Well begun...(Drake - Finished)

[Je'gan Olra'en]

Basic combat generally required weapons, and Je'gan had come prepared. A hovering rack floated along beside him, adorned with blades of every sort. Knives, daggers, swords of all descriptions, even a few polearms and a single wrist-mounted lanvarok.

This was going to make for an interesting day.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake strode onto the Training Grounds with his black cloak swirling about his legs. The hood of the claok was pulled up over his head and cast his face into shadow. He liked to keep his scarred and severly brutilized face hidden from other sentinents. However, he no longer cared what they thought about him.

Olra'en had told Drake to meet him on the Training Grounds the following day after their meeting. The Sith Knight had accepted Drake as his new Apprentice. No specific time or place had been set for the training session. Drake used his instincts and figured that the morning would be a suitable time so that was when he had chosen to go. He had not slept the previous night. Instead he had wandered around and refamiliarized himself with everything.

It did not take long for Drake to locate Olra'ren in the Training Grounds and when he did, his new Master was standing next to a hovering unit with an assortment of weapons. Drake spoke a word of greeting and bowed. Even though he despised bowing to other people, he would benefit greatly from it.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"Good morning, Drake."

Je'gan pulled a short staff from the rack and tossed it to his newest apprentice. The dowel was roughly four and a half feet, hardwood bound with steel, and capable of standing up to a solid blade. It weighed about the same, too, but handled with a more centered balance. He picked up a matching one and held it in the middle, two-handed.

"Attack me. See what you can do."

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake caught the staff one-handed with his palm extended outward. He mimicked the grip that Olra'ren had used on his own staff that he had picked up. The Apprentice had never really used a weapon before and the staff felt slightly ackward. When Olra'ren told Drake to attack and he nodded his hooded head. Drake walked up to his Master and swung horizontally at him.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"You can block three ways with a staff," Je'gan said conversationally as the blow hit between his hands. "This is one. Logically, what are the others?"

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake took a step from Olra'ren and demonstrated one way by holding the staff horizontally and raising slightly above his head. This way could block vertical strikes aimed at him. Then twisting the staff 90 degrees, he held it vertically and showed it could block horizontal strikes.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"Very good. And what if I do...this?"

He swung with moderate speed for just above Drake's knees, too high to really jump over and too low to use the middle-of-the-staff block.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake tried unsuccessfully to block the attack made by Olra'ren and the staff hit him square in the lower thigh. The pain was minimal, however, Drake was greatly angered at himself for not being able to block such a simple attack. He swung in the same manner that Olra'ren had to see how it was done.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

Je'gan thrust the end of his staff down to intercept Drake's blow, and shifted his grip, sending the staff's other end on a collision course with his new Apprentice's skull.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake hardly saw the staff moving toward his head and WHAM. The fierceness of the blow sent him sprawling and it was all he could do to remain conscious. Stepping gingerly to his feet his left hand came up and grazed the side of his head. He drew it away and blood was visible. His anger was carefully subdued and he faced Olra'ren. Drake felt somewhat grateful for his new self control, had that same thing happened to him a few months ago something inside himself would have snapped.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"Did you see how I blocked, Drake? And do you see how to block an overhand swing like that last one was?"

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake nodded his scarred head at Olra'ren.

"Yes, however, I need to tune up my reflexes."

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"Don't we all. Still, there are many ways to get around that.

"Close your eyes and stretch out with the Force. Let it flow through you. Feel, don't think." The Sith Knight's voice became a monotone as he slashed horizontally at Drake's side.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

The Sith Apprentice felt and overwhelming sensation as the power of the Force seemingly coursed through his body in waves. At that moment, Drake felt, rather then saw the slash made by his Master, Olra'ren. He brought his staff around and to the left so the end was pointing towards the ground. The two staffs collided and a loud cracking sound was heard.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"Very, very good, Drake. Now attack me. Don't lose that feeling. Be at one with the Force."

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake shifted the grip of the staff so it rested in his right hand and paralell to his arm. He twisted his body slightly and then flung his hand backward in a hard back slash.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

Je'gan stepped forward into the blow, catching it with a backhand strike of his own using the bottom end of the staff. He spun on his forward foot and ended up inside Drake's guard, with the Apprentice behind him. His right elbow shot back towards Drake's hip.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

With the Force still controlling his movements, Drake was able to get clear of Olra'ren's right elbow. If Olra'ren had truly wanted to make contact, he would have done so. With his next attack, Drake brought his staff around in both hands in a strike aimed down the middle of Olra'rens body.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

The Sith Knight, working off his acute danger-sense, flipped his right hand's grip and raised the staff behind his head, blocking Drake's strike cleanly.

He backed off and faced his Apprentice, face calm.

"Well done. Pick another weapon."

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake's cloaked and hooded form walked slowly over to the hovering weapon rack. Carefully he set the two-handed staff back on the rack and viewed his choices. After a moments contemplation he picked up a short sword with an ornate hilt. He hefted it a few times and stepped back from the weapon rack, this one would do.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"You see the difference between your weapon and mine. Yours is alloy, and mine is wood. What would you say if a pair of evenly matched fighters had these weapons and went at each other? Who would win?"

[Drake Shadowstalker]

"The staff that you hold, is bound in steel. It could withstand the cutting edge of a blade. If it was only wood then the blade of a sword could easily cut through it."

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"That's where you're wrong."

Je'gan replaced the staff with a simpler and slightly longer one made of uncovered wood, and turned to face Drake again.

"If you hit this with enough force, it probably will break...but at any real angle, and if I'm moving the thing, it'll just rebound. This is a very hard wood, almost as hard as steel.

"There are six basic strikes with a blade like this. Right and left horizontal, right and left arc over the shoulders, straight down from overhead, and stabbing." He demonstrated each. "There are also six blocks. Using what you know about the staff, try to block each of the six strikes with your sword."

He began slashing at Drake with moderate speed, running through the strikes a few times each.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

With the Force still guiding him, Drake parried and blocked each of the swings Olra'en made at him. He quickly memorized all the ways to block with the sword.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

Je'gan drew back and ran his fingers over the new dents in the staff.

"Well done, well done indeed. Now for the apex weapon..."

SNAP-HISS

A pale blue lightsaber blade appeared almost out of nowhere: Je'gan's newest project, the half-moon-hilted Magor. He tossed a generic training saber to Drake and assumed a Form Two stance with one foot ahead of the other and both knees very slightly bent.

"Have fun, but be careful."

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake caught the lightsaber in an extended palm. Not very anxious was he to loose any limbs. Any individual that enjoyed there body in one piece did not mess around with a lightsaber. The blade was pure energy and could slice through any known substance like it was butter.

He ignited the blade and a dullish sort of red sprange forward from the hilt. Drake would have to be very careful with this new weapon. Grabbing the hilt in both hands, Drake pulled them back to his ears and swung in a diagonal slash

[Je'gan Olra'en]

Magor rose, meeting Drake's blade squarely in one of the blocks Je'gan had just run through. As soon as the strike was stopped, though, the Sith Knight slashed down the red blade at Drake's hands, aiming to stop just before contact was made.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake had a sudden vision of his hands being separated from his body and it was not pleasant. He was grateful at the fact that Olra'en had stopped before severing his hands. A feeling that he did not feel often. The Sith Apprentice knew he had done something wrong in his attack. His head continued to throb slightly from the blow it had suffered earlier.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

The Apprentice was more or less broadcasting his surface thoughts, which was to be expected. Je'gan picked up on his sense of failure, and hastily tried to correct it. He moved his weapon farther up Drake's, to where it was during the block.

"Your attack was fine, you just have to think defense while thinking attack. Say I do that again, and move my blade down towards your hands." He did so, albeit slowly. "You can flick my strike away if you're fast enough, or alter the angle at which you hold your blade enough that I have to completely change the direction of my slash."

[Drake Shadowstalker]

The Sith Apprentice absorbed the words and stored them in the crevices of his mind. Drake utilized the second method that Olra'en had mentioned. He transistioned his weapon so it was at a different angle and Olra'en's slow moving attack was diverted.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"There we go. Now snap your saber forward at my head, but watch out for a low counterstrike. I can duck, you see, and you have to block or I'll eviscerate you."

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake did as he was told and snapped his saber forward at Olra'en's head. The Knight ducked like he said he would and did his counter-strike. The Sith Apprentice brought his saber down and pointed it towards the ground. Drake's and Olra'en's blades met and sizzled.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

Je'gan smiled; his wrist twisted all the way around, and Magor's blade slashed up at Drake's face.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

With his saber still pointed towards the ground, Drake lifted his hands and his right elbow extended out. Again the 2 blades hit and crackled loudly.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

Je'gan half-extended his elbow into a straight stab through the last few inches towards Drake's heart, then at the last moment flipped the blade overtop of the Apprentice's guard, aiming for the head.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake, not knowing what else to do, let his legs come out from under him and he fell to the ground. He got quickly to his feet and turned to face Olra'en. Embarassment was not an emotion familiar to Drake, but he felt it now.

"Umm...what could I have done there?"

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"Right now, not a whole lot. What you did was probably your best bet, and if you can work in a kick or something as you fall, you're in fine shape. Once you get faster, more options open up to you...but for now, don't worry about getting embarassed.

"You're off to a fine start, too. I wouldn't be taking on any Jedi just yet, but given time you may be a very good bladewielder.

"What do you want to learn next?"

[Drake Shadowstalker]

After a few moments deliberation, Drake spoke in his low voice.

"I want to learn manipulation of the mind, Master."

[Je'gan Olra'en]

A strangled cough erupted from Je'gan's throat before he could stop it.

"An ambitious goal and a worthy one. I hope you are aware that this will take months, even years.

"Still, there is no harm in trying. Let's put aside combat for now and begin. Can you sense my mind, Drake?"

[Drake Shadowstalker]

The Apprentice nodded his head.

"I can sense it but nothing is revealed of what it contains."

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"Look closer. You should be able to feel things that aren't covered by my shields. Emotions. Try to feel those."

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake dug a little deeper and he found the surface emotions of the Jedi Knight.

"I do feel those now."

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"You sure? Name the three emotions I'm making myself feel."

In a row, he called up memories and sensations corresponding to four: fear, anger, affection, determination. The last one might be slightly harder to get than the others, and seeing as he'd never actually mentioned its existence, Je'gan was curious to see if Drake could detect it this early in the game.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake concentrated harder on Olra'en's mind and soon felt the individual emotions that the Knight was projecting. The Apprentice saw bits and pieces of different emotions. He sensed...anger...fear...and affection. Wait...was there something else there as well? The feeling disapeared almost immediatly and Drake was left with the 3 he had first found.

"Anger...fear...affection, Master."

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"Those are them, Drake. Now...what am I feeling?"

He held the determination this time, at more or less the same level as he had let himself feel it before.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake cleared his mind and concentrated once again. He felt again the brief presence of something else lingering within the Sith Knight. This time he stayed with it and it didn't slip away like it had done previously. The Sith Apprentice was having trouble giving the emotion a name so distant was it.

"You won't be stopped...nothing can get in your way..."

Drake was becoming frustrated and then something clicked in his mind.

"Determination!"

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"Determination indeed."

He dredged up old, old memories, letting a half-unfamiliar emotion pass through him. Love. Genuine, true love.

"And now?"

[Drake Shadowstalker]

The Apprentice refocused himself once more and concentrated on the mind of Olra'en. Bits and pieces of the Sith Knights' memories flashed in Drake's mind, but they were little more then fragments at best and he could discern almost nothing. Then Drake caught a single fragment and the answer burned through him like fire. Love...

Drake sneered inwardly. Love! He couldn't remember the last time he had felt suck a weak emotion. The Apprentice spoke the word like it were acid.

"Love."

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"Correct," Je'gan spat, angry despite himself. He locked the memories away and placed them behind protective shields. The less accessible - to him or to another - the better.

"You can now identify most of the major emotions you'll encounter. Obviously you can feel them yourself as well. Try to project an emotion towards me."

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake projected a emotion that was foreign to him now, but earlier in his life it had embraced him. Helplessness. Peculiar was it that Olra'en had not asked him how his face and gotten so badly marred and distorted. The rest of his body was much the same but hidden beneath clothing. Perhaps...it was time to show his Master.

The Sith Apprentice allowed the memories he kept so deeply buried to be brought forth. Before he learned control of himself, such memories would have provoked him into uncontrollable rage. Not now though...he was past that. All that remained was a rather unsettling indifference.

Images of him getting sliced and beaten were vivid in his mind. He could almost feel the vibroblades cutting into his skin. The feeble attempts to defend himself as kicks and punches landed all over his torn body. And then...there was nothing...

[Je'gan Olra'en]

The projection was strong, and it had a noticeable effect on Je'gan before he put more into his defences and repressed his own emotional capacity.

"Nice job. You seem to have an aptitude for this. Now try something that works well for clearing crowds or driving someone mad.

"Fear. As powerful as you can make it."

[Drake Shadowstalker]

The Apprentice pushed the memories once more back into the deep recesses of his mind. Then he called forth memories that would invoke uncontrollable fear. They flashed like lightning through Drake's mind.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"Ehh...not bad. Focus more on me feeling them, rather than you yourself."

Je'gan locked eyes with his apprentice. The scarring was bad, but he'd seen worse...and since when did appearance have anything to do with what the soul was capable of?

"Drill time. You know your telekinesis; defend yourself."

A fist-sized rock rose beside Drake and flew towards his head. Je'gan, meanwhile, was backing off a little to give his Apprentice some room to work.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake's hand flew up instintively with the palm pointing out. He pushed a strong wave of hate out of his palm and straight towards the core of the rock. Pieces flew everywhere and one imbedded itself into the Apprentice's right cheek. With his fingers, Drake pulled out the rock shard. Blood trickled slowly down his cheek but he didn't care.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"When something's headed towards you, making it explode isn't necessarily the best way to stop it. Try again."

Another flung itself for Drake, this aimed at the Apprentice's back.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake whirled around quickly with his palm extended outward once again. He sent out a much weaker wave and this time it latched onto the surface of the rock, halting it in mid-air. The Apprentice then did a half turn and flung the rock as hard as he could in the opposite direction.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

The Knight's hand snapped up, catching the rock with an audible crack.

"You're capable. What did your Master think of your endurance?"

[Drake Shadowstalker]

"My edurance...? I suppose he thought it was decent enough. Faro from being the best, however."

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"Work on that, if you please. If you can outlast your opponent while defending yourself, a defeat is easy once he's tired.

"You are exhaustible. The Force, however, is not."

With the last word, a third rock was flung at Drake's gut from just behind Je'gan.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

The Apprentice's hand shot up once more and send out a strong repulsing wave. However, he had not been aware of the rock before it was heading towards him. The Force wave he had sent out slowed the momentum of the rock but had not stopped it entirely and it impacted on his stomache. Drake doubled over slightly before regaining his composure. He had stopped most of the momentum so the impact had been minimal.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"If you can't stop it, and you can't slow it, what do you do?"

Another rock, from Drake's right.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

This time the Apprentice dove with his hands outstretched to his right. He did a clean forward roll and finished in a standing posistion. Drake turned his body to face Olra'en.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"Well done. Never give up," he instructed Drake firmly. "Not when your powers are diminished, not when you're tired, not when you're wounded.

"Back to weapons, now. Take the lanvarok." He pointed, and the gauntlet twitched noticeably. "It'll only fit on your left arm, and be careful where you point it; it fires metal discs that are very, very sharp."

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake not being the one to ask unecessary questions did as he was told. Olra'en would explain himself in due time and the Apprentice would not rush it. After securing the gauntlet to his left arm he waited.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

A target, really just a chunk of wood, raised itself into the air about thirty metres from Drake and Je'gan.

"Enhancing your aim is very similar to physical enhancement. Keep your am still, and let the Force guide your projectile to its target."

The lanvarok contained seven disks. Je'gan didn't expect his Apprentice to hit with any of them, but he'd been wrong before.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake brought his arm containing the gauntlet up in front of him and directed it towards the target. Focusing on the target he used to the Force to keep his arm steady. In rapid succession he fired the projectiles until the gauntlet was empty. The first disc cleanly missed the target. 2 and 3 were closer but still wide. 4, 5, and 6 each got closer in succession and 7 grazed the edge of the target but did not stick. Lowering his arm, Drake had a dubious expression.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"Not bad at all."

The chunk of wood dropped. Seven discs levitated one by one and bit into the ground at Drake's feet, and then the target came up again.

"Try once more. Connect to the Force. Feel it flow through you."

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake carefully placed the seven discs back inside the gauntlest. They were incredibly sharp and could cut through the skin like it was butter. Holding his arm steady once again in front of him, the Apprentice felt the Force and locked in on his target. The first 5 came within a hairs breadth of the target and 6 and 7 stuck in the wood with a resonating sound.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

Je'gan nodded, just once, and disappeared, leaving Drake to recover his own ammunition this time.

"Try to find me."

The voice came from everywhere, courtesy of a minor mind trick. The Sith Knight was invisible, but he could still be sensed through the Force if one was careful enough.

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Using telekinetic power the Apprentice levitated the 7 discs and dropped them in front of him. One by one he loaded the gauntlet a second time. Reaching out to the Force, drake searched for Force signatures in the immediate area. Olra'en was hiding his, but not entirely and Drake picked it up after a few moments. It was directly behind him. Whirling around he brought the gauntlet up.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

...And had it slapped down. Hard. By something that remained invisible. Je'gan stepped quietly to the side.

"I said find me, not point a lanvarok at me."

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Feeling the presence only move a little to the side, Drake brought the lanvarok up again and fired once.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

The disk exploded in the launcher as Drake pressed the button. A fragment caught Je'gan in the arm; he took the pain and pulled it out without the illusion flickering. The fragment became visible once more as he dropped it to the ground and moved again.

"You didn't listen to me, Drake."

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake's temper got the better of him and he exploded.

"What is it you want me to do?!"

[Je'gan Olra'en]

"You did it already. You can sense the presence of a Forcer. That's all I wanted. But you went too far. Don't ever threaten me again outside of a spar - which this isn't.

"Today's lesson is over, Drake, unless there's something specific you want to learn."

[Drake Shadowstalker]

"No...I think that's about it, for now."

Far from thinking he had done anything wrong, Drake ignored entirely the first part of what Olra'en had said.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

The illusion dropped, and the last thing Drake saw before a Force-push blasted him off his feet was and outstretched hand and a pair of furious black eyes.

"I'll teach you well, Drake." The Sith Knight's voice rippled with Force Compulsion. "I'll make you great. But you will respect me."

[Drake Shadowstalker]

Drake felt himself thrown off his feet by an invisible force. He tumbled wildy through the air for several feet and landed sprawled out on his back. There was no anger in the Apprentice because he had more or less expected the result. He climbed quickly to his feet and didn't bother to brush himself off.

"Yes, Master."

Walking back over to the weapon rack, Drake picked up the sword he had used earlier. Olra'en was done teaching him, but he was far from being done practicing. He left the gauntlet on his arm. Practice was needed with that as well. He turned to Olra'en and bowed, then walked off.

[Je'gan Olra'en]

And I, considered he, thought Jorshal to be troublesome...