"aaaa" - talking through a holocomunicator or comlink. aaaa - inner thoughts and Force Visions. 'aaaa' - talking through a bond. 'aaaa' - regular dreams
AN: Hi everyone! I had a little bit of writer's block while figuring out what to write for this chapter, but I have finally finished it. I hope you all like it.
Oh yeah, I am VERY excited for Tales of the Jedi, the six-episode series that is coming to Disney Plus next month. I can't wait to see more of Ahsoka's story, along with getting to see a younger Qui-Gon, Dooku when he was still a Jedi and more.
Anyways, for those of you who are wondering, this chapter takes place during Evil Plans.
Also, the inspiration for the scene where Rex trains Rosella on how to use the weapons that he and his brothers use came from the fanfics The Clone Wars: Captain and Commander by Jade-Max and Protecting and Caring for the Commander by katierosefun.
Thank you princesselsaamidala22 for your review of the last chapter. I'm glad you liked it.
On with the story!
While on a two-week-long meditation retreat, Rosella volunteers to help out with a lightsaber class while Anakin is off helping Padmè.
Quick note, my knowledge of shooting guns is rather limited, so I hope I got most of the terminology right. Feel free to leave me a comment if I didn't.
Chapter 23: Assisting With a Lightsaber Class and Blaster Training
Once she had placed her empty lunch tray with the other ones that were waiting to be washed, Rosella walked away from the serving station. Even though she and Anakin were supposed to be on a meditative retreat, he was off helping Padmè, since she had asked him to help coordinate security for the dinner party that she was hosting that evening, as Typho had been given two weeks off so he could go see his family on Naboo while she had a volunteer shift at the Temple that had been scheduled for that very afternoon.
As the blond-haired teenager made her way towards the large open doorway that served as the entrance to the loud and noisy cafeteria, she spotted Ahsoka, who was standing in between two pillars, speaking to Obi-Wan. Even though she was too far away to hear what they were saying, she could tell that her friend was upset about something. A few seconds later, she saw her Uncle leave. Knowing that she didn't have enough time to talk to her friend, she walked through the door and headed in the direction of the training wing.
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"Good afternoon Initiates," Master Drallig said as he addressed the class who was standing in front of him. "Since you all are just beginning to learn how to use an actual lightsaber as opposed to the training ones, I have asked one of the Order's more experienced Padawans to assist me today." Then he clapped his hands together. "Now, before we get on with today's lesson, let's begin with some warm-up exercises."
Rosella, who was standing at the front of the room, watched as the initiates, who were only 9, went to the back, picked up a training remote and a blast helmet and returned to their spots. Then each remote was activated. One by one, they floated up into the air as the younglings placed their helmets on their heads and reached for their lightsabers. As each student ignited their saber, a remote would float down towards them.
Pretty soon, all of the Initiates were busy doing their warm-up exercises.
After their warm-up time was over, and everything had been put away, Master Drallig took a step forward and began his lesson. "I'm sure you all remember what I taught you about Shii-Cho, the first form of lightsaber combat," he said. "Well, today we will be putting that knowledge to the test by doing a sparring drill."
The room was filled with excited voices as the students began to talk to each other about finally getting to see a mock lightsaber duel.
Master Drallig waited for the room to quiet down. "Now, I want you all to pay attention as Rosella and I demonstrate the maneuvers that you will be doing with your partner." Turning to face the Padawan, he gestured for her to approach.
Rosella smiled, stepped forward and got into a Shii-Cho stance. After watching as the Jedi Master copied her movements, they both ignited their lightsabers. Giving her saber a quick twirl, she placed her other hand on the hilt as she held it in front of her.
Hoping to catch her off guard, the Temple Battlemaster stepped forwards as he raised his saber over his head and then brought it down as he aimed for the middle of her head. A quick look of surprise flashed across Rosella's face as she raised her own saber to block the strike. Then she was forced to thrust her saber to the right to block another strike that had been aimed in that direction. After repeating the same move on her left, she took her right hand off the hilt. Rotating her left arm ninety degrees to her right with her hilt facing downwards, she blocked a quick strike that had been headed for her back. Sensing that the next move was aimed at her left leg, Rosella brought her lightsaber around in a full circle, using her second hand to add more weight as she blocked the green blade before it could make contact with her skin. Knowing that their duel was soon going to end, the Padawan twirled her saber once before holding it in a reverse grip as she swung it downwards, the blue blade clashing with Master Drallig's green one as he had tried to execute a final strike towards her right leg.
Both opponents were breathing hard as they disengaged their blades and stepped away from each other. After taking a moment to catch their breaths, they bowed to each other.
As he turned to face the class, the Jedi Master deactivated his lightsaber and clipped his hilt back onto his belt. "Now are you all ready to try those maneuvers?" He asked.
The younglings nodded.
After pairing them all up and making sure that they all had enough room to move around without hurting any of their fellow classmates, he told them to begin.
The Initiates nodded, reached for their lightsaber hilts and set them to the lowest setting. Soon, the sounds of clashing sabers filled the room.
Rosella, who had already deactivated her lightsaber and hung the weapon back on her belt, walked around the room. She smiled while watching as everyone tried their best to do the maneuvers that she and Master Drallig had demonstrated. Ten minutes later, she heard the Jedi Master tell the younglings to switch positions and that the person who had been defending would now be attacking and vice versa.
Half an hour later, the class ended.
After saying goodbye to the younglings and thanking Master Drallig for allowing her to assist him, Rosella left the training room. As the doors slid shut behind her, she turned to her left and headed down the hall to the turbolift.
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Stepping through the doorway of the barracks that belonged to the 501st, Rosella made her way down the hall, moving past the entryway that led to the common room. Rex had contacted her while she had been studying and asked if she had the time to meet him in the training room.
Entering the room, she glanced around before spotting the Captain in the same shooting gallery that they had been in last time. Heading over to the room, the teenager opened the door and walked inside. After closing the door, she turned around and noticed that Rex was standing in front of one of the small tables with the same training pistol that she had used in her previous session on the surface behind him and a larger blaster next to it. "Captain," she said, walking over to him.
"Commander," he responded. "Are you ready to continue your training?"
"I'm always ready to learn something new, Rex," she told him.
"Good, because today you're going to learn how to fire a DC-17 hand pistol and a DC-15A blaster carbine," he told her. "While I mainly use my modified DC-17s, I will pick up a DC-15A and use it if I need to. Both weapons are just some of the ones that the vod'e and I have been trained to use while out in the field." Then he gestured to the training pistol that was on the table. "I want you to show me your shooting stance."
Turning around, Rosella stepped towards the table and picked up the training pistol. It was then that she realized that the Captain had removed the energy pack. Wondering when she was going to get to try it with the added weight, she shifted her feet to their correct spots and got into the same stance that he had shown her during their last training session.
Once she had repeated the same move a few more times, Rex came up to her. "Alright, you can relax now," he said, watching as she straightened up. "I think you're ready to try handling it with the energy pack inside." He held out his hand. "Mind handing it over?"
Flipping it around so she was holding it by the barrel, Rosella placed it in his hand and watched as he depressed the catch, popped the pack back in and closed the chamber. Then he lowered the power settings and flipped it around, proffering it back to her. Wrapping her left hand firmly around the stock, she took it from him and quickly compensated for the added weight.
Shifting her legs to their correct spots, Rosella got back into the same stance that she had just demonstrated.
Rex glanced down at her grip and shook his head. "I would place two hands around the stock sir, with both of your pointer fingers on the trigger," he said, trying not to slip into the voice that he used on his brothers when they were out in the field.
The young padawan frowned. "Why?" She asked. "Wouldn't it be a lot easier if I just used one hand?"
"No," the Captain replied promptly. "Since you're still learning how to use these weapons, it would be better if you had two hands on the trigger. If you were to use only one, your grip wouldn't be nearly as tight or strong when firing. Plus, the General wouldn't be to happy with me if I let you get hurt."
Realizing that he was right about the last part of his statement, Rosella placed her other hand around the stock, letting it rest on top of her left hand as she curled both of her pointer fingers around the trigger.
"Both of your thumbs need to be placed below the spot where the trigger is," Rex said as he stepped towards her and quickly adjusted her grip on the weapon. He made sure to place her thumbs on the cool metal and then he checked to see if her index fingers were firmly gripped around the trigger. When he was satisfied with her hand placement, he removed his hands and stepped back.
"Thanks," she responded, shooting him a quick smile.
"Anytime, sir," he told her. Then he gestured towards the target that he had set up before she arrived. "Whenever you're ready."
Rosella nodded and looked straight ahead at the target. Taking a deep breath, she pulled the trigger, bracing herself for the kickback as the pistol tilted up a little, causing her to take a tiny step backward.
Rex watched with a proud smile on his face as the blue laser flew down the alley and hit one of the inner rings. "That was a good shot for your very first try," he complimented, "but I know you can do better."
"How?" The teenager asked as she lowered the weapon before glancing over at him.
"Well, I happened to notice that your arms were a little too tense," he replied. "You'll want to try and keep that tension in your shoulders and torso."
"Got it," she said. Turning towards the table, she made sure that her feet were in their correct spots before raising the weapon into the air. Focusing on her goal, she squeezed the trigger. To her delight and surprise, the laser hit the center of the target.
"Now that was a very nice shot, Commander," Rex told her.
Rosella placed the weapon down on the small table in front of her, then turned to look at Rex. "Thanks for the advice," she said, the corners of her mouth lifting up into yet another smile.
Rex nodded and after letting her practice shooting with the training pistol, he had her practice firing a few shots with the DC-15A carbine. Once she got the hang of it, he made her stop for the day.
Rosella thanked him again for the lesson and left the barracks.
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Once Rosella got back to the Temple and had dinner in the cafeteria, the food wasn't as good as the meal that she had eaten last night over at her mother's flat, - it had been a small family gathering to acknowledge the part that Rosella had played in successfully rescuing one of Chairman Papanoida's daughters - she made her way to the apartment, knowing that Anakin was spending the night with Padmè again.
After brushing her teeth, the teen headed to her room, unhooked her saber from her belt and placed it on her bedside table before changing into her nightgown. Turning off her bedroom light, she climbed into bed and snuggled under her covers.
Mando Translations
vod'e - brothers