The Way of the Sarlacc

[Lilla Syrin]

"It is simple, and its simplicity is strength."

―Kreia

The first things Mei decided to work personally with Lilla on was her use of a lightsaber.

And Mei always started with the First Form. He had an inkling which she would be best disposed to use, but felt a grounding in all would not only assure the learner and teacher that the optimum one was chosen for specialism, but that the Padawan would learn how each Form worked. This would help them when in combat – as no Form would be unfamiliar to them.

So they would begin with Shii-Cho and the basics of lightsaber combat, such as the zones, the Three Rings of Defence as well as the basic moves and manoeuvres.

 

[Lilla Syrin]

Mei stood in the training room, the afternoon sun streaming in through a window and catching the dust motes as it did. A selection of training sabers were on the wall and Mei took one – placing his own there for safe-keeping.
Whilst he waited for Lilla to arrive, he performed the standard velocities of the first Form – a sequence of attacks and parries – cycled through at ever increasing speed.

 

[Lilla Syrin]

Finally, Lilla arrived, slightly out of breath. Her schedule was full, and although this suited her, travelling from one end of the Academy to the other between lessons was a long walk that often required a jog to make up time. This was especially true when one lesson ended at the same time the next was due to start. Even a Jedi could not be in two places at once. Well, not physically.

They bowed politely to each other and then Mei began. It was a training design he’d used before, many times, but had not planned to use again.

“Let’s talk about saber skills.Tell, me what have you learned so far?”

Lilla had been mostly focusing on accessing the Force, improving this aspect of her development, as well as understanding the teachings of the Jedi, and in particular Jedi Lore.

“Very little Master. We have not touched saber skills in any of my classes and my free time has been taken up with homework.”

Mei nodded. “I suspected as much, so do not feel as though you should have learned anything. I am aware you have your regular Padawan lessons as well as catching up with what you would have learned as a Youngling. You have over ten years of study to cram into a year. A tall order, but one you’ll manage, I am sure. Your teachers believe so too.”

 

[Lilla Syrin]

Lilla blushed at the praise. She was diligent and tenacious and apart from washing, eating and sleeping, she spent every waking hour training or studying. And even the necessary parts of daily life were punctuated with training – levitating her shampoo, or reading whilst eating.

“Thank you Master. I’ll not let you down.”

Mei nodded his agreement and then spoke again. “OK.Form I – also known as Shii-Cho or The Way of the Sarlacc or The Determination Form.”

“This is the first Form you’re shown as a Youngling. Lightsaber use is based on a number of Forms. And there is no perfect one – otherwise we’d all use that one. The one, or ones, you decide to devote most time to depend on who and what you are, your philosophy and what you expect to be up against.”

“Some are for strong, physical types and others suit faster, more nimble Jedi. Some work well against other sabers but are poor against blasters. Others are the other way around. Some Jedi like to know all styles to a decent proficiency, others like to master just one. But they all started here.”

“Every Jedi should be proficient in Shii-Cho, it’s simple, and its simplicity is its strength.”

“What I can show you today? We’ll start with the basic motions and target zones utilised with a lightsaber. If you can commit to daily sparring, we can get you up to speed quite quickly. You’re agile – and that’s a great start.”

“Shii-Cho is not designed to work in lightsaber-to-lightsaber combat but it is always a useful fall-back option when no other Form will do. Its aim is to disarm rather than injure – the basic Jedi philosophy. But that’s enough talking.”

 

[Lilla Syrin]

Mei now took up a ready stance and ran through a few practice drills.

“Today I’ll show you the various opening stances and you can copy and practice them until they’re reasonably embedded.”

So Mei ran through three basic stances.

“First is Jedi Ready.” His dominant, right, foot was held back, with the blade in a vertical parry position on the dominant side.

“Next is Defensive Neutral.” When Mei took up the stance it looked identical but when he switched between the two, Lilla would notice her feet were evenly spaced rather than one held back. “The aim is to look imposing! The blade is highly visible.”

“And finally, Offensive Neutral.” Again, Mei’s feet were evenly spaced, with the blade now pointing towards the enemy. “Now this provides the minimum visual blade area, so you are harder to target or track.”

“There is one more generic one, that I sometimes use, but let’s get these three down first, OK?”

 

[Lilla Syrin]

Lilla was indeed a swift study. She found the blade awkward to use at first but with a little coaching from Mei, learned to use the Force to assist.

“Too many see the saber as a sword. Anyone can use a sword – up to a point. But a saber, when used most effectively, is controlled in part by the Force. You must allow the Force to flow through you. Let the Force know what you need and it will assist you.”

“Do not tell it what to do. We are not Sith. Ask it, share with it your intentions and allow it to be at one with you, as is the blade. The saber is not a weapon. You are the weapon and the saber merely an extension of you. Now, let’s go again.”

 

[Lilla Syrin]

He was already pleased with Lilla’s efforts. She held the saber comfortably for a start. The Force helped with this. Most non-Force Sensitives found it difficult to handle a weapon with a relatively heavy hilt and a blade with no weight.

And her stances were good. But most important was her willingness to learn and her lack of conceit. That meant she would be willing to make mistakes and that meant she would learn quicker.

“I mentioned that there are other stances. I use Center of Being often. But it’s advanced – although you’ll be able to learn it soon enough. And then each Form tends to have its own stance. You’ll know over time what comes naturally to you.”

“Now I can show you some basics and a couple of practice drills – so you can work by yourself if you need to. Some Jedi call the practice drills velocities by the way.”

“Form I has two methods of combat which determined how moves are executed; Ideal Form and Live Combat Form. There’s as much information to take in early on as physical skill but if you keep practicing, study holocrons in your spare time, then you’ll do well. And remember to trust in the Force to guide you always.”

“The Ideal Form is mainly used in sparring, and all the moves and manoeuvres are executed at perfect horizontal or vertical angles, with attacks and parries being perpendicular to one another.” Mei demonstrated.

“The Live Combat Form is much more functional, the attacks being diagonal strikes at each respective body zones, the goal being to increase speed and reduce actual movement.” Again he demonstrated.

“The body target zones are numbered. One is head, two is right arm and side, three is left arm and side, four is back, five is right leg and six is left leg.”

 

[Lilla Syrin]

All the while Mei nodded to emphasise points and checked Lilla’s body language to see if he was going too fast.

Aware he was talking a lot and allowing Lilla to do little, Mei stepped back and said, “Now to some practical application.”

He demonstrated two moves. One was clearly a strike directed at an opponent’s weapon in an attempt to rip it out of their grasp. The second was a wide sweeping attack as if facing multiple enemies.

“Disarming Slash and Sarlacc Sweep. Now over to you…practice the stances again and then the two moves. Allow the Force to flow through you. Describe to me what you’re feeling.”

Lilla persevered. She was lucky in that she’d had combat training – albeit unarmed – and so balance and coordination were second nature to her. And since she’d been here, she was eating regularly and nutritious food, so as well as gaining a little weight, she also developed her muscles back to where they previously were. She would never be a body-builder – her frame was more like a dancer’s. Speed and flexibility were her key attributes, along with stamina.

 

[Lilla Syrin]

Mei overlooked any minor wobbles. “Remember, practice, practice, practice.”

“Now I want to show you zones.”

“Remember, every feint, every dodge, every block is a trap to the unwary. Not my words, it’s a standard lightsaber mantra. But as Shii-Cho was the first lightsaber form, it stands to reason that most of what we use came from it.”

“Attacks and parries in lightsaber combat are described by the body zones they target. Most attacks are executed with horizontal swipes, while parries are carried out with vertical blocks meant to push the point of the enemy’s blade away, with the exception of the head attack and block, which are reversed.” All the while Mei demonstrated.

“Zone one is the head. An attack consists of a vertical chop at the head, with the goal of vertically bisecting the opponent, and the corresponding parry is a horizontal block. There are subtleties with regards which guard position you attack from, but that’s for another day.”

“Zone two is the right arm and side. Attacks are horizontal sideswipes, with the corresponding counter being a vertical parry. In Shii-Cho sparring drills you hold the handle at waist height with the blade extended upwards.”

“Zone three is the left side. As before but reversed.”

“Zone four encompasses the entire midsection and torso, but refers specifically to the back. A successful zone four attack is almost always fatal. The classic parry is to drop and angle the blade behind your back. There is another but you’d have to be a contortionist to carry it off.”

“Zones five and six refer to the right and left leg, respectively. Attacks are low sideswipes or slashes, while the corresponding defensive position is to drop the saber with the hilt held at the waist.”

“OK, run through the numbers from one to six, first as if you were attacking and then as if you were defending. Cycle through a few times – and again, tell me how it feels. And remember to use the Force and believe…”

 

[Lilla Syrin]

Belief, Lilla had come to learn, was central to a Jedi’s abilities. Or at very least, hers. When she’d struggled, she’d quickly come to understand that the lack of accomplishment was directly proportional to her confidence in succeeding.

It was not a case of being blasé about her skills – she could not simply believe she was capable of anything and do it. In a significant way because that was not true trust in the Force. It was bravado, and deep down there was no real belief.

So, progression was key to belief and an understanding that her Master knew her proficiencies and so set her tasks, or incremental steps, that he knew she was capable of.

Mei, for his part, remained pleased with Lilla’s progress. She was allowing the Force to aid her, rather than try to bend it to her will – that was a huge plus as too often Padawans tried the opposite approach – the Sith approach.

“When I feel at peace, I feel I can achieve,” Lilla said. “As soon as I feel I am pressing, doubt creeps in and the rest is obvious. So, despite this being combat, I feel most comfortable and in control when I am at peace. Does that make sense?”

Mei nodded. “Yes it does, and it’s that step in understanding that separates Padawans from Younglings. And will allow the Padawan to become a Knight and even a Master. Forget this basic and you lose your way.”

“You will learn new things over the years, but these basics remain as true today as they will when you’re a Jedi Master.”

Lilla blushed. The thought of being a Master was not something she’d given any thought to, so for her Master to mention it was at once flattering, embarrassing and a little unnerving. But she was already wise enough to understand that to doubt his words would be her undoing.

 

[Lilla Syrin]

“OK, let’s learn one of the standard training velocities.” It was simply a sequence of numbers that both parties would learn. “The purpose is to see how fast you can go without making a mistake.” Mei ran it through very slowly half a dozen times – taking it in turns to be defender and attacker.

“Good. Now I’ll speed it up and see how you defend as the pace picks up. I’ll start by being the attacker.”

And Mei started to rain blows on Lilla – faster than before and slowly but inexorably, pushing her performance. And she progressed equally as assuredly.

Yes, she made mistakes, but she learned from them.

 

[Lilla Syrin]

“Good work, good work.” Mei nodded his approval.

“It’s easy to focus on the lightsaber,” Mei warned. “But to be a truly competent duellist, focus on the Force to aid you. Allowing the Force to flow through you will let you duel and something else all at the same time.”

Mei could see the flicker of doubt in Lilla’s eyes, which corresponded to a missed block from the young Jedi.

“That’s the reality – and sooner or later you’ll be in a position to do all of this without thinking. It’s like piloting. When you started you had to give it 100% concentration, yes? Now most of it is so second nature, you can fly somewhere and not even remember how you got there.”

Lilla nodded her understanding and agreement.

“And if you want more comfort, research has proven that practice – not talent – is what makes us great at something. If you put in the hours you will develop and grow into a blademaster. That’s not just words – it’s fact.”

This was a comfort to Lilla. She was not aware of her innate abilities, but she knew she would be capable of working every waking hour without complaint.

 

[Lilla Syrin]

The next day, Next Mei called out random numbers to simulate an attack and asked Lilla to block appropriately. When Lilla demonstrated she could do this without hesitation, Mei upped the game.

“Now I’ll call out the number and attack a split second afterwards. No tricks – let’s just see how you keep up.”

Mei started slowly at first but gradually picked up pace until they were going at a decent speed for a velocity. Lilla was indeed developing her skills – she had obviously been putting the practice in.

“OK, now for a little sparring. I’ll perform some attacks and see how you fare…”

Mei again started slowly before picking up speed. This time there were no clues as to what attack was coming, just the clues his body position gave – although Mei had already warned Lilla of the dangers of relying on what your eyes told you. He was hoping his Padawan was using the Force to guide her.

“Tell me when you’re ready for the next step…”

 

[Lilla Syrin]

The next day, Mei picked up where he left off the day before. The sessions lasted hours and were only curtailed to accommodate Lilla’s other lessons.

“OK, next is all about defense. The first rule of duelling is that you can’t win if you’re dead. Many Padawans are too offensive and thinks it’s all about power and blowing the other person away. Let them tire themselves out and when they make a mistake – which they will – you can strike.” He snaked his saber out without warning to prove his point, and was pleased when Lilla parried effortlessly, whilst appearing to be concentrating only on what the Cerean Master said.

“Now, there are three rings.”

“The Outer ring of defense relies on defending against grand sweeping blows. The wide attacks take longer to deliver, but are very powerful. The Outer ring consists of four guard positions, all with the blade held diagonally: the upper right, upper left, lower right and lower left. A diamond really.” Mei demonstrated.

“The Middle ring of defense is designed to pick up quicker blows and block them, though it is also effective for blaster-deflection. The guard positions all feature the blade being held at right angles, with the upper and lower guards being horizontal, while the left and right positions being vertical. More of a box than a circle I suppose.”

“The Inner ring is the last line of defense, dangerous to be attacking or defending from. It is proof against lunging attacks, and relies on parries instead of blocks. It has only a single guard position, with the hilt covering the navel. Attacks are deflected by angling the blade’s tip and shunting them aside with the lower third of the blade, facilitating a swift counter towards the opponent’s chest or abdomen.” Again, Mei illustrated his point.

“So…more sparring. I want you to defend against me. To start with, I’ll use wide and heavy blows, and I want you to concentrate on defending the Outer circle - furthest away from your body.”

 

[Lilla Syrin]

Mei spent the time practicing and practicing. First he would attack and then defend, pointing out improvements where they could be made and commenting positively when the block was performed perfectly.

“Be careful.I have fallen into the trap of being so defensive that I feared making a mistake. And that led to me failing to take the opportunity to win when it presented itself. I’m not saying it will happen to you - but it could. Just be aware is all I’m saying.”

Now we will practice the Middle ring. ”The box,” Mei reminded her. “What you’ll use for quicker lightsaber blows or blaster defelection. Don’t worry, I don’t have a blaster with me!” He laughed. He had something even better than that – but it was for another day.

“It probably still feels like lots of individual things but they’ll come together in time – and short time too the way you’re picking it up.”

“Ready?”

 

[Lilla Syrin]

The following day Mei showed Lilla the inner Circle. This was the hardest to master and Mei made it clear it was generally a last resort and would take the longest time to perfect.

“Try not to let them get too close is my best advice!” he counselled as he shared his wisdom.

Then Mei ran through a few moves because as he put it, “Opponents rarely stand in front of you waiting to be hit for too long.”

“Right.” Mei demonstrated the disarming slash. “Sun djem, you learned that before.”

Mei spun 180-degrees. “That’s Jung and you’d use it if your opponent jumped over you, or if facing multiple attackers of course. You can use the Force to enhance your jumps if you feel comfortable, but mastery of acrobatics comes from Force Valor, which I can teach you when you become a Knight.”

Mei then jumped in a 360-degree spin, with both hands on the saber. “Jung ma. Useful to build momentum for an attack.”

Mei repeated it with just one-hand on the saber. “Shun. Riskier because you might lose your saber.”

Mei jumped over an imaginary sweep. “Sai. If you can’t block, it’s an alternative. Some actually prefer it to blocking such an attack.”

Mei simulated defending and then following in on an imaginary opponent. “Flowing Water. You use the space created when the opponent withdraws their lightsaber to your own advantage. You follow them back with your blade. Sometimes this shocks them into pulling their own blade into themselves. It’s worked for me before.”

“And the last one today, Falling Leaf.” Mei spun and made a fast slash at an imaginary opponent standing behind him and then returned to face the way she was before the manoeuvre.

“OK, let’s spar…and start with the velocity I showed you before. You attack first and see if you can throw in any of those moves.”

 

[Lilla Syrin]

The days passed and Mei was growing in confidence at Lilla’s abilities. “OK, you’re doing well, so I think you deserve a challenge.”

Mei went to the rack of equipment and took down a remote. It was about 15 cm in diameter. It was armed with a light blaster. "Don’t worry, it’s non-lethal. But it will sting.”

He activated it and it moved quickly and in unpredictable directions. "Once you activate the saber it will target you. Use your blade to block the blasts. Simple really.”

Mei had a smile on his lips. Not sadistic by any stretch, but he knew this was not what Lilla would have been expecting and that was good. ”Remember, opponents never do exactly what you want them to. This simulates that to a degree.”

Mei watched and where necessary gave pointers, until the remote had cycled all the way through to its highest setting.

 

[Lilla Syrin]

Over the following days, the training progressed until Lilla was facing three remotes.

“Remember, success is incremental. Had I suggested that you could block a blaster from a remote, with a lightsaber, a few days ago, you wouldn’t have believed me. Now you are starting to believe. Once you believe wholeheartedly, you will block every blast, even if I threw a dozen remotes at you.”

Mei deactivated the remotes. Non-lethal blasts were still painful and not conducive to learning. They were not the Sith after all!

“There’s precious else I can show you on the basics. You know the Form, can defend yourself and you’re developing your ability to allow the Force to guide you. All that’s needed is practice.”

“That’s not to say I won’t spar with you going forward – just ask. But I’d advise you to spar with others. See different Forms and different people applying the same Form.”

“But our progress will take us to the next Form. And given I don’t want to favour any one in particular yet, I will next show you Makashi, the second of the Forms.”