[Avatar] 5 – Consequences

By the last day of our so-called ‘training’ under the Sith Instructor, who still has yet to name himself, one of our group members proved to be unable to feel the currents of the Force. Even the Twi’lek managed to catch up enough to start sparring, even if she was the most unskilled of our group. 

This human teenager, the failure, was dragged away by some of the Academy guards after our Instructor had used Force Lightning to make the boy fall to the ground screaming in pain. The Sith was dismissive of the boy after he was dragged away, his form rotating to us lined up before him.

"Congratulations, Acolytes, and welcome to the Academy proper. You have finished your basic training and can now be considered an 'Acolyte' of the Academy. From this day, your time is your own unless said otherwise. You may train, eat, fuck, wherever your desires leave, so long as you continue to show improvement. By the end of this year, in nine months, you may attempt to take the Graduation exam; if you pass, you will officially be Knighted as a Sith; however, if you fail the test? You must try again. If you three times? You no longer deserve to be called a student of the  Academy and will be dragged into the army to serve as a foot soldier or cannon fodder against the Empire's enemies. Don't disappoint; you may very well become one of the privileged few to become an apprentice to a Master if you play your cards right and prove talented enough to catch the eye of such Sith," the Sith congratulated us. Still, his glare continued to show his disgust and doubt that we'd be anything more than cannon fodder for the Empire.

Taking one last breath, the Sith turned and walked towards the training hall's exit. Then, abruptly stopping in his tracks, the Sith turned to our group, calling us again, "If you have any questions or concerns, consult one of the Academy's many droids or one of the Teachers of this Academy if they allow such questions. " Then, turning back around, the Sith calmly left the room, leaving us to our lonesome.

Recalling his statement about the mandatory tasks listed at the front of the Academy, I followed the Sith on the way, leaving my group behind. I needed to see what I'd be dealing with and if I could get some kind of reward for these 'tasks.'

...

I found myself walking alone down the halls, the Academy Guards moving past me as they actively patrolled the Academy; I also passed by other Acolytes, soldiers, Sith Knights, and even a few of the Academy's Instructors in their signature robes. I greeted none of them, instead sticking to the side of the hall and avoiding everyone as much as I could to prevent getting myself into some kind of trouble that would end with life-or-death fights that the Sith so loved starting over the most benign of reasons.

I had no money, no skills, no power, and no status; if one of the Instructors wanted to, they could kill me and, in the worst-case scenario, receive but a slap on the wrist as punishment. I had to be careful and respectful to any Sith who was stronger than me, which would likely be everyone in this entire Academy outside of my group.

When I eventually reached the 'board' the instructor pointed out to us, I realized that other Acolytes were going to and from it, grabbing a data slate and handing it to a droid next to the task board. Once those Acolytes left, I stepped forward, looking at the board to see what sort of trouble was ahead of me.

[Obtain three intact Shrack Brains - Reward: 40 Credits]

[Gather 40 live and undamaged Pelko Bugs for Trainer Shi'qa - Rewards: 100 Credits]

[Capture a live Phantasmal Beast - Rewards: 2,000 Credits]

Among the dozen different glorified fetch quests were more than a dozen Tombs, uncovered structures, and a few tasks to just clear out as many creatures from certain Tombs so that Slaves could go back to digging them out. It was not as bad as I thought it would be if not for the fact that an Acolyte of my level would get butchered trying to fight most of the beasts that lurked in the Valley.

Not to mention, I still needed to procure a weapon to do one of the tasks, as I'd likely have to fight to defend myself from other Acolytes and the Beasts. Luckily, there was an Armory in the Academy, one where we Acolytes could go to purchase weapons, armor, equipment, etc, to arm ourselves for our tasks.

Making my way to the Amory was a simple matter, as it lay on the second floor, a hall away from the central chamber of the Academy. It was guarded by four armed guards, security droids, turrets, and even seemed to have a few laser grids that the Quartermaster could activate to block out the entrance and zap anything that tried to cross through.

Stepping inside the armory, I was met with the Quartermaster, a human male around  40, with a scared face, bald head, yet thick beard.

"What do you want?" The Quartermaster asked simply, his voice grating on the ears.

"Need a weapon," I replied just as simply.

"I need specifics," The Quartermaster responded, crossing his arms.

"A blade or melee weapon. I'm a new Acolyte, and I have no Credits," I informed the man.

He scoffed, "You newbies get access to a simple metal sword, and no, it is not a vibrosword. Since you cannot afford the weapon, it can be loaded to you for a hundred Credits. You must pay back the hundred credit costs within a month's time. Failure to do so will result in punishment, fines, and debt, understood?" The Quartermaster explained as he stepped back and walked to the wall behind the counter that was covered in a significant number of different weapons, from blasters, daggers, throwing knives, and more simple melee weaponry.

He grabbed a simple saber and placed it on the Counter.

"Do you agree to the conditions?" getting a nod in reply, he placed down a datapad and scanner, "Please list your name and place your thumb on the scanner."

Doing so, I was met with a small prick as a tiny droplet of blood fell down into the scanner before the man pushed the sword under the metal bars.

"Enjoy, and don't get yourself killed out there," The Quartermaster shooed me away with his hand dismissively. With not even a sheath for the blade, I stepped out of the Armory and headed back for the Task board. I might as well get started on making some Credits and take care of the loan before interest starts building up.

Besides, I felt like eating some proper food tonight; the slop they gave us for free was the worst stuff I've ever eaten, and if I had the choice, I'd never eat the stuff again. Not to mention what else getting some Credits on hand would do for me.