Ahsoka, chapter 15: Game – part 1
After Professor Huyang's check and consent to leave the bed at last and taking a decent shower, Sabine's first aim was the weapons locker in the common room for arming herself again. As she took out her second blaster pistol she had left there in favor of the vibro knife before, Huyang came out of the workshop to present her the battery of the second pistol in its metal hand.
"I'm afraid that the blaster battery is the only usable part left." The professor stated. "The rest is only good for smelting once we get back on a decent planet with suitable facilities."
Sabine reached out a hand for it. "I'm taking my second blaster pistol that I kept in the weapons locker, but the extra charge can't hurt. Speaking of weapons, do you have any idea where the second lightsaber on my belt could be now?"
"I took it," Huyang confessed, which did not surprise Sabine due to the droid's programmed main tasks. She had no use for an extra lightsaber besides Ezra's. So be it, she thought and nodded shortly in affirmation.
As Sabine looked up again from packing away the charged battery just given to her into her belt bag, her eyes fell on the four thermal detonators stored safely in separated lined cases within the locker. As she contemplated to take one out, her thoughts were interrupted by the appearance of Jacen and her master coming from outside through the air lock.
"Good morning, Aunt Sabine," Jacen said to her with a broad grin.
"Good morning." Ahsoka followed behind Jacen and added: "How are you feeling?" Her master seemed to be relieved.
"Well, so far," Sabine answered.
Her master reacted with a nod, while Huyang stated: "Welcome on board again." Sabine was not so sure who the droid meant, Ashoka or Jacen, or both.
Then Ahsoka cast a questioning look to the professor. "Anything I should know concerning Sabine's health check?"
"Everything's at a green level. I may advise not to over-exert at the start, Padawan Wren."
Sabine looked at Huyang. "Thank you," but the droid missed the ironic undertone in her voice.
"Fine," Ahsoka said to Sabine and then looked at Jacen. "I'd like the two of you to take a short walk with me", and turned around without further explanation to activate the air lock again.
"What?" Sabine reacted, "Aren't we leaving this planet?"
Ahsoka stopped within the door of the air lock to turn around once more. "It won't take long." A slight twist of her chin towards the open door indicated no further objections.
Once they all were outside, Ahsoka closed the door of the shuttle and said in a low voice, nearly whispering: "I won't let you leave this planet unprepared," and started to set off.
Sabine raised an eyebrow and shouted "Where are we heading?" after her.
Ahsoka stopped and turned again. "To the place I discovered on my early morning walk before breakfast." She said calmly and exchanged looks with her apprentice. "This way, please," her open palm, partly covered by a grey handwarmer, directed forward and slightly sidewards.
Ahsoka lead them to a part where the underground grew thicker and suddenly opened to a comfortable animal trail they could follow uphill gradually. Jacen was the one who really relaxed and ran ahead of the two women. Though he made sure to stay in their line of view by looking back to them from time to time or halting at a blind curve.
Ahsoka used the opportunity to be relatively alone with Sabine to inform her about the missing corpse and cape in a lowered voice.
"That doesn't come as a surprise," Sabine's remark was equally muffled. "Which reaffirms my opinion to leave this planet as soon as possible. How long …?"
"Wow!" they heard Jacen before them. "That's nice."
Ahsoka walked faster to catch up with the boy, casting a "I knew it."-look to her apprentice as she passed her.
What Sabine saw on arrival was a creek meandering over clean-washed rock and downriver towards the sea. It sped up after a waterfall of a ledge as tall as a grown tree beside them.
"What's this all about?" Sabine grumbled to herself. Jacen beckoned eagerly to come over. Not filled with much enthusiasm, she climbed over a small boulder to join the boy and her master. Together they made their way alongside the shore of the stream to the end of the waterfall below, where the water accumulated into a small and peaceful lake.
"Those fishes over there are slippery to catch and called finger-lipped garpon due to their longer, outstanding underlip," Ahsoka explained to them. "Until this morning, I had only known them as natives of Corellia. I was surprised to find them here. They are delicious cooked with spices."
They could watch the movements of a small shoal through the clear water of the lake.
"Don't mind now, we are going to start with a warming-up." Ahsoka continued and beckoned to a grassy clearing behind a fine, sandy line of the riverbank a couple of steps downstream.
After arriving at the clearing, Ahsoka asked them to take off their shoes. Both students' faces showed puzzlement, but they did as ordered without comment. Jacen giggled while he stepped onto the damp grass barefooted. Without further announcement, the Mandalorian woman and the teenage boy began to crisscross the clearing with smiles on their faces, while Ahsoka searched the wooden perimeter for a broken branch or dead wood. Ahsoka had to step a bit further into the undergrowth and with a quick jerk she held in her hand what she was looking for and returned. "Could I borrow your vibro knife for a moment, Sabine?"
Sabine stood and watched Jacen, how he walked slowly and caressed the tips of grass with his palm. Sabine looked curiously at the stick in Ahsoka's hand. "Sure, of course," and reached for her belt.
Ahsoka used the vibro knife given to her for cutting off dead and broken-off twigs at the perimeter again, just letting them fall down to return to the cycle of nature.
"Show him the basics of Shii-Cho, please," Ahsoka asked Sabine as she confronted Jacen with the result in her hand to be taken by him.
"What, me?" Sabine replied by looking into the blue eyes of her master.
"Yes, you." Ahsoka insisted, facing her while returning the vibro knife.
"Well …", Sabine stretched the word to have the time to put back her knife and to react towards the boy. "Are you ready?"
Jacen nodded eagerly and weighted the training stick in his hands beside Sabine now.
Sabine stepped a few steps backward before she grabbed Ezra's lightsaber and ignited it before her. "The best way for starters to hold your weapon is with both hands, with the main hand you use at the top of the hilt and the other one below for support and security. Look that according to your main hand, the respective foot is standing in front like starting a small step, but at the same time both feet are firmly on the ground and slightly bent knees for a firm standing, too. Try it yourself with the stick held diagonally a bit."
Jacen did as he was told and Sabine nodded.
"At first, we're going to train the blocking blows which are important to protect all parts of your body, hopefully." Sabine continued and returned to her former training position. "For quicker usage and understanding while in training, those body parts have numbers. One is the head" and she held her blade up and a bit before her head to have room for counter pressure, "two is your right arm to protect" and with a half-turn of her wrists and arms the blade changed position to the side with the hilt in an upper angle.
"Three is the same at the other side of your shoulder", Sabine demonstrated it, "you tilt your hilt down for FOUR" her arms went down, the end of her hilt pointed upwards, " to protect your right leg and FIVE to block blows to your left leg accordingly", which she performed slowly, too. "I'm going to show it again slowly, than with a bit more speed", and so she did, counting aloud the numbers: "One – Two – Three – Four – Five. Now faster. One. Two. Three. Four. Five."
Sabine lowered Ezra's weapon and stepped her right foot back beside the left one. Only then she remembered being observed and cast a checking glance to her master, who nodded in approval.
Sabine repeated the movements slowly in order at the beginning. Jacen mirrored them for a while. During their practice, Ahsoka observed them from a secure distance. The Togruta woman was sitting cross-legged on a dry spot under a tree at the perimeter and did neither comment verbally nor by gestures and facial expression. Sabine hoped that she could prove her full recovery and back-to-normal condition to Ahsoka for their journey to continue soon.
Sabine deactivated the green lightsaber. "It's time to proceed, I guess," Sabine said to Jacen without checking Ahsoka. "Take a short break until we continue. I advise you to drink some water without falling into the stream."
"Haha ...," he answered, "… very funny." But he moved towards the water nonetheless, parting the grass with the stick softly swinging before him. He hummed.
Sabine put the weapon onto her belt again and cast a glance to Ahsoka. Her master sat there with her arms and hands relaxed in her lap, closed eyes and an even breathing. Sabine did not want to disturb her and went on to come by finding and producing herself a training stick like Jacen's. She had realized that Jacen's main hand was also the right one, like herself. After being introduced to the basics, Sabine reminded herself, it could be useful to let Jacen gain experience in how different the feeling was to confront a left-handed opponent, she thought as she returned.
Afterwards, Sabine had continued that Jacen applied the new learned movements to Sabine's hits, being his opponent. Now they trained in slow-motion, without much of a drive in their swings and still in the counting order of the numbers for him to customize. Pearls of sweat had appeared on the boy's forehead. From time to time, Jacen's groans indicated to Sabine that the training exerted certain muscles not often used by Jacen before.
- X – X – X – X – X -
Ahsoka relaxed. While meditating, she felt the rich nature of her surroundings with the lake and the stream as nurturing centers nearby. Sabine's instructions, Jacen's heavy breathing, the sounds of nature as well as the clonk-sound of the meeting of the training sticks only reached Ahsoka's perception like they were muffled and were far away, not only a few steps.
She concentrated to control her breaths and in doing so, another familiar voice spoke very clearly in her mind: "How do you feel, Ahsoka?" At first, Ahsoka stopped to breath in surprise for a second, but calmed again and exhaled.
"How's your leg?" Anakin sounded concerned for his former Padawan.
"No worries, master," Ahsoka answered in her thoughts, "it's a light wound which is in its final stage of healing process.
"That's good hearing," he replied. Anakin's voice already died away and trailed off.
A few breaths later, Ahsoka opened her eyes and slowly stood up to join the other two, a slight smile on her face. Jacen showed several signs of exhaustion, but Sabine was rather the opposite in fact and she seemed to enjoy herself without putting in much effort. That observation eased Ahsoka's mind.
- X – X – X – X – X -
A/N: Thanks for reading. Life has been really busy for me lately, so I apologize for updates coming irregularly. Depending on circumstances, my condition or mood, those updates will change between the story translation of my Star Wars-and-Planetbase crossover and creative continuation of writing this story. I hope for your understanding. I would appreciate your feedback, too. Until the next reading, have a good time!