Public A Meditative Retreat

[Ran Serys]

As the Spiran sun came up over the horizon, Ran watched it for as long as she could. She watched it until it was high in the sky, then she closed her eyes, lowered her glareshades, and laid back. Under the sun's rays the sand beneath her warmed while the water that crashed against the shore stayed cool. The wind pushed tiny clusters of ocean spray toward her. They landed on her exposed legs, stomach, arms, and face, anywhere her swimsuit did not cover. As the other beachgoers fled the cold spray, Ran embraced it and focused on it. The refreshing sensation of cold mist combatting the burning sensation of the sun's rays that made Ran begin to sweat.

Through the force she watched her surroundings, and began to meditate. She lost herself in the crashing of waves and the heat of the sand. After a while she could sense any movement below the surface, small wildlife burrowing in the sand and shifting it. The vibrations of it were so small and imperceivable to anyone but those in touch with the force. She felt the currents of the ocean and the marine life traveling upon them, using them for efficiency or swimming against them for others. A flock of the native avian species flew overhead and Ran's mind followed them. The sky was not unlike the ocean, a mirror but only on the surface. Ran was in tune with her surroundings, not just experiencing them, she became a part of them. She wondered if she could commune with the entire planet, and that is when she fell from focus and let herself go from meditation. All things were possible in the force, but just because they were didn't mean they should be. The thought lingered in Ran's mind as she sat up.

She opened her eyes and found that few had returned in the face of the cold spray, yet still she was not alone on the Spiran beach.

OPEN​

 

[Tigris]

Tigris felt a bit like a piece of flotsam floating on the unseen energies of the galaxy. Still without a master, Tigris continued to learn. Both at the Jakku Enclave and then on Coruscant, the former Darksider studied. Her hopes were to visit New Cov as well, or even the rumored Shadow Temple. Instructors had sensed her frustration, and practically ordered her to find respite. A place away where she could nurture her connection to the Light using the techniques she had learned.

So, there she was, on that beach. The movement of large bodies of water had always had an affect on Tigris. Their powerful rhythms, steady and unchanging, yet so fluid, resonated within her. Already, the steady crash of the surf against the shore lured her away from distractions and frustrations, even as the warm sun heated up her tattooed skin.

She dressed for the heat, a simple light fabric garment of burnt orange, a piece in front that hung to her knees and one in back, both tucked into a light belt, covering her modesty but leaving her legs bared almost to her waist. A sleeveless top of the same gossamer material was wrapped lightly around her with a sash. Already, the brisk mist of the surf dampened the garment, but Tigris didn't mind ts cooling effect.

Her attention had been captured by a figure resting in the sand. The hue of the woman's skin and the facial tattoos identified her as Mirial. This prodded the memory of visiting the Jedi Archives once, where she saw a very similar tall woman addressing several archivists. It was strange to find such a woman meditating on a beach, but Tigris was certain it was Ran Serys, the Chief Archivist and Council member.

Tigris padded quietly to a spot in the sand a respectful distance from the Knight. Her attention focused inward and away from the archivist. Almond eyes closed grounding herself in the sand, while focusing on the unwavering pulse of the surf. The sounds of other beach goers and sea birds faded in turn. Then, Tigris reached out with the Force.

Ran Serys

 

[Ran Serys]

She was not alone on the Spiran Beach. Nor was she alone in meditation. The Jedi padawan Tigris was near, eyes closed, and communing with the force. Ran found the younger woman to be a welcome and familiar sight.

Since Ran had become Chief Archivist the faces of the order had become less mysterious to her. She saw their faces, read their reports, and assisted in their research. Never had Ran felt so connected to her fellow Jedi.

“Tigris,” Ran called out to the Jedi softly. “May I join you in your meditation?” Guided meditation was a common but peculiar activity amongst the Jedi, usually reserved for Master and Padawan.

Tigris​

 

[Tigris]

As Tigris' mental focus softly closed in on the rhythm of the surf, the other sounds beginning to mute, the soft sound of her name in a feminine voice drifted into her consciousness. It was Ren Serys. Tigris sensed it as much as heard it. The words, the tone, were calming and gently engaging. The Chief Archivist's request was unexpected, but very welcomed.

"Yes, please." The tattooed padawan replied. "It would be my honor."

Tigris had not experienced a shared meditation, not a personal one. At least not as a Jedi. She was too new to the Order, and had no master. The Seyugi of her distant past didn't commune with the Force like the Jedi. They connected through more physical rituals, as their connection to the Dark Side was manipulated to benefit them in more physical feats. To have the Knight offer up guided meditation was more than she could have hoped for in her venture to the beach.

The raven-haired padawan compelled her body to relax even further, her mind swept clear in anticipation of the experience.



Ran Serys

 

[Ran Serys]

Ran stood up and walked across the sand to Tigris, closing the few meters gap the younger Jedi had thoughtfully left between them. Ran plopped down onto her backside and sat cross legged in front of Tigris in a more traditional meditative stance than she usually used.

“The honor is all mine.” Ran replied warmly as she closed her eyes, and held her own hands in her lap.

She relaxed and leaned into her connection with the force, and her place as a part of it. She was a vessel for it, a conduit, a wellspring, and a lightning rod. Her unique upbringing, having been so strong in the force but incapable of using it, had drawn the arrow back. Once her freedom had been unlocked the arrow was let loose and had never stopped. The metaphorical arrow that was Ran had only gained more speed and more velocity the more she trained and deepened her connection to the force.

Then she followed the force away from herself and into the sand, surf, and sky. The ebb and flow of nature’s movements around them pushed her focus to the young Jedi in front of her, Tigris. Two sources of light, both of different magnitudes but still they worked together to illuminate the path forward for themselves and all around them. Ran’s light reached a beam out to Tigris’ light in an attempt to bridge the gap their sentient minds naturally built. That was the way Ran experienced and saw the force. Lights shining down on the shadows of her past, doing their best to show her how much more brilliant the future could be.

“Do you feel it, Tigris?” Ran asked, wondering what the force might look like to her. “Brilliant beings that are apart from, yet still a part of the natural balance of nature. Our place in it changes over time. We evolve in ways nature does not. We evolve away from it, expand from it, but the force has given us the power to reconnect with all life simply but infinitely, and to see the subtleties around it all.” Ran explained in a way that was her own.

“Reach out. Commune with me and see how that changes our experience in the force.”

Tigris​

 

[Tigris]

Almond eyes opened at the sound of soft feet on the sand. that dark gaze peered up at Knight Serys as the much taller woman settled comfortably in front of her. Tigris had already begun to open herself to to the Force, allowing her to sense just how strongly it centered around the Mirialan jedi. Dark eyes lingered on the remarkable woman, until her own closed, relaxing into her meditative pose.

Tigris followed, her eyes closing again. She drew her focus back upon the Force, taking a moment to overcome the unusual addition to her meditation, and the excitement of its prospect. Her being found its place within the Force. Again, it took little effort to sense Ran's presence, a warm beaming drawing her closer. The former dark sider's perception of the Force had been, and continued to be, refocused in the Light. Before, it was a dark, elusive energy she had to wrangle and coax to permeate her so she could exploit its power for evil deeds. Only upon her conversion did she see the true light of it. Though she had been quite adept at manipulating the Dark Side, cooperating with the Light was still fairly new.

"Yes..." Tigris whispered, a tinge of awe in her voice. The padawan allowed Ran's words to flow into her conscious even as they guided Tigris. Perception moved easily, turning, revealing the Force in her senses, humming in the sand beneath, rhythmic with the waves of the surf. the knight's words expanded Tigris' narrow understanding of the Force, it permeated the world around them, it permeated Ran Serys, it permeated her. It was a bit overwhelming, and Tigris felt a mental swoon. But again, Ran's voice caught her and drew her focus back.

Tigris obeyed the knight, comfortably guiding herself in the Force, reaching for the bright light that she knew was Ran. As she drew near, the tattooed padawan felt her awareness expand, as if she had only had her head stuck into another dimension. Touching on Ran, her entire being was drawn into the Force awareness. A small gasp escaped Tigris' lips, but she did not let go, giving in to the Light. "I..." she murmured, knowing she should stay quiet, but marvelling at the revelation of their communion.

Ran Serys