The Crystal Code [Thurion]

[Lief]

She sat within a grove on Ossus, far enough from the Temple that she could not hear the others. Even their presence in the Force had been diminished to a mere pinprick. Not that it was entirely necessary; Shi-Yan was more than capable of blocking out background noise and distractions, it was more for the principle really. What she was about to do was sacred in her eyes, it was more than simply constructing a weapon - it was the symbol of her Order, it was a direct connection and focus to the Force, and through it she would be attuned to both.

Gently she raised her hands up, and in turn all of the pieces lifted in unison. There was far more than just one hilt could handle, and as it began to come together for the first time it took its shape and revealed why. Her eyes were open this time, as she saw the saberstaff in its completed form. However she wasn't done, and so she allowed it to deconstruct and return to the ground. Knowing that she had all the pieces, and more importantly that they fit, she gave a slight nod of her head. The crystals she had chosen were humming even now, a vibrant blue that perfectly contradicted her chosen path.

It was only now that she closed her eyes and truly began to focus. Putting together the lightsaber was easy, she had done so before, but aligning the crystals was another matter. Add to that the fact that Shi-Yan was placing herself under twice the strain, and it was cause for concern. She did not want it to explode when she made the initial ignition! And so she breathed in, just as she had within the caves when searching for them, and allowed the Force to flow around her.

[member='Thurion Heavenshield']

 

[Thurion Heavenshield]

Thurion had travelled to Ossus to attend a meeting with the Jedi Council after having spent the last week or so on Midvinter with his family. His wounds were mostly healed, as was his spirit thanks to [member="Coci Heavenshield"]. The Council had requested his presence during the debriefing on the aftermath of the Primeval invasion of Ziost. Many men and women had lost their lives that day, friend and foe alike. [member="Corvus Raaf"] had taken the loss of a close friend very hard and so he took the time to check up on her as well. While it may seem like he is pandering to the Jedi Order, Thurion went there on his own accord. There were no political gains in mind.

Once the meeting was ajourned, he took time to explore the magnificent new home of the ancient Jedi Order. It had been a long time since he wandered the halls of an order not under his own leadership, and for once he was the visitor. The Silver Temple on Voss had become a second home to him, thus eliminating much of the wonder one felt the first time spent exploring a new location. Finding himself outside in the training grounds, he smiled at the sight of young, eager younglings hard at work honing their skills. Thurion could not even remember the last time he practised on a training dummy. He did remember his first time, however; his very first swing resulted in him losing his footing and falling bum-first on the ground, much to Asha's amusement. He could even point out the exact spot where the bruise was.

Making his way farther from the temple building and through the training grounds, he came across what looked like a grove, surrounded by trees and beautiful scenery. Within the grove he noticed the shape of a young woman, deep in concentration. Stepping closer he was able to make out the pieces of lightsaber hilt hovering in front of her, along with pristine-looking focusing crystals. Thurion knew well not to interrupt the assembly of a person's lightsaber as it is a tradition held sacred by countless generations of Jedi, and instead opted to leaning against a nearby tree and simply watch the woman, seemingly barely in her twenties.

[member="Shi-Yan Cala"]​

 

[Lief]

So intense was her concentration that Thurion's sudden appearance did not distract her. Of course she knew he was there, the Force swirled around her as she immersed within it. The various components which made up her hilt began to come together, this time with full intent of slotting together. Within the assembly the crystals began to align, six in total; two blue color crystals, four focusing. Many Jedi opted to have just one focusing crystal, but experimentation with her first had led her to believe that two gave for a more precise blade, and more control over the intensity and length settings. Such was important during the initial set-up.

There were a few choice components not usually found within a sabers structure, however. Namely the addition of a Bifurcating Cyclical Ignition Pulse which would allow for the saber to be used if it had been submerged underwater. There was even the chance that it would not short-circuit when used against Cortosis, of course that she would have to test for herself some time. As it all finally came together the young Jedi focused on the crystals themselves as they began to align, attuning them both to one another and to herself through the Force.

"The crystal is the heart of the blade; The heart is the crystal of the Jedi; The Jedi is the crystal of the Force; The Force is the blade of the heart; All are entwined, the crystal, the blade, the Jedi; We are one."

As she finished her utterance the hilt locked together through the Force and lowered down to settle into her outstretched hands. Significantly larger than her standard hilt, it felt odd within her grasp. Opening her eyes she peered down at it for a moment. Simple, unadorned. Finally she looked around to where the man stood. Rising up she bowed her body respectfully in greeting, feeling his strong presence in the Force.

"Greetings, Master Jedi" she said - his was not a face she was familiar with, but being that she had been raised within the Jedi she knew one when she saw one, even if his attire spoke differently.

[member="Thurion Heavenshield"]

 

[Thurion Heavenshield]

He watched as the hilt came together with harmonious motions, flawlessly executed. A flashback to him assembling reminded him of how he struggled at first, unfocused due to the knowledge that Asha would not be there to witness his achievement. But when he reached into his pocket to pull out the piece of cloth taken from her old robes, he'd found solace in keeping something physical of hers close at all times. His next attempt went without a hitch, with the cloth tied around it. That same lightsaber had been with him ever since, as had Asha's spirit.

Once the padawan was finished, she approached him with a graceful bow. Thurion bowed his head in return. "Well met, young Jedi. A most impressive display, if I may say so. Pardon the intrusion." His sapphire eyes scanned the woman. The lack of a traditional padawan braid stood out to him. "But where are my manners - my name is Thurion Heavenshield, sent from Voss to attend a Council meeting." He tilted his head sideways ever-so-slightly. "Forgive me for asking - I am but a visitor to this place - but were you perhaps recently knighted? If so, allow me to extend my congratulations! Your master must be very proud."

[member="Shi-Yan Cala"]​

 

[Lief]

She watched as the man returned her bow and then proceeded to greet her in return. To his praise the young woman lowered her gaze in humility. "If you were here for my first attempt you would not think so" she said, with a delicate smile. The product of said first attempt rested upon her belt; it was actually her second, because the first had exploded on her. That had been quite a messy trip to the medical bay!

When he spoke his name - one she knew well, despite her seeming isolation here on Ossus - Shi-Yan's eyes widened and she once again bowed to him. "Grandmaster" she said; she may not have been apart of his Order, but a Jedi was a Jedi regardless of which section of space they guarded. The next question was to be expected. After all, it was one she had been asked countless times by Jedi who did not know who she was already. Even the Younglings believed she was a Knight.

"No, Master; I am what we call a Jedi Apprentice. I oversee my own training." As an afterthought she swiftly added; "My name is Shi-Yan Cala."

[member="Thurion Heavenshield"]

 

[Thurion Heavenshield]

"I see I cannot escape my reputation no matter where I go," he remarked with a smirk. "It's an honour to meet you, Shi-Yan." He glanced down at the hilt on her person and tilted his head to the side ever-so-slightly. "I suppose having a mentor is not for everyone," Thurion thought out loud, grooming his golden beard as if pondering. He could not imagine a life without a mentor, without his Asha. Long before Nina, Coci or little Théo, there was Asha. The thought of her caused him to smile while lost in memories of old.

"You know how to use those things?" he asked, referring to her Jedi weapons. His eyes met hers. "Those glowsticks of yours?"

[member="Shi-Yan Cala"]​

 

[Lief]

"Reputation means nothing unless there is truth behind it" she offered, with a slight shrug of her shoulders, "and if yours is to be believed, then you are quite the Jedi, Master." What he said next made the young girl frown, however. She glanced nervously to her feet for but a moment... Before steeling her senses. This was no way to act before a fellow Jedi. Meeting his gaze yet again she sighed inwardly. "I had a Master once" she began, resisting the urge to chew her lip as she recalled him, the man who had raised her from birth when her parents had abandoned her on the Jedi's doorstep. "But he dropped off the face of the Galaxy. They tried to pair me up with others, but none were a good fit."

She shrugged, it wasn't something she was necessarily happy about even if she was the one to take the step and ask the Jedi for permission to oversee her own training. It was a necessity, or else it would've been the Agricorps for her. Shi-Yan knew that was not her destiny. "Yes, Master" she said of the blades which adorned her hands and body. "Though I've little practice with a saber staff as of yet." That was why she had constructed one. There was no use in half-measures, after all, and besides all Lightsabers could be returned to their stun-like state if one knew how to mess with the dials correctly. And this particular Jedi did.

[member="Thurion Heavenshield"]

 

[Thurion Heavenshield]

The elder nodded, still stroking his beard. "And if it came down to it, would you be able to kill a man to save another?" He tilted his head slightly to the left. "How can you be sure of who to save and who to kill? Who are you to judge, hm?" All of these were philosophical questions, and he did not expect her to have an answer ready. Instead Thurion sat down at the foot of a great tree, making himself comfortable as he invited the young woman to join him. "Come, sit."

A gentle breeze swept through the grove, breathing life into flora and fauna. Golden strands of hair got caught in it as Thurion closed his eyes and simply enjoyed the moment, taking a deep breath before opening them. "Have you ever heard of the Living Force, Padawan?" A concept first introduced to him by Asha, and one he truly believed in. "The universe and all its denizens - sentient or no - are all bound to the Force. Thus, it can never be too far to call upon in times of great need. My master believed it, and so do I."

[member="Shi-Yan Cala"]​

 

[Lief]

Shi-Yan bit her lip ever so slightly, but otherwise kept herself entirely composed throughout his series of questions. She knew that it was a possibility, that the usage of a lightsaber was no simple thing and it meant understanding what it was to take a life. And living with those implications. But she wasn't so sure she could answer his question just yet. She had never used her blade against another, only in training.

Thankfully his attention turned to other things.

Carefully she stepped toward him and knelt down a few feet from where he was sat, listening intently. Her newest hilts she settled at her side. She watched as he enjoyed the moment, the scent of the meadows and the blossoms of the trees. It made her smile, knowing that another found such serenity in their surroundings.

"Yes, Master Jedi, I have studied the Living Force."

She listened all the same, though, she was respectful after all.

"Are you going to be on Ossus for long, Master? There are many wonders to be found here."

[member="Thurion Heavenshield"]

 

[Thurion Heavenshield]

"I'm afraid I will only be staying here for the night," he replied. "I have a family waiting for me at home, and I'd rather not give my wife the headache of having to care for our boy on her own," he added with a chuckle. "He can be quite the handful, you see. Even for one so small..." A wide smile reaching from cheek to cheek appeared on his face at the thought of his son, so little yet so fierce. Like a lion cub with everything to prove.

Holding out his hand, the tree they were sat at began to shiver and shake its crown of leaves until fruits dropped from it. A miscalculation caused one of the fruits to fall on Thurion's head rather than into his hand, however, to which he let out a childlike "Ow!" before rubbing the top of his head with his other hand. It didn't take long for another fruit to drop into his hand, and he couldn't help but laugh at the turn of events. "Not the way I intended it, but hey - it worked, didn't it?"

Of course this scene mirrored that of him as a child after having received his first lessons in telekinesis, when he demonstrated his newfound talents to an equally young [member="Kära Vi'dreya"] in the gardens of the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. Polishing the piece of fruit against his sleeve, Thurion then happily took a bite of it. His expression soon turned sour, and he quickly spit it out on the ground beside him. "Those... are not edible."

[member="Shi-Yan Cala"]​