Day-Tripping in the Rim (Pre-DotR Character Testing)

[Oreus]

Lothal - Some odd years before DotR
​

The past ten years had been peaceful for Kwanli, despite whatever may have been going on around the galaxy at the time. Lothal was far enough away from the Republic, the Sith, and the chaos of sentient life to stay fairly quiet. A Jedi Temple stood, as if one with the landscape, far from any city or settlement on the world as a place of refuge for the Jedi.

Various Padawans, Knights, and other Jedi passed through on a weekly basis and others seemed to be eternal fixtures at the Temple. One of these seemingly eternal fixtures was Kwanli the Wookiee. By this time being over 200 years of age, the Jedi Knight had seen a lot in his time. People came and went, but the battle remained the same. Conflict never seemed to fully disappear despite their major victory over their enemy nearly 100 years prior.

"Kwanli, a group of Padawans have are passing through this week. Please see to it they receive guidance and do not cause trouble on Lothal."

Of course. He answered, not speaking verbally with what would have been unintelligible roaring. I will accompany them in whatever they do.

This was not the type of assignment Kwanli had hoped for when the bigger conflicts faded away decades ago. He had hoped to turn his life of war and pain into one of study and hope. Yet each day seemed to draw him back to other duties that stunted his personal goals. Sometimes he wondered if he didn't want to change, and forced it upon himself. War had shaped him, and he had to be ready for the future if it came again. Only time would tell. For now, he needed to await the Padawans in the courtyard outside the entrance. An excursion into the cities and settlements of Lothal was usually in order. Perhaps today would be more, or perhaps it wouldn't. A sigh escaped from the Wookiee as he sat to meditate.

Come, Padawans.

 

[Aurius]

Cecil observed the grounds of the temple on Lothal with an aura of happiness around him. The temple was so peaceful and tranquil, much like the Jedi where said to be. He had traveled far to see the order he wished to join for himself, and it had so far not disappointed. He walked down the courtyard and saw a Wookie in a state of comatose meditation, and took it upon himself to join the jedi

 

[Vayate Merrick]

Raz had been up since the sun first rose, starting his day with a rigorous training routine outside the temple. A ten kilometer run around the base, followed by meditation on one of the nearby stone structures kept his early morning focused, however it was by mid morning that he had decided to take a break. Entering into the mess area he sought out a protein based nutritional supplement drink and downed it. Heading back to his room, he toweled off the glistening sweat that had gathered around his lean muscled frame, took a quick shower, and put on new robes for the remainder of the day. Leaving his room with his pike in its back holster, he heard from one of the other Jedi that Padawans would be coming by the temple today.

Temple life at Lorthal had become somewhat stagnant for Raz, but it was a perfect place to train, and focus on perfecting his martial prowess. The day had begun to show some additional promise however, once Raz discovered padawans would be coming through the temple. He had been searching for anyone who could be adapted to share, or already shared his ideas for what the Jedi should be. But he would need a person of great will to do so. Hopefully one of these padawans would prove to be what he has been searching for. If not, perhaps he could assist them with their time as padawans.

Heading towards the temple entrance, the knight took a deep breath and exhaled, focusing himself. First impressions were key, especially once his zealotry came out, so hopefully this time he didn't scare anyone away immediately. Who knows, maybe they would find it endearing, charming, or downright heretical. Raz had experienced pretty much every reaction you could think of by this point, towards his beliefs. A new batch of hopefuls however means a new batch of minds. His mind racing a little as he continued onward toward the entrance as to greet the padawans.

 

[Elijah Brockway]

Clunk.

"Oh, dear, that can't be good, I don't think that was supposed to fall off..."

Bzzt.

"Oh, bloody...did the wiring in the main console develop a short or something? Just about fried my hand off there, and now everything is dea--!"

Thump. Ca-chunk. Stomp. Stomp. Stomp. Crack.

Sihkar Tarei, recently-knighted Jedi and already rather experienced for somebody his age, cursed in frustration and pain after yet another part of his cockpit fell, this time hitting his head before falling to the ground...before he stomped on the thing and finished breaking it. He bit his tongue momentarily to keep from cursing any more, and then got up, walking out of the cockpit of his freighter before the universe conspired to drop anything else on his head. With a sigh, he gathered up his robe and lightsaber from where he left them sitting in the main hold of his ship, before walking out of the boarding ramp to meet with the mechanics and such that the Jedi Temple employed below.

* * * * *
​

"Three hours?" he later exclaimed, rather incredulous at the length of time it would take to properly replace what was deciding to get broken in his ship, and repair the parts around them to make sure everything would keep working well. He'd already been standing there for the better part of an hour while the technicians diagnosed most every problem it had. The head mechanic nodded sheepishly, and shrugged. "If it helps, master Jedi, there was a large group of Padawans just showed up," the mechanic suggested, trying to be helpful. "You could meet up with them, maybe teach them a thing or two, or just get to know their names. They should be meeting in the main courtyard." Trying to hide his own dismay, Sihkar nodded, before turning on his heel with just a wave goodbye for the mechanic. That done, he quickly made his way to the main entrance of the temple, to see what all was happening.

When he arrived, there were few others there. One young man who seemed quite obviously a Padawan to Sihkar, and another Jedi, a Wookiee - one that Sihkar could tell was most certainly not a Padawan. Both of them were meditating, but Sihkar wasn't in a mood to just meditate, and even if neither of these people were the ones he was recommended to go and meet with, he'd drag them into what he was doing, if only to help prevent his boredom. "Either of you gentlemen care to join me for some training? The meditating is all well and good, but I'm used to more active forms of practice. One of you might even learn a thing or two, eh?" As he spoke, another Jedi, somewhat damp all around - and smelling both of sweat and shower - walked up. "You know, get up and move about like him.

 

[Aurius]

Cecil turned about to the Jedi newcomer, in sheer awe at their complacency to their surroundings. On his homeworld, there was rarely ever any calm. Everyone was bustling about, doing this or that. Paint this, sculpt that. Creativity and design sparked in that place, but Cecil did not give it credit. Here, however, he began to understand the creative nature behind the Jedi's structure. Despite himself, his fathers teaching on architecture came back to him as he looked upon the domed archways, and cylindrical body of the temple.

He rose, sharply and calmly, and nodded his head towards the Jedi offering to work on the physical rather than the mental. Back home, he and Vasra trained with sticks in place of his Lightsaber sporadically, as well as doing various physical exercises to pass the time.

"I would be willing to try something, what would you recommend?"

 

[Elijah Brockway]

Sihkar quickly looked over the Padawan, sizing him up as he did so. He then pursed his lips, thinking over what to do. "How good're you with a lightsaber?" he asked after a moment, mind seemingly made up. His old master had drilled him on lightsaber combat almost to the exclusion of anything else, and the skill he'd gained from that had saved his backside more than once. "We could spar for a moment to test you a bit, then I might see if there's anything useful I could teach you."

 

[Aurius]

Cecil smiled immediately. Although he was yet unaware of how he matched up to a Jedi, he was considered one of the best swordsman his village had ever seen, next only to his Twilek counterpart. He drew his saber from the belt, bringing to up to show the Knight before him.

"I have long awaited the day where I might test my skills against a true Jedi Warrior. I read manuscripts about your first Lightsaber style, and tried to follow suit. Let's see just how well I did."

He turned the the Jedi around them, and calmly asked,

"Would anyone care to spectate?"

 

[Vayate Merrick]

The newcomer Jedi had been chatting with the padawan about being active basically, and spoke of Raz as an example. This was amusing slightly to Raz but also gratifying. Cracking his neck he suddenly became even more interested in the situation when the Jedi brought up lightsaber combat.

"Lightsaber combat eh? Heh, I think I could lend a hand or too in a combat lesson. My focus is lightsaber specialization after all, hence this beaut."

Raz grabbed part of his pikes shaft, and telekinetically detached it from its holster as he spun it one handed, planting the non emitter end in the ground in front of him. His lightsaber pike was the epitome of plain, in fact the only distinguishing mark was the activation button, otherwise it would look like a phrik alloy staff.

 

[Aurius]

Cecil's eyes traveled along the rather plain staff with genuine curiosity. The saber he wielded was not of his creation, but rather a fallen Sith weapon. It was silver and gold, distinctly intricate, with a customized grip that just felt molded to his hand, being excessively comfortable. This staff, however, looked the opposite. Stale in appearance, it did not look very comfortable or pratical to wield. But, appearances are deceiving, something Cecil knew well.

"If the two of you agree to spar with me, gladly."

 

[Elijah Brockway]

Sihkar looked inquisitively at the young man's saber, before glancing over at the athletic-looking man standing next to him, the one with the lightsaber pike. "Not to seem rude, my good man, but could you watch our little spar first? You might pick up anything important that I might miss from him. Perhaps you and I can take turns with the freshie." Sihkar flashed an easygoing grin at the both of them, drawing his own weapon from his belt. He carefully thumbed the activation stud as he did so, the amber blade of the weapon flashing out in time with the practiced flourish that Sihkar used when drawing the blade in any formalized setting.

Bringing his left hand up to grasp the remaining part of the hilt and falling into a standard Form I stance, focusing on the form that would be best for the young man in front of him to learn, both through observation in battle and in teaching. "Activate your weapon, then, young man, and I'll let you begin this little duel. Just be careful, because I'm fairly sure that's a live weapon." Sihkar, meanwhile, had already reached into his weapon with the Force, increasing the strength of the magnetic field enclosing his plasma blade. It would do nothing but give bruises and possibly light burns now, rather than causing grievous damage.

"Whenever you're ready."

 

[Aurius]

Cecil flipped the saber into the air, catching it with his right hand, closest to the activation button. His left hand traveled to the blade regulator, switching the setting down to a minimum, making the saber nonlethal, something he had done while training at home on numerous occasions. He settled into his own variation of Form I, which was distinctly incorrect with the footwork. Igniting his violet saber, he brought it up adjacent to his nose, then flourished downwards before bringing it back in a salute, returning to his combat ready stance.

"Let us begin"

He swiftly stepped forward, bringing his right arm above his head and down in a crescent strike, aiming for the left shoulder of the knight, as his ally observed.

 

[Vayate Merrick]

Raz nodded to the other Jedi, a three way was definitely not sporting or honorable when considering a padawan was involved.

"Sounds good, I am Raz'Allas by the way, and no worries padawan, I am sure you will do fine if you focus."

Raz walked a few feet away, and leaned against the nearest structure, carefully observing the spar to be. This, was what Jedi should strive for when it came to pass times. Contests of strength and skill are enormously important when martial strength is needed.

 

[Elijah Brockway]

Sihkar immediately noticed the issues in Cecil's stance. The main issue was that he was too wide, his feet too far apart; inherently unbalanced, and not good at all in real combat. He quickly made note of that before Cecil stepped in to press the attack, the man's violent blade coming down towards Sihkar's shoulder. The older Jedi shifted his stance, passing his left foot back behind his right while quickly putting his blade in a path of intersection perpendicular to the orientation of Cecil's weapon, parrying the attack quite simply.

While their sabers were locked, Sihkar spoke up: "First tip: economy of movement. Your initial attack was too slow and too wide, and most anybody could see it coming from a while away. You've got a good strength behind your blows, though. Keep that up." He then pivoted on his right foot, bringing his left back in front in a small step inside Cecil's reach, his own blade disconnecting from his sparring partner's and instead seeking that man's left forearm, where it was holding onto the long-hilted saber. As he did so he bent his knees slightly, bringing himself lower and adding a bit more torque into his slightly-pivoting attack.

 

[Aurius]

Cecil took a step back, closing his stance as he turned his body to the right. Now his blade could push the incoming jab away from his shoulder, and so he did. Taking heed of his complimented strength, he sped up his next strike, which disconnected from his opponents blade and arced sideways towards the chest.

 

[Oreus]

Commotion erupted as people began to arrive. Kwanli opened his eyes and surveyed the scene. New padawans, older padawans, and even some knights had gathered together to beat the daily grind. The Wookiee gave his attention towards the lightsaber spar and watched with a bit of nostalgic joy. There was a time he would have been the first to jump into such a thing. Experience and age had calmed his fire to test himself against his peers, though he still enjoyed the occasional session. Others seemed to be gathered around to watch the pair exchange blows, and it seemed a line was forming to join in.

"Learners," he roared after standing up. "There will be plenty of time to test yourselves. Today we are tasked to take the visiting learners on an excursion."

To those who did not speak Shyriiwook there may have been some confusion, but he knew plenty had learned to understand him so he made little effort to make it easier on the new ones. Someone would translate for him to the others. It was not totally uncommon for other knights to join the outings either, so they often were experienced enough to understand him to translate as well as some Padawans he had already worked with before now. The Wookiee looked over the gathered crowd and motioned towards a shuttle a ways down a path away from the temple. As usual, they would fly to a nearby city to great the local populace, ensure peace, and give the Padawans a view of Knights at work other than war.

I sense something different about today. Unsure if it is for the better or for the worse, but today will not be a typical excursion.

 

[Sreeya]

Kiya was late, as usual. She had a bad fight with her datapad, one she lost, and subsequently was delayed in everything. She had no information on where she had to be or what time and felt way too stupid to ask. It was as if she were already on the path to the dark side with her inability to get even the simplest of tasks done.

“Oh god they’re gonna kill me.. I’ll probably have to run a million laps to make up for this.”

She had overslept, staying up reading comics and romance novels instead of studying the Jedi Code. Truthfully she didn’t have it all memorized and hoped to bullshit her way through today. She did not have a lightsaber yet, a vibroblade her weapon of choice.

Kiya scrambled into the scene right as the fight began to take off. She didn’t know anyone here, and she nervously looked around at everyone. The wookiee looked dangerous, but only because she hadn’t seen one up close before. She glanced over at Raz, who was off to the side to watch the exchange. She decided to stand near him, pretending as if she hadn’t arrived significantly later than anyone else. Kiya cleared her throat.

“So um… nice weather eh?”

The weather? There was a fight going on and all she could muster was a lame comment on the weather. Frowning, she focused back on the fight, hoping the man hadn’t heard her at all. She wanted to be invisible.

 

[Wit]

Biri was late, as usual, and once gain it was because of some stupid exercise his sister had convinced him was part of Jedi training. He had spent half the night trying to juggle water balloons with his lekku and all he had to show for it was a wet room and a cold.

Trying not to sneeze as he navigated his way through the temple, his mind was full of ways he could get back at his sister and what would happen if word spread that she had managed to trick him again and how badly at that. He had been an idiot, there was no way to deny that. But he would get back at her, for yesterday, for last week, for all those times. Sure, he hadn't succeeded even once in his attempts to prank her, but one day he would do it for sure.

Rushing into the room where the other padawans were gathered, he tried to greet them with his normal flamboyance. Trying to execute an elaborate bow before he had come to a complete stop, he tripped just as he was shouting out his greeting. "Have no fear, for..."

Unfortunately as he tripped the bag he was carrying slung across his shoulder, one still filled with leftover water balloons from las night's exercises, went flying and launched it's contents into the air. When he managed to catch his balance and straighten himself he was faced with a sight that had him bursting out in laughter, though the mirth quickly died as he noticed all the faces starting back at him, one and all drenched from the balloons that had splattered around them. "Biriyani is here?" he finished tamely while trying his best to keep his face from splitting into another wide grin.

 

[Elijah Brockway]

(OOC: Psst wit they're outside mang)

Sihkar pivoted on his left foot this time, the point of his blade dropping to the ground as he quickly sweeped his blade to the side, catching Cecil's sidways strike - and putting Sihkar's own blade in prime position to flash towards the learner's chest, either showing how fast the Padawan could be, or how much he might have to work on his reflexes. However, Sihkar didn't have the chance to execute the attack, as Kwanli stood and ended the little spar. He withdrew shortly, nodding to Cecil as he deactivated his weapon and placed it back on his belt.

"The books are good resources, but now that you're here, you're going to have to work to clean things up. Still, unlike some of the newer Padawans, you at least have a basis to work with, and that'll serve you quite well later on. Good of you to take the initiative and try to learn a bit before coming over." Sihkar flashed a smile at the Padawan, before noticing a commotion next to him. He reached out with a hand, grabbing a couple of the water balloons through the Force and preventing them from falling with all the rest. After everybody else (including him) got wet, he smiled.

"Nice to meet you, Biriyani," he said, and the two water balloons he had reserved landed squarely on the Padawan. He chuckled to himself, before turning back to Kwanli. "So, how many more are we waiting for before we leave, then?"

 

[Aurius]

Cecil sheathed his purple saber and bowed to the knight, laughing slightly at the water balloons.

"Thank you. I will be studying this saber form carefully, it seems quite versatile."

He observed the Padawans with wonder. These two looked like they had ran a mile just to get here. He quickly shrugged off the water from the balloons and nodded to Kwanli, acknowledging the Knight's observations of the trip ahead. He gently turned to the other Padawans there, waving to them, and bowed to the Knights around him.

"Before we go any further, I suppose it's only appropriate to introduce myself. I am Cecil, of the House Espaa. I've already met Raz, and you have introduced yourself as well, Biriyani. But, with respects, who are the rest of you?"

 

[Vayate Merrick]

Raz continued to watch the boys movements closely as the padawan girl walked over towards him, stopping when within close proximity as she watched the spar, inquiring about the weather as to allude to further conversation. The next padawan to come around however sent water balloons everywhere with his bumble, causing Raz to begin chuckling slightly as he indulged the female with a response.

"The weather is great for sure, however this unexpected rain shower is even more enjoyable."

If that boy was a Jedi Knight, Raz wouldn't have been so amused, but padawans deserved some shred of happiness before they truly discovered the world. Raz saw it as a great injustice, nay dishonor to rob them of that.

He stopped leaning and walked towards the Wookiee, attempting to pat his left shoulder as he spoke, "Well, let's get on with the customary first trip then. However, this combat thing might be a good idea for the evenings activities. For those of you who don't understand Shyriiwook, I can help translate the gist of it. I still only know twenty or so of their words for wood, but I can manage with the general translation part. Remember, when we are in town you must act like envoys of the order. That means emulating the code to the best of your abilities, alright?".

He didn't mean to sound so bland, but he had his hardened shell on now, being official and stalwart like any true knight of the light should be. Raz waited for the rest before continuing towards the shuttle, but would follow them once they headed for it.

[OCC: Working tonight so I'll post when we are in the shuttle/at our destination/spoken too.]