Chapter Twenty Four: Hours
All who bothered to turn their gaze from their typical focal points were graced with a most peculiar site moving about the halls of the Sith Academy. Two acolytes, battered and bruised, slowly trudging toward their room. Well, one trudged, the other rested upon the trudger's back. Conversations were lulled and heads were turned as eyes fell upon the unusual pair slowly making their way through the halls and up the stairs, sluggishly eager to return to their suite.
Past the main halls of the Academy, the duo was able to continue their trek in relative peace, free from the discerning eyes of their peers. At the precipice of reaching their home, Lorrik offered to continue of his own accord, lowering himself from his partner's back. Just in time for the duo to see Arlia leaning against the wall adjacent their suite. She was obviously waiting for something, someone, and Lorrik believed it wasn't her own partner. Jresh subtly looked to his companion, who casually directed him to head inside whilst he chatted with the other acolyte.
The warrior entered the apartment with little more than an errant glance toward the stationary rival. A moment later, the door shut, giving the two inquisitors relative peace in the hallway between the various residences. Removing herself from the wall, Arlia approached Lorrik, any intention in her eyes sufficiently veiled.
"Can I help you, Arlia?" Lorrik casually asked as he tried his hardest to keep his body's frame sufficiently rigid and upright, eventually settling upon leaning his shoulder against the wall in as awkward a 'casual' stance as his beaten body could muster.
"Cut the pleasantries, Lorrik," Arlia directly directed.
"You know I'm physically incapable of doing that, you know," Lorrik stammered, his current physicality actually having an effect on his pleasantries.
"I want to know more about what you did during your duel with Jresh," Arlia explained.
"Which part? The injuries? The falling down a lot? Let me guess… you want to know about the lightning," Lorrik said, lifting a single hand, imitating a clawed motion with it. "What do you want to know?"
"I want to know how exactly it is that acolyte like you managed to conjure such a thing. We both know what's required to use that power. Something you should be utterly lacking. It is not to be harnessed by the weak, the cowardly, or the… pleasant."
"Well then, I guess I'm not weak, cowardly, or… pleasant, in the heat of combat."
"How long have you possessed this power? Why didn't you use it against me in our duel?" Arlia curtly asked.
"Oh, not long, by Academy standards. But to explain our duel, believe me, I tried. But at the time, I guess you could consider me somewhat… plagued by things like self-doubt. My emotional state wasn't exactly conductive to such conjurations. Needless to say, that is no longer a problem."
The Twi'lek offered the arch of her brow. "Where did this arrogance come from all of a sudden?"
"Not arrogance. Confidence. And it comes from belief. Actualization. Have you any long-term plans? Any ideas for the future? Anyone to share them with?"
"Sith who don't focus on the present and what's real tend to end up missing the knives being sunk into their backs," Arlia explained. "What's the point of asking me anyway?"
"I figured your curiosity ultimately stemmed from the fact that you desired this power for yourself. I thought I'd go ahead and help you along your way toward achieving such."
"You mean… you're actually helping me?" Arlia asked, baffled. "How hard did Jresh hit you in the head to make you think this is a proper course of action?"
"How do you mean?" Lorrik asked, seeming utterly oblivious.
"You're weird, but not dumb enough to actually believe that it is a good idea to teach someone who actively desires your downfall an ultimately lethal technique," Arlia stated, a confused twitch in her eye.
"You just don't understand our process. Our purpose. One can only receive so much challenge from within, from one's peers, from one's environment, if everything remains stagnant. Were you and your partner to be leagues ahead of us, I likely would be content for now, battling, dueling, challenging ourselves against you. But whether you realize it or not, the four pairs currently stand upon relatively equal grounds. We can't kill each other, and at this stage there's only so much interaction with Lord Syrosk. Our main source of initiative, inspiration, and progress will ultimately come from one another. Once any of us begin to fall behind, that momentary sense of superiority and satisfaction will be worthless when held up against the continued experience of besting and being beaten by your equals. So yes, I'll happily share a few secrets of the Force. Because I know for a fact that you're the kind of person that can utilize any knowledge that comes her way. That you can make something material from immaterial knowledge. I want you to get stronger. I want the others to get stronger. Because that in turn will make us stronger. Power without waste. Pride without disability. Progress without abandonment. Cooperative antagonism. So I'll ask you, and I want you to think about your answer. I have a datacard that can be inserted into any standard reader, containing the writings from which I drew upon a portion of my knowledge. Would you care to borrow it?"
Arlia remained silent as she sharpened her gaze, furrowing her brow as she studied the curious inquisitor.
Lorrik entered the suite to find Jresh meditating on the living room mat, his eyes closed, his knees bent, and his countenance practically peaceful. Passing close by, the inquisitor made his way to the footlocker that sat adjacent his desk.
"What did Arlia want?" Jresh calmly asked, not breaking his trance.
"A word. Needless to say, I happily gave her one," Lorrik answered.
"Intent on giving her anything else?"
The Human rummaged through the container's contents, before returning with a single datacard in his hand. "She's interested in learning more about Force lightning. I thought I'd give her a study tool."
"Remember when I said not to let someone take those things away from you?"
"This isn't taking, it's giving," Lorrik explained.
"Understandable," Jresh calmly stated. "You'll receive no further inquiries from me."
Leaning out of the threshold of the apartment, Lorrik offered the waiting Twi'lek a small handheld datacard. The other acolyte hesitantly accepted, still unable to properly process the Human's actions.
"Give it a good looking over, and return it at your leisure," Lorrik warmly said.
"I still don't readily believe that this isn't an elaborate ruse," Arlia muttered, almost angry at her fellow inquisitor's kindness.
"That's good. I'd hate for you start trusting me more than your own partner. Bye!" With that, the Human retreated into his home, leaving the Twi'lek on the opposite side of the door. Stepping toward his meditative partner, the inquisitor cracked a smile. "Funny, it's gotten to the point that I can write off my niceness as 'mind games'."
"Well, it's good to see you're no longer succumbing to fits of pain and exhaustion," Jresh calmly stated, still in a state of meditation.
"Positivity helps. Speaking of which, I could try my hand at healing some of your wounds if you'd like."
"You could tend to yourself first, if you'd like," Jresh replied. "I'm content to meditate whilst you recover from your own injuries."
"Nah, I want to see if I'm capable of acting under duress, examine how my emotional and physical state impact my ability to use Force healing," Lorrik explained.
"I see," Jresh stated, more than content with his partner's reasoning. "Have you ever actually tried to use this power on another being."
"Nope."
"I see," Jresh repeated, less content.
"We can stop whenever you start to feel uncomfortable. Now, if you'll take of your robe, we can begin," Lorrik warmly stated. Finally breaking from his meditative stance the Pureblood opened his eyes to lay them upon his companion. "The only way I know of this power to work is through physical contact."
"Understandable. Tell me more about the technique," Jresh asked of his companion as he stripped off the outer layer of his robes. The jacket possessed numerous rips and tears at the various joints and seams, as well as a sizable scorch mark where Lorrik had gotten in a direct hit with his saber.
"Basically, with the Force comes a connections to life, through which comes to ability to alter or manipulate it," Lorrik explained. "Force-users are capable of bolstering, enhancing, or expediting the natural healing process that occurs within our bodies. Force healing takes that to the next level."
"Is it a power of the light, or the dark side?" Jresh patiently asked, removing his gauntlets and placing them atop the heaped cloak upon the floor, moving on toward unwrapping his under-shirt.
"Neither. Both. It can actually go both ways," Lorrik stated. "Through the light, one is able to naturally enhance these abilities. Through the dark, one must draw upon powerful emotion, or siphon vitality from another source. If you wanted to heal yourself, you could meditate, drawing upon inner peace, or you could channel your rage, drawing upon a sort of dark sustenance. Peaceful method takes focus and time. Rage method brings remarkable results, but involves combating the consuming effect that prolonged exposure to dark side energies can have on organic material. Welcome the dark side into your body and it will eventually succumb to decay. However, whomever can master the dark side could theoretically outlast or overcome the deterioration, though sometimes at the cost of mere vanity."
"And what of siphoning?" Jresh asked.
"With sufficient control of the Force comes the ability to not only manipulate your own life, but that of others," Lorrik explained. "With a bit of focus I can heal your wounds as I would mine. With siphoning, however, I could steal yout energy and vitality to restore my own."
"Could the opposite be accomplished?" Jresh asked as he kneeled on the meditation mat.
"You mean giving up power for someone else's benefit? Theoretically, yes," Lorrik answered with a pondering glance toward his curious companion. The Pureblood had removed his shirt, revealing his battered torso. Cuts and bruises graced the warrior's musculature, the grandest of the wounds covering much of his side, stretching up from his hip. Removing what remained of his gloves, Lorrik knelt behind his companion, about begin the healing process. Placing a bare hand upon Jresh's shoulder, intent on testing his abilities on a minor scrape that graced his partner's flesh, the Pureblood flinched at the first contact.
"I'm sorry, guess I should have warned you before, y'know, touching a wound," Lorrik softly stated.
"I've moved beyond the stage of pain, it's just… I'm not exactly used to physical contact," Jresh admitted.
"Makes sense. I mean, when was the last time you touched someone that didn't involve a saber, fist, or heavy layer of fabric laying in between. We've carried each other upon our backs. We've shaken hands, I guess. But the Academy isn't much for interpersonal exchanges. And intimacies are a short and narrow road to betrayal and murder in your sleep."
"The last personal contact I had was likely before I ever stepped foot in this Academy," Jresh plainly stated.
"That'd be an interesting topic of discussion," Lorrik said with a grin. "Familial ties before being shipped off to the Academy."
There was a pause as the air was heavy with silence.
"Another time, maybe. For now, I'd rather you focus on your technique. I'd rather not have my flesh out of place when we're done."
"You got it," Lorrik warmly stated, closing his eyes and focusing his energies on his companion's wounds. A soft luminance emanated from his palms as he pressed them against the Pureblood's crimson skin. Drifting into a meditative state, seconds flowed into minutes. Minutes into hours. Passing from wound to wound, Lorrik graced each aberrant spot on the warrior's physique with the healing radiance that would transfer from his hand to his companion's torso. By no means a hasty process, the two remained dedicated to their craft, continuing to recover in silence.
So yeah, I guess you could say today had a profound impact on our group dynamic. That duel was an effective field test of our martial capabilities. It also detailed how far we were willing to go. How dedicated we were to continuing our training. Holding up our ideals. I think we both performed amicably, despite the wounds sustained from an all-out test of might between a warrior and inquisitor. And I think we more than reinforced our commitment to our beliefs.
Jresh continues to surprise me. He possesses a genuine curiosity in matters of the arcane. I've always thought fully grasping the nature of the Force and its capabilities somewhat beyond the notice of the warrior sect. Whilst I'll not know for some time how much he actually understands and how much he "understands", the fact that he'll so candidly ask of my opinions, my knowledge, is quick heartening.
The inter-group dynamics seem to be shifting as well. Gave Arlia one of my data cards. Careful study of it and she could harness the power of Force lightning. I have no doubt she's capable of it. She's got the source that the doctrines traditionally call upon. The emotion. The drive. Seeing what she does with it will prove intriguing. Will she share it with Isorr? Will she reveal the results of her studies as soon as possible, or keep it hidden up her sleeve. There were no overt signs of rejection when I told her of my philosophies, makes me wonder if my words will have more than a passing impact on her actions and beliefs. Observing our rivals over the coming months will proves as enlightening as whatever teachings Syrosk might impart upon us. I wonder if this is what it's like for him, planting an item, an idea, a thought, and just watching what becomes of it. If this is what it's like for him, I'm starting to understand why he goes through it all.
Just like I'm starting to understand why Kar'ai and Ryloh would want to foster the connection they seem to be developing.