Private You Must Learn Control

[Shem Spinner]

You Must Learn Control
Coruscant, Jedi Temple
Tags: Goto ​

Oni was well aware that when it came to using the force, he had anything but a delicate hand. He was good at sudden bursts or pushing things back, but he didn't have the level of control exhibited by those in the order ahead of him, and even at his rank to some extent. His use of the force was crude, even archaic to some extent, and he knew it. Case in point, a single puzzle cube. The sides were designed to slide in such a manner that, if oriented in the correct way, would open the cube up like a box. Oni hoped to practice his use of the force by completing such a puzzle. It was simple enough. Oni had taken the time to memorize how every part of the cube moved in order to complete it as efficiently as he could. Still, even with his immense knowledge of the cube, it seemed impossible to hone in on just one part.

The details were simply too small to focus on, no matter how much he tried. They either moved together, moved to far, or simply didn't move at all. As Oni attempted to delicately complete the puzzle, his frustration grew until he could no longer focus. In a fit of irritation, a small shockwave erupted around the swordsman, sending the puzzle cube flying across the training hall.

"This is ridiculous," he spat.

How could all that effort be wasted? Was he simply not trying hard enough? No matter what he did, there still seemed to be something that he was missing. It seemed no use now. Oni began gathering up his things. Maybe he could try this again another day...

 

[Goto]

The doomed puzzle cube flew across the room...

Yet, it stopped, mid-air.

Another invisible influence had saved it from an apparent doom, one destined to be bashed against the wall, even as a small figure stepped into the entryway. Dressed in his drab robes, with half his long hair in a top-knot, the Jedi Master looked nothing special, his presence unintimidating and unimpressive, his countenance merely that of an interested party. The silence was filled by the small alien's voice, kind in tone, even if the words were said with hyperbaton inflection to common Galactic Basic...

"Only ridiculous is training, if no purpose can you find in it," Master Goto said in a nonplussed manner as he stepped into the training room. "Of breaking open puzzle trinkets? An unorthodox approach to solving the problem, most certainly..."

The diminutive Jedi Master walked into the space, his bare feet padding on the tiled ground, one hand behind his back while the other was held out casually. Above it, the puzzle cube floated above the small three fingered hand, Master Goto's palm raised, as the object joined his approach toward the troubled - and clearly irritated - Jedi Padawan who was present.

"Padawan Oni, again shall we try?"

The puzzle cube dropped into Master Goto's hand. He offered it.

"But as intended it should be, this time."

Master Goto chuckled, as he lowered his hand and placed it at the small of his back, to meet the other. Supportive by expression and nature, even if the words broached on corrective, Master Goto watched with blue eyes that lacked judgment.

"Help you, I will... should you want it."

Shem Spinner​

 

[Shem Spinner]

Coruscant, Jedi Temple
Tags: Goto ​

"Help you, I will... should you want it."

The short statured Jedi master was an unexpected sight. Oni had assumed himself to be alone. Still, the master's lack of judgement put him at ease, and denying aid would be foolish. Oni didn't know how much it could help him. He had tried everything up until this point.

"I... do want help," Oni admitted. "I just don't know how to go about focusing on smaller details. I've already taken the time to know every part of this puzzle."

Oni took the puzzle as Goto offered it back, beginning to complete it by hand. He didn't even have to glance at the puzzle. The movements of every part were burned into the back of his mind.

"I understand how and when every piece is intended to move to a numerical level," the padawan explained. "I know exactly what my mind should be focusing on... but I'm missing something. I feel like a Zillo Beast trying to pluck up a single grain of sand."

 

[Goto]

Master Goto nodded as he listened, his blue eyes kind, a faint smile on his lips. The small alien believed in supportive reinforcement, to accept any mistakes or shortcomings as every sentient - himself included - mad them, and to seek ways to provide advice without judgment. There were some options to consider regarding the Padawan, especially when Oni spoke of his method for the puzzle...

"Logical, your approach is," Master Goto said in a soft tone, as he stepped closer and pointed a clawed finger at the cube. "Each step of the puzzle, put to memory, you know... and in some things, good this may be."

The Jedi Master inclined his head, his long ears flopping slightly.

"But what of feeling? Of sensing?" Master Goto raised his eye-bridges. Curiosity in his gaze. "Yes, a logical flow to things, there can be. But the Force, like the Living Force, known for natural occurrence it is. Our greatest success, our strongest connection, when open to that which is around us."

Master Goto tapped the puzzle cube.

"Reset sequence, you should," The Jedi Master smiled. "Lose numerical values, you will, but opportunity to avoid feeling like a Zillo Beast you may find, and in another approach... success."

Shem Spinner​

 

[Shem Spinner]

Coruscant, Jedi Temple
Tags: Goto​

"Reset sequence, you should," The Jedi Master smiled. "Lose numerical values, you will, but opportunity to avoid feeling like a Zillo Beast you may find, and in another approach... success."

Set aside logic? The notion seemed ridiculous, but it was something Oni had been told before, long ago in the age of the Je'daii. Even in those days his teachers remarked on his overreliance on calculation. Perhaps they were right, but the swordsman could think of no other way to see the world. This wasn't something he could so easily set aside. But, if he was to achieve mastery in the force, he was going to have to try.

"Feeling..." he echoed, frowning at the cube. "I'm not sure how to do such a thing... but I'll give it a shot."

He allowed his mind to take hold of the cube, bringing the puzzle up to him. How did one feel something inorganic? Was it to know the chemicals that made it up? The molecular structure that gave it form? No, this wasn't right. He was thinking about it too logically. This was meant to lose numerical values. In some way, he needed to move past the physical world he understood. Oni cleared his thoughts. They were only rattling around his head and frustrating him. The Pantoran needed to focus on something different.

Oni remembered what his old order had learned thousands of years ago, that the force moved through and within all things. What had they meant by this? It was hard for him to imagine such a thing in a way that made sense to his tactical mind... So what could he compare it to? The logical answer was wind. Wind could move through things, touching them to make it's presence known, but was ultimately unseen. It could move with tranquility and bring healing, or with a heavy hand to shape the surface of a planet. This seemed to be a roadblock. People didn't control the wind. Such a thing was impossible... but, as Oni reflected on it, he was quick to remember that the wind could be harnessed in a way that wasn't control, but still took advantage of its presence. If the wind- the Force moved through all things, and Oni could feel such a presence, it should help him feel what he wanted to move.

Slowly but surely, the pieces of the puzzle began to slide.

 

[Goto]

There were no words needed.

Even as the Jedi Master watched, he could see a semblance of the realization creep into the Padawan, there was willingness - if shaky - but it was certainly there. Especially when the Force began to move through the area, Master Goto very familiar with the mysterious energy, and the sensation of the Living Force's will was felt. The small Jedi Master didn't believe that the Living Force wanted to unlock a puzzle, that was a vastly oversimplified view of the moment, but Master Goto did suspect that - perhaps - it wanted to move through another willing conduit, to connect with another that was open to it, and to find what it would within young Oni.

So as the puzzle portions began to slide, locking into place one after the other, Master Goto smiled and remained silent. His small hands remained behind his back, clasped comfortably, as his blue gaze watched with interest. There was an underlying feeling of good will, support, as the Jedi Master consciously let his positive emotions into the space between and around them.

"Good, good," Master Goto said in a low voice, as he nodded. "Feeling, you are... keep going, feel the Force around you, moving through you, guiding your actions. Trust it, yes."

Shem Spinner​

 

[Shem Spinner]

Coruscant, Jedi Temple
Tags: Goto ​

"Good, good," Master Goto said in a low voice, as he nodded. "Feeling, you are... keep going, feel the Force around you, moving through you, guiding your actions. Trust it, yes."

Oni reflected on these words as he continued. Feeling. It was an abstract concept to be sure, and he seemed to be doing just that, but how it was so still wasn't clicking in his mind. But, in the moment, Oni put these aside, simply focusing on completing what he had set out to do. Eventually, the final piece of the puzzle slid into place and the box opened. Slowly, the padawan allowed the cube to lower to the floor.

"I... seem to have done it." Oni observed, seemingly surprised by this outcome. "But, I don't understand how."

The Pantoran was slightly embarrassed by this. To do something and still not understand must certainly seem ridiculous. Oni became slightly flustered, bowing to the master in apology.

"I'm sorry," he began. "But I've relied on strategy for as long as I can remember. This is... new. I... I would very much like to learn about it."