NOTE: You can skip to Chapter 6 if you want to go straight into the action. If you want some backstory, you can just continue.

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“Why are we here, master?” Vader said, as the ramp of their shuttle lowered into the hostile surface of Korriban/Moraband. The red and hot sands of the surface had already entered his boots when he walked on it. The wind added to his annoyance by scattering the sand into his eyes and blowing his robe, helping the sand enter his clothes.

“Don't you sense the power in this place, my apprentice?” Sidious replied with a question, and walked out of the ship, the weather not bothering him at all. He stopped outside savouring the Dark Side. The dark lord was home. The signatures of all Sith past and present brought made him happy and satisfied.

Vader felt it. The immense power of the historic events that were present in the Force signature of the planet was no joke but he reacted more mildly than his master. He had never cared for the planet or power anyway; he had no relation to it, he wasn't trained there and why focus on the gain of power if he already had a huge amount?

“Yes. The Dark Side is strong here. After all, it is where we Sith came from,” Sidious stated. His apprentice acknowledged the statement with a mere nod, understanding the significance of the place. His master had just suddenly summoned him and led him there, all out of the blue.

“Now, my apprentice, enter the ancient ruins for inside is the lesson I want to teach you,” his master commanded, pointing along the pathway in the valley. Vader stared blankly at the dark mud path, littered with both humanoid and animal corpses.

‘Great.’ Just when he was finally having a break from the war, but he could not complain.

“Yes, my master.” He began his journey, leaving his master by the ship.

Better just get this over with. The surprising news from Padme had brought him great joy; he was excited about becoming a parent. However, there was the Jedi Order and Palpatine to be wary of. He had looked forward to meeting her again and check out her health. He felt that the lesson was not too necessary, since he'd already learnt most of the Sith teachings.

The young man followed and walked along the path. It led to a fork between some destroyed ruins which was a Sith Academy and a mysterious cave. Sounds of shyracks echoed from inside it, which would scare a lay person but they did not earn any attention from him.

What exactly was the lesson? Where was he supposed to go? These questions aroused in his mind as he stared at the fork in the path.

The academy would be more sensible, but he felt weird as he stood before the cave entrance. His nerves were highly sensitive and his heart rate went up. For some reason, the cave was affecting him. It attracted him to it. Using his lightsaber as a light source, he entered the daunting cave, sensing a strong fluctuation of the Force.

There were many branches and forks inside and Vader had to fight through shyracks and tu'katas. The corpses and skeletons of many who failed to defend themselves gave him some clue of the place. From their datapads, he learnt what they were there for and which paths to avoid. Some datapads mentioned the deadly teren'ta'raek°, which was resistant to the Force, but it was probably dead by then.

Touching the walls of the cave, he sensed a trail towards something, the entrance towards the Academy or some other ruin. Whatever it was, it was the source of the mysterious fluctuation and he yearned to discover it. He followed the trail, sensing various people, Jedi and Sith alike who have once walked in and perished.

He crossed a stone bridge, which were lit by burning torches. The torches and the flesh corpses show recent infiltration. At the end of the bridge, there was the entrance of an ancient structure; it looked like some sort of training ground. The compound was filled with a weird fog, pinkish in color and it was probably what killed those recent infiltrators.

He cautiously stepped foot in the compound, but he felt no effects of the fog. He came upon the conclusion that Force sensitives like him were not affected. The door closed the moment he entered the building and became unmovable; he was trapped inside. His only choice was to move forwards and find the entrance of the academy, or more preferably, an exit.

The main question(s) in his mind were about when it was created and why, but that was not important — it was obvious that the Sith had built it, as an academy which was later abandoned and shifted to the other one in the valley. The floors were made of cobblestone and the walls were rugged, made of of some dark coloured material with engravings and sculptures. Judging the building's decoration and construction, it was probably some 4,000 years old.

His hair suddenly stood on its edge and his breathing went heavy. He felt the lightning course through his body and the red-hot rod being hit on his back. He regained his composure in a moment, wiping the sweat off his body, leaning on the wall and slowly catching his breath.

The place had an effect on him and plagued him with memories of his life every time he went into a room. He mainly ignored most of the mental pain and unreal joy caused by them, but he knew he could never escape....

There she was, his beloved, running towards him from another room. His sensible mind had long been gone, an effect of those drastic memories, and questions were dissolved in his thoughts. His heart leapt at the sight of Padme, and he ran to hug her, but she stopped right before him, her face contorted to one filled with betrayal and anger. Something was wrong; she had fear in her eyes.

“Angel, what is bothering you?” he asked her, slowly stepping closer. This didn't feel like her, it was only pain. Her joy from the day before was all gone, her smile deepened into a frown and tears of joy dissolved into tears of sadness.

“Why didn't you tell me?” she snapped, “That you were the evil in this galaxy, the reason for all this suffering!”

“Padmé, how could you say that?” he replied. He tried to appear innocent; he can't afford to get discovered, not even in front of her; Palpatine had warned him clearly. His wife clutched her hands near her chest – the sight of her sad eyes made him want to kill himself, since he was to one who brought such sadness.

She sighed, her lips quivering, “Tell me the truth, please. For the sake of this relationship.”

She maintained long eye contact but he could not face her. He was afraid that her brown eyes would bore into his blue ones, and find out the truth. There was the question of how she found out; that fact alone may be the reason she came all the way to Korriban. To think that she would go to one of the most hostile planets of the galaxy just to confront him.

It suddenly felt stuffy and hot, and he shifted in his place, holding his breath and clenching his fists. If he lied, he would have kept her life in danger for nothing. If he told the truth, hopefully she would forgive him...would she? This pain of hers was because she had never known. If she did, she wouldn't care and love him for the person he was. He was sure of that. Padmé had a forgiving nature.

He released his breath. “Alright, I'll tell you, but promise me, do not reveal this to anyone else. I promise I will not hurt you.”

She stood still, and then nodded slowly. He took in a deep breath. Here goes.

“It's...true," he said, stuttering in his words. He had never told anyone about this. "I'm a Sith apprentice to the Dark Lord Sidious. I was taken...from my...my mother when I was just a child, th-then I was trained...in the ways of the Sith.”

Padme stared at him, seemingly not knowing what to do and he understood. She had suspicions that he was a Sith, a dangerous enemy of the Republic, and he himself confirming it had just brought in more fear just had he hoped it brought trust. She remembered his promise; to never harm her or allow her to be harmed. However, remaining passive would be betraying her close ones.

“Anakin, I have to tell you something...” she said, looking down in shame, her hands held in front of her.

The entire Jedi Council suddenly burst in. Seeing them, his alarms went off. If they had been listening, his cover was blown; they would've known his allegiance was fake. How were they even there? He turned towards his wife, who stood next to Jedi Obi Wan Kenobi. She had fake tears and covered her mouth.

"I'm sorry, Anakin," her false mouth uttered. He gritted his teeth. This was supposed to be expected, but he felt a pinch on his heart and it felt stiff. He felt that he could not breath. Was this the wife he had known? She tilted her head sideways and gave him the most deceptive smile he'd seen on her. It did not and would never suit her.

He felt anger rising in him. She, along with the Jedi Order, had always been looking forward to having his head. Since he was known as the hero of the Republic, it was difficult but after his revelation, they saw the situation and took advantage of it. This betrayal would not be taken lightly, but there was still the Jedi to be taken care of. He lowered his head, thinking. His bangs covered the upper part of his face, making him unreadable.

The Jedi ignited their lightsabers, and Mace Windu spoke, “For threatening the peace and justice of this galaxy and your crimes against the Galactic Senate, you are under arrest, Skywalker.”

He faced them, revealing the fiery glow of his eyes as he ignited his weapon. With a battle cry, he gave a power attack at Windu, who dodged it and flipped away, allowing Yoda to send a flurry of deadly lightsaber strikes. Vader parried as much as he could, and sent a Force blast at the grandmaster.

Three Jedi masters attempted to corner him, forcing him to parry while they deliver blows. Feeling under pressure, he unleashed a powerful Force wave, which sent them to the wall, the force of the impact crushed their spines. It took a toll on him, but he hid that disadvantage of his. He turned to Kenobi, striking his head and chest, which the latter parried.

Vader kicked him hard, using the Force to intensify his attack. Kenobi was immobilized, which raised the concern of his fellow Jedi. Since Mace Windu was distracted, Vader dashed behind him and unleashed Force lightning. He used the Force to pull the three lightsabers of the dead Jedi, ignited them and used them to defend himself from other Jedi while he tortured Windu.

He wore a huge smile of sadistic glee as the Jedi Master's life faded under the electrocution. The other Jedi could only groan in anguish, unable to help their friend and comrade since they were busy with the Sith's lightsaber projection.

They studied the technique Vader used; it was an intimidating lightsaber skill which required a lot of concentration, used by Darth Traya†. It was quite weak and used only for fear factor, so why could they not get through?

“As long...as there is one...Jedi, we'll...always rise!” the Jedi master exclaimed in full faith as his life was gone.

The Jedi paused. Vader had just killed a leading member of the Council, one of the most powerful. Mace Windu had died and they suppressed any emotion that might come out. All eyes, that were filled with fear, turned to Master Yoda, who stayed in an offensive stance. The message was clear; remove the plague at all costs.

Yoda flipped towards the Sith, sending powerful lightsaber attacks with every strike. Vader was successfully hit several times, but he endured his injuries, channelling the pain to his anger, giving him more power. They all fought for a lengthy period, aiming to exhaust his stamina.

Shaak Ti knocked his head with the hilt of her saber. Vader absorbed the attack and going low in a quick motion, stabbed the Togruta through her abdomen, her blood splattering all over the floor.

The fight paused once again. Five Jedi masters taken out by one Sith apprentice. Things were getting worrisome. Padmé was nowhere to be seen. They now concentrated on attacking him with nothing but brute force and all at once. They would use their Force powers and combine them; it was a technique that would get rid of the enemy in one blow.

Before they could unleash their combined attack, Vader in an act of panic, released a huge Force wave, taking out most of the Jedi and blocking the attack. You could almost see the ripples made in the matter around by a release of a huge amount of power. The Jedi were afraid; they had given it their all with that attack and since it was disrupted, they had barely had any stamina.

Mundi refused to back down and slashed his blue lightsaber towards Vader's head while the latter ducked to avoid it. He kicked as the Jedi missed, and back flipped towards the wall to dodge the other attack from his side. He parried a strike from Yoda. His muscles complained from the lack of oxygen, but he forced them to work.

Summoning the Force, he used it to draw energy from his enemies, while draining away theirs. Kenobi broke free of such Force power and gave a Force-enhanced kick to his face that sent him across the floor. He rose from the floor, wiping off the blood that was running down from his nose. That was the moment he snapped and with his rage and immense energy, then his opponents fell to the floor once again. 

Master Secura charged but was stopped when he choked her and smashed her to the wall several times. He broke the ceiling and crushed her with the pieces. Her bones cracked and blood was spreading out of the rubble. Half of the Council was taken out.

Yoda used the Force to carry a huge rock and send it straight to the Sith. He used his lightsaber to cut the rock, preventing it from reaching him and pushed the pieces towards the surrounding Jedi. They screamed as they were hit and Ki-Adi-Mundi rushed to heal them. Vader Force-sped there and slashed through his abdomen to his chest. The heat of the plasma sealed the wound.

Before his consciousness could fade, Mundi could slash at Vader's abdomen. The apprentice swore at the Jedi and beheaded him. He kicked the head away and faced the five remaining Jedi.

He clutched the part where he had been hurt and was wet with his own sweat. He had injuries in his arms and legs from overstraining them, not to mention the burning feeling in his lungs and muscles due to the lack of oxygen and one of his ribs being broken. The air reeked of bodily fluids and he just wanted to get out of there.

Deciding to take them out in one strike, he pushed Kenobi while duelling and used Force lightning at Stass Allie, electrocuting her to death, her burnt body was beyond recognition. Four more left.

At the alarming rate they were losing Jedi masters, Yoda had had enough, he summoned the Force and sent a blast towards Vader, but the Sith resisted and tried to stay in his guard. Kenobi saw the tactic and helped Yoda by sending another Force blast. The other Jedi also did the same. Vader let out a cry before being sent to the wall. Quickly and swiftly, the grandmaster controlled the rocks to trap Vader inside of it.

“Your affliction on this galaxy is over Sith!” one of the Jedi Masters exclaimed, panting and looking as if he was about to collapse anytime.

“We will end this once and for all,” Kenobi stated, his voice soft, stepping towards Vader with his saber to kill him. As he lifted the weapon to strike at the Sith, he paused. The older man's face was full of worry, his teeth were gritted and his fists were white, tightly holding the lightsaber as his hands shook. Vader could see the hesitation in him.

The Sith quickly took advantage of it, giving mental attacks. Honestly, for Vader himself, he felt the same too. The man before him was his dear friend, perhaps the only one who could understand him but if he had to, he would gladly kill him.

Obi Wan sat down, pondering on his decision while the Sith infiltrated his mind, confusing him by sending memories of their time together.

“Master Kenobi, tricked you he has,” Yoda spoke up, placing his hand on the man's shoulder. “An enemy, he is.”

“Yes...yes, master,” He replied to Yoda, breathing shakily, and rose, turning to Vader. He had a tight grip on his saber. Vader panicked when he saw that what he was doing did not affect Kenobi.

The Jedi Master raised his weapon and brought it down to Vader's head.

The latter cried in pain, and fell. When he opened his eyes, he was on the floor and sustained no injury. No one was around either, except for the pinkish fog that seemed to glow brighter, and it was a silent as a dead planet. Basically, he wasted his energy for nothing. He punched the wall in frustration.

It was only a delusion, but this delusion left an impact on him. Could it have meant anything?

‘A vision of the future,’ his master's voice spoke to him. That made sense. Padme would betray him along with all of his loved ones which was why they had been suspicious. If he wasn't careful, he'd be dead soon. By this time, he felt nothing for them and buried his emotions underneath a rubble of hate for the Jedi.

Was this the lesson?

After pondering about the situation, he reminded himself that he must find a way out of there. A Force sensitive would be able to sense a vision only in a Force sensitive place, obviously, and such places were dangerous. He walked into another room. The darkness faded and the fog blurred his vision. He broke through it to see the room changed into a sky filled with smog and a few buildings. His vision waa directed to an apartment, a very familiar one.

Ahsoka was present with the Senator, looking down and depressed. They don't seem to acknowledge his presence. He tried to touch them but his hand just passed through them.

‘Another vision,’ he muttered. He stood there and watched them, curious as to what the developments would be this time.

“So he's dead,” Ahsoka said, seated on a sofa inside Padmé's apartment. Her nonchalant voice made him annoyed. It felt as if she never cared, maybe she actually never did.

“Yes,” the senator replied, putting the tray of beverages on the table and sighed. “You know, it has been...hard, without him and with the baby, I meant, babies.”

So she would still love him. He chuckled darkly, unbelieving that who he thought was a vixen could even harbor such feelings.

“Yeah I understand,” Ahsoka responded before she took a sip of the given beverage. “You are going to have twins; that must be a pressure, Senator.”

Padmé looked out through the window, pondering upon the situation and absentmindedly rubbed her forehead. The Togrutan stood up from her position and walked towards a hologram of Padmé and Anakin together.

“You know, there might be another way, an easier way for you to deal with this,” Ahsoka said.

“Forget it Ahsoka, I've already told Obi Wan. I won't let them train my babies.” Padmé looked at her, slightly annoyed that the Jedi were trying to talk their way around the subject again.

“No, Padmé,” Ahsoka responded, after turning off the holocron and took a seat next to her. “But the children might grow up to be like their father if they're not trained properly as Jedi. For all we know, other Dark Siders are still out there but I know you wouldn't agree so...”

“So?”

“So, I am implying that these children may become a threat to the galaxy.”

Padme guessed where the conversation was going, and pushed Ahsoka away. “No! Whatever it is, no!”

Vader guessed that the Jedi had agreed to kill his offsprings, so that they may not be a nuisance and because Padme had already refused in their training...

His buried feelings started to resurface. He was hurt at thought of her or his children lost. The feeling was unwanted but automatic, and he knew how to erase it. He must watch on.

Ahsoka stood up abruptly. “Say, when you become one with the Force, please tell me about it.”

She suddenly ignited her lightsaber and stabbed Padme right at her womb, right through the babies' heads. The senator fell down and the blood spilled all over the place. Ahsoka pulled out her lightsaber, cutting the woman in half. The two pieces of her body were scattered all over the place, creating a mess.

Ahsoka's cold gaze was on the body of the woman and the underdeveloped embryos. She then left the room and skipped outside. “Sorry but goodbye my old friend.”

He thought he would enjoy her death. He was supposed to, but tears unknowingly settled at the corners of his eyes. He touched his wet cheeks, the feeling of tears rolling down them foreign to him. He wanted to get rid of the pain, it felt so real and it was annoying. These feelings would hinder him of his purpose and mission. And he did not want such a harsh future to be inflicted upon her.

He knew the answer and the only choice he had. He must leave them, that way they would not be subjected to death and they would be out of his path. Besides, he wouldn't mind Padmé being put into an emotional punishment. That woman was always quick to give in to her emotions.

Realizing he was still stuck inside, he wiped his tears, ashamed of the emotional display and walked on ahead. Luckily, the room led directly to the outside. He was led to the bridge from before but on the other side. He was fascinated in the method the ancient Sith had chosen to construct training grounds. He followed the trail of shyrack corpses.

He soon found a way out of the Shyrack caves. The introduction of the sun's rays blinded him and he shielded his eyes. Ignoring his sore body, he hastily went before his master, who was waiting outside for him. The Sith Lord smiled with pleasure when he saw that Vader's eyes had returned to the normal bright orange-yellow which were full of hate.

“So, you found the answer?” he said, his cold eyes piercing through Vader's soul.

“Yes, master. I...I will never stray from the Sith's path ever again,” Vader replied, bowing down to the Sith Lord. The emotions he had for her and everyone else were gone, hopefully. His focus shifted from his love and excitement for a family to his thirst for power; he must.

They were nothing to him anymore, so why did he feel guilt and loss?

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Let me know how you feel regarding this book. A new story, a new beginning :-)

“Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Ephesians 1:2)

Definitions:

° teren'ta'raek (don't know if it's spelled correctly) - a deadly creature known to have appeared in the KOTOR series. Resistant to force powers and can affect you with poison. One blow can make you end up on the ground, with injuries.

† Darth Traya - The main villain of KOTOR 2. I never looked at her that way, but I admired her.

PS#1. I died a lot of times fighting both of them. PS#2. Play KOTOR (1 & 2), if you haven't. Their stories are awesome.