Alright, some of you are getting real jittery about the story. While I appreciate you guys reading this story, I cannot update that much due to school and extracurricular activities. I simply don't have as much time as I would like to write these. Anyway, hop you enjoy.

Chapter 9: Trial of the Spirits:

Starkiller continued to stare into the vacuum of space, wondering what to do now. Starkiller, having just discovered the true identity of Vader, was now angry. Starkiller, for a moment, felt the temptation of revenge. That lasted for a few seconds. Then, forcing himself to calm down, he reminded himself that he had rejected the dark side. Besides knowing the identity of Vader, Starkiller was also surprised to remember his birth name, but it didn't feel right to use. After being known as Starkiller for most of his life, it seemed that dropping the name Starkiller would mean him abandoning who he was. How could he expect himself to do that after the ways of the sith were drilled into his mind, never to escape his being? Galen sighed. It was too much to take in at once. He needed to focus on one thing at a time. The most pressing matter was how to deal with Vader and control the anger and hatred that he now felt for his master.

Starkiller's mind suddenly recalled the Jedi Temple. Maybe there was something there that could help him in his quest to find out what to do. There was only one thing that holding him back. He worried that returning to the Jedi Temple would serve to upset Ahsoka. Starkiller treated Ahsoka like he treated Juno. Her brilliant blue eyes only served to remind him so much about Juno and he was protective of her, which confused him. Even though he was no longer a sith apprentice, he chided himself for developing feelings for Ahsoka. Love was a weakness, and to show weakness would mean death. He could not allow his feelings for Ahsoka blind him. No, he had to be firm. He needed to go to the Jedi Temple, whether or not Ahsoka approved

Ahsoka, meanwhile, observed Starkiller. She could tell he was deep in thought. She was dying to know what he was pondering. She couldn't explain it, but she felt more than concerned for Starkiller. Starkiller, while tough and hard to read on the outside, was really a confused and uncertain person. She could see that there was more than just a sith assassin in Starkiller. His numerous battles with PROXY had shown her that he was capable of friendship and emotion. It seemed to her that the only thing that prevented Starkiller from going completely cold-blooded was his friendship with the droid, and even then, Ahsoka was even sure how he could endure the sith. Why was she worried about Starkiller? He was fully capable of looking after himself, but yet, he wasn't. Was that the reason she was concerned?

Or do I…no, that's ridiculous. I've only known him for a month and a half. Maybe I'm just crazy, or maybe…

Ahsoka quickly dismissed these thoughts, believing them to be just mere ideas.

Continuing to star off into space, Starkiller said, "I need to return to the Jedi Temple."

Ahsoka, who continued to watch Starkiller, looked surprised and a bit uneasy. "Why? What's there that you possibly use?" Starkiller could tell that she didn't want to go there.

"I…need to…finish what I started," he answered, remembering how he faced all the Jedi Trials, except for one: The Trial of the Spirit.

"What is there left to finish," she inquired, almost in a demanding tone.

Starkiller let out a small growl. He didn't really want to explain this to Ahsoka. She didn't need to know, but she was making this difficult. For a moment, Starkiller considering deflecting the question, but decided against it, concluding that she might be persistent. Better to tell her himself than her finding out.

"The Jedi Temple is calling to me," he said. "It's willing me to return to finish what I started. I need answers." Starkiller himself had no idea what he was talking about. He just…knew.

Ahsoka considered that he was not being truthful, but he sounded unsure. She frowned at his vagueness. Not that she had been one for details, but this was important enough to warrant her attention.

"You do what you have to. I'll be right behind you," she finally replid.

Satisfied with her approval, he took control of the Rogue Shadow. As it descended into Coruscant, Starkiller was working out what to say to the Jedi when he reached the temple. No doubt, they would not approve of him being in the temple due to his connection to the dark side, but then again, they would wonder why a sith would want to learn anything from them. However, he was not a sith. He only carried a name given by the sith. Nothing more. Still, Starkiller couldn't help but think that this wasn't going to be sufficient enough to allow him entry, but one way or another, he would find a way. This was the only way he was going to find out who he truly was. With that in mind, Starkiller decided to slip into a outfit more fitting for the temple (Starkiller is wearing the Jedi Exploration Outfit from TFU level Temple).

When the Rogue Shadow touched down on a landing platform near the Jedi Temple, Starkiller immediately set out on foot, giving Ahsoka reassurance that he would be gone for only a short time. As he walked up the stairs of the temple, he began to express some doubt about this. It seemed that this was the only place to go, but yet, he didn't fit in.

As he approached the temple entrance, he was met with guards, who demanded his business. Starkiller could

"I am here to face the Trial of the Spirit."

Both guards turned to each other. Starkiller could sense their distrust of him, but he could also sense their confusion as to why a wielder of the dark side would want to face and Jedi Trials.

"Come with us," one of the guards said. "The Jedi High Council will want to see you."

Starkiller merely nodded and followed the Guards inside. As they entered the temple, the guards motioned fof other guards to the door. The two guarding him were joined by two more in the rear. They made no attempt to deprive him of his lightsaber. As Starkiller passed through the halls, he awed at how beautiful it was. His past visits of the Jedi Temple showed only the wreckage of a once-mighty place. Seeing it in it's best was…inspiring. Starkiller was careful to remain neutral-looking. Many Jedi turned their heads his way and gave him a look of either uneasiness or questioning. Starkiller ignored them and kept pace with the guards, all the while creating mental shields. He did not know if the Jedi would probe his mind, but he didn't want to risk it. With that in mind, Starkiller increased the strength in his mental shields. The council could not know.

After what seemed like an eternity, they reached the Jedi High Council Chamber. The doors parted to reveal the council already in a meeting with Skywalker at the center. All heads turned his way.

"This young one wishes to partake in the Trial of the Spirit, but he is strong with the dark side," one of the guards said.

Starkiller was led to the center of the room and the guards were dismissed from the room. Skywalker was asked to stand aside as Starkiller stood face-to-face with the Jedi High Council.

"Why do you wish to face the Trial of the Spirits, young one," Yoda inquired first.

Starkiller took a deep breath before answering. "I seek a way to lessen my anger in order to maintain my rejection of the dark side."

"You are strong with the dark side, however," Master Windu pointed out.

"That may be so, but I intend to use its power only for the purpose of good. I have had a vision in which I was lead to an act of murder and vengeance that lured me back to the dark. I do not wish to see this vision come to pass. I must be stronger in order to face my…former master, Darth Vader, for he is coming as we speak."

The council members looked at one another. None of them had ever seen someone from the dark side attempting to free themselves of it, let alone face the Trial of the Spirit. This young one, perhaps, could be saved. Then, there was this Darth Vader. Who was he or she? Could they be of a threat to the galaxy?

"And who is this Darth Vader you speak of," Master Kit Fisto asked.

As much as Starkiller wanted to reveal the plans of the Emperor to the Jedi High Council, something in the back of his mind implored him not to. He couldn't explain it. Starkiller then chose on a compromise.

"Darth Vader will one day become Darth Sidious's apprentice."

The other masters once again turned to face each other. Starkiller could clearly see what was going on. At this point, the council could see that this boy knew something about the future. As much as Starkiller wanted to help them, he urged himself against it. If the Jedi were truly worthy opponents of the sith, they would find out themselves.

"And how powerful is Darth Vader?"

Starkiller fought the urge to look at Anakin. Starkiller knew that Vader was powerful. He was practically a tank and his lightsaber skills were deadly. However, Starkiller knew that Vader lacked speed. His armor made it very difficult to utilize speed. However, Anakin was not in any suit of armor. If anything, Anakin was more powerful than Darth Vader due to his mobility not being hampered as well as his very strong connection to the force. If anything, Starkiller could see that Anakin was far more powerful than Vader. The council would not stand a chance, no matter how powerful they were.

Starkiller took a deep breath before responding. "Darth Vader is far too powerful for any of the council to defeat. Only I can face Vader. That is the other reason why I must face the trials. I need to find out if my light side is stronger than my dark side."

Starkiller looked at the faces of the Council members. They were considering what he had said. Starkiller could see that some were impressed in his persistence to reject the dark side. Some were difficult to read, but it was clear that they would approve of his request.

"Very well," Mace Windu said. "We shall oversee your trial. Come with us and we shall take you to the trial chambers."

As the Jedi Council guided Starkiller to the trial chambers, once again, all eyes seemed to be on him. Starkiller bristled at this. It was very unnerving. Never in his life had he received so much attention either intentional or non-intentional. Starkiller banished that thought from his mind and forced himself to focus on himself. This trial could mean the difference between life and death, the light and the dark. The future of the galaxy could depend on this trial.

The Jedi Council all paused and lined the hallway. At the end was a door. Starkiller could not see what lied inside, but that didn't intimidate him. He simply advanced with a determined, but calm face. As he made his way to the door, he turned his head to the council members aligning the walls. They gave him looks of uncertainty and nods of approval. Starkiller merely looked. When he reached the door it closed. Starkiller activated his lightsaber and held it at ready. From seemingly out of nowhere, platforms supported by nothing appeared in front of him. They were scattered. Deducing that he would have to align them, Starkiller deactivated his lightsaber and reached out to make a line. As he did so, he realized that this wasn't the test. It was just a beginning. With that in mind, he made haste and jumped from one platform to the next. At the end, he spotted a large round platform, completely circular. Once his feet reached the platform, he began to sense someone else. Then came the sound of a raspy mechanical breathing. Starkiller could not see the foe. Realizing the mechanical breathing was behind him, he turned to look into a mist.

From the mist entered another warrior. He was human. He wore armor that covered most of his body, save for his arms. While the left arm looked relatively untouched, the right arm appeared to have a prosthetic hand and lower arm with some flesh still attached to it. Multiple lightsabers were attacked to his belt. Some of them looked vaguely familiar. He wore a battle skirt. The helmet resembled a Mandalorian helmet, but it gave a fearsome look. The sith activated a rather large lightsaber with three spikes around the emitter of the blade. The lightsaber glowed with a blood-red color.

Starkiller activated his aqua-blue lightsaber and charged first. The sith quickly began using Soresu to block his aggressive attacks. Not wanting to give the sith the time to counter, he continued to attack with Juyo and infused his lightsaber with lightning. Suddenly, the sith disappeared into a cloud of blue energy. Starkiller was momentarily confused, but then realized that the sith was using force teleportation. With that in mind Starkiller turned around and barely blocked the sith's lightsaber. Pushing the sith back, Starkiller shot out lightning. The sith caught the lightning with his saber and returned it to Starkiller, who easily sidestepped. As Starkiller dodged, he saw the sith rise into the air, energy pouring into him, Starkiller recognized the charging repulse. Using force speed to quickly move out of the way, Starkiller was still knocked flat on his back as he was caught in the edge of the blast. Starkiller was quickly back on his feet to exchange a few parries with the sith. As the two hit each other with force pushes, they both fell to the ground, one on one side of the platform, one on the other.

As Starkiller fought on, it suddenly occurred to him that this sith was fighting in a style much life him: unpredictable, utilizing force powers with the lightsaber, and the use of Soresu, Shien, and Juyo. Starkiller's mind worked feverously to come up with a plan. Speed would be his best bet.

Starkiller charged forward with his lightsaber. The sith did the same. They met in a lightsaber lick and Starkiller looked into the helmet of the sith. He couldn't see or read anything from this warrior. Starkiller, with a quick burst of strength, swatted the sith's lightsaber away from the lock and hit the sith in the head with his lightsaber. The sith reeled and shielded his face for a few moments as the helmet fell to the ground with a few clatters. The sith faced him and Starkiller turned to face…

That's me, Starkiller thought in horror and shock.

His skin was pale. His forehead bore marks as well as his cheeks. His sith were a dull yellow color, a sith yellow.

Starkiller quicky snapped back to reality as the dark apprentice swung his lightsaber. Starkiller dodged this and turned to face the dark apprentice and saw the sith cahrgin another force repulse. Starkill wasn't fast enough and he fell down to a lower platform. Starkiller landed flat on his feet and looked up, expecting the sith to be following and second. The sith appeared in mid-air, stone boulders materializing near him. As Starkiller sensed the force around these roucks, he was quick to dodge the projectiles. The floor quickly gave way to the force of the boulders and the dark apprentice followed up with another repulse. Starkiler took care to avoid being close to the sith as he unleashed the repulse. Again, the sith began to hurl more objects and using force repulse alternatively. The platform eventually gave way and Starkiller fell to yet another platform.

The sith followed closely and the duel began again. Starkiller began to formulate how to beat himself. Using force speed, Starkiller took quick and brutal strikes at the dark apprentice. The sith attempted to scramble his senses and fool him with illusions of Jedi. Starkiller ignored these illusions and continued to pressure the sith. Starkiller, seeing the sith begin to lose steam, quickly seized his chance. A few quick strikes forced the sith lord off the platform, but not without grabbing on to Starkiller's leg and pulling him too. Starkiler found himself pulled down. Unprepared for this move, Starkiller fell and grasped a small ledge to prevent himself from falling. Starkiller was quick to bring his lightsaber to bear to counter a strike from the sith. Jumping in the air and attempting to strike the sith from behind, the sith used force teleportation again. Looking around for his enemy, Starkiller turned to look up. He could see pillars shooting their way towards him, an inhuman scream also accompanying them. Starkiller jumped to the nearest pillar, walking up their length and jumped to the next one and then the last one. Once he reached the peak point of the last pillar, Starkiller used force speed with his jump to allow himself a quick strike at the sith. Momentarily dazed, the sith was unable to block Starkiller's impale from behind. The sith fell from the platform, his screams ringing out until there was a thudding sound. Starkiller looked into the depths and saw a massive flash of light coming towards him. He instinctively shielded his eyes from the light.

Starkiller felt himself lying on the floor. As he slowly rose to his feet, Starkiller gave a quick look around. His gaze fell to his hand, and the sight made him look in horror. His hand was deathly pale with metal claws on every finger except for his ring finger. A voice filled his head.

You can never escape me…

The vision faded and his hand returned to normal. He looked ahead of him to see an open door. Without a moment's hesitation, he advanced. As he entered yet another dark chamber, he was surrounded by the hum of twelve humming lightsabers. Grand Master Yoda was opposite of Starkiller.

"Kneel, young one," Yoda said.

For a moment, Starkiller hesitated, but then kneeled down.

"Under normal circumstances, bestow the rank of Jedi Knight, I do not to sith, but an exception, you are. You have proven your rejection of the dark side. Starkiller, by the right of the Cohuncil, by the will of the Force, dub thee I do…Jedi…Knight of the Republic."

As Yoda put his lightsaber to both his shoulders, Starkiller reacted with surprise. This was not what he had anticipated. All he wanted was to find a way to suppress his anger. That thought lasted a second. Then, Starkiller felt a surge of pride, of accomplishment. He was now another step from the dark side, and it felt…liberating. Starkiller…no, not Starkiller. He was now Galen Marek.

This is the longest chapter I've written yet. Be sure to rate, follow, and review for more chapters and thanks to all my supporters. Peace!