REVENGE OF THE SITH
Part IX – Confrontation
Ellis didn’t like being held in this prison of his, but he knew he had no choice. He knew he would do anything if it meant he could get Brianna and their baby returned safely. But it didn’t mean he had to like this plan of Revan’s.
Oh, he knew this was his former mentor’s way of getting back of him; why else would he make those comments that they were dead? They weren’t dead; he would know and he could feel that they still lived and breathed.
Unfortunately, that knowledge did nothing to deter the building anxiety and restlessness that he felt on being aboard the Ebon Hawk, while the crew pranced around aboard the Sojourn.
He couldn’t believe what Revan was suggesting — him, betray the Sith the way Malak had betrayed Revan? He couldn’t be serious, but Ellis knew from his past time with the former Jedi and Sith that he was indeed quite serious. It was madness, that’s all Ellis knew, but he wondered if maybe there was a way to make this turn the way he wanted.
Perhaps he could pretend to be on Revan’s side and then turn on him, just the way Malak did, but this time he would kill Revan. And he would find Brianna and then they would finish what they had started — they would rule the galaxy.
He stood pondering all of this when he felt the presence of the Force coming towards him. He watched as Bastila Shan entered from the garage and into the main hold. She must have felt his eyes on her, for she paused in her journey towards the starboard dorms. She gave a nod to him before continuing on her way. She was only stopped when Ellis asked her a question.
“How does it feel? Knowing you’ve killed thousands of Republic soldiers?”
The question caused her once again to pause before she turned around to face him. “It’s not as pleasant as you make it sound,” she retorted.
“Is Revan really worth it to give up the power you could have had?” he asked. “The dark side hasn’t left you, Bastila; Revan doesn’t make a point of hiding away from it, either should you.”
“You don’t have to do this, you know,” she said, taking a few steps towards him. “The dark side isn’t as powerful as you think.”
Ellis smirked. “It seems to have gotten me where I need to be.”
“Has it?” she questioned, looking him in the eye. “I seem to recall your wife and unborn child are no where to be found.”
The dark lord’s face hardened, the smirk he had previously worn now turning into a sneer. “You don’t possibly think I’ll let Revan live,” he said, his voice low and sending a frightening chill through Bastila.
“I think perhaps you need to rethink your position…”
He cut her off with a short laugh. “Even after tasting the dark side, you dare try to preach your Jedi swivel to me?” he asked. “How could you even go back to them after all they’ve done? These were the same people who left us to die to the Mandalorians.”
“The masters only felt if they had more time…”
“There was no time!” he exclaimed. “People were dying! Whole planets were destroyed just waiting for the Jedi masters and their precious Order to do something.” He took a step towards her, trying to intimidate the Jedi.
“You can lie to the others, Bastila, but you can’t really lie to me,” he breathed. “I’m sure Malak’s torture wasn’t all that pleasant and I heard you didn’t waste any time tasting the power that could have been yours. You even tried to seduce Revan back. Frankly, I’m quite impressed.”
Bastila took a series of breaths. She never enjoyed talking about that time she was with the Sith, especially knowing that she fell so easily. And maybe it wasn’t just that; perhaps it was the fact that she hadn’t looked at the Jedi Order in the same way.
She questioned herself for a long time afterwards, about what she wanted and who she was. “That time is over now,” she whispered. “I’ve always regretted what I did and I still feel guilt at my actions during the war.”
“Which war?” he asked, smugly. “The one that you didn’t serve in or the one you were forced to?”
Bastila looked at him, before smirking. “Would it surprise you if I said both?”
The young man blinked, shock clearly written on his face. “Yes,” he replied. “Yes, it would.”
“I know you and Revan have…a history together,” she began, ignoring the huff Ellis sounded. “But he’s more hurt that you would continue down this path, especially knowing what you have at stake.”
“How dare he be hurt!” the young lord growled. “It was he who led us down this path in the first place. And you need not concern yourself with my affairs, Bastila Shan. I only help you in order to get Brianna back and then I’ll kill you.”
“Has the dark side consumed you so fully?”
“The only thing that consumes me is getting my wife back,” he sneered. “And killing your husband.”
“That’s two things.” She retorted.
“Then I’d better make a list,” he said. “Try to stay off it.” With that, he returned to his make shift prison, positioning himself on the floor in a meditative pose. Bastila looked down at him and was slightly surprised to feel pity mixed in with anger.
She didn’t fully remember Ellis Yoly, but she did remember him as a young and bright Jedi who was apart of those that followed Revan. She knew how he had been exiled for going to war and at the time, she had backed the masters on their decision. But now, after everything, she once again questioned the Order and the role of the Jedi who were left.
Which wasn’t many.
She left the dark lord to his devices, instead heading back the way she came, leaving the Ebon Hawk and stepping upon the floor of the Sojourn.
He couldn’t believe what he was seeing and even when he confirmed what he saw was indeed Lady Salus, he still couldn’t believe it.
As expected, Atton was left alone with her — the assumption that he would ‘take care’ of her leaving her guards as giddy school girls — but he could do no more than stare at her. ‘Come to gloat?’ she asked, impatiently. The marauder only shook his head and asked the only question he could.
“What’re you doing here?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” she asked, spreading her arms to show her containment. “I’m viewed as a traitor, so I have to spend my days locked up as one.”
“A traitor?” he questioned, again shaking his head. “What…?”
“I contacted Revan,” she spoke. “I told him of our plans.”
“Why did you do that?”
“Really Atton,” she sneered. “I thought you had a small amount of intelligence.”
“You know what, sister,” he retorted. “Maybe I should just let you rot in that little prison of yours. Or better yet, perhaps I should show you what made me so good at what I did for Revan.”
He stared her down and was surprised to see her staring right back at him with a defiant look. However, underneath her bravado he could sense her fear; fear for what he would do her, what would happen to her child…it was that thought alone that stayed any remark he planned on making.
He didn’t know what this feeling was that he was having, but it felt…well…odd. It was the same feeling he felt when he had met Ellis on Peragus, the feeling he got when he began to tell his story of being a part of Revan’s Sith troops.
If he didn’t know any better, he would think that what he was feeling was sympathy.
Knowing what he was feeling was completely different from what he needed to do. However, he knew it needed to be done. “What did you do?” he asked.
Brianna seemed to sag within her cell. “I didn’t want anything to happen to him,” she whispered. “I had hoped…hoped that we could get through this without…well, getting to this.”
She looked at him, small tears in her eyes. “The True Sith are not our allies, Atton. We’ve been wrong; and they have used our misguided thoughts to their advantage.”
“How do you know this?” he inquired.
She gave a small smile. “As a prisoner,” she stated. “I’m pretty much left alone or I’m completely ignored. Sometimes, I can use that to my advantage. And I’ve overheard that the True Sith have been using us to get into the Republic, to get Revan out of the way; to get us out of the way.”
He gave a look that clearly said he doubted what she was telling him. He thought over his conversation with their masters, remembering how they had known Brianna had been in their custody.
He suddenly had a terrible thought — did they know that she was with child? They certainly had the powers to find out; or perhaps they already knew.
“Are they treating you okay?” he asked. “I mean, are they giving you what you need for you and…” He inclined his head to indicate her abdomen.
She gave a one shoulder shrug. “It’s better than nothing.”
He shook his head. “I’ll…I’ll find a way to get you some better food,” he said. “And we’ll think of a way out of this.”
He gave her a small smile, one in which she returned. Brianna was completely surprised by his attitude. They had never really gotten along, and when they did it was only for the sake of Ellis, but here he was trying to help her.
“Atton,” she began, knowing it must be the hormones she was experiencing. “I know we’ve never really gotten on, but…thank you. Thank you for doing this for me; for us.”
The marauder nodded. He didn’t want to appear soft, but the sentiment was nice. He certainly didn’t hate their little warrior princess — in fact, he greatly respected her — but he couldn’t himself be caught like that. He would help her, but he had to make sure that no one knew what he had planned, especially not their True Sith masters.
Then they were all doomed.
After his confrontation with Bastila, Ellis wasn’t surprised when he was summoned by Revan to join them within the conference room of the Sojourn. The young man had expected this after all and as far as he was concerned, this fit into his plans perfectly.
He was escorted of course by some of Admiral Onasi’s men to the room and again, the dark lord wasn’t surprised to see the entire crew sitting there waiting for him.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t get all prettied up for my interrogation,” Ellis smirked, as he was lead into the room and stood to face his enemies. “But I just don’t have an adequate dressing room for my stay.”
Revan raised an eyebrow at him, before nodding that the guard could leave. The two officers seemed rather hesitant, but Revan assured them with, “He won’t do anything, will you, Ellis?”
“No,” the younger man replied, a smile grin on his face. That only caused the two officers to look with uncertainty at each other, but they did as they were told and headed out of the room. “So why have I been summoned by the great Revan?”
“Can the sarcasm, Ellis,” Revan huffed. He grew tired of their animosity and he wanted to end it here and now. “You know exactly why I’ve requested your presence.”
“Requested?” Ellis chuckled. “Yes, I suppose being escorted by two armed guards could be seen as a friendly invite.”
“Enough,” the former Jedi commanded. “I need to know where the Sith are and I need to know how to stop them.”
The dark lord laughed. “What makes you think you can stop them?” he asked. “They have everything they need to defeat you and to take the Republic. A large amount of thanks goes to our operatives within the Senate itself.”
“So it’s true then?” Lynsel asked. “The Senate has been infiltrated by the Sith.”
“Just as true as the Sith have been working inside the Jedi,” Ellis smirked. He turned to look at Revan. “You don’t stand a chance.”
“You have just as much to lose as I,” the former Jedi countered. “Or have you forgotten that your masters hold your wife and child hostage?”
“You lie!” Ellis exclaimed. “They are not prisoners as I am and I know my masters would never harm them.”
“So sure are you about that?”
“They would never betray me,” the young man seethed. “Not like you and Malak did.”
“We did not betray you,” Revan started, but was quickly cut off by Ellis.
“You sent me back to the Jedi!” he cried. “Knowing that punishment awaited me, awaited us!”
“Damn it, Ellis!” Revan retorted. “Do you not remember what happened after Malachor!? I thought you were dying! You couldn’t stop screaming and to look at you, someone would think you had just gone through the stomach of a rancor.
“We sent you back to get help! Malak and I had no idea that the Jedi Council would be waiting for us and I certainly had no idea that they would exile you. We knew it was a possibility, of course, but we didn’t think any of this would happen.”
“Is that why you left?” Ellis asked, a slight trace of anger still in his voice. “To right the wrongs of your past? Is that why you destroyed the Star Maps and your outpost on Yavin 4?”
Revan sighed. “Something like that,” he whispered. “But I never destroyed that outpost on Yavin.”
“Sure you did,” Ellis chuckled. “I’ve seen the ruins.”
Revan shook his head. “No, Ellis,” he said. “I inadvertently stumbled upon a ritual conducted by the True Sith. I barely made it out alive.” Revan watched as the young man’s face showed a look of confusion. “When did you go to Yavin?” he asked.
“While I was trying to find you,” he whispered. “We stood at the ruins of your outpost. If you say it was intact when you were on the moon…” He shook his head. The conclusion he was coming up with did not make sense.
“Ellis,” Revan asked, looking at the younger man. He made a hard swallow, knowing the answer to the question before he even asked it. “Did you explore the temples on Yavin’s moon?”
Ellis made a small nod and Revan closed his eyes. By the Force, did that mean…?
“Have you been approached by the spirit of Exar Kun?”
The question caused the others to stir, as though that thought alone wasn’t nearly as bad as what Revan was going to say next. Ellis didn’t answer, but the way his face drained of color was all the answer Revan needed.
“Oh frak,” he murmured. “You’re being possessed by him. You were possessed by him when we met on Yavin.” Revan began to pace, the realization of everything hitting him full force.
“They’ve been clever,” he muttered. “They’ve been so very clever and we have done nothing but ensure them victory. This has been as I knew it was going to be; a deliberate plan by the ancient species of Sith and we have both willingly walked in to it.”
Ellis was as shocked as everyone else. Surely the True Sith had not done what Revan was saying they did. This was not a plan, at least not on the large scale Revan made it out to be.
“That’s what they were doing,” the former Jedi continued. “That’s what I had interrupted. They were bringing back the spirit of Exar Kun, just as they did for Freedon Nadd. I’m sure they discovered that your wife was contacting me or someone else to delay your plans and she was taken too.”
Ellis shook his head. “That’s not true,” he whispered. “That’s impossible.”
Revan spun to face his former colleague and friend. “Search your feelings, Ellis,” he said. “You know it to be true. The Sith have set us both up, to give them the opportunity to rule again and we have lead them straight to the Republic.”
The silence of the room seemed to stretch, with everyone digesting what the banter between Revan and Ellis had revealed. The sudden beeping of the comm. caused everyone to jump in surprise, with Carth quickly going over to answer it.
“I thought I said we weren’t to be disturbed,” he hissed.
“I know and I’m sorry, Admiral,” replied an ensign on the other end. “But I thought you’d want to know that the Supreme Chancellor has secured an emergency comm. line. He says it’s extremely urgent.”
“The Supreme Chancellor?” Bastila asked. “What do you suppose he wants?”
“Patch him through, Ensign.”
The young officer nodded and began to display the holo from the Supreme Chancellor. The image of Robert Belyn, Sr. was displayed for everyone to see within the room. “Admiral Onasi,” the Chancellor greeted. “I was hoping to ask if you knew the whereabouts of Revan and Lynsel, but I’m glad to see that you all are together.”
“You’ll forgive me, Chancellor, if we seem a little surprised by your transmission,” Revan started. “But we didn’t think you wanted to have anything to do with me.”
“Something rather unfortunate on my part, Revan,” the Chancellor began, sadness easily heard in his voice. “There have been…developments within the Senate that I thought deserved your immediate attention.”
“Such as?”
“As of 1300 hours today, reports came in that the True Sith species, as you call them, have made a siege on the planet of Geonosis,” he stated.
“Shortly after these reports came in, there was an attempt on my life. As you can see, the assassin wasn’t a very good one. However, I was shocked to discover the assassin was one of our senators and that he was acting on orders…”
Here, the elder man’s voice began to tremble. “On orders from my own son.”
“Bob, no!” Lynsel breathed.
The Chancellor nodded. “I was also informed that Kodis Basil is the one responsible for the siege on Geonosis,” he continued. “My attempted killer, though a horrible assassin, does make for a good informant. Our forces have been able to round up all those that sided with the Sith; however, I am sadly disappointed at how many of them there are.”
“Chancellor, I have more bad news for you,” Revan replied. “I have just come to the realization that this has been one large trap that I, my friends, former colleagues, and the Republic itself have fallen head first into.
“The True Sith have been planning this for ages now, with the true destruction taking place during the Mandalorian War and only getting worse with the wars that followed.”
The group saw the Chancellor emit a deep sigh. “As you and your companions know, Revan,” he began. “The Republic is on shaky ground at best. The wars have left us with barely enough resources to handle every day tasks, let alone another war.
“I was hesitant before at letting the Republic aid you in this fight, but I feel we no longer have a choice. The Senate has now virtually fallen, with several key planets already occupied by Sith troops. Despite the odds against us, we cannot let the Republic nor the galaxy fall into Sith hands.” The Chancellor looked hard at Revan.
“Whatever the resources you need, the Republic will supply them.”
Revan nodded. “Thank you, Chancellor,” he said. “I suggest you begin immobilizing troops. I plan on finishing this once and for all.”
The Chancellor nodded as well, closing the transmission and leaving the group once again by themselves. Revan turned to face Ellis once more, this time seeing the realization and the defeat in his former friend’s posture.
“Ellis…”
“Ziost,” whispered the young man. “They’ve built an underground base and have been establishing a military armada.” The dark lord looked up. “If what you say is true,” he said. “This plan has been in the works since before the Mandalorian War.”
Revan nodded, slowly. Placing a hand on the younger man’s shoulder, he whispered, “I still need you, Ellis. Your wife and child still need you. We need you to help end this.”
“I…I…I’ll need a comm.,” he said. “I need to contact my ship, more importantly Lord Casus. I need to know who’s still loyal to me.”
“Can you trust this Casus?” asked Carth.
Ellis nodded. “He’s about the only person I trust right now.”
“How do we know you won’t alert him to what our plans are?” Mission asked.
“He won’t,” Revan piped in. Looking at the defeated Lord Trayun, he added, “He knows what’s at stake.”