You enter one of the dozens of sparring chambers within the Shadow Academy of Lyspair, the simple square room utilized mostly by those learning the ways of the lightsaber. This five hundred square-foot room, rectangular in shape, is nearly barren. The floor is lined with simple padding, while the walls are made of dull, grey durasteel, gauged by innumerable lightsaber strikes, scarring the metal permanently.

The ceiling towers above you, nearly twenty feet in height, allowing for plenty of movement from the more acrobatic of Force users. There are no other adornments within the room, save for the entrance and lighting that bathes the entire room, yet seems to come from nowhere. All corners of the room are perfectly lit, with no visible shadows to speak of. There is nowhere for you to hide within the room, but… there's no room for your opponent to hide either.

The doors to the sparring room parted for the Knight. The room had always astonished the Knight, vast swathes of grey covered the prodigious hall and invisible objects held luminous qualities, bathing the large expanse in a yellow brilliance. He focused on the centre of the room, noting his apprentice kneeling and preparing for his training. His apprentice had impressed him with sheer determination and was close to earning his own lightsaber. Meleu’s footsteps brushed the padded floor lightly as he silently moved towards the Arkanian. Darkblade felt the presence of his Force aura consume the room and stood up to greet him.

“Welcome back to Lyspair, master,” Darkblade announced as he looked up to Meleu. His cloaked master stood in front of the Krath, towering him. The definition in his muscles pressed against his tight combat robe as Meleu’s left arm reached for his own neck.

“Let’s begin,” Meleu replied, unfastening the cloak that adorned his robes.

Suddenly, Meleu sprung into life as his outer garment fell from his shoulders, revealing the rest of his robes and a matching black helmet. He called upon the Force to bring his prestigious hilt to his right hand, illuminating the immediate area in red as he brought his saber to life. Meleu took the upper hand straight away as he lunged towards his opponent, pulling his saber arm back to build up momentum, before thrusting his blade into him. Fortunately for Darkblade, Meleu was predictable, something he had picked up from numerous fights. He danced away from the blade elegantly, followed by a sudden ducking of his head as Meleu swiped his blade athwart his body.

Darkblade continued to twirl around the arena with Meleu’s feasting eyes tracking him. The Sith continued the offensive flurry of attacks, cutting down towards the shoulder of the Arkanian before suddenly dipping low, cutting across his chest. His blade cleanly sliced through the torso of the Krath, which suddenly disappeared into thin air. Darkblade stood behind the shattered Force projection of himself, smiling at his successful trickery.

“Is this all you have learned whilst I have been away?” Meleu quipped, goading his apprentice and hoping to flick a switch in his brain.

The provocation worked. Darkblade’s expression turned into one of determination. His elegant stance changed as he finally reached for his training saber. He marched towards his master, eager to exhibit his newly acquired knowledge of combat.

The sudden onslaught of attacks didn’t catch Darkblade unaware. In fact he expected it. His Master was the epitome of quick engagements with little room for chit chat. What he hadn’t expected was for Meleu to shatter his illusion so quickly. Something I must improve on. Darkblade thought to himself.

“Is this all you have learned whilst I have been away?” Meleu spoke the words as if disappointed. Not willing to displease his Master so early during the fight, Darkblade strode towards his Master with a smug smile on his face. “Apologies Master, I was just testing my illusions. As you know I've been in the libraries ever since arriving, I wanted to see what they could do. Seeing as this is my first sparring match I’m wondering how my illusions would fare against a Master. I must ask though, how did you know it was an illusion?”

Meleu stood perplexed and a slight frown appeared across his face. With a loud and exaggerated sigh Meleu answered “Darkblade, we can talk after the match, do you think your opponents will stop and analyse everything with you every single step of the way?” Darkblade laughed at the thought, images of him and his opponents battling it out and after every few minutes a time-out would be called to analyse what had just happened. Lost in thought, a dreamy smile appeared across his face. Oh my, what a wonderful thing that would be, he thought to himself, imagine how sophisticated the battles would become!

The Knight had become angry and frustrated with his Apprentice, not wanting to prolong the fight any longer then he had to, he threw out his left hand and pushed with the Force. A massive pulse pushed throughout the room. Darkblade had no time to react, nor did he even realize what was happening until he was lying flat on his back, the air pushed from his lungs when he had landed. His training saber fell from his hand and clattered to the ground; turning off the instant it left his hand. Struggling to clear his head and get air back into his lungs, he heard the distant snap of a lightsaber igniting and Darkblade panicked. A sense in the Force urged Darkblade to roll to the left, which he did. Not a second later he heard Meleu come crashing down on the spot where Darkblade had been lying only a second ago. The force of the impact made the ground tremble and crack.

Using the momentum he rolled a few more times before being able to scramble back onto his legs. He called his saber back to his hand and ignited it. The sincerity of the battle now hit Darkblade like a tidal wave. “Sorry Master, I shall not wander off like that again.” Meleu paid no attention as the frustration, anger and adrenaline swarmed over him; he advanced relentlessly on his Apprentice. Sprinting forwards, Meleu opened up to a series of high and middle slashes. Routine took over and Meleu was battering at Darkblade’s meagre defences with ease. He looked at Darkblade’s face, noticing a hint of fear. “Is this how you imagined it would be? Is it like in all the books you've been reading?” he taunted. Meleu’s speed increased and his attacks grew stronger with each passing second, rage building up inside of him amplifying his already formidable skills. “You should do well to realize that no amount of reading can prepare you for real combat!’ With that last word Meleu broke through Darkblade’s defence. Knocking his saber to the right side of his body, Meleu swooped in across the left side of Darkblade; almost as if dancing he slipped behind Darkblade and swiped out his legs from under him. Crashing to the floor for the second time this battle, Darkblade landed on his knees. He grimaced, and then saw the ground rush up to meet him as he felt a boot connect with his upper back. Landing on his chest he felt the air rush out of him yet again.

Meleu laughed, sensing the end of the fight was close. He walked around Darkblade, stored his lightsaber and proceeded to grab him by the collar of his robe and pull him back up. Thinking the match was finished and he was being helped back up, Darkblade began to thank Meleu “Thank you Mas…” Darkblade’s head snapped back, the sound of two objects colliding echoed throughout the room. Blood flew through the air as Meleu head butted Darkblade, a strong reinforced helmet on a soft fleshy surface, the crack of brittle cartilage breaking filled the room. Darkblade screamed, feeling his nose break. He was vaguely aware of what happened in the next few seconds, but instinct took over and he pushed away from Meleu, miraculously breaking his grip on him. He called on the Force, wanting to hide from his Master. It didn’t matter how to him anymore. He enveloped himself in darkness, trying to find a moment's relief from his Masters terrifying onslaught.

Meleu was surprised by the enveloping darkness that had suddenly covered his Apprentice, but he could still see him nonetheless and let him have this moment to regain senses. His enhanced vision allowed him to vaguely see the form of Darkblade. He was starting to enjoy this little sparring match. Blood dripping down his helmet, Meleu crossed his arms and waited for the pitiful darkness to disappear.