Open Starlight Beacon of Light

[Elenath]

OOC: Open to Jedi only.

theme​

Elenath sat cross-legged in the center of the training room facing the viewport where the stars clearly shone out from the inky blackness of space. He'd specifically picked a training room with a view, as it calmed him down and helped him connect better with the Force in some strange way. At least, it felt that way for him. He hoped it would help Rahman too.

Elenath had only "met" the Orcolan once before, and that was at the meeting called by Ezra Thorne only a few days prior. Even still, they hadn't been formally introduced, but both had signed up for additional training in the usage of Force Light. The Echani already knew this was going to go poorly for him, as most physical applications of the Force were lost on him.

Elenath closed his eyes in light meditation, regulating his breathing. The brightest stars continued to shine even past his closed eyelids, and in their light he caught glimpses of some things to come; simulations of abominations in this very room cowered under the light of the Force. Emotions too — failure, frustration, triumph, though he could not tell whose. Another star flashed, and visions of countless former trainees sped through his mind's eye. Elenath let out his breath, finding he had been holding it, and rubbed his temples. "By the Force, they don't stop..." he commented quietly, hearing approaching footsteps and the swish as the door slid open with the newcomer.

@Xorism

 

[Rahman Bahadir]

What was a comfort for one, was discomfort for the other. A lumbering Orcolan traced through the narrow halls of the starship, occasionally bumping his head as he transversed through. Born of the soil, the gentle giant found little solace in the void, with its eternal designs and dimensions striking out in all direction.

Still, the Order had put out the call, and they had both answered. While typically found among the birds and the bees, the lizards and the trees, their new-found enemy required the Jedi to master what should have been relatively easy. And perhaps with more time and the right master, they would have had an easy go of it.

But times were different and training had to be done now and wherever it could be done, lest they be suddenly called away to action. It was on Starlight that Rahman finally gained his opportunity, alongside another fresh face.

Entering the room quietly, just ducking his head under the frame, the Orcolan nervously held his hands together. Glancing over at the Echani, he softly spoke, hoping he was. "Am I in the right place for the training?"

@Vosrik

 

[Elenath]

The soft voice speaking out from the entrance betrayed the truly massive form of Rahman, accentuated by Elenath's position cross-legged on the floor near the viewport. His eyes widened reflexively, having already forgotten the stature of the Orcolan from the meeting a few days prior. Rising to his feet, Elenath straightened his robes out. "Ah...yes. I've booked this room for our training," he replied.

There was an awkward pause before the Echani suddenly remembered his manners, stepping forward with hand outstretched. "Elenath," he introduced, his hand almost imperceptibly shaking slightly, though not out of fear of his training partner's size. Physical contact usually had unusual...side effects for Elenath.

After introductions were concluded, the indigo-skinned Knight gestured over to a small console along the wall. "This training room is fitted with fairly advanced projectors. It can simulate a vast number of planets and scenarios. Including..." he trailed off a bit, his mind drifting to the few images and recordings of abominations that he'd seen. "Well, including these abominations. Though without actually feeling their presence in the Force, I don't suppose it would fully encapsulate their...uh, true threat. And rage, terror, all that..." Approaching the console, he pushed a button that immediately transformed the cold interior of the Starlight into a lush forest planet, complete with avian sounds and a light breeze.

The seer hoped that the depth of his inexperience wasn't showing too badly. He truly was rather inept when it came to actual field experience — a fact that Elenath had come to be ashamed of in recent months, with the Jedi suffering from inaction on all fronts. They needed as many as they could to face these new horrors unleashed on the galaxy, and how could Elenath stand idly by?

@Xorism

 

[Rahman Bahadir]

The Orcolan graciously stepped into the room, well, about as graciously as a bull in a china shop that was quite well aware of its surroundings would. Reaching out to take the Echani's hand, and shaking it. "Greetings, I am Rahman."

Scooting over towards the console, they watched the various images that popped up before seeing the abominations properly for the first time. A horrible feeling trailed down his spine as the images clearly did not do the monster justice nor reveal the true dread that it certainly projected upon those around it.

It was therefore some significant comfort when the surroundings turned into something more home like, something Rahman knew. Glancing over toward the Echani, he felt a need to somehow comfort the man, without knowing exactly how.

"I've fought the Sith once." He remarked with a low level of intensity. Holding one hand in the other, he couldn't help but relive the physically painful memory. "Punched her right in the jaw too, which worked great till she stuck me with the tusk." It had hurt, but at the end of the day they won and saved the planet.

"I fought the empire too, on Bastion." That one was a more recent loss, and there wasn't much he wanted to talk about there. "Experience is only part of the solution, my friend." A small smile appeared on his face. "The rest is knowledge, and that is why we are here, no?"

@Vosrik

 

[Elenath]

He didn't know why he was expecting anything different, but the moment Rahman took Elenath's hand, his Force Sense triggered. Like neurons shooting through a nerve, the Echani's eyes glazed over as brief flashes of memory tore through his mind.

- The Orcolan, standing resolute, green lightsaber in hand and the Force coiling around him as he faced a hooded, armoured figure with a blood-red blade and elongated tusks -

- A flash of pain as a sharp tusk pierced his hand -

As quickly as they came, the visions were gone, and Rahman had already finished shaking Elenath's hand. His fellow trainee went on to explain how he had fought both the Sith and the Empire — ironic as Elenath had literally just seen evidence of the former. "I've uh, well, never actually been in a fistfight," the Knight admitted somewhat sheepishly. "Not real combat anyway. Most of my time has been spent here, on the Starlight." He punched in a few codes on the panel, fully materializing a simulated abomination. Not to put too fine a point on it, but Elenath was skinny and weak compared to the average Jedi — never mind Rahman, who was truly a pinnacle of physical might and prowess.

"Knowledge! Yes, I agree." Taking up a position opposite the Abomination, he took a few moments to center himself in the Force. Force Light was the zenith of a Jedi's power, a representation of all that was anathema to the Dark Side. Manifesting such an ability was not only tricky, but also required unwavering faith in the light and understanding of the balance of nature. All Jedi were taught this from younglings, to padawans, to knights. Elenath raised a hand, keeping his eyes shut while attempting to outwardly express the inner peace and harmony.

However, Elenath never was very good at physically manifesting anything, really.

What he got was a brief flicker of silvery-yellow mist that quickly dissipated. The knight realized he'd been holding his breath, and he deflated. Was it just him, or did the abomination...laugh? Of course not, it's a sim! Elenath mentally reassured himself.

@Xorism

 

[Rahman Bahadir]

For many Jedi, their path was not one of combat. The order had such a wide variety of skills, talents and abilities with all shapes and sizes. This never ceased to amaze Rahman, for each Jedi he met, he'd never usually be able to guess their story.

Standing on a ship in the middle of nowhere to practice something he'd never done before in the hopes of defeating an enemy he'd hoped to never actually find? Yeah, piece of cake. Maybe in another opportunity, the Orcolan could have shown Elenath a vast forest, or rocky mountain top. Or any other of the many terrains found on the ground. Honestly, at this point, he was hardly wishing to be picky.

Copying the Echani, Rahman took up position opposite the projection and closed his eyes, attempting to focus on the task ahead. All he could really imagine in his mind was quite literally the brightest thing one might see, the sun. Unfortunately, his efforts went unpaid like his fellow companion.

With a slightly confused look on his face, Rahman glanced over to his fellow Jedi. "So, uh, which of us has the knowledge? or is this a figure-it-out-yourself kinda thing?"

@Vosrik

 

[Elenath]

Seeing Rahman mirror Elenath's stance and technique, he watched and waited to see if his fellow knight would succeed. Unfortunately, the Orcolan seemed to have about as much experience in the use of Force Light as Elenath did.

To Rahman's comment, Elenath replied "w...well, I suppose we are both to figure it out somehow. With practice, perhaps." He focused once more, attempting to manifest something, but was unsuccessful once again.

He exhaled sharply. Why should this be frustrating? He'd literally had a premonition of this very moment not a few minutes prior. "I understand the concept," Elenath went on to explain. "It's the truest and most pure expression of the Light side. To summon it, you must be a focus of balance and harmony, but..." he trailed off. "For some, like myself, such things are often easier said than done."

Something clicked in the programming of the abomination, which literally roared into action, tearing up the simulated earth and foliage in a whirl of claws and teeth. Elenath ducked under a theoretical claw, his eyes telling him it was real despite his mind knowing it was not. Out of the corner of his eye, the knight spotted his own BB droid, "beorn," mischievously plugged into the console and tweaking the difficulty level of the simulation. He rolled his eyes.

"P..perhaps some adrenaline might help!" Elenath stuttered as he maneuvered around the backside of the abomination, which locked its malevolent gaze onto Rahman.

@Xorism

 

[Rahman Bahadir]

The task was proving much harder than anticipated, especially as someone who at least felt reasonably attune within the light. Perhaps it was the stress that came with the task ahead, or maybe it was finding the 'light' was simply harder to do without direct instruction? In either case, at the very least Rahman was not alone in this struggle.

Listening quietly as Elenath spoke, the Orcolan nodded along in agreement. This time the intensity of the simulation was far more scary, real and in your face. Rahman simply stared at the massive beast, attempting to connect with the stream of photons, perhaps trying to understand it just a little better.

But there was no understanding to be made, as the raging monster lunged into life, sweeping all around it, causing the Jedi to duck and weave.

"I don't think that's working!" He chimed in, squeaking by another thrashing potentially coming his way. "Perhaps we try meditation?" After all, if at first you don't succeed, try, try, try again. Once they had found what worked and could channel the light properly, he hoped the rest would be a breeze.

@Vosrik

 

[Elenath]

Meditation? There was hardly time for that — or so Elenath thought. The abomination whirled in erratic, uncoordinated attacks that were hard to forsee or learn from. The Echani kept his distance while it briefly focused its rage on Rahman, taking some breaths while continuing to try to focus. His thoughts drifted again to what gave them their strength in the light.

Balance. The natural order of life.

This monstrosity, truly an aptly named abomination, was anathema to such natural order and balance. The words of Elenath's master, Ivoriel, echoed in his mind from his early days of learning. "You have to be connected to your surroundings, Elenath. The Force is in all living things."

Well, clearly the Force did not exist in this thing.

Elenath opened his eyes, hand outstretched, and a more powerful light emanated from his palm. The abomination spun and opened its toothy maw with a gutteral, unearthly roar. It charged headlong at the knight, but wavered as his light grew steadily stronger. "Quickly, together now!" Elenath said with some strain in his voice, maintaining concentration as best as he could.

@Xorism

 

[Rahman Bahadir]

Cloudy as his mind was, one Jedi might find the light one way and another, another. Plonking himself down on the ground in the middle of the sim, the Orcolan was deadset on completing the training even if it looked a little silly doing so during the active combat simulation.

The trouble they'd gone to hone this new skill was making Rahman a little tense and nervous that he wouldn't be able to nail it down before they next encountered one of these creatures. The thought, only a small niggle at the back of his mind, likely wasn't helping with the difficulty of mastering it but that wasn't entirely the concern.

Each day, Jedi from all walks of life would go and fight the good fight, either protecting the innocent on some far flung world or by taking the fight to the enemy. Either way, these brave souls were risking their lives and yet here the Orcolan sat, clearing his mind and focusing on drawing upon the peace and tranqulity nessessary to summon the light that they required.

By meditating he tapped into his roots, his strengths and bit by bit his mind calmed and strengthened as his resolve built towards their common goal. Suddenly the Orcolan's eyes peeled open, his confidence returning as he knelt back up onto his feet and joined his fellow Jedi.

"Together." He nodded in agreement, drawing the force into an ever increasing light source at the tips of his fingers.

@Vosrik

 

[Elenath]

The effect was almost immediate. With both Jedi now fully concentrating and successfully creating Force Light, the simulation reacted in a manner similar to how it would upon being faced with the true Light — with screaming and writhing. Elenath focused harder, and the glow emanating from his outstretched hand grew ever brighter. Together, both knights reduced the creature to little else than a mass of discorporant flesh and bone.

A little, happy chime rung out across the room. "Simulation successful!" a feminine robotic voice warbled. By the console, Elenath's BB droid spun in circles with excitement. The false flora faded, replaced with the metallic and cold surface of the training room with the open viewport looking out across the expanse of space.

The Jedi Seer breathed a sigh of relief. Utilizing any physical abilities usually wore out Elenath rather quickly, but this exertion exhausted him even more so. Rising to his feet, he offered a hand to Rahman once again. "A pleasure," he said through laboured breathing. "I think I'll...need another go at that. Maybe a few..." Elenath bent over, gripping his knees.

"I'm just gonna go grab something to eat for now though. That and a nap," he huffed, motioning for Beorn to follow him. As he left, he gave a final nod to the towering Orcolan. "Should we ever find ourselves in battle, it would be a pleasure to have you at my side."

@Xorism