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Post by Jefardi Owwaullis on Apr 13, 2013 0:21:43 GMT -5
OOC: Sorry if this is slightly less than readable, this was done half asleep
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Jefardi was in a quandary. He was starting to realize that the previous, near year, of attempting to find the Jedi had been filled with one large hole in his plan. He really didn't know how to identify the Jedi. He knew they could use the Force and had something called a lightsword, no a lightsaber, he corrected himself. However, these could be duplicated in someone who was not a Jedi.
There laid his current problem; he didn't know if Sylvar was playing devil's advocate or not. The semi-friendly predatory grin that was on her face said she was. But at the same time, Jefardi was not the best when it came to guessing expressions. Especially with a species he barely knew.
With something akin to a sheepish grin on his face, "Honestly? As far as I know of...yes. Yes it does. Normally I would go talk to the 'official' Jedi on Coruscant to see if you were part of the Order. However given that the main temple, far as I can tell, is not reachable, I have to go off my own judgements, haven't I?"
Pausing for a moment, he reviewed quickly what she had said again.
"So I guess the question is, whether or not to trust you on your word." As he said it, the slight playfulness that was in Sylvar's voice started to creep into his. "Given that you went out of your way to find the plant" gesturing to the fairly green plant, "and heal it...I'd say that you were good. From my, admittedly limited, understanding, the Jedi are a Order that strives to bring peace and harmony to the galaxy. Helping a plant seems to support that."
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Post by Sylvar on Apr 13, 2013 13:55:54 GMT -5
It wasn't what she'd been going for, but Sylvar supposed it was a good start. Look at the evidence, go on the best guiding principle available, and make a decision. One of her goals would be to get the captain in touch with the Force enough to trust that rather than his judgement and minimal life experience, but that would come in time. She eventually smiled again, but this time warmly rather than playfully.
"That works for now," she said, stroking the plant. Looking at it she thought of where she would go from here with this person who might turn out to be her padawan. A wave of doubt struck her, remembering her own master's failing with Exar Kun. And Master Baas was a skilled trainer, yet losing Kun to the Dark Side was such a failing. Who was she to train someone?
"Captain, what do you know of the Sith or the Dark Side?"
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Post by Jefardi Owwaullis on Apr 13, 2013 15:07:37 GMT -5
Sylvar seemed to be satisifed by his answer and turned her attention towards her plant. Her expression changed to a rather warm smile from the predatory, playful one. After a few moments, her expression changed slightly, followed by asking what he knew of the Dark side or the sith.
Well thats an odd question. It reminded Jefardi of the question that the Jedi in the Nar Shaddaa bar had asked him. Increasingly, he was starting to think that it wasn't so much as a dream or some by product of his injuries, but more and more that it had actually happened. Unbeknownst to Jefardi, Chris had left a small piece of memorabilia, the washer, on the Odysseia. Jefardi had yet to find the object, as he had yet to check the top of the crate nearest to the entrance.
"The Sith are the opposite of the Jedi, from all I know. They run their own nation, and are currently in control of significant portions of the..well..the galaxy. But then again, that's fairly common knowledge." Adding as a after thought, he said, "Oh, its also klarking hard to get through their starports, literally half a dozen different checkpoints to just get onto your ship. That is just a personal opinion of mine."
Catching his breath, he thought for a moment. This definitely was mentioned at the cantina..what was it that was stated about the dark side?...There was that relic that Jojo had, it gave out this weird feeling...
"The Sith are linked to the Dark Side, or maybe its the other way around...I just know they are linked. I had a drea- no..that's not right, I think I actually met a Jedi before you...its just a rather hazy memory. Two actually. One of them had something called a 'Sith Holocron' on them. The older of the two mentioned it was a dark side artifact."
Thinking more about the Sith Holocron made Jefardi shudder.
"It gave off this weird...well for lack of a better term, vibe. As if it was trying to claw at the back of my skull....it felt almost...sickly." As he started to describe it, a weird, sickly feeling, a phantom memory of it, started to seep back into him. Pushing the memory out, he asked, "Why do you ask?"
It then occurred that Sylvar might be a Sith, although, if they were anything like their relics, she most definitely couldn't be one. She seemed to give off an almost opposite effect.
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Post by Sylvar on Apr 14, 2013 22:19:36 GMT -5
Sylvar nodded slightly as the captain described what he knew of the Sith and the Dark Side. Though she hadn't yet experienced it directly—not dealing with the formalities of docking procedure as a passenger—the Cathar had heard a lot about the goings on of the Sith occupation of a number of planets.
While helping to rebuild Cathar, Sylvar hadn't been entirely blind to the rest of the galaxy, but she hadn't really been paying close attention either. Following the dream/prophecy she experienced which spurred her on to find herself a padawan, Sylvar had made a point to educate herself about the recent events of the galaxy regarding the Jedi and the Sith. What she had found out had been… troubling… to say the least.
When Jefardi began talking about his run-in—dreamed or not—with not one, but two Jedi, and a Sith holocron, Sylvar's eyebrows shot up and her ears pinned forward. That… was unexpected. The very fact he knew its name and described in layman's terms how it had made him felt was proof enough to the old cat that he had indeed experienced what he claimed he had. Those details were not things readily made up.
Though it did raise questions. Was it a dream, a true experience muddied by the Dark Side, or perhaps the fledgling abilities of a Seer? If it was any of those, why would a pair of Jedi have a Sith holocron? If it was a dream, what did it mean?
The possibilities clearly troubled the old cat. Still, she pressed on with her line of thought which had spawned her earlier question.
"I ask because it is important to know the risks of trying to become a Jedi." She paused, making hard, steady eye contact with the colorful, human-esque being.
"With great power comes great responsibility. And great temptation. Many a promising Jedi felt the pull of the Dark Side and fell to it, becoming a force for excess, destruction, and death."
She dropped her gaze into her lap, her intensity leaving her as she went on with what sounded like a confession, and was in many ways.
"I will teach you, if you so choose. But it is only right that you know some things. I have flirted with the Dark Side. And I have never trained anyone in the Force nor have I had contact with the Jedi Order for several decades. I myself was trained by a great master, but even he with his wisdom and skill spawned the most powerful Sith of my age."
Sylvar returned her gaze to the captain, looking like an old mortal being rather than the possessor of such power as she claimed.
"If you'd prefer to find someone more skilled than I, I would divert my mission to help you find a more accomplished master. But you should also know there are risks associated with being a Jedi, or pursuing the Jedi which are external to the Order itself. It is not a safe time to be a Jedi in the galaxy right now. From all I have learned in my travels, they are being hunted by the very Republic they have historically defended. I believe it is only the fact I have been gone from the Order for so long and must be presumed dead that the Republic didn't come looking for me."
After her spiel, Sylvar fell silent, watching the captain with a hard-to-read look; something between wistful, concerned, curious, and penitent.
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Post by Jefardi Owwaullis on Apr 15, 2013 10:02:45 GMT -5
Jefardi listened to Sylvar give what seemed a semi-confession of danger. He had already knew about the Jedi being on the run. He had just missed the closure of the Coruscant temple, and saw Republic Troops walking into a empty temple.
Addressing this, he said; "I think the point is, that you DID NOT turn to the dark side. As for it being dangerous...I already knew that. I've been trying to find the Jedi for a while now, I got to the temple a few days after it was closed by the Republic military."
It was quickly becoming apparent to him, that this was actually going to happen...this wasn't some dream, but was actually happening. It was hard to believe for him. After more than three fourths of a year, he had finally found a Jedi to teach him, and she was offering to teach him. There was not a question in his mind if he was going to accept or decline the offer. If he declined it would negate every single thing he had just done for the past year, as well as serving no purpose.
Realizing he had been quiet for nearly three minutes, getting so engrossed into his thoughts, he quickly snapped out of trance like state, more than a little of embarrassment. Turning to Sylvar, "I would be honoured if you would teach me".
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Changing Title to 'Jedi Padawan' -Thon
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Post by Sylvar on Apr 15, 2013 16:33:47 GMT -5
Sylvar nodded as she listened to the captain’s thoughts on the potential danger. When he fell silent, she sat quietly “watching” Jefardi’s lack of certainty swirling about in his Force register for a few minutes. Eventually, the currents of his presence solidified in harmony with itself and he proclaimed his decision. Sylvar still had her own doubts, mostly about herself, but she trusted the guiding flow of the Force.
The old Cathar rose slowly before bowing stiffly to the other being.
“I too am honored to teach you and to call you my padawan.”
Then, after she straightened, the brief air of pomp and circumstance that had been their acceptance of each other vanished and the old cat actually looked somewhat chagrined.
“Normally, there would be something of a ceremony and recognition of your acceptance into the Order. Then you’d meditate on your goals and reasons for joining the Jedi, and we’d meet together before the Jedi Council before beginning your training. But… situations being what they are, we will have to forego the usual formalities.”
Though there was little to be done about it, Sylvar had something of an apologetic tone. She remembered her own selection as a padawan by Master Baas and her pride at being selected by the Jedi and by such an accomplished master as him. Then again, pride was not the appropriate response to such an august situation. But it was a failing of most learners and padawans and was to be expected.
Sylvar gestured to a chair opposite her, indicating he should sit. She also smiled, more than slightly bemused, over the speed at which this had all happened. She wanted to follow the proper pattern—the one she had experienced, anyway—and have him meditate on his goals and purposes, but it occurred to her she knew very little about him. Perhaps he didn't know how to meditate.
“Also normally, masters and initiates know each other for quite a long time before a padawan is selected. And the initiates are usually younglings who all-but grew up at the praxium or temple. But here we know very little about each other. We should amend that before we proceed too far. To start off with, do you follow any religion or belief system? Perhaps something in which you’ve grown up praying or meditating?”
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Post by Jefardi Owwaullis on Apr 15, 2013 17:26:24 GMT -5
Sheepishly, Jefardi wondered if he should bow in return, or if he should just not. Sylvar didn't exactly give him time to bow, as she started to talk before he had made up his mind, leaving him to figure that he probably shouldn't.
He took a seat opposite of Sylvar, in the chair as he listened to her talk about what would normally occur. To him nothing of this was normal, certainly not finding out that his passenger was actually a Jedi, and now his teacher....given she was using the word 'master' it would seem that would be the correct term to call her now, although he wouldn't call her such until he was asked to.
Religion was an odd thing for Jefardi. He grew up being raised by decently religious parents, but as he got further along in life, and more independent, he stopped paying as much attention to it, giving it less and less thought on a daily and weekly basis. That is, of course, until he had the experience in which he had nearly died, landing on Ajjiaka's ship. He could of sworn that he had seen the Judgement. He KNEW it was the painkillers that were partially causing him to see things then, and that it was probably just his mind playing tricks on him, but at the same time he felt that it was something entirely different. Jefardi had contemplated the experience more then a few times, trying to decide if it was truly a other worldly experience or just the result of weird effects of pain and painkillers. It was supported by the fact that the Force truly seemed to be a different type of thing altogether, an other worldly thing.
After a few minutes, Jefardi answered, "I'm...somewhat religious. I was a more religious on my homeworld before leaving it, and until rather recently..a month or so ago, I was not religious at all. Recently, I've been re-evaluating my religious views."
"As for meditation...that's not something that is part of the religion, at least not something I did. I've done a bit of meditation on my own but that was when I was trying to do, well its the only way I don't break anything I'm trying to exert control over with the Force."
Looking Sylvar with a large amount of curiousity, he asked "What of you? What are your beliefs?"
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Post by Sylvar on Apr 15, 2013 21:14:00 GMT -5
Sylvar listened as Jefardi commented on the nature of his religious belief, but not its content. That's alright. Despite the situation, they still didn't know each other that well and for some the nature of their religious belief was something fairly personal and not to be shared with strangers. She should have gone first she supposed.
"My beliefs have shifted quite a bit over my life," she said, leaning forward, resting her elbows on her knees and her chin in her hands. "When I was a kit, I believed in the ways of my people. Spirits of great hunters and elders were revered and honor was something that could be bestowed and shown."
"Then I was discovered as a sensitive and invited to join the Jedi. With Master Baas, I learned of the Force and believed in it."
The old cat inclined her head and twitched an ear off to one side, as though listening to something that wasn't actually sounding. She smiled slightly in that way that aged beings at the end of their lives do when reflecting on the follies of their past.
"At the time, I think I mistakenly looked at the Force colored by my cultural traditions. Like it was a great, all-encompassing spirit, or paired spirits—one light and one dark—that could be appeased by certain behavior and which would grant a being favors of greater skill or ability or knowledge."
She looked off into the distance for a moment, then smirked to herself, as though in on the joke that was her earlier beliefs.
"I believed every being had a destiny based on the will of the Force. Like it was a living being with a personality and desires. And that, regardless how something was done, so long as the right action was taken, one could remain distinctly on the side of Light."
At this point in her telling of the story of her belief, her voice changed. It was harder, colder, or at least lacked the earlier whimsy of her reflection on her old mindset.
"But things changed, and I found myself drifting more and more towards the Dark Side. It seemed no matter what I did, how light-sided my chosen actions were, I could not keep from slipping into the Dark Side."
The Cathar paused, looking down at her boney hands and fiddling with one of her joints absently. She realized she would at some point need to tell him the details of her break from the ways of the Jedi, and her return back from the brink of falling. But that would be for another time. He wanted to know what she believed, but had not asked why. Her earlier contemplative tone returned.
"Since then, my perspective has changed. I believe the Force is not a spirit—paired or otherwise—with a personality and will, but more a force of nature, integral to the very nature of the galaxy. And that what we call the 'Light' side and the 'Dark' side are more a matter of extremes or the lack of balance which is so necessary to life.
"I have seen as much harm come to others because someone calling themselves a Jedi pursued 'Light' to the exclusion of all else as I have seen from the hands of those calling themselves 'Sith.' So I have come to believe it is the balance that must be sought, and where true connection to the Force lies."
Eventually she leaned back, still with her hands clasped in her lap.
"It was when I realized the need to seek a balance that I became a Seer. Before that I would have been called a Jedi Guardian—a warrior—as combat and action was my forte."
She unclasped her hands and raised one to look at. The tendons and metacarpal bones showed prominently through her aging skin. Turning her hand over to look at the palm, she flexed her fingers, watching the creases in the skin and hearing the cracking of old, enlarged joints. She chuckled before looking up at her new padawan.
"Hard to believe at my age, I'm sure. But I can share my skills, creaky though they are, in combat as well as seeing with the Force."
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Post by Jefardi Owwaullis on Apr 15, 2013 21:54:00 GMT -5
Jefardi sat there and listened intent to Sylvar tell a tale of her belief in the Force. Of how she changed her placement from a warrior to a 'seer' whatever that was. He smiled when she chuckled at how unwarrior like she was now. "I will say that it seemed that you were every bit a warrior from the lightsaber demonstration.....it tends to lend to me believing that you can share the skills."
As he said that, he was wondering something. He had spent ages trying to find the Jedi, so they could teach him, so he could become one. Now that he was officially being taught by one, what would it entail? What kinds of things would he learn? He only knew of the power of Telekinesis, but that couldn't be it....could it? What is a seer? Jefardi's mind was starting to fill with questions.
Pondering for a brief bit, he asked "So you mentioned you were a seer...what is that?"
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Post by Sylvar on Apr 15, 2013 23:51:47 GMT -5
Sylvar bowed her head slightly, nodding in acknowledgement of his kind words. When he asked about what a seer was, one of her ears tracked off to the side again.
"A Jedi seer is one who uses their connection to the Force to see or know things. Though I didn't become a seer while I as still in contact with the Jedi Order, I remember they were jokingly called the most arcane."
She chuckled at the memory. "Reading prophecies, interpreting dreams, all that wizardy stuff some species' superstitions have."
Sylvar paused a moment to resettle into a more comfortable position. "One of the most common things that sets Jedi seers apart from other specializations are visions and precognition. It's one of those paths that can't be chosen by the person; it is a gift bestowed by the Force. If you do not get visions, you can't really be a seer. However, that does not mean you cannot 'see' with the Force. That is a skill inherent in all those connected to the Force and can be trained and honed to be a powerful skill."
She shifted again, not comfortable after some minutes of sitting at her age.
"The Force is a part of all things. It surrounds and connects and IS all things created in nature and touched by a sentient mind. Those who are connected to the Force possess one additional sense than other beings which allows them to 'see' this different… image… of the galaxy. And the 'sense' the Force connection bestows is something like all the other senses wrapped up into one, plus knowledge and understanding."
"For instance," she said, nodding at him. "I found your ship and you because I 'saw' your presence in the Force and it glowed brighter than any of the other things around it. I found the plant the same way; even inanimate objects created by the hands and minds of sentients can be seen through the Force, but even the faintest shred of life glows brighter by comparison."
The old Cathar stroked her plant for a moment, seeming almost to drift off absent-mindedly with it.
"That is how my Force sight works for me, though I have heard others describe their experience differently. Still, it is one of the most innate skills of all those connected with the Force. Most have it and use it without even knowing. For instance, many sensitives report feeling different or sensing something about others they later learned were Jedi, or feeling something when near someone who has used one of their gifts."
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Post by Jefardi Owwaullis on Apr 16, 2013 0:33:48 GMT -5
Jefardi listened to Sylvar explain what a Jedi Seer was. As far as he could tell from her description, it was a Jedi who received visions, sort of like telling the future. It wasn't a trainable skill, but rather something that someone had no control over. Then she mentioned something called Force Sight. The manner in which it was mentioned, suggested that it dissimilar to the visions mentioned slightly earlier...something that could be trained as opposed to something that seemingly occurred at random. Jefardi only knew of telekinesis prior to this, so the idea of force sight was unique to him.
Sitting forwards in the char, "You mentioned Force Sight, is it similar to telekinesis?" Realizing that probably didn't sound right, he added, "I should probably clarify that; is it similar to telekinesis, in the fashion that its trainable, not as in it occurs at random....actually a better question would be, what is Force Sight? You described what it felt like, or how you perceived, but not what it actually was...or does, although I could wager a guess that it is related to vision."
Jefardi was staring intently at Sylvar for an answering, curious as to what this 'force sight' was. His face had broken into something of a faint smile with the last part. He was being a little humourous, mostly because he was slightly out of place, and humour, at least attempted humour was his way of dealing with the situation. It wasn't that the situation was necessarily uncomfortable, so much as it was a new situation.
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Post by Sylvar on Apr 16, 2013 11:29:54 GMT -5
Sylvar wasn’t prepared for the captain’s questions, thinking she had already answered them. But she reminded herself this was going to be a learning experience for her as much as for her padawan; if she wasn’t explaining or teaching in the way that worked for him, they weren’t going to get far. She would have to adapt her presentation.
“Yes, Force Sight is very trainable, though its presentation and how one interacts with it can be very different between individuals.”
She fell silent for a while, trying to figure out how to explain Force Sight in a way other than she had already given. For her, giving the example of her experience was the best way she could think to explain it as she had very little else to go on. Like Jefardi’s awkward smile was likely his way of dealing with the disquiet of the unfamiliar situation, Sylvar’s ears pivoted around independently of one another as she thought.
“Force Sight is… Yes, it is related to vision. It is like seeing the world around you, but rather than use your eyes, you’re using something else. Some people say it is seeing with the mind, or soul, or mind’s eye, or the connection to the Force. There is also Force Sense, which is a more general ability and plays on other senses, but Force Sight is most widely used and trained of them.”
The old woman continued to fidget, not entirely satisfied with her new explanation. She again rested her elbows on her knees and her chin in her hands, her ears off to the side as she thought. After a few moments, her time teaching young Cathar kits struck her and she went with the impulse. She lowered her head more so she was covering her eyes with her hands.
“Cover your eyes,” she instructed. “And don’t peak.”
After a few minutes of breathing and thinking, Sylvar began her new line of explanation.
“Force Sight was originally a skill natural to the Miraluka. As a species, they are all blind and all have a connection to the Force, though some moreso than others. All of them use their connection to the Force to ‘see’ the world around them. Like some beings and animals use sound or touch to get a mental image of their surroundings, they use the Force.”
The old Cathar fell silent again, still with her hands childishly over her eyes and expecting Jefardi was doing the same. After a moment or two of nothing she lowered her tone and volume into a more meditative sound as Kherr had done so much when he was instructing. Between each statement, she paused to give a slow, unrushed air.
“I want you to try to reach out with the Force to ‘see’ or feel this room. Don’t simply remember what it looks like. It will be hard at first to tell the difference between using the Force and memory or imagination. But think about what it feels like when you make things move. Try to get that feeling back. When you feel it, turn it outwards—GENTLY—to the room.”
The first time Jedi master knew there was some risk asking him to try to get back the feeling he had when trying to use telekinesis and then asking him to turn it outwards to the room. Who knows, he could blast the entire room with the equivalent of an untrained radiating Force Push with him as the center. But if telekinesis was his sole experience with consciously connecting to the Force, that seemed like a reasonable and natural place from which to start.
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Post by Jefardi Owwaullis on Apr 16, 2013 17:17:01 GMT -5
Jefardi listened to Sylvar try and explain again what Force Sight was. If Force Sight was something that was trainable....it meant that there was probably other abilities that he didn't know about that were trainable. Knowing he had access to the Force for the past year, and only having it manifest itself in the manner of telekinesis had gotten him into a vague belief that it was the only power he could access, that the Jedi or Force users could only access powers or abilities that came naturally to them. It opened up a big of his imagination to what else could be done with the Force.
It was obvious that Sylvar was nervous about this, she was fidgeting, and not keeping still. It was slightly comforting to Jefardi, it was a first time experience for her as well, being in this situation, putting him slightly more at easy with the situation. He had been more then a little tense during this whole situation, part of his mind still not fully believing that this was actually happening, although that part of his mind was slowly fading. At first when she had said that this was a first time teaching, he thought she was saying it more out of sympathizing with him, but it seemed to that it was genuinely a new experience.
Struggling with it for a moment, Sylvar asked him to cover his eyes and to not peak.
Is this suppose to be some form of test? was all he could think. He was already sitting forward, so placing his elbows on his knees to prop them up, he covered his eyes and listened to Sylvar explain about the Miraluka's innate ability to use Force Sight.
Jefardi had a limited amount of what is called situational awareness, mostly bolstered by his fledgling connection to the Force. He could tell, to a extremely limited and unconscious level, changes in the environment that he ought to not know.
As Sylvar coached him on how to 'see' the room, Jefardi started to slightly panic inside. She is asking me to sense the entire room, I have so much trouble with just a single object....
Breathing out, trying to calm himself, he took a moment to center himself. He may not have the Jedi focus or training (yet), he still had coping methods for calming down.
Moving his right hand away from his face, and taking the left one to cover up his right eyes (not that it matter, given both of his eyes were closed), he reached out towards the room. He knew, vaguely speaking, where most objects in the room were. It was part of his unconscious mind, to be able to more accurately have a understanding where things were, especially living things. Deciding on picking an object and push out from there, he picked Sylvar's plant.
Mentally sending out tendrils of his mind, which he visualized in his mind going through his right palm, he focused on the plant. Finding it easy enough, it was aglow with the Force, something that always was curious to Jefardi, was the difference of inanimate objects and living objects. Living objects seemed almost infinitely more interesting, but he rarely tried to use telekinesis on them, in fear of harming the object and causing this odd, brilliant, for lack of a better word, colour to go out.
Examining it for a few minutes, he got comfortable with it's feel and colour, he started to expand what he was viewing, to the table it was sitting on, a rather gray colour, then the floor....the couch, the chair he was sitting in. When the expanding awareness reached a meter or so sphere, it touched Sylvar. If the plant had an interesting colour to it, Sylvar's colour was completely mesmerizing. Looking at the colour it contained, he lost focus, and everything went dark. The sudden disappearance of colour startled Jefardi, and he opened his eyes instinctively, to compensate for the loss of the sense.
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Post by Sylvar on Apr 16, 2013 21:55:59 GMT -5
While her padawan began attempting his first lesson—there was a little thrill of excitement when she realized that's what this was—Sylvar "watched" from the sidelines.
When a normal being was looking intently at something at a distance, another being could generally figure out that that was what they were doing and often the object of their attention simply by body language; where were they looking, were they focused, what was their attention directed towards? While another's use of Force Sight wasn't "visible" in the same way a normal being's eyesight couldn't be seen in action, there were still cues and Sylvar was watching for them.
As she "watched" him through the Force, Sylvar saw Jefardi extend his hand towards her plant. While he did this, she saw the glowing, swirling particles that made up his signature on the Force begin to move in sync and begin to slow in their choreographed flow. As the swirling slowed, the glow flickered stronger. She tried to contain her excitement, sure that this must be what it "looked" like for a Force sensitive to make their first fledgling attempts at connecting with the Force.
Jefardi seemed to shift his attention after a while and it took her some amount of time to realize he was likely focusing on her. It was fascinating to "watch." At the edges of what would be his head in the glowing particle cloud that made up his signature on the Force, the captain's previously slow, concentrated current began to swirl energetically. This movement was in harmony with itself, but shifted more and more erratically and eventually consumed the still center.
It was at that point, that Jefardi had jerked slightly in what Sylvar assumed was surprise or disorientation. As far as she could tell from what she had witnessed, Sylvar was sure he had had a brief few minutes of success.
"What did you see?" she asked excitedly, too energized to hold back for a more fitting, formal response.
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Post by Jefardi Owwaullis on Apr 16, 2013 22:46:49 GMT -5
Jefardi eyes started to focus, his eyes had been unfocused after he had uncovered them. The first thing that he noticed as his eyes started to focus, was Sylvar, who was staring intently at him, seeming almost...excited? Yes excited seemed to describe her best, as she asked in a energetic fashion, what precisely he had seen.
That was a good question...what HAD he seen? Jefardi had seen colour, odd bits of colour. He had 'seen' roughly a one meter sphere of space. Might as well start there.
"I saw...well, at first I saw your plant" he said, gesturing to it as he spoke, "then the table, the couch, the floor, the chair and..oddly enough...you".
Taking a moment to gather his thoughts about him, as they were unorganized, going to millions of different directions at once. If he didn't organize them, it would be hard to explain what he HAD seen. After a few minutes he went on.
"It was like seeing colour....I could feel that each object had a colour, some more strongly than others, such as the plant or you, but the colour...it was there but obscured."
That was as much as he could actually describe of what he had just seen...it was such a abstract thing, he felt that if he were to go any further with it, he'd start giving misleading information, given the limitation of speech in conveying this.
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Post by Sylvar on Apr 17, 2013 19:47:41 GMT -5
As she listened, Sylvar was at once electric with excitement and almost… disappointed. The fact that Jefardi had seen anything was amazing, but it was more a testament to his existing connection to the Force than to any skill of hers in teaching. He was more advanced than she had thought and likely he knew. It was from this came some of the disappointment; there would be less challenge.
But internally Sylvar shook herself of these sentiments when she recognized them. They were the vestiges of pride and self-interest; unfitting for a Jedi master, no matter how green. Yes, this was a learning experience for her as well as for her padawan, and to learn was to grow was to improve, but this was not about her and she chided herself to keep that in mind.
"Wonderful! Congratulations. To be able to sense anything on your first conscious attempt is excellent."
She sat back, contented and curious.
"That you see color is interesting. I have heard many people describe seeing Force signatures in different colors, but I have not experienced it myself. As I said, everyone's 'vision' in the Force is unique to the individual."
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Post by Jefardi Owwaullis on Apr 17, 2013 22:10:43 GMT -5
Jefardi blushed a little from the compliment, to him he hadn't done that much, there was no 'real' effort in it, or so it seemed to him. To be fair, it wasn't so much that there was no effort, as he hadn't done the same thing as what both he and Sylvar thought he had done. He hadn't 'see' anything, just sensed it. A small difference to be sure, but a difference regardless.
To him, it seemed odd that people would have difference experiences with the Force, although given the fact, that he was learning more and more about the Force during this session with Sylvar, it shouldn't be surprising. It was an odd thought to him, that the Force had unique and difference experiences with other people.
As Sylvar finished discussing how she had never seen it as 'colour' but had heard of other people describe that way, brought a new thought to mind; how other people saw or felt when they 'sensed' something through the Force.
"What ways have you heard it described as? That is, when someone sees through the Force?"
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Post by Sylvar on Apr 17, 2013 23:18:30 GMT -5
"I have heard a few Miraluka describe what I assume is their understanding of color," Sylvar answered thoughtfully. "Though it's hard to say since, being blind, they have no real concept of color."
She leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees. As she began describing her own experience, she "talked" with her hands quite a bit by gesturing and punctuating her descriptions with related hand movements.
"I don't see color. Mostly just differing brightnesses of light and variations of motion within the Force signature. As best I can tell, where some people see different colors, I see different patterns of motion within a Force signature. People who are confused or conflicted have patterns which move erratically and not in harmony. But calm, sure, or concentrating minds had a harmonious flow about them."
Thinking, she sat back again, trying to remember some of the other more common themes of Force Sight descriptions she'd heard. It was actually somewhat difficult because the details were rarely discussed in depth because the focus was on the accomplishment of the task. So long as someone was able to use the Force to know the area around them without the use of their biological senses, the details of how weren't so relevant.
"I also heard some describe their experiences as more like… knowing the physical natures of things. They described it more in terms of feeling and touch rather than sight. It's possible they weren't actually using Force Sight, but were using more of Force Sense. There can be a lot of overlap between related powers where one power can approximate another, so it can be hard to tell sometimes."
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Post by Jefardi Owwaullis on Apr 18, 2013 10:10:57 GMT -5
That is an interesting thought, how does a blind person know what colour is? While interesting, it wasn't the focus of what was being said. No, the focus seemed to be that inv
Sylvar described her experience of it as different brightness of light and moving patterns, their speed dictated the state of their inner mind. Nothing like what he had experienced just now, quite a different experience.
As she went on and described sense, it sounded more like what he had experienced, he felt more than he had seen the colours. Perhaps he had experienced Force Sense rather than Force Sight.
"I think Force Sense more accurately describes what I....felt....it wasn't so much as I was seeing as I was becoming aware of it the environment."
What Sylvar had mentioned about overlapping abilities had caught Jefardi'sShifting forwards in his seat, he asked curiously;
"You mentioned that powers overlap...how do you mean?"
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Post by Sylvar on Apr 18, 2013 20:26:17 GMT -5
"Quite possible," Sylvar agreed, nodding, when Jefardi suggested he might have been using Force Sense rather than Force Sight. "But not an issue, especially at this early outset."
After the captain asked about the overlapping of some Force abilities, the old Cathar decided a demonstration might be the best way to explain at first. She reached out a loosely pointing hand towards the cup Jefardi had earlier used to demonstrate his telekinetic abilities and point-guided it to rest on the floor between them. Admittedly the pointing was not particularly necessary, but she figured it would help with focusing her padawan's attention.
"A big area where powers overlap is in the physical uses of the Force. Telekinesis is a very basic power; you basically use the Force to move things around. But there is also Force Push..." she said as she pushed the cup towards Jefardi, putting her hand palm-out as though pushing it away.
"…Force Pull…" this time a 'come here' sort of gesture accompanied the cup skittering along the floor back to her.
"…Force Throw…" this was accompanied by a flamboyant up and sideways gesture which sent the cup flying through the air.
"…Repulse…" she snapped her wrist and closed her hand sharply, stopping the cup before it struck the wall.
"…and Levitate," she said finally as she floated the cup bouncily and almost playfully over to where Jefardi sat and let it hover there beside him.
"Some claim they are all different powers, while others see them as simply different targets and uses of the same base power. I personally fall into that latter group."
Sylvar sat back, steepling her fingers in her lap.
"There are other similar physical uses of the Force which can be be easily confused which are not well suited to our current surroundings. For example, Force Jump can allow a Jedi to leap great distances or heights. But that can be accomplished by both using the Force to enhance one's natural abilities at jumping beyond normal realms, or by jumping normally then using various forms of telekinesis to alter the distance travelled. The outcome is the same in all situations if don't correctly."
Sylvar cocked her head after a moment, thinking, then smiled playfully for a moment.
"There are some non-physical Force Powers that can easily approximate each other too…"
While looking intently at Jefardi, and then notably twitching one ear off to the side while the other was pinned at him, her voice sounded in his head, though her mouth did not move.
::…like Telepathy.::
Then, speaking normally, she appended, "Or rather, Mind Trick, since I don't actually know Telepathy. I just made you think you heard my voice in your head."
Her playful smile fading, Sylvar's tone changed to one of warning.
"It is important to keep in mind, however, that while some powers can approximate the effects of other powers, that does not mean they are interchangeable or that overlapping powers are equally suitable for any situation.
"I suppose… Think of Force powers with similar effects like similar tools; a kitchen knife, a dagger, and a straightedged razor are all similar tools, the primary purposes of which are to cut. And for some minor cutting jobs, you could use them interchangeably without problem. But that doesn't mean you should try shaving with your kitchen knife, or try to defend yourself in a knife fight with your razor.
"Most of the physical Force powers can come down to a semantic difference of what they're called and are decently interchangeable, but keep in mind not all powers that overlap or can approximate others are."
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Post by Jefardi Owwaullis on Apr 19, 2013 11:14:27 GMT -5
Sylvar told Jefardi all these list of powers and how they interchangeable for minor things, likening it to a sharp objects, such as knives and razors. More importantly, she showed their uses to him, at least four or five different ways to move a cup. It was a wonder the thing hadn't shattered yet, given how it had been thrown around today.
The amount of things he had never considered, such as a board push or pull, spoke more than a little of his closed minded views on what the Force is.
Out of all the things that Sylvar had shown him, the most unique it seemed, was the telepathy, or as she called it 'mind trick'. It didn't produce a result in the physical world, rather it caused a weird and quite possibly privacy invading effect, giving her direct access into his mind. That in particular dampened some of his wonderment at the display of abilities she had given earlier, and had produced a shot of fear through him.
As he started to consider what to say next, his body language started to change, namely going from open to fairly open, closing his arms and sitting back in the chair, no longer leaning forwards on his elbows.
It was a rather scary thing, the more he thought about it; 'Mind Trick' implied that it wasn't her just conversing with him like telepathy, but rather was playing an active trick on his mind. While fairly obvious, it was frightening to him, to have his mind be played with like that.
Jefardi was more curious now about other abilities, abilities that didn't just effect the physical like telekinesis, but effected the mind, such as a 'Mind Trick', but his curiosity was tempered by the fact he didn't want to be on the receiving end of it. Perhaps there is a way to block mental abilities of this kind?
"When you used telepat- I mean Mind Trick, you got inside my mind...is there any way to block such Mental abilities?"
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Post by Sylvar on Apr 19, 2013 17:25:33 GMT -5
Before Jefardi have even said anything, Sylvar had realized she had done something wrong. His body language was enough to know she'd made a mistake that had likely made him uncomfortable. When he asked his question, she knew what the problem had been and felt horrible. There she'd gone again and overstepped privacy bounds.
"Yes, there are. The main one is Force Shield. It is one of the first lessons usually taught to sensititves to help them protect against mental attack by those who would try to influence them."
When she progressed, her words had a distinctly apologetic tone.
"I'm sorry. I overstepped my bounds again and I hope you can forgive me. The similarities between Mind Trick and Telepathy fit with what I was trying to convey to you and I didn't think how... inappropriate an example it might be."
She shifted around in her seat, fiddling with her hands, in a discomfort that wasn't physical.
"It's been so long since I've been around others who are connected to the Force, and the last time I was when in a friendly, non-combat situation was when I was a learner myself. My mate and I, and sometimes the other padawans, tended to play games with each other via the Force by way of casual training. Seeing if we could get past each other's defenses... kind of like pranks." She made eye contact again for the first time since she realized her misstep. "I don't mean to excuse it, but I will need to be more mindful of myself. Again, my apologies."
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Post by Jefardi Owwaullis on Apr 19, 2013 21:17:57 GMT -5
Sylvar seemed rather apologetic about, and may of realized how that she somewhat overstepped her bounds with some what invading his mind. It was an odd sight, seeing the Master apologize to the apprentice Well that's what we are, right? Master and Apprentice...or in this case Master and Padawan. Jefardi had a master, it was a odd concept to him still, something that would take getting use to, for sure.
His body language changed slightly, he gripped his arms less tightly, although his arms remained crossed still, they seemed less like he was trying to somewhat hug himself, but it was more of just a comfortable position.
"It's okay, I just wasn't expecting...well...anything like that to happen."
Sylvar seemed to be genuinely apologetic, and more importantly somewhat ashamed of overstepping her bounds, which made Jefardi feel a bit bad about how closed up he had gotten after having the power effect him.
"Could you teach me that per chance?" he ventured to ask. Jefardi knew that Sylvar wasn't trying to make him feel uncomfortable, but if there was something he could do, to minimize stuff like what had happened with the mind trick, he was going to go for it first, if given an option.
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Post by Sylvar on Apr 20, 2013 16:03:03 GMT -5
"Understandable," Sylvar said, nodding. She still felt quite bad about the whole situation, but noted Jefardi's eased up body language. When he asked if she could teach him "that" however, she wasn't sure which "that" he was meaning.
"Which? Force Shield? Yes, I can teach you that. But," she looked at him with some disquiet — perhaps concern? — in her eyes.
"To teach it, however, the most readily available means of teaching it would involve me trying to get into your mind. It is an important thing to learn, and at some point soon I will need to teach you because it is one of the most basic forms of defense, but if the concept of Mind Trick unsettled you, we might be better leaving it for a little later when we know each other better."
Though she had gone along with the flow of the conversation, the old Cathar still had the urge to explain her earlier action, thinking perhaps better understanding might make him feel better.
"I feel the need to explain myself more about earlier. You used the phrase 'got inside my mind,' which is fair since I had said 'in your head' earlier. But the similarities between Telepathy and Mind Trick… well, they're only skin deep, you could say. With Mind Trick, you just put a simple idea or thought on the surface of another's mind. Usually the simpler the better. But it's only surface contact and only has limited use.
"Telepathy," she said, trying to shift into a more professorial tone to get past the discomfort of the situation. "Telepathy is different. More in depth. With Telepathy, a Force user can actually talk in or with another's mind, access their thoughts and memories and share your own. It can be a far more powerful power than Mind Trick. Though it also has extreme ranges of use. At it's weakest, the Telepathy power can function as a sort of empathy or can be confused for Force Sense, since it can pick up the same sorts of things; emotion, mind-set, basic feelings.
"A very weak Telepath could likely pick up the same information from another being as a very perceptive non-Force user knowledgable about body language or even someone able to see in the infra-red spectrum. But a very powerful Telepath can literally read the minds of those around them as easily as any literate sentient picking up a datapad or a holonovel, and more than that, influence the thoughts of another. They can be forces for good, but often it is a power abused."
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Post by Jefardi Owwaullis on Apr 20, 2013 16:52:13 GMT -5
Telepathy was starting to sound as a rather terrifying ability. The prospect of having further experience with having his mind...well for lack of better terms, 'probed' was deeply unsettling for Jefardi. While he would like to have better defense or rather a defense period against something like that, he wasn't ready to experience it again.
His body language closed up slightly as he considered it. On one hand, he did really want to have one (mental defense), on the other hand....
Coming to a decision, Jefardi finally said, "No offense is meant by me saying this, but I'd rather not experience mental...intrusions of that nature for a while, at least."
Being indecisive in this situation, wasn't helping anyone, and given the plethora of abilities that Sylvar had demonstrated, there was probably something that she could teach him that was far less invasive and basic. His arms uncrossed as his mind drifted away from the Mind trick and Telepathy to other things, such as the abilities that Sylvar had showcased. None of them particularly stood out to him.....Perhaps Sylvar could suggest something?
"What would you suggest that I start with?" he asked, looking Sylvar in eyes, the Mind Trick dilemma almost entirely forgotten.
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