Shadowy clouds blocked my sight within the jungle, darkening my vision as if seeing through a veil. The darkness pressed in on me on all sides as I pushed obstacles aside using the Force. Thorny branches tried to snag me, vines tried to strangle me, and all around me were sounds of lurking predators. Whatever was out there stayed hidden, choosing instead to observe or avoid me as I penetrated deeper into the woods.

My datapad showed a map that would lead me to the caves' location, but in this mire it was impossible to stay oriented. Very little sunlight passed through the canopy which made it hard to judge direction. A few hours into my expedition, I was growing tired from forcing my way through the foliage. Coming across a stream, I stopped to rest. The water was cool and refreshing as I splashed handfuls of it across my face. Not being able to see was beginning to make me nervous, as I heard sounds of violence around me. Animals attacking and killing each other, the wounded yelps of prey as they ran for their lives.

A hard knot of fear formed in my belly as I pressed onwards, trying to follow as straight a path as I could. More hours of hiking only served to get me more lost, and I called another break as I stumbled into a clearing. The ground was a smooth gray stone, scored by countless claws. The sun shone directly overhead, warming me and banishing some of the shadows that ran thick here.

There was something peculiar about this place. The stone felt solid, but I felt a great black chasm below my feet. There was intense darkness down there, perhaps in a cavern or underground structure. Whatever it was, it was reacting to my presence. While it had been a dormant energy before, it was quickly waking up.

I spent longer in the open than I should have, and realized my error when I heard the clicking of claws on stone ahead of me. My vision was so impaired that I couldn't see the creature that was approaching, but I heard its growls and the sound of its claws on the stone. I took a deep breath to suppress the fear that was rising in my chest and fought to break through the blindness that afflicted me.

As I focused, I could feel currents of the Force pushing against me, like wind-driven smoke. A voice whispered in my ear. Do not resist. The darkness is nothing to fear. Feel the mongrel's life force and snuff it out.

The creature was hungry, and as the voice commanded I stopped trying to 'see' it, and instead I felt it. It was a hot orange coal in a sea of blackness, burning bright with life. Behind me I could sense three more creatures lurking in the underbrush. The one approaching me was trying to scare me back into the woods where it had an advantage, and its pack could attack me together. Planting my feet on the stone and igniting my saber, I stood to face the tuk'ata. I was challenging it.

The beast took the taunt, howling and leaping at me, trying to grip my throat in its jaws. I dodged to the side, swinging my saberstaff as it passed. A crack and the smell of burning fur signalled my hit, and the tuk'ata was flung aside, stunned. It hit the stone hard and rolled away, smoke rising from its side. Walking over to it, I lay my hand on the creature's bleeding head. Predatory instincts swirled within its mind, and I could see them laid out like I was looking into a pool of water.

Changing this creature's behavior was as easy as changing its priorities. I altered the creature's mind so I was no longer food to the tuk'ata, I was its pack leader. A being it would gladly sacrifice its life to protect. The hound's eyes shot open and it struggled to its feet. Though it was heavily injured, it loyally stood in front of me as the rest of its former pack sallied forth to finish the hunt.

The tuk'ata barked and yelled at each other briefly before dropping into a fighting stance; my ally refused to turn on me, and prepared to fight its former pack. The three tuk'ata I had to face now tried to encircle me, but I lashed out first. I thrust my hand out, knocking the largest tuk'ata back, slamming it into a tree. The other two leaped at me, and one was intercepted by the tuk'ata I controlled. I lashed out with my hand and silver lightning exploded from my fingertips, surrounding the hound in a crackling prison. Throwing my hand aside, the tuk'ata was slammed into a tree where it slumped to the ground, dead. Smoke rose from its scorched fur and its mouth hung open. My ally, already wounded in the fight against me, was put down by its former pack member. The pack leader had also recovered and they now advanced on me together.

I tried to use lightning again, but the hounds seemed to be ready for it this time and weathered the assault, the electricity dancing off their fur and harmlessly striking the ground. The tuk'ata can resist the Force! I recalled, ceasing my barrage. I split my saberstaff into two blades and took the offensive against the predators. I charged the smaller one, striking the stone with one of my sabers to throw up a spray of gravel. When the tuk'ata flinched, I used the Force to enhance my speed and strength as I lunged, thrusting my saber into its shoulder. The creature yelped and recoiled, slumping to the ground as its leg gave out.

The pack leader swiped at me with wicked claws, ripping my saber out of my hand when i tried to parry. It pressed the attack, fixing its jaws around the crackling saber blade and wrenching it from my grasp. It pounced once again, and I wasn't able to dodge out of the way completely, one of its claws snagging my clothing and giving it leverage to pull me down. I was on my back and the tuk'ata stood over me, every ounce of my strength was being used to keep those teeth from my neck.

My hands were busy wrestling with the tuk'ata, but i lifted the blaster pistols from their holsters using the Force and repeatedly fired into the tuk'ata's belly. It roared and scrambled back, its claws now puncturing my skin as it tried to escape. I crawled back and pulled the pistols into my hands, firing on both tuk'ata as they tried to retreat back into the jungle. I struck both of the predators down, sending them sprawling across the stone.

Blood stained my robes from marks on my shoulders and side. I stood over each of the fallen tuk'ata and put a final blaster round in their skulls, not wanting them to get back up and hunt me down. I piled the bodies up and harvested a few useful materials from each- the tuk'ata claws and teeth in particular could be useful. Storing them in my pack, I decided to set up camp here for the night. I would need some time to recover from this battle, and it was surely only the first of many.

With bacta on my wounds, a tent over my head and precious time to rest, I began to meditate. I hadn't expected to find the caves on my first day, but I hoped I wouldn't have to endure this for long. The jungle filled me with a perpetual sense of anxiety, and though I had learned to see more clearly, it was far from perfect vision. It was becoming more obvious that I couldn't overpower the dark side here, I had to accept it and see as the dark creatures did in order to proceed.

Rest. Whispered the voice again. Its command was powerful, and I felt fatigue wash over my already weary body. I slipped into a trance, finding myself kneeling in the center of a misty grove of dead trees. Two pale blue ghosts appeared before me, and more began to materialize in a circle around me.

A lost Jedi. Said one of the ghosts in front of me. Sent to construct your lightsaber. Your Masters have sent you to your doom.

I couldn't speak, my mouth was rooted shut.

They fear the potential power you wield. Continued the ghost, They hope the predators of the Jungle will rip you apart, as you will not bow to their Code. They have even sent an assassin after you, ensuring your demise.

Indignation flared inside of me. That simply couldn't be true. The ghost, sensing my thoughts, strode closer to me. He was a tall and handsome human, clad in battle armor and wielding a strange lightsaber- it appeared to be a saberstaff like mine, but the handle was much shorter, only long enough for one hand to grip. I could feel the dark side radiating off of him.

I shall show you. You know the one they sent after you. He said, reaching his hand out to touch my forehead. The grove disappeared, and I was rushing through the jungle to where a human woman was creeping through the underbrush, seemingly unaffected their presence. The foliage simply moved out of her way, or ignored her completely. I recognized her face. It was Jona. She was dressed in the robes of a Knight, and a newly constructed lightsaber hung by her side.

She was secretly prepared to hunt you down and kill you if you did not swear allegiance to the Jedi Order. The ghost said. Memories rushed, unbidden, to my mind. Jona was always secretive, and she had several 'classified' training sessions with Master Korgan. Nothing else at the Praxeum was supposed to be kept a secret, and Jona had occasionally called herself a Jedi Shadow- a Jedi who specialized in hunting down and eradicating the dark side- assassination was not outside of a Shadow's arsenal.

I couldn't stop the rush of emotions that flowed through me, intensified by the dark side surrounding me. I was hurt, I was angry, and I was afraid. Jona had been able to block my sight before; what if she was the reason I was having so much difficulty seeing in the jungle? What if she simply killed me while I was resting? She was coming ever closer to me, ready to plunge a lightsaber into my unconscious form.

It was foolishness to think that the Jedi would simply let me go. Not after striking out at Korgan like that- they were trying to separate me from the other students so that I wouldn't hurt them. There would be no avoiding it- I would have to fight Jona, and kill her if I wanted to get out alive. In our fight earlier, she must have been holding back much of her power.. The Masters would only send her after me if they were confident she could defeat me.

Raising my head to the ghost, I implored him to help me. He smiled, and bid me to rise.

Rest easy, young Jedi. I am Exar Kun, Sith Lord and conqueror of worlds. You stand above my library, my greatest compendium of knowledge. Sith Masters, even centuries after my demise, have recorded their knowledge here. It has sat untouched for thousands of years, but you shall be the first of a new generation of students. Now go, find me within my sanctum.

I jolted awake. The sun had set, and I was still kneeling in my tent. Hours must have passed in my stupor, and I wondered how much closer Jona had come to finding me. Time was running out, I had to find a way into Exar Kun's library and benefit from the knowledge within. Any edge I could get over the assassin coming to end my life.

As I exited the tent, the ground itself welcomed me down. It started as a thrumming below my feet that grew into a powerful shaking. The gray stone cracked and crumbled, falling apart beneath me. I yelled out in surprise as I fell, but my descent was fairly short. My legs crumpled when I hit the ground and I fell on to my back, staring up at the ceiling above. Only a small section of the stone had collapsed where I was standing, but a few loose rocks fell, striking me as I covered my head with my arms.

Groaning in pain, I pushed myself into a sitting position when the rocks had stopped falling from above. The fall hadn't been more than ten feet, and nothing felt broken. It was mostly the shock of the fall and falling debris that hurt. Standing and walking away from the worst of the debris, I examined my surroundings. My Sight was able to cut through the gloom, revealing a rather cramped room. A door nearby refused to open as I approached, and it was stuck when I tried to manually open it.

This room was deathly quiet once the clattering of debris abated; however I could hear whispering on the other side of the door. It was beckoning me to continue onwards, telling me to use the Force to proceed through the temple. Returning my attentions to the door, I noted it was made out of the same stone that constituted the walls and floor. Extending my hand to the wall, I reached out with the Force and started dragging it aside. It was a struggle, the door was old and the mechanism to open it had long since decayed away. Slowly but surely, the heavy stone slab inched aside until it was wide enough for me to squeeze through.

The hallway before me was filled with ancient dust, undisturbed for thousands of long years. Echoes of my footsteps travelled far ahead of me, violating the pristine silence that had once filled this dark place. The air was heavy and musty, making my lungs feel like they were being coated with grime. Apart from the one sealed door I had passed through, my path was undisturbed as I strode through the strange construction. The voices called me forward, guiding my path.

I was led me to a large chamber where I could finally feel the source of the dark side power. Numerous pyramids sat on pedestals around me, each one whispering to me to come nearer. It was a library of dark and profane knowledge, and once again the ghost of Exar Kun appeared in front of me. In my vision, he had towered over me but I was rather surprised now to see we were the same height.

Greetings, Torr. Welcome to my bastion of knowledge, where secrets from across the cosmos can be gathered, free from censure by fearful Jedi. I, and the other Lords here, can teach you Force techniques, lightsaber combat styles, and battle strategies to overcome and overwhelm any opponent- including your lover-turned-assassin.

I knelt before Exar Kun, feeling a rush of delight that I was being delivered from certain death. He bid me to rise, and I stood before him as an apprentice. The ghost led me to a red pyramid seated on a stone pedestal.

Take the holocron. It will begin your instruction. Hurry! We haven't much time before Jona discovers your location and ends your life!

I nervously reached out to the holocron, my fingers hesitantly grasping it. At my touch, the holocron activated and I could feel its knowledge pressing on my mind like a river pushing on a dam. The spirit of Exar Kun suddenly seemed much more real, only a faint ethereal glow surrounding his otherwise living body. The Sith Lord smiled at me, and drew his lightsaber.

"Draw your weapon, apprentice. Your training begins now."