Star Wars: The Untold Stories

Sar stared intensely at the dark robed figure whose body practically vibrated with the powers of the dark side. Sar had never felt anything like while he had plenty of experience with the dark side thanks to his meditation, the presence around the figure felt utterly different.

While the feeling he usually felt around the dark side could be summed up as the voice of a seductress, sweet and tempting but every word laced with poison, the impression the robed figure excluded was like a freshly sharpened executioners blade ready to behead him at any time.

Sar was afraid that he could not deny, but he refused to succ.u.mb to his fears and prepared to face the unknown foe head-on.

"Who are you?!" Sar demanded in a firm voice conveying that he was not afraid of the dark force user.

Hearing Sar's question, the figure in front of him shook a little, and soon after, a loud and hoarse chuckle escaped from under the persons hood. The chuckle sounded ethereal as if thousands of different voices was chuckling at the same time, their voices echoing in the darkness.

"Who am I?" the figure repeated the question while slowly walking in a circle around Sar the shadows around him seemed to be slowly following him as he walked.

"Well, now I am but a mere echo of a past long forgotten, but when I was alive, I was a powerful Sith. My name spread fear and respect in all corners of the galaxy. My name was Darth Marr."

When he uttered his name, the shadows around him seemed to spike as if his very name injected them with power. The robed figure, now known as Darth Marr stopped circling Sar and Sar stopped as well keeping his blade pointed at the Sith.

Marr then lifted his arms from his sides and slowly pulled his hood back, revealing his ancient face to the young Jedi. Sar was quite surprised at how normal the Sith Lord looked. The person who stood in front of him looked like a middle-aged man with a full white beard and a head of messy white hair. There was nothing unique about him except the sinister yellow eyes and the two jet black horns in his forehead.

Marr lowered his arms back down and kept them along his sides. His face then broke out in a grin.

"The first visitor in over a millennia and its a Jedi how ironic." Marr seemed to find some weird amus.e.m.e.nt in his earlier statement as the grin never left his face. Sar did not see the humor in the situation and gave the Sith a curt question.

"What do you want Sith?"

Hearing Sar's question the Sith once again began circling him wit Sar following keeping his blade pointed at the Sith at all times.

"Want? Oh, I don't want anything, at least not anymore. I merely wish to speak with this generation of young Jedi."

Hearing Marr's answer, Sar merely narrowed his eyes. He knew the Sith was lying and was keeping something from him. He would have to play his game for now at least until he found a way out of his current situation.

"And what would you wish to talk about?"

Hearing Sar's question, the Sith's grin broadened.

"Let's talk about your order. Do you believe the Jedi have your best interest in mind?" Marr asked with mirth in his tone. Sar narrowed his eyes at the Sith.

"I do not care whether or not the order has my best interest in mind. The Jedi are peacekeepers we keep the peace in the galaxy" Sar answered in a confrontational tone.

"Peacekeepers, you say? I find that hard to believe considering the fact that all the Jedi I knew where all bloodthirsty animals hiding behind their code as a means to get away with their crimes" The grin never left Marr's face as he gave his reply.

Hearing the Sith's blatant insult of the Jedi order incensed Sar, so he quickly yelled back.

"You lie!"

Another chuckle escaped the Sith. Speeding up his circling a little, he once again replied.

"Is that anger I sense young Jedi? Tsk, tsk you should know better after all anger leads to the dark side."

"Shut up!"

"The Jedi will never change they are cutthroats and murderers serving only themselves and their search for power, all the while hiding behind their codes and 'noble' beliefs."

"Lies!"

"And yet you can not help but doubt them, can you?! You wonder if you were truly taken into the order to uphold peace or because the order wishes to use you as their tool! The order will betray you along with the one you call, Master!"

Sar let out a growl of anger and was getting ready to lunge at the Sith force be damned! 'How dare he insult his order! HIS FAMILY! He deserved death.' And just as he was about to charge he heard a voice that echoed in his mind, 'There is no shame in feeling fear or anger Sar. There is only shame in letting them control you.'

It was the voice of his Master, and as soon as the voice entered his ears, it was as if Sar was pulled out of a pool of tar, allowing him to think clearly again. It would seem that Marr's dark powers had a more significant effect on him than he had initially thought, having enhanced his feelings of anger.

Sar allowed a confident grin to surface on his face as he continued following the circling Sith with his lightsaber.

"I will be betrayed, you say? That's hilarious coming from you considering the fact that you were literally stabbed in the back by your apprentice maybe you should change your name to Darth Moron?"

Sar had clearly hit a nerve as Marr stopped circling him and the grin faded from his face his yellow eyes narrowed in evident anger.

"You should watch your tongue young Jedi." While Marr was replying, he had put his right hand into his left sleeve, pulling out the hilt of a lightsaber from it. "You never know what kind of trouble it will get you in."

Sar tensed greatly at the sight of the lightsaber he could feel that the Sith Lord was significantly weakened due to his current status as a force specter, but he was under no delusion that he would be able to face the Sith alone.

"I will give you one chance Jedi, join me as my new apprentice and I shall grant you power beyond your wildest imagination" The grin had returned to Marr's face, but it did little to mask the anger in his voice.

Hearing Marr's offer Sar got into his Ataru form and pressed his force abilities to the very limits.

"I will never live as a Sith!"

Marr broke out into hysterical laughter igniting his lightsaber where a blood red blade sprung out, before charging at Sar while yelling.

"Then die as a JEDI!"

Sar was surprised at how fast the Sith was as not more than a moment had passed before the Marr was upon him swinging his lightsaber down at him. Sar quickly blocked the blade and felt the heavy strike hit his lightsaber the sound of plasma hitting plasma resounding throughout the darkness.

Marr gave him no time to rest as he quickly followed up with strike after strike Sar managing to block them by the skin of his teeth and by the grace of the force. The bright sparks that came from where the lightsabers hit each other seemed to cut a little of the darkness away as if the intense heat from the battle between two force users scared it.

Sensing that he was getting nowhere, Sar decided to be a little bold so the next attack from Marr that he blocked he turned into a lightsaber lock the familiar sound of fizzing plasma grated at his ears. As soon as the lightsaber lock was started Sar used all the strength in his arms to push his lightsaber forward, making the unsuspecting Sith stagger a little backward. Which he quickly took advantage of by delivering a swift kick to Marr's stomach.

Marr let out a grunt of pain while sliding a small distance backward. Sar used this opportunity to take some distance from the Sith by using the force to jump back, landing a few meters from the Sith.

Marr removed the hand he had placed on his stomach before letting out a guttural growl of anger the dark side around him, getting further strengthened by his increasing rage. He deactivated his lightsaber and brought up both his arms both arms outstretched with the palms facing the Jedi standing a few meters away from him.

Sar instantly felt the power of the force pushing against him, quickly raising his own arms in the same manner he tried to resist with his the power of his force, but Marr was much stronger than him, and it proved little more than a slight delay before Sar felt the force slam into him s.u.c.k.i.n.g the air from his lungs and throwing him backward making him hit the stone floor with the back of his head.

Seeing that the Jedi was laying on the floor, disoriented Marr began sprinting at him before jumping into the air preparing to strike him from above. Sensing danger approach Sar forced himself to get up into a crouching posture just in time to block the red lightsaber coming from above.

Marr seemed to hang in the air, continuing to push his blade down towards the young Jedi. Sar quickly removed his left hand from his lightsaber while he kept blocking the Sith's attack. Using the force, he pushed forward with his left hand effectively throwing Marr backward, but he merely used the momentum of the force to complete a backflip landing on his feet in his original position a few meters from Sar.

The moment of respite from the Sith's unrelenting attacks allowed Sar to stand up although a bit shakily before righting himself and slipping back into his Ataru stance. The Sith Lord seemed to be enjoying himself as the grin had returned to his face, and he was currently playing with his lightsaber spinning it lazily around.

"It would seem I underestimated you young Jedi. Are you sure you would not join me? You would make a powerful Sith."

Sar did not respond to Marr's taunt; he just kept staring at him with a determined gaze.

"Hmmm? I grow bored of this farce as well. I will put an end to it then!"

Seeing as Sar did not respond to his taunt Marr once again charged at him. This time Sar did not wait for the Sith and charged the Sith as well. And soon the two figures collided.

As soon as their lightsaber hit each other, the darkness around them was pushed away because of the force flowing around them. The battle took a fast pace as strike after strike was struck at their opponent — the sound of lightsabers burning the air around them and colliding filled the room.

The battle almost looked like dancing: Parrying, turning around, striking left, then right, stabbing at the opponent and then using a flip to get out of range. Sar was using the Ataru form so his strikes were fast and his movement nimble while Marr used a form he did not recognize but greatly favored powerful strikes.

This fast-paced fight lasted about a minute before they both entered another lightsaber lock this time however it was Marr using his strength to push his lightsaber against Sar's. Forcing him down into a kneeling position with one leg straight on the floor and the other one bent slightly down. Past the two fizzing blades, Sar could see those two yellow eyes looking down at him.

Sar could sense something, something he had never sensed before. Sar could sense his death approaching.

***

Shaak Ti had once again found herself in the dark world she had been transported to while meditating on the ship. She once again found herself without a lightsaber. She tried to find Sar, but she could no longer sense.

She forced herself to bury the feelings of worry and guilt that were quickly taking root in her mind. Thoughts like: Why had I taken him with me, or is he okay? Were swiftly buried and swept away by her will.

There was nothing she could do at the moment, and those thoughts would only make her sloppy. She tried to see if something was changed, but except for the clear absence of the robed man that had been present last time, everything else seemed the same.

She was just about to begin exploring to find a way out when suddenly the shadows around her began to move and twist her vision shook, and then she found herself somewhere she knew very well.

In front of her stood the Jedi temple; however, it was immediately clear that there was something wrong. Three of the temples four towers was caught in flames, and the fourth was destroyed beyond recognition.

Around her were the corpses of the Jedi she knew from the temple Jedi padawan's, knights and Masters alike. She wanted to check on them to see if even one of them were still alive, but she could sense that should she do so she would be lost.

So, she let the force guide her and began walking towards the main temple gates even though every step felt like a thousand she kept moving. She had to find a way out of here and find her padawan and the force was telling her that whatever laid beyond those gates would allow her to leave.

Arriving in front of the gates Shaak Ti used the force to push them upon revealing what should have been an entrance hall but was instead a massive wall of grey mist the same as what had surrounded Eoliv. Shaak Ti knowing she had no other options, walked through it while surrounding herself with a thin layer of the force.

After having walked in blindness for a bit, Shaak Ti arrived in another room this time it was the room used to train the younglings in the ways of the force. Except the room looked now as if a battle had taken place the furniture was overturned or destroyed there were marks of a lightsaber along the walls and on the thick red carpet lay the corpses of dead younglings.

Great sorrow and despair filled Shaak Ti as she observed the room. She felt the dark side creeping all over her body, trying to force her over to it. She kept circling the light side through her keeping the feelings of despair at bay.

Forcing her sight from the dead younglings, she turned her gaze to a dark corner of the room. Where she once again faced the mysterious robed man she had encountered earlier. He stood with his left side to her, his red blade held in his right hand pointed down towards the floor. His head was bowed slightly as if he was looking down at something.

Following his line of sight, Shaak Ti saw what he was looking at, something that even brought the powerful Jedi Master to her knees, for at his feet laid her padawan, Sar Landala. Sar's lifeless eyes were staring listlessly at the ceiling of the room. Probably sensing Shaak Ti's despair, the man turned towards her the veil of darkness still covering his face and the same evil yellow eyes staring at her. He slowly stalked toward her with his lightsaber still held at his side.

Shaak Ti didn't seem to care her sight locked onto the corpse of her padawan. All the feelings she had kept at bay came crashing into her, guilt, fear, rage it all came rushing back. She could hear the dark side whispering to her promising her the power to save them. All the while, the man was slowly getting closer to the falling Jedi.

Shaak Ti was just about to reach out to the dark side when she suddenly had another vision. This time she wasn't in the dark world but the stone garden back in the temple. She remembered this scene it happened during the second week of Sar's force training he had once again failed to lift both of the force monoliths and had gotten frustrated and walked off.

She had found him on a balcony overlooking the city he was leaning on it looking out over the city. She had walked up next to him before asking.

"I sense impatience and doubt in you young padawan. Why do you insist on mastering everything in but a moment?"

Sar snapped his head towards his Master before exclaiming.

"Because I'm weak! How am I supposed to help anyone if I can't even lift two kriffin rocks?!" Sar let out a weary sigh before once again turning his gaze to the city. "I just feel so helpless, Master."

Shaak Ti stared at her padawan for a while before placing a comforting hand on his shoulder before turning her gaze to the city as well.

"There are plenty of forms of strength. Wisdom, compassion, and bravery these are the strengths that help us in our darkest of moments. Patience will be needed to master the force but do not mistake that as weakness my young padawan."

Sar looked up at his Master before a smile broke out on his face.

"Then it would seem you have found your answer to your question Shaak Ti."

Before Shaak Ti could question the strange answer, Sar had given her she was pulled back out of the vision and once again found herself inside the world of shadows. The robed man had gotten significantly closer and was almost upon her; she could now hear the humming of his blade as he approached.

Shaak Ti slowly gathered herself and began standing up. The robed figure stopped widening his eyes in surprise and slight fear as he slowly took a few steps back.

Shaak Ti ignored his surprise and bent her knees slightly closed her eyes and stretched out her arms on either side of her body fingers facing upwards and palms facing the walls of the room. The sound of the force flowing around her got louder and louder the air around her seemed to vibrate with power.

Then she opened her eyes. The sound of the force being released was deafening almost like a contained explosion it moved like a transparent wave washing away everything in its path the furniture, carpeted floors, and even the robed man was washed away by its power and momentum.

And then the world around her shattered.

***

Sar and Marr were still locked in their positions. Sar knew it was only a matter of time before the Sith got through his defense and ended him so in a last attempt he used all of the force around him and used it for one final push. It worked somewhat as he broke the lock they had been in however due to the fatigue from the previous bout and him just using the force he did not manage to entirely block Marr's follow up strike which glided along his lightsaber slicing through the tendons in his shoulder.

Sar screamed out in pain as his right arm fell lifelessly along his side, making him drop his lightsaber which turned off before clattering to the ground. He tried to punch the Sith with his left hand, but before he could even lift his arm Marr force blasted him in the c.h.e.s.t, flinging him across the room before he landed on his back.

Sar tried to get back up, but he couldn't move he could only lay there gasping for air as three of his ribs had been broken from the force blast. After a few seconds, Sar felt even greater pain in his c.h.e.s.t, making him scream out in agony as Marr had placed a heavy booted foot on his broken ribs.

The Sith was grinning wickedly while looking down at his defeated foe. He shifted his lightsaber into a two-handed grip pointing the tip of the blade downwards aiming directly at Sar's heart before lifting it over his head getting ready to drive it through.

And just when Sar sensed the attack coming, the Sith Lords eyes widened turning his gaze to the left, right before a transparent wave slammed into him flinging him away from Sar allowing Sar to once again gasp for air with the weight from his c.h.e.s.t removed.

Through his blurry vision, he seemed to be able to see that he had returned to the brightly lit throne room. Sensing something Sar used the remainder of his strength to turn his head to the right where he saw the one person he respected more than anything in the galaxy.

"Master" Sar managed to utter before the relief of unconsciousness took him.