When blades clash and sparks fly (PM to join unless tagged)

[Celiana]

Gritting my teeth at Andorreth mentioning Tomias and Selena. I simply inhaled and then exhaled again calming myself before addressing his questions. "Aye, I'm the reason Tomias ceased his activities of Coruscant. As for being nobility....also true, though I gave that up when I left to live on Coruscant after about a year though I decided on a more....exotic lifestyle. Nomadic even, I certainly lived that way while serving with Mandalorians. We had few luxuries, fewer possessions. Going back to Tomias though, he was involved in some incredibly dark things that I didn't happen to agree with and even with that I had help. I understand you were all on the run from Evil Corp hit squads on Nar Shadaa... I may have a friend that can help you resolve those problems. Though we'll discuss more on that later I'm curious about your female friend though..."

"Jae was it? You seem to carry yourself with a different walk since I ran into you last on Nar Shadaa, don't suppose you and Andorreth have done any sparring recently? You carry yourself now with the poise of someone who has handled a blade...I'd be interested to see you two spar and perhaps spar against you myself if you wouldn't mind terribly. I mean we are all heading to a dojo anyways I'd hate to have yu simply sit and twiddle your thumbs..."

[member="Andorreth Vikar"] - @Jae Jordan

 

[Jae Jordan]

Jae was too busy admiring the scenery around them to worry too much about what Celiana and Andorreth were conversing about, she picked up on one or two things though she couldn't say she was paying 100% attention. However she perked up a little upon hearing her name and turned to face Celiana, directing her attention off of the scenery and towards her.

She nodded in response when she asked if her name was Jae, remembering correctly. She looked over herself as Celiana said that she carried herself with a different walk and quickly realised it wasn't something that she herself could see by simply looking at herself. She straightened back up half awkwardly as she realised what she'd just done was fairly stupid. She glanced at Andorreth before answering her question, "Yeh, Andorreth showed me a thing or two with blades, and we sparred." She left it at that knowing not to further explain what happened after that. "He also won." She said with a smile at the end. She considered the proposal Celiana offered, of sparring against her. She shrugged and turned to look back her, "Challenge accepted, I'll spar against you." She replied with a gentle smile, she didn't want to come off too cocky as she knew who had more skill and the advantage in this situation. The odds were extremely against her, but that had never stopped Jae before. And although defeat was basically inevitably from her position she didn't shy away from a challenge.

If anything this experience would merely be like more training, she'd be exposed to moves used by those other than Andorreth and she'd get more time using a blade and hopefully hone her skills a little more.

[member="Andorreth Vikar"] | [member="Celiana"]

 

[Andorreth Vikar]

Smiling at Jae's version what had happened I almost laughed when she said I'd won. I'd definitely beaten her at the duel but it'd been what'd happened after the duel that I called a win. I wondered if Celiana would choose unarmed or armed combat against Jae...and then realized that I would have to spar against both Jae and Celiana. Odds were Celiana would choose to fight against Jae and then have both her and Jae face-off against me. Two opponents at once wasn't going to be fun, especially since Celiana was going to essentially be training Jae too. Osik, that wouldn't be fun.....

Suddenly I had a flash of memory, the duel I'd fought against Celiana via the training module. When she'd planted the spear she made herself vulnerable . A single swift kick to the shaft of the spear would've thrown her balance just enough to where she'd have fallen. Had that happened it'd have presented me enough time to slap the spear away from her hands. I heard a voice that said "use this knowledge to your advantage Andorreth..." Then jerking back to the present I looked around and was unsettled to say the least. Neither Jae or Celiana had said anything to me so that meant.....The Force. The Force had told me how to possibly beat Celiana...what in the name of the goddesses? Anyways I'd do well to pay attention to anything The Force of all things told me. Looking towards Jae I said "So we're back at it again with blades huh Jae? Who knows maybe we'll have some sparks fly like last time.....?"

[member="Jae Jordan "]- @Celiana

 

[Jae Jordan]

She noticed Andorreth lag behind only slightly, she looked back and saw him wearing an expression somewhere in the middle of confusion and shock. She tilted her head slightly, "You alright Andorreth?" She asked, genuinely concerned as he looked like he'd seen a ghost.

She laughed lightly at his comment on sparks flying, "Yeh, who knows what'll happen..." She left it at that thinking she had a pretty good at idea and what Andorreth was alluding to. She smirked at him though before continuing to speak, "Don't get too ahead of yourself though.." She warned before glancing over at Celiana and back at him once again, "Celiana here is gonna teach me all the cool moves, so watch out." She added playfully, she knew she was way too inexperienced for anything that would be able to take out Andorreth in a duel, it'd be a while before she could hold her own ground decently in a duel with him and even longer to actually succeed in beating him.

She honestly did want to get better and hone her skill of utilising a blade, not only did she find it an interesting and honestly a quite pleasing and appealing battle style she wanted to pursue something other than a blaster, there was only so much a good shot could get her and she felt as though she needed to expand her skill set. She found this was a great opportunity as she had two more than capable blade wielders her to help aid her.

[member="Andorreth Vikar"] | [member="Celiana"]

 

[Andorreth Vikar]

Smiling at Jae as she mentioned Celiana teaching her all the cool tricks and how I should watch out I chuckled a bit and looked towards Celiana. Looking towards her I said "So Celiana blades first then what? I mean I'm guessing you're not going to be using live steel against me if you're training me but I could be wrong..." I wondered if Celiana would have us duel with live steel but I somehow doubted that, though to earn Tamerlein it'd make sense. Hopefully Celiana would go easier on Jae as she was just starting out with a blade...

I noticed how Jae had playfully said yeah who know what'll happen. Smirking I looked ahead of us and saw the dojo, cherry wood exterior and a training ring outside. I'd venture a guess that Celiana had been trained here too once upon a time, though I also wondered if her Master was here as there were likely living quarters somewhere on site. In any case I waited for Celiana's response to my question about bladework training.

[member="Jae Jordan "]- [member="Celiana"]

 

[Celiana]

The banter between the two of them hadn't escaped my attention there was a relationship there. I could have guessed by the body language alone but the banter between the two had basically spelled it out to me explicitly. Not that there was a problem with it, it was nice to see love blossoming in these dark times. Andorreth asked about bladework and if we'd be using live steel. Smiling as he'd asked about that I simply led the way into the dojo. "Andorreth, you came to me for experience with a blade. More than that though you came to earn the right to wield Tamerlein youself."

"In regards to using live steel....yes, you and I will be using live steel blades meaning two things. Severe injuries can occur, as a result we have a medical droid on site and I also have both bacta and kolto in case of injuries. That being said....Jae won't be using live steel against me. Not that I don't think she could mind you, but rather she doesn't have the needed experience to face me with live steel. You do, I've observed you through The Force or rather someone very close to me has. She'll be overseeing my training of you and Jae. She was very impressed with your skills and I bend my knee to her expertise."

"One more thing before we begin Andorreth, I've told you of my past at least in part. And you know of my current status as a Jedi Knight of The Silver Order, so in addition to training you in the blade I give you my word of honor that upon the completion of your training under me that I will give you a copy of my library in the form of a holocron. More than anything though the knowledge inside will help you along in your walk with The Force. Also there is one technique that I will teach you upon completion of your training but it will require you to be on the end of some intense pain. I can promise that it is something incredibly elegant if that makes any difference. Also there is some information about Tamerlein you will be told upon the end of your training, it might be painful to hear but I think you'll understand why the blades we hold returned to the people they chose."

"So with that explained are you ready to begin Andorreth? I promise no easy solutions but I do promise to make you even sharper with blades than you are. Along with my knowledge I feel you can go even farther than you dreamed of." With that I drew Tamerlein and ejected the blade from my left beskar gauntlet. Then I waited his move would be the first and I would react accordingly...

[member="Andorreth Vikar"] - @Jae Jordan

 

[Andorreth Vikar]

Osik! I wasn't counting on using live steel...Though I was curious about the holocron and the power Celiana would teach me, not to mention what she had to say about Tamerlien's history. While I wasn't a fan of feeling the bite of steel against me I wasn't gonna back down either. Reaching over to my left hip I drew Serenity from its sheathe and spun it briefly before moving into range against Celiana resting my blade against hers. I inclined my head slightly then slapped her blade away while drawing what had been my brothers blade from the inverted sheathe on my back. I'd noticed the hidden blade she'd ejected and made sure to keep it in mind as I dueled against her the thing was that the hidden blade she had was activated by The Force. Meaning that it could be re-sheathed and re-opened at will...

Fierfeck'la osik. Darting forward I performed a quick three strike with Serenity, right back-hand slash, left shoulder to hip slash, then right horizontal slash across the waistline. Using the short blade I blocked several strikes of hers while looking over towards Jae. Winking at Jae I waited for Celiana's counter-attack.

[member="Jae Jordan "]- @Celiana

 

[Jae Jordan]

Jae continued to walk along with the two of them and started to pay more attention when the two of them began to converse about using live steel blades or not. The idea of live steel didn't mean anything to Jae at the time, though when Celiana listed the risks that came from training with live steel, one being severe injuries, she didn't like the sound of live steel in the slightest. She had no doubt Andorreth could hold his own in a duel, that was evident from her own training with him. Though she had to take into account that his duellist was someone who was very experienced in bladework and would not shy away from going all out.

When Celiana began to speak about Jae and not using live steel, she let go of a breath she didn't even realise she was holding at the time. Jae loved a challenge, but she also knew her limits and although she frequently liked to push and challenge those limits there were particular things Jae knew would be best to take at a somewhat slower pace. "Thank the stars. Live steel sounds cool and all, but I'll stick to wooden blades for the time being I think."

She walked up until the trio had reached the training ring that laid outside the wooden dojo. Jae looked around and turned in a circle slowly, simply taking in the exterior of the dojo and her surroundings. She turned back around when she heard Celiana readying for battle against Andorreth. She still didn't like the idea of live steel and couldn't help the uncertain feeling in her stomach. She opened her mouth to protest a little and somewhat prolong the duel but before she could she watched as Andorreth walked into the ring and unsheathed his own blade. Noticing the look of determination within his eyes she decided to keep quiet, knowing he was set on the challenge that was presented in front of him.

The match had only just begun but she couldn't help but jump slightly every now and then, only to relax when she saw that he'd blocked her strikes. Her brows arched in concern as she watched him duel against Celiana. She saw him wink at her and smiled back at him, giving her the impression that he had things under control which made her feel a heap better from the sidelines.

[member="Andorreth Vikar"] | [member="Celiana"]

 

[Celiana]

As soon as I saw Andorreth wink at Jae I shook my head and dropping Tamerlein from my right hand to my left I gave a quick slash across his ribs towards the v of his abs. Spinning back away from him I said "I get it Andorreth, she's cute keep your attention here." Doing a quick spin away from him I did a quick two-step and jumped stabbing towards his shoulder and chest. I pulled the strike so as not to impale him through the chest. Hopefully he'd begin paying better attention to this duel as it was he had high potential but needed discpline...

[member="Andorreth Vikar"] - @Jae Jordan

 

[Andorreth Vikar]

As I'd winked at Jae I'd caught a blur of movement then felt sharp pain from my left side dragging down to the v of my abs. Then Celiana darted back away and told me to pay attention. Grimacing in pain as I glanced down to my ribs I saw a thin line of crimson from the lower left side of my ribs to the v of my abs. Then I caught a flicker of movement as Celiana went airborne and there was a quick two stabs as she was airborne. In a flicker of movement I blocked the two strikes and while she was still airborne and coming down I darted forward and kicked out with a hook-kick I caught her calf and saw her hit the ground. As she hit she rotated her hips and went into a roll with a slash towards my legs.

Darting to the side as she moved towards me I moved to the side and behind her as she finished her movement. Inverting my blades I crossed them across her throat and said "Dead. No offense Master but I planned to take the hit. I was paying attention and chose the hit to win the match. Though I have the feeling you were holding back on me and wanted to gauge my skills." Looking back towards Jae with my blades still crossed against Celiana's throat I winked at her again. I had the feeling that next Celiana would either pair me against Jae or go against Jae herself...

[member="Jae Jordan "]- [member="Celiana"]

 

[Jae Jordan]

Jae gasped lightly as Celiana took her open shot and slashed Andorreth across his ribs, hearing Celiana telling him to pay attention to the duel she took a step back as she continued to watch the pair spar. From the sidelines she took this as an opportunity to not only see the two of them spar against each other but to also work on her own response time. She herself found it difficult the keep up with each of their own moves, she watched both of them and in her mind tried to think of a counter attack to work against her opponent, nine times out of ten she was too slow, and if in a real battle, she'd be dead by now.

Soon enough she noticed Andorreth had won the duel and locked Celiana between his two blades. She nodded slowly to herself, impressed with how quickly and swiftly Andorreth had ended the duel between them. She caught him winking at her once again and smiled as she started to walk forward. Leaning on the ring around the area she said, "You ok?" Gesturing towards his rib area, where the slash was. She couldn't tell how bad the wound was from where she was standing, though bad or not, it would need patching up.

Jae got a little nervous as the thought of duelling against Celiana played over in her mind, she assumed, and hoped, she'd go easier on her considering the level of skill that was within her. Though that still wouldn't put a stop to the nervous thought lingering in the back of her mind. She barley held her own against Andorreth and was only just keeping up. Only time would tell how she fared against Celiana.

[member="Andorreth Vikar"] | [member="Celiana"]

 

[Andorreth Vikar]

Celiana stopped and said "Well done Andorreth, you are correct though. I was holding back. Though I still wasn't holding back fully. You won that duel on your own." With that she sheathed Tamerlein and simply pointed to the med-kit on the wall. Jae asked if I was ok and smiling I said "It'd take more than this to keep me down. Not gonna patch it though, scars remind you of the fact there's always someone better. Besides I've been told that women dig scars." Re-sheathing my blades I bowed to Celiana and headed over to the med-kit to simply clean out the cut.

Glancing back over towards Celiana I noticed she was grabbing several different training blades made of hardwood. I could tell that Jae was nervous about facing Celiana but I knew that she'd be easier on Jae than me. More for the fact that she'd just started with blades than the fact she was a woman. Plus Celiana would likely start with basics then have Jae repeat them until it was instinctual. As I cleaned out the the cut I simply pulled my shirt off and tossed the shredded shirt in a rubbish bin then headed to another section of the mat to work on unarmed combat forms.

Then Celiana said "Jae, time to begin meet me over in the training ring when you're done there." Well now it was Jae's turn I had high hopes of my own for her training. I was curious to see how she'd fare, personally I thought she'd do well but I guess I'd see...

[member="Jae Jordan "] - [member="Celiana"]

 

[Jae Jordan]

She was relieved when she saw that the gash wasn't a huge one at all, though she smiled and rolled her eyes in a playful manner when she heard Andorreth talk about women digging scars. "Well.. you're not incorrect." She mumbled to herself. She watched him as he took his shirt off and continued with his own private training.

Only when Celiana's voice knocked her out of her own head space did she return to reality. She looked over in her direction and had noticed that she'd gone ahead and grabbed a series of wooden training blades. Jae exhaled once before taking her scarf and jacket off, leaving them on the rim of the training ring. She continued to tell herself to simply do what she'd done while sparring with Andorreth and simply stay focused and react. She already learnt from her mistakes and what not to do during a duel thanks to her session with Andorreth, her footing was her down fall last time, well, one downfall that lead to her defeat. As long as she could keep that under control she had high hopes that she'd last a decent amount of time, though maybe not attacking as much as she should she'd technically still be 'alive'.

She reached Celiana and stood in front of her, nervousness would have been more evident in her body language if it weren't for her confidence in the matter that seemed to negate the increasingly uneasy feeling that came over her. She smiled though, despite her current state, "Promise you'll go easy?" She offered with a half smile, an eyebrow quirking up slightly towards the end of her question.

[member="Andorreth Vikar"] | [member="Celiana"]

 

[Celiana]

Smiling as I heard Jae say that Andorreth wasn't wrong about women liking a guy with scars I waited for her to rejoin me out by the training ring. She asked me to promise that I'd go easy on her and laughing lightly I said "Yeah, there's no chance in hell of that. However we'll start with a longsword and knife combo and go slow. In the words of my instructor slow is smooth and smooth is fast." Handing Jae the longsword with a crossguard I flicked the hardwood curved knife around and showed her the finger hole where she could put a finger through to more securely hold it. "The hole for your finger isn't a guaranteed way to keep a hold of it but it gives you better grip and more leverage for strikes. Odds are because you're a woman most being in the galaxy won't think you a threat which plays to your advantage more than anything it make you dangerous to anyone who poses a threat to you or those you care about."

"There are plenty of places and ways to hide small bladed weapons. You saw me use the wrist blade against Andorreth I'm guessing? That's an example, dresses can hide small knives along the upper thigh, in heels, and even in your hair with small needle throwing knives. Most men see what they want to and not what they should namely how dangerous we as women can be. Now we'll start with a longsword and knife. The sword is to be used for creating openings for you to get in close and use the knife. Think quick cuts in vital places and use that." Bowing to Jae I spun the wooden longsword out and away from my body and flicked the karambit knife around to hook my thumb in the hole in an inverted position. Waiting for Jae to make the first move I flicked my gaze over to Andorreth, I could see why she found him so attractive and blinked a few times as I realized he was going through a VERY specific set of combat forms. Echani forms of the advanced variety....I'd have to see how much he knew later because that wasn't normal. Not many knew the martial forms of my people let alone the advanced forms without prior training....

[member="Jae Jordan "] - [member="Andorreth Vikar"]

 

[Jae Jordan]

Jae's shoulders dropped immediately after Celiana announced there'd be no chance of her going easy. As she listened to her explaining they'd start with a long sword and knife combo, she had to admit she didn't completely know what that meant, only, that it involved a long sword and knife. Oh well, she'd learn soon enough. She pondered over the words Celianas instructor had given her and thinking about it for a second or two she shrugged in agreement deeming it made sense to her. She took the long sword though payed more attention to the knife and the finger hole it came with, not seeing one before she found it amused and fascinated her for a short while before slipping a finger through and playing around with it briefly, getting a feel for the weapon. She took in what Celiana was saying and prepared herself for the duel.

Jae nodded in response to her question about seeing her use the wrist blade, which was quite fun to watch she had to admit. Hearing what each weapon was used for she repeated Celianas words in her own head to remember the purpose of each weapon and would try to use that in the duel she was about to enter.

She watched her bow and did the same in return. Knowing that Celiana was awaiting her to make the first move, she could feel her heart pounding soft but quick beats. She exhaled again, agreeing with herself to not think TOO much, and just react, keeping in mind the purposes of each weapon. If she kept that in mind and utilised that knowledge to the fullest she may have a chance in this duel, only time would tell...

Taking a couple quick steps forward and to the side slightly she struck forward with the long sword, keeping the knife close to herself knowing if she saw an opening to strike with the knife, she'd need to take it and wouldn't have time to think about it.

[member="Andorreth Vikar"] | [member="Celiana"]

 

[Celiana]

Smiling as I saw Jae's shoulder drop I watched her take a quick two-step towards me and then strike out with the longsword. Rather than move away from her strike I moved into range and blocked it. "Move into range with the first strike Jae, then follow up with a slash or strike with the knife like so." With my explanation done I demonstrated with the longsword against her blade and smoothly pushed it out of the way while smoothly slashing from her left hip to her midriff, Following the first strike I gently stabbed at her belly, then switching the grip on the knife by flicking it around I continued the slash from her belly to her upper thigh.

"Right now we're simply working on the repetition so you can get a feel for the movements. If you can track my movements then you can repeat them. This isn't sparring as much as it's training your body to respond Jae, once you've got that down we'll start moving quicker. Remember slow is smooth and smooth is fast Jae."

@Jae Jordan

 

[Andorreth Vikar]

Smiling as I watched Celiana instruct Jae I went on with my combat forms. I'd caught the look Celiana had given me when I'd started my forms, she recognized the fact I knew advanced Echani combat techniques. This would allow for several interesting things to happen now, odds were that she'd want to know where or who I learned from. In all honesty most I'd learned from my brother who'd been a soldier for Corellia. He'd started me out and expected me to continue learning on my own and I had, now with Celiana's help I could actually stand against Five and be able to win against him.

Clearing my head I continued going through the forms moving into more and more complicated and brutal techniques. I had a good feeling that Jae would be able to hold her own with blades after training with Celiana, not to mention she'd be able to spar against and beat me occasionally. I wondered what I'd be working on next with Celiana, as it was I'd beat her once already even if she had been holding back. I felt like she'd begin going even harder against me now but if it got me to be able to fight and beat Five the scars, bleeding and bruises would be worth it. I also wondered where Celiana's Master was.....Odds were though that she'd show up sooner rather than later....

[member="Jae Jordan "]- [member="Celiana"]

 

[Jae Jordan]

As Celiana struck at her, between her hips and midriff, she could feel her heart rate pick up a beat or two. Despite her knowing the weapons were merely wooden and hardly dangerous the sudden shock of being 'attacked' still got to her and she began to get mad at herself for leaving herself so foolishly open for attack. She knew she wasn't great with swords, at least not of yet, but leaving yourself open was the number one thing not to do, sword bearer or not. Though she knew getting frustrated with herself was only going to lead to one thing and that was going to be her defeat, she needed to let go of the error she'd just made and stay in the moment, reacting to Celiana's every move as best she could.

Taking in what Celiana said, she agreed that simply repeating Celiana's movements would be a great place to begin rather than acting off impulse which was, more times than not, incorrect. Remembering how she;d moved earlier before striking at her she did her best to imitate the movement as close to the original. Taking a couple steps inwards and closing the distance she brought her longsword upwards attempting to moved Celiana's weapon aside and once she'd managed to do that, she spun her body around only slightly and using the momentum she brought the knife close to her and managed to land a strike across Celiana's belly, a quick and short strike before she attempted to get back out of range for a counter attack.

[member="Andorreth Vikar"] | @Celiana

 

[Celiana]

Watching as Jae took the first strike across her belly I waited. Doing so was not a mistake either, I was pleasantly surprised when she mirrored my movements and after a quick two-step towards me she used her sword to push mine aside. Next thing I felt was the knife she held rake across my toned tummy. Following this she spun away in another smooth movement, smiling at her success I said "Well done Jae! That was nicely executed and the spin into range and back away was a nice touch too. It seems that you do in fact have a talent for this...."

Looking at Jae I flicked my eyes over to Andorreth and froze. I'd been wondering when Akira would show up....Well at the very least I knew she wouldn't simply show up to cause problems. At least I didn't think she would then again this was Akira I was talking about... Flicking my focus back to Jae I nearly missed another series of strikes from Jae. Blocking the first few strikes I blinked a few times in surprise as I felt three quick strikes against my toned tummy. Spinning back into a defensive stance I watched as Jae came back out of a roll. "Well, well Jae...seems you truly do have talent for this. It also seems that you've reminded me that even assassins need to keep focused, lest we become surprised...."

Looking at Jae I shot her a quick wink and waited for the next series of strikes. This was getting interesting to say the least....

[member="Jae Jordan "]- [member="Andorreth Vikar"]

 

[Jae Jordan]

Upon hearing the compliment and positive feedback Jae instantly smiled, feeling as though she had finally achieved something that wasn't simply from pure luck or a fluke. She'd actually taken the time to think about her next move and executed it quite well, even she had to admit, she was quite impressed with herself. But the duel was far from over yet, and she needed to keep her head in the duel and not get distracted or carried away with the minor victories. "Really only just watching the best and learning." She responded referring to both herself and Andorreth, the two of them were really the only training she'd ever had and given the current stage she was at in her bladework was all due to the two of them.

She watched Celiana and noticed her drift out of focus, not completely, though it as evident her full attention was not on the duel that was taking place at the current time. She debated whether to await for Celiana to focus her attention back to the match or take this opportunity to attack once again. Deciding on the latter she stepped in forward again, striking, despite Celiana managing to block the first few, Jae landed the last three perfectly. After the strike she made it her goal to get out of range, rolling away and getting back up to her feet once again. She was beginning to feel more and more confident in bladework as she continued to hold her ground during this duel, "What can I say, guess I'm just a fast learner." She replied in a joking manner, perhaps now she was getting a bit cocky.

She pulled her weapons close to her before making a quick step forward and rolling, ending up behind Celiana by the end of it. Rising to her feet she held the long sword near her in order to block anything and took a strike at her back with the knife, afterwards, getting down low and sweeping her leg around in the hopes of tripping Celiana up...though the thought of her getting a bit too cock sure of herself lingered in her mind throughout the entire moment.

[member="Andorreth Vikar"] | [member="Celiana"]