THE PATH OF REVAN
Part III: Satele
3,681 years before the Battle of Yavin
She knew they were talking about her. She could hear her name being whispered behind the closed doors of the Supreme Chancellor’s private office.
The events of the past several hours were still on repeat in her mind. The hole in her heart that had been torn open by the death of her teacher had not yet resealed itself. Whenever she closed her eyes, she could still see flashes of red, blue, and green light as Master Kao Cen Darach’s last words to her echoed in her mind.
“Go, Satele. You must walk a different path.”
Her eyes snapped open; her vision was blurry due to the tears threatening to escape. There is no emotion, there is peace, she reminded herself of the Jedi Code’s tenets, yet this did nothing to dry her already-watery eyes.
She detected movement in her peripheral vision and she glanced at the only other living being in the anteroom with her, shifting in his cross-armed stance. The Republic trooper had escaped from Korriban with her and had helped warn the Republic of the Sith Empire’s return. It was only just recently, at the initial meeting with the Chancellor, that Satele had been able to put a name to the soldier’s dark, rugged face: Corporal Malcom. It had been thanks to his intervention with a missile launcher that Satele had managed to get onto the smuggler Nico Okarr’s ship while her master fended off against the two Sith Lords long enough for them all to escape.
A chill ran over her body as the moment replayed itself once more in her head. Until then, she had only heard stories of the Sith, never seen one in person; after all, they had been thought extinct for the past three hundred years. And yet, in the matter of moments, she had come face to face with two of them, both equal in their embodiment of the dark side. She had never felt so cold before.
At that moment, the doors to the Chancellor’s office opened and she lifted her head up to see an old Cathar in the robes of a Jedi Master standing in the entryway.
“Satele,” the feline Jedi said softly. “We would like to see you.”
Wordlessly, Satele stepped forward. Corporal Malcom moved to follow her but was stalled by a gentle raise of Master Ram-Parr’s hand.
“Your presence is not yet required, Corporal. Please continue to wait out here.”
Malcom nodded dutifully yet Satele could sense a non-minuscule amount of impatience radiate off of him. The door closed as soon as she was through and she was cut off from him.
Gathered in the private office of Supreme Chancellor Vin Zondarus were the Chancellor’s closest advisers as well as half of the Jedi Council. Among them, she recognized Grand Master Zym, staring contemplatively out the window; Chief Librarian Irma Yorr, regarding Satele with a careful eye; Master Belth Allusis, speaking quietly with the Minister of Defense; Master Shol Bestros, his head bowed in deep thought; and Master Nikil Nobil, coiled up in a sage-like stance. Upon noticing Satele’s arrival, Master Zym turned away from the window and regarded her with goggle-covered eyes.
“Padawan Shan,” the Kel Dor said quietly. “You seem troubled.”
Satele swallowed, calling on all her willpower to keep her cool. “With all due respect, Master, I believe the entire galaxy is troubled at this point.”
“Watch your manners, Padawan,” snapped Master Yorr.
Zym raised a calming hand. “Let her speak her mind, Master Yorr. She has every right to, after what she has been through.”
The old Tholothian woman’s dark-toned face twisted into a sneer. “She is every bit as rebellious as her mother.”
Ignoring the remark, Zym continued speaking to Satele. “What I meant was, you seem troubled on a more… personal level.”
Satele frowned as she lowered her head. She knew there was no point in trying to hide her thoughts from six of the most powerful Jedi in the Order. “I am… still trying to process the loss of my master. He was like a father to me.”
“Kao was one of the best,” said Master Allusis. “I can think of few who have been respected more than him.”
“Indeed,” said Master Bestros, keeping his chin pressed against his chest. “He was the one who brought me into the Order.”
“Alas, we should not grieve,” said Master Nobil. “He is one with the Force now. Besides, it is because of his sacrifice that you are here standing before us.”
Satele nodded, though still she could not stop the tears from welling up in her eyes. This did not go unnoticed by Master Yorr, who let out a dismissive snort.
“She is already allowing her emotions get the best of her. She will be a pawn of the Sith’s in no time.”
“I won’t fall to the dark side,” Satele protested sharply. She immediately regretted her hasty response as Irma Yorr narrowed her violet eyes at her.
“Won’t you? It was so easy for your ancestors. Both Revan and Bastila Shan succumbed to the temptations of the dark side at one point.”
“And they both came back from it,” said Master Allusis. “In fact, it was Revan himself who brought Bastila back to the light.”
Yorr’s cranial tendrils twitched against her scalp. “In any case, I would rather not see history repeat itself, especially now of all times.”
“I will agree with you on that,” said Zym. “Satele, you are aware of your heritage, are you not?”
“Yes, Master,” Satele said quietly.
“You are descended from many great Jedi. But you are also descended from one of the most greatest Sith Lords that the galaxy has ever faced. Even three centuries on, there are planets still recovering from the horrors that Darth Revan had wreaked upon them.”
“We have no doubt that the Sith will do all that they can to bring you to their side,” said Master Ram-Parr. “They will want to transform you into another Darth Revan.”
“You must stand strong,” Master Bestros said firmly. “Resist all temptations of the dark side. Only then will we stand a chance against the Sith.”
Master Yorr shook her head. “I still say we should exile her, as we did her mother. It will be for her own safety.”
“We will not repeat that mistake,” Zym protested. “Shunning her will only push her closer to the Sith’s grasps. That was the mistake made with Revan. With Exar Kun. So long as I am Grand Master, I will not see that mistake repeated here.”
This drew a soft chuckle from Chancellor Zondarus, who stood by with his long fingers interlaced. “Spoken like a true political candidate,” the Anx head of state remarked.
Master Allusis kept his gaze focused on Satele, his dark eyes boring into her gray ones. “Padawan Shan, can we trust you to stay true to the light?”
“Of course, Master,” Satele replied, almost automatically. She could only hope that none of them heard the small hint of doubt in her words.
“Are you certain?” Allusis pressed.
“I won’t fail you, Masters,” Satele said firmly. “I’m not afraid.”
Master Yorr did not censor herself from letting out another derisive snort. “You will be,” she muttered. “They always are.”
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