Private Another Door Opens

[Silas Westgard]

Location: New Cov
Objective: Spend some time with his bro
Tag: Cailen Corso

While there were some doors closing there were new ones opening. Cailen, a kid who he treated like a little bro was starting a new journey elsewhere. Silas was obviously quite distraught to see him go, but it wasn't like he was going away forever. He'd be able to visit when he had time, it was just going to be strange not seeing him around the temples anymore. That's why on his last day he planned to do something and make the most of the time they had. The hard part wasn't planning it at all, it was keeping in the tears that were going to be a challenge for sure.

Before he set off into the jungle, Silas sent him coordinates to meet him on the same hill they both first trained together on all that time ago. He had something planned for the lad, hopefully it would cheer him up before he left that day. Arriving nice and early he calmly stretched off on top of the hill and awaited the boy to burst through the treeline of the jungle.

By now he should know how to get here safely. If Cailen didn't, his last day was going to be spent by one of the many hungry creatures that lay hidden in wait.
​

 

[Cailen Corso]

Objective: Say Goodbye, Try Not to Cry | Location: New Cov Temple | Soundtrack: Summerland

​

Every step Cailen took was harder than the last, because it wasn’t just his brother waiting for him on that hill …

… a bittersweet farewell to the New Jedi Order awaited him as well.

The trek from the temple to the hilltop seemed much longer than be remembered, but that might have been attributed to the dangerous beasts they encountered before. A smile spread across Cailen’s face as he relived the heart pounding experience. Very few Padawans could boast about surviving a wild panthac attack.

Cailen spent the majority of the walk lost in his thoughts, reminiscing over his fondest memories with Silas; Training alongside him with Valery Noble and Iris Arani , rebuilding a forgotten pit droid, and the attending the galaxy’s most intense charity gala. It suddenly dawned on him that he’d practically grown up with Silas.

In all his best recollections, his brother was right there beside him.

Soon, Cailen was climbing the slope of the hilltop training ground, and when his eyes met the older Jedi, he nearly burst into tears.

“Silas!” he exclaimed, running to meet the Knight with arms spread wide. He flung them around Silas, squeezing him tight.

Tears threatened to roll down his cheeks, but Cailen fought back the emotions. Today wasn’t supposed to be sad.

He was here with his brother, and he was going to make the most of every minute.

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Tags: Silas Westgard ​

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[Silas Westgard]

Location: New Cov
Objective: Spend some time with his bro
Tag: Cailen Corso

“Silas!”

The knight turned and saw Cailen run at him with open arms, emotional from the fact it would be one of their last days together as Jedi. Silas did well in keeping his tears at bay as he met his bro and gave him the biggest hug he could muster by lifting him up a few inches and spinning him around. He was going to make the most of the opportunity they had together, Cailen deserved a good send off after all.

"What's up little bro?" he said with a slight choke in his voice, slowly placing him down on the ground to ruffle his hair teasingly "I heard the news about you leaving the order and thought I'd give you one last goodbye" Silas explained, motioning his head to the grounds around them "I'm sure you remember this place well. We did our first training session here with Valery Noble who got us to do a spar together, one of which I won" the boy gave a cheeky wink to Cailen before moving into open ground and opening his arms out.

"Why not end it where it began? I want to see how far you've come"
​

 

[Cailen Corso]

Objective: Say Goodbye, Try Not to Cry | Location: New Cov Temple | Soundtrack: Summerland

​

The younger boy giggled as his feet left the ground, melting into the embrace and hugging as tight as he could. Cailen had always thought of Silas as an older brother, but he felt that now more than ever before.

"I heard the news about you leaving the order and thought I'd give you one last goodbye"

“Oh- I’m-” Cailen fumbled, nervously rubbing the nape of his neck.

“I’m really sorry for not telling you myself. I just- I was worried you’d be disappointed with me,” he said, wondering if Silas had noticed the lump that formed in his throat. He sighed, turning to look around the training area.

A smile quickly replaced the troubled look on his face. How could he ever forget this place?

“Of course I remember! That panthac almost ate us for breakfast!” Cailen laughed. It seemed funny now, thinking of how young and serious they were back then. How simple things were.

He supposed it was a rather dangerous encounter - but Master Noble was there the whole time, and she’d never have let them get hurt, no matter what. Besides, killing the beast wasn’t the goal anyway. Getting the boys to trust one another was her priority. It was the illusion of danger that pushed them together, and Cailen appreciated her for it every day since then.

He was even grateful for the panthac.

"Why not end it where it began? I want to see how far you've come."

“R-really?” Cailen asked, beaming with excitement.

A lot had happened since their last spar, and Cailen had picked up more than a few trucks that Silas hadn’t seen. He was excited to show his brother how much he’d learned over the last few months, but truthfully, Cailen was happy to do anything with Silas.

As long as they were together, it would be a great day.

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Tags: Silas Westgard ​

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[Silas Westgard]

Location: New Cov
Objective: Spend some time with his bro
Tag: Cailen Corso

“I’m really sorry for not telling you myself. I just- I was worried you’d be disappointed with me,”

Silas sighed and scratched his head "Why would I be? I'm obviously sad to see you go but if it means you'll be happier and well off then I can't complain" the knight smiled, happy that Cailen was able to decide what was best for himself "It's not like we're not going to see each other for the last time, so don't worry about me kid" he grinned to the boy, giving him a slight nod to indicate there weren't any hard feelings at all.

Suddenly taking out his lightsaber, the weapon was turned on with a swift motion and swished around casually as Silas paced up and down "You don't think I'd let you go before going at it one last time?" Silas chuckled slightly and motioned for him to get ready "I'd expect you to be way more powerful than our first meeting. After all, you're a promising warrior so I expect nothing less than a challange" he explained before snapping into a Sorosu stance.

"What are you waiting for Cailen? are you scared a panthacs going to take a nibble while your back is turned?"
​

 

[Cailen Corso]

Objective: Spar | Location: New Cov Temple | Soundtrack: Summerland

​

A huge grin spread across Cailen’s face when Silas ignited his saber. The younger boy followed suit, lighting his own cyan blade and taking his favored sparring stance.

He laughed at Silas’ taunt.

“Not a chance!”

The moment the words left his lips, he launched forward in an aerial spin, bringing his blade down in a powerful downward strike. Silas would make no mistake in recognizing the younger boy’s growth in skill and tenacity since last they dueled. Cailen smirked on the other side of their crossed blades.

“I’m not scared of panthacs anymore,” he said, pushing back and following with another strike.

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Tags: Silas Westgard ​

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[Silas Westgard]

Location: New Cov
Objective: Spend some time with his bro
Tag: Cailen Corso

Silas rushed forwards and moved to meet the boys downward strike with the raise of his own lightsaber, locking them in a temporary stalemate. The knight looked into his determined eyes and grinned "Not bad... it seems like you've grown comfortable in your own style" he said with a pleased tone before getting pushed back slightly by Cailen.

Instead of using his lightsaber this time, he used his body to weave around the strike and jump backward. Raising his hand, Silas sent a strong force push into the body of Cailen to try and gain some space "You've still got much to learn little guy" Silas chuckled before running at him at a fast pace to press the attack.

Swinging his lightsaber towards his head, he was expecting him to block it once more. Making sure the blade deflected off his own, he swiftly rotated his body and sent a hard kick into his stomach to try and send him to the ground for another attack. ​

 

[Cailen Corso]

Objective: Spar | Location: New Cov Temple | Soundtrack: Summerland

​

The Force Push wasn’t unmitigable, giving itself away in the aura of energy surrounding them, but Silas’ kick knocked the wind from Cailen’s chest. The younger boy stumbled backwards, catching his footing just in time to block the Knight’s blade with his own.

He was used to being on the defensive. Comfortable, even, with sustaining under the pressure of an aggressive opponent.

When an opening presented itself, Cailen pushed back hard with his saber. He followed it with a smaller Force Push of his own, then dashed backward from the saber-lock with incredible speed.

He didn’t afford Silas time to adjust, however. Just as quickly as the gap opened, Cailen closed it with a dash-attack from the side.

“I’ve learned so much already!” Cailen shouted back as their blades clashed brilliantly together.

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Tags: Silas Westgard ​

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[Silas Westgard]

Location: New Cov
Objective: Spend some time with his bro
Tag: Cailen Corso

Silas felt Cailen lift up his saber high into the air before driving him backward with a force push of his own. Digging the heels of his feet into the ground, his feet slid across the grass and soon came to a halt. However, Cailen wasn't planning on giving the knight any room to recover as he dashed forward with slashes of his own.

For the first few strikes, he used his lightsaber to deflect them, but when the time was right he decided to use his body to weave in and out of the saber being flung at him "We... will see... about that!" he said with a smirk as he was backing up towards one of the ancient stones step by step. Keeping his eye open for the next strike, he quickly jumped to the right and gave the boy a side kick into his back this time.

Pulling back his saber, he tried to make the most of the opportunity by sending a quick stab into Cailens shoulder. If it did hit, you couldn't be too careful in hitting the spine on stun.

Silas knew full well how much that hurt. ​

 

[Cailen Corso]

Objective: Spar | Location: New Cov Temple | Soundtrack: Summerland

​

And boy did it hurt like hell. Cailen knew the strike was coming before it landed, that he’d been out-maneuvered. But no amount of mental preparedness readied his muscles for the shock of Silas’ saber stun. If this were a real duel, he’d be dead.

Cailen lurched forward, flicking his own lightsaber off once he’d regained his composure. They could keep going, but Cailen knew when he was beat. Besides, there wasn’t much time left before he was expected aboard the shuttle, and he still had many things he wanted to say to the only brother he’d ever known.

He turned to Silas, his smile a mixture of pride in his growth but sadness at the thought of leaving. There was so much more he wanted to do, and for the first time since deciding to take his studies to the Outer Rim, he was having doubts. He kept his bottom lip tight and bowed.

“That was awesome, Si!” the younger boy said with a grin.

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Tags: Silas Westgard ​

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[Silas Westgard]

Location: New Cov
Objective: Spend some time with his bro
Tag: Cailen Corso

As soon as his saber made contact he swiftly turned it off and placed it back into its holster. They both could have had way more duels, but unfortunately, time was a cruel thing in this case "Indeed, and it shows you still have much more to learn" he said with a teasing grin before ruffling Cailens hair "One day you'll surpass my skills, but for now, I'm going to enjoy it" the knight chuckled before beginning to walk over to a path back towards the shuttle pads.

For a few moments both Jedi were silent as they walked the clean path with a view. Soon enough though, Silas had something on his mind he wanted to ask the young Jedi "Cailen, what are your reasons for leaving if you don't mind me asking?" Silas asked calmly, his gaze looking ahead of him at the shuttles bursting through the atmosphere.

"Whatever it may be, I know it will be for good reason" ​

 

[Cailen Corso]

Objective: Spar | Location: New Cov Temple | Soundtrack: Summerland

​

"I just..." he started, then paused abruptly. He had several reasons for leaving, but they were harder to articulate than to think. His thoughts turned to his former Master, Tarus. The man who discovered his Force sensitivity and brought him to the Jedi when he was young.

His death was what had led Cailen to this decision. He needed time to think and explore the feelings he had. The pain that he carried with him was bleeding into his training, causing him to lose focus and get distracted. He was angry, and it showed when he least expected it. Valery Noble had seen it before, when his hatred for the Sith boiled over on a rescue mission in the Outer Rim.

It was just too much for him to carry, and distance was the only solution he could think of.

"I need some time to think," he said, looking to Silas with sadness in his eyes. "I have to figure some things out, and I think doing that in a new place will be good for me."

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Tags: Silas Westgard ​

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