Star Wars: Jedi Academy [A Pub RP] (IC)

[Beiarusia]

> D'Qar

"She doesn't have a choice. Wren's too nice to say no, and I'm already here," said Kyle Katarn, arriving a few steps behind his fellow Jedi Knight, Martius Shan, and answering the question addressed to the lady Mandolorian. Arms crossed, Kyle made himself comfortable, leaning back against the thick trunk of a tree as if he had nothing better to be doing just this instant. He wore a simple outfit. A long-sleeved shirt and brown pants with the bottoms tucked into his boots, preferring something a bit more utilitarian as opposed to the traditionalism of Jedi robes. "This spot is big enough to share."

He looked over to Wren. "Nice trick, but I prefer walking," he teased, referring to her acrobatics.

The sound of nearly a dozen blasters continued unabated as the simpleminded B1 Battle Droids fired indiscriminately into the building where a handful of students had hunkered down. The droids weren't the best of shots but they were persistent to a fault.

"Think we're being a little unfair?" asked Katarn after witnessing the scene for a moment. Aside from Linea and Xin Endoni the students had no training in how to use a lightsaber, much less defend themselves against blasters, and undoubtedly would be fettered to simply hacking their way to success. It was like using a hammer for surgery. Painful, even to watch.

"We had twice as many droids," answered a pleasant voice that was actually two off-sync. The twins, Ashaika Ren and Ashaika Len, joined those already gathered in the small clearing, a matching set and perfectly identical in every which way. Sephi, youthful in appearance, with pointed, elf-like ears and skin that was too pink to be human. Hair was dark, cut moderately short and styled so that the two appeared as a mirror to one another. Figuratively joined at the hip.

Katarn looked to the pair as if he'd seen a ghost. "When did you two get back?"

"We wanted to see the new students," began one twin with the other finishing, "so we came to watch."

Unlike the other Jedi Knights who'd been called to D'Qar to assist in establishing the academy, Ren and Len were frequently off-world, running errands for Master Skywalker or playing diplomat with the senators on Coruscant. The twins, despite being more than a bit mischievous, were good at schmoozing and were partly responsible for the New Republic being as generous as it had been in assisting the New Jedi Order. There was only so much Leia could accomplish.

The twins, like Katarn, made themselves comfortable, sitting next to one another on a stump to watch the fiasco down in the mining camp. A few others would probably be joining them for the show at some point. Tarryyn was busy, and Bo Ganthor was a maybe, but Mara Jade would be around somewhere with Alon Windtine not too far behind.

[Arengin Union]

Alon Windtine

I don't feel ready, I don't think I've ever felt ready for this, part of me always thought I was. Ready to train the ones that will back hope to the galaxy, defend it for peace, and keep balance in the force. But how can we teach them any of that? What even is balance? So many questions and the answers I get only make more... Alon's inner thoughts were rambling on and on as he calmly walked through the forest, guided by the force which he knew would lead him to the others. He had developed such different connections with each of them, some good and some he felt were odd.

Going through the foliage of the forest, Alon arrived to the small clearing where many of the knights were settling down to oversee the advances of the new apprentices. Alon didn't say much as he entered the clearing through the tall grass, opting to stay quiet as he usually was.

"Greetings, it seems the apprentices have found the complex." He said with a calm voice.

Some of the apprentices seem to be more direct on their approach than other, with most nowhere in sight, Alon could only figure they would most likely be taking their time to formulate different plans. He trusted that the apprentices could be smarter than he would expect. He could see Master Skywalker's own apprentice fighting the droids, so that's why she was annoyed back at the temple! Skywalker had basically forced her into joining the trial, Alon found it peculliar to say the least.

Alon kept a still posture, his brown robe covering the simple outfit he was wearing, simple dark pants and a grey long sleeve shirt. He had left his armor in the temple, not seeing much use for it though he kept his belt for his twin lightsabers with him always, carrying the both of them at all times. He kept looking at the apprentices and their struggle against the droids, it reminded him of himself on his first trials, each seem impossible and the handling of the force was so confusing back then, it still was. But now he didn't feel exactly as a master, he couldn't fathom the idea of such rank as Master Skywalker, even with the padawans he would be assigned. However had become adept enough with the force thanks to Skywalker and at least felt competent enough to pass what he had learned as an extension to his students.

Alon looked at his fellow knights, all of them concentrating on the apprentices. The twins were there, he had always found them with a mixture of amusement and curiosity. Both of them seem so intertwine that it unsettled him at times, still they were his brothers in arms, part of a bigger brotherhood that the Jedi entailed. He still respected their abilities of speech and diplomacy, how articulate they both were and had always worked together on most things.

"How was the trip? I expected you two wouldn't want to miss this, we have got quite the variety." Alon said with wittiness in his voice, crossing both his arms and pressing himself onto a tree.

Jalelvi Garekk

Jale and his companion ran through the forest covered landscape, the younger Jale almost outrunning his fellow apprentice at time, but Joker was clearly on very good physical condition to keep up and lead on. Jale for his part had deactivated his saber, it was so as to not attract unwarranted attention from the droids. He was glad to have Joke with him, it eased the tension and anxiety of being alone and it made Jale believe that maybe his ideals about what the Jedi ideology was about wasn't so far fetched after all. He felt more confident to have someone who clearly seemed to know what he was doing, at least that's how it seemed, someone with experience and who carried himself with decision and ability. Still he couldn't get his odd name out of his head, it was better not to dwell on it, but out of millions of names "James" just seemed so odd still.

Soon the two met with the alien man of unknown name. As Joker introduced both of them Jale kept looking in every direction in case of any surprises, he felt that there was a presence in the trees but it was hard to really tell what was happening anywhere at all. He heard his odd introduction from Joker, calling him "Boy."

Ahhh varac! I forgot to tell him my name, why are you so dumb Jale! Was Jale's immediate thought, along with a feeling of defensiveness at being called "Boy," he was not a boy he was a man! Well at least he liked to think of himself as one.

As Joker finished on his introduction and offer for the alien man to join the group Jale tapped his shoulder, almost like a little kid about to ask his dad for something.

"My name is Jale Garekk by the way, sorry for not mentioning it earlier!" he said with a low whisper, he then gave a small hand wave at the alien man who seemed to be not to enthusiastic about teaming up.

“Okay fine, but I’m not just going to rush in. So let’s make a plan. These things were built to be dumb and slow, so let’s take advantage of that.”

Jale looked at Joker for a strategy, keeping close to the two men while also looking up on the trees and around their wooded surroundings, ever so vigilant for anything.

[Anowa]

Xin Endoni
Jedi Padawan
D'Qar, 13ABY

Xin at first had been rather eager to learn something new from her teacher, having spent what seemed like a year alone doing various patterns of strikes with a training saber and mothing more than meditating. But said eagerness turned into apprehension upon discovering exactly what the method of learning was going to be. Most teachers would give basic instruction before throwing them hip deep into it. Apparently Bo thought the time had come to forgo such niceties and teach head on through example.

Around her was an array of circling stun-blasters hooked up to a panel behind a blast shield. Said panel apparently signalled a random blaster to fire, aimed directly at her. Xin on the other hand, was constricted to a small red circle painted on the floor.

"You want me to what?"

"Block the blaster fire with your saber. Don't worry, their set to a very low setting so it won't hurt to much. Just enough to give an incentive."

Xin blinked, jumping a bit as the number of blasters started revolving around her. She took a duelling stance, not at all looking forward to the next few hours.

Xin Endoni
Jedi Padawan
D'Qar, 15ABY

In some ways, Xin hated the time she spent in that horrific circle, but it did teach her a few things, the most evident of which was to block blaster fire, reflecting it was something else entirely and likely not one she'd ever master, having a distinct lack of patience for it. She also learned how to muscle through the pain, a single shot didn't stop, three or four in a row, yes, but master Bo wasn't one to stop due to a single mistake, he was tough but fair like that. If you made a misstep he expected you to recover and carry on, but if it was obvious you weren't getting it or were having trouble, he'd stop and give a few tips, pointers, advice etcetera.

So, with all the experience of getting shot in the arse with stun blasts, she walked out into the so called killing field, saber ignited and a stern look of concentration upon her face. She wasn't here to play nice, or give the others an easier time, no, she could read the undertone of Master Bo's words. She was to serve as an example of what a Jedi's training looked like a mere 3 years in. Xin knew she was far from the best, and far from the most educated, but Bo made it clear that she was to give the new arrivals a beacon of indication of what was to come.

As she approached the collection of clankers all converging on the single door that someone had likely entered into, a few turned and started firing towards Xin. Their blasters never hit their intended mark, having been either stopped outright, by Xin's loaner saber or redirected into the dirt or sky. A few got too close, and Xin struck them down, flashes of light and the sound of activating failsafes indicating that they wouldn't be getting back up, at least until someon -likely Bo- fixed them. With more and more droids at the door turning to face the newest threat, Xin figured that her saber wouldn't be enough.

So, with a small tap on the overarching energy that permeated through everything, a ball of distorted space started concentrating in her off hand, and within seconds of it forming, she projected it forward with a flick of her wrist, a fairly visible wave of distorted air in the form of a shockwave kicked up dust, and caught 5 or so of the B1s directly in the blast, only 3 being impacted with enough force to become disabled, the rest either having been knocked over, or stumbled from the remnant pressure wave. Giving her an opening to make it into the building, which she did with utmost haste. Popping into the room a trio of other apprentices all but cowered within.

She paused, looking over them, "Anyone hurt?" Yes she cared, she was temperamental, not a sociopath.

[Brusia]

Martius Shan
D'Qar
Trial Site

Before Sen had a chance to respond to Martius' question, the Jedi heard a familiar voice approach from behind him. "Ah, Kyle, glad you could join us" Martius replied after his fellow Knight finished speaking; he didn't know Katarn terribly well, but in the conversations Martius did have with the man he learned that he was not a fan of formalities and preferred to be called by his first name. As Kyle spoke with Sen, Martius pulled a pair of compact macrobinoculars he borrowed from a New Republic soldier out of his pocket to more closely observe the students in the distance. Unfortunately, what he saw was not particularly promising; most of the students appeared to be spread out, with some already in a precarious situation as they looked to be pinned down by a couple dozen battle droids. Martius shook his head and sighed at the situation, informing the others: "Looks like we'll have our work cut out for us with this batch."

Turning back towards the group, he listened as Kyle and the recently arrived Ashaika twins debated whether or not they were being too hard on the students. Looking towards the twins, Martius decided to give his two credits, stating: "I'm inclined to agree with them, if anything I'd say we're going too easy on this group; even standard clone troopers were faced with more difficult trials than this as part of their training. Besides, even if they don't succeed in the trial today the wiser students still stand to learn much from it; if nothing else, failure is an excellent teacher to those willing to heed its lessons." And Martius would certainly know, between his exile and the near total destruction of the old Jedi Order, he learned more from failure than he'd care to mention...

[Relikai]

Jedi Knight Sen Zuroki Wren
Trial Site, D'Qar
15ABY

Being nice was... well, something she was trained to do ever since her parents began to serve as Rebel sympathizers when she was still young. Sen used to put it up as an image towards those around her, while behind the scenes her life was much shrouded in fear, a fear suppressed by the harsh Mandalorian-style training she was put through in order to toughen her mentally and physically should she be required to join the ranks of the Rebels one day. It could be said that her niceness was a false exterior, a politically motivated face to have potential partners and senators be at ease when dealing with the Consular as the New Jedi Order sought to establish connections with other worlds. That said, her stoic expression was a trademark among her peers although those who could see through it, something easy for the Jedi Masters.

"Master Katarn." She greeted with a short bow. The easygoing master was in a friendly way, one of her nemesis when it came to their personalities, and man often coming close to forcing a smile out of her even as she preferred to keep her emotions at a neutral state in her lifestyle with the Force.

"Practice is key, should I hope to reach the levels of Master Luke and yourself one day. And yes, this spot... is more than enough" She replied, giving the Ashaika twins an acknowledging nod as they appeared. Staying in D'Qar for several years with Luke's first batch of apprentices helped to forge several bonds of friendship, and some of them stayed on to become one like Sen, a Jedi Knight who now served the New Jedi Order and to a lesser extent, the New Republic.

"Bo's apprentice seemed to be doing alright, although such expulsions of the Force without a sufficient connection would drain her out over time." She said, noting the use of Force Push against the battle droids, knocking a few over. Most of the new padawans seemed to be holding a lightsaber or its type for the first time, and its pretty obvious where the inexperience showed. She continued to focus on the battlefield, her senses reaching out to absorb the words of the different padawans, identifying and placing words and identities together as she scouted the area.

"Some interesting ideas could be heard..." She whispered, eyes narrowing as she pinpointed a small group of padawans with a Kel-Dor and several humans. "I just hope it won't come to a point where we have to either stop the trials, or interfere to prevent the damaging of this place."

[Tayner]

Tillisk'Tor'Vih
D'Qar

Torr had been one of the first to exit the temple, and although he'd like'd to have said that the force guided him, he blindly ran into the forest. The climate was dreadful, near complete contrast from his home in the Ascendancy, and just as far away from the room temperature cabin of his Deep-X explorer. However, he would have to adapt. It wasn't until he heard far off blaster fire before he found his way to the mining complex, where other initiates had already begun to fight the enemy, old CIS B1 Battle Droids.

Torr had approached from a different direction than most, so he definitely had the flanking advantage. He pressed forward, leaving the brush behind as he maneuvered through the compound, evading the droid patrols as they headed towards the commotion. Torr drew near the two story building, likely the HQ or control building, likely where the switch to open the door to the mines was. He rounded the corner of the HQ building as he crouch-sprinted, probing for a weakness, and finding one.

The second story had about a Chiss-sized hole exposed on it, and Torr used that to his advantage, using the lessons he learned long ago when he was but an initiate of the old order, he jumped, using the force to propell himself up and through the hole in the wall. He landed smooth enough to not fall on his face, and observed the room. Many B1 droids blipped bianary in surprise until one bearing the markings of commander reacted.

"What are you waiting for? Blast him!" The droid blurted out as he pointed at Torr. In an instant four droids raised their blasters, but Torr was already a step ahead. He activated his lightsaber as he dashed across the room, and struck the first droid before it could compute it's orders. Torr vaulted a table and swung wildly at the second droid, smacking its weapon away before striking it again. The third droid fired at Torr, but he bolted away in a summersault. The fourth droid joined in on firing, only to strike the third in the back as Torr evaded the blaster fire. With a final swing, the third droid was felled, and Torr turned to the commander who was unarmed.

"Wa-wait!" The droid exclaimed before it turned and reached for one of its fallen subordinates' weapons. Before it could bring the blaster to bear Torr thrusted the green blade into the droid's chest, deactivating it for now. Torr looked around for a second, before finding a nearby computer and accessing it. He punched in some commands and initiated the opening sequence for the mine's gate before letting out a slight chuckle. However, before he could comment on the simplicity of the trial, he felt an impact in his back.

He spun on his heels, his back and left arm numbing after a sharp pain stung throughout his abdomen. He came to face four droids who had found their way up the staircase, weapons to bear. He ignited his lightsaber, and swung it wildly to block the ensuing volley of stun blasts. He diverted the first one back to its sender in a feat of luck, and sent the second one into the ceiling before being struck in his right knee with a blast. He let out a curse in his native tongue as his leg gave out, him managing to block one more blast before taking another hit to the chest and succumbing to the stun effect of the blasts and entering unconsciousness.

[Beiarusia]

> D'Qar

Linea ducked into cover as blaster-fire ripped in through the open doorway. She tried the control panel but the door was unresponsive, its power cell corroded from many years of disuse. No choice, she and Gai would hold the doorway as Rean and Krygen cleared the building of droids, simple enough, but they were outnumbered 2-to-1, and although dumb the B1's were ridiculously tenacious for being scavenged junk.

"Does Skywalker normally throw his students in the deep end?" Gai asked, back to the wall and swinging wildly at a droid foolish enough to try its luck. The grey-coloured B1 clattered to the floor as it deactivated.

Across the dusty room Linea witnessed a brief flash of blue and green light as Rean and Krygen battled the droids in the adjacent chamber. Outside more droids had wandered over to join the mass, nearly a dozen with more on the way. The doorway would serve as a funnel, allowing Linea and Gai to thin their numbers with little risk to themselves, but should the droids take advantage of the windows there would be no place to hide. The only option really was to run deeper into the building but that in of itself was no guarantee of safety. The droids would follow, and they'd be back at square one.

Then, suddenly, their luck changed for the better. Out from the forest stepped Kaidin Thelcar, his lightsaber ignited and held at the ready for the coming battle between him and the mob of hostile battle droids. One versus a dozen. Perhaps there was a plan in mind, or maybe he believed himself to be a capable swordsman, a natural-born Jedi, but whatever it was it never happened. Instead Xin Endoni intervened, cutting down two droids before using the Force to clear a path. Several were deactivated from the concussive impact of the Force Push, but the vast majority were merely stumbled, and quickly clambered up to their feet. With their commander having been deactivated, the battle droids engaged the first target to fall within their sights, in this case the unfortunate Kaiden Thelcar, his heroic momentum ruined by the unforeseen interruption.

"Anyone hurt?" asked Xin, safely inside the building.

Gai had to look up to the young woman, an impressive feat considering he himself was rather tall — by comparison Linea was absolutely tiny standing next to the Epicanthix teenager. "Thanks, but I had that. Was just about to make my move," he said with some jest. Then, glancing over to Linea, he added, "Why can't you do that? You're Skywalker's apprentice, right?"

Linea felt the flush on her cheeks. A difficult to miss embarrassment, red against the pale tones of her skin. "Hurry up," she snapped, storming off before the droids remembered them. They were busy now chasing Kaiden but that was likely a temporary distraction.

Rean and Krygen had defeated the droids inside the building. The fight hadn't been easy but neither was it beyond their limited capabilities, the B1's proving themselves to be relatively useless without a numerical advantage. Together, the five students hightailed it to the far side of the building, finding another doorway and no droids awaiting them. The mine entrance was straight ahead, and more spectacularly it was already in the process of opening.

"Up there!" Rean said, pointing up to the larger of the three buildings.

A flash of a blue lightsaber, and then the overwhelming blaster-fire of the battle droids. Whoever was up there had managed to open the door but hadn't been quick enough to escape the B1's. The student had been gunned down.

"That sucks," Gai said with an indifferent shrug. "Alright, let's get moving."

He was about to run off but was grabbed by the wrist by Krygen. "We aren't gonna help?" she asked.

"Not my problem." Again he tried to leave but Krygen maintained a tight grip. Her too-green eyes bored into him in a rather menacing expression, and he relented, sighing as if this was becoming too much of a pain. "Fine. You go up there and help the guy. We'll clear out the stragglers."

Upstairs, the victorious B1's were stalking over to the stunned Tillisk'Tor'Vih, blasters raised as if the moaning Chiss were still a credible threat. One nudged the man with a metal foot, chirping in binary. Another turned its head to investigate a noise. It carelessly wandered away from its fellows to investigate the potential intruder, heading back towards the stairwell, and peering down it saw nothing. Satisfied, the droid turned back to regroup with the others only to be confronted by a young woman with unnaturally coloured hair, a blue lightsaber sparking to life in her hands as she swung upwards. The blade caught the droid's blaster rifle, knocking it aside. Krygen followed through with a solid smack against the droid's elongated head with the bottom of her lightsaber. The droid stumbled backwards, wailing in alarm as its foot hit nothingness, falling down the stairs with a loud clang, clang, clang and deactivating at the bottom.

The remaining battle droids reacted accordingly, turning to face the Zelosian with blasters at the ready only to be blindsided by Rean, her green lightsaber striking the first before spinning into a leaping downward slash against the second. The final droid fired once, but the diminutive Bimm easily ducked below the attack to deliver a simple stab.

The sneak attack had been entirely successful.

"That was easy," said Krygen as she hurried over to the unconscious Tillisk'Tor'Vih.

"I did all the work," Rean said in her usual singsong manner.

"Yeah. Good job."

Rean stuck out her tongue; Krygen smiled. They both laughed. Fast friends.

Down below Gai was shouting to them. "We don't have all day!" he said. Linea, Xin, and himself had already cleared a path of the few stragglers and were waiting in the open by the mine entrance. The droids were busy elsewhere but would soon wander back to investigate the commotion.

Krygen and Rean crouched over the older Chiss. He was alive, which was a good sign, and it confirmed that the droids were indeed using stun blasters, but he appeared to be down for the count. They tried yelling and shaking. No reaction. Krygen, having no better ideas, slapped the man across the face with an open palm. If that didn't work they'd simply leave him behind. He wasn't in any danger, and they had no reason to carry him along. Dead weight. Besides, he was safer here on the surface than in the mines.

No telling what was down there.

---

---

---

Something interesting was happening down in the old mining camp. The Echani lad had attempted to intervene but was quickly outshone by Bo Ganthor's vertically blessed apprentice, and, as insult to injury, the boy was left to fend off the mob of angry droids all on his own. As this spectacle was taking place the Chiss made his move, successfully reaching the control panel.

"Good at using distractions," remarked Katarn, watching as the student was quickly overwhelmed. "Almost."

The students had little reason to question why or how or by whom the door had been opened. It was, and that was all that really mattered, and they had no issue in taking advantage of a good thing, but, surprisingly, a few paused to assist the unconscious Tillisk'Tor'Vih despite having no reason to do so. Master Skywalker had pitted them against one another, yet they were cooperating with no obvious benefit to themselves. A splendid occurrence if not one that would likely prove short-lived once they were in the mine proper. A competition with a prize was often too much a temptation to resist, more-so when the consequences of failure were so minimal.

"Bo's apprentice seems to be doing alright," commented Wren.

"That's like stating the sky is blue," countered Katarn. Xin still had much to learn, but the girl showed promise.

"Looks like we'll have our work cut out for us with this batch," added Shan.

Wren eyed another group of students taking cover at the edge of the camp. "I just hope it won't come to a point where we have to either stop the trials, or interfere to prevent the damaging of this place."

Katarn shrugged. "Place is a trash heap. I'm sure Luke won't mind us making a few new holes.

As the three Jedi Knights discussed the plight of the inexperienced students, Alon chatted away with the twins who looked on with some curious interest. "How was the trip?" he asked with some camaraderie. "I expected you two wouldn't want to miss this, we have got quite the variety."

"Boring," the twins answered in unison. One glanced over to Alon. Ren? Len? No telling. "The senators were more interested in the ramifications of some trade dispute," started one. "We don't know a thing about economics," finished the other. They switched back and forth, two mouths to one side of the conversation. "But you're right." The smiled. "This is a fun distraction. I almost wish we had an apprentice. Almost. Do you know who you're training yet? Is it the Chiss? Or maybe to the boy taking charge?"

[Yvren]

A’ro Stelwaas
D’Qar Mining Site

“I mean-“ A’ro began to explain himself before the sound of clattering and cries of surprise in Binary cut him off. He looked to see the group of battle droids stumbling as if they were in the vicinity of a small explosion and the unnaturally tall Humanoid woman walking through them with her lightsaber.

The sounds of blaster fire died not long after she entered the building. A’ro turned to his new companions, “Well that problem handled itself.” He said walking past the pair and patted the younger humanoid on the shoulder, “I love it when that happens.”

A’ro refocused his attention up to the gate, “l also love it when someone else does my work for me, come on guys the thing is probably in there.” Without bothering to see if the pair were following him, A’ro began making for the gate.

[Arengin Union]

Jalelvi Garekk


Jale was caught completely off guard by the explosion, he even stumbled down on the ground with fear as he looked everywhere around him like a scared animal. He then felt the tap of someone in his shoulder and turned around nervously to see it was just Joker, it calmed him a bit. He then looked towards what had happened, the droids were on the ground and some of the apprentices already heading inside the building.

The Kel Dorian companion then said.

“Well that problem handled itself.”

And then run off, leaving both Jale and Joker behind.

"We should go." Said Jale at Joker as he rose from the bushes out of the forest to the outside world following the Kel Dorian. Who after speaking with someone said.

“l also love it when someone else does my work for me, come on guys the thing is probably in there.”

Jale kept his blade up and with excitement followed, but making sure Joker was behind him.

---

Alon Winditne

"Boring. The senators were more interested in the ramifications of some trade dispute. We don't know a thing about economics."

The two twins answered, both in such a synced fashion it was hard to tell who was talking, Alon just took it as a single entity talking with the mind of two. The twins had always been a boggle of interest for Alon, how well intertwine they were with each other, his only theory was that it had something to do with their connection with the force and each other by extend but it was hard to figure out completely. They continued with their rambling, Alon giving off a smile of intriguity at their synced words and one continued the sentence of the other.

"But you're right. This is a fun distraction. I almost wish we had an apprentice. Almost. Do you know who you're training yet? Is it the Chiss? Or maybe to the boy taking charge?"

Alon looked over to what was happening, it made him shrug. He didn't know who his apprentices would be and deep inside he didn't want to know, part of him didn't want to have any at all. But he knew that wasn't a choice, he would train his apprentices at the best of his abilities, and he would not fail them as a teacher, at least he would try.

"I know not who it will be, I see that many of them have conviction and determination, but also anger and doubt. And even then that conviction and determination can lead to over confidence, and that leads to arrogance." Alon paused, running his hand along his beard.

"Whomever my apprentices will be, I only know it will be a challenge, no matter who it is. But you two are lucky of not having to concern yourselves on that." Alon finished his remarks, breaking the usual silence he had among his peers.

[Tayner]

Ensign Tillisk'Tor'Vih
Jakku, 5 ABY

Torr had usually been able to avoid the larger battles, but this one wasn't avoidable. Even if he hadn't volunteered he'd likely be ordered, damn near the entire Navy was assembled. He had locked his blaster's forward, and slaved the gunners' positions to his controls, effectively giving him the ability to treat the exploratory craft as a fighter. However, he was still given five passengers to ferry down to the ground battle before venturing into the fray. The Commandos looked anxious as the Deep-X Explorer made its decent, a unique ship in the large formations of U-Wings and X-Wings.

Swarms of TIE fighters intercepted them, it was a fight down, but the fighters and troop transports made it. Torr deployed the commandos he had ferried down, and entered the hairball of the fight above. He shot down more TIEs than he had fingers, and eventually when the Ravager was brought down, the Republic forces had gained air superiority. This only made their enemy more fierce, as Torr and others were called upon to conduct dozens of air strikes, or intercept suicide squadrons of TIE fighters who were running interference.

Eventually Torr was drawn away from the fur ball when engaging an experienced pilot, and enemy reinforcements arrived. It was Torr against a squadron, with help tied up elsewhere. He managed to hold his own, and to bring down some fighters with him, but the Ace pilot drew his number. The TIE placed a shot in a weak spot on his shields, and the laser nearly blasted the cockpit away. However, only a power conduit exploded, flames erupting in his cockpit and scarring his arm. He was rapidly loosing control, the ground growing closer and closer until something smacked him.

---

Tillisk'Tor'Vih
D'Qar, 15 ABY

"Wha- argh!" Torr exclaimed as he was awoken by a slap to the face, still alert from the dreams of long ago. His heart was beating rapidly, and he realized that he had outstretched his arms as he woke up to grasp the contols of his ship, which were only a phantom of his dream. "Huh." He grumbled as he looked up to the two other apprentices who were looming over him. He faintly recalled their faces from the temple, and he relaxed a bit as he saw they had handled the droids. He pulled himself up and dusted himself off, the orangeness of his flight suit now marred with black scuff marks in the places he'd been blasted.

"Thanks." He said, using the force to pull his lightsaber that had been dropped earlier towards him. He stuck it to his belt and walked back over towards the hole in the wall. Outside he saw a group waiting at the mine's entrance, and others hurrying towards it. However, the trio seemed to take special note as Torr appeared in the opening. "Friends of yours?" He asked over his shoulder as he turned around.

[The Olog-Hai]

Kaidin Thelcar,
D'Qar

Kaidin charged out of the tree-line, towards a dozen droids that were firing upon the entrance to a building which probably had someone trapped inside. It was exhilarating, the rush of battle, and something Kaidin always enjoyed.

Suddenly, a simply massive apprentice came out of nowhere, and attacked the droids, mowing through them. Kaidin stopped in his tracks, dumbstruck by the appearance, and then angry that his moment had been ruined. As he watched, the apprentice disabled two of the droids with her training saber, hitting them which caused them to deactivate, before she simply pushed aside a cluster of them with what had to have been the Force. Kaidin gazed on in despair and frustration.

As he watched, mostly distracted, a droid with bronze-colored markings sputtered and died on the ground. The remaining droids clambered to their feet, and looked around aimlessly. They spied Kaidin, and raised their blasters, charging at him and firing. Kaidin looked up to see blaster bolts flying at him, and dropped to the ground, only missed because how bad the aim of these droids was at this distance.

Kaidin took cover behind a tree, his saber at the ready. He couldn't fight them at this distance, so he needed to close with them, and he needed to do it fast, before any of the droids could manage to hit him. The droids held position outside the woods, singlemindedly firing at him, with no other goal in mind. Kaidin watched the bolts fly harmlessly into the trees, leaving no lasting damage. So, as he expected, the Jedi must have given them weapons unable to actually harm the apprentices, but probably deal enough pain to make sure the apprentices didn't make the same mistake again. Blasters set to stun, then.

That meant that Kaidin could interpose the less-useful parts of his body, absorbing, albeit painfully, the shots of the blasters, giving him some degree of protection, until he lost enough feeling to not even hold up his arm. Then, his torso would be an open target, and that would hurt.

Kaidin broke out of the tree line, charging at the droids with his right arm upraised as a shield, and his dominant left arm held behind him, saber at the ready. As he closed the distanced, the droids were smart enough to fire at him, most of them missing, but a few struck glancing blows, and one his his arm full on, sending tingling yet numbness painfully up and down his entire arm. I'm not going to be able to take much more of this, he thought. Guess I'll have to go through. As long as I can gain enough distance, they won't be able to hit me.

Kaidin closed with the droids as another shot hit his right arm full on, causing his arm to go entirely numb, and drop, now just hanging as dead weight. Luckily, as this happened, he was upon the droids, and began to swing his lightsaber at them, trying to break through. Kaidin swung with his training saber, hard, at a droid, and the rebound from the saber, not powerful enough to cut through the droid, almost took him off his feet in surprise. Kaidin tried to regain his balance, and tucked himself into a roll to avoid falling off his feet.

Kaidin's roll suffered a jarring bump as he slammed into the legs of one of the droids, causing it and him to fall into a hopeless tangle. Kaidin hit it with his saber a few times for good measure, then began to extricate himself as the droids let off more shots at hit. At this close, they would have a good chance of hitting him, so he had to move fast. Luckily, the droids were still a bit surprised by impact of the charge, and although they would begin firing quickly, Kaidin had a bit of a window.

Turning off his saber and returning it to his belt, Kaidin lowered his shoulder and began to charge at the droids, aiming to push his way through them, and to whatever cover was behind them. His saber would be useless when he wasn't used to how light it was, or how much rebound there was. Kaidin's charge broke thorough the line of droids, knocking one down, which he then jumped over, and landed on his feet, and kept running. Kaidin saw the mine entrance now open, and since that was his goal, it was as good a target as any.

The droids kept firing, but the fact that they were chasing him ruined their aim. Still, one of the droids managed to land a lucky shot on Kaidin's torso, nearly causing him to fall from the shock of it, and the pain. Kaidin dug his nails into his palm to try to distract himself from that pain, and continued on, a bit closer. About ten feet from the entrance, the droids landed another lucky shot, hitting Kaidin's leg, which promptly gave out under him. Kaidin fell into a rough tumble, over the hard ground, and game to a halt just by the entrance to the mine.

[Beiarusia]

> D'Qar

The situation had gone from bad to slightly better to unbelievably worse as the students rushed for the now open mine entrance. Behind them, the mob of B1 Battle Droids, dead-set in unwavering pursuit, their attentions piqued by the recklessness of Kaidin Thelcar. The Echani had tried foolishly to force his way past, betraying the others who sought to slip away unnoticed. There was little choice but to corral themselves inside the cave entrance. The maw was dimly lit by the sunlight that filtered in from the open gate; the air was stagnant, burdened by years of unbroken stillness. A tunnel, widened and artificially cut, led deeper into the mine, branching off into various pathways and narrow passages.

The students ran and were separated in the confusion, a flurry of lightsabers and blasters in the dark, but they were one step closer now to finding their prize. A bit further and the trial would be complete.

---

---

Linea was hunched over, hands on her knees and panting heavily after the exertion of running with droids as motivation. Tillisk'Tor'Vih and Krygen were nearby, their lightsabers casting a ghostly green-blue glow on the craggy walls and ceiling. They'd taken a wrong turn and had ended up somewhere away from the others. Alone. Probably lost. Most definitely lost. The mine tunnels were labyrinthine, a network of passageways crisscrossing in no discernible pattern, entirely devoid of notable landmarks.

It was also terrifyingly dark.

"I can't see a thing," muttered Krygen, using her lightsaber as a makeshift glow-stick.

Zelosians were nyctalopic (suffering from acute night-blindness), meaning that she was effectively blind on a moderately dark night, much less the pitch blackness of the mine. The downside of being a plant.

"Should we go back?" she asked.

Going back was an option, but they'd already come this far, by choice or by accident, and surely it wasn't much farther now. Moreover, backtracking may have been more trouble than it was worth. No reason to make themselves even more lost. The objective, undoubtedly, was hidden at the bottom of the mine, so it was only a matter of following the passageways down to the lowest bit. A simple plan. Easy. The tunnels were either level or descending/ascending. Guesswork, but eventually they'd be on the right path. The mine shaft could only be so deep.

They got moving. Linea led the way with Krygen stumbling along behind her. Tillisk'Tor'Vih lagged behind just a bit, as if watching the rear. The three students talked amongst themselves, an idle conversation of nothing important, getting to know one another without going too in detail. A slight echo. Their voices, and in the distance the report of a heavy blaster.

"I don't like this," said Krygen, clinging to Linea.

Linea shrugged her off. "There's something up ahead." A few more paces and the blue glow of her lightsaber revealed the black hull of a deactivated Imperial security droid — as made apparent by the white logo stamped on its arm — body limp and leaning against the cave wall. Raising her lightsaber a tad higher unveiled two more of the droids. Strange. The Empire had never had a presence on D'Qar and the mining corporation had abandoned the planet a long time ago. They wouldn't have used this model of droid. Training droids? Another student could have come ahead of them. Linea leaned in closer to inspect the droid, thinking that maybe some damage would be visible.

It reached out before she even knew what was happening, its hand closing around her throat, its eyes shining a brilliant white like diamonds in the darkness. Linea dropped her lightsaber, both hands grasping at the vice choking the air from her lungs as the droid righted itself. Taller than any of them. Krygen reacted quickly, swinging her lightsaber in a careful slash to avoid hitting the girl, but the droid deflected the blow with an arm, and although the limb hung useless now the machine was still active. But it dropped Linea in that moment of distraction. Landing on her hands and knees, she held out her hand, the Force pulling her lightsaber back to her awaiting hand. She tried to attack but the droid grabbed her arm and painfully tossed her aside, her shoulder flaring with pain with a loud pop as she was flung into the wall. The droid turned to face Krygen and Tillisk'Tor'Vih.

Behind it the two others had activated. Shadows in the dark with eyes as white as the sun.

---

---

Xin and Gai had, somehow, gotten lost with Jalelvi, A’ro, and Windweaver as company.

"I think we lost them," Gai said, again taking the position of unelected leader. He scanned the dark tunnel, his lightsaber doing a poor job at cutting back the darkness, and, satisfied that nothing was lurking, turned to look at the others, a slight frown as his gazed reached the unnaturally tall Xin. "Why'd you bring him? We nearly got blasted because of this idiot."

Xin dropped Kaidin, having dragged him along without thinking. He was groggy but awake, the rough-and-tumble descent into the mine having stirred his battered senses.

Gai shook his head with a long sigh. Then, looking to the other students, he said, "I'm in this to win, but if we're going the same way you might as well tag along. Are you coming or what?" He didn't wait for an answer before turning off into the darkness, his lightsaber a stark contrast in the omnipresent darkness. He expected Xin to follow. The others, well, they could do what they wanted, be that sticking together or going off on their own. Kaidin was useless as far as he was concerned.

---

---

J'Dar had successfully entered the cave via an alternate opening. No droids to worry about. Sure, it was dark, but his lightsaber provided enough light to get by even if the natural passageways were a bit tight for comfort. As the other students were running, droids blasting at them in sporadic bursts, he had leisurely made his way deeper into the mine and was probably the closest to the bottom by now. An easy enough trial.

A flash of red illuminated a far-off passageway, followed by the report of a blaster far heavier than what the B1's were carrying. J'Dar turned to face the opening, lightsaber raised as best he could in the small confines of the tunnel, ready for whatever was approaching on hurried footsteps. Heavy breathing, and then a panicked shout as Kyle Raskjo stumbled upon the weapon that, very nearly, had poked his eye out. He held his own lightsaber in both hands, as if preparing to dual J'Dar, but this was more a state of panic than an actual invitation for a dual. The Lorridian hadn't been expecting another student.

A slight crack as nearby rocks shifted out of place.

Before J'Dar could ask Kyle was already telling him to run. He himself was already down the passageway, the light of his lightsaber disappearing around a bend.

Another crack, behind, as the loose rocks gave way to a four-legged droid burrowing its way into the mine, its bulbous red eyes bright in the blackness, the long barrel of its internally built weapon unfurling into the firing position. A deafening echo as the Dwarf Spider Droid opened fire, its legs shuffling across the mess of rocks to close the distance between it and its unfortunate target. J'Dar narrowly avoided a hit to the chest. A second droid was shambling out of the path that Kyle had emerged from.

He was surrounded, one on either side.

[The Knockout Gun Gals]

J'Dar Kalla

J'Dar was fucked, and Kyle led it to him, intentionally or not. Dwarf Spider, he didn't know anything about them but they probably worse than the normal droids. At least he knew their names, but that's it. Kyle's direction led to the passageway, and there's no way an apprentice with little experience and no...wait. He could risk it, but it will be painful and definitely not a recommendation. He turned slowly to the direction of the passageway, but then he swung the lightsaber so that it will be the target of the droids. Both fired on it, and J'Dar was fortunate enough it hit the lightsaber, which means they can hit him alright. But by the time the droids hit the lightsaber, he already fled through the passageway.

[Tribe of Rinos]

Jaedcla Rownea
D’Qar
Jae sat behind a crate in the mine while the B1s fired at him, clutching his lightsaber. The droids were advancing on him and he only had a few seconds to make a plan. There were three droids with stun blasters. He might be able to take one hit, but couldn’t count on it. His mind counted all of his options. There were not many of them. The first droid began to go around the crate. Jae pointed his lightsaber towards it and ignited it, hitting the droid in its torso. The droid fell over, deactivated, firing a bolt off as it fell. The bolt went wide, hitting the wall. Jae jumped in front of the crate and slashed at another one. It hit the droid in the hip and it shut down. The third one saw him and fired off a volley, with the last bolt striking Jae in the arm. He charged to meet his foe, the adrenaline dulling the pain.

[Yvren]

A'ro frowned* beneath his mask listening to the Kiffar make an ass of himself as he panted to catch his breath. When the sound of his own heartbeat got down to a less worrying level he began palming the many pockets of his jacket to find his glowrod. "He's a ray of sunshine, isn't he?"

He knelt in front of the stunned Echani. "Someone should watch the tunnel we just came down. Those droids are dumb, but we might be unlucky enough for them to guess the tunnel we went down," he asked generally speaking at Windweaver and Jalevi, before producing the glowrod from his jacket and tossing it in their direction.

He turned back to the Echani, "Hey! Hey Mandalore! Wake up! You good?" He asks while also lightly slapping him on either side of the face leaning in to add, "Can you tell me your name?"

*Or whatever the Kel Dor version of a frown since they have horrifying gaping maws filled with teeth.

[Tayner]

Tillisk'Tor'Vih
D'Qar, 15 ABY

Torr had found himself with two others, the two young apprentices who had woken him up from his blaster-induced nap. The trio pushed into the mines, navigating the tunnels at random. After a while Torr disabled his lightsaber, the glowing stick doing more harm than good to his night vision, which he gathered was better than the others in his group. Krygen could barley see a thing outside of the sphere of green light her blade produced. It wasn't long until they were halted, Linea stopping to investigate some droids.

It wasn't long until the situation went sideways however, the droids activating and the one Linea was studying simply tossed her aside. Torr winced at the sound of her shoulder going pop, and he swiftly activated his lightsaber and advanced to Krygen's side. He could sense her fear, although it didn't take a Jedi to see her shaking. "Don't worry, I've got your back." Torr said, taking up a defensive posture.

The first droid attacked alone, one arm limp but the other outstretched. Torr smacked it, and the droid's last good arm also went bad. It swung its torso erratically in an attempt to flail its arms at Torr before trying to give the Chiss a hard kick, however after a few jabs to the torso (and one to the leg) it gave out. The other two droids appeared to coordinate their next attack, them trying to circle around the two padawans to assault from different sides.

Torr and Krygen were back to back when the droids lurched towards them. Torr swung hard, hitting the droid in its torso, but not hard enough as it reached out and grabbed him by the wrist. It's grip tightened until the lightsaber fell to the ground, deactivating. Torr pulled back his free hand and punched the figure's head as hard as he could, letting out a cry of pain as the droid showed little effect. It responded in kind, delivering a blow to Torr's chest and knocking the wind out of him.

Torr fell to the ground as the droid released him, while he was gasping for air. He pulled his lightsaber towards him, however, and hit the droid's knee joint, causing it to tumble down next to him. However, the fight wasn't over, as Torr finally drew a good breath the machine grabbed him by the throat and managed to get back up, its leg not being completely disabled. He found himself in a similar position that Linea was in only a few moments ago. He managed to croak out a single word from his position, a plea.

"Help"

[Relikai]

Jedi Knight Sen Zuroki Wren
Trial Site, D'Qar
15ABY

The padawans had advanced, the trapped group free as they advanced forward into the mining complex. Several has exhibited skills not possessed by the average youth, acknowledging and viewing them with interest as she took down mental notes, the Knight keeping within sight but hidden from most of the training area. Noting a few entering the complex, she crept forward, eyeing the many lifeforms comprising of the padawans as she focused deep within herself, a small aura of the Force concentrating around her as light and and sound filtered through her being, Sen and her clothes disappearing from the naked eye as her Cloak was complete.

It was hard to maintain this Force power, with almost all the discipline she built over her trainee years required to hold and maintain a stable connection to keep her hidden. Stepping forward, she moved into the complex behind the padawans, continuing to observe as she moved within her angles, keeping sight of them while being far enough not the be accidentally brushed or seen by the droids. So far, most of them displayed acceptable combat ability, with the veteran padawan exercising good use of the Force. These droids were softer than the actual ones used in the Clone Wars, but it was still no easy feat to pull off a good Push.

[The Knockout Gun Gals]

J'Dar Kalla

J'Dar ran so fast he just followed directions. Obviously he didn't paid attention as to where this cave led. Apparently, one of those Spider Droid followed him from behind. He's not sure about that, he just ran to whatever this route leads him to. It was quite a far route, until he fell down. Well, apparently that route leads to a bit of a ground below it. "Ouch!" he yelled. He fell hard, but not long enough. He stood up, though frantically. He stopped.

He looked to his surroundings. It really spacious, for one. "Where am I?" he confusedly questioned his presence.

[Beiarusia]

> D'Qar

Krygen could only watch as Tillisk'Tor'Vih battled against the droids, a flash of green in the darkness. She held her lightsaber close, blade shimmering in the dusty air, but beyond this comforting glow of verdant light she was blind, unable to distinguish the security droids from the omnipresent shadows that closed in from all around. She could only see the white eyes as they closed the gap between her and them. Krygen readied herself. The first droid reached out and she swung, missing and falling back a step. The second flanked, arm raised high to chop down, striking the young woman in the back and knocking her to ground. The first reached down but she rolled away to safety, scrambling to her feet as the second came again. Krygen swung again, flailing in an effort to force the droid back. It worked, the droid retreated a fraction of a bit, giving her a sliver of freedom to maneuver.

She didn't see the wall until after she had run into it. The droid was quick, grabbing her by the wrist and pinning her lightsaber, snapping to grab hold of the other hand as she beat her fist against the metal of its chest. A hollow knocking echoed against the hum of the lightsaber. It caught her, pinning her as she kicked and yelled, but the droid was too strong, and Krygen could do nothing as it restrained her. Emotionless eyes stared into her own. Cold. Her lightsaber fell from her grasp and deactivated.

"You are resisting arrest," the droid said in a mechanical monotone.

The young woman calmed a bit, breathing heavy as she racked her brain for a way out. She couldn't find one. The droid had her and she was helpless. Even if she escaped she could see anything. The only solace was knowing that the droids weren't programmed to kill. However, there seemed to be no issue with causing pain, as Tillisk'Tor'Vih and Linea could attest to.

A flash of blue light as the lightsaber slashed upwards in a diagonal against the droid's back. It dropped Krygen, deactivating as its fellow turned to face the new threat, but it, too, was cut down in a quick flurry of strikes, clattering to the floor, eyes dimming.

"Are you okay?" asked a familiar singsong voice.

Krygen nodded as Rean offered her her dropped lightsaber, using her own as a torch. The Zelosian and Bimm hurried over to assist their classmates. Tillisk'Tor'Vih would be fine once he caught his breath, but Linea had dislocated her shoulder. Aside from some cursing, she assured them that she was okay, and with some help popped the joint back into place with a pained yelp. She took a moment to allow the pain to subside.

"Are you sure you're okay?" asked Krygen, helping Linea up to her feet.

Linea nodded. She injured herself all the time so this was nothing new, or serious. Already her arm was mobile and she looked no worse for wear. "Let's keep moving before more of those droids show up."

They continued on deeper into the mine tunnels. Maybe they were lost, and on several occasions they got turned around, arguing at every intersection, but eventually they discovered a path that was illuminated by a series of glow strips installed every few meters along the base of the cut stone walls. The light was dim but was enough to see comfortably. Knowing they were on the right track they hurried ahead, eager to reach the prize, but as they neared the final bend the sound of battle could be heard. The distinctive hum and hiss of several lightsabers clashing.

Rounding the last corner Linea was struck suddenly by Kyle Raskjo, the Lorridian having been thrown from the conflict like a rag doll, or, more appropriately, a human-sized missile. The girl yelled out in surprise, thrown to the ground and rolling once, twice before coming to a rest against an adjacent wall, face-down with Kyle sitting atop her.

The young man — a teenager really — was dazed, making no attempt at all to get up as he took stock of just what had happened. After several seconds he noticed the others looking down upon him. "The ground is really soft," he absentmindedly said.

"Get... off... me," mumbled Linea, partially crushed underneath the Lorridian.

"What was that?"

"Get off!"

Kyle finally took notice of Linea and hurriedly picked himself up, stepping on the girl by accident, and offering a series of apologies as he tried to help. She pushed him away and dusted herself off, peeved at having been used as a sitting mat. She gave Kyle a harsh look and he retreated back a step.

Up ahead the tunnel widened to a corridor. Two students, Aidan Kel and J'Dar Kalla, were fighting a pair of ASP-19 Battle Droids, both armed with yellow training lightsabers. Aidan was holding his own but J'Dar was quickly bested, suffering a hit to his left arm before being thrown backwards. It was now two against one, but Aidan pushed harder, proving himself to be a capable fighter as he blocked, parried, and retaliated in a series of coordinated, precision strikes, lightsabers connecting again and again in movements that were hard to follow. One droid was forced wide and suffered a hard kick to the chest. It fell back, temporarily out of the fight, giving Aidan a chance to finish the other. He aimed high, forcing the droid to block, then used his momentum to swing into a horizontal slash.

The lightsaber flared as the plasma made contact. The droid was still for several seconds, as if confused by the concept of defeat, but it didn't deactivate, and instead continued with a hard strike that Aidan barely had time to counter. The second droid rejoined and the battle was over. Aidan was struck down and thrown with little care away from the passageway.

The droids settled into a resting routine, their lightsabers dark.

Krygen and Rean rushed over to help J'Dar; Tillisk'Tor'Vih tried to assist Aidan but he shrugged him off. Linea watched the droids. They looked to have deactivated, but after the last time she wasn't too keen on getting close.

"What are those thing?" asked Kyle, favoring an injury to his leg.

"Training droids," answered Linea matter-of-factly without turning to face him. She frowned. "Master Skywalker uses them to train with the other Jedi. They have different settings, but I'm guessing they're not set to easy right now."

The goal was undoubtedly somewhere behind the two droids. No choice but to fight. Tillisk'Tor'Vih , Krygen, Rean, and Linea approached, but only when they activated their lightsabers did the droids react, coming back online with their own lightsabers burning a fiery yellow. The droids stood side-by-side, adopting a defensive stance. The students had the numerical advantage, but as expected it wasn't enough. Krygen was the first to be defeated with a strike to the abdomen. Linea followed soon thereafter, hit in the head and sent flipping through the air much like Kyle. Tillisk'Tor'Vih and Rean managed to stand another half-minute before they, too, were sent down for the count.

The droids deactivated the moment the threat was neutralized.

"That hurt," moaned Krygen, laying where she had landed with arms outstretched. Linea groaned an unintelligible reply from somewhere nearby, face-down like an inchworm mid-crawl. "Yeah, I think Mister Skywalker is trying to kill us."

"We'd be dead by now if he was," said Rean.

"We practically are," Tillisk'Tor'Vih pointed out.

More students arrived. Gai Aldaoso leading Xin, A'ro, Jalelvi, Kellic, and Windweaver. Jaedcla and Horvat Tiali weren't too far behind. "What happened here?" Gai asked, looking over the students who were already beaten and battered. He saw the droids and activated his lightsaber. The droids reactivated and readied themselves for another fight.

Linea, however, had taken noticed of the droids' behavior. "Turn that off."

"But the droids?"

"I know. Turn it off."

Gai hesitated but did as told. Immediately the droids shut down.

"They only attack threats?" queried Rean.

Linea shrugged. "Maybe. I don't know." She inhaled, steeling herself for another misadventure. "Only one way to find out."

She stepped forward, closer to the droids, but even as she neared they remained still, like statues. She was close enough to touch them but got no reaction. It was only when she was past them that she assumed that her guess had been correct. The droids only attacked when threatened, but those coming in peace could pass unmolested. Not that she wanted to stress this more than necessary. Linea hurried the others to follow before the droids changed their minds. Gai looked disappointed, as if expecting a good fight, whereas Aidan did a good job hiding his annoyance for not figuring this out himself. The others had no qualms in avoiding a confrontation they would always lose.

The passageway opened to a cavern that was, for lack of a better term, massive. The heart of the abandoned mine. Powerful lamps illuminated the open space, old or new there was no telling, the shadows harsh against the forgotten machinery that had been left to rust. The cavern was noticeably wider at the top, encircled by terrace after terrace with a few catwalks suspended high above. Slumped against the far end was a gigantic mining droid, a six-legged abomination that would have melted its way through the granite with a powerful laser attached to its "head." Too big to have come down itself so there was little doubt that it had been assembled underground. It was also too big and too cumbersome to justify extraction. Like the buildings outside it was stamped in the same faded logo of a now defunct company.

At the bottom was a simple pedestal made of stacked stone blocks.

The students raced down the descending terrace, cooperation abandoned now that their goal was so close. Linea was fast and quickly took the lead, but Xin had longer legs. Gai inched ahead. Krygen quickly fell behind, shouting for the others to wait up, and behind her a few who seemed unbothered with the idea of losing.

In the end it was Tillisk'Tor'Vih who reached the pedestal first, having risked slipping down the steep slopes, but even then his victory was narrow. Resting atop the stone was a comlink.

It activated when they approached, and looking to them from the other side was Master Skywalker. "I see you've found my missing comlink," he said with some friendliness in his voice. The droids trying to kill them notwithstanding. "Congratulations. You pass. As for your reward, I must apologize, but my intent was to drive you against one another, some friendly competition, but looking now I see that you have worked together... mostly, and, more importantly, I hope that you understand that violence is not always the answer." Referring to the ASP-19 Battle Droids.

As Master Skywalker congratulated the students who had gathered around the pedestal, Krygen and Rean continued on down the terrace, having given up on winning the race a long time ago. They were passing by the disabled mining droid when Rean pointed out a shortcut down by going down the droid's leg. A simple idea but one that would have dire consequences.

Krygen, despite her best intentions, was a bit clumsy, and losing her footing on the slick metal casing she stumbled against an exposed power conduit, her hand striking a panel, and although nothing happened immediately, and she carried on without a care, power was now flowing through long dead circuits. The two girls had joined the others when the ground rumbled underneath their feet. Even Master Skywalker looked confused through the comlink. And then a loud whirring like metal grinding on metal sounded throughout the cavern as the mining droid came to life. The massive droid struggled to right itself, slipping down the terrace and towards the students who scattered with shouts and yells. The comlink was dropped in the confusion, destroyed as a massive "foot" stepped down upon it. Another whirring, followed by a shrill klaxon as molten energy dripped from the mining laser. A loud pop as the laser fired, boring into the rock, melting through with a horrifying sizzle. The laser tracked upwards. A beam of death that would incinerate anyone or anything caught in its path. The laser thinned before dying out, its capacitors recharging as the wayward droid repositioned itself, crushing machinery and stone as its climbed higher.

The students would have to make their ways up to the exit without being crushed or incinerated. If that proved impossible, well, the only option left was to disable the droid, but that was a task easier said than done.

[Tayner]

Tillisk'Tor'Vih
D'Qar, 15 ABY

The trial had went about as one would expect, hidden lessons and bruises given out. The groups fought the droids blocking their way, however it was only when they stowed their weapons when they were allowed to pass, unhindered.

"There's a lesson in there somewhere." Torr remarked, before the group re-entered their competition, and Torr entered a sprint. He managed to get ahead by seconds, and procure the comlink, which turned out to be their objective. A short congratulations before things took a turn to the worse, the resident oversized mining activating. Judging by the curious look on Skywalker's face, this wasn't part of the trial, and it definitely wasn't set on stun. The ground shook, and the group clambered about, Torr losing hold of the comlink in the fray, the droid's leg crushing it, and nearly Torr.

His fight or flight instincts kicked in, and like a proper scout Torr prepared to make like a tree and get out of that cave alive. However, something stopped him in his tracks.

"Help!" A fellow apprentice called, a younger lad, human. It looked like his ankle was twisted out of shape, and that he wouldn't be making it out on his own. Torr turned about, assessed the situation for a split second, and ran towards the apprentice (Jalelvi Garekk) and picking him up in a fireman's carry.

"Hold on, kid!" Torr yelled as he started to make a run for it.