their Jedi to him. Nihilus and Sion were no fools, they both knew Revan had been weakened severely when they had faced him. His disappearance from Trayus was something that bothered both Sith Lords greatly.

Somewhere, Revan was planning his revenge on them and both knew that when recovered, Revan would annihilate them unless they had a plan. Drawing on the resources of the Trayus academy, Nihilus and Sion began searching the wreckage of the thousands of destroyed ships around Malachor V for ones that could be repaired and used if needed.

A stroke of luck fell into Bandon's lap in the third year of his reign as Dark Lord of the Sith. The Jedi were moving against him directly as they had failed to do against Revan. It was a move of desperation, a sign to Bandon that he would soon control the Republic.

The Tarisian system was where the Jedi had presumed they could ambush Bandon. Laughing at their arrogance, Bandon brought with him the majority of his fleet, waiting for the Jedi to send their last hope right into his hands.

Author's Notes:Yes I know, you're all pissed off that I skipped three years there but I really wanted to get to the game. Just imagine Revan and Mira as bounty hunters. And YES they will be involved in the events of KOTOR I.