Atino had risen to the rank of master, something that she knew she should be proud of. However because her old master wasn't here to celebrate with her, she felt that it was a bitter situation. She always had Abeo to celebrate with, but the other cheetah wasn't as close as her deceased master was. Tralsay was always there for her, always worried about her. Even when he fell to the darkside all he could do was try and help her.
She made her way to the caves outside the pride where her trial was held. Despite how the caves frightened her, she still felt a pull to go there. It was the last time she had saw Tralsay. She knew he wouldn't like her wandering around the caves by herself, but she was older now. Her fears didn't control her. She could battle them and win.
She found the spot and sat down, closing her eyes. If she imagined hard enough, she could feel him next to her. He would be smiling when she told him that she rose in ranks. Then he would tell her that he expected her to become a council member, something she could only dream of.
“How long until they make you council member young Atino?” A voice said.
Majanga had watched the young cheetah ever since she entered the cave. He was searching for something he had lost years ago. However, the fact that Atino came here amused him. He had known her because of her old master, Tralsay. The ex-jedi and told Majanga all about his padawan, even pointing her out when she had her trial. Majanga had no interest in the old jedi Tralsay, but he told the ex-jedi he would be interested in the padawan to join him as his apprentice. She was still young enough to fully be consumed by the darkside.
Even now it was tempting to try and persuade her to join him. She would make an excellent addition to his ever growing number of Sith. He walked out of the shadows so she could fully see him. There was no use of hiding from her. As long as he didn't attack, she wouldn't either. This was just be a peaceful chat between Jedi and Sith.
His eyes looked at her necklace. That was how he could tell she had rose in ranks. Tralsay mentioned she was trying for night. Now she was a master. A very young master, one who could be molded so easily if given the chance. Even the most careful jedi could fall. He knew that for a fact. There were times in history when a jedi was just too cautious of the darkside, that the fear slowly consumed them until all that was left was darkness. Fear always led to the darkside.
The moment she heard the voice, her whole body tensed up. The lion came out of the shadows. She had never seen him before, but he knew her. That fact made her spine tingle. “Who are you and how do you know who I am?” Atino said calmly. She backed away from him. If it broke into a fight, she was sure that she would lose. Instead she would have to run for it. She was a ways from the pride and it would take her some time to make it there. However, she could outrun any lion, so it wouldn't be too hard to escape him.
“My name is Lord Majanga. It is very nice to finally meet you Atino. Your old master Farlay told me all about you. He told me that you had the potential to really go far in the jedi, to someday become a council member.” Majanga explained. He didn't get any closer. If he scared her away, his plan would be ruined. “I was there when he died, hidden in the shadows. I am sorry for your lose of course. Losing a beloved master at that age must have left some scars.”
He knew what it was like to lose everything you ever loved. “If you need to you can talk to me about the death. I think I have a better chance of understanding you then your jedi friends. Next to you, I was one of the only ones to see Farlay as he really was. How twisted he had become from the darkside he tried to control.”
Majanga gave her a gentle smile. “I know how the darkside works better then anyone. I know that he was to weak by fear to control the darkside. One has to be careful of their emotions when dealing with the darkside. It is true that the darkside is fueled by emotions, however if one doesn't have control over their emotions they will fall.”
“I don't need any advice about the darkside. I already know about the danger it causes.” Atino said defensively. As much as she hated to admit it she knew little about the darkside. She was face to face with the Lord of the Sith. Her old master had met with him, and even talked about her to him. She felt betrayed, but she knew her master wasn't in the right state of mind. He would never betray her like that if he had been clouded by the darkside. “Thanks to Master Farlay I learned enough about the darkside to make sure I never get near it.”
For the most part she had kept the pain inside of her lose. It was true that only a couple knew about how he died. And those who did hardly comforted her. They just said he was one with the force now. It really wasn't enough to heal her pain. If anything it just hurt her more. Now she was offered help by the last lion she would accept it from. Yet the offer was tempting.
It was true the Majanga would probably know Tralay better then most in the pride. The idea that she could talk to someone who understood her was something that only happened in dreams. She sat down, and watched him. “I do not want to join you, but if we talk, can we leave it at that? And will you promise not to mention this to anyone else.” She didn't want it to be known that she had been in contact with a Sith Lord. If anyone found out she could get into some trouble.
“I will promise not to tell. Who would I tell anyways. Most of the jedi will not speak to me. I am a lion of my word regardless. Anything you tell me I will keep to myself.” He said with a nod. “However I will listen to you, but I would like the same consideration. I would like you to just listen to me as I talk about the darkside. If you are not interested in the darkside after I am done, then so be it. However if your interest gets sparked even just a little bit I would like you to come with me.”
Atino hesitated before nodding her head. It was a fair deal, somewhat. She wouldn't be interested in the darkside though. There was no chance of her ending up like her master. “You should know that the darkside will never appeal to me. I will listen to you though. It is wise to know both sides of the force.”
“You are a wise jedi. I believe you will have an interesting future a head of you.” Majanga said with a nod. “Now why don't we go deeper into the cave so we aren't overheard. We want our little talk to be as secret as we can get it.” He walked deeper into the darkness.
Atino hesitated, but ended up following him. She knew that understanding what you fear could help you in the end. However she had to be careful. There was aline between understanding your fear and becoming obsessed with it. She would listen to Majanga's words with a grain of salt. Keeping her distance she followed him deeper and deeper into the darkness.
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