Max was confused. He had not seen his master, and now he wanted him to train with somebody he didn't know. Or so he thought. His master was a very... interesting being, but a very great one indeed.

He has something big planned

Max was making his way to the outskirts of the temple, he was also looking around, hoping to find someone who looked like an Oblox. Max had the picture of blox in his mind already, a small yet wise man. Powerful, maybe. But definetly not a warrior. If only his prediction was true. The man would be his envy.

Then he saw him. He figured it was him. It looked like an Oblox, except not exactly as Max had predicted. "Hello."

'Hmmm, Max, I presume?" he smiled, the smile wasn't a smile of 'We can be best friends forever, k?' it was more like a reluctant smile, one that made Max feel a little nervous. "Ready?"

"Err.., ready? I guess, what exactly am I ready for?" Max said, he didn't completely trustful of this being.

Oblox smiled the same trickful way Dolash does. "You'll see!"

Oblox was not a Jedi, but he was gifted in the Force - if you could call it gifted. Where others trained for lifetimes to come into contact with that mystical power, it channeled through Oblox wether he liked it or not, bombarding his dreams with visions and his sight with omens.

Nevertheless, he had learned to take it all in stride, even if he found the focus and determination of regular Jedi amusing. Max was no different in his eyes, just another young student putting his nose where it probably didn't belong. Not that he felt any resentment to the guy, just... what business was it of his what he wanted to learn?

Nevertheless, he staved off his apathy long enough to guide Max out of the city and towards a rocky hillside far out of sight of Theed or the Temple. They had walked in silence, but upon approachng the gaping maw in the side of the hill, Oblox's pace dwindled and he became uneasy.

Finally, a couple yards away from the entrance, he stopped. "I can go no further," he muttered, "even if I wanted to. From here on in, you're on your own. Dolash said only that you should enter the cave, and once you do, that you should not leave it. I will remain here to... keep watch."

It did not take a master of the Force to detect the dark presence in the cave - it felt like a stiff and cutting breeze, yet the air was completely still. The Force Seer sat rubbing his head, as though a migraine had taken root. "Go ahead, you won't get anything done standing here."

Max looked at the old seer and help back a laugh. He looked silly rubbing his head.

"Thank you." Max smiled, he turned and walked off towards the direction if the cave. It smelled foul, and it was very dark except for the little light coming from the outside.

Max entered and a full blast of the aroma went into his nostrils. He let a large sigh leave his body as he continued to go in...

It was wet, very wet. And cold, and smelly, and dark-a cave.

Why would Master Dolash want to meet him in here?

The cave wasn't just dark and wet. The deeper Max went, the more oppressive the darkness became, until he would question wether the light from the cave's mouth was following at all.

In the deepest depths of the cave, Dolash waited, knelt in a circle of dark-robed individuals.

"It's not too late to call off this test," urged one of the cowled figures. "The temple's taken less-capable men than him and turned them into Jedi."

"No, we have no time for that," said Dolash, who shook his head. "I don't need to know if he can become a Jedi, I need to know if he is one or not. This test is not without its' dangers, but they are less so than sending him out into the galaxy unprepared."

The sound of Max's footsteps drew closer, and Dolash glanced to his companions. "Start the ritual. No matter what happens, keep your concentration."

With that, the six in robes began to chant, raising their hands and murmuring in forgotten languages. Dolash felt a curling cold wrap around his limbs, binding in place as tendrils of fog.

Max walked onto a disconcerting scene. Dolash, his master, stood encircled by chanting figures in black, a strange luminescence granted to the natural chamber by unnatural means. Dolash himself almost dripped with a nauseating dark energy, his facial features contorted to hold himself in check as the shadows danced up and down his body.

"Max..." he hissed. "Max... The Darkside, it is in all of us. Simply because you know how to fight and you know the Force does not make you a Jedi... A lot of what we teach, it is philosophy, life lessons, techniques - these are superfluous. The basic test of a Jedi, it is a primal instinct."

Dolash balled his fists and raised them slowly, straining against the shadows that flowed so freely upon him. "The Darkside is power, raw and unadulterated. Many have tried to use it, and not just for personal gain - some have sought to use it for justice, have called upon its' power and believed themselves strong enough to hold themselves in check. Never do they succeed, but in their time, they are powerful."

"Know that the only thing that makes you a Jedi is this choice. Do you choose power, accepting the consequences of your actions? Or do you deny it so that you can retain your good judgement and your humanity? I cannot choose for you, it is the choice of every Force-gifted individual."

Dolash emerged from the circle, towering over his apprentice like a dark titan of creation, black fire streaming from his eyes. "What do you choose?"

The words Dolash had spoken were not news to Max, he had witnessed first hand what people had done to get more power and their quests for that power usually was in vain.

"Master, I do wish to have power, but I do not wish to harm anyone in the path to it. Doesn't the force give us power? What is exactly is wrong with power? Or is that too much power is what drives a man insane and resots in death. I choose power." Max said these words firmly, he truly felt these deep inside himself, he was not going to lie to his master.

Max kept his gaze on Dolash and then continued on. "Does power come with responsibilities, master? I do know that power comes with being a Jedi, yes?" Max looked to see what effect his words were having, pausing to see if Dolash had anything to say further.

Quite suddenly, Dolash roared, and lifted Max bodily from the ground before hurling the young padawan away. With his basic training, Max managed a wobbly landing unharmed, but Dolash was already after him.

"You misunderstand me, padawan!" he bellowed, as he chased Max around the chamber. "I am not here to lecture you, I am here to fight you! The Darkside will give you power enough to defeat me, but it will damn you to a slide leading to despair and destruction. If you do not wield it, however, then I will eventually catch you and run you into the ground!"

Dolash pounced, narrowly missing Max and smashing through a stalactmite. Rising from the dust and rubble, he turned burning eyes towards the padawan.

"Choose!"

Max was stunned by his master's ferocity. The strength the large Azguard was weilding was overwhelming Max, and Max's strength was decreasing.

[font=Century Gothic][font=Verdana]What does he expect me to do?? Max groaned in his head, getting hit in the shoulder by a large hand out of no where.[/font] [/font][font=Verdana]Max was freaking out. His one and only trusted mentor was attacking him, and it was actually hurting. His blows were timely, as ferocious and each one seemed to make him angrier, like he wasn't really doing his hardest.[/font]

WHAM!

The giant Azguard's fist had hit Max straight in the back, and knocked him over onto the ground. Grimacing in pain, Max tried to think of a quick way to take down the charging transport.

All of the sudden a giant chunk of stalagmite fell from the celing in front of Dolash, and hindering him long enough for Max to lead a kick right towards the Jedi Master, and with the force guiding the kick, Max knocked Dolash back a little as the stalagmite from which the former stalagmite fell from, landed on Dolash, knocking him down a bit.

Max saw his oppurtunity and grabbed his sword that he brought with him from the temple and used the blunt side to swing at the ambling giant's head. Dolash fell back down onto the floor and let out a long breath.

"Stop." Max groaned, he knew that the stalagmite falling was luck, and that at any other moment Dolash would've used the force to destroy it. He knew that he could never take the Azguard. "I can't go on."

The fires dimed. The darkness dwindled. The dark sigils faded. Where shadowy figures had stood, fellow Jedi now lowered hoods to look out at Max.

Regrad's panting calmed, the rage subsided, his extended claws and fangs retracted. The darkness passed. "You have passed this test, Max. Even in the face of confusion and danger you did not call upon the dark side." It did not even tempt him. Perhaps the powers of evil didn't see him as worth the effort?. "I am sorry for my deception and previous anger, but we have no more time for training and I had to know now wether you had the courage and will to continue your training.

"You do."

Dolash pulled Max up and helped dust off his dazed padawan. "You will not find it an easy road, though. Few do, but I forsee a greater challenge facing you than most. At first light tomorrow I leave on another errand, and you have proven capable enough, or at least loyal enough to the light, to accompany me.

"I know all of this must seem confusing, Max, and it is. These are trying times and we must all cope as best we can. I only ask that you trust me, and if you find you cannot do that, then trust in the Force."

Dolash smiled, and gestured to his fellow Jedi. "Come on, it's a long walk back to the temple, and we should try to reach it before dark."

As Max made the journey to the temple with Master Dolash, making a small limp the whole way, he pondered on the day. It had been rough and sort of surprising. The attacks from Dolash were definetly not suspected, but Max was ready for anything and everything for this 'mission' he was assisting Dolash on tomorrow.


"-for the mission." Dolash seemed to end speaking and he looked at Max. Definetly perplexed and unknowing of what his master had said, Max just nodded his head slowly and continued along on the road to the temple.


After what seemed awhile, Max entered the temple's grounds. With a sigh of relief Max spoke. "Good night Master Dolash."


Dolash seemed to have not noticed at first, but then he turned his head and nodded. Max smiled, apparently satisfied, and continued into his quarters. Slipping slowly under the covers in his room, he wondered if he was going to have to fight Dolash again. Dismissing the though, another one popped into his head.


Was the mission going to be off-planet? If so, Max wanted to be ready, and rested up. He closed his eys, and his last though before drifting asleep was about if he would get a lightsabre soon.