-Darin-

The hyperfuel refinery was to the far north of Corbalant. A rickety fence and shoddy exterior misled me into thinking it would be poorly guarded. It wasn't. That was clear as soon as I snuck through a window and was almost caught by a patrolling guard of a species I didn't remember facing before.

After ducking down I stayed put, hidden from view in the shadows, measuring the timing of the guard movements and reviewing the schematics of the facility with Seth. While doing so, I got a better look at the guards.

They were massive. Larger than Wookies and Seyley by almost half a meter. They were covered in short, bristly hair, possessed beady front facing eyes, and had a powerful looking snout with sharp fangs inside. They wore armor consisting of metal plates that were painted yellow and had the insignia of the company that owned the refinery. Stanco Industries. A quick search through Seth's database found no results for a species matching them. Stanco was also equally absent. Strange.

With no effort, I switched to Force vision. The world turned to gray, and I used the Force to analyze the room. It was a large room, with some stairs leading up to a small balcony style level only about three meters above the floor. Under the balcony, the control room for the coaxium reserves were located. A few industrial lights were hanging from the ceiling on sturdy chains. Four exits, six windows. Fifty seven guards, with over two hundred reinforcements possible. Room was soundproof, and the only sounds that could be heard were the electric hum of the lights, the constant thumping of heavy bodies on a metal floor, and my own beating heart. An alarm system was set up, but M5 already had that handled. The coaxium was stored in the two doors by the stairs on opposite walls, and the main doors were located on the door opposite of the control room. On the balcony, there were three doors, all of which led to separate buildings where the other guards were. They were all well trained and armed to the teeth with various weapons. Stanco really didn't want to lose this stuff, and I could understand why. It was highly valuable and would go for millions if not billions on the black market. Losing this would lose them a huge amount of profit.

Too bad. Admiral Cress was in the skies, jamming radio signals to other possible locations. Thorn was three thousand meters in the air with multiple ships, each possessing a garrison of troops. On my signal, they were to be flown down one at a time, the troops would jump out, load the coaxium, and fly away. Thorn was in charge of making sure the timing was precise after I gave the signal that it was clear. They had to swoop down in an orderly fashion. All at once would be a mess.

It was a good plan. One that we believed could be pulled off without a hitch. The hardest part fell on me. I had to secure the zone silently and without alerting anyone. While the signal was being jammed, it was only long range. Short range to the other two hundred guards would not be stopped.

I grimaced. The pain was returning. I felt the Force in me flex uncomfortably, sending ripples of pain throughout my body. It was like my body was fighting itself, and in the process it was tearing itself apart. I couldn't use the Force to fix it because the Force was the problem.

"Might I recommend a stealthy approach?" Seth said.

"That's the plan."

"I mean, one where you use fear as an ally."

"Don't start with me on-"

"The Force is imbalanced in you. You fight so hard to keep the darkness down, but it's a part of your nature. A part of who you are. You must accept that."

"I can fight through it."

"As you become stronger, the struggle will only escalate."

"So be it."

"You're feeling the pain of it. Of the struggle."

Was that what it was? Was that what these episodes of pain were caused by?

Seth said "From a tactical standpoint, you can harness that fear and use it to become stronger. Then you will have an easier time dealing with them quietly, or if by some chance you slip, you can have an easier time taking on many, many more."

As much as I hated to admit it, he had a point.

No. Giving in is not the Jedi way.

I'm not a Jedi.

But I'm a good person.

Am I? Am I really?

I do what I think is right even when nobody else agrees. That's what counts. And the best thing here is getting the coaxium. This gives me the best chance. And giving in once doesn't mean I'm just seduced to the dark side. I can control it.

I reach for the commlink and whisper "M5, lock all of the doors."

-0000-

The chief guard was patrolling casually, as usual, when all of a sudden, a light bulb popped. Then another. And another. Before he knew it, all of the main lights were out.

"Hey boss. What happened?" one of his Junel asked.

"Must be a power surge or somethin'. Quit yer worryin'," he responded. "Flashlights on, men."

Fifty-seven beams of light were turned on within the next minute and scoured the inside of the facility.

That's when the chief noticed something strange. He could faintly hear the sound of pressurized gas leaving a container. Ever so slowly, the room was beginning to fill with a strange fog. Alarm began to fill him.

"Ey boss. This stuffs breathable!" one of the Junel said.

"Are you sure?" the chief asked, not quite ready to believe him.

"Yea. It's not dangerous in any way. Gurhyshoots. Childrens smoke bombs."

"How do you know?"

"Used to make em when I worked on one of Stanco's other plants. Didn't think they'd have any here."

Something was happening. He could sense it. "On your guard men. I don't think we're alone."

As if on cue, something scrambled across the metal floor. His beam of light darted to the source of the noise, but it was gone, disappearing into the thick smoke. He tried sniffing the air to catch the scent of whatever was out there, but he could only smell gurhyshoots.

He heard a Junel shriek somewhere behind him, which was accompanied by a loud "Oh shit!" He turned and saw… nothing. The smoke was much too thick by now.

"What just happened?!" he yelled.

"Terrell was right behind me, then something swooped in and carried him up!"

I scanned the ceiling with the light. Nothing.

Wait, there was a shape falling to the ground.

It slammed into the ground, and I saw that it was Terrell. He had brutal slashes on his abdomen and his limbs were mangled, like they'd gone through a woodchipper. His face was frozen into a look of sheer terror.

"What the hell could do that!" one of the Junel asked.

"Call for backup. We need reinforcements!" yelled the chief.

As a few of the Junel scrambled, reaching for their comms, they realized something. All the comms were missing. Gone. None even realized that it had happened.

Right above the loose group of Junel, little bits of plastic, metal, and wires started to rain down. The chief picked up a large piece and inspected it. As he suspected, it was the comm, broken beyond belief. Unusable and unsalvageable. His hair stood on end.

"Everyone! To the exits!" the chief yelled, and a mad scramble for the doors ensued. Locked. All of them. They started banging on the doors when a body fell onto them. The chief stared at yet another dead Junel. On his abdomen, carved into the flesh with a knife, were the words "Don't try. Soundproof".

A thump to the left revealed another Junel. Carved into his abdomen were the words "One by one".

His heart was beating like a jackhammer by now. What kind of sadistic kriff were they dealing with?

"On your guard! Stay together!" he yelled at the Junel, and they formed a defensive circle. Everyone was watching everywhere.

That's when he saw it. A blackish gray blur too fast to distinguish dropped down, snatched a Junel, and shot right back up. He shot his plasma rifle in its general direction, but nothing seemed to hit. Something came careening down before being caught and dangling from the ceiling. It was the Junel, hanging from a chain around its neck.

"Oh man," one of the Junel said. "I don't wanna die, I don't wanna die, I don't wanna d-"

The voice was cut off by a sick crunching noise. The body fell to the ground as if it had been angrily tossed to the ground, and the head rolled towards the chief's feet. He saw a clearly deformed skull, as if a giant had grabbed hold and squeezed too hard. It reminded him of when he used to play with clay as a boy, shaping and molding it. But that wasn't possible. Junel bones were much too strong to be broken in that way.

He noticed the blur drop down again, but this time it moved horizontally on the ground, a glowing black blade appearing and slicing five Junel in half before they could even react before disappearing again.

He felt the cold hand of fear grip his heart and settle in his bones. A Sith. A kriffing Sith. The Alliance had turned on them. For one reason or another, they had turned and sent one of their monsters after them.

"Why did they send you!" he yelled into the smoke.

A laugh reverberated through the room, a cruel, hollow, dissociated voice that sounded like nails scratching on a chalkboard, like the voice of an ancient evil that had risen from the earth after eons of silence and was speaking for the first time. It was haunting, terrifying, disturbing. He couldn't help but grimace.

Somehow, he managed to not wet myself and asked "Did Charybdis send you? Or Lysis?"

A brief pause, and two Junel were seemingly grabbed from the smoke and yanked away from the circle. He waited, and the bodies dropped to the ground. On their abdomens were the words "Strike one" and "strike two".

"Quit guessing, boss!" one of the Junel yelled at me.

The cold voice rang out "Twelve down. Forty five to go."

"COME OUT AND FIGHT, COWARD!" one of the Junel roared.

The cold laughing filled the room and the black blade lit up towards the ceiling and was thrown at our group, slicing through seven more Junel before starting to return to where it came from.

"Shoot at that light!" he yelled, and a barrage of red plasma bolts came at the spot where the saber stopped and was deactivated. Clearly, multiple shots hit right where it was caught, but nothing fell.

"Me, a coward?" the voice rumbled, before a tendril of black… something… shot out of the smoke and impaled six Junel. "You are the ones engulfed in fear." Three Junel were grabbed from the top and bottom and ripped in half. "Drowning in fear." Four Junel dropped to the ground, grabbing at their ears, before their chest exploded and they fell limply. "CONSUMED by fear." Eight of the Junel burst into purple flames and within minutes, all that was left of them was a greasy spot on the floor and charred yellow armor plating.

The blackish gray blur dropped to the ground and stood there. Nobody fired at him. He tried to raise his gun, but found that he couldn't. He was petrified. The blade activated and began zooming by, slicing Junel left and right while the blur walked slowly towards him. As it got closer, he began to be able to make out some of its details. The Sith was wearing a blackish gray cloak with the hood pulled up, covering the upper portion of his face. It was a beautiful and terrifying cloak. As he got closer, he realized that cloak may actually be the wrong word. It was more like a robe, in that it possessed sleeves, could be fastened together in the front, and wasn't meant to look like a flowing cape. Instead, it gave his whole form a sinister appearance. It could look like a cloak when standing, but as he moved it followed with him.

Something zipped under his chin, and he became fully aware of the humming blade that was now against his neck. He watched as the form walked ever closer to him until finally, they were standing by each other. The Sith was a bit shorter than the chief, but that was understandable as his species was one of the more formidable ones. He stood there, staring, before reaching his hand out and grabbing the saber, deactivating it and placing it at his hilt before turning back to the chief.

The Sith raised his hand to the chief's head. He gasped as the life was drained from him. The Sith put his hand down and the chief's body fell to the ground, lifeless.

-Darin-

When the last one died, I dropped to the ground and threw up.

What the hell did I just do?

It all felt… wrong. It made me uncomfortable.

But in the moment, I felt incredible. Never had I felt more alive. More powerful.

But now, I feel dirty. Sick.

Seth said "It's always this difficult the first time. But it gets easier, I promise you."

"What did you do to me?"

Seth chuckled. "Nothing. I didn't do anything to you. That darkness was inside of you. That monster was waiting to be unleashed. I just never expected it to be so… powerful. It takes Sith entire lifetimes to learn and master the things you just did."

"I feel sick."

Seth said "Do you feel the waves of pain you would feel before?"

I shuddered as I realized that he was right. While I felt like a monster, the pain was gone.

"How?" I mumbled.

"You temporarily balanced the Force in you."

"No. No no no. I never want to do that again."

"Then the pain will return, and you will tear yourself apart."

"You're just trying to turn me," I said.

"No. I am a Sith holocron, that is true. But the nature of the Sith is power. I am here to help you gain the power you need to do what must be done."

"I don't want to be a monster," I spat at him.

"But you want to survive. Your condition makes this imbalance of the Force in you particularly lethal. It's why I won't ever turn you. If you stay on the light side, the dark will destroy you. If you become dark, the light will destroy you. It's the nature of the universe."

I sat down, shivering. "Then what do I have to do?"

"Embrace both sides of the Force. Use both sides at once, never succumbing fully to either one. Instead of black or white, you must be gray."
"How do I do that?"

"Honestly, I do not know. It isn't in my database. But you must find ways to combine both aspects of the Force. You will only survive if you can truly master all of the Force."

I sat for a moment before reaching for a table and lifting myself up. My mouth tasted like vomit. I activated my commlink and said "Rapid response team is a go."

I weakly made my way to the door. What Seth said made sense. I had to master all aspects.

I don't know how I'll do it, but I'll find a way.