First Cadence-He sat legs crossed on the floor of the training room. The lights were low and his mind was adrift on the currents of the force. His emerald eyes were closed as the drifted from side to side in deep meditation. The cool marble of the floor was slightly reduced by the small mat beneath him. His black hair was combed back and the old tattoos on his forehead stood out on his light skin. A silver cylinder rested in his right hand and another sat clipped to his utility belt. The air was still as if the room was holding its breath so as not to disturb the young Jedi Knight. His chest didn’t move for breathing, it didn’t need to. He inhaled through his pores and exhaled the same way. It was typical for a Zelosian and he was alone with no one to notice. It wasn’t always easy to do actions for the sake of others and preserving normality. Many would not know him for what he was unless he told them or they were familiar with the botanical species of Zelos II.
He furrowed his brow as something in his mind’s eye drifted just outside of his field of vision. It was something that tickled the senses and spoke of things to come but it was not yet for him to fully grasp. Soon his focus changed and he found memories of his life as a Jedi. One by one he reviewed his actions his thoughts and feeling and one by one he let them go. He had to face the moment. The past held only what had already been, the future held what may never be, only the present was within his reach and that was only as the force willed. Still the fact that many memories held the petite Lorrdian Jedi, [member="Kira Liadain"] had not escaped his notice and it was a realization they he could not help but linger on. However, that too was soon viewed, enjoyed and filed away.
The process continued slowly as he now went through the good and the bad, pleasures and pains, until each one was touched reviewed and filed away. His mind empty now of all but the small silver cylinder, the 19 candles placed in a semi-circle before him and the 190 small ball bearings that he would soon begin to try and remove from each candle. 19 bearings now rested on the candles and the rest waited patiently in a box on the floor behind him. Slowly he opened his eyes and stood. The emerald stood in contrast to his light skin and dark hair as the cylinder came up to chin level held horizontally in his right hand. His right foot slid back slightly and the toes of his left foot turned at a 45 degree angle toward the candles. Slowly his thumb found the switch for his light saber and the Yellow blade sprung outward from the silvery metallic hilt. His lightsaber was pulled back and up over his head as his left arm folded to be held parallel to the floor across his chest.
It was a Niman stance, his chosen form and the one he was hoping to one day be called a master of. Talon stretched out with his feelings and embraced each candle with his mind as he focused one letting the force guide his hand. The ball bearings sat firmly on each candle as Talon closed his eyes. A second later his muscles moved in response to the mental cue and the blade swept across the candles and 19 ball bearings clattered to the floor. He did not pause to revel in a success but rather reached for the next set of ball bearings in the force still with closed eyes and placed them on the candles.
Again he assumed his stance and let the force flow through him. The blade again hummed through the air and again the ball bearings clattered away from the candles. It was two swings and eight more to go. He continued on through the cadence and repetition of the exercise. His eyes never opening as he slowly fell into a form of moving meditation. The exercise brought him peace. His connection to the force became his focus and the lightsaber became an extension of his awareness. The writings one the Cadences proved true in his case and he felt himself draw closer to the force. Soon he found that he was on the last set of ball bearings.
His eyes slowly opened and he could see the candles still untouched as he placed the last set of 19 small metallic ball bearings. He felt the air on his now hot skin and he felt the serenity the force brought when one communed with it. Again his hand rose and brought the lightsaber into position. The yellow light washed over his skin and illuminated his features in its golden glow. His knees bent and his feet twisted in place as he prepared for the final stroke. His muscles were hot from exertion and small beads of sweat had formed on his neck and back. The room once again felt as if it held its delicate breath as the Knight prepared again to unseat the ball bearings and complete the first and easiest cadence. If he succeeded he would teach his padawans using this same method but he was not one to require of others what he could not do himself.
Finally ready he stretched out again and felt the force flow through him. His mind filled with the all penetrating energy field that permeated everything and bound all things together. Time felt as if it slowed to a crawl as the blade began its last and final arch of the cadence. The soft hum the only sound as first one and then another ball bearing was touched by the blade and sent away from its candle perch. It took only a second but he had felt everyone as his blade moved through the air. Each one had been touched just so and not a candle had been struck. It was a great feat but Talon had to remind himself that in the ancient times when this was used this was a padawans lesson. Although he had done it with closed eyes there were still 4 more cadences to go and he would bring himself to face each one. For now though his thoughts returned to his Lorrdian friend and the uncertainty he felt but now he felt he could face what came with more confidence and a deeper trust in the force and what it could do. Soon he would try the next cadence, soon he would test his skill and control again, but for now he would rest and prepare to meet his padawans for their lessons…