Hi there. Eek. This is my first SWTOR fic and my first fic in a long time so please bear with me. But anyhoo, I've had this idea flitting around my head for a few weeks now, since I finished the JK storyline with a gray Jedi for the first time. I've also cross-posted this on AO3.

Some of the dialogue is direct from game and belongs to the lovely people who wrote it.

In over three hundred years he had not forgotten her face. He'd thought about it every single day in his service to his Emperor, committing to memory every centimeter of it, though he could not even see color. Everything from her scars to the self-assured yet indomitable smirk she wore. However she did not wear that smirk now, as she floated in a kolto tank. No, now she did not seem so proud. She was half-conscious and vulnerable, soon to be another tool of the Emperor's.

Aurelia Antall was born a Sith - and became a Jedi. She fled Korriban at the age of eleven with a training blade, a grievous scar, and a deep hatred for the Empire. When she was recruited into the Jedi Order a few years later she vowed to do anything it took to destroy the Sith. By the time she was hailed as the Hero of Tython any Imperial that had stood in her way had been ended - and she was only twenty. So when she was asked to join a strike force against the Sith Emperor she accepted without hesitation. However, the confrontation went horribly wrong and now she's thought lost and fallen by her Order and her Republic. But a dark ally waits in the shadows to free her, and with his help she could end the Emperor once and for all.

Chapter One: Interlude

In over three hundred years he had not forgotten her face. He'd thought about it every single day in his service to his Emperor, committing to memory every centimeter of it, though he could not even see color. The deep scars that criss-crossed under her right eye, across her nose, down her cheek and lips. Those dark green eyes, her pale skin, the black hair she'd pulled into a tight bun, the self-assured yet indomitable smirk she wore. However she did not wear that smirk now, as she floated in a kolto tank. No, now she did not seem so proud. She was half-conscious and vulnerable, soon to be another tool of the Emperor's.

Scourge sighed as he turned away. How had she fallen so quickly? She was the Hero of Tython; she was the one - he'd known it as soon as she had defeated Scourge himself, only days ago. She'd fought relentlessly, stronger than any Jedi he had ever known and instead of fear inside her, he'd felt courage, bordering on pride. It was safe to say not one who'd faced off against the Emperor's Wrath before had ever been so self-assured. And, if Scourge was being honest with himself, she had defeated him quite handily.

Only to fall almost instantly at the Emperor's feet moments later.

But how? What had gone wrong? She was incredibly powerful - he had experienced it firsthand. It wasn't supposed to be like this. Because, once she was healed from the injuries she suffered at his master's hands, he was supposed to bring her to the overseer who'd just arrived from the Academy. And then she would be the Emperor's.

The medbay door opened and Scourge looked as a human doctor and her droid entered, the woman murmuring a "Lord Wrath" with her head bent, and he watched as they approached the Jedi's kolto tank. They began the preparations to remove her from the tank, and he felt a string of fear in the doctor, a streaming current beneath her focus.

"Careful," he admonished, folding his arms across his chest, almost smirking as her anxiety grew. "Our Lord Emperor would not want his special prize damaged."

"Then maybe he should not have ordered her out so early," the doctor said. "She is not fully healed. She - "

Scourge did not even have to raise his hand anymore to Force choke. Granted, he did not intend to kill with this one; it was merely to remind the doctor of her place and when he let her go she didn't speak another word.

A few moments later and the Hero of Tython stood before him, looking the same as she had in his vision, down to the arrogant smirk. But he could feel, quite clearly, the darkness inside her, the Emperor's presence. She would have to break Vitiate's control of her if she was to defeat him. A monumental feat, of course. But if anyone could do it, it would be the Hero of Tython; the Jedi from Scourge's vision. Or so he hoped.

Early on in the Hero's training Scourge asked his Emperor - "Why her, my lord? Why keep her here and not send her to Korriban with the other Jedi?" He took a deep breath, hoping he would not sign the Hero's death warrant here, "Better yet, why not simply end her? She has been almost a constant interference since she struck down Lord Tarnis."

The Emperor sat upon his throne, not slouching, but not completely straight; somewhere in between (a phrase that described him well - he was not quite man but not quite anything else either; his voice was human yet it bordered on the ethereal) and he responded, with the voice of a thousand souls, "She is powerful. We will use her, and she will become a powerful weapon of our Empire."

He told Scourge who she was - not her 'official' Jedi title as the Hero of Tython, but her true identity, her name. He realized he knew who she was. And it became clear to Scourge why she was here and not on Korriban, and why the Emperor hadn't destroyed her when he had the chance. For the Hero of Tython had been born Sith with the name Aurelia, to two of the Order's more impressive warriors and commanders in the Great War. She'd attended the Academy on Korriban as a child, and escaped at a young age. So it's personal. She betrayed the Empire, the Sith Order, her family, and became a Jedi. Using her, he can prove the dark side triumphs - and he can exact some revenge on her and the Jedi Order. But Scourge did not voice this; instead he merely nodded his understanding.

Scourge remained on the Emperor's Fortress at his own request even after the war turned in their favor; a month into Aurelia's training he asked the Emperor if he could personally oversee her lightsaber instruction. He did not declare his ulterior motive, of course - that if he could help her defeat Vitiate in any way, he would. So almost every day, before she went to Overseer Chaskar, she came to Scourge. He taught her tricks and techniques only he knew, knowing her muscle memory would remember what her mind might not when she overcame this possession. And she learned quickly, taking him down even when he didn't let her win.

He had been present every time her companions were interrogated; the Empire would not want to miss out on the Republic secrets they held, or so the Inquisitors said. Though, ultimately, Scourge knew such secrets would not matter; whether or not the Sith Empire won the war would not matter. Not unless Aurelia awoke and destroyed the Emperor.

He stood a few meters away as she quickly and smoothly took down an Imperial battle droid, and he had to marvel at her power and how being under the Emperor's control had only made her stronger. She looked at him now, her young face nearly glowing from the fervor of combat, as if she was fighting a smile.

"I guess you are teaching me a few things, old man," she said, and he wondered - not for the first time - if the teasing was her real personality, or if that was the dark side seeping into her. Though, what else would he expect from the Jedi that had sassed him on Quesh?

"I said I would."

She let her smile through, briefly, and then sighed. "Guess I'm due to meet Chaskar now." She met Scourge's eyes again and he could see the emerald color of them in his mind even if he couldn't actually see them. "He's incredibly snobbish, isn't he?"

"It is even worse on Korriban," Scourge half-muttered. "It seems as if every Sith born in the last fifty years is insufferably arrogant."

"I remember." A side effect of her current state, no doubt deliberate; she remembered her childhood on Dromund Kaas and her time at the Sith Academy perfectly, up until the moment she started planning her escape, and everything after that was gone. Aurelia sighed again. "I should get going before he decides to use me for lightning practice."

"He won't if it was the Emperor's Wrath keeping you." A smirk crossed her lips and she closed a few steps between them, her voice dropping to a purr when she spoke. "And how, exactly, would the Wrath keep me?"

She did this often, tried to flirt with him to unbalance him and crack his exterior. It was entertaining, if he was being honest, enough so that he had never informed her of his, er, lack of humanity so to speak, and entertaining enough that he played along. And it was decidedly another effect of the dark side - one of the more amusing ones, of course. Because knowing what he'd researched of Aurelia and her intense hatred for both his kind and the Order itself she would never willingly flirt with a Sith of her own volition. "I'm sure I can think of something," he murmured, stepping closer, pleased when she blushed.

"Well," she said softly as she tipped her head back to maintain eye contact, touching her hand to his torso, just below the thick patch of armor on his chest. It was odd, seeing her touching him but not being able to feel it. "Maybe if I leave you can spend more time thinking of some extra-creative… activities for us tomorrow."

As she walked away he couldn't help but watch her - and not because she was purposely swaying her hips like that - but because she intrigued him. Here was the Jedi he'd seen in his vision, defeating the Emperor and taking his place, fallen and corrupted to the dark side. Yet, in his mind, the vision had not changed. Aurelia was still the one.

Scourge sighed as he turned back, heading for the throne room. It was empty - Vitiate had informed his Wrath a day or so ago that he was returning to Dromund Kaas for an undisclosed reason, leaving Scourge effectively 'in charge' of the Fortress. Not that there was much to be in charge of - it was a secret, cloaked station and had been relatively empty since the war started more than a year ago. His eyes slid over the throne and he tried, for a moment, to picture Aurelia on it. His vision had depicted her with the Emperor's power, both Force and political, after all. But something told him she would not accept it. It -

The Emperor suddenly roared in his mind, a blood-chilling sound of fury, and Scourge could feel the weight of his rage. And then he knew the source of his master's anger - the darkness that had previously pervaded Aurelia was no longer there. She'd broken his control. Scourge moved quickly, running through the plan he'd concocted a few weeks ago in case this happened. He needed to gain her trust - and fast.

He made his way to the hangar and ignited his lightsaber. The first wave of soldiers put up hardly any fight and he slaughtered them with ease. The second wave, of about three or four soldiers, brought out heavier blasters and a simple throw of his lightsaber wasn't enough to take them all out. He deflected blaster bolt after blaster bolt until he leapt at the last heavy soldier and plunged his crimson blade deep into the man's chest. The confusion in Aurelia's companions was almost overwhelming as he tried to focus on Aurelia herself. There were only three in the hangar - the doctor, the alien soldier, and the droid, and he freed them from their cages.

"Where is the Jedi girl?" Scourge demanded, de-igniting his saber.

The doctor stammered.

The soldier glared.

And the droid beeped. "Sith = took her for 'interrogation'. Sith = said Aurelia would torture her."

Scourge sighed heavily. Damned Chaskar. He needed permission for something like that - which, of course, he'd never received. But this meant Aurelia would meet and could free the girl and hopefully soon they could leave. It would not be long before the remaining soldiers on the Fortress converged on them in the hangar, and without a doubt the Emperor would return as soon as he could, almost definitely having felt the wound of Scourge's sudden betrayal.

"You're - you're not gonna kill us, are ya?" the doctor asked quietly, bending down to check the vitals of one of the soldiers.

"Why would I have freed you only to kill you?" Scourge sighed as a fresh squad of soldiers rushed in and he drew his saber again. He tore through them easily, much like the first group, nearly irritated that they did not put up much of a fight either. And then he felt Aurelia's presence, the anger seeping into it, and he turned towards her, brandishing his saber. She had one of hers drawn, the white-gray crystal shimmering. The Jedi beside her had ignited her double-bladed saber.

"Step away from my ship," Aurelia demanded, her voice strong as it carried across the hangar. "We're leaving." Her pure hatred of him touched him and he sighed inwardly. It would take a lot of convincing to keep her from killing him.

"If I wanted to fight, I would not have freed your crew or killed these guards."

The astromech rolled up to her, beeping and trilling, and Aurelia's face softened slightly. Yet she still held her lightsaber, even as her companions gathered around her.

"More guards will come," Scourge said, keeping his voice soft but firm. He put his lightsaber back at his hip. "Shall we go before they arrive? Or would you like to be here when the Emperor himself returns?"

"Our last duel was interrupted," she frowned. "This one won't be."

He sighed. She had tried the same goading tactic on Quesh, and he was astute enough to step around it. "Destroy me, and the galaxy dies."

"Ha," she scoffed. "I know Sith are famous for their arrogance, but that's quite the claim."

He approached her, felt her resolve harden the closer he got. "I could've killed you on Quesh, had I wanted," he said. "Did you never wonder why I hesitated?"

Aurelia's frown faltered and her grip on her lightsaber loosened. He was getting to her.

"I have waited over three hundred years to see the face that came to me in a vision. Your face."

His words were like a blow to her brain; the sensation of it reached him and he almost smiled, and when she spoke again she did so slowly, as if trying to make sense of it. "If that's true, you could've told me this on Quesh. Or in your master's fortress."

"I needed to be sure you were the one I was searching for," he said. "I needed to be sure the time had come. And now I know."

"Know what?"

"Only a few beings have ever broken the Emperor's domination," Scourge said, his eyes flicking between Aurelia and the other Jedi. "You and that girl are special." And he wasn't blind to the surge of pride in her chest.

"Kira and I have the power to destroy your master."

"Not yet," Scourge said quietly, closing the distance between them. "Not without my help. Though the Emperor seeks to conceal his true plans, I have seen them. That vision has driven me to this…" And he knelt before her, keeping his eyes locked on hers, saw the confusion in them. "I pledge my loyalty to you. Take me to your Jedi Council on Tython, and I'll reveal why."

It was silent for a moment, and he knew she was weighing the options. Hopefully she realized she had more to gain by allowing him to join her side. He just had to convince her of that, and he wondered if she remembered the time they'd spent together while she'd been under the Emperor's influence, the conversations they'd had. Presumably not, judging by the frown on her face. And then her companions tried to dissuade her and his irritation rose. If only they knew…

"I seek to save this galaxy from annihilation," Scourge interjected, staying on his knee, keeping his eyes locked on Aurelia's. "Without my help, your ship will never escape. I can guide you to freedom."

She looked back at him, her eyes burning, and he almost thought she would decapitate him then and there. But she didn't. She de-ignited her lightsaber and returned it to her hip, yet when she spoke her voice was hard. "If I'm taking you to the Jedi homeworld you'll be under guard at all times. Don't try anything."

He inwardly chided himself for being worried and stood up. "Your flattery is pointless," he smirked slightly. "I do not seek your people's deaths - only their cooperation."

The Chagrian soldier made a poor attempt at a threat, and Scourge almost scoffed. "Time is a luxury we no longer possess," he said. "We must leave - now."

She touched his mind with the Force, and he let her, knowing she was seeking the truth. He had nothing to hide, and she needed to be able to trust him. "Fine," she conceded. "I'll trust you - for now. Let's go."

Scourge trailed behind the three companions he'd freed, Aurelia and the other Jedi behind him, as they made their way to her ship. He briefly heard the Jedis' conversation as he leaned against the open door, waiting for them to catch up.

"... He defeated me, Kira," Aurelia was saying, her eyes on her boots. "With a teeny bit of lightning."

"Yeah, and then you fought his control. You bested him in the end."

She's insecure.

Aurelia sighed again and stopped walking. "Not 'til Master Orgus showed up and kicked me in the ass to get me to best him."

And she still speaks to her dead Master.

"I couldn't have beaten the Emperor without your help, anyway." The Jedi girl touched Aurelia's arm with a soft sigh. "You can do this. You're strong enough, Aurelia. I know you are. Teeseven knows it, Rusk knows it, Doc knows it, Master Satele knows it… even Lord Grump in there knows it."

Scourge scoffed. "More soldiers are on their way," he called. "We must leave."

Aurelia caught his eyes with a huff but walked up the ramp anyway, the other Jedi trailing close behind her.