Begeren. Once a prosperous Sith world, it has been the site of numerous battles throughout the millennia. Grand halls and monuments were torn down and re-purposed by looting Republic forces thousands of years ago, before they were driven from the planet. Isolated settlements still dot the planet's surface, but the inhospitable, craggy, and desert-like terrain, along with the beasts common to many desert and Sith worlds, have kept most humanoids from colonizing. The One Sith’s hold on Begeren is all but broken, though a few small pockets of resistance remain. The Clans and Houses of the Brotherhood now swarm the planet to defeat them, but attention has returned to plunder. Roaming bands of Jedi, adherents to light and dark alike, claim—or destroy—priceless artifacts at every turn. One of the few remaining untouched areas on the entire planet is the Valley of Monuments, so named for its glorious architecture.

The area is impossibly quiet, the air itself seemingly dead. Your perilous trek has lead you to the heart of the Valley of Monuments and to the foot of a massive obsidian obelisk, rising maybe a hundred meters into the sky, each side perhaps ten meters wide. The obelisk is bound by ancient Sith symbols rising more than half way up the ancient monument. Not too far in the distance sits an ancient palace, impressive towers and terraces rising high into the sky. Weapons bristle from the superstructure of the palace far in the distance, large turbolaser batteries easily visible. Yet here, in the courtyard at the foot of this massive monument, the One Sith are nowhere to be seen. To either side of you, a ways in the distance, are impressive cliff walls, faces of long-gone Sith warlords and heretics alike etched into the canyon, preserved in near-pristine condition.

Beneath your feet, the ever-present sands have gradually given way to fine polished granite blocks, some up to a meter in length and width. These blocks form a large pathway leading towards and around the obelisk, then to the palace proper. You are drawn towards the obelisk, your gaze briefly locked on the monument.

The symbols on the obelisk periodically pulse a faint red, all but invisible against the obsidian stone. As they do, power washes out from the obelisk, bathing any nearby with the dark side. You know that on the other side of the obelisk in front of you is a small chamber holding an impressive six inch red crystal, and if intelligence reports are correct, that crystal is likely the source of the energy bound within the obelisk. Some within the Dark Council are desperate for the artifact. It was once a prized possession of Lord Tytonus, though what purpose the crystal held to her is unknown; it was recovered from her fallen corpse after the Sith Empire put her rebellion to rest ages ago.

Before you can even reach the crystal, footsteps upon granite stone tell you that you are not alone, and you realize that whatever you were going to ultimately do with the crystal, it would have to wait. Someone else has come for the precious artifact.

Tytonus raised her violet blade high above her head, and the fury of the sky opened above her. Clouds boiled above, and rained bolt after bolt of forked lightning into the very top of the ancient black obelisk that had stood in the valley for eons. Power surged over the gathered crowd, and down through Tytonus’ body. Staring out at the gathered masses of faceless soldiers, she plunged her saber into the base of the obelisk with a fierce cry, and a crack rent the darkened skies as purple fire lanced skyward.

Calm followed the storm, and a glowing red light began to come into focus as a section of the obelisk slid away. Whatever it was that was causing the power to rise and swell in the valley, was coming from that hidden compartment.

The vision faded from his mind as his senses flared, sending adrenaline shooting through his veins. From nearby, in the direction of the obelisk, he thought he heard faint whispers, as though someone were crying out in pain. Back in the direction he came from, a small avalanche of pebbles rang out in the canyon. Keirdagh jumped in surprise and reached for his saber while turning toward the source of the sound. Nothing there, he thought to himself, seeing no evidence of an intruder. Cursing his frayed nerves, he stretched out his senses, trying to locate the source of his unease.

Even as he started to turn back toward the column of obsidian, a soft, but deliberate cough sounded from behind him. Spinning with his hand falling to his saber, Keirdagh took in the sight of Aabsdu Dupar, one of Plagueis’ more famous sons, now standing at the very base of the structure, a cocksure grin etching his scarred, but still handsome face. Clearly enjoying the fact that he had gotten the drop on the grizzled elder, Aabsdu leaned nonchalantly against the pillar of stone, and greeted the Taldrya with a simple "Hey Yacks."

Frustration at being so easily evaded welled up within Cantor, and was made worse by the Di Plagia's familiar tone. Even at the best of times, such a thing would make Keirdagh hostile, and this was anything but the best of times. "What the fracking hell are you doing here?" Channeling his anger, and putting steel behind his words, he fixed a gaze that would have evacuated many a cadet's bladder and bit out, "get away from that column."

The tremble in his lip betrayed Aabsdu's nervousness, as did how quickly his hands shot to his belt, clutching the two sabers hanging there. "Sorry Yacks, I'm afraid I can't do that." Seeming to gain confidence as he ground out the words, he continued on, "all we've been hearing these past few months is how you've been destroying the artifacts, or shipping them off to Kalus immediately." The fact that Plagueis had been tracking his movements was not surprising to Keirdagh, but the fact that they had been able to track them to Kalus implied that Plagueis had better spies than he was aware of. "This artifact is my ticket to the Grand Master's good graces, and you're not going to destroy this one."

"That's fine Aabs," Keirdagh spat, as he started walking toward the Plagueian. "Take your damned trinket. I don't even care anymore. I just want to get off this rock before anything else goes wrong. I've had enough of these karking nek hunts." Aabsdu seemed to take the Taldrya at his word, but kept his hands firmly upon his saber hilts, as he watched him go past. Taking note of how Aabsdu kept his body directly between him and the pillar, Keirdagh couldn't help but laugh bitterly about how times had changed. At one time, nobody in the Brotherhood would dare doubt his word. Now, he was just another cog in Ashen's relentless war machine, honour and trust mere relics of days gone by.

Setting the pillar behind him and aiming once again for the palace ahead, he did his best to ignore the distrustful eyes of Aabsdu. "No! Save me! Don't leave me to him!"

The plea rent his senses, a psychic wail of haunting pain coming from behind him. Spinning around to locate the pitiable creature pleading for mercy, Keirdagh locked eyes with Aabsdu, even as he watched a cool calm settle over the younger man's face. "No, wait, Aabs" Keirdagh stammered, "It's not like that!"

One minute he was grinning quietly, and the next his face had transformed into an implacable mask as he reached out his right hand and shot a stream of lightning at Keirdagh. The flash of power cracked through the air, and slammed the Sith in his chest. Muscles convulsing, and flung backwards, the old man slid noisily along the granite stones, the grinding of armor masking the growl escaping his lips.

Aabsdu apparently wasn't going to leave any time for Keirdagh to recover from the sudden assault, even as the old man lay on his back staring at the darkened sky. He heard two sabers ignite and footsteps rushing toward him, any thought of trying to reason with the other man had fled the moment the pain begun. All that was left at this point was a seething rage.

Rolling to his feet and crouching like a sprinter about to start a race, Keirdagh let a predator's smile crease his lips. Springing forward, and igniting his golden blade, Keirdagh stretched out his mind and tugged on the man's head with the Force, causing him to overbalance and begin to flounder.

Taking care to bat the other's blades aside as he fell forward, Keirdagh launched an armored knee at full sprint into the Aabsdu's face, resulting in a sickening crunch that echoed off the cavern walls. Turning with the intention of finishing the fight quickly, Keirdagh found himself unexpectedly flying through the air toward the obelisk at high speed.

The strength of the dark side washed the world in multicolor hues as the obelisk’s power ebbed and flowed across the valley, rolling over the two elders as they battled for control. Few things made sense on Begeren; Aabsdu Dupar found the number actually lessening as the Brotherhood’s stay on the barren planet lengthened, but he was certain of at least one thing at this moment: do not trust Keirdagh Taldrya Cantor.

The Dark Jedi Master slammed into the black obelisk with a thud, his head banging against the ancient stone and cracking, blood beginning to trickle and matte his hair. Aabsdu knew them both skilled but had little desire to test his endurance against the experienced leader, so he raced forward so quickly the Adept seemed to ride the wave of his telekinetic missile as it hit Yacks. His gaze momentarily blurred as his own blood colored his face from his undoubtedly broken nose, so he relied upon his foe’s pulsating presence in the Force to bring his twin blades crashing down upon Yacks’ golden lightsaber, raised horizontally to defend his seated position.

The former Justicar’s interest in this place was another unknown to the Consul, but his own quest was crystal clear. There had been whispers both in the Force and among the leadership that a changing of the guard neared - Master at Arms Kalen Aquillarium was moving out. The nexus of energy that was the red crystal would make a fine offer to the Grand Master, a showing of Aabsdu’s loyalty and willingness to serve. This mission, at its core, was not about his Brotherhood or his clan — it was about serving himself, and Aabsdu Dupar never let himself down.

"Take the damn crystal," Yacks yelled between gritted teeth, "I don’t kriffing care!"

Yacks’ belief that Aabsdu would believe such a blatant lie was insulting and infuriating, but he had little time to respond as the Taldrya kicked out his right leg, planting it against Aabsdu’s left shin and knocking the Adept off balance again.

The Krath stumbled and loosened his heavy press against the Sith’s blade enough for Yacks to twist his blade and throw the silver swords sideways. Keirdagh raised a hand and sent his own wall of energy slamming into Aabsdu, tossing him several meters back where the young man slide across the sandy granite.

Aabsdu snarled as he leapt to his feet and sent a volley of electricity surging forward, but this time Yacks met the attack with his own torrent of blue and white energy. The speed trains of current crashed into each other midway and arched up, high into the air. The swirl of static seemed to charge the air as the space around the fighters crackled and the combined whirlwind of electricity was suddenly sucked into the obelisk. The pillar served as a channel, funneling the lightning up and shooting it straight out the top in an even more powerful blast.

Aabsdu watched in awe, more eager than ever to claim his prize, but when he looked back to his one obstacle he saw Keirdagh on his knees, hands clenching fistfuls of hair as he seemed to grimace against unseen forces.

Fiery claws of anguish tore at Keirdagh's mind as he fought to regain control. Ever since he'd crashed into the pillar, a howl had been sweeping aside his mental barriers, a howl fraught with pain, loneliness and sadness. As the wail reached a crescendo, his defenses finally burst and a flood of memories that were not his own invaded into his psyche.

The witch, she trapped me here. I was to be her prisoner. She would let me grow, before mutilating me to feed her sabers. She wanted to build an army from my body. But she must have failed. I have been alone for so long, captive in this pillar.

Forgotten.

Alone.

Abandoned.

Such bitterness and fear were beyond the scope of a mere mortal to understand. Even as the emptiness in his soul threatened to crush him, instinct drove him backwards from the slash of a silver blade that scored the ground in front of him. Scrambling to his feet, Keirdagh locked eyes with his adversary. He had said he had no intention of taking the crystal, but now, now there was no way he was going to abandon this pitiable creature to the fate of being used as a Dark Councillors plaything.

Darting back further, Keirdagh sought to keep his distance from the younger man. Their brief clashes thus far had shown him that Aabsdu outstripped him in the saber game. Thankfully, years of battling his betters with a blade had taught the old man more than a few tricks, and if he was to free whatever was trapped inside the obelisk, he'd need to use all of them. "You know what, Plagueian?" taunted Keirdagh, "I just changed my mind. I will be walking out of this valley with that crystal, over your smouldering corpse!"

The Consul's venomous hiss was the only response, as he tried to rush Cantor. Keeping his distance with bursts of lightning, and blasts of telekinesis, Keirdagh knew had had to wear down and wound the younger man before he could close and defeat him. It took all the skill the old man had, using subtle tugs of the Force to send Aabsdu stumbling to the ground, and then following it up with a rain of small boulders interspersed with short blasts of lightning.

The tactic to keep the Consul at bay seemed to be working for a short period, before suddenly, and without warning, everything around Keirdagh went dark. Floundering in the darkness, it was only through a whisper of sound and a scream of warning from the Force that he managed to save himself from being cut in two. Whipping his now dimmed golden blade into a high guard, he felt rather than saw Aabsdu’s silver blade collide with it. Any elation from surviving though was short lived, as the Adept twisted his wrist and sent his second blade to bite into the Dark Jedi Master’s chest, just below his outstretched left arm.

The pain of a saber burning its way into his body ignited the steeliest of Keirdagh's resolve. Reacting to the primal fear of fire and pain, his own hand darted forward and caught the Plagueian's wrist. Feeling the struggle of the weaker man to continue his death blow, Keirdagh knew that this was going to be the decisive moment in the battle. With a roar of pain and struggle, he felt the younger man's wrist shatter in his fist, and the offending blade dropping to the ground.

It had taken only a moment, but the darkness that had surrounded the struggling pair evaporated, leaving Keirdagh still holding a high guard against the younger man's blade. Pain turned into fury at the sight of his attacker, and the roar escaping the older man's lips turned to one of fury.

The Consul's eyes widened in fear, and he began to backpedal away from the enraged Dark Jedi Master, his calm demeanour shattering under the pain of a broken wrist, and the visage of doom and destruction in front of him. "Now," bellowed Keirdagh, "you die!" Lunging forward, the old man planted a booted heel solidly into Aabsdu's solar plexus. The wind rushed out of him in a gale, and Cantor pressed his attack. Rage, brutal and strong, lent Cantor a speed and efficiency he would have otherwise lacked, and soon it was all the Consul could do to keep up with the older man's attacks.

A sudden, blinding light assaulted Keirdagh’s eyes, allowing the Plagueian to escape his blade yet again. Not taking any chances he grasped his own and Aabsdu's fallen saber in a powerful grip in the Force, and flung them into a defensive barrier around his body. Crouching within the halo of whirling blades, he armed himself with his sword and dagger, and tried to shake off the effects of Aabsdu's distraction.

The being who he'd encountered in the obelisk had largely fallen silent since the last vision, but suddenly, Keirdagh could sense a great fear overtake its pain. Part of him feared that the Plagueian had just tried to take the prize while he was distracted and run. But instinct served him better. Hearing scuffling, and then a grunt of exertion, the Dark Jedi Master could sense what was coming. Taking a loose grip on both of the sabers with the Force, he flung them toward Aabsdu's oncoming aerial rush. Pausing only briefly he flung his emerald dagger after the blades, hammering it with all the power he could muster in the Force.

Dimly, he heard Aabsdu bat aside the two lightsaber blades, and then let out a surprised grunt as the Emerald Dagger, propelled to nearly supersonic speeds, flew completely through his body. The crash of a body to the ground was all Keirdagh needed to know that this fight was done.

Storm clouds swirled together in a vortex pattern above their heads as Dark Adept Aabsdu Dupar watched Keirdagh convulse on the ground next to the dark obelisk. The stone still erupted outward, huge streaks of electricity shooting across the valley to form a near ceiling. The obelisk itself vibrated fast enough to shake the very air around them, its dark black hue seeming to glow a bright void of light. Aabsdu had never experienced anything so magical, breathtaking. It was all so beautiful.

Then things started falling apart. The statues and rock walls around the two Elders of Taldryan and Plagueis cracked and crumbled. The ground shook, pebbles bouncing about, the air sizzled as Aabsdu felt a slight but increasing pressure against all parts of his body. Instinct kicked in; he know longer wanted to be here.

The Consul looked to the former Justicar, kneeling on the ground, hands to his head as he fought against a power the Adept could not see or hear. Unable to pierce the man’s thoughts, Aabsdu yelled against the growing wind, "I’ve decided to agree with you! We should leave!"

CRACK!

A large statue of some ancient Sith Lord burst apart at the base to Aabsdu’s right and the towering structure tumbled toward them. Aabsdu force leapt forward, rolling to avoid a large chunk of the man’s shoulder as debris rained across the valley. Ahead he saw the obelisk glow even stronger, yet the brighter it became the darker the valley turned.

The pressure against his skin moved deeper and started to push against his very soul. He realized the strength he was feeling, its essence having been drilled into him ever since he first arrived at the Shadow Academy a mere Initiate of the Brotherhood. And he realized the source of the dark side energy infecting him, its trail clear to see to those who knew how to look.

The obelisk was sending tendrils of Force radiation into both Aabsdu and Keirdagh. At first, the Krath felt refreshed, stronger than he had ever been. Then the ingestion became too much. His entire body convulsed and started to rip apart from the inside out. He was unable to move, barely able to scan his surroundings for the familiar figure of Yacks.

Keirdagh glared at him, his vision cleared yet body frozen. The man sneered one phrase only, "Idiot."

Then Keirdagh Cantor exploded, blood and guts blasting out in every direction at the head of a massive surge in energy, a wall that slammed into Aabsdu so forcefully it broken his cationic state and threw him into the air.

He hung for a moment, midair, staring down at the blood stained dust surrounding the obelisk, a pressure building beyond a point of resistance behind his eyes, ears, and fingers. He had no time for one final phrase, nor even a thought. Midair, Aabsdu Dupar vanished as the obelisk’s power consumed him entirely.

The wind died down. The ground steadied. The sky calmed, and the obelisk resumed its seemingly lifeless state as light returned. After only a few minutes, the valley turned restful again, yet stronger than before to those that knew how to look.