I Found A Free Moment [Varanin; Force Weapon Training]

[Aran Finn]

@[member="Ashin Varanin"]​

​

Na'Varro was now a Master of the Force, a darksider to be respected and in some places feared ... and yet there was still work to be done. By his very nature, the bearded man was a warrior. Every thing he had learned during his time as a user of the Force, every single thing he had focused on, had been designed to give him the edge in battle. That was not to say that the man had no weaknesses; there were several and they were glaring, but the truth was that his favoured powers and the emphasis he placed on the lightsaber made him a difficult proposition for most he would face. However, his arsenal was incomplete, he had realised. Even in his elevated level of power there were those much more powerful again than him. Ashin Varanin, newly-redeemed Master of the Light, was one such warrior who would chew him up and spit him out. Na'Varro needed a certain amount of safety and security to maintain his illusion of control over his life, and as such he needed more power and more knowledge.

His Force Shield was formidable, but in his development as a Force user (which was not over, by any means), Na'Varro realised that its development into a formidable manifestation of Force Weapon would be better suited to his style in the long run. Today he would learn the basics of the art from a true Master of it; learn how to call upon it at will, then the rest of his life would be spent strengthening the use of that power. With work, he would become all the more formidable. That was his goal now. Knowledge, power, security and his political ideals ... he was no longer a follower now. He had to lead and follow now, simultaneously and with respect. Knowledge would keep him on the straight and narrow.

He had asked Varanin to meet him in the Pit. As a Fringer he would train with other Fringers in the environment that had been set aside for them. This was just as much about solidarity and togetherness as it was about learning a new way to use the Force.

Standing armourless, wearing combat pants, boots and a work-out t-shirt with "Just Scrap" emblazoned upon it in red lettering, Na'Varro awaited the other, far more experienced Master, eager to begin his tutelage.

 

[Ashin Varanin]

@[member="Alen Na'Varro"] got a nod as Ashin closed the door behind her. The door was durasteel, six inches thick. She closed it as easily as if it was the plastoid door of a 'fresher, and stepped out onto the sand.

"Sometimes, when hubris catches up with me -- as is standard procedure for Jedi Masters in this day and age -- I'm half surprised when the ground doesn't tremble at my footsteps. That's part and parcel of being a tank, I suppose. You get used to being the immovable object, you start feeling like a mountain walking.

"In case you were wondering whether I'd still train you as a Lightsider, don't. I'm still me, and Fringe is still Fringe. Stay loyal to Fringe and I'll teach you everything you ever wanted to know. There are some who know more techniques than me, but few who know my particular variety. Still, it's nice to see someone interested in my specialty. Even my greatest apprentice prefers other skills. In fact, this is...the first time I've ever taught someone this.

"What do you know of this power? How is it normally employed? What are its weaknesses, so far as you know?"

 

[Aran Finn]

"It's not mine to worry about the nature of your connection to the Force, Varanin." Alen chuckled, folding his arms and nodding in return. "Who would want to be a Darksider if they could be anything else?"

The Dark Jedi Master listened as @[member="Ashin Varanin"] spoke, reflecting on why he was here as she did. Force Weapon was something that he realised he had to learn some time ago, and this was his first opportunity to actually learn it. This particular power had been lost to the Force in his time, but somewhere in the last eight hundred years someone had rediscovered it. Brilliant. Alen's style of fighting had always been focused on a war of attrition. Everything he had learned had been tailored to give him an offensive edge in battle, but the fact was, tanks like Varanin could take more than he could dish out. Force Weapon was another step on the path of knowledge that would take him closer to his goal of great strength, and after this lesson he would be working HARD on it. Perhaps some day he'd even match Varanin in its application. That day was some time away, however.

"Traditionally, it imbues a weapon with greater strength. The native Felucians used it to make their blades more durable and able to resist lightsabers. Some have even used the power to channel alternative powers through their blade, which is of great interest to me. I've heard it can even be used to imbue oneself with greater strength? As for weaknesses ... Force, I'm having trouble thinking of any. It would be sapping, sure ... but what Force power isn't?"

 

[Ashin Varanin]

@[member="Alen Na'Varro"]

"The Felucian connection is what let me rediscover it, in the last years of the Dark Age." She snorted. "As if the Dark Age was over. But I digress.

"I've never heard of being able to channel alternative powers through a Force Weapon-shielded implement, I'm sorry. Then again, I've never tried, per se. I'm normally too busy extending that coverage to my body. You're right, the power drain isn't the issue -- it's all about the extent to which you can split your focus.

"As for using it to achieve greater strength, that's a whole separate addendum...somewhat. For example, if someone dropped a block of stone on me, I could use Force Weapon to shield my body and avoid being broken in half. But if I wanted to shove the block off of me, I would need basic telekinesis or standard Jedi physical enhancement. I swear by both of them, incidentally. I'm a Core Powers apologist. Being able to exercise anything more than that while protecting myself with Force Weapon -- that takes some doing. I'm curious to see how quickly you pick this up.

"So let's begin with the basics. You're already expert in the use of Force shields; this is the same, but more so, with plenty of tutaminis mixed in for energy diffusion." She gestured across the Pit at a rack of swords, and one flew to her hand. She tossed it to Na'Varro, and ignited her yellow-bladed lightsabre. "We'll start with a single contact, as soon as you feel you're ready."

 

[Aran Finn]

Na'Varro nodded in approval. He too held a deep, warm love for the Core Powers; in his opinion all Apprentices should learn those power first. They were both a good base for expanding knowledge and extremely useful. A double-edged sword in the best possible sense of the phrase. So split focus was the issue at hand ... that made sense. Force Weapon was similar to Tutaminis, which had presented Na'Varro with some difficulties in that area. Morna Imura had given the Dark Jedi Master a few extra burns than he had wanted, but that was what training hard brought him. In his mind, if you weren't crawling away from training with a few extra wounds, then you were training wrong.

Alen caught the sword that @[member="Ashin Varanin"] tossed to him smoothly and swung it a couple of times out of habit. He was unused to the weight of it ... Na'Varro had been using a lightsaber exclusively for something like fifteen years, he was used to the weightless blade and light hilt. Swords were heavier and had a more balanced weight diffusion, which presented some interesting differences between swordfighting and lightsaber dueling. Na'Varro could wax eloquent about that topic for days ...

But he was here for another, more important reason. Drawing deep into the core of his soul, the catalyst for the meaning of his life, Alen felt the Dark Side well up in him powerfully once more. It was the tight ball of rage that sat high in his chest, omnipresent; it was the ambition that drove him to succeed even when the taste of life resembled ash in his mouth; it was the responsibility that weighed down on his shoulders constantly, an affliction of his own designs. Now he controlled the torrent of energy, manifesting itself in an impressive Force Shield around him. Slowly he drew it in, but not into his palm like with Tutaminis. Internalising his emotions, driving them inside, he drove the Force energy into his blade with pure force of will. Start with what you know, then expand on it. That was an efficient way of learning new things in Alen's mind.

"Ready." He said this confidently, striding forward with blade in hand and ready to swing.

 

[Ashin Varanin]

@[member="Alen Na'Varro"]

"We'll start with a single hit, then multiple strikes, then work up to sustained contact."

The yellow lightsabre rose and crashed down, aiming to make brief contact. The sword was basic durasteel; a lightsabre should have cleaved through it in a heartbeat. But Ashin's blade rebounded, and she nodded in approval. "Good. Now evaluate your shield's integrity, and your blade. How much heat got through? Was damage done, softening perhaps? When you're ready, we'll go again."

At his eventual signal, she began a controlled, even predictable, series of strikes from a standard Shii-Cho velocity.

 

[Aran Finn]

@[member="Ashin Varanin"]

Alen nodded and examined his blade. Heat damage was minimal though apparent, clearly his first go at the power was not perfect. That was to be expected. Only practice upon practice would help him improve this art, an art he aimed to master. So he went within himself, into his core, and resolved to start again. This time there was no Force Shield, only a similar level of power imbued into the hilt of the blade. Its resilience drew from his unwavering focus and channeling of emotion. He was ready to go again.

Waving her forward, he stepped in and Varanin attacked. The attacks were slow, standard Shii-Cho fare ... Ashin was only testing his weapon, not his skill. Na'Varro blocked with technical form, his blade making a tight box as he moved to intercept her attacks, his focus solely on the increased integrity of his blade.