AN: Hey everyone! Just wanted to apologize for taking so long this time. This semester really knocked me down. But, here we are!

Star Forge

Spar remained in the conference room after the others left. One thing was certain, Revan brought together an interesting group of individuals. He would be intrigued to see how well they worked together when things began to get tough and their loyalties were tested.

He was sure if they were Mandalorians they would pull through, while there were clan disputes throughout his people's history, those old rivalries quickly disappeared when something called them together, especially if it was a Mandalore.

What Revan proposed, Spar had to admit, he found the idea of becoming Mandalore a challenge worthy of him to say the least. Still he knew of others who would challenge him for the title. He knew Fenn Shysa had debated taking the title in the past. Revan was right, their beskar- known the rest of the Galaxy as Mandalorian Iron- was one of the strongest metals in known Space. And it was only a matter of time before Palpatine deployed forces to Mandalore to take that ore. Spar suspected he had mandalorian contacts prepared to help him mine the stuff, and knowing Shysa, he would declare himself Mandalore the moment imperial ships arrived in mandalorian space. If the imperials did decide to invade, he knew Skirata and Vau would put up a fight. At least he hoped they would. Those two old mandos may have seen their fair share of combat and then some, not to mention wanting to keep Fi, Ordo, and the rest of their clan out of the fight, but they wouldn't hesitate to pull the trigger if they came after Kyrimorut.

He set his helmet on the table and opened a communication channel. He entered Skirata's holofrequency and waited for the Sergeant to answer the secure line. It rang for a few moments before the confirmation ping, the older man known as Kal Skirata came into focus. Kal was close to sixty-two standard years, with a short cropped head of gray hair. Spar had to admit the man was aging well, the hard creases and wrinkles in his face weren't just from age, Kal was one of the few remaining True Mandalorians. That was why Jango had recruited him to train the clones on Kamino.

Skirata spoke up, "Spar? What do you want? I'm a little busy at the moment."

"Between killing Ko Sai and setting up a deserter society for any clone looking for a place to rest up I'm sure you've had your hands full old man," Spar retorted.

Skirata scoffed, "So you heard about that?"

"Yeah," Spar nodded. "I talked to Jaing awhile back, he told me you were hunting for that aiwha bait. And after everything she put us through I'd say good riddance." Spar sounded genuinely pleased with that statement. Ko Sai was one of the kaminoans in charge of the cloning project. She had subjected the first generations through untold tortures. Most of them didn't even make it through the first tests.

"Well, there must be a reason you called. Looking to settle down?" Skirata asked.

Spar shook his head.

"Not this time, Kal. I've... fallen in with a group of my own actually. That's why I'm calling."

"Don't tell me you're working with Palps and his imperial lackeys."

"I wouldn't be caught dead with that aruetyc. I'd explain but you would either shut off the comm or not believe a word of it. Long story short, I think we should meet up, is it safe to come to Kyrimorut?"

"Jaing and A'den are monitoring orbital traffic, let me find out if there are any Imperial patrols coming up. If there are, then we're gonna have to wait a few weeks. Just one thing though. Promise me you won't bring and shabla saber-jockeys."

"You have my word Kal." Spar nodded, knowing full well he would be bringing Revan. Comm me when you know the situation."

Star Forge - Living Quarters

Revan looked at the data pad one last time to collect his thoughts. Afterwards, he knocked on the door.

"Yes?"

"Serra, it's me," Revan called out. "May I speak with you? It's important."

The former Sith Lord waited for a few moments, importance of the coming discussion weighting on his shoulders until finally the automatic door opened.

"Thanks," Revan said as he walked inside. "Are you satisfied with your new quarters?"

Serra shrugged. "I am not exactly used to this type of architectural designed but it's not like I can be picky given the current situation. It's comfortable enough to sleep in peace and that will be sufficient. Thanks for letting me use it, by the way."

"You're welcome," Revan said with a nod. "Serra, I have important news to share with you but I suggest you sit down before I start."

Serra's expression turned concerned in a flash. "Is it my master? The clones found him? Wait, that can't be right, I hadn't sense him die. Was he captured?"

"No," Revan said slowly. "I told one of the HK units mass produced by the Star Forge to hack into the mainframe of the Grand Army so that he can keep me updated on confirmed Jedi kills and last I checked, they have not been able to find your Master yet. You can relax on that regard."

Serra sighed in relief but then she frowned. "And in what regard will I not be able to relax?"

Revan bit his bottom lip momentarily. "Are you sure you don't want to sit down? What I am about to share will be a bit shocking for you."

"Revan, I appreciate you rescuing me from the sacking of the Jedi Temple taking care of me when I was injured and exhausted but I won't be able to get back to 100% if you keep treating me like I am as fragile as a lightsaber crystal," Serra stated. "I will be fine."

Revan looked at her in mild respect before nodding. "Well, before I begin, I would like to ask you a question, so that I can discard a few possibilities. Do you know what planet your parents are/were from?"

Serra raised an eyebrow. "I don't see why asking that is relevant right now."

Revan stared at her for a long moment, analyzing her physical traits before mentally nodding. "You would be surprised."

Serra stared back at Revan, wondering what in the Force's name was going on inside his head. Shrugging, she decided to answer. "I am not entirely sure to be honest. Master Cin Drallig found me as an infant in a crash-landed escape pod on the Deep Core planet known as Tryast. My parents were not with me but when Cin checked the local holo-news he found out that a group of pirates stole the cargo of the only ship that approached Tryast space that day of the model which would keep that kind of escape pod. He also told me that they subsequently blasted the then worthless ship to pieces," Serra shared with a heavy sigh.

"Assuming that my parents placed me in the escape pod before being killed by the pirates," the Jedi Knight continued, "Master Cin took me to the Jedi Temple and eventually accepted me as his own Padawan. But I don't really have vivid memories about my parents. All I know for sure is that for some reason they were heading to the planet Tryast. Whether they were citizens of that planet or were just passing through I have no idea."

Revan blinked. "Then how do you know your name?"

"An old picture of me as a baby," Serra responded. "It was attached to a necklace around my neck and had my full name written in the back of the picture, along with the following sentence: The Core lives on."

Serra huffed. "Quite vague, if you ask me. I have been raking my brain for years about what my parents meant by that without success."

Revan looked at her with a look of dawning understanding before double checking the data pad in his hand. "I think I have an idea of what they meant.

Star Forge – Observation Deck

Plagueis stared down at Tython. The celestial body radiating in the Force, the Muun's yellow gaze turned pensive, as he watched the dark moon the ancients called Bogan orbiting around the planet he never thought he would actually get to see.

"I wonder if the archeological findings of the Kalikori include Rakatan artifacts," Plagueis mused. "Darth Bane seemed to be quite sure they were somehow responsible for the existence of the Flesh Raiders on Tython. Now that we are in a colossal space station of the Rakatan, getting some insights into the minds of such brilliant, if ravenous, people from the Pre-republic era could be quite valuable."

The Muun looked on in silent contemplation as he often did when pondering matters of interest to him. Frowning almost imperceptibly, he called out.

"Leaving so soon?" He asked without turning back.

The near-soundless tip-toe halted abruptly and Plagueis heard an exasperated sigh. "How long did you know I was there?" Former Padawan Sira-Talis asked.

"Long enough to realize you want to ask me something," The aging Sith stated. "I don't normally indulge the curiosity of Jedi younglings but I might as well do a scholarly deed while I wait for Revan to return."

There was a silent pause from the Padawan. Then, she walked with a cautious pace towards the view-port and joined Plagueis in his star-gazing. "So, what's troubling your mind, young one?"

Sira sighed. "What Revan told me shortly after you two prevented the clones to executing me."

"Which part?"

"That I should think of the Force as an academic subject and that if I only look at the Jedi/Light side perspective I will barely finish the test with half the grade," Sira muttered. "Every gut instinct tells me to deny that advice as hearsay but as a Jedi history buff, my rational mind can't help but wonder if he is right and I am only getting one half of the story; or worse, a needlessly biased one."

"Hmm." Plagueis hummed in consideration. "So, did you come to me because you want me to give you a reason to trust your gut instinct or because you want to expand your rational mind?"

"…To be honest, I am not sure," Sira said with an uneasy tone.

The two Force-sensitives remained silent, staring out to the vastness of space, as if searching for answers coded in light or perhaps speeding through space and time. Finally, the Muun turned to look at the human teen, his yellow eyes observing her with mild interest.

"Have you ever heard the tale of Darth Vectivus, the Incorruptible?"

Sira furiously raked her brain for any reference of said Sith from the history lessons she had studied for a few long moments but shook her head when she came up empty.

Plagueis chuckled briefly. "I thought not. He was one of the Sith that deliberately stayed in the shadows during the early centuries of the Rule of Two and even if the Jedi Council had learned of him, I doubt it would be the kind of story the Jedi would share with their students. In fact, I strongly suspect they would have erased all information available on the Sith Lord and hope to the Force no student of theirs ever would ever find even pieces of his biography."

"Why?" Sira asked slowly, morbidly fascinated by the idea of a Sith Lord so dangerous that the Jedi Council would have feared him to the point of bloating him out of history.

"Because while many Sith Lords have come and go over the millennia most of them can fit into a, shall we say, consistent behavior in the mind of most Jedi…but Darth Vectivus was a rare breed of Sith. His very existence would have forced the Jedi to rethink their values if the whole order had had access to his biography and was debated enough," Plagueis said with an amused tone.

Sira's eyes widen at the thought. "Just what kind of accomplishment did this Darth Vectivus achieve?"

Plagueis paused and looked at her with a smile of legitimate enjoyment. "Nothing," The Muun answered.

Sira's mind went blank. "Huh?" She mumbled incoherently.

Plagueis laughed briefly at her expression. "You heard me. As for why would that would be his greatest achievement, you have to remember that we are talking about a Sith Master. What made him unique among all the Sith from Darth Bane's line and separated him from countless Sith before the Rule of Two was precisely that: doing nothing. And that was because he did no evil. He didn't attempt to conquer the galaxy, try to wipe out the population of a star system, or start an all-out war with the Jedi. He was probably the simplest, most unambitious Sith to have ever lived. And so he just existed; learned. He even died of old age, surrounded by family, friends and his own apprentice to carry the mantle."

Whatever Sira was expecting to hear, it most definitely wasn't that explanation. She scratched her head, trying to picture what the Muun just told her and failing utterly. Plagueis nodded.

"See? That's precisely why the Jedi would have probably done their best to destroy such information should it have ever come to light: his very existence is a contradiction according to Jedi teachings," Plagueis declared. "After all, Darth Vectivus is historical proof that you can live your life immersed in the Dark Side without being consumed by its aggressive nature. Certainly not easy to do but still, he broke the pattern. If their students would have figured that part out it would only be a matter of time before they would have started to ask what other things, they have been taught about the Dark side are not entirely true. And it would be a valid question."

"…Yes…it would be" Sira murmured in deep thought. "You have given me a lot to ponder about."

Then the former Padawan sighed and strained out her gratitude. Plagueis nodded in acknowledgement and went to stare out the window again. The human teen bit her bottom lip and decided she had enough historical prying for one rotation.

Star Forge – Living Quarters

Revan sat quietly in his quarters. It had appeared his suspicions about Serra were correct, and that offered him a galaxy's worth of possibilities. But, he needed to meditate further, at the very least to collect his thoughts. The Keto lineage was an influential one. One Revan knew he couldn't leave underutilized.

He heard a knock at his door, opening it through use of the Force. Spar stood on the other side, somewhat surprised.

"I've spoken with Skirata. He's going to send me coordinates when he can meet."

Revan smiled, "Good. I'll keep the Ebon Hawk on standby for when it's time to leave. He gave Spar a quick glance over. You know, your people truly are a remarkable culture. Even during the war, I thought they were. Travelling with Canderous only reaffirmed that."

Spar paused, feeling a little awkward at the comment, "Can you tell me? What was he like? He ensured that the True Mandalorians lived. I'm curious about him."

Revan chuckled before sitting on the bed, his gaze drifting, "Canderous was… he was a warrior. In every sense of the word. I knew it from the moment I met him. He was very blunt, about everything. He had his opinions, and he made sure they were known. When I left him on Rekkiad he was determined to breathe life into the Mandalorians again. He was a natural leader, that much was clear," Revan paused, "and he was a good friend. He was my friend…" Revan drifted off.

"Why did he become Mandalore?"

"I can't explain exactly what was going through his mind at the time. He had just killed his own wife. I suppose he would say that he became Mandalore because it was necessary, it had to be him."

Spar raised a brow, "And what would you say?"

"I would say he did it for them, for you, even. He wanted his culture to survive, to thrive. He knew your people could be prosperous. When he put the mask on, he said to me that he would 'restore honor and glory to his people'. He would never have admitted I think, but, he cared about you- the future generations that is. He believed that you could undo the damage the previous leaders had done."

Spar remained silent as he stared at the floor, thinking over Revan's words.

Revan cleared his throat, "I know you didn't ask to be Mandalore, but neither did he. When we were trying to stop Malak, he and I had spoken about it; becoming Mandalore. He told me he didn't think he could lead the clans. But, seeing what had become of his brothers, Jaagi trying to kill him in the Dune Sea. I think it opened his eyes to what had been done to them. What I did to them... He brought them together, gave them a purpose. Canderous reminded them of what it meant to be a child of Mandalore."

Spar glanced at Revan before his comlink beeped, he pulled it from his belt, "It's Skirata. He said we can meet in two days. He'll send me coordinates soon." Spar started to walk toward the door before he glanced back at Revan, "Thank you."

Revan nodded in response as the warrior left. He took the sabers from his belt and placed them on the display on his dresser.

He stepped out of his quarters and followed the corridor to the nearest turbolift, descending to the droid bay alone. He made his way down to one of the armories and saw HK inside. He called out to the droid.

"HK, I have a surprise for you," Revan chuckled as he motioned for the droid to follow him.

"Speculation: Oh I hope it is a new blaster of some kind. I have been searching the holonet and Systech has made some breathtaking innovations in long range blaster technology. Oh how I would enjoy the olfactory sense of such a weapon discharging." HK pondered weaponry as he quickly followed his master.

Revan opened the door and gave HK a devious smile, knowing exactly what waited behind the door, "Not a blaster, HK. I think you'll find that I personally gain much more enjoyment from what I have for you."

HK stepped inside the droid bay, rotating quickly in an effort to find his master's surprise for him although at first glance he could see nothing in the bay other than miscellaneous droid parts, and what appeared to be a deactivated utility droid in the corner of the room.

HK froze as the realization struck him, "Clarification: Ah, I see that when you said 'surprise' you didn't mean the common definition of the word meaning an unexpected or astonishing event, fact, or thing, as T3-M4's existence means my own becomes less bearable."

Revan let out a chuckle, tapping T3's head joyfully, "It was unexpected though wasn't it? That would mean it's still a surprise."

HK-47 remained silent for a moment before saying flatly, "Sarcastic Statement: I'm overcome with joy..."

T3 let out a high pitched whistle as his power core reactivated, looking up at Revan before responding with a series of beeps, whistles, and chirps before Revan answered, "It's a long story T3, and trust me when I say you won't believe a word of it."

T3 chirped inquisitively in response as Revan looked at his comlink before answering, "Sorry little guy, I need to get back to work, don't worry, T3. HK is going to catch you up on what you've missed," Revan stated with a grin on his face.

HK glared at his master, "Declaration: I won't forget this master!"

Revan left the droids alone, listening to them bicker and argue as he walked toward the turbolift. While he was waiting for Spar to hear back from his contact he wanted to finally have a look around the Jedi Temple. He left the droid bay heading towards the Hangar where the Ebon Hawk was stored.

He stepped aboard the ship and caught notice of a maintenance droid working on the ship, "That's good for now, I'm going to need the ship."

The droid stood hesitantly as though it was mildly irritated with Revan, but it complied. He stepped into the ship's cockpit and powered her up, the engines came to life and Revan left the hangar moving towards the planet's surface.

The ship silently drifted over the mountains and grasslands of the planet. It had been a long time since Revan had been here. The temple was coming into sight, he began the landing sequence, decelerating and extending the landing feet.

The Ebon Hawk touched down in the main courtyard of the temple, it was somewhat maintained, but there was still a great deal of overgrowth consuming what once served as the training yards for future Jedi.

Revan powered down the ship and stepped outside, taking in the Tythonian scenery for a moment. He caught glance of a few small rodents scurrying through the grass before entering to Temple.

The ancient halls were still intact, but there was no telling how stable it actually was, even with the twi'leks doing their best to maintain it. He stepped inside the council chamber. The center table was cracked through the middle. Very few of the council seats had yet to crumble down to nothing.

He stepped back out into the main temple looking down to the center of the room. The holocron of ancient masters sat in the middle of the room. Revan closed his eyes as he raised his gloved hand. The lights of the holocron began to flicker. It took a great deal of concentration on Revan's part, but the holocron glowed to life, slowly rising off the temple floor.

The massive relic hovered into the center of the room where it stayed suspended. Revan let out a sigh.

"Well," he said. "It's a start."

Well, there you have it, expect Chapter 18 very shortly.

-CaptainCakeless117