Finishing touches (Zasz- complete)

[Evil Hobgoblin]

(ooc) Okay, it's time to finish your training, dude. You've been standing still long enough, and I thank you for being patient with me.

(ic)

There was darkness, and silence.

There were cave walls, and drips of water.

There were black gleams reflected off rushing water.

There was a question.

"What can you do, Zasz?"

[Zasz Grimm]

A voice rang out in response to Hobgoblin. It was his voice, and as usual, it was calm, cold, and somewhat frightening.

"I believe that the correct question Master, is, what can I not do? I have learned much."

He grinned inwardly. This was blatantly arrogant of him, as was his personality at times. He stepped out from the shadows, letting the Dark Dwarf view his form. He wore a tight clinging trenchcoat as always, his red eyes seemed to glow, his hair scattered everywhere in chaos.

[Evil Hobgoblin]

"Be silent." Hob's voice was the crack of a whip made from Hoth's cold.

When the quiet had deepened enough to let Zasz feel the sting of his Master's displeasure, Hob took a noisy breath. "As much as you have learned, you are an apprentice still."

[Zasz Grimm]

Zasz stood solemn, he realized he should not have said what he did. He stayed looking forward, blinking a few times, taking in Hobgoblin's temper, and his dislike of Zasz's word choice. He then looked back down to Hob.

"Yes Master."

[Evil Hobgoblin]

"FOOL!"

Hob hissed and spat. "What kind of Dark Jedi are you? Whimpering and cowing in subservience to another? A weakness lies within your spirit, yes! Fail to overcome it, you have!"

[Zasz Grimm]

Zasz looked up, a flash of anger in his face. He calmed it and he brought a hand up to his face to slowly wipe away the spit that actually hit his face. He looked to his Master and he merely grinned, and then chuckled.

"I merely was giving you the respect I thought you deserved. I have no such weakness, Dwarf."

That was a first, for him to call him such. He watched him carefully now, ever mindful of what he was capable of.

[Evil Hobgoblin]

"Hah!" Hob laughed aloud, mocking Zasz's surge of backbone. "I deserve far more than respect from you! I molded you, I made you into what you are now! Do you think anything less than obedience is apropriate to the being who is your Master?"

[Zasz Grimm]

"Yes, you might deserve it. Yes, you did mold me. But what is a Master to an apprentice? The learner merely takes what the teacher gives them, and moves on, to bigger, better things. To surpass their Master."

He grinned at his own revelation. His own knowledge. All that he spoke was true. But could he truly surpass the Dwarf? He was indeed extremely powerful. But perhaps Zasz was, as well. He had trained all his life, been an apprentice most of it.

He looked to Hobgoblin.

[Evil Hobgoblin]

The dwarf brought forth his cane and began to lean on it. He regarded Zasz in silence for a full minute.

"Prove it."

[Zasz Grimm]

Zasz stood motionless for a moment, merely watching his master. How did he mean to prove it...Attack him? Prove his strength? No, Hobgoblin always thought more into things. However, Zasz moved his hands towards his lightsaber hilt and held it to the right side of his body, as if contemplating...

[Evil Hobgoblin]

"Ha!" Hob barked a laugh. "You have not the wit to be a true Dark Jedi. Wallow in your indecision, for it will be your only companion."

The small dwarf turned and began walking towards the exit, letting his fingers fish around beneath his robe for something...

[Zasz Grimm]

Zasz sneered, and immediately as Hobgoblin turned, his blood red lightsaber blade sprung to life. He moved his arm and body such a way, that he was angled quickly. As he did this, he released his lightsaber blade, he let it spin and fly towards Hob. Of course, he controlled it.

He controlled it quite easily, using his aide, the Dark Side. He made it go toward the dwarf's back.

[Evil Hobgoblin]

Hob spun, something flying from his hand. Zasz's lightsaber intersected it, clove it in two-

-and then everything went black to Zasz.

"Such a strong control, my apprentice," Hob cackled mercilessly. "Had a lighter touch you used, such numbing feedback you would not have suffered."

Zasz's pupils had begun to open after being nearly totally shut, but the world around him was a blur and Hob was nowhere to be seen. His Force senses were still shaky after whatever it was that Hob had used had affected him, and a headache was just starting to form in his head.

"If you can leave this cavern alive, then a Master will you truly be. If you fail-"

"If you fail, you will fall by my hand."

[Zasz Grimm]

Zasz stumbled momentarily, his head pounding. His vision blurred, which he tried to use instead of focusing. He walked forward and his foot hit a crystal formation. He groaned as he cursed several obscenities. The headache was only going to get worse, and he still had to get out of the cavern.

This was it, he thought to himself. All the years of training, now brought him here. To his test. And how it was already shaping up. Half blinded, he needed his saber first of all. He looked around...

"Your vision is frelled, Zasz. Think."

And he tried to concentrate, to feel with the force, but that was still hesitant. What did Hobgoblin do to him!? He shook his head and then began to focus, to think, to channel through his body the dark side.

After a moment of this, he found his lightsaber, and his hand, as if knowing where it was, pointed at it. The cylindrical object flew to his hand and he squeezed it, reassuringly. He looked around, determining objects through the headache turned migraine. And he tried to remember the way he took to get here, and began heading in that direction.

However, he was mindful to concentrate on what was surrounding him as well, after all, it was Hobgoblin...

[Evil Hobgoblin]

As Zasz's foot came down, the Force began to scream that he was in danger.

Instead of stopping at the floor, the foot passed right through it. The smooth cavern floor vanished, being replaced with a crack in the ground that caught his foot. Somehow Zasz's senses had betrayed him or Hob had somehow tricked them.

As Zasz struggled to pull himself free, he heard the crack of tearing rock nearby. Something big and clublike had gotten off the floor and was swinging itself at him from behind.

[Zasz Grimm]

While trying to free his foot, he heard something. And then he turned his head and tried to see what it was, it was extremely blurry, but he thought he could see something coming at him. And then he knew something was coming at him, his hearing let him know, as did his blind vision.

He focused at it as best he could, and he put his hand up as quickly as possible. And he concentrated. He groaned in pain, the headache not subsiding. He had to see through the pain, set it aside, and he tried desperately, until finally he succeeded. By now the blurred object was so close...

And he willed it to stop, by using the force. He put his whole concentration into it, if the object was not stopped, Zasz would no doubt be killed. He closed his eyes, grit his teeth, and then looked once more at the object. He saw through the pain. He concentrated, and by his will, he made the object stop, falling only mere feet before it's mark...

[Evil Hobgoblin]

Barreling in behind the broken stalactite was something else- something that had hidden itself behind the big rock's movement.

It was Hob.

The goblin being sank its claws into the skin of Zasz's back, channeling energy into enough heat to burn Zasz to a charred husk if the other did not ignore the pain in both his head and his body and do something about it.

[Zasz Grimm]

Zasz crumpled to the ground, screaming out in pain. He clenched his teeth as his knees dropped onto the ground, his feet still stuck. He gripped his lightsaber hilt quite tightly, the pain excrutiating, his focus dimming. It was beyond hard, this test. He shook, trying to get the Goblin off of him. But it was obvious it wouldn't work.

This would kill him if he didn't do anything! Zasz groaned, leaning more into the ground. Surely he would die..No! He did not come this far, to achieve this much of his goals and to fail!

His body shuddered as the electrical like energy went through him. He focused, rather, tried to focus. He had to get Hob off. He closed his eyes, thinking. And he found his focus. A wave was sent out from his body, spherical in nature, spreading outwards. The Dark Side his aide as Hobgoblin; his master was thrown from him, somewhere into the cave.

It also jarred his foot loose and he pulled out, stumbling away, towards where he knew the entrance was. His hand on his lightsaber hilt tightened, as he groaned, holes in his back bleeding from the Goblin's claws.

His vision blurry, his force senses dulled, his body aching; he roared.

"I will make it out of here, Dwarf!"

[Evil Hobgoblin]

There was no sound from Hob's body hitting the walls or floor- he hadn't. The dwarf had once again found concealment somewhere in the room.

"Is that so?"

Invisible fingers took hold of Zasz's throat, but not to choke him. Instead Zasz found himself thrown backwards against his will.

"Wouldn't you rather give up and die, instead?"

[Zasz Grimm]

And he was thrown backwards, straight into a wall. He winced as the rocks and crystal formations dug in- but didn't break flesh. It didn't really help the gaping holes of his back, and he winced in pain. He struggled trying to keep consciousness, but he managed it. He looked around, his vision blurry. It was so damn dark, he couldn't see a thing.

"Would you!?"

He yelled at Hob. He tried to move from his spot, but found the going a bit hard. He blinked a few times, and he tried to focus. He had to find Hob. He resisted the invisible fingers as best he could.

He looked around, as if trying to feel the Dwarf. Feel him through the force that is. Such a powerful signature would be putting out energy for the force that he was using; hopefully Zasz would find it.

After a few moments of struggling, he did. He found the Dark Dwarf. He still fought the fingers and hand, but it did not good. So he concentrated.

He looked directly at Hob; though he didn't see him because of his blurred vision, he did indeed feel him.

"Gotcha."

He pointed his hand outward, open palmed, his fingers spread apart. What he was about to do would indeed take much of his energy from an already weakened body. However, what he did now was powerful no doubt. Five tips of electrical like energy, moved from the tips of his fingers and outwards. They spun through the air, in an odd formula of color. It was bright white. It moved quickly, split second; Lightning.

It crackled loudly around the dwarf, until it hit him dead on, one solid bolt as it came together before the strike, entering Hobgoblin's body.

Zasz slowly began to slouch and lean against the wall; drained.

[Evil Hobgoblin]

The shock blasted Hob backwards. Self-preservation instincts kicked in and the dwarf scrabbled for purchase on the rock floor of the room with his feet, eventually succeeding in stopping his backward momentum and coming to a standing position.

As the alien Dark Jedi stood there, he began to wobble. He took a step forward, and then another but held his leg in the air too long. He spun to catch his balance, then came down in a firm martial stance.

Facing backwards.

Hob teetered from side to side for a moment, as though he might fall, then one of his feet undug itself from the ground so he could get better balance. His upper body wove drunkenly to which Hob overcorrected, and the dwarf toppled to the ground in a heap of twitching robes.

[Zasz Grimm]

Zasz heard the light thud, and it caused him to look upwards quickly. He blinked a few times; the sound had brought him out of his pain-driven haze that held him trancelike and motionless. He blinked alot, trying to see, and he did.

He saw what seemed to be Hobgoblin on the floor- and twitching. Zasz came to the sweet realization that he had hit the Dwarf. Now was his chance!

He looked around, but as he tried to move from the cavern wall, he groaned. It was quite painful, but he managed to slowly stand. He held in his hand the saber hilt and he slouched; still barely able to stand. He looked around the cavern, trying to get his bearings.

This all, took a few minutes. And now, he was facing the exit- which he could barely see. He looked back to Hobgoblin's direction. He had succeeded.

Zasz's steps echoed lightly as he began the way to the exit.

[Evil Hobgoblin]

"Yu shwurda radda lidda furstyr!"

Hob was sitting up now, one finger held menacingly towards Zasz. His eyes wavered in and out of focus, and his lips didn't seem to work right. "Fweel mwah pwer!"

A bolt of lightning, thicker and brighter than Zasz's, leapt out from the tip of Hob's claw. His aim was less potent than his power, however, and the lightning missed Zasz entirely by going over his head.

It did succeed in shattering a nearby stalactite, sending it falling in Zasz's general direction.

[Zasz Grimm]

He turned his body to look at and hear Hob. And he saw the light from the lightning, and he tried to prepare himself to take a hit from it..But it missed. Zasz looked up as it crashed into the ceiling, causing a stalactite to loose itself, and fall down right for Zasz.

He had few seconds to either run or try to stop it. He put his hand upwards, trying to call upon power inside of him- whatever ounce he had left. He managed; he used the darkside, his tool, to stop the large rock formation.

However, he was sweating, his body, physically being burdened by the excessive use of the Dark Side. He found Hob; or what he thought was Hob. His vision was starting to clear a bit.

And he moved his hand forward, sending the stalactite towards the dwarf's tiny body, intent upon crushing him.

[Evil Hobgoblin]

Hob grinned crazily. "Yaaaaaahhhh!" hollered the dwarf as he extended a hand. Intense blue flame shot forth from it and hit the stalactite with the force of an explosion. The large rock shattered to pieces.

The flame kept on coming for Zasz, growing into a large column of fire. The dwarf swept the area with his wavering aim, seeking to kill Zasz through carpet bombing rather than precision.

[Zasz Grimm]

Zasz jumped back- shocked, literally. His mouth was agape from what he had seen; although blurily..The small dwarf had completely destroyed the large rock formation to rubble, and now, from what he could distinguish was sending a rather...large wall of flame at him.

Zasz looked around, he could go nowhere- nothing could protect him from the great pillar of fire that would burn him alive..

His only option was to kill Hobgoblin. He collected himself as best he could, bringing forth his effort, if he was to live, to survive, he would have to make this count...

Else all he had been doing for all of his life, would matter not.

He had to kill his mentor; a great mind.

He ignited the blade, and focused as best he could. He ran forward, to the right side, keeping close to the wall as best he could to avoid Hob's fiery hell. He used the darkside; his tool, his weapon.

His guide.

He found the dwarf, and he was now a meter away, if not more. He raised the blade, and brought it down, roaring as he did so.

[Evil Hobgoblin]

The noise startled Hob, who stopped blasting about with fire and skipped forward. One claw tip caught on the ground and the dwarf stumbled, toppled, and fell. He banged his head on the ground and rolled to one side, mumbling unfocused in a strange language.

[Zasz Grimm]

At Hobgoblin's falling; and apparent knock unconscious...It caused Zasz to stumble off balance, his saber far off target- he had put momentum in it. He moved forward and rammed into the wall with his shoulder, a jolt to bring him out of his rage and determination.

And to bring him to realize that Hob was out of it. And that he could escape.

He blinked a few times, his hazy vision letting up.

He looked around the cavern, past Hobgoblin; to his goal- the exit, his freedom.

He held the saber to his side as he walked quickly, wanting to exit. He stumbled a few times, as he made the exit out, thoughts crossing his mind.

He stood at the exit; just out of it, as he called back in...

..."I will see you in Bast, Hobgoblin."...

A Dark Side Master stood anew.