A TRUE BORN SERN

"Apprentice, I see you've touched down on Alderaan. Jaesa Willsaam and your home planet, where Nomen Karr found her. Excellent. You will discover everything you can about this Padawan, and destroy everyone she loves there." Baras seems to be excited about destroying things on this planet. He did openly express his hate for her mother years ago, that would never change.

"What are we trying to achieve?"

"It is the same mandate as Tatooine. Assault Jaesa from afar, stir her emotions and flush her to the surface." The Darth continued to give out his instructions. "Unfortunately, with the civil war for the Alderaanian throne raging, your contact, Duke Kendoh of House Thul, has become unreliable. Kendoh was supposed to find Jaesa Willsaam's family for you, but it seems he's distracted. You must undistract him."

"I will handle it."

"Kendoh is a political creature – the consequences of failing me are abstract for him. Once they are made concrete, he'll cooperate. You'll find him in the House Thul executive chambers. Make haste." When Baras ending communication, Leena gestured Quinn to proceed as what was discussed before they arrived on Alderaan space.

Luckily, all she had to deal with was a single person despite her dislike for the idea of politics. In terms of her own family however, she only had little knowledge. Such as the fact that the Republic and the Jedi killed her when the Battle of Alderaan happened decades back.

She took a deep breath before opening the Holocron after a long time. Upon seeing Zylas, Leena proceeded to sit down on her bed and ask the question: "Should I know anything… about how things work on Alderaan?"

"Now why in the galaxy would you go to Alderaan?"

Leena proceeded. "There's a civil war going on and I have a task to do on that planet. What do I need to know?"

Zylas didn't have any intention of hiding this from her. The truth would have come out eventually when the child finally meets her grandmother. "House Sern is not a large house but it is a proud one, they serve as a vassal house of House Organa for thousands of years. They say that an individual from our family has the strength of around ten Republic troopers. They won't support you as my heir."

"I'm not going there for inheritance." Leena corrected. "I don't like surprises, mother. What's your history on Alderaan?"

"I was born as your grandfather's youngest child and the only child gifted with the Force." Zylas began to tell her tale. "My Force abilities began to manifest at the age of ten, with Alderaan being a Republic allied world – he thought that it was for the best, for the Jedi to take me away and be trained, sacrificing every potential that I could grasp for our family for a life of detachment."

"You were a Jedi?" Leena raised her brow in doubt.

"I was never Knighted." Zylas shook her head sideways. "I was a mere Padawan… when I found the Dark Side too… appealing. Too tempting to ignore. My training never prepared me for what the galaxy had to offer. The Jedi was not my calling."

"What do you mean?"

"I was only fifteen when I realized that… I have been searching for a life, far greater than an ordinary Jedi. A life that I could find some significance to my purpose to the galaxy – a kind of calling that the Order wouldn't understand. I realized that… only through the Sith, I can achieve a power far greater than my own Master and the Masters before him."

"So it is true." She remembered Master Yonlach's words back on Tatooine. "You were Master Yonlach's Padawan."

"So, the old man managed to outlive me." She couldn't help but smirk in amusement. "Did you kill him?"

"No." The apprentice answered honestly. "I allowed him to live."

Zylas frowned. "You allowed a man such as him to live? That is not how the way of the Sith, you should have killed him when you had a chance." And there it was – the faint shade of yellow of her eyes. It was as if Zylas was keeping something, some sort of façade that she was trying to sell to the apprentice. "Master Yonlach was considered to be the greatest teacher of his time and a valuable asset to the Jedi Code. Imagine the damage the Order would receive if they lost such a Jedi? Always remember that the Force is conflict. The Jedi only understand the Force only partially, they fail to comprehend the fundamental nature of the Force: That it is conflict."

"Master Yonlach does not deserve death—"

"And you do not deserve my lightsaber." Leena stood there rather shocked. The words of her own mother gave her some sort of pain within the depths of her own heart. She could clearly see those corrupted yellow eyes, with a slight shade of orange – it was clear where her alignment was with the Force. The imbalance seemed so great and at the same time, she hoped, she believed of the illusion that her mother was good and kindly turned out to be a lie.

Made sense, a Padawan turned Sith would never remain kind. "You wish to be a true blood Sern? This is what being a Sern is – ripping out your enemies one by one before they could even try and strangle you in your sleep. We were once proud warriors of our House and your grandfather and your uncles were all weak. They didn't deserve to breathe. Victory or death."

As Quinn proceeded to land the ship in the spaceport, he continued his duties before he could call out his Lord. She probably already got the idea that they already arrived. Vette, on the other hand, was by her chambers, cleaning her blasters as she recalled the conversation Leena had with her old man.

For a woman like Leena, she could be considered a woman with an uncanny background. The Sith have always been a brutal order as they are chained with the dark side of the Force. Be one with the darkness and become the monsters that most do not even dare to be. They all have a choice – and regardless, they chose to follow her regardless.

Everyone is a monster to someone.

The villain is a hero, and the hero is the villain. Two sides of the same coin, what's painful was that the coins were of the same blood. The Force plays the strings of destiny in such a cruel and painful way, and only people like them can continue spinning the coin until it is done.

'Listen.' The voice spoke in her mind as the apprentice proceeded to head out her chambers. Having herself equipped with her armor, and her helmet being held by her hands. Leena took a deep breath, unable to avoid the noises in her head. 'I feel that you are so close, yet so far.'

When the three of them departed, leaving 2V alone in the ship again – the apprentice proceeded to waltz it the Thul estate. Wondering if she should even dare visit House Ser near Organa lands without any trouble, and with the dire circumstances of the planet – it was rather difficult to even achieve what she had originally planned. Despite having sufficient information from both of her parents, the Sith was still wary about the whole thing.

"You lack patience, Duke Kendoh." The Sith heard a voice as she entered the chambers of her connection on Alderaan. "There are standard procedures that must be adhered to.

Another Alderaanian noble from the holoterminal spoke. "Your disregard for our family rules is appalling. You are an abomination. Goodbye, cousin!"

"Fools." The Duke began to mumble. "They won't be feeling much of anything for long—"

"Duke Kendo," Leena spoke behind the mask as usual. "Darth Baras sent me."

"What? You're not on my schedule. I don't appreciate being interrupted. Baras isn't even on my radar, Sith. I have a war to wage and personal ambition to achieve here." The Sith didn't appreciate the tone, considering the number of problems she already has on her plate.

"Is breathing one of your personal ambitions?" She could kill him there and now if she felt like it.

"A threat? You see these Sith I have attending me? Your corpse will be my message to your Master." If she had five credits for every time someone said she'll die, she would be the richest woman in the galaxy by now. As the Duke continued to speak, he sat down by the couch and proceeded to give out orders. "FimmRess, make this intruder a distant memory, will you?"

"I'm sorry, Duke Kendoh, we are assigned to protect you and support your interest in the struggle for Alderaan. But we serve the Emperor first. And we do not cross Darth Baras or his apprentice." At least the Sith assigned to him had some sense.

"It's good to know some people have respect."

"We consider you an ally, friend." The Sith in the room began to bow in the presence of the masked apprentice.

"Uh, okay, that was unexpected… It seems I may have been hasty regarding your master's needs. How can I make amends?" The Duke offered his services to her.

"You can start by bowing to me, too."

"Of course," He did as was asked. "Consider it a small demonstration of my repentance. I pledge the same level of focus that had me so absorbed in my own work. I pledge myself to your directives, and as I aid you, perhaps you'll be moved to help me in mine."

"Unless your directives involve your suicide, I won't be participating."

"Point taken. I hope time will improve our relationship." The Duke smiled in her presence while the apprentice frowns behind her mask. She didn't want to do anything with this man of personal ambition. Perhaps keeping her connections to House Sern, a secret was wise for now. Baras wasn't an idiot – so was Leena. "As I recall, Darth Baras wanted information on a young Alderaanian girl who was taken off-planet to train with Jedi Master Nomen Karr. I was to locate her family so that you could, well, send this girl a message."

"For your sake, I hope you were successful." Leena crossed her arms, not wanting to deal with him any more than necessary.

"The truth is…" Leena just mentally sighed. "…information about this girl is difficult to come by. I managed only one lead. Nomen Karr's Padawan first the description of the former handmaiden of a noblewoman in House Sern named Lady Aletra. I'd have questioned her already, but Aletra is protected by House Sern's greatest champion. The man has never met his match in melee."

"He's never met me." Claimed the Sith apprentice.

"If I may, once you've eliminated her protector and gotten what you need… I would be personally very indebted if you'd arranged to have Lady Aletra brought to us. For questioning."

"Don't tell me what to do, Kendoh." She didn't really appreciate it regardless of his sudden polite tone throughout the conversation.

"I apologize if that sounded like a declaration. It was simply a request. While House Sern is a small player on Alderaan, it is affiliated with House Organa." This is one interesting information indeed. "Therefore, Lady Aletra's estate is hostile territory and very well-defended. Be cautious."

"Caution is for worms like you."

"I won't argue with you there." The Duke spoke in a polite voice still, maintaining his image in front of the Sith apprentice. "I do hope to see you soon. Until then."

When the Duke bowed as he watched the Sith and her companions leave the estate, Vette couldn't hold her comment for much longer. "House Sern, huh? What are the odds."

"Permission to sp—" Leena turned to meet Quinn's eyes. He cleared his throat remembering what he and Leena spoke about permission. "Yes, well. It seems that Duke Kendoh will not give us accommodations for our stay."

"And I don't think inns are a thing here on Alderaan. Everything looks expensive." Vette added on.

"Then let's hope that House Sern will take us in, in secret or else we will have to camp out or sleep in the ship." Even if Leena could afford at least three beds in an inn, she wasn't going to spend who knows how much to stay on this planet. Especially when she didn't know how long this might take.

The three of them proceeded with their journey under the blue skies of Alderaan. Unlike Tatooine that had the company of the blazing heat of the twin suns. This planet had a calmer atmosphere to it if one would ignore the political civil war that was going on about.

Leena wondered if her grandmother would even accept her in their home, regardless of what her mother did in the past. The apprentice had a hint on what her mother did but she also needed some sort of confirmation.

They would stop by the side of the road from time to time, resting their legs as the apprentice could slowly feel the cold coming from the mountains. And she thought the rain on Dromand Kaas was irritating to her skin, perhaps the Alderaan snow could be placed on the top list of the things she hates. The cold was never kind to her.

When they managed to arrive by the gates of the Sern estate, guards and droids were on standby with their guns out and had the boldness to even point them towards the Sith. "State your business, Sith."

"I'm here to see Lady Aletra," Leena spoke rather casually as her companions were hesitating on taking out their blasters, but the Sith raised her hand, assuring them that there won't be any need for them.

"Your name."

"Leena Sern." The guards looked at each other for a while before lowering their blasters. Granting them safe passage and clearance to the main building of the estate to see the Lady Aletra. Vette would look around to see what kind of displays were here and there, Quinn, on the other hand, had his complete guard up in case there was an ambush towards his Lord.

Guards within the estate would give odd stares towards the Sith. She completely understood why they wouldn't trust a Sith like her, they had every reason to doubt a Sith visitor. Guided by one of the handmaidens when they reached the foyer, the silence just grew colder when they walked deeper into the halls.

Leena found herself in front of a well-guarded door at the end of the hall, it all felt familiar to her. When the doors swung open, the handmaiden directed only the Sith to be inside and her companions are to remain. She nodded in silence as she entered, she found a woman seated by the couch with a cup of tea in her hand.

She gave this regal and yet commanding presence. She didn't have those grey eyes but from the way she was carrying herself – she was indeed the Lady regent of House Sern. Her champion spoke. "My Lady, we have an intruder."

"The things we do for love." She said as she placed her cup by the table gently.

Her blue eyes turned to the Sith. She stood up with a cane on her right, it seemed heavy to be just an ordinary cane. Lady Aletra didn't speak and the apprentice immediately spoke her terms. "Lady Aletra, I seek a family of your former handmaiden, Jaesa Willsaam."

"Lady," spoke her guard. "Let me kill this Sith as the last one Duke Kendoh sent."

"Windredd, you will do no such thing." The old lady sighed as she turned her attention back to the Sith, observing her from head to toe. "This one is a member of this family. Don't be rude to your grandmother and remove that damn helmet, you look like a bucket of bolts."

Leena blinked a few times and did as she was told. Lady Aletra walked towards the girl, placing her hand onto her cheek, observing every angle she could find. She had the exact face of her late daughter Zylas, and she didn't need the Force to know that the Sith was somehow nervous about her presence. "I've been fending off Duke Kendoh's advances for some time now, child." The woman spoke sternly as she sat back down on her couch.

She did seem to be a woman of great importance despite their tribute to the Alderaan civil war, they aren't major players and it seems that her grandmother didn't have much interest in it anyway. "I can assume you were here for him but here I am, assuming you want your rightful place as the Lady of this House. Am I wrong?"

"Yes." The girl nodded, which caught the interest of the old woman. "I'm looking for Jaesa Willsaam's family. Kendoh told me that she used to be your former handmaid."

The woman chuckled in delight. "Kendoh is nothing more than a liar. I was very much aware of a young handmaiden who left Alderaan with a Jedi Master, he has tricked you, child. The girl or her family never served me. To think that such a low life dared to misinform you, does he know who you are?"

"No. All he knows is that I am an apprentice of a Dark Lord he promised to cooperate with."

Before their conversation could go any further, the door swung open again with the handmaiden from earlier coming in with fear in her eyes. "M-my Lady, fo-forgive me but these… Sith demand your audience."

Leena turned around to find FimmRess and the other Sith coming through the door, Lady Aletra didn't even dare to stand up from her seat. "Forgive me, but I'm sure Duke Kendoh will double his efforts to help you find what you seek." He addresses to the apprentice. "The Duke congratulates you on your impressive venture into House Sern, I'm here to take the fair lady to him."

"This should be rich." The old lady couldn't help but mock as her guard was already to attack when she commands.

"Surely you have some more… useful information than Duke Kendo, my Lady?" A well-mannered Sith was presented.

"Of course, I do." Claimed her grandmother. "Before the girl left with the Jedi Master, Jaesa Willsaam was the handmaiden of Gesselle Organa of House Organa. They were inseparable even. Before the war, Gesselle was an aristocrat like myself and now, she leads the Organa troops against House Ulgo."

"That's an excellent lead, thank you."

"Good, you were raised with manners, unlike Kendoh."

"I will… take that as a compliment." Leena noted for herself as her companions entered the room to see that there were no hostile activities, yet.

"The duke will know where to find Gesselle Organa and how to reach her." Offered FimmRess. "If you let me deliver Lady Aletra to him, I'm sure Kendoh will happily shed light on the situation for you."

"The lady isn't going anywhere." Leena didn't need to think about this whole situation.

"Ah, you also have a sense of honor. Good thing you didn't take after your grandfather… or your blasted mother." Lady Aletra's words caught the attention of the Sith. Sure, she didn't know much of her family on Alderaan but, deep down inside she wanted to know and probably reconnect what she had lost all those years ago.

"Fine. As I said, I will not oppose you, nor will I defy your decision here. I meant what I said, I'm sure Kendoh can help you find and confront Gesselle. You should consult with him on it."

"Tell him to expect me in the morning."

"I will update Kendoh so he is ready for you." When FimmRess and his men left, Leena gestured for her companions to wait outside still until she was done. Aletra, on the other hand, gave specific instructions for her guard and her handmaiden to leave as well, granting her granddaughter's companions a room for them to stay for the time being.

When they were left alone, there was an awkward silence surrounding them but there was no nervous tension. The girl had more questions running around her head, this was the first time she spoke and met with someone who had the same blood as hers after so long. Even after she found out what her mother did, Leena couldn't help but feel all of this rather familiar.

"I hold you in high esteem, granddaughter." Aletra finally broke the silence as she gestured the girl to sit down beside her. "I only hope you make that worm Kendoh pay for misleading you. Take nothing he says at face value."

The apprentice took the offer and sat down. Aletra continued to speak. "Last time I saw you… you were nothing but a small babe. Your grandfather was so bold as to smuggle men to Dromand Kaas and managed to bring all four of you back on Alderaan if I could remember your youngest was a newborn babe at the time. Now, look at you," She turned her gaze to the Sith with a smirk on her lips. "A grown woman… who foolishly followed her mother's footsteps. You look like your mother, but you're nothing like her. You probably take after your father."

"Probably," Leena couldn't help but repeat that word. "I've been separated from my father for some time now. I don't know what he's like anymore."

"So why did you come back? Since you don't want your inheritance as the Lady of this House." The old woman asked as she stood up, pouring some tea onto an empty cup and offering it to the Sith.

Upon taking the cup, the girl took a small sip. "I'm honestly here for a task that my Master assigned me, about that girl I asked you about. As for the political part, I know very well that I will never be acknowledged by Organa or the other Lords as the rightful heiress to this family, especially when you support the Republic and as a warrior of the Sith Empire, I'm supposed to support House Thul."

"I'm glad to hear that you have educated yourself before coming here," Aletra sighed. "Nevertheless, your cousins Norin and Anthony are somewhat in a power struggle of their own. Tell me, child, do you still wish to be the heiress?"

"I have too much on my plate," Leena openly admitted as she looked down on her cup. She had a different kind of goal in mind then be part of a nonsense political struggle. "I don't want it."

"A galaxy is a cruel place," The Sith turned her attention to her grandmother as she repeated the word Zylas said not too long ago. "And it is cruelest to the weak. Years ago, a Sith Lord who claimed to be… well acquainted with your mother spoke to me about your development. Perhaps the Force smiles on you, Leena, perhaps you are a good person."

"I'm not a politician." She wasn't an aristocrat like her grandmother, she was raised differently. She knew nothing of the Alderaanian cultures or its traditions, how its government works. "And I'm certainly not a good person if you only knew… the things I've done."

But all her grandmother did was muster a smile. "We don't need more politicians, it's not more speeches in this family that will bring back what we have lost. House Sern is dying. Perhaps you don't but I can see it," Aletra continued as she placed her hand under the girl's chin and had Leena meet her eyes. "You, my dear, are capable of creating a legacy of your own."

When Aletra sat back down on the couch, she continued to speak. "Your cousins cannot be trusted," She boldly spoke. "One of their heart lies with the greed for power. A civil war in this family can be inevitable."

"And you think that bloodshed will even save this family?"

"You are not meant to save them. You are meant to lead them, inspire." Leena could see the sparkle in Aletra's eyes. As if she found a rare crystal from the dirt that was worth more than any credit in the galaxy.

"You don't even know me."

"You cannot think like an ordinary being, you must reach beyond mortal ambition and do what has never been done." This whole conversation felt familiar to the apprentice, but instead of speaking – the girl just continued to listen.

"Survive, my child," Aletra spoke with confidence as she gently placed her hand on the apprentice's cheek. "You need to be a true-born Sern if you wish to survive this galaxy."