Capernum: Settling in

Posted on Wed Aug 13th, 2025 @ 8:00pm by Lieutenant Commander Sean Loewen {Meji} & Lieutenant Lenore (Len) Holbrook

Mission: Stellar Problems
Location: XO's Quarters
Timeline: Current

ON:

In the quarters provided, Lt. Commander Sean Loewen had the packing tubs/chests stacked within, off to the side and out of the way. One of them, the first one he had grabbed from the stack with a mark that it was his possessions, he had open and was now haphazardly setting deco items around the room on various surfaces and shelves. No rhyme or reason to it, just unpacking to get the tubs empty so they could be sent back to the Operations department for storage. He knew that Lenore could be back at any time so he wanted to show he was at least trying to get things in order. His quarters matched the Captain's, with kitchenette and an L-shaped buddy bar that also doubled as a breakfast bar for dining, stools on both sides. The quarters were only slightly larger when it came to square footage, compared to his old quarters. The arrangement of the immovable objects was what made all the difference. So, with Len in the know about the move, Sean continued to try and unpack the tubs, stacking them within one another as he went.

Len walked to the XO's quarters and was happy that the doors slid open when she neared. She entered and saw that a lot of their things were unpacked. She took off her blue lab coat and placed it on the back of a chair. She came up from behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist, her cheek against his back. "Great job on getting things unpacked."

Sean grinned as he looked back at her over his shoulder. "A good portion, but still a couple tubs to go." He placed a small statuette of a dragon on the shelf in front of himself so he could spin in her embrace without breaking the hold, giving her a proper hug hello. "You dealt with work so, least I could do was get this started. Now," he gave a crooked grin as he gave his instructions in jest. "Nothing placed is permanent. Just getting it all out of the crates so we can then figure out some kind of deco flow." He gave her a light kiss.

Len returned the kiss before letting go of his waist. She headed to one of the crates and started to unpack it. It is mostly her civilian clothes, which she puts up on hangers in the closet area.

As time went by, little over an hour, all the tubs had been emptied. Loewen stacked them within each other and then put the lids in the top one at an angle, picking up the lot and setting them outside next to their door. A quick call to Operations and they would be sending someone up to collect them. Going back inside Sean went and poured two glasses of wine, a Merlot he liked, not being able to remember if Len liked red, or white, wine. "Libation for a break?" He asked sipping from his glass as he held the other within easy reach.

Len took the other glass and pored some of the Merlot into it. She smiled before taking a sip. "It's not bad."

"Not the best vintage, I admit," Sean said with a crooked grin. "But, it works for the moment. Saw a place on the Promenade that had some Chateau Picard, was thinking of grabbing a mixed case for personal storage before we leave port." He sipped the wine, swishing it slowly in his mouth. She was not wrong, it was a bit tasteless. He preferred Merlot you almost had to chew due to the robustness.

"That sounds good. I drink for the taste as alcohol does not affect me." She said.

Sean smiled at that. "Lucky you. I drink seldom due to lack of interest, and my own tolerance isn't the best. Not that I'm complaining."

Len smiled, "unfortunately it's part of my augmentation. I am happy the the Starbase crew are done with Sickbay. They were moving everything every which way." She said with a pout.

Giving a chuckle Sean wagged his eyebrows once. "Engineers, for ya. They love to change things." Just then the door chime sounded so Loewen went and answered it. Standing there was some wet-behind-the-ears ensign holding a lockbox similar in shape to a cigar box. He handed it over.

"Commander Loewen, Captain Green asked me to deliver that directly to you, Sir. It is delivered, have a good day." The younger man then turned and walked away.

Sean, curious by the expression on his face, brought the case to the breakfast bar and placed it lid-side up. Assuming it would open in regards to his biometrics since there was no keypad for a code, he put his thumb on the lock mechanism. A small red light blinked and the case gave forth a click sound as the lock was released. "I wonder what's in here," he said to Len, not opening it yet.

"It could be my lightsaber, since it's from Captain Green." She said looking at the box.

"I was thinking the same thing," Sean admitted. "Well, then." He used a thumb to lift the lid and then set it back flat easily. And, as they suspected, there it was. A lightsaber hilt and a palm PADD with 'Cmdr. Loewen' on the screen. Sean took up the PADD and motioned to the hilt. "That's yours. If you ignite it, hold it away from yourself and me. It will lop off body parts fairly easily." Sean tapped the PADD and began to read the message there.

Len took the hilt in her right hand, looking it over. The hilt is slimmer than Sean from what she could see. She moves the hilt away from them and ignited the lightsaber. She smiled when a blue blade came out. After a moment she pressed the button to turn it off, watching the blade disappear.

Sean had watched Len ignite and deactivate the blade, grinning. "Not to bring up the obvious, but there is a lot more to the lightsaber than that. Especially when you start to swing it around. Anyway," He waggled the PADD in his hand. "Ro says that I am now your master, officially. Your training is on me, and how quickly we proceed is my decision. Also, beneath the foam insert in the box that held the hilt, a surprise." Loewen set the PADD aside and pulled the foam insert from the box. Seeing nothing in the box/case he flipped the insert over and stuck within the foam on the bottom was another crystal. He plucked it from its shadow box slot, showing a crystal that was a dark purple in color. "Seems Master Ro has given you options per your request." Sean held his hand open to show Len the purple crystal better.

Len looked closely at the purple crystal with a smile. "I will have to thank her." She looked up from his hand to his face. "When do you want to start training?"

Sean could see the want in her eyes. He had felt the same way when he first learned of his ability to use the Force. But, he then had Qeritas to speed train him in a timeless environment. "Len, you're already in training, Love. We'll get you familiar with the other two disciplines, Control and Alter to a degree you can use them. Sense you have in droves, as you've demonstrated. Hold on." Loewen went to a wardrobe in his the bed area and pulled the lowest of two drawers open, bringing out a rectangular black case. Coming back to the bar and moving everything else aside, he opened it to show it was a tool kit, some of the devices for minute work. Grabbing two towels he came over and placed them flat on the bar top in stools right next to each other.

Once the towels were set he then placed the tool kit equidistant above the towels so they could both reach them. He patted the seat beside himself as he sat down, putting his own saber hilt on his towel. "Alright, a good beginning to honing your Sense, and becoming familiar with enhancing your body with the Force through Control. I'm going to disassemble my saber and you are going to watch. Once done, then we'll both work on yours as I instruct and you take it apart to change out your crystal and replace it."

Len nodded, sitting down next to him. She placed her saber on the other towel and turned slightly to see what he was doing.

"Building your saber is the first step in attaining the actual title of Meji, not student, apprentice, whatever. Technically, we're kinda cheating but it will be YOUR saber once the crystal is changed out. Okay, here we go." Sean began to disassemble his saber hilt and as he went he explained in detail what he was doing, why, and what each component was. No rush, taking his time so she could use her Sense to follow his movements with her feelings, and hoping to stoke Control as the Force would then know how to guide her in repeating this procedure with her own hilt. After a good amount of time his saber was laying on the towel in many pieces, all lined up from the first he had removed to the last. "Alright, Squire, your turn. I'll be right here if you have questions and I will guide you when you need it. Other than that trust in the Force, it will help guide you. It controls your actions and obeys your commands all in the same breath." He motioned at the tool kit for her to grab the first tool she would need.

She took the first tool and started to disassemble her saber hilt. She had focused on her Sense when he was disassembling his saber, seeing how the Force moved around him. She concentrates on the Force that was within her to slowly disassemble her hilt, her hands moving with purpose. Awhile later her hilt is disassembled on her towel.

Loewen gave her a grin. "Nicely done. I could feel the Force flowing through you while you were focused. Not around you, Len, through you. That means that you have taken the first step into Control. To enhance your body when needed. Things like jumping straight up twenty feet with little effort, more stamina, all that. Also, being Force sensitive means that your longevity is much higher. You might live about twice what your normal life span would be."

Sean took up the purple crystal with one hand, the other pointing to the blue crystal in its containment device. "Remove the blue crystal and replace it with this one," he handed it over. "Make sure it's aligned right or the energy focus will be off and the aperture won't activate the blade."

Len takes the blue crystal out of the containment device before taking the purple crystal into the device, focusing on the Force to make sure it was aligned properly. Once done she looked over at Sean.

Loewen was loving this. She looked like a school girl being taught her lessons and then when she finished a portion, looked to the teacher for approval. It made her that much more beautiful. Her eagerness to learn only added to his feelings for her. "Good job." Using the Alter discipline and the telekinesis power provided from it, he called the crystal seat to his hand gently. Once in hand he picked up his own and compared them with a finite examination. Satisfied all was right he then set his down and allowed telekinesis to put hers back where it had lifted off from. Sean could feel that her body reacted with a bit of excitement at seeing the device lift off and come to him without much effort. "I didn't have to remove mine so, you definitely paid attention to what I taught and what the Force was offering. A great first step."

Len nodded, "It just felt like it was right where it needed to be. What is the next step?"

"We work in concert to put them back together. I'll build mine, you build yours. Once assembled then we move to a more open space for you to ignite it and test it." Sean said with a grin. Without another word he began to casually pick up his parts and place them where they needed to go.

She picked up the parts and began to reassemble her saber hilt. She finished a few moments after he was done with his. Once done she stood up from her stool and moved to where there was more space.

Loewen followed, his own saber in hand as he faced her. "Eager? I know you're excited to learn but remember; there is no emotion there is peace. The lightsaber has a unique quality as the blade is pure plasma. As you swing it there is a centrifugal force to it. A heaviness. Be aware of that to maintain control. The harder the swing curves the more force is given, so you need to hold tight. Don't try to crush the hilt, just make sure it doesn't slip. Ignite." He put his saber up before himself, between them, and the cloud blue blade sprang to life with the familiar snap-hiss.

She tightens her hold on the saber and put it in front of her before igniting it. The purple blade came out in front of her. She keeps her excitement under control before her eyes again focus on Sean.

The way the purple hue lit up her face and eyes was something to behold. Sean liked that color for her. It fit her. "Okay, make sure you're clear of any objects and then give it a twirl like this." Loewen could feel he was clear of objects but whether Len was doing the same was difficult to ascertain since the Force had been flowing through her since they started the assembly project. Sean twirled his blade with his right hand, at his right side, then brought it back to the ready.

She used her senses to ensure that she was clear of objects before twirling her saber in her right hand as he had done, before bringing it back in front of her. She could feel the sweat starting to form on her forehead.

Sean looked her in the eye. "Control, Len. Breathe easy and relax into what you're doing. Open yourself to the Force and feel it course through every fiber of your being. Control perspiration, breathing, and muscles. And, use it subconsciously to grip the hilt so as not to let go of it without reason. Trust in the Force, it will aid you without even thinking when you don't call on it. You'll become one." He gave his own blade a few quick twirls around his body, demonstrating where her training will eventually lead in her skill level when she and the Force come to terms.

Len nodded, as she watched what he was doing. "Yes Master."

Being in teacher mode now, Loewen had to teach her the next step. "Len, I want you to come at me with saber raised, then bring it down towards my face and head to attack. Put some effort into it. I promise I can deflect it so curb your fear, as well. When lightsaber blades come in contact with each other it causes loud cracks, pops, and fizzes, and sparks do fly. This is something you need to get used to. The initial reaction will be to step back to avoid any unpleasant effect to yourself. It is just a plasma blade fighting to cut through another plasma blade. Go ahead."

Len took a deep breath and slowly let it out before doing as he had instructed. She moved forward with her blade aimed at his face, her purple blade meeting his blue.

As Len's blade came down Sean's met it in mid-strike, causing the crackling pop-fizz due to contact, a few sparks flying away from them. However, instead of a simple deflect Loewen half-stepped into it and locked the blades together, the sparks and crackling now more intense. He instructed her to angle her blade to her left as he angled his to his left, the plasma weapons still locked together. The flashing of power was bright, a kaleidoscope of blue, purple and white light as they fought to overcome each other. Through the X between them, both their faces lit up by the flashing and popping of ionic energy, Sean spoke to her. "Len, find your Control. Keep your body strong and hold the blade away from you with your own. Be confident and know you can do this, no matter how weak or strong you are."

Len focused on moving the Force through her body toward her right arm. She uses that extra energy to push her arm away from herself.

Sean gave her a nod of satisfaction, a grin on his face. "You're strong in the Force, Len. A natural. Let's step back." He eased away from her, with his blade held steady until they separated and stopped popping. When clear he closed his down and hooked it to his belt. "Outstanding, Love. You're ready for true practice in a far more open area. Shuttlebay two is Meji country, with plenty of room. I suggest when you feel the need you should go there and swing to your hearts delight and get your own combat katas down, and your style. There are several combat disciplines, each with their own unique traits."

Len turned her saber off and hooked it to her belt. "I'll have to do that sometime, see which one feels natural." She said with a smile.

"A wise thing to say," said Loewen, coming in and giving her a quick kiss. "You won't know what you're comfortable with until you actually start to use the saber as the weapon that it is. As I said, that means katas and combat moves with it until you find that balance for yourself which comes back to the idea; trust your instincts, your feelings." With that said he went over to the replicator and ordered a pint of water, light ice. He sipped as he went and stood belly up at the breakfast bar. "We'll end the training there for today. When you meditate, focus on what you learned and how better to apply it. A Meji never stops learning."

Len nodded. "Yes Master Loewen. I will mediate before going to bed. Right now I'm going to go take a shower, if you would like to join me?"

"Sounds good," Sean said, setting his ice water down and following her to the bathroom. He needed to clean up and visit the Bridge.

OFF:

Lt. Cmdr. Sean Loewen
Executive Officer
USS Capernum

Lieutenant Lenore Holbrook
Chief Medical Officer
USS Capernum