REVAN

Can a bad deed be forgiven by performing a good deed of equal value? If so, does this rule also work in reverse? Can someone's horrible action be nullified by the act of great goodness in the past?

Despite pondering about this matter for a long time, Revan still wasn't able to come up with the right answers to these questions.

It had been days, maybe even weeks, since Adas Kallig, also known as Darth Imperius, decided to defy the laws of reality by breaking into the heart of the force itself and disturbing the stream of souls to retrieve one of the souls from it. It was an insane action, dangerous for both him and the galaxy, but as always with Adas Kallig, judging his actions was harder than it seemed.

On one hand, his intrusion could be considered a selfishness of the grandest proportions, as he violated the laws of reality and endangered the entire galaxy just to bring one person back to life, without considering the consequences of his actions. And yet his actions could also be considered as a selfless act of pure love, as his feelings for Lana Beniko were so powerful that he challenged the force itself just to see her again. It was hard to tell which interpretation of his actions was closer to truth.

However, no matter which option was correct, the fact that he endangered the galaxy by creating a tear in the stream of souls was unquestionable, leading to the escape of various force users from the past. It was already bad on its own, but there was something much worse. After completing his objective, Adas Kallig left with Lana Beniko, clearly expecting that the hole he created would close on its own. He would even be right under the normal circumstances.

However the hole was still there. And it was getting bigger.

Revan, who was kneeling in front of the pillar of light, looked up to see the source of the problem. There was a Darkness in the part of the pillar where Kallig made a hole with his hand, searching for his lover. He could feel it, this terrible and powerful shadow, corrupting the light around it with its disgusting tendrils, slowly growing in size. The very reason Revan left the stream was to contain it, using all his power just to keep the Darkness from leaving the force and again corrupting the galaxy with its mere presence.

Revan could feel its hunger through the barrier he erected, endless and powerful, ready to devour the entire galaxy given the chance. He could distantly hear its screams, full of terribly fury and desire for revenge. He could see how it was corrupting the walls of the stream around it, slowly spreading its influence, hoping it would become strong enough to break Revan's barriers and escape.

It didn't only limit itself to corrupting the stream. It was also hunting for stray souls that would try to enter the stream after death. It would catch the unfortunate ones that came too close, devouring them and empowering the Darkness further, restoring the strength it lost with its death. Revan could feel the change, as it was slowly but relentlessly increasing the pressure it was putting on his barriers, forcing him to focus more and more on maintaining it.

It would take some time before it would become too much for Revan to handle, but the Darkness was patient. It didn't try to do anything reckless or rash, hoping to end its imprisonment as soon as possible. It knew it was only a matter of time before it would be able to escape, so for now it was content to just watch Revan struggle, aware that it would eventually be free.

The worst part was that Revan couldn't even warn anyone about this grave threat, as his entire focus had to be devoted to maintaining the barrier, hoping he would be able to give the galaxy as much time as possible before the Darkness would return.

His only consolation was the fact that the person most suited to stopping the darkness was active in the galaxy, already preparing himself for Darkness' return, even if unknowingly. He couldn't however bring himself to be entirely happy about it though, as he was also the one fully responsible for this problem. That thought made him return to his previous ponderings.

Was the fact that Kallig defeated the Darkness in the past enough to forgive him for releasing it now?

He still didn't have the answer to that question.

ADAS KALLIG

I sneezed.

I wasn't exactly the type to get sick often, which probably meant that someone was talking about me. Well, I was sure that it was about one of my many great qualities.

I probably shouldn't be distracted by some unknown people gossiping about me, as I had more important things to do at the moment. Like the party conducted after the ceremony, which I was currently attending.

Well, it wasn't exactly a party. It was more of the gathering of people loyal to me, with food and drinks available, where everyone could talk and most likely plot against each other, trying to create internal factions and alliances within the Eternal Alliance, leading to many betrayals and deaths in the future. Hmm, now that I thought about it, it really was just a party, wasn't it? The only thing missing to consider it a proper Sith party was for the party members to fight to death over something stupid and insignificant. But the night was still young and flesh raiders and mandalorians had already started drinking, so I was confident it would eventually happen.

Everyone was having fun, so I decided I would follow their footsteps. I looked around, trying to see someone I could talk with. I would use this party as an opportunity to show that I was a fun, personal boss. That would surely raise morale in the group.

Let's see. Maybe I could talk with Tarkin? He was standing alone at the moment, watching the rest of the party with an unmistakable giddiness in his eyes. I didn't exactly know what made him so merry, but it was probably a good opportunity to have a nice one-on-one conversation with my recently acquired war criminal wannabe. I didn't have time to do that on Coruscant, so it was probably a good moment for that.

I could also talk with Bo-Katan, as she was sneaking glances at me once a while, clearly wanting to talk about something. At the moment she was sitting at the table with Satine, having some sort of conversation, though it appeared that the talk wasn't going well. Maybe I could help with that, I was great at resolving conflicts after all.

Talzin was also a good option, as she was currently just standing in the corner, watching the party. She would sometimes send Maul a warning look, as he was in the middle of drinking with Raksh. Her son was constantly avoiding her gaze, trying to focus on his cup. It was a beautiful family scene that warmed my heart. It reminded me that I should probably talk with her about Maul. She would probably be happy to hear about how he was faring so far. There was also that thing with grandpa Aloysius, but I really didn't want to know what it was about.

My ponderings about who to approach first proved to be unnecessary as I noticed that Tarkin, who saw me watching him, started to walk in my direction with a small smile on his face. Well, it appeared that I would start this evening with a pleasant talk about future atrocities. A great start to the great party.

This chapter was really exhausting to write, mainly the Revan part. I will try to make the next chapter longer than usual, to see how it would work for me.