Star Wars: Darkside

Ch: 2

"So...are you...?" She asked me, more so demanded than questioned. "Or do you need some help...?" She was quite impatient.

~~~

"Help...?" I asked her a bit confused. Just how could she even help me...? Get me riled up as Ashlyn had...? Yeah...that's not gonna work twice....

Nadia held a devious smirk across her lips, yellow eyes glaring into my own. "So you do need help...?" She questioned me, arms crossed over her chest.

"No, that's-" I started but it was too late as she already cut me off.

She pointed her hand at me as I felt the Force grow stronger within her. Darkness crashed into me from all sides as if I'd crashed into a metal wall. I gasped for air but it felt like none ever came. I felt so alone as I crashed to the ground, a wave of Force energy spread out all around me as it created a mini sandstorm around us. Nadia paid it no mind...as if she were used to such things occurring.

Every part of my beings seemed to scream with a type of pain I'd never felt before. Like a crushing weight that pinched at my nerves. I let out a scream filled with agony and pain. My hands gripped my head as it felt light.

The pain intensified as my mind tried to fight it but I swiftly back down...all my willpower to fight getting buried into the deepest corners of my mind. I barely recognized when the feeling stopped, only knowing as I'd fallen to the ground...nearly collapsing at the pain I had just felt.

Something felt off...I could instantly tell. Different...new. The darkness around me no longer tried to engulf me, like a raging river...I was no longer fighting the tide. Instead...the tide and I were the same, it fueling the energy I'd lost while trying to swim upstream.

"Nova...!" I heard a panicked voice from beside me. I almost didn't recognize it, it wasn't laced with its usual anger or malice. It was also the first time she'd called me by my name. I braced an arm underneath me as I slowly looked up, still grounded. "Did I go too far...?" She seemed to question herself as she placed her hand on my shoulder. I looked at her eyes, they were back to her normal green. "Oh, I did...didn't I...? I've never seen a reaction like that before." Her voice then became quiet yet I could still hear it. "I've also never used it that aggressively before." She then turned back to me. "You have a tremendous amount of willpower."

I didn't know whether to be happy or upset about that. So instead, I just swatted her hand off of me before I quickly scampered up. I glared at her. First, she shot lightning at me, then she brought me here, and lastly...she did that...what even was that...?!

"What even was that...?!" I questioned her, wanting to know. There was a serious malice to my voice...one I've not had since I'd fought Ashlyn on Naboo. I placed my hands on my hips as I stared her down. "What did you do...?!"

"A little bit of Ancient Sith Alchemy...well very ancient to you." She informed me. "It was typically used to force Jedi to turn to our cause or for torture." She said the last three words very softly before raising her voice back to a normal range. "By overwhelming you with Dark side energy, forcing you to connect with it...now not many can actually force people to connect with a certain part of the Force."

I...I felt anger at her for forcing it upon me but nothing seemed to make me do anything...not like before. This time...I had the control.

"You can feel the difference...can't you...?" She asked me.

"It's...strange," I told her as I looked at my hands. I then easily used the Force to lift the sand up in the air around me...far too easy. Easier than it had ever been before.

"Unlike before, the first time, you aren't a slave to your emotions." She explained to me. "But rather, you control them just as you do your blade." She took out her saber and ignited its crimson blade. "Such as how a Grey is meant to be. The Force is a tool to wield." She then twirled her saber before she looked back at me, her eyes taking up a Sith yellow once more. "Care for a rematch...?"

"You're on." I quickly stated as I took my sabers, one in each hand, and ignited them. This time, I was the first to charge.

She caught my blade before narrowly missing my other one as she had to quickly jump back, out of my reach. We paused for a mere moment, she looked at me with somewhat surprise before she ignited her other crimson blade. The first time she'd needed to since I'd met her.

She then charged at me, she attacked with one saber and defended with another...each of her blades locking with one of mine. The sand kicked up around us as we both used the Force at the same time to push the other away. That sent both of us flying back but Nadia was a bit quicker to recover than me. She charged at me and all I could do was block as she picked up her attacks.

I was still no match for her speed. Although, she didn't disarm me...she didn't need to me. In my rush to keep up with her movements...I left myself open. She used that opening and 'killed' me by slicing me with her saber.

I took a startled breath as I fell. Unlike before...this wound didn't seem to instantly kill me.

Nadia deactivated her sabers as she crossed her arms. "It would seem, little Padawan...you have much to learn." She managed to say before darkness swept over my vision.

I instantly awoke from my meditation session. I shakily stood up as I looked around the small private training room. Master Yoda let me use it whenever I was supposedly with Ashlyn...not that any of the council members knew about Nadia. Kala and Obi-wan didn't even know about Nadia. They, like the council, thought I was still seeing Ashlyn...even if I haven't really seen too much of her since she introduced me to Nadia.

I took a deep breath before I assessed my connection to the Force. Once I made sure it was only giving off a Light side aura did I even attempt to leave the training room.

Just my luck...the moment I started to leave...I got a message on my com-link. With a slight huff of annoyance, I answered the com-link...making sure that whoever was on the other end didn't notice my slight annoyance at their call.