Private My White Crystal

[Tann Po'rah]

MY WHITE CRYSTAL​

Ilum had been a place of discovery. The young Padawan -escorted by her dear friend- headed to the cold frozen planet of Ilum in search of kyber crystals. Specifically, for Tann Po'rah's lightsaber. It had been a journey for sure that Tann was eager to retell to her master. That was what she was doing today on Kashyyyk. Only having just returned she was was eager to return to her master's side.

The Jedi Padawan headed through the common space of one of the Wookie's large hotels. Her master had been put up in a lovely penthouse with a view of the city. Tann took the lift up to the highest floor. She was wearing a different outfit than what Samatharis had seen her in. Today's outfit was more befitting for a Jedi. Normally Tann showed off more skin and looked like a dancer. But she liked the way she looked and wasn't afraid to show it. Perhaps today she wanted to be taken seriously. The Silver Order had given Tann a litany of outfits at her request. Her master had told her how eager they were to fund Jedi. Tann was pleased to hear how true this was. This outfit consisted of silk wraps and a shall, with a blue shall wrapped around the center. At her hip: a brand new lightsaber.

"Good evening, Master. How was your trip? Anything exciting happen? I can't wait to tell you about mind."

 

[Samatharis]

Sam was out on the balcony. Enjoying the view and the smells of the trees. She wore only a grey tee and fitting leather pants. Her fur motto lay on the bed and her armored boots nearer the mat in the fresher. Her bare feet seemed to enjoy the warmth of the deck and the many fur carpets arranged around the room. The wealth was uncommon. Sam loved every minute of it.

She turned and beckoned Padawan Po'rah approach. The sounds of the city were soft and echoed far, far below.

"I am well Young Hope. How are you?"

She motioned to a nearby coffee table. It was arranged for tea, for two.

"Tea?"

Then she leaned her back against the railing and bade her student begin. A smile to the newest item on her belt. Obviously, there was a story behind it. Hehe. Impressive.

Tann Po'rah

 

[Tann Po'rah]

Tann walked into the apartment past the wool rugs. The room smelled lovely, thanks to the open windows. She saw her master out on the balcony and gave her a bow of respect.

"I am wonderful," she would say in response. "And yes please. I'd love some."

Tann would take her seat down at the table and pour her master a cup, and then herself one. Handing the cup to her then she smiled. "It seems like we were just here, does it not? I've learned so much since then."

Looking at her cup she sighed with a happy humm. She thought about all the training she'd done and the mission that took her to Ossus. Yet being on Naboo was where this feeling came from. How long had it been? She couldn't say. But it really did fell like yesterday to her.

"So....I need to tell you some things. I uh....."

Not sure where to start, she would take out her lightsaber and dissemble it with her hands. Inside was a white gem, a perfect size for a lightsaber crystal. Tann offered it to Sam to investigate it.

"I was hoping you could explain this to me. I've never seen a white beam. I've only seen green and blue. So why is mine white?"

 

[Samatharis]

Sam received the tea and smiled. It seemed Hope had a bit on her mind. To start, a Lightsaber crystal. Mmm. Sam recieved it via levitation and took a moment to spin it in the air. Then she bladed her eyes and looked deeper.

"Illum. It chooses you."

She spun the crystal some more. Then passed it back to Hope. Floating it. Ever so lightly.

"Ya know. They say the color of a Lightsaber reflects the innermost desire of the Jedi it so chooses. Blue for guardianship. Green for grand purpose. Yellow for those of raw power. White for those who strike a balance. And black and purple for those who's destiny is found in conflict and battle."

She skipped red on purpose.

"I'm not entirely sure why your crystal choose to manifest itself as a white hue? Though, I suspect that in time? These things will reveal themselves. Mm. They usually do."

Sam smiled and waved the matter away. Sometimes the Force was unknowable. This, ...this felt like one of those times.

Tann Po'rah

 

[Tann Po'rah]

Her master would take Tann's crystal and examine it. Tann looked up from her tea to watch. She spun it around a little then looked closer and told Tann that Ilum had chosen her. Whatever that meant. Tann craned her head slightly in confusion. What did it mean...to choose her? "Master...?" she would ask hoping for some clarification.

Sam returned Tann's crystal back to her which she took in both hands. She'd rub the soft edge with her thumb. Her master continued, explaining the difference in lightsaber colors. Tann didn't know there was such a meaning behind them. She thought it was all random. Blue was apparently for guardianship. Protecting others. Tann could understand the appeal. But she wasn't much of a protector. That sounded more like a teacher sort of role. Or a mother type relationship.

Green for a grand purpose. Tann was a little upset that she didn't get green. It was her favorite color. And not having some grand purpose made her feel rather insignificant. She pursed her lips hearing that. Yellow was for power. Tann didn't need yellow. She had no interest in that. Then she explained what white meant. Balance. Balance between what though? Good and evil? Light and dark? Left and right? What exactly was Tann supposed to find a balance for?

Sam explained black and purple, but Tann was in her head for those. She missed their explanations. Her mind was too busy trying to think about a balance and her encounter in the cave. Sam would say then next that she really didn't know why it manifested white. Was it random? Or was there a purpose in it too? She said in time the truth wold reveal itself. Right. Patience. Not something Tann was good at. She wanted answers.

"Master. There's something else you should know. In the cave....I spoke to my grandmother. I'd never met the woman. She died before I was born. But....she wasn't a good person. She uh...manifested as an angry spirit. She tried to get me to join the Dark side. She said the Jedi ways were wrong and that staying here would only lead me into danger. She uh......was very convincing...."

Samatharis

 

[Samatharis]

Sam noted the impatience in Tann's voice and raised an eyebrow. She didn't much understand the appeal. Lightsaber colors were like fortune cookies, after all. Cute. But, otherwise insignificant. Sam herself had used several over the years and found none of them made much of difference. Still? Padawans will be Padawans. These kinds of things could be markers in your social group. So, perhaps Tann was worried her friends would make fun of her new color?

Then she spoke of an evil spirit. Not a wholly uncommon test for a Jedi to encounter in the Crystal Caves. The Force had a terrible way of manifesting it's trials. Always cutting right to the heart of things. Ah, and a grandmother this time? Interesting?

Sam narrowed her eyes and looked down at her tea cup. Contemplating as she talked,

"There are places in the galaxy that contain great powers of the Force. These 'Nexuses', as some call them, often react strongly with the sentient beings that enter them. Especially if that sentient being is more sensitive than most?"

She spoke vaguely because these were vague things. Unlike modern science, the Force could be quite irrational some times. Often, unpredictable.

"Ilum has this ability. The Force will mix and swirl around a Padawan who visits it. Often revealing to them some great truth or fear. And, should the Padawan overcome themselves. Conquer these swirling energies that surround them? Well. Then they are often doubly rewarded for their efforts. First, in self discipline. Having overcome their own selves. And second, in the revealing of a Force Crystal which matches the Padawan's unique affinity."

Sam pointed to Hope's crystal.

"This is why I mention that the crystal 'chose' you. It reacted to your own personal struggle and enjoyed your own victory. It then, became as you are. A trophy of sorts. Yes. But also a great mimic and a great reminder too. That the Force is both a great teacher and a great mystery. Even for all of us."

Sam leaned back and looked to the trees. She wished she could stop this discussion there and leave it at that. Alas, that would do her student a disservice. Tann wanted guidance. Even if all Sam could offer were more mysteries.

"As for spirits of the dark? Who can say. The Dark Side seeks it's own balance. Speaking both in truth and in lies. It is a trustworthy as a copper eel. A snake in the grass. Sometimes it lies to us to stroke our own fears. Sometimes it speaks to us in great truths to overcome the minds defenses. Other times it merely pulls the weaknesses we all experience in life and shows them to us up close. Reminding us we are always vulnerable."

Sam waved these comments away. As if they were of no great use to anybody.

"But I say. ...Trust neither, Tann Po'rah. For the Force always seeks it's own balance. Even the Light and the Dark. Both are polarizing forces. Entrapped in an eternal struggle for balance. Both will offer any young Jedi a destiny and help them on the path. Both will encounter danger. Yes. So the spirit was indeed correct. Stay here and no doubt. In time. Eventually. You will encounter great and terrible danger. However, whether this danger is unavoidable and perhaps even comes in the form of a healthy challenge? I cannot say. I am no fortune teller. Nor do I desire as such."

Again Sam waved the words away. More fluff for the fluff gods.

"Anyway. Pay it all no mind. You overcame your test. You have your prize. It cuts swiftly no matter it's color or hue. And no matter what kind of danger the future holds? Hehe. I trust you are more than ready to face it. Head on."

This time she smiled and took a sip of her tea. Reminding herself that saying grounded often meant coming back down to earth. And leaving the lofty, irrational mysteries of the Force for some other poor fool to mule over.

"Mmm. Ooo. That's good tea. Yum."

Sam enjoyed the little things in life much more.

Tann Po'rah

 

[Tann Po'rah]

Tann listened to her master as she went on to reply to her. Ilum was apparently a nexus. A strong place in the Force. Tara knew exactly what Sam meant. The moment she set foot on the planet she could feel the Light side of the Force like never before. It was even warm to her in the caves because of the way the light touched her soul. Just as the Dark was cold. She felt that too. More powerful than she'd ever felt before. It scared her at the time, and even more so now.

She then went on to say how her efforts gave her a prize. And nothing more. Her crystal -while pretty- was nothing more than a trophy to be shown off. Tann pursed her lips hearing this. She really thought it had more of a meaning behind it. She had to believe it did. In fact, she knew it did. Her master was wrong. Even more so getting on her nerves, was hearing that the Dark side spirit was correct. Her grandmother's ghost was right in the aspect that Tann would one day face danger. While it was always a possibility in her rational mind, hearing it out loud solidified that fact and made it real. So much so that Tann got chills in her veins.

Sam tried to tell her to ignore those words though. That the Force was merely trying to find balance. There was that word again. Balance. Was her crystal trying to tell her something after all? That Tann would need to find that middle ground between the Light and the Dark. The Jedi and the Sith? It was a lesson in philosophy Tann was not yet ready for. She would set her tea down and hold the cup there for a long moment before letting it go and folding her fingers together. There was so much to talk about. So many things she wanted to ask. She could be at this all day, searching for answers from her Master. But Tann could feel she didn't want to get into a debate over this. Tann trusted her gut.

Without saying anything, she would pick up the pieces of her lightsaber and start to reassemble it. Her mind was racing. It was so full of questions. So full of doubt and wonder. She sighed multiple times out loud without realizing it.

Samatharis

 

[Samatharis]

Sam raised another eyebrow and sipped her tea from an observational distance. It was obvious Hope had something else on her mind. Perhaps something else entirely.

Alas. Sam kept her soldier's posture. Slowly dismissing the idea. After all, if it was important? Tann would speak up eventually. No need to go digging where digging wasn't warranted. Or welcome.

Sam's shoulders moved to embrace the trees and smells of evening. Letting her gaze flow upward into the long branches and shadows of the day. Remembering why she loved coming here. Enjoying the escape.

She let a moment pass before slowly returning to Tann's presence. Breathing in a happy smile. Then setting down her tea cup. Just a bit too loudly. As if to say, Oh! Hi Tann! I didn't see you there! Oops! Hehe.

She smiled pleasantly. Awaiting a dismissal or, an eruption.

After all. Two could play at this game. Silence was golden.

Tann Po'rah

 

[Tann Po'rah]

Tann jumped a little in surprise. Sam clanked her cup down rather abruptly which startled the poor Twi'lek. She looked up to her master and gave a half-hearted smile. She then sighed again and looked at her cup once more. As if all the answers were there in her reflection. Why couldn't she get out of her head? Everything was so muddled in her head.

Finally she spoke, "Master. I'm scared. The Dark side is supposed to be evil? Right? If I'm to find some sort of balance......that means I should study it. And I don't want to. I don't want to feel that cold chill ever again. What am I supposed to do?" It was clear the girl was frightened. Terrified almost. Fear was not something a Jedi was supposed to be experiencing.

 

[Samatharis]

Sam seemed almost offended by her childish remark. Was life so simple that good versus evil created an impasse in the mind? Nay. Such things are what propel us forward. Give life meaning. Duality is what makes day, day and night, night.

"Childishness girl. Banish the thought."

She snapped briskly. As if to sunder a trance.

"The Dark is no more powerful than your own nature. Do you not see the secret within? The very sense that exists on the tip of your nose? The natural world that is within us all? Like a heart beating strongly and vast."

She flipped her hair in a theatrical, sensual matter. Teased, just a bit of shoulder. Bit her bottom lip, and toyed with a finger around her midriff. A coy playful little creature. Sexual and hungry. Desiring and lustful. Maybe even a toy that Tann could play with and find warm, and inviting later in the night. And then, nothing. Sam sat back up with a firm stone facade for a face. A strict taskmaster washing away her sin. Rising up and sitting like a statue. Unbending. Even voice had changed. A full transformation into stone and hard mortar.

"The Dark is the fascination of children. The monster underneath your bed. The virgin fantasy of a partner undressing in the dark. It is nothing. It is power. It is a shell. It is filled only with what we want it to be."

She snapped again. Then pointed to the trees. Revealing a bird sitting upon a branch.

"This bird understands the Dark. He knows hunger, and fear, and chill of the cold. As it should be. For thus is life. For where is the new sun without the dark of night to reveal it as such? Where is warm home cooked meal if not for the fast of empty bellies in the afternoon before? Where is the love of a dear friend if not rivaled by the wraith of a cousin offensive? What is the light if not for the dark?"

Sam sat back in her chair. Looking quite glum. As if having just spoken silly things about silly people.

"No Tann. Do not fear the Dark." She shook her finger. And shook, she did. "For it is just the other half of life that we all must eventually experience. It is the cold to balance the hot. The ice to balance fire. The blue to balance the red. Nothing more. Nothing less. But do not be so naive as to welcome famine and pain into your life. Suffer it, yes. Endure it, yes. Appreciate what it reminds us of, surely. ...But do not say childishly, the evil is good because it has cause to exist. No. Perish the thought. Evil is. Yes. But I do not fear it. No Jedi does. Because we have the Light. And the Light is righteous. Even unto the end."

She looked back and watched as the bird flew away. Leaving the branch empty and the lights of the evening drawing long.

"We are creatures of this world too, Tann Po'rah. But we are not animals, like the birds. And we, great as we are created in God's own sight, need never fear the dark. At all."

Then she resettled and reset herself. Slowly shifting back in the teacher and woman, that Hope knew better still. Almost smiling as she reached for her glass. Life's simplicity at a glance,

"Oh. Silly me. I got carried away. Hehe. Um... More tea?"

Tann Po'rah

 

[Tann Po'rah]

Being called a child was not what Tann expected to hear this day. Her master told her to remove the thought from her head. She tried explaining that the dark was part of everything. There could be no light without dark. As every animal instinctually feels this. Why would they be any different?

Then her master did something very strange and made some sexual pose to her. Tann looked at her with confusion. What was she doing? But the moment passed and she went to being stoic and......well cold almost. The dark was no more a threat than the monster under her bed. She pointed to a bird and went on to say that it lived in both the light and the dark. It was its nature. She should not fear it. The bird would fly away and so too should her thoughts on the matter.

She then asked if she wanted more tea to which Tann replied, "Oh. No. Thank you. I still have this one."

Reaching for her glass she picked up the cup and sipped another long draft. Tann then set the cup back down in her lap. "Thank you. Master. I suppose that makes me feel...a little better."

In truth it didn't. She was scared of the dark. She hated the cold feeling. And now her master was telling her it was fine to fell the dark side. If there really was such a thing. Words. That's all they were. Terms that meant little significance. Now it made sense. Balance. But it wasn't what the Padawan wanted to hear.

Tann would stand and set the cup down once again. "I think...I'm going to head back to my room. Unless....you wanted me for something else?"

 

[Samatharis]

Sam almost scoffed. Was it really so hard to grasp.

"Nothing. No. You're free to go."

Sam waved her away. Almost dismissively. She knew. Like the rebellious and the brave. Some things, you just have to figure out for yourself. There is no manual you can read nor rhyme you could sing that could help you experience life. To really understand. You must live it. Fully.

"But Hope."

Sam said at the end.

"Always know. You have a good heart. If you follow it. It will always give you what you want to know."

Then she turned her head and looked away. As if there was nothing ever more to say. Deep inside however. Sam knew. The next part would be the struggle. Tann would struggle with this for some time. All good people did. Even the best.

Sam took a deep breath then and exhaled slowly. Because this was the hardest part for the teacher. The mentor. Now all she had to do was wait. And trust. That Tann would brave the Dark and her own mortality.

And come off conquer in the end. Nothing wavering.

Tann Po'rah

 

[Tann Po'rah]

With that, she was dismissed. Not in a very warm way either. Sam wisked her away with her hand. She sighed a little and bowed. But as she started to leave her master would call her again. She said that she had a good heart. This made Tann feel a little better. She gave another small smile and turned her back to her master. She headed then to the lift and left. Her mind and heart were still unsure. She didn't know what the future would bring and there was no way to see how it would end up. None that she knew of at least....

END THREAD​