The jungle buzzed with alien life as Kai wandered deeper into the temple complex. After the emotional chaos of the command center, he needed distance—space to breathe, to think, to feel. The Force here wasn't just present—it was alive, ancient, and watching.
He stepped into a corridor half-swallowed by time, moss curling around stone carvings that whispered secrets of civilizations long gone. Each step echoed with a subtle hum that vibrated through his bones, resonating with the crystal around his neck. The air grew colder, more still.
He wasn't alone. Not in this place.
Kai let his hand brush the wall. There—etched into the stone—were symbols older than Basic, spiraling like constellations. One in particular caught his attention: a familiar mark, one he had glimpsed in the margins of the scrolls Kenobi had left behind.
"This place remembers," he murmured.
It wasn't just Jedi who had walked these halls. Something darker had left its mark here, too. Shadows of the past pressed against the edges of his awareness—anger, ambition, pain. A legacy not spoken of openly.
The Sith.
Five thousand years ago, the dark side had flourished here. He could feel its residue deep beneath the stone—buried but never gone. The Jedi might have claimed this temple now, but it had once belonged to their enemies.
Kai paused in front of a sealed archway. The crystal at his neck pulsed with soft light. From within his satchel, the holocron seemed to respond, emitting a subtle chime.
He reached out slowly, pressing his palm against the ancient stone. It was cool and unyielding—until the crystal flared, and the stone beneath his hand shimmered.
A grinding sound rumbled through the corridor as the archway split open, stone sliding aside with groaning protest. Dust spilled from the gap, undisturbed for centuries.
Inside was a narrow chamber lit only by the faint glow of bioluminescent moss. Rows of broken statues lined the walls—warriors, sages, some too twisted by time or intent to identify. In the center stood a pedestal, cracked and vine-choked, upon which lay a small, black obelisk.
Kai stepped forward, each movement careful. The air here was heavy, saturated with memory.
He knelt before the pedestal and reached toward the obelisk. As his fingers brushed it, a vision seared through him—a battlefield drenched in red light, sabers clashing in a storm of fury and fire. A voice echoed, deep and cold: "To master the dark, you must first know it. Fear it. Then choose."
He gasped and jerked his hand back.
The obelisk remained still.
Kai sat in silence, breathing hard. The vision faded, but its echo remained, tangled in his thoughts like a warning—or a challenge.
Curiosity tugged at him, stronger than fear. He leaned forward again, studying the obelisk more closely. Intricate runes ran down its surface, etched with such precision they seemed burned into the very stone. The design wasn't random—each symbol pulsed faintly with some forgotten rhythm, like a code meant to be unlocked only by those deemed worthy.
Among the scrolls, there had been mention of a Sith lord—unnamed, veiled in mystery—who had once waged war across the stars from a stronghold hidden deep within Yavin's jungles. A tactician, a sorcerer, one obsessed with legacy and knowledge.
This obelisk felt like his echo.
It wasn't just a relic. It was a fragment of memory, a container of will. And something within it recognized Kai.
He reached into his satchel, retrieving the holocron and setting it beside the obelisk. For a moment, nothing happened.
Then a flicker of red light pulsed between the two artifacts, connecting them like a breath drawn between old friends.
The obelisk whispered to him—not in words, but in instinct. The language of the Force. It showed him the flow of combat, the structure of forgotten forms. It didn't tempt, not yet. It taught.
Kai exhaled slowly. Whatever had begun here wasn't finished.
And he was no longer just a student.
He was the seeker.
The past was no longer buried. It was awakening.
Footsteps echoed faintly from the corridor beyond, growing louder with each cautious step.
"Kai?" Leia's voice called, tentative but clear. She stepped into the chamber, her eyes widening as she took in the sight. "There you are. We've been looking everywhere—there's a briefing starting soon."
Her gaze swept across the room, lingering on the broken statues, the moss-lit walls, and finally the pedestal between Kai and the obelisk. She stepped forward slowly, almost reverently. "I've been through this part of the temple a dozen times," she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper. "How did I never see this passage before?"
Kai rose, brushing dust from his knees. "It wasn't ready to be seen. Not until now."
Leia met his eyes, sensing the shift within him. He looked older somehow—not in years, but in presence. Like something inside him had turned, awakened.
"Come on," she said after a pause. "Whatever this is… it'll still be here. But right now, we need you."
He nodded, sparing one last glance at the obelisk and holocron, still faintly humming in resonance.
The Force whispered, but he turned away.
For a time...