Teacher and Student, Redux Part II (closed)

[waffles1123]

The atmospheric descent was rapid, as usual. In fact the whole journey from Coruscant had seemed to sweep past Shindar's eyes before she had even noticed. The moment was surreal, realizing that she would be entering the up-to-date version of what was originally the oldest Jedi Temple in existence. Every time she closed her eyes to blink a surge of the Force overcame her with a comfort like warm sunlight after a frigid night. There was much beauty in this place, and she couldn't even see the ground yet.

Soon enough, however, their ship had passed through the clouds and was sticking out its landing gear to meet the ground with a slight bump. Shindar didn't waste time staring out one of the ship's portholes. As soon as the atmospheric pressurization was complete, she opened the hatch to breathe the free air and see the Temple without filters before her eyes. The sight was magnificent, quite different from the feel of the Coruscant Temple. The jungles were alive here on Tython, but in such a different sense than the constant and overwhelming civilization of Coruscant. Shindar felt it may be easier to meditate and connect with the Force without having to drown out the noise of speeders, starship engines, and all the cacophony that came along with large cities. There was something about being close to a tree, having old-fashioned grass beneath one's feet, that made one feel more at home and therefore at peace.

She turned back to Master Rontatt, who was still inside the ship.

"I think I'm going to enjoy our time here quite well, Master."

The young girl took one last look out onto the Temple and planet landscape before accepting that she was likely going have much training to do on this day.

"What would you have me do today?"

 

[MightyPants]

The landing was smooth, so Heath didn't felt the ship plunging to the Jedi planet. He used to overlook what didn't caused him physical harm, except for street fights and things like that, because he had been raised in that way. Sometimes he was treated as a garbage, but he preferred to breathe and hold it before getting angry and yell as a fool, still he had a limit as the other humans. However it was quite difficult for Heath to succumb to his urges, almost impossible. He had personally take care of that problem.

He simply just looked out the large window that was right at the front part of the cabin, enjoying the wonderful landscapes that the world offered to his eyes. They were, indeed, images that were going with him to posterity. Even when he would be useless to others, if he was going to reach that age, one of his biggest fears was dyeing without fulfilling the role that fate had proposed to him. He was sure that in the not too distant future, he would be responsible for protecting the people of the universe, in charge of ending the bad means, which were to bring peace back to the universe. But fate used to play dirty tricks, and he was not exempt of that rule.

Finally, he let his body feel the peace of the planet. He looked at his Padawan, getting off the ship quickly, to which he replied with a slight expression of joy. Undoubtedly, the most notorious characteristic of the teenager was his passion for learning.

"I'm sure you'll love the planet as much as the training" Heath shouted from the ship as he approached the planet's terrain.

He had thought about some places to start their training, excepting the Jedi Temple that was not going to be useful for them. But mostly, the Force was going to guide them through the forest.

"We will immediately start training, for which we need to travel a lot. We will see the temple later, before returning to Coruscant. I hope you're ready, because the place is so far." he said, smiling.

That sounded like a joke, but it was not. Immediately after touching the planet with his both foots, Heath started walking in direction to the forest that surrounded the Jedi Temple.

 

[waffles1123]

With her pack slung over both shoulders, Shindar was ready to begin the day's worth of training. By Master Rontatt's tone it seemed that he had a lot planned for the day. That was perfectly alright though, Shindar didn't want to be left feeling like she hadn't done enough at the end of the day. While she longed to see the Tython Temple later she realized their mission was elsewhere for whatever Master Rontatt had in mind. The forests would be most intriguing to explore, and it was likely they would be walking through a lot of forest on their way to the unknown destination.

That assumption was correct, for as soon as her master touched the ground he began to head off into the vast forest expanses. Shindar was sure to follow closely at his footsteps. She wondered for many minutes what the training for the day would entail, and where they were headed to. In the end, she figured it was simply best to wait. Once again, she was not one that much preferred conversation, particularly if she knew the answer could be found soon enough. She didn't want to come across as asking too many unnecessary questions.

The walk was indeed long, but it passed quickly for Shindar just as the shuttle ride did. The scenery and flora about her was magnificent and captivating. She couldn't tear her gaze from the planets and view of the forest, which helped pass the time and also distracted her from her leg muscles getting too fatigued. After awhile, she looked up to see where Master Rontatt was headed. They'd been walking in the same direction for over an hour now...

 

[MightyPants]

Heath slowed the velocity of his walk just as he felt that the girl was trying to follow his steps. Heath was still somewhat incompetent when it came to train the younger and inexperienced initiates of the order, and now he was likely to leave the girl behind him for the differences of training, velocity and complexion. It was obvious, a Jedi Knight was fairly faster than a Padawan. Slowly, the forest began to open in front of them showing the vast flora and fauna that gave life to the place.

"Are you tired?" Heath had asked just one hour of brisk walking "We are near the place we are travelling to, so don't worry, Shindar"

Heath wanted to create a conversation or at least a few exchanges of words to make the trip more enjoyable, and no just that, he also wanted to strengthen through the sympathy the bond that tied them while they were teammates. He knew they soon were going to be eligible to go on missions to enforce the ​​Jedi values, so a stronger bond between Master-Padawan would not hurt. In the midst of everything that crossed his mind, the road in front of them began to close with unusual speed, until they finally found them in a rocky end, in front of a cave.

"We are here" pronounced, turning.

He stopped for some seconds looking at the girl and then he turned to the cave, waving his hand to invite the girl in. He had chosen the place for the great connection to the Force that could be felt inside. Also he knew the cave and he knew that inside was like a desert, so they were going to concentrate with no problems. He had gone a couple of times, so it was safe to enter. Or so he thought.

"Don't hurry. Feel the Force covering your body. Feel the sensation, the connection."

 

[waffles1123]

Upon reaching the cavern entrance, Shindar wiped a thin layer of sweat away from her horned brow. She wasn't breathing terribly hard: she had been training extensively for all her Initiate years to hone her body into a well-working machine, capable of running long distances and enduring long sessions of physical usage. Such strengthening was part of the Jedi way and would serve the Initiates well in their later years of apprenticeship and knighthood.

"Still feeling strong, Master," she replied with a slight chuckle at the end.

The two paused for several moments, and Shindar drank in the sight of the strange cave. A powerful aura seemed to echo from the cave's mouth, an aura which Shindar was not certain about. The touch of the Force power was unmistakable but she did not know from whence it came. This was a training day, so the girl figured she would find out upon entering the natural formation.

"Don't hurry. Feel the Force covering your body. Feel the sensation, the connection."

With eyes closed, she allowed random thoughts to leave her mind. Soon the comforting hum of the Force made itself known in her thoughts and she could not only see the cave but feel it without touch. She knew much of its layout, could watch how the tunnels within unfolded, and yet she had not yet stepped inside nor had she seen it with her physical sight.

Her eyes opened slowly, and Shindar turned to her mentor: "I am ready, Master Rontatt."

 

[MightyPants]

Heath walked into the cave next to the girl, closing his eyes imitating the act of Shindar, also cleaning his mind of every thought, anything mean that was evil or harmed his concentration. He wanted to be alone with the Force and the girl. He walked following the direction of the comforting waves that covered every little inch of the cave, trying to get to the center of the disturbance. It was not something difficult, and the magnitude of the waves aided them. After a few meters of blind walk, Heath stopped and put his arm in front of where the woman was, stopping her walk.

"Stop," Heath uttered in a specially serene tone, so much focused in what happened inside the cave, trying to be prepared for what was unknown for him "Open your eyes"

Slowly he lifted his eyelids, opening a world of multiple flashes that varied in brightness and presented only in indefinitely blinks. They were pretty far away, but they were bright enough to illuminate the place in which they were standing, a circle of various meters of radius, with the earth coloured by the multi coloured blinks of light. It was such a beautiful landscape that didn't had to envy the ground level of the planet.

"We have arrived" he said, ignoring the flashes that were taking his attention "What would you like to train first, Shindar?"

 

[waffles1123]

"Acrobatics," came the young girl's reply.

She didn't even have to think this time. Shindar saw the underground landscape and immediately had the desire to run and jump to highest heights with the aid of the Force. She knew the basics of unarmed combat and even a little about lightsaber training, as well as the basics of how to push and pull objects with the Force, yet she didn't know how to use the Force to magnify the strength and dexterity of her own muscles. That would likely be a very helpful tool for the Zabrak as she was not the most muscular of creatures.

"If that's alright with you, Master Rontatt."

Her reply came a moment later, remembering to be polite to her master because ultimately it was up to him what the two of them would train.