Training Day... Aliyah

[Tynian]

Tynian stood at the edge of the training circle. He had already been trained by Kane in the art of Aturi, and next up was the Jedi Knight Aliyah. The first part went fairly well he thought, but he knew that things were not going to get any easier as he day would progress.

The day itself was warm without a cloud in the sky. The time was about an hour before noon, and it didn’t look like the sun was going to relent its heat just for them...Which really didn’t matter too much, in fact, Tynian was grateful it wasn’t raining.

As Aliyah prepared herself, some thoughts ran through Tynian’s mind...
The young Jedi hadn’t seen her fight before, so he was a bit anxious to learn from her. Not in a bad way, just more excited about what he could glean from her experience and skill.

As his goal was to become an expert in all forms of lightsaber combat, this was the next step toward that goal and he welcomed it with open arms.

As he faced Aliyah, he bowed in respect to her and then readied himself for what she had to teach him.
“I am ready when you are.”


@One For Sorrow @Autumn's Firefly @Loco @Nightfall096

 

[Aliyah Phoenix]

Spoiler: OOC Note

There is going to be a lot less fluff come Post 2, my commentary will be saved for afterwards. But for now...

-Music-​

It was time to begin. There was something refreshing about sparring, it allowed her to let go of herself. To let go of what was around her. To be as close to One as she could be right now, with nothing but she and her opponent dancing in a clash of blue and white. Because of the unique choice of blade she couldn't really get a fix on what kind of Jedi he was, but Guardian was her closest guess. She could work with a Guardian. "Center yourself. You're a good duelist. But a lightsaber is only ever half the battle. We have an even greater ally, and the Sith overuse it constantly. I'll be using Soresu today, but I may throw in some Jar'kai." Her reputation for being ferocious in sparring sessions wasn't an over exaggeration; she needed to train like she was fighting for her life, she needed to train to the right way, and she hoped Tynian understood that. If there was something glaringly off about his style, she'd save it for afterwards, but from what she'd seen he might put up a very good fight. Still, she bowed before entering the dueling circle and bowed to Tynian as he bowed to her, unclipping her dual-phase saber, leaving the second on it's belt.

She activated the dual phase saber and brought it up to hip level, raising the blade until it covered the upper half of her body. Soresu was one of the hardest forms to master, because it relied on being very defensive. Being defensive was usually a bad thing to do in a duel of any sort, unless you're very sure you can block all the incoming attacks. But what Form III lacks in offensive abilities it more than makes up for in it's ability to provide a solid defense, and use your enemies attacks against them. Still, a double bladed lightsaber was new to her, and if she had to draw her first lightsaber and finish the fight that way, she would. Let's see what you can do. Moving her left foot backwards, and turning it fully to the left, Aliyah braced her knees and pushed her weight down evenly. This way he couldn't just beat his way through her blocks, she was grounded, if he wanted to upset her footwork he would have to get in close and move her himself. She was centered in the Force, and physically. She was ready. "We end when one of us gives up, or can't physically give up. We begin now."

@Nastalle @One For Sorrow @Loco @Nightfall096

 

[Tynian]

Tynian faced Aliyah and bowed in return. The Jedi had then taken her lightsaber out and planted her feet, beckoning Tynian to begin.
He had studied Soresu before from an archive in the Jedi Temple’s library. But he wasn’t familiar with the style known as Jar’kai.
But this is what he was there for... to learn from the more experienced Jedi... and to glean as much as he could from all of them.

Looking at her feet, Aliyah seemed pretty set in place. So Tynian surmised that if he could get her to move, that may help his chances. But then he remembered that he wasn’t there to win, but to learn.
So he activated his twin white blades and advanced.
He didn’t try anything fancy, but to just test out her defenses, he started with a series of jabs and thrusts at her core... Once in a while he would throw in a quick swipe at her shoulders, but then he’d go back to focusing on her mid-section.

 

[Aliyah Phoenix]

-Music-​

Aliyah was confident the others would start chiming in when they thought it was necessary, but right now she was focused on what she saw as the point of these things.
If he wanted to learn the actual mechanics of these forms, he'd probably have to do what she did and study from somebody who used them a lot.They could teach Tynian the technique, it was really up to the him to implement it in a fight (PvP).

As he started walking forward, she spoke. "Watch. If you need me to explain, we can pause." Aliyah began to focus her powers around the hilt of Tynian's lightsaber. Keeping her saber at chest level, her eyebrow raised slightly as he came in for a simple jab. Immediately, she stepped forward and moved her saber to strike the inner blade aside, delivering a quick slice down his waist. She kept her parry strong and her strike fast, humming a comment, "Make sure to go for single strikes. Throwing too many in a single burst can get you killed, all with a simple counter." Aliyah never let her defenses drop, she was prepared to disengage or block if he tried something.

@Nastalle @One For Sorrow @Loco @Nightfall096

 

[Tynian]

Tynian jumoed back from the parry. It stung but he would be ok. He then faced her again as he disengaged. He wanted to learn all he could do he stood across from Aliyah and held his lightsaber like she did. But because it was double bladed he held it horizontally in front of his chest. “I didn’t realize you could use the force to ground your stance.” he said as he placed his feet in the same way as she did.
Using the force he set his feet even more... “I would suppose that you’d have to be quick to turn it on or off as the fight goes correct?”
He looked down at his feet and then at hers, then looked up at her “How would you attack from this position?”

 

[Aliyah Phoenix]

-Music-​

He took the hit and backed off. Smart? Maybe. He started to talk as he brought his lightsaber to guard, causing Aliyah to smile slightly. He was a curious one, reminded her of herself. "I'm not using the Force to ground my stance. You have to pay attention to the details!" As she spoke, he'd realize what he'd missed. Aliyah centered herself physically, lowering her weight, and centered herself in the Force. Aliyah then started to focus on his hilt, and since that pretty much went uninterrupted, she reached out for it and yanked it into his chest hard. "My stance is just lowered so you can't move me. My abilities are all focused on you." Keeping her saber up and ready, she hoped the blow would cause him to stagger at least. If he was quick or strong enough he could probably catch it. She wasn't worried though, this was all part of the training exercise. Aliyah wasn't actually trying to hurt him, but learning by doing was sometimes the best way to learn at all.

@Nastalle @One For Sorrow @Loco @Nightfall096

 

[Tynian]

Tynian stepped back as his own lightsaber was pushed into his chest. Luckily it was horizontal, so he was only hit with the hilt and not the blades.
He shook his head and silently corrected himself for being hit that easily.

“So you’re using your own blade as a defense, while using the force as the primary weapon?” he asked as he tried to figure out just how Aliyah did that.

So he stood facing her again, this time planting his feet and focusing the force on her... He smiled and watched her like a hawk. Then he advanced.
Slowly at first, and not with weak attacks. His stance he kept firm, and his knees were slightly bent, and he moved his lightsaber to hit her left side then her right, but to add to it, he focused on her elbows and right before his second blade hit, he used the force to push her arms up above her head... in hopes of clearing a space to be able to get to her right side.

@One For Sorrow @Autumn's Firefly @Loco @Nightfall096

 

[Aliyah Phoenix]

"Close, but you're limiting yourself. I use my lightsaber as a tool to defend and attack, same way I use the Force." Aliyah let her lightsaber complete its swing, stepping aside with her left foot so his follow up swing met her blade again. He was swinging horizontally, Aliyah could tell by how he moved from the right to left that he was going to try again, feeling a gentle telekinetic push trying to shove her arms upward. Using the Force and an attack at the same time like that was smart; but it was also dangerous, like she was about to prove. Usually her arms would jerk upwards and he'd be able to hit her. Instead, she shoved Tynian's hilt back into his chest again as he tried swing, moving backwards. Since she'd already rotated and got herself out of range, the second attack wouldn't come anywhere close to hitting her. She did use her arms, which where now higher up and chambered; bringing them down hard, aiming for his exposed hilt.

@Nastalle @One For Sorrow @Loco @Nightfall096

 

[Tynian]

Tynian went backwards again, with the hilt of his weapon hitting his chest once again and his own attack missing it’s mark. “How can you keep doing that?” he asked. He wasn’t frustrated, but just a bit confused as to why it was so easy for Aliyah to pick his weapon around.
As her own blade came down, he used the force to push himself to the right as he twisted his torso so that he was no longer facing her, but sideways. It allowed him to get his hilt out of the way and block her blade with his own
left blade.
And since he was already moving right, he brought the other blade down and around to hit her legs...

He then spun away from her to avoid anything else she may attack with... creating space between them.
He then wipes the sweat from his forehead and then reset his feet.
“Again please.”
He was going to learn this... he had to learn this.

 

[Vollen Shai]

He had to huff as he watched the two youunger knights sparring, seeing them swat away eachothers blades and reach out with the force to throw their power around, create openings and press the attack. Hopefully if anything ever happened, this would be the sort of thing that might just save someones life. Force, there wasn't a chance they'd never have to use it, was there? With the Sith at their doorstep all too often, and the Republic and Hutt's going up against eachother in the colonies, there was too much upheaval in the galaxy to expect anything else.

But he could hope for something else, that had to be enough,

Watching Aliyah keep his blade at bay with the force, Vollen watched as Tynian adjusted his body this time to free up his arms and get the angle,

"Good move in there, not everything has to be blocked with your blade. Just as you did then, keep your feet moving, or with the force try to adjust yourself or their strike. Lots of options" He said with a smile, it was good to see them putting some real work inot the spar, it reminded of his own with Fennex.

And that reminded him that he needed a rematch.

 

[Aliyah Phoenix]

"You're not breaking my concentration? I'm focused." Her lightsaber was blocked by Tynian's right blade, as he twisted out of the way of the attack. She didn't bother to try and get into a lock with him, instead tapping the saber aside. Sweeping her blade low and around the underneath of his attack, she carried his left blade to chest height. The Force made her job easier, gently twisting the hilt as well. It was meant to disarm Tynian, twisting his arm at this weird angle. She could go for a strike to the side, go for a jab to the chest. She could do a bunch of things, but maybe he'd just let go of the saber, or try some other trick. That was a close call, and she nearly drew her second lightsaber and switched forms, but she was holding off on that. Tynian couldn't just disengage now, unless he wanted to get hit in the back or lose the saber. "Pay closer attention." If he stayed in the saber lock, she'd continue to drive it higher until the hilt flipped out of his hand. She kept her focus on his hilt entirely, using the Force and her saber to keep it where she wanted it, hopefully away from his hands.

@Nastalle

 

[Tynian]

As his own hilt began to twist out of his grip, Tynian used the force to keep it in his hands... almost like glue.
He opened his right palm and then his left, letting the hilt spin, then he caught it again as it made a quick turn. He was still locked with her blade, but then he realized his mistake and felt her blade slipping down towards his back...
He knew that he was going to get hit in the back, so he twisted his torso slightly so that Aliyah’s blade would hit his shoulder instead. The he continued the movement...
Taking the pain from the hit, and in one fluid motion he dropped to one knee, deactivated his blades, let his weapon drop to the ground, reached up with both hands, seized her by her wrists... then using her momentum from the strike, he pulled her hands over his shoulder while twisting and using his backside to bump her and to flip her overbid head and onto her back.

 

[Aliyah Phoenix]

Somehow Tynian managed to keep the grip on his saber and let it spin in his palms. It was a neat trick, but it seemed her blade just fell downwards and gave him a hit to the shoulder. Wasn't what she was going for, but she didn't prevent it, it was a good lesson. Instead of turning or trying to attack her with his saber, her dropped his hilt and... grabbed her wrist. He spun and threw her to the ground. As she landed, Aliyah stomped Tynian's inner thigh and threw a wave of force energy into his chest, trying to send him flying. She still had her lightsaber in her hand, but at this point it was deactivated. Getting back to her feet, she reactivated it again, making sure that he was far away before actually getting up. He'd have a hard time just shrugging that off, not that she meant for it to hurt, but his throw was a surprise. A little too dangerous though. "Don't be flashy. I could've kept this thing activated and cut you in half. Be practical, and don't throw away your lightsaber, it can be the difference between life and death." Aliyah dashed forward and jabbed at Tynian's chest. It would hit him while he was trying to recover or blocking her push. She could pull away at any second if she needed to.

@Nastalle[/abox3]

 

[Fennex Zeerda]

Fennex clambered over the edge of a toppled stone behind Master Shai, following the sounds of clashing lightsabers. He'd been crawling all over the ruins of the Jedha Temple, assessing the damage and sketching out plans for how they could go about rebuilding and improving the place, but it was taking more time than he intended and was taking away from his other duties- it was still little more than a pipe dream at the moment, for all their efforts, and would take a lot of concentrated work to get moving for real, much less made defensible again. He plopped down on the stone next to Vollen and fished a snack of dried ghibli fruit from his little shoulder bag.

"Did I miss anything exciting?" He asked the councilor, offering up a strip of the tangy dried fruit.

Knight Tyninan seemed a bit over eager, from what he'd seen of the communications, but it was important to show the youngling Knights what real life was like, so he certainly wouldn't fault the boy for his efforts. Fen was noticeably late to the party, as per usual, but oh well- obviously the Force didn't like him being early.

@Nightfall096 @Autumn's Firefly @Nastalle

 

[Tynian]

Tynian flew back after being force pushed away from Aliyah. He used the force to try to land on his feet, but instead landed on his knees. As Aliyah came back, he called his own weapon back to him and activated it just as her blade reached his chest. He was slightly too late in blocking the strike as the tip of her blade hit him. As he knocked the blade away, he backed up again and then rubbed his chest. "I knew where my blade was. I just didn't anticipate the force push after the flip." He deactivated his lightsaber and then asked. "How would you have gotten out of that situation?"


@One For Sorrow @Autumn's Firefly @Nightfall096 @Loco

 

[Aliyah Phoenix]

Inhaling gently as her blade nearly sailed directly into his chest, Aliyah rose from her centered stance and almost completely dropped her guard. When he deactivated his lightsaber, she knew that going over the basics was probably a good idea here. She knew that Kane was an incredible fighter, but he didn't specialize in Soresu or it's aspects. This wasn't a battle anyways, slowing down for a few moments will help. When the fundamentals where out of the way, they could try again. She would sound harsh, but that wasn't on purpose, she just wanted him to understand what he was walking into. "How many times did I hit you? Two or three times? Even one of those could be the end of a fight in actual battle. I'm gonna slow down, we'll cover some fundamentals of Soresu so you see how and why - and if you want to add that to your fighting style? Good."

Centering herself again, she raised her blade back into a centered stance, arced slightly right. A center guard, if what she was taught was right, and she was pretty sure Venatus knew what he was talking about. "Alright, so the reason I started the fight by centering myself was to make sure I could brace myself against an attack, or turn if I want to. My saber, my eyes and my focus is all directed at my enemy's body, but mainly their weapon. Always. Use your senses to tell what's going on around you, but you need to make triple sure you know where my saber blade is. Don't worry, I've heard this lecture a hundred times I'm just repeating it." She knew he knew. But, still, she was going to go through the entire explanation so he understood. "Tip touches you, you're dead. Don't believe me? Lightsaber cut to the shoulder, barely enough to pierce my flesh..." she pulled down part of her robe slightly to show the scar, which looked a lot worse than she described. "...until he pushed. You only get one mistake, so your number on priority in a fight, especially when using Soresu, is to make sure that thing never touches you. Make sure you are protected first. Now, how would I have gotten out of that situation?"

Aliyah jumped back suddenly, like being thrown by a push to the chest. Her eyes flashed as a stream of aerokinesis wrapped around her shoulders and brought her back to the ground suddenly, actually adding to her impact. "That, for one. I could simply take the push and try and stay on the ground, swing with that saber of yours to see if you could cut me on the way out. Put up a simple shield, last minute, but you wouldn't go flying. You could even just use a counter by pushing my telekinesis with yours. But never." Her head gently turned towards him. "Ever. Drop your lightsaber in a battle. Out there, unless you're one hundred percent sure they've given up, there are no rules. Either they kill you, you kill them, or you two kill each other. Heck, don't ever drop your guard, let alone your entire weapon, unless you have no other choice." She moved her lightsaber down slightly, making it look like she was letting it rest. But it was just another guard. "Two, you gotta break my concentration whenever I try to do something like grab your hilt with the Force. Hitting me or overwhelming me is usually one of the only ways to do that in a one on one fight. Interrupting my concentration means I can't do anything fancy, or keep holding your hilt and moving you around. And lastly, your doing good making every attack count, and you're attacking often. But you need to make sure everything you do has a reason. If it isn't helping or protecting you, or attacking them, best not to do it yet."

@Nastalle @One For Sorrow @Loco @Nightfall096

 

[Tynian]

Tynian nodded in understanding about what a lightsaber can do to someone. He lifted up his own sleeve revealing an “s” shaped scar on his bicep. “I’ve hand first hand experience with that.”

He watched Aliyah and listened intently to her instruction. He thought he had it, but another question care into his head. “Usually when I fight, I always feel like I’m reacting instead of initiating. Even when I fought a Sith it was more reactive than anything. And even when I sparred with you and Kane I felt like that. Am I wrong in thinking that?”

@Autumn's Firefly @One For Sorrow @Nightfall096 @Loco

 

[Vollen Shai]

“A few too many flips perhaps, though I’ll be interested to hear your take on it Master Zeerda” Vollen whispered back as his Amaran companion came to join them. Though as the pair he watched continue their bout and eventually began discussing, he moved to join,


“Not the worst trait in a Jedi” Vollen spoke up, breaking his long silence as he’d listened to the fighters compare styles and notes, learning from each other,

“It’s not our role to seek out the violence, but then it is our place to stop it. It is a fine line to walk, just as is reacting and attacking in a fight. Knowing when to push forward, pull back, you cannot always play one or the other. Even those whose focus is soresu and it’s defensiveness must know when to push back against an opening, when they can see overextension, or a way to break in where their opponent won’t be able to guard” but Vollen knew that such things did not come from meditation not study, but many days of practice with a blade, many hours in the temple, in the ring. Whether or not he’d trained enough when those days finally came... for now he couldn’t say. But he knew enough to share advice with young Tynian this day,

“Half the fight is in your mind. There’s no issue in focusing on attack or defends, but one has to know when to use the one as the other” he offered with an encouraging smile. He felt perhaps that it would soon be time to give the knight some practical training anyhow, and kept himself ready at his blade to show Tynian what he could. If nothing else he hadn’t admired the knights dedication, spending so long now in their company ready to learn.


@Nastalle @Autumn's Firefly @One For Sorrow @Loco

 

[Tynian]

Tynian turned to face Master Shai and deactivated his twin blades. "I would be honored if you could show me what you mean Master Shai." He gave the Jedi Master a polite bow of respect and readied himself to receive what Vollen was going to teach him.

@Nightfall096 @One For Sorrow @Autumn's Firefly @Loco

 

[Vollen Shai]

He eyed down the young knight, before raising himself from the stone and moving into the sparring circle, drawing his yellow blade,

"More than happy to Tynian, let's begin then" Vollen, having move to face the knight directly, swung his blade at Tynians right side waist. He'd stop centimetres before it connected, he didn't mean to start the spar just yet, but there was a lesson here anyhow,

"Now, an attack comes in like this, simple, easily defensible. What goes through your mind, what defenses could you employ, what follow up do you move with, how might that be countered, how do I account for that... the steps could be endless, and in a fight one can't know how everything will play out. But keeping the possibilities in mind, knowing and being clear about what you want to accomplish with each strike. This is key" he offered to Tynian. These were the fundamentals he'd been able to pick up over his time, he only hoped he put them into practice most of the time. That said, to drill it into the knight would take practice, and so, he began it,

"Ready?"

Vollen drew his arm back, and brought it down in a diagonal cut from Tynians right shoulder, down to his left hip. Hopefully Tynian would be able to think through these possibilities and react accordingly.

@Nastalle