Authors Notes: So sorry once again for the long wait for a new chapter but as always ill health, busy real life and also some bad times within the family health wise has kept me away. Hopefully I can get a lot more chapters out this year than last, hopefully this year will see the end or the run up to the end of this story. I thank anyone who is still following this story.
+TR+
(Leviathan)
Malak stood on the bridge of his flagship still awaiting news that Revan and whatever followers he had left had been located, but so far there had been no clue as to where they were hiding. What confused him even if he would not admit it was why were the Revanchists hiding if they were a large enough group to challenge his power, why had Revan been travelling in a small freighter for so long following the maps leading to the star forge? Was it possible he had only just found out he still had loyal followers? Were they organised and ready to fight, or were they still broken after his coup had killed so many of them.
So many damn unanswered questions all stemming from the fact Revan had not died when he was supposed to thanks to that stupid Jedi Shan saving him, questions had plagued him since learning of Revan's survival and whilst he was convinced of certain things such as Revan retaining his memories to some degree. That he wished to use Shan and the rest of her party as some kind of strike force, and finally he was certain that Revan still had many of his powers and skills intact. But did he remember where the star forge was or had he forgotten due to what the Jedi Council had tried to do to him, was that why he was following the maps. He knew he had already gone over all this in his head before, but Revan's actions were confusing just how much his former friend recalled. He realised that Revan surviving his betrayal was beginning to have an adverse effect on him, making him doubt and question things repeatedly and he needed to stop. He had to be focused on only two things destroying Revan and his followers completely no matter what their status was, and then he had to finish conquering the Republic.
That was the only thing he should focus on full stop and from this point on he would do so, he would stop asking himself pointless questions about Revan and his followers and just wait for the opportunity to destroy them when it came. He crossed his arms across his chest and stared out of the port window, waiting far more patiently than before now he had managed to realise the problem within himself.
+TR+
(Korriban)
Revan quickly noted the guards looked relaxed as he exited the ship and there was no signs of any extra security which he would have expected, but then again knowing the Sith's arrogance it was possible they did not feel much need for any added security. Or he suddenly realised they might put any added security where it would not be seen until it was too late. Or the only place they might decide to increase security was in the academy itself, it depended on how Uthar reacted to the threat of his arrival if he reacted at all. He remembered when Malak had put forth his name as well that of his master for the post of assistant governor and governor of the academy, he had not questioned it at the time as he had been busy planning his next mission. That had been clearly a mistake but his mind had been more focused on completing their mission as fast as possible, perhaps that had been why Malak had managed to move around arranging his coup so easily without him catching on.
Uthar Wynn and his Master Jorak Uln were both dangerous in their own way, both strong in the force although Uln had always been stronger than Wynn. Both were also skilled with a lightsaber, current information told him that Wynn had staged his own little coup to gain control of the academy, but like Meetra and Rikka he doubted Uln was dead. More than like he had been banished by a large percentage of the students supporting Wynn, Uln would not go far and he suspected he was hiding in the one of the tombs either been driven insane by his student overcoming him as well the whispers of the dark spirits within the tombs. Or he was plotting to try and regain control of the academy, perhaps trying to subvert the students sent into the tombs to gain prestige. Wynn and Uln would recognise him should he be forced to remove his helmet as they had met when he had agreed to assign him and Uln to the academy, at the time he had not been wearing his mask as he had just come from his quarters and nice long hot shower and had forgotten to put it on immediately after.
He moved up to the guards who barely looked at them until they stopped in front of them, he could see the guards were faking been relaxed and were actually alert and ready to spring into action. Clearly security had indeed been increased, their actions in pretending to be relaxed was to lure them into a sense of been safe and undiscovered. He was not fooled for an instant, he could even feel the intent of the two guards through the force to do their duty no matter what.
"What do you want mercenary?" the taller of the two guards demanded to know.
"I am here for two reasons, first we are looking for work and we know the Sith are winning the war so working for you and not the Republic makes sense" Revan responded calmly as he had long learned the art of lying. "Second I recently discovered I have a talent with the force, I bumped into one of you scout teams and we ended up fighting off an ambush made by the Republic" he explained having concocted the story in his head as they made their way to Korriban. "I lost my weapon after been charged by one of their Jedi and he lost his lightsaber, we both thrust our arms out for the weapon and amazingly it flew into my hand easily" he continued. "I killed him and then used the weapon to continue the fight, I somehow instinctively also used the force to throw two of their soldiers through the air"
He paused ensuring to show a look of amusement and amazement again a skill he had cultivated to push the idea he was a newly minted force user, he could see both guards exchange a look of amusement themselves clearly having seen such similar reactions on other potential recruits faces when they told them about their first accidental force usage. "The leader of the squad called Ja'kal told me about coming here and going through the academy to learn to use my new abilities as well as learn to use a lightsaber proper, I liked the idea and here we are" he finished.
"And what happened to Ja'kal?" the short guard inquired showing he knew the name.
"He went on with his mission whatever it was, I did not see him or his team again before we left the planet" Revan answered.
"And which planet were you on?" the short guard shot back instantly with a suspicious look on his face.
Revan almost smiled glad he had read over the recent intelligence reports before leaving so he knew exactly where Ja'kal's team had been stationed. "Onderon" he responded easily.
The short guard stopped glaring and then exchanged looks with his tall companion, clearly both debating what to do. Revan concluded that neither of these two knew about his possible arrival, they seemed to have little ability to hide their facial reactions Finally they seemed to reach a conclusion and face them once more, he could see out of the corner of his eye that Carth was getting a little edgy and his hand had dropped down towards his blaster but thankfully he did not reach for it. Rikka and T3 remained casual but ready for action should things turn sour, and HK was invisible with his stealth generator and was certain to have his blaster ready at the first sigh of a threat. Melkor and Niks stood at the back looking calm but he knew that was deceptive, both were on the lookout for any threats now they were on Korriban.
"If you want to get into the academy you will first have to see the Master's second Yuthura Ban, she should be in the local canteen at this time of day" the tall guard finally responded after a short period of thinking things over. "Go straight there down this corridor and take a left past the local market area and the offices of Czerka, you'll find it at the end of the hall close to the doors which lead to the academy" he instructed.
"How will I know this Yuthura Ban?" Revan inquired playing along even though he knew exactly what Yuthura looked like as he remembered her very well.
"Yuthura is a Twi'Lek, purple skill with a unique tattoo on her forehead you can't mistake her" the tall guard said with a smirk. "Bit of advice, do not anger her she has a wicked temper" he added with his smirk widening.
Revan just nodded and his head and moved past the guards with the others following, even as he did so he could sense through the force the eyes of the two guards following them for a few seconds before they turned back to their stations.
Outside the sensor range of both the trade and landing station or the academy the second shuttle carrying the teams of Major Shepard and Schaefer landed, as soon as it did the ramp opened allowing Shepard and Schaefer to exit the craft with their respective teams following close behind.
"Ok listen up people, we are here to cover the General and his team should things go sideways" Schaefer stated as he put a cigar in his mouth and lit it, taking a long drag before exhaling "We will spread out to cover both the academy and the trade and landing post by splitting up both teams in two" he added seriously.
"We will set up defensive positions around both targets on the high ground but remember they cannot know we are here until we are called upon to help the General" Shepard said taking over the briefing smoothly. "So stay low and out of sight of their sentries, we will also set up mortars and heavy laser cannons to ensure we have the advantage and keep the enemy pinned" she went on. "Major Schaefer and his team will cover the academy whilst we take the trade and landing station" she informed them.
"We will only engage if the General gives us the signal, we will keep watch over his and his teams progression through the use of long range scanners each one of us will have equipped" Schaefer took over once more once his fellow officer had stopped talking. "This op might be the most important one we take part in, the General is counting on us to have his back and we will not fail him" he told them staring each of them in the eyes as he spoke. "Get your stuff and be ready to move out in five people" he commanded and watched with no little satisfaction as the entire group snapped to attention and then moved to comply with is order before he turned to face his fellow Major. "Be ready for anything Shepard, we are in the enemy's backyard" he warned.
"I know Schafer believe me I do they have the advantage in numbers but as long as we control the high ground we have the edge" Shepard shot back easily taking no offence to the warning. "As long as we have our flanks covered we will be fine, now let's get moving before anything happens" she suggested to which Schaefer smiled and nodded still smoking his cigar before moving to get his own gear.
Once all of them were equipped and loaded with the heavy ordinance they split up and moved to their designated positions, both teams stayed low as they did so knowing the closer they got to their targets the more the chance they might be spotted if they were not careful.
+TR+
(Jedi Temple)
Zirrik sat slowly in his seat as he was joined by those few council members left which was Zhar, Vandar and Kavar. Vima and Vash were still council members but had chosen to leave with Revan and hopefully act as a bridge between the remaining Revanchists and the Republic and Jedi, hence he could not call on their advice and wisdom. No they needed to fill the now vacant seats after Atris's attempted coup and the loss of Dorak, whilst his old friend may still be alive he was sadly a prisoner of Malak. He held little hope he could be rescued, and even if he was then he may not every be the same after whatever treatment Malak subjected him to.
"We have had a trying couple of days perhaps even weeks but now that turmoil must be put aside, the council has been almost destroyed thanks to Atris and her downfall to the dark side" he began slowly once everyone was seated. "Aided in no small part by Vrook and Kai-El's anger and perhaps fear of Revan, we cannot allow that sort of emotion to cripple us once again" he told them seriously as he could make himself sound. "Before this meeting goes any further allow me to introduce our new members, chosen for their long experience and loyalty to the order" he paused as the door to the council chamber opened to admit six Jedi they all recognised. "Master Yarrik will replace Vrook whilst Master Sully will replace Kai-El, Masters Krom, Kane and Grace will stand in for Vima, Vash and Dorak until such time as we can determine their standing and fate and finally Master Savanna will replace Atris whose name and deeds will be struck from the records of the order for her actions which have forever tainted any former glory she may have gained" he introduced the newcomers and shocked the others with his statement of Atris been struck from the orders archives. "Please my friends take your new places, you are now from this moment on council members" he added to the newcomers who hesitated briefly before moving to comply all of them still getting used to the fact they were now on the Jedi High Council.
"Do you seriously mean to strip Atris from the archives when she accomplished much for the order in her time?" Kavar couldn't help but inquire as it was very rare for a Jedi to be struck from the archives.
Even Meetra Surrik had not entirely been struck from them just had her name redacted and changed to the Exile, her deeds had remained. But what Zirrik was talking about was actually removing everything Atris had ever done for the order, it would be as if she had never joined. He felt conflicted, even with everything Atris had done even her fall to the dark side she had once been a great Jedi and friend. This was a truly sad day for the order, never before had a Jedi especially a council member brought such shame down on their heads.
"As I said Kavar, no matter her past accomplishments what she has done has shamed us all and forever tainted her name and deeds" Zirrik responded sounding as he had when he was a younger man strong and focused.
The attempted coup had been a wake up for him and made him realise how badly he had allowed his authority over the council to dissolve, his age and occasional illness had made him weak and unable to command the respect he once had. Until he finally stepped down he intended to project that old sense of power he had once commanded, he would hold it for as long as it took to find the right Jedi to finally succeed him as Grand Master. Once he would have chosen either Vandar or Vrook, both experienced with a long history of service to the order. But Vrook had betrayed them when he had aided Atris's attempt at a coup, whilst Vandar had failed to help stop it or even chosen which side of the coup he was on. He had allowed himself to be rendered powerless by his inaction, and that was not the kind of Grand Master the Jedi needed.
"Do you think it possible Dorak is still alive?" Zhar finally spoke as remained silent as Zirrik talked and was surprised to see a renewed sense of strength surround the older man which pleased him to see.
"It is a slim possibility Zhar but even if he is I fear even were we able to rescue him he would never be the same after the torments Malak will undoubtedly put him through" Zirrik answered with a sigh. "I have grave doubts if he would be able to return to his place on this council were he still be alive and rescued" he admitted.
Silence followed his admission as each of them realised his fears were probably well founded, Malak was a monster now well known for his brutal use of torture to not only gain information but turn Jedi to his cause. Not even a council member could hold out against such torture for long, as much as they did not want to admit it Dorak was doomed one way or the other.
+TR+
(Korriban)
Revan led his small party into the cantina and came to a dead stop as he looked around and easily spotted Yuthura at the far end sitting in a corner and staring off into space, she looked completely lost in whatever she was thinking about but he knew she was ready to defend herself if need be. He frowned as he looked closer at the Twi-Lek and noted her eyes were not as lost as she made out, in fact they seemed to stray constantly to the two far right corners. He glanced in that direction and instantly picked out the two men trying to blend in with the various guards and patrons as spies clearly there to keep an eye on Yuthura, someone more than likely Wynn was either unsure of her loyalty or was becoming paranoid she would try and supplant him.
"HK, eliminate the two spies watching Yuthura quietly and without been seen" he ordered to the still cloaked droid. "The rest of you split up and mingle but do not go near Yuthura until HK gives us the all clear" he told the others unseen as he was still wearing his helmet.
He moved closer to the bar and gave the room a close look over taking in whom else was in, taking a close look at the uniforms of the various Sith sitting and drinking within the cantina. Some of them were actual Sith Masters or at least presented themselves as such, he doubted many of them could actually match a true Sith in force power or lightsaber combat. He could see that Malak's troops had lost a lot of their former military discipline they had once had before they turned traitor, instead of been alert and ready for any kind of surprise attack or ambush they were sitting laughing and drinking heavily. They were so absorbed with their own pleasures and sense of power, they were ignoring the fact they were still in a war with the Republic. Clearly the fact they were winning had made them overconfident, power had gone to their heads and they had forgotten how even the supposed certainty of victory could be snapped away from them as it was for the Mandalorians.
"Elated News Master, both targets are now neutralised" HK's voice broke him out of his thoughts and made him refocus. He glanced at the two corners and noted both spies were still in a somewhat upright position, giving away no sign they were quite clearly dead.
Nodding his head he moved on past the bar and towards where Yuthura still sat, the others quickly moved to join him having also heard the report from HK. He noted the instant Yuthura took note of their movement towards her, as he suspected she was indeed paying attention to her surroundings even if her mind was wondering. Just as he reached her position, Yuthura stood up and faced him whilst her hand strayed to where her lightsaber hung on her belt.
"Can I help you?" she inquired clearly on guard especially as Carth and the rest of his small party arrived.
"I believe you can" Revan responded easily noticing the way Yuthura suddenly straightened up as he spoke and her eyes cleared of anything but direct focus and that told him she recognised his voice.
That was both helpful and unhelpful depending on where her allegiance lay, he would have to watch her carefully for any signs of deceit no matter how she acted until he could be certain of where her loyalty lay.
"We are a mercenary unit looking for work and we have come here not only to find that work but also because I recently found out I can use the force" he continued moving on with his prepared cover story. "I wish to learn how to properly use it" he added.
Yuthura had to keep her mask of disinterest and shock in check as the supposed mercenary talked, because she knew beyond doubt that stood before her was Revan. She recognised his voice and more importantly she knew his presence in the force anywhere, she had been close to him many times due to her sister Rikka's position as his aide thus she knew how he felt in the force. Her general had final arrived on Korriban, but he had no idea how much more dangerous this planet would prove to be as he did not know Bandon and his assassin squad was here. Nor did he know his face was known to everyone within the academy thanks to Bandon bringing images of Revan without his helmet captured during the war, she had to get him and his party someone quiet where they could talk without been overheard or seen.
She was not ignorant that either Uthar or Bandon was having her watched, in fact she was certain the two Sith in the far right corners were spying on her. She glanced in their direction only to double take as she took a closer look at them, whilst it seemed they were resting in their seats something seemed oddly off about them and more to the point she could not feel them in the force. Clearly one of Revan's companions had dealt with them before approaching her, that suited her fine as it made actually leading the group somewhere they could talk easier.
"Really, you think you have what it takes to be a Sith?" she finally responded realising she had been silent too long.
Revan smirked under his helmet before turning to one of the nearby Sith at a table behind them and used the force to pick him up by the throat, the solider struggled in the air even as his friends jumped up in shock and moved to attack only to be waved away by Yuthura. Revan then released the solider and when he collapsed to the floor used the force to send him flying up against the bar, his head hit hard and he quickly fell unconscious.
"Will that prove sufficient?" he inquired wondering what Yuthura would do next.
"Indeed it does, very impressive and shows you have no problem using the force to inflict violence" Yuthura answered pleased to see the General's powers seemed to be intact. "You may indeed be capable of becoming a Sith, what is your name?" she inquired ensuring to sound as normal as possible.
"Dak Vorris" Revan lied easily having come up with new identities for each of his team, he had also ensured not to use the name the Jedi had stuck him with encase it had become known to Malak and his people. Even if by now they had begun to suspect he was still very much himself, especially after they had intervened in the attempted coup by Atris and Vrook. The emblem of the Revanchists would not have been missed by them, nor would it have been forgotten.
"I am Yuthura Ban, second to Master Uthar Wynn and the only way you will get into the academy" Yuthura replied repeating a line she had used with many other applicants thus staying ensuring none of the other Sith began to believe she was acting oddly and reported her to Uthar before she could finish talking to the general and his group. "Follow me" she instructed and led the away to the far end office which she had already prepared before had should Revan arrive as expected.
She had disabled any cameras within the room personally and then scanned it for any listening devices or any other spy apparatus, she had found none not even when she had scanned it before coming into the cantina this very day. Hopefully this would be the beginning of her redemption after failing to return to the fleet after Revan's supposed death, she did not doubt many in the fleet would believe her guilty of possibly betraying them. Hopefully Rikka the closest thing to a sister she had even if they did not share the same blood was not among them, the office was empty as she knew it would be as the fiancé manager who usually used it was dead. Killed three days before by Bandon when the man accidently ran into the supposed apprentice, Bandon as had become common lashed out and killed him without remark. A fate that had befallen several other people on Korriban both in the academy and in the spaceport, the man had no self-control and seemed to enjoy killing people for no real reason. Once Revan and his group were within the office she closed and locked the door, she then cast a force bubble so as to ensure they would not be overheard.
"Hello General, I have been expecting you" she said as she turned to face the one she knew was Revan. "A part of me had hoped you would avoid coming here due to the risk, but the rest of me is very glad to see you" she added.
"Are you Yuthura?" Revan inquired dropping any pretence of acting as removing his helmet much to the surprise of Carth. "I question your statement, you were supposed to return to the fleet should anything happen to me, I instructed you personally at what you should do if anything like a betrayal happened but you did not do that" he pointed out. "You stayed here on Korriban and continued training the fools who followed Malak and his allies into darkness, you aided the very people who slew our brothers and sisters and gave it not even a single thought at the sort of betrayal they were committing so why would you be glad to see me?" he went on ending on a very pertinent question.
"I did not aide them willingly General nor did I do it without questioning myself" Yuthura responded having suspected been challenged on her motives for staying on Korriban and hoping her reasons would be accepted. "When the news came in that you had been killed in a coup, I felt an immediate sense of loss as since the day you rescued me and Rikka and the others who were with us that day I had dedicated my life to following you and helping you achieve your goals" she explained. "Goals that had become as real and as meaningful to me as they were to you and our fellow Revanchists, but your loss threw me into a spiralling tunnel of darkness and a sense of numbness overtook me" she went on as she thought back to the day she had received the news of Revan's supposed death. "I lost the will to do anything but feel adrift, cut off from everything and I just went through the motions of what I had been doing up to the point I got the news of your death which was training new recruits" she paused stared into Revan's eyes as he watched her intently listening to her every word.
She hoped he was also feeling her force aura through the force so he knew she was not lying, she also couldn't help but wonder who had come with Revan to Korriban. Was the object of Bandon's presence Bastila Shan actually with him, she glanced between the group if it was even possible he would bring such a sort after prise with him here. She also did her best not think about what had become of her sister since the coup, tried not to think that she had been killed during that event. That too had played a part in her fall into numbness, it had been a pain on par with the loss of Revan perhaps even more.
"It was not just your loss General but the loss of so many of my friends who I had fought beside during the entire war with the Mandalorians, and more importantly the loss of Rikka" she admitted after a short pause. "It was all too much for me to handle and I apologise for failing to carry out your orders" she added.
Revan listened closely as Yuthura responded whilst also paying close attention to her force aura looking for any signs of deceit but he could not hear or see any, he also realised what she was telling him sounding very much like the same reasons Shepard and her team as well as Rand had fallen into such numbness and in Rand's case darkness. It seemed his temporary loss to the fleet had had a wider effect on many of his people, far more than he would have believed. He especially noted the flare up in her aura as she talked about the loss of friends and Rikka, it showed that her sense of loss was very much real. He relaxed somewhat, he believed Yuthura spoke the truth and was indeed still loyal.
"You speak truth Yuthura and your aura shows that your sense of loss is still very much real" he finally said in response. "And you are not the first of our people to loose themselves after the coup, others have had a similar reaction to what you underwent" he told her much to her relief.
"General, may I inquire as to the status of my sister?" Yuthura broke in before he could continue as her need to know whether Rikka lived or not overcame her.
Revan grinned at the honest need he heard in Yuthura's tone as she asked her question, clearly she had not sensed the familiar presence of Rikka beside him. More than likely due to the fact she was currently occupied trying to convince him of her loyalty, grinning a bit wider he glanced to the side were Rikka was standing still hidden by her helmet.
"Why don't you ask her yourself" he responded as he indicated for Rikka to step forward.
Yuthura turned her attention to the shortest of Revan's group as they stepped forward and removed their helmet, to her utter shock it turned out it was indeed her sister standing before her. Rikka was alive and well, unable to help herself she launched herself forward and engulfed her in an expressive hug even as she tried to understand how she had missed Rikka's presence in Revan's group. As they hugged the others removed their helmets and watched the reunion, the only one who did reveal their presence was HK who remained on guard near the door watching Yuthura intently.
"Why did you come Rikka, you usually do not leave the fleet?" Yuthura questioned as she slowly released her sister and took a good look at her noting the harder lines her features had taken on.
"I came to find out your fate and if the impossible had happened and you had turned I came to kill you as I knew you would want" Rikka answered honestly seeing no reason to lie.
Yuthura was not shocked at Rikka's response as it would indeed be her wish to be taken out should she ever fall to the dark side, she may have pretended to be a Sith but she was not one and if she had anything to do about it she never would.
"Well you don't have to kill me Rikka I am still loyal to the cause, I am still a Revanchist" she swore before turning her attention back to Revan who had watched their reunion in silence. "Things are more dangerous here General than you may have believed before coming, Darth Bandon is here with a handpicked cadre of assassins with orders to kill you and your people and capture Bastila Shan" she informed him not missing the look of distaste that passed over the general's face as she said Bandon's name.
"Hell, how do we deal with the Dark Lord's apprentice?" Carth demanded to know as she recognised the name. "Not to mention a bunch of assassins" he added.
"That is not the only problem I am afraid, first Bandon brought images of you without your mask general and as soon as you enter the academy you will have to remove your mask and they will know who you are instantly" Yuthura picked up before Revan could even think of answering Carth's question. "Second Uthar has sensed an opportunity and intends to kill the assassins and replace them with his own people, hence when Bandon confronts you they will kill you both" she continued. "Once you are both dead he intends to lure Malak here with the news he has Shan in his custody and then will attempt to kill Malak and assume his place as Dark Lord of the Sith" she finished.
"That is rather inventive for Wynn as I recall he wasn't exactly too bright" Revan responded not surprised the academy master was intent on trying to usurp not only Bandon but Malak all in one shot.
Plus if his plan actually succeeded and he managed to kill not only both Dark Lords but by some miracle kill him and his entire team, no one within the ranks of the Sith would dare appose or question him. However unfortunately for Wynn he had no intention of dying anytime soon, his plan would end up failing if he and his friends had anything to say about it. His attention shifted to the fact Bandon was here, he recalled him well after the man had tried to assault him after two of his friends had died in a battle against the Mandalorians that had gone disastrously wrong due to a mistake he had made. No matter how great a general was, no matter how skilled they were they still made mistakes and this one had proved costly in lives. Bandon had changed after that battle, becoming dark and slowly more twisted. He was not surprised to find he had become Malak's apprentice, however he felt no fear at the idea of facing him.
More than likely Bandon would count first on the idea that been on Korriban a planet steeped in the dark side would put him at a disadvantage, he would also depend on numbers and the supposed idea he had surprise on his side from him not knowing he was here with his assassins if they were still alive and not replaced yet by Wynn's people. He was wrong on all counts, the dark side would prove no disadvantage to him. If needed he could wield it better than Bandon or Malak, he just had to be careful as Korriban enhanced the dark side and could overwhelm even a well-trained Jedi Master. He would have to purge himself as soon as they got back to the ship, it would just take longer than usual.
"So what do we do now, how do we handle the Dark Lord's apprentice?" Carth demanded to know once more.
"He thinks he has the advantage Carth but he doesn't" Revan answered calmly. "We do, but first things first we need to get into the academy and if I know Bandon he will want to weaken us or at least expect us to be weakened from having to do whatever Sith trainee's go through now to become actual Sith by their standards" he stated. "He will only show himself once he is sure he has the supper hand, as like Malak he is to cowardly to face us head on right from the start" he concluded.
"I hope you're right Revan" Carth said even if before knowing his son was still alive he wouldn't have cared about facing the apprentice of the Dark Lord or even the Dark Lord himself.
"I am so don't worry about it" Revan shot back confidently. "Now we enter the academy and play along with whatever games they want, we pretend I am here to learn how to use the force and become a Sith" he told them. "Yuthura once you have introduced me to Wynn I need you to help Carth locate his son, brought here by Karath as revenge and help him get the kid back to our ship or at least out of the academy and hidden somewhere we can easily pick him up on our way out" he instructed turning to the pale Twi-Lek who nodded in understanding. "HK you will go with them and stun the kid on the heaviest charge you have, that will keep him out for a few hours at least" he added to which the cooper droid's eye glowed. "That should keep him from causing any trouble, Carth once you have your son secured double time it back to us as we will need your help when Bandon finally shows his hand" he finished.
"Just make sure that insane droid of yours does use stun only Revan, he harms my son I destroy him and then come for you" Carth swore not exactly liking the plan but seeing the need to get Dustil out of the way before things went to hell, plus he didn't exactly trust the blood thirsty assassin droid of Revan's either.
"HK will follow my orders Carth and the order is to use stun thus that is what he will use" Revan assured him.
"General whilst Bandon make want to wait until we have tired and weakened ourselves before striking, what about Uthar Wynn?" Niks inquired.
"Wynn will wait as well if as Yuthura has stated he plans to kill us along with Bandon at the same time by replacing the assassins with his own loyalists" Revan responded. "Thus the only way he can get us both is for Bandon to make his appearance, but as I have said he won't until he is certain he has a big advantage" he added.
"Could you be wrong?" Carth inquired.
"Anyone can be wrong Carth, no matter who they are but in this matter I am certain I am correct" Revan answered again full of certainty.
"One more thing General I have found some allies here, a few like myself are not lost to the dark side whilst three of them only wish to see you return to what they see as your rightful place as Dark Lord of the Sith" Yuthura informed him of the last bit of information she had to give. "Those who I know cannot be trusted I have placed in the most dangerous positions to ensure your escape, such as ensuring the weapons systems are deactivated for if they are not then as soon as you try and escape your ship will be blasted into atoms" she explained. "The others I have assigned to ensure your ships lockdown is lifted by the time you leave, I will send the signal to them to alert them to act once you are ready to leave" she added.
"Good planning Yuthura, when we do leave it will be in a hurry so do not let yourself get bogged down in a fight with anyone not even Wynn" Revan responded pleased to hear a few more of his people were redeemable. "That goes for the rest of you" he warned the rest of his group. "Now let's get moving, HK stay cloaked at all times until Bandon shows himself" he ordered. "Helmets back on until they instruct us to take them off" he added even as he replaced his own and then indicated for Yuthura to lead them out.
+TR+
(Telos, hidden Academy)
Atris sat crossed legged as she listened to the deep voice of the Sith Lord, one of many recorded in the archon holocron, one of the most forbidden the Jedi had ever recovered and now it was hers to study as she wished. No one could interfere with her studies now, not even the council who had betrayed her, she knew the answer to saving the Jedi was held within the various holocrons she now had access too. It was also the way to increasing her power so when she next faced Revan, Meetra and the rest she would be able to kill them and remove their corruption from the world permantly. She would raise a new order within the Jedi, powerful and no longer chained by the limitations the order had longed put upon itself. With this new order she would destroy Malak and his ilk and then she would help rebuild the Republic with her voice forever in the ear of whoever was Grand Chancellor, they would listen to her and no one else.