A 'Heated' Session

[Meeristali Peradun]

Berken's Flow
Mustafar

First the eyes and a noiseless exchange (a clear expression of curiosity), followed by consistent instances of coincidence - both of them in the same places at the same time, not at all a chase. There was something strangely intangible that held him off at the distance of respect, drawn to what he could gain from knowing her at all instead of wasting away his days continuing a routine held over from a past life while the life of a Jedi passed him by with little to be done for it. He had yet no master, and to bide the time until that changed, he had been chasing down every open class he could get his hands on.

She, however, had offered him something more immediately useful but had required him to come to the fiery world of Mustafar to do it. Something about it being more 'fun' that way, and... well, he couldn't entirely disagree, so long as he could keep his tail out of the lava pools. The prospect of being far and away from any training room or dojo was a welcome one. He could almost swear between Coruscant, Tython, and Ossus, that the wallpaper didn't change.

"I can't say I've ever seen a lavafall before... until now," he quipped to [member="Spencer Jacobs"] as he looked with more than mild interest at Berken's Falls from a safe position. He had never considered that anything other than water could act this way. It was quite alluring, in a way, and it more than made up for the rather warm, dry atmosphere. "So tell me: why, apart from the lovely scenery, are we meeting on this planet and not any other? Is there some advantage?"

 

[Allyson Locke]

Spencer seemed mystified as she watched the lava pour over as if it was water. The way the lava flowed like liquid over rocks was interesting and beyond words. The heat of the planet warmed her skin threatening to burn it from her bones, but she endured and doing so she was able to practice her most valuable skill. It was a skill that had saved her life numerous of times and was coveted by some who wished to learn it. Spencer being stubborn with her gifts, she looked towards the student she had picked up on Ossus. There was something in the force that guided her to him and the young woman wasn’t someone who denied the Force’s calling.

“It’s interesting on how the rocks and the materials on this planet flow like water. It’s because of the heat the planet provides. You better stay hydrated you’ll collapse if you don’t.” Spencer reached into her small pack on her back and removed a canteen full of water. She didn’t need it, the heat was turned into energy as it touched her flesh, which she need to expose to make the tutaminis effective. “I brought you here, because heat is a type of energy if you will. Tutaminis is energy absorption which manifests into force power.” Removing the pack from her back she slowly started to remove the spacer jacket and shirt. The woman was left in just a pair of tight pants and a short tank-top.

“Any questions so far [member="Meeristali Peradun"]?”

 

[Meeristali Peradun]

Fortunately, he had done all the research possible, short of reconnaissance in preparation for coming here - one of many habits formed during his tenure as a soldier in the armed forces of his home world. Yes, he was capable of turning into a powerful creature that could effortlessly shred durasteel, but it was harder to defend against most projectile attacks in that state. Sometimes, being a beast simply was not enough.

Being able to wear little more than a pair of shorts and sandals went a long way in being enough to not exacerbate the effects of the heat. The pack on his back, however, had the effect of producing sweat, which could handily be replenished by water from one of three canteens on his person - one on his belt, two on either side of the backpack. He pulled the backpack off long enough to divest himself of his shirt, and tucked the balled up article of clothing in an available pocket, slinging the pack back on his shoulders.

He knew something about being prepared, too, even so far to the point of having looked into what he was here to learn. The heat was of a stifling variety, but the environment was well suited to the task. Listening to [member="Spencer Jacobs"]' reply, he pulled the one canteen off his belt, unscrewed the lid, and took a modest gulp, fastening the lid shut again, after. He considered, for a moment, the thought that it was a good thing he didn't have to get his fur on, here.

He shook his head, to the right, then the left, then center. "None whatsoever."

If anything, looking into things in advance helped all his lessons move at a much smoother pace. Having as few interruptions as possible enabled instructors to be better able to impart their knowledge. In theory, anyway. In practice, so far, so good.

 

[Allyson Locke]

Chuckling, Spencer looked from the student back towards the rushing lava river that was a few feet away from them. She was known for her unconventional teaching methods especially with in the Jedi Order. Spencer blamed it on the unconventional teachers she had over the years along with Ashin. From the corner of her eyes she watched as he sipped the water, the action strayed her from the lesson, but she asked quietly. “They’ve taught you to manage your body temperature through the force yet? I remember it was one of the very first lessons we learned as younglings. Allowed you to stay warm when you forgot your jacket during the winter.” Spencer smirked knowing that her development on Dathomir was the reasoning behind her barefooted antics in space.

Allowing Stali to answer, Spencer remained quiet after the small story. Feet dragged against the dusting lava bank while she drew closer. Focusing the Force she built a small invisible shield almost like a coating over her hand. From there she dipped just her fingertips into the heat and felt the rush of the Force manifesting itself as she drew the bits of dispersed energy. It fed the ability and after a few moments she drew her hand free and flicked off the bits that started to cool. “Your turn. Do as I did.” She gave no other instruction, he had no questions so she assumed he came here knowing what needed to be done. Every one adapted and understood the skill differently, she waited for the former solider to question her.

[member="Meeristali Peradun"]

 

[Meeristali Peradun]

"Can't say I've learned that trick, but I can see how it'd be useful," he admitted in response to her query about regulation of body temperature, stowing the canteen away again, "afraid I haven't been around for long enough to have learned all that much, yet."

But for a good deal of abilities in the Force that he had yet to learn and know, there was often some aspect of his prior military training that made at least a halfway decent analogue - to say, he could adapt and improvise, but as he watched the blonde-haired master touch the lava directly, he knew he had no alternative that would keep him from melting the tips off his fingers... which begged the question, after she implored him to repeat after her in his actions. His brow knit in slight confusion.

"I'm not certain how it is you made contact with the lava flow, with your fingers still intact," he gave, looking her in the face, "so... how?"

He could postulate, though. Some form of protection, perhaps provided by the Force? Whatever it was, it was outside of his current, rather limited skillset. At any rate, the concern needed addressing before he could attempt what he was here to learn.

[member="Spencer Jacobs"]

 

[Allyson Locke]

Spencer mused as she listened to the questions. She had asked before if he had any and if he would have asked they would be farther along. Though, he was older and most likely set in his ways, there was possibly an assumption that there wasn’t as much to the skill. Looking at her hand, she tilting her head slightly and remained silent. There were several ways to explain what she had done, going with the best explanation she personally understood.

“Saying its simple would be an understatement, but in explanation it is. So, simply I controlled the force around me and tightened its coverage to my hand. The way it looks and works for me is like a woven lattice against my hands like armor.” After she explained herself, she couldn’t help but laugh. It sounded foolish to think that some invisible force could protect you from lava. Yet, it did and it was something that couldn’t be fully explained. Spencer paused for a moment allowing what she had said to sink into the student’s mind. “I know it sounds odd, but that’s what protects you – not really the absorption part of the skill. Which is something we’ll get into after you’ve demonstrated the ability to at least protect yourself.”

Taking a deep breath, she focused her mind to help boost Meeristali’s connection to the force through Force Valor, it would help him connect quickly with what he needed to do. From there she would slowly wean him from the boost till he was capable of weaving the Force against his skin alone. “Go ahead and try, once you feel confident enough dip your finger in. The main thing is to trust yourself and the Force, without trust the skill will never protect you.”

[member="Meeristali Peradun"]

 

[Meeristali Peradun]

He nodded. Protection it was, then, and a good thing too... he wasn't keen on the thought of sticking his fingers in the lava, otherwise. He'd always take water over fire if you asked him, for wet could dry and fire meant damage, but apprehension rather than fear kept him aware. Caution. He watched the flow of lava for another minute or two, then looked to his left hand. When he thought about it, the application was likely similar to fitting a barrier in the Force around his hand like a glove. He already had some reasonable ability with such a thing, so taking it to that step of detail was worth the attempt.

Tentatively, he put up his hand with the palm outward and started to effect a barrier-but-not-a-barrier with just the simple energy of the force, trying to keep it from ballooning out to its full size. This process was the way in which he made sense of what she was trying to have him grasp. Some success - the wall was closer to his body than it had ever been before. It was interesting to him, the potential... he smiled to himself, and got on with it. The Force was fascinating. So he tried to pull that not-a-barrier further in, the unbidden image of a glovelike fit in his mind influencing the progress. It made his skin feel alive, moreso than it already was, when the lattice of the Force closed in on his digits.

"Neat. Alright, then. How's this?"

He wiggled his fingers, and looked to her. Would this do?

[member="Spencer Jacobs"]

 

[Allyson Locke]

Spencer waited until Stali had shown her that he understood the technique. It was the first step, being able to control a specific part of your body with Tutaminis was just the beginning. Remembering her own training and the fire pit she burned her hand on several times, the thought of lava for some reason seemed a lot worse. Maybe she shouldn’t do this...again...or maybe she would. Either way, a smile spread across her face as she nodded praising the man for his efforts.

“That’s good! Good start. You haven’t learned absorbing, but that will come soon. Next we’re going to work on spreading the entire netting over your body and focusing specifically on different locations.” Dusting herself off, she settled her mind and focused the technique to her legs, she would then step towards the lava bare skinned and walk far enough till she was waist deep. The look of fear spread across her face as she wailed in terror. “OH GOD IT BURNS STALI HELP ME” Hands reached out towards the man as she started to crumple into the lava. Before he could act though, she laughed and stepped out. Her pale skin was slightly red, but soon returned to normal.

“Haha, hope you’re not mad. With tutaminis it can provide a rather good defensive technique against people and lightsabers. Being able to block a lightsaber with your bare hand is something quite unnerving to see as an opponent. The idea behind a lightsaber is that it can cut through anything, well except me and soon you.” Folding her arms across her body, she nodded with a matter of fact look. “Now that you got it to cover your hand and fingers, try dipping your arm elbow deep into the lava. If it starts to get hot remove it before you lose your arm.”

[member="Meeristali Peradun"]

 

[Meeristali Peradun]

It'd been a while since he'd seen a good prank. The fact that she didn't start in to the screaming until several moments after walking right into the lava told him all he needed to know, and it showed in his face with a well-formed smirk. So Jedi did have a sense of humour.

"Mad?"

The padawan shook his head and gave a little laugh, wondering if this was the Jedi equivalent of doing stupid crap with guns, and listened as she explained a little of the extent to which this ability could be used, which really sealed the deal for him. Really, what else would draw anyone to such a volcanically active world? Vacation? Hardly. A flicker of hesitation crossed his face when she told him to try submerging in the lava up to his elbow when he only had his arm covered, but reason pulled ahead of that thought - why not just extend the freshly learned coverage up the rest of his arm?

"Alright, then," he said, agreeing with the given task, "I'll be sure to do that - need both of my arms."

He flashed her a grin, and stretched his arm in front of himself as if to check it over. Nodding, he approached the pool, knelt, and began to push his fingers into that which would otherwise devour his flesh. Was it terrifying? Sure, but he'd learned to subjugate and dispel his fears early on in his time as a soldier.

"Probably the closest I'll ever come to touching the surface of a star," he quipped, as his fingers and hand delved deeper into the hot, hot floe of planetary magnificence, "Not that I want to."

He was quiet after that, focusing on extending the lattice of protection up his arm just ahead of its progress into the lava, until both reached the elbow of his right arm. Sometime just before that point, the tips of his fingers had started to feel uncomfortably warm, progressing to hot. A handful of seconds later, once that uncomfortable warmth had made most of its way up to his elbow and he was wearing a wary grimace, he pulled his arm from the lava and examined the result. It was the reddest his skin had ever been, which was fascinating and worrisome at the same time, but much like when [member="Spencer Jacobs"] had walked into the lava, the redness soon faded.

"Lightsabers, you say?"

 

[Allyson Locke]

Spencer watched carefully as the cat man took his turn into the lava. She could feel his focus and she was quite impressed with his ability to turn off the emotions of fear and worry. Taking note at his skills she figured him to be a lot stronger than he seemed. Still, the skill was new and he probably wouldn’t be able to in a moment’s notice absorb a blaster bolt from an unseen enemy. A sheepish grin spread across her face as she used a moment such as that to show off what she had been learning at Velok training camp. The day dream was quickly interrupted by Stali’s question about lightsabers.

More so that he had said the word lightsabers with a questioning tone. Spencer tapped around her waist and realized that the weapon was back on the Peregrine, lucky for her it wasn’t too far and if they were going to mess with lightsabers and other energy weapons – they should head back and into the small training room. Running her slender fingers through her hair and tucking it gently behind her ear, Spencer nodded and gestured for the man to follow her. “Just like you blocked the heat that would otherwise melt your skin off – you would do the same to the lightsaber. From there once you get used to just shutting out the energy to basically ripple along your skin, you’ll learn to absorb it into your body allowing it to manifest into something else.” With a wave of her hand she continued up the ramp to the ship and entered it.

“Now the transition from the energy of the lightsaber for example and the energy you put out from the absorption won’t be the same. Energy is lost and scattered in your body or to the outside world – so it isn’t perfect.” Moving through the ship she found her lightsaber in one of the holding shelves. The lack of use of the weapon made her wonder if lightsabers just stopped working after some time. She pressed the small red button on the hilt and the ion blade came to life – guess it wasn’t dead yet. The soft hum of the blinding white light blade was comforting in a sense – the weapon was the sign of a Jedi or in this case a force user.

Her free hand drew close to the blade that would cut through anything known in this galaxy for the most part, the warmth dance against her flesh as she glanced towards Stali. “Lightsabers are energy – tutaminis absorbs energy – so it only makes sense that one could draw energy from the lightsaber.” Wiggling her fingers for just a moment, she grasped the blade around the light blade and shook it. As she gripped the beam, it dimmed slightly and in a few moments lightning shot towards the legs of the table she stood next to. The table’s metal legs sparked and then collapsed. “Feth, I forgot to focus it somewhere…but yeah that’s a common manifestation. Go ahead and try it, don’t absorb just try and hold the lightsaber by the blade.” The blade turned off and the hilt offered towards Stali. “Any questions?”

[member="Meeristali Peradun"]