Order of the Sith Lords: Rule of Two

by lordtrayus

According to Darth Plagueis, thirty Sith Lords existed in the time between the Seventh Battle of Ruusan and the rise of the Sith during the Battle of Naboo. Yet we dont know who these Sith are. But now, here is a complete history of the various Sith Lords, who's millennia of scheming allowed for the Sith to destroy the Republic and eradicate the Jedi

1. The Birth-The Cleansing Feud

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars to my regret

Order of the Sith Lords

Birth of the Rule of Two

Darth Bane

Species: Human male
Birth name: Dessel
Reign: 1000 BBY-980 BBY

Info: Born the son of a miner on Apatros, Bane fled his homeworld, joining the army of the Brotherhood of Darkness during the New Sith Wars. Recruited to the Sith academy on Korriban, he became disenchanted with the Sith of the era, realising the dark side had been spread thin between too many pretenders. Striking out and gaining secret information from the holocron of Darth Revan, Bane vowed to remake the Sith, and decided to create the Rule of Two: two Sith, one to embody power, the other to crave it, a master, and an apprentice. Returning to the Brotherhood, he manipulated their destruction by goading Shere Kaan into using the thought bomb, which annihilated all Sith save for himself.
Finding the girl, Zannah, in the ruins of the battle, he made her his apprentice, and began her training. Lasting many years, Bane trained Zannah and even survived an encounter with several Jedi on Tython. Eventually, fearing Zannah was not cut out to be the master, he tried to find the holocron of Darth Andeddu in order to attain immortality, which gave Zannah the justification to kill her master. Confronting her on Ambria, Zannah overpowered him through Sith sorcery, and took his new prospective apprentice as her own, fulfilling his legacy which would last a millennia.

Darth Zannah

Species: Human female
Birth name: Zannah or Rain
Reign: 1000 BBY-980 BBY, 980 BBY-957 BBY
Info: Formerly the child known as Rain, Zannah was recruited by the Jedi, who were desperate for soldiers to send against Kaan and his forces on Ruusan. Split from her cousin Darovit, she was saved by the native Bouncers, but when a Jedi killed her friend Laa by accident, Rain lost herself to the dark side, assuming her true name, and then submitting herself to apprenticeship under Darth Bane. Growing into a beautiful but deadly Sith sorceress, wielding a double bladed lightsaber, Zannah helped her master, carrying out his intentions and will across the galaxy, including helping him create a holocron and allowing him to survive an encounter with five Jedi. Finally prepared to take the throne, she chose the Dark Jedi Set Harth as an apprentice only for him to abandon her. Confronting her master, she defeated him with her sorcery and took the assassin, Cognus, as her apprentice.

Training Cognus for many years, they continued to advance the aims of the Sith, with Zannah indoctrinating her apprentice to the Rule of Two, assuring Cognus' almost zealot like loyalty to the cause. Building a vast network of information, power and supplies, the two Sith soon learned that Set Harth had raised the ire of the Jedi Council. Acting quickly, the two Sith joined the hunt, aiming to kill him before the Jedi found him, lest he expose the survival of the Sith. Facing her would be apprentice, Zannah killed Harth (who escaped through essence transfer into a clone body) and the Jedi abandoned the chase, believing the threat passed, and the Sith remained hidden. However, Cognus, saw that the time was ripe, and confronted her master. Declaring her master unfit to rule as her actions in trying to recruit Harth had unintentionally endangered the Rule of Two, Cognus confronted her master and engaged her in a vicious lightsaber duel on the planet Talasea, with lightning flashing in the air, and Cognus, using the Mind Shard technique that she had long ago perfected, broke her master's concentration which made Zannah's own spell to summon down the elements backfire, resulting in Zannah being blasted apart in a lightning strike that scarred the planet surface.

The Cleansing Feud

Darth Cognus

Species: Iktotchi female
Birth Name: Unknown, went by 'The Huntress'
Reign: 980 BBY-957 BBY, 957 BBY-912 BBY
Info: Once a hired assassin, Bane offered her a new future different from the life of a hired killer, and with his death became Zannah's apprentice. Zannah indoctrinated her into the Sith, instilling a zealot like loyalty to the Rule of Two, while perfecting her mental capabilities and precognition, while also training her in the use of Niman.

Using her visions to further the ends of the Sith, Cognus received a vision that her master's former would be apprentice, Set Harth, had attracted the ire of the Jedi Council. Fearing his capture would lead to the exposure of the Sith, Zannah and her apprentice confronted Harth and when Zannah killed him, though his consciousness fled, the Jedi departed Talasea. Cognus perceived her time had come, and challenged her master. Unable to best her master's saber skill and Sith sorcery, she relied on her mind, and her precognition, and during her master's final stand as she conjured a Force storm, Cognus used her mastery over the Mind Shard to break Zannah's concentration and Zannah was immolated in her own lightning strike.

Now the sole Sith in the galaxy, Cognus realised that she now had to finish a job both Bane and Zanah didn't: cleaning up the mess of the New Sith Wars. While they had taken care to erase all knowledge of their presence, leftovers of the war, such as mercenaries and war droids, still filled the galaxy, and Cognus spent the next two years, orchestrating schemes that removed all relics, such as droid factories or mercenary brigades who could tie back to the Sith. At the same time, she used her visions to foresee events which could be used to her advantage, using her alias as a financial advisor to remove politicians and allowing lesser skilled or more corrupt take their place, and also allowed her to hire bounty hunters to assassinate significant targets that would have a small destabilising effect on the Republic and the Jedi.

After two years, Cognus began to seek out an apprentice. She eventually came upon Millennial, who was already a well-established businessman and political player. Further enamoured by his ability to foresee the future like herself, despite his obvious age and stubbornness, Cognus took him as her apprentice. He questioned everything he was taught, and his successful life had led him to become accustomed to comfort and that might makes right, which frustrated his master, who struggled on regardless, using strict discipline to try and break him from his mould.

In this time, she dealt with many latent threats that had risen from the Brotherhood of Darkness, and fifty years after Ruusan, she only had two last obstacles, a droid factory that had manufactured Kaan's HK droids and a mercenary group known as the Wraiths. After a final clash with his master on the nature of the Rule of Two, Millennial was contacted by the Wraiths, and when their Dark Jedi leadership pledged themselves to him, he confronted Cognus, using his own abilities to cloud her precognition, and cast her down.

Surviving, Cognus activated the last of the droids and gifted them to the Wraiths, and hired the military arm of the Wraiths to hunt Millennial down, eager for revenge, using the Wraiths split to her advantage. Knowing how Millennial's foresight worked, she also contacted the Jedi while in disguise, informing them that the last shattered remnant of the Brotherhood was making a move. All three forces converged on Millennial's castle on Christophsis, occupying his vision. Cognus then entered the fray herself, feeding on the three way battle and eventually arrived in Millennial's chambers where he and his legion were confronted by the Jedi. Killing former Jedi Lord Teepo and Jedi Master Lirondo before Millennial could talk, she slaughtered most of his supporters before engaging her former apprentice. Believing he had the upper hand, he realised too late she had deceived him, and she struck, overpowering him and using her assassin's knife to gouge out his third eye, blinding him to the future and slashed his throat open. She then had the droids self destruct, destroying the entire Wraith army as she made her escape, and cleansing the last Sith relics from the galaxy.

Realising she had made the same error as her master, Cognus now sought out a new apprentice, and moved her operations to Corellia. The son of one of her former victims was now a teenager, and recognised her for what she was. The heir to a powerful and rich company, she used his hatred for his overseers who only used him to line their own pockets to convince him to join her, using her murder of his parents to keep him quiet. She took them down, a perverse loyalty to her growing as she assassinated them all, and he himself struck down his uncle and took over his company as sole CEO. He then pledged himself to Cognus, who named him Darth Heritor, making him sacrifice his lover to become a Sith Lord.

Using Heritor's company, the two Sith built up vast power networks and funds, her precognition making it one of the most profitable in the galaxy, and feeding resentment on Corellia, Ciutric and elsewhere, fraying the edges of the Republic. Cognus spent her years training Heritor, becoming a twisted and warped mother-son like relationship, her indulging him at points but still using strict discipline and harsh, violent, brutal lessons to make him as dedicated to the Rule of Two as herself

Eventually, Heritor confronted her, and having learned how to shade her vision which she relied on all the more as she went on, he used his previously unknown mastery of Jar'Kai to surprise his master, and eventually bested her in saber combat.

Darth Millennial

Species: Mutant male
Birth Name: Erdwin Mosst
Reign: 955 BBY-950 BBY
Info: Born with a third eye, Millennial was rejected by his mother. His father, who suffered a disability and was crippled, however, killed the mother and raised his son alone, instilling him with a sense of stubbornness and entitlement. At the age of five, Millennial began to predict the future, a talent which proved more useful as he grew older. Upon leaving school, Millennial used his foresight to get himself a job at a local brokering firm, which he quickly raised through the ranks of, eventually becoming a director. On the word of his father he ran for public office, becoming as local councillor, and after that he euthanised his father to prevent him from holding him back.

In his early forties when he was discovered by Cognus, he had spent his life clawing his way up the ranks and had become accustomed to comfort, and also idolised Kaan and his teachings. Stubbornly believing that might made right, when Cognus took him as an apprentice, he questioned everything, never truly believing in the Rule of Two, seeing it as short sighted and weakening, though that was mainly the allure of power and wealth. Constantly exasperating his master, he had many clashes with her, to the point of violence on several occasions. Following a final clash, Cognus threatened him with death and he left, coming across the mercenary group his master was trying to destroy, the Wraiths. The Dark Jedi leaders pledged their allegiance, splitting the group, with the larger faction remaining loyal but with all the Force users now supporting Millennial. Recruiting them, he led the attack on his master's estate on Esseles, surprising her and casting her down.

Cognus however survived. Activating a war droid army, hiring the regular Wraiths, and involving the Jedi, Cognus distracted her former apprentice to the extent where she could catch him unawares, and slaughtered two Jedi, the leader of the Wraith soldiers, and most of Millennial's supporters. She then fought him herself, and circumvented his foresight, using her assassins knife to pluck out his third eye, blinding him to the future. She then sliced open his throat and threw him from a window. Saved by his few remaining supporters, they fled to Dromund Kaas and nursed him back to health where they set up the Prophets of the Dark Side, the dark side miasma hiding his existence from his master, though his foresight wasn't completely lost it was severely maimed.

Darth Heritor

Species: Human male
Birth Name: Nayte Antyion
Reign: 949 BBY-912 BBY, 912 BBY-882 BBY
Info: The son of two of Cognus' former victims during her time as a killer for hire, he was the heir to a multi million credit company. When his parents were killed, the board of directors assumed control of his company, and he became little more than a rich ceremonial figurehead. Growing up in wealth, he had no power and resented the fact that he couldn't control his own company, and was terrorised by dreams of the assassin who he had seen murder his parents. With his company stuck in a rut and losing money while the board got richer, he longed for a way to avenge himself, and discover the ones who had ordered his parents deaths, but lacked the means to do so.

This changed when one of his company's board of directors, who had previously warned the boy that they ruled the company and that he was there to give them legitimacy, was appointed to the Order of the Canted Circle. Cognus, in her persona as a financial advisor, was invited to the party in the director's honour. Heeding the call of the Force, she happened upon her future apprentice, getting intimate with a boy his own age, which was the threat the board held over his head by threatening to cut him off if it came out that he was homosexual. Encountering the boy, he recognised her for what she was, the woman who had killed his parents. Tempting him with power, wealth and the prospect of emancipation, while hanging a threat of dying like his parents above his head, Cognus tempted him and promised that she would return his company to his sole control, which he cautiously agreed to, in exchange for his allegiance and the power and wealth of his company. Cognus then began to assassinate the board of directors, killing the first as he was initiated into the order. Interested, the youth began speaking more with Cognus, learning from her and coming to her point of view. As the murders grew in number, he began to assume more of a leadership role, which he was virtually built for and began to invite Cognus into the company's meetings, getting her involved at the highest levels to the disdain of the board. In the end, only his uncle remained, and he entered Cognus' rooms with assassin droids, his private security dragging his nephew and telling him that she was the one who had killed his parents. Cognus then pointed out that the only way he could know that was if he'd hired her to begin with, and with her encouragement, the youth used a Sith war sword to decapitate his uncle and his guards, while Cognus destroyed the assassin droids. Pleased with his work, Cognus asked him if he wished to become her apprentice, and he knelt, becoming Darth Heritor.

As Cognus apprentice, Cognus indulged him, becoming a sort of maternal figure to him which he had sorely lacked. However she was a strict disciplinarian, ingraining him with the belief in the Rule of Two, twisting and warping his morals and sense of judgement, while stoking his hatred of her and of the Jedi for their role in his parents deaths. Using violent and often brutal training sessions, while also indulging him and training him in the art of seduction and using a carrot and stick approach, his greatest test came when she ordered him to kill his lover. Originally horrified, Cognus feared her apprentice would fail her when he bedded his lover…and was then delighted as he killed him in the throes of passion. Confident she had chosen well, she began the practice of integrating the Sith at the highest galactic levels, attending functions with her apprentice that met with people such as the Supreme Chancellor himself. Using his company's wealth and influence, along with her own precognition, they built a vast network of funds, power and spies which would one day contribute to the ability of the Sith to destroy the Jedi. Training her apprentice in Shien, she also made sure to cultivate his ability to perceive events around him, making his awareness his greatest asset. Under her instruction, he manufactured the fall of several high profile businessmen, senators and even the minister of finance for the Republic itself, while his own company excelled and allowed Cognus to manoeuvre less than honest people in to assume the positions after them. He also manufactured the Rendili-Kuat industrial conflict, in which acts of terrorism and sabotage, both industrial and state, severely impacted the ability of the Republic to maintain its fleet or expand it, leaving the outer worlds resentful and open to piracy, forcing them for the first time to rely overly on the Jedi.

Aware that any confrontation with his master would be seen coming, he needed an ace in the hole. After several years as her apprentice, Heritor, heir to the Sith, one day saw that his time had come, and entered her chambers, knowing her advancing age made her rely on foresight more than she ought to. Engaging his master in a ferocious duel, Heritor duelled her to a standstill, he then revealed his second blade, shocking her as she had had no idea of his mastery of Jar'Kai and killed her with a blow to the heart, his master delighted and telling him he was the true heir of the Sith and of the Rule of Two as she died, and he vowed to continue the Sith legacy in her image, and while he felt great satisfaction for killing the murderer of his parents, he also regretted his action as he had grown to love her as a substitute mother figure.

Now alone, Heritor continued to build the wealth and information network of the Sith. Enjoying political intrigue, he created a holocron on how best to use politics and manipulations to the benefit of the Sith, and was a master of Machiavellian scheming. He stoked tensions between the Republic and the Mandalorians, sponsoring the Mandalorians violent attempts to attract the Republic's attention, creating a tense pseudo border conflict. He also provoked tensions with the recently settled Senex sectors, and advised the Chancellor into using a heavy handed approach to the situation, resulting in greater tensions and mistrust of the Jedi.

While continuing his plotting, in his attempts to destabilise the election of a new president on Devaron whom the chancellor himself had declared support for, he came across one of her bodyguards. When the candidate was defeated, she was fed to the quarra while her guards were auctioned off for slavery. Buying the bodyguard, Heritor was an abusive master, pushing the Devaronian to his limits, and one day left his guard down, his slave taking advantage and trying to kill him. Pleased, Heritor revealed his identity as a Sith Lord, and offered his slave the chance to become his apprentice and one day kill the man who had done this to him, and his slave was freed and became his apprentice, Darth Inquiris. The two further pursued the aims of the Sith, Heritor constantly stoking his apprentices hatred and anger, acting much more brutally than his own master ever had. Upon the completion of a scheme that saw the Gran settle Malastare and enslave the Dugs, a furious Inquiris acted and engaged his master with his double bladed lightsaber, and used his savage mastery of Juyo to overpower Heritor's own skills and maim him before killing him by driving his horns into his hated master's skull

Greetings! It occured to me that since Disney in its infinite wisdom decided to wipe out thirty years of stories in order to rehash them their way, we never got to find out who made up the thirty Sith Lords who made up the Rule of Two, culminating in Sidious and his apprentices and the revenge of the Sith. So here is my contribution, which will eventually be the entirety of the thirty Sith between 1000 BBY and 4 ABY

The history of the Rule of Two can be split into several sections

1. Birth of the Rule of Two

2. The Cleansing Feud

3. Forging the Future

4. The Contagion Spreads

5. Dark Times of the Sith

6. Reversion to the Mean

6. The Darkness Rising

This first installment covers the first two eras, Birth of the Rule of Two and The Cleansing Feud, so let me know what you think of them!