This moment began to serge in her entire body. So overwhelming. Raven had already dueled her own master before, but this time was different. This time, she felt very nervous. But if he saw enough potential, then there was no way of declining. The Force could be felt pulsing around them in two complete different shades. Raven could sense him reaching out to her and feeding on her fear and stress.
Relax. She spoke to herself, trying to focus on the music. The next track of Scooter played in the background; the track Nessaja. Just a mix of techno beats and rhythums, no lyrics yet. Just keep focusing on it.
Vader had now extended his blade of red and held it up to her's. The blades cackled with a staticy noise as the brilliant red and purple rubbed against each other. Raven listened to the hissing of her lightsaber, along side the music. It encouraged her somehow and made her more alert and ready.
Just as Raven tried to feel out to sense her opponete's first move, there was a ripple in the Force that shot through her. Now, it yelled.
She moved her saber into a new position and with swift motion to block his first attack. Vader's strike was strong, which forced her to block more with balance then defense. This was one of the many disadvantages she had. Her physical strength and size could not come close to his. Vader struke again, this time from above. Raven thought to jump aside, but the force pushed her towards him. As she lunged forward she rolled past his strike and between his wide spread legs. She quickly jumped to her feet and turned to his back. She was about to strike him while he was open, when he made a back motion with his hand. The Force pushed her back enough and knocked her off her feet. This gave Vader time to turn around and face her while she recovered quickly, wasting no effort.
"Good." Vader told her, relaxing his blade but holding his stance. "Quick thinking on your part."
Raven nodded quickly to him. He remained in his position which gave her the clear to make the next move. The lyrics now of Scooter's song now played in the air:
"Always lived my life alone. Been searching for a place called home."
She darted toward him, making an upcut motion with her lightsaber. He encountered it with his blade angled against it. This left him open again, she thought. Why was he going so easy on her?
"I know that I have been cold as ice. Ignore the dreams, too many lies."
With that, she made a low spin on her heals and aimed for the center of his chest. He evaded with a step back and took another swing. The fast move startled her and she had no choice but to duck down out of the way.
"Somewhere deep inside... Somewhere deep inside me."
She then quickly returned to her feet. Vader made another high strike. This time, she jumped up into the air to avoid his attack. Now was the time to try the move she had been practicing for combat.
"I found... the child I use to be."
She twirled through the air above her master until she was directly above him. Just as she broke her spinning circle to strike, she felt the Force hit her in the chest. Vader's hand had came up just below her and the Force had thrown her up into the ceiling.
"And I know that its not too late..."
She grunted in pain when she hit the hard roof. Once the Force released her she recovered to attack again with a down cut of her blade.
"Never.. too late."
Vader raised his weapon and blocked. The weight of all her body coming down gave her enough power to push him back another two steps. Her feet gracefully landed her infront of him again and she returned to a defense pose. Vader nodded his head approvingly. "Impressive. But don't get too confident yet."
Now the beats of the song had intesified. Thick and heavy. Raven's heart was beating with it.
Vader made motion to come toward her again. Raven lunged forward to counter him. Their blades clashed over and over. Sparks flew and the blades hissed angrly. She began to think of a way to get his defense to lower. As she swung her blade around to block his strikes, she observed him. How he held his weapon and his position. Her eyes became keen on his center place of gravity. He had more defense up high than below. Once she found an open spot, she began to strike lower at his thighs and knees. Vader struggled to block her attacks, having to step back and recover. Raven smiled to herself; her plan was working. Now he was starting to retreat back. But just as she began to lock on another place to strike, Vader went for a high shot straight down. Raven's instincts took over and she jumped out of the way. She landed down on her back. She began to stir to stand up when Vader had her pinned down. He stood over her, his lightsaber pointed at her throat. She had lost.
Raven panted and looked away shamefully. Her master stepped back and sealed his weapon away, turning his back. "Your skills have gotten better." He assured her. "But you are still too confident in your abilities. The music does aide you a lot, but it alone won't be enough. You must learn to think of the outcome, plan a back up in case your next move fails."
Raven stood up and bowed to Vader. "Yes, master." Her voice was weak.
Scooter's voice now echoed with the music around them.
Vader turned to look at her over his shoulder. "Do not worry. It is a mistake I had when I was still learning. You will overcome that bad habit with practice."
Raven nodded to him and put her own blade away.
"In the mean time, I will have a new droid built for you to help you with that training; one with better reflects." He paused looking away from her to stare out the window. "Your next training will be first thing in the morning tomorrow." He had no more to say. He swiftly exitted her room.
Raven bowed to him once again and plopped herself on her bed once he was gone. With a heavy sigh she closed her eyes and started to day dream about London.