An Informal Lesson

[AuroraRogersSkywalker]

It was about 9:00 in the morning at the Jedi Temple on Tythor. Saerina Avrikana, a young Jedi Knight, was waiting in a training room for her Padawan to arrive. It was the first time in quite a while she had been assigned a Padawan of her own; she had been in charge of mostly group training for a while before this. As usual, Saerina felt a bit apprehensive at the idea of meeting someone new. It wasn't so much that she was afraid the Padawan wouldn't like her, but she hoped they would be able to connect well.

She watched some of the other Master-Padawan pairs around the room. Some were doing one-on-one, others had a small group of Padawans to one Master. Saerina had some extra training remotes in case anyone else wanted to join her and her Padawan, Davin Cort.

When Davin walked in, Saerina took a moment to study his presence in the Force. The first thing she sensed was a strong mind, full of opinions. A sense of loyalty. And yet, the young man seemed unconfident. Saerina could understand that; she had struggled with healthy levels of confidence as a Padawan too.

She smiled warmly as he came in. "Welcome, you must be Davin? I'm Saerina Avrikana." She had to look up to meet his eyes, since he was several inches taller than her. Most teenage Padawans did tower over Saerina. "Before we begin, why don't you tell me a little about yourself? What do you feel you are gifted in as a Jedi? What do you enjoy doing?"

@AlecaiWhite

 

[AlecaiWhite]

Davin took in a deep breath as he traversed the winding halls of the Jedi Temple on Tython. The air was cold and crisp. Even though it was 9am the coolness of the previous night still lingered, waiting for the days sun to take it away. Davin was headed for the training room to meet his new, and first, master. He had heard about her from other padawans, according to them she was young, kind and very small. however, he hadn't been able to glean much more than that so he assumed, like himself, she was a solitary character.

It was around 4 minutes past the hour when Davin finally walked into the fairly busy training room. The wash of the force hit him like he was going from a cold room to a much warmer one, the feel of the air, the very space around him, changed completely even with so the small number of force users in one room. He cast his eyes around the room, looking for his new master. It took him a couple of sweeps before he picked up the lithe, short, brunette/blonde girl, standing by herself. He only noticed her because her eyes were fixed upon him. He was used to being stared at, the downside of having grey skin, but her look was more intense, like she was sizing him up.

He walked towards her, studying her as he got closer, she was short, incredibly short and very skinny. She looked as if a strong breeze could carry her away, but his fellow padawans had been right, she was young. He guessed that she was about his age, maybe slightly older, 22 at the most.

As he stopped in front of her she introduced herself.
"Welcome, you must be Davin? I'm Saerina Avrikana."
He bowed respectfully and straightened before replying "Thank you for agreeing to teach me Master"
He was taken slightly aback as she instantly shot a question his way. "Before we begin, why don't you tell me a little about yourself? What do you feel you are gifted in as a Jedi? What do you enjoy doing?"
He stammered slightly before responding. "Well, um, I may not look it but I am human" he gestured to himself "I'm a clone, of my fathers first son. I am 17 years old and" He paused, thinking "The Jedi is all I really know. I enjoy saber combat, I'm good at it. There are just, certain aspects of the force I don't understand." He trailed off, he hadn't ever really thought about his skills or what he enjoyed.

 

[AuroraRogersSkywalker]

Saerina nodded and listened carefully as Davin spoke. He did seem to be feeling a bit awkward; he shifted around, he stammered, he fidgeted. Saerina understood how he felt. It had taken her a long time to get over (or mostly get over) her own shyness. When he mentioned that he was a clone, she made a mental note to be sensitive to that. Sometimes clones struggled with feelings about their individuality and their purpose in life.

The one thing that surprised Saerina, even more than hearing that Davin was a human, was that he didn't seem to know what his strengths were. That definitely told her that he had low self-esteem. She had a firm belief that it was important for a person to have a reason to believe in themselves.

"I think you and I will find a lot in common," she told him. "Lightsaber combat is one of my favorite things about being a Jedi, too. It's more than just a way to defend yourself. It's an art form, really. Which forms do you specialize in?" She waited for him to respond before continuing, "The Force is abstract and hard to understand. It took me a long time to fully grasp some of the techniques, I'll admit. I hope I'll be able to help you in this way."

She motioned for him to follow her over to a more open area where they had more space. "How about we start off today by having you show me a bit what you know about your lightsaber? We'll take it easy and then gradually build up to a more difficult level. Just so you're aware, I mainly practice Soresu, but I have been intensely working on Makashi as well."

Once Davin was ready, Saerina drew her lightsaber and only activated one of the blades, set on a low power. "I'd like you to attack first, whenever you're ready." She took a moment to concentrate on the Force, so that she could get a better sense of Davin's fighting style, and how to respond to it.

 

[AlecaiWhite]

Davins demeanor brightened significantly as Saerina mentioned that she too enjoyed lightsaber combat.
"Lightsaber combat is one of my favorite things about being a Jedi, too. It's more than just a way to defend yourself. It's an art form, really. Which forms do you specialize in?" She asked.
" I practice Ataru" He responded "It suited my dual sabers better than the others"
He listened politely as she spoke of the abstractness of the force. He hoped that he could understand it, so far he had definitely struggled with the force.

She gestured for him to follow her towards a more open area. He listened to her as she mentioned that she practices Soresu and Makashi. Both were more defensive that his style, but Makashi was developed for saber to saber combat so she could outlast him if their battle was prolonged. He heard the distinctive hum of her blade extend as she drew her saber. He looked at the hilt, it was a simple yet elegant design with both of the crystals exposed.
"I'd like you to attack first, whenever you're ready." She said as she dropped into her first stance.

Davin responded drawing his lightsaber. He ignited the blade and turned down the power to its training setting. He took to quick steps forward swinging his blade in a simple arc towards her torso.

 

[AuroraRogersSkywalker]

Saerina nodded in approval when Davin mentioned that he practiced Ataru. "That's a good one, very versatile," she remarked. "I hope to give that one a more serious try someday, because it focuses on using the Force to overcome your physical limitations."

When he ignited his lightsaber and attacked, she used basic Soresu tactics to block his stroke with little to no effort. She then let him attack a few more times, hoping he would observe her technique, how she let the Force guide her movements, and spent little energy blocking those initial attacks. A few ideas for feedback came into her mind; she would give him her suggestions after the duel.

"Good," she said encouragingly as he attacked a few more times. "Now get ready to be on the defense." Then Saerina switched gradually into some basic Makashi techniques. This was a good opportunity for her as well to practice it a bit, since she was by no means a master of Makashi yet. The main thing was to shift her footwork into a perfectly balanced position, and then her strokes became less fluid, more light and choppy. She started off with a small, calculated jab towards his chest. It was a small stroke, probably hard to notice if one wasn't paying attention. Saerina wondered if Davin had ever had experience with Makashi before, if he had ever sparred with a Jedi who used it as their primary form. Hopefully he wouldn't be caught too off-guard by her use of it.

One of her goals with Davin, she decided, was to help him strengthen his defensive skills. There would be plenty of people in his life who were experts in Ataru and could teach him how to use powerful offense. But defense was just as important, and it was something that should not be overlooked.

 

[AlecaiWhite]

Saerina parried his blows with almost effortless ease. He wasn't surprised by this, he hadn't be throwing his hardest hits. Even so, he was sure that she be able to fend off his attack. As he swung in and out he noticed how she moved when on the defensive. She kept her blade close into her body, moving it sharply to block his attacks which minimized her bodies exposure to his blades strikes.

"Now get ready to be on the defense" Saerina said as she parried his blade high, making his step back slightly, creating a natural pause in the combat. He wasn't strong on the defensive, at least not blade to blade. She stepped forward and flicked the tip of her blade at his chest. He reacted instinctively and jumped backwards, using the force to aid his movement. He landed about 3 meters behind where he started.
"My apologies master" He said as he walked back to combat range. "Can we please try that again" He took hold of his saber in both hands and prepared himself for her to attack again. She came at him quickly, jabs and cuts coming from high and low. He parried the best he could, reacting to her thrusts and moving his blade to push hers off target. He kept his foot work light and quick, channeling the force to his feet trying to move out of the range of her blade.

Again and again she caught him with the tip of her blade, the jabs slipping past his defense or he misjudged the angle of her attack and actually moved into the path of her attack. He was starting to notice a sort of pattern in her movements, she shifted her weight when she was going to cut and lent forward when she was about to jab, however, the speed of her movements were faster than he could react.

 

[AuroraRogersSkywalker]

(OOC: Sorry for the delay, I was having a hard time with finals!)

Saerina smiled to herself as Davin reacted so strongly to her small thrust towards his chest. "No need to apologize, it's all part of the learning process. If you come back here, I can show you the proper way to block it."

Once he was within dueling distance again, she demonstrated to him exactly where the position of her blade would be. "The idea is to hold your blade almost vertically, at a slight angle," she explained. "And then rotate it in a counterclockwise direction, and that will push my blade away from you. Remember not to use much movement. My stroke doesn't require much effort from me, so your blocking shouldn't take much effort either." She repeated the maneuver, a little slower, and Davin responded much better this time. She nodded in approval.

They practiced it a few more times before Saerina said, "All right, I am going to perform a longer sequence of jabs and thrusts now. You already know what to expect for the style of my form, so try to respond in a way that makes sense. Most importantly, don't overthink it. Concentrate on the Force, and it will guide your blade." With that, she still continued to move a little more slowly than she normally would have, but her various thrusts and cuts were continuous and random. She was curious how Davin would react.

After that sequence of movements, she asked him out of curiosity, "Have you ever sparred a Makashi user before? I know it isn't a very common form."

 

[AlecaiWhite]

"Have you ever sparred a Makashi user before? I know it isn't a very common form." She asked him as their second sparring came to an end.
"No master. I have only ever been taught Ataru" he replied "I know bit about it though" He paused and then began to recite the few facts he knew " Its the second form, primarily for dueling. So its good for a saber fight but it can be unreliable against opponents wielding blasters"

He powered down his saber and hung it from his belt before continuing "It is hard to anticipate your movements" he trailed off slightly "Master, I know I may be overstepping by bounds but, lightsaber combat isn't where I struggle. I have watched most of my peers progress to being knights and I would argue that I was better than most of them in a fight" He stopped thinking that he was definitely going to far. It was his first session with Saerina and already he was questioning her authority.

"Im sorry master" he said as he bowed his head to her "It isn't my place to question your teaching methods"