The Greatest Sith... That Never Lived
Posted by: Darth Danno 11.15.06 12:01am
Previously:

• CHAPTER I: MEDITATION and REFLECTION

CHAPTER II: SEEKING THE SITH

The droid crashed to the floor amid a shower of sparks and severed limbs. It convulsed on the ground for a few moments before going silent. A slight puff of smoke wafted into the air from where the lightsaber had pierced its chestpiece, then its ocular receptor went dark. Vader stared down at the remains of the super battle droid, then turned and examined the charred hunks of metal that had, moments before, comprised the other 4 droids. Since the Trade Federation had been shut down. They had a large surplus of droid military which the Empire was only to happy to take off their hands, at a fraction of their true resale value. Most were just melted down and the scrap was shipped off to Sienar Fleet Systems to be used to help create the new Imperial armada. The super battle droids were spared and instead were reformatted and refitted with the appropriate components and hardware to become training droids. Some thought the magnaguards would prove more appropriate, but that idea was scrubbed due to cost effectiveness.

Vader glanced over at the timer on the training room wall and cursed silently to himself. This exercise took him a full five standard minutes longer than it had last week. The technicians in the room went about their work, entering data into computers, calibrating machinery, etc... No one dared look at him. It was almost as if they could feel his disgust, and that Vader would take his ire out on whomever was unlucky enough to cast a glance his way. Even though no one said a word, he knew news of this would reach the Emperor rather quickly, and he would not be pleased.

Lord Vader stormed out of the training room. He knew he should adjourn to his meditation chamber after the strenuous workout, but he had more important things on his mind. He was still plagued by thoughts of those two Sith Lords being mentioned so prominently, yet no other reference to them could be found. This had been bothering him now for the past two weeks. He knew it had to be an oversight on his part. He would just have to search harder.

So back down to the archives he went. He searched and searched, yet came up empty. How long had he been down here? He had lost all track of time. This was quickly turning into an obsession, and that wasn't good. Perhaps he should just ask Palpatine. Maybe he held some vital piece of information, a bit of knowledge that, when revealed, would make everything fall into place like pieces to a puzzle. Vader sat down in one of the overstuffed chairs and gathered his thoughts. His mind drifted to images of Korriban. He knew the training academy there had drawn many hopefuls back in its time. Beings from across the galaxy who felt the call of the Dark Side. Some succeeded, while most did not, and were never heard from again. They did not have what it took, be it weakness, compassion, whatever. They were unworthy of the mantle of "Dark Lord of the Sith". Surely there was no need to record the names of those who failed in their quest for greatness. Perhaps these two were powerful Jedi who defected, like Revan or Malek, who recognized their true calling. Maybe they were powerful Sith who betrayed the Dark Side and joined the Jedi in their hopeless cause. Perchance the force could aid him in his quest.

He quieted his thoughts and focused on his training, reaching out with the force, into the past. Seeking answers to the unanswered questions. All that greeted him was darkness. No visions or images entered his minds eye. Refusing to give up, he strengthened his resolve and fine tuned his focus. Then, he saw a light. Very faint at first, but it grew and sharpened until he beheld the image of a man, clad entirely in black robes, the dark hood obscuring his facial features. Whomever he was, he was completely engrossed in his lightsaber training. He blocked and parried with the skill of a true master. His crimson double bladed saber jabbing and slashing at his invisible foe. Vader had spent a great deal of time studying the forms of lightsaber combat, and could see this individual had a firm grasp on all seven styles. His transitions from one form to the next were flawless. This being was truly one with the Dark Side, letting it guide his actions, and also his reactions. It was not clear how old this individual was, but he couldn't have been a mere padawan and have mastered all the complexities of lightsaber combat, especially using a double bladed lightsaber. He even performed flips and jumps with grace, agility, and dexterity. Vader mused that he would be a formidable foe in combat. Much better than the Trade Federation refuse he was relegated to combat night after night.

Then the image was gone, vanished with the speed of a state of the art hyperdrive. The force had alerted him to something else. He was no longer alone...


Darth Danno