Disclaimer: Don't own Star Wars! Kotor 1 and TOR belong to Bioware, and Kotor 2 belong to Obsidian!
AN: This is just one of the many draft I had for my current SWTOR AU fic, Intertwined Paths. Hope you like it.
The tall trees of Tython's forests moved violently as the wings of Republic shuttles lightly brushed against the branches. The shuttles flying right over them were Rendaran-class, its purpose for fighting against the Sith changed into carrying Jedi to and from the planet. Shuttles entering Tython mainly contained Jedi Padawans from other planets, while those leaving were Jedi recently knighted and sent to fight the Sith on the fringe worlds. Either way, the two pathways converged from a single point: the Jedi Temple.
The Jedi Temple had been built after the Sith Empire occupied the Republic's capital, a desperate maneuver to force the Republic to sign the Treaty of Coruscant. The temple on Coruscant had been destroyed by the Sith forces led by Darth Malgus. Without a home, the Jedi relocated to their ancient homeworld to rest and seek guidenace from the Force.
Acting as a replacement for the temple on Coruscant, the Tythonian temple focused more on the meditative aspect of the Jedi Order. The temple was not a fortress like its Coruscanti counterpart, as it based on the Alderaanian bastions with two small cupolas on the roof, surrounding the large, central dome. The trainings grounds spread out through the landscape, and the main entrance had a large promenade that extended from the front doors.
The main cupola of the Temple complex had multiple holoprojectors and statues displaying many heroes of the Jedi Order. An enormous holocron shaped was suspended in the center, between the dual sweeping ramps that led to the upper story. Surrounding the large holocron were two smaller holocrons of the same shape. Many Jedi chattered with each other on the lower floor, ignoring a small group walking up one of the ramps.
The group was comprised of three; two humans, and a droid. Two of the humans bore the robes and lightsabers of the Jedi Knights. The droid was an astromech, its wheels trying to catch up with the other two Jedi in front of it.
One of the Jedi was Kira Carsen, who donned a set of robes with a lighter hue of brown, and hooked to her belt was the silver hilt of a double-bladed lightsaber. Her brashness shone in her blue eyes, and her red hair that had a small pony tail on the back. Yet, there was some uncertainty as she stared at her fellow Jedi.
The Jedi in question, Taran Windu, wore the typical Jedi robes over a set of green armor covering his chest and legs. The hood was placed over his head, its cowl concealing his face from the other Jedi. Hanging from his belt was an elegant, silver hilt that contained a blue lightsaber crystal.
Months ago, Taran was once a simple Jedi Padawan who just arrived on Tython, but he immediately found himself fighting against the dangerous Tythonian natives called Flesh Raiders. Defending the Twi'lek settlement of Kalikori village from the Flesh Raiders, Taran deeds and the construction of his lightsaber allowed him to be knighted.
Kira, eventually, had been transferred from the tutelage of Jedi Council member Kiwiiks to Taran, in spite of the fact they were approximately the same age. It was only a few months ago when she was knighted. Kira was not too fond of someone her age teaching her, but she got used to it.
Taran turned his head towards Kira, the cowl of his hood moving out of the way for others to see his dark complexion and his brown eyes fell on Kira to notice something was a little off. Whatever was making Kira unlike her usual cocky self, it worried Taran, yet he did not try to show with so many Jedi around them. Instead he simply called out, "Hey, you are alright?"
"I'm fine," she answered, though the uncertainty in her voice betrayed her. "I'm just wondering about why the Jedi Council called us, that's all."
Their current visit to the ancient Jedi homeworld was not a social call. After finishing their business on Tatootine, the trio had been contacted by the Jedi Council, who ordered for them to return to Tython immediately. The urgency of this command had made Kira worried as to what was so important.
A small chirp from behind the two Jedi made them turn to their droid companion, T7-O1, an astromech who had been trying to keep up. The droid raised its circular head, and its single lens stared at Taran and Kira as T7 gave a series of beep and chirps. The assuring tone from T7 was meant to calm Kira, but it did not worked as the droid hoped.
"I don't doubt the Council's wisdom, T7, but it seems kind of strange," was Kira's response.
"That may be true, but we can't know for sure until we find out," Taran spoke.
Before either Kira or T7 could say anymore, Taran continued to walk up the ramp and they followed the young Jedi to catch up with him. Walking up the ramp, the trio found themselves on the upper level with a pair of large, double doors right before them. Approaching the doors, the group saw them slid open, revealing the High Council Chamber.
A large domed chamber, the High Council Chamber contained a large table with a holocommunicator placed in the center. While three of the ten chairs surrounding the table had been occupied, it had been enough to make the Jedi Council.
At one end of the table was the Grandmaster of the Jedi, Satele Shan. Instead of the typical Jed robes, Satele wore a skintight outfit and her double-bladed lightsaber was attached to her belt. Her face showed much experience from the battles she fought in the Great Galactic War years ago. The once brown hair had some strands of gray on the side, a sign of proper aging.
Satale was present during the meeting with the Sith embassy on Alderaan, safe away from the destruction of the Jedi Temple. The Sith invaded the Republic capital to force the Republic into signing the treaty, which worked successfully. The Jedi, left without a home, relocated their ancient homeworld due to Satele's efforts.
Her blue eyes stared at the young Jedi before her and their droid companion as they entered. "It is good to see you again and well, Knight Taran," she greeted.
Stopping right at the table, Taran lowered his brown hood, revealing the short, black hair. His eyes turned to each of the Jedi Masters present to the meeting. "Masters," he greeted. "It's good to see you."
"It is good to see you too, young one," Kiwiiks greeted. She smiled at her former Padawan. "You as well, Kira."
Kira's old mentor was a Togruta with a few wrinkles on her red-skinned face to show her how her old age was affecting her, but her smile put away any concern of Kiwiiks' health. No one paid attention to the lightsaber resting next to her thigh.
"Master Kiwiiks," Kira gave her old mentor a nod.
The greeting between master and student had been cut short by another member of the Council, Jaric Kaedan. Much like the rest of the council, he was veteran from the Great Galactic War, and the scar over his right eye proved that. Kaedan's experience in the war gave him experience, but it was accompanied with paranoia and fear. It showed when his cautious eyes glanced at Kira. "Now that you are here, we must get down to business."
"We still need one more master to appear," Satele told Kaedan. "This was his idea to begin with."
"And he is already here," a filtered voice announced.
Kira, Taran, and T7 turned around to see someone entering the High Council Chamber-a Kel Dor, judging from the breath mask and the orange skin. The lightsaber on his belt identified the Kel Dor as a Jedi and his outfit proved that even further as Taran could tell the Kel Dor was a member of the Jedi Council. Taran rememberd
The Kel Dor passed the trio and towards his seat on the Council, his silver irises under the breath mask staring at the young Jedi. "I see the Hero of Tython has arrived as instructed," he commented as he arrived at his seat and sat down.
Taran could feel a blush of embarrassment appearing of his face, but he was able to hide it. "It is an honor to meet you, Master."
Fortunately, the newly arrived Jedi Master gave his name as he sat down. "I'm simply a humble servant of the light," he spoke. "With all master present, I believe it is time for this meeting to commence."
"Yes," Satele spoke before returning her attention to the young Jedi before her. "I'm sure you have many questions. We will try to answer then as best as we can."
Nodding, Taran admitted, "I am curious as to why Jomar Chul was on Tatooine."
All members of the council knew what Taran spoke of. Jomar Chul was another Jedi Knight whose ship had been attacked by Sith assassins and he crashed on Tatooine. Taran arrived in time to save Jomar, and it was that moment that Taran became involved in this endeavor.
"As you are aware, the Jedi and the Republic has been fighting against the Sith Empire on the border worlds," Kaedan began. "The Treaty of Coruscant has not helped to stop it."
Kiwiiks continued from there. "Master Tol Braga has found a way to stop this endless bloodshed." After she said her piece, Kiwiiks turned her head to the Kel Dor master. "Master Braga?"
Tol Braga gave a slight nod before he turned his attention to Taran. "I'm organizing top secret a strike team of the best Jedi," he explained. "This strike team is meant to infiltrate the Sith and capture the emperor."
Hearing those words shocked Taran to the core. The Sith Empire had been ruled by their emperor, a mysterious political figure who never showed himself to the galaxy. Any word of the emperor had only been rumors, besides the facts option sputtered by Sith soldiers claiming their fanatical loyalty to him. The emperor was obviously a powerful Sith, but none knew his true power, save for a few.
Kira, being among those few, took the news harder than Taran did. "Are you insane?!" she exclaimed, her voice nearly at a shouting level. "Fighting Sith Lords is one thing, but the emperor?!"
Kiwiiks' head whirled towards her old student and barked, "Kira!"
Taran's brash companion stared at Kiwiiks and she found her sharp-witted mouth snapping shut. Yet, her words had reached Taran as he stared at the council, trying his best to shake off the shock. "I have to agree with Kira on this," Taran admitted. "The Sith claim the emperor to be powerful. We don't know how powerful he is."
"True, but no one is invincible," Satele spoke. "We've learned the emperor usually leaves the Imperial capital of Dromund Kaas and remains in seclusion for several days. Not even the Dark Council knows where this is. We've been locating that for some time."
At this point, Kaedan stepped in. "Jomar Chul was scouting Sith space, charting areas for the assault. The hyperspace route will allow us to pass the Imperial fleet and find the emperor."
"Members of my strike team include Master Warren Sedoru and Knight Leeha Narez," Braga offered. "I would like you and your friends to join my team."
Taran's eyes widen at that request. "Me?" he asked.
Kira, also surprised at this, joined in. "Us?" which was followed by T7's high-pitched whirl.
Tol Braga nodded. "You have the skills necessary for this mission. Your victory over Darth Angral has proven that much."
The name was burnt into Taran's mind. A Sith Lord, Angral had his son, Tarnis, infiltrate the Republic for plans called the Planet Prison until Taran caught wind of the plan and killed Tarnis. Seeking vengeance for his son, Angral took the plans for the Planet Prison and other weapons. Angral eventually struck down Taran's Jedi Master, Orgus Din, but it was not enough as he led on Tython with a new weapon called the Desolator.
A culmination of the Planet Prison and other Republic weapons, the Desolator allowed Angral to turn a planet into a husk. That had already been proven with the agricultural world is Uphrades. Fortunately, Taran and Kira put a stop to Angral before allowing the Republic ships to destroy the Desolator.
Taran knew that Angral was just a powerful Sith Lord, but his power had its limits and could not match his emperor. Yet, the possibility of capturing the Sith emperor would show the galaxy that the Sith are not invincible. It could end the conflict once and for all. The great risk that came with this mission was seemingly worth it, if it meant ending the stalemate.
"I'm honored Master Braga," Taran accepted. "What's our next destination?"
Kira stared at Taran with surprise at his choice, but she never had the chance to voice her opinion when Braga gave his orders. "Right now, I need you to head for Quesh. Master Sedoru will be there to meet with you. After that, I want you to meet with Knight Narez on Hoth."
Satisfied with the answer, the grandmaster of the Jedi Order decided to conclude the meeting. "Good luck," Satele spoke. "And may the Force be with you."
Taran gave a small bow to the Jedi Council before he proceeded to leave the High Council chamber with T7 and Kira following behind. While T7 remained uncertain of the young Jedi's decision, Kira had been fuming about it. Either way, Taran decided to save it for later and continue to head for his ship.
Acid rain fell from the toxic skies and pounded on the surface of Quesh, with only a few creatures capable to survive Quesh's harsh environment. When it was discovered during the Great Galactic War, the harmful environment scared off both the Republic and the Sith Empire and the planet had been ignored. That was until the Republic realized they could harness the toxic chemicals for adrenal glands.
The plan of Republic troops establishing complexes on the planet caught the Sith Empire's attention as they immediately send their own troops. The single planet brought the two galactic powers together brought them into a power struggle over Quesh, like so many other worlds in the galaxy. Both the Imperials and Republic had many holdings on the planet, and many times, one side tried to outwit the other.
Among the many Imperial centers, one had been placed over a large system of underground caves. Anyone who knew the system would find themselves right under the command center, and they could destroy the center from under. It was unfortunate that the Republic was the one who learned the existence of cavern.
Within the cavern, there had been evidence of Republic soldiers trying to set detonators around the cavern system. Yet, their bodies were scattered across the floor of the cavern, chunks of collapsed rock crushing down on their corpses. The plan would have succeeded if it had not been for the interference of a Sith.
The said Sith, a Pureblood by the name of Kera, was limping towards the mouth of the cavern, a hand had been placed over a bleeding cut on her side. Her black armor had been covered in scratches from when she narrowly escaped the cavern from collapsing on top of her. The cape that came with her armor had been torn and filled with holes. A small cut on her forehead allowed some blood to flow onto the black breath mask covering her entire face. Fortunately, it did not enter the filter.
Kera stopped in her tracks, her eyes under the mask caught sight of huge chunks of rock placed right at the entrance. The rocks were piled on top of another, creating a thick wall that prevented anyone entering or leaving. After staggering through the ruined cavern, the Sith found herself stopped by an obstacle that prevented her from leaving out alive.
Irritation and anger rose in Kera as a free hand yanked one her silver hilts from her belt and red blade sprung to life. In spite of her injuries, rage sparked Kera's strength as her used her might to strike against the rock wall. Small bits and pieces of cluttered dirt flew through the air every time her weapon dug into the large chunk. Each time the young Sith brought her arm back to strike against the rock, her anger grew at what brought her current predicament.
Kera had been sent into the cavern to stop the Republic troops from destroying the Imperial command center. She slaughtered them, but it had been revealed to be a trap by Lord Draahg, her master's lap dog. Draahg's last words before the betrayal rang through her mind:
"Our master knew someday you would rise against him. That's why he sent you to your death. Consider it a privilege that I'm pulling the trigger. Oh, and Darth Baras sends his regards. Goodbye."
"RAH!" Kera roared.
With one final blow, the Sith's red blade buried itself into the heart of the rocks. The force of the final blow sent a majority of the rock rocketing through the air and revealing the familiar toxic land. A sigh of relief passed through the filter of Kera's breath mask as the sight of Quesh, no matter how morbid the wasteland looked.
Kera limped out of the cavern and into the open toxic air, happy to be free from the enclosed space of the cavern. She needed to get out of here and back to the center and inform her companions of what transpired.
The red blade of lightsaber returned to the hilt and Kera replaced the weapon with a circular, handheld holocom. The holocom dialed a continous series of high-pitched beeps until the call was finally answered. Seeing any of her companions would bring joy, and she felt the most at the appearance of a certain Imperial captain.
The captain in question was a human, wearing the typical gray uniform of non-Force Sensitive Imperial officers. His black hair was combed, and his blue eyes stared at the Sith with worry.
"My lord, we have been trying to contact you for hours?" the Dromund Kaas accent emerging from the captain's throat as he expressed concern for the Sith. "What happened? Are you alright?"
Under the breath mask, Kera smiled at the holographic image of the captain. "I'm fine, Quinn," she spoke, her voice a little hoarse. "Be at the command center. I will explain when I arrive."
"Yes, my lord," Quinn nodded.
The call ended when Quinn's hologram returned to the holocom in Kera's hand and she returned the device to her belt. Remembering her Sith training on Korriban, Kera did her best to tolerate the pain coursing through her wounds and quickly dragged her feet on Quesh's surface. Kera wanted heal her wounds and leave this wretched planet as soon as possible.
Fortunately for the young Sith, the journey back to the Imperial command center did not take as long as Kera expected. Her eyes catching sight of noxious smoke arising from the command center's spires brought her much joy as she tried to quicken her pace towards the entrance.
The Imperial Troopers, clad in their black armor, took notice of the injured Sith and immediately deactivated the force field. They would have assisted Kera inside if she did not shrug them off and proceeded towards inside the center. The door to inside the complex opened, and Kera wasted no time to step inside.
Once inside, Kera could see a gush of wind passing over her face, meaning the room was being filled with oxygen. The Sith quickly removed the black mask on her face, allowing her long, brown hair to relax itself on her shoulder. Her brown hair relaxed itself onto her shoulders Small horns protruded from her chin and the deadly look was completed with the hellish red eyes.
Kera could feel small scratches all over her face, both old ones from her training and new ones from Baras' betrayal. A small amount of blood enter soaked her lips and she traced a hand over what seemed to be a new scar running over the right side of her lip. Bringing her hand to her eyes, Kera could see some blood her fingers. A small twinge in the corner of her bloodied mouth showed her great restraint from unleashing her newfound anger to Baras.
Baras. Even thinking the name brought so much rage to the young Sith. Her former master left her for dead and now she wanted revenge, a task that would not be simple.
Baras was well known for his network of spies working within the Republic and even under other Sith Lords in the Empire. Kera knew she needed to avoid them to strike at Baras, but his political power was another advantage she needed to overcome. The young Sith would need allies, possibly member of the Dark Council to face off Baras and-
The young Sith's head snapped up immediately as she felt something in the Force. There was a presence in the room-two in fact.
Whirling her head to a small corner of the room, Kera's eyes came across two figures standing near the durasteel wall of the small chamber. Both figures wore black robes that completely engulfed their body. The cowls over their hood concealed their eyes, but the tendrils on their red cheeks allowed her to identify them as Pureblood Sith. Strange enough they did not carry any lightsabers on their person.
The gash on her side still hurt, but Kera ignored it as she grabbed both hilts. Two red synthetic crystals powered the blades as each one came to life and found itself pointing at an intruder. "Who are you people?" Kera demanded. "Are you working for Baras?!"
The cloaked figure on the right raised a gloved hand to stroke the horns on his bony chin. "She is still alive," the deep voice emanated from his voice in praise of the young Sith. "Impressive."
His companion simply commented in his own deep voice. "Don't be, Servant Two. Our master expected no better candidate to his Wrath."
The other figure addressed as Servant Two, smirked at his companion's remark. "Indeed, Servant One."
Kera face of suspicion and anger masked her confusion at the duo standing before her, her mind focusing on the word of "candidate." She knew her actions under the service of Baras would catch some attention of other Sith Lords. Yet, she did not know who this "master" that the two "Servants" mentioned.
The grip on each hilt tightened as Kera began demanding, "You have three seconds to tell me what is going or so help me..."
The cloaked figure named Servant One raised a hand in assurance. "Patience. All will be explained," he told the young Sith before turning to his compatriot. "Servant Two, if you may?"
Taking a step closer to the red lightsaber blades, Servant Two began, "For the past few months, Servant One and I have been watching you. We have seen you fight against the Empire's enemies with the best of your efforts."
At that point, Servant One joined in on the conversation. "Your rage and power is unmatched by any, save for the emperor and the Dark Council. You are truly worthy to be the Wrath, the Emperor's personal enforcer."
Kera's eyes widen with shock at those words. The emperor, the ruler of Sith, personally requested for her to become his enforcer? To turn away from such an honor would be insane, but a small hint of doubt entered her mind.
"How do I know you're telling the truth?" she questioned. "What if this is a mistake?"
Servant Two's smirk turned from amused into an annoyed at that question. "We are the Emperor's Hand. We are his eyes and ear throughout the galaxy. We do not make mistakes."
The Force allowed Kera to sense the truth in Servant Two's words, eliminating the sliver of doubt she felt. The Sith's attention was brought to Servant One as he came a step closer to her. "Will you accept the offer?" he asked.
Kera's mind went into deep thought and her two lightsabers ended pointing at the ground. The emperor presented an offer that could give Kera power beyond her imagination, the same power she could use to destroy her former master. It also provided her political support within the Empire. To deny it would deprive her of both.
The red blades retracting back to their hilts, Kera hooked them to her belt and gave her answer: "I accept."
AN: Alright, please leave your thoughts in the reviews and if you have any criticism, please let it be constructive. Thank you.
Raika out!