Basics

[Darth Armyss]

Albrecht opened his eyes as [member="Darth Veles"] explained that what he was sensing was indeed him disguising his own force aura to appear as that of a Jedi Master rather than a Sith Knight. While an ingenious ruse, he probably would have seen through it now that he knew what his vision during the brief moment of meditation had meant, and made note to improve his focus during meditation. Indeed, such an ability would be quite useful for him to learn at some point, but for now his focus returned to the task at hand.

So next was the practice of telekinesis, probably the most overt ability that the force could grant someone, and also one of the most useful. He had attempted to develop his ability on his own starting at age fourteen, when he first discovered his force sensitivity for what it was - having previously attributed his unusually keen force sense ability as being nothing more than dumb luck. However, he had no success in those endeavors over the course of two years, and after those two years had passed, he no longer had the time to practice it; not that he had anything to practice, of course, having only successfully used telekinesis once, to call a blaster to his hand in what had been a life or death situation. The whole point of this course was to allow him to use his abilities in times other than ones of desperation.

Upon hearing the Mon Calamari Sith's instruction, he closed his eyes again, this time isolating himself from his surroundings, leaving only himself, the table, and the objects upon it. He reached out both of his hands at once, inhaled deeply, then exhaled, a single word entering his mind.

Come...

At this point, multiple knives levitated upwards and flew towards him at a moderately quick speed, stopping mere inches from the palms of his hands, then dispersing into an evenly-spaced ring around him, his arms falling flat to his sides. Having accomplished this, Albrecht extended his focus to include the dismembered droids, his mind not only seeing their form, but feeling along them, searching for the path of least resistance for which his knives would have to aim, which wasn't too difficult to achieve, as all he had to do was focus on where they appeared to have sustained the most damage. It took quite a bit longer than his Sith Pureblood counterpart before he reached the stage where he was ready for this second part, but the results would soon speak for themselves.

At this point, the knives slowly began to rotate so that their blades pointed outwards, and then they began to orbit around him, slowly gaining momentum as he raised his arms up again. They began to spin, faster and faster, until they were revolving at a high enough velocity that the blades appeared blurred, a deadly, sharp disc around the human acolyte. All of the meditation , while time consuming compared to his counterpart, had all culminated in this moment, as his mind gave the order.

Attack...

His eyes opened and his arms thrusted out in front of him as the rotating knives shot forward, one by one in rapid succession, and impaled the remnants of the training droids, each one embedded about a centimeter or so in whatever weak point he could identify (again, these weakspots would be obvious to most people, not just force sensitives). He lowered his arms down to his side, his expression indicating a degree of surprise - he had no illusions that he could accomplish the exercise without much incident, but he hadn't anticipated being able to do this! He wrote this particular instance off as a fluke, and made a mental note to practice this technique extensively to see if he could duplicate this result on a consistent basis. On the other hand, he was always rather handy with bladed weapons, including throwing knives, so perhaps this could explain his accomplishment more easily as simply doing something he was already able to do, but with the force instead of through physical exertion.

(If this seems to be too good for a rookie, bear in mind that this is if he's allowed the time and energy to meditate - he'll need quite a lot more training before he'll be able to do this in less-than-ideal conditions, such as mid-combat)

 

[Darth Veles]

"Good." That was all the Sith Knight said after observing the Acolytes as they picked up what they could and tossed it at the droids. "Remember, you can use telekinesis to negate your opponent's Force push or pull. It is also great at breaking their concentration; when you see they have to focus on some task, there is nothing easier than sending a push at their bodies. More often than not, this kind of attack will be successful, as not only you will break your opponent's focus, you will also catch them off guard. This all makes telekinesis one of the most common powers. It also isn't particularly hard to learn and practice..." The Mon Cal fell silent again, thinking for a while, the large orbs looking at both [member="Albrecht Tagge"] and @Ballen-Ist. "Using it to simply throw things is very easy, but more advanced applications, such as Force choke, require much more precision. A common fetish among the Sith, choking anyone who crosses your path for no reason. Unless you are skilled enough, the strength of your telekinetic attack might break someone's neck, so do not even think of using choke until you know how much force you can apply."

Pausing to take a breath, he took their use of telekinesis as a sign both of them knew how to use it and thus could practice on their own. "Since you are meditating, I think it is a perfect opportunity to test your skill at telepathy. Telepathy is also very useful, allowing you to send messages into another's mind and opens the path to powers such as mind tricks or directly controlling other beings. Again, your skill largely affects how you use it. Those who have never used it before usually find it easier to show the receiver a simple image in place of words, or a feeling. The average users can have a fluent conversation in their minds and those who master it can greatly influence the thoughts of others."

"First, feel the one you want to telapathically communicate with in the Force. In this case, that is your fellow student. When you touch their presence and the other allows you to connect your own presence to it, you should be able to send a message into each other's mind. Try it now. Remember, do not resist the presence of your fellow student in your mind."

 

[Ballen-Ist]

Breathing deeply, the boy would feel a pleasant sensation of satisfaction washing across his being. Seeing as he was meditating, he began to listen and follow [member="Darth Veles"]' instructions, his mind taking in to the explanation of telepathy. The boy had studied many force powers in his youth, force telepathy being one of them. It was an extremely useful technique, one that was difficult to master.

The force that surrounded the trio was extremely present to the boy's senses, his own energy flowing outward in order to manipulate the force in the air. Ballen-Ist would attempt to extend his own thoughts and mental images through the mystical energy source, beads of sweat forming on his brow as he focussed intensely. It was a different task for the boy, his mind not being used to such exercise. Though, through great efforts, he would attempt to send [member="Albrecht Tagge"] images, ones that dipicted the One Sith's flag, it's symbol waving majestically.

 

[Darth Armyss]

Upon receiving [member="Darth Veles"]' instruction, the human acolyte drifted back into his meditation-induced trance to begin the excercise, deciding to allow [member="Ballen-Ist"] to go first while he thought of what to send back.

At first, Albrecht interpreted the telepathic image as an intrusion, but he suppressed his instinct upon remembering the Mon Calamari's instructions, and lowered his defense. At first blurry, the image gained clarity, slowly but surely, to reveal a great banner, blowing softly in a breeze, and adorned with the Sith's emblem. A sign of patriotism in his Sith Pureblood counterpart, perhaps? The choice intrigued him, but he was forced to put it out of mind for now, for it was his turn to project a message.

The message he chose was something...of a different nature, a memory, in fact. This event took place rather recently, and was in fact the event that led him to join the One Sith. It had occured on Tepasi, about a year ago, during an attempt by Albrecht to salvage the remnants of his family's holdings from the former "throneworld" of the House of Tagge (having moved their seat of operations to Brentaal IV around 200 ABY, after volcanic activity nearly destroyed their historical holdings that established the House of Tagge as one of the aristocracy of the galaxy). The incident in question was a duel with an unknown Sith, whose features were hidden by a black cloak and deftly wielded a bloodshine lightsaber. The fact that Albrecht lasted more than a few seconds against his adversary was impressive, but after ninety seconds of intense fighting, he was knocked unconscious by a blow to the back of the head, and that was the end of it. To this day he still didn't know who this Sith was...and a part of him was a bit afraid to ask...

 

[Darth Veles]

Patiently waiting for the Acolytes, giving them several minutes to grasp his words and do as he asked, the Mon Calamari closed his eyes, trying to feel the two through the Force, and most importantly, their telepathic connection. Upon focusing on it, he could, indeed, tell the two students exchanged some messages, although he could not tell their nature. Taking it as a sign the two understood telepathy well enough, the Mon Calamari Sith decided to continue the class, now focusing on the last few basic powers, those that enhanced one's body with the mystical Force energy. Force speed and Force jump. Despite being in a room, its large proportions allowed them to practice it with little limitations.

"Acolytes. As you surely know, Force speed and Force jump belong among the most basic and most useful abilities. Both of those powers might save your life one day... Force jump, for example, is commonly associated with overcoming great heights. Mass the Force in your legs, crouch a little bit and jump. That is very basic, trivial even, but it also rapidly shoots you from one place to another, which can be very useful when you need to close the distance between you and your target. Keep in mind; when in the air, you are extremely vulnerable to attacks, as you cannot rapidly change your direction. Put simply, you cannot dodge. Do not use this in combat unless you want to retreat and never Force jump towards an enemy who knows about you. While you're in the air, they can prepare and use the fact you cannot suddenly change the direction of your jump to cut you down. And never, ever, jump over your opponents!" That was a very common mistake among Force sensitives, jumping over someone while thinking their opponent will just watch without seizing the opportunity to attack. "When you fly over your opponent, you have to land and turn around, while they only have to turn around. If you turn around in the air, you will show them your back when you're most vulnerable, with no chance to deflect the Force or any other attack."

Taking a breath, the amphibious Knight continued, "Always let the Force guide your instincts when measuring the distance you want to jump. Focus on the place where you want to land, mass the appropriate ammount of energy in your legs and jump. Touch the ceiling, but try not to break your neck." Avreet said and watched the students, [member="Albrecht Tagge"] and @Ballen-Ist.

 

[Ballen-Ist]

Grinning with eagerness, the boy would quickly raise to his feet, his eyes moving to examine the room around him. It wasn't the biggest, but it would do just fine for testing out these powers. Force speed and jump were core abilities under force control, ones that the young Sith had wanted to learn a long time ago. This [member="Darth Veles"] was a pretty good teacher so far, he had gained much information from the Mon Calamari Sith. He had also read of this power, knowing it's one consequence. It drained the force-user's energy dramatically, along with their metabolism. After using this power for an extended amount of time, the user would have to rest for a recovery period. The young Sith pure blood's eyes had already closed, allowing him to cancel out any physical distractions. He had to concentrate, focussing on his mind and it's awareness of the force.

It surrounded him, just waiting to be manipulated at any given time. The boy would imagine himself as a magnetic, attempting to attract the force energy within and around him into his legs. A strange sensation washed over his body's lower half, his legs almost feeling as if they were vibrating. Having been surrounded in the force energy he had gathered, they were empowered, ready to be used at the boy's disposal. Moving his leg forward, the boy would break off into a sprint, quickly dashing across the room to the other side. As he ran, he noticed how everything was in slow motion, the force having altered his perception and speed apparently, allowing him more time to react. An extremely useful skill, with a heavy drawback. Slamming his foot down, the teen would come to a skidding halt, turning around to look towards Darth Veles.

Force jump was an ancient technique, known to be used commonly through out history. There were several uses for it, making it rather popular amongst force users. Ballen-Ist would have to be careful, for the height the user was able to jump depended on their skill level and physique. The boy's body was in it's prime, that being the only thing that concerned him. Surely he wouldn't hit the ceiling. Using the force energy he had gathered earlier, he would begin to allow it to flow, beginning to cloak his body slightly, though the majority remained in his legs.

With a bend of his knees, the boy would prepare to jump, his eyes closed to envision where he would land, beside Darth Veles. Springing forward, the boy would jump at a horizontal angle, aiming to go forward, rather than up. Soaring through the air, his hair would flap back, jerking forward as he landed with a thud. Coming to a crouch as he landed, the boy would sustain minimum damage, aiming to absorb the impact. He would need more training to master this technique, however he had successful made his destination.

 

[Darth Armyss]

Fortunately, it didn't take much to warn Albrecht of the flaws behind using Force Jump to jump over an opponent, having studied the history of the Sith and its various splinter factions extensively, and recalling a study of the Duel on Mustafar between the then newly-knighted Darth Vader and Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, widely considered to be one of the greatest lightsaber duels of all time between two perfectly-matched opponents. During that duel, according to Kenobi's memoirs, Vader had attempted to do exactly that, knowing that Kenobi had done the same thing against Darth Maul on Naboo and got away with it. Of course, the reason it worked was that Maul lowered his guard, and thus didn't see it coming, but Kenobi knew what was coming well in advance, and dismembered both of Vader's legs and one of his arms mid-jump, before leaving him to burn to death on the side of a lava river...a mistake in and of itself, because Vader had survived, and would continue to survive for another 23 or so standard years, even if he was, as the memoirs also stated, 'more machine than man'.

Upon watching [member="Ballen-Ist"]'s less-than-graceful landing, Albrecht focused his efforts on avoiding the same mistake as his counterpart, something that, for him, hopefully shouldn't be too difficult, as a force jump was in many ways similar to normal jumps while playing gravball, a sport he never really cared for but had dabbled in at one point or another. The only real difference was that he would have to rely on the force to cushion his landing, as opposed to relying on reduced artificial gravity.

Just as the other acolyte had done, he focused his energy into his legs, and after a brief moment, he sprang upwards, launching himself into a high arc to emphasize height rather than distance, thus giving him the time he needed to envision his landing point, focus his energy into his legs again, and land on his feet, the force seeming to absorb the vast majority of the impact. He still felt it, but years of mercenary work prior to joining the Sith had hardened him, and so it had less of an effect on him. It seemed that going second had its advantages. "I've observed that jumping is the easy part - it's landing without hurting yourself that seems to require more effort."

[member="Darth Veles"]

 

[Darth Veles]

Veles observed both [member="Ballen-Ist"] and [member="Albrecht Tagge"] attempting to jump with their legs empowered by the Force. Both Acolytes performed well, not crushing their heads by hitting the ceiling or breaking the neck upon a failed landing, even though it seemed their landings needed something. It took Avreet a few seconds to realize that the thing that bothered him the most was the loud thud as their feet touched the ground. To the young assassin used to always silence any noise made by his fall, it looked imperfect, very noticeable by anyone who might hear the sound. The two students most likely did not worry about stealth as much as their teacher though, so the amphibian made no comment on that. "It is quite effective, yes? Now, I will explain you the last of the most basic powers; Force speed."

"Force speed. The power when you allow the Force to fill your body and enhance your reflexes, movements, reactions. You move faster than a normal being. From your point of view, you move at normal speed, it is the world around you that seems very much slower, giving you more time to act and think. Your speed is equal to your control of Force speed. The greater control you have over the power, the more skilled you are, the faster you move and the slower your surroundings seem. It is a fairly easy skill to learn, but not many master it despite its usefulness. I also chose not to follow the path of mastering this particular skill, although I consider it one of the powers I am very good at. Still, my skill cannot compare to the masters of Force speed. I am fairly sure you have witnessed someone in your life utilizing this particular power and I am certain you will meet many more. If you do not use the power, your opponents using it will seem unnaturally fast, the most skilled of them nothing but a blur. When you let the energy enhance your body, their movements will become more natural, the ones of the same skill level as you will appear to be normal. My advice is to use the power whenever you're in a duel. If nothing else, it gives you an edge over your opponent unless they are better at it than you. It drains your power fairly quickly, so remember to use it wisely. The power usage also depends on how well you control the skill. The faster you are, the more energy you use." The Sith Knight explained, this time not giving the two any task, it was up to them to practice if they wanted and had the energy to do so.

"That is all. Thank you for attending the class. If you have any questions, please ask right now." Veles said coolly and politely, his expression showing nothing.

 

[Ballen-Ist]

"Thank you, Darth Veles." Spoke the red skinned boy, as he gave the Mon Calamari a thankful nod. He had learned much, and would not forget the service the man had done him. After that, he would leave, making his exit promptly.

 

[Darth Armyss]

As [member="Darth Veles"] dismissed the two of them, Albrecht recalled that he indeed did have a question, but it was a more personal one that he decided would probably not be appropriate to ask at the moment. It had to do with the Sith Knight in question, or more specifically, their race. He was curious as to why it was that Darth Veles had joined the One Sith, in spite of the very well-documented attempted genocide of his entire species by Darth Krayt about seven centuries ago. True, it's basically ancient history by this point, but he recalled that some races were not very keen on letting go of grudges, the Bothans in particular, in regards to their hatred of the Yuuzhan Vong, even though the extragalactic species had coexisted with the galaxy in a mostly peaceful way for the last eight centuries by now. Maybe the Mon Calamari weren't as vindictive, he thought, but it was still an interesting thought that he would need to clarify later.

"Thank you, I'll let you know if I need any further instruction" Albrecht responded with a nod as he turned and left, making a mental note to catch up with [member="Ballen-Ist"] whenever he could get the chance for some more practice.

 

[Cractius Stretus]

Cractius immediately entered the room . "I have immediately been transferred from a lommite mining world" . "I was told the basics were reached here" , sorry for the tardiness lord "