"You… Learned how to control your fear?" asked Kayla.
Durac nodded.
"Yes… In a manner of speaking," he said, "I learned how to take my inner fear and turn it into a weapon against my enemies. The trick to controlling fear is that you need to remember to stay calm and collected, when you're calm, your focus is heightened along with your sense of awareness, your reflexes and reaction time are quicker, and you think a lot quicker, and you don't have to worry about hesitating."
Kayla's eyes began to widen. Her father continued.
"Every time I was in battle, I always thought about you and your mother and how I wanted to make sure I came back to you, because of this, I accepted the cruel and bloody battlefields of the Outer Rim and opted to go from being a keeper of the peace… To a warrior for the Republic," said Durac, "in the end, I did not fear my enemies, my enemies feared me and the clones under my command."
"…So… I can turn my fear against my enemies?" asked Kayla.
Durac nodded.
"Now, close your eyes and concentrate," he said.
Kayla closed her eyes and concentrated.
"Let the darkness into yourself… Let it wash over you… Let the fear of death touch you… Let the fear of death pierce your heart and fill your mind," said Durac.
Kayla swallowed and opened her mind to the darkness, letting it flow into her. The pour girl shivered and whimpered, she formed her hands into tight fists as she felt the darkness begin to claw at her… Gnaw at her, like wild beasts.
"F-Father… I-I can't do it…" she whimpered as she tried to push the darkness out, "I… I'm scared…"
"That's good," said Durac, "now accept that fear… Let it become your strength… Grab hold of it and turn it into your own weapon."
Kayla shook her head rapidly while her eyes were still closed, the poor girl began to hyperventilate, her heart began to beat faster to the point where she thought it would tear through her chest. Durac grabbed her hands and held them.
"…Concentrate sweetie… I'm right here," he said, "I'm right here, Kayla."
As Durac squeezed his daughter's hands, her father's warmth was enough to… Ease her. Calm her. Kayla began to stop shivering and whimpering, her heart rate slowed, and her breathing became shallow. Durac smiled as he sensed Kayla accept her fear.
"Good… Now… Always remember to keep calm whenever you're in battle my daughter, to disregard fear, is to disregard your life," said Durac, "understand?"
"…Yes, father," said Kayla
"That's my girl," Durac said as he kissed her on the head, "I love you, little one."
Kayla opened her eyes and looked up. Durac and the masked Sith Lord were gone.
"I love you too, father," Kayla said with a smile.
Kayla picked up her lightsaber, stood up and ignited it as the Sith Assassin unfroze.
"IT'S TIME TO DIE!" she cackled.
Kayla got in a ready stand and swung with incredible speed, swatting the disc saber blade away and sending the Sith Assassin stumbling back.
"W-What the!?" she thought with alarm.
Kayla flourished her lightsaber. The Sith Assassin was shocked.
"Th-This is impossible! She was on the ground!" she thought.
Kayla looked the Sith Assassin dead in the eyes.
"WHAT THE HELL!? YOU WERE ON THE GROUND, PRACTICALLY BEGGING NOT TO DIE AND HERE YOU ARE READY LIKE YOU'RE ABOUT TO FACE THE BIGGEST FIGHT OF YOUR LIFE! WHERE DID THIS BODE OF CONFIDENCE COME FROM!?" demanded the enraged Sith.
"…It's not confidence," said Kayla, "I was trying to rely on my training and push aside my fear. But the moment you started you stepped up your assault, fear started to take hold of me… And that was when I realized…"
Kayla pointed her lightsaber at the Sith Assassin.
"If I was going to defeat you… I needed to accept my fear. And upon accepting my fear, I'd have all of the power I need," she said.
The Sith Assassin scoffed.
"You think you're so tough because you're ready to accept dying in battle?" she asked in a mocking tone, "well then, permit me to show you how that mindset it folly!"
Kayla and the Sith Assassin engaged each other again, just like before, the Sith Assassin spun her disc saber blades as she performed wide sweeps, and blocks on Kayla as the two fearsome warriors battled it out in this, possible, final round.
When the Sith Assassin went for a spinning thrust, Kayla deactivated her lightsaber and performed a backflip handstand, kicking the disc saber out of the Sith Assassin's hand.
"Wha-YAUGH!" the dark warrior yelped as tripped her up with a leg sweep and jumped to her feet.
The Sith Assassin was not amused and pulled her disc saber back into her hand and deactivated its Disc Mode, then she went back to using a single saber.
"Alright… Maybe you're not all talk," she said.
Kayla beckoned her, the Sith Assassin roared and engaged the confident inquisitor, the two of them immediately entered a 'Dance of Blades' as they circled, slashed, blocked and parried each other's attacks; however, whereas the vicious Sith utilized her brute strength, the cunning inquisitor used precision and speed in order to match her step-for-step.
Kayla turned and blocked a swing to the left and right, then she spun and ducked low before swinging upward as the Sith Assassin performed an overhead chop; Kayla and the Sith Assassin ducked low as they performed sweeping slash attacks and locked blades before breaking off and going at it again. And through it all, Kayla stayed calm and focuses, she timed her strikes, blocks, and evasions with great effort against her darker self… Her inner demons.
"Impossible! How am I losing ground!?" thought the assassin.
Kayla and the Sith Assassin went for a unified thrust and locked blades. Kayla gritted her teeth and kept her feet firmly planted on the ground, but the Sith Assassin tried to push against her, snarling like a wild Nexu.
"What's the matter, getting angry?" mocked Kayla.
"Shut your mouth!" roared the assassin.
Kayla was shoved back, the Sith Assassin unleashed a flurry of flourishing strikes at her and Kayla evaded via multiple backflips as her opponent began to steamroll towards her. The Sith Assassin jumped and performed another overhead chop, slamming her blade against Kayla's.
"Something's not right… This doesn't feel like Form V, this is beyond aggressive… Don't tell me," thought Kayla.
The Sith Assassin lashed out with a flurry of swings, forcing Kayla to slide, duck, and dodge each one of them. This aggression… The poor reliance on defense… This could only mean one thing.
"Form VII," thought Kayla.
"I'LL END YOU, YOU LITTLE BRAT!" roared the Sith Assassin.
Kayla tightened her grip on her lightsaber and buckled down as her opponent came swinging at her again.
"To disregard fear, is to disregard your life."
Durac's words echoed through her mind as Kayla weathered the Sith Assassin's assault. Kayla and the Sith Assassin locked blades and pushed away from each other, then they went at it again, sweeping and slashing at each other as they slipped into another 'Dance of Blades', their crimson blades becoming a swirl of crimson energy.
Kayla and the Sith Assassin locked blades again, but then Kayla broke the lock and jumped forward, driving her knee into her opponent's gut, and sending her stumbling back with a palm strike to the nose and a heel kick to the chest. The Sith Assassin felt something hot dripping on the ground, she wiped it with her left hand and looked to see what it was. It was blood. The Sith Assassin started to shiver.
"Impossible," she murmured fearfully.
The Sith Assassin looked at Kayla and saw the inquisitor beckon her with her hand.
"Are you afraid?" she teased.
The Sith Assassin was not amused.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHH! I have no fear!" she roared as she charged again and jumped at Kayla.
Kayla side-stepped as the Sith Assassin brought her blade down in an overhead chop, then Kayla held it down with her own lightsaber blade and elbowed her in the face, then she spun around and kicked her in the kidney to stun her before spinning back around and kicking her right in the face. The Sith Assassin stumbled back and spat up more blood. The Sith Assassin was horrified.
"You know what makes Form VII such a poor choice?" Kayla asked as she approached the Sith Assassin, "the use of exaggerated bursts make the form unpredictable. But the mental rigors and the feeling of being swept up in the field of battle gives your opponent too many openings if you don't master it."
"W-What?" stuttered the assassin.
"…But you didn't master it… I never mastered it," said Kayla, "which means you only bust it out… As a last resort."
The Sith Assassin growled and lunged at the inquisitor again. First a strike to the upper left and right angle, Kayla blocked them both. A strike down to the lower right angle, again, it was blocked. The Sith Assassin turned around and went for a sweep, but Kayla deflected it with and upward slash and deflected a follow up swing with a downward slash and struck the Sith Assassin in the face with her pommel to stun her.
Kayla walked over and shoved the Sith Assassin back, goading her into delivering one final overhead chop; to which Kayla spun around to the Sith Assassin's right side as she brought her disc saber down, Kayla flipped her lightsaber in a reverse grip and drove her blade through the woman's back. The Sith Assassin let out a pained gasp and slowly looked down, seeing the crimson blade. Kayla pulled out her lightsaber and deactivated it. The Sith Assassin dropped her disc saber, she didn't even bother to raise her head.
"I. Won't. Become you," said Kayla.
Kayla turned and looked at the Sith Assassin.
"I will never become you," she said firmly.
The Sith Assassin giggled and slowly looked over her shoulder at Kayla.
"…Foolish child… You might reject the dark side now… But it'll come back," she said with a wicked smile, "all it'll take… Is the proper trigger…"
Kayla watched as the Sith Assassin dropped to her knees as she began to turn into carbonite, then she fell over and shattered to pieces. Kayla let out a long breath and sat down, then she laid on her back and looked up at the sky.
"…I did it father… I beat her… I… Won," she thought as she slowly closed her eyes.
/\/\/\/\/\
"Hey, you're finally awake," said a voice.
Kayla, who's eyes were cracked open, slowly looked to her right. Sitting next to her was a young man, roughly around her age, maybe older, he had caramel colored skin, deep blue eyes, and short black hair; as for his attire, he wore a set of black and gold leather tunic, black pants, boots, and a pair of gloves.
Kayla looked around and saw that she was in a bedroom, and that she was resting on a full-sized bed, she took a note of the full bathroom to the left side of the bedroom across from her and the window that overlooked the city. As Kayla kept looking around, she looked down at herself and saw that she was still in her inquisitor robes.
"Thank goodness," she thought.
Kayla looked around a bit more and saw her lightsaber resting on a nightstand to the left of her bed and quickly pulled it into her hand, igniting it and getting ready to pounce.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Relax!" the young man exclaimed as he threw his hands up.
"Who the hell are you?" asked Kayla.
"My name is Daralec. Daralec Triclar," he said, "Revanite apprentice of Master Vuraso."
"How did I end up here?" asked Kayla.
"The Grandmaster sent High Master Clacrum to see if you actually went to do your initiation, he said that he found you out cold inside of the cave still, so he took you and brought you back here," said Daralec.
Kayla deactivated her lightsaber.
"Out cold…? But I-"
Kayla was cut off as High Master Malakam and a male Zabrak, entered the bedroom. The Zabrak appeared to be in his late twenties to early forties and sported the typical features of any Zabrak, which were the facial tattoos, and horns, but this one appeared to have jet black hair. As for his attire, he appeared to be sporting a set of crimson red and steel-colored armored robes and clipped to his hip was a dual-phased lightsaber.
"You're alive," said Malakam, "I thought you wouldn't wake up."
Kayla set her lightsaber down and sat down on the bed.
"Don't sound too disappointed," she said, "I mean, I still feel kind of groggy…"
Kayla took a deep breath and wiped her face with her hands.
"…Hey uh… This guy… He told me you found me out cold in the cave…" Kayla said, pointing to Daralec, "is that true?"
"I did," said Malakam.
"How… How long was I out?" asked Kayla.
Malakam and the Zabrak looked at each other, then they looked back at Kayla.
"…Four days," said Malakam.
Kayla slowly looked at the Zabrak and High Master.
"…Four… Days?" she asked.
"Yes," said Malakam.
"…Four days?" Kayla asked again.
"Yes," said Malakam.
Kayla turned away and put a hand to her forehead.
"Th-That's impossible," she said, "it had to have been a couple of hours, at least. I mean, I remember going into the cave, I remember touching the holocron and then… I saw Sith… Ancient Sith! I saw a female; I saw two males and one of them was wearing a mask. I-I saw myself… Like a darker, twisted version of myself…"
Kayla looked at Malakam.
"What even was that place?" she asked, "why did… How… I saw things…"
"That is the process of the initiation," said Malakam, "only by entering the cave, can you enter your mind and quell that which unbalances you. By destroying the very thing that unbalances you, you are also severing ties to your past and destroying yourself. Tell me, how does it feel? What's it like to be reborn?"
Kayla looked down at her left hand and opened and closed it twice.
"I feel… Lighter," she said, "like a great weight has been lifted off my shoulders."
"That's good," said Malakam, "you've started on your path to becoming a member of the Knights of Revan. As a reward, you are no longer an Outsider, you are now an Initiate."
"…Is there a difference?" asked Kayla.
"Initiates are individuals who've just recently passed their initiation and can now begin to work their way into our ranks," said Malakam, "however, unlike Daralec, initiates do not have a master, instead they must undergo three trials to prove themselves worthy of earning the rank of apprentice."
"Three trials? Oh, that shouldn't be too bad," said Kayla.
"Oh?" asked Malakam, "then this should be a cake walk for you."
The High Master snapped his fingers and another Revanite, a male Rattataki, came in and handed Malakam a luggage carrier, then he departed. Kayla raised an eyebrow as the Rattataki came and left.
"These are for you," said Malakam.
The High Master set the carrier on Kayla's bed. She quickly opened it up to see what it was. It was a set of dark brown and white colored leather robes, and with them came a pair of boots and gloves.
"…Dark brown and white?" asked Kayla.
"Only a full member is permitted to wear the traditional crimson red and black. Initiates must wear those," said Malakam.
"Why no armor?" asked Kayla.
"Wearing armor is a privilege given to full members of our order," said Malakam, "should you pass your trials, become an apprentice and then a knight, only then will you be able to make your own armor."
"Make my own armor?" asked Kayla, "but… How?"
"Patience, initiate," said Malakam, "rest as long as you need, when you're ready, go and speak with Master Kudo Sizal."
"Okay," said Kayla.
"Ahem," Malakam said as he crossed his arms.
"…I mean… Yes, High Master," said Kayla.
"Good girl," said Malakam.
Malakam turned to leave when he stopped and looked back at Kayla.
"By the way, initiate," he said.
"Yes?" asked Kayla.
"Who was your father?" asked Malakam.
"Huh?" asked Kayla.
"Your father… You called out to him while you were unconscious… Who was he?" asked Malakam.
Kayla blushed.
"…General Durac… He… He was a Jedi Master… Or rather… A renegade Jedi Master," said Kayla.
Malakam and the Zabrak looked at each other again.
"I see," said Malakam.
The High Master left.
"Come apprentice," said the Zabrak.
Kayla's snapped her attention to Daralec, who got up from the chair.
"Yes, master," he said.
Daralec followed the Zabrak out of Kayla's room. The young woman blinked a couple times in confusion.
"W-W-W-Was that the master he told me about?" she thought.
Kayla shook her head.
"…Never mind that… Let's just see how these fit," she thought.
As Kayla began changing into her new robes, up in The Grandmaster's chambers, Malakam was having a discussion with the Revanite leader.
"Why do you have an interest in this child, Grandmaster? She's young, she's overestimates her own abilities," said Malakam, "we should just kill her and destroy her ship, no one will ever know where she vanished."
"No," said the Grandmaster, "I sense great potential in this child. She is young, yes and she overestimates her abilities… But I can sense that she is curious about our order. As far as she knows, our order was nothing more than the stuff of myth and legend."
"She's curious about our order and how she can attain the same power as Revan," said Malakam, "we cannot trust her, Grandmaster, she must be executed."
"You say she cannot be trusted… Yet she went to the cave. She could've taken that speeder and gone anywhere else, she could've gone to her ship, she could've gone to one of our other citadels on this planet, she could've gone off the grid and spend the rest of her days surviving out there in the wilderness," said the Grandmaster, "this child is in pain Malakam, terrible pain. I feel that we are the only ones who can help her heal from the pain within her heart."
Malakam sighed.
"Then, I shall trust your judgment Grandmaster," he said.