Darth Malak

"There’s nobody left who remembers who I was before. But they’ll remember Malak. I’ll make sure of that."

- Malak

Darth Malak was a Human male who took the mantle of Dark Lord of the Sith during the Jedi Civil War. He was, prior to becoming a Sith Lord, a famed Jedi Knight and military commander. Born on the planet Quelii as Alek, he escaped the Mandalorian's attack on Quelii. Shortly after, the immigration records listed Alek's home village, Squinquargesimus, as his surname. Nicknamed Squint by his fellow Jedi, Squinquargesimus befriended the Jedi Padawan Zayne Carrick and, after taking the name "Malak," assisted him in defeating the Jedi Covenant. During the Mandalorian Wars, Malak gained a reputation as a headstrong warrior who would recklessly charge into danger. He eventually drew closer and closer to the dark side, ultimately being seduced by Sith teachings imparted to him by his closest friend and fellow Jedi Knight Revan. After the final battle of the Mandalorian Wars at the Sith world of Malachor V, the two twisted the allegiance of the Revanchists and the forces of the Galactic Republic under their command, building the foundations of what would eventually become a new Sith Empire.

In his role as Revan's chosen apprentice, the newly-christened Darth Malak helped his Master track down the Star Maps, devices that led to the Star Forge, an ancient space station built by the Rakata. A year after Revan and Malak disappeared from known Republic space into the Unknown Regions, they returned and declared war on the Republic, determined to end the "tyranny" of the Jedi Order. At one point under Darth Revan's tutelage, Malak's entire jaw was removed by a lightsaber strike from his own Sith Master, forcing him to wear a large metal prosthesis. After the Jedi dispatched a strike team to capture Revan and Malak, the latter betrayed his Master, ordering the guns of his flagship, Leviathan, to fire on Revan's vessel. Convinced that his Master had died, Malak usurped Revan's mantle of Dark Lord and ruled the Sith unchallenged, brutally conquering territory after territory. He even took an apprentice of his own, a former Jedi named Darth Bandon.

It would not be long until Malak was proven wrong about his beliefs on Revan's death. The next year, Malak intercepted the Jedi Knight Bastila Shan and an amnesiac Revan, whose identity as the Dark Lord had been replaced with loyalty to the Republic by the Jedi Council. After Malak told Revan of his former identity as the Dark Lord, the two fought each other, but Shan allowed herself to be captured by Malak so that Revan and his companions could escape. Malak corrupted Shan, whom he had once considered a threat. She eventually became his apprentice, replacing Darth Bandon, whom Revan and his companions had previously killed. Now assisted by Shan's battle meditation, Malak considered his Sith Empire to be invincible. However, when the Republic fleet attacked the Star Forge above Rakata Prime, a redeemed Revan boarded the ancient superweapon and confronted Malak in a lightsaber duel that resulted in the Dark Lord's defeat. With that, Malak's reign as the Dark Lord ended, and the Republic emerged victorious from the war.

Early life and Jedi training
"The Jedi Order moved too slowly for Revan and Malak; we were too cautious in their eyes. They always sought to learn far quicker than their Masters felt was prudent."

- Zhar Lestin

Alek was a Human male born on the planet Quelii in a village named "Squinquargesimus." After Quelii was devastated by the Mandalorians, the name of Alek's home village was used as his surname on immigration records. Eventually, Squinquargesimus was found to be sensitive to the Force and was trained as a Jedi Padawan at the Jedi Enclave on Dantooine. Nicknamed "Squint" by his peers, Squinquargesimus' closest friend was the Padawan who would eventually be known as "Revan." Though Revan was recognized as the stronger of the two, Squinquargesimus' desire to broaden his knowledge did not remain unnoticed and he, like Revan, eventually sought out additional training from the Twi'lek Jedi Master Zhar Lestin on the galactic capital of Coruscant. Some time before 3,963 BBY, both of the young men completed their training and attained the rank of Jedi Knight.

Recruiting for the Revanchists
"It's ridiculous, don't you see? The Sith threat ended what, 30 years ago? The Mandalorians are the threat. The Mandalorian are here&hellip;almost. We need every able-bodied Jedi we can get."

- Alek Squinquargesimus, to Zayne Carrick

When the Mandalorian Neo-Crusaders launched an assault on the Republic and started the Mandalorian Wars, both Squinquargesimus and Revan were eager to defeat the invading forces. However, the Jedi Council urged the Jedi to be patient and strictly forbade action against the Mandalorians, feeling that the true threat had not yet emerged. Revan would not be dissuaded, and both he and Squinquargesimus believed that the Order operated too slowly and exercised excessive caution in its decisions. Squinquargesimus was the first to join Revan's movement, known as the Revanchists, and other Jedi soon followed. In the year 3,964 BBY, Squinquargesimus was among a group of Jedi that chose to take a more proactive role in the ongoing war by participating in a scouting mission along the Outer Rim, just prior to the Mandalorian invasion of the Republic. Led by Revan, whom Squinquargesimus called "his honorary Master," Squinquargesimus and his fellow Jedi investigated the Mandalorian threat along the Republic border against the wishes of the Jedi Council.

The Revanchists stopped briefly on the ecumenopolis of Taris in hopes of recruiting more Jedi from the local Jedi temple. While there, Squinquargesimus met a Jedi named Zayne Carrick, who was Jedi Master Lucien Draay's Padawan. Draay was the son of Krynda Draay, the Covenant's founder. When Carrick failed to capture the Snivvian black marketeer Marn Hierogryph, whom he had been unable to apprehend seven times previously, Squinquargesimus rescued the Padawan from falling into the cityscape. After this, the two Jedi conferred, and one subject that they discussed was the ongoing war. Not only did the Jedi High Council disapprove of the war, but the teachers on Taris counseled their students that the Jedi were supposed to defend the Republic from the Sith. During their discussion, Squinquargesimus reminded Carrick that the Sith threat had ended decades ago Squinquargesimus unsuccessfully tried to recruit Carrick, who refused because the Jedi Masters, including Draay, believed that the Sith, not the Mandalorians, were the Jedi's business. Squinquargesimus laughed, saying that the Mandalorians could be in the Masters' presence, but to get the Jedi's attention, the Mandalorians would have to act like Sith. Though Carrick was a less-than-promising student, Squinquargesimus suspected that he would be a major player during the war. Before he and the Revanchists left Taris, Squinquargesimus shared this opinion with Carrick, and stated that sometimes one had to enter the darkness in order to save the light.

Sometime before Squinquargesimus and the Revanchists went to Taris, four Sage Masters of the secret Jedi organization known as the Covenant&mdash;which was dedicated to preventing the return of the Sith&mdash;envisioned that one of their Padawans would become a Sith Lord and would be responsible for their deaths and the destruction of the Jedi Order. After Squinquargesimus and the Revanchists left Taris, Carrick's Jedi Masters killed their apprentices and framed Carrick for the Padawans' deaths, subsequently forcing Carrick to hide from the Jedi Order and civil authorities.

Flashpoint Station
Soon after leaving Taris, Squinquargesimus and his companions were left behind on the planet Suurja while Revan investigated events on Onderon and its jungle moon of Dxun. Roughly a week after his meeting with Carrick on Taris, Squinquargesimus was captured in an ambush before the fourth battle of Suurja by the Mandalorians and taken to Flashpoint Station, an old Republic research station that the Mandalorians had captured a few months prior. There, Squinquargesimus became the favorite test subject of a Mandalorian scientist named Demagol, who was attempting to divine the source and nature of the Jedi's Force abilities.

Weeks later, a female Arkanian offshoot named Jarael, who had helped Carrick elude the Jedi Masters on Taris, arrived on the station. Squinquargesimus immediately knew the Mandalorians had mistaken her for a Jedi, and when Demagol came to take Jarael, Squinquargesimus volunteered to be studied in Jarael's place, insisting that he had some abilities that Demagol had yet to discover. After Squinquargesimus was brought back to the holding area, Demagol intended to waste no time in testing Jarael due to her unusual Arkanian features, but Carrick&mdash;who was on the run from his Jedi Masters&mdash;as well as the rest of the crew of the Last Resort, a starship which belonged to the elderly male Arkanian offshoot Gorman Vandrayk, going by the nickname of "Camper," arrived to rescue Jarael. Carrick pretended to be captured by the rogue Mandalorian Rohlan Dyre, and was taken in her stead by Demagol. When Dyre and Demagol emerged, they announced that Carrick was dead. However, after the Mandalorians were tricked into leaving the station during a false "Republic attack" masterminded by Marn Hierogryph, who had allied himself with Carrick, it was revealed that Carrick was posing as Demagol, whom Dyre had managed to incapacitate.

Before he and the rest of the freed Jedi prisoners escaped, Squinquargesimus asked Carrick to join them once again, but Carrick declined, saying that there was something he had to finish. Squinuargesimus said his good-byes to Jarael and took the unconscious Demagol to Coruscant for trial. En route to the galactic capital, however, Demagol fell into a drug-induced coma and could not be awakened. Doctors informed Squinquargesimus that his hair would not grow back completely due to Demagol's experiments. As the Mandalorian atrocities continued to mount, Revan, who was known to the public as "The Revanchist," could no longer restrain himself. As Revan's closest friend, Squinquargesimus traveled to worlds such as Dantooine to recruit even more Jedi to his and Revan's growing rebellion. While on a mission to the planet of Cathar to investigate the truth about the massacre that had taken place there, Squinquargesimus, Revan, and the Jedi accompanying them felt death in the Force when the Mandalorians unleashed a devastating nuclear attack on Serroco.

The Adasca affair
"This is an advance that transcends simple monetary compensation, don't you agree?''" "A dangerous advance. The power to destroy matter on an astronomical scale&mdash;that's too much for any'' government to wield responsibly!"

- Arkoh Adasca and Alek Squinquargesimus

Following the journey to Cathar, Squinquargesimus was sent to the Omonoth system as a representative for Revan's Jedi faction, responding to the invitation that Lord Arkoh Adasca&mdash;the eighth Lord of the House of Adasca and the leader of the medical corporation Adascorp&mdash;had extended to Revan. Prior to Squinquargesimus' departure, several Jedi had experienced visions regarding the possible importance of Adasca's "discovery" and the role it could play in the ongoing conflict. Squinquargesimus was instructed by Revan to ensure this new danger was taken "out of the mix." Upon his arrival aboard the Arkanian Legacy, Adasca's flagship, Squinquargesimus was reunited both with Jarael and Rohlan Dyre, the rogue Mandalorian he had met at Flashpoint. During this time, Squinquargesimus confided to Jarael that he did not believe Zayne Carrick was guilty of the charges levied against him. Jarael attempted to make Squinquargesimus see that Adasca was a madman, but she was quickly interrupted and restrained by Adasca.

Later aboard the vessel, when Adasca's plan to use exogorths&mdash;giant worm-like creatures&mdash;as destructive biological weapons was revealed, Squinquargesimus reacted with disgust, feeling that such a force was too powerful to be entrusted to any government. Adasca asked Squinquargesimus if he should entrust the exogorths to the Jedi, and Squinquargesimus stated that it was not a bad idea, which shocked Jarael. Squinquargesimus then told Jarael that the Revanchists saw heartache and chaos in the years to come, citing this as the reason behind Revan's assignment to attend the meeting. The Republic Admiral Saul Karath, who had been invited by the Duro Eejee Vamm, Adasca's servant, maintained that Squinquargesimus did not speak for the Jedi and that he and the Revanchists were freelancers. Squinquargesimus' disgust transformed into alarm, and he lit his lightsaber when the final party to the negotiations announced his arrival via transmission.

As Mandalore the Ultimate, the leader of the Mandalorians, entered the Legacy, Squinquargesimus leaped forward and ignited his lightsaber in an attempt to kill Mandalore and end the war. Predicting the attack, Mandalore quickly struck him down with his newly-made battle axe, knocking the young Jedi off his feet. While Mandalore and Adasca discussed the exogorth deal, Squinquargesimus tried to convince Karath to arrest them, but the admiral would not take the risk of doing so while they were outnumbered. When Adasca struck Jarael for talking in her wrist comlink to Gorman Vandrayk, who had been involved with the exogorth project nearly forty years before, Squinquargesimus ignited his lightsaber and placed the blade near Adasca's throat, warning him not to hurt her again. Squinquargesimus then deactivated his weapon, allowing the discussion to continue. He expressed disbelief that Mandalore would offer Adasca a powerful position in the Mandalorian war effort in exchange for the device controlling the exogorths, and was also surprised when Admiral Karath offered Republic territory for the device.

When the Mandalorians boarded the Courageous, Karath's command ship, after the devastating events of the battle at Serroco, Zayne Carrick, along with Admiral Karath, Lieutenant Carth Onasi, and Commander Dallan Morvis, escaped on the Deadweight, Onasi's own ship. After Karath received a transmission from Vamm regarding Adasca's meeting, Carrick eventually boarded the Legacy with Karath, Onasi, and Morvis. Carrick was then imprisoned with his former Master, Lucien Draay; the Jedi Master had been ordered by Haazen, a co-founder of the Jedi Covenant, to investigate Adasca, an old friend of Draay's. After Draay and Carrick destroyed the HK-24 units watching them, they met up with Onasi and Dyre and worked together to crate a plan to put an end to Adasca's scheme.

When Carrick&mdash;dressed in spare armor that had been given to Dyre earlier by Mandalore&mdash;initiated a diversion, Squinquargesimus immediately realized what was going on and participated in the brawl that erupted. Squinquargesimus, along with Carrick, Draay, Onasi, Karath, Jarael, Dyre, and Morvis, escaped the Legacy observation dome as the exogorths under the scientist Gorman Vandrayk's command devoured it, killing Adasca. While Karath, Morvis, and Onasi escaped on the Deadweight, the others searched for another ship, since Squinquargesimus' ship had been destroyed in one of the docking bays. Squinquargesimus was shocked that Draay would deny them passage just to get to Carrick, but as the latter was about to comply with Draay, the Moomo Williwaw, the starship of the Ithorian bounty hunters Dob and Del Moomo, crashed into the Legacy. This prevented Draay from apprehending Carrick, and Squinquargesimus traveled with Carrick and his crew in the Williwaw to Taris in order help the resistance there.

When the Williwaw returned to Taris, the ship was hassled by Mandalorians that had recently invaded the world. When Dyre managed to get the Mandalorians to fly away from the ship, Squinquargesimus signaled Carrick, who was dressed in the Mandalorian armor that he had acquired from Dyre on the Legacy. With a jetpack, Carrick then rocketed down to the city below. After this, Squinquargesimus and the crew flew off in the Williwaw. Squinquargesimus later engaged in a sparring match with Jarael, in which she bested him. The match brought the two closer together, with Squinquargesimus explaining to Jarael that the Jedi had refrained from emotional relationships since the Great Sith War. He was interested in her romantically, but she was reluctant since she had not gotten over her abuse by Adasca. Unconvinced, Squinquargesimus told her to ask herself if it was the timing or if it was just him that she did not want to have a relationship with.

Against the Jedi Covenant
"That's why I'm pleased you've approved my first motion&mdash;ordering the recall, and, if necessary, detention of the prowar renegades! Including Alek of Quelii, whose rogue actions in the Adasca affair, including aiding the fugitive Zayne Carrick, I have duly reported."

- Lucien Draay, to the Jedi Council regarding Squinquargesimus

Squinquargesimus, along with Jarael and Dyre, eventually landed on the planet Jebble in the Williwaw to rescue Carrick, who had left Taris with Jedi Knight and Shadow Celeste Morne to pursue an ancient Sith amulet known as the Muur Talisman. A base had been set up on the planet for Mandalorian troops planning to capture the peaceful planet of Alderaan, but the Rakghoul Plague, a disease inflicted by the Muur Talisman, had spread through the base, turning all of the Mandalorians into deformed Rakghoul mutants. While the group was in the process of leaving Jebble in the Williwaw, the Mandalorian fleet, commanded by Cassus Fett, Mandalore's primary strategist, arrived.

In order to stop the plague from spreading further, Carrick sent a message to Fett, warning him not to land his troops on the surface. Fett took the warning most seriously; when the Williwaw had left, he ordered a nuclear bombardment of the planet. Changed by the loss of Morne, who had seemingly died during the bombing, Carrick reminded Squinquargesimus that he owed him a favor from Flashpoint Station and asked him, along with the rest of the Williwaw crew, for assistance in stopping the Jedi Covenant. Before they separated once more, Squinquargesimus told Carrick to bring evidence of what the Covenant was doing to the Jedi High Council. Soon after, Carrick's former Master, Lucien Draay, gained a seat on the High Council on Coruscant. In the Council Chamber before the other Masters, Draay claimed that the path that Revan sought was wrong for both the Republic and the Jedi. The Council approved Draay's first motion, which involved the recall&mdash;and if necessary, the detention&mdash;of all the Revanchists, as well as any renegade Jedi.

Squinquargesimus and Shel Jelavan, whose brother was killed by the Covenant, went to Coruscant to perform his part of Carrick's plan while the Padawan and his crew searched for Sith artifacts on the planet of Odryn that were in the Covenant's possession. Due to the arrest warrant for the Revanchists, Squinquargesimus went under the guise of "Captain Malak" and adorned blue tattoos on his head. He and Jelavan sent out a holographic transmission to Masters Vandar Tokare and Vrook Lamar from Coruscant. Squinquargesimus and Jelavan met up with Lamar and Tokare inside a cantina in the underlevels of Coruscant to discuss evidence pertaining to the Padawan Massacre. Following the end of their testimony, they arrived at the rendezvous point to meet with Carrick and Hierogryph. Despite Squinquargesimus' assurances that Carrick's name would be cleared, Lamar stated that if they accused Krynda Draay, the founder of the Covenant, they would tear the Order apart, saying that what they needed was one of the Masters to stand up and confess.

At that moment, the Khil Jedi Master Xamar, one of the Covenant's members, appeared with his lightsaber leveled at Carrick and Hierogryph's throats. Xamar ultimately handed Carrick and Hierogryph over to the Jedi and agreed to go before the Council. He also testified to the Councilors, telling them everything he knew about the Covenant's illegal activities. Xamar agreed to accept whatever fate they decreed for him with a single caveat: that Krynda Draay be given full immunity if and when action was taken against the Covenant. Squinquargesimus testified to the Council on Carrick's behalf after the events of the Covenant Affair, which was the Covenant's failed insurrection against the Jedi Order, led by Sith acolyte Haazen. Squinquargesimus was then sent to the Revanchists with a final warning. He went under protest, telling Jarael that he would remain "Malak" until there was an end to the war's suffering.

Masks
"They were beaten! You didn't have to do it! One of you knew, but you didn't listen! I don't know your name&mdash;but I take up your cause. I will not remove your mask until there is justice&mdash;until the Mandalorians have been defeated once and for all. So swears&hellip;Revan!"

- Revan, after the vision of the Mandalorians slaughtering the Cathar

After Malak left Coruscant and returned to Cathar, where Revan had been attempting to find proof of the Mandalorians' devastation of the Cathar people, Vrook Lamar and a group of Jedi tracked Malak and Revan to the planet. Lamar and the Jedi met with Revan, Malak, and the Revanchists and told the group to abandon their efforts and disperse permanently. The Jedi Masters believed that the Mandalorians were not a threat and that nothing warranted the Jedi's involvement in the Mandalorian Wars. During the discussion, Revan noticed a Mandalorian mask underneath his own feet and picked it up. When the light struck it, all the Jedi experienced a vision of the past of Mandalorians driving hordes of the Cathar into the sea. A Mandalorian female, to whom the mask in Revan's hands belonged, tried to convince Cassus Fett&mdash;who had led the attack on the planet&mdash;that the Cathar were defeated and did not need to all be killed. Fett refused to stand down, saying that the Cathar left a stain of dishonor amongst the Mando'ade and that he intended to wash that stain clean by committing genocide. Fett then ordered the planet's devastation, killing the Cathar and the Mandalorian female.

After the vision had ended, Revan became enraged, shouting that the Mandalorians did not have to kill all of the already-beaten Cathar. Recognizing that the lone Mandalorian female knew that the genocide had been wrong, Revan decided to take up her cause of protecting innocents from unnecessary destruction. Revan donned the Mandalorian female's mask, vowing not to remove it until there was justice against the Mandalorians&mdash;specifically, their defeat. After this, the Jedi Council officially sanctioned the Revanchists' involvement in the Mandalorian Wars, and both Malak and Revan were promoted to the rank of general.

A few months after the events of the Covenant Affair, Zayne Carrick participated in a swoop-dueling event known as the Tandem Open on Jervo's World, a large network of swoop-dueling arenas above the world Pantolomin. Jarael, who was accompanying Carrick, had a vision through the Force while resting aboard the Hot Prospect, a Calipsan mining ship that Trandoshan crew member Slyssk had previously purchased. In the vision, she was back on Taris in the Jedi Tower, wearing a red spacesuit and wielding Carrick's old yellow lightsaber. However, instead of Carrick's former Jedi Masters, she saw the men who had played significant roles in her life over the past few months: Malak, Rohlan Dyre, Demagol, and Arkoh Adasca. The four men who had expressed interest in Jarael over the past few months told her that the reason for their interest in her was hidden within herself, pointing to her clouded past and mysterious destiny. A moment later, Carrick appeared in the vision, bound in chains and blaming Jarael for betraying him. A Zeltron female named Chantique, who held Carrick's chains, told Jarael that he now belonged to her and left Jarael at the mercy of Malak and the other three men.

Confrontation on Wor Tandell
"Stop! Rohlan is a friend!''" "They're not capable of friendship, Jarael! Only torture&mdash;and genocide! Like Cassus Fett&mdash;and Demagol''! If you'd been on Cathar, you'd know!"

- Jarael and Malak

Malak eventually contacted Marn Hierogryph in search of Jarael, and the Snivvian told Malak that she was on the planet of Wor Tandell. Intending to surprise Jarael, Malak went to the planet and met her by the Hot Prospect. Later that night, Malak told Jarael and Hierogryph of how the Jedi Council had officially sanctioned the Revanchist Jedi's involvement in the Mandalorian Wars. He also explained that to himself, "Malak" was more than a name&mdash;it was what he was born to be. Since the Mandalorians destroyed his life on Quelii, Malak had answered to names others gave him and were not his own because he had not cared; Malak thought that because his home was gone, it did not matter who he was. However, he concluded that on the contrary, his identity did indeed matter because there was nobody left who knew him as Alek Squinquargesimus, and Malak stated that he would make sure that people would remember his current identity.

Malak told Jarael that he had contacted Hierogryph, saying that the Revanchists had almost everything they needed to win the war. However, Malak felt that he would not be complete without Jarael, citing her combat abilities and her glimpses of the Mandalorians' atrocities up close. He reminded Jarael that Zayne Carrick and Hierogryph were not fugitives any longer and that Revan's Jedi needed Jarael. Malak also stated that the Revanchists could not afford to be involved with anyone who had a hint of controversy in their lives, as Carrick and Hierogryph had, and reasoned that since Rohlan Dyre could walk freely in public, there was nothing hindering Jarael from joining Malak. When Hierogryph mentioned Jarael's Force talents, Malak became excited, telling Jarael that she belonged with him. Dyre then appeared, shouting that Malak could not take her now or ever. When Malak attempted to reason with Dyre, the Mandalorian punched him in the jaw, addressing Malak by his former nickname, Squint. Malak then ignited his lightsaber and began attacking Dyre, who evaded him with his jetpack and fired at the Jedi with his blasters. Jarael screamed at Malak to stop, to which he refused, reasoning that the Mandalorians were incapable of friendship, only torture and genocide. Malak eventually cut Dyre's blasters in half and wrestled him to the ground, asking Dyre if he was there when the Mandalorians killed the Cathar.

The Republic captain Telettoh and the Cathar Jedi Ferroh arrived at Carrick's camp along with the former Padawan. They pulled Malak off Dyre, calming the Jedi down. Telettoh berated Malak for attacking Dyre, stating that the Revanchists could not afford any scandals. Carrick apologized to Malak for not arriving at the camp sooner, expressing his astonishment at the fact that Malak had brought the Republic cruiser Testament just to see Carrick and his friends. Malak informed Carrick that he was there for Jarael like he had promised. Carrick then pretended that he and Jarael were romantically involved, which surprised both Malak and Hierogryph. Malak asked Jarael why she had not told him that she and Carrick were together, and Carrick replied that they had gotten together recently. Carrick explained how Telettoh and Ferroh told him of Malak's plans and that he and Jarael had plans of their own. Shortly after that, Malak bid goodbye to Carrick, Jarael, and their crew. Eventually, Jarael contacted Malak and asked for his assistance in tracking down Carrick, who had been kidnapped by the slavery organization know as the Crucible during a mission to rescue the Crucible's slaves. However, Malak could not offer his aid since he and the Revanchists were fighting the Mandalorians. Malak's forces eventually recaptured the Omonoth system long enough to recover the remains of the Arkanian Legacy.

The trial of Demagol
"In the name of the millions the Mandalorians have killed, tortured, and enslaved&mdash;we'll save the Republic! And defeat the Mandalorians forever!"'' "This&mdash;this is your secret, isn't it? You can't beat us in a fair fight! That's the way you like it, Jedi&mdash;isn't it? So save your Republic&mdash;but who'll save the Republic from you''?"

- Malak and Rohlan Dyre

Malak eventually participated in a show trial for the captive Demagol&mdash;who had recently come out of his drug-induced coma &mdash;which was set at Coruscant's old Senate chamber. Before Malak testified against Demagol, he met with Zayne Carrick and Marn Hierogryph, who were also called to testify against Demagol. Malak inquired as to where Jarael was, and when Carrick told Malak that she left his group, Malak apologized. Malak informed Carrick and Hierogryph that after he testified he would be going back to the front lines of the war, and that the ship under his command was already with Admiral Saul Karath's patrol. Malak also told the former Padawan and the Snivvian that his forces retook Omonoth and recovered the Arkanian Legacy remains, and informed Carrick that he found Adasca's aide, Eejee Vamm, mutilated. Malak then left Carrick and Hierogryph in order to prepare for his testimony.

During the trial, Malak testified to the audience about Demagol's experiments on both him and and the Jedi who did not survive the scientist's studies. As Malak continued, Demagol, who insisted that the Jedi stop calling him by that name, broke free of his binders. Malak used the Force to throw Demagol across the chamber, and publicly vowed to save the Republic by defeating the Mandalorians permanently, in the name of the millions the Mandalorians had killed, tortured, or enslaved. Demagol questioned Malak's tactics, asking who would save the Republic from Malak after the Jedi succeeded in his quest to defend the Republic. The Senate guards escorted Demagol out of the Senate chamber and put the Mandalorian scientist in a speeder which would take the Mandalorian back to the holding cells. However, the two guards in the speeder were actually Zayne Carrick and Marn Hierogryph, who figured out that the Mandalorian who had been traveling was impersonating Rohlan Dyre, and that Demagol was in actuality Dyre. After learning that "Demagol" did not make it to the holding cells, Malak headed the search for the scientist on Coruscant, and ordered his forces to detain and search every speeder they found.

The final battles
"Revan and Malak were heroes, the great saviors of the Republic."

- Dorak

The entrance of Revan and his Jedi into the war marked the conflict's turning point. Revan's military strategies and tactics, coupled with Malak's courage and determination, saw the pair becoming the foremost heroes of the war. Claiming victory time after time, they were propelled through the ranks of the Republic military, and Revan was given direct control over the entire Republic fleet. With his newfound authority, Revan spearheaded the Republic war effort and began to steadily push the Mandalorians back, and though Malak lacked Revan's military genius, he exemplified himself as a capable war leader. Malak eventually gained a reputation as a headstrong warrior who would recklessly charge into danger.

Together, Revan and Malak liberated Taris, fought Cassus Fett at Jaga's Cluster, and defeated much of the Mandalorian army at Althir. Yet, despite such victories, the Jedi Masters they had left behind believed that Revan, Malak, and the Jedi that had joined them were only offering easy solutions to the galaxy's problems, fearing that much woe would result from their recklessness. As the war progressed, concerns were raised over Revan and Malak's behavior. They gradually changed from the idealistic men that had first rebelled against the Jedi Council and began to adopt characteristics similar to their Mandalorian adversaries. To Revan and Malak, ultimate victory became all that mattered, and in order to ensure it, the two Jedi met their enemies' brutal, merciless tactics with a ruthlessness of their own. Over the course of the war, Malak and Revan developed a cold, calculating disposition that was uncharacteristic of Jedi and grew to despise weakness and indecisiveness. "Moral shortcuts" became common practice under their leadership, along with a number of other unsavory acts. Though there were some who frowned upon such actions, the vast majority of the galaxy cared only that Revan and Malak were winning the war and hailed them as heroes.

At some point during the Mandalorian Wars, Revan found a Rakatan Star Map in the old ruins near the Jedi Enclave on Dantooine. The Star Map was necessary to uncover the secret location of the Star Forge, a relic of the Rakatan Infinite Empire that had ruled the galaxy approximately 20,000 standard years before. Revan and Malak delved into the ancient ruins, and after successfully passing the trials set for them by the guard droid that had been left behind by the so-called "Builders," they were given access to the Star Map. Moments before they crossed the threshold that would lead them to their prize, Malak warned Revan of the consequences, feeling that if they examined the Star Map, the Jedi Order would banish both he and Revan. However, such words did not dissuade Revan from continuing to the Star Map. Though a part of Malak yearned to return to the Order, he remained at his friend's side, knowing that once he crossed the threshold, there would be no chance of ever returning to the life he once had.

In the final year of the Mandalorian Wars, Revan found another Star Map on the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk. Shortly thereafter, Revan traveled to the Sith planet of Malachor V, where he discovered the Trayus Academy and delved deeply into the Sith secrets contained within. Revan introduced Malak to the Sith teachings, causing him to fall to the dark side. The heroic reputation that Revan and Malak had gained during the Mandalorian Wars was finally cemented during the final battle of the war, where Revan forced a final confrontation with the Mandalorians over Malachor V. Revan intended to unleash the Mass Shadow Generator&mdash;a superweapon recently constructed by the Zabrak engineer Bao-Dur&mdash;on the planet. Trusting the device's activation to a capable Jedi General that would later become known as the Jedi Exile, Revan battled and killed Mandalore the Ultimate himself. The Mass Shadow Generator's activation wiped out the majority of the Mandalorian fleet, in addition to the Republic forces and Jedi who were not fervently loyal to Revan. In the end, many Jedi were twisted to the dark side, and the once-proud Mandalorian clans were crippled, just as Revan had intended.

After the final battle of the Mandalorian Wars, Revan constructed an assassin droid designated HK-47. When the Exile&mdash;who had ordered the Mass Shadow Generator's activation and had disconnected herself from the Force during the cataclysmic final battle&mdash;left Revan and Malak's fleet to answer for her actions before the Jedi Council, Malak wanted Revan to order HK-47 to kill her. However, Revan, who saw the woman as a Jedi that was already dead, would not allow her assassination. Having defeated the Mandalorians, the two now-legendary Jedi Knights did not return to the Republic. Instead, they led the remainder of their forces into the Unknown Regions, claiming to be hunting down surviving Mandalorians. For a year afterward, nothing was heard from them, and the Republic feared its heroes to be lost. However, the purpose of the two Jedi's quest was somewhat different from what the Republic believed. After the end of the Mandalorian Wars, Revan and Malak began to search for the Star Forge, using the maps they had found on Dantooine and Kashyyyk. The two fallen Jedi located and uncovered three more Star Maps on the desert world Tatooine, the Selkath's oceanic homeworld Manaan, and the ancient Sith tombworld Korriban.

Sith apprentice
"When they left after the Mandalorian Wars ended, they were Jedi. When they returned&hellip; they were something else."

- Carth Onasi, regarding Revan and Malak

With the information obtained from the Star Maps, Revan and Malak began their search for the Star Forge. At some point during their search, they met the mysterious Sith Emperor of the old Sith Empire, which was thought destroyed during the Great Hyperspace War. The Sith Emperor corrupted both Revan and Malak, and gave them a mission to return to the Republic to serve as a vanguard for a Sith invasion.

After this, Revan and Malak eventually discovered and traveled to the previously unknown Rakata system. Upon their arrival, the pair crashed on Rakata Prime. Shortly thereafter, they were attacked by the primitive Black Rakata, who attempted to take them prisoner, but after the two fallen Jedi displayed their Force powers, the natives were quickly cowed into submission. Though Revan initially negotiated with The One, the leader of the Black Rakata, it soon became apparent that none among the Black Rakata had relevant information pertaining to the Star Forge. Revan then decided to win the favor of the Elders, a Rakatan tribe that the Black Rakata was at war with. Unlike their violent introduction to the Black Rakata, Revan and Malak approached the Elders in peace, learning much from them about the Rakata, their old empire, and of the disruptor field that had caused Revan and Malak's ship to crash. Increasingly aware of the abhorrence that the Elders held for their species' violent past, Revan and Malak styled themselves as servants of the light, searching for a way to destroy the Star Forge. After Revan and Malak gained the Elders' trust, the Elders gave the Jedi access to the temple. Thanking the Elders, the two fallen Jedi promised to destroy the Star Forge and return.

Instead, Revan took control of the Star Forge, and he and Malak added the "Darth" title to their names, declaring themselves the new Dark Lords of the Sith. In 3,959 BBY, the pair founded a new Sith Empire and returned to Korriban, seizing control of the planet and establishing a new Sith Academy there. Revan and Malak then returned to known Republic space at the head of a massive invasion fleet. Openly revealing themselves as Sith Lords, the pair and their followers declared war on the Republic and the Jedi Order. This marked the beginning of a twenty-year campaign to end the "tyranny" of the Jedi Council once and for all, initiating the Jedi Civil War. At one point under Darth Revan's tutelage, Malak saw his Master as being soft, causing tension between the two that culminated in a lightsaber duel. Malak's jaw was removed by a lightsaber strike from Revan himself, and Malak was forced to wear a large metal prosthesis cover over where his jaw had once been. A portion of the device allowed Malak to talk, but his voice now reverberated with a gruff electronic tone because his cybernetic jaw could not move.

In the year 3,958 BBY, Revan and his Sith carried out a successful attack on the shipyard world of Foerost, capturing the majority of the Republic's fleet. The Republic Admiral Saul Karath, who had served under Revan and Malak in the Mandalorian Wars, declared the Republic unworthy of his loyalty and transferred his services and his flagship Leviathan to Revan's service. Karath also gave the Sith codes that enabled them to bypass a Republic Navy docking bay's scanners. This allowed the Sith forces to sweep in and destroy over half of the docked ships before they had time to react. Later, Revan promoted Karath as the commander of the entire Sith fleet. As a final test of loyalty to the Sith, Darth Malak ordered Karath to destroy Telos IV, a planet that Revan had originally intended to conquer. Karath complied, killing millions of innocent people and earning the wrath of the surviving Telosians, including the Republic commander Carth Onasi, who once considered Karath his mentor and Malak a hero. Later that year, Darth Malak bombed the Zabrak homeworld of Iridonia, and the Sith also carried out a successful attack on the planet of Rodia. Though a powerful Sith Lord, the ambitious Darth Malak began to chafe under the dominion of Revan as the war progressed. The man who had once been Revan's staunchest ally and most loyal friend began to eagerly await an opportunity to replace his Sith Master.

Betraying the Master
"You knew I would one day challenge you for supremacy, but you underestimated me. I acted sooner than you expected and seized the Sith throne with a single brilliant stroke!"

- Darth Malak, to Revan on the Leviathan

Malak's chance to usurp Revan's position came in 3,957 BBY when the Jedi Council sent a strike team to capture the two Sith Lords. The team managed to corner Revan on the bridge of his flagship. Malak, who was separated from his Master, ordered the guns of his own flagship, the Leviathan, to fire on Revan's vessel in an attempt to slay both his Master and the Jedi&mdash;specifically the strike team's leader, Bastila Shan, because of her power with Battle Meditation, a Force power that enabled her to strengthen the Republic forces' resolve and coordinate their fighting effort while sapping the will of their enemies.

Unbeknownst to Malak, Shan saved Revan's life and brought him to the Jedi Council, and Revan's mind was then reprogrammed with the identity of a Republic soldier. Though Malak failed in his attempt on Revan's life, his Master had been incapacitated during the attack. Believing himself to have been successful, Darth Malak assumed command of the Sith Empire, at last taking the mantle of Dark Lord for himself. A small part of Malak always regretted betraying his Master from afar. Malak knew there would be some who thought and claimed that he had been a coward, that he had acted out of fear, and that would not want to face Revan in personal combat again.

The search for Bastila Shan
"I am more interested in the young Jedi Bastila and her Battle Meditation. Have you learned how she escaped the destruction of Taris?"

- Darth Malak, to Saul Karath

Although his stratagems and tactics centered around brute force, Malak was able to win many victories over the battered and outnumbered Republic forces through the sheer size of his armadas. Unlike his former Sith Master, Revan, Malak would destroy worlds rather than capture them, ensuring that neither side of the conflict had vital resources. He fueled the Star Forge, which was modified to produce the ships and assault droids of the Sith fleet, by using the Force powers of captured Jedi Knights to augment the input of Rakata Prime's sun. After Revan's apparent death, Malak took a former Jedi whose quest for power had set him apart from his fellow students and named him Darth Bandon, taking him as his Shadow Hand and elevating the young Sith to the second-in-command in the Sith Empire. Jedi that were not killed by Malak's Sith forces fell from the light, becoming Dark Jedi and swearing their allegiance to the Dark Lord.

While the war against the Republic continued with success, Darth Malak feared that the Jedi Bastila Shan's rare gift with battle meditation&mdash;which surpassed even the most powerful Jedi Masters&mdash;would make her a grave threat to the Sith war effort. Malak expended tremendous resources in an attempt to locate and capture Shan. He nearly succeeded when his apprentice, Darth Bandon, led an attack on her ship, the Endar Spire, above the planet Taris. Shan, among other Republic soldiers, was forced to evacuate her craft via an escape pod and crashed into the lower levels of Taris. To prevent Shan from escaping the planet, Malak captured Taris and blockaded the planet. However, Malak soon grew impatient with the search for Shan and ordered Admiral Saul Karath aboard his flagship, the Leviathan, to destroy the planet. Nonetheless, Shan was able to return unharmed to Dantooine on the light freighter Ebon Hawk, thanks to the efforts of the Republic commander Carth Onasi; the amnesiac Revan, who was unaware of his former identity as the Dark Lord; and their companions. After Revan was retrained in the Jedi ways in the Enclave on Dantooine, the local Council ordered Revan and his allies to search for the Star Forge.

Soon after, a bounty hunter named Calo Nord&mdash;who had been defeated on Taris by Revan, Shan, and Onasi&mdash;managed to escape Taris' destruction. Nord was hired by Malak to track down the group, capture Shan, and kill her companions. Nord and Karath revealed to Malak that one of Shan's companions was Revan, whom the Sith Lord had long believed to be dead. Despite Nord's galaxy-wide reputation as a bounty hunter, he did not survive his next encounter with Revan. After Nord's death, Admiral Karath informed Malak of the bounty hunter's failure. Malak told Karath that no bounty hunter could stand against a Jedi, and to avoid making the same mistake twice, the Sith Lord sent his apprentice, Darth Bandon, after Shan. Malak ordered Bandon to find Shan and to bring her to him alive, if at all possible. There were rumors that Bandon would challenge Malak for the right to rule the Sith, but Bandon never had a chance to develop his plans, as he failed to capture Shan and was killed by Revan after the former Sith Lord found a fourth Star Map in his quest to locate the Star Forge. During Revan's search for the Rakatan space station, Malak and his Sith forces attacked Dantooine. They destroyed the Jedi Enclave and killed many, Jedi and civilian alike. Malak also captured eight Jedi for later use on the Star Forge. The Sith Lord plundered through the ruins of the Enclave, looking for Jedi artifacts. The Jedi Council had sensed this would happen and tried to evacuate everyone, but it was too late. The local Jedi Council managed to escape, however, and some of the Jedi holocrons and relics were moved to another location.

Revelation on the Leviathan
"You cannot hide from what you once were, Revan! Recognize that you were once the Dark Lord&mdash;and know that I have taken your place!"

- Malak, to Revan

While on their search for a fifth Star Map, Revan and the crew of the Ebon Hawk were captured by the Sith and brought on board the Leviathan, Malak's flaship. Before Revan and his crew were taken to the detention area, Revan sent a member of his crew to free the rest of the group from the Leviathan detention area. After taking Revan and his crew into custody, Admiral Saul Karath tortured and interrogated Revan, Shan, and Onasi in an attempt to find out their mission's objective. Sometime after Karath departed the detention area, the Ebon Hawk crew member managed to liberate Revan and the others from the detention area. The crew then split in two groups. Shan, Onasi, and Revan headed to the bridge of the Leviathan to lower the ship's shields, disable the tractor beam, and unlock the door to the docking bay, while the Mandalorian Canderous Ordo led the rest of the crew to the docking bay.

When Shan, Onasi, and Revan made their way to the bridge, they were confronted by Admiral Karath. The admiral informed the two Jedi and Onasi that Malak was on his way to the bridge and requested their surrender. When the three refused, a fight broke out, during which Karath was struck down. Before the two Jedi and Onasi made it to the docking bay, Malak arrived, hindering their escape. Conferring with his three adversaries, Malak discovered that Revan still had no knowledge of his time as a Dark Lord, which had been wiped out by the Jedi. Amused, Malak revealed to Revan the truth of his former identity. Shocked by the revelation, Revan asked Shan if this was true, and she confirmed both his former identity and her own role as part of the Jedi strike team that had captured him. Malak soon used the Force to create a stasis field around Shan and Onasi and prepared to kill his former Master. Revan proved himself a capable swordsman, however, holding his own against the Dark Lord. Shan intervened so that Revan and Onasi could escape, and Malak defeated and captured her.

After successfully capturing Shan aboard the Leviathan, Malak took the Jedi to the Temple of the Ancients on Rakata Prime. Seeking to make Shan his apprentice to fortify the Sith Empire's efforts with her battle meditation, Malak attempted to turn her to the dark side and tortured her with Force lightning. Shan was at first firm and resisted his efforts, but Malak insisted that it was not merely torture&mdash;it was a taste of the dark side power that she could possess. Following a week of torture, Malak succeeded in breaking Shan's will, finally turning her to the dark side and taking her as his apprentice to replace the fallen Darth Bandon.

Battle of Rakata Prime
"You made a mistake coming here, Revan. The Star Forge fuels my command of the dark side. You are no match for me here. And this time you will not escape!"

- Darth Malak, to Revan

The preparations for the Star Forge were nearing completion, and the space station added new ships to the Sith fleet every day. The Star Forge operated at three hundred percent beyond the Sith's expectations. The fleet was merely awaiting Malak's instructions, and the Dark Lord was confident that they would be invincible once Shan provided assistance with her battle meditation. Assuming they would be victorious, Malak was already planning to begin the final conquest of the Core Worlds and crush the Republic forever.

After Revan and his crew located the Star Forge, they sent the space station's coordinates to Republic Admiral Forn Dodonna so that she could take the Republic fleet and attack the Sith and their Star Forge. When the Jedi penetrated the Star Forge's defenses, Malak was not surprised, ordering one of his Dark Jedi to dispatch the battle droids, which had been constructed by the Star Forge, to deal with them. However, Malak underestimated the Jedi, and the Dark Jedi brought news of the droids' failure. Malak was at first surprised that any Jedi could stand against an army of Star Forge droids, but then he was told that Revan was with the Jedi. Though Malak knew that his Sith troops would only slow Revan down, the Dark Lord dispatched his forces and Dark Jedi on the Star Forge to hinder Revan's progress and allocate enough time for the Sith Lord himself to fully prepare the Star Forge's defenses.

Malak summoned his new apprentice, Bastila Shan, and informed her that Revan was on the Star Forge. Shan feared Revan’s power, but Malak stated that she would prove herself worthy of being his apprentice if she defeated the former Sith Lord. Shan proclaimed that she would not fail Malak again. After their conversation, the Dark Lord mused that perhaps Shan would be able to defeat Revan, but even if she failed, it would supply the necessary time to prepare the Star Forge's defenses. After defeating an attack force of Forge droids, killing nearly all of Malak's Dark Jedi and Sith forces, and convincing Shan to return to the light side, Revan confronted Malak, who was in the midst of using the Force to choke two Jedi prisoners. Upon his former Master's arrival, the Dark Lord threw his lightsaber into one of the Jedi and blasted the other with Force lightning, effectively killing both. Revan offered Malak a chance to surrender, reminding the Dark Lord that the Jedi might show him mercy. However, Malak replied that the wiping of an individual’s identity was no act of mercy and stated that he would rather die. The Sith Lord unleashed the unlimited army of Star Forge battle droids against Revan, using the opportunity to escape to the Star Forge's observation tower.

Final confrontation and death
Revan managed to stop the droids from attacking him and followed Malak to the observation tower. Malak realized that his former Master's powers had surpassed those that he held during his own reign as the Dark Lord. Malak proclaimed his intention to break Revan's will and make his former Master his apprentice, as Revan would be a far greater asset than Shan and her battle meditation. However, Malak feared that Revan was too powerful to be his apprentice, believing that Revan would betray him should the former Sith Lord became the stronger between the two. After Revan retorted that he would not turn to the dark side again, the two began a lightsaber duel, in which the victor, unlike in their previous duels, would decide the fate of the galaxy.

Revan proved himself to be the better lightsaber duelist, almost defeating Malak. However, Malak withdrew from battle, explaining to his former Master that he could not be defeated. Malak then told Revan that he had brought the bodies of eight Jedi from the Jedi Enclave on Dantooine to the Star Forge and explained that rather than letting the deceased Jedi become one with the Force, he used the Star Forge to corrupt what remained of the dead Jedi's Force energy. Malak used the Force to drain the life force from one of the Jedi, transferring it to himself. After replenishing his energy, Malak resumed his duel with Revan. However, the former Sith Lord freed as many of the captive Jedi as he could, allowing them to become one with the Force and shortening Malak’s supply of energy.

Malak was eventually brought to his knees, mortally wounded. He began to regret turning to the dark side, and Revan apologized to his old friend for starting him down the dark path. Malak was reminded by his former Master that he had chosen to continue to practice the dark side, and Malak told Revan that perhaps there was more truth in the Jedi Code than he had ever believed. The dying Dark Lord realized that he alone had to accept responsibility for his fate. With his dying words, Malak realized that as the darkness took him, he was nothing in the end. Malak died with sorrow and regret over his deeds, but without hatred or malice toward Revan, his one-time closest friend. Malak's corpse was consumed by the flames of the failing Star Forge as the Republic fleet destroyed the ancient space station.

Legacy
"He left quite a mess."

- G0-T0

One year after Darth Malak's death and the defeat of his Sith Empire, Revan, now in possession of his full memories from his time as the Dark Lord, vanished from known Republic space to search for a mysterious Sith faction known only as the "True Sith." Although Malak had died in his duel with Revan, the Dark Lord's final confrontation did not mark the last anyone saw of him. Four years after Revan's disappearance, the Jedi Exile discovered the lost tomb of the ancient Sith Lord Ludo Kressh while exploring a shyrack cave on Korriban. The Exile encountered visions from her past, the first of which was an apparition of the young Malak before his fall to the dark side. As the Exile looked on, Malak slowly lured several Jedi to his side, including Bastila Shan. When the Exile refused to join him, Malak and the other apparitions attacked. The Exile prevailed and made it through the tomb alive after experiencing several more visions, including one of Malak's former Sith Master, Revan.

Approximately three centuries after Darth Malak's death, it was presumed that Revan never returned from the Unknown Regions. However, the True Sith Empire&mdash;which was led by the mysterious Sith Emperor who corrupted Revan and Malak &mdash;that Revan went to battle with launched an attack on the Republic, igniting a war that lasted for decades until the Sith Emperor signed a treaty with the Republic. An image of Malak was featured in a record of the event that was produced by the Kel Dor Jedi Master Gnost-Dural for the Jedi Archives.

The atrocities that Darth Malak committed would overshadow his good deeds as a Jedi Knight in galactic history. Although Revan was remembered&mdash;and even admired by some, including Canderous Ordo&mdash;for his tactical genius and subtleties, the Dark Lord was remembered by others, such as the droid and Exchange crime boss G0-T0, as something of a brute who had left the galaxy in a mess. Many sentients, including the Jedi Mical, thought the situation would have been different if Revan had remained as the Dark Lord. While Revan's strategies would have led to a stronger and more unified galaxy, Malak's genocidal reign only caused a greater destabilization of the galaxy and nearly destroyed all of his former Master's original goals. In contrast to his Sith Master, Revan, Malak used brute force rather than strategy to defeat his enemies, as demonstrated when he ordered both the bombing of Telos IV and the destruction of Taris. The destruction that Malak caused would portray Malak as a monster who, despite all his attempts to gain absolute power, was still inferior compared to Revan.

When Darth Revan first introduced Malak to his assassin droid, HK-47, the droid liked Malak. HK-47 expressed this opinion to Revan after his reconditioning by the Jedi, stating that Malak was efficient and brutal. However, HK-47 informed Revan that if he had known that Malak would betray his Sith Master, HK-47 would have "gladly removed his entrails" when he had first met him. After the Jedi Civil War, HK-47 thought of Malak as an angry club that was given to grandiose displays of brutality and murder that seemed inefficient, and in many cases, unnecessary. However, the Echani Handmaiden Brianna was of the opinion that Malak's destruction of Taris exemplified his heart through the operation's execution and intent. Brianna felt that while Taris' destruction was brutal and lacked finesse, it showed Malak's commitment to defeat the Jedi.

Personality and traits
"We'll go to the front&mdash;and beyond it, if it'll save the galaxy. Sometimes you have to enter the darkness to save the light."

- Alek Squinquargesimus

Darth Malak was a light-skinned human male who stood two meters in height. His head was adorned with blue tattoos, which he received while helping Zayne Carrick clear his name. Malak later adopted a large metal shield that covered his face from his upper lip down to protect a lightsaber injury that completely severed his lower jaw &mdash;a wound that had been inflicted by his Sith Master, Darth Revan. A portion of this device allowed Malak to talk, but his voice reverberated with a gruff electronic tone, creating a disconcerting effect, since his cybernetic jaw did not move. As a Jedi Knight, Malak wore a set of red Jedi robes. During his time as the Dark Lord of the Sith, Malak wore a set of skin-tight, red-orange body armor that showed off his physique, draped in a half-cape of black cloth. As a Jedi, Malak used a lightsaber containing a blue crystal. After he fell to the dark side, he employed a self-built lightsaber that produced a red blade longer than those of standard lightsabers. Malak also possessed a powerful Sith sword recovered from Korriban, although he rarely used it in combat. Malak fought in a one-handed, aggressive style.

Before taking the name "Malak," Alek Squinquargesimus was an optimistic young Jedi with a distinctive sense of justice, which he shared with his friend and "Master", Revan. Because of Squinquargesimus' belief of the Jedi Order's passiveness, he joined Revan's campaign against the Mandalorians, feeling that the Jedi Council would not be able to solve the conflict. If necessary to save the light, he did not outrule the option of entering the darkness to do so. Believing that the Council had failed to uphold the Jedi Order's vow as the "guardians of peace and justice," Squinquargesimus not only joined Revan but aided him in the recruitment of other Jedi, utilizing his influence and charisma to attract many Jedi to the Revanchists. Not only was Squinquargesimus proud to stand at Revan's side to defend the Republic, but he also sought to defend its ideals, including freedom and justice. Squinquargesimus believed that in doing so, he was fulfilling what the Jedi Council failed to do: defend the Republic citizens that the Jedi had sworn to protect.

When Squinquargesimus assisted the fugitive Padawan Zayne Carrick in exposing the Jedi Covenant, he changed his name to Malak. Malak later explained to the Arkanian female Jarael and the Snivvian Marn Hierogryph that his new name was more than just a name to him&mdash;it was what he felt he was born to be. Malak was determined to make sure everyone knew of his accomplishments. After experiencing a vision of the Mandalorians' genocide of the Cathar people, Malak came to believe that all Mandalorians were incapable of friendship, including Jarael and Carrick's companion, Rohlan Dyre. While many in the Republic credited Revan's military strategies for the Republic's success during the Mandalorian Wars, other individuals were quick to point out Malak's fierce courage and relentless fury at the forefront of every battle as the key to the victory. Because the victories during the Mandalorian Wars corresponded frequently with crushing moral compromises, Malak sensed that he was falling to the dark side but saw no alternative path. With the horrors of war clear to him, he understood that he would face this dilemma.

After Malak and Revan defeated the Mandalorians at Malachor V, the former realized that all his efforts would be for nothing if a strong hand was not in control of the galaxy. He knew the only people he could put his trust in were the forces he had fought with, feeling that they were capable defenders. That was when Malak finally understood the dark side, believing that it was named from the ignorance of never having killed and of never having to order friends to their deaths. Malak also believed the dark side was named from the ignorance of not experiencing the perpetual belief that every day would be one's last day&mdash;all for cowards unwilling to fight for their own survival. He shared these thoughts with his closest friend, Revan, who found that he agreed and understood his friend's mindset completely. Even after Malak's initial fall to the dark side, a part of him still held true to the Jedi way. At the beginning of Revan's quest to find the Star Forge, Malak was apprehensive, knowing that if he followed Revan any further, he would forever forsake his commitment to the Jedi and the Republic. Yet despite further corruption by the dark side, especially after he betrayed Revan, Malak was never fully able to rid himself of the good in him. Moments before he died from wounds inflicted by a redeemed Revan, the Dark Lord allowed himself to let go of his hate and anger, reflecting on what his life could have been if he had not been corrupted by Revan as a Sith Lord&mdash;or if he had had the strength to forsake the dark side and return to the light, as Revan had done. Malak died with sorrow and regret over his deeds and without hatred or malice toward Revan.

Relationship with Jarael
When Squinquargesimus met Jarael at Flashpoint Station, he recognized that she was not a Jedi, and pleaded with Demagol to be examined in her place. Shortly after Carrick and Dyre successfully rescued the Jedi on the station, Squinquargesimus asked Jarael to call him by his first name rather than his nickname the next time they met. During Arkoh Adasca's auction for the exogorth superweapons, Adasca struck Jarael after she tried to speak over a comlink to Gorman Vandrayk. Squinquargesimus threatened Adasca to not do so again. After they ended Adasca's scheme and returned to Taris, Squinquargesimus attempted to enter into a romantic relationship with Jarael. However, she was not ready since she had not gotten over her abuse by Adasca. After he changed his name to "Malak" and helped clear Carrick's name, Malak reunited with Jarael on Wor Tandell and tried to convince her to not only join the Revanchists, but to also become romantically involved with him. After Malak fought Rohlan Dyre, who was in actuality Demagol, Carrick deceived Malak into believing that he and Jarael were romantically involved. When Malak met with Carrick before the trial of Demagol, the former Padawan told Malak that he and Jarael had ended their relationship. Malak told Carrick that he had thought Jarael would be involved with someone older and more established.

Powers and abilities
"This is but a taste of the dark side to whet your appetite."

- Darth Malak, to Bastila Shan

Having been a Jedi Guardian, Darth Malak was a skilled lightsaber duelist. He spoke and comprehended Basic, the Republic's trade language, as well as the Sith language. As a Jedi, Malak used the Force as a means of protection and healing. During his later reign as a Sith Lord, Malak employed the Force to choke more than one person at a time. Before his final duel with Revan, Malak demonstrated this ability to the former Sith Lord, simultaneously choking two of the Jedi that he had captured. Immediately after, the Dark Lord exemplified his skills in throwing his lightsaber, igniting and plunging it into the chest of one of the captured Jedi. Malak's strength with the Force enabled him to create a whirlwind of Force energy that would encircle his victim, and he also possessed the ability to create a stasis field with the Force that he used to freeze his enemies in place. He was proficient in using the Force to augment his speed and utilized the Force to suppress the abilities of another Force user. Malak was able to render himself virtually invulnerable to most Force powers for a limited amount of time, and was additionally capable of leaping large distances in order to reach his enemy.

Darth Malak was able to amplify his screams, triggering shock waves that rippled through the Force. He also used the Force to tap into his innermost fears, pain, and hate and convert them into intense anger, which could be channeled to increase his speed, strength, and ferocity. Malak's connection to the dark side gave him the use of Dark Healing, an ability that fueled one's regenerative processes by draining the life force of another. He was skilled in the use of Sith sorcery. During his time as a Sith, Malak was proficient in Force lightning, which he used with ease while torturing Bastila Shan and while dueling Revan aboard the Star Forge.

Behind the scenes
Darth Malak was created by BioWare as the primary antagonist for the 2003 Xbox and PC video game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. In both Knights of the Old Republic and its sequel, The Sith Lords, he is voiced by actor Rafael Ferrer. According to the Knights of the Old Republic video game's lead designer, James Ohlen, as the designers at BioWare began to flesh out their initial story about Revan, they realized they needed a good antagonist. Malak was also featured in the Knights of the Old Republic comic series written by John Jackson Miller and published by Dark Horse Comics. As revealed by Miller, Malak’s immigration experience was inspired by the character Vito Corleone of The Godfather movies, who took the name of his Italian hometown when he came to America. In the article "The 100 Greatest Things About Star Wars&hellip; Ever!", which was published in Star Wars Insider 100, Malak came in at twenty-third place and was beaten by his Sith apprentice, Darth Bandon, who received twenty-second place in the rankings. Malak received an entry in The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia.

In the letters section of the twenty-ninth issue of the Knights of the Old Republic comic series, John Jackson Miller stated that the comics would "speak to the matter of Revan and Malak&mdash;perhaps sooner than you may think." In production notes for the same issue, Miller promised that the comics would reveal more information on Malak, now that his homeworld had been established. According to the Knights of the Old Republic Campaign Guide, Darth Malak held a rank called the "Sith Magnus." Abel G. Peña, who wrote Malak's entry in the campaign guide, stated on his official thread on StarWars.com that while the "Sith Magnus" is a canonical rank, he could not elaborate on its meaning yet.

An easter egg in the ending of the Xbox version of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic allows the player to transform Malak into a green-skinned female Twi'lek dancer and skip the final battle. In the Jedi Exile's vision of Malak in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords, Malak wields a red-bladed lightsaber. An item that can be found in The Sith Lords is "Darth Malak's armor," which differs in appearance from the armor Malak is seen wearing in the first game. According to the sequel's official strategy guide, Malak's lightsaber, which contained a violet crystal, can be found at some point in the game, but only in the Xbox version.

While Knights of the Old Republic and other artwork portray Malak with a sickly head, yellow scleras, and brown irises, other artwork, including Celebration IV's exclusive bust of Malak, depict his head as pale with white scleras and gray irises. An action figure of Darth Malak was released by Hasbro in the third quarter of 2007 as part of the Expanded Universe wave of the 30th Anniversary basic figure collection; he was the thirty-fifth figure to be released in this line. A miniature of Darth Malak was featured in the Champions of the Force set of Star Wars Miniatures, which was released on June 6, 2006. The Knights of the Old Republic set of miniatures, released on August 19, 2009, features another miniature of Darth Malak, as well as one of his former identity of Squint.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 0: Crossroads
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 6: Commencement, Part 6
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 8: Flashpoint, Part 2
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 10: Flashpoint, Part 3
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 14: Days of Fear, Part 2
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 15: Days of Fear, Part 3
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic: Daze of Hate
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 22: Knights of Suffering, Part 1
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 23: Knights of Suffering, Part 2
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 28: Vector, Part 4
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 29: Exalted, Part 1
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 31: Turnabout
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 34: Vindication, Part 3
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 35: Vindication, Part 4
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 37: Prophet Motive, Part 2
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 40: Dueling Ambitions, Part 2
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 42: Masks
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 46: Destroyer, Part 2
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 47: Demon, Part 1
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 48: Demon, Part 2
 * Knights of the Old Republic: Opportunities
 * Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
 * Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords
 * Timeline 1: Treaty of Coruscant
 * Timeline 8: The Jedi Civil War
 * Darth Bane: Path of Destruction
 * Timeline 8: The Jedi Civil War
 * Darth Bane: Path of Destruction