The Tragedy of Tavion

[Wolf]

The First Order's takeover of Yalara had gone without a hitch. The Knights of Ren in particular had taken the opportunity to explore a Temple devoted to Marka Ragnos. The exploration was successful and they had managed to recover the holocron of the ancient Dark Jedi Tavion Axmis. The holocron was restrained to only being used twice, and the leader of the expeditionary group, Darth Veles, chose two Disciples of Ren, Mael Ren and Wolfgang Krieger, to have the opportunity of searching its depths and learning from the Dark Jedi.

Wolfgang Krieger now sat in a meditation chamber in the depths of the Bastion of Ren. He sat cross-legged on the ground, and in front of him lay a small black pyramid. He inspected the red grooves and patterns that adorned its sides. He waved a hand over it, using the Force to open the top of the holocron as was required. Wolf watched as a hologram emerged from the holocron of a woman, standing about 30cm tall. This was Tavion Axmis' Gatekeeper, the one who would be able to teach Wolf the lessons stored within, and who would bear the same personality and imprint of the cognitive processes of Tavion herself. The holocron was a marvellous piece of technology, possible to create only by the power of the Force to imprint one's mind upon it. The Gatekeeper stared inquisitively at Wolf, looking him up and down.

“I am the gatekeeper for the holocron of Tavion Axmis. Through me you may seek what knowledge lies within.”

Wolf paused for a moment, before speaking. "Tell me about Tavion Axmis. The Empire Reborn. The Cult of Marka Ragnos."

Wolf listened intently as she began her tale, recounting the history of the Empire Reborn. It was an ambitious enterprise for sure, but Wolf could identify the source of the problem the more she spoke. Ineffective leadership. The Supreme Leader was not prone to such incompetence. He was in the same rare strain of men that included the legendary Emperor Palpatine. The First Order was organised, principled and powerful. They would not fall in the same way as the Empire Reborn, Wolf was sure of it. He had seen their decisive leadership and combat success. Under the Supreme Leader's wise and steady hand, they could not fail.

Wolf continued to listen as the Gatekeeper spoke of the location of Marka Ragnos' tomb, the life of Desann and his defeat, and the Cult of Marka Ragnos and her current mission to resurrect the old Sith Lord. Of course, it was a failed mission, but the Gatekeeper did not know that, only knowing what had been imprinted by Tavion at the time. The Gatekeeper continued to speak about Tavion's own ambitions and goals.

"I sought power at every turn, and grasped every opportunity that arose to me. I strove to become the most powerful being."

"Why?" asked Wolf. The hologram paused for a moment.

"Why?"

"Yes, why? Why did you seek power, and strive to be the most powerful being?"

"No one has asked me that. I would answer... to be truly free."

"Interesting." Wolf paused for reflection, before continuing, "And what is freedom if you are a slave to your desires and hunger for power?"

"What are you, a Jedi?"

"No."

"You speak like one who is weak."

"I speak like one who has purpose."

"I will happily end this. Do you want my knowledge, or not?"

"Yes. Let us move on."

What was the use of pursuing power for its own end? Tavion reminded him of many of the Sith he encountered back with the One Sith. Not that all Sith were so selfish, but there was certainly a plurality of them. It was a vain and fruitless effort, and one that seemed to result in one only being consumed by their own desires and ambitions. Wolf reminded himself that he was still young however, and could easily fall into the same trap. As he looked at Tavion, he could see only a symbol of what he should never become, and never give into. No, Wolf did not train, kill and grow in the Dark Side for himself, he refused to accept that. He fought for the Supreme Leader, for order, an iron rule and true peace. There was a nagging feeling that perhaps he was simply being naive, and in the years to come he too would be consumed by such things.

 

[Wolf]

Wolf inquired about the Force, and Tavion began her training by exploring one of the most basic Force abilities, Force Push. The technique was already familiar to Wolf, being the first he had ever used. Indeed, it was how he discovered he was Force sensitive, under high stress after being betrayed by his brother, and using the Force to push his brother off of him. Since then he had employed it in many situations, from preventing a nasty Croa from killing him on Sekalus to trying to operate his starfighter without physical contact. He looked forward to what Tavion could reveal on the subject matter, and advance his proficiency with the ability to a higher level.

In front of Wolf now sat a large metallic cube, three metres high and wide. The training chamber boasted of a number of different training modules, and the telekinesis module had been activated. Wolf stretched out his palm towards the cube, reaching out with the Force. The cube was incredibly heavy, weighing at least a tonne, and Wolf struggled to push it back. The Gatekeeper of the holocron examined his efforts. A bead of sweat dripped down Wolf's forehead, his jaws clenched and his muscles straining as he urged the cube to move backwards.

"Stop trying so hard," came Tavion's voice.

Wolf stopped and shot the Gatekeeper an exasperated glance. "Stop trying? What would you have of me, lie down and wait for it to politely be on its way?"

"No," she ignored his sarcasm and continued, "The Force is not some crude physical tool like a lasso to throw on an object and move it around. The Force is all around us, and moves in us. Look at the block again, but do not think you must fire something at it from your palm. No, the Force is around the block already, and inside the block, and is the block. Understand this, and you will know the limits of your power have been created by you inside your mind, and no one else. Let go of your self-imposed constraints, and push the block."

Wolf nodded, and looked at the block again. He outstretched his palm, this time closing his eyes and reaching out with his mind to feel the block with the Force. The Force is around the block, and inside it, and is the block. No longer pushing out some invisible force from his palm towards the block, he instead willed the block directly, as though the block itself was an extension of his being. No matter its size, his mind commanded it with one determined thought. Move.

The three metre high cube flew across the room and crashed into the back wall, falling to the ground. Nothing was damaged, thanks to this being a training room and built to resist the strongest of Force users. Wolf grinned at his success, and nodded to the Gatekeeper in acknowledgement of their depth of insight into the Force. So this Tavion really did know her stuff. The Gatekeeper continued to speak about control of the Force, and Wolf listened as she moved onto a more applied form of telekinesis.

"An outward push is one thing. But there is another, darker, ability. To reach with the tendrils of the Dark Side into a person's windpipe, and crush it." Tavion then went on to explain the mechanics of the move, and what to feel for with the Force, and to will the person's windpipe to be squeezed. Pressing some buttons on a control panel, Wolf summoned a spherical droid that floated in the air in front of him. It was not a perfect example to test on, being a droid, but according to the Gatekeeper the principle was the same.

The floating droid hovered in front of him with a low hum. Wolf extended his hand, and cupped his hand as if he were squeezing an invisible ball. As instructed he called upon his anger and emotion, directing it in a trained line towards the droid. His emotions spilled out from him in the form of tendrils of the Dark Side, wrapping around the droid. Rather than squeezing from the outside, he had to delve within, and the tendrils travelled through and into the inner circuitry and CPU of the droid. And then, he closed his hand, commanding the invisible tendrils to squeeze together. The droid screeched, struggling against him. Wolf narrowed his eyes, concentrating as he willed the droid to be crushed from within. There was an audible crack as something inside the droid snapped, and it fell to the ground, broken.

"A most brutal technique."

"Indeed, but one that can be effective to quickly dispatch unprepared foes without a drawn out fight."

 

[Wolf]

The Gatekeeper continued to impart Tavion's knowledge to Wolf. She continued onto lightsaber combat, and particularly the Shien variant of the 'fast' style of lightsaber combat. Rather than the traditional seven form of lightsaber combat, the New Jedi Order of the first century and corresponding Dark Jedi had made do with three main styles of combat, fast, medium and strong. It would seem that at that point in time, so soon after the glorious era of the Galactic Empire, knowledge of the traditional forms had been wiped out by the legendary Emperor, leading figures like Luke Skywalker to rediscover old techniques and create new forms.

Tavion practised the 'fast' style, though the strikes of the sword were stronger and more forceful, taking more inspiration from Shien. Wolf would preferably have liked to study the more mainstream, traditional forms of lightsaber combat rather than these first century novelties, but it was nevertheless deeply helpful in forming Wolf's own skill with his newly acquired first lightsaber. Wolf watched with interest as the apparition of Tavion swiped through the air with a lightsaber, demonstrating the necessary footwork, pace and skill required to use the form.

Wolf drew his own lightsaber, and flicked the ignition switch. The serrated, unstable crimson blade materialised from the hilt, crackling with energy, both out from the top of the hilt and also from lateral vents, acting as a crossguard. Wolf could feel the presence of the Dark Side around the blade, the remnant of its past master, the ancient Master of the Knights of Ren, Kylo Ren. He was immediately reminded and taken back to the underground lair on Mechis III from where he had retrieved the lightsaber and encountered the foul cult that resided there. He was still healing from the wounds he had received there, and he rubbed his left side as he still felt a throb of pain there from where two of his ribs had been broken, bandages still present underneath his clothing.

The apparition of Tavion studied the crossguard lightsaber inquisitively, it would appear she too could feel the dark energy that surrounded it. Before she could ask about the blade, Wolf moved into action, mimicking the same footwork and manoeuvres he had seen Tavion demonstrate. His blade growled as it cut through the air, his movements at first stunted and choppy, still trying to figure out the intricacies of this Shien variant of the 'fast style'.

"You learn fast for a beginner in the art of the lightsaber."

"I have used a blade in combat for years, it is my primary weapon."

"That would explain it. But a lightsaber is no ordinary blade. It is much lighter, faster, stronger. Your movements still act as though you carried a heavy primitive sword. You do not. Your lightsaber is the most precious possession you will ever have. It must be an extension of your very soul."

Wolf nodded, closing his eyes as he moved around the room with an invisible foe with his lightsaber, delivering fast, nimble but strong strikes and parries. The Disciple of Ren continued to work on this form with the Gatekeeper for the next few hours, before pressing a few buttons on the control panel and summoning another floating droid. Blaster deflection training. This was not something Wolf had been able to perform with his vibroblade, and so it was new to him. He held his lightsaber in front of him, taking a deep breath as the droid was about to fire a low-charged blaster bolt at him, one that would not permanently injure him, but sure would hurt.

He yelped as the first bolt came for him and he failed to move fast enough to deflect it with his lightsaber as it burned his arm. The Gatekeeper tutted, "Close your eyes, let the Force guide you. You're no youngling, this should be easy." Wolf rubbed his arm in irritation, closing his eyes and holding the lightsaber up again. He centred himself, letting the Dark Side flow through him, tendrils of the Force feeling his surroundings.

Another yelp of pain, as another blaster bolt burned into him. He lifted a hand in protest at the droid, "Oh come on, I was not bloody ready!" The spherical droid prepared to fire again, and Wolf exhaled a deep sigh, closing his eyes and calming himself down. He let the Force rise within him again, feeling out his surroundings. His mind snapped into action this time as it anticipated the droid's fire. Wolf's wrist reflexively twisted to the correct position as the blaster bolt came, accurately predicting where it would land by use of the Force. The bolt collided with his crimson lightsaber blade and careened off into the wall. Wolf smiled at his success.

 

[Wolf]

Blaster deflection training continued for a couple hours more, before Wolf moved onto fighting an actual combat droid that wielded a training lightsaber. Wolf was tempted to use the melee skills he already knew, but instead forced himself to adopt this new fast style of lightsaber combat. The lightsaber, that ancient weapon, was truly a remarkable thing, and together with the Force made a truly deadly weapon. With the aid of the Force he could react faster than he normally would, as he weaved in and out, maintaining the correct footwork he had practised earlier as his wrist turned effortlessly to direct the blade to parry and strike.

Wolf suddenly cried out in pain. He had carelessly burned his left shoulder with the crossguard blade after bringing the lightsaber around to strike at his foe.

"That's what happens when you use that. I have never seen such a poorly designed lightsaber," came the haughty remark of the Gatekeeper.

Wolf spoke through gritted teeth, defensive of his recently acquired weapon, "Then I will have to educate you." He leapt forward at the combat droid with a wild diagonal strike to the droid's shoulder. The droid blocked it, and the two were engaged in a saber lock. Wolf kept driving forwards though, using his momentum to push the droid backwards until he was up against the wall. And then, by twisting his wrists forward, he pressed the crossguard blade into the combat droid's chest, burning a hole through it. The droid's eyes flickered and the lights went out as it crumpled to the ground. Wolf deactivated his lightsaber and walked back to Tavion's apparition. "Poorly designed, eh?"

"I stand corrected. Is there anything else you wish to learn?"

"Yes, anything else you have to offer-"

"I must ask, am I remembered well in the galaxy? Did I achieve greatness?"

Wolf hesitated, unsure how to answer. "I only came to know of you when searching for this holocron." Tavion remained silent, and so Wolf continued to elaborate, "You were killed in combat by a Jedi. A Jedi who had not even become a Knight."

"W-what?" The atmosphere in the room suddenly changed, the lights dimmed in the training room as Tavion stared at him in shock. When she created this holocron her very consciousness had been imprinted on it, and he was witnessing Tavion's genuine reaction to what he was saying. It was surreal seeing someone who lived 800 years ago now learn about their own death.

"You were consumed by your lust for power and selfishness and let the Sith Lord Marka Ragnos possess you. And then you were slain." Tavion stared at Wolf blankly, her emotions concealed. Wolf continued, "If you had found a greater purpose, and committed yourself to restoring the Galactic Empire for the greater good of the galaxy, perhaps you would have been more notable in galactic history. Rather than being a selfish narcissist who was consumed by their own ambition, and easily forgotten."

Something snapped then, and Tavion let out a enraged scream. The holocron began to shake, and the apparition of Tavion enlarged in size and charged at Wolf, leaving the confines of the holocron. He could not help but back himself into a wall, even though he was quite confident she could not actually do anything to harm him.

Tavion stared at him face to face, clearly livid. The lights in the training room were flickering now, the presence of the Dark Side raging around the room, the ancient Dark Jedi yelling into his face. "Selfish narcissist? What do you know of me, or of my life? What do you, nothing more than a young inexperienced fool, know of the things I have suffered, and the sacrifices I have made? What do you know of always living in the shadow of someone greater, and always being held to the impossible standards of what came before? Do you know what it is to feel truly insignificant, to not be accepted? Do you see the opportunities the Dark Side offers to change that? To become great, to be loved by all, to be obeyed, to be powerful, to be remembered, to be immortal? Do you?!"

Wolf was speechless as she unleashed her tirade. He stared into her hate-filled eyes, and could only feel pity. Before him was a tangible example of the dangers of the Dark Side. Corrupted into a pitiful, wretched mess. "I am sorry the circumstances of your life were unkind."

"I am Tavion Axmis! I do not need or want your pity!" She screamed in rage and thrust her hand forward now around Wolf's neck, though Wolf reassured himself it was just an apparition. His eyes suddenly widened in shock, however, as he felt his neck compressed and his windpipe constricted. Not that the apparition had become physical, but that the tendrils of the Dark Side had wrapped around his neck where her hand was. The Force signature she had impressed on the holocron 800 years ago would have been strong enough that it could interact with the world in a tangible way, at least when she was placed in high enough stress to call upon the requisite anger. And Wolf had unfortunately provoked that anger.

Wolf's hands instinctively came around to hold his neck as he felt Tavion's vicious Force grip crush down upon his windpipe. His body was struggling for air as he began to suffocate. He began to walk back to the middle of the room, walking through Tavion's apparition, while her tendrils of the Dark Side still gripped viciously around his neck. He felt his strength ebb away as his lungs fought for breath, and he stumbled to the holocron that sat in the centre of the room. He drew his lightsaber and ignited it once more. He brought the lightsaber over his head and brought it crashing down upon the holocron.

The holocron was sliced in two, and Wolf turned to hear Tavion's blood-curdling scream as her apparition faded into thin air. He felt the compression around his neck immediately subside, inhaling a deep breath and panting as he recovered from the ordeal, the lights in the training chamber returning to their bright prior state. Wolf looked down at the charred remains of the holocron, broken on the ground. He felt a deep sense of pity, and unease at the selfish creature the Dark Side had transformed Tavion into. He deactivated his lightsaber and turned to leave the training chamber.