"By the Force! What the Hutts?!" Revan exclaimed for what felt like the tenth time, tossing the datapad onto the table. The sharp noise drew the attention of two younglings who were concentrating on something at one of the terminals.
Mentally scolding himself for the outburst, and thanking the Force that Luminara had left on her own business as soon as she brought him here, he reluctantly picked up the tablet again. It contained the loaded history of the Order.
His indignation was boundless. What was preserved in the archives as the "History of the Jedi Order" was a pitiful six pages of dry facts and names, among which, for some reason, no mention of any Dark Sider could be found. It was as if the only adherents of the Dark Side were the Sith, and even they had been vanquished centuries ago, leaving nothing to worry about. Even his own name was mentioned only once, as a knight who had atoned for his sins—but what those sins were remained unstated.
This state of affairs was profoundly unacceptable to Revan.
He returned to one of the Temple Archive terminals and connected directly, digging deeper and deeper into the repository of ancient knowledge. After sifting through hundreds of documents and scattered testimonies, Revan began to understand the root of the problem.
It turned out that a certain Jedi Master, Restelly Quist, after the, in her opinion, final destruction of the Sith, decided to ensure that all memory of the dark order vanished. Not only did they begin a hunt for Dark Side artifacts and acolytes, but they also tried to "protect young Padawans from the Darkness" by simply removing most of the information about the Sith and their ilk from general access. Yet, how the younger generation was supposed to be warned about the dangers of the Dark Side without concrete historical examples, was never addressed.
"The height of idiocy," Revan whispered, opening the next file.
With enough willpower and a considerable amount of persistence, information about Dark Side adherents, numerous schisms within the Order, and several major conflicts could be found. But the ancient former Sith doubted many younglings would have the patience for such research, not to mention that it wasn't encouraged.
The ancient one mentally paid tribute to Qui-Gon, who, evidently, had spent many weeks poring over the archives to find information about him.
Yielding to his own curiosity, Revan launched a search for all mentions of his own name to see how historians portrayed him. The result was immediate. The archives contained information, approved by the High Council, about the fallen Jedi.
With every line he read, the former Jedi grew grimmer, his hand twitching more often, poised to either rub his eyes or slap his forehead in an attempt to dispel the delusion. He couldn't say there wasn't a single word of truth, yet the entire history was illuminated from such an angle that even Revan himself began to feel something akin to shame and self-disgust.
It claimed he was obsessed with a thirst for power and glory, willingly went to fight the Mandalorians in pursuit of fame, poisoned the unformed minds of young knights and Padawans with his false judgments, and led them astray. Then, he consciously turned to the Dark Side and brought about the downfall of all his followers.
The author of this historical sketch attributed excessive cruelty, a propensity for genocide, and many other unsavory traits to Revan. However, upon reaching the name of the creator of this archive section, the former Sith merely smirked.
"Should've guessed," he muttered. "Atris."
His relationship with that woman had soured from the start. A true recluse, she hid in the Archives from the entire galaxy, too afraid to join the fallen one and his followers in war. Because of this, she used every means to blacken his name. And the way she described the final battle at Malachor V...
It implied Revan and Meetra were war criminals, fully aware of all the consequences of using experimental weapons of mass destruction. In reality, no one anticipated the effect would be so monumental. Yes, Revan knowingly put his forces at risk, luring the enemy into the strike zone, but it was assumed Meetra would manage to pull the fleet back. It didn't happen. The Mandalorians advanced faster than planned, and Meetra made the decision to activate the mass shadow generator earlier.
Republic forces won the battle but lost about 40% of their troops. Atris, however, wrote about 70% of the fleet's fighters being sent to certain death. It never occurred to anyone that no commander would take such a risk. Especially considering he himself participated in that battle, personally leading the assault on the enemy flagship.
Revan went to the Unknown Regions based on a tip he received from the Mandalore, who, before dying, admitted he was pushed into the war with the Republic by the Sith. And Meetra returned to the Order... only to be exiled.
Oh, how Atris pontificated at the trial, while Meetra listened to all her accusations with a slight smile. Having suffered in that battle like no one else, Surik didn't care about the Council's decision. She wanted to fly as far away from the Order, from the Force itself, as possible. She wanted to forget the pain and suffering that overwhelmed her the moment thousands of sentient beings simultaneously perished. Revan managed to "close himself off" then; she did not.
Atris twisted the truth however she pleased, taking advantage of the accused's silent consent. Revan had already been declared fallen to the Dark Side, despite the fact that the accusers hadn't even spoken to him yet.
Next came the descriptions of the atrocities committed by Revan's Imperial army during the war with the Republic. And for half of them, the ancient one could not be blamed! He would never have acted so foolishly! His goal was the conquest of the Republic and the creation of an Empire in its place.
During attacks on planets, only military targets and enemy troops were destroyed. All infrastructure and residential sectors were left untouched. The Empire needed to get on its feet quickly, and there were simply no resources for restoring destroyed cities and factories. Malak, however, lacked such foresight… And his troops could indeed be blamed for almost all the described crimes. After all, it was he who gave the order to destroy Taris!
But who cares about the details? Why recall a defeated Dark Lord when there's a returned-to-the-light, very much alive one, upon whom one can empty a rather substantial bucket of sludge?
"And she declared herself the last of the Jedi?" Revan thought, continuing to examine the records. "The one who, in her entire life, never trained a single student! And she decided to lead the Order?"
He remembered meeting Atris after the victory over Malak when he tried to find information about Meetra in the Archives. Back then, it ended in mutual insults. And much later, he learned from Surik that the self-proclaimed last Jedi was driven mad by Sith holocrons and turned to the Dark Side. Meetra had to kill her, which Revan would not dare to reproach his comrade-in-arms for.
"And where were the other Masters? Why was the Sith Triumvirate allowed to hold the galaxy in fear for so long? There were only three of them!" Revan inwardly fumed.
All that was needed was to unite, securing the Republic's support. But no, they preferred to flee and hide again.
Several hours passed like this. Revan sifted through the archival records, trying to understand what had happened to the Order. Finally, he tiredly pushed back from the terminal.
"It's all so simple," he exhaled. "I should have guessed right away. Nothing ever changes."
Time and again, conflicts between Force-sensitives flared up in the galaxy. And time and again, the Order's most experienced Masters died in them. Only the weak-willed cowards survived, those who hid in remote corners of the galaxy so that, when all subsided, they could return triumphantly, waving the banner of Light and calling for the Order's revival.
What could they teach, if they themselves were weak and untrained? The Order of protectors of peace and justice in the galaxy had turned into an Order of archivists and spineless diplomats, incapable of even debating experienced politicians. The Jedi had willingly lowered themselves to the level of the Senate's lapdogs... penned in a kennel and put on a chain.
"And this Ruusan Reformation?!" Revan hid his face in his hands. "How could they agree to such a thing?"
From the perspective of a former Jedi and military commander, such a move was the height of foolishness. The Order had effectively stripped itself of all its military might and ceased to represent any significant force in the galaxy. Yes, people listened to the Jedi, but mostly out of respect. They were feared, but only by those who lacked common sense. It was no surprise that so many knights died at the hands of mercenaries! Criminal cartels had nothing to fear from retaliation by the adherents of the Light, because there was simply no means to strike back.
"And everyone's okay with this?! Are they seriously fine with this state of affairs?!"
Anger and indignation rose in waves in his soul, and it took great effort for Revan to curb the flow. He couldn't understand how such a powerful organization could become so weak? How could they willingly shackle themselves? Why did no one stop to think about where the Order was headed?
"Knight, are you alright?" a child's voice sounded next to the ancient one.
Revan turned his head and saw the same little Zabrak girl he'd met in one of the training rooms. The girl was looking at him with unconcealed worry, genuinely concerned about the Jedi's state.
"I'm fine, Youngling," Revan smiled kindly. "You're Rina, right?"
"Yes, Master."
"I'm not your teacher, and you don't have to call me Master."
"But the Order's traditions require younglings to address all members of the Order respectfully."
"Belaya would be thrilled," Revan chuckled, remembering the most zealous proponent of tradition in the enclave on Dantooine.
"Who?" the girl didn't understand.
"An old acquaintance of mine," the former Jedi dismissed.
The girl nodded thoughtfully.
"Master, is something bothering you?" she suddenly asked.
"What makes you say that?"
"You look gloomy," the Zabrak stated. "Oh, you're reading about the Ruusan Reformation! We just learned about it today."
"Is that so?" the former Jedi smiled. "Will you enlighten me?"
Rina straightened up, as if she'd been called to present a report in class, and briefly recounted the events at Ruusan.
"The Order was reorganized then, and the Jedi, along with the Republic, renounced an independent army, handing over the care of citizen safety to the Judicial Corps," the girl finished, frowning disapprovingly.
"I see you don't like this history?" the ancient one noted.
"The Masters say a Jedi shouldn't strive for personal power, but should care for the greater good. So the Order doesn't need an army," the girl mumbled. "But I think we should be ready to fight evil with more than just wisdom!"
"And I agree with you," Revan chuckled.
"But the Masters say that the desire for power leads to the Dark Side!"
"And does having a brain also lead to it?" the former Sith rolled his eyes.
"What?" the Zabrak didn't understand.
"Don't mind me," Revan smiled warmly. "I'm just noting some illogic in the Order's policies, that's all."
"Oh," Rina looked embarrassed.
"Don't worry, Youngling, your thoughts aren't forbidden. And thinking for yourself is always useful. The thought itself carries no harm, if you have the wisdom to understand its meaning."
"And if I don't?"
"That's what teachers are for. To guide the new generation."
"And can teachers be wrong?"
"Everyone can be wrong," the former Jedi shrugged. "But it's still worth listening to their opinions."
"And what about the Dark Side?"
Revan paused for a few seconds, contemplating the answer. The Zabrak waited patiently. She had never thought she could ask so frankly about it before.
"The Darkness holds many temptations and dangers, but you shouldn't fear it. Fear, after all, is perhaps the main thing that pushes the Force-sensitive to the Dark Side. You cannot succumb to it. And the best remedy for fear is knowledge. We are always afraid of what we don't know and don't understand."
"Does that mean we should study the Dark Side?" Rina asked cautiously. A dangerous question within the walls of the Jedi Temple.
"It's important to remember that studying the Dark Side and walking its path are two different things."
The girl pondered the Ancient one's words.
"Study your enemy," she finally declared.
"To some extent," Revan agreed.
The Zabrak frowned.
"This requires a lot of thought," the girl concluded.
The former Jedi merely smiled, appreciating the child's attempt to grasp such global concepts. But he was sure that the sooner the youngling considered the balance of Light and Darkness, the easier it would be for her to resist temptations. It was a great shame that the Council hadn't realized this over the past millennia.
Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed two individuals entering the archives. Korun, whom Revan had met earlier, was accompanied by a man of the Kel Dor race. The former Sith immediately recognized them, as he had been looking at their images on the holoscreen just a couple of minutes ago when studying the new composition of the Order's Council.
"Masters Windu and Plo Koon," the ancient one recalled their names.
Amplifying his hearing with the Force, Revan listened in on the two Masters' conversation.
"Qui-Gon is self-willed, as always," the Korun complained. "What right did he have to bring Skywalker into the Order? And to insist on his training!"
"But you must agree, Master Windu, that all members of the Council felt the Force within the boy," the Kel Dor reminded him.
"As well as the Darkness!"
"But, according to Jinn, this may be the child from the prophecy. The Council is obligated to consider all options."
The dark-skinned Jedi pondered his interlocutor's words.
"Even so," he waved his hand a few moments later, apparently having decided something for himself. "The risk is too great. His training poses much more of a threat than a benefit. And even the Grand Master agrees with this."
"We cannot miss such an opportunity," Plo Koon objected. "The Darkness is thickening more and more over the Order. Everyone feels the threat. And this boy, Skywalker, could be the key to victory over the Dark Side."
"The Sith, you mean," the Korun corrected his companion.
"Yes," the Kel Dor agreed. "If we are to believe Qui-Gon, he encountered one on Tatooine. And as we know, always two there are. This means somewhere in the galaxy there are two adherents of the Dark Side posing a threat to the Order and the peaceful life in the Republic."
"But what if the boy, once trained, succumbs to the Darkness that is already in him?"
"The prophecy says he will restore balance to the Force, and I, like the Grand Master, am confident that this will mean the end of the Sith."
Silence fell, during which the speakers looked at each other, each lost in their own thoughts.
"I don't know, Master Plo Koon, I'm afraid to train him," Windu shook his head.
"Fear leads to the Dark Side," the Kel Dor reminded him with a chuckle.
"And yet."
"Well," Plo Koon sighed. "In any case, we should now wait for Qui-Gon's return. I think the Council will reconsider his request."
"Undoubtedly," Windu agreed. "By the way, where did he go?"
"Still accompanying the young Queen Amidala from Naboo. I heard she raised quite a fuss in the Senate and even initiated a vote of no confidence in Supreme Chancellor Valorum."
"Master Van," a loud girl's voice ran through Revan's amplified hearing like a peal of thunder on Dromund Kaas.
"Yes, Rina, what is it?" the ancient one asked, gently massaging the ear nearest the Zabrak.
"I wanted to thank you for answering my question. Usually, Masters don't want to talk about the Dark Side."
"You're always welcome, Youngling," the former Sith nodded.
"I have to run, but can I talk to you again later?" the girl asked hopefully.
"Of course."
"Wonderful," she rejoiced.
"All the best, Rina. May the Force be with you."
"May the Force be with you, Master."
The Zabrak turned and headed quickly for the exit. Revan was about to return his attention to Windu and Plo Koon's conversation, but the Masters had already left the Archives.
The ancient one decided to find out what prophecy the Council members were discussing and how Skywalker was connected to it.
There was little information. The text of the prophecy was nowhere mentioned, and hints were of little interest to an experienced military commander. He knew that rumors and the truth always diverge. However, even from the snippets of conversation he managed to overhear, Revan drew a few conclusions.
Qui-Gon brought Skywalker to the Council, and they clearly felt the boy's potential. However, some prophecy clearly agitated them. They were afraid to teach him. And frankly, Revan was glad of this. He no longer wanted to leave the boy for training in this Order. They would only ruin the entire potential of a very gifted future Force-sensitive.
He needed to find Jinn and take Anakin from him. The sooner, the better.
Revan rose from the terminal and headed for the Archives' exit. He was disappointed in the current Order. He didn't like how the Jedi now served the Senate. He didn't like that the number of Light Side adherents had fallen to such a pitiful quantity. He didn't like that the Order had renounced its military forces, that military affairs were no longer taught to younglings, and that combat training received so little attention. The Guardians of Peace had turned into philosopher-hermits and were gradually losing their influence.
The former Sith couldn't tell if it was his dark part speaking, the one that bore the title Darth, or if any rational sentient would agree with him, but nonetheless, he decided that this weak Order was not his path.
But there was another side, wasn't there? And it wouldn't hurt to meet its representatives too. Maul agreed to arrange a meeting with his teacher… He should pay him a visit at the first opportunity.
Suddenly, Revan felt a powerful presence in the Force.
"Found what you sought in the Archive, young knight?" a creaking voice sounded beside him.
Turning his entire body in surprise, the former Jedi saw a small platform hovering on repulsors, upon which sat a strange-looking alien whose species Revan didn't know the name of. However, he had met similar beings before. One of his teachers, Vandar Tokare, was of the same race.
There was no doubt. From the records about the Order's Council, the ancient one knew he was facing the Grand Master himself. And he absolutely did not want to confront him right now. Although the former Sith's disguise was flawless, one should not underestimate the Force-sensitivity of such an experienced Jedi.
"Master Yoda," the ancient one respectfully bowed.
"Known is my name to you, knight. Cannot boast the same I, however," the green-skinned alien creaked.
"Knight Avner Vaan," Revan nodded.
Yoda twitched his ears slightly and tilted his head.
"Heard your name before, I have not."
"I have traveled much and only returned to Coruscant today."
"Is that so?" the strange green-skinned Jedi shook his head. "Old I grow, perhaps, forgetting the names of students I have become. Remembered the name of every youngling I, before."
Revan realized he had slipped up. Alarm flashed in his mind for a moment.
"To worry, no cause you have, knight," the Grand Master smiled slightly. "Not as important the name is, as the essence it conceals."
The former Sith remained silent, trying to grasp any hint of the Council leader's intentions.
"To personally congratulate you on returning to your home, I wished. Long time since you were here, it has been."
"Yes," Revan agreed. "A very long time."
"And what of your home, think you?"
"I don't know what to think, Master," the former Jedi shook his head, sensing that there was no threat.
"Hmm," Yoda drawled. "Right you are in your doubts. Changed since Ruusan, the Order has. And continues to change, even now."
"Master?"
"Hundreds of years served the Light I have, and taught others all I know myself. But with each year, stronger I feel, that something is not right. Made a mistake somewhere, I have. Missed something important."
"I don't understand what you are trying to tell me, Master," Revan said, vaguely feeling that, despite his words, he had an idea of what the old Jedi was muttering about.
"It may happen, that help the Order will soon need," Yoda said thoughtfully. "Thickens the Darkness over us and conceals the future with its veil."
"And what does that have to do with me?"
"From your home, do not so quickly renounce, young knight," the green-skinned alien said, looking Revan straight in the eyes.
With those words, the Grand Master turned around and flew into the adjacent corridor, heading towards the Council tower.
The ancient one stood for a long time, watching him leave and contemplating the old man's words.
Perhaps the Order still had a chance, if a sentient like this stood at its head.
Pulling his hood over his head, Revan headed for the secret passage to discreetly leave the Temple.
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