Prologue

A dark rider upon the back of a black destrier, the black hood of the
rider bellows about his head as it catches the wind. In slow motion, to the
beating of a heart, the stallion pounds its hooves upon the sodden earth.
The sound of thunder fills the air and a brilliant flash of lightning
streaks across the darkened sky.

Fog flows from the horse's flaring nostrils with each breath he takes. The
path the dark rider leads his steed upon is filled with danger and things of
the unknown. But his senses are far beyond – stretching out in every
possible direction, searching for any possible danger lurking somewhere in
the darkness.

Trees flash by in a blur. A deafening clap of thunder drowns out all sound
as the destrier races along the well-used path through the dark and
foreboding forest surrounding them on all sides.

The rider draws his weapon, sensing his quick approach to danger, holding
it out from his side in his right black leather gloved hand.

The forest begins to break up about him, and soon the dark sky can be seen
through the canopy of the forest. And then, everything falls away.

Standing like a towering monolith, a massive black stoned castle set
against the dark viscous clouds of the sky. Spires reaching up toward the
heavens like swords of stone as if to pierce the sky, ever-darker forest
surrounding its walls and clinging plants climb up its sides as if drawn to
the darkness the dark rider can feel deep inside the bowels of the castle.
There – there is where he will find the means to return from where he had
come.

But there is something…something of the light – something that keeps his
mind drifting from his goal…something he must destroy in order to complete
his mission.

Suddenly there is a scream in the night – like that of a great beast of
his knowledge, a rancor. It echoes off the valley walls and the black of the
castle.

A sudden chill in the air stings the rider's skin. He growls low, deep in
his throat and reigning in his steed, he sets the destrier into an all out
race toward the gates of the castle.

The air hisses in his ears as the sweet musty scent of the forest fills
his lungs. The edge of his robe flies in the air behind him as he rises up
from the saddle to ease into the full gallop of his steed. He can hear the
voices of the ancient warriors of his Order chant and whisper to him through
his gift – a power unlike any other on this planet called Earth.

Part I

As he draws nearer to the dark foreboding castle, weaving his steed
through the forest, dodging trees, leaping over ancient decaying collapsed
trees, he can sense the thing inside the castle that he seeks and that which
keeps him from fulfilling his mission.

Another flash of lightning and clap of ear piercing thunder pounds down
upon the dark rider and his stallion, the path before him lights up as clear
as day.

The gates of the castle appear far ahead, open and promising death to
anyone who passes through them. Yet he feels no fear – he is unafraid of
death and danger, for he has looked upon the face of death many a'time and
laughed as he turned his back and walked away. He will face death and walk
away – unafraid and awaiting the next time he will face death again.

The moment the destrier passes through the black wrought iron gates, he
rears his mount to a halt, and pauses for a moment, allowing his senses to
scan his surroundings and prepares himself to venture into the castle and
face what denies him what he desires, deep within the castle.

*******

The room is dark, wafts of sweet inscences floats about in the air; the
only light is a single candle sitting before a figure all in black, cross
legged upon the floor of the small room.

His power surrounds him, fills him and binds him eternally to all that is
about him, part of him. A dark power that few dare to wield but it seduces
anyone who has the power to sense it. It fills every pore, every cell, every
inch of his body, mind, heart and soul, and it is as chaotic as the birth
and death of a star.

He has been in a state of meditation for hours - almost days – since the
day he set off on his own after his failure in a mission his Master had
entrusted him with, thinking, searching for answers, angry at himself for
his failure. And as he meditates, he heals his body of the unseen wounds his
Master had inflicted upon him for his failure.

It will never happen again.

In his mind he sees things, things he has never in his life seen before –
things that do not exists – atleast not in his own galaxy. He invisions a
tall towering dark castle with heaven piercing spires, a warrior in black
upon a powerful four legged beast of the same shade, wielding a sword unlike
any design he has before seen.

He sees many things, things he cannot explain, things he does not
understand, things the Darkside of the Force has chosen to show him.

Suddenly the room quakes, and an alarm begins to sound.

Instantly his eyes open and he rises to his feet with ease and grace, and
moves toward the main consul before the viewport before him. He studies the
consul and raises his eyes toward the viewport just in time to feel the ship
begin the quake harder than previous, as a brilliant wall of multicolored
light appears in the path of his ship. But before he could evade, the light
envelops the sleek black craft and suddenly disappears – leaving nothing
left but fading wisps of light.

Updated 4/10/02