The murky gray skies of Dromund Kaas began to clear up ever so slightly as the sun arose form it’s slumber. Out on a high cliff, the Sith Darth Raze watched as it rose from its nocturnal refuge. He took one good, hard look at the sunrise, and began to head off down the cliff. The Great Sith Temple lay just below the cliff face.
Darth Raze gazes at the horizon and the rising sun.
The dark lord was able to climb down with relative ease. Once he reached the bottom, he started walking towards what looked to be a large stone entrance into the temple. As he passed that door and strode the open-air halls of this part of the temple, he contemplated the emotions that had been stirring in him recently. Anger, fear, aggression. He was experiencing those even more than he normally did. It was all because of her…that ex-Jedi Zacom. Master Scourge had taken in the young adept as a new apprentice after some extensive convincing. Raze would have most definitely preferred that she had been killed instead on that fateful night in the hangar bay of the Hand. She seemed too unpredictable, even by Sith standards. And not only that, but she had fought against the Sith as a Jedi. What made her less likely to betray the Sith this time around? As much as Raze wondered all of this, he could do nothing to change the mind of his master. She had seen how powerful Zacom was in the Force, and the opportunity to train one such as her was too great to pass up. Raze let out a long sigh as he came to yet another entryway. This one led further into the temple. A security device on the wall prompted him for a retinal scan, and he obeyed accordingly. With a few clicking noises and a whoosh, the door opened up to reveal an elevator lift. Raze stepped into it, and it immediately began a descent into the lower and more secretive levels of the temple. Raze saw many levels pass through the small crack in the elevator door before it finally came to a stop. The doors opened up, and before Lord Raze stood a long, dark hallway. With a wave of his hand, the walls of the hall seemed to retract up and away into the ceiling. But no, they were merely revealing the many view port panes that lined the hall. Light flooded the hall as the walls fully retracted. The dark lord walked over to the nearest window, and gazed at the sight that was many feet below him. He was on a long, underground sky bridge that was above a massive subterranean training complex. Below Raze, thousands of Sith warriors were sparring or training with each other. Some practiced their Force powers, some their agility drills, and still others were having practice duels.
The rear entrance to the Sith Temple.
Raze smirked as he looked on at all the activity beneath him. He was very pleased with the progression of the army of the Sith that he and Master Scourge had amassed. The construction of this army was the result of many years of pain and sacrifice by both of the dark lords, and soon they would see the fruits of their labor. The Sith Army and the Hand would both ensure the ultimate assimilation of the New Republic. Raze knew that an army of this size, especially because they were also Force wielders, could easily crush the nearly 1 million general infantry soldiers of the Republic. It was the Jedi, nearly 100,000 strong, who worried the dark lord. True that his army was larger, but he just hoped they were well trained enough to defeat the Jedi. If they were not powerful enough to get the job done, he could always call on the help of the Krath, the dark jedi brothers and sisters of the Sith. They numbered nearly 75,000 strong. The problem with enlisting them would be convincing them that they could serve their need for revenge, which is all they seek. They have no wishes to subdue the Republic, but only see the Jedi pay for the near-extinction of their order many millennia ago. As Raze lost himself in his thoughts, he meandered further down the long hallway. As he neared the other end of it, he came upon his master’s private training chamber. She was inside at the moment training Zacom in lightsaber dueling. Oh how Raze loathed that ex-Jedi. She should be dead right now, but instead she was to become Raze’s ally? Unacceptable! Well, in Raze’s mind anyway. Thoughts of unfortunate “accidents” that could befall her began to fill Raze’s evil mind. If he could get a chance to kill her, he would most definitely take it.
As he looked on into Scourge’s chamber, he noticed the polished style of Zacom’s movements. It was one thing to be involved in a duel, and totally different to view one as a spectator. Raze found a small amount of appreciation for this chance to study his enemies’ style up close and without consequence. The young one seemed to match up very well against Scourge, who was possibly the best duelist in the galaxy. Of course, Master Scourge didn’t use a saber in combat anymore. She liked to utilize Force lightning for combat. As both Sith continued to train, Raze felt his heart fill up with apprehension. He turned and headed back towards the other end of the hall. He stopped at another windowpane to view the progress of the Sith warriors down below. As he gazed upon them, many thoughts filled his head again. He knew for a fact that most of them would follow him if he asked it of them. Many would even turn on Scourge if need be. “No, no” Raze was quick to stop himself in his thoughts. “What am I thinking?” he said to himself. “She is my master…I cannot betray her. She is not the problem…Zacom is.” As he once again pondered ways to rid himself of Zacom, he noticed that the army was beginning to form up into marching ranks. “Hmmm…must be time for breakfast…” said Raze aloud. He continued to gaze at the army below him. It was something to truly behold. The formation of nearly 150,000 Sith warriors all marching in unison was astounding. The Republic was surely doomed. “The decisive battles would soon be fought…but not yet. Not yet” thought Raze to himself. The New Republic was still licking its wounds from the Calamari battle. Add to that the fact that they had enslaved the native inhabitants of the planet into making a new armada of Star Destroyers for the Sith fleet. All this activity on the surface, and yet the Republic still had not a shred of knowledge about the massive Sith army that would be coming down upon them very soon. As the dark lord strode the path back towards the elevator, he thought again about how he could eliminate Zacom. He had to make whatever he did look like it was an accident, construed by the Republic, or by the Jedi. If Master Scourge were to find out that he was responsible, then he might as well have just flat out betrayed her instead. Zacom must be eliminated. Someway. Somehow.
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