Cover Artist: John Van Fleet

Darth Zannah is on Serenno, manipulating a minor separatist movement to take action early. She succeeds and returns to Ambria, where Darth Bane is unsuccessfully attempting to create a holocron. At her request, he explains that making these minor movements fail prevents them from organizing into something larger that may expose the Sith. She returns to Serenno where she is taken before Hetton, the mastermind behind the failed plot. She learns that he is a dabbler in Sith arts who may hold the clue to Bane's quest to create a holocron. He pledges himself to her and she takes him back to Ambria where he and his servants are killed by Bane. In the fight, Bane loses control and nearly kills Zannah before she can explain herself, and she suggests that the orbalisks are clouding his judgement and holding him back. He agrees to the possibility and sends her to infiltrate the Jedi Temple and see if they have information that will rid him of the parasites, while he goes to Belia Darzu's stronghold on Tython to find what he needs. On Ruusan, the Republic has begun building a monument to the battle with the Sith. Zannah's cousin Darovit disagrees with the monument, and so attempts to sabotage it until he is caught by Jedi Knight Johun Othone. As they talk, Darovit reveals that the Sith still exist, and Johun takes him to Coruscant to hopefully meet with the Jedi Council. While Johun tries to persuade Valenthyne Farfalla, Darovit waits in the Jedi Library, where he finds Zannah just as she finds the answer to her questions regarding removal of the orbalisks. Fearing for what will happen to the Sith if they are revealed, she takes Darovit and they leave for Tython, followed closely by Johun and Farfalla and three other Jedi. On Tython, Bane defeats Belia's guardians and finds her holocron. Spending time researching, he finally finds the answer to his problems with creating a holocron. As he leaves the fortress to return to Ambria, He sees Zannah arriving, followed by the Jedi. The Sith retreat to the fortress where they are assaulted by the Sith. Two Jedi attack each Sith, while Master Worror practices his battle meditation to give the Jedi an advantage. At first, Farfalla and Master Raskta Lsu attack Bane while Johun and Sarro Xaj face Zannah, but when Bane proves to be too much for them and tries to attack Worror, Johun joins them. As they duel him, Johun manages to find a weak spot in Bane's armor and injures him, causing his rage to take over and throwing them out of his way. Before he can kill Worror though, Johun pushes the Jedi away, saving his life but breaking his meditation. With the backup briefly gone, Zannah manages to kill Sarro and go to her master's aid. She manages to approach Raskta unnoticed and cuts her down. With the other Jedi distracted, Bane removes Johun's arm and beheads Farfalla before cutting down Worror. He then uses his rage to throw Sith lightning at Johun, but is prevented by Worror's last act, which redirects the lightning back at Bane, nearly killing him. She kills Johun and finds Darovit who explains that there is nothing he can do about the poison the orbalisks left in Bane's body as some of them died. Taking everyone to Ambria to find Caleb, she is unable to persuade him to save her master's life. Darovit tells her that if she will turn in the Sith, Caleb will heal Bane so he can stand trial. She agrees, and when Bane finally awakens she tells him what happened and he demands she kill him rather than let him be turned in. When the Jedi arrive, they find the mutilated body of Caleb scattered all over the camp and they are attacked by a clearly insane young man. Ending his life, they presume they have eliminated the Sith threat and return to Coruscant, while Zannah repairs her ship so she and Bane can hide elsewhere now that her cousin helped convince the Jedi they had killed the Sith.