The Mandalorian Wars, a Star Wars fan fic Options

[Agent Griff]

So this is my newest fan fiction, generated by my love of the excellent game Star Wars KOTOR. I warmly recommend it to everyone out there who wants to experience an epic story filled with memorable characters first-hand. My story will not actually take place during the time covered in the game, but will take place before it. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it.

You might also notice some references *cough*rip-offs*cough* from Star Wars films.

~~~
Night was falling outside an unknown mansion in a great city. The owner of the house, obviously an important person, called his security guards to him to report. There were about eight of them, all armed with weapons ranging from Blaster pistols to Blaster carbines. They all wore dark crimson outfits with the logo of the security firm on the right side of their shirts. The owner stood on a chair as a security guard with a braid of hair hanging from the back of his head emerged from a door and reported that the back-door was clear.

"Very well. Resume patrolling the house." the owner said with a relieved voice. He seemed to be afraid of something. The guard gave a nod and was away. The owner then turned to the leader of the guards, which was standing besides him. "Any more news of the terrorist?"

"They just found the body of a senator in the lower quarters of the city." the leader of the guards said with a cold voice. He didn't seem to care much for the deaths of others.

"Dreadful. I trust you will handle this situation well. That's why I hired you in the first place." the owner, who seemed to be a senator himself, said with some relief.

"That's our job sir...and we're the best in the branch." the guard leader said with obvious confidence in his men.

"I hope so...not for the sake of the money I spent to buy your services, mind you, but for the lives of your men. So far, the vigilante has left no survivors when dealing with the bodyguards of other senators." the senator said with an amount of fear returning in his voice.

"They were not enjoying our services weren't they?" the leader of the guards said, starting to appear annoyed by the senator's questions.

"Yes...of course." The senator said, realizing that he was stressing the leader of his bodyguards.

As soon as the senator stopped talking, bursts of blaster fire could be heard outside the house. All the bodyguards around the senator, 3 of them, drew their weapons. Their leader soon raised a com-link to his mouth and barked out a few orders to his men. He also asked the guards outside what the situation was.

"That's for you to find out." a sinister voice mysteriously replied.

As soon as the com-link from which the voice responded was shut down, the lights of the chamber were shut-down. All of the guards were alerted by this. Soon afterwards however, they all switched on their portable flashlights which were mounted on their blasters.

"The vigilante, he's here! He cut the power!" one of the guards yelled with a panic-stricken voice.

"Stay cool. There's one of him and three of us, we'll blast him to pieces." another guard said.

"Yeah, but outside there were five of us and one of him...and they're all dead!" the panicked guard said once again.

"Shut up! He'll hear us! You two get the senator out of here! I'll stay and handle the vigilante." the leader of the guards said as he split up his men. A possibly dangerous move.

The panicked guard and the one which tried to confort him based on their numbers took the senator out of the chamber through the door which led to the back-door. It was a secret passage meant especially for times like this. The senator was still frightened, despite he had 2 guards with him. Some of the murdered senators were killed in broad daylight, yet none had managed to see the assassin...and live to tell the tale.

Blaster fire could soon be heard from the chamber from which they had left. A few blasts were heard before everything went quiet. The security guards accompanying the senator urged him to continue on by himself while they stood and held the assassin in place. Without much choice, the senator accepted. He ran on, almost reaching the back door. As he ran, he could hear screams and blaster shots behind him yet it was too dark to see anything besides the flash of blasters in the distance of the passage. The senator soon reached the door, yet it was locked. As the senator stood for a few seconds, trying to think of an alternative, he could feel a hand on his shoulder.

As he quickly turned around, he was relieved to see that it was the security guard with the braid of hair which had reported on the situation of the back-door. Given his position, he would surely be one to have the keys. The senator smiled as the thought of surviving the vigilante dawned on him.

"Are you alright sir?" the guard asked with a relatively calm voice.

"Yes...gladly. I thought you were the vigilante when you touched me on the shoulder." the senator said, chuckling. "I thought I was dead for a moment!"

"I managed to catch the killer by surprise when I came back from outside. I wasn't with the others when I heard the blasts. I think I managed to drive him off...for now." the security guard said.

"Wonderful. Could you open this door?" the senator asked with a relieved voice.

"Of course sir. That's why I locked it in the first place, so the killer couldn't enter through this entrance." the guard said as he went over to the door and started tinkering with it.

"Good thinking. You'll make a nice profit from this affair, now that all your colleagues are dead. You'll get all their money." the senator said with a smile. He was trully grateful.

"Hm...regarding profit, did you truly rig that pod-race on Malastare sir? That's the word on the streets, and a lot of betters are angry that they lost their money." the guard said, idly bringing unrelated matters into discussion.

"Well...I do own a racing team...and the betting corporations were offering me a lot of credits if my team lost the race...so I did." the senator answered.

"Hm...easier to receive money than to properly earn it right, huh?" the guard said as he was working on the door.

"I was down with debt and that was the only way out. Besides...the opposing team had helped me before with another rigged match so I returned the favour." the senator said, showing that he felt he did the right thing.

"Do you feel sorry about it?" the guard asked as he turned around from the door, facing the senator.

"No. Now why do we keep on with this nonsense? Your job is to defend me, not ask me random questions." the senator said, finding it hard not to use the word 'stupid' instead of 'random'.

"Too bad, that was your chance to change your ways." the guard said with slight disgust.

"What do you..." the senator was cut short by a lightsaber piercing his chest.

As the senator fell down, slightly gasping for air, the guard, which turned out to be the killer, looked at him with disgust. Just as the killer was preparing to leave, a lightsaber lit up behind him. It was a Jedi which had come to stop him. As the killer turned and lit up his lightsaber as well, the two of them had a short chat.

"Your killings stop now murderer!" the Jedi said as he raised his lightsaber.

"Then I suppose you're content with the corrupt senators dragging our Republic down with them as they fall to lower depths. Well, it's not like you have much of a choice do you? You do what your masters tell you to do, in the end." the killer said with a somewhat sarcastic voice.

"I do not think you are in the position do consider yourself a member of the Republic when you murder its leaders in cold blood." the Jedi said with a calm voice.

"Hm...that's the beauty of democracy isn't it? You get the leaders you deserve. If you support these corrupt vermin, fight for them!" the killer screamed as he attacked the Jedi with his own lightsaber.

As the two combatants suddenly drew together to attack each other, it all ended in a blur. It was all just a dream. One of many such troubling and detailed dreams that Jedi padawan, Korben Jeross, was having in the last days. These dreams were considered troubling because Jedi had deep consideration for dreams and visions. Through the future could be predicted, the methods to reach the predicted outcome however were hard to predict.

As Korben woke up from his bed, he went to his master to talk about the dreams. It was another new day in the capital of the Galactic Republic, Coruscant. The corridors of the Jedi Temple were as lively as ever, as Padawans and Younglings scurried around to do their daily tasks. Both humans and aliens alike filled the hall, yet they were all attuned to the Force. Korben pretty much kept to himself since he never really grew a liking for the other Padawans. He found them interested in learning and meditation and nothing else. They were also hard to talk with since they often did not respond, their mind drifting to other things. The only person Korben was really attached to, and used to talk to daily, was his master, Jedi Knight Maik Daasrad.

As he entered his master's chambers, he could see that he was meditating quietly. He tried to walk quietly and not disturb his master's meditation as he approached him from behind. Korben also wanted to give his master a little surprise.

"It's no use trying to surprise me Korben, I know you're there." master Daasrad said.

"Sorry master, I forgot about Jedi mind-reading." Korben said, apologizing.

"You have been very absent minded as of late Korben, forgetting many things which are deemed important by the Jedi Order. Mind-reading among them. What is troubling you?" master Daasrad asked with a slight 'know-it-all' tone that Korben loathed.

"I have been having these visions master...very disturbing visions. I do not know how else to call them." Korben said with a concerned voice.

"Hm...why don't you describe one of these visions?" master Daasrad said, curious about the content of the visions.

"Well, I'll tell you about the latest one. It's in a house, a well guarded house which I think is owned by a Senator. The Senator starts talking about a supposed assassin which has been killing senators lately. After he finishes talking about the assassin, blaster fire can be heard from the outside. The senator is whisked off by two of his guards as the killer pursues him. The two guards are eventually killed and the senator is left alone, cornered. As he prepares to be killed, one of his guards appears and conforts him. The guard, after a short discussion, then draws a lightsaber and murders the senator with disgust." Korben said.

"I suppose this lightsaber has a red blade, does it not?" master Daasrad asked.

"Yes, it does. After he kills the senator, a Jedi appears and draws his own lightsaber, a blue-bladed one. He calls the killer to battle, telling him that his killing streak is over. The killer denies that and says that he is doing these things for a right purpose. They then start fighting. After that, the vision ends." Korben said with a troubled voice.

"Can the faces of any of these combatants be seen?" master Daasrad asked.

"No master, their faces are all clouded and their voices sound strange. Do you have any idea what it could mean?" Korben asked seeking the help of his master.

"Just that. An assassin starts killing senators and a Jedi pursues him and fights him. This is an obvious vision of the future, yet these visions are treacherous, even to the most talented Jedi. They are the conclusion of a number of actions, yet these actions are unpredictable. Great troubles loom ahead for those with such visions." master Daasrad said with wisdom emanating from his words.

"Do you think I could be the Jedi fighting the assassin master?" Korben asked with a rather enthusiastic voice. He always thought of ways he could improve his own renown.

"Do not be so hasty to seek power for yourself padawan, for it could have unforseeable ends. Whether or not you will be this Jedi, remains to be seen." master Daasrad said, mysteriously.

"I understand master." Korben said with a rather dissapointed voice. He was dissapointed by the fact that the Jedi often supressed any amounts of personal ambition in a padawan.

"Now, padawan. Go to the Archives and study the war of Exar Kun. It will teach you a few things about why such ambition to gain personal power is...frowned upon in the Jedi Order. I don't like using the word 'supressed'." master Daasrad said with a slight smile. He had read Korben's mind and had seen the frustration he had regarding the Order's views on personal ambition.

"Yes master." Korben said as he left his master's chamber. He also reminded himself not to think too much about personal things around his master.

As soon as Korben left, Daasrad opened a small hologram receiver which showed the hologram of Jedi Master Vandar Tokare, one of the leading Masters of the Order.

"What wish is it you have, Maik?" the small Jedi Master said in the voice specific of his species.

"Have we received any more reports regarding the movements of the Mandalorians?" Daasrad asked with a rather concerned voice.

His concern would grow true in the coming months.
~~~
That's it for the first part of "Mandalorian Wars"! I hope you enjoyed it. Comments are appreciated!

This post has been edited by Agent Griff: Jun 18 2007, 03:11 PM

[Agent Griff]

This is the next part of the fic, enjoy!

~~~
As Korben stood in the library he carefully studied all he could about the warrior-culture of the Mandalorians. The Mandalorians, he learned, were a warlike, nomadic group of clan-based people consisting of members from multiple species. Often, they served as mercenaries. Their culture revolved around that of battle and war being a source of honor and pride in their community. The leader of the Mandalorians typically took on the title of "Mandalore." Mandalorians were frequently allied with the Sith, most notably Exar Kun though they would not hesitate to cooperate with the Jedi if it suited them.

Almost three thousand years after the conquest of their own planet, Mandalore, the Mandalorians wandered the Galaxy far from their home systems hoping to begin a new crusade against worthy foes. This brought them to the Empress Teta System during the period when the Krath had gained control of the system.

The Mandalorian clans became allied with the Sith after their leader, Mandalore the Indomitable, was bested in combat by the fallen Jedi turned Sith Lord, Ulic Qel-Droma. Mandalore pledged loyalty to Qel-Droma who in turn was apprentice to Dark Lord Exar Kun and in their name the Mandalorians laid waste to countless worlds in the years that followed, gaining the enmity of the Republic, and, most crucially, the Jedi.

Since then, the Mandalorians have been ruled by a new warlord calling himself Mandalore the "Ultimate". The information in the Jedi Records wasn't extremely accurate when it came to the current political situation of the Mandalorian clans, not knowing about the assassinations of the leaders of clan Mirdalan and Wau. In their blissful ignorance, the Jedi records reffered to Mandalore the Ultimate's power as being disputed by many of the Mandalorian clans, clans who now served him fully in fear of his power.

Korben then began reading about Mandalorian culture after being bored by their history and poiltics. Korben didn't really like either. He regarded history as a useless recording of past mistakes and deeds of little consequence to the present. Politics he regarded as pointless negotiations regarding something which should be handled firmly. Korben always thought that if one should rule a planet, one should do it with a firm grip. Thus, he failed to see the use of the Senate which always bogged down matters of importance in accord with their own personal agenda.

Returning to Mandalorian culture, it consisted of a very straight-forward nomadic society, influenced by many other cultures around the galaxy. As a whole, Mandalorians were not prejudiced of any species, but tolerated all Mandalorians, as long as they followed Mandalorian principles. Many war-orphaned children (such as Jango Fett and Mira) would be adopted into Mandalorian society, and brought up as Mandalorian children.

The Mandalorians were nomadic warriors, despite the fact that they had the home world of Mandalore. The Mandalorians kept their nomadic ways so that in the event of attack, there would be no easy way to exterminate the Mandalorians. They also built no straight roads on Mandalore in order to make it much easier to ambush and pin down any invaders. This attributed to the Mandalorians' survival over thousands of years. This also meant that many Mandalorians had never visited Mandalore.

Individual Mandalorians were independent warriors, bound together by the same culture. Each piece of Mandalorian steel was created, chosen and customized by a Mandalorian to their level of skill. The armor had great cultural significance for the Mandalorians, and each set told about the Mandalorian underneath. However, there was a saying in Mando'a: Verd ori'shya beskar'gam, meaning a warrior is more than his armor.

Not all Mandalorians constantly fought on the front line. There were farmers, regular factory workers, engineers, and doctors too. However, all Mandalorians were warriors at heart, and all knew how to fight.

There were six acts one needed to follow to be a Mandalorian, known as the Six Actions (Resol'Nare). They consisted of: wearing armor, speaking Mando'a, defending themselves and families, raising children as Mandalorians, helping the clan succeed and sustain itself, and when called to arms by the Mandalore, rally to his cause.

The only leader of the Mandalorians was the Mandalore himself, and he held his rank as long as he commanded the respect of his fellow warriors. In battle, Mandalorians would be assigned to different squads and jobs, depending on their area of expertise. The Mandalorians worked together to the best of their ability in battle. Mandalorians were not promoted to better jobs, since they did not have jobs—only in battle would some kind of organization need to occur.

Despite their rather gruff appearance and style of combat, the average Mandalorian was more sociable and kind than one would expect. As long as individuals spoke their mind, accepted a meal when offered, looked them straight in the eye (or the horizontal section of their visor), took off their boots when guests, paid their debts, fussed over their children, never made a pass at a Mandalorian of the opposite sex (unless the individual planned to become part of the culture) and respected the elderly, anyone who encountered a Mandalorian was not likely to be killed.

With this lengthy lecture regarding Mandalorian culture and history over, Korben was now glad to return to his own room and sleep after a day of hard training and tiring study. He went to his room and did just that yet he couldn't afford a good night's sleep since he waked up early next morning because of the clamour in the school. Everyone was up and about, talking constantly about the big "invasion". Korben got out of his room dissorientated and saw Malak nearby. He asked him what was going on.

"Didn't you hear? The Mandalorians have begun attacking worlds on the fringe of Republic space." Malak said with an almost excited voice.

"And why are you so excited?" Korben asked, not realizing the magnitude of the situation.

"They're obviously trying to provoke the Republic into open battle and if we come to that, we Jedi are surely going to participate. Those Mandalorians deserve to be beaten into the ground for all the horrible things they've done. For all the innocents they've killed, death is a light punishment." Malak said with hate in his voice.

"They do deserve a good beating, that's right, but still, they haven't attacked a planet in Republic space have they?" Korben asked.

"No they haven't, but we can't just let them ravage innocent worlds while we stand by and watch idly! We can't let another world die just to maintain our frail peace! We should face them openly and give them a real fight!" Malak said, almost shouting. He had personal reasons to hate the Mandalorians. His homeworld had been destroyed almost completely by the Mandalorians in the War of Exar Kun.

"That's just what the Mandalorians want Malak. The Republic is weary after the War of Exar Kun and who knows where this war might lead to? It may be the bane of the Republic for all we know." Korben said, advising caution.

"Now whose words are those Korben? Yours or Master Daasrad's? Haven't you always been one to advocate action instead of pointless negotiations?" Malak said, hinting towards Korben's dislike of politics.

"Well...now that you put it like that..." Korben hesitated for a moment.

"I think that is quite enough Malak. You return to your duties and try not to influence my student in any way that could bring harm to him." Master Daasrad intervened as he saw Malak trying to turn Korben to his side.

"We were just having a discussion about recent events Master. No harm can come from that, can it?" Malak asked in a somewhat mocking way. He hated when he was interrupted and when he was given lectures to by Jedi Masters.

"It can, in more ways than one. Come Korben!" Master Daasrad said as he left. Korben soon followed.

Master Daasrad led Korben to their personal training chamber. Master Daasrad seemed nervous.

"In light of recent events, all lightsaber training sessions will be longer and all students are to have at least basic skill in all forms of lightsaber combat and advanced skill in one form of their choice. This was not my decision to make and I do not agree with it yet I will comply." Master Daasrad said in a very impersonal tone of voice.

"What will happen Master?" Korben asked, concerned.

"I honestly do not know Korben. Hopefully, the Senate can find a peaceful solution and these barbarians can be convinced to return to their barren worlds where they can kill each other all they want." Master Daasrad said, openly showing his scorn of the Mandalorians.

"Why don't you agree with the decision of the Council? In times like this, Jedi should be able to defend the Republic if need be." Korben said.

"And is there? Korben, if there is one thing I hate that is ignorance. Jedi should never become private enforcers of the Republic. The last thing we need now is a private army of highly trained Jedi. Let us commence your training." Master Daasrad said as he closed the subject.

The invasion of Outer Rim worlds commenced by the Mandalorians would continue for another 10 years until the Republic itself would come under attack. Worlds like Althir and Cathar were desecrated in the hopes of baying the Republic to battle. Before Republic worlds themselves would come under attack the Republic fleet was involved in a number of skirmishes with the Mandalorians, mirroring the conflict to come. A dark period was beggining for the Republic, a period which would continue even after the end of the Mandalorian Wars...