"Come in and sit down," a red-haired woman of the human race, dressed in light Jedi robes, said with a smile, beckoning the younglings into the classroom.
The Jedi Temple was incredibly huge: it contained many rooms where Jedi studied the Force, trained, held meetings, socialized, and so on. Enormous funds went into maintaining this place. A place built on a Force Nexus, which helped new Jedi better understand the Force. And indeed, from the moment I arrived at the Temple, the Force literally enveloped me, filling my body with extraordinary lightness. Immediately upon arrival, all the newcomers who would become younglings were subjected to a medical examination. First of all, they took blood tests for midi-chlorians to confirm Force potential, and did a comprehensive check for chronic diseases.
Medicine here had advanced far compared to what I had seen in the Milky Way. And this applied not only to bacta and kolto, which helped heal wounds quite quickly, but also to disease diagnosis. Only healthy individuals were accepted into the Jedi, and if someone arrived with obvious illnesses, they were immediately sent for treatment and then re-accepted. Although there were incredibly few sick ones in the intake I was in. The Gifted themselves were incredibly strong, health-wise, and rarely got sick. I myself, since I was born as Light Flyingstar, had never been sick at all. This was connected both to my connection with the Force and to the civilization on Tustra, one of the most developed in the Galaxy.
The children — some pushing, others, like me, avoiding unnecessary contact with their peers — sat down. The classroom was designed for about a hundred sentients, although thirty came to the lesson. In the intake that arrived with me, there were about a hundred sentients, and we were quickly divided into two groups. Of course, not everyone would become Jedi. Some would go to the Service Corps, some would drop out during training and return home (and such precedents existed). Fatalities during training did not occur. But even those who became Jedi might not live long and could die in some backwater.
By my rough estimates, considering deaths, falls to the dark side, expulsions, transfers to the Service Corps, or failure to meet training conditions, about ten to fifteen sentients from my intake would become Jedi in about twenty years. But for now, none of us had faced the problems of the outside world, beyond the Temple. For now, everyone, even partly myself, felt like a chosen one who would study the Force, assemble their own lightsaber, and become a keeper of peace and order in the Republic. Peace and order convenient for a handful of sentients in the Senate. However, even that didn't stop me yet. What was important to me at this point? Training... I had the illusion of choice, but no actual choice.
Either become a Jedi, or sooner or later a Sith would get to you... Or Siths. It didn't matter what you called them, in my opinion. The only thing that mattered was what they could do to me. Here, in the Jedi Temple, even Plagueis himself had no say.
"So," the woman drew attention, "my name is Shiala Donita. I am a Jedi Knight and your teacher. Today, as those who have become younglings, you will get acquainted with part of the history of the Republic and the Jedi, and study elements of our philosophy."
Teaching history and the Code to children? They wouldn't understand half of it. On the other hand, did they need to understand? What mattered was raising them.
"Over the course of a year, we will study the theoretical foundations. In parallel, Knight Roan Lancestfield will handle your physical training, and later swordsmanship, when you begin it. Throughout this year, you will be observed, and afterwards you will receive an offer to join a clan."
"A clan?" asked a Zabrak girl.
"Yes," Shiala nodded, "a clan. In the clan, you will also engage in self-development. Each of the clans has its own characteristics."
Yes, they had a clan system. Unlike the Sith, who had never had such a division, Jedi training had clans. Each clan was focused on a specific discipline.
"Then you will also begin to learn the culture and politics of different races, the basics of tactics and strategy, the Force, and swordsmanship. When you finish studying the required disciplines, you will be assigned to an individual mentor, becoming their Padawan. They will teach you everything they know and can do themselves. When you are deemed worthy, you will be granted the opportunity to undergo the Trials, after which you will become Jedi Knights."
As she continued her explanation, she infused her voice with the Force. As a result, almost everyone literally swooned and looked at Shiala with admiring eyes. An interesting technique — it wasn't hypnosis or mind control, but simply putting the Force into her voice. In other words, she just made everyone listen to her. Those who couldn't control the Force, even having a connection to it, immediately fell under this... charisma of hers. However, it had a lesser effect on me. After all, I did control the Force. It had an effect only because Shiala controlled it better than me. But even that was enough to attract her attention. Only for a moment, but I noticed how she held a thoughtful gaze of her green eyes on me.
The rest of her lesson resembled Yoda's speeches. The Republic... The Jedi... The Light Side of the Force. As someone who knew the canon more or less, I allowed myself to relax and listened with half an ear. And some of our group were even taking notes on the datapad that everyone was given. But I knew perfectly well that all the lecture data could be downloaded from the Archives, to which our datapad was remotely connected. Which I did... And I decided to spend the introductory lesson on meditation, into which I immediately and gladly sank. Fortunately, the Force of the Temple seemed to call me to immerse myself in it and help. For sentients with my potential, the Force was like blood. Channeling the Force through myself, I felt lightness; fatigue and tension were relieved. The only thing I feared was visions.
The problem with Force visions was that they had a twisted logic. For example, Anakin saw Padmé's death, with Obi-Wan nearby. And he tried his best to avoid it, ultimately arriving at that result. Like those crazy Masters who killed their Padawans — the main character of those comics was Zayne Carrick. He was a so-so hero; he was weak with a lightsaber, and his Force worked on the principle of awkwardness-luck. But it was realistic... In any case, visions were a real problem. I was wary of them and feared them like fire, because you never knew for sure what to do. Act? Or trust the Force? Again, I wouldn't recommend the latter either. That's exactly how Qui-Gon died. He trusted the Force above all else, and that's right when the Force wants you to win. But then his Force led him onto a lightsaber blade in the gut from Maul. I would rather start believing not in the Force, but in my own hands...
By the way, the nuance of meditation was that the Force seemed to sense passing thoughts and acted accordingly. Incidentally, right now I clearly felt attention directed at me. Was it Shiala? She was giving a lecture and at the same time unobtrusively focusing on me. If I couldn't sense Yoda, then she... She wasn't even hiding it. I opened my eyes and met the frowning gaze of the instructor. Shiala clearly didn't like that I was dozing off in her lesson while most were writing. I thought that if I sat in the back row, she wouldn't pay attention to me. After all, there were so many students around.
But no... The lesson lasted about another thirty minutes at most when she dismissed us. Interestingly, she seemed not to remember about me, although, most likely, they simply didn't force us to study here, apparently thinking that we were punishing ourselves this way. By the way, walking in the crowd of my group, following a senior youngling to the cafeteria, I noticed that some from my group had already become friends, at least with each other. What can I say... Children. I tried to keep my distance from everyone, at most greeting them. However, some were little bothered by this and still imposed themselves, asking questions like: how old are you, what's your name, where were you born.
In the cafeteria, we were seated and served a monotonous lunch of meat and a vegetable salad. The Temple, by the way, was completely self-sufficient, thanks to the AgriCorps, which grew vegetables, fruits, and animals for slaughter for meat. The Jedi were not always loved, and are not loved now, so it was better for them to grow their own food rather than have it supplied from other planets. By the way, the AgriCorps was also one of the main sources of income. A huge number of credits flowed into the Order's treasury from the development of crop varieties for different colonies across the Galaxy.
"And the second group looks pretty exhausted," said one of the boys sitting next to me.
"Of course," I remarked, looking at our... classmates. "While we had theory, they were doing physical training with Master Roan."
"You can talk?" one of my groupmates marveled.
"What?"
"Well, it's just, it seemed to me," the dark-haired boy smiled, "that you were silent all the time."
"Why would that be?" I asked, and mentally answered myself. I don't like talking to large numbers of people. "It's just that it's hard for all of us right now. I had a loving family before I came here."
"Is that so?" the boy asked. "You're lucky. But I didn't have a family, just a name my mother gave me, if I believe my... former master. Feemor."
"Feemor?" I repeated. Could this boy be... Yes, most likely. Qui-Gon's first Padawan, about whom almost nothing is known. At least, I had heard of him only in the context of knowledge about the second Padawan — Xanatos.
Qui-Gon had three Padawans and even hints of a fourth. The fourth could have been Anakin. As for the first three... The first was Feemor. Almost no one knows anything about him, but he seemed to be a calm guy and became a fairly average Knight. The second was Xanatos. Heir to an aristocratic ruling family, whose father faced a rebellion for cruel rule. Qui-Gon killed Xanatos's father during the rebellion, and Xanatos left the Jedi Order; afterwards, he had a confrontation with his former teacher, resulting in Xanatos himself joining his father. And the third, everyone's famous Padawan — the Chosen One's Slayer, Kenobi. It's pointless to recall his fate, as it's well known anyway.
"And will we become like that?" asked Feemor.
"Unlikely," I shook my head. "They won't send us straight to Knight Roan after lunch. Remember, someone from the second group was bragging that they had an hour break after breakfast? Probably the same will be for us."
"Indeed," one of the guys checked his datapad. "A whole hour of freedom! What shall we spend it on?"
Personally, I would dig around on the Archives website with youngling access; maybe I'd find something interesting. History almost didn't interest me. But the rest... maybe I could find some techniques. They were recorded not only in Holocrons or the memories of teachers. Technique descriptions were also in the Archives. And you could access it remotely from any computer in the Galaxy; everyone just had their own access level. An ordinary sentient could only browse through propaganda materials, history, and some other theoretical knowledge that was in the public domain. A youngling, theoretically, should have more privileges. Logically. Which is what I did, having wolfed down my lunch.
While the others were figuring out what to do with themselves, I returned to the room — a huge room where all the boys from our group lived — and, sitting on my bed, calmly opened the Archives website on the HoloNet. Yesterday I didn't have the opportunity to study it thoroughly; I only noticed that all of Knight Shiala's lectures were there and could be easily downloaded. Now I was interested in access to techniques... Which turned out to be just a section where the primary meditation guide was stored... "Is that all?" flashed through my mind. How disappointing...
Okay, since I have some free time, I need to use it for something other than ordinary meditation. What did I start doing? I just remembered Luke's training from the movie about feeling the Force, when he trained to deflect blaster bolts with a lightsaber. After blindfolding myself with a bandage and closing my eyes further, I connected with the Force and began to navigate around obstacles. What, in my opinion, are the advantages of this particular training, right here? The fact that the training hall always gives you plenty of room to maneuver and there's only one obstacle — a training droid with blasters. Its shots need to be deflected. Here, among the beds and belongings, even seeing everything, it's sometimes hard to walk. After all, the children just arrived and aren't used to discipline. So it was hard to orient myself. I stumbled, fell... The Force acted like a locator. Waves reflected off surfaces and told me about obstacles. For now, this sensory perception is quite weak, but when I can develop it, fighting in smoke or darkness will become a simple task for me. I'm acting according to my original doctrine — maximum survival for me. That's why I'm training in threat detection, though it's tough; I need to wait for training with the droid. I'm practicing navigating obstacles relying only on Force sensations, sensing others' presence. That's why I plan to focus on Soresu in the future.
* * *
"Interesting boy," Shiala remarked, sitting next to Roan in the observation room. The woman and man were the mentors for all the younglings in this intake. They were now watching the only boy who had returned to the room.
"The children aren't used to the daily routine," Roan muttered darkly, "and they've scattered around the Temple. At least we can keep an eye on them. But what is Master Yoda thinking? Without discipline from the start, they'll remain a bunch of disorganized garbage. And this one," the dark-haired man nodded toward Light Flyingstar, "alone, without a mentor, is reaching for Force techniques."
"And in my lesson, he was meditating," Shiala said thoughtfully. "Interestingly, he downloaded and read my first two lectures, and he's meditating... Oh, the Force, just look at his readings. With that many midi-chlorians, it's not really surprising."
Roan glanced at Light's data and was slightly taken aback.
"He's certainly no Master Yoda, but in potential, he's above Yan Dooku and even Windu," Roan noted. "Interesting. Very interesting. Polishing such a talent would be worth a lot."
"Just don't break him," Shiala remarked. "Meanwhile, several other promising children came with him. For example, this girl — Meza Orta," the image switched to a Zabrak. "Her midi-chlorian count is barely there, but she's very attentive. She has an excellent memory."
"Mediocrity will remain mediocrity," Roan snorted. "I've seen a smart aleck like that before. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't jump above his head."
"You're only evaluating their combat potential, you barbarian," Shiala snorted. "You were a barbarian, and you still are."
"I don't want to hear anything from a former Jedi Shadow," Roan said, opening the data on the student who had caught his attention. "He definitely has every chance to become my Padawan. This Light Flyingstar, according to his profile, has a weak character despite his connection to the Force... A weakling. But this boy, even if he has average potential, his physical data already surpasses even some children two years older than him."
"Cin Drallig?" Shiala asked. "Looks like the barbarian found himself a student just like him."
* * *
"What are you doing?" a male voice asked me as I was taking off my blindfold.
"Trying to see with the Force," I explained to the older youngling.
"By yourself? I mean, on your own? You're not a Miraluka, this is hard to learn..."
"I'm managing," I sent the teenager into cognitive dissonance.
"Looks like you're talented," he smiled. "Well, everyone should gather in the training hall. Your group has physical education now."
The training hall they led me to was much more spacious and open than Shiala's classroom. We were lined up and told to wait. After a couple of minutes, a tall man appeared before us. His arms were strong, etched with muscles. He himself resembled a bodybuilder. His hair was black, probably spiky. And on his belt, in the most visible place, rested a lightsaber. Actually, judging by the length of the hilt, as I understood — the man wielded a lightstaff.
"I am Roan Lancestfield," his booming voice made my ears ring, and he wasn't even using the Force. "Now we will begin a course that will save your lives. It doesn't matter if you become losers who end up in the AgriCorps, or the Service Corps, or fly to some backwater to fulfill the duty of true Jedi, bringing peace to all, as our rules postulate. Physical training is good for any Jedi," he walked before our formation, "and whoever doesn't understand that," he stopped in front of a rather frail Feemor, next to whom I stood — quite short compared to my peers, though I wouldn't call myself frail. Because I did physical training, I even had my strikes practiced, and I could take down a peer in hand-to-hand combat easily. Although, how does he assess the body under the clothes? Unless he's trying to apply psychological pressure. Great achievement, scaring kids — at least he's not using the Force. "You probably consider yourselves the Chosen Ones who will become great Jedi. But I'll disappoint you — Chosen Ones aren't born, they become," partly true. The Chosen Jedi even managed to lose a hand to an old man. By the way, ordinary children under such aggressive breaking would definitely start crying and calling for mom. "And we'll start... With you," I knew it — the tactic of "look him in the eyes" would backfire, because this "absolutely standard sergeant" chose me. "You... Drop and give me push-ups..."
I calmly assumed the push-up position and started doing push-ups.
"I'm surprised you know what this is, but you're doing it wrong," an incredible weight fell on my back, seemingly wanting to crush me. "You, little one, are channeling the Force through your muscles. You shouldn't know how to use it yet. That's wrong because you're strengthening your body when you shouldn't be, and do you know why? Because by using the Force, you're unlearning to use your muscles, and they don't grow. Remember! If there's anyone else who already knows how to use the Force — forget how to do it. Your task now is to learn to use your physical abilities, not Force abilities."
"Tea... teacher," I coughed, resisting the force of gravity.
"What? I can't hear you?" he stopped affecting me, and I was able to sit up.
"Why can't I..."
"Because... I'll explain," he stood in front of me. "Muscles grow in childhood. And contact with the Force is established the same way — better during the growth process. But by channeling the Force through yourself, you don't let your muscles grow; you get used to things being easier, but in reality, you're limiting yourself. Follow the logic, kid. There are two younglings: one develops muscles separately and the Force separately, and the other does both together. As a result — at first, the second one wins, but at the end of training, the first one will be stronger. Do you know why? You don't know," Roan sighed. "And you can't even guess. Listen, everyone... The potential of Force enhancement depends on the state of the muscles! In other words, if you," he poked me with his finger, "only use enhancement but don't develop your muscles, then in the future, when you grow up — any other Jedi who trained with the standard method will be stronger than you, even if you use enhancement. Because, let's say, enhancement multiplies your physical strength by two. Which will be bigger?" he asked everyone. "What's bigger: multiplying the number three by two, or the number five by two? The answer is obvious. If you multiply three by two, you get six, and if you multiply five by two, you get ten. The Force improves your indicators, Light Flyingstar, but it doesn't let your muscles grow because — since you're managing anyway, why should the body bother? How do muscles grow? During training, we show them that they're too weak, so the body organizes their growth. You, with enhancement, don't show them anything. Thus, you don't grow."
Logical, though unpleasant. At least now I know why my progress stopped — what I had in terms of muscles was clearly not my limit. And I wasn't planning to become a super-jock, but muscles wouldn't hurt me, especially considering their benefit in enhancement. Once I crossed the threshold in enhancement on Tustra, I began to enhance myself little by little, which caused my training with grandfather to stop yielding results. So I need to try not to use the Force during exertion.
"But it will be very hard for you to do that," Roan informed me. "You're already used to it. It's as natural to you as breathing, but it's okay. If you don't want to become a weakling, either change yourself, or continue using the Force like a drug."
* * *
"Listen," after physical education classes, exhausted, I was walking to the cafeteria with the group. Feemor was already hovering next to me. "That's so cool! You use the Force... Automatically, that means you're stronger than many. Even that bully Drallig," another familiar personality. "My five thousand midi-chlorians would hardly allow me that..."
"Didn't you hear Master Roan?" I asked Feemor tiredly as we walked down the Temple corridor and almost reached the cafeteria. "I have a downside."
In fact, channeling the Force for me really is like breathing. And I simply can't not enhance myself. Yes, earlier it was hard for me to do enhancement, but when they trained me and developed me physically — everything became easy, and now it's all hitting me back.
"I don't know," Feemor said thoughtfully, as our group, almost crawling, dragged ourselves to our room. The smartest ones, like me, rushed to claim the showers. Well, more like shuffled. My clothes were practically sticking to my skin, and my muscles were aching.
Roan specifically devised a way to press me with his Force, thus disrupting my enhancement effect and forcing my muscles to work. Unfortunately, according to him, this gave a half-hearted effect. I need to learn to control the Force myself. Before, I controlled it on a reflex principle. That is — I perform a certain action and automatically connect the Force. Now I need to learn to do it differently. I must be able to perform the same action with and without the Force.
The water slightly relaxed my muscles after training. I hadn't felt fatigue from physical exercise in a long time. Honestly, the approach for children is too harsh. Although I imagine the Sith have it even harder. But it's stupid to complain here. We are the Gifted, Force users. We are capable of much more than everyone else, I don't know why or how, but despite the two-hour boring lectures and frankly cruel, for four-to-five-year-old children, physical training — no one complained. The most I saw was a whining Rodian who dislocated his arm. Everyone else turned red from exertion but did all the exercises... Considering everything current — it will only get worse. Because right now, we essentially have only two subjects.
Theory and physical education. Soon, meditations will be added, which, according to rumors, will be led by one of the Council, most likely Yoda. He messes with minds using the Force better than many. Also, we have tours of the Temple, particularly the Archives, which are currently managed by Jocasta Nu. Starting next year, they'll teach us not only to move correctly with the Force but also will intensify the theory, mixing it not only with history and philosophy but also with politics, culture, basics of strategy and tactics. They'll also start teaching us to fly on simulators, there will be engineering and droid construction, an introduction to biology and chemistry. Essentially, theoretically — a Jedi is a sentient who has graduated from a University. Because much of what is studied here is studied almost at a University level. I also looked at our programs on the website and compared them with the programs of Alderaan University, for example. Many topics coincide.
But that's not all... The practice will expand; it won't just be physical education. They'll give us training swords because we're not yet grown enough for our combat ones — Lightsabers. Roan will teach us the basics of fencing, help us set up technique and choose our combat forms. There will also be practical hand-to-hand combat classes, survival training consisting of using various gadgets like underwater breathing apparatus. Overall — Jedi are universal fighters. Yes, later each of us will choose our specific specialization. For example, someone will go to inflict good as a Jedi Guardian, fighting smugglers, pirates, various scum, and encountering dark side cults. They focus on fencing and combat Force techniques. Someone will decide to dedicate themselves entirely to studying the Force, becoming a Jedi Consular. These are pure diplomats and negotiators; they also make healers, knowledge keepers, researchers. Well, someone will try to combine both directions, becoming a Jedi Guardian. Jedi Guardians, by the way, are the most resilient and promising. They are not only the least tempted by the Dark Side but also the most balanced and versatile.
At least, that's what I remember. Nothing prevented a Jedi Guardian from inflicting good and administering justice, both using a lightsaber and using the Force. This path is focused on defense, which I like the most. And even though it's hard to hit two birds with one stone, I have a huge amount of time before the major Galactic-scale conflicts, and I can calmly, by following the Guardian path, become a fairly strong Jedi. The main thing in such conditions is not to slack off.
Yes, I need to train with dedication, using every minute for something. I have a list of Force techniques that I must master from the very beginning. First of all — sensory perception and precognition, which will help me in battle. I trained telekinesis even before entering the Temple, so showing a decent level won't be hard for me. Although it's worth remembering that there's no limit to perfection. Additionally, I should consider Force forging, which will help me in the future, Tutaminis and Crucitorn. The last two techniques are studied superficially by younglings. So that's for my later training when I become a Padawan.
From physical development, besides body development, hand-to-hand combat, fencing. Forms... The First Form, Shii-Cho, is always studied, and as I've planned many times — I will study the defensive form, Soresu. It's the one that helps you come out of a fight without a scratch. With my huge potential in the Force, I can definitely combine Soresu, precognition, and enhancement, which will make me a defensive fencer with perfect defense... Reaching the bed, I fell asleep... I was dreaming some nonsense again, as if I, with two green lightsaber blades, was almost destroying Vader in direct combat, who was only saved by the timely appearance of stormtroopers, and I myself retreated with the help of that semi-MCU squad "Ghost" from the "Rebels" cartoon. Well, that's nonsense... I don't think I'll reach that level; at most, I can escape the planet before Vader shows up on it...