Interesting, I really like how Buffy was forced to confront her increasing "Sith-ness." Although I'm not sure what the end result of that will be. It could go either way, at this point. She could fully embrace the dark side, or she might be more in the middle of dark and light (I doubt she would completely flip to the light side at this point though). I can't wait to read Faith's chapter! It looks like we're getting close to the end of their separation as they both close in on the Purge Engine.

Yeah, one cannot go around choking people with the Force and not expect there to be some sort of consequence. You are correct that this is not the end of what Buffy is and will always be. She's cookie dough, remember? She's not done baking yet.

To answer what made this chapter interesting was:
1) The concept that the Sith Emperor is a being of void rather than emotion - all other Dark Side Force users that I am aware of draw on emotion. This seems to imply that the Dark Side eventually in some way burns out or destroys the ability to feel emotion.
2) Buffy getting more Sith like and her apprentice drawing her back some. That has some both bad and good implications for Buffy, bad she is feeling the same strain of using the Dark Side that everyone does (it is making her more evil/impulsive/uncontrolled emotionally) but good because she has build something of a emotional support system that seems to be helping her somewhat to resist this.
3) The continued parallel drawing together of the Buffy and Faith story lines, I haven't decided if I like it or hate it but it is defiantly an interesting way to do the story! It builds up tension for when they eventually meet...which is good but I worry that it feels a bit contrived.

Again thanks for an interesting story!

Tom.

Thank you so much for taking the time to reply to my comment! Really, this means a lot to me. As to the points you made...

1) I wish I could take credit for the Sith Emperor, but alas, I cannot. I did not create the character, nor any of his history or powers. The creative teams at BioWare deserve the credit for creating such a character, but the overall theme of the Dark Side is one that I have seen in Star Wars literature before. The Dark Side feels hot and passionate in the short term, but in the long term, it leads to unfeeling coldness if you let it.
2) Yes, Buffy is getting more Sith-ish, and Thriss doesn't necessarily like what she sees. I intend for that to be the case for the immediate future, so we'll see how Buffy develops further.
3) The parallel stories of Buffy and Faith are pretty much the foundation of this entire story. I think that if you hated it, you wouldn't still be reading the story, but of course, I could be misunderstanding what you mean. The two Slayers were always going to reunite at some point. The only difference is that the point of reunion is almost here. I'm sorry if it feels contrived, but I have been striving to make that the end goal from day one.

Thank you again for your feedback! It means a great deal to me. Best Wishes for you and yours!

The vision ... felt so real until the moment it was revealed as a vision.

She stands alone after losing the one person who, like Thriss, meant something to her, and she turns her back on everyone else...

In that moment, the meaning of the Sith Code became clear to her. In that one moment of clarity, Buffy ceased to be Buffy and became Darth Sunhome.

Don't be so sure about that. I may not have been entirely clear, but I don't think Buffy's going to buy into that theory right away without thinking about it some more. It was a revelation, yes, but will it be one that she accepts? It is very possible. Stay tuned!

I just realized how odd the story mechanic is, for a quest to go out and find clues to a big hidden McGuffin of power. I mean who hides his big doomsday weapons instead of keeping it close to him when they could have needed them? How logical would it be for the President of the United States, in order to push the nuclear button, to first have to send out some Marines on a quest to secure the hidden launch codes?

This is not a burn at your story, which keeps on being entertaining (although the way they got this clue was a little too easy I must admit), more a general moment of fridge logic realization at the entire genre. The one thing that does strike me as odd is Buffy and the Sith Emperor. If she doesn't see him as like the other Sith but more as something separate from them, in this case a void, that might classify him as slay worthy. Not for his power, but because he's a classic Big Bad. And Slayers kill Big Bads.

Finally, I know my eyes currently suck, but are my beta reading days over?

The mechanic is an odd one, I'll give you that. I suppose they want to test people to see if they're worthy or whatever, but in the end it is rather silly when you think about it for more than a few seconds.

As for the beta-reading, I'll leave that up to you. Send me an e-mail telling me if you'd like to help beta or if you'd rather just read and be entertained. Sithspit was kind enough to beta this chapter, and I didn't want to burden you if it could be helped. If you would rather I did send you my chapters to get another set of eyes, however, then I would not object to multiple beta-readers.

I hope your eyes get better soon. Take Care!

OH!!!!!

Faith and Buffy will be meeting soon right????

Oh god... what if the thing is balance and that's what both Buffy and Faith have to figure out???

Oh no now I need more please.

You are correct that Buffy and Faith will be meeting sooner rather than later. There will be Buffy/Faith 14 chapters, possibly Buffy/Faith 15, but after that, it's into the final stretch. Stay tuned, ladies and gentlemen!

Hmm, interesting chapter...very interesting!

Thanks, Tom.

Thank you. If you don't mind me asking, what about the chapter, exactly, made it interesting?

Great chapters!

Tom.

Thank you.

Buffy and Faith in The Old Republic? I love everything about this idea. I love that the two Slayers have their own stories, separate from the stories of the eight classes in the game, while still existing in the same "universe." I love that you're developing a cast of OCs that seem real and nuanced.

And I REALLY love how you completely turned my expectations upside-down by making Buffy a Sith and making it actually WORK. I like how her slow descent into the dark side was more of an act at first, but now she's starting to genuinely act more like a Sith, or, well, more like a Revanite actually. Even after I knew that Buffy was a Sith, I didn't expect her to actually start to partially embrace the Sith way of life. But in retrospect, it makes a lot of sense.

Meanwhile, Faith is a Jedi while still remaining essentially...Faith-like. And I love how her experiences mirror Buffy's, and I should really stop here or I'll go on listing every minute detail that I love about the story...

In short, it's awesome. Can't wait to read more.

Thank you so much for your kind words! Really, I'm so glad that this story hit the right notes for you. I'll try my best to update somewhat regularly, but this is all at the discretion of my muse in the end. I hope you continue to enjoy what's yet to come.

Thanks again, and Take Care!

Continues to add that certain flair to my reading enjoyment Thanks for continuing this story

I'm not sure what that certain flair is, but I'm very glad that you are still enjoying the story. Thanks for commenting, and stay tuned for more!

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand once again we learn that the Star Wars galaxy is a very small galaxy, where everybody keeps going to the same planets and/or running into the same people, or in this case their family. ;)

Hey now! The galaxy is not so small, my friend. The Force is guiding Our Heroes (TM), don't you see? ~_^

Ooooh, bad Buffy! Bad, naughty Buffy! Less Slayer, and more Sith you are, yeeees, mmmm...

That was my Yoda moment, brought to you by Kelloggs Frosted Mini Wheats...ROFLMFAO till it hurts....

Edit/Reply : Yup, sure did. I'm intrigued to see how it goes when Darth Sunhome meets Faith again...

I am unsure if you should be applauded or executed for that Yoda impersonation. Either way, I hope you liked the chapter! Thanks for commenting!

Poor, poor Buffy. How soon we forget, hm? Tsk.
I hope she gets a clue and bounces back before the Force starts to ravage her complexion as well.

Don't you fret about Buffy's lovely face. I imagine that even if she did go that far down the Dark Side, she'd have clicked the 'Hide Dark Side Corruption' option in the character window. I know I always do that with my Dark Side characters when I want them to look good. ~_^

Howdy!

And as you said, the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and Buffy's now in the express lane. And seems Thriss has noted it and ain't too thrilled. Well, we'll see how fast the fall goes.
I do like, however, that Buffy realizes she's always been ruthless and efficient. Hell, she's even down right cruel at times, and selfish. But for the sake of these, rare to never. And now Buffy seems to have decided, "what the heck, lets go for it."
What's sad is that up to this point Buffy has avoided deliberate, out-right cruelty for cruelty's sake nor enjoyed it and I could even see some of her (and the Sith's) point of view (I'm not fond of the Jedi in many cases either). Now she's taken that step and a big one, and it's over the line. She sinks too far and little chance of coming back. Buffy will either enjoy it too much and not want to, or feel too wracked with guilt and commit suicide by Faith.


The Cracker!

The Cracker!

Greetings!

As I was writing this chapter, I was incredibly scared that I had written Buffy's shift into a darker gear as too much or else too soon or maybe both. I can tell you, however, that I have started the draft for Buffy XIII, and this incident will definitely be noticed and talked about by her companions. One of the key things about BioWare games is that no matter what kind of character you are, your actions have consequences, and I intend for the same to apply to the characters in this story.

I do think that Buffy feels she is justified in what she is doing because she sees Loslar through a negative and personal lens, and I do not think that she would Force choke some random stranger just for kicks. The road to hell is paved with good intentions, and Buffy seems to figure that if she's going to walk that road, she might as well have fun while doing so. If only she realized where that road was taking her...

Stay tuned for Faith XII, coming up hopefully very soon!

Hmm, it's been a while since any of my characters have been to Alderaan in SWTOR...

I do find myself wondering when the two groups will meet though...

Alderaan was always buggy for my characters in the MMO, no matter what server they were on or what class they were. I will not, however, be subjecting Buffy and Friends to lag and frame rate drops, nor will I force them to pay Cartel Coins to get a good connection to the internet.

As for when both sides of the story will be meeting up... This is Buffy XII, right? We might get to Buffy XV and Faith XV before combining the two threads into one. That's not a promise or a guarantee: It is just an estimate. We'll see how things turn out.

Amazing? I'm still the first to comment your latest update? I would have done so sooner but I have this nasty eye infection that makes it really hard for me to read a computer screen. Thank TtH for their black background skin. ;)

Enough self pity, on with the review. It seems kinda cliché to have Faith blame herself, but the clichés exist for a reason. People really do blame themselves for shit they didn't do. At least you got it out of the way and back on track. Also nice to get a new update so soon. Wasn't expecting that.

Finally a small request, I needed a Jedi character for a cameo for a Halloween story I was working on and because I'm shit with coming up with new original names I sort off borrowed Ralto. I hope you don't mind?

I don't mind at all. I'm flattered that you thought to use one of my characters. My only request is that if you have the character himself be based off of the character of Ralto in my story, then you simply put a disclaimer at the end of the chapter or something saying that you're borrowing the character with permission. If the name is all you took and the character is original, then never mind what I said and go for broke!

And yes, self-pity is a cliche, but I fully intend for Faith to be past that stage. She'll still feel guilt for her past sins, but it won't be overwhelming like it was at the start of this chapter. Faith can never be fully rid of guilt if she's to stay on her personal journey of redemption, but she can at least not let her guilt rule over her life.

Thanks again for your comments and your thinking of using Ralto. It's always good to see comments from you, since you've been reviewing this story since the beginning, or so it feels.

More updates coming sooner than you might think. ~_^