Time to Feel the Heat

[Gaia Sunaris Cadera]

Amaryllis stretched as a yawn escaped her lips. It was later mid-afternoon in the common area of the spaceship. Lunch had been delicious and filling. On the ground lay books upon books of galactic knowledge - things she needed to learn, things she had learned, and other things she knew but needed to refine. Indeed, she was filling herself up with knowledge.

But, she knew [member="Kahlil Zambrano"] wanted time to train her specifically with the Force thing and the subsequent lightsaber she had created. The gentle hum of the kybar crystal was calming, relaxing. Whether it was just in her head or not she wasn't sure. She eyed it for a moment as she placed the books onto a table that she had moved back against the wall. Long tail curled before uncurling.

In truth, she hadn't really been looking forward to Kahlil's teaching moment. Their last teaching moment, of course, had quite literally been him indirectly calling her a monster so. She wasn't sure if he still believed that, but Amaryllis remembered it very well. Vividly. It still ate at her, especially as he never even apologized.

What if that was the only reason he kept her around? Some beast to be tamed or some stupid? She hoped she had proved she wasn't just... An animal. Either way, she took a moment to breath as she sipped a glass of water. Wearing a simple outfit, she could only hope this would be over quickly.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Right. He still hadn't apologized. Kahlil hand't forgotten when he accidentally called [member="Amaryllis Tansea"] a monster. That's not what he had meant when he spoke to her about K3, but he hadn't had the chance to clear the air. No, he was nervous to. It had reached the point he simply couldn't put it off anymore, and he entered the training room. It wasn't hard to see where Amaryllis was, given how bright her colors were.

"You look uh.. Good." He mumbled, glancing away. Normal clothing suited her well. But if they were going to begin their training.. He sighed, then turned his gaze back to her. "Look, about before. I didn't mean you're a monster. You're not. I only meant that we, as Jedi, can be looked at with both awe and fear. We can do things people consider impossible, but I wasn't saying you yourself are a monster. I think you look really pretty, actually." Kahlil scratched his chin, glancing away after a moment.

"A.. Anyway. Let's get started on your training. I can't have you falling behind Kafh afterall."

 

[Gaia Sunaris Cadera]

Amaryllis and [member="Kahlil Zambrano"] didn't really have much words for each other since the incident. Mostly, it was awkward for him. And her feelings were hurt. Of course, the air wasn't even clear from K3 and @Thiavi. She didn't think Thiavi had tried to make the robot kill her, but she didn't really feel like Thiavi liked her all that much, if t all. Indeed, really, Kafh was the only one she felt like from the crew that actually liked her.

But did anyone, really? Her time outside of the jungle was making her feel more and more insecure about herself. Names ranging from thing, to it, to what, bounced around everywhere she went. Her eyes moved to the mirror that was built into the training room, her amber eyes briefly looking at the green, blue, and purple that was called her skin. She wasn't like others, it was true. Especially with this long freaking tail that dangled behind her. ... Maybe she wasn't meant to be in this kind of world.

She took a sigh, but perked a brow as Kahlil entered. Great, it was time. She moved to stand in front of him, meeting him half way. She looked good? She squinted, almost suspiciously for a moment. She listened as her amber eyes met his. And he explained himself. "R.. Really?" She asked after a moment, mostly focusing on his last comment. "It is okay," she said after a moment.

At least he was friendly, even if it was just a lie to make her feel better! "What do... What shall we do first?" She asked after a second, staring at the lightsaber then at Kahlil.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Well, at least [member="Amaryllis Tansea"] seemed to accept his apology. He sighed the weight off his shoulders. Last thing he wanted was for his Padawan's to resent him. Kahlil pulled out his own saber, lighting up the blade with a thumb of the button. "You know all the settings of your saber, correct? Before you were allowed to make it you had to after all." Right, even after getting the crystal Jedi didn't just immediately make a lightsaber. They had to know how it functioned, and how each piece interacted to make the weapon.

He turned down the setting for his weapon, nodding for the chameleon to do the same. "I'll be teaching you how to use it properly. Small drills, mostly to get you use to holding it. Now, don't forget this. That is not a weapon. To a Jedi, it is a shield, used to protect the innocent. You will never take a life, unless you have to to save another. Understood?"

 

[Gaia Sunaris Cadera]

She couldn't hold it against him. With his explanation, it made sense she guessed. He was trying to impart a lesson into her, and she took it the wrong way. Or, she could only hope that he was being honest in his apology. If he was just trying to make her feel better, or like in all those holotvs where they just say something to make the other person feel better...

Nonetheless, she gave a small nod. "I think so," she commented after a pause. She moved over, her tail uncurling as it stretched out. She reached down as she grabbed the handle of the lightsaber. She held it carefully as she moved towards him with it. "What if hungry? Hunt?" She asked, a slight tilt to her head. If she didn't have a knife or bow or... Shudder, a blaster, couldn't she at least feed herself?

But most importantly, "Can... You tell me example? How to choose one life over another?" She asked, her head tilting slightly. She turned her 'saber down to the training setting, that way no actual damage would happen.

[member="Kahlil Zambrano"]

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"There's no easy way to choose one life over another. All life is precious. Those we kill for food, we do so to survive. Not for sport. And when you have to choose, when there's no alternative? You'll have to go with your gut. What you believe is right. The easiest way to think of it is, if you didn't take this life, would someone else die? But even that can change from case to case." Kahlil turned his saber on, the blue blade erupting with a hum. He took a simple stance, holding the blade in both hands and spreading his feet evenly.

"None of that will matter if you don't know how to use your lightsaber however. Follow my lead, my example." He didn't want to dwell on philosophy for this lesson. That would come at another time when she, Kafh, and the others were all grouped together. Kahlil was a firm believer that no life should be taken unless all other options were exhausted. Though, it suddenly became clear to him that he wouldn't be able to teach [member="Amaryllis Tansea"] the same way he had been teaching Kafh. How much of basic did she still understand?

Instead, he'd have to teach her through action. Having lived where only actions mattered for eleven years, it had to be the right choice. For now, basic strikes. He took a step forward, bringing his saber down in a swift two handed strike, then back, then forward again but this time with a horizontal strike. "Feel the blade in your hand. There's little weight in the blade. You're not swinging the blade so much as angling the hilt with enough force. Understand?"

 

[Gaia Sunaris Cadera]

Amaryllis gave a small nod as she listened to [member="Kahlil Zambrano"] explain the answer to her question. He went further into detail than she expected, although a slight frown tugged on her lips. Not because she didn't agree with him, no. She fully hated taking lives, and ate reduced meat because of it. Most of her diet was fruits and vegetables, but she found herself too tired if she didn't eat meat too.

Something about protein, she had learned from one of her books. Energy building things in the body or whatever.

So she gave a smile and a nod as she stepped away from Kahlil. She followed his lead as she turned her own lightsaber on. It hummed, the light green color seemingly sparkling in the light. She stepped out of his way as he began to show her techniques.

She watched, her amber eyes intently staring at the Epicanthix. Angling the hilt? She bit her lip as she tried her dang hardest to understand what he meant. She had come a long way, in a short amount of time, but there were still plenty of words she hadn't gotten down. So, instead of acting like she knew, she simply repeated what he did.

A step forward. Bringing down the saber with her two green-blue-purple hands. She then did it backwards, forward again but horizontally. She wasn't quite sure if she did any of it right. "Too much..." She paused, trying to explain, "Weight on blade?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"More than you thought, right?" Kahlil watched [member="Amaryllis Tansea"] preform the moves. She was, at least, able to hold the weapon. But she'd have a way to go to master using the weapon. He pulled up his saber, holding it out horizontally in one hand. "It's surprising, given it's just energy. The hilt is it's counter weight, giving you balance. Make sense?" He'd have to go step by step to really explain it.

"Right, so." And that's exactly what he'd do. Step by step, the parts of the blade and how to use it, as best as he could explain to the Chameleon, about the various zones of the targets, and the basis of Lightsaber combat.

 

[Gaia Sunaris Cadera]

Amaryllis cracked a grin with a tiny nod. She was trying to relate it to knives that she had used to hunt or defend herself back on Akiva. There were some nasty animals, especially when she first began to use the Force, that she had to fight off. But she put a lot more force into her attacks with it, that was not required for the lightsaber.

She followed his guide. "Amazing," she whispered as she followed him step by step. Despite their cultural and language differences, the session seemed to go very well. Heck, she may even be able to use the lightsaber in her next fight. Maybe. If she even got around a fight, she had so far managed to avoid them. She particularly focused on these different 'zones' that he discussed.

Like hunting an animal, it was important to know the key spots to attack. She took a breath as she paused, "I hope I don't have to hurt people," she whispered with the realization of the power that came with the lightsaber.

[member="Kahlil Zambrano"]

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"I hope so too, honestly." Kahlil let out a breath. Thankfully, [member="Amaryllis Tansea"] had more combat experience then he expected. It wasn't that she wasn't good, she just didn't understand his words right away. Time was all they needed, which ended up with the lesson going rather well. They'd certainly end up doing more of these sessions as the days went on, but for today, it would be enough.

"Tomorrow I'll show you how to deflect blaster fire. It'll really help you protect life instead of taking it. Sound fair?"

 

[Gaia Sunaris Cadera]

Her eyes widened at the mention of blaster fire. One of her greatest fears... Amaryllis's skin crawled with the idea that she'd have to confront it, but she recognized that she'd need to learn. "Sounds fair," she confirmed with a nervous smile.

And man, did the next day come way quicker than she expected. Wearing a simple green dress (maybe that was too much green for one organism? Oh well, she found the fabric nice and unrestricting.) In the training room, Amaryllis held her lightsaber as she watched it flicker, hum, and shine. It was truly mesmerizing. She could only hope she wouldn't get distracted by it!

[member="Kahlil Zambrano"] would likely be there any moment to begin blaster fire deflection. That she wasn't ready for, but for now she turned off the lightsaber and placed it on the counter... Where it rolled off, behind the metal counter and got stuck in between it and the wall. Bending over the counter, she growled as she tried to reach it, her fingers barely touching it as her body was practically on top of the counter.

Ughhh.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Alright, you ready for the next lesso-" Kahlil paused his sentence as he entered the room, glancing over to [member="Amaryllis Tansea"] curiously. He coughed once as he turned his gaze away. "You.. Uh. Alright over there?" There were some things better not spoken aloud. Still he made his way to the center of the room like it was normal, dressed only in a pair of loose slacks as per his usual training.

Just go about the normal lesson. Only way to do it. What ever blush he had faded as he focused on the lesson. "Don't forget, you can use the Force to lift that. Or did you forget my first lesson already?"

 

[Gaia Sunaris Cadera]

Amaryllis nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard [member="Kahlil Zambrano"]. Bolting upright, her eyes wide for a moment as she let out a nervous laugh. "O-oh. Hi. Yes, this on- I was... Oh, right," she said after a moment. How dumb of her - she had even used the Force to get the last bit of shampoo out of the bottle that morning.

With the realization that she could just use the Force, she pulled it into her hands. Although, her eyes widened more at the realization that Kahlil was not wearing a shirt. Was he not supposed to be wearing a shirt? And why did she suddenly feel insanely nervous all of a sudden?

She gulped, happy that she was able to control her skin color at least enough to not let it burn bright red.

Definitely because she was nervous about the training. "So... Blaster... Deflection, training?"

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Yes, blaster deflection. We as Jedi are the only kind of people that can defend against blaster fire in an effective way. By using our lightsabers, we can protect ourselves and others from ranged attacks." Focus on the lesson. Kahlil waved his hand, calling over one of the small orb training droids to his palm. "You've trusted the Force for a majority of your life. You understand that you have to believe in it, listen. All you'll have to do is trust in the Force, and let your body act on it's own. Become it's conduit, let it flow through."

He tossed up the sphere, closing his eyes as the droid activated. Within moments it was floating around the young Knight, firing at random intervals. Kahlil whipped his weapon around, the blue blade catching every strike as his body twisted and turned. He was good at this, really good. This had become his life after joining the Jedi. After a minute he stopped the droid, letting out his breath.

"It looks easy, but that's only if you trust in the Force. You ready to give it a try?"

 

[Gaia Sunaris Cadera]

Amaryllis locked her hands behind her back as she tried to focus on what he was saying. Something about Jedi being the only ones who could protect themselves and others from the attacks of blasters - at least, the most effective. Her amber eyes tried to concentrate but would dip occassionally to his chest, where she had to take a moment to breath.

She gave a nod. She had trusted in it, even though she had never realized that it was that. She eyed the small training droid carefully - at least she knew what it would entail. Her instincts told her to hide, run, but instead she jumped up on the desk with crossed legs as she simply watched [member="Kahlil Zambrano"] do... Amazing things.

Two of Amara's worst fears, he just deflected so easily. Her mouth hanged open for a moment after it ended, her eyes wide with the light and colors and how he managed to do it.

When he asked if she wanted to have a try, she shook her head. "I trust, but... No, is very scary," she commented as she stared at the droid which both shot red bolts out of it and was a droid itself. "I... Maybe."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"Don't worry, the shots from the droid are little more then a poke if you can't deflect them. But that's the point of the training. You might need to defend yourself, and the real thing won't just be a slight sting." Right, [member="Amaryllis Tansea"] was horrified of both droids and blasters. He let out a sigh, rubbing the back of his head as he glanced her over. She had come a long way, but was it too much to have her face her fears?

"You don't have to if you don't feel ready. We can go through the same drills we did yesterday until you do."

 

[Gaia Sunaris Cadera]

Little more than a poke, alright. Her amber eyes stared at him for a moment, unsure of what she should exactly do. She took a deep breath. She needed to make herself useful, right? She couldn't always just be counted on as the cook, especially with some of the stuff they got themselves into.

"I will try, first," she said quietly as she took a deep breath and moved over. A purple finger turned her saber on, and assumed the same stance that he did before the little droid starting at him.

Visibly shaking, she closed her eyes and let the Force flow through her. Trust in it, like she had for so many years. Like what Kahlil said. She visibly jumped as the droid starting shooting the bolts at her, her body automatically reacting to deflect the bolts.

But when one missed her saber and landed on her right arm, any connection she had was over to the Force as she jumped away from the droid, practically stumbling back to [member="Kahlil Zambrano"], unable to quite catch her footing. Sure, it didn't really hurt but she hadn't expected it to sting that much.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

At least she'd try. That was as much as Kahlil could ask for. He watched [member="Amaryllis Tansea"] as she started to defend herself against the blasts, though her jumping from surprise didn't look good. "Stay calm. Trust in the Force, let your body react. You've got this." Encouraging words, though when one of the shots did hit her it seemed to break her concentration completely.

He caught her as she stumbled back into him. "You alright?" His voice was filled with concern as he glanced down at he. Sure, the shot wouldn't actually do any damage, but she was scared of it for a reason. "You did really well for facing your fear you know." Once he was sure she was okay he'd smile, nodding once. "It's difficult, but I'm sure you'll get a hang of this soon."

 

[Gaia Sunaris Cadera]

Amaryllis did try. In fact, she tried her best - or at least she thought she did. Right? She had confronted two of the things that scared her the most and lived through it. Granted, this wasn't a life or death situation at all. It was just a training exercise. And she had failed it, despite it going okay at first.

Well, she felt his hands grab hold of her arms, which helped stabilize her. Long tail had barely managed to avoid running straight into him. She looked down, somewhat ashamed. "Y-yes, I am," she mumbled quietly. She was perfectly fine. Not even a bruise showed up.

Stepping away from him, she gave a small nod but refused to make eye contact. "Thanks," she said quietly as she crossed her arms and rubbed them. "I almost useless. Cannot just cook all the time," she said more quietly, somewhat confessing her fears to him. Indeed, she just didn't want to be a drain on the group - especially considering how she was catching up on 11 years worth of information alongside her training.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

Ah, so that's why she was pushing herself. Kahlil chuckled as he shook his head. [member="Amaryllis Tansea"] really thought she was useless, even after what she had done with that rancor on Felucia? He couldn't help but laugh. He reached out, gently patting her head with one hand as the other raised a thumbs up. "You're far from useless. You might not be able to handle blasters, but you handled Brutus nice and easy didn't you? If it wasn't for you, we'd of had to fight him and the slavers."

One more shake of his head, then he stepped back and to the center of the room. "We all have our own strengths and weaknesses. When we work together, we overcome those weaknesses and become that much stronger for it. We'll switch gears, get you use to at least this kind of combat so you can defend yourself if someone with a lightsaber comes after you. Sound fair?"