CHAPTER EIGHT
Thanor Jax. Shadow recognized the surname; according to recovered Imperial records, Carnor Jax was the name of an Imperial stormtrooper who was recruited to become one of Emperor Palpatine's Royal Guards. It was no surprise then, that Palpatine would take an interest in Carnor after finding out that he was a possible descendant of a Dark Lord of the Sith.
This also made Shadow wonder if Lumiya knew this as well and, if so, she had found Carnor Jax and took him as her second apprentice, after Flint's death on Vjun. If this was all true, Shadow was amazed by the coincidence of him finding Darth Erebus' holocron and it leading to him finding another to two possible Sith Lords, which he was supposed to be hunting, and the Sith relic which he currently sought.
Or perhaps it was simply the Force at work. He wouldn't have known.
But none of this solved Shadow's present situation: how did he find Lumiya and, possibly, Carnor Jax? All records of Jax stated that he was last sighted on Dromund Kaas nine years ago, working for Darth Vorath's Sith Empire, and was surely gone by now.
Or dead, Shadow thought, but he ignored that consideration.
At that moment, his ship's communications device beeped and Shadow activated the small holoprojector placed on his control board. A shimmering, miniature humanoid male, dressed in a hooded cloak not unlike Shadow's, appeared before him.
"Agent Shadow," the being said with a greeting nod. "What is the current status of your mission?"
"I have...somewhat located the holocron of the Sith king Adas, Agent Umbra," Shadow replied. "It is in the hands of someone named Lumiya."
"Lumiya..." Shadow's fellow agent scratched his chin in reminiscence. "Ah, yes, the Watcher's other agents created a file on her twenty years ago. One of Palpatine's dark side adepts, correct?"
Shadow nodded. "I believe she has taken on the mantle of Dark Lord of the Sith."
Agent Umbra gave a mirthless chuckle. "Well, someone has to do it, especially with Vorath gone."
Shadow felt no amusement from his fellow agent's humor. "She will have to be eliminated in order for the Plan to proceed."
Umbra waved an airily hand. "Yes, yes, of course. Have you located her then?"
"That's the problem," Shadow muttered. "I have found it extremely difficult- to the point of impossibility- to find Lumiya and whoever she has taken as a apprentice."
"How sad," the other agent replied, his voice tinged with smugness. "If you were a wannabe Sith Lord, where would you go to learn of the Sith?"
"Well, at the moment, I can not go to any planet in the Esstran sector, due to what happened to Korriban and the Horuset system." Shadow thought for a moment. "But...Lords Naga Sadow and Exar Kun did leave behind Massassi temples behind on one of the moons of Yavin."
Umbra nodded. "Yes, I remember you telling me as much. And there is also Prakith, Onderon, and Almas..."
Shadow's eyes glowed with a combination of realization and anticipation. "Indeed. Thank you, Agent Umbra."
The holographic figure tilted his head. "Coming from you, those words sound quite alien."
Shadow ignored him. "Tell the Watcher that my mission is still ongoing. Agent Shadow, signing off."
Once Umbra's hologram had vanished, Shadow began setting in hyperspace coordinates. He was certain that Lumiya and Jax would have already visited Yavin 4, for Sadow and Exar Kun were very successful Dark Lords, and their relics and writings left behind in their tombs would likely give them the most information on the old Sith Empire.
But Sadow and Kun were also connected by another Dark Lord, who had apprenticed himself to Sadow's spirit and later completed Exar Kun's fall to the dark side post-mortem.
Freedon Nadd.
After setting a course for the Japrael system, Shadow leaned back in his seat and waited for the hyperdrive to kick in, anticipating the upcoming end he would bring to the Sith.
* * *
Kyle Katarn awoke to the sound of the low hum of a lightsaber. He groggily lifted up his head to see a man clad in crimson armor not unlike those worn by the Coruscant Guard during the time of the Galactic Empire. In the man's hand was a double-bladed lightsaber, blazing with a scarlet light.
Standing behind the armored man was the same fearful Rodian Kyle had tried to calm down. The scissor-handed cyborg Nekuz stood nearby, glowering at Kyle, while the female Zabrak Veshira still laid unconscious.
The Jedi Master soon realized that he was tied to a chair, most likely one of the ones the three Snatchers were sitting in during their sabacc game. He also sensed the presence of someone standing behind him. He craned his head around to see another man, covered in armor that looked like a mix of armor worn by Mandalorians and Ubese mercenaries, which, along with his bare arms that ended with cybernetically implanted claws on his hands, gave him a frightening appearance.
Kyle then realized that these two men were the two Dark Jedi he had briefly spotted earlier. But something about their appearance made him think they were more than just mere Dark Jedi. After staring at Kyle through his visor, giving the Jedi Master a cold, foreboding feeling, the man behind him looked up to face the one clad in Coruscant Guard armor.
"You have done well, my apprentice. You may wait outside while I finish business here."
The other Dark Jedi nodded, deactivated his lightsaber, and strode out of the room. His master then walked around Kyle's seat and spoke to the cyborg Snatcher.
"If you don't mind, Nekuz, I will be taking the Jedi and the four troopers with me."
Nekuz snarled. "What about the ransom money we had planned?"
"I will pay you extra for your services to compensate for that. Do we have a deal?"
The cyborg reptilian tilted his head in a somewhat grudging nod. "Yes, very well."
"Good." The dark warrior tore off Kyle restraints and grabbed him by the collar, lifting him up with great strength. Through the man's slit visor, Kyle could feel the warrior's eyes coldly gaze into his own.
With a quiet chuckle, the Dark Jedi said, "It certainly has been a long time, hasn't it, Katarn?"
Kyle stared at him. "How do you know my name?"
"All will be clear in due time." With that, the warrior turned and headed for the door, dragging Kyle behind him along the way.
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