Jedi Knight Begins

[Connor Harrison]

Galactic Alliance Jedi Campus
Coruscant, Core Worlds


"Kyle Chambers. Here to see a...Liliane Lancaster."

The dark haired man wearing an also dark outfit left his message with the Toydarian at the security gate of the Jedi campus on Corsucant. One of many belonging to the Galactic Alliance after the liberation of the planet, Kyle felt there was no better place to seek help.

Liliane Lancaster was simply a name he had seen on Sullust ready to help those seeking a future, that she was taking on one recruit to help shape and train them for service. He made his case, and now he was here to meet her.

Carrying a duffel bag, he stood and waited, looking around the entrance to the building as he did taking in the architecture and the Alliance propaganda. Species of all sorts came in and out, young and old, military and admin. There was a real sense of unity and team-work, unlike what he saw in the First Order which was plain and simple racism to those not of the human species and a strict iron-fisted rule.

His days serving the dark were well and truly over. It was time to begin his new path, right here.

[member="Liliane Lancaster"]

 

[Liliane]

Liliane could never stay in one place for too long nowadays. Every single day of her life consisted of travelling, doing some missions on a planet, and then moving on to the next one. But the two main worlds on which she often found herself were Sullust and Coruscant. The first because it was the Alliance's and New Jedi Order's capital and the second because her home was there and the planet still needed a lot of work to be done.

Now she was on Coruscant. Feeling nostalgic, she did the very same thing she did years ago when she was just a teenage girl -- taking a walk around parks every now and then with a cup of coffee bought from a small coffee shop. She loved such simplicity.

Of course at that very moment, the woman wasn't wandering around aimlessly, but instead headed to the Jedi campus. She had some work to do there, but she was not necessarily in a hurry yet. Her new Padawan could wait a moment or two. She'd heard the man was from the First Order, which was also a difficulty of its own.

Even though Kyle Chambers might have been a defector, it was always really difficult to work with people who'd made a complete 180 degree turn. It took a lot of getting used to in the new environment, as well as a great deal of confidence and mental strength to successfully turn.

She just hoped the man had all that was needed.

And after a few more minutes, the lady dressed in just a short black slim dress, wearing black high heels, made it into the Jedi campus. There would be no missioning today. Only getting to know each other and some simple training.

[ [member="Kyle Chambers"] ]​

 

[Connor Harrison]

Kyle didn't get many looks standing around the entrance, which was good. He wasn't over-dressed, or under. He didn't bear insignia or rank or carry weapons or armour. He was just himself, dressed in his old military tunic and carrying his belongings.

Of course, he didn't know who knew about his past. But, then the Alliance had taken on defectors before, hadn't they? The galaxy was full of lore about those defecting from one side to the other and helping turn the tides of war. Maybe this was something Kyle Chambers could do to ease his conscious.

A few people walked towards him, and then right past him. A few different species, which was alien - no pun intended - to a man serving where the human race was the be all and end all.

Kyle looked around for a few moments in each direction - into the campus to see if a female was coming for him, and then outside to look for a shuttle or welcome party.

But through the bodies, one seemed to be making a bee-line for him. A business woman of some kind going on her dress, and knowing just how to look and walk like one too. He coulnd't take his eyes off her as much as he tried, and she certainly was coming for him. Kyle stepped forward a little to intercept.

"Liliane Lancaster?" Kyle asked.

[member="Liliane Lancaster"]

 

[Liliane]

The moment Liliane stepped into the campus, she was able to see a man in a uniform -- it was not an unusual uniform for a soldier, but it was somewhat odd for a Jedi. Perhaps that man was the defector. He looked old; a lot older than herself, she made a quick assumption. But age did not matter.

So she quickly made her way to the man who seemed to have noticed her as well.

"It is I," the Jedi Marshal nodded. "I assume you are Kyle? If so, then nice to meet you!"

The girl let her eyes examine the man very subtly. Getting to know the physique of a student was essential to determining the best way to approach many aspects of training, especially dueling.

"I am sorry for making you wait, but I see you found this place on your own and didn't run into problems, I assume?"

Coruscant, now that it was under Galactic Alliance control, didn't make an effort to hide their Jedi temples from the public. Many people who served the Alliance were welcome to wander around some areas of the Jedi territory without getting into trouble, so the man mustn't have had issues getting into the campus.

At least she hoped so.

After hearing the answer, she would politely ask, "Shall we head to my training quarters?"

[ [member="Kyle Chambers"] ]​

 

[Connor Harrison]

Kyle offered a warm smile – tight, but warm – and nodded as he gripped his bag.

"The pleasure is all mine. And please, lead the way."

He turned on his heel to stand with her and started off beside the girl who didn’t quite fit the profile he had in mind. But what DID he have in mind. Older? Robes? Administrator?

"It’s a nice place you have set-up here. It was easy to find so don’t worry about that."

Looking around at everyone going about his business, he felt that he was the small fish again in an even bigger pond than before.

"So," came the small-talk to work her out, "how long have you been with the Alliance? Are you one of those Masters or, something else?"

He was learning as he went about the Jedi and Force as a whole.

[member="Liliane Lancaster"]

 

[Liliane]

It was not a long walk to Liliane's quarters, but it did give them a while to get to know each other and have a nice casual chat. Liliane could recall the times long ago when she always enjoyed socialising. They'd been wonderful times indeed, followed up with years of depression and grim, only to make way for a more positive attitude once again.

"Yeah, well, I think I've been here for maybe eight years now? I can't remember, really," the Jedi Marshal spoke while casually walking towards the training rooms, Kyle by her side. "I've only been a Master for about a year, I believe. And a Jedi Marshal even less than that."

It was weird how her rank in the New Jedi Order seemed so typical and normal now, even though even half a year ago, she wouldn't have even imagined being a Marshal. She could only hope that people would look up to her now just like the way she herself had admired Masters and Marshals when she was nothing more but a Padawan.

"But I love it here and I couldn't imagine myself doing anything else, really."

Guess that had helped her a lot at climbing the career ladder. Passion was a necessity when one wanted to succeed.

"I'm sure you'll enjoy the Alliance as well. If my horrible teaching skills don't give you nightmares, that is," she joked.

[ [member="Kyle Chambers"] ]​

 

[Connor Harrison]

"Don't worry, I'm pretty good at following orders so as long as you have faith in what you teach, I'll learn."

Kyle had worked under a female before. A Commander in the White Wolves unit and she had been a brutal mentor. Age didn't matter. If they had it, they had it. Kyle felt this girl had it. She didn't look that old, but she rattled off some impressive titles.

"Eight years, and a Master for over one? Well that's good going."

He frowned a little.

"You said a Master AND Marshal? What's the difference? Is that some sort of splinter cell in the Alliance?"

[member="Liliane Lancaster"]

 

[Liliane]

Liliane made a quick exhale from her nose.

"Umm, well, in the galactic scale of things, I'd still be considered a Master-level Force user, that's why I often call myself a Jedi Master," Liliane tried to explain. "In the Galactic Alliance, though, I'm a rank higher than Master. Jedi Marshal is the highest rank possible here, second only to the Grand Marshal Omai Rhen. We're commanders and advisors to Grand Marshal Rhen, enforcing his rule over the New Jedi Order."

She looked at the man, hoping he understood what she'd just said.

They were about to near the room they were headed to, but that didn't matter the conversation would have to end. Like she'd planned, there would be very little training that day, if any at all. So they had a lot of time to just talk and get to know each other.

Because knowing each other was important.

"Most Marshals would typically lead a permanent sub-unit of the New Jedi Order. I myself don't have one of these units yet -- I focus on more temporary things and Padawan training."

She walked over to the door to the training room. It opened automatically.

"And I myself am more of a fighter than a commander, anyway."

[ [member="Kyle Chambers"] ]​

 

[Connor Harrison]

Kyle nodded in approval as this girl, this Jedi Master and Marshal explained herself to be quite high up the pecking order.

Following her through and into the training room which was rather spacious, Kyle turned to her.

"Makes perfect sense, and nothing wrong with leading with a fight than commands, that’s fine."

He took a little slow circle in the room to look around and get his bearings.

"Forgive me, all this talk of Padawans and training and things, kind of throws me off a bit and makes me feel like I should be in school." He gave a crooked smile and a shrug. "No offence, of course. Just want you to know how alien this is to me. Are you…going to be training me or someone else?"

She still didn’t LOOK like he expected a trainer to. She was far too…sweet.

[member="Liliane Lancaster"]

 

[Liliane]

"Huh, well," Liliane was slightly clueless. The question had seemingly come out of nowhere. Maybe something she'd said or done triggered such a question, maybe the man just hadn't completely come to the understanding of who Liliane was yet...

"I am not quite the traditional Master, you might have understood by now," she started the response, picking the right words to make herself understandable and to answer more questions than she could create. "I am more liberal when it comes to training. It is my job to oversee your progress and stand for getting you to the Knight level one day. How I do that is up to me and you."

She looked into Kyle's eyes.

"I will train you. But I will definitely not train you at everything. There are some things I am probably the best at and there are things which I am never to be bothered with."

Would the Padawan like this approach or would he prefer a more traditional route? If it was the latter, then things were to turn a whole lot more complicated.

"So it's up to you to decide. I am giving you the freedom to ask for training from other Knights and Masters. If they can give you something, go and take what they have to offer. I am going to do my best to hand you these offers and point you in the right direction. Don't think of me as a teacher or an iron-handed ruler. Instead, I would like to take the role of a mentor."

She walked over to the few chairs that were in the room, gestured the man to take a seat and then took a seat herself.

"Or. I could teach you absolutely everything you would ever need, taking the more traditional Jedi approach. But like I said, it's up to you to choose."

[ [member="Kyle Chambers"] ]​

 

[Connor Harrison]

Kyle followed her around the room as she talked, just watching and listening to her and taking it in. When he was offered a seat, he took it, feeling like he was back in interrogation. Except there were no Stormtroopers at the door or cameras trained on him. Dropping his bag, he rubbed his hands together slowly and leant forward, arms on his knees.

"I can’t say I know what traditional is, because when does tradition become a tradition at all? No, if you are on a level you are because of what you do and how you do it, and as a mentor, I will take that. I’ll listen, I’ll follow you lead, I’ll learn and won’t stop pushing."

He nodded to his bag.

"That’s what I’ve come here with, and I have no expectations from the Alliance or from you, but I don’t give up, so hopefully I won’t let you down in turn."

He gave a smile to close his affirmation of faith in her.

[member="Liliane Lancaster"]

 

[Liliane]

Liliane nodded, then smiled.

"Alright. Sounds great," the woman said. Her eyes then moved down to look at the floor, thought for a moment, and then raised her eyes again. She couldn't really tell if she'd just destroyed the man's hopes and beliefs or not. Despite his affirmation that he didn't know what traditional was, was he actually fine with the way the Master wanted to teach him or was this just the facade of a growing distrust?

Such pessimism shouldn't have been let in on a day like that.

"So tell me, you've come from the First Order, right? Did you know there that you were sensitive to the Force?"

She thought a sudden change of topic could somewhat help loosen the tension she was feeling inside. As well as that, she could get to know the background of the man to work out the best possible solutions for training and mentoring him.

The First Order was mainly the faction for Darksiders, so if they had had any effect on the man, things would have been a lot more difficult. Darkness, even if it was just a withering seed unable to grow, could sometimes ruin everything. She knew that just too well, having had follow the Light while having a flaming fire of Darkness inside.

[ [member="Kyle Chambers"] ]​

 

[Connor Harrison]

With a smile more fake to appear comfortable and at ease, Kyle looked at her and noted her body language. She was either intimidated, or feeling a sense already that this one was going to be more trouble than her worth. Was it his age, his former standing, his sex? All? One or two?

As she looked back, he reaffirmed the smile and didn’t flinch or recoil or frown at her question. He kept his face calm and devoid of much hostility to simply let her say what she needed to say.

"I was, yes. You should have most of my notes in the file I sent before landing here, transmitted yesterday. I have known for years, since I was a child but I never openly accepted or touched upon it. That I know of, anyway. I mean, my skill in the White Wolves was unquestionable, and I was a good shot. I also had lots of stamina, and even when wounded I pulled through. I know this Force can work on healing and also making perception greater, so what if without realising it I had been rooting this Force in me to shoot straight, to hit my marks, to carry me through and help when the danger increased? Does that make sense?"

[member="Liliane Lancaster"]