THE MEANING OF LOYALTY

Leena did as what General Gesselle said. When she proceeded, she could feel the sense of fear into these remaining men. "All right, men, this is it. With the captain d-dead, it falls on m-me to rally what's left of us. I-I guess the reinforcements aren't gonna make it. We better get ready. Ulgo forces are fast approaching. I can feel the tunnel walls sh-shaking."

"Consider us your reinforcements." Spoke the Sith as she basically barged into their camp. The remaining men had the sense of pulling out their blasters, open ready to fire when commanded.

"Lieutenant, we've been flanked!"

"No, wait!" The Lieutenant raised his hand, ordering the men to lower their weapons. "General Gesselle sent word that a Sith would be coming to our air, but I thought I must have misheard her."

"Sir, I'm not trusting a Sith. No way."

"We're drastically outnumbered. Sergeant. The General's given order and besides, without help, we die for sure." Looking at their numbers of only five, there was no way they could survive if House Ulgo sends multiple waves in their way. This was basically a war, but even their General didn't have a choice when the offer stood in front of her.

It was the Sith or send her men to death and lose their only position on the front lines. "The rest of the men and me aren't sticking around for a suicide run!"

"If you men follow the sergeant, you'll miss a great victory," Leena claimed. Men who run from their duty are no men at all.

"If we stay, either Ulgo kills us or the Sith does. Who's leaving with me?" The sergeant seems to be determined.

"Uh, I don't think so, Sarge." One of the men denied the offer. "Maybe with the Sith at our side we can repel the attack."

"Yeah and I don't relish the idea of being a deserter anyway."

"Glad to hear it, men. Sergeant, you are relieved. And I will report this to General Gesselle personally."

"Now you're sounding like a leader, Lieutenant." The Sith managed to give out praise. Though if the Sergeant was Zabro's man he wouldn't be breathing for long.

The Lieutenant turned around and faced the Sith with a rather more confident expression than earlier. "Even though I understand the instinct to run, desertion can't be tolerated. Get out of here, Sergeant. Let the real soldiers fight the good fight."

As the Sergeant was being dismissed, the Sith turned to the tunnel exit as she could feel several men heading towards their way. One of the soldiers finally spoke out. "Lieutenant, the Ulgo forces are coming now! What do we do?"

"Stand your ground and fight like men!" Leena spoke rather sternly, her Captain noticed that immediately as he and Vette pulled out their blasters as the Lieutenant ordered his remaining men to take their positions for the fight.

Unlike the previous times, both of her companions noticed that their Lord immediately ignited two lightsabers. She was sending these men to slaughter, but they stood by her anyway as they took their aim.

When the cold winds began to blow, Quinn could feel the rush of adrenaline through his body. He hasn't been in a situation like this for a long time, and under the service of his Lord, he stood there in awe. His Lord stood tall and proud when the Ulgo forces proceeded with their firepower and the Sith did not hesitate to charge towards them.

Bold and brave, she had the speed and the strength of a warrior. It was like she was the very embodiment of what the Empire stands for. She was strong, he knew that from the very beginning as he tracked her progress and there he was – seeing the very limit of her strength, perhaps, he even thought of his calculations wrong and there was more to her power than what has been demonstrated at that moment.

He and Vette watched her back, shooting any soldier who dared to stab their Lord at the back. It was useless to resist her power, and he was marveling at her achievements.

She was more than a Sith, she was a warrior.

Even the task of identifying the enemy can be difficult and that the cause of that failure can lead to catastrophe. There are only two groups who possess this ability, the Jedi and the Sith. Quinn very much understood that the Sith are proven to be more capable warriors – as his Lord demonstrated time and time again.

She carried the wrath of the Empire.

When the first wave was finished, the Lieutenant rushed towards the Sith Lord who, like the rest, felt the burning adrenaline through her body. "That was… that was amazing! They just kept coming and coming, and you… you're a war machine!"

"I appreciate your observation."

"Uh, you might want to stop all the chatter," Vette interjected herself into the conversation.

Quinn followed immediately after the Twi'lek. "My Lord, the enemy is still in the tunnel regrouping for another attack. We must be ready."

"Pretend to be weak so they may grow arrogant." A code to herself that she followed for years, leading up to her current state. "Let them come. They'll find I'm more than their match." 'If he is taking his ease, give him no rest. If his forces are united, separate them. Attack him where he is unprepared, appear where you are not expected.'

"Here they come!" When the next wave of Ulgo soldiers arrived, the Sith immediately jumped into the action swinging her lightsabers as if there was no tomorrow. Quinn wasn't so surprised, after all, she was trained to kill for years. The galaxy is built by killers and he was already used to looking at them.

Vette was doing well to hold herself with the soldiers, holding her blasters well and had such an accurate aim. Not as accurate as his, but as long as she could shoot down Ulgo soldiers, she was working with their Lord's convenience.

Though Leena had two lightsabers on her hands, Quinn noticed the struggle she was having to make sure that those soldiers didn't have the time to actually strike her down. The glorious mysteries of the Force were unknown to him and he couldn't help but be irritated when Vette rushed out of the line and towards their Lord.

"Vette! Come back here!" He tried even when he knew that Vette wouldn't listen. But he was proven wrong, when the Twi'lek stood by Leena's side – they had a kind of tandem that matched every rhythm as if it was a song. A kind of chorus that was being sung in the dark.

Leena knew where to swing and Vette knew where to dodge as she fired her shots. It shouldn't even surprise him considering the years they have been together. They were synchronized as if their mind and souls were one and the same.

He had underestimated Vette, and somewhat, underestimated the loyalty that his Lord had gained over the years. He found a new kind of respect towards her.

"Th—there's blood all over me!" The Lieutenant screamed when the second wave of slaughter was done. "It's everywhere! Everywhere!"

"Calm down, Lieutenant," Leena spoke softly as she walked back to the line, as she turned off her lightsabers. "Your wounds are superficial."

When the Lieutenant finally calmed down, he gave a firm nod towards the Sith. The Captain immediately noticed that Vette was rushing back to where they were, he didn't even notice that Leena went back on her own. "Hey, I just snuck a peek into the tunnel. There's a heap of those laser brains getting ready for another swipe."

Quinn observed the tunnel exit and acknowledged the information. "My Lord, Ulgo reinforcements are approaching. It sounds like an entire battalion. I believe the worst is yet to come."

"Then let's stay sharp." The Lord acknowledged as she ignited her lightsabers once more. "And Vette, no more running into the battlefield."

"Can't make any promises!"

"Get ready to be overrun!" The Lieutenant found the boldness to still stand in the front lines with his remaining men. With the Sith by their side, he had the slightest ray of hope that he could survive this and go home to his family.

The Sith has power this galaxy has yet to see, the potential of a Sern was considered to be limited and yet no one really knew where that limit was. She continued to slaughter the Ulgo forces, for a moment, she might have found stronger than fear.

Fear isn't the only way to power and victory, even though it was known to be the Sith way.

She could see herself slicing soldiers left to right – and the next moment, everything was black. Holding her lightsabers still, the girl turned around wanting to know what's happening. Though this wasn't the first time this happened to the Sith, she was very much aware that this is the wrong time to be experiencing this.

She turned around one more time to find a Jedi, looking directly into her eyes. He seemed to be around the same age as her, short black hair, tall and physically fit. The Jedi robes seemed to be hard to miss but, what caught her attention, even more, were the pair of grey eyes that were staring right into her soul. Like her, he held his lightsaber as if he was also in the middle of a battle.

His double-bladed green lightsaber was severely connected to its wielder, a lightsaber that he created himself unlike hers.

It didn't seem like another vision. To her, it seemed so real.

"Sith." The Jedi spoke in shock. They were in a similar confused situation that even they couldn't find the answers to understand this.

"And you're a Jedi," Leena spoke what's in her mind. With everything she learned through the years, she didn't know what to make of this. "What's happening?"

"I should be asking you that." She paused for a moment. The voices in her head, it was him.

"You… you were the voice. The voice in my head!"

"So are you." The expression of confusion didn't leave his face. It was like they were two different puzzles that no one could answer. The fact that she found a Jedi in front of her wasn't the fact that bothered the Sith. What bothered her more was the similarities they have in appearance. He had this power lingering inside of him – a very familiar power as if they knew each other from long ago.

But nothing in her memory confirmed this.

"You called me brother… in a dream once." The Jedi spoke as he was determined to gain the answers he dreamt of for years. "You told me that I abandoned you… but I don't know who you are."

"Impossible." Leena shook her head, as she denied it. She never saw this Jedi in a dream, she only heard his voice regardless if she was awake or asleep. "My brothers are both dead. They were murdered… by Jedi like you!"

"What is your name, Sith?"

Before she could even open her mouth, she found herself in the middle of a field with lifeless soldiers scattered on the ground. She shook her head, wondering if that was all a vision or if it was something real. "I-It's a miracle… the Ulgo forces are retreating. You… you did it!" The Lieutenant rushed towards the Sith with such praise.

They were alive because of her.

"I… couldn't have done it without you, Lieutenant." Leena just ignored the feeling of loss for a moment. Her conversation with the Jedi felt so, real.

"You are too… too kind, Sith." The Lieutenant smiled. "I'll get General Gesselle on the holo for you. She'll be very relieved." He took out his holocom and did what he promised.

The image of Gesselle Organa was presented to the Sith. "What's the word, Dargus? I assume that since you're hailing me, the day is won?"

"Yes General! The Sith singlehandedly turned back the entire attack."

"Sith, as painful as it has been, it seems you've come through. I hope you're not expecting a thank you."

"War makes… strange bedfellows." Even Leena couldn't help but agree to the General's words.

"This experience has certainly proven that. Now, I promised to tell you where Jaesa Willsaam's parents could be found. They have been servants in Castle Organa for many years. And I have already passed on the concern for you… acknowledgment to the higherups of House Organa, with this victory – I am pleased to say that you have been acknowledged." Though with a heavy heart, the General continued to speak. "Sern, the Willsaam's are simple, innocent, hardworking people. They deserve your mercy."

"I'll take it under consideration."

"That's all I can ask." As the holo ended, Quinn immediately proceeded to perform scans on his Lord. To see if there are any injuries that she managed to gain from earlier. But before they could leave, the Lieutenant spoke in gratitude. "Uh, goodbye, Sith. And… thanks for saving my life."

"No thanks needed, Lieutenant. Some Sith also has a sense of honor."

"Are we going to head for the castle?" Vette asked as Quinn was quickly patching Leena up. The Sith nodded as they began to proceed to Castle Organa.

It was natural for her to suspect that the Organa troops wouldn't take her visit kindly. Her companions found themselves unable to even fire their shots when the Sith continuously began to slice down Organa troops one by one. She had this boiling confusion and even a sense of frustration running through her veins.

The most irritating factor was that Jedi who asked for her name. He was something to her, he was more than the noise in her head.

But she didn't know what.

When the Sith found herself in the presence of the Willsaams, she also found herself in the presence of a Jedi who ignited his blue lightsaber. "No! General Gesselle's warning was true! The Sith has come for us!"

"Men, rally around us. The fight is upon us." Ordered the Jedi. Having a quick observation, he wasn't the Jedi she saw earlier. A part of her felt rather disappointed.

"I didn't think a single assailant could make it through Castle Organa's defenses all the way here to us." A man spoke, as they assumed to be Jaesa Willsaam's father.

But the Sith stood her ground and still had her lightsabers intact. "The Organa guards are well-trained. It was quite a challenge."

"It will feel like child's play compared to facing me, Sith." The Jedi seemed determined to protect the couple. There was no sense of fear in him, he was calm and collected. "You will not harm Parvin and Gregor Willsaam, I vow it."

"I disavow it." Quinn mentally sighed. His Lord's humor is sometimes out of place.

"Please," Gregor Willsaam began to plea. "Master Jedi, I realized the Sith can't be trusted, but I want to hear this."

"Fine." He reluctantly agreed. "Say your piece, Sith. I'm not going anywhere, and I will protect them, no matter what."

Leena turned off her lightsabers and began her negotiations. "I'm here to do things for them, not to them."

"Then there's no need for further violence. Sith, what is it you want?" Gregor asked though the Sith could clearly sense the fear in him. So did the Jedi.

"Gregor, this has to do with Jaesa. I just know it." His wife spoke as well.

There was no need to hide things that everyone already knows. "Yes, I'm here because of your daughter."

"I knew she shouldn't have gone with the Jedi!" The sense of regret in a mother's heart was something Leena feet from where she stood. She then wondered, if her mother Zylas had something to regret inside that Holocron of hers. "Now the Empire is hunting her! Sith… Jaesa was our life. She was going to marry Organa nobility so that we would no longer have to be servants."

"When she… left, we sacrificed that dream. We don't know anything about Jaesa now. We were told we would probably never see her again." She didn't need the Force to know how sad and hard it must have been to give their daughter away, their only child to the Jedi Order. Her mind then drifted to a quick wander, if Zabro felt the same too. "We are mere servants. What could you want with us?"

"I am here to deliver you from servitude." Vette turned her eyes to the Sith, knowing what she can offer and what she can do. The question is, which one will she choose?

"You… you want to help us?" The father grew confused.

"No, Gregor, the Sith is toying with us before killing us!"

"Heed your wife's warning, Gregor Willsaam. Sith is devious and demented." When the Jedi spoke, she couldn't help but have that boiling hatred inside of her come out after so many years. After all, it was the Jedi who destroyed her family in the first place regardless of her mother's past as a Padawan.

"Is that what you mean, Sith? By killing us you end our life of servitude? Can't you spare us?"

"If you align with the Empire, you live."

"What do you mean by this?" Gregor continued to ask. "What is to happen to us if we do as you say?"

"I'll see to it that you live like kings." She can.

"Oh, you dirty, no good certin—" before the wife could even say something else, her husband spoke in concern. "Parvin! Jaesa has gone off to a life of discipline and detachment. We are unlikely to ever see her again. The Sith is offering us a way out of this. A way to live!"

"Jaesa is sensitive, Gregor. She will feel our betrayal. It will fester in her. Don't you see, this Sith is banking on that."

"Did you hear me say you'll live like kings?" Leena repeated her offer.

"My wife can't see the big picture. You offer a choice between death or pledging ourselves to our daughter's enemy. I choose that Parvin and I live in the arms of the Empire. And I trust that my daughter will understand and remain strong."

She nodded. "Your wife has to agree as well."

"Please, my sweet," Plead Gregor as he held his wife's hand. "Stand with me on this."

"My place is with you, Gregor. As long as we're alive, there's hope."

"We are in an agreement." He said as he turned to face the Sith. "We shall embrace the Empire. Tell us what happens next."

"You'll receive instructions at the Imperial landing." With the deed done, even the Jedi couldn't comprehend. Quinn didn't much approve of the idea of offering the couple riches in exchange for their loyalty, but he was certain that his Lord should know what she was doing. She was offering too much and yet, even he knew that she was a woman of her word. It was a wise approach.

"Ahem. I'm glad you're all found an accord. But there's still the matter of you being our enemy, Sith." The Jedi seemed determined to do something, but it was rather against their code. Naturally, Leena was an enemy to them but, she did not resort to aggression towards them even when she slaughtered Organa guards. "Now only will I not allow the Willsaams to do this, but you had yourself a killing spree getting here. That can't go unpunished."

"This is a peaceful solution, Jedi. Honor it." Her companions could hear the tone of disgust coming out of her mouth.

"Yes, Master Volryder, stay true to the Jedi Code and keep the peace. Too many have died already today." Gregor spoke, as he was already thankful for the mercy that the Sith gave them. "Gregor and I go of our own free will. And spare this house any further pain."

"This doesn't sit right, but I can't attack someone walking in peace. Even a Sith." He said as he took away his lightsaber.

"You just saved your life."

"The code is everything, Sith. But I wouldn't expect you to respect it." On the contrary, because of Tarun – she has a sense of respect for the code but not for the Jedi Order. "Leave out the back door to avoid further causalities. I'll say nothing further."

With an agreement, the Sith and her companions left with the Willsaams and proceeded to the Imperial landing to see them off.

Even with the success of this task, the image of the Jedi was still in her mind. He seemed so familiar, she felt that she knew him from somewhere but nothing in her memory could confirm it. It bothered her, as much as the Force made them feel connected at some point, but she didn't know the reason.

What was the purpose?

What was the plan?

No one knew but the Force.

Leena opened her holocron to find the image of her Master, Darth Baras. "Ah, apprentice, the Sith FimmRess who attends Duke Kendoh was able to patch me through you directly. Excellent. I am seeking an update. News of your search for Jaesa Willsaam's family has reached me, and I am quite concerned."

"What news have you heard, my Lord?" The apprentice had to be polite.

"Duke Kendoh contacted me to tell me that you have been busying yourself with personal exploits, and disregarding my mission."

She should have killed Kendoh when she had the chance. "What exactly did he say about me?"

"In a moment. First, the more important subject." The Master brushed off as he had more worrisome concerns than a rebellious apprentice. "Tell me you've found the family of Nomen Karr's Padawan. Tell me they have been taken care of."

"I made them swear allegiance to the Empire and sent them to Dromand Kaas."

"Really? Excellent thinking. As I torture them, their pain will scream into the galaxy and torment their daughter." As Baras said this, the apprentice couldn't help but sigh mentally and proceeded with caution. Hoping she won't be punished.

"I promised them riches," she said what she negotiated. "And I believe it will be more effective if they live more fruitfully."

"Ah, very conniving." The Master praised. "The happier they are under Imperial rule, the more it will tear the Jedi's heart. I will make it so. You eclipsed my greatest hopes for you and prove you belong at my side. Which makes my susceptibility to Duke Kendoh's gossip about you all the more foolish."

"You said it, I didn't." She shrugged.

"I have learned to follow all roads to their conclusion. So, when I hear something alarming, I always pursue it. First off, Kendoh said that you sent an explosion that caused the death of several Thul dignitaries."

"That was his doing, not mine." She wasn't even aware that members from House Thul died. She was too busy killing off Ulgo soldiers.

"Hmm. It must be politically advantageous for him to disavow his role in such a thing. Kendoh also said that you helped the Republic defend their front in Organa's war against House Ulgo. Painting you as a traitor."

She resorted to killing Kendoh, painfully. "Doing so expedited my mission. I find them to be a more reliable intel compared to what Kendoh has given me, which resulted in failure for the last time." Baras had an idea that his apprentice might contact her blood relatives on the planet, but even he knew that he was planted enough fear and trauma into her mind.

He underestimated his apprentice.

"Well, I do not care about the trivial war on Alderaan," Baras claimed as long as she did what she had to. "All that matters to me is that your mission is complete. For whatever reason, the man task took it upon himself to slander you. I have no further use for Duke Kendoh. Punish him however you please. If it were me, he'd pay severely – especially with the reported assassination of Lady Aletra of House Sern, your grandmother."

And in return, Leena underestimated her own Master.

The news caught her companions by surprise. Vette wondered how Leena would handle this, not to mention that with the acknowledgment – she had work to do before she could even leave Alderaan. But Leena spoke calmly in response to her Master. "I'm interested to hear what he has to say for himself. Then I will grant him the bloodbath he begged for."

"Do what you will, but quickly. Until we destroy the threat of Jaesa Willsaam nothing else is more important. Goodbye, apprentice."

"What do we do?" Vette asked as Quinn awaited orders.

"Quinn. Make sure that my message will reach to the Duke. That he and his men will answer to me because today I am Lord of House Sern." With a firm nod, Quinn immediately began to send a message towards the Sith assigned to Duke Kendoh.

The visible hatred and irritation in her grey eyes were enough for her companions to know that this Alderaanian noble was a dead man. Leena Sern was a woman who doesn't appreciate threats and at the same time, something puzzled him. Never mind the Jedi who was in her mind, what worried her was that how come no one in her family notified her of the incident immediately.

When the Sith and her companions arrived at the chambers where Duke Kendoh resided, he couldn't help but greet them nervously. "Ah, come in! I heard about your success, and I am so very pleased for you!"

"Cut the antics, Kendoh." The Sith spoke harshly as she removed her helmet, dropping it on the floor and revealing a young woman with distinguishable Sern traits such as the cold look in her corrupted eyes. There was no denying what he got himself into.

"Is… is there a problem?"

"Baras told me you called me a traitor and blamed me for the murder of your fellow Thuls." She wasn't so pleased even for a Sith.

"Oh, uh, he…" Caught red-handed and she didn't need the Force for him to say the truth. "I see – how awkward for me. Allow me to explain. My Lor—I mean… L-Lady Sern." When Organa finally granted acknowledgment, it was only natural for other houses to hear that Lady Sern has indeed returned to her home and it won't be so long until they rally their forces to crush an enemy that has wronged them.

Serns are hard to kill.

"I realized when you blew up the power generator, several of my rivals would be exposed. So, I seized the opportunity to eliminate them. I… had company when I was speaking with your Master, and I needed to keep my fellow house members blind to my maneuvering—"

"That is a lie." Spoke FemmRess. The Sith apprentice was getting even more irritated with this Duke. "You contacted Baras yourself, alone."

"When you showed disrespect towards me, I granted you mercy." The apprentice spoke with a stern gaze as she ignited her lightsaber. "When you granted me wrong intel and tried to manipulate me into killing my own grandmother, I gave you a chance to prove yourself to me. When you framed me for your political actions, I did consider even granting you the mercy of banishment. When Baras told me of the murder of my grandmother, the Lady Aletra, I was also considering mercy to let you live in the pain of torture. And you know what, Kendoh? Lying to me was your last mistake and I have no more patience to even grant you mercy."

"I—I only wanted Baras to know that I was looking out for him!" He began to kneel in front of the Sith apprentice, basically begging for his life. "It was harmless! I knew you would succeed, and all Baras would care about was that! Please… please don't… kill me! FemmRess, you and your men are assigned to me. If I am attacked, you must defend!"

"If Darth Baras's apprentice decides you die, we will not intercede."

"Leave one Sern alive and the cowards can never sleep." She made her decision as her companions slowly took a few steps back as the apprentice proceeded forward.

"It will be a pleasure to be relieved of this assignment. Can we help at all?" FimmRess offered his services to the apprentice.

"I appreciate your offer, but a Sith who passes the sentence should swing the sword." Raising her lightsaber high up, she took delight into cutting him down – with his sentence of death, even that wasn't enough to grant justice for her grandmother and there was more to the story than Kendoh giving out the order.

"He was a sad and twisted waste of space. Serving him was torture."

"I can only imagine." Said the apprentice as her gaze was still on the body. She knew there was more to it.

"Now we report back to our master on the Council. We will be paying attention to your exploits, Lord Sern. Farewell." When the Sith and his fellows excused himself. The apprentice closed her eyes, taking a deep breath before she turned to face her companions.

"Quinn, investigate the matter for me, leave no stone unturned."

He bowed. "Yes, my Lord."