All Neon Like

[Aeron Zambrano]

[SIZE=10pt]MID-AFTERNOON – VOSS[/SIZE]
[SIZE=10pt]OUTSIDE THE JEDI TEMPLE[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]Much had changed in the few weeks since the Silver Jedi had begun their way in the world. They had a Temple, they had recruitment for non-force users, they had bases and they were even expanding already. Everyone was dedicated and enthusiastic. It was a good crowd of people to be around when she felt…[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]She didn’t know how she felt really. Most of the time when she could distract herself with the work, pouring herself in to her training or helping build the Temple but in moments like this where it was quiet she had nothing to occupy her mind. She could open to the Force, letting it flow through her like water but…it was hard to forget the screams the Sith had torn from her, the doubts they had planted in her mind. Asaak believed in the Silver Jedi implicitly but the quiet…[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]She shook her head, walking along through the trees. It was wonderful to have the kind of freedom she’d found within the Silver Jedi. In her time with the Republic she’d never felt at leisure to explore. Even if Coruscant had been the kind of place to aimlessly walk around she wouldn’t have felt as if she could. Voss however, felt like home. Felt like the home she’d always known.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]When she rounded the crest of a hill she spotted a shock of bright hair, striking against the lush green of that particular patch of the planet. She knew her Master had recently taken on a new Padawan and thought she remembered a description of that same intense hair. She slowly made her way closer, making sure her presence was obvious in the Force so she wouldn’t surprise the girl. “Hello – I’m Asaak Tey. I don’t think I’ve seen you around before.” Being on a planet no one had inhabited for hundreds of years took a lot of the guesswork out of who was friendly and who wasn't and Asaak felt comfortable enough to move forward and toe the water of a small lake that opened up before them.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt][member="CHANI"][/SIZE]

 

[CHANI]

Hate flowed through her, she had experienced pain on Voss, it hurt her, she hated the trees, hated, the water, hated the flowers and creatures. Her training lightsaber slashed across a flower, thudded against a tree as she severed a branch, the pain escaped gradually and in one final act of defiance to the planet she threw her training saber at the water, her hate and her emotions went with it. She just had to get it out.

As the saber promptly sank and she stood clam on the edge of the water, a presence caused her to look out of her peripheral, had she thrown her saber too soon? Chani was not used to people coming up from behind her, Nar Shaddaa saw fit to take away any friendly reflex. Her gaze fell upon the individual with suspicion before she introduced herself, [member="Asaak Tey"] had fascinating striped tendrils, she caught herself openly staring at them, averting her gaze, then locking to her eyes.

"My name is Chani, I have been around, I don't stay in the Temple for too long past completing my duties. I have had enough of cities, towns, crowds," she approached the water and toed it as well, smiling manically at Asaak Tey. "Have you been here for a while?"

 

[Aeron Zambrano]

She was familiar with anger. Though she had found peace among the Jedi she had started her life in the Underworld of Coruscant. A young girl in such a city had to work hard just to survive, let alone do well. Had she not been discovered it was any one's guess where she might have ended up. Certainly not under the tutelage of a Master as wonderful as Rasu Gan. Not to mention the seeds that had been planted in her mind by her Sith kidnappers. She had not yet asked her Master to clarify, to put her mind at ease and it was...poisoning her.

She was familiar with the haze of suspicion in the look the other girl gave her. Her dearest friend, Moroi Wareyasui, had often looked at her the same way before she gained his trust. She guessed the bright-haired woman had seen her fair share of pain and suffering judging by the way she took the time to size Asaak up. The Togruta made sure to keep her body language neutral, letting the Kiffar know she meant no harm.

She grinned when [member="CHANI"] shared her name, revealing sharply pointed canine teeth. "You're Master Gan's new Padawan then? She mentioned your name. She's my Master as well. I've been with her for several months now, starting when we were both members of the Republic." She moved to the edge of the water, sitting down and crossing her legs just far enough from it's edge to avoid getting her robes wet. "How'd you come to join the Jedi?" she asked, not knowing it might be a loaded question.

But...she had experienced her own anger and pain. The Silver Jedi were about releasing that and becoming defenders, protectors - wise and calm. If the swipes of frustration and anger she'd seen Chani display a few moments ago were genuine, perhaps they could help each other. And maybe Chani could help Asaak with her own saber skills - that swing of hers certainly looked formidable!

 

[CHANI]

She looked at [member="Asaak Tey"], "Apprentice," watching her pointed teeth as she spoke, taking a mental note to shave her own in a similar fashion, she liked the...utility of them.

"You have been a Jedi Padawan but a Jedi nonetheless, even though I am here and I now fly under the banner of the Silver Jedi make no mistake, I am no lightsider, my upbringing prevents me from fully embracing the kindness and wisdom of any Jedi Order, I began as a dark individual, sought out the neutral masters and have been redeemed by Rasu Gan, our Master, although I have never produced any dark side abilities, inside myself I have the dark and it has me, growing up on Coruscant must have been turbulent in a sea of so many, you must have been discomforted, put out by a robbery or lack of food, or some abuse.

Although she knelt next to Asaak Tey now, there was menace in her voice, a tone which wavered up and down and in between; kindness, disgust, understanding,

"On Nar Shaddaa I have suffered through horrors that would haunt your dreams forever. When you are the smallest, weakest, one must adapt, become feral and sick through heinous behavior just to eek by. We both grew up on the streets, we both suffered in our own right, but that is where the similarity ends, don't turn your back on me, ever, for however much I want to love and accept and fulfill a prophecy of the Jedi Way, I am like ancient Sisyphus, only with devoted padawans, Jedi like yourself will I ever redeem myself and avoid the darkside of the force, for alone, my destiny is to inflict pain, it is my reflex, my way..."

Chani smiled and shared a flower she plucked, a beautiful representation of their budding relationship, Assak, a flower beside a dandelion weed.

 

[Aeron Zambrano]

She was floored by the explanation that came pouring from the bright-haired girl. At first she wasn’t even sure what to say, pressing together the raw ends of the fingers on the hand that the Sith had taken all the nails from. They were slowly beginning to grow back but the dull stab of pain whenever she used them too roughly reminded her of her ordeal.

The Togruta nodded slightly when she heard, indicating that she understood the distinction that [member="CHANI"] had made. “Do you truly believe that because of your upbringing you cannot follow any path you so desire?” Darksiders had changed their stripes before and Chani claimed that she had never produced dark powers. It wasn’t inconceivable. But she had not intentions of preaching to the girl – that was not her goal or her place. She just couldn’t stand the thought of Chani believing that just because of her circumstances she could not choose a life for herself. She had been born to something terrible – if she wanted to leave it, Asaak believed the Order would accept her. Or at least Asaak would.

She was so terribly, painfully kind and optimistic.

That being said, she wasn’t foolish enough to believe that she could turn her back on the bright-haired girl next to her. There was a strange off-kilter bend to her eyes, a manic look, that spoke of all the horrors she’d suffered on Nar Shaddaa. “Coruscant had its charms. I learned to survive. Small jobs, making ends meet. I saw a man murdered and I tried to save him but I couldn’t. As his blood was drying on my hands I made the decision to protect every innocent I could and I found my way to the Jedi. But…” She paused, the narrative of hope and idealism broken by her recent ordeal. “I was recently kidnapped by Sith…tortured. It’s still with me. I don’t know how to heal.”

She reached up, gently pushing the flower that the Kiffar offered with the Force so its bright face bent to face Chani. She needed distraction from her confession, unsure why she decided to share something so personal. “How good are you with that practice saber? You look like you could show me a thing or two.” Asaak's talents lay in the use of the Force, of manipulating things around her, of connecting with her gift to perform Force powers with ease. Combat...was something she definitely needed work on.

 

[CHANI]

"It was my desires which kept me on Nar Shaddaa for so long, intermingled in that cesspool of criminals, If I want something now, I must be mindful of why, aware of the consequences," She listened to [member="Asaak Tey"] 's own cause & affect before a little too excitedly exclaimed, "Sith?" correcting her tone as Tey shared something personal and something she wanted and understood the feeling all too well, getting it out felt good, being able to beat it down felt better, admittedly, "Of course, padawan," Chani half play mocked, "an apprentice will show you how it's done," reached for her training saber and embarrassingly remembered she threw it in the water.

She smiled and punched Asaak tey in the jaw enough to begin the training duel, "Even if your enemy doesn't have a lightsaber, does not mean you are unbeatable, invulnerable, I have seen Sith lightning a lesser force user in the blink of an eye, char them from neck to bellybutton, the form you want is for protecting against a force assault, something to stalemate them."

Chani's remaining attacks floated by Asaak as she advanced on her, unrelenting in strikes, punching, kicking, cartwheel, jump, flip, shake, repeat. "You are more advanced then you realize Padawan and grinned that manic look that seemed to staple her sanity together with humor. "Don't move so much in this Defense, keep your form tight, subtle movements, don't let me predict them. You do not even have to have your saber out to practice most defensive forms as it will be your foot work and feigns that will trip up an opponent."

 

[Aeron Zambrano]

To say that she was surprised when [member="CHANI"] punched her in the jaw was something of an understatement.

There she was, minding her own business and trying to connect a bit with the girl sharing a Master with her, when she was rudely pulled out of her reveries by a smack! Well…she supposed she’d been asking for a lesson. She wasn’t about to let that happen twice, throwing all her momentum backwards in to a reverse somersault and springing up with her fists up and tucked to her body. Moroi had taught her enough so she didn’t get killed – but Chani was a different breed entirely. Chani cared nothing for Asaak’s well-being, which made the Togruta a little sad but that was for another time.

She had to concentrate hard, listening to the bright-haired flash’s advice while changing her stance to emulate what she was being told. She was just getting ready to try a counter, to attack back when….

There was a growl from the side of both of them accompanied by the smell of rank breath. Asaak ducked some crazy combination of cartwheel and punch from Chani (kriff this woman was impressive!) and whipped to the side to see what it was that had come to join them and somehow snuck up on her. Chani must had been taking up more of her concentration than she thought because as she saw the creature….it took her breath away.

She thought at first it was a Nexu. The body was similar, a big cat like creature with a wide mouth. But that thought was quickly dashed – the beast had wings for forelegs, pressing on bent appendages to move. Its mouth was full of wicked teeth and along the bone of the wing large hooked spikes glinted in the sun.

Oh, lovely.

“We should trap it,” she said, her first thought being that the Masters would want to see this life form. Despite their time on the planet, its wildlife was still a mystery to the Silver Jedi. They needed to know what they were living amongst – what was friendly and what wasn't. Not to mention that many of the Healers would want to see if it had any properties they could use to their benefit. There had to be ruins they could corner it in – hell, maybe they could knock it unconscious. They were going to have to – the creature let out a hideous cross between a growl and a scream as it reared up on its hind legs. Asaak lifted her hand up and reached out with the Force, feeling for Chani’s training saber in the water and ripping it out, letting it shoot back to the girl’s hand.

And just in time: the creature dropped back down on its forelimbs, rocketing forward to devour them. Asaak lifted both hands and set her face in a grim line, rocketing the Force out towards the animal in an attempt to buffet its limbs with a Force push, hoping the resultant disturbance in the air would send it tumbling.

Chani was without a doubt the more gifted of the two in combat and Asaak was quickly learning to master the Force. Together, they could do this.

Otherwise, they were about to get eaten.

 

[CHANI]

[member="Asaak Tey"] caught on quickly to her feints and subtle kicks, responding in kind with equally efficient blocks, maneuvers, small retreats but just as Asaak was going to take the initiative of her own accord, the growl...

Then the scream which pierced Chani's ears, then a burst of air whooshed past her as Assak just moments before retrieved her saber for her, "The living force comes quick to you, I am glad!." and activated the training saber, the gross amalgamation rose into the air with its wings and tumbled back down from the force ability the padawan unleashed on it, after the beast fell backwards to the ground, a patch of trees parted, revealing a nest in the tall grass, "It is a mother protecting her young..." an unexpected response, she wanted to kill it, regretfully felt like she needed to kill something so ugly, but Chani remembered not all ugly things where innately evil, so she deactivated her training saber and stepped back as the creature began to stand back up.

"We should swim in the water, get our scent out of here." stepped a bit into the lake, "I do not believe we need to catch it, the creature wont be going anywhere for a while, better to return and capture the creatures likeness with surveillance, study it further." and finally not believing the words came out of her mouth, "We do not need to fight."

 

[Aeron Zambrano]

She pulled back with the Force when the creature stopped its immediate attempts to scare them off, not wanting to continue her offense when it had ceased its own. She was surprised by the boundary it seemed to be setting for itself until [member="CHANI"] made the observation that the creature was protecting young. She was glad to hear such peaceful sentiments from the girl standing next to her, already something she wasn’t expecting after receiving such manic looks and a punch to the jaw.

Asaak nodded in response to Chani’s suggestion, turning though keeping an eye on the creature behind them before slipping in to the water, treading it behind her as they washed out their scent.

When they reached the other side and the Togruta had slipped from the small lake she looked around, wringing her robes between her fingers. “That was gracious of you,” she teased, this time a bit wary of punches to the jaw. It seemed to be a good rule of thumb with the bright haired girl.

 

[CHANI]

She laughed and her smiling fell into a spartan stare upon [member="Asaak Tey"] , "This place is peaceful compared to Nar Shaddaa, that was a legitimate situation to avoid, the first kind I have ever truly been introduced into, my actions always settled on the other side, I am glad to be not living in the past anymore, I feel so free here on this planet, even if it is weird, it seems both our weirdness' go hand in hand, what do you feel when you reach out with the force to this planet?

Shaking water off herself and marching on, "I have always felt a trapped lightside presence, caged by a darkside warden, but everything around us outside the nightmare lands are as peaceful as can be, we are powerful enough to avoid killing weaker sentients we happen across."

Chani's bouncing personality extended a smile, "How far can you jump?" and suddenly the Kiffar jumped towards a nearby cliff face in one momentous somersault, she looked back down as she landed and was pleased to have leaped fifty feet vertical with ease. "This is my specialty, try jumping onto that cliff down there," pointing to a ledge twenty or so feet further down. "The key is to realize you weight almost nothing inside the force and remember also that the force surrounds us, the force is us, we are apart of it and it's natural to move throughout the world willingly." her bizzard alugh returned, "It's like being caught in a friendly river!"