2This idea of AU lunacy is something I've had saved for a while, it's something I worked maybe in 2018 that I want to get around to redoing into a proper fanfic, you could possibly call it my first true fanfic.
6900 BBY
Hakagram Graush's War Camp, Korriban
Hakagram Graush lay awake in his camp despite what should be a celebratory mood. He and his warriors had crushed one of the last remaining warlords, Kul Ka'vash and from him demanded his fealty or his life. As sure as Horuset would rise in the sky, he of the proud lineage of Graush would rule this planet and the Sith people would be whole. Yet he felt unease about him, as a commotion began to erupt outside of his tent, drawing a sword the king had rushed out to see the commotion. [1]
As if to confirm his unease a bright burning light had flashed across the sky, before landing in the direction of The Valley of the Sleeping Kings. A ring of lighting had encircled the king, yet the sky was a clear night. An ethereal figure emerged from the lightning before. The figure wore a helm that mirrored his own and carried a broadsword and ceremonial axe at this side, the symbol of a king. The figure gazed at him, silently judging as it looked him up and down. [2]
"Blood of my Blood, and Flesh of my Flesh." Came the chilling words from the figure, a term of endearment that could only raise one possibility.[3]
"It cannot be! Grandfather?" The king had figured he was dreaming, but only a fool ignores the spirits. Especially the spirit of Dathka Graush, The Scourge of Korriban
The figure spoke with a gravelly voice that could scrape Horuset itself. "I call to you, a great darkness comes that will see our people reach across the stars once more. However, this world will be scourged, and only through the will of the Bastard of Anem Thema's bounty, shall our people to see a Land of Glorious Shadow. What shall you do with this knowledge, Blood of my Blood, and Flesh of my Flesh?" The figured asked before fading away. [4]
The King found himself approached by one of the nearby Kissai, a holy person and priestess the one who saw and interpreted omens, Kal'Chyl. [5]
"Oh Exalted One. This can only be a good omen, you are the one to lead us to the stars." She spoke as if it was certainty.
"Hmph, I am not so sure Kal'Chyl." The King replied dampening the overjoyed priest's mood. "The only thing that is certain about visions is that they are uncertain. I shall head to the Valley of the Sleeping Kings myself."
"What about you, Exalted One, who will lead your warriors back to Ra'Thun you do take this journey?" The priest asked concerned the King was risking his life.
"I am skilled with sorcery and blade, I fear no mere bandits, and their blood will stain the sands red if they try. As for my warriors, my trusted Lavran, Arak Mul shall lead them back home." Kal'Chyl only bowed as Hakagram made his way towards a makeshift stable. The King mounted a beast known as a Nathik. It was a fast quadruped that could be tamed as a beast of burden, and to carry a person or pull a chariot if need be. [6]
Valley of the Sleeping Kings
One week had passed since Hakagram had seen the apparition of his feared grandfather. He had made his way across to the Valley of the Sleeping Kings. Only for his Grandfather to reappear.
"So, Blood of my Blood and Flesh of my Flesh, you have arrived." The apparition spoke. "The darkness has shown me a new vision. You like I, will be slain by treachery. Your Shadow Hand will be influenced by twelve outsiders from beyond this world. They might appear to be gods, but they have technology that has been lost to our ancestors for centuries, that of traveling through the stars." The apparition gestured to a long passage to the right of the Valley. "You must take up my Sword and Helm, slay or enslave these creatures or die trying. I always felt your father was weak, his greatest contribution in this life may have been to sleep with that wretched slave concubine that was your mother." The apparition said giving Hakagram a glare that stopped him cold. [7]
Hakagram found himself heading the toward Valley of Galog, where the most brutal of Kings and occasional Queen were buried. However, unbeknownst to the daring King, the Twelve outsiders would be making their landing soon. [8]
Tomb of Dathka Graush,
Hakagram felt he must have slain his twentieth Tuk'ata. As he progressed toward finding his ancestor's relics, he had noticed this tomb was not adorned with any statues. Like all Tombs in the Valley of Galog they only contained warnings for in this tomb were figures to be appeased and only turned to in the most dire of circumstance. This tomb was built to appease the Scourge of the Living and Anointed Levran of Raku'toth, may his spirit sleep forevermore. It seems it was now a broken plea. While young king could best any beast or warrior of his age, facing down his grandfather could be a feat beyond him. Qyasic most foul permeated this place, as it did all forbidden places.
'Perhaps I should have listened to the priest, and had taken it as a good omen. No power came without risk, but I am taking a risk either way?' Hakagram shook his head. 'No I must persevere.'
The main chamber of his grandfather's tomb was a nexus of pain, suffering, and anger. It was a large room with countless statues surrounding a raised platform with a solid black sarcophagus. Hakagram approached the sarcophagus as the most unnatural chill had started to surround the air around him. The sarcophagus itself had several seals on them, grabbing his warblade, he struck the sarcophagus while channeling lightning into it, and the seals broke.
Initially, nothing else happened, yet Hakagram remained on his guard, he would be foolish to think he could loot his grandfather's grave and leave. A skeletal fist quick shot up to break through the lid, as the Sith king had to brace himself for what came next. A skeleton adorned in armor and carrying a flawless war blade emerged. Through one of the cracks in the creature's armor, he saw what looked to be a crystal. A screaming shroud of darkness had begun to surround the skeletal figure, as its eyes were filled with purple fire.
"Blood of my Blood, If you wish to claim my strength you must take it from me. Although I do not have much hope for you, the son of a weakling and worthless slave. Perhaps when I slay you, I shall reanimate you as befitting of your parents." He inwardly shuddered at the unnatural hissing his grandfather's corpse had made, but tempered it with hate, his grandfather was possibly even crueler than any story could tell
The skeletal remains of Dathka Graush moved with unnatural speed, and Hakagram swore he saw some of the remaining muscle around his face, form a smile.
"Arise, withered slaves attend your master in life and death, and destroy the intruder!"
At this urging, a thousand tortured screaming souls flooded the chamber and entering the statues which began to break revealing skeleton underneath! The skeletons had began to change growing sharp claws and fangs before beginning to attack.
However, Hakagram would not let them get the chance to strike. Bolstering his speed with innate sorcery, and charging his warblade with lightning, Hakagram charged into several isolated clusters of skeletons at least taking down one hundred and a half. However, a large horde of skeletons had begun to close ranks.
"Is that all you have, 'King'?" Dathka said indifferently to his progeny's seemingly imminent demise."
Hakagram tapped into his fury and hatred and allow his faith in himself to give him power. 'It was I who had to pick the pieces left behind by grandfather's misrule and father's weakness. It was I who brought the House of Graush closer to ruling Korriban, then even it's Scourge. It was I who brought the Houses of Horda, Drahan'math, and Ka'Leg to my rule. I will crush my grandfather and, butcher or enslave these interlopers.'
The younger Graush turned these thoughts into a single word. "Perish!" At Hakagram's command, a storm of lightning surged forth from his hands engulfing most of the room in his fury. [9]
"Hm impressive, perhaps you are not weak after all." Dathka's spirit remarked as a few hundred skeletons remained.
Thinking quickly Hakagram ran towards his grandfather's sarcophagus and moved behind it. As the remaining corpses ran towards him, he lifted the sarcophagus and threw it into the mob of skeletons before charging in to destroy what was left.
Dathka, finally decided to engage in battle and had drawn his sword and began a furious offensive against his grandsire.
"Blood of my Blood, do you believe you can raise enough fury to strike me down? I am no mere corpse." The corpse seemed almost bored.
"You will fall like one regardless, for I am Hakagram Graush, King of the Sith. I shall triumph over those living and dead!" The living youth shouted in defiance of the dead elder Sith's power.
"We shall see."
Their duel continued with a constant clash of magical steel, as Hakagram managed to strike the left side of the Scourge of Korriban's armor. Dathka in response began to use his sorcery to force Hakagram to kneel, humiliating him before slaying him. While he began to fight against the power that pressed against him, he noticed that the crystal where Dathka's heart would be was exposed, he reached out to pry it from the corpse. Using a jolt of fury Hakagram pulled it from the corpse, causing it to collapse as dark laughter began to ring out around him.
"Impressive, Flesh of my Flesh. Seize my Crown, my Sword, my Heart, my Scrolls, and with them forge a path In Adas's glorious shadow." Dathka said with a genuine smile on his ghostly visage as his spirit reappeared. [10]
"No Sire of my Sire, I will walk a path, that shall eclipse even Adas, a path that only Horuset can be able to judge!" The king shouted in triumph.
"May Horuset's unrelenting fire be with you, Flesh of my Flesh." As Dathka Graush faded away the darkness of the tomb receded, and Hakagram began the trek back to Ra'thun, but he would not find it as he left it.
So this is a premise that throws a hell of a lot of Star Wars lore as we know it right out the window by default.
[1] In Legends Hakagram Graush was the King of the Sith before the Jedi Exiles had arrived, there's very little that is touched on the Pre-Dark Jedi Sith. In Legends, the Sith first started out as their own species, and not necessarily out to fight the Jedi, until the Jedi Exiles arrived. Then you basically get the Sith and Sith Code as we know it. The Sith also didn't exactly worship the Dark Side per say even if they had a lot of force users that used that what could be called the Dark Side.
[2] Hakagram Graush only exists, because on a continuity error, which take note is going to become a pattern because anything beyond the Great Hyperspace War is really fucking wonky to make sense of from a consistency standpoint. Even if you boil it down just simple things like clothing and weapons. Basically someone wanted the Dark Jedi to kill Dathka Graush via lightsaber only to find out that lightsabers did not exist. So Dathka Graush was retooled into an earlier Sith King, and Hakagram was created. Also, The Valley of the Sleeping Kings is more famously known as the Valley of the Dark Lords.
[3] I took this from SWTOR to be a traditional Sith way of addressing a grandchild or beyond. Considering there isn't a large time gap between both kings I've imagined Dathka and Hakagram as a grandparent and grandchild.
[4] I've taken the liberty to design Sith gods, as being close to pseudo Ancient Egyptian as possible, even if the Ancient Sith tend to be a mix of ancient Mesopotamian dress with an Ancient Egypt flare to it. What is being described are cryptic references to a then-possible future. Although I haven't even come close to finalizing a headcanon of any parts of ancient Sith culture too much so this could change.
[5] Sith priests, as Sith society was divided into castes at this point in time. Although I'm not going with the Sith castes being radically different sub-species, save maybe some genetic differences in the Massassi. While the lowest caste were slaves or grotthu, which was seen as in insult.
[6] A Lavran I've made as a trusted left hand, based of the Sith Lavranok. With all the subtly of a Mack truck, the species that the bad guys get their name and culture from are naturally left-handed. A Nathik was me creating a proper mount, that isn't an overgrown hound like a Tu'kata or ambiguous with the timeline like a Hississ.
[7] Dathka Graush was assassinated because no one likes a murderous necromancer for a King. The biggest aspect of how screwed up the lore can be at least for now until we get to the idea of Sith Worlds, is the fact Dathka Graush had an asteroid base out in Wild Space. Yet Korriban was long considered a graveyard world, even before Dathka Graush killed a lot of people and set Sith society back.
[8] A renamed Valley of Golg, but as a place not of veneration but of placation.
[9] I'm putting the Force for the Sith in the context of sometimes being magical spells made manifest, to the Sith the Force was known as Qyasik . Although the incantations are not necessary. It's more the words play into the idea of tapping into power. I felt it would be something to put in, in dealing with a Sith POV on The Force. Also there is a at least in theory a functional Sith Language I'll use parts of it where applicable.
[10] These refer to several artifacts. Namely the Helm of Dathka Graush, his crystal heart, The Blade of Ieldis which worked in conjunction with his Helm, and scrolls as just a repository of knowledge. Adas was the first King of the Sith to unite the Sith species.