"Well done," Master Zhar said to Venar from his seat in the Council Chambers the next day. "You brought Juhani back to us, and cleansed the Ancient Grove. You could have easily decided to kill her, and it would've cleansed the darkness, but you chose an alternative path."

"I only did what I thought was right. She had chosen to give in to the Dark Side only because she was afraid there was nothing left for her after her mistake," Venar explained, "I simply showed her that it was still possible to get back up after her fall."

"Yes," Master Vandar spoke up, his green skin wrinkling on his forehead. "This is the Jedi way. We don't seek to destroy the individuals who use the Dark Side as a first resort. Our first attempt should always be to return them to the light."

"Those who have returned from the Dark Side are in a better position to warn and help those who risk falling themselves," Vrook spoke up, his demeanor softened a bit more than usual.

"I understand, Masters," Venar said, "what will happen with Juhani?"

"She has been taken into the care of our healers. They are helping her to move past her darkness and to return to the balance within herself," Zhar explained.

Venar at that moment felt Bastila's presence enter the room through the entranceway behind him. She walked up next to him and stood there at attention. He glanced sideways at her.

"You have made astounding progress, Venar," Zhar said,"The Council has decided you will now officially join the ranks of the Jedi. Welcome to the Order, Padawan Moonrunner."

"Thank you Masters," Venar said with a bow, "I am honored."

"My time training you, however, is over. The Council has granted you as Padawan to Bastila Shan. She will complete your training."

"It is no coincidence that you and her share a bond," Vandar explained, "The Force has brought you together. You must take advantage of that bond. Rely on each other for strength and endurance."

"Which brings us to your first assignment as Master and Padawan," Master Dorak said, "We sent someone to investigate the ruins you dreamed of Revan and Malak finding. Unfortunately, they have not returned. Bastila, you and Venar are to investigate these ruins and report back to us what you find. Perhaps there is something there that can shed light on their fall to the Dark Side and how they have been able to amass such a large fleet."

"Of course, Masters," Bastila said, "We will leave at once."

"What makes you so certain we will succeed where the previous Jedi failed?" Venar asked suddenly.

"You and Bastila shared a dream about this place," Vandar explained, "Perhaps it you two the Force has selected to explore it. Perhaps sending another Jedi in your place was... a lapse of judgement."

"Whether we like it or not," Vrook spoke up, "the Force has selected you for this task. Now go, we will speak more of this when you return."

Bastila and Venar both took their bow, and left the Council chambers. He wasn't completely sure where they were going, but Bastila seemed to know. She was walking with purpose and at a quickened pace.

As they walked down the hallway, Venar realized Bastila was conspicuously silent, and she seemed to be avoiding his gaze. He wasn't completely sure as he still had a long way to go to hone his powers, but he thought he sensed some sort of uncertainty and apprehension within her.

They walked down to the garage of the enclave where the Jedi kept some landspeeders for the Jedi to use. They walked through the garage with landspeeders lining both sides of the garage. They chose one and Bastila took the drivers seat. She started it up and slowly brought the vehicle to the large double doors that proceeded to open and allow them to depart the enclave.

"You're... unhappy with the Council's decision aren't you?" Venar spoke up as she drove the speeder through the settlement.

"I am not unhappy. You've earned it," she said stiffly," It was time you became an official Padawan."

"Then... you're unhappy I'm your Padawan?"

"What makes you think that?" A defensive tone crept into her voice.

"You haven't said a word since we left the Council chambers, and its all over your face."

"Oh please, I am a Jedi. I'm above broadcasting my emotions through something as crude as facial cues."

"Am I wrong?"

"Yes... Yes you are."

"You've never had a Padawan before have you?"

"Uh... no. No I haven't."

"So... are you like... nervous or something?"

"I am not nervous! Look its just that... everything about this is... unusual. You being trained, you learning as quickly as you have, and then you being assigned as my Padawan. Not to mention the Force Bond we share."

"Well when you put it that way..."

"And we still have Carth and the others waiting on the ship. They won't wait around forever."

"Then we better finish up here as soon as possible."

"I have always had a clear path throughout my life as a Jedi," Bastila said, "I always had a clear purpose. I followed the Council's wishes, carried out assignments for them, I even fought Revan. But now... I feel like my path has suddenly become unclear... Things are changing, Venar. I have a feeling things will change even more very soon."

"Then lets hope it changes for the better and not for the worse." She simply nodded in response as she drove the speeder into the open plains.

The world was Arkanis, a rainy gloomy world where sunshine was a rare event for those on the surface. Canderous remembered the battle on that world all those years ago, before the start of the Mandalorian war.

The Mandalorian frigate was in orbit over the world. Him and an entire detachment were preparing to launch an assault onto one of the major ports below. The hangar bay of the frigate was packed with Mandalorian warriors readying their basilisk war droids, huge mechanical 'beasts' that the warriors rode into battle. They were armed to the teeth with blaster cannons and even projectile slug-throwing weapons.

The city below was expecting the attack. That only made the battle more fun, added to the challenge of conquering the world. For Canderous, it was a rite of passage. His first battle in which he would lead the charge. He was fifteen years old at the time, but was already very large and muscular. His heavy armor only added to his intimidating appearance. His new basilisk war droid was positioned at the front of the hangar, and would be the first to launch out into open space.

As soon as they broke through the atmosphere of the planet, the city below would be lighting them up with ground cannons. Arkanis was a heavily militarized world, which was why the Mandalorians had selected it for such a conquest. It was said their military was the most disciplined of all the Outer Rim settlements. The Mandos had viewed that statement as a challenge.

Canderous mounted his war droid and secured his helmet and sealed it with the rest of the armor. He held a long spear looking weapon that he could use to stab out and deliver a lethal shock, and also use to fire blaster bolts from the tip. He thrust his weapon up into the air and delivered a loud bellowing battle cry. He launched his mount out the hangar into the void of space, and the rest of the assembled warriors behind him did the same.

The basilisk war droids fired up their booster engines and propelled themselves down towards the planet, guiding themselves on the trajectory Canderous had laid out.

Once they had hit the atmosphere the heat and fire enveloped Canderous and his army. Their heavy armor plating and the shields of the basilisk war droids were built to absorb the heat of entry into the atmosphere. To the city below, it looked like hundreds of meteors were streaking through the sky, which contrasted drastically against the pale gray sky.

The city of Arkanon was built along a large bay on one of the planet's several oceans. The city was fortified with large walls that surrounded the city from an older time. Now, large ground-to-air guns had been emplaced along the wall to defend from aerial attacks. Already, the majority of the civilian population had been evacuated underground and the soldiers had been placed strategically throughout the city.

The ground-to-air guns began firing rapid volleys of cannon fire into the bright streaks of lights heading down towards the city. Canderous' heart beat faster and the excitement ran through his veins as he saw the brilliant streaks of green cannon fire heading straight towards him and his descending army.

"Haha! For Mandalore!" he shouted through the comm in his helmet.

"For Mandalore!" the deafening cry came back over his comm. He smiled silently inside his helmet as he began guiding the basilisk through the volley of incoming fire. His vehicle responded as he leaned to the left and right and gripped the handles in front of him. Behind him he heard an explosion and sudden static on his comm which indicated one of his warriors had been hit by cannon fire.

"We lost Markhohn," came a voice over his comm, confirming his suspicions.

Over the next several minutes of their descent through the atmosphere, Canderous got about twenty more reports of casualties. It was to be expected, however, especially in one's pursuit of the glory of war. Soon, the city below was more clearly visible and Canderous could now target several of the gun emplacements. He selected the nearest ground turret through the targeting system in his helmet and launched several concussion missiles down towards the target. The rest of his army followed suit as explosions peppered the battlefield below.

They were extremely close to the ground now and Canderous prepared his droid from impact. The mechanical legs of his war droid extended and locked in place as his vehicle struck the pavement and the droid fired its booster engines to cushion the impact. The street cracked and dust and debris flew up as the mechanical legs dug into the ground. Soldiers began firing from vantage points and behind defensive cover positions they had set up. Several more of his army had fallen in behind him, with the rest dispersing into different sections of the city.

Canderous rushed forward on his basilisk firing his blaster lance and tossing frag grenades into clusters of the enemy forces. His men shouted a loud battle cry as the city tumbled around them. Canderous relished every moment of the battle. His career as a Mandalorian warrior had begun.

"This is it," Bastila said as she brought the vehicle to stop outside of the ruins they had seen in their vision. It was exactly as they had seen. The dark stone pillars scattered throughout the area, the entranceway into the side of the sloping grassy hill, it was all as if they were back in the dream. Only this time, it was real.

"Do you feel that?" Venar said, a chill running through his body. They got out of the landspeeder and started walking towards the entrance.

"Yes," she replied, "The Dark Side is strong here..."

"Great," he said sarcastically, "Think anyone's home?"

"I don't think this was ever a place of residence... it seems more like a tomb of some sort... though why Revan and Malak would be interested in some old tomb I have no idea."

They made their way over to the stone entranceway which was sealed by a heavy stone doorway, just as they had seen in their vision. There were strange markings carved into the stone surfaces of the pillars and the entranceway. Bastila ran her fingers over one of the symbols carved into the stone. "This... this symbol," she said, "its the same symbol Revan used for his Empire..."

"I thought it looked familiar... we saw this displayed in the Taris military base."

"Perhaps this place might shed more light than we thought," Bastila said.

Together they reached out their hands toward the door, and using the Force, began to unlock the stone mechanisms within. The stone grinding and rumbled as the door parted open, retreating into thin slots in the walls. Inside was a dark long passageway with no discernible lights. They gave each other a quick glance, and ignited their lightsaber and walked inside.

The blue and yellow glow of the lightsabers lit up the path before them and after walking several meters they realized the hallway wasn't as long as they had originally thought. The hallway opened up into a large rectangular room with three sealed doors, one to their right, another to their left, and another straight ahead. In the center of the room was a single body lying on the floor in pale brown Jedi robes.

When they got closer, Venar recognized him as the Jedi he had talked to before venturing out to get his crystal; Nemo. He was dead, his skin was cold and almost icy to the touch. His robes were tattered and singed in parts.

"Poor Nemo," Bastila said, her voice taking a sad tone, "He didn't deserve to go out like this." She picked his lightsaber up off the floor. "We will return this to the Council when we get back, and see to a proper burial for him."

Suddenly, a humming sound reached their ears as a floating cylindrical droid with several protruding mechanical arms descended from the ceiling. It stopped directly in front of them and began speaking to them in a language they couldn't understand.

"Bastila? Can you understand this thing?"

"No," she frowned, "I've never heard such a language before."

Suddenly, the droid began speaking to them in a completely different language. Still, they couldn't understand it. "I seems like its cycling through some preset languages... like its trying to communicate with us."

"Geez, how old is this thing?" he said, noting the old rusted dark metal with which it was constructed.

Suddenly, the droid uttered a serious of guttural sounds with a wet almost gargling quality to it.

"Wait," Bastila said suddenly, "I understood some of that. I believe its speaking an ancient dialect of Selkath."

"Do you think it knows Basic?"

"We can understand Basic," the droid suddenly said in a clearer form of Selkath, "But we are not programmed to speak it."

"Woah, hey I understood you that time," Venar said.

"I was analyzing your speech patterns," the droid said, "I have been able to learn a decent portion of your language by gathering data from your speech."

"I see..." Bastila said, "what are you?"

"I am the Overseer," the droid said, "The Builders programmed me to enforce discipline among the various slave species while this monument to the power of the Star Forge was being constructed."

"The Star Forge? What is that?" Venar asked.

"It is the ultimate creation of the Builders," the droid said.

"But what is it?"

"...It is the ultimate creation of the Builders."

"It doesn't seem like the droid knows," Bastila said, "Or it may have been programmed not to reveal that information. Who are the Builders?"

"The rulers of the greatest Empire the galaxy has ever seen," the droid responded in Selkath.

"Do you mean the Sith Empire?" Venar asked.

"The Sith are not Builders. They were a slave species to the Builders."

"Are you saying these... Builders enslaved the Sith?" Bastila asked incredulously.

"The Builders enslaved thousands of species, including yours." The droid confirmed.

"How long have you been here?" Venar asked.

"I have been here for approximately twenty-five thousand years."

"This is incredible!" Bastila exclaimed, "If this droid is correct, that means this place was built by an ancient alien species that ruled the galaxy long before the Republic was ever formed! There's no group or species that matches this description in our records. Even the Hutt Empire at their peak wasn't as powerful as what this droid has insinuated."

"What happened to Nemo," Venar asked the droid, "Did you kill him?"

"I did not kill him," the Overseer responded, "He submitted to the tests and did not survive. The door behind me may only be entered by those who prove themselves worthy. First you must enter the two doors on either side of the room and defeat the guardian in each room. Only then, will the locked door open to you."

Bastila and Venar exchanged grim glances with each other. "What's behind the door?" Bastila asked.

"An answer."

"Very well, droid," she said, "We will submit ourselves to the test."

"Hey speak for yourself," Venar said. She shot him a disapproving look. "Relax I'm kidding."

Slowly they moved over to the door on their left, and as they approached the door slowly opened to reveal another rectangular room with a single ancient computer terminal at the rear of the room. In the center, stood another guardian droid that seemed to be scanning the room.

As they walked into the room, the door shut closed behind them with a thud. The droid suddenly turned to regard them, the lights on its exterior turning from a light green to a bright red.

"This doesn't look good," he said.

"Just... focus."

Suddenly, a bright beam shot out from a nozzle on the droid. It was cold and seemed to freeze the very air around it. Bastila and Venar dodged out of the way as the cryogenic beam struck the door behind them, freezing it with a sheet of ice. Venar ran forward and leapt through the air towards the droid. Just as he was coming down to deliver a strike, the droid emitted a powerful shockwave that threw him back hard against the wall. The droid fired another powerful blast of its cryogenic beam shooting out at Bastila. She stood her ground and held her lightsaber up at the last moment deflecting the beam into the ceiling.

The blade of the lightsaber hissed and crackled as the beam strained against the powerful blade of energy. Bastila let out a straining grunt as she slowly angled her lightsaber to deflect the beam back at the droid. The cryo beam struck the droid and quickly froze and encased the droid in a thick block of ice.

Bastila let out a deep breath as Venar slowly got to his feet, his head pounding. The once blank screen on the computer suddenly lit up with a menu written in ancient Selkath. They walked over the computer and Bastila tried to make out what the ancient language was saying.

"What is it?" Venar asked.

"It looks like some kind of incomplete code we have to fill in," she responded.

"Can you do it?"

"I'm... not sure," she said studying the text. "It seems as if its giving us only three possible options."

"You mean its like a multiple choice question?"

"I think so..."

"Here let me see," Venar said moving in to study the text himself.

"What are you going to do?" she asked mockingly.

"Shhh," he replied holding up a finger. Suddenly, he touched one of the answers on the screen and the computer beeped and the screen turned off.

"What did you do?!"

"I actually haven't the slightest idea but I think it worked..." Venar said as he turned and the door to the room opened behind them.

"Your recklessness is going to get us killed!"

"Oh come on," he replied nonchalantly, "the Force is with us, remember?"

"That is not... you... ugh!" She began walking towards the exit.

"After you, Master," he said with a coy smile.