If there was anything to be learned about Mandalorian celebrations, however small or large, it would be that their ale is quite potent. Had Darth Revan lacked the ability to purge is body of chemicals, he has no doubt that the Mandalorian drink would have knocked him out cold with as many as Canderous insisted that he drink. A hangover would be the worst thing for a climb as treacherous as this. After a night of relative merriness, the morning brought out an air of suspicion and irritability; particularly, if not exclusively, from Canderous' wife. A brief argument had broken out between her and several of Revan's officers - whether or not Sith Troopers would accompany them for the climb.

Eventually, an agreement was grudgingly accepted; only four Sith Troopers would join in the climb, along with six of the Ordo Clan members. Those left behind were tasked with maintaining and protecting the base at the foot of the Twin Peaks. They had left in the morning, just after daybreak; which is just as well, it was taking a long time to climb. Already, two and a half hours had passed, all the while the exposed part of Revan's forehead had gone partially numb as freezing air coalesced on the skin. Some of their small group had voiced some concern regarding which of the peaks to climb first, but Revan was already certain that they had camped at the foot of the correct one. This belief was further impressed upon his confidence as he felt a presence growing stronger as they made their slow ascent.

At last, they reached a flat surface. Canderous, of course, was the first one to reach the natural platform, and quickly helped pull others up. After taking a few moments to rest and refresh their throats with water, Revan stood to observe. Taking notice, Canderous stood, quickly followed by Veela. Their eyes follow Revan's gaze, settling upon a small, barely noticeable opening in the jagged ice and stone wall.

"This is it, then?" Veela breathes, the anticipation in her voice betraying the renewed disdain she clearly felt towards the Dark Lord, who glances at the woman.

"Yes... I remember this cave." Revan replies, his tone flat. He steps towards the opening with purpose. The Sith and Mandalorians all stood, accompanying the Dark Lord into the narrow cave. Leading the way with a glow rod, the group descends through the curling path, eventually coming upon a somewhat wide tomb. At the center of the room lays a lone, stone sarcophagus. The surface is unremarkable, lacking any particular markings save for long worn runes of an unintelligable language, but Revan is still able to recognize it. He expects a remark from Veela or the other Mandalorians, but when none comes, the Sith Lord proceeds. He raises his right hand, invoking the Force to move the heavy stone slab off. He steps forward, peering into the sarcophagus, and is greeted by several things; where once a skeleton had laid was now only filled with a thin layer of dust. Only a pair of objects occupy the space.

Revan reaches in, picking something up and turning to the Mandalorians. The Ordos all seemed to lose the air in their lungs, taken in by the legendary mask of their people. Canderous steps forward, carefully taking the mask from Revan, and gazes at the mask. Revan, on the other hand, turns from them and back to the skeleton and the second item; a Datacron. The Dark Lord reaches in, carefully extracts the fragile cube, and stows it safely in a pouch on his hip. Canderous, apparently curious, looks up from them mask and gazes over at the empty sarcophagus.

"Lord Dramath the Second's resting place." Revan tells the Mandalorian. "Roughly two years before the Mandalorian Wars began, Mandalore the Ultimate was approached by a being with skin the color of blood - A member of the Sith species. The being told Mandalore that he was the emissary of an incredibly powerful master - a descendant of the Sith Lord who drove Dramath into exile. This emissary convinced Mandalore to help him find this tomb."

Canderous blinks and looks at Revan, as do the other Mandalorians.

"For what?" Veela asks, sounding annoyed and confused. "Why would Mandalore the Ultimate help some nobody find a sack of bones?"

"I assume to collect them." Revan answers, gesturing at the empty resting place. "But also, to influence and eventually manipulate Mandalore into war against the Republic."

This revelation comes as considerable surprise to the Mandalorians present.

"You're saying we were manipulated into a war with the Republic?" Veela growls, clearly angered by the notion. "Impossible!"

"The Force can do terrible things to the mind." Revan lectures. "Look at what the Jedi tried to do to me; they tried to wipe out my memories - reprogram me as a loyal servant of the Republic after my capture."

"How do you know this?" Canderous asks, completely serious. But his tone suggests that, unlike his wife, he is willing to accept the truth when he hears it. "Did coming here help you remember this?"

Revan doesn't reply verbally right away, but nods.

"I learned that from Mandalore the Ultimate as he was dying." Revan explains. "I know Sith sorcery when I see it; and Mandalore was clearly under the emissary's control. Only as death took him was he freed from its grasp. The Datacron told Malak and I more about Dramath; that his half brother, Tenebrae, killed their father and sought to destroy him as well. Dramath fled here with his servants, and eventually died of natural causes. His servants entombed his remains here."

Suddenly, a quick motion from Veela drew Revan's attention.

"You think we'd accept that lie?!" Veela growls furiously. "We went to war for glory! To test ourselves in the ultimate war!"

"A war that left your people weakened and broken." Revan harshly barks back. As if something clicked in his mind, Revan's brow furrows and his jaw slightly gapes. His gaze became distant. But Veela took no notice.

"Only once you got involved!" Veela growls.

"Veela, now isn't the time for this..." Canderous reasons. "What's done is done; the war was lost. But now, we have a chance to rebuild!"

Canderous holds the mask up towards Veela.

"You can lead the clans of Mandalore back! Unify them once more!" Canderous presses, but this only seems to further agitate Veela.

"You can't be serious; if anyone should lead us, it is you!" Veela argues. "You could have led us, led Clan Ordo, but you left!"

"I had to, Veela..." Canderous replies, but clearly hurt. "The clans were scattered, broken. There was nothing for me but to move on after the war."

"There was us, Canderous!" Veela yells, leveling her blaster at Revan's face. "Your clan! Your people! ME! But instead, you went and became a hired muscle, and then you became the lapdog of Revan the Butcher!"

Revan gestures to his Sith troopers, who had all raised their blaster rifles. Their action had caused the other members of the Mandalorians to raise their own weapons, making for a very tense stand off in a very cramped space. At his motion, the troopers hesitantly lower their rifles.

"I won't defend my choices, but I did make them." Canderous counters. "But we can make things right - With this mask, we can repair what was lost, what was broken. But we need to do it together!"

"You mean with him?!" Veela growls, her finger tightening on the trigger of her blaster.

"Listen to sense, Veela." Revan warns. "Bloodshed here is pointless, and stupid. Don't throw away everything over so little."

Veela's face flushes red as her temper rises further.

"Nothing!? NOTHING?!" Veela shouts. "You said that we were nothing but puppets in someone else's game! That our clans were destroyed for nothing! That our war was so- ..."

Veela's eyes widen as her body suddenly tenses and her arms swing downwards. Her entire body becomes as rigid as a board, making Canderous' head jerk back in surprise. He turns to Revan, who was holding out his left hand, his eyes focused intensely on the female Mandalorian. Revan flicks his wrist, and Veela's eyes roll back as she loses consciousness. Canderous nearly drops the mask as he moves to catch Veela in his arms as Revan lets go of her.

"She's sleeping." Revan says reassuringly to his friend and the clan members. "The last thing we need is a senseless firefight. Take what I said for what you will, but it is the truth. I wish I could tell you more, but I only remember so much."

Revan turns his eyes to Canderous, who looks back at the Dark Lord and sighs.

"How long will this last?" Canderous asks.

"Long enough for us to get back down to base." Revan replies. The Dark Lord then raises a hand, gesturing at the mask. "But right here, right now, a choice must be made."

Canderous sets his jaw, looking from Veela to Revan, and finally to the Mask of Mandalore. He raises the mask to Revan, letting the Dark Lord take ahold of it, and then pulls Veela up onto his back.

"Help me secure her." Canderous barks at his clansmen. "I don't want her falling off on the way down."


Commander Breen stands, arms crossed over his chest, as he gazes at the tactical display holomap. It had been a full day, maybe a bit more, since the last time the base had heard from their dark master. The thought crosses the commander's mind that, perhaps, the Mandalorians had played dirty, perhaps they used this opportunity to kill the Dark Lord! After all, he is responsible for their defeat during the Mandalorian War.

However, no sooner had he finished the thought than did Darth Revan step into the tent; along with several Mandalorians and Sith Troopers. For a moment, one of the Mandalorians gave the Commander a horrible start. The man is wearing that mask!

"My Lord..?" Commander Breen tentatively looks from the Mandalorian to Revan, looking for reassurance. Revan merely gestures to Canderous, who steps forward confidently.

"I am Mandalore the Preserver." Canderous announces. "I will reunite the Mandalorian clans, and together we will fight alongside your Empire."

"I... well that's... that's wonderful!" Commander Breen claps his hands together, still appearing uneasy. "With your people swelling our ranks-"

"We are not joining the Sith Empire." Canderous interjects gruffly. "We will fight alongside it, but we are not its pawns."

"Mandalore the Preserver here will be assisting in the war, and against an enemy we both share." Revan informs the commander. "In exchange for their assistance, a section of the galaxy will be carved out for the Mandalorians. Mandalorian Space, if you will."

"Is that wise, my Lord?" Commander Breen asks, sounding modestly defiant. "What is to stop a second Mandalorian War, if they should choose to engage in war against us, once the Republic is gone?"

"You'll just have to worry about that later." Canderous growls, but clearly amused by the commander's concern.

"The Mandalorians are our allies, Commander." Revan replies evenly. "But one day, indeed, perhaps they will wish to test themselves against us. But that is not now, not today. Set aside your concerns, and serve the Empire to your fullest."

"Ah, yes, of course Dark Lord." Commander Breen replies in a much more professional tone, even offering a polite bow.

Revan turns back to Canderous, who was already heading out of the tent, and follows. The two make their way through the thick snow to the Mandalorian camp, and enter the large tent. Within, Veela was now sitting up, her eyes unfocused. She shakes her head as she realizes Canderous is standing in front of her, her eyes tracing up her husband's body and finally resting on the mask. Despite her earlier anger, she seems unable to help herself from smiling.

"We have a lot of work to do, Veela." Canderous tells his wife, lowering himself to rest on one knee and resting a hand on Veela's right shoulder. "We are going to reunite the clans, and I'll need your help."

"You have it." Veela replies, sounding somewhat less groggy. She looks past Canderous, locking her gaze with the yellow-red glowing orbs under the shadow of Revan's hood. "You... Butcher... I hate you, for what you did to us... But... thank you."

"Then use that hatred, that anger, and put it to good use." Revan lectures friendlily. "Turn it into passion, into strength. Turn it on our shared foes; and let remind the galaxy once more why the Mandalorians are a culture to be respected."


-Coruscant-

"This is an outrage!" exclaims a pale-olive skinned being. The humanoid being's left eyelid twitches as he whips his body around, gesturing at the Republic Senate. "Not one year ago, Vulta was the site of a battle between the Sith Empire, and this Republic! You defended us then, and our people shed blood alongside your warriors; yet now you abandon us?!"

"You are not being abandoned, Representative Ru'Quaan." the Supreme Chancellor of the Republic responds, his tone suggesting a calm understanding. A diplomatic tone. "This war has taken an unbelievable toll on the Republic's fighting capability. If the Empire's fleet appears again-"

"They shall return, Chancellor!" the Vultan proclaims, turning dramatically to the Chancellor, purposefully making his extravagant robes flutter. "And what force would you send? What can you send!? A token force? Perhaps a large bulk armada to boot the Imperials out after they conquer us? How many more of our people must suffer?!"

"It is the Sith Empire that is responsible for the suffering in the galaxy." the Chancellor calmly argues, but the vein throbbing on his temple shows his frustration.

"Bah! You avoid to answer the question!" a female Vultan speaks up, shaking her head, causing the tied-back fleshy strands on her skull to swing lightly.

From the observatory section, Carth Onasi watches morosely. Admiral Cede stands next to him, hands clasped behind his back.

"I can't blame them for being afraid." Admiral Cede says to Carth, but keeping his gaze fixed on the dramatic scene unfolding. "We were forced out of the Kanz Sector less than a month ago. And now Jebble and Serroco were taken by the Empire. The Sith are literally on their doorstep; both of those worlds are only a single jump away from Vulta. Within three hours, the Sith fleet can move in from those systems and hit them with a two pronged strike. Without our fleet there, Vulta will fall within days."

Carth lets out a heavy sigh, heavily hanging his head, using the door frame to prop himself up.

"What about the forces still on the planet?" Carth asks, though clearly dreading the answer.

"Our military presence there is too light to hold the Sith armies back for long." Admiral Cede grumbles. "A few weeks, maybe a few months if they're lucky. But only a few Vultan cities would have adequate protection; the rest of the world is vulnerable to an invading force. And if I know Revan, that's precisely the kind of tactic he would favor. Seize the rest of the planet, and then surround and choke off the opposing forces."

Admiral Cede turns to Carth.

"As inspiring as what you said to me was at the time, the reality doesn't change." the Admiral sighs. "When Revan and Malak began this war, their combined ferocity and tactics stripped us of member systems faster than anything we faced during the Mandalorian War. When Malak took charge, his brutality and total warfare tactics lost us even more worlds. Some worlds lost completely... But we were adjusting to them... We may have formed some kind of actually successful counter measure; but with Revan at the helm again..."

"What is the Jedi Council saying?" Carth asks.

"Hard to say, really. I honestly think that the Jedi are even more terrified by this than we are, if that's possible." Admiral Cede shrugs. "They've lost thousands of Jedi during this war; either killed or joining with the Sith Empire. Don't get me wrong; whenever we have Jedi leading the charge, our success rates are much higher. But even the Jedi can't stand up to overwhelming numbers for long."

The two men turn back to the Senate gathering; or what was left of it. More than a hundred systems had seceded from the Republic; either after having been conquered, or deciding to secede from the Republic in anger over their worlds being left defenseless against the encroaching Empire. And most of those who seceded turned around and joined the Empire out of fear. Many of them believed that being occupied was a far better option to fighting back against a foe with seemingly infinite resources.

"CARTH! CARTH ONASI!" yells a voice, followed by hurried footsteps. The Republic Ace turns to see a thin Chagrian woman rushing up to them, only to be blocked by a pair of Republic guards. "Carth, something's happening on the holo! It-it's your son!"

If flesh could truly freeze instantly, his heart and stomach would most certainly have right then and there. Wordlessly, Carth hurries to follow the woman. She takes him to a more private room and switches the viewscreen on. Almost immediately, Admiral Cede enters the room as the image of Dustil Onasi, his face covered with bruises and untreated cuts, appears kneeling before an infuriated-looking Togrutan.

"Gentlebeings of the galaxy; I am Lord Kalatosh Zavros, loyal servant of Darth Revan. Today, I intend to send an important message; one that this lad, Dustil Onasi, will help me deliver." Kalatosh proclaims, his angry frown turning into a vicious smirk. "This lad was training to be a Sith, but he made one mistake; assisting in the escape of the fugitive, Carth Onasi, his father."

Admiral Cede raises a hand to cover his mouth; the look of dreaded understanding appearing in his eyes. Carth is unable to turn from the image of his son.

"This was an act of treason. The Empire, under Darth Revan's renewed leadership, is one of greater tolerance, and meritocratic opportunity for not just humans, but for all sentient beings. I am proof of this." Kalotosh continues, pacing a circle around Dustil. "But what we shall never tolerate, is treason. Betrayal of one of our own will never be allowed to escape justice. Carth Onasi was a prisoner of war, captured and placed in custody away from the war. With his release, a renewed escalation of the war will soon follow! For this crime of treason, a vile act of willful assistance of the enemy, father or not, is only suited with the punishment of death."

"No... no no no...!" Carth mutters, tears welling up in his eyes and rolling down his cheeks. His heart begins to hammer against his chest as horror slips into every crevasse of his being. Admiral Cede walks up beside Carth, and grips the Republic Ace's shoulder tightly, also still staring at the viewscreen, but with a barely contained rage welling up within.

Kalotosh stops pacing behind Dustil, and unclips his lightsaber. A fiery crimson blade bursts to life with a low growl, and illuminates the two beings. As Kalotosh raises the weapon, the light bathes Dustil's face in an eerie shadow. Suddenly, Dustil's head whips up.

"FOR THE REPUBLIC!" the boy shouts as loud as his lungs could muster. Kalotosh's face twists up in anger, and he brings the weapon down swiftly.

"NOOOOOOOOOO!" Carth screams, tears pouring from his eyes. Carth practically loses his ability to stand, falling forward against the table and slamming his fists onto the surface. "YOU BASTARDS! YOU BASTAAAARDS!"

The Republic Ace, ruined by witnessing his only child's death, is reduced from a hero of the Republic to a sobbing, grief stricken and broken man.


Hello all! I hope you enjoyed this page, as dark as it got here at the end. I really debated with myself for a while about how to handle Dustil's fate. I toyed with the idea of having Dustil surprise Kalotosh and escape his restraints, leading to a short battle between the two, but decided that this would work out a little less cliche. With more and more worlds falling under the sway of Revan's Empire, is there anything the Republic can do? With Page Seven coming to a close, so does our first chapter!

Up next, Chapter Two of Star Wars: Fall of the Old Republic. What awaits Revan in the fringes of the Outer Rim? With the Sith Empire tightening its grip in the Trailing Sectors, and pushing Coreward, can the Republic even hope to push back? Or will the arrival of unforeseen allies shift the tide of war? But as the Empire begins to strangle what remains of the Republic, Darth Revan and his closest allies push on with their own agenda. With the information gained from Sion, Revan now seeks Darth Traya and Darth Nihilus; the only threats to his Empire, or is there another?