Living on a corrupt planet like Darlyn Boda is not the best place for a child. Having been born there was one thing, but witnessing the death of your mother as well? It's like the universe is telling you that you are supposed to be a piece of trash.

I was born in an area filled by pirates, the only one caring for me being my mother, Shkyla Lanwood. She named me Hunter, it was a different name for a girl, but she said it was because I had a special purpose. We lived in a small house by one of the rivers, away from all the evil-doing. I made a friend as well, and he was like a brother to me. Jake and I would run around for hours on end until we had to go our separate ways for the night.

But my blissful fun was stopped by a great darkness...

I mindlessly walked through the markets with my mother, my small hand being grasped by her greater and gentle one. I kept looking at all of the colorful fruits, wondering which ones we would buy.

"Come on, Hunter, keep up with me." My mother spoke as she stopped to help me not fall over. She looked at me from head to toe, a look of disappointment on her face. "I thought I told you not to go out this morning, I just made these clothes for you, Young Missy." She knelt down and brushed the dirt off of my sleeves and leggings. Taking my hand again, she took me through the crowd of people, wary of the ones with objects latched onto their belts.

"Mommy, where are we going? Are we not buying food today?" I asked in confusion.

She led me around the corner and into an alley. She gave me a hug before letting me go and walking out.

"Stay there until Jake comes to get you. Okay, Hunter?" She said with a smile.

"Okay," I said as I sat down and leaned against the wall.

Only moments later, the sounds of men and women shrieking in surprise and fear filled the air. Letting curiosity get the better of me, I walked out of the alley a bit to get a good view of what was happening. From what I could tell, there were a few droids carrying blasters and shooting at people, and from behind them stood a man in dark robes.

People started to run away from them, which was the opposite way I was facing. I just continued to watch as the droids separated and went after smaller groups of people. The man wearing the dark robe did the same, but he only went after one person, my mother.

"Mommy!" I cried, hoping she would hear my warning.

Apparently, she didn't. Instead, she ran away from the man as fast as she could. He raced after her, a cylinder-shaped weapon falling into his right hand, a second one also falling into his left one. Two red blades appeared from them as he caught up with my mother. He took advantage by striking her back with one of the weapons causing her to fall to her knees in pain. He then took both of them and aimed them at her head, both of them slicing through her neck in an "X" shape.

I stood there frozen in horror and shock. What in the world just happened to her? Little did I know, that man started to head towards me, recognizing I was her child.

"What a pathetic little thing you are, to think you would actually survive in such a horrid place." He said as a smile sneaked it's way onto his face.

I immediately bolted, running for help. The man hot on my heels. I had no chance, I was smaller and weaker than my mother, he was going to hurt me just like he did to my mom!

"Hunter!" A voice called out. I was then picked up and carried away, hopefully far away from that man. The person holding me soon slowed down and set me down as well.

"Are you okay, Hunter?" They asked.

"I'm fine," I spoke as hot tears started to flow down my cheeks. The man rested his large hand on my bony shoulder before looking out into the woods, seeing that no one had followed us.

"Let's get inside, Hunter. Go play with Jake while I go talk to Bri'Tin."

"Okay." I ran off and up the messy staircase to see my old friend, Jake Gadreel. Once I entered his room, he looked up from the book he was reading to smile at me, it quickly faded when he noticed my grim expression.

"Hunter, what happened?" He asked as he stood up and walked over to me. He towered a good seven centimeters over me, the two years between us causing him to be like that.

"My mom... I think she's... dead." The tears started to form once again, this time pooling up on my waterline and blurring my vision. They only started to run down my face when my eyes could no longer contain the large amount of salty liquid.

"I'm so sorry, Hunter." Jake spoke, his dark brown eyes looking at her with great sorrow.

"It's fine, I guess." She said while still looking at the wooden floorboards.

"How about we go on a walk? To get your mind off of it."

"Sure."

../.\..

After a long walk in the forest, we arrived towards the village. Bodies littered the ground, not to mention pieces of cut metal from battle droids. Republic Troopers and a few Jedi were walking about, checking for any survivors that needed medical attention. One of them turned to us, her green skin slightly surprising me. A Twi'lek as a Jedi was surely a rare thing indeed!

She walked over to us and knelt down, a warm and gentle smile spreading among her young face. "Why, hello, little ones. Are you alright? This place surely isn't an area for you two to be at."

"We know, but we came here looking for my friend's mother. She wants to know if she's still alive." Jake said to the woman.

"Oh, is that so? Then tell me, what did she look like? I'm sure she is with the rest of the survivors who is resting."

"She's a human, like me." I began, my voice wavering a little. "She has long and straight blonde hair, she also has gray eyes, and..." It took me a moment to think of a very important detail. "She has a strange scar on her right cheek, it's a white scar that is separated into four tiny circles."

The woman kept looking at me intently, taking in every word I said. "Well," she began, pinching her chin between her knuckles. "We should be able to find her easily if she has that scar. I'll start looking for her, you two stay here. I don't think you want to see some of these dead people." She stood up and walked away, leaving Jake and I standing there.

As a few minutes passed, I grew antsy. Sitting and waiting was not an option. Getting to my feet and straightening out my dress, I walked around, trying to find my mother myself.

"Hunter! We are supposed to stay here!" Jake called out as he began to chase me down. It didn't take long, I found my mom, but not the way I wanted to find her.

"So, my eyes did not deceive me. She truly is dead." I stared down at what was left of her, only her head stood at my feet, her body a meter or so away.

"Hunter, I am truly and deeply sorry for your loss. She was the only family you had." Jake said, his voice cracking near the end.

"Hey!" A boy's voice shouted. "You two, get away from there! Don't you see that's Darth Krys's victim?!"

"You mean a Sith killed my mother?!" I gawked at the teenager in horror. My legs felt weak, nausea filling my stomach to the brim.

"Master Axfow, come here at once! A child is hurt!" He called out, running in the direction the Twi'lek Jedi had gone earlier.

"Hunter, is something wrong?" Jake asked as he helped me sit on the ground.

"Yes, why would a Sith Lord kill my mom out of all the people on this pirate planet? She was kind and gentle, you'd think he'd just push her out of the way!" I screamed, tears leaking out of the corners of my tightly shut eyelids. He only rubbed my back and put my head on his shoulder in comfort.

"There they are, I believe the girl is ill or injured, Master." The boy had returned with his master, she listened to him before coming over to me to see if I was hurt.

"Oh dear, are you alright child?" She asked, her thin hand resting itself upon the crown of my head.

"No, I'm not." I said as I wiped my nose and eyes. "I just found out my mother was killed by a fallen Jedi. Do you think I'm okay?!" I shouted in frustration.

"Dear, Darth Krys is not a fallen Jedi, he's a man who was scooped up into the darkness due to greed and wanting protection for his family. I know you're suffering, but you will get over it. You will gain strength from this, it will help shape you into the amazing woman you will be." She spoke.

I opened my eyes and looked at her, but I still kept close to Jake for security and protection. "Why don't you just take me to the Jedi Academy? All I have left is my friends, I don't want them to be hurt like my mother, I want to protect them."

"Hunter..." Jake said a bit harshly, there was a tint of fear in it as well.

"Is that so, little one?" The Twi'lek asked me, her narrow face now had curiosity written all over it.

"Yes, I want to be trained to become a Jedi. To protect those that I care about." Jake tugged on my arm a little bit, I only shook him off.

"Very well, then. We will bring you back to the Jedi Temple. But be warned, there is a lot of things you must learn, and they come at a hefty price."

"It's fine with me," I grinned at her.

"Alright then, you may come along with us." She said before leaving, her padawan following behind her.

I got up to follow them, letting go of Jake in the process. He immediately stood up and grabbed my right wrist. Looking back at him, I kept a straight face and tugged his arm away. "It's for the best if this happens. We will still be friends, but far away from each other." He gave me one more look of sadness before I ran off to follow the Jedi.

This was my beginning, and it was a sad one. It brings me nightmares, seeing my mother murdered, but those remind me of my purpose in life. To kill Darth Krys and to protect the ones I hold close. I will hunt that man down, especially since he was the one who abandoned my mother in the first place. Our family is what caused him to go into the darkness, now he's trying to eliminate us. He may have succeeded in killing my mother, but I will hunt him down first, even if it costs me my life.