Star Wars_ Young Jedi Knights 04_ Lightsabers - Kevin J. Anderson [31]
He suddenly realized that he had been aiming wrong. It was his own fault. Reacting wildly to his sudden fear, he had overcompensated.
As the first mynock came toward him again, claws outstretched and long fangs ready to tear him to shreds, he took a second to aim and squeezed off a long bolt that sizzled through the creature's body.
The mynock gurgled and fell to the floor, where it was impaled by one of the stalagmites.
"Yes!" Norys shouted in triumph-but three new mynocks swirled around him, attracted by his shout.
He fired again and missed. The creatures came at him from the front, side, and behind. Norys turned, remembering to think, point, aim, and shoot. He eliminated another creature.
Two more emerged from the ceiling, but Norys swiveled at the waist and forced himself to concentrate. One of the two struck from behind, though its claws skittered off Norys's white stormtrooper armor. He ignored it as he set the second mynock firmly in his sights and shot it.
"Gotcha!" He turned and carefully targeted the remaining creatures, one after another. Gradually, his shooting improved. He learned how to aim. He had learned how to be deadly.
Finally, his blaster pack winking from low charge, Norys stood still and waited-but no more of the creatures emerged from the illusionary cave.
He squinted through his goggles, alert for a new attack.
The walls of the cave shimmered and vanished, leaving only the flat metal shell of the training chamber. He allowed himself to relax.
"Good," Qorl said.
Norys turned to see the old TIE pilot standing next to the controls. In the excitement of the exercise, he had forgotten entirely about the military instructor.
"That was fun," Norys said. "I'm getting good at it." He looked down at the blaster, wondering when he'd be able to use it next, when he'd be allowed to practice against a real target.
"You did well enough, Norys," Qorl said again, "but you must remember-mynocks don't shoot back."
Qorl pushed another button on the controls, and the door to the training chamber opened. "Come, we must go to the assembly rooms. Everyone will be there." The old TIE pilot waited for Norys to march ahead of him. "Our Great Leader is planning to address the Shadow Academy."
Zekk sat smothered in his private shell of selfconfidence as dozens of Dark Jedi students gathered in the confined room where Master Brakiss and Tamith Kai lectured them in the ways of the dark side.
Zekk wore his padded suit of dark leather armor and sat straight and proud, shoulders squared. His lightsaber hung comfortably at his side. After weeks of training, he had grown fully comfortable with it.
It was like a part of him, an extension of his body.
That, more than anything else, convinced him he was destined to be a Jedi Knight. He was a loner, but he was also the most powerful of Brakiss's students. The other trainees flashed him occasional glances. Zekk had rapidly surpassed all of them, even those who had been at the Shadow Academy for months and months.
But then, Zekk had the greatest motivation. He wanted to be strong. He wanted everything the Force could give him.
Among those gathered in the assembly hall he noticed Vilas, the Nightsister Tamith Kai's darkhaired and brooding trainee. Vilas, who was from Dathomir, was arrogant and smug, always looking down at him, never letting him forget that it was he who had stunned Zekk when he'd resisted capture on Coruscant. Zekk wasn't about to forget. He felt a rivalry with this swarthy young man who talked too often about how he had ridden rancors and summoned storms on Dathomir-as if Zekk was supposed to be impressed.
The ominous Tamith Kai stood next to her prot6g6 Vilas. She and the new Nightsisters had begun training Vilas during the Shadow Academy's construction. They therefore considered him the first of the new Dark Jedi, stronger than the others.
For now.
Zekk crossed his arms over his leather-armored