Jedi Temple
And again, Asena was knocked down to the ground, her chest heaving with burning breaths. Each inhale hurt more than the last. At first, sparring with the battle droids seemed like a good idea; whilst others favored calm study and quiet contemplation, Asena sought more martial pursuits. Legends of old Jedi told of great heroes, the ones who championed themselves for the good of Force, the ones who became known as the respected warriors of the light. The padawan dreamt of one day becoming part of that legacy.
But in reality, at that moment, she'd had the wind knocked out of her now more times than she could count. Getting up time and time again was getting more difficult, given she was now covered in bruises and welts. Truth be told, Asena was far more comfortable with spears and pikes, the longer length giving her more advantage; it kept predators out of range, whilst giving her the added benefit of extended striking distance. The training saber however was... not great. Much to her frustration, it was taking Asena longer than expected to master the basic drills. Adding to that, her palms stung something fierce; they were practically on fire and upon inspection, she could see why. Angry, red blisters were beginning to form, with the skin being rubbed raw from the grip of her weapon.
Still beats the meditation sessions… she thought, a huff escaping her otherwise bated breath.
With that and a groan, the padawan pushed herself up, making sure to pat off the dust from her arms and legs, until immediately regretting it once more when remembering her blisters. Luckily, no one was around to hear her curse.
Biting back the pain, Asena turned towards the awaiting droids, saber partially made ready, “Again…” She ordered, achingly falling into stance, “begin the sequence.”
The training droids did not confirm right away. Instead, one opted to retort, “Observation: Training program unsuitable for entry-level padawans. Suggestion: Decrease difficulty.”
Asena, in a somewhat childish tone, mimicked the programmed response. "...SuGGeStIoN: DeCrEaSe DiFFiCuLtY." Stubborn as ever, she refused to relent, instead opting to snap at the droids in a less than pleasant manner. "Just start the sequence!”
On final confirmation, the droids sprung into action, one moving in head-on whilst the others flanked towards the sides. She parried the first jab, battering one adversary aside before turning to face the other towards her right. It swiped at her and she jumped back, nearly losing her footing in the process. Her movements were sluggish, her body not able to fully comply. Perhaps she’d pushed her luck with this last round. One opponent struck her shoulder, whilst the other's rod swiped her at the knees. It made contact and Asena went down, the training tool tumbling out of reach.
“Repeat observation: Training program unsuitable for entry-level padawans. Suggestion: Decrease difficulty.”
“Agh!” Asena, using the Force, launched a rock at the droid’s frontal cone. The projectile hit its mark, but the robot (disappointingly) gave no outer reaction. Instead, with no further movement detected, the sparring droids powered down as per their programming.
With the session apparently over, the Nautolan sighed. I can't keep this up...I need something more.
What she really needed was some real instruction, a bit of guidance at least. Asena needed a teacher.
@Apollyon