Another Round [Dragon School]

[Josh Dragovalor]

"Stop."

The three of them would suddenly be restrained through the Force, their sabers being torn from their grasp and falling to the ground. The Jedi Master had seen enough and decided to step in. He wouldn't ordinarily use the Force as he did to stop them, but he was starting to think that they wouldn't have stopped had he just commanded it. After a few moments, he released the hold on them both.

"Seskel, you need to learn control" Josh would lecture calmly as he would motion for the three of them to sit down. "You're growing frustrated too quickly. You're letting your emotions pile up and release, and letting them control them instead of you controlling them. You need to remain calm, and keep your focus.

And while there is no shame in enjoying battle... I do so myself, after all, I think you might enjoy it a little too much. Remember that there is love to be had for the challenge of the fight. But there should never be joy taken in dealing harm to others. Instead, learn empathy for the harm you do, even if it is a necessity. The sooner you let empathy into your heart, the sooner you will begin to become the Jedi that you need to be.

Eenia, your focus is improving, but you need to keep working at it. Similarly to Seskel, you need to learn to remain calm and don't let what happens in a fight get to you. A Jedi is calm, a Jedi handles situations with a cool and calculated head. The best tactical heads are the calmest ones who can retain that calm through the most intense of battles. Might is important... But mind is just as much. This is a physical, mental and emotional game we play. Learn to master every aspect.

Skye... The worst things generally happen due to inaction. Calm yourself and learn to let go of hesitation. Train your mind to think quickly and ensure that there are no openings left on you. If you give an experienced opponent an opening, that opening is generally all they will need.

Any questions?"

 

[Seskel Sangrey]

"Yeah, how am I supposed to lean control and why? Frustration motivates me. It makes me stronger." Seskel says as he slides his hand down his side, holding where Eenia had struck him. "I've learned how to embrace anger, not peace of mind. That makes no sense to me." He sits against the wall, letting out a small huff.

[member="Josh DragonsFlame"], [member="Eenia Vahn"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

"Because you're not in control of yourself. You're not in control of your emotions or your frustration. Your frustration is in control of you" Josh responded calmly in turn, though still with a tone of sternness. "Frustration, anger... Things like that are the path to the dark side... And no matter what the Sith may say... They are never in control. The dark side is a pair of chains" Josh would explain as he would pace around a bit in turn. "The dark side takes hold of you, it changes you, it controls you... It renders you a shell of who you used to be, and all your excuse will be is that you have power.

What you don't realize is that the dark side isn't the only path to power."

Josh would hold out a hand then, taking a deep breath.

"Duck."

With that warning given, a fireball would suddenly begin charging in his outstretched hand, the fireball rapidly growing bigger, and bigger, and bigger and bigger. Finally, he would let the fireball loose as it rocketed toward the room and slammed into the wall, exploding into a powerful array of pyrokinetic energy. Even from a distance, the Padawans would be able to feel the heat from the white hot flames before they finally began to die down. The room remained much hotter as a result though. Luckily the walls in this room were designed for this sort of thing.

"You felt no frustration or anger from me. I remained calm, composed and relied on my own merits. But that still would have probably vaporized you. Power. That's true power. The power to do things like this and not lose yourself in the process. Any questions?"

[member="Seskel Sangrey"] - [member="Eenia Vahn"]

 

[Eenia Vahn]

It had been fairly mortifying to be hefted up and away from Seskel the way she had been, but not because the action had been done. It was because the action had needed to be done. The fact that Eenia had lost herself enough in that moment to need to be hoisted up off of the ground and yanked apart from her fellow padawan was ridiculous. She knew better; Anora had, had this discussion with her. And yet frustration had taken control of her almost immediately when things became heated during their spar.

When they had been set loose, Eenia frowned but she did as she was told and sat down. While Seskel was being lectured about his methods of control, Nia almost missed being told to duck. Luckily she had looked up in time, and ducked aside when the fireball went blazing past them. The blonde had shifted in her seat to look over her shoulder at the wall, and then her eyes went back to master DragonsFlame. Well, that had clearly not been expected, at least not by Eenia.

So when he asked if they had questions again, Nia nodded. "Does it get easier?" she asked, though realizing that was a vague question, clarified. "The control, I mean. Does it ever get easier..?"


[member="Josh DragonsFlame"]. [member="Seskel Sangrey"]

 

[Seskel Sangrey]

Seskel laughs a little and shakes his head, standing up and looking at the wall. "You know, for a Jedi, you have a few mortifying tricks up your unnecessarily wide sleeves." He says, folding his arms and looking at his master. "And I don't mean to piss anybody off, but while you're preaching about 'Control over your emotions," And all that, why don't you shift your gaze to Blondie here, she was just as much frustrated as I."

[member="Josh DragonsFlame"], [member="Eenia Vahn"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

"She's aware she needs to learn. You are not" Josh corrected calmly toward [member="Seskel Sangrey"] with a shake of his head. "You have grown arrogant in thinking that you have nothing to learn when it is right in front of your eyes. You need to learn control because if you do not learn control, then it will control you. It has already begun to do so" He pointed out. "A Jedi is in control of all parts of their body, their mind and their soul. That is what separates us from the Sith... The Sith let it control them, and thus are never in control of their own fates... While the Jedi are in complete control. But to do that, it requires training. Learning."

He then looked toward Eenia. "The same goes to you, though I assume you've figured that out already. You both need to learn what needs to be done to have mastery of yourself. Master your body, master your mind, master your soul... And once you do, you will be able to use it to it's fullest potential. Do you understand my point, now? Or must we spar in a matter of more excess so you can get knocked around until you realize just what a fully mastered body and mind can do? If you think so... Take up your blade and come at me now. I will not hold back."

It was not a threat, of course. If either felt they were too good for this lesson, then they were free to come at him now and take a harsher version of his sparring lessons. If words did not help, and examples did not help, then perhaps experience would be their teacher. But it was completely up to them.

[member="Seskel Sangrey"] [member="Eenia Vahn"]

 

[Seskel Sangrey]

Seskel did not like the way he was being talked to. At all. He knows he needs to learn control and all, but it's hard when someone needs to do the same, but their lectures are a little less... Degrading. With a harsh glare of anger, Seskel ignites both of his blades and rushes towards [member="Josh DragonsFlame"] with all the power he can, clearing the distance in under a second, he throws one blade around his master and uses the other blade to attack him all while pulling the other blade towards his master's back. It doesn't matter to him if he's struck down time and time again, he will go down fighting until he can't fight anymore.

[member="Eenia Vahn"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

Josh knew that Seskel would come at him. He had seen it coming a mile away. So when Seskel would rush him, blade drawn, Josh would wait until the last second before igniting his blue blade. His technique? Good. Varied. He was a swift learner with two blades. But there was no control there. He rushed in blindly, hoping technique and his aggression alone would take him to victory. Josh would get his blade up but never did move to block. Instead, he would duck down and point his blade toward his chest while Seskel would be busy trying to catch the other blade that would surely have hit him otherwise on the rebound. He would turn the blade to low power and poke him, indicating he could have easily just rammed the blade through him and killed him.

"You have good spirit. But you lack discipline and control. If I were to send you out to the field now... Well... Do you want to know what would happen if I were to allow that?” He would ask. “You would rush in, your guard would be passed no matter how good your technique is and you would be gunned down in seconds. I would be effectively sending you to your death.”

He shook his head.

“I don’t want that. And neither do you. So take a deep breath. Clear your mind. Push everything out. Find a state of calm and focus that only centers said focus on the fight… Then come at me again. Practice patience, caution, tact... Your technique is good, but unrefined. If you don't have the patience and calm to make that technique work, then it's useless."

He motioned toward [member="Eenia Vahn"] as well.

“You too. Come at me. You're not off the hook”

With that, Josh would ignite a second blade on his belt, which he would then hold in his other hand.

[member="Seskel Sangrey"]

 

[Seskel Sangrey]

"I'VE TRIED DISCIPLINE, AND CONTROL!" Seskel belts out, his eyes welling up with tears, his hands squeezing down on the hilts of his sabers so tightly his knuckles start to turn white. "And all it has ever done is let me get struck down, time and time again. To be beaten like an unwanted ANIMAL!" He ignites his blades, staring at [member="Josh DragonsFlame"], before lifting one, pointing it in his direction. "You Jedi may have a different moral code than that of the Sith, but in the end, you're all just trained killers." He shuts his blades and puts them at his sides. "Fighting for different beliefs, but what man should have the power to say that someone should die?" Seskel smiles and sits against the wall, letting out a long sigh as he brushes his hand through his hair. "In the end, once we stare at our enemy. Face to face, as all of the corpses of our friends and foes lie about the ground to rot. We are staring at a mirror. For fighting them is what made us into the killers that we will be at that moment." He props one knee up and rests his arm along it, looking around at all the people in the room, shrugging his shoulders afterwards and looking towards his lap. "Maybe I'm wrong but so help me if there isn't a sliver of truth in my words."

[member="Eenia Vahn"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

Josh would listen to what Seskel had to say, calmly, listening intently. After he was finished, he would take a deep breath and nod his head.

"I see you've watched the Galactic Alliance, and seem to have the impression that's how all Jedi work" Josh would point out, to start. "That's not how we do."

"I don't kill a man unless I have to. Raids, the battlefield... It happens. But in situations where I am in control, I have learned to mitigate casualties as much as I can" Josh spoke softly. "I do not kill by choice. And the Silver Jedi is big on the idea that we are not judge, jury or executioners... Some do not follow that, it is true. But we do our best to prevent that. We do not kill unless it is absolutely necessary. And yes, it's true... We have to make a judgement call on that. But so does anybody, no matter their position, or lot in life. If someone puts you in a position where you must kill them to defend yourself, or another... Then you know that it has to be done. But..."

He takes a breath. "Discipline, control... That allows me to keep myself in that position of control. And that if I have to make that call... If I am put in that corner... Then I am confident that I can make it soundly. Without my biases getting in the way. But most importantly, it helps me ensure that in all places possible... I am able to save lives. My own, my comrades, even my enemies.

I believe in a world where people can be redeemed instead of having to kill unnecessarily. But if I am to lose that discipline, that control...

... I will just be another killer. That is why I want to teach you this. So you know just as well as I do how important saving lives is.

Do you understand?" He asked. "Will you let me teach you, and help you mitigate this death as much as we, as people, possibly can?"

[member="Seskel Sangrey"] [member="Eenia Vahn"]

 

[Seskel Sangrey]

"How are you so sure that the path of the Jedi is right for me, I keep trying it, but find myself drifting back to the Dark." He says, standing up and groaning. "No matter what it seems I get the shit beat out of me, so what do you think is my destiny? Which order am I to be a good dog for?" He asks, raising an eyebrow to [member="Josh DragonsFlame"], a glare of seriousness in his eyes. "And I'm not trying to be disobedient. I'm asking an honest question. What side do you see me joining in the end of my training?"

[member="Eenia Vahn"]

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

"You're drifting back to the dark because you're not focusing. You're not sure why you do this, and it's hurting your focus" Josh would respond calmly. He didn't glare, he didn't yell, he didn't scold him. He just told him matter of fact what he thought on the matter and what he felt that Seskel needed.

"You need to figure out why you're here. Why you do this. Why are you training? What is the end goal for you? Why are you training to be a Jedi? Find that answer... And you'll find the rest."

[member="Seskel Sangrey"] [member="Eenia Vahn"]