<i>Jedi Hunter Graus sat motionless, facing Dajorra's falling sun, eyes half-closed and straining to watch its dying rays.
Upon the creation of his lightsaber, he had been brought here personally by his Master and Quaestor Socorra to a circular dais atop Arcona Citadel on Selen. It was the first time he had been allowed to the Ziggurat's upper levels: the Holy of Holies of Clan Arcona, where its greatest secrets lay. And, he suspected, if he failed in his tasks, it might well be the last time.
The last rays dipped beneath the horizon, and a final ray of light seemed to linger, just moments, on the Jedi Hunter's face.
It had been an apparently easy task: Meditate, without calling upon the Dark Side, without food or drink, with the sun full in the sky, from dawn to dusk. His Master had given a simple but forceful warning as the Jedi Hunter had set himself down for meditation: Failure to obey would be met with death. After that, the Krath had requisitioned the Journeyman's lightsaber and left him to his own devices.
Darkness creeped forward as the sun finally disappeared, cloaking the Journeyman in shadow. Night had fallen.
Wordlessly, the Jedi Hunter stood and turned around.
Figures, robed, with lightsabers in-hand, stood upon the ziggurat, apparently waiting. Graus recognized many of them: Arconae, Summit and other luminaries, each important within the Clan. Still others stood silent and hooded, wordless and hidden. And before them all stood the lithe form of his Master Socorra, clad in her formal Invicta robes.
"Jedi Hunter Graus," intoned the Quaestor, "you have come before us seeking to be elevated, have you not?"
Graus nodded, eyes downcast. "I have, Master".
"Then understand that any hesitation, any disobedience, any defiance will result in death. Do you?"
Again, the Jedi Hunter gave a nod, more cautiously this time. This elevation seemed unlike any other trial within the Clan - there was an unspecified sense that told him that his very life was at stake, here.
The gathered Arconans seemed to tense just slightly, and fingers hovered over an activation button. "I do, Master."
"Very well then," she replied. "What makes you believe you are ready to become one of us?"
An easy question, to begin with. "I have finished all tasks set before me by the Summit, and brought each to a good end."
"Oh?" the Krath snarled suddenly, as her face contorted with disgust. "You mean the construction of this trinket?"
Socorra reached within the folds of her robe, taking out a small cylinder.
Graus recognized it instantly. It was his lightsaber.
The Jedi Hunter looked at the Master, shocked. "Yes," he said weakly, as Socorra weighed the weapon in her hand.
The Quaestor snorted contemptuously, and tossed the weapon off the ziggurat without so much as another glance.
"No!" Graus screamed, heedless of protocol. There, tumbling through the air, was a work of months: Something that the Jedi Hunter had poured his heart, his soul, and all his skill with the Dark Side in to create. And it was about to be unceremoniously destroyed by another's hand. It felt like someone ripping out his heart.
And suddenly, that void within his chest was filled with rage. And power.
Graus reached out a hand as fury spilled into his eyes and face, all propriety forgotten. The weapon abruptly reversed course, flashing to life before it had even finished settling in his hand. In a single, fluid motion, the Jedi Hunter ran through his Master with the shimmering blade of his own making.
The Quaestor seemed puzzled for a moment, as she stared at the Hunter. Then, a smile appeared on her face. "Very well," she managed to get out, before collapsing into shadow.
Graus looked around, expecting the gathered Arconans to reach for him any moment now, but no such attack seemed forthcoming. Instead, the Arconae and Summit had their lightsabers still in-hand - but they appeared overall more relaxed, and some were even smiling.
"Congratulations," a feminine voice said, the exotic Socorran accent rolling off her tongue.
</i>But..no! That's impossible!<i> thought the Jedi Hunter, as one of the previously hooded figures removed said hood, only to show the face of Socorra.
Then, comprehension dawned. Of course. An Arconan Force Wraith.
She nodded to him and smiled, pride beaming in her expression.
The Consul, Wuntila Zratian Entar Arconae, Lord of the Shadow Clan, approached him, seemingly without fear or tension. "You have learned the final lesson of the Dark Side."
"It's about power, isn't it?" Graus ventured.
"It's always about power," the Consul replied, smiling slightly. "But yes. The final lesson is this: Power is never given away. It is always taken. If someone should block your path, strike him down. Even if that someone is me."
The Jedi Hunter nodded, comprehension dawning. Around him, the gathered Arconans lit their weapons, one by one. Around the ziggurat itself, on lower levels, others responded in kind, until the night sky was lit by dozens of separate weapons.
"So, what will it be?" Wuntila asked, bringing forth a lightsaber of his own. "Do you claim the mantle of Dark Jedi Knight?"
Graus understood. Nodding slowly, he lit his lightsaber and raised it high. A hundred Arconans followed suit.
Triumphant and ascendant, the newly frocked Dark Jedi Knight was first to shout as a hundred sabers pierced the sky:
"ARCONA INVICTA!"</i>
I, Socorra Erinos, hereby request a promotion for Jedi Hunter Graus, who has fulfilled all requirements for promotion under the Dark Jedi Brotherhood's promotion guidelines, as follows:
(REQUIRED AT LEAST:)
Graus has been a Jedi Hunter for over six weeks.
Graus has earned a Dark Cross for his services.
Graus has earned an Amethyst Star and many others for his competition activity.
Graus has participated in 16+ of the 15 required competitions.
Graus has created and run the following competition: [ToL - Week 3] Webhunt with the supervision of Marick.
Graus has performed a major House Task: His Summit Task was to build upon Port Ol'val's wiki page, and he went above and beyond this, not only working on that but also updating the HQD wiki page and then designing the HQD base in its entirety from scratch, with personally drawn schematics to add to the massive amount of written definition.
(AT LEAST THREE OF THE FOLLOWING:)
Graus has finished his character Wiki Article.
Graus has created a 10 page charaction fiction.
Graus has completed the following two Shadow Academy Leadership Exams: Leadership Studies & Leadership Fundamentals.
As Graus has met and gone above and beyond all the necessary qualifications, I respectfully request his promotion to Dark Jedi Knight.
Congratulations, my student. You have made Arcona so proud!
In darkness,
KP Socorra Erinos, Quaestor of House Qel-Droma
General Socorra Tenebrosa Nhar’qual Erinos, 2012-09-03 11:08:18 UTC