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Synopsis:
After the Sith Empire lost the Battle of Alderaan, Darth
Malgus felt rage burn through his body. He was unwilling
to believe that the Empire had lost Alderaan to the
Republic. Malgus felt the presence of a light side user
and demanded that his pilot take him back. He scoured
the area searching in the force for the light side user.
Initially there was nothing, but then he felt him. He
instructed the pilot to hover above the ruins until he
returned although he was seriously wounded. A Zabrak
Jedi revealed himself and ignited his blue blade and the
two engaged.
A boy named Veradun followed his father into the
families private zoo that was financed by the Empire.
Veradun's father told him that he enjoyed the animals so
much because he could learn much from them. When the
child asked what, the father instructed Veradun to
follow. The father led Veradun to a Kouhun tank and
lifted a feeder rat above it from a nearby cage. The
father dropped the rat in the tank and the kouhun bit it
in half. The father asked Veradun why the kouhun killed
the rat as Veradun had fed it only moments before. The
boy answered that it was instinct. The lesson from that
animal was that savagery was the provence of animals,
not men and that savagery was only useful if it was
controlled and put in service to an end.
Malgus realized that his bloodlust and anger had allowed
him to be sloppy and overlook the Jedi's power. Malgus
allowed himself to control his anger attacked the Jedi,
blocking large amounts of rubble. Malgus came to the
conclusion that he could have ended the Jedi at any
time, but he needed the satisfaction of a lightsaber
kill.
Veradun's father showed him the viirsun next, a avian
the Veradun found particularly boring. The mother fed
the viirsun offspring some partially digested insects.
But the offspring quickly attacked the mother and killed
her. As it turned out, the viirsun wasn't one and was
actually a mimnil - a creature that looked like a
juvenile viirsun and had actually killed the viisun
offspring and waited for the mother. The lesson was that
Veradun must trust no one, least of all those who appear
weak.
Malgus was surprised when he felt another Jedi in the
force. The Jedi switched on his lightsaber, but was
quickly killed by Malgus when the Sith crushed his
windpipe. Malgus felt a quick flash of anger from the
Jedi and the two fought once more. Malgus let Force
lightning strike the Jedi, but he continued to fight
never the less. When Malgus channeled more power into
the Jedi, he fell to his knees... beaten.
Veradun's father led him to a cage with a tarp over it.
Veradun thought it must be new to the zoo, as he had
never seen it before. His father told Veradun that the
boy's instructors had seen few with his talents in the
force and that he would be a great warrior. The father
walked away telling Veradun to look inside the cage and
figure out the third lesson. When the boy pulled the
tarp off it, the cage was empty and realization struck
home.
Malgus turned off his lightsaber as a confused Jedi
pondered why. But Malgus stepped forward and activated
his lightsaber in the Jedi's chest. The look in the
Jedi's eyes had said, mercy from a Sith? The question in
the Jedi's eyes was once Malgus had asked himself
countless times and one that his father had tried to
tell him. Sometimes there was just a empty cage. |