A few mier, ihe ste room of the ship, that was more like that of a series of holding rooms for prisoners.

  ‘My thoughts were fused, and heavy. I have overindulged on dark side energies, and could feel the dark side influence gripping my mind, twisting my thoughts and pulling on my emotions every passing sed.’

  ‘The carefully created inner baween light and darkness was broken. The shadows were desperately trying to gain trol of my mind, knowing that with every passing sed, their influence over me will wane. As I struggled to rebance myself in the force. Forcefully eling the light side even as it burned me from the inside.’

  ‘I walked between the rows of empty cages until I reached one in a dark er, my mind still distracted by my inner battle. I stopped beside the cage and looked towards the fearful presehat was desperately trying to hide on the opposite side of the cage. I was looking at it, but it still stubbornly pretended not to be there. A fickle of annoyance burst into my mind, and I almost gave into the temptation to pull it out from the shadows. Only to take a sharp breath, as I realized what I just thought.’

  ‘Instead, I took a slow breath and spoke up.’

  “I sense your presehere is no reason to hide anymore.”

  ‘I waited for a little more, struggling to tain my emotions. Then I saw a small form began to move forward. It slowly, hesitantly stepped out of the shadows into the meical white light that was reag only half of the cage.’

  ‘As she finally stood in the light, I was able to see that she was a human girl, about the same age as me.’

  ‘Great, another pipsqueak! The dark thoughts whispered into my mind. Why don’t you catapult her out of the ship? There is already enough trash here… Including you…’

  “Very funny..” — ‘I spoke to myself, causing the girl to flinch.’

  ‘She was looking at me fearfully. I saw that more than a few shivers ran over her already injured and weak body. Yet in her eyes I saw something I didn’t expect... Reition, and a stubborn will to fight?Why would she want to fight with me?’

  ‘The voices answered. Because you are her enemy, ’t you feel her presence, weak… yes, but she is one of them. A jedi to be… how cute… why don’t you stifle her light before it spreads? It would be so easy for a mighty Grey Lord as you… he-h-h…’

  ‘This time, the whispers spoke in the voice of the trandoshan boss I just killed.’

  ‘This time it was me who flinched, raising my hand in front of my face. Trying to focus as a sneer broke out of my throat.’ — “I have already killed you… why won’t you shut it!”

  ‘The girl gred at me. Her sharp eyes burrowing into my own.’

  “You... those eyes… that strange skin... you are a sith! You will have to kill me, because I won’t turn to the dark side, no matter what!” — ‘The girl stated, and I couldn’t care less about her turning to the dark side or not.’

  ‘I blinked away the shadows that were clouding my sight and finally the dark thoughts seemed to retreat.’

  ‘Stubborn as ever…’

  ‘The whispers spoke using my own voice this time.’

  ‘No matter, we will meet again… Nizzal… We both know that you belong to me… In time… You will uand-stand-and-ad-d...’

  ‘As the st of the whispers disappeared, I could feel a tremendous sense of relief and tiredness pressing down on my mind and body.’

  ‘The worst thing of all was the fact that I somehow mao run into a jedi youngling... she is not even a padawan... great.’

  ‘I exhaled a long and desperate sigh.’

  “Wha-what are you doing? I won’t yield!” — ‘The girl shouted at me, seeing how I reached for my lightsaber.’

  ‘I made a quid precise cut with a fliy wrist... The eleic lo the door cut apart easily, giving way ih of my bde. Feeling drained and ued, I began to walk away from the cells. Looking for the bridge.’

  ‘I o get away from here. I didn’t even care where. I just wao enter hyperspace, the into a bed and sleep.’

  ‘The girl behind me seemed to be fused... She sauo the door of her cage aatingly stepped out of it. Seeing that nothing bad had happeo her, she slowly began to follow me from a safe distance...’

  “Why did you let me out? I am a jedi... Sith and jedi are a enemies... Didn’t you know?”

  ‘I felt my headache pulse with even more pain as the girl kept pestering me. Why is she following me? She could just take one ship from the hangar and leave…’

  “Tell me, how many sith did you see, or speak with in your life?” — ‘I asked sarcastically, still unwilling to let that slight pass like that… I was not a sith for force’s sake!’

  ‘She seemed stumped for a sed. Then she answered predictably.’

  “None, I mean one... you!”

  ‘I stopped in my tracks for a sed, a million and one arguments ing to my mind to debunk her idiotic statement. As, I had a feeling that my arguments would have fallen on deaf ears.’

  ‘Suddenly a loud grumble resohrough the corridor, and I realized that it came from my stomao surprise there… I used up a tremendous amount of energy.’

  ‘On a whim, I decided to ge my dire from the bridge to the ship’s tina, but only after I released another annoyed sigh.’

  “If I am the only sith you ever met, then how do you know that I am indeed a sith?” — ‘I humoured the girl, while tinuing my walk.’

  ‘I didn’t really care about her. She wasn’t even a proper padawan. What could she do against me? I have just ftlined a bunch of bloodthirsty trandoshan.’

  “Well... ylowing yellow eyes are telltale signs... and your sickly looking skin... both of them are signs of heavy dark side exposure...” — ‘The girl lectured me on my frig dition, but that was not what bothered me. What bothered me was that she was right.'

  ‘Not that I was going to aowledge that.’

  “Now, that is at least partially true. Yet I have another question for you. What if there are dark side users who are not Sith?”

  “I would think that you are trying to deceive me... except... I didn’t really know what you could gain from doing so...” — ‘She seemed troubled for a moment.’

  “Oh, bless the force... someoually using their brain...” — ‘I stated, almost surprised that she seemed to actually sider my words. My annoyaowards her immediately lessened siderably.’

  “If you are not a sith, then what are you?” — She asked.

  “I am a member of the Order of the Grey... It is a secretive sect of a sort... We excel in using both the light side and the dark side while searg for baweewo.” — ‘I answered.’

  “If you speak the truth,” — She narrowed her eyes on me before adding. — “then I will apologize. Thanks for letti of that cage…”

  ‘I stopped and turned around in the corridor, quite surprised by the sudden turn of events. I saw her face flinch for a moment, seeing my most likely glowing yellow eyes... Yes, they will probably stay that way for a few days or even weeks after drawing so deeply on the dark side.’

  “You are wele.” — ‘I thought about what to say , then added.’ — “By the way, my name is Nizzal. If you want, you call me Nizzy... most of the people do it anyway... Oh, my full name is Nizzal Grey... What is yours?”

  “Hi.. My name is Kalifa.. I used to be a jedi youngling... but I don’t know what I am anymore... They probably think that I died... I was kidnapped from a training exercise, but that was weeks, if not months ago... I heard them talking, that I will be released on an isnd where they will hunt me down for sport... They were currently searg for other preys for their sick game...”

  “Hmmm... Yeah, that sounds much like what I heard... they were trying to add me into their colle... Wasn’t one of their brightest moments...” — ‘I felt a smile stretch ay lips.’ — “Oh, well, I guess it was in a manner of speaking, gettirocuted and stuff.” — ‘I couldn’t help but chuckle at the memory.’ — “At least those scum won’t trouble anyone anymore...”

  “What do you mean by that?” — ‘Asked Kalifa, clearly fused, and I just realized that I have spoken those thoughts out loud. Ugh… I guess the dark side influence wasn’t pletely shaken off yet.’

  ‘Suddenly feeling ashamed of myself, I started to search for some sort of excuse to justify my previous slip up.’

  “Well, they wao hunt me down to...” — ‘I began but was interrupted.’

  “No, what do you mean by they won’t trouble anyone? Did you kill them?”

  “Ah, no, not all of them.”

  ‘Hearing that, Kalifa seemed to sider just walking back te, but she quickly ged her depressed expression as she heard my words.’

  “Some were killed by pirates, but I would say most of them were indeed killed by me.” — ‘It felt good t about my ret achievement, no matter if it was unusually risky. Those scum definitely deserved it.’

  “You... you must be joking... you are around my age... How would you mao...” — ‘The girl, Kalifa, was clearly unwilling to believe me at face value, which irked me tremendously.’

  “Look, I have no ination to prove you anything... but the facts are given you were freed by me. I was the one who chased away the pirates as well. Besides killing most of the trandoshans. Therefore, this is my ship now. So if you want to e along, you are free to do so, but you will do it under my and.“

  “Since I am not a sith, I don’t feel ao kill you or to turn you to the dark side... I kind of had enough for this day, you know? I simply want to eat something... and I am already dreading to find out what kind of sick shit these types of trandoshan psychopaths pced on i their kit... So I don’t need anymore questions or troubles for the day...”

  “Sigh... Just e along quietly a whatever edible we find... Or if you are stubborn, you take one of the fighter pnes and leave wherever you want...”

  ‘She seemed to sider my statement, then she owards me, and said...’

  “I will stay, I think. I am pretty hungry... as well.” — ‘She said sheepishly.’

  “Good, then e, it is time for lunch...”

  ‘Kalifa nodded silently and began to follow me in a somewhat closer distance. We walked for a whole thirty seds, when she suddenly asked...’

  “Are you sure that you killed all of them?”

  ‘Force... help me not to put her bato that damn cage.... Be uanding... She must be happy to see someone who didn’t want to kill her at first sight... I should be patient... Yet, I am kind of emotional right now... I mean, seeing how those fug pirates treated me after I saved their fat asses kind of fucked me up...’

  ‘Then I gathered an unusual level of dark side energies... and a good k of it is still cirg inside my body... Oh, and that meant I had to stantly suppress this burning anger inside me... and that didn’t help my general mood...’

  “By the way, y me back to the Jedi Temple on Corust?” — ‘Came another question from Kalifa.’

  ‘I froze mid step and turned around just to look at the girl in the eyes.’

  “Look at me,” — ‘I began with a dark tohat suggested nothing good.’ — “do you remember what you called me the first time you saw me?”

  “Oh...” — ‘She seemed to realize the problem.’

  “Yes, what do you think will the jedi think if I appear like this before them?”

  “...” — ‘She remained silent this time.’

  “Exactly, and that means. I would rather jump head-first into a sarcc’s open mouth, then go any closer to Corust ever again... Especially after what I just endured from those idiotic elders... They think, I didn’t realize what they did... fuckers used me as a cheap bait, while ag so magnanimously... Thousands of years passed by and nothing really ged... Heh, not that I ever expected otherwise... Yet, I don’t feel the slightest happiness from gettily what I expected... They drown in their own shit and I wouldn’t care! Do you uand, so don’t ever bring up the Jedi Temple in front of me ever again!”

  ‘I turned away from the human girl... and tinued my walk, meanwhile, sinking deeper and deeper into my own thoughts.’

  ‘I might have overdo a bit, seeing how hurt she looked… It’s all because of this dark side energy that I am stantly losing my shit! I am not supposed to be this emotional… I scolded myself for the sed time today.’

  ‘It’s a shame, really...’

  ‘Some people think that knowing human nature is a blessing, and sometimes it is... Yet if you had enough knowledge, it would bee a curse as well, a curse of ina.’

  ‘As you tinuously expand the magnitude of the scope, of that which you look at the world as a whole. You will tinuously see the bigger and greater e over a bigger and bigger time period... You will find yourself pnning and thinking not in days, weeks or years anymore... But in hundreds of years or even thousands of it, while new and new variables tio appear stantly, f you to aodate them into your pn.’

  ‘If you have so much time, you have so many things to lose. You will iably slow down to an overly rexed lifestyle. You will ze around days and nights doing nothing but thinking about useless stuff and pnning about your future as, meditating, reliving old memories hundreds of times. Or simply imagining possible adventures, using your visions to see through time and space. It is easy to get lost in your own memories... especially if there are so many...’

  ‘Whatever... the jedi cil betrayed me without blinking an eye. I wasn’t going to follow their bidding for five years in the first pce, especially since I was io begin with. I merely used them as they did use me. It was an ideal ce to gather information about the current Republic.’

  ‘I couldn’t help but smile as a vicious thought resurfaced in my mind.’

  ‘It would be iing to see, what the gactiate has to say about threatening a helpless child to join the civil war, or she would be sent into a mining facility for twenty years... I guess I will write a nameless story, about my overly cruel fate and send it to the media...’

  ‘I want to see that green fuck boil in his ow!’

  “Hehehe.... I already see it.“ — ‘I chuckled to myself. e in the Jedi Temple! The wise cil of the high and mighty Jedi has decided to start f children into war, even outside of their order.’ — “Heehhehe....”

  “.... Are you sure that you are not a sith?” — ‘The girl asked.’

  “Cough... cough, cough... don’t ruin my fantasising! ’t I hold a rightful grudge?”

  “.... That is exactly what a sith would say...” — ‘Kalifa said in a low tone.’

  “And how the hell would you know that!? Since I recall that you never eve one?”

  “I read about them in the archives...” — ‘She began almost whispering this time. There was something arming ione, but I couldn’t care about it at the time.’

  ‘Instead, I burst into another rant.’

  “Your archives! Spare me your childish impulses, please... What level of information would you possible able to reach, if you are not even a padawan learner? I just searched your archives a few days ago, and even on the padawan level of authorisation, there was about eighty pert of general historical information, which you access from anywhere... The other twenty pert was mostly a bunch of half truths and propaganda... Ouch!!”

  ‘A dark premonition came over me, signaling an immediate threat appearing right behind me, but I couldn’t move out of the way, as Kalifa grabbed one of my lek in a tight painful grip. That sent cold shivers throughout my skull.’

  “Hey, let go of my lek.... What are you doing? That hurts stop!” — ‘My lek has snaked around Kalifa’s arm, squeezing it in a subscious attempt to free itself to which she also tightened her grasp on the soft flesh.’

  ‘I cried out in a sudden mix of panid pain, only to feel the now familiar touch of a bster pistol pushed into the middle of my back.’

  “Shut it and stop squeezing my arm or I swear that I will tie a knot on your leks! You must indeed be a Sith, to curse my order so mu that short time we met.”

  “What!? You ’t be serious.” — ‘I protested immediately.’ — “I am the victim here! Listen, if you don’t let me ght now, I am gonna teach you a lesson you won’t fet!”

  Suddenly, there was a blue light filling the corridor, followed by the heavy sound of a colpsing body.

  In the middle of the corridor, a human girl stood with a shocked expression and shaking hands. Staring at the body of the unscious twi’lek. The girl had the beginning of paniduced tears in her eyes. The out a long, relieved sigh. Finally realizing that the gun she secretly picked up and actally pulled the trigger in the middle of their scuffle was the same gun that the kidnappers used to capture her, and probably other targets, alive.

  It was a bster specifically made for ralising targets without causing them perma harm. Aside from that, it hurt like a bitch, something she experienced on her own skin not so long ago.

  As she calmed down, she felt a sense of aplishment and smugness washing over her body. She caught a sith alive, something that even Master Obi’Wan Kenobi couldn’t aplish. She crouched dowo the most arrogant twi’lek she had ever entered, carefully cheg if she was truly unscious. Before deg to speak up.

  “Who is the boss now? You sith scum!”

  She straightened up, slowly. Thinking about her a.

  “With that said… I o find something to tie you up… Of course, first I will take this saber of yours. She picked up the bde and ig out of curiosity.”

  Her mood has plummeted somewhat when she saw the brilliant silver color. She directed an annoyed and slightly envious gre at the stupid girl sprawled out on the floor.

  “How would a stinking sith get her hands on a beautiful bde like this? I bet she stole it from someone… Hmph!”

  That said, she turned around ao search for something to tie up the fool. She wasn’t willing to figure out how she might react when she realizes what had just happened.

  Kalifa gulped drily as the thought haunted her.