Two New Homes

[Black Noise]

Sogar landed the Alliance transport on the moon Iktotchi, his homeworld. Beckoned to the child, whom he retrieved from Coruscant, to follow him, he slowly opened the landing ramp, steeling his nerves for what he could sense outside. He and the child had come a long way, the girl was, as he had learned on the way, Nooam'rah Sekth. There was very little Sogar knew about her, yet he believed he would have ample time to get to know her in the days that would follow. Gripping her shoulder, more for himself than for her, Sogar watched as the landing ramp settle down and sucked in his breath tightly.

Before them was a very old, large house, unoccupied and in desperate need of repairs. This was Sogar's old home, a home he had not visited in over 30 years. Yet even in that time, it hadn't changed much. Outside the house was a small graveyard, with two new stones joining the fourteen or so older ones. Even without seeing them, Sogar knew whose they were. His family were all dead, though that did not affect Sogar too much. His family had been dead to him for many years. But this home, the memories that it held, it did affect him.

He lead the girl with him towards the house. Without speaking, the Iktotchi sat in the old porch swing. He waited for a moment, reminiscing his short years at his home, and they happy days with his brother, before shaking himself out it. Looking to Nooam'rah, Sogar realized that this was more tgan a second chance at being a father, but a second chance at life. Smiling, he asked.
"Are you ready to begin?"

 

[Valkyrja]

Nooam'rah sat rigidly in the seat beside the Iktotchi man who had introduced himself as Sogar Derimsa. In truth, the young girl had no idea where exactly they were headed. Sogar, the man that she would soon call "Master", had only just met her a short while ago, saving her life from the midst of a horrifying battle on the city planet Coruscant. While she knew little about the man, she believed firmly that he had saved her life for a reason. Rah's best friend, Weh, would still frequently pop into her mind, and she would have to fight back the tears that wanted to come, and her eyes would enlarge and well up with water to reflect the infinite depths of her sadness. However, there would be time to mourn for her friend later, for now, she needed to keep herself strong. Eventually, Sogar would make her strong, and she would not let her friend's death be in vain by allowing her own life to be one of misery. From this point on, Rah would live her life not only for herself, but for, and in the memory of her lost friend.

As thoughts of her new master danced around in her head, the ship landed. Who was he really? A former sith, that she knew. A powerful force wielder, and a potentially wise, yet dangerous man. That much was obvious. But there was always so much more to someone than that. The young girl wanted to know more about him, and she had a feeling that she would learn much in the coming years. A strong feeling of anxiety came over her as the landing ramp lowered. There was something up with him. It wasn't as if she knew much of anything about him, but she could just feel it in him. It was a little weird, but, it didn't bother her. A slight chill crawled up her spine as the man's large fingers lightly gripped her shoulder. Something told her that it was to make her feel a little more comfortable, yet, at the same time, she had a feeling that it was partly to steady his nerves. Maybe it made him feel better to make her feel like he was calming her.

It wasn't as if she didn't feel nervous herself, after all, she was a young girl out in the depths of space with a man she had only just met. What would her mother think? But then again, it wasn't as if she had much of a choice in the matter, either. Rah glanced at the man, looking at the large home before them. The place looked ancient, and it seemed that no one had been living there in more than a few of her lifetimes. But then, she was still quite young. The girl found herself very curious about this home. What was the deal with this place? After all, Sogar must have some connection to it. Maybe an old home? But then again, how old was Sogar, anyway? It wasn't something she felt would be appropriate to ask him. Unfortunately, it hadn't taken long for Rah's eyes to fall on the various graves. The air caught in her throat, and Rah's eyes slowly glanced up to him, another wave of sadness washing over her. If this place was truly his home, then those graves must have been family members. Rah's thoughts drifted to her own family, whom she would likely never see again in her life. While the thought saddened her, even now, she knew it was necessary.

Nooam'rah followed after him as he lead her to the home. It was nice, despite its age. She could imagine herself and Sogar fixing the home up over the years. Then again, would he want to remain here for very long? Especially if there were many memories of the place. Sogar seemed like the type who sought to escape his past, rather than embracing it. Shortly after, Sogar sat down on a porch swing, then smiled at her, asking if she was ready. While unsure if she were truly prepared for whatever was to come, Rah felt that she needed to be ready. "Yes...I'm ready."

 

[Black Noise]

Sogar's smile widened and he stood up abruptly. With a nod, he spoke.
"Excellent, because this old home is getting to me. We can deal with it later, for now, walk with me a bit."
Beckoning Nooam'Rah to follow, Sogar began slowly walking towards an open field to the right. The 'field' was really an empty expanse of dry, dusty, flat land that stretched on and on for miles without rock nor civilization. Behind them lay the road to the nearest city. After a few minutes of walking, Sogar stopped and outstretched his hand.

"What do you know of the Force, Nooam'Rah? Before us is an expanse of seemingly nothing, just a very large amount of dust. Or at least, that's what we see. But with the Force, we can reach out and sense everything, the tiniest of insect that thrives out here, the small lizard that burrows into the ground, and mammal that disguises himself in the dirt. It connects every living thing, and it connects me and you. Try, reach out with your mind, try to find out what you can see out there. You may be surprised."

A fairly simple task, but groundbreaking and the first steps to learning Force Sight. Any ability, well trained, was a gamechanger in the hands of a master. Sogar intended to make her a master of everything he knew and more.

 

[Valkyrja]

Nooam'Rah stood close to her master as he responded to her reply stating she was ready. He said that the old home was getting to him, which indicated that her prior theory was correct, and there was some connection to this place that he had in his past, likely a strong one to make him seem so troubled. He then claimed they would deal with it later, a statement that left the young girl a little confused. After all, how exactly would they deal with it? Especially her. The girl had nothing to do with this place at all. At least, not that she knew of. However, as Sogar began to walk onward, Nooam'Rah followed after him. After several paces, several minutes, and a couple silent protests, the barren landscape of the area became apparent. The young girl could see bare fields all around her, stretching far beyond her field of vision. It was quite interesting to see so much nothing after her year on Coruscant.

Nooam'Rah looked to her master curiously as he waved his hand toward the vast expanse of open land. It appeared so barren. All she could see was dust and dirt from here. First, Sogar asked her how much she knew of the force. Suffice it to say, she didn't have much knowledge on the subject. Pretty much everything that she had known about it up until this point was purely speculation and tales, which often wound up being incorrect or unsubstantiated. "Not much. Master. I've just...heard stories." Nooam'Rah replied with a slight nervous chuckle, glancing over the massive expanse of land as she lightly gripped her left arm with her right hand, her common nervous stance.

He then went on, say that through the force, even such a barren landscape could should to have much to see. Several life forms could make their homes in a place like this, and the naked eye wouldn't likely catch them. But, with the force, one could see them clearly. Or rather, they would be able to sense those creatures. Nooam'Rah listened closely as he spoke, taking in the lessons of the force. It seemed important for her to pay close attention, to absorb every little detail of the Force that he was willing to teach her. The connection between every living thing seemed true from the start. She had always felt a close connection between herself and the things around her, and when she was younger she could feel something. But now, it was much stronger, and she could almost swear she could feel tiny twinges of activity in the distance. But it seemed more like a strange vibration, terribly imprecise, but there.

"Reach out with my mind..." Nooam'Rah repeated, looking closely, attempting to clear her mind of any surface thoughts. The young girl tried to see anything, an animal, an insect, some kind of movement. The minor vibrations seemed like a good way to try and find something, but the more she concentrated on it, the harder she looked. The harder she looked, the less she could feel the vibrations, and the more fruitless her efforts seemed. The young girl grumbled to herself and crossed her arms, her brows furrowing. "I can't see anything! I can't "sense" ANYTHING!" Nooam'Rah exclaimed in irritation. Regardless of how mature she tried to act, she was still a child, and her attention span was sparse enough as it was, much less when trying to keep her mind clear.

 

[Black Noise]

Sogar suppressed a laugh at Nooam'Rah's frustration. He had not expected her to instantly 'get it' on her first try, no one ever did. The road to becoming used to the Force was long and hard, but once an apprentice reached the end then learning any ability was only a matter of knowledge and practice. He had kept a close feeling on Nooam'Rah as she reached out, and Sogar knew she felt the Force. He knew exactly what she was doing, and what she was doing wrong. But trying to explain it likely wouldn't help too much. So he decided to try show her. First, he spoke.
"Look out there, what do you see? Nothing, correct?"

Stretching out his hand, Sogar smiled and picked up a small rock up from the ground in front of them. Without a word, he tossed it out far. Within a second or two, it had hit something in the distance and a dusty colored, reptilian like animal scurried across the dust plain for a moment before burying itself into the ground. Satisfied. he spoke.
"Your mind is like this plain. You may clear it of all that can be seen on the surface, but underneath you are still restless, stirred up by the slightest disturbance. And like this plain, the harder you try to focus on any one thing, the harder it is to see anything at all. You must step back, settle your mind completely, and focus upon only making yourself at peace."

Sitting down, Sogar beckoned Nooam'Rah to join him on the ground. Closing his eyes, he reached out to the little girl and used his own Force ability to help calm her spirit and mind. As he attempted to calm her, he spoke softly.
"The Force is like quicksilver, grasp it tightly and it will fly from you. Keep your mind open, let it come to you. Only when you're ready, then begin to reach out and find it for yourself, to feel the presence of the animals and insects near you. Feeling is sensing, and if you can feel, even slightly, the living around you. Then you're already doing it right."

 

[Valkyrja]

Nooam'Rah's expression slowly softened as she glanced over to her master, her gaze shifting slowly up to his face as he began speaking. Upon asking his question, the young girl again looked to the open field, her eyes slowly glancing from patch of ground to patch of ground, seeing little more than dirt and the occasional bit of dust blowing in the breeze. Then, he said exactly what she was thinking. Nothing. Nooam'Rah's gaze again returned to her master, a curious expression taking over her face, her lips pursing slightly. He then rose a stone from in front of them, and cast it out into the open field. The young girl's eyes followed the stone as he sailed through the air and crashed lightly into the ground, making a barely audible thud. Then, a slight twinge of that familiar vibration came, and almost immediately after, she saw a small reptilian creature crawl out from the soil, then burrow back down into it in a spot a couple meters away.

Sogar continued, speaking of her mind, comparing it to the plain. It could appear calm on the surface, but the depths of her mind, like this field, were still teeming with life. Or in the case of her mind, thoughts. She would need to learn to quiet her mind, and to keep her mind calm. That was what he was saying. But that had to be harder than all that. In order to focus on the universe around her, she would need to be still and calm herself. To try and focus on single things, at least, without training, would blind her to everything around her. "Making myself at peace?" Nooam'Rah repeated, looking to him as he slowly sat down. The words rolled around inside her head as she slowly dropped down beside him, sitting comfortably in a meditative posture with her legs folded. Again, listening intently to her master's words, Nooam'Rah looked to him, attempting to keep every word fresh in her mind.

"Yes, Master." Nooam'Rah said quietly, looking back to the field before slowly inhaling deeply, closing her eyes as she concentrated. The various thoughts within her head swirled around rapidly, but slowly, and with no small amount of effort, they cleared away. Eventually, after several minutes, the sounds around her dissipated, the feelings of the breeze on her dark skin vanished, and she could hear nothing. Silence. It was amazing to hear absolute silence. The vibrations were returning, stronger than ever. The young girl's brows furrowed slightly, and she felt a slight twinge of something tugging at her mind, like something was reaching out to her, calling out her name. But as suddenly as it began, it disappeared, and it was calm again. This instance quickly faded from her mind almost as a forgotten dream, and she continued attempting to achieve a full state of calm and peace.

Nooam'Rah repeated the mantra in her mind. "Find peace. Make yourself at peace. Calm your mind." She could feel some outside influence affecting her, and assumed it was her master helping her. Suddenly, a strange feeling came over her. Nooam'Rah could feel various vibrations coming from exact positions in front of her. Many of them were further out, and many were below her. It was a strange feeling. The closest she could come to describe it, would be as if there were hundreds of wires connected to her and several creatures around her. She could feel them moving, burrowing into the dirt, crawling around on the surface. Slowly, the feelings faded away as the realization of where she was came back into her mind, and the young girl's eyes fluttered open. The breeze had picked up a little bit and the sun had lowered a little bit. Indicating that it had likely been a short while. Plus, she felt a little tired already, more accurately, physically exhausted.

Nooam'Rah's eyes lit up as she glanced over to him, shooting up into an upright position, a wide grin crossing her lips. "Master, I did it! I could feel them! A whole bunch them! Animals in the dirt, on the ground, and even some up in the air! It felt like hundreds!" The young girl's excitement was probably unexpected, but, she was nothing if not excitable.

 

[Black Noise]

Sogar smiled at Nooam'Rah's excitement. He was not surprised, he knew she was capable of completing the task and her excitement was well warranted for her success. Feeling out her physical state through the Force, though in a manner she would not notice, Sogar nodded and spoke.
"With training and time, you will not only be able to feel all of the living things around you, but also see each and every one even if your eyes are shut. Now, before we head back, there is one more thing I'd like to begin teaching you."

Still sitting, Sogar reached out his hand and caused the Force to flow into Nooam'Rah, revitalizing her body. While she would not feel immediately refreshed, she would no longer feel physically exhausted either. It was Force Revitalize, an ability commonly associated with the light side, yet not something Sogar had ever used in a light sided way, until now, that is. Beckoning her to stay seated for a moment more, he picked up a small stone and began.
"Lastly, see this stone? I want you to concentrate, each out as you did before, but reach out to this stone. Let the Force flow through you as before, and direct it into this. It is a lot to ask, but I am confident in you, and I only ask that you try."

In her current state, Sogar was not fully sure whether Nooam'Rah could pull it off. But if she did, the stone would lift into the air telekinetically and float about. A small feat, but a large stepping stone that would lead to many far more powerful abilities in the future. She only needed to try, and by trying, even without success, Nooam'Rah would likely get a general feel for what she needed to do.

 

[Valkyrja]

Nooam'Rah couldn't help but giggle quietly when she saw her master's smile at her excited behavior. Again, the child listened to his words. He claimed that with training, she would be able to see them all, with her eyes closed no less. That would imply that she would be able to detect life forms and their specific locations, simply by concentrating. No eyes required! How interesting. Nooam'Rah reassumed her former meditative position, her smile slowly fading into a slight smirk as she looked to her master. It appeared he was going to begin speaking again. More instructions no doubt. He claimed there was something else he wanted to begin teaching her. Nooam'Rah's mind instantly began wandering about what it was.

After a moment, he reached out his hand toward her, and she could feel something flowing into her, like the force itself was pouring into every pore on her body. Interestingly enough, the physical exhaustion slowly began to wear off, and in a way, she felt refreshed. Mentally, she was still tired, but physically, it was as if she had been given a nice energy boost. What couldn't the force do? Deciding it was probably a better idea not to peer too much into it and focus on the lesson at hand, the young girl remained quiet, and she watched her master as he continued on. Sogar then tasked her with manipulating and levitating a stone. Telekinesis was a jedi ability she had heard about, but hadn't really thought about it as of late. The young girl looked to the stone, noting it's small size and almost perfectly round shape. "I will try, Master."

After a few moments of concentration, Nooam'Rah's brows furrowed slightly as she looked at the stone, and she could begin to feel the force moving within her, and slowly, she could almost feel it moving into the stone. Remaining focused on the stone wasn't terribly difficult, but maintaining the connection of the force within her and within the stone was. Then again, focus was something the young girl definitely needed training with. After another thirty seconds or so, the stone began to rise, levitating up between the two of them. Every couple seconds it would begin to drop, and then rise again as her focus slowly faded then was recovered. Deciding it'd probably be easier, Nooam'Rah's eyes slowly closed. She could still feel the stone in the air in front of her, similarly to how she had felt the animals earlier. She wasn't sure if it was the stone she could feel, or more accurately, just the small amount of the force within it.

This continued for another minute or so, until a sudden thought popped into the girl's wandering mind. She could remember during the invasion, having glanced back once to see the man who was now her master performing amazing feats with the force, including destroying walls and crushing massive objects. Were those things she would some day be able to do? Then, another quick image of when she was in the ship, and that sudden outburst of energy dented the ship she was thrown into. What was that? A manifestation of the force affinity within her? Or just an outburst of it, maybe? Or, perhaps it was just her imagination. She supposed there really was no way of knowing. During this time of wandering, the stone had slowly begun to lower itself toward the ground as her focus again wavered. However, she managed to catch herself, and the stone raised back up about a meter above the ground.

Suddenly, an image of Weh flashed before her closed eyes. Nooam'Rah could see Weh in a cell for a moment, and then a moment later, she was holding a lightsaber, or at least, it appeared to be one. Then, began swinging it wildly, apparently filled with rage. What could this mean? It had to have meant something? After all, Weh was dead. Wasn't she? Sogar said she was, and Nooam'Rah couldn't see any reason for him to lie to her about that. After all, it wouldn't make her feel any better in the slightest. Finally, another final glimpse showed the Weh's face, twisted with rage and an apparent lust for some sort of revenge. This expression shook the very core of Nooam'Rah, and she felt her focus, and everything else waver. She could feel her own anger bubbling up inside her at this. "Weh!" Nooam'Rah shouted in her mind. Immediately after, a loud sound snapped her out of her almost trance-like state. It sounded like a cross between something snapping and someone stepping on and breaking a large twig.

Nooam'Rah's eyes opened suddenly, catching a glimpse of the stone in front of her crumbling into powder in mid-air. It appeared that the stone had been crushed in an instant. Nooam'Rah suddenly fell back, hitting the ground relatively hard. Not enough for much pain, but definitely a shock. The young girl propped herself on her arms, sitting up slightly to look down at the small pile of dust, then to her master. "What happened? I'm sorry, Master! I didn't mean to..." The young girl hurriedly apologized, worrying that she had done something wrong and that he would be angry with her for not doing specifically as he had instructed. It was at this time that another wave of exhaustion came over her, and she felt truly tired, and her eyes felt heavy. Still, a part of her wondered if her master had crushed the stone, just as a means of snapping her out of it and ending the lesson.

 

[Black Noise]

Sogar watched closely as Nooam'rah did as he directed, concentrating and levitating the stone. He smiled softly to himself as she was able to lift the rock within a matter of moments, and was even more glad when he felt that her focus was her greatest weakness. Focus could be honed, fixed and easily controlled as time passed by, Force Sensitivity on the other hand could not be artificially enhanced without copious usage of the Dark Side. So, if Nooam'rah's greatest hurtle was her focus, then Sogar predicted an easy path for her to walk in learning about the Force in the future.

His smile disappeared as he sensed the change in her focus, Nooam'rah was unconsciously drawing into a deep meditative trance. Such a trance was natural for a Force adept who wished to gain a deeper connection to the Force, but for a child the trance could easily draw the Dark Side. And draw the Dark Side it did. Sogar could feel it gathering around Nooam'rah as she relived a memory, and the Iktotchi did not need to look into her mind to know which memory she was likely reliving.

However, rather than intervening to pull Nooam'rah away from the Dark Side, Sogar decided to wait. He was not much older than she when Sogar fell, or rather, jumped into the bottomless pit of the Dark Side of the Force. Nooam'rah was clearly resisting the Dark Side, so Sogar reasoned it was better she got a little taste of it now rather than feeding on it much later, like so much a forbidden fruit dangled in front of a greedy eye.

When Nooam'rah crushed the stone in an instant, using her emotions and the Dark Side to do so, Sogar said nothing. As she apologized, he said nothing. Silently, the old Iktotchi reached out and brushed the dust about, picking up some of it and allowing it to fall through his hands. Breathing in deeply, he finally spoke.
"The power of the Dark Side is great, is it not? It grants the power that, even one as young as you, is able to use to destroy something so strong so easily. But the Dark Side is a double bladed lightsaber, it may destroy your enemy, but simultaneously it will destroy everything you love. Then, it will leave you a hollow shell, incapable of ever being pure or filled again. When you use the Force, Nooam'rah, it must always be done out of pure desires. Never let your emotions fuel your ability, and never fear anything. If you fear your enemy, then he will anger you. If he angers you, you will hate him, and your hate will cause suffering. Suffering, Nooam'rah, is universal. No matter what side you are on, you will suffer. But whereas Jedi will see it and move on, accepting the suffering and remembering those that are gone with love, a Sith will hold on to that suffering and turn it loose on all they see."

Standing up, Sogar offered out a hand to Nooam'rah and smiled.
"I am not angry, you did well today in your training. I am proud of you. Now come, let us go fix up my old home. It needs a bit of a woman's touch in decorating, don't you think?"