Little is known of the Acolyte's beginnings. His childhood was spent almost entirely under his Master's direction, shaped by discipline, Echani martial training, study of the Sith and an expectation of obedience. The Academy was an unusual interruption. For a time, he trained alongside others his own age within the structure of the Sith Order and experienced something closer to a conventional apprenticeship.
He was withdrawn before receiving a permanent placement. His Master instead gave him a task: acquire six lightsabers from Jedi Knights or Masters he had personally killed, then use them to make his own lightsaber.
That was the entirety of the instruction.
He was given no ship, credits, equipment or support. Once sent out, the Acolyte was left to work out the rest for himself.
For more than two years he has moved through the galaxy largely alone. He works aboard freighters when it suits him, stows away when it does not, and steals what he needs when there is no other practical option. Food, medicine, clothing, equipment and information are acquired as circumstances demand. Names are equally temporary. He gives strangers whatever identity is useful and discards it once it has served its purpose.
Finding suitable Jedi has often proved more difficult than killing them. Some of those he hunted turned out to be Padawans, something he did not always discover until after the fight was over. Their lightsabers do not count toward his Master's demand, though the Acolyte sees no reason to discard them. Weapons, crystals and functioning components still have value.
As a result, the number of lightsabers in his possession exceeds the number that actually count toward his task.
The years away have changed the nature of his training. Echani forms learned through instruction have been tested in cargo holds, alleys, wilderness and unfamiliar cities, often against opponents who flee, call for help or use whatever advantage is available to them. Injuries have to be managed without Sith physicians. A failed hunt still leaves him needing food, shelter and passage somewhere else. Mistakes remain his problem to solve.
Experience has gradually worn away many of the assumptions of formal training. He has become more patient when a hunt demands it, quicker to improvise when circumstances turn against him, and accustomed to working with whatever can be found.
His possessions reflect the same life. Almost everything he carries has been stolen, scavenged, repaired or altered by his own hands. His clothing is heavy and practical, patched as it wears out. His bracers and boots have been reinforced with sections of
cortosis metal folded into place and crudely bolted down. The workmanship is rough. It is sufficient.
During those years, a personal name has become largely irrelevant. Strangers receive whatever name is convenient, and none of them matter once the encounter ends. Away from the Academy, from other students and from anyone who expects more of him, he has returned naturally to the identity that existed before he ever needed one.
The Acolyte.
A trained weapon with a task unfinished.
