Star Wars: Darklight
by AB
Chapter 11
The Past and the Future
Moraband was a desolate, arid wasteland with very little to almost no life left on it. In times of antiquity it had been the birth place of the species "Sith".
Beyond antiquity Force users were not split into two sides. The Je'dai, peace loving monks meditated on the Force and in their reclusive temples trained and lived a life of solitude and tranquility. All this changed when some of their numbers discovered the Dark Side of the Force and started learning and teaching it to others. The War of "Hundred-year Darkness" split the ancient Je'dai order into the Light Side worshiping Jedi and the Dark Side worshipping Dark Jedi. The Dark Jedi lost the war and were exiled. They landed on Korriban enslaving the native Sith becoming almost god-like by using their training with the Dark Side of the Force. After sixty or more millennia no one, not even contemporary Sith, now a term used for those affiliated to the Dark Side, remember how Moraband or Korriban, as it was called in olden days, was before the Dark Jedi landed on it. If it had been a water world or had forests. Now it was a Bastion of the Dark Side and the burial place of the darkest of the Dark Lords of the Sith.
Moraband had been abandoned, reclaimed and lost to the Sith only to be reclaimed again, lead to their rise and fall again and again more times than anyone cared to remember. In fact, no one really remembered anymore.
Twenty years ago Darth Insidious' Master, Darth Vitus broke the rule of two and re-established Moraband as the new Sith Academy and Headquarters of the Sith Conclave. In secret and slowly so as to not notify the New Republic and the Jedi Order Darth Vitus and his Apprentice worked to consolidate and grow their power, find more Force-Sensitive children and train them to the Dark Side. This was what was known to the Sith currently residing in Moraband anymore.
Tormak had not had the easiest of lives. He was born in Corellia's industrial netherworld. His mother was one of the whores servicing the workers in the dockyards and other industrial complexes. As a child he had to watch his mother servicing her clients and do shifta, the local variety of injectable drug. From an early childhood he was involved with the gangs of the Industrial netherworld, ever hoping he'd make a "good score" and afford to leave Corellia for one of Corellia's outer colonies and live a better life. At the age of 12 one of his mother's clients tried to rape him, the result was the death of the client. Tormak's first use of a Force ability, Force-push came out of his fingers, pushing the client back snapping his neck. Tormak ran away never to return.
Two years later Tormak was part of a smuggler's crew. Their latest job was to steel an artifact from one of the bosses of the Mandalorian privateers. The mission did not go as planned and for all his newfound powers Tormak was unable to escape, he was captured and interrogated. During his interrogation he was tortured and tortured for more information, some of the crew had escaped. Tormak though did not know anything, the crew's leader told his crew only what they needed to know and never the whole picture. All he knew were some names which proved to be fake. In the end one of the Mandalorian privateers' clients learned of Tormak's affinity to the Force and bought him off them. He turned out to be Darth Vitus who renamed teen Tormak into Darth Novus and trained him as one of his disciples along with Darth Insidious and Darth Drakus.
They along with three others found along the way formed the Sith Conclave and in the shadows they gathered power and found apprentices. Darth Vitus had wanted to wait and not attack the New Republic and the Jedi, Darth Insidious, Darth Drakus and Darth Gubernare disagreed. Eventually Darth Insidious overthrew their Master becoming the Leader of the Sith Conclave. A month later the onslaught had begun.
Darth Novus joined as an apprentice to Darth Vitus and learned what he could from him but as he discovered his true calling was to invent. He loved inventing new machines, new ways of the Force, new science and technology. He remained a member of the Conclave to assure access to information and that no other Sith would manage to kill him.
He was walking down the stairs of the Conclave and academy building, refashioned and rebuilt by slaves from the ruins of the old Sith Academy laid to ruins by centuries of war and abandonment. He was walking slowly down the large steps of the Conclave building with huge columns to the left and right with whipping and hooded statues to the left and right, old Sith Lords on the left and slaves on the right. The strong conquerors and the weak. The steps were red and brown from the sand being carried over by the wind, the white marble dyed red and brown.
He saw Darth Sage approach him from the left, coming up the large steps.
"Master Novus." Darth Sage greeted him. He pretended to ignore him and kept on walking. He always liked to walk with his hands behind his back. Darth Sage saw the motion by his fingers to follow him.
Darth Novus walked them to a cave in the valley of Dark Lords. He did not know why, could not comprehend it but ever since he had stepped foot in the desolate planet he had felt an affinity for this cave so he went there regularly to meditate. There was another reason he now walked in there. There was only one entrance, he could see anyone approach from almost any direction so no one could eavesdrop on him.
"You asked for me, Master Novus?" Darth Sage asked him.
"Yes, have you wondered ever why we are in this situation?" Darth Sage did not know what he meant.
"Situation?"
"Yes, this war."
"Because we are Sith? What else is there to do against the Republic and the Jedi?" Darth Sage tried as best he could to hide his emotions from him.
"They are Jedi. We have always been at war with them."
"And yet… we are not actually fighting them. Just besieging them. What have you heard of this?"
"What more could I know of this than you, Master? A Sith Lord in the Conclave?"
"Yes, I am in the Conclave, yet you are an instructor in the Academy. All of our apprentices plus all those who have yet to be assigned Masters, the younglings are under your care."
"I am but one of many instructors."
"You are indeed, now will you answer my question or should I torture you some as they did in the old Sith Empire?"
Darth Sage powered up his lightsaber in fear, only to receive Darth Novus' Force-lightning making him drop his weapon and kneel in pain.
"I do not intent to kill you Darth Sage, do not make me kill you." Darth Novus electrocuted him some more before stopping.
"The apprentices do not know much. Darth Drakus' apprentice is the only one who has said anything about it other than Darth Solus." Darth Sage groaned in pain.
"What have they told you?"
"Not to me. Darth Solus was bragging to Darth Pike how his Master has him running errands to capture the new Sith'ari, how he would be the one to break the stalemate and deliver us into a new empire. Darth Pike only replied that he was a brat and his Master could easily break the stalemate if she wanted to but she didn't. Darth Solus did not like this but Darth Drakus was in front so he did not retaliate."
"Ah good, what do YOU think?"
"I think I am not powerful enough to have my opinion." The reply earned him another jolt of lightning.
"Tell me what you think Sage or I will electrocute you to death." Darth Novus grabbed Darth Sage by his neck and squeezed hard while pressing his Dark Side mind trick Force-Persuasion on Darth Sage.
"I… I… " Darth Sage stuttered. "I think our Dark Lord is stalling for reasons I do not know or can comprehend." Darth Novus smiled.
"Are you willing to work with me then? To subvert Darth Insidious?" Darth Novus knew what Darth Sage would reply. There were few who could resist his Force-Persuasion and Darth Sage was not one of them.
"Yes Master for some considerations I will." Darth Novus smiled, Darth Sage had replied exactly as predicted.
"And what may those considerations be?" He asked Darth Sage, his hand never leaving Darth Sage's neck.
"A seat in the council, my own apprentice and the… liberty to teach the younglings as I want."
"I'll grant you the seat and the apprentice." Darth Sage knew he would not be getting his third request. Darth Novus' eyes told him as much. They also told him of what his fate would be if he pursued this matter now or betrayed Darth Novus.
"I accept your will and truth as the truth then. What is my first mission?"
"You teach the younglings and the Dark Conclave's apprentices when we do not. This crystal contains what you'll be teaching them from now on." Darth Novus gave Darth Sage a data-crystal. Darth Sage nodded. The power Darth Novus now had over the lesser Sith Lord made him horny and lustful but he had never liked the male body in a sexual way. He did love the bodies of his female servants though and later on he would unleash his lust upon them. For now, he let go of Darth Sage's neck.
"We cannot be seen talking in public about any of this and my responsibilities do not align with yours… for now so you will receive my orders in the form of encrypted data-crystals. I will leave them in the location inside the crystal I just gave you." Darth Novus made to leave the Cave.
"How will I know to look for them?"
"Oh… I know a certain female youngling. She'll tell you when to look for them. No one will find it strange for one of your pupils to be talking to you." Darth Novus replied calmly without turning to face Darth Sage again.
"How do you know a youngling?" Darth Sage inquired surprised.
Darth Novus did not reply. He left the Cave walking away from the Valley of Dark Lords. He knew the youngling because she was the daughter of one of his servants. He had found the servant in a planet the Sith had raided. He had killed her husband who had tried to kill him in defense of his family. He had kept the wife as his servant. When he saw their daughter he immediately recognised her as a Force-Sensitive one. The Child had spent some time in their Life-Eradicator core to bring out the worst in her, her Darkest Side before turned over to the Sith Academy for training. Darth Novus had made sure this one was brainwashed to be loyal to him, she and a few other of the younglings. His methods varied from Force abilities to inventions of his he could and did use to various purposes.
Feeling rather pleased with how this affair had gone he walked up the Conclave building's steps slowly with purpose and self-confidence in his stride.
"Darth Novus, wait please." Darth Novus turned to the direction of the voice. He saw a young male slave approach him. He knew him to be Darth Solus' own personal body slave. While Darth Solus was now eighteen years old his body slave was just a few years older.
"Jura, why are you not by your Master's side? Or should I say… "in" his rear side?" Darth Novus mocked him. It was well known in Moraband what Darth Solus liked Jura for. The young adult was almost an imbecile but he had a great body and rumours had it a rather large dick. A dick Darth Solus apparently according to the same rumours loved to hate having up his ass. He would have, the rumours had it, Jura fuck him only to punish and torture the man after for being "an abomination of nature".
Darth Novus did not usually listen or cared for rumours but knowing Darth Solus as he did, from a younger age when Darth Insidious had lured him to the Dark Side and made him her apprentice, he was of the mind to believe these rumours about him and his body slave.
Jura was a tall, muscular oaf of a man who thought himself far more intelligent than he actually was. The man was a gay man's dream, if you had no expectation to form a conversation with him. He had a pleasing edged face and long crimson hair. The collar around his neck declared of his status amongst the Sith community.
"My Master has left for a mission. I was told to remain behind." Jura replied with his lips formed in a way as if he was smelling filth and was trying to avoid it. He considered himself higher in stature than Darth Novus even if Darth Novus was a Sith Lord in the Conclave just because he was serving the apprentice of the Sith Leader.
"I see, well you are usually told to be "behind" him aren't you?" Darth Novus had no problem with what those two were doing, he was only using it to achieve his goals and to irritate Jura who dared think himself better than him. "Going to eradicate life in Tython is he?" Darth Novus asked casually as if already in possession of the answer.
Jura's answer perplexed him. "No, he is going to Balmora."
"Ah, I see, well I suppose Darth Insidious knows best." Darth Novus replied hiding his surprise.
"Oh no, the Dark Lord Darth Insidious did in fact order the attack on Tython, to eradicate all life on it. My master knows better. He will kill the failed Sith'ari there and use it to elevate himself as the true Sith'ari and Dark Lord he is." Jura replied smugly unable to understand in his low intelligence how he had just revealed his Master's plans to one of his rivals in Sith Order.
"I see. Why do you disturb me then? A Sith Lord and your superior… in every way possible?" Darth Novus taunted Jura.
"I know what you are up to." Jura stated. Darth Novus remained emotionless.
"Of what you speak of? I have my fingers in many honeypots and projects."
"You are planning on betraying Darth Insidious. I have seen you scheme with Darth Sage and others." Darth Novus continued walking seemingly trying to reach the entrance of the Conclave building. He did not reply. He knew that for as long as he did not Jura would follow him. He walked them in silence to his chambers and ordered the servants out locking the doors behind him and Jura.
The moment the doors were locked from the inside he Force-pushed Jura back against the wall. He cared not of what the man knew or thought he knew, it was irrelevant. This confrontation had given him the perfect opportunity to further his plans against Darth Solus and he had been waiting for an opportunity for some months now.
He pulled Jura to him and started Force-strangling him. "You DARE blackmail a Sith Lord you impudent piece of shit slave?" Darth Novus pretended anger.
"Let… go… my… master… " Jura struggled to talk.
Darth Novus pulled him in closer cross slapping him roughly with his free hand. "You will pay dearly for this transgression slave." Darth Novus walked to his desk pulling Jura with him. He retrieved various items from one of the drawers. Jura could clearly not see what those items were. Darth Novus left the items on the desk and released Jura from the Force-choke. Jura fell to the floor coughing and holding his neck. Before he could catch his breath Darth Novus pulled on his hair bringing him to his knees.
Darth Novus tilted Jura's head to the left exposing the man's right ear to him. "You will now feel pain and discomfort of some magnitude and by the time I'm done I will be in complete control of you." Darth Novus declared. Before Jura could answer back Darth Novus pushed one of the items in his ear. Jura could not fully see what the item was but it looked like some kind of mechanical leach no larger than a few centimeters large. Pain exploded all over Jura's right ear. Inside it, outside it, all around it. Then Darth Novus tilted Jura's head to the right and repeated.
"I now can hear what you hear through my workstation." Darth Novus stated and continued by tilting Jura's head back. "Open your mouth, slave." Darth Novus commanded. Jura resisted which only rewarded him more pain as Darth Novus just cast more Force-Lightning through the hand holding Jura's hair.
Jura screamed his lungs out feeling pain penetrate every nerve ending from the top of his head to his toes. Screaming made him open his mouth. Darth Novus pushed something down his throat. It looked like a mechanical slug without a shell. Sage tried to scream again as the mechanical slug buried itself down his throat attaching itself onto Jura's vocal chords.
"I now can directly control what your speech." Darth Novus declared and bent Jura over the desk. Jura probably thought he was going to get raped but instead Darth Novus held his head and hands down binding them to the floor and held the final of the items he had retrieved from the desk drawer.
Darth Novus kneeled so he could hold it in front of Jura's eyes. "This, slave, is my latest invention. I've had it tested in animals so far and one or two Life-Eradication slaves after they had been completely drained so this makes you the first "official" test. This little squid like machine will take full control of your brain and central nervous system. You will do what I want, when I want you to, how I want you to. I will be in control what you hear and when you hear it. What you say and when you say it. I will control if you walk, if you breathe… if you have an erection or when or if you see, what you see and so on. It'll take twenty-four hours for the machine to take full control from you after that you are mine and the machine will stop you from doing anything I don't want you to do, say, hear, or tell. Seeing as your Master is away for more than a day you'll stay like this here." Darth Novus stood up and placed the mechanical squid on top of Jura's nape. The machine activated and dug its' tendrils into Jura's skin. Darth Novus kneeled back down lifting Jura's chin up with a smile on his lips.
"This, I can assure you will have you in excruciating pain until it finishes taking control from you. The more you resist the more it will hurt. Feel free to scream and wail all you want, in Moraband no one is going to care or try enter the private chambers of a Conclave Sith Lord to help you. You are alone, helpless and now belong to me. Happy suffering little slave." The truth was he didn't have to let Jura suffer but the slave had tried to blackmail him so Darth Novus was feeling far less charitable than he would feel otherwise.
Darth Novus stood up leaving the room. He headed for the lightsaber grounds where he knew his apprentice would be training.
Suddenly he stopped walking looking seemingly at the sky smiling wickedly. "Tern… you have three very serious problems heading your way, survive this and you may yet… end this."
Thousands of lightyears away Tern stopped meditating with a start.
"My Force-visions are becoming more and more strange. This one I suppose is of the present… " Tern thought. "Darth Novus… he felt a lot less dark than he thought he would feel. "… and you may yet end this… " does he mean end the war? Why would he want the Sith to lose?" Questions swarmed his mind as Tern tried to make sense of things. Eventually he cleared his mind and continued his meditation.
"So… you created "him" Master?"
"Yes, my apprentice. I no longer have any need of you." A scared, hooded man spoke. Tern recognised the other voice, it was Darth Insidious'. He guessed the male voice was Darth Insidious' Master, Darth Vitus.
They were in a dark lit laboratory without windows. It was easy to understand they were underground considering Tern knew the lab he had been created in had been built underground.
"You create this… thing to make the perfect host for you… to train him as your slave apprentice until he is mature enough to host your Force-Consciousness, you will then forever clone this adult body to cheat death. Such… shortsightedness It… he can become the real Sith'ari and restore what Darth Bane destroyed." Darth Insidious yelled at her Master.
"You foolish, stupid, idiot little girl… that is exactly what I'm planning to do… " Darth Vitus laughed maniacally. "I will grow him as my apprentice, remove his Consciousness with mine, make it look like "he" kills me and ascends to the Sith Conclave as the Leader when in truth it'll be me. Everyone will believe this one to be the Sith'ari and I will rule unchallenged with a host body created almost purely from the Dark Side of the Force. You have no idea of the power I will possess. Now it is time to die girl you have no further use to me." Darth Vitus powered up his lightsaber just as the lab's alarms started ringing.
"No, I think not old man. I have called some "allies". When the Jedi learned of your experiments, they were more than eager to shut you down. I just have to hold you off until they storm this place." Darth Vitus gave a roaring groan and attacked her. Tern "saw" the ferocious battle between them unfold as Master and apprentice started dealing lightsaber blows after lightsaber blows mixed with Force abilities Tern had not even heard of much less seen or thought possible. Darth Vitus looked like he would win the duel when a twin "replica" of Darth Insidious attacked him yielding dual blue lightsabers.
"Sister… please help me, this man seduced me to the Dark Side… I was wrong please help me." Tern had to admit Darth Insidious was a great actress. The three of them locked blades and the duel re-commenced.
Tern saw them battle it out until Darth Insidious attacked her Master making him lock his blade with hers. He Force-pushed her back which left him vulnerable from the Force-wave Darth Insidious' sister sent his way. He was sent flying back. He recovered and attacked her. She deflected his blade up, pirouetted around bringing one of her blades above her head just as he lowered his. She thrust her free hand backwards. Her lightsaber came out Darth Vitus' back. She pulled it out and pivoting around cut off his head with her now freed second hand and blade.
Darth Vitus' lifeless body fell to the laboratory's floor. Behind her came a chilling voice full of hatred. "Thank you sister, I could not have done this without you."
The vision was interrupted someone was shaking him awake. Tern opened his eyes to Alkon standing over him. "We have almost arrived in Balmora. It is time to discuss the plan of attack."
Tern nodded grimly. "Yes, and we have far less time than we thought."
"How come?" Alkon asked worried.
"I saw a vision… the three Life-Eradicator class Heavy Battlecruisers are not going to Tython as we thought… they are coming to Balmora."
"We were betrayed by that Sith "friend" of yours?"
"No, Cyra's son disobeyed his Master. He was ordered to go to Tython, instead he is coming here, somehow he knows I am going to be here. He is coming here to kill me."
"Oh goodie… no time to lose then."
"No, indeed." Alkon helped Tern to his feet and they left for the bridge.
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