Chapter 6: The Sith's Princess

Chapter 6
The Sith's Princess

Korriban - 21 YEARS TO THE BATTLE

Don’t leave me here! Don’t abandon me with him, I beg you!

She wanted to scream at the figure of the man walking away. Throughout that entire day, the only consolation she had was that stranger. He hadn't arrived in time to save her mother and father, but he had fought to bring her to safety. He had saved her from that Jedi. Liora didn’t even know what Jedi were. She didn’t know where she was. She had collapsed from exhaustion the moment she sat in the man’s ship. Should she call him Eriaar or Xuir?

The hand gripping her arm pulled her back, and the girl found herself staring into the eyes of the Dark Lord of the Sith. «Do you know who I am?»

Liora wanted to answer no, that she had no idea… More than anything, she wished she knew nothing at all. Liora had always lived with her mom and dad on Velmara. That was the life she knew… the father she knew. Yet, deep in her heart, Liora had always known the truth, even before she confirmed it one day, out of nowhere, when she looked into her mother’s sad eyes while holding her hand and saw her memories, her greatest pain, and her deepest regret. It was a lightning bolt out of the blue. Liora hadn’t even known she had that ability, didn’t know how or when to use it, so why, on that day, had it shown her such terrible things?

It was at that moment she discovered that her beloved father was not her father at all; the horrible past of her mother; the terrible things she had seen but had always refused to do… She discovered that her real father was the Dark Lord of the Sith, Darth Nexar.

Yet, what would be so wrong in lying to that man? What could he do that was worse than what the Jedi had done to her family?

Kill her?

Good!

At least she would be reunited with her mother and father! She slowly lifted her gaze and shuddered.

Why do I look so much like him?

Ever since she had learned the truth about her birth, she had spent days searching for any physical resemblance to her dad, hoping it had all been a mistake, even a cruel joke of her imagination! She had never had any luck. Yet, it took only one glance at that man to understand just how much they resembled each other. She had memorized every little detail of her face, and now she saw them all in Nexar. Her throat closed up, and large, hot tears ran down her cheeks. Her heart pounded in her chest. Her lungs refused to fill completely, contracting desperately for air. Her mind was invaded by thousands of questions with terrible answers. Her body trembled violently, struggling to stay upright.

A hand grabbed her chin, and Nexar lifted her face with such a brusque movement that Liora feared he would snap her neck. «I detest children, especially those who throw tantrums. Do. You. Know. Who. I. Am?»

Liora tried to break free, but Nexar was too strong. «Yes… But you will never be my father! He is dead, killed by the Jedi!»

The Sith’s smile made her shudder: this man was dangerous and utterly insane. «Good! You have the right spirit. Hate me, in fact, the more you hate me, the stronger your power will grow. When you are older, you will take my place and become the Queen of the Sith!»

Now she understood why this man had become her mother’s only regret. Liora stared into the black eyes veined with gold, the power of the Sith, and felt a tingling sensation all over her body, like an electric shock. Then, instinctively, she struck the Dark Lord of the Sith with her open palm on his chest. Something, an immense power, erupted from her hand, and Nexar was hurled straight against the wall. Liora stared at her hands in disbelief. She had always felt power flowing through her veins, silent and inert. Every so often, she had even heard a distant whisper, an undefined voice—she couldn’t even tell if it was a man or a woman—yet it had always been there, telling her when and how to move to avoid dangers, obstacles, anything that crossed her path. She was sure it was that energy that had moved her hand and unleashed that power.

Nexar’s deep, low laughter caught her attention. This man was very strange. Why was he laughing? Liora had expected a furious outburst, not this bizarre reaction. She watched him get up and walk toward her again. His eyes now held a completely different light from moments ago—he almost seemed proud. She was overwhelmed by the desire to run, but where could she go? Korriban was the cradle of the Sith; there was no other form of life besides them. She didn’t know how to pilot a ship, and she would only end up killing herself. And yet…

Perhaps death is a better fate than growing up with this man.

Nexar placed a hand on her shoulder, and this time, she noticed the difference from his earlier grip: he suddenly seemed gentler. «First of all, you need a new name,» he said, a proud smile on his face. «And I believe I have the perfect one for you, my daughter, the Princess of Evil: Lady Obskura. That will be your name from now on.» 

Korriban – 16 YEARS TO THE BATTLE

Her footsteps echoed in the silence of the corridor, looming like death itself. Five years had passed since she had been brought to this planet, and they had been pure hell for her. She had resisted, tried in every way to hold onto the light, just as her mother would have wanted, but the more Nexar subjected her to training, the more her mother’s image faded from her memories. She hadn't recalled her voice in years, and now she had to struggle to remember even a single detail of her face.

Liora had disappeared as well, dead along with her mother, killed by the Jedi. The garments of Obskura, which she had tried so hard to reject, were now familiar to her.

At her side dangled the second lightsaber that had once belonged to her mother. When she had escaped from Velmara, she had managed to bring with her only one of her mother’s twin blades. The Kyber crystal had immediately recognized Obskura. Nexar said that there was a stronger connection with her than with Selene; he claimed it was proof that it was destiny for Xuir to bring her to him.

Darth Xuir…

Every now and then, she thought of her savior. She had spent little time with him, but it had been enough to understand how different he was from creatures like Nexar… and from what she had now become. Xuir was not a Sith. He wasn’t a Jedi either, but he had strong moral values, and he had demonstrated that by rebelling against his Master and saving her life. She also knew that Nexar hadn’t given up yet. He desperately wanted Xuir to join the Sith Order.

She laughed at the thought—Nexar was the embodiment of evil, incapable of any positive emotions, a hollow shell filled only with rage, hatred, envy, and jealousy. He roamed the Galaxy hunting down beings with immense power, turning them into his personal playthings with which to terrorize innocent people. She was one of those playthings. And Xuir was the one he desired more than any other. He had fought him before; he knew the power that man wielded. And he knew that if only Xuir joined the Sith Order, they could conquer the Galaxy and beyond.

The spies Nexar had sent after him had never returned… Well, except for the severed head of one of them. It seemed that Xuir could sense the presence of any Sith spy within thousands of kilometers. Nexar had then tried hiring bounty hunters, but it had quickly become obvious that they had met the same fate as the others. The Dark Lord of the Sith had grown increasingly frustrated with his failed attempts to spy on Xuir. He was absolutely convinced that this defensive wall had a very specific reason.

Well, in the end, he was right.

As a last resort, he had turned to smugglers. Nexar didn’t speak highly of them, calling them traitors and claiming that their only useful purpose was to serve as live bait. But he had been forced to change his mind. He had searched the entire Galaxy for the best smuggler for this particular mission, and indeed, despite the man’s absolute refusal to land on Korriban, he had managed to complete the task without consequences. And the information he had brought back was very interesting:

Xuir had taken an apprentice.

She was about eleven years old, had violet hair, and possessed a power that had sent shivers down the smuggler’s spine, even though he hadn’t gotten too close to them. The girl commanded the shadows.

Obskura had seen Nexar’s eyes light up at those words. Shadow Wielding was an extremely rare ability, unseen in a Shadows' Master for at least a thousand years. Normally, such beings were reclusive and solitary. The question had arisen immediately: where had Xuir found that girl?

Absurd that he’s sending me and Malakar to Ryubin, hoping to find another one, as if they weren’t as rare as a Dyad in the Force.

Obskura scoffed and stepped into the Arena, the physical and military training ground of the Sith Fortress. She had spent the last few years there, perfecting her combat style under the watchful eye of the Dark Lord of the Sith… as well as working on controlling her power.

There was something horrific about being able to read people in that way. If she concentrated enough, she could delve into the suppressed memories of a being over a thousand years old. During training, she had wounded more than one of her fellow warriors, but the only thing Nexar cared about was that she learned to use her power, regardless of the consequences.

«Hey, Princess.»

The river of her thoughts was violently interrupted by Malakar’s voice.

«What are you doing around here? Do you miss training with us mere mortals?»

Obskura miserably failed at suppressing the smile that instinctively spread across her face.

«Maybe I just missed your jokes, Malakar.»

Khraven Malakar was the youngest Assassin in the Sith Order. He was a year older than her and the most beautiful creature she had ever seen. He had long black hair and onyx eyes streaked with gold due to the Sith power coursing through his veins.

He had been the first to show her kindness in that infernal pit that was the Sith Fortress. Many had looked down on her, believing she received special treatment in her training since she was the Dark Lord of the Sith’s daughter… without considering that she had actually been psychologically and physically tortured for the first two years, locked in an isolation cell and surrounded only by images of her parents' deaths. Subjecting her to that hell had certainly made her deeply hate the Jedi—but her hatred for Nexar had grown just as much. After all, it had been him who had decided the course of her training.

When she had finally been released, she was so full of hatred that she had attacked the first human beings she saw. Nexar had been there too, but he had merely watched as his daughter—who at that moment resembled a bloodthirsty beast more than a human—killed two fully trained Sith warriors with her bare hands.

There was one thing, however, that she had to admit: the dark side was intoxicating. Once you tasted its power, you could never go back. The whisper of the light side, which she had always heard as a child, could never compare to the clear, almost deafening voice of the dark side. Every instruction was precise, down to the last millimeter. And when you gave it full access, letting it flow through your entire body, you felt invincible.

«You still insist on calling her that?»

Syphira approached them, and Obskura distinctly felt the murderous intent start to boil in her veins.

«That princess treatment doesn’t suit the Sith Order very well.»

Obskura looked at her, and her power activated instantly: Syphira was the only one in her family to have joined the Sith Order, but not the only one born Force-sensitive. She knew well that her resentment stemmed from envy and jealousy.

«Oh, Syf… I think having a twin brother who's a Jedi is even less fitting for the Sith Order than the so-called princess treatment I supposedly receive.»

Syphira’s face immediately lost all color.

«Who told you that?»

Her rage and hatred fueled Obskura’s power, and her lips curled into a vicious grin.

«I’m not finished: you always said your parents were bounty hunters, but you were lying. Your mother works for the Republic, while your father works for the Jedi Order. That’s how they managed to get your brother into the Order, despite his twin sister choosing to become a Sith.»

The reaction was instant: Syphira ignited her lightsaber and swung it down at Obskura. The crimson blade stopped abruptly just inches from her face, despite the pressure Syphira exerted on the hilt.

A mere thought had been enough for Obskura to counter her attack. A blink later, Syphira was sent flying. Guards immediately restrained her as she screamed for vengeance.

Obskura rolled her eyes, then turned to Khraven.

«Come with me. Nexar wants to see us both.» 

Ryubin – 16 YEARS TO THE BATTLE

Obskura and Khraven walked through the charred ruins of a village, stepping over the corpses, now reduced to bones, of the victims of that attack. The air was thick with pain, hatred, despair, and terror. The attack had been sudden and brutal. Looking at the conditions of that battlefield, Obskura would have been sure that the attackers were Sith and not Jedi, and yet...

The information the smuggler gave us has been verified: the attackers were Jedi, not Sith.

But why such relentless aggression against innocents? Had the Jedi gone mad? Sure, their main enemy had been witches, but what did the villagers have to do with it? Among those skeletons, some were far too small to belong to adults. Since when did Jedi kill children?

Now that I think about it... I was just a child too... And my mother was innocent.

Something didn’t add up. Nexar would never allow her to investigate the Jedi Order, but she had to admit that these levels of aggression were concerning... especially for an Order considered the cradle of heroes and saviors of the Galaxy. The Jedi who had killed her mother had seemed like a monster to her, but the one who had saved her had become one. Perhaps, after all, Jedi and Sith weren’t so different.

«Princess, come look at this.»

Obskura let out a long breath before joining Khraven in front of the only house that hadn’t burned down. Among all of them, it must have been the largest in the village. Something caught her attention at the foundations: a sort of thick, black smoke rose from the shadows cast by the sun on the house. Obskura raised an eyebrow: it was surely the work of the Shadows' Master. She raised a hand and brought it close to the walls: when her fingertips brushed against the stone, a wall of darkness rose to block their path. She immediately withdrew her hand: the icy cold emanating from those shadows was a harbinger of death.

An arm wrapped around her waist, and Khraven pulled her back against his chest. Her heart started beating faster, and no matter how much she tried to focus on the wall of death a few meters away, all her attention was on the warmth of the body behind her. Khraven was a year older than her but already a true mass of muscle.

When he spoke, his deep voice reverberated in his chest and consequently in her back, making her shiver. «Well, this is new. What is it?»

Obskura cleared her throat and pushed away the arm anchoring her to his chest. «It’s the Shadows' Master’s power. Xuir’s apprentice has the ability of Shadow Wielding. No one has seen one for a thousand years.»

She took the trouble to protect this house… Could there be someone inside she wants to protect?

They stepped back a few paces, and the wall of darkness lowered, revealing a little girl with electric blue hair and eyes staring at them in fear. The three of them stood frozen, but the first to move was the girl, who turned on her heels and ran.

«Wait!»

Obskura shouted after her. She didn’t approach the house—she knew well that the wall of darkness would kill her and was almost entirely convinced that it was created only to prevent entry, not to stop a terrified child from leaving. She motioned for Khraven to follow her, and they circled around the house’s perimeter. As she expected, a blue head peeked out of a window before scrambling up and looking around in fear. Obskura barely had time to say anything before the girl sprang to her feet and darted into the forest. The two Sith exchanged irritated glances before beginning the chase.

The little one was fast and clearly knew those woods better than her own hands. No matter how much they called out to her and promised they wouldn’t harm her, she didn’t stop. Which was also true! Nexar would wring their necks if anything happened to that girl. Because there was no doubt she was related to the Shadows' Master. The power emanating from her was truly spectacular, if not unsettling. She wasn’t a Sith, but she certainly wasn’t a Jedi either. And yet, it seemed someone had trained her in the basic use of the Force, because the speed at which she was moving was not normal.

Suddenly, at her side, she heard a low growl. «I’m getting tired of this. We’re not babysitters.»

He raised a hand, and the girl froze instantly, tumbling to the ground and rolling a few meters before crashing into a tree. The two Sith reached her and surrounded her, though they didn’t further restrain her. The child got to her feet and looked at them with terrified but incredibly steady eyes.

«You’re fast,» Khraven observed, as the girl searched for an escape route. «What’s your name? What’s your relation to the Shadows' Master?»

Obskura rolled her eyes. «Do you really think she has any idea what we’re talking about?» She knelt to the girl’s level and smiled. «It’s okay. We’re not here to hurt you. My name is Obskura, and this is Khraven.»

She noticed the girl’s hand movement too late—the light dimmed, and the air became electric.

«Obskura, watch out!»

Khraven pushed her away as a lightning bolt struck the spot where they had been standing just seconds before, leaving only a blackened crater.

Sith lightning.

She struggled to sit up, still dazzled by the sudden attack, and what she saw knocked the breath from her lungs: the girl stood in front of Khraven, her hand extended towards him, fingers slightly curled, and her electric blue eyes glowing with power... She had never seen anything like it—the very life was literally leaving Khraven’s body.

No… That’s not it… It’s his Midichlorians!

She wasn’t absorbing them; she was manipulating them! What kind of ability was this? A muffled groan of pain from Khraven snapped her back to reality—she would think about it later. She focused on the girl, and her power activated: she couldn’t be more than six years old, hadn’t lived long, but her life hadn’t been easy. She saw another girl, older than her, with violet hair…

The Shadows' Master, and she is…

«Is this what your sister taught you?»

The girl immediately lost concentration.

«Jess, that was her name, right?»

«She’s still called that!» the girl shouted angrily, walking confidently towards her. «And what do you know about my sister?»

Obskura tried kneeling again. «What’s your name?»

«Nyxara,» the little one replied, lowering her arms. «I’m five years old.»

She held out her hand. «Come with us. An uninhabited planet is no place for a child alone.»

«But my sister…» Tears welled up in her eyes. «She always comes back for me. She takes care of me and our parents. If I disappear, she’ll worry.»

«Don’t you think she would feel better knowing you’re safe?»

«Are you Jedi?» she asked, wiping her cheeks with her forearms. «Because my sister said not to trust Jedi, that they’re bad.»

You have no idea.

«Your sister is very smart.» Nyxara took her hand, and Obskura closed her fingers around it: her hand was cold but brimming with energy. «We’re not Jedi. With us, you’ll be safe from them.» 

Korriban - 13 YEARS TO THE BATTLE

Obskura pushed back the Sith who had surrounded her using the Force and returned to a defensive stance. This was how she trained every day. Her father’s orders. He said he had an important mission for her and Khraven. He was the youngest Sith Assassin in the history of the Order, while she was the daughter of the Dark Lord of the Sith… Which, in practice, made her the Princess of the Sith.

Every training session was always watched by Nexar, Khraven, and little Nyxara. The Dark Lord of the Sith had been ecstatic when they had brought him the younger sister of the Shadows' Master, and then he had completely melted when she had demonstrated her ability: Midichlorian Manipulation. She also knew how to wield Sith lightning, but what her father adored most about his new protégé was precisely her power to control life and death at will.

Nyxara, in comparison, had adapted immediately to the Sith. It was clear that her family was particularly attuned to the dark side. Nyx, as Nexar loved to call her, had awakened the dormant darkness within her in just three days. From that moment on, the Dark Lord of the Sith had taken her literally everywhere, on every mission, and the child followed him without any trace of fear. She had learned to suppress her emotions and controlled them exceptionally well for an eight-year-old.

She saw Nexar give her a nod, and Obskura focused the Force, making the air around her vibrate. Seeing her lower her saber, the Sith attacked en masse, but when they were close enough, she unleashed the dark side and hurled her opponents dozens of meters away. The training was over, and she was exhausted. She deactivated her lightsaber and clipped it to her belt. She sensed movement behind her but did not turn. She raised a hand, and the Sith who had the bright idea of attacking her from behind was once again thrown into the air.

Nyxara ran up to her, taking her hand, and she smiled at her. The little girl desperately needed the presence of an older sister. She had clung to the Shadows' Master for so long. Thanks to her, Nexar had obtained further information on this mysterious girl: she visited Ryubin at least once a week to take care of her insane parents and younger sister. She had not been able to explain what had happened to her mother and father. She only knew that they had never recognized her, never slept, and constantly screamed incoherent and senseless phrases. From how she had described it, it seemed as though their minds had been destroyed by a mental attack. It must have been terrible, especially for the older sister, who surely remembered her parents in their right minds and had watched them deteriorate that way, little by little, day after day. She understood the hatred she bore for the Jedi. In that, they were very much alike.

«Well done, my daughter.»

She shot him a glare, then focused on Khraven. They had been a steady pair for two years now, and she was a constant source of envy and jealousy. Syphira openly hated her but had not tried to approach her again. Her power had become even stronger, and now she could delve even deeper into others' souls and memories. There was no enemy she feared enough—even Nexar no longer had secrets from her. She had never revealed to him that she had used her power on him as well; he probably would not have taken it well. Information was the most precious asset and the most dangerous weapon. Simple words—the raw truth—could extinguish a powerful fire and kill the cruelest of enemies.

Khraven intertwined his fingers with Obskura’s, then patted Nyxara’s head. «Your father wants to speak with us.»

She shifted her gaze to Nexar. «What can we do for you, Father?»

«Come,» he told them, beginning to walk. «There are too many prying ears here.»

They followed the Dark Lord through the halls of the Sith Fortress. They entered the throne room and waited as Nexar took his seat. He was advancing in age, but despite that, he was still a first-rate warrior. She had seen him fight, knew how cruel he could be… One only needed to see how he had treated her for the first two years to understand that, but he was slightly less harsh with Nyxara. Probably because her mother hadn’t abandoned him and taken away his little toy. She was quite pleased that the girl had taken some of the burden off her shoulders.

Nexar relaxed against the black obsidian throne. «I know where Darth Xuir is… Go, and do not return without him and his apprentice. I also want the Shadows' Master. After all, it is only right to reunite two sisters, isn’t it?»

Obskura hesitated. «But… Father, everyone you’ve sent has never returned alive. It’s clear that Darth Xuir wants nothing to do with the Sith Order.»

«Khraven is the best Assassin the Sith Order has ever seen,» Nexar replied before fixing his gaze on her. «And you are my daughter. You work well together, don’t you? I will not tolerate failure. Return with them or don’t return at all. An Assassin can be replaced, and as for you… Well, Nyx will take your place excellently.»

The little girl looked up at her, worried, while Obskura took a deep breath to avoid responding sharply to her father. «We will do our best, Father, but you know better than we do that it will not be easy. You yourself could not defeat him…»

She bit her tongue too late. Nexar’s eyes lit up with rage, and Khraven instinctively shielded her from the Dark Lord of the Sith’s fury. She had seen that disastrous battle through her powers. She knew that Eriaar had torn his pride to shreds. Not only had he single-handedly decimated the Sith Order, but he had escaped right under Nexar’s nose using the Dark Illusion ability and Necromancy—an ability typical of the Nightsisters, an extremely powerful clan of witches from Dathomir. He was not an easy enemy even back then, but now he had likely become even more dangerous. He had killed every spy Nexar had sent against him, and some of them had been elite soldiers. He had no trouble eliminating a squad composed of five Assassins. The smuggler said he was particularly protective of his apprentice. She and Khraven had no better chances than the others. Nexar was sending them to their deaths.

With clenched fists, Obskura bowed her head. «As you wish, Father.» 

«Do you really have to go?» Nyxara asked them, clinging to her waist. «I don’t want anything to happen to you. My big sister’s Master is dangerous. She told me herself. He will never join the Sith Order.»

Obskura knelt down and embraced her. «Don’t be afraid. We will come back. That’s a promise.» She pulled away and gently placed a hand on her head. «Take care of Nexar and the Order in our absence, alright?»

The little girl nodded, then Khraven extended a hand to her. «It’s time to go, Obskura.»

Obskura nodded and intertwined her fingers with his, letting him pull her to her feet. The two boarded the ship. Obskura turned to wave at Nyxara, but the girl had already walked away. She must have sensed the lie in her voice. She was sure of only one thing: neither of them would return alive. Darth Xuir had saved her once, yes, but he would never show mercy to anyone who threatened his apprentice’s safety. He had proven it more than once.

As she sat in the pilot’s seat, a terrible feeling settled on her chest, so strong it threatened to suffocate her.

She looked at Khraven. «I shouldn’t have made that promise, should I?»

Her companion started the ship’s engines. «Obskura, you know better than I do what a threat this Sith represents to the entire Order. I understand your father’s desire to have him as an ally rather than an enemy, but that being said… He won’t let anyone get close to his lair. We will have to draw him out. It’s the only chance we have of making it out alive.»

The ship lifted off the ground, and Obskura entered the coordinates Nexar had given them. «What if we target the Shadows’ Master instead?»

«His apprentice?»

She nodded as they activated the thrusters and prepared the ship for hyperspace. «She’s thirteen. She can’t be much stronger than her Master, right?»

«Are we talking about the same person?» Khraven asked her, clearly ironic. «She has the ability of Shadow Wielding—no creature like her has been born in thousands of years. On top of that, she has been trained for seven years by a powerful Force wielder… Xuir is very likely ten times stronger than your father. We don’t even know which of the two is more dangerous.»

He’s not wrong, though…

No matter how powerful the girl was, experience sometimes outweighed everything else, especially in battle. But there was one problem, and it wasn’t a small one: Xuir would undoubtedly sense their arrival and the danger they represented, so even if they tried to go after the girl, it was unlikely that her Master would let her wander around alone. In short, if they tried to lure out the apprentice, it was almost certain they would end up facing both of them—and definitely not with good intentions.

Obskura placed a hand over her heart: she could feel the Force vibrating uneasily around her. Something was about to happen, and whatever it was, it wasn’t good. She lifted her eyes to the open space before them.

Over the past few years, she and Khraven had completed various missions together, some of them quite dangerous, but she had never felt this sensation of fear and death before.

At that very moment, Khraven launched the ship into hyperspace, and Obskura knew that someone truly would not be coming back alive from this mission. 

Zyphara – 13 YEARS TO THE BATTLE

The planet before them was breathtakingly beautiful. Its entire surface was covered in vast, lush forests. It was a single gigantic island, surrounded by an immense expanse of crystalline water. Khraven pointed to a large enough beach where they could land and leave the ship.

Once the engines were shut down, Khraven was the only one to stand. He placed a hand on her shoulder, but Obskura was frozen in place: the sensation of fear and death had become unbearable. So much so that she could hardly breathe. She was genuinely afraid for both of their lives.

«Obskura?» Khraven knelt before her and took her hands, frozen against his warm palms. «I know, I feel it too, but we can't go back empty-handed. The fate that awaits us in that case might be even worse than what lies ahead here. Nexar is a cruel man, and you know it better than I do.»

So is Xuir.

Those words never left her lips, but they were the truth. Khraven hadn’t seen Nexar’s memories, the massacre carried out by the Jedi named Eriaar Shehol, who later became Darth Xuir. Yes, perhaps it was true that the Dark Lord of the Sith would punish them severely if they failed the mission, but at least he wouldn’t kill them… Or would he? Obskura wasn’t sure she preferred Xuir over her father.

A sudden feeling of calm wrapped around her like a blanket. She shifted her gaze to Khraven, who smiled at her gently. He took her chin between two fingers and placed a soft kiss on her lips—a silent promise that threatened to stop her heart. 

Either both of them, or neither.

He didn’t give her time to respond, taking her hand and pulling her to her feet. He led her out of the cockpit and pressed the button to open the hatch. There was no turning back now. Xuir had surely already sensed their arrival, and he would not allow them to leave… Not two Sith like them. She wasn’t even sure anymore that he hadn’t noticed the smuggler. After all, he hadn’t come to harm them, only to spy on them. Perhaps Xuir had simply let him.

It was instantaneous: as soon as Obskura set foot on the sand, she was overwhelmed by the power radiating from Xuir and his apprentice. It sent shivers down her spine. Not even Nexar had ever instilled such fear in her. They were truly, incredibly powerful. Khraven had felt it too, because his face had suddenly gone pale. Instinctively, they both tightened their grip on their joined hands.

This is incredible. I’ve never felt so much power. The girl is only thirteen. Nyxara is strong, but her older sister is on a whole different level.

Khraven had to pull her again to get her to move. They left the beach and entered the forest. The sun, which had guided their steps just moments before, was now completely obscured by the dense canopy of leaves. The trees were massive—she and Khraven together wouldn’t have been able to encircle even the smallest one. The temperature was also exponentially lower than on the beach. Shivers of cold mixed with those of fear, making her tremble like the leaves above their heads.

They were both on edge. Their eyes darted around, as if instead of two enemies, an entire army was waiting for them. Obskura swallowed hard, noticing a disturbing detail.

Is it just my imagination… or do the shadows seem to be moving?

Xuir’s acolyte was a Shadows Master, and this forest was shrouded in absolute darkness. Which meant they were literally surrounded by hundreds of thousands of eyes, able to report their every move to their master. Xuir and his apprentice already knew where and when to find them.

There was no hope of luring them out. They had fallen into their grasp the moment they accepted the mission, even before setting foot on this planet…

They had been dead from the moment Nexar decided they would be the ones to hunt down Xuir and his young apprentice. 

The two walked for a long time through the dense forest. They both agreed that moving at night would be too dangerous. They were already clearly in danger, but the night was even darker and was the domain of the Shadows Master. No matter how powerful those two were, it seemed impossible to pinpoint their exact location. The smuggler had told them that the dwelling of the two was particularly difficult to locate, even from above. Moreover, Xuir had to be capable of hiding his presence and that of his apprentice even from radars, as even those had detected no trace of a living being. That planet was extremely unsettling. If not for Xuir and his apprentice, it would have been a ghost planet. She had to stop thinking! She was only scaring herself even more.

The sun was about to set when Khraven stopped. «It’s useless. If we keep going like this, it won’t be those two who kill us, but the cold.»

Obskura was about to agree with him when a tremendous roar made the ground beneath their feet tremble. Even her eardrums threatened to burst. A massive shadow hid the already fading sunlight. A gigantic black dragon flew over their heads. Instinctively, the two Sith activated their lightsabers, even though they could do little against such a giant. The creature hovered for a few moments above them, and suddenly, its enormous violet eyes met Obskura’s frightened ones. The dragon was looking at her! She was more than certain. The creature roared once more before flying away toward the setting sun.

«Let’s follow it!»

«What?!» She grabbed Khraven’s arm before he could actually run after the dragon. «Are you insane?! We need to get out of here!»

«Obskura, focus!» He took her by the shoulders and forced her to look him in the eyes. «That creature is made of shadows! If we follow it, it will lead us straight to the Shadows Master and her Master.»

Obskura was beyond incredulous. «No, wait, let me get this straight: a thirteen-year-old girl is capable of shaping and giving life to shadows, and instead of doing the smart thing—turning around and running—you want to go to her?!»

«Your father will kill us anyway if we return without those two.» His sad smile broke her heart. «Might as well die after seeing a Shadows Master in action.»

He took her hand and forced her to move in the direction of the dragon. Step by step, Obskura realized that the dragon was just bait. They were being lured into a trap. The sun had now disappeared behind the mountains. The forest had become much gloomier and colder. The shadows of the tree branches stretched toward them like claws, ready to seize and kill them. She moved closer to Khraven and activated her lightsaber, hoping to make the shadows vanish with its red light. Khraven did the same; despite his confidence, he was also afraid—afraid of not making it back alive from this mission, afraid of being separated from her, afraid of dying.

Slowly, the vegetation around them began to change: the trees became slightly sparser, and the light from the two blue moons grew stronger. Strangely, this did not diminish the number of shadows surrounding them in the slightest. Even the ground beneath their feet was becoming a bit firmer. The two Sith exchanged glances: they were near a clearing. They barely had time to think it before a beautiful house appeared before them, perfectly integrated with the surrounding vegetation, carved into the massive trunk of a fallen tree. There was a lit bonfire, and sitting with her back to them was a young girl with long violet hair. The two stopped instantly. Obskura cast a glance at Khraven, the obvious question in her eyes: where is Xuir?

«I assume you followed Nythraal.» Her voice was eerily similar to Nyxara’s. «You were bothering my shadows, wandering through their forest like two amoebas in the bloodstream. But then again, what could I expect from two creatures whose combined average IQ doesn’t surpass that of a microorganism?» Alright, the older one definitely had a sharper tongue than the younger one. «You have my sister. Isn’t that enough for you?»

Khraven stepped forward slowly. «We’re looking for…»

«I know.»

She cut him off, then turned around: a cold shiver ran down Obskura’s spine at her gaze. Her violet eyes were piercing, speaking of a tormented and terrible past. She was thirteen, which meant that when the Jedi had invaded her village, she had only been six years old. What she had seen that day had shaken her, terrified her, and changed her forever. Maybe she wasn’t evil by nature. In fact! She certainly wasn’t. What had happened to her had transformed her into what she was now.

…

A bit like me.

She focused on the girl, trying to activate her power, but…

It wasn’t working. Why wasn’t it working?

Every time she tried to enter her mind and see her saddest memories, to uncover her weaknesses, she found herself blocked by a thick wall of darkness—impenetrable. That girl had mental barriers that were nothing short of incredible. Xuir had trained her well. Moreover, the girl fixed her violet eyes on Obskura, as if she knew she was trying to read her. A disturbing smile spread across her face, then she turned away again, as if two Sith like them weren’t even the slightest threat to her.

Khraven tightened his grip on his lightsaber. «Your Master should teach you some respect for adults, little girl!»

Everything happened suddenly when Khraven took a threatening step toward the Shadows’ Master: blocking their path and shielding the girl were two exact copies of Khraven and Obskura.

What is this?

Khraven’s clone smirked before activating his lightsaber and lunging at the Sith. Obskura moved to help him, but the other Obskura held her in place with the Force. They were illusions. Illusions so realistic they had the same power and presence as the person they imitated. Obskura had never seen anything like it. She let the illusion approach, then freed her armed hand and aimed for its head, but her opponent simply pulled back. She didn’t wait a second longer and attacked in turn. Fighting against oneself was not easy at all. In fact, it was proving to be extremely complicated—not just for her, but clearly for Khraven as well. Those illusions had their exact same abilities, their exact same level, and thought exactly as they did.

This will be a new training exercise to introduce.

Obskura thought, dodging an attack that nearly cut off both her arms. She glanced at the girl, who was once again sitting, toying with the fire. From her expression… she almost looked bored, as if having two Sith just meters away wasn’t a problem at all… as if she and her Master could handle anything. Annoyed, she managed to push away the illusion she was fighting and launched herself at the girl. She raised her lightsaber, but when she tried to bring it down, a shadowy hand gripped her wrist. A chilling cold quickly spread from her arm throughout her entire body. From the corner of her eye, she saw her own shadow emerge from her shoulder, an eerie smile on its face. The girl turned her head slightly toward her, and Obskura saw her violet eyes glow with power.

A sudden burst of Force sent her crashing into a tree. She barely had time to open her eyes before Khraven crashed into another tree, snapping it in half from the force of the recoil. The two illusions became more and more ethereal, and when they vanished, standing behind them and in front of the girl was the man who had saved her from the Jedi almost eight years ago.

The first thing Obskura noticed was the immense power he was emanating. Back then, he had been strong, but now he was on a whole different level. His energy sent shivers down her spine—he was furious. He hadn’t even activated his lightsaber yet… as if even in this state, they stood a chance against him.

A groan of pain at her side caught her attention. «Khraven!»

He was in far worse shape than she was. Obskura could fight extremely well; she could defend herself against most enemies. But Khraven was an Assassin, which meant he was one of the best warriors in the Sith Order… And like him, the illusion Xuir had created had inherited his exact same abilities. At least the wounds didn’t seem severe or fatal. She pressed down on the wound at his side.

«You’ve changed a lot since the last time we saw each other, Liora.»

Xuir’s deep, resonant voice made her tremble—it was far too calm, in stark contrast to the obvious fury imprinted on his face.

«Or should I call you Obskura?»

Her arms, which had reached out to help Khraven up, suddenly froze.

«How… How do you know my name?»

Xuir clicked his tongue, irritated.

«Who do you think you’re dealing with, girl?»

«You clearly underestimate us,» Khraven murmured, pulling himself to his feet and physically positioning himself between her and the enraged Sith. «Nexar wants…»

«Nexar wants,» Xuir repeated with a snarl, the air around them turning electric. «Nexar commands. Nexar is really getting on my nerves. Was it not enough for him to lose all the spies he kept sending after me? Did he decide to send his own daughter and one of his Assassins to their deaths?»

«Try to see reason,» Obskura pleaded. «If you joined forces with my father, the Jedi Order wouldn’t stand a chance. We could wipe them out together. Isn’t that what you want?»

His eyes gleamed with hatred.

«You assume much, Obskura, but how much you truly understand is doubtful. I should have killed your father that day on Nerathos. I should have razed the Sith Order to the ground when I brought you to him. I should have done many things. If I had, Shadow’s sister would still be safe on Ryubin, far from the madness of the Dark Lord of the Sith and his war against the Jedi.»

Shadow? The girl’s name is Shadow? A fitting name for a Shadows’ Master.

Beside her, Khraven ignited his lightsaber.

«Let’s make a deal: if you defeat me, we’ll leave, and I give you my word that no other Sith will set foot on this planet. But if I lose…»

Khraven suddenly fell silent, his voice replaced by gurgling sounds. Obskura turned to look at him—he had fallen to his knees, his lightsaber deactivated at his feet, clutching his throat, his eyes wide and his mouth open, desperately gasping for air. Xuir slowly lifted a hand, and Khraven’s body followed its movement.

She panicked—she couldn’t lose him too, not like this. They had warned Nexar more than once that this was completely useless; that Xuir would never join the Sith Order; that the only thing he cared about was the life and training of his young apprentice. And yet, here they were, facing two enemies completely out of their league, risking their lives, as if no one cared.

Driven by desperation, she lunged at Xuir, but just like before, her own shadow grabbed her ankles, sending her crashing forward. She lost her grip on her lightsaber, which landed just inches from Shadow’s feet. The girl opened her palm, and it flew into her hand. She activated it and observed the red blade.

«Master, why isn’t my Kyber Crystal red?»

Seriously? It was as if they didn’t even exist to her.

Xuir lowered his gaze to her, his eyes softening ever so slightly.

«Because you haven’t bled it. That’s fine. You are not a Sith. You’re a witch. A Shadows’ Master, not like the others.»

A thought crossed Obskura’s mind—if that day, instead of bringing her to Nexar, he had kept her with him, would he have spoken to her with such kindness and care? When she had met him, and for the little time she had known him, she had sensed that Eriaar had been a great Jedi Master, probably well-loved by the Padawan and respected by the other Jedi. If that day she had begged him to keep her with him, not to take her to her father, perhaps things would have been very different.

Hot tears began to stream down her cheeks, first in drops, then in rivers. The feeling in her chest, the Force swirling restlessly around her… Now she understood. They were signs—omens of death, to be precise.

Watching Xuir interact with Shadow, rage boiled in her veins—there was no blood relation between the two, yet that Sith was treating his apprentice infinitely better than Nexar had ever treated her. Did blood ties really mean so little to him? Her fury fueled the dark side of the Force, and without even realizing it, she broke free from Shadow’s powers.

The girl noticed instantly, but Obskura was already up, summoning Khraven’s lightsaber and lowering it toward Xuir. The Sith was forced to release his hold on her companion and focus entirely on her.

«Fight me!» she screamed, seeing that he still hadn’t activated his lightsaber. «You’re the one who turned me into this, so now fight me!»

The man completely ignored her, merely dodging her strikes.

Frustrated, she tried to choke him with the Force, but Xuir—far more powerful and experienced—needed only a flick of his wrist to free himself. What infuriated her even more was that he wasn’t even being arrogant—just condescending, as if he were dealing with a child’s tantrum rather than the enraged daughter of the Dark Lord of the Sith.

Obskura let out a cry of rage and attacked again. This time, Xuir moved. He grabbed her weapon-bearing arm, forcefully deactivating her lightsaber, and twisted it behind her back, pinning her against him. His grip wasn’t painful, yet despite that, she could barely move.

She heard him click his tongue and shake his head slowly. Then she felt a tingling at the base of her neck, and before she could stop him, he was in her mind.

You disappoint me, young Obskura.

His voice echoed in her head, almost painfully.

She had been trained to resist mental attacks—tricks that Jedi often used in battle. She had spent hours meditating, strengthening her barriers. Yet this man had bypassed them with disconcerting ease, as if they were nothing more than a sand wall swept away by the tide. 

«Let her go!»

Both of them lifted their eyes to Khraven, who stood behind Shadow, his red lightsaber just inches from her neck.

«Let her go, or your apprentice will meet a grim fate.»

She immediately sensed Xuir's body stiffen, and a low growl vibrated in his throat. But Obskura was frozen in terror—not because of the situation, but because of the girl's expression: she was bored. A Sith Order Assassin was threatening her, and she was bored.

Her violet eyes were calm, placid, almost glassy, devoid of emotion.

Time seemed to slow as Shadow shifted her gaze between Khraven and Obskura. An unsettling grin twisted her almost angelic face, and then, suddenly and completely out of nowhere, a violet laser pierced Khraven's stomach.

The Assassin lost his grip on both his lightsaber and the girl, who stepped forward and thrust her arm, now holding a lightsaber.

Shadow slowly turned toward Khraven as he collapsed to his knees before her.

The Shadows’ Master raised a hand, and the shadows around them exploded, engulfing Khraven’s body entirely.

Xuir released Obskura instantly, rushing to the girl's side and scanning her from head to toe.

«Are you okay? Did he hurt you?»

Obskura fell to her knees.

«Who? Who killed all the spies?»

The Sith looked at her, every trace of compassion erased by hatred.

«I did. Shadow is innocent.»

In the blink of an eye, he activated his lightsaber, and the red laser created a perfect spherical hole in Khraven’s forehead.

«But I am not.»

Obskura’s heart stopped for a moment, stealing her breath away.

She had witnessed the cruelty of the Jedi, suffered it firsthand, and the same could be said of the Sith. But she had always believed that a creature like Xuir—who had turned to the dark side to avenge the deaths of innocent people—would never be capable of such atrocities.

...

How wrong she had been!

The scream that tore from her throat was almost inhuman, agonizing.

It scraped her throat raw, but every sensation was numbed by the pain of losing her companion—the only person who had ever shown her a shred of kindness and love within the Sith Order.

How would she survive alone?

Everyone there hated her. They thought she received some kind of special treatment.

Of course! That was her special treatment! Being sent to this planet to die...

At least they had let her bring her companion.

So, at the very least, she wouldn’t have to die alone.

How wonderful.

«Kill me.»

She wasn’t even sure which of the two she was addressing.

She didn't even care about becoming a joke among her fellow Sith for being killed by a mere thirteen-year-old girl.

So what? If they didn’t kill me, Nexar will.

«And why should we?»

Shadow’s mocking voice made her lift her gaze.

«It hurts, doesn’t it? Watching the people you love die, I mean.»

The girl walked toward her before kneeling and patting her head affectionately, as one would a beaten puppy.

«First, the Jedi destroyed my family. Then, your father kidnapped my sister. And now, you and your companion wanted to separate me from my Master?»

The grip on her head was becoming painful, but Obskura was terrified by the hatred she saw in the brilliant violet eyes of a thirteen-year-old.

Not even she had ever felt such contempt for living beings, whether Jedi or Sith.

«The most painful wounds aren’t those of the body, but of the soul. The body heals, but the soul will remain shattered for eternity, even after death.»

She released her, and Obskura collapsed backward as Shadow returned to her Master.

«Oh, and of course, my Master ordered me not to kill you.»

She shifted her gaze to Xuir, who merely shrugged.

«After all the effort I put into saving you, I couldn’t allow my apprentice to kill you.»

He smiled at the girl.

«Will you give her a ride back to her ship?»

Shadow raised a hand, and suddenly, Obskura was engulfed in blinding darkness—darkness that was anything but silent.

Billions of voices overlapped, screaming to be heard, threatening to deafen her.

She tried to cover her ears, but her arms felt much heavier than usual.

Luckily, it only lasted a few seconds, and when the light of the two moons blinded her, she found herself on the beach, the ship they had arrived in by her side.

She tried to stand, but she was utterly drained.

What could she do now?

Shadow’s words echoed in her mind: The body heals, but the soul will remain shattered for eternity.

Never had truer words been spoken by a human being.

She could almost feel it... Her soul, in pieces—already fractured by the murder of her parents and unborn brother, and now completely destroyed by the death of the man she loved.

Perhaps the best thing to do was return to Korriban and let her father kill her.

If she died, she would be reunited with Khraven and her family.

A sudden retch emptied her already empty stomach, but when she recovered, she felt slightly lighter.

She forced herself to her feet and dragged herself to the ship.

She climbed aboard and sat in her seat.

Out of the corner of her eye, she thought she saw movement beside her, where Khraven had sat just hours before.

His absence hit her with the force of an asteroid.

She placed a hand over her heart; she struggled to breathe.

Yes, she would return to Korriban and let her father kill her.

She wasn’t afraid to die.

Not even when she had watched her parents die had she thought about her own life—it didn’t matter to her.

What Liora and Obskura had always desired—one openly, the other in silence—was a normal life, like everyone else’s, far from the strange power coursing through her veins, far from the constant whisper of the Force, far from the dangers of the power struggles between the two Orders that ruled the Galaxy.

Her hand moved on its own, but the coordinates she input were not those of Korriban.

Her vision was blurred by tears, but she knew the Sith planet’s coordinates by heart, and these were not them.

She wasn’t even sure where she had just set course for.

And yet, when she went to change it, her hand froze in midair.

Don’t.

She felt like laughing—the usual indistinct whisper of the Force now had Khraven’s voice.

Probably just the dark side mocking her.

Why couldn’t the Force just leave her alone? Hadn’t it already ruined her life enough?

What more could it possibly want from her, when she had never asked for these powers?

She angrily wiped her tears and tried again to reach for the controls, but this time, an ethereal hand caught her wrist.

Obskura’s head snapped to the side, and she let out a scream, leaping up from her seat and activating her lightsaber—

Seated in the co-pilot’s chair, watching her with confused yet amused eyes, was Khraven’s ghost.

Obskura had, of course, heard of Force ghosts. She knew they could appear to both Jedi and Sith. But she had never thought they could manifest so soon after their physical death. Had Khraven sensed her desire to end it all and join him? Was that why he had appeared to her so quickly? She reached out a hand, but of course, she couldn’t touch him. He was only a spirit, a gift of the Force for those still living who needed guidance. 

Her knees gave out, and she curled up on the seat, crying. A cold yet gentle breeze, like a caress, brushed her shoulders, and she knew—Khraven was holding her. He wouldn’t stay with her forever, she knew that. But for now, she needed him more than the air she breathed.

Don’t worry, Obskura. You’re not alone. But you can’t go back to Korriban.

She wiped her tears and took a long, trembling breath.

«Where are you sending me?»

Khraven knew she was referring to the coordinates he had made her enter.

Somewhere safe. Trust me… Trust the Force. The Force warned me long ago, so I prepared a more stable and secure future for you.

Trust the Force? After everything it had done to her?

She looked at Khraven, and finally, slowly, she nodded. Perhaps she no longer trusted the Force. But for him, she would travel to the farthest reaches of the Galaxy and back with her eyes closed. She activated the engines and confirmed the course, leaving behind that cursed planet—and the body of the man she loved. 

Jakku – 13 YEARS TO THE BATTLE

Obskura landed following the docking instructions of the spaceport. She stepped off the ship and was immediately hit by the intense heat of Jakku’s desert climate. She was utterly exhausted, her knees trembling, but she absolutely had to follow Khraven’s instructions and find the man who would help her.

She merged into the crowded streets of the main market. The heat certainly didn’t stop the merchants, who were eager to sell their goods to the highest bidder. She quickly bought something to eat and drink while following the ghost of Khraven. No one could see him, but his presence was still felt, as everyone instinctively avoided him without truly passing through him. Only one child was drawn to him. She was with her parents. She had long black hair and two onyx eyes. She wore a red and black tunic. Obskura was certain she had seen those clothes somewhere before. In any case, the child must have been particularly sensitive to the Force. Confused, she called out to her mother and father and pointed at Khraven’s ghost.

Careful!

Khraven’s voice murmured in her mind.

That’s Lord Zarrus, and she is his companion, one of the most powerful Nightsisters of the Nightsister Clan. Her name is Neris. Avoid them.

Obskura hurried to move away, but Neris must have sensed her because their eyes met, sending a distinct shiver down Obskura’s spine—she was truly powerful. Obskura quickly looked away, pulled up the hood of her cloak despite the stifling heat, and kept walking. She could feel those black eyes on her. She didn’t know much about the Nightsisters, except that they were a clan of witches. She shivered—she had had enough encounters with witches and didn’t want to see another one for at least the next ten years.

She glanced over her shoulder, trying to determine if she had lost them, and bumped into someone. «Oh, I’m sorry—»

Her voice died in her throat. In front of her stood two Jedi, just a little older than she was, and one of them was definitely a Nightsister. Obskura took a step back—out of the frying pan and into the fire! The girl had long, straight orange hair and bright, kind gray eyes. Her companion, obviously her partner since they were holding hands, had short hair and icy blue eyes.

Leave! They’re not the problem, but their Master is.

Khraven didn’t have time to warn her before Obskura sensed danger behind her. She spun around, and the ground seemed to disappear beneath her feet—it was the Jedi who had killed her parents.

Obskura took a step back, frozen with terror. This must have been her unlucky day! What was his name? Kai… Kai Dar-Vantos. His icy gaze sent chills down her spine. She had changed a lot since they had last met—she had grown, and he had aged—but the Force had always warned her about him, as if he was far more dangerous than she had ever imagined. Obskura was certain she could take him on after her fight with Xuir and Shadow, but she was also utterly exhausted, and her strength was beginning to fade. Her knees trembled.

At that moment, she felt a tingling at the base of her skull and instinctively reinforced her mental barriers—Kai was trying to remember where he had seen her face before.

Better not give him a reason to recall and avoid a fight. She bowed deeply, hiding her face from the Jedi. «I’m sorry, I was lost in thought and didn’t see you.»

She felt hands grab her shoulders and pull her back. «Master, I sense two powerful disturbances in the Force. I fear someone is following us.»

The younger Jedi subtly turned his head toward her and motioned for her to leave. Obskura was confused but didn’t ask questions and slipped away. Why had those two Jedi defended her? Not that she would have preferred otherwise. In any case, she wasn’t the one following them. She didn’t know them, and she had no intention of staying to chat with Kai Dar-Vantos. Not after what he had done to her family… to her life.

She shook her head to push away those thoughts and resumed following Khraven’s Force ghost. He led her to a small establishment. There weren’t many people inside, but the few who were there shouted over one another, almost as if competing to see who could be heard the loudest. At least in there, no one paid any attention to Khraven… or to her.

Obskura took a deep breath and walked up to the bar. She sat down, and something to drink was immediately placed in front of her. She looked at the bartender, confused—she hadn’t ordered anything. On missions, drinking was forbidden, and even inside the Sith Fortress, it was highly discouraged. Not because alcohol was banned, but because there was always the risk that it had been spiked with poison. She had been subjected to multiple poisoning attempts, especially by Syphira, so by now, her body had reached a point where no poison could kill her, but caution was never too much.

She was about to thank the bartender when a hand took her glass, and a man downed its contents in one gulp. «Friend, make that two doubles. One for me and one for my partner here.»

Partner? Who is this guy?

His face was familiar, but she couldn’t quite place where she had seen him before. «Do we know each other?»

The man smiled. «Let’s say we do, though I imagine you don’t remember me. I had more dealings with your father than with you… well, with Nexar and your… what was he? Your partner?»

«Khraven. His name was Khraven.»

«Was? Why? Is he dead?»

«Do you see him around?»

The man gave a wistful smile and raised his hands in mock surrender. «Okay, sorry, I didn’t know. My condolences.»

It was then that she remembered who he was. «You’re the smuggler!»

«In the flesh.»

The only person who had ever gotten close to Xuir and Shadow and lived to tell the tale. Why he was calling her his partner was still a mystery. She had a relatively good memory of him. She had only caught a glimpse of him, but he had been kind and respectful toward her. He had almost seemed indifferent to the fact that he was in the presence of the most powerful Sith in the galaxy. He was there solely for his mission and the money it would bring him.

Smugglers were like that—they never took sides. They worked when they wanted, with whom they wanted. They followed the flow of the market and the credits. They were usually extremely intelligent and welcomed wherever they went. To the Republic, they were low-level criminals, not even worth the effort of hunting down and arresting. The Jedi and the Sith used them as spies or as cheap dealers of spaceship parts or rare objects. The best of them could literally find a needle in a haystack—if paid enough to do so.

She wouldn’t have minded a life like that. After all, she had the brains for it and the desire to live life on her own terms. Having the freedom to make her own choices would give her the chance to break free from her father’s chains.

The man slid an HoloCube across the counter to her. «I need help with a mission. A few months ago, Khraven contacted me and gave me your name, but he made me promise not to seek you out. You had to come to me.« He smiled. «Do you Force wielders all see the future?»

Obskura shook her head. «No, not all of us. It’s a special ability and usually a Jedi thing. Khraven… It’s too complicated to explain.»

A hand appeared in her field of vision. «Rilo Vann, but around here, everyone calls me Skippy.»

Obskura couldn’t help but laugh. «Skippy?»

«There have been twenty arrest warrants out for me.» He said it with pride, winking at her. «But for some strange reason, unknown to me, of course, I’ve always come out clean. That’s why, after a while, my… colleagues, let’s call them that, started calling me Skippy.» He turned fully toward her. «So, what do you say, Obskura? Will you help me?»

The bartender placed their drinks on the counter, and Obskura picked up her glass. The decision had never been easier.

She clinked their glasses together, then downed hers in one gulp. «Why not? Could be fun.» 

Cantonica – 13 YEARS TO THE BATTLE

And so, Obskura found herself entangled in this new life. She had never visited this planet before, but just looking at it from above was enough to give her a headache. They were heading toward Canto Bight, home to the largest and most important casino in the Galaxy. That place attracted all kinds of people, but they all had two things in common: a lot of money and bad intentions.

Skippy was a regular at the casino. He called it his personal marketplace. It was the best place to find simple, almost boring jobs that paid a fortune. Those people didn't care about spending absurd amounts of money, as long as the smuggler got the job done properly and without tarnishing his esteemed employer’s reputation.

During the journey to Cantonica, Obskura had managed to get some rest. Her new friend’s ship was comfortable and well-equipped. She had eaten, and with a full stomach, sleep had come quickly. When she woke up, Khraven’s ghost was gone, but she could still sense him in the Force—he was near. She had made it back to the cockpit just in time to see the luxurious hotels, shops, and recreational areas from above as they approached the casino. That was when Skippy had explained the mission: they needed to break into the casino’s secret archives and retrieve some records belonging to a regular client, someone who was currently in deep trouble with the Republic. She wasn’t given a name, and she didn’t care to know either.

Obviously, that kind of information wasn’t left out in the open, nor was it kept on the owner’s desk—it was locked away in the casino’s infamous vault, known in the underworld as the Impenetrable Fortress. Reaching such a place would have been impossible without the help of a Force user, but he certainly couldn’t ask the Jedi, and the Sith… well, Nexar had paid him, but he had also threatened him at least ten times with a long, painful, and gruesome death. So, he preferred to stay far away from Korriban. He could have asked some witches, but in recent years, they had gone into hiding. Skippy said it was because of a problem with the Jedi, who seemed to have lost their minds. They were hunting down anyone they even suspected of being remotely Force-sensitive. They had wiped out entire villages and exterminated whole witch communities until the survivors decided to go into hiding and distance themselves from civilization.

That’s what happened to me and my mother.

When she asked why they were doing this, Skippy had simply shrugged—he had no idea, but he imagined it was just Jedi business, as she had put it. However, not all Jedi agreed with those methods. After all, Eriaar had turned to the dark side only because he had tried to protect Obskura and her mother from his Jedi Master. Moreover, back on Jakku, two young Jedi Masters had helped her. Who knew—maybe the new generation would bring some positive change.

«Back to the matter at hand...» Obskura refocused on the mission and on Skippy. «Your help will be crucial for the success of this operation.»

«You won’t have anything to complain about,» she promised. «I was trained well.»

«Ah!» Skippy let out a deeply ironic laugh. «I don’t doubt it, Obskura… But tell me, do you really want to keep calling yourself Obskura? You know you can pick a new name, right?»

Truthfully, she had thought about it, but it didn’t feel right. Liora had died along with her mother, her father, and her unborn little brother at the hands of the Jedi. Obskura was all she had left of herself. She couldn’t, and wouldn’t, erase what she had done, what she had lived through as a Sith—because that would mean erasing Khraven as well, and that would devastate her.

She gave Skippy a shy smile. «Who knows? Maybe one day, I’ll get a nickname like yours, Rilo.»

Seeing his hand rise toward her head, Obskura instinctively tensed and took a step back. But Skippy simply patted her head gently and in a friendly manner. «You’re going to go far, Obskura, I’m sure of it. For now, let’s see how you handle this mission.»

 

When they left the ship, both Skippy and Obskura were dressed to the nines. There was a particularly strict dress code to enter the casino. Skippy wore a luxurious white suit that highlighted his amber skin and long, curly black hair, carefully tied in a ceremonial braid typical of his culture. Obskura wore a long red dress, low-cut and slit at the thigh. The fabric was clearly expensive and caressed her skin softly. She felt a little too exposed, used to tight black leather armor that covered her entire body, but Skippy reassured her more than once that she looked absolutely stunning. Obskura briefly wondered what Khraven would think if he saw her like this, but it was better to push that thought away—she didn’t want to summon him at that moment.

The closer they got to the two guards at the entrance, the less confident she felt. She knew she was a powerful Force manipulator, but she had never done something like this before. Not to mention, they didn’t look very friendly. They sized up every customer with a scowl and a menacing glare. Not that she expected anything different—after all, this was the most important and shady casino in the entire galaxy. Skippy had already warned her that security would be a major thorn in their side.

When it was their turn, the two men at the entrance immediately recognized Skippy. «Well, well, if it isn’t the charming Skippy. The Republic still hasn’t managed to arrest you?»

Skippy gestured to himself, looking innocent and confused. «Me? And for what? I’m the most honest man in the galaxy.»

The second guard nodded toward Obskura. «What’s this? You got yourself a girlfriend?»

«Funny, but no.» Skippy wrapped an arm around her shoulders. «She’s my new business partner. Her name’s Obskura.»

That was when the first guard noticed the lightsaber hanging at her side. «She’s not a Sith, is she? You know the rules: no Jedi and no Sith.»

«I’m not a Sith,» Obskura replied. «Didn’t you hear Skippy? I’m his business partner.»

«And that lightsaber?»

Obskura shrugged. «I stole it. The Sith who owned it fell in battle, and, well, I took possession of her lightsaber.»

The two men exchanged glances for a few moments before one of them shook his head. «Sorry, without a formal invitation, we can’t let you in.»

Skippy opened his mouth to argue, but Obskura stopped him. This was a Jedi trick, but Sith knew how to play with minds too. She focused on their mental defenses. It was extremely rare for a non-Force-sensitive person to have even the slightest ability to build strong mental barriers, so it was easy for her to slip into their thoughts. She took care not to force her way in—otherwise, she would compromise them, and that was not her goal.

When she was sure she had a firm grip on their minds, she raised a hand and moved it in a semicircular motion from left to right. «We can pass.»

The two men stepped aside and repeated in unison, «You can pass.»

Skippy pressed his lips together, probably to keep from bursting into laughter, then nodded. «How kind of you! Thanks, and have a good shift, guys.»

Once inside, Obskura released the men, ensuring that not even a trace of their passage remained in their minds. When they were far enough from the entrance, Skippy began bouncing with joy, telling her how legendary she was. Obskura gave a small smile: even Khraven had never gone beyond “you did well.” Legendary was an adjective unfamiliar to her, yet hearing it from this unknown smuggler was strangely comforting.

And apparently, Skippy truly knew every customer in the casino. He couldn’t take a step without someone stopping him to say hello and chat. Women looked at Obskura with envy, especially at her hand, safely resting in the crook of Skippy’s elbow. Despite being old enough to be her father, Rilo Vann was undoubtedly a handsome man. His features were sharp but not rigid. Under the casino’s intense lights, his amber skin almost looked like gold. His smile was dazzling and kind. His eyes had a light pink hue, in stark contrast to his darker skin. He also kept himself in excellent shape… Well, a smuggler had to be strong and fast at any age, so it didn’t surprise her much that he wasn’t some decrepit, overweight old man. On top of all these qualities, he also possessed a quick and sharp intellect. A smuggler could only reach such prestige with a certain level of intelligence to back it up.

Finally, they reached the bar and took a moment to breathe. Now the real mission began. Skippy would continue his usual rounds, play a few games with his regular clients, and at some point, Obskura would break away to head toward the vault. She could easily hide using the Force and play with the human mind. It would be simple for her to reach the vault and even easier to get inside. The only rule Skippy had given her was: no fighting. Of course, obviously—if she spilled blood, Skippy could kiss his business goodbye.

Skippy raised his glass and smiled at her. «Ready?»

Obskura downed her drink in one go. «I was born ready.»

The smuggler laughed, then followed suit. «Then let’s get this party started, partner.»

The duo blended back into the casino crowd. Skippy put on his brightest smile, and even Obskura started making friends with people who, if all went well, would soon become her clients too. She quickly discovered how much she liked that world and how comfortable she felt, as if she had been doing it her whole life. She was a skilled and engaged conversationalist. Among all those strangers, in a reality completely different from what she was used to, Obskura finally felt at home.

They moved from game to game. Skippy won them all, and even her luck skyrocketed. At a certain point, Obskura excused herself from the group and slipped away. Slowly, to avoid drawing attention, she wrapped herself in the Force like a cloak until she was sure no one noticed her anymore. She wasn’t invisible, just transparent. It was easy for her to pass the bar, move away from the crowd, and reach the service doors. Two were unguarded, but the central, largest, and heaviest ones were watched by two human guards. Obskura walked toward them calmly, latched onto their minds, and shattered their barriers.

«How do I get to the vault?» she asked in a honeyed voice.

The guard turned lifeless, vacant eyes to her as if he couldn’t really see her. «Just go down the stairs. You’ll find three doors. The central one opens into a vast chasm. The one on the left into a pool of magma. The one on the right is the correct one, but a Narglatch guards the vault.»

Oh, what a surprise.

«And what’s its name?»

«Voska,» the second guard answered. «She’s a particularly aggressive female.»

Obskura nodded slowly—she expected nothing less from a place called an impenetrable fortress. Sure, using a Narglatch was a bit predictable. There were far more dangerous creatures in the galaxy… Harder to capture and tame, but definitely more difficult to bypass, even for an experienced and powerful Sith like her.

No point in worrying prematurely. She ordered the two men to open the doors, then stepped inside. She found herself in front of a flight of stairs that disappeared into the darkness. She took out her lightsaber and activated it: even with that light, she couldn’t see the bottom. There was nothing that particularly scared her. In just a few hours, she had seen truly terrifying things: a dragon made of shadow, its Master, and the Master of the Shadows’ Master, who had killed her companion right before her eyes. A Narglatch was the least of her problems and concerns for the day. She had rested during the journey, but she needed much more rest to fully recover her strength.

She descended for many meters. She could feel the pressure around her changing. The Force was calm around her and allowed her to sense the creature waiting for her behind the door to the right. Its presence grew increasingly intense. It had to be a particularly large specimen to generate such power. She finally reached the last step and found herself in front of three doors. Without testing the other two, she went straight for the one on the right.

She pushed it open and found herself in a smaller room than expected. In front of her stood the massive reinforced door of the casino vault, but standing between her and her objective was a gigantic Narglatch, already growling at her. It was an unusually large specimen, both for a female and a male of its species. The creature rose onto its hind legs and roared, making the walls around them tremble. Obskura snapped her fingers, and the door shut behind her. The Force enveloped the internal walls, isolating her and the Narglatch from the rest of the casino. The creature leaped at her, but Obskura simply raised a hand and shattered its weak mental defenses.

It landed just inches from her face, looking at her with two big, suddenly innocent eyes. Obskura commanded, «Sit, Voska.» The creature obeyed, and she chuckled softly, stroking its snout, which, upon closer inspection, was actually quite adorable. «Good Narglatch. Those mean people will surely blame you, so why don’t you come with me?» Voska stuck out her long, rough tongue and scraped half of Obskura’s face, making her laugh. «I’ll take that as a yes. Be good, lie down, and wait for me.»

The creature moved away and curled up in a corner of the room. Obskura, meanwhile, focused on the massive steel-reinforced door. She allowed the Force to begin flowing through her veins with increasing intensity. She raised a hand, palm open toward the vault, and concentrated the Force on the door’s hinges. Slowly, she began to close her fingers, and the Force, following the motion, tightened its grip on the vault. The hinges started to creak. Tiny cracks appeared in the metal, growing wider and longer. Voska lifted her head and perked up her ears, alarmed by the sudden noise. When Obskura was certain the door was standing and sealed only by the Force, she pulled her arm back, and the Force followed her movement, causing the door to collapse to the ground with a metallic crash that resonated through her bones.

Obskura smiled proudly and stepped inside. There was a terrible musty smell, and the air was freezing. She was surrounded by money, gold, and stacks upon stacks of files. She wondered for a moment why they didn’t use some form of digital storage, but she had more pressing matters to deal with. She needed to find the documents on Skippy’s client—and fast. She didn’t have all night. People would start asking too many questions if she didn’t return to her partner’s side soon. She had memorized the few details Skippy had given her about his mysterious client, so she could try using the Force to find the right file. She closed her eyes and concentrated. Soon, a silver line of light formed in her mind. She opened her eyes and followed its traces. She started sifting through a stack of documents, not even reading the names. Suddenly, she stopped: the Force was making the file vibrate. This was the one.

She slipped it into her bag, then turned and exited the vault. She signaled Voska, and the two climbed the stairs. Obskura took care to hide her new friend in the Force so that no one could see her. She quickly made her way back to the bar, then slowed her pace to appear more casual. She merged once again into the chaos of the casino and looked for Skippy. She found him more or less where she had left him. She had done well: not much time had passed since she had walked away. Indeed, her new friend looked at her in confusion, and Obskura simply smiled at him and gave him the slightest affirmative nod. At that, Skippy’s face broke into a gigantic, relieved grin.

The two played a few more rounds to avoid suspicion, then began making their way toward the exit. Obskura’s grip on the entire casino prevented anyone from descending into the vault, but maintaining it required a tremendous amount of energy, and she was exhausted.

Beads of sweat formed on her forehead before trailing down her cheeks. «Hold on,» Skippy whispered to her, waving at two guards. «We’re almost at the ship.»

Obskura could only manage a weak nod. Voska gave her gentle nudges with her snout at her side—right, she was still concealing her too. Fortunately, the ship finally came into view. The two boarded, and as the hatch closed behind them, Obskura released the Force’s hold around Voska, who suddenly appeared beside Skippy. The man let out a scream and fell to the floor, scrambling backward until he hit the ship’s wall.

He pointed a finger at Voska. «W-what is that?!»

«It’s a Narglatch, and she’s female,» Obskura explained, puzzled by Skippy’s overreaction. «Her name is Voska. I couldn’t leave her there—once they discover the vault was breached, they’ll blame her and kill her.»

Voska slowly approached the man, who pressed himself against the wall as she sniffed him curiously. «Y-y-you really are the d-daughter of the Dark L-Lord of the Sith. W-what made you think bringing a carnivorous creature like a Narglatch along was a good idea?!»

A sharp headache took her breath away. «She’ll behave and won’t harm you. Let’s focus on getting out of here unless you want the entire casino’s army on our tail.»

Skippy slid along the wall before getting up and bolting into the command room. Obskura rolled her eyes and ordered Voska to lie down. The Narglatch trotted to a corner, curled up, yawned, and immediately fell into a deep sleep. Obskura smiled and joined Skippy, who had already started the engines. She took the co-pilot’s seat and prepared the ship for hyperspace—she wanted to get away from that planet as fast as possible.

Control gave them the all-clear. The ship lifted off and shot into open space. Obskura held on until they were beyond the planet’s atmosphere, then finally released the casino from the Force’s grip. It was like lifting an enormous weight off her shoulders. She let out a sigh of relief and leaned back fully into her seat. 

Hyperspace – 13 YEARS TO THE BATTLE

Obskura placed the bag on her lap and took out the folder, handing it to Skippy once he had engaged the autopilot.

«That was easier than expected.»

«Yeah, you even made a friend,» Skippy grumbled sarcastically. «But… you were amazing, Obskura!» He took the folder and flipped through it quickly. «How did you manage to find the right one among all those piles, with the little information I gave you?»

She shrugged and gazed at the starlight outside. «I was well-trained. I may not be a Sith anymore, but I'm still the daughter of the Dark Lord of the Sith.»

«You Jedi and Sith really love theatrics,» Skippy chuckled, securing the folder and adjusting the coordinates. «You all have these fancy ranks. The Jedi have the Grand Master, and you Sith have the Dark Lord.» He turned slightly towards her. «If you had stayed, would you have become the Dark Lady of the Sith?»

She thought about that question carefully. «No, it's not that simple. The title isn’t necessarily passed from parent to child. More often, it goes from Master to apprentice. I could have become one if I had killed my father. That’s the only way an apprentice can take their Master’s place.»

«Ah, so you're dramatic too,» Skippy teased. «Listen, let’s be honest, I think you're made for this job. You’ve got the brains to go far, you’re strong, you’re trained in the Force and combat. You even have just the right amount of ruthlessness to survive in the big smuggler family.» He stood up and held out a hand to her. «So, what do you say, Obskura? Want to join me?»

Well, after all, it was fun… And I don’t have anywhere else to go.

She stood up and shook Skippy’s hand. «It will be an honor to work by your side, Rilo Vann, also known as Skippy.» 

Mordaxa – 13 YEARS TO THE BATTLE

The planet where Skippy lived was exactly as she had expected: teeming with criminals, an unstable orbit, and as far as possible from a Republic outpost. The atmosphere was truly unsettling. The air was barely breathable. The many buildings, all crammed together, were rickety and probably still standing only thanks to some miracle of the Force. Obskura almost laughed. The real life of that planet and its massive capital was underground. A network of tunnels connected the capital to secret spaceports, far from prying eyes, all shielded to remain undetectable by Republic ships' radar.

Skippy steered the ship away from the capital. He didn’t like big cities. Many of his jobs required maximum security and discretion, and… well, Mordaxa’s capital wasn’t exactly the safest place in the galaxy. There, the walls quite literally had eyes and ears. So, he had chosen a more private life, in the middle of nowhere, where his clients could feel at ease and not as if even the air around them was spying on them. And he wasn’t kidding—suddenly, in the vast emptiness, something metallic reflected the few rays of light that managed to pierce Mordaxa’s dense clouds.

Skippy landed smoothly at a safe distance from his home, shut down the engines, and stood up, offering her a hand. «We’ve arrived, Lady Obskura.»

She took his hand and let him pull her to her feet. He had a charming manner, though he was prone to casual flirting. However, his home was nothing like what she had expected: there was nothing seedy or shady about it. In fact, it was well-built and appeared to be carefully maintained. It was quite large compared to the capital’s homes, which were all stacked on top of each other. The door opened into a luxurious and well-kept living room.

Whistling, Skippy headed straight for the bar and poured himself a drink. He asked if she wanted one, too, but Obskura declined, too busy looking around in wonder. She was almost certain that many of the objects were stolen and definitely not Skippy’s rightful possessions, but then again, what else could she expect from a smuggler of his caliber?

One display case, in particular, caught her attention.

Kyber crystals…

Some of them were incredibly powerful, radiating strong energy. She felt drawn to the purple and red ones. But there was one she had never seen before—a black Kyber crystal. It was one of the rarest in the galaxy. Where could Skippy have found it?

«Tell me, did you swipe this from the casino too?»

Skippy approached the display case with his glass in hand. «Oh, you like it, huh? I’m never telling you where I got it. That’s a secret.»

She shot him a glare, but she understood. Black Kyber crystals weren’t just incredibly rare—they were also extremely dangerous. Keeping one on display like that was no small risk. It was a miracle that it hadn’t already attracted some creature searching for it.

Obskura scoffed. «A fitting name, indeed.»

«You said it, partner.» With that, he sprawled onto the couch, kicked off his shoes, and propped up his feet. «Why don’t you head upstairs and pick a room? Mine’s the center one at the top of the stairs. The others are free and yours to choose from.»

«Alright, thanks.»

Obskura climbed the stairs and stifled a laugh—Skippy had delusions of grandeur. The doors looked more suited for a king’s chambers than a smuggler’s hideout. Shaking her head, she continued down the hallway, observing the paintings on the walls. They were all undeniably authentic and, just as obviously, stolen. That man was truly something else.

At the end of the hallway, she pressed a button to enter the last room. A fire automatically ignited in the fireplace, warming the room. It was probably the most comfortable place she had ever called home. It even had a private bathroom! Her sore, tense muscles were in desperate need of a hot soak—if not outright boiling.

She slowly undressed and filled the bathtub. The moment she sank into the hot water, relief washed over her. She leaned her head against the edge of the tub and closed her eyes—she could get used to this new life. A sense of peace and calm wrapped around her like a blanket. Her mind was quiet… finally! She no longer had to fear being attacked at every turn; she no longer had to fear angering her father; she no longer had to harm innocent people. She could finally breathe.

A single tear rolled down her cheek.

Thank you, Khraven.

His presence grew stronger, but he did not appear.

I’ve left you in good hands, Obskura. You’ll be safe with him. Live your life as you wish. Be happy. That’s all I want for you.

His energy was quickly fading—he was saying goodbye, and this time, it was forever.

You’ll always have a place in my heart, Khraven.

There was a smile in his voice as his Force ghost whispered his final words in her mind.

And I will always be by your side, my love.

Obskura broke into silent sobs, but little by little, the weight on her heart grew lighter and lighter, until it disappeared completely. Now, nothing tied her to the Sith Order… nothing that truly mattered to her.

She had thought many times about running away with Khraven. Her father had Nyxara, and her power was even rarer and stronger than Obskura’s. As much as she felt sorry for the child, Nyxara would be just fine on her own. She had everything it took to take her father’s place. One day, Obskura was certain, Nyx would kill Nexar and claim the title of Dark Lady of the Sith.

She took a deep breath and let it all go—her father, her old life, her first love…

Before her lay a new life, and she would live it on her own terms. 

That evening, after a lavish dinner, Obskura sat at her desk. Lying before her was her lightsaber—the one that had once belonged to her mother. She remembered the duel between her mother and the Jedi Kai-Dar Vantos well: her mother’s blade had been white, not red. She didn’t know exactly what to do, but the whisper of the Force would guide her actions. She couldn’t walk around with a red lightsaber. Anyone who saw it would immediately associate her with the Sith Order, and that was the last thing Obskura wanted.

Skippy had given her his toolbox, stating that everything in the house was hers now too. Carefully, she opened the compartment holding the Kyber crystal and slowly removed it—she had never seen it up close before. It pulsed with the power of the dark side of the Force. The moment she held it in her hand, she realized it was burning hot.

The crystal knew what she intended to do and was determined to resist her in every way.

She clenched it between her palms, ignoring the pain, and brought it to her heart. She began to infuse it with light and the power of the light side of the Force. The Kyber vibrated violently as the two opposing energies clashed.

Suddenly, a powerful Force explosion hurled her backward. She crashed onto the two-seater couch in front of the fireplace, legs in the air. For a few seconds, she couldn’t breathe due to the impact, but then her eyes locked onto the Kyber crystal—now hovering in midair above the desk.

It’s white!

She leapt to her feet and rushed back to the desk, staring at the Kyber in disbelief. «I did it!»

She reached out and touched it cautiously, fearing it might still be hot, but instead, it was cool and pulsing with new life—just like her heart.

«Mom… I did it…» She pressed it to her chest once more, fresh tears streaming down her cheeks. «I purified it… We will never go back… Never again! I promise!»

With that promise, she truly felt like she had been given a second chance—to do good…

Or at least, not too much harm to the galaxy.