Author's Note: Oh my goodness... Vader: Shards of the Past... The fan film by Star Wars Theory was absolutely spectacular! So much depth and emotion to it, the effects and acting were brilliant, and it just felt like Star Wars! Something that The Last Jedi or Solo failed to accomplish! All of you have got to go and watch it if you haven't already! This was just Episode 1, and in order to do Episode 2 he needs to raise $200,000 approx. which we the fans can do by supporting his Youtube Channel! As far as I'm concerned, I am considering it to be canon to the Star Wars universe.
Now on with the Shaniverse! :D
"Mama, daddy, what's happening?"
"It'll be alright sweetie, nothing will happen to you..."
"...get our son out of here safe!"
"WHERE IS THE CHILD?!"
"Out of your reach."
"Marcus!"
"Lara!"
"MAMA!"
Malachor Sith Temple - Malachor I
Jarik POV...
I clench my fists tightly, glaring furiously at the ground as if it was the source of all of my agony. However the true source stood several feet away, smirking at me despite the bloody nose I gave him. I slowly raise my metal fist and note the small amount of blood staining it, glaring darkly with golden eyes.
"Jarik..." Ahsoka whispers, laying a comforting hand on my back. "Jarik, please just look at me..."
"What're you asking me to do Ahsoka?" I ask coldly. "Forgive him?"
"No! Of course not!" she tells me in angry astonishment. "What he's done to you is unforgivable, and that is not what I'm asking you to do!"
"Then what are you asking me to do for him?" I demand, whipping my gaze around to glare at her.
"I'm not asking you to do anything for him," she replies sharply while glaring right back, switching over to our bond. "I'm asking you to do this for me!"
I remain quiet, glancing at Maul for a brief moment before she holds a hand to my face to focus my attention on her.
"Jarik, you can't let him get to you. That's what he wants," she tells me. "Remember we're here to find a way to defeat the Sith. To look for answers and, if possible... bring Anakin back."
"Him being here changes things," I retort.
"Killing Maul won't bring them back little Jari," she shoots back.
Little Jari...
That's what my mother used to call me.
"He knows things about the temple that we don't. I don't like it either, but he can help us," she reasons. "Don't kill him out of hate Jarik. Stay with the light, stay with me! I don't want to lose you, so please don't do something you might regret."
Closing my eyes I softly breathe in and out to try and control my blinding rage, and Ahsoka helps out as well, attempting to soothe me with her presence and wash away the darkness that grew in me. Reopening my eyes, they were no longer golden.
"Alright... I'll go along with it," I promise her.
She smiles at me in relief, and leads me back over to where the rest of the group was standing. They all glance at us in concern, although Maul had his eyebrows raised in contempt and amusement.
"Are you alright dad?" Mara asks me worriedly.
"I'm better now Mara," I tell her with a soft smile.
"Dad?" Maul muses, making my gaze harden.
He gives me and Ahsoka a critical gaze, stopping for a moment upon noticing Ahsoka's ring, and hums to himself with a grin.
"It would appear you are just like any other Shan," he comments in amusement.
"What does that mean?" Ezra asks.
"Enough with the taunting, Maul," Ahsoka snaps at him, keeping hold of my right arm with her hand, constantly keeping the anger within me at bay. "What game are you playing here? Why would you help us?"
"Hmph, straight to the point then, I suppose," Maul shrugs. "If you must know, I am the enemy of your enemy now. Surely you understand, Lady Tano, that I have my own reasons for wanting the Empire to fall. However as of this moment, we have little time before the one they call Vader arrives."
"How do you know this?" Kanan questions.
"His dogs will tell him where we are," he states, giving the five of us a glance-over. "Three Jedi, a Shan, and a... part timer. I'm sure he would love the opportunity to see you."
Maul stares at Ahsoka and I with a raised brow, as if implying something. I glare coldly at him in response as he tilts his head, almost curiously. Beside me I feel Ahsoka tense up a little bit with some anxiety and unease, and Maul finally turns away with a scoff.
"Oh he will come for you," he continues with a grin, and it finally clicks for us.
He knows who Vader is. Just like how Ahsoka mentioned what he said years ago.
"But together, we have strength. He won't be able to resist us," Maul says eagerly.
"Ok, hold on. There is no us!" Kanan interrupts with a frown. "Dealing with Inquisitor's is one thing, Vader is another. And I'm not convinced we're all on the same side."
"Kanan, we should trust him!" Ezra urges, and I roll my eyes in contempt.
"Fat good that did for Pre Vizsla," I mutter sarcastically.
To my surprise, Maul actually shrugs in agreement.
"Jarik, please just hear me out!" Ezra says. "Look, he, Mara and I took this from the temple together!"
At the sight of Ezra pulling out a Sith holocron, I widened my eyes in surprise and wariness, sharing a concerned glance with Ahsoka and Kanan, while Mara looked a little more subdued and wary.
"This is why we came here right? To find out about the Sith. To figure out a way to beat them?" he continues. "Ahsoka, you said we came here for knowledge!"
"Ezra, there is no way a Jedi can unlock that holocron!" she points out warily.
"Maybe not a conventional Jedi," Maul remarks, looking at me. "Perhaps a man of your talents, Shan?"
"What are you talking about?" Kanan asks in confusion.
I just narrow my eyes at him, and Ahsoka glances at me in concern while Maul feigns an expression of shock.
"He didn't tell you? None of them did?" he asks the others.
"Tell us what?" Ezra asks.
"I highly doubt any of that's important," Mara scoffs, although she was a little worried.
"Your friend, Jarik Shan, is the last living descendant of Darth Revan himself!" Maul reveals with a grin, his eyes gleaming.
Kanan and Ezra both widen their eyes in shock and surprise, whipping around to face me, while I glare furiously at Maul, who smirks at me in return. Ahsoka lays a reassuring hand on my shoulder and Mara looks between us nervously. I breathe out slowly, controlling the intense rage I was feeling.
"Why- why didn't you tell us?" Ezra asks with a frown.
"Because it was never important for you to know," I reply quietly.
"You... you're actually descended from the Revan? The Prodigal Knight?" Kanan asks warily.
"The very same one that became a Sith Lord, leading a massive campaign against the Jedi!" Maul adds gleefully.
"Hey, don't forget that he's also related to Satele Shan, one of the greatest Jedi Masters in history!" Mara retorts in my defense.
"I can't believe you didn't tell us that!" Ezra says in upset.
"Now is not the time to talk about who Jarik is descended from," Ahsoka interrupts firmly, shooting warning look at Maul. "Right now we have bigger troubles. Vader is on his way, and we need to know more about how to learn from this holocron."
"Master Shan?" Maul questions with a raised eyebrow.
"I am not delving into the dark side just to satisfy you with opening it," I snap at him with a seething glare. Why doesn't the kriffer just open it himself?!
"Why not?" Ezra demands irritably.
"Very well Shan," Maul says with a disappointed sigh. "If you will not open the holocron, there is still another way to acquire the knowledge you desire by unlocking the temple itself."
"How? Tell me how!" Ezra asks eagerly.
"At the top of the temple is a chamber. Connect the holocron to the obelisk within and you can unlock the ancient knowledge of the Sith," Maul informs us.
We look up to where we could see the glowing chamber at the top.
"Why are you working so hard to keep us here Maul?" I demand.
"I cannot defeat Vader alone," he replies grimly.
"I say we stay with him," Ezra tells us.
"Yeah? Well I say we go, and that settles it!" Kanan retorts.
Maul scoffs in disgust, turning around to scowl at us.
"Are you such cowards that you would run from this chance to defeat your enemies!?" he asks mockingly, before looking more pitiful. "Who will slaughter your friends..."
I narrow my eyes at him, sensing immediately that he's influencing Ezra to his advantage. Glancing at Mara, I'm relieved to see that she doesn't seem to be taking his advice any further than me or Ahsoka are. From the look she gives me she can sense the same thing.
"Kanan?" Ezra asks.
Kanan frowns, looking at Ahsoka and I. Ahsoka glances at me with a subtle nod, and I sigh reluctantly in defeat, nodding to Kanan.
"Fine," he grumbles.
I raise my arm and activate my comlink.
"R5, we're staying for a while," I tell him, and he beeps back irritably in reply. "Yeah I know it's a kriffing bad idea, but there are some things we have to take care of first. Keep the Knight Hawk out of sight, and scan for any ships coming in, or out."
After R5 beeps back his reluctant agreement, I close out the transmission, and Maul sidles up beside me with a grin.
"How exciting! We're all on the same side!" he says happily.
"Just show us how to get to the top before I show just how strong my prosthetic arm is," I snap at him.
"This way..." he trails off, walking away.
Vifi POV...
Some distance away from the base of the temple where the Jedi and Maul were, my group was camped in a small ruined structure, with the Eighth Brother perched on top of a broken column. One of my probe droids was providing invaluable surveillance on our enemies, which we were all listening to.
"Look, he, Mara and I took this from the temple together!"
"This is why we came here right? To find out about the Sith."
"...last living descendant of Darth Revan himself!"
I frown thoughtfully, surprised and intrigued to hear this information.
"So, my old friend Jarik is a descendant of Revan himself?" I ask curiously.
"Isn't that quite an interesting development," Third Brother muses.
"More importantly however, the boy holds possession of a Sith holocron," Second Sister states with a hiss.
"We cannot allow him to use it!" Fifth Brother exclaims.
"I will reclaim it!" Eighth Brother states.
With a twirl of his lightsaber jets, he soars off into the air in the direction of the temple, and not long afterwards, both the Fifth Brother, and Third Brother's follow after him. Pulling out my lightsaber I raise it into the air, eager to join in on the fight and reunite with my old friends, when Second Sister stops me.
"Wait. Let the boys thin them out. Then we will retrieve Lord Vader's prize," she tells me.
I think about it for a moment before smirking in agreement, putting my saber away.
Jarik POV...
Maul continued to lead us along the outside of the temple, eventually stopping at one of the corners next to a wall.
"Now what?" Kanan demands.
In response, Maul raises a hand and presses it against the side of the wall. A section of it immediately lowers down into the ground like an elevator of stone, which has Ezra annoyingly fascinated.
"Wow!" he exclaims.
"I've seen cooler," Mara says in dismissal, pulling a small grin of amusement to my face.
The platform lowers down to our level, and immediately Ezra and Maul both step onto it. Kanan moves to follow before being stopped by Maul, causing him to frown in annoyance.
"Only two. No more no less," Maul states smugly, covering it with false pity.
"Yeah? Well these two come as a set!" Kanan retorts, shoving Maul off of it and stepping on beside Ezra, who glances at him irritably. "Either of you okay riding with grandpa?"
"We'll be fine," Ahsoka assures him with a smile.
With that being said, Maul presses the hidden button on the side of the temple, and allows it to rise further up the side. As we wait there was no talking between us, Mara shifting uncomfortably every few moments while I had my arms crossed. Eventually the pillar reaches the top, and so Maul brings it back down to our level. I gesture for Ahsoka and Mara to get on the next one.
"You two go next," I tell them.
"I'm not so sure that's such a good idea," Ahsoka says in disagreement.
"Why not Lady Tano?" Maul asks innocently, causing her to glare at him.
"You're just asking for Jarik to kill you," she states in annoyance.
"Ahsoka, I'll be fine," I reassure her. "It's just a simple elevator ride, no more than a few seconds."
"There is another ascension stone a few feet away if we want to rise at the same time," Maul offers, surprisingly.
Ahsoka glances to where he was pointing, and then at Mara before nodding. I stare warily at Maul and follow him to the other platform, stepping on it beside him. Satisfied, Maul reaches out and presses his hand against the wall, causing a soft red glow to appear before our two platforms began the ascent. Ahsoka and Mara were in a quiet discussion, no doubt questions from the latter, while me and Maul stood stiffly beside each other.
"So how did you survive?" Maul finally asks.
"I escaped the temple. Rescued another," I reply stiffly.
"Hmm," he hums in reply.
"You however have not changed a bit," I state with a frown, glancing at him. "How did Crimson Dawn would out for you?"
"You're aware of that?" he replies, sounding a little surprised. "Hm. You are a perceptive one."
"Perceptive enough to know you're messing with Ezra," I accuse, glaring at him.
"What could you possibly mean by that Master Shan?" he replies in mock disbelief.
I was about to answer with a retort, before widening my eyes at the sight of the Eighth Brother suddenly swooping in from the air. At the level the platforms were taking us Kanan and Ezra were still standing up there, the former being kicked out of view by the Eighth Brother, and they soon disappear from view.
"Ahsoka!" I exclaim, pointing to it.
"On it!" she yells back, whipping out her lightsabers.
"Behind us!" Maul warns.
I whip around to see the Third and Fifth Brother's charging for us, just as our platform reached the top. Jumping backwards, Maul and I both whip out our lightsabers as the two Inquisitor's swoop in, Third Brother flying past me in attempting for a kick. He quickly spins around to slash his lightsaber at me, which I quickly deflect and retaliate with a horizontal swipe of my own. Fifth Brother slams into Maul in a fierce blade lock, attempting to shove him back with his own brute strength, but Maul scowls and presses back harder, swinging around to kick him in the gut.
Third Brother charges for me again in another quick series of upward and downward slashes and swipes, and I lean my head out of the way, dodging or blocking his strikes, dashing forwards. He vaults over me however in a move that has me surprised, and lashes out with his saber. I just barely deflect it, although he had cut through a part of my Jedi cloak. Scowling, I quickly pull the entire cloak off and throw it at the Third Brother's face, blinding him for a moment. He cuts it apart just in time to see me perform Obi-Wan's signature battle stance with pointing fingers, and then kick him in the chest.
He stumbles backwards into the Fifth Brother, who was having his own troubles with Maul, barely able to keep up with the former Sith Lord. Then out of nowhere the two Inquisitors thrust out their hands with a Force burst, shoving the two of us back. We weren't sent flying, as we were prepared for it and managed to block the wave, but it gave them the chance to recover, and Third Brother jumps for us. Maul and I both duck underneath the attack, and go back to back for a moment to face the Inquisitors on either side.
"Perhaps, for once, we can actually work together as a team?" Maul comments.
"This is temporary," I shoot back.
Right afterwards, me and Maul both thrust an arm out and blow the Inquisitors away with powerful Force pushes, knocking them off the side. At the same time, Ahsoka also pushed Eighth Brother off the side, and the three Inquisitors all flew away in retreat on their lightsabers. Me and Maul watched them go, deactivating our lightsabers while Ahsoka pulled Ezra back onto the cliff and Mara checked on Kanan, who was slowing getting to his feet. We walked over to them, rejoining once again as a group of six.
"Are you guys okay?" I ask them.
"We're alright," Kanan says with a sigh.
"I'm pretty sure they know Ezra has the holocron," Mara says uneasily.
"Vifi," I say with a sigh.
She always did have an interest in probe droids.
3rd person POV...
While the rest of the Inquisitors flew around the temple to get into position in various spots for their ambush, Third Brother managed to sneak away, having sensed something of great power. He could tell instantly the moment he sensed it what the power he felt was.
But how did it get onto Malachor?! How?
Well, that's something that carried little meaning to him for right now. His true master would be most pleased if he brought him another one, and once the stone beneath Vader's castle was retrieved, he would have two. Best part is, nobody knew about the stone hidden beneath the Sith temple that drew his attention. No one!
With a smirk on his face, the Third Brother angled his lightsaber to carry him further down the side of the temple, so that he may recover what his true master seeks.
Jarik POV...
Sensing something, the six of us all look up to see Vifi and the Second Sister flying high above the temple, soaring towards the backside with their spinning lightsaber jet thrusters. Once again, that is just simply not fair.
"Looks like they figured out your plan," Kanan observes with a frown.
"Then we shall alter it. I recommend that we split up and scale the pyramid from two sides. They will also have to divide their forces," Maul advises.
"And let me guess, Ezra goes with you? No, thanks," Kanan shoots down immediately.
"It is the logical choice," Maul replies.
"For you," I add with a frown, displeased by the idea.
"I say we split up," Ezra interrupts, eager to go with Maul. "Trust me!"
My face was set into a heavy frown, bordering a scowl as I had my arms crossed in displeasure. Kanan also wasn't happy, but he eventually sighed in defeat, giving in too Ezra's wishes.
"Excellent, excellent," Maul says in satisfaction, walking towards the lift. "You will find another lift on the far side, we will meet again on the next terrace."
"Hey, why don't I tag along with them too?" Mara asks me, Ahsoka and Kanan.
"No way," I shoot down immediately.
"Only two can travel on these lifts at one time girl," Maul adds with a frown.
"Hey, I wasn't asking you," Mara retorts, before looking back at us. "Please? I can make sure they don't delve into any... bad decisions."
I wanted to keep her from going with Maul at any cost, but Ahsoka shared a brief glance with me, giving a subtle nod. I eventually gave in to her wish, reluctantly nodding my head.
"Great!" she says happily.
"Again, I will have you know that only two can travel on these lifts," Maul adds.
"That's fine," Mara says, pulling out a grappling hook from her belt and grinning. "I'll just use this."
"I suppose that'll be fine," Ezra comments.
"Very well," Maul growls.
He presses the button on the side of the wall, allowing the lift to quickly ascend to the upper levels of the temple. Mara shoots her grappling hook into the side of it and then jumps into a side-standing position on the pillar, allowing herself to rise upwards fairly easily. I watch her go uneasily, feeling like this is a bad idea.
"They'll be fine," Ahsoka reassures us.
"Yeah? How do you know that?" Kanan questions with a frown.
"Because you taught Ezra," she replies with a smile. "And we taught Mara."
Kanan glances at me, and I shrug in response, accepting my wife's wisdom with a small smile. We began our walk towards the other side of the temple for the next lift, when I stop with narrowed eyes, glancing back down the side of the temple. Someone was traveling down below... instead of upwards... it was the Third Brother.
"Jarik? What's wrong?" Kanan asks me.
"I sense him too," Ahsoka says with a frown.
"The Third Brother is going further down the temple, instead of upwards..." I say slowly.
"Why would he do that?" he asks.
I glance at Ahsoka, nodding at her.
"I'll go and figure that out. You two keep going to the top," I tell them.
"You sure about this Jarik?" Ahsoka asks.
"Yeah. There's no reason for him to not come after us unless he was after something really important," I state intently.
"Well, good luck then," she says.
"You too," I reply with a grin.
With that being said I jump off of the terrace and fall further down the temple, following after where I could sense the Third Brother was going. He was headed deep inside of the Sith temple, at it's very roots. And the closer I got to the bottom, the more the sense of power increased in my mind. I don't have any doubts that what I am sensing is the artifact that woke up along with the rest of the Sith temple.
And Third Brother was eager to get it.
3rd person POV...
Mara pressed a button on her grappling hook and it pulled her all the way to the top, where she flipped onto the terrace just behind Maul and Ezra. They gave her a glance as she stood to her feet, but soon continued along once she joined them, standing beside Ezra. Not a few moments later however, several of Vifi's probe droids came out of nowhere and flew towards the trio, prompting them to pull out their lightsabers.
The probe droids all shot laser bolts at the group, which the three swiftly and easily moved to deflect, redirecting some of their fire back at the droids. Mara swiped her lightsaber at an incoming laser to deflect it, and it soared through the air back at one of the droids, destroying it with an electrical explosion. Ezra deflected another laser bolt back at a probe droid, and Maul jumped through the air to slash down at another one. The final droid shot one bolt at Ezra, who evaded it, before Mara threw her lightsaber through the air to stab it through.
As she was calling her lightsaber back, a red spinning saberstaff zoomed directly towards Ezra, who just barely managed to block it, sending it back to its owner. Vifi caught her lightsaber and opened her mask, letting out a dark and triumphant laugh. With a scowl, Ezra and Maul charged for the Inquisitor, the latter spinning his own lightsaber in challenge. Mara made to follow before another lightsaber was sent hurtling towards her, which she batted away with a surprised shout, before being called back by the Second Sister, who was charging down the steps on the other side.
"Mara!" Ezra exclaims in alarm, noticing the Second Sister approaching.
"I've got this, keep going!" Mara yells back, raising her lightsaber in challenge and charging for her worst enemy.
"Ezra!" Maul shouts at him, gesturing him to keep going.
"What's wrong child? Worried for your friend?" Vifi taunts with a sickening smirk.
Scowling, Ezra charges back up the stairs with a loud yell, angry at Vifi and determined to take her out for good.
Ahsoka and Kanan were ascending higher up the temple on another one of the lifts when they heard Ezra's yell.
"Well that doesn't sound good," Kanan says worriedly.
Ahsoka however was focused on something above them.
"Look out!" she exclaims in alarm. Above them, the Fifth Brother was standing at the terrace with his lightsaber activated.
He slashed down furiously at them but the lift was already lowering downwards again, causing him to miss and hit the ground instead. Activating her own lightsabers, Ahsoka leaps high into the air and flips over him, deflecting a strike on the way while Kanan jumps to the ledge and struggles to pull himself up. Ahsoka lands on the terrace and turns to face the Fifth Brother, blocking an attack with her left lightsaber blade. Kanan pulls himself to his feet and activates his own blue lightsaber, ready to strike when the Fifth Brother whips around with his saber's spinning feature, knocking him off balance before slashing at Ahsoka again, who parried the strike easily.
He goes on the offensive with powerful swings that are blocked or deflected by Ahsoka, and Kanan moves to attack again. Before he could however, the Eighth Brother had charged up the side of the terrace with his spinning blade and kicked Kanan in the back, sending him stumbling. Ahsoka gasped in alarm when she saw the Eighth Brother about to strike Kanan's unprotected back, and so she leaped underneath the Fifth Brother's next swing and brought up her lightsabers to block the Eighth Brother's attack.
Kanan glances up, and the Eighth Brother scowls before shoving at Ahsoka, who slashes at him with her other saber. Seeing the Fifth Brother storm forwards, he raised his lightsaber and went on the attack, causing them to get into a fight with hard brutal slashes and swings. Ahsoka and the Eighth Brother also get into a fierce duel, the agile and speedy Inquisitor proving to be a contender against Ahsoka's own skills.
Mara flipped over the Second Sister, who whipped around to deliver a hard strike against her in response. She blocked it with her own violet blade, deflecting and dodging the next few strikes before entering into a blade lock with her.
"Well isn't this nice," Second Sister says with a smirk. "You'll get the chance to join your beloved parents very soon!"
Mara scowls, shoving the Second Sister backwards before delivering an upward slash. Second Sister bats it aside and advances forwards with a few quick attacks, spinning her lightsaber every so often in an attempt to unbalance her. However Mara had been training hard for the last few weeks since their last encounter, and had improved much since then. She dodges or deflects the Second Sister's attacks in quick succession, backpedaling towards a staircase. Standing a few feet above her, the Second Sister scoffs in response.
"You might as well give up now Jade," she says.
"Wow, do you ever shut up?" Mara retorts with a grin.
Scowling, the Second Sister marches up the stairs with her lightsaber spinning, and slashes up at Mara, who parries and deflects her blows while allowing herself to be backed further up the staircase.
Jarik POV...
The ground fast approaching, I tensed up and used the Force to soften my landing on the ground. Standing back up to my full height, I stare down the dark triangular doorway leading further inside with a frown, sensing the powerful artifact to be far within, as well as the presence of the Third Brother. Warily, I start walking down into the dark depths of the temple, pulling how my blue lightsaber for some light.
Whispers seemed to surround me as the darkness grew, and the light faded the deeper I went into the temple. Glancing around the sides of the walls warily, I took note of the red glowing lines marking up the walls with a dim glow. The further I went inside, the more the power of this artifact seemed to be growing in strength, feeling so similar to the stone underneath Vader's castle, as if it was connected... yet also different... Dark spirits whispered around me, but I kept them at bay, sensing Ahsoka's presence subconsciously doing the same over the bond despite being in combat currently.
...one never knows for sure...
The moment I hear that deep voice I come to a stop. Turning around, I widen my eyes to see that I'm suddenly not in the same corridor that I entered.
Reality can be whatever I want.
Turning back around, I gasp quietly to see that I was suddenly standing in a massive cavern, with the darkness swirling all around me. The only light in the cavern came from a bright white glow at the far was completely quiet, aside from the sound of my footsteps and the groaning of stone, echoing throughout the chamber. But it was what lay in the center of the cavern that had my attention, and it was where the immense source of power I've been feeling came from.
Set on the rocky pathway stretching over an abyss was a tall black monolith, rectangular in shape, that had an opening towards the bottom. Inside that opening I could hear voices whispering in my mind, shrieking and echoing darkly. Leaning down to look, I saw swirling red and black energy that radiated the source of power and the whispering echoes. And the amount of power this swirling matter gave off, it felt... infinite. Not even Mortis could compare to its might.
"SHAN!"
I stood back up and turned around to see the Third Brother standing at the entrance of this massive cavern, staring me down. I couldn't see his face due to the mask, but the fury and disbelief behind his glare was something I could easily feel.
"Step aside from the artifact!" he demands.
I glance between him and the swirling matter glowing red inside the monolith, and stare back at the Third Brother.
"I don't think so," I reply, quoting my old master.
Third Brother scowls, activating both blades of his lightsaber and charging forwards with a war cry. I respond by pulling out both of my lightsabers and dashing towards the Third Brother, determined not to let this source of power fall into the Empire's hands.
3rd person POV...
Ezra dashed up the stairs and immediately started slashing his lightsaber hard at Vifi, pressing her back. She deflected his strikes with a flashing twirl of her red lightsaber, grinning at him. During the confrontation, Maul watched gleefully with a smirk on his face.
"That's it young one! Use your anger, use your pain! Let it fill you, fill you!" he encourages.
Ezra heeds Mauls advice without question, too caught up in his rage at Vifi to fully understand what it is that Maul is telling him. Slamming his lightsaber down, he enters a blade lock with Vifi for a few moments before shoving her back. She spins around from the shove, facing Ezra agin with a frown on her face before widening her eyes in alarm. Behind Ezra, Maul was raising his arm, clenching his fist and grabbing the Inquisitor in a choke hold.
Vifi gags as her throat was constricted by an invisible force, lifting her into the air helplessly. Her lightsaber was turned off, and she grasped at her throat as Maul continued to choke her while she stared down at the pair with terrified eyes.
"No! No!" she whimpers in fear.
"Strike her down!" Maul shouts with a growl, turning his saber off. "You want to end this? Finish her!"
Ezra glances uneasily at Maul, raising his lightsaber towards Vifi. She whimpers in fear with terrified eyes at seeing Ezra raising his lightsaber to strike with a determined gleam in his eyes. However, seeing the look of fear in her eyes made Ezra falter in his decision. She was genuinely terrified... of him! How could he end someone's life so ruthlessly like that, even an Inquisitor? And what about Ahsoka and Jarik... Vifi was their friend.
Would they want to see Vifi dead?
"I- I can't!" Ezra admits helplessly, shutting his lightsaber off and looking down.
Vifi's gaze slowly turned into a sly smirk upon seeing Ezra falter in his decision to kill her. Maul however, was not pleased. He grunts in anger, activating his lightsaber and then lets out a yell of fury and rage, throwing his lightsaber at her. The spinning red blades hurtle directly towards Vifi, and she screams in terror, raising a hand in a futile attempt to block it. In her last moments, she instinctively stretched out over the long since dormant clan bond she had as a youngling, releasing all of her fear.
"HELP ME!"
Ahsoka slashed her lightsaber at the Eighth Brother, knocking him a few feet away when something hit her. She widens her eyes in horror, feeling the long since dormant clan bond with Vifi flare to life one last time with her terror, before breaking forever. Despite knowing all the things that Vifi had done, she couldn't help the choked sob that threatened to break.
She was dead.
Jarik vaulted over the Third Brother's back and swiftly turned around, Force pushing him to the ground when it hit. He'd almost forgotten about it, but the clan bond with Vifi that's been dormant ever since the formation of the Empire spiked one last time, broadcasting her fear, before breaking apart and going dark forever, as she was snuffed out. He was frozen in place with shock, saddened despite knowing what she's done in service to the Sith.
The Third Brother charged at him again with a furious yell, breaking him from his momentary brief and resuming their battle.
Halfway across the galaxy, Rylla was sitting in the cockpit of her and Hayden's ship, listening to him prattle on and on about this new job they were taking with a soft smile of amusement on her face. She then widened her eyes and gasped as the dormant clan bond she hasn't touched in years suddenly flared to life. She could feel the terror of her old friend, Vifi, moments before she was snuffed out, breaking it forever.
Rylla began to quietly cry as Hayden was looking over at her in concern, immediately trying to figure out what was wrong.
Ezra gasped in horror as the lightsaber cleaved Vifi in two, from her right hip to her left shoulder. Vifi's corpse fell to its knees, the metallic sound of her lightsaber falling ringing loudly in his ears, and the remains of Vifi collapsed onto the cold stone with a thud in two separate pieces. Ezra breathed hard with wide eyes, struggling to comprehend what he saw as Maul slowly leaned down beside him, speaking quietly into his ear.
"The next time you hesitate like that, it might cost you your life," he growls, before speaking more softly. "Or the lives of your friends."
"...But Vifi was Ahsoka and Jarik's friend," Ezra replies quietly, still in a state of shock.
Maul frowns at him.
"You felt your anger against, Vifi, did you not?" he reminds him, turning away. "She made her choice."
Mara POV...
I delivered a horizontal strike against the Second Sister a she continued marching up after me, and she blocked it before lashing out with her own attack. Leaning away from her swipe, I flipped backwards onto the top of the flight of stairs, holding my lightsaber in a Shien handgrip as she charged up the staircase, slamming her lightsaber down. I blocked and parried, continuously backing up as the Second sister kept advancing with her angry slashes and strikes, attempting to bat my lightsaber away.
The biggest mistakes I've made in previous encounters against the Second Sister is that I kept fighting too much with my anger and pain at what she did to me, something she exploited to perfection. Now though, I was much more calm as I kept up the defense against her attacks, whereas she was obviously more frustrated.
"Why do you continue to persist girl? Your friends will soon die, as will you!" she declares, striking the ground after I dodged out of the way. "It is inevitable."
"Yeah, it's as inevitable as you looking like a total doofus," I retort, charging forwards and swinging my lightsaber heavily, causing her to stumble back briefly.
"Your attempts to insult me will get you nowhere Jade," she snarls.
"I don't know, they work pretty well for my dad," I remark wth a careless shrug, grinning.
Seething, she dashes forwards for me again, suddenly attacking with a series of furious blows and catching me by surprise. She swung vertical, horizontal, left, right, up down, and this time I was stumbling backwards more than I wanted to. With an enraged yell, she slams her red lightsaber down onto mine, entering the two of us into a blade lock as she forces me against a wall, leaving me trapped.
"There is nowhere to run, and this time your precious adopted father is nowhere nearby to save you!" she exclaims.
I grit my teeth nervously, noting how the two sparking and sizzling lightsabers were slowly being forced closer and closer to my face. I groan angrily as I start shoving the two lightsabers back in the opposite direction, calling upon the Force to give me more strength. Second Sister growls angrily, pushing back once again as I keep trying to get past her. Finally, with a determined yell I slip underneath the two blades and roll back to my feet on the other side, pushing off the ground in her direction.
My blade fell heavily against hers, causing her to stumble back uncontrollably. As she attempted to regain her balance, I shut my lightsaber off and brought back both of my arms, and then I thrust them out with all of my power in the Force. Second Sister was blown clear off the side of the temple and into the air with a furious yet fearful scream, falling down into the darkness of the ruined city far below. I had no idea if she survived or not, as I couldn't see her flying with a lightsaber, but I had no clue.
Sighing in exhaustion, I collapsed to my knees with heavy breaths, a little bit surprised that I've actually beaten her for once!
The surprise went away as a sudden chill in the dark side had me looking up, sensing a terrifyingly familiar presence approaching. If I looked closely, I thought I could see several of the lights in the underground ceiling disappearing briefly for a moment, as if something was passing over it. Whatever it was, it made me shiver in fear. Glancing to the side suddenly, I spotted Ezra ascending to the top of the temple by himself determinedly.
I quickly move to follow after him.
MOMENTS EARLIER...
3rd person POV...
Kanan's yell accompanied by lightsaber slashes broke Ezra out of his horror and shock, both he and Maul glancing up in the direction of the sound.
"We must hurry, I fear our companions are in danger," Maul says urgently.
Giving one last look of regret and horror to Vifi's corpse, Ezra quickly rushes up the stairs after Maul. Reaching the top of the staircase, they could see Ahsoka and Kanan fighting against the Eighth and Fifth Brothers below them, slowly pushing the Inquisitors back.
Maul then frowns, sensing something else. Looking up towards the dark starry surface roof far above them, he could sense a powerful force of darkness approaching, quickly deducing who it was. He could sense Darth Vader himself drawing ever closer, some of the spotlights disappearing for a moment to show that Vader's TIE Fighter was flying above the surface, looking for them. Ezra noticed Maul's stare and followed his gaze, only to see nothing.
"What is it?" he asks.
"Nothing," Maul says, tearing his gaze away. "We must not delay. I will handle this. You take the holocron. Place it in the obelisk, activate the temple, gain the knowledge you seek!"
Ezra looks down at the battle going on before nodding to Maul.
"I'll meet you at the top," he promises.
Once Ezra rushed away, Maul turned to look down at the ongoing battle and activated his lightsaber, jumping down. The Eighth and Fifth Brothers momentarily paused in their attack upon noticing him jumping down, and backed up nervously. Maul then landed in front of Kanan and Ahsoka and swiftly went into action, wasting no time in slashing his lightsaber at the two Inquisitors, kicking the Fifth Brother in the gut and striking again.
Ahsoka and Kanan glanced at each other before nodding, the latter moving forwards towards the Fifth Brother. Maul swiped at his head and the Fifth Brother ducked, but was unable to avoid Kanan as he slashed his blue lightsaber through his own, sending it clattering to the ground in a shower of sparks. Fifth Brother widens his eyes in alarm and looks up in fear as Maul comes charging forwards, slicing his double-bladed lightsaber through his torso, ending his life with a pained cry.
Ahsoka swiped her lightsabers at the Eight Brother, deflecting and parrying his own attacks before twirling past his guard and damaging his lightsaber, shoving him back. The Eighth Brother stumbled backwards, his lightsaber sparking for a few moments, and turned his gaze back to his enemies. Ahsoka, Maul and Kanan all stood before him, readying their lightsabers in challenge if he so dared to try and take all three of them on, Ahsoka standing in front as a clear leader, appearing quite dominant.
WIthout a moments hesitation, the Eighth Brother decided to cut his losses and get out of there as fast as he could. Twirling around, he activated the jets of his lightsaber and jumped into the air, beginning to fly away. However, the damaged lightsaber couldn't handle the use of the jets and immediately broke apart in a sparking explosion. The Eighth Brother fell several hundred feet down the side of the temple with a terrified scream, while the victors of the battle watched. With the threat over, Maul turned around and looked up the side of the temple with a satisfied grin on his face.
"Where's Ezra?" Kanan demands.
"You mean, my apprentice?" Maul sinisterly replies.
Ahsoka and Kanan both widen their eyes in alarm, glancing at each other. Without a seconds hesitation, Maul whipped around like a flashed and dashed forwards with a blazing lightsaber, headed directly for Kanan. The Jedi Knight only had a moment to widen his eyes in alarm before the red blade cut through them causing him to scream in agony, dropping to his knees.
"Kanan!" Ahsoka yells in alarm.
All Kanan could see was red, his senses on fire as the agony of a lightsaber slashing his eyes burned through every section of his body like lava being pored on his head. He held a hand tightly to his face, feeling the charred skin and small amounts of smoke rising from where his eyes should be. All he could feel was intense, burning agony on his face. Maul grinned fiercely, dashing forwards to finish him off, but Ahsoka leapt in between them, blocking his lightsaber with her own white blades, scowling angrily at him. She shoved him back, standing protectively in front of Kanan.
"My apprentice is activating the temple, or more precisely, this battle-station! Which I shall use, to exact my revenge, on all my enemies!" Maul declares fiercely.
Mara POV...
I finally reached the top of the Sith temple, seeing Ezra slowly approaching a floating obelisk in the center.
"Ezra!" I call out.
He turns to me, surprised.
"Mara? You're okay!" he says.
"Yeah, I blasted the Second Sister off the side of the temple, but I don't know if she survived or not," I explain. "What about Vifi and Maul?"
"Maul went to help the others, and Vifi..." he says, hesitating and making me narrow my eyes. "I'll tell you later. Right now, I'm trying to activate the temple with this holocron so we can learn the secrets of the Sith."
I eye him suspiciously for a moment before letting it go, deciding we have more important matters.
"Alright, so how do you do that?" I ask him.
"Well... Maul said to place the holocron in the obelisk," he says, gesturing to the floating obelisk behind him.
"Alright, then do it," I tell him.
Ezra nods before pulling out the Sith holocron and we slowly approach the obelisk, hearing evil whispers echoing around it. He holds the holocron up to the obelisk, and it starts to float in the air for a moment, before moving into the center of the two obelisk stones. Immediately, purple lightning is generated from the obelisk and runs through the holocron, which glows a bright red in response.
"Who comes forth, before the holocron of the Lord of Betrayal?" a woman's voice demands of us.
"Uhh Ezra? Ezra Bridger!" Ezra says.
"And Mara Jade Shan!" I add.
"Shan... how interesting..." the voice whispers. "What do you seek here, daughter of Shan?"
"We were told this holocron is the key to knowledge!" Ezra informs the voice.
"Indeed Ezra and Mara! And do you know what knowledge is?" the woman asks.
"What is it?" I ask her.
"Knowledge... is POWER!" she declares.
The holocron suddenly glows with power, and an immense energy burst of red swirling energy radiates off of it, exploding outwards into the air, and shooting a concentrated beam of pure red matter directly above it, breaking through the surface and shining like a spotlight into the sky.
Jarik POV...
I spun my lightsaber around, twirling past one of the Third Brother's attacks and striking at his back. He quickly holds up his lightsaber to block it, and then turns to face me with his spinning lightsaber, jumping at me wildly. I backpedal, deflecting the strikes he sent my way while backpedaling closer and closer to the monolith carrying the powerful artifact. I raise my blue lightsaber to stop his overhead strike, and then lash out for his chest, to which he quickly backs away from.
"Make it easier on yourself Jedi! I will have that monolith's power!" he hisses.
"I'd give it my all before I let Papa Palps wield power of this magnitude," I retort sarcastically.
He chuckles to himself.
"You think I plan on giving that to the Emperor?" he asks mockingly in response.
I frown at his response in confusion, when activity from the monolith suddenly halted the two of us in our attacks. Looking at it, its spike in energy was increasing, pulsing like a beating heart as glowing red lines ran across the surface towards the monolith. It the surged into the swirling matter inside of the monolith, which let out a shriek before glowing a bright red. Immediately the chamber around us began to shake and groan, the surge of power being sent out by this artifact absolutely mind boggling. I quickly came to realize that this swirling matter is what powers the Sith temple, the weapon that wiped out all of the Jedi and Sith several millennia ago, leaving them as petrified husks of ash and stone.
"Oh Force..." I say quietly.
Who was activating the temple?!
"Now you will die!" Third Brother exclaims.
I whip around to face him just as he jumps into the air and comes crashing down on top of me. I raise both my blue and green lightsabers to block him, but the force behind his strike left me tumbling to the ground, holding my lightsabers just above my face to keep his from cutting my head off. He growls, pressing down as hard as he could while standing over me, my head just barely hanging over the abyss far below. He continues to press down harder and harder, but with a determined scowl, I push back even more with newfound strength, shoving him back and kick him in the shin.
He yells out in pain, as being kicked in the shins is never fun, and I deactivate my green lightsaber, grab the Third Brother by the shirt with my metal arm, and then throw him out and down the abyss. He lets out a furious yell as he falls down, disappearing into the darkness below. I breathe out heavily, deactivating my blue lightsaber as well and laying there for a moment, glancing at the monolith. The swirling red matter within continued to glow and let out haunting shrieks as it provided power to the temple. It's here that I'm deciding that no one should ever know of power like this, lest they use it for the wrong purposes.
"Jarik! Maul betrayed us, and he's blinded Kanan! Make it back up soon will you?" Ahsoka suddenly says over our Force bond.
I slowly get up, widening my eyes in alarm at hearing what happened to Kanan, before narrowing them angrily.
"On my way," I tell her.
Giving one last look to the artifact, I rush out of there as fast as I could, ready to finally give Maul a piece of my mind.
3rd person POV...
The activation of the temple, along with the large explosion of energy it gave off has the two fighters stopping our battle for a few moments, although Maul was grinning gleefully.
"The power will be mine! Ezra will be mine! And there is nothing you or Shan can do to stop me!" Maul declares triumphantly with a wild growl.
He dashes forwards towards Ahsoka again and she renews the fight, deflecting and blocking his attacks before spinning around, unleashing her own fast paced offensive to try and throw him off. Having send a message over the bond to Jarik, Ahsoka could only hope he made it there soon. As the two combatants were dueling however, Kanan was slowly crawling along the ground, managing to pick up his lightsaber, and then picking up an old worn temple guard mask.
Ahsoka bats Mauls attack to the side and then vaults gracefully over his next slash, coming up on his other side and blocking his lightsaber. Breaking apart, she then jumps back several feet up onto the flight of stairs.
"Running away to your boyfriend again, Lady Tano?" Maul asks mockingly.
Ahsoka just smiles at him.
"If you wanna finish our fight, you'll have to deal with him first," she advises.
Maul frowns in confusion, turning around to spot Kanan standing firmly in front of him, wearing the mask of a temple guard.
"Go get Ezra and Mara!" he tells her.
Ahsoka nods at him before rushing up the stairs, while Maul scoffs mockingly at him.
"I will make this quick," he chuckles.
In response, Kanan activates his blue lightsaber and holds it in a reverse grip, holding his ground.
"You had your chance!" he snaps.
Maul frowns at him before slowly walking forwards, moving towards the left. Kanan tenses up, sensing Maul's movements through the Force along with his sense of hearing. He could make out the clanking of Maul's robotic legs, and practically see him through the Force. He could see clearly as Maul swiped his lightsaber through the air and then dashed forwards.
Raising his lightsaber, Kanan calmly blocks Maul's attack, blocking and deflecting his next series of strikes and then catches Maul's attempted punch, twisting around and yanking him towards the edge. Hitting the statue, Maul stumbles off the edge of the terrace with a scream, tumbling down to the lower levels. Kanan sighs in relief, collapsing to one knee when his comlink beeps. R5's urgent voice filters through, and he picks up the comlink.
"R5? How did you- Okay fine! We need a pick up!" he asks, before R5 once again beeps frantically in alarm. "A TIE Fighter? Are you sure?"
Mara POV...
The activation of the entire Sith temple with this immense power has us enraptured, and quite honestly not sure what to do yet, when the woman's voice speaks again.
"I have been waiting," she states.
"What is going on?" I ask her.
"The power to destroy life and alter Reality, is at your command!" she states, much to our shock.
"What?!" Ezra exclaims. "No! No no that's not what we wanted!"
"Then perhaps the other who approaches, will claim it instead!" she states in contempt.
I whip around in alarm, sharing a concerned glance with Ezra, whose eyes were wide in surprise and dread.
"Maul," he realizes.
"No wonder my dad didn't trust him," I say angrily.
Together, we both rush out of the center of the chamber and towards the ledge to try and warn the others.
"Guys! Maul tricked us! This temple's a weapon!" Ezra yells.
Once we came to the edge I couldn't see anyone nearby, however the Force suddenly grew as I could sense a familiar being enveloped in darkness approaching. I widened my eyes in horror upon sensing who it is, Ezra slowly sensing it as well. A bright light suddenly flashed into our vision blindingly for a few moments, causing us to raise our arms. Once we got over the light, we both looked up to see Darth Vader soaring down closer to us on top of his TIE Fighter, lightsaber already ignited.
His cold mechanical breathing was audible to me even across the crackling electricity and the engines of his TIE fighter, as he stared down at me and Ezra. I swallowed nervously for a moment before hardening my gaze, laying a hand on my lightsaber, prepared to fight with every ounce of power that I've got.
Wow, what a cliffhanger huh! Yeah I'm evil! :)
Lord Vader has finally arrived on Malachor, yet everyone is currently separated right now! This can't be good... cannot be good at all! And by the way... MERRY CHRISTMAS! :D
