Tatooine: First training.
"Catch," the man in the cracked glass mask tossed her a small steel object.
The blue-skinned beauty effortlessly caught the item and felt a slight surge of power as it nestled in her hand. This strange-looking contraption, assembled as if on a whim, felt like it had become a part of her hand, as if it had always been there. For her, the lightsaber was like a trusted ally and friend, one that would never betray her. Siths might betray, but a lightsaber crafted by her own hands would never fail her. No other weapon could ever replace a lightsaber, so at this very moment, she was ready to toss her blaster into the Sarlacc's pit!
The deactivated hilt intoxicated the woman. She had refrained from touching the Dark Side of the Force for many days, and now her teacher had returned her lightsaber, infused with the emanations of the Dark Side. The power was bewildering, the Force was inflaming her wounded ego to action, but only the fear of the man in front of her held Tann in check. However, how long could she resist the pull of the Dark Side? Like a drug addict who had finally gotten their hands on their coveted dose, she could fall at any moment!
Without a word, the mentor moved towards the apprentice who clung tightly to the deactivated lightsaber in her hands. Even through the gloves, she could feel the cold metal of the most powerful weapon in the galaxy. With a single finger movement, a single wish, Sev'rance could turn the starry night into a bright yellow light that would illuminate the surroundings. The emanations of the Dark Side were quickly absorbed into the addict's body...
"Ugh..." the beauty received an unexpected and resounding slap.
She stared in surprise at Hassan, who had approached her, seeing herself in his mask for a moment. However, a moment later, her feminine face contorted in anger, fueled by the Energy of the Lightsaber, and in the next second, she received another, even harder slap with the back of his hand. Her thoughts scattered into the void along with her dark-blue hair, which fell straight onto her face. Now, angry red eyes peered at the masked man through them, and sparks flew from her yet again after another refreshing slap.
Her head felt empty after the second slap, but the female heart gave way by a third. The rage still burned brightly within her, casting a shadow of fear. Sev'rance wasn't in a hurry to turn towards Hassan now. Her thoughts were just beginning to regain some order, while her chest was literally torn apart by conflicting emotions. Fear held the subordinate in check, while anger and resentment pushed her towards action.
"Look at me," the Sith said in a menacing male voice. "I said, look at me."
Fear outweighed anger. Even the residual emanations of the Dark Side emanating from the hilt couldn't ignite the flame of disobedience to drive away the fear. She looked at her teacher, ashamed, like a little child, to receive another humiliating slap. Oh yes, it was truly humiliating, especially considering her merits and combat skills. But what could she do? Fear, bordering on terror, chained her body that was already stiff. Hassan overwhelmed the apprentice and completely destroyed the Dark Side emanations that had penetrated her soul.
"Look at me," Darth demanded. "Look at me!"
Sev'rance obediently complied. Her gaze momentarily caught on the reflection in the mask, where she saw a shattered image of herself, broken into several pieces, clearly imprinted on her empty mind. And then she received another harsh slap, keenly feeling the sharp bones of the male hand even through the glove. However, the pain on both cheeks was nothing compared to the blows that pierced her heart. Each slap drove a nail into her heart, from which a black fog slowly seeped out, known as the Dark Side.
"Look at me."
Sev'rance reluctantly turned to him, but kept her gaze lowered, expecting the next slap. Looking into his mask would only cause her more harm, so she dared not raise her eyes above his feet. Slaps might not be such a terrible punishment, considering that Hassan could easily break her again, but they inflicted a special kind of damage to the psyche of a proud person. A slap was an effective way to show who was in charge here.
"Look at me," his voice was tinged with authority.
Tann timidly raised her head. Her red eyes darted around, afraid to look at the cracked mask. At this rate, she would definitely bring even more trouble upon herself, so she gathered the remnants of her willpower and finally looked directly at her teacher, who seemed to be looming over her. His crystal-clear mask was accentuated by the closed cloak, making him look like a white-faced specter who had found no peace in the Force. And to some extent, that might be true. After all, even the Great and Terrible Count was not as skilled in the Force as Hassan.
"Ha-ah..." Sev'rance flinched involuntarily, hearing his heavy sigh. "How many times do I have to tell you to control yourself? Huh? How many?!" Tann instinctively trembled at the shout. "You are strong, but the path you followed with Dooku is over. The Dark Side is powerful, I don't dispute that, but for the power it can give you, you will pay too high a price. Your face," he touched her cheeks with his fingers, while the apprentice was paralyzed listening to his lecture, "will be spoiled and covered with wrinkles. Your mind," he lightly tapped her forehead with his index and middle fingers, "will dull and become insane. I'm not telling you to renounce the Dark Side and become a Jedi. I want to show you a completely different path to greatness. And this path takes much longer than training with the Sith and Jedi. First and foremost, you need to learn to control yourself and... be patient," her eyes widened when she heard the last words.
"I...," her voice was slightly hoarse. "I understand. Forgive my weakness, Master," the girl obediently knelt.
"I will forgive you only if you learn from this lesson," Hassan stepped back a couple of steps. "Why did I bring you here? To start full-fledged training," Sev'rance swallowed a lump in her throat, expectantly. "You may rise."
The apprentice stood up obediently, waiting for further instructions. How long she had been waiting for practical training! It had been less than a month since she became Hassan's apprentice, and now he had finally decided to conduct a training session. What would it be? Lessons in the Force? Or fencing? She had achieved greater success in the latter than in the former. Moreover, cut off from most of the power of the Dark Side, she was unlikely to show outstanding results in the Force right now.
"For advanced Force techniques, it's a bit too early for you, and you're already familiar with the basics like the 'Force Push,'" he said, pulling a black metal blade from under his cloak. "Let's start with fencing," the girl breathed a sigh of relief to herself. "I already have a rough idea of your fighting style, but it's better if you tell me about it yourself."
"I'm listening," she nodded her head. "Count Dooku taught me Makashi, the Second Form of lightsaber combat. It's specifically designed to counter an opponent with a lightsaber. Makashi is characterized by elegant but powerful strikes that require high precision in movements. Thanks..."
"Alright, I understand," Hassan interrupted her. "Makashi is undoubtedly good if Count Dooku uses it, but sooner or later, the Second Form will let him down. You can continue to use your familiar style, and I'll only teach you special techniques that will allow you to modify Makashi."
"May I ask a question?" she asked hesitantly.
"Of course," it seemed the teacher was surprised by her curiosity.
"Do you use the Jar'Kai style adapted to Ataru?"
"Why do you think that?"
"You use a lot of acrobatic moves along with strong lunges, and your dual-blade combat skills are impressive..."
To be honest, that's all she could say because of the peculiarities that didn't fit into the framework of these two styles. For example, the simultaneous attack with two blades in a lunge, while reminiscent of Jar'Kai, had something off about it, as if he had significantly altered the technique without the influence of Ataru. He used Ataru to leap over her and, of course, kick her in the face.
"If you think that way, why do you ask?" he waved his hand. "Speak your mind; you're my student, and this is a training session. I'll answer any of your questions."
"Thank you," Sev'rance replied. "When you leaped over me and broke through my defense with a swift attack..."
"Ah, you mean that," he nodded in understanding, taking out a second blade from under his cloak. "Let's repeat it, but this time I'll move more slowly."
"Alright," Tann said with concern, activating her lightsaber.
The yellow light sliced through the space, aided by the moons and stars in illuminating the surroundings. She needed to focus on her teacher, or else she risked missing the strike that would surely open up her abdomen – she had no doubt about it, despite her instructor's words. That's how Sith train. If you weren't diligent enough in practice, you received the well-deserved punishment of missing a strike, so that next time you would be wiser.
Hassan slowly bent forward, then rushed at the student. His current speed was nothing compared to what he had demonstrated in their first duel, so Sev'rance easily blocked the black blades. In the next moment, the teacher leaped up, bypassing the girl over her head, and at the same time, he hooked her head with his blades. The lightsaber once again blocked the sluggish attacks of the instructor... And when he landed on the other side before making the final leap at Tann, the teacher stepped to the right, shifting all his weight to his right leg. It turns out that his last jump was not in a straight line, but diagonally – that's why he succeeded in breaking through her defense last time!
It hadn't happened just now, but the steel that had struck the lightsaber still slightly deflected her hands. Oh, the Force, within a couple of seconds, Hassan had attacked her from three directions, not only confusing the apprentice but also not giving her a chance to plan a counterattack! And if you consider that the trajectory of his last leap was tangential, in other words, from all four sides!
"In the heat of battle, I didn't notice that you stepped to the side," Tann said, stepping out of her combat stance without deactivating her lightsaber.
"You need to make the step to the side and shift your weight instantly, but I'll teach you that principle next time. Now I'll show you a combination you need to learn. First," he hid the second blade under his cloak, "a stabbing lunge," after which he stepped back, pressing his hands holding the single blade to his chest. "You can transition into this stance after an opponent's failed attack or simply by stepping back to avoid it. Then you make a stabbing lunge," he stepped forward. "The length of the step depends on the distance to your opponent. The main thing is not to collapse after the lunge and not to break your stance. Then a circular attack around," he turned around, cutting through the air with the blade in one hand. "Notice that the circular attack is done with a one-handed grip and is just a transition to the third," and at the same time, raising his free hand forward for a "push," "the final attack, where you put your opponent on their back using the Force. Let's try it. Get into your stance."
"Teacher, but after the circular attack, you're left vulnerable," she astutely pointed out.
"Well, then try to counterattack."
To be honest, this combination didn't impress Sev'rance much, but it didn't make it any less effective. In essence, it was very easy to perform, except that at the end, you had to focus on the Force for the "push." But who was she to challenge the teachings of Darth himself? She stood in the classic Makashi stance while her teacher, standing opposite her, pressed the blade aimed precisely at her throat to his chest. After a couple of seconds, when Hassan was sure of the student's readiness, he instantly stepped forward, trying to pierce her chest with the blade. She parried the first attack, stepping aside, and then ducked down to avoid the circular attack, letting the steel blade pass over her head. At that moment, she thought that the teacher was vulnerable to a counter...
"Phkh..." However, before a thought could fully form in her mind, she sprawled on the ground from Hassan's titanic "push."
"I told you that the circular attack is a transition for the 'push,' didn't I?" he looked at the impression in the ground where his student had been. "Now you know why. With the first two attacks, you can break your opponent's defense to finish them off with a 'push.'"
"Ugh..." Sev'rance, trying to regain her senses, shook her head soberly. "I understand," she stoically got to her feet and quickly dusted herself off. It seemed like she needed to focus on speed after the second strike to prevent the enemy from counterattacking.
"Use this technique wisely. It works well against those who like to stay on the defensive. If the enemy prefers to dodge, then perform a circular attack at their legs to make them jump. In this case, you can put less force into the 'push.'"
"Okay, please let me try," Tann pressed her yellow lightsaber to her chest, copying the teacher's stance.
"With pleasure," Hassan beckoned her with his finger. "Let's repeat the combination a couple of hundred times."
Their training began.
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
The girl diligently extended her hand forward, sending another Force Wave at the teacher, from which only his cloak seemed to dissipate. After about the five hundredth repetition, her clothes were soaked through with sweat, and dirty strands of black hair persistently fell into her eyes. She brushed them aside again... Then she touched her stomach, feeling a strange discomfort there.
Maybe she was hungry? No. Heartburn? The unfamiliar feeling in her lower abdomen was nothing like a fire in her stomach. Then what was it? It felt as if there was some heaviness, as if Tann had swallowed a large stone whole, which was now making itself felt. Or maybe she was just overworked?... Most likely, it was indeed due to exhaustion.
"What's wrong?" Hassan asked, his mask beginning to glow as it welcomed the first rays of the sun.
"Nothing," the apprentice shook her head.
"Is your stomach hurting?" Before she could answer, he continued, "Well, we've worked hard today. Let's go back to the room and rest for a bit..." the speaker turned and headed towards the speeder bike. "Oh, by the way, your last 'push' was a bit stronger than the first one. You're making progress, my apprentice."
"Cough, cough," Tann cleared her throat, looking at her open palm.
Was it really true? Honestly, she hadn't noticed any difference. If anything, her last push should have been much weaker than the first due to accumulated fatigue, but if the teacher condescended to praise her, then she would humbly accept his words. In reality, Hassan wasn't lying. It was quite possible that the tiny boost in the Force was related to him feeding her mana potions.
"Do we have more training planned for today?" Tann sat on the speeder bike, gripping the handlebars tightly.
"No," the mentor replied as he sat behind her and embraced her around the waist, paying no attention to the dirt and the unpleasant smell. "Today, we'll start training Dooku's apprentice, Shaala Doneeta."
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