The War Prayer

[Sor-Jan Xantha]

V O S S
The Silver Temple

The mountain side supplied any number of vistas.

In re-purposing the ancient temple for their use, the Silver Jedi made use of the paths and plateaus for a variety of uses. In their first encounter, a rolling hillside with a view of the Valley of Voss-Ka had supplied the backdrop for meditative training designed to invoke the preternatural senses of the Jedi. Awaken the Force. Teach reflection and contemplation.

To be the eye of the storm was to be a Jedi.

But, that metaphor necessitated a certain degree of chaos. And life was rarely subtle in supplying a ready amount of distraction, distress, or destruction.

So the place for this second encounter was intended to inject a little bit of stress into the Korun's meditation. Change the pattern. See how he would adapt, overcome, and -- most importantly -- learn about himself.

From the gates leading to a winding path down the mountain, the view from the Silver Temple was spectacular. Thumbs tucked into the belt cinching his robes, the green-clad knight was content to allow the breeze to whip back the tawny hair as he waited for the padawan to join him at this outdoor sparring area.

The tools for their training were relatively simple. A training saber, notably longer than the boy's usual lightsaber, hung from his side. An old starfighter helmet, a blast shield set over the face shield, waited at the child's feet, beside a set of small, round training remotes.

[member="Marcus Undal"]​

 

[Marcus Undal]

Voss had a great wind that blew robes and tussled grass. These winds were not powerful gusts either, as if the planet had an idea of what the perfect amount of wind was. It was quite peaceful and tranquil, walking through the tall grass as wind blew through. After the meditation that Sor-Jan and him had done, Marcus felt more at peace then he ever had in his entire life. Would it last? Marcus wasn't sure, but at this rate, he didn't care either.

Making his way to the sparring arena, he arrived later then usual. Sor-Jan, the small child Knight, stood waiting for the dark-skinned Korun, a smile plastered on his tawny-headed face. At his feet lied an old starfighter helmet with the blast shield down, an item that Marcus could not discern the reason of. Standing in front of the Knight, Marcus bowed as was courtesy. He had already learned that the Corellian did not care much for pleasantries, but still, Marcus would not disrespect him.

"This planet is incredibly magnificent." remarked Marcus, waving his hands as if to claim dominion over the planet itself. Had he been born here, his life might have been completely different. He would still be training to be a Jedi as well, as the SSC had chosen this planet for the remarkable temple.

Marcus' eyes fell on the training saber that hung from Sor-Jan's belt. It had been absent before, had it not? Guessing what today's training was, Marcus let his hands drop to his side. He had been given a training lightsaber of his own, though Marcus had not handled it just yet. He had not even activated it just yet. The beam that would no doubt erupt from its cage frightened Marcus, as he was not content when wielding weapons.

Still, a Jedi used a lightsaber when necessary. He would not be a good Jedi if he could not wield it properly. Unsure of exactly would happen next, Marcus eagerly awaited Sor-Jan's instructions.

[member="Sor-Jan Xantha"]

 

[Sor-Jan Xantha]

The view was truly magnificent.

The rolling hills and the valleys below made the youngling recall the hamlet of Bela Vistal, on Corellia. So drawn to the parallels, enraptured in memory and half-forgotten dreams, that the boy was oblivious of the padawan's approach until the man was standing in front of him.

Blinking, the small Anzat snapped back to the present moment as the Korun bowed to him. "Marcus!" the young knight chirped brightly in greeting, returning the gesture in kind. The boy noted the training saber at the man's side. A good addition. The boy had brought the one he carried in case Padawan Undal had not yet equipped himself with the necessary tools of their training.

"You carry a lightsaber," the boy noted, his eyes coming up from the silvery handle to gaze up into the man's face. "Good," the youth chirped, with a head nod that seemed to suggest a certain level of satisfaction.

"Have you had opportunity to practice or train in its use yet?" Sor-Jan inquired curiously. The first step to this training would be fathoming the depth of Marcus' experience, or lack thereof.

Speaking for himself, it had taken some time for Sor-Jan to become comfortable with the lightsaber. Being a product of an era in which the Sith had, supposedly, been eliminated from the galaxy, blast deflection techniques had been the principle focus of his training as a Jedi Hopeful. There had been kid's in his clan who could juggle three, even four, remotes at a time. Meanwhile, Sor-Jan had struggled to keep pace with a single remote. Let alone two. Only when he'd been apprenticed to a master, and that master had time in which to figure out how Sor-Jan learned best, did many of the skills of knighthood really start to come together for him.

Other Jedi found the lightsaber to be intuitive.

Each their own strengths. And the boy was curious for a glimpse to see where Marcus' strengths would lie.

[member="Marcus Undal"]​

 

[Marcus Undal]

The young Knight seemed to be staring off into a distant memory before he fully noticed the Korun entering. Smiling at the greeting, Marcus had taken to the young Anzat since their last meeting. Even with him being so "young", the Knight was comfortable with Marcus and vice versa. Marcus had fought with children younger then Sor-Jan however, so the idea of the small knight wielding a lightsaber did not seem so off to Marcus himself. Nodding to the Knight about training with his saber, Marcus replied with a softer voice then before.

"I have used it before, yes. I have been training with other Padawans when I have time. Still, I am rusty with it. I am not used to getting so close to the enemy to be honest." Haruun Kal's atmosphere ate away most durasteel and rusted metal a good deal. Because of this, blasters were not used on the planet itself. Instead, slug-throwers were incredibly popular, and Marcus had used them his entire life. Armed with a lightsaber now, an elegant weapon for a more civilized age, Marcus was having trouble using it.

Before, his trusty slug-thrower rifle allowed him to pick off targets from a long ways away. Up close, it was even more devastating, the bullets shredding skin and flesh like paper. Blasters left black marks and charred skin, much like lightsabers. Additionally, defending himself before meant the death of his opponent, in any ways necessary. With him becoming a Jedi of the SSC, Marcus had to understand that a battle for a Jedi was lost when the lightsaber was ignited.

[member="Sor-Jan Xantha"]

 

[Sor-Jan Xantha]

The boy nodded as the man spoke of conflict.

It had been said, there's nothing like a good blaster at your side when the poodoo hit the air recycling unit. The Jedi, by and large, disagreed with that sentiment. All the same, the young Anzat had a tendency to carry both a blaster and a lightsaber with him when the going got tough. Many in his chosen field would have said that he had failed already for that fact, because he was looking for a conflict and, thus, he found precisely what he'd been seeking.

That sounded well and good, from a purely hypothetical discussion of theology or philosophy and non-violence. Yet, Sor-Jan doubted it was the BlasTech HSB he carried that had caused the Hyperspace War or any of the conflicts that had followed.

"Here's the part where a good Jedi Consular would say something metaphorical about how you've lost the moment you think in terms of 'enemies," the small boy opined aloud, his face whimsical for a moment as he looked at the Korun and added, "It would be very deep, and perhaps meaningful, but I've never found that line of thinking very practical."

Pragmatist, thy name is Corellian.

It helped that Sor-Jan had never been very good at being a Consular. Gesturing with his arms, the boy seemed to make an all-encompassing motion, as though holding the whole of the galaxy in his arms. "For thousands of years, the Jedi served as guardians of peace in the Old Republic," the boy said, beginning the lesson for the day. "One of the last masters to sit on the Jedi Council before the fall of the Jedi was a Korun named Mace Windu. He was a scholar and a warrior."

And a bit of a pompous arse, but that was beside the matter.

"Even in those days, the golden age of Republic, we were too often dragged into the political and military affairs of others," the boy said, continuing the lecture with a series of motions that gave the impression that, were his hands bound, the boy might well be rendered mute. "Even when we were not, fear of the Jedi drove any number of attacks against us."

The bombing of the Jedi Temple.

The abduction of Force Sensitive younglings.

The theft of Jedi focusing crystals.

"The point being, conflict is inevitable," Sor-Jan stated, coming to the point. "We cannot change that. We can merely prepare for it."

Diplomacy was certainly a part of those preparations. The boy would give the Consulars that much credit. Allies had always been an important part of the Jedi's success. But, at the end of the day, the Hyperspace War had been won because rough men had stood ready to do what needed to be done. It was with that thought in mind that the boy drew the training saber from off his belt. A blue blade radiated from the hilt, as he activated the weapon.

"The lightsaber isn't the weapon of a Jedi. It's a companion," the youngling remarked cryptically. There. How was that for metaphorical and deep? Going through the motions of a Niman warm-up regimen, the boy moved the blade around in one hand while extending out and in with his free hand.
"The focusing crystal connects you to the Force," the boy explained.

Coming to a stop, the boy shut down the weapon and then looked back over at Marcus. "That's why it's not as clumsy or random as a blaster," the boy noted, returning the hilt to his belt and then bending down to retrieve the spherical training remote. As he activated it, the remote hovered in the air.

"Feel up to a challenge?" the youth inquired wryly.

[member="Marcus Undal"]​

 

[Marcus Undal]

Marcus smiled. A pragmatist to the end, Sor-Jan was shaping up to be Marcus' favorite teacher. These profound words flowing out of a small 'child' only made this more funny in Marcus' brain. Listening intently, Marcus thought of his career choice. Most Jedi were sorted into their groups based on their abilities and personality. Sor-Jan did not honestly strike Marcus as a Consular, and perhaps that was why he was so good at being a Jedi. He didn't need to be whimsical or flowery. Sor-Jan was a Corellian that had seen much of life's tragedies, and he did not need to make life flowery.

Learning of Mace Windu, Marcus nodded. He had heard and read tales of the old Jedi Master with the purple beam that could cut down droids and Sith alike. The stories, though sometimes stretched, about Windu's abilities were legendary. The Ghosh of Windu had long since died, having fallen during the era of the Plague. The death of the known Windu Ghosh was heard across Haruun Kal, though Marcus never understood why until recently. With the similarities in their background, Marcus would not doubt be compared to Master Windu. Was that necessarily a bad thing?

Marcus listened to the tales of the Golden Age. A time when the Sith seemed gone or distant, and the Republic benefited from a time of peace and some would even say decadence. Peace seemed so far away during these turbulent times. The Jedi were constantly under siege, and it appeared that the SSC was the only Force Sect that was doing anything about the One Sith.

Watching Sor-Jan ignite the saber, Marcus smiled at the words 'companion'. The idea that his lightsaber was a companion to him felt like home. Before, he had been taught to trust in his senses and his rifle. Here, on the picturesque planet of Voss, Marcus could trust his lightsaber and the Force. It was a great trade in Marcus' mind.

Nodding to the idea of a challenge, Marcus drew his lightsaber from his belt, the feeling of the steel cold in his hand. With a flick of his finger, the crimson beam escaped the chamber within, a burst of color irradiating his face. Crimson was an odd color choice, but Marcus was proud of it. The only way to embrace his anger and rage was to face it head on, and for that, his saber would be a companion to him.

"I am ready for any challenge. The Force is with me." Marcus replied. It felt good to say that.

[member="Sor-Jan Xantha"]

 

[Sor-Jan Xantha]

The youngling smirked in spite of himself.

Boldly stated. Though, it would be difficult to be subtle with that lightsaber color. A synthetic crystal? Uncommon, but like the classes of Jedi there were those who put too much stock in something as trivial as a color or a name.

All that mattered was the performance. "Let's test that theory," the boy said in answer, taking a step back as the training remote came on-line and floated up into the air.

The spherical droid would turn, pivot, and alter it's trajectory at varying altitudes and orbits around the Korun. At random intervals, it would fire training bolts at him. Sometimes one. Sometimes two. Sometimes a burst of three in rapid succession. The bolts were harmless, though they'd sting if one made it past his defense.

As this took place, the small Anzat was watching Marcus closely. And not just his physicality. The boy was feeling for impressions of the Korun mentally, and from within the Force as the padawan was put through the paces of this test.

[member="Marcus Undal"]​

 

[Marcus Undal]

Training droids. He had seen Padawan's train against them in the arena before, but this was his first time doing so himself. His saber lit brightly, Marcus watched the remote dart back and forth in the air, a soft whooshing sound coming from the droids sudden movements. After a tense few moments, a training bolt was loosened from the remote itself, which Marcus attempted to deflect with his saber. However, too slow and relying on his own reflexes, the bolt struck Marcus in the shoulder, causing him to seethe in pain.

Gritting his teeth, Marcus continued to watch the remote, his saber held tightly in his hands. It was obvious he was gripping too deep into his emotions, as he had when fighting on Haruun Kal. Though he was able to deflect the bolts a few times, it was obvious Marcus was relying on himself rather then the Force itself.

[member="Sor-Jan Xantha"]

 

[Sor-Jan Xantha]

The boy watched, not surprised by what he saw.

The Koruun had a lot of talent, that much was obvious in the bolts that he did deflect. An impressive feat in any event.

As the training droid came to end of it's programmed cycle, it gave a chirp as it paused in mid-air. Stooping down, the youngling knight picked the helmet up from off the ground and walked toward the young man. "I suggest you try it again," the youth said, as he held the blast shielded face guard out for the man to take.

"But this time... look with your senses. Not your eyes."

[member="Marcus Undal"]​

 

[Marcus Undal]

Marcus stared down at the young Anzat, eyeing the helmet with narrowed eyes. Blocking his basic sense of sight scared Marcus completely, as most Korun lead with their eyes. The idea of blocking it and not using it at all scared him completely. Focusing on the task at hand, freeing himself of the fear, Marcus nodded towards Sor-Jan, fitting the helmet as comfortably as possible on his head. His vision completely blocked, Marcus took a breath, moving his head to where he assumed the Anzat was.

"I cannot see a thing in this. I understand using the Force to sense my surroundings, but blocking my vision entirely?" His voice had lost its velvet, instead gaining a slight temperamental attitude. Regardless of what Sor-Jan would reply with, Marcus sighed and readied himself again, igniting his training saber and activating the remote.

The small machine drifted and jumped, while Marcus continued to panic. Unable to see the remote and worried about being struck by its stunning laser, he went into complete defensive mode, holding his saber close. Firing off a few shots, Marcus barely was able to defend himself, the bolts striking him in various places. Fear in Marcus was replaced with anger, as the idea of being unable to see what was attacking him drove him slightly mad.

Once the remote finished its round, Marcus wasted no time activating it again. He didn't care how long it took him, he would eventually get past this small machine. Trying to focus on the task at hand, and reaching out through the Force, Marcus slowly visualized the remote itself. Darting back and forth, a single bolt spat out of the minute droid towards Marcus, its intent to stun him. Sensing the attack, Marcus raised his saber quickly, the bolt being redirected from Marcus. Unable to contain his grin, Marcus strafed the remote, this time deflecting more bolts then ever before. Even still, he would definitely need practice, as fear constantly gripped his mind.

[member="Sor-Jan Xantha"]

 

[Sor-Jan Xantha]

Fear.

What a familiar sensation. It trickled out from the mind of the Koruun like a rank odor, and the small Anzat knew it as one would know an old friend. Fear was a Jedi's constant companion, the first and most pervasive opponent they would ever face. And never overcome.

At least, not so far as Sor-Jan had discovered.

"Let go your conscious self," the boy remarked, coaching from the sidelines as he shook his head and watched the Koruun tackle the test with the droid again and again. "Act on instinct. Don't try and control it."

From a certain point of view, the man began to improve. He was doing it. Seeing events before they happened. Placing himself exactly where he needed to be at exactly the moment he needed to be there. But, he was harnessing the fear. Not surrendering it. "You're reacting out of fear," the boy noted, as he continued to monitor and watch the Koruun's performance. "Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate..."

Tucking his arms inside the sleeves of his robe, the boy paraphrased his own conclusion to Master Yoda's 'fear' speech. "Hate leads to the Dark Side of the Force," the young knight warned.

"When you are at peace, when your mind is clear, that is when you are truly powerful."

[member="Marcus Undal"]​