Teräs Käsi - an unlikely initiation

[Corvus Raaf]

Until this point the exercise was part physical and part mental. Much like running a long distance. But marathons don’t punch you in the face!

Corvus was tempted to use the Force – but that wasn’t what this was all about. The pain she could endure – she was a woman after all and men never fully understood their ability to withstand such things. It was why only women gave birth after all!

But his action galvanised her. She still didn’t want to hurt him – but she sure as heck wanted that stone. But rushing it wasn’t going to benefit her at all – so she remained patient. Grabbing here, feinting there – prepared to take another punch if it meant she could get the measure of his actions.

And finally she saw it. There was a rhythm to his actions. He tossed the stone from hand to hand and like many so well practiced in a particular art, he had preferences. If she grabbed in a certain way, he always twisted back with his left hip and then immediately transferred the stone. She tested her theory again. Yes.

So she feinted to grab and instead held back slightly, waiting for the transfer. Perhaps he sensed this as his hip went back and he tossed the stone but in a lower trajectory than normal. She grabbed for it and knocked it aside. Her eyes darted to where it had gone and she dived on it – prepared to wrestle him for it if need be.

[member="Tracyn"]

 

[Alan]

The rock bounced out of his hands, much to his actual dismay. He had expected her to take much longer, but he had underestimated the combative qualities of the Jedi. He smiled as it landed on the ground, and he gently walked over to her, crouching next to her.


"You may keep the rock. Take it as your reward for a good day."

His eyes, icy gray in their complexion, turned towards the setting sun that was beginning to find it's way below the horizon, forming shadows on the forest floor and the temple itself.


"Sleep in a bit tomorrow. Think on everything you did today. Tomorrow, we're going to go over the form itself. I think you passed the physical parts."

Tracyn's grin, something that he hadn't had for a while, shook his head. He had to remind himself that he didn't want to think about women like that, especially such a young girl. But he had to admit, [member="Corvus Raaf"] looked exceptionally beautiful in the light. When she was older, if she so chose, she'd make someone very happy. But she was beautiful in a way that he could admire platonically, beautiful in her intelligence and her resolve, her will that was stronger than Beskar- she'd go far in the galaxy. She'd go far as a Jedi- and hopefully, right some wrongs. More than he could do, at least.

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus afforded herself a smile. Not of the self-indulgent variety but one of happiness. For too long she’d been wandering and now she felt like she belonged somewhere. Learning was in her blood, as was being a Jedi. So she bowed to Tracyn and excused herself. "Until tomorrow..."

She returned to the dorms she’d been shown before – flipping the stone between her hands. Once there she showered, checked out the robes that had been given to her and put the rock under her pillow. She didn’t view it as a reward but instead a reminder. Rocks were steadfast. In a flowing stream, pebbles rolled but rocks were resolute. She would no longer be a pebble and go with the flow – she would instead be that rock and stand firm for what it meant to be a Jedi. One day she would trade that stone for a candle – but that was a very, very long way away.

It wasn’t that she was purposefully awkward and she certainly wasn’t disobedient – but she had trouble sleeping. Soft beds were not something she had become accustomed to. So she rose just before first light and went for a run – following the route Tracyn had set out for her the day before. Apart from a short, sharp heavy shower, the run was uneventful. She passed the time reciting the Jedi Code in her head, over and over. Once she returned, she rushed to the refectory and ate the biggest breakfast she’d had since she was in the Academy on Corellia - before showering, changing and heading off to find Tracyn for today’s lesson.

He was a good man. Since her former Master’s death she had lacked any guidance but here was someone she could and would listen to. Not out of some blind faith – but because she respected him. And that respect was born out of his actions. Whatever sort of Jedi she eventually became, she would owe a great deal to her Knight in shining armour.

[member="Tracyn"]

 

[Alan]

The dawning light broke across the temple, flooding the pillars and the walls with it's golden light. As it bathed the temple in light, it also invigorated the populace within- and soon, the Jedi were up and about, doing whatever business they had to do daily. Some meditated, some were on their way to other planets- and much to Tracyn's dismay, as he was passing to the open gardens where he was to meet [member="Corvus Raaf"], he found himself staring at Jedi geared for war. They were wearing armor, intricate in it's detail and it's purpose. Tracyn stopped, watching them pass. They stopped and looked at him for a moment- noticing the odd collection of armor and cloth he had on. It was Beskar'gam on the arms and on the legs, but otherwise- it was Jedi robings with the Mandalorian Super Commando armor woven in. They stared at him, before turning on their heels and walking away. As they should. No need to stay and gawk- a fruitless exercise in itself.


Tracyn grasped his center of being, and pulled himself away from whatever thoughts and emotions would come from that. Whether it be jealousy, anger, or shame. He couldn't have his own mind clouded as he was going to be teaching someone an art of being in balance with yourself.


He found her, bright and early- and he sensed that she was well fed. That, and the small amount of debris from her morning buffet still lingering on her collar. He brushed it off with a swipe of his hands, and he stood facing away from her, his back turned. He reached up to his collarbone, and tore the armor from his body. The mix of tan robings and the heaviest armor in the galaxy fell to the floor, and he was bare chested. He flexed his back muscles, and the tattoos therein. A mix of prison and Mandalorian tattoos- a sign of the journey he had been on. Tracyn had the words W A T C H O U T written across his knuckles, though the ink was fading due to the location on his hands. His hands were full of cuts and scrapes- a sign of his fighting prowess. They called them the beauty marks of the pugilist, marks of fighting and of testing his limits.


"Do you know what move is synonymous with the art of Teras Kasi, Corvus?"

He called her by her first name. He posed the question innocently, with little cryptic meaning behind it like the earlier questions.

 

[Corvus Raaf]

She bowed politely to him as she approached him and then watched him remove his garments. She felt she knew him enough to know this was no show of bravado but rather a necessity for the exertions ahead. Having said that, she had no intentions of joining him in this state of undress.

But she was prepared and so stripped down to a T-shirt and light jogging pants. In the heat of battle she knew she'd have to fight in whatever gear she was wearing - but she was never a Jedi for elaborate armour. The robe was functional and symbolic. Dressing up like some soldier was wrong on so many levels.

His question was - as ever - enigmatic. She had quite literally no idea. There were many moves she'd read of but one in particular? She declined to guess. If she got it right it would appear she was more knowledgeable than she was. So she instead answered honestly and simply, with a slight shake of the head. "No, I do not."

[member="Tracyn"]

 

[Alan]

"It is the most essential and basic form of Teras Kasi. You can use it, and use it well-" He paused and turned around, showing the positions of his hands. His fingers were erect and straight, with the upper most knuckles curled. His palm was flat and protruding with his thumb in alignment with the other fingers.


"You hit anyone with this- I guarantee you that it will hurt them to the point that they will either fall back." He pointed to a dummy, a humanoid punching bag with realistic bone and flesh and muscle density. He walked towards it, given that it was about six or seven yards away."Hit that dummy with a steel hand."He stepped forward, shooting his arm straight out."Extend your arm out, and use your triceps and biceps to jolt your arm forward at the last moment, lunging your forearm and ultimately your palm forward. Smack them hard enough to break their bones. You don't use Teras Kasi unless you're willing to break bones or take someone's life. Now go hit that dummy."


[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus listened intently. As he started to explain, the answer to his question seemed obvious – ‘steel hands.’ It was what the art was also known as.

She copied his hand shape. Curling the upper-most knuckles felt odd at first, so she held them in place with her other hand – to help build the muscle memory required to make this feel as natural as balling a fist. In fact, she needed it to become more so. Then she practiced the move a few times where she stood. It was hard to gauge the right movement without any resistance – so she walked forward purposefully towards the dummy.

She focused everything she had on that shape in front of her. Not using the Force, but by sheer willpower. The birds stopped singing, the dew-covered grass stopped smelling. All of her senses were focused on the dummy. On one specific place on the dummy.

And she adopted the pose he’d shown her the day before. Her dominant hand held back and her knuckles at the level of her lips. She turned her body slightly, balanced her weight evenly between her feet and crouched down slightly on her knees.

And remembering yesterday’s lesson, her eyes were on the dummy’s ribcage. Suddenly her hand snaked out. It lacked the explosive speed of Tracyn’s but the form was decent enough. There was a loud ‘thwack’ as the dummy was hit – and Corvus certainly felt the impact. Her natural tendency was to repeat the move – but she knew that any mistake would run the risk of being ingrained if not corrected, so she held herself back.

Looking to her teacher, she raised an eyebrow. It was not a look that said praise me. It said, how can I do better?

[member="Tracyn"]

 

[Alan]

"HIT IT LIKE YOU WANT TO HURT IT!"



Tracyn's hand shot out and curled into fists, encouraging his student, [member="Corvus Raaf"] to push herself. She needed to know that the martial art was about speed and power, and the desire to hurt your opponent."Do not give into the negativity, embrace it and understand that it is a thing to be done. When you use Teras Kasi, understand that you must hurt that person, that you are going to put them down lethally or non-lethally. There is no inbetween. You aim to put them down. To hurt them."He glared at her.


"AGAIN!"He'd practice this for hours upon hours, before he even considered learning the other moves of the martial art.

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus both felt and heard the encouragement of her teacher. She took the lack of direction on form to suggest she’d done OK.

And she knew what was wrong. The Jedi Code was clear about the use of aggression. She needed to find a different trigger to unleash her full power. To hit someone so they stayed down but to be doing so in full accord with the Code.

‘To use my power to protect.’ She hit the dummy, slightly harder than before.

‘To defend.’ She hit it again, slightly harder.

‘To strike hard but without aggression.’ Punch.

‘To strike the last blow.’ Punch. That was more like it.

‘To strike the final blow.’ Punch. Yes, that was it.

Over and over she repeated the mantra, sometimes the words formed on her lips, barely a whisper but still audible above the sound of the dummy being hit. And the blows definitely rained down on the dummy. By now the sweat wasn’t just dripping down her face, her body was slick with it – but she carried on relentlessly, ignoring any physical discomfort. Tracyn would tell her when the final blow had been delivered. Until then she was internally serene but externally passionate – perhaps she had found the right balance?

[member="Tracyn"]

 

[Alan]

He felt it. Her focusing her aggression. A steady, quiet release of it. He knew the feeling. But he had failed to contain it, failed to keep it under control and a poison in his veins nearly destroyed him and brought him spiraling downwards towards an onyx darkness. He watched as his student, slammed the dummy with the right kind of aggression. [member="Corvus Raaf"] was making an exceptional example of what proper technique and form could do. She also had another thing.


Determination.


He made a sharp whistle for her to stop, and then pulled the dummy back. Her footwork was good, and her balance seemed fine."Teras Kasi is all about speed. You have to learn to be twice as fast, and twice as hard as your opponent."Tracyn looked downward at Corvus, then back to the dummy. He maneuvered his feet, putting his fists up, and dropping his left leg back, while his right leg went forward. In an instant, it shot outwards, up and towards the dummy's head. His foot, impacted the dummy's head. A showering of plastic and rubber marked the cracking of the dummy's pretend skull. He dropped his leg back, and shot his knee forward, where the Solar Plexus of most humanoids would be. The dummy broke instantly.


"Now, we move onto kicking."


He turned and smiled at his student.

 

[Corvus Raaf]

It was a good thing Corvus wasn't conceited. If she were she would have been crestfallen at the difference between her efforts and those of Tracyn.

What Corvus saw instead was how it should be done. The benchmark. What years of training would lead her to. But she didn't start with a plan to fail. She would improve with every blow, every day until she'd reached the required standard. She wouldn't settle for second-best just because she was a beginner. So she held the memory of that punch, that kick, in her mind.

"Faster, understood. Harder, understood." The sweat was still flowing freely and she appreciated the cool breeze that tried to dry her skin. "OK, kicking it is then." She smiled at Tracyn. It was a momentary thing as her face returned to that impassive state, concentration etched into every feature. And if anything, she'd turned it up a notch.

[member="Tracyn"]

 

[Alan]

"Kicking comes from exerting power at the right moment, and angles. Make the wrong move, you become disadvantaged. Use kicks wisely, as they typically will and might leave you in a precarious defensive position."Tracyn noted the fact that he should be careful in case [member="Corvus Raaf"] went nuts.


"So, that being said, I want you to understand how to maneuver your legs carefully."He motioned for her to follow him to a training area. And the area had a few things, pull up bars and dummies to practice on, but instead, he stopped at two brick walls, about five and a half feet across from each other. He jumped up, and placed both of his feet on either side of the wall, and let his body go flat. He was in a perfect split, and smiled at Corvus.


"Try."

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus listened and learned. Every now and then she’d repeat a word to show her understanding. “Power.” “Angles.” “Wisely.”

Her breathing was slowly coming under control and she drank from a water bottle to replace the lost fluids as she followed him. And as she did she listened and she watched and only just suppressed the desire to shake her head. Of course 'doubt' was the Achilles heel of Jedi. Believe you can’t do it and you won’t. But of course [member="Tracyn"] wanted her to go next.

This was no time to quote Master Yoda – but she was certainly tempted.

She judged the distance and knew she had the reach and the flexibility for the manoeuvre. It was her muscles that might betray her – and they did.

She jumped slightly awkwardly but managed to plant both feet. But a second of so of sliding down was followed by a trembling and then burning sensation in her muscles and she ended up in a heap on the floor. To her credit she got straight back up and attempted it again. But once more the fact that her muscles turned to jelly meant she was unable to hold the position for more than a couple of seconds.

Her eyebrow took over. She raised it and it said simply, ‘What do I need to do differently?’

 

[Alan]

"I know you can push yourself. It's as simple as that. Stretch your muscles, and try again. Focus. Use the force, and I slap the shit out of you."


He used his powerful abdominal muscles to straighten his back, and he let out a deep breath.


"Take it slow."


[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus took another drink from her bottle and discarded it on the floor. "Push, stretch, focus, poodoo. Got it." There was a trace of humour in her voice but not in her face. She was deadly serious.

So she jumped up again and believed. Not in the way she used the Force. This time she believed in herself. And Tracy as a teacher. She had placed both of her feet on either side of the wall, and her body had gone flat. There was pain - which she ignored. And there was wobbling of the muscles, which meant she adjusted her position slightly. Every time they wobbled, she transferred her weight with tiny movements and in this way she was able to remain in position. She controlled her breathing and stared into Tracy's eyes. "I took it slow..."

Now there was a small smile.

[member="Tracyn"]

 

[Alan]

[member="Corvus Raaf"] wasn't exactly the type he'd call hilarious or even remotely funny, but he saw humor in her. A first, to say the least. He blinked, then shrugged. He maintained the position, watching her intently. His eyes met hers, and he smiled. She was developing. When they first started, she was eager- but now, she was ready to learn more. He jumped down, rolling his powerful shoulders while he made his way back over to the training area. Tracyn pivoted on his heel, a sharp, quick movement.


"In Teras Kasi, you have to be able to move faster than your opponent- so you have to be more flexible. Your muscles will need to be stretched every day if you want to maintain a good form."


He tapped his head, smirking.

"Now, I can teach you all the moves- but you're here for the sweet treat of Teras Kasi, aren't you? Now, my mental protection came from someone else, so I can't fully teach you- but I can give you the basics. If you want to have a fortress against mental attacks and persuasion, you'll have to find someone like I did."


He took out a small coin- an actual metal coin! He showed it to her- it was an old Mandalorian coin. Old enough to have Mandalore the Binder on it still. He rolled it on his fingers, before stepping back.


"What you're going to do- is I'm going to toss this up in the air. I'm going to try and read your head of which side you want it to land on, and if I guess right, you get hit. Hard. Your job is to prevent me from getting access to what side you want it to land on."


He turned the coin. The image of the Mandalorian symbol, the skull- was on one side, and the armor of Mandalore the Binder was on the other side.


"Mandalore is heads, skull is tails."


He tossed the coin upwards, ready for her to try and pick a side. Not that the actual landing mattered, but he wanted a simple test to introduce the concept. Pain also was a good teacher.

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus stared into his eyes as they remained suspended between the walls. It hurt but pain was something that a Jedi simply had to get used to. On the plus side she was lean but muscle definition and flexibility were way below what she knew was required for the task in hand. But being pragmatic, she knew she had to work with what she had and develop that aspect on a daily basis. Corvus didn’t do day’s off. Or even hour’s off. So committing to a significant daily exercise regime was simply a lifestyle choice she’d embrace.

He jumped down and she initially followed him with her eyes, before making her way to where he was herself. His sudden movement startled her – but the lesson wasn’t lost on her. And she nodded at his words as she filed away the information. Flexibility was key.

She listened intently to his description of mental protection. She’d already built her own ‘durasteel’ wall in her head to keep emotions in and out. Oone of the side-effects of being a Jedi with a natural ability to be Empathetic was that she couldn’t control the flow. So she simply put up a barrier. And it had held for the last ten years.

She leaned forward when he took out the coin. Other than in museums, she’d never actually seen one. It was beautiful.

So pretty that she wasn’t listening entirely as he gave her some key instructions. “OK…I guess heads or tails. If you can sense what I’m guessing, I get hit. Hard!” Saying it back, it didn’t sound exactly like a Jedi technique but she was the learner and he knew best. Oddly the concept of pain wasn’t bothering her. It was how she shielded her mind.

Before she could say anything else, he’d flipped the coin. Without preparation she simply thought ‘Heads.’

[member="Tracyn"]

 

[Alan]

He felt the amazement in her mind- he could not read her mind. Only a more trained Jedi could. He could, however, sense her emotions. The coin was wonderous- he had spent a small fortune back in his Ori'ramikad days to acquire it. Coins were a lost art- credit chits had become the norm. Coins, coins were out except in the more uncivilized parts. Too easy to counterfeit, for the most part.


It did not take a trained man like Tracyn much to sense what she wanted. He sensed the description of heads, the powerful image of Mandalore the Binder. Field Marshal Mantis wore an armor similar to his, so the image had recently come back into style. Tracyn drew his "hand back, and backhanded [member="Corvus Raaf"] across the face. Hard.


"You should concentrate on keeping me out. You must sense my presence, and understand my intent at the same time. Know that I am trying actively to get into your mind and determine what you want to do. That is what all Sith and enemies you will face will try to do."


He turned the coin until it was on heads. He let her recover from the hit, before cocking his head to the side.


"Keep. Me. Out."


He let the coin go again. It soared into the air, turning and making an audible pinging sound.

 

[Corvus Raaf]

She was expecting a hit. But perhaps not this hit. She’d involuntarily flexed her stomach muscles, so the slap across the face was unexpected. It hurt of course. It hurt a lot. But she knew the discomfort would pale into insignificance compared to having her mind invaded by the Sith.

But she didn’t, no couldn’t, dwell on the pain. He would flip the coin again momentarily and she had to have a plan. To her credit, she didn’t even touch her face. Instead she considered how to she kept her emotions in and out. But that felt inappropriate. A wall felt right for something under her control but not for an invasion. Any wall, however strong, could be penetrated.

As she thought it through, a bead of sweat fell from her eyebrow and landed on her top lip.

She nodded to Tracyn that she was ready. As he let the coin go again, she imagined her mind was encased in water, with a thin film holding it in place. If you prodded it, it would simply flex and deform. It would be like trying to nail jelly to a wall. She put up this defensive barrier and once in place in her mind’s eye she simply thought ‘heads’ – and waited for the attack. There was no consideration of another slap – she was too focused for that.

[member="Tracyn"]

 

[Alan]

She put up a wall around her mind, and he felt it. She was trying to move his presence around, as if he was going through water. However, as he tried to prod, it became difficult. However, it was not impossible. He felt it tearing. As if it were water that he had to push through. Then he felt her distraction. She was too focused on keeping him out. On preventing him from trying to gain access to her mind.


So, he began a physical assault.


"You must become focused in both your body and your mind. Focus on one entirely, and you will suffer."

An instep, and a sharp jab to the stomach would remind [member="Corvus Raaf"] of the consequences of concentrating too hard on the mental aspect.

"But- for the record. I could gain access to your mind. But you must be reminded to concentrate on what is going on around you, and inside of you. Otherwise, my fist could have been a blade and you would do no more good for the galaxy, now would you, Miss Raaf?"

He held the coin out to her.

"Try the same test with your next teacher. I cannot teach you anymore about the mental aspects. They are beyond my capabilities as a teacher, though I'm sure the Jedi are not lacking in those who can grant you the knowledge you seek."