"Let the past die. Kill it if you have to. That's the only way to become what you were meant to be" - Kylo Ren
Sith Gothic 2
Dantooine 1
Landing Site. Dantooine.
Both the Jedi Enclave and the old capital city of Garang had been destroyed during the Sith bombardment, which had been ordered by Malak towards the end of the Jedi Civil War. Back when when I had been allied with Revan I'd warned the Jedi Masters of the attack, but even from orbit I'd gotten the sense that they hadn't listened to me. Not that I was surprised as they weren't the kind of people to listen to warnings from someone like me.
Atton landed the ship at the new planetary capital, a settlement called Khoonda, that was just south of the now ruined Enclave. We arrived in the morning, or what could be considered morning by the locals, but since they were farmers most people wouldn't consider this a decent time to be and out of bed.
However we were all up, and I was even dressed despite the early hour. I was wearing a layer of comfortable and light black clothing known for sturdiness, beneath the different bits of armour that I wore. No two items were from the same place, and the only thing they had in common was that they were all black. For example my gauntlets were from an ancient tomb that I'd found on the Wookie homeworld.
I wore an amourweave coat over my body armour, as it not only offered another layer of protection, I thought that it looked rather stylish and as a bonus it hid my weapons from view. Which was important when you carried a lightsaber as I didn't want to be identified as a force user.
As I led the crew down the ramp, a black-haired woman walked up to us while carrying a datapad. A device she used to access the records the locals had. This would tell her that despite the name the ship now carried it was in fact the Ebon Hawk, a vessel known to be under Jedi control the last time it was here. Its image would be in records.
"You'll find little welcome here, Jedi" I was told "For your own good, I recommend you speak to Administrator Adare, quickly finish your business in Khoonda, and then go!".
The tone of her voice caught me by surprise, sure I'd played the game so I'd known to expect this, but I still felt taken aback.
"The last time I was here it seemed as if the Jedi got along well with the people of Dantooine" I said.
Of course that had been before Malak's attack. Still it was a big change, I could remember a time when people came to the Jedi here for help, to settle matters, and even for asylum. How things had changed.
"You must have left before the Jedi Civil War, then," the woman said. "Six years ago, the Jedi were good neighbors. The kids, the Padawans, they were always around if you needed a spare set of hands. The Knights helped patrol the plains, keep away kath hounds and raiders. They weren't exactly the most sociable of neighbours, but we thought it was an honour, having a Jedi Enclave in our community".
She laughed bitterly.
"In the end it made this world a target. When Malak came, the Republic only had a small patrol group here. The Sith fleet was huge, the Republic forces didn't have a chance" I was informed "The Sith didn't just bombard the Jedi Enclave, they hit Garang and every other decent sized city settlement on the planet, just in case there might be Jedi there. Then the Jedi abandoned us they fought long enough to make sure the Masters got away, then left everyone else to die".
So my warning had not been headed after all.
"But Malak was defeated years ago," said the Handmaiden. "Surely you rebuilt".
By the looks of things they had.
"The Jedi never really came back," the woman said. "They poked around the rubble a little, made a show of providing medical help, but once they were through recovering artifacts from the Enclave, they simply left again. The Republic provided some support, but it was Administrator Adare who really started the recovery. She was just the Agricultural Administrator before the war, but she was the one who got the rest of the survivors organized. She turned the old Matale estate into Khoonda, got the fields cleared and replanted, so that we could eat at least".
This administrator person sounded like a remarkable woman.
"With the Exchange bounty on Jedi, you'd be smart to keep your identity secret" the woman was now saying.
After that warning she turned around and left, not even bothering to collect a docking fee or to introduce herself. Nor I was able to inform her that the bounty had been lifted,
"Well seems as if I need to go and meet with this Adare lady" I said to the group.
(Line Break)
Khoonda. Dantooine.
"Wait here" I told the others.
Alone I stepped inside the office and found the leader of this place. As it turned out Administrator Adare was a tall, regal-looking woman in her mid-fifties. Her dark brown hair was coiled into a severe bun, that was held in place by what looked to be knitting needles. She radiated seriousness so intently that I could sense it with the Force.
"A visitor. Please, come in. Welcome to Khoonda; I am Administrator Terena Adare" she greeted "You're the owner of the, um… ship that just landed?"
I nodded.
"Yes, that's my ship" I replied "My name is Gothic"
I left out the lord part as that would just draw attention, but other than that I wasn't worried about using my name. I hadn't been well known during the war and any records the Jedi had about me would have been lost with the Enclave.
"Your transponder says different, but unless I'm much mistaken that's the Ebon Hawk" the administrator was now saying "That vessel has been to Dantooine before, during the war. That was a Jedi vessel".
Again I nodded.
"The ship did belong to the Jedi" I confirmed "and the Jedi don't seem to be welcome here anymore".
I didn't see the need to lie, but neither did I tell the whole truth. If this woman was left with the impression that I was a Jedi then that suited me just fine. Most people didn't understand the difference between Sith and Jedi in any case, and it was rare for anyone to even try.
"That is an unfortunate truth," Adare said grimly. "Most of the settlers here hold bitter memories of the Sith occupation, short as it was. Right or wrong, our settlers blame the Jedi and their Enclave for their suffering. I however remember the old Jedi Masters and the considerable help they lent to Dantooine"
She paused for a moment, and looked around, as if she was worried that someone might be listening who shouldn't be.
"I still maintain… discrete connections with the Jedi" the human female admitted "I suppose your arrival here is no coincidence".
Indeed it wasn't.
"That's part of why I am here" I confessed "I am trying to find a Jedi Master who is hiding somewhere on this planet"
Adare smiled slightly, she was no doubt thinking that despite my dress sense that I was in fact a Jedi, and an ally of Master Vrook. To be fair I had once been his ally, and even now I meant him no harm. I'd leave the fate of the Jedi Masters up to Kreia.
"We've known each other for many years. And our continued friendship could create many problems in the current political climate" Adare told me.
Which was her way of telling that she couldn't openly help me.
"He came to Dantooine not too long ago. He was looking into something quite important. Did he send for you?" I was asked.
Again I saw no reason to outright lie, and I sensed that this woman would know if I did.
"No" I said "He didn't send for me".
"Then why are you looking for him?" was the next question I was asked "and how did you know Vrook was here?"
I knew that my answer needed to be carefully phrased.
"There's a danger out there to all Jedi, and I don't mean the Exchange bounty" I told Adare "I've already contacted a few of the remaining Masters with the intention of gathering them together so that we can discuss the threat, and decide on a course of action".
Not that they'd live long enough to do anything about it, but I would discuss the issue, and if they somehow defeated Kreia then I would help them fight the other Sith, although I suspected that no matter what I would still end up doing the real work.
"I'll try to arrange a meeting" Adare promised as she paced in front of her desk "but I can't tell you when. Vrook comes to meet with me, but I never know when he's coming. The next time he comes, I will inform him that you are here".
Her lack of help with this wasn't a big deal.
"More than likely we'll run into each other before long" I told the leader of this settlement "He'll have sensed my presence".
Detecting a lone Jedi on this planet would be hard because this world was strong in the lightside even after Malak's attack, but the Jedi Master should be able to sense me. Even if he didn't, I knew what he was up to and would find him sooner or later. I just had to follow the path set out before me.
"The remains of the Jedi Enclave seem like a good place to start" I said.
Which was my way of asking permission to visit.
"I wish you luck," said Adare, "And while the Enclave might be a good place to start your search I don't think you'll find much there. The Jedi Masters saved as much as they could when Malak attacked. That was why they fled, to keep the holocrons and other artifacts out of Sith hands".
Hopefully they'd sent the Younglings away before the attack, that had been my hope when I'd given the warning. I didn't want the Jedi totally destroyed just the current Order of them.
"The Sith stole some of what remained, and destroyed more in the bombardment. The ruins have been picked over by scavengers, relic hunters are one of the largest sources of revenue for Khoonda" Adare informed me "The Enclave sublevel remains largely intact, but that's only because it is very dangerous".
If there was anything worth taking then it would be done there.
"Be careful there are large, cave-dwelling insects called laigreks who have made nests down there" I was warned "So far no salvagers have yet been able to bring much out of that level. Many have been killed in the attempt".
Adare paused, she was considering something
"Do you intend to visit the Crystal Cave?" she asked.
I nodded as indeed I did intend to visit the cave. If events were following that of the game, and that seemed to be the Will of the Force, or perhaps the will of whatever power it was that had brought me to this universe, then there should be a special crystal waiting for me in one of the chambers.
"Yes, I do" I confirmed "Have the kinrath have overrun the cave?".
I recalled that the strange creatures would be there and that they would be hostile.
"Wait a moment" Adare urged as she pressed a button on her desk. "Zherron, would you come to my office, please?".
A moment later the office door opened, and a man stepped inside. I assumed he was Zherron, who was a medium-tall man; he wore Republic made armour, which had been repainted, so I felt fairly certain that he was a former soldier who'd fought in the war for the Republic, either against the Mandalorians, or the Sith, maybe both.
"Good morning, Administrator" he greeted.
He didn't even acknowledge my existence until his boss gestured towards me.
"Zherron is the captain of the militia here in Khoonda," Adare said to me "Zherron, this is Gothic. He and some friends of his plans to go to the caves, the ones we were talking about earlier".
The captain looked me up and down, making note of my set of mish matched yet high quality armour. I wasn't carrying any weapons as far as he could see, but this was a meeting in an office so I would hardly have brought a blaster rifle with me.
"I certainly could use the help" the old soldier admitted "We've been trying to handle the kinrath for months now. They've been breeding like wild, digging new passages. The cave system they used to be contained to now connects the old Crystal Cave and that's far too close to this place for my comfort".
The Jedi must have been keeping their numbers down in order to protect the farmers, which they could have done by wiping out the creatures, at least on this part of the planet, but that wasn't the Jedi way.
"We keep blasting the nearby entrances, but they just dig more, and the main nest is now in the crystal chamber" he let me know "As they multiply, more and more are leaving the caves to hunt. The turrets keep them away from Khoonda, when they're working, but there are already parts of the plains that aren't safe day or night".
Pest control wasn't normally a Sith's concern, but since I needed to enter the cave I'd have to deal with the creatures.
"I can't go in there and clean out the nest; the kinrath there are too many and too strong for my boys" I was then told "If you think you can handle them... well good luck".
His lack of confidence in my abilities, while understandable since he knew nothing about me, was still a little insulting.
"I'll see what I can do, Captain," I said "I can't wipe them out, but I should be able to reduce their numbers and drive them out of the Crystal Cave".
While I couldn't be sure I suspected that there sudden increase in numbers had to do with them nesting in the cave. They might be feeding off the large amount of Force energy within the cave.
"I understand." Zherron replied
He almost didn't say anything else, but after his boss gave him a look he spoke some more.
"Keep your eyes open if you're heading towards the Enclave. There's a force of mercenaries camped in the wilderness area north of the ruins" the man warned me "They're a strong group, led by an ex-Sith trooper named Azkul".
Yes I'd have to kill him before I left. He was most likely the dark presence I'd started picking up on just a few moments ago.
"He says they're here doing forest and mountain training, but I don't think that's the whole story, but his men didn't bring any heavy weapons with them, and they mostly keep to themselves so I haven't tried to drive them off" I was now being told "Still, once a month or so, a group of them will get drunk and rough someone up. I'd steer clear of them if I were you".
Canderous would want to check them out in case these mercs had any Mandos in their ranks.
"Thank you" I said.
With that I left the office, it was time to get moving. I had much to do while on this world.
(Line Break)
Enclave. Dantooine.
By the looks of things The Enclave had been torn apart by turbolaser fire. Part of one side of the main building had been blasted open so that the upper floors could be seen, at least what was left of them. Even from here it was clear that whatever had survived the bombardment had long since been removed by treasure hunters or by the Jedi who came to recover whatever they could.
The building and grounds were pockmarked with dozens of large craters, and the entrance to the upper levels was buried in rubble. Making it even more clear to me that there was no point looking around those parts of the Enclave for any Jedi treasure.
Outside of the Enclave there was a cluster of tents, making it look like a camping ground. I could already smell the cooking fires, and see the scavengers who'd come here in the hopes of finding a holocron, or a stash of lightsaber crystals, anything that was worth to allow them to start a new life somewhere else.
There were those foolish enough to believe that the Jedi funded themselves with huge treasures hordes that were kept in the lowest levels. This was a lie, the Jedi were a registered charitable organization that drew funding from wealthy beings and businesses who wished to give something back to the galaxy.
"There's no more room for salvagers here," said a rough-looking woman with grey hair. "Turn around and go back to where it was you came from. There's nothing left anyway, except the sublevel, and that's full of damned laigreks".
Her hostile tone did not deter me or my companions.
"I was planning on trying the sublevel," I said "but before I go, why don't you show me your salvage, I have credits to spend".
The woman brightened up upon hearing that.
"Sure, I'll show you what I have" she offered "But several collectors have been here before you, so there's much of the good stuff left".
She led us to a table that was made of bits of junk, and then lifted up a footlocker, which she rested on the table.
"The name's Daraala. I'm sort of the storekeeper here; the salvagers bring me what they find and I trade them for supplies and gear" she told me.
Before long Daraala began setting items out on the table.
"Robes and lightsabers are long gone; that was what everyone wanted" I was told "And I only have a few crystals left."
While the collectors who'd come here hadn't been Force Users, I could tell that as some of gems left behind had belonged to Jedi I could sense that with the Force, still they had been able to identify the items of real value to those who want to buy a real Jedi artifact.
"Most of this is junk" I said "Computer parts, bits of droids, but some of its good stuff".
This woman had a few intact focusing lenses, which were key components in the construction of a lightsaber. These lenses worked to regulate the beam of a lightsaber, allowing the blade the saber produced to terminate at a given point. Different types of lenses yielded different properties in the lightsabers that they were built into; in addition, like most other parts of the Sith and Jedi weapon, they required skilled craftsbeings to create them though often there mass produced versions that available to buy as focusing lens weren't exclusive to lightsabers, but the cheap lenses needed to replaced as they wore down quickly".
"Kreia is this what I think it is?" I asked the old woman.
Her nod confirmed what I had already suspected, that the lens had been constructed from an Adegan crystal for use in a lightsaber. Although Adegan crystals were one of several types of crystals that were suitable for focusing lens construction, they were more commonly used as focusing crystals in lightsabers due to their rarity and cost. The best lens were made by Jedi Masters who could be trusted to wield the most powerful of blades.
"Is it valuable?" I was asked.
While I had no desire to lie I didn't want to tell the whole truth.
"It's worth more than anything else you have here" I told the trader "This is actually from a lightsaber".
Before she could question me further on the subject I made an offer.
"I'll give you two hundreds credits for this" I said to the woman "And fifty more for the gems".
Which was little better than stealing it since this lens could be worth more than seven thousand credits, and collectively the remaining gems could be worth two thousand. I was surprised that no one had brought them before now, perhaps they were a new find.
"Certainly, and thank you," said Daraala, now smiling at me.
My group and I were about to move one when the woman spoke again.
"If you're heading into the sublevel, please look for my friend Jorran: tall man, long grey hair and beard streaked with black. He and Taepalae took a group in a few hours ago; the others made it back but he's still missing" she requested.
There was no reason not to.
"I'll keep an eye out for him" I said as turned and headed for the Enclave with the other trailing behind me.
(Line Break)
Enclave. Dantooine.
The door to the Enclave sublevel opened with a horrible screech. Some emergency lighting was active, but for the most part the interior was dark, and the air was more than a little stale. Everyone switched on a light of some kind and as a group we began to move down the hallway.
T3 raised a little sensor dish from the top of his head, then let out a short series of whistles and beeps.
"Translation: T3 is scanning the area for life forms, master," said HK-47. "The duracrete walls reduce his detection range. Nonetheless, he is tracking two faint life signs, humans. One maybe the Jorran meatbag we were requested to find".
More than likely the other was the Disciple, or whatever he was called. Didn't really care for him.
"Caution: Laigreks are cold-blooded, and thus only detectable by bioelectricity. Under current conditions, T3 cannot spot them before they are close enough to attack" HK said next.
I sensed trouble ahead, but the Force wasn't helping much in this case as it was just a general bad feeling, which only grew as the group moved deeper into the sublevel. Before long I began to hear a metallic scratching sound. Which became louder as we turned a corner.
Several laigreks were moving around a closed door, trying to claw their way in. These were larger than expected, and I could see why they'd be a danger to treasure hunters, but when facing experienced fighters like my group they went down easily enough.
"Is someone out there? Anybody?" I heard someone call out.
The voice he come from behind the door.
"Help! Laigreks are everywhere! Help me, I'm trapped in here!" a man yelled.
I couldn't help finding this amusing for some reason. I also knew that the man who was shouting had to be Jorran.
"It's clear for now; the laigreks in this area are dead" I said loudly enough for Jorran to her me.
"Frak, you must be fierce with a blaster," the man replied.
I hadn't heard anyone use frak as swear word since I'd last watched Battlestar Galactica.
"Let me get this door open" Jorran was now saying.
There was a loud click and the door rumbled open.
"You must be Jorran," I said.
He nodded.
"That's me. Thank you for getting me out" he replied "I haven't got anything to reward you with, but I know where there's decent salvage in here, if you're willing to risk it".
Jorran pulled a datapad from his pocket and with it he brought up a map of the sublevel, with several areas marked.
"This room here is a machine shop" he said while pointing at the padd "There are half a dozen protocol droids in there, just standing in rows; they've got to be worth a couple hundred credits apiece. Get them activated, and they could just walk out under their own power. There's a library further down the hall, but the door was totally jammed. We were trying to get it open when the laigreks rushed us from deeper in. It's a good bet the nest is down there someplace".
This would come in handy.
"Thanks for the information," I said, while taking the pad. "We've cleared the way back to the surface; you should get to safety".
I then turned to the others.
"Come on let's clear out this level before we hit the library" I said.
The droids didn't concern me, others could claim them after my group had cleared the way. My interest was in the library. Knowledge was worth more than any robots.
(Line Break)
Enclave. Dantooine.
"T3 download whatever records you can" I ordered "Focus on anything they have on the Sith, and Jedi training methods".
We'd just entered the library and while most of it was in ruins there were enough lit up shelves here to let me know that a lot of knowledge had survived. No doubt there was much here I could learn from, but my droid's memory banks were limited as were my ship's so I had to be picky.
"Greetings!" said the human male who called Micah if I recalled correctly "I am...".
I stopped him there.
"Listen buddy I don't care who are just go away" I said.
I'd never liked this character.
"But..." he protested.
I was firm about this.
"Go away or I'll shoot you" I warned "Go rebuild the Jedi Order or something useful".
On stun. I wouldn't murder someone just because they were annoying. Well not unless they were really annoying.
"Take a look around" I instructed the group "Once the download is complete we'll leave this place".
I walked over towards some corpses and saw that they were Sith assassins not mercs. They'd been dead for a while, and they'd been killed by a lightsaber of this I was sure. In fact they'd been dead for days at least and I'd not sensed any other Sith around so this was likely the whole hunting party.
They must have been hunting the Jedi Master who was hiding somewhere around here. This might explain my unease about this place, and it could also mean that there more Sith on this world. This kind of Sith could stay hidden until it was time to strike.
Which meant that I needed to hurry up and finish my business on this world before one of my fellow Dark Lord's tracked me to this planet.
