Rahk'neqah

From Star Wars: Exodus Visual Encyclopedia

"Make no mistake, Blackthorne. I have no love for you or your followers. On the contrary, I intend to scour this galaxy of all those whom oppose me. And make no mistake... I have the power to do it."

— Rahk'neqah to Cadden Blackthorne

Rahk'neqah, also known as the Nomad Soul, was a powerful Dark Side spirit. His origins were unknown, but his knowledge and command over the Force were vast. At one point in his lifespan, he became betrothed to Aliah'ara, and as such trained her in everything he knew. Together, they became widely feared throughout the galaxy.

Little was known about Rahk'neqah, but it was certain that his spirit's age dated at least back to the first Sith Empire. It is unknown when and how he, and his queen, died, but since his demise, he had acquired many hosts, and had built two powerful artifacts that held part of his consiousness, his tomb located on an unexplored world in the Unknown Regions, and Soulblade. These two artifacts, as well as his ability to transfer his spirit from host to host as it convenienced him, allowed him to obtain true immortality.

Throughout the years, the Nomad Soul's ultimate goal was unknown. It was also unclear how many times he physically died. His spirit seemed well intact, evidenced by his lack of insanity when first encountered by Cadden Blackthorne.

During the end of the Xen'Chi War, Rahk'neqah's spirit joined with Blackthorne's own, combining the former's experience, knowledge in the Force, and sheer hatred for the Jedi with the latter's memories, abilities, and physical appearance. Rahk'neqah's motives for this merge remained unknown, but it was clear that his original intent was to take over Blackthorne's body for himself.

Days after Cadden Blackthorne, as Darth Trayus, attacked the City of the Jedi, Rahk'neqah and Cadden were engaged in a duel in Blackthorne's mind. Rahk'neqah won, and shifted the balance of power in his favor, completely subjugating Cadden to his will.

Contents 1 Introductions 2 The Next Transfer 3 The Fall of the Nomad Soul 4 The Nomad Soul's Revenge 5 Full Circle 5.1 Unveiling of a Plot 6 Skills and Abilities 6.1 Lightsaber Combat 6.2 The Force

[edit] Introductions

"Where the mind falls... the body is sure to follow."

— The Nomad Soul

Nothing was known about Rahk'neqah, save that his two known appearances were revealed to Cadden Blackthorne during his journeys. It was speculated that this being was either an ancient Sith Lord, or some other powerful Force user whom fell to the Dark Side. Either way, his mysterious capabilities to enter another host's body at will, often with great ease, allowed him near-immortality.

Rahk'neqah was first encountered on the ice world of Talmohkt, when Cadden, Trai Kanossi, Ryy'Suuk, and Renalla Starrider crash-landed on the planet. Seeking a way off-world, the group of four adventurers signed on to aid an organization calling itself the Triad in defeating the Frozen Empire. Ulfik Nevekron, one of the higher-ups in this organization, led the Resistance's front against the Imperium. However, as Cadden and Ulfik further developed their unusual friendship, Ulfik began advancing his own plans.

The master swordsman and acrobatic eventually revealed his true colors, turning out to be the leader of the Imperium. The entire rise of the Imperium and, subsequently, Triad, was but a ruse to lure Cadden to Talmohkt. Rahk'neqah, who had been inhabiting Ulfik's body, saw great potential in Cadden, and in his future the Nomad Soul saw something worth taking over Cadden's body for.

In a final climactic battle outside Talmohkt's capital, Ulfik faced Cadden Blackthorne in a heated duel inside an Imperial bunker. The undertrained Cadden managed to get the upper hand against Ulfik, and cut the man down, but not before he transferred a small part of his consciousness into Cadden's body. Ulfik himself died in the resulting bunker's explosion, as a direct result of Cadden setting off a series of detonators, but his spirit remained in his unusual bird, whom transferred his soul to a new host.

[edit] The Next Transfer

The bird, with the Nomad Soul's essence trapped inside, found its host a new body to occupy, a mere soldier by the name of Gered. With the soul transfer complete, the bird fell to the ground, dead. Gered, now under the influence of Rahk'neqah, was filled with rage and anger toward the young Blackthorne, whom had managed to get the upper hand of him. However, he knew he would not be able to defeat Cadden on his own, and knew better than to underestimate young Blackthorne again. So, Rahk'neqah sent out a telepathic call to the far reaches of the Unknown Regions, in hopes of luring one strong in the Force to his location.

While he waited, the Nomad Soul began his plottings to regain power on Talmohkt. First, he eliminated the leaders of the Triad, secretly and silently. Second, he eradicated the Klith, a resident species, practically locking all but the strongest in the Force in the Underground complex. A result of this action caused many Klith deaths and a short-lived uprising. By now, it was too late. Finally, as his last preparations, Rahk'neqah began to research into space travel, to expand his empire.

One powerful being in the Force answered his summons, arriving on-world in but a month after the beginning of the series of calls sent out in the Force. However, it was not there to aid. This creature of an unknown origin, named Klatonn, faced Gered in a bid to control his territory. Unbeknowing to Klatonn, however, everything was going according to plan. As Klatonn prepared to kill Gered, the Nomad Soul took the moment of weakness in his opponent's defenses to his advantage, and began the soul transfer. It took longer than the usual instantaneous tranfer, due to Klatonn's great will, but eventually the will was broken, and the spirit transfered through, and Gered collapsed to the ground.

[edit] The Fall of the Nomad Soul

Next was a more broad call in the Force, and Rahk'neqah sent it out, in an attempt to find an apprentice. This move will perhaps never be understood, and it is theorized that the fall of the Nomad Soul was all a part of his plan to stake his revenge against Blackthorne. One particular individual, a Dark Jedi named Carth Dyral answered the call, and came to Talmohkt. Sensing the power in Klatonn, however, Carth was virtually powerless at the moment to turn on his summoner, and grudgingly subsided to the superior.

Klatonn then sent out a "distress call" to Cadden Blackthorne, whom predictably took the bait. Cadden arrived on-world, where he was greeted by one of the few Klith on the surface left, and taken to the Nomad Soul. There, Klatonn faced off with Cadden, in an attempt to break Cadden's will. However, the time that passed had made Cadden stronger than Rahk'neqah had anticipated, and as a last-ditch effort, the Nomad Soul tried to lure Cadden to the Dark Side instead. He first lied about Cadden's parents' deaths, where he claimed to be the culprit. A spark of anger at the throught arose in Cadden, but he refused to believe it. Then, the Nomad Soul made a larger push - and claimed that he was the cause of Renalla Starrider's death. This enraged Cadden, as Rahk'neqah had hoped, but unbeknowingst to the Nomad Soul, he underestimated Blackthorne once again. There, Klatonn died at Cadden's hands as a result of Cadden's rage taking over, as a massive wave of energy was pushed from Blackthorne's hand, piercing through Klatonn's body and completely obliterating Rahk'neqah's connection to the alien's body.

Carth Dyral, however, saw this opportunity, and made his move. Though greatly drained as a result, Cadden still held a strong resolve, and the two squared off. It was clear that any duel that would happen would be pointless, and likely both of them would exhaust themselves before either fell.

Over a short period of time, Cadden and Carth, begrudgingly working together, secured the advancement into space, and united Talmohkt under the new Frozen Empire. However, complications arose, and the two broke into a furious duel. Carth lost his vocal cords, and Cadden his right eye, as a result, and during that duel, an unusual bond formed between the two. It ended in a draw, when they both realized that, should one kill the other, the wave of pain that would be echoed as a result would likely kill both instead.

A shaky alliance was formed once again, but it didn't last long, as Trai Kanossi returned to Talmohkt, after sensing Cadden's fall. Joining with the Klith and a rising Resistance, Trai fought the already-shaking Dark Jedi Cadden Blackthorne, and finally Cadden's resolve was broken, and he had realized what he had turned into, what he had done. As an act of redemption, Cadden ended the entire space expansion of Talmohkt, leaving the world behind while faking his own death. It is unknown what happened to Carth, but eventually the other had found a way off-world as well.

[edit] The Nomad Soul's Revenge

"Break the bones, and the body will heal. Break the spirit, and the body will die."

— Kladaar Blackthorne, on how to defeat the Nomad Soul

However, Cadden was unaware of what other changes were happening. With each passing day, a very small, insignificant portion of his will was being transformed to the Dark Side by the Nomad Soul. For a short period of time, on Talmohkt, Rahk'neqah had his revenge. However, as Cadden trained himself to resist the new dark urges inside of him, and continue toward the Light, those small parts of his will were torn away.

The transformation would ultimately take three years to complete, but in the Udine System, Cadden finally broke, and Rahk'neqah's consciousness was able to take a hold of his will. Unfortunately, he did not anticipate Cadden's two sons, Jerik and Guan, to aid Cadden in destroying the last of the Nomad Soul's corruption on Blackthorne's will.

In a duel between the sons and father, Cadden was beaten back into a corner by both Jerik and Guan, and was wounded in the process. In that moment of weakness, the Nomad Soul saw his end, as Guan aided his father in completely eradicating Rahk'neqah's spirit from his body, and sending it into the abyss.

However, his influence would remain. Not only had the battles Cadden fought with the Nomad Soul left him with a constant battle against his own Dark Side, but also with a near-fall when Cadden was revealed his false heritage as a Mandalorian. Fortunately for him, however, Faarel was able to dispel these lies, thus foiling Rahk'neqah's revenge.

[edit] Full Circle

"Now, we are one!"

— The Nomad Soul, after merging his soul with Cadden Blackthorne's

Two years would pass, before Rahk'neqah would, once again, return. Revealing indirectly that he had embedded a piece of his consciousness in side Blackthorne, the Nomad Soul spoke to him once more when Faarel Blackthorne was killed by the Darksider Sivter. Through a carefully thought out plan, he successfully led Cadden to Soulblade, an ancient Sith sword that the Nomad Soul had constructed during his time alive, in his original form. The blade possessed strong powers in the Dark Side of the Force, as well as a significant portion of Rahk'neqah's consciousness.

With the blade in hand, and his eyesight sacrificed, but restored through the Force, Cadden traveled to Rahk'neqah's tomb, whereupon his shattered the sarcophagus that kept his soul imprisoned. The act allowed Rahk'neqah to invade Cadden's body, initially to take it over, but when he discovered Cadden's will was too strong, the two formed a pact, and merged their souls into one.

From that point, the sheer power inherent in the Nomad Soul corrupted Cadden, and turned him to the Dark Side once more. Rahk'neqah, while not entirely pleased that he was unable to complete his original plan, was satisfied with the process, and completed the merging into one single individual. However, it became apparent that the Nomad Soul was still capable of operating on his own outside of the two merged souls, although not even Blackthorne himself was aware of it.

The Nomad Soul soon set into motion a plan to restore life to his long dead beloved, Aliah'ara, whom he encased the soul of in a blade similar to his own, but in dagger form. Rahk'neqah remained the only individual whom possessed knowledge of the blade's location.

[edit] Unveiling of a Plot

"You see, Blackthorne, you have no control over me. True, I could purge your soul from this body, claim it as my own. But I have far greater plans that require you to remain."

— Rahk'neqah to Cadden Blackthorne

Several days after the Battle of Taylon, Rahk'neqah let it become known that he had plans in store for Cadden himself. Unwilling to unearth a single detail to his host, however, instead of counting on Cadden's participation, the Nomad Soul opted instead to dominate Blackthorne's mind and turn him into a servant to his will, stating that Blackthorne was more valuable to him alive, and in control of his body, than he would be dead and in the nether regions of the Force.

After the mental battle that followed concluded, Cadden awoke to find his environment different, and the way he walked and did things different as well. It became unclear to even himself where the distinction between him and Rahk'neqah lay anymore. But Rahk'neqah's final words before Cadden departed on his new mission rang loud and clear in his mind:

"Yes, accept your fate... you now serve me...."

While it was unclear as to who it was that maintained control, it was clear that Cadden and Rahk'neqah became the perfect fusion of one being. Cadden's personality and body, as well as memories, had been successfully joined with Rahk'neqah's wisdom, experience, and power. With this turn of events, Cadden shed his former identity, and accepted his fate as Darth Trayus, and servant to Rahk'neqah.

[edit] Skills and Abilities

[edit] Lightsaber Combat

"If you were to face an ancient Sith Lord in combat, you would learn that we are as children playing with toys compared to the prowess of the old Masters."

— Kreia

While Rahk'neqah does not prefer to use a lightsaber, and instead uses Soulblade, he is master of combat nonetheless. His millennia of experience has granted him a perfection in the forms of Ataru and Juyo, and his proficiency in Makashi grants him the finesse necessary to defeat his opponents with ease. He also utilizes elements of Shii-Cho and Niman in duels, thus making him a well-rounded, yet very dangerous, adversary against all but the absolute best.

Aside from the rudimentary abilities with melee combat, Rahk'neqah also frequently employs Dun Möch to weaken the will of his enemies, a technique he has used for ages as a device to better employ his most valued ability. Furthermore, while Rahk'neqah prefers to defeat his opponent through sheer strength and show of ability, he is not a stranger to the concept of Sokan, and would not hesitate to utilize this technique if it meant victory.

[edit] The Force

"The recent Sith the galaxy has witnessed could only dream to match the sheer power found within him."

— Unknown Jedi Historian

It is, without question, that Rahk'neqah is a master of the Force. His knowledge over it, and its inner workings, is impressive. His most valued ability, Spirit transference, has been perfected by the ancient creature over the millennia, thus allowing him to obtain true immortality. Furthermore, Rahk'neqah possesses a wealth of knowledge over the Force, from the rudimentary basics to some of the most impossible feats even for the greatest of masters. It is unknown what the extent of his powers are, but it is known that there are few that could even stand a fighting chance against him.