Vano found a stab of relief pass through her as Voldon seemed to agree with her theory, though she couldn’t help but feel the urge to protest to the Battlemaster facing Soto alone. “But shouldn’t you-” though he had already sprinted off in the direction of blaster fire and shouts of final agony further towards the base. “Don’t break cover until we have to fall back!” she instructed her squad, sticking to Voldon’s instructions. Ahead of them, the treeline shivered as more of their units, led by Elara and other members of Havok squad, fell back, unable to beat back the advancing throng of Alliance soldiers as they stormed through the thick jungle canopies towards them.
“We have to keep them back from the compound as long as we can!”
The shriek of pain that echoed from behind them sent a cold shiver down the Mirialan’s spine. Soto had gotten someone. One of the Force users, too, if the shift in the energies was anything to go by. Doubling over to brace her hands against her knees for a moment, Vano had to drop back and let her squad take the brunt of the next barrage of fire while she regained her breath, extending a hand to yank them back towards the cover line when it was clear they couldn’t hold their position any longer.
“Drop back! There’s too many of them!”

Master Roan, whatever you’re doing up there...please, hurry. She knew he probably wouldn’t hear her, but if the other team couldn’t get rid of Bracknell and slow the assault soon, there may not be a resistance base left when they returned….
_________________

The Sith beasts skidded to a stop on either side of their Master, snarls rumbling in their throats as they faced down Bracknell while the other Sith Lord advanced towards them. Even Roan seemed to falter for a split second, taken aback by the sheer strength emanating from their adversary. He had intended to let Aria and Yerbol have a hand in Bracknell’s downfall (it only seemed right to give them a chance at some revenge of their own), but now….no, he couldn’t risk it. Bracknell was too powerful. He would have to do this alone. His own lightsaber crackling to life, Roan glanced over his shoulder at the trio behind him and murmured.
“Yerbol.” Roan’s voice was quiet, but still firm as ever as he spoke directly to the Knight. “Take Aria and Abbeth and find Cheriss, then get back to the shuttle. Leave Bracknell to me.”

They wouldn’t have time to argue as Bracknell raised a hand, almost nonchalantly, a barrage of white-blue electricity flying towards the group. Roan hastily flung up a barrier to block it, though even he was nearly knocked off his feet by the impact. “YERBOL! NOW!” the Sith Lord snarled. He sprang forward to engage Bracknell again, giving them the chance to slip off before the other man could attempt to harm them again. Roan hated having to close blades with Bracknell, he wasn’t a talented duelist by any means, but he had to block Bracknell’s concentration from Aria and Yerbol and there was no more efficient way. Visceral snarls from his left-hand side informed him that Taral was still at his side, giving him some form of cover to fall back on if he tired, though without Chwuq to protect his other side Roan was still vulnerable to Bracknell’s less than honourable tactics.

The remaining Tuk’ata could only do so much, and with Bracknell’s strength so amplified since their last duel, Roan couldn’t hold his ground for more than a few minutes of exchanged blows. He tried to push back, force Bracknell into moving backwards, but each time Roan or Taral tried to mount an offensive strike, Bracknell shifted his stance and closed the opening. There was no way he could predict their every move...he couldn’t! And yet it seemed to Roan the longer this wore on that this would be the place his vision had warned him about. Bracknell lunged forward again, a burst of energy unbalancing Roan and sending his only protector flying backwards to land in a heap at the doorway. Taral’s life essence was faint, but still there, though he could not get up. Roan would not have time to worry about his companion however, as Bracknell almost instantly drove forward again, his movements startlingly precise and quick as they aimed one strike after the other for Roan’s vitals. He parried many, one to the neck, another to the head, one to the abdomen, but his enemy’s assault was so vicious he could not sustain the speed at which he would have to move to keep blocking. No matter, he had done his part...Aria and Yerbol would leave this ship safely and return to the other Masters. If he couldn’t kill Bracknell now, as well, they would just have to mount a second attack attempt...but that would not be for him to decide.

Exhaling a quiet breath, he tried still, for Aria’s sake (he knew once she found out, it might break her, but she had Yerbol now. She would manage.), to keep fighting, but he was so tired now….his eyes locked with Bracknell’s, the smaller man’s pupil’s dilating as his face twisted into a grin.
“Roannn!” Taral’s voice distracted him for a fraction of a second, the Tuk’ata dragging himself to his feet once again and leaping to try and knock Bracknell away from his Master.

A searing pain stabbed right through Roan’s chest, the Sith Lord choking out a pained gasp as he sagged forward, his legs weakening and threatening to collapse from underneath him.
“I’ve waited a long, long time for this, Noctis.” Bracknell spat, withdrawing the energy blade.
Roan could only smirk in response, still determined that he would go down with dignity. Bracknell would not get the satisfaction of knowing he had won.
“I should have snapped your scrawny neck when I had the chance-!” he coughed, before blackness edged his vision and he dropped to the floor, barely witnessing the dark shape fly over his head as Taral lunged for Bracknell in a fit of rage. With a stab of alarm, he registered Aria’s scream.
“DADDY!!!”

WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE, YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO BE WITH YERBOL WHERE IT’S SAFE!!
_________________

Aria stiffened in alarm as she heard the Knight’s name spoken in her father’s voice. It didn’t seem….right. Roan had NEVER referred to Yerbol by name, not even once. It was always “boy” or “Jedi”, even later on when it seemed that Roan was warming up to him….and something just didn’t seem quite right about him doing it now. She had a bad feeling about this, but before she could protest, Abbeth had grabbed both the younger duo by the forearm and begun to pull them backwards. Yerbol seemed to be just as much in shock at hearing his name as she was, stumbling as Abbeth yanked them away and urged them into a retreat.
Aria managed to pull her arm free of Abbeth’s grip, only to stumble forward as the larger of the two tomb beasts fell into step behind them and gave them a forceful nudge down the corridor they had just worked through.

They complied with Roan’s instructions, frantically searching the ship’s corridors for any sign of their Dathomirian companion, but would stop abruptly before they rounded the next corner as they could feel the shift in Force energies. Something was very, very wrong. She could feel the Tuk’ata beside her tense its muscles and whine uneasily, as if it sensed it too.
“Roan.”
Aria dug in her heels, her hand flashing out to snatch Yerbol by the wrist and pull him to a stop as well.
“We’re going back. He needs help.” it wasn’t negotiable. Not waiting for her friend to argue, Aria spun on her heels and broke into a Force-propelled sprint back towards the other room, the tomb beast hot on her heels. They would still arrive just too late.

A dark shape twitched in the doorway as the other Sith hound struggled to get back to its paws, letting out an enraged shriek as it leapt towards Bracknell. Aria’s relief at seeing her father still standing would be short-lived as Roan trembled in place, and then fell, first to his knees, and then rolling onto one side as he tried and failed to get up again.
Aria’s heart dropped into her stomach. No, no...not him too, not him…
“DADDY!!!” the scream had ripped from her lungs before she could bite it back.

Yerbol knew something went horribly wrong when the Tuk'ata came back from them, that sinking feeling in his stomach growing exponentially when he saw Roan's body collapse to the ground, Bracknell sneering triumphantly over his latest victim. Before the Knight could withdraw his saber to take vengeance for his best friend's fallen father, something tugged at his mind, hard. Again it tugged, even more forceful, his body filling with energy. It shot through his veins, coursing through every muscle fiber, every ligament. His senses were overwhelmed with the breathing patterns of those in the room, the horror of Aria's discovery, the pain and fear that the Tuk'ata emanated, his own anxiety at facing Bracknell...all of it came so quickly that he took a few steps back, his eyes closing momentarily. A voice echoed in his mind, exhorting him:

Fight

Renso? Here?

Fight

His eyes opened, strength gathering in his lower limbs as he shot forward, saber activating mid-dash. Bracknell attempted to throw a barrier between he and the broad-shouldered knight, but acted an instance too soon, forcing the Sith Lord to take a hard blow in the chest with Yerbol's shoulder. As Bracknell reeled backwards, Yerbol threw his saber out in front of him in an arc, the weapon clipping Bracknell's dodging form in the left leg before returning to the Knight's hand. Gripping the weapon tightly in both hands, Yerbol thundered:
"YOU WILL PAY FOR ALL THAT YOU'VE DONE!" The corridor walls trembled at the roar of judgment he pronounced, shifting his weight onto his front leg in a defensive posture and motioning for Aria to join him, knowing full well through this new found energy that she had felt the voice, got the same infusion of power from Renso(he assumed) that he did. Their bond would make them an unstoppable force, one that Bracknell would regret ever tampering with. When Aria sidled next to him, nothing needed to be said; rather, Yerbol knew all too well that she would compliment his first move, which would be to throw up a barrier around the front of his body before he leaped forward, slashing downward. They had executed this combination before, he leaping upward while she flanked from either side. Normally it would've taken out an enemy in a single, graceful motion, but Bracknell managed to pierce through the barrier with a powerful gust of energy, staggering Yerbol backwards in time for Bracknell to counter whatever Aria managed to throw his way. Moving back towards Bracknell, Yerbol slashed at the Lord's legs, which was countered with a block, then another when the Knight tried to go for his mid-section. Another gust of energy was blocked somewhat by Yerbol, but he was still blown back a couple of feet. Undeterred, he went at the Lord once more.

Bracknell wouldn't leave here alive. No matter what the cost.

____

She was getting weaker by the second.

They had been fighting for what felt like years, neither gaining the upperhand. Forces on both sides managed to exchange some light fire, but the battle that raged between Voldon and Jean was so chaotic, so fraught with energy that there were moments where neither contingent could fire a shot without risking the death of a critical member of Bracknell's order. Reinforcements from the Alliance were getting routed around the base by stealthily placed turrets and mines, but their numbers weren't reduced by too large of a margin, many of their forces trudging their way to the base; however, their aim was getting sloppier, their strategies muddling. It was as if they were losing the will to fight.

Voldon, unaware of this fortunate development, managed to block yet another overhead strike before he pushed her off with a kick to the gut followed by a ram to her chest with his shoulder. This finally knocked her to the ground, where Voldon would stand over her, saber at her throat, breath coming in ragged gasps.
"Just finish it." Soto spat, blood and spittle landing on his leg. Voldon raised the hilt of his saber to comply, but then stopped, looking back at where Kira had been just a few moments before.
"Unlike you, I have standards to uphold." Voldon delivered a solid haymaker, knocking the woman unconscious. He spied Alliance troops hesitantly moving forward, some choosing to stay in their positions of cover.
"SURRENDER, ALL OF YOU! NO MORE DEATH NEEDS TO OCCUR THIS DAY!"

Yerbol knew something went horribly wrong when the Tuk'ata came back from them, that sinking feeling in his stomach growing exponentially when he saw Roan's body collapse to the ground, Bracknell sneering triumphantly over his latest victim. Before the Knight could withdraw his saber to take vengeance for his best friend's fallen father, something tugged at his mind, hard. Again it tugged, even more forceful, his body filling with energy. It shot through his veins, coursing through every muscle fiber, every ligament. His senses were overwhelmed with the breathing patterns of those in the room, the horror of Aria's discovery, the pain and fear that the Tuk'ata emanated, his own anxiety at facing Bracknell...all of it came so quickly that he took a few steps back, his eyes closing momentarily. A voice echoed in his mind, exhorting him:

Fight

Renso? Here?

Fight

His eyes opened, strength gathering in his lower limbs as he shot forward, saber activating mid-dash. Bracknell attempted to throw a barrier between he and the broad-shouldered knight, but acted an instance too soon, forcing the Sith Lord to take a hard blow in the chest with Yerbol's shoulder. As Bracknell reeled backwards, Yerbol threw his saber out in front of him in an arc, the weapon clipping Bracknell's dodging form in the left leg before returning to the Knight's hand. Gripping the weapon tightly in both hands, Yerbol thundered:
"YOU WILL PAY FOR ALL THAT YOU'VE DONE!" The corridor walls trembled at the roar of judgment he pronounced, shifting his weight onto his front leg in a defensive posture and motioning for Aria to join him, knowing full well through this new found energy that she had felt the voice, got the same infusion of power from Renso(he assumed) that he did. Their bond would make them an unstoppable force, one that Bracknell would regret ever tampering with. When Aria sidled next to him, nothing needed to be said; rather, Yerbol knew all too well that she would compliment his first move, which would be to throw up a barrier around the front of his body before he leaped forward, slashing downward. They had executed this combination before, he leaping upward while she flanked from either side. Normally it would've taken out an enemy in a single, graceful motion, but Bracknell managed to pierce through the barrier with a powerful gust of energy, staggering Yerbol backwards in time for Bracknell to counter whatever Aria managed to throw his way. Moving back towards Bracknell, Yerbol slashed at the Lord's legs, which was countered with a block, then another when the Knight tried to go for his mid-section. Another gust of energy was blocked somewhat by Yerbol, but he was still blown back a couple of feet. Undeterred, he went at the Lord once more.

Bracknell wouldn't leave here alive. No matter what the cost.

____

She was getting weaker by the second.

They had been fighting for what felt like years, neither gaining the upperhand. Forces on both sides managed to exchange some light fire, but the battle that raged between Voldon and Jean was so chaotic, so fraught with energy that there were moments where neither contingent could fire a shot without risking the death of a critical member of Bracknell's order. Reinforcements from the Alliance were getting routed around the base by stealthily placed turrets and mines, but their numbers weren't reduced by too large of a margin, many of their forces trudging their way to the base; however, their aim was getting sloppier, their strategies muddling. It was as if they were losing the will to fight.

Voldon, unaware of this fortunate development, managed to block yet another overhead strike before he pushed her off with a kick to the gut followed by a ram to her chest with his shoulder. This finally knocked her to the ground, where Voldon would stand over her, saber at her throat, breath coming in ragged gasps.
"Just finish it." Soto spat, blood and spittle landing on his leg. Voldon raised the hilt of his saber to comply, but then stopped, looking back at where Kira had been just a few moments before.
"Unlike you, I have standards to uphold." Voldon delivered a solid haymaker, knocking the woman unconscious. He spied Alliance troops hesitantly moving forward, some choosing to stay in their positions of cover.
"SURRENDER, ALL OF YOU! NO MORE DEATH NEEDS TO OCCUR THIS DAY!"

Yerbol knew something went horribly wrong when the Tuk'ata came back from them, that sinking feeling in his stomach growing exponentially when he saw Roan's body collapse to the ground, Bracknell sneering triumphantly over his latest victim. Before the Knight could withdraw his saber to take vengeance for his best friend's fallen father, something tugged at his mind, hard. Again it tugged, even more forceful, his body filling with energy. It shot through his veins, coursing through every muscle fiber, every ligament. His senses were overwhelmed with the breathing patterns of those in the room, the horror of Aria's discovery, the pain and fear that the Tuk'ata emanated, his own anxiety at facing Bracknell...all of it came so quickly that he took a few steps back, his eyes closing momentarily. A voice echoed in his mind, exhorting him:

Fight

Renso? Here?

Fight

His eyes opened, strength gathering in his lower limbs as he shot forward, saber activating mid-dash. Bracknell attempted to throw a barrier between he and the broad-shouldered knight, but acted an instance too soon, forcing the Sith Lord to take a hard blow in the chest with Yerbol's shoulder. As Bracknell reeled backwards, Yerbol threw his saber out in front of him in an arc, the weapon clipping Bracknell's dodging form in the left leg before returning to the Knight's hand. Gripping the weapon tightly in both hands, Yerbol thundered:
"YOU WILL PAY FOR ALL THAT YOU'VE DONE!" The corridor walls trembled at the roar of judgment he pronounced, shifting his weight onto his front leg in a defensive posture and motioning for Aria to join him, knowing full well through this new found energy that she had felt the voice, got the same infusion of power from Renso(he assumed) that he did. Their bond would make them an unstoppable force, one that Bracknell would regret ever tampering with. When Aria sidled next to him, nothing needed to be said; rather, Yerbol knew all too well that she would compliment his first move, which would be to throw up a barrier around the front of his body before he leaped forward, slashing downward. They had executed this combination before, he leaping upward while she flanked from either side. Normally it would've taken out an enemy in a single, graceful motion, but Bracknell managed to pierce through the barrier with a powerful gust of energy, staggering Yerbol backwards in time for Bracknell to counter whatever Aria managed to throw his way. Moving back towards Bracknell, Yerbol slashed at the Lord's legs, which was countered with a block, then another when the Knight tried to go for his mid-section. Another gust of energy was blocked somewhat by Yerbol, but he was still blown back a couple of feet. Undeterred, he went at the Lord once more.

Bracknell wouldn't leave here alive. No matter what the cost.

____

She was getting weaker by the second.

They had been fighting for what felt like years, neither gaining the upperhand. Forces on both sides managed to exchange some light fire, but the battle that raged between Voldon and Jean was so chaotic, so fraught with energy that there were moments where neither contingent could fire a shot without risking the death of a critical member of Bracknell's order. Reinforcements from the Alliance were getting routed around the base by stealthily placed turrets and mines, but their numbers weren't reduced by too large of a margin, many of their forces trudging their way to the base; however, their aim was getting sloppier, their strategies muddling. It was as if they were losing the will to fight.

Voldon, unaware of this fortunate development, managed to block yet another overhead strike before he pushed her off with a kick to the gut followed by a ram to her chest with his shoulder. This finally knocked her to the ground, where Voldon would stand over her, saber at her throat, breath coming in ragged gasps.
"Just finish it." Soto spat, blood and spittle landing on his leg. Voldon raised the hilt of his saber to comply, but then stopped, looking back at where Kira had been just a few moments before.
"Unlike you, I have standards to uphold." Voldon delivered a solid haymaker, knocking the woman unconscious. He spied Alliance troops hesitantly moving forward, some choosing to stay in their positions of cover.
"SURRENDER, ALL OF YOU! NO MORE DEATH NEEDS TO OCCUR THIS DAY!"

Aria had bolted towards her father without thinking, without considering that it would leave her open to Bracknell’s attack. Thankfully, Yerbol drove forward and occupied his attention, which allowed her to sink to her knees carefully beside the Sith Lord, who was barely breathing.
“Never could...do as you were told.” he sighed. “Told you, you’d be the death of me one day…”
“Daddy, no we’ll...we’ll get you back to a shuttle and get a medpac on it you’ll be f-fine!” Aria choked out, feebly trying to put pressure on the wound though there would be no blood coming out of it due to the lightsaber’s almost instant cauterizing effect.
“No.” Roan managed to shake his head, murmuring. “Listen...I’ve done my bit...now you have to do yours...finish what we started...if he’s...got any brains left...he’ll be pissing himself...you two can...beat him…”
Aria wanted to protest, her hands shaking as she slowly sank back onto her haunches, glancing up at Yerbol as she felt the surge of energy flowing through her body from Renso. HE was Renso?!
“Hey.” her father was smiling. ACTUALLY smiling, for the first time she could remember since she had been a little girl. “I’m...proud of you. You’d have made...one hell of a Darth, kiddo.” and that would be the last thing Roan ever said to her.
She expected to cry. To feel utterly lost for what she would do without him. But no tears came. Only white hot, searing rage. She looked up again to glimpse Yerbol beckoning her to join him, as their eyes locked she nodded and rose to her feet, skirting carefully around Roan’s body to stand at his side.
__________________________

If murder had had a look personified, it was reflected in Aria’s eyes at that moment. And it TERRIFIED Bracknell.

His step faltered, only briefly, which gave the duo time to execute their signature move, though Bracknell quickly recovered, flinging Yerbol backwards before twisting to avoid Aria’s blades arcing straight for his neck. Strafing sideways again, he drove the hilt of his saber into her collarbone and sent Aria staggering after her counterpart, giving him enough time to step backwards and recenter himself momentarily before the duo launched another assault, which he barely managed to parry. Yerbol’s blade sliced into his right shoulder while Aria’s clipped his torso as she darted to his left.
Spinning to face them again, Bracknell’s grin began to fade. His wounded leg couldn’t take his weight as effectively, meaning he had to keep shifting every few seconds. His shoulder smarted painfully. His breath came in short, pained gasps.
Neither Aria nor Yerbol had broken out in a single sweat, their knuckles white as they clutched their weapons and shifted as if to mount another attack. Slowly, Bracknell began to inch backwards, there was an elevator here...he could escape to the hangar, flee to the planet and meet up with Soto….

“GRRRRRRRRRR!!!!” His attention snapped from the pair he had been fighting with to the two hounds that materialised behind him, blocking his path to the elevator door. Spittle dripped from their maws, ghostly crimson eyes boring into his own.
“Traaaaaaaaiiiitooorrrrrrrrr.” one hissed, their teeth gnashing together as they prowled closer. Bracknell swallowed and strafed back away from the Tuk’ata, another glance thrown over his shoulder towards Aria and Yerbol. He’d take them over the beasts any day. Holy crap, those things gave him the creeps (one of the reasons he hadn’t managed to kill Roan previously)!
A pained yelp would leave Bracknell’s mouth as the larger of the hounds lunged forward suddenly, barrelling into him with her full weight and knocking him right off his feet. He swore as his lightsaber clattered from his grasp, rolling right towards Aria, whose extended hand beckoned it there.

The crystal buried within the hilt crunched loudly beneath the sole of Aria’s foot as Bracknell staggered to his feet once more.
Unarmed. He was unarmed. The beast’s breath hot against the back of his neck, Aria and Yerbol’s sabers humming in front of him. Nowhere left to run as they all inched closer….
Slowly, he raised his hands and choked out, voice going up an octave.
“Let’s...let’s talk about this...okay? We don’t have to be unreasona-”

_____________

“Washing your hands in blood won’t take away the stains.” Aria hissed, Bracknell flinching as she raised a hand, though he would open one eye quizically as nothing happened. No lightning. No gusts of wind...no other energy manipulation. Her hand hovered, palm turned inwards, in front of Yerbol’s chest as the other gripped her remaining weapon. Wait. She wanted him to wait.

Bracknell was going to SUFFER for the things he had done. The command spoken was barely a whisper from her lips:
“Bleed him.” but the Sith hounds heard it. And obeyed.
Bracknell seemed skeptical. “You think they’ll listen to you? They only followed Roan out of fe-ARGH!” a pained cry escaped him involuntarily at the sharp cutting pain that gripped his already injured leg. Blood oozed from the two neat rows of fang marks the Tuk’ata’s teeth had left. The beasts let out chilling howls, striking again each time Bracknell tried to stand up, every impact rending another chunk from his flesh. Shoulder. Forearm. The other leg. Eyes. Throat.

Still, Aria waited, counting each bite, speaking with an eerie calmness to her tone as she paced closer still, Yerbol close beside her.
One.
“That’s for my mother.”
Two.
“And Merak.”
Three.
“Takree and Qanarr.”
Four.
“For Korriban.”
Five.
“For Tython.”
Six.
“For Lysa.”
Seven.
“For the other Masters.”
Eight.
“And for my father.”

“It’s still a quicker death than you deserve!”
Finally, the Tuk’ata paced backwards to leave the final blows to the duo, their tails lashing in excitement as they looked on and licked Bracknell’s blood from their muzzles. Aria looked to Yerbol again after her vehement final proclamation, a silent confirmation. Their sabers raised in unison, Bracknell now too weak from blood loss to do anything but brace himself for the inevitable impact as they swung downwards….
______________

Vano and her squad broke the treeline in time to witness the end of Voldon and Soto’s duel, the forces that had been riveted there to attention suddenly fumbling to re-engage in their battle. Vano’s squad hurried to raise their weapons once more as the Alliance troops crept forward, only to halt as Voldon bellowed out for their surrender. No more troops broke cover to advance.
Her sides heaving from exertion, Vano spun to face the Battlemaster, blinking away the blood that dripped into her remaining eye from a freshly opened gash (whether the culprit had been an Alliance vibroblade or a stray branch during the retreat, she could not remember).
“You’re not going to kill her…?” the Mirialan gasped out, disbelief edging her tone.

Aria had bolted towards her father without thinking, without considering that it would leave her open to Bracknell’s attack. Thankfully, Yerbol drove forward and occupied his attention, which allowed her to sink to her knees carefully beside the Sith Lord, who was barely breathing.
“Never could...do as you were told.” he sighed. “Told you, you’d be the death of me one day…”
“Daddy, no we’ll...we’ll get you back to a shuttle and get a medpac on it you’ll be f-fine!” Aria choked out, feebly trying to put pressure on the wound though there would be no blood coming out of it due to the lightsaber’s almost instant cauterizing effect.
“No.” Roan managed to shake his head, murmuring. “Listen...I’ve done my bit...now you have to do yours...finish what we started...if he’s...got any brains left...he’ll be pissing himself...you two can...beat him…”
Aria wanted to protest, her hands shaking as she slowly sank back onto her haunches, glancing up at Yerbol as she felt the surge of energy flowing through her body from Renso. HE was Renso?!
“Hey.” her father was smiling. ACTUALLY smiling, for the first time she could remember since she had been a little girl. “I’m...proud of you. You’d have made...one hell of a Darth, kiddo.” and that would be the last thing Roan ever said to her.
She expected to cry. To feel utterly lost for what she would do without him. But no tears came. Only white hot, searing rage. She looked up again to glimpse Yerbol beckoning her to join him, as their eyes locked she nodded and rose to her feet, skirting carefully around Roan’s body to stand at his side.
__________________________

If murder had had a look personified, it was reflected in Aria’s eyes at that moment. And it TERRIFIED Bracknell.

His step faltered, only briefly, which gave the duo time to execute their signature move, though Bracknell quickly recovered, flinging Yerbol backwards before twisting to avoid Aria’s blades arcing straight for his neck. Strafing sideways again, he drove the hilt of his saber into her collarbone and sent Aria staggering after her counterpart, giving him enough time to step backwards and recenter himself momentarily before the duo launched another assault, which he barely managed to parry. Yerbol’s blade sliced into his right shoulder while Aria’s clipped his torso as she darted to his left.
Spinning to face them again, Bracknell’s grin began to fade. His wounded leg couldn’t take his weight as effectively, meaning he had to keep shifting every few seconds. His shoulder smarted painfully. His breath came in short, pained gasps.
Neither Aria nor Yerbol had broken out in a single sweat, their knuckles white as they clutched their weapons and shifted as if to mount another attack. Slowly, Bracknell began to inch backwards, there was an elevator here...he could escape to the hangar, flee to the planet and meet up with Soto….

“GRRRRRRRRRR!!!!” His attention snapped from the pair he had been fighting with to the two hounds that materialised behind him, blocking his path to the elevator door. Spittle dripped from their maws, ghostly crimson eyes boring into his own.
“Traaaaaaaaiiiitooorrrrrrrrr.” one hissed, their teeth gnashing together as they prowled closer. Bracknell swallowed and strafed back away from the Tuk’ata, another glance thrown over his shoulder towards Aria and Yerbol. He’d take them over the beasts any day. Holy crap, those things gave him the creeps (one of the reasons he hadn’t managed to kill Roan previously)!
A pained yelp would leave Bracknell’s mouth as the larger of the hounds lunged forward suddenly, barrelling into him with her full weight and knocking him right off his feet. He swore as his lightsaber clattered from his grasp, rolling right towards Aria, whose extended hand beckoned it there.

The crystal buried within the hilt crunched loudly beneath the sole of Aria’s foot as Bracknell staggered to his feet once more.
Unarmed. He was unarmed. The beast’s breath hot against the back of his neck, Aria and Yerbol’s sabers humming in front of him. Nowhere left to run as they all inched closer….
Slowly, he raised his hands and choked out, voice going up an octave.
“Let’s...let’s talk about this...okay? We don’t have to be unreasona-”

_____________

“Washing your hands in blood won’t take away the stains.” Aria hissed, Bracknell flinching as she raised a hand, though he would open one eye quizically as nothing happened. No lightning. No gusts of wind...no other energy manipulation. Her hand hovered, palm turned inwards, in front of Yerbol’s chest as the other gripped her remaining weapon. Wait. She wanted him to wait.

Bracknell was going to SUFFER for the things he had done. The command spoken was barely a whisper from her lips:
“Bleed him.” but the Sith hounds heard it. And obeyed.
Bracknell seemed skeptical. “You think they’ll listen to you? They only followed Roan out of fe-ARGH!” a pained cry escaped him involuntarily at the sharp cutting pain that gripped his already injured leg. Blood oozed from the two neat rows of fang marks the Tuk’ata’s teeth had left. The beasts let out chilling howls, striking again each time Bracknell tried to stand up, every impact rending another chunk from his flesh. Shoulder. Forearm. The other leg. Eyes. Throat.

Still, Aria waited, counting each bite, speaking with an eerie calmness to her tone as she paced closer still, Yerbol close beside her.
One.
“That’s for my mother.”
Two.
“And Merak.”
Three.
“Takree and Qanarr.”
Four.
“For Korriban.”
Five.
“For Tython.”
Six.
“For Lysa.”
Seven.
“For the other Masters.”
Eight.
“And for my father.”

“It’s still a quicker death than you deserve!”
Finally, the Tuk’ata paced backwards to leave the final blows to the duo, their tails lashing in excitement as they looked on and licked Bracknell’s blood from their muzzles. Aria looked to Yerbol again after her vehement final proclamation, a silent confirmation. Their sabers raised in unison, Bracknell now too weak from blood loss to do anything but brace himself for the inevitable impact as they swung downwards….
______________

Vano and her squad broke the treeline in time to witness the end of Voldon and Soto’s duel, the forces that had been riveted there to attention suddenly fumbling to re-engage in their battle. Vano’s squad hurried to raise their weapons once more as the Alliance troops crept forward, only to halt as Voldon bellowed out for their surrender. No more troops broke cover to advance.
Her sides heaving from exertion, Vano spun to face the Battlemaster, blinking away the blood that dripped into her remaining eye from a freshly opened gash (whether the culprit had been an Alliance vibroblade or a stray branch during the retreat, she could not remember).
“You’re not going to kill her…?” the Mirialan gasped out, disbelief edging her tone.

Aria had bolted towards her father without thinking, without considering that it would leave her open to Bracknell’s attack. Thankfully, Yerbol drove forward and occupied his attention, which allowed her to sink to her knees carefully beside the Sith Lord, who was barely breathing.
“Never could...do as you were told.” he sighed. “Told you, you’d be the death of me one day…”
“Daddy, no we’ll...we’ll get you back to a shuttle and get a medpac on it you’ll be f-fine!” Aria choked out, feebly trying to put pressure on the wound though there would be no blood coming out of it due to the lightsaber’s almost instant cauterizing effect.
“No.” Roan managed to shake his head, murmuring. “Listen...I’ve done my bit...now you have to do yours...finish what we started...if he’s...got any brains left...he’ll be pissing himself...you two can...beat him…”
Aria wanted to protest, her hands shaking as she slowly sank back onto her haunches, glancing up at Yerbol as she felt the surge of energy flowing through her body from Renso. HE was Renso?!
“Hey.” her father was smiling. ACTUALLY smiling, for the first time she could remember since she had been a little girl. “I’m...proud of you. You’d have made...one hell of a Darth, kiddo.” and that would be the last thing Roan ever said to her.
She expected to cry. To feel utterly lost for what she would do without him. But no tears came. Only white hot, searing rage. She looked up again to glimpse Yerbol beckoning her to join him, as their eyes locked she nodded and rose to her feet, skirting carefully around Roan’s body to stand at his side.
__________________________
If murder had had a look personified, it was reflected in Aria’s eyes at that moment. And it TERRIFIED Bracknell.

His step faltered, only briefly, which gave the duo time to execute their signature move, though Bracknell quickly recovered, flinging Yerbol backwards before twisting to avoid Aria’s blades arcing straight for his neck. Strafing sideways again, he drove the hilt of his saber into her collarbone and sent Aria staggering after her counterpart, giving him enough time to step backwards and recenter himself momentarily before the duo launched another assault, which he barely managed to parry. Yerbol’s blade sliced into his right shoulder while Aria’s clipped his torso as she darted to his left.
Spinning to face them again, Bracknell’s grin began to fade. His wounded leg couldn’t take his weight as effectively, meaning he had to keep shifting every few seconds. His shoulder smarted painfully. His breath came in short, pained gasps.
Neither Aria nor Yerbol had broken out in a single sweat, their knuckles white as they clutched their weapons and shifted as if to mount another attack. Slowly, Bracknell began to inch backwards, there was an elevator here...he could escape to the hangar, flee to the planet and meet up with Soto….

“GRRRRRRRRRR!!!!” His attention snapped from the pair he had been fighting with to the two hounds that materialised behind him, blocking his path to the elevator door. Spittle dripped from their maws, ghostly crimson eyes boring into his own.
“Traaaaaaaaiiiitooorrrrrrrrr.” one hissed, their teeth gnashing together as they prowled closer. Bracknell swallowed and strafed back away from the Tuk’ata, another glance thrown over his shoulder towards Aria and Yerbol. He’d take them over the beasts any day. Holy crap, those things gave him the creeps (one of the reasons he hadn’t managed to kill Roan previously)!
A pained yelp would leave Bracknell’s mouth as the larger of the hounds lunged forward suddenly, barrelling into him with her full weight and knocking him right off his feet. He swore as his lightsaber clattered from his grasp, rolling right towards Aria, whose extended hand beckoned it there.

The crystal buried within the hilt crunched loudly beneath the sole of Aria’s foot as Bracknell staggered to his feet once more.
Unarmed. He was unarmed. The beast’s breath hot against the back of his neck, Aria and Yerbol’s sabers humming in front of him. Nowhere left to run as they all inched closer….
Slowly, he raised his hands and choked out, voice going up an octave.
“Let’s...let’s talk about this...okay? We don’t have to be unreasona-”
_____________
“Washing your hands in blood won’t take away the stains.” Aria hissed, Bracknell flinching as she raised a hand, though he would open one eye quizically as nothing happened. No lightning. No gusts of wind...no other energy manipulation. Her hand hovered, palm turned inwards, in front of Yerbol’s chest as the other gripped her remaining weapon. Wait. She wanted him to wait.

Bracknell was going to SUFFER for the things he had done. The command spoken was barely a whisper from her lips:
“Bleed him.” but the Sith hounds heard it. And obeyed.
Bracknell seemed skeptical. “You think they’ll listen to you? They only followed Roan out of fe-ARGH!” a pained cry escaped him involuntarily at the sharp cutting pain that gripped his already injured leg. Blood oozed from the two neat rows of fang marks the Tuk’ata’s teeth had left. The beasts let out chilling howls, striking again each time Bracknell tried to stand up, every impact rending another chunk from his flesh. Shoulder. Forearm. The other leg. Eyes. Throat.

Still, Aria waited, counting each bite, speaking with an eerie calmness to her tone as she paced closer still, Yerbol close beside her.
One.
“That’s for my mother.”
Two.
“And Merak.”
Three.
“Takree and Qanarr.”
Four.
“For Korriban.”
Five.
“For Tython.”
Six.
“For Lysa.”
Seven.
“For the other Masters.”
Eight.
“And for my father.”

“It’s still a quicker death than you deserve!”
Finally, the Tuk’ata paced backwards to leave the final blows to the duo, their tails lashing in excitement as they looked on and licked Bracknell’s blood from their muzzles. Aria looked to Yerbol again after her vehement final proclamation, a silent confirmation. Their sabers raised in unison, Bracknell now too weak from blood loss to do anything but brace himself for the inevitable impact as they swung downwards….
______________

Vano and her squad broke the treeline in time to witness the end of Voldon and Soto’s duel, the forces that had been riveted there to attention suddenly fumbling to re-engage in their battle. Vano’s squad hurried to raise their weapons once more as the Alliance troops crept forward, only to halt as Voldon bellowed out for their surrender. No more troops broke cover to advance.
Her sides heaving from exertion, Vano spun to face the Battlemaster, blinking away the blood that dripped into her remaining eye from a freshly opened gash (whether the culprit had been an Alliance vibroblade or a stray branch during the retreat, she could not remember).
“You’re not going to kill her…?” the Mirialan gasped out, disbelief edging her tone. "She'd kill you in a heartbeat if your places were switched!"

The horrific, gruesome display that Aria put on through the vengeful Tuk'ata would have normally been a bit excessive for the young Knight's tastes, but after everything that Bracknell had done to them, after he had robbed the galaxy of hope and tried to stamp it under his heel, the punishment seemed fitting. Her steely gaze met his and a moment of understanding passed between them, wordless and undefined. Within seconds, Bracknell was cut down by the duo, his already mutilated body splitting further into viscera and gore. He stood there next to her, attempting to absorb the gravity of what they had just accomplished. They didn't speak for a while, nor did they hear Abbeth's hurried footsteps towards them. It was only until he called out that Yerbol tilted his head upward:
"We need to head back! Just got a message from planetside." The Kel-Dor's face was obscured by their trademark breathing apparatus, but the smile in his next comment was visible all the same:
"They've surrendered. All of them! Neta said something about Saresh, but didn't catch very much of it...still! Surrendered!" Wiping sweat from his brow, he examined the remains of Bracknell for a brief second.
"He deserved no less." The stillness of the ship prompted Yerbol's eyes to widen.
"Cheriss! Where is she?!"
"Back at the shuttle." Abbeth chuckled.
"She looks almost as bad as Bracknell, but she's alive and just as...Cheriss as ever. She moaned something about you two owing her a great deal before passing out on the seats." A small half-smile formed on Yerbol's face.
"Sounds like she'll be fine." He sheathed his saber as he walked to the still corpse of Roan, kneeling before the father of his best friend and whispering:
"I promise you I'll keep her safe. No matter the price I have to pay."

______

"YES! YES YES YES YES!!!!" Shirt in tatters, blaster shot to pieces, blood weeping from a gaping hole in her shoulder and other assorted wounds didn't stop Neta from jumping enthusiastically in central command, those around her celebrating with cheers and roars of approval as the galaxy map, which once heralded their doom, began to display a slow retreat from the fleet, shuttles rocketing up through the now clear atmosphere that Jungze and the youngsters allowed, the group of Force users nearly collapsed in the same room they occupied for the battle from sheer exhaustion. It had happened so quickly that Neta found it hard to believe, but after Voldon secured the front of the base by defeating Soto, Alliance forces beat a hasty retreat back towards the transports they came in on. She had been at the rear of the base, helping the scant forces and one remaining turret fend off the endless invasion of troopers when the firing just...stopped. As fast as they had appeared to close in on the base, they disappeared back into the forest, the reeking scent of engine fuel seeping even more into the atmosphere as the Alliance beat a hasty retreat. She had sprinted back into the command center when a communications aide put Saresh's strained and somewhat mortified face on the holocom unit in the center of the room where the galaxy map once stood.
"Chancellor! Nice of you to finally get in touch with us."
"We need to talk."
"Wish you could've mentioned that earlier." Saresh glared at the pilot, answering:
"We were misled. I was misled. This latest campaign by Bracknell only confirms what I've suspected."
"Oh, what? That Bracknell was using you people to-"
"Like I said, we need to talk. I've ordered Alliance forces back to Coruscant and I'll be on the first shuttle out there along with a delegation...well, some of the delegation. You have the others." Neta couldn't help but smirk.
"We'll see you soon, Chancellor. By the way...don't mind the mess. Cleaning up after a needless battle can take time."

Their shuttle landed in the hangar, although the scorched walls, dead bodies and fractured weapons were all new touches to the decor.
"I'll get Cheriss to the med bay. I'm sure Neta and Elara are going to want to see you both." Once both were off the ship, Yerbol leaned forward in his seat, eyes boring into the ship's interior. What was there to say? Congratulations, we stopped the galaxy from falling apart? I'm so sorry about your father? Man, you sure know how to rip someone apart with Tuk'ata! Remind me not to get on your bad side!

What came out felt like the right thing to say:
"He loved you, Ari. I know he did." He took one of her hands into his, squeezing it gently.
"And I will-" He cut himself off, fully aware that what was ABOUT to roll off his tongue was something that he was in no position to say at the moment nor would it be the right time even if he WERE prepared to. Instead, he added:
"I'll do all I can to help you through this." He did crack a smile as he withdrew his hand and placed the same arm around her shoulders, rocking her gently as he added:
"I think I proved that I'm pretty good at helping you over the past six months, right?"

_____

The conflict might have been over, but the clean up was just beginning. Bodies were buried, tears were shed in copious amounts, walls rebuilt as much as they could be, weapon parts smelted and reformed into tools and preparations made for the incoming Chancellor of the Galactic Alliance, which made the diplomats on base very excited. Being able, as some of them put it, to "negotiate from a position of strength like this is unparalleled!" Their negotiations would begin upon Saresh's arrival, which was to be in three days time. During that seventy two hour stretch, most of those on base slept little, ate as much as possible to gain strength and worked tirelessly to mend whatever they could. He tried to check in with Aria as much as he could, but he was tugged in many different directions by those in assistance, so any time they would have had together was swallowed up by others. Finally, though, most of the base had been cobbled back together and with Saresh inbound in an hour, the chair tucked up against the lower right corner of the base became a very nice place to rest. Plopping down in his work attire of shorts and a sleeveless shirt stained with sweat, he placed his head against the wall, shutting his eyes for a quick second...

He heard sniffing. Then a nudge at his hand.
"Whaaaaat?" He groaned, looking down to find one of the Tuk'ata blankly staring at him.
"Just...stay out of trouble and let me rest, ok?"

The frenzied excitement of their attack on the pale-haired one began to die down, Chwuq and Taral slinking back to Roan as the two young ones finished their enemy off. It was over. They had won.
“Roan?” Chwuq whined, pushing her muzzle into his hand. “Rooooooaaaaannnn?”
Taral grunted, pawing at the man’s clothes. Answer us! Why don’t you answer us?! “ROAAAANNN!” They nudged him again, harder. Never bite, they remembered. Never to bite Master Roan, but if he would not answer. His visions consumed his attention, sometimes, a gentle nip could stir him. Roan did not move. Chwuq’s whine accompanied her mate’s. She dropped her head onto his chest, stared at his face, snorted again. There was no breath. There was no Force. Only empty stillness. Like the blackness that came, when there was no more pack. When the planet died. Roan was pack now. All that was left of pack.
And now there was no Roan. No Roan, only the Roan-pup who smelled like him, who did not like them...who called them nasty names. Footsteps came towards them, the Tuk’ata growling softly, tensing as they stood protectively over the body, only to recognise the smell of the boy. The strange boy, joined with the Roan-pup in a way they did not understand. They were mates, they thought, but no, not-mates, Master Roan said. Something else, something called ‘friend’. They could not understand what it meant, only that they must not attack him, sniffing warily as he approached, Roan’s pup behind him.
Would they wake him? No, nobody couldn’t wake Master Roan now. That they understood. There was no Roan, not anymore. Only the girl and the boy. Protect them, Roan had said.

They were pack now. There was still pack left.
______________________

The tomb beasts retreated from Bracknell’s tattered body as Aria and Yerbol finished him off to move towards her father’s, pawing at his robes and nudging him with their noses as they frantically tried to rouse the defeated Sith Lord. Their whining vocalizations were so confused and desperate that Aria almost felt sorry for them. Abbeth had reappeared moments earlier to inform them triumphantly that the Alliance forces down on Zinuthra had dropped their weapons in surrender. They couldn’t stay, they had to return to the others, and get Cheriss into a medbay. Abbeth said she was cut up pretty bad, he wasn’t kidding.
But if they could move quickly back to the planet, she might still make it. The Tuk’ata snapped their attention back to her and Yerbol as the Knight knelt beside her father and murmured something she couldn’t hear, the tomb beasts hauling themselves to their paws (one of them was limping...that would be fun to deal with later, she’d never had to put a bandage on a drooling dog-thing before) and trailed after the duo like lost Kath hound pups, all the way back onto the shuttle, silent but for the occasional low whine or cry of what she could only assume was grief. Her father had always ranted on and on about how they were sentient, capable of emotion and attachments. She wasn’t quite so sure they understood exactly what had happened. She still couldn’t believe it, sitting with her head in her hands as they collapsed into chairs on the shuttle and Abbeth piloted them back into the hangar.

She could hardly recognise it from the state it was in. Not that it was her main concern, her brain still trying to process those final moments as they had rounded the corner back towards the bridge again. The memory played back in her mind’s eye, over and over in slow motion. Her father was gone. She would never see him again, never hear his voice again.
“He loved you, Ari. I know he did.” Yerbol’s voice jolted her out of the reverie, Aria glancing up at him and managing to force a smile as the Knight looped an arm around her shoulders. She sighed, leaning into his embrace as she whispered:
“I just...can’t believe he’s...gone.” the words felt foreign on her tongue. He had been so powerful, so assured, Aria had always believed that nothing in the galaxy would ever be that strong that they could take Roan out of her life. And yet, in the blink of an eye it had happened. But Yerbol was still there. He would be there, he promised. She smiled again and nodded, mumbling: “He was warming up to you, you know. He thought you were alright, for a Jedi.” Aria didn’t know if it meant anything to Yerbol, but somehow it felt like it was right to tell him. Like Roan would have wanted him to know.
She wanted to stay there. Sit with him and just try to process what had happened, but they couldn’t.

Saresh would be there in three days, and people needed their help. Others were wounded or dying, the place looked like...well, a war zone, and was in no condition to receive the Supreme Chancellor. She wouldn’t see Yerbol again for what felt like hours. Aria distracted herself by helping whoever she could, but eventually she could not cope any longer with the chaos of those who were still able rushing to and fro as they tried to clean up, and slipped away. Her feet carried her down the hallway into an empty room. HIS room. Perhaps she had hoped there would be something there for her, something that would make it seem like he was still here...that he would appear in the doorway and tell her what a silly girl she had been for thinking that anything could ever hurt him. But it did. Bracknell did. Tears finally threatened to spill over as she pressed her back to the cot he had slept on and slid onto the floor, knees drawn up to her chest.

Movement in the doorway startled her and she felt a surge of hopeful relief that was quickly squashed like an ant as the Sith hounds slunk into the room and slid across the floor to join her, red eyes blinking as they thrust their noses towards her, sniffing.
“Roan?” one asked in a weak, whispery voice, spindly tendrils of Force energy prodding at the edges of her mind. Similar to the one that connected her with Yerbol, but weaker, more tattered. They had to be coming from the beasts. She remembered Roan telling her once, when she was ten, of how they could feed on Force energy. How it helped them survive in the tombs where there was hardly any other food. But they needed a connection, to a strong presence, a mutual agreement to share power. Roan had let them share his. Angrily, she shoved the tendrils away, lifting her face to glare at them with reddened eyes.
“Go away, he’s not here.” she sniffed. The Tuk’ata grunted again, pushing its nose into her ribs.
“Roan?” it repeated.
“Didn’t you hear me, I said he’s gone!” Aria began to lose her patience. The beasts didn’t understand, still they kept repeating his name, nudging her, bothering her. She wanted them to leave her alone. She wanted to be alone.
“PISS OFF!” Aria screamed at them, the tears finally spilling over as she clenched her hands into fists. “GET IT THROUGH YOUR THICK SKULLS, HE’S GONE AND HE ISN’T COMING BACK!!!”

Yelping, the two tomb beasts skittered out of the door as the room’s walls trembled with the force of her shriek. They would pace just out of her view, up and down, grunting and huffing as they watched her from afar, too afraid of being shrieked at again to approach her. Eventually, they would prowl away to search for Yerbol, instead, and she saw no more of them for the hour or so that she spent curled up in that room on her own, giving in to the overwhelming feeling of loss that tightened her chest.
She couldn’t believe she felt guilty for screaming at them. But here she was. Looking for her father’s smelly dog-things to go and APOLOGISE to them. This was new. Aria would find them fussing at Yerbol who was slumped over in a chair in the right-hand corner of the main atrium, grumbling as he swatted away a blood-caked muzzle tiredly.
She felt slightly better knowing that it wasn’t just her that was annoyed with their incessant whining. Aria made her way over, wiping the last tears from her red and puffy eyes and sniffing out an apology:
“I’m sorry, Bol. They were bugging me so I chased them off.” she plopped herself onto the floor beside the chair, back against the wall, smirking. “I didn’t think they’d go looking for you instead.”
One of the Tuk’ata hunkered down next to her, then abruptly crawled into her lap before she could say anything in protest, its nose twitching as it snuffled at the strands of hair that clung to her sweat and blood-stained cheeks.
Force, their breath stank. But underneath, if she pushed past the stench of dried blood and musty tomb-smells, a familiar smell clung to the sleek black hairs. They still smelled of him. Her jaw trembling, Aria wound her fingers into the creature’s fur, desperate to keep it close for as long as she could. They were the only thing she had left of Roan.

She wanted to cry again.

"Ah, no worries. They're growing on me...although I think we're going to have find some way to give them baths. Long, soapy, baths." He looked down at his shirt and laughed, looking to the Tuk'ata with a wan smile.
"Well, I suppose I'm being quite the hypocrite, aren't I?" The one that had been sniffing his hand now sniffed his knee, snorting a moment later.
"Oh it's not that bad!" He leaned forward and scratched behind the creature's ears, telling Aria as he did so:
"You know, I had a couple of dogs when I was growing up on Taris. One medium sized, potato shaped dog that had stumpy legs and another much larger mountain dog that had massive paws. They were fun companions, although a bit long in the tooth when we met them. My parents, according to them, had gotten both of them before we were born, so they weren't all that active...still, they were great to be around. Lysa always preferred the potato...that was his name, by the way. Potato." He patted the creature on the flanks, hand coming away with a sticky film.
"Yeah, baths are in your future." The Knight looked down to Aria, whose jaw was quivering.
"Woah, hey, hey..." He scooted down to the floor, once again placing a comforting arm around her shoulders, allowing her to lean in if she wished.
"It's ok to keep crying, you know." He motioned to the barely populated command center in the middle of the room.
"No one's going to notice...I think everyone over there is sleep walking or taking naps. Look at Reggie, he doesn't seem like he's all that into watching the map for Saresh's ship." The baby faced Reggie was currently hunched over in a chair similar to the one Yerbol had occupied, loudly snoring. Behind him, a couple of others shuffled to comm units that were silent, exchanging whispered sentiments.
"I'm sorry, by the way. For not being there for you as much as I should've been the past few days. Neta had me sprinting around the edge of the compound to make sure the energy shields weren't totally damaged, then had me rebuilding that bloody hole in the wall in the hangar. What on earth did the Alliance troopers have down here, rocket launchers? Proton cannons? Surprised that they weren't able to take down the base with that kind of firepower." A soft beeping came from the center console, prompting Reggie to snort loudly, awakening from his slumber to spot five blips heading towards them. Fumbling for the comm unit, he squeaked:
"Envoy incoming!" With that, the once quiet command center began to bustle with activity once more.
"Well, that was a short interlude." Blowing out a sigh, Yerbol looked down to his companion.
"I've got an idea I want to talk to you about. Something awesome, something grand in scope...it also involves steak." He grinned, kissing her on the side of her head before rising(he didn't think about the gesture all that much at the specific moment).
"You're gonna love it! Just gotta negotiate GALACTIC PEEEAAACCEEEEEE!!!"
"GAAALAAACTICCC PEEAACCCEEEE!!!" Bex called out as he emerged from the military wing of the complex, the duo chuckling at their inside joke.
"Gonna get it today, Bex! Gettin it TO. DAY!" The sudden burst of excitement was surprising to the once thoroughly exhausted Yerbol, but he was rejuvenated by what he had come up with for he and Aria while working around the base...well, that and knowing that their fight would soon be over. Hopefully.

_______________

The briefing room, which once saw chairs in a circle, now had rows of chairs facing each other. Saresh and her convoy of diplomats, all of which had some sign of exhaustion on their faces, sat on the side opposite the doorway. Neta and Elara greeted them, led them into the room and was about to call the diplomats in when Saresh shook her head.
"First, I need to talk to the Masters as well as Yerbol and Aria."
"Fair enough."

Once the surviving Force users came together, Saresh addressed them:
"What has occurred over the past six months has been trying. For all of us."
"You destroyed two Orders of the Force, Chancellor. Let's rephrase that a bit, shall we?" Voldon jabbed, eyes boring into the Twi'lek's skull with ferocity.
"I'm not attempting to reduce the severity of your suffering, Master Naylon, but we too had been deceived. Bracknell had grown increasingly erratic in his behavior, attempting to bully advisers, ambassadors, policy makers and the entire Senate into passing harsh, extreme measures against Force users. More and more of those who had joined the Alliance grew wary of our partnership and pushed for me to challenge him(believe me, there were MANY who left after the destruction of Tython and even more when Korriban was laid waste. Our numbers weren't as massive as they seemed). When I pressed him two months ago, he..." She trailed off for a momentary pause, gathering her thought before continuing:
"He made so much sense. Everything made sense when he spoke. It was as if a divine miracle occurred when we had first met. Total peace between Empire and Republic? I wanted nothing less." She sat back.
"But it was all for naught. The cost that was incurred by our actions was massive and I will constantly be seeking to repay those of you who fought so bravely for true peace."
"There's a 'but' coming, isn't there?" Matt quipped, brow furrowing.
"Perception of Force users has become rather slanted, to the point that we've had several planets declare a ban on those who use the Force."
"I'm aware." Voldon's jaw tightened.
"While I understand the anger and the venom Force users may possess towards the galaxy, they also will have to understand that what Bracknell and I sought to do was-"
"Stomp us out, eradicate us?!" Matt nearly shrieked, Voldon instantly clapping a hand on his shoulder to restrain him.
"Our original intent, Master Carnagie, was to establish a separation of state. We were going to call together the respective Councils and negotiate a way for both the Jedi and Sith to remain in their respective domains without interfering in the Alliance's interests." Yerbol then angrily retorted:
"Which meant taking helpless kids on transport vessels? Allowing both Tython and Korriban to erupt into civil war while sitting back on your haunches while YOU DID NOTHING?! I FOUGHT ON BELSAVIS, CHANCELLOR! I BLED WITH THOSE REPUBLIC TROOPERS AND YOU WANT TO INVALIDA-"
"YERBOL, THAT'S ENOUGH!" Voldon roared, taking in a deep breath.
"You'll forgive us, Chancellor, but we're on edge." Some of the ambassadors had recoiled in their seats from the display, but Saresh wasn't flustered.
"Understandable. This subversive war has taken a toll on your people, hence my proposition to your unified Council." She straightened her full length skirt as she continued:
"In order for the galaxy to recover, we'll need refuge cities, places where Force users can safely get help and assistance while we attempt to mend the gaping wounds of public outcry. We can have certain locales set up in the Core worlds as well as the Outer Rim and this planet...?"
"Zinuthra." Matt muttered.
"So Zinuthra. We will need, of course, experienced Force users at these locations to begin setting up. We'll dedicate resources to helping you as well."
"What's the end goal, Chancellor?"
"To hopefully integrate Force users back into mainstream society where...well, let's cross one bridge at a time, shall we?"
"We need this all in writing. You people love your 'treaties'. We want one."
"I expected as much. I'll have my people draw one up."
"No, no, we have our own diplomatic core." Yerbol added, smirking at Saresh's sigh of disapproval.
"Before we leave..." Voldon looked over at the others.
"I feel like some of us have other things they'd like to say."
"Of course."

Part of her wanted to take heed to Yerbol’s comfort, but she knew she couldn’t cry forever (and perhaps another part of it was simply the fact that she had cried so much since Yerbol had peeled off to help Neta that her eyes were scratchy and dry and she simply had no more tears to cry). She didn’t feel much like laughing, either, but her friend’s recollection of his childhood pets elicited an amused giggle from Aria. “You named your dog ‘Potato’? Poor guy.” her gaze returned to the two tomb beasts who seemed to have made themselves quite at home around the duo, Aria shifting uncomfortably under the weight of the second who had apparently gone to sleep in her lap. “They aren’t so bad once you get used to them.” she nodded in agreement. “They’re just...very large, stinky, lapdogs I guess. That happen to have a fondness for tearing things to pieces.” her nose wrinkled slightly at the general sticky and unkempt appearance of the two canines. Baths were DEFINITELY in order, she agreed. Aria dropped her head to rest against his shoulder briefly, not noticing the odor in light of their current company (and she probably smelt just as bad, having spent nearly forty eight hours in the same clothes they had returned to the planet in and not moving except to seek out her companions. Glancing down at the Tuk’ata again, she shrugged.
“Alright, you can stay. But the FIRST thing you’re getting used to is baths. And letting me brush your teeth. I’m not wandering around with dogs that smell worse than a Rancor’s back end.”
Its ears twitched and it snorted (or sneezed, she wasn’t sure), blinking at the pair in confusion.
“Buh-ruhsh?” Understandably, it had probably never seen a toothbrush in its life and had no idea what the word meant. Aria tried not to laugh too hard.
“Yes, brush.” Oh, this would be entertaining. She almost shut her eyes and nodded off then and there (forty eight hours with no sleep would do that to anyone, too), had it not been for Reggie’s sudden scramble to attention and the surge of activity within the command center again.
Aria’s lap guest was abruptly evicted (with many a snort of protest), Aria letting out a long-suffering groan of her own. “Do we HAVE to go...can’t we just stay here and sleep…?”

But no, Saresh wanted to see them personally, apparently. She didn’t understand the apparent joke between Yerbol and Bex, but the Knight’s promise of an idea of awesome proportions gave her enough motivation to haul herself to her feet and follow him into the meeting with the remaining Alliance figurehead. Their self-imposed guardians were banished to wait outside of the room, couldn’t have them terrifying Saresh and her diplomats any further after all (“Stay. You understand ‘stay’, right?” They had reiterated the word back at her and thumped their backsides onto the floor. She took that as a ‘yes’.).
______________________________

Aria was immensely grateful for the presence of chairs, and that they would be sitting down for the exchange, immediately collapsing back into one. Voldon and Matt joined the duo, Ailel not far behind them and Vano trailing in shortly after the final Jedi Master, in Cheriss’ place (who was still confined to the medbay, though the medical personnel on duty reassured them that despite her comatose state, the Dathomirian’s vital signs were stabilizing gradually). Jungze was also unharmed, though so exhausted from her combined effort to control the weather patterns in their favor that she and the younglings were confined to bed rest until they had recovered more of their strength.

Aria stayed quiet for the most part and allowed the others to begin the negotiations instead, watching the Twi'lek woman through narrowed eyes as she recounted her agreements with Bracknell and the moment his behaviour had become so brazenly unreasonable that she had come to her senses. She only sat forward as Yerbol exploded into an angry tirade, extending a hand to place it on his arm as Voldon abruptly intervened and offered Saresh another apology. Frowning at her friend in concern, Aria mouthed ‘are you okay?’, patting his arm gently to convey the best form of comfort she could in that situation. Even Voldon looked tired, and older if that were even possible, his eyes slightly sunken from lack of sleep. She remembered the news about Kira that had reached them as they had rejoined the rest of the group and could understand why.
“Took you long enough, didn't it?” Vano snorted impatiently in the silence that had settled after the outburst, hands on her hips. “You could have stopped this all, could have done SOMETHING, but you just SAT there and let them nearly wipe us off the face of the galaxy!”
“You'll forgive our reluctance to just welcome you back with open arms, Chancellor.” Ailel cut in. “But you and your associates tried to kill us and caused the deaths of some of our friends and family members; you'll understand if a simple acknowledgement of your errors is, on its own, inadequate.”

“So you're going to quarantine us to specific neighborhoods like disease-ridden refugees?” Aria gawked at the Chancellor in disbelief. “How does that put us in ANY better of a situation?”
“It’s for your own protection.” Saresh insisted, her lekku twitching uncomfortably though she maintained her calm demeanor. “While I have withdrawn all Alliance military forces and ordered a complete halt to Bracknell's execution orders there are many governments across many worlds who still view Force users as a blight on the galaxy.”
“Whose fault is THAT?” Saresh ignored the sarcastic comment from Vano and continued: “There is a strong concern that they may attempt to continue what Bracknell and Soto started. It's safer to keep you and your friends here on Zinuthra, and start slowly integrating you back into populations on non-hostile worlds until our delegates can collectively diffuse the tension this war has caused.”
“Take the diplomats back with you.” Ailel suggested after some careful thought. “The ones who defected and joined us, let them address the Senate and give testimonies to validate our innocence.”
“It would be a solid start.” Saresh agreed. “I already have contacts reaching out to settlements on Coruscant, Dantooine and Taris, to start setting up safe zones. If you have Force users who are well enough, and willing, we can arrange safe convoys to provide protective escorts for them and to help them get settled in.”
The promise of resources to help them recover went down well. Better food and medical supplies were sorely needed by the surviving resistance members, and after some more careful exchanges there were even promises of other doctors who could be sent to give assistance to the feeble gathering they had managed to amass from their supporters (there was concern for the condition of Cheriss and some other soldiers who had been fatally wounded, specialist intervention might be needed to ensure they got the best care they possibly could and maximised their chance of recovery).

Before they were dismissed, Aria recalled one more important point of concern, taking advantage of Voldon’s offer to stand and face Saresh.
“We keep Soto.” she murmured, determined to stand firm on that fact. “She has to be held responsible for the things she did.”
“Aria.” Ailel began to protest. “I know you're angry about what happened but you can't take that out on Soto-”
“Soto was just as much an instigator as Bracknell, she made the decision to go along with the plans, to help him put them in place. This has nothing to do with personal revenge. Lock her up in prison for all I care, but if they let her go who’s to say she won't join up with these hostile governments and try to rally them again, finish what Bracknell started?”
She let that question sink in, feeling herself teeter unsteadily as another wave of exhaustion hit her, grabbing onto the back of the chair she had risen out of. “Now if that's all, I'd like to go and rest while you hash out the boring political jargon with the diplomats.”

Some sleep and a change of clothes would do her a world of good, and then maybe she'd be in a respectable enough state to actually partake in this idea that Yerbol was so excited about...

-Several hours later-

The common area was stuffed to the gills with every single member of their motley crew, most of which looked exhausted beyond words, but maintaining hopeful optimism in light of the purpose of their assembly. After the diplomats had debated, argued, slammed fists against tables and gone through the normal motions of politicking, a treaty had been written up and signed by those in attendance. With the agreement in place, the Council was called in to approve the treaty, which they did with some modifications. Finally, everything was put in place and the war that had begun six months ago was officially over; the ramifications, however, would be felt throughout the galaxy for years. With the heaviness of what was to come, Neta thought it best to call a meeting for every person on base as a way of not only thanking them for their service, but informing them of the potentially bright future they could be a part of if they so chose. The pilot stood at the entrance to the base, back towards the assembling crowd as she looked out towards the lush wilderness. It was difficult to believe that she was so close to seeing her children again. She could be a mom. A full time mom. She chuckled at the thought just as someone came alongside her, nudging her gently.
"You look pensive." She smiled, nudging Yerbol back as she responded:
"Just thinking is all."
"About?"
"Not having to lift a blaster pistol for hopefully the rest of my life."
"So you think you're finished? Going to retire, riding off into the sunset on your frigid ship?" The Council members filtered in from various parts of the base to where Neta and Yerbol stood, the former patting him on the arm.
"That's the idea, honeybunch." She took a sharp inhale, exhaling just as forcefully before following up with:
"But first there's recognizing all these hard working men and women who fought for, you know, the galaxy's freedom."
"Right." Yerbol swallowed hard as he turned around, mumbling;
"You'd better give us a private goodbye." He thought he caught a shimmer in her right eye, but she wiped it away before retorting:
"I wouldn't want anything else." Smiling broadly at the group, she looked to her left and right, nodding in approval. The Council, Ari, Yerbol, Elara, Saresh, a few of the diplomats brought over to their cause...they all stood side by side in front of the gathering.

Time to say farewell.

"We've been through...well, hell. All of us. We've sacrificed everything for this cause, to ensure that the galaxy had a future to look forward to. With YOUR help, we made that reality." She paused for a moment, looking over the crowd with a rush of sentimentality.
"I know what it's like to give up everything you love to fight for a cause, to see your friends, people that worked with you side by side, sacrifice their very lives so that you could carry on their fight, so their sacrifices were not in vain. I stand in front of you now to tell you that you have shouldered their legacies in the best way possible. And I'm so, so proud of you all for that." She stepped forward a bit as she continued:
"Chancellor Saresh has authorized a memorial for all those who have fallen, monuments established on several worlds including this one, to help us remember the bold men and women who died to secure our future. While we carry their memories with us in our hearts, we must move forward, to ensure that when we reflect on our fallen friends, we can know that the galaxy actually IS being made a better place. The Chancellor, along with the Council, have drawn up measures to ensure that you all have a place to call home after this." On cue, the Chancellor began:
"Words cannot express how crippling, how devastating this conflict has been on the galaxy, on all of you. As a person elected to ensure that the people under my charge are taken care of, I failed. Miserably. But I hope that with our new found agreement and subsequent restructuring of the Alliance, we can make the galaxy a place where peace will be the only thing we know." She cleared her throat for a moment before continuing:
"There will be sanctuary cities on Dantooine, Taris and Coruscant with potentially a few more springing up for those who need the assistance, both Force user and not. We would love for you all to join us on those worlds, as well as here, to help us build refuges for Force users who will need all the help they can get. We also invite you to join the Alliance, to help us rebuild our infrastructure and aid in helping our new government ascend past the petty squabbles of both Republic and Empire. No longer are we to be torn asunder by political differences! We WILL be one government, unified together for the good of mankind." Most in the assembly couldn't help but hoot cheers of approval, applauding vigorously. Once the crowd calmed down, she carried on:
"We would also understand if you needed time to make your decision, to go home and see your families. To that end, we will be providing a sum of credits to use at your leisure. We hope to see you in our ranks, but understand if this war has taken too much of a toll on you to carry on with another struggle. I exhort you to talk to any one of us if you have any questions or suggestions for us." A rare smile cracked the Twi'lek's features.
"At this rate, your ideas would probably be just as good as my own." Scattered laughter crossed the room as Neta wrapped up:
"This is all still very much a work in progress, seeing as our good Council is still in talks about how to proceed with certain aspects of our plan, but know that their talks don't affect your timeline. Inform Elara, your new base commander, of your decision and then proceed with whatever you wish to do...and know that I appreciate you. Each one of you. Thank you...thank you from the bottom of my heart." The assembled crowd let out cries of joy that could only come from those who had been fighting a mercilessly tiring war for half a year, hugging and other forms of celebration occurring. Voldon took the opportunity to motion for Aria and Yerbol to follow him outside along with the other Force users who had stood at the front of the crowd. Once they were far enough from the base, he addressed them:
"Much has yet to be decided, but we at least have a working title." Jungze chuckled.
"Council of Elders does make us sound a bit on the aged side, doesn't it, Voldon?" The Battlemaster smirked.
"Well, I think it reflects our wisdom."
"An idealist as always." Yerbol raised a brow, asking:
"So...wait...what about Jedi? Sith?" Jungze shook her head.
"My dear, if this conflict has taught us one thing, it's that our Orders did nothing but hamstring us from dedicating ourselves to understanding the true nature of the Force. Jedi, Sith...titles mean nothing now. Well, they do for some. I don't think Cheriss will want to drop her 'Darth' title, but alas, I think there would be some distinction in being the only Darth left in the galaxy that we know of."
"What happens now?"
"We're all going to help with the restoration efforts on different worlds once we've gathered our bearings here. Malu-" He motioned to Jungze.
"Is going to try and find any survivors with a group of Alliance ships for transport."
"How fun that will be." She quipped.
"And what of us?" The young Knight asked cautiously.
"You decide that. Nothing binds you to keep fighting, but we would gladly accept the help." Yerbol nodded thoughtfully, adding to Voldon's comment:
"So you all are rebuilding...well, scratch that, creating something totally new from this ash heap Bracknell left. Sounds like something I'd like to be a part of once...well, let's just say that I'll see you when I see you." Voldon chuckled in understanding.
"And what of our Miss Saal, hmm?" Jungze drew a bit closer to Aria, placing a comforting hand on her arm.
"Surely you don't want to jump right back into the fray? Go off with Yerbol somewhere and do something young people do, like ice skate or play arcade games."
"Ice skate? Arcade games? They're not fifteen, Malu." Matt chortled out.
"Oh you know what I mean. Go enjoy yourselves. There'll always be work for you two to get done when you return from your hiatus."

She felt so much better after getting some actual sleep. Her head was clearer, rather than being a fuzzy mess of over-intensified sounds and voices, and she could ACTUALLY think straight. During that time, the diplomats had hashed out the fine details of the treaty. At first, Aria got a little nervous when Neta summoned everyone back to the command center. Oh, I went to sleep because I DIDN’T want to talk politics, Neta! she felt like shouting to the ceiling (rather than AT poor Neta), but was pleasantly relieved to find that the spec ops pilot simply wanted to convey her gratefulness for each of the people who had stood beside them and fought with them for the duration of the horrendous six months they had been at war with the Alliance. She was glad Neta had taken it upon herself to convey the thanks to them, sure that Neta was speaking for every Force user on the Council and not just herself. Aria had wanted to try and say something to convey her own gratitude for their sacrifices, but whenever she tried to think about how to put it into words she found herself falling short. Neta summed it up pretty well.

She looked up again to spot Voldon beckoning them out of the room, nodding and slipping out after him to find that Yerbol and the other members of their Council of Force users had also been summoned. Voldon presented them with the idea that he and Jungze had been discussing, of a formal “Council” being formed of the older and more experienced Force users. Aria had to admit she liked the sound of that, especially of how it differed from their previously laid out Councils. Equal say for each member in decisions to be made, rather than a constant power struggle between members over who should have more influence than their counterparts. She couldn’t help but feel proud that they had all LEARNT something from the whole experience. People who would have previously shunned or tried to kill each other had REALLY come together as allies to work towards an end goal that would benefit everyone in the galaxy. If a mystic of some description had approached her months ago before she had followed Lysa into Naga Sadow’s tomb and foretold the events that had taken place since, Aria would have laughed in their face and called them mad. But it had happened, and she was proud to say she had been a part of it.
Slow, careful footsteps came towards them, Cheriss joining them a moment later. The Dathomirian was paler than usual, and still wobbly on her feet, though she cracked a broad grin as she caught wind of Jungze’s insinuation about titles.
“No indeed, Malu, you are correct. I will make no judgement of your choices, but I earned that Darth title and I intend to take it to my grave.” she proclaimed. “Besides, someone has to pay homage to the old ways somehow.”
“You weren’t far off from it, Cheriss.” Ailel chortled in amusement, placing a steadying hand on Cheriss’ shoulder as she teetered again, leaning up against the side of the compound to keep herself upright. “You should be in the medbay.”
“I’ll be fine, I can still see straight. I didn’t want to sleep through ALL the interesting discussion.”
She looked between Voldon and Yerbol as the Knight enquired about their obligations to join (or not join) the rebuilding efforts, nodding slowly at the Battlemaster’s subsequent reply and Jungze’s query directed at her. She sighed heavily, shrugging her shoulders.
“No, no...I’ve definitely had enough of war and fighting for a while.” she agreed quietly, managing an amused smirk. Ice skating. That made her chuckle at the thought. “I dunno, we could take a trip back to Hoth.” she exchanged a knowing glance with Yerbol, whose cheeks reddened ever so slightly. She was going to excuse herself and Yerbol so they could slip away and talk about whatever it was he had planned (and whether it involved them staying together, as he had alluded previously), when Cheriss nearly lost her balance again and was subsequently ‘banished’ back to the medbay by her concerned comrades. The Dathomirian looked unsteady enough on her feet, and Aria was hoping someone would offer to accompany her to make sure she got back safely when their eyes met and Aria found a kind of urgency there, something that said ‘I need to talk to you’. Nodding in affirmation, Aria volunteered to accompany Cheriss and ensure she did as she was told; they walked the first few corners in silence, Aria allowing the still ailing Master to lean some of her weight against her side as they made their way back to the medical portion of the complex at a slow pace. Cheriss finally spoke again:
“I wanted to talk to you away from the others, about your parents.” The proposed chosen topic came as somewhat of a surprise to Aria, she had known her father and Cheriss had been acquaintances, but for the other Sith Lord to have been close enough to Roan to have known ANYTHING about her mother was new information for her. She wanted to ask other questions, too many questions, but all she managed to squeak out was:
“What about them?”
“Roan always knew you’d questioned his feelings about your mother, he never got the chance to explain it to you. He asked me to do so in his absence, before we left Zinuthra to approach the Alliance fleet...I know it might be difficult for you to believe, Aria, but he loved your mother. Very much. Perhaps too much.” the Dathomirian chuckled, stopping to lean on the wall and recover some of her breath momentarily. “Their meeting was a total accident, but I could tell as soon as I saw that look in his eye that he was smitten. I TOLD him not to play with fire but the karkin’ idiot wouldn’t listen to me.” she snorted and rolled her eyes, shaking her head fondly. “He decided that she was worth the trouble and that he’d do whatever he could to make things work despite their differing political factions...the Dark Council were most displeased with the fiasco but he had concocted this whole lunatic scheme in his head that if they just gave him enough time he could persuade your mother to switch her allegiances to the Empire and to the Dark Council. ‘She could be useful to us’, now your mother wasn’t a fighter or a violent person by any means (in fact I doubt she’d ever touched a blaster or a vibroknife in her life, much less would she know what to do with one), but I tell you, she could sell snow to a Wampa! She could indeed have made an excellent pair of eyes inside the Republic’s own forces, if he could have succeeded.”
Aria sighed. She could see where this was going.
“There’s a ‘but’ coming, right?” Cheriss nodded.
“But your mother was so patriotic, and so STUBBORN, she swore blind she wouldn’t abandon the Republic for anybody, not even your father. I thought he had more sense, but he kept insisting to the Council that he just needed more time. Always he needed more time, ‘just another month and she’ll be swearing her loyalties to the Emperor, I swear!’. Of course, one month turned into three and so on, then you came into the picture and the rest of the Council began to lose their patience. They wanted to kill her then and end it all, his attachment to her made him weak and they could see that, but you became his bargaining chip for a time. They couldn’t risk eliminating her without wasting your potential, you could have, and did, inherit his Force abilities. The Sith could use that, train you as an acolyte.” she remembered her parents fighting about her Force abilities, managing another nod. They reached the medbay, which was thankfully just as sparsely populated. Those who were well enough had long since left and the others were so badly ill they were still unconscious or pumped full of medication to pay the pair’s conversation any mind. The question was difficult for Aria to voice, but it was the one she had been desperate to know for the five years since it had happened:
“Then...i-if he loved her...why make me kill her? Why…?”
“By that time, he had exhausted all other excuses, Aria. Your mother was safe as long as their attention was on you, watching your progress. That’s why he spent so much time tutoring you even though he really shouldn’t have. It’s just as well you and Vano got on so well and that he could train you together or they might have had his head for shirking his REAL apprentice’s training in favour of yours. But after you turned sixteen, Roan was out of time. The Council would not accept any more of his excuses, and if he wouldn’t act to remove the threat to the Empire your mother had become with the things she knew of the Dark Council through spending time with him, the rest of us were to take matters into our own hands and do it for him.” Cheriss sat on her appointed bed, her features creasing into a wan smile. “He would have fought off every single one of them to protect you both, run away with you somewhere remote and shielded you from them if he could have...but perhaps like we all were back then, he was neck-deep in the philosophies and he couldn’t see another way out. You have to understand that it was the hardest decision that your father ever had to make in his lifetime and he HATED himself for it afterwards, but he was convinced that your mother was safer dead than she ever would have been alive. If he had tried to sneak her away somewhere she would have spent the rest of her life hounded by the Dark Council until we finally tracked her down and then it would not have been a pleasant end for her. Assigning her as your target for your trials would make it quick and as painless as he possibly could without doing it himself….he would have spared you that grief if he could but he didn’t have it in him to lay a finger on her. Even asked me if I’d do it, once. I wasn’t going to put my neck on the line for him when I warned him in the first place not to start all of this.” Cheriss sighed again, reaching into a pocket in her robe to fish something out, which she turned over a few times in her hand. “So I suppose I owe you an apology as well, for my part in it.” she extended the hand towards Aria, palm opening to reveal the delicate gold chain that sat there, suspended on the end was a single cluster of gems, as dark as the night sky but which still shimmered with faint blue and purple hues as they caught the light. “This was your mother’s, she gave it to Roan just before he took you to the Academy. He never took it off.” a small, amused smirk crossed Cheriss’ face. “He thought none of us ever noticed, but we did. He wanted you to have it, if he didn’t make it off that ship.”

It was a lot for Aria to process, the young Force user pensively quiet as she picked up the pendant and closed her fist around it protectively, clutching it close to her heart. She wasn’t normally one to wear jewellery, but this would be different. Now at least, she had something from both of them.
“Alright, that’s all I had to say, so you don’t have to hang around. I’m sure you have better things to do than keep pestering the last Darth in the galaxy.”
Aria couldn’t help but grin teasingly at the remaining Darth, quipping:
“You’re still not dropping it? Well, fine, but don’t complain in twenty years time when all the kids are laughing at you for having a ‘funny name’.” that earned her an (affectionate) clip around the ears from the Dathomirian, who also nearly passed out again from the effort of the movement, shutting her eyes as she sagged back against the pillows. Aria paused in the doorway, turning to smile over her shoulder.
“Cheriss...thanks. I...I needed this.”
“I know.” the former Sith Lord waved her off. “Now go on, go and join your friends. I’m sure we’ll all be seeing each other again at some point in the future.”

She found Yerbol again, not far off from where the group had still been gathered, sidling up to join him and murmur. “So….what now?”

Yerbol felt Aria sidle up next to him just as Aliel had finished a thought about one of the settlements, the question about to be answered by the young Knight when Voldon called their impromptu meeting to a close:
"I need to check on Kira, but the ideas we've talked about so far have been excellent. I dare say we might have a chance at making this stick."
"And I'm inclined to agree." With a few other phrases of affirmation, the first Council meeting ended, the force users dispersing to various parts of the compound just as Yerbol felt a sharp jab in his ribs.
"I hate it when you do that!" He protested, turning to find Neta with a sad half-smile on his face.
"I had to get it in one last time."
"Last...time?"
"Well, ok, that's melodramatic, but the last time for...well, Force knows how long. C'mon, kiddos, walk with me." Yerbol looked to Aria with a shrug, whispering while they followed their spec ops friend:
"I didn't plan any of this with her." They wound their way around the outside of the base, past the firing range, the hangar and up a dirt path leading up towards some of the vistas that were used not only for recon, but for ships to land for supply drops and to be worked on by technicians in case the hangar was full. Strolling in silence for a few more minutes helped them end up at a cliff overlooking the lush wilderness below. Perched about a hundred yards from the edge of the cliff was Neta's ship.
"The XS Stock light freighter, modified to beyond the afterlife and back. I found this...well, correction, inherited it from a smuggler who had double crossed me on a particularly sensitive operation where he tried to take both his and my share. Needless to say, he departed this world and I took what I felt what was rightfully owed to me." She nostalgically sighed.
"That was five years ago. So much has happened since then and I..." She shook her head, turning to face the duo.
"I'm done. I miss my kids, I miss waking up in the morning and not having to worry whether or not they'll have a mom to see again, I miss not having to reach for my comm unit and hope, no, PRAY, that I didn't have to shuttle Rodian refugees from a dying planet because their government was falling apart and the Republic refused to help." An exhausted laugh escaped her throat.
"I AM going to miss you two, though. Didn't think I would have to be in the remote position of wanting to miss you two when I first met you, but..." She placed a hand on both of their outside arms.
"You two have the purest, most courageous hearts I've ever seen. To want to take on the galaxy and then to WIN?!" She chuckled, squeezing their arms lovingly.
"AND to see that the power you both have is being used responsibly? The galaxy is so lucky to have you two around." Her eyes sparkled with gratefulness as she let go, motioning to the ship.
"But to help everyone in the galaxy, you've got to have a ride, right? Can't take public transport anymore. So, she's yours." Yerbol's jaw dropped.
"She's got a bit of a steering issue sometimes and the hyperdrive, as you know, will whine if pressed too hard, but I figure that you can work around that."
"Neta-"
"Yes, I'm sure. I'm not going to need a reminder of what I had to do after Vivi died. I've got enough money to get a small corvette class ship for me and the kids plus a lot more. I want this ship to be associated with you two. I want people to see this thing crossing the sky and know that good is being done on their planet." She cackled a bit, adding:
"Man ALIVE, I'm such an idealist. Maybe that's why I gravitated towards you two." The smile that had formed from the cackle broadened.
"I may be leaving now, but I'll always be there for you two in whatever way I can." She drew closer to Aria as she followed up with:
"Alderaan is nice this time of year. You ought to come by in a couple of months. The kids would love you." Her eyes misted over as she took Aria in an embrace, holding her tightly as she whispered:
"You're loved by so many, Aria. Please don't forget that." A few silent moments passed in the embrace before Neta pulled away, saying with wink:
"And take care of sweet cheeks here, ok? He needs a good woman around to keep him in line." Yerbol cleared his throat as Neta pulled him into a hug.
"Be careful out there, baby boy." Yerbol nodded into her shoulder as they shared one last moment together before she took a step back, wiping her now reddened eyes.
"I'm leaving on the first transport out in a couple of hours, so make sure you come wish me good luck, ok?" As she walked past them, she slid a comm unit into Aria's right hand, calling out while making her way back to base:
"I'll always be there!"

It took a few minutes of processing, wiping away a few tears and silently sitting up against the base of a tree, but it seemed like the initial wave of emotion over Neta's leaving had slightly passed, prompting Yerbol to remember that he had an idea...one that actually tied rather well to Neta's gift.
"Hey, so...remember I told you I had an idea? One that I told you that you would love?" A smile framed his features as he continued:
"So, we're basically free of responsibility for a while, right? No wars, no Bracknell, no Renso(that we know of), nothing. This would be the PERFECT time to take some vacation...and I know exactly where to go. I want to go see my parents. On Taris." He held up a hand.
"Now before you say 'Wait, isn't that where one of the settlements is going to be?', I'll counter with the notion that my parents are situated on a terraformed side of the planet close to a Republic(now alliance?) base that was barely populated to begin with...and even a that, they're a few miles away in a quaint little settlement nestled around groves of orange trees and sweeping plains and...well, what Taris probably looked like before the Imperial fleet bombed it to pieces. It's beautiful country out there and I think it would be good for the both of us to be in a place where we can just be, you know?" His voice dropped a bit as he continued:
"I'd understand if you wanted to go off somewhere by yourself to process everything that's happened...I mean, I'd get it. I'd miss you terribly, but I would totally get it."

As the meeting dispersed and it seemed she and Yerbol would have some decisions of their own to make, turning to find Neta had joined them, seeming a bit sad. Aria nodded slightly as she and Yerbol accompanied their former pilot, taking a (for once) leisurely stroll through Zinuthra's wilderness in silence until Neta led them to an expanse of cliffsides overlooking the rest of the plains, where the spec ops soldier had left her ship (that Aria had silently and affectionately dubbed “the Ice Box”, not very creative true but it gave her a chuckle or two when she thought about it). She remained quiet as Neta reflected on her own memories, pleased to hear that she was considering returning to her kids, it didn't take much to tell that Neta was very fond of them and she had an immense amount of respect for the woman being able to stay away from them for so long, to risk everything she had in order to help the resistance to make the galaxy a better place for everybody. Nothing could have prepared her for what Neta said next.
Like Yerbol, at first Aria could only gawk at the red-headed woman in shock. After roughly half a minute of silence for Neta's words to sink in, she finally piped up in protest:
“Ne-Neta! No...Neta you can't give us your ship!” she sighed, raking a hand through her hair as the redhead shook her head and firmly insisted that she was one hundred percent certain of her decision. They could hardly refuse the offer, especially considering the tearful scenario they now found themselves in. All they could do was say thank you and promise to take care of the quirky freighter. Aria managed a choked up laugh of her own, returning Neta's embrace she mumbled:
“We're gonna miss you, too, Neta. This won't be the last you see of us, I promise.” she smiled at the offered invitation, affirming that they would visit her and her kids in the near future.

Dammit, she'd cried enough for one day, but since Yerbol had started crying a bit after they parted ways with Neta again, she couldn't help it. Yerbol finally brought forward his idea of wanting to go see his parents, then asked if she would accompany him, nervously waiting for her response. Tucking Neta's leaving gift into a pocket, she smiled and squeezed the Knight's shoulder comfortingly. “No it...it sounds like a lovely idea. I promised we'd stick together if that's what you wanted, and I meant it.” she hadn't forgotten their last walk together nor the things they had talked about during it (despite not fully understanding her own feelings yet, she intended to honour that promise, both that they'd stay together no matter what and that they should take time to try and figure out exactly WHAT had happened between them to make everything feel so...different about their friendship, or whatever it was now.)

“Well, guess we'd better think about getting stuff together, then. And fetching the dogs.” she chuckled softly at the thought of the two Tuk'ata, probably searching high and low through the compound trying to find them. “We're going to have to give them a bath first, though.” she certainly wasn't going to have them looking in their current state if they'd be accompanying the duo to go and see Yerbol's parents.
They ambled back to the base at a leisurely pace and quickly managed to find the dark-furred creatures, however tending to the male’s limp and cleaning them up a little turned out to be trickier than even they had predicted. It involved (quite literally) wrestling them to the floor and pinning them down in order to get a toothbrush anywhere near their teeth (they were stronger than they looked and Aria had to enlist Yerbol's help to hold them down and tackle them one at a time) but about an hour later they were less bloodstained and no longer coated in a sticky layer of...whatever in Force that had been stuck to their fur. Aria had nearly been bitten twice, which was quickly solved by sharp reprimands (“bite me again and I'll knock your karkin teeth out, understand?”).

Having had enough emotional farewells for one day, she had suggested that they slip back out and head off as soon as possible, though they would be stopped by another voice shouting out from the atrium as they made for the exit:
“So you thought you could just leave without saying goodbye, did you, Saal?”
Aria groaned softly, turning to face the Mirialan as Vano jogged up to them.
“That was the idea.” she muttered, slugging her in the shoulder with a playful fist.
“C'mon, I won't keep you long.” Vano insisted, dragging her into another hug.
“Oof!” Aria grunted softly, managing to return the hug. “You doing okay?” she enquired, knowing that Roan's absence had been hard on her as well. Her father had been Vano's mentor and the pair had always been close to him and to each other.
“I'll live. You two are heading out to have a break I hear?” her remaining eye passed over Yerbol, twinkling knowingly before she tugged on Aria's arm, imploring her:
“You had better write, or call or...something, you hear? Once a month!”
“That's a little excessive…” Aria protested, “But regularly, I promise.”
“Good.” Vano's features split into a grin, pulling Aria aside for a moment to whisper:
“Y'know, I'm starting to think it's a good thing my brother died when he did; watching you prance off into the sunset with some ‘Jedi punk’ would have probably killed him.”
“We aren't prancing off-” Aria bristled in protest, Vano quickly cutting her off.
“Please, EVERYONE on base has seen the way you two have been making eyes at each other the past few months, you can't even deny it any more.”
Aria felt the blood rushing to her face, and didn't dare turn around and risk Yerbol seeing.
“I have NOT!”
The Mirialan raised her hand in a final wave of farewell, retreating with a final cackle of:
“Suuuureeeee, you remember that when you're writing out the wedding invitations, Aria!” and fleeing before Aria could lunge for her again.
Clearing her throat awkwardly, Aria turned back to Yerbol and muttered.
“She's mad as a rabid Krayt Dragon, don't mind her. Let's uh...let's get outta here before anybody else gets any ideas shall we?”

Yerbol didn't have to imagine what Vano was teasing Aria about, but her yelling about wedding invitations certainly confirmed it.
"I think I've figured that out by now." He smiled knowingly as one of the Tuk'ata(the male...Taral! That was his name!) bumped his foot, scratching at Yerbol's shoe.
"Alright, alright, we're going." An appreciative snort came as both beasts fell alongside the duo, one on either side. Waving and shouting sentiments back at those who launched them at the pair, Yerbol couldn't help but feel a wave of jaded nostalgia flow over him while calmly walking up the path they had trodden so many times before in anticipation of getting supplies to those who needed it or intercepting political prisoners who had managed to escape confinement or...well, the list could go on for a long while, but Yerbol couldn't help but appreciate what they had accomplished on Zinuthra. While the planet may have been a monument for the True Sith, it was now a beacon of hope for the future of the galaxy. He wanted to share his thoughts with Aria, but something else came to mind when they arrived at the overlook with Neta's(no, their) ship. Catching a glimpse of the glistening mountains, he spoke, slightly shifting his pack of belongings:
"Your Dad deserves something for all of us to remember him by. A monument, a statue, something...I don't know, what would he want?" An idea clicked in his brain.
"I've got it. Come on, get onboard. We're not leaving the planet juuuuust yet."

He chided himself for not thinking of it before, looking out over the landscape beneath the ship as he kept a watchful eye on the radar screen. When a series of triangles appeared, he took the ship down into a valley adjacent to the one that their base was situated in, separated by the massive mountains that surrounded the freighter as it gently touched down right at the foot of one such imposing structure.
"You remember this place? A few months ago...your dad, you and I came here to do some more research about the properties of the crystals buried in the mountains. Maybe we can hew out one of the crystals, emblazon it with an inscription and leave it in the center of this clearing? A testament to a man who you loved dearly and helped us take down the biggest threat to galactic peace possibly ever." He rose from the pilot's chair before taking off his overshirt to reveal a sleeveless shirt underneath, preparing for potentially sweaty work.
"Unless you want to do something else? Cause I'm all ears."

Aria was all to pleased to skitter out of the compound and back to the ship, only to stop abruptly before the overhang at Yerbol's unexpected suggestion. In the back of her mind, she had considered the idea herself, but every time she tried to think about it in any great detail Aria found herself feeling upset again and she quickly had to abandon her train of thought or risk sinking back into that horrible feeling of all-consuming despair again. Though her throat tightened slightly, she found that Yerbol quickly ushering her onto Neta’s (it’d take a while to get used to calling the freighter ‘theirs’, it still seemed strange) ship and proclaiming that he had come up with an idea of his own helped her to maintain her calm demeanour.
It wasn’t long before they landed again and Aria found that they were in a very familiar valley. She nodded slowly as she let her gaze sweep over the peaks, letting out a quiet contemplative sigh. “Yeah, yeah...I remember.” Aria murmured, nodding her head. Glancing sideways at her friend, she stepped forward to head towards their last dig site, it would be the easiest place to start. “Then let’s find the best one. It’s got to be perfect.” she mumbled, crouching down there and scanning over the exposed crystals that glistened in the rock face. She looked thoughtful again for a moment, her jaw quivering slightly as she swallowed the lump forming in her throat and spoke up again:
“I’ve got an idea, something….something similar. I...I don’t know if it’d work but we must be able to work it out with the Force somehow.” her hands were shaking ever so slightly as she plucked the saber from her belt; it felt heavy in her hands, and the sharp curve in the hilt made it awkward to hold, she never understood how he had managed it, or why her father had chosen to build a hilt with such a design flaw in the first place. She’d never gotten the chance to ask, she wished she had. But there was no time to think of that now. Aria managed to activate the blade, letting out a quiet breath before she drove it into one of the fissures they had made on their previous excursion, letting it imbed in the facets of the crystals. After murmuring a few quick words and some careful restructuring of the crystal’s molecules to ensure it would not come out of place, she sat back again.
“I-I was going to keep it but…..the crystal probably wouldn’t re-imprint to me and I can’t figure out how you’re supposed to hold a hilt that shape anyways.” she glanced at Yerbol again and smiled. “I guess it’d also be like part of him was still here, watching over everyone. We could carve a little inscription underneath.” she suggested.

She felt better afterwards, like the weight of Roan’s loss wasn’t pressed quite so heavily down on her shoulders. She didn’t need the saber. She could do this. Keep going. They’d won, now. It was time to go and relax and….do things normal people did. And meet Yerbol’s parents. She tried not to overthink that part on their trip to Taris, instead occupying herself by focusing on their piloting. It seemed like barely a day had passed before the planet loomed into view. Suddenly her nerves got the better of her and she jumped to her feet as Yerbol shut off the engines, flitting back towards the map console, where both Tuk’ata lifted their heads in surprise and snorted at her in concern. She waved them off and they returned to their nap, Aria pacing back and forth until Yerbol joined her again, flashing her a concerned look.
“I-I don’t think I can do this, Bol…” she mumbled, teeth sinking into her lower lip. “What if...what if they don’t like me or they think I’m weird or a bad influence on you…?” No. No, she HAD to do this, she kept trying to tell herself. They were just his parents, for Force sake, she’d faced far worse things: murderous, backstabbing acolytes, bloodsucking tomb beasts, a TIE fighter crash, intangible apparitions and a vindictive Sith Lord trying to wipe them off the face of the galaxy, and yet the thought of engaging in conversation with her best friend’s parents terrified her more than ALL of those things put together...

"Not only watching, but making sure that no one made any strategic mistakes...or misplaced the mass amount of scrolls, parchments and holocrons we retrieved from Quensu. Because I think he'd be guarding those ferociously." He returned the smile, placing a hand softly on the middle of Aria's back and rubbing it gently for a few moments, allowing the solemnity of the occasion pass over them. He hoped she could get some kind of closure from the incident, to spark the kind of healing she would need to move forward.
"And I don't think you'd need his saber to keep him in your heart." He snorted a chuckle.
"Aaaand I'm fairly certain he would've mocked me for being sentimental, but oh well." Another couple of minutes passed.
"Whenever you're ready, just say the word. We can stay as long as you'd like."

__

Journeying to Taris was strange on a number of levels, one of which included passing by Neta's old quarters and realizing that not only was that room theirs, but the ENTIRE ship was going to serve as their mode of transportation from here on out. She had of course taken all of her supplies and personal effects except for a small holocron that was in the cockpit with a slip of paper attached to it that proclaimed in Neta's hurried scrawl:
"Data terminal in Coruscant. Think you'll like what you find." The cryptic message was then followed by coordinates that could be plugged into a navigation unit, the duo affirming they would explore Neta's parting gift when they were done on Taris. Other than the small surprise, however, things were deadly quiet. Coming from the ordered chaos of Zinuthra to the stillness of hyperspace was a surreal experience, one that prompted him to do a number of things that he didn't necessarily have the luxury of doing while on Zinuthra. Like shower for more than five minutes or play Sabaacc with Aria or even try to talk to the Tuk'ata, which produced more snorting and groans than anything. In summary, it was peaceful.

And it was almost uncomfortable.

Speaking of discomfort, with Taris coming up on their radar, Aria began to pace in the war room, doubting whether or not she could meet his parents.
"Hey, we're in the same lifeboat here. I haven't seen them in fourteen years and I...i'm terrified to think that with the way Bracknell came after us that he found out about my parents." He exhaled vehemently, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"But, my dear, we're going to be fine, right? Idealism is what got us to topple the biggest threat to galactic peace and so help us if it's not going to be what helps us make it through this. I mean, it's going to be fine! Fine!" A nervous laugh followed his attempted reassurances, making his way back to the cockpit to preoccupy his thoughts with landing.
"Now where was the base again?"
____

After getting some directives from Alliance customs, who had reached out to the ship for landing authorizations, they parked their new vessel in the hangar of Republic Outpost Echo. Once off the ship, they were greeted by a retinue of Alliance troopers who took one look a their lightsabers and almost all smiled collectively. Apparently the past six months had featured a joint effort between a few Republic and Imperial bases to try and house any Force sensitives that were planetside or in the vicinity. As base commander Mylo Igera put it: "It took mass genocide, but the Republic and Empire finally managed to put aside their differences to buck the system...and it felt really good." Indeed, what was once a Republic base now had Imperial accented voices humming alongside the normal bustle. Optimism was the order of the day now that Bracknell was out of the picture and it made Yerbol feel all the more satisfied that he and Aria had fought as hard as they did. Maybe, JUST maybe they would have lasting peace. Maybe.

In regards to his parents, Mylo informed the duo that they were indeed alive and well, having checked in on the settlement census about a month ago. They received directions to the settlement, hopping on speeders not a moment after and slicing through the verdant Tarisian countryside for about a quarter of a mile before a cluster of homes appeared on their right, their circular shaped roofs packed in via a stone wall that surrounded the settlement for what Yerbol assumed were protective purposes. When they got to the entrance and dismounted, Yerbol's face broke into a grin.
"Dad had been talking building something like this. To protect us all from those 'infernal Rakghouls!'" He chuckled in nostalgia, approaching the thick, grey barrier and walking through the unguarded entrance to find his home just like he remembered it...well, with many more settlers, gardens and other evidence of a booming population(for Taris). Just about fifty yards off was a broad shouldered man gesturing vividly to a smaller man in stature, the latter nodding in agreement with the broad shouldered man, whose short hair was a mixture of grey and black. Yerbol could hear the enthusiasm as the man spoke:
"You see that, Earl? If we can get the Alliance to agree to this, then we'd have everything we need!"
"I'll get it all worked out, Vol, see if we can't get a vote on it." The man named Vol clapped a hand on Earl's shoulder.
"Always the resourceful one." Earl strolled away, prompting Vol to turn around, his blue eyes dancing with a kind of youthful mirth that was unquenchable. His navy colored t-shirt and khaki colored shorts showed off toned musculature that, if one looked closely, had stretch marks from a time much more muscle occupied the body than now. Yerbol's hand trembled as he made eye contact with the older man, who squinted a bit, then drew closer. Yerbol managed to choke out:
"Hi Dad." Without a word, Vol threw his arms around the boy, cheering loudly as he squeezed his son tightly in his arms.
"I can't believe it." Vol muttered tearfully, withdrawing from the embrace and planting a hand on his son's cheek.
"My goodness you've grown. I suppose that's what'll happen when you fight off evil for a living, including toppling an Empire." Yerbol's brow furrowed.
"So you did know..."
"Your face was all over the holonet! My son, a terrorist!" He threw his head back and laughed, telling his son:
"I knew you were out there doing good. I knew that Tython and Korriban and this premise of genocide wouldn't go unpunished and you! You did it!" He then looked to Aria with a knowing smirk.
"And this must be Aria, your partner in this whole affair." Without warning, Vol hugged the young woman, although not as hard as Yerbol in order to preserve her spinal integrity. As he withdrew, he told her:
"You've got some guts, kiddo. Not in regard to restoring order to the galaxy, but to putting up with this lug! It was hard enough to do at home."
"Dad..."
"What, can't I embarrass you? I'm your father, it's in my genetic disposition. Now come on, your mother is going to want to see you."

Yerbol echoed her own doubts, which surprised Aria a bit at first but after she had taken time to think it through (of course he hadn't seen them in that long, had she completely forgotten how he had told her he didn't have the time to return to Taris before receiving Lysa’s message?) she found it was slightly liberating that she wasn't the only one on edge about the meeting that lay before them. She flashed a nervous smile of her own back at her companion and nodded. “Yeah, fine.”
_________________

For a moment, she had been worried they wouldn't even FIND the base in the first place, since she had absolutely no inkling of the Republic outposts on the planet and Yerbol couldn't seem to remember where it was either. Thankfully, there were people on duty in the relay towers that were able to direct them to a safe docking area, and from there they simply had to ask a few questions to find out where they should be headed.
Aria implored with the two Tuk'ata to stay with the ship. This would be difficult enough already without potentially frightening Yerbol's parents to death if they were to lay eyes on the two hounds. They had been less than keen, grumbling and whining in protest about ‘danger’ this and ‘not safe’ that, though were eventually coerced under premise that the duo would be nowhere near any Rakghouls.
“Thank you.” Aria had smirked as she scratched both behind an ear. “...guess I gotta come up with better names than ‘Stinkface’, huh?” she had teased them as she wracked her brains trying to remember the names Roan had given to them (they were odd words, difficult to enunciate...with some effort and help from Yerbol she had concluded the male’s name was Taral and the female’s Chwuq. Try saying those in a hurry.)

As they stepped out into the spaceport of base Echo, not only were they greeted personally by the base commander (who grinned like a buffoon after spotting the signature weapons clipped to their belts), but were also presented with an image of Chancellor Saresh occupying every large screen in the port as she made some kind of announcement over the HoloNet. Behind her, images of Zinuthra, the Alliance fleet, Soto, Bracknell, and some of the key instigators of the Rebellion (including herself and Yerbol, the other Masters and so on) flashed up periodically to illustrate Saresh's topic of speech. The older Twi’lek was attempting to offer a public address since the pair had left her with the diplomats on Zinuthra, apparently to try and salvage whatever remained of the reputations of the rebel leaders after Bracknell had made sure to stamp their names into the mud.
“....and so I must be the one to admit that, regretfully, we misjudged the actions of these so-called rebels in favour of Lord Bracknell's lies. Once again I must reiterate my deepest apologies on behalf of all that remains of the Alliance government, to these people who have been working so tirelessly towards true peace in the galaxy, and to their families who have been separated from them and unable to reconcile. We understand that a simple apology will in no way make up for our former actions but hope that the sanctuary program can begin to mend the rifts that have been caused between Force users and the rest of us, and give you the opportunity to return to your families in the near future.” Saresh was finishing as they completed their exchange with Mylo and made their way to the settlement.

Aria couldn't help but grin in return at Yerbol's sentiment as they left the speeders at the entrance and made their way inside.
“Well, must be having some effect,” she remarked as she let Yerbol take the lead. “I don't see any Rakghouls around right now.” for which she was glad, she remembered the spindly-framed, diseased creatures with their sickly white complexion and razor sharp black talons. Almost reminiscent of the Ice demon creatures native to Quensu, she thought suddenly, and was extra glad that there appeared to be none nearby. As they rounded the corner to where Yerbol said he had remembered his house being, it wasn't difficult for her to see the resemblance between the broad-shouldered man and Yerbol. She had been going to offer some form of comfort and encouragement to Yerbol, but was forced to inch backwards as his father approached and immediately drew the young man into a hug so tight it made Aria wince sympathetically. Though she was of course relieved that Yerbol's dad seemed to be making light of the whole ‘terrorists bent on destroying our hard won peace’ fiasco, perhaps they hadn't lost faith in him like he had feared. As Vol released his son and addressed Aria instead, she smiled and returned the embrace as best she could, that explained where Yerbol got what she liked to call his ‘death-grip hugs’ from. Thankfully she was used to the being lifted off the ground in such a manner that Vol’s hug did little more than momentarily knock the breath out of her lungs.
“Yessir.” she chuckled nervously, tucking a stray strand of hair back into place behind her ear. “It's an honour to finally meet you, Yerbol talks about you a lot.” the young Knight appeared to be embarrassed enough by his father's teasing, she figured she could do no worse but that she should also attempt to defend his honour a little:
“Although I have to admit he's been very good company, I'd be in far worse shape if I didn't have him looking out for me.”
She tried not to stutter, or laugh too often, anything that would give her nerves away. She had never noticed it before, perhaps because she had always been in the company of others like Roan, Vano and Elara whose accents were just as heavy as her own, but FORCE did she drawl like an Imperial. Surrounded by an entire base full of Republic citizens, she was painfully aware of the abrasive edge to her voice and tried to minimise it in the least awkward-looking (and sounding) way possible. Already she was wishing a massive hole would open underneath her feet and swallow her whole. Great start, Ari. Drawl at them like a complete bantha-brain, great start. She hoped her face wasn't as red as it felt.

If Vol thought anything of it he made no mention as such and simply beckoned them inside to meet up with Yerbol's mother as well. She caught Yerbol's concerned gaze out of the corner of her eye as the duo trailed in after Vol and smiled back at him, managing a quick thumbs up gesture that would hopefully convey their previous assertions before they had disembarked from Ne-...their ship.
Everything’s going to be fine….we can do this.

"Well that's good to hear! I tried to teach him how to look out for other people and I thought that the Jedi would only enhance the start I gave him." He clapped his son on the shoulder playfully as he motioned for them to follow him.
"Now come on in. Mom's out back." The home was circular in shape, but had a couple of branching hallways with doors open that revealed rooms of much larger size than normal settlements. It was apparent that Vol had done some work, Yerbol commenting:
"What'd you do, double the square footage of this place? Lysa and I barely had enough room to make it to the kitchen without bumping into stuff."
"Saresh had always been very generous when she was governor of Taris, but even more when Chancellor. A few years ago she mandated a specific line of transport vehicles to bring us whatever we needed, hence-" He motioned to the brushed stainless steel facade of the cabinets in the kitchen, which was further on from the living room that greeted them when they entered.
"Now wait a minute, I want to bring her in." There were two beige couches, one of which had stitching coming out of it, Yerbol chuckling.
"I did that. I think Lysa and I were horsing around and I tried to grab onto the couch and...well, it didn't work out." The seating arrangements were shaped in an "L", a monitor mounted to the wall facing the longer couch. The monitor was on mute, but displayed news coverage with subtitles at the very bottom in Basic. This time there was a feature story on the discovery of gang issues on Quesh and how said gangs were severely hampering the Alliance's efforts in mining resources.
"Always someone there to make others miserable." Yerbol commented sardonically, casually examining the coffee table situated in the center of the room.
"No scholarly magazines? Weird. Must've filed them all away...or Mom made him give them up." He expounded a bit more on the premise:
"Dad was a professor at Coruscant Academy for a long time. Taught Economics and Philosophy before marrying Mom and deciding he wanted to put into practice what he learned. 'Better to die knowing you made a difference than live knowing you never will!' Still kept up with the trade, though." A surprised gasp floated in from the kitchen, Yerbol's throat suddenly filling with what felt like a multitude of frogs. Vol beamed at the duo as he motioned to a woman about ten inches shorter than Vol, her shoulder-length hair a collection of light brown, red and grey, dark, piercing eyes looking over the two before she put a hand over her chest, face crinkling as tears ran down her cheeks.
"My baby boy..." She croaked, approaching him and taking his hands in her own, squeezing them gently before embracing him.
"Hey, Mom." He whispered, the phrase the only thing he could muster as the emotional gravity of what was occurring washed over him. They stood there for a while, silently hugging before she withdrew.
"I'm so happy you're alright." Her voice had a musical lilt to it, as if she were singing every other word.
"Aria made sure of that." The mother hugged Aria as well, drawing her close as she said softly:
"Thank you, my dear." The making of a teasing smirk formed on her lips as she looked to her son.
"It's nice to know someone is watching over him. I'm all too aware of what he can get into."
"Mom, you too?" Volgorl and his wife chuckled, the former placing an arm around his beloved and addressed Aria:
"Names are in order, aren't they? I'm Volgorl and this is my beautiful wife, Tabitha." She playfully slapped him on the chest.
"Don't worry about formalities around here. Life is too short for hierarchy to get in the way, so our first names will do." Vol added, Tabitha slipping away from her husband as she called out:
"You two just made it for tea. Sit down..." She took a backwards glance at her son.
"I think we have a lot to catch up on."

So much was exchanged at the wooden table. Laughs, tears, sentiments, stories, all of it occurring over seemingly endless cups of tea that Tabitha magically synthesized. Much of the initial exchange came from Yerbol and Aria recounting their story, each getting supplemental questions and comments("Really? How did Bracknell manage to do that?!" or "Talking with a dead Sith Lord sounds like a horrifying prospect, but at least he helped you!") They had omitted Lysa's death, but his parents not asking made Yerbol uneasy. Did they know already? Or had they figured it out and they didn't want to talk about it in front of Aria? In either case, their conversation was of a positive tone, seeing as they had conquered "a threat to everyone, not just Force users" (Tabitha shared her theory that mass extinction of one race would only lead to mass extinction of others). His parents shared their expansion of the house, constantly fighting off the waning terrors of Taris and other minor stories that normally had the entire table laughing at one point or another. The dual paned window in the kitchen showed off a setting sun, Tabitha's verdant garden cast in a beautiful orange-red glow visible from the kitchen table thanks to the open back door. A silence came over the room after a quip from Yerbol about his father's hair, Tabitha finishing her tea before asking:
"How long are you two staying for? Surely you're going to have to go back out there." Yerbol shrugged, looking to his companion with a smile.
"I think Ari and I deserve a break...wouldn't you say, partner?"