Set during the Clone Wars, Jedi Vydel Dir'Nul has ignored the call of the Jedi Council to take up a position as general. Instead, she tracks a serial killer, called Kardem, as vengeance for the murder of her lover, the freighter pilot Ash B'risko. Since Ash, Kardem has killed only female Twi'leks, but more disturbing is his means of killing: lightsaber and Force lightning, indicating that he is a Dark Jedi.
Dir'Nul follows Kardem's trail of hints and finds his eighth victim. At the same time, a hooded figure approaches and calls her name. They fight, but the figure disarms her and tells her he has come to take her back to the Jedi Council. Dir'Nul retaliates with Force lightning. As the Jedi calls the name of Master Dir'Nul, she responds that her name is Kardem.
The Jedi reveals that Dir'Nul is Kardem. She discovered Ash with a Twi'lek dancing girl, and in her rage killed him, creating the dark side mental persona of Kardem in the process. From then on, she had killed female Twi'leks in the Kardem persona, then investigated the murders in the Dir'Nul persona. The Jedi tells her that he was sent to bring her back, dead or alive. Calling upon the dark side, Kardem kills him with lightning and his own lightsaber. She then reverts to the Dir'Nul persona and is shocked to find that "Kardem" has claimed yet another victim, this time a Jedi. She reaffirms her vow to bring the killer to justice.
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