Hey, everybody. Back with another chapter.

So, this one is gonna be good. I think it's gonna surprise you what I do in this chapter. The reason I took so long to get it up is because I just wanted to get ir right.

Let's get to it.

DanielJensen27: Well, Nihilus' spirit is not as strong as he once was. He can exert some influence, but he can't feed on Force energy like he used to.

Guest: Sorry, a duel between them was never in the cards.

Chapter 51- Secret of the Tomb

(January 30, 2051)

Ben leans down under the control panel and flips a switch before straightening up in the pilot's seat. Out of the viewport, the planet of Yavin looms large against the darkness of space.

Ben and Rey had spent a few days on Korriban, and also travelling to the nearby planet of Ziost, looking for clues to the history of the ancient Dark Lord Naga Sadow. Finally, in a temple on Korriban, they found a record from the time of the New Sith Wars that Naga Sadow had fled to the moon of Yavin IV after his defeat in the Great Hyperspace War and being driven from Korriban by the Republic. And so, the pair had left Korriban to travel to Yavin IV, hoping that some of the Massassi temples and the tomb of Sadow himself might yield some more clues about Sadow and the downfall of the Sith Empire during its golden days.

Ben guides the Falcon around Yavin Prime, and soon enough, the forest moon of Yavin IV appears up ahead. "There it is. Prepare to start the landing cycle," Ben says as he flies right at the moon.

Rey fixes her gaze on the forest moon. "This was once the Rebel base? The one where they launched the attack that destroyed the Death Star?" she asks.

"Yes…and now that I remember, it's where my mom first met my dad," Ben says, a smile crossing his face. Rey smiles slightly as well.

As they enter the atmosphere of the moon, they pass through a thin cloud layer before breaking through, allowing the forest to come into view below. And up ahead, far in the distance, they can see the unmistakable shapes of the Massassi temples. Ben has seen photos of the temples from their time as the home of the rebel base, but he has never visited them before.

Ben first flies over the temples, surveying the surface. Since the Rebellion left decades ago, the forest has begun to reclaim the temples. The old landing pads are covered in trees and shrubs, and even more moss and shrubs are growing on the sides of the temples themselves. It takes Ben a moment to finally find a spot where the trees are thin enough that he can set the Falcon down. He carefully manuevers the ship to set it down, managing to avoid hitting any trees.

As Ben powers down the ship, he looks at Rey and says, "Be careful here, Rey. We don't know what damage the Empire might've caused after the evacuation, and how their abandonment might've had an affect on them. I don't want to take too many risks if their structural integrity might've been compromised." Rey nods in response

After they shut down the ship, Ben and Rey leave the cockpit and head for the boarding ramp. As they come down the ramp, they can feel the humidity in the air, and see a slight fog rolling in through the forest.

"Alright. Let's go," Ben mutters, and they set off for the nearest temple.

(Several hours later)

Ben takes a brief drink from his canteen as he and Rey approach the next temple. They had already visited two of the Massassi temples. The temples had not yielded many answers, but they had seen a number of carvings on some of the walls of the temples, some of which were images of the history of the Sith Empire or glorifying Naga Sadow, while others were hieroglyphics of the ancient Sith tongue.

While Ben could not read Sith very well, he knew a few things, and from what he had been able to see, there were a few carvings that suggested the largest temple, which had been the main base for the Rebellion, held the tomb of Naga Sadow. However, he had also discovered some carvings that were more recent than the original carvings, and mentioned another temple with something of significance. Ben and Rey decided to divert their attention to this other temple for a short time to see what the carvings were talking about before moving on to the Great Temple to find Sadow's tomb.

As they reach the temple's entrance, both of them feel an unearthly chill begin to settle over them. Both of them stop in their tracks and look at each other. "This is a place of darkness. Horrible things have happened here," Rey mutters.

"Agreed. Be on your guard," Ben says, and the two enter the temple, drawing their lightsabers from their belts and holding them at the ready.

As they enter the temple, they feel a strange sensation. As if something is hovering over them, and they're being constantly watched. However, as they look around, neither of them can see anything. They are also able to confirm that the interior of the temple, at least on the ground floor, is one large chamber.

"Something's not right here," Ben mutters.

Suddenly, they hear something. Like something large scuttling over the ground. Then, two large beasts enter the temple from a far entrance. They are massive lizard-like creatures, but with two serpent like heads at the end of long necks. Their tails are also tipped with a large spike, which looks to be dripping with some kind of liquid, which they immediately presume to be poison. The beasts set their sights on the pair and screech before scuttling towards them.

Ben and Rey immediately ignite their sabers and leap away from each other to try and separate the beasts. Sure enough, the beasts separate, one coming after Ben, and the other after Rey.

Ben charges to meet his opponent. The beasts screechs and lashes out at him with its heads. However, Ben summons the Force around him and uses it to help him leap over the beast, out of the range of its heads. As Ben comes down close to its tail, he brings his two sabers in front of him, and with one fierce blow, cuts the poisoned spike off of the tail. The beast screeches in pain and turns around to face Ben. However, Ben grasps the spike with the Force, and with a surge of Force energy, sends the spike flying into one of the beast's eyes. The beast bellows in agony as the spike enters its eye. However, the poison on the spike begins to enter its bloodstream, and the beasts falls to the ground as it tries to fight off the poison. However, it cannot hold on forever.

As Ben dispatches the beast facing him, Rey faces down the beast coming at her. She dodges the first charge and slashes at the beast's side with one of the blades of her saber, but is dismayed to see that the blade is hardly able to cut through the armored scales on the beast's side.

Realizing she won't be able to just cut the beast down with her lightsaber, Rey extends a hand out to the side as she calls on the Force. Grabbing hold of any debris or objects around her, she uses the Force to send them flying at the beast. As the beast is battered repeatedly, Rey uses the Force to grab hold of the two heads. As Ben watches in slight surprise, Rey actually uses the Force to twist the necks around each other, then lets out a massive wave of Force energy that sends the beast crashing through the wall of the temple and flying into the lake outside, where it struggles to swim.

Ben looks at Rey for a moment before he cracks a grin. "Wow. That was impressive," he says. Rey smiles in return.

Suddenly, they feel the unearthly chill intensify drastically. Both of them look around anxiously. Then, they suddenly feel a wave of energy rush through the chamber, and both of them are knocked tumbling across the ground, their sabers knocked out of their grip.

Ben and Rey struggle to get back to their feet, but feel as if something is trying to restrain them. Then, they hear a deep, echoing voice sound in their minds, "You…who intrude in this place. You may have defeated my pets, but to stand against me is not so simple."

Ben and Rey swivel their heads, wondering where that voice is coming from. Then, energy and light seems to seep out of the walls and floor of the chamber, gathering in the center. It all gathers in the center before rising up, gathering together and twisting into the shape of some humanoid. Then, the image becomes more clear, showing a towering shape of a human man. He is mostly clad in a dark cloak, but the areas not covered by the cloak are covered by an ancient looking armor. His head and shoulders are covered in a wild, black colored mane of hair, and his eyes seem to glow with a golden eye.

"You have defiled this place. Now, you will be the first tools of my resurgence," the spirit snarls to them, his voice echoing throughout the temple.

Ben forces himself back to his feet as he faces down the spirit. He feels a sense of fear rippling through him, as he has never felt such raw dark side power from anyone in his life. Not even the presence of Snoke felt so powerful. "Who are you?" Ben demands.

A chilling laugh echoes through the chamber, and the glow of the spectre's eyes flashes brighter. "Long ago, I was the greatest Dark Lord of the Sith. I am Exar Kun," the spirit declares.

Ben freezes in place, and chills run down his body. Of course he knows that name. Exar Kun. One of the most infamous Dark Lords of the Sith to ever exist. He had studied Exar Kun's lightsaber style extensively to guide his own training in lightsaber combat, but he had of course learned of some of the other stories of Kun. He knew that Kun's final fate was something of a mystery, but he had not expected the Dark Lord to have preserved his spirit here on Yavin IV for thousands of years.

"How are you here?" Ben demands

Again, Exar Kun's spirit laughs. "The dark side of the Force is a floodgate to many great abilities. I have preserved my spirit here millenia, waiting for my chance to return to the wider galaxy. And now, two young Jedi have come to me, offering themselves as slaves to my will."

"You will never enslave us!" Rey declares as she struggles back to her feet. She stares defiantly at the ancient ghost as she declares, "You are nothing but a spirit. You are powerless here!"

Exar Kun's eyes flash in anger. Another surge of Force power throws Ben and Rey against opposite walls of the temple, pinning them against the stone walls. "I AM EXAR KUN! GREATEST OF THE DARK LORDS OF THE SITH! THE STRONGEST JEDI OF MY DAY COULD NOT HOPE TO MATCH ME! AND NOW MY POWER HAS ONLY GROWN! YOU ARE AS NAUGHT BEFORE ME! I WILL DRIVE YOUR SPIRITS FROM YOUR BODIES AND ENSLAVE YOUR MINDS TO MY WILL! AND WITH YOUR POWER, I WILL RETURN AS HEAD OF A NEW SITH EMPIRE!"

Then, Exar Kun raises his hands, extending one towards each of them. Suddenly, both of them feel as if their heads are splitting apart from excruciating pain. Both cannot help but scream in pain. Then, to their alarm, they feel as if their souls are being torn from their bodies, and realize that Kun is attempting to drive their spirits out of their bodies. And both know that if Kun can separate their spirits from their bodies, it will be easier for him to destroy them.

Both summon the Force around them, trying to tether their spirits to their bodies and stop Kun's attack. But the pain persists as Kun pours more power into his attack. Both of them feel their spirits being slowly torn out of their bodies.

Then, Ben and Rey manage to turn their heads and look at each other. As they look at each other in despair, feeling that they may have finally met a challenge they could not overcome, both of them suddenly feel something. As they look at each other, they sense something within themselves. A connection, a connection between each other. They had felt it several times before, including when they first met, and during the mission aboard the Supremacy. But now, it is as if they can feel it more clearly. As it feels like other parts of their essence are slipping away, there is less distracting them from feeling this connection.

Rey reaches out towards Ben, afraid for him. "Ben!" she cries out, a tear spilling out of her eye. Then, Ben feels something. The pain he is feeling begins to lessen. However, as the pain he is feeling decreases, he sees that Rey seems to suffering even more.

A surge of anger and protectiveness floods through Ben as he turns his head to face Exar Kun. With a scream that echoes through the Force itself, Ben unleashes a massive Force repulse, a wave of energy surging out from his body and radiating out in all directions. The attack momentarily disrupts Exar Kun's attack, and Ben feels the pressure on him lessen. Drawing on lessons from his mother, Ben raises both hands towards Exar Kun and unleashes bolts of Force judgement towards Kun's spirit. Although not enough to truly harm Kun, it affects him enough that his form blurs slightly and forces him to stumble back through the air.

Kun's force grip on Ben and Rey ceases, and Ben immediately rushes across the room towards Rey. "Rey! Rey!" he calls to his friend. As he reaches her, he sees she is just barely stirring, clearly affected terribly by Kun's attack. Ben crouches beside her, and then, without thinking and as if by instinct, reaches out with one hand and lays it on her shoulder. He feels Force energy flow out of him and into Rey. A second later, Rey opens her eyes and looks up at Ben.

"Come on. We have a fight to win here," Ben says, extending his hand, and he helps her to her feet.

The two stand together as they turn to face Exar Kun, who has resolidified his spirit. He glares at the two and tries to reach out with the Force again to once more try and separate their souls from their bodies. But, to his shock, he feels an incredible resistance that was not their before. Ben and Rey respond with a Force wave that again knocks him back.

Exar Kun stumbles, but moreso from shock. What just happened…it shouldn't be possible, except for one possibility. "How? A dyad? How?" Kun mutters.

Ben and Rey feel a bit confused by what Kun said. Clearly, Kun thinks something just happened, but the term dyad is unfamiliar to them. However, neither of them have the luxury of being able to afford to spend time thinking about it, and they refocus on fighting off the ancient Sith spirit.

"We are stronger than you believe, Exar Kun. Your arrogance in your own strength will be your downfall," Ben says.

"No! I am Exar Kun. I AM ETERNAL!" Exar Kun bellows, and he again unleashes his power in the Force.

A wave of energy rushes over them as Kun tries using a form of Force chill. However, Ben and Rey are able to stand their ground as they summon the Force around them, staving off the unnatural chill Kun is trying to summon. Ben reaches out with the Force and begins to summon a storm of Force energy around Exar Kun to batter his spirit. In an attempt to distract Ben and stop his attack, Kun uses the Force to send fallen debris flying at Ben. But, with a single wave of her hand, Rey is able to freeze all of them in place.

Kun feels the storm of energy Ben is summoning beginning to batter at his spirit, and responds with a Force repulse of his own, dispersing Ben's attack and forcing the young Jedi to stumble back. He then tries to use the Force to seize control of their bodies in the hopes of using Force rend to rip apart their skeletons. However, Rey raises her hands and summons a Force shield around them.

Exar Kun bellows with rage and begins to grip the entire temple with the Force. He begins to rip the temple's foundations out of the earth, intending to raise it into the air before dropping it back down to kill the two young Jedi. However, both of them quickly realize what is happening. Rey extends both hands and reachers out with the Force, trying to counteract Kun's actions. Ben reaches out his hand towards her to lend her some of his strength.

However, as Rey struggles to keep the temple in place, Ben realizes that they can't afford to fight him so indirectly anymore. Ben thrusts both hands out to the side, calling out with the Force. From yards away, his two lightsabers, the ones once wielded by his grandfathers, flying across the ground and back into his hands. Their blades spring to life, one blue and one purple.

Ben stares down Exar Kun as he grips his sabers tightly. "You are but a spirit now, Kun. You may still be powerful, but we are the ones who hold the power over you," he declares defiantly, and begins walking towards Kun.

Kun growls and glares at Ben. He raises his hand and pours out his Force power, trying to freeze Ben in place. At first, it works, and Ben struggles against Kun's grip to try and keep moving. But then, Rey, now freed from trying to keep the temple in place, raises her hand and pours her own strength into Ben while trying to counter Kun's grip. After a moment, Ben is able to force himself forward, pushing forward even against Kun's grip.

Kun begins to feel concern, then fear enter his heart as he realizes that despite his strength, he cannot stop Ben. But that doesn't stop him from trying. He tries seizing control of Ben's mind again using Sith sorcery like the kind he had once used to mind control the Senate, but finds an almost impenetrable shield around Ben's mind.

Ben pushes on, despite all the pressure on his body. Finally, he manages to reach Kun's spirit. "YOu may have been powerful in your day, Kun. But that day is long past. It is now our time, and you don't belong in it." Then, with a scream and summoning the Force to boost him, Ben lunges forward while crossing his sabers into an X, and forces the crossed sabers into Exar Kun's spirit. Ben then begins to channel Force judgement, and all the Force energy that he can muster, into his sabers.

Kun begins to panic as he feels the energy rushing through his body. Then, before him, unseen to ben and Rey but very visible to him, he sees a spectre appear before him. The ghost of his old master, Vodo Siosk Baas. The ancient Jedi master looks at his long fallen apprentice before his voice echoes in Exar Kun's mind, "Your time has come, Exar. You are defeated." Then, the ghost seems to vanish, but a little light remains in its place before flowing down towards Ben.

Ben feels a slight surge in strength, and pours that strength into the energy he is pouring into his lightsabers before, with a scream, he breaks the X with his sabers. And with that motion, all of the energy and lightning he had gathered explode outwards, funneling through Kun's spirit. Exar Kun screams as the massive explosion of Force energy batters his spirit before, at least, the relentless Force assault disintegrates Kun's spirit, and what remains of it pass into the netherworld of the Force.

Ben falls to the ground, completely overwhelmed and drained of his strength. Despite being exhausted herself, Rey manages to walk over to Ben and fall to her knees beside him. Placing a hand on his shoulder, she is able to send just a little amount of Force energy to Ben. Just enough to ensure he doesn't lose consciousness and will be able to recover his strength on his own.

Rey collapses next to him, both of them looking up at the ceiling of the temple, which has been badly damaged by the fight with Kun's spirit. Silence reigns for several minutes before Rey manages to speak, "I think we won."

Ben can't help but chuckle. "I think so, Rey. We did it. We defeated Exar Kun," he says.

They lie there in silence for several moment longer before Rey says, "If we could've defeated him…maybe we can defeat Kylo Ren and the First Order after all."

"Agreed," Ben says. But he realizes that if defeating Exar Kun almost killed both of them, if not for whatever this strange connection between them is, they need a lot more training and work together to be able to guarantee victory.

This is a huge victory for them, but it is not the end. They still have a long journey ahead of them, and after that, the final battle with the First Order and its Supreme Leader still looms in their future.

And, I'll end the chapter there.

So, now you know why I took so long with this chapter. The Force duel with Exar Kun. Exar Kun is one of my favorite Sith Lords in Star Wars Legends. When I read about the return of his spirit in Legends and Luke Skywalker's Jedi students helping Luke defeat Kun's spirit, I considered doing something like that in this story. So, I decided to include that on Ben and Rey's journey. But, I wanted to make sure I did the duel justice, so I took extra time on this chapter to make sure it was good.

So, as you may have noticed, Exar Kun confirmed something. In this story, Rey is part of a Force dyad with Ben, not with Jacen. That will come into a play in several big ways later in this story.

This duel with Exar Kun will have a huge impact on Ben and Rey, and will be referenced multiple times throughout the rest of this story.

Now, for a public notice. I have started my final semester of college, so that is another reason why I took so long to get this chapter up. I will probably be spending even more time than usual on my studies this semester, to make sure I finish my college studies with good grades, so updates to all my fanfictions may come less often. So, just keep that in mind.

Alright. That'll be it for this chapter. Next chapter will feature the legacy of another fan favorite Sith Lord, so look forward to that. It should be up within a week or so. Until it's up, please leave a review and tell me what you thought of this chapter, and stay tuned!