A/N: in which zaara goes to ziost, theron also goes to ziost, and rei gets a new apprentice

fair warning, i've tried to make sense of the mess that is the ziost timeline, so it takes about three chapters for everyone to get there. as usual, I think bioware just... forgot that travel times exist. either that or everyone was secretly orbiting ziost the whole time.

I'm not unreasonably bitter about this I promise

"What'd I miss?" Zaara took the stairs two at a time, holocomm in one hand and datapad in the other, as she bounded down to where Vector, Raina, and Vette were already seated. They had already started watching that week's episode of The Great Imperial Bake Off; Zaara took the last empty space on the couch and frowned as she noticed the absence of her favorite contestant. "My music teacher is gone," she pouted, curling up beside Vector.

Raina shushed her, but Vette leaned forward and nodded. "Two episodes ago. Elimination by half-baked pie."

"That's a rough way to go."

"It is."

"We still prefer the twi'lek officer," Vector offered, taking Zaara's free hand in one of his own as she nestled against him.

Jaesa's light footsteps announced her arrival just before she chimed into the conversation. "I think she's a bit… frightening. It's probably the only reason she's still in — aliens never make it this far." She plopped down on one of the free chairs beside the couch, tucking her legs up under her. "What's her name? Tessa?"

"Thessa," Raina corrected, following it up with another loud shhh!

The apartment descended into relative silence after that, the only sounds coming from the ever-present rain and Vette as she pulled apart one of her blasters. As much as Zaara simply wanted to enjoy the afternoon, she couldn't shake the feeling of unease that had haunted her for weeks now.

It was all tied up with the new Sith Intelligence. While she was glad that Intelligence was being officially re-formed and would have someone as reliable as Lana at the forefront, it had left Zaara with plenty of work to do during the restructuring and relocation of Intelligence headquarters. She was no longer part of Intelligence — hadn't been, ever since it had originally been disbanded nearly three years ago — but that didn't keep her from being heavily involved in its rebuilding over the past few months.

Lana was more than capable of handling it herself. Still, that didn't keep Zaara from hovering — both literally and figuratively; when she wasn't directly overseeing things on Dromund Kaas or, more recently, Ziost, Zaara was in near-constant communication with either Lana or one of the few Sith and agents capable of getting her the information she needed.

Like she was now — monitoring the situation as closely as possible while still trying to enjoy the company.

She'd spent the better part of the past two weeks on Ziost, scrutinizing the new combat training that was being implemented, and there was no denying it was more streamlined and efficient with the changes Lana had made. Zaara had finally admitted there was little reason to stay and bother her — unless you'd like to accept my offer to take up the position of Intelligence Commander, Lana had pressed — and had allowed Lys to drag her back to Kaas City.

The Wrath herself was nowhere to be found at the moment, having declared it date night with Quinn; the pair had left earlier that evening, leaving their apartment to the group currently immersed in the Bake Off show.

It had become a sort of tradition with the group of them, gathering once or twice a week and all piling in the Wrath's apartment for a relatively uneventful night in. It was nice, a sort of quiet in the aftermath of Yavin that didn't seem to exist outside.

And still, Zaara was anxious.

She was contemplating leaving to find something more stimulating to occupy her mind — arguing with SCORPIO over the effectiveness of her ship's security protocols was usually a safe bet — when Pierce made his way down the stairs. He stopped behind the couch where Zaara sat, towering directly above her.

"Agent."

"Lieutenant."

"That terminal of yours up there is going off," he informed her, sounding more than a little irritated at the fact. "And where's Kaliyo? She owes me money."

"Thanks for telling me. As far as Kaliyo, I have no idea. And Pierce?" She reached up to give him a little pat on the cheek. "She owes everyone money. You won't be seeing those credits."

Pierce simply grinned down at her. "I can get them back, don't worry."

They were met with another Shh! from Raina.

Untangling herself from Vector, Zaara headed upstairs to her room; considering how obscenely huge the apartment was — evidently, being human, Sith, and the Wrath had its advantages — Zaara had long since claimed a single room upstairs as an office, so she no longer needed to work out of her ship while on Dromund Kaas.

She found a single message waiting for her. It was from Lana, but wasn't on her normal frequency or through Intelligence's, but one they'd used back on Rishi.

We need you back on Ziost — tonight. Sorry to cut your vacation short.
—Lana

Agent Ven paid us another visit yesterday evening. Not too unusual, on it's own, given that she's been overseeing Sith Intelligence rather closely — but Minister Beniko called for her, and they're keeping it quiet. Only a handful of us know she's even here. I can't say for certain, but I'd guess it has to do with the reports we received yesterday.

—RK

Theron read the message for a third time before closing it, letting the datapad clatter onto the cafe table. He knew from Kovach's reports that Zaara was playing a far larger role in rebuilding Intelligence than he would've expected; it was both comforting and unnerving to have ties with the two women now in charge of Sith Intelligence. Kovach was right — Zaara's presence on Ziost wasn't at all unusual, but its secrecy was, and it just reinforced his theory that the reports from the day before warranted investigating.

According to Kovach, a military outpost near the capital had lost contact with a patrol. When they returned nearly seven hours later, they were all possessed. Evidently, that was less of a cause for concern than it might have been elsewhere; with a planet as steeped in the dark side as Ziost was, and with all the history and culture buried on the planet, it wasn't odd for the occasional Force-insensitive to stumble on an old artifact and go mad.

But if Lana had reached out to Zaara — something was wrong.

Well, more wrong than the Sith waving away a few possessions.

Theron was still mulling over the report — his caf long forgotten and going cold — when T'sereen finally arrived, sitting across from him with an impatient sigh. "Bureaucracy," she explained grimly.

He pushed the report aside; there were plans to be made, but — he hoped — they could wait for fifteen minutes. "That's right, I'd heard you were working directly with Saresh, now." Evidently, the former Barsen'thor's departure from the Jedi Order had proven quite lucrative for her political career, with various senators and ambassadors all vying for her attention and trying to take advantage of the allies she'd made while with the Jedi.

"Not quite," she sighed. "At the moment, it's just a list of requests she wants me to accomplish with my political connections. I'll find a way to take care of them, just in case I ever do need her support. For now, I'm headed to Dantooine."

"Dantooine?"

"There's an old Jedi temple there — destroyed, but it may hold information I need to access that holocron I found."

Found was an interesting way of saying stole from Nox and the Sith on Yavin. Whatever secrets were hidden within the holocron, Theron did have to admit it couldn't hurt to have the Jedi access them, rather than the Sith — even if T'sereen wasn't technically a Jedi anymore. "Still got your full crew?"

She shook her head. "Zenith's headed back to Balmorra and Qyzen has business to see to. Nadia…" T'sereen trailed off, frowning. "She wants to spend more time on Tython, but…"

She didn't want to go back after walking out on the Jedi. It was something she'd mentioned to Theron on more than one occasion, that her departure from the Order had been relatively peaceful and she didn't want to risk a confrontation. It wasn't really like T'sereen to avoid a fight — she hadn't ever been one to hesitate to stand up for anything she felt strongly about — but Theron assumed it had to do with her padawan, Nadia. T'sereen had practically taken her in as her own daughter; she'd realign the stars if Nadia asked.

"Have you asked Satele about it? Or maybe Master Cori?"

"No. Sort of." T'sereen sighed, her lekku twitching in discomfort. "The council wants Kira Carsen to take over Nadia's training. They haven't reached a decision yet, but I'm afraid that asking for permission to return to Tython will only reinforce their point — that a Jedi needs training and guidance from someone still within the Order."

Theron gave a sympathetic nod, searching for some other topic that would be somewhat less uncomfortable; everything had been about the SIS lately, diving headfirst back into work — which was only partially an attempt to keep his mind off of Rei.

It was mostly successful.

Even with as busy as his return to the SIS had kept him — it was nothing short of a whirlwind, really — he'd found himself searching through her files. Not Darth Nox, of course, he'd been through those already and they began quite abruptly about three years ago, but Reiyaxa.

The information was sparse, but it was there — entrance into the Sith Academy on Korriban in 9 ATC, officially added to the Imperial Census as Reiyaxa Kallig in early 12 ATC, responsible for several attacks on Hoth, of all places.

Of course, actively searching through her files hadn't been the best way to keep from thinking about her.

"How's Felix?" Theron asked abruptly, intentionally cutting off his own line of thought.

"Good. Saying the same things you are." She rolled her eyes and clarified, "That I should talk to the Grandmaster."

Before Theron could respond, his datapad alerted him to a new message — from Kovach.

Three new reports of possessions in the last hour. It's spreading to New Adasta. Minister Beniko plans to contact the Dark Council. Agent Ven and I are investigating — unless we find the cause, it'll be an official state of emergency. Full report to follow.
—RK

"You should talk to her," Theron suggested as he stood. "Worst case, we'll get to have another chat about Satele's disappointment in us. I've got—"

"Work?" T'sereen finished for him, offering a look that was both exasperated and amused. "See, this is why I never let Felix invite you to dinner. How are you going to make it through an entire meal if you can't get through ten minutes and a cup of caf?"

"Next time the SIS fires me," he promised, "you can take me to the nicest place on Coruscant and I'll even stay for the full meal."

"Next time? That might be funny with anyone else, but with you, you're just testing your luck."

"You've been busy." Rei didn't bother to hide how impressed she was, taking in the small campsite and inspecting Vrynn and Talos' discoveries.

Though Darth Praetis' assistance had come a bit late, Rei was thankful for the chance to get to the heart of the matter with regards to Revan's temple — or, not Revan's temple — especially given her lengthy stay on Dromund Kaas. Whoever the temple belonged to, Rei was going to find out and get into the inner chamber.

The second objective being more important than the first.

The young mirialan apprentice gave a quick bow of her head, barely looking up from her datapad. "My lord, I think we may have a problem."

Rei frowned. "What is it?"

"The holocron you found with Lieutenant Iresso in the temple," Talos began, hesitating. "It's gone."

"Gone?" Rei was certain that holocron was the key to discovering the truth behind the temple and it's connection to Revan's disappearance; the Jedi knew already, of course, she wasn't sure how but they knew. They had no use for the holocron, and yet Rei knew that they were the ones who had taken it.

She had her holocomm out and connecting to Darth Zhorrid's frequency even as Vrynn and Talos attempted to explain the situation. There were others she could go to, of course, some of whom actually worked for her; Zhorrid, however, was already busy tracking things down for Rei.

"Darth Nox." Zhorrid was frowning. "I made reservations. I thought I'd surprise you with dinner and a trip to the opera. Your Dashade tells me your already off-world again."

"I… yes. Why exactly did you make dinner reservations?"

"To celebrate. I do love the chance to get all dressed up." Zhorrid folded her hands in her lap, pouting for a moment before she continued. "That Rakata business I sent my agents to look into — I have a name. Eclipse Squad. They were outfitted with the implants and sent to Belsavis with a science team to research the implants' effectiveness against prisoners there. I don't have names or current locations, though."

"Good. When you find them, I want their corpses delivered to Acina for study. Next time I'm on Dromund Kaas, I promise I'll stick around long enough for a good celebration. For now, I have another favor to ask of you." Rei explained the general situation, leaving out several details but making certain to emphasize the importance of the holocron. Zhorrid did eventually agree to help, after Rei offered an artifact from the Reclamation vaults — and possibly suggested, very strongly, that in retrieving the holocron, Zhorrid could earn some respect from the rest of the Council.

Rei highly doubted that would happen, but Zhorrid's expression brightened immediately at the prospect. "Of course, Darth Nox. Just send me the details."

Once Rei had made sure Zhorrid was up to date, she collapsed against one of the low stone walls, resting her chin atop her folded arms. With the Revanites taken care of, it was business as usual at her Sphere, if a bit busy. As an added bonus, there were enough Reclamation Service teams on Yavin to justify Rei's continued absence from the Citadel.

There wasn't enough to do on the Citadel, she'd discovered. It was a lot of paperwork and meetings and following up on her teams' progress — standard stuff, work she'd long been used to managing. But in the time she'd been back — just over a month since the Republic forces had left Yavin — Rei had found herself with far too much time to think.

Here, however, her thoughts were nearly immediately interrupted by Vrynn.

"My lord, Darth— Uh, Lord Nox," the apprentice began, the steely concentration she'd had while studying now gone. "I've spoken with Talos, and I thought I might perhaps make a request?"

"Did you?"

"Yes." She gave a dutiful bob of her head, but said nothing else until Rei raised her brow expectantly. "Oh, um… My training, on Korriban — my trials — it was interrupted by the attack by the Republic earlier this year. Darth Praetis, she's my aunt, and she was going to continue my training but she's…" Vrynn paused, tugging absentmindedly on a lock of her blonde hair, "She's awfully busy most of the time, and I don't officially have a master at the moment, and I thought, maybe…" She trailed off again.

Rei was silent for a moment, brow furrowing as she realized what Vrynn was requesting. "You want me to continue your training?"

"Or not, if it's inconvenient?"

While Rei didn't have anything against it — after all, she did only have two apprentices, where other Sith had dozens — she couldn't help but wonder if there would be repercussions with Praetis. "I'll speak with Praetis. If she has no objections, I'll consider it." Glancing back towards where they'd already set up a camp, Rei added, "Consider our work here your trials."

The halls of the new Intelligence headquarters were almost eerily empty. Zaara's footsteps echoed down the long, sterile hallways and the quiet beeping of her earpiece seemed unnaturally loud in comparison.

"Watcher Three?"

"I've gone through the security footage the Minister requested," he answered. "We can't find the source or the original possessions, but we did locate the captain at the first outpost to report them. Minister Beniko and Agent Kovach are on holocall with her now."

"The Minister's office?" Zaara turned sharply, heading instead to Lana's office rather than her own.

"Yes."

"I'm on my way. Have someone contact Raina Temple," she ordered, "and tell her to ready the crew." After receiving confirmation from Watcher Three, Zaara switched off her earpiece and slipped into Lana's office. As expected, the main holoterminal displayed the image of a woman in well-worn armor. Her dark skin was flushed, and sweat dripped across her brow.

She was explaining something about patrol routes, and paused as she ran a hand through her already-tousled hair. "It's not just the soldiers anymore," she clarified, her voice thickly accented. "It's civilians now, too. We've rounded them up in some storehouses on the outskirts of the city for now, but they're dangerous, sir. If it gets much worse, we won't be able to keep from firing on them."

"Understood. We'll be in touch, Captain." Lana cut the line and turned to Zaara, letting out a long sigh. "You're here, good. I'm sending you and Kovach to New Adasta to investigate personally. The reports we've received so far are… incomplete. I'm meeting with the council in a few hours and need something solid to present to them."

Zaara nodded. "You have a theory?"

"I… do," she offered hesitantly, glancing from Zaara to Kovach and back. "But it's… Like I said, I need something solid."

"Are we at risk?" Zaara knew her cognitive programming — or lack thereof — protected her from various forms of coercion and mind control, but wasn't particularly interested in testing it against whatever force was brainwashing people by the dozens.

Lana hesitated again, but her expression hardened as she answered. "It's likely everyone on this planet is at risk. You both have training, you should be fine. I'm counting on you."

It wasn't a particularly comforting answer, but the best Zaara figured she'd get considering the circumstances. "Of course. I'll send Raina and Vector down here to assist. Lokin will come with me." Best to leave Kaliyo and SCORPIO with the ship, she assumed — at least until they knew more. Zaara turned to Kovach. "Agent?"

He gave a curt nod. "Ready whenever you are."

As they made their way back through the headquarters, Zaara made arrangements with the rest of her team. Once she finished, she turned her attention to Kovach. She didn't know him all that well, despite his constant presence at Lana's side over the past few weeks; best she could tell, he had an eye for detail and a fondness for quiet office jobs.

Wading out into the thick of this possession madness would prove interesting.

"We're meeting that woman on the holo?" Zaara confirmed as they descended down to the first floor. "Who is she?"

"Captain Adina Kartier, recently reassigned from the front lines due to a possible connection between her and Darth Arkous. It's since been proven that she hadn't had any contact with the Revanites, but she still remains in charge of a small outpost just within the capital." Kovach spoke quickly and precisely, as if reciting from a list. Zaara was almost impressed, but given his implant, Kovach might have actually been reading off a list.

"And her involvement in all of… this?" She paused as they waited for the doors to the shuttle hanger to slide open.

"She was the first to report the possessions. This is the first time we've been able to contact her since."

"Good." As Zaara stepped into one of the shuttles, she clenched her teeth, biting down hard to keep from saying anything further. It was too much, she supposed, to ever hope that the Sith would stop being the source of her constant headache.