Deep within the jungles of Karufr lies a massive temple built from stone blocks, hand-carved by the builders of the Massassi. The ancient race made its home on the planet after joining forces with Clan Taldryan, having been freed from stasis years ago. Now, an entire civilization exists, hidden far from the prying eyes of Karufr's citizenry. As a Jedi, you are one of the few to have access to their secret base.

You step onto the temple grounds and watch the fearsome warriors train in small regiments with their crude weapons. The entire temple is in a state of anticipation as the Massassi know they will soon be called on once more to aid the Dark Jedi of Taldryan in battle. The temple is shaped like a giant pyramid, towering into the sky, and serves as a backdrop to the training ground.

The War Chief notices you and gestures you forward. He clears the area around you with a bellowing command, and the Massassi warriors present form a wide circle with you at the center. A moment later, you realize you're not the only Jedi to visit the temple—the crowd parts slightly to allow the newcomer to enter the ring. The gathered Massassi holler in good cheer. They want to see a fight.

The Chief raises his weapon to the sky and barks a command. The Massassi begin to stamp their feet against the ground, creating a loud, steady beat that seems to get your blood pumping. With little choice left, you lock eyes with your opponent and ready yourself for a fight.

The Massassi tribe surrounded Darkblade, whose dark hooded robe encased his face in a shadow. He held his training saber in his right arm, unlit and waiting for his opponent. The tribe began to chant, an equally shadowed looking figure approached the makeshift arena. Darkblade looked up, the towering figure approached him yet his face remained impossible to make out with his head lowered.

Darkblade had not known exactly why his master had sent him here, he was only told he would meet someone. He supposed this was the person he was supposed to meet. Was this a test for him?

The figure stopped, he motioned for the crowd to quieten down. The chanting stopped, the ground stopped vibrating from the stomping feet. The hooded stranger lifted his head up. Darkblade’s eyes widened, he instantly recognised the man, even with his hood still covering his face. The mask was indistinguishable, it was his master’s.

“But master, why?” the younger Jedi asked.

“You may be my apprentice, I may have taught you everything you know, but this is for the greater good of Arcona!” Meleu retorted, showing no emotion in his voice.

Meleu lowered his hood revealing his trademark mask, covered in scars of its own. With his right arm outstretched, he used the Force to pull his hilt from his robe sleeve into his hand. He ignited the hilt and pointed it towards his apprentice. Darkblade adopted a defensive stance against his master, his knees bent slightly with his unlit saber in his right hand.

“You’re a traitor master, come and get me!” Darkblade shouted.

The Massassi tribe began to chant and stomp their feet again. Darkblade’s blood began to pump around his body faster and faster, yet Meleu seemed to remain calm. The loud sound from the tribal members was soon blocked out by the young Guardian in an effort to hear his masters small movement.

Meleu leapt high into the air, his crimson blade swivelled in the night sky to produce an array of confusion within his opponent. He slammed into the ground in front of where his apprentice was. Darkblade performed a limbo like maneuver as he precognised Meleu’s slicing movement across his neck. Meleu raised his saber above him, as to perform an aggressive blow to his opponent, before dipping down towards the Arkanian’s legs. Still halfway through his limbo-like maneuver, Darkblade sprung from the ground using his bent knees in order to avoid his legs being cut off.

As Darkblade completed half of his somersault, Meleu blasted his out of the air with a telekinetic wave of the Force, hitting him directly in the sternum, instantly breaking numerous ribs.

Meleu walked over towards his apprentice and raised his saber. Using the Force to empower his strength, Meleu struck a killing blow down onto his apprentice. However, once again Darkblade had displaced from his original position. The Arkanian jumped to his feet, igniting his similar coloured blade. With the two now facing each other and equally equipped, they swung at each others, locking sabers.

Using his Force-fueled strength, Meleu pushed against his apprentice’s body. The Guardian’s strength began to dwindle and he pulled his saber back from the lock, receiving a Force-enhanced kick to the right thigh in return, sending him onto his left knee.

Damn, this hurts Darkblade thought as he dropped to his knee. Thinking fast, Darkblade called upon the Force to surround him and protect him, even if it was for a brief moment. Darkness enveloped him and provided a momentary area of safety to catch his breath and assess the situation. The Knight however was familiar with the technique, and immediately reached out with the Force to find where his apprentice was hiding in the blackness.

“I can feel you Darkblade,” Meleu spat out, “There is no hiding from me anymore, it is time to face death like you were always meant to. You have been nothing but a failure and a disappointment to me.” said the Sith mockingly, loud enough to be heard over the roar of the Massassi mob circled around them. He strode purposefully into the blackness towards where he sensed his apprentice was cowering, “Time to end your pitiful existence, Arkanian.”

Darkblade gritted his teeth, his luck having run out. Tenderly checking his ribs and realizing he was living on borrowed time. Breathing hurt, moving hurt, everything hurt as his body screamed out at the slightest movement. Seeing his Master approach through the blackness caused an involuntary shudder of fear which turned into pain as his body protested against the movement. Looking back he noticed he was near the edge of the Massassi mob. Taking a deep breath and sucking in the pain, the Guardian shot out a spark of electricity towards the oncoming Sith, and plunged out of the blackness and into the mob, not waiting to see if he had hit his intended target. The startled grunt of pain reached Darkblade’s ear as he bowled through the crowd, pushing and shoving as much as he could. It was exhausting work and very painful for the Arkanian.

The Krath looked back and saw Meleu appear from the already dissipating blackness, looking around bewildered trying to find his cowardly apprentice. It didn’t take long for the Dark Knight to find the Guardian. Activating his saber and issuing a war cry, Meleu plunged headfirst into the mob, hacking left and right as bodies fell and ligaments flying through the air. The tang of blood filled the air immediately, causing the Massassi warriors to become restless and bloodthirsty. Becoming swept up in the melee frenzy, the Massassi howled and shouted out war cries themselves, instigating small melee’s across the grounds surrounding the two Dark Jedi’s. Four Massassi warriors grabbed their weapons and turned to face the oncoming Sith, blood steaming off his black combat robe. Allowing a sly grin to spread across his face, he called upon the Force to instill fear and terror into those surrounding him.

The Massassi, fueled by rage of the death of their fellow warriors continued barreling towards the Sith. The first of the warriors ran straight towards Meleu, slicing his halberd-style weapon at the Dark Jedi. As the first strike of the weapon came towards Meleu, he easily evading the swipe with a slight right side step, the durasteel blade brushing his left cheek. The missed strike lead the Massassi tribesman to follow through to far, opening up the left side of his body. Meleu took advantage of this, thrusting his blade into the slightly taller beast’s abdomen, dispatching of him immediately.

Twenty meters ahead of him was his apprentice, who turned back towards his occupied master and smirked. His body seemingly disappeared as he shrouded his body through the Force. Meleu, keen on striking down his apprentice decided to stop toying with his opponents.

Meleu used the Force to bring his dead opponent’s halberd-like weapon to his left hand. He turned back towards the Massassi warriors, who had somehow rallied more to their cause. They were ready to strike. Augmenting himself through the Force, Meleu ran and jumped high up into the air towards the warriors, as he made his way down from the leap, he positioned the halberd towards the ground. As he landed, a telekinetic wave caused by the Force-fueled leap spread across a small radius around the landing Sith, sending the Massassi to the floor momentarily.

Meleu, with his durasteel blade in his left hand and lightsaber in his right ran towards the last known position of his apprentice, searching for him through the Force. Darkblade’s physical cloak fizzled as his Force weakened slightly. Having heard the commotion behind me, he turned around to face his master.

Meleu motioned towards the halberd in his left hand,

“I’ve always liked the look of killing someone with these, and it pleasures me more that the person that will fall to this newly acquired blade of mine will be Quaestor-supporting scum.”

It was strange however, Darkblade still held a smirk on his face,

“If only that were the case, master.”

Almost instantly, Darkblade used his left-hand to direct a small Force shock towards his old master and then used his illusive abilities to trick him momentarily. Meleu rapidly threw up a barrier of the Force around his body, protecting him from the small-scale strike. Dropping his halberd, he raised his lightsaber above his head to strike down his apprentice, but it was only then that the illusion disappeared, and the sound of the distant speeder which Darkblade arrived quietened as the Arkanian fled.