[Cerea] Hiding in the Dark

[Liam]

Techaro Ioka sat at the base of a temple deep in the forests of Cerea. Here he would be meeting his new padawan, Jade Evoyn. Techaro had read reports on Jade and was very interested in teaching her the many aspects of the Force. Today Tech would teach her the basics of Force Stealth, an ability that was used to mask one's presence in the Force and hide them from others. Techaro had been taught this power by Jedi Master Larik Novan on the aquatic planet of Lamaredd, and the Jawa was eager to begin instructing others in its ways.

The Jedi closed his eyes and reached out with the Force, attempting to sense if his new trainee had arrived at the planet yet.





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[Undine]

Jade had been contacted by a Jedi Knight named Techaro Ioka, he had offered to teach her the basics of Force Stealth on the planet of Cerea. Furthermore had had apparently been interested in taking her on as his apprentice. While immensely honored, Jade had to question the wisdom in his thinking. "I'm blind, I never thought I would receive a Master." After spending the great majority of her lifetime training to be apart of the Jedi Order, it would seem that she would be taking one of her first steps down the path to full membership within the order.

Master Ioka had given her directions to an ancient temple deep in the forests of Cerea, and she didn't want to leave her new Master waiting for too long. That being said, she was nervous, which was rare for her. "Why now? What has changed to make me worthy of a proper Master?" She recently crafted her first lightsaber and thought that perhaps this was the reason. The weapon of a warrior, no a guardian. "But can I be such a guardian? I will fight and die if I must to protect my fellow Jedi but I do not wish for conflict." Shaking her head Jade began to make her way in the direction of the temple. She had no idea who this Jedi Knight was, but it didn't matter to her, she was here to learn and to grow with the Force.​

 

[Liam]

The Jawa continued in using his mind to sweep the area until he stopped at a strong yet timid presence. This feeling was relatively common in padawans, who usually had much potential that they had not yet unlocked. This presence, however, was stronger than usual. Techaro had been able to locate the energy a lot easier than he was able to with other Jedi, meaning that the person he was about to train had the potential to be a very powerful Jedi. This excited Tech, who opened his eyes and stood up almost immediately. Jade was not far from the temple, so he decided to meet her halfway.

Quickly, he launched himself into one of the many trees surrounding him and jumped from branch to branch with ease, making his way towards the girl. He swung himself from one tree to the other until he was standing almost exactly above Jade, almost thirty feet in the air. He leapt off of the thick wood underneath him and allowed himself to slide down the tree's bark noisily, not wanting to catch the girl by surprise and frighten or surprise her. After landing in front of the blue Pantoran, Tech extended his hand in greeting, quickly dropping it when he realized his mistake.

"Hello," he laughed nervously, hoping the girl had not noticed his blunder. "My name is Techaro Ioka. You can call me Master Tech or just Tech for short. It is a pleasure to finally meet you, Jade."​

 

[Undine]

She was nearly there, the temple where she was to meet her new Master. She had decided to practice at her skill in Art of Movement if only for a small amount of time, while making her way to the temple, and by now she was moving at top speed. She almost didn't notice the presence in her field of vision due to her focus on her movements. Whoever it was they didn't seem to have malicious intent, but when the Jawa stopped and began to maneuver their way to ground level from directly above her. Jade dropped low, putting her hand to her lightsaber incase of an attack. But the attack never came and Jade relaxed a bit, as the Jawa introduced themselves.

"Techaro Ioka? Well it is an honor to meet you Master Tech. Jade bowed her head in respect before introducing herself as well. "I al Jade Evoyn, your new padawan, you may call me Jade or just padawan." Even though she had noticed the offered hand drop earlier, Jade wanted to make sure her Master didn't think of her blindness as a weakness. Looking him in the eyes with her blank gaze, Jade offered her hand in greeting with a smile on her face. "He didn't know I was blind? Why wouldn't the Grand Council tell him?" Jade thought to herself. "You were not aware I was going to be blind were you Master Tech. Forgive me if I come across as untrainable, but I promise my blindness will not burden you, I wouldn't allow it."

Jade was nervous, Master Tech could send her back to Naboo to wait for a new Master if he wanted to, and Jade wouldn't blame him. Most people either pitied or underestimated her because of her blindness. It was one of the reasons she was hoping to learn Force Stealth. A skill in stealth along with people generally not considering her a threat would make her an excellent person for stealth and assassination missions. Not to mention her ability with Force Sight. Jade was able to see everything roughly within 15 meters from her, even underground. No one would be able to hide from her. Jade's only drawback was the fact that she couldn't read or pilot any aircraft.​

 

[Liam]

"I'm sure that it isn't." Tech responded sincerely when Jade explained that her blindness would be no burden. "In fact," he began, gesturing for the girl to follow him as he began to walk in the direction of the temple. "I see it as an advantage that you have over others." To alleviate any sort of confusion he had caused with this statement, Techaro elaborated. "You have been blind your whole life, no?" he asked. "And you use Force Sense as your primary means of vision?" Tech waited patiently for the girl's response as he lead her through the forest. "My vision is great. My eyes serve me well. But you see, eyes are merely physical. They can be tricked. It does not take much to fool someone's eyes." The Jawa lifted his right hand, sending some fallen branches that had settled onto their path back into the thick brush to the side. "The Force is something different entirely. It takes a lot of skill and practice in order to disguise yourself from the Force." With that being said, the two Jedi approached a small clearing in the trees, which opened up to the stone temple where the Knight had been waiting earlier. "Ah, it appears that we have arrived." he said, gesturing for the padawan to enter the temple before them.


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[Undine]

Jade listened as her new Master explained how he thought her blindness would be an advantage for her. She completely agreed with him, but she knew of few others that thought similarly. She would still have to prove her ability in order to gain the respect and trust of a few of her peers, and she was content to do so.

"Yes I have been, and that is my only means of sight Master Tech. Not that I mind, if anything I wish I could see farther, but I see everything within range, all the way down to the individual blades of grass, although it is difficult to make out small details or facial expressions. That is why I think I've developed such a keen sense of empathy in the Force." Jade replied to Techaro's questions, she completely agreed with his next statements regarding fooling the eyes. In a way they were a perfect match as Master and padawan, she had no doubt that like most Jawas, Master Ioka has been underestimated just as she has been for being blind. Just as she has in the past however, he no doubt had used this to his advantage.

Once they had reached the temple, Jade made her way into the temple with Master Tech following. She was unsure of where to go and what to do, as she was the one to be trained today. From her understanding of how light worked and how normal people could see, she understood that since this planets star was outside so the inside of the temple would be dark and difficult to see in for her Master, but she was unsure. "Master can you see in here? I understand that most people require lighting to see" It wasn't the first time Jade had wondered if or how another person could see the world around them, but it was one of the first times she inquired about it for fear of sounding like a fool. She had been picked on many times when she was younger, for asking what such things as colors and stars looked like.​

 

[Liam]

"Most people would be completely lost in here. However, I was blessed with good vision." Techaro explained, his bright yellow eyes allowing him to see through the darkness that surrounded the two. His eyes were very handy when it came to exploring the dark. Jawas had naturally good sight, so caves and temples like this offered no challenge in navigating to him. He was so unaffected that it was almost as if he were still outside. Tech was glad that Jade was asking questions; it showed that she was eager to learn and the Knight liked that in a person. It reminded him of himself as a padawan, trying to soak in information like a sponge. A slight smile spread across his face as he lead the girl to the center of the room.

"We are now going to begin the first step in your training." the Jedi began, using the Force to seal up the entryway that they had used to get into the temple. The last bit of light exited the room as Tech moved a large boulder in front of the door. Aside from the small holes in the tree that allowed oxygen to enter the temple, the two were completely sealed off. "It is important that you are able to identify things that hide themselves in the Force." Techaro paced in front of the girl, his footsteps and voice bouncing off the walls and echoing throughout the temple. "This will be easier for you, since most people would find the darkness of this room off-putting, making it harder for them to concentrate. You must be able to reach out to the Force and let it guide you to things that are hidden." Tech stopped walking once he had gotten a little deeper in the temple, having let a considerable amount of space come between the two. "Your first task is simple, you may you whatever Force abilities are in your disposal." the man explained.

"Find me."

With that being said, Techaro completed shrouded himself in the darkness with the Force. His entire presence became hidden, nearly becoming undetectable. Nearly. If Jade focused hard enough, she would be able to locate him. But until that time came, it appeared that the teacher had completely disappeared. The only sounds in the temple were that of the Jawa's footsteps, which echoed all over the room. And the occasional soft chuckle. or too.

 

[Undine]

Jade listened to the Jedi's words as he explained his species vision and the task he was setting before her. Jade had read up a little on the teaching she came here to learn. She knew the basics of what Master Tech would be asking of her and she understood the concept of force stealth, but nonetheless she was surprised when the Jawa disappeared from her field of vision.

She knew she had nothing to fear from her new Master but none the less she did not like the feeling of being unable to trust her vision. Jade walked with caution around the corridors of the temple, letting the force guide her this way and that. If she were not being trained at the moment she would have loved to stop and inspect and ponder the left over artifacts of the ancient temple ruins. When she was about to give up she thought of something. "I don't need to look for his physical form, I can just reach out with the force and feel his emotions."

Refocusing herself, Jade knew that if Master Tech was nearby he would most likely be able to see the slight blue-white glow of her eyes whenever she strained herself. Doing just that she reached out in a random direction in an attempt to sense any emotional vibes within the force, letting the vibrations guide her like a distress beacon to a fallen ship Jade made her way closer and closer to her goal.

Once she reached the person or thing she thought she had sensed, Jade reached out with her hand and asked, "Master is that you?" She couldn't see him but she knew better than to not trust the force, then again this was the first time she had trusted the force in this manner.​