Within the Sith Observatory
Just Outside the Dormitory Levels
"Still no signal to the outside or Leia's team?" Phasma panted to Shara after overhearing complete static through the Mandalorian's comlink, only to get a sad shake of her head as a response while the human woman drove her saber into the control panel for the three-layered durasteel doors guarding the dorms for the prospective Sith children. "Then we need to make our stand here and hope for the best."
Without being able to sense the infiltration team's position through the impenetrable miasma of darkness over the last ninety minutes, K'Kruhk and Phasma had decided to press on and try to prepare for the liberation of this facility's collection of kidnapped children on their own, a task that was proving to be more daunting than both Force Users and their teammates expected.
Having cut down or blasted through dozens of Sith guards, ancient and refurbished war droids, and Sith-warped beasts throughout their two hours of a diversion, the strike team was beginning to see how Krayt's disciples had taken complete advantage of the generous space available for weeding out any unwanted intruders. One of Leia's Noghri had been ripped into countless pieces after shielding Phasma from a hidden railgun half an hour ago, and another was reduced to a charred husk not five minutes later while protecting K'Kruhk from a combined Force-generated storm of lightning from several now-dead acolytes.
Even as Phasma and K'Kruhk led their team with near perfect coordination and cunning, given how both ex-Sith and veteran Jedi Master were kindred spirits from their unique struggles to survive against a hostile galaxy, no one group could hold out forever against a virtually endless tidal wave of enemies. They needed a temporary haven to regroup and replenish their strength and supplies against the staggering opposition arrayed against them.
Hopefully, the main level for the imprisoned younglings would have medical equipment and food to tend to the cuts and burns for the exhausted Alliance members, or a hidden armory that could replenish their arsenal of anti-Sith weaponry. At the very least, the dorms could double as a fortress to continue keeping the Sith's attention on them and not the main team.
"Madame Phasma, Master K'Kruhk, you need to see this." The final Noghri, Ireak, imploringly warned the two Force Users, pointing through a glass window. "I believe the Sith have allowed us to learn their ultimate purpose for this Observatory's existence, and it is truly despicable."
"As if we don't have enough of that already." Shara despairingly murmured while plugging into a nearby terminal to pilfer what data he could from its systems and hopefully slow down their remaining pursuers.
Feeling the sole surviving Noghri's fury and horror at whatever she saw, K'Kruhk and Phasma hurried over to her, and they felt their jaws fall slack open at the depravities of what lay before them. At least now, they understood the nexus of agony and heartbreak that flooded their awareness in the Force.
The Observatory's dormitories were home to many heinous pieces of equipment designed to torture every child tragic enough to be trapped down here. These methods included incredibly diverse methods, from heavily modified and highly illegal IT-O interrogator droids, cutting apart several defiant acolytes, and isolation from their peers to more exotic tools including modified Ssi-Ruuk entechment tables and about a half dozen of the most heinous torture devices of the Yuuzhan Vong, their Embrace of Pain.
The footage continued, breaking every viewer's heart, and enraging them to new heights by showing several Sith Sorcerers and Inquisitors conducting all manner of sadistic Force-based torture meant to break down the kids' resistance. Unleashing bolts of lightning on rebellious souls, subjecting them to nightmarish scenarios that preyed on their worst fears, and choking several young children into unconsciousness when they failed the impossible standards set before them.
The footage ending, Phasma nearly fell to her knees, feeling sick throughout her being upon realizing how she had betrayed everything she cherished, all in the name of avenging ancient vendettas by working for an order that had destroyed countless lives, just as hers and her people was by greed and compromise.
Everything she was taught about the One Sith, that it was supposed to be superior to all other Sith incarnations that preceded it, was all a lie. This iteration was just as twisted and evil as its predecessors, ripping children from their families to use as disposable soldiers in an endless war of darkness, and she had spent so much of her life willingly learning and serving this monstrous order.
Beating her hands against the steel floor, she let tears of grief and self-loathing pour out, ignoring all around her as she released all her heartbreak and regret. Did her brother know of this facility? Was he an active participant in this heinous operation? There were too many questions racing through her mind, and she knew she wouldn't get any answers here.
A large three-fingered hand touched her armored shoulder, and she turned to face K'Kruhk's solemn sympathetic gaze, "There is still time to save these children. We can liberate them and work to rehabilitate them with their families' help. It's our duty to get them the recovery they deserve."
"How do you know?" Phasma despondently asked, remembering how far she fell into the darkness and all she had ruined before she had just started to fight her way out, and knew not everyone was as strong-willed and honorable as her.
"Because the both of us, along with all those we care about and have forged bonds with, will aid their healing. Just like you will try to do for your brother." K'Kruhk sagely pointed out with words that touched Phasma and allowed her to hope how she might be able to reach Keldo yet.
"That's all well and good, but it won't mean anything if we can't get those children out of here before the Sith finish their work on them." Shara disgustingly spat, handing both Whiphid and Human a datapad. "You need to see this, and then we need to find a way to save these kids and blast this place into subatomic particles."
Quickly scanning the first batch of files, both survivalists found the device containing a set of orders and communication logs marked for Darth Haxar and another Sith Lady called Darth Vindicaa from the Observatory's commanding Sith Lord, a Columi who called himself Darth Phobar, a Sith Phasma had no experiences or information on.
Darth Haxar. That was a name K'Kruhk dreaded hearing, remembering her as his greatest failure as a teacher and Jedi Master. A woman originally named Sidirri and a Jedi Youngling under his care before she fell to the Dark Side over the trauma from the first few months of the Great Jedi Purge and eventually fled his care and later joining the One Sith to become one of Krayt's most powerful and vicious Inquisitors.
Reading through the logs, both Jedi and ex-Sith saw what had enraged the Mandalorian so much. This place was more than a training camp, it held many Sith treasures meant to rewrite a person's personality into a blank slate to be filled with the Dark Side. And there was also research into cybernetics, research that was so heavily encrypted that it might take a dozen supercomputers to make a dent in the software.
Phasma suddenly figured out the Sith's strategy for Falleen, and it made her blood boil, even as it made a twisted sense to the survivalist in her. Krayt and his scientists were planning to turn the broken children from here into Force-wielding cyborgs as part of a massive armed buildup in their bid to take over the galaxy.
As soon as the children were extracted, and the facility's data was taken to track any related laboratories, both Phasma and K'Kruhk vehemently promised to ensure this structure was destroyed, even if it meant blowing away the city encompassing it in the process. Nothing from here could afford to remain standing if it meant preventing its evil from being duplicated anywhere else.
Their resolve was interrupted when they read the final transmission log, saying how the Sith overseer put the temple into full alert and went to the command center to await his enemies. That meant Vestara, Leia, and the others were walking right into a trap, and with the comms and Force blackout, there was nothing anyone could do to help them except hope for the best.
Hearing a distant bang emerge from a turbolift to the group's right, everyone realized that in their fatal distraction, they forgot to lock down the lift's controls.
Phasma broke the preparations for this new assault by holding out a hand, "Stay your hand. We've got a few of your Jedi friends coming to assist us."
"I thought you couldn't sense anything beyond a few dozen meters?" Shara skeptically reminded her.
"Not with the blazing signatures of Ben and at least two more Jedi coming down this route. It's like seeing the sun start breaking through a terrible monsoon." Phasma metaphorically pointed out.
"Quite an excellent and eloquent analogy." K'Kruhk complimented, moments before the wide turbolift opened to reveal their reinforcements in Ben and a Jessar and Yarkora in Jedi Knight robes that no one recognized.
Accompanying them were four freelancers they never expected, Robonino, Jarael, Bralo, and Parja, the Patrolian bounty hunter armed with the tricks of his trade in weapons and slicing equipment, and Iskalloni medic having sashes and a backpack full of medical gear along with her blasters and tranquilizer darts. The two young Mandalorians, to round this group off, were wearing their traditional light beskar Mandalorian armor and equipped with vambraces and customized WESTAR-34 blaster pistols.
"Thank goodness we're not too late." The Jessar breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing their contemporaries relieved to see them.
"Do not assume anything just yet, Jedi Kiea." Bralo pointed out. "None of us can see our buir, your ba'buir, Vestara, and the rest of our friends, and we need to find them before it's too late."
"Too late for what?" Shara worriedly repeated. "Why do I think we need to compare notes?"
"Where are they?" Ben anxiously pressed. "Have they gone to the command center?"
"That is exactly right." Ireak nodded. "Lady Vader and her comrades are trying to shut down the jamming field and take control of this facility to save these children from their terrible fate. We have been, as you would say it, 'running interference' for them and have uncovered much of the Sith's plans."
"Then we must reach them before they're all under his sway." The Yarkora frustratingly growled. "But we still cannot allow the imprisoned here to stay in this hellish abomination."
"Under whose sway?" K'Kruhk tried to get a more detailed answer out of anyone.
"A Sith with a nasty knack for mental manipulation and is apparently the ultimate mastermind behind the One Sith's horrid galactic network of mini temples. We need to divide and conquer so we can liberate these kids and save our friends. We all know a bunch of us are worried about their loved ones." Robonino answered, tactfully ignoring the glares now pointed towards him.
"Good luck getting through the small army behind those doors." Lona skeptically warned the newcomers. "We've got at least fifty enemies trying to pry their way through, and three hundred children to liberate."
"First things first. Before we plan our next move, let's get you all patched up." Jarael pulled out one of her backpack's medkits. "Master K'Kruhk, if you can lend me your medical expertise, it would be invaluable in speeding our mission along."
"Of course." The Whiphid humbly agreed. "The sooner we are all taken care of, the sooner we can help and rescue our friends and the trapped souls down here."
"Good. Ben, I need you to help Ireak and Phasma with their injuries." Jarael ordered. "Robo, see if you can break through the jamming field for all our teams. If we're going to take this place down, then we need to be at our best and have tight coordination between everyone."
"Right." Both men said before getting to their duties.
Hang in there, Ves. Please, don't lose your way. Ben silently pleaded through the Force while preparing to examine the two women's wounds.
Phasma took a moment to console him, "Have a little faith in your love. She has a stronger will than you give her credit for, and so much more to fight for than just you this time."
"How did you-?" Ben astonishingly asked before the older human interrupted,
"I don't need the Force to see the desperation in your eyes, or the worry over a loved one." Phasma acknowledged. "When this battle is over, I will tell you all about my brother, his fall from grace, and my hopes to save him from the dark side. And then we will discuss my atonement and later punishment for all the harm I wrought on the galaxy."
Just Outside the Command Center
"Three people are still on the other side of this door." Poldar, one of the Noghri accompanying Leia, warned his contemporaries. "But I do not recognize any of their scents."
"Any Sith in the mix?" Akku asked the two Sith defectors as he worked to slice through the three layers of cortosis doors blocking their way. After weaving their way through five defense webs, evading countless security drones, and silencing any Sith beasts that would have given away their mission, the infiltration squad was almost at their target.
"Hard to say, but that would be an educated guess." Vestara gritted out, sweat dripping down her forehead from the increasing mental strain as they grew closer to this dark presence. "Stang, it's getting harder to even think down here."
"I have a hunch I know exactly who's to blame for that." Ferren wearily groaned. "Darth Phobar."
"A little more info, please, and try to make it quick." Mirta testily asked.
"He's a scheming Columi that preys on a person's mental insecurities through Sith sorcery to compensate for his limited offensive capabilities, making him a brilliant strategist and expert on psychological warfare." He explained.
"So, just like the Qreph brothers, only loaded with Force energy like they wanted to be." Leia disgustingly surmised, with Mirta and Vestara sharing a look of remorse for their despicable work they did when in the two Columi's employ.
"Does he have any weaknesses besides his inability to wield a lightsaber?" Mirta sneered.
"He can do just that with the Force." Ferren clarified. "In fact, he can even wield up to three with his mind if he wanted. But I never found any flaws in his strategies."
"Then we'll have to improvise and face him head-on while we still have the strength." Vestara groggily reminded everyone.
"Isn't that the story of our lives? Well, at least you won't be on your own this time around." Allana's chipper voice came through, surprising everyone to see her, Tesar Sebatyne, and a mix of at least twelve Falleen commandos and Mandalorians accompanying the two Jedi, along with General Orellios and five of his Lira San royal guards bringing up the rear.
"What are you doing here, Allana?!" Leia all but shrieked towards her granddaughter. "You're supposed to be with your grandfather!"
"Someone had to come and save your hides." Allana mischievously quipped, before seriously amending, "Farlander and Haxim got word on what this temple's full capabilities are, and they sent in a bunch of teams to ensure this place is shut down for good."
"But why you?" Vestara worriedly clarified. "If the Sith capture or kill you…" She left that thought unanswered, given the Jedi Queen prophecy that could tip the balance of the Force surrounding Allana, and a modicum of guilt flashed through her eyes, remembering how she selfishly revealed it to the Lost Tribe on Coruscant before ultimately joining up with Krayt's One Sith.
"I'm not going to sit by and let my friends and family fight a war without me. It's what I signed up for when I joined the Order, and that's just not what I'm about, whether as a Jedi, Chume'da, or anything else." Allana passionately denied.
"We can argue about your grandkid's place in this war after we take care of this big brain of a Sith and free those kids!" Garazeb angrily interceded. "The longer we wait, the more of our people and innocent civilians are gonna be killed in the battle going on right above us."
Nodding, Ferren agreed, "He's right. Besides, we'll need all the help we can get in a minute."
Relenting, Leia warned Allana, "We'll talk about this later."
Seeing the younger woman stoically shrug, Leia was reminded of how proud of Allana's growth as a woman and leader and reminded herself how she could no longer control her. She was a full-fledged Jedi Knight and adult and could make her own decisions. All her family could do was try to be there for her in her moments of triumph and weakness while hoping for the best.
But the time for talking was long over. Now, it was time to finish shutting down this evil tomb of a temple, and nothing was going to stop this diverse force, just as Akku got up from his knees to report, "That should do it. The doors will be open in two minutes, max. Everyone had better get ready."
Dathomir
Ros Lai Outpost
Just Outside the Training Dome
"I see you were able to get precisely your fair share of rest, dear." Adari teased a drowsy Edaan before she warned him, "Are you sure you're ready to begin? Once you go through these doors, I won't be able to help you with your trials in any way. You'll be on your own, cut off from all support unless your life signs drop to critical levels."
Glancing down at the silver bio-band attached to his wrist, designed to monitor his condition, as well as ensure Edaan did not push himself to death's door while training, Adari felt another murmur of fear and guilt reverberate through her chest. Even if the session was not about to begin, she already deeply regretted having to put him through this ordeal to test his spirit's resolve, despite knowing how this had to be done to protect her husband from the coming battles and his inner darkness.
Giving Adari's hand a quick and gentle squeeze, Edaan confidently nodded, "I am. I'm a bit afraid but taking comfort by knowing how I won't be alone. I've got you rooting for me, a lot of friends waiting for us, and a recovery to continue when all this is done."
Before Adari could playfully chastise him, Edaan, in a humbler voice, continued, "And more importantly, I owe it to myself and all those I neglected to see these trials through to the end. I can't afford to back down now, especially not when our friends are risking everything to fight against the Sith for a free galaxy. And I especially owe it to you and my…" Wiping a few stray tears escaping his eyes, he finished, "my family to honor all that you've done for me and the galaxy's innocents and continue your legacies.
"Don't forget, before we re-enter the battlefield, I need to assess my skills and resolve without the help of my six deceased masters. If I don't see how far I can go against enemies as dangerous and dark as the Sith before I'm ready, it'll spell disaster for everyone in the galaxy. I don't need to tell you what, or whom, I'm talking about here." Edaan dangerously alluded to his conclusion.
"Yeah. We don't need another like him trying to enslave the galaxy." Adari anxiously concurred. Although she had not lived through the horrors of Darth Sidious's reign, she learned much of his paranoia, insatiable lust for power and lack of regard for anyone other than himself, and his endless manipulation of the galaxy for his demented soul to make her fear that kind of being. It was that same kind of thinking that doomed her planet and people to millennia of slavery and a cycle of Sith-backed betrayals before its long-awaited liberation by the Jedi and their allies.
How ironic, then, that she quickly fell in love with and married the sole remaining descendant of the most dangerous and powerful Sith Lord out of three generations.
"Well, May the Force be with you, my love." Adari wished her husband luck before being pulled into a gentle kiss.
Slowly pulling away, Edaan smiled and lovingly told Adari, "When this war is all over, you have to promise me two things, two non negotiable terms."
"Just name them." The violet-haired and skinned woman wholeheartedly agreed, trusting her soulmate and knew she was not about to commit to anything absurd.
"For starters, we have a proper honeymoon when we win. As sweet and thoughtful as this retreat is, it's not a genuine vacation." He firmly said.
"Deal." Adari nodded, knowing they both could use a genuine period of recuperation after they helped save the galaxy. Perhaps a beach world, or maybe a return to Dathomir and seeing this majestic world in all its ancient wonder. On the other hand, Kesh and her people could probably use more help in recovering from their Sith's enslavement, and she could show Edaan all her world had to offer while not on the run from any enemies. Honestly, it did not really matter, if she was with her love and continued to strengthen her bonds with him.
"After that, we can see about having a child or two to start our family." Edaan bashfully finished, stunning his wife into absolute silence. The silence was too much to bear, he earnestly laughed before clarifying, "Remember, I did say we'd do that after we have our honeymoon, and the galaxy starts settling into a new era of peace. I do have a series of ordeals to begin and old wounds to overcome, for starters."
"Yeah. I don't think I'm ready for having or adopting children right now." Adari anxiously laughed, even as she watched Edaan start walking into the training dome until her comlink vibrated, and she recalled her obligations for the next few days.
Oh, Edaan. You're going to be the death of me after all. Adari amusingly lamented, rushing to her station alongside Master Malicos and the rest of the outpost's staff, all the while praying to Edaan's gods to keep him safe and sane through his trials. She felt in her heart how he, and everyone close to him, would need the Force and every cosmic blessing they could get for whatever came next in this dark galactic war.
After hearing how Kam Solusar helped him realize his greatest flaw, she and Taron had reworked their strategy to better test Edaan, and they had come up with many promising, and borderline disturbing, results that would absolutely push the young man to every single limit he ought to possess.
Honestly, Adari was completely grateful that Taron was on the Jedi Order's side. If a creative lunatic like him served the Sith, then it would be an ultimate battle of wits and misdirection to see who came out on top. Celestials' willing, no one in all of creation would have to witness such a contest.
Falleen
Port Nowhere
Within the Sith Observatory
Inside the Command Center
"So, you have come back to us at last, you three broken traitors. And you even brought our master a few new presents as penance? A fine tribute to start your atonement." A diminutive Columi, garbed in light black robes of a Sith Lord, mockingly appraised Vestara, Ferren, Mirta, and their large band of allies in their ridiculously named "Alliance of Light."
Seeing his enemies outnumber his group, each having their weapons drawn and the Jedi-led force ready to pounce on the Sith Lord and his two Falleen disciples, Phobar knew he would only have one chance to salvage something from this compromised temple and get a few more prisoners for the Dread Lord's Inquisitors.
That meant he had to stall for a few more moments before he could defeat them. And trying to undermine the tenuous trust between the varied groups would be an apt means of doing so. A shame he might lose both his apprentices in the process, but it was such a minor sacrifice when compared with preserving a key part of the One Sith's great dream.
"Don't bother, Phobar. No one here's falling for your manipulations." Ferren wearily warned him.
"No one here insinuated to me of that, Oculus. I merely meant that you and your friends just walked right into my ultimate trap." Faster than anyone could see, the door to the command center suddenly slammed down, leaving all but two of their allied commandos and every Lasat guard trapped back in the hallway. "I don't think we needed all those meager grunts interfering in this stimulating conversation. They would only have needlessly made this victory of mine exponentially more complex than it needed to be."
"Enough of this." Garazeb growled, taking aim with his bo-rifle, but found his weapon getting heavier, and his arms growing wearier with each passing second. He saw many of his teammates in a similar plight, and not even the Jedi and defecting Sith were immune if the strain in their eyes was a sign.
The Lasat general exhaustively demanded, "What… what are you doing to us, you floating brain?"
"Do you know of the Vitiate-era Sith Lord named Paladius?" Phobar conversationally asked. "He was a self-serving renegade who led a minor cult before being killed by a future member of the Dark Council who went by the moniker of Lord Kallig. But the arrogant Sith Pureblood had two rare and highly coveted abilities that were useful in dealing with his enemies. He could drain the essence of almost anyone near him if he so wished and weaken the connections to the Force of most beings.
"In fact, that's what I've been doing to all of you since you entered my fortress. And the longer you stay down here with me, the worse the effects are on you until you collapse and are no longer part of this war. That is, unless you decide to wise up and join the winning side."
Vestara, feeling a surge of dark anger and humiliation at being outplayed so flawlessly, was not about to let any of her enemies defeat and capture her again, especially a sanctimonious and know-it-all brain jar of a Sith. Nearly giving into her rage and attempting to unleash a burst of lightning, she found herself too exhausted to so much as emit a spark. She then felt a desperate tug through a familiar and growing Force Bond, and it was one she knew and cherished with all her being.
Ben was somewhere in this temple, and he was fighting the same darkness that she was, that being all the incentive she needed to control her fury. If he could resist such a temptation with the odds stacked so high, then she had to rise to the challenge and prove that his trust in her was not misplaced. After all, they did resist worse lures and destroy one of Abeloth's avatars all while being deprived of food, water, and rest for three days straight at the end of both her and the Lost Tribe's resurgence.
To Vestara's relief, before any other snide remarks could be made, Allana, Leia, and Tesar made a charge at the Columi, hoping to eradicate the threat right away. Unfortunately, and unsurprisingly, they were quickly blocked by his two apprentices, each one activating two crimson lightsabers to intercept the swift lunges and ferocious push.
"If you want to get to me, honored Jedi, then you'll have to get past my escorts first. But in the interest of being sporting, they're not just for show." Phobar sadistically warned as the guards forced both Jedi back several feet from their master with their brute strength alone.
Well, no one came here expecting an easy victory. Allana quietly lamented, banishing all thoughts of her worry for the men trapped outside as she and the others went on the attack.
Shedu Maad
Jedi Temple
Within the Main Strategic Center
The Jedi Council and its most veteran members were busy as ever in their temple's main strategic center, arguably far busier than in over a decade. Having to coordinate their order's massive undertaking across the galaxy, fighting on three key battlefields across the Outer Rim while tending to their wounded and helping the free powers scour their ranks for traitors, it was enough to overwhelm any group.
It was lucky for them that the Alliance of Light's reserves and key commanders were aiding this tremendous workload, and the intelligence officers from the Chiss, Hapans, and Aquilians shored up the Jedi's defenses. And never mind how Tenel Ka Djo was personally coordinating her subject's recovery and salvage efforts while cordoning off the Jedi Order's wounded headquarters. With each of the six dozen individuals, be they civilians, military, royalty, spies, or Jedi, everyone was fulfilling their duties with total efficiency and perfect coordination.
But interrupting this precise operation, Lando's hologram blazed to life, taking over the holotable covering Batuu, surprising all. While Kyle normally would have reprimanded the businessman for the reckless distraction, he saw the forlorn and anxious glean in the visitor's eyes, and recognized this wasn't a social call. Suddenly, five more holoprojectors activated, with the two-feet forms of Kajin Bar Yimmon, Denjax Teppler, Vedo Anjiliac Atirue, Boba Fett, and Jag Fel.
Everyone was surprised by the inclusion of their peers, Fett got straight to the point, sharply demanding of Lando, "I'm guessing this warning isn't meant for Mandalore alone."
Seeing the solemn gaze the old entrepreneur and Jedi ally gave each galactic leader, Kyle asked Lando, "I take it you were able to get the reinforcements."
"And then some." Lando simply answered, his voice devoid of the typical warmth and pleasantries.
"What reinforcements?" Vedo suspiciously asked. Eyeing Lando, he warily guessed, "You've been holding out on us, haven't you, Calrissian?"
"I don't think so." Jag corrected, recognizing the fearful gaze his friend gave everyone. "It has something to do with the rumblings my contacts have informed me in the Unknown Regions, right?"
"Among other things, yes." Lando gulped, taking several deep breaths before beginning, "As I asked Luke to inform most of you, my son and I made contact with the Silentium deep in the Unknown Regions. And they, along with the Chiss and Aquilians, have given me information I'm now transmitting to you all, critical information that supersedes our war with the One Sith."
"Are you talking about Abeloth?" Denjax asked, the dread at the Celestial-made demoness obvious to all.
"No. Not yet at least." Lando corrected. "I'm talking about more threats out there that are infinitely more dangerous and darker than Abeloth, and how we need to strike a truce with the One Sith before they're ready to destroy us."
No one was expecting that answer, and activity in the entire command center skidded to a halt at Lando's words. Taking the initiative, he continued, "I have a plan to get Krayt and his Sith to the bargaining table, but we need to move fast before their proxy wars drag out much longer, and his strike on Dathomir devastates the planet."
"Mister Calrissian," Kajin slowly growled out, barely restraining his fury, "I suggest you tell us, in vivid detail, what it is you learned in from your old friends, and why you believe that we can possibly ally with the terror-sponsoring One Sith and all their collaborators and traitors."
"Wait. You said they're going to attack Dathomir?" Kyle interrupted, the fear in his voice striking a chord with all at his typical stoic calm. "Are you certain of this, Lando?"
"Yes. And right now, I'm on my way there with my friends to stop it before this war spirals out of control and Edaan or anyone else is kidnapped." Lando promised before addressing the rest of the galactic heads of state, "The Chiss and Aquilians already know what is going on and are mobilizing accordingly, and they're alerting our friends out on their turf. But I'll tell you everything about the return of some very old enemies, and the emergence of some new ones."
"Why not start with giving us a few names first?" Fett impatiently pressed.
Glaring at the Mandalore for a moment, Lando ruefully nodded, and explained, "For starters, I know exactly where Daala and her people are going, and the army she's whipping into a frenzy to fight the entire galaxy. It's an entire region of space that's been waging a quiet war on all Force users and sympathizers for centuries, and the only thing holding them back is a small fraction of their people that are leading a military and religious resistance. And right now, her megalomania and promises of genocidal retribution are the last thing we need."
"How do you figure that?" Denjax warily asked, some of his disgust being replaced by fear at the knowledge of Daala planning another war of conquest and annihilation. "Who's playing her this time?"
"Not Abeloth, but the strongest empire in the Unknown Regions, a Sith Empire more malevolent, deadly, and terrifying than any we've ever faced before that resides in the Nihil Retreat." Everyone stunned silent at the admission, Lando added, "And this empire has formed a pact with six of seven worlds teeming with Rakata survivors, the Ssi-Ruuk Imperium, and many other denizens in that region of space."
"We need to get the word out, carefully, but quickly." Lando emphatically urged them all. "The fate of all creation is in our hands, and none of us want to be responsible for our people and civilizations being obliterated."