Sith Lord Darth Bane travels in hyperspace in his ship, the Valcyn. Bane is the lone survivor of the Battle of Ruusan, in which Lord Skere Kaan's thought bomb destroyed the entire Brotherhood of Darkness and most of the Jedi Knights on the planet. Bane is accompanied in his journey by the unwelcome ghostly avatar of Lord Qordis, one of the Sith who perished in the battle.
Qordis chides Darth Bane for abandoning the Sith, while Darth Bane is concerned about carrying on the Sith legacy. As Darth Bane approaches Dxun, the beast moon of Onderon, the spirit of Qordis shuts down all of the Valcyns systems. The ship crashes, but Bane survives through his use of the dark side.
As Bane sets out through the Dxun jungle, the spirit of Qordis causes the remains of the Valcyn to explode. Bane continues through the jungle, slaying a jungle creature and then encountering the spirit of Lord Kaan. Bane follows Lord Kaan until he reaches the pyramidal tomb of Freedon Nadd. Kaan leads Bane to a room inside the tomb that contains a Sith holocron full of all the Sith knowledge Bane will need.
As Bane enters the room, barnacle-like symbiotes called orbalisks fall from the ceiling and agonizingly affix themselves to Darth Bane's body. Darth Bane suppresses the pain and immerses himself in the knowledge found in the Sith holocron. Much later (probably days), Darth Bane emerges from the tomb invigorated with dark-side knowledge and power. He decides to revive the Sith, but using the Rule of Two Sith at a time. Bane bends a flying beast to his will and mounts it, intending to travel to Onderon in search of an apprentice.
Bane of the Sith has inconsistencies with the Star Wars: Jedi vs. Sith comic and Darth Bane: Path of Destruction book, such as Darth Bane telling Kaan not to use the thought bomb, the timing of Bane's search for an apprentice, the timing of when Darth Bane adopts the Rule of Two and the manner in which Qordis dies on Ruusan.
The short story is retold as part of Darth Bane: Rule of Two.