Chapter 27 – Training begins
Ahsoka will begin her training in this chapter. I saw a few good guesses about who she'll be training with in the reviews.
Cwageneralandrewbutler, thanks for the compliment. I really appreciate it and I hope that you continue to enjoy this story.
DigDugDiamond, I will do something with that vision, but not yet. I'm going to let the story develop further before they will discuss that.
Enjoy the chapter.
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Ahsoka stirred and slowly woke up. She stretched her body and sat up in the bed. Looking around, she noticed that what the Daughter had said was true; she was still in her bed in her room. It really had been a dream.
She got out of bed and walked up to the mirror in her room. Ahsoka studied her reflection for a moment. "So I am becoming a Force Wielder now? I can barely believe it." She thought as she stared at herself in the mirror. "I don't really look any different." She shrugged and grabbed a set of clean clothes and headed towards the refresher.
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As she stood in the shower, Ahsoka let her gaze wander over her body. She studied the places where she had been wounded before, during the kidnapping on Onderon and the battle on Felucia. There wasn't any trace left of those wounds, they had healed completely. "Is this also because of the Daughter's powers?" she asked herself. "If her power enhances my normal Force abilities, I suppose that my Force recovery is stronger as well. I'm certainly not going to complain." She smiled and finished up her shower.
;-
Ahsoka silently made her way downstairs. It was still a little early and the rest of her family was still asleep. Waking up early was always required in the Jedi Order. That was one habit she wanted to forget, but it wasn't so easy to get rid of.
She sat down on the couch and activated her datapad. She hadn't checked it yesterday because of the party. There were two messages waiting for her. Ahsoka tapped the first message and read what it said.
"Dear Ahsoka,
Happy birthday, I hope you're having a nice day. Like I told you at the ball on Naboo, I had intended to visit you now. I wanted to surprise you on your birthday, but unfortunately it didn't work out the way I had planned. Sorry about that.
Right now I have a busy schedule, so I owe you one. When I have more time available I'll make it up to you.
Love,
Lux."
Ahsoka smiled as she finished reading the message. "Oh Lux…" she thought. "I'm sure I can think of something." She wondered as she thought back at the nice places Lux had brought her to when she was on Onderon with him. Ahsoka chuckled and checked the other message.
"Hey Snips,
I just wanted to wish you a happy birthday. Obi-Wan and Master Plo Koon send their regards as well. I hadn't had much time to talk to others since the Council has send me on an assignment.
It was great to see you again and I hope that we meet another time soon.
Stay safe and may the Force be with you.
Anakin."
Ahsoka chuckled as she read the message. She had a strong feeling that Anakin wanted to write a lot more, but Obi-Wan probably told him to keep it short because he had to go on a mission. Still, it was nice that he still remembered her birthday even though she was no longer his padawan.
With a smile she placed her datapad aside. It was nice to know that they all cared so much. The emotions she felt caused her a great sense of peace. "What the Daughter said about the Force really is true. I haven't felt this at peace in a lot of years." She thought as she relaxed on the couch. Ahsoka opened herself up to the Force to meditate. She could sense the Force all around her, stronger than she had felt it before. "The Daughter is going to teach me how to handle these new powers and increase my mental strength. How can I increase my physical strength?" Ahsoka wondered, letting the Force guide her to an answer. Images entered her mind, memories and past events flowed around her. "There will be a place for you amongst our group if you want to." A voice from a memory said to her. Ahsoka quickly recognized the voice. It belonged to Shaden Zadane from the H'Raani M'Kai. "Perhaps I can train with him and the others? They are all very strong and learning about my people's traditional fighting styles sounds very incredibly interesting." A smile spread on her face. Later today she would go and see if she could train with them.
Ahsoka was so immersed in the Force she barely noticed that a few others had entered the room. She withdrew herself from the Force and opened her eyes. Lilo sat in a chair opposite her and their mother just walked into the kitchen. "Are you back amongst us again sis?" Lilo asked amused. "Yes, I'm back." Ahsoka replied with a smile. "Good, you didn't even respond when we said 'hello' just now." Lilo said. "Oh, sorry. I was a little too deep in my meditation to notice." Ahsoka replied a little embarrassed. "I suppose we should have gotten used to that by now, living with a Force user." Lilo said casually. Ahsoka rolled her eyes. "What is that meditating like anyway? You do it quite a lot, but it looks like you're just sitting there." Lilo asked curiously. "Uhm… I'm not sure I can explain. Meditating allows me to connect to the Force more than I usually do. I can use it to release some negative emotions into the Force and sometimes even see visions or the future, but that's not very easy." Ahsoka tried to explain. Lilo nodded slowly. "Wow, that's quite a bit more than I thought." She replied. Ahsoka shrugged. "Well, it's quite difficult to explain how it really is. I'm not sure I can fully explain how using the Force really is. I really can't imagine my life without it. After all, I've been tapping into its power for years." Ahsoka said. "I guess that's true. I don't really know what to imagine from the Force." Lilo replied with a smile.
Their mother walked back into the living room. "Good morning Ahsoka." She said when she noticed that Ahsoka had finished with her meditation. "Good morning mom." Ahsoka replied. "Could you both help me get breakfast ready?" Yuae asked her daughters. "Sure." Lilo replied as she and Ahsoka both got up.
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After breakfast Ahsoka had done some more meditating and Force practice. She had kept it to basic exercises for now, not risking overdoing it. She was going to wait patiently for tonight so the Daughter could tell her more about her new powers.
Marina had an appointment at the palace, so Ahsoka had gone along with her so she could ask Shaden if she could train with him. Marina had let Ahsoka fly this time and Ahsoka had taken the opportunity to get back at her sister for the comment she and Lilo had made about her flying skills.
"Sheesh, you really are a crazy pilot you know that?" Marina said with a hint of relief in her voice. They had just arrived at the palace. Ahsoka chuckled at her sister's remark. "That's what you get for mocking my flying skills." Ahsoka replied with a teasing smile. Marina laughed nervously. "I think I'll fly again next time." She said as she wiped the sweat from her brow. "I have to get to my meeting, see you later." Marina said. "Alright, have fun." Ahsoka replied. Ahsoka looked after her sister for a moment before walking into the direction of the barracks of the royal guard.
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Ahsoka entered the barracks of the Shilian royal guard, the H'Raani M'Kai, to look for Shaden Zadane, the leader of the group. With the aid of the Force, she was able to find him very easily. A smile spread on her face. He was currently in the training area of the barracks.
She entered the training area and found Shaden and several other warriors training. They turned to her when she walked up to them. Shaden saw her and smiled. "Ahsoka, good to see you. What brings you here?" He asked. "Well, I was hoping I could train with you and the others." Ahsoka replied. "Hmm, normally we don't allow others outside our group to do so. But, like I told you some time ago, after all that you have done for Shili you are more than welcome among us." Shaden said with a smile. Ahsoka smiled back at him. "Thank you Shaden. I don't know if I can officially join the H'Raani M'Kai though, I think I'm going to be quite busy these days." She replied. "Are there some kind of problems?" Shaden asked. Ahsoka shook her head. "No, it's just some personal matters involving the Force. Let's just say that I'm going through some changes and I'm looking to do more training." Ahsoka replied. Shaden nodded. "Alright then. Well, you're more than welcome to train with us. But, I should warn you: our training is probably more intense than what you've experienced before." He told her. Ahsoka smiled. "The Jedi have some pretty intense training schedules too, but I'll take your word for it." She replied. "Good. Well then, shall we?" Shaden asked. Ahsoka nodded and they walked back to the group.
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A few hours later
Shaden laughed excitedly as they finished their training exercise. "Well Ahsoka, I must admit: you were certainly capable of keeping up with us." He said with a smile. Ahsoka laughed as well and took a few deep breaths. "The Jedi Order has quite the stamina training programs. I've also learned how to use the Force to restore my energy at a young age. It's very helpful either during training or in a battle." Ahsoka explained. "That does sound very useful." Aurora replied next to her. Ahsoka nodded. "Yeah, but I have to admit: your training is quite intense." She said with a smile. "A bit too much?" Aurora asked her. Ahsoka shook her head. "No, it wasn't. It was just the type of training I was hoping for. Anakin sometimes didn't train me hard enough because he was being a bit overprotective, but this was just great." Ahsoka explained with a smile. "That's good to hear." Shaden replied. "It's quite impressive to see some as young as you with such stamina." Cira said as she walked up to them. "Thanks Cira." Ahsoka replied. "Just make sure you don't overdo it. I'd rather not have your mother yell at us for making you pass out or something." Cira said with a teasing tone of voice. Ahsoka's lekku darkened a bit as the others laughed. She joined in their laughter a moment later. "Don't worry, I'll be sure to prevent that. Mom would probably have a heart attack if that happened again so I'll do what I can to make sure that doesn't happen." Ahsoka said when the laughter stopped. "Good. Training is good and all but overdoing will have the exact opposite effect." Shaden replied.
They continued talking for a while until it was time for them to go. "So will you join us again next time?" Shaden asked Ahsoka. She nodded. "I certainly will. When are you training again?" Ahsoka asked him. "We rotate our training groups so that the majority of us are available to protect the royal family and the people of Shili." Shaden replied. "I'll send you a message about when we," he said as he gestured at the others around him, "are training again." Ahsoka nodded and smiled. "That sounds good to me. It will give me plenty of time to practice with the Force as well." She replied. "Good, then I will contact you later." Shaden said. "Okay, thanks for today." Ahsoka replied. "Anytime." Shaden said with a smile.
They said their goodbyes and Ahsoka headed back to the speeder. Marina's meeting should have ended around the same time as she finished with the training. "That's what Marina thought at least. I don't know that much about politics, but one thing I do know is that meetings can last a lot longer than planned." Ahsoka thought as she leaned against the speeder.
For a little while Ahsoka just looked at all of the people passing by. The vast majority of the people were Togruta. Even though she had already lived on Shili for some time now, it was still nice to see so many of her own people. Ahsoka sighed and looked at the palace. "It's a good thing I already learned about how to be patient a few years ago, otherwise this wouldn't have been easy." She thought.
A couple of minutes later Marina walked out of the palace, a tired expression on her face. When she spotted Ahsoka waiting by the speeder she gave her sister a tired smile. "Long meeting?" Ahsoka asked with an amused smile when Marina reached her. Marina groaned slightly. "There were a few disagreements. Things took somewhat longer than planned." She replied. "Were you waiting long?" Marina asked. Ahsoka shook her head. "No, it wasn't that long." She replied. Ahsoka observed her tired sister for a moment. "Want me to fly back?" Ahsoka asked. "Only if you fly normally this time." Marina replied. Ahsoka chuckled a bit as they both got in the speeder.
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"So how was the training Ahsoka?" Yuae asked her daughter. They were all seated in the kitchen enjoying dinner. "It was great. It was the kind of intense training I was looking forward to." Ahsoka replied with a smile. "Just be careful that you don't overexert yourself again, alright?" Yuae asked with concern in her voice. "Don't worry mom, I'll pay close attention so that won't happen again." Ahsoka replied. "Did you ever figure out what happened that day?" Lilo asked curiously. "Uhm… Well… Yes, I did." Ahsoka said slowly. Her family looked at her. "You did? So, what happened exactly?" Her father asked. "Eh…" Ahsoka said softly as she looked at her family. "Should I tell them about what happened on Mortis? About me having the Daughter's powers? I don't want them to worry. What should I do?" Ahsoka asked herself. "It's okay if you don't want to tell us dear." Her mother said when she noticed Ahsoka's hesitance. "Thanks mom. I wouldn't really mind telling you, but…" Ahsoka paused and took a deep breath. "I just have no idea how I could possibly explain it to you." She said as she shrugged. "So, I was right in thinking it was something Force-related?" Marina asked. "Yes, that's right." Ahsoka replied. "But don't worry, I've found a way to learn how to handle it." Ahsoka said, hoping to reassure her family that everything would be fine. "Okay, we trust you dear." Haymish replied. Ahsoka smiled at her father and they finished their dinner.
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The rest of the day had passed and Ahsoka lay in her bed, waiting to drift off to sleep. She had resorted to a few calming techniques she learned as a Youngling in the Jedi Temple. Her anxiety about what the Daughter would be able to teach her was preventing her from falling asleep. Somewhat later, Ahsoka drifted off to sleep.
She wasn't sure how much later it was, but eventually Ahsoka found herself 'waking up' in the same area where she had first met the Daughter again. She looked around and saw the Daughter sitting cross-legged under the tree, waiting for her. Ahsoka walked up to the being and sat down opposite her.
"Welcome back Ahsoka. I can see that you're eager to begin." The Daughter said. Ahsoka nodded. "I've always been eager to learn about the Force. Being able to learn from a Force Wielder as powerful as yourself sounds very interesting to me." Ahsoka replied. The Daughter smiled. "It's good to see such enthusiasm. You've also began training your body." She said. "Yes, I've been able to join the training of the H'Raani M'Kai. They're going to let me join in their training sessions from now on." Ahsoka replied. The Daughter nodded. "That's good. They are highly conditioned warriors and should be able to help you train your body to withstand your new powers." She said. Ahsoka smiled. "That's what I thought as well. So what are we going to do now?" she asked. "I am going to teach you more about the Force and help you understand the power you now have." The Daughter replied. Ahsoka nodded. "Alright, let's begin." She said with a smile.
"As you already figured out yourself," The Daughter began, "my powers enhance your natural Force abilities." She explained. Ahsoka nodded and let her continue. "Your normal abilities will become much more powerful, so you will need to exercise more control when using the Force. As you master my power, I will be able to teach you the more advanced Force techniques." The Daughter explained. "What kind of techniques?" Ahsoka asked curiously. "You know about the Dark Side technique Force Lighting, correct?" The Daughter asked. Ahsoka nodded, a slight frown on her face. Anakin had told her enough about Force Lighting and how much it can hurt. "There is a technique called Force Absorb, which allows the user to absorb Force Lighting and restore energy. The grandmaster of the Jedi Order, Yoda, is able to use this technique." The Daughter explained. Ahsoka nodded, not really surprised that Master Yoda would be able to do such a thing. "This is one way to counter the Dark Side lighting." She said. "Then what is another way?" Ahsoka asked. "The Light Side equivalent of Force Lightning." The Daughter replied. Ahsoka frowned. "There is a Light Side version of Force Lightning?" Ahsoka asked in disbelief. "How is such a technique light?" she asked. "Attacking your opponent with lightning isn't very light, you're right about that. But the way the techniques work is different." The Daughter replied. "How are they different?" Ahsoka asked. "Force Lightning was designed to ravage the target's body and inflict massive pain. The Sith designed it to be used both in battle and for means of torture." The Daughter explained. "It's Light Side counterpart, named Electric Judgment, wasn't created to inflict pain. Yes, it's still lightning and it will hurt, but less than Force Lightning. Electric Judgment is designed to drain its target's energy, leaving them defenseless and defeated." She finished explaining. "That's quite a difference. I had no idea that such a technique even existed." Ahsoka said. "The Jedi Council is aware of its existence, but they don't teach it to their students because it is easy to misuse." The Daughter replied. "That sounds like something the Council would do." Ahsoka said as she shrugged. "Will you teach me this technique?" she asked. "Later I will, when you are more familiar with your newfound power." The Daughter replied. Ahsoka nodded in understanding.
"Several other techniques I can teach you about are the Alter abilities. You have studied several of these already, the Jedi Mind trick and Telekinesis are amongst these abilities." The Daughter said. "Another one of the Alter abilities is known as Alter Environment. This technique allows a Force user to control the natural world around them." She explained. "I've read about that ability before during my studies in the Temple." Ahsoka replied. "Yes, the Jedi know the ability. However, not many are capable of using it. But those who mastered it can use the technique to influence their surroundings. For example, they can create gusts of wind to unbalance opponents or manipulate waves." The Daughter told her. "That sounds like something that could definitely come in handy." Ahsoka replied impressed.
"There are a number of other advanced Force techniques as well. But for now, let us begin with helping you attune to your new strength." The Daughter said. "That sounds good to me." Ahsoka replied. "Very well. Concentrate on the Force. Find the energy within yourself and let a small part of it out." The Daughter began to instruct her. Ahsoka concentrated and followed the instructions the Daughter gave her. She touched the power inside of her and let it out slowly. The Daughter told her to withdraw herself from her state of concentration and let the power return to where it came from. Then she told Ahsoka to tap into it again.
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They repeated this process for several hours. Ahsoka constantly tapping into increasingly larger portions of her new power under the instructions of the Daughter. They altered the duration of the exercise occasionally to familiarize Ahsoka with the energy flowing through her.
"Very good so far. You're doing well Ahsoka." The Daughter said when Ahsoka withdrew herself from her state of concentration again. Ahsoka smiled, her confidence continually increasing as she drew deeper into her new powers. "Let us practice with the amount of power you have accessed thus far." The Daughter said as she waved her hands. Ahsoka detected something appearing behind her. She turned around and saw a couple of round stones materializing. "These objects are similar to the Muntuur Stones that experienced Jedi Masters have used before in their training. The real ones each weigh several tons." The Daughter explained. "Several tons?! I don't know if I can handle that…" Ahsoka replied shocked. "Don't worry. These duplicates are a lot smaller and they are lighter. Tap into your power and try to levitate them. If you can handle it I will have more of them materialize." The Daughter assured her. "Alright then." Ahsoka replied as she looked curiously at the stones, wondering how they just appeared. "The benefits of dreaming and being able to influence them." The Daughter told her. "Of course." Ahsoka replied with a smile. She looked at the stones again. She extended her hand and began to concentrate on making them defy gravity.
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Ahsoka took a deep breath as she lowered the stones and they vanished into nothingness. She had been able to levitate more than she had thought possible at first. The Daughter had made multiple stones appear and in her serene state of mind Ahsoka had picked them all up with the Force.
"Nicely done Ahsoka. You have made an excellent start to mastering your new powers." The Daughter told her with a smile. "Thank you, that was quite the exercise." Ahsoka replied with a smile on her face as well. "Before you wake up again, there is one thing I should tell you about." The Daughter said. Ahsoka nodded and allowed her to continue. "As you continue to develop your newfound power, your Force signature will eventually change in certain ways. Your appearance will also change somewhat." The Daughter continued. "How will my appearance change? I understand that my Force signature will change, but my appearance?" Ahsoka asked slightly confused. "You will inherit my signature appearance, the light glow that surrounds me." The Daughter replied. Ahsoka raised one of her eyebrow markings at this. "So, I will be glowing like you later? I'm not really sure if I like that so much. People will probably think I'm some kind of odd being or something." Ahsoka said. "Do not worry about that. You can control the glow through concentration. You can command it to fade away." The Daughter replied. Ahsoka breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good to know. I wasn't really looking forward to people giving me weird looks because I'm glowing." She said with a smile. The Daughter smiled back at her.
"Am I going to change in other ways as well?" Ahsoka asked curiously. "What kind of ways are you talking about?" The Daughter asked in return. "Well, there are several things I'm still a little curious about." Ahsoka began. "For instance, as I recall, you were an immortal being. If you gave me all of your powers and abilities, how does that affect me?" She asked. "What you said is partially true." The Daughter replied. "We were eternal beings and lived long lives, but we were still mortal." The Daughter looked at Ahsoka. "You are still as vulnerable as normal Togruta. However, there is a Force technique that will allow you to slow your body's aging and live as long as we did. I can teach you this technique if you like." The Daughter explained. Ahsoka thought it over for a moment. "There are advantages to a long life, but there are plenty of drawbacks as well." She recalled what Master Yoda had once said about having a long life. "I don't think I want to know that technique." Ahsoka said after a short while. "I would outlive everyone I care about. I'd watch all of them grow old and wither away… That's not something I want to have to experience." Ahsoka explained. The Daughter nodded. "A respectable decision. The others in my family were able to live as long as myself, so I never had to experience that. It is your life and you're free to decide that on you own." She replied. "Thank you." Ahsoka replied with a smile.
"You will be waking up soon. Is there something else you wanted to ask?" The Daughter asked her. "Yes, there is one more thing." Ahsoka replied as she thought back to their time on Mortis. "If I have all of your abilities," Ahsoka began, "does that also mean that I will be able to transform like you and your brother did?" she asked curiously. The Daughter didn't immediately reply. "I'm not quite sure." She said after a moment. "That ability was tied into the way we were born. I suppose that only time will tell whether or not you can transform like we could." The Daughter said. Ahsoka nodded in understanding.
After that, the world around her began to distort again, signaling that she was waking up again.
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That's it for this chapter.
Ahsoka began her training with the H'Raani M'Kai and the Daughter. The training scene with Shaden and the warriors was a bit short, but I didn't know much things to add there. They will be back in other later chapters and the scenes will be longer.
I used a couple of things from the book "The Jedi Path" in Ahsoka's training with the Daughter. This book is kind-off a Jedi's guide to the Force. It describes a lot of techniques and history of the Jedi. It's a pretty interesting book with 'comments' in it from the people that 'held it before'. It was handed down from Yoda to one of his students, then to Dooku, Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan, Anakin and Ahsoka. Darth Sideous obtained it and later it was recovered by Luke. It's a pretty fascinating read if you want to learn more about the Jedi and the Force.
As Ahsoka develops her powers, the Daughter will teach her new techniques. Some I listed already, several others might still join that list.
You're probably noticed that the last part wasn't really answered, about Ahsoka being able to transform like the Daughter to her phoenix form. I'm not sure if I should add this yet. It could make a nice addition and create some interesting situations, but at the same time I think it might be a bit too much. Let me know if you think I should use it and what type of creature Ahsoka could turn into. With her predator background as a Togruta, I'm thinking of some type of dragon like an Arkanian Dragon (found on Starwarswikia). But, like I said, I'm still not sure if I should add this or not.
The next update will either be for Mysterious Ways or The Hidden Truth. It depends on which story I have the most inspiration for.
Until next time.