ABANDONED
He had lost everything. His home laid in ruins, fire crackling all around it. All those whom he had loved were dead, slain by ruthless, bloodthirsty pirates. There was nothing left for him now.
He was abandoned.
As he sat there, on his knees, mournfully sobbing for those whom he had lost, a figure appeared out of the darkness, cautiously walking towards him. He had failed to notice the newcomer until they gently touched him on his shoulder. Startled, he turned around to face his savior.
It was an alien face that greeted him, one he had not seen before. It wasn't like the ones he saw during the attack- sneering, threatening, and all-around frightening. No, this one was calm, though rather big, protruding from a large hump on the figure's back. A pair of black eyes stared at him with a mix of peace and concern.
"Are you all right, little one?" it asked in a booming voice.
He shook his head.
"Can you tell me what happened here?" it asked.
He told the stranger. He told it about the marauders that had attacked, killed, and looted. He told it about the burning of his home and the deaths of his parents and sibling. He told it everything.
Once he was done, the alien patted the boy on the head. "Do not worry," it said. "You are safe, now. The pirates have been chased off and won't be coming back. Do you have any where else to go?"
He shook his head again, sobbing at the same time.
The alien tilted its head, a feat which the boy would have thought impossible. "Are there any orphanages or other such havens nearby?"
Once again, he responded with a negative.
"Well, I know of one," the alien said, picking the boy up with its large arms. "It is far away from here, but I can take you to it. Have you heard of the Jedi Temple?"
He shook his head.
"Well, I can think of no better place for you than there. It is a safe haven for those strong in the Force, and I can certainly sense it in you. Would you like to go there? You will be among your own kind."
The boy mulled over it before nodding.
The aliens two mouths- one on each side of its unusual head- curved into a smile. "In that case, welcome to the Jedi Order. Before we go, can you tell me your name?"
The boy nodded. "Deren," he said. "Deren Saran."
-Jedi Temple-
"This is an intriguing boy you've found, Master Vadon," said Jedi Master Kavar said as he and his Ithorian comrade watched the young boy train amongst his peers. "Where did you find him?"
"Somewhere in the Outer Rim," Aamaw Vadon said. "On a planet called Belderone. His home had been attacked by pirates."
"Hmm," Kavar said. "Belderone is not far from Hutt Space. Those dastardly slugs probably had business there."
"In either way, the others and I chased them off." Vadon continued to watch the boy with curiosity before saying, "You don't think he'll... develop a hunger for revenge, do you?"
"It all depends on how you raise him, Master Vadon," Kavar said as he turned to leave. "By trial and error."
-Taloraan, seventeen years later-
Pirate ships dominated the cloudscape of Taloraan. A Lethisk-class armed freighter led squadrons of S-100 Stinger-class starfighters around tibanna gas stations that floated within the gas giant. Standing on a platform protruding from Taloraan's capital station, Deren Saran watched the ships via a pair of macrobinoculars.
Be mindful of your feelings, Deren, his master had told before the outset of their mission. Disregard what they did to your home; that does not make them deserving of death.
But Deren could not make the rage that boiled within him subside. The terrors he had seen all those many years ago were still fresh in his mind: his burning home, the charred corpses, the taunting laughter... he had to rid himself of his grief.
Climbing into the S-250 starfighter that the Republic had lend him and Master Vadon for the rescue mission of Senator Dollan, Deren took off towards the armed freighter, shooting down the Stringers that came after him. He spun his fighter this way and that, executing wild maneuvers that soon gave him a clear shot of the freighter.
Once he was in range, he leaped from his fighter and landed on top of the ship. Igniting his lightsaber blade, he began carving an entrance, prompting cannons on the side to fire at him. He quickly cut them away before kicking down the slab of metal he had carved out. Inside the ship, a band of Niktos, Weequays, and Klatooinians waited for him inside, bearing vibro-axes and blaster rifles. They sneered at him, muttering curses and jeering taunts.
He simply smiled.
-Jedi Temple-
"Deren Saran, your actions on Taloraan were simply intolerable," Jedi Master Vrook Lamar said with severe disapproval.
Standing before the twelve members of the Jedi High Temple alongside his master, Deren was surprised to feel no remorse for his actions. In his mind, the pirates he had slain on Teloraan deserved the fate he had brought upon them, for what they had done to his family. The Council, of course, did not agree.
"Do you have any parting words before we expel you from the Order?" Master Atris said bitterly.
"Let us not be hasty," Master Zez-Kai Ell said, leaning forward in his seat. "We all make mistakes in our lives as apprentices, murder often being amongst them." To Deren, he said, "Do you feel any remorse for your actions, young one?"
Deren shook his head.
All those present stared at him; some appalled, others angered. The momentary silence that followed was soon broken by the oldest of the council, Vandar Tokare.
"Do you care to explain why you do not feel remorse, Padawan Saran?" the wizened alien said.
"They deserved it," Deren said. "They killed my family mercilessly when I was young. It was only fitting that I gave them the same fate."
"You feel attachment towards your lost love ones," Master Kavar said. "You are aware that the Jedi Code forbids attachment, are you not?"
"Yes, but I no longer care what the Jedi Code allows and doesn't. I am at peace with myself for avenging my family."
"And yet, does this massacre bring your family back?" Master Lamar said. "Has your home on Belderone been repaired? Has eternal peace been brought to the galaxy?"
When Deren did not respond, Lamar grunted. "Then it is clear that there is no place for you here within the Jedi Order. Unless, of course, Master Vadon thinks he would be able to curb this anger of yours and whip you back into shape."
All eyes turned to the Ithorian Jedi, who simply hung his large head in shame.
"Then it is decided," Master Atris said. "Deren Saran, you are hereby expelled from the Jedi Order."
"I don't need to be," Deren said bitterly. "You've already abandoned me."
With that, he turned on his heels and strode out of the High Council's chamber.
-The Leviathan; two years later-
"You have been abandoned by your family through death, and the Jedi through exile."
The crimson blade shimmered as it touched each of the man's shoulders shoulders, purposely burning into them. The tall being who stood before him spoke with a cold and sinister voice, amplified by the metal collar that concealed the lower half of his face.
"The dark side has since become your ally. It is the only that has not abandoned you; that has stayed with you from the day you were born."
The lightsaber then hissed shut as the Dark Lord of the Sith finished off the informal "ceremony."
"You are to be my Shadow Hand and sole apprentice. You shall obey my every command and carry out my every task."
The man who was once known as Deren Saran looked up at his new master, eyes which were once dark brown glowing like a fire.
"Arise... Darth Bandon."
No comments:
Post a Comment