Star Wars: Slave Of Darkness

Terrak was troubled. It was easy to see, even without the inherent empathetic abilities provided by the Force. It was written plainly across his face as he tried to meditate.

The cause was clear. He had been arguing with his sister again.

The tentacles around the Jedi's mouth twitched in irritation as he sat in silence. Not with the Zabrak, but with himself and his own inability to aid either of them in finding peace.

Closing his eyes, he allowed himself to slip into a light meditation.

Contrary to popular belief, even in the Republic, the Jedi did not normally eschew close relationships between themselves or others, a perception born from the insular nature of the Order. 

Many Jedi found it difficult to bond with those that did not, or rather could not, understand the way the Force affected their lives, so they found themselves drawn more towards others like themselves.

Bonds between Jedi and other Force Sensitives formed easily and were oftentimes unintentional. Most were beneficial ties, allowing the partners to coordinate better or to more easily sense the other's emotions. Master-Student bonds went deeper than this, even allowing coherent communication in some rare cases.

What Terrak and his sister had was beyond anything that the Jedi had heard of before. Not only were sensations shared between them when they allowed it, the emotions of one would influence the mind of the other. They were separate beings, but only by a thin margin. 

A danger, to be certain, but one they had been trying to regulate.

Force Sensitives were rare in comparison to the galactic population, making up a bare fraction of it. Despite that, there were enough consistent lineages of Force Sensitives for the phenomenon of familial-based Force Bonds to be studied. Parent-child bonds were common in such circumstances, but Force Sensitive siblings were another matter.

Whether due to personal choice or because of some biological reason, it was rare for Jedi families to have more than one child and only in particularly potent bloodlines, such as that of the Qel-Droma.

The Jedi grimaced slightly.

His knowledge on such matters was limited to the basics as he had never possessed a need for such information. And now, that lack of knowledge was preventing him from being of aid to his ally…and friend.

He himself had chosen to abandon worldly attachments years ago. Not because he believed that such things were wrong or harmful, but because of the nature of his path and the dedication necessary to walk it.

The life of a Shadow was a difficult one, even when compared to the already arduous path of the Jedi. Agents like him delved into the darkest parts of the galaxy and hunted down the most dangerous threats in service of something greater than themselves. 

The danger of falling was an ever-present, looming threat that haunted the nightmares of every one of them.

Every time he accepted a mission from the Council of First Knowledge, he did so knowing that the remainder of his life could be measured in mere days, if not hours, and that failure could damn thousands. But it was a purpose that he had chosen. 

The Shadows did not conscript new members, but rather took in only trusted volunteers.

Over the years, he had shed names like water as he moved from mission to mission. "Garsh" was but the latest face that he had worn. It wasn't even the first time he had posed as a slave, former or otherwise.

But for all his high-minded ideals of becoming a nameless weapon of the Force with no material ties, he had still had friends. And now he found himself taking on an unexpected student.

There was a level of natural compassion, patience, and easy grace in the young Zabrak that he envied. Had Terrak been born in the Republic, he would have been a great Knight by now. Lauded as a hero by the masses.

'Or dead on a battlefield somewhere.' His cynical mind provided.

And there was an ache in his chest for the one that he had failed.

The Jedi's thoughts turned towards the other one he had tried to reach out to. That day outside the platform, he had seen the man reach out a hand in turn to another. He thought he had seen a glimmer of what must have been a good man once.

So he had plied his gambit to get close without drawing suspicion. While the dry sands of Korriban were far from pleasant for aquatic species like the Quarren, it was far from debilitating enough to bring him down, not with the Force flowing through him. 

When he sensed the human and Wookiee approaching after he had completed the First Trial, the Jedi had faked unconsciousness via meditation to see what the former slave would do. He had been pleasantly surprised at the result.

There had been opportunities to speak with Aldrex, to feel him out and start the process of drawing him away from the Dark. He had touched it, yes, but not to the point where he was too far gone.

But the Jedi's cautious, if not borderline paranoid, nature had played against him. Aldrex's actions had drawn several influential eyes to him in a very short amount of time. 

The Overseer in particular had kept a very close watch after the First Trial, despite his façade of neutrality and disinterest. Careful looks into unguarded minds revealed rumors that the soldiers were talking as well.

Such widespread attention had made him hesitant to act until it was far too late. He did nothing but watch as Aldrex delved deeper and deeper into Sith lore, becoming stronger but also more twisted.

That spark he had seen outside the landing pad grew dimmer and dimmer as weeks passed.

When the Jedi had returned from the Second Trial, that light had gone out completely. Whatever had occurred in his absence had coerced the man into fully embracing the Dark and killing in cold blood.

The first time he had seen Aldrex's eyes stained a sulfurous yellow, however temporary it had been at the time, he had made his decision to break away. It happened slowly over weeks as the Jedi carefully layered compulsion over compulsion to cloud the acolyte's mind and make him overlook the Quarren's lack of presence.

It didn't stop the guilt from building right along with it. Aldrex's corruption could have been halted, but he had hesitated out of fear.

In the end, he had judged that the soul of one man was worth less than the success of his mission. He could only hope it was worth it.

But now, he had to face his failure once more. Somehow, Aldrex had broken through the compulsions and was now acting against him, even if not directly yet. The Jedi had sensed the lingering presence of his power on Ianna just before she had verbally attacked him.

He did not believe in coincidences.

The Jedi had to grudgingly admit that the acolyte had chosen an effective form of attack. Whatever had been done to Ianna was not mental. The hateful words she had spat at him and the rage seething through her were all her own, merely directed. 

The only reason she had not physically attacked him was solely due to her brother holding her back, but it had clearly driven a divide among them. Though in her anger, she had let something slip.

Aldrex was aware that he was a Jedi Shadow. He had never told either Ianna or Terrak of his role in the Order.

The Jedi had spent several hours in meditation when things had calmed once more, pouring over his memories for anything that might have given the man any kind of hint. When he found nothing, he was forced to accept a damning fact.

If Aldrex had not discovered it for himself, someone else had to have informed him. Which mean that it had likely originated from higher up. A Lord…or worse, a Darth.

That he was not already in a holding cell or dead meant that the source wasn't his target. They were hardly subtle and would have had little interest in allowing a Jedi Shadow free reign to wander the Sith Academy or risk destabilizing Project Ascension.

Aldrex was a threat, but he was just the weapon of a greater threat. One interested in keeping this farce going, despite knowing the Jedi had infiltrated it.

The Jedi paused.

Or perhaps that was the reason. He connected the dots quickly.

Aldrex was being tested. It wasn't difficult to figure out how.

This was Aldrex's Fourth Trial. The elimination of the other acolytes.

Kalista had disappeared yesterday. Something had chased her into a blind spot in the camera network, but she hadn't come out the other side. When he had inspected the location himself, all he had found were a trace of ashes on the floor and a lingering sensation of terror. 

Whatever her pursuer had been, it had known how to maneuver around the coverage angles of the cameras to avoid detection.

Qiv, the Nautolan, had disappeared months ago without a trace. Due to her hostility towards most of the others, he had originally believed that Olia had killed him. In hindsight, he had begun to wonder if Aldrex had performed that deed instead.

Olia herself, Aldrex's main rival, had seemingly disappeared as well, though she had left the academy to venture out into the desert. He did not know if she was still alive.

Without a doubt, the Jedi knew that his mission had been exposed and his cover blown. According to protocols set by the Council of First Knowledge, he should be trying to exfiltrate from Korriban as fast as possible to avoid capture. While he could accomplish that thanks to a number of contingencies he had set up, there was still a problem.

Leaving would mean abandoning Terrak and Ianna, something he found himself loathe to do.

He knew he was becoming attached to the pair. Whatever reservations he had about Ianna and whatever bile she spat at him, he had still taken her under his wing as he had her brother.

He did not wish to fail. Not again.

Garsh's eyes opened slowly.

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The first book of this fanfic has been completed on Patreon, you can look it up in the collection alongside the second book. You can visit Patreon if you want to read in Advance.

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