Ask Crossed Blades

It would be at least another three hours until they entered Takodana's atmosphere and began their descent toward the planet's Jedi Temple according to the pilot. He was a Jedi pilot—Jedi soldier? Did they have pilots and soldiers, non force sensitive and the like? Shaw didn't know. Anyway, the guy driving the ship had gotten fed up with Shaw wandering up to the cockpit to ask him how much longer it would be and had personally sealed and locked the cockpit door after Shaw's last little impromptu visit. Just when Shaw thought they were really beginning to vibe and become buddies! The teenager would have to find some other way to fill his time that didn't involve asking their driver a bunch of questions about how to fly a ship.

He knew just the thing! Luckily Shaw wasn't the only padawan on the transport, and he quickly sent a text message to the other on his dataphone. The message read:


Then he recorded himself making some lightsaber noises through the microphone and hit send. Stuck on this transport for the last couple of days had been incredibly boring. Caul had been the only bright spot on the whole trip, and the two padawans had been meeting up a couple of times a day to train and let off some energy. Today not even getting locked out of the cockpit could dampen Shaw's spirits because the Jedi Knight on board had agreed to break out the training lightsabers.

Shaw was practically bouncing off the walls as he made his way to the cargo hold. This would be the first time he had gotten to hold a lightsaber, much less train with one! He was beyond excited, and not even the lingering voice in the back of his mind that told him his parents would not be pleased about this bothered him. Okay. Maybe it bothered him a little bit, but it wasn't going to stop him. He reached the cargo hold first and put on some pump up music. @Zay

Was it wrong that Shaw was more than a little bit relieved when he walked in and saw that Kyle, the Jedi Knight they were traveling with, wasn't there? No? Because he was. Extremely relieved. Most of the Jedi Knights Shaw had met in his brief time in the order had been pretty chill. But not Kyle. Kyle was a menace. And not in a good way like Caul and Shaw.

What happened next took Shaw completely by surprise. Caul was standing there waiting for him and then, before Shaw could say anything, Caul was tossing something his way. Not just something. Not just anything. A lightsaber. A real, plasma emitting, cut through walls and slice a hutt in half lightsaber! Okay, so it was a training lightsaber and couldn't actually cut a hutt in half, but Shaw felt like it could.

The teenager was speechless, staring down at the cylindrical weapon with wide eyes and a face that said it all. His hands slid around the handgrip and squeezed, just to make sure it was real and he wasn't seeing things. Bro was totally geeking out and doing cartwheels on the inside. It was a real lightsaber. The legendary weapon of the Jedi and Sith Order, the two organizations that his parents had raised him to distrust. But even then, before he had been sent to the order, he had always had a fascination with lightsabers. What kid didn't??

This felt like a real movie moment. Like an imaginary wind tugged at his clothing while a stage light shone down on him and epic music played in the background. He could already picture himself doing all kinds of sick moves with this lightsaber, and he hadn't even received a lick of training yet. He felt like he could do anything!

Before Shaw got to the exciting parts of his imaginary quest he would get an opportunity to put the weapon to use in real life. His thumb slid across the activation stud, and a purple blade of pure plasma emitted from the hilt. Shaw laughed, clumsily raising the blade to try and block Caul, who was bringing down the wrath of the fictional maia Gandalf.

"DUUUUUDE! I'M MACE WINDU!" A name of a famous Jedi Shaw had recently learned about in history class. He was surprised he had remembered the name! @Zay

Shaw had never felt as cool as he did in this moment, violet and verdant blades clashing and struggling for dominance. Even if the strength of Caul's downward strike did cause Shaw to stumble backward a few steps, he still felt cool. Sure he stumbled back, but he stumbled back with a lightsaber. Somehow that just made all the difference.

He had no idea who Qui Gon Jin was. The name didn't even sound familiar. He would have to go to the library and look him up later. Wait. Did Caul just inspire him to go to the library and study? Of his own accord? Wild.

Leveraging the space he had generated, Caul did a crazy awesome Donkey Kong spin move and struck at Shaw's leg. Distracted and out of his league against the more experienced padawan, the low-power setting blade made contact and tripped Shaw, already on the back pedal. He fell flat on his butt with a thud that echoed through the training room. Shaw's laughter followed. "Bruh! You know I've been skipping glute day at the gym!" That was definitely gonna be sore for a while.

Untrained and inexperienced he might have been but willing to give up he wasn't. Swinging wildly to try and fend Caul off while he got to his feet, Shaw would stand up and regain his footing. Then he would swing his blade in a rising cut aimed for the other padawan's arms. Even if there was no chance he was gonna win, this was fun. Some of the best moments Shaw had experienced since being sent to the order. @Zay

Any advantage Shaw might have gained by swinging his new training lightsaber in erratic and wild, unpredictable strokes was temporary. It fizzled out in the face of an actual tried and true form, which was exactly what Caul slipped into. It was a smooth, masterful transition. As easy as slipping into a new robe.

"What is that?" Shaw asked curiously, gesturing to the position Caul had taken. Blade raised, arm extended. Shaw knew just enough to know that there were different lightsaber positions. Styles. Whatever they were called. He had watched some of the other padawans training before, seen their masters correcting their stances and movements and attack patterns. Now that Shaw had his own training lightsaber (thanks to Caul), maybe he would get to join in on some of the training too.

Waiting for the other padawan's answer, Shaw lunged forward. Thrusting the violet blade out and forward in a straight line, toward Caul's stomach. He hoped Caul was having as much fun as he was. @Zay

"Soresuwhat?" Shaw echoed, staring at Caul with a blank expression. At first he thought maybe the other padawan was trying to pull his leg or something, but he could see that Caul meant what he said. He wasn't trying to pull a harmless prank on the new padawan. That was when Shaw stumbled over Caul's extended leg and rolled onto his side. Caul might not have been trying to pull his leg but he certainly had just tripped it.

Shaw looked up at Caul and laughed. That was the second time he'd gotten him, and they had just started. He had to give credit where credit was due. "Nah bro. Not yet." He shrugged. "But I haven't had a training blade until now." His hand gripped the hilt a little tighter, still amazed that it was his to keep. "And I'm pretty new. Only been with the order a few months."

Back on his feet, Shaw watched Caul's movements carefully and then imitated them as best he could. Assuming the same balanced stance, holding his blade at the same level. His form was a little rough around the edges and would take a lot more practice, but it was a start. "Alright..." Leave some space for the force. That was easier said than done, but he would give it a try. "Kinda like meditation or something?" Once Caul was ready, Shaw would swing the violet blade in a horizontal wide, sweeping attack. Still crude, but a start thanks to Caul's coaching. @Zay

Seeing Caul stretched out across the cold metal floor of the training room for a change gave Shaw some hope. Maybe it was just beginner's luck, but whatever it was, he would take it. It meant that there was a chance he would get the hang of this after all! A chance was usually all Shaw required.

"Lesgoo!" he agreed right away, eager to get some more training in before Knight Kyle came along and ruined their fun like a big wet blanket. That was usually what happened. He beckoned Caul closer, deciding to mess with his friend a little bit. He realized that Caul was the better duelist by leaps and bounds, but there was nothing like a little friendly competition to really get the blood pumping. To really make you want to push yourself to your limits. Still, Shaw couldn't be totally serious. His lips split into a grin. "Come at me, br—"

That was when the transport jerked to one side. They hadn't even rounded the corner outside the training room when they came face to face with Knight Kyle. By the look on his face it was safe to assume that he hadn't taken time out of his day to come and train with them. "Pirates," was all he said at first, probing blue eyes sweeping up and down the length of the hallway before he added, "We're being boarded. Make your way to the escape pod and seal yourselves inside. Await my word to launch." By that Shaw inferred that he hoped it wouldn't be necessary for them to abandon ship. He handed Caul a comlink and left the padawans to follow his orders.

Shaw looked over at his friend. Were they just going to let Kyle handle it all by himself? Naaaah. Forget what Kyle had just said. Shaw certainly had. A silent agreement passed between the two boys. "Lead the way, Qui Qon!" Shaw saluted. Caul knew the layout of the ship better and on top of that he was the one with a real lightsaber. Shaw would be support. The Robin to his Batman but without those hideous tights thank you very much. @Zay

"Gon," Shaw repeated. Right. Qui Gon, not Qui Qon. Hadn't taken him long to get it mixed up, had it? Just like it didn't take Caul long to formulate a plan. While Caul hacked into one of the nearby maintenance consoles, Shaw would watch his back. He had always wanted to watch someone's back. This was kind of like fulfilling one of his childhood fantasies. It just wasn't as exciting when there were actual, you know, lives on the line instead of random NPCs in a video game.

Newly acquired training lightsaber in hand, Shaw stood back to back with Caul like a statue, brown eyes keeping a look out. Not actually back to back—bro needed room to work after all—but pretty close. "Where do you think Kyle went?" he asked Caul. If they were going to cover the retreat of the other passengers, what would Kyle be doing? If Shaw had liked the guy, he might have given him the benefit of the doubt and assumed that he was boarding the pirate's ship this very moment and slicing them up like fruit ninja, but Shaw didn't like Kyle, so he preferred to imagine him hiding out in the refresher or something.

Everything was quiet at first. Not even the hum of a passing mouse droid as Caul's fingers clicked away at the console. Then they would hear footfall echoing down the hallway behind them. Shaw spun around, purple training lightsaber coming to life in his hand, and came face to face with two rodians and a gotal.

"Looky what we got here, boys!" the gotal grinned, "Couple o' youngens. Fetch a mighty price, won' they?"

Not just pirates but the worst kind of pirates. Slavers. Shaw charged forward, catching the gotal by surprise, and bashing the purple blade into the pirate's arm. It didn't sear through flesh or anything, but it would leave a nice welt. The pirate yelped, "Why you—" but Shaw followed it up with a good shove that sent the gotal stumbling backward.

"They're Jedi!" one of the rodians yelled. The two reptilians humanoids took cover, ready to open fire on the teenagers. @Zay

dice 11/20

A blaster bolt struck the gotal and he collapsed, hitting the floor in a crumpled heap. "Did you see that?" Shaw started to say to Caul. "One of his own guys—" But he realized as soon as he looked up that it had been Caul that had redirected the plasma bolt, not that the rodians had really lousy aim. Although that would've been a real stroke of luck for them.

Shaw dove for cover behind the maintenance console just as the rodians lit the room up with blaster fire. Red hot plasma bolts struck the control panel, frying the electronics with a sizzle and crack. Scratch that idea.

Heart racing, his hands started to get clammy as he laid there waiting for a break in the fire. It came as soon as Caul started twirling his green lightsaber, deflecting one red plasma bolt after another. It looked like Life Day in here! While the pirate's attention was on the other padawan, Shaw scurried out from behind the maintenance console and looted the gotal's blaster pistol.

He had never fired one of these things a day in his life. No time like the present, right? Taking aim, he squeezed the trigger and opened fire on the two rodians. His aim was worse than a drunk gungan's, striking the corridor and the ceiling, but hopefully it was enough to keep the pirates pinned down while Caul advanced with his lightsaber. @Zay

12/20 dice

"Is... is he dead?" Shaw asked stupidly, staring down at the rodian pirate split into two pieces by Caul's blade. His bottom half slid across the width of the hallway when the transport ship trembled again, bumping into the wall. Of course he was dead. Shaw had just never seen anyone get chopped in half before. It was nothing like those gory, over the top scenes out of a slasher holodrama. It made him a little sick to his stomach even though there was no blood or viscera or anything like that. There was just a horrible burning stench that hung in the air.

Shaw looked over at Caul and swallowed. Shaw counted himself lucky that he hadn't been the one to have to strike the killing blow. Lamely, he extended a hand to Caul's shoulder. Sincerely but without his usual hype man voice, he said, "Had to be done, man... You saved us." Maybe it was what Caul needed to hear, maybe it wasn't, but it was all that came to mind at the moment.

Now it was time to think like a pirate. Engine room would have been the best bet for disabling the ship and crippling its engines, but they were pirates. Pirates wouldn't want to damage the merchandise, so that meant that the cockpit was the next best bet. Luckily that was the one room on the ship that Shaw knew exactly where it was. "This way!" he said to Caul, breaking into a run.

The pilot station's door was shut and sealed from the inside but not for long. Two pirates were huddled beside it with welding equipment, trying to break in. Further down the hallway the padawans would hear the distinctive hum of a lightsaber punctuated by blaster fire. Blue and red lights danced across the duraplast walls. Looked like Kyle was closeby.

A sneak attack seemed like the best option. Switching the setting over to stun, Shaw leveled the blaster and fired. It struck one of the pirates, who slumped to the floor unconscious, but Shaw's timing had been off, and he hadn't coordinated his attack well with Caul's. Alerted by the blaster bolt, Caul's target would turn and see him coming. @Zay

8/20 partial success

If Shaw had just taken the time to coordinate his attack with Caul's, the sandy haired padawan would have stood a fighting stance. Now he and the last pirate standing were locked in a battle of the wills, both struggling for the upper hand as they played tug of war with Caul's lightsaber. Shaw stood there watching, helpless and unsure what he ought to do. He leveled his blaster, but his aim was terrible. He couldn't be sure that in the struggle he wouldn't hit Caul with a stun bolt instead of the pirate.

A final wave of blaster fire echoed from down the hallway, screams resounded, and Knight Kyle was standing there staring at them. Blue lightsaber activated, it hummed in his right hand but it was his left that shot out. Suddenly the pirate's grip on Caul would be broken, grasping at air as he was tossed full tilt into the wall. "I thought I told you to seal yourselves in one of the escape pods?" Kyle barked, brushing off any explanation the padawans might try to pawn off as he pushed past them and brought his fist down on the sealed door.

The door to the cockpit slid open with a hiss, and the pilot stared back at them. He didn't say a word, just swiveled back around in his chair to mess with the controls. "Might as well make yourselves useful if you're already here," Kyle was muttering, shoving the teenagers into the gunnery station. "Try to get a bead on the pirate's ship and start blasting. I'll make sure the other passengers made it to the escape pods."

Kyle was gone, and the cockpit door was sealed again. Shaw scurried down the ladder of the gun well, leaving the upper turret for Caul. "Uhhh," he called up, "Have you ever used one of these things before?" Shaw certainly hadn't. @Zay