They couldn't have a clearing, and they couldn't have a grinder, but there was more than one way to torture Jedi Apprentice.
At Luke's request, Raól found a super-sized gym willing to give the Jedi Order a discount on their subscription. Luke, Kess, Nik, and Tayla strolled in for the standard newbie tour of the place. It was all indoors. A half-kilometer running track ovaled around an immense collection of exercise and weight-lifting equipment, on which dozens of people were already sweating out their weekly or daily routines. That way led to an indoor swimming pool. That way led to rentable training rooms. That way was the sauna. That way was the locker room... The four of them followed the guide around, not asking much, just nodding and taking it in. Nik carried the duffel over his shoulder not yet realizing what was in it beyond everyone's exercise clothes. Tayla wanted to play on the stuff like they were climbing frames. Kess sighed a comic lament that this meant the end of her vacation from running.
Once the tour was over, Luke shooed everyone into the locker room to change, stuffed the duffel into a locker, and he shooed everyone out again.
At his lead, they gathered in an empty spot between the running oval and the exercise equipment. Luke gave Kess a specific look to remind her she was a Jedi Master now, and she read his expression clearly. He started to stretch and Kess turned to teach Tayla how to do the same.
Nik simply stood there, head hanging at an angle as Kess often did, eyes rolling at what was going to happen next. He gave Luke an enticing grin. "Are you a betting man?"
Luke chuckled under his breath as he lunged into a deep stretch. "Depends on the bet." He already knew what was coming.
"If I can bench more than you can, I don't have to run."
Blonde brows lifted. Nik was nearly a whole head taller and naturally bigger in build. Luke eyed him as if considering this offer, and shrugged, "I held up an X-Wing last night so it wouldn't crush your sister into jelly. Can you bench more than that?"
Nik's shoulders slumped. "Fuck."
Luke chortled and gestured at him. "Stretch first so you don't hurt yourself."
Nik slid tightened eyes to Kess for a clue how to talk his way out of this.
She waved it off. "Don't even try. Trust me. You're wasting your time."
Nik flattened his mouth and reluctantly began to stretch.
"Can you touch your toes?" Kess dared Tayla.
Tayla flopped her chest onto her thighs and grabbed her shoes with both hands, but her eyes were out at the equipment. "Which one we gonna do first?"
Kess pointed the other direction, to the running oval. "That one."
"Just run? What we need this place for? We can do that in the street!"
"We start with running. Fun stuff comes after."
Luke jogged ahead with Nik. Kess jogged behind with Tayla. The girl was having fun with it at first, hopping around and practically dancing back and forth as she ran, but she tired towards the end of the first lap. She tried to stop, heaving dramatically.
Kess just turned to jog backwards and shook her head with a grin. "Come on. We're not done."
"What? We did the whole thing!"
"We're gonna do two."
The top of Tayla's body swayed like a reluctant weed in the wind, but she ducked in to keep going. By the end of the second lap, she was gasping for air and dragging her feet like she was wearing shoes of concrete. Nik was in no better condition. The men finished first, but Nik immediately set his hands on his knees and heave at the floor to catch his breath. Without keeping up their own exercise for five months, Luke and Kess weren't entirely unaffected by it, but they had an easier time of recovery.
Tayla rolled onto a padded mat and spread her arms and legs spread eagle to groan for air. "You cheated. I don't got no energy for the fun part now."
Nik sat down on the mat nearby her and draped his elbows over an up-turned knee, concentrating to calm his breath. He probably didn't realize how red his face was.
Kess grinned but let them be. Instead, she rolled her shoulders back and looked over at Luke for the next move. Yet Luke's eyes were sneaking out at the crowds on the machines. Kess sensed out. They were being watched.
It took a second, but she observed that it was just curiosity; no ill-intent, no hate. The Jedi had been recognized by several people out there, and all were keeping a half-eye on the little group to see if they'd witness any parlor tricks.
Good luck with that, Kess thought, and turned her attentions back to Luke for the next direction.
He stood his full height and half-turned her way, but his eyes remained on the machine floor. He murmured, "Go get the duds."
Grinning deeper, Kess arched her brow. "Really?"
His eyes scraped the crowd, and he grinned a little by the time his eyes landed on her again. "I'm thinking about something you said once. And I'm wondering if a little PR might earn us a free subscription to this place."
Now both brows were in her forehead. "You want to put on a show?"
He waggled his head back and forth and corrected her. "I want to spar. And this is the only place we have right now. But if a little sparring can double-duty as another expense saved..." He shrugged.
Kess rocked back on her heals to turn back for the locker room. "As you wish."
She returned with two plain hilts in her hands and strolled to where Luke had gathered the apprentices. He secured an open mat towards the back end of the equipment area, near the back curve of the running oval. Tayla and Nik sat side by side on the edge of it but Luke was still on his feet. As much as Nik resisted the running, his adrenaline was pumping now. "So? What's next?"
Luke unlatched his lightsaber from his belt and handed it down to the man. "Hold this for me."
Nik looked at it, turned his eyes up at Luke to see if the man was serious, smirked, and took it. Luke added with a stern index finger. "Just 'hold it'." He flashed a smile. Nik shrugged and set it in his lap.
Kess too took off hers and handed it to Tayla with a similar order. "Don't turn it on."
Tayla looked it over with wild interest. "Why not?"
"Because I'm not in the mood to carry your ass to the emergency room today." Kess said and turned away from the two. She walked backwards across the mat, already watching Luke's every move. r Over his shoulder, Luke eyed her back as he stepped to the other corner. They spread themselves four metres apart. Kess flipped one hilt in her left hand, then flipped the other in her right and motioned to toss it to him when he was ready.
A grin spread across his mouth when he put his hands out for it. The hilt flew across the space and flared alive the moment it hit his palm, instantly flashing back and forth in big circles beside each of his shoulders in one lightning fast maneuver.
Show off. Kess set her feet and unlocked her knees. She settled the hilt in both palms and lit it up without showing off about it. She watched Luke's bright eyes, but she sensed out to the rest of the room too. Well, they're sure as hell watching us now.
Maybe this was better for them, Luke thought. She was distracted by the crowd, and she should have been entirely focused on her opponent. They hadn't sparred in months so, truthfully, this was good for them both.
They began to circle each other-
"Woah! Woah! Woah!" A gym monitor stepped up with both palms out and cut the mat between them. His face was stern. "We don't want anyone to get hurt. You're going to have to put those things away."
Luke straightened on locked knees but didn't disengage the lightsaber. "These are practice blades." He motioned over to where Nik and Tayla had the real ones. Nik held it up for the monitor to see.
Kess took a few steps closer as well. She sent out her intent to Luke and he reached his right arm out to the side. Kess sliced down and bopped him on the forearm, after which he wriggled his fingers in the air and showed his undamaged hand to the monitor.
Kess turned to stroll back toward her corner to wait out the rest of the argument. Luke bit his lip and lunged fast to whap her in the ass with his blade. She yelped and spun, holding her butt cheek with her palm. Luke grinned, smug, and shrugged at the gym monitor. "No one's going to get hurt."
The gym monitor stepped backwards as he scolded. "We'll see. But if I call it, you stop."
"Willco," Luke agreed with a fervent nod, and stepped back to his place. "Just keep everyone out of the way.
As the gym monitor settled to watch from the edge of the mat, several patrons came around to stand and watch with him. Luke and Kess steadied on wide feet again, eyeing each other again, and paused to smirk. But it wasn't the crowd and it wasn't the spar that fueled the smirk; it was last night's sex. That harmonious thrill of absolute connection pulsed in their veins as if they'd just finished. Kess was no longer distracted by the crowd.
This was going to be fun.
Stomp, stomp, CLASH! White blades sliced the air. Sneakers danced across the padded mat. Dodge. Duck. Parry. Cuss. Smirk. Try not to chuckle. Crash, crash... crash, crash, crash... fancy little spin around the shoulders while returning to corner position. Dart across. Use Force Pull on just one foot and leap over to slice across the mid-section as the other fell flat on their back with laughter... Then put out a palm to help them up.
Back to your places.
They couldn't deny it if they tried: Luke and Kess were having a good time. They sparred for about a half an hour, almost taking exact turns on who was winning, and the crowd gathered at the edges with enough interest that they each seemed to collect their own cheering squad.
They could have gone for hours longer, but didn't want to do that with all the people standing around. Both thought about heading back out to Iktri so they could play alone sometime soon. The white blades shrank away as they approached each other with completion, and some of the crowd applauded.
"Hey Skywalker?" A Mirialan man called from the small, standing audience.
Luke looked over.
The Mirialan angled his head. His green-gray skin and smoke-colored eyes observed the Jedi with mature curiosity. "How does one apply?"
Brows knitted. Luke glanced to Kess and back at the man. "Apply what?"
The Mirialan gestured at Nik and Tayla still sitting on the side, both still holding the real lightsaber hilts like squires. "For an apprenticeship."
Kess's brows popped into her wet bangs. Luke angled his head more, fought a grin, and blindly handed the practice hilt to Kess the same moment Kess blindly took it from him. She chortled silently to watch Luke stroll to the side to talk to the guy.
Kess turned away, eyes shining on his back, happy to see him happy, and strolled over to Nik and Tayla to take the real hilts back.
"Do we get to play like that now?" Tayla asked
Kess shook her head. "There's an exercise you guys have to be good at first. And we're going to have to take you Iktri for the first bunch of those lessons. But soon." Kess eyed Tayla and nodded this as a promise, handing the girl the practice hilts as she did. "And the more you meditate, the sooner it will be."
"Cool." Tayla said quietly and smiled big, looking over the practice hilt with interest.
Nik's eyes were on Luke and the crowd sneaking closer to listen to him talk with the Mirialan. "Doesn't look like we're going to get much else done today anyway."
Kess flicked her head for Nik to go. "Go bench something. Tayla and I are going to learn how to do some dumb bells. Let him get this PR business out of the way."
Nik hopped to his feet. "What do you want us to do with these?" He opened his palm with the practice hilt still in it.
Kess took it out of his hand, met his eye with smug sibling rivalry, and blindly latched it to a loop on his exercise pants. "Might as well get used to having one in the way." She helped Tayla hook the other on her little belt loop too; the thing was nearly as long as the girl's thigh, but Tayla strutted proudly to have it there.
Luke spent the next hour talking with the Mirialan and the on-staff manager of the gym itself. Two others hovered close for the duration of it as if they, too, wanted to apply for apprenticeship. Kess merely glanced over and smiled in love to find Luke calmly managing his eagerness at all these potentials showing up.
When they went back to the locker room to change and go home, Tayla was alive and chatty, Nik was quiet and pleasant, and Luke murmured through a smug little grin. "So, Jedi Lendra, looks like I have a new project for you, if you want it." He met her eyes. His were sparkling.
"What's that?"
He pointed at the practice hilt hanging off of Nik's hip. "We need to make more of those."
She smiled from ear to ear and nodded. "How many do you want?"
He thought for a second, pulling off a T-shirt and tossing it aside so he could pull his tunic over his shoulders. "Maybe... fifteen?" He winked.
Kess chuckled and rolled her eyes at the number. He was suggesting 'home-bred' apprentices instead of 'walk-ins', just to nudge her about it. She let it slide. "Is that guy a potential?"
"I don't know yet. He's going to come by the office next week," Luke said. "We have to figure out a way to test them." After that, Luke was lost in deep thought.
Kess protected him to do just that. She engaged Nik and Tayla in small talk as they finished changing, discussing what to make for dinner tonight. Tayla finished first and slumped on the little bench to wait for the others, elbows on her knees, face drooped in her palms, trying to suggest ice cream was a suitable dinner menu. Nik was distracted by the growing trepidation of this afternoon's ritual of sending an unanswered vidcomm.
Kess secretly suspected she and Luke would spend the rest of the afternoon brainstorming ideas on how to test people for Force Sensitivity. Not having a sure way to test someone was an unspoken thorn in Luke's side.
Tayla.
Tayla sat up, green eyes wide.
Kess turned around with ears open.
Luke's attention popped up from his shoe.
Nik's eyes noticed the other three suddenly paying attention to nothing specific, and so he paid attention to them.
"What?" Tayla said to nothing.
Don't forget about that dead garden. The man's voice was smooth and calm, grinning and quiet.
Luke stared at the air. "Are you going to tell us how to find it?"
Kess listened.
They heard a chuckle and a near groan of a Master's friendly disappointment. You don't need me to tell you how to find it.
Luke flattened his mouth and glanced at Kess.
Kess arched a brow. "Are you going to tell us your name?"
When you get there, he promised lightly, and he was gone.
Tayla popped off the stool. "So you guys can hear him too!"
"Yeah, when he's talking to us," Kess told her.
Nik shifted his eyes. "What just happened?"
Luke flicked his chin at Nik. "Did you meditate this morning?"
The grown man's face dipped into a slightly childish pout.
Luke smiled as he made his point. "And that's why you didn't hear him."
Nik leered an eye over at Kess. "Is it inappropriate to flip off your own Jedi Master?"
Kess shrugged as she turned back to the locker for her boots. "I do it all the time."