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Chapter 14
Malak was standing atop of the bridge of the Leviathan. Below him, through the viewport, he saw Taris, a planet forgotten by the Force, in his opinion. Even during the Mandalorian wars, he found this place pathetic. Mostly because of the presence of the Exchange, with the Davik King as the leader of it. During his time as the General of the Republic forces, he had a close encounter with the crime-lord. And he did not like any second of it. This man disgusted him. The way he treated those beneath him. The Dark Lord of the Sith almost chuckled at it. Years ago he believed in such things as compassion, but now he considered it to be a weakness. Something that could belittle his power. And he could not allow for that. He couldn't allow himself to become weak as Revan.
Malak's thoughts drifted to his former master. The current Dark Lord was almost sure, that he had managed to kill his predecessor. But he felt something at the edge of his mind. Someone's presence. And through almost twenty years, he got so used to his presence, that he could easily recognize it anywhere. Revan was somewhere out there. That was sure. Apparently, the Jedi have managed to escape the destroyed flagship, taking Revan with them. And if they did, the former Dark Lord was surely left alive. And it scared Malak a bit.
He knew, that the Jedi Council wasn't as stupid as his old master claimed. For sure, they've done something to Revan. Something to erase the threat, he used to be. But nevertheless, they haven't killed him. The Code didn't give them a permission to do so.
And that brought the problem. If Revan was alive, then, sooner or later, he would become a challenge for Malak. And that was something that sent small shivers down his spine. Even defeated, Revan remained powerful. Eventually, he would regain his old powers.
To top it all off, Malak sensed his old master's presence right below the Leviathan. Somewhere on Taris. Could it be? Has the Jedi Council truly been so stupid, to assign Revan under Bastila's command. He had to concede it to Revan. Those 'Masters' truly were arrogant fools. They've proven it dozens of times during the Mandalorian wars, and they kept on doing it till now.
Malak watched the planet below. Taris was slowly rotating on its own axis. His golden eyes, burning with hatred, observed the City, that was built on its surface. This planet might as well be turned into dust, in his opinion. But he desired one person, who was there. He needed Bastila. He knew, that he could win this war without her battle meditation. But he wanted to pay back for what Revan has done to him. He wanted to take his anger out on her since she used to be the closest person to his former master.
First, he would torture her. He would make her scream in pain, she has never experienced before. He would turn her into his apprentice, by showing her the true power of the Dark Side. He knew, that she would be resisting him. But he knew how to break her.
He would use her attachment to Revan for his own purposes. He would develop her affection for him into hatred. And from there, she would go down the path of the Dark Side.
And when she will be already under his influence, he would take her dignity. It would be his personal revenge on Revan. He knew, that nothing could hurt his former master more than the suffering of someone close to him. And the closest person to him was definitely Bastila.
He knew of their secret relationship. And he would take all the pleasure of using it against Revan. Personally, he wasn't having a grudge against Bastila, no. He saw her as a younger sister. But still, she was close to the man he hated. And that gave him a very good reason to make her suffer.
Malak smirked in his mind at the thought, that has entered his mind. He saw, with an eye of his imagination, Revan's reaction upon seeing Bastila, after he was done with her. He imagined his former master's pain after he encountered his lover. She would be broken, turned into Malak's apprentice and a servant. She would become his slave, who was supposed to satisfy his every need. And the Dark Lord was pretty sure of Revan's response for that.
First, he would be in despair, upon seeing his beloved one in this state. And then heartbroken, after realizing, that he was supposed to kill her. It would make him suffer unimaginably. Revan surely was physically available of killing Bastila. He outmatched her in every way when it came to combat. But being forced to kill someone you loved? Malak couldn't think of anyone, who would be supposed to do that.
Malak fought an urge to laugh evilly. His plan of taking revenge on Revan was done. And he was looking forward to fulfilling this plan. But the only thing he could do now was to wait.
"You there! Up-worlders! Anyone using this elevator has to pay the toll!" Revan and Rex were greeted, after entering the Undercity.
"Yeah, this is our elevator! If you use it, you've got to give us something!" the second man shouted at them.
"I don't believe this planet! Even the beggars are trying to shake us down." Rex commented quietly, chuckling slightly.
"Five Credits! That's what it costs to use our elevator! Five Credits!" the first one added with a demanding tone. And Revan certainly didn't like anyone using this tone against him.
"Get out of here you filthy beggars!"
"Oh, you think, that if you are from up, then you can simply treat us as trash?" one of them said with an angry tone.
"We'll teach you some good manners!" the second one added. They took a fight stance and prepared themselves for the fight. But it was something, that Revan had no time for. He had much more important things to accomplish, than arguing with two beggars. In a blink of an eye, he ignited his both lightsabers and leaped at the strangers. With a swift blow, he decapitated these two men, who were stupid enough to threaten him. The headless corpses collapsed onto the ground with a soft thud.
Revan turned off his lightsabers and clipped them back to his belt. Fortunately, no one was around. A small village, if it could be called so, seemed to be abandoned. This caught Revan's attention. If no one was there, then what these two were doing here?
"Be cautious," he said to Rex. "Something seems to be wrong here."
His companion, in response, only reloaded his blaster. They marched in silence through the abandoned village. A smoke was coming from the small cabins and tents, and everywhere, the odor of rot was being felt in the air. Revan brought a hand to his face, in order to cover it from the unpleasant smell. He fought an urge to throw up. For a brief second, he wondered how anyone could live down here.
Revan kept on walking forward until he stumbled on the body. He looked down at the corpse, he had walked on.
It was a man, he judged from what little remained from the dead human. His clothes were soaked up in dried blood and covered with mud. His whole face was a mess. Long gashes were spreading across his features. It made it unrecognizable. Revan, once again, fought an urge to throw up. The man's whole face was one big wound.
Rex knelt next to his General. His face furrowed at the sight. Never before has he seen someone so deformed. He brought up his gloved hand to the remaining of the man's head and traced his fingers along the gushes. It wasn't left by any weapon, that was sure. But Rex hadn't met any creature, that would leave such traces as well.
"Do you have any idea what has caused that?" Revan asked in a whisper, his voice shaking a bit, and a small steam coming out from his mouth. No one knew, what could leave such marks.
Rex, in response, only shook his head. He also was a little afraid. The unknown creature could be dangerous. And they were now in a middle of nowhere, with little knowledge of their surroundings.
Suddenly, they've heard a little growl. A steady, low growl, resembling a little, a wolf's snarling. It was coming from their right. There was a wall, covered in shadows. And this sound was coming from that shadows.
The growl started to grow louder, and now it was coming from different sides. Revan and Rex slowly stood up, having their backs against each other. They took a defending pose, preparing their weapons. They were moving in circles, trying to localize the source of the sound. The former Dark Lord, again during this day, ignited his lightsabers. They weren't giving a lot of light, but still, it was better than nothing.
Revan saw, with a corner of his eye, something emerging from the shadows, which were around them. A strange creature was coming in their direction. It was pale, as the dead ones, and was walking on rear legs, with the front ones as a support. It had a round head, with two holes on top of it. It had also few black hair, standing out of the head and a few teeth in something, that resembled a mouth. A small trail of saliva was coming out of it.
More of these creatures started to emerge from the shadows. Revan and Rex were surrounded by the aliens and outnumbered. Ten pale creatures were heading in their direction.
One of them decided to leap at their potential prey. Rex immediately lifted his blaster rifle and aimed it at the creature. He pulled a trigger and watched the strange thing flying backward, only to raise on its legs again. The soldier was stunned. He aimed perfectly into the creature's head, and yet, it remained alive.
The rest of the pack followed the first alien's lead and leaped at the two man. Rex quickly regained his footing and started shooting at other creatures. The effect was similar to the previous one.
Revan was waiting patiently for the creatures to come closer. One of them was stupid enough to do so. The fallen Jedi killed it with one swift movement of his arm, cutting the alien in half. The corpse has fallen dead on the ground.
Rex followed his lead and draw his vibroswords, he took with himself. The blaster rifle was for nothing in the encounter with the strange creatures. They've continued the fight in this way. The two man were waiting for the attackers to make the first move, and then, they were cutting them in half. But the creatures kept on coming. They've kept on killing them, but in place of the one killed, two others showed up from the darkness.
A sudden flash caused the two men and the creatures to lose their footing. A flash grenade, Revan stated. He closed his eyes immediately. When the senses were failing, the Force was coming in hand. He sensed few people coming in their direction. Warriors, he stated from the way they walked. At least the man at the front.
The blaster shots followed the explosion, and with that, the groans of the creatures came. Revan and Rex heard thuds of something hitting the soft ground beneath them. When the whiteness finally started to disappear and they've begun to see something around them, they've noticed the creatures lying dead on every side of them. And then, they saw a group of three men coming in their direction.
"Well, well, well, a Jedi here? Davik will be most pleased with this" a deep voice said. It belonged to the one, standing at the front. It was a tall man. He had a muscular body. It was obvious from his posture, that he was an experienced warrior. He had short, grey hair, and a smoothly shaved face. He was carrying a heavy blaster rifle and was dressed in knee-high black shoes, beige trousers, black sleeveless shirt, and, also sleeveless, coat. He also had a black tattoo on his left shoulder. He was being followed by two men, who were visibly afraid. They were no warriors. They were mere boys.
"If you think I'll be your prey, you're mistaken, Mandalorian" Revan answered, eyeing the man cautiously. He knew him. He remembered that voice. But he couldn't come up with the name.
The man at the front literally stopped in his tracks.
"I know you, Jedi" he answered with the same tone after a moment. He kept his eyes on the man with the lightsabers in front of him.
"Canderous we don't have time for that" one of his companions whispered at the man. Despite the distance between them and Revan, he easily heard that.
"Shut up you little coward!" Canderous responded. "If you want to run away to Davik, I'm not stopping you. But I prefer to come back with something, that has any value."
"As you wish" the same man answered and turned to leave. His second companion followed him close behind.
"So… Canderous, isn't it?" Revan asked with a slight smile dancing across his lips. He started to come closer to the man. "That's funny. Last time I've seen you, you were staring helplessly, as I was killing your leader."
Mandalorian's eyes widened in shock. That could not be, could it?
"Revan?" he whispered slightly. The man grinned further.
"I'm happy, that you remember me."
"How could I forget you? You were the only one who dared to face us. You, your two Jedi friends and the three soldiers, who were following you.
"I'm most pleased with your statement, Canderous" Revan answered. "And this is actually one of my men, Rex" he introduced his companion. He and the Mandalorian only nodded at each other. "What are you doing here, you old bastard?"
"Trying to find a job, and what else could I be doing here? Since the war against the Republic, I'm wandering across the Galaxy to find a place for my old ass" he answered with a chuckle.
"And you ended up working for the Exchange? How low have you fallen" Revan responded, teasing the old man.
"Yeah, and now I'm looking for some way of getting out of this bloody planet."
"As it happens, we do as well" Rex interjected.
"Yeah, we've crushed here" Revan added.
"You were in that Republic Cruiser? Hell, how have you found yourselves there?" Canderous asked with a small laugh.
"A long story for other times."
"Hmm, I see. So, what brings you down here?"
"We're looking for one of our companions. A female Jedi. She was in the escape pod, that has crushed somewhere here. We're looking for her. Or any trace of her" Revan responded.
"Well, the only escape pod that has crashed nearby is few hundred meters away from here, actually" Canderous responded, pointing with his hand. "I think, that this is a good place for you to start your searching."
"Thank you, Canderous" he answered and turned to leave.
"Hey, hey, hey, where do you think you're going? There's no way I'm letting such an occasion pass me by" the older man said, running up to them. Revan only looked at him questioningly. "What? Like hell, I'm coming with you. Something says me, that you, of all people, will manage to get me a job" he finished. Revan now smiled.
"It's good to have you on my Side, Canderous," he said, pulling out his hand. The man shook it in response. Rex mimicked his leader and also exchanged a handshake with the Mandalorian.
"I'll follow you anywhere, Mandalore" he added. Revan smirked at that. Theoretically, he owned that title, after winning a duel against Mandalore the Ultimate.
"That's good. But please, for the time being, refer to me as Alen. I'll explain you later why."
"Of course… Alen" he responded, trying a new name on his tongue.
"Good. Now, we have work to do, don't we?" Revan said, breaking a friendly moment. The group of three headed into the direction, that Canderous pointed. Rex and the Mandalorian were engaged in a chat about the war, while Revan was at the front, walking in silence.
After few minutes, they've reached the crashed escape pod. A small trail of smoke was coming out of it. There was a hole in the ground, where the pod has crashed. Revan came up to it.
The doors were broken down. The pod was abandoned for a longer time. He came closer to the inside. He ignited his lightsaber, in order to get some light. In the darkness of the pod, he found one thing. A small braid. He took it in his hand and examined it for a while.
"What is it?" Rex asked, trying to see what Revan was holding.
"A track, we were looking for" he answered and handed him the braid. Rex took it into his hands and watched it cautiously.
"This is a Padawan braid. One that the apprentices of the Jedi Order wear" Revan cared to explain. "And, if I'm not mistaken, this one belongs to Bastila" he finished. Rex handed the braid to Canderous. The man took it in his hand and watched it without any interest.
"So that would mean…"
"That she was captured" Revan finished for Rex. He returned his gaze into the escape pod, in order to find any clues about Bastila's whereabouts.
"I think I know who could take your companion," a young, female voice from behind them said. The three men in response turned around and aimed their weapons into the direction, the voice was coming from.
In front of them was standing a blue, Twi'lek girl. A child. She raised her hands defensively at the weapons pointed at her.
"Woah, easy there. I'm not your enemy, you know?" she said with a soothing tone.
"Mission? What are you doing here, kid?" Canderous asked. The girl in front of them furrowed her brows at that.
"Hey! I'm not a kid" she responded, pointing her finger at the Mandalorian, with one hand placed on her hip. "Anyway, Big Z's got himself into some trouble and I wanted to find some help. And then I've noticed, that the village was abandoned, and I stumbled upon you."
"You know her Canderous?" Revan asked the older man.
"Yeah, I do. Her name is Mission Vao. No one knows the slums better than her. But she can be annoying sometimes" he replied.
"Mission, isn't it?" Revan asked the girl. The blue Twi'lek nodded in response. "My name is Alen. You said something that you know where our companion can be" he added.
"Yeah, I mean, I've seen the Black Vulkars dragging someone. From what little I could see, I've noticed it was a woman" she responded.
"That's her," Revan said to Rex. "Can you show us where she is?"
"Well, I can. But not for free" she quickly added. Revan let go a resigned sigh.
"How much do you want?" he asked.
"What? No, I don't want Credits. I only want help. My friend is in trouble" she answered, a weariness clear in her voice.
"Woah, hold on a second" Canderous said. "You want to say, that Zaalbar is in trouble?" he asked.
"Yeah, I've just said that you nerf-herder" she answered. Revan chuckled at that. Certainly, not many people had guts to stand up against a Mandalorian.
"What has happened to him?" the former Dark Lord asked.
"He was caught by a bunch of Gamorreans" she replied with a shrug.
"If we help you rescue your friend, would you help us find our companion?" Revan asked another question.
"Sounds fair to me."
"Very well. Then, why don't you show us where this friend of yours was caught?"
"Follow me!" she replied, visibly happy. The three men followed her, keeping their distance.
"You've grown weak, Alen" Canderous whispered. Rex grinned at that, and Revan eyed the man with a sight that could kill.
They followed Mission all along to a wall. The old doors were standing out of it.
"Well, here we are" she announced. Revan looked down cautiously and immediately pulled back his head.
"Are you kidding us?" he spat out with anger. "These are the sewers!"
"Yeah, and that's where my friend is" she replied, acting as she didn't hear Revan's anger. The man sighed heavily.
Guess I don't have much of a choice, he thought, as he descended into the sewers, taking a deep breath. His companions following closely behind.
What Revan failed to notice was a small gash on his right shoulder.
Okay, I hope you liked this chapter, and if you did, then you know what to do with it. Please, place your thoughts about my work. That way I know what I can change and what is okay. See you next time!
