A long time ago in a galaxy far,
far away...
The galaxy is at war. The Republic's grip on the galaxy is dwindling. The Confederacy has pushed the Republic back north of the Deep Core. The Empire has conquered the galaxy's eastern systems. Coruscant has driven out all factions and claimed independence. All three sides now butting heads over territory.
The Jedi and the Sith have fallen into myths and legends, the force a dead religion. A single temple in the secluded Deep Core plant Tython is all that remains of the Jedi.
The day of harsh training has come once again, led by Jedi Master Kilbaine. This training may prepare the young Jedi for the roles they are destined to take to bring peace to the galaxy once more...
The morning brought a wind with a soft whistle through the trees and over the plains, in which the grass danced and the branches swayed. The sunrise extended beams of light that passed through the gaps of the leaves and branches. The sky was that of a light blue, with bits of white here and there. The avian life chirped while the mammals grunted and bellowed. The amphibians peeped and the insects chattered and buzzed along the following creaks. All coming together in the harmony of nature. This harmony would soon be broken by the loud and alien chirping coming from the Jedi Temple common rooms. Specifically, coming from the room of Karkun Kilbaine and his apprentice Atsa.
It was as if Master Kilbaine has been expecting this, for just after the Knights and Padawan finished yelling at the young lizard, Master Kilbaine was yelling throughout the halls.
"Everyone up! I want you all at the Temple Entrance! It's that time again!"
This was not only for the Knights and the Padawan. No, this was for Master and Vanguard alike. Only certain members of the council are exempt from this, which includes Kotsa, Votar, Jerosi, and Fe. No one knows why the others are required to attend, including the council members themselves. Master Zathris in particular has pondered this on many occasions. Votar, however, actually helps Master Kilbaine run the training regimen, and has a knack for making exercises look easy for an old master.
Koda, an honorary guest in the home of the Jedi, was offered a chance to join the workout. He was told it was his choice, and that they'd love to have him.
Master Kilbaine leads all of the Jedi to the forest, where the trees tower over head. Everyone seems to look up, admiring the height of the great trees. While the admiration is being performed, a few drops start to land on the heads of the up lookers. The drizzle turns to standard rain, and then a torrential downpour. This causes the ground to quickly become deep mud, and the amount of water coming down was in a very high quantity even with the trees sheltering from above.
"Perfect conditions for our workout!" Master Kilbaine exclaimed for all to hear.
For hours the exercises would continue, having both Jedi and Vanguards trudge through the mud, climbing the trees, and performing Olympic level conditioning and strength training. Team work skills are performed, taking a team to events such as chopping down a dead tree or performing running relays through the mud. This would last for 6 hours, with Master Kilbaine barely breaking a sweat.
After a final tug of war competition(in which a giant log was used), the outdoors workout was finished, and everyone was to clean themselves up and then head to the training rooms of the temple.
At the lobby of the training facility, Jedi are paired with jedi and Vanguards with Vanguards. Non-lethal weaponry is handed out to all, training grade sabers to Jedi and low power blasters(which would cause only a very minor burn on contact) and dulled blades to the Vanguards.
The rules are simple: No biting, clawing, spitting, breaking of limbs, over aggressive acts, or any form of lethal damage. Each time an opponent hits the other with what would be a lethal or disabling strike(Lightsaber hit, Sword hit, Blaster fire), the attacker gains a point. Once three points are reached, the one who acquired the three are proclaimed the winner, and the sparring ends.
The first batch of matches are announced, four matches for the four sparring rooms. The announcements echo throughout the hallways, and overcome the noise of the lobby's occupants. The first sets of matches go by, with Knights against Knights, Padawan against Padawan, and Vanguard against Vanguard. After around 10 sets of matches, the announcements come on once again.
"Kelios Shar-da and Maruc Revan at room 1. Katori Atsa and Adeline Sha at room 2.Jehaa Starcross and Valik Jitauri at room 3. Jackle Staki and Tuuk Braz at room 4. Master Kilbaine brings Koda to the observation deck of room 2. Upon sitting down, he turns his head to Koda.
"Sir Koda'rai, if you wish to participate in a friendly sparring match, I'm sure we could find you a worthy opponent". He turns his head to the middle of the sparring room. "Don't worry though, you have time to think about it. For now, I must be sure our Temple can defend itself if ever necessary".
The combatants are given their weapons, and the doors to the rooms open. Combatants are instructed to face each other at the far ends of the room.. Once the pairs are in the room, the doors shut tight, and observation may only be made from the observation decks, which hangs down from the ceiling of each of the sparring rooms.
When the two combatants are ready, a bell is rung, and the fight begins.
The chirping. The loud and seemingly unending chirping was what Karkun awoke to. This wasn't out of the ordinary, but it never seemed to become any less annoying. Karkun just shoves his head into his pillow and does his best to ignore it until it stops. After that, he'd be able to go back to sleep, right? His thoughts were interrupted by the yell of his father, instructing everyone to go to the Temple entrance. With a snarled expression and crust still in his eyes, he grabs Atsa and heads to the entrance.
After six hours in the hell that his father called "training", everyone was to go clean up and head to the training facility. As such, Karkun heads to his room and cleans off in the refresher room. Upon finishing his grooming, he heads down to the training facility, as instructed.
"Kelios Shar-da and Maruc Revan at room 1. Katori Atsa and Adeline Sha at room 2.Jehaa Starcross and Valik Jitauri at room 3. Jackle Staki and Tuuk Braz at room 4. Karkun, with cuts and bruises on his face and hands from the earlier training regimen, turns his head to his shoulder, where his apprentice had claimed as his personal throne .
"Alright Atsa, remember what I taught you. Don't let her out maneuver you, that's your biggest advantage here. I'll be watching from the observation deck".
He then guides Atsa off his shoulder and gently pushes him towards the room before turning to head towards the observation room. Just before he heads up the stairs, he turns back to his apprentice.
"Remember Atsa, no one will get hurt. It's to make sure we can keep ourselves from getting hurt in a real situation".
And with that, the Knight heads up the stairs to observe his apprentice.