Hello! Thanks for reading my story! You may have noticed that the first page was titled as Chapter One, but I decided to treat that as a mistake, and changed it to be a Prologue. This is because I wrote the chapter, using the end of the KOTOR game as a base to write my version of the Dark Side ending. So, that in mind, this is where Chapter One actually begins! I'd like to thank everyone for the comments and the follows for the story! I am glad you enjoyed the start of this story, and I hope that I continue to entertain you all!
Darth Revan, having reclaimed his identity, charged aboard the Star Forge, determined to face his usurper, Darth Malak. Cutting a swath through Dark Jedi and Sith alike, Revan finally came face to face with his one-time apprentice, and close friend. Though Malak had prepared for the battle, he was ultimately unable to best his former master, succumbing to Revan's might. The Republic fleet attacking the Star Forge was lost, and with it the Jedi Master Vandar. Now, having reclaimed his dark throne, Revan plots his first move as Dark Lord of his reclaimed Sith Empire...
STAR WARS
FALL OF THE OLD REPUBLIC
CHAPTER ONE - FOR THE REPUBLIC
The sound of slow drops of water escaping a cracked pipe stabs at the silence in his dark cell. Carth Onasi, once regarded as one of the Republic Military's finest, now sits with his face buried in his palms, his body aching and his mind drowning in misery. How could this have happened, the ace pilot asked himself over and over. How did he not see this coming? Why did he let Revan go to the Rakatan Temple, accompanied by only Jolee Bindo and Juhani? For the thousandth time, Carth curses himself, and Revan. So many... so many died just a few short weeks ago... Thousands of good men and women, interested only in saving the Republic from the brutality of the Sith... All because of him... All because he failed them... Again.
Carth lets out a ragged breath, pushing his hands up to his scalp, and running his fingers through his hair. How long has he sat in this murky darkness, the man wonders. Long enough for the stubble on his face to grow at least an inch, he surmises with a tug of his fingers. A large portion of the Republic Fleet had mobilized for the assault on the Star Forge; at least, such is what Bastila had told him when she gloated to him of its destruction. The Republic would never kneel to Revan or the Sith, he had retorted; only to have the fallen Jedi laugh mirthlessly back at him.
"Then all those who fight against the will of Darth Revan and the Sith will die." the traitorous young woman had icily cooed back. That conversation had been three days ago, and he had not received more than a small ration of sustenance since then. Just feeling around his face and body, it was clear that the Sith are slowly starving him, hoping to break him with desperation; but they would not have the pleasure... He would die, and give them nothing. And, flaunting his influence, Revan had brought Carth's own son, Dustil, to watch them torture Carth. They demanded that he reveal identification transmission codes so their warships could pass unseen into Republic Space. He knew why; they wanted to switch tactics. Malak had been using brute force to conquer worlds, but that left every world the Sith touched scarred and scorched. Millions died with every planet that fell, but under Revan's returned rule, they were apparently taking a different route.
But he doesn't care; even if the Sith turned around and started supplying aid to the worlds they ravaged, they would still be monsters. The sound of a door sliding open catches the Republic Ace's attention, though he does not raise his head to look. The door to his cell creaks open, admitting a pair of Sith soldiers to enter, followed closely behind by...
"Dustil...?" Carth mumbles, his throat sore from a lack of water.
"Father." the young man contemptibly replies, offering a repulsed leer. He is wearing the standard grey uniform of a Sith officer, further signified by the single red patch over his left pectoral, and carries what looks like a lightsaber hilt locked onto a small magnetic pad on his belt. Dustil maintains a straightened, professional stance as he stands flanked by the two soldiers. "You look awful." his lip curls. "And you smell worse."
"Yeah well, my accommodations don't really allow for regular bathing and a change of clothes." Carth replies ironically.
"Quite." Dustil grunts. He motions to the two soldiers with a nod, prompting the pair to leave the young man alone in the cell with his father. For a long, tense moment, Dustil only leers down at his progenitor. Finally, he speaks, his tone lowered. "You had so much promise."
"If you mean that by working for the Sith, then you'd be wrong, Dustil." Carth replies, shooting a glare at the young man.
"And why not?" Dustil barks back harshly. "The Republic is stagnant, dying. Lord Revan knows this, and even the Republic itself cannot help but admit its humility before the Sith Empire."
"And what makes you think that the Sith are so much better than the Republic?!" Carth growls, pushing himself off his cot to stand face to face with his son. "The Sith are murderers, Dustil! They don't build, they only destroy! Look at what they did to Telos! They murdered your mother, and took you away from me!"
To Carth's surprise, Dustil's eyes seem remorseful, even if only for a small, minuscule moment. Realization hit Carth like a bag of bricks; deep down, his son was in pain.
"Lord Revan gave you a chance, and that you are not dead yet should be proof enough of his mercy." Dustil retorts angrily. "Lord Revan has even told me that he plans to restore what Malak has destroyed! Even Telos!"
"He's only saying that to keep you loyal to him, Dustil!" Carth argues desperately. "As soon as you are of no use to him, he'll kill you!"
Dustil chuckles, shaking his head and looking briefly at the floor before locking his eyes with Carth's.
"You had the honor of travelling with him, fighting along side him, seeing his true self, and yet still you cannot accept it." Dustil growls back. "He's told me all about your inability to trust others. You are suspicious and leery of everyone, even your own allies. You think everyone and everything out there will betray you. But you are the one who has betrayed, father."
"No, I have never betrayed anyone!" Carth hollers furiously, hurting his throat. "I have loyally served the Republic my entire life! I was loyal to your mother, to you! I was always loyal to those that I cared about, to my troops, to everyone! Revan betrayed the Jedi, Revan betrayed the Republic, and then he betrayed himself! His lust for power will be what ultimately gets him killed, and every single Sith that serves him will meet that same end!"
Dustil merely leers at Carth, who glares right back.
"Your mother would be ashamed of what you've become, Dustil. " Carth tells the young man, slowly sitting back down on his cot. "I never wanted any of this for you... Revan is responsible for what happened to Telos, and for what happened to so many others. I will never betray the Republic to the Sith, not even for you, son."
He looks up at Dustil, and notices that the boy's eyes were transfixed on a small camera, though his face was still pointed at Carth himself. Dustil's eyes widen when the little red light blinks off; and with agility Carth was not expecting, Dustil turns and leaps out of the cell. Carth only hears a surprised shout, and two blaster shots. Stumbling, Carth hurries to his feet and slowly approaches the door. The scene before him leaves the man perplexed; Dustil stands over the bodies of the two Sith troopers, holding up a blaster rifle.
"Dust... Dustil... what...?" Carth stammers, unable to understand his son's actions.
"We don't have time to chat." Dustil growls, checking the blaster rifle over. The young man shoots his confused father an irritated glance as he moves to check the hallway. He waits for a moment to listen for any signs of incoming, but is relieved to hear nothing. Dustil walks up to Carth, who tenses. He feels the shackles on his wrists and ankles release, and clatter to the floor.
"You have five minutes to get out of here; that's all the time I could afford to get you." Dustil says harshly, ushering his father towards the cell doorway. He peers around the corner. "Good, the guards are still away. This is your only chance. Here, take this."
Carth's son shoves a tiny device into his hand, and pushes him towards the detention area exit.
"Dustil, I..." Carth starts, but is interrupted when the boy pulls him into a hard, but brief hug.
"There's no time, Dad." Dustil tells him, releasing his father and slapping the blaster rifle into Carth's hands. "That device will let you take one of the transports in the hanger. Take one and get the kriffing hell out of here. I don't care where you go, just don't get caught again."
Carth's eyes start to water, but he pushes the tears down and nods.
"I'll find you, Dustil. I promise." Carth tells his son before bolting down the hall as fast as his feet could carry him.
"...I know you will... Dad." Dustil mutters quietly, watching his father flee and disappear around a corner. He fights back tears of his own, and recomposes. Five minutes is all the time either of them had now.
Carth rounds the corner of a long hallway, taking special care not to be noticed by the occasional pair of Sith troopers patrolling the grounds. Before, he had no idea where he was being held; but after listening to a conversation here and there as he quickly moved towards the hanger bay, Carth discovered that his incarceration was on the planet Ord Radama. He knew of the world; once a marshy planet, cities soon overtook the surface. Before the Jedi Civil War, the planet was used as an ordnance depot for that region of the galaxy. But now, the Sith control it. Carth can only shudder to think what type of treatment the Devlikks were receiving at the hands of their new overlords.
Pushing the thought from his mind and focusing on the task at hand, the Republic Ace finally finds his way into the hanger bay. Incredibly, he had managed to do so without detection; likely due to the overconfidence of the Sith guards. Taking it slow, Carth hides behind various supply crates as he approaches the nearest vessel; a Herald-class Shuttle. He looks around, and notices a young human man, probably no older than his mid twenties, checking off a list. The young man is dressed in the formal grey officer's attire, and seems engrossed in his task. He never sees Carth's quick approach. Suddenly, an alarm blares, surprising both of them. THe young man notices Carth, but too late; Carth swings the blaster rifle at the youth, catching him in the side of the head. The young Sith utters a surprised, pained yelp and crashes into a stack of supply crates, knocking them down.
The event does not go unnoticed, even over the blaring sirens. Several Sith Troopers spot Carth, and begin firing at him as the Republic Ace runs up the shuttle's loading ramp, returning a few shots with his own stolen rifle. Carth hits a switch on the wall, closing the loading ramp behind him as he hurries to the cockpit. He hears the ship being peppered with blaster bolts as he pulls the small device Dustil gave him from his pocket, and slides it into a keycard slot. The ship's computers whir to life, and Carth, relieved at the sight, immediately begins turning on all of the shuttle's systems. Within moments, the craft's engines roar awake, and the repulsors lift the ship off the hanger floor. Carth recklessly engages the shuttle forward and out through the closing hanger blast doors.
Seconds later, he finds himself under fire from the prison's anti-aircraft turrets. Fortunately for him, the automated turrets are relatively easy to predict, and avoids being vaporized before ever reaching the planet's upper atmosphere. An alarm chimes, notifying Carth that the ship is being locked onto by Sith Buzzard-class Starfighters. The shields absorb the brunt of the first wave of fire, but he knows that the shields wont be able to stop a second. He pilots the shuttle past a pair of Interdictor-class Cruisers as fast as the shuttles engines can provide; though he picks up several more fighters doing so.
"Come on... come on..!" Carth growls, glancing down at his navicomputer. Finally, the hyperdrive shows a full charge, and Carth thrusts the switch handle forward, hoping and praying that he can escape before the Sith ships can activate their interdictor fields. To his joy, the stars become straight lines of white light, and the Herald-class Shuttle disappears into hyperspace...
Realizing he had been holding his breath, Carth heaves a heavy sigh, leaning back into his seat as he places his palm over his eyes. He lets his hand slide off his face, and stares into the swirling blue of hyperspace, trying but failing to not think about what kind of fate awaits his son...
A crimson-bladed lightsaber clatters to the hard floor of the Trayus Academy, followed quickly by a sudden and intense wave of the Force. A figure is thrown bodily through the air, crashing into a pillar and dropping to the floor. In his stubborn refusal to die, the self proclaimed Darth Sion slowly heaves himself up from his prostrate position on the floor. All around the expansive chamber, the bodies of Sith acolytes and Dark Jedi litter the floor; some stabbed, and other either cleaved entirely in two, or missing their heads.
"I... cannot die... you are wasting your time..." Darth Sion growls defiantly. "No matter how many times you strike me down... I will rise again and again..."
Sion is slowly covered in the shadow of Darth Revan, who leers down at him with glowing yellow-red eyes from the shadow of his cowl. Bastila Shan stands near the chamber's entrance, smirking.
"Yes, you are quite stubborn, Sion." Revan concurs, his voice sounding gravelly with the lowered tone. "But you are also weak. All you can do, is irritate me."
Sion tries to stand up, but Revan irritably flicks his right wrist, flinging Sion across the room and crashes him against the far wall. He pulls his outstretched arm back, dragging Sion back through the air and smashes him through a thick pillar. Sion falls, almost fully buried in the debris.
"How long did you think your so-called Triumvirate would last? How long before it would draw my notice?" Darth Revan implores darkly. "I will ask one last time; where is your Master?"
Sion pulls himself out of the rubble, and laughs.
"I have... no Master..." Sion replies, coughing dust from his lungs. "I and my fellow apprentice... Darth Nihilus... destroyed the haggard witch... We tore the Force from her... She is nothing now."
"Is she dead, or not?" Bastila asks, stepping up beside Revan. "Tell us her name, you fool!"
"I do not know... Nor do I care." Sion growls, still ever defiant. This time, he remains on the ground, drained of stamina. "But if she lives... I hope you find her... and crush her before she can cast her webs again... Her name is... was... Darth Traya... But before that... Kreia..."
Revan's eyes narrow; the name felt familiar, even though he had not met her... at least, not that he could remember. Could it be possible that he knew Kreia? Before he can consider the thought, Sion speaks again, grinning.
"You should know her..." Sion says pointedly to Revan. "After all... she was your Master too..."
Revan is visibly taken aback by the revelation, causing the edges of his mouth to drop into a frown. If that was true, then this Kreia would likely be able to help him fill in the gaps of his past that the Jedi Council stole from him! This was certainly worth looking into.
"And Nihilus?" Revan inquires, growing impatient. When Sion offers only a smug grin, the crimson blade of Revan's lightsaber leaps to life, and the Sith Lord raises Sion into the air, pulling him close and plunging the blade to the hilt straight through Sion's gut. Sion gasps, his good eye widening in surprise. His body shudders as Revan slowly raises the blade a few inches up Sion's torso. "Answer me."
"Agh..! I... KUGH!" Sion sputters. "Nihilus... does not stay in one place... not for long..."
"Then where does he go?" Bastila presses.
"He... remains in the shadows... of the Outer Rim..." Sion tells them, agonized. "But you will not find him... and by the time you do... he will be too powerful, even for you..!"
"Why do you believe that?" Revan asks in almost a whisper, driving the blade another few inches upwards and into the bottom of Sion's rib cage.
"Nihilus... feeds on the Force... of all living things..!" Sion warns them. "He consumes all life... even entire planets are not safe... from his hunger."
"He can consume the Force of an entire planet?" Bastila repeats, sounding both horrified and largely unconvinced. But Revan's eyes narrow.
"Then he is a threat to my rule." Revan says simply, deactivating his lightsaber and allowing Sion to drop to the floor. He looks down at Sion with a somewhat disgusted gaze. "You, on the other hand, are nothing. The Force flows through you, keeping your body alive... But what are you if not already dead?"
Darth Revan lowers himself, crouching over Sion's exhausted body.
"You defied me, tried to split my Empire; and yet you ultimately failed." Revan admonishes. "You and Nihilus destroyed your own Triumvirate before I ever found out of its existence. And so you stood alone against my wrath; that is not bravery, or even confidence, it is stupidity."
"Yes... I see that now..." Sion admits, sounding just as mentally exhausted as his body. "I allowed the promises of greater power... the squirming lies to crawl into my mind... I should never have turned against you..."
Sion turns his head to look Revan in the eyes.
"But you were considered dead... killed by Darth Malak..." Sion tells Revan somberly.
"You should have known better." Revan grunts as he straightens back into a standing position, towering over Sion.
"That is true..." Sion concurs. With all his remaining strength, Sion manages to raise himself into a kneeling position, using his forearms to stay up. "I... may still be of use to you... Allow me to serve... and correct my mistake..."
"And why should Lord Revan do that?" Bastila hisses angrily. "You already turned away from the Sith Empire to form your own; why should we believe you will not simply do the same once you have recovered your strength?"
Revan stands silent, allowing Bastila to speak for him, and gazes down at Sion in mild interest.
"No... I see the folly of such a thing... I am not so stupid as to attempt the same thing again. I studied at your academy on Korriban... before Kreia filled my head with her venomous words..." Sion raises his head to look at Darth Revan imploringly. "Forgive my weakness, and allow me to prove... my undying loyalty... Lord Revan..."
For a long moment, Revan stands silently, his hands clasped together against his abdomen as he considers the request. Intelligently, Bastila only throws a disapproving look at her master, but also remains silent. Finally, Revan takes a deep breath, closing his eyes for a brief time, and then glares at Sion.
"Forgiveness is not the way of the Dark Side." Revan answers coldly. "And neither is mercy. You defied me once; there are no second chances."
Before Sion can even think to move, Revan's hands fly forward, unleashing a storm of forking bolts of violet lightning. The sheer heat of the blast causes Bastila to stumble back, and she shields her eyes from the intense light with her hands. Sion's screams last only a few seconds as his flesh and bone are torn asunder and incinerated, leaving only a smoking pile of ashes in his place.
"Darth indeed." Revan scoffs. He turns away from the ashes and looks at Bastila, who offers a knowing nod. "I want Darth Nihilus and Kreia found."
"We will exhaust all of our resources to locate Nihilus, my Lord." Bastila replies, bowing her head. "Not a single world will go without a thorough search. We will find this so called Darth. As for Kreia; I know who he speaks of. She was once a Jedi Master... But her beliefs became increasingly radical; so much so that she was held in low regard by the other masters. She eventually left the Jedi Order. This explains what she did afterward..."
Bastila glances around the chamber, raising a brow at the mess of bodies.
"Do you have use for Trayus Academy, my Lord?" Bastila asks, prompting Revan to cast a meandering gaze around the chamber as well.
"I believe that we have some free time." Darth Revan replies after a moment of thought, setting his lightsaber to the magnet on his belt. He steps over a headless Dark Jedi's corpse, and begins a slow exploration of the academy, with Bastila in tow.
For the most part, the Trayus Academy is visually unremarkable; two long, curving halls were lined with doors leading to the quarters of those who studied here. They search every hall, every chamber, even the proving grounds seemed to hold little of interest. It isn't until they reach the Trayus Core, that the pair discover the source of the powerful Dark Side presence enveloping the ruined world.
"Amazing..." Bastila whispers at the sight. She closes her eyes and stops. "I've never felt such... raw power... The Dark Side is so strong here... Stronger even than on Korriban..!"
"Yes..." Revan mutters, leaving Bastila behind as he walks to the center of the Core. He mentally notes that there are two other bridges extending from the Core; places he would search in time. For now, the Dark Lord stands, letting the dark energies of the Core flow freely through him, invigorating him and eliminating the exhaustion he experienced battling Darth Sion and his horde of followers...
And then, as if someone had lit a flame in the recesses of his mind, memories flood into his consciousness. Revan staggers, prompting Bastila to run over to him from by the bridge leading back to the Academy.
"Lord Revan!" Bastila ducks under Revan's right arm, using herself as an anchor to keep the Dark Lord from falling to the floor. "Revan..! What is it? What happened?!"
"I... I remember..." Revan shakes his head, as if trying to ward off a fly. His left hand shoots up to cup his forehead as a pain jolts through his skull. After a few moments, Revan allows Bastila to help him stand straight again, though his hand remains over his eyes, as if the crimson and green glow around them was as bright as a star. "I came here alone... during the Mandalorian Wars..."
"Yes, you defeated the Mandalorians here." Bastila tells him, sounding worried.
"No, before that..!" Revan barks irritably, causing Bastila to flinch in surprise. Revan takes a deep breath, and lets his hand fall, slowly opening his eyes. "The Mandalorians feared this world... and I came here to find out why... and then I used its power..."
Darth Revan shakes his head once more, which he immediately regrets, as doing so gives him a throbbing headache.
"This is where my journey through the darkness began..." Revan whispers, sounding almost in awe of his rediscovery. A horrible sensation grips his insides; he discovered something important here... and whatever it was, taught him about the Sith ways, that much he remembers. The Dark Lord turns towards one of the other bridges, remembering which one led to a trove of knowledge. He immediately heads toward the bridge, further confusing the already concerned Bastila. She falls into step behind Revan's quick pacing, wondering just what it was that had the great Darth Revan, Dark Lord of the Sith, suddenly so concerned himself.
The Herald-class Shuttle containing Carth Onasi bursts into existence, and the Republic Ace looks forward, relieved to finally see Coruscant. Hundreds of warships patrol the space around the shimmering capitol of the Galactic Republic, but all too soon, he finds himself being locked onto once again.
"Incoming vessel, we have identified your ship belonging to the Sith Empire." came a harsh, angry female voice, but of what species, Carth couldn't really say. "You will power your ship down and prepare to be boarded. Failure to comply will result in your craft being fired upon."
"My name is Carth Onasi, I'm a pilot of the Republic Fleet." Carth hurriedly replies. "I was captured by the Sith during the assault on the Star Forge; but I managed to escape. I need to speak with whoever is in charge of the Fleet immediately!"
For a few crucial moments, their is nothing but silence. Finally, a male voice booms through the intercom.
"Carth Onasi? Is that really you?" said the voice apprehensively.
"Yes, yes Admiral Cede, it's me." Carth sighs in relief.
"Great galaxy, it's good to hear your voice, Carth." Admiral Cede replies, sounding equally relieved. "We'd thought the worst."
"That's not too far off, Admiral." Carth tells him with a sobering tone. "I have a lot to report... none of it good."
"...I see... Come to my flagship, Carth. We can discuss it aboard the Sojourn." Admiral Cede replies, not fully succeeding in hiding the downcast in his tone.
"Understood." Carth concurs. Without another word, he receives the location of the Sojourn, and pilots the shuttle towards it.
This was a fun chapter to write! :D Sorry for the delay though! Hopefully you all enjoyed this addition to Star Wars - Fall of the Old Republic! Hopefully, it won't take long for me to add another page! Chapter One is now is swing!
