Midnight Wanderings

[NightSister]

Aria spun round in an instant to see that Celiana had joined her sabers together. As far as she was aware, double-bladed lightsabers were frowned upon by Jedi due to their Sith origins, but there was likely some exception that she hadn't yet heard about. Her mock duels were frequently against two blades - rarely against saberstaffs - but she supposed it would be a learning experience.

She moved with the grace and technique of an Echani firedancer as she intercepted every attack smoothly, letting instinct guide her. In many things, she went out of her way to avoid trusting her instincts, but combat was different. Finally when she saw a weak spot, she pivoted, sending a hard kick towards Celiana's chest.

[member="Celiana"]

 

[Celiana]

Celiana saw the short look of surprise enter Aria's eyes upon joining her sabers together in a staff configuration. As Aria moved and intercepted her staff attacks Celiana saw the grace Aria exhibited under pressure. "You move well, I'd forgotten how the Firedancers moved it's been awhile, you have their grace Aria." Seeing Aria pivot before sending a kick towards her chest Celiana quickly switched her saberstaff to her right hand and twirled it out and to the right clearing her body while extending her left palm downwards sent a wave of Force energy pushing her body into a Force assisted cartwheel to the left. As Celiana landed she flicked her right hand back out and twirled her saberstaff back in front of her while sliding her left foot around in a loose circle bring her into a loose combat guard.

Waiting for Aria to make the next few moves Celiana kept her guard stance up and her senses open waiting for Aria's next moves.

[member="Aria Vale"]

 

[NightSister]

"As do you." Aria did a backflip away to avoid the saberstaff and landed lightly to see Celiana in a combat stance. "But Celiana, you also shouldn't feel bad. Some people after experiences like that would spend their lives wallowing with a packet of deathsticks - but you became a Jedi." She twirled her lightsaber, ensuring that focus would be on the flashy display of light and not on her as she crouched down and slid her leg out to trip Celiana up.

[member="Celiana"]

 

[Celiana]

Aria's words to me about what I could've chosen to do wallowing in the survivor's guilt of death-stick smoke and instead becoming a Jedi, it was nice to have someone reassure you of things sometimes. Losing my focus for a second and focusing back in on her twirling saber blade I didn't sense or see her sweeping her leg under me until I'd hit the floor. She was definitely a great duelist I realized then using The Force I spun rotating my hips and kicked up off the floor spinning my saber hilt in my hand clearing a bit of space between us.

"So Aria, if I shouldn't feel bad or guilty about my circumstances then why should you feel bad or guilty about yours? I mean they're not survivor's guilt you're just growing up and leaving home for a bit. In fact why should either of us feel guilty about those things?"

[member="Aria Vale"]

 

[NightSister]

Aria smiled thinly. "I suppose I shouldn't feel guilty. Maybe it's more that I miss them. Or I'm just worried they or I will die before we can next see each other. Whatever it is, it keeps me up every now and then, but I suppose good things can always come out of that," she grinned. "It's nice to fight the Echani way after exclusively using the Force for so long. And you're really rather good."

[member="Celiana"]

 

[Celiana]

"Aye....I miss the waters of Eshan. But I know this is where I'm needed for now." Feeling droplets of sweat running down my back and soaking through the back of my shirt I peeled out of it standing there in a black sports bra and my olive cargo pants. Thumbing the power switch off on my saber staff I disconnected them and using The Force levitated them out above either hand before flipping my hands into a downwards motion hooking them back onto my belt. Extending my left hand out palm facing me with my right coming to rest in front of my chest I asked,"Would you mind sparring Echani style? Unarmed, no Force powers, no blades simple hand to hand?"

[member="Aria Vale"]

 

[NightSister]

When Celiana offered a proper duel, Aria grinned wider than she had since she'd come to Voss Temple. She switched off her lightsaber and slid it into her belt, then copied Celiana's gesture. "I'd like nothing more." It had been so long since she'd duelled properly, not as a Jedi or even as a Firedancer, but as an Echani. The ancient and beautiful martial art was what had made her feel like she belonged with the Echani, the one thing that had stopped her from being an outsider. Now it was her favourite homesickness cure, her most effective method of staying fit and above all, the thing she most loved to do. "Your move."

[member="Celiana"]

 

[Celiana]

Seeing the grin cross Aria's face I couldn't help but smile in turn. It'd been too long since I'd had a traditional Echani sparring match and I hoped Aria would enjoy it. Moving closer to Aria I crossed my left forearm against her opposing right forearm as she said, "I'd like nothing more." Moving my feet in preparation to strike she said "your move." As soon as the words left her mouth I moved.

Bringing my hands back together and then pushing them forward in a quick shove I brought my right foot into a a two-part kick first towards her right thigh then snapping it back into a sidekick, roundkick combo aimed at her opposite thigh then her abdomen.

"Gods I missed this!"

[member="Aria Vale"]

 

[NightSister]

In the moment it took to go from Jedi combat to true combat, the atmosphere shifted and Aria felt herself again. Being a Silver Jedi had seemed to her a good mix of combat, the Force and the admirable career her foster parents had had, but opportunities to battle properly had been scarce. She felt glad that she had found the opportunity at last.

Aria whirled around to face the side and kicked towards the ceiling, her leg coming to almost a perfect straight angle. If she had moved fast enough, she would have hit Celiana's leg as it kicked and sent her backwards. If not, the high kick still looked pretty impressive.

[member="Celiana"]

 

[NightSister]

In the moment it took to go from Jedi combat to true combat, the atmosphere shifted and Aria felt herself again. Being a Silver Jedi had seemed to her a good mix of combat, the Force and the admirable career her foster parents had had, but opportunities to battle properly had been scarce. She felt glad that she had found the opportunity at last.

Aria whirled around to face the side and kicked towards the ceiling, her leg coming to almost a perfect straight angle. If she had moved fast enough, she would have hit Celiana's leg as it kicked and sent her backwards. If not, the high kick still looked pretty impressive.

[member="Celiana"]

 

[Celiana]

OOC: Double post dearie
-----------------------------------------
IC:

As Aria began to move I could feel rather than sense a change to both atmosphere and her mindset. It felt more, alive. She was becoming more herself in a hand to hand duel. Aria whirled around and kicked out towards the ceiling and it was definitely an impressive kick. Dancing back on my left foot I darted back forward off of that same foot doing a quick quad kick at lightning speed.

A roundkick sidekick combo aimed at her left ribs then the sidekick aimed at her stomach. Rolling forward and bringing both elbows out towards the inner part of her legs at knee level before rotating my hips into a spinning kick with both legs. This was what being Echani was part of and it was a feeling like no other.

[member="Aria Vale"]

 

[NightSister]

If at that moment a Sith Lord had appeared in the training chamber to kill her, Aria felt like she could have not only survived the encounter but permanently disabled the imaginary attacker. She felt truly unstoppable now, and she felt like Aria. Not a Jedi, or a Guardian, but Aria Vale, the adoptive Echani, and no amount of wealth or love or glory could replace that feeling.

Celiana was a formidable sparring partner, but so was Aria. Dropping down, she rolled across the floor to behind Celiana while she was kicking relentlessly and did a flip to get to her feet, hopefully kicking at Celiana's back as she did so.

[member="Celiana"]

 

[Celiana]

Aria is herself now. She'd transformed into someone more alive, powerful, at peace. It was a beautiful thing to see. As Aria rolled across the floor behind me and performed a kick up moving to kick at me as she came to her feet I went into motion. I waited until she was going into the kick up to go into a planche then kicking both feet behind me one towards her midsection to off balance her the another to her legs to bring her back down. Pushing off the ground into a standing push-up I tilted my body weight backwards coming back into a stand in a ready position.

"This is who you really are Aria. That was a beautiful thing to see through The Force, you coming into what makes you, you."

[member="Aria Vale"]

 

[NightSister]

"Likewise," Aria said with a smile. As Celiana kicked out elegantly towards her, she jumped to dodge the first kick and at the same time kicked out to parry the second. As she dropped back to the ground Aria took a quick step to Celiana's side before sending one leg out in a Kani-basami takedown.

Even after spending two years hopping from culture to culture before her recent recruitment into the Order of the Silver Jedi, the idea that combat was for self-defence only was incomprehensible to her. Not only was it the greatest feeling in the world to have trivial matters swept away and replaced with pure adrenaline, to fight with somebody, free of weapons and the Force, was so educational. No amount of conversation could teach Aria as much about Celiana as just minutes of proper dueling. Each movement gave her some clue about Celiana's mental discipline, about her experience with the world. It was enough to make one wonder what use the Force even was.

[member="Celiana"]

 

[Celiana]

Moving into the fall with Aria's take-down I lay on the cold pavement momentarily and performed a quick kick-up. I honestly wanted her to lay into me. One of the things that she'd be able to tell through this type of combat was what my mental state was, along with my experience with the world. I wanted her to hit me more, I knew I could take it. Coming back to a standing position I went into a defensive stance my right forearm braced against my left arm into a cross-guard.

Hit me Aria. Lay into me and don't hold back. I let The Force carry my thoughts to her. I wanted her to know what I'd felt before being trained by Arja on Keldabe. Abused, hit time and again by family, a castoff, a victim. I missed Arja she was a harder version of my mother and vastly more caring. After she hits me and lays into me she'll find out how I'd changed to who I was now.

[member="Aria Vale"]

 

[NightSister]

Celiana was requesting that she not hold back. That was somewhere she was afraid to go - once before animal instincts had nearly taken over and the memory still haunted her. But Jedi training and maturity pushed the worry away as she told herself that it wouldn't happen again.

Her friend's frame still trapped inside her takedown, Aria rolled over to flip Celiana flat on her front. The Force shifted to match the change in atmosphere, and it was deafening. Aria wasn't certain it was in a good way.
She pulled out her caught leg and swung it over Celiana's head, at the same time grabbing her arm and pulling it back in an armbar submission. From there she waited.

[member="Celiana"]

 

[Celiana]

Well then, I wasn't expecting that. The arm bar submission was a good choice as Aria had started bringing her leg over my neck I'd brought my free arm in front of her leg. She was trying for a submission hold, though with me being me she wouldn't get it I was stubborn in the extreme. As her leg came over my somewhat free arm I grabbed her foot and twisted hard in an effort to force her to move her leg. As I lay there I idly and slightly enviously thought though Aria had gorgeous legs.

Though I wasn't actively using The Force I was sure that if Aria had maintained her connection to The Force she'd probably heard that thought. Slightly embarrassing, but oh well. As she shifted to try and get a better grip around my neck with her legs I quickly brought my head up and jerked it back against her chest in an effort to make her release me. Pain was an excellent motivator and teacher I'd learned.

[member="Aria Vale"]

 

[NightSister]

Spoiler: OOC

I'm so sorry I took so long (nice signature by the way)

It was clear that Celiana was skilled - it almost made Aria wonder how she was still a Padawan. Her head nudged her back quite a bit, and she didn't bring her elbow across her chest to block fast enough to shift back into the submission move. Quickly she brought her legs up and kicked to a standing position and crouched, putting one knee down on Celiana's chest before she could get up herself.

[member="Celiana"]

 

[Celiana]

OOC: Thanks My Guy who I still need to introduce designed it.

Well osik, I still hadn't dislodged Aria. Arching my back upwards I created a bit of space and brought my leg underneath me as a leverage point. Pushing off of that leg I brought myself to a low crouch and with my whole body strength brought myself into a slightly higher crouch before shifting my weight backwards forcefully bringing my hands free which hurt quite a bit. Switching my hands to keep my back arched and off the ground I quickly wrapped my leg around Aria's leg heel against her calf I kicked against her leg again forcefully jerking myself free. This was becoming rather tiresome. I hurt and if Aria was in pain she wasn't showing it.

Resting free of her grip for the moment I'd sunk into a low crouch trying to recover for a moment. If she caught me again as much as I hated to admit it I'd probably end up tapping out. Well it's her move.... hopefully I can at least make this a draw. I hated losing, although I wouldn't mind too terribly much if Aria beat me, few could tire me out as she did. Probably due to the thorough Echani training. Though she's got a natural skill for this kind of work she'd make a good infiltration specialist especially due to the armed and unarmed combat abilities. Your move Aria.

[member="Aria Vale"]

 

[NightSister]

Although battle school had taught her the ruthless power of a soldier or a warrior during a fight, both Jed training and Eshan itself had taught Aria the etiquette one was to use during a duel and this, a friendly combat practice between two trainee Jedi, was not a fight but a duel. Seeing Celiana's discomfort, she paused for the slightest minute to let her friend recover - although the extra pain had been at her request, pain was pain and no matter how resilient you were, pain hurt.

Panting for just a few moments, Aria carefully planned out her next move and tried to telegraph Celiana's next move before closing the distance between the two of them and pushing into her lowered body with her knee.

[member="Celiana"]