Middle Ring. A planet unknown to star charts.
753DBY.
15 years before the Mandalorian Purge.
Five years later.
Victor von Doom.
I don't usually like people who ruin my plans.
There have been too many of them in my life.
But for a change, this time the disruption of my plans worked in my favour. I no longer had to think about how to find the knowledge I needed to strengthen myself and search for my mother, and then take revenge on Mephisto. No longer did I need to act in the most hateful way, pretending to be an ordinary child in order to get my hands on the rich property of this body's father, no longer did I need to bother dealing with this body's bastard brothers...
Now he could deal with that later, and only to eliminate all traces of his origins in this universe.
Yes, in return, I am forced to obey a stronger madman who dares to call himself my teacher... But at least he is not as complete a nonentity as the representatives of this body's family, and, moreover, he is a source of knowledge. This somewhat reconciles me with reality.
Besides, I'll definitely kill him in the end in the most brutal way possible, after testing some new device that I haven't been able to invent yet, unfortunately.
After all, the one who calls himself Darth Warburos treats technology with utter contempt, like any sorcerer who has completely forgotten about science in favour of his magic. A terrible flaw that has surprised many of my enemies.
We were arguing about this just now... Once again.
"Droids and technology are just tools. It is unacceptable to pay so much attention to tools when you could be spending your time on more important things!
"I do what I think is necessary... And I don't answer to anyone!" — I was pretending to be angry rather than actually angry, once again blocking the Force with my energy field from the lightning bolts that struck me. " — Not even to you! I've been learning from you for five years, old man! I could have learned a lot of useful things during that time! But you're slow! Slow as a complete idiot!" — Fuelled by artificially induced anger, I finally deflected the Lightning Bolts back in the opposite direction, where they disintegrated without a trace from the wide swing of their creator.
In a mere five years, I learned much more from my first teachers, the monks, and was already strong enough to defeat Richards! Here... I must have been too hasty. This madman is just as insignificant as the rest.
"You are still too young! You have learned too much for a fifteen-year-old! Learn patience!" — exclaimed the bald old man from his throne, his bright orange eyes flashing, a trait shared by Adepts of the Dark Side when they experience strong emotions.
I am now certain that mine are flashing just like that.
The Dark Side... The Light Side... The locals divided the unified energy into two components, as if into black and white. I usually hate such silly divisions, but here I have to admit that the worldview of the local possessors of supernatural abilities has some basis. First and foremost, because of the emotional colouring of one side of the Force or the other and their corresponding influence on the Gifted, those who are able to interact with the Force.
However, I have not yet encountered the Light Side, so I cannot judge it accurately. Not yet.
"Stubborn fool," I said, expressing my opinion of my interlocutor's intellectual abilities with my whole demeanour.
"Ha-ha... Excellent, Dun Mo," he exclaimed unexpectedly calmly, exhaling sharply and heavily. "Yes, good... Very good.
"A very simple technique." — I dismissed him, seeing no point in flattery for such a trivial matter.
"Anyway, let's sum up the first stage of your training... In five years, you have achieved more than my previous student did in fifteen... And even now, despite your age, I can say with confidence that I have raised and trained a sufficiently intelligent successor, worthy of inheriting the Sith Order and the Rule of Two in the future!" — once again, the mad Sith Lord, who had finally lost his mind over his teaching, began to drive himself into the abyss of self-deception. Raised and trained, indeed! I studied all the available sources of knowledge solely with the help of my brilliant intellect and nothing else. Varborus himself hardly participated in my training, only persistently trying to teach me how to use lightsabers. However, I contemptuously ignored this weapon. Why swing a piece of looped plasma when you have a myriad of opportunities to work directly with the Force?
What utter nonsense!
The Rule of Two he mentioned... Very interesting. It originated from the fabrications of the founder of the current Sith Order, Darth Bane. He believed that if one teacher took on several students, they would unite and overthrow their stronger master. Then, for the sake of power, they would fight among themselves, and the winner would ultimately be weaker than the previous Sith Lord.
Therefore, there should be only one apprentice who could overthrow his teacher, but only if he was stronger.
A perfectly workable theory for the locals, who do not possess my genius. Without such a mind, the Sith cannot carry out their foolish plans in a single generation. And so they are forced to pass on their legacy, and this original method is quite suitable... Not bad. It also helps them hide from the Jedi, who have not forgotten their old enemies.
Not that I intend to stick to it, because I'm not a weakling who can be overthrown by a bunch of other weaklings... But it's useful to know what you're dealing with. Especially when your source of knowledge is so zealous about this rule.
"You distracted me not only to test my magnificent abilities." — I folded my arms across my chest, growing more accustomed to life without armour, which had become a second skin to me. Although, if possible, I need to get myself some suitable armour as soon as possible. Fortunately, the Sith use it often.
"Ha-ha-ha, even the Dark Lord Kaan himself would envy your pride!" — The old man smiled, which was a kind of reproach. After all, Kaan was a defeated rival of Darth Bane who wanted to increase the number of Sith and create his own Empire.
"I don't care about the envy of the dead. Especially those who lost so miserably." — I replied dismissively, seeing no point in hiding my attitude towards such things.
"Yeah, yeah... That's true. Show me your current mastery of the Force. My further words will be based on that." — Darth Varborus waved his hand imperiously.
Without answering, I began to concentrate on this Force technique. One of the most useful for all current Sith.
I needed to be myself. To be part of the unified structure of reality that the Jedi were accustomed to. I had to be visible in style, but not as an Adept of the Dark Side. I had to make sure that no one could recognise my true appearance, that I was perceived as a given.
The sign that I had succeeded was the feeling that I had been cut off from something important that had always been with me. It was as if I had lost my armour again and was completely defenceless. It was a terrible feeling, but nevertheless necessary. I had learned quite a lot about the Jedi, albeit from the Sith, and this knowledge made me realise that it would be almost impossible to negotiate with these monks.
They are too dogmatic and, for now, too strong for me.
I had come to believe that even Richards would be more amenable to further cooperation.
"Oh, excellent, excellent! You definitely know how to hide from others!" — Without realising how accurately he had hit the nail on the head, the old man exclaimed, rising from his throne. "Since you won't be causing me any trouble with the Jedi, you're coming with me to a planet to retrieve an interesting holocron, the knowledge of which should help the Grand Plan.
"You've heard about holocrons four times in a row, but every time they turned out to be nothing but empty shells or empty boasts. And that's just in the last year." — I sneered contemptuously, ceasing to use the Force.
"No, no! This time I'm sure!" — The Sith, maddened by old age, tugged at his beard and came down to me. "The information is reliable. The informant is also... It's a pity that he will have to be eliminated afterwards. But all in the name of secrecy... And that is why I warn you, apprentice, be careful! Don't let those around you know who you really are!"
"I understood the difference in power between the Sith and the Jedi from the very beginning!" — I growled discontentedly and angrily when I was once again taken for a fool.
"Very good... Very good, yes... If you manage to help me in my search, I will give you full access to the Sith Archives." — The old man raised his index finger, having already forgotten his own words from long ago that every apprentice would be given access to this place.
But his senility only played into my hands, so I pretended to be ready for action. Besides, I really needed the Archives. There I would find real knowledge, not the pitiful scraps I had been forced to learn for five years! Soon we found ourselves on a unique Sith spaceship.
My ships could also travel between stars, but in this galaxy, such vessels had long been mass-produced, and so the locals had thousands of years of experience with them, which allowed them to perfect them to their current technical ideal. But... Nothing radically new had been developed for thousands of years, so the intelligent beings were forced to modernise what already existed, although they achieved some success in this.
However, the design of the one the Sith flew in was not bad... Even if it didn't have any green colour.
And the Stygian-based absolute cloaking device intrigued me...
"You are already skilled enough to pilot the ship," Varborus offered a small compliment. "Take him to Boz Piti, that is where we will find what we need. And yes... Call me only when we arrive, or if some unlucky intelligent being attacks our ship."
Watching the old man retreat to his quarters, I snorted contemptuously and returned to the controls.
For now, I would have to obey. In the future, I would give him what he deserved, but for now, I would have to remember my early student years and be a boy on errands.
Middle Ring. Boz Piti.
Two days later.
I naturally spent the time it took for the ship to travel between planets through hyperspace wisely.
Namely, I made further plans based on the knowledge and opportunities I had gained over the past five years.
First, of course, I had to gain as much knowledge as possible from what Darth Bane's followers had accumulated. Then, while developing and improving them, I had to prepare a material base for myself. The backwater principality where my current body was born would do just fine for that.
I will establish a system similar to that of Latveria and begin to train my own army. I will undoubtedly become the most powerful of all the Sith, but there are tens of thousands of Jedi, and defeating them all at once... It would be like all the superheroes of Earth coming against me — a possible but unlikely victory. Even so, some would still survive and wage a guerrilla war against me. Such heroes are always as resilient as cockroaches.
Next, based on the situation, I would gain control of the territories of the Galactic Republic by any means necessary. Whether by force or cunning, with such resources I could organise a full-scale search for my reborn mother. I would search every corner of this galaxy, but I would find her.
When she is found, she will take her place beside my throne, as she should... And then I will return to my universe and, with my newly acquired powers, triumphantly destroy Mephisto, Richards, and show everyone the newly acquired power of Duma!
...Yes. I really, really like that plan! What else could be expected from my genius?
"You've become even more arrogant over the years, apprentice." — muttered the Sith, interrupting my dreams, which I will definitely make a reality.
"And you're even more insane and old." — I said contemptuously, feeling out of place due to the active Force Hide.
"Ho-ho. It is a natural process for living beings, even those with unprecedented power. And anyone who tries to circumvent it is a fool. Darth Bane could not resist the temptation, and that is why he perished." — snorted Lord Sith, known in the world as the researcher Ragnar Dakos.
My new identity became... the errand boy of this very researcher, Victor. And the old man clearly knew how to annoy me the most! But now... Now I know how to transform my emotions into power... And into the Force. And that's why it's worth accepting these taunts and cultivating even more power within myself. As much as possible!
"A nasty little planet. But this is where we can hide what we need." — The old man looked around at the expanse of one of the galaxy's many planets, known among intelligent beings as a graveyard planet.
"There are a lot of dead people here." — I muttered as I descended towards the numerous ruins that littered the entire surface below us.
The Force helped me sense the energy of the Dark Side that permeated the area, reinforced by the enormous number of lives lost.
"Of course! In their time, intelligent droids from the army of a certain Khalif from the neighbouring desert and still inhabited Morna ran riot here." — snorted Lord Sith, catching up with me and looking back at the remains of huge creatures everywhere. "The Hattas really don't like it when someone goes against their will, even if you're a twenty-metre-tall, six-armed giant. Remember that." — said Varborus with a hint of admonishment.
Yes... Hutts. Long-lived, huge, lazy creatures with crime in their blood. Potential allies in controlling the criminal world. I understand perfectly well that cleansing this part of society will take much longer than it did for little Latveria. Many decades of work, which I see no point in starting now. When the entire galaxy is under my control... Then we can deal with this.
"Where is your informant?" I asked, using my Force to push the giant's rib out of the way. It is worth noting that Sila's potential in telekinesis is limitless. And my brilliant mind will undoubtedly unlock it... But later.
Right now, I am weak and forced to obey the whims of a future corpse... Which, over time, became easier for my pride to accept. What's the point of being angry at someone I will undoubtedly take revenge on for all the humiliation? It's not the damned Richards with his incredible luck, thanks to which he can get out of even the most cunning traps and dangerous situations.
"We agreed to meet him in those ruins. He'll also work as our guide... Fool, thinking he can get a bunch of credits from a stupid explorer for a pathetic trinket. How disappointed he'll be!" — The Sith chuckled nastily and clapped his hands.
"Idiot." I said contemptuously to the informant. Even if he was physically incapable of understanding the true nature of the client, he should have been able to sense his obvious madness. But no! He gave in to greed!
A fool indeed.
"Oh, Mr. Dakos!" — exclaimed the blue-skinned Twi'lek, who had been silently staring at his datapad, a device similar to a computer and a tablet. " — Good to see you!
"And I'm glad to see you, Zilva." — smiled the Sith, playing the role of an old explorer quite well for a madman. "Let's skip the small talk and get down to what you found for me!
"Oh yes, yes, come this way! I took the liberty of looking around a little, searching for something that might interest my dear client. In every sense of the word, heh heh." — The eccentric smiled, heading straight into a small corridor, which immediately suggested that it had not been built by extinct giants.
"You really paid that nobody?" — I raised my eyebrows, speaking only with my lips.
"Yes. He is well known in this field, and I did get something from him... Even before you began your apprenticeship." — The self-proclaimed teacher replied in the same manner. "It's a shame he decided to betray you in the end..."
I just snorted contemptuously in response. It's really hard to find people who are loyal to you; I can count the ones I have on one hand.
"Wh-what do you mean, Zilva?" — Lord Sith stared at the informant, doing a good job of portraying panic, surprise, and terrible disappointment on his face.
"Come now, Mr. Dakos. You understand the situation perfectly well." "I've been working with you for a long time, and I've realised one thing — you have plenty of credits. Now we'll fly to your home, get our money, and go our separate ways..."
"I saw your face. You think I'm going to believe you're going to let me go after all this... Apprentice, what are you doing?!" — he interrupted when I used telekinesis to tear off part of the ceiling above the Twi'lek, completely pinning him down.
"End this charade. I'm tired of it." — I replied with haughty contempt, catching the blaster charge with the Force — a technique that allows one to block both ordinary energy and mystical energy.
"You're impatient, apprentice." — the Old Man sighed, stretching out his arms and releasing Force Lightning at the remaining mercenaries, who were still reeling from the shock of their employer's sudden demise.
"A-a-a-a!" — a strangely synchronised cry rang out from the exotics and humans.
As soon as I learned this technique, which I now directed at the selkat who had shot me, a representative of some water race, I immediately wanted to use it on Richards! Unlike ordinary lightning bolts, mystical ones are much, much more painful. How long could the Rubber Man withstand such a powerful discharge?
"I see no point in dragging out traitors. They must be mercilessly exterminated," I replied, pulling out the exotic's datapad. "And judging by the looks of it..." It wasn't particularly difficult for me to hack the device, because over the past five years, contrary to the old man's wishes, I had studied the local technology. "He didn't lie to you.
The technique of the mechu-deru helped me greatly in this... It is a technique with unprecedented potential! It allowed me to interact directly with technology using the Force... Full-fledged technokinesis and technopathy at the same time! Combined with my genius intellect, I could create truly masterful creations!
It's a pity that knowledge of it is scattered and incomplete. The Sith were often like my self-proclaimed teacher — they neglected technology. Even the most famous of the Sith who used this technique, Beliya Darzu, limited herself to primitive techno-beasts... What a disgrace. As soon as I gain independence, I will have to search for a complete mech-deru.
"Of course. To lure me here, he provided very clear holographic images of his findings." — He said, dissatisfied with such distrust of his intelligence. After that, we moved on to one of the four passages leading from the circular room.
The winding path was accompanied by otherworldly whispers, like something out of a cheap horror film. Why did I have no trouble overcoming such a ridiculous obstacle, finding myself together with a mad old man in a rectangular room... A room that looked very different from the rest of the planet, which was covered in greenery.
"The Dark Side is strong here..." — the Sith whispered with considerable excitement and anticipation, while I noticed that the atmosphere here was indeed colder, darker. More deserted.
As much as I wanted to believe that the Force was a single, indivisible energy, and that the locals were idiots, but... Then why did the same energy have such a different effect on the surrounding world? Just because it was used for supposedly evil deeds? Then what are the boundaries between good and evil in the Force? Are they universally accepted? That's complete and utter nonsense! The local Force is a different form of magical energy, but it is not a living being... Therefore, the division into different sides is justified.
Walking across the sand, I noticed that this was the only place in the ruins where absolutely nothing living grew. Not even a tiny green sprout in the cracks.
We approached a statue of some indistinct figure in a cloak, whose outline had long been erased by the merciless sands of time...
"Oh, yes, yes, yes..." — The old man touched the statue's holocron with trembling hands.
"Hmm..." — I put my fingers to my chin and began to examine the pyramid-shaped artefact decorated with gold.
It gave off a chill and a sense of darkness... But at the same time, a sense of desire and anticipation. It definitely possessed some form of intelligence.
"Can you feel the power contained within it?!" — The old man turned his head sharply towards me, his irises glowing yellow and red.
"Oh yes, undoubtedly. And it must reveal itself to me!" — I folded my arms across my chest, glancing meaningfully at the holocron. It began to glow even brighter, sensing a suitable teacher.
"Ha-ha-ha! You make no attempt to hide your greed, apprentice! Compared to you, your predecessor seems like a complete idiot! He expressed his loyalty to me, assured me of his allegiance until the very end... Ha-ha-ha-ha! And that despite the fact that I was always ready to die for the Order!" — Darth Varborus laughed, only managing to keep the holocron from falling out of his hand thanks to telekinesis.
"And you will die." — I promised directly, never hiding my plans for my self-proclaimed teacher. " — I will defeat you in a fair and direct battle! That is my word.
"Ha ha, how straightforward, how straightforward... But that's what makes it all the more enjoyable. After all, you follow the Rule of Two without any ulterior motives!" — he laughed again, proving that insanity spares even powerful masters of mystical matters with impressive abilities.
"Either way. We got what we wanted, old man...
"This time you're right, my ungrateful apprentice. We really should leave this place! I wouldn't be surprised if that fool intended not only to rob a simple, hee-hee-hee, researcher, but also to sell the holocron to the Jedi, who would cut off his limbs for possession of such an artefact, warriors of the Light, hee-hee-hee, ha-ha-ha!
"Pathetic hypocritical worms." — I gave my assessment of these monks, still flattering them greatly.
"Well, at least we agree on something, apprentice!" — the old man laughed again, joining me in bringing the ceiling down on the bodies of the mercenaries lying in the same positions.
The Jedi must not find out about our visit. Sooner or later, they will be destroyed or subjugated by me, but until then, there is no need to complicate our lives. No one dares to hunt Doctor Doom!
The same planet.
A few days later.
Two men arrived on the planet.
In the Outer Ring, they would have been mistaken for paupers, had it not been for the quality of their light robes or the distinctive cylinders on their belts. Every beggar in the galaxy knew them and tried to stay as far away from them as possible.
The simple-minded didn't care who they were, whether they were Jedi from the capital planet of the Republic or one of the legendary Sith. To them, they were all the same, beings that should not be encountered under any circumstances.
At least that was what Master Jedi Voonas Kapilar of the Mon Calamari race thought.
"Master, do you sense something?" — asked the thirteen-year-old girl, an incredibly rare representative of the Zeltron Jedi.
They were rarely accepted into the Order, as the hedonistic traits of their race prevented them from becoming true, flawless Jedi, untouched by base passions... which the Zeltrons were famous for throughout the galaxy.
Pinkish skin, scarlet hair, orange eyes... And incredibly attractive appearance. This is a temptation for young Padawans, especially males. That is why first the teachers in the temple, and then the Jedi Master himself, had to severely restrict her social circle.
"Exactly, Padawan. Very weak... But the Dark Side was here." — the Jedi remarked to his Padawan, listening to his own feelings.
His senses had always been sharp, which is why he had joined the ranks of the Dark Hunters, a special unit of the Order that sought out the remnants of the Sith legacy, which had to be destroyed or hidden in the farthest corners of the Temple.
"There were Sith here?!" the girl exclaimed, instantly lighting up with excitement, even stamping her feet and inadvertently touching the hilt of her lightsaber.
"Oh... What kind of fad is this..." — the mon-calamari shook his dome-shaped head and sighed heavily. How did his apprentice fall for this nonsense?
The High Council wanted as many Jedi as possible to be interested in finding the cursed legacy of their destroyed enemies, and they went a little too far. Now more than half of the younglings, Padawans, and young knights want to find a Sith, possibly even the last one, and, of course, defeat him in a great battle!
What to do with him next varies from simple barbaric murder to capture and conversion to the Light Side of the Force.
"So there are no Sith..." — sighed the young girl, looking extremely disappointed.
"If it's not here, it's gone. We'll look for traces of the visitors to this planet... But we're unlikely to find anything worthwhile. There are practically no traces." — Voonaas sighed resignedly once again. "However, that's no reason to despair. Follow me, Himeko..."
***
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