Chapter 21: Preventing a Resurrection

The near silence on the dropship was charged with a torrid of emotion. The information that Kayora and the others had gleaned from a crazed Imperial Guard captain was less than comforting. While knowing Revan’s plan did make their goal slightly more concrete, the sheer lunacy of the plan was far more unsettling. 

Revan, or whatever twisted form of Revan they faced, was determined to kill the Sith Emperor once and for all. Although Lana had no love lost for the Emperor, it was known to a select few that the Emperor had not existed in a physical form for countless years. While he still technically ruled the Sith Empire, in reality it was ruled by the Dark Council, who claimed to be guided by the Emperor. For hundreds of years he had existed in spirit only, and was thus incapable of causing the mass chaos and destruction he had while existing in physical form.

Unfortunately, Revan’s desire to kill the Emperor was rendered impossible if the Emperor continued to exist only as a spirit. Thus, Revan’s insane plan consisted of sacrificing the life-force of the moon to resurrect the Emperor, so that he could be killed for good. Setting aside the fact that Revan would be committing the genocide of a planet to bring back a Sith Lord, Lana was certain that Revan was underestimating the power of the Emperor. If he succeeded in reviving the Dark Lord, he would almost certainly not succeed in killing him.

Which would mean that the Emperor would be free once again to terrorize the galaxy.

Pursing her lips, Lana looked around the shuttle at the others. Next to her sat Darth Marr, the spikes on his shoulder armor brushing up against the wall as he leaned back, arms crossed. Theron and Satele Shan sat a few seats away, talking surprisingly little for two who were related. The Zabrak Juri was standing at the entrance to the cockpit, her hand loosely resting against the doorframe to keep her balance. Kayora was speaking quietly with the petite Mirialan Jedi, who barely looked to be an adult. Across from Lana was the Mandalorian Shae Vizla and Vera, though they both had their helmets on so Lana was unable to tell whether they were interacting or not.

The shuttle shook slightly, and Darth Marr briefly turned his head toward the cockpit. There were no subsequent shakes, so whatever it had been, it didn’t appear that they were being attacked by Revan’s forces. Or perhaps their fighter escort had eliminated the threats that quickly.

Lana stood and walked the length of the shuttle, stopping next to Juri, who didn’t take her eyes off of the view through the windshield. They stood shoulder to shoulder for several seconds before Juri broke the silence.

“I don’t know who has it worse, you or me,” she stated, voice curiously void of emotion.

“What do you mean?”

Now Juri turned, her yellow eyes drilling into Lana’s before flicking toward the back of the shuttle, where Vera sat, head tilted back and resting against the top of her seat. “Is it worse to have the most important thing to you in the world by your side, facing the danger, or back at the camp, left to wonder what is happening?”

The bare honesty of the question caught Lana off guard. She blinked, then turned back toward the front, taking in the passing foliage as she attempted to formulate a response. When it was apparent none was forthcoming, Juri let out a short huff and let her gaze return to the world outside as well. The pilot reached up and flicked a switch, then shouted back that they were approaching the landing zone. Lana stepped back, intending to return to her seat for landing, but paused. She reached out a hand, then thought differently and let it fall to her side.

“You’ll make it back,” she said to Juri, with a conviction that she wasn’t sure where it came from.

For a long moment Juri just stared at her, then the edge of her mouth twitched upward for a fraction of a second. A brief nod, then Lana turned and made her way back to her seat next to Marr. Across from her, Vera had shifted, and was now leaning forward, arms resting on her knees. Though she couldn’t see through the darkened visor, Lana knew that Vera was looking at her as well. Mustering up a smile, Lana reached out with the Force, gently squeezing Vera’s hand. The bounty hunter’s fingers flexed slightly, and then the shuttle jolted slightly as it touched down onto the ground. Pneumatic hissing filled the air as the interior and exterior pressures equalized and the boarding door pitched open. Everybody stood and checked their kit before heading toward the door.

It was time.

—

If there was ever a location to stop a resurrection, this would be it. The strike team stepped through an elaborate stone archway and found themselves in a large courtyard. What once had been exquisite stonework was less so now, but still had an aura of opulence that hung heavy in the air. The courtyard was circular, decorated with glowing markings and ringed with stone obelisks. The farthest perimeter of the courtyard, where the team now stood, was the highest. Every several meters, the floor would step down, until reaching the lowest area in the very center.

Where Revan stood, arms raised to the sky.

Upon the strike team’s entrance, Revan turned to face them, lowering his arms. While there had been some uncertainties before if this was truly Revan, the individual before them erased any lingering doubts. His trademark mask hung at his waist, and the scarred face that glowered up at them looked decidedly displeased to see them. He stood his ground as they moved in, fanning out into a staggered formation, Kayora at the front with the other lightsaber wielders flanking her and the ranged attackers slightly farther back.

Lana held her lightsaber tightly in her grip, though kept it unignited for the time being. Revan examined each of them in turn, his eyes studying them with an intensity that left Lana cold. She flexed her fingers on her other hand, waiting for something, anything, to happen.

Revan’s voice cut through the tension, gravelly and laced with anger. “Why do you oppose me? The Emperor is a threat that must be extinguished.”

“You will not succeed,” Kayora stated, firm and sure. “You don’t understand the power of the Emperor-”

“I am the ONLY one who understands his power,” roared Revan. “I was kept prisoner, tortured by him, for years before he finally decided he was done with me. I bore witness to his power every. Single. Day. He hasn’t even been present while most of you have been alive. How can you claim I don’t understand his power?” Revan took a menacing step forward and jabbed an accusing finger at Kayora. “If you will not step aside, you will be struck down.”

There was a crackle, then a hum filled the air as Kayora’s lightsaber ignited. The others followed suit, and soon a rainbow of blades danced in the air in front of Revan. Lana kept hers lowered but at the ready as Kayora spoke.

“If you resurrect him, not only will you kill thousands of innocents to do so, you will fail to defeat him, and the fate of the galaxy will be at risk. We will not allow that.”

Revan barked out a laugh. “Innocents? The inhabitants of this planet are followers of the Dark Side, and my Revanites are more than willing to sacrifice themselves for the good of the galaxy. No life taken here will be wasted.” He reached down and unclipped his mask from his belt. He fitted it onto his face, then grabbed his own pair of lightsabers, holding them loosely at his side. “But if you wish to waste yours, so be it.”

Lana heard a click behind her, and then Vera’s voice rang out. “You talk too much,” the bounty hunter said, and she pulled the trigger, sending a charged up sniper bolt straight at Revan’s head.

In the blink of an eye, Revan’s lightsabers ignited, one red and one purple, twirling up to deflect the shot harmless into the ground next to him. Letting out an inhuman cry, he threw his arms wide, sending a terrifyingly powerful wave of force energy radiating outward. Lana and most of the others were thrown off their feet, propelled violently backward. Her motion stopped abruptly as her back slammed into one of the stone obelisks, knocking the wind out of her. As she gasped for breath, Lana shook her head and tried to get her bearings. Revan’s power was still pressing her against the cool stone, making it hard to breathe. Fortunately she had managed to keep her lightsaber in her possession, though it wasn’t doing much good now. Craning her neck, Lana saw several of the others in a similar predicament as she was: Satele, Theron, Marr, and Shae were all pinned to their own obelisk, struggling to break free. 

Flashes of light came from the center dias, where Juri, Kayora, and Revan were exchanging savage blows. A flash of movement in the corner of her eye turned out to be Vera, using her jetpack to try and get into a flanking position. Regrettably, Revan was much too quick, reflecting one of Vera’s blaster bolts back so close to her it forced the Chiss to drop from the sky.

Straining against her invisible bonds, Lana’s frustration began to rise. There was no way that she was going to die like this, but she was coming up blank on how to free herself. As she systematically began to flex her extremities, looking for weaknesses, the Mirialan appeared in front of her.

“Hold still!” the girl said, her spiky black hair bouncing as she dashed up to Lana. She also appeared to be glowing slightly. Slender green fingers reached out, and as soon as they made contact with Lana’s robes, the glow rushed from the Jedi and washed across Lana, and suddenly she was free. Dropping the few inches to the ground, Lana had barely caught her balance before the Mirialan was sprinting off toward one of the others still trapped, though not before making a slight detour toward a strange glowing orb.

Whatever was going on there was outside of Lana’s expertise, and currently did not rank high on her priorities of what needed to be done. What did rank high on that list was taking out the fanatical Force user that was currently gaining the upper hand on his current opponents. Calling upon the Force for a burst of speed, Lana reached her opponent just as Kayora took a powerful kick to the midsection, doubling her over. Without missing a beat, Lana threw herself into the melee, viciously arcing her blade at Revan. A quick pivot and he dodged her attack, but the move took him into Juri’s own attack, her dual bladed purple saber knocking one of Revan’s weapons to the ground. Letting out a growl, he grabbed Juri’s throat with his free hand and hurled her at Lana with inhuman strength, sending them both tumbling to the ground.

By the time they both scrambled to their feet, Revan had already turned to the newest threats, meeting mirroring attacks from Master Shan and Darth Marr with his own blades, having retrieved his lost weapon. A quick glance around confirmed that the Mirialan had managed to free the others, and they were all moving in, looking for an opening.

Now that they were all present, the battle turned even more chaotic than it had started. Blades twirled and danced, colliding in explosions of color and crackles of sound. Blaster bolts sizzled through the air, though their unpredictable ricochets meant they were just as much a hazard to friend as foe. 

As the battle wore on, it became apparent that the stories of Revan from days past were not exaggerated. Lana shouted in frustration as he threw a loose stone into her feet, tripping her up as she attempted to move in. A pulse of Force energy sent Darth Marr stumbling back, bracing himself against the onslaught, while a deft thrust slipped past Juri’s own blade, nicking her side. An attempt to counterattack was quickly denied, with Revan flipping over Juri’s back and using his momentum to lever her down hard into the stone floor.

They were slowly losing ground. For each solid strike they made on Revan, he responded with a half dozen more. Eventually, their injuries would catch up with them. They needed to end this soon. Lana pushed herself onto her feet, grimacing at the pain from the smoldering lightsaber wound across the top of her thigh. She spat out a mouthful of blood and sucked in a jagged breath as the blood slowly oozed into the cracks of the stone. Glaring at Revan, she quickly analyzed their situation.

Darth Marr had failed in his attempt to withstand the shove, and was currently on his back a distance away. Juri was still on the ground, obviously dazed from the impact, and Shae had rocketed herself backward to retrieve her dispatched pistols. Theron was slumped up against one of the obelisks, and Kayora and the Mirialan were both struggling to their feet a fair distance away. Only Vera and Master Shan were engaging Revan, with Shan raining down a flurry of blows with her double-bladed saber while Vera used her jetpack to move laterally, quickly circling Revan while taking precise shots with her sniper.

Timing her moment, Lana waited until Vera sped past her before darting into action, launching off of her good leg and calling upon the Force to increase her speed. She saw Kayora do the same, just as Revan cracked a gloved fist into Master Shan’s jaw, snapping her head back. Another burst of Force energy sent the Jedi Master tumbling backward like a ragdoll, barely missing Kayora. Revan deflected another one of Vera’s shots, then, after locking eyes with a charging Kayora, hurled one of his sabers at the circling Mandalorian.

It felt like time suddenly slowed to an imperceptible crawl. Lana saw the red blade leave Revan’s hand and tracked the trajectory. Her heart leapt into her throat when she realized that Revan had calculated the angle perfectly: with the speed Vera was traveling, there would be no time for her to adjust her path. 

The crimson blade that was currently arcing through the air would strike Vera.

For the briefest of moments, Lana thought about stopping that blade. She could do it. She could reach out and grab it with the Force. She may not be able to fully stop it, especially if Revan was still controlling it, but she could introduce enough resistance that its path would be disrupted, and Vera would pass by unharmed.

But if she did that, she would have to forfeit her attack on Revan. Which meant that his attention would be solely focused on Kayora, who would not be able to withstand his undivided fury for long. Kayora would fall. Lana would fall. Vera would fall. And it would all have been for nothing.

Gritting her teeth as a tear slipped from her eye, Lana shut off all her emotions, save her anger and rage. Time returned to normal and she flew at Revan, screaming in fury. His head twitched to the side and his eyes widened ever so slightly. 

Finally, he had been caught off guard. His attempt to reposition to defend against both Lana and Kayora came too late. Lana ducked under his blade and sliced her own through his calf as she darted by. Twisting around midair, she saw Kayora’s pale green blade leave a burning scar across Revan’s chest. Roaring, Revan threw out his hands, attempting to catch them both in another resounding wave. Lana, already being slightly off balance with her turn, got caught in it, but as she was catapulted away, she saw Kayora duck under the wave and plunge her blade into Revan’s stomach. The pressure against Lana suddenly ceased, though she was still tumbling as she collided with the ground, her head cracking against a raised section of stone. Her vision immediately went blurry, and she could feel her consciousness fading. Her attempt to push herself up failed when her arm gave out, possibly broken in the fall as well. Blinking rapidly, trying to push the dark away from the edge of her vision, she squinted at where Kayora stood, Revan on his knees in front of her. It appeared there was another figure, a glowing specter that looked oddly similar to the man on his knees.

As her vision faded, she quickly twisted her head, ignoring the stabbing pain that it caused. She stared in the direction Vera should have been, willing the blurred shapes to convalesce into something she could recognize. She thought she saw something blue and white, which may have been Vera, but her mind was too impaired to tell. Lana wanted to scream, but even that action was out of her capabilities. The inky blackness flooded her consciousness, and everything went blank.