Chapter 1
Yes, yes new story sorry to my fans but really I can't help myself at this point. This is really a test chapter to see how it does and mostly to get it off my mind. If people like it, I may keep going. FYI I am also playing very loosely with the mythology of the Star Wars Universe so ya big time fans not going to like it.
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-994 BBY unknown world-
As a dark hooded figure stepped off his spaceship, he could feel it. A feeling he had never felt before in the force. Something was here on this desolate planet, something incredibly old and very powerful. It reminded him of the time when he found the holocron of Darth Revan some time ago. Yet it was even older than that, far, far older in fact. How old he could not tell even as he reached out into the force. Nor could he tell what it was that he was feeling in the force.
At first, he thought it was perhaps the dark side leading him to some ancient trove of Sith knowledge or a tomb of some long forgotten dark lord. But those thoughts were quickly disproven when stood in front of the cave where the feeling was coming from. Whatever was in there was not of the force, but powerful all the same. Which left him with more confusion for what else could there be, but the force.
Hearing the sounds of a ship landing the hooded figure looked towards an old starfighter landing just next to his. Then watches as another cloaked figure jumps out of it and makes her way towards him. As she does a ghost of a smile comes to his lips as he feels the annoyance and anger radiating off his young apprentice.
"Greeting's master." The hooded women say to him before bowing respectfully. Both in respect and fear of the man who stood in front of her.
"Apprentice." He says in a simple greeting.
In an inpatient, but still respectful voice the woman asks, "Why have you called me here master? It is unusual for you to take me away from my training for anything that is not of significant importance."
Looking at his apprentice with some disappointment because she cannot feel it, the man says, "Can you not feel it, apprentice?"
"Feel what master?" The woman asks in some confusion.
His yellow eyes look at his apprentice in both disappointment and anger as she cannot feel what he felt lightyears away when she is standing right next to it.
"Look at the cave apprentice then reach out into the dark side of the force and tell me what you feel." He says to her in anger.
Knowing she has displeased her master the woman quicky looks towards the cave and reaches out into the dark side. When she does however, she still cannot feel anything and is about to say as much until a wave of power comes over her. Making her eyes widen for while it is barely there a power she had never felt before can be felt just out of her reach.
"Master, I can feel something, but I cannot tell what it is. It is like looking into the dark, you know something is there, but you just can't tell what it is." The woman says to her master.
"Indeed, what you feel my young apprentice is a force echo. Something happened here long ago to leave an impression on the force. As well as something more. Much, much more." The man says to her.
"What happened here master?" The woman asks in curiosity.
"I do not know my apprentice, but we are going to find out." He says before starts walking towards the cave with the women hot on his heels.
They walk for what seems like for hours in the cave, following what is a natural path of broken cliffs, deep holes, and dark passages. As they do the echoes in the force get louder but stay just out of reach so neither can tell what the force is remembering. But the sounds of screams, battle, joy, hatred can be felt with step.
How is this possible the man wonders as he keeps walking? No matter how hard he tried he could not grasp what exactly the echoes where saying. As powerful as he was it should be easy to grasp it but that does not seem to be the case. And another question how was it that none have even been here before or felt this feeling he was having. While the planet they were on was deep in the outer rim and a barren hunk of rock he was far from the first to visit it. From what records he could find it was even used as a minor base for the Sith Empire long ago. So, someone should have felt this before him. Even if this cave was closed up and buried under the ground someone should have felt it long ago seeing as he felt it all the way from the mid-rim.
Was the force trying to bring him here for some reason or was it just a coincidence. No there was no such thing as coincidences, only the force. That still left him with the question of why now? It was a question he would keep asking till he and his apprentice arrived at a large solid metal doorway long rusted over by time.
It is when they are in front of it that the echo becomes clearer, and ghosts of times past become clear.
"Close the door, hurry before he awakens!" A young man yells out to his companion.
"I am hurrying, give me a moment!" A slightly older man with what looks like a plasma torch says as he seals the door closed.
"We do not have a moment. The demon's supporters are close!" The young man yells at the older man again.
"Done let's go. We need to get out of here before we blow the charges." The man says just as he is done sealing the door but only to be shot by some kind of weapon before they can leave.
"There they are! Stop them!" A group of soldiers yell out as they rush forward with weapons drawn ready to gun down the two men.
"Stop right there. It is over, hand over the detonator." A woman dressed in some kind of military uniform steps forward and commands.
"We can do that captain. The demon must be sealed!" The young man yells at her.
"Fool that demon you are talking is the one reason why the peace has still held. Without him you doom not only us but countless others to die." The young women says to him.
"Peace? Peace? He has made slaves of us and nothing else. How can you have peace when you have no choice but to obey. When the ax is over your head ready to drop if you disobey. That is not peace." The young man says to her passionately.
"Foolish boy, before him all mankind knew was war. He brought an end to that and to do so some sacrifices needed to be made." The women say to him calmly.
"Freedom should never be sacrificed." The boy cries out.
"Even if by doing so peace for all can be achieved. Would you sacrifice the lives of trillions just so you can have your freedom?" She asks, making the boy hesitate.
"Don…. don't listen to her. She is only trying to fool you. Press the button before it is too late." The man who was shot says before he dies.
Looking back at the woman with hesitation still in his eyes the young man closes them and presses the bottom, and a series of explosions is heard going off in the background before the images of the past fade away. Leaving the two beings standing in the cave before the metal door.
"Foolish boy." The woman says.
"Indeed, my young apprentice. People often talk about peace but when it comes to paying the price for it, they are never willing to. Even now with the galaxy thinking we are gone they have taken little time in fighting among each other for little more than scraps." The man says as he continues looking at the gate. Trying to figure out what it is he just saw.
The weapons they saw were clearly old beyond known history. From what little the man knew from history ballistic handheld weapons that fired metal slugs have not been in wide use since just before space faring civilizations took to the stars some 200,000 years ago if not longer. Was it possible that they had stumbled across the remnants of an ancient civilization long sense lost to history? But even if that was so how was it that this gate was still here when everything else had long sense turned to dust?
"Master, do you believe we have come across some ancient civilizations of force users?" The woman asks.
"I do not believe so, my young apprentice. From what we just none of the people we saw had any knowledge of the force. If so the women or young man would have used it." He answers her.
"Then what do you think we have found?" She asks.
"I am not sure, but I aim to find out." He answers and raises his hand to use the force to open the rusted door. But no sooner does his power touch it then does he experience a backlash from the force itself that is so powerful that it pushes them both back by a significant margin.
When they are able to get their feet back under them the man looks at the gate and says, "So that is why this place has never been found before. A force barrier was put here by someone of significant power in order to hide whatever it is that is behind this door."
"But master you said that none of those people we saw knew how to use the force." She says to him
"True, but that doesn't mean we are the first to come here. Seeing as this barrier is here someone found this place long before use and tried to hide whatever it was that is behind this door. For what reason we will not know till we open it." The man says trying to think of why they would do such a thing and coming to only one conclusion. Whoever found this place before him was afraid of whatever was inside. Yet that didn't make any sense for how that he was standing in front of the door he could tell that whatever was in there was not of the force. So why fear it?
"Come my apprentice, you will help me open this door." The man says.
"Yes master." The woman answers him then steps forward to do as she was told.
Together they both raise their hands and start to channel the force with all their might. Till after a few moments they are able to push pass the barrier and force open the doors, but not without a significant effort as shown by how heavy their heavy breathing. For the women it was like one of her more intense training sessions with her master and for the man it was like being back on Korriban learning about the ways of the Sith again.
With the doors now open they both walk in not quite knowing what to expect. Something grand, some type of lost knowledge, the possibilities were endless. Yet all they found when they enter was a dark chamber of broken technology long since forgotten and a body lying in the middle of the floor with an old longsword sticking out of its chest. A body that was to both of their surprise still fully intact with not a spot of decay on it. Again, the man had to wonder how this was possible. As for the woman, she could not help but think of how beautiful the young man who was laying down on the floor with a sword shoved though his chest was. But still felt something was very wrong here.
"Master, something is wrong here. I do not know what it is, but I am feeling something coming from that body. Something old and immensely powerful." The woman says to her master.
"Yes, my apprentice, I can feel it too. Whatever it is we are feeling from the body it is not of the force of that I am sure, but it is like it in a way or perhaps even older." The man answers not knowing what to make of the feeling coming from the body. So, making a quick decision he force pulls the sword from the body to his hand and looks at it in amazement. Not because there was anything special about the blade itself since it has long since rusted over but because the blood on the blade was still wet and then like it was never there if it vanished off the blade right before his eyes.
Too caught up in trying to figure out how such a thing is possible the man did not notice till it was too late that his apprentice has walked closer to the body. "Apprentice get away from the bo….."
Is all he was able to say before he saw the eyes of the body open, and a bright red light envelops them. The next thing the man knew was that he was spinning around in the void of space. Watching as stars exploded, planets collide and whole galaxies are both born and destroyed. It was both beautiful and terrifying to watch as for the first time in his life he felt truly insignificant when compared to the universe itself. That was not where it ended however as next, he is pulled into what he could only describe as some type of timeline and watched as moments from the past flow by quicker than the eye could follow. Yet slower than slug passing by.
He watched as the Brotherhood of Darkness that he used to be a part of rose and fell. As the Great Schisms happen repeatedly. The Eternal Empire, the rise and fall of the Old Sith Empire, the death of Revan, Vitiate, Satele Shan, Bastila Shan, and many other famed forces uses whose names had yet to be forgotten by those of the force. So much knowledge come in the blink of an eye till it stop and he stood before a powerful force uses the likes he had never seen. An old man with glowing blue eyes and a long white beard.
Their eyes meet and the old man said to him, "You should have left the door alone young one."
Before he can ask why however he is once more pulled away to a time before the founding of even the Infinite Empire. The fall and rise of civilizations come and go like a setting sun till he reaches a history he had no knowledge of. An intergalactic human empire starching two halves of the current known space. All ruled over by the same young man that they had found when they had entered the room and what a man he was. While he was not Sith he was the closest thing you could get without having the force. The acts of which he had committed were brilliant, cunning, and cruel. Yet before he could see any more everything stops, and he hears a voice.
"So, the myth begins again, does it? But I do not think I wish to play apart in this story."
"Who is there?" The hooded man calls out then turns around.
When he turns however, he sees he is no longer in space or the timeline with all those images of the past. Instead, he finds himself standing on a platform of some kind overlooking pillars with faces on them stretching on for what seems like eternally. And on the platform with him seeing on a throne like an emperor the young man from the room sits looking at him with cold uncaring eyes.
"Come now, that is such a silly question. Surely after everything you have seen and heard you must have picked up my name." The man says to him.
And like a light goes off in his head the hooded man says, "Lelouch vi Britannia."
"Correct and it is a pleasure to meet you Dessel or do you prefer Darth Bane." Lelouch says with an easy-going smile enjoying the look of surprise that comes to the man's face.
"How do you know that name?" Bain asks in anger but not feeling the force answer his call like it normally would when he became angry.
"You might as well stop with that Lord Bane. You are not in the physical world anymore and your unique abilities will not help you here. And come now did you really think you were the only one seeing images of the past fly by just now? Lelouch says to him.
Looking at the man before him with his eyes now glowing a Sith red Bane says, "And do tell where we are Lelouch vi Britannia."
Giving him a mocking smile Lelouch answers, "Come now for someone who thinks himself wise are you honestly telling me you have not yet guessed where you currently are?"
Looking at the smaller man Bane says, "Do not push me boy. I can guarantee you, you will not like what happens if you test my patience more."
In response to this Lelouch just laughs a bit and says, "Lord Bane threats are meaningless here as I have already told you. You are beyond the physical world now and couldn't harm me even if you tired but if you don't believe me just look at yourself for a moment."
Doing as told, Bane looks down at himself and sees his body fade in and out of existence. "An astral projection?"
"Correct, you see, this place works on a different set of laws than the physical world and requires a strong mind to even enter here. Something your companion lacked, but you surprisingly don't." Lelouch answers.
"And I ask again where is here?" Bane asks paying no never mind to the fact his apprentice was not here with him.
"That is a complicated question to answer, but to put it simply you are at the end. Well, the end of the beginning anyways." Lelouch answers with an uncaring voice.
Bane however cannot keep the shock off his face as he looks around for, he was easily able to understand Lelouch's vague answer.
"Creation. You're saying this is creation?" Bane asks in wonder and fear.
"No, this is only the end of the beginning of creation. The final act before the curtains of what you know as the universe were risen and life began. Beyond this is creation itself and a place that is far beyond your or my understanding." Lelouch says to him.
As he continues to look around Bane does not want to believe what Lelouch is saying. For to him and those who came before him there was only the force and nothing more. But now upon entering here he was seeing that the force was only one small part of something far majestic.
Looking at Lelouch, Bane asks, "Why are you telling me this? Why did you bring me here?"
"I did not bring you here. You brought yourself here or was it not you who pulled that sword from my chest?" Lelouch asks the dark lord.
"So, there was something special about that sword." Bane says.
"Hardly, it was just a rusted piece of steel that happened to be in my body and nothing more." Lelouch corrects.
"So, you say, but yet this didn't happen till after I pulled it from your body." Bane says back.
"True, but in truth I could have removed it at any time if I had so wished. I just didn't feel like it seeing as it helped me stay…. I guess the word would be asleep seeing as I can't truly die." Lelouch says growing a bit bored of this conversation now.
"What do you mean you can't truly die?" Bane asks, feeling like he already knew the answer.
Waving him off Lelouch says, "It does not matter Lord Bane. All you need to know is that you have forced me to awaken instead of leaving me to sleep. Which I am not too happy about but since it has already happened there is nothing to do about it other than taking my leave before you and your companion wake up."
"What do you mean wake up?" Bane asks as he realizes the world around him is starting to fade away.
Giving Bane a mocking smile Lelouch answers, "As I said before Lord Bane this is not the physical world. Your mind was dragged here by its power which means your body is still in the real world currently unconscious on the ground. As for me, I am not so limited. Till we meet again Lord Bane, I bid you farewell. That is if we even do meet again,"
With those parting words the world around Bane fades completely away and he awakens with a start only to find himself indeed back in the dark room with his apprentice still on the ground unconscious. Moving quickly, he uses the force to speed his way out of the cave to his and his apprentice's ships only to find his apprentice's starfighter gone. Along with the man known as Lelouch and any answers he had hoped in getting from the man.
-Outer Space-
At the same time that Darth Bane was standing where his apprentices ship once was, Lelouch was looking out at the wider universe with mixed feelings. In many ways he missed looking at the stars from the physical plane of existence for there was something utterly unique about it. It gave off a feeling that was hard to describe in words but was wonderful none the less. Yet at the same time he was saddened at being among the living once again since he was tired of his continuous existence. But was unwilling to pass on his codes to another to live a continued life of isolation and loneliness. For that was the cruelest thing he could ever do too other. No matter if they though it was a gift or not.
While on the surface immortality seemed like a wonderful gift it was at its core a curse and quickly lost its appeal as time passed. You only had to ask his long-departed friend CC who he had voluntarily taken her code from when she grow to tired to live on any longer. He could still remember her last words to him before she asked him to take her cold. You are not really living, when you cannot live among those who would fade away to dust. Yet two codes always need to exist if this universe were to continue to exist. It was just one of those things that the creator of all things did that was unescapable. Well at least till the end of all things with while he knew it would come, he would wish for long before it came. Unless that was, they decided to do what his father and mother tried to do and destroy it all.
Something neither were willing to do but the second he was more then willing to out of his love for her. But not for the love between a man and a woman but the far simpler love one friend has for the other. They were much to alike to be in love with each other like that. It was funny in a way that the only two truly immortal beings could not find love between themselves because they were to much alike. So, it was out of friendship and nothing more that he took her code and let her pass on leaving him sadly behind to watch as time passed on. And watched he did for a time till people forgot and diverted from the Zero Requiem.
It was rather surprising to Lelouch how long his plan had worked out. Seeing as for over 1500 years peace had reigned over mankind. Something he didn't expect to happen but then he didn't expect to become immortal either. If he did, he would have planned for that as well but didn't and had to watch as the peace ended in the worse way possible.
For too long humans had thought themselves the only intelligent lifeform in the universe despite the stupidity of such a notion. So, when after 1500 years of constant expanding, they ran across their first intelligent alien life form they did what people do and panic. Despite the aliens showing that they were nonaggressive from the very start humans did what they were best at. Found ways to hate things that were different from themselves and challenged their place in the galaxy. Instead of putting those different aside like a rational mind would they instead saw enemies were there was none and started building their military up. Till finally a few years later they fried the first shot of a war that would see the worse of humanity.
From the initial surprise attack on the unsuspecting aliens who still thought peace was possible to the mass killing of civilians. The human race done acts that had not been seen since the 1st Pacific War and brutality of the 3rd Third Reich. And even then, what the 3rd Reich did seemed tamed as the atrocities done to the aliens were simply unforgivable. Especially since the aliens didn't do the same to the human's they captured.
It got so bad that he couldn't just sit back and watch any longer despite truly not wanting to have anything to do with the war. But his sense of justice would not let him stand by and do nothing. So out of the shadows he came and in short order put a leash on the human race stopping the war in the most brutal fashion imaginable. Once that was done Lelouch had ushered in a new era of peace for a time and built an empire that would expand to encompass half the galaxy and a number of different species.
It was a peace however that wouldn't last long for within the first two centuries rebellion would come along with a full civil war that was started by those same type of xenophobe people of the war that happen before. Lelouch had of course put a stop to that but not without passing harsher laws restricting the freedoms that till then his people had enjoyed. And that was how it would continue to go for the next two thousand years as rebellion after rebellion took place. Some for just causes that saw him give in just a little to placate the people but most for unjust that saw those same laws he would remove put back into place in short order.
By the time the end came the only thing Lelouch could say that was good about him coming out of the shadows was that his tyranny saw the breakdown of the invisible walls' humanity had put up between itself and the other species. What took its place was funny enough a new type of Zero Requiem but one that wouldn't end in a long-term peace. Seeing that at that point time the empire was split between those who supported Lelouch and those who wanted him gone.
What happened after he was gone, he didn't know, but nor did he care to know. Having seen Lord Bane's memories, he knew his empire had been completely forgotten. The only way for that to happen would have been for a civil war to happen that was so devastating that the historical records were entirely lost. And the only way to lose those was to have a complete technological reversal. Something that was easy to believe seeing as the current spaceship he was in was in many ways inferior to the ones of his time.
Yet that was all in the past now and he was not someone to live in the past. So, the question was what should he do now? Again, from the glimpse he saw within the minds of Lord Bane and his apprentice Darth Zannah the galaxy had changed quite a bit from his own time. While at the same time staying largely the same with the same issues. He had no desire to become an emperor again, but nor did he wish to be some hermit living in complete isolation. Not that he would have a choice in the latter since instead of killing the two people who had awoken him like he should have he had let them live. Because of that he knew they would come looking for him at some point for the power he clearly possessed as he saw how greedy they for power. If he didn't wish to have to fight them or run from them all his life, he would have to set himself up as someone powerful enough that they would think twice before messing with him.
But what should he be, he wondered as he entered Hyperspace?
