Cold Blue Steel and Sweet Fire

[Setzi Lunelle]

Location: Arca Jeth's Praxeum on Arkania

Setzi’s heart beat rapidly like a hummingbird's wings as she sat on a wooden bench and waited for her new Jedi instructor at the Arkanium Praxeum. The small training facility, reminding her vaguely of a log cabin, was nestled in the Arkanian wilderness and on the journey, the padawan marveled at the planet’s sights and untouched nature as they moved further away from the Adascopolis, the capital. It was a cold climate and as she sat warming her hands in the folds of her heavy wool padawan robes, she could see her breath coming out in little puffs of steam.

Even though the harsh, wintery climate was so different from the desert and plains of her homeworld of Aduba-3, she supposed she needed to get used to it as she would stay here in these lodgings until the Jedi Master pronounced her fit for advancement. She closed her eyes and used the Force to see if she could sense Master Shatterstar nearby, but she could detect nothing except a faint imprint from the dining room where two other padawans were having stimcaf. She knew there was a large stone fireplace in that dining room and right about now in the cold Praxeum entranceway, it beckoned to her.

The Praxeum wasn’t that big, but she assumed there would be quite a few rooms to practice lightsaber techniques and telekinesis. Unless… he was going to have her train outside? She shivered just thinking of that and pulled the hood of her robe over her head, her teeth chattering. She played with the strands of her shoulder length braid and watched the entrance for signs of the Jedi Master

[member="Varus Shatterstar"]

 

[Varus Shatterstar]

The weather hadn't been too harsh on Arkania, certainly nothing to rival the storms he'd seen on his few trips to Ilum, but still the snow was falling and the wind whipping in such a way that he was barely visible until he got close to the Praxeum. He was about 100 yards away before he could see the small training facility clearly and manage to make out clear details, and through the gentle snowfall a tall, broad man finally materialized almost all at once, and he was heading right for the front gates.

He wasn't in any hurry, in fact, he didn't even appear cold, but perhaps it was easier to appear this way when you were manipulating the force in order to keep warmth circulating your body. Like the fumes of heat from a gas fueled lamp, the force visibly rose from the Jedi's shoulders like steam as he trudged through the snow, reaching the gate and pushing it open without even so much as stopping to take a look around. His long strides then took him into the Praxeum, past some of the others that had taken refuge for training there and into the dining room where he found one of two couches situated on either side of the fireplace.

Stopping next to one of the couches, Varus sat down a satchel, peeled off his cloak and then his jacket and then draped them both over the back of the couch. He then turned and sat back into the comfortable seat, an indifferent look upon his face as he glanced over at the fire and then down into the satchel the he'd pulled over to him and sat in his lap.

Digging through it only took a moment, and when he'd found what he wanted he retrieved it and set it aside. He then reached back in and pulled out a data pad which he sat on his right thigh. First, Varus reached over and took the metal container he'd sat down first and opened it up. He turned it up, taking two large gulps and then lowered the container back down again, screwing the top back on before discarding it to the couch next to him once more. Next he picked up his data pad and began running his fingers across it's face, making contact with both Kian and Corvus to report his status of arrival before setting the data pad down and laying his head across the back of the couch for his first moment of peace and silence in quite some time.


[member="Setzi Lunelle"]

 

[Setzi Lunelle]

As Setzi sat huddled among her robes, she noticed a tall man enter the Praxeum and walk up the hall and into the dining room. Was that Varus Shatterstar? She watched him round the corner and then rose, straightening allowing her robe to hang more open, despite the chill and straightening out her tunic with her hands. Only one way to find out, she thought.

She walked into the dining room and noticed the new arrival was sitting on one of the couches near the fireplace. She couldn’t fault him for finding the best seat in the entire Academy. The padawan began to walk over and noticed how he lay his head on the back of the sofa, almost as though he were weary. An unwanted feeling that she was intruding on his private time came creeping in, but she had nearly made her way over to him. To turn back around and go the other way would only make her look foolish. If it were Shatterstar, he was a Jedi after all. He would be able to sense her approaching.

“Master Shatterstar? Is that you?” she asked him, still standing to the side of the couch. The inviting fire warmed her on one side, but she didn’t sit down yet. “My name is Setzi Lunelle and I’m looking for Varus Shatterstar."

[member="Varus Shatterstar"]

 

[Varus Shatterstar]

"You're looking at him.", Varus said as he lazily let his head fall to the side, blue eyes opening again to see a youthful woman's face. She was pretty, which was the first thing he noticed about here, but it seemed like Jedi tended to be rather pretty considering that practically every one was in incredible shape. It was a minor blessing, their fitness and tough training regiments, which helped to keep them in near perfect condition, which allowed for their most impressive features to shine like strong jaw lines, cheek bones and tight, toned figures. It was simply the way of the world for the Jedi, which was funny when Varus thought about such trivial things when he remembered that emotional connections to others were frowned upon. How could they expect for their young and upcoming Jedi to control themselves with so much eye candy around their temples?

"Have a seat, if you wish.", Varus told her, motioning to the couch across from him as he leaned up from the back of the couch and propped himself up by planting his elbows into the tops of his knees.

[member="Setzi Lunelle"]

 

[Setzi Lunelle]

As Master Shatterstar turned his head her way, Setzi thought, how arresting are those blue eyes! She wasn’t quite expecting his gaze to be so intense. But she knew the Jedi Master wasn’t just another pretty face. He had an acclaimed reputation throughout the Order, and she only hoped she would live up to his good reputation and wouldn’t fail him as a clumsy, uncoordinated student.

“Thank you,” she said nodding and sitting across from him. She finally pulled back the hood of her padawan robes down and let it settle on her shoulders. The dining room was much warmer than the corridor near the entrance and suddenly her woolen garments seemed far too hot on her skin, beads of sweat beginning to appear on her forehead. But at this point, she would trade sweltering in her robes for that awful bitter cold that she had felt before.

“As I stated before I’m Padawan Lunelle. Or you can call me Setzi. Aduba-3 is my homeworld, but I’m residing here and I was assigned to you by Master Hinanta.” Master Hinata was an elderly Jedi Consular who made her residency at the Praxeum. “She thought you would be a good fit as a Master. I hope your journey here was not too stressful,” she continued, remembering how tired he had seemed when she first entered the room.

[member="Varus Shatterstar"]

 

[Varus Shatterstar]

"I don't take recommendations from others Masters.", Varus said in response to Setzi, a bit abruptly as he wished to make it known that he wasn't there to waste his time, nor would he let it be. His hasty response, however, did not reflect his lazy and calm movements, hinting at his fatigue from having been awake for almost two days now. He'd been performing a special type of training to test his resolve and resilience by pushing himself to near exhaustion of both body and mind to lengthen his realm for punishment and fatigue. Something quite dangerous to his health and ill advised by the other Jedi.

He wasn't much certain about how much he cared for the opinions of other Jedi at that moment, however, watching silently like the voiceless warrior he was meant to be as politics wrought decay within the Republic. "I take an apprentice in the rare occasion that one comes to me with the desire to learn and the confidence that I am the one that should teach them. I require nothing more, nor will I go through the trouble of mentoring a student for less.", he told her, narrowing his eyes on the woman a bit as if expecting some form of response or request while he leaned forwards a bit on his elbows.

[member="Setzi Lunelle"]

 

[Setzi Lunelle]

Setzi listened to Varus as he leaned in and explained his reasoning for taking her on as an apprentice. But honestly, he looked downright exhausted, and the brunette padawan felt bad keeping him awake now, when possibly he could use a good night’s sleep and not a long, drawn-out conversation with her about the unpredictable nature of the Jedi Order.

“I understand,” she said. “But I’ll cut to the chase,” she added before she had time to even acknowledge whether she was being too bold or not. Sometimes the truth needed to be said.

“You look absolutely fatigued, Master Shatterstar. I think you and I should both retire to our rooms and start off fresh tomorrow."

Setzi rose and put her hands out towards the fire to warm them. What was she thinking trying to dismiss Master Shatterstar so easily when she would much rather sit with him by in this cozy room, perhaps have stimcaf or tea and conversation, rather than scurry off to a frigid icebox of a room where she would be piling her blankets around her chin to keep warm?!? Sometimes you really aren’t that smart, Setzi, she told herself. But the right thing was to let him go get some rest.

[member="Varus Shatterstar"]

 

[Varus Shatterstar]

"I don't need rest.", Varus claimed as he began to pop each one of his fingers by putting pressure against the top of each knuckle one at a time. So, let me cut to the chase instead." , he told her as he watched her carefully with those sapphires people had begun to pick him out for those days.

"Are you requesting my time as your Master? Or are you simply following the suggestions of a Jedi that you and I both know doesn't know any more about who should be paired with who than anyone else does?" , he asked rather directly with a certain direct tone. "Because I can assure you that if you are not prepared for my brand of training you will regret taking her suggestion."

[member="Setzi Lunelle"]