Tales of Tenric's Training: V

“Heed my voice now Padawan.” Came the formal tone. “You must know your place, your purpose, and your balancing point in the Force before you can step safely into the vastness of it all.” His Master spoke now in a whisper, but Tenric heard him clearly in his mind.

“Many long Millennia ago there were those who knew and understood the currents in the Force. They were neither Sith nor Jedi, but held to the Light. It may even be that their influence began the Jedi on their monastic path. One of my old masters discovered their teachings and taught me. We devoted ourselves to learning their ways. They lived symbiotically with all life and understood how the ripples interacted. They also knew how to become one with the Force and yet retain their essence. Of all things I may teach you, these will be the most useful to you in the time to come.”

Here he paused for a moment to allow Tenric to re-center himself for he had sensed his padawan’s rising excitement.

“You have felt the connections these last few days and sensed the currents as you found your way here. Now you must remain at the center of calm I have shown you how to find, this time however you must open your eyes while doing so.”

Tenric waited a few moments to be sure his whole being was calm and centered. He could feel the rock beneath him as an anchor. The rock was his balancing point he realized, the clearing his place, and as he opened his eyes he began to understand his purpose. There before his eyes was more than just the clearing, the trees, and the grass. Ripples and waves moved all around him like heat on a summer afternoon. The waves seemed to flow and respond much, as would those of water. As he watched he could see currents moving through them, each one setting up new ripples or changing ones already there. So amazed was he that after a few moments he lost his anchor and the current, ripples, and waves vanished from view.

“Master, I am sorry.” He began, “I - -I was overwhelmed.”

“As was I the first time.” His Master smiled back. “Now let us practice a bit more shall we?”

So practice they did. As the afternoon wore on Tenric learned to maintain his Force-Vision for longer periods of time. He learned to stand and even walk while his eyes saw what he thought of as two worlds. He began to realize that there were differences between the currents that flowed from the Unifying Force and those of the Living Force. He also came to see why this clearing had seemed right to him. It was a point of resonance in the Force. The boulder acted like a jetty at the beach, calming and separating the waves.

The next day his Master showed him how to follow individual currents or ripples to see where they had originated or were headed. It was by no means easy and left Tenric so exhausted that he slept heavily and without dreams that night. By week’s end he had begun to “surf the Force”, as he called it, by establishing a cadence between his movements and breathing. In this way he was able to stay calm and centered much of the time while going about his daily activities. He was learning to see the Force active around him at all times.

In the second week his Master helped him focus on the smaller ripples caused by thoughts and intentions. Tenric learned to see another’s indecision or conviction and began to learn how Jedi could tell lie from truth. He also learned how he could use the Force to change those ripples in subtle ways. In the third week he began to see colors in the currents. His Master told him that each Jedi was unique and would find his own way to interpret the Force-Vision. Apparently for Tenric the addition of tints and hues to the waves, ripples, and currents were to be his way. The colors were subtle and did not obscure his normal sight, but they were there and he began to learn to interpret them.

It was at month’s end, though, that Tenric got his first taste of Saber dueling the ‘Jedi’ way…..