Spar with a master (Da Loof and Cyril)

[Captain Awesome]

Mol paced up and down the jedi courtyard. He tried to center himself as he twirled his lightsaber in his hand. He had been looking forward to practice his Ataru with someone who could really hold his own. For the tenth time, he experimentally activated his lightsaber, and admired its long, cyan blade as its glow played off his face and headspikes. The blade was long, thin, and defined. Perfectly suited for a duel such as this.

 

[Cyril Khan]

The plants of the courtyard swayed with the breeze, and the bright sun brought warmed the verdant ground. As beautiful as the location appeared, sometimes people used it for other reasons than peace, serenity, and meditation. Every once in a while a pair of Jedi would meet in the center on the stone plaza and engage in a semi-realistic battle. The place created a more realistic scene than the training rooms usually could. This accuracy to actual combat often attracted a decent audience; several students, knights, and masters stood along the parameter of the courtyard with their backs to the facility’s walls. That day did not differ much from any other; today a master, who almost never chose to fight publicly, came to spar a younger Jedi.

The master entered the courtyard wearing a simple white tunic. Nothing stood out about his appearance; he looked like any man prepared to spar with an unknown opponent. The emotionless face, while intimidating to those who did not know him, came natural; although his appearance seemed to show otherwise, he did not have any callous or vicious strategy in plan; he arrived as a newcomer, as no one important; a man who did not know otherwise would not suspect him to be a well-placed council member.

Only one thing stood out about this master that entered the dueling area, for he lacked one thing that every other being, the opponent and the audience members, carried. The leather belt which bound the pallid tunic held no weapon, no energy blade, or anything that could inflict physical damage. This Jedi took the role of a Counselor seriously, and as a pacifist he chose to do battle in ways of submission of both mind and body. That was the legacy of the Velvar family; Tían Velvar would only use a weapon, if his opponent desired so, for the sake of learning to fight against the styles of Shii-cho and Soresu.

 

[Captain Awesome]

Mol watched solemnly as the master strode up to the cobbled stone ring, his form so tightly packed with Force energy that it seemed to illuminate the very essance of the tranquil courtyard, like the glow of the sun. Mol face betrayed no emotion, of course, but as his bright blue eyes briefly locked with the powerful stare of the master, butterflies fluttered unbidden around his stomach.

"Master," he acknowledged respectfully. To spar with such a man was a rare oppertunity indeed! And Mol told him so. "Master, it really is an honor to be able to learn from you like this." As if he hadn't rehearsed that line again and again in his head while he had been waiting.

Mol realized that the silent master had come ready for a duel, so Mol hooked his lightsaber to his black leather belt and threw off his gray, cotton robes, where they fluttered to the grassy ground just outside the stone ring. Just his black leather boots, and his practifal lighter gray tunic remained, the gentle breeze tugging at their loose folds.

"Well..." Mol looked quizzically at the stern-faced master. "Shall we begin?" An awkward way to begin, Mol realized, but he simply lacked the patience to bandy around words. He was a young knight, barely past the level of apprentice, and he yearned for an oppertunity to test himself. And besides, he couldn't think of anything to say.

 

[Cyril Khan]

The master stood in a neutral stance and appeared extremely vulnerable to attack. However, Tían used this tactic as a mental game. From years of communication and meditation with the Force, he had a connection with the mystical energy that few others could match. He knew he did not have to be prepared in body to react to an attack, because the Force would alert him far before a surprise attack could harm him. However, the master knew that many younger students thought of the world too much as the physical; the first path to learning about the opponent was to discover whether or not he or she underestimates a foe just by physical appearance.

“I do not know how much honor is in it.” After all, the pacifist Jedi did not approve of any type of fighting, even though he knew the importance of training duels. Tían Velvar did not move as he said this; he remained in his relaxed stance and eyed the younger opponent. His words came out in his typical, antisocial tone; he did not try to be insulting, and likewise he did not try to avoid callous words. “However, if you came to learn, I suggest you study closely.”

While master stood in his combatively weak stance, he studied the Jedi facing him. A duel demanded more mind than physical skill; he had already subtly made a mental attack by standing in a noticeably inferior stance, and now he intended on learning much about the other just by reading his outward emotions and actions. Already had psychological combat begun, and no one had used as single Force power. That is the state of all duels; the majority of the mental game comes before the match even begins in earnest.

Tían stood in his still, feeble stance and waited. Unless the other Jedi moved right away, he would learn after a few minutes that the master would not attack, even if it meant waiting to the end of time. That was the way of a pacifist; only attack through counterattacks in defending one’s self or others.

 

[Captain Awesome]

Mol waited, in his spot in the dueling ring, his deactivated saber ready in a 2-handed, vertical Soresu hold. A few minutes dragged past, perfectly still. He waited for the master to draw his saber, as it would be poor form to ignite his own saber against an unarmed man.
Finally, it became apparent that the man had no intention of attacking, or even drawing his lightsaber! Perhaps he was one of those fabled Taras Kasi masters, who could wield the Force through their bare hands, fists, and feet, to an extent to which no lightsaber could hope to compare.
A moment more passed, and Mol shifted uncomfortably under the master's unceasing eyes. "So... I'll start, then?

 

[Cyril Khan]

The effect of standing in a weakened stance meant nothing now; the Jedi left himself open so that his opponent would move into his trap. However, they both knew now that the master intended to preform a counter offensive strategy. If the younger Jedi had not yet discovered this, however, the event would not last long. Even so, the elder contestant assumed the worst and left his position of weakness. He circled his foot outwards into a light stance, with one foot shoulder length from the other at all angles. Both of the master's hands rested open and outward in a non-aggressive manner. Now he would look prepared to fight; even so, he did not intend on making the first move. The change in position happened only to incite the other to do so instead.

"When you are ready." Tían Velvar did not move from or in his new stance. In his stillness, his eyes bore across the courtyard to the opponent who would undoubtedly loose patience and attack first. The master would not initiate the combat, and he had all the patience in the galaxy to wait until times end for his challenger's first motion.

 

[Captain Awesome]

Mol nodded. The man was ready; he would begin. He activated his lightsaber, which snap-hissed to life in his hands. He was ready to begin.
He knew how to fight. There must be no warning whatsoever. He silently centered himself through the Force, preparing himself for the exertion.
For a full minute, he stood stock still. The Force was his greatest ally, and he intended to use it.
In a flash of movement, Mol was upon the master, moving through the Force to an extent that he was little more than a blurred haze, or a shadow. With an audible whoosh, he was behind the master, using his unnatural speed to deal a sweeping horizontal strike that would hopefully bring his stinging lightsaber's across the master's undefended back.

 

[Cyril Khan]

The Force pulsed around the master and told tale that the knight could not even imagine. Velvar channeled the Force and let if flow through his veins and into his mind. The past events of darkness had harmed the master’s powerful communion, but even then barely any other creature alive had as much of the trust of the Force as he. Without a doubt, in the silence of the wait and the stillness of the body, each breath and second brought more of the reality to the master. The knight intended on surprising him but failed before he took his first step forward.

No one present could deny the Jedi Knight’s swiftness, and it seemed for a moment that youth could beat those of experience. Unfortunately, Master Velvar knew too much of the techniques of speed; the mind also could speed up as much as the body, and thus time became irrelevant. The Jedi, that appeared no more than a blur to the audience, no longer moved beyond vision or comprehension. The conscientious master saw his opponent move no quicker than normal and readied himself with the utmost speed.

The Force gossiped the goal of the attack to the listening master well before it occurred. The knight’s assault appeared as blatant as the rest of his actions, for they all lined up behind each other in a chain: the wait, the charge, and the attack. The master read this chain and knew his defense. The cyan blade shifted in the moment, but it never found its designated target. With intensity, elbow and knee hit the ground and rebounded upwards. The attack cut the air above him at the body’s furthest depth and had passed when the master swiftly returned upright. During the swift dodge, the body rotated, driving towards the vulnerable foe.

The master’s hand reached outward towards the overextended hands of the opponent; the failed attack had left the arms and hilt open, and Tían intended to take advantage of the moment. In a moment of alacrity, he had cut the distance from sword range to fist range with one tactical dodge. Now the master targeted the opponent’s weapon wrist; his hand would moved to grab the foe thus to control the lethal tool. Tían’s action seemed to be unavoidable, as the other still had inertia in the opposing direction and could not counterattack with the weapon, even at the close range. Only continuing the momentum of the blade away from the master seemed to be a viable defense, but that would only open up more future opportunities to submit him. However, it seemed in this single moment, where the tide of the battle turned from a hopeful charge to a strategic counterattack, that the younger Jedi would have to prove his own creativity.

 

[Captain Awesome]

Mol's lightning strike whizzed through the empty air.
His grasp on the saber almost slipped; never before had he seen a man so adept in the Force and in the martial persuits, who could not only evade such a solid attack, but turn it into one of his own! He had much to learn from this man.

Mol could see the clutching hands descending on his saber hand. Even in his Force-induced state, where the river of time oozed like molasses, there wasn't enough time for him to pull back. Not only that, but he found himself unable to follow through with the sweeping blow. He was defenseless, his flank was exposed; no, this would never do.

But Mol had not expressed the defensive value of Ataru to the old man yet. Perhaps he could teach the man something after all. Ataru, at its very basis, represents not only a mastery over the second dimention, like so many other forms, but also over the third, and even fourth dimention. He had already expressed his dominance over the second and fourth dimentions with his Force-assisted charge, and it was high time to take advantage of the third dimention with his withdrawl.

In the split second, Mol drew the Force into his form once more, calling upon the very life around him to enhance that which already thrummed through his very being.
In layman's terms, he jumped. He jumped really high.

But it was so much more then that. His robes billowing out, Mol continued his swing, spring off of the ground and floating higher and higher through the Force. Floating through the air, he could feel it even stronger, suffusing everything.
Out of the hungry reach of the old man's hands he sailed, twirling, until he gracefully landed back on the ground, slightly crouching a good three meters away.

But Mol wasn't finished. Although he made no further attack on the man, he was by no means idle. He was searching the man through the Force. What were his weaknesses?
It was an old technique - called Shatterpoint. He had spent how many days meditating on this latent power of his, trying to refine it into something he could use. And so Mol looked at the man not with his eyes, but through the Force. He saw the man, gleaming like a corusca gem. Where were his faults? If only he could find just one for him to capitalize upon! The process was long and tedious, but his defense was rock-solid. This would not be an easy fight.

 

[Cyril Khan]

The attempted grab failed indeed, but it did not matter. Had the master succeeded, the duel would have ended swiftly and the crowd displeased. Of course, Tían did not care about pleasing anyone had no intentions on cutting back to give a dramatic fight for the audience. In fact, Master Velvar had never sparred gently with any opponent. The only way to practice for reality is to make practice real, he had always said. Many of the onlookers knew this, and came to see the forceful combat, even though they never fully knew if it would last long or not.

The Jedi Knight’s evasion worked as a successful defense, but the offense proved fruitless. Tían did not need the gossiping Force to alert him to the midair cut; once the opponent began his leap, the master moved towards the safest location in the courtyard. The cyan blade struck lightly where the elder once stood, but only too late for catching flesh. The hands of the master lost the opportunity for a firm grip due to the evasive action, but the jump did not keep flesh from meeting flesh.

The attempted strike could not effectively harm Tían, for the opened nimble hands had prepared for an attack with the weapon. The Jedi would not have come to a sword fight unarmed if he did not know how to keep himself safe from the cutting edge. In the moments that the two remained in contact, the elder guided the opposing force away from harm. The technique did not come as a simple hand motion, but the movement of the entire body. Indeed, the blade stuck where Tían had once stood, but the master had taken a new location. With a smooth slip step and circular turn of the body, the Jedi took the location where the knight previously stood.

As the younger Jedi landed a few meters away, Tían resumed the light, open-handed stance he had taken before the pasted charge. Once again, he showed intention for the other to attack, but this time he would not wait forever; as a pacifist, he did not initiate combat, but he felt no remorse in aggression once a conflict began, as long as his own attacks resulted only in the subduing of his foe. However, for the moment he chose to let his opponent make his move. In the time between attacks, the master only breathed the Force in more deeply and prepared for the next moments of battle.

“I would have suspected my weaknesses to be obvious by now. I am disappointed in that you expect to find more.” Tían recognized the Force power as it moved towards him; he had used it often before and taught it to many students. Nonetheless, he chose not to stop his opponent’s attempt; he didn’t care if the knight learned of his weaknesses. He wanted to see if he could actually take advantage of such knowledge. After all, as the Force pulsed through the master, he prepared for his next move. If the younger Jedi tried another charge like before, he would find his result in trouble; if he left the elder to attack, the result would most likely be of the same genre.

 

[Captain Awesome]

Mol stood facing the man, his saber at the ready to intercept any attack made from the man. They circled slowly for a few seconds, his mind racing, before he finally spoke. "Your skills are incredible. But I think I have found your weakness."
Mol slowly advanced in a manner least befitting of his style, his lightsaber spinning in front in a butterfly kata, his cyan blade moving so quickly that there seemed to be a haze of cyan in the air in front of Mol, like a fiery shield. There would be no ducking this attack, no dodging, no trying to grab this arm.
Mol's center of gravity low, his eyes tracking every movement of the elder man, his mind prepared for whatever Force trickery the elder he in store for him, Mol advanced, closer, and closer, and closer.

 

[Cyril Khan]

((Sorry for the late response: I've had a busy week))

No one could deny that the knight’s tactic would work effectively against an unarmed foe. The streaming blade did seem to make use of this apparent weakness, and if used properly it could lead to the younger Jedi’s victory. However, in no way had the battle reached the climax. The flurry of strikes only existed a short distance from the master; as intimidating as the show could have been, Tían did not flinch or seem bothered by it in the least. The blade still had yet to reach harms way, and this, in his mind, did not constitute as an attack.

Tían had given his opponent time to make the next attack, but the knight had not yet closed the distance. While much of the audience expected a defense against the incoming, striking weapon, at that moment the master intended to make his attack against a stalling opponent. With a light thrust of the hand, a powerful wave of Force energy rushed at an angle towards the foe; a slight wind and noticeable ripple in the green grass revealed the incoming attack. Likewise, a secondary wave shot in from the opposing direction. In one sudden moment, the two bundles of Force energy collided with vigor, creating the intended power. The whirling energy pulled air, grass, stone, and every foundationless object with intense force towards the center vortex. The master stood controlling the event as it erupted suddenly around his foe. The younger Jedi barely had any time or ability to escape this masterful expression of the power many referred to as Force Whirlwind.

This attack did not insure damage to his opponent, but Tían used it only to set up his next move. He did not intend on keeping the vortex for long; he only needed the other Jedi to fall off balance for his next attack. The whirlwind would not linger long, and the master intended on making a conjunction attack once he released the power.

 

[Captain Awesome]

"Oof!" Mol found himself pummeled by the Force. His tunic was whipping around, slapping at his arms and legs. He tried to keep his eyes focused on the elder man, but he quickly gave up. He had to be content by keeping tabs on the elder with his mind's eye - through the Force. Mol prepared to lash out at the man with the Force if he did anything - and Mol certainly didn't expect him to stand still in his moment of weakness.

 

[Cyril Khan]

((Pardon the wait; one big project has been bogging me down timewise))

 

[Captain Awesome]

((I understand. Any projections on when you'll be able to post?))