Shadows of Bankor

It was early afternoon, the weather just really starting to warm up, when a knock came to the door of Juri's clinic. Sacha remembered their conversation the other day. The woman she'd met... seemed like someone who was sympathetic to her leanings against the Imperials. And this was no secret. She just wasn't sure what to do. She seemed wise, moreover.

So the young Mandalorian woman had sought out the clinic. Hopefully she wasn't interrupting anything...

From the back room, the small Witch arrived. New, were a pair of earrings, that seemed to radiate a small bit of otherworldliness to them. The foxtail was done up, the hairpin ever present.

"Good Afternoon, Sacha of Clan Ordo." The Dathomiri bowed her head slightly, respecting the Mandalorian warrioress.

"I am glad to see you. Unless you need medical attention, in which case I am sorry that is why you've sought me out, but I will happily render aid." She beamed to the armored woman.

"No... I don't need medical attention. Actually... I just needed to talk. If you're not busy." She looked around, something a little awkward and uncomfortable in her posture. Shoulders hunched up and not standing exactly straight. "I know you must have a lot to do here."

"This way." She invited the Mandalorian to the back, making sure the door closed firmly behind the pair. "Medical attention isn't just wounds and sickness. It can be listening when someone is needing an ear. Please, my ears are yours."

She followed her back, finding a place to sit once they reached the back room. Her elbows rested on her knees, and it was almost as if she was curling in on herself. Once the door was firmly shut, she began to speak. "... The Empire paid a visit to the Mandalorian enclave today."

The Witch said nothing for a long moment. Instead, she put on a pot of water. "Are your people alright? Are you alright?" Concern laced her voice, as she looked to the woman. She stood tall, hands gently folded in front of her stomach.

"We're all right... for now," she replied quietly. "It was one of their leaders, a woman in a mask. She offered a contract for hunting down the Resistance and the Jedi and those helping them. She was very insistent. We stonewalled them for now, but they'll be back."

"... Worse for me is that her attention was focused on me for it."

"An Inquisitor." She replied quietly. "They're worse than just Imperial commanders." She began measuring out the tea blend, waiting for the water to boil.

"Most of them have knowledge of the Force." She spoke rather plainly, then looked to Sacha. "And her attention on you? It... might confirm something I thought."

"Yeah... She started talking about sensing a great destiny about me." She replied with a nod. "What was your thought?"

"Just a feeling, really. I think, you feel it, too." The Magus stepped closer to the Mandalorian. "If an Inquisitor has taken interest as such, they might get the same feeling." Her voice above a whisper.

"What do you know of the Force?"

"Not a lot. I know some of the stories of the Jedi and what they could do because we conflicted with them for so long," she replied, lowering her head. "I... know that I can affect the emotions of other beings."

She moved, offering a seat to Sacha, and then sitting down across from it. "Sit." It wasn't a command, but it seemed she didn't leave much room for argument, either.

"Tell me about it. How did it feel?"

"Unpleasant. It was like a pressure I put on its mind," she admitted. "I didn't like making it afraid of me."

"Fear can be so easy to inflict." She said quietly, but didn't judge the Mandalorian. She reached up, touching her hairpin. "I can use fear to make those who would seek to do my harm to draw no closer. But fear is a step, it can lead you to a dark place."

The Witch watched the warrior. "But you can also use that ability to be a balm, to soothe those who need it. It is a gift, Sacha."

"I know... I know. I've met people in that place. It felt so wrong," she said, leaning down to rest her helmet in her hands. "I don't want to be like that." Her voice sounded like she was trying to hold in her emotions and that it was a tenuous thing.

"I've tried using it like that... I've been able to sometimes..."

"Meditation, and practice. It takes time." She responded, offering a smile, and leaning forward to offer a hand to the warrior. "And constant restraint and diligence. To not simply just use your gift as a blunt instrument." If she were allowed, she took Sacha's hand.

"To be forged into a discipline extension of yourself."

She took her hand, grip firm. "Meditation... I've never tried. Discipline I understand, at least."

"Discipline can be honed by meditation." She gently squeezed, and then clasped her other hand over Sacha's. "Just as the body. To focus inwards, on your thoughts, and more, on your place within the Galaxy." She offered a smile, looking to the T-Visor.

"It can be soothing, to expand, and breathe. A quiet room. If you have articles of faith, those can be aids, as well. Just to focus and practice in ritual."

She nodded, finally looking up. "... Okay... So... How do you meditate?"

She released the Mandalorians hands, and sat up. "That is a path you might have to find on your own. Typically, you want to find something that allows your mind to empty. It can be excercise, it can be simple breathing techniques," a slender hand came up to her amulet.

"It can be making art, or forging armors and weapons. Whatever makes you feel at peace, that is a good starting point."

She nodded quietly, visor angling down to her hands briefly. "There's always work to do for an Armorer."

"Alright. Let's start there." She nodded. "When you are working on something, start small. Focus on the grip of your tools. The way the material feels when you work it. But never the big picture." Juri leaned forwards, looking up to the visor.

"Each individual strike of hammer to plasteel. Each individual stitch in fabric. The pull of needle and thread. Empty your mind of all other thoughts."

She nodded as she listened. "Yeah... I think I can understand that. It feels a little quieting, anyway."

"It never needs to be for long. It csn be a moment. Minutes. Hours. However long you feel you need. But during that time, open yourself to the world around you. The Galaxy. Feel it flow through you." Again, she took her friends hand.

"All things connected."

She nodded quietly. "I'll try. I can't promise more than that, since I don't really understand it."