Judgement Day
A retelling of Sith Inquisitor Act III from the point of view of Darth Ravage. It's basically me following a little plot bunny that came from this line of Thanaton's during the Voss missions: "I love you like my own child. But you are a blight upon the Sith Order and must be purged." Content warnings: Canon typical violence, Torture, Implied dysfunctional family dynamics ------------ Pick up your rope, Lord, sling it to me If we are to battle, I must not be weak
“Thanaton will likely plead for our aid, and Kallig is pursuing Thanaton,” Decimus concluded in his recounting of the duel on Corellia as they all gathered inside the council chambers on Korriban.
Darth Baras had called for a special session, and Darth Decimus saw fit to inform the rest of the council on what they had missed of the Kaggath between Darth Thanaton and Lord Kallig while they waited for Darth Vowrawn, Darth Thanaton, and Darth Baras to arrive. Darth Zhorrid had not dared show her face since they had disciplined her for her insolence three years ago and more are the better for it; Zhorrid was an insipid child who had demanded their respect when she had not earned it. Darth Marr in particular had been harsh.
Darth Decimus was open in his support of Lord Kallig, at first purely out of spite to Thanaton who had he had always held in little regard, and then out of recognition for Kallig’s service during the Battle of Corellia, calling her the Conqueror of Corellia and the first among a new generation of Imperial heroes. From what Ravage had seen, she had the support of the Imperial military, allying herself with Moffs like Pyron. Darth Mekhis had designed the Silencer, but Kallig had seen the project to completion and it had proven to be a devastating weapon against the Republic.
“I met Kallig as my forces were landing. She is quite powerful for one so young,” Darth Hadra chimed in.
Decimus grinned viciously, “She is like an akk dog with a bone. She keeps her brutality on a tight leash, but it is there. She’ll carve a path of destruction through all of us to get to Thanaton.”
Ravage scoffed, dismissing the idea that a lord could take on the entire Dark Council outright. In Ravage's eyes, Kallig may be able to defeat Thanaton, but that was because Thanaton had always been weak. It was not as if Thanaton was someone like Darth Baras, with deep connections and webs even into the Republic, or like Vowrawn, who had been the orchestrator of many a downfall, or Marr, whose martial prowess was unmatched.
He held that opinion until Kallig entered the council chambers during Thanaton’s petition after Baras’s corpse had been removed.
“My lords, her master was corrupt! She is corrupt! Without Sith tradition, we are nothing!” Thanaton’s pleas were passionate but reeked of desperation.
Ravage heard the chamber door open and saw from the corner of his eye Darth Vowrawn turn to look, as the one sitting closest. He could feel Vowrawn’s amusement increase.
“And what are you suggesting that we do about it?” Darth Marr demanded. He had received the news of the Kaggath with the same disdain and contempt as he did with all Sith infighting and he likely viewed this as Thanaton trying to use the council in his scheme to crush a rival.
Thanaton continued, believing he was making headway. They all knew that if Thanaton could convince Darth Marr to aid him, Vowrawn and Rictus would follow. “We all know what the situation requires. Order must be preserved and punishment meted out. If we are to conquer our enemies, Zash’s former apprentice must die!”
“Well, well. I am truly flattered that you talk about me to all your friends, Darth Thanaton. You shouldn’t have.” Lord Kallig cooed words honey-sweet and laced with poison. Kallig cocked her head, stance changing ever so slightly as she stalked her prey. An akk dog with a bone indeed. The mask gave a skeletal impression, and the black armor scoured by battle lent a fearsome appearance to one so small.
Thanaton spun on his and was spitting mad when he saw her. “Our talk concerns the future of the Sith Order! A future, without you!”
“Yes, yes. I am a plague upon the Sith. Blah, blah, blah, blah.” She clicked her tongue, the sound sharp through the vocoder, “Your crony outside said the same thing. My sympathies, by the by, he is dead now.”
Thanaton was furious, stumbling over his words. Ravage rolled his eyes. “Then why haven’t you killed her yet?”
Lord Kallig did not bother to mask her emotions or hide them. She was amused, like a nexu playing with its food. Thanaton turned to Ravage with the same fury he had Kallig. “You know as well as I do that these matters require proper rites.”
Ravage growled at Thanaton’s righteous tone. Lord Kallig interrupted them, “You have had your chance to plead your case, Thanaton, now it is mine.” She addressed the council directly. “Darth Thanaton abandoned the arena for the Kaggath when he abandoned Corellia. By his own rules and rites, his life is forfeit. It was forfeited long before he left Corellia. It was forfeit when he stalled the Imperial offensive to cripple me, which is also against the rules of Kaggath.”
Decimus nodded, “Kallig speaks true.”
“We are well aware of the rules of Kaggath,” Mortis said.
That did not, however, change Ravage’s own opinion regarding Kaggath. “The Kaggath is a playground game. Murder has no rules.”
“The Kaggath is an honored Sith tradition!” Thanaton was outraged, as he was with all things that went against the traditions he so loved. “Tulak Hord competed! Marka Ragnos! Ludo Kressh!”
Ignoring Thanaton, Kallig plowed ahead. “His charges against me are false. Zash was corrupt, I shall not deny that. When she tried to kill me, I defended myself, as Thanaton himself encouraged me to do, and as is my right per both the law and tradition .” She hissed the last word, looking at Thanaton as she did. “When I tried to serve Thanaton, he attempted to kill me and has continued to do so since. Once more, I am well within my rights to defend myself.”
Ravage looked to Mortis, who was impressed if his smile was anything to go by. Darth Gravus was Mortis’s ally, and he supported Lord Kallig. By Kallig showing she knew the laws, she had just won Darth Mortis over. With Darth Decimus already supporting her, she now had two councilors on her side of the matter. Darth Mortis would uphold all Sith and Imperial laws. Thanaton had signed his death warrant no matter how this session concluded. Ravage looked around the room to gauge them.
Darth Vowrawn would side with whomever he deemed the most interesting, as was his way. Darth Hadra would likely choose Kallig. Darth Marr would only go the way of what was best for the Empire, as he did in all matters. Acharon would choose who he deemed the most competent. Darth Aruk and Darth Rictus were the only true mysteries. Ravage would most likely choose Kallig if he were to be completely honest, if only to thumb his nose at Thanaton.
Darth Marr looked to Thanaton, “The question remains: why has this apprentice, this child, proven impossible for you to kill?”
“Quite simple, really,” Kallig said. “I beat him at his own game.”
“Do not mock me!” Thanaton hissed.
Ravage had had enough, turning to Mortis. “I swear, if you don’t silence Thanaton, I will!”
Kallig harrumphed. She removed her helm, revealing blonde hair bound in braids wrapped around her head. The angle of her nose and jaw tickled Ravage’s brain as familiar. Her accent was Low Ziostian without the obscurity of a vocoder. “It is not considered mockery if it is true.”
Thanaton seethed at the council, “I will not be betrayed. I will not die. Once I have killed this slave, you will all answer for it.” Thanaton ignited his lightsaber, turning to face his rival.
Lord Kallig was pacing as ice-cold power and rage seethed from her, twirling her dualsaber around. It was an older make, with a dark purple crystal at the center and two sharp metal blades at each end.
“I have long forgiven your childish behavior and your shortcomings,” Kallig’s words were bitter and piqued Ravage’s interest. There was a history there, beyond what was happening now. Kallig continued, “You may very well kill me, Thanaton.” She spat out his name like it was poison. “But should you survive, you won’t forget me and I will haunt you for the rest of your days.”
Kallig disappeared in a dark cloud, reappearing moments later with a burst of black energy and purple lightning crackling across her violet blade as she struck, releasing a ball of lightning into Thanaton’s face before dipping low and using the Force to spin rapidly, lightning coming down and striking Thanaton, hitting his barrier.
Thanaton released a wave, throwing Kallig away from him only for her to disappear and reappear again behind him. He turned and unleashed a blast of lightning at her, leaving Kallig no other option but to roll away from him. She landed on a knee, reigniting her dual saber behind her. Thanaton did not give her a moment to breathe, unleashing a storm and forcing her to move. Kallig twisted and turned, weaving in and out of the strikes Thanaton called down onto her. Her left hand moved as she summoned something, speaking in a low tone. She used the Force to run past Ravage and Mortis, and Ravage heard the Old Sith tongue. She was casting a spell.
A spell that she unleashed, coming to a halt and casting it at Thanaton when he tried to heal himself. Thanaton shouted, grasping his head and Ravage could hear something being crushed as he was forced to stop casting. Kallig disappeared again in a shroud of energy. Ravage reached out to sense her, only grasping a trace before it disappeared again. She was hiding herself, waiting for a moment to strike. He glanced over to Rictus, who commanded numerous assassin-trained Sith and he was grinning.
Thanaton dispelled whatever Kallig had cast on him, raising his head to reveal bloodshot eyes and a bleeding nose. He looked around rapidly, turning as he searched for his rival. A shimmer of purple to his right caught the attention of the room and Thanaton as well. Thanaton prepared to meet her, only for Kallig to appear at his left and Thanaton barely had time to ignite his blade to block her attack. Rictus cackled as she struck, violet locking against red. They stood in a standoff of might, pushing back against the other physically and when neither would move, they both resorted to trying to push the other with the Force turning it into a battle of wills. The chamber creaked, metal scraping together harshly. They would bring the room down upon them all, Ravage thought, looking up as the ceiling shuddered.
They both ended up pushing the other away, Thanaton falling to the ground and Kallig managing to catch herself, spinning in a rapid movement to do so. Kallig stared down her opponent, teeth bared. She was whispering in the Old Tongue again, her left-hand contorting. Ravage was close enough to see her skin turn corpse-pale and her eyes burn red.
Thanaton was gasping, struggling for air as he floundered on the floor. Thanaton struggled to stand, pulling himself to his feet only to be met by Kallig casting another spell on him. A death field tore away his strength, dropping him back to a knee and Kallig rose to her feet, reinvigorated by what she had taken from Thanaton. He had lost. Ravage sat back, waiting for the killing blow to be struck. Kallig seemed to have some honor, allowing Thanaton to get to his feet.
“No, I won’t be defeated. I can’t be.” Thanaton was in denial. Kallig stood, awaiting his surrender which Thanaton would not give. The fool did not know when he was beaten.
Thanaton tried to attack her with force lightning, only for Kallig to redirect it above their heads as she advanced on him. The ceiling groaned, a corner popping loose. Thanaton then summoned a storm, unleashing it upon Kallig forcing her to stop as she was engulfed in a maelstrom of dark energy and lightning that Thanaton continued to throw at her. It generated a violent current of air in the chamber, swirling around Kallig in blinding light. Thanaton stopped his assault, shifting as he waited with hope in his heart.
Only for that hope to be vanquished when with a thunderous rumble that shook the Academy itself, the maelstrom was absorbed by Kallig, who emerged with flashing purple eyes and cloaked in dark side energy. Behind her, four pale forms appeared, stunning the council who all leaned forward as if their eyes deceived them. Lightning still jumped across her and with a shake of her hand, it was gone entirely as were the ghosts.
Kallig was a Force Walker, Ravage thought, having believed it to only be a myth up until the proof of the ability was right in front of him. A feeling of elation came from Darth Rictus. Thanaton oozed desperation and no small amount of fear. Rightfully so, Ravage felt, thinking about the spectral forms that had appeared behind Kallig when she survived Thanaton’s last attack. Force Walking was rare, and for her to have learned it and bound multiple ghosts, Thanaton had been right to beg for aid. Only the entirety of the Dark Council could truly stop her with that kind of power at her fingertips. Unfortunately for Thanaton, he had chosen a Kaggath and rendered any outside aid expressly forbidden. Even if he should somehow kill Kallig, he would be slain for breaking the rules of the rite, and Darth Mortis would insist upon it as a matter of Sith law.
Thanaton began to summon another storm only for Kallig, eyes still glowing, to throw him across the chamber and into a wall. A boom resounded, shaking the Academy’s foundations. Ravage could feel the fear seeping up from the lower levels. She dropped him after a moment. Thanaton staggered to his feet, breathing heavily as panic took him.
Disappointment roiled from Marr as Thanaton in a desperate ploy, ignited his lightsaber and charged Kallig who stood with crossed arms at the center of the chamber. The blade was a breath away from removing her head when she stopped him, the chamber shaking as she held him still. Ravage leaned forward when Thanaton’s hand burst with a spray of blood and bone as she forced him down to a knee, his lightsaber falling to the floor as Thanaton was forced into supplication.
Lord Kallig spoke to Thanaton in a tone so low that it could not be heard except for perhaps Marr’s audio sensors but her palpable fury could be felt. The last of her words were loud enough to be heard and she burned with vengeance.
“You will not die until you say our names.”
Vowrawn looked intrigued, sitting up and watching. Ravage himself was curious. Thanaton made the mistake of gathering the Force to himself and was met by a storm focused entirely on him as Kallig unleashed the full extent of her fury and her brutality. The power that radiated from Kallig was oppressive as she attacked Thanaton, drawing on dark healing when he neared death only to strike again in a thunderous blast, casting afflictions that made Thanaton’s skin bubble with pestilence and breaking his bones, only for the breaks to heal and break again. Thanaton was helpless to do anything with the hold Kallig had over him.
Again and again and again she attacked, until at last, Thanaton broke screaming. “Elenei! Alysanne! ELENEI! ALYSANNE!”
Those names were important to Kallig, Ravage realized at the triumphant and vicious feeling of satisfied vindication that swept over Kallig. He filed the information away for later.
She relented and released her hold upon him, allowing him to drag himself away from her, coughing and whimpering. She slowly followed him as they all rose from their seats. The victor of the duel was clear. Kallig stopped as they approached, maintaining a respectful distance while her eyes never left Thanaton’s broken body. Thanaton grasped Marr’s boot with his left hand and tried to reach for Mortis in a final plea for aid with the gruesome remainder of his right.
“I am sorry, Thanaton,” Mortis said before he snapped Thanaton’s neck, a mercy no doubt, for Ravage was sure Kallig would have let him suffer a slower death.
“Good riddance.” Ravage spat, sneering at the corpse.
Darth Marr rebuked him immediately, “He was a better Sith than you give him credit for, Ravage.”
“Let us hope that his successor is as worthy.” Mortis declared, approaching Kallig and ushering her to Thanaton’s former seat beside Darth Marr. “My lord, your seat.”
Kallig was stunned, completely bewildered. “I-I. My lords, I do not know what to say.” Her shock was sincere.
Vowrawn spoke, amusement laced into his tone. “You have killed a Dark Councilor in fair combat, what else were you expecting?”
“I openly defied Thanaton and challenged him, amassing power far too quickly for any sane Sith to be comfortable with. The Dark Council is well within its rights to execute me for it.” She was smart, Ravage would give her credit but it did not change the fact that she was merely a lord and a lord could not hold a seat on the Dark Council. Vowrawn was impressed by her honesty, his eyes gleaming.
Rictus grinned, speaking for the first time since the session had convened. “Ordinarily, yes. We would. However, with the circumstances, you have proven yourself.”
Kallig paused, thinking on her answer, and then she nodded. “Very well.”
“She is only a lord!” Ravage protested vehemently. He was not one for tradition, but this was one he would adhere to. “You cannot place a lord on the Dark Council!”
Darth Marr rounded on him immediately, snarling viciously. “Quiet, Ravage! She has earned her place!”
Ravage reluctantly stood beside Marr with the others as he beckoned Lord Kallig to approach. She took a knee and bowed her head. “By order of the Dark Council, and in light of your reputation in serving the Empire, you are now Darth Imperius. Rise.”
The newly christened Darth Imperius rose smoothly. “You are head of the pyramid of ancient knowledge. You are charged with keeping the mystical knowledge of the Sith and guarding the secrets of our order. With us, you are the ruler of all Sith, answerable only to the Emperor himself.”
Imperius nodded solemnly. “I will do my best to live up to my new position.”
Ravage scoffed, not trusting her words or sincerity. “Never trust the humble ones.” Darth Imperius looked at him with a raised brow but said nothing.
“What shall be done with Darth Thanaton?” Vowrawn questioned.
“As the winner of the Kaggath, it is Darth Imperius’s decision,” Mortis said. Ever the upholder of laws, Ravage snorted.
“Destroying Thanaton’s properties and executing his forces will only serve to weaken the Empire. As such, I shall absorb them.” Imperius paused, thinking for a moment. “Thanaton shall be given the proper funerary rites as befits his position as my predecessor to this council, and his name and records shall remain intact.”
A brief flickering of grief and then it was as a candle snuffed out in the wind. Ravage narrowed his eyes in suspicion. She was hiding something. While Ravage pondered what she could be hiding, the council concluded the session.
Darth Mortis and Darth Vowrawn were walking with Imperius out of the chamber. Mortis was speaking to her. “We will summon you the next time the Dark Council congregates. I suggest going to Dromund Kaas and consolidating your power base.”
Imperius nodded, and Vowrawn clapped his hands together in a delighted manner. “Ah, wonderful! While you are on Dromund Kaas, Imperius, I must invite you to tea! Oh, and do not be overly worried about logistics and accounting. It is quite common during a power transition-”
Ravage rolled his eyes. Darth Vowrawn was gauging whether or not Imperius would be a potential rival, a potential ally, someone entertaining, or someone entirely boring. Vowrawn had done the same when Ravage had obtained his seat before the Treaty. Ravage elected to remain behind until Thanaton’s corpse was collected. His suspicions of Imperius circled through his mind and when the corpse was collected for burial, Ravage made a trip down to the Archives.
Every Sith that had survived the Academy had a genealogy test done, it was mandatory; whether their line was New or Old. The genealogy testing made it easier to arrange marriages and alliances; old blood marrying old blood, new to new, and new to old. At times, a Sith would marry a force-blind. Cousins marrying cousins was common. When a line diminished down to only one or two surviving members, there were examples of aunts and uncles marrying nieces and nephews to preserve it.
Ravage had been the product of one such union; his mother and father had been uncle and niece, the last of their bloodline. Of their five children, only Ravage had survived the last war. His brothers and sisters had all been idiots, either killing each other as the eldest two had done to be the heir or dying in battle as the rest had. Ravage was the last of his line and while he had sired three children, one had been force-blind, one did not survive the trials, and another who he had made his apprentice had been killed because the fool had been caught by another lord seeking revenge for his murdered apprentice. A pity, the boy, Essor, had shown promise, only for his arrogance to make him disregard the ‘No Unsanctioned Murders’ rule of the Academy, the only rule Ravage himself would follow, and to leave a terrified and weak-willed acolyte as a witness.
He poured over the archives, searching for anything noteworthy of Kallig. He found several. Some were entries written by Tulak Hord himself, describing Aloysious Kallig as one of his greatest generals and the greatest amongst his rivals. Another was the genealogy of Aloysious Kallig, detailing his descendents. He had had four children; three daughters and a son. Two of the three daughters were killed and of the son, there was no further record.
The third daughter, Alysanne, was where the line continued. All daughters, interestingly enough. It continued down until a century and a half ago when Lord Andrasa’s downfall resulted in her children being sold into slavery. All records after that listed were slave records, leading down to Elenei, recently deceased, and her daughter, Alysanne. The newly christened Darth Imperius was a descendant of the Old Blood. He was shocked to learn that she was only twenty-one. The last Sith to rise so high and obtain a seat on the Dark Council so young had been Darth Marr forty years prior.
Her father drew Ravage’s interest. That had been censored and censored recently. Ravage used his authority to override the censor and was stunned by what was revealed.
It was tradition for a Sith parent to take an interest in their force-sensitive child’s upbringing, no matter if the child was born from wedlock or was illegitimate. It was tradition for a child’s first lessons in the Force and the Sith Order to come from their Sith parent. Darth Ravage laughed. No wonder Darth Thanaton was so desperate to kill her; for a man who prided himself on traditions and upholding them, she was living proof of Thanaton’s hypocrisy. And no wonder, Darth Imperius had chosen to keep his name intact. Striking it from history would mean removing part of her lineage.
Alysanne Kallig, Darth Imperius, was Darth Thanaton’s natural daughter.
