Chapter IV - A Jedi's Fall

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In the years that followed, Stendhal learned everything he could from the Spirit of XoXaan and the Trayus Academy. After doing so, Stendhal departed from Malachor V to begin his quest for revenge against Palpatine and the Sith. He soon began raiding Imperial Outposts all over the Outer Rim in an attempt to lure the Sith to him. His raiding soon took him to the Outer Rim world of Telos IV. He made his way to an Imperial Outpost where he slaughter all inside without mercy. He struck down the Stormtroopers with anger and vengeance in his heart. 

Stormtrooper: Kill the Jedi!

Stendhal carved his way through the Imperial Outpost. Despite the fierce resistance put up the the Stormtroopers, Stendhal proved too much for them. He showed no mercy as he cut them down like they were Droids. None could stand against him as they fell beneath his blue and green Lightsabers. He used the power of the Dark Side to destroy all in his path. Soon enough, he reached the command center where an Imperial Officer stands defiant. 

Imperial Officer: You have made a grave mistake attacking this outpost, Jedi scum! The Empire will hunt you down to the ends of the Galaxy!

Stendhal: Good. I want them to hunt me. I want your masters to hunt me down so that I may kill them. 

Stendhal then reached out to the Force and began to strangle the Imperial Officer. Stendhal took great pleasure in the Officer's struggle to breathe. He had fully immersed himself in the Dark Side. As he closed his fist, a crack was heard as the Imperial Officer collapsed to the floor, lifeless and still. 

Stendhal: Soon....my revenge will be complete.

Stendhal then sat in the middle of the ruined command center, surrounded by the corpses of the Stormtroopers he had jus killed. As he meditated on the Dark Side, he felt a familiar presence enter the room. He stood up and saw a Torguta female standing before him. 

Stendhal: The Force be with you, Ahsoka Tano.

Ahsoka: Stendhal. 

Stendhal: So, you too survived Order 66. I thought I was alone in the Galaxy. I thought myself to be the last of the Jedi. But what brings you to Telos IV? Did you come here to hide or attack this outpost?

Ahsoka: You do, Stendhal. I felt the Darkness in you. I didn't want to believe that it was you, yet here you are. You slaughter these people with vengeance in your heart, not something a Jedi should do.

As Ahsoka said this, Stendhal was silent for a moment. He reflected on all that had happened to him since Order 66. He thought of the countless Jedi that had been slaughtered by the Sith. Anger soon swell in his heart. 

Stendhal: Do not lecture me, Ahsoka. The Sith have turned the Republic against us! How many Jedi have they slaughtered? How many of our brothers and sisters were gunned down by their own troops? We were blind to the Sith's grand plan. While we fought the Clone Wars, Palpatine had orchestrated the Jedi's fall and we walked blindly into it. The Sith had changed and adapted while the Jedi  became predictable and weak as a result of it. That was our mistake. 

Ahsoka: Past mistakes do not justify current ones. The danger is in becoming what you fight. It was the trap that the Jedi fell into. It is the trap that takes you now. 

Stendhal: To fight the darkness, you must embrace it. The Dark Side itself must be used to destroy the Sith. 

Ahsoka could see that Stendhal was deeply immersed in the Dark Side. Despite this, she wanted to try to bring him to the Light. 

Ahsoka: Revenge is not the Jedi way. 

Stendhal: I have no quarrel with you, Ahsoka. I now have the power to avenge our fallen brothers and sisters. I will raze Palpatine's Empire to the ground. I will slaughter all those who stand with him! We can avenge the Jedi Order! You walk the path of justice in this warped society. We share the same cause.

Ahsoka wore a sad expression on her face. It was clear that Stendhal had fallen to the Dark Side. Not only that, he he embraced it as a necessary action. 

Ahsoka:  I cannot permit that. You were a great Jedi, Stendhal. But you have given yourself over to revenge. It stops here.

Ahsoka then pulled out her Lightsabers and ignited their white blades. As Ahsoka got into a combat stance, Stendhal showed little emotion. 

Stendhal: You refuse to understand? What a shame. 

Ahsoka: The real shame is what happened to you, Stendhal. I don't know what happened to you, but it doesn't justify the needless slaughter. If you continue on this path, you'll only find pain. I will not allow you to continue down on this path. I do not wish to strike you down, Stendhal. But if I must, then so be it.

Stendhal: If you are not with me, then you are my enemy. Killing you will bring me no joy. You will have a Jedi Funeral, Ahsoka. That I promise.

As Stendhal said this, he ignited his blue and green Lightsabers and got into a combat stance. In that moment, Stendhal prepared to duel against Ahsoka Tano in a Lightsaber duel. What he didn't know was that this Lightsaber duel would forever change his outlook on not only his quest for revenge, but also his ideals and philosophy.

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