It was hard for Meetra not to feel encouraged by the sight around her.
She was standing with Revan and Bastila at a dais in the center of a small chamber. Circled around them was every companion who had served them during the Jedi Civil War and the Purge. Carth Onasi stood in the front of Revan's crew, and Visas Marr was at the head of Meetra's.
"I suppose introductions aren't really necessary?"
Visas Marr chose this moment to speak up. "I disagree." She turned in the direction of Lord Scourge, her expression wary. "I believe most of us would like to know what a Sith has to gain by helping us in our mission." Murmurs of agreement echoed through the chamber.
Meetra sighed in exasperation. If anyone was going to ask that question, it was bound to be Visas. A Miraluka, she could only see other beings through the Force itself. And she could surely see the aura of the Dark Side around Scourge.
"Scourge is here because he must be." Meetra glanced at Revan who responded, "It's true. Hear him out." Visas still appeared suspicious, but she bowed her head respectfully.
Sending a grateful look their way the Sith stepped forward and reached into his belt. "I understand none of you really trust me," he remarked. "But once you have seen what I have to show you, all of you will understand we have little choice but to work side by side." He pulled forth a small object, a pyramid made out of red crystal and obsidian.
A Sith holocron.
"I've gathered what knowledge I possess of the Sith Emperor in this holocron. This will help us in our mission." Jolee Bindo scoffed. "And what mission is that?" Scourge turned his red eyes to the hermit.
"To kill him."
Scourge didn't wait for a response, pressing his finger to the top of the holocron. A fiery glow emanated from inside and Meetra felt the Dark Side spread to every corner of the chamber. As the holocron began to project it's contents, Scourge began to speak.
"The Emperor's true name is unknown. I have scoured every record, communed with every artifact I can procure. All I can find in accordance to the Emperor's identity is his title. Darth Vitiate."
The dark outline of what seemed to be a tall humanoid male formed above the dais.
"Vitiate has lived for hundreds of years. Maybe more. He grew up on Korriban, the homeworld of the Sith during the early days of the Empire. Who exactly his family was, I do not know. But what I can guess is that at some point in his early adulthood, he quickly grew in influence and attained a group of loyal followers. Eventually he gained the title Vitiate, becoming a fully fledged Sith Lord."
Juhani, now a Jedi Knight, peered at the image intensely. "How could this Sith have lived for so long?" Scourge ran his hand along one of the holocron's edges, and the rough image of Vitiate dissipated. Another image materialized, this one being of a temple.
"Vitiate was obsessed with not only claiming power, but also finding a way to hold onto it forever. Vitiate sought what so many Sith have over the years; immortality. He hid himself away in an isolated temple. Experimenting with alchemy and Sith sorcery Vitiate altered and warped his body to unnatural degrees."
"This isn't unheard of, Lord Scourge," said Atton Rand. "I doubt he has much strength left now."
Scourge raised his brow. "You would be right to. For a time Vitiate's experiments bore fruit. His body stayed young and he continued to grow in power. But after many years his experiments finally caught up with him. He grew weak and delirious.
But Vitiate would not accept defeat so easily. Gathering hundreds of his most loyal followers, he brought them at his temple on Korriban and began his final ritual."
The energy from holocron reached a fever pitch. Meetra noticed several of her old companions flinch, as all around them appeared shapes of men and women of different species. With an inhuman scream the apparitions were ripped apart.
"In a ceremony that perverted the Force itself, Vitiate consumed the lives of his followers. Their longevity, their strength, was now his. To demonstrate his newfound power he unleashed a wave of energy that destroyed the temple and everything around it. As the smoke cleared, Vitiate emerged to the people of Korriban…"
The light from the holocron began to die down. But not before the assembled crew was shown one last image. Meetra could make out a crowd of Sith on their knees, but the figure standing over them was shrouded in utter darkness.
"Vitiate was reborn, his lifespan extended almost indefinitely. Seeming nothing less than a god to his people. He proclaimed himself their new Emperor. And he has ruled the Sith every since."
Finally, Scourge closed the artifact and placed it back in his belt. Meetra pulled her cloak around her, still feeling the cold of the Dark Side around her. The crew was silent, but Meetra could sense their worry. She didn't blame them.
"Well, that was encouraging." Canderous Ordo finally broke the silence. "We already faced a Sith Lord who could feed off the living Force, and he nearly wiped out the Jedi." He looked at Meetra pointedly before turning to Revan. "Not even you could kill him."
Revan's posture seemed to waver. "I understand your hesitation. Malak and I sought to fight him, only to become his slaves. But I'm stronger now then I was then. And this time…" His eyes glanced towards Bastila. "I actually have something to fight for."
His wife's cheeks reddened, and Meetra had to stifle a laugh.
Meetra spoke up again. "From what we've gathered, the Emperor's power will begin to wane soon. The energy he gathered from all his servants will begin to leave him, and he will be vulnerable." Revan leaned against the dais, gazing intensely at their companions.
"After years of isolation the Emperor is returning to Korriban. The planet is abandoned, but he will gather another mass of followers to consume. And when it is done he will announce his return to the Sith Empire and launch another attack against the Republic." His was dark, but as Revan continued there was a hint of hope.
"Yet if we destroy him now, defeat for the Empire will be all but certain."
Canderous nodded in understanding, but his demeanor was still skeptical. "That sounds wonderful. But I still don't understand just why a Sith is helping us."
"Because I will perish if I don't," Scourge replied. This drew a look of confusion from Canderous and the others, and the Pureblood continued. "Two hundred years ago Emperor took notice of my success at the Sith Academy and abroad. I became a member of his personal enforcers, the Emperor's Wrath. But it came at a price."
Canderous looked at him closely. "What price?" Scourge removed his armored gauntlet, exposed his bare hand. "I was enhanced with Sith alchemy, similar to the kind he used on himself years ago. I was made stronger and faster than before. And I would live twice as long as the average Sith." He clenched his fist, and Meetra noticed the skin on his hand was translucent and waxy.
"But if the Emperor is allowed to perform his ritual, my life force will be drained. My strength comes from him, and when he takes it back I will die with the rest of his victims."
Meetra's old friend Mira let out a harsh laugh. "So this isn't about saving the galaxy. You're just in this to save your own skin." Sighing in frustration, Bastila shook her head and said firmly, "His reasons for helping us don't matter. Scourge understands what's at stake."
She cast him a foreboding glance. "And I think he's smart enough not to betray us."
Once again the chamber grew quiet. Meetra reached out through the Force to see how each of them was taking this. Most of them were struggling with whether or not to trust Scourge. Revan seemed to sense this as well. "I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for Scourge," he pleaded.
"After discovering what his Emperor planned to do, he sought me out He and Meetra found me, lost and half-mad from trying to escape my memories of the Emperor and what I did in his service.
I'm not asking you to trust him. I'm asking you to trust me." He gestured to Bastila and Meetra.
"Trust us."
Carth Onasi was the first to respond, while the rest of the crew continued to deliberate. "Revan… You know I trust you. I stood by you, even when I found out who you were, what you had done." His gaze flickered towards Scourge briefly. "If you really think this is the right choice, then you know I'm with you. Of course I'll have to put in orders to replace me as admiral if things go south."
Canderous Ordo shrugged before stepping forward. "I will do the same. Mandalore needs a strong leader. Preferably a live one. But if the Emperor returns I don't suppose that will matter. I'm with you."
Visas Marr nodded. "I have already seen entire worlds fall to the Sith. While I still live, I won't allow any more to suffer their fate. We will stay with you until the end." She gave Meetra a warm smile, and next to her the handmaiden Brianna did the same. "We're with you."
Towards the back of the group Meetra heard enthusiastic beeping. The utility droid T3-M4 rolled into view, flanked closely by the recently repaired 3C-FD. "You know these two aren't going to miss out on this. And neither am I!" Next to them it looked like Mission Vao was trying hard not to burst out laughing.
One by one every crewmember stepped forward. Meetra nodded confidently and shot Revan an encouraging grin. But he remained stoic. "I want you to realize what I'm asking," he said grimly. "There's no going back. If we fail, we die."
"Yeah. Haven't heard that before." Carth's joke had everyone chuckling around them, and he folded his arms assertively. "You told us you needed our help. And we're right here with you."
Revan stepped down from the dais. "If we're all in agreement, ready your gear. We leave for Korriban in 09:00 hours. The Ebon Hawk's been retrofitted, and can hold all of us. You'll be filled in on the plan of attack on the way there."
The group dispersed, heading to the parts of the temple they had settled. Meetra passed Scourge and asked, "What will you be up to?" He gestured outside. "Meditating. As the rest of the Jedi in your crew should be doing when they have the chance." He stepped through an archway leading to a balcony overseeing the temple grounds and dropped to his knees.
While his attitude clearly wasn't winning Scourge any friends among their old crew, Meetra agreed. There wasn't any room for doubt or fear now. She found Bastila standing alone in a hallway leading to her and Revan's room and asked, "How is he?" Bastila shrugged.
"Revan is holding up well enough. He's just worried not everyone will make it." Something in her voice told Meetra it was more than that. "If there's something else trouble you, Bastila, you can tell me," she said warmly.
Bastila's face turned red, and her eyes darted to the side. When she seemed confident everyone was gone she muttered, "On the way here Revan had another nightmare." For a second Meetra stared at her blankly before groaning and resting her face in her hand.
"I don't know what to say, Bastila. I don't know if Revan's ever going to be free of his visions." She reached out with her mind, searching for Revan. Meetra felt his doubt and his worry. Even now, with a small army at his side, he was still afraid.
"But I know Carth was right about one thing. Revan's lucky we're with him this time."
...
Revan sat alone in the room he had chosen for himself and Bastila, staring at a box resting just two feet away from him. It was impossible for him to meditate.
They were so close now. So close to finishing what he'd started all those years ago. Soon enough, Revan would finally destroy the man who had taken everything from him. But when the time came, would he be able to do it? Or would he become the Emperor's slave again?
He felt a shift in the Force, and Revan stretched out his hand towards the box. Its lid flew off, and Revan pulled out the object inside. His old mask was covered in a fine layer of dust, and the left side had been cracked his final duel with Malak. But it still held the same power as it always had before.
Revan wiped off the dust, and felt the Force coalesce around him.
It was time.
Author's Note: Hooray for exposition!
So here we have the slightly tweaked backstory of the Sith Emperor. I wanted to make him less ridiculously powerful, because let's face it. The writers of the Old Republic MMO kind of overdid it.
Bringing the band back together was one of the most important things about this story to me. And I know 3C-FD technically died in KOTOR II, but I always thought it would be nice to have another droid in the mix. Speaking of droids, worry not HK-47 fans. I have plans for him.
Let me know if there are any improvements I can make or any questions you have, and I'll see you next time!
