Pain Without Love

[The Traveler]

[member="Vega the Chaos Mage"]

The Traveler, the enigmatic and pragmatic neutral force user of the One Sith, Former Warlord of The Prime and ancient sith of a long past era stood inside of the training circle. For the first time in nearly nine centuries he had decided to take upon an apprentice, a young female who had deemed herself worthy of taking on the title of sith and he would test her. If she was determined to be part of this life then he would make her immune to pain through pain. That was what he excelled at and that is what he would deliver to her.


It was true that he himself was no longer a sith and treaded his own path but he was still as brutal as any Sith lord and perhaps far more sadistic as he considered himself outside of the turmoil of his peers as he sought neither position or power but information he could use to further his own research. This girl, this Vega would serve him in ways she would not understand and she would grow in her own power as he trained her and used.

As per his own dogma he stood in the battle circle, his heavy armor still upon him as he tossed off the munitions bandolier and the dagger bandolier that he used to augment his deadly arsenal. His almost mechanical voice reverberated as he spoke softly to himself, words that could not be heard. His gauntleted fist clenched as she came in. he extended a hand towards her as he spoke.

“Welcome to agony, your new home. This is a mandalorian battle circle, for countless ages it has served my people in turning young men and women into archons of war. This is where you shall learn the most important skill any sith “ He said the last word with venom as he considered this new breed inferior “ could master. Control over their pain, control over their saber and the ability to kill.” In one a few quick movement the 5’7 foot master moved towards a rack of almost stick like swords. Five slivers of bamboo bound in multiple places, with a circular hand guard and a long delicate handle.

“Kendo is an ancient tradition, designed to teach combat without suffering serious injury. Make no mistake it will hurt, I will brake you, but I will rebuild you. Your bones will splinter, your flesh will scar and your spirit shall wither. Yet what is broken grows stronger, what is scarred becomes tough and what is withered with proper care shall grow mighty and virile again. Select your Kendo and come at me, I wish to see what you have”.

 

[Vega the Chaos Mage]

Vega stepped within the confines of the battle circle, halting her purple physique a few feet before the threshold of the entrance. Finally she'd found her answer; the key to desired knowledge resided within the rogue master ahead of her. He felt strong- knowledgeable, to be precise. Too long had she waited for a physical being like him to come into her acknowledgement and accept her under his wing. But for now, how that came to be remained trivial. It was a story for another time; the here and now was the priority, not how they came to acknowledge one another and get to this point in time. This. . . 'treasured' point of time. The apprenticed Sith couldn't even dream of what he had in store for her. But there was only really one way to find out the answer to that - wasn't there?

She remained within a state of total silence while he spoke, hands linked before her crotch with a head held high to make it self-explanatory she was listening. This pain he wanted her to endure, she admired the determination and moral behind its meaning. Sounded absolutely necessary to go through the stages of training which carried in his almost robotic lilt. Succumb to the sense of pain and one could become almost unstoppable. Yeah - Vega most definitely chose the right master.

"I understand - my master." Vega calmly replied, a serious lilt accompanying her words. Once the order was given she marched over to the selection of blades, gliding her fingers down over their frames before halting upon a hilt. She proceeded to take it off the rack and slowly maneuver it before her chest, just to loosen up her limbs and familiarize herself with its weight. Once that was done she lowered a scorched arm and stepped back from the master before her. For now the blade's tip directed towards the ground. She weren't going to use it until he gave the command to do so. He didn't sound like the type who'd appreciate one proceeding to a task of his without him first demanding it.

"I am ready to proceed forth when you are, sir. Give the command to do so and I will instigate this session for us." The Sith respectfully said, and remained silent and still until engaged or commanded to do otherwise. She'd do almost anything to get to the level she desired. Any task he wanted executed by her hand would go forth without hesitation.

[member="The Traveler"]

 

[The Traveler]

[member="Vega the Chaos Mage"]


The Traveler growled as he charged forward slamming the butt of his weapon into her midsection with as much force as he could without causing serious internal injuries. As she reeled over he smashed the Kendo stick across he mouth and finally ended with a hard blow to her rear sending her tumbling down. He twisted and put a foot on her throat and a final smash of his weapon across her chest to end the first moment of instruction.

" I gave you the order to attack, never miss an opportunity, never expect mercy and never let your guard down. Even in training the second a weapon is drawn be prepared to fight, prepared to kill. Because in life among your peers a moment like this is your end, your end would displease me as i have plans for you" he would let her worm her way back to her feet by herself. She would succeed on her own or she would suffer on her own, that was the price of his tutelage.

" I am not master, nor sir. You will refer to me as The Traveler, my formal title in the galaxy or you may call me teacher. Either suits me, but do not give me the credence of the lesser instructor. My job is to make you strong, i am no sith but i am preparing you for the meat grinder to stand by your peers and to surpass them. Never forget a single lesson and never for one moment forget what i am doing to you. Grow to hate me, seethe in your anger of me, but learn to harness it. For every day in this life you will know why others fear and distrust me, i am an unknown, an element outside of their game and you will learn that yourself. ".

 

[Vega the Chaos Mage]

Vega came here expecting her physique to endure pain - and her expectations met exactly that. She didn't expect he'd attack so soon, to be honest. Not with such potential in his attacks so early in the session. Shame on her; she should have just gone to attack instead of waiting for him to speak. He was here to see what she was capable of, not what extent her frame could go through before she toppled over. She shook it off for now as best as she could, though. Maneuvering herself into a backwards roll to land among her feet was the best way to execute the task of returning to a standing position on both limbs. A scorched wrist brushed over her mouth to try and dismiss the phantom pain, but it rendered useless. Pain lingered everywhere he inflicted his attacks upon her. She'd just have to lump it and move forward.

"You're right - that was foolish of me, mast- teacher." Vega calmly replied, motioning the weapon in her grasp up before her abdomen. She still had strength; the pulsing pain among her just reminded her of his words about overcoming it. Standing around whining wasn't the right move here. He wanted to see what kind of skills resided within her? She was more than happy to demonstrate for her mast- 'The Traveler', as he ordered her was best to refer to him. The Traveler. She liked that.

Vega motioned her wrist, dancing the blade from side to side before her to loosen up her limb. She had a target upon his being to incapacitate him, but it was a matter of getting close enough to do so. Without another word to pass her lips, Vega proceeded forwards towards [member="The Traveler"] in a sprint; however, she didn't intend on confronting him while she were on two limbs. Once she got close enough, she spun on her heels and dropped herself to her knees to skid his right limb where she maneuvered the blade around to whack the back of knee. Earlier battles gave her the knowledge that it usually resulted in the enemy losing balance so she decided to take the gamble.

 

[The Traveler]

[member="Vega the Chaos Mage"]


The Traveler anticipated her move a put a heavy boot out into her face as she drew close in her slide. It was an interesting move that would catch the unwary and the untested, but it was a dangerous move that could cost one much. He smashed his foot into her face and crunched down on her nose following the momentum to send her onto her back and then stomped her in the breast as hard as he could.

" You must learn your opponent before you can defeat your opponent, you must learn yourself before you defeat yourself" he said as he took two steps back.

He took a few steps around her crushed form " Do not stop, pain is a figment of your body telling you you are feeble. MAster your pain, master your mind, control your spirit. You must push yourself beyond that of the mortal coil that you inhabit. You must become the deacon of your own despair and the master of your own destiny." he lifted his Kendo into a high guard. " This is the high guard, it is a basic technique designed for the combat, i have allowed you to beat yourself and have shown you the cost of failure. Now it is time to show you success. My blows will be more deliberate and now designed to show you the failure of your guard, we will learn the High Guard today then you shall have a chance to rest and recuperate".

 

[Vega the Chaos Mage]

'Play through the pain', she thought to herself; however, the boot she received to the face didn't help to straighten her focus.But she weren't going down so easily without at least some infliction. The instigating retaliation he performed towards her only left her grazing her weapon against his opposing leg. Whether or not she inflicted any kind of damage remained unbeknown to her. Her face pulsed and throbbed with pain, while her chest suffered a streak of tightness. Felt like she couldn't breath for a moment, but again she thought. Play through the pain; she had to experience it to master it. Like he went on to say, she had to learn how to defeat herself. Ignore this illusion of pain she was burdened with. With his help, hopefully she would come to finding a way to ignoring the entire concept.

Vega coughed, trivial strands of blood staining the ground beside her. She ignored it; she focused on his kendo as she brought herself to her feet to ignore it. The pain never ceased, but she tried to ignore it. His words held a great meaning, and she continued to mentally repeat them to herself while she observed his frame's motion. The female took a step back, maneuvering her being to one side so her tightened chest faced away from him. But her weapon? It was lifted before her, pointing towards this master of hers. Despite what he said she'd mentally refer to him as master. He had the skills to be classed as one.

"Then teach me - teacher. I learn from my mistakes. If this current guard of mine is filled with openings then point them out and show me where I go wrong. Through that I can learn from you. Through that I can eventually counter you." Vega boldly replied, an almost demanding lilt accompanying her words. Of course she had next to no right to demand anything from him, but she had to display dominance. Present a challenge that may have otherwise gone unacknowledged.

[member="The Traveler"]

 

[The Traveler]

[member="Vega the Chaos Mage"]

" The ultimate goal of the teacher" he said his mechanically cold voice echoed as he spoke " is to be surpassed by their student. For sith that is to be slain by an apprentice of theirs, for me it is to see you ascend to your own mastery and dominion. For a thousand years and then some i have graved the galaxy, many years of darkness as a sith and only years as what you see before you. In that time i have harnessed my pain, learned to both be lead and to control the force. A floating lotus blossom on the shores of eternity, a enigma of that which was and has ever to be. I have been beaten, bloodied, bruised, eviscerated, burned" he removed his armor from his right arm exposing the mechanical arm.

" Through all pain and injury i have prevailed through pain and suffering, to live to see tomorrow is victory my young student. Be not to hasty in your path to power, be not to hasty in your mastery of excellence. Revel in the pain you feel now, find pleasure in the agony. For every drop of blood i spill here, for every bone i shatter and break, for every drop of sweat you spill in trying to up me.... you do not shed on the battle field. We train how we fight, we live how we die, we fight against an enemy that shall claim us all in the end, regardless of strength and power. Time is your enemy and your ally, though the pain may magnify that you will live through your engagements with me so that you may live through your engagements in the field. I give you mercy of life, your fellow sith, the jedi and the rest of the scum this galaxy conjures will not" he grabbed her shoulder and kicked her left foot back slightly while widening her stance to shoulder length.

" The High guard, is basic it defies saber forms, it defies all. From here you can learn to defend, as the best defense is to not ever be struck. You will now defend as i teach, you will be struck but you will begin to trust yourself and the force to guide your blade. remember the unexpected is your enemy, but it is your ally for your enemy knows not you or your actiosn" he said as he raised his Kendo " defend" he roared as he swung toward her left kidney.

 

[Vega the Chaos Mage]

She acknowledged his strong words, purple eyes peering down at his mechanical limb as she listened to the next speech that proceeded to roll off his tongue. They'd serve well in her memory. From there she could repeat them to herself in her time of need. But for now a pin was placed upon them, especially so when he forced her to manoeuver her foot and shoulder into a more developed stance. She let her limbs loosen, letting him motion her frame like he had the strings to her puppet physique. He knew what he was doing, and she had her trust him. To be honest she'd very much forgotten about the pain which still tried to regain her acknowledgement. Her subconscious must have been seeing to it while the rest of her focus resided on her teacher. In others words, he was teaching her something right.

Startled by the sudden outburst of his demand to defend at first, Vega never allowed it to overwhelm her into a state of frozen surprise. Purple hues darted down towards the incoming attack towards her kidney. Vega launched her opposing arm down towards his own, smacking her palm against the his elbow's fossa to force it to bend away from her physique. From there her second hand immediately proceeded to hurl towards his chest, again using her palm to benefit her. She targeted his chest to push him back, but then she realised something. He was supposedly part machine, wasn't he? Too late now, but perhaps it wouldn’t have caused too much infliction. As a result, she didn't remain on the footing she was to find out. The female student sidestepped and spun on her heels, bringing her left leg around in order to try and hook her foot around the back of his leg to try and incapacitate him.

[member="The Traveler"]

 

[The Traveler]

[member="Vega the Chaos Mage"] That DDoS attack really stunk.

The Traveler watched her as she began her counter, a little to soon she was and perhaps to eager to please. But that was an acceptable trait in his apprentices, he twisted his hip and punched down when she tripped to leg lock him slamming a heavy fist into his shin and listened to the crunch of bone from the follow through. It wasn't hard enough to break it completely but it would fracture it.

" Whehn fighting an armored opponent one must always remember to target where the armor is not. Striking me in any of the plates woven between the suit will do no good" he said as he stepped away and allowed the medic droid to come in and begin his assesment.

" Enough for today, in the morning we shall continue our instructions. Until then practice what i have taught you today and rest if you feel comfortable enough to. Tomorrow i will not take it nearly as easy on you".

 

[Vega the Chaos Mage]

[member="The Traveler"] ugh, tell me about it :/


It was only natural for Vega to express her pain in an audible tone. She groaned out once the grazing and crunching of her bones instigated. The female Sith toppled over onto her side, though she caught herself with her hands to avoid hitting the ground with a sharp thump. Immediately her eyes darted down towards her shin. The limb instinctively held itself in the air to avoid the possibility of more pain through the weight of her physique overwhelming it. Again, she tried to ignore the pain, but she had to admit this certain sensation was challenging. She tried to take her mind off it while listening to his words as she attempted to bring herself to one foot. For now she could only rely on the balance of one limb, but hopefully this medical droid she came to acknowledge could see to that.

“That was foolish for me,” Vega groaned out. “But thanks to you I learn from my mistake. Thank you for this. . . Session.” The Sith added, dipping her head in appreciation. “What shall I do until tomorrow? Go over today's teachings?”

 

[The Traveler]

[member="Vega the Chaos Mage"]


The Traveler turned his head to look at his student as he stopped at the durasteel doors. His head cocked slightly as he admired her determination and tenacity. She would not let injury deter her from her mastery of the force and the lessons he would give her. She would serve as an excellent pawn one day, until she no longer served his purposes at least.

" Practice or sleep, or both" he said as he watched the medical droid apply the splint to the fracture. " I can only show you, it is on you to master what i have taught you. There are not enough free hours for me to make you better without your efforts on your own. You must practice until it becomes second nature. You muscles must be conditioned to act before your mind demands it. You must become an extension of your weapon for it to serve you in combat. Practice, rest and prepare for tomorrow" he continued out of the training room.

OOC: Just have her practice for the next post and do what ever, including resting. She took a considerable beating and can't fight starving etc.

 

[Vega the Chaos Mage]

Without another word breathed, Vega once again bowed her head in appreciation before he took his leave for the night. Rest was essential, both for her mental and physical state. Firstly - she needed to heal. But not here. Somewhere where she could rest and kill two birds with one stone. In addition she forced the droid off of her, limping back towards her craft after gesturing the droid to follow. From there she proceeded onto the bed on board her craft, laying herself down on her back as an exhausted sigh escaped her. A few grunts, as well. The droid proceeding to see to her injured limb resulted in ongoing pain. Pai she challenged fiercely as an extension of her training. A difficult task, but the Sith fought through it, eventually falling into an unconscious state through the entirety of the whole night. When she came to wake her limb had been bandaged and seen to. A slight ache remained, but nothing as painful as before. Not enough to wince, at least. Or was it that her tolerance to pain has just improved?

[member="The Traveler"]

 

[The Traveler]

[member="Vega the Chaos Mage"]



When his apprentice would finally awake and make her way to the Training Circle she would find The Traveler standing there. His arms crossed and only his helmet and chest guard armor on, his arms were bare and a pair of simply black fatigues on his legs. It was no telling how long her master had been standing there and there was no gauging the expressionless mask for his mood or his ideas on her rest period.

" Today, we practice what we have done yesterday. By this evening end, you will be exhausted and your existence will be questioned. It is your destiny to succeed or fail by only your will. ".

 

[Vega the Chaos Mage]

Vega departed from her ship, but not before making sure she had her weapon strapped to her side. Yeah - it was there. The cold metal touched her digits, saving her having to confirm it was there with an amethyst glance. She headed straight towards the training circle; she could feel her master was lingering there, but it still came to some surprise once she laid her eyes upon his being. She expected he'd leave her to train on her own for a while; perhaps observe from the shadows before presenting himself. It wasn't a problem, though. Vega bowed her physique before taking a few steps towards him. She came to a halt with a good few meters separating them, proceeding to listen to what he had to say. It sounded like he wasn't going to treat her with any kind of mercy. Either she died today, or she didn't. That's how she took it. It was quite the challenge, but one she'd happily take. She needed the seriousness of it.

"Of course-" Vega went to say something else, but she halted. He was her master, but perhaps for now he just wanted to be her enemy. As a result, she decided not to treat him like so until he said otherwise. Fingers glided over towards her weapon, lingering over it as she went on to say, "Is it wise for me to draw my weapon?"

[member="The Traveler"]

 

[The Traveler]

[member="Vega the Chaos Mage"]


" Wisdom dictates that one have a plan to kill everyone, even if not needed" he said as he readied his own weapon for attack. " Prepare to defend yourself" he said as he made a simple strike at her right side. It was time to put her training to practical use.


OOC: Sorry abvout the time, dealing with things