[fic] Star Wars KOTOR:The Star Map

kookaburra · October 20, 2005

Hello! how are you all? well this is my first fan fic I posted to this KOTOR forum.I dearly love KOTOR more then you can possibly imagine.It was the original KOTOR that got me hooked in the first place.I love the original characters so much that I write fan fics about them. I am a LSM Revan fan, I also love the characters of Bastila Shan and Carth Onasi.Any ways this story is about Jedi knight Revan and his desend to the dark side.Also I would really appreciate any consructive feedback to help me strengthen my work. any advice on how to fix up any mistakes in this story is also most welcome.

Cheero

-Kookaburra

Revan and Malak have found a special artefact that will eventually lead them to the Star Forge. However, as Revan and Malak dig for the secrets of the first Star Map while trying to defeat the Mandalorian leader, the secrets that they found on Dantooine will eventually completely turn the two heroes to the Dark side…

DANTOOINE

Revan lay restlessly on his bed in his barely lit room inside the Jedi Academy. He was in deep concentration trying to control his thoughts from the past few days what had happened rubbing his short brown hair as if it helped him to concentrate. However, nothing could control it. He and Malak had found something, something that no other Jedi had discovered.

His senses told him, their mysterious discovery was somehow very special. What they had found was an ancient artefact, with an enormous amount of power coursing though it, dark side energy. Not even the Jedi Masters of the Academy here on Dantooine had discovered it, Revan thought to himself. He and Malak were the first ones to find it.

A couple of nights ago he and Malak stealthily snuck out of their beds to visit this artefact. They were quite fascinated about it and wanted to gain as much knowledge about it as possible. Revan was determined to learn as much as he could and went to the Jedi Library in the academy to try to find some information about the mysterious artefact they had discovered; but to Revan’s surprise there was nothing in the great Jedi archives about this strange and wonderful artefact. Revan wanted to try to discover the information himself.

Malak entered the room, which the two young Jedi shared. A relatively tall man, with about the same medium build as Revan, but unlike him, Malak was bald. The two were roommates and good friends. Revan and Malak were inseparable, always in support of one another. Revan was the most charismatic of the pair, making him very popular and well respected by the Jedi in the Academy.

“We must sneak out tonight, Malak, we have to know what this artefact is,” explained Revan.

“I agree, Revan, I’m sure we can find out what it is,” replied Malak as he sat on his bed.

“We cannot let anyone know about this, Malak, not even the Jedi Masters,” said Revan as he stood up and began pacing back and forth, “If they find out, they would surely expel us from the Jedi Order.”

“The secret is only between you and me, Revan,” Malak promised. Revan stopped and looked at him; he knew he could trust his best friend.

It was late afternoon on Dantooine; Revan and Malak had finished their Jedi training a few hours ago. They had both decided that they would sneak out when all the Jedi Academy’s lights were out. The two would spend the entire night in the strange ruins and learn more about this ancient artefact. However, Revan knew he would have to be back before sunrise for his Jedi training, or else his Masters would get suspicious.

During his training sessions, Revan would always finish first. He would always complete the trials in half the time that it took the other Padawan students. The Masters knew Revan was incredibly strong in the Force and was quite easily the most gifted out of all the Padawans. A few students were jealous of Revan’s abilities but the majority of the Padawans admired him. They would, more often than not look up at him as their leader. Revan was extremely intelligent and could always come up with solutions to problems that his peers were having.

“Malak, I need to get some rest, we sneak out tonight,” ordered Raven, as he climbed into his bed.

Malak went over to his bunk; he was tired from his Jedi training too. He had worked hard at becoming the second best Padawan in the Jedi Academy, though Malak still could not keep up with Revan’s amazing progression.

“I agree Revan, I will rest now too,” Malak answered as he lay on his bed.

“Good, you do that, Malak, we will need the rest. I will wake you when it is time to go.”

Malak closed his eyes and drifted off into a deep sleep. It had being a long day for him.

Late evening- Dantooine Time.

All the lights were out in the Jedi Academy, darkness filled the hallways and corridors, and no one was around to be seen. There were noises of the wind and the Kath hounds howling. The night sky was as clear as it could be, a full moon was shining very brightly, and the stars were shining to their fullest. Anyone who was up could have seen the entire Dantooine landscape under the moonlight’s full illumination.

Revan crept quietly toward Malak who was fast asleep, he was careful not to make any loud noise, so as not to disturb the sleep of anyone in the Academy. By this time of the night, all the Jedi Masters would be asleep because they had to be prepared for the next day to teach their Padawans.

“Malak, wake up,” whispered Revan, softly into Malak’s ear.

Revan began to shake him. Malak stirred stubbornly, and then began to turn slowly. Revan appeared over him. He could see that Revan was wide-awake and already dressed in his Jedi uniform and he had his lightsaber clipped on his belt; Revan was ready to go.

“Quickly get dressed Malak, we are spending the rest of the night in the Dantooine ruins where we discovered the artefact,” ordered Revan as he put what belongings he needed into his backpack, “bring a sleeping bag and a pillow, and help me carry these books, they could help us in acquiring what knowledge we can about our discovery.”

Malak was still half-asleep, but eventually got up and slowly got dressed into his Jedi uniform and clipped his lightsabre onto his belt. He gathered up all the books that Revan had borrowed from the Jedi library earlier that had pictures on the pages that resembled closest to the artefact that they were looking for.

“Let’s go Malak,” ordered Revan again.

“I’m coming, Revan.”

Revan and Malak silently climbed through their dorm window, which Revan had purposely left open so he and Malak could get through Revan jumped down from the window to the ground first, then it was Malak’s turn, neither one not making a sound, he then followed behind Revan.

They both were cautious and made sure that no one was around and quietly made their way to the exit to the enclave. Once there, they quickly dashed toward the Dantooine Plains, which were just all grasslands and farms owned by farmers and settlers. They would have to be cautious of dangerous animals in the grasslands.

Revan didn’t need a torch; through the Force, and the full moon’s glow, which was shining down brightly on the ground, they could make out the path that they were taking towards their desired destination.

“I believe it’s this way, Malak,” announced Revan, with full confidence.

“Ok Revan, you lead on,” Malak slowly replied. Revan was always leader, he thought to himself.

Malak knew his best friend had the ability to lead very well. Malak could tell that Revan would indeed one day make a great Jedi leader, given the situation; he could lead an army of Jedi and the Republic to any victory. He could sense that Revan was indeed very strong in the Force and his abilities in the force were by far stronger than Malak’s. Revan was so quick at learning and a mastermind, but on occasion Revan would get impatient at their Jedi trials because everyone was moving too slowly for him, including the Jedi Masters who could always some how calm the quick-minded Jedi Padawan.

After a relatively short travel, Revan and Malak finally arrived at their destination. The pair stood out side of a great temple ruin; it was covered by thick vines and was well hidden from sight. A massive door was in front of Revan and Malak, it was the only entrance to the temple that they knew, and for its size it was quite well concealed. They had made it back here; this is where they were going to study the fascinating artefact that they discovered. Revan’s curiosity had taken control of his thoughts, he was thirsty for knowledge.

In the centre of the entranceway was a large seal that kept the doors closed, but this was not going to stop Revan. He pushed the seal in and opened the doors to this temple enclave. It was very dark inside and nothing could be seen. Visually blind through the darkness, Revan and Malak together turned on their torches. Walking slowly around the first room of this mysterious temple, they shone their torches on the walls, trying to find inscriptions or any sort of sources to help their understanding, but all they could see were the walls of grey bricks and some fallen walls scattered on the ground of the enormous room. Revan could feel some sort of power he had felt before, but different. This power he felt within this place felt so intoxicating and he didn’t understand it; it was calling out to him and Malak, it felt strong.

“Do you feel that Malak?” asked Revan.

“Yes I do Revan,” replied Malak.

“What ever we are feeling, it wasn’t as strong before, when we first came here,” Revan explained as he started moving further into the large room.

“It feels strange even, whatever it is, almost as if it’s calling to out our names,” said Malak nervously.

“The artefact must be through that doorway,” Revan announced confidently. He was pointing to the door in front of him. There were two other doors next to the one that Revan and Malak were heading towards. Revan could feel the artefact’s power, a power that he did not understand. He could sense the artifact through the force. They opened the door and instantly knew they found what they had come for. Malak was surprised by Revan’s perfect sense of direction using the force.

“Revan! The force is with you, it seems to be guiding you here,” Malak shouted excitedly.

“I believe so,” replied Revan, who was just as surprised.

“Well Revan, Your strength within the force, has led us right where we needed to go,” Malak said as he walked around the ancient artefact.

“I can’t help it Malak, I feel connected to this thing, whatever it is,” Revan said as he moved in for a closer inspection, “we just have to get it open some how.”

Revan looked around the strange contraption. It was truly wonderful; it was shaped like a flower before its bloom, and was quite smooth to touch for something this old. He shone his torch and looked all over to find a way to open it, but the old metal artefact had no buttons or levers that he could see. Revan had to find out about it, he had to get it open. Malak was just looking around the dark room for anything he could find. Revan turned away from the artefact and back to Malak.

“Malak you stay here and set up our beds, I’m going to explore the next two rooms,” Revan ordered, and Malak nodded in agreement.

Revan left the room where Malak and the contraption were and continued to go into the middle room and looking around fascinated with the temple’s architecture, which was very old, like nothing he had ever seen.

Once inside the middle section of the temple, Revan looked around and found another two more doors leading to rooms he could not see before in the darkness. One was to the left and the other one was to the right. Revan concentrated his senses and decided to take the one to the right. With caution, he opened the door, and entered the room. Again, it was like the other rooms, but this time with scraps of metal scattered across the floor. Revan shone his torch ahead, he continued walking, concentrating through the force to heighten his senses Suddenly something caught his eye ahead of him, something he couldn’t make out from that distance, and he began to walk towards it. As Revan got closer to the object, it started to take shape; Revan could work out that it was some strange computer terminal, with inscriptions that he could not understand, it was not in plain Basic, but in some strange alien language. A language Revan had never seen before.

Revan was absolutely fascinated by the terminal; there were strange buttons on it, and the console was not on. Revan decided to experiment with it, not sure if even worked still.

He pushed one button; suddenly the console came to life, with the screen flashing on and lights glowing around the buttons. Revan was startled and staggered backwards; when he regained his composure, he began to study the fascinating markings on the console. On the screen, it was displaying that same strange alien language that Revan had never seen before. After a few moments of studying the console, Revan discovered a drive, and instinctively remembered that he brought his data pad with him. If his data pad fit into the drive, he might be able to decipher the text and translate it back to Basic. He entered his data pad into the computer terminal. The computer started to make strange noises like buzzing sounds and the screen started flickering, Revan watched anxiously; a few minutes later, the screen flicked a final time and the strange language on the console was now translated into Basic. Relieved that his plan worked, Revan took a deep breath, and began reading what was on the console.

Almost instantly, Revan knew that this was some sort of puzzle.

Name the three primary life giving planets:

1. Oceanic

2.Grassland

3.Volcanic

4.Arboreal

5.Desert

6.Barren

Revan decided that he would try to give this odd puzzles a go. After reading over the question, he understood instantly what it meant. He could remember back a few weeks ago that Master Vandar was talking about Dantooine’s environment. He could recall what Vander was pointing out, that Life giving areas were Oceans, Grasslands and Arboreal.

Revan punched in the answers to the puzzling questions. He entered Oceanic, Grassland, and Arboreal. It took mere seconds for the computer to respond; the terminal then ejected Revan’s data pad and left a strange marking. Revan decided that he had answered the questions correctly.

He backed away from the terminal and decided to explore the next room. He knew that within that room would another strange puzzle. He was making progress, he thought to himself. He then made his way back to the middle room.

Revan entered the second room and he shone his torch ahead of him once more, looking for another terminal. Eventually, he could see another computer terminal ahead of him. Again the computer was off, and with more caution this time around, he pushed the button. Again the computer terminal flared to life. It displayed that same strange alien language, acting identically to the other console. Revan entered his data pad into the drive, that familiar buzzing sound started, the lights around the buttons turned on, and the screen flickered. Moments later the strange language was translated by Revan’s data pad. He then began to read the puzzle.

Name the three primary death giving planets:

1. Oceanic

2.Grassland

3.Volcanic

4.Arboreal

5.Desert

6.Barren

Revan was confident the answer was the three other answers. He punched in Volcanic, Barren, and Desert. Again the computer started to make strange noises and made a second marking on his data pad. But this time it didn’t eject it instantly but instead it began to print on Revan’s data pad; slowly the sentence revealed on his data pad read, “You have proved yourself worthy, you may learn the secrets to the Star Forge,” then the terminal spat out his data pad, and Revan caught it before it could hit the ground.

Revan read the print again, quite shocked by what it said.

“You have proved yourself worthy, you may learn the secrets to the Star Forge,” Revan whispered to himself.

The Star Forge, what is the Star Forge, thought Revan. He was puzzled. Whatever it was, he had to find out. Whilst in deep thought, Revan faintly heard shouting, and it eventually broke his concentration when he realized it was Malak screaming out.

“Revan! Revan!” screamed Malak, the volume of his voice increasing.

Revan burst into the room where the artifact stood, and where Malak was waiting for him. To Revan’s shock and surprise, he could see a hologram in front of him and Malak, coming out of the metallic artifact. Malak was in pure shock at the design in front of them. Revan began to walk towards it; he studied it with fascination.

“What did you do Revan?” asked Malak, as he approached Revan’s side.

“There was some puzzle, I had to figure it out,” replied Revan as he started pacing around the hologram, rubbing his chin with curiosity.

“A puzzle?” asked Malak, with a confused expression.

“Yes, it was a puzzle and it left this on my data pad,” Revan handed his data pad to Malak, who began to read to himself, then looked closer at the data pad, even more confused than before, “ don’t know either.” Malak began to read aloud to Revan,

“You have proved yourself worthy; you may learn the secrets to the Star Forge.” Malak was baffled, he didn’t seem to understand it at all, but Revan was beginning to.

“This seems to be some kind of map,” said Revan, as he was starting to understand.

“A map?”

“Yes,” replied Revan.

Revan continued to study the map. It was glowing brightly in the room, and it looked quite ancient. He started pacing around the map; he could see some tiny dots on it displayed the worlds of Korriban, Mannaan, Tatooine and Kashyyyk on it, but he could see that a few directions towards other locations were missing; the hologram was not showing its complete path to the worlds, it was incomplete.

“This map appears to be showing us a path to theses worlds,” he said pointing to the hologram.

Malak began to understand what Revan was saying.

“In other words, Revan, this map will guide us to what it wants to show us, it will lead us to something far greater.”

Revan could now see that Malak was beginning to understand what he was explaining. Malak was indeed a smart young man.

“Yes Malak, that’s it, I solved the puzzle and I intend to find out what is.”

Revan came up next to Malak, and started explaining to Malak that there was something else called the Star Forge, something with great importance to the Galaxy.

Revan pointed to the saying on his data pad.

“Apparently this map will lead us to this Star Forge!” said Revan, as he started moving excitedly around the hologram.

“Star Forge?”

“This Star Forge whatever it is must be some kind of weapon, if it is, it could aid the Republic against those damn Mandalorians,” Revan explained.

A wicked smile began to form on Malak’s face.

Malak was indeed pleased with this news about finding this treasure. He and Revan had succeeded in finding something quite important. This map would lead him and Revan on a quest to find the rest of the puzzles to get to this Star Forge. It would mean that he and Revan would have to travel to the worlds that were stated on the hologram. Malak was quite pleased that he joined Revan in this quest. This discovery could very well be the key to challenging the menace of the Mandalorians.

Malak looked at Revan.

“Should we travel to theses worlds, Revan?” asked Malak as he approached his friend.

“Yes! We will find this Star Forge and use it against our Mandalorian enemies,” Revan proclaimed.

“I believe we have found a discovery of a life time.”

“Yes,” Revan answered, with wide eyes.

“So what do you actually think this thing might be called?” asked Malak.

“Well it shows some star systems, and the planets within them, from this Galaxy, I gather this is called a Star Map,” replied Revan

Revan continued to study the Star Map, pacing around it thinking to himself. He had completed his mission, he had indeed learned more than he possibly could have imagined about this Star Map, as it was constantly processing heaps of information. Revan would have to record the details into his data pad to get the details of the Star Map locations.

“Malak, I am going to record this Star Map in my data pad; it will be handy for future reference for when we go on our quest,” Revan explained.

Malak nodded in agreement

Revan punched in a few commands into his data pad, and it chirped away at his command. He then pointed the data pad at the Star Map, and it started downloading the information and it copied every thing that was on the hologram.

The data pad beeped.

The information that Revan needed was now fully completed in the data pad. They could use this information to aid them to the Star Forge.

Revan was pleased.

Revan and Malak decided it was time to get some rest. Malak had already set up their little camp and so they climbed into their sleeping bags.

“We have to be back at the Jedi enclave by morning. Get some sleep, we have more Jedi training tomorrow,” Revan ordered.

“I shall, ‘Master’ Revan,” said Malak teasingly.

Revan smiled at Malak’s joke. He felt like he was a Master. He did indeed lead Malak to this place and he knew if it weren’t for him, Malak wouldn’t have ever made this discovery. Revan was happy to share this secret with his best friend.

Malak turned over in his sleeping bag and drifted off to sleep.

Revan was lying down restlessly thinking about his day, he had discovered an enormous amount of information about this Star Map in one day. It was quite a rare thing for some one to gain so much information in so little time. After all Revan was a brilliant student and a quick learner.

Revan closed his eyes and drifted into sleep….

Revan found himself standing in a middle of a battlefield; He could see a dozen Mandalorians fighting against strange beings that he did not recognize. The strange beings were all blue and they had eyes sticking out of their heads. Armies upon armies of these aliens were fighting on the battlefield. He turned and could see a mass of Mandalorians being slaughtered by these creatures. Revan tried to yell out to one of these creatures but it didn’t hear him. The creatures were also falling to their deaths from Mandalorian gunfire.

Sweating and pale from seeing this war, Revan tried to run but to no avail. He seemed to stay in one spot all the time; no matter how hard he tried to run, he remained in the same spot.

Revan squinted around; something had caught his attention; Revan could see a strange symbol glowing in the far away horizon on a far away banner being held by the strange creatures, and he soon realized that they were coming towards him. The symbol looked very familiar to him. Theses creatures indeed had something to do with Star Map that he had discovered.

Revan turned back the other way he saw a Mandalorian coming towards him, Revan tried to scream at him but the man just went right through him as if he were a ghost. It shocked Revan; he then looked up at the sky and saw something that was just a pinprick in the sky. To see it from the ground, it must have been very big. Revan couldn’t make it out. Before he tried to get a better view of it he could feel a severe agonizing pain. Something jolted into his shoulder. Revan turned to see one of the strange aliens smiling menacingly down at him. Before he could go any further the last thing he saw on the creatures right hand badge was the word:

Rakatan

Revan suddenly woke up; sitting upright, he had found himself drenched with sweat. He had just had a very bad nightmare. The Force had given him a vision. It seemed to be a vision of some far away war but it was happening in another system. Revan had remembered from the dream that he saw something floating in the sky but it was too far away from him. It would’ve been in outer space. Revan must of have seen the future. The dream, that he had must have meant something, he thought to himself.

Revan looked at Malak; he could see that Malak was not affected by the dream. Somehow, it only affected Revan alone, and only him. He also remembered the creature that stabbed him in his dream; he clearly saw on the creature’s badge the word, Rakatan on it but he didn’t understand. Maybe the creatures that he dreamed about had something to do with the Star Map he and Malak had discovered. Revan decided to dismiss the dream and get more sleep. Whatever Revan dreamed about, it was a powerful vision he would have to seek it out in the morning.

Early morning Dantooine time, Revan and Malak had packed their gear up and were heading back to the Jedi enclave. It was still dark and the sun was slowly rising. Whilst walking alongside Malak, he could not forget the dream that he had last night. Revan looked troubled.

They made their way through the ruins, and across the plains on Dantooine; it was all grassland and they followed their path back toward the enclave.

Malak looked at his friend with concern. He could tell something was wrong with Revan and decided to ask him about it.

“Revan, something seems to be troubling you,” asked the concerned Malak.

Revan looked up at his concerned friend. He wasn’t sure whether to share his troubling vision he had last night to Malak. The dream did not affect Malak at all, he did not see what he saw.

“It’s nothing, Malak,” Revan muttered.

Malak could tell that something was wrong with Revan and he wanted to know what was troubling him.

“Revan, you can’t fool me, I know there’s something wrong. Care to tell me about it? I might be able to help.”

Revan knew he couldn’t hide any thing from Malak; he could always tell if there was something wrong with him. Malak did know Revan inside out.

“I had a dream last night Malak. It wasn’t a pleasant dream, it seemed more like a nightmare.”

“A nightmare? That’s strange, maybe it has something to so with that place we were at. You must have had a vision through the Force, but why did it affect you and not me?” asked Malak.

“I don’t know Malak,” replied the troubled Revan.

They were now halfway back to the Jedi enclave. Revan could see ahead that there were a few lights on at the Jedi academy. He had hoped that the Jedi Masters had not discovered he and Malak were gone from their dorms.

“Malak, look ahead there’s some lights on at the academy.”

Malak looked and he could see what Revan was talking about. The Jedi Masters must be up earlier than usual; they normally don’t get up for another hour. Revan and Malak started to sprint back to the Jedi Academy.

Revan and Malak were now outside their dorm window. Revan looked up. The window to his dorm was a few meters up. He would have to use the Force to jump up at the window’s ledge. He then turned to Malak.

“Hold these, I will get up first,” Revan said as he handed the data pad and his equipment to Malak.

Revan reached out with the Force and called upon its power to make him leap up to the window’s ledge and he did it with super quick speed. In a matter of mere seconds, Revan was hanging off his window’s ledge; he then climbed up with ease and into the dorm.

Malak was still waiting for a response from his friend. Revan then stuck his head out the window. He signalled Malak to throw his data pad and his equipment up before he got up.

“Throw the stuff up, Malak!” ordered Revan.

Malak did as he was told and threw Revan’s and his own equipment up to him. Revan caught it on his first go. Malak then had his turn and jumped up to the windows; ledge he had reached out with the force to call for assistance for his leap. Revan had helped pull Malak in through the window.

“Thanks,” said Malak, wiping his Jedi robes.

“Don’t mention it,” replied Revan, with a wink.

Revan went over to his drawer and put the data pad inside. He had to hide the data pad so no one would discover it for himself or herself. He put the rest of the equipment away. Malak had hopped back into his own bed. Revan did the same, they were both still very tired from their adventures, and immediately they both fell asleep.

In the morning, Jedi Master Vrook had taken over the Jedi classes to teach the Padawans and the Jedi, all of whom were doing their daily exercises. He carefully watched every one of them. They were all doing extremely well in their trials. As he scanned all his students, his eye caught sight of Revan. He looked cold and distant; he did not look the same as he did the day prior. Master Vrook decided to go over to Revan to try and find out what was troubling the young Padawan.

“Revan, are you feeling alright? You do not look too well,” asked the concerned Jedi Master.

Revan didn’t feel like talking to his Master. All he could think about was the dream he had. Something was calling out to him. He didn’t understand it at all. This energy source had entranced him. This source or what ever it was, made him crave for power. He couldn’t help it. Revan was then cut off from his trance. He heard Master Vrook’s concerned calls to him. He looked up at his Master.

“Revan! Snap out of it,” called his Master.

“Sorry Master Vrook, I just had something on my mind,” Revan lied.

“It doesn’t look like it, Revan, you did not respond to my hails. I think you should drop by and see the Jedi healers; you do not look very well. I think I will dismiss you,” ordered Master Vrook.

Revan wanted to protest at his Masters dismissal. How could Vrook dismiss him for this? Revan had felt a strong emotion. Anger, hate and aggression, all of theses emotions he felt.

“I am alright,” Revan protested.

“Revan, I want you to report to the Jedi healers at once and that’s an order,” Master Vrook commanded sternly.

Revan looked at Master Vrook. Then at all the other Padawans, who were staring at him and Master Vrook. Malak was watching too, but he remained quiet but he looked all right. He was standing there as if nothing hadn’t affected him. Malak had gone along with him to the temple where the Star Map was and he didn’t even experience the vision Revan had received, even though Malak was strong in the force as well.

Revan stepped down, he did as Master Vrook ordered and faced the Jedi Master with a stern face.

“Yes sir.” Revan spat.

Revan turned from the concerned Jedi Master and exited the Jedi training hall. He made his way to the medical centre. Since the dream last night, he felt that he had changed. He felt as if something were trying to control him.

Master Vandar came into the Jedi training hall where Master Vrook was training Malak and the other Jedi Padawans. Vrook saw Vandar coming and went up to discuss the little incident he had with Revan.

“Master Vandar, what a pleasure to see you this fine morning.”

“And I you, Master Vrook,” said Master Vandar.

“Master Vandar, I have a concern, one of our best pupils was cold and distant. It was Revan. He was not his normal self, and he did not lived up to his full potential during training.”

“Hmm, strange indeed,” Vandar pondered.

“Revan was misbehaving and wouldn’t do what he was told, he was arrogant, and not acting the path of a Jedi. I fear something is terribly wrong with him,” explained Master Vrook.

“Think upon this I will, Master Vrook,” replied Vandar.

Malak had overheard the Jedi Masters talking about a war against the Mandalorians. He knew that these Mandalorians were quite a savage race and they would take over any territory they came across. They had started a war with the Republic, who had to send out many of their forces to defend the border of Republic space, and lost many cruisers during this first real confrontation. The Mandalorian threat was increasing in size, and the Republic had no one to turn to.

Malak entered his dorm; sitting on the floor was Revan, meditating. He looked more calm, and peaceful then he had been earlier. Malak approached his friend to tell him of the news he had just overheard.

“Revan, did you hear that the Mandalorians have declared war on the Republic?” asked Malak, as he stood above his friend.

Revan looked up; he had heard about the Mandalorians for sometime, as they were slowly taking planets outside of Republic space. It seemed to him they were instigating a war with the Republic.

“They have declared war?” asked Revan as he slowly moved out of his meditation and stood up in front of Malak.

“Yes, I heard Master Vrook talking about it this afternoon. The Republic lost many loyal fighter pilots during the fight, and they have begun invading planets in Republic space,” explained Malak.

“Are we just going to sit by and watch our Republic get crushed to pieces by these bastard Mandalorians? I am not going to sit by and watch our fleet get slaughtered,” replied Revan, pacing impatiently up and down the room.

Revan was completely out of his meditation, but was still in deep concentration, calming himself and remaining relaxed. Malak could see that Revan had improved a great deal and was back to his normal challenging self.

“Aren’t you supposed to be in the Med centre?” asked Malak.

“No, I didn’t go;” Revan replied and then stopped, “we must assist the Republic.”

“What are you going to do, Revan?”

“I am not going to sit here Malak. The Jedi have to assist, and I am going to help stop this menace from taking over Republic space,” Revan announced proudly.

“You know I will always be at your side Revan, but we must consult the Masters first.”

Master Vodo-Siosk Baas, Master Vandar and the other Jedi Masters gathered around the conference table; they now had to discuss the war against the Mandalorians. The Republic was at war with them and they would have to send out some Jedi to deal with the Mandalorians. Most of the Jedi were indeed strong with the force. Revan and Malak, hid behind the door of the conference room and quietly listened in on the discussion.

“We only have a certain amount of Jedi that are ready for conflict,” announced Master Vrook.

“The Mandalorians are clearly a threat to the galaxy, we must assist the Republic,” replied Master Zhar.

“Assist the Republic we should, but the future is uncertain, a greater danger I sense beyond this immediate threat,” said Master Vandar as he looked around the table at the other masters.

“You believe it is unwise at this point to send out Jedi assistance?” asked Master Vodo-Siosk.

“The greater danger I sense is unclear; we must be patient until it is revealed,” replied Master Vandar.

“I agree, we must be patient,” said the concerned Master Atris, as she looked at Vandar. She too sensed the greater threat.

Behind the door, Revan and Malak turned away and began walking back toward the academy’s central hall.

“How can they not assist? Well I for one am not going to sit by and watch, the Republic will need our support,” Revan whispered to Malak.

“What do you think we should do?”

“We have to rally as many of the Jedi as we can,” replied Revan.

A day later, the Jedi Masters discovered that Revan and Malak had quickly formed a league of Jedi Knights and Padawans together to challenge the Mandalorians and assist the overwhelmed Republic. The Masters always knew that Revan was indeed a very determined Jedi Padawan. His strength with the force and his charismatic nature could always inspire his peers.

Masters Vrook and Zhar entered the hall and witnessed a large portion of the Jedi from the academy had gathered around Revan and Malak. Revan was standing on a pedestal and asking all who would join him in the Mandalorian war.

Master Vrook walked toward Revan and stood in front of him.

“What is the meaning of this, Revan?” Master Vrook demanded.

Revan looked down at Master Vrook.

“We are going to war against the Mandalorians, Master Vrook,” Revan replied loudly as he turned toward the crowd of Jedi.

“On who’s orders?” Master Dorak asked as he too approached Revan.

continued on next post.....

kookaburra · October 20, 2005

continued on from last post...

“Mine!” declared Revan proudly, “We must assist the Republic against this threat!”

Master Vrook was very shocked at Revan’s response, looking at him with a concerned expression.

“You have no such authority Revan; if you do not come down from there at once, you will be punished.”

“All Jedi, get back to your training immediately,” ordered Master Zhar.

To Master Zhar’s surprise, the crowd of Jedi did not obey his orders; they all stared loyally at Revan waiting for his response. They were deciding who they were going to side with.

“I’m sorry Masters, but we cannot stand around here and watch our Republic get torn apart by theses Mandalorians! Someone has to stand up against them!” Revan announced, again turning towards the crowd of Jedi.

“Revan, I’m warning you! Stand down!” said Master Vrook, getting impatient.

“All those in favour in defending the Republic, stand behind me and I will lead you to their assistance,” Revan told the crowd of Jedi.

Immediately a large majority of the crowd swarmed behind Revan, only a few stayed at the side of their masters. Revan had clearly convinced them.

“There you go Master Vrook, the majority agrees to assist the Republic and fight against the Mandalorians, with me as their leader,” Revan proclaimed proudly at his master.

“Revan you will be punished for disobeying my orders,” replied Master Vrook in a calm commanding voice.

“You mean I will be expelled from the Jedi order for doing what I must? Master Vrook, we are Jedi Knights, it’s our job to protect the Republic.”

Master Vodo-Siosk came in to see what all the commotion was about in the hall; he could see a huge number of Jedi standing behind Revan, with Masters Vrook and Dorak, and a few other Jedi in front of him.

Master Vrook was about to make his move on Revan, but before he could hear Master Vodo-Siosk calling him out.

“Master Vrook, let them go,” ordered Master Vodo-Siosk Baas.

“What do you mean let them go?” replied Master Vrook, “Most of these Jedi haven’t finished their training, sending them into conflict could have dire consequences.”

“Our Republic is under threat, Master Vrook. While I would advise them to stay, the choice is not mine or yours. The path is theirs to choose, all we must do is urge them to rethink and be patient. Anyone who leaves will be dealt with when the war’s over for disobeying our requests,” Master Vodo-Siosk explained.

Vrook knew Vodo-Siosk was right; he turned back to Revan and the other Jedi who were going to go with the headstrong Padawan.

“You may precede Revan. But if you do, you are going against the wishes of the Jedi council. May the force be with you,” Master Vrook said, then turned and walked away.

“I understand,” replied Revan, stepping off the pedestal.

Revan, Malak and the other Jedi gathered what equipment they needed and met at the Jedi enclave-docking bay. Standing in the middle of the port, Master Atris waited for Revan.

Revan walked forward towards his master, knowing she would want to speak with him.

“You wish to speak with me Master?” Revan asked as he approached.

“Revan you must not go, there is a danger beyond the immediate threat. Please stay and be patient until we have discovered what this danger is,” Master Atris replied.

“No, I have to help the Republic. They will be crushed without our assistance,” announced Revan.

“You don’t know that, the future is unclear,” Atris walked closer to her Padawan.

“I have to,” Revan replied, stepping away.

Master Atris knew there was nothing to stop the headstrong Revan and his loyal Jedi followers. Although his strength with the force was unmatched by the others, without completing his training he hadn’t quite learned control of his power and emotions.

What of the more distant threat that has yet to reveal itself Master Atris thought to herself as she watched the starship leave the spaceport

Revan and Malak moved forward towards the gigantic doors as they began to slowly open. The two Jedi looked at one another, Malak giving a smirk, but Revan instead turned back to the opening doorway, ignoring his friend’s kind gesture.

Inside, Revan and Malak stood in front of the doorway as a number of alien guards approached. Malak began to ignite his lightsaber.

“Put it away!” Revan ordered and Malak did so immediately.

The guards then lowered their weapons and walked to either side, revealing three more aliens sitting behind them. These particular aliens looked well-dressed compared to any of the others, these must be the leaders, Revan thought to himself.

“Vi aeo Rakatai, ehr Efrer tiraben.”

Revan then began to do the same channeling and use of the Force as he did on the One, and copied the Galactic basic language into all three of the alien’s minds. All three were astonished by what they had just felt and learnt.

“I am Revan, Jedi Knight.”

“This is the Elder tribe, and we are the elders,” the alien replied, “what brings a force user to the Rakatan home world?”

“Rakatan that is your species?” Revan asked as he walked toward the elders, “We crash landed and our ship, which is in space, needs to dock and have repairs.”

“Indeed, that is our species,” the elder replied, “unfortunately, you will not be able to dock your ship, nor will you be able to leave. The disruptor field will not allow it.”

“Disruptor field? Of course that is why we crashed,” said Malak as he moved closer.

“We can help you,” replied one of the other elders.

“How? Is there a way of disabling the disruptor field?” Revan asked.

“The great temple, we do not know what is in it but you can disable the field from within.”

“You don’t know what’s in it?” Malak asked.

“The doorway, the only entrance is protected by a barrier. We can perform a ritual to disable the barrier, we cannot enter because only users of the Force are permitted,” one of the elders explained.

The elders explained the history of the Rakatan people, who once commanded a massive empire, the Infinite Empire they called it. During the height of the empire they created the Star Forge, the ultimate display of its everlasting power.

The Rakatans conquered thousands of systems and made them apart of the Infinite Empire, taking all other races as slaves. Over thousands of years they ruled with an iron fist over the galaxy, eventually the empire began to collapse through rebellion by the slaves, corruption and the great plague. The Rakata retreated to their home world, where corruption tore apart the civilization, and they destroyed themselves. Over time, they lost their affinity to the force and the elders held their past, which was passed through each generation to remind them of their mistakes.

“The Star Forge, what is it?” Revan asked.

“The ultimate display of the Infinite Empire’s everlasting power,” explained one of the elders.

“You don’t know do you?” Malak asked looking impatiently at the elders.

“We only know that it was a part of our civilization’s demise,” the elder replied, “The temple will hold its secrets.”

“You will help us gain entry?” asked Revan.

“We will.”

The Elder’s gathered together and guided Revan and Malak through the mountains and cliff faces. Eventually they arrived at the temple, an enormous structure made of stone and a huge doorway situated in the center with stairs leading up to it. The Elders began setting up the ritual site, and began chanting.

“Prepare, when the barrier opens, you will not have much time to get inside,” said one of the elders.

The ritual was underway and went on for some time, Revan and Malak stood impatiently waiting to enter. When suddenly a bolt of energy rose from the middle of the ritual site, and began to turn towards the entrance to the temple. It struck the doorway with an mighty thud. Revan and Malak quickly proceeded to enter the enormous building.

Revan and Malak walked inside the main hallway of the temple which was remarkably well lit. A large door stood in front of them in two directions to the left and right along the hallway. Revan proceeded to open the door in front of them by pressing the metallic plate in its center that had a strange ‘H’ pattern on it and the door began to open.

“I’ll go through here, it would be best to split up,” Revan ordered, handing Malak a device, “Take this communicator, and tell me if you find anything.”

“Ok Revan,” Malak replied taking the communicator; he then turned and started to walk along the hallway.

Revan slowly entered the doorway, being cautious of his surroundings. On his right he noticed a corridor that appeared to go underneath the temple, he then proceeded following the corridor down. Once Revan reached the bottom, he ended up in a room that had only one doorway so he decided to enter it. Inside this room was a strange floor design, with nine squares connected to make a larger square, with a tenth at the bottom. A puzzle, he thought.

He gently stepped on of the square blocks on the floor, when it suddenly created a bright glow. He then proceeded to step on all, making different patterns. Nothing was working.

“Damn, I can’t think of anything else,” Revan thought to himself outloud, “wait.”

Revan remember the metal panel on the door that he had entered, it had a pattern. He then stepped on the blocks to make the pattern ‘H’. Suddenly the entire floor lit up and the door in front of him opened, he entered proudly.

Malak continued walking through the long hallways and corridors, but found nothing, getting impatient he decided to call Revan on the communicator.

“Revan, I haven’t found anything. How about you?” Malak asked as he leaned against a wall.

However, there was no response. Malak stood up straight and a worried expression crossed his face.

“Revan?”

Again, no response and Malak was getting especially worried now, so he began to run back to the temple’s entrance and the big door Revan had gone through. Quickly weaving through the hallways and rooms, Malak finally reached the doorway, but it was closed.

“Revan, do you copy? Come in Revan!”

“Calm down, Malak. Yes, I found something, come down here quickly,” Revan spoke through the communicator.

“I can’t, the door’s closed,” Malak replied.

Suddenly the door opened and Malak ran through, running down the corridor and through the puzzle room where he saw Revan.

“Why didn’t you answer me before?” Malak asked frustrated and winded.

“Come over here,” Revan ordered.

Malak approached Revan, who began to move aside, and his eyes began to light up with surprise. It was an alien style computer terminal. Revan recognized it from the ones at Dantooine, but to him this one was different, it was more important.

“I put my data pad in the terminal and now I can understand it, I can now control the doors inside the temple,” Revan explained excitedly, “and I found where the switch is, to disable the disruptor field.”

“Great, now let’s get the hell out of here,” Malak replied impatiently.

“No, I’m going to ask it about the Star Forge,” Revan announced, as he started typing.

Suddenly the terminal began to beep and what appeared on the screen was not expected.

“To gain the knowledge of the Star Forge, one must first gain the knowledge of its location.”

Revan became frustrated and hit the keyboard, another puzzle, a riddle that he would need to figure out. All he wanted to know was if it was a weapon, and if so he could then use it on the Mandalorians.

“It must want something from the Star Maps,” said Malak looking worryingly at his friend.

“You’re right, we never checked it properly once it opened, and we were so focused on the hologram. There must be something inside it, maybe a key or something,” Revan replied calming himself.

“We’d better get the disrupter field turned off and head to your shuttle, Commander Tred will need to know we’re safe,” Malak explained.

“It’s on the top floor, let’s go,” ordered Revan as they turned away from the terminal and headed back to the first floor.

ON THE KRIPPLON

“Commander, there appears to be a large fleet moving towards us at the other end of this sector,” an officer called out.

Revan where are you? Commander Tred thought to himself.

“Sir, they will be here within minutes. I’m afraid whoever it is, they know where we are. What do you suggest we do?” the officer asked.

“Prepare to signal our surrender,” Commander Tred replied as he sat back in the command chair.

THE RAKATAN TEMPLE’S TOP LEVEL

Revan and Malak had quickly made it to the up most level of the temple and were heading towards the outside area where the switch they were searching for was located. When they reached it, Revan and Malak looked at its simple yet effective design. It appeared that only a user of the force could ‘push’ it, so Revan focused and pushed it with the force. Suddenly a loud buzzing sound started then stopped moments later. The disruptor field was off.

“Ok, let’s get back to the shuttle,” Revan ordered, turning and walking toward the exit, with Malak following closely behind.

When back on the first floor, they began to jog through the hallways and quickly made it to the middle of the temple. Then Revan stopped, he saw a door to a room he did not noticed earlier. He walked in curious as to why he wanted to stop. Malak turned to see where his friend had gone.

“Revan, where are you?” Malak shouted, running toward the room Revan had entered.

When Malak arrived at the door he was surprised to see Revan holding something.

“What’s that?” Malak asked.

“A robe, it feels strong in the force,” Revan replied softly, “turn around I’m going to put it on.”

Malak turned around for Revan’s privacy, and he could then feel the robes energy. What could have made this? Malak thought.

“It’s on,” Revan announced.

“That’s nice, but we really should get going,” Malak joked, then turned and started running for the exit.

Revan followed quickly behind, leaving his old robe in the room, and before they knew it they had arrived at the exit.

Once outside Revan and Malak were surprised to notice the Elders had gone, but instead there was a group of Mandalorians. Had they also crashed on the planet? Has anything happened to the Kripplon? Revan thought to himself.

“How did you get into the temple, Jedi?” one Mandalorian called out fiercely.

Revan and Malak both ignited their lightsabers in unison, preparing for the inevitable fight.

“The same way you can’t,” Malak replied with a smirk on his face as he used the force to jump behind the group.

Revan quickly took advantage of the strategy Malak used; he ran with his saber swirling in the air toward the group of Mandalorians.

Malak had three of the seven Mandalorians firing blasters at him from all sides, and he swiftly deflected the attacks, with the bolts flying off his saber. When suddenly another jumped him from the side with a vibroblade, Malak quickly swung his lightsaber around and battered off the Mandalorian.

Revan was dealing with three who had swords, defending himself valiantly, and attacking when the moment was right. The first Mandalorian had taken a swing towards Revan’s head, the second towards his back and the third was trying to lunge his sword into the Jedi. Revan anticipated the moves of his opponents before they could react, and quickly disarmed the first, swiping off his arm. Revan then moved gracefully away from the third one’s lunging sword, batting it away with his saber and into the second Mandalorian’s stomach.

The two Jedi had now moved next to one another, deflecting blaster bolts and awaiting to defend against the two Mandalorians with swords. Malak moved toward one of the Mandalorians who firing his blaster, and in two swift strokes, disarmed and then decapitated him. Revan quickly defending his friend, blocked several swinging attacks, then through the force he pushed the attackers away hurling them backwards.

Revan and Malak stood next to one another, preparing for their final attack, waiting for the Mandalorians that were left over to stand up. Suddenly the two jumped together towards their opponents, and within a few swings had completely eliminated the immediate threat.

“Excellent work Malak,” Revan called out excitedly.

“You too Revan,” Malak replied with a smile.

They then turned and started jogging toward the mountain pass, following the map and using the force to find the shuttle. Both were extremely proud of their performances in the fight, and it kept their adrenaline pumping, making it easier to run longer.

After only a few hours, Revan and Malak arrived at the shuttle, and were happy to see the crew. The soldiers had set up camp, and were peacefully patrolling the area. The two Jedi approached the camp and the soldiers and pilots quickly formed a line.

“All soldiers present and accounted for sir, except the ones you had taken. What happened to them sir?” asked Captain Fergus.

“We ran into a little trouble,” Revan replied, “is the shuttle ready for take off.”

“Yes sir,” a crewmember called out.

“Then lets get moving, we must get back to the Kripplon as quickly as possibly,” Revan ordered as he began to board the shuttle.

Moments later everyone was aboard the shuttle and it took off into the sky. Sitting behind the pilot and co-pilot, Revan and Malak sat in silence, thinking to themselves about recent events.

“It’s good to see you alive and well Commander Malak,” Captain Fergus called out, “you too general, and I see you found a new robe.”

“Thank you captain,” Malak replied looking down at the beautiful surface below.

Revan sat there in silence, he could feel something, it was there before but now it was getting stronger as the shuttle slowly gained altitude. The feeling as if something was calling him, it was not just a feeling, Revan thought. He could almost hear it.

As the shuttle reached outer space, Revan, Malak and the pilots froze. They looked on at the Kripplon, and saw what they would have never expected. A fleet of warships approaching it, they all looked on in shock.

The Republic fleet had arrived.

“General we have an incoming transmission from the Kripplon,” the co-pilot called out.

“Thank you, accept the transmission for video feed,” Revan replied turning his chair toward the small view screen.

Revan flipped the switch and the view screen flickered on. He could see Command Tred, with a large smile on his face.

“It’s great to see you again General Revan!”

“It looks as if help has arrived and in good time too. Prepare for my arrival commander,” Revan replied and turned off the view screen.

As the shuttle slowly made its landing in the docking bay, Commander Tred stood with a garrison of troops behind him. The hatch door opened, with steam rising from the valves. Revan came out followed by Malak and they walked toward the commander.

“It’s a pleasure to see you again General Revan and Commander Malak,” announced the happy Commander Tred.

“Thank you Commander, but we must get back to the bridge and contact the rest of the fleet. We have to get back to home base as soon as possible,” Revan ordered and then proceeded to walk toward the exit.

On the bridge of the Kripplon, Revan sat comfortably in his new robes on the command seat, looking toward the view screen, with Malak at his side.

“Open transmission with the entire fleet,” Revan ordered.

“Yes sir,” an officer replied and immediately set up the feed, “the fleet is ready for your orders General.”

“This is General Revan, the Kripplon is in serious need of repair. The fleet will have to escort us back to home base; I will have new orders when we arrive.”

Moments later, the fleet moved into position and prepared to go into hyperspace. Within seconds the fleet had left the sector.

HOME BASE – FONDOR STAR DOCKS

A week had passed since Revan and Malak had discovered the Rakatan world; the Kripplon was completely repaired and was docked in one of the spaceports above the planet of Fondor.

Revan was sitting in his private quarters in the spaceport, reviewing maps and laying out his strategies. He was primarily focused on the recent systems where Republic fleets had been attacked, trying to pin point where exactly the Mandalorians were based.

The communicator on his table began beeping; Revan pressed the button and waited for a response.

“Excuse me General Revan, the crew for the Kripplon is ready and waiting for your orders,” a voice spoke through the communicator.

“Very well, I will be at the dock immediately,” Revan replied, gathering his notes and equipment.

Revan proceeded through the large station and entered the docking area. He looked around to see Malak and the crew waiting patiently in line for him.

Malak began to approach Revan.

“General, we are ready and waiting,” Malak announced as he walked with his friend.

“Very good Malak,” Revan replied as he continued for the ship, “but you will not be boarding the Kripplon.”

“Not boarding?” Malak asked as he stopped walking, angry at Revan’s response.

Revan turned and looked at his friend, and handed him a data pad.

“No, go to dock-22.”

Malak stared at his superior in anger, not understanding what was happening.

“But that’s where the Avenger is docked. You wish me to board that instead?” Malak asked getting impatient.

“You’re the Avenger’s commander and General now,” Revan responded giving a smile, “the Kripplon will wait for you in space.”

“Thank you General,” Malak replied with an excited smile, “I will make haste and meet you in space.”

Malak saluted, then turned and quickly walked out of the dock. A great smile covered his face as he made his way to Dock-22. Finally, my own ship to command as a general, Malak thought to himself.

When he entered the dock, he was surprised to see only one man standing next to the ship. A man was dressed in the traditional uniform of a Republic Admiral; Malak proceeded to talk to him.

“I am General Malak, I have come by order to command the Avenger.”

“An honor to finally meet you General. I am Commander Graven, the crew are all prepared and are inside waiting for orders.”

“Very good Commander,” Malak replied, “We must board at once and meet the Kripplon in space.”

The Kripplon and the Republic 1st fleet were in space outside the Fondor Star Dock, waiting for the Avenger to join.

Revan sat comfortably in his command seat looking out the bridge window, thinking about his next strategy and of his friend. Malak had proved himself as a capable leader, but Revan was still not sure whether his decision was wise in making his friend a general and in command of his own vessel. The transmission terminal began beeping and Commander Tred approached Revan.

“The Avenger has joined the fleet and is awaiting your orders sir,” Commander Tred announced.

“Open a channel to the fleet,” Revan ordered and an officer quickly pressed buttons on the terminal.

“Channel open sir,” the officer called out.

Revan then turned his chair toward the view screen and pressed a button on his seat.

“General Malak, take the Avenger and join the 3rd fleet. They are stationed in the Danju System, they will have the rest of my orders when you arrive.”

“Yes Sir,” Malak replied.

“The rest of the fleet follow me out of the sector,” Revan ordered as he let go of the button.

Revan turned to the navigation screen to see that the Avenger had already entered hyperspace and left the system. With the Kripplon in the lead and the first Fleet in formation close behind, they entered hyperspace and quickly shot of out of Fondor.

Revan’s plan was to find a suitable system and planet the Republic could use as a new stronghold, closer to the war and the Mandalorian threat.

DANJU SYSTEM

The Avenger quickly entered the system and exited hyperspace, not far ahead of them was the 3rd Fleet. A short while later the Avenger joined formation and Malak signaled the officer at the transmission terminal, who pressed a combination of buttons.

“Transmission ready General,” the officer called out.

Malak quickly sat on his command seat and pressed a button down.

“This is General Malak of the Avenger; my orders were to join the fleet. General Revan told me that you had his next orders.”

“Admiral Karath of the Leviathan speaking, we have been waiting for you,” a voice spoke through the terminal, “our orders are to proceed to the Dubrillion System and meet with the 2nd fleet.”

“Any further orders?” Malak asked.

“Yes sir, we are then ordered to patrol the Hydian Way. There have been attacks on Republic trade lines by the Mandalorians, and our orders are to eliminate this threat and clear the route,” the voice explained.

“Very well admiral, stay in formation and continue to Dubrillion,” Malak ordered.

Malak turned his seat around and Commander Graven approached.

“To Dubrillion Commander,” Malak ordered.

“Aye sir,” Commander Graven replied as he turned to an officer at the navigation computer.

The Avenger and the 3rd fleet moved into formation and within moments had entered hyperspace.

A FEW DAYS LATER

ON THE KRIPPLON

Revan was doing his daily exercises in his private training room. Focusing through the force he sat with his legs crossed levitating in the air. Through his meditation Revan was trying to concentrate, he had a lot on his mind as commander and general; he was hoping that the force would help guide him. But the future felt uncertain, and his mind was empty. Until suddenly he visualized a planet, one he had never seen before and it called to him. It was acting through the force, telling him of its location, Revan thought. A moment later he lost concentration and fell to the ground because his communicator started beeping.

Revan stood up and walked over to the desk and picked up the device.

“Yes what is it?” Revan asked as he put on his belt and walked out of the room.

“Sir, could you get to the bridge as quickly as possible please,” Commander Tred answered.

On the bridge, Commander Tred was pacing up and down past the transmission terminal, waiting for his superior. A minute later Revan stormed through the door, with a disapproving look on his face.

“Sir, a distress signal from a planet in this system,” Commander Tred announced as Revan walked past and sat on the command seat.

“Which planet?” Revan asked looking toward the officers at the navigation console.

“The planet of Taris, Sir,” an officer called out.

“What’s the distress?” Revan asked looking back at the Commander.

“A small Mandalorian fleet has begun attacking Sir,” Commander Tred replied, “they appear to be preparing for an invasion.”

“Quickly open all channels with the fleet!” Revan ordered swiftly turning toward the transmission terminal.

The officer at the terminal began pressing buttons and a moment later turned back to Revan, putting his thumb up.

“All members of the fleet, keep the formation and make haste to the planet of Taris,” Revan ordered, “beware of enemy ships, and prepare for assault.”

The fleet quickly turned and in unison the thrusters on the back of each ship bolted them across the system. As the fleet moved through the system they could see Taris in the distance, and a small fleet of Mandalorians circling the planet.

“Commander Tred, get the pilots to their ships,” Revan ordered, “we must take out the Basilisk War Driods before they can enter the planet’s atmosphere.”

“Yes Sir,” Commander Tred replied and then left the bridge.

“Officer, prepare the battle transmission channel,” Revan ordered as the fleet began to approach closer towards the enemy, “Switch the view screen to tactical view.”

The Republic fleet was just moments away from the Mandalorian invasion force and had a strategy. He watched as the enemy warships turned to face his fleet.

Fortunately, Revan had the advantage of numbers; three battle cruisers and four medium assault cruisers versus three Mandalorian warships and two Basilisk Deployment cruisers. He knew instantly how he would take advantage of an already promising situation.

Revan pressed the button on his command seat.

“Send the starfighters out and attack the Deployment cruisers, and have the assault cruisers defend the fighters,” Revan ordered, “the battle cruisers will attack the warships but the Majestic will stay back until ordered to attack the flank.”

The Majestic was a slower battle cruiser compared to the others in the 1st Fleet, but was heavier and significantly more powerful when attacking. Revan’s plan was to draw the warships away from the Deployment cruisers, leaving a gap in the enemy and allowing the Majestic to fly through, separating the Mandalorian fleet and surrounding them at the same time.

The fleet began to move forward quickly as the starfighters began to take the lead and the assault cruisers followed them. Before the Basilisk War Droids could be deployed, the starfighters had reached their targets and began firing. The battle had commenced.

Revan’s plan didn’t seem to be going as effectively as he’d hoped and the Mandalorian warships stayed to protect the Deployment cruisers.

“Commander Tred, break off from the fleet,” Revan ordered, “we’ll try lure them out of formation ourselves.”

The Kripplon halted as the fleet moved towards the warships, then turned and moved quickly out of formation. At full speed the Kripplon moved to the other side of the Mandalorian warships taking the flank. The rest of the fleet engaged in fierce battle, with bolts from turrets flying everywhere and over on the other side the starfighters were quickly decimating the invasion.

After a short while the Mandalorian warships began to break off from their cruisers and had taken the bait Revan had set with the Kripplon, creating an opening in the enemy’s fleet.

“Majestic move into position between the Deployment cruisers and the warships,” Revan ordered, “focus your main firepower on the cruisers.”

The strategy was working extremely well in the Republic’s favor and the starfighters within moments destroyed the Basilisk Deployment Cruisers, with the help of the Majestic. The assault cruisers began to direct towards the warships and started moving into formation with the rest of the fleet.

“We have the enemy routed sir,” Commander Tred called out excitedly, “they’re in full retreat.”

“Continue the assault commander,” Revan ordered.

The Mandalorian’s warships were on the run and gaining ground away from their pursuers.

“Track coordinates before they jump into hyperspace. I don’t want them to get away,” Revan ordered signaling the navigation officer.

The officer quickly turned around and began punching numbers into his console.

“They’re heading out of Republic space sir,” the officer called out.

“Prepare to enter hyperspace, do not lose them!” Revan shouted and then pressed the button on his seat, “fleet, stay in formation and download the coordinates, continue the pursuit.”

In a flash the Mandalorian warships took off into hyperspace, but the Republic fleet followed close behind and moments later followed them out of the system.

ON THE AVENGER, DUBRILLION SYSTEM

Malak sat in his command seat patiently awaiting the arrival of the second Fleet; he was in his element and there was no one to stand in his way. The power and command of the second and third Republic Fleets, Malak thought to himself with a smile.

“The second Fleet has entered the system sir,” Commander Graven called out, “they’ll be in formation in a few minutes General.”

“Excellent Commander,” Malak replied and turned to the transmission terminal, “prepare the channel officer.”

A few minutes passed and the second Fleet joined formation with the Avenger and the third Fleet. Malak looked on at the view screen, admiring the force under his command.

“Second Fleet reporting, what are our orders general?” a voice called out over the radio.

“Stay in formation with the third Fleet, and continue onto the Brentaal System,” Malak ordered, “When we arrive we have to patrol the Hydian Way.”

“Yes sir,” the voice replied.

The second and third Fleet turned in formation and slowly moved across the system, moments later they went into hyperspace.

kookaburra · October 20, 2005

THE RAKATAN TEMPLE’S TOP LEVEL

Revan and Malak had quickly made it to the up most level of the temple and were heading towards the outside area where the switch they were searching for was located. When they reached it, Revan and Malak looked at its simple yet effective design. It appeared that only a user of the force could ‘push’ it, so Revan focused and pushed it with the Force. Suddenly a loud buzzing sound started then stopped moments later. The disruptor field was off.

“Ok, let’s get back to the shuttle,” Revan ordered, turning and walking toward the exit, with Malak following closely behind.

When back on the first floor, they began to jog through the hallways and quickly made it to the middle of the temple. Then Revan stopped, he saw a door to a room he did not noticed earlier. He walked in curious as to why he wanted to stop. Malak turned to see where his friend had gone.

“Revan, where are you?” Malak shouted, running toward the room Revan had entered.

When Malak arrived at the door, he was surprised to see Revan holding something.