Passive/Change (Dee)

[Apillis]

As the few weeks had past since Jia had become Rin's apprentice, the young Jedi Watchman begun finding herself a bit more talkative than she ever had to be in the past. Not that that is some sort of surprise, after all, she has to teach her Padawan somehow. But, it was more than mere duty as a teacher, and that is what she found odd, for she is far from an innately social person. Furthermore, it lead her to learn just how far away she from the hardlining orthodox Jedi of the Order as she learned more about Jia's former master and his points of view. His teachings to her and his ideals came off strongly to her as the mainlining traditional Jedi Masters of the Order stuck in ancient stodgy ways -- unwavering and unflexible.

Much of what she taught in regards to the Jedi teachings was almost an invective both for and against progressivism and traditionalism of the teachings themselves. Her attempt was to convey both were right and wrong by simultaneously denouncing either thus by proxy simultaneously promoting either -- as one was waylayed with a heavy handed diatribe the other was promoted and vice versa, and for Jia herself to pick up and utilized what she felt was best. One thing that had always got under her skin within the Jedi Order was the belief that there is only one right way to follow the Jedi Code, or only one proper method as to how to utilize the Force, and the black and white mentality that it was often believed that needs to be adhered to in order for one to truly call themselves Jedi. Just as one does not need to be Jedi to understand the Force, one does not need to adhere to one singular understanding of the Jedi Code to be Jedi.

In some ways she found herself echoing the Aing-Tii in their definition of the Force as appearing more like a rainbow than simple light and dark. Light and dark after all can be composed of more than just black and white, or even the bland shade of grey. As examples, she would often speak of the dark side within everyone as being of different shades, and when utilizing Force Sight such an understanding can be understood not in just the metaphorical but the metaphysical as well. Her own inner-darkness she described as being ranging shades of red to dark violet. Defining red as passion, desire, rage, and envy -- the dark shades of violet being pride, stoicism, detachment. If one looks deep enough they can see what composes their own inner-darkness as well.

The dark side is a wholly natural thing within the Force and all life, it is fear, anger, aggression, lust, and envy. The natural primal emotions found within all life, as it is the "gift" from the dark to all things. Jedi on the other hand generate their own light within themselves to conquer their darkness from overwhelming them. It boiling down to shall one be a master or a slave to it and to themselves. A Jedi can create their inner-light with compassion, serenity, balance, and self-control; and this can stave off the darkness that lowers one to a base beast and slave of the dark side. It is a firm belief and personal truth to Rin that the dark side is not inherently evil, for it is a natural product for both the Force and life itself as the Force is connected to all life and it is called the "Dark side" for a reason -- obviously for it being the other half of the Force itself. As the Force touches upon and sustains all life, it is both the light and darkness of the Force that is both touching upon it and sustaining it. To deny the dark side as an unnatural thing, is to deny part of one's self and all life as an unnatural thing, and to do that is a major folly.

But, continually as Rin would preach her own points of view, philosophies, and what she was gradually beginning to compose into her own teachings -- she was always quick to note to Jia that they were her own personal truths, and whether Jia agreed with them and/or chose to follow them as well was on her. It is Rin's ultimate goal to enable Jia to compile her own understanding of the Jedi way, and compose her own belief structure within it as Jia was now within her last remaining years of apprenticeship. After all, it is Rin's desire for Jia to shape herself into the Jedi Knight that she wants to be, rather than what some stodgy old Jedi Master wants her to be or even Rin herself.

Outside of such philosophical and metaphysical teachings, most of their time was spent among the Miraluka themselves on Alpheridies -- more specifically the Culu Memorial Center and Luka Sene. Rin gave Jia the old pair of goggles that she used to wear when was a Padawan attending the Culu Memorial Center until she at last learned to utilize Force Sight. Otherwise the Abron system's red sun is a harsh thing for the eyes to bear. Much of what Rin did was simple observation, for it is an odd circumstance when she feels the need to step into to meddle with the Miraluka Council's governing affairs for such a generally peaceful people and society. Most times it was simply her desire to remain unintrusive and merely keep up with current affairs.

She did, however, the very first day they arrived upon Alpheridies and went to the Culu Memorial Center, is go to the Jedi artisan's lab -- and have Jia pick out a lightsaber crystal. At which point, all Rin told her is, "Build it.", and while it may have seemed unceremonious, she expounded upon the point of view that how special or unique or "ceremonious" it is or can be is dependent upon the one doing the building. Even pointing out as an example many biologists do not bother to go out to grand locations to discover new wonders of life, they will often just walk out into their own backyard garden and find hundreds.

Albeit, when their duties upon Alpheridies were done for the day, like at this moment in time, they returned to the Vigil, and flew out of the planet's atmosphere only to drift in its orbit. Rin did this primarily to grant herself some peace from constantly being placed into social situations beyond her control, and for the fact Jia does not possess the Force Sight ability thus to constantly wearing goggles or some other protective eye-wear so her eyes are not damaged by Alpheridies' red sun would be encumbersome and irritating to the young Jedi.

Aboard the Vigil itself, Rin often walked around its halls in little more than a dark grey undergarment tank top and shorts. Most of her time she spent simply sitting in the pilot's seat and staring off into the scenery of Alpheridies' grand horizon with the unending void beyond it as the planet orbited it is bright red sun. In many ways her quiet contemplation was more not knowing precisely what to do with herself in these silent moments to herself. Thought subdued into stillness, and inactivity was driven by utter uncertainty with the realization of her seldom if ever possessing the answer of what to do with herself; and the feeling of insecurity if she is doing right by Jia...

[Dee]

It had been a strange past few weeks for Jia. There were a lot of new things she needed to learn to adapt to. Most of them were not entirely difficult and would just take time for her to get used to.

She had taken well to her new responsibilities under Rin on Alpheridies, though granted, there had not been much for them to do since they arrived other than observe. She wondered what eventually was going to happen that required them to act. For now though, she was fine with watching and learning how the Miraluka lived and functioned as a society. The planet itself was an interesting change of scenery for her, after having spent most of her life on Coruscant. The goggles she had to wear while they were on the surface were a pain but considering that the alternative was to slowly go blind, she wore them without much outward complaint.

She thought it would have been harder to get used to the idea of essentially living aboard a ship, but she had gotten used to it rather quickly. Likely due to her own efforts, as she spent the first few days of the initial trip to Alpheridies exploring Vigil, and getting to know every corner of the ship. Not only had it satisfied her curiosity, but it allowed her to feel more familiar and comfortable with her new surroundings.

The hardest thing for her to try to get used to though, was just how different Rin's teachings were from Qi's. They had completely different views on most things and Jia felt her mind being tugged in two different directions. It was... difficult. Many of the things Qi had taught her over the years about the light and the dark side and what it meant to be a 'good' Jedi, Rin seemed to completely throw out the window. It was a lot to take in.

What she struggled with most so far was Rin's views of the dark side. It was a point of view she had never heard before. It had always been so simple to understand before. The dark side was corrupted, crude. It destroyed the balance of the Force and left only chaos and suffering in its wake. It was evil and it was the duty of a Jedi to protect themselves and others from it. It was what she had been taught for most of her life, and what she had come to believe. Now she was being given this opposing opinion that there was nothing evil about the dark side in its most base form. It wasn't naturally corrupting, it was just an opposing force to the light, keeping the Force in balance. According to what she was being told, the very thing that she had always believed to destroy balance was actually necessary for true balance.

The thoughts weighed heavily on her mind and she had a lot of questions, and rarely could find the answers. Rin told her often that it was up to her to figure out what she personally believed. Truthfully, that didn't help as much as it was maybe intended to. For so long she had been taught not to stray from what she was told. Now with these differing thoughts bouncing around in her head, she wasn't sure what she believed or how to interpret the knowledge she was being given. She had been unable to come to some kind of conclusion in her mind about what she felt was more truthful.

She could have spent many long hours pondering these things, but most of the time she had was spent constructing her lightsaber, which she had been doing for the past few weeks. "Build it" was the only thing she had been told regarding it, and so she did. Rin had rarely brought it up again since.

Picking a crystal had been difficult for her. She had tried very hard to pick one that she felt she could connect with. Even after she finally decided on one the first time, she ended up changing her mind and replacing it only a few days later. The second one she felt more comfortable with and it was the one she had kept. It was a blue crystal apparently found on Hoth, called a permafrost crystal. Supposedly when ignited a lightsaber using the crystal would produce an icy blue colored blade, but she had yet to see it first-hand.

She split her time between constructing the hilt itself and on meditating over the crystal. She had created the hilt entirely with the use of her telekinetic abilities, only ever physically picking it up to check if it felt right in her hand. In a way it was like a further test she was giving herself to further hone her skills. Building the hilt and doing it right was a very precise action and she had to redo parts of it many times. It took a while.

She knew of the tradition many padawans followed of creating one that resembled their master's. Though she had been unsure about following it considering her situation, she eventually went with it, deciding to do so as a show of respect for her new master even despite their short time together. As such, the patterns upon her's looked somewhat similar to the ones on Rin's, though she had done much more than simply copy them; it had its own unique style as well, especially concerning the actual physical build. It was a single bladed weapon and the shape itself was suited to her and her smaller hands, and focus on quick movements. It was clearly her own creation, no where near a complete copy, but the resemblance could be seen. It was, she thought, a good balance of originality and respectful mimicry.

That had actually been the easier part. The hilt was completed. At this point it just needed to be fitted with the crystal. Yet no matter how much Jia focused on the task, something just felt... off. She couldn't get herself to feel like the crystal, and the lightsaber it would be going into as a result, was her's. It wasn't something she could explain with words, it was something she felt in herself. There was not a strong enough connection there between her, the Force and the crystal, and she didn't understand why.

In the time spent meditating she had found herself at points going into trances where she felt almost bombarded by sensations. She would also sometimes see figures in her mind, though she could never make out who or what they were meant to be, she just knew that they felt familiar and distant at the same time. Truthfully, it all made little sense to her. Though these trances or visions or whatever they were seemed to only last for a few minutes to her, she would later snap out of them to find that hours had passed. At times she even felt fatigued afterward.

This was soon to be one of those times. Jia was sitting alone on the floor of the sleeping quarters, the two pieces of the hilt of her unfinished lightsaber sitting in front of her and her chosen crystal resting in her hand. Her head was bowed and her eyes closed, as they had been for quite a while now. Her eyes suddenly popped open as she snapped out of that state. She blinked a few times as she tried to refocus on her surroundings. She stared down at the crystal and after a moment released a frustrated sigh as her hand closed around it. This wasn't working. She still couldn't make sense of it. Why was this so difficult? She shook her head slowly as she decided she needed a break to try to clear her mind before she went back to this.

She stood up and after leaving the crystal and the hilt pieces sitting on her bed she turned and made her way out of the room. She slowly wandered the corridors trying to shake off the feeling of tiredness that she felt lingering. She made a sudden decision to find Rin and began to drift in the direction of the cockpit. It was a guess on her part that her master would be there. She had noticed it wasn't uncommon for her to spend time in there, staring off and thinking about who knows what.

Jia's assumption was proven correct as she appeared in the doorway of the cockpit and looked over towards Rin, sitting in her usual spot in the pilot's seat. She leaned somewhat lazily against the side of the doorway as she spoke up with a simple greeting, "Hi.", accompanied by a friendly smile typically seen on her face.

Though the first few days had been just as awkward as their initial meeting, at this point they seemed to have mutually become more comfortable with each others presence. As a result, Jia was able to mostly shed the timidness that had taken over her in their first interactions, and Rin actually seemed more interested in conversing with her. Granted the conversation was usually something based on training, or lessons or the like.

Still, Jia was happy to take what she could get. She didn't know how interested Rin would be in talking to her right now. If she wasn't in the mood, then she would know it soon enough.

[Apillis]

Insecurity can be a subtle and powerful thing, and in some ways the more subtle the more powerful. The less seen, the less aware, the stronger its ability to fester and wear down the mind and self-esteem -- indulge fear -- give into its inevitable hold. Simply knowing is one thing, to be fully aware is quite another -- it is possible to be knowledgeable and yet utterly ignorant when speaking of the same thing. When it comes to the heart of Man, fear is one such topic where it will be ever prevalent in all aspects, whether they know it or not, and there is nothing they can do about it. There is never any escape from fear.

As it gnaws away at the soul from the inside -- its conjured insecurities within the heart and soul eroding a person from the inside out. Failure gives these insecurities weight and meaning, whether preceived or justified, failure is one of the most powerful conjurers of fear. When expectations and hope is placed upon the shoulder's of the hopeful, and falling short of those expectations becomes failure in their eyes and the eyes of outsiders -- it becomes a trauma that none truly walk away from the same.

In years past, Rin knew of her fears but she never really understood them. In her younger days studying the dark techniques wrought from the shadowy qualities of the soul within all life -- she used her own fears to practice such methods; but it was only upon failure and falling deep into the dark chasm of her own heart did she realize she had been feeling about blindly in the dark. It was not until she was placed before the edge did she at last understand how much she could not see within the dark.

Since her crawling back out of the darkness back into the light, she has looked back over her shoulder into the horizon where the light stops and the chasm of the abyss within her starts. Always looking back, gazing upon the failure she suffered, becoming a instrument of a thing she once utilized as a tool. Like one who uses a tool suffering a severe accident, she had been maimed, and walked away from the experience never again the same. Before the fall she had grown complacent and arrogant, and when humility left her -- so did caution, and then failure claimed her -- her failure. A part of herself was cleft from her, something she will never again be able to reclaim.

There is a darkness in her, a strong one, and there it rests with the insecurity of uncertainty if she truly has conquered it, and should it rise again -- can she resist it a second time? It is in such doubts and fears where insecurity can erode even the strongest of resolves... Can she stay strong for her apprentice...? This is where Rin's mind dwells in moments of quiet solitude.

Jia's greeting snapped Rin out of her thoughts, Rin looked over her shoulder behind her as she sat in the pilot's seat with her feet up on the seat, knees to her chest. Her gaze turned to Jia, she was quiet for a second, "Are you still adjusting it...?", she asked implying about Jia's lightsaber as she still seems to be fine tuning the Jedi tool. Dropping one leg to the cold metal floor of the ship, she pushed off the floor with her foot to spin the seat around to face her apprentice, "Show me what you can do with it as it is.", she requested with a staid tone.

[Dee]

There was something in Rin that Jia couldn't understand. She had noticed it early on, and it had persisted through the weeks. Sometimes in rare moments she could see it in her eyes, but more often she could feel it. Something deep down that she tried so hard to keep from surfacing. She could sometimes swear that it was only fear, but no... It was more complicated than that. Jia couldn't comprehend exactly what it was. It was some sort of awareness, some feeling, that was alien and unfamiliar to her. She could only recognize the sensation it gave her as... heavy. As if it weighed everything down.

Jia had no doubt that there was much more to whatever it was that she sensed in her master, but it was nothing that she could truly know on her own. She wanted so many times to bring the subject up. To better understand it, to better understand Rin. How does one do such a thing with tact? Without stumbling onto something they have no business intruding on? Those were her worries, and they were what had so far kept her from questioning.

She could feel it right now as she watched Rin in the pilot's seat, staring off in thought as she was prone to do. It was a short lived experience as Rin acknowledged her presence with a look over her shoulder. "Are you still adjusting it...?" Jia had already become used to Rin's 'greetings' not exactly being greetings, so she wasn't thrown off by the sudden question. As usual the older woman was straight to the point. The young Mirialan assumed that she was referring to her unfinished lightsaber. Her assumption remained the same as Rin turned in her chair to face her and spoke further, "Show me what you can do with it as it is."

Jia's initial response was a single blinking of her eyes and a shifting of her weight. She had not expected that she would have to use or even show off the weapon before she considered it fully completed. Yet she felt no real qualms about having to do so. "Ok... It's not with me. I left it in my room." She stood up straight so she was no longer leaning against the doorway as she explained herself. "I'll go get it."

After waiting for a moment she turned and left the cockpit, heading back through the ship to the sleeping quarters to retrieve the lightsaber. As she placed the crystal inside the hilt and fastened the two pieces together her mind wandered, pondering what exactly Rin was going to expect her to do. With the lightsaber in one piece she took a moment to try to further snap out of the daze she had felt herself stuck in since she left the room the first time. She had to clear her mind and be able to focus on whatever was going to be happening in the next few minutes.

As she started to cross the ship's corridors to return to the cockpit, the thought occurred to her that she had yet to actually see if the weapon would even turn on with the crystal inside prior to now. She bit the inside of her cheek as she imagined the possibility that she miscalculated something or put a piece in the wrong spot, and how ridiculous she would look if the blade wouldn't even turn on in front of Rin.

Well that'd be embarrassing...[/color] The thought passed through her mind as she reappeared in the doorway, but she tried not to dwell on it and allow an opening for nervousness. She had been very precise, very careful while building the lightsaber. She hoped she had done everything right.

With the lightsaber held at her side in her right hand, she looked to Rin and began to explain her progress. "It's pretty much done. Almost. The hilt is all put together, I just haven't... It doesn't feel right yet. It doesn't feel like it's mine even though I'm the one who's been creating it for weeks. There's no connection... I don't know why. I haven't been able to figure it out."

She paused as she realized that her explanation might have eventually become rambling and glanced back down at the lightsaber. After a moment she shifted it so she was holding it sideways in both hands. She looked back up at Rin, lifting the hilt up as if to offer it to her. "Do you wanna see it?" An almost child-like part of her hoped that she would. That she would want to see the work she had put into the weapon she was holding in her hands, that she had created herself for the first time. The logical part of her suspected that it was highly possible that Rin wouldn't and truthfully, she would not be too surprised by such a decision. She fell silent, waiting to hear her master's response to her question.

[Apillis]

As the young Jedi darted off to get her not-quite-finished lightsaber from her quarters within the ship, Rin's brow furrowed a little in response. Over the few weeks spent together there was a certain level of charm and an immense amount of sweetness to the girl that Rin found endearing. But it only made Rin want to keep her guard up a little more, as she feared allowing the girl in -- while Rin still questioned herself, it could affect Jia as well; and that Rin simply could not allow in even the slightest of ways.

Still Rin would be lying to herself if she did not acknowledge the fact she begun to find a certain measure of comfort Jia's presence of sweetness and light, both in the metaphysical sense and on the simplistic earthly level. When left to her own thoughts, they seemed to constantly drift to the cold and arid... the dark and despair of her own inward conflict and insecurities just as before. Yet, once Jia became present, her focus became the girl herself, the innocent light within the girl before her, for it is in that moment she found that is all that matters -- all that truly matters. But -- a distance she believed needed to be maintained, the very last thing she wishes to do is drag this lovely girl down with her should she faulter again.

As Jia returned Rin rose from her seat to a stand and took a few steps toward the girl as she stood in front of her. Hearing Jia's trouble with her finishing her lightsaber brought an inward smile to Rin concealed behind her stoic visage. Though, Rin's brow furrowed once more when Jia offered the lightsaber to her to take a gander at, which Rin looked down at the Jedi tool craddled in Jia's hands. She immediately took notice of how the lightsaber resembled her own, though it was a standard-hilt as oppose to her own double-bladed lightsaber, nevertheless the similarities and slight differences to give it some of its own uniqueness were blatant to the young lightsaber duelist's eyes. Rin's lips parted a little bit out of her slight taken aback reaction seeing this, for she never really expected it -- and was even a little flattered by it, even if it was not Jia's intention.

With a bit of a gentle touch, she rest one hand under Jia's and with the other closed softly closed Jia's hands over the lightsaber as she said quietly, "Show me by demonstration.", it was only then a very small smile at last cracked after several weeks with the young girl, "By placing trust in your training, you can place trust in yourself.", Rin then took a couple steps back as she let go of Jia's hands to observe what maybe the problem with Jia's lightsaber if there is one, and Jia's actual use of it as well...

[Dee]

Jia watched Rin's expressions after she stopped speaking, trying to determine how she was going to react. There was nothing to be seen until those grey eyes fell on the lightsaber in her hands. Surprise. Jia couldn't tell if it was positive or negative. She was amazed that her nerves weren't completely out of control.

She wasn't sure why she was always so nervous anyway. It made sense at first. She had just met Rin, she wanted her new master to see that she would be a capable student and she didn't know what would be expected of her. She wanted to do well and she had never handled failure very well, but lately she lacked so much confidence in her own abilities.

Jia glanced down as Rin began to move her hand, she thought to take the lightsaber from her. As Rin instead unexpectedly placed her hand against Jia's own, she froze for a moment before questioningly looking back up at the older girl's face. There was no resistance from her as Rin gently guided her hands to close back around the weapon. "Show me by demonstration." A smile. The first she had seen from her. Jia couldn't help but smile widely herself in response to this new sight.

"By placing trust in your training, you can place trust in yourself." Seeing Rin's small smile and hearing her words made Jia forget that she had been worried at all. The self consciousness melted away. As Rin stepped back to give her room she silently responded with a nod. Her own smile still had not faded.

Once Rin had put enough space between them Jia returned her focus to her lightsaber. She held the hilt vertically with both hands as she took a moment to focus herself. First step... It had to actually turn on. She held her breath as she slowly slid her thumb to power it on. Another smile, this one of relief, grew on her face as Vigil's quiet cockpit was filled with the hum of the blade's power as it came to life.

She paused to admire the light, icy blue coloring of the blade, but didn't waste much time. She changed how she was holding the lightsaber yet again, switching to a one handed grip as she took a few very slow, careful swings simply to test out the feel of it and to make sure it stayed in one piece. When she was satisfied she shifted her weight to adjust how she was standing, moving into an opening stance. The cockpit of a ship wasn't the most spacious of places and that fact aided her in deciding which style and movements to perform. Soresu was the style she tended to prefer and the fact that many of its maneuvers were tight meant that less space would not be a huge issue.

There was a brief pause as she held her stance. Finally she began to move. There was no doubting her dexterity with every swing of the blade as she managed to fluidly transition from one movement to the next. Clear defensive techniques that were meant to be parries, blocks and the occasional counterattack, if she had an actual opponent. They weren't very fast paced swings. She was clearly doing them more slowly than they would be done in actual combat in order to keep better control in the somewhat tight surrounding space, as well as to show off her understanding of the form. She would throw in a sudden movement, a twisting of her wrist to flow into a short, quick swing or a swift shifting of her body as if she were dodging an incoming attack; to show that she did truly have the speed and could use it.

She had been showing off mostly defensive techniques. As she decided she didn't really have much else to demonstrate on her own she came to a stop, ending off in what was meant to be a more aggressive stance for a more offensively focused style. Perhaps an attempt at showing that she was capable of such a form as well. She didn't continue any further. She stopped and waited, her eyes on Rin, to see what she had to say and what she wanted her to do now. Though much of her worrying had been calmed by Rin's earlier encouragement, she still silently questioned her own skill, and for a brief moment hoped to herself that it had been good enough.

[Apillis]

Any Jedi worth their salt recognizes the inherent philosophies within the varying disciplines of the lightsaber forms, and the theories behind their general use. They were more than mere martial form to be utilized within combat and battle -- they were an artform of their own kind. As a lightsaber duelist herself, Rin studied closely her apprentice's technique much like an art teacher critiquing a student. She instantly recognized the first form Jia begun to utilize as she observed the girl demonstrate the formal strokes of Soresu, a defensive from. It was not a form she used herself, as she lacked the patience required for using such a style when martial action became required. However, she knew of the concepts and philosophies behind it at the very least.

But the few basic simulated striking strokes Jia followed up with Rin instantly knew, as they were of the Aggression form, something she is quite familiar with herself. The ideals and philosophy behind the Aggression form was something Rin identified with greatly, and it was its disciplines and concepts that she used when developing her style of double-bladed lightsaber combat. They both require an aggressive stance and both require high speed combined with much agility and adroitness in order to be successful, and seldom does its practitioners plant their feet firmly on the ground as they need to keep moving with the goal to overwhelm their opponent with forceful, fast-paced movement.

When Jia finished her short demonstration, Rin approached the girl, standing quite close to her. With gentle hands, she took and guided Jia's own hands to hold with a grip so Jia's hands were just dash more apart while the foregrip was choked up higher on the hilt as she explained, "An old friend of mine was taught by one of the Soresu masters at the Jedi Temple, who is on the High Council these days. This is how she taught my old friend to grip her lightsaber in a Soresu stance with the blade more centered and a little closer to the body -- somewhat like Djem So, another defensive form -- though only less so than Soresu. But, Soresu key principle is patience, allowing any opponent to burn themselves out trying to penetrate your impenetrable defense. But, the masters possess such a honed understanding for the form, not only is it as if they are impenetrable -- but they trap their opponent within their own offense.

"My master once taught me when I was very young beginning down the path of becoming a skilled lightsaber duelist is that... Dueling is not simply blind instinct, nor is it attempting to be faster and better than your opponent... It is in truth -- a dejarik game... and every move you make on your opponent and they on you -- is a check. It is a fast paced dejarik game of outwitting your opponent in a series of checks. It is never a matter of who is better than whom on the given day -- it is always who out-thinks whom within a matter of a split second.

"This is why for when I begun training in double-bladed lightsaber combat, I used the concepts of Ataru", Rin then stepped around behind Jia, gently moving the Padawan's arms with a slight alteration in posture into a more engaging stance with the lightsaber held a little more outward away from the body at a fourty-five degree angle and the lower hand just two inches above the pommel of the lightsaber hilt. Speaking over Jia's left shoulder with her mouth not too far from the girl's left ear Rin continued to explain, "It is a stance for rapid, quick unrelenting strikes to never allow the opponent to have a moments reprieve to think about their next move. Remove their ability to think and rely only on instinct, in theory, you remove their combative skill from the match -- and thus, ensure a checkmate.

"To ensure a checkmate within a duel, there are two things you want to deprive from your opponent. Their ability to think and their ability to breathe. Not in the sense of death or actual suffocation. But more over, they are simply labored to breathe, it means less oxygen to the brain, which in turn minimizes their ability to think, while simultaneously depleting their energy -- one becomes tired far more quicker when they are trying to catch their breath. As they lose energy, their will begins to wane -- and as one's will weakens -- so in turn does the will to fight. The true goal of any true Jedi lightsaber duelist is to defeat an opponent without ever doing them any real harm.

"Which in turn makes Form 'Zero' the ultimate form within any lightsaber duelist's arsenal. To defeat an opponent without ever having to strike a blow... or even raise your blade... now that... is a true master of lightsaber dueling. The very pinnacle of what any true Jedi lightsaber duelist seeks to aspire to.", it was only then it begun to dawn on Rin after having gotten so into the lesson she realized how close she was to Jia while her hands still gently rested upon the girl's own. Rin's visage begun to blush heavily as she abruptly stepped back and away from the young Padawan and quickly went back to pilot's seat, spinging the chair back around and gazing back out into the great void as she went on to say, "Wi--w--wi--with th-that in mind... think about what sort of dejarik player you wish to be... and tailor your lightsaber with that understanding in mind..."

[Dee]

Lightsaber combat was not simple in the slightest. It was more than just swings and blocks and dodges. There were unique philosophies and personalities behind every form that needed to be learned and understood in order to ever have a chance at mastery. Being in good physical condition was a must, but so was an open and focused mind. As with most of the skills she had been taught over the years, Jia did the best she could. She had put a great deal of effort into learning how to utilize the forms which fit her.

Still, it wasn't her preferred method of problem solving. She always hoped that she would not have to resort to it in most situations. She felt guilt at the thought of having to hurt someone else. Still she knew the importance of the art of lightsaber use, and knew that realistically there would be times where she would have little choice but to raise her blade. She had already found herself in such a position in the past. She was prepared for those future occasions and would do so if she had to. At least there was some comfort in knowing that such a case would probably only be in defense of another, or at least of her life.

With her short and simple demonstration Jia was trying to show Rin the knowledge she had of the forms and how she interpreted it into physical movements. It was hardly a display of how well she would do in actual fast paced combat, but she was certain she would eventually be expected to demonstrate those skills as well. For now she wanted Rin to see what she knew and the level of understanding she had. She felt it was that understanding which formed the base of lightsaber combat in its entirety. Without it, one was doing little more than just carelessly swinging a blade around. So how could her master understand the level she was at without first being shown this?

Jia simply stayed standing in the stance which she had been when she finished as she waited for Rin to speak. As Rin again approached her and began to speak while carefully adjusting her hands, an action Jia did not fight, she listened carefully to every word. She had not seen much of it with her own eyes just yet but she knew that Rin was a talented duelist. Her teachings and advice already held a great deal of weight in the girl's mind, and knowing that this was an area she had expertise in only made Jia want to take in everything that was being said even more.

A dejarik game... She had never thought about lightsaber dueling in that way before. Of course overall skill and experience had a great effect on the outcome, but it made sense that how one acted and reacted in the course of a duel itself mattered just as much. One missed swing, one opening left unguarded, no matter how skilled, could leave a person in a terrible position. She would have to take this lesson to heart and learn how to focus more on the 'here and now' of a duel. Learn how to better predict her opponents movements and react more accurately and effectively. As Rin said, learn to out-think in a split second.

Jia nodded every once in a while throughout Rin's lesson to show that she was in fact paying close attention without actually interrupting her. She briefly thought to herself how she could already see how she would benefit just from the small adjustment Rin had made of her hands. There was more to come as Rin suddenly moved around her, arms circling the Mirialan's thin form in order to further adjust her stance from behind, moving her into a more aggressive style. Jia's body tensed suddenly, an uncontrollable action that she didn't quite understand, before it quickly relaxed again.

As Rin went on to explain how one might ensure a 'checkmate' within a lightsaber duel the young Padawan remained as attentive as she had been before. She barely made any movement of her own, staying in the stance her master had put her in and seeming to feel no discomfort at being moved around as she was. Does she think it's better to tire them out by attacking or defending more? She silently wondered to herself before deciding to eventually ask the question out loud.

There was a sudden pause. Nothing but silence for a second or two before Rin abruptly shifted backwards. As Rin's body swiftly slipped away from Jia's own she stayed frozen in the same position she had been posed into as if she was stuck that way. Her eyes were the only thing that moved as they followed Rin's retreat back to the pilot seat. All she could do was stare. In that quick moment where Rin stepped around her in order to move back to her seat, she saw her face and the blushing of her cheeks, which brought a sudden rush of red to her own. Her eyes suddenly turned downcast, her head bowing slightly in a subconscious effort to hide embarrassment, the cause of which she wasn't sure of.

...What was that?

She didn't have time to dwell on her own inner question as once Rin was seated she began to speak again, "Wi--w--wi--with th-that in mind... think about what sort of dejarik player you wish to be... and tailor your lightsaber with that understanding in mind..."[/i] Jia only nodded in response at first. An action that she soon realized was silly, considering neither of them was looking at the other anymore.

After shifting so she was no longer standing in a stance and forcing herself to lift her head again once the blush had faded from her cheeks she spoke up with a stuttered verbal confirmation, "A-Alright..." She paused for a moment before deciding to continue, bringing up the question she had thought about earlier, "What... What you said about trying to overwhelm your opponent... I understand it, but I'm not sure about something. I sometimes try to mix attacking and defending, switch between them depending on what my opponent is doing. Kind of like what you said, with out-thinking and reacting... But sometimes it's hard to tell what to do without throwing myself off. Do you think one's better than the other? There's so much to try to pay attention to. How do you stay focused and not get overwhelmed and tired yourself?"

[Apillis]

Embarassment, fear, insecurity -- heart-pounding awkwarding thumping with a steady beat beneath her breast for reasons she had no understanding or grasp of within her head and couple decades worth of life experience. She has always trained as a duelist, and seldom ever social beyond business, even with the one she calls her 'friend' she has never been really the talkative sort. In fact, Jia is the first she has ever really conversed with at any level of great length. Quietly, she liked it, she enjoyed talking to the girl -- telling and teaching her what she knows and what she has experienced, and gradually the desire to do so even more has been building up within her. However, Rin in this particular situation finds herself in a strange place within herself, some place she has never felt before, and with no words or perception to get ahold of it.

There was a bit of silence that passed before Rin finally answered. Still a little flustered and thinking hard on how to answer, it lead her to taking a little bit of time to come up with a decent reply. She does not want to mold Jia into the Jedi she wants to her be, but rather Jia mold herself into the Jedi she aspires to become. After a moment of though, Rin answer became clear to her -- which was the simplest one, "That depends on you... Jia.", Rin replied with a quiet voice.

Taking in a deep breath and letting out a sigh before extrapolating further, "Of the forms you know... you prefer Soresu, right?", Rin took a trice to gather her thoughts, "It is thought of as purely defensive by the laymen. But, as I mentioned earlier... this belief is subverted by masters of the form. While they appear to be defending the entire time, their actual goal being to trap their opponent within their own offensive. In a dejarik game... this would be the sort of player who exhausts their opponents moves until their opponent has no left, and find themselves either checkmated... or more perferrably -- forced to conceed the game. It is a game of careful moves, and great patience and serenity -- even when greatly pressed by the opponent. The danger lies in giving your opponent the opportunity to exhaust you rather than you them."

Pulling a leg up so her foot rest on the seat of the pilot's chair she is sitting in so her is knee is to her chest, while loosely wrapping her arms around the bent leg -- she continued, "Then there is... Ataru... it is called Aggression Form for a reason. Unrelenting swft attacks to push your opponent's back against the wall and claim a win. Exhausting them in this manner is a refusal to allow them a moments reprieve forcing them slip up and grant an openning for that checkmate -- or bring them down to submission. However... when all there is, is blind aggression within each movement or action -- it becomes difficult to think without it...", Rin was silent for a moment upon that utterance before she went on to conclude, "...which in turn exhausts yourself -- possibly before even your opponent."

Slightly peeking around the pilot's chair, she inquired, "There are many ways to play dejarik... But of the methods you know... Which do you see yourself as? The tortoise or the hare?"

[Dee]

Jia didn't know why she had felt so embarrassed. She couldn't explain her own reasoning to herself. The more she dwelled on it, that still didn't change. She had felt completely fine before with Rin being so close. The thought hadn't even occurred to her that she should feel uncomfortable until she saw that Rin did. Which was actually somewhat strange in itself since she had never before found herself in a situation with that much physical contact. It was not exactly typical for her. So she wasn't sure which was more confusing; the fact that she was embarrassed at all once she saw that Rin was and couldn't understand why, or that prior to that she hadn't felt uncomfortable with how close she was to her in the slightest.

Now she was insecure. Unsure. As she stared at the back of the seat Rin had returned to and waited for an answer to her previous question all Jia could dwell on in the silence between them was that she wished she understood. Not just her own feelings at the moment, but her master's as well.

Only when Rin finally gave her answer did Jia once again begin to calm. Her thoughts went back to the task and lessons at hand. She listened quietly to what she was being told about the pros and cons of both forms she had experience with. As Rin slightly peered out from behind the pilot's seat Jia found herself offering the older woman a small smile as she uttered her last few sentences. It took Jia a moment of thought before she was ready to reply.

"I think I'm definitely better suited to waiting things out. Sort of." She paused and glanced to the side for a moment. "At least in a duel..." She sighed quietly to herself as she made that distinction before moving on, "When it comes to using my lightsaber, I'd rather not have to hurt anyone. So if I can draw out the fight and tire my opponent out to the point where I can find another solution or it stops all together, to me that would be the best way for things to end up. I'd rather have to fight a little harder to defend myself than just be outright aggressive from the start. The only thing that worries me is what you said, about getting overwhelmed before being able to tire out the opponent."

She paused, staring out the front of the cockpit at the view of Alpheridies and the depths of space beyond it before blue eyes once again focused on Rin. "I know that Ataru might be better suited to certain situations though. That's part of why it's good to understand it, even though I might focus on Soresu." It was then that the padawan realized that the blade of her new lightsaber was still ignited. She stared down at it before switching it off. With the quiet hum of the weapon gone, there was nothing but silence as Jia again raised her gaze onto Rin.

[Apillis]

The awkwardness still loomed for a bit even after her retreat back to the pilot's seat. She found herself getting close to the girl, and it scared her -- it was nothing but fear. So, she quickly cut herself off and hid, hid back behind the pilot's seat serving as a sanctum from friendship, intimacy, or any form of closeness. The young Watchman did not fully understand the odd feeling she felt beneath her chest, she had never felt them before, not like this. Years of isolation and solitude from others combined with her stoic outter shell and at times overly critical nature, has served well at keeping Rin from bonding with others. Perhaps, what terrified Rin most of all is with Jia she could feel that changing, and does not know how to deal with it; and above all is conflicted about wanting to keep her distance or draw closer to her.

Bringing everything back to the moment at hand, however, Rin paused for a moment in thought, thinking about how she could teach and instruct Jia in whats he needed to know. Eventually her dwellings fell upon an answer, which was not unlike how Xyse once trained her. Rather than run to the technical and complex, she thought it best to fall back on simplicity. Focus and control, each of the forms relied heavily upon both, as do countless martial forms. There were two things that Rin often practiced to hone both for her, one was the technique Battlemind, and the other was practicing the Jedi unarmed martial art of Broken Gate. The young Watchman knew enough of the principles of Soresu, and that's about all she could really teach her in regards to it. The skill and development would then fall upon her.

However, defensive posturing in any martial form does not come from that martial form alone. It comes from other areas as well, or if nothing else -- can be drawn from other areas. There are numerous defensive techniques within Broken Gate that the defesive postures and strikes when applied upon an opponent can be blended, or if nothing else an adaptation of such could be applied into other martial forms, and perhaps Jia could do so when honing her ability with Soresu. While simultaneously teaching her how to utilize Battlemind to grant her a sharp, unwavering focus; thus only aiding Jia further. At least, that was Rin's theory and hope.

After contemplating it for a moment, Rin stepped out around her the pilot's seat, and begun walking to a more open area of the ship, namely its lounge area, "Come."

The young Knight walked to the center of the lounge area of the ship, then turned on her heels to face Jia before gesturing to the girl to stand before her. At which point Rin went on to say, "There is only so much I can help with in regards to Soresu itself. I know some of its principles and philosophies, but it has never been one of the forms I have prescribed to. However, no form is limited to its techniques alone. You will find lightsaber duelists, especially the masters, adhere to several forms, some of which are even mastered. The error is that many think they switch between them, but this is wrong -- they learn those other forms, even to the point of mastery and incorporate aspects, techniques, and even philosophies of those other forms into their most favored form developing their own style within the form so they do not have to switch between other forms. Those who practice Niman this is esepcially the case. Myself for example, as I mentioned I developed my double-bladed lightsaber style by drawing from Ataru techniques and disciplines. But... that is not all I drew from to develop my style within my chosen form...

"Fortunately, with the minute amount of good sense I had in my days as a Padawan I never did question my master's wisdom in teaching me Broken Gate and Battlemind to help develop my abilities as a duelist. Nor question his advising me in that only a fool trusts their life wiyh a weapon. After all, what is a weapon in comparison to the hand that wields it? And let no one tell you that unarmed techniques has no place within a confrontation of blades. A simple leg sweep, collapsing of a knee, or knee to the bread basket can ensure that checkmate we spoke of earlier all the more quicker. The technique Battlemind is using the Force to maintain an unwavering focus and clarity within the battle, seeking to eliminate all distraction. From these lessons take what you can and try to hone your style within Soresu. If it is not helping you develop your own style and honing your skill within the form... Well, we will adapt, and seek a new method...

"Before we do anything, though. What do you know within the Jedi unarmed martial arts...?"

((Edit: Fixed typos.))

[Dee]

Again there was silence between the young Mirialan and her master. Jia waited, assuming that Rin was thinking before she spoke further. While she did her thoughts again started to drift toward the awkward moment that had occurred shortly before. Specifically, the fact that Rin had gone back to pilot's seat and had not even looked at her again for a long moment afterward, even as she spoke directly to her. Jia didn't know what exactly to make of that action. Maybe making anything of it at all was silly. Still...

Rin had surprised her. Jia had hoped from the start that her relationship with Rin would not be like the one she had with Qi. He was a good man, but... Connecting with him was hard. Her first few interactions with Rin had made her pessimistic about the possibility of things being different with her. Yet the more time they spent together, the more Jia found herself attached, and the more she found herself feeling optimistic. Despite clearly not being a social person and so often trying to keep to herself, Rin had somewhat opened up to her. Jia had seen glimpses of the woman behind the stoic mask, and it was someone she wanted to know better.

Yet for every time Rin seemed to open herself up, there were just as many times that she closed herself off. Whether it was by suddenly stopping conversation, or showing little to no readable emotion, or... Hiding herself behind a pilot's seat after a suddenly awkward moment. It was as if the older woman couldn't decide if she wanted to become closer to the girl or push her away. All Jia could really do was hope that in time that would change...

Her focus again switched as Rin suddenly stood and started to walk for the door. Jia stepped to the side to allow her to pass. "Come."[/i] She did as she was told and followed her master out of the cockpit and toward the ship's lounge. She clipped her lightsaber to her belt for the moment, unsure if she was going to need it shortly or not. She stopped when Rin did, though she moved once again as Rin gestured for her to stand in front of her, and did so.

She was attentive as Rin spoke. Taking from multiple forms to create one unique style was not something she had imagined doing prior to this moment. It made perfect sense though as she heard the idea spoken aloud by her master. It was probably much smoother than actually switching between two separate forms on the fly. She smiled a bit at Rin's mention of her "minute good sense" as a padawan. Rin went on to mention Battlemind and Broken Gate. Jia knew them in concept only, having never really practiced or experienced either of them in great depth. Though it seemed that was going to change.

The idea of using unarmed combat as a supplement to lightsaber use was different than what she had previously been taught, that unarmed techniques were just something to fall back on, just in case. It was another change in ideology that she would have to adapt to. She nodded in silent response as Rin advised her to use the lessons she was going to receive in said concepts to help further her skills. She would certainly try her best.

"Before we do anything, though. What do you know within the Jedi unarmed martial arts...?"[/i]

Jia answered Rin's question simply, "Not very much. Only simple, basic things mostly. I know how to throw a punch, and target certain areas in certain situations. But nothing more than that." She waited then before speaking more, for Rin to either ask her further questions or continue with the lesson.

[Apillis]

Rin's brow furrowed a little with a slight tilt of her head in response to Jia when uttering quietly to herself, Then there is a lot to teach. It is was then Rin said to Jia, "The first lesson in any unarmed martial arts instruction is to learn how to fall." The motion itself only took an instant it seemed, as Rin seemed within that split second as little more than a blur, and the motion itself was minute. All the young Watchman did was take one simple step past Jia with her right foot with her long lean legged stride -- planting her right foot behind Jia's left; while simultaneously Rin's right forearm struck the padawan square on the chest. Her strength was slightly more than expected for a human from all her physical training through the Force, but then again... she is not exactly human either despite outward appearance. The reality being she did not even know exactly what she is, or what one like herself is legitimately labelled.

With her statuesque stature and athletic long lean form, she stood before the young padawan looking down at the girl from her height as she crossed her arms under her chest as she maintained a stoic gaze. Though behind the stoic visage there were numerous questioning and weighing of what to do or say or advise next, and what she should tell Jia about how or why she will be training her the way she is and will. The reality being Rin was scared to, deep within her was numerous amounts of fear that fed her insecurities into becoming something greater within the cavern of her heart where a dragon slumbered, waiting patiently for its moment to strike. The dark is and always has been patient, and it was something Rin knew and feared even more.

Maybe... just maybe... it was time for Rin to learn how to lower her own guard and fall, to take a chance. The stoic visage begun to melt a little in that moment, a bit of the insecurity, concern, and fear that the shadow dragon that had made its nest within Rin's heart gnawed at it. Gently Rin closed her eyes and openned them again before moving to the seat nearest to where she stood, and sat down. There was a lot on her mind, and after the weeks she has spent with Jia, especially as her instructor, and given they will spend more time together, perhaps a bit of honesty and candor is do. Maybe she is making a mistake, maybe she is doing the right thing, Rin did not know, and she knew she had no answers for whether she was doing right or wrong by conceding to let the girl a bit into her heart, but perhaps at last maybe Rin could learn to let go.

With a heavy sigh and insecurity now blatantly expressed upon Rin's angular face, she uttered quietly, "I'm not a very good Jedi... I never have been. I never saw things as other Jedi do, nor responded as a proper Jedi should. These days I try, I try very hard... But I succeed only so often...

"Once upon a time... I used to believe I could use the dark side as a tool... You see, the dark side is always there, it is everywhere -- is something inherent in all life -- aspects of our most primal. Fear, lust, hate, anger, aggression... and more. These things are facets in all walks of life. A practitioner of the dark does not merely reach into themselves to unleash the dark side. That was the mistake I made in believing when I was young, even younger than you... A dark practitioner of the Force channels the darkness from around them into themselves, for the darkness shrouds and covers all, as it exists everywhere. Even no matter how bright a light maybe, the darkness only becomes darker.

"The dark is munificent in its way, and it is always willing to wait... that's why it always wins... It will never lose... not ever. Destroy it in one, it will still exist in another, and the same cannot be said about the light. The darkness always looms, no matter how bright you shine the light within yourself, there will always be a shadow cast behind it. Waiting. It is willing to wait. My master understood this, but no matter how much he tried to tell me, I was too arrogant to listen... I didn't understand.

"I used my own fears and distaste for my own failures as fuel to be stronger, faster. Always did I return to the light to center myself, but... when all you use is blunt action to deal with a problem... it becomes difficult to act without it, and thus become little more than a blunt object yourself. I failed to understand that as we fought a fallen Jedi of the dark side... My master and I became separated, and as I fought the fallen Jedi, I begun calling upon my own darkness. It was patient and it waited... just as the fallen Jedi's master was as she destroyed... any resistance I had within my mind to maintain even the smallest semblance of self-control and hold over the darkness within myself. Giving the dark the opportunity to pull me down, and I fell far into its darkest caverns..."

The memories of those years still vivid in mind, the cruelties she committed as the darkness gripped her, and the evil practitioner of the dark held sway over her. To this day Rin is uncertain whether the fall was her choice or she was made to; or if even the villainy she committed during those few years, were her actions or those of another. She still questioned and did not know, she only knew that when the opportunity -- the second-chance to reach for the light again came by the compassionate hand of her master, she reached desperately for it, and clings to what light she has left within her with all her desperation... and hope. Rin quickly wisked away a tear that just begun to trickle from her eye, but gave it no more acknowledgment than that as if trying to save some face out of simple, petty pride.

"The darkness will always give... for it is charitable as it blankets all", Rin said, "It will always win, even in defeat -- because it never dies or fades.", her eyes downcast before turning them to Jia, "But at the heart of that strength is its very weakness, as even a simple candle light can hold it back. A lesson I failed to learn, but you will.", rising back up to her feet, she stated candidly, "I do not know how to face an opponent without aggressive action... Neither do those of the dark... Therefore, to add another challenge to your training, in fact, the most important challenge for you to learn as we spar and train: to answer my aggression with the light within you. Answer with the strength of the Force and the light shining within you. That is how a Jedi brings peace within dark times, and how a Jedi staves off the darkness; and this has been passed on from one generation of Jedi to the next for many, many millennia."

[Dee]

"The first lesson in any unarmed martial arts instruction is to learn how to fall."

Jia could only blink at her master's words. She was about to ask what exactly she meant by them, but she would not get the chance. In fact, she barely even had the time to do much more than look surprised. Rin moved unexpectedly, and quicker than she could react to. The next thing Jia knew she was struck hard in the chest and was knocked backwards. Even if by some miracle she could have stayed standing despite the strength of the blow, Rin's foot being planted firmly behind her own ensured that she collapsed and landed hard on her back against the cold metallic floor.

The first reaction she had was to suck in a sudden breath to replace the air that had been forced from her lungs. After that the pain caught up with her and her face twisted into a cringe. She rolled onto her side and curled up slightly as she waited a few seconds for the pain to dissipate. Once she was able to ignore the aching her widened eyes rose to look at Rin with an expression that seemed to be constantly switching between emotions. Confusion. Misunderstanding. Disbelief. A touch of hurt.

At least Rin's words made sense now. She would realize that once she was over the initial shock of what had just happened and was done traveling through a range of emotions. Even so, she would not have expected the older woman's statement to be literal in this situation...

Still lying on her side, she slowly propped herself up slightly with her arm against the floor. She had not said a word and her eyes had not left Rin. Rin who was looking down at her with that still stoic expression. Then something changed. Rin's face shifted. It was slight at first, but it was noticeable, and it became more apparent with each passing moment. The padawan continued to watch in silence as her master's eyes suddenly closed, then opened again, before she suddenly moved from where she had been standing and sat nearby. The look on Jia's own face began to shift as well as she saw the change in Rin's demeanor. Regardless of what had happened seconds ago, the girl found herself very concerned for Rin. She had not seen fear and insecurity so openly displayed by her before.

As Rin spoke, Jia found that she couldn't look away. Jia was so focused on Rin that she still had not bothered to get back up after falling. She remained where she was, still on her side, watching Rin from her spot on the floor. She heard every word and as Rin continued, her words only became heavier on the girl's heart.

"...Giving the dark the opportunity to pull me down, and I fell far into its darkest caverns..." Jia's eyes widened even further. Those were not words she expected to hear. She knew that Rin was unconventional as a Jedi, especially after these things she was being told now, and somewhat aggressive as a person, but to actually fall to the dark side...? Something clicked in the girl's mind. Was that the feeling that she had been trying to make out and understand these past weeks? The one that felt so alien to her? That was what Rin was afraid of, what she was always trying to keep inside...

This day had been a whirlwind of emotions. Jia couldn't explain exactly what it was she was feeling now if she were asked to. The natural reaction to finding out that someone you saw every day, a mentor you respected and someone you trusted with your life, kept such a secret was likely fear. As well as anger at what could be perceived as some kind of betrayal. Yet surprisingly it was not either of these emotions that had control over Jia at the moment. They were there but they were being held back. More than anything she was stunned by what she had just been told.

She had so many questions she felt like she needed to ask and she might have blurted them out were it not for finding herself speechless. Rin had not fully explained why she fell, how long she fell, whether she embraced it or...

In a way the tear the her master quickly tried to wipe away, the one Jia saw despite the attempt, silently answered some of those questions. It made it clear that whatever the circumstances were surrounding Rin's fall, they were significant enough to cause her a great deal of pain as she remembered them. It could not have been something simple like giving into anger and quickly bouncing back. Yet in that moment, Jia suddenly found that all those answers she was looking for did not matter. Any negative emotion she had felt seconds before was gone. All she wanted was to comfort Rin. To tell her that it was ok, because it was in the past.

Rin had said all she had to say for the moment. She left Jia with those final few statements about what would be expected of her from this point on. All the young padawan seemed capable of was continuing to stare up wide eyed, and now somewhat slack jawed, at her master standing before her. The words she wanted to speak wouldn't come to her. She still found herself unable to move, and with no idea what she could possibly say.

For a long moment she stayed that way. After a while she wasn't even really looking at Rin, or anything else anymore. She blinked suddenly as her gaze focused again. There had been a lot for her to think about. She was still far from certain of most things, still had burning questions on her mind, but for now... She was at least sure of something. She finally moved, slowly pushing herself back up to her feet. Once she was standing again she looked Rin in the eyes. Her expression was soft. There was no anger, no distrust.

"Maybe... Maybe I'm going to sound naive... But I don't believe that the darkness will always win. Just because it's there... doesn't mean it's won or going to win. If even a small light can fight it back and push it away then the more that light grows, the less strength the dark has. As long as we nurture the light, it will always hold off the dark and keep it powerless to control us." Her words held a sense of determination. She was certain of them.

After a pause her now quiet, gentle voice was heard again, "You say you're not a good Jedi. You think that there's still darkness in you... But there's light too. I've seen it. I think... You just need to let yourself see it too." Another pause, before she shared the last thing on her mind. "I'll do the best I can. To prove that the dark side doesn't always win. By doing as you said."

(( Edit: Fixing color code nonsense. ))

[Apillis]

The young Watchman did not immediately reply to Jia's sentiments, her initial response to was just to continue the lesson, though her tone was quiet with a slight emotional inflection from being affected by the girl's disposition, "The proper way to fall is flat on your back though at a small angle to reduce impact, having your arms out also helps reduce the impact, though not under you, otherwise it is your body weight landing on your arms which is... not good... to say the least. Anatomical physics doesn't reply kindly to it.", taking a couple steps closer to Jia she stated, "The best way to avoid falling with the trip I just did is to step into me while grabbing my arm, and using your own leg to trip me in kind while pushing against me. It's basically a reversal grapple. Or if you're to go with with it and fall, to still hold on to me, and pull me down with you, bringing us both back to an even playing field on the ground."

Crossing her arms back under her chest she uttered, "I do not think there is darkness still in me, I know there is. As there is in all living things. As with all things in terms of the Force, a Jedi does not think they know. It's much like standing within unending night or day. Notice in daylight, even with bright sunlight, even when you turn to face it... there is still a dark shadow cast behind you. Notice at night, there are still shadows -- shadows within shadows -- even in its darkness. The void of space being the greatest exclamation of this. It's greatest strength and weakness being exclaimed. It is spread everywhere to limitless extents, but even the smallest light can hold it back, even if just a little; but that light within the void is not regulated to tiny bits of light, it is filled with stars and their light can span galaxies and time itself... However... even stars die, and the darkness of the void remains unhindered... uneffected. That is the dark side of the Force."

Rin grew an amused smile in the next moment though, "But, let's see if you can put your money where your mouth is. To truly tap into the strength of the Force's light within you, there is the lesson of letting go. A Jedi holds no attachment to the material, they let go of it all -- everything, letting the Force take them over. In a sense, it is no longer them that is acting, but the Force, it is something Jedi Masters do well, more so those few who have attained enlightenment and have reached a pointof centeredness they know their place within the Force so exactingly when they let go of all things and the light of the Force take them over -- it's a sight to behold. It is as if they are the Force in those moments.

"The laymen mistake it for acting on instinct. Instinct is a blind, thoughtless action -- it is an animalistic action done with no thought, regard, or understanding -- it is just done without knowledge or clarity. A Jedi when letting the Force's will become their own, they may not be thinking -- they instead know, they have a clear understanding of their surroundings, themselves, and the Force. They do not need to think about the trees behind them, the soft ground beneath their feet, the density of the forest, or those chasing them. In those moments as their understanding is the Force's -- they are those trees, they are the forest, they are the soft ground beneath their feet, they are those individuals chasing after them, and they are themselves -- the Jedi does not need to think about it because they already know, and thus they know the route in which to escape through those trees and that dense forest. The danger lies in -- the dark siders chasing them know it too, for they have lended themselves to the dark side in the same manner. This is how a Jedi understands their surroundings, and move within it.

"The danger of over-reliance on this is taking it to combat. The knowing of incoming action is seldom enough, especially against another Force-sensitive, more so one trained within it. The Force may show you what action I maybe taking within the next instant, but it is showing me the same about you. These moments will boil down to will and clarity, and it is in this moment contradictorily, thought comes in -- as you utilize the clarity of your mind to perceive the incoming actions of your opponent and attempt to out-think them. Bringing us full circle to our previous lesson only a bit ago about dueling being like a dejarik game, and each move a check -- all of depending upon who is a better within a split second.

"Understand...", said Rin, her amused smile remaining as she subtly uncrossed her arms and slid her left foot a little forward, "you must utilize such clarity in all moments... No one -- especially the dark practitioners... will give you any warning--"

It was in this moment attempting the same action as she did before, Rin with her right foot stepped around Jia, and planting her long stem firmly behind the padawan. All the while with her right hand doing what appeared more like a fast yet soft open palm strike to Jia's chest to cause exactly the same effect as the last trip Rin did to the girl. The only question this time was if Jia would be prepared for it and counter it as Rin told her to; or would she fall victim to it again. Though Rin did not really express, her immense hope was Jia being able to withstand or better yet, counter the maneuver.

[Dee]

A very small smile formed on Jia's face, one that held a touch of amusement as Rin continued on nonchalantly with the lesson she was giving. She was unsurprised by the woman's reaction. The young padawan did the only thing that seemed to make sense to do at the moment and went back to silently listening and taking in the information Rin was teaching her.

Rin eventually did return to the idea of the dark side and as Jia listened to the things she said, that small smile of her's slowly faded. It seemed very grim, the idea that no matter what the dark could always outlast the light. She didn't want to believe that. The light had the strength to persevere too and even though stars may die, the light inside of people did not have to. Perhaps though, that was a conversation for them to continue another time as Rin seemed content to continue further with the combat training.

The Mirialan's brow furrowed at the sight of Rin's smile. It was unexpected and she was unsure what exactly it was for. She focused much less on it than she did on the lesson though. Jia's mind wandered for a moment as she thought about just how far away she felt from the Jedi Masters Rin spoke of, who had become so connected with the Force and the amazing feats they were capable of. It was so hard to imagine herself being at that level. It was so far away.

She was aware enough even despite her inner musings to catch sight of subtle movement. She quickly glanced down at her master's foot, then up at her again. She was still smiling. Why was she--

Wait...

Another swift sudden movement closed the small distance between Jia and Rin. This time she at least saw it coming with enough time to attempt a reaction. Her strength in such situations was her speed, her ability to get out of the way, but she had nowhere to go. Rin was already too close for her to have any hope of completely avoiding the incoming attack.

She had already lost her chance to counter. She had not reacted fast enough. If she had the time, she would have likely scolded herself for not seeing this coming sooner. She was hit in the chest for the second time. The only thing left for her to do at that point was to try the last resort Rin had suggested, to take her down with her. It wasn't exactly a smooth movement. She actually seemed to flail a little before she managed to grasp onto Rin's arm with both petite hands. She wasn't very strong at all, so she was relying on the weight of her small, falling body to pull her master off balance and cause her to lose her footing as well.

There was nothing graceful about how she fell. She would have to work on that whole falling the right way thing. This time, it was going to hurt. Again...

[Apillis]

With her right foot firmly planted behind Jia's right leg, the moment the open palm of Rin's right hand struck Jia's chest. The young Watchman was about to sigh, as her hope that Jia would be able to counter the maneuver was dashed. But -- in that trice alone, Rin was caught off-guard by Jia as her hand was latched onto her, and as Jia fell suddenly Rin found herself being pulled down with her. It is not always about grace and finesse, sometimes a clumsy or wild action is the most effective.

With a wide-eyed cringe and a blundering flop Rin fell on top of the young Jedi the moment she hit the ground. There was a momentary surprise of finding herself on the ground... on top of her padawan. Her grey eyes shifted their gaze only to find them staring back into Jia's ocean blue eyes. Face to face Rin could feel Jia's breath against her own as she gazed into the young Jedi's eyes.

Without really any thought behind it, Rin rested her left arm on the cold metal floor of the ship to raise her torso a little off of Jia. Her eyes continued to look into Jia's as a gentle hand, Rin's own hand, softly brushed Jia's bangs to the side out of a tender affection. But it was only a second later thought at last popped into Rin's mind, "What am I doing?"

Rin's eyes widened utterly thrown and taken aback by the moment, immediately she sprang back up onto her feet. Flustered entirely by the situation, Rin stammeringly said to her padawan, "Errr... um... uh-we... w-w-we'll continue the lesson later... W-We've gone through enough for now."

With that Rin retreated to her quarters, the small prison cell sized room of metal. The small vanity mirror on the wall, she looked into -- looking straight into her own reflected eyes upon the mirrors surface, and asked herself again with a quiet yet shaken voice, "Rin... What the hell are you doing?"

[Dee]

Jia's body once again slammed against the floor of the ship with a thud, followed by Rin... whose body landed hard on top of her own. She 'oofed' loudly as her master's full weight hit her with a decent amount of force. She was pretty sure that hadn't gone the way it was supposed to. Somehow this did not seem like it would be even a little bit of an evened playing field.

I probably should've thought that through better...

After her initial cringe caused by the pain of the fall, the first thing Jia saw as she looked up was Rin's face hovering in front of her own. At that point her body stilled completely. She didn't move an inch. Their eyes locked and she found that she could not tear them away.

Her lips parted very slightly as she started to open her mouth to speak. What she did not know, just something, but her breath caught in her throat. Rin moved a gentle hand to push aside a few strands of her hair and as she did, Jia could feel her fingers lightly graze against the skin of her face. As she felt the touch, Jia suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of calm. She still couldn't look away.

Abruptly, whatever had just happened in that moment was disrupted as Rin suddenly looked startled and scrambled off of the girl and back to her feet. Jia blinked once, followed by a sudden widening of her eyes as she too seemed to be jarred back to her senses. She swallowed and quickly sat up, her eyes desperately searching for anywhere to focus on that wasn't the woman now standing in front of her. It was the floor they found as she felt the warmth of a blush creep into her cheeks for the second time that night.

Her master stuttered out that the lesson was over and without delay Jia heard the sound of her retreating footsteps. She didn't raise her head to watch Rin leave. She stayed staring downward with those slightly widened, perplexed eyes. "Uh, good... Good night..." By the time the practically whispered words left her mouth, it was too late for them to reach anyone's ears but her own.

Jia didn't move from that spot for what felt like a long time. All she could manage to do was gaze down at the metallic surface of the floor. After a while she lifted her head and stared forlornly at the doorway that Rin had exited the room from earlier.

"What is this..." She whispered quietly a question that only she would hear. One she could not answer on her own. There she stayed with her eyes glued to that spot, alone, silent and left to nothing but her thoughts and the internal echo of an unanswered question.