Morning Blades (Open)

[Ashaiya]

There was a lot of movement this morning on the moon of Ruusan, the sounds of a lightsaber roaring through the quietness of the place. It might of sounded as though a battle was taking place but in truth, it was simply one young Dark Jedi, somersaulting and flipping through the air, her blade little more than a purple coloured blur. Every movement led in to the next and there was nothing but confidence in the body and mind of the blue haired girl as she catapulted around the clearing.

Ashaiya had spent an hour or so already practising her blade work, a frenzied period where she had barely stood still. It was common place though for her, Ataru was such an acrobatic Form and by now, she could maintain the speed necessary for quite some time. Her previous spar with Nadgkema had removed whatever rustiness she might of had and she was performing at her best one more. She felt at one with the Dark Side and herself and was in a great place mentally and physically.

Gracefully, Ashaiya or "Tempest" as she was now known as among the Dark Jedi, landed softly on the ground, taking a moments break before continuing her session.

[Daniel Aldan]

"I see my lessons have not faded." These words came from behind Ashaiya. It had been some time since Daniel had seen his former student, not since her acceptance into the Penumbra. He was glad that she had found a path among them, and truthfully he had hoped that she would when he left, giving her the message of his departure for the Sith Council.

"How have you found Ruusan?" He asked.

[Ashaiya]

"Your lessons have saved my life more times than I can count," Ashaiya replied with a smile, turning around to face Daniel. Her time on Ruusan had flown by and for the most part, the blue haired Acolyte already felt more at home then she had after two years on Munto Codru. The atmosphere was so different, despite the fact that both factions used the Dark Side of the Force.

"It has been an eye opening experience for me and I wish I had been brought here sooner," she replied, chuckling. "I feel more alive than I ever did as a Sith."

[Daniel Aldan]

"I am glad, both that my teachings have saved you and that you have found your way here. I must confess that when I asked you to take my message to the Council, I was hoping that in some way it might sway you to one day join me. " Daniel stated.

It had been so long since he had seen his former combat student, not counting when he interviewed her for her acceptance into the Penumbra. "How do your current lessons go?" He asked, wondering what strides she had made while on Ruusan.

[Ashaiya]

"Your message helped to pull me away from the delusions of the Sith and to think for myself again. By the time I stood in the chamber to deliver it, I practically knew it word for word. It set things in motion for what was to come and I became far more cynical of the Empire after that. It set things in motion." Ashaiya paused and then added, "Thank you for helping me see the truth."

She smiled at the point, before answering his question, "I have finished my lessons with Jacob for the time being and have been taught the Penumbra philosophy. It is refreshing to hear of a way which is neither Jedi nor Sith but somewhere in between, I have taken to it quite well."

[Daniel Aldan]

"I am glad to hear it." Daniel replied. Then he spoke again. "I wonder, if you wouldn't indulge me in a little spar? I would love to see how you have grown as a duelist." He stated. He hoped that his former student would agree. It had been a long time since they had trained together back on Munto Codru, and now, training again, with both of them members of the Penumbra, it would seem as if things had really come full circle.

[Ashaiya]

"I would be happy to cross blades with you once again," Ashaiya replied with a nod of the head. It had been some time time since they had met on a training ground although it did not feel the same way now as it had then. They were colleagues rather than a master and student and that altered things quite a bit in her mind.

She then took a step back and moved in to the opening Ataru stance and instantly started to open herself up to the Force. She allowed it to flow through her body and legs, energising her muscles. Ashaiya was in complete control though, having found the balance she had sorely needed when she had joined the Dark Jedi. The Acolyte felt comfortable with herself and her gifts, something that she had only felt for brief moments as a Sith.

[Daniel Aldan]

"Excellent. I am honored." From his dark leather belt, the curved golden hilt of Aurum was removed. He adopted the stance of his mastered form, Makashi. Blade pointed down, body angled toward the opponent to present the smallest target, feel shoulder with apart. He brought his lightsaber to life, allowing it's gold blade to burst forth with the familiar snap-hiss. Then, with his free right hand, he gestured to his former student, urging her to make the first strike.

[Ashaiya]

Not waiting a moment longer, Ashaiya quickly advanced, aiming to take the advantage from the start. Her speed was amplified due to the Force energy flowing through her. The blue haired woman had to admit that she felt almost nostalgic fighting him once again, it brought back memories from a time where she was not as self assured. Not a time she was eager to relive but her thoughts could not help but dwell on them. It seemed like an age ago when it had only been a year or two.

She leaped in to the air and attacked from above to increase the power behind her blow. Her attack was a vertical slash towards his shoulders. Ashaiya did not leap over him though, remembering her lessons with him.

[Daniel Aldan]

It had been a long time since he had first trained Ashaiya in the art of the lightsaber, and she had only improved since then. Her strike was quick and attempted to take the momentum of the fight as soon as it began. But, as he knew, her leaping and jumping, while characteristic of Ataru, also would only serve to tire her out. He took one single backstep to give him more space to counter her attack. Economical, swift movement. Such were the backbones of Makashi. Raising his curved hilt, he caught her purple blade with his own golden one, sending sparks flying around the two combatants.

Pushing her blade away, he struck twice in lightning fast repetition. He stabbed at her torso and then quickly cut downward to the right, hoping to slash her left leg and deprive her of a solid base on which to fight.

[Ashaiya]

Sensing rather than seeing his strike, Ashaiya used the momentum of her saber being pushed away to spin around completely and bat away his stab, forcefully sending his attack away from her. Continuing with the spin, she came around a second time to barely get her blade in between his blade and her leg. Momentum was key and the blue haired Acolyte knew that all too well. Makashi was effective against her Form but that did not mean Ataru was weak, she just needed to combine it with her other abilities.

Once she had blocked his strikes, Ashaiya jumped back in to the air and began to unleash a flurry of short strikes, directed at the top half of his body, a Saber Swarm.

[Daniel Aldan]

Daniel countered fierce aggression with calm precision, deflecting each slash and strike with the minimum energy required. When the last strike came he leapt forward, pushing her blade down and to the side and stepping even closer. Holding her blade in it's current low position he brought his right hand forward, throwing a swift uppercut toward the Acolyte's jaw. It was a move that was very uncharacteristic of Makashi, but one he used quite often, and had used to surprise many an opponent before. Hopefully, it would work to catch Ashaiya off guard as well.

[Ashaiya]

The sudden change in aggression was unexpected but Ashaiya did not panic, relying on her own experiences in battle. She could not get her blade in the way of the punch so she relied on her Force abilities instead, just barely summoning a Shield to protect her rather glass jaw before his fist made contact with it. Fist met barrier with a loud thump but it did its job, shattering afterwards. She could not take too many blows of that nature, Ashaiya knew that all too well. The Acolyte then took one hand from her saber and unleashed a blast of air from close range, putting in as much power behind it as she could.

[Daniel Aldan]

Ashaiya was as clever as always in thwarting his blow, and the corners of his mouth twitched upward in a small grin. Daniel was proud that she had learned so well from his lessons, and from her own fights, and glad that she was with him on Ruusan now.

The blast of air pushed Daniel backward, but he did not fall. Instead he rapidly retreated, gracefully moving his feet to avoid stumbling. Then he advanced again upon his central line, and just before he reached the Acolyte, he Pulled downward on her lightsaber hilt. He hoped to force her weapon downward and stop her from blocking his next strike; a swift stab at her midsection.

[Ashaiya]

This was not the type of duel that Ashaiya had expected but she had no issue with unorthodox combat. She moved to counter his stab, only to find her lightsaber forced down by the Templar's Pull. Again, it forced her to think on the fly which was she found quite enjoyable. She could not dodge the stab so she had to evade it instead and leaped vertically. However, she was just a little too slow and she gasped as his blade went through her coat and made contact with her mid section, causing a shallow stab wound.

She could of dulled the pain but her Ataru was taxing enough without her having to use even more energy to do it. So, she would just grit her teeth and bare it. As she came down again from above, Ashaiya summoned a Shield in order to try and ram the Templar. Yet, there was something slightly different about her Shield as it began to crackle with static electricity.