Shaak Ti blinked a couple of times as the bright lights from the throne room assaulted her eyes. She adjusted to the light just in time for her to see the force wave she had created slamming into a middle-aged man flinging him across the room.

Shifting her sight to whatever the man had been standing on, she spotted her beaten padawan managing to hear his soft gasping breath before he slipped into unconsciousness. Sensing the state of her padawan filled her with rage, but she got those feeling under control quickly. She ignited her sky-blue lightsaber and got into a fighting form facing the prone form of the man she had thrown across the room.

Marr quickly got up from his prone position growling in pain and anger while getting up, his yellow eyes seeming to glow with the power of the dark side. Coming face to face with his new opponent Marr could immediately sense that this Jedi was on a completely different level than the one he had faced a few moments ago.

"Ah, you must be the boys Master" The grin from his face was gone, and he was now fully focused on Shaak Ti "It is a shame that you fought so hard only to watch him die."

Shaak Ti did not let herself be angered by the Sith Lord's clear taunt. Instead, she replied to him in a calm and leveled voice.

"You speak with the assumption that you are going to get past me Sith."

"No, I speak with the certainty that I am going to kill you." The Sith replied with venom on his tongue. Shaak Ti merely twirled her lightsaber around before pointing it at the Sith and declaring.

"You may have stood a chance at killing me back when you were alive, but now you are nothing more than a specter of the past preserved by the powers of the dark side."

This statement seemed to anger the Sith Lord as he screamed out in unbridled rage before charging at Shaak Ti. She quickly followed suit charging at him as well. The two clash right in front of the throne sending the sound of their lightsabers hitting each others echoing out across the room.

This was the start of a battle that went way beyond what Sar had experienced. Here there was no holding back as both force users pushed their skills to the limit. The sound of two lightsabers hitting each other seemed to sound out every few seconds. They swung right the swung left they struck from above and below. They spun the lightsabers behind their backs to confuse the opponent before trying to hit them from another angle. They used the force to retreat. To push, pull, or lift their opponent.

This duel took many minutes before it finally reached its climax. Shaak Ti blocked a heavy blow from her opponent but right when she was about to strike back Marr force pushed her back. She managed to steady herself with the force but still slid back until the back of her legs hit the seat of the throne.

The Sith Lord was quick to pursue her already having closed the distance between them quite a bit. It was at this moment that Shaak Ti had an idea. She quickly spun around, jumping onto the seat of the throne before running up along the backrest. Marr's lightsaber struck down precisely at the same time as Shaak Ti began running up the backrest, barely missing her and slicing through the seat of the throne and some of the backrest.

Shaak Ti sat off from the backrest going into a backflip with the help of the force before landing on her feet right behind the Sith. Marr was quick to respond quickly, turning around to block whatever attack awaited him, but he was too late. As soon as he turned around Shaak Ti circularly spun her lightsaber managing to cut off both of Marr's hands sending them and his lightsaber to the floor.

Before the Sith Lord even had a chance to register the loss of his hands and weapon, Shaak Ti followed up with another attack this time slicing across both his thighs, sending him into a kneeling position. As soon as his knees hit the stone floor, Shaak Ti plunged her lightsaber into his chest, making the Sith widen his eyes and let out a soft trembling breath.

Pulling out her lightsaber, she spun it around again before turning it off and attaching it to her waist. Looking down at the now defeated Sith she noticed that black smoke seemed to be coming out of all of the wounds she had inflicted and that Marr's skin seemed to slowly crack and let out more of the dark smoke.

Marr let out a burst of pained laughter before addressing his soon-to-be killer.

"Well, it would seem I am the one who underestimated you Jedi." Marr let out a burst of wheezes and coughs. "Though my death will not help your Order. You. Have. Changed. Nothing!"

Marr broke out into hysterical laughter though, coughs and wheezes interrupted him between laughs. Shaak Ti frowned before saying.

"I will not be swayed by the illusions created by the dark side!"

"Ilussions? No little Jedi...merely...the...future." And with those last words, the Sith Lord Darth Marr burst into black smoke which dissipated soon after.

Shaak Ti paid no heed to the Sith's lies and began rushing over to her Padawan she had just taken a few steps when the pyramid around her began to violently tremble the lights on the wall flickering on and off.

"What is with this planet and its love for sudden dangers?!" Mumbled Shaak Ti in annoyance before she quickly rushed over to her Padawan slinging him over her shoulder before using the force on his lightsaber pulling it towards her and grabbing it in the air then attaching it to the other side of her waist.

She then began rushing towards the doors they had entered from, all the while cracks had formed in the stone floor, and pieces of the ceiling was coming crashing down around her. Dodging falling debris while carrying a person on your back might have been hard for an ordinary person, but for a Jedi, it was nothing more than a slight inconvenience.

Shaak Ti nimbly dodged the falling stones before spotting the door a couple of meters in front of her. Seeing as the door was still closed, she gathered as much force power as she could into the hand not keeping her Padawan on her shoulder before she pushed it forward releasing the gathered force, blasting the stone doors open with ease and letting in the sunlight from outside.

She ran until she sensed that they were a good distance away before she turned around to face the crumbling structure with her Padawan still on her shoulder.

It was clear to see that the release of the dark powers that inhabited the planet had caused the pyramid to begin decaying. The red vein-like crystals that ran along the body of the pyramid had turned entirely black blending in with the rest of the building. Cracks were spreading along the pyramid's body at a pace noticeable for the naked eye.

It took but a few moments before the building began caving in on itself reducing the once impressive structure into a ruin. After having confirmed the destruction of the building, she then lowered her Padawan down from her shoulder, gently placing him on the ground.

Using Force Healing on his chest to mend his ribs and heal the bruising. Although she could completely heal him, she still had to get him to a medical droid. Exhaling a sigh of relief once she heard her Padawans steady unlabored breathing Shaak Ti began to notice that something was different about Eoliv.

It wasn't that hard to notice since all of the mist that had been there when they had first arrived on the planet was gone — allowing one to get a clear view of the seemingly unending gravel dessert they currently found themselves in.

Shaak Ti allowed herself a few minutes of rest to gather her thoughts before deciding it was time to head back to the ship. She needed to report her and Sar's findings to the High Council back on Coruscant. She once again put her unconscious Padawan on her shoulder before beginning the short walk back to the ship.

Arriving back at the ship she lowered the boarding ramp which made a 'hiss' sound before slowly lowering down. Just as she was about to step onto the ramp, she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. There, right beside the ramp was a tiny patch of grass, a speck of green in an ocean of grey.

Shaak Ti smiled at the sight before heading up the ramp boarding the ship, handing over her Padawan to the medical droid, turning on the engines and deflector shields before leaving the planet's surface and atmosphere.

***

Sar awoke with a splitting headache and sore body. He could feel bright light shining onto his face through his closed eyelids. He slowly opened his eyes only to close them again quickly as the bright lights stung his eyes and worsened his headache. Waiting a few minutes, he tried again this time starting by squinting adjusting to the light before he fully opened them.

He seemed to be currently laying on his back, looking straight up at a bright lamp shining down at him. He used his arms to lift himself into a sitting position with his back placed against the wall behind him, before looking around the room.

He realized that this was the med-bay on the ship they had used to get to Eoliv. The room was small, with only a single bed, a few medical instruments, and an operating table. Sar was just about to get off the bed when a mechanical voice interrupted him.

"You have awakened Master Jedi this is good news."

Sar looked to the right casting his gaze on the medical droid that stood a little distance away looking at him. The droid was a standard 2-1B medical droid most ships had them. This one looked the same as the rest. It's head looked kind of like a skull with what looked like a microphone at its mouth. It had a human-like shape, though its chest was formed a bit like a thin barrel.

"How bad shape was I in" While Sar was asking he put a hand to his forehead and began massaging it to try and relieve some of the headache.

"You had mild bruising on the chest and a cracked rib, I also had to perform surgery on your shoulder to reconnect the severed tendons" The droid slowly turned around going back to fiddling with something. "You should be able to move around, but I recommend not doing any strenuous activities with your right arm for a while."

Sar just nodded, even though the droids back was turned before swinging his legs over the side of the bed and heading to the bridge.

Opening the door and stepping onto the bridge, Sar felt the presence of his Master sitting in the chair. Shaak Ti turned around, smiling at the sight of her Padawan before throwing him his lightsaber while saying.

"It would seem you lost something."

Sar caught the thrown lightsaber with his left hand and attached it to his waist before making his way over to the co-pilot seat and dropping down onto it with a grunt. Sar just sat there staring out the window looking at the passing blue streaks outside before he opened his mouth and said.

"I almost went over to the dark side" Sar looked down in shame after saying that.

Shaak Ti merely raised an eyebrow at her Padawans declaration before answering.

"What is your point, Padawan? I sense that you remain on the side of the light."

"Perhaps, but I was tempted!" Sar exclaimed before lowering his voice and continuing. "I tried telling myself that it was Marr's influence, but now I am not sure."

Shaak Ti looked at her depressed Padawan before shaking her head and replying.

"We all get tempted by the dark side Sar. You, Me, even Master Yoda. While anger and pain both lead to the dark side, it is love and the wish to protect others that lead most Jedi astray." She looked into her Padawans. "It is our ability to resist these temptations and keep moving according to our beliefs that make us Jedi."

Hearing his Master's words seemed to make something click inside Sar's head. He quickly closed his eyes, trying to immerse himself in this sudden feeling of enlightenment. The force danced around him, and he felt his body vibrate with its power. Sar smiled at his Master and replied.

"I understand now, Master."

Shaak Ti smiled back at her Padawan.

"That's good then. You should get some rest Sar we still have a bit of time before we arrive in Coruscant and I will need you well rested when we report to the Council about our findings."

Sar nodded, closed his eyes, and drifted off. This time willingly.

***

Sar and his Master stood beside each other in the middle of the Council room, a heavy atmosphere hung in the air as they had just finished their report. There was, however, an additional Master was present; Master Adi Gallia.

Yoda was the first to break the silence.

"Powerful in the shadows, the dark side has grown, troubling, this news is." Picking up after Yoda Master Windu spoke.

"This Darth Marr, did he leave any clues as to why he had decided to appear?"

"No, he did not seem to really know himself, though it may have something to do with the sudden appearance of a Sith." Shaak Ti responded. Windu frowned at the mention of the Sith.

"Obi-Wan killed him on Naboo. He no longer poses a threat." He looked like he was about to continue but was cut off by Master Yoda.

"Coincidence, this may be, but sensed the dark side grow, we have." Yoda closed her eyes. "A disturbance in the force, I sense. Meditate further on this issue, I must."

After that, there were a few more words exchanged before Sar left the Council room with his Master. They walked a little down the hallway before Shaak Ti addressed her Padawan.

"Go meditate in the garden I sense that your strength in the force has grown considerably since we left Eoliv. We will focus on your force training until your shoulder is healed."

Sar agreed to his Master's walking beside her towards the garden.

***

It had been a week since Sar had returned from Eoliv. He was currently sitting in a kneeling position in the stone garden two force monoliths floating in front of him. Sar exhaled a soft breath before focusing on the third monolith. Slowly but surely it started to float upwards before it was at the same height as the rest of them.

Sar's eyes were tightly closed, his forehead creased and beads of sweat rolled down his forehead. He managed to hold the three monoliths for about a minute before his eyes snapped open, making them drop back into their sockets with a soft thump.

Sar exhaled slowly wiping the sweat from his forehead before standing up and heading towards the training hall to meet his Master.

Entering the hall and jumping down the small hole in the center, he came face to face with his Master who stood with her arms in her Jedi robes waiting for him.

"Your mastery over the force has grown my Padawan, and now that your shoulder is healed I will once again begin training you in lightsaber combat." She removed her arms from her sleeves, revealing that she held her lightsaber in her right hand. "Now after I have finished beati- I mean sparring with you we will expand your force abilities."

Sar frowned at the sparring part but got quite excited at the mention of furthering his ability in wielding the force. Sar had felt just how important such abilities was in his battle against Marr.

"Is that arrogance I hear Master? Now that is no way for a Jedi to behave." Sar jabbed back at his Master before turning on his lightsaber and getting into his Ataru stance.

"Not arrogance Padawan, wisdom." Shaak TI replied back smiling as she lit her own lightsaber and got into her own stance.

The two force users used the force to close the distance quickly. Sar and Shaak Ti collided in the middle their lightsabers pushing up against each other a grin on each of their faces.

Needless to say, the two had both grown on their mission to Eoliv, and the Master and apprentice were closer than ever before.

Though Sar still got beaten to the ground before he even had a chance at hitting his Master.