Chapter 1 - Prologue: A Shadow From The Past (1/2)

Place: unknown

Time: irrelevant

”God damn it!” I shouted as loud as I could, before becoming aware that I was no longer in the seat of my disintegrating Dragon. In a futile attempt to save a pair of ZAFT pilots whose Mobile Suits were wrecked, I got caught on the edge of the CYCLOPS system, just as it detonated under the EA headquarters in Alaska. The display screens in my X311's ċȯċkpit shattered one after another, showering me with pieces of their monitors. All I knew was a wave of unbelievable agony. The last thing I remember was the incredible heat that caused my blood to boil.

Then I was here. Again. The Earth was just as breathtaking as the first time I saw it from this position, all those months ago.

Ever since I ended in the GS universe, I flirted with death on countless battlefields, yet feeling it actually claim me was... Dying was disconcerting. ”I fuċkėd up and should be dead,” I said in a hollow voice.

”You should be. However, I made a deal,” a melodic voice sounded from behind me. It was the ethereal being who had plucked me from my home dimension the first time around.

I did not bother turning around. She liked her mysterious act and stayed invisible. For all I knew, she lacked a corporeal form to show me and anything I could see might be just more smoke and mirrors.

”Which means that I need to deal with another mess,” I stated.

”Correct. Then, if you do not get yourself killed, I'll be able to return you here shortly before JOSH-A was destroyed. I'll be nice and won't tell your girlfriend about that stunt you just pulled.”

I winced. Ever since I was sent here, I had to deal with a mountain of troubles, which became much harder when my ”favorite” ROB decided to become a chat buddy with my girlfriend. They had a lot of fun at my expense...

”Ahh. Don't pout. After all, she's the main reason I went to all that trouble of giving you a second chance.” Her voice became coy.

”Who needs to die this time?” I sighed.

”Funny you ask. You don't remember, do you?” The woman sighed. ”It was to be expected, yet...”

”What are you talking about?” I asked in confusion.

”One Republic Chancellor, a few of his cronies in the Senate, and the Separatist leadership. You have a war to end. It's all because you must prepare the galaxy to face the Vong. They aren't exactly what you expect, my Knight. Remember, the Vong must be stopped. Have fun!”

The curses that left my mouth were not fit for print.

=RK=

I awoke, slumped over the controls of a fighter. That's an upgrade from the shuttle ride where my last adventure started.

I frowned. There was something wrong with that thought.

This time, my mind was clear-er. There was no sign of the numbness that plagued me for a week after my previous trans-dimensional travel. Those were the high points of my situation.

Yet, even those thoughts felt wrong. Off. My mind was clear, true. I couldn't say the same about my memories. I could remember fighting to get as many Eurasian soldiers out of the CYCLOPS blast radius as if it happened minutes ago, nevertheless I knew decades passed since I got myself killed over there. My mind went to the image of Earth seared in my head. I haven't thought about my homeworld in a very long time. Nor about Natarle or my comrades. I couldn't afford to – that life was over. I don't know when exactly it happened. It wasn't a sudden decision but a gradual process until one day I awoke and going back home to 'Nat wasn't so important any more for I already had home here. I had sacrificed too much of myself to survive as a Sith. I tore my morals to shreds and I'm sure the person I used to be didn't really come out of the Sith Academy on Korriban. A slave went in there, a former Earth Federation Lieutenant Commander seconded to ONI. When I was permitted to leave to do my first master's dirty work, a Sith Acolyte left and that was over sixty years ago…

Then why the battle at JOSH-A where I died was so vivid in my mind? What did the entity say? That I had forgotten?

”Who you are, my Knight. Why are you fighting for. May you find your heart in this future. Until the end of the road, when we shall meet again, fare thee well, my Knight.” Her voice echoed in my head and I knew I won't be meeting her until the day I die.

Her words didn't make much sense. What did the Republic Chancellor had to die? Besides the fact he was the nominal leader of the enemy? What Separatists? There were just us, the Sith, our allies and the Republic with its own. Did someone on the Dark Council planned a coup or something, just like my supporters there did?

I closed my eyes and went over few meditation exercises to focus my mind. First I needed to figure out where I was then go join friendly forces so I could ȧssess the situation. What happened anyway? The last thing I recall… Ah. The battle above Korriban. The Republic was launching spoiling attacks in attempt to break our momentum as we were in the final stages of the preparation for our final ȧssault at the Core. I was caught out of position when the enemy arrived – in my fighter en route to a cruiser meant to bring me back to Dromund Kaas where I would be formally inducted as a member of the Dark Council.

Something happened during that battle, didn't it? I could vague recall the Force screaming a warning, then there was light and I was reliving my last engagement back on Earth. Whatever happened did a number on my memories. They felt quite scrambled yet otherwise my mind was clear. It was weird sensation.

On the bright side I couldn't feel any present danger which was reassuring. I took a few deep breaths and exhaled slowly finishing my last meditation exercise and opened my eyes.

I was in a cramped ċȯċkpit of a fighter I knew did not possess a hyperdrive and I had no idea where I was. My arms, which were clad in light and comfortable armored gloves, ran over the controls as I checked the status of my tiny ship. It was a modified Sith Interceptor, with a shield generator installed, as well as laser cannons with enhanced capacitors allowing a sustained rapid fire. Lastly, there were two racks of light proton torpedoes under the wings for attacks against hardened targets.

Yes, this was the ship I was in above Korriban. However said planet wasn't in sensor range, much less the two fleets viciously tearing at each other in orbit. I was reluctant to go with active sensors until I had better idea where I was stuck at.

As far as fighters go, my interceptor was a sweet killing machine – very good in a dogfight or even the odd bombing run. However, that did not help me with my current predicament. I was Force knew where, without a hyperdrive. I hoped that I won't be meeting my patron soon after suffocating. I sometimes called her ROB in my mind – as in Random Omnipotent Being, because she still hasn't properly introduced herself. Surely she didn't just drop in to troll me before I died? That's not the impression I got from her in our previous interaction, yet this latest meeting – it was off somehow.

Kriff it, what mess did I get myself in this time?!

I checked the starfighters sensors again. I could detect some gravitational disturbances at the edges of the scanner's range. So, there was probably at least one planet in the system. I hoped that it was inhabited or at least life bearing or I was kriffed beyond belief.

My hands ran over the controls and the Sith Interceptor's engines roared to life under my gentle touch. The nimble, little spacecraft carried me deeper into the system. I gave the autopilot a general course plot, and started checking what resources I had at my disposal.

I was wearing a black robe covered by durasteel armor. My head was protected by a mandalorian styled helmet, with an integrated computer projecting a small HUD display on which the status of my armor, oxygen supply, and shields were shown. It was good to know that I had some additional protection aside from the laminated sheets of durasteel and armored weave of my robe. I knew exactly what punishment it could handle so there was no need to test it. While my current outfit wasn't as durable as a proper heavy armor, it could still handle a lot of the stuff usually thrown my way, besides it was much more comfortable to wear that my Mandalorian crafted Cortosis Assault Suit.

My armor had some neat features. Like a dart launcher on the left arm guard, with knock out, poison and ion enhanced munitions – the last was for taking out droids. I was armed with a pair of heavy blaster pistols, and had four power cells for each. For tougher situations, I had a pair of thermal detonators, four frag grenades and two ion pulse grenades. For a moment, I thought that I was making a great impression of a Mando bounty hunter and I should know considering I've been posting as one a handful of times while doing odd jobs for either Baras or Imperial Intelligence.

I blinked in confusion. What the hell? Where did all those memories came from? I'm sure I just died back on Earth. The Kriff? That was decades ago! Did the other Sith do something to my mind? Or perhaps the Jedi?

A lance of pain split my skull at that thought. No. Not Jedi. What was I trying to recall? Acting as a bounty hunter but not really? I focused through the pain as I was taught back in the academy and the memories I was looking for surfaced… slowly and painfully but here they were.

Sith. I could remember now. Orders. Locations all over the galaxy – hunt down and dispose of low grade Sith who had went off the reservation and caused trouble for the Empire.

Wait what? Palpatine's Empire? Why would I need to take out a Chancellor or Separatists leaders then… Palpatine? Who was that and when did he got himself an Empire? The only Empire worthy of the title was ours.