At first Zar had mistaken the Sith lord for Vader, but he noticed the design of the Sith's armor was considerably different. The leneses on the helmet were blood red, as was the diamond shaped crystal on his chest plate. There were sharp prongs on his gauntlets and shimmering claws on his hands.

"Who… What are you?"

But the Sith lord answered not. Then Zar remembered what he had been told to find out from the only person on the planet.

"Who is number one?!" he demanded.

The Sith Lord didn't answer with words, he just took his light saber and did the Makashi salute. Zar understood that he had to beat this guy before he would tell him anything.

"Very well." he said igniting his own lightsaber "We'll do it the hard way."

A few months ago Zar would have jumped into this duel without knowing what he was up against, but by training with his master he learned that throwing the first punch wasn't everything. Instead he would let the Sith make the first move, that way he could observe what kind of fighting style he practiced, find it's weakness, and exploit it.

For about thirty seconds Zar and the Sith lord just carefully circled each other, waiting for the other person to make the first move. Finally the Sith lunged at him with a Juyo strike.

"Gives me the Makashi opening stance and salute and then attacks me with Juyo." thought Zar as he blocked the blow "He's trying confuse me, keep me off balance, I better be careful."

The Sith lord continued to lunge viciously at Zar who kept on the defensive so he could study the Sith's style. Over the past few months Zar had incorporated a little Soresu into his own fighting style, that way he could maintain a more defensive stance if necessary. He used to think Soresu was a weak form of combat because it didn't have a nearly any emphasis on attack, but that was before Kita used it to defeat Commander Mordred on Naboo.

"This guy isn't fooling around… He's attacking viciously, but not wasting any energy doing so… I better finish this quickly, or I'm the one who's going to end up dead… There's something familiar about his fighting style…"

Suddenly and without warning the Sith sent Force Lightening blasting out of his left hand. Zar raised his lightsaber just in time to block it.

"You'll have to do better than that."

The Sith charged at Zar and intensified the power of his attacks. Zar was able to block the attacks, but it made him feel uneasy how he knew this person's fighting style, like he had encountered it somewhere before… but where?

Zar waited for the Sith to give him an opening, then he channeled the force through his hands and sent him flying into the wall.

"Score one for the Jedi to be." he said triumphantly.

In no time at all the Sith rose to his feet, but instead of attacking he deactivated his lightsaber and placed it back on his belt. For a few moments he just stood there, then Zar saw several lightsabers, at least twelve come flying out of the Sith's cloak and activated in midair.

"Oh boy… I don't like where this is going…"

The Sith pointed at Zar, just like that one of the lightsabers came flying at him like a torpedo. Zar dodged it and it stuck into the wall behind him. The Sith pointed at him again and this time all the remaining lightsaber's came flying at him at once. When Zar dodged them they turned around and came flying at him again.

"And he's doing all this with his mind!"

Zar kept dodging the hail fire of lightsabers when suddenly he noticed the red one that zipped by him.

"Wait a minute… That looked like Vader's! Has the emperor found a successor?!"

While Zar was lost in his thought a blue bladed lightsaber came at him from behind and scored a wound across his leg. As Zar fell to the ground he saw something that was even more shocking.

"That's my master's blade!"

When Zar hit the ground the Sith called all his lightsabers back to him and advanced. When he was right on top of Zar he drew a lightsaber from his belt, but it wasn't the red one he had used at the start of their duel, it was blue, and it had a golden and silver hilt that Zar knew all too well.

"By the force! That's Kita's!"

For the first time, the Sith spoke.

"Now I will destroy you Jedi… As I destroyed your friends and Master."

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

Completely ignoring the wound in his leg, Zar got up and furiously swung his lightsaber, blowing the Sith back and knocking his helmet off.

"What!?! This can't be real!"

Underneath the Sith's helmet was an older version of Zar. His face was horribly scarred, and apparently he had lost his horns in battle. His eyes were full of pain and hatred. Then he started laughing.

"Haven't you figured it out yet? I know I have… MWAH-HA-AH-HA-AH!!!"

Just like that the evil Zar dissolved into thin air, leaving him alone.

"TELL ME!!! WHO IS NUMBER ONE!?!"

For a few moments Zar was all alone. Then he heard the familiar sound of a man breathing through a respirator, but it wasn't that of his evil self's. Darth Vader emerged out of the shadows and advanced towards him.

"No… no… I'm already wounded… I'm in no condition to fight Vader!"

Much to Zar's surprise Vader didn't draw his lightsaber. He just stared at him.

"I am number one." said the dark lord mockingly "I am the driving force in your life. I am fear, anger, hatred, and suffering. I drive you on… and consume you."

"NO!!!"

Zar took his lightsaber and flung it at Vader. When it struck him the dark lord dissolved into thin air just like Zar's evil self had done. Next Zar heard footsteps coming from behind. He turned around and saw a perfect reflection of himself, not like his evil self, it was himself exactly the way he was now.

"I am number one." he said "I don't care for anyone or anything."

"That's no true! I love Kita!"

"No you don't, you love yourself." replied Zar's reflection smiling mockingly "And you don't care about your family, the Jedi, the Sith, the Empire, or the Galaxy… Just looking out for number one."

Zar angrily used the force to blast the duplicate of himself into the wall, when it hit the ground it dissolved like the last two apparitions. Then the room was full of a blinding white light.

"Oh… what now?"

Suddenly Zar saw the silhouette of someone walking out of the light and towards him. The light started to fade and he could see who it was, he rubbed his eyes in disbelief.

"Kita… Kita is it really you?!"

She smiled at him, but unlike his reflection the smile was full of love. His dreams had never done her justice.

"I am number one." she said "I am the light you follow out of the darkness… I am love and compassion… I help you through the hard times… we are one in this life… and one day… we will be one in the force."

"… Kita!"

Zar ran over to embrace her… but when he was within breathing distance she dissolved into thin air just like the rest. Zar fell to the ground… and actually started crying. Then he felt a hand on his shoulder, he looked up and saw that it was his master. Everything he had just experienced wasn't real.

"Zar… A Jedi's greatest test is to look inside one's self… Often we see things we don't like… But take heart for these things are not set in stone… Unlike the past, the future isn't a written book, it is always in motion, always changing… We always have a choice… and you are who you choose to be."

Chad helped Zar to his feet.

"Now let's leave this unsightly rock of darkness and death… The others want to see it when you're knighted."

Zar thought he was going to start crying again.

"Master… Do you really mean it?"

Chad smiled at him.

"Let's go home Zar."

(To be concluded)

That's right, we're not done yet.