Chapter Fourteen (Patreon)

Initiate Ali’ya was odd, to say the least. She’d always been more inclined towards learning and practicing that social gatherings, but ever since the Gathering--when she came back with the first purple blade in decades--she’d acted like a woman possessed. Her mind, always sharp, seemed to grow even more attentive. In a single year she finished half of the Senior Initiate classes, taking the end-of-year tests for first and second year at the same time. She could be found practicing lightsaber forms up until curfew with Master Dooku and Master Bulq. She haunted the library, so much that it seemed the chief archivist-in-training, Jocasta Nu, was followed wherever she went.

Somehow she managed to have something of a social life. Most likely because her friends and associates were all as study-mad as her. Her friend Padawan Paratus joined her whenever she studied mechanics. Initiate Windu was with her as she trained under Masters Dooku and Bulq, even managing to bring another master of Soresu, Knight Mundi, into their fold. Padawan Koth and Initiate Trebor often joined in their lessons, able to keep up with Initiate Ali’ya but not with Initiate Windu. Truly the boy was blessed by the Force with such skill.

For her part, Ali’ya found her time as a Senior Initiate not dissimilar to her experience in high school, just without the migraines and mental illness. Her schedule was just as busy, but it was impossible not to delight in the myriad subjects that even now seemed fantastical to her. The experience points that came from leveling up her skills were a bonus and helped her to push on ever further, but most of the joy came from the simple act of learning. Even in a hundred lifetimes she could never read the whole of the Jedi Archives, but that would not stop her from trying. She read everything that seemed of interest and everything that seemed of use. She read medical textbooks on humans, near-humans, humanoids, mammalians, fish, avians, and insectoids--one after the other, each time her newfound powers helping her to connect the dots and compare cures and treatments in a way her old self would be envious of. Most of all she read of Togoria, of her people and their traditions. Her great-grandmother may have died before she could pass on all her knowledge, but Ali’ya would honor her memory.

Of course, books could only take her so far. But for now, that was far enough. Especially when combined with her extracurricular activities. Master Bulq was often in the temple, and whenever he was they met twice a week so Ali’ya could practice her Soresu and learn the beginnings of Djem So and Shien. In their normal lightsaber class--currently being taught by Master Drallig--the initiates were working on Ataru, easily Ali’ya’s worst form. While her felinoid body was flexible enough, she was far too large for the flips and jumps of the form to be comfortable--let alone useful--and her long arms and blade were not meant for wide swings. Given her natural strength she had no need for them and with the size of her body crossing from shoulder to ankle too far too long. Unless she boosted her speed with the Force, it was easy for her opponents to slip away from the slow and powerful blows. Djem So, which used shorter blows that (while less powerful) were swifter and conserved energy better than Ataru, was much more to her liking. There was also Ataru’s insane lack of defense. Using the form made her feel like an unarmored knight, praying that her lance would strike before her foe’s. Having to use Ataru--and only Ataru--against another initiate made Ali’ya feel like drowning herself. Which made it perhaps appropriate that after her lessons she read up on Mon Cala, Quarren, and Gungan architecture--though books about the latter were hard to come by, even in the Jedi Archives.

Yet none of these were the reason that Ali’ya had managed to level up twice before her eleventh birthday. No, that honor went to her new perk, Life Force. She knew it would be useful simply by the cost, but she was astounded at how useful it was. With Life Force she could improve her healing by working on herself. She could use the Force to regrow her muscles immediately after exercise, could slow down the aging of her cells--though that was still a greatly limited feature at her current level. Perhaps most importantly, she could use it to facilitate rest. That was an expensive feature, using most of her strength in the Force for just a single hour of rest. Yet it could be done while in a meditation trance, something that allowed her nearly unlimited access to the Force in the galaxy, replenishing her own power just as she expended it. She could channel the Force through her via mediation, then out to heal her, running it back through her. Six hours of this restful meditation provided more than enough rest for a day, though she still needed to sleep at least once a week. In those eight extra hours a week she practiced with other Force techniques. She found an old, physical lock in one of the abandoned rooms and used it to practice her fine motor skills with telekinesis. She practiced both her handwriting and her use of the Force by using telekinesis to control her pencils. She practiced her languages, practiced Force Blast on dummies and pulled up her strongest Force Shields, letting them run until she collapsed onto the ground, panting with the exertion. She did push-ups, pull-ups, sit-ups, and lifted weights. She ran two kilometers each day, making sure to heal her muscles after every bit of exercise. Were it not for the fact that her friends were just as she was--weird and obsessed with at least one topic--she would likely have never seen them. Instead she managed to gain even more friends.

Ali’ya met Initiate Vokara Che while looking for medical texts in the archives. She developed a better relationship with Master Bulq after requesting that they meditate together following a training session, something that became a regular occurrence. She took apart droids and built them back together with Kazadan Paratus, sparred (and usually lost) with Mace Windu, and studied the multitude of cultures found throughout the galaxy with Kirana. Between this Ali’ya attended her classes, easily soaking in the knowledge thanks to her Learning Prodigy perk. A single explanation was enough for her to understand, and thanks to her System-improved memory there was little she forgot. To test her concentration she often studied or meditated in the eating hall, just to make sure she could focus in the din of battle. After all, such a fate was almost inescapable for a Jedi and the System had threatened that they wanted an interesting story.

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Experience Points: 13,951/9,000

Level: 9 → 10

Age: 11 (Happy birthday!)

Vital Statistics:

Strength: 13 (+6 Togorian) = 19

Agility: 15 (+6 Togorian) = 21

Vitality: 16 (+6 Togorian +2 Underdweller) = 24

Intellect: 24 (+10 Learning Prodigy +2 Improved Memory +1 Technology Adept) = 37

Will: 32 (+10 Force Prodigy) = 42

Charisma: 26 (+1 Noble Lineage) = 27

Luck: 13 (+5 Lucky) = 18

*

It was odd, Ali’ya thought, that she knew her birthday solely because of the System. Her family had celebrated it, but the depths of Coruscant used a different calendar from those at the top, the Standardization Act of 273 ARR never reaching below the 2,000th level. She had little doubt that in the depths of Alsakan there still existed those who used calendar systems from before the Republic’s founding. Some on Coruscant used the ancient Zhell calendar, based off of stars that they never saw.

While she had turned eleven, the Temple would not recognize her as such for another two months. She had been five when she arrived, and the Temple used that day as her birthday. She had no objections, for she enjoyed being able to separate the day when she arrived in this world, to her family, from the day she arrived at the temple. Both were important to her, in admittedly very different ways. Soon she would be eligible to be a padawan, and to take the Initiate Trials, which were to be held in five months.

Ali’ya was certain she’d be ready for them. She’d been training after all, and Master Dooku said that her skills were, “Not as infantile as your fellow initiates.” From Master Dooku that was high praise indeed.