A Beacon of Light (Avaloria Dython's training)

[Ares]

Veren Lorollo stood in one of the Jedi Temple's courtyards. Truly, the Coruscanti gardens residing in the Temple were beautiful, without a doubt- but they honestly couldn't compare to Ossus's vibrant gardens. The faun-like Jedi Knight was humanoid, but only to a degree- his face was human, to be certain, but on his forehead were two small horns that curved back slightly. His brown hair was short and stuck up somewhat. The Knight stood at five feet and two inches, and he only wore a Jedi tunic with shoulder pads and gauntlets- sleeveless, of course. Veren's digigrade legs were covered in carefully trimmed brown fur, ending in two-toed hooves resembling a goat's. His eyes were a deep blue, showing wisdom from moderate age and a slight hardness from the Alsakan Crisis and the current Hutt War- yet, being an "Equine", whose lives could last as long as 200 years, Veren seemed to have barely aged from the times of the Alsakan Crisis.

The Jedi Knight was waiting for his new apprentice, Avaloria Dython. She was a beautiful young Twi'lek- fast as a bullet, though. She was witty and sharp. He had chosen her mainly for her intellect; some of the prospective Padawans were almost... well, some just weren't as intelligent as Veren would prefer. The satyr-like Jedi had made sure to watch the prospective Padawans in the combat area, and the Twi'lek girl had more or less trounced everyone with blinding speed. She would definitely make a Knight... well, that is, if she could pass the rigorous, but charming, Jedi Knight who had decided to take her as an apprentice. Veren took a moment to remember... He had tried training two Padawans before, but they had both been reassinged when Veren had been sent on a mission during the Alsakan Crisis.

He heard... footsteps. Outside to beautiful courtyard, he could sense his new Padawan nearing the area. Hopefully, this time he would be able to fully train a Padawan.

 

[Avaloria]

She smiles warmly as she gazed up at the long branches that extended from the tree's that lined the side of the elegant court yard. She never had been to the Coruscant temple, her mother had always saw comfort at Ossus. She didn't allow her smile to fade, but found herself looking down remembering that sorrow filled face of her mother screaming at her to run. A moment, she pressed her hands to her chest, holding back the sorrow that filled her heart from the events that only occurred a month ago.

She knew this would be her first Master, after the death of her mother, and yet she felt a sudden sense of reserve. Her movement was slow (for her), yet before she could get to close to where she was to meet her new Master she made sure she lowered her arms to approach him in a proper manner. Her beautiful gleaming blue eyes gazed the courtyard.. she never had seen her New Master, only knowing he was a Jedi Knight ..and nothing more.

"I've been here a month and yet this temple still is a maze.., I wonder if he'll be able to identify me," she said to herself using her lekku's to communicate that silently.

 

[Ares]

Veren stopped his musings, and his right ear twitched. He heard some movement in the trees. Stupid enhanced hearing. It always unnerved others to see the Jedi Knight's pointed ears follow a sound, but right now, no one seemed to be watching him. He remembered that sometimes, though, Padawans got nervous around him in particular. It probably had to do with the hooves.. but hey, that was natural. He sensed, in the Force, a Twi'lek girl. His Padawan.

The Jedi Knight turned around, looking at the Padawan approaching him. She was a beautiful young Twi'lek who was walking foward with incredible grace at a medium speed. He thought back to when he saw her usually "walking". Moving this slowly must have taken a lot of effort on her part. The faun-like Jedi smiled at her, and said, "Hello, Avaloria. I'm Veren Lorollo. Aged Jedi Knight, and, coincidently, your new Master."

 

[Avaloria]

She turned her full attention to the Faun-like Jedi and could not help but find the Jedi's unique appearence pleasing. Infact his difference made her feel more at ease. Training on Ossus she met many new species but he was a first for her, she was more intrigue by his appearence then the fact she had a new Master. A moment she would give only silence, in awe of the beautiful nature of the Jedi, prehapes it was her youth that made her curious about this Jedi's origins but she soon shruged it off.

"Well, Master Lorollo it is an honor to finally get to meet you personally. I was informed of your name but, I must be honest, your appearence is very intresting to me."

She paused for a moment realizing what came out of her mouth, her cheeks seem to glow a deeper hew of blue as she realized that may have sounded abit rude, she quickly attempted to back track.

"Um, Well what I meant was that.. On Ossus where my mother trained me for sometime I've seen many new species but, um..well, yours is a first for me."

She looks at him, with her piercing blue eyes and hoped he wouldnt be taken back by her abrupt nature. She had remembered along time ago her mother having told her to becareful of the words we chose as they may come back to sting you later. While waiting for him to respond, she stood abit ackwardly, probably due to her comment.

 

[Ares]

The Jedi Knight simply laughed- an infectious, charming sound. He smiled and responded, "Don't worry. I get that a lot. It's usually about the legs, but sometimes the people stare at the horns. And it's okay. My species tend to not venture into the galaxy very much, much less become Jedi. So far, only three of my species before me have become Jedi. I understand being curious."

Then, the Jedi straightened slightly. He spoke now in a more business-like tone. "Now, no matter how much more interesting it would be to stand around and talk, I really must get back to the subject I meant to bring up- your training. What field do you wish to explore first? Jedi Lore? Lightsaber combat? Force application?"

 

[Avaloria]

Relieved that her new master did not take immediate offense, the color of her cheeks return to their normal blue. She looks at her master square in the eyes, showing him that she wishes to look beyond his physical appearance and respect him as the "man" he is. She ponders his question for only a second and then she answers him with her cheerful deposition.

"Well.. My mother used the Libraries of Ossus to teach me much of Our History, Extending as far back as Tython where our four fathers had emerged.. Though I will admit, I almost fell asleep during such.. lessons. If the choice is mine to make.. I think I'd like to begin training with Force Applications."

She smirks at her comment about falling asleep, she remembers how the Jedi originally had been born into this world, the first schisms, and yet.. she never found lore particularly interesting. She definitely was a small ball of fire..

 

[Ares]

Veren emitted his usual infectious laugh, smiling as he always seemed to be doing. The Jedi Knight was known to be very charismatic without ever really trying at all. He walked a few feet to his right, and looked closely at a leafy plant with many plants.

"I have seen from your training sessions that you have learned the basics- push, pull, sense, etc. But I believe that the core powers aren't all that are necessary. One of the most useful is the ability to coerce plants and animals to do as you wish. Now, this is a moderately difficult ability. Do you want to start this, or do you want to practice the Core Powers more? Or do you have another Force Ability in mind?"

 

[Avaloria]

She smiles pondering his new question and request of her. She never lets her eyes leave the figure of her master, in fact she hangs on to each word he gives her, for now. This is all new to and it fascinates her to no end that her master has such an adorable laughter. She eventually leaves her gaze from him and to the plant and then ponders the idea of speaking to plants and animals , or at least controlling them to a degree.

"Seems like an interesting challenge, I'm more then up for it. The Core Powers I've focused on for sometime and have decent amount of control using them, though there is room to improve. You've interest me with .. this Plant and Animal Controlling.. How do we going about doing this?"

Her tone sounds a bit bubbly, this is likely due to her curiosity to this and her fascination to the concept. Her mother hadn't really focused to much on force powers, primarily she was focused on teaching Avaloria Lore.. perhaps that is why it bores her even now.

 

[Ares]

Veren didn't resist the urge to laugh. His new apprentice was very friendly and talkative. Unlike the last two boring, solemn students. They were the ones who had made the Knight uncomfortable. The satyr-like Jedi responded, "Very well! Plant coercement is the easier of the two, so we shall start with that. Now, before I teach you the ability, I find it is best to inform my students of the nature of the ability. Now, there are several ways to do that. There is the way that the Jedi Order at large attempts it, where you simply channel your will through the plant. Easy, useful, but not really that reliable. Plants usually don't like you if you try and control them. The dark way never used by Jedi is to bend the plant in question to your will. I would never advise this, because you may dominate one plant, but the rest will turn against you, usually. And either way, it would be cruel.

Now, my preferred way is to use telepathy to insert subtle messages into the plant in question's mind. If you send a constant overlay of suggestions, it starts to make the plant want to do it, and within a window of about thirty seconds, I could make this entire garden come to life and attack someone. However, that takes practice. Here is a demonstration."

Veren stood still for several moments, and his eyes began to look distant, as if he was looking at something on another plane, or just somewhere far away. After a short time, his eyes took on their normal appearance again. "Now, look at the Ildaja vines I was looking at earlier."

All of a sudden, several of the vines wrapped around a pillar disengaged themselves from the marble cylinder like leafy, flower-covered snakes. They moved hypnotically in swaying movements, then paused. The snapped out right in front of the faun-like Jedi Knight, to the small bird bath on the far side of Veren. One snatched a marble from the little pool, and all four vines flew back at high speed to their coloumn(sp?), and settled down, still holding the marble, into a restful position.

He smiled again, and said to Avaloria, "All right, now you try. Just insert a thought into the vine's mind- only try one of them for now, it'll be easier. Because I've already manipulated them, they'll be easier to suggest. This should be no problem for you."

 

[Avaloria]

Amazed by what she had just witnessed she ponders a few moments on how to go about doing this. For her first attempt she rose her left arm in front of her, opening her left hand so that her palm could be seen pointing itself toward a single vine. Her thoughts she figured she'd used basic suggestive projection onto the single vine, not attempting anything to complicated or to advance for herself. She did know her limitations.

Whisper within her mind, over and over again she asks the vine "Extend your self toward the Jedi Knight, my Master and offer to shake his hand." She figured this would be a nice peaceful suggestion to the plant and perhaps one it wouldn't mind doing. Well, she continued to focus, continued to repeat the phrase to the vine through Telepathy , at first the vine itself did not respond but after a few moments it began to wiggle a bit in place. Struggling to get it to do as she needed it to, she figured she may be trying to hard.

She lowered her arm and this time opened her eyes and focused her full attention on communicating with the single vine. She imagined herself , a spiritual version of herself, conversing with the organic life form. She repeated the phrase in her mind, once more "Extend yourself to my master, Please." This time she repeated a more simple line, hoping that a simple form of respect may go a long way with this tiny vine. Again the vine moved a little, and.. after five minutes of exerting herself, exerting her mind, the Vine moved as if it had bones, bending slightly to extend itself toward her Master.

Her Concentration waivers though as a few Padawan go running by Her and her Master. The vine itself almost falters back to its original position, but remembering her mother explaining to her that meditation like states require full concentration that the things outside your mind.. are best blocked out. She regains her focus and the vine itself finally struggles to hover before Her Master. Not the "Cleanest" form of concentration , but after 15 to 20 minutes the vine finally agrees to moving toward her Master's Hand. The Vine moving in a slow manner to attempt to wrangle itself into the Knight's left hand, in a form of a greeting.

Though before the vine itself could reach her Master's hand, it falls limp and returns to where it came. She lost her concentration, and a sudden expression of failure shows upon her face. Her concentration broke as she for some reason thought of her mother while doing this exercise.

"Well , That wasn't as good as I thought I'd do...."

 

[Ares]

After the Twi'lek girl tried and tried for almost thirty minutes overall, but still ended up losing control, the faun-like Jedi spoke, "It's okay. I was horrible the first time I attempted to coerce plants- much less animals. Do you wish to keep trying, or do you want to move on for now? We can do something else and come back to this later, if you like," he asked.

 

[Avaloria]

"I'd like to continue trying if I may," she said with a voice of determination. She wasn't one to just throw in the towel when something was difficult. Perhaps this was the first time she'd show her new master that she wasn't all jokes and giggles, that behind her optimistic personality she did take things seriously.

She looked at the vine again and began to speak the words again in her mind. "Please, Reach for my Masters hand," her mind spoke these words in a repeating pattern, over and over again as she could almost see the very words she spoke entering into the plant's self-being. This time, her focus unwaivering and her mind speaking faster and faster as if she was entering a different plane of thought. As she spoke the words, her eyes glazed over by her sheer concentration. The environment around her ignored by her determination to see this task through, she could feel the plant move.

She believed in the words she spoke, and felt herself reaching out to the plant not to force it but to work with it. Using the living force as her ally to carry her words to the organic plant, the vine began to lift from where it stood and moved with a slithering effect to her Master's hand. Here is where the vine , curled before Master Veren and reached out to his hand. Even with the sounds of the fountains in the background, the constant movement of padawans and other fellow knights marching about, her concentration this time remained.

Her confidence having been re-boosted, she grinned as her eyes flashes to reality. She saw that the vine remained as she was still able to focus, she spoke softly to her Master, "Well.. arn't you going to introduce yourself to it?"

She giggled out of excitement as the vine hung in mid-air waiting for the faun-like Jedi Knight to greet it properly. Even though she appeared to be communing with the vine with ease, she hid the fact it was taking allot for her to do such behind her adorable chuckles.

 

[Ares]

Veren nodded when his apprentice decided to have another go at the ability. She was determined. The Twi'lek would be a very good Jedi in the future- she was strong, dedicated, intelligent, and charming. She could excel in any given field. Good girl.

The faun-like Jedi watched shrewdly as she worked in the Force. It was appearing to get easier. Good. She caught on quickly. He rubbed his right horn lightly, a habit from his twenties. The Jedi Knight watched on, and he noticed the vines coiling up in front of him. One snaked its way up in the air. It slithered up, like a botanical hand, to present itself to him. Avaloria spoke, "Well... aren't you going to introduce yourself to it?"

The Equine laughted-good-naturedly, and extended his muscled hand to the plant. "Well, it's very pleasant to make your acquaintance. I'm Veren Lorollo, Jedi Knight. Have you had the chance to meet my Padawan yet? She's very talented."

He slipped his thoughts into the vine's Force Presence, and it turned its end like a head to face Avaloria. The leafy plant slithered over slowly, and extended itself like a hand to her now. Veren grinned. "I believe he wants to get to know you. Tricky little fellow...

 

[Avaloria]

She smiles , and extends her hand to the vine ever-so gently and shakes it up and down as if greeting it. Her soft, cheerful voice rings clear and her eyes sparkle with that vibrant glow.

"Well now, arnt you a friendly fellow," she says playing along, having a bit of fun. She wondered if Master Veren could sense her sadness with her mother, but that thought itself faded quickly as his kindness and cheerful deposition was all she needed at this moment. She let go of the plant and looks to her master , her sweet smile not fading from her face.

"That was fun, and I think with a little more practice on my own I should be able to do this with as much ease as you've willed it. I definitely appreciate learning this new trick," she spoke that last sentence with a pleasant , soft tone.

 

[Ares]

Veren nodded with a slight smile on his face. His apprentice learned extremely quickly, much better than his previous two Padawans. The faun-like Jedi replied with a smile, "Good, good. How about we practice this on a different plant for one last time, and then we can move on. And your welcome. It's my duty to teach, after all, and this little trick has proved invaluable on any planet with plants. You can get news, defend yourself, and mess with others from a distance...."

The faun-like Jedi certainly appreciated having a Padawan like Avaloria. She was easy=going, pleasant, and she rarely thought of the sorrow. She seemed to have handled her mother's death rather well, grieving in quiet, and staying bubbly in outward manifestation. Veren nodded to his apprentice and spoke again in a cordial voice, "Now, try it one last time on that spore flower behind you. Suggest to it to fire the spores from the yellow flower- it's pointing towards Master Ploontab. He grinned wickedly. "He always liked flowers, after all...."

 

[Avaloria]

She gazed toward the spore plant and then looked at the Jedi Master, Master Ploontab. A wicked grin flashed upon her face, and she understand that perhaps her Master and Master Ploontab must be close for him wanting her to play a trick on him. She allowed herself to be naive in this matter and began to commune with the plant, but before doing so she gazed upon it with a admiring concentration. Her lips moved ever so slightly as she repeated this sentence over and over again, "Please, Project your spores toward Master Ploontab he does admire your species".

Her lips moved slightly, as if she spoke the words verbally yet not a sound could be heard. Her eyes gazed over, and the plant itself seem to glow with a vibrant green, within her own stare. At first the plant communication was responsed with a soft resonating tremor through the force, but as if connecting with the plant on a more intimate level it shot off a cloud of pollen , that within its awake a few rounds of spores ejected themselves outward toward the unsuspected Master. She waited to see... the outcome of such a prank. Internally however, she was starting to feel a bit drain from exerting the force so frequently and her stamina was something she still was improving.

 

[Ares]

Veren watched as his Padawan encouraged the plant- he had chosen this specific one because it enjoys letting spores go to fertilize its species. It didn't care where they, went though, but when directed, it would gladly do so. And right now, it was a win-win scenario for the plant, the Knight, and the Padawan- the plant got a chance to reproduce, Veren got to play a prank on a friend, and his Padawan got a chance to practice her Force Powers.

Then, several clouds of fluffy green spores fired outward, and covered the Chagrian Jedi Master. Master Ploontab yelped once in surprise, and jumped off his bench in surprise, landing in the dirt. Veren was almost crying with laughter as he jumped over to the Chagrian. He said, "[color=""grey"]Sorry, Ploontab- training and all. Besides, I had to pay you back somehow for the mayonnaise you applied to the inside of my sheets... liberally.[/color]"

The faun-like Jedi laughed good-naturedly and walked back over to his apprentice. The Jedi Knight spoke, "Alright... Do you want to continue Force Training, do saber training, or take a break for lore? It's your choice."

 

[Avaloria]

She giggled warmly after seening Ploontab fall forward. She had fun with having the small spore plant do its current deed. She then gaze over to her Master, hearing his Question she was more then ready to continue training , even though the sun now was slowly setting over the endless city.

"Prehapes some, friendly dueling would be nice. I must admit and I know this may sound abit wrong.. but, Mentally I dont think I could do much with the force at this time. The plant trick may seem to have come easy but, I didnt relize it would exhaust me so quickly.."

Physically she was more then prepared to continue the training however.

 

[Ares]

Veren laughed good-naturedly, and replied, "Good, good. Do you know any styles of lightsaber combat? I saw that you can utilize Ataru quite well, but do you want to also practice another style? Sometimes rapidly switching between styles can confuse opponents. Do you wish to simply spar, or do you want to learn to switch between Ataru and Makashi?" the Jedi Master asked. His student seemed very adept at almost everything she tried...

 

[Avaloria]

She stood there and pondered the Question for a moment. She was always up for something new, though even for her Learning Ataru took allot out of her. She seem to have more difficulty learning combat forms then.. Force Abilities. Perhaps it had something to do with an affinity to the force, but she wasn't entirely certain. She unclipped her lightsaber and smiled warmly at her master.

"I'm willing to learn Makashi.. In fact I dont think I know of that form. I will do my best not to resort to.. my comfortable form."

She said that with a hesitation, which naturally comes from not knowing something or for hearing about it for the very first moment.