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The next day Micah and Yoda left for Coruscant aboard the newly arrived Consular class ship with two knights who had acted as crew on the ship that brought their three fellows to the Explorer. Master Saa took formal control of the Explorer, installing Lily and Fay as her seconds as the initiate's education ramped up to the next level.
Knights Ti and Toramund were given command of the student's physical exercises, though Knight Ti also joined in the classes on meditation and Occlumency. The ability to mold her mind into such an organized format came surprisingly easy to the Togrutan woman though the need to create a defensive layer against outside influences did not. The other knights did not join these new classes as quickly, leery at first and not quite as fast to see the utility of the new learning, but soon got their feet back under them.
None of the three newcomers however were brought in immediately to Harry and his ongoing lessons with his mother, as Yoda had ordered. Lily and, at her insistence, Fay would have final say in who would be allowed to learn about those lessons, and all of the children knew not to talk about them to the newcomers until given permission. Even better, by this point even the youngest initiate had learned how to keep his thoughts from being read without their knowing about it.
Knight Cale, a young bookish Muun began to teach the initiates math and science. Saa continued to teach the history classes, expanding them now to include more Republic history rather than simply the history of the Order. The last two knights joined together with Knight Brandon, who had remained aboard, to start the students on entirely new classes: astronavigation, computer skills and other things of that nature, which would be needed in time when they were older.
All told it was a massive amount of work on the little shoulders of the initiates, the equivalent of a middle school education plus a watered down version of a soldier's calisthenics classes and a monk's mental training on top of that. It was monstrously tough training, made to in part break the students and remold them into Jedi, while also weeding out those who lacked the drive, mental fortitude and basic intelligence to become Jedi. It also served to make certain the teachers knew of any students who might become bullies or worse later on.
Thanks to the meditation aspects and Lily's training with the students in Occlumency, the initiates here were able to handle it somewhat easier than most would have, but not so much they could slack off. Free time slowly disappeared as the teachers added more training, but the students responded with enthusiasm for the most part, and refused to be cowed in a way that brought faint smiles to the new teachers' faces.
The now repaired Explorer once again began to jump from system to system, stopping for longer periods of time only occasionally. If the ship needed new supplies the students would be allowed out on a trip to the planet's capital or, if the planet had such things, historical sites under supervision while at least one of the masters and two of the knights remained to personally resupply the ship. Occasionally local government representatives would wish to pay their respects, but Master Saa always went to them never allowing anyone who was not a Jedi onto the ship. The Bando Gora's ability to implant the virus via a brainwashed dock worker had nearly cost them the younglings' lives and would never be repeated.
But for all their training and their mental acumen, the kids were still kids, with all that entailed. Knowing this might have been one of the reasons why the council of First Knowledge was so set on shutting down the training vessels, but it certainly made for some interesting times…
OOOOOOO
Leaning close Harry had to yell into Alecto's ear to be heard over the roar of the crowd. "What the heck are those things?"
The things in question were four footed animals which Harry had first thought of as this planet's version of horses. That thought lasted right up until the creatures turned, and Harry could see their wide, fang filled maws. They were being ridden by the locals, a species of nonhuman aliens who had grayish skin, wide hands and heads that looked like those of a hammerhead shark. They were called the Veltoshi, and were almost as aggressive as their appearance suggested, but not at all expansionist according to Master Saa, because their rate of birth was extremely low in comparison to the galactic norm. She'd had to explain that quite a bit, but in the end the initiates understood.
"I think they are called Vecktri or something like that," Alecto replied, a smile on his face as they watched the race commence. The two boys joined in the cheering, neither of them noticing that Aayla and Zule had left them behind along with their minder, Knight Cale. The two girls had noticed something far more interesting than sweaty creatures and their even sweatier riders.
Lily, who had followed her son as she normally did, had noticed, but since Knight Ti was still within sight thought nothing of it. The Togrutan knight was at that very moment talking to young Wulo, who was looking mildly rebellious. Keeping one eye on her son Lily floated over and through the crowd, and Ti looked up with a faint smile, shaking her head as she whispered. "He wants to join the race, apparently such things among his people were everyday events."
"I don't doubt it," Lily said, reaching down to pat the Chironian's head gently between his velvety horns. "However, I doubt they let foreigners join in here, and besides, those animals look like they'd be able to bite you and keep on running, which you can't do Wulo. Maybe tonight we can come back and you can race along the route by yourself?"
"It's not the same," Wulo muttered, shaking his head. His people were very herd oriented, and he had begun to subconsciously miss a lot of the interaction the herd had which simply had no equivalent among the initiate clan. Physical exercises were fine and dandy, but the ship just didn't have anything like the rolling plains of his homeworld.
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