The new scent. (Lalita Zaryet's training)

[Phil]

This was something new to Durtrak, out of all the sentients he encountered up close and personal, this would be the second or third female he would meet. Today was different though then other days, and instead of the bright, clean halls of the Enclave on Arcon-VII, he chose to go to the wetlands. They were more like his homeworld of Trandosha, and it would be here he would train the human named Lalita Zaryet.

It had just finished raining in the area, and Durtrak waited in the opened area where trees and plants were cleared, allowing plenty of room for training. His contact at the Enclave left instructions to his newest apprentice that he was located here, and knew all he had to do now was meditate... and wait.

 

[GABA]

She had received the message left for her and left the enclave where she had now called her home. The former jedi knight, however, felt more comfortable in the outdoors. The flora was different, but comfortable. The air smelled of rain and the clouds didn't look as though they were going to leave just yet. Her flaxen hair tied behind her head kept her cool in the humid air as she closed in on a clearing ahead of her.

Flaring her senses, she could feel a presence and determined it must be who she was supposed to meet, to train her. Stepping into the clearing, she had arrived, and curious to know what else she can learn from this new master.

 

[Phil]

Sniffing slightly, Durtrak smelled someone new enter the area after he sensed it. Turning around, he spotted the lone sentient who had entered his territory. He knew who it was and presented a trandoshan smile to her.

"Greetingssss. I am Osssspion Knight Durtrak, your new insssstructor. Lalita Zaryet, I would pressssume?"

 

[GABA]

"Yes that would be correct." she told the Trandoshan with a returning smiling and a bow. "I am eager to gather what else I can learn, and I presume you are the Knight who will show me?" she asked approaching closer to the Trandoshan. While she did, she was memorizing his pulse in the Force, like she did with most others she met.

 

[Phil]

"That issss correct. As you approached, I could ssense that you are unlike mossst of my ssstudents, one touched by The Force. Thisss will make thingsss easssier for both of uss. But before we begin, Durtrak requiressss sseveral honessst anssswersss for his questionsss."

"Do tell, what do you know of us Ossspion Guardianssss, and why is it you seek to join usss?"

 

[GABA]

"The Ospion guardians were a sect of former Jedi who broke away from the order, only too recently to form their own order and remain as guardians of whom serve the weak and the defenseless." Lalita carefully explained, "I cannot follow the path of the Order no longer, it is following blindly in a direction of consequence, so I trailed away seeking those who may know of a different path, one that I will once more be comfortable on."

 

[Phil]

"Very good, jussst the awnssser I would expect. It pleases me that you see the faults in the Jeedai's way of things. Now then, before we continue, do you have a Lightsssaber of your own?"

 

[GABA]

"Yes." she simply stated. "But I rarely like to use it even when I need too." and with that she un-clipped the hidden weapon from behind her white cloak, a snap-hiss, and the green blade appeared.

 

[Phil]

"Good. However, you will be required to ussse it in our training. I believe that you are trained in it's ussse, but actionsss speak louder then wordsss. But for now, I require a demonssstration of what you are capable of. The area we are in is perfect, for the few treesss you see around us provide excellent viewsss."

With that, Durtrak took a step back as he suddenly propelled himself upwards, grabbing the edge of a strong branch on a tree as he pulled himself up with ease. He was now around fifteen feet above the ground level.

"Come, follow me upwardsss. Ussse the lower branchesss if you are unable to leap as high as Durtrak."

 

[GABA]

Lalita smiled, she was more than happy to follow upwards. Carefully listening to the force she removed her white cloak to avoid being snagged. She crouched down and threw herself upwards allowing herself to grab an opposite branch, "Now where?" she asked Durtrak, her smile still on her face.

 

[Phil]

"We go up more, with a little creativity."

Turning his head, he looked down on the branch he was standing on as he focused his attention on it and to the tree that was across from the one they were on. He then ran along the branch, leaping into the air as he landed on a branch that was a little higher on the opposite tree. Turning around, he looked at Lalita across from him to see if she could follow.

 

[GABA]

"Creativity, I see." she said looking at the surrounding branches. She stepped off the current branch and landed several feet below Durtrak, her knees bent and the branch pushed back, sending her back in the air, passed Durtrak, grabbing a branch above before swinging herself down to Durtrak's branch. "Creative?" she smiled.

 

[Phil]

"Indeed it isss. Now that we are up here, we ssstay up here until I sssay sso. While up here, we have a great view of the sssurrounding area, as well as sssensing all around us from thisss height. Not jusst the animalss, but everything that is alive in these sswamps. Reach out with the force, feel all you sssee, sense the creaturesss that inhabit these lands."

 

[GABA]

Lalita wasn't sure of how much Durtrak knew of her experience with the Force, but she did have an unusually odd connection with other living creatures especially plant life.

But she did as he asked.

Closing her eyes Lalita loved what she felt, others may have thought it would be overwhelming, but to her she felt at peace, comfortable, it was relaxing. Her eyes opened, but she wasn't seeing what her biological physique was telling her to see, Lalita grinned to whispers of the trees, the softness of the grasses...

"These trees are very polite..." she smiled.

 

[Phil]

Durtrak was pleased, she was a quick learner and already quite intone with The Force it would seem. He was doing exactly what his student was doing as he reached throughout the Forrest and becoming more intone with it's surroundings and in The Force. Once he felt they both had enough time, he opened his reptilian eyes and looked towards Lalita.

"That ssshould sssuffice. Now, I want you to tell Durtrak what capabilitiesss you know with The Force, what are the powersss you have learned?"

 

[GABA]

"I can manipulate the Force to aide me in my speed and senses, object manipulation, and create force shields. I understand what flora say to me and I can use them to aide me in offense or defense." she informed her instructor, "I tend to surprise those who underestimate me."

 

[Phil]

"Interessting. From the way we moved through the treesss, I believe that you are well trained in their ussesss. It givesss me an idea on what Force techniquesss I will passs onto you. We Osspion Guardiansss are braver then the Jeedai Knightsss in learning about... the darker sside of the Force, and ssince the day of our departure from them, we have learned much from what they ssought to block from usss."

After a brief moment where Durtrak closed his eyes and reopened them a minute later. he looked towards his apprentice.

"I will now sshow you about the powersss of the Osspion. Are you ready to move foward, Initiate Laylita?"

 

[GABA]

Lalita didn't have to think twice, she had been thinking about it for a while, why else would she had come to the Ospion guardians. With a curl of her lip and a raise of her eyebrow, "Of course. I am ready. Teach me."

 

[Phil]

"Firsst, you musst tap into your anger, for it isss the key to unlocking hidden powersss within usss. Once it has rissen, you will sstrike me with a sstream of lightning. Watch and learn."

Durtrak then held his hand up into the air, and with a clench of his sharp teeth, several sparks surrounded his three fingers before a stream of lightning shot out of them and went upwards, striking a branch of a tree before they disappeared.

"Force Lightning is a useful power that can be quite deadly when masstered."

Durtrak's tone then suddenly changed to a far more serious one then he has shown while in Lalita's presence.

"Now you musst focusss on your anger if you are to have a chance of cassting thisss power. If you cannot, then my lightsaber will help you find your anger."

With that, Durtrak pulled out and activated his dark yellow lightsaber and held it at his side. Hopefully his threat of pain would work and Lalita's anger would be seen.

 

[GABA]

Angry, Lalita wasn't really the type that got angry. She looked down at her fingers, she could see the glow of the lightsaber from the corner of her eye. Her mind cleared and then refocused.

Anger. What made her angry. Those who don't listen to her. Those who thought she was a little off, talking to plants, she wasn't crazy, she wished she knew that when she was a youngling.

But still, others still thought she was crazy even now. The voices she heard inside her head. There was a pain in her chest, one that she recognized from many times before.

Lalita shut her eyes tightly, that pain never seemed to leave her, it always reminded her that it was still there, it begun whispering voices of its own, voices from the past, images, feelings, that she thought she had buried or say the least overcome.

She was sad, she was frustrated, she was angry, and the sparks in her hands were showing it.