Inevitably, the Infiltrator closed in on Korriban. Kairyn didn't think she was even close to being ready for this, but Maul was going to leave her here whether she was ready or not. She had been voicing her concerns all morning to which Maul simply responded, "Either you hit the ground running, or you die." He meant that figuratively of course. But he didn't downplay the threat of death.

The sith took over the controls for the landing. He carefully guided the starship down to the surface of the dusty red planet. The sith could feel her fear. She was terrified of what lay ahead. To be honest, she would be a fool to feel otherwise.

Once the Infiltrator touched down on Korriban, Maul handed her dagger to her. That was the only personal item she was allowed to take with her. The sith opened the loading ramp and led her down, onto the ancient planet's rocky ground. "I will come back for you in one week's time. On the seventh day, be here when the sun is highest in the sky, or I will assume you dead."

Her heart was racing. The air was cool though the sun was out, and there was nothing but stone ruins, sand, and rock in sight. The first thing she noticed is that there was absolutely no water. "How am I supposed to find-

"You'll find a way." He said as he headed back to the Infiltrator, quickly closing the door behind him. She watched in panic as the Infiltrator's engines started up again. He was really leaving her here. Soon, the starship was nowhere in sight.

The moment Maul dropped her in the middle of Korriban, Kairyn was just… lost. She didn't know where to even start, what direction to walk in, or anything. So, she just picked a direction and started walking. Her eyes scanned the area, searching for anything dangerous that she should avoid. But, visibility wasn't that great. Red dust swirled around in a constant wind, obscuring things that were far away. "It's only for seven days. I can do this." She told herself. But a lot could happen in the space of seven days. Recently, her life had changed forever in just one night. She pushed that thought away and walked onward, looking for… anything.

Logically, she would have to make or find a shelter first or find a source of water. Water would be important these next seven days. Without either, she wouldn't survive. Water first, she thought. But as far as she could see, there was nothing. But the animals that Maul had warned her about had to get water from somewhere. There was no life without it. 'Maybe' she really didn't like this idea 'I have to find one of those creatures and follow it.' Everything Maul had warned her about had the potential to kill her so this would be incredibly dangerous, but it might be even more dangerous not to.

Kairyn kept walking for about an hour, not even sure if the direction she was going in was the same one she started in. As she walked, she picked up the presence of something dark. She had no idea what it could be until she heard it. In the distance, a loud roar echoed off the stone ruins. Kairyn turned the other way, moving away from the sound. She reached out with the force to maybe see what it was. What she found made her heart sink. About a hundred yards away was a single tuk'ata, charging right for her. Could she fight this thing? Kairyn honestly didn't know. She did know, however, that running wouldn't work. It was much faster than she was. It came closer and closer until at the last possible moment, Kairyn jumped over the animal to avoid it. The tuk'ata spun around in its tracks and came at her again, jaws snapping. She evaded the creature several more times, while thinking about what she had versus where she could strike this thing to kill it. Then, she decided to aim for the back of its neck. Remembering what Maul said, though she chose a different method, Kairyn moved to attack.

She held her dagger firmly and leaped on top of the creature. The tuk'ata thrashed wildly, but Kairyn managed to stay on with her heightened balance. In one swift motion, she drove her dagger down into the creature's neck, separating its vertebrae. The animal swayed and then fell onto its side. It took some effort for the girl to get her dagger back; it was wedged tightly.

Kairyn stood back from the creature and looked at it. It was unlike anything she had seen before. The thing was huge! More than five times her size at least. And Kairyn had killed it. It gave her a sense of renewed hope. Just maybe she would survive this.

She had spent the rest of her day looking for water. She always paid attention to her surroundings, so she wouldn't have another encounter like she did with that tuk'ata. But, inevitably, she happened upon another of these beasts, and another. She killed them both in the same way she killed the first. Thankfully for her, she hadn't been found by a pack of them yet. Only single ones. But the second beast did injure her. She had a couple of deep scratches running across her right arm. It certainly hurt but it wouldn't be too much of a problem yet.

Kairyn noticed that all three of the animals had a force signature. It was nothing like what she felt from Maul, but it was still something. She wondered if the terentatek hunted them.

Darth Maul had finally gotten around to researching exactly who Kairyn was. He was certain that he could easily find it on the holonet. Almost everyone had some kind of trail. But after nearly an hour of searching census records, birth certificates, and other sources of information, he found nothing. Kairyn Alaina Farthou did not exist.

When the sun started to go down, Kairyn noticed that the temperature was dropping very quickly. She thought it was cool earlier. This was terrible. Once the sun was completely below the horizon, she began to shiver. Again, she recalled what Maul had taught her. He briefly went over raising one's body temperature with the force. She didn't know exactly how though, and even if she did, would it burn up precious energy she couldn't yet replace?

Kairyn spotted a cave not too far off. Perhaps it would make a decent shelter for the night. Kairyn proceeded toward the cave's opening. Once inside, she listened for the presences of other creatures. A few animals like the ones she had faced earlier were in here, but how far back were they? That question was answered as a large Tuk'ata emerged from the shadows with two smaller ones behind it. It looked like a family. Suddenly, the mother lunged at her, nearly taking a bite out of the hybrid. Their screeches echoed off the cave walls like metal scraping against metal. As she dodged another attack, Kairyn noticed a pond of water deeper inside the cave. But she couldn't get to it. Not with these creatures here. The hybrid was forced out of the cave. The Tuk'ata followed her out, still determined to kill her. Kairyn scaled the rock walls, outside the cave. With her agility well honed by Cirque Aethereum, she was able to get away from the deadly animals.

While resting on the ledge of the cliff face, she realized that none of those creatures could get her up here. Though it was cold, she was safe for now. Kairyn settled down onto the rock. The biting cold kept her awake for some time though she eventually fell into a light sleep.

About an hour later, she was awakened by high pitched screeching sounds. Upon opening her eyes, she found several large winged animals circling overhead. When one of them dove for her, she scrambled off of the ledge, and landed on a lower one. In her groggy state, she almost missed the lower ledge. As they kept diving at her, claws outstretched, she realized that this was an incredibly difficult position to defend from. She had hardly any room and these creatures could fly. As one came close to her, she jumped onto its back and held on tight. The creature flew erratically to try to get Kairyn off, but she held fast.

The others started to swoop in close to the hybrid, even though she was on the back of one of them. When one of them came within range, Kairyn quickly drove her dagger into the creature she was riding and then jumped onto the next one, all the while, using the force to determine where she was in relation to them. In a way, this was similar to a routine she once did at the circus. She had to jump from moving platform to moving platform high up above the stage. Though this time, she had no idea where her platforms were going to be. While she was thinking about her next move, she felt sharp teeth puncture the skin around her shoulder. Kairyn howled in pain. The creature, with Kairyn in its jaws, ripped her from the back of the one she was on. Kairyn used her other arm to slash at the creature's face, making it let her go. As she tumbled toward the ground, another shyrack came close enough for her to grab onto. Instead of carefully thinking about each of her moves, she let go. Kairyn trusted in the force and her instincts. She realized that if she thought too much, it would slow her down and get her hurt.

The acrobat systematically killed all but one of the shyracks in this way. The last one, the one she was on the back of, had taken her far from the cliff face. She had nothing to jump onto once she killed this one. Would it eventually land? Would it tire out? She didn't want to find out. The ground was about fifty feet below her. Not too bad, but she could die if she didn't land right. It was solid rock, after all. But the force gave her confidence. She felt like she could actually jump and land unharmed. Kairyn killed the last shyrack and once again, trusted in the force.

She landed on her feet just fine. She wondered how she had been able to do it, but didn't think on it too long. There were so many things about the force that she didn't understand. She just accepted that it had worked.

Maul had continued to look for any information regarding Kairyn. After still finding nothing, he decided it was time to contact his master. He needed to update him. And perhaps he knew more about this girl. He walked over to his holodeck as he punched in the code to contact him. The zabrak knelt before the communicator, waiting for Sidious to appear.

A hooded figure in zeyd cloth robes appeared on the holoprojector. His face was mostly hidden under a hood. He stayed silent, waiting for his apprentice to state his business.

"My Lord, I have completed my mission." He said as he kept his eyes downcast.

"I sense you have more to tell me than that, my apprentice. You know better than to try my patience." His voice was stern.

Maul was uncertain about what he had to say next. He didn't know if his master was going to condone or condemn his actions. "I have discovered a force sensitive… untouched by the jedi." This piqued Sidious's interest. "She has lost much and harbors a strong hatred inside her." For a long moment, Sidious said nothing. He gave no indication of what he was thinking. Maul began to expect the worst.

Finally, he spoke. "What are your intentions with this girl?" His apprentice knew that there must always only be two. Surely he wasn't defying that ancient rule.

"I have taken her to train as an assassin." He informed Sidious. If he disapproved, he could always kill her and be done with it. He hoped he didn't have to. He knew she could be useful if he was successful in training her. "What are your thoughts on this, master?"

"I think that you have overstepped your bounds." The sith lord stated. What Maul predicted might come true. Though frustrating, it wouldn't make a huge difference. His master's wrath worried him much more. Sidious was the only man in the galaxy Maul ever feared.

Sidious spoke again. "You may have been right in taking her, but you should have contacted me before you decided her fate." The sith fell silent again. He seemed to be thinking of something intensely. "Now tell me, what is her name?"

"Her name is Kairyn." He looked up to his master's face.

The sith master thought on this name. It sounded familiar… very familiar. "Ah yes. Kairyn Alaina Farthou." He stated her full name slowly and smirked slightly under his hood.

He hadn't spoken her full name, yet Sidious knew it. Did he know this girl? He decided not to question his master. "I have placed her on Korriban to see if she is worth training further. She has learned the techniques I have taught her relatively fast for someone her age."

Sidious's smirk widened when he heard from his apprentice that she was learning quickly. Of course she was. "You have found the centerpiece of one of my old projects." He began. "I pulled the names of five particular force sensitive children from the Jedi's holocron about two decades ago. I intended to form a team of sith spies. But of course the Jedi intervened and I abandoned the project, along with the force sensitive children who the Jedi would now never find."

"That might explain why I couldn't find anything on her when I researched her." It was all becoming clearer now.

"Yes. That would be my doing. Her existence is undocumented." Sidious chuckled. "Now why were you researching her? What were you looking for?"

Maul responded honestly. "I suspect that she's not entirely human. The rate she learns new concepts is too impressive to believe her as such. I wanted to know exactly what I am dealing with."

He paused, remembering why he chose this particular girl. "Kairyn is half Arkanian, making her highly intelligent. Her race is known for its ingenuity and… pride." That last part he may have been able to train out of her at a young age, but she wasn't a youngling anymore. "Tell me Maul, are you having trouble training her? Is she constantly questioning you? Resisting you?"

With a hint of annoyance in his voice, he replied, "Always. Nothing can go without a question from her. Is this a trait you want? I have been trying to train it out of her."

Sideous smirked because he knew he was right. Even though he didn't know the girl, her race spoke volumes about her. "No no, her pride wasn't what I wanted. I planned on squashing that as soon as I could. Without pride, the arkanians could be quite impressive. And to find one that was sensitive to the force... But with all of that intelligence, she might be smarter than even you. And it's possible that she already knows it. That could be why she questions you." A dark grin crossed his pale lips as he knew he would not like this. "But you have more experience." He added. "As far as her training goes, you might not be able to rid her of that trait at this point. Arkanians are stubborn. She will likely always trust her own opinions and experiences over yours. That is why I never intended to make her an apprentice. Her race makes her unfit for that purpose." He considered for a moment if it was possible at all to train someone like her past the age of youngling. It would certainly be interesting to see if his apprentice could do it. " But if you want to continue to try to train her, you may. I'd like to see if you can." His smile was a bit unnerving. "If you hope to be successful, you will have to be unconventional. As an arkanian, her loyalty and compliance won't be easily won."

Maul growled. It seemed she was going to be much more trouble than he bargained for. He would definitely need to reflect on his master's words and come up with a strategy. "Yes master."

"Good good. And Maul." He said, pausing to make sure he got his attention. "Good luck." He smirked darkly as if he knew better. His image faded as the communication was ended.

The next day, Kairyn explored a little more, in search of water. After having lost quite a bit of blood the previous day, she was in great need of it. So far the only source she found was guarded by that family of tuk'ata. She didn't think she could get past them, but it was possible she would have to. For now, she kept searching. Her injuries were starting to really wear on her though. Her arm needed tending to and the shyrack bite had her whole shoulder and her upper arm sore. If she moved the wrong way, intense pain would radiate from that wound. Had the shyrak hit an important nerve? It still bled, even hours after it had happened.

Kairyn also needed to find a food source. There was no plant life around for miles as far as she could tell. 'What are the animals eating besides each other?' She thought. Her initial idea of following one of these creatures seemed more and more appealing. But she feared it would lead her to something like the cave, in which what she needed desperately was inaccessible.

The hybrid wandered for nearly the rest of the day without finding anything. Eventually, she resigned herself to going back to that cave while she still had some strength in her.

First, she scoped out the area, looking for anything she could use to her advantage. She would have loved to find something to use as bait, and then disrupt a rock formation, making it crush the offending creatures. Unfortunately, there was nothing of that nature around. Finally, she decided she just needed to go for it. She was wasting precious energy. If she didn't succeed, she would die. If she didn't do this, she would also likely die.

As she approached, she could hear them growling and hissing. They knew she was here. They could probably smell the blood on her. The amount of it that had seeped into her clothes must be enough to tip off predators to her presence. Even though the creatures sounded their threats, she proceeded into the dark cavern.

Out of the darkness came the largest. Three rows of razor sharp teeth snapped in her face.. As Kairyn evaded the jaws, the other two creatures jumped into action. One of the smaller tuk'ata ran toward her with immense speed. Kairyn ducked just a fraction of a second before the animal collided with the rock wall where she had been. Before she could regain her balance, the third creature had jumped on top of her, pushing her into the stone roughly beneath her. Looking up at it, she saw it rear its head as it went in for a killing blow. The hybrid kicked it hard in the abdomen before it could. She felt the pressure on her release as the tuk'ata reeled backward, away from her.

Before she was back on her feet, the largest one came at her again. The hybrid ducked low and drove her dagger upward into the animal's neck. It released a terrible gurgling screech, spraying warm, thick blood on her face before hitting the ground. 'One down.'

The other two attacked with renewed ferocity. Even though she had killed one, Kairyn was certain that the remaining two would kill her. They were fast and the loss of their mother fueled their rage. The hybrid found it difficult to keep up with them. While avoiding imminent death, Kairyn was having a hard time finding an opening to attack. Both of them seemed so coordinated that they shared the same brain. Could they be communicating to each other? As creatures of the force, she didn't' rule out that possibility.

Suddenly, she found herself on the ground. Both sith hounds raced to hold her there with their clawed feet. She hissed in pain when something sharp was dragged across her right side. She looked down to see five inch claws tearing into her skin. She realized just how hopeless her position was. Anger burned in her chest. She had come this far just to die alone in this cave. All because of that horned psychopath. He ripped her life away from her just so he could throw her into this hell. No…. No, she wouldn't die here. She refused.

Kairyn's anger erupted into a force push, throwing the tuk'ata into the rock behind them. As the creatures were shaking off the shock of such an impact, Kairyn tore open the throat of one of them with her blade. 'Two down.' Things were looking less bleak now.

That was until the remaining tuk'ata wrenched her dagger from her.

The two struggled for some time. Kairyn was getting slower though. Her blood loss was catching up to her, making her head swim. She needed to end this quickly. She sent another force push at the creature. She watched it sail into a stalagmite, crumbling the rock. While it was recovering, Kairyn used the force to levitate the largest rock fragment she could find. As she lifted it into the air, she commanded the force to bring it down with enough speed to break the animal's skull.

Kairyn collapsed. That had taken more energy than she had to give. But with the promise of nearby water, she willed herself to her feet.

Some time later, Kairyn woke to find that she had passed out by the water pool. Her entire body hurt now. She lifted herself to a sitting position to find that there were streaks of dark red across the ground. She felt dizzy.

After fully waking, she wondered how long she had been out. Glancing around for anything to gauge the time with, she found the bodies of the three tuk'ata. The blood on the ground around them still looked pretty fresh. Maybe only a few hours had passed? At that moment, the hybrid realized how important keeping track of the passing time would be. She needed to meet Maul on the seventh day, and if she missed it, she would die here.

On Korriban, there were so many ways in which she could die. It was staggering to think about. Even things that she hadn't thought about before were dangerous to her now. If in every situation she didn't make the right move, she wouldn't make it. Kairyn wondered how many potential trainees Maul had dropped here that had died.

Kairyn drank more water and then cleaned herself up some. She needed to rest if she was going to attempt to find food next. The tuk'ata claw marks on her right arm from her first encounter had scabbed over now. It wasn't so bad. What was most concerning were the injuries she received today. She allowed herself to sleep a little more to regain her strength.

First and foremost thank you for reading! This chapter was turning out to be really long so I decided to break it up into two parts. Currently, I am about half-way through writing part 2 but it might be a few days before I have the chance to finish it.

Those of you that have given me reviews, thank you! Reviews really are the best. :)

~Loops