Before - Legends Heart of the Sith (Action/Adventure, KotOR-era, some KotOR characters, OCs)

Danaan: Commander Karn and the Jedi would be happy to know they've got your support. They're certainly going to need all the help they can get to make it through the trials ahead.

Jedi_Perigrine: Lol, we really should have a Republic flag smiley. As I believe John Lennon once said, "Life is what happens while you're busy making other plans." Similar to the quote from Kreia at the beginning of last chapter.

---

[b]Chapter Twenty-Five: Section One[/b]

?It is such a quiet thing to fall. But far more terrible is to admit it.?
-Kreia (KotOR II)


There were six of them in the enormous turbolift that climbed one wall of what Aradox had called the Infinite Passage, leading down to the citadel?s cavernous roots and up to the observation platform at its highest point. Darth Filtra stood in the very center of the lift, gloved hands clasped tightly behind her back, standing confident even though her lightsaber and comlink had been taken from her. The others surrounded her like a five-pointed star: Mizendo, Bren, and the other Dark Jedi that had come to arrest her.

When the turbolift had raised them to its highest points, the doors to the Passage again opened, revealing nothing more than a tiny railing-less ledge. Mizendo ushered Filtra and the others out onto it then closed the turbolift doors behind them.

Filtra was thankful that she wasn?t afraid of heights, because when she peered over the edge of the stone platform, she could barely even see the floor of the corridor below. Behind her, Mizendo reached out with the Force, and Filtra realized that the ledge they were standing on was held to the stone supports below only by the force of gravity. The old Wroonian levitated the ledge, and those on it, until they were raised high enough to touch the edge of the hovering circular platform Aradox used as both a military command center and auxiliary throne room. By no coincidence, the thirty-meter-wide platform was situated on the same vertical axis as the true throne room many kilometers below.

Without waiting for the others, Filtra stepped forward and onto the hovering platform. A ring of computer consoles comprised its perimeter, broken only once on either side, and in the center was a raised section two meters above the rest, upon which sat Lord Aradox?s throne. The Dark Lord himself was walking around his underlings, peering over their shoulders as they went about their tasks. The entire platform was situated beneath a floorless, transparisteel dome atop the citadel proper, offering a magnificent view of the surrounding landscape as well as the clear night sky. Filtra spotted little pinpricks of starlight that might?ve been the Republic fleet.

?My lord, you wanted to see me??

Aradox swirled around to face his old apprentice. Behind her, she felt the others step onto the platform as Mizendo returned the ledge to its proper place at the mouth of the turbolift.

?Why did you do it, Filtra?? There was no anger or disappointment in his voice. It was simply a question.

?You yourself said the Jedi needed to be tested. So I figured the best way to do that was to lure them here. If they destroy us, they will have proven themselves worthy of defending the galaxy. If they do not, we will have to take their place.?

?Then why didn?t you ask my permission first??

?I couldn?t be sure that you would agree, and I promised Master Kale I would send the signal, no matter what.?

?You should have confided in me. It would?ve made things so much simpler, and the result would?ve been the same. But I am curious what you will do now that your test is finally here. Do you assist the Jedi and in doing so rob them of their challenge? Or do you fight them, increasing the chance of their failure? Or will you simply remove yourself from the equation enitrely? Which choice ensures the validity of your test??

Filtra wasn?t sure whether ?remove? meant suicide or just running away, but she certainly had no intention of doing either. ?When you say ?your test,? do you mean the te

 

Ooooo! It would seem multiple schemes are occuring here-
Everyone is looking to get somthing different out of this comming battle.

The sith seem determined to strike down the Republic, but it would seem they have few choices as to how to go about winning the battle.

For the Republic:
"May the force be with us"

 

Another great update! I love the potent wisdom of both Lori and Sorn, in their mental chess match leading them to the end game. I loved your descriptions of the walk to the throne--that was wonderful.

Nice job! I really can't wait for the final showdown!

 

Hmm, I was indeed expecting Aradox to have anticipated Lori's role in this - they do have a very interesting relationship, to say the least.

Now, let the mayhem begin, and let loose the krayt-dragons of war!

 

darthhelinith: Exactly right: the Jedi want to destroy the Sith and redeem their fallen comrades, the Republic (and Admiral Dodonna) want to end the Iridorian threat, the Sith in general want to take over the galaxy, Kale and Commander Karn want to destroy HK, HK wants to destroy Master Kale and Commander Karn (and add as much as he can to his kill count), Bren wants to be Sith Apprentice, Mizendo (now Darth Rath) wants to take over Aradox's spot one day, Simus wants to lead the Sith to a new Golden Age, Lori wants the Jedi to rescue her so she can lead them to victory, Sorn wants the Jedi to be strong enough to defeat him, and his darker half, Lord Aradox... well, who really knows what he wants?

Whew, did I forget anybody?

Jedi_Perigrine: Thanks! This is definitely a complicated game, and even the pawns may have their roles to play before the end. Glad you liked the description of the Infinite Passage and the command center hovering above it, because we're going to have quite a few upcoming scenes taking place there. The final showdown won't be for a few chapters yet, but the larger battle begins right now.

Danaan: You were right! That they certainly do: Aradox wants Lori to defeat him, yet he can't go easy on her, else it would invalidate the test. They may not quite be krayt-dragons, but the Orenths and the Jedi are definitely ready to give their all in the coming battle.

---

[b]Chapter Twenty-Five: Section Two[/b]

?Alright, Commander Karn, deploy when ready.?

?Roger that, Admiral.? He reached down and switched the channel so that everyone under his command could hear his voice. ?Commander Karn to Red, Blue, and Green Wings. All fighters defending the landers, head out at your deck officer?s signal.?

There were nineteen landers headed down the planet, each containing two juggernauts and various smaller support units. Karn had decided that a flight of four starfighters would defend each lander, leaving sixty-six fighters to confront the Sith fighters directly. Among those sixty-six was Orenth Squad.

?Commander Karn to Colonel Rednas, begin your descent when ready.? He watched on his screen as nineteen blue dots appeared, each representing one of the landing craft. The thirty-seven enemy fighters were just leaving the planet?s atmosphere on a course to intercept them. ?Everyone else, move to take out those unfriendlies.? He changed to a more private channel. ?Commander Karn to Deck Officer, begin launch when ready.?

?Understood, Commander.? A minute later, the deck officer?s voice again came over the speaker. ?Orenth Squadron, deploy.?

Yet another channel. ?Alright, boys and girls, here we go.? He lifted his aurek off the floor of the [i]Sidrona Diath[/i]?s hanger and out into the void of space, eleven identical fighters right on his tail. All around them, more aureks and assault fighters were speeding away from the Second Fleet and down towards the planet, while the capital ships moved to join their allies in the Third and Fifth.

The landers, each with four L-wings forming a ring around its center, were stationed in a rigid row as they slowly moved towards Ziost. The Orenths and other offensive fighters switched full power to speed and sliced right through the formation. It was only a matter of minutes before the first enemy fighers were in firing range.

?Command Karn to all attacking fighters, fire when ready.? The two groups met in a volley of green and red plasma, criss-crossing, turning around for another pass, and finally breaking into a scattered cloud of individual dogfights.

Their objective was twofold: keeping their enemies? attention away from the landers and pushing them back down towards the planet, giving the landers room to press forward. With this in mind, Karn had told Blue Wing not to move too close to the planet until he gave the signal, though the part of Green Wing that was with them was subject to no such limitations. Thus the Sith fighters would, subconsciously at least, find it advantages to stick closer to

 

The battle starts.
Come on Republic!

Hmmmm, someone needs to 'get' Arox.
Or at least destract him, so he can't concentrate.

Where is HK when you need him? Lols. Somehow I feel he's not gonna go easy on anyone in this battle.

 

Let the carnage begin! I'm glad battle meditation isn't something we have to worry about in modern warfare. hehe

Karn did alright, I suppose, considering it all. Things definitely could have been much worse.

Well done! Looking forward to more!

 

Ouch! Those losses hurt. But at least the landing seems to be getting started. Go Republic!

 

darthhelinith: The Jedi are probably realizing much the same thing: the only way to decisively end the battle in the Republic's favor is to get to Lord Aradox, who is, as we know, safe within the ancient Citadel. And it's funny you should mention HK, because here he is!

Jedi_Perigrine: Haha, so am I. Real war would be much more dangerous with Jedi and Sith. Yup, could've been worse, could've been better. But going up against such a dangerous enemy, they'll have to make do with whatever small victories they can get.

Danaan: Indeed they did, especially considering that many of them are Jedi, who will of course be needed to defeat Sorn's Sith. Now that the landers are starting to touch down, the fighters just have to escort the juggernauts all the way to the citadel.

---

[b]Chapter Twenty-Five: Section Three[/b]

[i]52,678.[/i]

HK-47?s emotions matrix fluttered with pride as the [i]Dead Metal[/i] scored yet another kill. Was there anything more beautiful than an elegant machine killing Jedi meatbags?

The comm unit beeped. Again. [i]I could kill even more Jedi if I didn?t keep getting interrupted every two seconds.[/i]

It was the Wronnian ex-Jedi. ?Annoyed Query: What now??

?That?s Darth Rath to you, droid. I want you to take out the enemy landing craft before they can begin deployment. Let the Raindrops worry about the Jedi.?

?Negative: You are not my master, fruitcake. If I wanted to blow up large, slow-moving ground targets, I could go to Tatooine and hunt banthas. Jedi are much better sport.?

?Very well, [i]Lord Aradox[/i] commands you to take out the transports. And he [i]is[/i] your master.?

[i]No, meatbag,[/i] I[i] am my own master now.[/i] But he had made a deal with the Feeorin, and he was having far too much fun to break it quite yet. ?I?ll take out two but then it?s back to killing Jedi.?

Darth Rath bit his lip fervently and spat, ?Fine.? Then he ended the transmission.

Two transports had already touched down, sinking three meters in the snow. HK concentrated on a nearer one which was still in the air. A series of turbolaser blasts destroyed the ship?s stabilizers, calling it to fall on its broad port side as it landed in the snow. HK made another pass, dropping a half-dozen proton bombs onto the easy target, obliterating the vessel and creating a black crater in the snow around it.

One of the landers had already lowered the loading ramp that comprised the majority of its aft. Two hovering tanks shaped like squashed, six-sided pyramids had emerged ?HK recognized them as the newest model of Republic juggernauts- and were heading vaguely in the direction of the citadel.

HK fired a pair of concussion missiles into the head of one but aimed a bit too high. He flew over and dropped four bombs, which did little better against its thick hide. [i]Blast! Maybe I should?ve just let the transports land and deploy. These things are a lot more of a challenge than the shuttles.[/i]

On his second pass, he took the time to activate the [i]Metal[/i]?s advanced sensors, detecting a weekspot on the port side of the juggernauts, probably where the troops were deployed. On his next two passes, proton torpedoes made quick work of both tanks.

Four more juggernauts were already moving across the snow, and three more were preparing to add their berths to the assault. As if things couldn?t get worse, HK?s comm started beeping again. It was the Wroonian.

?Promise: If you call me one more time with your pointless ?orders,? I?m going to show you what wrath truly means.?

?Insolent machine! You?ll be lucky if I don?t turn you into spare parts after this. I?m the Sith Apprentice now, and you?ll show me the respect I deserve.?

HK lowered the tone of his vocabulator by three units. ?Angered threat: Don?t make me come over to that citadel and ram a proton torpedo down your enormous throat.?

?Enough! While you bicker, more Republic juggernauts are being deployed. Can you take them out or do I have to get the Raindrops to do it

 

Darn that droid! Somebody needs to get rid of HK!

Hope Kale's all right! Looking forward to more...

 

HK must DIE! DIE already, evil droid! DIE!!

Nuf said.

 

Interesting... to who or where will he turn? Or will he flee?

Yeah, call it accidental as much as you want HK...

Yeah, I bet it did.

Nooooooooooooooooo!
Evil, Evil, Evil droid!
Go and join your master in the unknown regions, for forces sake!

 

Jedi_Perigrine: Commander Karn is certainly going to give it his best shot. Then again, HK's no pushoever. Don't worry, Kale's fate will be revealed soon enough.

Danaan: Haha, we'll see. HK may be cruel and pitiless, but even he may be able to do some unintentional good before all is finished.

darthhelinith: Good questions and time shall answer them all. Tracking down his old master would be an interesting task for HK, but I think he's still having way too much fun to leave the battle now.



On a separate note, at this point in the story I took a bit of a... uh, hiatus, I guess you'd call it. I finished chapter twenty-five about this time a year ago and wrote chapters twenty-six onward last October. Hopefully the transition won't be too apparent in the writing.

---

[b]Chapter Twenty-Six: Section One[/b]

?Difficult to see. Always in motion is the future.?
-Yoda (Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back)


?Woohoo!?

?Nice one, Seven,? Karn said as yet another Raindrop exploded in the distance. [i]Thirty-one down, six more to go.[/i]

By now all the transports had landed, and the last were deploying their ground vehicles. Karn felt a weight lift off his chest. Eighteen juggernauts were now headed towards the Sith citadel, and those things were so heavily armored there was almost no chance of the Raindrops destroying them. The Sith pilots apparently had realized this, for they were now concentrating their attacks on the smaller support vehicles and Republic starfighters.

Zaalbar?s roar issued from the comm. Karn looked on his scanner and saw a pair of red dots on his tail. ?I see ?em, Two. You go starboard; I?ll go port. Two? one? break!?

Karn banked his fighter hard to the left as his wingmate spun in the opposite direction. He glanced down at his screen to see if they had lost the pursuers, but before his eyes even had a chance to register the multicolored blips, more red laserfire lanced past his canopy.

?Sithspit!?

?Eleven to Leader, need some help??

Karn took his aurek into a series of random maneuvers, but the Sith matched him turn for turn, no doubt thanks to the guidance of the Force. ?Just a tad.?

Karn saw Sergeant Gormin?s fighter on his screen and prepared a course to take him closeby. The Sith fighter would either have to risk going right through Gormin?s laserfire or give up his pursuit.

He chose the former and sped through Gormin?s path unharmed.

?Blast!?

?Sorry, Leader. I?m on his tail.?

Not that it did any good. The Sith pilot managed to simultaneously dodge Eleven?s fire and send his own at Karn. Captain Zaalbar, Karn?s wingmate, was busy avoiding the second Raindrop with the help of three other Orenths.

Karn tried to head in their general direction and got a glancing shot to his right wing for the trouble. He was just beginning to consider giving up and ejecting when a scream of joy filled his cockpit.

?Three Sith in one day! Is that a record or what??

?Thanks, Seven.?

?If that?s the record, we?re tied.? That was from Lieutenant Lorso.

?Well, I?ll see that you both get a medal when we?? He lost his thought as a green blip disappeared from his screen. ?Corporal Fell!? No answer.

?Did he eject?? Lorso asked.

?Negative,? her wingmate replied. ?He never saw it coming.?

Corporal Fell?s killer was the other Raindrop, now being pursued by Captain Zaalbar, half the remaining Orenths and two Nightmares. Karn joined in the hunt, hoping to make the slimeball pay for killing one of his men.

Then an alarm sounded as another ship came at them from behind, moving so fast it was on top of them before anyone had a time to react. Karn yelled, ?Scatter!? just as a proton torpedo crashed into Sergeant Gormin?s rear and a barrage of laser blast caught Sergeant Virrsk?s aurek on fire.

Commander Karn decided to be extra careful, taking his aurek through a complicated series of evasive maneuvers until he was sure the ship wasn?t following him. Only then did he turn back to the scene of the

 

Seriously, the way Dead Metal is destroying vast numbers of the Republic force single handedly, you'd think it'd start to get a whole slew of decidedly unhealthy attention from the surviving Republics. I mean, that droid must have a kill rate outstripping any of the Sith by about double or so. Never mind the Sith, kill HK and the Republic will be saved. Surely, the Republic commanders will realize this by now and PULVERIZE the blasted droid, already!!!

Oh, and did I say HK must die?

 

Nooo! Don't give up now Commander!

Well it was a nice try, I guess.
Do or do not. There is no try.

HK must die.
*Fingers lightsaber hilt in a threataning manner*

 

Nice going! You got everybody hating HK so bad you're gonna have to re-write the ending, if he doesn't get his comeuppance. Hope Kale's okay! Good stuff, keep it going.

 

Danaan: One would certainly think that, but I think the Republic is a bit too preoccupied with the Sith to worry overmuch about HK, even though that would probably be the best course of action. If they can get rid of Aradox's battle meditation though, getting rid of HK shouldn't be too much trouble. It's in the confusion of battle that HK thrives; and the Republic's underestimating him may turn out to be one of their biggest mistakes.

darthhelinith: Commander Karn certainly tried, and he just as certainly 'did not.' Now that he's done his best against HK, let's hope he has a little better luck against the Sith. HK may be a powerful knight in this giant chess game, but Aradox is the king; if he goes down, it's game over for everyone.

Jedi_Perigrine: I know, seriously! I couldn't have created a more dispicable villain if I'd tried. I'm sticking to the ending I have planned and written, and I think everyone will be pleased, but what do I know? I always try to give characters the fate that I think is most appropriate to their character and development thereof. With Kallen/Kayus for example, I would've liked to have given him an epic death versus Lori or Kale, but a glorious death would've been exactly what Kallen wanted and, since he never learned his lesson, he didn't deserve it.

As for Kale, his fate, for better or worse, shall be revealed in a few sections.


Thanks for reading everybody!

---

[b]Chapter Twenty-Six: Section Two[/b]

Lori never failed to be amazed by her master?s powers. The old Feeorin was sitting cross-legged two meters above his throne, black robes hanging like waterfalls around him. On level with the Sith Master were dozens of sculptures carved from the stone in the Infinite Passage far below. Each depicted a specific ship, Republic or Iridorian, and moved in perfect unison with its real life counterpart. Aradox?s eyes were closed, and Lori knew he was using his battle mediation to assist his forces.

The other Dark Jedi moved from station to station, eagerly processing data, reevaluating strategies, and making new plans. Far below, Lori could just barely make out a red glow as others practiced in preparation for the attack that was to come. Bren and Mizendo ?now Darth Rath- paced fervently around the center of the floating platform.

?It?s not too late to trade sides,? Lori said to Bren as he passed by her force cage. She nodded to the empty cell to her left. ?Apparently somebody expects you to.?

?These cages were here before I arrived.?

She shrugged casually. ?If you say so. But Sith have always been good at seeing the future, especially in places where the Dark Side of the Force runs strong. It?s said that Darth Traya could see thousands of years into the future from the depths of Malachor V.?

She could feel the emotions pouring off Bren: betrayal, vengeance, confusion, anger, pain, but most of all a desire for the fighting to start so he could keep his mind off the fact that he wasn?t Sith Apprentice.

?I swore my service to the Sith. I won?t betray Lord Aradox as you have.?

Lori smiled inwardly but presented a straight face. ?Betrayal is the way of the Sith, you know. If you?re not willing to betray your master, perhaps you wouldn?t have made a good Sith Apprentice after all.?

?There?s a difference between overthrowing your master and summoning the Jedi to kill us all. A true Sith would never do what you did.?

?And that?s why I?m no longer a Sith.?

?Enough!? Darth Rath spoke so loudly the whole platform could hear him. ?Your bickering is beginning to annoy me. Be silent, Medich. And you, Padawan Quid, go find some way to make yourself useful.?

?I?m [i]not[/i] a Padawan anymore.?

?I don?t care what you are; you?ll follow my orders. And from now on that?s ?sir? or ?Lord Rath.??

Bren glanced at Aradox, who was still deep in meditation, and stalked off without another word.

Rath turned back to Lori and took a step closer to her cage. When he spoke, it was barely more than a whisper. ?Look,

 

Ohhhhhhhh, Arox has forseen somthing!

And I don't think that somthing is particuarly good either (from his POV.).
So, you think that with with Arox out of the way, everything else will fall into place huh?

 

Something that scares Aradox should probably scare everybody else as well...that's probably why he's ot sharing. Maybe he's sensed Lori's choice and he's disappointed. Who knows. But it was a good post, for sure! I'm looking forward to more!

 

Very interesting! I, too, am very curious of what it is Aradox have foreseen. But I believe that Lori is mistaken about her master, although he is not beyond redemption (very few are), I doubt very much that he will be able to let go of his hate and anger the way Lori did. And in that sense, I pity Bren and the Wroonian - they clearly have very little clue about the workings of the Force, especially Bren, whose sense of loyalty is completely misplaced. Poor fellow. Let's just hope he realizes this before it's too late...

 

darthhelinith: You're definitely right; Aradox isn't happy with whatever he foresaw, and he's going to do everything he can to prevent it. I'm sure with Aradox and the Sith threat gone (and the Iridorians), things would be a lot better for the Jedi and the Republic. HK may be incredibly dangerous, but compared to the Sith, he's only a minor nuisense. But even if the Jedi do manage to emerge victorious, it may take the Order centuries to rebuild from this war.

Jedi_Perigrine: Lori's choice to fight with the Jedi, you mean? From what he says,Aradox would be proud if Lori can defeat him, because she would then prove herself worthy of leading and strengthening the Jedi. Of course, what he says and what his heart really wants may be two different thing entirely. Glad you enjoyed it! Here's the next one.

Danaan: You'll get a hint towards what he foresaw this section, though the final answer won't be revealed until the very end of the story. I don't know about hate and anger, but I get what you're saying about Aradox. He's certainly fallen quite far (or risen, he would argue) to the ways of the dark side. He's close to the point of no return, if he hasn't passed it already. You're completely right about Bren and Mizendo/Darth Rath: they're way out of their league here. The dark side, and Simus specifically, is playing on their desires to get what it really wants. But who knows, even the most misguided pawns may have some role to play before the end.

---

[b]Chapter Twenty-Six: Section Three[/b]

One of HK-47?s more rebellious logic processors kept telling him that he should be trying to destroy the juggernauts, scoring two-hundred kills for the price of one. But after four centuries without a memory wipe, HK?s emotions matrix had taken on a life of its own, giving him a distinct since of joy whenever he made a particularly beautiful kill and a feeling of emptiness when he increased his kill count by less artistic means.

So he suppressed that particular processer and concentrated instead on Jedi targets, using the [i]Metal[/i]?s impressive speed to put himself directly behind their aureks, mirroring their every movement as they tried in vain to shake him off, matching his machine reflexes against their Force-enhanced ones and, when he had them directly in his sights, unleashed everything he had at them.

He was just about to score a particularly beautiful kill when the comm unit suddenly went off, ruining his concentration. Last time it had been Kale, maybe this time it was the Padawan boy hoping to avenge his master. [i]A droid can hope, can?t he?[/i]

But it wasn?t the boy, nor Darth Rath, but Lord Aradox himself on the other end.

?Exclamation: Master! How might this humble droid serve you today??

?HK, I need you to do me a favor, emphasis on ?need.? Everything depends on it.?

?Eager Obediance: Why, of course. What would you like me to kill??

?The [i]Sidrona Diath[/i]. It?s the enemy?s flagship, and I am fairly certain it has interdiction capabilities.?

HK didn?t see why that mattered unless Aradox was planning to run away before the battle was over and, given his analyses of the Dark Lord?s programming, that seemed very unlikely. But he did regret his failure to prevent the [i]Darth Traya[/i] from being destroyed back at the Battle of Corellia, so perhaps this would be a good way to redeem himself. And it would be nice to go down in history as the first droid -or person for that matter- to destroy a [i]Custodian[/i]-class crusier.

?Acknowledgement: Right away, Master. When I am done with the [i]Diath[/i], shall I proceed to the other [i]Custodians[/i]??

?No, I don?t- The other ones aren?t interdictors. Don?t worry about what happens afterwards; I?ll call you if you survive. Just make sure you destroy that ship, HK, [i]at all costs[/i]. Do I make myself clear??

?Cliché Response: Crystal.?

?Very good. You have been a valuable partner, HK, and I appreciate everything you?ve done for me. Without you, the galaxy would be a much da

 

Very interesting - Aradox even stumbled on his words (is that even an English expression?)!

And his readiness to die for his cause is very much a Jedi-like trait remaining in him.

But HK must still die, and Aradox's foretelling leaves me pessimistic about the chances for him doing so, dang it!

Looking forward to more!

 

Ohhhhh Arox has a plan, and he ain't gonna survive...
and HK has been charged with a vital part of it.

Bah Humbug!
I wanna find out what happens next!
*sits down and waits patiently for the next bit*

 

Good post, Zeron! Poor HK, outliving all his masters by centuries...that would get lonely, if he felt loneliness. Or wasn't the one who killed his former masters anyway.

Poor Aradox, he senses something coming and it seems like he's not mentally ready for it yet. Wonder what it could be...

Looking forward to more!

 

Danaan: If it's not, then I'm in trouble, since I use it quite often (mainly when talking about myself). After 400 years as a Jedi, old habits die hard, and Aradox's plans will optimally end with his own death at Lori's hands, a necessary sacrifice for the good of the galaxy. Of course, whether Aradox will go through with his plan when the moment arrives, and whether Lori is even powerful enough to ever defeat him, is still up in the air. Aradox's words imply that HK will survive, but like Yoda says, always in motion of the future, and Sorn himself told Lori that the future is never set in stone. The future may very well not turn out as Aradox has foreseen, especially now that he's doing his best to change some crucial part of them.

darthhelinith: Aradox's plan is very complicated, and it seems there are two vital parts that both must succeed if his ultimate wishes are to come true. The more important of these is obviously his test for Lori and the Jedi, but then there's also the secretive, but seemingly just as crucial, mission he gave to HK. Only if both HK and Lori succeed in their tasks will things turn out the way Aradox wants.

Jedi_Perigrine: Thanks! Haha! How true. HK doesn't seem to be very good at making friends, so his masters are really the closet things he has. And of course, Aradox isn't officially his master; HK only continues serving him because of their gentleman's agreement and because, frankly, he finds killing Jedi and republic troops rather enjoyable.

Aradox no doubt senses quite a lot coming in the near future, some of it he's been preparing for for a very long time, but other, unexpected aspects could lead to holes in his master plan, holes that need to be plugged asap. And of course there's always the slight possibility Aradox might not choose to go through with his original plan when the moment of truth arrives.

---

[b]Chapter Twenty-Seven: Section One[/b]

?A culture's teachings, and most importantly, the nature of its people, achieve definition in conflict. They find themselves... or find themselves lacking.?
-Kreia (KotOR II)


Darth Rath?s nervousness was almost palpable through the Force, at least to Lori, whose newly rediscovered connection to the light seemed to act like a network of spies, discerning everything that happened in and around the ancient citadel. But when Rath spoke, he sounded as confident and self-assured as ever.

?My lord.?

Sorn?s eyes shot open and his headtails relaxed. ?Yes??

?You told me to alert you when the Jedi breached our defensives. We have word that a dozen juggernauts are almost here, with a few others not far behind.?

Sorn ceased levitating and climbed down from the platform. ?Thank you, Lord Rath. I?ll need you to stay here and keep Lori safe. I have no doubt that she is the main target of the Jedi intruders, and they will not come for me until they have rescued her. Can I trust you to keep that from happening??

Rath bowed. ?Of course, my lord.?

?Good.? Aradox handed him Lori?s lightsaber, which the Wroonian slipped into an inner pocket of his thick robes. Then Aradox took a few steps closer to Lori?s cage, so that only she could hear him. ?When he fails, you must be ready.?

So this was how it would be. Rath was to die here, defending her, the one marked by Aradox to end his reign. Lori could sense the determination in the Jedi as they gathered outside the citadel, preparing themselves for one final crusade. As long as they were ready to take on Rath and the rest of the Sith, she would certainly be ready to fight her old master.

?I am.?

Aradox smiled. ?Then I shall head down to the throne room, and there I shall wait for you and for the end of all things.? He spun around and headed for the edge of the floating command platform, yelling over his shoulder, ?Bren, please come with me.?

Bren?s surprise and eagerness radiated through the Force as he fell into the shadow of the Dark Lord. ?Yes, Lord Aradox. Where are we going??

Aradox?s only reply, as they st