Vandar was back in his element as he accompanied the other leaders of the fleet.
He considered how he'd ended up in his current position.
As a Jedi Knight he had been on the front lines in the frantic battles with Exar Kun and his forces of the fallen. He remembered killing those he had trained with and studied beside while watching others fall by the blades of their friends and family.
He had known both of the leaders of the Sith at that time, and had known them both as heroes and villains. Nomi Sunrider, as well as both her deceased husband and daughter, had been friends. Once even fighting alongside the venerable Thon of Ambria, even spoken at the Tchuukthai's funeral.
His own talents were in planning and was also exceptionally gifted in receiving visions. Unfortunately, while his rise to mastery was meteoric, the council he'd been stuck with was far more disappointing. They would argue and whine over what he said, twisting it into something entirely different and applying it seemingly on a whim to whatever situation came up.
Near the end of the Mandalorian Wars, the main council had finally given in to provide aid and he did what he could providing aid and advice when he was able, letting those trained to command the armies as the final arbiter of the fate for good or ill.
Being corralled into aiding in the the only one of those close to Revan to return being exiled because of their fear, he almost despaired.
But he was tired of the constant bickering of the council, and chose to retreat to the Dantooine enclave and teach at the end of the war, saddened by Revan's desire to leave, but a part of him felt that the man needed to find peace, and the Republic was not where it could be found for the troubled soul.
Vandar had little choice but to watch as the others decided to make Revan into their puppet, even then he could feel how wrong they were in doing such a thing. Revan was abandoned by their ignorance before, and it was only because he had taken that teaching to heart and been betrayed once more that he would be made into their pawn.
But the Sith had proven to be stronger of will than the others had hoped, becoming the symbol of the force itself.
Yes, Revan's actions had shown him a secret about the force that his fellows had only feared. The force itself was neither light nor dark, but the beings using its power were corruptible not by the force, but by the power they took from it without the traits that made them Jedi.
And he had watched many rise in the ranks that did not have the moral fiber to be there, and he partially blamed himself for allowing it.
With the decimation caused by Exar Kun and the war that followed, they didn't have the numbers to be picky about who was there, and results in battle spoke more than the training and wisdom one had picked up.
Those in power would not lightly give up such power, and while capable warriors they were not all the best choice as leaders.
And then there were those who wanted to change things to their own whims, a prominent example being Atris and her desire to shred the code they followed and remake it as they wished it to be.
After Adi's death, Atris led the charge to begin restricting who could be trained, stating that it was the fact that they were not trained from their childhood that Exar and Ulic had fallen.
To his disbelief, others listened then, and their actions then led to his decision to join Revan in returning to the fleet he had been supplying as a rearguard against the menace he saw the warrior prepare to face.
In the end, it was that decision that saved him from Atris' betrayal of the Jedi, calling down a deadly foe that slew many of those he still viewed as brothers and sisters leaving only the scattered remnants from the ashes of Katarr.
The familiar words of the Code he had followed, passed through his thoughts.
Emotion, yet peace.
Ignorance, yet knowledge.
Passion, yet serenity.
Chaos, yet harmony.
Death, yet the Force.
