A Jedi Craves Not These Things

[Clara Firestorm]

Naboo.

Few worlds could match its splendor and beauty. Be it the majestic dignity of Theed, the lush rolling hills of the countryside, or the cool waters of the lake country, Naboo embodied everything beautiful about the galaxy. Clara Firestorm, Jedi Padawan, found herself lost in the sights around her. Since her reconciliation and brief reintroduction with the Jedi Order at its mobile fleet, she had been sent to the Naboo countryside. There, in the small city of Selton, she was to meet the Jedi who would finally teach her the mysteries of the Force and start her down the path of becoming numbered among those that call themselves Jedi Knights.

Selton was no Theed, but that was not to say it wasn't beautiful in its own right.

The city was architecturally like the rest of Naboo. Marble, cut from Naboo's very own sources, was sculpted into towering pillars and elaborate dome-topped structures. Color was everywhere. Above, the blue sky showed no traces of clouds and the gentle breeze kept the temperature almost perfect: not nearly too hot, but not too cold either. The city was segmented by small waterways, which jutted through the village towards the large river that lead towards Theed. It was along one of these waterways that Clara, armed with only a name, stood as she had been commanded in patient silence awaiting the one she would call "Master".

That name was Khivas Carrick, Jedi Knight.

Khivas' name was not alien on beautiful Naboo. Not long ago, a Jedi Knight by that very name fought in the Battle of Naboo which proved once and for all to the Empire that democracy would not tolerate Sith dominion in the galaxy. Aside from his noble contribution to Naboo's continued freedom, Khivas Carrick was well known among the Padawans of the fleet to have taught many of them their first lessons. Clara felt honored that one such as Carrick would permit a rookie like her to study under him.

Confronted with a possible long wait, and with beauty surrounding her on all sides, Clara dipped into the Force and entered a light meditation. She sought out the serenity of the Force and awareness that immersion in its energies brought her. Already she could feel a twinge of worry in her subconscious: she was known for being more reckless than other Padawans. She hoped that, despite her past shortcomings, she could prove a worthy student to another Jedi Knight.

As quickly as worry took hold, however, she squashed it. The Force would guide her path. So it always had...

 

[Khivas]

Naboo, Early Afternoon, City of Selton,

The planet still bore the scars of recent conflict, a brief One Day War bringing about so much destruction in a single stroke. Theed was still cleaning up the mess the Battle wrought, some of that mess being the handiwork from a young Jedi warrior, his first ever engagement against the full mechanized might of the Imperial Empire.

Just outside the city lied not one, not two, but multiple Star Destroyers, most of them picked clean of all their useful parts, and another converted into a makeshift HW for the new Rebellion.

All in all you had to hand it to the Sith Imperium; those assholes may be exactly that, but they sure as hell know how to pull off a planetary invasion. They had an appetite for destruction, a reputation even, one to maintain, and while they still lost the battle, they sure as hell meet the expectations of all involved.

Granted the business of the Deck Officer at present had nothing to do with the city of Theed or the planet at large, but rather the simple task of escorting a Jedi Knight through the space ports of Theed to a personal speeder that would take him to the smaller city of Selton, where the Jedi's next assignment awaited him.

"Man, that Imperium a sure did a number here" Said the Officer.

"You should've been here when the war actually started." Said the Knight.

"Wait, you were here?! Man, that must've been hard! What was it like? If you don't mind me asking, that is..."

After a brief moment of walking in silence, the Knight let out a grunt and declared hours thoughts on the battle, calling them "Bad, messy, violent, and completely necessary. Wouldn't have done it any differently."

The deck officer let out a sharp whistle before speaking again. "Damn! Man that must've been something. Say, what was your name again?" He asked as the two of them came upon the speeder meant for the Knight's use.

As he took his seat and strapped himself in, the Knight looked up at the man and said "Khivas. My name is Khivas Carrick."

With a nod, the Deck Officer closed the hatch on the speeder and patted the top, alerting the pilot it was good to take off, and in short time the speeder would carry Khivas to Selton, where his charge would be waiting for him.

Upon arriving and stepping out, Khivas did not have to look long to find the Padawan, for while she may have appeared to him to be unremarkable and dare he say plain in appearance, she stuck out like a sore thumb due to her connection to the Force, her mediation radiating despite it being so lightly done.

Standing over her, Khivas placed his hands on his belt and looked down to her, and introduced himself.

"Hey there kiddo," He said, "Name's Khivas. I believe I'm here to train you."

 

[Clara Firestorm]

Being startled out of meditation was not the way Clara had envisioned her first encounter with her Master to be.

His voice broke through her thin focus, shattering her connection to the Force instantly. Later, when she would reflect on this moment, she would curse her own lack of concentration. Had she been more aware, she could have clearly felt Carrick's approach through the Force. Clara quickly composed herself and bowed like she had seen the Padawans back at the fleet do so often before higher ranking Jedi. She used that brief moment to get a good look at the more experienced Jedi Knight. Khivas Carrick was a striking figure with long locks of white hair, pale skin, and a greenish tint to his eyes. In the Force, he radiated with the light side as most Jedi Knight so often did. Overall, Clara found her soon-to-be Master rather impressive. A good first impression.

And, as she had so often been told, first impressions were everything.

"It is an honor to meet you, Master Carrick." she said, rising from the bow. "You reputation proceeds you. I am honored that you would take me as your pupil."

Internally, Clara chided herself again. She sounded too formal. Khivas had introduced himself by his first name, a common trait among the Knights. Usually, only Jedi Masters wanted their Padawans to address them as "Master". Still, first impressions were everything, and she would be damned if she was going to make another bad impression before the Jedi. No, not this time.

 

[Khivas]

She was tense, and very proper, two things Khivas would have to remove from her during their time together since Khivas hated formalities outside of the Jedi Council Chambers. And Reputation? He had a reputation? "I have a reputation? Is it good? I hope it's good, that'd be a shame if it was bad." Khivas said in a mixture of sarcasm and legitimate insight to Clara, "I'd be mad as all the known hells if I got assigned to a Knight with a bad reputation, mhmm."

Holding out his hand to shake hers, Khivas let out a soft but wide smile, and to put her mind at ease, said "It's a pleasure to meet you Clara Firestorm. Let this be our last truly formal greeting for a long while as I'm not too overly big on those. Just show the proper respect when meeting and talking to someone is all I ask, we can work on how to seduce and charm people later. And you don't have to call me Master, not outright at least. Never know when we might be on assignment and suddenly calling me "Master" will be one of the worst things you could possibly do."

Releasing the handshake, Khivas placed his hands on his belt and looked Clara up and down, noting what she possessed, and noted further that it wasn't much. "Simple robes, a lightsaber....About it, pretty barren it seems." He thought to himself as he took stock of his Padawan's- His Padawan, man oh man that's going to take some serious getting used to right there, going from the student to running a classroom and now actually having a personal student to yourself. "Well, at least she has a weapon. I'll work on armor and anything she may want later on. First thing's first though..." He thought before turning his inner dialogue into open words "So, I didn't get much information on you, only that I'm supposed to teach you the ways of the Force. Mind giving me a quick run down of what you need or already know so I know where to start?"

 

[Clara Firestorm]

I told you that you were too formal...

Clara fought down the rush of embarrassment she felt as her Master spent his first words to her reprimanding her for her formality. Of course, she had expected it, but had not heeded her own warnings. She was all too relieved when Khivas changed the subject, allowing her mind to finally settle on the matter at hand. The truth of the matter was, this was going to take some getting used to on her part too. As she thought over her lessons back at the fleet, it dawned on her that she hadn't really learned much at all. The Knights and Masters there had given a brief overview of what it meant to be a Jedi and she had practiced rudimentary skills with her fellow Padawans, but nothing truly groundbreaking had been achieved throughout much of her early training.

"I know the basics," she admitted. "I can feel the Force. I can move some things with my mind. A fellow Padawan taught me the foundational methods of using the Force for healing purposes, but that's about it. As for what I need..."

Her eyes wandered downward towards the metallic cylinder clipped to her belt. The lightsaber she wore there was a symbol of her decision to return to the Jedi Order after coming so close to turning her back on her destiny. Moreover, it was a symbol of her ancestry and the role the Jedi Order had played in her family for centuries on end. Briefly, she recalled sparring with fellow Padawans back at the fleet. She recalled the immersion she had felt with the Force: the oneness using it had brought her. That sensation provided the answer to her query for her.

"I need to learn to use this." she motioned towards the sword. "The Force speaks loudly to me when I employ my lightsaber. If I may be so bold, I believe I am meant to become a Jedi Guardian. Trained in the ways of the lightsaber, I shall be a guardian to the fledgling Republic which, the Force willing, will emerge out of the Rebellion."

 

[Khivas]

So of all the things she wanted to learn, she most desired how to use the sword. "A guardian huh. Well, while that system is a little outdated, I myself think of my "classification " as a Sentinel, so Lightsaber combat is something I am very well acquainted with, so it'll be my pleasure to teach you how to use our second best and most practical instrument." Khivas said to her, recognizing the potential to be a warrior within her.

"Also there's more to it of course, for instance Force Skills, many of which vital to any Jedi, but a couple we may have to branch out to others for, but that's no problem, the more the merrier right? But alas, first thing's first!" He continued, a bit of enthusiasm in his voice, "If you plan on going by old rules, then the first thing you're going to need is some armor. Luckily for you I know how to make that and I can make something that would benefit you greatly until you get acclimated to wearing it, or if you feel like getting something different later on. But until that point, let's head over to the Theed. There's a training facility we can borrow there to get you better acquainted with your lightsaber."

 

[Clara Firestorm]

Theed.

Clara's heart began to thump more rapidly than before at the mere mention of the word. A myriad of emotions rushed through her. Theed is where her mother had been when she had died during the Battle of Naboo. Yet, at the same time, Theed was a city she had always dreamed of visiting. Remembering her training at the fleet, Clara quickly silenced these thoughts, opening herself up to the Force in order to clear her mind of distracting emotions. She regarded her master with a small smile and a nod of agreement. Her eagerness to finally begin her training as a Jedi Knight quickly overcame any anxieties she had about the voyage ahead.

"Sounds like a plan," she paused, catching herself before she could say 'Master'. "...Khivas."

The duo of Jedi took Khivas' shuttle out of Selton.

From the shuttle, Clara got the best view of Naboo she had seen since her arrival. As the ship pulled out of the small countryside city, woodlands quickly overcame the land. There in the air, for the first time, she saw the scars from the Battle of Naboo. Charred trees, fallen ships, and deep trenches marred the once lush beauty of Naboo. The sight immediately humbled Clara, who had focused on nothing but the planet's beauty since she had arrived. In a way, Naboo itself was teaching her of the horrors of war and, at the same time, solidified her resolve by showing her why the Sith and their empire must be stopped once and for all.

Her eagerness for knowledge grew.

 

[Khivas]

"Talk to me." Khivas said as they sat alone in the back of a speeder, the Knight sensing the feelings coming from Clara, despite her best to hide them. If it had another Padawan, it probably would have succeeded, but for Khivas, with how much training he had received for his sensory abilities, managed to pick up on the vibe she was giving out.

"Seriously, talk to me if something's bothering you. Bottling stuff up isn't good for you. And yes I can sense it, might as well let it out now rather than later in a horrible mess."

{Btw, these past posts have been from my phone at work lol bear with me}

 

[Clara Firestorm]

"My mother died here." she blurted out without really intending to. Or perhaps she had. Perhaps she wanted someone to know. To care.

"Darth Judicar was the Emperor when I was born. Like me, he was from the Firestorm family on Serenno. As a Sith Lord, Judicar ordered that all Force-sensitive beings in his family be brought into the Sith Order. My mother alone remembered our family's ties to the Jedi and fled, giving me to the Jedi while I was still very young." she paused. This was the first time she had relayed this story to another person. It felt odd and, yet, she felt weight slowly lifting from her chest. Weight she didn't know she had been carrying. Weight that had been there for far too long. "She lived the rest of her life as a refugee, even after Judicar was driven out by his apprentice. She was on Naboo during the battle and... she payed for it."

Clara stopped there, allowing the silence to once again fill the space between herself and Carrick. She already felt better, having told someone her burden. Still, telling the story was only half the battle. The other half was honoring her mother's memory. Her mother had died ensuring that she would become a Jedi: someone who could face the Sith who were responsible for her demise. Silently she wondered if such preoccupations were proper for a Jedi. Even more silently, however, she didn't care.

 

[Khivas]

The visible part of Khivas sat there and watched Clara give her tale, filling him in on what was bothering her, listening intently and quietly with respect to his student. On the inside, in the back of his mind, Khivas was having a bit of an inner dialogue with himself, and the sound of that dialogue went something like this:

"Ok, ok, hold on here. Did this student of mine just tell me that she's a descendant of the previous Sith Emperor? And she's not lying, not as far as I can tell at least, and I can normally tell pretty well when somebody's lying to me."

"No Hoss, she's right, she could've been next in line for the throne of your most dire enemy. Tell me," He answered himself in his mind, "How does it feel to be assigned to training the blood relative of the guy who very nearly destroyed the galaxy?"

"Fracking great."

Back out in the real world, Khivas nodded and took a breath, remembering his own personal tribulations and trials as he grew up, harking in his personal experiences involving the Darkside and how one of his closest friends had managed to turn to the Lightside despite everything about him saying otherwise. "I have a very close friend of mine who saved my life ages ago back on Corellia, where I'm from by the way. Beautiful planet, or at least it was, the Sith really did a number to her. I met my first Master there, hell of an oldhead, but a damn good Jedi, taught me a hell of a lot as I grew up." He said, staring out the window of the speeder.

"It wasn't long though, working hand in hand with the Corellian Resistance before we attracted the attention of Jedi Hunters. I was sixteen when my master was killed and my home that I had known for three years was destroyed, and I spent that following year recovering from my wounds and boring Revenge on the bastard that did it. Funny thing though, how fate works; I found the two that did it, the master and apprentice, set then up, fought them, was even ready to die, and I still lost the battle in a way. If it wasn't for the apprentice betraying his master, I'd be one with the Force a long time ago. And as for the apprentice..."

Facing back to Clara, Khivas continued with his story. "Turns out he no longer wanted to live in darkness. He had through his own travels found the light, and he wanted to be a Jedi. That's why he saved me, because he saw me in a vision and through mere words and the crossing of blades I got him to be on our side of all this. He was a Pure-blood Sith, an apprenticed Jedi Hunter, and yet he managed to become a Jedi. The point of this story is to remind you that you have the final say in what you are. I won't tell anybody you're from the same family as the last Emperor Jackass, but I will tell you that you and only you can truly make yourself a Jedi."

 

[Clara Firestorm]

This is what it is like to be Clara Firestorm in the light:

For a fleeting moment, her connection to the Force surges, as though her Master's very words caused a tectonic shift in its energies. With it comes a peace that transcends any comfort she had ever known. Her awareness extended outwards until she was no longer connected to the Force, rather the Force was connected to her. She could feel every contour of the shuttle. Every scratch. Every shutter made as it descended into Theed. She could feel the ship's engines --- was the ship's engines. Even Khivas, who sat so near to her, luminous in the Force, felt apart of her. And when she opened her mouth to speak, it was not she, but the Force who spoke:

"I will be a Jedi." And she knew the words were the truth.

Then, as quickly as it came, the sensation departed her and she resumed her usual, mediocre connection to the Force. Oddly enough, Clara did not feel any fear or confusion. The peace that the Force had given her remained. Somehow, she knew her Master had triggered the prophetic response of the Force. Though she wondered, briefly, why the Force would react so strongly to Carrick's assertion, she quickly brushed the thought aside.

All would be revealed in time.

The shuttle angled downwards and entered Theed airspace. Clara's eyes narrowed as she took in every detail of the battle-scarred city. This city had seen the end of her mother, which in turn spurred her to seek out the Jedi once again. It was only fitting that it would be the city where she would actually become a Jedi.

"Where is this base you spoke of?" she asked as the shuttle began to land.

 

[Khivas]

"Well that's good, I'd hope you would be too." Khivas said in the manner of a smart ass when Clara declared that she intended to be a Jedi. Upon landing and getting out of the speeder-craft, she asked where exactly the training hall was, or rather where the base was, and while there was a base on Naboo (a few, actually), they wouldn't be going to it. Instead this training hall that Khivas had mentioned belonged to a rather well known school of swordsmen, the large gymnasium belonging to an old noble who hated the Imperium with a passion and during the Battle of Naboo, donated his facility to the Rebels so that they could make a Forward Camp to command their troops during the siege of Theed.

The same Forward Camp that Khivas and Rane coordinated a strike to bring down a Star Destroyer just outside the city.

Now that giant school for the combative arts was just that again, a school for the combative arts, only that the owner continued "donating" his services and facilities to the Rebels, teaching them how to use various melee weapons and other items of martial interest as well as operating as a temporary logistics station, and as Khivas was a Jedi and one of the people there during the infamous Battle Of Naboo, he figured he could ask for a small space to teach his new Padawan a trick or two. Also knowing that Clara didn't know any of this, Khivas decided to tell her everything on their way to the place as they walked, letting her know about how it was a school, than a Forward Camp, and now a school and camp together at once.

Finally the school itself came into view, and without missing a beat as Khivas reached the doors, he bounded and strolled right on through the doors. "Hello?" He rang upon entering the school. "May I talk to the man in charge of this place for today?"

A man about his thirties looked up from a datapad and noted to a younger man, one more young than Khivas, to head over and handle the new visitor. As he came over, his Rebel uniform as clear as day in the lights of the wide space, He eyed Khivas up and down, and upon seeing the Lightsaber sticking out from behind his back, realized what he was going to be talking to. "Oh, Master Jedi, I'm sorry, I wasn't aware we would be receiving any of your kind here today." He said, his tone not one of offense but honest duty and speculation.

"You weren't supposed to, but I'm an impromptu guy. I was wondering if I could borrow a small classroom or space to train my Padawan here? I promise I won't break anything nor will I get in your way." Khivas answered, asking for permission to hold his session here. The young soldier pulled out his own datapad, and with a series of "um", "Maybe...", and "But then...", he finally answered with a complete sentence and a renewed breath, exclaiming "Aha! Yes, I think I can spare a single area for you. Come this way please." He said, and walked off as he lead the way and escorted Khivas and Clara to a small training room out of the way of the rest, a place where he could train Clara in some decent sword forms and techniques while not being in the way of the soldiers doing their rounds. "If you need anything, just let me know, alright?" Said the young soldier. "Will do, thank you." Replied Khivas, dismissing the duo's guide and walking into the room.

The inside hadn't seen much use, let alone love in quite some time, and it was apparent by the amount of dust building up around it, but it was still serviceable, and Khivas intended to put it to good use. Moving over to the console on the far end of the room, Khivas brought up the training regimen control panel and set up an energy dampener in the room, allowing him and Clara to use their lightsabers without cleaving through each other like a hot knife through butter. "Alright then," He said, pulling his saber from it's sheath, "Now then, time for our first, real lesson. Now remind me, you said you studied the first form, Shi-Cho already?"

 

[Clara Firestorm]

"Somewhat," Clara replied cryptically even as she surveyed her surroundings. "The Padawans back at the fleet taught me to spar. None of them had been taken as formal students yet, so I assume Shi-Cho was the only form they knew. I sorta picked up what they showed me. Nothing formal, in the way of training, though."

Her brief hiatus from the Order had its downfalls. The first of which being she hadn't had any formal training in almost anything. Khivas would be the first of her real instructors in both the ways of the Force and the lightsaber. That wasn't even mentioning the philosophies of the Jedi. From what she knew about them, Clara suspected Khivas would prefer it that way. Untainted by another teacher, he wouldn't have to break her bad habits. He could mold her skills on his own. Some part of that soothed her anxiety over the fact that she had no formal training.

Master Carrick would provide the foundation stone for her Jedi training and provide the ladder on which to climb it at the same time. How did the old saying go? Two gundark with one stone?

Clara turned and faced her Master fully now. Her preliminary senses told her that he was a serious swordsman. All of that mumbo jumbo about being a Jedi Sentinel hadn't been bravado after all and that excited her.

"From all that I've heard, though," she continued. "It is the foundational form which is practiced by deflecting blaster bolts. Am I close?"

 

[Khivas]

"Not quite." Khivas said when he heard Clara give her definition of Shii-Cho. "It can be used for that, yes, but it was made to replace actual metal and carbon fiber swords when Lightsabers became the mainstay for Force Users. It was simple and raw, and ironically had no real strength outside of it's simplicity. It was also built to help accommodate for the emergence of blasters, but not specifically tailored to them like Soresu and Shien were. As such, it really isn't overly practical unless you're utterly amazing with a sword, but it does have it's uses. That said, while I'm really good with a lightsaber, I prefer a few different styles. I'll be teaching you the basics of them today."

Taking a few steps away Clara, Khivas ignited his blade, and said to her "Now come at me. I want you to score a killing blow on me. And don't worry about it actually being fatal, that's what the energy dampeners in here are for." Standing there with his saber ignited but resting outwards at his side, as if it was taunting Clara to rush into him.

 

[Clara Firestorm]

Clara nodded as her Master explained the terms to her.

In any other situation, she would have been a bit taken aback by his suggestion of using real lightsabers to spar, but she supposed he would have no reason to suggest such an exercise if he wasn't sure of the safety measures in the room. She quickly slipped out of her more formal Jedi robe, tossing it to the side so that she was just in her standard tunic. She then reached for the hilt of her weapon, which she unclipped from her belt and brought into an opening form posture. Thumbing the activation switch, her lightsaber's emitter spat green fire which materialized as a bar of emerald plasma.

Clara never forgot the rush that came with activating her lightsaber.

Once more, she opened herself up to the Force. She could feel the pulsation of the Force-attuned crystals in both her own lightsaber and that that of her Master's. Not only that, but she suddenly became aware of the fullness of the room and every contour there within. She inhaled and, as she did so, allowed the Force to center her. When she released her breath, she was in motion. Her Master was in an open posture, saber resting at his side, almost as if he were egging her into an attack. She settled on a feign. Lashing out with the green blade of her weapon, she aimed for Carrick's wide open torso while simultaneously sweeping her nearest leg outward, hoping to catch him and, if at all possible, upset his balance.

 

[Khivas]

Khivas could feel Clara in the Force, her emotions running on high when she ignited her lightsaber and the thrill of a fight took hold, indicating her preference as a Jedi. He could also sense the eagerness to fight, not as a darkness or taint exactly, but just something one enjoyed but never as an indulgence, which was good, for that'd be one less thing Khivas would have to worry about later on down the road.

Then she came at him, her body moving with potential but still in motion as a rookie, and her move, while in the right mindset, was one not very much used because of how easy it was to counter, and how open it left you should it fail.

A lesson Clara was about to receive.

Khivas blocked the strike to his torso, stopping the blade's assault entirely and holding it there, and as her leg tried to sweep his, all he had to do to end the maneuver was stiffen his muscles slightly, letting her leg clash and stall against his. "Not a bad idea, but keep your movements practical. I'm massive compared to you, and most opponents can easily counter this attack simply by strengthening their stance slightly." He said to Clara, "And more so, it leaves you horribly open should it fail." Sweeping his leg back and pulling her forward and now off balance, bringing his left hand to clash against her sternum and send her flailing into the ground.

"Up now, try again." Said Khivas, standing back away from his student, his guard the same as before.

 

[Clara Firestorm]

Clara picked herself off of the durasteel floor, reignited her lightsaber as she did.

The lesson Khivas taught her had been a hard one, but one that had not been lost on her. She wasn't yet skilled enough to pull off a maneuver like that against an experienced fighter like her Master. As she brought her blade back into an opening posture, she quickly analyzed the situation. Khivas was back in his previous stance, giving the appearance that he was wide open for attack. The crux of this, though, was that he was both swift and knew which areas of his body to guard. A single attack wouldn't bring about the results she desired. If she wanted to complete her Master's request, she would need to use a combination of movements.

With the Force as her guide, Clara again sprang into action, sprinting the short distance between herself and Khivas before pivoting into a wide swing. Her hope was that her Master would parry her, at which point she would unleash a flurry of slashes, all seemingly random but all carrying a specific purpose at the same time: All of her slashes were either horizontal or vertical and all were either aimed for his blade wrist or his free hand. The point of this, she knew, could be easily deduced by Khivas, though he could do little to stop it. He would be forced to constantly move his blade and his arms in order to avoid being struck. The end result was a win-win for Clara.

Would he give her an opening while parrying her maneuvers, or would he get struck and provide an opening in that manner? She continued to press her attack, hoping one or the other would occur.

 

[Khivas]

Khivas hoped a little, and only a little, that he wasn't being too hard on Clara already, knowing that there's a certain level of tough one can be towards their student before they break. He also remembered that both of his masters had been very rough to him during his training, with Ayso beating the everliving shit out of Khivas on the regular and Rane nearly throwing Khivas off of a giant mountain into the poisonous, acidic mists below, and to be fair what came about those two doing such rough stuff to Khivas was that you now how a master swordsman and a near-master at using Force Leap, Telekinesis, and Speed, so Khivas quickly buried the thought that he may be too rough on Clara and went on with the lesson.

It was a good thing too, because she got up and brushed herself off rather quickly and was back to trying to take Khivas' head off in no time. She came at him with a wicked fervor too, figuring that one strike would not be enough to land a fatal blow, and she was right, in fact one motion never is. She also figured, at least he was guessing, that since there was such a massive gap in their skill levels, if she couldn't outperform him, she'd overpower him, which isn't actually the worst idea and was something Khivas himself once employed ages ago against a giant Mandalorian.

But Khivas wasn't a giant Mandie, and Clara wasn't Khivas at that point in his life, and a simple rush of strikes, while pressing, would not be much of a concern for him. Nigh lazily, Khivas parried each one, utilizing footwork and action economy from Forms Two and Three to evade Clara, and with a little from Form Five, on her last strike, parried it with force, the point of which to turn the tide against her. You see, the key in fighting in a duel, and to a greater extent, a battle or even war, is having the patience to hold out and weather the storm, this case Clara's rapid strike session, waiting for an opening, and at times, having enough courage to make one yourself. This case was no different, as Khivas held out and weathered the storm that Clara delivered, he waited, and waited, and right when the right point showed itself, he made his move, parrying her with a bit of extra power behind his own blade, forcing her to go wide to the side and allowing Khivas to take advantage of his new opening, stepping in and delivering an elbow square into her upper arm, toppling her.

"My first Master reminded me many times through bruises and harsh words that fighting is about patience and courage. Enough of the former to wait out a storm, and enough of the latter to brave it when you had to. You had the right idea, but your movements are too deliberate, wastes too much energy. Make them simpler yet more focused, and be sure to mind your surroundings, and I'm sure you'll get me in no time." He said to his student, his words kinder than most dueling masters would be to their pupils. "I will say this about you though; you certainly have potential and talent, so for you, it'll be all about the diamond in the rough." He said, this time taking on a more formal dueling stance for Clara, with his left hand held to his side, and his sword in the air as he feet lined up for battle.

 

[Clara Firestorm]

Clara Firestorm was frustrated, but, she supposed, that was to be expected.

She was a novice, he the Master. To think she would so swiftly defeat, with her scant training, the man who was meant to train her was an utterly ridiculous notion. The Padawan Learner chastised herself for her latest mistake and winced slightly at the pain in her upper arm. Perhaps she was overthinking things too much. Yes, she thought, that was the key. At this stage in her training, no strategy she developed would topple Khivas. Regaining her posture, Clara brought her humming blade to bare on her Master. Then she did what she should have done in the beginning. Done what the old Masters back at the fleet always harped at their apprentices to always do when a situation proved to be stonewalling them.

She gave herself over, fully, to the Force.

The process was easier said than done. She had to release her frustration with Khivas and with herself. She had to quiet her loud thoughts. When all of that was done and she could hear nothing but the gentle thrumming of her's and Khivas' lightsabers, she opened up her mind completely and let the Force flow in. And flow in it did. Like a dam bursting, the Force flooded into her with the ferocity of a gale-force wind. Suddenly, she was more aware of the room around her. Her Master, Khivas, was a pillar of light in the darkness of her mind. That is when she noted something subtle.

He is already doing this, she told herself.

Something that currently took conscious thought for Clara, the surrender to the Force, was something Khivas had already done. Was doing. It seemed to come to him as naturally as breathing. That realization alone told her why he truly continued to defeat her. His experience, his knowledge, and his connection to the Force were all working in tandem to predict her every move and analyze her every strategy. And it excited her...

Fully centered, Clara allowed a small smirk to curl along the contours of her mouth. A smirk that told the galaxy that she was enjoying this, as most warriors truly enjoyed the thrill of a good challenge. Her next movements where whispered into her ear by the ever-present voice of the Force.

Again she charged at Khivas. To an outsider, it would appear as though she were about to repeat her offensive from just moments before. Indeed, she opened with the same maneuvers, launching into a flurry of short yet speedy horizontal and vertical slashes. As before she alternated between targeting Khivas' weapon-wrist and his unarmed wrist. Despite the similarity of her actions, however, her movements had completely changed. No longer was she flailing her weapon around like a berserker. Though still riddled with some slight roughness, a result of still being a Rookie, Clara's movements were more elegant and refined. Each strike flowed into the answering parry and visa versa. The Force thrummed a warning each time she needed to pivot out of the way of a strike or parry her Master's blade.

All the while, Khivas' words replayed in her mind. Patience was key. She could not become hasty and force an opening. Khivas' strength, of course, was an issue and the blows of his blade against hers often racked her body with slight tremors, yet she overcame each. Finally, she saw what she was looking for. A potential weakness. It wasn't much, but perhaps the element of surprise could still be hers. Calling on the Force, Clara mentally reached out and seized Khivas' legs. In a display of raw mental might, Clara tugged on the Force, intent on causing Khivas to stumble or lose his neat footwork. Of course, she suspected her Master would sense the mental assault through his own connection to the Force. Such was the genius of her strategy.

The Force pull would serve as her feign.

Using the sudden, yet brief, break in her Master's concentration this would hopefully cause, Clara would put all of her physical strength into a slash meant to bat her Master's lightsaber away from her, giving her just enough of an opening to swing down on his exposed ribs and land a 'killing blow'.

 

[Khivas]

Clara was.......different this time, her attacks still rough, slightly unrefined, but closer to a more learned form, and her aura within the Force burned brighter than before, her focus much stronger as she turned herself over to the Force to guide her. "Good talent there..." Khivas thought to himself as he observed Clara as she struck out at him, the same flurry as before.

What was different however was the warning bells going off in Khivas' head, the Force warning him of an impending attack, which was odd of course because he was already under attack by his Padawan, which lead him to believe something else was coming at him, and sure enough as a swell in energy emanated from Clara, Khivas knew what was coming.

The Force grabbed and tugged at his legs, throwing him off his balance, Khivas had to remind himself multiple times in wish succession not to send Clara flying into the wash with a massive and sudden Force Push.

Instead he would let himself fall, controlling his trajectory so he stumble and roll backwards, and just in the nic of time since his student's blade came screaming at his and knocked it away, following up with another strike to tear out his ribcage, a most impressive stratagem for her level.

Thankfully Khivas was resourceful and cunning on his own, and had a knack for letting his opponents give his movements momentum, and this was no different. As his blade was sent out to his side, Khivas spun with it, using the added force to speed his turn and just barely stop the blade from clashing with his body.

Holding the pose, blades locked and stalemated, Khivas said to his student "Good, that was real good. Keep that up and you'll be an expert in no time."