Preface

The story that I want to tell you cannot be found in a datapad or taught by some fancy historians.

They say that the years that spanned between the Jedi Civil War and the rebuilding of the Jedi Order were the darkest period that the galaxy had ever seen. Whether the Old Republic was lost or won in the end… well, you'll have to decide that for yourself.

However, the story that I am going to tell you is true. I was there, in the heart of the wars, and I remember.

There was something different.

It was quiet within the small, airless room. A woman sat soundlessly in the darkest corner of the enclosure, shrinking beneath her tangled mess of auburn hair. A steady ray of sunlight peeked through a slit in the dull wall behind her, illuminating the beads of sweat that blotched across her greying forehead. She looked frail and ill, almost lifeless; despite the slow rise and collapse of her chest as she struggled through labored breaths.

Her body was surrounded by tall electric walls of energy, humming with the live threat to burn the very flesh from her bones if she were to lean against or reach through them. Of course, this would prove to be a difficult action as her wrists were currently bound tightly behind her hips, held in place with a pair of heavy metal clasps.

This was, truly, a miserable sight to behold… to the kind eye.

However, this sight was something that the man on the opposite side of the room was unusually accustomed to witnessing.

He, much in contrast to the woman, had a bored expression plastered across his young, striking face. His deep brown eyes were cold and empty and his emotions equally so; careless, unenthusiastic and nonchalant to the exposure of his captive's pain. He felt no pity, he felt no agony, and he certainly felt no remorse for what he was planning to do to the woman next...

Killing Jedi was this man's specialty, and very few assassins could match his skills in torture. He had been trained to hunt and destroy his enemies –both physically and mentally– and it was a job he did not take lightly. And, as an added bonus, this man had a skill that many non-Jedi humans did not possess; the ability to block his mind and mask his presence, allowing him to avoid detection or being probed by Jedi.

Most Jedi, upon the realization that this man's mind was inaccessible to them, would admit defeat and abandon their attempts to push past his mental blockade. And yet, today –very unlike any other day– the young man could not get this particular woman to break.

There was something different about this Jedi woman.

She would not give up.

She would not let go.

She would not die.

"Jaq,"

The man's ears twitched at the sound of the woman's raspy voice, and his gaze flicked cautiously towards her with anticipation. Her head rolled slowly upwards, revealing a set of tired and sunken eyes that sent an icy chill down the man's rigid spine.

This time, when he looked upon her, he felt different.

There had been rumors spreading like a wild-fire throughout Nar Shaddaa that promised wealth to any man (or woman) who sought employment at the mining facility within the Peragus asteroid fields. I hadn't really expected these 'get rich quick' rumors to be a lie, but -as with most rumors- I fully anticipated the possibility of disappointment.

So, obviously (as bitter as I was to admit it) my journey to Peragus wasn't really just a simple ploy to gain some hard-earned pazaak money. Sure, easy wealth would have made the entire gallivant across the galaxy a bit more worth-while, but, if I am being completely honest with myself; that was not my initial reasoning. My initial reasoning was to escape; escape the Refugee Sector on Nar Shaddaa that I had spent five years of my life hiding within, escape the twisted mess that I had begun to weave, and -most importantly- escape from myself.

My decision to escape to Peragus had been quite a spur-of-the-moment decision, which was very unlike me. Call it what you will; destiny, fate, utter stupidity… regardless, I was committed. And at first, I was pleased with my decision! I was making money, I was keeping busy, and I was blending in quite well with the mundane crowd of miners.

Then the dreams began. No, scratch that, nightmares.

And these constant nightmares that I was having –or, reliving, if you want to be more precise– began to drive me towards the verge of insanity. So, like any sane person would do, I sought out some medical assistance from Mrs. Nurse at the Peragus medbay. At first, Mrs. Nurse was very helpful in offering me a cure for my 'anxiety dreams' in the form of a very large, very painful injection. However, after three more returns to the medbay, Mrs. Nurse became rather stubborn.

"I highly doubt you are still in need of this medicine, Mr. Rand. Long-term complications will ensue if you continue to inject such a high-dosage antidote on a regular basis. Perhaps you should give meditation a try."

Ah, yes. Mrs. Nurse had become a bitch.

Perhaps she was sour towards me for not ever calling her by her parent-given name –Korlyyn, or something hideous like that– though I wasn't about to give her the satisfaction. Especially now, after she had refused to give me the medicine that I most certainly needed. Liver be damned, I did not care if this injection would be the cause of my death. I needed to keep the nightmares at bay. I needed the "knock your ass out and hope to wake up in the morning" kind of antidote. I needed that medicine.

…

I could never convincingly lie to myself.

Regardless, this is where my sequence of luck took a sharp left and careened over a cliff edge. Originally, my plan was solid; I hid within the medbay until Mrs. Nurse retired for the night, I broke into the medical database to locate my desired treatment, I stole the injection, I returned to my quarters un-noticed, and I reveled in my success. And I would have gotten away with it, too, if it hadn't been for my meddling moof-milker of a roommate, who had caught me injecting a dose. Or three.

I can hardly say that I blamed him for his blabbing trap, though. Everyone who worked at the mining facility was looking for a moment of glory, in any way that the opportunity presented itself; whether it be fixing things, accomplishing things, or turning in your drug-addict of a roommate. We all –and I say 'we' lightly, because I wasn't really participating in this popularity contest– wanted a chance to stand out.

Subsequent to my "security violation" -as the guards so eloquently put it- I was promptly apprehended and tossed into the comfortable safety of a Force cage.

Ah –wait– did I say comfortable? I meant cramped.

Author Note:

On 5/14/17 15 chapters of this story were completely pulled, and are being edited and re-uploaded.

You can check out the cover art for this fic in higher detail in my profile. The link is located in my bio.

Let me know if you find any errors within the story, and feedback is always amazing! :) Love.