Sith Training on Ice

[DMtheSith]

Ven knelt on the ground within the Zoist academy. The room he knelt in was a square about forty yards from corner to corner. The ceiling sloped up in a pyramid shape stopping short of forming a tip which formed an opening to the sky that allowed snowflakes to flit down into the from the overcast sky. Icicles hung off the ceiling and the corners were home to piles of snow which were swept from under the aperture in the ceiling. Ven was wearing the standard issue black acolyte robes. Before was his warblade laid out in front of him and a box that contained a training lightsaber assembly with a red crystal. He also had a Sith holocron put directly in the center of the room. So far he had like things on Zoist. Sith life suited him well and Ven was beginning to think he would like it better than pirate life. "Now then," he said to himself. "My partner should be here soon."

 

[Valatrux]

With a warriors swagger Valatrux entered the training hall alongside his partner.

"Now we hone ourselves, are you ready fellow Acolyte?" Valatrux questioned as he knelt next to his fellow sith.

He could feel the vibrations of the dark energy in and around him. The aura of Ven was radiating as well. Valatrux began to channel his pain and hatred into focus as he waited for the coming training to begin. It has begun, his first steps into ascending his power.

 

[DMtheSith]

“Indeed.” Without another word Ven extended his hand towards the holocron. This was the first of many secrets Ven hoped to gain for the Privateers, or for himself at least. Focusing the darkside, he caused the holocron to light up and a red hologram of an old man in black robes appeared. Ven adressed him. "My lord, we wish to learn the ways of form I, Shii-cho." The old Sith began pacing back and forth.

“Well then. Two more acolytes awaken me to teach them Shii-cho? Are the overseers really that lazy that they need to rely on the dead to do their teaching for them?” The Sith lord stopped before the two. “Well then, we may as well start. First, assemble your sabers.”

“Yes my lord.” Ven closed his eyes beneath his goggles and began assembling his lightsaber. Letting the dark side energy wash over him and infuse itself into his saber.

 

[Valatrux]

Valatrux opened the case in front of him and began assembling the training saber, his eyes fixed on the weapons simple yet elegant and powerful design. He felt a rush as the holocron addressed them. The dark side was manifesting in him as his saber took shape, this one wasn't very special but someday he would craft his own saber to his liking.

 

[DMtheSith]

The pieces of the saber swirled around in front of Ven, clicking together around the crystal, allowing the dark side to fill both him and the saber. Ven felt the last piece of the saber click together. The old Sith watched as the two acolytes finished assembling their sabers.


“Now then, Shii-cho is the oldest lightsaber form in existence. While it is somewhat clumsy and predictable, it is very useful for teaching the basics of lightsaber combat. Be warned, the form is better suited to deflecting blasters and fighting multiple opponents without lightsabers rather than fighting one on one with an opponent with a lightsaber. That is not to say however, that it is useless for in saber combat. Indeed, many masters of the lightsaber blend it with their own forms. To begin, assume the defensive neutral position. Blades held upright on your dominant sides with your feet evenly spaced.”

 

[Valatrux]

Valatrux listened as the old sith master explained the art of Schii-cho. The foundation of mastery over the saber. He understood that without these basic manuevers he would be unable to unleash his true power. He assumed the defensive neutral stance as instructed.
"so it begins" he states.

 

[DMtheSith]

The Sith lord snapped his fingers and two Sith training droids entered the room holding blaster pistols. "To achieve the most basic understanding of Form I, one must first become proficient with blocking blaster bolts. For now these blaster bolts are weaker versions used for training. They won’t kill you, only burn you.” The hologram smiled. “Remember, in real life your enemies will not use training bolts.”


The two training droids assumed the forms of rebel soldiers and leveled their guns at the two acolytes: One at Ven and one at Valatrux. “Think fast.” the hologram said. Both droids fired three bolts at the two acolytes.

 

[Valatrux]

Valatrux channeled the force through his body as he precisely defended against the bolts, he could feel the saber as though it were an extension of him. He could make accurate adjustmen's to fend off the blaster fire of the training droids. The ability to do this in battle would be quite helpful. He focused and flawlessly deflected the bolts with a ln eagerness to learn that consumed him.

 

[DMtheSith]

Ven was taken slightly by surprise as the bolts flew at him. The first one went straight for his chest. He frantically moved his saber to block it. The bolt reflected off wildly. “I should be better at this.” He thought. He had combat experience before. The problem was that we wasn’t used to the weight and balance of the saber. All the weight being in the handle made moving the blade highly unfamiliar. He over swung to deflect the second bolt. Without having enough time to recover the third bolt caught him on the shoulder. The two droids lowered their pistols and reverted back to their original form. “Well done acolyte Valatrux. Acolyte Ven you will get it in time.” The old Sith nodded at the two approvingly despite Ven’s mistake.


“Now then, it is time the two of you learn some sort of saber to saber combat. As I mentioned earlier, Form I is not optimal for dueling but it is better than nothing. If you were to encounter a Jedi I would not recommend using Form I exclusively if you are proficient in another form. However, if the Jedi was a padawan who also only had knowledge of Shii-Cho, you would have the advantage.” The Sith began pacing back and forth again.


“You see, as Sith and users of the Dark Side, we draw our power from our emotions. The problem with a Jedi or other Light Side user using Shii-cho and what makes it good for our purposes is that Form I fosters a heated emotional mindset. Because of this Form I, while it is designed for disarming, generally fosters fighting with a killing intent. This is why light siders, the rabble that they are, must exercise restraint when using Form I and we can use it to draw ourselves closer to the Dark Side. Use it to strengthen yourself in the heat of battle. However, this is not to say that a Jedi cannot use Form I effectively. A Jedi named Kitt Fisto who lived a millennia ago was a master of Form I.”


“Enough about Jedi. For a master Form I is like water. However, for acolytes at your skill level Form I will be clumsy and basic. Remember, Form I draws its power from its simplicity. There are two types ways to use Form I: Perfect Form and Live Form. Perfect Form uses perfectly vertical and horizontal parries and cuts and is used for sparring. Live Form is what you would use in a fight and incorporates diagonal attacks at the target zones. There are six target zones. The first is the head, the second is the right arm and side, third is left arm and side, the fourth one targets the back, the fifth targets the right leg, and the sixth target zone is the left leg. These are where you would direct your attacks using the Live Form.”


The old Sith stopped pacing between each other. “Now let’s try a bit of sparring. Face each other in offensive neutral with feet evenly spaced and your blade pointed at your opponent. Spar each other using Live Form. Stop when someone lands a hit.”


Ven turned towards Valatrux and assumed the offensive neutral stance. He winced in pain as he felt the burn on his shoulder.


“Don’t think I’m going to let you off for having a shoulder injury. A Jedi wouldn’t so neither will I.”


“Y-yes my lord.” He focused on Valatrux.

“Begin”

 

[Valatrux]

Valatrux gripped the hilt tightly as he listened and accepted his instructors approval. Listening to the Old Sith, Valatrux became much more gripped by the way he spoke. Ready and willing to take on the next lesson.
Valatrux readied himself at his opposing peer. Ven seemed slightly disheartened. Valatrux felt nothing but a burning agony to push farther.

 

[DMtheSith]

Ven waited for Valatrux to make his move. He sensed Valatrux’s desire to push farther and decided it would be best if he made the first move. He dashed at Valatrux and perfectly horizontal slash to Valatrux’s right side.

 

[Valatrux]

Valatrux met the strike halfway and attempted a quick disarm. The disarm was sloppy but he made up for it with regaining his balance quickly and setting up to unleash a flurry of quick slashes towards Ven. This, is exactly what he wanted... to be a warrior above all else

 

[DMtheSith]

Ven stumbled backward in an effort to avoid the disarm. He was taken slightly by surprise with the slashes but this time he was determined not to get hit. He parried each slash whist stepping backward. Ven had been in duels before but not with an opponent as ferocious as this. The old Sith watched on with interest as the two acolytes fought their way across the room. Ven was starting to feel overwhelmed. The next slash came at his right shoulder. He parried it than dived behind Valatrux's right side. It was all coming back to him now, the years spent fighting as a pirate. He recovered and spun round on his heels back to the offensive neutral position. Lowering his saber he lunged at Valatrux with the point.

 

[Valatrux]

Caught off guard by this move, Valatrux clumsily side stepped Ven barely being missed by his attack. As he regained his footing and assumed an aggressive stance with high guard, his head filled with passion for war he went for a high downward strike vertically against Ven. The ferocious nature of the swing was very obvious in the loud roar Valatrux expelled with the attack.

 

[DMtheSith]

Ven was slightly startled by Valatrux’s roar. He sensed the dark side radiating from him and was shaken. He had never felt this kind energy even from Captain Varno. Valatrux’s saber came crashing down onto him and Ven struggled to meet his blade. He ended up having to twist around awkwardly. Ven ended up on one knee locking blades with Valatrux. The two pushed against each other for a few seconds with air around Ven becoming oppressive with Valatrux’s dark side energy. This wasn’t good. He’d never win at this rate. He tried to push the Dark side out. Suddenly Ven remembered what the Sith lord said about using Shii-cho with the killing intent. Why fight the Dark side when he could match it?


Ven gathered the Force in his hand while nurturing a rage within himself. He momentarily took his left hand off the hilt to point his palm at Valatrux. He released a blast of the Force at Valatrux and then lowered the point of his blade, trying to cause Valatrux’s blade to slip to the ground. Quickly he got to his feet and made a diagonal cut to his opponent's shoulder.

 

[Valatrux]

The rapid and escalating dual raged on, Valatrux felt he was gaining the edge over Ven as their holocron mentor watched the two young Sith exchange saber slashes and parries. Ven's use of the force unexpected and unable to be met with his own force attack, being very effective in spacing the two allowing Ven to gain an upper hand. This is when Ven made his cut for Valatrux's shoulder
"Your ferocity must be matched by your ability to rally from an attack young Acolyte" The holocron spoke out to Valatrux.
With this he let back in evasion of the attack and set his stance for his next move. He valued Ven's ability to keep up, but also wanted to challenge his peer. He raised his saber and began yet another flurry of attacks hoping to break Ven's defense

 

[DMtheSith]

Ven was driven back by Valatrux’s attack. His attacks came faster than Ven could keep up with. He was slightly behind on parrying each strike until he reacted a second too slow to Valatrux’s last strike which only grazed Ven’s lightsaber and struck him on the right arm. The blade burned causing Ven to stumble to the side.


“Enough.” The Old Sith lord said. “Well done acolyte Valatrux. Ferocity is a valuable weapon in the hands of a Sith. Acolyte Ven, your performance was admirable. You have the skill with the blade but you do not have the speed. Perhaps I should teach the two of you Force speed.”


“Force speed is basically using the Force to slow down your perception of the world and increase the speed of your muscles. This power is invaluable in the hands of a saber user. You can use it to speed up your saber attacks. Jedi master Mace Windu used Force Speed to appear to be wielding multiple sabers at once. That goes to show that even Jedi get things right from time to time. With enough mastery you can increase the duration and amount of speed as well as even gain the ability to run up walls for a short time.”


“To begin using Force speed, first build up the Force in your legs and arms. Then build it up in your eyes and ears to slow down your perception of the world Do not be afraid to utilize anger to gain the full ability of the Dark Side.” He gestured to the droids who assumed the forms of Jedi and stood across the room from the two acolytes about twenty yards away. “From where you’re standing I want you to slash the training droids using your sabers. You have five seconds.”


“Starting now.”

 

[Valatrux]

Building to the inferno of passion burning in Valatrux were the words of the old sith. As he instructed he began to channel the force, he grew infuriated and began to rage with dark energy. He gripped the saber tightly as he clenched his jaw, his posture indicated that he intended to lunge violently from across the room. He let out another roar as he burst from his original position to slashing the Droid in two before the time limit.
"Flawless young Acolyte" The Old Sith announced "Now, Ven it is your turn" he commented.

 

[DMtheSith]

Ven watched Valatrux speed across the room. At the old Sith’s world he focused his attention on the training droid before him. He closed his eyes and focused his anger against the Jedi. He felt the force built inside of him, felt it flowing into his limbs and head. He opened his eyes and saw the world moving slowly. He took his first steps and found himself moving faster than the rest of the world. He broke into a sprint rushing towards the image of the Jedi. He jumped and slashed the training droid across the chest.


“Well done young one.” Ven took a moment to recover then stood up triumphantly. He was a natural at this.


“Thank you my lord.”


“Now then, there’s another power I think the two of you should learn another power called Force cloak. Force cloak involves bending light and sound around you in order to make yourself invisible and inaudible. An alternative way of doing this is to simply use mind trick or Force illusion but since you both are new acolytes I wouldn’t recommend it. This is a rare ability and hard to master but it will serve you well. To start you must focus the Force in the area just around you to bend light around you. Make your body like a rock in the middle of a river: The water flows around you taking notice of you. Next you must then still the air molecules in your vicinity, particularly around your feet, so that they will not be vibrated. However, leave an opening around your face so you can still breathe.”


Ven nodded and focused the Force. First he pictured all the photons hitting and bouncing off of him. He willed there to a current around him. Less and less photons hit him as he slowly faded from view until he became invisible. Next he focused on all the air molecules rattling around him. Ven stilled them and in the stillness he felt a moment of peace.


“Watch yourself acolyte. I sense that you’re falling into the Light side with your calmness. Remember: Peace is a lie there is only passion.” The hologram chuckled. “Well this must be the first time I’ve heard of someone falling into the Light side. Be careful of the Light side acolyte. Most of the time people talk falling to the Dark side but the Light side can creep up on you sometimes.”


“Yes sir.” Ven stoked the fire of hatred towards Telv Varno within him and felt the peace leave him. The dark side grew back within him causing the stillness of the air around him to go from calm to almost like death. Still, having used the dark side most of his life he was used to feelings like that.

"Now then acolyte Valatrux, your turn."

 

[Valatrux]

Valatrux focused his rage yet again to harness the force, he bent the world around him. The air and the light around him being bent by his will, cloaking him from basic perception.
"Ahh yes Valatrux, well done." The Old sith chimed. "You both display great potential with the force, and with your sabers. You both have your own personal strents and weaknesses but through training together you two shall be of much help to each others development" he continued.
"My thanks to you my lord" Valatrux announced as he faded back into a perceivable form. Inside Valatrux felt his power growing, his passion burning brighter.