Mind Over Matter
It was not until a transmission arrived from Dawn Star Planet that Sola-Balke regained his senses.
Only then did he begin to reflect on the reality of having been so easily defeated by the Priestess. He realized that her swordsmanship was still much the same as before—roughly equal to his, perhaps even slightly inferior—but there had been no decisive gap between them.
But the true gap lay in their state of mind.
The term "state of mind" was intangible, impossible to see or touch, yet it was precisely what the Jedi Order emphasized most in its cultivation of the Light Side Force.
Cultivating one's state of mind helped one advance further in training with the Force, and could even allow one to reach the realm where mind triumphed over matter, where one's will could influence or even control all things in the world. In that respect, it coincided perfectly with the cultivation of the Force.
For a powerhouse at Sola-Balke's level, the term "state of mind" could be summed up rather simply. Put plainly, it meant always making the right choice.
This was crucial to the Jedi Order, which could foresee the future and remain steadfast amid the river of time and the Force, controlling what lay ahead.
A realm such as mind triumphing over matter was still far too distant even for someone like Sola-Balke, whose swordsmanship ranked among the top five in the Milky Way Galaxy.
Yet in the battle that had just taken place, Sola-Balke had gained a profound understanding of what a state of mind truly was...
He felt that everything about him was under the Priestess's control. Whether it was the air he breathed or the Lightsaber he continuously swung, everything—absolutely everything—was the Priestess's weapon. She constantly altered the planet's gravity to