Erin parried the training blade headed for his neck and retaliated with a harsh slash to his opponent’s side. The droid barely staggered, moving into its next swing without pause. He blocked the slash, forcing the blow upwards, and landing another heavy country slash on the droid. The longer the process repeated the more sweat gathered beneath his mask, controlled breaths used to keep stamina loss at a minimum.

Djem So, one of the main variations of the fifth form, was one of his favorites to practice. It was all about creating openings by redirecting attacks and following-up with heavy blows. Its effectiveness depended on sharp reflexes and an acute combat sense. Lacking in either category would leave the user stuck on the defensive and drawn into a premature counterattack not in their favor.

If he was using the Force to reinforce his body and movements, Erin could overwhelm the training droid before exhaustion ever set in, but this training was meant to hammer the form into mind and body. Nothing would be gained by substituting his inexperience with power. A master would’ve been able to take down the droid with a single counterattack.

The door to the private training room released several beeps.

He blocked a blow from the droid and pushed it back with a grunt. Lowering his blade, the droid’s movements ceased. The droids back here might look the same as those in the public training areas but they had access to many functions and modes. It wasn’t as advanced as the droid he was used to training with, but they made things more convenient.

Erin headed over to the room’s entrance and the door slid open after a press of a button.

The acolyte on the other side, dressed in plain black clothes common among the lower rank students, bowed their head to him. “Eskella ordered me to bring you to her.” They said.

Short and straight to the point. Erin didn’t bother asking any questions, training blade swapped for his warblade as he followed the acolyte through the academy’s halls. Eskella wouldn’t have explained the why to someone she was ordering around.

The acolyte led him out of the training halls and onto the second floor of the academy’s central chamber. Tucked in a corner, just barely out of the view of cameras and far away from others, Eskella awaited them.

“Leave us.” She ordered as soon as they got close. The acolyte nodded and took off, paying extra attention to the ground.

“How have you been Eskella? Training has been going well, I hope.” Erin said.

Eskella grunted. A scowl ruled over her face whenever he was near though after their little bout nearly two weeks ago, but she knew better than to aim a glare his way. “One of my people, a lower rank acolyte, has heard your name being tossed around in certain circles they have an ear in.”

Good. All the assignments he’d been taking on were getting the intended effect. Once enough people started talking, the source would be forgotten and it would be as if he was always a part of the academy by the time any higher ups took notice of him.

“You should start building up your power base. A higher rank acolyte without some form of one would stand out too much and be seen as a shortsighted fool.”

“Powerbase?”

Surprise lessened her scowl for a moment. “What kind of-“ She stopped short, thinking better of whatever insult was being formed. “Your tools and resources; things you use to handle things tasks that are beneath true Sith.”

Eskella pushed off the wall and joined him on the edge overlooking the first floor. Acolytes were coming and going, many likely to meet their deaths someone in the harsh sands outside. “Lower rank acolytes are full of slaves and ignorant fools who just happened to be born with some degree of Force Sensitivity. They’re not good for much but they are smart enough to know that they should stick themselves to someone with real strength.”

“They make for good errand runners and distractions against the more dangerous predators on Korriban. Trusting them with anything more than that would be a mistake” Eskella said. “I can use the ones under my thumb to find you some that haven’t been brought into anyone’s fold.”

Her helping him? “In exchange for what?”

“You’re…powerful.” Eskella admitted begrudgingly, glaring down at the people below. “If the two of us we’re to work together, no trial would be a problem.”

Amicable words but Erin felt the simmering anger in her. As far as he could tell, she was prideful and conceited. Their one-sided spar earned him respect and fear, but the anger that came from such a humiliation outweighed them twofold.

She was playing the long game. At least one among the group of acolytes she rounded up for him would be loyal to her, his every move reported and possibly sabotaged if she was angry enough to defy her father.

“I’ll let them come to me.” Erin said.

“Don’t be stupid. My father made it clear that you don’t have any time to waste.”

“And you would have me waste that time entertaining those weak willed enough to be herded around like cattle?” Erin said. Eskella could surround herself with the useless; weak links like that would make her so-called powerbase nothing more than a house of cards that could collapse at any moment. “Those with ambition and the skill to use it will seek me out.”

Eskella shook her head. “And when that ambition stabs you in the back?”

“Traitors will be dealt with accordingly.” He said.

Eskella wanted to say more but bit her tongue, stalking off while muttering to herself.

Not surprising. His approach would be a risky one.

Who in their right mind would attempt to gather those who wished to rise to the top and lusted after power under them when students were known to kill anyone they perceived as a rival or obstacle to their advancement? Allow that ambition to go unfed and they were likely to turn on you. Fail to supply them with the proper tools to improve their abilities and they would resent you. Do both but fail to properly instill a proper mix of fear and respect and the very person you brought up would be the one to bring you down in pursuit of power.

They cannibalized each other. It was the nature of the Academy. The nature of the Sith as a whole. There was nothing wrong with that. So long as he got what he wanted, he didn’t mind others using him to reach their goal.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

At the end of the day, that was the basis of most relationships.

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Erin sat at one of the many tables of the mess hall, fresh out of another sparring session with overseer Tremel. The burns from his toxin infested wounds would’ve clouded the minds of the others, but the pain sharpened his focus.

He made it a habit to stop here after training. Not for the meals; the credits earned from assignments or provided by Tremel were invested into a stash of rations that had already grown to the point that it could last him for well over a year here. Droids manned the kitchens and acolytes were prohibited from entering. All the same, Erin woudn’t take any chances; droids could be reprogrammed, and rules broken.

Luxurious food wasn’t worth a poisoning.

Information and opportunity were the main reasons he paid this place frequent visits.

Some groups whispered just a little too loudly; generally about upcoming trials that might take them off planet, though they sometimes let useful tidbits drop. The hunting grounds of beasts best avoided, the status of nearby tombs, the accomplishment of stronger acolytes; nothing groundbreaking, but information that could come in handy.

Being here also gave others a chance to lay eyes on him and approach should they have the confidence. Others wore similar get-ups, but he was the only one that kept his mask on twenty-four seven. He sat in the same place every day as well, closer to a corner and near the room’s exit. A faceless acolyte who arrived in the mess hall daily, robes ripped and skin littered with wounds, got people’s attention.

Unfortunately, those who whispered about him were either newer acolytes or those stagnate at the bottom of the barrel with little hope of advancing through the pecking order. None who would dare to approach.

Erin gave one last look around. Dia and Kory were nowhere to be found.

Personal interest satisfied and his purpose here done, Erin swiftly made his exit, walking through halls and descending metal stairs on his way out of the Academy. His next assignment, not from any of the Imperial forces but a direct order from overseer Tremel, would see him to the tomb of Naga Sadow.

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Shrill screeching and desperate screams filled the dry air.

Creatures, bat-like in appearance but several times larger and lacking any fur, swarmed around a group of acolytes. The panicked swings of their vibroblades and electrostaffs missed. One unlucky member of the group was seized, talons dug through flesh. He was lifted from the sand, the swarm of creatures carrying him off. Members of his group gave chase but it was all for naught, their weapons rendered useless as the creatures gained height.

The tomb of Naga Sadow wasn’t far from the academy yet the creatures of Korriban were ready to strike out at any moment. Just another reason to always be on guard.

A high pitched phew rang out.

A single crimson bolt killed one of the retreating creatures. Several more shots rang out, slow and methodical, the creatures killed or their wings burned through. They fell out of the air along with the acolyte. For once the sand on this planet was good for something and cushioned the landing just enough for the injured acolyte to survive the fall, a loud scream unleashed as his arm collided with the ground.

While the acolyte’s group rushed around him, Erin passed them and stopped at the entrance of the tomb he’d been in search of. The entrance was no different than the other one he’d been in, built into the side of the valley’s mountain of rock and various stone statues of robed figures staring down, glares meant to ward off intruders.

A woman stood in front of it, dressed in crimson armor and a blaster-rifle aimed towards the skies, the smoking elongated barrel far better for long distance targets. She was a trooper but she didn’t wear the standard issue armor and there weren’t any others around. A specialist?

“Hello, acolyte.” The woman said him with a nod, lowering her rifle. A rather casual greeting all things considered. “I know that your masters in the academy don’t treat failure kindly but if you’ve been dispatched into this tomb, I must warn you against heading in. Violent beasts have been reported inside by the few acolytes who’ve returned alive.”

“What do you know of these beasts?”

“Only that they move in packs. The acolytes who have returned didn’t get a look at the creatures.”

“Anyone other than acolytes in the tomb?” Erin asked.

“No sir. Troopers are not allowed within this tomb. My only task is to observe and report if any of the beasts emerge from it.” She explained with a frown. “Acolytes and only acolytes are allowed within. I believe it to be a testing ground for your overseers. Your peers either return with artifacts or don’t return at all.”

Beasts that moved in groups and a tomb full of acolytes tasked to retrieve artifacts. He’d bet credits that most took advantage of a little loophole known as murder to get their artifacts; it be easier to save their energy by stalking routes to the exit and jumping anyone who managed to retrieve anything special from the depths.

Erin nodded to the woman as he passed. “The warning is appreciated but I have been tasked with culling those beasts.”

“Alone?” The trooper questioned, concern written across her face.

“I am more than enough for some wild animals.” Erin said as he descended into the dark, foreboding stairway. The oppressive atmosphere of Ajunta’s Pall tomb had nothing on the ominous whispers the Force tickled his senses with here.

Was he already being hunted?

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The tomb of Naga Sadow differed from Ajunta Pall’s, metal favored over stone during its construction. The corridors were like that of the academy but much wider with hooded statues. Dim lights attached those statues and against wall mounted panels lit up the way ahead, the power within this place persisting despite how long it’s been.

Both tombs were cold and unforgiving, this one even more so.

The first had been full of the dead and the desperate. The angry and hateful filled this place.

He passed many acolytes, none worth attention or time, his warblade and robes garnering jealous glares.

Fools who obsessed over the advantages of others rather than digging their heels into the ground and making their own strides forward would find their futures cut short by the stagnation.

Those in his way stepped out of it.

The bigger groups sized him up, whispering low enough that he couldn’t make out any words. Their trepidation did the talking for them.

It was just as he thought; this first floor was full of people unwilling to fully dive into the tomb and brave its dangers, but perfectly willing to try their luck against a lone acolyte. They expected him to return exhausted and hurt. That combined with their superior numbers would negate any difference in skill level. Something along those lines was likely going through their heads.

He had a plan for them.

Erin headed further into the structure of stone and metal, descending to another floor when he found the next stairwell.

Things became more intricate.

Grand chambers full of opened coffins and urns. Emptied armories. Skeletal remains, dried blood, and old weapons. The tomb had seen many visitors, some made into permanent residents. More would join according to the distant screams echoing throughout the wide cold corridors.

Erin picked up the pace, a beeline made towards the source of the sounds. They brought him to the entrance of a dimly lit chamber, much of the metal walling torn into and the wires hidden beneath paneling sliced clean through. The lights within flickered in and out, a desperate group of acolytes forced to form a circle at the room’s center.

It didn’t help.

The light flickered out.

A dark blur streaked past the acolytes, one dragged off into the darkness of the room’s edges. Anguished screams were silenced by a sharp snap. Tearing. Crunching. Growls and snarls. Teeth grinding into bone. The sounds filled that silence.

One of them was being eaten piece by piece and the group could do nothing but stand there and listen until it was their turn, frozen by horror.

The jumpy gaze of one of the acolytes landed on Erin. “You! Get-“

The yell was cut of by another blur taking the acolyte down. Emboldened by their lack of fight, the creature didn’t bother retreating into the darkness, tearing and ripping into its victim right then and there.

An animal with dark, near black skin, that almost appeared scaly in nature ended the acolyte’s life in moments. Several more followed its lead, the rest of the acolytes taken down and bitten into by the pack of ferocious creatures. All of them shared the same scaly looking skin of varying dark colors. As they finished up their meals, they rose, as long as he was tall.

Their sharp needle lined tails swayed as the creatures stalked towards him on all fours. Blood dripped off the teeth of their menacing maws, low primal growls leaving them. Their eyes pulsed with dark energy, glowing an ominous red.

Erin readied and activated his warblade, its hum filling the air.

The Dark Side fueled those creatures.