Teaching The Kids

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How long had it been since Cyril had stepped foot aboard one of the floating Praxeums? Months, years maybe. The passage of time was becoming a bit hard to keep track of as of late. That would happen when Sith performed alchemy on your brain. The little things became difficult to remember, to say the least. Why was he here? To pass on his knowledge, sort of. He'd long since absconded training classes -- Varus was his last pupil when it came to bladework. He was here to review, not to teach outright. A young man needed a test, and he was happy to supply such. It would be a nice warm up for his early trip to Balmorra.

He was clad in dueling robes today. Normally, Cyril went into battle clad in heavy armor. Now he was unrestricted; he could practice his favored styles without issue. The lack of protection did not mean much today -- his lightsabers were set to stun rather than to kill. Hopefully the Padawan had the same concern for his safety, though Cyril did not intend to call the boy on it. He didn't intend to get hit at all today.

Of course, one's predictions did not always come to pass.

He awaited young [member="Aston Jacobs"] in one of the many dueling rings overlooking the world of Ossus below. His teacher, [member="Mantic Dorn"], had asked to observe for a time. Cyril had no issue with this, any teacher worth his salt would want to make sure their student was not picking up bad habit. Furthermore, Cyril's reputation with the Jedi Order was murky at best. His leadership of the Army of Light had failed, and he may or may not have called the Council arrogant children when leaving the galactic core.

But that didn't hold much weight these days, right? It was a new day after all.

 

[Aston Jacobs]

"I'm a little nervous I'm not gong to lie to you." Aston muttered to his Master [member="Mantic Dorn"]. But the key thing here was training. He cared not if he won or lost, but if every ally he fought on the training grounds or every ally that gave him advice would aide him in the true fight against injustice and against the Sith. He would gladly do this all day. Aston had nothing but his Jedi attire and a training saber. Aston had never in truth fought in the dueling rings above Ossus before, so while he was getting some tips, he would also be fighting high above Ossus, which was a thrill in itself. Or at least to him it was.

Aston stepped into the dueling ring as he could see [member="Cyril Grayson"]

The Jedi padawan walked forward and stuck his hand out towards him. "Aston Jacobs, formally meeting." Aston said with a small smile. "Thank you Master Grayson for the opportunity."

Aston was grateful that he had agreed to a duel. Not to just test out his skill, but to see what else could be improved upon. If Aston wasn't mistaken, the Jedi Padawan could improve quite a bit.

 

[Mantic Dorn]

Mantic followed his padawan in to the training room, while they had much to do on their own and Mantic, renowned for his vigorous training programs, usually managed the main bulk of his padawans trainings he was grateful forthe help offered by master[member="Cyril Grayson"]

"It is natural to feel that way padawan. Focus on the task at hand and not whom you are facing." was the short advice Mantic offered [member="Aston Jacobs"] before the padawan left him to start the session.

Mantic himself took s formal bow toward the teacher of the day and then found a position to observe but had no intention of interfering, save for if this newly returned master would speak against the jedi order or its fundamental rules, something Mantic was not expecting at all. He was however hoping on picking up a trick or two himself by watching.

 

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In his younger days, Cyril would have opened up by listing his achievements in the realm of combat. He had been a vain creature in the past; yearning to impress his teachers and allies in any way possible. Now? Hoe let his wounds speak for themselves. He cracked wide smile as the master-and-padawan duo made their way through the doors. He hadn't met either of them -- not that such was was an issue. Cyril had never been too well connected within the Order: most of his duties had him as a diplomatic emissary, military adviser, or other similar positions within the senate. Still, it was nice to break away and deal with his own kind for once.

"Cyril Grayson," he boomed, all smiles, "I'll test your limits. I'm sure your master will be interested to see how you fare against an opponent you're not used to." He took the boy's hand and gave it a firm shake. One might notice the slight whir of servos in his right arm: the entire limb was cybernetic now.

With that said, he took a healthy step back, and gave [member="Mantic Dorn"] a short nod. Cyril had trained half the current Jedi Order how to swing their glowsticks. He would not allow any harm to come to Mantic's student.

"I'll not go easy on you. Treat this like a real duel, life or death, otherwise it won't mean anything." He ignited his blade, the bright blue core shimmering quietly as it came forth. He held the blade outward, almost casually so. A farce, truly, but few ever picked up on such save for the more experienced.

"The opening is yours, my friend."

[member="Aston Jacobs"]

 

[Aston Jacobs]

Aston nodded in recognition to what [member="Mantic Dorn"] had said and after the handshake with [member="Cyril Grayson"]

"I'll not go easy on you. Treat this like a real duel, life or death, otherwise it won't mean anything."

When he mentioned he should treat it as a real duel, life and death Aston smiled and nodded his head again. "Yes sir, you can count on it." Which was the complete truth, if he was just going through the motions then it wouldn't mean much at all. And the Jedi Padawan had ever hoped to increase his skills with the force and with the lightsaber.

The Jedi padawan ignited the training saber, and he raised it up near his body. Aston held the blade with both hands as moved forward quickly and directed his blade in a horizontal cut towards the Masters' midsection.

 

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And so it began.

Cyril was not out to overwhelm the young man. not yet. Odds were Mister Jacobs knew a few tricks that Cyril did not. It had been years since he'd taught at the academy. Plenty of time for the instructors to decide on an entirely new training regime. He knew the Silvers fought in an entirely different fashion than the Republic -- it was likely the latter would feel just as different to him now.

A two handed sweep? Not fancy, but it could certainly get the job done quickly. Cyril drew in a deep breath as the blade arced toward his midriff. Centering himself, he drew his weapon up close to his body, and cracked a thin smile as the two weapons met in a flash of spark.

"A good opener," He commented as the weapons locked, "Might I suggest opting for the vertical slice if you prefer fighting with both hands. You'll get more stopping power behind it." Regardless, the blade had hit him a little harder than he expected. This boy was not a fumbling Padawan. He had some muscle on him. Either that, or the force was guiding his movements -- likely a bit of both.

Rather than rely on brute strength to repel his opponent, Cyril utilized something he knew would have positive effects for his own effort. He thrust a hand toward Aston's chest; a minor telekinetic push to throw the Padawan off balance. If successful, the Jedi Master would step forward with a flurry of light, quick blows. Nothing that would shatter any man's defenses by strength alone -- his movements were the fundamentals of Niman; striking quickly, looking for a weak point.

If he did fail, then Cyril might be in a bit of trouble.

[member="Aston Jacobs"]

 

[Aston Jacobs]

"Understood." Aston said briefly as [member="Cyril Grayson"] had mentioned for an opening move. Aston was all ears when it came to recieving advice on anything in regards to his future as a Jedi, as these tips and hints would be something that would help him long after this friendly duel was over. Unexpected was his next move as the push did indeed press him back and knock him off balance. While he moved to try and regain balance his Jedi friend moved forward with a flurry of strikes.

Aston raised his lightsaber in defense meeting each strike as best as he could, while clumsily it looked as it took him a few second or two longer than he expected to regain balance. Nonetheless each strike was met, but there was much to be improved on, much. Aston was well aware of this, and should Cyril tell him once more, Aston would do nothing but agree with him.

Aston as it seemed considered himself to be as humble as he could when it came to respecting those around him. His peers and his allies he had nothing but respect for. The padawan's footing leveled a bit as his right foot was just ahead of his left foot, a respectable shoulder length apart. Aston reacted in turn as he brought his blade in a vertical overhead strike towards Cyril.

 

[Mantic Dorn]

From the corner of the room Mantic stood observing the lesson. He was still, very still. to train with a saber was indeed the foundation of a jedi. Or so Mantic thought and he was glad to see and learn from [member="Cyril Grayson"] as he spoke instructions during the clash of the training sabers.

There was focus and concentration in [member="Aston Jacobs"] as well and for this Mantic gave a thin smile giving him a sensation of pride. Naturally he pressed the emotion away and remained silent though.
The focus on two hands in the opening strike was interesting. He had though that his padawan would be more of an Ataru-like fighter. But then, there were several Ataru moves with two hands as well.

Perhaps he was over-analyzing the spar between the two. Yes, he probably was.

Shifting his foot he waited to see what the next stage of the session would include.