Ask Starlight Jedi Ascension Trials — T'vani

[Ezra Thorne]

Ezra did his part to look surprised when the ‘boulder’ was hurling their way. In case his fellow judge didn’t do the same, he made sure to nudge her as well. They had to sell this for it to be impactful. The initiate’s approach, however, was a bit unexpected. Instead of using the least amount of stamina in an attempt to bat the boulder away, she chose a far more draining approach of slowing it down and tugging in the opposite force of the trajectory.

Ezra said nothing, but he did note a few things down on his datapad. Vani was officially completely depleted of her Force reserves as a culmination of all her prior Force uses and overexerting herself for the boulder. She would not have any Force to apply for any other trials left and would have to get creative on approach.

This was a very critical lesson to learn - it was one Ezra learned the hard way on the field. Learning it as an initiative during a trial was a luxury he was pleased to see offered to others.

@Mr. Teatime @Remileah @Volene

 

[The Gatekeeper]

Now depleted of her Force reserves by her quick-thinking but rather direct effort, T'vani would need to get clever with whatever dregs she may have left. Hannibal's trial program was to some degree meant to exhaust an initiate through the various challenges proposed to them. It also wasn't programmed to let up too much if they tired earlier than designed.

This too was a test. Even when down on their luck, exhausted, worn out, a Jedi must stand tall in defense of others who cannot.

The catapult sank back into the floor, which closed above it. Holo-Hans' image leaned forward in his holo-chair, holo-fingers intertwined. His mouth opened to speak the final test.

"Stand firm!" his voice would suddenly shout from the Intiate's left. From seemingly out of nowhere charged a humanoid Jedi training droid was charging at her, its training lightsaber raised in the classic Djem 5 opening for a powerful downward blow. A hit wouldn't actually hurt at all- mildly uncomfortable tingles at worst- but the droid was strong enough to potentially knock through a basic block.

Could T'vani remain centered, focused, and determined enough to trust in the Force and call on whatever dregs remained of her strength?

@Remileah @Sreeya @Volene

 

[T'vani]

___As Hannibal announced the final part of the trial, T'vani turned just in time to see the droid charging at her. The girl gritted her teeth and drew her hilt, igniting the lightsaber as she pondered her options. The Initiate could feel the fatigue, especially after the previous trial's rigorous demand of altering the boulder. Her fingers tightened around her training sabre as she analysed her opposition, recognising the Djem So half of Form V.

___"Stand firm," T'vani murmured to herself. Hannibal didn't specify that she needed to block the attack, only stand her ground. The aspiring Padawan adopted her stance, choosing the first rudimentary form: Shii-Cho, specifically the Live Combat variation. She knew she couldn't block the attack and hold it fully. Doing so would only put her in a war of attrition, and that was a fight the droid would easily win. She recalled her time with Master Krim, watching him spar with Kane and teaching her after it was over.

___As the droid approached, T'vani counterattacked with sun djem as the droid swung. Her blade targeted the droid's hands in an attempt to disarm it, only barely succeeding. She wedged her blade into position but, unable to entirely cancel the droid's momentum, still received a tag on her shoulder. T'vani winced as the edge singed her shoulder, using the adrenaline rush to finalise her move and send the blade spiralling through the air. She had softened the blow, but in the end, she was still hit by the droid.

___With the training droid disarmed, T'vani deactivated her training sabre and turned to face her judges again. Despite being tagged and exhausted, she remained upright as tall as possible, awaiting their final judgement.

@Mr. Teatime @Sreeya @Volene

 

[The Gatekeeper]

Holo-Hans watched the initiate's efforts and rewarded them with a bit of polite clapping. Her shoulder would sting uncomfortably for a little while, but the droid's training saber couldn't cause any real harm. And of course, as always, the program didn't assign scores or pass/fail ratings. It just chose the challenges.

The hologram vanished and the surroundings began to reorient themselves into a flat plane once more while the droid returned to its previously concealed charging booth after retrieving its weapon. Lights switched back on and Holo-Hans appeared in the arena's center near T'Vani.

He offered a shallow bow. Holo-Hans dramatically raised his hands. "The Three Trials are done! You may choose to engage in a Trial of Arms. But first-" He turned to the judges and repeated his bow. "Judges? I leave this young one to you."

And with a jaunty wave the hologram disappeared. It would only reappear to help oversee the optional Trial of Arms as needed.

Meanwhile, challenge data correlated by the trial program 'Hans_and_Feats.exe' was delivered to the judges' booth for ease of use and review.

@Remileah @Sreeya @Volene

 

[Myrell’anay]

“Thank you, Master Grayza,” Myrell’anay uselessly told the fading hologram. She called it good manners. And besides, she didn’t need to review long.

The older knight stepped forward.

When she was herself an initiate and eventually a padawan, Myrell had been subjected to a particular teaching method which for better or worse she retained to this day. According to its philosophy, since learners would need to focus most of their training on shoring up their flaws, rather than practicing what they already mastered, it made little sense to dwell on the positive. As such most of her feedback would be dedicated to the student’s shortcomings, scrutinizing them, explaining how to overcome them. And if Myrell knew firsthand how frustrating it felt on the receiving end, masters seemingly never satisfied no matter much progress was shown, always nitpicking, never highlighting the accomplishments, the reputation it gave her with the younglings was of very little concern to her when weighed against the quality of their training.

“Initiate,” she said. “Master Thorne and I have reached a decision. I would ask you to listen closely and not to interrupt our judgement. Any questions you have are to be saved for the end. Understood?”

When the young Fiani showed assent, she would begin.

“It took time for you to gain your bearings when searching for the lightsaber,” she remarked. “It was the very first trial, that much is true, yet as Jedi we often face situations that force us to act quickly. We are taken aback, we are ambushed, we face the most unexpected requests, and our connection to the Force cannot falter for it. That will be something for you to consider.”

“I was disappointed by your answer to the trial of the mind. Not by the answer itself, mind you, but by the lack of depth it showed in your reflection. You were asked what would you do if a man of means and lawful authority dictated that some of his people must be enslaved for the greater good, while some of said people agreed, and others did not,” Myrell recalled. “The act was posed as lawful and subsequent questioning of its legality was irrelevant, much like other considerations regarding the circumstances of your involvement, and Jedi jurisdiction. We do not rule planets, Initiate, though we accept the people’s support when it is willingly given. But, to the heart of the matter...”

“The fact that you accepted slavery as serving the greater good without question was highly troubling to me. Instead of asking whether the man in question was acting out the plan or merely considering it, you could have asked what was the problem slavery was meant to solve, and wondered if alternative solutions existed, but you did not. The people in question were not unanimous on the matter of slavery and that should have alerted you to the fact that this was no simple cultural matter to be brushed off. You could have expressed concerns that a man of means and lawful authority could twist the law to further his own ends, but that, too, went unaddressed in your answer. Jedi do not have the luxury of shallow analysis, Initiate,” she stressed. “Questions like these we face often, and when we falter, people suffer for it. The same goes for the trial of spirit. Turning the bucket to the side so it could hold a handful of sand was a very literal reading of the task asked of you.”

“Lastly, I will address the second to last trial you faced. The boulder was foam,” Myrell unceremoniously revealed. “Had it been stone, it would have been well beyond your capacity to stop, yet once again the most obvious path was the one you chose. Did you expect it to work? We worry you overestimate your capabilities, Initiate. The Force is a powerful ally, but you must mind your age and ability, especially as you begin to embark on real missions with real dangers across the galaxy. Such overconfidence will kill you long before any foe does.”

“With all that said, perfection is not demanded of initiates, nor of padawans,” she continued after a pause. “You succeeded at most trials and demonstrated an amount of control over the Force that is well within the range required to study as a padawan under a master, and as such I would declare your trial of ascension a success.”

If T’vani knew Myrell better, she would know that one word, well within, meant praise of the highest order. The healer turned her head.

“Master Thorne?”

@Mr. Teatime @Remileah @Sreeya