Ask Ajan Kloss Master and Apprentice

[Izel Thral]

Izel was impressed by the rapid improvement her apprentice was showing already. His technique would still require a great deal of fine tuning, but the basics were coming to him quite quickly. With every passing minute be became more attuned to the Force, and could more accurately track her movements even with his eyes closed. And then he began to predict her movements. He started jumping not towards the branch she was already on but towards the branch she was headed for next. The Vratix let out an exhilarated chitter as she had to turn in the air and reach out with the Force to pull a vine to her in order to escape the Kiffar's grasp. This exercise was finally starting to become a challenge for her as well.

She lost track of time as the two of them continued their chase through the jungle, the Padawan getting ever closer to grabbing his prize. It was past midday when they finally reached the canopy. Izel jumped and Isen jumped after her, directing himself on the perfect intercept course. The Kiffar would open his eyes in time to see his fingers mere inches from the red ribbon flapping in the wind, but at the last second it would pull away as Izel evaded him once more. The Knight landed on a nearby branch and clung to it as she took a moment to catch her breath.

"Very good Padawan." She said between breaths. "You've already made significant progress. And now that I have a good sense of where you're at I can tailor your training appropriately." She paused to look out across the forest canopy, observing the beautiful view of the seemingly endless jungle sprawled out before them. She also noticed the position of the sun. She looked back to Isen with a twitch of her antennae. "But that's enough for today I think. We can resume tomorrow after you've gotten settled in." She unwrapped the ribbon from her hand and stowed it back in her satchel. There was of course more motive to her actions than just the practical need to give Isen a tour of the rest of the temple and show him his new quarters. By stopping the exercise when he was so close to victory she hoped to give him some inspiration to come into their next training succession excited and ready to go.

"Now let's get back to the temple, I could use a good meal after that." She said with a laugh, and started making her way down, descending from one branch to the next towards the jungle floor.

@Isen

 

[Isen Ramm]

"Very good Padawan. You've already made significant progress. And now that I have a good sense of where you're at I can tailor your training appropriately. But that's enough for today I think. We can resume tomorrow after you've gotten settled in," Master Thral said to him. Isen tried hard to hide his annoyance when she started to roll up the ribbon to put it away. He had been so close and felt like he had been given another opportunity, maybe he could have gotten it. Isen had spent years going through the motions of training and learning, and for the first time in something not combat-related, he was more eager than ever.

Ultimately, it was time to head in. "Now let's get back to the temple, I could use a good meal after that," his new master had told him. For the first time, he noticed how sore he was and tired. It wasn't just physical fatigue either. Never had he used the Force so much in a short period of time. His mind was wary too. As much as he would have loved to continue vying for the ribbon, the young Kiffar needed a break...and some food.

Once they reached the bottom, Isen stopped, with his new master getting a few steps ahead of him. "Master Thral, thank you. I suspect that the Council paired us for some reason, and I don't know why but thank you for believing in me. It means a lot. I've not really had that before."

@Reyn

 

[Izel Thral]

Although Izel could sense Isen's eagerness to continue it was clear he needed rest. Even for someone with Jedi training their chase through the jungle would have been exhausting, both physically and mentally. Using the Force so much over such a short period of time could be quite taxing. It really was better that they stopped now rather than push themselves until an accident occurred.

The Padawan was mostly quiet during their descent back to the forest floor, seemingly deep in thought. The question of what was answered once they reached the ground and the young Kiffar spoke up. Izel looked back at him, antennae twitching. She couldn't exactly offer the boy a reassuring smile but she hoped her tone was warm enough to get the message across. "There's no need for thanks Padawan." She insisted. "Anyone willing to learn is deserving of an appreciative teacher. I'm honored by the Council's decision, and I only hope I can help you along your path to becoming a Jedi. I can see you going very far here, if you keep to your current course."

Without saying anything else she turned and kept walking. She hoped that what had been said was what the Padawan needed to hear. She was still getting the hang of this teaching thing, but he seemed to be performing quite well for his first day. She hoped she could keep up the pace of progress as they continued. She did sense great potential in Isen. Her fear was more with whether she could help harness that potential correctly, and not fall prey to darker impulses. She still doubted herself after her failure to maintain her calm on Ontotho. In the end she suspected Isen's training would be as much her training. It would determine whether or not she was truly fit to be a Jedi. If she wasn't, she wasn't sure what she would do.

/Exit Thread
@Isen