Fresh Air (Fro)

[Talau the Ever-Lurking]

“Well…not a whole lot, to be honest.”

Nodding slightly, Talau waited to see if he had any more to say before she spoke.

“I can at least say I’ve observed that Consulars are very attuned to the mind, and Guardians to the body.”

Again she nodded.

”Yes, this much is true. Consulars and Guardians are the most obvious faces of the jedi: One the diplomatic and problem solving face…prefering not to fight, but will if they must. The other the protective and stalwart face of the jedi…willing and ready to fight to protect all that they hold dear and believe in, they will gladly lay down their lives to see that others are safe. If those are the faces of the jedi, then the Sentinels are like the hidden hands of the Order…many of us prefer to take a course that allows us to do both as easily as possible, and often as subtly as possible.”

For a moment she’d allow that to soak in. It was, at best, a vague covering of the stereotypes of the three ‘branches,’ and something she would have to expand upon.

”Those are, of course, speaking to the stereotypes. Every jedi is different, and each has their own way of going about their tasks, so to say that all Guardians rely solely on physical skills would be incorrect, as some rely heavily on force abilities, and some are very much like Sentinels, preferring to do as little physical damage as possible until it is necessary. Some Consulars are very adept fighters, but prefer to avoid using those skills as much as possible, preferring to learn all they can about the galaxy and keep others from fighting, though they will not hesitate to fight with every ounce of their strength if they feel it is necessary. Like the other two ‘branches,’ some Sentinels lean one way or the other in their thinking and actions. So you see, there is no clear cut division between the three except in the sorts of tasks the Council sends them on.”

Tapping one of her fingers on the desk lightly, Talau smiled, chuckling softly for a moment. ”My first master, Shoal, was a guardian…a shistavanen with a heart of gold. He was the kindest man I’ve ever met, and while he was very much a guardian in spirit and action, he understood the necessity of all three, Consular, Guardian and Sentinel, to make the whole Order work effectively, and believed that an understanding of all three was necessary for anyone who wanted to become a jedi. So, I think that I shall teach you, at least in the beginning, like he taught me in the beginning: to understand all three.

As a Sentinel myself, I walk a line between Guardian and Consular as best I can, so hopefully this will work a bit more easily for you than it did for myself and Master Shoal.”

[Fromikeable]

Vance was surprised that Tal took his lack of education so well. Was it so common to be untaught in the structure of the Order, the thing he was supposedly devoting his life too?

Skip it and listen. Tal explained in a nutshell most of what he knew: Guardians loved their sabers and Consulars loved their studies. He listened a little closer as she described Sentinels; the sort of behind-the-scenes jack-of-all-trades Jedi. Vance was aware that this was probably a pretty generalized statement, but nevertheless it was more than he had previously known about the third branch of the Jedi.

Tal continued explaining, and Vance continued to listen, swaddling the feather-necklace in his hands.

Tal's second installment seemed logical enough to Vance. One obviously couldn't just sum up every kind of Knight in the Order with three sterotypes; that was unfair, inaccurate, and foolish. Of course there were philosophical Guardians and battle-ready Consulars; they were just as subject to natural differences as the rest of the galaxy.

Her last sentence struck with Vance a little more than the rest though. He had never considered that the rank he would hold was just that: a rank that would simply determine what sort of work he was set to. On the one hand, that made things a little easier to consider, knowing that choosing a branch didn't mean he had to suddenly adhere to some additional code. On the other hand, it did mean that the rest of his time in the Order would be spent a certain way based on his decision.

Tal wrapped up her little lecture with a recollection of one her own masters, a Master Shoal. Shoal seemed to think (rather wisely, in Vance's opinion) that the entire Order, all of the branches, needed to be understood, recognized, and respected in order to have the Jedi work efficiently. It made sense of course; what good was a machine if the cogs didn't fit each other? What good was a computer if the circuits didn't connect? The first people that had to understand an organization were, in fact, the organizers.

"As a Sentinel myself, I walk a line between Guardian and Consular as best I can, so hopefully this will work a bit more easily for you than it did for myself and Master Shoal.”

So I'm not limited then. Over the course of the explanation, a notion had happened upon the padawan; that his master would most likely only be able to teach him the path they themselves had chosen. Vance wasn't sure if it would be possible to choose a different path under those circumstances, but it good to hear that with Tal, he wouldn't truly need to worry about it quite as much.

"Good," Vance nodded in comprehension. When not stunned (however rarely that was today), he was actually pretty quick on the up-take. He continued to swaddle the feather subconsciously, too deep in thought to divert his attention to actually putting it around his neck.

"But what sort of work comes with being a Sentinel? I can imagine that Guardians get very confrontational assignments, and perhaps Consulars are given more diplomatic tasks, but what happens when you're one of 'the unseen faces of the Jedi'?"

[Talau the Ever-Lurking]

Vance took all the information in stride, it seemed, now that he was getting used to the oddity that was Talau. It was certainly a good sign as far as she was concerned. When all was said and done, it seemed that he only had one real question: “what sort of work comes with being a Sentinel?” That was a good question, especially since Sentinels could be so much, do so much, and were more often than not very flexible in their abilities and duties.

”Hmm…well, that isn’t an easy question to answer,” she replied honestly. ”I’ve done any number of things, from diplomatic (the last of which didn’t turn out so well for me) to searching for possible apostates and dangerous criminals. Though, more often than not, I have dealt in investigations of one sort or another. My friend Locke is a full Investigator…so he deals most often with researching, infiltrating, and breaking down criminal activity like drug cartels and smuggling rings. I, however, am a Shadow, therefore I investigate, track, and deal with ‘dark-side’ objects and people who have connections to them, as well as dark jedi and these new ‘Sith Order’ members. Other Sentinels work to find the children who will be the Order’s new younglings. It’s quite possible that you were discovered by a Sentinel yourself. Furthermore, there are Sentinels who will often stay on one planet, or in one system, for years at a time helping to better the society there and acting as a go-between for that areas government and the Council.”

Chuckling a little, she grinned over at him with a quirky sort of amusement and hints of green in her eyes. ”The Technical Division of the Order is also primarily comprised of Sentinels, as well as the Quartermaster being one more often than not. So you see, we have a wide range of tasks available to us…mainly because we do not focus strictly on the force or on combat, but also on developing other skills that do not require either one.”

Folding her arms across her chest lightly, she’d lean back in her seat a bit thinking over her path. It hadn’t been intentional, but her becoming a Sentinel (and further a Shadow) was the correct path for her life. If anything would help her through the years it would be the training and experiences she got as a Sentinel, as well as those lessons she’d gotten from Shoal on how to fight without use of the force to aid her…there was no doubt in her mind about that. In fact, despite the painful knowledge that she had only come to the Order because of her parents murder, she knew that this was the correct place for her to be to gain the knowledge and skills she would need when she returned to Rilia.

”Anyway, that’s about as well as I can answer your question, since there really isn’t one clear way to reply. The only other thing I can tell you is that if you chose to become a sentinel it would behoove you to learn skills common to those outside of the Order. I, for instance, am a passable lock-pick and slicer, as well as the fact that I know…and am still learning…several languages. If there are two things to know about Sentinels, it’s that we are constantly learning and honing our skills…and that most of us rarely appear to be jedi at all. After all, it isn’t exactly a good idea to let it be known you’re a jedi if you’re tracking down someone who doesn’t want to be found.”

[Fromikeable]

Vance listened earnestly, hovering on every word Tal spoke. By the sound of it, Sentinels were indeed the skill of the Order. But they were more than that. They were the skilled workers; the Jedi that wanted to learn just as badly as they wanted to serve the Code. They had the fitness and capability to fight of a Guardian fused with the mind and wit of a Consular, and even had practical skills to top it off.

It sounded pretty nice.

I need to consider this more. Sentinels sounded pretty suiting to the padawan (especially considering he already possessed an affinity for mechanics and electronics), but his logical side got the best of him. This was, after all, quite a major decision that should be meditated on, considered over a long period of time, and looked into. It was not the sort of thing you resolved after two minutes of thinking and a three minutes explanation from a master you've had for about an hour now.

"Interesting," Vance chimmed, lifting one his hands to scratch his chin. He instead smiled in surprise and remembered the feather-charm still his hand. He noted its beauty again; how the colors seemed to radiate, almost like the feather itself was alive.

Vance set aside his pondering and undid the clasp on the necklace's chain, allowing it to release into one long piece. He brought both ends around his neck and reconnected them, pulling the necklace forward slightly so it would rest on the back of his neck. He finally let the feather go, allowing it to dangle from below his chin as he leaned forward slowly. He then settled back in his seat, allowing the new neck-piece to rest up against his chest. He would tuck it into his shirt in a moment; for now he just wanted to enjoy it.

"I need to think about it more, mull it over." For another minute he was silent, still going over the entire prospect in his mind.

Still, Vance couldn't help but wonder about Shadows specifically. Their job seemed... mysterious, at best. Vance seemed to recall Sirius wanting to become one, and knowing Sirius's passion for things, it said a lot about hunting the "Dark Side."

That begged a question that was a little out of left field, but had nagged at Vance in the night's quiet every night since Shon-tul had died. It was a question he asked every time he was reminded of that day on Agamar, being electrocuted and dueling for his life.

It was something he asked every time he thought of Shon-tul floating in that tank.

"Tal, I need to ask you something important." Vance's tone grew dead serious. He wasn't overjoyed that he was already about to tax his new master, but as he had said, this was something he needed a straight answer about.

"I understand what brings people to it, and I understand what it does to those people, but there's always been one thing no one has ever told me in a single statement."

"What is the Dark Side?"

[Talau the Ever-Lurking]

Quietly the woman watched her new padawan, studying him from behind golden-brown eyes. He was a clever one, certainly…something she was thankful for. It would certainly make her job easier in some respects, considering some other padawans she’d seen ‘round about the temple and their penchant for being bull headed about learning. As he clipped the necklace on she smiled just slightly, the sight and feeling of it…right…to her.

“I need to think about it more, mull it over.”

She chuckled a little at that and put up a placating hand. ”I wasn’t asking you to sign a contract you know, Vance. I was asking so that I could begin thinking about how to better teach you and prepare you for your path. I wasn’t expecting an answer that would magically lock you into your life’s path.” …And that was the truth of it. There was no mystical pact that would be formed simply by him telling her which path interested him most…it was just a question, and an answer that could easily be changed later on.

For another few moments Talau allowed the silence to settle between them before she started to hum softly. She was waiting for the inevitable query, feeling a new question bubbling just below the surface of Vance’s emotions. The soft and lilting melody seemed to compliment the stirrings of serious, and almost grim, emotions emanating from the teen.

“Tal, I need to ask you something important.”

A nod was all she gave to acknowledge his statement, her eyes returning to him only a moment later. As he lay the foundation for his question, she already had a few guesses as to where it was going…and was already debating her own answer. The Rilan woman had a…unique…view of the force for a jedi, much less a Shadow, so this was going to be……interesting.

“What is the Dark Side?”

For another few, long, moments there was no sound from the woman other than her soft humming as her eyes drifted away from her new padawan and her mind continued to work over her answer, now that she knew exactly what the question was. Did she answer from her opinion, or did she answer from the jedi perspective? That was the largest problem she was facing. Gently tapping the fingers of her right hand on the desk, Talau finally sighed and stopped her humming, her eyes returning to Vance once more.

”That’s a difficult question for me to answer, Vance, because I do not have the same opinion of the force as many Jedi do. Most Jedi would likely tell you that the Dark Side is a corrupt side of the force…the Night to the light side’s Day, so to speak. Personally, I do not believe there is a light or dark side to the force…the Force just is, but our own actions and intentions make it seem thus to those who don’t truly understand.

To me the Force is like our lightsabers…it is a tool to be used, but how and why we use it makes the tool ‘good’ or ‘evil’. A lightsaber, by itself, is not inherently good or evil, but the wielder may use it to murder, or use it to protect. The force is the exact same way. It can be used to protect, or harm…a dark jedi may be able to heal their pupil, if they so chose to make the attempt at learning such things, and use the ability to ‘speak’ to animals to turn them on people and make them dangerous, just like a Jedi of the Order may learn to use lightning or to instill fear in enemies to make them flee or better protect themselves or others…therefore, it is not that there is some mystical line that one must cross to learn ‘dark’ abilities or ‘light’ abilities, just a desire to learn and how the learned abilities are used.”

Allowing that to sink in for a moment, she hooked one leg over the other and traced some invisible design on the top of her desk, her eyes wandering over the work stacked neatly on it. Time and again she had come across instances that reaffirmed her thinking…and had even considered the consequences of learning some of the darker abilities, like lightning, to aid her in her work. Still, there hadn’t been enough of a need to warrant it, so she hadn’t bothered.

”In general, Dark Jedi do not want to heal others, and so they don’t bother to learn…they are selfish, or driven by strong emotions like fear or hate, or they desire to protect something or someone they care for so much that they will do anything to see it happen, even if it means murdering or otherwise harming others. Because of this, they use the skills they learn to bring them closer to their goal…or try to. The skills themselves may even be ones taught to them by this very Order, but in their hands they become ‘dark.’ Why? Not by some magical change in the alignment of the ability, but rather a change in the person and their actions.

In general, we Jedi do not allow our emotions to control us and we seek to help and protect others…yes? Some of the abilities we use are, as I said, the very same abilities that Dark Jedi would use against us and others…but when we use them they are considered ‘light’? How does this make sense? In truth, it doesn’t.

Here is another example: take two people, ordinary people, with the exact same skills, abilities and talents. Now, make one ‘good’…using their learned and natural abilities for good…like Jedi. The other is ‘bad’ and use their abilities to that end. They’re regular people, they have the same talents and abilities, they just use them differently. It doesn’t make their talents good or bad, and no one would claim such…logically, the people themselves are ‘good’ and ‘bad’. So, if the Force only lends us our abilities, how can it possibly be good and evil? Why not just say that the people using it are ‘good’ or ‘evil’ and use their abilities in the force as such?”

Again she paused, this time standing up and moving over to lean against the wall near the small window in her room and look out for a long moment, considering her answer. ”There are, of course, abilities that are more easily used when fueled by powerful emotions…thus making them more easily learned by Dark jedi and the like, just as there are abilities that are more easily learned by compassionate souls more similar to Jedi…but that doesn’t mean that they cannot be learned by either side. So, my answer, now that you know the ‘whys’ of it, is that there is no such thing as the ‘dark side’…just people who use their abilities for evil, and objects that have been tainted by strong negative emotions, which, in the right circumstances, can negatively affect others…thus becoming dangerous.”

She turned her eyes to Vance then, gazing at him steadily for a long moment.

"That is why I track them down...to help eliminate the danger posed to others by such people and objects...not because there is some twisted form of the Force that needs to be eradicated."

[Fromikeable]

For once, it seemed that it Tal was the one who had to deeply consider something today. Vance was glad that the exchange was at least proving somewhat as affecting to her as it was to him.

Then she went on and explained her perspective. Was it the Force that could be evil and dark and angry? Or was it simply called that when it was used by evil, dark, angry people?

Vance sat through the entire explanation in dead silence, not even pausing to consider what he heard as he absorbed every syllable, every tone, and every movement of Tal's lips. He sat in stark concentration, focusing on his master.

She finished, and for a minute, he stared at her intensely, making sure that she was really and truly finished. When it became evident that she was, Vance's mind slowly reemerged, and his look of concentration was replaced with another of severe consideration.

That... that makes far more sense. Vance had learned enough about the galaxy to know, just by wandering the Temple's halls and observing the Jedi there, that it was odd to think of the Force in simple terms of good and evil. That was like trying to paint a masterpiece using only black and white, with no shades of grey in between. It was possible, but it looked far better and did a much better job of expressing the art with the grey.

After all, the Force was the embodiment and living energy flowing through all living things. Were all living things simply divided into black and white camps? Was it natural to organize everything into two extremes?

Was it nature's way to be so simple?

No. That was the beauty of the Force; it was so vast, so unbiased, so free and solid that in comparison, the petty squabbles of the life it powered seemed foolish, maybe even a little ignorant. And yet, that's what set people away from the Force that fueled them; people were focused on things, and the Force was focused on the life within the things people focused on.

Vance liked Tal's example. He had never truly been happy with the answers offered to him about the Dark Side of the Force before. They had all seemed too... stiff, too... predetermined, as it the galaxy was as easy to read as pamphlet in a waiting room. It wasn't. If it was, the Jedi, in all honesty, probably wouldn't exist.

In truth, he liked Tal's answer overall. He had possessed a few suspicions about his teachings in the Force, and she had just supported all of them. He still needed to see it firsthand, though; to truly discover it for himself. Anyone could be told an answer to a question, but it meant more and struck a stronger cord whenever the inquirer actually went out and answered his own inquiry.

The padawan took a moment to observe Tal again. The room was dead silent, save for a soft, thoughtful tune she was humming. It was soothing like a lullaby, and yet serious and foreboding like a crescendo in an epic. Vance listened to it for a minute, being swept away in the melody. As he floated back down to Coruscant, he couldn't help but smile a little.

"So you say it's the people, not what the people wield." It was a simple observation, but an important one.

"Thank you for that Tal. It means more than you know." The padawan smiled a little wider. This woman, this Jedi, had done more for him in the last hour than the collective efforts of almost everyone else he knew had done for him since Shon-tul had died. He may not have admitted it, but he still thought of his deceased master frequently, and he often still blamed himself for his failure. There were still those questions, "Maybe if I had been able to delay him a little longer", or the infamous "If I had only endured the pain". They nagged Vance. They stung him. They tortured him.

Tal was a reprieve from that torture though, and suddenly those questions seemed a lot less awful, almost like they suddenly didn't matter as much.

"Maybe if I had been able to delay him a little longer..."

"Then you simply would set Shon-tul's death off by a minute."

"If I had only endured the pain..."

"Then he would have killed you were you limped."

For a moment, the room was silent. Vance shifted his gaze from Tal to the ceiling, imaging that could he trace out with his eyes little designs across it, sweeping slowly about in long spirals. It was strange; in his bid to gain answers today, he had found instead a new idea; that these weren't questions that necessarily needed or even had answers. Perhaps that's why they had nagged him; he was trying to solve them the wrong way.

Vance looked down at his feather again, bringing a hand up to hold it. He felt it one last time, the sharp edge and smooth sides, and then promptly opened up a space between his robe and his under shirt. He promptly proceeded to lower the feather gently into the space, making sure it settled gently as the cloth he wore sandwiched it. He finally fixed his robes, patting softly.

"So..." The padawan's smile curled a little, adopting a playful, devilish style.

"A magic feather, huh?"

[Talau the Ever-Lurking]

“So you say it’s the people, not what the people wield.”

Shaking herself from her own reverie, Talau nodded to his statement. ”That’s correct. Of course, it should be noted that the phrase ‘absolute power corrupts absolutely’ also applies. But again, that’s the person and their ability to handle great power and responsibility, rather than the power itself. Anyway, you’re welcome. I’m glad I could help clear things up at least a little for you.”

As the thoughtful silence stretched on, the woman glanced over at the time. She had some work to do, and she had to go and talk to the council about her taking Vance on as a padawan. With this in mind, it was likely best that she cut their meeting short for the day to get everything sorted and prepare herself for her new tasks. To be honest, she was a little nervous about taking a padawan but…she couldn’t go second guessing herself, especially not now.

“So…a magic feather, huh?”

She chuckled at that.

”Hardly magic…but special, yes. Anyway, you should be on your way for now, Vance. I have work to do on my own end, and I also need to see about meeting with the Council to make everything official for your being my padawan, alright?”

As the boy got up to leave, she stood near the door, a hint of a smile on her face. ”I’ll see you tomorrow at the saber training rooms to see just where you stand with your training there. Alright? Let’s make it in the afternoon.”

With that settled, she saw Vance out and got to work on her ‘to-do’ list.