Private A Quiet Thing

[Cedric Grayson]

The contest of swords was often were Cedric prevailed.

He'd not intended to push Starlin so far, but then he was getting a bit rusty in his dueling skills. What better way to practice than facing a new opponent? Their blades clashed in small explosions of light that caused the rains to evaporate with each impact, creating a small cloud of steam around the two combatants.

Cedric attacked without much finesse. For now, he would rely on brute strength to disarm Starlin - the youth could dodge him for a time, but all it would take was a single hammer blow to fell him. Djem-So was ever the guardian's chosen tool as he pressed the assault further, a slight smile tugging at the corner of his lip as he began to notice Starlin's movements slacked somewhat.

The boy had expended himself quite spectacularly with that impressive display of control. Cedric didn't know how to fly exactly, but he imagined it was exhausting. He raised his blade to drop the a guillotine as Starlin threw himself into the air, his force-enhanced kick crashing into the exile's chest.

Cedric was a sturdy man, but not immovable. He spat a curse as the air was knocked clean out of his lung, and he was sent stumbling several feet back as he struggled not to fall over entirely.

"Unorthodox," he commented, his chest ringing with a dull pain as he pressed forward once again. He feigned an overheaded strike, but rather than press into the falling of the blade, he halted it halfway, instead thrusting forward with his body to try and shoulder check Starlin hard in the ribs.

Starlin Rand

 

[Starlin Rand]

Starlin took the feinted blow, staggering backwards. His chest exploded with pain, making it difficult to breathe.

He drew upon the Force once more, seeking the strength to continue without rest, then lunged forward. His strikes became more focused, the slacking signs of fatigue fading fast.

“There’s more where that came from,” he said, his usual optimism returning in the form of a cocky smirk. Rather than closing the short distance that had opened up between them, he threw his shoto at Cedric, guiding its movements with the Force to strike at his chest.

Cedric Grayson​

 

[Cedric Grayson]

The boy had some good tricks. More than Cedric had expected.

Rather than slow, his opponent seemed keen on increasing the cadence of their contest. The three blades crashed and sparked violently, but neither could find purchase over the other. Cedric's usual strategy for dealing with aggressive opponents was either to tire them by maintaining a superb defense, or to overpower them entirely. It seemed like the former was becoming an increasingly unrealistic plan.

"Clearly," Cedric agreed, his voice pointedly monotone as he batted aside another of Starlin's lunges with a twitch of his hand. The exile prepared to launch an assault of his own against the padawan when the shoto was thrown. Unable to raise his blade in time, Cedric brought an open palm up to his torso, and willed a small sheathe of energy around the hand. The shoto impacted loudly, but harmlessly against the tiny and nearly invisible barrier. Were the weapon fully powered, Cedric's half-hearted effort in the forging of the barrier would have resulted in the loss of a hand. As things were, he paused to examine the weapon, then simply tossed it over the side of the plateau.

"Well," Cedric cracked a small grin that, despite his generally serene nature, was rather shit eating. "Go get your lightsaber."

Starlin Rand

 

[Starlin Rand]

Out of breath, Starlin showed little visible reaction to Cedric’s conjuring up a shield, though he straightened a little as the Jedi Master tossed his weapon over the edge.

“Well. Go get your lightsaber."

Sighing, Starlin raised his empty hand up high… and the shoto reappeared in his fist.

You see, as a result of strange alkahest enchantments, the damned thing could teleport. As the chit-eating grin was presumably wiped off of Cedric’s face, a still-panting Starlin smiled.

“I already got it.”

He leaped back into the fray, resuming the duel.

Cedric Grayson​

 

[Cedric Grayson]

Cedric was thankful for his helmet. It did well to hide the sudden frustration that came across his face, most unbefitting for a Jedi Master. He was aware that some Jedi that practiced extensively with manipulation of the material plane could create rifts for themselves to travel through. He was not, however, familiar with transporting items in the same manner.

Perhaps it was a new technique the Silvers had developed. Perhaps he would need to look into it himself.

These thoughts and others were silenced as the boy charged him. Back on the defensive, Cedric blocked the youth's strikes as if he knew were they were going before Starlin's arms even began to move. In a sense, he did. Where he lacked knowledge of the stranger aspects of the Force such as matter manipulation or phase walking, he was an expert when it came to the art of the lightsaber duel. Decades of intensive training and live combat had honed Cedric into the pinnacle of what a Jedi Guardian could be, or perhaps from a more negative perspective, a well oiled machine of war.

He stomped down hard where he thought Starlin's toes were as the the youth lunged at him again, twisting his body to the side and narrowly avoiding both blades as he tried to level his weapon at the padawan's neck in an attempt to force a surrender. There would be no more trickery.

Starlin Rand

 

[Starlin Rand]

There was an ever so slight shift in Cedric’s stance and attitude, as if some veil had fallen away. Starlin picked up on it in time to avoid the master’s toe-stomping, as well as to block the would-be killing blow aimed at his neck. But the fight wasn’t going to just end there.

Cedric came at him with greater force than he had previously. This was no longer a duel in jest, a sporting game. This was serious business. Starlin, still winded, was very obviously struggling to keep up. He was still standing only by the grace of the Force, upon which he was so heavily reliant, its loss would have crippled him.

All the same, Cedric was far more advanced than Starlin was when it came to bladework. It was only a matter of time before the master’s lightsaber stung the Padawan’s skin, smarting the flesh along the back of his right hand. With a hiss of pain, Starlin lost his grip on his saber (which could not teleport) and, with burning lungs and aching muscles, submitted.

“I yield.”

It seemed a better option than dancing until he dropped from sheer exhaustion or slipped up, making a foolish mistake.

Cedric Grayson​

 

[Cedric Grayson]

It was only then that Cedric noticed just how drained he was. Keeping up with the boy was harder work than he'd expected it would, a pleasant surprise to be sure. The armored master offered Starlin a respectful nod as he doused his blade, his chest rising and falling rapidly as he gulped for extra air. He'd not intended to push himself or Starlin that far.

No. He shouldn't have done that. It was important to test the youth, but he'd unconsciously made the decision to end the duel quickly and on his own terms. It had been the trick with the lightsaber that had gotten him - for a moment, Cedric had lost control, and he instinctively chose the quickest route to reassert his dominance. That was a very dangerous attitude to have if he was to serve his people and not lord over them.

Or, perhaps, Starlin was simply skilled enough to bring it out of him. Was it a disservice to the youth's abilities to claim that treating him like an equal combatant was a mistake? Cedric wasn't sure. He decided that the answer to his question relied on whether he'd truly needed to fight Starlin as if he were an equal combatant, or if he'd simply been caught off guard and acted to regain control without thinking about it beforehand.

Something to meditate on.

"You did fantastically," Cedric murmured, breaking the pregnant silence that had hung in the air as he pondered his decision. "A creative fighter. The Sith won't know how to deal with you." Bogan's Lament hissed as it was doused and subsequently clipped to Cedric's belt. "I know I won't need to worry about you in the field. That's far more than I can say for most of my students." It wasn't an insult to the others, simply a fact. Starlin was much farther along in his training. "I will complete your training. You will be a Jedi Knight, and if you heed what I have to say, one that walks with the Ashla at his back."

Starlin Rand

 

[Starlin Rand]

Crouching to pick up his lightsaber, Starlin simply didn’t bother to get up again. He sank down onto the ground, sitting with his legs stretched out before him, leaning back on his hands. Rain mingled with sweat as it dripped down his skin, soaking his civilian clothes. He hardly minded it.

I will complete your training. You will be a Jedi Knight.

Starlin perked up slightly at Cedric’s words. For a moment or two, his heart leaped in his chest, just as the starry-eyed fourteen year old’s had when Syd offered to train him. Holy chit, I’m going to be knighted?!

Soon, perhaps, but not yet. He still had to finish what he had started, and he couldn’t do that lying here in the rain. Lightning flashed overhead, followed by the roll of thunder. The storm was worsening.

Starlin clambered to his feet, his weapons clipped to his belt. He didn’t really know what to say, apart from exactly what he was thinking, but holy chit I’m going to be knighted this is amazing didn’t sound very impressive when spoken out loud. So he settled for a smile and a nod.

“Thank you, master.”

Cedric Grayson​

 

[Cedric Grayson]

It had been a far more interesting way to spend his evening than he'd anticipated. He reached up to draw back his cowl and remove his helmet, pinning the ancestral mask beneath his arm.

The exile cracked a thin, albeit warm smile as Starlin bestowed the teacher's moniker unto him. Another charge, another life that he was responsible for. It always surprised him how easy it felt to accept that burden. In a just galaxy, he would be spending his days teachings students about life instead of how to wage war.

"We're both going to need some rest, I think," he mumbled as he keyed in a command on the datapad embedded in his wrist plate. "Speeder's on the way to pick us up. I don't know about you, but I don't feel like climbing all the way back up." He needed rest and meditation. Cardio could wait. "When we arrive, the droids will show you to your quarters in the guest wing. I'll have a room reserved for you. You'll need to rest well, we're undertaking an important rescue operation on Chandaar tomorrow. I expect it will be fairly educational, so I want you there with me."

Starlin Rand