Chapter 33 – Master and Student (2)

Layan wasn't working only on his force skills but also on the cloaking devices, but as he never saw one himself, he had slight problems. He based his prototypes on the same design as a shield generator and tried to affect the light spectrum to create an invisible field.

It took several months before he succeeded, but it was far to be perfect. First, the power consumption was huge and was invisible but not undetectable. The cloaking devices he heard off weren't just hiding something but also making it undetectable, whereas his creation couldn't and everything hiding under could be detected with all types of sensors, heat, sonic and all the others.

"Huh."

"Again."

Lyn was crouched down, coughing after Layan kicked her in the sternum while practicing form III Soresu. During the past six months she did astonishing progress, be it in force skills or lightsaber combat.

Her progress wasn't without hardships, as she had to be beaten black and blue by her master again and again. He wasn't wrong, she became particularly skilled with healing abilities.

With a backflip, she was back standing and ready to counter his assaults. The two were confronting each other in the training room of the Phoenix as a heavy rain was falling outside.

Lyn progresses were impressive, and Layan didn't bother to teach her any values he holds dear or learnt by himself. He would keep this for the moment when the training about the dark side will begin when this year of training will end.

On her side, she wished her master could learn the meaning of taking a break. Her training was intensive, she was fighting him, enduring his attacks and was thrown to the ground every day. He was showing no mercy during her fight and didn't hesitate to hit her like a sandbag.

When she proved to be talented in healing, he told her to cherish this gift as only a few where linked to the living force strongly enough to be called healers, apparently even grandmaster Yoda wasn't, most Jedis were only able to heal bruises.

Her only breaks where when she was studying at the newly restored library or training with the Muntuur stones which were retrieved from the barren land previously known as the Gardens of T'alla.

"What is the bet today master? What do I win if I touch you?"

It was something she proposed him to spice things up, but she rarely won. Her best chance was form 7, as apparently, even her master didn't learn it and had to take lessons from master Ood. Form 7 was restricted among Jedis and only a few learned it, even Obi-Wan Kenobi and other famous Jedis didn't learnt it.

"Touch me first. Then we'll talk."

During lightsaber training, it was one of the rare moments she considered her master as normal as the rest of the day; he was either in a dark mood or thinking to something. Tomorrow, he would leave for a volcanic world called Mustafar to recover an old droid schematic, and these little excursions will multiply in a near future as Master Ood gave him several locations to visit where he may find old knowledge aging back to around 4,000 years ago.

"Master, do you ever had a lover or will you build one, because you spend more time with your droids than me."

"Tch. When I talk about psychosocially destabilizing your opponent, I'm not talking about childish pranks. You have to hit where it hurt; it would be barely passable as a Dun Möch use."

It was something he taught her to use when confronting a stronger opponent, and she had to admit that taunting her opponents was enjoyable, against Ood's and Vima's apprentice, it works well but he, on the other hand never bat an eyelid.

"It was a true question though."

She smirked while saying, and for the first time she saw him with a smile, but this smile gave her goosebumps, with reasons. As he instantly used his favorite form, form 5, whereas until now was only using form 4 Ataru.

At once, she had to withstand less blow, but these blows became more and more powerful and she had a hard time to keep her defense steady. Form III was made for defense, the goal was to endure and wait for the opponent to tire and commit mistakes. This form was based on the economy of movements and keeping up your momentum.

"What was your question again?"

He was smirking while she endured his assaults, a bit tired as this training lasted since hours, she jumps backward and change for the Niman, the sixth form. It was her favorite and more comfortable style with Makashi.

Her counter-attack was short lived as he used the stones laying on the ground, reducing them to pieces before using ballistakinesis, thus throwing at her pieces of rock at high speed. Taken aback, she had to erect rapidly a force shield to block it.

It worked but not long enough, so she re-switched to form III and blocked the last pieces of stones.

"Good, you start to understand. You're impatient, we have something in common."

He smirked and said in a tone of nostalgia.

"How that?"

The times when he was talking about himself were rare, so she deactivated her lightsaber and tried to know more.

"I can't count the number of times my master reprimanded me about my impatience. She was always smiling while saying that and each time the training resumed but she had that creepy smile while beating me up black and blue. Good old time"

Maybe it was a misconception of her part, but the more time they spent together, the more she found him to open to her and he became less grumpy.

"Can I come on Mustafar tomorrow? We didn't leave Ossus in six months. I start to feel bored."

"No, you will take a break. It's been six months, and I realized you didn't even have a day off since then. Enjoy it, and I'll try to give a bit of time to let you blow off some steam from time to time or you will become weary."

Layan didn't pay attention about it before now. While he was training with Shaak Ti, he was enjoying himself and never asked for a break, but he had to take into account Lyn's younger age and the training regime was harsher as he wanted her to be combat-ready for the beginning of the Clone Wars.

"You're sure you're okay, master. You're strange."

The young girl was looking at her master that was acting unlike himself.

"What? I am such a monster that giving you a day off is suspicious?"

This little girl really has a gift to upset him, she was like his master, always pointing his defaults with humor which never miss hitting his ego.

"Not my fault, if you're a stingy spartan instructor. I thought you were sick. I was worried for your health as a good apprentice should be."

She was making a sweet smile and had an innocent expression, this contrast almost made Layan puke.

"The shamelessness. Is it due to your training in Dun Möch, or is it innate? Because I never remarked it before."

"Shamelessness? What are you talking about?"

"Okay, the last six months of training paid off, you're definitely stronger than me at trash talk. If you ever face Dooku, he will have serious problems fighting you."

Seems like the little girl starts to be more comfortable around him, but Layan didn't know if it was good or bad.

"Who?"

"Oops, we'll talk once you will have passed your trials."

"Master, you're so annoying!"

Each time she was interested in something he was repeating this phrase, she heard it an incalculable number of times ever since the beginning of her training with him.

"Now let's see how you breach the defense of a master of Soresu. Load Obi-Wan Kenobi fighting profile."

The droid standing by the wall took the appearance of a man in his thirty with auburn hair and wearing simple clothes. Over it, he was wearing armored protections on his limbs and a white breastplate. There were no decorations except the Jedi order logo painted over the shoulder pieces.

Lyn knew this name, when he taught her about the qualities a Jedi should have, he was often taking about this man, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and when he talks about the others, it was often with despise in his voice.

She fights this droid again and again every day, often being the same masters for each style as few were those mastering several fighting styles, even her master was preferring form 5 over the others.

Taking a deep breath, she put the blade at her lower side and started to take the opening stance of Makashi. It was a form created to fight in lightsaber duels and permit economizing energy, and the precision of this style made it ideal to pierce heavy defenses.

Watching his student fighting against the droid, Layan was pretty enthusiastic, she was showing potential in her studies and wasn't hot headed as she was always preparing strategies before engaging the combat.