Obi-wan sat cross legged on the ground opposite his Padawan. He was attempting to guide Zett through a meditation exercise. This one in particular was to aide him with his farsight. Helping him to control the ability instead of visions just randomly appearing to him. So far, Zett was doing, fine, with it. Not exactly thriving in mastering the exercise, but not exactly failing it either. He was going to have towork hard with him on this.
For his part, Zett was getting slightly frustrated. Master Kenobi was extremely demanding. Constantly pushing him, not letting him give less than one hundred percent. He knew that this really was for the best, but it was still frustrating. At least Master Kenobi never compared him to Master Skywalker. Especially when they spared, he didn't. Which was good since, like Master Skywalker, he used Form V, and Master Skywalker was widely considered the finest practitioner of Djem So that the Order had ever seen.
"Focus, Padawan. Be mindful of your thoughts. I can feel your frustration and distraction quite clearly through the Force," Obi-wan said quietly. Obi-wan sighed inwardly. Zett was extremely talented, but easily distracted. It was definitely something that the two of them would have to work on. Fortunately for Obi-wan, he had plenty of experience in dealing with that from Anakin. Speaking of...
"Come to join us Anakin?" Asked Obi-wan, surprising his old Padawan who thought he had slipped up to the pair quite stealthily.
"No, Master. I was actually hoping to get in some sparing before we start our negotiations for the day," replied Anakin. "But I can see you're quite busy." Looking to Obi-wan's Padawan, he nodded his head and asked the young man how he was doing. After hearing his reply, Anakin shocked his old Master by what he said next.
"Allow me to give you a small piece of advice, Padawan. Master Kenobi is one of the finest Jedi alive. And one of the finest beings alive as well. Listen to him. Listen better than I did. There were many, many times where I let my own arrogance and pride blind me to what my Master was trying to teach me. Do that, and you'll be a far greater Jedi than I could ever be."
This frank admission from Anakin, who, by any standard, was one of the greatest Jedi in the history of the Order, was surprising to him. His old Padawan had truly changed in the six months since the Temple fell. Gone was the arrogant, emotional, somewhat impulsive, young man. In his place, stood a confident, assured, somewhat humble Jedi Master. Fatherhood, and no longer having to hide his marriage, seemed to make all the difference for Anakin.
Shaking off his surprise, Obi-wan stood and stretched. "Actually Anakin, I could use some time sparing. If you take some time later to help Zett refine his Form V technique."
"Gladly, Master." Turning to Zett, Anakin told him, "Come find me this afternoon when we break around midday. We'll work on it together."
"Thank you, Master Skywalker. I'll do that."
With that, both Anakin and Obi-wan shrugged off their cloaks and ignited their lightsabers. The duel they engaged in was almost legendary. Their blades moving so swiftly that they appeared to be nothing more than blue blurs of light. The sound of their blades flying through the air, crashing into one another blended into one long continuous sound. As the two Jedi Masters dueled, they slowly started to attract an audience. To the Clones, this was really nothing that they hadn't seen before. Though granted, they had never seen the two Jedi move so quickly, so fluidly, so powerfully before. To the Mandalorians, seeing the Jedi was somewhat eye opening. The two men fought with a combination of grace, speed and power that was rarely seen.
As their blades crashed into each other again and again, Anakin and Obi-wan appeared to become even more focused. Their strikes, feints and parries even quicker and more powerful. Though both men knew this was just a sparing match, neither wanted to lose and both wanted to win. After several more minutes, Obi-wan maneuvered Anakin to where he could seize a small area of high ground, giving him a slight edge. With a smirk on his lips, Obi-wan looked at Anakin and told him, "It's over Anakin. I have the high ground."
For his part, Anakin was sorely tempted to attempt a leap over Obi-wan. And if he was being honest with himself, before he became a father, before the fall of the Temple, he likely would have. His arrogance would have gotten the better of him. But now, he simply smiled, deactivated his lightsaber and bowed to Obi-wan. Telling him, "You won this round, Master. But you and I both know you got lucky." Laughing, he turned away and made his way back to where his and Obi-wan's cloaks were. Picking up his cloak, he noticed all the people that had been watching him and Obi-wan. "Sorry, I know we're late for our meeting, but we wanted to get some training in, and, well, we're both a bit stubborn and don't like to lose."
Nodding his head, Kal Skirata told him not to worry about. After all, no good warrior ever wants to lose. Even in training. This was likely the one area that Mandos and Jedi were exactly alike. As they walked slowly back toward the main house, Kal thought over what he had just seen and what he and his boys had decided on last night. As Mando'ade, they weren't exactly tired of fighting. But they were tired of fighting for the wrong reasons. If they were going to join with the Jedi in this fight, it had to be for the right reasons. Not just because they were bred to be cannon fodder for the Republic.
Sitting around the table in his house, Kal, his boys, the Jedi and Padme resumed their discussion from the day before. The first part was fairly easy, actually. The former Nulls and ARCs were willing to work with the Jedi. As long as they agreed to some conditions. The Jedi, for their part, were well aware that they would have to make some concessions and were more than willing to listen. Kal, speaking for his family, laid it out for them.
"First things first. My boys have the right to turn a mission down. If they think it's a suicide op, or the cause isn't worth dying for, they can walk away. I won't let them be used for cannon fodder like they were in the War, understand?"
Obi-wan, speaking for Council, quickly agreed. "That won't be a problem. As it is, the men in the 501st have that option now. It also extends to operations where they may be called into combat against their brothers. You're free to confirm that with Captain Rex. As the Second in Command of the Battalion, and it's effective day-to-day commander, he can verify the things that have changed and provide an unbiased opinion to you."
"Alright, we'll do that. Secondly. My boys, and every single man in the GAR are aging too damn fast. We've been looking for a way to slow it down. You want my boys to help, you help them live a full, normal life."
Anakin was the first to speak up this time. "You have my word. I want that as well. These men deserve that. Maybe some of our healers, combined with the research you've already done can make this happen. And if not, we'll keep looking until we do."
"Hmph. Well, I'll believe it when I see it. Lastly, I want to talk to a, a friend, of mine. He's trying to drum up support to throw the Empire off of Mandalore. And unlike some, he's not against accepting Jedi aide. Help him, and he might help you with a Mandalorian Army at your backs when you go to take on the Empire."
This time, it was Padme who responded. "What you say there has great merit. We would be more than willing to talk to your friend. Who knows, perhaps one day this will lead to a closer, friendlier relationship between the Mandalorians, the Republic and Jedi."
"Well, that might be putting the engine before the speeder," replied Kal. "But perhaps one day we could be friends. In the mean time, and as long as you meet your commitments, if my boys want to go with you, I won't oppose it. It's their call."
Looking to his boys, he saw them all nod. "Well, that settles it. Looks like you got yourselves some Mandalorians. Just don't make me regret this. These boys are my life. You don't hold up to your end of the deal, there aren't enough planets in the galaxy to hide you from me."
Master Fisto, who had remained quiet up to this point, nodded his head and told him, "You have our word. We won't rest until every single man gets a full life."
"Good. Cause you can start living up to that commitment right now. My friend is on his way. Should be here in a few minutes."
"Excellent, Mr Skirata," replied Padme, donning her Senator's persona. "We are eager to hear what he has to say."
Back on Tython, Seryana Ky was in one of the sparing rooms, a training lightsaber in her hand. She hadn't touched a lightsaber in years up until a few months ago. But then one day, Master Skywalker had walked up to her and her fellow pilots of the ExplorCorps as they were all sitting around eating lunch and told them that, as former Jedi Initiates, Master Yoda had decreed that they were all to be retrained in lightsaber combat. He had instructed them to report to the training room the next morning immediately after breakfast.
The next morning, when they had reported wearing traditional Jedi Robes instead of their flight suits, Master Skywalker greeted them warmly and told them to select a training saber from the case on the wall. She had briefly closed her eyes, trying to recall half remembered training, and tentatively reached out with the Force and felt a pull from one of the sabers. Taking it in her hand, she felt an instant connection with the crystal in the saber she had chosen. Smiling to herself, holding "her" new saber in her hand, she turned back toward the front and Master Skywalker.
Half the pilots had still been convinced that this was some sort of practical joke being played on them by the greatest prankster the Jedi Order had ever seen. Those who felt that way, however, were quickly disabused of the notion. Master Skywalker had quietly explained to them that, after the fall of the Temple, the Council had reevaluated many things about the Order. This was one of them. He reminded them that every person in this room was a Jedi. Whether they had ever been Knighted or not. They were Jedi, still.
To Seryana, that had been music to her ears. She had seemed almost to float to through the class after that. Her body slowly readjusting to the basics of Form I. Her muscles moving through the long forgotten motions, the emerald green blade of "her" lightsaber seeming to dance in front of her. As she moved through the various katas and velocities of the Form, she noticed Master Skywalker intently watching each student for a few seconds before shifting his gaze to another. Seeming to make mental notes as he went. He confirmed this after class by recommending to each student either additional practice in Form I to reestablish a base to build from or by recommending another form for the student to study and begin to specialize in. Most were told to continue to focus on Form I for now. Though a few, those that seemed to have a natural grasp of lightsaber use, were given advanced forms to study. She was one of those. She could still recall his voice as he had told her, "Jedi Ky, I'd like you to study Form II. You have a grace and flow to your movements that would be well suited to the Makashi style."
"Finished day dreaming, are you?" She heard fromin front of her. Blushing and ducking her head, she saw the slight form of Master Yoda before her. In Master Skywalker's absence, Master Yoda had taken over the class. Having the aged Grand Master of the Order yank you from a day dream was not a pleasant feeling. She had forgotten how often he had caught her day dreaming when she was an initiate. "Remember, I do, your day dreaming Seryana. Focus, you must learn."
Suitably chagrined that not only had Master Yoda caught her, but he apparently remembered her, she could only meekly reply, "Yes Master. It won't happen again."
"Hmph. Heard that, many times I have. Your stance, assume."
So Seryana did. She adopted the opening stance for Form II, expecting to be asked to demonstrate some of the form's sequences. Instead she was shocked to see Master Yoda call his lightsaber to his hand and move into the stance for Form IV.
"Defend yourself, you must," Yoda stated simply. With that, he leapt at her and began to spar and duel with her. Pushing her just enough to force her to put her all into the Form. To his mild surprise, she was actually quite good. Nowhere near Dooku's level as a swordsman, of course, but still, he would rank her as a more than competent Form II duelist. Done well, has Young Skywalker, he thought. Justified his faith in him had been.
During her brief session with Master Yoda, Seryana had been pushed to her limits and somewhat beyond. The Force seemed to flow through her far more strongly than it had ever done before. It was as if every move of her blade was a part of her. Her saber nothing but an extension of her own body. The precise thrusts, slashes and parries of Makashi seeming to flow together, one into the other seamlessly. Force, how she wished she had been chosen as a Padawan all those years ago. Not that she didn't love what she did now. It just kind of sucked is all.
"Of your feelings, be mindful my young Jedi," Yoda reminded her. Seryana could only grunt a response as she was putting all her physical exertion into her lightsaber. Her duel with Yoda ended shortly after when she was forced to admit to defeat to the Grand Master.
"No shame should you feel," Yoda told her. "Done well, you have. But focus, you must. If master this you do, unbeatable will you be."
Nodding her head at the compliment, Seryana replied, "Thank you, Master. I'll work on that."
Nodding his head, Yoda completed their instruction and dismissed the class soon after. Seryana was exhausted. She had never called upon the Force so strongly before or for such an extended amount of time. It had left her feeling drained. Nor had she ever engaged in a duel like that before. Most of the sparring she did with her fellow classmates was done at a much slower, more deliberate pace. And even then, her use of Form II generally ended the matches quickly, as Form I was distinctly unsuited to combating Makashi. Thinking on her day, she dredged up some of her earliest lessons from when she was an initiate from the recesses of her mind. If she was ever going to master her lightsaber, she would have to master herself. Having decided that, she made her way to one of the meditation groves, settled herself in it and, for the first time in a long time, began to meditate.
On Coruscant, Bail had been very busy. He had finally tracked down where Palpatine was training the increasing numbers of darksiders that were showing up throughout the Empire. A few were former Jedi. But most were simply beings that had been taken and broken to the dark side. Bail didn't pretend to understand it, but apparently the Sith could compress several years of training into several months. Well, when he put it that way, it wasn't really that surprising, was it? The Sith didn't give two credits whether a being lived or died during training. So why should they slow things down for anyone?
At any rate, he now knew that they were being trained on Korriban. He didn't know how many there were, but according to his security chief who had compiled all confirmed reports of Dark Jedi throughout the Empire, there were at least fifty. Possibly up to one hundred. What he didn't know was just how dangerous these beings would be going up against a fully trained Jedi Knight. In that regard, he could only hope and pray.
He knew he was taking an enormous risk with his activities, especially since Winter had accompanied him on this trip to Imperial Center, but it was something that he had to do. His own honor demanded it. Fortunately, he had the information now, and no one appeared to be wiser. All he had to do now was get it to the Jedi. This was fairly simple actually. The data was encoded deep within a random message to Corellian Engineering Corporation about some of their local patrol vessels. Upon receipt at Corellia, the coding would automatically reroute the hidden message through multiple relays and would get to the Jedi in a day or two. He prayed that they would be able to put a stop to this menace.